How Do I Send a Brochure When I Don’t Have One?
Brenda asks:
“I’m getting calls from people who want me to send them a brochure, and because I don’t have one, I keep telling them to visit my Web site.
I feel like I’m losing sales because I hear these people say they don’t have a computer. How can I send a brochure when I don’t have one, don’t know how to make one, and don’t want to have them made because of the expense?”
I’m not sure which way you view a brochure, because in one sentence you say you think you’re losing money without one, and in another sentence you say that it’s an expense.
A brochure is either considered as an investment in your business or as an expense because its creation and distribution won’t increase your profits.
If you choose to not make a brochure, then stick to that choice. No designer can satisfy everyone that comes their way. However, keep tabs on the number of people requesting a brochure, because in time you may realize that there is a large amount of orders you’re deflecting without one.
Online printers make brochure creation available, and the investment of time and money may be worthwhile.
Look at the brochures through this link and this one, too (look for two more pages of brochure designs through those linked pages).
They weren’t made with online printer support because the Web wasn’t as popular then as it is now, but today these types of brochures can be designed online.
If your primary customers have computer connections, perhaps you don’t need a brochure. The decision is yours to make or break. Monitor the requests, and stay focused with or without printed material.
How Do I Keep Business Going Now?
Savannah asks:
“My gift basket sales are way down now, and I know I’m not alone. I’m very concerned. How do I keep my doors open while waiting for this economy to bounce back?”
The media continues to paint a grim economic picture, and while the facts are true, I still believe that “waiting for this economy to bounce back” will destroy your business.
These three examples represent reasons for buying gifts and baskets, and your business is in a great position to get these sales.
When a baseball is hit, the on-field team runs toward the ball rather than wait for the ball to roll to them. Waiting allows the other team to score or get into position to score. So, for you, waiting is similar to allowing a competitor to get the account.
Get into the sales game by going after clients rather than waiting for them to come to you.
Invest in breakfast or lunch with a loyal client. Mail letters or postcards. Do what’s necessary, within your budget, to make contact.
Waiting for the economy to get better is not an option.
Can I Get Customers Through a Mailing List?
Samantha asks:
“I bought a mailing list of corporate names and addresses, and I sent all of them a letter and my business card to order my gift baskets. It cost me a lot of money, and none of them ordered. I don’t know what to do now.”
I’ve spoken with other designers who, over the years, have had the same negative results. It happens for one main reason: people who don’t know you and don’t have any connection to you treat your mail like junk and feel no obligation to buy.
I thought about using this same route to build my business back in 1990, but the cost to rent a mailing list was too much for my budget, so I started treating the people in business that I know as if they were already customers.
These people have been mentioned in the past in my newsletters and on the Gift Basket Business blog: my doctor, insurance agent, accountant, bank manager, dog’s veterinarian, and others who already knew me. Getting them to buy was easier than asking strangers to become buyers.
I developed a group of letters, which are available here, to contact them, and through those letters, business grew steadily.
This is one of the major growth areas that stop many of us from succeeding and why designers in the Golden Basket Club get full doses of training in this area and watch their sales increase every month.
Use my example as one to create your own dynamic business.
