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Publicity- DIY or outsource??

Jan 10

Posted by Emma Rhoades in Growth, Planning, Starting out in business, The Board Room, The Marketing Dept, The Sales Dept | 5 Comments

Recently I’ve had a few people ask me about Publicity and if they should do it themselves. I find that I answer both yes and no, depending on the person. Many people talk about how publicity is ‘free’,  except when you pay over $1000 for a company to do it for you.

So, how do we do it ourselves? Simple really- there are heaps of media release templates on the web- microsoft office online has a few for a start. Then do a search. Many of these are free and will give you an idea of how to structure your media release. If you don’t feel confident in writing your own, outsource this- find a copywriter who can do it at a much cheaper rate than a media company.

Then research where you want it to go, ring up and ask who to send the release to. The best process to use to achieve top results is the phone, send, phone approach. Phone the person whom you are about to email. Tell them who you are, and that you are sending a media release to them via email. Send the release and then follow up a few days later with another phone call- ‘just to check they got it’. This develops rapport with the journalist that you don’t get when you use a company.

On the flip side, if you don’t have much time, or really don’t even want to try your own PR, outsourcing to a company is a great way to go. Be careful though- thoroughly research the media company before engaging in any contract work with them. Find out what you are getting for your money. Ask to see some previous results- and actually contact those businesses to ask for their opinion. I’ve heard some horror stories about people paying in excess of $100 for a ‘media release’ that is only a couple of paragraphs- purely because they did not research the company prior.

Remember- publicity is only ‘free’ when you do it yourself!!

10-20-30 the planning guide for the rest of us…

Dec 8

Posted by Steve Gray in Excellence!, Finance, Growth, Innovation and Creativity, Leadership, Negotiation, Planning, Risk Management, Starting out in business | No Comments

I have been on about the Guy Kawasaki 10 – 20 – 30 planning device for a while now (since I found it in early 07) Well this week I had the good fortune to use it myself and have created a template to be used in Power Point.

Unfamiliar with 10 -20 – 30? It’s a simple device for pitching ideas, I see it as a way point in the planning process, not so much as an endpoint which seems so logical when you figure it being used to pitch ideas to investors etc. Ideally if you have a business idea I would STRONGLY suggest you use this to assist in sorting out its usefulness.

So it’s 10 slides presented to a max of 20 mins and the smallest text is 30 Pt. see I said it was simple… but of course there are fairly explanatory headings and some body text in it to assist you to make your pitch viable/useful. I feel sure you will be charmed by the thing once it’s used a few times.

The 10-20-30 power point business presentation

As you will see when you download the file, it is a plain old BxW, simple presentation. All you need to do is put the words in that fit for your project even the basic animation is done (when you view the slide show, you can click the forward button and see each point come up one at a time, how it should be, and not a whole page of text.)

I used it on an idea as a way to ‘flesh out’ a few things and in following the headings I found I was really challenged to come up with appropriate answers, after quite a while of cutting, pasting and soul searching I got it to a point where it seemed to work.

I see all sorts of possibilities with this. For pitching ideas to a boss on an area of business or a dept, which is not doing too hot, to put thoughts together for a business partner to look over, then of course to show info to prospective investors. These days when people pitch ideas at me I say to them to do this, then show me the result, thing is not one has actually done it (yet).

Those in the know, figure that’s because it causes people to look at things logically and not just emotionally.

Have a play with it, read it though, jazz it up with imagery etc and see what happens, I’m sure it has lots of uses, I hope you find the same.

Hello?! Are You LISTENING?

Dec 7

Posted by Michael Crooks in Excellence!, Growth, People!, Personal Development, Starting out in business, The Customer Service Dept, The Marketing Dept, The Sales Dept | 1 Comment

I’m on the phone with a salesman from one of my suppliers. He asks me, “So, do you sell to any medical practices?”

“Yeah I do”, I replied. “I have some dentists and a periodontist.”

“Great!” he exclaimed. “You’ll be interested in our new stethoscope covers!”

Really, I think to myself. Let’s see, when was the last time I saw a dentist with a stethoscope. Oh yeah … NEVER!
He drones on. “So can I send you a couple samples. They’re really great and they can imprint their practice logo on them, and they keep dirt off of them, and … I cut him off.

“Sounds great”, I said. “You send them to me and I’ll see where it takes me. I look forward to getting them, I’m so excited. Wow! Stethoscope covers.”

