Cost Effective Marketing
for Small Businesses
Many small businesses struggle
to find a balance between producing professional-looking
documentation and keeping the budget on track.
Graphic designers often charge large fees to produce
something that you could probably have done a
lot of yourself, at no cost except your time.
Printers dictate a minimum amount of copies, when
you may only need a few, at a cost that is beyond
the project budget.
Many
businesses decide that the costs involved are
prohibitive and produce the documentation themselves.
The result is often a document that is produced
in-house that looks like it's been created in
Word or Paintbox and does little or nothing to
distinguish you from your competitors.
There are, however, ways you can produce professional-looking
documentation (such as letterhead, business cards,
brochures and reports) in-house and at a minimum
cost - you just need to think a bit differently.
This article will give you some ideas on how
you can improve your marketing ideas without breaking
the budget.
Design
Good design is not just something that makes
your document look attractive. A good design should
consider your type of business and your potential
clients and customers. Stop for a minute and have
a think about your business. What makes you different
from your competitors? What are you best at? Take
a good, hard look at your existing clients and
customers. Who are they? What do they like? All
of these things should be taken into consideration
before you even start.
Have
a think about the type of layout you want to use.
Would a three-fold A4 brochure or a postcard be
better? Split A4 flyers and newsletters into multiple
columns rather than a single column page. Select
a font to use for headings and one for normal
copy and stick to them. Make sure that all your
documentation is consistent and looks like it
belongs to one "family".
Get a designer to create and set up a template
in a program you already have, such as Microsoft
Word. Then you have a ready-made document that
you can change and reprint whenever you like.
You can even use the same template to produce
letterhead, flyers, newsletters and fax headers.
Microsoft Word has a huge array of features that
many people don't even use, such as style sheets,
headers and footers, tables, borders, envelopes
and labels (you can even print your return address
on the envelope as well).
Take the time to learn how to use some of these
features - it will save you a lot of time and
can help you create a much more professional look.
Alternatively, have a designer produce a pre-printed
page that you over-print yourself using a Word
template or similar document.
Printing and Output
Printing
costs are often the most expensive component of
producing marketing material. What type of printing
you choose to use will depend on how many copies
you need. If you only require a few copies, printing
on your desktop printer may be the best option
(but keep in mind how much it costs to replace
colour cartridges on your printer and how quickly
you will go through them). If you need more than
a handful but still don't need enough to require
an offset print run (usually a minimum of 250
or 500 copies) try using colour photocopying -
most photocopying shops can print your document
directly from disc (though this usually incurs
an additional download fee). But if you require
more than 200 copies offset printing is definitely
the most cost-effective way to print.
Short Run Printing
Just
because you run something out on your desktop
printer doesn't mean it has to look boring. Stationary
shops such as Officeworks and craft stores supply
specialty papers designed for use with laser and
inkjet printers.
Use a coloured, transparent or textured paper
to give your document a lift and to make it stand
out. Print on adhesive paper to create stickers
and CD labels. Or use unusual sizes or shapes
- perhaps a square brochure that you print on
an A4 page and cut out. You can trim them yourself
or get your local photocopy shop to do it for
you (provided it is a straight-edged cut). If
you only have a few you could even cut them into
unusual shapes by hand.
Large Run Printing
Even within the realm of offset printing, there
are ways to get the best value for your money.
You could use single or two-colour printing instead
of full-colour. Or pre-print large quantities
of a "base" document that you can overprint
for multiple purposes. There are also print brokers,
who can give you a much better price than many
independent printers. Print brokers reduce their
costs by buying paper and inks in bulk and printing
many jobs at the same time, rather than just yours,
but there are a few catches.
First you have to work to their schedule, they
may only run off brochures once a week, so you'll
have to wait for the next print run rather than
going into production straight away. Secondly,
you will have a limited selection of paper stocks
to choose from, or no choice of paper stock at
all, so specialty papers are out of the question.
Digital
Output
One way to reduce your printing costs is to not
print at all! Most businesses these days have
personalised email addresses for their employees,
giving you an opportunity to promote your business
and market your products without even having to
print anything.
E-newsletters are now a familiar form of marketing
for many companies and are a good way to keep
reminding people of your services, but make sure
you give the user the option to unsubscribe and
that nothing is sent unsolicited.
Get a designer to produce an html template for
you or have them design an html invitation or
product brochure that links to your website. Acrobat
PDF documents and Word documents are also acceptable
file format to be sent as attachments.
Binding and Presentation
Never underestimate the power of first impressions.
There are many ways to give your presentation
a more "finished" look. Check around
stationers and craft shops for specialty or coloured
envelopes and presentation folders.
Rather than just handing potential clients and
customers a couple of typed pages of your corporate
profile, give them a folder that includes your
business card and a flyer as well as the profile
- a far more memorable product. Have the document
wiro bound and a label designed and printed to
stick on the front of the folder and voila!
