Category Archives: Marketing

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Adding to Your Value-Added

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If you want to bill clients at premium prices,  you need to establish and present a brand that communicates your value-added as perceived by prospective clients.  In plain English,  you must make clients feel that you are worth the money.

A good brand is very seductive.  Brand loyalty leads people to pay $5.00 for coffee when they could buy perhaps higher-quality brew for $2.00.  It makes women covet $1000.00 + handbags so they can flash a certain designer label,  when handbags of similar quality and attractiveness,  but without the logo,  are available at less than half  that price.

As we continue to explore strategies to expand business,  let’s give some thought to building on authenticity  (see the May 28 post),  using it to strengthen perceived value-added and power of  the brand.  Increases in perceived value are generally more profitable than increases in the quality of services delivered.  Clients are known to pay more for what they think is worth more before they’ll pay for service upgrades.

Successful Freelance consultants deliver first-rate expertise and customer service.  As a marketing strategy,  we can attempt to make ourselves appear worthwhile to prospective clients in a number of ways.  One strategy can be to package ourselves rather lavishly,  handing out expensive business cards,  renting office space in the high-rent district and paying big registration fees to attend prestige conferences.  The premise is,  in order to attract big fish clients,  one must swim in the same waters.

Alternatively,  one may choose the high visibility route and invest scads of time on social media sites,  posting frequently, earning a high Klout score and showing up in the top ten of a Google search.  The premise is,  if one’s name is all over the internet,  then prospective clients will see it and one will then be considered the obvious choice when it is time to hire,  through the power of notoriety and perceived expertise.

Teaching,  speaking engagements and visible involvement in business and professional groups are a third strategy.  The premise here is that professional expertise is demonstrated through these activities and that builds trust and gives prospective clients the incentive to not only hire,  but pay a premium for services rendered.

Whichever strategy you find most attractive,  be mindful that your perceived value will be enhanced when you establish links with individuals and organizations that are admired and respected by your clients.  If you can arrange to be photographed with the mayor or governor,  it will raise your perceived value because you will be seen in the company of movers and shakers.  Membership in certain professional associations or social clubs may also confer significant value.

Professional certifications can do the same,  which is why a Certified Public Accountant can charge two or three times what an accountant with a degree but no special piece of paper can charge for providing nearly identical services.  The CPA designation allows a trust factor to kick in and it’s worth money.   According to Martin Reimann,  professor of Psychology at University of Southern California, the “right” affiliations and relationships bolster one’s perceived value.  They are endorsements of value-added.

My parents often told me when I was growing up that we are judged by the company that we keep.  I took that admonition to heart and picked my friends with care,  especially as I got older and there was more on the line.  The advice applies equally to our professional lives.  If it appears that we have the confidence of those whom prospective clients and referral sources respect,  we are more likely to be hired or referred and better able to charge premium prices for our services.  But it all starts with being authentic.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

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Getting Good PR

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Every Freelance consultant and business owner has an eye open for good publicity opportunities.  Articles written about one’s business are far more effective than paid advertisements,  because they are considered objective opinions.  Other than word of mouth by satisfied clients who sing your praises,  there is nothing better than good PR to help build the buzz that makes you look credible and successful and worthy of still more business.  So what are the best ways to get good publicity?

If you have the kind of business that can potentially attract more than sporadic media attention,  then building relationships with editors and writers whose publications and stories focus on your category of business is a good use of your time.  Once you’ve identified good media prospects by reading their articles,  send a press release that details an event that would interest.  In your email,  reference an article or two of theirs that you’ve read.  Follow up with a telephone call.  Offer to take that person to lunch or coffee.  Even if your press release doesn’t get you any editorial space,   you may be called to provide comments as an expert when other stories are written.  Check in periodically,  to maintain the relationship.  Meeting for coffee every once in a while can pay off.

