Free Report How to Do a Phenomenal Trade Show
March 5, 2010
Spring Time brings lots of trade shows, and trade shows can be a great opportunity to gain new clients, build relationships with other businesses, referral sources, and the media. Even though trade shows don’t always produce an incredible return on investment (sometimes they do depending on your strategy), they can be a strategic part of your overall marketing plan. The long term results of the relationships you build can be well worth the investment. Some shows will also produce immediate results as well.
Display options
Booth placement – Booth placement is very important. Generally, the closer you can get to the entrance is best. Try to be on an end if possible. A corner location is the next best option.Type of display (i.e. pop up, banner, etc.). A pop up display is a portable display that has carpeted panels. You then stick your signage on it with Velcroe strips glued to the back of the sign. Pop ups come in table top size as well as many different full size displays. If you plan on doing a lot of shows, you may purchase your own. They are a little pricy, but certainly worth it. Otherwise you can rent one. Generally the companies that sell exhibition displays also rent them. A less expensive option would be to have a vinyl banner created. **Today, there are many custom pop-up options. Full color pop-up banners are inexpensive but look really good.
Message – Use a strong headline that will attract the type of client you want. See my “How to Create Phenomenal Copy” in the Phenomenal Marketing Program.
Attraction mechanisms
Headline – A bold headline (follow the instructions in my “How to Create Phenomenal Ad Copy)Activities – In order to get people to stop at your booth, you need something that gets them to stop and take interest. Food is always a good option. Balloons for the kids. We once hired one of those balloon-tying people which created a long line of moms with kids in tow!
Give Aways – Have people register for a tv, stereo, blu-ray player, or whatever. This is simply a way to get more people in your booth and a way to develop a follow up mailing list.
Contests – You may want to develop some sort of quiz that has to be answered, or put in a cheap portable putting green. If you make it in 3 putts you get a free gift as an example.
Target Market – Your message and your strategies should match your target market. For example, in my cleaning business, we broke all the conventional rules and created a strategy just for the high end. We had a pop up display with the headline “Nobody Out Cleans Clean As A Whistle” with a subhead that said “How to Select A Professional Carpet Cleaning Company”. The words REPUTATION, EXPERIENCE, EDUCATION, SYSTEMS, AND GUARANTEE were each on separate small signs. Above each word was a large photograph. Each photograph was different – each one depicting a different aspect of our business in action. Instead of trying to drive people to our booth, we stood back a bit and waited until someone looked long enough. When they did, we simply approached and used the 5 Point Marketing Message Introduction Version and gave a Free Trial Offer in exchange for their mailing address. Carpet, electricity, tables, chairs – Most shows will charge for all of these items, so you need to decide ahead of time whether you will rent them, or bring them. Parking, set up – The most effective way to do a home show is to have at least one other person with you. Parking is always a hassle. An assistant can help man the booth as well as help get things set up. Having someone else in the booth allows for breaks, more time with prospects, and allows you to get out and network with others in the show. Strategy – You want to have a strategy for your show. It does you no good to just be there. What do you want the result to be?
Script – Train each person on what to say as people approach.
Goals – What financial or lead goals do you need to have. Communicate this to each assistant.
Follow up (get cards, and registrations) The fortune is in the follow up! The follow up can be more effective than the actual show. Especially if you had a significant conversation with the attendee.
Booth conduct!
No eating or drinking – Never eat or drink while in the booth. If you are alone, you may be able to slip a sip while no one is looking. Otherwise, step two booths down and keep an eye on your booth. If someone approaches, put your food down and go help them.Never sit! – Sitting down sends the wrong message. It says that you are too relaxed. It also tends to put you in a passive frame of mind.
Look busy – Attendees tend not to approach you if you are just standing there by yourself. If you are by yourself, and the show is slow, straighten materials on the table or something to look busy. This makes them feel that you are not waiting to pounce on them. Weird but it works.
Don’t stare them down – Staring at people makes them uncomfortable. Instead hand them something or have some sort of catch phrase to reel them in.
Be fun! Trade shows are fun environments. Don’t be too serious. Find fun catch phrases that will get people to laugh a little. Don’t be too corny, but if you can get them to chuckle a bit, you will have time to get your message across.
Create your own activity /social proof. If there are two of you, and the show is slow, have one of you act like a client. Get outside the booth and talk to the other person. As someone approaches, fan out to make room for the next prospect.
Networking! – The greatest benefit of a trade show is oftentimes the relationships that are built with the other vendors. Many times there are referral sources, the media, and sponsors of the show that are in a position to refer tons of business to you.
Literature Tri-fold brochure – The “How to Select” brochure is a great handout item Free Trial Offer Card – If you want to give a free trial, use the Free Trial Offer Card. Referral Program – If the attendees are potential referral sources, have an outline of your referral program.
Special Offers – You may want to have a home show offer if the book the appointment right away. Many times, you can book the job on the spot, so bring your appointment book with you or some way to get them on the schedule while they are in the buying mood.
February 19, 2010
4 Keys to Implementation
February 2, 2010
Keys to implementation
The # 1 reason most small business owners don’t grow is F.T.I. (Failure To Implement). You know what to do and you know how to do it, you just don’t do it. Sure, information is great because you can get “inspired to implement” by listening to a cd or going to a seminar. I know that my mental state is dramatically changed when I listen to Zig Ziglar’s stuff in the car. I can be a little discouraged, or just plain tired, and before you know it I’m laughing, encouraged and inspired again.
So, INSPIRATION is the first key. I call it “Inspiration to Implementation”. Have you ever noticed that people who are really growing and moving are inspired?
