Category: Tell Everyone! Marketing

Make the Ask: Planning Producer Meetings

The crisp fall air is upon us; harvest in most parts of the country is in full swing, fall calving is under control, and there is a short break in stock shows. It is a great time for BioZyme® dealers to start planning and preparing for producer meetings.

Ask – Invite producers

First, as a dealer, you need to set a date, time and location for your meeting. Make sure it is on a day that doesn’t conflict with something else in the area that would diminish attendance, such as a sale or the state football playoffs that your local team is in for the first time in decades. Send out invitations so the producers get them a week or two in advance. And if possible, follow up that invitation with a phone call the day before the meeting.

“It is super important to call everybody you invited, even if you sent them a postcard,” says Dorothy Orts, North Dakota Area Sales Manager. “You won’t have a successful turnout if you don’t call and ask them to the meeting.”

Once you have a date set, be creative in picking a location away from your store. It makes them feel appreciated to see you meeting with them outside of the normal place they do business with you. Orts, and her counterpart in Oklahoma, John Jeffrey, agree that the meeting should be held at a restaurant or a small community building and in conjunction with a meal. Jeffrey says if the food is good, people will show up. And Orts has learned by experience to keep the room small for a more comfortable setting where everyone can hear. She says if the room is too big, the acoustics might suffer, and if producers can’t hear, they are not going to pay attention.

Ask – Encourage interaction

Orts likes to make the meetings interactive and asks questions of the producers to get them involved and relaxed. She then asks for any current customers to provide a testimonial about the BioZyme products, saying that most producers will share their passion at the spontaneous response. And she also makes sure everyone knows about the Amaferm® advantage.

Allow sufficient time for discussion after the meeting, as most speakers will stay to visit with producers. Both Orts and Jeffrey say what happens after the meeting is often just as important as what happens during. Jeffrey described a recent noon-meal meeting where just a handful of producers showed up. Jeffrey and the dealer sat down with them in a more conversational manner

and people stayed for nearly three hours to learn about the products and share ideas.

Ask – Collaborate with others

It is a great idea to plan a meeting with other groups or businesses with similar goals. Jeffrey says he has piggy-backed with local cattlemen groups or pharmaceutical companies to share costs. When working with a drug company, he says they showed research that mineral usage increases the effectiveness of vaccinations – sharing both messages at once. And with the new Veterinary Feed Directive (VFD), it is timely to coordinate meetings with pharmaceutical companies.

Ask – Follow up

“You just have to ask,” Jeffery says. “You can’t sell something to people if you don’t ask them to buy it.” Jeffrey says when coordinating meetings with dealers, he likes to run a short special for those in attendance, which also encourages the producers to visit the store or place an order within the first week after the meeting.

Orts likes to send each meeting attendee home with a sample of Vita Charge® Liquid Boost® because it will likely save one life and help gain customers. Both area sales managers say to follow up and call those who attended.

“No two meetings are ever the same,” Jeffrey says. “Just be sure to ask for the sale. You never know if you will get a new customer that day or two weeks from now.”

Other Ways to Offset “It’s Too Expensive”

Learning is a complicated concept as everyone is unique in their own way, and learns in their own way as well. It is easy to give up when customers don’t react positively to the way you’ve positioned a product. You understand it… why shouldn’t they?

Unfortunately, we have to understand that all customers are different and different positioning tactics appeal to some more than others. Here are a few quick tips on conquering the “It’s too expensive” objection we often hear:

Divide into Daily Prices
For just 15 cents per head, per day, you can feed your cow the mineral program that will result in performance that pays.

Compare the Price to Something Tangible
Vita Charge® Gel gets livestock back on feed for less than the price of a Starbucks® coffee.

