Huge Benefits of Business To Business Marketing

Huge Benefits of Business To Business Marketing:

Business to business marketing has advantages over marketing to consumers that make marketing even easier.  Business to business companies market their products and services to businesses rather than consumers in general. Some of the most successful businesses exclusively supply to other businesses.  This is one of the most lucrative business models possible today, and it has proven to be especially profitable when the business is conducted online. If you're considering going into business providing products or services, then you'll want to look into operating a business to business company.

With online business to business operation and marketing, many of the expenses of running a traditional business are gone or greatly reduced.  This positively affects all the other aspects of running the company.  Less expense means less time spent managing the money going out, and more money for important things like business to business marketing and promotion. No company will succeed without an advertising and promotion budget.  And as many large, worldwide corporations have shown, the more money spent advertising, the more people become familiar with the brand. That breaks down into more customers and more profit.

A company that does its business chiefly online won't need the storefront that a traditional business does. And company that relies on business to business marketing wouldn't benefit from a traditional storefront anyway.  Since traditional customers won't be coming in and out browsing goods or asking about services, the need for a traditional shop area is eliminated.  This drops overhead costs dramatically.  There's no huge warehouse or building to pay heating, cooling and lighting bills on, and no need for insurance to protect customers.

There's also no need to pay a staff to man such a store, which eliminates many of the expenses associated with being an employer.  An online company that chiefly exists through business to business marketing may still have employees and some expense, but the lack of a storefront will greatly reduce the costs associated with managing employees.

Now, money that would have been spent on necessities like payroll and utilities can be better spent business to business marketing and increasing the customer base.  The expense of promotion is also lessened with this business model because it's so much easier to identify a target market.  There's not as much need to figure out exactly which consumer to market to as there would be with most consumer products. 

With business to business marketing, what it is that you're offering to business automatically identifies your target markets for you. If you're selling general business products like paper or office supplies, then your market is large and wide open, and you'd do best finding a particular angle to market your products to each specific industry.  But if you choose a product or service that's very specialized, your marketing research is simplified a great deal. 

The internet is great for b2b marketing because of its word-of-mouth properties. While many of your customers will find you thanks to your business to business marketing and promotion, many more will because of social networking.

Keep Customers Buzzing About Your Business

Use Email Marketing To Keep Customers
Buzzing About Your Business

by Tim Knox

Email marketing can be a great tool to keep you in the forefront of your customers' minds. But don't stop at just sending out a weekly or monthly newsletter. Here are some email ideas that will have your customers buzzing about your business.

Email marketing can be used as an effective tool for communicating with customers. Its is an effective medium of communication to boost sales by ensuring that your customers constantly remember you.

Obviously Paul's dentist reads my column because I've been preaching about using email to keep in touch with customers for years. OK, maybe he doesn't read my column and is just a brilliant guy in his own right. Either way, the point is clear: using email - no matter what type of business you're in - is an excellent way to keep the lines of communication buzzing between you and those folks who keep you in business.The other day my radio show cohost, Paul Finley, mentioned that he had received an email from his dentist. The point of the email was to let Paul know that his office would be closed for a week and included instructions on what to do in case of a dental emergency.

You'll notice that I didn't say to keep the lines of communication "open." I said to keep the lines of communication "buzzing," as in active, as in constantly communicating messages that will entice them back into your business.

The difference is huge. "Open" simply means that you're there if and when your customers happen to think about you. "Buzzing" means that you proactively do things to keep your business in the forefront of your customer's mind. Instead of waiting for them to come in only when they need something, you send emails that give them reasons to come in as soon as possible. You don't wait for Mohammed to come to the mountain; you send the mountain to Mohammed via email.

It's called "email marketing" and every business - including yours - should be doing it. Don't confuse email marketing with spamming. The emails you send your customers are never unsolicited or intrusive. You get their permission to send them occasional emails that are of benefit to them. And by benefiting them you increase your business and solidify your relationship with the customer.

Ideally you should collect email addresses from everyone who walks through your door, whether they buy something or not. Offer them the opportunity to sign up for your free email newsletter or announcement list and offer them an incentive to do so, maybe a $10 discount off their first purchase if they sign up today. The allure of saving $10 not only entices them to give you their email address, but to also make that first purchase while they are there to save the $10. See how that works? You got them added to your email list and they made an immediate purchase. You can now use email marketing techniques to turn them from a one time customer into a repeat customer.

Remember the number one rule of sales: it's easier to sell to current customers than to sell to new customers. The first sale is always the hardest. You should concentrate on building a legion of repeat customers and email marketing can help you do that.

Email should be a part of every business's marketing strategy. If you own a hair or nail salon you could email customers on slow days and offer a special discount if they come in by a certain time. If you own a clothing store you could email your customers every time a new clothing line comes in or if you're having a sale. If you're in the furniture business can email your customers about excess inventory and offer them a discount if they come in by a certain date.

Email marketing works for professional service providers, as well. Accountants can email their clients with special bulletins about changes in the tax law or to remind them when it's time to file forms. Stockbrokers can email clients about changes in the stock market or to tell about a hot new IPO that's on the horizon.

Doctors and dentists can use email marketing to notify patients that it's time for their annual checkup, to remind them of impending appointments, to inform them of new office hours, or to let them know about new services. Or perhaps you're in practice building mode and you want to offer a referral bonus for current patients who refer their friends and family to you.

You get the idea. Email marketing can increase your business's revenues, solidify your reputation, and keep you fresh on your customer's mind.

If you have questions about putting email marketing to work for your business just shoot me an email and I'll point you in the right direction. Or if you've successfully used email marketing to increase your business let me know about it and I'll share the news.

I'm sure others would love to hear about how smart you are.