12 Commandments for Small Business Marketing

By Barry Thomsen

1. Know your target customer—you'll spend your advertising and direct mail dollars wisely if you know exactly who you're going after and use the correct media.
   
   
2. Provide excellent customer service—whether in your store, at a sales call or on the phone, make your customers feel like the important persons they are. They will remember how they were treated long after.
   
   
3. Know what your competitors are doing—shop their store, surf their Web site, watch their ads and get on their direct mail list and you won't be surprised later.
   
   
4. Seek free publicity—you can always think of something new or different to send a press release on—do it monthly.
   
   
5. Deliver more than you promise—surprise your customers and prospects by giving something extra: faster delivery, free refill, faster quotes, free upgrades, a small gift, etc.
   
   
6. Use a Web site and e-mail—if you're not a computer wiz, learn the basics so you can communicate in today's world.
   
   
7. Reward customer loyalty—your repeat customers are what will keep you in business and make you grow. Show them you care and need them.
   
   
8. Use advertising and direct mail regularly—people won't remember your ad or mailing from three months ago; you need to remind them again and again.
   
   
9. Test, test, test—the ad or direct mail pieces you used last time may need to be changed and your mailing list may need to be refined. Always monitor responses.
   
   
10. Always look for new products and new markets—expand your prospect base and sell more products to your existing customers. Keep looking—they're out there.
    
    
11. Ask for referrals—if you don't ask, you probably won't get them. Your current customers are great sources of new business.
    
    
12. Review the previous eleven commandments—monthly or weekly to remind yourself how to build your business. Many of these get forgotten or overlooked if they are not visible all the time.

To learn more about managing your marketing mix, consider these AMA seminars:

• AMA's Course on Direct Marketing
• Developing and Executing a Customer-centric Strategy

Author Bio: Barry Thomsen is the Publisher/Editor of the Small Business Idea-Letter and President of Colorado Cards & Magnets Inc. He has over 30 years' experience in small business start-ups and marketing. He can be reached at (877) 700-1322 or at idealetter@aol.com.