- Target Your Marketing Most small business owners waste their time and money pitching too broadly. Do you have an effective method for identifying people who want your products and services?

- Use a Problem Solving Approach Over 95 percent of small business owners focus their marketing on reasons people should buy their products and services, not on their clients. Is your marketing focused on client's concerns and problems or on yours?

- Demonstrate Value Getting your name in front of people is a first step in marketing, but if your prospects don’t know what you do or how you can help them, you haven't achieved your goal. Past clients and prospects may have only a limited idea of how you can help them. Do your prospects understand range of problems you solve and solutions you provide?

- Build Relationships Every past client and prospect who has shown an interest can help you grow your business. Most service professionals know this but waste this resource through lapsed or infrequent communication. Do you have a method for staying in touch on a monthly basis with every person who could help you grow you business? Do you have a strategy for growing number of qualified prospects on this list each week?

Many people find that defining their marketing strategy is hardest part of their job. So hard that many small business owners use a tactical approach instead. Don't make this mistake!

Once you have clear marketing goals and a well-defined strategy, your marketing will be more focused and you can make more effective use of appropriate marketing tactics to grow your business. Shift to strategic marketing and you'll turbo charge your marketing and your business. - 2004 © In Mind Communications, LLC. All rights reserved.

For mailings, this doesn't mean send best stuff first and let it do sale for you. No, no, no. Printed material seldom makes sale. It’s just another contact point. First punches are either tossed or buried in some stack.

If your price is under $100, send them to your web site. Over, send them material for added credibility. This also depends on target market value of your price. If your market considers $500 a drop in bucket then credibility perception changes.

Interview past purchasers. Find out when did they first take notice and how many before they took action. Was it when they received a certain number of contacts? Always. When did need make it a priority. Create a list of triggers and look for those signs in future contacts. Model your follow-up program accordingly.

In several studies, 92% of purchase makers cited that letterhead, envelopes and business cards where major factors in how they rated creditability.

Credibility can be lost if your material includes careless mistakes or omits vital information. In buyer’s perspective, all answers need to lead on how they can feel confident about your service or product and how it solves their need.

One of my services is printed material and web site analysis. After reviewing 294 brochures, I found 81.5% of information dancing around solutions instead of commitment to direct and clear solutions. Non-commitment is biggest sales destroyers. Don't send them material about X when they inquired about Y. If it doesn't answer Y, it’s tossed. And you have 30 seconds to 3 minutes to complete their question. Long sales letters demonstrate commitment in receiver’s minds because of thought and care it took to create and address their challenge.

Also, don't send Y, with "I think we need to offer this because we've received a few inquires lately even if it’s off our path" feeling. If you are unable to fit in time to write a letter explaining how and why you can provide Y, then pass it up. This may be a "good" opportunity but not be "great" opportunity you truly want to attract.

If, on other hand, their issue isn't clearly understood or known, then you're asking horse to jump fence without knowing how height. It’s a wasted effort and you can lame horse. Don't mail it with an "if it works, okay, if it doesn't oh well" energy. This gives impression that you weren't listening. A big strike against you. Usually one too big to overcome.

For service businesses, it is best to complete your first contact verbally and follow-up with printed material once or twice, then verbally, then twice, etc. Give prospects 1-2-3 punches if you have answer. Be honest if you don't provide what they are seeking. Don't adjust and accommodate because sales are down for month. This is a disservice to your customer and your business. This will diminish assets later. Share wealth; earn a life-long customer, and new collaborator with your referral.

Copyright 2004, Catherine Franz. All rights reserved.

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Catherine Franz, 15 year business coach, specializes in marketing and nonfiction writing, She is available for 1- on-1 and group support. She also instructs teleprograms and workshops. Additional articles, ezines, and blog available at: http://www.AbundanceCenter.com.

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