Canadian Small Business Women

Connection, Synergy, Community

Why we hate MLM companies and any other direct seller business

Jemi

Nobody likes to be sold to. When we hearing the word “selling” of any kind, we turn our head away and run. The truth of the matter is, we are being sold through marketing everywhere we go. Everything from our clothing, cars, and even our toothpaste all has been marketed to us.  Why are we so hesitant to buy from a MLM company or any direct seller?

Direct sellers- Don’t have the marketing budget as big companies do and have to work harder to get through your door than an average company. By work harder, I mean that their frontline (Your Avon lady) needs to find you (the consumer) and teach you about her products. Bigger companies like Home Depot and Wal-Mart have big commercials and advertising teams that send their marketing message to you so that you will choose their brand over the competition. This marketing message comes to you in different forms like; TV, radio, print newspaper, social media sponsored ads.  Direct sellers only have brochures, a website, and themselves to send that same message to you. You see the seller as a seller, whereas a big corporation, you see a message.

Many MLM companies have started as a scamming business that looks legit in the beginning but have con many hardworking citizens. Some of these companies made millions misleading others and has made national news staining the MLM community. Not all multi-level businesses are schemes but because we have heard about horrible stories, we are forever tainted.

Most consumers don’t know that MLM are more often just like the companies we work for. There is a CEO that overlooks the company as a whole that delegates to a board, those delegates to managers, and those delegates to the frontline workers. This CEO makes the most money because they usually hold the most profit share and the bottom line business reflects their pocket size.  The difference between them and our direct sellers, is that these direct sellers are able to work hard and reap the financial benefits that come along with it, where in a corporation, they work on a wage.

Our direct sellers are our neighbours, friends, and family that are trying to make a little extra money to get out of debt, create savings, or have a dream that they cannot achieve in the standard 9-5 job. Many of these corporations do not give their frontline workers the bonuses or even benefits that they need in order to sustain a comfortable living. Direct sellers need to work harder to gain your trust and attention so that they can make a dollar. We as people don’t like being misled or sold to. We as people need time to trust a company or product before purchasing. Make an informed decision before choosing one over the other.

 

Jemi Smith guest blogs on numerous websites and owns a mom community website called momsgotodurham.com. She has a passion for business and marketing and is raising two young boys under 3. You can e-mail her at jemiechevarria@gmail.com or call her at (647)785-5851

 

Fast Track your Business with these Marketing tools

Jemi

Marketing can be a daunting task and can be overwhelming at times. Keeping a space just for your marketing tools can go a long way. All you need is some patience, a well-organized work area, and great excel worksheet to keep track of your progress. Implementing these tools right away will increase your revenue right away!

Business/Marketing Calendar (Also known as Editorial Calendar):  There are many different ways to have a marketing calendar. You can use a monthly hanging calendar, a calendar app, or even a dry erase one. This calendar keeps track of your promotions, sales, and any other marketing materials you want to implement.

How to use a marketing calendar:

  1. Before writing down anything in your calendar, make a list of all the different types of promotions your business will need marketing for. (For example if you are a florist and you need to send out marketing for Valentine’s day) This is also where you will place your special events and sales like Black Friday. List them per month then down to the date. For each event, mark 3 months beforehand to set-up your marketing accordingly to the date.
  2. Place each event on the calendar, including the 3 months mark. Starting at the 3 month mark you’ll write what kind of actions you will take either bi-weekly, weekly, or monthly up until the event to promote the big day. (For example, if you are promoting your Boxing Day specials, you can send out early e-mails to your customers giving them exclusive deals. A month after that you can send out flyers. Then weekly after that you can promote on your social media sites.
  3. I recommend having a weekly calendar alongside it with all your online marketing efforts from your blogs, social media content, and sales and promos. This way you can place your online and offline marketing material together. Make sure that you use separate promo codes when you use “call to actions” so you can keep track of what is working.

E-mail signature: Placing a signature at the end of each e-mail is a low cost way to showcase what you do on every e-mail you send out. You can do a free one through your e-mail provider or you can invest in one that has all your social media links.

A car organizer: A great way to stay on top of all those unexpected moments when you meet potential clients or prospects is by having a car organizer. You can get this at any local organizational supply store. It hangs at the back of your car seat with different size components. Place your business card, brochures, post cards, samples, pens and blank papers, and any other marketing material.

Small sample kits: You can meet great contacts anywhere you go. Sometimes the person waiting in line in front of you is looking to use your services. Don’t get caught not having any information at any point.

