Tip for February 1, 2006

Only 15% of adults in the U.S. say they enjoy TV commercials while 34% say they like ads in newspapers and magazines.

Tip for February 2, 2006

Ad specialties give you off-line visibility Advertising specialties with your company name, logo, or slogan on them are a good way to remind people about you when they're not online, or when they're about to go online. You can order custom mouse pads, diskette holders, pens, coasters, and even screen savers that will serve as mini-billboards for your company or your web site. The cost is surprisingly low, and the visibility helps you stand out from your competitors.

Tip for February 3, 2006

Guerrilla Bill Symons treats every visiting salesperson that comes through his door as a very special guest. His company will even take the visiting salesperson to lunch, rather than letting them pick up the tab. When salespeople leave his office, they have become unofficial ambassadors for him and go on to spread word of his company wherever they go. The rapid growth of his company proves this tactic and he feels much better at the end of the day.

Tip for February 4, 2006

Ten commandments from Sam Walton: * Commit to your business * Share your profits * Motivate your partners * Communicate all that you know * Appreciate what your associates do * Celebrate your success * Listen to everyone in your company * Exceed your customer's expectations * Control your expenses better than competitors * Swim upstream and avoid conventional wisdom

Tip for February 5, 2006

Don't publish an article, publish a series Publishing articles online by putting them on your web site or uploading them to a forum library is a great way to enhance your credibility and interest people in your product or service. But don't just publish one article. Instead, plan a series of articles that you can publish every month or two. By publishing something new on a regular basis, you get greater visibility by repeating your key messages, and you build an audience of loyal readers.

Tip for February 6, 2006

How your sales presentation won't appear to be canned. Role play, tape yourself and practice until your sales interview questions become a part of you. Salespeople are the world's greatest actors. A great performance on the stage or on film is preceded by many hours of practice. A great performance by an actor or a salesperson does not appear to be staged. It smacks of "professionalism." Practice with a peer or a friend and your improved skills will increase your sales

Tip for February 7, 2006

More proof that education sells, Part 1 of 2 Today, my copy of a catalogue from Freestyle Photographic Supplies arrived, hard-to-find specialty items and supplies for professional photographers. The front cover contained a list of the firm's Board of Advisors plus topics they had written for the catalog. The table of contents listed the article title plus the page of the catalog where the article was to be found. These short articles converted a "selling" publication--which might have a short shelf-life--into a "reference" publication which I am likely to keep until the next issue appears.

Tip for February 7, 2006

More proof that education sells, Part 2 of 2 There's more to the short articles in the Freestyle Photographic Supplies than just their educational value. Several of the articles mentioned that longer, more detailed, versions of the articles could be found on the individual photographer's web sites. This is an excellent example of what Jay calls Fusion Marketing at work. The publication gets valuable editorial content for free, and the photographers drive qualified traffic to their web site for free. A win-win situation for all!

Tip for February 8, 2006

Visit the Dropout: When someone drops out, don't bother to send them a "sorry-we-missed-you" letter, or even a second renewal notice. Visit them personally. Get nose-to-nose, or at least phone, and ask why they're leaving. Ask what you could have done differently to have kept their interest alive. Never take a single member for granted.

Tip for February 9, 2006

Get an 800 number. People are seven times as likely to phone if the call is toll-free.

Tip for February 10, 2006

Distribute handouts after online presentations After using online visuals to support a teleconference or telephone sales presentation, distribute PDF copies of the original presentation visuals to prospects and attendees. Audience handouts are as necessary for online presentations as they are for in-person presentations.

Tip for February 11, 2006

How a One Dollar Investment Creates 5 Figure Incomes When Entrepreneur.com columnist Pete Silver was ordering a carryall bag from Lands End, he was offered an option of adding his initials for just $1.00 more. "How about my web site URL?" he asked. "OK," the Lands End representative replied with a laugh. Since then, his dark blue bag with a bright red www.petesilver.com stitched on it has generated at least three clients he knows began with conversations sparked by curiosity about his URL. I say I'm a writer, and suddenly, everybody wants to know "what kind" and "what else do I do?" A one dollar investment that continues to pay big dividends; proof, once again, that Jay was right all along! It's creativity, not budget, that boosts awareness and profits.

Tip for February 12, 2006

Create an easily located testimonial folder Valuable testimonials are easily lost. When you receive praise from a client in a letter or e-mail, immediately copy and paste it to a Word document and save it in your Testimonial folder. Use a filename that identifies the name of the individual who praised your quality and service. This is especially important when kind words are buried in longer letters and e-mails which you might inadvertently misplace.

Tip for February 13, 2006

Refresh your newsletter testimonials Rotate your testimonials when preparing your One-Page Newsletters. Introduce new testimonials as receive them. In addition, insert older testimonials that you received a while back. Each issue of your newsletter is likely to be read by new prospects, who are unfamiliar with the older testimonials.

Tip for February 14, 2006

Where have all the profits gone? The May 17, 2004, USA Today had an interesting article that--although about the music business--is startlingly similar to what happens in traditional book publishing. Basically, the article traced the "vanishing royalty stream" experienced by musicians whose CD goes "Golld"--i.e. sells 500,000 copies. How much do you think a group will receive? Would you believe $40,000? After all the "deductions" are taken from the initial royalties, that's all that remains for the performers. A story all too similar to what happens when you write a "best selling" book. In light of similar book publishing stores, more and more Guerrillas are exploring e-books, self-publishing, and print-on-demand alternatives.