The second key is ORGANIZATION. Being enthusiastic is wonderful, but enthusiasm without direction is like spinning your wheels in the sand. You are exerting a lot of energy, but not getting much traction. Take some time each morning to work on your projects, get focused and run your business and career by a calendar.
Three is STRATEGY. You can be as inspired as you want, but if you are using the wrong strategy, it won’t work. For example, if you are trying to attract high end clients with a marketing strategy that is reaching low end prospects, it ain’t gonna work. Now this is an obvious example, but when was the last time you truly challenged your strategies to see if you are going about the things the right way?
And finally, the most important of all is SUPPORT. You must have people in your life that believe in you. You must have a community of people that can inspire you, challenge you and hold you accountable. No man is an island. We all need others looking into our lives and giving input. Of course your dream team needs to have people who have the right agenda and that have your best interest at heart, and they need to be competent.
Phenomenal Products was founded on Proverbs 15:22 that says “Without consultation plans are frustrated, but with many counselors plans succeed.”
Get involved with a group of people that you can share your goals and dreams with. People that are like-minded that will support you. You will be better for it. - HP
Support
How to Create Phenomenal Copy that Gets You the Marketing Results You Want
January 16, 2010
4 Steps to Creating Phenomenal Copy that Gets You the Marketing Results You Want
PART I
Whether you do paid advertising or not, the words you use in promoting your business, introducing yourself and making a sales presentation, and of course when you write an ad, can make the all the difference.
Finding better “copy” to use in all of those situations will ultimately put you in a position to sell more of your product or service.
Notice that the title of this article doesn’t say “ad copy”. It simply says “copy”. The reason is that many of my members practice referral marketing, networking, and reach out to repeat clients, so they aren’t doing a ton of “paid advertising” and doing a ton of copy writing.
However, even if you don’t do a lot of “direct marketing” where copy writing can make or break the entire deal, copy is extrememly important in Relationship Marketing as well.
I came across a cool example of how effective copy can instantly make a sale.
I was sitting in traffic, a little early for my networking group that was just up the street, and I noticed a sign in front of an oil change place that read “LET US INSPECT YOU BEFORE THE COPS TICKET YOU” “DEC DUE”. I glanced over at my inspection sticker to realize it had expired last month! I immediately pulled into the place and had the inspection done right there and then.
Now, most places simply have a sign that says “State Inspection” out front. No sense of urgency, no good copy.
In addition to advertising copy, you use copy are communicating with prospects, clients, referral sources in a variety of different ways. Perhaps you have a brochure or free report that you hand to prospects. Hopefully you have a website. You introduce yourself at a networking group.
You make sales presentations.
And if you do direct advertising, you are KILLING yourself if you don’t understand ad copy. I see it all the time. Most of the advertising you see in all industries is bad. It doesn’t work. The blind are leading the blind.
So, whether you are writing an ad, a brochure, or a newsletter, follow these simple steps to start with. And be sure to continue your journey of becoming a better copywriter.
Step 1: Write to Your Target Audience and Them ONLY!
Before you write anything, ask yourself “who am I trying to reach with this message?”. Basically there are 3 types of audiences…
1. Suspect – Someone who fits your “Target Market” profile. Your “target market” is the type of customer or client you are after. Are they high end, middle, low? Commercial? Residential? Any specific niche industry? What is their lifestyle like? What are their problems? What are the solutions you can offer them? You see, if you try to be everything to everyone, you won’t be anything significant to anyone.
2. Prospects – Someone who has expressed interest or had you give them a quote in the past.
3. Client – Someone who has already used your service. (there are actually even a couple of levels above “Client” or “Customer” - “Cheerleaders, Referral Sources, Members, or as Ken Blanchard calls them… “Advocates”).
The message will be different depending on your audience. For example, you have already broken through the “trust” barrier with your existing clients, so your messages to them will be different that someone who has never used your service. Sure, on an ongoing basis, you want to reinforce the trust they have placed in you. But what message is going to keep them coming back for more and telling others about you?
A prospect needs to know that you can be trusted and that you know what you are doing, so they are compelled to move forward with you. They need to know that you are the ONLY choice that makes sense. Your copy must compel that.
And Suspects must be moved up to Prospect. You need to get them to “raise their hand” so to speak to at least prove that they are interested in a service such as yours.
There are many ways to do this, so I won’t go into it in this article, but I think you get the idea.
Step 2: Understand Why People DO Things
There are only 2 reasons people will take extraordinary action…
1.They have to. 2.They want to.
1.Fear of Pain. 2.Hope of Gain.
1.To Avoid Pain. 2.To Get Gain.
The deadly assumption that small business owners make is that “people need my service, so I just need to get my name out there”. Just putting your shingle out doesn’t get it in today’s market. You have to convince them that they need you (and only you) or get them so excited that they want you (and only you).
In your copy, you have to show them the pain of not acting and share the hope of acting. You see, it doesn’t matter whether we are talking about a prospect responding to an offer, or an employee going the extra mile, or you getting off your butt to take your business to the next level… we only act if there is FEAR or HOPE. If we are comfortable, we don’t act.
So, get make your reader so uncomfortable that they feel they have to act, or get them so inspired that they want to act. How do you do that? With powerful compelling copy.
Step 3: Connect with why people use your service
For example, in the cleaning industry, we have identified 6 different reasons people clean. Sometimes, it is a combination of reasons. Your audience is not always aware of their reason or need, so you must create the awareness with your copy writing. For example, if a prospect thinks that they should only clean if there is visible soil, and doesn’t understand the health risks of “invisible soil”, you can raise that awareness in your copy.