What a moron. Sure, maybe he doesn’t know that a periodontist treats gum disease. But then again, he’s the one selling medical equipment supplies. And furthermore, why would a doctor want an imprinted stethoscope cover? The people who would see the imprint are already in his office. A better tactic would be for me to take the stethoscope cover to a business such as a pharmacy or health club that wants to get their name in front of those the doctor has access to. They’d imprint their logo and distribute them to doctor’s offices.

But here’s my real point.

How often are you so focused on selling what you have to sell … that you aren’t even listening to the answers people give you?

Bad Acting Is Bad For Your Business

Nov 27

Posted by Michael Crooks in Excellence!, Human Resource Management, People!, Personal Development, Starting out in business, The Customer Service Dept, The Marketing Dept, The Sales Dept | 2 Comments

I called my stockbroker a couple weeks a go. I had a question. I wasn’t sure who to ask for because it’s been about a year or so since I actually talked to anyone there. Anyway, I finally get “my guy” on the phone. What a phoney!

This guy doesn’t know me from a fence post but acts like he just saw me yesterday. He ACTS like he cares about me, but his act is so bad no matter what he’s saying it sounds like this:

“Haaaaayyyyyyy, how ya do’in? Boy It’s nice to hear from you! I haven’t a clue who you are — but as long as you called — I’ve gotsome really great ideas for you to consider that will suit you perfectly, what-ever-your-name is. We should sit down and talk. I’ll pop some information in the mail to you. You look it over and give me a call. Cause, hey! I don’t remember your name, so there’s no way I know your phone number … as evidenced by the fact that you never, EVER hear from me.”

I got the info in the mail and I’m like, “Whatever!” I didn’t call him. Course, he didn’t call me. Until three days ago … I called him.

“My guy” wasn’t in. Someone took my name and number and said “my guy” would call me back. He hasn’t.

I’m moving my account.

Sure, maybe he wants my account and the fees that go with it, but it’s obvious he doesn’t care about my account or me. And no, sending me a birthday card every year doesn’t make up for treating me like I don’t matter the other 364 days a year.

Here’s My Points:

If the only communication I get from you is a birthday card, then the card simply calls attention to the fact that I never hear from you.

If you make me feel like the small account I am … I will never become a bigger account … at least not your account.

If you really don’t want my business … fine. But if you really do want my business … then genuinely treat me like I matter.

Pretend Role-Playing Solves Real Problems

Nov 18

Posted by Michael Crooks in Excellence!, Innovation and Creativity, Personal Development, Planning, Starting out in business, The Marketing Dept, The Sales Dept | No Comments

“Daddy”, my 11 year old daughter excitedly exclaimed. “All I have to do is sell seven Holiday wreaths and I earn enough money to go on the school trip to the amusement park at the end of the year!”

As I reviewed the info packet with an advertising professional’s eye, I casually asked, “What do the wreaths look like?”

My daughter pointed to a photocopied, black and white line drawing that was totally void of warmth or cheer. I looked at the drawing and immediately became depressed. Then I became irritated.

The ability of a businesses to “think things through” is paramount to launching a successful promotion or for a non-profit to launch a successful fundraiser. Unfortunately, no one thought this wreath fundraising thingy through.

Without a photo, you’ve got 11 year-olds trying to sell warm, Holiday cheer by showing people a crude drawing that evokes about as much warmth as sticking yourself in the eye with an icicle.

One of the best tactics you can employ to help you “think it through” is to role-play the steps of your promotion or fundraiser. Walk it through. Use props. Have fun and actively look for problems or difficulties. If possible, role-play the activity with an outsider, someone who has had nothing to do with the planning of the activity, event or promotion.

I saved a client an embarrassing moment just the other day, because I helped her “think it through”.

Jan asked me to print up some raffle tickets for a fundraiser for the church. She wanted “Need Not Be Present To Win” printed on the ticket. No problem. Then I asked her to explain to me how the raffle would work — verbal role-play.

“Well, we’ll draw the first ticket,” she explained. “The person with that number comes forward and chooses the prize they want. Then we draw the next ticket on down the line.”

“That’s great, Jan,” I replied. “But how does that work with the whole, “Need not be present to win” thing?

A moment of silence was punctuated by a blank stare. We then revised the drawing protocol to facilitate the attendance issue.

As for my daughter’s wreath fundraiser? All I can say is, “Thank God” for grandparents, aunts and family friends who don’t have the heart to say “No”. In two hours of going door to door my daughter managed to sell one wreath. That’s when we invoked the friends and family tactic.

Then my wife asked me how many we were buying. I noted she said, “how many” not “are we”. I then quickly role-played in my head a scenario where I said, “none”.

