One thing that is often overlooked is the print material side of things. While online strategies have tremendous benefits, when coupled with offline print media and promotional items you will be sure to have a winning strategy attracting attention and donations from all angles. Brochures provide a very economical and practical way of raising awareness. People still want to read things and hold them in their hands. When waiting in a doctor’s office, at a conference or fundraiser or even waiting at a service desk at a local business. Brochures offer a full-colour experience that can draw someone in to your message and by mixing digital marketing into the brochure you can use QR codes and web links for people to access from their smart phones while they review your custom printed brochure.

Furthermore, there is one crucial thing that all non-profit organizations must do and that is to look professional to be taken seriously. Your non-profit should be treated like a business with proper branding, professional website and even professional print materials such as brochures, pull up banners, business cards and more. The more well-presented your non-profit looks, the more credibility you will have and this will help generate more subscriptions, donations, awareness and more.

It might not seem fair that you would have to worry about your image as much as a business when your cause and mission behind the non-profit organization should be enough however that is the reality for your non-profit in todays world. Many non-profits have to operate on the kinds of extremely constrained resources that often make professional-level presentations securely out of reach, but in a world where so many books are judged by their covers, it can often mean the difference between success and failure. The good news is that printing materials and even setting up a website are extremely economical in the market today compared to what these things would cost a decade ago. This means that your non-profit can really shine with a professional-level layout, design, and printing for a minor investment. While the impact on your budget is minimal, the impact your custom printed brochures will have on potential donors, visitors, or partners can be massive and very positive.

Despite what you may have heard, print marketing is very much alive and very effective today. Direct mail and some strategically placed custom printed pamphlets can send your awareness and sponsor-raising efforts into hyperdrive.

Print Marketing is Versatile, Low-Cost and Effective

While you can’t discount their effectiveness, there’s more to using nonprofit brochures for direct mail marketing. In fact, using brochures outside of direct mail are just as strong in drumming up awareness of your organization, your cause and any events that you will be hosting. On top of that, not having to mail out brochures means you can further preserve your marketing budget in order to put it to use in other targeted ways that can likewise lead your organization towards success.

There’s nothing more attractive than a nice stack of good-looking brochures. At events like conventions, it’s important to have ample promotional materials at your table or booth to give away to visitors, and a brochure is the perfect choice.

Turn to Printing Shark Ottawa For All Your Nonprofit Brochure Printing

At Printing Shark, Ottawa’s top printing shop, we can even provide direct mailing fulfillment services as well as the design, printing, and mailing out your nonprofit brochures. We have been working with non-profits for over 5 years to help them raise awareness, increase donations and expand their organization’s efforts. We will get your job done quickly and effectively to ensure that your next event will have plenty of brochures to go along with it, and they will all be expertly designed and printed to provide your organization a veneer of professionalism that will turn potential donors’ heads and grab their attention.

The post Nonprofit Brochures for Effective and Budget-Conscious Promotions appeared first on Printing Shark.

Once the dust settles, business will (however slowly) return to normal and some industries will see a surge as new revenue opportunities present themselves. Some industries will shake off some of the businesses that were barely hanging on leaving a void that needs to be filled by the surviving businesses and also the new businesses that start in the aftermath.

These are troubling times but it doesn’t mean you should give up or look at the world as doom and gloom. Now more than ever is the time to buckle down and get organized. That is how you will succeed. Take this time to be strategic and assess your business and the future of your company. Restructure your business processes and systems, setup and incorporate new softwares to help streamline operations once you reopen and work on marketing plans for the relaunch after the shutdown.

You need to 10x and 30x your work efforts now more than ever. Here are some things you should do right now that will ensure your company hits the ground running once you are back in action:

#1 Create several weeks/months worth of meaningful social media posts and schedule them in your Facebook account etc. so that they dripfeed over the coming weeks and months

#2 Create a series of print materials ready to get your business in the hands and mailboxes of potential customers

#3 Redesign your business cards and printed marketing materials such as flyers, posters etc.

