Posted by JulieD on October 21, 2008 under Down Is Up, Marketing | 
Food prices are rising because supplies are down and demand is up. A recent National Geographic Magazine article focussed on preservation of healthy soil as one of the solutions.
This might be good news for some businesses, if they can think and market themselves creatively.
Heavy machinery compacts the earth, so manufacturers who make huge, wide tires for the machines should see their products rise in demand.
Farmers use GPS technology to pinpoint where they should drive, to minimize damage to soil. Savvy GPS equipment and software firms, who pay attention to their customer’s needs, will be doing well, even if the overall economy is down.
Dirt as a growth industry? Did you see that coming? In every downturn there are segments of the economy that are still growing.
Has the changing economy created new customers for you? Probably.
How will you tell those potential customers that they need you? In a trade magazine article? In press releases? By running a special promotion or contest to raise your visibility? By direct mail?
Posted by JulieD on October 20, 2008 under Customer Service, Down Is Up, Marketing |
In a down economy, everyone is re-examining how they spend their money.
You could find yourself gaining business in these tough times if you position yourself as the best, mopping up all the customers your competitors are currently under-serving.
But only if you talk about how you can help.
Southwest Airlines hit the front page of my city newspaper’s business section today simply by saying they weren’t going to charge extra fees like all their competitors are doing (at least, not yet).
It’s not exactly news, it’s not even particularly good news, but by speaking out at a time when people are looking for ways to save money, Chief Executive Gary C. Kelly just made his company look like every traveller’s best friend.
(And, in a phrase that made me laugh out loud, he reinforced the company’s ‘maverick’ status by adding that they might consider becoming, “more like other carriers if, after thorough market research, customers told the company they did not mind paying the fees.” Yeah. That, and when hell freezes over and pigs become Southwest’s competition!)
Can you differentiate yourself from your competitors? Can you use it to get some non-news coverage, like Southwestern, or put out a special announcement to your client base? Is it time to add some content to your website or corporate blog? Maybe a direct mail piece or tip-sheet?
Keep talking up your business. Your customers are thirsting for good news.
Posted by admin on under Marketing |
Now is the time to reach out to your customers.
With uncertainties in the economy do you know where your customers are?
Are they sitting on buying decision? Are they waiting for someone, something to give them confidence?
That someone should be you, and it should be now.
Yes the stock market is down but your customers (most of them) are still doing business and still trying to figure out how to make money. You believe you can help them (or you should), so you need to reach out now, before someone else does.
Show them that:
- Doing business with you can move their business forward even (especially!) in tough times,
- Your product or service is amazing value for money,
- There’s an incentive to buy now (Can you add on a service? Offer a limited-time bulk discount?)
Don’t waste time worrying. Think of a way you can reach out to your jittery customers today, craft a message and send it out.
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You can reach your customer by phone, by email, by blog, Twitter or direct mail, but you’d better know what you’re going to say when you do. When you have decided what you business’s offer will be, contact JDWrite, to have a professional writer spend time crafting your message while you get back to business.
Posted by admin on October 15, 2008 under Customer Service, How-To |
The web is full of rants about bad customer service experiences, but it doesn’t have to be that way. If you are in charge of customer service for your company, here are five ways to delight your customers, gleaned from my years both managing a customer service department, and personally talking to tens of thousands of customers.
- Answer the phone, if at all possible, with real people - even ten years ago, my customers were astonished when a real person answered the phone by the third ring. It delighted them and started every conversation off well. These days, if you can have the phone answered by someone from the same country as your customers, you will exceed their expectations.
- Answer their question - not the question you think they’re asking, not the question on your script. Their question.
- Don’t waste their time - if it’s clear that you can’t help them, find someone who can. Even if you have to offer to refer them to another company. You’ll have earned their trust and they’ll remember that when they’re next in the neighborhood, or when someone asks for a referral.
- Be honest - customers are suspicious. They know about advertising tricks and they are worried about losing money and losing face. If you know there is something that other customers have had problem with or frequently misunderstand, highlight it, upfront. Explain how it can be avoided or turned to the customer’s advantage. Earn their trust.
- Don’t make excuses - if the customer is unhappy, the most powerful thing you can do is simply say “I’m sorry. What can I do to make this better?”. This is powerful voodoo. This is Kryptonite. This, assuming you’re sincere and give your reps the power to act on their promises, will defuse 99% of escalated cases.
Fight hard to empower your customer service reps, to allow them to do these things. Sure, there are some customers who will try to take advantage of you. Following these rules, however, lets you reward the vast majority of everyday people who just want to do business with you, and not get a migraine headache from the experience.
Posted by admin on under How-To, Writing |
Do you hate to write business letters? Do you spend a lot of time on each email only to receive slow or no responses? Use these six tips to develop a writing style that gets results.
One Letter One Subject
Each letter or email should address one issue only. You can always send another email to talk about a second subject. Keeping to one topic helps the reader absorb your point, and act.
Openers and Enders
Direct Marketing studies show that the most-read sentences in any letter are the first and last sentences (especially if that last sentence is a ‘P.S.’).
Make your purpose clear in the first sentence: “I am writing to share details about the Jones project”.
After that you can introduce background information, but do not start there. People are busy. Tell them what they are going to read about, in the first sentence.
Recap your purpose at the end of the letter, and use the last sentence to ask for an action: “Please let me know by Friday…”.
