We get asked this a lot and the short answer is that it must be part of a wider marketing / business development plan. BUT within that context here’s our recommendation.
The best way to introduce a company to new buyers using email is this.
Research potential businesses by browsing their websites and finding the names of people who work there. Cross-check the names using Linked In and build a spreadsheet database of prospects.
Write a bespoke introduction email to the recipient which demonstrates you have researched their business and understand their needs. It should not be about sales. The first approach is about research and finding out more about them. Aim to set a time to speak on phone/Skype to find out more.
For those who do not respond. Plan a second email with a gentle reminder of your interest in their business. Ask them to pass the message to the correct person if they are not dealing with suppliers.
If they do not reply, add them to your mailing list and start to send regular, short, informative messages which will help their business (may include some sales messages, but very few).
If you can afford it, send a postal mailing individually to each business with some collateral, samples or testimonials as a follow up. Again, invite them to connect with you by telephone/Skype.
The deep skill lies in writing that first, well-researched email. It needs to be short, engaging and to create a desire to learn more from the reader. If you work in B2C this is not a practical solution unless you are a startup, because it’s too time consuming.
Creative Agency Secrets provides email copywriting services, and training to teach your team how to write and execute email introduction programmes.
https://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/Chalkward.png421427Rebecca Caroehttps://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/CAS_Logo_1line_RGB.jpgRebecca Caroe2014-08-22 12:32:242017-01-27 15:59:19What's the best way to introduce my business by email?
Could you use a similar device on your website to help guide your prospective customers through your services and products?
This is the second one we’ve done – the first was for FeedBlitz – they use it to help readers understand the FeedBlitz services for RSS delivery for email, feeds, podcasts as an alternative to FeedBurner.
Leave FeedBurner
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https://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/decision-tree.png421663Rebecca Caroehttps://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/CAS_Logo_1line_RGB.jpgRebecca Caroe2014-08-21 12:09:132014-08-21 12:14:59Can you help us test our new "decision tree"?
Matt O’Neill is the Managing Director of ModComms – a company that produces The Pitch Pack, he sent us this neat video pack which business to business marketers
ModComs pitch pack video
can use to open new leads.
How does PitchPack work?
The pack is a bit like a card brochure – you open it that triggers a magnetic switch which opens the power – a logo displays for a second while it warms up and then the first video plays
A typical pack has 4 videos – they come with volume controls and the larger packs have more videos on them. Al the components are built in – from batteries, speakers to CPU.
They are encoded to Xvid format– the reason to use a specific codec is that it is lower file size with max picture quality. A standard has 256 mg memory of which 170 is usable the rest is operating system. so it gives about 17 minutes of video playback.
Finish watching, close it like a book and that switches it off.
In the spine there’s a little USB port you can charge the battery and uploading the videos.
If a client wants to use it the production process is firstly to design the outer pack – card wrap – using a standard Adobe Illustrator template. The videos have to be produced and then you have all the assets. These are sent digitally to China. The factory sends back a prototype in digital print (not litho). Sometimes there are small amends, it is signed off for manufacture and production.
One thing is critical is quality assurance with Chinese factories -we include two rounds of this – locally it’s checked in Shenzen and then it’s sent out and we check a few samples too. Then we dispatch – sometimes it’s a bulk delivery, other times we do the fulfilment individually.
As part of the marketing it’s important that the telesales follow up to fix the meetings.
What types of Business use PitchPack?
It’s any B2B organisation providing a higher value product or service. Tech companies like it, hotels, consultancies, engineering groups and some internal comms – high level changes across global senior teams.
Integration wit the sales funnel – the clients using account based marketing principles. Some use it for the ‘door opener’ – grab attention of a senior decision maker. It’s critical to have a structured follow up process. Or use it as a leave-behind or a send-after to answer questions. Salesman can film themselves on a mobile phone giving the answers and then include other videos too. Those companies that are a bit more sophisticated and using lead scoring, for example, the score triggers sending a pack.
Personalisation – we are used to it with paper mail, but when you show the recipient that there’s an introduction just addressed to them – it’s flattering. Anecdotally we hear it is very powerful.
