Signature Line: An overlooked, virtually free marketing tool
Signature Line: An overlooked, virtually free marketing tool
E-mail messages are the most frequently overlooked (and virtually free) marketing tools available to entrepreneurs. No, I’m not talking about electronic mail campaigns, or spamming, but using the messages you send out every day to your clients and colleagues as a subtle marketing tool. You can do this by adding more information to your signature line in all your e-mail.
How many times have you received a message from people who aren’t using a company domain name in their e-mail address, so you’re not sure who Bill or Sally @Hotmail.com is? Or what if you’re in that position yourself? Many low cost Web hosts will forward e-mail received to you@yourdomain.com, but don’t provide an e-mail address from your domain name. So how do you look professional when you’re dealing with a $35 a month Web site and free Internet e-mail? You use an annotated signature line.
Most e-mail programs allow users to create an individual signature line that is appended to all outgoing messages. If you’re not using one, you are missing an effective and virtually free way to market your business. And as an added bonus, your marketing message can be seen where paid advertising is forbidden such as on electronic bulletin boards, giving you a competitive edge is such circumstances.
So why bother to annotate your signature line? Here are some good reasons:
1. Annotating your signature line makes it easy for your clients to find your contact information when they want t o buy again. Sure you may have given them a business card, but what if business cards are lost or misfiled? Creating a situation in which your client has to look in the Yellow Pages for your phone number may be risky, especially if a competitor has a more compelling marketing message.
2. Annotating your signature line reminds and makes it easy for your clients to visit your web site. Of course that’s assuming you want your customers to visit your Web site. And why wouldn’t you? Your Web site is a great visibility tool that builds your relationship with your customers.
3. Annotating your signature line identifies the origin of your messages so that if they get forwarded, people who are interested in what you have to say or offer can find you easily. Evan if you know for sure that your customers have your address, your fax number or understand the full range of your products or services, that information does not forward with your e-mail unless you put it there. So if one of your loyal customers forwards an e-mail from you to a colleague and your contact information is not included, you’ve just closed the door to a new business opportunity that your customer opened for you by forwarding your message.
4. Annotating your signature line can be a gentle way to remind customers of upcoming events (“Sale end Friday, Dec 27th” or “Don’t miss our open house on Jan 17”) to buy again (“Call today for a free quote”), to promote a new product or service (“Ask me how our new widget will save you money”), to encourage forwarding and referrals (“Forward this newsletter to anyone you thing will find it valuable”) or to call for feedback (“If you like working with us, tell your friends. If you don’t, tell us and we’ll make it right”).
So what should you include in an annotated signature line? At the very least, your e-mail signature should include you full name, title, company name, web site link, plus you phone and fax numbers. Also consider a direct access phone line (if different than the company phone number), cell phone number, company tag line or motto, an offer, a reminder to buy, last call for a special deal, teaser for the future products or services, or even an inspirational quote, if it reinforces your marketing message.
It doesn’t have to be fancy to get read. You can make simple borders around your key messages or information by using your title key (~), a dash (-), and underline (_) or even a series of asterisks (*). Bottom line: Every professional needs a standard signature line in all business correspondence. Because that is exactly what e-mail is professional correspondence. Of course, we use it so casually and so frequently that it hardly seems like something professional at all. But bear in mind that all correspondence between you and your customers is an opportunity to enhance you business relationship, even if that communication happens only in cyberspace.
Signature Line An overlooked virtually free marketing tool - To learn more about this author, visit Veronika Noize's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
Once my clients truly understand that marketing is about relationships, we start talking about how those relationships are created and maintained to determine appropriate marketing tactics for their businesses and personal styles. But no matter what kind of business my clients are in, they all have the same excellent relationship marketing tool at their fingertips: Their e-mail messages.
E-mail messages are the most frequently overlooked (and virtually free) marketing tools available to entrepreneurs. No, I’m not talking about electronic mail campaigns, or spamming, but using the messages you send out every day to your clients and colleagues as a subtle marketing tool. You can do this by adding more information to your signature line in all your e-mail.
How many times have you received a message from people who aren’t using a company domain name in their e-mail address, so you’re not sure who Bill or Sally @Hotmail.com is? Or what if you’re in that position yourself? Many low cost Web hosts will forward e-mail received to you@yourdomain.com, but don’t provide an e-mail address from your domain name. So how do you look professional when you’re dealing with a $35 a month Web site and free Internet e-mail? You use an annotated signature line.
Most e-mail programs allow users to create an individual signature line that is appended to all outgoing messages. If you’re not using one, you are missing an effective and virtually free way to market your business. And as an added bonus, your marketing message can be seen where paid advertising is forbidden such as on electronic bulletin boards, giving you a competitive edge is such circumstances.
