In most industries, it can be said with confidence that there is a certain type of customer that requires special effort due to their deep knowledge of your industry or their discerning taste. This customer knows a great deal about the applications of your product, his needs and the needs of his community, and the details regarding your products and those of your competitors. In order to market to such a knowledgeable, discerning customer, basic marketing techniques will not be enough to grab their attention and win them over to your product. In some cases, this customer will know more than not only your lead marketer, but also your product manager and others in your organization about the needs of the market into which you are trying to sell. This type of customer requires a very special approach based on facts, knowledge, and information that is highly interesting and specific to the customer. Marketing brochures with information in bullet points and beautiful colors will offer no great appeal, but high quality, detailed information will.

Why is the marketing technique of providing high-quality, detailed information specific to the industry and customer needs far and above that which is specific to your product so effective with this customer type? The reason, simply, is that this customer clearly cares deeply about the matter at hand, or about the problem to which your product provides a solution, and therefore has an implicit trust for a an individual—and a company—that has taken the time to acquire deep knowledge on the subject at hand and/or seems to treat it with a passion equal to that of the customer. The flip-side of the coin is that the highly discerning or knowledgeable customer is not likely to take your seriously if you appear not to know very much about his needs. You are a knowledgeable company, so show yourself off as one!

How do you create and information-rich, interesting, and useful information limb to your marketing strategy, and how do you leverage it? Let’s look at a specific example. Let’s say you market a luxury transportation solution to for horses. Your customer is perhaps the owner or care taker of a prize competitive horse. The customer will have an extremely in-depth level of knowledge as to the needs of his horse, as well as a passion for meeting those needs. If you meet that customer’s passion and provide information beyond what is already available to him, you will gain his trust and begin to build a strong relationship. Providing rich, informative materials regarding general horse care, comfort, and other equipment will accomplish a few key marketing goals for you:

• Build trust
• Build the impression that your company has the expertise to provide the BEST solutions
• Keep the discerning customer on your web page, in your showroom, or wherever the info provided resides
• Keep the customer coming back to you
• Differentiate yourself from the competition
• Set yourself up as an industry expert

Marketing returns are an important consideration to any business or corporation. Investing the time and monies into marketing requires a lot of trust and communication with other people; some of whom work behind the scenes and you may never meet face to face. If you want to take your business marketing into your own hands, do not hire a marketing team – join one.

Marketing, referral or networking groups facilitate the meeting of fellow, local business owners in your area and generally meet once a week. For every area of location, each referral network in a community generally has several chapters to choose from. Each chapter provides an exclusive membership to one person within their field of business. This means, that if you are a general contractor, you will be the only general contractor in the group or chapter; or if you are an optometrist, you will be the only optometrist in the group and so on. If another like business owner already holds a chair within that chapter another local chapter is easy to find.

The benefit of being the only business owner in your field within the group is so that the other members will refer the people they meet and know only to you. Setting aside time once a week to meet with fellow business owners in your community can prove to be an invaluable investment to the future growth of your business. These meetings are held in the early morning and are structured to meet the individual needs and vision of every person within the group. At every meeting you will be given the opportunity to share who you are, what you do, where you are located and the kind of referral you are looking for. You are encouraged to bring business cards and / or flyers to each meeting so the other members of the group have something to pass along when they refer you to their friends, family and other contacts. During each meeting you will also be given forum to give and receive referrals with the other members of the group. Getting to know local business people in your area and relying on word of mouth are two of the most cost effective ways you can market your business. The challenge for some in these marketing groups is weekly attendance. However; since your participation within the chapter is exclusive to one person of your profession, you are holding a position in the group that could be attended by someone else who may be a more consistent source of referrals for the other participants who do show up every week.

There is a nominal fee to join, an annual due and a fee for to cover the cost of your breakfast every week. However; most participants of these groups have found great success using this referral system of marketing and enjoy the opportunity to help grow each other’s businesses. Two of the most successful referral marketing teams are Business Network Inc. (BNI) and Team Referral Network (TEAM).

These groups always have a positive atmosphere and are a source of encouragement to any local business owner; they are proof that marketing your own business can be fun! If you are curious about joining a marketing group, I would recommend checking out TEAM, as the first two breakfasts are free to newcomers.

