18.8 billion pieces of direct mail went out in the 2nd quarter of this year. And most predictions I am reading predict that this will double by the year 2013.
Mail might be a more expensive way to market than others that are out there, but a study that was done by the Winterberry Group that was released last March noted that direct mail were getting an improved ROI.
Television did not kill radio. Direct mail did not kill newspaper ads. TiVo did not kill television. Paid search did not kill email. And email will not kill direct mail. New marketing mediums might fragment marketing budgets but so far only government regulations and obsolete technology can kill a marketing channel such as the Do Not Fax lax and the SPAM law, and do not call list.
As many marketers have been quick to point out, competition in email has only increased up to over 210 billion emails send out daily marketing this channel every more challenging for your prospects attention.
It seem s to me that every though more and more marketing is being down electronically those that seem to be the most successful are still keeping direct mail a part of their mix and sometimes the prime driver of their attack.
Larson note: Why mail? Because it works. Only mail? No but it still gets the job done. There is an art to a mailing attach, you might want to mix it up with a pay for key word deal. Play with it. Have some fun and keep your eye on your (snail) mail box. Bet someone sent you something to get your attention and . . .did.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
P.P.S. Need a mailing attack? Call us we know how to make it work for you.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Direct Mail For B2B E-Commerce
When some people think multichannel marketing these days seems to mean if you include Social Media Marketing to your mix with paid search you have arrived.
Hardly.
If you are serious about B-to-B marketing you should be taking a good long hard look at direct mail. Yes snail mail. Ground mail. Through wind and storm, sleet and hail etc, ect.
Yes paid search and search engine optimization are essential for your campaign but mail?
Think about it. You’re launching a new product. Are your customers or prospects going to be looking online for something that is new? What if they don’t do a search for it? What if they don’t go to your web site and take a peak, then what? Mail!
E-Mail marketing might work to introduce your new product if you can get the addresses and or you can get them to open it. On a level of pure impact it is hard to ignore the box, card, or letter then is placed on your desk. It’s there, right there in front of you. Even if it goes right into the bucket they need to look at your name on the card to know they don’t want it, and then them might just take a peak to see what the product or offer is, just in case. Who uses mail these days to promote themselves?
Now don’t get me wrong, I am not suggesting you stop using online marketing as a major attach method but I am strongly suggesting that you not forget the old marketing methods of mail (and a little telemarketing to cement the attach). You might be amazed the some old ways of marketing sill work.
Larson note: What is a Larson’s method of attack? Telemarketing, Post Card Mailer, E-mail, Blog, Social Media, Web site, Search Engine Optimization. For the most part in that order. Why because it works, for us.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
P.P.S. Need a mailing attack? Call us we know how to make it work for you.
Hardly.
If you are serious about B-to-B marketing you should be taking a good long hard look at direct mail. Yes snail mail. Ground mail. Through wind and storm, sleet and hail etc, ect.
Yes paid search and search engine optimization are essential for your campaign but mail?
Think about it. You’re launching a new product. Are your customers or prospects going to be looking online for something that is new? What if they don’t do a search for it? What if they don’t go to your web site and take a peak, then what? Mail!
E-Mail marketing might work to introduce your new product if you can get the addresses and or you can get them to open it. On a level of pure impact it is hard to ignore the box, card, or letter then is placed on your desk. It’s there, right there in front of you. Even if it goes right into the bucket they need to look at your name on the card to know they don’t want it, and then them might just take a peak to see what the product or offer is, just in case. Who uses mail these days to promote themselves?
Now don’t get me wrong, I am not suggesting you stop using online marketing as a major attach method but I am strongly suggesting that you not forget the old marketing methods of mail (and a little telemarketing to cement the attach). You might be amazed the some old ways of marketing sill work.
Larson note: What is a Larson’s method of attack? Telemarketing, Post Card Mailer, E-mail, Blog, Social Media, Web site, Search Engine Optimization. For the most part in that order. Why because it works, for us.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
P.P.S. Need a mailing attack? Call us we know how to make it work for you.
Monday, September 28, 2009
The Week Ahead Sept 28 – Oct 2, 2009
Monday:
Tuesday: Case-Shiller Housing Price Index, Consumer Confidence
Wednesday: Gross Domestic Product, Regional Manufacturing Surveys
Thursday: Weekly initial jobless claims, Personal Income and Consumption, Construction Spending, Auto and Truck Sales,
Friday: Factory Orders, Payroll / Nonfarm Payrolls
Larson note: Wow was I off last week. I expected upward trends and saw bad news home sales and factory order. Good news was the Fed will hold interest rates steady.
This week I am at a total loss. I like what I am hearing on the street and at trade shows on factory orders but without employment it is going to be hard to keep up. And for unemployment I look at companies purchasing equipment to keep up productivity rather then going out and hiring anyone.
On the Larson front I have Dan ? waiting in the wings as prime telemarketer for companies in advertising, websites and communication. He has training and experience and expect to have using him at full capacity within 2 weeks. If you are in these areas you might want to give us a call. I expect Dan's hours to be taking up quickly.
The focused industries we are looking to add clients in for the month are Advertising Specialties, Trade Show Booth Builder, Sign Shop, a Graphic Design Studio, and Printer both small and mid-sized.
Additionally we are also looking for sales persons in all areas except
the Great Plains States.
If interested give us a call at 847-991-0488.
Howard’s out of office public schedule for the week:
Monday:
Tuesday: Marathon Training 6:30am,
Wednesday: Motivation show McCormick PlaceThursday: Marathon Training 6:30am
Friday: Saturday:
Sunday: Marathon Training Long Group Run
Trade show schedule:
> September 29- October 1, 2009: Motivation show McCormick Place
> October 5-7, 2009, Parcel Forum 09 Hyatt Regency O’Hare
> October 21-22 2009, Mid-Pak Minneapolis MN (Registered but not committed to going yet)
> October 22nd, 2009: 2009 Midwest Fall Business Expo Serb Hall Milwaukee, WI
> November 15-18, 2009 Fabtech Int. & AWS Welding Show McCormick Place, Chicago
> December 2-4, 2009 The Intl. Work Boat Show, New Orleans LA (Registered but not committed to going yet)
> December 3-5, 2009 Athletic Business Conference & Expo, Orlando FL (Registered but not committed to going yet)
Time slots still available to meet & talk over coffee.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://frontofficebox.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://ultimateconnection.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
P.P.S. We are offering 2 free (a $75.00 value) ½ hour consultation periods per week to talk about marketing businesses. Call or email to get your spot to pick my brain for 30 minutes today.
Tuesday: Case-Shiller Housing Price Index, Consumer Confidence
Wednesday: Gross Domestic Product, Regional Manufacturing Surveys
Thursday: Weekly initial jobless claims, Personal Income and Consumption, Construction Spending, Auto and Truck Sales,
Friday: Factory Orders, Payroll / Nonfarm Payrolls
Larson note: Wow was I off last week. I expected upward trends and saw bad news home sales and factory order. Good news was the Fed will hold interest rates steady.
This week I am at a total loss. I like what I am hearing on the street and at trade shows on factory orders but without employment it is going to be hard to keep up. And for unemployment I look at companies purchasing equipment to keep up productivity rather then going out and hiring anyone.
On the Larson front I have Dan ? waiting in the wings as prime telemarketer for companies in advertising, websites and communication. He has training and experience and expect to have using him at full capacity within 2 weeks. If you are in these areas you might want to give us a call. I expect Dan's hours to be taking up quickly.
The focused industries we are looking to add clients in for the month are Advertising Specialties, Trade Show Booth Builder, Sign Shop, a Graphic Design Studio, and Printer both small and mid-sized.
Additionally we are also looking for sales persons in all areas except
the Great Plains States.
If interested give us a call at 847-991-0488.
Howard’s out of office public schedule for the week:
Monday:
Tuesday: Marathon Training 6:30am,
Wednesday: Motivation show McCormick PlaceThursday: Marathon Training 6:30am
Friday: Saturday:
Sunday: Marathon Training Long Group Run
Trade show schedule:
> September 29- October 1, 2009: Motivation show McCormick Place
> October 5-7, 2009, Parcel Forum 09 Hyatt Regency O’Hare
> October 21-22 2009, Mid-Pak Minneapolis MN (Registered but not committed to going yet)
> October 22nd, 2009: 2009 Midwest Fall Business Expo Serb Hall Milwaukee, WI
> November 15-18, 2009 Fabtech Int. & AWS Welding Show McCormick Place, Chicago
> December 2-4, 2009 The Intl. Work Boat Show, New Orleans LA (Registered but not committed to going yet)
> December 3-5, 2009 Athletic Business Conference & Expo, Orlando FL (Registered but not committed to going yet)
Time slots still available to meet & talk over coffee.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://frontofficebox.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://ultimateconnection.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
P.P.S. We are offering 2 free (a $75.00 value) ½ hour consultation periods per week to talk about marketing businesses. Call or email to get your spot to pick my brain for 30 minutes today.
Friday, September 25, 2009
Twitter For Reputation Management
Though still in what I would call great monitoring software, you can use Twitter for some reputation management.
Customers are looking for interact with companies on their teams not just in the traditional manner. This is where twitter starts to become a powerful tool for a company, at least the companies looking to assist customers or keep a hold of their online reputation.
