Increase Awareness About Your Products

One of the biggest reasons many people don't buy quality products from businesses is because they simply aren't aware of what products are offered. Here are a few ways to increase awareness about your products and services: Consider creative marketing avenues you haven't tried before. These may include table tents, lumpy direct mailers, door hangers, event flyers, bag inserts, statement stuffers, social media posts, chat forums, industry publications, tradeshows, and more. Test your marketing results via coupon codes and targeted promotions. Create a regular product spotlight postcard campaign that highlights various products or services you offer. Create a customer referral program that encourages loyal customers to spread the word about your business and do the selling for you. Showcase happy customers who are using your product. Consider testimonial stories or brief customer quotes. Team your marketing efforts with an established business that complements your offerings. Offer discounted promotions when purchasing both. Create a goodwill marketing plan to increase name recognition and drive business while also giving back to your community. For example, you might sponsor a local charity event or donate a portion of your profits to a charity (e.g., "10 percent of all sales in June will be donated to XYZ charity"). Provide a risk-free trial offer and satisfaction guarantee to take the worry out of trying a new product. Utilize social media by creating a company LinkedIn and Facebook page, and build your audience through employee connections. Differentiate yourself from the competition by offering value add-ons, educating customers about industry trends, providing helpful tips, or simply having a live person answer your phones instead of a confusing, automated system. Build your customer base by offering exclusive first-time customer promotions. Learn from others. Collect examples of marketing materials or creative ideas that caught your attention, and combine some of your favorite features into customized ideas for your business. If you need help creating the perfect marketing materials that are sure to get noticed and remembered, give us a call today!

Top Tips for Generating Customer Reviews

If you own a business, you probably know how important great online customer reviews can be to your bottom line. In fact, one 2013 study revealed that eight out of every 10 customers trust online reviews as much as they trust personal recommendations. So how do you go about generating online feedback? Here are some simple things to get you started: Get social: If you don't have a Facebook page and Twitter account, now is the time to get one. If you already do have Facebook and Twitter accounts, make sure you're checking them regularly for comments. You need to keep a close eye on your social pages and respond to customer comments -- good and bad -- as they arise. And of course, you need to make it easy for people to find your social sites, so include links on your website and in your emails. Make it easy to be nice: Sure, you may like to go on and on about how great your product or service is, but your customers may not be that chatty. For the verbally shy, make reviews easy by adding non-verbal options like multiple choice options or a star-rating system. Get your game on: Ever heard of gamification? Basically, that term refers to websites that incorporate some sort of game play into their design to make it more fun for customers to engage. You can get as complex as you want, but even a simple thing like adding virtual badges or trophies for customers who leave reviews can increase feedback. Be generous: Everyone likes to score something for free, and offering a free sample or free trial period can be really effective at getting customers to leave reviews. Follow up: A customer just made a purchase. Is that the end of the transaction? Not if you want to generate some (generally positive) reviews. Once a purchase is complete, touch base with the customer to discuss both the item they purchased and the purchase experience in general. When you get positive responses, ask if you can share them as testimonials on your site. OK, so those are just a few ways to generate reviews and feedback, but what should you do if some of that feedback is negative? First, set aside your anger and indignation, and don't stress: Every business is going to catch a little flak once in a while. Don't ignore negative reviews; instead, reply politely to deescalate and help soothe the customer. Try not to get into a debate on your social page; instead, invite the customer to contact you by phone or email, or offer to contact them. Be sure to thank them for their feedback and apologize for any inconvenience they've felt. And of course, if the feedback is on target, use it to make needed improvements. Engaging customers and generating positive reviews takes work, but it's work that can yield big returns. Take a few minutes today to think about how your business can improve feedback and start building its own base of dedicated fans.

Turn Your Competitors' Customers into YOUR Customers

Here are a few creative ways to help turn your competitors' customers into your own: 

Offer a comparison chart that focuses on reasons why customers should choose your product over the competition. For example, you may offer a standard five-year warranty, while your competitors may only offer a three-year warranty. Or perhaps they offer an extended five-year warranty option, but at an additional price. Stay informed of what your competitors are doing, but avoid copying their ideas. Instead, add value and make their ideas even better. For example, if a competitor offers free shipping on purchases of $100+, you could provide free shipping on all purchases and possibly even returns. Create a unique tagline or slogan that focuses on your key selling points, such as: "Hassle-Free Returns" or "Receive your lunch order within 30 minutes or it's free." Add value to a comparable product through added services, such as longer support hours, free training, and live phone operators (no automated phone service). Create a customer survey. Ask your audience how you can improve, what new offerings they wish you provided, what they like best about your company, and what areas they may find lacking. Their answers could easily point to ideas that will help you gain a competitive advantage. Provide a risk-free trial to test your products or services before committing to a change. Compare your guarantee to your competition. If your competitors don't offer a guarantee, this is an extra reason to promote your guarantee heavily. Compete with low-price competitors in creative ways. Offer exclusive discounts when items are purchased together as a package, or offer free or discounted add-on bonuses. Romance your competitors' customers. Show them the affection they may be missing from their current vendor, and let them know you're willing to go the extra mile to win their business. Even if prospects are happy with their current provider, be sure to continue your marketing efforts. Create front-of-mind awareness so you're at the top of their list if they ever change their mind.