Know Your Brand By Kathleen Gage
How often does one mistake an advertising campaign for a complete marketing program? Often an ad is the least important part of your marketing. It’s really about branding. Branding relates to virtually everything you do – your marketing collateral, advertising, how you present yourself, your website, who your customers and vendors are, and your market position and visibility.

The more visible you are within your target market, the more credibly you create. Familiarity breeds credibility. Key here is to be very clear on who your target market is. It is easier and more cost effective to create visibility within a target market than it is to be all things to all people. As the saying goes, “If everyone is your market, then no one is your market.”

Take time to determine specifically who your market is and who you would ideally like to do business with. The clearer you become, the more business you attract and the more enjoyable that business becomes.

Kathleen Gage is a business advisor, keynote speaker, and trainer that helps others gain the visibility to stay in their customer’s minds... Call 801.619.1514 or E-mail kathleen@turningpointpresents.com . Get Gage’s FREE 4 day online marketing course by visiting www.kathleengage.com

You're Selling The Invisible By Lori Giovannoni
Keep in mind much of what you are selling is invisible. Things like integrity, commitment; ethics can only be demonstrated within the context of a relationship. In a sales situation it is your job to communicate your integrity and ethics through the demonstration of your Credibility, Competence and Connection.

Take for instance the issue of Connection; many a salesperson will focus on their Credibility and Competence yet without a solid Connection the prospect is left with an uneasiness and hesitancy to use your services. Connection is created through rapport. Rapport is defined as minimizing the difference between you and your prospect. The more common ground you can find emotionally, intellectually and ethically with your prospect the greater your chance of a connection.

A great salesperson always answers the question in the prospects mind, "How does what your selling relate to me?" If you can answer that question you're connected.

Lori Giovannoni is a nationally recognized speaker, executive speech coach and author.  As a consultant specializing in effective presentation skills Lori helps companies increase profit margins through higher teaching her clients how to close more effectively and more often. Her client’s  live their 'brand' through their presentations. Contact Lori at 801.299.1264 or lori@xmission.com

Utilizing Hidden Advertising Dollars
Co-op advertising is a great source of advertising dollars. And there is so much of it available to people, yet most people know very little, if anything, about co-op dollars.

Co-oping is where you put in money for advertising and the manufacturer of a product you sell also puts in money. Often it is as much as 50% of the campaign. It is a great way to stretch your advertising campaign and to beef up your campaign.

With the onset of the Internet, there are many co-op-advertising opportunities available. Not all are good investments though. Check opportunities out very carefully before making a final commitment. Not all are as good as they sound.

Using co-op dollars is an excellent way to build a stronger relationship with your retail suppliers and to generate a lot more traffic in your store or on to your web site. If the overflow of business is handled correctly you will increase your sales and profits.

The great thing about using co-op dollars when you are dealing with standard media is that your account rep can handle the paperwork for you. Many retailers hesitate using the “hidden” dollars due to feeling intimidated by the paperwork, the unknown. Not only can the rep help you with the paperwork, they can also help you to build the campaign. However, before you trust them completely, find out what their experience is, what successful campaigns they have spearheaded and get some references. Take the time to do some research upfront to save money over the long run.

Co-op dollars are not limited to retail businesses. Often, there are hidden dollars for non-profits. There are city and state funds that are set aside to help various organizations increase their visibility and reach. 

One nice thing about using co-op dollars from a large manufacturer is that brand names do attract customers to your business—that's why you offer them. Advertising specific well known brands will increase your foot traffic. Harley Davidson has an amazing co-op program they offer to their retailers. It is a primary reason they have done so well. They encourage advertising based on specific guidelines.

It is to the advantage of an advertiser to utilize these dollars. Manufacturers in virtually every industry want to help with advertising costs. They are very aware that when you advertise their brand name product you will probably sell more of it, thus increasing your orders.

The disadvantage of co-op advertising can be the restrictions set by the manufacturer. Often, they have such rigid guidelines about how to design the ad that you may lose all control of creative expression. For example, their logo may have to be positioned in an exact location in order for them to co-op the campaign.

If you are working with someone who claims to be an expert at advertising and they know nothing about co-op dollars they are not the expert they claim to be. Be aware.

Areas that you need to be educated on are program terms and reimbursement schedules. In some cases it can take months to receive reimbursement for a co-op campaign. In other cases, the company you are cooping with will send the money directly to the media source. Be sure to check this information out in order not to run into a cash flow problem.

Advantages of co-op advertising

•  Extra money to advertise

• Account executive can do the paperwork

• More frequency

Disadvantages of co-op advertising

• Restrictions by manufacturer

• No guarantee it will work

• Limited creativity in ad copy

Before making a final decision, research your options on co-op advertising. You may be pleasantly surprised with what you discover.

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