Bullet Points
Use bullet points to catch the reader’s eye as she is skimming down the page (between the first and last sentences).
- Bullet points catch the eye
- They summarize the details
- Use sentence fragments to keep them brief
- Use only 3-5 bullet points
Be Informal
Unless you are writing for a scientific journal or your industry has a very formal style (i.e. law), keep your style informal. Use ‘you’ and ‘I’ instead of writing in the passive voice. For example, say “We decided at last week’s meeting to push forward with…” instead of “A meeting was held and it was decided that…”. Conversational language keeps a document livelier-and readers awake.
Keep It Brief
Try to keep documents to one page (or one screen, if email). People will read a short document immediately but put a long one in a ‘to read’ pile. Short communications also force you to keep to the point.
Edit out unnecessary words and repetition.
Don’t repeat yourself (like I just did).
Edit
Always leave time for editing. Re-read every piece of writing before you send it out, even quick emails. Edit out half your words if possible. Seriously.
Don’t rely on your spell-checker. I almost proposed giving a talk on “Sex Tips For Better Business Writing” to my local Chamber of Commerce. Luckily that is one of those errors that leaps off the page, but the spell checker didn’t catch it!
Find someone else to proofread your work or use these copyeditor’s tips: slowly read your work aloud once to make sure there are no missing or incorrect words. Then read the work backwards to look for spelling errors. Reading backwards helps you see typos.
Always carefully check these typo hot-spots check:
- telephone numbers
- zip codes
- names
Also check for ‘smart quotes’ that are turned around the wrong way, and missing punctuation.
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Use these six tips to develop a clear, concise and correct business writing style. You will endear yourself to busy colleagues, and start to see improved response rates to your communications.
P.S. Contact me if you need a copy editor. (See what I mean about the P.S.?)
Posted by admin on under Funnies |
YOU MAY KNOW what you mean, but are you really saying it? These advertisers left things a little up in the air:
Kenney Shoe Stores: We only sell the right shoe.
Law firm ad: If you have experienced accident, injury or even death, call us…
Sexual harassment seminar ad: Experts will define issues, clarify laws, and conduct hands-on training.
We’ve upped our standards. Up Yours.
Sale: All furniture slashed!
Use [our medicine], and you can kiss your hemorrhoids goodbye!
________
Proof that it’s never a bad idea to hire a professional writer to help you say what you REALLY mean.
Posted by admin on under How-To, Writing |
IF A DOCUMENT is worth writing, it’s worth writing twice.
Although science fiction author Robert Heinlein famously claimed never to rewrite anything, he must be the only successful writer who can make that claim.
If you find it difficult to write well, remember that a first draft is just that. The trick to good writing is to dash off a fast first draft that captures the spirit of what you want to say. Don’t worry about spelling, structure or even perfect grammar. Now leave the piece for as long as possible. Then come back and re-read it.
Is the purpose of the communication clear? Write a sentence at the top that expresses that purpose, then rearrange the meat of your first draft below it. Cut out any repetition and tighten up long sentences. Summarize the main points in a final sentence, then tell the reader what you want them to do (e.g. “Call me with your opinions on this issue”).
If capturing a first draft on paper causes you trouble, try some different ways of marshalling your thoughts: draw a mind-map; make a list of bullet points; dictate your ideas into a voice recorder.
But always try to give yourself time to step away from your first draft and come back to it later. Good writing (and re-writing) takes time. As Pascal said, “This letter is long, because I did not have time to write a short one.”
Posted by admin on under Marketing, online |
If Your Site Doesn’t Help Its Audience, It Is A Wasted Resource
AUDIENCE
Who is the audience for your website? You must know who will use it before you can design a useful site. Will your users be prospective clients or perhaps the press, both looking for information and ways to contact your company? Will your users be existing customers, who may need product support or ways to buy add-on services?
PURPOSE
1. What do you want from your website?
Is your website a tool to build your mailing list? If so, put a sign-up box on every page. Will it provide information on your services and products for prospective customers? Make the information clear and easy to find. Is the site’s purpose to sell products? Then make it easy for your customers to buy: invest in shopping cart support and put a ‘buy me’ button next to every item.
2. What do your customers want from your website?
Don’t forget to ask your existing customers (and your customer service staff) how the website might help them. Frequently Asked Questions and auto-responders that email information on request save time and money. Or perhaps your customers simply want a way to order more services.
GETTING THERE
Make it easy for your audience to find your site. Register a domain name that is easy to type. If your company name is long try a logical shortened form (e.g. BN.com instead of BarnesandNoble.com). Try not to use dashes (e.g. writing-world.com) because people will invariably forget to use them and end up at someone else’s site.
DESIGN
- Less is more - in all design matters.
- Navigation: don’t make visitors click through more than three levels to reach a page. Make sure your grandmother can find her way around your site. Could you use a blog or social networking site? Is that what your visitors are comfortable with?
- Typography: Limit yourself to one or two fonts and colors.
- Pictures: make sure pictures are no more than 72dpi and as small as possible for faster downloads.
Animation: just say no!
- Words: cut out half your text then cut out half again. People don’t read websites; they browse, looking for something to click on.
CHECKLIST
- Does your home page clearly explain what your business is and what customers can get from your site?
- Must-have pages: Home Page; Products & Services; About Us.
- Nice-to-have pages: Press Room; Testimonials; Feedback Form.
