John Boyd posted this  on Linkedin which I found as a good reminder on using one’s business card.

Your business card is worth gold in the business networking world. If used correctly, it is one of the top tools you can take advantage of to increase referrals. Can you imagine 20 people carrying your business cards around and delivering them to high-quality prospects? You betcha!

Business cards are a powerful investment. They are inexpensive, compact, durable, and offer your prospects valuable information: who you are, how to contact you, and a hint of your personality and style. A business card can be one of a kind, so elegant, funny, weird or charming that it will keep you in the minds of people for a long time. It can even be a conversation starter. It is passed from person to person taking the message to anyone who comes in contact with it.

Business cards have two important functions:

- Do business with the person who receives it.

- Put your name out there through the person who receives it; this means: referrals.

So, how is it exactly that you play your business cards right? Check out these tips for using business cards effectively:

1. Don’t leave home without them
Keep your business cards with you at all times, and many of them, so that you never run out. Make sure than you always have your cards with you AND that your business networking associates have them too.

2. Look for opportunities to exchange them
There are many situations in which you can distribute your cards around, one-on-one meetings, social gatherings, seminars and shows, and to complementary businesses.

3. Long distance contacts
Every time you send a letter, send a business card along. Send business cards with thank you notes and sales materials you mail out. Communicating through email is very efficient, but try to complement it with some ways where you can include your business cards too.

4. Be a magician
You should always use tricks to make your cards unforgettable. When you meet people and give one out, write something down on it, another phone number or email address, to make it more desirable. Give the person more than one card and ask him or her to pass them along to someone who could be interested. When you receive a card from someone, treat it with care in front of the owner, and when you are alone, write something on it about the person so that you can remember him or her easily. At restaurants, leave your card with a good tip and a thank you on the back.

One of the basics of handing out business cards is to recognize the power and potential this little tool has. Remember: never leave home without them!

If you liked this article, tell all your friends about it. They’ll thank you for it. If you have a blog or website, you can link to it or even post it to your own site (don’t forget to mention www.meetingwave.com as the original source).

http://www.meetingwave.com/meet-people.html

Goal Setting

It’s that time of year again; time to take a hard look at your business goals that you set last year and measure them against your actual numbers. It is also time to set new goals for 2010. When setting your goals, I would suggest keeping a few questions in mind:

What do you want?

Be specific. The better you understand how your goal will look, sound, and feel, the more likely you will make it exactly what you want, and the more resources your unconscious mind can muster to help you achieve it.

Is your goal achievable?

Work backwards from your yearly goal. If the goal seems overwhelming, break it into smaller steps that seem feasible.

Is achieving your goal within your control?

Make sure your goal reflects things you can directly effect.

What stops you from having what you want now?

Are the costs and consequences of achieving your goal acceptable?

Will the results be worth the time, resources, and effort involved?

How can you incorporate the good things about the present into your goal?

Do you have all the resources you need to achieve your goal?

What resources do you already have to help you reach your goal?

Resources include skills and training, information, attitude, internal emotional state, money, help or support from others, etc.

What would have to be different for you to have your goal? Be specific.

How often will you check your progress?

The holidays are a great time to take a good look at your goals for 2010, but get started with these questions today!

During the current economic downturn you have an incredible opportunity to INCREASE SALES and BUILD MARKETSHARE. But don’t take my word for it … there’s almost a century of proof to back up common sense.

Here’s a quick summary:

1990’s – A MarketSense study concluded the best strategy for coping with a recession is balanced long-term branding with promotion for short term sales. The study shows brands like Jif and Kraft Salad Dressing experienced sales growth of 57% and 70% respectively after increasing their advertising during the recession.

1980’s – McGraw-Hill Research analyzed 600 B2B companies and found that those who maintained or increased advertising grew significantly … both during the recession and the following three years. In fact, by 1985, sales of companies that advertised aggressively had grown 275% over those that didn’t.

1970’s – An American Business Press study showed that companies who advertise and market aggressively can maintain and increase sales during a recession and in the following years.

1940’s, 50’s, 60’s – Buchen Advertising tracked advertising dollars vs. sales trends for the recessions of 1949, 1954, 1958 and 1961. They found that sales and profits dropped at companies that cut back on advertising and, that after the recession had ended, those same companies lagged behind the ones that maintained their ad budgets.

1920’s – Advertising executive Roland S. Vaile tracked 200 companies through the recession of 1923. He reported in the April, 1927 issue of the Harvard Business Review that companies that had continued to advertise during the economic downturn were 20% ahead of where they had been before the recession, while companies that reduced advertising were still in the recession, 7% below their 1920 levels.

2009 – The results are up to you!

It seems like common sense, if you advertise when everyone else stops marketing…

1.) Your message is more likely to be noticed due to fewer ads in the market

2.) Your business is more likely to be remembered when everyone starts advertising again It is common sense but yet every recession one of the first things companies do is pull back on their marketing and advertising.

 ©2008 Advertising Specialty Institute®

Need more?

