Creative Biz Builders

Archive for the ‘Promotion’ Category

So you want to put together a little marketing for your business and you want to stand out above the rest?

Well then, put a little pride into what you do.  Make up samples that encourage others to visit your site, view your products and see the pride you put into it with what you are handing them.  As shown in the photo, we added a piece of candy,  a business card, and a little bit of ribbon to a crisp clear 3″x5″ bag.  Can we make these samples cheaper?  Probably.   But for the few extra dollars, we will probably gain a few extra customers because…. instead of giving a sample, it is like we are giving a gift!

Another great way to make colorful samples is to use a variety of colorful bags and put them all in a plastic container or basket. Let your potential customer take one themselves and it will be like choosing a free gift. Who doesn’t like that? You can also give these to customers who purchase items from you. Yes, it takes time to make them up but isn’t your customer and the sale worth it?

You have to put time and effort into your business to see the success.  What is the cost of making these samples?  Well, let’s say you want to make 100 samples with a high quality look.  Do you have to use gourmet candies?  No. You can use Chocolate Kisses or wrapped, hard candies,  or samples of your products.   Let’s use Kisses as an example.   For a marketing campaign of 100, you would need the following and your expenses would run you:

* 3 Bags of Hershey Kisses – approximately $10
* 1 Pack of 3″x5″ Cello Bags – $3.99
* 1 Curling Ribbon Surprise – $2.99
* 100 Business Cards – approximately $10

These costs are approximate, but you see that it doesn’t have to cost a lot, to make up some creative promotional packages that you can be proud of!

Next time, examples by business type!  Stay tuned!

Sylvia

One of the best ways to increase our sales is to put a little bit of effort into the marketing and promotional materials we give our prospects and customers. The thought we put into our business is reflected by those materials, and our customers do notice. Here are 5 low-cost ways to promote your business with product presentation & creative business builders.

1. Business cards – make sure you have some! They should look professional & include (at the very minimum) your name, phone number and web site, if you have one. Including your address is recommended, as well as your email address.

Take this up a notch by putting your business card in a 3 x 5 cello sample bag with a piece of candy to make it pop! Here’s one idea:

2. Catalogs – If you can’t afford them, or catalogs don’t apply to you, try to print out fliers of your current specials or offers or something similar.

Now, take those up a notch too! Catalog bags are a great way to get lots of packets together in advance of vendor fairs, trade shows, deliveries, and prospect visits and for your shipping packages if you ship.

Make sure your catalogs or fliers have your Name, phone number, email address and an expiration date, if applicable. If you have an ordering web site, by all means, include it here. I don’t know about you, but my handwriting hasn’t improved with age. Labels would be a good low-cost investment here.

Inside the catalog bags, you can include your business card (even if you put them together as in the photo above), your current catalog, coupons and samples.

TIP: Do your best to include at least one sample for a current sale item in your catalog bag.   Customers want to see, smell, and touch what you’re selling. Including several samples can get expensive, so try starting out with 1 or two. These types of catalog bags, with samples in them, are called “lumpies!”

If you don’t sell for direct sales companies, but sell antiques, collectibles or other items ~ you could include a tea bag with a note to have a cup of tea on you. We’ll have more tips and ideas about that soon.

3. Labels – Labels are another inexpensive way to save time and make your catalog kits and other marketing materials look more professional. As I said above, my handwriting isn’t very good and I don’t like punishing my customers with it, so labels are a must for me.

4. Delivery Day – Delivery day is another time to shine! Some of the direct sales companies offer consultants brown paper delivery bags. yuck! I have been to some arts & crafts shows, etc where the seller handed me my purchases in those plastic grocery bags!!! Oy!

Never fear – you can deliver your items with style without spending a bundle. Put a smile on your customer’s face with more professional merchandise bags:

Now see there? Aren’t those much nicer than brown paper delivery bags? Notice how you can juuussst make out what’s inside this frosted merchandise bag? That builds the anticipation! Don’t forget to put your catalog bag in there too!

5. Thank Your Customers! Want your customers to remember you with a smile? Follow up with each customer! That’s right. After you make a delivery, it’s easy to get caught up in trying to make that next sales goal. But remember, your past customers can be your best customers! Follow up with them, make sure all was well with their last order–and ask for their next order!

Customers like to be appreciated, remembered and taken care of. That’s why I also suggest finding something special to *give* your customers, especially repeat customers.

You can give them a small gift on their birthdays, after a certain number or dollar amount of purchases, or even for holidays and special occasions. Just letting them know you’re thinking about them with an extra little gift will go a long way towards promoting your business.

Some ideas? There’s lots of promotional products out there of a useful nature that would fit the bill perfectly. Such as:

* Calendars for new years (with your business information printed on them of course!)
* Magnets (Include your business info)
* Keyrings
* Tea packets, bath packets, bookmarks
* Send a postcard for a special occasion or holiday

Get the idea?

Hope you enjoyed this post! Got some ideas to add? Post a comment! =) I’ll be back with more soon! Let me know what areas of promotion you’d like to hear more about. Vendor Shows? Home parties? Craft shows?

Have a Blessed Day!
Sylvia