Here are the 6 reasons people clean…
1. Visible Soil – Obviously, the carpet, rug, floor, or fabric is soiled or stained.
2. Events – Future events such as weddings, graduations, holidays, house guests, etc. This could also include past events such as a party that caused “visible soiling”.
3. Health – Carpet, floors and fabrics can hold harmful bacteria such as pet urine, mold, etc.
4. Maintenance – For the floor or fabric to last longer, it should be maintained.
5. Problem Solving – This would be a perceived “defect” such as “roll crush” or “pile distortion” that may be able to be solved with professional cleaning.
6. Odor – Pet odors, cooking odors, etc.
Step 4: Understand the 4 Great MOTIVATORS
Veteran copywriter Herschell Lewis stated in his book “Direct Mail Copy that Sells” that there are “four great motivators”. Although this book was written in 1990, I believe the same holds true today.
1. Fear – This could be a fear that is already felt, or it could be a fear that is raised in your message. Example, if your copy suggests that your prospect should purchase carpet protector because the carpet may not perform as well as it would otherwise – and the soil that has bonded to the traffic areas will cause it to “ugly out”, you will raise a concern or a fear of having to spend money unexpectedly and a fear of not getting the most out of their investment. ** Note: The context of “fear” in this instance is not to use “scare-tactics” so that we can sell someone something they don’t need, but to simply allow them to feel what they need to feel to take the action they need to take.
2. Exclusivity – Although this motivator works better for a Lexus than a carpet cleaner, it is still alive and well in our industry. Some clients feel “exclusive” because they have a carpet cleaner that not everyone can get (or afford). They may also feel “exclusive” because they are able to afford the luxury of having these services provided. They may feel exclusive because your copy suggests that your special offer is an exclusive offer.
3. Guilt – With effective copywriting, you can actually trigger the emotion of guilt if your reader begins to feel they are neglecting their investment or exposing their babies to harmful chemicals. Again, these are ugly emotions that we don’t want to just help create for the sake of it, but that fact is that if I feel a tinge “guilty” or concerned about something that I should feel that way about, perhaps I will take action for my own good.
4. Greed – Isn’t it amazing that the word FREE works wonders in high income and low income alike. Unfortunately for the human race and fortunately for marketers, there is an element of greed in all of us.
CAUTION: Using these techniques carelessly is like handling a sharp knife. You can end up cutting yourself more than anything else, leaving a bloody mess!
Next week I will share a step-by-step process for “building” an effective message.
The Most Profitable Sale Ever Made
January 9, 2010
In any business there is one type of sale that brings the most profit. There is one single sales activity that can make the most difference in the profitability of your company. Not taking advantage of this all important sales opportunity will cost you thousands of dollars.
That sale is called the “upsell” or “add on” sale. The reason this type of sale is so profitable is because you have already invested the cost of acquiring and administering your client. Therefore, anything that is added to the “ticket” is extremely profitable. The marketing cost, the labor cost, the administration cost (i.e. the – overhead), has already been realized. This makes the add-on sale the most profitable sale you can make.
With that said, how do we add on more sales? The actual techniques of upselling are not that difficult or tricky. In fact, just the opposite – many times simply opening your mouth is all that is required. I will discuss technique in just a moment, but first, there is a deeper issue that must be addressed.
The deeper issue has to do with overcoming fear (remember the definition of fear? False Evidence Appearing Real). Many times we are afraid to ask for an extra sale. We feel like the client will get upset. Don’t think that because it’s just not true.
You should also realize the value in making the upsell. You should also realize the potential loss of not making it.
The following should motivate and inspire you to focus and act on this extremely valuable and profitable opportunity. We must come to grips with the importance of this activity and communicate it to our staff.
Making additional sales has great value to at least 3 different people:
1. You (or your company)
2. Your employee
3. Your client
Let’s look at you first. What’s the value of an upsell? If you are a solo operator and you were able to add only $50.00 per day average in sales (this should not be difficult in most companies) over and above whatever you are doing now, 5 days a week, 52 weeks per year, that would total up to $13,000.00 per year. The cost of acquiring and servicing that client has already taken place. Let’s say that your additional materials involved in providing the additional product or service was 20%. You still have $10,400.00 per year left over. That’s over $866.00 per month! Translation: A monthly payment on a Mercedes (or whatever your fancy), just by focusing on that $50.00 per day. What if it was an average of $100.00 per day? Get the drift? That’s a great deal of money, without much effort.
If you have employees – let’s say you have 3, that would be $39,000.00 in additional income that goes to the company. Obviously, you will have some material cost, labor, and perhaps some extra incentive cost used to motivate your people to sell more. Let’s say that your costs are normally 50%, but now that you have already acquired that client it goes down to 35%. You now have $25,350.00 in additional profit. That’s a real nice chunk!
Now let’s talk about your employee. Let’s say that part of your 35% cost is 20% that goes to the employee for providing the service. This is borrowing an example from a service company that pays their technicians commission for each job they produce. Your service person gets 20% and let’s say that you have put in another 5% incentive for each upsell that is made.
Here’s the value to the tech:
$50.00 x 5 days x 52 weeks = $13,000.00 x 25% = $3250.00 per year in additional income to the employee. That’s $270.00 per month! Maybe not enough for a Mercedes, but maybe a used Mustang! How many dinners or diapers would that buy over the course of a month? A lot! When you add compounding interest over a 20 year period, you can actually show your employee how this little process can create a very healthy nest egg.
