Position Yourself For The Lion's Share of Profits

Crank up your self-promotion now. Don’t decrease your marketing; increase the volume to a roar!

The knee-jerk reaction for a lot companies when faced with a recession is to reduce their marketing efforts. However, decades of research show that those who maintain or increase their marketing will supersede their former competitors once the recession starts to recede. Those businesses who fail to market are like farmers who fail to plant -- they whither.

Even as you accept this truth, you may still be faced with a shortage of spare cash to invest in marketing–particularly in traditional advertising. What to do? You can and should focus on a content marketing strategy that will require a whole lot of thought (i.e. big on strategy) and effort, but will not require a lot of money.

Here are 6 ways that strategic marketing will help smart and willing companies get through the recession:

1. Develop a deep understanding of your customers and what is most important to them. Determine what problems are most vexing and what solutions they require. Make sure that this understanding informs every aspect of your marketing – Internet Marketing, Social Media Marketing, Direct Mail Marketing, etc..

2. Be certain that your website is customer-centric and loaded with content that positions you as a trusted provider. If your website is short on content and if it is all about you and not serving them, it’s essential that you upgrade your site. Your website is your most important sales and marketing tool. You must do whatever it takes to transform it into a positive marketing force.

3. Either begin a blog or integrate a blog into your existing website. Your blog will serve as your best way to connect with your customers by demonstrating that you are open to a two-way dialogue, that you are authentic, and that you have an individual or company personality with which they want to engage.

4. Start a customer-focused eNewsletter or transform the one you have so that it reaches out consistently to your best customers and prospects. A content-rich eNewsletter allows you to direct targeted messaging either to all of your customers or to specific demographics within your customer base.

5. Unless you and your team have the time and talent to do all of the preceding by yourselves, bring in marketing experts to help you make the marketing upgrade. most business owners possess a body of essential knowledge that can be translated into content that will be relevant and valuable to your customers. That translation is difficult unless you have strong editorial skills. Although you may not need long-term help, you will almost certainly need assistance in making the transition to a complete content marketing strategy.

6. Make sure every piece of your marketing and advertising motivates your customers and prospects to visit your new content-rich website. Yes. your ultimate objective is to have them contact you or to visit you in person. But most prospects won’t make that immediate step. They will check out your website (for professionalism, for videos, for their own confidence factor) and if it proves you to be a trusted source of information and by implication of products and services, you will soon receive that phone call or that in person visit.

Even if you may have limited marketing resources, your most important investment both for the short and for the long term will be in developing and deploying a marketing strategy that connects you to your customers and prospects.

Another way to say "connects" is to say "reaches them at their level." By the way, we know great ways to do that with online video marketing as well as Internet Marketing. Smart Marketing is the very best investment you can make. Now is the time to make that investment.

Surpass Your Competitors For Profits Now. Call Promise Productions Marketing Communications at 972-822-3587.

Better Dallas Website Design for Better Results

Let's define our words. Better Dallas Web Site Design means marketing-savvy design to bridge the credibility gap to get more responses. "Better Results" means nothing less than conversions and profits.

For a business web site to reap profits, there are 3 Objectives it must accomplish:

1 • Credibility: a professional website design to communicate (visually & verbally) that your business has it "together" and is trustworthy.

2 • Value Proposition: it must convey the value and benefits your product or service. It must be free from hype and "cut to the chase." By the way, an online video is the best way to do this.

3 • Visibility: your website must be found in the search engines by those with purchasing intent at the right place and time. This means it has to be search engine optimized and might need to be actively promoted with Search Engine Positioning.

People write books after books about each one of these. The bottom line is that Promise Productions is a Dallas Marketing Communications firm that has mastered each of there areas. We streamline you for results. Many others offer one of these. A couple offer two of these benefits. Only a rare few offer the whole package for true success.

Attention Small and Medium sized businesses: if you follow what we advise you stand a very good chance of making an additional $1 to $2 Million in profits in the next 12 months. We have "been there and done that"; let us do it for you.

Attention Larger and National Companies: we can position you to dominate your marketplace for enormous profits.

These are not idle promises; they are tried and true smart marketing tactics we learned firsthand modeled from Fortune 50 companies and further refined to be up to the minute.

The question is how profitable is your business truly willing to be? How much growth can you handle?

Forget the "economy"; our tactics are somewhat influenced, but NEVER THE VICTIM OF any situation going on in the economy. Your customers will always want solutions that give them tangible value. Your ideal customers will pay a premium for the positive difference you make for them. If you have a legitimate business, our strategies can give you legitimate profits.

