Are you tired of empty promises from those get rich quick schemes?
The sewing machine repair business is a real doable business, like all real businesses. Success depends on successfully doing three things: Finding Customers, Satisfying Customers, and Holding On To Customers.
In this article, we will discuss the second task: Attracting Customers.
One essential for every business is gaining customers and making sales. Failure to get customers means there really is no business. Any time someone tells you that you can make loads of money without selling, finding customers, or making sales; just recognize it as a lie. In real business, you must continually get customers.
There are two major ways to find prospective customers: advertise and have someone else advertise for you. Lets consider advertising first.
You can market your business in hundreds of different ways. You can rent billboards. You can send mail directly to hundreds of people as postcards or letters. You can distribute fliers and posters. You can place space ads or classified ads in your local newspaper. You can advertise in magazines and bulk advertising programs like ValPak. You can promote through telemarketing, radio, TV, internet, and similar media.
Why advertise your business? Of course, to attract new customers. Advertising is the fastest and easiest way to attract prospects and make them customers. In just a few days, you can have real customers and be making real dollars.
Unfortunately, advertising does not always work, but it is always expensive. In my Sew And Quilt Stores, we spend approximately $55 for each new customer we attract. That is after being in business for sixteen years. Great care must be taken to control advertising expenses and insure its effectiveness.
What promotion will work for you? You have to decide. Weigh the effectiveness, cost, and potential of each medium. Just because a type of marketing works for someone elses business is no reason to think it will automatically work for yours.
Think about your business. If your business is going to operate out of your home or garage, what promotion do you think will best reach your prospects? If you have a store front, how does this change the dynamics?
If your customers are going to bring their sewing machine to your home, how will you attract them there?
A common beginning point for new business owners is newspaper advertising. The theory goes that everybody reads the newspaper, but is that true? How many people will actually respond to you ad and become your paying customers? In a sense it does not matter what the ad costs. What matters is how much money your ad earns for you.
Classified ads are often even more attractive as an marketing medium. The cost of classified ads is much less than space ads. Yet, the reach of classified ads is often far more effective than display ads. Classified ads are placed in specific categories to make it easy for prospects to find your service. Therefore, placing a small classified ad in the newspaper will not only reach prospects who are interested in your service, it does so at a very minimal cost. Still, apply the same marketing tracking and cost evaluation to make sure you are effectively reaching your target prospects.
Direct saturation mailings, batch promotion programs that distribute a group of ads directly to prospects, and direct ad distribution can be effective in letting people know you exist. Direct mail is reaches each household, but it can be very expensive. Batched marketing programs can significantly reduce those costs, while still being delivered directly to prospects. A typical direct ad distribution would involve programs like door to door fliers. If you have a trustworthy team or organization it can be cost effective.
Generally, I would recommend against high priced media promotion like radio and TV. Control your promotion investments.
Evaluate your advertising based on the actual cost per customer response. You can afford to spend on advertising ; only if it produces real sales from real customers at an affordable rate.
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