#4 Create a series of blogs that can be released over the coming months to add fresh content to your website

#5 Make a list of potential local partners and influencers that can

#6 Reach out to some podcasters, news stations, radio stations etc. – all of these people are looking for positive, feel-good stories that are local, happy, and most-importantly not the same old COVID news. Take advantage of this and get your story out there with information about your business, yourself, your staff, how you are coping, plans for the future, how you are helping etc.

#7 Assess your competitors, industry leaders, and other business professionals for ideas on how they are running their businesses so you can find possible ways you can steer your ship better.

People are getting sick of social media because it is the same old doom and gloom. Offline marketing is becoming even more important than ever. Now is the time to design or redesign your print marketing promotions and get some new custom printed flyers etc. so you can blast your company promos and messages out there once things resume.

These 7 tips should help your business recover quickly once this is over. Doing the work now will give you a much better chance of success.

All the best, take care, be safe and keep working!

The post Time to Get Organized for Marketing appeared first on Printing Shark.

Consistently engaging current customers through marketing efforts will undoubtedly have a positive impact on business goals later on, including increasing revenue through the sales of additional products and services. So, we came up with a few ideas for how businesses can continue to market to existing customers.

1. Know the customers’ data.

The first step in marketing to existing customers is knowing their data. Who are your target customers? What do they buy? How much do they spend? How often do they shop? What motivates your customers to buy? Take advantage of a customer relationship management (CRM) system in order to better track customers’ data for the future. When you know your customers better, you’ll have an easier time connecting with them.

2. Stay top-of-mind.

After customers’ first purchase with the business, it can be easy for you to fall by the wayside without the proper marketing techniques. Instead, stay top-of-mind with existing customers by utilizing regular communication. Send customers print or email newsletters as an ongoing reminder about the business. Include discounts or coupons when applicable, or inform them of new products and services the business introduces. By continuing to market to current customers, you can stay top-of-mind for any future purchases they need.

3. Follow up post-sale.

For some businesses, a post-sale follow-up is the perfect way to market to existing customers. For B2B customers, service businesses or large purchase businesses, be sure to follow up with the customer at an appropriate time and see how things are going with the new product or service. For instance, a landscaping company might check in with a customer two weeks after the project and see how he or she is enjoying their new lawn. Intentionally following up and keeping in touch with customers is a great way to continue to market to them.

4. Ask their opinions.

You could even market to existing customers by getting them involved and asking opinions on developing new products or services. Ask how they enjoyed their last experience with the business, and any new things they would add or change about the company and what it provides. Invite your customers “inside” the business by getting their input on new developments. Not only will customers feel more involved and engaged, but they will also create a stronger relationship and loyalty for the future.

5. Start a loyalty program.

Speaking of loyalty, one of the best ways to market to existing customers is through a customer loyalty program. Loyalty programs can work for almost any business. Customers can start out by receiving small rewards for smaller purchases, then move to bigger rewards the longer they stay with the company and the larger purchases they make. Keep your loyalty program simple and easy to understand, and customers will keep coming back time and time again because they feel valued.

While marketing might seem like it’s only for new clients, the most successful businesses integrate their marketing strategies throughout every level of customer. Use these tactics to continue to market to your existing customers and see how the business can grow.

The post Marketing to Existing Customers appeared first on Printing Shark.

In those periods, the downtime overhead on each employee increased or went up to $302,400 in 2006. It is 10 percent on the high side from last year. (Averaging both figures put the total money spent on each staff to about $162,292. It also includes all their benefits, pay check, promotions and purchases)

Contrast the fortune of the market productivity with the total US labor productivity, which increased by a mere 1.4% in 2006 (an abysmal showing in a decade). What it is showing is a 7-time increase in marketing productivity in contrast to overall work productivity! It also highlights the growing frustration by marketers of doing more, only to get less.

