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We hope you find this arcthve useful. A subscription to The Small Business Advisor Newsletter is free. Subscribe now - it's easy! The Small Business Advisor Newsletter for July, 1997 CONTENTSNotes, tips, etc Build Sales & Profits Fast With Simple Postcards Getting Started In Your New Business Get Free Publicity Book Review - Law for Dummies 8 Steps To Sure-Fire Advertising Your Existing Customer Base Copyright And Intellectual Property ++++++++++++++++++++++++ NOTES/TIPS/etc BACKING UP YOUR COMPUTER DATA.
Here is a tip worth its weight in gold: Be sure to TEST your backups by
attempting to recover one of the saved files. Better you find out it doesn't
work now! http://www.m-w.com/netdict.htm
http://www.columbia.edu/acis/bartleby/bartlett/
http://www.thesaurus.com/
http://www.almanac.com/
http://www.refdesk.com/
http://www.biography.com/
++++++++++++++++++++++++ BUILD SALES & PROFITS
FAST WITH SIMPLE POSTCARDS For nearly 30 years I've used postcards to develop new business. They work even better today than in the past. That's probably because they satisfy the need today to get information quickly and easily. Postcards are one of the most effective tools you can use to build your business. They're low-cost and simple to use. You get results in just a few days. And, you can control the flow of responses to avoid "feast or famine" sales activity. Let's look at some benefits of using postcards to build your business. SAVE MONEY ON POSTAGE. The current postage for mailing a postcard is 20 cents. Yet, the U S Postal Service will process postcards just like First Class Mail. That's 1/3 less than the cost of a letter or self-mailer without losing any of the benefits of First Class Mail service. SIMPLE AND EASY TO PREPARE. By sending postcards you eliminate the work of folding, stuffing and sealing envelopes. You eliminate the cost of buying envelopes. You also substantially reduce the cost for paper and printing. You don't even need to spend a lot of time developing your promotional message. A brief "benefits stressing" message requiring a response for more information works best. Developing the message for a postcard is a lot like writing a classified ad. You probably already have an ad that could easily be used for your postcard message. Your postcards can be mailed within a few days of your decision to use them. And, in less than a week you will know your results. There are a few postal regulations for postcards concerning size, paper thickness and paper color. The minimum size for a postcard is 3 1/2 inches high by 5 inches long. The maximum size is 4 1/4 inches high by 6 inches long. A standard 4 x 6 index card can be mailed at the postcard rate. A 3 x 5 index card cannot be mailed because it is less than the minimum size of 3 1/2" x 5". A standard 8 1/2"x 11" sheet of index stock paper cut into 4 equal pieces will produce four 4 1/4 x 5 1/2 postcards that qualify for postcard postage. The minimum paper thickness is 0.007 inches and the maximum is 0.0095 inches. Don't try to figure out the technicalities of paper thickness. Just use paper with thickness similar to an index card and you will be well within specifications. For those who want to be more precise, use paper designated as 67# card stock (pronounced 67 "pound" card stock) or any paper designated as index stock. Paper used for a postcard can be any light color that does not prevent legible addresses and postmarks from being placed on the card. I've found light blue, light green, yellow, pink and tan/buff colors to be best. Postal Service regulations prohibit using "brilliant" colors. THE MAXIMUM NUMBER OF PEOPLE WILL READ AND RESPOND Perhaps the greatest single benefit of the postcard format is its ability to get the maximum number of people to actually read your offer. Your postcards should be simple and present an uncluttered appearance. A personal message that is brief and easy to grasp in a second or two will get up to 95% or more readership. It only takes a flip of the wrist to get the message. Because more people read the message on a postcard, more people will respond to a postcard mailing than any other format. The area for your message is limited by the size of the postcard. That's one reason why postcards are best used as the first step in a 2 step sales process where you're just looking for qualified responses in the first step. Postcards will increase the number of qualified, interested prospects coming to your business. You'll still have to close the sale. But, you'll have many more opportunities to close sales. Implementing a successful postcard mailing program begins by determining who you want to mail your postcards to. You need to find or compile a mailing list of qualified prospects for your postcard offer. But, that's another subject I'll cover in another article. (Bob Leduc recently retired from a 30 year career of recruiting sales personnel and developing sales leads. Contact him for several publications to help small businesses grow and prosper. Email: BobLeduc@aol.com Subject: "Postcards". Voice: (702) 658-1707, after 10 AM Pacific time) ++++++++++++++++++++++++ GETTING STARTED IN YOUR NEW
