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“Doing business without advertising is like winking at a girl in the dark.  You know what you are doing, but nobody else does.”  – Stuart H. Britt, New York Herald Tribune

Charles Lewis here, at Charles Lewis Photography, and I’ve spent over 30 years discovering, testing, PROVING, and perfecting the most effective techniques for marketing and selling portrait and wedding photography.  I did this for one reason, and one reason only – I wanted to make a great living doing what I love:  Portrait and Wedding Photography.  And I discovered very early, that, in order to make a great deal of money in portrait and wedding photography, I had to become a MASTER  MARKETER AND SELLER.

On the subject of photography marketing, here are 7 secrets I have found to be very powerful and effective for both Online marketing such as websites, email marketing, etc.  and off line marketing such as sales letters, advertisements, etc.:

1. The more you tell, the more you sell.  Longer copy, if well written and interesting, almost always outsells shorter copy.

The key here is to be INTERESTING in all your marketing, to your “Target Market.”  The absolute killer is to be BORING.   So for me, my target market consists of what I call “Female Warm Fuzzies” – women who love their family and value photography and all the things sensitive photography can capture.

So I want to always talk in terms of warm, sensitive, emotional terms that she will really find wonderfully interesting.

2.  Always have a double readership path.  Some people are readers, others are skimmers.  Write for both types.  Use lots of bolded “subheads” which contain the main BENEFITS of your message.

Really what this means is you’re going to have other “headlines” scattered throughout the webpage or sales letter or ad.  These smaller headlines are known as “subheads” – and they are usually in slightly smaller type than the main headline at the top of the page, but still larger than the regular “body type” used on the page.

3. The headline is the most important part of your marketing message .  Without a doubt, the headline must stop your target market dead in her tracks.  That’s its job.  It must contain a clear benefit.  It must get her to read the first sentence of the message (and then continue on from there, of course.)

So work hard on that headline, it’s very important.  And NEVER write anything that doesn’t have a headline.  It’s the “ad” for your ad, webpage or sales letter.

4.  Talk in terms of benefits – always benefits.  What’s in it for her?  Why should she contact you now?   What will she miss out on if she does not contact you right now?

Is there some special reason for her to take action right now, such as a discounted special price for example.  Just keep asking yourself, as you’re writing the webpage, or the sales letter, “What’s in it for her?”   

5.  Stories sell, facts only tell.  Always include a few emotional stories (since people invest in photography for emotional reasons.)

Women who are “Warm Fuzzies” usually like stories – emotional stories – that they can relate to and empathize with.

6.  Always play up the guarantee – it’s very important.  The easiest way to get someone to respond to you is to give them an iron clad guarantee which removes all the risk from them, and places it firmly on you.

I have done this for my entire career – if my clients don’t LOVE their photographs, if they aren’t THRILLED, I will either do whatever is necessary to see to it they are thrilled, or I will give them all their money back.  And there will be no hard feelings or hassles, either.

7. The most important thing in marketing your photography is to be persuasive, not just pretty.  Photographers miss this one all the time.  We like pretty.  We’re “artists.”  But in marketing, pretty isn’t nearly as important as persuasive.

So don’t just make your web pages and ads pretty – but use everything I’ve talked about here to make them PERSUASIVE.    Use lots of emotional words.  Not just attractive photographs.  The days where just making an ad or a sales letter pretty – and having it work well, are long gone.

Use these 7 powerful marketing secrets as a checklist for everything you do that has anything to do with marketing your photography services.  They have served me extremely well, and they will do the same for you.

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Why are some photographers getting rich and having all the customers and clients they could ever want, while others are struggling?  Charles Lewis has created the *ultimate* guide – “The TOP 33 Photography Marketing Secrets” free E-Book reveals the secrets for getting hundreds of new customers – FAST – regardless of the economy, your town, or whether you work on main street or out of your home studio.
Click Here: ==>  http://www.cjlewis.com

Charles J. Lewis has been awarded the Master Of Photography Degree and the Photographic Craftsman Degree from the Professional Photographers Of America. He owns and operates Charles Lewis Photography in Grand Rapids, Mi.

