september 2007

Did you know one of the best direct marketers is  -  the post office?

I get direct mail pieces from them all the time. Their goal is to help you become a better market (and maybe use the mail service a bit more). Today I received a large envelop from them, with a photo of a lunch bag on the back, and Let’s Do Lunch printed in red on the front. Inside was a large napkin printed with ideas to help you bring in more business. And they included a Place Your Order form which you could mail in, order a “sandwich”, and they’ll mail you more ideas.

So of course I had to order my “sandwich”. I’ll let you know what I receive in a few days.

Lori

If you haven’t visited www.usps.com you may want to head over there and look around. They really do have quite a bit on marketing.

As I sat waiting for a client today, I took the time to enjoy a few minutes with nothing to do. I watched the people come in and out of the restaurant. I watched the sun shine on the trees and flowers. And I did nothing other than enjoy.

If you’re an enterpreneur, you know that’s not the norm. Being an entrepreneur means filling up every minute with as much as possible. Even on my days off I usually have a million things going on at once. I think that’s just the nature of an entrepreneur.

But after reading several books lately, I’ve begun filling a portion of my time with little things. I enjoy sitting outside with nothing to do. I enjoy riding through the mountains without a book-on-tape. Sure, we all need the education and the uplift, but occasionally the best thing to do is do nothing.

What do you do to enjoy “nothing”? 

So you say you’re a service business; therefore, you don’t need a website, or more than a five page brochure online.

Think again.

Even a service business needs to spend time and energy generating leads. In your local community, that may mean attending networking events, advertising in a local paper, and volunteering at your local chamber.

But being online is no different - your target audience just changes a little.

I’m in Denver, Colorado. I am in the south part of town, or in the Denver Tech Center area, but that doesn’t mean I don’t drive to people and businesses that I have built relationships with. Driving is a natural part of people’s lives, especially if they are in a big city. But they have to know you exist first.

Instead of creating a five page online brochure, what if you created a special email campaign that provided in-depth information on your services? Or what if you created a special mini-site dedicated to providing more information on one or your services? You can provide so much more information online, because your site can grow and change over time.

As a service business, create a website. Then list out each service you provide. An accountant may provide strategy sessions, tax services, and bookkeeping. A dentist may provide cleanings, whitening, and restoration services. Once you have your list, you now have a plan for creating more information on your site, and ways of connecting with potential customers.

Let’s take the dentist. He may have a five page site, and provide one page describing every service he provides. But with an online strategy in hand, he begins creating separate pages exclusively for his main services. He creates a page on whitening, and creates a white paper on the dangers of whitening products, and what to look for when shopping dentists. He provides this in exchange for an email address - and has a series of email to follow up and potentially book a new client.

It’s easy to do - once you understand the why’s and the how’s.

Lori

p.s. Want to learn more about the why’s and how’s? http://getknownmarketing.com/