Last but not least, let’s talk about your clients.
How could they possibly benefit from your taking more money from them? Obviously the benefit of having the service or product is there, and hopefully you believe that much in your product. But more important than the benefit is the potential loss to the client if they do not get this product or service.
What is the actual, realistic, potential loss your client may experience by not purchasing this “extra”? Fear of loss is one of the greatest emotional motivators known to man. Communicating potential loss by not taking advantage of something always outweighs the benefits of taking advantage of it. Don’t over use it, just understand the power that it carries.
Once you have clearly advised your client what could happen if they don’t use that service (in a professional, courteous, concerned manner), follow with the benefits and incentives. Outline the benefits of using the service, how your company uniquely provides that service. The fear of loss + the extra benefit of getting that service from you adds up to an effective presentation. If you add an extra incentive for your client to take advantage of that service today instead of some other time, you will also increase your response.
One last thought about your client: If she needs a service that you offer, and you do not mention it, she may call your most despicable and unethical competitor to provide that service for her. Now how do you feel about offering extras to your client?
If you feel like you are “selling” something rather than providing a legitimate, needed, extremely valuable service or product that will help them avoid pain and loss,then you will not be very successful. Are you completely convinced that this extra item will benefit your client? If so, don’t do them a disservice by not offering it.
Understand that by offering a great add on service you are doing your clients a favor. You are helping them not hurting them.
How to do it.
There are as more sales techniques and concepts than I could begin to mention in a single article, but here are just a few tips that will help you and your staff to add more sales:
1. Just mention it. A multitude of sales have been made by simply mentioning “you know we do offer…”
2. Get specific. Point out a specific service by asking what are your plans for…”
3. Avoid “no” questions. Try to avoid questions that can be answered with a closed “no”. In other words don’t say “would you like some…”. Only ask a yes or no question if you are sure that the answer will be yes. You can ask a qualified “open no” like “you know we offer…” The client may then say “No, I didn’t know you offered…” then you say “Oh yes…” followed with your presentation.
4. Use presentation materials. A booklet that outlines your products and services, brochure, product description sheet, flip chart, or post card can be a great help. Statistics prove that a listener retains up to 60% more with a visual presentation.
5. Demonstrate. Someone once said “a presentation without a demonstration is just a conversation!”. Don’t just tell them, show them what the product does.
6. Use testimonials. Written testimonials or verbal testimonies about how this product helped someone else is ALWAYS more powerful than what you say.
7. Offer a free trial offer. If providing a sample of the service has the potential of leading to a larger order, then offer a free trial offer. Once a client sees the product or service in action, they become more familiar with it, therefore making a believer out of them.
A final note…don’t offer anything until you have established a rapport with the client and you have secured believability. You must establish yourself as a trusted consultant and representative before attempting an extra sale. Many times this is accomplished by WOWing the client with the primary service first.
Avatar - An Amazing Example of “Experiential Marketing”
January 4, 2010
I spent the Christmas holidays with my wife and my son in New Jersey where my wife is from (yes, COLD!!). My son wanted to see Avatar which we did. We got there and found out that the tickets were TWICE what normal movies cost, and we found out it was sold out, so we had to come back the next day and wait in line for 40 minutes to get in. And by the way, we bought the tickets the day before in order to get into the line! Now, here’s the best part. We didn’t even know what the movie was about! That’s Experiential Marketing at it’s best. There has been so much hype about the movie that we (along with enough other people that it has grossed over $1billion so far).
So, we waited in line, to pay TWICE what “normal” movies cost. Can you do the same in your business? You bet! Click on the Fr-ee Report below to find out.
For the record. I disagree with much of the political and spiritual overtones of the movie Avatar. This is not an endorsement, but simply an amazing example of Experiential Marketing at it’s best.
Free Report: How to Get People to Stand In Line and Pay You the Highest Prices!
January 4, 2010
THE FUNCTION OF MARKETING
What comes to your mind when you think of marketing? For some, the first thing that comes to mind is advertising. Others think of face to face sales or networking. Still others think of “getting your name out there” or branding. The function of marketing, whether it is advertising, or promoting your business at the local chamber of commerce, has one function and one function only, and that is to increase sales. Period. Of course there is a huge difference between sales and marketing. Marketing is everything you do to generate prospects. Sales is what you do once you are face to face or phone to phone with that prospect.
At the end of the day, your marketing must increase sales. It obviously must bring qualified prospects that you can convert into clients. If it fails to do that, it is not working. Too many business owners spend lots of time and money “getting their name out there” but their efforts don’t produce sales. There are many ways to market your business. Some marketing creates pre-qualified, ready to buy clients that don’t have to be sold. Other techniques generate “leads”. Those leads then must go through an effective sales process to turn them into clients. Even the intangible things such as “branding” and “positioning” that don’t produce immediate sales should clearly help to increase sales by creating demand and raising the perceived value of your product or service. The bottom line is that your marketing must produce a top line or it is not working. We must be brutally honest about that and get totally unemotional about our marketing and take a more scientific approach. Track your marketing efforts. How many leads did you generate? How many did you close? Track everything!
The ONLY 3 Ways to Increase Sales
Regardless of the type of business you are in, there are only 3 ways to increase sales under the sun. The 3 ways are…
1. Increase Price
2. Get More Clients
3. More Frequency or Services from Existing Clients
Increase Price. If you are able to increase my price without losing too much in volume, your top line would increase. If you raise your price 20% and lose 20% of your sales volume, you are still making more money. If you raise your price 50% and lose 50% of your sales volume, you are still making more profit. This program reveals proven techniques for getting the highest prices for your product or service. By positioning yourself and your company differently – by creating a different message – you will be able to continually raise your price. The beauty is that you probably won’t lose any sales volume! If you do lose clients, you will quickly replace them with clients that are willing to pay a higher price because you will have developed a compelling case for doing business with your company.
