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Market your biz by sponsoring printed items
By Tom Falco (c) 2003
One great way to get exposure for your
business is by sponsoring certain printed
items.
For instance, I recently moved and it was
interesting to see all the junk mail I
received from mortgage companies, banks,
movers, etc. Annoying, but interesting.
I noticed a few places were very clever
in their advertising and marketing
techniques.
I received a bunch of change of address
cards to send to friends and relatives
and on the back of the cards was an ad
for various businesses. So each time
I would send a card out, that business
would have their messages seen by my
friends and relatives.
This is a very clever way to get someone
to actually mail your ads out for you.
It doesn't cost them a dime in postage
and none of the cards will be returned
address unknown since you are sending the
cards to people you know.
I got free cards to send and the advertiser
got free advertising. All they did was pay
for the cost of printing the cards.
My realtor gave me a sheet of return address
labels with the address of my new house.
These had my name and address and under that
in small print it mentioned: "Courtesy of
ABC Realty". So each time I used the stickers,
the realtor got a his name out there as well.
We sell various U.S. flag items including a
very popular bumper sticker with the U.S.
flag and the saying "These colors don't run."
We sell thousands of these.
On the side of the sticker in very small
letters is our web address:
www.TheDiscountPrinter.com .
I am sure that when someone is asked where
they got the bumper sticker, they can
easily refer their friend to our website
since it is right there on the sticker.
To order stickers like this, please see:
http://www.thediscountprinter.com/flagitems.htm
There are many clever ways to get your name
out there. We welcome your ideas.
Let us know what you have done to get your
business name out into the public.
Mailto:ezine@xpectmore.com
ARE YOU ACCESSIBLE BY PHONE?
By Tom Falco
http://www.XpectMore.com
Many people will not do business with people
on the internet unless they have a phone number.
Are you scaring people away by not having a phone
number readily available?
It's a proven fact, if your website does not offer
information like telephone numbers, street addresses
or more, people will shy away feeling that you are
not reputable. Unfortunately many scammers on the
internet have made people leery.
It is understandable that you don't want to receive
phone calls especially if your website does not require
that you do. But the phone number eases people's fears
and you'll honestly see business improve if you don't
appear to be so aloof. 99% of the web surfers won't call.
They just like to know that they can.
I have tried to even email many websites with a question
and some don't even have email addresses or any way to
contact them. This is hard to believe but true.
We just attempted to add our ezine to an ezine list site
but the site had no email or phone numbers listed and we
could not ask a question, so we passed them up. It appeared
to us that all they were interested in was harvesting
email addresses. This may not be so, but who knows, they
didn't appear reputable to me without even so much as an
email link -- the number one way to communicate on the web.
Guess they didn't want to be bothered. Well neither did I
so I just clicked off their site.
We get calls all the time at our on-line printing company
from people who just want to "see if we are real." They
actually say that on the phone. Then they hang up and
place their order at our site. True fact.
So one little 20 second phone call reaps us lots of business
in the long run.
Try it. Add your phone number today. See what happens.
This article may be reprinted with
permission by including the
resource box in its entirety at the bottom of the article.
--------------------------------------------------------
Tom Falco is editor of XpectMore.com eZine
and also owns: http://www.TheDiscountPrinter.com
To subscribe to XpectMore.com Marketing eZine
mailto:ezine@xpectmore.com?subject=subscribe
or visit: http://www.XpectMore.com
=============================================
HOW TO SWAP LINKS AND GET RESULTS
By Tom Falco (c) 2002
We have gone over this in another issue,
but it seems to be a very popular idea that
people ask about all the time.
One of the best ways to get new business and
hits to your website is by swapping links with
similar sites. They don't have to be direct
competitors, but similar sites compliment each
other well.
If you sell wedding gowns, why not link with
a site that sells wedding invitations or
wedding photography?
If you office supplies, why not trade with a site
that sells printing or office furniture.
One thing you should not do is link one of those
free for all links things where everyone and anyone
links to everyone else with no rhyme or reason.
We sell promotional calendars. They are already
designed and made with photos of various things
and we just print the customer's logo, name or
whatever at the bottom.
Daily we are asked by people if we make calendars
from scratch, using their own photos. We don't.
So we sought out someone who does and we
swapped links.
Now we send people to the other site who will
print their calendars from scratch and they send
people to us who require standard desk and wall
calendars already printed with theme photos and
who just want their personal info at the bottom.
