| |
| |
|
Online Advertising |
Guaranteed Targeted Website Visitors from just $0.45 per 1000. 24 Hour Unique Visitors, Online Stats, 30 Day Guaranteed. We offer Country Targeted or Mainstream Traffic at wholesale cost.: CLICK HERE |  |
|
|
Target Your Market
Your market is not everybody, as so many small businesses assume. It is the people/organizations who need, want, have the money--and the willingness--to pay for what you are offering. Identifying them can be complicated and expensive, or it can be relatively painless and cheap. How much do you need to know about them? Enough to have all the clues on how to reach them, and what to say, when you do. Finding your target is vital, so whatever method you choose, do it properly and test your assumptions. Research The best place to start is with what you already know. What does your company know about its clients? Do you already have a perfect client--the one you wish you had more of? Examine their demographics. Who are they, where are they, what are they spending, what are they earning, how many employees do they have? And any other information that may help you build a clear picture. Now, identify what need your product or service is fulfilling. Who needs your product or service the most? What industry are they in? Where are they located and how can you reach them? Further Research Once you have exhausted your internal research, go further. Interview potential prospects. Ask questions that deal with the benefits you bring: Is there a need? Is there awareness of your type of offering? Try to identify any unfulfilled needs: price, service or other benefits. See if there are any weaknesses in the competition. If all those you survey are happy with their present supplier, you should ask yourself if is this the right target. If you are targeting specific industries, read their trade magazines and investigate their associations. Associations often publish directories with statistics concerning their members. These can be found in your local library. Boards of trade put out listings of their members, divided into services provided. Business directories are invaluable. They list businesses geographically and according to industry sector. They also give you the products offered, the number of employees, sales figures and the principles involved. Armed with this information, you can survey a number of these potential targets to confirm they are in need of your benefits. Remember, these are not sales calls. Ask for 5 minutes of their time, and ask only non-sales questions. Simply gather data and thank them for their time. Resist pitching yourself. You now have an idea of who your target is and where they are, but what are they thinking? How much do they know and what do they need to know? This brings you to the world of Psychographics. Psychographics don't come from Jo Jo the Psychic reading your target's mind (although, it would be nice). They relate to how your target thinks about certain issues, and the way they do business. Much of this information comes from studying your potential targets. Put yourself in their shoes. Talk their language, think their thoughts, feel their emotions, respond to their cues. To catch a fish you have to think like a fish. If this all sounds daunting, you may want to hire a research company. This can be expensive, but if you don't have the skills, time or the inclination to do it yourself, it's perfect. Any research company worth its salt can identify your target down to the colour of their underwear (if they wear any). The tighter your focus, the more effective your materials can be. All your prospects have different levels of awareness of your type of product/ service. Using Capstone's Awareness Scale?, divide your potential prospects into three groups: 1. Those who are unaware of the existence or the benefits of your type of product/ service. This is the Educational Target. 2. Those who are aware but unsure or unconvinced. This is the Doubter Target. 3. Those who are convinced and buying. This is the Differentiation Target. Once you define your ideal prospect, you're set. This perfect buyer falls in the middle of a bell curve of prospects with similar wants and needs. The positioning and communication strategies and tactics you develop to sell this prospect will apply to most of your prospects. Keith Thirgood, Creative Director Capstone Communications Group Helping businesses get more business through innovative marketing Markham, Ontario, Canada 905-472-2330 Subscribe to Thrive-on-line http://list.capstonecomm.com/mail.cgi?f=list&l=thrive_on_line
MORE RESOURCES:
|
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Value Proposition is the Key to Success Value proposition is treated as the standards or service that the organization is planning to offer or deliver to targeted group of customers with the help of some effective strategic planning.In today's multifaceted technologically driven and extreme competitive business atmosphere, the ability to successfully run your business and to have precise and timely insight into the business performance through value proposition, is the key to success. Business Cards and Business Etiquette One of the very basic conditions of being a successful businessman is to get people (your existing or prospective customers) to like you and a very basic requirement for being liked by people is to have proper business etiquette. We all like to be in companionship of well-cultured people and etiquette is one of the most important components of culture. CD ROM Business Cards - Offline Marketing For Online Promotion It's a great concept, - and it has a 'cool factor' of 300%!Many people will pop these into their drive just because of image appeal alone. What's really neat is when one is so well done, so informative, so interactive, that everybody wants one. Marketing to Success on a ZERO Budget TOP 10 TIPS TO GET YOU MARKETING TO SUCCESS ON ZERO DOLLARS!I come across so many people that absolutely freak out when they think about having to market their business. Heaps of questions come up like, 'Where do I start?', 'I hate selling', 'How do I market my business when I don't have any money?'