References:

TEAM Referral Network: Together Everyone Achieves More., “Don’t Hire a Sales Team,.. Join One!”
Web, 28 July 2011.

BNI Local Business – Global Network., BNI Home Page;; Web, 29 July 2011 <http://www.bni.com/>

Also See: Marketing > On-Site Service Providers and their Role in Marketing Your Brand

An essential part of marketing for any business is not only the employees the owner or management chooses to hire but the training that each employee receives. After all, the people in your employ are representatives of the company as a whole. One bad experience with one employee can undermine any marketing efforts a business owner has strived to achieve. More important than any flyer, future event advertisement or coupon for a return-visit discount that you could take the time and trouble to print and place on a counter or wall in your place of business; taking the time and effort to train employees to share your company philosophy and encourage a positive customer experience can have more of an impact on return business than anything else. For instance, if a potential customer, possibly one who has come upon a flyer or publication promoting your business, calls for directions or to ask a question regarding services your business provides and has a bad experience, your business transaction may likely stop there and your return on investment becomes a big goose-egg! Hiring, training and keeping good employees are challenges that most business owners face.

However, an investment in staff education and promotion of personal development can be worth its weight in gold. When you take the human element into account with regard to marketing a business, it is important to recognize that we all desire to feel important and that our contribution matters. When people feel valued at their place of employment and feel as though they are making a worthwhile contribution to a team, they tend to stay on with the company longer; which can significantly reduce turnover and lower annual costs for rehiring and training future personnel. Further, employees who feel valued on the job tend to take more pride in the day to day tasks they are assigned; are less likely to show up late or call in sick; are less likely to steal from the company and overall; and do a better job than others who do not. By making an investment in your employees, and training them to share in your personal philosophy, they are more apt to look out for the companies’ best interest and by this you create a trickle-down effect. The impact that of creating happy employees and a happy workplace generates is an invaluable way to market your business in-house. Therefore, making the investment in employee education and promotion can prove to be worth its weight in gold.

One company, called Results Through Motivation (RTM), has been very successful in doing just that. RTM began with a philosophy and made the integration of employees and customer relations a primary focus. Within an employee’s very first week on the job they were to memorize the ‘Six P’s of the RTM Philosophy’: Purpose, People, Planning, Perfection, Profit, and Pride. At the end of the week the employee was to recite the Six P’s and give their interpretation of what they meant. Further, RTM continued to instill their vision, mission and purpose into their training program and the people who work with RTM tend to achieve great results, and is reflected in their sales and profits since its inception in 1983. RTM posts the following in all of their places of business:

Our Vision: To be the premier quick service food company in the world.
Our Mission: Quality Food, Fast and Friendly.
Our Purpose: To make money, have fun and make a difference in people’s lives.

By creating an atmosphere of good spirit and team effort, employees become an integral part of helping forward your business in your intended direction and as a result, they do much of your in-house marketing for you!

References:

Wikipedia., “Stew Leonard’s”; Web, 26 July 2011 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stew_Leonard’s>

Funding Universe., “RTM Resturant Group” – Web, 27 July 2011, <http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/RTM-Restaurant- Group-Company-History.html>

Reference: Marketing > Marketing for Long-Distance and Mail-In Services

When seeking to operate a thriving business, undoubtedly, the marketing aspect is an essential part of keeping any successful business in operation for the long haul. Many companies spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to analyze Return on Investment (ROI) for their efforts in marketing and to determine which avenues of marketing will be most beneficial to their overall success and longevity while maximizing their allocation funds for marketing. However; some very successful businesses survive quite well on very little or no marketing at all. While this is a unique situation and does not work for everybody, it is worth exploring. How do these companies stay in business, much less become successful?