If you go and set up a few searches on third party tools like Co_Tweet, Twhirl or TweetDeck you can monitor mentions of your company name, product or services. If you want to get the most benefit it is important to respond to both the positive and negative Tweets about you. The good and bad news is that all your updates can be seen by anyone who does a search for you and actively helping out customers in the now can only allow you to show your customers you are there for them and care for them.
Larson note: Your reputation can spread like wild fire online, you need to monitor and nip it in the bud asap so you and you're company’s reputation that you are spending time and money building is not ruined in a matter of 24 hours.
The bigger your company gets the more important this becomes. Yet big is in the eyes of the beholder. If you are a big fish in a little pond, you need to watch your “pond” and name carefully. Size in this case does not matter. Fortune 500 or Mini 100 it’s your name on the firing line.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Is Manufacturing Coming Back?
August 10, 2009 in the New York Times. General Electric has committed to building not 1 but 2 new U.S. factories.
Jerry Carney is quoted as saying “We haven’t produced a new product here (in Louisville KY) since the 1950’s. This new product happened to a hybrid electric water heater.
So how did this come about? Labor gave some major concessions to GE in the form of two-=tiered wage structure, where new GE workers would ear 37% less that most current workers and in return the GE pant in Louisville will recapture work now being done in Chine and will employ 420 people and in addition to that the firm is also building a battery plant in Schenectady, NY.
As noted in the San Francisco Business Times, “companies are reshoring manufacturing . . . for reasons that vary as widely as the types of goods returning to American factory floors.” This article goes on to explain why CP Lab Safety recently shifted production of more than 80 of its products to a California contact manufacture, after more than 7 years of using a contract manufacturer in China. Yes you can manufacture in the US at a cost comparable to China!
I have to take my hat off to both GE for reshoring the jobs and the Union for accepting a two year wage freeze in addition to the lower wage tier for new employees. Also it should be noted that Jeffrey Immelt, GE chief executive officer has NOT taken a pay race and in fast his take-home pay dropped by 64% in 2008 vs. 2007.
Even as the recession ends feed your factories with new hard won business not just business as usual.
Designers, engineers, reashers and developers all are up for the challenge. Are you?
Larson note: Is this the time both service and manufacturing companies go to war? Or will we just sit back and let a handful of companies like GE do it all? For us at Larson we are committed to the US and use US workers. Period! My company does battle on a daily basis with companies out of India, Philippines and even Jordan. I intend to win not just the battle but the war. Who’s with me?
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
Jerry Carney is quoted as saying “We haven’t produced a new product here (in Louisville KY) since the 1950’s. This new product happened to a hybrid electric water heater.
So how did this come about? Labor gave some major concessions to GE in the form of two-=tiered wage structure, where new GE workers would ear 37% less that most current workers and in return the GE pant in Louisville will recapture work now being done in Chine and will employ 420 people and in addition to that the firm is also building a battery plant in Schenectady, NY.
As noted in the San Francisco Business Times, “companies are reshoring manufacturing . . . for reasons that vary as widely as the types of goods returning to American factory floors.” This article goes on to explain why CP Lab Safety recently shifted production of more than 80 of its products to a California contact manufacture, after more than 7 years of using a contract manufacturer in China. Yes you can manufacture in the US at a cost comparable to China!
I have to take my hat off to both GE for reshoring the jobs and the Union for accepting a two year wage freeze in addition to the lower wage tier for new employees. Also it should be noted that Jeffrey Immelt, GE chief executive officer has NOT taken a pay race and in fast his take-home pay dropped by 64% in 2008 vs. 2007.
Even as the recession ends feed your factories with new hard won business not just business as usual.
Designers, engineers, reashers and developers all are up for the challenge. Are you?
Larson note: Is this the time both service and manufacturing companies go to war? Or will we just sit back and let a handful of companies like GE do it all? For us at Larson we are committed to the US and use US workers. Period! My company does battle on a daily basis with companies out of India, Philippines and even Jordan. I intend to win not just the battle but the war. Who’s with me?
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
More With Less For How Long?
Things on the economic reports have been getting better yet there is one big item that is not, employment. Companies are doing more with less people. Worker productivity, the output per hour of all individuals rose at a seasonally adjusted rate of 6.4% in the nonfarm business sector during the second quarter of 2009, following a pace of 0.3% during the first three months of the year, according to a report released in August by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. This increase in productivity is the largest increase in almost six years.
In manufacturing, productivity increased 5.3% according to the report. The increase in productivity in manufacturing is the result of hours falling faster than the output.
Historically, productivity climbs sharply as the economy begins to turn from recession to recovery.
Will companies respond to the productivity gains and start to rehire employees, thereby alleviating some of the pressure of their current staffs?
When asked how companies plan to meet the quality needs that exceed in-house capacity, the majority of companies, 62%, work overtime, 27% outsource the work to a third party and 23% hire temporary workers. Still, another 18% of respondents said, “We don’t. The work simply will not get done.”
This is not true at all companies. During the past year, 43% of companies have maintained the number of employees, while another 20% of companies have increased the number of employees.
Some analysts are predicting that this will be a jobless recovery where businesses will learn to do more with fewer people, meaning the economy grows but employment does not. Other analysts argue that as corporate profits climb, company investments will increase including investments in new employees.
How is your company poised to deal with the recovery? Are they looking to hire full-time, part-time or temporary workers? Will they keep plugging along with the employees that are already in place? What solutions do you have in place?
Larson note: How are you handling the recession and the challenges and opportunities that are out there for all of us? He you been positioning yourself of this opportunity? Employees? How do you know if you need some, more? Set goals and guidelines to let you know if achieved your ready to advance to the next level. If you not out there positioning yourself you will be pushed aside.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
In manufacturing, productivity increased 5.3% according to the report. The increase in productivity in manufacturing is the result of hours falling faster than the output.
Historically, productivity climbs sharply as the economy begins to turn from recession to recovery.
Will companies respond to the productivity gains and start to rehire employees, thereby alleviating some of the pressure of their current staffs?
When asked how companies plan to meet the quality needs that exceed in-house capacity, the majority of companies, 62%, work overtime, 27% outsource the work to a third party and 23% hire temporary workers. Still, another 18% of respondents said, “We don’t. The work simply will not get done.”
This is not true at all companies. During the past year, 43% of companies have maintained the number of employees, while another 20% of companies have increased the number of employees.
Some analysts are predicting that this will be a jobless recovery where businesses will learn to do more with fewer people, meaning the economy grows but employment does not. Other analysts argue that as corporate profits climb, company investments will increase including investments in new employees.
How is your company poised to deal with the recovery? Are they looking to hire full-time, part-time or temporary workers? Will they keep plugging along with the employees that are already in place? What solutions do you have in place?
Larson note: How are you handling the recession and the challenges and opportunities that are out there for all of us? He you been positioning yourself of this opportunity? Employees? How do you know if you need some, more? Set goals and guidelines to let you know if achieved your ready to advance to the next level. If you not out there positioning yourself you will be pushed aside.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Miscellaneous Marketing Numbers
37.6 million Americans will download podcasts monthly. According to the Pew Internet and American Life Project, 37.6 million Americans will be downloading podcasts on a monthly basis, up 116% from 17.4 million in 2008. Marketing News, July 30, 2009
39% of consumers trust marketing professionals. An international survey by Custom Research on the level of trust consumers held for various professional groups discovered that just 39% of respondents trusted marketing professionals. (On the other hand, firefighters earned a 92% trust value.) Marketing News, July 30, 2009
2% 2% or less of U.S. gross domestic product is motor vehicle production. Motor vehicle production now makes up less than 2% of U.S. gross domestic product, versus over 5% in the early 1970s. Business Week, June 22, 2009
58% of organizations to increase involvement in sustainability. According to a study released by the American Marketing Association, 58% of respondents said their organizations will increase their involvement in sustainability in the next 2-3 years. Marketing News, July 30, 2009
70% of Kodak’s revenue from digital photography gear. 70% of Kodak’s revenue today comes from digital photography gear; Kodachrome slide film accounts for less than 0.01%. Fortune, July 20, 2009.
11 UW-Madison CEO alums on Fortune 500 list Harvard and the University of Wisconsin both have 11 CEO alums on the Fortune 500 list Fortune, May 4, 2009
Larson note: Just some little things that I have been collecting to see if they are worthy of a complete blog. Enjoy.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
39% of consumers trust marketing professionals. An international survey by Custom Research on the level of trust consumers held for various professional groups discovered that just 39% of respondents trusted marketing professionals. (On the other hand, firefighters earned a 92% trust value.) Marketing News, July 30, 2009
2% 2% or less of U.S. gross domestic product is motor vehicle production. Motor vehicle production now makes up less than 2% of U.S. gross domestic product, versus over 5% in the early 1970s. Business Week, June 22, 2009
58% of organizations to increase involvement in sustainability. According to a study released by the American Marketing Association, 58% of respondents said their organizations will increase their involvement in sustainability in the next 2-3 years. Marketing News, July 30, 2009
70% of Kodak’s revenue from digital photography gear. 70% of Kodak’s revenue today comes from digital photography gear; Kodachrome slide film accounts for less than 0.01%. Fortune, July 20, 2009.