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Before deciding on a strategy for marketing your medical practice, first determine your target market. There are several factors you must consider when selecting your target market. In health care marketing, it is not unusual to have several different target markets for each of the different medical products and services you provide.

If you have a family practice or if you’re a general dentist for example, your target market will be significantly different than that of a specialized practice such as a cosmetic surgeon or dermatologist. While there may be some common factors within the two target markets, the differences will be your defining factors.

There are three critical factors that should be considered when defining the target markets for your medical practice.

Location: Most prospective patients will want relatively quick and easy access to healthcare. It is unlikely that they will drive an hour or more for an earache or a toothache. Therefore, a family doctor’s target market is going to include prospective patients within a 7-10 mile radius. For a specialist, a prospective patient may be willing to drive further for care, if that specialist has effectively demonstrated how she can meet that prospective patients needs using effective health care marketing strategies. As such, a specialist like a cosmetic surgeon or aesthetics doctor would have a broader target market in terms of location.

Demographics: This would include the age, gender, income and possibly occupation of a prospective patient. A family doctor may want to target younger families in hopes of building a long-term relationship with them. Target age groups that will give you the greatest opportunity to handle the types of cases you desire to treat, and will help grow your practice long-term. A surgeon with a focus on cosmetic surgery may find the best age demographic for them is women 30 – 50 with a higher income level in professional occupations. Remember, the markets you select are going to depend on the types of products and services you offer.

Needs: You must also consider your local community’s needs when developing your target market. Let’s take a family practitioner for example. A family may want a provider that offers comprehensive care for the entire family so that all family members can be treated by the same physician. If you are capable of treating an entire family from childhood on, you should consider targeting families with children of a certain age and above. If there is a void for physicians specializing in special needs patients, and you treat special needs patients, include these patients in your target market. Similarly, if you are located near a large population of seniors and have products and services that can meet their medical needs, consider including them in your target market.

When brainstorming potential markets for your medical practice, look closely at your current patient panel. Your existing patients are a good source for determining which of the areas listed above will be most important when defining your target market. Look at the location, demographics and needs of your best current patients and then seek to target prospective patients who are similar to them. You can do this by learning more about your current patients using surveys to obtain more specific data on your “ideal” patient’s behaviors and needs.

Your strategic medical marketing plan can only be successful if you accurately determine your target market. Once you have identified your target market, all of your efforts must be focused on bringing that market through your practice doors.

With a clearly identified target market your health care marketing plan should focus on appropriate media within that area. Community or neighborhood newspapers are good places to consider if your target market consists of many seniors. If your target market has a much younger base, then you may consider advertising online.

For services like cosmetic surgery, your target market may be reached through certain magazines or websites. Knowing where potential patients are likely to be or read or surf will help you maximize your exposure to the kind of people you are targeting with your health care marketing plan.

Spending money to advertise in places your target market is not likely to see or read is just wasting valuable resources. You get more bang for your buck by carefully considering each and every possibility for exposure and its potential to bring you patients.

A physician’s marketing plan fails or succeeds depending on the accuracy of what you consider when determining your target market. Take the time necessary to have a firm understanding of who it is you want to walk through the doors of your practice and then use that understanding to move forward confidently toward your goals.

Marlee Ward is a medical marketing specialist and health care marketing consultant. Having worked in marketing and public relations for over 10 years, Marlee has seen medical practices struggle with their marketing efforts and get “taken” by practice consultants time and time again. Surrounded by a network of medical professionals, Marlee was inspired to create the Rx MD Marketing Mastery System to give physicians, doctors, and dentists the knowledge, tools, and technology needed for medical marketing success! Visit us online at www.rxmdmarketingsolutions.com.

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Product mix decisions are usually the most important and fundamental of all marketing strategy decisions. Corporations are careful to coordinate product decisions to avoid the risk of stretching company resources into product-markets offering little competitive advantage. Thus a product policy must be formulated to which all decisions are tied.

