THE FASTEST AND BEST WAYS TO GET BUSINESS
Need More Business? Here Are a Few Methods to Consider.
By Jeffrey Dobkin
PART TWO
If you'd like to increase your business, don't panic. There are many ways to attract more customers.
1. Create an Idea Sheet--I hate lists. But if you need new business, you should create a list of the best ways to get it. This is your road map. Start with a blank sheet of paper. Write down "where to look for new business" in a short "key word" or one-sentence format. Write down the best ways you've made sales in the past. Write down every idea for getting business you can think of, no matter how silly. Sorry, turn off the TV and radio when you're doing this.Finally, write down your best prospects, how you found them, and where you can find others that are similar. Allow one hour to do this initial writing. Let it sit for a couple of hours, then go back and add more ideas. Repeat this entire procedure two times. Finally, prioritize this entire list from best to worst, and engage.
2. Send a Letter--The most effective direct marketing sales tool--and my personal favorite--is a letter. If you can send just one business letter a day, I guarantee this will increase your business (if you can send two, so much the better). Eventually make it a goal to send five business-building letters a day (25 per week), and your business will flourish and grow. Definitely.
3. Pick up the Phone--Geez, I hate making phone calls. But if you want instant action, the phone is the first place to start. It's a necessity of business and of life
The phone as a sales tool is a mixed blessing. It's immediate, fast and powerful, and it's a much stronger medium for closing sales than a few sheets of paper. But it's time consuming. And you certainly can't contact 5,000 people a day like you can in a direct mail campaign. Not to mention call reluctance and burnout. Still in all, if you need immediate sales, call everyone you can think of "just to say hello."
Write a loose script so you'll have a few interesting things to say leading up to your request for new business or a referral to someone who may need your service or products. The pecking order for calls is--first call all your old accounts. These are the most likely candidates for continued business. Then call your most likely prospects from your best house list. Then pick up the phone and call a new prospect list you just bought or recently compiled. Keep all phone calls brief--under two minutes--until you smell a sale.
4. Join an Association--Whether you join the Possum Hunter's Club of North Jersey, The American Society of House Sitters, or the local Lion's Club, mixing with a fraternal bunch of guys (or ladies) who share the same interests and problems is always a good move. Ask successful people how they market. Co-op ad space or mailings with other newcomers. Share ideas. Learn what works and, as importantly, what doesn't. Learn about your industry from the trade associations bulletins, newsletters, and offers that are sent to members.
5. Go to Other Meetings--Need business immediately? What better way to get it than through an in-person presentation? Only one way to do that--show up. Attend events where you have a good chance to expose yourself to potential prospects. Everyone likes doing business with people in their own neighborhood, so try school board meetings, library meetings, business presentations or other groups, civic meetings, etc. For example, I went to a meeting for small press publishers and sold several copies of my book, HOW TO MARKET A PRODUCT FOR UNDER $500. I doubt anyone in the room said to themselves that morning, "Humm, I think I'll go to that meeting and buy Jeff's book." It happened because I was there. Check the newspapers and business journals published close to your home.
6. Get Trade Magazines--And read them. There's usually a column on marketing or getting new business in each. If the writer is great, get old copies and read his column. You may even stumble on some of my writing.
A subscription to most trade magazines is yours for the asking. You can subscribe free if you qualify. But a subscription may take six weeks to start, and we're talking IMMEDIATE help in this article. You can get a free sample of a magazine rushed to you first class (or priority mail) by calling the publisher and asking for a media kit (boy, my magazine publisher friends are going to hate me for saying this).
A media kit is an advertising package about their magazine that publishers send to potential advertisers. It includes their advertising rates, plus all the hype of why you should spend all your advertising money with them. When publishers get a call asking for a media kit, it gets sent right out--usually the same day. Make sure they include two recent copies of the magazine, and ask if they'll send you any directory issue they may publish.
Get the names, addresses and phone numbers of all the trade journals for your specific industry--find them at the library. When you get the package of advertising material in the media kit, check out the magazine audit page to find out if the magazine is sent free to qualified individuals. Never mind the paid subscription cards in the magazines. If others get it free, you can qualify, too (my publisher friends are really gonna hate me now).
7. Read This Book--For the other thousand tips on low-cost marketing techniques, read the book, HOW TO MARKET A PRODUCT FOR UNDER $500. It's almost 400 pages of easy-to-use, practical marketing methods. Oops--couldn't resist plugging my book. But if you need low-cost techniques on marketing and direct marketing, it's information-intense and filled with not just information, but solutions.
Jeffrey Dobkin is a speaker, direct mail copywriter, and marketing consultant. His book, HOW TO MARKET A PRODUCT FOR UNDER $500, is available from
Danielle Adams Publishing Company Box 100 Merion Station, PA 19066
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