11 UW-Madison CEO alums on Fortune 500 list Harvard and the University of Wisconsin both have 11 CEO alums on the Fortune 500 list Fortune, May 4, 2009
Larson note: Just some little things that I have been collecting to see if they are worthy of a complete blog. Enjoy.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
Monday, September 21, 2009
NOR chip price drop
NOR chip will drop 27% in 2009
then stabilize in 2010
Buyers can expect price erosion for NOR flash memory for the rest of 2009, but prices will stabilize in 2010, according to market researcher IC Insights.
then stabilize in 2010
Buyers can expect price erosion for NOR flash memory for the rest of 2009, but prices will stabilize in 2010, according to market researcher IC Insights.
The average price of a NOR flash chip will fall from $1.68 in 2008 to $1.23 in 2009, says the researcher. The price will be flat in 2010 and increase marginally to $1.25 in 2010.
In 2009, NOR unit shipment will increase 1%, but with prices falling 27%, the overall NOR flash market will decline 26% to $4.6 billion. As prices stabilize in 2010 and unit demand picks up, the NOR market will increase slightly to $4.7 billion.
The largest market for NOR is cell phones, which use the flash chips for code storage. However, NAND flash used primarily for data storage, is being used more in cell phones and is replacing NOR.
Larson note: Now the question is as wholesale prices drop do you pocket the savings or pass it on to your customers? My prediction is that the savings will be passed on as, your competition, my completion ties to regain the market share they have lost over the last year. We will have to follow the general flow of the market and find better ways to be cost effective to ourselves and our customers
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
In 2009, NOR unit shipment will increase 1%, but with prices falling 27%, the overall NOR flash market will decline 26% to $4.6 billion. As prices stabilize in 2010 and unit demand picks up, the NOR market will increase slightly to $4.7 billion.
The largest market for NOR is cell phones, which use the flash chips for code storage. However, NAND flash used primarily for data storage, is being used more in cell phones and is replacing NOR.
Larson note: Now the question is as wholesale prices drop do you pocket the savings or pass it on to your customers? My prediction is that the savings will be passed on as, your competition, my completion ties to regain the market share they have lost over the last year. We will have to follow the general flow of the market and find better ways to be cost effective to ourselves and our customers
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
The Week Ahead Sept 21-25, 2009
Monday: Leading Indicators
Tuesday: FHFA US Housing Price Index
Wednesday:
Thursday: Weekly initial jobless claims. Existing Home Sales, Durable Goods Orders
Friday: August New Home Sales
Larson note: We saw some bad and I mean bad employment numbers last week, as August numbers really took a beating, yet on the up side the manufacturing figures looked good, very good. So where do we go from here. Yes employment is going to stay tight, very tight as employers get more out of what they got. Yet, look for more capital investment to increase output and look for more labor concessions to let the US companies build new factories and the reshoring (work contracted to a supplier overseas that is brought back to the United States) see this Thursday’s blog on reshoring by GE.
Are we out of the recession? Maybe. Are we out of the woods? Hardly.
The focused industries we are looking to add clients in for the month are Advertising Specialties, Trade Show Booth Builder, Sign Shop, a Graphic Design Studio, and Printer both small and mid-sized.
Additionally we are also looking for sales persons in all areas except
the Great Plains States.
If interested give us a call at 847-991-0488.
Howard’s out of office public schedule for the week:
Monday: Tuesday: Marathon Training 6:30am,
Wednesday: Assembly Show Stevenson Convention CenterThursday: Marathon Training 6:30am
Friday: Saturday:
Sunday: Marathon Training Long Group Run
Trade show schedule:
> September 22-24 2009: Assembly Show Stevenson Convention Center
> September 29- October 1, 2009: Motivation show McCormick Place
> October 5-7, 2009, Parcel Forum 09 Hyatt Regency O’Hare
> October 21-22 2009, Mid-Pak Minneapolis MN (Registered but not committed to going yet)
> October 22nd, 2009: 2009 Midwest Fall Business Expo Serb Hall Milwaukee, WI
> November 15-18, 2009 Fabtech Int. & AWS Welding Show McCormick Place, Chicago
> December 2-4, 2009 The Intl. Work Boat Show, New Orleans LA (Registered but not committed to going yet)
> December 3-5, 2009 Athletic Business Conference & Expo, Orlando FL (Registered but not committed to going yet)
Time slots still available to meet & talk over coffee.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
P.P.S. We are offering 2 free (a $75.00 value) ½ hour consultation periods per week to talk about marketing businesses. Call or email to get your spot to pick my brain for 30 minutes today.
Tuesday: FHFA US Housing Price Index
Wednesday:
Thursday: Weekly initial jobless claims. Existing Home Sales, Durable Goods Orders
Friday: August New Home Sales
Larson note: We saw some bad and I mean bad employment numbers last week, as August numbers really took a beating, yet on the up side the manufacturing figures looked good, very good. So where do we go from here. Yes employment is going to stay tight, very tight as employers get more out of what they got. Yet, look for more capital investment to increase output and look for more labor concessions to let the US companies build new factories and the reshoring (work contracted to a supplier overseas that is brought back to the United States) see this Thursday’s blog on reshoring by GE.
Are we out of the recession? Maybe. Are we out of the woods? Hardly.
The focused industries we are looking to add clients in for the month are Advertising Specialties, Trade Show Booth Builder, Sign Shop, a Graphic Design Studio, and Printer both small and mid-sized.
Additionally we are also looking for sales persons in all areas except
the Great Plains States.
If interested give us a call at 847-991-0488.
Howard’s out of office public schedule for the week:
Monday: Tuesday: Marathon Training 6:30am,
Wednesday: Assembly Show Stevenson Convention CenterThursday: Marathon Training 6:30am
Friday: Saturday:
Sunday: Marathon Training Long Group Run
Trade show schedule:
> September 22-24 2009: Assembly Show Stevenson Convention Center
> September 29- October 1, 2009: Motivation show McCormick Place
> October 5-7, 2009, Parcel Forum 09 Hyatt Regency O’Hare
> October 21-22 2009, Mid-Pak Minneapolis MN (Registered but not committed to going yet)
> October 22nd, 2009: 2009 Midwest Fall Business Expo Serb Hall Milwaukee, WI
> November 15-18, 2009 Fabtech Int. & AWS Welding Show McCormick Place, Chicago
> December 2-4, 2009 The Intl. Work Boat Show, New Orleans LA (Registered but not committed to going yet)
> December 3-5, 2009 Athletic Business Conference & Expo, Orlando FL (Registered but not committed to going yet)
Time slots still available to meet & talk over coffee.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
P.P.S. We are offering 2 free (a $75.00 value) ½ hour consultation periods per week to talk about marketing businesses. Call or email to get your spot to pick my brain for 30 minutes today.
Friday, September 18, 2009
What’s Next for E-mail Marketing
The e-mail inbox lies at the convergence point of two trends in advertising: Marketers forming direct relationships with consumers and marketers working to deliver more relevant, specifically targeted messages to consumers. The inbox uniquely allows marketers to address interested consumers in context.
As a result, it verges on becoming a major online advertising medium. However, it remains to be seen how quickly the potential of the inbox will be realized. Much will hinge on eliminating the clutter and aggravation caused by spam, phishing and viruses. These attacks have forced ISPs to adopt draconian measures to protect their subscribers, impeding the medium's creative and functional capabilities. Fortunately, the industry has started addressing these problems and there has been progress. The Online Trust Alliance (OTA) announced that 51% of Fortune 500 companies use at least one technique to authenticate outbound e-mail. Goodmail, and email company, delivered almost three billion certified e-mail messages in August, by partnering with leading ISPs that permit carefully screened and qualified senders to achieve 100% delivery of opt-in e-mail with images and links enabled.
The same level of trust facilitating these privileges today will open the door to a more interesting inbox experience tomorrow. Imagine rich media and video, shopping cart functionality and quick and easy bill pay in e-mail. These features and more are coming. Here are three topics to consider, to prepare you for the inbox of the future.
The medium is the message. Future e-mail will bring new experiences and standards of expectations to recievers, while introducing creative elements and functionality. Think about how you can make e-mails more engaging and useful. Video? Links? Etc? Companies can use video in e-mail to deliver product demonstrations and consumer reviews, while travel marketers can send video tours of the destinations they're pitching. Or send a link to a site with more venues to look at.
All eyeballs are not created equal. The age of “spray and pray” marketing is over. People have gotten good at ignoring irrelevant messages no matter how loud a marketer shouts. Intelligent inbox marketing enables advertisers to inform, intrigue and entertain customers by speaking to an audience of one. With the bridge of trust from marketers through the ISPs to consumers firmly established, the point of action gets moved even closer to the consumer. With diminishing attention spans, the fewer clicks between catching their eyes and driving them to buy something, the better.
Greater accountability means greater revenue opportunities. Firms across each vertical sector can develop e-mail programs to derive incremental advertiser revenue. In tomorrow's world of guaranteed inbox deliverability and provable impressions and click-throughs, a sender can develop a more sophisticated and appealing performance-based advertising pricing model. They'll be able to offer higher-priced ad vehicles like rich media banners, video pre-roll and “big ticket” inventory.