Frankenberger and Graham, two Oregon professors, studied 2,662 firms over 16,000+ ‘firm years’ (1970 – 1991) to determine the effect of advertising on a company during a recession. The results? Firms that advertised during a recession increased in value and got more marketing bang for their buck … in some cases for up to three years after the recession had ended. 

• Increased sales. 62% of customers do business with the company after receiving the promotional product.

• Brand awareness. 84% of customers remember the business that provided them with the promotional product.

• Return on investment. At $.004/ impression promotional products have the best CPI of popular advertising media.

• Improved relations. 42% of customers view the business more favorably after receiving the item and virtually none indicate a negative feeling.

• Frequency and repetition. A key to advertising, promotional products are kept on average for 7 months and many are used every business day!  * Advertising Specialties Impact and Exposures Study – October, 2008.

At tradeshows and conferences, it is easy to get lost in a sea of booths. It is important to remember a few simple rules when creating a tradeshow solution that will make you stand out from the crowd. In an article on marketingprofs.com “What Makes Them Work” written by Jared McCarthy, it says there are 5 rules that can help you generate buzz at your show.

Rule #1: Tradeshow Displays Don’t Sell Stuff

A common misconception is that tradeshow displays sell stuff. They don’t. The job of the display is to make people stop so that you can sell stuff. If you’re counting on the display to do your job, you’re asking it to do the wrong thing.

Rule #2: Sucker Punches Work

If you really want their attention, hit ‘em when, where and how they least expect. That means that as people are strolling down the aisle you have to show them something so unique, so compelling and so to-the-point that they will have no choice but to slow down or stop.

Rule #3: Tradeshow Displays Are Not Brochures

Brochures have lots of words. People get them and read them when they want, where they want, for as long as they want. Tradeshow displays are just the opposite. People can’t take them home. They only see them where they are. And they will not spend time with them.

The single toughest challenge in creating great tradeshow display is eliminating 97% of the words because you have about two seconds to make your impression and stop traffic.

Rule # 4: Clarity Versus Clutter

If you want to attract attention, you have to be clear: a clean, dynamic, organized display that has a clear message that you are clean, dynamic and organized.

Rule # 5: Be Different. Really Different

People in the same business tend to think alike. The result is that, except for the logos, they also tend to look alike at tradeshows.

Even if you increase the effectiveness of your display by a mere 5%, you’re talking with 50 more prospects for every thousand people who see your display. It’s a small investment when you consider that it only takes one good new customer to turn your next show from an expense to a profit.

Stop by today to find out how Signs By Tomorrow can help you find a solution that will put your company in the spotlight.

Reasons to Sell Tradeshow Display Solutions  

Almost every industry has tradeshows and almost every company related to the industry goes to them; and needs tradeshow display solutions. The graphic message is the focal point of tradeshow displays and every exhibitor wants powerful graphic solutions, which is a natural fit for the sign industry. 

Why Companies Exhibit at Tradeshows  

Trade shows are the only medium that brings the buyer to the seller – and not just one buyer, but hundreds. Tradeshows are the number one choice for buyers to make purchasing decisions. Trade Shows offer a cost effective means to prospect new business. One salesperson can make only 3-4 direct sales calls a day, but during one session at a tradeshow, the same salesperson can make 20-30 direct contacts! 

Tradeshows Continue to Grow  

Trade shows are among the Top 50 Largest Contributors to the US Gross Domestic Product. By the end of 2008, spending on exhibitions surpassed spending on print media. 

Popular Tradeshow Display Solutions  

Pop-Up Displays – large dynamic graphic backwalls • with easy set-up

Banner Stands – compact banner graphics with • instant set-up

Folding Panel Displays – cost effective lightweight • tabletop displays

We’re not just your neighborhood vinyl shop, we’re your full service Sign Solution and digital experts. We can produce and ship anywhere, large or small.

We are woman owned and family run.  Our excellent customer service, quality of work, competitive pricing and on time delivery has put us a notch above the competition.

If you need a sign for the first time or are unhappy with your current sign provider, or just want to try someone new, give us a call and let us help you with your next sign order and give us an opportunity to earn all your sign business.  Most jobs are done in house allowing us control over quality and time.

Your message everywhere.

Your sign is one of your most important marketing tools. It grabs customers’ attention, informs them of your services, and inspires them to take action—in just one glance.

Your sign is constantly working to promote your business. We offer a wide variety of sign products and services that get your message out of the office and into the world, in as little as 24 hours. Each solution is designed with your business goals in mind and supported by our unrivaled industry experience and cutting-edge technology, giving you maximum impact and cost-effectiveness.

First post of the blog

What exactly is SIGNvertising?  Simply put it’s “Achieving your desired marketing results through effective use of signs & graphics.”  No matter your marketing goal, promoting a new product, branding a new store location or directing traffic to your event, Signs By Tomorrow of Brentwood has the affordable yet effective SIGNvertising solution!

Let our team of sign professionals help you develop the visual communication solutions that will achieve your desired business results.  We get to know your business, your target audience, and your goals, then combine that understanding with our in-depth knowledge of the latest industry trends, products and materials.