Purple Diamond Marketing Blog

Have you ever met an “Energy Vampire”? These people walk among us and may look like us, but after one meeting with an energy vampire you will see what they are great at…..stealing your energy and leaving you exhausted for the rest of the day. Often when you ask an Energy Vampire how their day is, they will reply in a monotone voice about every problem they have encountered in just the morning and by the time they start to tell you about their afternoon you want to jump out the nearest window. Now that might sound extreme, but the point I want to make to business owners is that you must be careful to avoid negative people and if you are in a negative mood, do NOT share with your staff or customers. Find a life coach or friend that you can be open with, but bring a positive attitude to your business daily and you will see that it is the greatest attribute your business can have!

I mentioned this tip to a group of local business owners who attended a Marketing Breakfast Seminar talk that I gave today for the Beverly Chamber. “Stay positive!” No matter what is happening behind the scenes at your business, always smile and stay positive. People worry about doing business with struggling companies because they may not be around if there is a problem with a product later. Lead by example. If you believe in your product….others will follow! And, when you meet business people in the community and at networking groups, if you find that someone is draining all your energy or their negative talk is creeping in to how you see your own business, limit your contact with them.

This also holds true to social networking on-line, be sure that you are representing your business in a positive light and that you are not using these places as a place to vent about your problems. It is ok to connect in a fun way with others, but be sure your comment is coming across as comical and not something that someone may misinterpret as serious. If you are not sure how your post will be received it is better to be cautious and write something else. The same goes with posting on Twitter or Facebook a link that is very controversial or negative, not a good idea. If you are using on-line social networking sites to help your business and you are someone who posts about politics, religion or any other topic that can divide people in to groups “for” and “against”, my best advice is to avoid these topics and look for more positive messages to share.

Remember, avoid “Energy Vampires” and surround yourself around “Positive People” and watch your business grow!

All my best to your success!
~Charlene

“Success wears the Purple Diamond!”

For years I have enjoyed working with local businesses and helping them to advertise their business with a 30 second TV commercial that airs on many of the top networks. TV advertising is both effective and still an affordable way to reach your target market in an exciting and fun way. Everyone loves to see their spot air during their favorite TV show, but when customers come in the store saying they saw the owner on TV or a person stops you at the grocery store and asks you if you have ever been on TV, that is when you know that you selected a powerful way to advertise your business.

Tell someone that you are going to be launching a TV advertising campaign and instantly you will have lots of volunteers to be in your spot. Even applicants for voice over talent for the commercial will come flooding in. But I caution my clients that this is not a time to make a home movie, their commercial reflects their business and so you want to have a quality commercial that catches the eye of the audience and will be memorable and lead to more sales. TV offers a message with sight, sound and motion which can give your company the credibility and visibility it needs to gain market share and allow you to show your own business personality. Since most people are relaxed while watching TV, your message has a better chance of reaching the consumer at a time they are the most receptive. And, with the majority of people watching an average of 4 ½ hours of television a day, this media is a perfect place to reach the volume of consumers you need for a successful campaign.

But isn’t TV expensive? With the right media buyer and producer, television can be more affordable than radio, billboards and newspaper and will achieve better results. However, the best advertising campaigns are when you combine TV with other advertising venues like internet, radio, print and billboards. Recently, I had one cable TV client who paid $900 for their production of their 30 second TV commercial and only spent $500 per week to get a total of 50 commercials per week that aired in their target area on a combination of a couple of networks. This averaged $10 per 30 second spot. Unfortunately, most business owners have heard the crazy prices to advertise on TV during the Super Bowl or a major league sporting event so they never contact an advertising agency to ask what it would cost to be on television and learn how affordable it can be.

If you are interested in learning more about how TV advertising can help your business, please contact Purple Diamond!

All my best to your success!
~Charlene

“Success wears the Purple Diamond!”

Owning your own business has some real perks like defining your own “do’s and don’ts” for your company. Dress code in the work place is one area you will make a decision about by how you dress. If you have worked in the past at a company where they have strict rules about how you must dress, then your first thought might be that you want a more relaxed business attire. You may even want to wear jeans and a t-shirt and sneakers all week, but unless you are a construction worker or you never see the light of day with your business, plan to “dress for success!”.