One of the main marketing strategies employed in modern firms to great effect, is branding and packaging. A product brand stands out from other similar products being offered by competitors. It helps position an organization in terms of price level, quality, service and other factors that are critical in reaching the target market.

Buyers often use brand image as a proxy for quality and dependability, particularly if they find it difficult to evaluate a good because of its newness or complexity. Branding, as an important competitive strategy thus creates a basis for building customer brand loyalty.

Also, different brands may be used to serve different market niches. Items that are similar, with different brands present a variety of alternatives for buyers, hence increases sales in many markets.

However, it should not be concluded that a good must be branded, although there are numerous advantages to branding. With some goods, a name identity can be de-emphasized and emphasis placed on the marketing strategies elements such as low pricing.

The attributes to be included in each marketing policy vary a lot as each particular case is unique in its own right. The over-all product promotion has a major effect on the image of the organization, and that image as seen by customers helps spell success or failure.

Stephen is an Business Organizing Expert . He researches and studies on big and small business strategies . Website: Business Management Solutions for efficient business operations.

Stephen shares his experience in self development tips and ideas that will add value to your life. Website: Self Development Tips

Stephen shares his experience in self development tips and ideas that will add value to your life. Website: Self Development Tips

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There is a very common mistake that I see IT service providers making when it comes to marketing their business. It’s unfortunate for any IT company, because in doing so he or she is actually REPELLING business rather than attracting it.

I am talking about IT business owners who cannot answer the question “What Do You Do?” It sounds silly, but take a look in your local yellow page book and glance over the IT ads. You’ll find a wonderful array of vague, boring ads that list out general facts, offer all kinds of ”off topic” services, and lack any ounce of uniqueness, intrigue, or emotional response.

You see, marketing is the art of motivating people to buy your product or service. To effectively motivate someone, you have to communicate to them in terms that he or she will relate and RESPOND to.  This involves knowing WHO you are taking to and WHAT they actually care about.

Nobody cares how about boring facts about your company. What they care about is specifically what results or benefits they will get if they buy your technology product or service. Period!  To do this, you have to properly plan and craft your marketing message in specific language that will hit home with your targeted prospects.

The problem that I am seeing, and it’s wasting a countless number of marketing dollars, is that too many IT guys are in business for themselves without doing any real work researching their target market, developing a USP, and crafting their marketing message. They ‘fly by the seat of their pants,’ and when someone puts them on the hot seat and asks “what do you do?” they can’t deliver an answer that’s memorable, sparks some interest, and generates word of mouth.

Instead of having a few powerful responses handy, the average IT guy is unprepared and begins to spit out boring facts about the services they offer, how long they’ve been in business, and what certifications they have, etc, etc. The problem with this type of answer is it doesn’t answer the question “What’s in it for me?” That’s really all anyone cares about when they ask “What do you do?”

When you resort to using boring facts as the centerpiece to your marketing, you are effectively making your company appear to be no different than your competitors. When you can’t differentiate yourself from your competition, prospects will assume that since your marketing is the same your SERVICES must be the same, and they will lose interest.

This is also how you get shopped on price. If you market your company exactly like your competition, than the only thing different WILL be your price. Your services become simple commodities and you give buyers no other option but to base their buying decision off of the price.

The key to preventing this from happening to your IT consulting company is to:

1. Focus your marketing around the results that your services provide.
2. Make a list of 4 or 5 specific benefits your clients can expect to gain after you perform your service.
3. Make a list of 7 or 8 specific aspects about your company that are unique and set you a part from your competition (e.g. – 24/7 service, free support hotline, 2 hour response time, remote desktop service work, etc.)
4. Be specific in your ads and avoid using any vague or clique terminology.

As soon as you start being specific in your ads, avoiding vague/clique terminology, focusing on results, and listing out unique aspects about your company, you will notice that your clients will immediately stop focusing on price. You will also appear to be different and SUPERIOR to your competitors. You will have instant credibility and prospects will view you as competent guru in your field.

So the next time someone asks you “what do you do” make sure you have a good answer.