BUSINESS You're sick of working for somebody else. You think you can really do a better job than the person you are working for can. And, you have saved up the money you think you'll need to start your very own business. What's next? The next step is to decide what it is you want to be doing with your career. Be careful here. All too often I find that my clients have left a secure full time job, with benefits and all, only to find that what they have actually done is swap working for somebody else with working for themselves. Nothing has really changed for them except that they work longer hours and get paid much less! This is not the place you want to be. It's time to decide. But for most of us, decision-making is not an area where we are the strongest. Most of us actually spend the better part of our lives avoiding decisions! In order to make the right decision, it's important that you understand what it is you really want out of your life. Here's a quick way to find out. Ask yourself this question: If time, location, money, education, relationships, etc were of no consequence, what would you do with your life? Where would you live? How much money would you be making? What kind of car would you be driving? Who would your friends be? Who would you spend most of your time with? How many children would you have? Once you think of any answers to these questions, write them down! Now, answer these questions. Where are you right now as compared to where you want to be? How much are you earning right now? Who do you spend most of your time with? Are you in a relationship, or married? Where do you live? What kind of car do you drive? What you have just done is defined, in simple terms, where you are today and where you want to be tomorrow. All that's left is to decide how you're going to get there! To begin to understand what it will take for you to live your dreams, ask yourself these questions. What has to happen in order for me to earn the amount of money that I want to be earning? What type of work can I do that will fulfill my financial as well as my personal goals? What can I do today that will begin to bring me in that direction? Would starting my own business be the answer or would changing job be the right decision for me? You should now have a basic blueprint for not only what you really want out of life, but also and idea of what type of business or job you'll need to be in to get where you want to go. This is the "how." As long as you have the "what" and the "why," the "how" becomes the easiest part ofall. Your next move is to figure out the "how." If it's a business you've decided that you need to start, now is the time to go to the library and get all the information you can find about the industry. If you want a different job, you'll want to do research into what companies might offer that position. Prepare a resume that highlights only the education and experience that are pertinent to that specific position. Leave out anything that is not directly related to the position you are seeking. Why wait? Go register your business today! Write that resume today! Now is always the best time to take action. Don't make the mistake of waiting until "everything is just right," because life is dynamic and we are always in a state of constant change. There is no better time than the present! This is the very first part of achieving any goal. First, decide what it is you really want. Then, ask yourself why you want it. What will it give you? How will it make you feel? All that's left after that is figure out the mechanics, and that's the easy part. There are books written in every possible business or industry by people who have mastered the "how." Get those books and start doing whatever it is you need to be doing today in order to reach your goals! Write to me and let me know how you're doing. (Mr. Imbriale is a nationally recognized business coach specializing in business development. For a free telephone coaching session contact him at roberti@ix.netcom.com, http://www.amabiznet.com, or 516 754 9144.) ++++++++++++++++++++++++ GET FREE PUBLICITY
Some of the best advertising you can get is FREE. You can't buy it for any price. It's FREE media publicity. Get media coverage when you follow these simple guidelines. The other day a woman told me, "I don't think you can get on media unless you know somebody." Nothing could be further from the truth. Radio, TV, newspapers, magazines, newsletters, tabloids--all need a steady stream of good stories to present to their readers, listeners, and viewers. If the interesting, informative, funny stories suddenly dried up, media would be forced to go out of business. You can get media coverage when you supply media managers with the stories they need. What is there about your business that would interest your local TV news director or newspaper reporter? Perhaps you're a real success story that other people would want to copy. Maybe you've uncovered a time or money saving tip. Is your business involved in a public controversy or community improvement project? TV loves visually exciting events. Stage an event and make a call to the news room. Bottom Line:Make a media person's job easier, and you will get free media coverage. (For Kevin's free list of info-packed Special Reports and Tapes on marketing with media, write him at DrNunley@aol.com or call (801)253-4536.) ++++++++++++++++++++++++ BOOK REVIEW - LAW FOR DUMMIES "Law for Dummies" published by IDG Books contains over 350 pages of very practical legal advice. Author John Ventura does a good job covering a lot of territory. Although not specifically written for small business, there are a few pages covering business structures, taxes, and bankruptcy. The book is a good reference to use before calling on the services of an attorney and in fact, the book provides some good tips on selecting an attorney. Written is plain, easy to understand English (to legalese here!), you can determine when you should seek formal legal assistance in a wide variety of situations. Available in bookstores nationwide. $19.99 ++++++++++++++++++++++++ 8 STEPS TO SURE-FIRE ADVERTISING
Why advertise? After all, it costs money to buy ads, print brochures, create web sites, and other marketing tools. It takes a lot of time and effort to prepare good advertising - hiring outside creative help makes it even more costly. It's hard to know where to advertise and how much to spend. And it's frequently difficult to measure the results. Yet advertising in one form or another is vital to most businesses. Why? Because: *** YOUR COMPETITION ADVERTISES.
