Friday, June 13, 2008
Marketing Strategies
Marketing Strategies
Tune in to WIIFM
By Renee Barber
Many businesses bemoan the downturn in sales and ‘lack of customer loyalty’. (One of the terms for these types of consumers is: ‘brand tarts’). They try to pinpoint the source of the problem with expensive consultants or simply throw advertising dollars at the issue, only to end up bewildered (and jaded) when they don’t work. What’s the solution? Believe it or not, the first step may just be to switch radio stations.
One of my first instructors in my marketing course mentioned that we should tune into the WIIFM radio station as our assignment for the week. With no small amount of confusion, we all looked at each other and wondered if our instructor badly needed a holiday.
When our instructor wrote down this acronym, the lights began to go on:
WIIFM = ‘What’s in it for me?’
Every time you draft a direct sales letter, or write that award-winning copy for a glitzy brochure, you need to keep that little statement in mind.
Sure, you want to sell 100,000 of your nice, shiny products, but what does your consumer want?
Customers who buy boats don’t just want to get from point A to point B.
Home builders don’t sell a house; they sell a lifestyle.
Customers who need a web site don’t (necessarily) want the most technologically advanced site in the world. (Sorry, but this isn’t just an exercise for folio building!) They want a marketing tool that gets results.
As soon as you start picking up on the waves from WIIFM, and creating marketing materials that are attuned to your customer’s needs, the results will be music to your ears.
Renée Barber is the owner/operator of Rising Star Designs & Communication. She is based in Melbourne, Australia, but accepts clients from around the world (have PayPal, will travel). If you require a designer who writes, or a writer who designs, you've found the right person.
Most people would agree that a picture is worth a thousand words, but anyone who has ever read a profoundly moving book also knows that 'word pictures' are no less powerful or creative than a painting. Bringing that same ethos to business communication is what Rising Star Designs & Communication is all about.
If you want a company which creates communication, not just ads—or builds bridges with your customers, not just web sites—contact Renée today.
Rising Star Designs & Communication 'the perfect marriage of words and design' http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Renee_Barber
Tune in to WIIFM
By Renee Barber
Many businesses bemoan the downturn in sales and ‘lack of customer loyalty’. (One of the terms for these types of consumers is: ‘brand tarts’). They try to pinpoint the source of the problem with expensive consultants or simply throw advertising dollars at the issue, only to end up bewildered (and jaded) when they don’t work. What’s the solution? Believe it or not, the first step may just be to switch radio stations.
One of my first instructors in my marketing course mentioned that we should tune into the WIIFM radio station as our assignment for the week. With no small amount of confusion, we all looked at each other and wondered if our instructor badly needed a holiday.
When our instructor wrote down this acronym, the lights began to go on:
WIIFM = ‘What’s in it for me?’
Every time you draft a direct sales letter, or write that award-winning copy for a glitzy brochure, you need to keep that little statement in mind.
Sure, you want to sell 100,000 of your nice, shiny products, but what does your consumer want?
Customers who buy boats don’t just want to get from point A to point B.
Home builders don’t sell a house; they sell a lifestyle.
Customers who need a web site don’t (necessarily) want the most technologically advanced site in the world. (Sorry, but this isn’t just an exercise for folio building!) They want a marketing tool that gets results.
As soon as you start picking up on the waves from WIIFM, and creating marketing materials that are attuned to your customer’s needs, the results will be music to your ears.
Renée Barber is the owner/operator of Rising Star Designs & Communication. She is based in Melbourne, Australia, but accepts clients from around the world (have PayPal, will travel). If you require a designer who writes, or a writer who designs, you've found the right person.
Most people would agree that a picture is worth a thousand words, but anyone who has ever read a profoundly moving book also knows that 'word pictures' are no less powerful or creative than a painting. Bringing that same ethos to business communication is what Rising Star Designs & Communication is all about.
If you want a company which creates communication, not just ads—or builds bridges with your customers, not just web sites—contact Renée today.
Rising Star Designs & Communication 'the perfect marriage of words and design' http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Renee_Barber
