Business Development Center

If you have a low budget or no budget your advertising campaign can still be done for free, and a small business owner can get free ads with large publishers.

Magazines and other print publications have an ad to content ratio to maintain for legal reasons, and sometimes an issue has a blank space just waiting for an interesting press release (content) to match the size of an ad that they want to squeeze in for maximum revenue.

Once developed a free ad campaign for a manufacturing company on a product line that hadn’t changed in 30 years.  How do you say something new about a dinosaur?  Forget features and focus on the benefits.

Research and create a directory of publishers in your industry, and then contact them for the proper editor responsible for reviewing press releases for your line.  Their web site may have what you need, otherwise these editors will tell you what they want, the format, and requirements for accompanying photos.  Make a database from your list, and then get ready to send them a press release every month (forever).

Develop a dozen press releases about the benefits of 12 different products with professional quality photos.  Divide your database of publishers into 12 groups, and then rotate press releases so all 12 go out to someone every month, and track your system carefully so each editor gets a different release each month for a year.

You can start all over a year later with the same press releases or develop new ones if you are introducing new products.  What happens next?

Eventually you will be published.  Most send you bingo cards to report interested readers, and then it’s time for followup.  My system generated 100+ leads a month, so be prepared with a good followup system and don’t let the bingo cards get stale.

For most small business owners a single employee can handle the mailing and followup once the press releases, quality photos, and phone routine or form letters are ready.  With discipline and patience, it will work!

One final note, do not overlook smaller publications.  Any printed media remotely associated with what you do is worth the small cost of a monthly press release.

Small businesses have special needs, especially in comparison to larger, more established companies. The term “small business” often really refers to “new business”, in that many small businesses that have been around for a while are as large as they are likely to ever become simply because of the type of business they are. Some small businesses, however, are destined to become large businesses. These companies in particular need to weigh the considerations of their unique situation when purchasing a business phone system. Knowing one’s options when it comes to business phones can save a substantial amount of money and time.

If a company is in a physical location that will be able to meet it’s needs for many years to come and their number of employees is well into the double digit range, they may wish to go with a Private Branch Exchange (PBX) system. PBX systems offer increased expansion capabilities and can come with more available features for the end user. Installation expenses for PBX systems can be extremely high, however, and should be factored in any organization’s business phone system budget.

The alternative would be to use a Key System. Key Systems are cheaper and require less in the way of installation expense. Still, they are only expandable to provide service to thirty or forty terminals. For businesses that will eventually require more handsets than Key Systems are capable of supporting, replacement with a PBX system would be inevitable.

The worst case scenario would be for a business to buy a phone system that barely meets it’s current needs only to find that it will have to be replaced soon after. Properly planning for growth will help any business end up with a phone system that can expand with it’s expansion and allow the most value for the overall investment. Like any business investment, phone systems do not last forever, so it is often unnecessary to purchase the very best (and most expensive) system on the market. Still, it does pay to purchase a business phone system that is certain to meet your company’s needs, both now and well into the future.