Bloggers have lots of influence and it is sometimes a challenge to reach them.  Blog Dash is a site I recently found that helps you connect with bloggers whom you can hire to spread the good word about your business.  Fifteen categories of business are represented,  from arts to travel,  and numerous bloggers within each category can be reached.  There is a free option,  which will give you no real access to bloggers  (but they will see your business and may comment),  or you can pay up to $50.00/month and be able to pitch bloggers directly and build relationships.  http://blogdash.com

Write a good press release  (see my post Press Release Primer,  3.1.11)  to encourage traditional journalists and bloggers to give your story some editorial space.   They are considered old school in some quarters,  but a press release is still the way to get the word out to journalists and bloggers,  whether or not they know you.   But you have to provide good content and 95%  of the time what a Freelancer or other business person has to say is not considered relevant.  Hint:  when one advertises,  one generally receives editorial space.

Solicitations to provide expert opinion or commentary showcase you to look like the go-to in your field.   Help a Reporter Out HARO  http://helpareporter.com and Seek or Shout  http://sos.cision.com  allow you to respond to requests for quotes on any subject,  from big data to the medical device industry.  Three or four years ago I signed up with HARO but I quickly shut this free service off.  I was nearly buried in emails and I couldn’t take it.

It is obvious that the adage  “There’s no such thing as bad publicity”  was created before the dawn of social media.  Social media can cause a minor PR hiccup,  or negative customer review made by a spiteful customer (or maybe a competitor),  to blow up out of proportion and do you some damage.  Resist the temptation to hand over your social media functions to some 22 year old.  In theory,  social media updates ought to be a great responsibility for a young person who lives this stuff anyway, understands how to get the word out and works cheap.   The problem is,  that young person may not have the wherewithal to give the right answer when something challenging is written.

Creating good buzz about your business is part of the Freelance consultant or business owner’s job.  How to get that done in the most effective manner requires a strategic approach,  like all of your other business activities.  If sporadic PR is what your business attracts,  it is best to engage in a variety of activities to ensure that you appear viable and relevant to clients and colleagues.  You may not get written up,  but you will build a good reputation.   If your business is the type that would attract more press,  then spend the time and money to advertise in the relevant publications and build relationships with journalists who cover your kind of business.   Subscribe to have the ability to reach out to bloggers and see what that does for you.  Budget for a year and then evaluate.  Learn to write a good press release  (see my post  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE,  3.19.13).

Thanks for reading,

Kim

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Presenting a Webinar

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Last Wednesday I presented my first (and perhaps only) webinar.   To prove to myself and the world that I’m capable of presenting a webinar made it a worthwhile experience,  although I suspect that there will be no tangible benefit derived.  I was not paid to present (same old story, hey?).  So far,  the only follow-up has been a guy who wrote to me looking for free advice (of course!).

Nonprofit Webinars offers free one hour presentations each week and the selection is very good.  My topic was  “A Business Plan for Your Nonprofit”.  If you’re interested,  please visit   http://nonprofitwebinars.com   and you will be able to access my presentation,  plus several others.  Maybe you can explore the possibility of presenting a webinar yourself?

Putting together the presentation text was not a huge chore,  since I teach business plan writing on a regular basis.  The challenge was editing down a 6 hour workshop to less than one hour (to allow for a Q & A session) and adapting the focus to a nonprofit,  rather than for-profit, venture.

The part I hated was creating the Power Points.  I am no graphic artist and I resent that audiences expect as much graphics works as they do content.  My feeling is that a webinar is like radio.  Content is king and graphic art is the chorus.  The mere thought of producing graphic art work caused me severe stress.  But I had to do the deed.

I found out how to get free online images and registered myself at Morguefile  http://morguefile.com ,  which has hundreds of very decent high-resolution photos available for download to your desktop.  A respectable number of them were applicable to my topic.  I chose photos that were interesting and somewhat ironic or amusing,  yet still related to my topic.

High resolution photos present a problem,  though,  because too many photos cause your file to be too “heavy” to send as an attachment.  Thank goodness a friend who is proficient in producing customized Power Points shrank some of the images and combined with text on some slides and wrote text on top of other photos.  She also used the Power Point animation feature,  which I know exists,  yet was totally unable to figure out.  As I said,  graphics work is not my forte.

