d) they have the authority to buy your service/product and can afford it.
Everyone else is a stranger. Not a prospect.
3. Target
You can't try to market to everybody. When you do, you're marketing to nobody. Pick a niche market and focus on your main audience. Target them in all of your marketing materials.
4. Offers
To get people to respond to your marketing, develop an enticing offer and get it in front of as many people in your target market as you can. Perhaps, a free tips report, free e-zine, or free sample. The best offers are generally the FREE offers.
5. Getting the Word Out
There are a multitude of ways to get the word out about your offer. You can try traditional marketing, such as direct mail, press releases, networking, ads, etc. Or, you can use the Internet, such as online networking, joining in discussion forums, submitting to search engines, link exchanges, affiliate programs and so on.
Whatever you choose, schedule time each day to market your business. Write it on your calendar. When it's written down, it is more concrete, and there is a better chance that you will do it.
6. Follow-Up
Once you begin to generate prospects, it is imperative that you get their contact information (i.e., name, e-mail address, and any other pertinent information) into an organized database. Why all the work? Because follow-up is the key to successful marketing. Once you have contact information, you can continue to make enticing offers for your product and/or service (discounts, gift certificates, 2 for 1 deals, etc.)
7. One Service/Product
Choose ONE product or service to market at a time, or you're liable to confuse your prospects. You can have more than one product listed on your website. However, when you contact your prospects, it's best to focus on one product at a time.
8. Guarantee
Guarantee your products or services. Offer, at minimum, a 100% Money-Back Guarantee. When it is clear that you stand behind your services/products, you will have accomplished a trust-factor. This is called risk-reversal.
9. Proactive
Don't use the Passive Marketing technique. That's when you distribute general information, verbal and written, about your company, and then just sit around waiting for the phone to ring, or for your e-mail inbox to fill up with orders. In the real world, it doesn't work that way. You have to be proactive.
10. Track
Track. Track. Track. I can't say this enough. Keeping accurate numbers will help you make good marketing decisions. If you don't know what's working, you're going to waste a lot of time and money. However, if you do know exactly what's working for you, you're practically guaranteed to reach your goals.
Copyright 2002, Joe & Maria Gracia
Give to Get Marketing
Visit http://www.givetogetmarketing.com for free marketing tips, articles, and case studies to help you grow your business.