Compelling Incentives
I had a printer mail me a promotional piece every two months for the last year. Every mailing includes a beautiful picture and they then tell me
how great they are. But they have never once compelled me to give them a try. I would have been much more motivated if they offered a “Free
Hour of Graphic Design” if I ordered over 1,000 brochure or mailing pieces”. If they have an in-house graphic person with available capacity
then this free $75 gift cost them nothing, but a high percentage of those that take them up on the offer will become Lifetime Customers.
When you write proposals for bids, you understand that a company's normal buying criteria is price. Fill your proposal with all the little things
you will do for them and the benefits that they will see from these extra actions or processes. Make it comprehensive. It could include graphic
design, editing, special paper, free shipping or delivery, etc. When a prospect sees your proposal and compares it to the other proposals he
gets, he will be amazed at how thorough your proposal is. If you had a well-articulated risk-reversal, then it should put your proposal at the top.
(You might not state this up front, but if the prospect is sitting on the fence, you could add that your work includes on-time delivery or it's free.
(In reality, if you take on the risk, you'll get many more clients. For those clients that you do deliver their order late, only 20% will take you up
on the "free" offer.)
Package Synergistic Products/Services
When a printer provides a package that includes graphic design, professional copy development, direct mail packaging design and the
printing, all for a slightly higher price than their competitors, they go from being just another printer to the only logical choice for many
businesses.
Expand Customer Purchases
To stimulate further customer purchases, start giving a set of "thank you" cards to your customers as a bonus for orders of a certain size. Tell
them that they can send them to their clients as a thank you for doing business together. These customers will appreciate the added touch
and will return for more business. Furthermore, their business should improve as they thank their clients. This brings you more business.
Add a guarantee to your printing, then call them within a certain time period (perhaps 30 days) to ask how things are going. While talking to
them, ask them about any additional needs they might have. You may be able to make additional sales on the phone.
Compelling Competitive Advantages
If no other printers in your competitive area offer comprehensive mailing services, then this might be a compelling competitive advantage that
you could add. Not only is it an additional profit center, but it would set you apart.
Laser Targeting Dream Clients
Find out what your best clients are worth to you according to their Lifetime Value. If the average is $10,000, then you'll know what you can
afford to give away to attract similar dream clients. Put together a substantial mailing package and Laser Target the best potential dream
prospects in your competitive area. If you mail them consistently over the course of a year, it is likely that you'll pick up more than enough
clients to make your promotion profitable.
Printer