Joseph Madden

First impressions are important in many arenas. First dates are a prominent example. In the business world, your first impression often is dictated by the business card you are handed. Color business cards, if not color custom business cards, are a must in today’s marketing world. Take a close look at your current card. What message is it sending? If you either can’t tell or don’t like the answer then it is time for a new round of business card printing.

Without Quality Paper Your Card Turns To Vapor

Those electing to save a few pennies by using cheap paper often have their card quickly end up down the chute and into the incinerator. Quality paper conveys a quality company. Flimsy paper or perforated edges on your business card is like holes on the elbows of your jacket. Firm and textured paper is akin to a sharply pressed and custom fitted shirt.

Test the Ink by Using the Sink

In addition to the quality of the paper it is also important to use only the best ink. There is an easy way to see how good your ink is. Pour a small drop of water on your card. Does the ink run? If so, it is time for new custom business cards. Many cards can have a long hibernation in the drawer of the recipient prior to actually being needed. When the prospect goes to flip through the cards you don’t want a faded card next to your competitor’s sharp color business cards.

Without The Right Words Your Card Is For the Birds

There are obvious components of a business card. Your name is primary among them along with applicable contact information. Your company name is also obviously present. Usually a logo is on the card, and today the company’s web address is also a must. However, this usually is not enough. Either through a slogan or short line of text you must effectively convey who your company is and what service or product you provide. Without this the recipient might forget who you are and be unable to decipher why he took the card in the first place. Away into the circular file it then goes. Not a good end result for your business card printing budget.

Do They Jibe With Your Company’s Vibe?

Your company has an aura. Or, you could call it a style. Your business cards need to match this image. If you own an investment consulting firm, then your card must be precise and highly professional. If you own an extreme sports videography company then obviously your card will be a bit more colorful and wild.

Next time you seek business card printing keep all these considerations in mind. The wrong card can quickly quash a sale. Use custom business cards as a marketing weapon.

Popularity: 55% [?]

Today is the day I am going out to take pictures for my WebSite GaylordGuide.com and talk to some of the local Gaylord Michigan businesses to offer them addtional exposure to their Local Customers and Tourist. Am a little neverous, I am more of the shy type when it comes to approaching people but I really believe the services GaylordGuide offers will be of great benefit to the businesses and the local area.

I am still going to take a picture of their business irregardless, if a business want to add additional information about their establishment , products, services have additional pictures listed and be on top of the free listings. Considering what other websites are charging to just be in thier directory (upto 150 bucks just to be listed) I think it is more than a fair deal it’s pretty much a steal…

The charge for adding additional information beyond their address and a picture is only going to cost the $20 for the year. For the first 100 businesses listed the $20 setup fee will be waived and if they don’t have a website I will offer them a one time offer of having a 3-5 results driven website built for them along with domain hosting and email for only $200.

Even with the weather being a little over cast i think the pictures should turn out well (besides I know how to edit them … Make them “brighter”) Wish me luck..

Popularity: 56% [?]

As the subject subject states..

Anticipated, personal and relevant advertising always does better than unsolicited junk.

What does this mean. ? Quite simply, it is more cost effective to have the viewers of your ads and promotional goods (specials, coupons, announcements etc…) to want to know about them . Many business people have asked over the years ….

How do you make the customer want to see your advertising?

For starters . Ask your clientèle,.
Yes, simply ask them if they would like to receive promotional discounts from you. Quite often when you directly ask a customer, if they would like to be put on a list to receive your promotions, they will say yes. Many customers really do want to know about specials from businesses they trust.

Now sometimes that is all it takes to get them to opt-in for your advertising / marketing material. But to make it so they look forward to the advertising/ promotional offers it must be something that they are going to want.

(I will write more on this VERY important subject: Opt-in advertising)

Popularity: 93% [?]

Anticipated, personal and relevant advertising always does better than unsolicited junk.

Making promises and keeping them is a great way to build a brand.

Your best customers are worth far more than your average customers.

Share of wallet is easier, more profitable and ultimately more effective a measure than share of market.

Marketing begins before the product is created.

Advertising is just a symptom, a tactic. Marketing is about far more than that.

Low price is a great way to sell a commodity. That’s not marketing, though, that’s efficiency.

Conversations among the members of your marketplace happen whether you like it or not. Good marketing encourages the right sort of conversations.

Products that are remarkable get talked about.

Marketing is the way your people answer the phone, the typesetting on your bills and your returns policy.

You can’t fool all the people, not even most of the time. And people, once unfooled, talk about the experience.

If you are marketing from a fairly static annual budget, you’re viewing marketing as an expense. Good marketers realize that it is an investment.

People don’t buy what they need. They buy what they want.

You’re not in charge. And your prospects don’t care about you.

What people want is the extra, the emotional bonus they get when they buy something they love.

Business to business marketing is just marketing to consumers who happen to have a corporation to pay for what they buy.

Traditional ways of interrupting consumers (TV ads, trade show booths, junk mail) are losing their cost-effectiveness. At the same time, new ways of spreading ideas (blogs, permission-based RSS information, consumer fan clubs) are quickly proving how well they work.

People all over the world, and of every income level, respond to marketing that promises and delivers basic human wants.

Good marketers tell a story.

People are selfish, lazy, uninformed and impatient. Start with that and you’ll be pleasantly surprised by what you find.

Marketing that works is marketing that people choose to notice.

Effective stories match the worldview of the people you are telling the story to.

Choose your customers. Fire the ones that hurt your ability to deliver the right story to the others.

A product for everyone rarely reaches much of anyone.

Living and breathing an authentic story is the best way to survive in an conversation-rich world.

Marketers are responsible for the side effects their products cause.

Reminding the consumer of a story they know and trust is a powerful shortcut.

Good marketers measure.

Marketing is not an emergency. It’s a planned, thoughtful exercise that started a long time ago and doesn’t end until you’re done.

One disappointed customer is worth ten delighted ones.

Obviously, knowing what to do is very, very different than actually doing it.

Popularity: 100% [?]