Results – using a campaign with a global software company – we did a small run of 250 packs of which 240 were distributed. They got 23 meetings with decision makers and they’ve got 4 deals with an average value of GBP250k each. That campaign cost 5k on the packs themselves, 7k producing one video and re-used another couple of videos. Total campaign cost 16k.
Why should our readers try the service?
Video is growing – mobile traffic about 50-70% of mobile traffic is video now. Cisco predicts that 1/5 of the world’s population will access video online by 2016.
As a medium, video creates feelings of trust and so when brands use real people or show people doing real things curiosity is triggered. When making video for marketing purposes don’t put everything in. Leave them wanting more.
Confidence in the brand is built and sometimes amusement. If you can make video for business funny you will have next to no competition because there’s so little out there.
With that popularity it’s a blessing and a curse – the competition will only get more furious.
Marshall Mcluan said the medium is the message in 60s and these packs are both – it allows people to explore video in their own time in their own way wherever they happen to be.
This is an easy differentiation tool – stand out from the crowd. I remember in 2005 there were personalised USB sticks but now these are ubiquitous. This type of marketing tactic is now at its 2005 moment but in 3-5 years it’ll be old hat.
If you are producing video for the pack, the content can be re-used across other media – home page, landing pages, powerpoint, email-able files. The results are pretty tangible – looking at it in pure numbers.
Are you a tradesman – plumber, electrician, carpenter, builder – and want to do some marketing to get more customers? We had a meeting today with a new client and talked about marketing.
There are lots of choices in marketing, but for a tradesman’s business, there are actually only 3 marketing tools they need
Business cards
A website
A mailing list (email or postal)
Let’s run through these and how to use them
Tradesman’s business cards
Cheap to design and print, these are your number 1 marketing tool when you first start. They should have accurate information about how to contact you printed in large type with a recognisable business name.
How tradesmen use business cards
Hand two to every customer. One to keep and one to give to a friend.
Keep them in your wallet, in the car glove box and hand them out liberally especially if you go to a social function or belong to a networking group or business meeting group.
A tradesman’s business website
When you’ve enough cash, buy a website. A simple 5 page site is all you need to start off.
How tradesmen use a website
It needs to have
a header that says your company name and phone number,
a home page that describes your business and the geographic area in which you work,
a page with your full contact details,
a page to describe your specialist skill,
a page of customer testimonials,
a page about you and your team.
A tradesman’s mailing list
Once you’ve been working for a while, you will send out invoices to get clients paying you. This is your chance to start to grow a mailing list. This is useful because your past clients may refer you to future clients, and sending out mailshots or newsletters serves as a reminder to people about your services, and how to contact you.
How a tradesman uses a mailing list
Keep a record of every customer name, business name, address, telephone and email when you raise an invoice. If you use an accounting software programme, it’ll save these details for you.
When you get a phone call or email enquiry for a new job, save the contact details. Check on the phone that you have spelled their name correctly – this is particularly important for email addresses because one wrong letter and the message won’t arrive.
When you do a job quote, save the contact details.
Every month collate all these lists into one place (preferably electronic). Save the file with an obvious name e.g. August 2014 Mailing List. Then send out a short message to the whole list using specialist email sending software like MailChimp/AWeber/FeedBlitz. DO NOT USE your email program. Ask me why not if you don’t know.
Put the date in your diary to send the newsletter every month for 1 year.
Stick to the schedule.
Send that mailing.
Even if it is short and has one photo of a job you’ve done (before and after photos are great), or a customer testimonial – it all adds up. Over time you will get to having a big list.
Say you do 10 jobs a month and meet 5 new people each month who take a card. Within 5 years you’ll have over 900 names on your list. If you do 20 jobs a month and meet 10 new people – you get to 900 names in half the time!
That is it.
There are additional marketing techniques that you can add on top of the basic 3 such as outbound mail campaigns, using recommended trades services (Builders Crack, Rated People), creating website landing pages for Yellow Pages and other directory listings, customer satisfaction surveys, freebie giveaways or seasonal special offers.
But don’t do these until you have the basic 3 covered and working well.
For tradesman marketing services, call Creative Agency Secrets – outsourced marketing for busy business owners.