Increase the Perception of Value within the Product
Dyson has claimed 27% market share in the US vacuum cleaner space. They detail everything behind their products:

  • 5 years of prototyping
  • 5,127 prototypes
  • 1,000 Dyson engineers and scientists in Britain, Singapore and Malaysia
  • Engineers in disciplines like Fluid Dynamics, Aerodynamics, Turbo Machinery and Acoustics

Let’s do the same with BioZyme® mineral…

  • 60+ years of developing products
  • 160 published university research studies to prove how the products work
  • 350 PhD’s study the impact of Amaferm®
  • 12,000 cows each year participating in field trials for real-world proof

Introduce a Calculator

BioZyme has developed several calculators to help pencil out the value of the VitaFerm® mineral products. Take the time to go through these calculators with your customers. These calculators can be found at:
http://vitaferm.com/cost-calculators/.

Offers Stats that Prove Others Believe in the Value

In 2011, 216,714 beef cattle consumed VitaFerm every day -or- 5,418 producers believed in its value

In 2015, 538,379 beef cattle consumed VitaFerm every day, so today the brand is trusted by over 13,459 producers and counting!

Consistency is Key to Great Branding

Your favorite country band is coming to town and you have tickets. After months of waiting, the night of the show is finally here and you get to hear all of your favorite songs. However, that morning the band decided they didn’t like playing the same songs every night so they played two hours of pop covers instead. You leave feeling dejected and can’t understand why they wouldn’t play the music that made them great.

Though this would probably never happen with a band in real life, it does happen with brands quite often. Consistency is repetitive, and because we are the ones delivering that message day after day we sometimes feel like our message has become boring. What is actually the case is that consistency paves the way for creativity with an impact and is what moves your brand from a good one to a great one.

So, what is your brand? A brand is what sets you apart from everyone else. It can be anything – a symbol, design, name, sound, reputation, slogan, emotion, employees and more – that separates one thing from another. A brand gives your business an identity. Do you want to be just a feed salesperson, or someone everyone knows because of your consistent message and identification? The sales person who listens to your customers’ goals and offers suggestions to help achieve those goals? According to North Star Marketing, here are four advantages to being consistent with your branding message:

Consistency helps manage perceptions. By thinking carefully and deliberately about your brand, you can shape how people perceive your organization. Consistency connotes professionalism, purpose and stability.

Consistency conveys outlook and attitude. A focused effort to establish and maintain consistent branding will deliver a very specific set of impressions: Are you serious? Are you intentional? Do you follow through? Are you focused?

Consistency eliminates issues surrounding brand confusion. For many companies, their branding is actually more of a hindrance than a help. A consistent brand should instill confidence rather than confusion.

Consistency protects your investment. Without established brand standards, many organizations spend thousands of dollars crafting a logo and building a message, only to have it degraded by inconsistent, sloppy application. Build equity in your brand by being consistent.

As you position your product before customers, be sure to brand yourself or your business. Keep the message consistent in your producer meetings, brochures, Facebook posts and media interviews. If you use a tag line on the bottom of a direct mail piece, make sure that same tag line is on your web site. If you have a logo, keep it consistent on your marketing pieces – don’t change the font or color. Remember, when you need help with marketing pieces, you can contact Katie Vaz at kvaz@biozymeinc.com. She can help you work toward consistency in your positioning by adding your logo or brand slogan to any of the current marketing pieces.

Source: http://www.northstarmarketing.com/2015/05/07/the-difference-between-a-good-brand-and-a-great-brand-consistency/

Using Your Inventory Calendar as a Marketing Tool

Setting an inventory calendar can be useful for more than just inventory management. It can serve as the framework and guide for your marketing schedule as well. It makes sense to align marketing and promotion with the inventory your housing at the time and to be prepared to turn seasonal stock as quickly as possible.

Consistency is often one of the biggest struggles for dealers, and establishing a marketing plan can give you a guide to follow to help you stay on course and in front of your customers in the most effective way possible.

First, establish the list of marketing tools you plan to use to reach your customers.

That list may look something like this:

  • Radio Ads
  • Facebook Posts / Social Media
  • Event Marketing
  • Email Marketing
  • Text Messaging Service
  • Local Business Flyers

Next, reference your inventory calendar to know what items you should be promoting for that respective month. Promotions need to be done in advance of your selling season to prepare customers, so it’s always good to set your marketing plans 3-5 months in advance.

