Tip for April 1, 2007

The number one reason for buying a big ticket item is "no down payment." The number two reason is "no interest." Radio reaches the youngest audience and newspaper reaches the oldest.

Tip for April 2, 2007

Postcards increase visits Few devices can match a good old direct mail postcard for announcing a new online business activity. Postcards are cheap to produce and mail; they ensure that your message is seen by the person you're trying to reach; and they should arouse enough curiosity to generate an online visit. Try a teaser postcard that contains nothing but your new web address in big print by itself, or that shows a picture of your home page. Or craft a short message that details the advantage of doing business with you online and invites contacts. Either way, you'll build online traffic through this simple, low-tech device.

Tip for April 3, 2007

Guerrillas test prices, even higher prices. It is not unusual for a $299 price to outpull at $245 price.

Tip for April 4, 2007

Marketing Aikido: Drypers, a small disposable-diaper maker, told parents they could use any Proctor & Gamble discount coupon to get $2.00 off the price of a pack of Drypers' diapers. This turned all P&G coupons to their advantage and positioned them competitively. True guerrillas, those Dryper execs.

Tip for April 5, 2007

Seek sponsorships Many mailing list discussions, web sites, and online newsletters sell sponsorship notices. These are a great way to boost your visibility with a specific group of people that is likeliest to be interested in your products or services. Sponsorships cost anywhere from $25 to several hundred dollars per week or newsletter issue. If you've found online publications, web sites, bulletin boards, or mailing list discussions that attract a high concentration of hot prospects, ask the site or publication's owner about a sponsorship notice that will put your message in front of the right people in the right place at the right time.

Tip for April 6, 2007

Do you want to compile a list of truly hot prospects? Create an ad or direct mail piece that is also a questionnaire. Anyone who takes the time to complete it and send it back is truly a hot prospect.

Tip for April 7, 2007

Aim for lifetime value -- and that's a summary of the incremental future profit expected from each name on your database. Says the British Institute of Direct Marketing, "It's the net present value of all future contributions to profit and overhead expected from a customer."

Tip for April 8, 2007

Every business needs allies No matter what business you're in, you should be able to find allies in related businesses online, and joining forces can increase marketing presence for all of you. For example, you and another web site operator can agree to exchange links, or to feature one another's information on your sites. Or you can plan joint promotions or contests where each of several businesses devotes time, money, or merchandise in exchange for a sponsorship notice. Think about other businesses that are seeking the same customers you are, and then contact those businesses about how you can work together to boost your online marketing punch.

Tip for April 9, 2007

Are you going for the sale or the lead? Marketing goes for the sale or the lead, rarely both. Know what you're aiming for.

Tip for April 10, 2007

Don't push the string. General Eisenhower would put a piece of string on the table and say "Pull it and it will follow where you wish. Push it and it will go nowhere."

Tip for April 11, 2007

Can search engines find your web site? Ideally, your web site should pop up as one of the options whenever a potential customer uses a search engine to look for your product or service. Unfortunately, different people have different ways of specifying a search query. For example, if you're in the bed and breakfast business, someone searching for "lodging" or "accommodations" in your area won't find your site unless those specific words appear somewhere in the text of your web pages. To make your web site as visible as possible to every search engine, consider all the specific words and phrases people might use to search for it, and then make sure those words appear somewhere in your web site's text.

Tip for April 12, 2007

Success in sales does not depend on technical skills. Every day we buy sophisticated technology from people who know less about it than we do.

Tip for April 13, 2007

Are you dieting or reading? Vanderbilt University's Professor Terrance Deal says, "Just as reading diet books is a substitute for losing weight, reading management books is a substitute for good management."

Tip for April 14, 2007

Do you seek offline publicity? It's easy to become Net-centric when planning and executing an online marketing campaign, but don't forget that most of your prospects spend most of their time offline. A brief notice in a magazine like NetGuide or Internet World is a great way to draw attention to your online business. Study the news sections of magazines devoted to the online world, come up with a newsworthy angle about your online business, write a press release about the event, and send it to the news section editor at each magazine. One brief mention in any mainstream Net publication is worth thousands spent on advertising.

Tip for April 15, 2007

Leading sales performers have two universal characteristics in common: they operate out of high levels of personal maturity, and they strive to unlock the highest potential of their prospects.