The TRUTH is that there are MORE than enough clients and profits to go around -- your business just has to succeed at attracting them through the 3 pillars of: Credibility, Value and Visibility.

Got Profits? Put Promise Productions to work FOR you – call 972-822-3587.

Online Video Marketing

We at Promise Productions Marketing Communications wanted to share some take-away points on using video marketing to your advantage – especially in times where you have to get the most out of your marketing budget.

Why is Video Marketing so hot?
It is the right time becuase of the convergence of several things. First, it is popular – your customers and the public alike loves to watch video online. Today, the average businessperson watches 3 videos online each day! Don't you want to communicate to your prospects in the way they WANT to respond to?

Second is technology. Broadband Internet speed and fast computers and smart cell phones allow video to be easily broadcast, received and shared -- in more places than ever.

Third, there are so MANY places online to put your videos -- getting them in front of more prospective customers for minimal time and effort -- talk about value! Examples include:
• Your official company web site.
• A video post on the company blog.
• Video in the company e-newsletter.
• Links to video in email marketing.
• Hundreds of video sharing sites such as YouTube and Vimeo.
• Social Media websites and forums.
• Offline distribution such as DVD direct mailers, Cable TV, etc.
Fourth, technology makes it where video can be done with low hardware expenses. Unlike just a couple years ago, legitimate corporate video can be done with just under $10,000 of equipment. Unlike marketing in a physical material way (a printed ad in a newspaper or magazine or brochure, etc.) online video distrubition means your marketing budget is not eaten up in print costs, yellow pages, or broacast time. You money can be more wisely spent on
(a) video marketing strategy
(b) crafting your video marketing message for maximum effectiveness

Why is Video Taking Over the marketing budgets of many leading companies?
Simply put, it is where business' customers (of all kinds) ALREADY are. If you are not using video, you are now missing a very significant segment of your audience! This applies to all types of business including common and "non-technical" markets such as furniture or car repair.

Second, savvy companies who want to remain profitable, know that video marketing makes their dollars Go Farther. Reach more prospects for less -- while also giving a More Effective communications media through video. This is today's way to get a High Return on your marketing investment.

What Does My Business Need To Succeed at Video Marketing
As a business, you need several components that all work together. ALL these ingredients are necessary for usccess. There is no one cookie-cutter formula, but there are common foundational elements that MUST be there for online video marketing profits:

1. Above all, you must identify WHO your ideal customer is and WHERE they are online.
2. You need marketing communications strategy to develop the message content to best appeal to and reach these ideal prospects.
3. You need professional video camera, video editing, sound and spokespeople for the mechanics and content of your business marketing video.
4. You need the online strategy and expertise to put your video in all these online places.

Conclusion
Video is both easier, cheaper and more valuable to your business than ever. But to get professional results, you need professional video production realizing a solid marketing strategy that emphasizes Social Media Marketing tactics.

Turn to Prmise Productions for all your Dallas Video Production needs. Our marketing, branding, Internet Marketing and Social Media Optimization skillsets position you for success, today and tomorrow. Call 972-822-3587 to position your business for success.

Social Media Marketing - Opportunities & Challenges

Statistics on Social Media Marketing in First Quarter 2009

A survey by WebProNews of 900 marketers reveals that social media marketing strategy plays heavily into 2009's business growth equation:

• 88% indicated they were employing social media for marketing purposes
• 72% have only been using social media marketing for a few months
• 64% of marketers are using social media for 5 hours or more each week
• 39% are using it for 10 hours a week
• 81% say the number-one benefit is generating exposure, followed by increasing traffic and building new business relationships
• Over 50% received an increase in search engine positioning

With the realm of Social Media Marketing evolving and growing quickly, compounded by many marketing firms are Social Media virgins, here is what the industry reported as the challenges these newcomers face:

• It seems that strategy is the most important part. What strategy should we use?

• What are the best practices -- the best tactics, sites and tools?

• How to identify and target your ideal audience.

• How to quantiy the additional exposure into tangible results and ROI.

• How do I get synergy between the different areas of Social Media Marketing?

Social Media marketing is still in its youth. That means there are enormous possibilities. While everyone's "mileage" may differ with no one cookie cutter formula that will fit all businesses, one thing is certain: our customers are already there, so we HAVE to be there, doing our best to reach them in a marketing medium that has credibility.

