Tags |
|
|
Atricle Dump - Marketing, Lead Generation, and Research: A 3-in-1 Solution
Employment Newsgroups Job Search ResourcesNewsgroups are online, message-based communities of people with common interests. Each newsgroup is dedicated to a topic, and you may write, search, read and reply to messages about that topic. Several newsgroups are job and career related.Some groups are dedicated to employment advertising, while others are dedicated to resume submissions, job wanted messages, or general discussions about employment and careers. The Usenet Employment Newsgroups are a very productive source of job posting. Thousands of jobs are posted to the various Newsgroups each day and these opportunities are often overlooked by most online job seekers. Many Employers, Recruiters, and Job Sites automatically post their positions to the Newsgroups, and the groups serve as a Meta Job Search Engine. Unfortunately, since these are all free postings and anyone can post to newsgroups the groups are filled with off topic posts, scams, and other worthless junk.Tips for Your Job SearchMost online job seekers do not use the employment newsgroups. Most job seekers
The Wrap Up
At the end of the survey when I ask if they are interested in more information about my company and services they already have an idea of what to expect and are more likely to be open to hear and receive my message because there is no surprise and I was not beating them over the head with message. I merely made them think about their website or lack thereof.
Script = Professionalism
Once you have developed your survey you should write a script. I know - I can hear your sighs now - you don't want to sound like a robot or just another telemarketer but the use of a script will ensure that you sound like a professional. The danger with a script is that it might not be conversational or may not consider the person on the other end of the phone. To avoid sounding robotic and like you are reading a script you should read it aloud
We all know at least one social butterfly. I am talking about the type of person that you can put in a room full of strangers and by the end of the night they know everybody. The social butterfly is like a people magnet. He or she takes pleasure in introducing people, making recommendations, and bringing people together that can be of help to one another.The social butterfly is the person you call when you’re looking for a band for your wedding, the best real estate agent in town, or the perfect physical trainer.We call on the social butterfly for practically everything because we know that they have an extensive seemingly inexhaustible contact list of people that they can refer us to.We love the social butterfly because we also know that they will undoubtedly refer people to us as well. We trust, respect, value, and rely on the social butterfly and will always do whatever we can to help them.How much help could we be to the social butterflies in our lives if we too became social butterflies? How much more would our businesses soar?Pay close attention to the social butterfly be
Long before I started my business, I realized that I wasn't good at telephone sales and that I would need to generate leads in another way. I developed a sure-fire way to generate those leads, interest in me, and my business, through the use of telephone market research.
There are many benefits of doing market research including the ability to learn more about my target market's behaviours and opinions, honing messages and presentations based on real, first hand responses, as well as, to test out new messages or theories prior to wide release.
As a website developer and consultant, my large market is businesses and my main target group is small business owners. In order to contact these owners I would need access to their contact information.
For my target market, I found a regional business development directory to be very complete including names, addresses, phone numbers and website information. Some of the information was a little out of date but it was going to be far better than just cold calling to reach "The Owner or Manager" and get successfully past the front desk person etc. For other Business-to-Business companies I might suggest the local Chamber of Commerce or Business Association. Contact lists may be purchased or leased from outside sources, however, that is beyond the scope of this article.
For a client of mine, who is in the property care and landscaping industry, I was able to suggest hitting the phone book in the areas he wanted to generate business in and call every twentieth or thirtieth name in the book. The only criteria his respondent had to meet, was that they are a homeowner or property owner. In his case, my client is located in a small town and most respondents would be homeowners. If he were in a major city I would recommend that he be calling property management companies and target areas of the city with a high concentration of houses. Most cities still have their phone books broken down by community or borough.
Developing the Survey
The first step in this process was to develop the survey. To do that you first need to determine the subject of the survey. This should also relate directly to the message you wish to communicate to the lead. For my company I wanted to find out one of two things, if the respondent had a website what were the circumstances, experiences and opinions of having it or if the respondent didn't have a website the circumstances and reasons for not.
Tuning in the Respondent
As you can see, these questions relate to only one specific service - websites. This allows the respondent to easily understand what subject area you are talking about so that when you switch to providing your message they are already thinking about that subject. In my case, the respondent could easily tell that I was asking questions about websites, they probably figure that my business has something to do with websites.
