Targeting the Unaware, and Bringing Them to You

How many businesses in your service area do you think are out there that fit your ideal customer profile, but aren’t yet aware you exist? How many know of you, but aren’t yet aware of what managed services is, and how an outsource IT provider would benefit their business operations?

That number is probably much larger than you think.

But, you can fix that by running an awareness campaign that targets those individuals and introduces your company and services to them.

Determining Who to Target

The first step in running a campaign like this is to build up a list of companies for you to target. This list of potential customers needs to contain viable leads for you to target that would be a good fit for your company. 

When putting together your list, be sure to ask:

• Are they a part of your target audience?
• Are they currently operational?
• Are they located within your service area?
• Do they appear to meet your technical requirements (e.g., number of workstations)?
• Do they appear to be in a period of growth where they could afford to work with you?
• Are they in a vertical industry you currently work with, or one you want to work with?

If you’re struggling to put together your own list, you can consider purchasing a lead list. But, be aware: you must purchase from a reputable company that thoroughly vets your list. Otherwise, you could potentially waste a lot of marketing dollars marketing toward companies that aren’t a part of your target audience, can’t afford to work with you, and might not even be operational anymore! And, just because you purchase a list that contains emails does not mean that you can start emailing these companies (Be safe - be CAN-SPAM compliant). 

Determining the Best Way to Market To Them

Once you have your list, you need to start marketing to them. From a high-level perspective, you have two different ways to do so: through digital marketing tactics, and through physical, direct mail pieces. And, it’s possible to achieve success using both. But it’s going to be much more difficult to do so through digital marketing. Let us illustrate why.

You probably market to your current clientele using email. But, you can’t yet do this with the people on your list: they haven’t yet given you permission to do so.

So, what other ways could you target them?

You could promote your posts or run campaigns through social media. But social media is more effective for building relationships. If you want to start a relationship, we suggest introducing yourself using other methods.

You could also work to improve your search engine ranking. And, this will help people find you that are looking for help with their business’ IT. This is a good long-term strategy, but likely isn’t the digital marketing tactic that’s going to help introduce you to the largest pool of potential customers.

Your best option would be to run a PPC campaign through Google. Definitely doable, but pretty complicated if you’re not overly familiar with doing so. You might end up spending a lot more than you bargained for.

The most effective and affordable way to introduce yourself to new customers is through direct mail.

Direct Mail is the Way To Go

In your direct mail pieces that you send, you need to be informative, but also capture the attention of those who receive your direct mail pieces. Because of this, we recommend sending out a combination of letters and postcards: with a letter, you can provide more detailed information and with a postcard, you can capture your recipients' attention.

It isn’t enough to just send them direct mail pieces, though. Your goal with a campaign like this is to get them to learn more by visiting your website, and then have them fill out a form so you can continue to keep in contact with them through your marketing. So, you need to encourage these recipients to head to a landing page on your website by including a shortened URL and a QR code on your direct mail pieces.

Don’t Forget the Follow-Up

Probably the most important piece in a campaign like this is a follow-up call. This should NOT be happening before you send out your direct mail pieces: this would come off as too much of a cold call, and would likely leave a bad taste in the mouths of those you speak to.

Use your direct mail pieces as a reason to strike up a conversation. This really solidifies the idea of your brand in their mind. And, even if they’re not yet ready to start working with you, you’ll be in the back of their minds when they’re ready to take the leap.

Allow Us to Introduce You!

Interested in running a campaign like this? Our Meet The Company Campaign will provide you with all of the tools you need to introduce your company to new potential clients. We put together a list of 50 leads carefully vetted by us based on your specifications, and then send them 3 letters (each accompanied by an added deliverable) and 2 oversized postcards over the course of six to eight weeks that each directs them to one of two landing pages we provide you with. We will even provide you with a phone script so that you know just what to say during your follow-up calls.

Give us a call at 888-546-4384 or contact us here to learn more and get your campaign started!