Email Marketing Mistakes to Avoid

May 23, 2013 by Leave a comment

Email marketing is not dead. It is alive and kicking, but only the very best email marketers are making any progress. The law has changed in America, Canada and Europe, so that spam marketers may be punished by the law. This has not stopped spam email getting through, but it has helped some annoyed authorities to lock up or fine some of the people who fill up our email inboxes.

There are a lot of people out there who are getting their email marketing wrong. And, it is a shame that people cannot automatically block these messages from getting through. But, the junk filters on most email services catch most spammers, and the blocking functions help people to remove the rest. What you need to do is make sure that you are not treated like a spammer. You need to make sure that your email gets through, and has an impact on the reader. Here are a few tips to help you.

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Emails that do not apply to the person you have just sent it to

It is quite possible to receive emails that do not apply to you. You may find that this happens when you buy one product from a company, but they sell a range of things, and so send you offers on their other ranges. From a marketing point of view this may seem like a good idea, but it is not.

If you sell more than one range, you need to make absolutely sure that you only send people offers on the ranges that apply to them. You may remind people that you sell other items, but do it with small suggestions at the bottom of the page.

Amazon is getting good at doing this. They use the things you have bought in the past in order to build a profile of the sorts of things that you may like. Their email messages and marketing pages will then feature items that are related to your previous purchases. They even have a suggestions list, where you can remove suggestions that do not apply to you, so that they may build an even better profile of you.

Emails that have spelling mistakes

This is the mark of the truly unprofessional. If you have spelling mistakes in the subject line then you will probably have your emails blocked. If there are spelling mistakes in the email, then how will the recipient ever be able to trust you?

Emails that are addressed to the wrong person

Sometimes you cannot help this. For example, the person signing up may enter his name as Vincent when it is not. You should always make sure the email is addressed to the right person; even if this means you do not enter their name on the email (then you cannot be wrong).

Emails to people who have not agreed to receive them

This is now illegal. You are not allowed to email people who have not expressly shown a desire to be emailed. Sure there are still a lot of people doing it, and a lot of people get away with it. But, if you are running a legitimate business, then you really should not risk it.

Emails that are made up of images only

These take ages to load; they are often flagged as spam, and are impossible to read via the message source. A savvy Internet user will not read an unknown email if the source shows no indication on what it is about.

Emails with a hidden email name

Phishers and spammers do this. The email will show that it has come from a legitimate website, but that is a cover. The real email address is hidden. You can only see it if you go to the message source and look at the email address it was really sent from.

Emails that are sent too frequently

Believe it or not, people do not like to receive emails all the time. Once per month is more than enough. The likes of eBay and Amazon will only send emails once per month, and that is just about enough to stop people from blocking them or opting out of their mail list.

Emails that do not have an opt-out section

If you do not have an opt-out section then people will block you. With an opt-out section you are at least going to have the opportunity to gain them back in the future. If there is not opt-out section/link, then you are going to end up being blocked permanently.

Emails those take too long to load

Fill your email with great design elements and it may look good, but if it takes too long to load then the recipient will assume it is a virus email and will delete it. Plus, why would you need to fill the page with things that make it load slowly. Keep your emails to a message instead of a story.

Author bio: Korah Morrison, working in www.tutorsville.net - online service that helps students achieve their academic goals.

Filed under Blogging, Business, Entrepreneur, Sales and Marketing Tagged with , , , , , , , , , ,

8 Marketing Mindsets That Undermine Your Business

May 22, 2013 by Leave a comment

By Mark Combs, Cre8iveDept.com

Your mindset makes all the difference in the success of your marketing and your business. A mindset is a belief that, in spite of facts to support or refute its validity, we hold to be true no matter what happens. We all have mindsets, some good, some bad. Mindsets can help or hinder us in our business and in our marketing. Let’s look at a few that undermine your business.

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1. “Marketing invites rejection.” – This mindset holds that if I promote myself, the only outcome will be that people will not only dislike my offer but will ridicule me for promoting it. If you feel this way, ask your self these questions: 1) Is it possible for everyone in the entire world to like my offer? No, it’s not. So by not purchasing your product or service, they are rejecting you. By default we are going to experience some rejection. 2) When I decide not to buy a product or service, do I ridicule the advertiser? No. 3) Do I have any evidence that the general public actively ridicules those that market their businesses? No. This mindset is rooted in the desire to be liked by everyone. And as hard as it is for us to admit, it is impossible to be liked by everyone. What is the worst that could happen? Some people don’t buy what you offer, but more people buy than are buying now. So truthfully, marketing leads to more acceptance than you are used to.

2. “Asking for referrals sounds like I’m begging” – This mindset stands on the premise that the service or product you are marketing isn’t valid or doesn’t have any value. And by extension you don’t have value either. When this comes up, ask yourself these questions: 1) Do I have customers that pay for my services? Yes? Then there is some value in what you do. 2) Are there more people out there that would benefit from my offer? Yes. 3) If my existing customers weren’t happy, would they keep paying for my product? No, they would find another resource. 4) If my customers are happy with what I provide, would they be willing to introduce me to their friends? Facebook and Twitter think they would. If you have customers, your offer has worth, and is good enough to be shared. You, regardless of what you are pursuing, have worth. Never let anyone tell you differently.

