Marketing without Advertising

Michael Phillips, Salli Rasberry0873376080, 9780873376082

This book teaches small business owners to the secrets to making a business dazzle. it provides practical advice on how to attract new customers, satisfy the regulars, and turn dissatisfied one-timers into loyal supporters. It details strategic methods for effective pricing, customer education, improving store appearance, “spreading the word” and utilizing the internet – both for marketing and direct sales. A must-have for any small business owner!”

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Table of contents :
Web Resources……Page 0
Table of Contents……Page 9
Introduction……Page 13
1. Advertising: The Last Choice in Marketing……Page 15
A. The Myth of Advertising’s Effectiveness……Page 17
C. Why Dependence on Advertising Is Harmful……Page 22
D. Advertisers: Poor Company to Keep……Page 23
E. Honest Ads……Page 26
F. Branding……Page 28
G. Listings: “Advertising” That Works……Page 29
2. Personal Recommendations: The First Choice in Marketing……Page 33
A. Cost-Effectiveness……Page 34
B. Overcoming Established Buying Habits……Page 36
C. Basing Your Marketing Plan on Personal Recommendations……Page 37
D. When Not to Rely on Word of Mouth for Marketing……Page 39
3 The Physical Appearance of Your Business……Page 43
A. Conforming to Industry Norms……Page 44
B. Fantasy: A Growing Part of Retail Marketing……Page 47
C. Evaluating Your Business’s Physical Appearance……Page 53
4. Pricing……Page 55
A. Straightforward and Easy-to-Understand Prices……Page 56
B. Complete Prices……Page 57
C. Giving Customers Reasonable Control Over the Price……Page 60
D. Internet Pricing……Page 63
5. The Treatment of People Around You……Page 65
A. Tracking Reputations via the Grapevine……Page 66
B. How Employees Spread the Word……Page 67
C. Common Employee Complaints……Page 71
D. Handling Employee Complaints……Page 73
E. Finding Out What Employees Are Thinking……Page 75
F. Suppliers……Page 77
G. Business Friends and Acquaintances……Page 81
H. Individuals Who Spread Negative Word of Mouth About Your Business……Page 83
I. Your Behavior in Public……Page 84
6. Openness: The Basis of Trust……Page 87
A. Financial Openness……Page 89
B. Physical Openness……Page 91
C. Openness in Management……Page 92
D. Openness With Information……Page 94
E. Openness With Ideas……Page 97
7. Deciding How to Educate Potential Customers……Page 101
A. What Does Your Business Do?……Page 102
B. Defining the Domains in Which Your Business Operates……Page 107
C. Providing Information on Businesses in Established Fields……Page 110
D. Businesses in New or Obscure Fields……Page 113
E. Whom to Educate……Page 115
8. How to Let Customers Know Your Business Is Excellent……Page 125
A. Tell Them Yourself……Page 127
B. Help Customers Judge for Themselves……Page 131
C. Giving Customers Authority for Your Claims……Page 140
9. Helping Customers Find You……Page 145
A. Finding Your Business……Page 147
B. Convenience of Access……Page 149
C. Signs……Page 151
D. Telephone Accessibility……Page 152
E. Listing Your Services Creatively and Widely……Page 157
F. Getting Referrals From People in Related Fields……Page 159
G. Trade Shows and Conferences……Page 161
10. Customer Recourse……Page 165
A. Elements of a Good Recourse Policy……Page 168
B. Designing a Good Recourse Policy……Page 169
C. Telling Customers About Your Recourse Policy……Page 172
D. Putting Your Recourse Policy in Writing……Page 173
11. Marketing on the Internet……Page 177
A. The Importance of Passive Internet Marketing……Page 179
B. Yellow Pages Plus……Page 181
C. What to Put on Your Site……Page 183
D. Designing an Internet Site……Page 187
E. Interactivity and Customer Screening……Page 190
F. How to Help People Find You Online……Page 192
G. Active Internet Marketing……Page 195
12. Designing and Implementing Your Marketing Plan……Page 197
A. Your Marketing List: The “Who” of Your Marketing Plan……Page 198
B. How to Evaluate Your List……Page 199
C. Marketing Actions and Events: The “What” of Your Marketing Plan……Page 201
D. Direct Marketing Actions……Page 203
E. Parallel Marketing Actions……Page 211
F. Peer-Based Marketing Actions……Page 217
13. The Last Step: Creating a Calendar of Events……Page 223
A. Marketing Calendar for an Interior Design Firm……Page 224
B. Marketing Calendar for Jerry and Jess’s New Chiropractic Clinic……Page 226
Recommended Reading……Page 235
Help Beyond This Book……Page 237
Worksheets……Page 239
Physical Appearance That Develops Trust……Page 241
Evaluating Your Pricing Policy……Page 243
Employee Questionnaire……Page 245
Questionnaire for Suppliers……Page 247
How Open Is Your Business?……Page 249
What My Business Does……Page 251
The Domains in Which Your Business Operates……Page 253
Do People Know What You Do?……Page 255
Do You “Tell Them Yourself”?……Page 257
How Customers Can Evaluate Your Business……Page 259
Referrals……Page 261
Customer Referrals……Page 263
Mail Accessibility Checklist……Page 265
Walk-In Accessibility Checklist……Page 267
Listing Questionnaire……Page 269
Customer Recourse Policies and Practices……Page 271
Your Marketing List……Page 273
Designing Direct Marketing Events……Page 275
Designing Parallel Marketing Events……Page 277
Marketing Event Worksheet……Page 279
Index……Page 281
Related Products……Page 289