11. Employees: Empower employees to solve customers'
problems and motivate them to bring customers back. Ratner says,
"I make each employee sign a piece of paper stating, 'I
understand that my number-one job, no matter what I was hired for,
is to make the customer come back.' This lets my employees know
that we're serious about customer service."
12. Business cards: Schloeder advocates printing
information on both sides of your business card. "Why should
it have just your name, address and phone number, when you can
include a description of your company, hours of operation, mission
statement or other important information?"
Cost: a few cents per card.
13. Signage: Look for other ways to use signage-at events
or even on your vehicle. A local ice cream shop owner tools around
my town with the name of his sweet shop on a magnetic sign affixed
to the side of his car. Everywhere he goes, he's promoting his
business.
Cost: about $40 to $75 for a magnetic panel.
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14. In-store venues: Your windows, countertops, reception
area, walls and other on-site features of your business are great
advertising vehicles. Frame advertising campaigns, and put them on
your walls. Create minisigns for your countertops. Adorn visible
windows with appropriate displays or graphics.
Cost: inexpensive frames for ads, $10 to $30 each; minisigns
from your computer printer, pennies; a window artist, about $25 to
$50 per hour.
15. News releases: Get to know your local media, and
learn how to make yourself part of the headlines. A news release
announcing the involvement of Schloeder's company in developing
a regional Web site ended up netting a small write-up in a local
newspaper. Over the course of two days, she received more than a
dozen phone calls from prospective clients.
Cost: 37 cents.
16. Your expertise: Tax Mama Rosenberg routinely
self-syndicates articles about tax planning and other areas of
expertise to local newspapers across the country. These vehicles
often have thousands of readers and are hungry for well-written,
informative content. Get a list of newspapers at www.newslink.org.
Cost: $0.
17. Networking: Head to your local chamber of commerce or
other networking groups with a pocketful of business cards. If your
business is more national in scope, attend appropriate trade shows
and conferences. By networking with her competition, Rosenberg
landed referrals from others in her field when they've had too
much business or a conflict of interest.
Cost: $0.
18. Referral bonuses: Inspire customers to act as your
sales force by giving them an incentive to bring you new customers.
This may include a discount off their next service or a small gift
or credit on their account. Be sure to ask new customers where they
heard about your business so you know when a customer has made a
referral.
Cost: a few dollars.
19. Speaking: Rosenberg markets her business through
seminars, teaching prospective clients about the tax issues about
which she's so savvy. If you have a way with words, seek out
opportunities to speak in front of appropriate groups. This
positions you as an expert in your field. Look for groups in your
newspaper's event calendar, or check with your local library,
which may keep a list of social, civic and business groups.
Cost: $0-and sometimes, you may receive payment for
speaking.
20. Charities: Teaming up for a good cause-whether by
donating products or services or volunteering your time on a
nonprofit board of trustees-fosters goodwill within your community.
Most of the time, these activities are also rewarded by publicity
or promotion through the charity. You can get even more mileage out
of the event by posting photos in your place of business or sending
out your own news release. It's a great way to do well by doing
good deeds.
Cost: the wholesale cost of your time or product.
A Penny Saved...
Shel Horowitz may be the king of penny-pinching promoters. The
Hadley, Massachusetts, marketing consultant and author of
Marketing Without Megabucks: How to Sell Anything on a
Shoestring (AWM Books), among other titles, generally spends
nothing on his own promotions. Through a combination of paid
speaking engagements, barter and information-sharing, he's been
able to bring in lucrative marketing and copywriting assignments
that pay about $125 per hour for clients as far away as Cyprus,
Europe and Japan. Here are some of the tactics he's used:
- Bartering: In exchange for writing copy for a local
Yellow Pages, he received free advertising in the book.
- Recruiting free help: For his first Web site, he hired
an intern who created the site in exchange for the experience.
- Creating a presence on the Net: Horowitz is active in
Internet discussion groups and works on generating publicity to get
his name-and business-in print.
- Information-sharing: In some cases, Horowitz, 47, is
paid to speak to groups or write articles to share his expertise.
In these cases, his marketing becomes a revenue stream.
Horowitz shares more of his frugality on his Web site, www.frugalmarketing.com.
Gwen Moran is a writer and consultant specializing in
marketing.
Originally published in the February 2004 issue of Entrepreneur's StartUps
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