Articles
Market Your Business with People Pleasers!
Business has fallen off drastically since the economy took a dive, hasn’t it? Not only are people holding onto their money, when they do let go of some of it they are often sacrificing quality for price. It’s important to bring the customers through the door-or to the website-but the economy has hit businesses hard, too, shrinking the advertising budget. Media ads are expensive and internet ads are all too often ignored. Local papers or flyers are less expensive than television or radio ads but they are still pretty pricey!
If you’re on a reduced budget as so many of us are, you’re going to have to be a little more creative with your advertising. The key to being successful in these times is to think outside the box, make use of what you have and cut costs to the bone. Your advertising doesn’t have to look cheap in order to be cheap! There are a lot of inexpensive ways to bring customers through the door but first you have to let them know you are there. Flyers are an excellent way to announce yourself to new customers while enticing regulars to visit you again. Oh yes, we’ve all seen people tear those off their windshields without even glancing at them! But if you hand them out yourself or hire a student to do it for you, most people to accept it will actually read it. Attach a coupon that gives them a percentage off or offers them a freebie item with a purchase. You could even buy a few gross of novelty items and offer them just for coming in the door. Everyone loves a freebie!
There are other ways to attract new customers and get back old ones, too. If you have a mailing list with or without email addresses, send out snail mail or email and offer small items to customers who bring in a friend. You can reward them with useful everyday essentials such as pens, pocket notebooks, magnets or even silk flowers. The cost of these promotional materials is very low when you buy them in quantity. To increase your purchasing power, you may want to approach other business owners and propose a group purchase. These days we all need to work together, and this could also lead to some very lucrative networking for all of you!
There are so many way to use small promotional gifts that you are limited only by your imagination. Brainstorm with your employees or other business owners in your area. You could have a special sale and reward purchases of promotional items with coupons good for a cup of coffee or perhaps a multi-purpose keychain. For a special incentive, get some attractive, transparent plastic drinking glasses and stuff them with candy, teabags or a coupon. That’s a big departure from the standard cheap magnet or calendar and is sure to get you some word of mouth advertising!
The key to using promotional items is their usefulness. A clip for snack bags, an erasable board for the refrigerator, back scratchers or a dish rag or towel will be used everyday with your logo staring them in the face! Particularly popular right now with the older (more affluent!) crowd is a pen that’s big enough around to be a comfortable fit for everyone. Those pens are closely guarded, believe me!
Besides being good for business, it’s smart to get involved in your local community’s charities and activities. This kind of advertising gives quadruples benefits—your business attracts customers, you get the satisfaction of helping your community and you make new friends and business contacts. Your name and business will become known to everyone involved, who will tell their friends and who in turn will tell theirs. Good will is the most valuable kind of publicity!
So be creative in your advertising. It doesn’t have to be expensive and it doesn’t have to (figuratively) scream at people. It just has to make the customer or potential client feel valued, amused, surprised, pleased or all of those. The business that makes people react is one that will never lack for customers!
To find out how you can use promotional items to help your branding and sales, contact a Miami marketing agency that can show you how to get it done. We are also known as a Miami advertising company that helps its clients increase their sales while making your clients and prospects feel valued.
