Small Business Marketing & Profit Growth Specialists
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HI All,
Please note that whilst in hiatus somewhat online this year, I have been planning my new blog that will be launched in the coming days under a new domain… I will annunce it on here once I have finished painting the walls and moving the couches in lol…
You know what I mean…
Then I will be unleashing the blog that I have always planned… stay tuned people…
Regards
Darren
Hi All, very excited to announce that we now have a brand new home for us at Turning Point Business Consulting, on facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DarrenHughesOnline.
Click on the “Like” button, and receive a Free Copy of my latest book PLUS go into the monthly prize draw for up to $1,000 in Free Coaching from me… see you on the other side,…
Regards
Darren Hughes – Director, Turning Point Business Consulting
http://www.TurningPointBC.com
http://www.Facebook.com/darrenhughesonline
Hi Guys, a quick invitation fo you to get your own copy of my new book entitled …
This book is jam packed with simple and easy to follow strategies that you can implement into your business TODAY and start growing your business…..
To secure your very own copy, simply sign up for your Free copy at the side bar at the top of this page ( just over there on the right —> )
Enjoy !
Darren
What would you do ? You have a business
in the beauty industry (day spa, massage, beauty or hair salon etc etc) and you are offered $2,500+ in Free Gifts from a local restaurant and over $9,000 in gift from a local gym that you could use to pamper your clients and show them how much you appreciate them… If it was me, I would say where do I line up ???… Some people just ‘get it’ I guess and other’s don’t…Sigh….
Hey, I just stumbled across this very cool site. http://namechk.com/.
We all know that everyone is oooing and ahhhing about social media. And when you do go to take the plunge and dive in, how do you know if the user name you want to use is even available on Facetube… Youbook … Twatter… (could not help myself… I actually like “FaceTube” maybe I should register it… Always reminds me of Captain Slow ‘James May’ from Top Gear… 
you know, all these sites that you have heard of that everyone is talking about… Well, now you can find out, quickly and easily. Check out http://namechk.com/ one hit of the button and you will see if your ‘handle’ has been taken already at over 60 of the worlds mot used and talked about social media sites… time is money and I LOVE sites like this that just make life easier…
Would love your feedback
Let me know your thoughts …
Darren Hughes
Turning Point Business Consulting
Melbourne, Australia
http://www.Turning PointBC.com
· A dry cleaner could offer a clothes retailer a $20 voucher to include with any suit or dress purchase.
· A restaurant could offer a meal worth $100 for $20 to upmarket car dealers, real estate agents, etc. to give as a gift to their clients to celebrate their purchase/sale.
· A Bank could hand out a copy of a Free Book or a Free Report by a Business Service Provder, to their small business clients when they take out a new business loan.
The opportunities are endless… The most important thing is to get out there and make it happen. Don’t expect that you can sit there and the business will come to you. Go out there and GET THE BUSINESS !
What else can I say about this method ?Only 4% of retailers in the USA use direct mail. In Australia this figure is lower. And yet … dollar for dollar, nothing sells products as effectively as direct mail. Start collecting your customers’ names, addresses and telephone numbers today!
I have pleaded, cajoled and written about using direct mail. I’ve talked about it until I’m blue in the face. And still, most people I know don’t use it! So please don’t be one of those people.
Warmest Regards
Darren Hughes – Director
Turning Point Business Consulting ( http://www.TurningPointBC.com)
Visit my site & sign up for a Free Copy of my latest book …
“77 Free & Low Cost Strategies Guaranteed to Attract New
Customers & Clients into your Small Business in ANY Economy”
New post testing out AGAIN this new Posterous platform… bugger me, it actually works… how good is this ?… My empire can now expand even more.
Magazines and newspapers all over the country are hungry for news about products. Every publication starts out with lots of blank pages and editors and journalists are looking for something new, something to fill those pages.
Press releases can help you sell your product in three ways:
Send your press release to magazines and journals particular to your business, and try all the others too. You never know who will pick it up and print it for you.
