Category: Learn Marketing

You buy a direct mailer to promote your business and it seems not to work.  What happened? You mailed 5,000 pieces and got one phone call and no leads. It failed  – I agree. But what went wrong with the direct mailer for your business?

What went wrong is you started digging your well after you got thirsty.

The two biggest challenges you face when trying to get new customers for business are:

1. They don’t know you.
2. People procrastinate.

 (Assuming your mailing list was good, you mailed enough pieces out and the postcard or flyer you mailed was designed well.)

“One or two mailings and your done” type of direct mail campaigns (or any other advertising you do) to try it out, seldom, if ever, work.  You did not mail the mailing list long enough and people did not get familiar enough with you. And by the time they got around to buying, they did not remember you because you only sent them one mailer.

Rule of thumb: people will buy from a business they are familiar with over a business they just heard of…100% of the time! Even if you have a super low price and a great deal. One exposure to your mailer is not enough to work.

Your prospective new customers today always procrastinate.

Why? People do not want to spend the money and will put off buying bigger ticket items as long as they can. This is especially true during times of economic strain.

And they want to make sure you are reputable and will stand behind what you sell.

Which brings me to the title of this article. “Start Digging Your Well Long Before You Are Thirsty”. All advertising takes time to get traction. This is why you should never do short-term direct mail campaigns. The only way to win at marketing your business is to market regularly and consistently. Marketing should be treated as a fixed cost just like your payroll. I would dare say marketing your small business is even more important than your payroll because marketing is what makes your business known and brings in customers and money.

How long will it take for a direct mail campaign to work?

Generally, it will take at least 4 to 6 mailings to a specific, defined mailing list before your campaign starts to get traction.

Why does it take 4 to 6 mailings to see any appreciable return?

The first time someone on the mailing list sees your postcard, they may not need what you are selling. Or they have not thought about buying what you are offering.  Your postcard goes in the trash with a yawn. But two things happened: 1) they saw and touched your ad and, 2) your postcard made an impression.

The second time they receive your postcard. They noticed it and start thinking about if they need what you’re promoting.

The third time they receive your direct mailer they Google you and check out your company. They are becoming more familiar with your company.

The fourth time they receive it, now they are closer to being in the market. They have been shopping around online, and maybe read your reviews.  But they put off buying for another month.

The fifth time they receive your postcard mailer they are ready to act and call or come in your store. They have decided they need and want what you are selling and they take action.

We have had clients who called our office to buy something from us that have a stack of our postcard mailers on their desks. If we had stopped mailing them after one mailing we would have lost the opportunity to earn their business.

Direct mail is the only form of advertising that puts something directly in the hands of a potential new customer for your business and is one of the only marketing tools where you can target almost exactly who you want to reach.  Direct mail is tangible.

In this age of digital marketing, it is vital to use a form of advertising that is tangible and can be held onto. With digital advertising, your prospective customer is gone with one mouse click.  You also have bigger and more competition on the internet than in the mailbox.

I hope this article answered some questions you had. If you need anything else please give us a call.

The most frustrating advertising is the advertising that you do for your small business that did not produce a result.

Why did the advertising for your small business not produce results?

The reason the advertising for small businesses did not work is because of one or more of the following three things:

1. Messaging for your advertising was off. Most of the time the message is what the business owner or marketing manager thinks the message should be, which often is not the real reason why people are buying the product or service.
2. The audience (or the buyer) of the product or service was not clearly identified. Usually, it is often a vague idea of who the best customer is or who the business owner would like to buy their product or service, not necessarily who is buying it. The answer to this is to survey your current customer list or people who have bought from you. You have to have more than the name and zip code they live in to do an effective job.

What you need to start with are the customer’s name and home address. Phone and email are helpful. From there, an expert marketing company like Wilson Print Marketing can take your basic data and data mine to get more information on the people who have made purchases from you.

Data mining is the process of taking basic information you have on your customers and using that to find out more information about them. For example, just a few things we can data mine for:

• Age
• Income
• Education level
• Family size.
• Home Value
• How long they have lived in their homes.
• Marital status
• Number of Children
• Credit rating
• Hobbies
• And much more…

After we have more complete information about who bought from you in the past. We can use that to match other people in your marketing area who have those basic qualities and characteristics.

Now you can create a strategy that effectively reaches those new prospective customers because you now know more about who they are.

