Business Cards
11-1 Business Cards are a great way of advertising and marketing one's business. Business cards can be given out to anyone that you meet, left on counters in convenience stores, gas stations, bulletin boards at laundry mats, etc. Not only good for individuals but also good to leave with retailers that are always looking for wholesalers that have better prices etc.
11-2 Pro - A business card is a great tool because it has your name, web address, email, whatever info you want to put on it. People usually hold onto business cards and they can see it often when they either open their wallets, or if they place them on their desks etc. Business cards can even but sent inside of all correspondence that you send out, so you can reach a large area of people this way.
11-3 Use this Method - Absolutely!! I do use them with other businesses and find them to be a wonderful marketing tool. Plus, it is a great icebreaker when meeting people wherever you go as well. People tend to forget names etc, but with your business card they have all that info right there for them and they will remember you with the card!
AutoResponders
11-1 Autoresponders are another great tool because you can set up an email marketing campaign in it and keep emails going to people on a scheduled interval of time. They say that a person has to see something at 7 times before they act upon it, so therefore autoresponders are a great way of keeping you and your product/business in front of potential customers. Customers from this method can be either businesses or individuals
11-2 - Pro - As I stated, having an email campaign going out to a large list of potential customers, plus it is a great way to keep track of a large list or group of people. Saves alot of time with contacting people.
11-3 - Use it- Absolutely!! It saves time, energy, and helps to put your business on auto-pilot with contacting customers, or potential customers. People feel good when they think you have not forgotten about them as well! I think this is a must have for one's business!
Website
11-1 - A website is a tool that people will see and be able to find you when they do searches on the Internet for a particular item or business. Plus, a website can help you do business and get customers from any part of the world instead of just locally or in a particular area. More retailers would be able to buy from your business this way as well.
11-2 - Con - One con against a website is that there is so much competition and unless you really work at getting your website at the top of the search engines no one will even see you much! It takes a lot of advertising and marketing, time, and money to get your site in a better position to help you with your business.
11-3 - Absolutely - I would still use a website because it is an awesome advertising and marketing tool. People from all over the world can see your product/business and you can definitely build your business into something great with hard work and alot of tenacity. All of your products etc are all in one spot for all to see with all of the pertinent information as well. Many more people are doing shopping online today than ever and the #'s keeps going up...much more convenient.
Word of Mouth -
11- 1 Still the best form of advertising and marketing around is done by word of mouth. Customers that are satisfied and like your products tell others about you and your business. People are going to listen to their friends and family when they tell them this or that is a great product etc. Anyone from anywhere can be a potential customer through this form of advertising.
11-2 Con- one con against this is that if your business or product is not liked by someone they will be telling others about it and turning them off without them even giving the product(s) a try many times. This can really give a business a bad reputation if people are not happy and saying alot to others about your company! This can really hurt your slaes.
11-3 Absolutely I would use this method! Your happy customers can be your best form of advertising. When others see someone pleased and extremely happy with a product then they want to go out and buy it as well...and the cycle continues on. Great for your business with people are hearing positive things from someone other than a salesman.
Free samples -
11-1 Another excellent way of getting your product tried by a potential customer. People love anything FREE and will be able to use it and see how they like it before having to spend money themselves. Excellent for a large customer base so they can see the overall savings and value of a product. But can be a useful tool by anyone really.
11-2 Pro - this would be a great way for a large account to try out the product and to be able to compare your product with what they are presently using. By doing a study they can see how much they are losing or saving, and if things go your way you can get yourself a huge account that will be buying alot of your product. So, it is worth giving some product away then.
11-3 Absolutely I would use this approach! As I stated already people like FREE things, and since it is free people are more apt to try it. What better way to get your product into someone's hands to try especially non-believers! People hear so much nonsense on TV, etc that many times they do not believe what a sales person says. So, trying it themselves with out taking $$$ from their product gets them to try it, but it also makes them think about why someone would go to that extent of giving a product away, and that can get a trust going on!
Marilyn L. Ali