*** *** ADVERTISING TELLS CUSTOMERS
WHY THEY SHOULD BUY FROM YOU. *** *** ADVERTISING GIVES OLD
CUSTOMERS NEW REASONS TO BUY FROM YOU. *** *** ADVERTISING INCREASES
THE AMOUNT EACH CUSTOMER SPENDS. *** ***ADVERTISING STIMULATES
RETAIL TRAFFIC. *** *** ADVERTISING BUILDS YOUR
BUSINESS. *** FOLLOW THESE 8 STEPS TO CREATE FORCEFUL ADVERTISING 1. Focus on one message.
2. Talk to "you."
3. Start with your biggest
gun. 5. Ask for action.
6. Include vital information.
7. Pay attention to design.
Now, sharpen your pencil and your mind. Single out the most important idea for the ad, brochure, mailer, web site or other advertising tool you are about to compose. What graphics can you use to illustrate this? What strong, motivating words can you use to convey it? Good luck! (This is from BIG IDEAS BULLETIN authored by Binnie Perper, Copywriter & Creative Director, Writing By Design, Ferndale, WA. Binnie works by phone, fax and e-mail with clients throughout the country, as well as through graphics designers and marketing consultants. Contact her at 1-800-583-4-WBD, via E-mail at writing4u@aol.com or Fax: 1-360-384-1468) ++++++++++++++++++++++++ YOUR EXISTING CUSTOMER BASE
In our daily business activities we are constantly trying to create sales to new customers. But something that we fail to do is talk to our existing customers, as they are free resources to create additional profits. Let's take a few moments and look at this marketing opportunity that many businesses fail to capitalize on. We all know it takes quite a bit of resources to create a new customer, especially online, as you are dealing with many issues. For example, a customer cannot drop into your business and look around or talk to you. All of the interaction you have with prospects and customers takes place online via email or by telephone. This makes trust and confidence harder to come by. Many of us make our buying decisions based on emotions and senses, especially using sound and sight. Since online business does not lend itself to using these senses, it takes a bit more time and effort to turn an interested prospect into a valued customer and once you have accomplished this it is much easier to go back to that customer and resale them. This is one of the most under utilized marketing opportunities in business today. Why do you think that you receive mailers from retail stores you have purchased from before in the form of preferred customer offers, because they understand this very powerful marketing tool. Existing Customers: How Do You Resale Them The most important tool in dealing with your customer base is communication. You need to let them know you appreciate their business and want them to purchase from you again. You have overcome the biggest obstacle of getting them to purchase your product in the first place, now offer them additional opportunities to purchase again and again. But how do you go about doing this? You need to develop a marketing plan for your customer base just as you did when you began offering your initial product for sale. Here are a few elements you need to develop in order to be successful. 1. Getting Your Customer To Buy More Of Your Product. Once your customer has determined that your product will fill their needs and they place an order, why not offer them more than 1. There are plenty of ways to offer multiple purchases. One of the most effective is to offer a bulk purchase discount. Offer a discounted price for the purchase of 2 or 5 or 10 units, whatever your product is best suited for. Remember here that you want to make the offer of multiple units attractive to your customer so they will take advantage of it. There needs to be a reward for them to spend more. Even though you may not receive as much profit margin per unit you are making additional profits for free so it doesn't hurt to lower your unit profit margin. 2. Getting Your Customer To Upgrade Their Product. Many businesses offer packages of products and this is an excellent opportunity to upgrade your customer. For example, you are offer a series of weight loss products that you sale for $29.99 each. Your customer wants to buy 2 of these products, why not offer them the opportunity to purchase more at a discounted price, offer them a price of $24.99 for a purchase of 5. This is a savings of $5.00 per product and $25.00 for the package. This creates a value to your customer and also creates more sales and profits for you. Just remember not to give your product away but you will need to create a value for your customer to change their purchase and upgrade. 3. Getting Your Customer To Purchase Additional Products. Most businesses offer more than 1 product and when you ship out your order to your customer why not include a flyer or an opportunity for your customer to buy additional products you offer. This can be a product catalog, a list or whatever means you want to present to your customer. Just make sure there is an additional offer along with their order. This customer has decided to purchase from you so make sure you give them the opportunity to purchase again from you. Repeat sales create more profits. 4. Getting Your Customer To Buy Again Immediately. This is the key to getting multiple purchases for your customers. You want them to reorder immediately. The best method for doing this is by offering your customers a preferred customer discount. But you must also make a time limit on the offer to get an immediate response, usually 30 days or less is what you want to offer. If you make the offer period too short the customer just will not respond and on the other hand if the offer period is too long then it doesn't create any urgency for them to order. 