August 25th, 2010
Welcome back to the second and final installment of our two-part series on updating your marketing materials.
5. Obsolescence?
Some companies continue to produce marketing materials that aren’t truly making any kind of impact, whether for closing sales or increasing publicity or spreading the word. Take a good look at all your marketing materials to see if any of them are truly obsolete. For example, if your staff no longer makes sales calls, then you can stop ordering print brochures, unless you plan to use them as a direct mail piece. If you discover that any of your methods or materials have become obsolete, cease using it and look for ways you can enhance whatever is working.
6. Efficacy of materials
Are you currently performing any kind of tracking to discover what materials are working (specifically, converting to sales or new clients) and which aren’t? In many cases, this can be as simple as asking a new client “how did you find out about us?” If the majority of your business is conducted online, there are many tracking methods that can be employed to track which sales are coming through which venues. By tracking your marketing methods, you can easily see which are working (and therefore, may warrant an even greater investment) and which are not (and may be retired or discarded). Ongoing communication with sales staff may also be useful in ascertaining which methods are working and which are not.
7. Input from staff
Speaking of the sales staff, be sure to communicate with your sales staff before discarding any seemingly ineffective materials (or before creating new materials). The staff has a unique viewpoint (and a vested interest) in participating in adjusting or creating new sales materials. Additionally, non-sales professionals can offer valuable feedback as well.
As usual, we trust you have found this information to be most useful. Got your own tips for updating marketing materials? Post your comments here or drop us a line.
Ready to order a rental projector for your next trade show, sales meeting, or company event? Ordering is as easy as 1-2-3 when you order from Projector123.com. Click here to get started and discover the Projector123.com difference today.
August 23rd, 2010
Unless this is your busiest time of year (which for most companies, it’s not), this is an ideal time to take an objective look at your marketing materials and ad campaigns and determine whether or not it’s time for an update. Ideally, marketing materials are designed to help you close more sales, attract more clients, and save time by explaining your products or services. Unfortunately, many companies neglect their marketing materials and send their sales force out with outdated, incorrect, or ineffective materials. Here are some key points to consider.
 1. Current data
First, take stock of what you’re currently using for marketing materials, how many copies you have on-hand, what it’s currently being used for, and at what frequency. Go through the materials to determine how much of the information is accurate and up-to-date.
2. Cost of an update
One of the factors you’ll surely want to consider throughout this evaluation process is how much it will cost you to update your materials. Online marketing is the easiest to change in an instant, and often changes are inexpensive. Conversely, print materials are often expensive (and can take awhile) to replace. However, for many businesses, both formats are essential.
3. Website updates
If you can’t afford (or don’t truly need) to have a webmaster on staff, it may still make sense to have an experienced webmaster on retainer, who performs updates as needed. Alternatively, you may have a savvy staff member or other company employee who could (with a little training) make these changes as the need arises. Information changes (contact info, pricing, additions or deletions to services or products, staff bios, operating hours, press updates, etc.) to your company website should be made immediately, not “saved up” and made all at once. Often times, having someone in-house who can make these immediate changes is easier and more cost-effective than having to go outside of the company.
4. Social media presence
If you don’t already have an established social media presence, what on earth are you waiting for? Whether your demographic includes GenY or Baby Boomers, social media is growing by an alarming rate, and if you don’t have a social media strategy, you are most definitely leaving cash on the table. Likewise, if you launched a Facebook page and opened a Twitter account, but your audience (friends / follower) numbers aren’t steadily rising into the thousands, your campaign is not as effective as it could be.
Be sure to join us next time for the conclusion of our tips for evaluating your marketing materials. In the meantime, you can spruce up your sales presentations and company training sessions with an affordable professional LCD rental projector from Projector123.com. Click here to get started now.
July 16th, 2010
In this final installment, we’ll wrap up the four-part series on how to grow your business with effective free workshop strategies. If you have suggestions or ideas we haven’t covered, please feel free to post a comment here and share your ideas with everyone. We love hearing from you!
This article is all about maximizing your return on investment (an investment of your time and effort) in planning and executing a successful free workshop or presentation.