Keep Questions Open Ended
The survey questions should be as open ended as possible. This is not scientific, as it cannot be quantified in small sample sizes, but it is the best way to avoid leading the respondent to a perceived answer. They may feel that you are looking for a particular response. This can happen when you use a scaled response survey such as ratings of 1 to 5 or 1 to 7. In my own personal experience this type of survey is best left to academics. In most cases you are looking for opinions and experiences of an individual. Ask questions like, "Could you explain how you felt about the experience when you last purchased a car?"
Keep Things Brief
There should be no more than 10 to 15 questions on the survey. The fewer questions and the more open ended the better the dialogue with the respondent and the more valuable the information.
The Wrap Up
At the end of the survey when I ask if they are interested in more information about my company and services they already have an idea of what to expect and are more likely to be open to hear and receive my message because there is no surprise and I was not beating them over the head with message. I merely made them think about their website or lack thereof.
Script = Professionalism
Once you have developed your survey you should write a script. I know - I can hear your sighs now - you don't want to sound like a robot or just another telemarketer but the use of a script will ensure that you sound like a professional. The danger with a script is that it might not be conversational or may not consider the person on the other end of the phone. To avoid sounding robotic and like you are reading a script you should read it aloud t
In a separate article, I bashed surveys for a number of reasons.To recap briefly, they’re unreliable, slow, unrepresentative of customer sentiments at large, and there are more direct ways of tapping into customer satisfaction.One of the best ways of doing this is by asking a customer how things are going DURING the transaction, itself.One of my law professors, who helped Subway to expand across country, said you have no business owning a restaurant if you’re too shy or lazy to walk up to customers and ask, “How’s your meal?”It’s absolutely essential, he said, if you want to control quality, get valuable feedback right away, and show that you care about customer service.And it’s incredibly simple, isn’t it?There’s no paperwork to fill out, no forms to mail, nothing to tally, and it is done, one customer at a time. The CRM (Customer Relationship Management) folks make it seem as if they’ve invented a one-to-one interest in customers.Baloney! That’s what existed before we tried to get fancy and bureaucratic about monitoring and managing customer satisfaction.Another
For a client of mine, who is in the property care and landscaping industry, I was able to suggest hitting the phone book in the areas he wanted to generate business in and call every twentieth or thirtieth name in the book. The only criteria his respondent had to meet, was that they are a homeowner or property owner. In his case, my client is located in a small town and most respondents would be homeowners. If he were in a major city I would recommend that he be calling property management companies and target areas of the city with a high concentration of houses. Most cities still have their phone books broken down by community or borough.
Developing the Survey
The first step in this process was to develop the survey. To do that you first need to determine the subject of the survey. This should also relate directly to the message you wish to communicate to the lead. For my company I wanted to find out one of two things, if the respondent had a website what were the circumstances, experiences and opinions of having it or if the respondent didn't have a website the circumstances and reasons for not.
Tuning in the Respondent
As you can see, these questions relate to only one specific service - websites. This allows the respondent to easily understand what subject area you are talking about so that when you switch to providing your message they are already thinking about that subject. In my case, the respondent could easily tell that I was asking questions about websites, they probably figure that my business has something to do with websites.
Keep Questions Open Ended
The survey questions should be as open ended as possible. This is not scientific, as it cannot be quantified in small sample sizes, but it is the best way to avoid leading the respondent to a perceived answer. They may feel that you are looking for a particular response. This can happen when you use a scaled response survey such as ratings of 1 to 5 or 1 to 7. In my own personal experience this type of survey is best left to academics. In most cases you are looking for opinions and experiences of an individual. Ask questions like, "Could you explain how you felt about the experience when you last purchased a car?"
Keep Things Brief
There should be no more than 10 to 15 questions on the survey. The fewer questions and the more open ended the better the dialogue with the respondent and the more valuable the information.
The Wrap Up
At the end of the survey when I ask if they are interested in more information about my company and services they already have an idea of what to expect and are more likely to be open to hear and receive my message because there is no surprise and I was not beating them over the head with message. I merely made them think about their website or lack thereof.