An inventory calendar will help paint a visual picture of the opportunities you have to focus on, what promotional efforts could be combined or if it is necessary to run multiple campaigns simultaneously. Obviously margin and/or volume will factor into your focus each month, but don’t leave out ‘door-opener’ products that could generate traffic or interest as well.

Once you’ve established your product focus for the month, detail your marketing plan to include specific tactics, contacts you need to reach out to, deadlines, etc. There are several tools and programs you can use for social media, email marketing and text messaging services that allow you to schedule in advance so you only have to manage these messages once per month.

At the end of the month, you should revisit each marketing medium used and analyze its effectiveness so you can make any necessary adjustments for coming months.

Displays that Wow Your Customers

Product displays, if executed well, are guaranteed to stop customers and generate interest. When marketing to the show livestock audience, keep in mind that exhibitors often play more of a role in feeding decisions than you may assume, so your display should cater to a younger demographic. During the breeding season, cattlemen may prefer a display that educates them about the challenges products help them overcome. Every product and audience is different. The following are a few tips to keep in mind as you hone in on your merchandising skills:

LOOKS MATTER
Make sure your display fully embraces the product brand. BioZyme® invests a great deal of money and energy promoting brands to the end customer, and therefore, it would be in your best interest to stay consistent with the respective brand look. Because of the diversity in types of dealers within our networks, we are happy to discuss options in customizing a display to fit your space.

COMMUNICATE EFFECTIVELY
Communicating a clear understanding of what a product does is key to successful selling. Remember that communication is not limited to words: both the visual and written language of a display must also carry a cohesive message. A successful design is one that will seamlessly integrate with the rest of your marketing campaign (and in this case, the national marketing campaign efforts of BioZyme brands).

PRODUCT IS KING!
Ultimately, every display has one goal: to sell product! Displays that overwhelm the product defeat their purpose at retail. Make sure that your display is making the product the star. If your retail area does not have enough space to showcase every product, make sure you are highlighting those small pack products (Vita Charge®, Vitalize and the new Sure Champ® Spark) as conversation starters so you can lead in to telling customers about the larger mineral products available as well.

ADD VALUE FOR YOUR CUSTOMER
Every new display project is an opportunity to create value for your customer. Value can be created through timely placement (putting the right product out at the right time), added education or a sales promotion or bundled products.  Consider a display that can be changed according to time of year so your customer benefits when most appropriate for their business.

For help with your store displays, contact Katie Vaz, Marketing and Communications Manager, at kvaz@biozymeinc.com or 816-596-8782.

Understanding The Value

Without an understanding of what all is included in a bag of BioZyme mineral, it is possible your customers feel they are comparing apples to apples when, in fact, they are not. BioZyme mineral prodcts contain a host of things other mineral brands simply do not offer:

AMAFERM®
The key ingredient in all of BioZyme’s products, Amaferm® is a natural feed additive, that acts as a prebiotic increasing digestibility to maximize the energy value of feed.

OPTIMIN® Proteinates
The nutritional success of any organic trace mineral depends on the ability of the organic escort to hold onto and protect the metal from undesirable reactions. Optimin’s superior chelation stability maintains the integrity and keeps the organic mineral in its original form during digestion. Optimins are soluble and ready for absorption, especially when they are needed most – under stress or during difficult dietary digestive conditions.

PRICELESS Attributes of BioZyme Mineral Products

  • Research proven vitamin and mineral levels
  • Exceeds NRC requirements for respective production stage
  • Highest ingredient quality and consistency
  • No least-cost formulations as BioZyme manufactures to the ingredients, not the guarantee

Promote Where it Matters Most

It is very apparent that organic reach for Facebook posts has been taking a hit over the past few years. Even as recent as this year, with Facebook limiting the reach of “promotional posts,” the percentage of followers a company reaches organically continues to decrease. While it is possible to slightly improve this percentage through higher quality content, Facebook advertising offers more effective ways to improve post viability, for a price of course.

Facebook advertising allows companies to choose a post and have it distributed in the news feed to anyone they want, based on interests, demographics, etc.

