SALES BEGIN BEFORE
YOUR SALESMAN
CALLS
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This decades-old ad absolutely hits the mark. It was produced
by McGraw Hill Magazines and was meant to entice corporate advertisers
to think about the power of advertising. You may or may not consider marketing
important in this economy. I'm sure you can recognize the difficulty of having
your salesman face a cold, uninterested stinker of a potential customer, like
this guy. If a company chooses to ignore
the benefits of creating a positive brand image, they take the risk of
handicapping their sales force when they are trying to make a
sale.
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Remember, Everyone is
a Consumer.
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What consumer doesn't want
to do business with someone they know and respect? This is why many corporations
have found success in marketing their corporation versus purely marketing their
products. Customers measure Brand Equity
through Brand Associations
to determine who the corporation is and what they represent.
Are they good stewards? How do they treat their customers and their employees?
Are they community oriented? All these factors serve to increase Brand Equity and employee morale.
Seeing their company name in the media builds pride among a company's
workers.
Ok, start from the
beginning.
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First and foremost you must
Set a Clear
Objective.
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What is it you want your marketing efforts to accomplish? Analyze the
task by asking who do you want to reach and what do you want them to do once
you've reached them? With all the new electronic media and proven traditional
media available, it is critical to choose the most effective and least expensive
avenues available. In some cases pure
Public Relations may
suffice.
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There is no one size fits
all.
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Social and Viral media are
very affordable, but may not work to target your audience. Even
if these methods reach your audience, they may not be able to stand alone
without the support of more traditional
tactics.
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So, once you determine the task, it is necessary to
Establish A Budget.
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You don't
want to spend more than you can afford. You can't plan the building of a house
without the architect knowing the dollars available. Once your architect designs
a house, if you can't afford it, he can't remove rooms and expect the structure
to stand. The same holds for a marketing
budget and plan.
After a
Budget and Media plan is developed, it's time for the fun stuff. The Creative. Number one, know
who you are talking to and what they're looking for. Your potential and existing
customers want to realize a benefit from doing business with you.
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This benefit is known as the
Value
Proposition.
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This
message needs to be easily communicated and understood. The graphics should never get in the way of the overall
message. Yes, you want your ad to be noticed, but in a good way.
Stand out from the crowd by offering information that the recipient wants and
needs. Most foreign firms talk features. They chest pound how they are the best
in their category. In the USA it is more important to sell the benefits to the
customer. Americans want to know, "What's
in it for
me?".
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Remember,
it ain't creative unless it
sells.
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Always, and
I mean always end with a call to
action which enables you to collect information. Open a dialog with your audience. The
worst advertising is that which leaves a consumer without a response mechanism.
How would you ever know if your advertising is working or if you've made the
right media choice without feedback? If something is not working after giving it at least 3
impressions, change the message and/or the placement.
After over
35 years of being in the advertising business, I can tell you it's not magic. It
takes work. Research and Testing are your
best friends. Just like any good friend, they will keep you from
making the same mistakes over and over.
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Sales
begin before your salesman calls.
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