Anatomy of an Online Promotiton

In the last two issues of More Clients, I've discussed the importance of clarity in your marketing and how to design effective marketing campaigns that integrate the elements of clarity.

This week, I'm going to share a case study - the current online promotion for my Fast Track Workshops. This will demonstrate in a non-conceptual way how I go about designing and launching a promotional campaign.

Here are the campaign basics:

My goal is to promote ten workshops around the U.S. and Canada with the intention of filling each workshop with a minimum of fifty people. The workshop is designed to build soild marketing skills that will last a lifetime.

The target audience for the workshop is Independent Professionals and owners of other professional service businesses. Most participants will come from the More Clients e-list and their friends and associates.

The primary vehicle for promoting the workshops is through email and an online sales letter. In addition, I'll be working with my Certified Marketing Coaches and my Affiliates to spread the word.

The Promotional Schedule

You can't promote a series of workshops like this with one email. You need several reminders. The trick is not to fall prey to "email overkill!"

I sent a pre-registration email last week, am launching the workshops officially with this eZine, and will mention them in each issue of More Clients through the end of May. In addition, I'll send a couple stand-alone emails reminding people to sign up.

Why does it take so many reminders? It's because not everyone reads each email every time it's sent out. I've been surprised many times when someone said, "I didn't know you were doing that program," when I'd been promoting it for several months.

The Online Sales Letter

This is the main marketing document that educates your prospects about your offer. It lets them know what you're offering, what they'll get and how to take action. This kind of letter can be used to market any service or program.

A sales letter should not be a "hype letter," full of exaggerated claims and superlatives that can't be backed up. But it needs to include several important components, including the following:

1. Be very clear who the service or program is for. This is the first thing in the mind of the prospect, "Is this for me?" The more specific you can be, the better response you'll get.

2. Be crystal clear about what the service or program actually is. In this case it's a live, one-day workshop. If your service is more complicated, don't assume your audience will understand it without your detailed description.

3. Highlight the ultimate outcome of the service or program. That is, what exactly will your clients get from this service? The primary outcome I'm promoting is, "building solid marketing skills," (as opposed to receiving a lot of information).

4. Outline the benefits and advantages from several angles. I talk about specific results people can expect from the workshops, principles they will learn and skills they will gain. All of this can be accomplished without over-the-top hype.

5. Include testimonials or case studies. I've included several testimonials from past workshop participants. Not everyone reads or believes testimonials, but I personally find them both assuring and persuasive. It's good to know others have gotten results through this service or program. (Never make up a testimonial!)

6. Next, include information on the structure of the service or program. What happens and what will it look like? Make sure the prospect feels comfortable that you know what you're doing. Vague descriptions about how the service works won't cut it.

7. If you can, include a bonus with the program. Bonuses can be offered to everyone who takes advantage of the service or program or it can be conditional. I'm offering a complimentary Marketing Strategy Session valued at $295 for the first 40 people who sign up for each workshop.

8. Create sense of urgency. This is another thing that can go over the top, but if you give a reason for acting now instead of later, you'll usually get a better response. For workshops, I always offer an "early bird enrollment fee" for those who sign up by a specific date.

9. Tell your prospect what to do next. Don't just tell them to call, have them respond online or fill out a form. And let them know exactly what will happen when they respond.

10. Finally, include a FAQ at the end to answer any questions that were not addressed in the main letter. Realize that it's those little unanswered questions that often stop people form taking action.

Additional Promotion

I've found that one of the best ways to promote a workshop is through an introductory teleclass. I'll be offering one for the workshops on April 9 (mark your calendars). This gives people a taste of your program, answers any questions they might have, as well as giving a sense of who you are that can't be conveyed by the written word.

When your promotional plan and sales letter are ready, then you can launch it with confidence. I've done hundreds of such campaigns, for services, online products and workshops, mostly with great success.

What campaign are you going to launch?

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The More Clients Bottom Line: If you want to sell a service or program, you need to design a campaign that communicates in great depth about what you are offering and then get that information into the hands of as many people as possible.

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What do you like most and dislike most about online marketing campaigns? Please share on the More Clients Blog.

http://www.actionplan.blogs.com

Comments

[Karen Field]

Hi Robert,
Thanks for this excellent post - it's so helpful to see a practical example. I have the same question as Tohami... I'm about to launch a product for the first time so I don't have any testimonials - is it effective to use testimonials for other products/services I provide instead?

[Shama Hyder]

Hi Robert,

Great points! I think leveraging your list is a great idea and I feel testimonials really help the prospects connect.

[Carna]

Hello Robert,

Thank you for the great information.

I dislike being hit over the head with daily -or sometimes twice daily- e-mails. Especially when the marketers use tricks like: "Ooops - forgot to add the link" (I know that this can happen but sometimes you just know that it's a trick). Also, I can't stand when I get all kinds of detailed information about their personal lives including the cat who just coughed up a hairball. Who cares! I just unsubscribe...

[Louise BJ]

Hi Robert

Thanks for this great step by step outline.

Online marketing campaigns that come from people I've got to know, like and trust are a bit like messages from a friend. What you've done in this post/ezine is to introduce your workshops 'gently'. Your mailings are welcome and not 'overdone'.

The campaigns I really dislike are those that hit me over the head daily (sometimes even more often) with mailings about their product or event. I usually unsubscribe from their list - just to stop getting the mailings. These people don't really care about their list, they just want the sales - they're not in it to build long term relationships.

[Mohamed Tohami]

Hello Robert,

Thank you for this great outline.

What if someone has no list to promote his program to? And what if this is the first time you conduct this workshop and therefore you have no testimonials?

Regards,
Tohami