Small Biz: How to Create a Splash for Almost No Cash
Corner Office's post on the trend to marketing simplicity works well for small businesses with limited budgets. Here's an example of how UK-based Pearson and Harper, a small but aggressive B2B software and services company, influenced the buying behaviour of some of the world's largest oil companies.
The company wrote a unique message in a white paper about the changes that could be made in the oil industry using its solution, presented the paper (for which they obtained a copyright) at an oil industry conference, making sure no one else was saying the same things.
It made the paper available through its website, finding leads by requiring people to register their contact details to download it.
Then it identified the decision-makers to influence and sent them a carefully worded PR announcement. It also got the PR into publications read by influencers and decision-makers.
The whole exercise cost less than £3,500 including a transatlantic trip to the conference.
To have maximum impact Pearson Harper applied these few basic rules:
- Make sure your proposition is truly innovative. Check what your competitors are saying and have something new to say. Don't make the mistake of affirming their messages and credibility.
- Create a message about the client's business environment. This is more effective than a message about your products or services. Relate it to increased business performance.
- Test your assumptions, anticipate challenges and ensure you prepare considered responses.
- Make sure the new message is attributed to you. Publish it and shout about it.