Now's the time to think creatively and prepare for the next revolution in e-mail marketing.
Larson note: And you thought email marketing was dead? Hardly. Just had to retool and work on a way to make the spamers get dumped in the spam folder and ligit emailing to the in box. Should you be using this channel in your marketing attack? Probally.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
As a result, it verges on becoming a major online advertising medium. However, it remains to be seen how quickly the potential of the inbox will be realized. Much will hinge on eliminating the clutter and aggravation caused by spam, phishing and viruses. These attacks have forced ISPs to adopt draconian measures to protect their subscribers, impeding the medium's creative and functional capabilities. Fortunately, the industry has started addressing these problems and there has been progress. The Online Trust Alliance (OTA) announced that 51% of Fortune 500 companies use at least one technique to authenticate outbound e-mail. Goodmail, and email company, delivered almost three billion certified e-mail messages in August, by partnering with leading ISPs that permit carefully screened and qualified senders to achieve 100% delivery of opt-in e-mail with images and links enabled.
The same level of trust facilitating these privileges today will open the door to a more interesting inbox experience tomorrow. Imagine rich media and video, shopping cart functionality and quick and easy bill pay in e-mail. These features and more are coming. Here are three topics to consider, to prepare you for the inbox of the future.
The medium is the message. Future e-mail will bring new experiences and standards of expectations to recievers, while introducing creative elements and functionality. Think about how you can make e-mails more engaging and useful. Video? Links? Etc? Companies can use video in e-mail to deliver product demonstrations and consumer reviews, while travel marketers can send video tours of the destinations they're pitching. Or send a link to a site with more venues to look at.
All eyeballs are not created equal. The age of “spray and pray” marketing is over. People have gotten good at ignoring irrelevant messages no matter how loud a marketer shouts. Intelligent inbox marketing enables advertisers to inform, intrigue and entertain customers by speaking to an audience of one. With the bridge of trust from marketers through the ISPs to consumers firmly established, the point of action gets moved even closer to the consumer. With diminishing attention spans, the fewer clicks between catching their eyes and driving them to buy something, the better.
Greater accountability means greater revenue opportunities. Firms across each vertical sector can develop e-mail programs to derive incremental advertiser revenue. In tomorrow's world of guaranteed inbox deliverability and provable impressions and click-throughs, a sender can develop a more sophisticated and appealing performance-based advertising pricing model. They'll be able to offer higher-priced ad vehicles like rich media banners, video pre-roll and “big ticket” inventory.
Now's the time to think creatively and prepare for the next revolution in e-mail marketing.
Larson note: And you thought email marketing was dead? Hardly. Just had to retool and work on a way to make the spamers get dumped in the spam folder and ligit emailing to the in box. Should you be using this channel in your marketing attack? Probally.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Regular Sized Postcards For Marketing Penetration
While oversized postcard mailings can be very effective, see yesterday’s blog, they are perhaps not that much more effective than any other Kind of mailing piece. There are other choices in your mailing arsenal. Due to their size, oversized mailers tend to stand out, but if the message is well-defined and creative graphic are used, that is what really ensures the success of any mailer, large size postcards or small.
Sometimes we get preoccupied with the size of a mailing, forgetting what can help make a mailing successful. Deciding the size of a postcard or any other mailing should only be the first step to creating an effective piece, not the determining factor.
In order to truly stand out, you have to be unique among your peers. Be sure you know your marketplace. If the extra spend will make you stand out among the crowd, either option could lead to greater response and sales.
Larson note: The key is to do something. Don’t just stand in the sidelines waiting to act. Take action and get results.
If you would like a postcard from us call or email and Ill have one sent out. This is just another part of our action plan when we are going after a new client for ourselves. But I’ll warn you; this will get you in the Larson prospect list.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. Need a quote on designing and printing up postcards? Call us today at 847-991-0488.
Sometimes we get preoccupied with the size of a mailing, forgetting what can help make a mailing successful. Deciding the size of a postcard or any other mailing should only be the first step to creating an effective piece, not the determining factor.
In order to truly stand out, you have to be unique among your peers. Be sure you know your marketplace. If the extra spend will make you stand out among the crowd, either option could lead to greater response and sales.
Larson note: The key is to do something. Don’t just stand in the sidelines waiting to act. Take action and get results.
If you would like a postcard from us call or email and Ill have one sent out. This is just another part of our action plan when we are going after a new client for ourselves. But I’ll warn you; this will get you in the Larson prospect list.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. Need a quote on designing and printing up postcards? Call us today at 847-991-0488.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Say YES to Oversized Postcards
Oversized postcards can be effective in business-to-consumer, business-to-business and nonprofit marketing. They never replace envelope mailings in many markets, but oversized postcards do have several advantages over smaller postcards and envelope packages in many instances.
Oversized postcards will stand out more on the desk or kitchen table. And we all will agree that you can't get a response if the piece doesn't get read and it won't get read unless it gets noticed. Size does matter. With the right graphical treatment, a larger card is more likely to get picked from the pile of mail. Color, strong visual impact to further highlight the large, bold nature of the bigger sized post card.
Another benefit is the additional space available to convey the message. While smaller postcards might be good for a very short and concise benefits statement, offer and call to action, they do not offer much room for more complex communications. Oversize or multi panel postcards provide the necessary space to communicate just about anything. This is particularly important for marketers who have a number of offers or products.
Larger postcard mailings can save you in the long run because you can present several offers at once. Don't overdo it and try to cram unrelated offers on one postcard. The piece should be designed with your target audience in mind — the extra space is a way to grab their attention and tell a richer story of a brand and an offer. Just keep it clean not mess even with the added space.
Larson note: I do like this option and use it as one the mailing tools in our complete marketing attack package. Just remember white more space comes more responsibility. Don’t mess u your message and confuse the poor customer with too many offers. Keep it simple, keep it concise. And remember this is ONLY 1 of the tools.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. Want to put mail into your marketing mix? Call us, its easier than you think.
Oversized postcards will stand out more on the desk or kitchen table. And we all will agree that you can't get a response if the piece doesn't get read and it won't get read unless it gets noticed. Size does matter. With the right graphical treatment, a larger card is more likely to get picked from the pile of mail. Color, strong visual impact to further highlight the large, bold nature of the bigger sized post card.
Another benefit is the additional space available to convey the message. While smaller postcards might be good for a very short and concise benefits statement, offer and call to action, they do not offer much room for more complex communications. Oversize or multi panel postcards provide the necessary space to communicate just about anything. This is particularly important for marketers who have a number of offers or products.
Larger postcard mailings can save you in the long run because you can present several offers at once. Don't overdo it and try to cram unrelated offers on one postcard. The piece should be designed with your target audience in mind — the extra space is a way to grab their attention and tell a richer story of a brand and an offer. Just keep it clean not mess even with the added space.
Larson note: I do like this option and use it as one the mailing tools in our complete marketing attack package. Just remember white more space comes more responsibility. Don’t mess u your message and confuse the poor customer with too many offers. Keep it simple, keep it concise. And remember this is ONLY 1 of the tools.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. Want to put mail into your marketing mix? Call us, its easier than you think.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Start your holiday e-mail plans
With Labor Day over summer is officially over. The kids are back to school and those of us with jobs are back at work. For e-mail marketers, now is the time to buckle down and get a holiday e-mail plan into effect, if you haven't already done so.
The holiday season is crucial to retailers. This year, with the recession, a good holiday season is even more important. It is important to plan early and have your online marketing plan in place. So start your planning now.
Since more marketers are getting into e-mail, the competition will be stiffer than before. Still, with a good plan, you can connect with your customers. Consumers will shop on tighter budgets this year, so offers with percentages off and free shipping will be of greater interest to the shopper.
In addition, consumers will be overloaded with messaging around the holidays, so e-mail marketers should think about the content of the e-mails to connect with them, but not to overwhelm them. For example, a simple (short) text offer with a nice image of the product could be a good approach. Making an emotional connection to the item without too much information is a good way to make the connection.
Another idea is to send offers for related goods in transactional items. This can help up sell products that might make nice stocking stuffers. This kind of e-mail will be appreciated, as you help consumers navigate their gift shopping and help them check off their shopping lists.
No matter what your approach this holiday season, now is the time to start planning.
Larson note: As we say in Chicago politics, vote early vote often, same holds true with email marketing start early and email often, but don’t be obnoxious, Follow the laws on what you can and can’t do with email marketing such as opt ins and the all important opt out option. If you buy a list work your demographics tight to your ideal customer and let it go…
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. Need an E-mail attack for your business? Talk to us and see how easy it can be. List procurement, copy, and graphics.
The holiday season is crucial to retailers. This year, with the recession, a good holiday season is even more important. It is important to plan early and have your online marketing plan in place. So start your planning now.
Since more marketers are getting into e-mail, the competition will be stiffer than before. Still, with a good plan, you can connect with your customers. Consumers will shop on tighter budgets this year, so offers with percentages off and free shipping will be of greater interest to the shopper.
In addition, consumers will be overloaded with messaging around the holidays, so e-mail marketers should think about the content of the e-mails to connect with them, but not to overwhelm them. For example, a simple (short) text offer with a nice image of the product could be a good approach. Making an emotional connection to the item without too much information is a good way to make the connection.
