Monthly Archives: August 2009

Divide Your Sales Territory Into Primary and Secondary Markets.Use A Different Door Hanger For Each.

Target new prospects in a secondary market with door hanger distribution and a strong offer.

Target new prospects in a secondary market with door hanger distribution and a strong offer.

Door hanger advertising offers many strategic advantages that are often overlooked. Because you are picking the distribution areas, you have the ability to target exactly were you want to prospect for new business.

For more effective results, divide your market area into two territories:

1- Your primary market, where most of the residents are aware of business and provide the majority of your daily sales. (usually the homes closest to your retail location)

2- A secondary market, an area from which you don’t see much traffic. Perhaps this secondary market is a little further away or has a strong competitor servicing it. Whatever the reason, you suspect there is potential for new business.

Now that you have two seperate markets, create a door hanger specifically for each market.

You primary market contains your loyal customers which provide the majority of your sales. Don’t take them for granted. Keep in front of them and remind them why they like your products or service. Reward them with new offerings and discounts. Spend the majority of your door hanger advertising budget on this group.

The secondary market is your chance to grow your business. Be more aggressive with your special offers. Give this group a reason to travel further or to experiment with a new supplier. Don’t measure the success of your door hanger campaign by each individual transaction. Remember,  if you just break even or even lose a little bit on each new sale, you’re getting a shot at a new customer. Measure the value of every new customer on what he will spend in the future, not just first sale. And don’t forget aboutn the word of mouth factor. If he tells family and friends about you, that’s an extra bonus and more sales!

Many business owners fear that if they give a deeply discounted offer of their door hangers, folks that live further away will come, use a coupon, and I never be seen again. Perhaps that’s true. But if it is, it means that your product or service is not special enough for them to consider coming back. Think about it.

Here’s a final tip that might help you save money when creating more than one version of your door hangers. Door hangers are often printed on letter size card stock (8.5 x 11.5 inches). The door hanger image is repeated either 2 or 3 times on the same sheet and then cut them in thirds or half after printing. So a 1000 sheets will yield either 2000 or 3000 door hangers depending on the size.

If you provide the printer with more than one version of your door hanger, the order can be printed at no extra cost except perhaps for an additional artwork charge.

Give this strategy a try and you’re sure to see new customers. Good Luck!

Share Your Door Hanger Distribution Costs

Door Hanger Advertising works great. So why aren’t you doing it more often? For many businesses the problem is distribution costs. If this is your problem, consider sharing the distribution cost and logistics with other businesses. Here’s how.

Plastic Door Hanger Bags Can Reduce Distribution Costs

Plastic Door Hanger Bags Can Reduce Distribution Costs

Instead of using regular door hangers, print flyers instead and then insert your flyer along with other businesses in a clear plastic door hanger bag. Go to www.BlanksAndBags.com for prices and ordering information.

This door hanger promotion method is a great way to promote an entire shopping plaza. By including offers from your business neighbors, the door hanger bag will contain more value for your prospects, and additional traffic will be created which can increase your response rate.

Another approach is to include businesses that you’re not in competition with, but are related to your product or service. For example, a Realtor may include a mortgage broker, insurance agent or home repair specialists. A chiropractor, might include other health care professionals such as a dentist, optometrist or medical office.

One final thought. Who’s going to be on the outside of the plastic door hanger bag? There are 2 sides.

Here are some suggestions:

1- You could rotate the prime positions.
2-Your distribution costs could also be reduced by charging a premium for those spots.
3-You could print an index page that might feature the theme and list all of the businesses inside the door hanger bag.
4- You could always just keep the best spot for yourself, after all it was your idea!

Who’s Going To Distribute Your Door Hangers?

Door hangers are a great way to advertise, but you’re busy running your business, so how will you get them distributed?

Professional door hanger distribution companies are available in some cities, but they might not always be available when and where you want them.

One idea is to get a local organization like the Boy Scouts, A Church Group or Little League Team to distribute your door hangers as a fund raiser. You help them and they help you.

You can always distribute your door hangers yourself or with a friend or loved one. Walking is great exercise, and if you spend an hour at the beginning or end of the day distributing door hangers, imagine the shape you’ll be in at the end of a few months.

Plan your distribution area in advance using Google Maps and count the houses on each street.

Plan your distribution area in advance using Google Maps and count the houses on each street.

Here’s another more aggressive plan. Hire a full time employee dedicated to door hanger distribution. Sounds expensive but consider this:  an adult with a plan can easily distribute 500 door hangers in a day in most suburban neighborhoods (more in a city environment).

Figure a 7 hour day with and hour for lunch. In today’s job market, there are plenty of able bodied workers who would be happy to have the job for lets say $9 per hour (this type of wage may vary more or less in different parts of the county). That would work out to be .126 cents per door hanger. That’s a lot less than a .44 cent stamp!