Tip for April 16, 2007

Common speaking mistakes: agreeing to make a speech before you know about the audience; agreeing to speak in fringe time when the audience may be tired; letting others write your introduction; preparing at the last minute; winging it; trying to be funny; running overtime.

Tip for April 17, 2007

Each publicity outlet is a target The big mistake that most publicity-seekers make is that they're concerned only with packaging their message, rather than in tailoring it for the needs of specific publications. Each publicity outlet has its own editorial point of view and its own needs when it comes to choosing what to publish. Smart guerrillas decide on a list of specific publications where they'd like articles about their company to appear, and then they study those publications carefully to determine their editorial focus before sending them a press release or a pitch for a feature article. The only way to get magazines to "buy" your bid for publicity is to treat each one as a unique customer and cater to its needs.

Tip for April 18, 2007

"John, I will be visiting other people in this area. If you were me, who would you call on next?" Wait for John's response. When your prospect suggest a name, ask: "Why did you pick him?"

Tip for April 19, 2007

Uncommon speaking gems: Opening with a bang; getting to the point fast; sticking with one theme; using simple language; using illustrations; concluding with emotion or drama. For these, thank Winston Churchill.

Tip for April 20, 2007

Conflict sells publicity ideas When seeking publicity, position your company against competing companies. The press loves conflict, and describing your company in terms of its differences from your competitors is a natural way to build conflict into a proposed article. Think about proposing articles about how you're fighting for your share of a larger company's market by offering better customer service, or more expertise, for example. Or maybe your company is the David and your main competitor is Goliath. No matter what business you're in, competitive conflict can whet the media's interest in it.

Tip for April 21, 2007

In getting appointments, a Guerrilla is more concerned with being genuine than in presenting an overly polished and superficial professional image.

Tip for April 22, 2007

I love online, but oh, you fax! A survey of 420 small businesses found that 93.1% said the fax is the most essential machine in the business.

Tip for April 23, 2007

Time your publicity salvos Timing has a lot to do with whether or not your announcement or proposed article is accepted by a magazine for publication. Before sending out a press release or pitching an article to an editor, get a copy of the publication's editorial calendar. The calendar will tell you the editorial deadline for each issue, and it will also point out the special editorial focus of upcoming issues. By studying the calendar, you may find that your proposed article or your press announcement fits in perfectly with an issue a few weeks away. Targeting your idea at that specific issue will improve its chances of making it into print.

Tip for April 24, 2007

A Bay Area tax accountant who commutes from the suburbs San Francisco, regularly walks the length of the train waiting to see a friendly smile from a well-dressed businessperson before he'll sit down. He's found that when he does, a conversation will ensue and he'll be asked what he does.

Tip for April 25, 2007

No, no, no, no! Most prospects will say "no" four times before saying "yes." Most salespeople stop asking after two "no's." Once the prospects say, "yes," they feel a tinge of remorse, so offer support for their decision.

Tip for April 26, 2007

Publicity isn't a one-shot weapon Publicity is a key to visibility in cyberspace, and it should be an ongoing part of your online marketing plan. Rather than coming up with a press release about your new business, sending it out to a few magazines, and then forgetting about publicity, develop a publicity plan. Your plan should include a calendar that shows editorial deadlines for specific issues of specific publications you plan to target for at least six months or a year in advance. In addition, the plan should list specific article ideas or press releases that you'll prepare for each publicity target. With a good publicity plan and the dedication to implement it, you'll ensure continuing visibility for your business in online and offline publications.

Tip for April 27, 2007

If it has a first-class postage on it, include a business card. Make your card a marketing piece.

Tip for April 28, 2007

Ten techniques for blending sales with marketing: joint meetings, encouraging communication, making sales and marketing one unit, joint projects, joint planning sessions, switching jobs, making each department responsible for each other, joint goals, one manager, joint compensation.

Tip for April 29, 2007

Piggy-back on better-known companies Many a little-known company has grabbed its share of media attention on the back of a better-known ally, and you can do the same. Scan the news sections of online magazines and you'll see major companies like America Online or AT&T mentioned frequently. Come up with an angle that ties you to a well-known firm and use the firm's name in your press release. The presence of other, more newsworthy company names in your announcement makes your announcement itself more newsworthy.

Tip for April 30, 2007

Always use real stamps. Your materials are much more likely to get through than with metered mail. Real Guerrillas use several stamps of smaller denominations.