Business Development Systems Don't Have To Be Expensive

Marketing On A Budget!!

One of the complaints we hear frequently from advisors is the cost of implementing an effective marketing campaign to get in front of qualified clients. In this edition of "Marketing Ideas," we would like to share with you some of the tools that can be used at very little cost to generate qualified leads. In addition to building and implementing a systematized business development plan, with Expanding Horizons you have access to great ideas for attracting new business. Whether you work with indviduals or businesses, you and YOUR business will benefit from the creativity and experience of seasoned professionals across the country. Call me to learn more about Expanding Horizons business development coaching 303-335-0734.

Rick

Starting The Conversation

Business development success greatly depends on your ability to start the conversation with people you don't yet know. In the past, we have been told that cold calls were the most effective way to start the conversation. This might have been fine for the early part of our careers, but there is NO WAY this is going to happen today. So what now? Direct mail might get their attention, but it can be very expensive and will not start the dialogue. Hiring a marketing firm can work, but again, very expensive. How about hiring someone to smile and dial? Also potentially cost prohibitive and it is likely that they won't have the expertise in your business to get the prospect talking.

So what can we do and still control costs. As we have discussed in previous issues of "Marketing Ideas," using a survey to start the conversation can be very effective. The survey provides the prospect with a virtually "anonymous" tool to open up with their concerns and issues. Your survey process should follow this simple plan:

1. Intial email (Survey is coming)
2. Email with survey link
3. Clarification phone calls begin
4. Email to those who have not yet completed the survey
5. Survey analysis email to entire list
6. "I have been thinking about our conversation" appointment phone call

The conversation is now started and you are on your way!

Survey technology = $20/month (Survey Monkey, Constant Contact Survey, etc.)


Inexpensive ways to generate leads!

If you have been following Expanding Horizons for a while, you know we are big fans of LinkedIn. Used correctly, this business networking site can provide an endless stream of leads to feed your marketing machine. When you notice that one of your contacts is now linked to a prospective lead for you, simply call and ask their permission to contact the lead. When they say, "yes" you are on your way. Now you have two choices. You can pick up the phone and call or kick your survey process into gear using a tool like Constant Contact or InfusionSoft. Be sure to reference the referer to stay out of SPAM trouble.

Wait a minute! How do I get their email address? Take a look at www.Jigsaw.com. This great site could be described as "Give-A-Lead / Take-A-Lead." You enter the company name or a contact name and find them on the site. Give up 5 points and you now have an email address and direct phone number. You can spend a little to seed your account with250 points and you are on ready to begin.

www.LinkedIn.com = $0/month

www.Jigsaw.com= $0 to $25/month

Professionalism on a budget

No time to do it right!

Two of the great challenges with any marketing or business development plan is finding the time to keep the "system" working and maintaining a professional image. There are many tools out there that will generate automatic response emails. You send the first request for survey email and these systems trigger a series of emails based on a timeline. Constant Contact (www.ConstantContact.com) is a great example of an inexpensive way to manage this process. You will still have to produce the original emails, but once you have the system in place daily maintenance require just a few minuts.

The real key to all of this is discipline. Watch for our next issue of "Marketing Ideas" to gain some insight into building the discipline to keep a marketing and sales program producing results.

www.ConstantContact.com = $15 / month