?. How to Give Your Biz a Boost with a Summer Marketing Makeover Are you on track for hitting all your business goals for the year? A quick check-up of your promotional efforts can reveal "week spots" and help identify what needs tweaking to give your business a healthy boost in the next few months. Here are five key areas to focus on with your mid-year marketing makeover. Customers Are Like Vampires No, customers aren't bloodsuckers (well, maybe a few are!) and they don't come out only at night. According to legend, vampires don't come in until they are invited. Want to Increase Your Business? First You Need to Understand where You are at! Are you having trouble understanding basic situational marekting concepts? Then this article is for you.Alex Margarit shows you a simple step by step way on how to put together a basic situational analysis. Marketing Ideas Without Action Will Get You Nowhere! Marketing Ideas Without Action Get You NowhereYou want to grow your small business, but how do you do that? Many of the small businesses I work with are not really sure what works best, or how, or where to get started.We're all familiar with the term Marketing, but what in the heck is it really supposed to do for us?* Build brand awareness * Build name recognition * Increase market share * Get more clients * Generate referrals * Create more repeat businessMaybe you've tried some things in the past like brochures, yellow pages advertising, Chamber of Commerce networking but were disappointed with the results so you stopped doing them. The Art Of Writing Classified Ads The writing of good classified ads truly is an art that needs to be learned and perfected. Depending on the type of business you run, the development of a good classified ad can boost your annual sales by an average of £5,000 to £20,000 or more. Putting Your Website to Work Websites have replaced the brochure as the "must have" marketing tool for businesses large and small. While virtually every business has a website, few are harnessing the potential of their websites and the Internet in general to promote and grow their businesses. The 3 Unknown Steps of Marketing Success To be your own marketing expert you first need to know where to begin. It's no good learning how to be a good copywriter, if you don't know what medium is best to promote your work through. Six Secrets to Creating Successful Tourism Marketing, Websites, Ads, Tradeshow Booths, & More If you want to substantially increase your tourism prospects and sales without a lot of effort and expense, then read on and prosper. You are going to learn the power and impact of the written word. Marketing Lessons from Santa If a nonexistent man can change the world and millions of people with a message of joy then his marketing plan surely works. Right? Then what has Santa been doing right all these years that we can learn from? Santa's message is short--joy. The Key to Success Good business is about communication.. Educating Your Customers One of the biggest marketing mistakes businesses make today is failing to educate their prospects and customers about the unique advantages that are being offered to them. The cornerstone of any marketing plan should be to educate your customers. Top Five Tips For Designing Marketing Strategies That Get Results "But this won't work" said Steve. "I've tried it in the past and had no response. Four Simple Ways to Cut Your Trade Show Marketing Budget in Half Many times when a trade show is planned for there isn't someone who watches the budget and tracks where the money goes. But, if you do want to know where your trade show marketing dollar goes and want to do better, this article is for you. 8 Instant Ways to Create Consistently Successful Marketing Campaigns It's almost a given that when I speak to a new client, she tells me how much she's always hated marketing herself. "I'm no good at it" and "No matter what I try, it doesn't work" are common complaints. Direct Mail Marketing Generates Sales Leads: Heres How 1. Personal Unlike an advertisement in a trade publication, which can be read by anyone, your sales letter arrives at your prospect's place of business as a piece of personal communication from your mind to his. The Importance of Business Marketing Business marketing is one of the most important parts that your business needs to be addressed with careful attention and proactive thoughts. In last decade or so, the importance of business marketing has increased volcanically, as the advent of Internet and online business has ushered a whole new era in business.
|
| home | site map | bad credit loans |
| SUBJECTS: • Advertising • Book Marketing • Domain Names • Email Marketing • Ezine Marketing • Ezine Publishing • Internet Marketing
|