Whichever way you decide to distribute your door hangers, be organized. Google maps are great and are very detailed. Figure out your distribution area in advance. Count the number of houses on each street and pay your workers by the street, not by the number of door hangers you give them to distribute. Even good kids, may start hanging more than one door hanger on each door as they get tired. In this way, it’s easy to spot check and make sure your distribution is accomplished.

Planning out your distribution area in detail may sound like a big homework assignment, but remember, you only have to do it once. You’ll be all set when it’s time to distribute your door hangers the next time. Good luck!

Try Adding Value Instead Of Discounting On Your Door Hanger

Remember, the purpose of your door hanger advertising campaign is to generate leads.

A good way to do this is to include a “Special Offier” on your door hanger. We call this your “Magnet”. A good magnet will attract new customers.

Try being creative. Many advertisers use the old “10% Off” approach. It may work, but it’s been over used and often the prospect doesn’t believe the discount is real.

No not a "Chcik Magnet".  Use a special offer as the "Magnet" on your door hanger to attract new customers!

No not a "Chcik Magnet". Use a special offer as the "Magnet" on your door hanger to attract new customers!

Try adding value instead of a discount. Price your product competitively and then add more product or service for the same price. For example, a door hanger for a carpet cleaner might say “3 Rooms Cleaned for $99 – Plus 1 Chair Cleaned FREE!” This is a “WIN, WIN OFFER”. He gets his full price for the carpet cleaning and lets the client know that he also offers upholstery cleaning – and after cleaning one chair the rest of the upholstery may look a bit dingy, which could lead to an additional sale.

The value added offer doesn’t always have to be free either. We’ve all been asked to “SUPER SIZE” our order at a fast food restaurant. That extra $1.99 for a larger fountain soda and a few extra french fries really adds up.

So take some time to think about the Magnet on your door hanger. If you need some help, just give us a call and we’ll be happy to brain storm with you. Call 866-585-0965 M-F – 9-6 Eastern Time.

Use door hangers to promote your website. Don’t have a website? Read this!

Using door hangers to send visitors to your website is a great idea, but have you given much thought as to what they will do when they get there?

Who should designed your website? A website consultant, a template on online, your nephew?

dot-com

Make your website an ad not just a brochure. Include special offers and change them regularly.

The answer is: YOU SHOULD DESIGN YOUR WEBSITE!

You don’t have to learn any complicated software. You can hire someone or ask a friend for assistance, but you should be in charge of the content.

The first step is to decide what you want your website to do. There are 3 main options to consider:

  1. A Brochure Online
  2. An Ad Online
  3. A Store Online

For most small businesses options 1 and 2 are the most practical and affordable. Most websites are set up as online brochures with information about products and services.

Using your website as an “Ad Online” is an overlooked concept that works very well. It’s a way to promote special offers on a regular basis without having to pay for newspaper or other advertising. You just have to get your customers trained to checkout the latest offers from time to time. Ofcourse, the offers have to be strong or your clients won’t take the time to return.

We have just introduced an exciting new one page “Mini Website” that allows the site owner to easily update content and special offers. No software training is needed. Click the link below for more information:

http://www.GetAMiniWebsite.com

To kick off our new web program we are offering a $50 discount on your next Door Hanger or Flyer Printing Order when you purchase a $99 Mini Website.

For more information call 1-866-585-0965.

Full Color vs Two Color Door Hanger Printing

rainbowMarketing dollars are tight. Funny, that seems to be the case in good times and bad. Nevertheless you want to get the most for what you spend. So, do you order full color glossy door hangers or less expensive two color door hangers?

To help decide, consider two factors:

Consideration Number 1: What are you selling?
If you are selling a high end product like jewelry or furniture – or –  a high end service like cosmetic dentistry or major home remodeling, then as they say, “…a picture is worth a thousand words” and a full color glossy door hanger will probably work better.

If you are selling lower priced products or service like fast food or driveway seal coating, then a two color door hanger may work just fine.

Consideration Number 2: Wo are you selling to?

Image is important, especially if your target market is higher income. A full color door hanger may work better in this situation. If your service requires an in home estimate, a photo of you or your employee(s), looking neat and professional, may provide the secure feeling necessary to be invited into your prospects home.

Consideration number 1 & 2 don’t always coincide. For instance, perhaps you are offering a weekly lawn service at a relatively low price, but your target is higher priced homes. A full color door hanger is probably the way to go while the same type of service offered to middle class homes might work with a two color door hanger.

Here’s another idea. Save money by using a two color door hanger to drive prospects to your full color website.

Your the boss. With the information above, you need to make the decision. Have confidence in what you are doing and you’ll get it right!