Advertising: What has worked and what has not!

[TechForce]

I'd imagine they'd be networking events, generel events where members from various business that are in the chamber will attend, gives you a chance to swap business cards and deliver a short pitch to alot of local businesses etc. then there's things like BNI which run off of the same general idea, but with a focus on businesses referring customers to one another.

the only advertising i've done to date and the costs to date are:

Business cards: £68 (5000)
Flyers: £71 (5000)
and Google Local Business/My website (free, apart from the hosting fee for the site)

so far, most of my work has been brought in via google. i always ask every new customer where they heard about us, and i'm still shocked at the amount that say through google!

the flyers were distrubuted just over a week ago, in a handful of places, local shops etc. and so far they've brought in one new customer who i'll be visiting a little later this afternoon. so they've almost paid for themselves.

i'm not sure as to wether or not i should have included business cards in the list, but i feel they're still 'marketing' material none the less.

Word of mouth is the best advertising there is, but i left this off the list as i would have thought it's pretty much a 'given' that it does get results, i always drop a few business cards off with every new customer after a job has been completed, and ask them if any of their family/friends need anything could they pass them a card and get them to drop me a line, the majority of customers will be happy to do this provided you met their expectations on the particular job, and it already gets you on a level of trust with whomever they refer.

 

[jay c]

What type of events to the chamber of commerce have?
I am not sure of the cost in my area but I was thinking of
looking into it.

My local chamber hosts a few different regular events:

1. Business After Hours - Members are invited to an open house at some local business. It's an opportunity to make connections with other business people.
2. Networking Breakfast - Members eat breakfast and get 30 seconds to introduce themselves and their business to everyone else present. You can hand out brochures, business cards, whatever.
3. Ribbon Cuttings - Each member business can have a ribbon cutting ceremony to which all other members are invited. Can be at your place of business or at city hall.

Their calendar also has numerous other events around the county sponsored by other organizations.

 

[jay c]

Active in the community!? We're techs for chrissakes! We are recluses. We hide in our respective apartments, houses, caves, parent's basements, converted garages or starships. WE DO NOT socialize...

Non Sequitur has been great this week and exactly on point!

 

[perryny]

Networking is hands down my most effective new business generator.

Nothing beats meeting your potential customers face to face - or meeting new colleagues who can refer you to these potential customers.

You've got to mix it up and move around a bit, otherwise the contacts can begin to stagnate, but the more people you meet, the wider your circle.

I can meet with a two dozen business professionals and salesmen a week in a semi-social setting and at least a third of them might have a decent size contact list that meets my prefered, small business criteria. Accountants, lawers, real estate agents, financial planers... they all have client lists full of single server, 5-25 node sized clients. My ideal target.

You're meeting these people weekly. Unless you're a tool, you should be able to establish a relationship where you're comfortable enough to press a bit for a referral.

Offering a 30-day trial to your managed maintenance plan could help in spreading the word about your service pretty quickly.

Cold-calling works for me too. Both door-to-door (with flyers) and on the phone. This needs a good script and practice though.

 

[TayConsInc]

I've just been approached by the Yellow Pages, how does everyone feel about this marketing strategy?

I would be marketing residential and well as business/commercial. I assume the YP market is an older crowd still using a phone book.

 

[allanc]

1. Word of mouth
2. Business cards
3. Car Magnet
Tried the craigs list thing a bit, but it was not worth the spam.

Are car magnets easily removable (eg daily basis), don't leave any scratches, etc?

 

[Tweak]

Are car magnets easily removable (eg daily basis), don't leave any scratches, etc?

If it is a concern than get a static cling type of window advert and you won't need to worry about scratches and the discoloring that comes from magnets on the paint...it DOES happen with enough time no matter what ANYONE says, the sun and environment will affect the look and once the magnet is removed you'll notice the outline. Static cling types are like the cling tint and removes easy and can be reused.

 

[allanc]

If it is a concern than get a static cling type of window advert and you won't need to worry about scratches and the discoloring that comes from magnets on the paint...it DOES happen with enough time no matter what ANYONE says, the sun and environment will affect the look and once the magnet is removed you'll notice the outline. Static cling types are like the cling tint and removes easy and can be reused.

Are any type of signage on a vehicle also saying 'break in for some cool tools'?

 

[Tweak]

Are any type of signage on a vehicle also saying 'break in for some cool tools'?