Another idea is to send offers for related goods in transactional items. This can help up sell products that might make nice stocking stuffers. This kind of e-mail will be appreciated, as you help consumers navigate their gift shopping and help them check off their shopping lists.
No matter what your approach this holiday season, now is the time to start planning.
Larson note: As we say in Chicago politics, vote early vote often, same holds true with email marketing start early and email often, but don’t be obnoxious, Follow the laws on what you can and can’t do with email marketing such as opt ins and the all important opt out option. If you buy a list work your demographics tight to your ideal customer and let it go…
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. Need an E-mail attack for your business? Talk to us and see how easy it can be. List procurement, copy, and graphics.
Monday, September 14, 2009
The Week Ahead Sept 14-18, 2009
Monday:
Tuesday: August Producer Price Index, August Retail Sales, July Business Inventories,
Wednesday: August Consumer Price Index, August Industrial Production, Crude Inventories,
Thursday: Weekly initial jobless claims. August Housing Starts and Building Permits,
Friday:
Larson note: Well we have another feel good week again, but remember we are STILL in a recession. Even though things are getting better, the downspin has not stopped. If we can stop losing jobs, then I will feel good about where we are. Until then. Keep working your butts off. Gain market share even if you are not gaining in total sales revenue. Then when we get to the other side of this mess you will be king of ”your” hill.
The focused industries we are looking to add clients in for the month are Advertising Specialties, Trade Show Booth Builder, Sign Shop, a Graphic Design Studio, and Printer both small and mid-sized.
Additionally we are also looking for sales persons in all areas except
the Great Plains States.
If interested
give us a call at
847-991-0488.
Howard’s out of office public schedule for the week:
Monday: Tuesday: Marathon Training 6:30am,
Wednesday: Thursday: Marathon Training 6:30am
Friday: Saturday:
Sunday: Marathon Training Long Group Run
Trade show schedule:
> September 22-24 2009: Assembly Show Stevenson Convention Center
> September 29- October 1, 2009: Motivation show McCormick Place
> October 5-7, 2009, Parcel Forum 09 Hyatt Regency O’Hare
> October 21-22 2009, Mid-Pak Minneapolis MN (Registered but not committed to going yet)
> October 22nd, 2009: 2009 Midwest Fall Business Expo Serb Hall Milwaukee, WI
> November 15-18, 2009 Fabtech Int. & AWS Welding Show McCormick Place, Chicago
> December 3-5, 2009 Athletic Business Conference & Expo, Orlando FL (Registered but not committed to going yet)
Time slots still available to meet & talk over coffee.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
P.P.S. We are offering 2 free (a $75.00 value) ½ hour consultation periods per week to talk about marketing businesses. Call or email to get your spot to pick my brain for 30 minutes today.
Tuesday: August Producer Price Index, August Retail Sales, July Business Inventories,
Wednesday: August Consumer Price Index, August Industrial Production, Crude Inventories,
Thursday: Weekly initial jobless claims. August Housing Starts and Building Permits,
Friday:
Larson note: Well we have another feel good week again, but remember we are STILL in a recession. Even though things are getting better, the downspin has not stopped. If we can stop losing jobs, then I will feel good about where we are. Until then. Keep working your butts off. Gain market share even if you are not gaining in total sales revenue. Then when we get to the other side of this mess you will be king of ”your” hill.
The focused industries we are looking to add clients in for the month are Advertising Specialties, Trade Show Booth Builder, Sign Shop, a Graphic Design Studio, and Printer both small and mid-sized.
Additionally we are also looking for sales persons in all areas except
the Great Plains States.
If interested
give us a call at
847-991-0488.
Howard’s out of office public schedule for the week:
Monday: Tuesday: Marathon Training 6:30am,
Wednesday: Thursday: Marathon Training 6:30am
Friday: Saturday:
Sunday: Marathon Training Long Group Run
Trade show schedule:
> September 22-24 2009: Assembly Show Stevenson Convention Center
> September 29- October 1, 2009: Motivation show McCormick Place
> October 5-7, 2009, Parcel Forum 09 Hyatt Regency O’Hare
> October 21-22 2009, Mid-Pak Minneapolis MN (Registered but not committed to going yet)
> October 22nd, 2009: 2009 Midwest Fall Business Expo Serb Hall Milwaukee, WI
> November 15-18, 2009 Fabtech Int. & AWS Welding Show McCormick Place, Chicago
> December 3-5, 2009 Athletic Business Conference & Expo, Orlando FL (Registered but not committed to going yet)
Time slots still available to meet & talk over coffee.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
P.P.S. We are offering 2 free (a $75.00 value) ½ hour consultation periods per week to talk about marketing businesses. Call or email to get your spot to pick my brain for 30 minutes today.
Friday, September 11, 2009
20 ideas to use Twitter for your Business
In recent months, we have had conversations with people on and off of twitter who own their own business. Many of those people reported they do not understand the value of twitter and especially how it can help their business.
We explained that we see the core values of Twitter Success to be… engaging, building relationships and providing value. While it may seem simple, if done effectively, it can propel your business to much higher levels of success. Whether you are new to the world of business or a seasoned professional in business.
Keeping those core values in mind, we are providing you with 20 “basic” ideas to help you use Twitter for your business.
1. First, do not talk business all the time. Like anything, variety is the spice of life.
2. Engage with people on a personal level and talk about all kinds of things that others may be interested in.
3. What-ever your business is, tweet people’s attention to things, places, people, etc. Then provide value and establish why your business may be of benefit or interest to them.
4. Feel free to be creative and think outside of the box. The possibilities are virtually unlimited.
5. When you tweet about your own products or services do so from the perspective of offering advice or value, rather than hard selling. (Nobody likes SPAM)
6. Establish a habit of tweeting as often as you see fit. Please don’t go overboard and always be focused, but there should be a daily activity to establish consistency.
7. Use search.twitter.com. This will help you to find lots of interesting people who are in your line of business. BONUS: This search is provided in real time, as it’s happening now.
8. Take a look at some of the Twitter third party tools that are listed here Twitter Watchdog. Some of these tools will help you to be far more productive as you interact.
9. Spend the first few weeks building your Twitter following with people who you know or feel would be interested in your business. Twitter Karma, Buzzom and Tweet Adder are great applications for this.
10. Understand that Twitter is probably the fastest-growing social media phenomenon of all time for business and really can take advantage of this opportunity right now.
11. Make sure that you understand the Twitter lingo, what RT means, what the @ means and so on.
12. Understand that while many still do not fully understand Twitter, other businesses have been very successful by using Twitter in ingenious ways that creates a viral effect locally, nationally and globally.
13. Survey or Ask some quick easy questions and get a lot of opinions from targeted people, rather easily.
14. Realize that there are a good number of like-minded people and businesses on Twitter and its becoming a goldmine for networking, ideas and resources in a variety of ways.
15. Twitter can be very educational and if you open your mind up you will be surprised what business “nuggets” you will receive.
16. How important will Twitter be for your business in the future? Get plugged in and stay plugged in.
17. If you want to convert your Twitter followers into potential clients you will need to engage in a process of soft marketing, by providing valuable insights and information and establishing yourself as someone to trust. Only then can you tempt followers into your sales funnel.
18. Be understanding of those who think that Twitter is just “ridiculous.” You may come across some criticism while engaging your business and you might have to carry out some internal public relations within your organization to assure people you’re not wasting your time.
19. As you progress on twitter, spice up your twitter background with a tailor-made Twitter background design.
20. Last but not least, always be positive, be yourself and have fun.
Taken from: * Skeeter Hanson twitter.com/SkeeterHansen & Al Ferretti twitter.com/AlFerretti
Larson note: Taking in population as a whole if we look at the top 10 the US wins hands down on the sheer number of computers based on population. At least I’m guessing on that. If you go on density of population this is a handy little chart
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
We explained that we see the core values of Twitter Success to be… engaging, building relationships and providing value. While it may seem simple, if done effectively, it can propel your business to much higher levels of success. Whether you are new to the world of business or a seasoned professional in business.
Keeping those core values in mind, we are providing you with 20 “basic” ideas to help you use Twitter for your business.
1. First, do not talk business all the time. Like anything, variety is the spice of life.
2. Engage with people on a personal level and talk about all kinds of things that others may be interested in.
3. What-ever your business is, tweet people’s attention to things, places, people, etc. Then provide value and establish why your business may be of benefit or interest to them.
4. Feel free to be creative and think outside of the box. The possibilities are virtually unlimited.
5. When you tweet about your own products or services do so from the perspective of offering advice or value, rather than hard selling. (Nobody likes SPAM)
6. Establish a habit of tweeting as often as you see fit. Please don’t go overboard and always be focused, but there should be a daily activity to establish consistency.
7. Use search.twitter.com. This will help you to find lots of interesting people who are in your line of business. BONUS: This search is provided in real time, as it’s happening now.
8. Take a look at some of the Twitter third party tools that are listed here Twitter Watchdog. Some of these tools will help you to be far more productive as you interact.
9. Spend the first few weeks building your Twitter following with people who you know or feel would be interested in your business. Twitter Karma, Buzzom and Tweet Adder are great applications for this.
10. Understand that Twitter is probably the fastest-growing social media phenomenon of all time for business and really can take advantage of this opportunity right now.
