subject: Marketing Reconnaissance Pt 1/3 [print this page] I read an interesting line the other dayI read an interesting line the other day. It went like this: If you work for yourself and you're not talking to people, you are unemployed... think about it, we are always marketing whether it is ourselves or our business we are always engaged in some form of marketing. That lead me to the following tirade relevant to MARKETING!
As a business owner, you need to expand your customer base and spread the word about your products and services. Do you ever wonder how beneficial a marketing program is if you don't have deep pockets?
All marketing is beneficial! Frankly, it is financially riskier for a business not to market. And there are literally hundreds of cost-effective ideas you can use to increase your revenue
Here are five marketing approaches that don't cost a bundle that I have seen deliver success for almost every business.
You must communicate with your current clients. It's amazing how much money businesses spend to gather market information and attract new clients when they have a wealth of opportunity and information in their current customer base. One of the best ways to increase revenue is to talk to existing customers. In a perfect world, this should be done by someone outside your company so clients are willing to be honest and open. But, I have found that with a select group of my long time customers, I have forged a bond where they feel comfortable "shooting straight" with me.
It's Simple to Do. When you are trying to derive perceptions, you don't need to talk to hundreds of individuals; you can merely choose five to ten clients. Simply ask if they'd participate in a phone interview. Here's how it works:
1. Contact: Send a letter asking permission to have someone contact them about your company.
2. Gain Information: Have the interviewer call and ask value-based questions such as:
What problems were you trying to solve or what challenges were you facing when you came to XYZ Company?
How important were XYZ Companies services in solving your problems or addressing your challenges?
What did you value most about the company's work?
Are there other products or services you wish XYZ Company offered that could help you with other business challenges?
3. Analyze: After all the interviews, collect the data and look for recurring trends and themes.
4. Follow Up: Every client that participates should then get a personalized Thank you letter from you. Include the top ideas garnered from the interviews and explain changes you plan to make to your business plan, based on this exercise.
5. Use what you learn. If you don't, then the exercise was moot! I know of a company that utilized this tactic and they more than doubled their business in one year. How? It is simple, the owner learned what people wanted, learned how to present their Value Proposition, and how to price it, and then proceeded to make changes that improved those areas.
Muy Importante'..Underline this...Read this out loud...commit this to memory- This is a conversation with your customer. Don't put them in the hot seat and fire questions at them. You need to draw them into a comfortable conversation and gain as much valuable data as you can. It really is not about how satisfied they are with you - it's about how much they value your product or service.