So why bother to annotate your signature line? Here are some good reasons:
1. Annotating your signature line makes it easy for your clients to find your contact information when they want t o buy again. Sure you may have given them a business card, but what if business cards are lost or misfiled? Creating a situation in which your client has to look in the Yellow Pages for your phone number may be risky, especially if a competitor has a more compelling marketing message.
2. Annotating your signature line reminds and makes it easy for your clients to visit your web site. Of course that’s assuming you want your customers to visit your Web site. And why wouldn’t you? Your Web site is a great visibility tool that builds your relationship with your customers.
3. Annotating your signature line identifies the origin of your messages so that if they get forwarded, people who are interested in what you have to say or offer can find you easily. Evan if you know for sure that your customers have your address, your fax number or understand the full range of your products or services, that information does not forward with your e-mail unless you put it there. So if one of your loyal customers forwards an e-mail from you to a colleague and your contact information is not included, you’ve just closed the door to a new business opportunity that your customer opened for you by forwarding your message.
4. Annotating your signature line can be a gentle way to remind customers of upcoming events (“Sale end Friday, Dec 27th” or “Don’t miss our open house on Jan 17”) to buy again (“Call today for a free quote”), to promote a new product or service (“Ask me how our new widget will save you money”), to encourage forwarding and referrals (“Forward this newsletter to anyone you thing will find it valuable”) or to call for feedback (“If you like working with us, tell your friends. If you don’t, tell us and we’ll make it right”).
So what should you include in an annotated signature line? At the very least, your e-mail signature should include you full name, title, company name, web site link, plus you phone and fax numbers. Also consider a direct access phone line (if different than the company phone number), cell phone number, company tag line or motto, an offer, a reminder to buy, last call for a special deal, teaser for the future products or services, or even an inspirational quote, if it reinforces your marketing message.
It doesn’t have to be fancy to get read. You can make simple borders around your key messages or information by using your title key (~), a dash (-), and underline (_) or even a series of asterisks (*). Bottom line: Every professional needs a standard signature line in all business correspondence. Because that is exactly what e-mail is professional correspondence. Of course, we use it so casually and so frequently that it hardly seems like something professional at all. But bear in mind that all correspondence between you and your customers is an opportunity to enhance you business relationship, even if that communication happens only in cyberspace.
Signature Line An overlooked virtually free marketing tool - To learn more about this author, visit Veronika Noize's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
 | |
 |
No article feedback found. |
| |
Leave Your Feedback |
 | |
| |||
Leanne Hoagland-SmithAre your sales where you want them to be? Will you be one of the few who achieves sales or business success or one of the many who have failed to change? Are you tired of being told you are like everyone else? Then you may find my first book on sales of interest. Be the Red Jacket in the Sea of Gray Suits, The Keys to Unlocking Sales available at Amazon or at http://www.processspecialist.com/red-jacket.htm. This book is a reflection of my no-nonsense approach to improving sales to overall business results. If you are truly committed to making sustainable changes, then I can help you secure a positive return on your investment because I focus on executable solutions not telling you the problems you already know you have. From training to corporate (group) coaching to executive one on one coaching, my approach is to assess, create awareness, build a goal driven action plan and then execute. The bottom line question is "Not do you or your employees know it, but do you or they want to do it?" Please call for a free strategy session at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website |
|||
Stephanie RobeyStephanie Robey is President and CoFounder of Pivot Positive, LLC - an Internet marketing business focused on helping people start work at home ventures. Previously, she was employed at The Search Agency with over 20 years experience in graphic design and 10 years experience in online marketing. She was responsible for launching the Conversion Path Optimization (CPO) unit where she and her team have conducted hundreds of optimization tests for online companies across multiple verticals. She is a successful entrepreneur having started and sold 2 companies and remains on the board of directors of the third, PhotoSpin.com Stephanie began her career in the direct marketing realm creating and producing direct mail for many of the major cable television companies and directly attributes her understanding of Internet marketing to those early offline experiences. Stephanie is a graduate of San Diego State University with a BFA in Graphic Arts and also holds an Executive MBA from the Graziadio School of Business and Management at Pepperdine University. Read Steph's Blog Meet Steph and Dave Sign up for our Free 7-Day BootCamp: Self Employed & Rich - Visit Stephanie Robey's Website |
|||
