Q.How does one market their catalogs?

A.There are various ways to market catalogs, some of which you probably heard of, such as catalog swaps, which is a great way to get your businesses seen and heard of. For those that do not know what this is, there are various groups out there, including Yahoo groups that cater to catalog swapping. What this means is that you are just swapping catalogs with one another or many people, but what you might want to do to entice someone to purchase from you is offer them an additional incentive, such as a percentage off, or possibly a buy one get one free item. These are only suggestions, but of course you are free to give away what you would like to. More often than not people will take you up on your offer. Another way to market catalogs is just by leaving them in places that many people go to, such as a doctors office, library, restaurant, party places, even your local candy store. Always attach your business card to your catalog, and/or affix a sticker to it so they know who to call. Again, you might want to include a special incentive to the mix. While this is not exactly direct marketing, meaning right to a person so-to-speak, indirect marketing works more than you think. Another example of this might be to include a catalog in shipments that you are sending out to people for other companies that you may be representing. If a catalog does not weigh much, then it will not add any more cost to your shipments. If someone has ordered from the company that you are wishing to market, which has a catalog such as CIAB, then sending them their order with a catalog and business card would be sufficient, and then the recipient could always look to see what they would like next; keep the catalog handy, and hopefully keep ordering from you. One last suggestion would be to include a catalog to anyone requesting a sample from you, or anyone you are sending a thank you note to. The goal is to try to keep your company in front of people. With so much competition out there, it is always a good idea to offer them something as part of your “thank you for your purchase, or request.”

Q.How do we make contacts for sales?

A.Barring all the normal methods; such as, friends, family, co-workers, and the like there are various ways to make contacts excluding the above. While the above does work at times, it is not going to pay your bills, so we need to look for alternative methods. Newsletters are a great way to acquire new contacts, but a newsletter must be worthy of this. What does this mean? It means that you must put in content that people find interesting enough to want to subscribe to your newsletter. However, just as above, you can always offer an incentive to join your newsletter. This could be in the form of free e-books, a free gift, a drawing, and/or contest. Quite often people sign up because they want to win and get something for free, but it is your job to try to at least and keep them there with quality content, because they can choose to opt out as well. Do not keep sending out newsletters over and over again. This will most likely annoy most people and they will eventually opt out. If you keep your newsletter to twice a month, (if you are not part of a group that sends out weekly newsletters) you should be fine, but if you are constantly over-sending your newsletters people will just delete them.

Q.What is Email marketing, etiquette and time-lines

A.Email marketing can fall into the same category as a newsletter, but it is not really sent through a newsletter venue. One example might be that you have a very long list of contacts, perhaps people that have purchased from you in the past or maybe people that have requested information from you, or just plain inquiries. Your best defense on emailing these people is to put a disclaimer on the bottom of your emails such as the Can-Spam act or something along those lines. In this way you are at least giving someone the chance to accept or deny your emails. However, emailing these so called contacts that have not opted into your list can be considered as Spam nevertheless. It is highly advisable to request permission first before sending any emails to people individually or you risk the chance of being reported. Another form of email marketing is something many of us use on a daily basis, which is comprised of Yahoo groups, Google groups, MSN groups and the like. While this is a wonderful way to get your businesses seen and heard of, it requires time and persistence, and in many cases groups do have rules which you must follow. There are thousands of free advertising groups out there that you can join, and there are no rules, those would be the best to join as you will never have to worry about being kicked out and messages will always go through.

As far as email etiquette is concerned, the same applies as above. In reality you are not allowed to email people individually (assuming that you do not know them of course) without their permission unless it is a group that allows this. Another dilemma which comes into play is the harvesting of email addresses from groups, forums, etc. What this means is that you are taking individual emails from groups and emailing them privately. This is a no-no in the online world. People get highly upset and will inevitably report you to the proper authorities, something you do not want to have happen to you.

Q.How do you follow up with your marketing campaign?

A.Reiterating from some of the above, sending someone an email asking them if they liked the catalog that they received, the items that they received or even a sample, keeps your name in front of people, which may lead to new sales for you. Example: You had a craft show and you did a drawing for a super sonic Cellomania surprise pack! Now you have a bunch of entries with emails on them, but you also handed them a catalog, business card, and a sample of a cello bag. You now have ample opportunity to contact these people requesting how they liked the sample, the catalog, or if there anything that you can help them with. Would they like to sign up to your newsletter offering them specials and sales. Makes sense now doesn’t it? They can not fault you for emailing them, because you did in fact give them something to look at and keep. They will also appreciate your effort for following up with them.

Of course if you had orders placed you will always want to thank your customer for their purchase, and this can be done via email, or by way of regular mail sending them a thank you note. Once again, add something to that note, it could be some free samples, candy, or specials, but it puts you ahead of the game in all directions. People tend to remember the ones that have gone the extra mile. So get your running shoes on, and be that exceptional person, it will help you in the long-run - Pun intended.:-)

1. Keep a stack of biz cards in your pocket to drop off when you are out and about. Many places have bulletin boards you can throw them on.

2. Get a stamp for the back of your card with an offer to new customers such as “Free gift with your order."

3. Attend local women in business meetings, health conventions, bridal shows. You would be surprised at how many vendors could use your products.

4. Use your Cello, tape sealers, sample bags and ribbon! Presentation makes a big difference!

5. Offer a referral gift to friends if they send you a new customer.

6. Keep a log of all your prospects or add to the newsletter as stated above so you can come up with a big annual marketing campaign or even for your monthly specials.

7. Add a mint to your thank you card with a little saying about (Thanks a Mint for your order) as people love treats.