Interview- Joan Stewart (Publicity Expert)

What are the best ways to get the media to cover your special event?

Make the event fun and different. If you want the TV cameras there, you must have these three ingredients: people, color and motion. Please, no talking heads.  And no news conferences. The media HATE news conferences.

Is it affordable for a Small Business to have a TV show on a cable station community access channel?

 Not only is it affordable, it’s free! You will either pay a very small amount of money to rent the camera equipment, or they will shoot the program for you. Air time is always free. You can have one show or an entire series of shows. Another option is leased access cable, which lets you lease air time all over the country. You can have your own national TV show in, say, a dozen smaller markets, for less than $400 a month

How can a Small Business owner brand their business cheaply?

 Branding isn’t about cute names or logos or websites or fancy stationery. Branding is all about creating a feeling in the hearts and minds of people who do business with you so they return to you again and again. For me, that means delivering top-quality products and services, offering outstanding customer service, and always under promising and over delivering.

Read the entire interview at:

Joan Stewart Interview

Sell 30% to 50% More... using Effective Testimonials...
by Thom Reece

Among the variety of techniques available to you as a marketer, there is one that is virtually guaranteed to increase your business...testimonials !

To clearly understand why testimonials are so powerful we must first look at the basic perceptions of our audience.

Here's how "John Q. Customer" might describe his attitude:

"In addition to making me an enticing offer, you must prove to me that you are okay to do business with. You must eliminate any fear that I have about doing business with you. The basis of my fear is doubt and skepticism...two essential components for survival in today's tough business marketplace.

I come by my fears honestly and from experience. I have been conned before. I have been lied to before. The quality of products and services that I have purchased in the past have not always lived up to the claims made for them.

Hardly a day passes that the nation's press doesn't reveal some major breech of ethics by business and political leaders. Dishonesty and misrepresentation are commonplace. So why, in the face of all this negative experience, should I believe your advertising claims? "

These are sobering conditions in which to operate. It's easy to understand why customers temper their buying decision with caution. They don't want to lose money and, more importantly, they don't want to feel foolish. Eliminating this natural fear and skepticism is the job that testimonials do best. The reason is simple: If you say you are good, people ignore your self-serving back-patting. When others say you are good...it's credible. This goes to the very heart of why testimonials are so powerful...they give us credibility and believability.

When you deliver a good compelling offer that is both credible and believable, your sales and profits will increase.

TYPES OF TESTIMONIALS

There are four different types of testimonials. They are:

Customer: By far the strongest category of testimonial is the satisfied customer. In consumer offers a 30% increase in business is not unusual, and business-to-business offers often double or triple results through the use of good customer testimonials.

Celebrities: Celebrities are not as believable as customers. They are not credible because they are paid. I may not like the celebrity which could negatively affect my attitude towards your company or product. They generally increase awareness, but it may not be good awareness.

Experts: If you are selling artificial hearts, then a testimonial from Dr. Denton Cooley would probably boost business. Even though he might be paid, he is so credible that it would probably work. Your expert must be an expert in a relevant field.

Expert Organizations: A trade association, a magazine in your field, a chamber of commerce, a newsletter, etc. Expert organizations carry a lot of weight because people believe that their opinion cannot be bought.

WHAT MAKES A GOOD CUSTOMER TESTIMONIAL? To maximize the selling power of testimonials, you should keep a few tips in mind:

Tip-1...Be Specific: Testimonials phrased in specific terms pull more weight than more general statements. For example...

"I increased my companies profits by $78,350 last year using your advice!"

is a lot more effective than..

"I enjoy working with your company."

Tip-2...Cite Complete Attributions:

"Mr. John Jones, President
SMITH MANUFACTURING
Chicago, IL

rather than

" J. Jones, Chicago"

The more complete the attribution the more believable the testimonial.

Tip-3...Use Customer Terminology and Phrasing: Resist any temptation to rephrase you customers' words. You'll generally lower the believability factor.

Tip-4...Use Photos of the Testimonial Writer: You will triple the believability and selling power if you print a photo along with the words. Photographs of the person using your product work best.

How To Collect Usable Testimonials...

Collecting usable testimonials should be an organized and on-going marketing function.

First...Read the in-coming mail carefully and keep a file of customer comments. Follow-up on those with potential and put them in usable form.