Let’s explain this

Marketing digitization fuel productivity

The henchman of global productivity growth is the desire that everything has to do with tech. If things like the numbers for overall US productivity is going down, it means the latest crop of business solutions (SFA, ERP) are underutilized. In the other case, talent might just be what is fueling marketing productivity and driving value through digital marketing technology.

The ups and downs of agency outsourcing

The pattern is to consistently give marketing agencies work to close the ratio of people to program gap in relation to marketing. After the transfer of dollars, a benchmark shouldn’t get crossed if an outsourced work requires extra supervision from in-house staff. Outsourcing PPC to outsiders doesn’t motivate the way it does for the in-house team. Such a strategic function should get done in-house.

Be bold to say marketing is an asset.

At some point, there will always be a downward slide between marketing and overall productivity as marketers do more for less much longer. In the long term, those who view marketing as ” milking the puppy” will drop their performance if the milk/cost doesn’t continue to flow. Only those marketers stationed to take up the rails when business is down will be used consistently to help grow a business.

The post Why Hard Work Is What Defines Good B2B Marketing appeared first on Printing Shark.

Is this your current situation, if it is, it’s safe to say you are not alone in this boat. A lot of business are used to or growing used to marketing their business on a very tight budget. How can one get effective in marketing under a stringent budget? Here are some tips we would love to share.

Be creative with how you throw incentive towards existing customer like the ” refer a friend ” option.

A customer’s referral network is an excellent place to grow your customer base even if it is slow. Putting out milestones and incentive each customer can reach will go a long way in improving your sales. By so doing, repeat and loyal customers can crop up even if it via social media.

Be proactive with your localized community.

Social media is a tool you can use to get more sales if you hit up friends and advertise to them what you are selling. Never underestimate the referral you can get from businesses who don’t offer what you have via social media. Also, know that a lot is expected of you as well; it is a give and take situation in this case. You can do joint events together and get promotions from local-based media networks as well.

Niche marketing is effective.

Niche marketing is far more effective if you are on a budget. Instead of generalizing about who might need your product, research, and survey the environment to find out what sex, age, location, income level you’re catering for. Smart work will always beat hard work anytime.

Create a great partnership

Marketing can be simple, or it can get hard if you don’t know what you are doing. Smaller firms value partnership when marketing because they can always split the cost. An artist can always partner with a lyricist to market themselves. B2B marketing is trending today, even on social media. You give a shout-out to me, and I give one to you too on my page to increase promotions.

Small businesses get always faced with their challenges. But if they look very closely, there are free marketing tools and less expensive mediums to carry out ideas. These will grow your business in the long run.

The post HOW TO STAY ON AND MARKET EFFECTIVELY FOR YOUR BUSINESS appeared first on Printing Shark.

If you have ever experienced this, it is about time you have a change or rethink the type of printing solutions you need.

Only one option exists to make a first impression

Appearance can sometimes be deceiving, and that is what happens in the world of business. Whether you’re packaging the best product or offer the best customer services, if you don’t organize your business the way things can run smoothly, no one is going to patronize you – especially your reps.

Anyone using a business card has two things at the back of their mind; Professionally present your business and give out your contact. It means that the card that will be carrying the image of the company must be of high-quality fashion and materials. A proud business owner will love to give these cards out.

Partnering with premium card providers

Even though a premium business card is what you need, it has to be done by the right printing company in order not to drop the standard that you have set for yourself and your esteemed clients. While most people offer you free services is to rub off on your contacts and provide less quality work for premium payment.

What options do you have? When you decide to employ the services of a big box company, they take your order for granted. They don’t often get done to the individual’s specification; instead, they mass produce them using a template. When you request for custom finishes like lamination or a flood coating, don’t be surprised if it gets handled by someone unprofessional.

Now you understand why we want you to have a premium business card from a professional printing service. A localized card done by an experienced printer is not to be taken for granted because the process is laid layout from start to finish.

The outstanding characteristics of Business cards

The name ”premium card” comes from having what quality exactly? In a place where the proliferation of business card might get overshadowed by the true essence of why a premium card might be needed, here is what you should be looking at:

• Top-quality-card-stock: For every material used in printing a card, the weight and texture have to be with the right finishes.