3. The third thing that causes advertising to fail is very important. Even if you have the first two points in, not having this one in will cause the advertising you bought for your small business to fail.

Consistency. If you are buying advertising with the attitude you are going to “try it” to see what you get, 9 out of 10 times you will get nothing for your money.

Why? Because the product of trying is having tried.

You did not give it time to work. The days of quick responses are long gone. Today people have more options and shop longer. Especially on bigger ticket items people tend not to make on-the-spot decisions to buy; they shop, research, and most likely procrastinate.

100% of the time, people will buy a product or service from someone they know and trust over a company they just heard of. In advertising circles, they call it branding or name awareness. When you bounce around “trying” one advertising medium to another and canceling after a few months – you are wasting your money!

The steps for success are:

1. Identify your audience. Know who you want to reach based on who has bought from you in the past.
2. Craft the message based on why people bought from you.
3. Pick the advertising medium or media that best reach your audience. Usually, it is best to combine multiple media.
4. Plan your advertising for at least 12 months. You are in front of your audience on the same medium, day after day, week after week, month after month. You can change and update your message as you go but stay with it. Be consistent and do not give up.

Advertising a small business is similar to boiling a pot of water. When you first turn on the heat there is no boil. Then after a while as the temperature increases, the water comes to a simmer. Then finally a full-on boil.

Marketing your small business should be approached with the same attitude as boiling water. Don’t expect a full-on boil when you first turn on the heat. It takes time. You will get results but you first have to heat up your market and bring it to a boil.

Home service businesses can often have a difficult time standing out in the highly competitive market. It’s like trying to find a needle in a haystack, except the needle is your business and the haystack is the endless sea of competitors. However, by using direct mail to target neighborhoods that you are already working in, you can increase your business’s visibility and attract new customers. It’s like finding a needle in a stack of needles, but at least now the needle has a neon sign on it.

Here are some ways that home service businesses can use direct mail to target neighborhoods they are already working in and gain new customers:

Identify Target Neighborhoods

The first step in using direct mail to target neighborhoods that the business is already working in is to identify the areas you want to target. Look for neighborhoods that are in close proximity to the locations you are currently serving. Consider factors such as household income, demographics, and home ownership to identify the best neighborhoods for your services.

Create a Compelling Offer

Once you have identified your target neighborhoods, the next step is to create a compelling offer that will entice potential customers to try your services. This could be a discount on their next service, a free consultation, or a special package deal.

When thinking of an offer to put on your marketing postcard, it needs to be something that stands out from the competition and makes potential customers excited to try your services. It’s like going to a carnival and choosing which game to play – you want to choose the game that looks the most fun and offers the best prize. In this case, your services are the game and your offer is the prize.

Design Your Direct Mail Piece

The design of your direct mail piece is critical to its success. Make sure your piece is eye-catching and professional-looking, with a clear call to action that encourages recipients to take action. Use high-quality images and graphics that showcase your services, and include your logo and contact information prominently.

Choose a Reliable Mailing Service

When it comes to direct mail, choosing the right mailing service is essential. Look for a reliable and experienced direct mail marketing company, like Wilson Print Marketing, to help you target the right neighborhoods and ensure that your pieces are delivered on time. Our company can help your business with a mailing list, graphic design, printing your mailers, and mailing them out for you. We are truly a one-stop shop and can save you time.

Track Your Results

Finally, it is important to track your results to determine the success of your direct mail campaign. Keep track of how many responses you receive, how many new customers you gain, and how much revenue is generated from your campaign. This will help you fine-tune your strategy and make adjustments for future campaigns. It’s like playing a game of darts blindfolded – you might hit the target, but you’ll never know unless you take off the blindfold and check your aim.

If you need help planning out a neighborhood campaign for your home service business, please call 727-536-4173 or click here to contact us. Wilson Print Marketing can help you come up with a strategy that works best for your business.

As a small business owner, it is essential to know the demographics of the people you would like to do business with. Knowing your target audience can help you develop more effective marketing strategies, create products that meet their needs, and ultimately increase your revenue. In this article, we will explore why it is important to know your target audience’s demographics and how to determine who your best prospects are.

Why is it important to know your target audience’s demographics?

1. Understanding your target audience’s demographics helps you tailor your marketing strategies.

One of the most significant benefits of understanding your target audience’s demographics is that it enables you to create more effective marketing strategies. If you know the age, gender, income, and interests of your target audience, you can create marketing campaigns that are more likely to resonate with them. For example, if your target audience is predominantly female, you may want to use more feminine colors and imagery in your advertisements.

