|
Disclaimer The articles on this Web site are provided for information purposes only and for redistribution as outlined in our guidelines. Illinois-Business-Startup.com does not accept any responsibility or liability for the use or misuse of the article content on this site or reliance by any person on the site's contents. |
Posted: Nov 24, 2007 Thinking Outside The Box Marketing For This Holiday Season by: Joseph D. Hawn Go Global: There are so many ways to reach a global market today. Some such options are the internet through email, click links on websites, your website and E-bay type sites. You can also network to expand your business and I bet you know at least one person that knows some one from another country if not yourself. You may also use hotels, motels, and bed & breakfasts to spread the word of mouth through business information left at these locations for consumer to pick up and take. You may also partner with a company from another country. Postering: With all the added traffic through stores and restaurants this is a great way for your business to be visible. Postering in locations that you are allowed in businesses that are well established and gets your business name noticed. Let's face it restaurants will be a big one to target with all the time spent shopping who will want to cook. Business Partnering: Many businesses will partner with you for an even swap. I know of retail establishments that will include your literature inside every customer shopping bag if you return the favor. Other businesses may include their material in shipments to their customers but they may also include other businesses literature as well for a small price. If you're a scrap booking super store try targeting craft shop or fabric stores. Pizza places may target entertainment facilities. And Gift basket designers need to target spas and event planners. Home staging company needs to target real estate agents, investors, property management companies, and may be even hotels. Direct Mail/ Door to Door: This is not for every business or product and should be considered by each business individually. Everyone enjoys supporting the local business and likes to stay local for purchases. To effectively utilize this opportunity will depend on your product and your customers. Maximize your profits and minimize your cost of shipping and mailing to customers. This can actually save your customers and your business time and costs for getting the products instead of shopping elsewhere. For example in door to door marketing of products your business can eliminate the costs of shipping, stress, headaches, time, money, and energy for your customers this holiday season. Websites: This not only includes your website but others with great potential opportunities. You need to maximize and utilize your website to gain customers focus, build relationships, introduce and try new products and build your database. You may be able to build your database with offers for newsletters, special offers, drawings as well as many others. Another very popular site for many individuals this holiday that may be over looked is Secondlife.com. This site was a recent focus of the CNBC television show Business Nation. Some other popular sites are myspace.com, facebook.com, and linkedin.com just to name a few of the social networking websites. These sites give your business and products the opportunity to be talked about and build a reputation with consumer confidence. Remember just one person socializing in cyberspace can create a network of opportunities and spread information like wildfire. Joseph D. Hawn is a business consultant who can be reached at mailto:jdhbusinessservices@hotmail.com http://www.myspace.com/jdhbusinessservices |