Designers
Market-Link™
"Smart Marketing Tools for Architects, Designers, and Allied Professionals"
Issue No.
2
"Resist the Urge to Propose on the First Date"
by Susan Bilenker
Picture this: You've just met someone you
really like, and your imagination's conjuring up all kinds of future
scenarios of happy days spent together. It feels so right to you, you're
just brimming over with the urge to get started right now on your new life
together . . . But wait. What's wrong with this picture?
That's right. You have no idea how your new
friend feels about you, or marriage, or anything else for that matter. So
before you jump head first into the pool, you'd better test the waters and
get to know each other. What will that take? Time and shared
experiences.
Think about this the next time you're
tempted to mail your entire brochure and every press clip ever written
about your firm to a prospective client who's never heard of you and may
or may not be interested in your services or product. There are several
good reasons to resist the urge to do this:
First, you'll overwhelm them with
more information than they have the time or interest to read and
absorb.
Second, people will be much more
receptive to your message if they feel you're familiar with their needs
and interests. If your first communication with them is all about how
great your firm is, they won't see how their needs fit into the picture,
and they'll be on the defensive or simply
disinterested.
Third, potential customers won't
actively respond to your message until they've heard about you anywhere
from five to nine times. This is because they need to feel that you're
consistent, dependable, and reputable before they'll take the risk of
engaging in a new business relationship. (Sounds a lot like life, doesn't
it?)
Since your marketing message will be most
effective if it's repeated over time, consider extending the life of your
promotional materials by mailing one piece each month, with a cover letter
relating the mailer to your prospect's interests. If you mail everything
you have in one bulky first-time package, it won't get the attention it
deserves and you won't have anything left to send out next
month.
Fourth, brochures and folders and
postage are expensive. If you keep your early mailings light, you'll save
money and avoid sentencing your marketing materials to an early grave in
your prospective client's paper-recycling basket.
Susan Bilenker is a marketing and
publicity consultant. She specializes in strategic thinking and
implementation for architecture and design firms, working directly with
the principals to identify and open up new markets for their services.
Involved with the Internet since 1995, she publishes several informational
Web sites, including DesignSite and Rivertowns Online.
copyright 1995 Susan Bilenker
Communications . Please e-mail
comments and suggestions to Susan Bilenker at info@design-site.net. |
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