Know the Facts…The True Cost of the $9.99 Business Card

Do you really understand what you are getting?

There are always 3 things to consider when making any type of purchase – QUALITY, SERVICE and PRICE. You won’t always get all three, so you need to decide which 2 are the most important to you.

  • QUALITY – they look nice, but if you choose to design your cards and other items on their site using their designs it is just that, THEIR DESIGN. That is a problem because…
  • These are stock designs – Anyone else can choose the same design including your competition – your business will not stand out when others have the same look
  • You do not own the design or the logo you created on their site. Everything done on the site belongs to THEM – you can only use the design on items you purchase from THEM. If they don’t offer an item you are interested in – you cannot put their image on it.
  • When you order the “FREE” business cards, they put their name on the back and say “These cards are printed free courtesy of…” Do you really want potential clients to know that you don’t have enough confidence in your business to invest in printing business cards? Your business cards are the least expensive form of advertising there is – and they are also the most important piece of advertising you have!

When you purchase a logo or a design from Handouts – it belongs to you. Please always verify with your designer that the designs are yours before they do the design.

  • The design belongs to YOU. You can use it on anything you choose. You can build your company image around that design.
  • It will be a design created for you and not shared with others.
  • Your competition will not have access to the same design

SERVICE – if you need to contact someone at the online company, you will speak with the person that answers the phone, there is no personal service. When working with a local company…

  • You receive personal service
  • You are supporting a local business
  • Your design will be carried through all of your marketing pieces
  • If you want a specific promotional item or a direct mail or EDDM piece it can be handled through the same company

PRICE – the $9.99 business cards are rarely ever $9.99 once you add in for all of the extras.

  • We can’t speak for the printing price from other companies, but at Handouts ALL of our printing prices are very competitively priced with online companies at 500 pieces, and at 1000 and higher, we are actually less expensive with better quality AND your designs will be carried through all of your marketing.

Now you know some important facts that you should consider when thinking about purchasing your printed marketing pieces and how it will effect your other maketing pieces.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us. We would love the opportunity to provide you with a competitive quote on any of your marketing needs! We want to help you grow your business!

5 Tips to Make Your Business Stand Out

When you have the opportunity to meet a prospective client…will your business stand out from your competition?

Here are 5 tips to help you make your business stand out…

All of your marketing pieces should work together to build your company image.
  1. 1. Send a consistent message – Make sure everything you print or imprint works together to build you image
  2. • Professionally designed marketing materials
  3. • Be consistent in your design and use of your company colors
  4. • Quality printing & paper selection
  1. 2. Be visible with promotional items
    1. • Keep in front of your clients with promotional items (remember to keep consistent with your company colors)
      • Shirts – helps you look professional and makes you a walking billboard
      • Vehicle lettering or magnetic signs – great exposure!
  2. 3. Have a strong online presence
    • Professional Up-to-Date Website
    • Blog
    • Have a strong social media presence
    • Send email blasts to keep in touch
  • 4. Create a powerful offer – something to make people take notice
    1. • Make sure you have an expiration date to create a sense of urgency
    2. • Use a Promocode so you can track what is working
  1. The last tip is a simple step that sometimes gets overlooked.
  2. 5. Focus on customer service
    • • Listen to your customer’s needs
    • • Pay attention to detail
    • • Be a resource – if you can’t help them, lead them to someone who can
    • • Be quick to respond
    • • Provide Extraordinary Service

If you need help, call Handouts…..we do that!

SEO vs PPC – Which is better for your business?

SEO

Organic Listings – Local SearchHelps to build your brand

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) gets your page to show up higher in search results by making it more attractive to search engines.

According to Wickipedia: “Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of increasing the quality and quantity of website traffic by increasing the visibility of a website or a web page to users of a web search engine.”

This means when a customer enters their search criteria into Google (or any other search engine), the search engine crawls the internet for content and key words that match the search criteria. One of the things you can do to help the search engines find your site is to make sure your website is listed in as many on-line directories as possible and the the listings are accurate an consistent.

PPC

Pay-per-click (PPC) or Paid Ads – Digital Marketing

According to Wickipedia: “ is an internet advertising model used to drive traffic to websites, in which an advertiser pays a publisher (typically a search engine, website owner, or a network of websites) when the ad is clicked.”

This means PPC is a type of internet marketing where advertisers pay a fee each time their ad is clicked. So they are buying vists to their site instead of getting the visitors organically through SEO. You bid for blacement in the search engine’s sponsored links so when someone searches for a keyword related to your somethng on your website you have one of the top spots in the results. Ther is a fee for each click.

So, WHICH IS RIGHT FOR YOU?

SEO

• Local customer base
• Relults take longer because it is trial and error to find the best keywords
• You are looking for any type of traffic to your site, not just orders
• You have a specific monthly budget, typically SEO is a fixed amount.

PPC

• PPC can target multiple areas so if your customer base covers a larger area or several areas, this is a good choice.
• Immediate results – you will see result in the first month
• You are looking for a specific type of traffic ex. orders, PPC lets you adjust key words to target customers who are ready to purchase.
• With PPC, the more you are willing to spend, the higher your return. It has a measurable ROI because it tracks every click and call you receive from the ad.
• Your customer base covers a larger area – PPC can target multiple areas

The ideal solution is to do a mix of both.
Showing up higher organically with SEO can make your PPC lower. Using both can also increase your traffic because the more you show up, the better your chance of being clicked on.