Get more clients. The second way to increase sales is to get more clients. This is the one that people usually think of first. There are many, many ways to get more clients. This program will focus on how to get the best clients and to get as many as you want whenever you want.
Existing Clients. The third way to increase sales is to get your existing clients to use more of your services, or to use your services more often. This can have a dramatic effect on your income. If you are not marketing to your existing client base, you could literally double your business with this strategy alone. This is assuming that you have something to offer your existing clients. Keep in mind that properly marketing to your existing clients is one of the chief ways to position yourself at a higher level. By educating your clients and “training” them to think of you and your company in a certain way, you “brand” yourself among them. Don’t forget about referrals!! One of the most profitable benefits of marketing to your existing clients is their referrals!! If you are not in constant contact with your clients, they will forget about you. You must be top of the mind at all times. When anyone mentions your industry, your name should immediately come to mind.
Statistics have proven that it costs an average of 500% more to gain a new client than to keep an existing one. They already know you. You already know them. They have already paid your price. They are the most likely to do business with you assuming that you have a repeatable service, other products, and/or you want referrals from them. For most businesses not marketing to your existing clients is the biggest marketing mistake of all. This program reveals some of the strategies you can use to keep your current clients coming back for more and to keep them actively referring you.
EXPERIENTIAL MARKETING
I came across a term some years ago that explained what I was already doing in my marketing, and explained how I was able to get the highest prices. The term “Experiential Marketing” is sort of an unusual, obscure term, but is key to getting the highest prices for your service. There is a book called Experiential Marketing by Bernd H. Schmitt, published by The Free Press. Let me share a quote from this book…
“Today, customers take functional features and benefits, product quality, and a positive brand image as a given. What they want is products, communications, and marketing campaigns that dazzle their senses, touch their hearts and stimulate their minds. They want products communications and campaigns that they can relate to and that they can incorporate into their lifestyles. The want products, communications, and marketing campaigns to deliver an experience…”
Notice that it says to deliver an experience in the marketing campaign. Hopefully all of us know that we must create the most unique and powerful experience when we actually serve our clients. But what this is saying is that it is created in the marketing campaign. Interesting.
The quote goes on to say…“The degree to which a company is able to deliver a desirable customer experience (in the marketing) and to use information technology, brands, and integrated communications and entertainment to do so, will largely determine it’s success in the global marketplace of the new millennium.”
You may not be concerned about the “global marketplace” in your industry, but the degree to which we understand and implement this concept will determine the degree of success we will have in getting the highest prices.
What is the main marketing message of most business owners? How does the average, every day business advertise their service. If your industry is like most, you will find that the message is either about “price” or by the “method” of doing the work that they do.
Let’s deal with the price advertising first. Price advertising comes in many different ways. The most common type of price advertising is placing an ad that offers a low price. But that is not the only type of price advertising. The way that you carry yourself is a reflection of the value of your service. How you dress, what your company vehicles look like, what your office looks like, how you answer your telephone, what your marketing materials look like. You see, you will take up a position in the marketplace, just by existing. The question is whether you will take up the position that you want or not. You have to design what your position will be rather than letting it happen by accident.
The most common type of price advertiser is the one that advertises a ridiculously low price never intending to honor that price. Or, they have one in stock at that price, or whatever. In the worst cases, you could categorize these price advertisers in the “bait n’ switch” category. They bait the prospect with a low price to “get in the door”. Once the prospect is generated, they “switch” them to what they really want to sell. In the worst cases, the company would even refuse to offer the low price service. Do you have “bait n’ switch” operators in your industry?
The bait n’ switch advertiser is only one of 3 types of price advertisers. The second is what I call the “price merchandiser”. The price merchandiser, unlike the bait n’ switch is a legitimate business model, but has intentionally positioned itself as the lower price alternative. Think of Southwest Airlines. They have intentionally positioned themselves as the low price alternative and they are very focused about running their business model accordingly. Not offering meals on their flights, their point to point routes, open seating, the revolutionary “10 minute turn around” have all kept their costs low so that they can offer the low price. Just because you offer a low price doesn’t mean that it has to be negative or unprofitable. Southwest Airlines is the most profitable airline in the industry. They have built a brand of “fun and friendly”.
This model only works if you have the right business model. If you are a professional that works alone, this would not be the right approach for you. However, if you built a system that could duplicate what you do over and over and you could expand your units at a profit, you could use this business model.
This brings me to the third type of price advertiser. The third type of price advertiser is the small, independent, uninformed operator that does not have the management infrastructure, the reach, and cannot handle the volume that a larger price merchandising company could. Let’s think about a plumber or a carpet cleaner, or a service company like that. If the plumber or carpet cleaner is a solo operator, why would he want to “match” the price of the bigger operators? He can’t compete with their margins. He doesn’t have the management infrastructure, the capital, the brand image, the television commercials, and more that the larger company has. His revenue is generated by his sweat. Therefore, even thought the “overhead” is lower, this person should charge more rather than less.
