Advertising raises Curiosity and Interest - Relationships builds Sales - true or false

Many entrepreneurs in Barrie ask me why I say, "You should not Advertise". My answer is that advertising only raises curiosity and interest. Large businesses can afford to advertise to raise brand awareness. Advertising has nothing to do with sales. Sales comes from building relationships.

Let's do a reality check. Look at your list of customers and work out how many sales came to you from relationships and how many came from advertising.

Caution: Do not measure specials, discounts, sales. These are events. Usually loss leaders. You don't get long times sales from these activities.
Are any of those on your list always looking for sales and not a real valued customer? Remove them from this reality check. Note: when you spend money on adverting your sales count the costs for creative and placement of these ads. We are looking for real customers.

Now look what you are spending on building relationships - Getting SALES. This is a difficult area to measure. Historically, for larger business this expense is around single digit % of revenue.

In times gone by advertising was used to do mass marketing. Now, our world is much smaller. Sales acquisition seems to be upside down. The big guys spend all their money on advertising and nothing on sales. They measure their success by market research and statistics. We don't have that luxury. We are looking for results - sales.

Spend 98% on raising interest does not make sense and spending only 2% on acquiring sales, is even more wasteful.

I am a Relationship Marketing specialist showing how to build relationships and how to get more sales.

We buy from those we know and have a relationship with.Cute and catchy slogans are not who we are. Each of us are so much more than these words that others have created. People buy from people because we trust them, know them and believe in them.
I am not talking about big box stores. I am talking about doing business with business owners that you are comfortable with.

Example of a relationship strategyTake Kris Hughston! She is in financial services. She is part of one of North America's top financial institutions. There are thousands and thousands of agents like her in Ontario. So why would you consider her services?

Let's look a little closer at Kris. She is offering to promote (for nothing) any business that gives women a fair shake on her Mr. Bob's Network page, click here. Kris is a champion for empowering women.

Now, let me ask you a question! How many women do you know that have had a bad experience when dealing with a purchase. I bet you know a lot. By connecting with women-friendly businesses she has formed a strong relationship with these women.

The Big QuestionWho would you do business with? A person who supports women's issues or just another supplier? Who would you tell others about? I believe you would tell every women you know about Kris.

Great stories about Kris's passion become popular and her business grows.
Many businesses have hidden talents. I am always amazed that businesses struggle over how to introduce themselves and typically talk about what everyone says.

Tell others about the relationships you have and how you helped others and you will be prosper. Call me and let me show you how to build a new sales strategy based on Relationship Marketing. www.opinionnaire.ca