Branding your comapny should be the first thing a company does. You have to convince potential customers to buy from you. Very few people have a monopoly like Microsoft or Ebay, Everyone else need to steer business to their company or product. When people think about your company, what is their impression. For my company, Solutions Ink, I wanted to portray a fresh, professional, ease of use type of company whoose product meets their quality needs while helping their business. I wanted to portray Solutions Ink as always on the fore front of the printing and promotional product industry's.

To achieve this I needed to tell potential customers of new and innovative products for the printing industry. Variable data, large format digital printing, digital printing with pantone colors, label and form combinations, magnet and form combinations and e-commerce ordering systems. How best to show customers then actually devise a campaign where the product you are trying to educate your customers about is sent out to them to give them ideas how to use this product to help their businesses. One campaign I organised was to compile a list of fashion retailers whoose logo's were specific pantone colors that are not reproduced well in 4 color process printing. Today with 6,8 and 10 color presses you can print in 4 color process and 2 pantone colors quite easily. This keeps the integrity of the company's logo intact in their big marketing or flyer campaigns. This is OK for large run printing jobs. The problem is that even for large chains, you tend to have regional sales in a small amount of stores. In store displays usually are done in small numbers and are printed digitally. Today there are certain digital presses that can insert pantone colors on top of the 4 color process printing. After devising a mock up campaign and targetting by variable data the buyers of these retail fashion chains, I was able to secure 2 large accounts for present and future business.

This technique can be applied to any industry. The key is to really now your product and the strengths of your company. The next step is to educate your customers on your company's merits. Then you must reinforce your image constantly to stay in your existing customers mind, as well as peak the curiousity of potential new customers.

Once you have achieved this, giving out promotional products is a useful way of staying on their minds. The trick is to find a great promotional product, that fits you budget, is useful to the end user and doesn't shout your name too boldly. Humour is a great way to have your customers keep your stuff. The items seen most times for an office person are calendars and coffee mugs. To be different in the Montreal Promotional Product market, Solutions Ink sent out to all existing customers a 14 ounze special mug which was imprinted with thermochromic ink. The ink is heat sensitive and evaporates on heat and returns on cold. With this you can print something underneath the thermochromic ink which is revealed when cold. On the outside we simply put the word STRESS in red over a black background. Most people who work know about stress. The humour side was that when you poured your hot coffee the message turned into stress free at Solutions Ink. A simple inexpensive idea that our customers really enjoyed and every time I stop at one of their offices I readily spot our mugs. On top of this I received 4 orders from these customers for these mugs with a different message for their customers.

Another great way for your company to be branded positively is to become associated with a worth while charity. Today we must give back to those less fortunate. Sponsering an event gives your company great exposure but the real treat is in knowing that you've helped others. Money is not the end all, all the time. A funny thing, helping others usually rewards yourself if not immediately some time in the future.

The trick is to plan out your actions. Research the market, research your company's attributes and brand your company's image positively and constantly. Following these steps should help your company stand out from the competition and make yourself more successful Best of luck.

Steven Schneidman

About the Author: Steven Schneidman owns a successful printing and promotional product company. He started off teaching finance at a Canadian University and working at the head office of the secong largest bank in Canada. Solutions Ink works to help all size comapnies grow and prosper. If you need help you can contact me at 514-337-2238 or visit us on the webb at www.solutionsink4u.com

Why Dream Merchants Make More Money

Why Dream Merchants Make More Money
Copyright 2001, Joanne L. Mason
www.moneymakingsalesletters.com

Want to know the secret to creating your best sales letter ever?
All of the classic copywriters have said for ages that when you help someone else achieve their dreams that youll never run out of customers.

Its true. Dream merchants always make more money. A dream merchant is someone who knows how to help you achieve your dreams. He understands the dream that youre pursuing and can offer the necessary tools to make your dream a reality. He also knows that the fastest way to achieve his own goals is by helping you reach yours.

Think about it in everyday terms. Consider going on your dream vacation. No travel agent would ever just tell you how much a
ticket to your desired location is going to cost you. Instead, the agents job is to sell your dream.

Travel offices are plastered with breath-taking posters of exotic locations from every corner of the globe. Whether you want to bask on the sunny beaches of Jamaica or ski the snowcapped-mountains of Montana, your travel agent can get you there. Whats more, by the time that your agent finishes painting a glorious picture of fun and relaxation in your head, youll be so excited that you wont care what it costs as long as you get there.

The same principle applies to writing winning sales letters. You must appeal to the dreamer that lies inside every prospect. Help them to see your products as more than peddled goods. Build up the benefits that your product offers. Focus on fulfilling your customers desires so much that your price is seen as a minimal exchange when compared to the ultimate satisfaction of achieving their goals and dreams.

Study your niche and understand what they want. Do they want to make more money and become successful in business? Do they want to save money and feel secure? Do they want to lose weight and live healthier? Discover what exactly it is that they want.

Examine your potential customers until you understand the motivational triggers that make them buy. Use this information to become a dream merchant. Tell your customers how you can help them achieve their dreams and youll have an instant increase in sales.

Let Joanne Mason show you how to increase your income by as much as 1700% by using one simple secret for pulling more sales and profits from every ad, promotion or sales letter you'll ever use! Details at
www.moneymakingsalesletters/greatheadlines/index.html

Joanne L. Mason is the owner of moneymakingsalesletters.com and publisher of Sales Letters Secrets Ezine. Subscribe now at www.moneymakingsalesletters.com/ezine.html and receive 2 FREE ebooks valued at more than $49!