The Challenges of Marketing an Intangible

Marketing a product that customers can see, touch, and try before they buy is challenging enough. So how can you market something customers can’t see or feel? How do you turn an intangible idea into something that will connect with people in a hands-on, real-world way? That is often the challenge involved with marketing a service. Here are five tips to help you get started:

* Focus on answering the question, “What’s in it for me?” Feature lists are all well and good, but for most people the bottom line (THEIR bottom line) is what really matters. If you can show a prospect how your service will benefit them (by saving time, reducing costs, providing security, or eliminating frustration, worry, or doubt), that will go far in convincing them to give you a try.
* Make it real. Just telling someone how much your service will benefit them isn’t always enough. Back up your claims with tangible, real-world proof. Use testimonials, case studies, and verified statistics whenever you can to help bolster your case. Few things sell confidence better than a success story from a satisfied customer. A testimonial or case study outlining the positive results your service has provided will go a long way toward putting a prospect’s mind at ease about doing business with your firm.
* Create a strong, positive identity. While your service may be intangible, the words and imagery you use to represent your brand can help you make a positive impression in prospective buyers’ minds. Consider Prudential’s Rock of Gibraltar logo or Allstate’s “good hands.” Each conveys a message of security and dependability — traits important when you’re talking about insurance and investing. Try to create a similar feel with the images and words you use to promote your company.
* Avoid the temptation to under-price your services. Under-pricing undermines profitability and sends the message that you don’t value your own services as highly as your competitors value theirs. Customers will see this as a sign that your service is inferior in quality or that you lack the experience necessary to help them. If you’re uncomfortable pricing your service competitively, consider a tiered approach, where customers can pay higher premiums for added benefits.
* Treat yourself — and your company — as the product. In many ways, you are. When customers buy a service, they’re really buying into a company and its people. They’re trusting your knowledge, your skill, your experience, and your integrity to do right by them. Keep that in mind. Use every interaction as an opportunity to reinforce, renew, and reward that trust…and encourage your staff to do the same.

10 Simple Ways Make it Easier for Customers to Contact You

A toll-free number is no longer the standard way for customers to contact you. Customers are bombarded with choices in today’s technology-focused world. If your business doesn’t offer a method of communication that suits your customers’ preferences, they may find another company that does.

Here are 10 tips to make it easy for ALL of your customers to get (and stay) in touch with you:

* Consider offering a live chat support service option on your website that provides real-time, text-based conversation with someone who can quickly answer questions.
* Use social media tools such as Facebook and Twitter to communicate with customers. Post helpful information in your stream, and encourage customers to ask questions and provide product feedback.
* Provide interactive maps that allow people to customize directions to your location, as well as a photo of your building to make your business easier to find.
* Include any helpful information that may save customers frustration when they try visiting you. For example: “XYZ Road is currently under construction — please use ABC Street instead.”
* Create a Google+ page to share updates, promotions, links, and photos. This will make it easy for people to recommend your business, products, or services to friends and contacts, while at the same time helping you measure your followers’ interactions.
* When posting blogs, be sure to offer an area for comments and feedback, as well as contact information, in case the reader has questions.
* Build trust with online customers by providing your company’s physical address in addition to email, phone, fax, Skype, and support line info on your website’s contact page. Add links to customer forums, your Facebook page, and your Twitter feed, as well, and consider offering a contact form as a convenience for customers.
* Include, at minimum, your website info, company email, and toll-free phone number on every marketing piece you create, including letterhead, notepads, brochures, flyers, quotes, surveys, etc. Customers who desire additional information will often seek out your website’s contact page.
* Consider a mobile website designed for smart phones that makes it easy for users to find information about you, regardless of what device they are using.
* Provide a clear call to action in direct mail, email messages, and other marketing pieces so readers know how to get in touch with you.

We encourage you to contact us anytime if you have questions or comments. We look forward to hearing from you!

Of Manhole Covers and Marketing

You’ve probably heard the question asked, “Why are manhole covers round?” Answers vary from the obvious (“because manholes are round”) to the more obscure. Wikipedia offers several possibilities. My personal favorites?

1. A round manhole cover cannot be accidentally dropped into the round hole it covers. 2. The circular shape makes the heavy covers easier to roll.
3. Round castings are easier to machine lathe than those of another shape and less expensive to produce in a size wide enough for a person to fit through.
4. The round shape makes it easy to replace an open cover without having to line up the corners.
5. A round tube holds up better against the earth’s compression surrounding it than a shape with corners would.

If I were to guess, I’d say it’s probably a combination of all these things (and maybe more) that made round manholes and manhole covers so popular.

Which brings me around to marketing.

Like a manhole cover, the best shape for your company’s marketing is also round. More to the point, the best approach to your marketing is a well-rounded one. Just as the reasons for using a round manhole cover are many and varied, so too are the reasons for choosing each specific element in your marketing plan. The big difference? In marketing, there is no one-size-fits-all.