It is this very "trust-factor" of consulting the collective wisdom of individual opinions and reviews that means that prospects are best reached by those who UNDERSTAND them best. Most often that means their very peers. But a savvy company who is open to marketing communications at their customer's level, can quickly be positioned to receieve the lion's share of a niche in the marketplace.

For marketing-savvy Social Media, including Strategic Blogging, call Promise Productions Marketing Communications at 972-822-3587.

Best 2009 Business Advice

Words To Conduct Good Business By:

1. Make business development a priority. Good businesses who market better, DO better financially than great businesses who market poorly.
2. Develop a true and compelling marketing message that attracts prospects to come to you. Put that message online and marry it with compelling visuals.
3. Focus your marketing on a target market. Within that market, focus on your ideal prospects.
4. Get visible in low-cost-high-impact ways, preferably by educating your marketplace about the problems they face and how to solve them. Show them answers to the questions they did not even know they should have been asking. Include Social Media Marketing in this equation. And for best results, use Online Video to do that interaction.
5. Think big. Act big. Market big. We have only one life to live, so don’t waste it on small thinking. Don't shrink back and go extinct in a tar pit of regret; push forward with passionate business that is the overlap between your skills and gifts and the need out there.
6. Do what you love and always always always do your best for your customers. Value what you do and work with those businesses and customers that value the service you provide.

If you feel at home with this advice, then consider that we are the Marketing Communications firm for you. Call Promise Productions at 972-822-3587.

Best Dallas Photographer Awards

We're excited to announce that the results are in for Best Dallas Photographers as awarded by the Los Angeles Still Photo and Motion Video Academy of Promise Productions because our photography department swept the awards!

The winner for Best Dallas Photographer goes to Promis Productions Photography.

The winner for Best Dallas Architectural Photographer goes to Promise Productions.


The winner for Best Dallas Wedding Photographers goes to Wedding Photographer Dallas.

The winner for Best Hotel Photographer goes to Promise Productions.

The winner for Best Dallas Headshot Photographer goes to Head Shot Pros.

The winner for Best Resort Photographer goes to Promise Productions.
The winner for Best Dallas Portrait Photographer goes to Portrait Photographer Dallas.

The winnder for Best Commercial Architectural Photographer goes to Promise Productions.

The winner for Best Apartment Complex Photographer goes to Promise Productions.

The winner for Best Executive Business Portrait Photographer goes to Head Shot Pros.

The winner for Best Country Club Photographer goes to Promise Productions.

The winner for Best Fitness Photographer goes to Portrait Photographer Dallas.

The winner for Best Golf Course Photographer goes to Promise Productions.

The winner for Best Dallas Senior Portrait Photographer goes to Portrait Photographer Dallas.

The winner for Best Dallas Bridal Portrait Photographer goes to Wedding Photographer Dallas.

We can only attribute our success to being blessed with the experienced staff, artistic eye and ditigal workflow know how to keep our clients happy. To all our customers, thank you for making us Dallas' premier professional portrait and commercial phtoographer source.

Dallas Apartment Complex Photographer

Apartment Complex Photography is provided by our staff Architectural Photographer - Mark. He has done dozens of apartment complex photography assignments, and we work with each complex to put it in its best light.

OUR PROFESSIONAL PROCESS
Our digital photography is marketing-savvy so you can use it for many promotional purposes – web site, brochures, blogs, ads, videos, etc..

We use special architectural camera lenses and proprietary lighting techniques to showcase your apartment's floor plans, clubhouse, pool, spa, workout room and other amenities. We bring thousands of dollars worth of dedicated equipment to capture just the right look. A typical apartment complex can take 4-6 hours to completely cover.

OUR PROFESSIONAL RESULTS
All our gear and attention is there to give you one thing - results! These days, your image on your prospect's computer screen is most of what they know about your apartment complex -- be it your web site or a 3rd party apartment locator service. It only makes sense to invest in attracting ideal tenants with first class photography.

OUR SERVICE AREA
We provide professional apartment complex photography for the Southwest and West Coast. Our central office is in Dallas, TX -- within easy reach of Plano, Highland Park, Uptown, Frisco, Lewisville, Southlake, Denton and McKinney.

RELATED VISUAL PROMOTIONAL OPPORTUNITIES
In additional to architectural and promotional photography, Promise Productions provides both high quality 360° virtual tour services and deluxe Property Tour Videos. Having the best visual presentation gives your prospects a taste of the lifestyle at your apartment complex and increases your number of leases signed.