Script = Professionalism
Once you have developed your survey you should write a script. I know - I can hear your sighs now - you don't want to sound like a robot or just another telemarketer but the use of a script will ensure that you sound like a professional. The danger with a script is that it might not be conversational or may not consider the person on the other end of the phone. To avoid sounding robotic and like you are reading a script you should read it aloud
What is the biggest mistake people make with resumes?People write their resumes as a chronological summary of everything they’ve done in their professional lives. Employers only care about one thing: what you can do for them. If they can’t quickly get that answer out of your resume, it’ll get tossed in the garbage can. An effective resume draws their attention, clearly spells out why you are better than the other candidates, and lands you an interview.Should I use an experienced resume preparer?Yes. Get it done right the first time because once your resume starts circulating, you won’t get a chance to go back and clean it up. Frankly, when I work with people on their resumes, I am shocked at what they’re sending out. These days, employers keep resumes in their databases for months or even years. So if it is poorly done and unimpressive, you may have blown it. Don’t take any chances on this.How long does a really good resume take to prepare?At least several weeks. You can’t throw one together and expect it to be your best. That’s another reason to engage a preparer. That pe
Developing the Survey
The first step in this process was to develop the survey. To do that you first need to determine the subject of the survey. This should also relate directly to the message you wish to communicate to the lead. For my company I wanted to find out one of two things, if the respondent had a website what were the circumstances, experiences and opinions of having it or if the respondent didn't have a website the circumstances and reasons for not.
Tuning in the Respondent
As you can see, these questions relate to only one specific service - websites. This allows the respondent to easily understand what subject area you are talking about so that when you switch to providing your message they are already thinking about that subject. In my case, the respondent could easily tell that I was asking questions about websites, they probably figure that my business has something to do with websites.
Keep Questions Open Ended
The survey questions should be as open ended as possible. This is not scientific, as it cannot be quantified in small sample sizes, but it is the best way to avoid leading the respondent to a perceived answer. They may feel that you are looking for a particular response. This can happen when you use a scaled response survey such as ratings of 1 to 5 or 1 to 7. In my own personal experience this type of survey is best left to academics. In most cases you are looking for opinions and experiences of an individual. Ask questions like, "Could you explain how you felt about the experience when you last purchased a car?"
Keep Things Brief
There should be no more than 10 to 15 questions on the survey. The fewer questions and the more open ended the better the dialogue with the respondent and the more valuable the information.
The Wrap Up
At the end of the survey when I ask if they are interested in more information about my company and services they already have an idea of what to expect and are more likely to be open to hear and receive my message because there is no surprise and I was not beating them over the head with message. I merely made them think about their website or lack thereof.
Script = Professionalism
Once you have developed your survey you should write a script. I know - I can hear your sighs now - you don't want to sound like a robot or just another telemarketer but the use of a script will ensure that you sound like a professional. The danger with a script is that it might not be conversational or may not consider the person on the other end of the phone. To avoid sounding robotic and like you are reading a script you should read it aloud
In Today’s Vent I’d like to talk about emotional business practice. This is a subject in my network of colleagues that unfortunately has become more popular in the recent months.To determine your action by emotion rather than reason will derail you in seconds away from what you should be focused on. When you run your own business or even work for another company as an Independent Contractor your daily activities should square up your pay or rather what you do and how you conduct yourself will determine your paycheck.I network among very bright individuals in the same field; network marketing. I’ve seen an emotional environment filled with negativity that I’m sure has placed us all back a few steps.We are being sized up by the public eye and whether we like to admit this or not, we make an assessment of one another all the time. Now I’m not suggesting we cannot “tell it like it is!” But in a public environment we should use discretion and if not for anyone else at least for our own sake. Yes, we have the freedom to act or judge on our own, but we should be doing this wisely and objectively.We
Keep Questions Open Ended
The survey questions should be as open ended as possible. This is not scientific, as it cannot be quantified in small sample sizes, but it is the best way to avoid leading the respondent to a perceived answer. They may feel that you are looking for a particular response. This can happen when you use a scaled response survey such as ratings of 1 to 5 or 1 to 7. In my own personal experience this type of survey is best left to academics. In most cases you are looking for opinions and experiences of an individual. Ask questions like, "Could you explain how you felt about the experience when you last purchased a car?"
Keep Things Brief
There should be no more than 10 to 15 questions on the survey. The fewer questions and the more open ended the better the dialogue with the respondent and the more valuable the information.
The Wrap Up
At the end of the survey when I ask if they are interested in more information about my company and services they already have an idea of what to expect and are more likely to be open to hear and receive my message because there is no surprise and I was not beating them over the head with message. I merely made them think about their website or lack thereof.