One of the caveats of hosting a free event is that you can’t count on everyone who registers to actually show up for the date of your event. The statistics seem to vary depending on industry and type of event, but generally speaking, anywhere from 30% to 50% of all free presentation registrants typically attend the event for which they’ve registered. In other words, it’s important not to get too excited if you have 100 people register for your event, because only about 30 to 50 will actually show (according to generalized historical data). Using the ideas from the last installment can help ensure that you maximize attendance from your registrants, and here is a somewhat “advanced” strategy to boost your attendance.
Upsell a Workbook or Similar Relevant Product
 This approach requires a bit of preparation beforehand, but it can be well worth the extra effort. You can make your event free, and upon registration, participants can choose to purchase an optional workbook (or something else of value, related specifically to the event. For example, a DVD or CD of the video / audio from the event itself, that they can refer back to at a later time). This can provide you with some income to help offset your costs, as well as incentivizing people to show up on the day of the event (to claim what they’ve purchased).
To create a sense of urgency, state in your registration process or paperwork that this workbook (etc.) will sell for $___ (a price at least double that of the registration pre-purchase) on the day of the event. For example, you can sell a “comprehensive workbook” that covers everything you plan to cover in your presentation, plus exercises, fill-in-the-blank guides for your key talking points, contact information, a list of helpful resources, etc. for $10 prior to the event and $25 the day of the event.
The purpose the workbook is multi-fold. First, when people are paying for something (like a workbook) that they won’t receive until the day of the event, they are more likely to attend to get what they paid for. Secondly, the pre-sale of a workbook gives you a pretty good idea of how many folks will attend (as well as how many workbooks you should have printed). Third, the pre-sale of workbooks provides you with some income to help offset your costs (printing the workbooks, renting a projector, providing snacks if you so choose, etc.) Fourth, the workbook keeps people engaged during your presentation, which makes them much more likely to retain and understand the material you’re presenting. Finally, they can walk away from the event with something of value, which builds trust in you and may help you win their business.
 Collect Information and Follow up with Everyone
At your event, post a sign-in sheet and give folks a way to sign up for your newsletter or mailing list. Put out your business cards and collect theirs. It’s not enough to just collect information, you’ve got to follow through by following up with everyone who attends. In this way, you can close more sales, grow your business, and truly make your free workshop a success.
Got your event booked? Be sure to rent a projector from Projector123.com. Click here to get started and find out why business professionals throughout the country rely on us for fast, affordable, professional grade LCD rental projectors.
July 14th, 2010
In segments one and two respectively, we covered ways to find a venue in which to present a free workshop, as well as how to plan your content and delivery. In this final installment, we will explore ways to maximize attendance at your event, in order to ensure the highest possible return on this investment of your time and effort.
Ways to Maximize Attendance
1. Provide an incentive to attend
You’ve seen this method a hundred times or more – because it works! A little extra gift (or chance at winning a fabulous prize) can nudge someone who is on the fence about whether or not to attend your event. Incentives don’t have to cost a bundle; in many cases, you can partner with another local business or professional (spa, salon, massage therapist, hardware store, etc.) to negotiate a lower rate or discount on your purchase of a gift certificate, since the business or professional will get some free publicity in exchange for their participation or donation. It helps if the incentive is relevant or appealing to your target audience (e.g., a home improvement center gift card for people who are coming to your workshop to learn how to install their own sprinkler system).
Alternatively, instead of providing an incentive to every person who attends, you could invest in just one grand prize and each person who attends the workshop gets entered into a drawing to win it. Examples of grand prizes might include a weekend stay at a local resort, or something valued from a few hundred to several hundred dollars.
 2. Provide an incentive to bring a friend (or three)
You can use the same suggestions in #1 above, but offer an additional incentive for the person who brings additional friends (for example, they could get an additional entry into the grand prize drawing for each person they bring with them). Depending on your lineof work, this can also be helpful in boosting sales, as in some scenarios, people will respond to peer pressure / social proof. For example, now that I see my friend is signing up, I’m also going to sign up and we can do it together.
3. Collect a deposit
Often times, when an event is free to attend, people can subconsciously put a lower value on its benefit. This psychological phenomenon can be alleviated by collecting a small up-front deposit, which is totally refundable when they attend the event. Because people are generally more motivated to avoid pain than to seek pleasure, the potential pain of losing their deposit if they decide not to attend often provides enough incentive for them to keep their commitment and show up for your event. A deposit could be as low as $10 to $20, depending on what makes sense for your target audience.