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I’d like to keep track of projects, editing, and version control as simply as possible. I see a zillion tools and possibilities, just want something simple and reliable.
Writing team [image credit dunlapschools.edublogs.org]
Focus on having one place for your editorial work schedule. We use teamwork.com for our project planning – but other solutions include Trello and Basecamp. Set in place working processes that force users back to the project management app for all their work. E.G. we use Teamwork as the agenda for our update meetings – it is immediately obvious if someone isn’t using it or it isn’t up to date with their status. Name and Shame works as a motivator.
Secondly, the editorial calendar (which can be a spreadsheet of monthly activities) sets out what needs to be done in advance so you can plan.
Thirdly use cloud services so there’s only one version of any document you are writing. We use Google Docs and from the fall you’ll also be able to do the same on Apple with their Yosemite update. One document, multiple users.
Fourthly, if you want to be picky – as I am, have a file naming convention on your documents. We use date followed by client name and detail of the document. Note using a YYMMDD date format means all documents sort into reverse date order easily (the US date format does not work).
How is that for starters? Get in touch if you want a 20 minute update on what you’ve chosen and I can try to spot any issues or working practices you may need to reinforce.
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https://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Writing-team.png236559Rebecca Caroehttps://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/CAS_Logo_1line_RGB.jpgRebecca Caroe2014-07-01 10:00:002014-07-14 16:15:33How to manage a writing team
We recently launched content creation services. (Article creation, infographic design, etc) We have 3 funded startups that we currently work with. Acquired through my network. How can I get more, what would be the best way to do this?
Have a solid new business development process and an action plan. Like any sales activity, you need a strong proposition and a tested process to present your offering to the market.
You are (sadly) no different from any other B2B biz dev client we have.
1 – research and build a database of your prospects (funded startups)
2 – make an offer to them that is compelling and they respond to your approach
3 – have a range of services that are easy to buy, demonstrate added value and encourage re-purchase
4 – rinse, repeat.
https://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/startups.png551738Rebecca Caroehttps://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/CAS_Logo_1line_RGB.jpgRebecca Caroe2014-06-09 10:00:002019-08-01 15:38:03How do I get funded startups to buy Content Creation services?
Many businesses use direct email and purchased mailing lists for new business development. It’s a tried and tested technique.
No more cold calls or emails. [Image credit http://muddycolors.blogspot.co.nz/]
But it only works when you have a VERY compelling and well-written message.
Here’s an example we received
Would you like to have just one invoice to pay every month for all of you property maintenance? And only have to remember one number. Then give us a call and let us and our team do it all for you. From a one off job, or a complete maintenance package that works just for you
I have attached our company profile for you to see who we are and what we do
Also here is a link to our website [included but not hyperlined]
Please do not hesitate to contact us with any queries or quote requests
Kind regards
Improve your cold email text
Thanks very much for getting in touch.
As you probably can see I run a marketing business and my eagle eye couldn’t help noticing a couple of things you could improve with your approach email which I just got.
You forgot the company profile attachment. And the link isn’t formatted correctly to open your website.
But the main thing your email lacks is a strong reason for me (the recipient) to DO ANYTHING.
Take a read of a couple of our blog posts about writing cold emails
Whether you are a young entrepreneur looking to venture out into the world of small business, or you are a high level marketing
Image from auocoms.com
firm, you need to fully comprehend the ins and outs of basic marketing and law. It’s important to know what will get you (or your clients) in hot water, or even worse, put out of business. Claiming ignorance will not work as a defence when you’ve been dragged into court over trademark or copyright issues. There is a very thin line between what is protected and what isn’t; the following are ways in which you can assure that you are properly protected from a costly and time consuming lawsuit.
Trademarking
When it comes to names, catch phrases and images it’s generally a good idea to check a Trademark Database. If you find what you’re looking for in the database, it doesn’t mean that you cannot use it; however, you would be wise to ask permission from the trademark holder. Unless you are a direct competitor of the trademark holder, they tend to give or sell permission. This rings especially true in regards to using stock photos for websites and catalogs.
