| |
| |
|
Marketing Information |
|
|
|
At the Speed of Light
How many times has someone you've called said, "Why don't you send me some information on your company"? Ask yourself, before you send anything: How will this be dealt with once it arrives at that person's desk. Aren't they already suffering from information overload? On the one hand, people say they they need more information in order to make the decision just to meet with you, let alone to agree to buy or hire. On the other, they have more information about everything than they know what to do with. The problem is, your prospects are not usually looking for information. They are usually, politely, asking you to go away. Most salespeople at this point shovel a whole lot of information at their prospect, hoping something will stick. A more effective way to respond to your prospect's request for more information is to send something that reaches them at a gut level. It doesn't have to be overwhelming, a subtle message can be as effective as a bold one, as long as it connects. How to achieve that connection on paper or a website is, of course, the big challenge. Upon receiving your marketing material your prospect will ask themselves, "Is it worth my time to look at this? and "Do I have the time to look at it now?" This happens in the first glance. If your material doesn't elicit a yes to one or both of these questions, you have failed. When done right, the connection is made with no effort on your prospect's part. Suddenly they recognize that someone is saying all the right things. Information alone does not have the power to move a prospect further along the sales path. Making a connection does. And it can happen to your prospect in the blink of an eye. A well known, well received, Saturn commercial showed how in seconds we can come to a profound understanding and connection with an advertiser. A young woman calls the Saturn guys and asks a favour for when the new car is delivered to the showroom. We see her and her nice, average-Joe kind of fellow looking over the new car. He's paying lots of attention to the macho dashboard details and such and she seems a little nervous. As he turns to examine the rest of the interior, we see in a flash, (in one version, we see only a few square inches) what he sees--a baby seat. We have all the information we need. We know precisely, now, what this story is all about. We cannot help but be caught up in the drama because it is up to us to make the story up for ourselves, as it unfolds in the remaining few seconds: in his eyes, surprise and (very obvious) love for the lady. On her face, the question: how will he take the news? Then the happily-ever-after answer. The connection with the audience has been made. The thought of a mother-to-be doesn't make me go all mushy, and I've never even been in a car with a baby seat. But this reached me at a profound, personal level. I'm ready to look at a Saturn when my latest Honda is ready to be traded in. You may not be selling cars, but the principle is the same. You must connect strongly and quickly, and the best way to do that is at the gut level. That gut level connection is often all your prospect needs to know before they will meet with you. The average person has a unfathomable reserve of information that is accessed, processed, understood and felt in something approaching the speed of light. That kind of information--gut level understanding--is more powerful than anything else a marketer can thrust on a prospect. Does it really work that way? Does watching a boy call his grandfather from the beaches of Dieppe on his cell phone to say thanks work? Ask Bell. Not only does an image or a concept do the work of a thousand words, it does it in 1/1000th of the time, and with a thousand times the punch. This is not to say you must include pictures with your marketing material. A good writer can paint vivid pictures with text in people's minds, using the power of a metaphor or a story. The lesson: Don't turn your marketing materials into something like a manual, catalogue, lecture, or diatribe. Use the powerful informational forces already resident in your target market. Work to understand who they are and why they might want you instead of someone else. Speak in their language, and keep the focus on them. Keith Thirgood, Creative Director Capstone Communications Group Helping businesses get more business through innovative marketing Markham, Ontario, Canada 905-472-2330 Subscribe to Thrive-on-line http://list.capstonecomm.com/mail.cgi?f=list&l=thrive_on_line
MORE RESOURCES:
Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Generational Marketing Having run a multi-state franchise company with multiple brands it became obvious to me early on that if one were to properly respond to the needs and desires of your customer base; you must indeed, understand generational marketing. The X'ers have a completely different mindset than the "Boomers" or the "Matures. To Swag or Not to Swag: Tip to Brand Your Tchotchkes on a Shoestring It's interesting to see how resourceful people become when starting their own business. Especially when budget is tight, creative juices go into high gear. Loyalty Cards Systems - Beware, Some Should Be Avoided Recently, I discussed a loyalty card system with a vendor who was selling quite a number of his systems to restaurants. I was shocked to discover the lack of detailed information that this vendor catered for, and the opportunities the system he provided squandered. No One Gives A Damn About Your Business. Unless You Give em A Reason To The good news is that there are thousands of people looking for what you offer. The bad news is that those people are extremely tough to attract not to mention that your very livelihood depends on it. Let It Ring Telemarketing has its place in the marketing arsenal. But telespammers - like their digital counterparts in the email marketing world - really make it tough on the legitimate follow-up telephone call from a company with which you have a relationship. How To Market Effectively Even If No One Understands What You Do So how do you effectively market your product or service when one knows anything about them because you're in a new and emerging industry? How can you expect to get customers if no one understands what it is that you do?If this is your situation then a big part of your marketing strategy will need to be educating consumers about what you do. If yours is a field that is relatively new, or perhaps misunderstood, adopting an education strategy can help consumers understand the benefits you provide and feel more comfortable with the idea of purchasing your products or services. How Nearly Going Broke Taught Me The Value Of Niche Marketing If you want to learn how effective Niche Marketing can be, I suggest you "don't" take the route I did.Back in 1983 I started a company offering general Electronics Subcontract Assembly services to just about anyone who made Electronic products. Beyond the Booth With the advent of spring, trade shows begin to blossom. Research suggests that tradeshows are where today's businesses invest much of their marketing budgets. Marketing: Can I Trust You? We live in an unprecedented era of communication. Because of this, your prospects are literally bombarded from all directions with marketing messages. Marketing is More Than a Token Process "Necessity is the mother of invention!" The first time I heard this was nearly twenty years ago when I was introduced to Tony Robbins' material. I was listening to, and applying, information from his thirty day series. Discover the Winning Marketing Strategy Secrets of Donald Trump Apprentice Wanna-bes The highly entertaining Donald Trump's search for an apprentice turned into a hit reality TV show captured attention of millions of Americans and week after week delivered great insights into leadership, business and marketing savvy.In one of the episodes Trump challenged the two opposing teams of apprentice wannabes (Apex and Mosaic) to put together a bridal gown sale. 15 Commandments Of Creating A Wealth Pulling Niche Niches are like bathrooms; you never notice them until you need one." - Primm (From NicheBrain. Freebie Seekers? Turn Them Into Clients and Referrers - or Turn them Far, Far Away Many service business owners these days are "giving away" their business services - and then wonder why people aren't hiring them in droves. In the name of "marketing," business owners are providing way too much information for free. Linking Features & Benefits I'm sure that you've had those Eureka! moments, too. When a piece of information suddenly helped you see or understand something that hadn't been apparent before. Ten Crucial Questions Ten Crucial Questions for Your Business Future I'ma business coach. I've worked with hundreds of small, medium and very large business, and over the course of the past eleven years, I've asked my business coaching clients endless questions which have helped them achieve much greater levels of success than they would have otherwise. Networking: The Cost of a Connection "Networking is a waste of time," said JoAnne, owner of a busy print shop. "Besides, I advertise in the daily paper. Are You Losing Business? As a small business owner, you are grateful for all of your clients or customers. But did you know that small business lose over 62% of sales because they don't follow up? You are caught up in the business of running your business you don't take the time to follow up with your clients. Out of Sight, But Not Out of Mind What's black and white and read all over? A newsletter of course! And while there are perhaps hundreds of ways to market your business and increase your bottom line, one of the singlemost effective tools in marketing is your own business-building newsletter.The Power of Newsletters:Newsletters show the customer you care - even when you can't be there. Client Attraction Technique #3: Study the Competition! One very powerful and cost-effective marketing strategy is to study the competition. This is an important exercise, as essentially it allows you to find out as much as possible about the opposition - how best they operate, what they lack and then how to capitalise on it!Study the Competition OfflineStart by reviewing the Yellow Pages, the Thomson Local or even go online to determine what you're up against locally (and if applicable nationally). The Real Marketing Genius I spend a lot of my time reading books and listening to tapes about business and marketing. I guess that's understandable.
|
