MediaCorp Overland Park Kansas Television Publicity

By Jody Gabourie

Marketing is all about creating and fostering relationships with your prospects and your clients. A big part of achieving this is that people need to know, like and trust you before they’ll engage in a relationship with you or do any business with you.

Before a person will commit to making a purchase from you, they need to trust that your products and services will do what you say they are supposed to. Also, if you want to keep your profitable clients, they have to continue to trust that you’ll deliver on your promises.

Trust is the basis of any relationship, be it personal or strictly business. Take a look at the following ways that you can build trust and credibility into your small business marketing strategies:

1. Provide examples

Give lots of case studies and examples that outline how you’ve helped clients and the difference it has made in their business and their life.

Real examples are much more powerful and credible than simply making claims about your service or products.

2. Seek out referrals

We all ask our friends and colleagues to recommend good places to eat or a reliable plumber, because we trust the opinions of people we know.

It’s the same for your business; actively seek out referrals from satisfied customers. Implementing a marketing system to generate referrals is one of the most overlooked marketing tactics for small businesses.

3. Get testimonials

People always pay more attention to what others have to say about you than any claims you make about yourself and your business. Make it easy for your customers to provide testimonials. Create some marketing systems to facilitate this and then use the testimonials in all your marketing tactics: website, sales pages, direct mail, email communications, brochures and so on.

4. Offer guarantees

None of us like “buyer’s remorse” and providing a guarantee of service or results of your products and services will go a long way to help alleviate any concerns people have in handing over money to you.

Make sure you act promptly and with no hassles when you have to fulfill your guarantee. Keeping your word is a huge part of building trust with people.

5. Share your contact information

Nothing raises a red flag more with me than when I cannot find a business’s contact details - address, phone number, fax, email address, website, name of their assistant, customer service number, etc.

By listing your contact information on all your marketing materials, you go a long way in showing people you exist, you are a real legitimate business and you’re available if they have any concerns or questions.

6. Write articles

Write and submit articles to establish yourself as an expert and to help build a reputation that shows you know what you’re talking about, you’re willing to share your expertise, and you’re “here to stay” - all components towards building trust.

7. Stay in touch

Regular and consistent contact with people helps facilitate trust - they know you’re around and interested.

Contact your prospects and clients regularly (via email, phone call, card, etc.) to get feedback, follow up, and provide useful tips.

8. Be a resource

Provide information that is timely and helpful to your prospects and clients. Post articles on your website, send them an applicable, interesting report or magazine clipping, forward an email with details about a great teleseminar or workshop they might benefit from.

9. Let your personality come through

People do business with people, not companies. Help prospects trust you by letting them get to know you. Share your personality and passion in your marketing strategies and communications - for instance, have a picture of yourself on your website, share some tidbits about your personal life (hobbies, likes & dislikes, pets) and don’t be afraid to express opinions in your writing.

By Nancy Desoloc

What you should know about the advantage of infomercials?

In reality, if you watch a TV commercial in a 30-second spot. You may be interested to know the product; but that is about it. The next thing you do is search the internet or go to the store to know more of the product or go to the place to know more of the service. This factor is a hassle if you get interested with the product or service right away.

If you are marketing your products and services, your objectives are to generate product/service
knowledge, then leading to market position, and productive revenue. In most circumstances, and in some corporate culture around the globe, you might want to value generating less capital on marketing expenses but maximizing results. But that depends on your marketing concept and direction, products or services, and your budget. And one of the most effective avenue for reaching and persuading vast numbers of people to try your products or services is the television.

This is when infomercials come in. Infomercials are joined terms of “information” and “commercials.” It is a commercial television or radio program offering the sponsor’s/ advertiser’s message to its target market or consumer demographic about the product or service. Infomercials are also known as Direct Response TV (DRTV), obviously, because they are aired on UHF and VHF channels and it results favorable response from its viewers. It is some people’s perception that infomercials are overrated. But no, they are not. The benefit of a direct response TV is its real-time inquiry and the advantage to place an order. This is in contrast with a 30-second commercial where the objective is to increase the visibility of the brand name. DRTV is the best advertising format especially for new and innovative products or services that can be demonstrated and shown.

Products and services like health and fitness products, cosmetics, dermatological and personal care products, nutritional supplements, kitchenware, appliances, spas, salons, and other products and services engage in Direct Response Marketing because they want to achieve a call-to-action: a direct response from a target audience or consumer who have seen your TV spot at a local or cable channel.

Direct Response Marketing or infomercials’ objective is to communicate its message DIRECTLY to its target audience or consumer demographics. Your message is your Product, Place of Distribution, and Price. Your message is mandatory. If you fail to do this, then your marketing strategy is a flop. The strategy to this is to give full information about the service or product; service’s or product’s pricing structure; where they can purchase the product; what the product’s or services unique selling point or the competitive advantage compared to other product type or service type; and the benefits and advantages of the product or the service.