• Double-sided-Color-Printing: Double color printing on either side of the card bring out an exquisite touch and feel
• Exquisite coating and laminating: It is either you are making the card glossy, or semi-glossy to meet a specific taste or laminated to protect and make it last.
• Custom size and blend: Many features can get customized just for you: like the embossed text or a custom sizing e.t.c

Why our color graphics is the best option for your business card calls

We have been in business for 40 years in the city of Ottawa to give you good color graphics and your printing needs. Our staff and members are posited to pick your calls anytime you are willing to place an order.

The post Showing your hand: Premium business card is vital for business growth appeared first on Printing Shark.

Is website engagement a revenue-generating source? According to 2014 B2B procurement, found that people find IG easier carrying out their research on an official page than others (that is what 83% respondent think).

While that figure is encouraging, the question of where would B2B buyers get the most information offered got answered, and official websites came down to 37%. What this shows is that more attention should be paid to writing contents that are engaging and encouraging on websites.

Engaging the visitor at the right time with the right message is the ambition of any marketer, hoping to communicate effectively. By posting content that hits the pain points and challenges of the average visitor search, companies can nurture prospect into a quality lead.

You need to meet your buyers where they are always shopping

While other forms of digital marketing like emails, advertising, and conferences might hold sway in the mind of the marketer, website engagement can be enriched if the right content is always uploaded first because of their reach and lead generation.

An instance is company websites that hit 100-200k every year with a few tens of thousands each month. A figure like that is impossible to ignore as a marketer. What if a fraction of the data are people at the highest stage of the funnel? A considerable opportunity could get lost because of a lack of engagement.

Even at the awareness stage in the funnel, a poorly kept website that is not engaging is a huge turnoff. If the investment is not channelled towards engaging the new prospect, another opportunity is lost. Bounce rate is another reason you might need to write engaging content so that they can convert.

The unequal website visitors

A website that matches all your demographic, like industry, job, function, and much more would be a great thing.

Personalizing your website allows you to engage with visitors on a personal level, after that gain more CTA, case studies because you would be hitting their interest and challenges.

Marketing Sherpa predicted that 67% of people would instead engage a website that speaks about their job compared to 82% of people who prefer their industry. Such a figure indicates the call by prospects for sites to have specified contents.

Website visitors have demographics that stands them out like industry the industry they are in, their location, and lots more. The marketer’s job is to pick all these elements and serve up contents that might increase the visitors’ engagement.

2019: The year of website personalization

Personalization is taking off from where it stopped the previous years. Individual content uniqueness is what still stands at the top of the pile. Meeting the prospects at the point of their need with clear and concise content is an excellent way to achieve that.

Your bounce rate will reduce as more people stay longer on your site when you follow this approach. It will also educate and place your company at the top of the food chain that can convert any lead.

The post Why website engagement in marketing is important appeared first on Printing Shark.

In a time where purchasing leads and marketing for new leads is the order of the day, catering for existing customers gets taken for granted at a loss to the firm.

What do you do with your customer content to stay in their mind beyond the purchase? How do you make brand ambassadors out of your customers? The 3 vital points to take in making your customers brand advocates get located here.

1. Start posting regularly

Companies strategize based on the lifecycles of the client at the point of meeting them for the first time. It is now becoming a trend for active marketers to forget about the customer as soon as the sale gets made. Post-sales are a tool that marketers use to turn client to brand advocates.

Make an additional data inquiry (through progressive profiling using digital marketing tool) to carry on wealthy clientele for your business. Who are customers talking to always? What bothers them the most? How can you reenact their success? As soon as data collection gets done, your work starts with relevant and targeted content to the customer until they succeed.

2. Build up the engagement and assurance

Finding new lists via an email blast is the way to find and keep clients. Making your client loyal is dependent on the content you put out. By continuing in touch regularly, your customers know you care, that way they love and patronize your brand.