Motivational speaker Tony Robbins asserts in his ‘Personal Power Program’ that “success leaves clues.” One successful business owner who has shown marked success over time is a man named Stew Leonard. Stew began his dairy and food store in Norwalk, Connecticut in 1969, along with 7 employees and built a financial empire. With current annual sales of approximately $300 million and some 2,000 employees, Stew Leonard’s ‘Stew’s’ is still going strong. Stew’s is the world’s largest dairy and food store; it is also the Guinness Book of World Records “greatest sales per unit area of any single food store in the United States.” When Stew was asked where he got all the good ideas he answered, “We learn from our customers. We’ll try any new ides – no matter how harebrained the idea sounds.” Customer comment boxes are located conveniently throughout the store and are emptied and read at the end of each closing day. Stew’s willingness to do things unconventionally and mindfulness to always listen to the customer are the primary and fundamental ways he markets his business. At the entrance of each of the Stew’s locations there is a slab of granite with a saying inscribed that reads: Rule 1: The Customer is Always Right! Rule 2: If the Customer is Ever Wrong, Reread Rule 1. Stew’s determination to stay connected to his customers is what has driven his business to great success. Furthermore, each employee understands Stews vision and that “customer service cannot be a sometimes thing. It must be earned and re-earned every day.”

Another successful company, that spends very little on advertising and marketing is Costco Wholesale, and yet somehow has become a household name. The founders of Costco also understand the importance of listening to their members. Each location has a customer comment box and the comments are handled on a daily basis. Customer comment cards are also read daily by the Regional Buying Office and suggestions for new products, as well as return of old products, are seriously taken into account. Phone calls to the members who have questions or concerns are also made by the warehouse and buying office staff. By keeping advertising costs low, Costco is better able to pass on savings to their members.

Both of the aforementioned businesses see the use of a Customer Comment Box as an essential part of their growth and success. It is also believed that if one person makes a suggestion or a comment, there is likely 10 to 20 other customers who will not take the time to say anything; they will simply take their business elsewhere. If a business owner loses sight of the customer, we begin lose everything.

If you have recently become involved with a Multi Level Marketing or have been working with one for any length of time, you are familiar with the challenges that these types of sales structures involve. Initially, when you were approached, the venture most likely sounded exciting and a great way to make additional income or even secure your financial future. However, after writing out your list of one to two hundred personal contacts, as you were encouraged to do after you signed up, and you began to share with your friends, family, neighbors, co-workers and even people you looked up from high school; you may have experience some unexpected resistance or blatant lack or support and most likely felt discouraged.

Most people are skeptical in our day and age, as they should be, and are further resistant when it comes to readily parting with their money especially if it is not buying something meaningful to them. You may have also encountered more resistance from people who are close to you than you had anticipated. After all, this is something good you are doing and promises to bring you good fortune; why are they not at least happy for you? Just because you are now here to share the good news with people, you cannot expect others to share your vision.

In an effort to avoid putting people off, make sure to have experiences and conversations with your friends where you do not initiate the topic or details of your business and find other things to talk about.
In knowing that you are still the same person as before you began this business, and have not become a zealot, they are more likely to be curious and open when the topic should arise. If they happen to ask you about your business dealings specifically, then they have opened the door. Further, do not trick them into meeting you for brunch whereby you plan to bring your business material to share with them. This method may prove to not only be unfruitful, but it may cause a silent dis-ease when it comes to spending time with them in the future.

After you have exhausted the leads found in your personal rolodex you will need to find ways to make other potential leads and contacts. As you make new contacts in your community, here are the Top Rules for Initiating Conversations about the MLM Service or Product You Are Offering:

#1 – Never, ever, ever lie when you are asked if what you are selling is “one of those pyramid or marketing a schemes.” It is often tempting to become defensive and not disclose the full nature of what you are a part of when questions of that nature are asked of you. However; a sense of humility and full disclosure is often the best way to be successful and keep your integrity intact. Further, if you are not honest about the multi-level nature of your new business and later the person that you denied it to happens to consider investing, they will know that you initially lied to them and it may very well not only lose you a sale, but you lose your credibility as well.

#2 – Be enthusiastic but avoid over talking your product and sharing long-winded details. While people may initially be curios and charmed by your excitement, being over-eager is also never a good way to ensure closure of a deal.

#3 – Be a good listener; quietly discover what the possible personal appeal your product could very well provide to someone just like them. People are more attracted to others who listen and feel appreciated. Each person is different and we all have internal factors that motivate us individually; finding out what a person’s dreams, hopes and goals are for the future is a good way to lay a foundation.

#4 – Be sincere. If you are looking at them as just a number, or by the money they can potentially generate under you they will know it. Most people can smell insincerity coming from over a mile away. Believing in the product you sell is essential to your personal success. Having a personal story to tell, with regard to the use of the product you are offering endears any potential customer to you and they are more likely to make the time to listen to your presentation or even tell others about you.