You can set up a link on your site on one page
for all links, or if you sell various things you can
set up a link on that page. Just call the page
"Our Friend," or "Visit Our Friends" or "Our
Partners."
We sell lots of party items like printed napkins,
glasses, matches, etc. and on that page we
link to other party places that set up parties,
sell "parties in a box," rent tents, etc. We all
compliment each other and get more business
as the end result.
It's simple to do. Just check out complimentary
websites. Use your imagination. If you sell
pet supplies, you can easily swap links with
pet trainers, pet photographers, pet sitters and
so on. All these compliment your site without
having the same product.
Email the webmaster or contact person, usually
the business owner. Explain to them the link
swapping idea.
It is usually a good idea to check their site to
see if they already swap links. If they do, then
this is for you. If there are very many similar
links to yours you may not want to swap, but
usually the competitors will only help, not
hinder your business.
Suggest a swap in your email to the owner and
explain the concept. Tell them the page you will
place their link on and it is usually a good idea
to even have the link there already set up before
you even inquire about the swap. Usually a
person will not turn you down if they see you already
have placed them in good trust on your site.
This article may be reprinted with
permission by including the
resource box in its entirety at the bottom of the article.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Tom Falco is editor of XpectMore.com eZine
and also owns: http://www.TheDiscountPrinter.com
To subscribe to XpectMore.com Marketing eZine
mailto:ezine@xpectmore.com?subject=subscribe
or visit: http://www.XpectMore.com
============================================
CONSTANT CUSTOMER CONTACT
"BRANDS" YOUR BUSINESS
By Tom Falco
http://www.XpectMore.com
Are you making constant contact with clients,
customers or future customers?
As you know, it is very important to keep your
name or business name in front of prospects.
They say that it takes up to nine times for a
person to see your name before they will do
business with you. So your name is pretty
important!
Corporations do it all the time. Everywhere you
look you see logos of corporate giants. How many
times today did you see the "swoosh" from Nike
or the Coca Cola logo? This is branding at its best.
You need to do this for your business. In your own
way. You don't have to go broke doing it.
The simplest way is through contact, i.e.: email, fax,
snail mail, etc.
When someone contacts you through email, it is important
to respond quickly and efficiently. Make sure you
have a great signature and lead them to your website
or business. Give them all the information they will
need: street address or web address or phone number or
all of that information depending on how your business
is run.
Many times, one email will lead to two or three or more
with the same person. Keep it going! Keep in contact
without SPAMMING! Make sure each email has your company
name prominent. Don't rely on your return email address.
Mention the name of the company in the email body copy.
Something like: "Thank you for contacting www.abcdefg.com"
or "We at www.abcdefg.com would like to thank you for
contacting us..." Mention the name and put links so that
if they need to, they can go right to the site
without a problem. Lead them!
Fax is very good, too.
We give a lot of quotes on printing. People need custom
quotes all the time for post-it notes or labels or
whatever.
We usually fax them a quote, rather than email.
A fax is more permanent. A fax can have your actual
company logo and slogan. It can list your products and
services. A fax can be seen by others, where email most
likely is only seen by the one person who receives it.
A fax can be copied and sent around the office. A fax can
be seen sitting on a person's desk. Each time this fax is
glanced at, your logo, slogan, company info. is seen too.
We have actually made sales on items mentioned at the bottom
of our faxes. They would call and say, "I see you print
pens, can you give me more info?" And this is just because
we listed a bunch of products at the bottom of the main
cover sheet of the fax.
Another great way to keep in touch is by sending invoices.
If a person purchases from us and does not go through the
shopping cart on our website, where they automatically
receive an invoice in email, we will fax and then send them
an invoice in snail mail.
We require payment in advance for our products, so they
already have paid by check or credit card, so the invoices
are marked "paid in full" but we send them so they have
them for their records. And we send them twice. Once by
fax and one by snail mail.
Our invoices also have small ads on them and of course
our company logo. So they are seeing our "brand" each
time they see the invoice. They also appreciate the quick
faxed invoice and love when they receive an original
hard copy in the mail. (Also, our logo and brand name are
on the envelope, so this helps, too).
I can go into ad specialties like pens, mouse pads, post-it
notes, etc. but that is another way of branding.
But through email, fax and snail mail, you should be able
to keep your name in view of clients and potential clients.
In a future issue, I'll explain how simple post-cards can
get you tons of responses and customers. I'll explain how
to cheaply have them produced and what to put on them. What
color stock to use and how to test them.