That may very well be true but the answer/suggestion I offer addresses only the issue with a magnet and how it will adversely affect the paintwork of the automobile...my solution resolves that problem, the other is what you get an alarm for or park in a well lit heavily trafficked area or whatever else you need to do, since my suggestion is for static cling it is so fast and easy to pull off when parking somewhere so it works when you drive but could be somewhat safer once parked.

 

[NickCat11]

Are car magnets easily removable (eg daily basis), don't leave any scratches, etc?

I can tell you from experience that the magnet on the tailgate of my truck messed up the paint. When I took the magnet off to clean it, the paint underneath was bubbled up

 

[wimwauters]

Chamber of commerce here is a ripoff. They want nearly a grand a year. Door to door is too much like being a salesman which we aren't. If people want something repaired they look us up.

Agreed, there are cheaper alternatives to the expensive business networks,
which make more sense to 1 man bands like ours. You will find $200/year or $100/month ones out there. But it does require socializing

Active in the community!? We're techs for chrissakes! We are recluses. We hide in our respective apartments, houses, caves, parent's basements, converted garages or starships. WE DO NOT socialize...

Well, some of us do, or learn to, and are more successful because of it. Check out Thor Schrock, he might inspire you

 

[allanc]

That may very well be true but the answer/suggestion I offer addresses only the issue with a magnet and how it will adversely affect the paintwork of the automobile...my solution resolves that problem, the other is what you get an alarm for or park in a well lit heavily trafficked area or whatever else you need to do, since my suggestion is for static cling it is so fast and easy to pull off when parking somewhere so it works when you drive but could be somewhat safer once parked.

Yes, but I am torn.
I think that leaving it *on* the vehicle when parked is a good idea.

 

[Tweak]

Yes, but I am torn.
I think that leaving it *on* the vehicle when parked is a good idea.

Just choose your parking locations carefully.

 

[Iconic]

For an alternative to the Chamber of Commerce try looking for Business meetup on www.meetup.com

I have gone to a couple in my area and walked away with some good marketing information from a Social Media meetup as well.

 

[activeits]

Advertising on the cheap

When I first setup in business I did the local paper and Yellow Pages, both of which were a waste of money.

The vast majority of my business comes from Word Of Mouth, and customers also offer to stick up my flyers at their place of work. I also put up the flyers in newsagents, which usually cost around 20p to 25p per week.

http://cid-349e29dd88bb2ea4.skydrive.live.com/embedphoto.aspx/Public/Images/A6%20Advertisement.jpg

Thanks

 

[budsandbytes]

We have tried everything, thinking that *something* will make a noticeable difference over word of mouth. The local newspaper worked for a couple of months, but after that, there was no actual business from those ads. We tried coupons on the back of the grocery store receipts- 6 months and 0 coupons came in. The 6 different yellow pages that are distributed in our market got the smallest ad available, thinking we'd at least pick up those we were closest to, and we obtained one client for an $89 service. There's $418 down the drain.

The one form of advertisement that has worked for us, and I swore it wouldn't, was doing whatever we could (for FREE) to ensure that google, yahoo, BOTW, etc. knew everything they could about us. The only referral we've gotten in the past six months that wasn't from an existing customer was from the web- even though they had a broken computer.

When we first launched our facebook page, we saw around 50 friends in the first 4 hours. 25 were people we knew personally, 12 were people we had as recent customers, and 13 were people that we'd had no contact with, but found their way into our customer list within the next week.

Nothing will beat word of mouth. Don't let any slick salesperson trick you into thinking otherwise. Yes, advertising is necessary to some extent, just make sure that every $ spent comes back to you twice, if not more.

We recently had a yellow page provider offer us a "per customer" rate, where they would give us a specific phone number, and would charge us per call, with some exceptions for repeat callbacks, etc. It was quite telling that they would be happy to give us a full page ad for $1000 / month, but they would also like $220 PER CALL for that same ad, when billed on a per call rate.

Be VERY wary of anyone selling advertising, I think it is the biggest scam out there right now. There are a few diamonds in the rough, but be mindful of the promises, and be sure to limit your losses by never committing to a long term contract. If somebody wants to hold you to 2 years, its because they know you'll have figured out it was a bad bet after the first month.

 

[selfemployed]

Door to Door is the most effective - hands down.....

