Broadcast Your Message with Self Promotional Products

Who needs self promotional products Anyone that is selling or promoting anything.

What most self-promoters need is a way to keep their name and contact info in front of their prospects or "suspects"; in short they need a message that keeps on messaging.

We all have received promotions in the mail, by visiting salesfolk or at trade shows. At most trade shows, some businesses even give out custom bags so attendees have a place to put all their promo stuff; a promo bag to hold all those promo handouts.

Why do businesses bother with promotional materials The simple reason is they work by spreading messages, themes and images and keeping those messages in front of those that have been targeted.

Lets say you are a plumber that gives out magnetic business cards so folks can stick them on their refrigerators. Most plumbers have their business name and contact info on their trucks.

A self promotional plumber may also have his magnetic business cards stuck on his truck with a sign "Please Take One".

Sure its a silly idea and you may laugh. But plumbers that use this strategy report they usually replace all their magnetic cards every day.

Magnetic cards are cheaper than mass media, almost as cheap as some standard business cards, and have a lot more staying power.

And it makes sense if you have ever needed a plumber.

The key is to look at your sales process and sales cycle and determine where promotional products can be leveraged to deliver your message. Most promotional product campaigns fail because they fail to focus first and foremost on the desired results.

Before purchasing your promotional products determine how and to whom you will deliver them. This will help you narrow down your choices for appropriate products.

"And dont forget to track your results so you can improve" adds Wilcox.

Not only is there an endless array of self promotional products but also a seemingly endless way to "package" or merchandise your self promotional messages.

Take promotional caps. There are caps of all colors and styles. Some can have custom logos embroidered with a 3-D effect and even messages printed on the edge of the bill.

Given the right strategy many people could be wearing your self promotional caps. Strategy is why it is important to think through your desired results first.

Self promoters are strategic, not reactive. For instance, farmers in the Salinas Valley give their farmworkers company logo caps at the end of the growing season.

The idea isnt that the farmworkers will return to Mexico for the winter and wear their caps everywhere spreading the company message; the cap logo is simply a promotional reminder of the farms name and where to go for work at the start of spring season.

Self promotional products can take many forms. There are pens, HiLiters, letter openers, staplers, badge holders and dog tags. There are memo pads, PDA holders, calculators, clocks, radios, mugs, coasters and water bottles.

You can try backpacks, tote bags, coolers, velour pouches, tape measures, knives and flash lights. And key chains, pill cases, first aid kits, luggage tags, combs, fans and pedometers.

And candles, shampoo, hand lotion, hand sanitizers, lip balm, sunscreen and bug repellant. And golf tees, balls, towels and totes. And more.

It is helpful to remember that not all promotional items need to be useful like calendars or pens. You can also try fun items like stress balls, yo-yos and piggy banks. My favorite are those clear balls that flash when bounced. Next to food and chocolate.

Food and candy are always popular. How about gum, mints, gourmet food, cookies, coffee, hot chocolate, ice tea and bottled water. Customers, prospects and suspects love to eat and drink But then again, dont we all

And what if your promotional targets are chocolate lovers like many of us You can try chocolate wrapped in foil, coins, sports balls, squares, gift sets, bars, truffles or custom molds.

And of course the more traditional magnetic business cards, notepads, calendars and even custom business cards. Thats a lot to think about so where to begin

Start with your sales and promotional cycle and see where your customer and prospect "touchpoints" or points of contact are. Your messages desired result may be a phone call, an appointment or an e-mail inquiry.

Use your self-promotional products to leverage or "convert" to the next step toward your desired promotional results.

With focus and attention to results, self promotional products can add power and zip into your promotional campaigns.


About the Author

Jack Deal owns JD Deal Local Search marketing, Santa Cruz and Scotts Valley, California 831-457-8806. Related articles, ideas, strategies, tactics and tips can be found at

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Internet Marketing For Real Estate Professionals

Today with almost every business running successfully on the Internet, each one of us needs to be aware of online marketing. People can sit at home and shop and even look out for great properties. With so many real estate agents coming online, it has become easier to view various properties at different location from the comforts of your home or office. Internet marketing is quite different from the traditional marketing. In Internet marketing for real estate, you are a part of a big market of the World Wide Web with hundreds of competitors. With the rise in property business and investments, its time that the real estate professionals got familiar with the Internet marketing.

With the help of Internet marketing, you need to attract more clients and improve your sales. Apart from building a well groomed website, you also need to come up with strategies that attract and generate prospects. Thus real estate professional will have to come up with a great deal of effort and web designs to generate customers. Many a times, it so happens that you come up with the website, but fail to succeed as you make no efforts to market it. With millions of website present on the Internet, people will not be aware about your business, until you advertise and market it.

To be successful in the online real estate business, you need to come up with the right key words and graphics that should attract the prospective customer. Always remember to flash things that will benefit the browser and not you. People will log on to your website, only when they feel they shall benefit something from it. Thus always write and come up with specific elements that will benefit the people, who are looking out for properties in any particular location. You need to understand the mindset of your viewers and make use of proper key words. For example, if a browser is looking out for a property in Boston, or any particular region in Boston, you need to make use of those keywords, so that your website is ranked on the first page of the search engine.

Using the right keyword will assure you that your website is up on the first page of Google or MSN and that the browser will view it. Also make sure to use proper title and tag line. Many of the people choose to open your website, only if the title sounds good to them. Make sure that the title is matching the content of your web pages and use accordingly. As you are in property business, you would need to grab lovely pictures of the property and display it on the site. It would be good, if you could give some important details regarding the property. For example the width of rooms, number of rooms, materials used, exact location and so on.

Internet marketing needs a plan of action and dedication as well. You cannot simply come up with the website and leave the rest on fate. You have to constantly keep generating great marketing ideas and execute it well to get the best results. Good Internet marketing promises a good business. For real estate agents, it is time you get real and work towards generating traffic to attract the prospects. Put up pictures of the property that lures the customer and forces him to call you and fix an appointment to take him around to view the property.


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