Enterprisers.in » Marketing

What a 9-Year-Old Can Teach You About Selling

yazdi — Tue, 08 May 2012 06:01:35 +0000

If you want your conversations to have a real impact, you need to simplify your message.

I recently read a study that confirmed my suspicion that most people don’t remember what we present to them in a sales call. The data suggested that the average buyer in a meeting will only remember one thing–one!–a week after your meeting.

Oh, and by the way: You don’t get to choose what that one thing is. Sigh.

Click Here for this interesting article

Marketing tips for SMEs

yazdi — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 06:50:45 +0000

Marketing is an extremely important function in any business – more so for a Small and Medium Enterprise (SME). But then it is very challenging too – both in terms of the media to be used and the cost at which you can achieve a widespread awareness and recall for your product or service. Let’s see how SMEs cope with these challenges and achieve higher spread at the least cost.

Referrals - this is the simplest and most powerful medium of getting new business. Ask your existing customers to refer you to their friends. Some will do it on their own, proactively, while some others will refer you only when asked by someone else. Both types of referrals are extremely valuable since more than half your job is already done by the referer. Trust, which is a vital part of any sale, is already built and you just need to agree on the commercial terms. You may like to reward your existing customers for a successful referral, to encourage them to refer more, or you may just like to send in a thank-you note. Remember to acknowledge and thank the referer always.

Social Media - Use the Social Media effectively to widen your reach. When using Social Media, be careful not to publicize your product or service aggressively. Promote yourself by being an expert on the subject and offering to help. The more your family and friends perceive you to be an expert in your chosen field, the more likely they are going to do business with you. Use Facebook, LinkedIn and your own personalised blogs to spread the word. Use these media intelligently, to drive the traffic to your own website.

Visibility - Here again, the idea is to promote yourself as an expert. Join a Chamber of Commerce or a Trade Association or a Networking Group and participate actively in its activities. Speak on the topics of your interest e.g. if you are in the Plastics Field, you can join a Plastic Manufacturers Association and give lectures, submit papers and lobby for the industry, which will get you quoted in Trade and General newspapers and magazines. Write articles in Magazines and Newspapers. The more you are known as a Plastics expert, the more people will turn to you for business.

Retain Customers - It is much more difficult and costly to get new customers as against retaining your existing customers. Pamper them, handle them with care and give them a bit more than their money’s worth. Implement a good Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system to follow up on leads, service and outstandings. Wish them on special occasions. Do all that you do for your family and they will be a part of your family and will stay with you for life.

Mailing Lists - Use mailing lists sensibly. Send mailers to your customers, friends, prospects and relatives. Pass on information selectively about the trends in your industry, new developments, etc. Use the 80-20 rule – Talk about your industry 80% and your own brand 20%. Mailers should not be too frequent and boring to be deleted on the spot, nor too far apart for the receiver to lose interest. Mailers should be made so interesting and valuable that the addressees should be looking forward to receiving the next one !

Advertising ? Advertising is one of the most costly and least remunerative methods of promoting yourself. In current times, owing to media clutter, the reader involuntarily switches his mind off the ads and relies more on recommendations and referrals. However, if you need to cast the net wide and your target audience is well identified with a particular medium, you may just want to try it out.

Be Ready - Above all, be ready with a brief overview of your business and its need. In a social meeting with friends or unknown people, if someone asks you – “What do you do and how can I help you ?” you should be ready with a 60 second pitch about yourself, your product / service, your immediate past achievements and your current needs. Keep practicing this pitch over and over – it should not sound rushed (don’t try and pack 5 minutes of info in 60 seconds ! ), but should be clear and concise.

Most of the above does not involve any heavy investment in terms of money. But they do require time to plan and execute effectively. Here again use the 80-20 principle – plan 80% and execute 20%, and you will reap rich rewards. Happy Marketing !

