As with stock options and retirement plans, you’ll find strength in a diverse marketing campaign. Specifically, it is to your advantage to create a balance between offline and online marketing. Here are three steps to help get your marketing propely aligned:
First, get the media to drive new traffic.
Second, capture your traffic’s contact information by giving them something (this is karmic marketing).
Step three, begin the process of creating a relationship.
One way to assure yourself of getting picked up by the media is to comment on something already in the news. Look at today’s headlines and see if something going on is applicable to your business – think like a reporter and look for the story.
Another point here is that you don’t have to actually write the story, just provide the idea and information for it, and the reporters will write it for you. This is also a good opportunity to take on a college intern – they provide free news releases and you provide free hands-on education.
You could also send out a news release that could be as simple as a tip sheet. You might give five great tips and say, “You can find the rest of my tips on my Web site.” This provides value and helps drive traffic to your site.
The important part is to get the media involved – let them do some of the work for you. Once the media gets a hold of it, the exposure they create naturally sends new traffic to your Web site, where people can find the rest of your tips or the rest of the information you promised in your press release.
To capitalize on this new traffic, include another call to action. Every step closer a prospect takes through your marketing is a unit more that they trust you, making it easier for you to capture their information once they’ve landed on your site. So take advantage of this and have them fill out a quick form to sign up for your weekly e-zine or e-mail newsletter – capture their contact information and create qualified, if not exclusive, leads.
Don’t let any of these leads slip through the cracks once you’ve got them. One way to ensure this is by using an autoresponder. Aweber.com is a reputable source for autoresponders, featuring filtering systems and spam-checking functions. You should offer more information and add value during this initial phase of creating a relationship before you ask them to buy anything. Adding an autoresponder is an ideal way to stay in touch, offer additional value, and let your prospect get to know you and your business.
The point of this mix of marketing techniques is that the consumer mindset is much different than it was five years ago. So this multi-step marketing is much more trustworthy and appealing for today’s consumer.
This post is the eighth in a series of excerpts from OneCoach CEO John Assaraf’s interview with copywriter Joe Vitale, author of The Attractor Factor and Life Missing Instruction Manual, The Guidebook You Didn’t Get at Birth. For more information about Joe Vitale, visit his site at www.mrfire.com.