Script = Professionalism
Once you have developed your survey you should write a script. I know - I can hear your sighs now - you don't want to sound like a robot or just another telemarketer but the use of a script will ensure that you sound like a professional. The danger with a script is that it might not be conversational or may not consider the person on the other end of the phone. To avoid sounding robotic and like you are reading a script you should read it aloud
The most common form of business security is the alarm system. Nowadays, business security technology can make your business extremely secure and provide the peace of mind. Both wired and wireless alarm systems are available in the market.The more thriving your business, the more interest it is likely to produce amongst intruders. In order to protect your business one of the primary things you need to do is set up safe cash flow practises. This includes correct recording procedures with regular appraisal. Often it has been found that the company's own workers tend to steal from the cash flow. Installing a monitored security alarm can guarantee business safety by keeping an eye on the workers and also lessen the amount of time a criminal is on premises and therefore restrict possible loss. Apart from monetary safeguard, it is also crucial to provide protected environment to the employers and the customers.The monitored alarms systems can be easily installed and can be supervised by professionals at a monitoring centre. Business security alarms protect all points of entry - doors and windows. Some of them a
The Wrap Up
At the end of the survey when I ask if they are interested in more information about my company and services they already have an idea of what to expect and are more likely to be open to hear and receive my message because there is no surprise and I was not beating them over the head with message. I merely made them think about their website or lack thereof.
Script = Professionalism
Once you have developed your survey you should write a script. I know - I can hear your sighs now - you don't want to sound like a robot or just another telemarketer but the use of a script will ensure that you sound like a professional. The danger with a script is that it might not be conversational or may not consider the person on the other end of the phone. To avoid sounding robotic and like you are reading a script you should read it aloud to yourself. If you are unsure about how it sounds try it out on someone in your home or office. The worst thing you can do is to call up someone and start in with, "Uuuhhmmm, could I speak to - uuuhhmmm�"
Your script should include a brief introduction. In my case my introduction went like this, "Hello, Mr. Adams. My name is Jay Gilmore. The reason I am calling is that I am doing some market research for my business services company in your area and I wanted to get some feedback from fellow business owners, like yourself."
Note that I didn't mention the name of my company. This shows the respondent that I am a person calling to talk to another person - people like to talk to people and not businesses.
Removing the Common Objection
The next words that come off the script are very important, "I am not going to try to sell you anything, and I just want to ask a few questions to help in planning my business."
This has worked every single time to break through the, "I'm not going to listen to a sales pitch" instinct that so many business owners and consumers have developed over the years.
Ask for Their Time
Now that I have broken through their resistance I am able to request permission and their time to do the survey. Be respectful of the respondent's time by making sure that the survey may be completed in less than five minutes. Tell them how long it will take - and be honest. It is not very professional to lie or mislead people about the time you are asking them for.
Once the survey is complete you should conclude by thanking the respondent for assisting you with your research.
The Marketing Starts Now - Actually it Already Started
The marketing part is next. In closing you should briefly introduce your company and the service being marketed. An example would be, " Thank you Mr. Adams for all your help. I would like to let you know that my business, Joe's Flowers is a local flower shop that specializes in arrangements and designs from North American plants and flowers. Would you be interested in receiving more information about our services and our company?"
After answering questions in your survey about flowers and their buying habits they are probably ready to find more information about your company and its products or services. Get their mailing address and / or email address and any other information you require to send them the information you want.
What to Send
Sending the information about your business can make or break this relationship. You have already gotten willing permission to send information to the respondent - now you have to send them something that will lead them to choose to buy your product or service or refer a friend or colleague.
The contents of the information package - be it electronic or print- should be a letter of introduction and thanks for the participation in the survey and some free and useful information that they will relate to regarding your product or services.
This information package is a first step to an ongoing relationship that will allow you to nurture goodwill and relationships with people who are actually interested in your business. The respondents will be expecting some form of marketing message but don't overdo it. Pushing too hard to close a sale at this stage will not work with this piece. This is not a direct mail promotion so don't treat it as such. That being, said don't hesitate to place importance and urgency on the message. Use benefit oriented copy to entice readers to take some form of action.
Follow-up Will Make the Sale - Well Some Anyway
As you bring the respondents closer to your business's products and or services by providing valuable informa
HTTP = HTML link (for blogs, profiles,phorums):
<a href="http://www.articledump.net/article/29341/articledump-Marketing-Lead-Generation-and-Research-A-3in1-Solution.html">Marketing, Lead Generation, and Research: A 3-in-1 Solution</a>
BB link (for phorums):
[url=http://www.articledump.net/article/29341/articledump-Marketing-Lead-Generation-and-Research-A-3in1-Solution.html]Marketing, Lead Generation, and Research: A 3-in-1 Solution[/url]
Related Articles:
Young Entrepreneurs - Ensuring Future Business Success During Childhood
What Your Employees Want You to Know (But You Might Be Afraid to Ask)
Bookmark it:
|