Boy, that wreath sure looks nice on my front door.

Retail, retail, retail… When will people learn…

Nov 16

Posted by Steve Gray in Innovation and Creativity, Planning, Risk Management, The Marketing Dept, The Sales Dept | No Comments

I have been doing some work near a newish shopping centre, it was completely revamped in the past few years. It has a supermarket and some other shops to act as a draw cards and so far so good.

I went there for lunch on two occasions, an Asian food shop is near one of the entrances, clean neat and tidy, I took a look at their menu and chose garlic prawns. Okay so far so good, I sat and waited. Of course I checked out the details. Next door is a fashion store JAMMED with stock and while I was there (a good 1/2 hour) only two people wandered in and out again with no purchase.

I noted that the shops on this side of the entrance are set back about 5 metres from the flow of pedestrian traffic, so there was little chance of any browsers wandering in as the menu was on the counter and not out the front.

Lunch arrives, it was a seafood and chicken combination. Whoops it was wrong… I was now very hungry so I took it, tasted ok but not what I had ordered.

In the time I was there only one other person came into the shop, had a glance at the Bain Marie and walked out. So it struck me, here we are at peak lunch time, they sell food but no one was buying… In the mall there were lots of others shopping and not coming this way.

My thinking cap went on…

  • What if they had a super cheap loss leader to get people at least trying their fare? (eg. very small $3 lunch specials)
  • What if they gave out some discount vouchers (by wandering the mall and actively handing them out) so that people could be tempted. Normally I do not advocate discounts but in their case the idea of some customers is better than no customers.
  • What if they had made sure I was given the right food… (that’s another issue!)

Here is a business that will fail due to lack of income, no doubt about it (they can’t sell too late as they have no outside access and people will stay away from the closed shops near by even if the place is open late for the supermarket.)

I ask… what is it with people throwing money away by not trying to boost heir business to at least get some sales… The downward spiral has begun.

The message here for other businesses is to be vigilant and open to fresh ideas to ensure your business has every opportunity of succeeding.

The people service continuum

Nov 15

Posted by Steve Gray in Excellence!, Growth, Innovation and Creativity, Leadership, People!, The Customer Service Dept, The Marketing Dept, The Sales Dept | No Comments

In the service stakes there are those that connect with the people they need to serve and those that quite frankly wish the customers would go away. There are of course levels within that and as always I would like you to focus for a moment on the top end.

People that serve in those lofty heights have a few qualities that make them stand out from the crowd, but don’t let that descriptor fool you, you probably will not see anything different in the way they interact with the customers to give away that they have this high end skill.

In simple terms what they do is often invisible, it has great depth, it is a level of intimate connectedness. This allows them to encourage, influence, involve, engage, be in alignment with, but above all it allows them to be effective with the customers.

It also means that customer loyalty is built in a way that makes it hard to erase, these customers do not fade away, they become advocates of what the service person has provided for them, which is much more than a product or service, it’s that intimate and deep connectedness that all great relationships have.

The customers that come into contact with this exceptional sales or service person will follow them if they leave the company, or if they walk in the door that they have a day off they will come back when they are there.

For the company to ensure these sorts of customer service people are attracted and retained they need to carefully look at their culture and environment they provide, the culture, personality that the other staff have and then weave magic within that. In short they need to become employers of choice.

For the employee that has or wants to develop this skill level they need to make sure they listen actively, find ways to connect genuinely with the customers (and most probably their team mates).

Great service is its own reward, and the return of customers time and again due to the intimate connectedness of the service people is what the sales and service game is all about.

My Top 5 Low Cost Marketing Ideas by Emma Rhoades (Guest Blogger)

Nov 8

Posted by Guest Poster in Excellence!, Starting out in business, The Marketing Dept, The Sales Dept | 3 Comments

Whether you are in business by yourself, or employ a couple of people, every business will benefit from low cost marketing. The following are some strategies you can use to expose your business.

1) Article writing. This will not only ensure you become an expert in your chosen field, it gives you great exposure for your business. Once you have chosen a topic to write about, ensure your article includes lots of tips and ideas that readers can take away to put to use.

2) Strategic Alliances. This entails forming partnerships with other businesses that target the same market as you. For example, a baby photographer, a baby clothes shop, a baby bedding business etc. All 3 of those target mothers with newborns, and can work together to ensure referrals are passed on.

