We begin today’s post with a little poem:
Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
Marketing is hard.
I’m overwhelmed.
So much information….
(The sound of a quietly sobbing poet)
Does that remind you of anyone you know?
Complicated and Simple
There is no subject under the sun which can’t be reduced to its few essential principles.
On the other side of the card, there is no subject that can’t be made to appear complex and hopelessly beyond the grasp of all but a few (highly paid) industry “gurus.”
Direct mail marketing is a subject about which much has been written. Much advice has been offered and sold at premium prices (those gurus again). Everywhere you look for marketing advice, you find opinions and one expert’s opinion may be in conflict with another expert’s.
It’s easy, especially for the new marketer seeking advice to end up with an inbox jammed with emails and offers from this expert and that one, all reaching for your dollars, with a promise of a no-fail solution. This is usually followed by information overwhelm, thinking you’ve got to learn and master many technologies and concepts in order to pull off a successful marketing campaign.
Okay, stand up and stretch. It gets better from here.
Now let’s flip that marketing card back to the simple side. How simple can marketing be made? How about this simple: No matter how small your list is, no matter if you’re working out of your den, no matter this-or-that, just start.
I Can’t Just Start…Can I?
Probably everyone reading (or writing) this has at some time been guilty of waiting…until everything…was perfect…before they took action.
Well, the fact is, there is no such thing as “perfect” and the timing is never right to do things that you’re nervous about or afraid of. So, if you run your marketing (which is the lifeblood of your business) on this basis, you will never move forward—or upward.
But if you just start—mail out your first batch of postcards in spite of fear of other considerations—you’ve factually moved forward. You’ve reached some people. You’ve opened the door to leads. And you can turn those leads into sales.
By just starting this way, you will learn what works, so you can strengthen it, which will bring even better results.
Waiting is losing. Starting is winning.
Continuing is Winning-er
When actors stop making movies, they disappear from the pages of People magazine and then they fade from the public’s awareness. Movie fans find other more visible stars to put their attention on. Tom Cruise is one of—if not the—biggest Hollywood stars because he is continually making and promoting his movies (He didn’t just stop at Risky Business, and hope to sustain a huge career, right?).
In the same way, if you don’t routinely remind prospects and customers that you’re there, you fade from their awareness. Then, when they need the kind of service or product you sell, they will contact the company—your competition—that is “top of mind” with them.
So, it’s crucial to start but then it’s necessary to continue with routine marketing.
It’s an easy choice: get overwhelmed into paralysis by all the marketing experts out there, or just start.
There’s never been a simpler way to start marketing your business than by logging on to www.prospectsplus.com/pei. There you will find customizable postcard templates, as well as prospect targeting resources, and mailing services, all for you use, all from your computer. So simple.
Or, if want to start off with a bang, call Opportunity Knocks at 1 (866) 319-7109 and talk to our marketing and design pros. They know what works in your industry and will design a card that will get results and make it easy for you to continue marketing.