Here are some examples of small sample kits that are easy to carry:

Business card & tiny sample: I have met a young woman that creates soaps from natural ingredients and gives out tiny samples with her business card in small clear bags.

Brochure & Business card: Keep brochures with your business card attached to them for those wanting a bit more detail of your business.

Laminated marketing material (different sizes): I recommend having a postcard size (5×7) and a legal paper size (8X11) of laminated marketing material with you at all times so you can do a quick presentation in seconds. This can be a laminated brochure.

Prospect list: Through my experience in sales, I have learned that having a contact list of prospects is very beneficial. Have both a paper list and an electronic database to keep track of who you have met in your travels. Get very specific as to the prospects’ family life, job, the type of car they drive, what area they live, and so forth so that you can be relatable and also you can market to them specifically.  Make sure you have their contact information (phone and email) , plus where and when the contact was made.

Don’t underestimate the power of preparation when it comes to business. Clients and prospects are everywhere and having these tools will give you the edge that your competition doesn’t have. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed these tips.

For more information contact Jemi Echevarria at jemiechevarria@gmail.com and (647)785-5851

39 ways to hand out your business cards

Jemi

Welcome to the world of networking. Business cards are the most inexpensive way to get your name out there. They are small, thin, and easy to give out. Your name, contact, website, and slogan tell the prospect all they need to know about you and your business. You can get 500 for less than $60 in colour. This means when you have successfully handed out your 500 cards, that’s 500 people that didn’t know about you before. There’s no telling what this can do for your business. If you try these 39 ideas on a regular, you’ll see more traffic to your website, and more referrals coming your way.

  1. Post them on community bulletin boards (churches, laundromats, grocery stores, etc)
  2. Place them in thank you cards, birthday cards, anniversary cards to your clients with your handwritten notes
  3. Make sure you have more than enough to hand out at networking events
  4. Attach business cards to all your bags with products
  5. Place them at the bottom of gifts
  6. For an event place them in goodie bags to hand out
  7. Punch a hole in the corner of each business card and attach them to sucker to hand out
  8. Look for businesses that have a community table where you can place a stack of business cards for their customers to take
  9. Deliver them to mail boxes
  10. Before presentations, attach them to each folder
  11. Make sure you have an electronic copy as your signature of each e-mail
  12. Use your electronic copy as a banner for your social media platforms
  13. Place them on windshield wipers
  14. Place them in bathroom stalls
  15. Add them to your invoices
  16. When you are out running errands, use this opportunity to meet new prospects and exchange numbers. Hand out your business card
  17. Have a card display attached to your car with your business cards
  18. Attach your business cards to balloons at an event and hand them out
  19. Keep samples in individual bags with your card in each of them. Get their information in exchange for your samples
  20. Have a referral system with professionals similar to you but are not your competition. You keep their cards, and they keep yours and together you spread your business
  21. At networking events have your card in a clear plastic name tag
  22. At an event, hand out water bottles. Punch a hole in the top right hand corner of your business cards and tie with a string to each water bottle
  23. Glue your card to clothes pins and pin your card everywhere
  24. Stick your card onto a magnet and hand them out
  25. Give a few cards to friends and family to hand out for you
  26. Ask your good customers for referrals. Give them cards to hand out for you and for every business transaction that comes from a customer, give them a discount.
  27. Throw a party, hand out your cards to your guests
  28. Place them in individually wrapped bags with candy and hand them out
  29. Get mini cards and hole punch them for your customers to add to their key chains
  30. Canvas to restaurants and small businesses, and introduce yourself and your products
  31. When you leave a tip, give your business card with a thank you note
  32. Give your child(ren) to hand out your business cards at events. No one can resist cute children!
  33. Wear a clear lanyard  around your neck at all times with your business card
  34. Keep business cards in stands on tables or counters from businesses in your area. Make sure you make good connections with these business owners and recommend their business whenever you can
  35. Place them in books at your library related to your business
  36. Stick them in free newspapers
  37. Go door-to-door and introduce yourself with your business cards and products
  38. Stick them on a hat as a creative way to attract interest to you
  39. Bring a brightly covered basket of your products in crowded places and when people ask you about them, give them your card

Hope these ideas will inspire you to get out there and meet new prospects! For more information call Jemi Echevarria at (647)785-5851 or e-mail her at jemiechevarria@gmail.com.