As you consider new marketing opportunities for your company — and reexamine existing channels you’re not sure are still working as effectively as before — ask yourself, “How well does this approach fit with my overall marketing plan?” If the answer is “not very well” or the reasons you come up with for trying it aren’t very sound, you know where that idea should go: straight into the file shaped like a manhole cover.

Disconnect to Connect

If you’re feeling overwhelmed by various forms of electronic communication, you’re not alone. There’s something to be said for traditional forms of contact, whether the warmth of a handshake or the crunch of a newspaper.

In our attempt to feed our information-hungry prospects and customers, we run the risk of creating a system overload. If your business is looking for a way to break through the electronic communication overload, try marketing in print.

People are so used to being bombarded with emails, texts, Facebook notifications, tweets, and pop-up ads that attractive, quality postcards, self-mailers, and other marketing pieces offer a refreshing change of pace.

Sometimes you just need to disconnect to connect.

Perfect Pitch

Perfect pitch is a musical term for the ability to recognize any note on the scale just by hearing it — or to sing any note on the scale without a point of reference. Experts say only one in 10,000 people have this ability, though others may possess elements of the skill.

In sales, we often refer to our own sort of “perfect pitch” — a presentation so persuasive it overcomes objections and leaves no doubt in a prospect’s mind that our product or service is exactly what they need.

Like perfect pitch in music, a perfect pitch in sales can seem equally elusive. And while there is no fail-safe way to close every sale, there are things you can do to make your presentations resonate with prospects and strike a better chord.

Do your homework. Get to know as much as you can about your audience before you meet. Discover their needs, their wants…and their motivations. Tailor your pitch and approach to address those triggers, and focus on how your product can benefit the customer, rather than just the features it possesses.

Start with an analogy. Stories have a way of breaking the ice and making your product more relatable. Telling a prospect your high-speed Internet service is faster than the competitors’ might impress them momentarily, but comparing your service to running on smooth pavement with the wind at your back versus running through a pool full of molasses, against the current, might make a stronger and more meaningful (long-term) impression.

Answer the whys. Wise salespeople prepare ahead of time to deal with the whys: Why do I need your product? Why should I choose you over the competition? Why should I care about all those bells and whistles? All of these are valid questions you’ll need to answer. And, no, “because I said so” is not an acceptable response. If you can’t make a concise, compelling case for your product, you’ll have trouble making many sales.

Practice, practice, practice. Alexander Graham Bell once said, “Before anything else, preparation is the key to success.” Just as a musician or singer needs to practice their craft, successful salespeople must prepare themselves for every presentation. Outline your presentation ahead of time, and practice your delivery so you know what you need to say in various situations.

Keep honing. No salesperson hits the right note on every sales call. Learn from your mistakes and miscues. Use all of your experiences — both positive and negative — to sharpen your skills, so you’re always prepared to perform at your best.

Would You Like Fries With That?

If you’ve ever eaten at a fast-food restaurant, surely you’ve been asked, “Would you like fries with that?” or “Would you like to supersize your meal?” Cross-selling involves presenting customers with complementary products or services to consider above and beyond their initial purchase. Here are a few tips on how to successfully cross-sell (or up-sell) your products to increase revenue:

* Use cross-selling as a way to help customers try to solve a problem, rather than just to sell more stuff. Educate them on products or services you have to offer that may meet their needs or new items that weren’t available before.
* Suggest relevant items that complement and make the initial purchase more valuable (such as selling a memory card, camera case, and batteries with a new camera). Also consider offering items that vary in price, such as an $8 case, a $15 case, and a $25 case. The least-expensive items will most commonly be added as impulse buys.
* Position products in lucrative places on your website to cross-sell complementary items, or direct customers to other items they may be interested in. For example, Amazon.com offers suggestions of items that are frequently bought together, as well as “Customers who bought this item also bought XYZ.”
* Promote bundled packages that provide a price break to purchase extra items together. For example, “Save $15 when you purchase our XYZ camera, case, and memory card value bundle.”
* Reinforce cross-selling efforts with customer testimonials or expert recommendations. Popularity sells, and people are more likely to follow suit when they see what others are doing.
* Timing is key when up-selling products. Don’t try to promote an extended warranty until after the decision has been made to purchase an item.

Done properly, cross-selling is an effective way to boost revenues, while at the same time helping customers get more value from their purchases.