It amazes me how many college graduates miss that message when they go out and apply for positions or work as interns their senior year. Though you will have people say, “wear what you want”, a first impression is a lasting one and you want to offer the best impression you can. Think about if you were to go on a first date with someone and they showed up at the door looking like they haven’t showered in a month and they have ripped jeans and a t-shirt with an offensive saying on it…..though you might relate to this casual dress, chances are they will not make a great impression on you or your friends. Dressing for business works the same way. If you get an appointment with a potential client and it is their first time meeting you and you decide to go super casual and wear jeans and they are in a suit and tie, how confident will you be that they are seeing the best you?

Sure, we all want to believe that it is our abilities that sell us and not what we wear, but great marketing recognizes that people often buy with their emotions. If you look a mess, they may “think” you are not prepared to handle their business. You might be saying that if Donald Trump walked in to your office in torn jeans, you wouldn’t care. Most of the successful celebrity business people required a professional attire when they started in business and it was only after they made millions that they could dictate how they wanted to be seen.

How about if you have no meetings and will be working in your office all day, do you need to be dressed well? Again, you are the owner and you will decide this, but studies have shown that people who dress professionally while answering phones will project more confidence. And, if you get a last minute call during that day to meet with a prospect you lose no time with going back home and getting dressed for the meeting.

These days my son, who recently graduated from college, is working weekends doing telephones sales. Without me ever saying a word, he dresses each weekend professionally in a tie and sometimes full suit to sit in a cubicle to make phone sales next to co-workers who are in their comfy weekend clothes. His sales are higher than most even though he is new to the company. When I asked him if he is required to dress for the position which is commission based selling, he quickly said “no” and explained that he has watched me work from home in business dress and make-up and ready for anything when that phone rings and knows that much of my confidence comes from looking professional at all times.

Though there are jeans that cost more than some suits, you may wish to look again at how you are choosing to represent your own business and if the message you give with your own appearance is helping or hurting your brand!

All my best to your success!
~Charlene

“Success wears the Purple Diamond!”

This morning I met with the owner of Hamilton Bookkeeping to review my accounting system and make sure everything is all set for the end of the year for my business. The peace of mind I get from having someone who is versed in the program I use for my accounting [Quickbooks] to review my work helps me to have more time for my clients, a clearer picture of the bottom line for my business and keeps me focused on reaching my long-term business goals. If you are like most small businesses, you probably have tried to do your own accounting. This is great if you are a numbers person, but if your strength is in another area then hiring a professional is highly recommended.

Knowing your numbers can help you to drive sales and achieve sales goals. If you are not up to date with knowing what you are doing for sales each week, how can you project a sales goal for the month, quarter and year? Long-term growth of your business is accelerated when you are on top your business. Knowing if you need to do an advertising campaign to stimulate sales or when to hire more sales help can only be determined if your accounting is accurate. When you start your day, do you know how many products you need to sell or service hours you need to bill out to cover the expenses of your business? If you do not know this information it is like jumping in your car and knowing you need to get to a client’s office, but you have no address or directions. We all want to be successful in our businesses, but without strategy and having a profit & loss statement do you honestly see your business thriving in today’s market?

When Purple Diamond takes on a client for television advertising the first question I ask is what the client has allocated in their budget for the ad campaign. Having a “real” number helps me to help them be successful. There is nothing worse than finding out after your have produced the TV commercial that the client doesn’t have money to air the spot. Yes, they can now put that commercial on their website, but had they known their actual budget for marketing they might have chosen to spend that money they used for the TV production in another area like Google Ad Words or an email newsletter campaign.

Whether your business is thriving or barely keeping the lights on, take the time to get your books in order and call in a professional if you need help. Success requires goal setting and assessment of your progress.

All my best to your success!
~Charlene

“Success wears the Purple Diamond!”

