To serve as the voice of the pest control industry, protecting the livelihood of pest management professionals while fostering education, promoting professionalism, raising ethical standards, enhancing environmental stewardship, improving public health and quality of life.
By Mark L. Hendrickson, Wingra Group
Last week I walked into an auto parts store to buy a new set of spark plugs. While there, I found a discount coupon on the counter for the nearby jiffy-lube. Because I needed an oil change, I drove over and found a coupon on their counter for $5 off any purchase at the auto parts store. These two businesses were sending customers to each other through fusion marketing.
Pest control business owners can do the same thing. As a business owner, you always tend to think you have to do it all. But with fusion marketing you can take your pest control business to levels you never thought possible.
Likely partners in fusion marketing are those that have a similar target market as yours, but do not compete with you. Examples in other areas might be a graphic designer and a printer, a wedding photographer and a caterer. In the pest control industry, fusion marketing partners might be a cleaning service company, facility maintenance and management firms, or real estate brokerages. Your fusion marketing affiliates are limited only by your imagination. Think about the companies that you do business with. These might include a vehicle leasing firm, a waste management company, office supply store, computer consultant, or an accounting firm. Would they make for an appropriate fusion marketing partner?
The type of deal you arrange can take many forms other than the coupon exchange noted above. For example, you can compile mail lists for a joint direct mail campaign; you can make joint sales calls, or make special offers together.
Here are a few quick steps to establish your own fusion marketing program.
1. Define your partners. Make a list of businesses that have similar prospects as you, but are not in the same business. Contact them with your idea.
2. Determine your offer. Work with your partner to create your joint offer.
3. Draft a general letter of agreement. This does not have to be a heavy-duty legal document. Just describe who does what and who gets what.
4. Prepare the materials. Write the marketing copy, sales letter, etc. You can draft it, or both of you can and then compare notes. Remember to always make the pitch benefit oriented and answer the prospect’s question of “what’s in it for me?”
5. Combine your prospect lists and get to work. Don’t worry about who has the larger list. Once they’re combined, there is greater strength in any case.
6. Respond at once. Make it easy for prospects to do business with you. Follow up at once to answer their questions and earn their business.
7. Evaluate. What was the bottom line effectiveness of the campaign? What would you change? How will you continue in the future?
That’s about it. If you take the steps above, identify logical affiliates, and plan your fusion marketing program, you have a good chance of increasing your revenue.
Mark L. Hendrickson is President of The Wingra Group, a marketing and business development firm in Madison. For more information, contact him at mark@wingragroup.com.
By Tim Dollmeyer, ActionCOACH, Business Coach
Building your business requires you to continue to attract new leads. Here are some ideas for finding leads without breaking your budget. That’s right, I’m talking about marketing. Does the word inspire fear, dread, or anxiety? Keep in mind that everything about your business is marketing. If you own a business, you are a marketer.
Want to know what caliber marketer you are? Check your bank account balance. That is your ultimate marketing scorecard. You see, marketing involves much more than advertising. Every contact to anyone outside of your company is marketing.
Jay Conrad Levinson, the father of guerilla marketing has several definitions of marketing. One of my favorites is, “the truth made fascinating.”
Lead generation is all about finding new prospects that will give you permission to sell to them. It’s important to understand that, as a small to medium-sized business owner, you have to create several lead generation (hereafter called marketing) strategies that work together. Before you begin testing new strategies, you need to know what you currently have. Otherwise, you won’t know if your new investments have paid off. Measure everything!
Next, create a plan. You need to know what you want (vision), why you want it (mission), and have a clear direction (plan). This plan includes all of your current marketing strategies and those that you will eventually implement. Because the economic situation is tight, you need to be sure that your marketing will bring results. That’s why I love guerilla marketing. It’s the most cost effective way to find and retain clients.
The best way to find new clients is referrals from your current clients. In fact, your clients are the best sales force that you have – better at selling than your best salesperson. Do you ask for referrals? How do you do it? Do you really think that your clients will remember to tell everyone about you? This is where fusion marketing comes in.
When asking for a referral, why not make it easy for your client and provide her with a brochure. That brochure will direct her to your website where you can educate her on your services. You may opt to sell online, or you may want your new prospect to call you or submit a form so you can send her an information packet, followed by a call to schedule an appointment. Within this article, I have listed five strategies that build on each other – one type of fusion marketing. For another type of fusion marketing, see the other article in this issue of WPCA’s e-mail newsletter.
The best way to discover more marketing strategies is education. There are many books written on the subject. Create for yourself an unfair advantage by being the best marketer in your field.
Tim Dollmeyer is a certified ActionCOACH business coach. If you have questions, call 262-672-2915 or email timdollmeyer@actioncoach.com.