Are big on-line directories eating up your marketing budget?
Remember who and where your customers are and spend your money wisely.
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What's Your Image?
You need to project a professional image to get the edge on your competition.
CompEdge has been designing logos and marketing materials since 1989 including
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978.632.1571
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Featured Customer
of the Month
Short Stop Convenience
Lisa Briggs, Owner
Corner of Pine and Central Streets, Gardner
Short Stop offers the best coffee in town, awesome deli sandwiches, real New England clam chowder, and all the basics - newspapers, soft drinks, beer & wine, KENO and Lottery!
Stop in and say "hi" to Lisa and her friendly staff. And try the chicken salad!
Pine Street has temporarily been closed off from Cross Street to Central. However,
Short Stop IS STILL OPEN and accessible from Central Street.
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Greetings!
This has been an especially tough winter for a lot of us. Not only does business usually slow down a little during winter, but also the national economic news has been negative, making people reluctant to spend their money.
You have to watch your spending too. Make sure you're getting the most out of your marketing dollars.
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On-Line vs. Print Directories: Where Do Your Customers Find You?
Are Big On-Line Directories Cost Effective?
On-line directory services such as SuperPages.com and YellowPages.com are aggressively competing for your advertising. Contrary to popular belief, YellowPages.com has nothing to do with the phone book, while SuperPages.com is the product of Idearc Media, the same marketing company that publishes the Verizon Yellow Pages phone books.
When your phone book ad representative comes calling this spring, he or she will encourage you to purchase, not only a phone book ad, but an "enhanced package" of on-line services through SuperPages.com. Don't sign that contract unless you are very sure of what you are buying.
Two of my clients have recently reported having negative experiences with these services. One client, whose business is in Templeton, Massachusetts had his "service area" listed as Minnesota and Wisconsin. No wonder when you looked him up, his business did not come up. For that he paid over $100 per month!
Both SuperPages.com and YellowPages.com offer similar services: on-line
listings and advertisements, tracking reports, web hosting services, and a lot of
"bells and whistles." It all sounds very impressive, but can
quickly eat up your entire marketing budget.
Are Your Customers All Over the World or Are They Local? The Phone Book Works.
While on-line directories have the potential to reach
millions of people all over the world, if your customers are local, they will use local means to find your business. I highly recommend that you have at least a listing in the phone books of all the regions where most of your customers are. It's a courtesy to your customers to have a presence there so they can find you when they need you, it legitimizes your company, helps you gain brand recognition, and can generate business. Even my one-line listing generated a few calls and a couple of new customers so far this year. If you're in the trades buy the biggest phone book ad you can afford. It's one of your most lucrative advertising methods.
Get FREE Listings in On-Line Directories.
Keep in mind that if you have a business telephone number and an ad in the phone book, you will have a FREE listing on SuperPages.com. Also, I recommend that you go to YellowPages.com and sign up for one of their FREE listings. Be sure to complete your profile yourself so that the information is correct and
you can be found in a search. YellowPages.com spreads your listing to
AOL yellow pages and some of the other search engines including availability on iPhones.If your customers use one of these browsers they will be able to find you there through a simple listing.
Maximize Your Current Market
Do You Want Fries With That?
Do your customers know everything about your products and services? Are they buying one thing from you and another from your competitor because they don't know about everything you have to offer. It's your job to educate your customers as to what you actually sell.
Your Customers are Your Sales Representatives.
Are your customers talking positively about you? Don't be shy. Give them a handful of your business cards and ask them to refer you to their family, friends, and colleagues. Referral reward plans can be a good incentive for them to do so.
For more ideas on how to market your business locally, contact me to help you with your marketing plan.
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If you need help developing a marketing plan, identity package, print material or web site please contact me. I appreciate your business and referrals. Feel free to forward this e-mail to your business colleagues and associates.
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Sincerely,
Maureen Horrigan
CompEdge Marketing & Design
978.632.1571
maureen@compedgedesign.com
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