Are you taking the safe middle ground in business?

If you are - you need to read my comments.

As I write this the news about the death Steve Jobs of Apple has taken over the media. A question; do you think that all of what Steve Jobs and Apple did over the past decade was playing it safe? Of course not!

So why are you playing it safe. If you continue to act and look like your competition, then you will be considered to be the same as your competition. To my knowledge no one has made an impact on the world of business by playing it safe.

For years I have spoken about ‘marketing to the edge’. This is what you need to do now. It is all about finding your edgy proposition and promoting the heck out of it. How else will you ever be noticed?

To get assistance in ‘marketing to the edge’ contact me at 519-539-2267 or timothygibney@sympatico.ca. In the e-mail subject area please type ‘marketing to the edge’.

Why don’t you take the first step today?

Is a post card better to use than a brochure in your marketing?

This was a question asked by a business man to a graphic artist at a workshop I was attending.

I listened closely, and then the artist said ‘A post card is always better.’ I did not say a thing because the man asking the question only could think about pictures. So in a way the artist was right. In a big way the artist was wrong.

I know that you should always try to help the client get what they want. But what this business man wanted was a way to promote the uniqueness of his business. A nice picture on the front of a postcard with a few words on the reverse side of the card would not be able to explain the uniqueness of what he offered.

A picture may say a thousand words to a client, but are the words it is saying the words you want to be said?

You can’t leave your message up to the thoughts of the client – you’ve got to tell them your message. The only way you can do that is with your words.

Does your marketing really tell the prospects what you are all about?

Are you competing on price?

Maybe it’s time to re-think that strategy.

As you know, if you discount you are lowering your profit level. Are there alternatives to a lower price strategy?

Consider these ideas;

• Develop or sell only ‘one of a kind’ products or services. When I was in the manufacturing and retail business many years ago, this is how we were able to succeed.
• If you have services that are very unique, what about combining them with a product. That way you can sell the product and increase your bottom line.
• Have a limited amount of the products you sell. When there is scarcity there is demand. The great thing about this is - with demand the price is never discounted.
• Build your reputation, if you haven’t done it by now, please start. This is because once your reputation is built as a top of the line business - discounting is not requested.

By implementing one of these ideas you will take you business to the next level. This means that you will have upgraded you business. You will have taken it out of the annoyance of competing on price.

So when can you start to sell value instead of selling on price?

Is this customer service?

Recently I called my auto dealer to book an oil change.

It was noon hour when I called to book an oil change on my car. The person who picked up the phone stated “You called at the wrong time.” I responded by saying “Isn’t this the service department?’ The person responded “Yes.” My response was “Please book me in for an oil change.” The person told me that I would have to call back and gave no further explanation.

I bring this customer service fiasco up because I am sure that it has happened more that one time lately. So how can you avoid this type of situation in your business?

I know that it all comes down to one action – communication. This communication means that everyone is aware of what is going on and what needs to be said if there is a concern. This communication includes training everyone who can and may pick up your office phone on how to do it. This communication includes showing scripts to all the staff and making sure that they practice the scripts so that situations like I’ve described don’t happen.

When will you take action to avoid this type of customer service?

How do you get attention with your advertising?

How do you get your prospects to read what you’ve put into your ad?

Years ago I attended a seminar with the late Charlie Mouser. He was an internationally known lecturer and editor. For years he spoke to associations and business people all over North America. He was known for his ability to detect business trends far ahead of most. He was also considered an authority on newspaper and print advertising.

I will always remember what he said regarding headlines. He said the only 3-word headline that ever worked was ‘Free Beer Tonight’. He went on to say that you need at least 9 words to grab the attention of a reader.

Now this was said 24 years ago. What bothers me the most is that business people are still using 3-word headlines in their marketing even though it will not grab the attention of any of the readers. I know that the reason business owners are still following this bad practice is that they are not evaluating the results of their marketing efforts. I say that because if they did evaluate the results they would find out that what they are doing now doesn’t work.

When are you going to evaluate the results of your marketing? The financial future of your business is at stake.