Now in the Spring is your ideal time for apartment complex video tours and apartment photography with the blossoms and greenery. Simply call 972-822-3587 to schedule your architectural photography date.

Searching for New Customers in Today's Marketplace?

Customers with cautious budgets are doing more research online before choosing their products and services. This apples to everything from daycare to hotel travel.

The luxury shopper or the luxury traveler is still willing to pay a premium BUT ONLY for a top notch product or travel experience. Does your web site design give them that reassurance? Are you using smart video online to, not just tell, but SHOW them what you have to offer?

As a business, your need to be found in the search engines at the right place and time is more important than ever before.

The current recession is motivating businesses to fine turn their online marketing for optimum results. There are several strategies to be found online and savvy businesses are working ALL these angles simultaneously:

• Pay Per Click Marketing
• Search Engine Optimization
• Social Media Campaigns & Blogging

All three areas of online visibility are and will experience dramatic increased spending. By 2013 eMarketer estimates total US search marketing outlays will surpass $23 billion. We think that is far too conservative because:

• Search Engines are THE #1 way customers and businesses find those they do business with -- both locally and abroad.
• Social Media is exploding with no signs of stopping and it has the trust factor with the consumer that slick advertising agencies no longer deliver.

The writing is on the wall -- you either make online marketing an immediate priority or go extinct. Your customers are using the search engines to find the best deal. Businesses HAVE to be found in the search engines because that is where their customers and prospects are.

Got profits? Contact Covenant Designs at 972-822-3587 for Search Engine Marketing Camaigns, Social Media Campaigns, and Marketing-Savvy Blogging.

Promise Productions awarded ClipperWind Contract

Promise Productions was chosen as the Marketing Communications firm of choice for the Clipper Wind contract. Clipper Windpower Inc. is an international wind energy company manufacturing and deploying wind turbines, doing over a billion dollars of revenue annually.

Promise Productions was selected for the year long contract for its multimedia prowess, efficiency and ability to take information on diverse subjects, master it and communicate it to all levels of management. Our marketing copy writing and technical copy writing will come in handy. Our graphic design skills will reinforce the marketing and training verbiage with compelling graphics, illustrations, photography and videography.

Our considerable Business-To-Business marketing experience also gave us an edge in communicating to their technical and industrial divisions as well as the Green Industry marketplace.

Clipper has an aggressive schedule with 250 gigantic wind turbines being deployed throughout the USA this year. They are behind on their employee training needs and value our one-stop-shop approach to all their marketing communications challenges including:
• Employee Training Video Production
• Corporate Training Video Production
• Multimedia Presentation
• Articulate Online Testing (SCORM compliant)
• Digital Photography

Promise Productions  is into its first month serving Clipper Windpower and already we are told we are producing 400% the results for the same time and money of the previous internal department plus their outsourcing. We look forward to continuing this level of excellence. Stay tuned to our blog for quarterly updates.

For corporations needing training videos, internal communications, marketing communications and their story told in a compelling way to a variety of target audiences, turn to Promise Productions  for results that reinforce your brand as well as your cash flow.

Call 972-822-3587 to speak with a marketing-savvy business communications expert.

Dallas Hotel Photographer

Based in Dallas, Texas, we provide architectural and promotional photography for hotels all over the USA. Hotel Photography is provided by our staff architectural photographer. He has photographed many luxury hotels, and we work with each property to put it in its best light.


OUR PRO PHOTOGRAPHY PROCESS
Our digital photography is marketing-savvy so you can use it for many promotional purposes – web site, brochures, in house displays, ads, videos, etc..


We use special architectural camera lenses and proprietary lighting techniques to showcase your hotel's suites, pool, spa, restaurant, conference rooms, workout area and other amenities. We bring thousands of dollars worth of dedicated equipment to capture just the right look. A typical hotel can take one to two days to completely photograph.


OUR PROFESSIONAL RESULTS
All our gear and experience is there to give you one thing - results! These days, your image on your traveler's computer screen is most of what they know about your hotel -- be it your own web site or a 3rd party travel booking website. It only makes sense to invest in attracting ideal travelers with superior photography.


VISUAL PROMOTIONAL SERVICES
In additional to architectural and promotional photography, Promise Productions,  provides high quality 360° virtual tours and deluxe Hotel Tour Videos. Having the best visual presentation gives your prospects a taste of the experience at your luxury hotel and significantly increases your bookings.

Now in the Spring is your ideal time for hotel photography with all the greenery. So simply call 972-822-3587 to schedule your architectural photography date.