On webinar day,  there were technical issues to surmount.  Go-to-Webinar refused to download in Internet Explorer,  but thank goodness I also have Firefox.  Second,  one is supposed to speak into a land line with a headset.  I had neither,  but my iPhone 4 gave good sound quality,  according to the moderator,  and it was better without the headset.

I rehearsed,  but I could have done more  (my schedule went crazy).  I got a little nervous and talked somewhat too fast.  I synched the slides,  the text and my voice over rather well.  I did my best to sound more conversational and less preachy because a webinar is radio,  with visuals.

I developed simple poll questions to help me know who in the audience had done business planning and strategic planning previously and I took questions at around the 15 minute mark and again at around 30 minutes.  I preferred to address a few questions as I went along,  rather than holding all until the Q & A.  The moderator handles all questions and the presenter gives the answers.  I got some very good questions and I felt good about my answers.  I conveyed my expertise,  which was the objective.

Toward the end of Q & A,  my phone connection cut off and I had to dial back in,  which was frustrating.  I handled it like a trooper and traded some relaxed banter with the moderator.

So what grade would I give myself? A solid B.  If by some miracle I do this again,  I’ll make myself rehearse more.  Other than that,  I’m happy with my performance.  If only I could get a client out of it!

Thanks for reading,

Kim

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A Winning Email Marketing Campaign

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I’ve not done many email marketing campaigns,  mostly because I dislike being on the receiving end of such campaigns,  so I made the decision to basically avoid that method of outreach.  I was remiss,  because there are times when an email marketing campaign fits the bill.  Content marketing,  or the new advertising,  is an excellent way to stay in contact with clients and cultivate prospective clients and that strategy forms the basis of email marketing campaigns.

What I needed to do was learn how to craft an effective email message,  create a catchy subject line,  avoid looking like spam and send the email to the right group of people.  In other words,  I had to learn how to do a proper email marketing campaign.  To that end,   I invite you to copy my homework.

1.   Start with a good list

Everyone on your email list should want to receive your emails.  Include a safe unsubscribe feature to allow those who would rather not receive your emails to opt out.  When collecting names,  ask if the person would like to receive email updates from you.  To track emails sent,  you may want to invest in Did They Read It  http://didtheyreadit.com, which will anonymously report to you the read rate of your emails.  Constant Contact  http://constantcontact.com ,  the email marketing platform,  will send out and track your email marketing messages and your newsletter,  too.  According to the Email Marketing Metrics Benchmark study done by the marketing firm Silverpop in 2012,  the open rate is 20%.  The click-through rate,  or the measurement of how many people clicked on a link that was embedded in your email and most of all the conversion rate,  or how many people signed up for a special offer or did business with you,  reveal the value of your email list.  Still,  the open rate is a very telling measure because nothing happens until the email is opened.

2.   Information, not sales

A few paragraphs that give newsworthy updates about the industry sectors of your principle client groups,  or info that can be used to help list members solve a common problem,  will greatly improve your email open rate.  An email marketing campaign is not the forum in which to swing for the fences and score a big sale or assignment.  Rather,  an email marketing campaign is the place to let your expertise shine and offer no-cost value to current and prospective clients.

3.   Subject line that pops

Be edgy and provocative, be witty,   be amusing,  but don’t be boring.  When your recipient opens emails and is faced with a huge stack,  make him/her want to open yours and see what you have to say.

4.   Interesting photo or video

A picture is worth 10,000 words,  so add a good photo or two to your email,  one that communicates some aspect of your message.  A short video of you speaking to a topic,  or a testimonial by one of your clients,  is also compelling.

5.   Easy call to action

Once you’ve made the case,  remember to ask the recipient to do something with the information that you’ve provided: take a survey,  sign up for a free 30 minute consultation,  sign up for your newsletter.   Resist the temptation to go for the jugular and force a sale in your email marketing campaign.  The more successful strategy is to entice the recipient to make some small contact with you that appears to have more benefit for them than it does for you.  Build trust and familiarity first and you will become the obvious choice when your services are needed.

6.   Optimize for smart phones

It has been reported that nearly half of all emails are now opened up via smart phone.  Figure out how to size and space your email and links to make it easy to read on a smart phone.

