Do you notice when you start a small business how many times in a day an opportunity comes up to present your products and services to a potential customer? It’s as though you are sending out a signal that says, “Talk to me, I have just what you need!” Are you prepared to take advantage of the moment when the perfect circumstances set up to promote your company? Tell you what – if you’re not ready you’ll miss out on a sale and you cannot afford this when you are starting out. As a marketing consultant, I tell my clients to emulate the Boy Scouts and “be prepared.”
Get ready by memorizing a synopsis of what your company does that you can deliver in a one-minute speech to anyone, anywhere at any time. Have three and five-minute versions ready so you have something more to say after the one-minute introduction piques a person’s interest. Business cards with your contact information and website address are essential marketing tools, so always have at least ten of them on your person. If you are in the habit of carrying a computer case or briefcase, stuff a few well-designed color brochures in a side pocket to hand out to potential customers or partners when you know they have shown enough interest they will not throw it into the nearest trash container.
You can go a little more high-tech with your business cards by having a brief but dynamic flash presentation burned onto mini-CDs. This is quite impressive, especially to a potential client that represents an important or large account. These are expensive, but worth the investment when you land the account.
Now for some very cool technology that will make you look polished and in-charge no matter the size of your new business. Pocket size Pico projectors give you the option to do a live, impromptu media presentation almost anywhere. In the time it takes you to get from the ground floor to the 15th floor in an elevator you can “wow” your audience with a narrated wall-projection. These mini-projectors are designed to work with your laptop computer and handheld mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets.
Picture this scenario – you’re having cocktails in the airport lounge before your flight leaves. You strike up a conversation with the person sitting beside you and he (or she) shows an interest in what you do. You flip open your briefcase and use it as the backdrop to project the marketing video for your small business. The individual is impressed and within a few days, you meet with them to sign a contract. There was no time lost and no opportunity wasted.