Let’s look at an example. Let’s say that this is an income statement of a price merchandising firm:
$5M Income
- $2.5M Cost of Sale
=$2.5 M Gross Profit
- $2.0M Fixed Expense (40%)
=$500k Net Income
If a smaller operator that billed 200k has the same cost structure that produces a 10% margin, he would end up with $20k in profit. Not cool! Obviously there are lots of variables in this scenario, but to compete with the price merchandiser, you are going to spend lots of money in advertising, your costs are going to be at a high percentage because your prices are low.
Instead, the smaller operator should charge higher prices and leverage the benefits of being a smaller operator. The smaller operator can experience lower marketing costs by generating referrals, marketing to existing clients and creating a demand for services so that he can command his fee.
So, the saddest case of all the price advertisers is the small independent contractor or professional that has not figured out the value in their service and how to communicate that to the right people. This program is written especially for you.
Regardless of what type of price advertising you do, price advertising always does one thing: It attracts price shoppers! Hello? If you are attracting a multitude of price shoppers, you may want to take a look at how you are marketing your company.
The Effects of lowering or raising price.
This is a hypothetical pricing situation. In this hypothetical situation, Job 1 is priced at $200.00 and the cost of doing Job 1 is $100.00. This would give you $100.00 in gross profit. If you are discounting your price by 20% that would give you scenario #2. Job 2 charges $160.00. Guess what doesn’t change? The cost! It still cost $100.00 to do that job! So, that means your profit went down to $60.00…a 40% drop!! What if you could position your company is a way that you could charge 20% more instead of 20% less? What do you think would happen? Let’s take a look…Job 3 is priced at $240.00 instead of $200.00. What stays the same? The cost! $240.00 minus $100.00, gives us $140.00 profit. And by the way, the difference in profit from Job 2 and Job 3 is 2.33 times the amount. That means you could do half the work and make more money! Or, do the same volume and make more than twice the money. This is a very important concept for small, independent companies to understand. It’s not in the volume (with any company), it’s in the profit. It is terribly important as independent business owners to understand this because we don’t have a national brand to generate leads for us. We have an entirely different set of benefits to offer, which are worth far more.
The second way that most small business owners advertise their company “how they do their work”.
There is another common way that business owners communicate their service. They communicate how they do their work. What could possibly be wrong with this? Let’s look and see. Let’s say that you run into a potential prospect in the marketplace. The prospect says “Bob, don’t you (whatever it is that you do)?” You respond, ‘Oh, yes…” and you begin to talk about how you do your work, or the features and benefits of your product. The problem is that everyone else says the “same thing”. So if you do the “same thing”, why should someone choose you over another company? Why should they pay you a higher price? They shouldn’t.
You can see how this mistake is repeated over and over by small business owners. An ad for a carpet cleaner says “ABC Carpet Cleaning” followed by “Professional Carpet Cleaning, Upholstery Cleaning, Spot Removal…” Wow! I never knew that a carpet cleaning company cleaned carpet!! Let’s look at another ridiculous misuse of time… you’re at a Chamber of Commerce meeting and a CPA stands up to introduce herself. She says “I’m Sue Smith, I’m a CPA, and I do taxes” Well no duh! I never met a CPA that does taxes!! See how small business owners waste the 60 seconds of time they have to tell someone why they should do business with them over anyone else?
In today’s competitive marketplace, it is not enough to just tell what you do, or to tell the features and benefits. Today, you must answer the question “Why should I do business with you over the other 400 people in town?” and “Why should I pay you a higher price?”
This program reveals my proven 5 Point Marketing Message that can and is used in many companies to get the highest price or to create demand. Large corporations typically try to be the low price choice. Small business owners must differentiate themselves to get a higher price and protect their margins.
The Experience Economy
Before we get into the marketing message, I would like to share another concept with you that reveals more about marketing the “experience”. To prove this point, we will talk about coffee. When coffee first hits the market, it is a commodity. As a commodity, coffee cost about $1.00 a pound. Not much differentiation at this point other than the type of bean. Once it is packaged, it becomes a good. Now there is some differentiation. Now the price is anywhere from $3.00 to $8.00 a pound depending on the brand. A nice jump.
The next level is the service level. If you go to Denny’s and buy a cup of coffee, you are now paying for a service rather than a good. Even though you went there for coffee, you are really paying for the service. How much does a cup of coffee cost at Denny’s? About $1.00 per cup. How much of that weak coffee can you make from a pound of coffee? A lot! So the price per pound goes way up when you charge for a service. Are you in the service business? Yes you are! Are you marketing a product or a service? The secret to getting a higher price is identifying the service you provide that is wanted by your target prospect, rather than how you do your work which sounds like everyone else, or the functional features and benefits. You need to sell what it does rather than what it is. What does your product or service do that’s different. This will get you a higher price, but not the highest price.
How to get the highest price…
Have you ever heard of a little company called Starbucks? Starbucks started out as small coffee company in Seattle, Washington that few knew about. In a few short years, it has become a multi-national, publicly traded, billion dollar corporation. In the first quarter of 2003 they broke 1 billion dollars!
People stand in line in the cold, in the rain, in the heat, when they are late for work, to pay the highest price for a commodity that has been around for thousands of years. What is up with that?? Why?? Because they have so effectively marketed…. are you ready…. an experience around coffee that the people stand in line to pay the highest price for it. They not only created the highest priced brand, but they also created demand.
An interesting fact about Starbuck’s is they grew from unknown to worldwide without massive advertising. They created such a unique experience that people couldn’t stop talking about it. This is an important notation you should make. The Howard Partridge Referral Marketing System outlines a referral marketing system so effective you may never have to advertise again. You will find that high end clients buy mainly through referrals. Starbuck’s built a massive company through word of mouth!