Despite numerous pronouncements to the contrary,  email marketing is alive and well,  according to a January 2013 survey conducted by the marketing services provider Experian.  Their survey indicated that correctly conceived email marketing campaigns remain the best way to draw traffic to your website and increase sales revenue.  So copy my homework and get busy creating one for your business.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: How to Write A Press Release

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In numerous posts,  I have urged readers to send out press releases.  Despite the presence of social media outlets,  traditional media outlets still matter and the usefulness of a well-crafted press,  or news,  release continues.  When you win an award,  participate in a major charity event in your community,  teach a class, host a webinar, or debut a new product or service,  a press release should be sent to the appropriate media outlets.

Writing a good press release can be a challenge.  The stakes are high for Freelance consultants and other small business owners who must promote their products and services to target markets on a shoestring budget.  The press release is an important representation of you and your brand and it’s imperative to make it effective. Reporters might receive dozens of press releases a week,  so the relevance of your story must be obvious.  The key to success is an interesting news hook,  says Lou Colasuonno,  former editor-in-chief at both The New York Post and The New York Daily News and now Senior Managing Director at the New York City P.R. firm FTI Consulting.

Colasuonno advises his P.R. clients to consider how newsworthy their story will be to a publication’s target audience. Colasuonno also advises that the press release email subject line summarize your story hook in 10 words or less.  Your release needs a good headline,  so that the editor or reporter will immediately see how your story will impact their readers.   He recommends that you customize your press release to the editor or reporter who has responsibility for whatever your topic is,  to improve the likelihood of a response.  Finally,  he cautions that you visit media outlet websites and note publishing deadlines.  Two weeks lead time is standard for many newspapers and a bi-monthly magazine may require three months lead time.

  • Determine the story your release will tell
  • Write a  “hook”  that communicates why your story qualifies as news to recipient media outlets
  • Avoid using words and phrases that are likely to get your email blocked by a spam filter
  • Keep to a 400 word maximum release

Follow the standard format when you compose your release.   At center top in capital letters,  write FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE and below that include the contact information,  with email address,  web address,  telephone number and today’s date.  Centered below the contact info and written in bold capital letters,  provide your headline.  If your press release must exceed 400 words or one page,  include a short synopsis of your story below the headline.

Many press releases begin with a dateline,  giving its city and state of origin in parentheses.  In the first paragraph,  summarize the story’s theme and newsworthy info very concisely.  The most significant items appear at the top of the page and less important information is stated in subsequent paragraphs.   The final paragraph gives standard company info,  including the company mission,  when the company was founded,  awards that have been received or other major achievements,  so that the media recipient will have some background information.

Add credibility to your news release by including at least one quote from someone in authority  (maybe that’s you).   An insightful quote communicates to readers why your story is important and deserves publication.  You might also add audio-visual aspects to your press release and include a YouTube or podcast link or link to a client testimonial from your website.  Finally,  it’s recommended to send your news release in the body of the email and also as an attachment,  since many editors and reporters will not open an attachment from someone whom they do not know.

Alas,  even when we follow all the  “rules”,  our press release may go begging.  Carson Stanwood,  Freelance PR/media consultant and COO of Channel Signal,  a social media analytics platform in Jackson Hole, WY,  claims that in his experience,  only about 10% of press releases receive a response from recipients.  He recommends that you follow-up your press release with a phone call and cautions that you not call daily or otherwise make a pest of yourself. I prefer to call the editor or reporter first,  to determine whether there is interest in my story.

I pitch first and then send the press release if appropriate.  My strategy does not always work,  because editors and reporters sometimes lie,  unfortunately.  Really,  whether your story sees the light of day depends on what other news is happening and what the editor or reporter finds compelling.  But keep sending out press releases when appropriate,  because that is how relationships with the media are developed.  Offer to take a business reporter or editor to coffee and pitch your story in person.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

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Content Marketing Is the New Ad Copy

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Several times this year,   you will be presented with opportunities to advertise your Freelance consulting services in a print or online publication.  You probably belong to at least one professional networking organization,  whether it’s one that caters to peers in your field,  or a local business association.  The organization will have a newsletter and a directory and you will be asked to make the decision about buying an ad.  What should you do?