2. Knowing your target audience’s demographics helps you create products that meet their needs.

By understanding your target audience’s demographics, you can create products that meet their specific needs and preferences. For example, if your target audience is predominantly older adults, you may want to create products that are easy to use and have a larger print. Similarly, if your target audience is predominantly young adults, you may want to create products that are tech-savvy and incorporate the latest technologies.

3. Understanding your target audience’s demographics helps you allocate your resources more effectively.

Knowing your target audience’s demographics helps you allocate your resources more effectively. For example, if your target audience is predominantly young adults, you may want to invest more heavily in social media marketing, as young adults are more likely to be active on social media platforms.

How to determine who your best prospects are:

1. Analyze your current customer base.

One of the best ways to determine who your best prospects are is to analyze your current customer base. Look at the demographics of your existing customers and identify patterns. For example, if you run a clothing store and notice that the majority of your customers are women between the ages of 18 and 35, you may want to focus your marketing efforts on this demographic.

2. Conduct market research.

Conducting market research is another effective way to determine who your best prospects are. You can use surveys, focus groups, and other research methods to gather information about your target audience’s demographics, interests, and behaviors. This information can help you create more targeted marketing campaigns and products.

3. Use analytics tools.

Analytics tools can also be useful in determining who your best prospects are. Platforms like Google Analytics can provide valuable insights into your website’s visitors, including their demographics, interests, and behaviors. You can use this information to optimize your website and create more effective marketing campaigns.

Knowing the demographics of the people you would like to do business with is crucial for small business owners. It helps you tailor your marketing strategies, create products that meet your target audience’s needs, and allocate your resources more effectively. By analyzing your current customer base, conducting market research, and using analytics tools, you can determine who your best prospects are and create more successful business strategies.

Running a small business can be tough. As a small business owner myself, I know firsthand how chaotic and unpredictable each day can be. It’s like trying to wrangle a herd of cats while juggling flaming torches – entertaining, but not very productive. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve looked up from my work and wondered where the day went. There are so many tasks to handle in a day, and it can feel overwhelming trying to keep everything organized. Here are some things I have tried that can help you can take control of your day and turn it into a well-oiled machine. Say goodbye to the chaos and hello to a productive and profitable business. Let’s wrangle those cats and conquer those flaming torches, shall we? Here are some quick and easy tips to help you organize your day and be more productive:

1. Start with a plan: Every morning, sit down and make a to-do list for the day. Be specific about what needs to be done and prioritize the most important tasks. This will help you stay focused and avoid wasting time on unimportant tasks.
2. Schedule breaks: It’s easy to get lost in work and forget to take a break. But taking regular breaks is important for your mental health and productivity. Schedule short breaks throughout the day to stretch, grab a snack, or just take a quick walk around the block.
3. Avoid multitasking: Contrary to popular belief, multitasking can actually decrease productivity. It’s better to focus on one task at a time and give it your full attention. This will help you get more done in less time and avoid mistakes.
4. Delegate tasks: You don’t have to do everything yourself! Consider delegating tasks to employees or outsourcing certain tasks to freelancers. This will free up your time to focus on more important tasks, like growing your business.
5. Use technology: There are so many tools and apps available to help small business owners stay organized and productive. Use a project management tool like Trello or Asana to keep track of tasks and deadlines, and use a scheduling app like Calendly to schedule meetings and appointments.
6. Take care of yourself: As a small business owner, it’s easy to neglect your own well-being in favor of your business. But taking care of yourself is essential for staying productive and avoiding burnout. Make time for exercise, relaxation, and hobbies that bring you joy.
7. Celebrate your accomplishments: Finally, don’t forget to celebrate your accomplishments! It’s easy to get caught up in the day-to-day tasks and forget to acknowledge your progress. Take time to celebrate your successes, no matter how small they may seem.

To sum it up, organizing your day as a small business owner doesn’t have to be a chore. With some careful planning, incorporating technology, and taking time for self-care, you can boost your productivity and keep your focus on business growth.

Starting and growing a small business can be as nerve-wracking as watching a horror movie alone in the dark. Marketing your small business can be like navigating through a maze, with twists and turns at every corner. But fear not, my fellow small business owners! By focusing on a few key areas, you can make the most of your marketing efforts and attract the right customers to your business.