3) Newsletter Swaps. Working together with other like minded businesses as above, can also mean swapping spaces in each others newsletters. Ensure you put a good offer that each business can give to their database. This will help you to grow your own. Just approach another business and ask to swap. Be careful that your databases match up in numbers. It’s no good approaching someone who has 2000 on their database if you only have 100. Make it win – win at all times.

4) Press Releases. Extremely valuable tool- only if you have something to offer the media!! Too many times I’ve seen people get a press release written, only to find that the media deem it un-newsworthy! Have an event, or tag onto a special occasion on the calendar.

5) Networking. Online forums, offline events are always extremely effective tools- provided you don’t join up just expecting customers. These are to build your credibility, learn off others, and basically to get your name out and about. Expect to give your time and expertise- and don’t expect a customer every time. Networking is about having fun, meeting new people and developing a reputation.

Emma Rhoades owns advertising business Diva Promotions. She aims to give women with their own micro business highly targeted, cost-effective advertising campaigns. Visit www.divapromotions.com.au today to book into your next campaign and start growing your business! Emma can be contacted via the website, admin@divapromotions.com.au or 1300 76 36 76.

How to Test and Measure the effectiveness of your advertising by Emma Rhoades (Guest Blogger)

Nov 4

Posted by Guest Poster in Starting out in business, The Marketing Dept, The Operations Dept, The Sales Dept | No Comments

Advertising can be viewed as extremely risky for small businesses that don’t have a massive budget each month. It doesn’t have to be that way- as long as you test and measure all of your advertising. Follow the below steps to ensure you don’t waste your precious cash flow on advertising that doesn’t work.

1) First, ensure you have mapped out your target market, and you’ve found an advertising medium that will get your message right in front of them.

2) Ask everyone the question “Where did you hear about us?” Make it compulsory on a newsletter subscription, or on a booking form, or an order form. If someone rings up to enquire about something, ask “By the way, can you tell me where you found us?” I’ve never had someone say no to that question. Keep it in a spreadsheet, or database, but make sure you’ve recorded it. Get your receptionist or staff members to ask it as well.

3) Ensure you have a good internet statistics system. This will tell you when visitors are coming from another website, and the exact page they came from. If you don’t have any statistics being recorded- start now!!

4) Once you know where a good % of your visitors are coming from, you can start looking into the marketing that works. If after a month of asking everyone where they heard about you and not one came from your yellow pages ad, you can either improve your advert, or put the money into testing something else.

5) Run with the ones that are working. By this I mean you pay $200 for the advert, and it brings in $500 profit. Simply increase this type of advertising. Whether it is dropping flyers- do double the amount. Or a banner advert on a website- look at what other options they have, or run the banner more often.

6) Lastly, check your conversion rate. After you have noted down where everyone is coming from, work out if they are buying?? You may be getting visitors, but are they turning into profitable customers? If not, start looking into increasing your conversion rate.

Remember, advertising should only achieve 1 of 2 things- either the offer you make is so enticing that it turns first time visitors into buyers or getting visitors into your database so that you can sell to them later.

Emma Rhoades owns advertising business Diva Promotions. She aims to give women with their own micro business highly targeted, cost-effective advertising campaigns. Visit www.divapromotions.com.au today to book into your next campaign and start growing your business! Emma can be contacted via the website, admin@divapromotions.com.au or 1300 76 36 76.

Win win marketing

Nov 2

Posted by Steve Gray in Growth, Innovation and Creativity, Negotiation, Planning, Risk Management, Starting out in business, The Board Room, The Marketing Dept | 1 Comment

Most of you will have heard of the term win win, meaning a positive outcome for both parties, I thought about it as I was pondering some marketing options for a business.

My thought went like this, what if a marketing Co (lets say a newspaper selling advertising) were to only offer win win advertising so I knew I would get work from that advert that was greater than the cost to place the advert… (yeah I know its not about to happen any time soon.) But what if they did? Would I want to spend more $$ with them in the future… YOU BET!

What would it take… let’s see a measurement device (to see if the advert is working) and a more cooperative approach to working out the marketing “ploys” to make it work. You see often an advert on its own is not enough, it may need to have a deal attached to it, a call to action, a loss leader int he acvert as a solid draw card and so on.

It would take more effort than an artist creating an advert and the sales rep pestering you to place the ad. But would it be worth it.. OF COURSE IT WOULD… after a while the relationship built between the sales rep and the business placing the advert would become rock solid and after the initial process the rest may well become much easier.

So next time a advert sales rep says they want to chat to you about your advertising, ask if they can guarantee it’s a win win advert…

Now if only I can create a win win situation with my wife…hmmmm… :)

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