The answer is to confirm your budget after checking out the rate card and jump on it if you’re able.  Consider the advertising opportunity as an extension of whatever content marketing you produce.  If you don’t write a blog or newsletter,  then ads are  your content marketing and you must make the most of them.

Consider who will see the ad.  If potential clients are members of the organization,  then you definitely want to advertise in newsletter and directory.  Additionally,  there is  a second audience for your advertisement,  the organization big shots.

Placing ads with the newsletter and/or directory of the right organization will cause the big shots to look upon you more favorably.  They will likely reward you with valuable opportunities for exposure.  In exchange for your ad,   you can expect to be invited to moderate or speak on a panel or receive some other showcasing opportunity.  You may even be nominated to become an organization big shot yourself.  It’s a political thing and if you can scrape together the budget,  you are advised to join in.

Frame your approach to the ad in terms of content marketing,  that ubiquitous new term for advertising copy.   Content marketer and ex- advertising executive  Barry Feldman says that first,  determine what potential clients need to know about where and how your services fit into their business needs and then decide what action you want them to take on the road to hiring you to solve those needs.  Those pillars shape your ad copy,  i.e. the content marketing message.

Your content must be compelling,  communicating the story and providing  information that matters to prospective clients,  even if the audience consists of your peers and not prospects.   Peer organization big shots may be good referral sources,  so take the time to produce persuasive content.  Because life has become a barrage of marketing messages emanating from various media,  create content that makes your ad pop.  Spotlight three or four primary services maximum,  so potential clients and referrers will not become confused about what you do.  Hire a graphic artist to design a sleek and eye-catching ad.

Be authoritative,  never arrogant,  and perhaps be  a bit provocative as you concisely describe the challenges that cause clients to hire you and the unfailingly excellent results that you deliver.  Weave in terminology that clients use,  so that content will resonate.  Remember the call to action,  to inspire prospects to call you when in need of your kind of services.   After they’ve read your ad and decided they might want more info,  what do they do? You must tell them.

Maybe they send you an email or give you a call,  which gets a conversation going.   Maybe they go to your website and fill out a short questionnaire to get the ball rolling.  Generating prospective client follow-up,  also known as in-bound marketing,  entices prospects to commit to evaluating the fit between your services and their needs.  Most ad viewers won’t take the plunge,  but if even one does you will be on the road to good ROI for ad dollars spent.  If you get invited to a meeting with your prospect,  you will be 85%  of the way to a contract.

As I’ve said before,  social media gets all the headlines,  but tried and true forms of advertising are still able to deliver results.  Advertisers must approach ad copy as content marketing now and aim to teach as much as sell.   From the Mad Men era to the new millennium,  if you tell the story in a way that grabs prospective clients,  you will get the sale.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

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Marketing Mix Remix: 4 Ps for the 21st Century

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The term Marketing Mix was coined in 1948 by Neil Borden,  who was then a professor at the Harvard Business School and James Culliton,  who was dean of the business school at University of Notre Dame.  In 1960,  then marketing professor at Michigan State University E. Jerome McCarthy laid out the original 4 Ps: Product,  Place,  Price and Promotion.

Half a century later,  the 4 Ps  are still considered to be the marketing strategy gold standard.  Over time,  the marketing mix list was expanded to include nine Ps,  with Process,  Position,  Profit,  Packaging and People added.  In whatever number,  the Ps served marketing departments throughout the world for several decades.

But we’re in a new century now and the marketplace has changed.  It is time to re-think and re-tool the Ps for today’s B2B service-oriented economy.  Eduardo Conrado (Senior VP and Chief of Marketing at Motorola),  Richard Ettenson  (Thunderbird School of Global Management)  and Jonathan Knowles  (CEO of Type 2 Consulting in New York City)  have presented a reinterpretation of the Ps that tacks toward offering solutions,  which is what the Freelance consultant’s current and prospective clients value today.  Their model has updated Product to Solution;  Place to Access;  Price to Value: and Promotion to Education:  SAVE,  a perfect acronym if ever there was one.