I have been in business for 5 years now. I started with no money and was almost forced into working for myself because I got laid off from work. Passing out fliers door to door is the biggest success I have had in this business in terms of advertising. It's not fun but it works!

Keep in mind I tartget homes, home offices and very small businesses. I go door to door in business districts. Ideally I look for office buidlings comprised of many different office suites.

My objective is not give someone a flier but get in front of someone. The flier is the tool I use to get me in front of them and gives me a reason to walk into thier establishment. My flier is short and sweet and not fancy. It indicates what I do, has my name and number, my rate and MOST IMPORTANTLY, my headshot. Later when the person finds the flier laying around they see my picture and remember me.

I try and make it fun when going door to door with the objective of getting the prospect to start asking me questions. Nobody likes solicitors so I walk in and make eye contact with the person and starting talking to them while walking towards them handing them my flier. I have a short spill that goes something like "Hey my name is Michael and I am an independent computer consultant in the area trying to grow my business and get my name out there. If you need any computer support or have any other technology related need I would love to help you out." As soon as the flier touches thier hand I start back pedaling like I am busy and have to go. They sense me trying to leave while I am still talking to them and they put thier guard down and get receptive to what I am saying.

Sometimes it results in me doing work right there on the spot.

I usually pick up a new client every time I go and pass out a round of fliers.

If you can't tell I am a big fan of this method of advertising.

 

[PcTek9]

we spent thousands saturating local radio stations... i should have just put in the floor in a pile and lit it on fire. yes the commercials were great, sounded fantastic... but a lot of the stations trick you, but saying they will air it at certain times, and then they just appear not to do that at all. It really doesnt pay off ... we got one customer... and they called, then never showed up...

 

[schwags]

Ok, here is the rundown of my marketing. I am still a nights and weekender, but I have found that I have almost too much business to handle now...

Dex yellowpages, I have a small ad there that cost $35 a month and gets me at least 2 or 3 clients a month. Not the most return, but a decent one.

Google adwords, I get probably 40% of my business through here now, it used to be almost 100%, but word of mouth and repeat customers has displaced that now.I have noticed that by setting my budget I can almost dial in how much business I want every month. Obviously that isn't perfect, and I'm sure there is a ceiling, but so far it has worked like that. One related note, your website has to be good. I recently changed my website and noticed an almost 2-fold increase in business.

Word of mouth and repeat customers. the BEST thing you can do to market is do an amazing job. I very rarely have a customer that is less than excited to have found me. I do this through a combination of being professional and courteous, and going above an beyond their expectations. Also, I do the work fast, as fast as I can without doing a shoddy job. Yes, this means that I am working almost 18 hours a day, but it is worth it. good looking business cards are very important here. When a customer asks for one, give them 3.

I am very close to going full time with this business. I love it 100 times more than my current full-time job, but it is hard to cut the 'money cord'! In the future I am thinking of a few more marketing ideas, tell me what you think:

Offering basic tutoring classes. These would be inexpensive for the average person, and they would learn the basics of web browsing and using a computer. I'm sure most of you know that a very large percentage of the population thinks the internet is the IE on their desktop. When that icon is gone, the internet is gone! added exposure = added clients

Car decals. I don't mean just a name and address on the back window. I mean a 1/2 wrap or full wrap of the car with professional graphics. Still tasteful, but eye catching. I know it can be expensive, but I think it would be the best return for my area. Besides, I might as well get something for all those miles I drive! I'm also changing cars, a Mustang GT convertible is a little childish and flashy.

Sending out coupons or some sort of mailer to all my past clients. Maybe it will jog their memory and get them to call me back?

 

[preemo]

Few things that are working for me:

1. Word of mouth - nothing works better. Make your clients extra happy, and they'll send you leads. Over 50% of my business comes from existing clients.

2. Email Marketing - has been critical in keeping touch with my clients. it's not very expensive ($15/mo), green (no printing), easier to send and edit, and is completely trackable with statistics. You can make better campaigns over time. My rec: Constant Contact. If you'd like to sign up, PM me I can offer a discount as a business partner (or help you become a business partner).

3. Car Magnet - also quite cheap, and works quite well for neighbors, or people you talk to near your car. I've even had a few people stop me in traffic to ask my about the cost of my services.

4. Website - make sure you list your prices on your website. testemonials from happy customers has also help alot

5. Join a networking group like BNI - not sure how it is in other part of the US, but in Miami, networking is KING. I find more business leads at happy hour than anywhere else.