Selling Food in Your Catalog

Fabulous news: There are a lot of food choices in the market today.

Not so fab news: Not watching what you eat could cost you your perfect slim figure and your health.

Everybody loves eating. It is one of the basic necessities for survival. Our body needs energy to be able for us to perform our activities. But not eating the right kind of foods can be unhealthy to our body. Have you ever wondered why it is that today, in spite of advancements in technology, in spite of having more experienced and educated doctors, nutritionists, therapists and diet experts, people are more sick that ever? Were people always this sickly? Could it be what we are eating? Yes, perhaps it is because of the foods that people eat today. After all, you are what you eat.

Aside from health considerations, people are more and more concerned of what they eat because they want to be slim and sexy. People are much pickier these days. Before paying for something from the department store they would spend at least a few hours trying to read the nutritional contents on the box. That is why it has become more and more difficult for food companies to market their products. But food is one of the most enduring products to sell. Thus, if you are able to create an effective advertising material chances are you will not have a problem attracting your potential customers.

Catalogs are perhaps one of the ways to market your food business. When designed and printed effectively, catalogs can be a big investment for your business. So before choosing a printer to do the job for you make sure they can accommodate the number of pages you need to print in your catalog. Make sure to also check the layout and alignment of the text and graphics. Likewise, consider how and where your catalogs will be distributed when choosing the paper stock for the front and back cover as well as the inside pages.

However, creating the right food catalog can be very tricky. Photographing foods can be really difficult. You are shooting an unstyled, non-engineered product so if shot at the wrong angle the picture can look unappetizing instead of yummy. If you are unsure how to go about with your catalog it may be a good idea to hire a good food stylist. A good food stylist will know how to change those gloomy lumps of food into works of art. They may be expensive, but worth every penny in the form of higher sales and profit for your food business.

5 Tips On Making Your Business Card A Powerful Marketing Tool

When used effectively business cards can be a great marketing tool. In this article we will discuss 5 of the most effective ways that you can use your business cards everyday.

1. Be Creative.

Be creative in the design of your business cards. Business cards do not just need to be bits of paper with your contact details on them. Be creative and give your business cards a use and purpose. Make them a powerful marketing tool in the promotion of your business.

Your aim is to make your business card something that the receiver will want to keep and make use of. This is the difference between a well thought out and designed business card and a piece of paper with your contact details on it that will probably be thrown into the trash.

Give the recipient of your business cards a special offer. For example if you are a school/training centre you may offer ‘first lesson for free with this card’ or if you run a shop maybe you will offer ‘10% of any purchase over $50′.

Whatever your business, there is a creative way to give your business card real value to the receiver. If you can think and implement these new creative ways before your business does, you will have an instant advantage in that area of business, and should definitely see a rise in business if you have promoted you cards correctly.

2. The 1 minute rule

The 1 minute rule basically says, if you talk to a person for longer than 1 minute they should already have one of your business cards in their hand.

This means in conversations you need to find a way to talk about what you do, and be in the position to be able to offer one of your business cards to the person you are talking to in the first minute of conversation. This can be likened to a conversation you may have with someone at the bus stop or on the elevator. The conversation will end in a very short time and you only have a very short time to get your message across, or in this case get your business card to the recipient.

The 1 minute rule is basically just practice to get your business card out there as much as you can. Many people go through all the trouble of ordering business cards just to let them sit in a corner of their office. To use business cards effectively you must be giving them out at every opportunity that you have.

3. Make them keepers

Once you have given your business card to someone what is going to keep it from being thrown in the trash or forgotten about. Unless you are selling necessities it is probably fair to say that most likely they do not need the product/services you are offering at the present moment. Hopefully though in the future will come a time when they are looking for that product/service and that is when your business card still needs to be in the hands of the person.

Why does someone want your business card? If you cannot answer that easily, maybe it is time to think about a new business card design.

Does your business card have valuable information on it? By valuable I mean a map, discount, calendar, measurements, charts or anything relevant to your industry? If it doesn’t, you may want to think about adding a value feature to your business card.

4. Leave them everywhere you go

During a number of trips around a number of businesses in my local area I have noticed piles of business cards on the counters of various businesses. For example a recent trip to my accountant I noticed they had a few piles of business cards on the counter for mortgage lenders, home loans, etc.

This can be likened very much to link swapping that goes on with webmasters looking for business referrals from similar businesses.

Every place that you frequent, you should ask if they mind you leaving a stack of you business card there for their customers. You could try this at your doctors office, your dentist, accountant, lawyer, beauty saloon or hairdresser.

For similar businesses (e.g. accountant > lawyer or money lender) maybe you can arrange to have a stack of their business cards displayed at your business when they offer your business cards at theirs. This can be a very effective way to use you business cards and can have great returns.

