Turning Your Small Business Into Big Business With A Partner

Some companies just get it.

I remember over 10 years ago, a new business opened up in my local mall. The first time I walked by Build A Bear, I laughed at the idea. Who would honestly keep going to a place where you could stuff your own bear?

Fast forward. My daughter now has over 10 of the stuffed friends, and an entire tub of clothes and accessories. And I love their marketing strategies – they seem to be teamed up with a ton of different businesses.

This week I received an email from Williams Sonoma. I love going into that store – doesn’t it make you seem like you might actually be able to cook? (All right, I haven’t mastered that part, but its still fun to pretend.)

And there in my email was Build A Bear. Yep, you need the special cake pan to make the 3-D bear. And then you can buy separate decorating kits to make a variety of outfits for the bear. How cool is this?

Now is a perfect time for the Santa suit. Or you can use the Princess decorating kit for your daughter’s birthday. Or the Soccer outfit after your team finishes the season. They’ve got you covered.

Just by taking their concept to a totally different level, they are easily going to add a LOT of income to their bottom line. And both companies will do very well with this promotion.

Cross promotion is finding a company that sells to your target audience, and joining up with something that benefits the both of you. And it may be just the thing you need to jumpstart your 2009 sales.

5 Tips For Getting More Response From Your Email

What kind of response rate are you getting from your email? Think about these statistics for a moment.

• A recent study showed that over 50 percent of all email sent out each day is spam (with tens of billions of email sent every day).
• Top ISP’s (your Internet service provider) are blocking about 25 percent of your permission based email. This is the email that you have requested, or that is coming from clients and peers.

While these numbers may frighten off small business owners, and make them wary of using email as a marketing tool, there are things you can do significantly improve your delivery rates.

Here are 5 tips to help you overcome delivery problems:

1. Get Permission.
With dozens (or even hundreds) of emails coming into a persons email box every day, don’t send regular email out to someone that hasn’t requested it. When you are out networking, by all means add these people to your mailing list. But don’t automatically put them on your email list. If you have an ezine, send an email thanking them for speaking with you, and give them the link to sign up for your ezine. Never assume they want your information, even if you meet with someone regularly.

2. Attract attention by your From and Subject lines.
People learn to scan their email boxes quickly to determine what to delete, and what to keep and read. If you always send things from one email address, they will recognize you instantly. Also, be descriptive with your subject lines. Don’t use “Hi” or “Thanks”, describe what your message is about “I enjoyed meeting you at Wednesday’s Networking Group” or “Thanks for spending 5 minutes at my booth Tuesday”. Depending on their email program, they may not see long detailed subject lines. But getting to the point provides you with a greater chance of having your email opened.

3. Get your email through the spam filters.
Spam filters are constantly changing, but there are things that automatically rank high when your email account is determining deliverability of a message. All capital letters, excessive punctuation, repeated phrases, specific words/phrases, and continual talk about selling/buying will all trigger spam filters. If you use a good delivery system, many have spam assessors that will let you know the status of your email.

4. Create a structured email, and use it again and again.
Keep your emails similar in nature. If you use ezines, develop a template. If you send text email, build up a style. People develop relationships online because they like the way you write and the information you provide.

5. Tell people upfront what to expect.
Tell people upfront what you will be delivering. If you are sending autoresponder series, use your first one to provide the details of the remaining emails. On your website, sell your ezine and tell people what they will be receiving each delivery. Put samples to give people an idea of what to expect. And be consistent.

Design Email Campaigns To Bring In More Business

In the pre-Internet days, communicating with your customers took a whole lot more effort. You had to plan a promotion, create the marketing piece, print out address labels and attach them to the marketing piece, head to your post office and buy a bulk mailer or buy individual first class stamps and stamp each piece individually. Then drop everything into the mail. The whole process could take anywhere from several days to several weeks, depending on your use of graphic designers and printers.

But then the Internet rolled around, and everyone jumped on the bandwagon of email. Email is a quick form of communication that allows you to send anyone anything at little or no cost. Of course the problem with email is because of its low cost, everyone does it. It’s not uncommon for someone to get several hundred email a day.

With that kind of incoming messaging, your communications have little to no chance of making it through – and creating the sale – unless you provide your customers strong value and they anticipate and even wait for your arrival.

As a part of your marketing strategy, consider the following when building a campaign.

1. Don’t just send email because of its value to you. Give your customer the value. What do they want to know? What do they care about? They don’t care about the details of your business. They care about how your business affects their lives.

2. Send email on a regular, anticipated time interval. Tell your customers when to expect email from you, and what to expect in the email. “Sign up for my weekly ezine in which I provide you with simple 5 minute tips on organizing your home office.” This gets straight to the point, tells people when they will receive your information, and how they can use your information. People can decide before they sign up if this type of correspondence is for them.

3. Don’t overwhelm your customers. Different industries have different email patterns. If you are emailing to a consumer, they may only open up personal email once or twice per week. If you send one or two email per day, you’ll quickly overwhelm your customer, causing her to opt out of your email. If you email business owners, they may appreciate daily correspondence, and like quick tips to start out their day. Find out what your customer prefers, test your responses often, and give them what they want.

4. Don’t forget about the mail. Just because email is a great system that’s inexpensive to use, don’t forget that snail mail can be equally effective. Try working the two together. Email your customers to watch for a new promotion you’re about to put into the mail. Send out your postcard. Then email a week or so later asking if they received the postcard, and giving them further incentive to make contact with you.

5. Instead of emailing people with all of your information, offer them choices. Autoresponders are a great way of emailing people only the information they are truly interested in. If you have a new product coming out, give them a chance to sign up on another list that will provide more information. They will receive a variety of emails based on this new product, and their desire for your information.

Above all, keep trying. If something doesn’t work, look at the possible reasons why. Is it your timing – maybe it’s a holiday. Is it the message – refine the way you say it. The important thing is to be consistent, and be willing to change to reach your fullest potential.