Another interesting fact is how the Starbuck’s experience came about. Howard Shultz, CEO of Starbuck’s came to work for Starbuck’s as their national marketing director. He worked for a company that supplied Starbuck’s with coffee makers and accessories. At that time, Starbuck’s did not offer specialty Espresso drinks. They sold coffee beans, coffee makers, grinders, and accessories.
Howard Shultz was in Milan on a business trip. As he was ducking in and out of the Italian Espresso Bars, he had an epiphany of sorts. He realized that he could create the same “community experience” in America. He rushed back to Seattle and presented his idea to the principles of Starbuck’s. They said it would never work. They wouldn’t even give him the back of a store to test it. Shultz left the company, opened 5 stores called Il Giornale (Italian for the Daily News), was wildly successful and generated enough seed money to buy Starbuck’s for their bean distribution system. The rest is history! This story is recounted in a wonderfully entrepreneurial book called “Pour Your Heart Into It – The Starbuck’s Story” by Howard Shultz.
We will use Starbuck’s as the ultimate “Experiential Marketing” company and unravel the secrets that we can implement in our own businesses to get the highest price and have people stand in line to get it.
The illustration of Commodity, Good, Service, and Experience was taken from a book called the Experience Economy. The authors used having a cappuccino on St. Mark’s Square in Venice as the “experience”.
A quote from this book tells what is wrong with so many industries in America today…
“Commoditized. No company wants that word applied to it’s goods or services. Just to mention commoditization sends shivers down the spines of executives and entrepreneurs alike. Margins fall through the floor and customers buy solely on price, price, price.”
Isn’t that what has happened to most industries today? It is a travesty for this to happen to the service trades. But we have done it to ourselves through low pricing, and poor marketing. It is up to us to change it.
Notice that the sub-title of this book says “Work is Theatre and Every Business Is A Stage”. Our company has adopted this powerful mantra in our business. Every time we pick up the telephone, we are on stage. When we drive up to a client’s home or business, we are on stage. When a prospect picks up a brochure, we are on stage. Anytime anything about our company comes into contact with a prospect or client, we are on stage.
The Experience Economy is outlines how a theatre production is created. You should think of your business as a theatre production. When you think about theatre, and what happens behind the scenes, there is a great deal of work. Blood, sweat and tears earned that show the position that it has.
So, here are two more lessons…
One. No matter whether you or your staff members are hot, cold, sick, tired, bankrupt, have family problems, equipment problems, or whatever, don’t ever let your customers see what happens behind the curtain. When the curtain comes up (the telephone rings, you walk into the grocery store, one of your employees is driving a company van when they are off work), the only thing the community sees is a well thought out theatre production. You have choreographed every move, every image, the costumes, the props…everything has been designed to make your prospects and clients feel a certain way. You have provided them with an emotional experience. This is why scripts are so important. Have you ever thought about the fact that scripts in a theatre production are designed to make you laugh, cry, or provoke you to deep thought and imagination? One of the important concepts to realize about experiential marketing is that just as much of the marketing happens during and after the process of delivering the product or service. Think about Starbucks. You begin the learning experience after you have ordered the cup of coffee.
Two. After you have successfully created the ultimate experience, you then show the “behind-the-scenes” process of how it was all put together. You see this more and more with movies being published on dvds. The behind-the-scenes adds to the total experience. How does this apply to your small business? Instead of offering commodity service for a certain price, you share how the ultimate service experience is created…everything from training and education to the guarantee. More on this later.
Ironically, as so many products and services are “commoditized”, we are no longer in a “service” economy. Almost everything you buy comes with a unique experience. At all levels, especially the high end market, consumers are expecting more than functional features and benefits. They want to be part of something that means more than just buying a product. We see this in environmentally friendly products. There is an entire movement behind this marketing message.
The first word on Starbuck’s main brochure is “EXPERIENCE”, followed by “the Perfect Cup”. Inside, it shows the reader how many shots of espresso and how much milk or froth is used in each type of drink.
Experiential Marketing gets you the highest prices. People are willing to pay for an experience.
The Drycleaner Example. Here’s an example of how people will pay more for a product without really even knowing the difference in the product itself. A dry cleaner in my area offers “free home pick up and delivery”. It’s not really free because they charge the highest price for dry cleaning clothes. But the fact that I can simply put my clothes in a supplied nylon laundry bag and toss it out on the porch on Tuesday and my clothes will be hanging on the supplied hook on Thursday is a real convenience factor. Toss them out on Thursday, and they will be back on the following Tuesday. I travel a lot, and take the risk of not making it to the cleaners during their hours of operation, so I pay the highest price for dry cleaning, because of the home delivery program. I have no idea how they clean my clothes! I don’t know anything about their method of cleaning or “how they do their work”. So, what am I paying for? Peace of mind. To know that my clothes will be hanging there when I need to rush out of town to teach a seminar. Here’s the catch: Since they provide a premium level of service, I assume they use the best system of cleaning. Since they automatically fix a button or a seam without me having to point it out, I assume they do the best job. My clothes feel and smell clean, but they have never told me how they “do” their work. This company is not the ultimate in experiential marketing, but it simply demonstrates one premium service that people will pay a higher price for. They pay a higher price so they don’t have to worry about it. Hassle free. Lower the hassle factor in your service. Make it easy for the client. This drycleaning company could take their business to the next level by attaching “news clips” along with the receipt that is attached to the hanging clothes. They could insert information in with the bill they send each month. They could upgrade the van and driver that delivers the clothing. There are so many things they could do to create a greater experience and therefore solidify and expand their position if they wanted to.