9 Ways to Increase Customer Retention

Experts say it costs five times more to attract a new customer than to retain an existing one. Consequently, customer retention is critical to the success of your business. Here are a few tips to help you stay in front of your customers and increase your customer retention rates:

* Develop a customer loyalty program that offers special promotions and incentives for return customers, such as birthday discounts, a reward punch card, free shipping, monthly discounts, free upgrades, and the like.
* Offer surveys that ask customers what they think of your business and how you can improve.
* Encourage open communication with your customers. Request feedback and suggestions. Offer options such as email forms, surveys, a toll-free number, chat forums, and social media links.
* Consider creating a focus group with a couple loyal customers to provide their insight from a customer’s perspective. Be sure to reward them for their input.
* Utilize customer complaints and suggestions to improve your products or services.
* Create a referral program that encourages and rewards loyal customers to do the selling for you.
* Differentiate yourself from the competition. Offer value add-ons, educate your customers about industry trends, provide helpful tips, and have a live person answer your phones instead of a confusing automated system.
* Socialize with your customers. Attend trade shows, offer open houses, encourage customers to respond to blog posts, and communicate with your customers on social media sites.
* Mail personalized thank you cards showing your appreciation for recent purchases or for interest in your products and services.

If you have other ideas for keeping customers satisfied, please feel free to share them in the comments below.

The More You Tell, the More You Sell!

In order to satisfy today’s information-hungry audience, K.I.S.S. (keep it simple sweetie) doesn’t always apply. Prospects and customers are looking for detailed information to help them make informed decisions. Here are a few tips to help you educate your audience about the products and services you sell:

* Make your marketing materials more educational. Include a product history, list benefits from a customer perspective, explain how it works, and provide comparisons of why your product is better than the competition.
* Provide customized information packets neatly organized in a pocket folder full of detailed information for customers interested in a specific product or service.
* Show confidence in your products by providing free samples, free product evaluations, or a discounted, no-obligation trial for customers to try your products or services firsthand and learn more about them before making a decision to buy.
* Take advantages of opportunities to be viewed as an expert in your field. Write guest columns in industry publications, speak at a trade show or on a radio feature, and post your own blog.
* Provide a Q&A section on your website that offers convenient answers to potential questions.
* Offer educational product videos that show product highlights, key features, and tips.
* Create customer forums that allow customers to discuss your products openly and educate each other.
* Provide free hands-on training or presentations at your business, during trade shows, or on-site for customers to see and learn the benefits of your products firsthand.
* Offer webinars, e-learning, or how-to seminars that offer educational tips and interesting information not only about your products, but your industry as a whole.
* Publish a regular newsletter as a marketing tool to build relationships and offer information about your business, team, products, and industry.
* Invite customers “behind the scenes.” Give them a tour of your building, and introduce them to your team. Show them a “day in the life” of your company. Let them view how products are made and learn more about your quality-control standards and guides.

Remember that educating your customers shouldn’t stop at the sale. By staying front-of mind and continuing to offer helpful information and tips, your customers will look to you first when they are ready to purchase again in the future.

Of Manhole Covers and Marketing

You’ve probably heard the question asked, “Why are manhole covers round?” Answers vary from the obvious (“because manholes are round”) to the more obscure. Wikipedia offers several possibilities. My personal favorites?

1. A round manhole cover cannot be accidentally dropped into the round hole it covers. 2. The circular shape makes the heavy covers easier to roll.
3. Round castings are easier to machine lathe than those of another shape and less expensive to produce in a size wide enough for a person to fit through.
4. The round shape makes it easy to replace an open cover without having to line up the corners.
5. A round tube holds up better against the earth’s compression surrounding it than a shape with corners would.

If I were to guess, I’d say it’s probably a combination of all these things (and maybe more) that made round manholes and manhole covers so popular.

Which brings me around to marketing.

Like a manhole cover, the best shape for your company’s marketing is also round. More to the point, the best approach to your marketing is a well-rounded one. Just as the reasons for using a round manhole cover are many and varied, so too are the reasons for choosing each specific element in your marketing plan. The big difference? In marketing, there is no one-size-fits-all.

As you consider new marketing opportunities for your company — and reexamine existing channels you’re not sure are still working as effectively as before — ask yourself, “How well does this approach fit with my overall marketing plan?” If the answer is “not very well” or the reasons you come up with for trying it aren’t very sound, you know where that idea should go: straight into the file shaped like a manhole cover.

A Fish Story Worth Remembering

Many years ago, a pike was placed in a tank with live minnows. As you’d expect, the pike immediately swam at the minnows and ate them. After a few days, a glass partition was added to the tank, and the minnows were placed on the other side of the glass (away from the pike). The pike continued to swim after the minnows, but kept running into the partition. Eventually, it gave up and swam around its own side of the tank instead.

After some time, the experimenters removed the glass partition separating the fish, but the pike still did not go after the minnows. It had been conditioned to think it could not reach its prey. An account of a similar experiment involving perch is available here.

So what does any of this have to do with business? Well, people, like fish, often give up too soon. We condition ourselves to believe a goal is unobtainable because we’ve experienced setbacks in the past. We give up trying, even if the barriers that once held us back are no longer there.

So the next time someone (even that small voice inside yourself) tells you, “Oh, we’ve tried that before, and it doesn’t work,” remember the story of the pike. Then give it one more try.