Marketing Ideas

Even with all the technological wonders available today, you still need to print business cards. Why, you may ask, should I print business cards when I can just e-mail all my contact information? Here are just a couple of reasons why the business card is still so important:

• Personal touch - With all the digital dealings and electronic exchange of information, you need a way to connect on a personal level with your customers. Something as simple as business cards can make a world of difference and give your customers a point of connection that you just can’t make with an email.
• Generational gap - Not everyone is tech savvy. With generation X, generation Y, and the millennials all in the same work force, you need more than just one form of contact information sharing. Emails are invaluable. But many people, especially in upper levels of management, still rely on a Rolex and a book full of business cards to maintain their contact list.
• Brand recognition - Like any marketing manager will tell you, you need more than one medium on which to brand yourself. When people are exposed to your logo on the Internet, seeing the same logo on a business card works to reinforce their recognition of you. So, don’t neglect the business card as a method for exposing your customers to your corporate identity.

Don’t phase the card out just yet. You still need to print business cards. Your customers want to connect with you on a personal level, many of your customers do not rely on emails for contact information, and the business card provides one more opportunity to reinforce your brand. These reasons alone are enough to keep the business card around for many years to come.

No one buys anything from a person or business he doesn’t trust. You wouldn’t buy a car from a dealer you thought was ripping you off, or from a salesperson who you thought wasn’t being honest with you, right?

Most people have always gone into a skeptical mindset when they make big-ticket items, like televisions and cars, but that skepticism is leaking into smaller purchases too. With all of the hyped-up advertising, with promises that can’t be delivered, you can’t really blame consumers for being cautious.

It’s precisely this reason that you need to use marketing techniques that put customers’ minds at ease. Here are a few ways to get trust from your customers, which is a first step to making any sale:

Testimonials
People believe what other customers have to say about you and your product more than they’ll believe what you have to say.

Using testimonials in your catalogs, brochures and other marketing materials is what will convince people that your product is the best, that it works and that it won’t break.

Get testimonials by asking customers what they liked about your product or service and how it helped them. Ask if you helped them solve a problem – these kinds of benefit testimonials work especially well. Write down their comments, and get their written permission to use them. It helps if you offer a discount or something valuable in exchange for their time. But, be sure you get the testimonial before you offer the discount or you might be called out for bribing your customers!

Write articles to establish yourself as an expert
Writing free articles for your local newspaper or magazine can be a great source of getting trust from the community. Write about what you know – your industry or your type of product – but don’t only talk about you and your product. In fact, it’s best if you don’t mention your affiliation at all in the article. Your name, occupation and/or business name will most likely be in the credit line. You might also get a headshot to accompany the article. People want to buy from those they think are knowledgeable – knowledge equals trust.

Ask for referrals
Give out your business cards to your customers and ask if they know anyone who might need your service. You can also ask your friends and family to ask their friends and family for referrals. Also, try some networking events like social industry dinners – they can be great places to strike up a conversation and find someone that might need your product, or knows someone that might need your product.

Personalize your direct mail
Use people’s names on letters and postcards – people will be more apt to read something that is addressed to them by name rather than to “Dear customer.” You trust someone that you know personally, and using names are an easy way to evoke trust. Also, try to get to know your target market – whether they have kids, pets, etc. and use that info in your direct mail pieces. “Now that your kids are about to go back to school …”. Make people think your direct mail is talking directly to them.

Lastly, once you establish a contact, keep following up periodically. Once a month or once every other month is good – enough for them to remember you, but not enough to annoy them. Once you earn consumers’ trust, the rest of the sales process is much easier!

 

When people first start a new job or start a new business, when do they feel like they have officially “arrived”? Usually, it’s when they get their business cards! Getting your nice new business cards is an exciting time – for some reason seeing your name on a small piece of cardstock with your title and contact info is enthralling.

 

If you’re just starting up a new business or you’ve changed jobs and need to get new business cards printed, your basic options for where to get these cards is a traditional brick-and-mortar printing company, or an online business card printing company.

For this post, I’ll go with the online company for the following reasons:

Online companies are generally cheaper. They’ll save you money, plain and simple. They generally have less overhead costs and may not need as many employees. The savings the company gets by employing only a few people to multitask are forked over to you.

You have a plethora of options. You generally have many more designs and templates to choose from when you shop online.

You’ll get your cards faster. Online companies can start printing orders right away, so there isn’t as much backlog. A small backlog means you get your order quicker. Also, many processes are automated, so the process can get started overnight, without anyone having to run the equipment.

It’s convenient. You can shop and order at any time of day. You can shop in the comfort of your pajamas if you want to! Plus, with the rising gas prices you won’t have to drive to pick up your cards or to check out the proof – everything can be emailed or mailed directly to you.

You and your business are very much alike in many aspects. For example, both would end up lonely and unfulfilled without any friends. A company builds its group of friends through networking.

Networking can come in many forms and fashions. Most popular today are the various networking opportunities existing online. There is a long list of possibilities in this arena. Some include cross promotional arrangements, newsgroup participation and social networking site membership. The Internet can provide for a large and rapidly developed network.

However, just like you, your business needs to also step out into the real world. A popular venue for flesh and blood interaction is trade shows. They often present a great forum to distribute your color business card far and wide. Business card printing rates allow for you to be quite liberal in their distribution versus other possible marketing materials.

After you have developed a wide network it is critical not to ignore it. Just like with friends in your personal life, your business friends need attention as well. Build and nourish your company's network and the dividends will quickly become evident.

Budgeting wisely is a necessary evil for businesspeople. Survival depends on cash flow and revenue and expenditures. As a businessman, I am intimately familiar with trying to come up with innovative ways to make the numbers work.

I have learned (the hard way) that there are some areas where cutting costs doesn’t always pay off. One of those areas is in product promotion. I used to try to save money by using cheaper companies to do my newsletter printing and brochure printing. At times, I even used black and white literature, and I even gave those awful things to customers!

As I said, though, I have learned. I have learned that spending more on quality literature now always means more revenue later. So now I always go with a good printing company. I always have full color newsletters and brochures, and even full color business cards. The results are tremendous.

If I can convince other young entrepreneurs to learn from my mistake before making it themselves, I will be a very happy man. So please take my word for it: cutting corners on printing your promotional material will do nothing but hurt your pocketbook.