Marketing Tips....

Every organisation and company has a range of simple and low cost activities they can initiate to enhance their profile and build their marketing programme. Here are some examples....

• Running a simple competition can produce a list of names and addresses of your regular customers. A simple draw for a hamper of products or tickets to a live stage show will produce plenty of entries, which you then convert to a database of customers… They are an ideal audience for mailing a regular newsletter or special offers leaflet....

• Get you and your business noticed in your local community. Simple low cost sponsorships will get you recognition in the news columns of your local newspapers and media, and among your customers. By becoming involved in your community affairs through local councils, sports clubs, Rotary and the like, you will also be able to publicise your business.

• If you do advertise regularly, tell your agency or designer as part of their brief that you want your adverts to be memorable and humorous. The Barry Crump "bugger me" campaign is a classic example. Clever adverts are memorable adverts, and humour is always welcome.

• Launching your own regular newsletter doesn’t need to be expensive. You can prepare some copy, have it checked over for spelling, grammar and sense, drop it into a computer page template and then send the whole thing as an email attachment to your customers and suppliers. If they want a hard copy version, they can print it off. You print out just a few copies for display on your counters and to mail to people who you can’t reach by email.

• Get a website! Today every business is expected to have a website, however modest. Customers and prospective customers want to checkout the information about you and your business often in the evenings when you are closed. If they like what they see, they will call you the next day… but you need a smart website to help sell your business. They don’t have to be expensive. There are free templates available online, and once written and illustrated, you just need some simple technical help to get the site up and running.

For more helpful tips on marketing your business, and developing a proper communications programme directed at your customers and prospects, call Geoff Mowday today on 09 480 8960.