Today I attended a marketing seminar on “Knowing Your Niche Market”. Some of you may be asking yourself why a marketing coach and advertising agent would go to such a seminar and my response would be with 2 great reasons. The first, even when you specialize in a field you should always stay sharp and at the top of your game by checking out what others are saying and what techniques they are currently using. Second, the best place to find warm leads and potential clients is at a seminar where people have gone to learn more about the services you offer. The largest part of the seminar was spent on developing an elevator pitch that will allow you to peak a person’s interest in a short time and have them asking for more info about your business.

The speaker shared a standard format that is pretty widely accepted as the best way to begin. I have seen it at other seminars and in several marketing books. It is as follows: Tell your name & business name in the first sentence. Then give the information of “who” you work with, then “identify the problem or benefit” that you offer that niche market which results in something specific for them. “I am ________, owner of ________. We work with________ to_________ which results in _________. “ The key to an elevator pitch is to be memorable and to connect with the person you are speaking with in a way that is meaningful to them. If you start to list off a laundry list of services that you offer, chances are the person will not be engaged. However, if in your elevator pitch you are able to define exactly what you can do for a client which delivers the results they are wanting, chances are you have their attention.

Elevator pitches are being used quite often at networking groups as a way for members to connect with members and visitors to the group. I caution my clients about giving the exact same pitch every week to the same people….YAWN! The key to a great elevator speech is to keep people awake and not asleep while you speak. Having a clever tagline that you use at the end, but being creative with your intro and message in a 30 second time frame will have you be memorable and lead to more business. Also, pay attention to who you are speaking with. Try to use words that connect with them. For instance, if you are in a room of doctors and you are a web designer you might choose to say that you work with local medical practices and health care facilities to create websites that are easy to navigate by their “patients” and are found easily in searches on-line….instead of being generic and saying “customers” and throwing out the term “SEO” which is a term they may not know, shift the wording to connect with who you are speaking with.

Finally, be enthusiastic when delivering your pitch. If you sound monotone or you just appear like you are bored when you are speaking about your business why would I ever want to do business with you or to refer you to someone I know? Give me a reason to be excited about working with you!

All my best to your success!
~Charlene

“Success wears the Purple Diamond!”

Today is Veteran’s Day in the US and Remembrance Day in Canada, and I wanted to be sure to thank the military who have bravely defended my country, protected my family and way of life and helped to provide me the opportunity to be free to choose to be a business owner. There is so much focus these days on the economy and keeping your business profitable that we can forget the vast number of military men and women who are serving and have served to protect us. However, it wasn’t so long ago that I watched the Twin Towers in New York City on 9-11 come crashing down and I recognized that in a moment the day to day business of doing business was meaningless when your life and family are threatened.

I was just a kid during the Vietnam War and I had an older brother who had friends who had been drafted and killed in Vietnam and those who were not killed were never the same again. There were so many people who treated the military poorly back then and felt that we had no business being in Vietnam. I was too young to really understand the political issues, but I knew that the older boys being drafted didn’t have much say in whether they served. Their only other choice other than being recruited was to leave the country and go to Canada to avoid the draft. Today you see many of the men who served during that awful war and they share how their life was forever affected by what they observed, but were saddened by the lack of our support when they returned. Thankfully, those same Veterans are here today to make sure people recognize and honor our military for their service and courage. And, as a business owner and a mother I wanted to be sure to always say “thank you” to the brave men and women who protect us while we sleep and make it so that we can have days in which we are so busy in the day to day operations of our businesses that we forget that it was only a few years ago that the world stood still and watched the planes take down the twin towers of the World Trade Center and crash in to the Pentagon killing so many innocent people.

I want to give thanks to all the branches of the military and to the firemen and police that protect my business daily!

All my best to your success,
~Charlene

“Success wears the Purple Diamond!”

No budget to hire a marketing director? Maybe your company is down to the bare bones with just you as the person who is wearing all the hats and you are struggling with understanding Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin, Email Marketing, Blogging, etc. and you finally have a website and people are telling you that it needs to be updated and fresh. Ok, so how can you build a marketing team to help with very little resources?