Once you have scheduled an appointment with the express intention of sharing more about your business; you can share all of the information and insurmountable amount of research your company has provided you with. Then, if the person appears indifferent to what you have to share, is full of excuses as to why they just don’t think it is right for them or even tells you out-right they are just not sold; try to take it in stride. Do not take it personally and moreover; never be too assertive as it is a huge turn-off.

If you are a person with dogged determination who also firmly believes that the product you are selling is a superior value and great benefit, yet are still having a rough time meeting your sales goals and desired financial success; consider others who have also met with great adversity when they too believed in the product they were selling. Colonel Sanders, for example, the famous entrepreneur, who created a financial empire with his simple chicken recipe, leaves a legacy of what your kind of determination can accomplish.

References:

“A Day in the Life of MLM Joey. – “How to Alienate Your Friends and Annoy People.” Web, 29
July 2011 <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-eT-lZ1Jrw>

“Convert Your MLM Videos Into A Powerful List Builder & Online Sales Tool’ Web, 29 July 2011             <http://www.ilovemyhealth.com/>

First Year MUST LEARN as a Marketing Professional

All things considered, what is the most important thing for an aspiring marketing professional to learn in their first year on the job? I would make the argument that training in publishing and layout software, tradeshow management, brand rationalization, and copy-writing are all important, but completely secondary to teaching major, overarching marketing concepts. As a matter of fact, I would argue that you will get the most out of your entry-level marketing employee if you teach them conceptually how marketing decisions are made, what drives marketing spend, the importance of return-on-investment (ROI), and so on. Furthermore, if an entry-level marketing person learns to operate these major marketing concepts, they are likely to pick up on the rest much more quickly and to understand your expectations—or how to best help you in your job—much better than they might otherwise.

What, then, should an entry-level employee learn from the seasoned marketing professional? Here are the top five things to learn if you are an entry-level aspiring marketing professional:

1. First and foremost, the newbie must learn about ROI. The concept of ROI, sadly missing even amongst some high-level marketing professionals, is essential to making the marketing department a useful, healthy, respected part of any organization. A marketing department that uses its budget without any systems in place to track the ROI on that budget is a disgrace, and therefore any employee that makes marketing decisions without thinking about an implementing a  way to track ROI on that decision is a disgrace.
2. Teach the spring chicken about who the stakeholders are in your work. Sound political? It is. It is essential that she figure out early on who the people are that are affected by the quality, focus, and subject matter of the work produced by the marketing department. Who is going to come to her if she makes a mistake in the technical information? Who will object to one image being used over another? Who is a stickler for data-driven content, and who will complain about marketing fluff? Of all these people, who is the most important to please? To whom does her boss answer? All very important questions to consider for the aspiring marketing professional.
3. The new guy must learn quickly who the best resources within your company are. Who is most in touch with customer needs and can best evaluate whether or not some piece of marketing reflects the solution to those needs?
4. Teach the youngster about value proposition conceptually, and then as applied specifically to your company and products or services. All too often, an inexperienced marketer will focus marketing collateral and customer outreach materials on product features or specs, instead of focusing on how those features can solve specific customer problems and why the customer should use your product or service over that of the competition.
5. Last but not least, every industry has its own lead generation profile. In some industries, leads are generated mostly online. In others, tradeshow leads are exceptionally good because they convert at the best rate. Teach the newcomer how leads are generated in your industry, and how leads should be qualified.

Read More…

• Back to Basics Marketing
• Marketing as Company Wide Responsibility
• Mobilization: Reaching Outside the Marketing Department
• Advanced Lead Qualification: Sales and Marketing Work Together
• Sales’ Feedback into Marketing: Profiling Prospects and Their Problems
• “Inside Marketing”: Marketing to Your Own Sales Organization
• Developing Unique, Customer-Focused Value Propositions
• You Are Here How to Train an Entry-Level Marketing Employee
• When Return on Investment Doesn’t Paint a Full Picture
• Defining and Presenting Value Propositions in a Competitive Market
• Logos and Promotional Product Designs for “Difficult” Subjects
• Defining and Refining Value Propositions for Luxury Items
• Evaluating Return-On-Investment (ROI) for Tradeshow Activities
• Management Mistake in Small Business: No Investment during Trying Times