By Georian Lussier
From man’s earliest drawings of deer hunts on cave walls, we have told stories to enlarge our circle of friends, to tell others “I exist.” Some experts see the internet as carrying on the tradition of oral communication – or, as that sixties song described it, the grapevine. Lance Strate, a Fordham University communications professor points out, “we evolved with speech, we didn’t evolve with writing.”
Interaction over the internet mimics the cadence of our conversations; it offers immediate, abbreviated, give-and-take with another human being. Time will tell what impact creating an avatar has on real world relationships, but the popularity of blogs and social networks such as MySpace points to a new communications era.
Your customers, partners, suppliers, and prospective clients are likely to be active internet users. A recent study of over 2,000 adults reports that they regularly check 2 or 3 personal email addresses a day. A quick search on Yahoo for “painting and decorating contractors” produced 1,950,000 web sites.
Brandt Domas, Internet Pioneer
Brandt Domas, owner of Domas Fine Painting and Restoration in Denver, Colorado was an early adopter of e-marketing. Since 1998, he has used the internet as one leg of his marketing and communications strategy. His current site at http://greatpaintjob. com is actually smaller than the first, but customers have exclusive access to photos of projects performed for them, which they enjoy forwarding to family and friends. He believes this is a successful way he differentiates his business.
Brandt averages 1,000 visits to his web site a month; he tracks the traffic to spot trends. Approximately half of his work involves historic preservation, and he serves both residential and commercial clients. He does not pay for links to other sites, but takes advantage of opportunities offered to members of professional associations.
One way Brandt communicates over the web is through newsletters to a current list of customers and prospects. When he receives an internet inquiry he asks, “who referred you?” Ten years ago, most of the visitors to the “great paint job” site were younger people. Today, he finds all ages actively use the internet. This trend includes professionals who are closing in on retirement.
With all his commercial clients, and with about 80% of his residential clients, he sends proposals through email. Brandt has had some of his emails filtered out at the client’s end, and attaching PDF files has sometimes been a problem. He put a practice into place where he tells clients when the proposal will be sent, and asks them to verify they have received it. He also follows up to ensure the client was able to download the proposal successfully.
Domas Fine Painting & Restoration focuses on the Denver area, and Brandt is not currently looking to expand geographically. However, his web site has been useful for out of state owners who are searching for work to be performed on their Denver properties.
Brandt firmly believes that every business needs to be accessible over the internet, and that even a static site is better than no presence at all. This is because it provides an easy route for prospective clients to learn about your business, is a necessity. However, even the simplest site needs some key components.
Brandt’s site starts with “we are excited to learn more about you and the possibilities of working with you on your project.” It offers help defining a strategy on a wide range of projects, including restorations. The site emphasizes that the firm has been around since 1979 and is largely successful due to referrals of satisfied customers. Their key values of professionalism, performance and integrity are boldly printed, and they promise to call people back within 24 hours.
The visitor can then choose to learn more “About Us”, make contact over the internet, or see what information Domas Fine Painting & Restoration provides about “Color.”
Online Resources
There is an abundance of information about ‘how to build a better website’ on the internet. A general search for “e-marketing” produced a good mix of articles for small businesses, as well as, promotional pitches from communications consultants and web designers. The following may spark a new way of thinking about how the internet can help promote your business.
Keep it Personal
Inc. Magazine has published numerous articles on e-marketing. Even ten years ago, owners were encouraged to build two-way communications into their web sites. In her 1998 article entitled “One-to- One Marketing on the Web”, Dr. Martha Rogers urged owners to use the internet to reinforce relationships with current customers, vs. prospects. She cited an example where an early adopter in the daycare industry installed video cameras so parents could see what their kids were doing throughout the day. Another example was a wine company that kept a personal wine list feature to keep track of customer preferences. Dr. Rogers also took a page from Brandt Domas’ marketing book. She suggested password-protected sites so clients could see work in progress. Her closing advice was to use the web to talk with your customers, not at them.
Seventy is the New Fifty
Stuart Elliott, an advertising columnist with the New York Times, recently published an article called, “Tailoring Messages to a New Audience: Wrinkled Baby Boomers”. No surprise, people in their 60s, 70s and 80s are ‘not going gently into that good night.’ Rather, they are traveling, dining out and adopting new technologies. Harley Davidson is fiercely targeting this group, and so should you.
We are Here to Help
One consulting group, aptly called MC eConsulting, offers to align your business strategy, marketing initiatives and web activity, and to analyze existing websites for performance, traffic, and sales leads. Their web address is wwww.mc-econsulting.com
A consultant in the Atlanta area that focuses on small to medium businesses offers a free report with six principles of effective internet advertising. On his site at http:// ramondees.48dayscoach.com, Ramon E. Dees encourages the use of major search engines, such as Google, Yahoo and Ask.com. He posts testimonials, including the following quote from a carpet cleaning service: “Within the first twenty days of my campaign, I booked 13 jobs that averaged $273 each.”
Network Solutions at http://design. networksolutions.com lists some website tips regarding e-mail marketing and e-mail newsletters. They reinforce the importance of good manners on the web, including not overwhelming a customer’s e-mailbox, giving them the chance to opt out of future messages, and having a clear subject line and message.
Keep it Short and to the Point
Tool Kit is a New York Times resource for entrepreneurs, and a recent column stressed the importance of a 15 second speech. If you shared an elevator ride with a prospective customer, how effectively would you sell your business? As the internet mimics conversation, the same rules apply: (1) Focus on what you can do for the customer, not on how wonderful your company is. (2) The message needs to be painfully clear. The customer has to “get it” immediately. (3) Everyone in the business should be able to reinforce the message.
E-marketing offers a balance of high tech and high touch communications: The medium is electronic, but you are still inviting people to sit down and talk.