Top 5 Reasons why You should Blog for your Business

Jemi

Blogging has become a huge phenomenon in the online world. Anyone and everyone can start a blog. It’s easy and very inexpensive to start. All you need is a computer, the internet, and the time to put together a blog. As a business owner, you can stand out from your competitors by giving useful tools and great expertise to your customers at minimal cost to you. Here’s what blogs can do for you and your business:

  1. Open Communication between you and your customer: You are starting a conversation with your potential client. When they read and follow you, it gives them a direct insight to how you are as a business owner.
  2. Subscription list: If your readers enjoy your blog they can be notified directly via e-mail. This is an opportunity for you to create database for you to promote your services and products. Limit your e-mails to once a month or twice a month.
  3. Affiliate marketing: When you are receiving a large following of readers, you may want to consider using affiliate marketing into your blog. This will create another stream of passive income right into your bank account. Affiliate marketing are just like businesses advertising on your blog, when your readers click the ad from your blog, and a sale is made, you will get a portion of the sale!
  4. Higher rankings: Google analytics like to see different clicks going to and from your website. The more clicks coming to your blog from your social media sites, and vice versa, Google “bots” see it as a popular place to be and will rank your blog and website higher for FREE.
  5. Free publication: Having a blog puts you, as a business owner, on a different and personal expertise level than someone that is competition and not blogging. You never know who may be reading and following your blog that can create a whole new venture for you that will make you even more money!

Hope these tips will get your fire burning to write a blog. Even if the blog is just once a month to start, it will generate a following that will be expecting your great insight. Happy blogging!

Contact Jemi Echevarria by phone: (647)785-5851 or by e-mail:  jemiechevarria@gmail.com

10 tips to Cut costs, Increase sales, and Save time

Jemi

For every small business, there will always be costs to be paid out. The trick is to receive more business than having to pay bills. Whether you are a small start-up company or a retail store, these tips you can do right now. Marketing and advertising doesn’t have to cost you a lot of money. With a little planning and some time, you can achieve the results you want. Try all of these tips once and track the progress. If it works, great! Do it again. If it doesn’t, note why you think it didn’t and how you would do it over again.

Tip#1 Know your customer! A pet peeve of mine is when an entrepreneur will tell me that EVERYONE is their customer. Although it is true that we can take business from anyone, there will be a group of people that will be your primary customer. This is the “type” of customer that buys from you regularly. They say 80% of your business will come from 20% of your customers. Get to know your customers very well. Learn about their buying habits, their education, and lifestyle.

Tip#2 Following the previous tip, create a customer management system. This means a database where you place all your customers information including birthdays, anniversaries, spouse’s name and number (for gifts), and any other information that you can use to personalize the experience for your customer. These types of small gestures will bring a lot of business over time and a loyal clientele base.

Tip#3 Hire a student. College and University students are looking for experience in their field. You can hire them for an hourly basis or per contract. For example, I had a business mentor that didn’t have time to punch in her receipts into her excel so she hired an accountant student to simply punch in her numbers. The student gets extra money and the business owner has more time to do what they love to do.

Tip#4 Do not go with a very elaborate website. Start with something small and simple then work your way up when your business grows.

Tip#5 Try a joint venture. During your travels as an entrepreneur you’ll find some great people in the same industry but are not your competition.(For example; a makeup artist and hairdresser) These two professions are not in competition but they do cater to same market. You can join together on marketing (IE one business gets one side of a postcard, and the other has the opposite. Together you can split the cost of printing and get your business out there twice as fast)

Tip#6 Know your competition. Do a SWOT analysis of your greatest competition. “S” stands for strengths. What does your competition do better than you? “W” stands for weakness. What does your competition lack? “O” stands for opportunity. How can you improve your business from your strengths and weaknesses? “T” stands for threats. Where can your competition really hurt your business?

Tip#7 Barter goods. When you make great connections with other businesses, you can sometimes barter for goods. This means providing a service for a service instead of using money. You may give a service of printing business cards to get your car detailed for instance. This is a win-win relationship.

Tip#8 Track your invoices, receipts, and bill payments. When you have a handle of your finances, you are able to see where you are making the most money and how. Keep a journal and calendar on when bills need to get paid and when invoices are being charged.

Tip #9 Conduct surveys regularly. The best way to improve your business is to find out directly from your customers. Give coupons or discounts to your customers for participating in the survey.

Tip #10 Give out useful information for free. Your brain is full of so much expertise. Create opportunities to showcase your talents. You can hold free webinars. Volunteer to speak at different engagements. Write articles for different newspapers.

These ten tips will increase your bottom line immediately and save you money. Not every business owner has thousands of dollars to hire an advertising agency. Become an expert in your own marketing.

For more information contact Jemi Echevarria, marketing campaign manager at

(647)785-5851 or jemiechevarria@gmail.com