In this issue:
Cooperative Marketing Strategies
Putting Your Business on the Internet For FREE
Have you ever noticed how many corporations market their products and services with each other? For example: McDonalds, Mattel, and Coca-Cola.
Why do you think they do that?
Working cooperatively with other companies can save you money on your marketing and advertising. It also brings in additional customers that you may not have reached through your own efforts. Same goes for those businesses you market cooperatively with. It is a win-win situation for all of you.
So how can you make this strategy work for you?
Take a good look at your business. Who are your customers? What other types of products and services would appeal to them? What other businesses supply these types of products and services?
Next make a list of the businesses that market to the same target market. Then investigate their services to see that you are not in direct competition with them. Categorize each of the other businesses so that you have similar businesses grouped together.
For example, if you are marketing cloth diapers, find companies that provide other services to new or expecting parents. Child care, children's resale shops, a Discovery Toy's consultant, midwives, nanny, maid service, companies that prepare and deliver home cooked meals, nutrition consultants, breastfeeding clinics, doctors. And group them according to their services so that each group is not competing with another.
Then start brainstorming about how you could coordinate an offering or advertising venture with these businesses. For example, they could each offer discounts or coupons that could be put in a welcome package for a new mom and handed out by the physician's office. Or you could run a series of larger ads in a local paper announcing a gift package that could be given to new parents. An announcement of this offering should be sent to the customer list of ALL involved businesses.
A package of this type could include diaper service for a month, a one time maid service for the new mom, a few days of prepared meals from a food delivery service, a toy for the baby. These gift packages could be sold to the customer at a reduced rate and have additional information about other products and services in the packet for the new parents.
Once you have your business list, idea list and benefit list together you can start contacting the other businesses. Ask to speak to the owner or the person that handles their advertising. Present your plan to them and see who is interested. Get a couple dates/times that are best for them to meet. Schedule a meeting of all the interested parties and present your ideas to them. See what other ideas they come up with and start firming up your plan of attack. Will you put the materials together yourself, or hire someone (they may want to work cooperatively with you also!)? Find an interested business from within each category so that none of the businesses are in direct competition with each other.
The same principle can be applied online. Check out the website at: http://www.HomeImages.com. This is a cooperative marketing effort put together for businesses that provide products and services to homeowners. This group markets together on and off line.
If you are interested in setting up a cooperative marketing program on the Internet, you can contact Terri Gray with Gray's Internet Consulting for a FREE consultation and proposal. She can assist you in establishing and marketing your Internet Business.
There are a number of ways you can market and promote your business on the Internet for FREE. Some of these methods include:
These signatures are not typed each time. If you are using Eudora, go to Window on the menu and then select signature. You can type your info in at that location.
If using Netscape, prepare your signature in your word processing program and save the file as a text file. Then from the Netscape menu select Options and then Mail and News Preferences. Select the file that says Identity. You will see a place that says signature. Just use the browse button to find where you saved your signature text file and you're all set.
For more information on establishing a FREE Internet Presence, read the report at: http://www.homeimages.com/gray/corporat.htm.
Setting up your home office and tips for how to work with small children at home. Next issue will include tips on writing ads that sell.
Go To: Should Your Company Be Online?
Email your comments and suggestions to: grays@homeimages.com