Here are five things that every business owner should consider when marketing their small business:

1. Direct Mail Marketing

Yes, I know. Snail mail is so 20th century. But guess what? Direct mail marketing still holds a lot of potential for small businesses. By sending out personalized, targeted mailings to your ideal customers, you can cut through the digital clutter and get your message directly in front of the people who are most likely to be interested in your products or services. Plus, receiving a tangible piece of mail in this day and age is like finding a needle in a haystack – it stands out!

2. Targeting Ideal Customers

Let’s face it: not everyone is going to love your business. But that’s okay. By identifying and targeting the people who are most likely to buy from you, you can save time, money, and effort in your marketing and advertising campaigns. Think of it like dating – you want to find the right match, not just any match. So, get to know your ideal customers’ needs, preferences, and behaviors, and tailor your marketing messages accordingly.

3. Finding Out What Your Customers Need and Want

In the words of the great Mick Jagger, “You can’t always get what you want. But if you try sometimes, you might find you get what you need.” This rings true for small businesses as well. By soliciting feedback from your customers, you can gain valuable insights into what they’re looking for from your business. Whether it’s through surveys,  social media polls, or just simply asking your customers for feedback, listening to your customers’ needs and wants can help you improve your products or services and create more effective marketing campaigns. Having this basic data straight from the people that buy from you can help you hone in your advertising and marketing message to appeal directly to the types of folks you want to work with.

4. Following Up With Prospective Buyers

You know what they say – the fortune is in the follow-up! It’s not enough to just attract prospective buyers to your business. You also need to follow up with them to keep the conversation going. This means reaching out to people who have shown interest in your business, providing them with more information, or answering any questions they may have. It’s like keeping in touch with a friend – you don’t want to be a pest, but you also don’t want to be MIA.

5. Consistency and Persistence

Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither is a successful small business. Marketing your business is a marathon, not a sprint. It’s important to stay consistent and persistent with your marketing efforts, even when it feels like you’re not making progress. Don’t give up! Keep trying different strategies and tactics until you find what works best for your business. And remember, slow and steady wins the race.

In conclusion, marketing your small business can be a rollercoaster ride, but by focusing on these five essential marketing strategies you can make the most of your marketing efforts and grow your business.

A few years ago I wrote an article that turned out to be one of our most viewed and read titles, “Problems and Solutions“.  The business environment in the last couple of years has changed and is fluid, to say the least, and there are a new set of problems we have not faced for a while.

Today we are dealing with labor shortages, supply chain issues, and price increases AKA inflation. Most businesses I talk to say business is very good. They have lots of demand but need more people, supply is tight and everything is getting expensive.

Problem 1: Staff Shortages

“I need more people.” “I can’t find anyone who wants to work”  “I am concerned about being able to deliver what I have sold now.”

Sound familiar?

This problem is really a money problem. If you have the cash to pay you can find top people.

You do not want to spend money on promoting your business because you worry you will not be able to deliver. The solution is getting more and better new customers.

Solution: Promote – don’t ever stop. Two things happen when you continue your company promotion.

1. You have more customers coming in which means you can be more selective about who you work with.
2. Being able to focus on your most profitable and easy-to-work with new customers solves a lot of headaches. Your cash situation will improve and you can afford to pay more for good people.

Problem 2: Supply Chain

“We are having trouble getting materials or products to sell we can’t handle any more business.” I hear you on this. This is very real right now.

Solution: You can’t give up. You have to promote and keep the flow of new customers coming in. If you go into agreement with the 24/7 news cycles of “bad news” you will want to pull back and conserve.

To conserve is the first step on the path of closing your business’s doors forever. Why? Because when a business conserves it starts contracting, getting less and less able to control its own destiny.

The solution to almost all of your problems as a business owner is to promote because it increases your size and scope and your ability to overcome any problem.

The answer to most of your business’s problems is promotion.

Your business is either improving or getting worse, even if it is by a little at a time. There is no such thing as coasting…you only coast when you are going downhill.

Do you really need a printed brochure in today’s marketplace? That is a good question and obviously, I have a vested interest in saying, “yes you need a brochure for your business”.

The truth depends on what you are selling.

With bigger ticket sales, products, and services that have a perceived risk of potential loss and industries that have a lot of competition or that require follow-up to close the sale, the answer is absolutely you need a printed brochure or booklet. Your next question is probably, “Why can’t I send them a digital brochure? A PDF brochure costs me nothing and the client can read the brochure when he or she wants to.”  