First, because I am a marketing coach, I will tell you that you save money and time by working with a professional in this field who can help you to jump ahead of your competition and still remain within your budget! A great marketing coach will share with you that there is so many resources at your fingertips that do not cost you money. The most obvious one is to enlist family and friends to help you with marketing projects and to brainstorm on creative ideas to sell your products or services. If you haven’t considered asking for your family and friends’ help, recognize that most people know about 200 people. If you enlist 10 people to help build your dream by asking for their support you quickly reach about 2000 people with just their contacts. If they are on your Facebook or Linkedin page it makes connecting with them a lot easier.

Some of you might feel overwhelmed with all of these on-line networking sites and having a strong internet presence. Is it really worth the efforts? YES! However, you have to know how to determine exactly how much time to devote to building this and understand that it does not produce immediate results so patience is needed. That works great if you have time for this, but chances are you are lacking the staff you need to allow you the time to set-up all the accounts and to maintain them. Can you afford to put it off? A marketing coach or PR firm can easily do this for you as part of their assistance to your business, but you can also consider contacting the local colleges to see if they have students who are marketing or communication majors and want to do an internship as part of their senior credits. These energetic and tech savy students can help you get started. Today I chatted with a business that I had given this idea to last year and they have seen great results with their on-line networking because of the work this college student has done for their business for free.

Local networking groups like your Chamber of Commerce, BNI, Le Tip, Business Forums, and non-profit volunteer organizations can also help you to market your business with just being a member and connecting with other members. They are also a key part of your marketing team. However, look at your budget and choose the active groups with the members you are looking to connect with first since these organizations do require membership fees. Expand to adding a few more groups when your annual budget allows for this and you can make time to get to some of the events that they offer. Staying in your office and waiting for a phone to ring just because you have a website is not the best way to connect locally. Often we need to get out and about and let others know we are in business.

Finally, consider your clients as part of that marketing team! They are the people who REALLY know the great work you do and can share actual stories about the benefits of being your client. Do not be afraid to ask for their referrals and to write you a recommendation that you can use on a Testimonial page or in your marketing material. Be sure to give back when you can to help their business, too. We really need to help each other so that all of our businesses have the growth they need to be strong in the years ahead.

Purple Diamond is a marketing coach who is committed to seeing businesses gain the success they desire within the budget they can afford. If you do nothing, your results reflect just that. But, if you step boldly in to seeing that there are options within any budget and you just need to build your marketing team, you will feel energized and close more business.

All my best to your success,
~Charlene

“Success wears the Purple Diamond!”

Are you the first person to talk in every conversation? Do you think your listening skills are pretty good because you let the other person speak? If you are busy waiting to jump in with your own thoughts chances are you never heard anyone else’s conversation. The best business owners and sales reps have developed excellent listening skills. They understand that even the words people are saying may not be the complete message. Hearing the person’s complete message, recognizing body language that gives another message, and tracking the speaker on what they are saying by repeating their message back to be sure you are clear on what they are saying and validate that you are listening will help you to be successful.

The first year I was working in TV advertising I almost made the rookie mistake of “thinking” I knew what the client wanted to spend for his advertising campaign. I failed to do a complete “needs analysis” and my eagerness to please this important client had me create a proposal that was 10% of what he actually wanted to spend. Thankfully, I was with a more seasoned account executive who told me to keep the proposal in my briefcase and wait to hear more of what the client wanted for networks and what he wanted to accomplish with the campaign. I had learned so much from watching the other sales rep and from listening to the client that I never made the mistake of trying to “sell” a person again. My approach shifted to hearing more about their business and what they wanted to achieve. If what they needed matched my skills or what I had to offer then it didn’t require selling because it sold itself.

Listening is essential when you are with a customer, but it is also key when you are working with your banker, accountant, lawyer, marketing coach or business consultant. The professionals in these areas have so much knowledge that will benefit your business, but if you are too busy talking during your meeting or you choose to see yourself as knowing everything there is no room for growth. A person is not teachable when they believe they are already taught. I regularly attend seminars for marketing and advertising because I recognize that no one knows everything and to stay on top of my profession I need to be open to listening to others.