Got Business? Mind Your Branding!

The economic downturn is proof of the message this strategic marketing communications firm has been telling our customers:

"When times are lean, those with anemic marketing are hit the hardest. But those with strong brands still have strong businesses."

You see, customers are still spending, they are just choosier who they do business with. Businesses with TRUSTED brands are thriving today, but those that have not prioritized their marketing are hurting and in danger of bankrupsy.

The time is NOW to market and promote your brand. Fortunately there is great news: there are more cost effective ways today than ever before to stimulate your business through online marketing. Let Covenant Designs show you how to reap profits through smarter marketing strategy.

Here are a few hints...
• Use postcards for direct mail to your best prospects.
• Promote your business web site into the Top Three in Google.
• Use smart Blogging to interact with your customer base and spread the message on the value of your products and services.
• It is a visual age. Utilize professional photography and video production to drive your message home with compelling
• Social media is exploding. I just heard is has surpassed even email! Develop a comprehensive and expert social media campaign to reach your prospects in this arena.
• Choose a Dallas ad agency or marketing firm that understands TRUST-BASED marketing.

Want to know more about our strategic branding services? Call Promise Productions at 972-822-3587 for results and profits.

Trust Based Marketing For Profits Today - Part 3 of 3

Six Steps To Generate Trust & Credibility in Your Target Market

Okay, enough theory. Let’s get down to the nuts and bolts of building trust. There are six steps to follow if you want to develop a trust-based marketing strategy:

1. Select a target market. It is much easier to build trust in a specific, target market. By focusing on a target market, you can demonstrate your understanding of your prospects’ needs, and tailor your solution in ways that resonate with your prospects. People are more likely to trust business professionals who speak their language, understand their issues, and have developed comprehensive solutions for their industry.

2. Develop educational products that prospects in your target market will appreciate. Most Web designers and other IT professionals want to show prospects how talented they are. That is necessary when you get into a competitive bidding situation, because you have come late to the game.

However, with trust-based marketing you establish your credibility and reputation before your prospects even have a need. The way to do this is by providing free information. Articles, speeches, newsletters, press releases, white papers, seminars, audio CDs, and simple surveys of your target market are examples of valuable information that prospects appreciate.

Your informational products should address specific problems that your target market faces. Sample titles might include: “The 10 Dirty Secrets About Web Design that Other Web Designers Don’t Want You To Know;” “Five Mistakes That Most Realtors [or your specific target market] Make with Their Web Presence;” and “How to Double Traffic To Your Web Site for Under $100.” You should be able to come up with dozens of truthful, interesting, attention-grabbing topics to present to people in your target market-- and many formats in which to present your content.

3. Build a list of prospects. Your list of prospects could become the most valuable asset you have in your Web design business. Once you have a list of prospects in your target market, you can continuously follow up with them in ways that establish trust and credibility. Capture prospect information by offering a free newsletter on your Website, any time you speak, and every time you offer informational products. Ask your network to let people know about the free information you offer (which is much easier than asking for referrals).

If you have a budget, you might also invest in advertising and direct mail to build your list. Use these techniques not to promote your services, but to offer a free report or subscription to your newsletter. Opt-in list building services, Google, and Yahoo search marketing can help build your list, too. All of these paid services are less effective than free strategies, but will allow you to build your list more quickly.

Note that staying focused on a target market makes it easier to build your list. For instance, if you focus on developing a Web presence for lawyers, you can easily obtain lists of lawyers, write articles for publications targeted at lawyers, and speak at conventions that lawyers attend. You can also develop information that lawyers specifically need, for instance, by comparing legal Websites to one another.

4. Follow up with prospects. Once you’ve chosen a target market, built a list, and created a few educational products, you can follow up with prospects on your list in ways that build trust.

Your newsletter or business blog is the best way to follow up with prospects. Every time you send it out, you remind your prospects that you are an expert in your field, not by telling them, but by showing them with expert insight and information. And, with each issue, you can promote additional opportunities through which your prospects can gain education and information from you, such as speeches, seminars, roundtables, eBooks, white papers, and articles on your Website and Business Blog.

Similarly, each time you follow up with prospects through other vehicles, you should offer other ways for them to get yet more information from you. For instance, if you speak in public, offer your prospects a free white paper that will interest them, and fits your expertise.

The more you follow up in valuable ways, without coming across as a salesperson, the more trust you’ll build.