5. Ask for an opinion

‘Do you mind if I ask you a quick question? I’m looking for opinions on my new business card’. After asking the question and bringing the topic up hand them a business card. Make sure that they keep it, even if they try to hand it back to you tell them that you have thousands printed already.

Thank the person for their time, and if they ever need the product or service that you are offer that your contact information is on the business card. Even if that person may not directly contact your business, there is always a chance that they may pass your card or business name onto another party.

Even in the worse case they may go home and tell their friend how a nut just came and talked at the bus stop and handed them a business card for his lawn mowing service. That friend may say, ‘I’ve been looking for a good lawn mower’. ‘Here’s the business card I got’. And there is a situation where you may still even get business out of handing your business card to a stranger and even a disinterested stranger.

By following just one of the above five ideas each day, you can turn your business card into a great marketing tool, and see an almost instant increases in business.

Catalogs through the Years

Winter, New Year, spring or summer, you name it. Whatever the season is mail-order catalogs fill in your home almost every week. This is because everything imaginable can be ordered by mail today. And with the introduction of the Internet, online catalogs have allowed people to order products and avail of services online. This is not a new trend. People have been using catalogs to buy goods for years. There was even a time when catalogs were the only link people in rural areas across America have to the new products being sold in the big city.

For years, shopping malls have blossomed and progressed across the country. But people can’t neglect the simpler way of shopping without mall crowds and traffic. Some still prefer shopping right at the comfort of their own home. But will catalogs replace shopping malls? Perhaps not, but a combination of the two will be seen in the market for quite a long time.

Catalogs seem to have taken an important role in the lives of busy people especially around the holidays. During the rest of the year people are more likely to do the actual purchasing online or at an actual store. But during the holiday season catalogs seems to be the perfect solution to getting all the shopping out of the way with a minimum hassle.

However, some merchants consider catalogs as an increasingly less important part of the marketing mix as new media and marketing channels rush in the market. Nevertheless, even though catalog purchasing may decline as online shopping becomes more popular, retailers should begin to view catalogs as the gateway to their stores and their products.

As a customer, remember to choose wisely and use your head when ordering from catalogs. Remember the old maxim that if something sounds or looks too good to be true, it probably is. So be very wary when ordering. Additionally, don’t feel obligated to place an order just because you have received a free catalog. Companies send out huge numbers of catalogs to make money. But receiving a catalog does not mean that you have to purchase some of their products.

Retailers and merchants should, thus, find ways to make their catalogs as exciting and stunning as possible. The catalog should not only be a way to show all the items available but it should also serve as an idea provider and a source of inspiration. After all, shopping is not just about finding the right item; it is about the whole experience.

Producing Catalogs that Sells

Catalog print jobs can often be time consuming and intricate. Schedule conflicts, management decision disputes and inventory delays often interrupt the print job. That is why, for every catalog printing project, it is important to plan carefully and effectively lay down your ideas and designs in order to create a catalog that efficiently presents your products or services.

There are several reasons why careful planning is important. For one, it can help you determine how much capital is needed for the print job, hence, allowing you to secure financing. In addition, you are most likely to succeed with your print job when you have a good plan to accommodate any drawbacks or discrepancies in printing. Think of catalog planning as a preparation for a trip. You would of course want to know where you are going, how you would get there and how much it would cost you. You would want to have a direction to where you are headed. When you are well prepared and properly directed, you would most likely achieve the success that you want.

Planning is also a good means of communication. Say for instance you are developing the catalog for the company’s new products. This will allow you to communicate with your superiors, peers, printers and third party vendors as they all affect the catalog design and decision process.

So how could possibly produce a catalog that meets up with your expectation and caters to your customers needs? Well firstly, you have to make sure that the catalog combines price, general product information and images in one place for ease and efficiently in delivering what the customers need to know about your products or services. The catalog must also be user friendly so that when they get in the hands of the customers they will not have a hard time looking for the products they need. Additionally, having a simple catalog is always better that crowded over-designed catalogs. Remember that you are marketing your products not merely the catalog so a simple yet catchy catalog can perhaps get the attention of your target customers that those intricate ones.

And finally, ask yourself who will read my catalogs? Are they the rich business tycoons? Perhaps the housewives? Or maybe the ordinary employees? Whoever they are you have to make sure that your catalogs would appeal to them and encourage them to read through the whole pages. So if you want to bank on more cash and profits, then carefully plan your catalogs and make its wonder work for you.

Logo Design

All business owners know that the most vital part of a promotional material is the message that it communicates to the customers. That is why even the logo has to be carefully designed and created to make sure that it gives the right meaning.

In the past, there is actually no need to put logos in stores or in the products. This is because there is little competition and oftentimes, towns only have one clothing store, restaurant or general store. But today, things have changed. From everyday necessities such as toothpastes and soaps to expensive jewelries and clothes, there are literally hundreds of different suppliers and retailers. Competition is stiff, that is why most of these vendors are looking for the best way to make their products stand out among the rest.