Conrado,  Ettenson and Knowles posit SAVE as the centerpiece of a 21st century solution-selling strategy that encourages marketing and sales practices that take a client-centric perspective.  The SAVE model gets one into a solutions-oriented mindset and helps a Freelance consultant to devise marketing strategies that target specific client needs.  SAVE emphasizes the value proposition of the B2B solution that is being offered and creates the context for the Freelancer to position him/herself as a trusted source of expertise,  advice and problem-solving.

SOLUTION,  rather than Product /Service

  • Describe your services and bundle your service packages according to the client needs that they meet instead of merely presenting a list of services offered,  with descriptions of their functions,  features and benefits.  Don’t make clients have to think about how to use your services.  Show them exactly where your service fits.  Clients are over-worked and distracted,  so save a step and visualize things for them.

ACCESS,  rather than Place

  • Institute an approach to delivering products and services that is mindful of the client’s entire purchase journey,  from the initial project specs meeting through post-project follow-up support and billing.

VALUE,  rather than Price

  • Articulate the benefits of your services relative to price,  instead of stressing how price relates to production costs,  profit margins,  or competitors’ prices.  Present your value proposition in a way that ensures you’ll be perceived as being well worth the money.

EDUCATION,  rather than Promotion

  • Provide information relevant to your clients’ specific needs at each point in the sales cycle.
  • Re-think and re-tool a broad-brush advertising message and media outlet choices.  Maybe a webinar that helps clients sort out approaches to meeting specific business needs will be more convincing than an advertisement.  A relevant case study,  presented as a story, is invariably convincing,  helping clients to visualize where and how your services can address business needs effectively.

Eduardo Conrado and his marketing team at Motorola used SAVE to guide the re-structuring of its entire approach to marketing and sales strategy development.  Motorola now designs strategies that build a strong case for the superior value of their products by presenting them as solutions that solve problems,  shifting the perception of their sales professionals to that of trusted experts and advisers.  Like Motorola and other multi-nationals,   Freelance consultants who plan to maintain their relevance in a merciless marketplace are advised to bring our marketing strategies into the 21st century as well.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

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Holiday Greetings!

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Freelancers know that our business is only as good as our relationships and our relationships are our responsibility to cultivate and nurture.  One of the ways we do this is by sending December holiday cards to clients.  Show appreciation for the business you’ve been awarded and make this small,  yet important,  gesture that is a good relationship building block. 

Sending physical holiday cards,  as opposed to email greetings or e-cards,  demonstrates that you are a gracious and thoughtful professional,  willing to take the time to properly acknowledge and thank your clients at this special time of year.   When you send to your clients a genuine holiday card,   it shows that you understand and respect business etiquette.  Sending  holiday greeting cards is good for business relationships and for business.

 Holiday cards are an inexpensive and effective marketing tool.  They don’t take much time to write.  Your clients will be flattered to receive one from you.  Many business owners and Freelance consultants do not send December greetings to their clients any more  (or if ever),  so when you make the effort to send the card,  you communicate an important statement about who you are and your approach to doing business.  Sending holiday cards helps to distinguish you from competitors,  guards against your being viewed as just another vendor,  enhances your brand and shows clients that you value them.

When shopping for your card,  take special care to select one that will represent you well and will leave the desired impression with the client.  Because it is possible that you’ll have on your list clients who are neither Christian nor particularly religious,  avoid cards that depict a nativity scene or other Christian imagery,  or cards that contain a religious message. 

Scenes of winter or Poinsettias (for example),  with  “Seasons greetings”  or  “Happy holidays” printed within is the business-appropriate choice.  Spend the money to buy a good quality (but not lavish) card.  A small and tasteful card will be perfect.  Expect to pay about $20.00 for a box of 8 cards.