This would appear to be true.

My question to you is do you want to win a new customer or make yourself feel good that you are following up because you sent them an email with a PDF brochure attached?

The fact is the average person is bombarded with over 250 to 300 spam emails…every day! The added problem with sending emails with a digital brochure attachment is people are afraid of opening email attachments nowadays due to computer viruses and hijacking fears. People also do not read emails, they scan them. So is sending an email really that effective? People are generally nice and do not want to say no to a salesperson, so the easiest way to get rid of a salesperson is to have them email information “to read”. So you email them and then you can never get them to take your call and the sales cycle ends there.

Here Are The Facts About Using a Printed Brochure For Your Business:

1. People tend to believe what is written over digital because it is more real to them. They can see a printed brochure, hold it, and touch it.
2. When you hand or send a brochure to a prospect they see it. If it is designed properly they will read it and respond. 76% of people say they keep printed information about products they have an interest in for reference.
3. Using a printed brochure helps validate the buyer’s decision to go with your company, leading to less buyer’s remorse and more sales.
4. A brochure should help guide the buyer through their decision by explaining benefits and providing proof. This works best in printed material.
5. Most of your competitors are probably using digital brochures if anything at all. It is easy to spot a professional, reputable business just by the quality of their marketing materials. At least that is what your prospect feels. First impressions do matter.
6. Printed marketing material makes your business real to the prospect.
7. Mailing a follow-up brochure is more effective because there are no spam filters in a mailbox and people do at least look at their mail.
8. Printed brochures are generally inexpensive to produce.
9. A printed brochure will help you to close more business for higher prices.

To sum it up you need a printed brochure because you need to be effective. Printed brochures are a proven tool to winning new customers.

If you want to know how to get a brochure for your business, please contact our office. We can help.

There are only three reasons why a direct mail piece fails to pull a response for your business:

1. The piece was mailed to the incorrect prospect for the product or service. (i.e. you have an old, bad, or incorrectly targeted mailing list.)
2. The piece that was mailed did not communicate to the reader.
3. No follow-up or consistency of mailing.

Unlike with other methods of advertising your small business where the problems and reasons why it failed are clouded, direct mail marketing is the opposite…the fix is always simple. All three of the above reasons are within your power to handle and fix.

Direct mail is the only form of advertising that does reach 100% of the time your best prospective new customer. So if the mailing list that you’re using is good, you can rule that out and the next thing to check is the design and message of your mailer. We know that the United States Post Office delivers the mail, every day. We know that people get their mail from their mailboxes and go through their mail. What happens or doesn’t happen after they get the mailer is a failure in communicating.

The following is a checklist for debugging the failure to communicate in a direct mail piece:

1. Did you try to advertise more than one service or product? Loading a direct mail piece or any other form of advertising with more than one product or service can cause confusion for the reader. People have short attention spans nowadays and will not read a lot of copy.
2. Did your mailer have too much copy? You have to have photos and graphics to break up the copy. No one wants to read a textbook.
3. Did you promote the benefits of owning the product or having the service?
4. Did you have a headline that stated the benefit of the product or service?
5. Did you give the reader a reason to buy? A special offer? Something to get them to respond now? Whatever it is, it has to have a perceived value.
6. Was the special offer a good value based on what your competitors are offering?
7. Did you give them a way to respond that is obvious? The phone number needs to be in a large bold font, that is easy to find and see. Is the email or website easy to find?
8. Did you ask them to respond and give them an expiration date for the offer you presented in the piece?
9. Did you avoid using industry terms that a normal person would not know the meaning of?
10. Was the piece easy to read?
11. Could you look at it and in 2 seconds know what it is about?

Direct mail marketing is easy. The failure to communicate is a big reason you did not get a response.

You could also have gotten a huge response and simply did not know it. You might be thinking, “Wait! That does not make any sense. How could I have not known I got a response?”

Today people will respond to your advertising in one of three ways:

• They will call
• They will walk into your store.
• They will go to your website and check you and your company out.

In fact, 98% of people who are interested in your offer will go to your website long before they call or buy something from you. If your website is old or not designed to convert leads you are losing business. Having a well-designed website is vital to your business’s success today.

We offer free website analysis and can give you tips that you can use to make your website better and convert more leads. For more information, click here.