Business to business gifts are excellent at maintaining a positive impression with your clients. They can build brand awareness within the professional community as well as amongst the general public. The next time you launch a new product or service, try introducing it with imprinted promo products.

Giving customized promotional products to your clients can set you apart from the competition. Even if your clients are already familiar with your service, they may not be aware of your latest developments. Capture their attention with an interactive promotional item. If your new service or product has yet to be launched, introduce it on a customized gift by name with a reference to sign up at your website for a free giveaway. This will encourage clients to visit your website.

When gifting to clients within your industry, it is particularly important to choose a promotional item that relates to your field. For example, if your new service will be something casual and smart, introduce it with a promo apparel or promotional hats. By introducing a new product or service to clients with a clever business gift, you maintain a strong industry awareness of your company.

When it comes to good movies, how many of us can actually remember them based on their twists? When was the last time you actually saw a film and had it stuck to the back of your mind for days, weeks and even years, up till this moment? I am certain by now most of the world’s movie going population have feasted their eyes on the movie “Six Sense”. Can you remember the storyline and the events that led up to the movie’s breath-taking climax? I personally liked the movie and I thought the entire movie was well-paced and did not fall short of its premise.

Now imagine making a presentation to market your products or services the same way. Similarly, a strong presentation should have a strong, great plot. Be it a live presentation at a podium or a deftly created Powerpoint presentation, it will appear to be more memorable if you treat it like your own award-winning movie. What you need is a strong hook that pulls your audience right into your story, a series of key elements (or product/service benefit) that will build the climax and finally an ending or conclusion that will sell your audience straight on the spot!

Now the next time you want to create your own marketing presentation, imagine being a director and winning at your very own marketing presentation Oscar!

Last month, I was given a free book of coupons to spend at my niece’s school charity carnival. She, along with her classmates, was selling ice cream cones for $5 each. All proceeds went to the local orphanage so that they could afford new computers for their school going kids. Arriving at the carnival, I looked appreciatively on as a large crowd gathered around their stall, all eager to purchase one or all of their tri-flavoured confectionary. Moving closer, I discovered that a cute blonde schoolgirl (whose name was Jessica, my niece told me later) was singing a specially-composed short ditty about the ice creams they were selling, to the delight of parents. Needless to say, their items sold like hot cakes, or rather, cold ice creams!

What makes or break a product or service depends on the skills we employ. When selling to customers these days, we can follow little Jessica’s example and employ right-brained skills to attract them. In marketing, it is not sufficient to stuff too much information into customers’ minds. We need to empathise with them while understanding what drives and inspire them and building great relationships. Too much sobriety or seriousness can lead to bad marketing moves. You should inject more fun and play when selling your goods or services, just like the way little Jessica did at the carnival. She clearly knows that merely standing around shouting “Ice cream for sale! $5 each!” will not help get sales they need.

There’s always a little bit of Jessica in all of us when it comes to marketing. Remember that the next time you want to sell something.

My elder sister, who was married with 2 beautiful kids, recently related to me an amusing story that got me chuckling for days after that. She told me how her teenaged son had asked her for more allowance because he needed the extra cash for a ticket to the upcoming Red Hot Chilli Peppers concert. She flat out refused, telling him that he should’ve managed his monthly pocket money better. Then he said: “But mom, didn’t you swear to yourself that you’d never do this to your kids, when you sneaked into a concert back when you were a kid like me?” Needless to say, he enjoyed his concert later on, courtesy of my sister, his blushing mother.

See how easy it was changing a resounding NO to a YES in seconds? Likewise with marketing, all you have to do is to start asking great and related questions that would make your customers think twice. Your customers also have got a clear idea of what they DON’T want, but your job is to help them say what they DO want, seeing how most have trouble admitting and expressing that.

You should also appreciate your customers saying NO, but don’t give up yet! Give them a sense of entitlement and treat them with genuine honesty. People also take a lot more precautions to avoid unnecessary pain than to gain pleasure so you should tell your customers how they are missing out if they don’t take action now!

Lastly, don’t shut out your prospects. Hear what they have to say and steer the conversation slowly but surely to your objective. That way, you don’t conform to the Babbling Salesman syndrome!

Sometime last week, I was on my way out to run important errands when I was inundated with calls from a pesky insurance agent who was trying to sell me the latest package with excellent Personal Accident coverage. I explained to him nicely that I was unable to continue the conversation but he stubbornly persisted. I had little choice but to slam down the phone and proceeded with my errands.

Later on I sat down to think about what happened earlier on. When it comes to marketing your products or services, how far do you really understand your customers? Do you really know the agony and pleasure they go through daily? What about how your products or services can help alleviate their pains and whether they will take to it like bees to honey? The answer might be a resounding yes but how often did you personally spend time to fully comprehend your customers’ needs?

You need to ask your customers if there will be drastic changes to their lives if they no longer purchased your goods or services. Get their feedback and ask if they would also recommend your company to their friends and family, and if not, why? You can also ask them what it takes to recommend your products or services to people that they know.

Generating profits might be the first agenda on every company but understanding your customers and getting to know their wants (as well as their don’t-needs) are essential to a marketer’s success.

Tired of a 9-to-5 job that gets you nowhere? Want to start a small business and gain more financial freedom? Before you send out that resignation letter, here are some tips to guide you in making the right decisions in starting your own small business.

First, thorough research is needed. Take stock of your marketing skills and see what your target customers want, as well as where, when and why they buy. Focus on your customers and put your plan to work through selling your products or services to serve the chosen market profitably and optimally. This can be done via a mix of strategies that touch upon the Seven P’s: Product (your goods/service inclusive packaging and value-added benefits), Price (what is the customer willing to pay for what you are offering?), Place (how and where can the customer access your items) and Promotions (PR and advertising-related means of marketing).

Not to be forgotten, are the People (who you employ to garner more customers), Process (how your business operates, and policies attached to it) and Physical Evidence elements (your premises, staff and vehicles can influence how you are perceived by your customers).

Once you have all this in mind, it is time to put your thoughts into a great marketing plan, AND stick to it. Remember, revisions can be made when necessary so don’t be afraid to improvise!