Business Management - Marketing/Sales

Once upon a time, I worked at a studio where every file had to be checked by three people before it went out to the printer. Every file, every time. What do you do when you spot a client’s error?

If I were a sales manager for a printing company, I’d focus on effective prospecting techniques before I moved on to treating customers well. There’s absolutely no excuse for making a cold call without having done your homework.

I was on a conference call recently and someone asked the question, “Does anyone have any creative ideas for getting in to see someone who is consistently ignoring my voice mails?” The best idea that I’ve heard in a while came over lunch recently.

When trying to win over prospects, lead with “why” your company is in business, move on to “how” you serve customers and, finally, get to “what” you offer. Customers don’t buy what you do. They buy why you do it.

New York-based department store Bergdorf Goodman is looking to boost holiday sales through a direct mail catalog meant to lure affluent recipients to the in-store experience. The holiday catalog promotes the retailer’s exclusive gifts for fans of the Bergdorf lifestyle and features brands such as Cadillac, Alexander McQueen, Tom Ford and Valentino. It includes gifts for men, women, children and the home in a 68-page print catalog.

The holiday catalog is another mail effort from Bergdorf celebrating its 111th anniversary.

Earlier this year, Bergdorf released a fall/winter shoe book representing the aftermath of its 111 anniversary celebration.

Have you read a good book lately? Kelly and Bill both have, and they share their recommended reading lists after discussing the value of books in this week’s “Short Attention Span Webinar.”

I am a student at Clemson University and have had the opportunity to talk with some of the industry’s leaders in innovation that have embraced the strategy of becoming a marketing service provider. I offer the following three reasons for becoming a marketing service provider:

When it comes to print, I like the unexpected. Iggesund’s promotion for the Invercote sheet incorporates an ample dose of it. There are many reasons to love this piece—yummy textures, surprising pop-outs, images that appear to be 3D…all ideas you’ll want to steal.

I have spent much of my career hiring sales people. It used to be a pretty simple process. If I were a sales manager today, the process I used would be NOTHING like that old one.

Early in my sales career, I made the grave error of badmouthing a purchasing agent. I was speaking to my key contact at that company and delivered the punch line just as the head of finance was walking by. Gulp!