Everyday we're hearing doom and
gloom in the news and what "they're
saying"
about the economy. But did you know that many businesses are
hiring, thriving and growing? These are the ones you don't hear
about and "they" don't want you to know about. With a creative
product business, the most important thing you can do right now
to boost sales and thrive is update your MARKETING and keep
MARKETING!
While other businesses stop marketing and stop advertising in a
down economy because they want to "save money"- do not be
tempted go that route. You will not save, in fact, it is the
kiss of death and the fastest way to stop your sales. Your
current customers and potential customers need to know you are
there and ready, willing and able to do business. If you don't
tell them you're still in business they will forget you exist.
It's as simple as that!
Now is the perfect time to boost your business by marketing
creatively and keeping your company and products known. And
whatever you do - Don't Be Boring with your marketing! Kick it
up a notch - borrow concepts from other industries and be
willing to experiment!
Here are 11 Ways to Boost Your Creative Product
Marketing In Today's Economy
1. Create or UPDATE your "elevator speech" to
let people know what you do in a fast, intriguing, succinct
way so they'll be curious about your unique offering and how
you can help them. Remember it's not about you - it's about
your potential customer.
2. Send out an ezine (Online Newsletter) to your
customer list on a regular basis. You can easily
create one for your retail customers and another for your
wholesale customers. This is a great way to keep your name out
there and make sure your customers remember you're in
business. Out of sight out of mind.
Constant Contact is a quick and easy way to get started
immediately and stay "top of mind" with your ideal clients.
3. Show your appreciation to your past customers and
woo them. Remember that your past customers who
know, like and trust you are more likely to buy from you again
- if they were satisfied the first time. Send them Thank You
cards with a personal message thanking them for their past
business. Let them know how much you appreciate them. Or send
them a coupon for a free gift if they make a new purchase of a
certain value. Try using
Send
Out Cards for an easy and inexpensive way to streamline
the process. It's a real card sent through the mail, and can
be customized just for them.
4. Make it easy for people to buy. Is your
shopping cart doing its job making it easy for your customers
to place an order? My favorite shopping cart system is
1ShoppingCart because it's flexible and it's also easy to
suggest other products to the customer upon check out. It also
works with most merchant accounts as well as PayPal. A good
shopping cart is critical to purchasing online. Shopping cart
systems are not created equally - think about when you have
aborted an order because the site did not make it easy to buy.
5. Make sure your site is easy to navigate.
Amazing how many sites are difficult to navigate, and to even
understand where & what the products are. Remember it's not
about you or your company - it's about solving a problem for
your customer. They are looking for something, and they want
to be able to find it quickly and easily. Don't make them work
hard to buy something from you!
6. Create an area on your website just for wholesale
buyers. This can be created as a password protected
page, or you can create an affiliate system page just for
wholesale buyers - it makes it easy for them to get all the
information they need quickly and easily.
7. Update your website with new content -
make it fresh and appealing so there is a reason to visit
regularly. Use good quality photos with great descriptions and
even add a video showing your items in action. Educate your
customers about the features and benefits of your products.
8. Use social media -Twitter and Facebook to market
and connect. Once you learn how to effectively use
social media, you'll understand why it has become so
important. My "go to" expert for Social Media is my friend
Mari Smith - you'll want to learn from the best and follow
her on twitter @MariSmith
9. Hire professional sales reps to sell your
products wholesale to stores. If you're not using sales reps
now, you may want to read my previous article,
Tips for Hiring A Sales Rep before you hire one.
10. Start an affiliate program so others can
sell your product retail and make a commissioned sale. It's a
win-win for all. And if you're already using
1ShoppingCart you can easily have affiliates sign up. You
can select which products affiliates can sell and how much
commission they can earn.
11. Send out Press Releases, and contact your local TV
stations and newspapers! The media is always looking
for stories - so why not yours? One of my clients is always in
the local media - the main reason being he makes contacts with
locals who are dying for a story. Just make certain you have a
new twist or angle connecting your business to what is
relevant right now.