3. “Marketing doesn’t work for my kind of business” – A convenient mindset for those afraid of stepping out of their comfort zone is the idea that your business is special and unaffected by any laws of marketing or nature. That no matter what has been attempted, marketing doesn’t apply to me. If you feel like this, ask yourself these questions: 1) Have I made a serious effort to market my business for longer than 6 months? 2) Have I enlisted the help of an expert in marketing? 3) Have I tested and improved my efforts over multiple marketing venues? More than likely those that hold to this mindset can only answer no to the above questions. It is safe to say, that there is always a way to market your business. I would accept the challenge if no one else would.

4. “I don’t have the time to market my business” – Mindsets come in all shapes and sizes, this one is unique in that being busy is a good thing in business. No one can fault you for not dropping everything to market a business that is already busy. Ask these questions: Am I busy working in my business or on my business? If you are taking out the trash and filling orders, you are working in your business. If you are making your vision for your company become a reality, you are working on your business. If you are working in your business, it may be time to start delegating some responsibilities and focus on growing your company. If you are working on your business and are still too busy, it may be time to start delegating some of your more managerial tasks. When you take on the role of your company’s chief marketer, your success is right around the corner.

5. “Only the sub-standard companies need marketing” – This one is rooted in the idea that if a product or service is good enough there is no need to tell anyone about it. It may have basis in the adage “Build a better mousetrap, and the world will beat a path to your door”. If your product is as revolutionary as Edison’s light bulb, or Gutenberg’s Bible that adage may be true. But in today’s marketplace there is no one exempt from the need for marketing. Ask these questions: 1) If I tell no one about my business, who will be my first customer? You won’t have one. If they aren’t aware of your offer, they can’t purchase it. 2) If I have no customers, how will the word spread about my mousetrap? It won’t. Think of it this way if Walmart, Nike, and CocaCola have to keep marketing their offers, why would we need to?

6. “I’m not qualified to market my business” – Number six is found in the fear of those things outside of our wheelhouse. Not being qualified gives us ample reason to avoid the scary world of marketing and stay where we are comfortable. If you feel this way ask these questions: 1) With the right instruction, could I learn to do some of my marketing? Yes, with instruction we can do anything we set our mind to. 2) Is there someone I can turn to if I am unable to achieve the quality I want? Yes, there are many professionals that will be glad to help you for a reasonable cost. 3) With a little experience, will I get better at marketing my business? I am sure of it, you have nothing to lose but the fear of the unknown.

7. “Marketing bothers my customers” – This mindset is based in insecurity but shows up wrapped in courtesy. We don’t want to be like the telemarketers that call every night in the middle of dinner. We want to be liked, accepted, even respected, and barging into other people’s lives is just rude. I agree. When you feel this way ask yourself these questions: 1) have I ever seen marketing that isn’t intrusive and disrupts my schedule? Yes, we see over 4000 marketing messages every day and we keep our focus. 2) Is it possible to reach my customers that won’t bother them? Yes, with a little thought and some targeted marketing tactics, your customers will be glad you contacted them. I promise you won’t have to call them during dinner.

8. “No one in my industry does any marketing” – Wanting to fit in is the basis of this mindset. We all want to fit into a certain crowd, even if we are supposed to be standing out of the crowd. No matter what situation we are put into, studies show that humans want to fit in with their peers. We can’t help it. We are wired that way. So if no one in the industry is marketing their business, we automatically assume that it is a taboo and can’t be breached, regardless of the reason. If this is your thought, ask these questions: 1) Why not? Good question 2) Do we have enough business? Never. 3) If I step out of the norm, what are the benefits? You could DOMINATE the market. 4) Draw backs? Your peers may grumble at first but when they see you rocket past them they will either put it in gear or be left behind.

The way we think about our situation can determine the success or failure of our marketing and our business. Most of our mindsets are based in a false perception of the world around us. To defeat these false perceptions we must ask the right questions to get to the truth, and then be ready to act on the truth we receive. If you need help losing some unhealthy mindsets, I would be glad to help. -  MarkCombs@Cre8iveDept.com

 

Filed under Business, Customer Service, Entrepreneur, Sales and Marketing Tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The Importance of Knowing Your Perfect Customer

May 21, 2013 by Leave a comment

Here is a little bit of information on the perks of knowing your clients a little better. This does not involve getting to know them personally. It involves getting to know a little more about them than mere demographic information. It means getting to know them in a more detailed manner, to the point when you can make general and sweeping statements about most of your clients, such as how most of them have children under ten, or most of them are interested in American College sports.

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Targeting makes your advertising more effective

Knowing your client is the first step to targeting them with your advertising. The more you know about them, then the more information you can leverage when you are trying to appeal to them with your marketing.

There is no point in trying to sell to the masses, and there is little point in trying to appeal to everybody. There are only a small number of people out there who are looking to buy your products or services at any one time, and they are the ones you should be targeting. If you can appeal to them alone, then you save yourself a lot of time, effort and money when conducting your marketing campaign. Knowing your client, his/her interests, hobbies, job, family life, age, gender, location will help you to focus and target your marketing so that it reaches the right people.