Next,  consider who should receive a card.  Along with current clients,  you’ll also include any clients you’ve worked with during the year.   I send cards to all clients I’ve worked with over the past five years,  as a way to keep my name in front them and remind them that they have not dropped off of my  radar screen.  Later in the new year,  when they’re thinking of whom to call for a project,  I want my name at top-of-mind,  if possible.  BTW,  it’s good to verify that clients from the past are still in the same posts,  so a visit to the organization website or call to the main switchboard will save you from wasting a card.

If you are a very organized Freelancer and had the foresight to order holiday cards printed with your name and business name back in November  (unlike your Diarist),  personally sign your name to the card anyway and write a brief handwritten message.  Along those lines,  do not use pre-printed address labels.  Keep the personal touch going by handwriting the client’s name and address on the envelope.  Verify job titles and always use honorific titles  (Mr. or Ms.).

Lastly,  get your cards stamped (no religious stamps,  use holiday stamps if available)  and to the post office no later than December 15.

‘Tis the season,

Kim

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Guerilla Market Guru

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We’ve made it through a very competitive presidential election and we witnessed quite a battle.  The President remains in office because he was the more strategic.  He ran the better campaign,  he had the better ground game,  his get out the vote initiative was superb.  In sum,  President Obama had the better marketing plan.

He didn’t execute as ruthlessly as political strategist Dorie Clark recommends (see the October 30 post),  but he took full advantage of a few key situations,   most notably the well-timed  (for him, anyway)  Hurricane Sandy.  He hopped onto Air Force One,  landed in hard-hit New Jersey (what an entrance!),  reassured numerous devastated and frightened residents and in the process,  managed to have sworn nemesis Governor Chris Christie eating out of his hand,  all with the TV cameras rolling.  New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg,  officially an Independent but really a Republican,  went so far as to endorse the President for re-election.  Talk about fortune smiling.

So the 2012 presidential campaign provides a blueprint for Freelance consultants who are trying to survive and thrive as the economic assault on the middle and working classes continues.  The only possible way to keep your business alive is to survey your unique set of circumstances and leverage all resources to strengthen your position.

One major factor in competing strong in a weak economy is remaining visible.  Longer lapses between assignments,  especially when combined with the insult of smaller projects and fewer billable hours,  are a dynamic that slashes your available money.  Yet one must do all that is possible to preserve the marketing budget,  for that is when we need it more than ever.

When marketing on a limited budget,  be very objective.  Review your marketing strategy and make sure that activities align with current conditions in your business environment.  Contact media outlets that have been just beyond your reach and inquire as to what your budget will support now.  I’m willing to bet that there are deals to be had.  Also,  advertisers can expect to receive some editorial space,  so when you purchase an ad,  expect at some point to be asked to give quotes or even write an article that will showcase your expertise.

Evaluate your core message and verify that it addresses what clients are most interested in when they consider hiring for your service category.  Be aware that client budgets and priorities may have shifted along with the economy.  Examine your website and print collaterals.  Sometimes a client will check you out before calling,  so make sure to communicate a message that will optimize every potential opportunity.

To both improve your reach and save on your marketing budget,   review your social media strategy.  Perhaps this is the time to explore Google + and figure out how it can help you engage clients and prospects,  or at least keep you visible in the best ways.  Google + invites client interaction,  making your marketing a two-way conversation that can enhance your brand by showcasing you as a trusted adviser and authority.

On the traditional media front,  write and distribute press releases to announce your participation in any business-related public event.  Oh yes,  and do make sure that you schedule yourself to speak at conferences whenever possible and conduct workshops and take on teaching opportunities.  Call your local adult learning center,  community college and neighborhood business association to figure out how to get on teaching and speaking calendars.

It is also very important to maintain good relations with current,  or previous clients.  Just last week,  as I finished up with a client meeting,  one of the principals asked if I’d mind if her daughter called me.  The daughter is a dancer with a mid-sized company that needs marketing strategy and PR work.  That meeting itself was the result of up-selling services that expanded billable hours with the client.

Superior service and excellent relationships matter more than ever in a highly competitive business environment.  Christmas and Chanukkah are coming.  Plan to send holiday cards to all clients you’ve worked with in the past five years.

