The Edge Marketing

Your business success depends on your ability to promote your services, your products, and yourself. Fortunately, promotion is simple. I know...you hate selling. "But, I'm not a born salesperson," you say. "I don't want to hustle people." And, images of high-pressure, arm-twisting solicitors come to mind. But, that doesn't have to be you. You're not pushing your services/products onto others; people will buy them because they need them and because they have a relationship with you. It's the personal connection you make with your prospects that will help them remember you, and like you.

Self-promotion doesn't come easily to everyone. But, to grow your business, you must market your services and your products everyday. Your selling job consists of two things: First, making people aware of your services/products and second, making it easy for them to do business with you. Here are some easy marketing tips:

1. Evaluate your promotional materials: Are they consistent? Do they appear professional, yet personal? Your promotional materials should put your customers first, and discuss ways that you can help them. Write with the intent of creating value for the clients you serve. Use a professional agency to design your marketing message and refine your corporate identity. Keep the style, fonts, and colors the same for your letters, brochures, and newsletters.

2. Persuade naturally: Develop a partnership with your customers. Approach each client's situation as a team effort, rather than something that you are supplying. Don't rattle off your capabilities; instead, tell your prospect a story about how you helped another client.

3. Develop your personal presence: A winning image starts with how you look. Pay attention to your appearance, the way you make eye contact, how you use your voice, the things you talk about, and the firmness of you handshake - these reflect how well you think of yourself and how you want others to think of you.

4. Create the right telephone presence: A phone call may be the first contact you have with a potential customer. Create the same kind of atmosphere that you would in a face-to-face meeting. Listen carefully to what your prospective client says and really respond.

5. Handwrite a message in your correspondence: Include this personal touch whether it's a thank-you note or a simple P.S. at the bottom of a letter.

6. Show your customers that you appreciate them: Do things that help your clients. For example, record a "tip of the day" on your voice mail message, send clients two tickets to a special event with a note, photocopy interesting articles and send them to clients and prospects with a hand-written "FYI" note and your business card.

Copyright © 2000, Wendy Gray Maynard, Kinesis

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