You can do this via your website by showing gestures as soon as a visitor visits the site for the first time. You can also choose the best way to know what customers want to know about your product by putting it on a scale of preference. You can direct how contents, call to action, and images can be used to predict the behavior and data of customers.

3. When you have an excellent customer experience, it resonates when speaking it to friends. What is the reason for the transformation from a customer to a brand advocate? Client attaches advocacy to the emotional experience they have had with the company or brand. Clients spend at least 80% of their money buying for themselves and from b2b businesses directly from word of mouth persuasion. That has contributed to the company’s brand and ROI.

Here are some ways or form by which companies can encourage customer’s advocacy.

Keep them on their toes when they are your advocates.

You can carry this out by scaling their satisfaction, interactions during events, and with emails that come with benefits. Join groups on LinkedIn to expand your network and encourage comments on issues at present or through meet up. Having a right to air their view is part of the advocacy program.

Allow them access to spread contents.

A simple button of sending or share with a friend goes a long way in boosting your advocacy even if it is through email or via social media after they might read your content.

Make it a habit to reward feedback.

Organize shows and events that bring customers together to contest and allow the winners to leave with a reward attached.

Your marketing department has a job to do, and that job continues even after a sale gets made.

The post Marketing Continues After a Sale – Customer-Focused Marketing Plan appeared first on Printing Shark.

I went there again in the past few weeks still the same issue and the same response from the company.

The bottom line is, they never paid attention to my complaint and clearly were not listening to what I had to say.

The past few years I have been using a company that cares about what I do and how to best achieve it by giving me an incredible customer service.

If you are currently in the predicament I faced earlier; it is time to seek help.

Here are 4 ways to better improve your conversion rate

Quantify happiness: start with the fundamentals.

Trying to quantify happiness have been going on for ages by philosophers looking for the next headline. In this our fast-paced business, it is about going back to the fundamentals.

It all starts with the simple questions of asking for a buyer’s feedback on a buying process, they just encountered, using a rating or scale system.

Depending on their rating, you can now categorize them in various ways like:

• Detractors: disgusted customer with a lot of negative comments about your buying process.
• Passives: Indifferent to the whole process, not entirely satisfied
• Promoters: Brand loyalist looking for more opportunities

You can now eventually channel your attention to more pressing areas.

2. Customer success: The key to converting more

Immediately the buying process is completed, and a sale is made, it is up to the seller to keep it up. They can do that by offering after-sales services that keep the customers satisfied to bring more product. It also helps keep the marketing and sales department on their toes.

Conversion rates can measure customer’s success programs.

A follow up after attending to a customer complaint is the best way to create support. You can start post-case support questions like;

• Were your complaints attended to?
• Would you be available to further talk about the issue with one of our team members?

By attending to customers swiftly, you would have retained at least 5% of your customers which can get you 25-95 percent profit on the long run, that is according to 2013 Bain & Co. A great benefit if you ask me.

3. Listening to clients: Covers all ramifications

Customers experience to why a customer might patronize your business to about 5.2x. Have it at the back of your heart that customers experience is relevant.: Start at the top of the awareness, to gaining and maintaining interest, all the way down to the end.

That is why it is essential to cover every ramification about your customer. Here are the salient questions you should be asking:

• Interest: What format work for you in receiving our brand.
• Consideration: Who does the buck stop at his table?
• Conversion: Is price an essential topic for you?
• Retention: How can we better serve you?
• Advocacy: How would you rate our service to a friend or colleague?

4. Digitalize your action

 Now that your customers have responded, what next?

It doesn’t stop with just getting feedback; you have to put in the work. Synchronize whatever feedback with an automation tool that predicts the next available step to take, especially when data is much.

In summary

The Bottom line is to listen and put your customers first because through to them is the key to getting more business.  Data from feedback is useless if they are not acted upon so if you are looking to improve your conversion rates for your Ottawa business then utilizing this feedback is a great way to boost your business.

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