5. Develop proactive referral systems that bring more prospects to you. Referrals are fantastic, because they bring you prospects that already trust you, based on the recommendation of somebody they respect. Unfortunately, many Web designers assume that referrals come automatically from satisfied clients. They don’t.

You have to ask for referrals from clients, and ask specific questions about people they know who might have a need for your services (e.g. “You told me that you’re on the board of the Chamber of Commerce. Do any of the other board members need help with their Web presences?”). You should also build referral networks with complementary professionals, for instance, by creating your own “mastermind groups” of professionals that meet on a weekly basis to help each other grow their business.

6. Be patient. Remember that it takes at least five favorable impressions with a prospect before he or she trusts you enough to contact you. Don’t destroy the trust you are developing by suddenly pitching your services, offering a free consultation (which prospects automatically translate to mean “sales pitch”), or asking for an appointment. If you offer enough valuable information to a focused market, soon people will begin calling you.

If you do want to contact prospects on your list, there are two effective ways to do it. The first is to follow up with a call after they take advantage of one of your information products or programs. Ask them for their advice and feedback, and offer to answer any questions they have. Don’t sell them anything; if they have a need, they will let you know. Then, send them a handwritten note thanking them for their time.

Second, create a research study or survey, and contact prospects to participate. Offer them a free copy of the study after you are done. Topics might include: “Top ten concerns [your target market] has about their Web presence;” “Benchmarking: How much your competitors are spending on their Web presence;” and “Web results: Top traffic drivers for [your target market].” Research studies show your prospects that you are an expert, and give them a great opportunity to share their issues and concerns with you.