E-Series – Yazdi Tantra

Marketing Intelligence Services

yazdi — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 14:31:33 +0000

National Small Industries Corporation (NSIC) has setup a special website for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, based on information available with their Marketing Information Cell (MIC). The site proposes to share Marketing Intelligence Services, Marketing Tools, Infomediary Services, Technology Support and much more.

Click Here for the website

The TED Commandments

yazdi — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 06:36:53 +0000

The TED Talks promoters send this tablet as a guide for speakers prior to each event. In her TED Talk Amy Tan described the arrival of the TED Commandments as “something that creates a near-death experience; but near-death is good for creativity…”

Click Here for the TED Commandments

Networking Opportunities – Centrallia

yazdi — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 11:01:30 +0000

Centrallia event is based on the internationally recognized business to business match-making forum called Futurallia, which has successfully brought thousands of businesses together since its founding in 1990.
Core of the concept are a series of 30 minute, pre-programmed, one-on-one meetings that allow businesses to quickly connect and find ground for common opportunity. It is an intense, yet friendly and cooperative environment, that allows delegates to meet with up to 12 potential trade partners over two days. Pre fixed meetings are organised based on the profile of the participant.
Further opportunities to meet and network are abundant through Centrallia’s tradeshow and social events. It is simply one of the fastest, most efficient ways to expose your business to new markets and opportunities worldwide.

More than 500 small to medium sized businesses from around the world will gather in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, during Centrallia to form new business relationships of mutual benefit. This global business to business forum gives the opportunity to forge profitable alliances with companies located in the Americas and across the world. Participation from more than 20 world economic regions are expected.

Click Here for the Brochure

Click Here for the Presentation

Click Here for the website

Sankalp 2010

yazdi — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 08:53:45 +0000

The Sankalp 2010 Awards and Investment Forum is an annual Intellecap initiative committed to catalyzing entrepreneurship in the social enterprise space. Sankalp actively facilitates collaboration between established and budding entrepreneurs, investors, thought leaders and sector stakeholders interested in contributing effectively towards this fledgling yet fast-growing industry.

Sankalp 2010 Forum and Awards shall recognize, award and connect the most investible social MSMEs (Micro, Small and Medium enterprises) operating in 5 high impact sectors:

Agriculture, Food & Rural Business
Clean Energy
Inclusive Education
Health, Water & Sanitation, and
Technology for Development

Click Here for more information

Trade Information – India

yazdi — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 04:34:25 +0000

The Department of Commerce in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India, maintains a very interesting website - commerce.nic.in – with a host of Trade and Commercial Data. The data can be accessed Productwise, Countrywise and Regionwise. A must see for all into Local and International Trade. The site is well maintained and updated regularly.

Tenders Information System

yazdi — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 10:44:16 +0000

This Indian Government Tenders Information System is the Central Source for Government and Public Sector Procurement / Tenders/ Notifications issued by the Central and State Governments and other public bodies across India for goods, services and works.

Tenders based on specific Product/Service category to which your business can respond

Civil Works, Equipment, Machineries, Support Services…

View all Tenders floated by a certain Government of India entity

Central Govt. Min. / Dept.

Tender notifications by the Tender Category, namely

Click Here for this storehouse of the latest Tenders by the Government of India

Export Opportunities for SMEs

yazdi — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 05:59:24 +0000

Products that are exported by SMEs in India and in which small-scale industries (SSI) generally have the bulk of the share, are garments, engineering goods, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, leather, plastic products, processed food, gems and jewelery. Also, 95 percent of the products exported by the SSI are non traditional products. Click Here to read more….

http://dare.co.in/opportunities/other-business-opportunities/export-opportunities-for-smes.htm

How Big Brands Can Use Social Media

yazdi — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 01:38:44 +0000

One of the primary topics at recent industry events has been the barrier between big brands and social media. Ford Motor Company is one brand, however, that has not let that historic barrier stand in their way.

WebProNews spoke with Scott Monty, the Head of Social Media at Ford, who explained how the company first became involved with social media just a few years ago. Their efforts began as a hobby, but he helped them develop an approach to incorporate social into their overall business strategy.

Click Here for the Video