Page 148 - Duct Tape Marketing

Get Your Entire Team Involved in Marketing

instead of passing that problem on, she saw to it that the problem
was addressed? Then she called the client back and made sure he was
happy and offered to send the client some movie passes for his trouble?

Telephone Training
The telephone is often the portal to the prospect world for the

small business. Everyone who answers the telephone for your orga-
nization should be trained to do it in a manner that represents and
communicates your core message. This may require a script, practice,
patience, and a zero-tolerance policy, but it’s that important.

External Marketing Training

Often, small businesses must rely on a series of contractors or vendors
to deliver the results their clients expect. For instance, an office furni-
ture dealer uses an external installation staff, or an advertising agency
uses a courier service to deliver proofs to a client.

Guess what? Those outside or external partners are performing a
marketing function on your behalf, no matter what the logo on their
shirt says. While your clients may allow you some leeway due to the
circumstances, they won’t put up with shoddy service or bad manners
consistently.

Kevin Lankford, the Authentic Success Coach, feels that the big-
gest aid to his business has been organization through documentation.
He has developed his own operations manual that explains on a step-
by-step basis the objectives for his business. The manual is broken down
according to administrative, sales and marketing, and production tasks.
The manual also includes a page called “This is how we do it.” It’s a
step-by-step guide for those times when he needs to hire external help.
It’s better than a to-do list!

It’s imperative that you choose vendors and partners who share

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