Branding Agencies Southampton

It doesn’t matter whether you are a start up business, a multi-national or a 100 year old family business we all face the same challenge – and that’s how to stand out from the crowd. How to be memorable and get ourselves onto the wish list for our potential buyers.

This article, originally distributed in Practical Marketing  in August 2008, includes a list of 5 simple and low cost ways you can use to set yourself or your business apart. Resulting of course in more interest, more orders, more sales and more clients.

1. Become an invaluable source of information & advice
Cut out and keep articles and save website links that might be of interest to your clients, prospects and referrers of work to you. Then send this useful information out, with a hand written post-it note, compliment slip or business card, or in the case of web links send with a personalised email.

Why would you do this?

By doing so you show you are thinking about the client, you are positioning yourself as their expert and further cement the relationship making it more likely the client will refer business to you in the future.

So an accountant for example might send one of their clients who had been talking about the merits of buying vs renting new office premises a report from a local firm of surveyors of the pros and cons, or better still details of premises they spotted which fit the bill. You can just hear the conversation in the pub – “Oh, my accountant is really proactive. He spotted this great office building before we even knew it was on the market. You really ought to get him as your adviser.”

2. Use your business card to sell
Business cards - a simple tool that every business has but are you making the most of the opportunity they present?

Of course your card will include your name, address, telephone, email details and website address – and where appropriate any relevant qualification. But what’s on the back of your card - that much underused space?

This is a great opportunity to include some key messages about your business, what specifically you can offer or encourage people to visit your website maybe with the promise of a free download.

For example the rear of my new business card has the following:

Talk to Second Opinion Marketing about:
• communicating business messages
• improving business and marketing performance
• launching new products and services
• keeping in touch with customers

The other thing about business cards is to use them! Always, always carry a stock of business cards with you. Give them out at networking events, use them instead of a compliments slip when you send information to a prospective client, offer them to people who have referred clients to you in the past and give some to existing clients so that they can pass on to their contact. Business cards are of no use to you in the little plastic box they are delivered in. ...