John PowerJohn Power, founder of Biltmore Franchise Consulting, has extensive experience developing and marketing franchises and business opportunities. He has been in and around franchising for over twenty years. From 1980 through 1990 he conceptualized, organized, and developed the American Video Association. He grew AVA to 2,000 national members, before selling the company it 1990. It was later merged into another home video marketing company. From 2000 to 2005 he worked as a contract marketing and human resources consultant to several local and national companies. In 2005 Mr. Power began working as a franchise development consultant on a full-time basis. Since that time he has helped more than three dozen companies initiate and develop their franchising program. He notes that there are many companies interested in developing a franchise program, and who need his specialized assistance. Mr. Power is a “hands-on” franchise consultant. He said, “I am the ‘nuts and bolts’ person who tends to the details for my clients.” Mr. Power holds a B.S. degree with a major in Marketing. See: www.biltmorefranchise.com You may contact Mr. Power at: jpower@biltmorefranchise.co - Visit John Power's Website |
|||
Casey GollanCasey Gollan, Business Coaching & Mentoring Programs. Add $1 Million to $10 Million in the next 1 to 3 years. Since 1996 Casey has to added hundreds of millions of dollars to businesses. Watch a free video see client results Business Coaching website. - Visit Casey Gollan's Website |
|||
Dave KurlanDave Kurlan is the founder and CEO of Objective Management Group, Inc., the industry leader in sales assessments and sales force evaluations, and the CEO of David Kurlan & Associates, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in sales force development. Dave has been a top rated speaker at Inc. Magazine's Conference on Growing the Company, the Sales & Marketing Management Conference and the Gazelles Sales & Marketing Summit. He has been featured on radio and TV, including World Business Review with General Norman Schwarzkopf, in Inc. Magazine, Selling Power Magazine, Sales & Marketing Management Magazine and Incentive Magazine. He is the author of Mindless Selling and Baseline Selling – How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball. He created and wrote STAR, a proprietary recruiting process for hiring great salespeople, and he writes Understanding the Sales Force, a popular business Blog and is a contributing author to The Death of 20th Century Selling and 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2. - Visit Dave Kurlan's Website |
|||
Jeff FosterWebBizIdeas.com is a Minneapolis website design company founded to help people start an internet business by providing them with website, business, and internet resources that help foster the growth of successful online businesses and develop innovative Internet business ideas. We specialize in internet consulting & internet marketing. - Visit Jeff Foster's Website |
|||
Dianne CramptonDianne Crampton is an executive leadership coach, team consultant, author and president of TIGERS Success Series, Inc. Dianne has been helping CEO's and Executives connect their employees to their core values and goals for over 20 years using the trademarked TIGERS team culture process, which stands for trust, interdependence, genuineness, empathy, risk and success. To download a free white paper on behaviors that build strong teams and behaviors that will predictably tear them down go here. - Visit Dianne Crampton's Website |
|||
Joe DagerJoe Dager is President of Business901, a progressive coaching company providing no-nonsense direction in areas such as Lean Six Sigma Marketing and organized referral marketing. What others say: In the past 20 years, Joe and I have collaborated on many difficult issues. Joe’s ability to combine his expertise with “out of the box” thinking is unsurpassed. He has always delivered quickly, cost effectively and with ingenuity. A brilliant mind that is always a pleasure to work with.” - James R. If you want to learn more about Business901, start a conversation with us. We can be found @ Web/Blog: Business901.com Web/Blog: FundingYourNonprofit.com LinkedIn Profile Follow me on Twitter - Visit Joe Dager's Website |
|||
|
To learn more about the Evan Elite Author Program please contact us. | |||
 | |
|  |
Subscribe to Veronika's articles
 | |
|
|  |
 | |
|
| |
 | |||||||
|
 | ||
 |
||
|
||
 |
||
|
| ||
 |
| Have you written articles that would be of value to entrepreneurs? Become an expert on our site by publishing them! Expose yourself to a wide audience, drive more traffic to your website and get more sales! Click Here for details. |
|
|
 |
| Modeling the Masters: Learn the true secrets behind Walt Disney's business success factors & grow your company! Video produced by Phanta Media |
|
|
 |
"Learn straight from Evan how you can Make a Full Time Income (And More) from a Website"
Click Here To Learn More |
|
|
|
|
Get advice & tips from famous business owners, new articles by entrepreneur experts, my latest website updates, & special sneak peaks at what's to come!
|
|
|
 Performance Emotional Intelligence How To Select Keywords Branding The Product Joint Ventures ebook Entrepreneur Flight Manual |
|
 | ||
 |
Top 50 Debt Blogs
Learn To Get Out Of Debt | |
 |
Top 50 Business Plans
Top Business Plan Blogs | |
| ||
 | ||||
| ||||
|
| ||||
| ||||
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||
|
Email us your ideas on how to make our website more valuable! Thank you Sharon from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for your suggestions to make the newsletter look like the website and profile younger entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez and Sean Combs!
|
|
|
| ||||||||||
|
| ||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||