It allows you to tell clients what they want to hear

If you know your clients, then you should have a pretty good idea of what they want from your product or service. There are very few people who buy things for the sake of spending money. Most people are looking for a certain perk of benefit that goes with your product or service. If you know your clients, you are going to know what this perk/benefit is in advance. You may then present that perk or benefit to them in the most pleasing and appealing manner possible.

If you do not know your target consumer, you will find that you have to rely on luck in order to have any success with your marketing.

It puts you above your competition who may be missing the mark

It is a good thing if you know your client, but it is a great think if your competition does not. Whilst they are plowing thousands of dollars into ineffective marketing campaigns, you are speaking directly to the client (not literally of course). As your competition scramble around trying to test market products, you already know what you client wants.

You may even use your knowledge of your client in order to damage the marketing efforts of your competitors. For example, if you know that most of your clients have young children, then you can heavily market the fact that your product is child safe. The absence of such claims on your competitions’ marketing campaign will indirectly tell your client that your competitors’ products are not child safe. Because logically, if all products in that genre were child safe, then why would you be boasting so much that yours are.

It takes a lot of market research in order to find your ideal client

It is going to cost you a lot of money to research your clients fully so that you know them very well. However, in the long run it will cost you more to run numerous ineffective marketing campaigns, than it will to learn about your target consumer (clients). So knowing your clients very well is going to save you money in the long run.

Knowing your ideal client allows you to focus your marketing

If you know everything about your client, then keeping your marketing focused to their needs is going to be a lot easier. It is like fishing for a certain kind of fish. If you know what type of bait your chosen fish enjoy, then you will have a far better chance of catching one.

It also means that you can spend more money on certain kinds of adverts, because you know that they are going to reach the right people. You do not need to spread your budget around a large number of adverts and advertising platforms.

Knowing your ideal client allows you to focus your investments

You can spend more money on romancing the right type of people. Most businesses have a budget, and the marketing budget is likely to be a fairly big one. This money may be spent more wisely if you can accurately judge a potential return. Because you know your clients very well, then it is safer to assume that you will have a far larger conversion rate, which will therefore justify a larger and more concentrated investment in your client.

Stealing customers from your competition becomes easier

This assumes that you know your client better than your competition does. If this is the case then you can use your competitors’ weaknesses to your advantage, and disseminate this information to your target customer the manner that is most pleasing to your client. You can do it in a way that will speak to them more effectively than if you did not know much about your target consumer at all.

Part and parcel of knowing your clients better is figuring out what they do not like about your competitors so that you can better highlight how you differ from them.

Author bio: Korah Morrison, working in www.tutorsville.net - online service that helps students achieve their academic goals.

Filed under Business, Customer Service, Entrepreneur, Sales and Marketing, Social Media Tagged with , , , , , , , , , ,

Providing Great Customer Services at Trade Shows

May 20, 2013 by Leave a comment

Participating in a trade show is a great way to expose your business to a number of potential customers. One thing that can be a bit tricky however, is that there are likely several competitors at each event trying to win business from the same people. It’s smart to set your company apart from the herd by offering specific services that are enticing to consumers. You want to attract them to your booth and seal the deal before they wander off looking for others.

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Read on for three effective ways to provide great customer services at trade shows that will win you business and boost company profits.

Customer TLC

The best way to woo the customer is to make them feel important. Every single visitor should be greeted with a smile and any questions should be immediately and articulately answered. Don’t leave them guessing or they’ll likely end up at another booth. Offer pamphlets or other informational materials to all event guests so they leave feeling as if they have all the info they need on your business. Make it clear that the customer is king, and every visitor will feel valued. That could be the key to making the sale.

Bring The A-Team

The best way to ensure that trade show visitors feel important and appreciated is to bring your best employees along to the expo. A trade show is not the time to test out new interns, summer hires, or lazy workers. You want the crew that does the best job reflecting your services and who understand the ins-and-outs of the business.

Do a Demo

There’s no better way to lure trade show visitors to your display, show off your merchandise, and convert them to paying customers than by doing a demonstration and/or offering free samples of your product. This allows visitors to judge for themselves how great your business is, and make them feel pampered in the process. Everyone likes free stuff so putting out small samples of your best items for potential customers to try out is a great way to make your trade show booth stand out above the crowd. Also, any activity from a demo will attract attention and divert focus to your booth.

It’s easy to make trade show visitors feel valued with the right approach to customer service. You want to highlight your products while also illustrating what your merchandise can do for the consumer. The more you woo the visitors who stop by your booth, the easier it will be to keep them around to listen to your pitch.

As long as you have your best employees on site, plenty of product samples, and give visitors the TLC they expect, your business will likely see a positive outcome from the trade show experience.

BIO

Kyle Haze is a small business owner and trade show connoisseur who works with Exhibit Edge to organize and implement expositions all over the country. In his free time he enjoys running, biking, and spending time with his family.

Filed under Business, Sales and Marketing Tagged with , , , , , , , , , , ,

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