If you follow these steps consistently, within six months to a year, you’ll have a huge database of prospects. They will call you first when they have a problem that you can solve. Best of all, you can achieve these results without a large investment of money.

~~~ OK, the following is the bonus section of this article! ~~~

Why Most Web Designers Will Avoid This Advice -- And Why That Is Great For You

Most Web designers will not act on this approach to business development. There are a few reasons why. First, many Web designers come from the “If I build it, they will come” school of marketing. They know they are talented, and believe that eventually people will learn about their capabilities. Unfortunately, this strategy only works in baseball movies directed by Kevin Costner! Average Web designers with superior marketing skills will almost always do better financially than brilliant Web designers who don’t make marketing a top priority.

Second, trust-based marketing strategies are somewhat unusual. It requires GIVING, believing that you will receive back in time. That is, it requires faith to make the up front investment of time and energy (and some money) to establish trust and credibility within a focused market. Most Web designers rely on traditional marketing approaches that push their services, and old habits are hard to break. They think too short term. Others try these approaches for a while and then give up, or don’t commit fully to implementing these strategies as a top priority.

Finally, many Web designers lack the patience and discipline it takes to focus on a target market and become a recognized expert in that market. They want business, and they want it fast. So they go to bidding sites, and battle dozens of other competitors from around the world to get jobs. If they would only invest a few months of effort to build trust and credibility, they would have all the clients they can handle for the long haul.

But all these reasons are good news for Web designers who do choose to base their marketing strategies on building trust. You can get the most desirable clients in your target market, while your competitors continue to slog it out. They will have to compete on price, submit competitive bids, and deal with prospects that don’t trust them enough to give them straight answers. You won’t.

I hope you make the right choice! We invite you to choose Promise Productions for your marketing communication needs. Let us cause your business to thrive in any conditions through integrated and strategic messages (and compelling visuals) that reach your ideal prospects with the understanding and solutions they long for!

We're ready to learn about your goals. Feel free to call us today at 972-822-3587.

Trust Based Marketing For Profits Today - Part 2 of 3

Trust-Based Marketing and Its Benefits

Trust-based marketing builds trust with a somewhat unusual strategy. A key part of this strategy involves providing valuable education and information to your prospects up front, so that they perceive you as an expert. You don’t sell to them, or make pitches. Instead, you show you understand them.

That is, you provide insights about their problems, what those problems cost, and how they can solve them -- all within the area of your expertise. Once those prospects realize that you can help them, the more likely they are to call you as soon as they have a need.

"You have now moved from being a pushy nuisance to a valued service."

Marketing based on the development of trust creates entirely new opportunities for getting your prospects’ attention and interest. Once you learn how to build trust, you can stop those overused selling techniques, and everything will change for you:

* Prospects call you first when they have a problem. You can stop chasing them.
* You win more business sole source, before the prospect sends it out for bid. That’s because prospects perceive you to be an expert, and call you when they have a need.
* Your entire marketing program has a single point of focus: develop trust. Therefore, you can measure your marketing investment based on how well you achieve this goal, and continuously improve.
* Many of the tactics you use to build trust happen automatically, allowing you to spend time on other things.
* You can charge higher fees, and stop competing on price.
* You can stop selling, and start having open and honest conversations with your prospects.
* People refer business to you even if they have never hired you, because they perceive you to be an expert and appreciate your valuable information and knowledge.
* You feel good about marketing your services beuacse you are truly providing value.

The Principles of Trust-Based Marketing

If you want to market your Web services on the basis of trust, it’s important to incorporate a few fundamental principles into everything you do. The following seven principles underpin the development of trust:

1. The more value you provide, the more trust you build. Most marketing and sales efforts focus on pushing your services and capabilities. This doesn’t build trust; in fact, it turns the prospect off. Who wants to waste time reading or listening to “just another pitch”? Instead, you can build trust by providing value. In trust-based marketing, value takes the form of free, or low-cost, educational products and services -- articles, speeches, newsletters, audio CDs, etc. Each of these products helps your prospects to understand their critical problems (within your range of expertise), and start to develop solutions.
2. Trust increases gradually. This is business, but it is also a relationship. For example, it takes five or more interactions with a prospect before they trust an IT professional enough to even consider hiring that person. Building trust is like taking a series of baby steps. It happens over time, as you provide a series of high-value interactions that benefit the prospect.
3. Trust is based on “pull,” not “push.” You build trust when you give prospects the opportunity to choose whether or not to take advantage of the information and insights you can offer. Instead of pushing your services onto them, let your prospects choose to take advantage of your valuable expertise. That way, you will have plenty of prospects who have given you permission to stay in touch with them (in ways that are valuable for them). When they have a problem, they’ll contact you first, because they know you and perceive you to be an expert. Often, they will hire you without sending their project out for bid, and you can charge higher fees.
4. Trust is fragile. Prospects are naturally and understandably wary. If you move too quickly, or push too hard to close a deal, you will turn your prospects off.
5. Some interactions build more trust than others -- and most cost almost nothing. Your newsletter, public speaking, articles, and testimonials can all build an enormous amount of trust. None of these cost much to implement. Newsletters and articles establish your expertise, and provide value to your prospects. Public speaking lets prospects see you in person, and makes them feel as if they know you. Testimonials provide “social proof” that others perceive you to be an expert.6. Authenticity and empathy build trust. Who here does not like feeling understood? By being open and honest with your prospects, and empathizing with their problems, you build trust. Prospects want to work with professionals who can step in their shoes and who understand the results they are trying to achieve. They also appreciate people who can serve as their trusted adviser, giving open and honest advice about how to move forward.