Copywriting and Ad Copy
If you make your living writing ads that capture and engage an individual into purchasing your product, it might behoove you to check and see if your country has specifics on what is and isn’t acceptable. I check in with The American Writers And Artist Inc frequently to ensure that no new laws have been passed regarding copyright or trademark infringements.
It astounds me the number of websites and marketing ads that promise unobtainable results due to their products. Perhaps the most abused clientele are those attempting to purchase weight loss diets, pills, and exercise equipment. An example of this would be using false testimonials in advertising.
Copycatting Isn’t Only for Serial Killers
Anyone who has ever watched a crime show eventually sees an episode about a copycat serial killer. It’s inevitable. Now, I’m not saying that those in marketing that copy other people’s work are perpetrating as severe a crime, but nonetheless, it is a crime (and like all copycat serial killers, they will get caught).
It’s a simple concept to grasp. It was cheating to copy a friend’s homework in school, and it’s cheating to copy someone’s marketing work in the real world.
Just because someone else was successful using an idea or phrase in his or her ad copy does not allow you to copy it into your advertising campaign.
Faking It on the Internet
Possibly the fastest growing form of illegal marketing is the growth of black hat SEO techniques. This is the attempt to use hidden text, improper link building, and cloaking to raise a company’s website profile in search results.
Another illegal form of online marketing is creating fake reviews of companies and products. In a recent case, in which nineteen companies were fined for created fake reviews on Yelp and Google Local, New York State Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman, stated:
“What we’ve found is even worse than old-fashioned false advertising. When you look at a billboard, you can tell it’s a paid advertisement — but on Yelp or Citysearch, you assume you’re reading authentic consumer opinions, making this practice even more deceiving.” Schneiderman continued “This investigation into large-scale, intentional deceit across the Internet tells us that we should approach online reviews with caution.”
Without a business law degree, it’s not always possible to know what is and isn’t allowed. Thankfully, the internet is always full of advice and answers, and there are always sites like Legal Vision that make it their goal to provide insight and solutions to legal needs.
When all else fails, remember the words of Anita Roddick, the founder of The Body Shop, “Being good is good business.”
If it feels wrong, it probably is wrong…
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https://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/copyright.png215600Rebecca Caroehttps://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/CAS_Logo_1line_RGB.jpgRebecca Caroe2014-06-03 09:40:422022-12-19 11:57:07The Legal Side of Marketing - what you need to know
We were lucky to find out about TrustRadius the enterprise software comparison site founded by Vinay Bhagat
Image via CrunchBase
through a search we were doing for clients. As a result, we got in touch with them and secured an interview.
Why did you start TrustRadius?
We’re trying to change the way software is bought and sold. If you’re a consumer who wants to buy a product or service there’s a wealth of information out there. But if you’re trying to buy a piece of technology which could have a huge impact on your career, or business – it’s more challenging; more opaque.
Technology marketers try to control the information flow a customer gets.
Our belief is that through a platform like TrustRadius we can give buyers a more authentic, rapid way to make smarter decisions. It’s not just picking the right product – it’s the right product for your use case.
Every business has unique needs – on TrustRadius you can crowdsource different perspectives about the context around the problem the business is trying to solve. This allows the user to made a more informed choice.
This isn’t trying to provide all the answers. TrustRadius is a layer to get intelligent and get insights, way to avoid mistakes. It’s more than a content layer, it’s a way to allow people to connect with each other. a contextual social network.
What are the issues with other solutions?
The Gartner magic quadrant is not appropriate for everyone.
We have a user who contacted people through the site and did information exchanges to get to the real story behind their tech selection and purchase.
People have tried to do backchannel references for years – it’s hard to get peer input rapidly at scale.
Reviewers have authentication – and we use Linked In – in connect button to verify identities.
What’s your business model?
Today we are not focused on making money – we’re trying to create a trusted at scale network – as a young company we
have to concentrate at this. If we can wedge ourselves between the buyer and seller its a $4trilliion marketplace. We bootstrapped for 1 year and now have raised VC money last June – we maniacally focus on getting to scale through effectively recruiting reviewers, sourcing content and engaging vendors. Read more
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within that context here’s our recommendation.
![Startups blackboard [image credit http://www.getcomfortable.co.uk/]](https://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/startups.png)
