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Small
Business, BIG Marketing™
by Will
Dylan ©2004
CHAPTER 7 - WALKING
ADVERTISEMENTS (con't)
Another
Example
What about
the plumbing business? Here’s a quiz for you. Name 2
plumbers in your area. I’ll wait.
Couldn’t
do it, could you? Most plumbers are independent
businessmen and women. They don’t have big advertising
budgets, and they only service a local area.
So you can
imagine that a plumber, who sees 4 or 5 or maybe 6
clients a day would be well served by offering a
referral program. Turn
those 6 clients into 12 by having them each refer a
friend who has a plumbing problem.
Now
you’re saying that this is not possible. You only call
a plumber when you need one, so what good is a 10%
discount off your next plumbing job? It’s not like the
mechanic who does regular maintenance on your car. You
might use a plumber once, and then never again. How
would a plumber come up with a referral program?
I’m no
plumber, but here’s my idea. You refer any client to
me who has a job of $100 or more, and I’ll install a
brand new kitchen faucet for you at no charge. The
faucet won’t cost a plumber much, because he’s got
the inside track on deals in the industry. So a nice $80
faucet at the store probably costs him $40. And he can
put it in about 15 minutes or less. Now who wouldn’t
want a nice new kitchen faucet, installed free! All they
have to do is mention you to their friends. If one of
them calls, you make $100 less $40 for the faucet, and
gain another client for the future. Do that for a few
years and watch your business grow.
**Any
business can so this. Think about the connections and
knowledge that you have, and what value it represents to
your clients. Then package it up, just like the mechanic
or the plumber did in these examples. It could be simple
as 10% for a referred customer, or a little different
like our plumbing example. Either way, it creates
business at low cost. And that’s just the point,
isn’t it?**
**Another
point…you couldn’t name two plumbers in your local
area. Imagine if a plumber had taken the time and effort
to gain some publicity for their business on the local
news or in the newspaper, or taken advantage of our
money saving tips to advertise more effectively with a
small investment. In a business filled with no-names,
that plumber would probably stand out in your mind.**
Start Chapter 8 >>
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