If You Think It’s Good Enough, Give It Away!

I may have said this before but I’ll say it again, nevertheless. If what you have is good enough, and you’re confident other people will appreciate it, give it away and let them try it “risk free”.

I’m not talking about “free estimates” or “free consultations”. I’m talking about an actual product or service that you are willing to give away or let your potential clients try out, RISK FREE! Okay, this is the part where most of you, businesspeople, are going to go “what!?!”

But hear me out here. Unless, you’re the only one in the world carrying a certain “widget” or “service” that people are willing to die for, you’re going to have to stand out against your competition, bad boy! And if you’re the new kid on the block, why are customers going to risk trying you out?

The goal of giving “it” away is to take away the risk factor. The goal here is to create a non-defensive attitude. The goal is to get your potential clients in the door. People in business call this the “loss leader”. And it is. And yes, there is a great benefit for having a “loss leader” in whatever it is that you do. You want people to latch on to something without them losing anything, except time. If your product or service is good enough, they will stick and stay with you.

So what does this have to do with people who are not in business or who do not have anything to sell? A lot! As a matter of fact, as cliché as it sounds, this practice falls under the “it is better to give, than to receive” category. And rightly so, marketing consultants have seen its value during the recession.

And because this article comes out in time for Valentine’s day, don’t we all do this to our significant others? Don’t we give them something… risk free? Don’t we pay for this and don’t we spend for that? Yes we do! And always, we get something BETTER in return, whether we expect it or not.

It doesn’t matter if it’s business or personal, if you believe that what you have is good enough, give it away! Don’t hold back! It might look like a “loss leader” but the return on investment will always outperform the initial cost of providing that “loss leader”, hands down.

Think about it and have a great day.

Different Types of Advertising and Which of Them Benefits Your Business

By Paco Arespacochaga

There are so many mediums of advertising ranging from TV all the way to Internet Video. In print, you have the newspaper on one end and the direct mail on the other. Radio and podcasts have their place in today’s business marketing environment as well. Rounding them up, there are different types of advertising but not all mediums truly benefit your business. What I will share will you should give you a “bird’s eye view” on where you should allot your advertising budget to.

Depending on what industry you’re in, different advertising mediums come out more effective than others. Take a moment to find out what makes a potential customer, patient or client seek your service or product.

I would assume there is a “need”.

Now take a moment to simulate where a potential customer, patient or client will go to make a purchase of your service and product.

I’m assuming it would be the Internet, the Yellow Pages, the Penny Saver or something similar.

And lastly, be ready to answer why a potential customer, client or patient will choose YOU over your competition when he/she is ready to make a purchase of your service and product.

Perhaps you had been successful in creating an effect Top of Mind Awareness (TOMA) campaign that made a potential customer, client or patient remember you and what you have to offer.

Balancing your media mix gives you more opportunity to reap the benefits of your campaign in the form of a higher ROI (return on investment).
On the other hand, putting all your advertising dollars in one medium is like giving money away!

In this example, I will share with you how an effective advertising mix can be beneficial to your business.

Acme Carpet Cleaners began operation of its carpet cleaning business in the neighborhood. They started printing flyers and hired someone to go door to door and leave the flyer at a resident’s door, gate or mailbox. The flyer had a very good ad message (copy write). It introduced their business grand opening and a “2 room get the third one FREE!” promo. They also purchased a solid Direct Mail campaign from a reputable company like Idearc, RSVP or Valpak to drive the message across a larger targeted area.

They also invested some advertising in the LOCAL newspaper and Penny Saver.
On top of all of these, they advertised on Online Directories such as Superpages.com & Yellowpages.com and also did some Pay-Per-Click campaign.

And speaking of directories (phone books), when people are ready to make a purchase, they only go to the Internet and their local yellow pages. It’s a good thing Acme Carpet Cleaners had some presence there too!

And when they were done with the job, they were prepared and creative enough to leave a refrigerator magnet, with their phone number, with the client.

Now, do you think their cost of investment is costly? The answer depends on how the advertising budget is being looked at. The smart way of answering the question is to determine the number of NEW clients and ad campaign like the one above will generate. Also, the Average Value Order (AVO) should be determined to see if the number of clients times the AVO can bring a decent to significant return on investment (ROI). Getting a 5:1 return at the very least is a good thing!

And let’s not forget that carpets do get dirty again! So if you did a good job the first time around, you’re bound to get another phone call from the same client and that, my friend, is when real money is made!

In a Marketing Campaign, the Budget Must Reflect the Business

By Paco Arespacochaga

In today’s business environment, a business owner must be well equipped with ways and means to maximize his advertising and marketing investment. Yet, one question still brings back different answers.

“How much should I invest in advertising?” usually generates responses such as:

5% of your desired gross profit

10% of your desired gross profit

5% of the gross profit you made the last fiscal year

10% of the gross profit you made the last fiscal year

Don’t spend anything more than necessary

Don’t spend anything at all

And there are many more. All these answers are true to some extent because there really is no “one absolute” answer. In marketing 101, we were taught that a business should spend 10% - 15% of what they wanted to gross in revenue. So if a business wanted to make $150,000, it should set aside a budget of $15,000 to $22,500 just for advertising and marketing expenses alone.

The sad truth is that many start up business owners perceive advertising as a necessary “evil” as opposed to a business necessity. Feel free to call it business suicide if you must because that is what it is.

In a marketplace where everything is all about perception and perceived market value, taking no action in effectively positioning your products and/or services doesn’t mean you’re not you’re protecting your business equity. It is quite the contrary. This is because your inaction is giving leverage to your competition, which is doing the opposite of what you are doing.

Your advertising budget reflects the type of business you have. Invest in your advertising. You don’t wait to make money before you begin advertising. Begin advertising to MAKE MONEY!

Next blog… Different Types of Advertising and Which of Them Benefits Your Business.