Marketing includes your business elevator speech, other presentations,
brochures, website, and advertisements. In addition, there are other “little
things” which are also included in your marketing. These are the things that
many people do not consider important but make up the sum of your business for
those prospects and clients that you meet and interface with each and every
day. These are the “little things”.
One of the first things you hand to others is your business
card. Is it simple or confusing? Is it legible and easy to read? Dose it help
those to whom you give it, or does it confuse them? It should contain your
name, your business’s name, your contact information including your email
address, phone number, website address, and your mailing address. Make it
professional and not so odd or weird that no one wants it.
Your card does not have to include your home address. If you
are in career transition, you should get a mailing address at a mail box or
some other address where people can send you information that may not be able
to be emailed. Make sure that your email is active and check it frequently.
Make sure that your phone, especially your cell, has a functioning voicemail
with a professional greeting. Make sure your voicemail is never full, check it frequently,
and follow up on your messages, no matter who is calling you.
Use both sides of your business card if you wish, but make
sure that the type font that you use is large enough to be read without a
magnifying glass. A small font is not acceptable, and fancy fonts that are
illegible just make it difficult for the person who may be trying to contact
you. Keep it simple and clear, not fancy. Make it easy if for your contacts, and
they will be inclined to help you. People don’t want to work with others who
are too complicated. Make it easy for people to do business with you.
When you attend networking meetings, wear a name tag. The
event may provide stick on tags to which you add your name, but get your own
name tag. For a small price you can print your own or have one made. Keep it
simple; your name and business name are all you need, and your business card
has the remainder of your contact information. Your name tag should be legible
from several steps distance and not require the person who you meet to lean
into you in order to read your name. Your name tag should provoke questions
such as: “So, what does your business do?”
When you are given the opportunity to introduce yourself at
a networking meeting, if you are sitting, stand up and project your
introduction to the room. Do not whisper, but take the same attitude that you
would if you were giving a presentation, for that is what you are doing. Be
clear, concise, and complete, and do not ramble on excessively. 30 seconds is
all you need to bait the hook so that they will ask for more information.
Remember that marketing is everything that you do. It is the
bigger things like advertising, but it also is the little things such as
business cards, name tags, and replying to emails. Leave me your comments, or
email me at Jim@SOC4Now.com, or call me at 360-314-8691. Maybe
we can share some ideas that might help us both. That’s Appreciation
Marketing at its best. Let’s make it work
for everyone.
No comments:
Post a Comment