11. Make sure that you understand the Twitter lingo, what RT means, what the @ means and so on.
12. Understand that while many still do not fully understand Twitter, other businesses have been very successful by using Twitter in ingenious ways that creates a viral effect locally, nationally and globally.
13. Survey or Ask some quick easy questions and get a lot of opinions from targeted people, rather easily.
14. Realize that there are a good number of like-minded people and businesses on Twitter and its becoming a goldmine for networking, ideas and resources in a variety of ways.
15. Twitter can be very educational and if you open your mind up you will be surprised what business “nuggets” you will receive.
16. How important will Twitter be for your business in the future? Get plugged in and stay plugged in.
17. If you want to convert your Twitter followers into potential clients you will need to engage in a process of soft marketing, by providing valuable insights and information and establishing yourself as someone to trust. Only then can you tempt followers into your sales funnel.
18. Be understanding of those who think that Twitter is just “ridiculous.” You may come across some criticism while engaging your business and you might have to carry out some internal public relations within your organization to assure people you’re not wasting your time.
19. As you progress on twitter, spice up your twitter background with a tailor-made Twitter background design.
20. Last but not least, always be positive, be yourself and have fun.
Taken from: * Skeeter Hanson twitter.com/SkeeterHansen & Al Ferretti twitter.com/AlFerretti
Larson note: Taking in population as a whole if we look at the top 10 the US wins hands down on the sheer number of computers based on population. At least I’m guessing on that. If you go on density of population this is a handy little chart
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Country Computer Rankings
Country rankings,
Ratio of number of computers to population
(top 10)
1. Israel
2. Canada
3. Switzerland
4. Netherlands
5. Sweden
6. United States
7. United Kingdom
8. Australia
9. Denmark
10. Singapore
* Source: Pocket World in Figures 2009 Edition, The Economist
Larson note: Taking in population as a whole if we look at the top 10 the United Sates probably wins hands down on the sheer number of computers based on population. But if you had to focus your money on density you would look at the higher density ratings, that is if Israel, Canada, Switzerland, Netherlands and Sweden are in your market area. If you do go on density of population this is a handy little chart
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
Ratio of number of computers to population
(top 10)
1. Israel
2. Canada
3. Switzerland
4. Netherlands
5. Sweden
6. United States
7. United Kingdom
8. Australia
9. Denmark
10. Singapore
* Source: Pocket World in Figures 2009 Edition, The Economist
Larson note: Taking in population as a whole if we look at the top 10 the United Sates probably wins hands down on the sheer number of computers based on population. But if you had to focus your money on density you would look at the higher density ratings, that is if Israel, Canada, Switzerland, Netherlands and Sweden are in your market area. If you do go on density of population this is a handy little chart
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
Personal Spending Cuts
Spending Cuts By Age
Age No cuts Some cuts Deep cuts
18-34 24% 45% 31%
35-44 19% 45% 36%
45-54 14% 40% 46%
55-plus 21% 51% 26%
Spending Cuts By Income
Income No cuts Some cuts Deep cuts
<35K 17% 45% 38%
$35-$49.9K 11% 55% 34%
$50-$74.9K 22% 43% 35%
>$75K 21% 53% 26%
*Source: Harris Interactive August 2009 Sample of 2.066 adults surveyed online between July 15-17, 2009
Larson note: What is your target market? Does this tell you why you are or are not making sales gains? You could still be gaining market share but dollar volume might be dropping. Look at your demographics and it might start to make sense to you.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
Age No cuts Some cuts Deep cuts
18-34 24% 45% 31%
35-44 19% 45% 36%
45-54 14% 40% 46%
55-plus 21% 51% 26%
Spending Cuts By Income
Income No cuts Some cuts Deep cuts
<35K 17% 45% 38%
$35-$49.9K 11% 55% 34%
$50-$74.9K 22% 43% 35%
>$75K 21% 53% 26%
*Source: Harris Interactive August 2009 Sample of 2.066 adults surveyed online between July 15-17, 2009
Larson note: What is your target market? Does this tell you why you are or are not making sales gains? You could still be gaining market share but dollar volume might be dropping. Look at your demographics and it might start to make sense to you.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Digital Spending: Bought, Owned, Earned?
This kind of conversation must run though hundreds or offices weekly. A CFO talking to a CMO about spending on Social Media Marketing.
CFO: "Before I spend any money in this environment, I need to know the impact of this investment to the company’s bottom line. I need to see an ROI."
CMO response: "It's not about the ROI; it's about creating awareness. Having people understand our brand will create engagement, which will lead to revenue."
Two people in the same boat wanting the same thing, reading the same news. The global economy continues to grow. Pipelines are thin, and prospects are taking longer than usual to buy. It is tough out there. Both the CFO and CMO are still expected to do their jobs. Prospects still have needs they must take care of, and it's become more important than ever for companies to communicate and demonstrate their differentiators and value.
The task for the CMO is to prove that the "return" in ROI does not need to be about revenue. It could be an increase in engagement, interaction, click-through, the key is to make sure it is measurable and tied to business objectives. When this is accomplished, the discussion becomes less about money and more about the value that the marketing initiative is creating.
The issue for the CFO is one of available money. In the past, many CFOs were at fault for being too willing to award budget dollars for projects that lacked clear direction and analytical rigor. When times were better, and they were flush with money, they often failed to hold CMO’s accountable for the return-on-investment. Most marketers, for their part, jumped too eagerly into digital in an effort to stay current, as most of us know, it is a learning process on how to find customers and make money off SM.
Now that every expenditure must count, now that the CFO's confidence is shaken Social Media Marketing is concerned, and the CMO has lost credibility of not understanding SM. While new digital tools such as social media seem interesting and worth investigating, the end results are still too up in the air.
As a result, there is a great impasse created by a crisis of trust and confidence, money and need to be a player, two aspects of their relationship need rebuilding if their organization is going to succeed in the SM marketplace.
Most CFOs understand instinctively that there is some undefined, magic equation that states an increase in awareness yields an increase in purchases. They also are aware that technology can serve to uncover the magic a bit, but they need more education. How does new technology and social media relate to the business, how do they influence customers, and how can they help the business grow?
It's the CFO's job to be skeptical. What CFOs need is for CMO’s to be honest and to let them know when they are taking an educated guess. They are used to working with assumptions. They just need those assumptions to amount to something with a dollar sign in front of it. For example, if marketing can show the results of its calculation that illustrates the spending differences between loyal and non-loyal customers, the CFO will be comfortable making the leap that loyalty equals revenue equals investment, even if the numbers are not precise.
For instance, a key goal of "acquisition" is awareness -- which is where many marketers are focusing their social-media initiatives. Employing tools such as Facebook, MySpace and Twitter, many organizations struggle to logically correlate more Facebook "friends" with driving higher awareness and, consequently, higher revenue. I think we all know that having gobs of followers is meaningless unless you have a way to have a dialoge with them. Therefore, as marketers build out their social-media budgets, they should focus on optimizing the relationships among social-media activity, the number of people engaged in that activity, and click-throughs to their sites and online purchases.
To help the CFO properly evaluate the value of any marketing initiative, consider the measurement concept of bought vs. owned vs. earned.
Bought refers to any type of media that are purchased, from TV spots to radio to digital-marketing campaigns such as banner ads. Bought media are where most organizations have spent money in the past and have little capability to track its specific value other than to assume a "magic formula."
Owned media are the assets and intellectual property that are specifically owned and controlled by the company, such as advertising creative, collateral and websites. Once analytics capabilities are in place, organizations can measure the efficacy and fine-tune the assets to reach their desired goals.
Earned media is the concept that others will talk about a brand as a result of either good or bad experiences. Old as time, of course, word-of-mouth is now becoming measurable. Twitter, for example, is allowing marketers to measure this type of communication.
This is the very essence of marketing in a social-media world. Campaigns start and stop, but successful organizations look for long-term, loyal, repeat customers.
This is a place both CFOs and CMOs need to strive toward. By examining the relationships among spending on bought, owned and earned media, companies can fine-tune their marketing to ensure their investment is driving the maximum results.
Larson note: The concept of bought vs. owned vs. earned is something most of us have never heard before or even thought about. This could be the best way to analyze where marketing campaigns could be optimized with SM moving deeper into our lives.
The social networks between people and their family, friends and business associates play a persuasive part in purchasing decisions, vendor choice and churn behavior. CMOs by tapping into this valuable pool of marketing intelligence can strengthen their own acquisition, up-sell and retention campaigns with solid ROI that they can talk to their CFOs about. The challenge of quantifying the value of social networks is not easy there are soft sells and hard sells. …………..
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. Need a blog? We can write it for you. Call today and find out how.
CFO: "Before I spend any money in this environment, I need to know the impact of this investment to the company’s bottom line. I need to see an ROI."
CMO response: "It's not about the ROI; it's about creating awareness. Having people understand our brand will create engagement, which will lead to revenue."
Two people in the same boat wanting the same thing, reading the same news. The global economy continues to grow. Pipelines are thin, and prospects are taking longer than usual to buy. It is tough out there. Both the CFO and CMO are still expected to do their jobs. Prospects still have needs they must take care of, and it's become more important than ever for companies to communicate and demonstrate their differentiators and value.