4. Pre-Workshop Q&A
As part of the registration process, you can have people submit their most burning question about ____ (your area of expertise) and agree to answer all submitted questions during the workshop itself. This also works on a subconscious level, as people are more inclined to attend if they know they will receive something of value (the answer to their most pressing question).
Hopefully, this list has sparked your own creative ideas for ways you can maximize your efforts in conducting a free workshop. Good luck!
Remember – when you’ve booked your event, be sure to visit Projector123.com to reserve your LCD rental projector. With competitive rates and a hassle-free process from start to finish, you’ll soon discover why professionals across the USA rely on us for all their rental projector needs. Click here to get started.
July 12th, 2010
In the prior segment, we looked at ways to find a place, organization, or venue through which you could host a free workshop, lecture or presentation. In this installment, we’ll look at how to select the content you will present.
Congratulations on finding a venue through which you can host your free workshop. Next, it’s time to decide what kind of content you will present. Here are a few things to consider when choosing your presentation content.
 Know Your Audience
The cardinal rule of public speaking, this guideline keeps you on point, on par with your audience, and on your toes. Consider the presentation from your potential attendees perspective. What would be important to them? What is the greatest thing they could gain from their attendance? What kinds of problems do they have, and how can you solve them? What information or tips would be most valuable?
If you truly have no idea, then it pays to poll your potential audience members to find out what is important to them. Alternatively, you can speak to the director of the organization to find out what kinds of folks (age, demographics, professions, employment status, etc.) typically attend their events or belong to their organization. Don’t be afraid to ask pointed questions – it is essential for you to get inside the minds of your potential prospects in order to present the most appropriate information possible.
For example, if you are a tax attorney presenting to a group of CPAs, you would use appropriate terminology and make certain assumptions of the audience’s understanding of the material (otherwise you would be perceived as condescending). Likewise, if you are a tax attorney presenting to a group of senior citizens, you would not make the same assumption and you would take the time to explain any industry jargon, abbreviations, or technical terms.
Less Is More
Once you know all about your audience, you can begin to compile relevant information for your presentation. Keep in mind the old adage, “less is more.” If your topic is particularly complex, choose just one or two key segments to focus on, and you can pave the way for a return invite to continue a multi-part series. If your topic is fairly simple, yet you have a unique spin on it, keep the material relevant and plan to open the floor for Q&A.
Be Mindful of Time
If you are invited to speak for an hour, plan no more than 40 minutes of material – in most cases, speakers try to include too much information, which often causes them to go over time, or else not finish. It is far more professional to finish early and open up the floor for questions and answers, rather than to go over time. Your audience will always appreciate a slightly shorter workshop rather than being inconvenienced by a presentation that runs too long. Again, if they are positively riveted by what you have to say, it’s still best to leave them wanting more (and to get invited back to present additional information).
In the next installment, we’ll look at ways to maximize attendance at your free workshop. In the meantime, why not visit Projector123.com and reserve your rental projector today? It’s fast, easy, and our competitive pricing just might surprise you. Click here to get started now.
July 9th, 2010
If you’re looking for free of low-cost ways to grow your business, there are countless reasons to choose free workshops as a business builder. Read on to learn a few simple strategies designed to maximize your time and efforts in order to make your workshop as fruitful as possible.
Besides the fact that free workshops typically cost you nothing but your time, there are many other advantages to using this tactic as a business building tool. For starters, it offers extremely targeted marketing – after all, people aren’t likely to show up for a retirement planning seminar unless they are interested in (or concerned about) this issue. Additionally, hosting a workshop or lecture automatically establishes you as an expert in your field, and you have the opportunity to demonstrate your knowledge and experience in a way that isn’t boastful or obnoxious. Finally, in a workshop kind of environment, you can build a rapport with an audience, answer their most pressing questions, and give examples of how you could solve their problems. In other words, a successful free workshop helps you sell yourself without feeling “salesy” at all!
Look for Local Opportunities
Where can you host a local workshop? Once you start looking, you’ll see that the possibilities are virtually endless. Many local communities and civic organizations (such as the Rotary Club) bring in unpaid speakers to present on a variety of topics, and at the end of your presentation, you can pass out literature or business cards, speak with people to book appointments or close them, or otherwise promote your products or services.
