Client and prospect lists and how they can be used to increase your business are almost endless topics in themselves. So, first we’ll visit some basic information on the types of marketing and some of the names of the categories of marketing.
Marketing is a broad based subject and by looking at the various categories of marketing it is easier to understand some of the principles involved. Sometimes a little humor helps in remembering and understanding how this all works in our daily lives.
Marketing Categories:
You see a handsome guy at a party. You go up to him and say, “I’m fantastic in bed.” That’s Direct Marketing.
You’re at a party with a bunch of friends and see a handsome guy. One of your friends goes up to him and, pointing at you, says, “She’s fantastic in bed.” That’s Advertising.
You see a handsome guy at a party. You go up to him and get his telephone number. The next day you call and say, “Hi, I’m fantastic in bed.” That’s Telemarketing.
You’re at a party and see a handsome guy. You get up and straighten your dress. You walk up to him and pour him a drink. You say “May I?” and reach up to straighten his tie, brushing your breast lightly against his arm, and then say, “By the way, I’m fantastic in bed.” That’s Public Relations.
You’re at a party and see a handsome guy. He walks up to you and says, “I hear you’re fantastic in bed.” That’s Brand Name Recognition.
You’re at a party and see a handsome guy. You talk him into going home with your friend. That’s a Sales Rep.
Your friend can’t satisfy him so she calls you. That’s Tech Support.
You’re on your way to a party when you realize that there could be handsome men in all these houses you’re passing. So you climb onto the roof of one situated toward the center and shout out at the top of your lungs, “I’m fantastic in bed!” That’s SPAM!
The best marketing programs will use a mixture of all these methods to get results. However the single most effective method is Direct Marketing. Performed correctly or properly this can also give you the highest return or payback on the dollars invested in the marketing program. That of course is what business is all about, (ROI, Return on Investment), maximizing the return on the dollars invested in the business, and of course the dollars invested in the marketing program.
This brings us back to the methods of Direct Marketing. Jumping right to the bottom line, the most cost effective method, with potentially the highest Return on Investment, (ROI), is Direct Mail Marketing.
In many ways your past clients are your best potential future customers. They are the core and reason you are in business. They have already bought what you are offering at least once and if, through yourself and your employees, you have worked to build a positive emotional experience for them in their dealings with you and your company, they will most likely return with more business for you and or recommend your company to others.
The positive emotional experience is the relationship you are continually building. Every contact with a client, (or potential client), is important. It has been called, “The Moment of Truth”. In the client’s mind it tells them how they are being treated now and will be treated by you in the future.
I learned of “The Moment of Truth” concept at a seminar given by the President of Disney College, at a large business conference I was attending years ago in
San Francisco. I learned about “The Moment of Truth” in real life after leaving the seminar and returning to my room in the very large, high end hotel where the conference was hosted. I stepped into the elevator to go catch a shower and nap before the formal dinner that evening. The only other person on the elevator as I got on was a maintenance technician, employee of the hotel. He was dressed in work clothes and carrying a belt of maintenance tools. After the doors closed and we had begun our ascent he turned to me, in that Moment of Truth between an employee and customer, and asked, ”How is your stay at the (hotel)? Is there anything we can do for you to make your stay more pleasurable?” A maintenance tech. My jaw dropped to the floor. I was stunned but managed to mumble a thank you, no, everything is fine type of response.
Do you train your employees in the importance of “The Moment of Truth” with your customers? That hotel did. It showed in everything they did. It showed in how the waiters polished the spoons as they set them down for the dinner that night and how the busboys cleared the tables after the meals. Although I don’t have any current plans to return to
San Francisco, I know where I will stay when I do. Also I know where to recommend to anyone who wants to know where to stay in
San Francisco.
In Direct Mail Marketing your customer lists of your clients and customers are arguably the most important resource you have for many reasons. We will get to the reasons later, however the form and format of you list is of major importance. This will enable you to find more clients that match all of the characteristics of your current best clients. How to do that is the coolest trick I ever learned in my years in business. How to find more clients just like your current top 20 percent or so. WOW!! I almost can’t wait to get to that part of the story.
If you don’t currently have a usable mailing list of your clients, you can start by exporting one from your accounting software system. All accounting software systems need the basics of client information to function. And all accounting software systems that I know of can export this information in a database format. To be able to use it properly you must be disciplined to accumulate the client information correctly.
The following are in my mind the basic requirements for the start of a usable mailing list;
Ø Mr. / Ms.
Ø First Name
Ø Last Name
Ø Complete Mailing Address
Ø City
Ø State
Ø Zip Code
You will also want the clients home phone, cell phone, work phone and e-mail address.
If you don’t currently have a mailing list and your accounting system seems to be only first names or last names or some other garbage, fix it. If you only fix 5 client names a day, you will have a useable list in no time at all. Be disciplined. Do it now. There are reasons why a very large percentage of businesses fail in this nation of ours. Not having a usable mailing list of complete information for marketing is one of those reasons.
A Digital Printer can help you with everything needed to put sales and marketing information in the hands of your best and greatest resource. That best and greatest resource would be your present clients. You already have a relationship established with them and are not starting from scratch here. We can also help you find prospective clients that match the characteristics of your best clients.
Once you have a useable mailing list, how are you going to use it to your best advantage?
No problem, that will be the subject of our next session together.
At A Digital Printer we can show you how and prove it to your satisfaction. http://www.ADigitalPrinter.com, Toll Free 877-930-5200
