Customer Databases – using, not abusing them
If you’ve been in business a number of years, you should have a database of your customers. In fact, you should have software that’s tracked all their purchases, contacts, and requests. Now, they may not be all your best customers, but it’s a list that can be used with other communication tools none-the-less. If you don’t have a list, you can purchase one or more. However, make sure you’ve done your homework or marketing plan first. When you do, you should have a full demographic and economic profile of your ideal target client. Then, you can go “happy hunting” or...
Read MoreImportance of consistent collateral or use of your brand
Many small businesses make the mistake of letting other vendors (from the Yellow pages to Little League) layout their advertising or use their logo. The problem you get with this is that it’s often done wrong and your brand and its message fall flat. Moreover, you’ve just wasted you’re money trying to advertise or promote your business. A very simple cure to this is to have brand standards manual in place. For small businesses, this is often a 5-20 page document that explains how your brand is to be used. It dictates: 1. Short statement on who you are, what you do, your...
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