1. Getting lost in the crowd.
Did you know ten years ago people were exposed to 3000 ads a day? How about today: The number of ads we are exposed to daily is 9,000, can you believe it? No wonder businesses report poor response from their advertising. The biggest change in advertising and marketing is the internet. Which just happens to be part of the number 2 most dangerous trend.
2. People can't find you.
According to the Direct Marketing Association 42% of the people you are targeting want to respond to your ads through the web. That survey is from 2006, you know it has to be higher than that now. Think about how much time is spent online each day. The internet has changed everything about the way we conduct business. What is your business doing to adjust to the paradigm shift caused by the internet? One idea is take a look at the money you are spending on Yellow Pages advertising and consider redirecting some or all of it to internet efforts. To learn more about internet advertising, Google Adwords and search engine optimization go to
http://tinyurl.com/2np4w2 to learn more about this vital topic. Then find a good SEO partner. We use Jennifer Adelman at
www.theprojectfox.com
3. No follow up, and worse, no automated follow-up.
What happens when someone shows interest in your product or service but does not buy right away? Too often any follow up is hit or miss and much more often miss. If you are like me you might do okay at follow up for a while but then something happens, such as a salesperson quits or you get busy. It happens and it happens a lot. You pay good money for advertising and marketing but without an effective automated sales follow up process you are losing money. That is something you cannot afford to do in this economy. I solved that problem with a selling software program. If you would like to learn more about how an automated sales follow up program works send me an email and I will get you that information.
steve@digitalprintink.net
4. No way to track results.
What sales and marketing efforts are working for you? How can you know if you don’t track results? Can you give a return on your investment amount for your marketing dollars spent? Most businesses do not know what their return is for each $1 spent. Now you can, especially with web-based marketing. Not only can you track results, you can get in touch with a lead within seconds after they respond. The MIT Sloan study found that the faster you follow up with a lead the more likely they are to buy. Well how about 5 seconds! How is that possible you might ask? It is possible and happens all the time with web-based integrated marketing. I have literally contacted people while they are still on the website reading about my company. Talk about a powerful impression. They usually just start laughing and say WOW that was fast! Great way to start a sales conversation!
5. NO PLAN.
You need a plan. Most of us are not marketers; we are business owners, managers and salespeople. It takes time and knowledge to put a plan in place. Most small businesses cannot afford to have a full time marketing staff so they rely on outside help. We’ve developed a plan. It is easy to implement and can be in place in 30 days or less. Contact me
steve@digitalprintink.net. I will show you how it works for us.
Digital Print Ink started out as a Springfield, MO printing company 30 years ago and we still do that every day. We’ve added mailing and design and now the web response vehicle with PURLS that sets you apart and helps you get a higher response from your advertising/marketing. If you just want to talk and strategize I am open to that. No charge to talk, I love strategizing. You will learn something and so will I. I have a lot of experience in helping businesses grow. I helped grow a business from $2.5 million to $50 million in 6 years. I started a Long Term Care Insurance division for a $500 million dollar corporation that became the largest long term care insurance agency in America. We generated over 10,000 leads a month. I’ve interviewed over 3000 job candidates in my career and trained and managed over 500 salespeople. I know how to help people grow and manage their business. I love printing and mailing because it is a low cost and easy to implement strategy that gets results for business people quickly and it gives you a known return for your investment.
You can reach me at
steve@digitalprintink.net or call 417 881 5309.