The task for the CMO is to prove that the "return" in ROI does not need to be about revenue. It could be an increase in engagement, interaction, click-through, the key is to make sure it is measurable and tied to business objectives. When this is accomplished, the discussion becomes less about money and more about the value that the marketing initiative is creating.
The issue for the CFO is one of available money. In the past, many CFOs were at fault for being too willing to award budget dollars for projects that lacked clear direction and analytical rigor. When times were better, and they were flush with money, they often failed to hold CMO’s accountable for the return-on-investment. Most marketers, for their part, jumped too eagerly into digital in an effort to stay current, as most of us know, it is a learning process on how to find customers and make money off SM.
Now that every expenditure must count, now that the CFO's confidence is shaken Social Media Marketing is concerned, and the CMO has lost credibility of not understanding SM. While new digital tools such as social media seem interesting and worth investigating, the end results are still too up in the air.
As a result, there is a great impasse created by a crisis of trust and confidence, money and need to be a player, two aspects of their relationship need rebuilding if their organization is going to succeed in the SM marketplace.
Most CFOs understand instinctively that there is some undefined, magic equation that states an increase in awareness yields an increase in purchases. They also are aware that technology can serve to uncover the magic a bit, but they need more education. How does new technology and social media relate to the business, how do they influence customers, and how can they help the business grow?
It's the CFO's job to be skeptical. What CFOs need is for CMO’s to be honest and to let them know when they are taking an educated guess. They are used to working with assumptions. They just need those assumptions to amount to something with a dollar sign in front of it. For example, if marketing can show the results of its calculation that illustrates the spending differences between loyal and non-loyal customers, the CFO will be comfortable making the leap that loyalty equals revenue equals investment, even if the numbers are not precise.
For instance, a key goal of "acquisition" is awareness -- which is where many marketers are focusing their social-media initiatives. Employing tools such as Facebook, MySpace and Twitter, many organizations struggle to logically correlate more Facebook "friends" with driving higher awareness and, consequently, higher revenue. I think we all know that having gobs of followers is meaningless unless you have a way to have a dialoge with them. Therefore, as marketers build out their social-media budgets, they should focus on optimizing the relationships among social-media activity, the number of people engaged in that activity, and click-throughs to their sites and online purchases.
To help the CFO properly evaluate the value of any marketing initiative, consider the measurement concept of bought vs. owned vs. earned.
Bought refers to any type of media that are purchased, from TV spots to radio to digital-marketing campaigns such as banner ads. Bought media are where most organizations have spent money in the past and have little capability to track its specific value other than to assume a "magic formula."
Owned media are the assets and intellectual property that are specifically owned and controlled by the company, such as advertising creative, collateral and websites. Once analytics capabilities are in place, organizations can measure the efficacy and fine-tune the assets to reach their desired goals.
Earned media is the concept that others will talk about a brand as a result of either good or bad experiences. Old as time, of course, word-of-mouth is now becoming measurable. Twitter, for example, is allowing marketers to measure this type of communication.
This is the very essence of marketing in a social-media world. Campaigns start and stop, but successful organizations look for long-term, loyal, repeat customers.
This is a place both CFOs and CMOs need to strive toward. By examining the relationships among spending on bought, owned and earned media, companies can fine-tune their marketing to ensure their investment is driving the maximum results.
Larson note: The concept of bought vs. owned vs. earned is something most of us have never heard before or even thought about. This could be the best way to analyze where marketing campaigns could be optimized with SM moving deeper into our lives.
The social networks between people and their family, friends and business associates play a persuasive part in purchasing decisions, vendor choice and churn behavior. CMOs by tapping into this valuable pool of marketing intelligence can strengthen their own acquisition, up-sell and retention campaigns with solid ROI that they can talk to their CFOs about. The challenge of quantifying the value of social networks is not easy there are soft sells and hard sells. …………..
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. Need a blog? We can write it for you. Call today and find out how.
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Contact/People Changes
Did you know?
• Up to 20% of all postal addresses change every year.
• Up to 18% of all telephone numbers change every year.
• Up to 21% of all CEO's change every year.
• 25-33% of email addresses on a "house" file will become outdated every year.
• Up to 66% of people change companies or job functions every year!
Larson note: Pretty amazing. People move, people change positions, employment, how do you keep up with it? You need to be constantly updating your CRM. Sales and marketing need to talk and update each other on new events about customers and contacts. Calling your customers and hot prospects on a regular routine to make sure you are up to date and don’t fall on the wayside is the only way to escape from this information deathtrap.
Its work, lots of work but do it or lose it (the customer).
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
• Up to 20% of all postal addresses change every year.
• Up to 18% of all telephone numbers change every year.
• Up to 21% of all CEO's change every year.
• 25-33% of email addresses on a "house" file will become outdated every year.
• Up to 66% of people change companies or job functions every year!
Larson note: Pretty amazing. People move, people change positions, employment, how do you keep up with it? You need to be constantly updating your CRM. Sales and marketing need to talk and update each other on new events about customers and contacts. Calling your customers and hot prospects on a regular routine to make sure you are up to date and don’t fall on the wayside is the only way to escape from this information deathtrap.
Its work, lots of work but do it or lose it (the customer).
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
Friday, September 4, 2009
Search: Paid Has A Place
This morning I put a big hit on paid search results. You know, banner ads pay for click, sponsored searches, etc. but there is a reason to use this tactic in your marketing attack.
If you implement a paid search you can have same day impact on your web sales, views and hits. Is that worth something? Perhaps. Unlike an organic SEO you can implement it fast, it is very easy to put into place, it is measurable and it is keyword accountable.
Because you can basically own as many key words as you can afford, you can support your other marketing channels attacks with this tactic. In a natural SEO, assuming you have equal site competency with your competition, the one who wins is the person who starts out with the best keyword combinations and choices. How you pick your keywords can at times be a crap shoot. Paying lets you choose your words based on actual conversations with real people.
Larson note: The words “choose wisely” always pop into my head when I’m talking SEO’s. The only right choice is the one that gets you to the top for the least money. I get offers to do SEO, paid search, pay for click, adword offers weekly, if not daily, as I am sure you do as well, unless your business is hiding under a rock. I like organic searches 9 out of 10 times yet, don’t tell anyone but on a couple of occasions I, Mr. Tight Wad, have done paid sponsored results promotions. Why did I do it? Instant rankings and I can create a service (product) landing page to push a service in a unique way.
So pick your spots and “choose wisely”.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
If you implement a paid search you can have same day impact on your web sales, views and hits. Is that worth something? Perhaps. Unlike an organic SEO you can implement it fast, it is very easy to put into place, it is measurable and it is keyword accountable.
Because you can basically own as many key words as you can afford, you can support your other marketing channels attacks with this tactic. In a natural SEO, assuming you have equal site competency with your competition, the one who wins is the person who starts out with the best keyword combinations and choices. How you pick your keywords can at times be a crap shoot. Paying lets you choose your words based on actual conversations with real people.
Larson note: The words “choose wisely” always pop into my head when I’m talking SEO’s. The only right choice is the one that gets you to the top for the least money. I get offers to do SEO, paid search, pay for click, adword offers weekly, if not daily, as I am sure you do as well, unless your business is hiding under a rock. I like organic searches 9 out of 10 times yet, don’t tell anyone but on a couple of occasions I, Mr. Tight Wad, have done paid sponsored results promotions. Why did I do it? Instant rankings and I can create a service (product) landing page to push a service in a unique way.
So pick your spots and “choose wisely”.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
Search: Paid or Organic?
So how do you get seen? Pay for it or do an organic search? If you need a push does a little paying work or should you sit back and let natures little web spiders take their course go with organic all the way.
Search engine optimization is more effective in the long term o over all ROI due to three big areas, trust, volume and relevance.
1st, people tend to sue the same search engine for all of their searches and come to trust that there favorite search engine will return a high quality organic search. People might understand that the search engine itself controls the organic results but know it is paid advertisers who control paid search results. Knowing that the list of companies shown is based entirely on being the highest bidder, it makes people stop and think.
2nd, studies have shown that 10% to 30% of searches are willing to click on an organic search while only 10%-30% are willing to click on a sponsored clink. The despondency in volume means that those sites that rank will in organic search results will get more click thorughs than those found at the top of a paid search.
3rd, the search engine algorithms have been refined to the point that their organic results are highly relevant to t he search term. When you compare this to the paid search, where companies bid on any term or word they choose, searchers know that the organic search will consistently be more relevant to them that a sponsored link.
Larson note: Taken in total the results giving form an organic search generates more and a higher degree of trust. If you can put a good SEO program together you should generate a higher quality of traffic and be more effective than a paid search.
Yet there is a reason to have a paid search presence. Look for our next blog this afternoon to find out why.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
Search engine optimization is more effective in the long term o over all ROI due to three big areas, trust, volume and relevance.
1st, people tend to sue the same search engine for all of their searches and come to trust that there favorite search engine will return a high quality organic search. People might understand that the search engine itself controls the organic results but know it is paid advertisers who control paid search results. Knowing that the list of companies shown is based entirely on being the highest bidder, it makes people stop and think.
2nd, studies have shown that 10% to 30% of searches are willing to click on an organic search while only 10%-30% are willing to click on a sponsored clink. The despondency in volume means that those sites that rank will in organic search results will get more click thorughs than those found at the top of a paid search.
