Distribution Turns Direct Marketing into Dollars

Hoarding makes you no money
Marketing Ideas from Manhattan Series, No. 3

Are you sitting on a stockpile of marketing materials? That practice won’t bring customers to your real or virtual door.

It’s not easy for small and solo business owners to keep track of everything. However, marketing materials that sell products and services should not be amassed over long periods of time.

There are many reasons for temporarily not distributing promotional materials, including:

1. The last campaign stalled.
2. A better idea replaced the current one.
3. You forgot the materials exist.
4. The printed deadline date voids the copy.
5. The material (appearance) is uninspiring.

What are the options for these objections?

Money going to waste
Order lower quantities. If you quickly grow tired of seeing the same brochure, perhaps it’s best to order fewer quantities (if possible) so you can create and issue new materials.

Line out a printed deadline and write in the new one. This procedure won’t look sloppy with one line through the old date and legible, handwritten printing added above, below, or on the side. I successfully re-invigorated a campaign with postcards using this procedure.

Wait no more than three months to use materials that were trumped by another idea. Some trends occur so quickly that you must resort to a fast plan to capitalize on the event. That’s fine. Wait no longer than three months to revive the first plan to keep the campaign on track.

Keep your materials in sight. Storing boxes of marketing literature may lead to wasted space, opportunity, and money. Write yourself a note or post a sample as a reminder, especially if the materials are in a plain, brown box.

Prospects and customers must be informed, on a regular basis, about what you sell and how it benefits their lives. The only way to do this is through distribution.

The top picture was captured on 7th Avenue, just above Times Square. The second picture is a second or third story window at East 38th Street and 8th Avenue.

Thursday’s Idea: Be the Center of Attention

Technorati Tags: marketing materials, small business marketing, solo business marketing, small business owner, solo business owner, direct marketing