5. What To Do Before You Drop Them. Many businesses make the mistake of dropping their marketing efforts to their existing customers too quickly. I am not recommending that you hound your customers, but keep them informed of additional products, future offerings and the like. There are some very good methods you can use like a mailing list, either via email or regular mail, to all of your customers updating your products or services, telephone marketing, contests, or a free gift or information. Decide which method is best for you and make sure you contact these customers at least every 30 days so they remember who you are and what you are offering. Your customers will tell you if they don't want to be contacted again, but this usually doesn't happen very often if you are providing valuable information to them. The most important point, however, never remove them from your mailing unless you first tell them you are doing so. Don't assume they are not interested because they haven't purchased from you again, they might just be waiting for a better time financially or they don't need the other products at the present. You never know, tomorrow they might. 6. Develop Your Marketing Materials. This should be considered and developed before you begin marketing to your customer base. You want to take the time and decide on pricing, special offers, and how you are going to keep in touch with your customer base. Then write your special offers and sales materials and have them ready for your customers when they order. Also you want to decide how you are going to deliver these offers, via email, flyers, telephone, fax or mailing lists. You want to be flexible and try a few or all of these methods to find out which ones work best. I have found that flyers works very well when they are inserted with my books for multiple purchases or discounts for my other products. When you write your offers make sure you use the same techniques used in creating your initial offer. Hit the benefits and what they will do for your customer, use customer centered wording about what you and your products will do for them, and add customer centered testimonials of other happy customers of yours. These testimonials should be focused on the results that were achieved by those customers, what they got out of your product. 7. Start Today. Maybe you haven't been using this tool, it's not too late. Go back and contact those customers you have sold to before and re-acquaint yourself with them. Ask them how they have been doing and how they feel about your product. You might be surprised that not only will you get additional orders, but you will also get some very good testimonials. Don't be afraid to talk to your customers, if you build a good relationship with them they will become customers of yours for a long time to come. It's all too easy to forget about your current customer base. If you understand what is necessary to stay in contact with your existing customers and do what's necessary to resale and recapture customers your profit margins will increase significantly. I guarantee it! (Terry is the publisher of the "Internet Marketing Issues" a Bi-Weekly newsletter, books and information reports. Learn more about his books and other related information at his website: http://www.intersuccess.com/) ++++++++++++++++++++++++ COPYRIGHT AND INTELLECTUAL
PROPERTY Copyright is the protection by statute or common law that gives artists and authors the exclusive "right" to publish their works and/or to determine who else may publish their works. Copyright subsists for the life of the author, plus an additional fifty years after their death. Copyright does not cover ideas, concepts or information, but covers the way in which these ideas, concepts or information is put across, such as in literature, musical works, poetry and artwork. There is an international convention on copyright, called the Berne Convention, which ensures that works published within the various countries that signed the convention, are adhering to the same regulations. Recent amendments to Canadian Copyright Act provide easier access to artists and writers for compensation for use of their work by others. In common law, copyright is exclusively the domain of the creator, unless otherwise specified by contract or other legal instrument. However, copyright provisions may vary in an employer-employee relationship across some jurisdictions. Intellectual property, on the other hand, covers a range of issues that include, but extend beyond copyright, such as trademarks, patents, and even certain proprietary interests (e.g. trade secrets), that an individual or firm may have with respect to an invention, a symbol, a code or other form of expression, arising from one's work. Matters normally existing in nature, however used, cannot be patented for profit, but any combination or creation of natural matters, to produce a specific invention, symbol or concept, can be patented. If one is searching to explore possibilities for something they have invented, such as through `marketing' their invention to prospective manufacturers and wholesalers, it is important to register the patent first, have the other party sign a non-disclosure/restriction of use agreement, prior to discussing any further details with them. You want to make sure that any money that is earned on the invention is yours, and that you would be using part of this money to contract with the particular manufacturing or wholesaling firm to mass produce and distribute it. Appropriate legal counsel may be required to assist you in ensuring that everything is included in such an agreement. (Angela Browne is President & CEO, of The Management Group, a small business consulting & paralegal services business. For information, contact her at ceo@the-management-group.com) Return to top of page - Back to Home Page - Back to Archive Index |