2 Step Marketing

Do it Right.

I receive postcards all the time. The other day I received a postcard trying to sell me a copy machine. It had tiny, tiny lettering slathered all over the front and a large portion of the back of the card.

It was extremely hard to read, so hard in fact that I threw it away.

Several days later I received a postcard with 32 words on it telling me that I could get complete information on unrestricted long distance telephone service for 5.5 cents a minute with no additional monthly fee by calling the 800 number on the card.

I did call. I got the information, had my questions answered and ordered my long distance service changed.
The company who offered me the long distance service was using a time tested 2 step selling process:

Step 1. Generate a lead - Get me to call their 800 number.

Step 2. Provide the requested information - Provided to me on the phone by one of their sales representatives, who was able to answer my questions and make me feel confident that I could save quite a bit of money on my long distance bill and that the service would be as good or better.

What's So Good About 2 Steps?

It is much easier to create interest (a lead) than it is to get a person through an entire buying process (a sale).

You aren't getting the prospect or existing customer to part with any money just yet.

You can use postcards to inexpensively promote to your target prospects and customers and generate leads (inquiries about your products and services) to then be followed up on and converted to sales.

This 2 step process also helps you to create a list of people who were interested enough in what you offered to contact you.

You can then recontact the one's who you didn't complete a sale with when they first inquired, preferably until they do buy from you.

IMPORTANT: Be sure to get the information you will need to recontact the people who responded to your postcard offering.

Repetitive follow-ups with the people who contacted you will result in increased sales. Make it a company policy to follow up with those people who contacted you about your products and services.


The Most Effective Use of Postcards:

The purpose of your postcard's message is to generate a sufficient level of interest in the mind of your prospect to get him/her to contact you to ask you about your offer.

You are generating interest, not collecting their money (not yet anyway). That is what the 2 step marketing process is about. Generating interested prospects and customers who contact you for more information.

Your message needs 3 parts to be most effective:

1. A clear statement of the biggest benefit of your product or service (in the long distance example, it was cost savings).

2. A good reason for them to contact you NOW.

3. A simple, easy way for them to respond (an 800 number for example).


Your message should be short and to the point. Short messages on postcards produce more leads than long ones.

For example:

Call 800-555-1212 for Your Copy of Our Free Report:

What 99% of Business Owners Don't Know and Will Never Find Out About Using Postcards to Explode Their Profits

Offer ends 5-5-01 (Print a date 3 weeks from your mailing date to create some urgency)

Lots of people will respond to find out what they might not know. Don't forget, they responded, which is least some interest in the information you have created a curiosity about.

This method works and is sure to produce a large number of inquiries if sent to your proper market.

This 2 Step Marketing Process Works.

Use the tips you have read here to create your next postcard's message and see what happens.

You will generate a bunch of leads from people who are truly interested in your products and services.

Share Your Knowledge with Others for Cost-Effective Online Marketing

Every day, online surfers are seeking information on millions of subjects. Whether they need to know how to fix an appliance, promote their online business, play better golf, or how to write a book, there are plenty of questions to go around. If you own a business and are quite knowledgeable in a particular subject, you can benefit from cost-effective online marketing through knowledge creation and management.

Questions and Answers are Lucrative for Your Business

Imagine answering questions for very targeted Web surfers every single day and getting free exposure for your website in the process. Wouldn't this be the ultimate form of online marketing for your business? When you provide answers to those tough, not-so-common questions in your field of expertise, you're doing just that.

You'd be amazed at how educating potential customers can help increase your business. It's a secret that marketing gurus have known for years, but many online business owners fail to recognize its potential. When you provide answers to questions from a targeted readership, then your business suddenly hits the spotlight as the "expert" in its field. Potential customers will begin to trust you simply by reading your articles. They will feel as if they already know you when they arrive at your website, and they will be much easier to convert to real paying customers.

Free Advertising and Ads Revenue Sharing

There are two ways to use knowledge creation and management for your benefit online. One, you can add knowledge through articles and tips posted at your own website or in a newsletter. Two, you can publish your articles and tips at other websites to receive advertising benefits.

Some websites will allow you to advertise free through ads or a bio on your particular article pages. Others might allow you to share revenue from other businesses that advertise on your article pages. This is called ads revenue sharing. Both can offer long-term benefits, especially as the traffic to your article pages grows over time.

Multiple Opportunities

Online marketing through knowledge creation and management can be focused on one particular knowledge-based website or multiple websites. The choice is yours. With multiple websites, you might post the same article on many different websites (if allowed) or you might write different articles for only one website. Either way, you'll have multiple opportunities to advertise your business or to enjoy profits from ads revenue sharing.

Cost-effective online marketing through knowledge creation and management gives you the freedom to share what you know with your targeted audience without paying for advertising or taking unnecessary risks while implementing a marketing strategy.

Search online for specific questions you can answer and write articles based on these questions. Or, you can hire a writer to put your thoughts into words for you. Either way, you can provide answers that will draw targeted readers to your website for years to come. Once you establish yourself as an expert in your field, your online business will grow like never before!

Self-Employed Jobs

Being self-employed often sounds exciting. The thought of not having to work for anyone else and being able to enjoy your freedom is appealing. Those who decide to take this route anytime soon will find out that this is often not the case and realize that they will actually be working longer, harder hours for a few years as they try to get their business off the ground. The difference in being self-employed and working for someone else is that now everything rests on your shoulders. When you were working for someone else, you didn't have the responsibility of the whole company to worry about, it didn't matter too much if the company was a financial success or not, it was not your concern – it is now. In this article, we will look at some types of businesses that you can have at home.

1. If you are a pet lover then consider a pet-based business from home. You may be one of those individuals that animals of all kinds are drawn to, and if so this type of business is perfectly suited to you. A pet-business can involve everything from pet sitting, to walking and training pets, and providing supplies and toys to the pet owners. More than 60 million American homes have pets and that is a huge market for a home based business on any level.This kind of work can be done world-wide with very little start up costs. Most pet owners will spoil the beloved animals with anything that they find is cute, fun, and practical.

2. Home improvement is an excellent self-employed business opportunity, as homeowners will pay to have items removed from their residence as well as fixing up much needed repairs. This is an excellent source of income for the person who is good at fixing things and loves to clean and clear items from one place to another. During the warmer seasons, this is a great way to make extra income. Obviously you cannot do this type of business with a car so you will need a pick-up truck of some type or a vehicle that is capable of carrying away a variety of items.

3. If you are good at typing and have knowledge of how to work a computer, you may want to consider medical transcription. Transcription can be done at home and if you do not have much medical knowledge you can brush up on medical terminology or even through taking a quick course at your community college or other institutes. This is a demand that will not slow down anytime soon. Doctors offices, dentists, and even veterinarians all need someone to transcribe their records. If you are good at typing and familiar with Word documents and formatting this is a good choice for you.

Home-based jobs are becoming very popular for many families who are looking to increase their income but not necessarily work outside of the home.

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