May 2005 Issue:

My Site is Bigger Than Your Site
It's Not Rocket Science, Really!
Designing a Killer Brochure

Archived Issues

My Site is Bigger than Your Site…..

Surfing around the ‘net can be interesting, informative, and sometimes a little intimidating. When you run across sites that offer similar products and services to yours, it’s nearly impossible not to compare how your site “stacks up” to theirs. But, the good news is that you can make your web site stand out from the crowd with a little effort and planning ahead.

Gaining some sort of advantage over your larger competitors can be a huge challenge. If you are a small business in a competitive market, it is quite easy to be ignored or even pushed out during your first few months of building your online presence. Patience is your best friend here, but there are also some other tactics to consider that will help differentiate your web site from everyone else.

Find Out What Your Customers Need
Filling a need or solving a problem almost always turns a prospect into a customer. So get back to basics – find out what your customers’ problems are and what you can do to solve them. Then, emphasize this information in your marketing strategies, especially on your web site. Do a little research to find out what customers are looking for, then make a list of things that you do better than the big guys to solve customer problems. For example, do you have excellent customer support? Offer discounts or special pricing? Have you been recognized in your industry or won awards? All of these things can make you stand out from your competitors.

Do Your Homework
You need to find out what your customers want, but how are you supposed to get this type of information? Try short customer surveys, either by telephone or on your web site. Offer a free gift or discount for filling out the survey to increase participation from your customers. Do you know what blogs are? Blogs (short for Web Logs) offer information on all sorts of topics, and by joining the discussion you can find out from real customers what they like and dislike about certain products and services. There are several blog directories available to help you find the right topic for your business. Subscribing to newsletters and news feeds that pertain to your business can also help you keep up with what’s going on in your industry overall.

Get a Little Personal
Many people find it much more appealing to directly interact with the owner or employees of a business during their purchasing experience. A personal response to an order beats an auto responder any day! This can be a huge differentiator between you and a larger competitor. The idea here is to be available to your customers and help build trust in the relationship. Customers want to know you and trust you before they buy anything from you!

Bigger Isn’t Always Better
Small businesses have an excellent opportunity to understand their customers and what their problems are. Show them how your products and services solve their problems, and be sure to take advantage of the unique qualities that small businesses can offer, like personalized service or stability in the community. Add some of your own creativity and initiative, and you may be surprised how easy it is to make a great impression on the web!

It’s Not Rocket Science, Really!

Thinking about trying an online campaign of some sort? Good idea! It’s a proven method of reaching your customers effectively while keeping marketing costs down. But of course, online advertising is nothing like the print, radio, or even direct mail campaigns you may be used to. So to be successful in an online campaign, you need to know some of the basics that apply to online advertising.

Think About Your Goals
Whether you are sending out an e-newsletter or starting a click ad campaign, you need to determine what you are trying to accomplish. Are you trying to get name recognition with your e-newsletter? Are you trying to drive more traffic to your site with click ads? Some online initiatives are measurable, while others are a bit more difficult to assess. With a click ad campaign, for example, you can set some concrete benchmarks, such as a 20% increase in traffic during the first week the campaign. By setting tangible goals you can compare marketing activities and repeat the ones that seem to work the best.

Two Sides to the Story: Media AND Message
One of the most important things to consider is the media you will be using for your online campaign. The vehicles you select will depend a lot on the budget you have to work with, but banner ads, paid ads in industry publications, email messages to your customers, etc. can clearly be effective ways to get your campaign out into the “media”.

But before your campaign is out there in cyberspace, you need to determine what your message really says. Is it effective in motivating your prospects into taking action? Is it memorable in some way? If possible, try your ad on a small sample of existing customers and get their reactions to it. You may find you’ve overlooked something that is important to the outside world!

Be certain that your message is right, and then make sure it shows up in the most effective media outlets that you can afford or that have already worked for you before.

Test and Measure, Test and Measure
Keep an eye on your web stats, email responses, banner ad views, ad clicks, and whatever else will help you determine changes in customer behavior or response. Analyze the data to identify trends and other information that will help you measure your results against the goals you set at the beginning of the campaign.

Online campaigns can be very cost effective ways to market in today’s Internet world. Be sure to set goals, evaluate your message, and keep track of your results, and your online campaigns should turn out to be a very efficient way to reach your customers and prospects.

Designing a “Killer” Brochure

We hear that expression a lot – “killer” brochures, “killer apps” (computer applications), etc. Well, thankfully it’s just an expression, because designing a killer brochure really wouldn’t do you much good, would it?

What we are really talking about here is designing a fabulous, beautiful, memorable, informative brochure for your company that enhances your marketing efforts. A great brochure is the result of exceptional planning. There is a definite process that you should consider to keep your brochure project on schedule, on message, and on budget, including these tips:

1. Identify the people that need to be involved in the project. This will probably include a designer, content writer (maybe from your marketing staff), and the people involved in reviewing and approving the final product.
   
2. How do you plan to use the brochure in your marketing? Determine the goal of the brochure. Is it a leave-behind for salespeople? A self-mailer? Part of a trade show? Or will it be an all-purpose brochure used as part of all your marketing?
   
3. Know your audience. Customers hate reading brochures that are too technical or too detailed for their needs (unless of course you have a technical, detailed product!). Make sure the brochure is appropriate for the customers who will be reading it.
   
4. What’s the competition doing? It’s always a good idea to take a look at how your competition is presenting itself and what their marketing materials look like. Then, you can identify ways to differentiate your company and create a brochure that represents you.
   
5. Write good content. Avoid the temptation to squeeze every little detail about your business into the brochure. The objective of a brochure is to generate interest about your company and provide prospects with important information you want them to know. Stay on message and keep it as simple as possible.

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