Before you get started, it’s important to have specific goals and understand the different options and ad types available to promote a post on Facebook. There are many reasons to boost a post, including:

  • Increasing brand awareness
  • Increasing brand engagement (shares, comments, likes)
  • Boosting website traffic
  • Promoting new content or blog posts

Use your budget most effectively by following these guidelines for boosting a post on your Facebook business page:

MAXIMIZE TARGETING OPTIONS

It’s easy to boost a post. It’s hard to effectively boost one. The key lies in who you are targeting. Based on the goal, you have the ability to target anyone you want on Facebook. When boosting a post, Facebook offers specific targeting options including: audience (fans and/or friends of fans), location, age, gender and interests.

If the post is focused on information only relevant to current fans, it’s important to target only those people. On the other hand, if the goal is to interact with potential new customers, that needs to be reflected in the targeting.

FOCUS ON QUALITY IMAGES AND VIDEO

There is no way to stress enough the importance of having a high quality image or video tied to a post. When boosting a post, especially to users who might not be familiar with the brand, the image will be the first piece they see. It needs to be eye catching and engaging at the same time.

If using an image, make sure it is appropriately sized. If these dimensions are not followed, Facebook will resize them, causing images to look less attractive. An image 1200px by 900px is a safe bet. You can find ideal image sizes for all the Facebook Advertising campaigns at: https://www.facebook.com/business/ads-guide/post-engagement/photo. It is important that all images are high quality to avoid blurry and distorted messages. Most importantly, if you plan to pay for a boosted post, you must follow the 20% text rule. While organic posts do not need to follow the 20% text rule (only 20% of an image can include text), boosted posts do.

UNDERSTAND ALL AVAILABLE OPTIONS ON FACEBOOK

Facebook offers a variety of different advertising options. While they make it easy to boost a post and move on, it’s important to know what options they have and see if there is one better suited for the target audience and goals. Visit www.facebook.com/business/ads-guide for a breakdown off all the different advertising options.

While boosting a post may seem as simple as pressing a button, there is a lot more to consider in order to effectively use it and see results. To avoid irrelevant clicks and visitors, advertisers need to understand who they are targeting, what the goals are, and why users should care about the post.

Don’t Sell. Help.

It’s a safe bet that most people have had a bad experience with a sales person. You may even cringe, roll your eyes or your stomach turns when you hear the words “sales person.” Kelley Robertson, author of Stop, Ask & Listen – Proven Sales Techniques to Turn Browsers into Buyers and The Secrets of Power Selling, lists seven reasons why customers hate sales people:

1.) They don’t listen
2.) They talk too much
3.) Lack of knowledge
4.) Lack of follow-up
5.) They lie
6.) Fail to understand the customers’ needs
7.) Refusal to take “no” for an answer

However, sales are essential for business. After all, nothing happens until you sell something. So how do you find balance? How do you become aggressive in growing your business without being labeled as a “sales person?”

To be great at selling, you must first be passionate about the product(s) or service(s) you’re representing; and secondly be passionate about the people you serve. This type of passion is something a dealer can rarely fake. A passion for what you’re selling coupled with a passion for helping your customers make the best decisions for their operations will come across in everything you say or do.

This is one area BioZyme® dealers often do not have trouble as 80% of dealers use the product personally and have experienced firsthand results they are passionate about sharing. Here are four reasons this type of passion is a game-changer for your business:

Passion Builds Trust with Customers
There are no sales without trust, and a passion for selling can cement trust between a dealer and a potential customer like nothing else. When passion is genuine, customers know it, and will respond to it by placing their trust in you and your business. A passion for selling also helps build trust because:

  • A sales person with passion truly wants to understand the customer and their unique needs and then sculpt how a product or service fits into that picture.
  • When a sales person is fully invested in the products he or she represents, that passion can be contagious for customers.
  • Passion permits a sales person to go after the best possible outcome – even if the best possible outcome for the prospect is not the product he or she originally had in mind.

