Sales Intelligentsia

Prospecting Tools: Brochures

Everybody seems to want a brochure. Yet I often wonder if they are as effective as they should be. Many times a request for a brochure during a sales call is a signal of a brush-off. Brochures are effective tools if you use them effectively. They serve as a central information piece for your business, another contact in a series and give your customers something to read when they have nothing better to do. If you have a service that requires explanation or a product that has many relevant features and specifications by all means have a brochure done by professionals. Otherwise, consider using the money for something more effective.
My reservations about brochures are strictly based on a sales perspective. From a marketing point of view there may be many reasons to do one. In the sales process they can interrupt the flow of a presentation or divert the customer’s attention while you are gathering vital information. Don’t rely too heavily on brochures as selling tools.

Prospecting Tools: Business Cards

Business cards are remarkably powerful tools in the sales process. They contain all the information a prospect needs to contact you at any time. They’re small enough to fit in a wallet or rotary file, yet they can be visually memorable if well-designed. You can write notes on the back or even offer a mini-brochure listing a few benefits of your business. Handing one to someone usually results in them giving you theirs, establishing permission for you to contact them.
Have a high-end graphic designer do your cards and have them printed on high quality stock by a reputable printer. Your designer can handle the printing. Cheap generic cards or laser printed cards are fine for temporary use but you do not want to convey a sense of being temporary so get good ones as soon as possible. You don’t want to scrimp here because these little contact makers are often the only reminder a prospect may keep of you and your business.
Your primary goal after getting a new batch of cards should be to get rid of them. Hand them out at the drop of a hat. Attach them to all outgoing mail including bill payments, invoices, letters etc., even if you know the recipient already has one. Don’t worry if they seem to have no connection with your business. They may know someone who does. I have a friend who went to a party for a college buddy at a run-down house. While there he got talking to another guest who was a relative of the hosts. After chatting they exchanged cards which he didn’t really look at because it seemed an unlikely place to make business a connection. When he got home and emptied his pockets he discovered he’d been talking to the CEO of a Fortune 500 company! Needless to say it was a good connection.

Prospecting Tools: Logo

A logo is a visual symbol of your business. Logos were originally developed because the majority of the customers were illiterate. A wheelwright used a hanging wheel for a sign or logo, a blacksmith an anvil, etc. Today logos are equally important because we know that as many as fifty per cent of us primarily think in pictures. These visual thinkers remember and represent things subconsciously in images and a strong image has much more resonance with them that a set of words which must be represented aurally in the mind. Have a simple effective logo designed by a good graphic designer and use it on your marketing materials in a consistent manner- same color, same type, etc. Consistency builds acceptance.