Additionally, if your city or town has a Chamber of Commerce (even the smallest towns usually do), you can ask for a schedule of events and see what kind of presentations are offered, and whether or not your area of expertise offers a match. You may not have to join the local Chamber to present (although it may make sense for you to join, depending on the cost and the potential networking opportunities).
Remember to check with your local library and SBA (Small Business Association) to find opportunities where you can speak and offer a free educational presentation or workshop.
 Go Virtual
Depending on the nature of your business, you may be able to host a virtual workshop either by phone (teleclass) or via web (webinar). To determine whether or not this kind of format would be a match for your business, think about the kind of content you would deliver and whether or not it is easy to demonstrate or describe by phone or via computer screen demo. Additionally, consider whether you are equipped to receive orders and sales from across the globe. Setting up a virtual webinar is easy and there are many low-cost tools to help you facilitate the event. Plus, it allows you to reach out to a much broader audience of potential clients, as opposed to hosting an in-person workshop in your local area.
Once you’ve found a place to host your free workshop, the next step involves choosing content to present. Join us in the next installment for tips on how to increase attendance and gain more qualified, interested leads by giving people exactly what they want.
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June 30th, 2010
Let’s face it – everyone is in sales. From the neighborhood babysitter who wants to pack her weekend sitting schedule to the CPA who wants more clients, even non-sales positions require plenty of sales savvy in this economy. Here are some tips for simple ways to win clients and influence prospects.
Professionalism
While it’s true that our culture seems to lean more towards the casual aspect of life, business, and social interactions, that doesn’t mean professionalism should be tossed out the window. Even if your business has adopted a more casual culture in terms of dress, marketing materials, and conversation, professionalism remains an essential component of effective sales. Simple details such as promptness, courtesy, appropriate language, and a can-do attitude can go a long way towards signing your next deal.
Authenticity
Everyone likes to buy, but nobody likes to be sold. This is where authenticity can become your greatest asset. In our society, there is often a distinct lack of authenticity (this is what makes your skin crawl when talking to a smarmy salesman). People appreciate honesty, candor, and a true sense of self. False bravado, empty compliments, and a fake smile are not the tools to close more deals.
Integrity
Put simply, integrity means doing what you say you will do, when you say you will do it. And yet, it’s shocking how few people in the business realm can truly be accountable to their promises. Don’t make promises you can’t keep, and be sure to keep the promises you make. This simple yet profound practice will surely set you apart from your competition.
Helpfulness
The greatest salespeople in the world know that the easiest way to close more sales is to solve people’s problems. This requires getting to know your prospects first, talking to them, doing some research, and finding out what make them tick and what kind of problems they need to have solved. Solve a person’s problems and you’ve got a client for life.
You can use a rental projector to exhibit professionalism and display authenticity and integrity about your products and services. To rent a projector for your next sales meeting or presentation, click here to get started.
June 25th, 2010
Are you wondering how you can find more local leads for your business? There are many free ways to do this, and you can easily tap into your local market with these easy tips.
1 – Free local advertising.
Most businesses are so focused on their paid advertising, they may forget to utilize local free and almost-free advertising. Craigslist.org is easy to use and can bring in a lot of local leads, depending on what kind of business you have. Additionally, your town may have a presence on sites such as backpages.com, cityslick.net, hubspot.com, etc. Just do an internet search on “local free advertising” for more ideas. Additionally, your local town or community may have free publications where you can list your business without paying a fee (as opposed to the bigger, flashier paid ads). Take advantage of this local free advertising to get more local leads.
2 – Start a blog.
Blogs are useful for gaining organic ranking (which refers to which sites shows up first in an online search) and a lot of blog owners are missing out on local search traffic because they are not using local tags or keywords. For example, if you are a CPA in Charlotte, it pays to incorporate keywords like “Charlotte CPA” and “Charlotte accountant” into your blog and your website. Starting a blog is free and easy, and you can get started at WordPress.com.
3 – Ask for referrals.
One of the easiest ways to grow your business locally is to ask your existing clients and customers for referrals. This can be as simple as posting a sign in your place of business (“A referral is the greatest compliment you can give us.”) or sending out an email to your client base, or calling some of your key clients to ask for referrals. Whether or not you incentivize your clients (offer a gift or payment or finder’s fee) for their referrals is entirely up to you.