Once you get a few press releases printed and get sales from them, use these articles and sales as tools to get other wholesalers and agents interested in what you’ve got to offer.
Darren Hughes
Small Business Profit Growth Specialist
This is the best kept secret in the mail order industry. If you are marketing products directly through TV infomercials (half hour commercials), newspaper ads and mail order, you will sell 8 times more again if you also get the buyers into your retail store.
In fact, the really switched on retailers and corporations (including banks), are jumping on the direct mail and direct response marketing bandwagon like hungry fleas jumping on a dog. All hands on deck so to speak.
So before we can look at different ways to sell your product, we need to look at what most people in business are doing. In most cases, they only sell their products through one ‘selling channel’ – a retailer will only sell in a shop, a wholesaler will only sell to retailers using agents or sales representatives, a mail order merchant will only sell using mail order, and so on.
If you compare your business with a building that is only supported by one foundation pillar (the selling channel), and the building gets bigger and bigger, that’s OK as long as that pillar remains strong. However, if for any reason the pillar weakens, your whole building comes crashing down.
If, on the other hand, you build your business on many pillars (selling channels) and one of them weakens due to economy or whatever – your business still stands strong.
In other words, the more ways you sell or distribute your product the more solid your business. Joseph Cossman – a self made millionaire – used this multiple selling channel technique to sell millions of dollars worth of products over 20 years! In his opinion:
· 25% of your success is product
· 75% of your success is in the selling and promotion of that product
He used this procedure dozens of times and it never failed him.
We’ll take a look at the successful formula that Joseph Cossman and many other successful business owners have used, but before we do so, you’ll need to develop a couple of selling tools to promote your new product.
Tool 1 : Promotional Article
A new product is likely to be sold through several ‘selling channels’. To be able to do this you’ll need a ‘promotional article’ or a catalogue sheet, written about your product. This sheet should have a photo of your product and a good description of what your product is and how it’s to be used, plus what benefits the customers will get by using your product. Keep this sheet low cost – black and white will do fine.
This selling tool will be used to give to your distributors, to accompany press releases, used at trade shows and so on. This information should also be reproduced on your website.
Tool 2 : A Testimonial Sheet
This should be from your satisfied customers, end users, distributors and dealers. Testimonials sell, and give your product credibility. The best way to get them is to record your happy customers telling you why they liked using your product or doing business with you. That way you can use the testimonial in a transcribed form (on paper), or on CD of your website. If your products are expensive enough to warrant it, you can even do the testimonial on video which is really effective.
Tool 3 : A Good Sales Letter (Or Two)
This is what will accompany the first two selling tools. A good sales letter will open many doors for you and your products, when you are selling to wholesalers, distributors, retail and business customers.
Now that we have the necessary ‘selling tools’, over the coming weeks and months of this blog, we will look at how we can use them to sell your products. Obviously, not all of the ideas, strategies and concepts will apply for every product or service, but with just a little imagination I am sure you’ll be able to make some of them fit whatever you are selling…
Onwards & Upwards…
Darren Hughes
“The Small Business Profit Growth Specialist”
The tips, hints, strategies and ideas that you will find on this blog, will provide you with a step-by-step, ‘sales and marketing’ manual for starting / growing your small business. Each of these ideas you can think of as a ‘Business Booster’, a little nugget of an idea that you can implement into your business to boost cash flow, and make your business more profitable…
“How do I make a meaningful difference to my bottom line?” is a question that most small business owners ask themselves. If you put any one of the ideas that you find on this blog into practice, it will create such an impact in your business, I guarantee you it will leave you begging for more.
Your existing customers are the hottest market you’ve got, and yes, you must have a good product and customer service. What links the two together is marketing, and the facts are that out of 100 products, 90 never get past the initial development and testing stages and, of the 10 that do, 7 will fail in the market within 3 years.
To add insult to injury, 80% of new businesses are gone within 3-5 years. Why? Because, in the vast majority of cases, people have no idea how to sell, promote or market their products.