3rd, the search engine algorithms have been refined to the point that their organic results are highly relevant to t he search term. When you compare this to the paid search, where companies bid on any term or word they choose, searchers know that the organic search will consistently be more relevant to them that a sponsored link.
Larson note: Taken in total the results giving form an organic search generates more and a higher degree of trust. If you can put a good SEO program together you should generate a higher quality of traffic and be more effective than a paid search.
Yet there is a reason to have a paid search presence. Look for our next blog this afternoon to find out why.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Robocalls For Telemarketing Ending
The end of (most) recorded telemarketing calls is in sight. Tuesday September 8, 2009 to be specific. Now there are exceptions, of course, but telemarketers are supposed to get written permission from consumers to solicit them through automated messages. NO matter if you’re on or not on the do not call registry, no matter if you have done business with them before, they cannot be a recorded message, unless you have given them written permission. They can still use a real live person (I guess a dead person would not do much good) but for the most part no more autodialers with a recorded message.
Tuesdays changes competes this phase in of the 2008 amendments to the federal telemarketing rule.
But like any government ruling there are exceptions, first and foremost, they exempted themselves. That’s right; politians can still hammer you with their prerecorded messages. Those ugly automated political calls will not stop. The other exemptations are a little more understanding, flight delays, school closings, debt collections, calls from banks or wireless companies and charitable organizations.
For more information or to file a complaint to fet.gov or call 877-FTC-HELP (877-382-4357)
Larson note: Not that I like government interference. I would rather the commission disappear, and telemarketing companies learn how to make calls to people and business correctly with some good training but life is what it is and we need to work within the confines of what is left of our free market society. More and more they encroach into our lives. Each law, each ruling restricts our freedoms to make choices. And of cause they went and exempted their own political automated telemarking messages, go figure, what is good for the goose is NOT good for the gander, I guess.
At Larson’s we have never used an automatic phone message attack for our clients. We don’t use autodialers or predictive dialers. Part because it does fit with the kind of telesales work we do which requires asking questions, listening and being a skilled communicator with the person we are talking to and second, because I hate them. What I don’t personally like it don’t let my company do.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
Tuesdays changes competes this phase in of the 2008 amendments to the federal telemarketing rule.
But like any government ruling there are exceptions, first and foremost, they exempted themselves. That’s right; politians can still hammer you with their prerecorded messages. Those ugly automated political calls will not stop. The other exemptations are a little more understanding, flight delays, school closings, debt collections, calls from banks or wireless companies and charitable organizations.
For more information or to file a complaint to fet.gov or call 877-FTC-HELP (877-382-4357)
Larson note: Not that I like government interference. I would rather the commission disappear, and telemarketing companies learn how to make calls to people and business correctly with some good training but life is what it is and we need to work within the confines of what is left of our free market society. More and more they encroach into our lives. Each law, each ruling restricts our freedoms to make choices. And of cause they went and exempted their own political automated telemarking messages, go figure, what is good for the goose is NOT good for the gander, I guess.
At Larson’s we have never used an automatic phone message attack for our clients. We don’t use autodialers or predictive dialers. Part because it does fit with the kind of telesales work we do which requires asking questions, listening and being a skilled communicator with the person we are talking to and second, because I hate them. What I don’t personally like it don’t let my company do.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
Better Search Campaigns
Want better search campaign conversion rates?
One tried and true technique is to time the scheduling of your campaigns to maximize your marketing spending. For many b2b search marketing campaigns should be pointed at visitors who are more likely to make a call for information during normal business hours rather than filling out a form on your web site. Scheduling your ads to appear when your kind of customer is online is only common sense. If your campaign is running outside of normal business hours how likely are the visitors reading your ad or going through your site going to follow up and make a call? The phone is still the best medium in a b2b transaction. It you can do better scheduling your click though rate goes up (because people who what to do business with you are on line), you will be reducing your cost per click and your ROI will be increased
Larson note: If you want to sell to me, be there when I am. When I search be there, when I leave my office, I could care less if your ad is up out and running. If you’re selling b2b I’m at my desk with the computer on 9 to 5 after that good luck. So don’t waste your money. Find out when your customers are on line and attack.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
One tried and true technique is to time the scheduling of your campaigns to maximize your marketing spending. For many b2b search marketing campaigns should be pointed at visitors who are more likely to make a call for information during normal business hours rather than filling out a form on your web site. Scheduling your ads to appear when your kind of customer is online is only common sense. If your campaign is running outside of normal business hours how likely are the visitors reading your ad or going through your site going to follow up and make a call? The phone is still the best medium in a b2b transaction. It you can do better scheduling your click though rate goes up (because people who what to do business with you are on line), you will be reducing your cost per click and your ROI will be increased
Larson note: If you want to sell to me, be there when I am. When I search be there, when I leave my office, I could care less if your ad is up out and running. If you’re selling b2b I’m at my desk with the computer on 9 to 5 after that good luck. So don’t waste your money. Find out when your customers are on line and attack.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Act Quickly On Leads
In some companies (I don’t know why) there has been a longstanding debate of whether to immediately hand off a lead to sales or let marketing neuture it into bigger and better things. While I can appreciate building a one product or service lead into a full line client, there are more down sides than ups to holding back and taking action on the lead.
1st money comes to those who act fast, quickly and decisively. If you wait to nurture a lead into something bigger and better, you might just loose the sale and the customer to your competition. If not that there is always the chance that the prospect will discover that they do not need your service or the reason they needed you if the first place. You need to strike when the iron is hot, when the idea, product or service is fresh on the customer’s mind, ask for the order.
2nd calling immediately shows your prospect that you are taking an interest in their needs and are accountable to them. Others might say this appears desperate but in fact it is quite the opposite. If I have a need and I want it filled NOW. I don’t want to wait! I want to work with someone who wants to take care of my “pain” now, not later. You are demonstrating that the client is important to your business and that you are and will be attentive to them and their needs. A clients’ number one concern is timely responces and accountablity. The speed in which you act come across better, when you contact the customer immediately.
3rd in our current economic period money and those willing to spend money seems to be the scarcest thing you can find. If a customer has a budget for your service or product, isn’t it your job to help them spend it? Make the call and lock up the sale while the budget is still there before it gets eaten up by some other pressing concern.
Larson note: Move that lead to sales and let them do what they are trained to do, sell and let people buy. At the same time move that lead to marketing so they can support the sales effort. Sales and marketing need to learn to work together and, heaven forbid, share information.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
1st money comes to those who act fast, quickly and decisively. If you wait to nurture a lead into something bigger and better, you might just loose the sale and the customer to your competition. If not that there is always the chance that the prospect will discover that they do not need your service or the reason they needed you if the first place. You need to strike when the iron is hot, when the idea, product or service is fresh on the customer’s mind, ask for the order.
2nd calling immediately shows your prospect that you are taking an interest in their needs and are accountable to them. Others might say this appears desperate but in fact it is quite the opposite. If I have a need and I want it filled NOW. I don’t want to wait! I want to work with someone who wants to take care of my “pain” now, not later. You are demonstrating that the client is important to your business and that you are and will be attentive to them and their needs. A clients’ number one concern is timely responces and accountablity. The speed in which you act come across better, when you contact the customer immediately.
3rd in our current economic period money and those willing to spend money seems to be the scarcest thing you can find. If a customer has a budget for your service or product, isn’t it your job to help them spend it? Make the call and lock up the sale while the budget is still there before it gets eaten up by some other pressing concern.
Larson note: Move that lead to sales and let them do what they are trained to do, sell and let people buy. At the same time move that lead to marketing so they can support the sales effort. Sales and marketing need to learn to work together and, heaven forbid, share information.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
A-HA Your Way To Appointments
The most important skill you can learn to improve your success when prospecting is to learn how to overcome common objections.
Anticipate the objection: Don’t expect prospects to accept your invitation to meet on the first asking for the appointment.
Handle the objection: Have a valid reason the prospect should meet with you. Having a cup of coffee with them, although a wonderful reason is not good enough.
Ask for the appointment: Immediately after handling an objection, propose a specific day and time to meet. Go for it, what do you have to loose
Larson note: If you don’t ask you don’t get. That is sales. If you can handle the initial put off and ask again, your odds go up. Do it again and your odds get better. It takes 3 to 9 attempts to make good things happen. Are you up to the challenge? There are many reasons to want to be meeting, know why you should be and go for it. Have a real purpose and make it work. And say A Ha more often.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
Anticipate the objection: Don’t expect prospects to accept your invitation to meet on the first asking for the appointment.
Handle the objection: Have a valid reason the prospect should meet with you. Having a cup of coffee with them, although a wonderful reason is not good enough.
Ask for the appointment: Immediately after handling an objection, propose a specific day and time to meet. Go for it, what do you have to loose
Larson note: If you don’t ask you don’t get. That is sales. If you can handle the initial put off and ask again, your odds go up. Do it again and your odds get better. It takes 3 to 9 attempts to make good things happen. Are you up to the challenge? There are many reasons to want to be meeting, know why you should be and go for it. Have a real purpose and make it work. And say A Ha more often.
Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://www.businessiibusiness.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate
P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.
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