Finally, if you are not quite sure of what someone is talking about it is important that you ask questions. Leaving a room with a question still pending because you didn’t voice it will drain your energy with worry, limit the connection you have with the other person and keep you from gaining what you need to be the best at what you do. Listen and learn and gain the success you are looking for in your field!

All my best to your success!
Charlene

“Success wears the Purple Diamond!”

There is no doubt that 2009 was a challenging year for most businesses, but I saw a trend that was significantly different in the advertising field than in past down economies…..businesses cut their advertising budgets instead of advertising more and taking advantage of better rates from TV, radio, billboards and newspapers. Some businesses shifted to doing more on-line marketing during this year to off-set their past traditional advertising, but it has amazed me at the number of businesses that are doing nothing. What are you waiting for?

In the 1981-1982 recession businesses who advertised aggressively during the difficult times had a far greater return than their competitors and after the recession they had a significantly stronger market share. So, why do we not see more local businesses taking advantage of better media rates? Most of it is that we are influenced by what we hear on the news. It does have an effect on consumer spending and it also has an effect on how businesses will choose to spend money. Even with businesses that are not really directly impacted by the economy they will follow suit and choose to cut their marketing budget just because it is what everyone else is doing. Yikes! This is when I ask them if they are looking long range at what it is doing to their business and if they are planning on staying open, what is their strategy to increase sales?

The thing you really need to ask yourself as a business owner is this….”How will I get people to know about the holiday sale I am having at the end of the month or about the quality service I am providing today?” Word of mouth advertising and on-line networking will help, but is it enough? Can you see your business reaching a wide enough audience to insure traffic to your doors so that your sale is successful or so you capture the market of people who are planning to purchase the service you provide? And, when the economy improves, have you positioned your business for growth with a strong marketing campaign or did you cut your budget so much that only your immediate family and friends still know you are in business? How are you telling the world your doors are open and you want to do business?

Listen less to the news media and more to your own business intuition. Contact a marketing consultant or hire a PR firm to help position yourself for today and tomorrow. Sitting in your store with no traffic coming in the doors or no phone ringing for your service offers you time to review what you have done for marketing and advertising this year. Decide if it is time to be bold and brave and invest in your business today with a smart marketing strategy so that tomorrow you are the leader in your industry and the company everyone remembers!

All my best to your success!

~Charlene

“Success wears the Purple Diamond!”

Today, I attended the Salem Enterprise Center’s “5th Annual Million Dollar Women Symposium” which was sponsored by the Beverly Cooperative Bank. The panel of speakers were all business women who built companies to over $1 million in revenue. As I listened to how each of them overcame obstacles, raised money, grew their business and succeeded, I heard a constant theme….”be passionate and persistent and you will see progress!”

There were many questions asked to these successful business women, but the theme of doing something you love and never giving up on yourself or your business is what made the difference between success and failure. One of the panelists spoke about the importance of surrounding yourself with positive people who believe in you and step away from those who doubt your abilities. Some other great advice that the panel shared that helped their success; say “yes” to opportunities, get out and network and build a great team that supports you.

“Passion + Persistence = Progress!” So how do you know if you are passionate about the work your business is doing? One great indicator is when you do not see it as “work”, but something you love to do. That even if you didn’t get paid, you would still be drawn to the business. How about persistence? If you are impatient or you tend to quit things before you ever complete tasks, succeeding in business might not be in your near future. However, if you have a bit of “craziness” in you and you just won’t take “no” for an answer and you are the type of person who gets back up right after falling….you are on the right path! Think about one of the most difficult days in your life and analyze how you handled the challenges you were given. Finally, how do you measure your progress? There are ways to analyze the growth of a business. It can be done by the profit and loss statement year to year, the growth of the client base, the growth of the staff…..but it can also be more subjective. Did you learn anything useful this year to help guide you on building a stronger business for the future? Have you connected with a wider networking base? Do you feel good about the work you are doing and excited about the next step? Maybe the best advice I learned today about being successful and progressing as a business owner is to not give up on my dreams no matter who or what gets in my way.

All my best to your success!

~Charlene

“Success wears the Purple Diamond!”