This article may be reprinted with permission by including the
resource box in its entirety at the bottom of the article.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Tom Falco is editor of XpectMore.com eZine
and also owns: http://www.TheDiscountPrinter.com
To subscribe to XpectMore.com Marketing eZine
mailto:ezine@xpectmore.com?subject=subscribe
or visit: http://www.XpectMore.com
-----------------------------------------------------------------
ARE YOU BRANDING YOURSELF?
By Tom Falco
http://www.XpectMore.com
Are you placing your email address and URL on
all correspondence?
Many people forget to add this to important
mailings and even their business cards.
Today, most people prefer to email messages than
make phone calls, so it is very important to have
your email address on all letters, invoices and
business cards.
Make sure your URL (web address) is on everything
that you send out. Keep "branding" your business.
Keep that URL out where it can be seen.
It's not enough to have your phone number and fax
number on your business cards or letterheads. Add
your email address and URL if you have one.
It's important also to have a signature on all
emails that go out. There is a cool free "signature writing"
service at: http://www.TheDiscountPrinter.com/freeads.htm
check it out.
Don't be left behind. Promote and brand your business
every chance you get. It's the professional thing to do.
Some say it takes up to nine times for people to see your
name before they will do business with you. If that is
true, then it's very important to have your name and
email address out there.
Try to encourage email exchanges. The more emails you have
going back and forth, the more credibility you will build
in your potential clien't head.
Offer something free. Make people email you for information.
This way you are opening the door to email correspondence
without spamming. Your goal should be to have the person
email you first asking for information or just a simple
question. Once the ball starts rolling, your various email
exchanges can easily turn into sales.
It's important to have a pop account or an account that
reflects your company or website.
Using generic @aol.com or @hotmail.com really puts a damper
on your look and makes you appear unprofessional. Plus,
when you email a person with your own private "branded"
email address, you are actually advertising your company
just by the mere action of sending a message.
Joe@bikeseller.com sounds better than joe@aol.com
Or Mary@thegiftstore.com is much better than mary@hotmail.com.
Isn't it?
Brand yourself. Brand your business. Do it today.
This article may be reprinted with permission by including the
resource box in its entirety at the bottom of the article.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Tom Falco is editor of XpectMore.com eZine
and also owns: http://www.TheDiscountPrinter.com
To subscribe to XpectMore.com Marketing eZine
mailto:ezine@xpectmore.com?subject=subscribe
or visit: http://www.XpectMore.com
PRINTING TIPS:
How to get the best quality
By Tom Falco (c) 2002
We often talk about different printed products
that could be used for marketing your business
from business cards to printed pens, frisbees, etc.
But many people seem to have a difficult time
setting up the image they would like printed.
When ordering on-line printing. or any printing
for that matter, it is best to follow the guidelines
of the printer. Ask about their printing specs
and what they want before you submit your
artwork.
Standard files for printing include: EPS files
"outlined" or vector. Also Illustrator files
as vector files. These are the best.
Vector "outlined" files are preferable
because they actually turn the fonts (typefaces)
into "art", eliminating the problem of font matching.
When you send someone a file, their
computer will open it using the fonts they
have installed on their system. Even web
pages work that way. So to ensure that
the font you desire is being printed, save
all your work as vector files or "outlined".
By turning the fonts into "art" they actually
transform from a typeface into a line image
which will open correctly on anyone's
computer system.
Another way to save files is to save them
as TIF files. Unlike GIF and JPG files, these
are higher quality and can be saved with
resolutions as high as 1200 dpi, whereas
GIF and JPG files are very low resolution
(only 72 dpi.).
JPG and GIF files will not work for quality
printing. They are great to send as email
attachments and use for website viewing,
but they are very poor quality for printing.
Many of the printing programs now, allow
you to save the files as TIF or EPS. When
designing for professional print jobs, it is
imperative that you provide the best quality.
Remember the old computer adage:
"Garbage in, garbage out." There is no way
to clean up sloppy low resolution artwork.
If you want quality, you need to provide quality.
This article may be reprinted with permission by including the
resource box in its entirety at the bottom of the article.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Tom Falco is editor of XpectMore.com eZine
and also owns: http://www.TheDiscountPrinter.com
To subscribe to XpectMore.com Marketing eZine
mailto:ezine@xpectmore.com?subject=subscribe
or visit: http://www.XpectMore.com
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