Picture you are in a grocery store. You need some soaps and shampoos. So you went to the section where these products are displayed. You will be surprised to know that there are quite a number of brands to choose from. If you are the kind of customer who doesn’t stick to one brand you will have a hard time choosing which brand of soap or shampoo is best for you. But most customers today look for consistency and familiarity when it comes to products they need on a daily basis. Hence, a good logo will create a differentiating characteristic of a brand that will eventually become familiar to customers.

Simply put, business owners use logo because they are good stimulants that once a customer sees a particular logo they will immediately remember what brand it is. With the seemingly complex way of modern life today, people just don’t have a lot of time to research all the benefits and features of each brand. They simply take note of the logo and know immediately what these products are all about. In addition, with the advent of the Internet, shopping has never been easier. Just like when people shop in stores, they also look for familiar brands when browsing through the Internet. Hence, when you have a good logo people will not have a hard time recognizing your brand. Logos are in a way the simplest, most direct way of promoting your business. It is like an overall statement of what you are about, minus the lengthy statements. Since logos are distinct graphic images, they can easily create name recognition and easily entice your target customers.

Capture Clients with Words That ‘Hook’ and Graphics That ‘Kick!’

Do the marketing pieces you send out lack pizzazz and personality? Are they capturing the clients you want to work with?

As your company’s in-house graphics person–perhaps more by default than by intention–you’re pressed to be a jack/jill-of-all-trades. You want to do a great job of producing promotional pieces, but you have little time to learn advanced design and marketing skills.

Your ongoing challenge is learning to do a little more to get a lot better results–quickly and painlessly.

How can you improve them? What Techniques Can You Apply NOW?

Take these 5 design/marketing tips to heart. Using them consistently will save you time in the long run and attract more customers.

#1 Develop a brand identity and stick with it

Branding is an all-encompassing concept that brings together your business’s product mix, pricing, ambience, promotions, identity, and much more. From a graphics point of view, it’s your logo, stationery, business card, website, and flyers that create a graphic personality. Your descriptive tag line bonds these pieces with added pizzazz.

Think about familiar brands like Nike’s. You know what it offers instantly when you see the logo (the Nike swoosh) and tag line (Just Do It!). You want that kind of instant recognition for your company.

The results? Your messages get noticed because you’ve built credibility and recognition into your brand through consistent use of graphic identity techniques.

#2 “Hook” customers with persuasive writing and a “call to action”

Make a habit of doing these two things: Use persuasive words that “hook” their interest, and include a well-defined call to action in every piece. When writing marketing pieces, what can you do to make them more effective? Apply these basics:

- Know who you are writing for and keep their preferences in mind as you write each word.

- Put your message in terms of “you” rather than “I” or “we.” People don’t care about what “we” offer; they care about how your product or service can make their lives better.

- Make it clear what your readers should do, think, or believe as a result of reading the information you present.

- State your intention as a command–known as a “call to action.” It can be as simple as “Call Today” or “Order It Now.”

The results? The whole point is to encourage your prospects to take action! Whether it’s to send an email or pick up the phone and call you, using precision wordsmithing persuades your prospects to take action…now!

#3 Use digital photography and illustrations to add “kick” to your marketing pieces

A ho-hum marketing piece generates few calls. What a waste! Learn the ins and outs of working with digital photography and illustrations — so much easier with Internet resources galore to choose from.

A few quick tips:

- Place your strongest image in the top half of the page where it will get the best visibility.

- Using one large picture makes a stronger impression than several smaller ones.

- Group several small pictures so they collectively form a single element.

- Juxtapose a small picture with a larger one for contrast.

The results? Photos and illustrations help you add the “eye” appeal that translates into “buy” appeal.

#4 Jazz up your layouts so your most important points stand out

Break up monotonous lines of text with attractive “pull quotes” or “call-outs,” which make critical information stand out on the page. To create a pull quote, just copy a provocative or challenging statement from your text and paste it into a different position on the page using large, contrasting type. Add decorative quotation marks, border it with lines, or place it inside a box to jazz it up.

The results? The points of interest you’ve added draw the reader’s eye to the exact point you want them to remember.

#5 Ensure professional results by using the right file formats

You’ve just created a flyer that will be printed and mailed to your clients. To finish it off, you import a needed graphic from a website and send your file to the printers. Ouch! The resulting graphics looks blotchy and amateur in print. What went wrong? Graphic file formats for the Internet (72 dpi, low-resolution JPG and GIF) and file formats for offset printing (300 dpi, high-resolution TIF and EPS) are totally different animals. In this case, you’ve used the wrong file format and resolution for your purpose.

The results? Choosing the right file formats gives you a professional-looking document with clear images and the quality you want.

Start using these five easy techniques to add pizzazz and personality to your marketing pieces now, and you will “hook” new clients immediately.