Devise marketing moves to position your consultancy to win as much available business as possible.  Be a fierce competitor not by spending more,  but by being shrewd and recognizing opportunities.   Make every marketing move strategic and create good luck.  Only the strong and the lucky will survive and thrive.

Happy Thanksgiving,

Kim

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Do Not Sell Your Elevator Pitch

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The elevator pitch gets a lot of attention.   Much has been written about its importance and how to get it right.   Unfortunately,  most of the so-called experts cannot help us get our elevator pitch right,  because they don’t understand what it’s about.

The original purpose of the  “elevator pitch”  was to have something relevant to say about your business if you happened to encounter someone who could potentially become a client.   Over time,  its purpose was corrupted and it metastasized into a sometimes smarmy self-promoting sales pitch that prospective clients didn’t want to hear.   Most of us forgot,  or perhaps never realized,  that  an elevator pitch was never meant to be a sales pitch.    

But we’re Freelancers and we need to self-promote because we need to plant the seeds for new assignments so we won’t starve to death!  Isn’t that what an elevator pitch is for? If it doesn’t sell us,  then how do we introduce ourselves to prospective clients?

Take heart,  gentle reader.   As we all know,  it’s not what you say,  but how you say it.   It is more advantageous to present oneself in a way that does not reek of obvious selling.   What Freelancers need is an elevator pitch that not only can open up the possibility of a sales opportunity,  but can also be gracefully inserted into a casual conversation.

The well- made  elevator pitch presents you and your offerings in a socially acceptable manner,  with no  obvious  sales pitch.   You’ll be able to roll it out at a backyard barbecue or a wedding reception,  without making people cringe.   To do it right,  it is necessary to learn how to introduce yourself and your business concern in the context of social conversation.

According to Geoffrey James,  author of  “How to Say It: Business to Business Selling”  (2011),  break your elevator pitch down into three parts.   First,  come up with one  sentence that will Position your business.   That sentence will describe what you do for clients in easy-to-grasp language and will state a benefit  that could be of interest  to the person who asks about your professional  life. 

The beauty of this sentence is that it will start the process of separating the wheat from the chaff by revealing the questioner’s level of interest in what you do.   If that person shows only polite interest,  you’ll know that you’re not speaking with a prospect and can move on to  other topics.   But if he/she asks something like  “How do you make that happen”?,  you may have a live one.

If your questioner shows knowledge and interest in your field of expertise,  then proceed to level two and Differentiate what you do by giving examples of what distinguishes you from competitors.   “Some of my clients begin to receive the desired return on investment within three to six months after implementing the business  strategy plans that come out of the sessions I facilitate for them”.   “We have extensive press contacts that will allow us to roll out the PR strategy you need to make your business appear reliable and trustworthy to your target customers”. 

If your questioner continues to demonstrate interest and ask relevant questions,  then advance to level three and open a Conversation.   Ask an open-ended question to verify whether you are speaking with a potential client,  or just someone who is bright and curious,  but cannot hire or refer you.   Maybe  ask something like,  “Does your company have these kinds of needs?  If so,  how are you getting the job done”? Drill down further with,  “Do you have an impending project on the drawing board”? The answers you receive will let you know who you’re dealing with.

If you’ve done things even half way right,  maybe five minutes have elapsed during which the other  person has done much of the talking and you the listening.  If it makes sense to keep the conversation going,  it’s time to  ask for a Meeting,  since  1.) Follow-up is an essential component of success and you don’t want to let an opportunity slip through your fingers and  2.) You are at a social event and you don’t want to be crass and ruin the mood by continuing to talk business.

You might propose it this way:  “If you’re open to talking a little more about how I can help you with  (insert prospect’s concern),  I’ll be happy to sit down with you.   How do I get on your calendar”?

A more cautious approach is,  “If my company were able to handle  (insert prospect’s concern),  what are your thoughts about us getting together so that you can learn more about what we do? Can I get on your calendar”?

So there you have it.  A straightforward and brief elevator pitch strategy that is a real conversation and elicits useful information for both parties.  It is not a sales pitch.  Now all you have to do is put yours together.

Thanks for reading,

Kim