The next question that comes up when talking about charging more, is whether there are enough people to go around to afford a high end service. As of December of 1999, there were 3.5 million millionaires in the U.S.
Not that all of them will pay the highest price for your service, but we live in a very affluent society that pays big money for intangibles. Don’t let the profile of “your area” fool you. There are business owners, professors, doctors, lawyers, and many other professionals in every area. You may have to diversify a little in a smaller community, but don’t let the visible landscape scare you off. Mercedes Clients are sometimes hidden. They don’t respond to traditional advertising means, and therefore are not as visible as other types of customers. The way to make your business immune to swings in the economy is to create such a unique experience that people will choose you over someone else. They will pay a higher price for you, and they will wait for you. Creating demand and higher prices as well as solidifying your position for the future. That’s what it is all about.
Experiential Marketing goes far beyond features and benefits
Features are specifications of a product or service. In other words, what it is.
A Benefit is what the product actually does. One of the first things you will learn when you begin studying marketing is to focus on benefits rather than features. In marketing, we must ALWAYS speak in terms of what’s in it for them. Speak in their language. Speak in terms of benefits. Instead of “we have”, use “you get”. Experiential Marketing is the ultimate level that includes everything you do.
Here are some examples of general benefits that have to do with working with one company over another.
• Peace of mind
• Security
• Good feelings
• Status
• Better health
• Convenience
• Get on with their lives!!
Be sure to make a LONG list of benefits of your product or service. After you finish making your list, then think of the benefit of the benefit. In other words, one benefit your client may get is that they get the owner on the job rather than an employee. What is the benefit of that benefit? Knowledge and experience will be on hand. What is the benefit of that benefit? Whatever you are offering the client will ultimately be better because of that knowledge and experience that is applied. Now list the exact, specific ways that it will be better. Get the picture?
Even though benefits can get you a higher price, it is only a part of experiential marketing.
The 4 Essential Components of Experiential Marketing
There are actually 4 essential components of experiential marketing. However, 3 of the four actually have to do with customer service, so we will save the details on those for a customer service discussion. However, I will touch on 2, 3, and 4 to make sure you understand the importance of them.
The four components are…
1. Powerful Presentation. We will spend a great deal of time on the presentation. In particular, the experiential marketing message.
2. Positive Reception. Positive reception is a term I use to describe what kind of experience your prospects and clients have when they actually come into contact with your company. Whether they call on the telephone or come by your office, the way that your prospects and clients are received is extremely important. If you begin to update your message and get an effective high end experiential message out to the marketplace, and get them to call your office, you don’t want to sound like a Saturn dealership. I have been blessed to be able to buy many products and services in the high end market. When I call a company, and I can tell that they really don’t understand. They are talking about “deals” and I am still evaluating whether I can trust them or not, is a big barrier. So, you need to make sure that you sound like a Mercedes dealership.
Make sure you have a professionally recorded voice mail message. If you have a hold button on your telephone, have a professionally recorded on-hold message. Create positive scripts for how the telephone is answered. The sales scripts that you deliver, and the pricing structures you decide on will determine whether the client perceives you as a bona fide high end service company can be trusted. By the same token, if you decide to become an effective “value” (Saturn) company, then everything you do will speak value in a positive way. Remember that “work is theatre and every business is a stage”. The more work you do on scripting the right words, and delivering the right experience will be the determining factor of your success.
3. Effective Delivery. In other words, how the product or service is delivered. I am constantly amazed to see how small business owners do not create any significant difference in the way that they deliver their product or service. The entire experience is just like the last guy. No difference. Commodity service. Commodity product. WOW your clients by having the shiniest, sparkling service vehicles around. Beautiful clean uniforms, outstanding on-site presentation materials, scripts that are used starting from the introduction. A multi-step service system that can be communicated to the client so that she knows you are doing more steps than anyone else.
4. Unusual Follow Up. Examples: Quality Check Call after the job. Thank You Letter with Comment Card. Referral Reward Program. Informative Newsletter that shares how to get the best use out of your product or service. All of this sets you apart, creates demand, and gets a higher price. In fact, it is impossible to create the “Most Outstanding Service Experience Ever™ without having “after the service” interaction. The Howard Partridge Client Base Marketing System outlines how to accomplish this.
Free LIVE Relationship Marketing Webinar with Howard Partridge Reveals Proven Strategies for Getting More High Quality Clients! Monday November 30th 7:00pm Central
November 17, 2009
On this webinar you will discover my proven strategies on how to get higher prices for
your service (if your price is fixed, you will find out how to get higher quality
clients), how to generate so many referrals you may never advertise again, and how to
double your business with one simple strategy. Not only is this presentation free, you
will get access to a free business building package online that is worth at least
$600.00. If you are tired of dealing with price shoppers, and you don’t have as many
high quality clients as you want, then join me on this free webinar.
During this live presentation, you can ask me any question you like. Depending on the
number of questions we have, I may not get to all of them, but I will answer as many
as I can. I have practiced “Relationship Marketing” for over 25 years and I have been
teaching other small business owners my concepts for over a decade now.
Most importantly, you will leave this webinar with strategies you will be able to
implement immediately after the call to take your business to the next level.
Simply register here and you will get your own unique link to the webinar. You can
listen and watch right on your computer. You don’t even have to make a long distance
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if you are in the U.S.).
Mark your calendar now so that you make sure you are on this call. It will NOT be
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Of course my materials and memberships are worth every penny I charge because of what
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October 28, 2009
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