“Most people I meet have brilliant skills in their field of expertise or have a great product, but they can’t market their way out of a wet paper bag”
In any business, marketing is everything. Your marketing and sales skills are the bridge that spans from your product to your potential (and existing) customers.
Here you will find the biggest mistakes that most people are probably making right now in their marketing efforts.
The mark of a true champion, whether in business or in sport, is the ability to come up with a winner when the chips are down, and to do it consistently whenever it’s needed. That’s why the world’s top cricket players practice thousands of catches – so that they won’t drop that one crucial one. It is why gymnasts do hundreds of repetitions of the same move, over and over again, so that when the pressure is on, they’ll get it right.
What do you think? Are you ready to be a champion – a consistent champion ?
Good ! Look at it this way … whether you get great results or just get by in your business, you are still going to have to spend some time playing the game … So why not be the best ? And to be the best you must master the basics first, because when it comes to making money, marketing and sales is where it’s at. Get the basics right and the results will take care of themselves….
Onwards & Upwards…
Darren Hughes
Director, Turning Point Business Consulting
httpvhd://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uASVzkrEKgs
Quite Simply the BEST 3 minutes & 10 seconds you can possibly invest today….
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTGpCS6P0t8
“As the Director of Turning Point Business Consulting & Team Leader for Victoria of the Better Business Institute, I bring to the table nearly 20 years of sales & marketing experience. I’ve spent my career on a continuous journey, studying, learning & experiencing first hand what it takes to start, grow & maintain a successful business.
I’ve seen business from both sides of the fence, both as an employee & as an employer. I spent the early part of my career in various sales & marketing roles in the retail & banking / finance industry, working for some of Australia’s leading companies including Australia Post, Target Australia & the National Australia Bank. I also enjoyed several years in the Restaurant / Hospitality industry both here in Australia & overseas in Japan.
In 1998, I decided that it was time for me to work for myself & leapt into the realm of small business, purchasing a small Personal Training business & turning it from a start up operation with a mere handful of clients into a thriving business success.
I personally worked with over 2,753 people from all walks of life, helping them to take those all important first steps back on the road to a healthier, happier, stronger, fitter & more confidant way of life.
I grew the business dramatically over that period & sold my business seven years later for over nine times what I paid for it ! How did I do this ? – By SMART Marketing. By learning & understanding what the cornerstones of a successful business really are. Learning what works, what doesn’t & understanding the key areas that are absolutely vital to the growth & long term success of any business. It was a wonderful business & a very rewarding time of my life, but after the birth of our two children, I realised that it was time once more for a change in direction.
While running my Personal Training business, I remember meeting many small business owners who were struggling, stumbling along & with businesses that were never really reaching their true potential. Many of them unfortunately did not make it & ended up closing their doors for good. I realised that I wanted to share with others what I had learned. How to start, grow & maintain a successful, thriving business that truly allowed the business owner to lead the life they desired. To earn the kind of income that they desire, to be in a position to choose how many hours per week they work, and to be able to step back and have a holiday when and where they want without panicking about whether the business will be ok…
Since then, I have worked with a number of clients in the retail, hospitality & health / fitness industries & am always looking for small business owners who want to be successful & are serious & really committed to growing their businesses & taking them to a whole new level. If this does describe you, then give me a call & who knows, we may be able to work together to transform your business & rapidly expand your bank account !”
What is it going to cost you ? … Nothing, well… I may expect a Coffee…
But other than that, there are no strings attached. I do respect the time of the people I meet, but I also greatly value my time. So if you are just wishful thinking, then this opportunity is NOT for you. But, if you are open to new ideas around getting more clients into your small business, getting them coming back more often, spending more money, and referring more business to you… then I suggest that you give me a call. We can then schedule a time to sit down, have a chat about your business and see if there may be some way I can help you.
Looking forward to perhaps speaking with you soon…
Warmest Regards
Darren Hughes
Director – Turning Point Business Consulting