7. The economics of trust are incredibly powerful. It doesn’t take long to develop a group of prospects that know you and perceive you to be an expert in your field. Once you do, they will refer you to other people -- even if they don’t hire you. Within six months to a year, you can establish yourself as a recognized expert and thought leader in your market. You will have all the clients you want.

Our 3rd and final post will reveal 6 Steps To Generating Trust.

Got trust? Call Covenant Designs at 972-822-3587 for trust-savvy approaches both in print communications, professional web site design, and social medial strategies.

Trust Based Marketing For Profits Today - Part 1 of 3

Introduction
Trust-Based Marketing is the way to get all the clients and profits you could ever want in today's economy.

"You see, what is lacking today is not so much cash flow but rather credibility."

Businesses, like people, do not want to risk when their fears are stimulated and the only way to open their wallets is through trust.

This 3-Part article on trust based marketing is adapted from the writings of Andrew Neitlich.

Trust-Based Marketing overcomes the distrust factor of overly-slick marketing and is, instead, based on establishing your credibility in the marketplace. Trust-based marketing requires an initial investment of time and energy up front, but but reaps a RICH HARVEST enabling your business to land all the clients and projects you want within six months to a year. Best of all, trust-based marketing doesn’t cost a lot to implement.

The Fundamental Problem with Traditional Marketing
Traditional approaches to marketing suffer from a fundamental flaw: they PUSH your services and products at the prospect. As a result, prospects are easily turned off. Face it, they’re sick and tired of receiving hundreds of marketing pitches every day.

Whether you design a business Website that describes your services, use the sales gimmicks that most sales training courses teach, or depend on Pay Per Click to get noticed, you will face the following problems if you pursue traditional marketing strategies:

1. Prospects avoid you, because they don’t want to deal with yet another vendor or salesperson.
2. Prospects don’t always give you straight answers about moving forward.
3. You end up competing on price alone, instead of getting sole source deals. Your value goes down in the customer's eyes and your service gravitates towards being a commodity!
4. You spend more and more money on advertising campaigns that produce less and less results.
5. You feel frustrated, because you have to go through the indignity of pitching your services and skills only to receive rejection when you are sure that you offer a terrific solution.

Trust-Based Marketing Gets Inside the Prospect’s Head

There is another way than pushing yourself at customers. It has to do with attracting new business instead. Before we unveil it, consider what your prospects are probably thinking when they realize they need to invest in a new Initative, Image or Web Site. I will use Information Technology market (IT) as an example. When you get inside the prospect's head, here is what is typically going on:

1. I don’t want to hire an IT professional, but I have to. This makes me feel ignorant and vulnerable, because I need help and can’t solve my own problem.
2. I have no way of knowing if the person I hire is really the right person for the job.
3. I hear many stories about people being burned when they hire IT professionals.
4. Why can’t IT consultants speak a language I can understand?
5. I don’t care about technology. I just want to get business results. Technology is the means, not the end, and I wish these people would understand this fact.
6. This is going to be expensive, and I worry about not getting enough return for my investment.

The Root Issue IS TRUST

Underlying each of these thoughts is a common message. When it all boils down, your prospects are really saying, “I want to hire somebody I can trust who will give me results I can trust.” Therefore, developing trust becomes the key to attracting new business deals.

You have established trust when you meet four criteria:

1. Your prospect is familiar with you and with what you do.
2. Your prospect perceives you to be an expert in your field.
3. Your prospect believes that you understand his or her specific issues, and can solve them.
4. Your prospect likes you enough to want to work with you.

Our next post will cover the enormous benefits of trust-based marketing.

Got trust? Call Promise Productions at 972-822-3587 for trust-savvy approaches both in print communications, professional web site design, and social medial strategies.

Businessweek Acknowledges the Great Video SEO Frontier

As people enjoy seeing videos in their first page of Google search results, the range of marketing possibilities grows wider and richer!

Adapted from an article in Businessweek, Feb 2009 by Liz Gannes

Efforts to get your web site to appear on the first page of Google for your keyword search has created an entire industry of SEO services and Pay-Per-Click services that is almost a decade old. However businesses have now woken up to the incredible value of video optimization for internet search.

Since May 2007, Google's search results incorporate not just text web sites, but also results from news sites, videos and maps right into the body of a search results page. Today, online videos are claiming more and more of this coveted first page search territory.

VIDEO'S SUPERIOR ODDS
Videos are 53 times more likely to appear on the first page of search results than text pages in Google. Here is what the study round:

"On the keywords for which Google offers video results, we found an average of 16,000 videos vying to appear on results pages containing an average of 1.5 video results—giving each video about an 11,000-to-1 chance of making it onto the first page of results. By comparison, there were an average of 4.7 million text pages competing for a place on results pages with an average of just 9.4 text results—giving each text page about a 500,000-to-1 chance of appearing on the first page of results."

The simplest reason for this finding is that there are far fewer videos than Web pages. But it's worth considering that U.S. video views have surpassed search itself (there were 12.7 billion video views in November 2008 compared to 12.3 billion searches for example.).

It used to be that the main thing people did on the internet was search for their desired information, product or service. This has now profoundly changed. The main thing people today do on the internet is watch video. It you want new business in today's marketplace, you need to be saying you message with video, period.

THE GOLDEN MARKETING OPPORTUNITY OF 2009
These developments are recognized enough to offer video SEO companies, with services ranging from video production to creation of keyword-driven video pages based on natural language processing and content analysis.

In a PermissionTV survey of more than 400 executives, 67% said online video would be the primary focus of their 2009 online marketing, with 52% expecting to start or extend online video projects in the second quarter of this year.

Video is rocketing at lightning speed as the preferred corporate communication, advertising and marketing medium. In fact that "52% expecting to start or extend online video" in February 2009 represents a 32% increase from just 3 months before!

MARKETING ON STEROIDS
It is clear that video SEO has the ability to make all sorts of video marketing more valuable. Original branded video content, viral commercials, video analytics, and video search will become more valuable because of how they can be prominent online.

If you want results, use professional video production. If you want visibility in Google, broadcast your message online with video.

For professional video production that is marketing-savvy, call Covenant Designs at 972-822-3587.