FREE Sales Tip

I bought a printer recently and it made me realise a very interesting fact about marketing and buying. Over the years at various business events, meetings and sales pitches I have picked up hundreds of business cards, amongst which were cards from people that could have sold or sourced me a printer. So why didn’t I call them?

The answer is simply because I didn’t remember them. A meeting and exchange of business cards months or even years before had not had a lasting impression on me. There is a saying that absence makes the heart grow fonder which applies when talking about love but is certainly not the case in business. Simply speaking it’s more a case of ‘out of sight out of mind!’

Why do market leaders keep their brand so firmly fixed in front of us with adverts and leaflets, promotions, emails and direct mail? Because they know it works. They know they have to keep re-enforcing their brand and reminding you they are there in order to sustain results, retain current customers, attract new customers and grow.

Harvard Business School’s Professor of Business Administration, John Quelch CBE says ‘In a recession, consumers become value oriented, distributors are concerned about cash, and employees worry about their jobs. But a downturn is no time to stop spending on marketing. This is not the time to cut advertising. It is well documented that brands that increase advertising during a recession, when competitors are cutting back, can improve market share and return on investment’