Chuck,
I claim no expertise in marketing, though, over time, I've noticed what's worked and what hasn't.
I haven't read "Guerilla Marketing", so I'm not familiar with those tactics.
In fact, my approach probably flies in the face of common business wisdom. It may well be the counterpart to "Guerilla Marketing."
I suppose if I wrote a book, it might be titled, "Monkey Embryo Marketing." :-)
Here's one of the tenets of "MEM."
WEAR THE UNIFORM
When I abandoned the safety of the day job, in 1989, I did so, with plenty of engraving skills, but no clue as to how to approach potential customers. I didn't work the phones, (I since have, with some success) mainly because I felt that I would be hung up on.
In the beginning, my target market was award shops. It was the industry I grew up in, therefore, I knew what services most shops offered. More importantly, those not offered. That's where I developed my original niche.
(Note: To this day, I find business-to-business relationships, to be the most enduring, and the least problematic.)
On the first day out, like any self-respecting salesman, I wore a suit and tie. I visited a number of local award shops, with mixed results.
One shop, in particular, stuck in my mind. The owner was an old-timer, who happened to be busy with a customer when I arrived. I had never met this man in my life, but through his occasional sideway-glances, I got the distinct impression that he didn't like me.
That's when it hit me. The awards industry, with rare exception, is made up of "regular" people. I was wearing the salesman uniform. It wasn't that the store owner hated me. He hated salesmen. His heels were dug in, even before I had a chance to speak to him. Needless to say, I didn't make any headway there.
Since then, I've had many successful cold calls. I attribute that success to the fact that I choose my "uniform" according to the type of business I'm approaching.
Depending on the weather, and the nature of the potential client's business, the uniform may range from jeans and tennis shoes, to golf shorts/shirt, to dress casual. Of course, if the job calls for a presentation before a corporate Board of Directors (I've had a couple) the suit and tie goes right back on.
It's worked for me. :-)
David "The Stunt Engraver" Lavaneri
DGL Engraving
Port Hueneme, CA
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