Second...Analyze your customer list and develop a sub-list of your top 10% of customers by sales volume and frequency of ordering. Carefully craft a letter to this select list "Asking for their help". Suggest to them what you are looking for in the way of comments and then let them provide you with the raw material. The important lesson here: You can't sit casually back and hope for testimonials to come your way. You have to go out and get them.

The reward, however, is always worth the effort. The time you spend nurturing your testimonial program will result in increased sales and profits, an improved image, more sales leads, lower sales costs, shortened selling cycles, and improved cash flow

Thom Reece is the editor/publisher of "Thom Reece's Web Marketing Strategies & Techniques Newsletter™" and CEO of On-Line Marketing Group, a Hawaii based direct response marketing consultancy and web development firm. He is a highly sought after speaker and seminar leader. His writing has appeared in DM News, Cleaner Times, Home Business Magazine, Opportunity World, Money 'N' Profits, Advertising Express (India), Fairfield Business Letter, and in numerous ezines and web sites. Mr. Reece's company produces the annual international conference & exposition on internet marketing. Details are at: http://www.ecomconference.com Thom Reece may be contacted at http://www.e-comprofits.com or thom@e-comprofits.com

The Customer is Always Right, (Especially when you think they aren't!)
by Terri Zwierzynski

It takes a long time for a self employed business owner to build up a reputation for great customer service. I am a caring person, and putting customer service first is something I hold very dear as an important aspect of how I do business. And recently, I almost blew it. In a fit of irritation over a client's request for help, I made a very poor assumption -- and almost made an idiot of myself in the process.

As I reflected on that experience, I came up with these four elements of providing great customer service as a self employed business owner. I share them as a model of how to think about your own customer service interactions (especially those that occur via email) and as a reminder to myself too. I call it the CARE model of email customer service.

C = already a Customer!

Gaining a new customer is 5-10 times more expensive than keeping an existing customer. So doesn't it make sense that we should treat them accordingly? It's easy, when you are in a rush, to forget all the work it took to get them to be a customer in the first place. And never underestimate the wrath of a customer scorned -- a disgruntled customer is much more likely to talk to others about that one bad experience they had with you, than all the good experiences that came before it.

Customers are precious -- remember to treat them that way!

A = Attitude

Having a bad day? In a rush to get to an appointment? If you respond to a customer under those circumstances, chances are that your annoyance or hurry, even if it is not about them, will creep into your response. The words you choose are very important; doubly so if you are responding via email. It's hard to choose the best words if you are peeved or if your mind is elsewhere!

So, take time and care to respond. Find a time when you can take a few deep breaths and set aside any distractions. If you can't find the time, or feel yourself unable to curb your negative energy, get someone else on your team to respond.

R = Relationship

EVERY customer interaction is a link in your relationship with that customer. A good customer interaction, where you solve their problem and make them feel better in the process, makes for a solid, strong relationship. On the other hand, a careless response puts a weak link into the relationship. And a chain is only as strong as its weakest link!

Customer retention is all about how you make your customer feel. Use polite, professional (but not necessarily formal) language, take care to re-read what you've written before sending, and thank them, even if they are complaining. And always ask, at the close of your email, if you've solved their problem or answered their question adequately. These little things can make a big difference.

E = Extra

How can you go the extra mile when interacting with your customers? Can you deliver more than they are asking for? Or just add an unexpected measure of kindness in your response?

Include additional information or advice related to their request. Or, if you can't answer their question, do a little research and point them to a helpful resource. Add a P.S. with a personal note about their health, family, a recent trip, etc. Following up with a hand-written card or note can also be a nice touch.

Treat your customers with CARE, every time, and they will come back, time and time again.

Terri Z is The Solo-CEO: a self-employed internet marketing consultant to solo entrepreneurs, freelance writer, and grassroots promoter of the "solo entrepreneur lifestyle". She runs www.Solo-E.com, the resource website for solo entrepreneurs which attracts thousands of visitors monthly from over 100 countries on six continents (and was named a finalist for “Website of the Year” in the 4th Annual Stevie® Awards for Women in Business). Terri is also the co-author of 136 Ways To Market Your Small or Solo Business.

Visit Solo-E.com and get our new ebook, "25 Surefire Ways to Capture More Clients, Get More Done in Less Time, and Make More Money -- in 90 Days or Less."

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