Several months ago, a few of us decided to partner with the best business people we know in several industries. With a variety of businesses involved in the group, from merchant services to website development, marketing design to insurance, promotional products to information technology, we joined together to become a one-stop shop for small businesses. We became The Small Business Specialists. Our goal is to help start-up and small businesses grow.
Each of us are experts in our own niche. Coming together allows to leverage our knowledge and experience. In running our own businesses, we found it to be most efficient to focus on using our skills and hire or outsource the other aspects of our businesses. Even running our group, we refer to each other for ideas and brain-storming.
An auto mechanic best uses his skills repairing engines, not mopping the floor, filing papers, or running his payroll. Non-profit employees and volunteers should provide their services, not fold and stuff envelopes, or create small give-away items. A veterinarian should be seeing people’s pets, not fixing computers or updating his website.
In reality, any business owner should focus on just one thing: running his business. Everything from payroll and accounting to marketing and office cleaning should be done by a hired employee or an outsourced contractor.
That’s where The Small Business Specialists come in. We provide the essential services to running any business. By working with one group, a business owner can streamline the entire process or selecting other vendors. Due to the familiarity we’ve developed with each other, we can easily work together to meet the needs of the client as quickly and painlessly as possible.
If you are, or know, a small business owner thinking of starting a business, talk with one of our consultants to see if we can help get you jump started. Visit our website or call one of our consultants at (303) 731-4363.
Recently, I started working with an automotive repair shop; Davis Repair. They recently hired a BMW technician. They wanted to reach out to nearby BMW owners to try to lure in some new customers. They weren’t sure where to start…
The shop owner wanted to test direct mail on a small mailing to evaluate if he should make it part of his 2010 marketing plan. We developed a campaign to market to the 500 BMW owners closest to his shop. The campaign was very simple; three monthly mailings of the same postcard to BMW owners.
The first set of cards was mailed in November. About a week after the mailing, Davis Repair received several calls for minor repairs and oil changes. However, they were also able to service one new customer’s BMW with a $3,000 repair. That one repair covered the cost of the entire campaign.
After the experience, the owner called to expand the marketing. He wanted to add the next closest 500 BMW owners. The modified campaign will now run for six months, alternating between the two groups. Since they have already covered the cost of both campaigns, all future business generated as a result of this mailing is profit.
This example shows how a direct marketing campaign should work. We defined the target market of BMW owners, developed a message tailroed to them, and reached out to them multiple times. As a result, new customers have come in, and with good customer service, will become regular customers.
We don’t yet have the Return On Investment (ROI) for this campaign, as it is only about halfway finished. The preliminary response shows promise, and the results have already paid for the entire campaign.
This campaign, though on the small side, shows what a direct mail campaign should do for your business. If you want help developing a campaign tailored to your business. I’d enjoy the opportunity to talk.