4 – Host a workshop.
In most communities (even the tiny ones!) there are a variety of ways to reach potential clients by offering free workshops, lectures or information. Check with your local Chamber of Commerce, library, community center, colleges, and Small Business Administration (SBA) to see what kinds of classes or free information is offered, and find out how you can participate. For example, a CPA can host a free 1-hour class on how to save money on your taxes, how to apply for an extension on your taxes, etc. That attracts the perfect target market, and gives an opportunity to collect information from these leads. Additionally, you can monetize these free workshops by giving people a reason to buy today – create a special offer or a discount to invite them to sign up on the spot.
If you plan to host a workshop or class, count on Projector123.com for all your rental projector needs. Click here to learn more about our affordable professional rental projector packages.
June 16th, 2010
Looking for easy ways to boost sales and increase your bottom line this summer? In part 1 of this series, we looked at ways to use fire sales to increase business. In this installment, we’ll explore how to effectively use contests to grow your bottom line.
There are several different ways you can use contests to temporarily boost sales, so be sure to read all of these to see which offer the best fit for your business.
1. Sales Contests
Your sales force can be your greatest asset. However, if your sales folks know that a slow season is coming up (or is underway), they are far less motivated to perform at their usual peak. This is when a contest can really come in handy. You can offer weekly, monthly, or seasonal incentives to motivate your sales team to maximize each customer interaction, and to find new ways to sell during a slow season.
2. Consumer Contests
Engage your customers by finding ways for them to interact with your brand. Thanks to the popularity of social media networks and tools like Twitter, it’s easy (and practically free) to launch and promote a consumer contest. You can create a contest around most anything: name our newsletter, name our new mascot, create our logo, recipe contest, invent our next product, tell-a-friend, pick the charity who deserves 10% of our next promotion, etc. People love to share their opinions and to get involved.
3. Employee Contests
These differ from sales contests in that most sales people are paid on commission and therefore motivated by their own bottom line. Employees may certainly be money-motivated, but they also appreciate recognition and acknowledgement, which is why employee contests can also be effective. Additionally, non-sales employees have a different perspective than sales reps, and may therefore create more creative and unique suggestions for problem-solving and growth. If you launch an employee contest, be sure to incentivize those employees so that they are motivated to participate to the best of their ability. What they come up with just might surprise you.
Be sure to come back next time for the final installment of this 3-part series. In the meantime, if you need a rental projector, visit us at projector123.com for all your rental projector needs. Click here to get started.
June 11th, 2010
In the prior two segments, we looked at fire sales and contests as viable ways to boost sales during the slow months of summer (or any other time of year). In this final piece, we’ll explore a third powerful way to increase revenue: creative promotions.
Get Creative…Get Paid
Sizzling promos are welcome any time of year, regardless of the current state of the economy. People love to find a deal, scoop up a bargain, and feel as though they’ve really scored a win. But because buyers are constantly bombarded with marketing messages, it pays to truly get creative by inventing promos that pop.
Ultimately, your main goal should be to give folks a reason to buy right now. There are many ways to do this, including:
1 – fear of loss – would include verbiage such as: “for a limited time.” “a limited number,” “only __ remaining,” etc. The idea is that if they don’t act now, they’re going to miss out.
2 – buy in bulk – prepaid packages, two-for-one or BOGO deals, discounts on gift cards, annual passes, etc. The idea is to make it wildly appealing for them to spend more now, because what they get will either last longer or include a lot more perks.
3 – bring a friend – friend flies free, payments or incentives for referrals, buy now and your friend pays nothing, sign up 2 friends and you’re free for life, etc. These tactics rely on the power of peer persuasion, as well as social proof.
Whenever you are preselling packages, be sure to consider the long-term and medium-term ramifications of your current actions. For example, if you presell packages now that customers have six months to use, keep in mind that your immediate cash flow will rise, but you may not be able to run a similar promotion for six months if your capacity can’t handle the increase in customers (and at that point, you’re working and paying your staff for money that’s already been collected and possibly spent).
Got your own ideas for boosting business during slow periods? Post a comment and share with us.
And remember, when you need to rent a projector, whether it’s for an employee contest, to draw more attention to your business, or to award as a prize to the winning sales rep, the clear choice is Projector123.com. Click here to get started.
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