Tip for February 15, 2006

A British newspaper gave away thousands of balloons with a "Just say no to drugs" message. Kids kept coming back for more. Reason: they were inhaling the helium from the balloons.

Tip for February 16, 2006

Ask a question in subject lines When posting a discussion group message or sending e-mail, write a subject line that asks a question. Questions naturally arouse more interest than statements, and make it much more likely that your message will be opened and read.

Tip for February 17, 2006

Selling on target to control the sales interview. Know your company, the features and benefits you offer customers. The connotation in the words "canned presentation" is negative. Yet - you must have a track to run on, a path to follow so that when the prospect interrupts with a question you are able to respond and smoothly regain control. Then you can head in the right direction - to the close and another sales. One key to more sales is the ability to maintain or regain control of the sales process. Know the services you offer and develop how your services will benefit your prospect

Tip for February 18, 2006

A whopping 76% of Americans think the product claim of improved is overused.

Tip for February 19, 2006

Give samples to opinion-makers A good way to get free publicity is to offer a free sample of your product or service to someone in a position to publicize it. If you've written a book, send copies to columnists or editors at publications that serve the book's market, for example. Find online newsletters or 'zines that serve your market and get a sample to the editor; a few positive remarks in a widely-read publication will give you visibility and credibility you just can't get in other ways.

Tip for February 20, 2006

What makes some salespeople more successful than others? A recent study of salespeople from diverse industries nationwide showed that high-performing salespeople plan their primary and secondary sales calls, carefully developing a questioning strategy for drawing out customers' needs and preparing responses to potential objections. In fact, top performers consistently developed written plans not only for sales calls but also for handling key accounts and managing their territories. Top performers tend to ask many questions of prospects, according to the study, and they are good listeners, allowing customers to talk 60 to 70 percent of the time. They also are more likely to take care of their own professional development by attending sales-training seminars and listening to or reading motivational tapes and books.

Tip for February 21, 2006

If you make cold calls on the phone, you can increase receptivity if you tell the person being called how their name was secured. Enhance it by asking questions, and further improve it by asking for referrals during your follow up.

Tip for February 22, 2006

Survey your prospects Surveys serve a dual purpose: they gather your prospects' and customers' thoughts, and they boost goodwill by showing customers and prospects that you care about what they think. A brief survey posted on your favorite discussion group can help you better understand customer needs, gauge reactions to a product name or idea, or provide valuable information about you versus your competition. To conduct a successful survey: * use yes/no or multiple choice questions; * use 20 or fewer questions so the survey doesn't take much time to answer; * explain who you are and why you're doing the survey when you post it, and promise to post the results; * set a response deadline; * offer to reward respondents by entering them in a drawing for a prize.

Tip for February 23, 2006

Qualifying Questions: "Who, besides yourself, is involved with purchase decisions of the sort we're discussing?" "Who tells you which temporary services you can call to request a temporary employee?" (If someone does not tell the): Then, Mr. Prospect it would be your decision to give my company a job order if you liked our program, is that right? Qualify your prospects and conserve your and their valuable time.

Tip for February 24, 2006

What Makes Mini Marketing Great? Pt. 1 The marketing program run by BMW's Mini Cooper division runs counter to the prevailing winds in many ways. At a time when the larger automobile manufacturers are saturating the market with a near-endless supply of near-identical cars, the Mini is doing the exact opposite. For example, limited production is keeping the Mini in short supply. This maintains prices (and profits) for Mini dealers and eliminates the inventory problems plaguging many automobile brands.

Tip for February 25, 2006

What Makes Mini Marketing Great? Pt. 2 Mini's limited production, itself, has been turned into an advantage for buyers. Since Mini Cooper and Mini Cooper S's are in short supply, buyers can custom accessorize their Mini to their specific tastes. Numerous design and comfort options can be specified when ordering. When the resulting car arrives, it has been basically custom-built built to the owner's specifications, adding to the car's uniqueness and--hence--desirability. Since the owner's have "bought into" their car when ordering, they are far more likely to profess their satisfaction than owners of cars identical to thousands of other cars imported into the United States.

Tip for February 26, 2006

What Makes Mini Marketing Great? Pt. 3 Mini has also turned the disadvantage of waiting for the car's arrival to their advantage. They use the Internet and e-mail to keep those who have ordered Minis informed of the progress and due date of their "custom built" cars, thus building far more anticipation and emotional involvement into the purchase than possible when buying from a a selection of identical models at an adjacent "superstore."

Tip for February 27, 2006

What Makes Mini Marketing Great? Pt. 4 Mini has done a good job of regionalizing its advertising and making it easy to understand the brand's advantages. For example, it's Boston dealer lists the out of pocket gasoline costs of driving round trip to various cities in a manner similar to airlines, i.e. "Portland, $18 round trip," or "NYC, $32 round trip." This makes it easy for prospects to instantly appreciate the Mini's fuel economy.

Tip for February 28, 2006

What Makes Mini Marketing Great? Pt. 5 Like Guerrillas everywhere, Mini Marketing is all about combining economy and effectiveness. Whenever possible, store sales personnel encourage prospects to visit the www.miniusa.com web site and download a brochure and "accessorize" their car. This eliminates the need for dealers to order expensive brochures to hand out.