    Passion Keeps the Sales Pipeline Full
    One of the great things about a passion for selling is that it can help dealers maintain a full sales pipeline without as much effort as those who lack such a passion. Why? A passion for selling turns customers into advocates (see page 6) who will recommend the dealer and their products to others. Word-of-mouth marketing continually sends new leads who are interested and ready to buy to the dealer. Having these customers who are also willing to provide testimonials and refer other customers, is priceless in any industry.

    Passion Allows Dealers to Be Persistent
    Persistence is always a watchword in sales since customers will not always be quick to pick up the phone or return a call. Great dealers who have a passion for selling have an advantage here because that passion helps them overcome such barriers and be persistent in pursuing the sale without becoming a hindrance to the potential customer. With passion, great dealers can come up with creative solutions to reach their prospects and ultimately make the sale.

    Passion Helps Dealers Continually Improve
    When dealers have a passion for selling, that passion often makes itself known through continual improvement. No dealer is perfect, but not all dealers are willing to make the commitment of time, money and energy it takes to reach the next level. Those who have a passion for selling are willing to make this commitment not only because it is the best thing for their careers, but also because it is what they want to do. That is passion for selling in action.

Marketing Multitasking

While many studies lay claim that multitasking can actually reduce efficiency, I will argue that ‘marketing multitasking’ is a no-brainer. Unlike mobile devices that are distracting and often prohibit productivity, finding ways to inject marketing into tasks you are already performing is quite the contrary. In fact, marketing multitasking is an excellent opportunity to multiply your effort.

You wake each morning with a standard routine that must happen in order to operate your business. You get dressed. You go over important tasks with your staff. You communicate with your customers during the sale, at checkout, and hopefully, you follow up. You invoice clients. Perhaps, you spend time driving to deliver product. You attend events, such as stock shows, where you simply visit and support your customers. Because you are accustomed to this routine, it is possible that you overlook marketing opportunities that can be easily injected into those everyday tasks at little to no cost.

Let’s touch on a few marketing multitasking ideas that can be incorporated into your normal business routine:

Staff Dress Code. You should never underestimate the value of apparel or wearables. Next time you are at the mall or large event, take a look around. Count how many shirts you see with brands like Nike, Under Armour, Carhartt and other popular brands. You’ve just been marketed to – many times over. Outfitting your staff with branded apparel creates walking advertisements for either your company and/or the brands you represent. Clothing can be used as conversation starters and magnet for potential customers, and they work overtime! How is that? If you invest in attractive apparel that your employees or customers like, they will wear them everywhere, even when you don’t ask. Being strategic about getting dressed in the morning is a cost effective, fun way to market.

Invoices. For dealers who snail-mail to send invoices or statements to customers, consider adding a product stuffer to the envelope. This is a small piece of paper designed to fit perfectly in an envelope and tells your customer about a new or related product they could benefit from. While you’re spending money on postage, you might as well include something that could spark interest and generate additional sales. For those who utilize electronic billing systems, you can also take advantage of this by attaching a PDF flyer in your email or, better yet, including a coupon for your customer’s next purchase.

Checkout Chatter. The short period of time a customer stands at the counter to check out is a perfect time to introduce them to upcoming promotions, new products or simply ask them if they are satisfied with the customer service they received. It’s the perfect time to up sell or receive feedback on their experience.

Vehicles. As a feed dealer, it is a given you spend much of your time on the road or have a vehicle out and about on any given day. A great way to increase brand awareness is with a vehicle wrap to advertise your dealership or a magnet that has your contact information, creating a traveling billboard.

Show Sponsorship. You will likely attend a stock show at some point throughout the year, whether with your family or to support your customers. While you’re there, wear your branded apparel and consider a sponsorship of product for class winners or champions. Ask if the show will announce your sponsorship over the microphone throughout the event and let people know where they can purchase product. Signage at these events is always a great way to increase awareness, and depending on the event, can come at a low cost.

Employee Time. If you have employees who have some downtime throughout the day, ask them to utilize that time writing thank you notes to your customers. You can never thank your customers enough, and a simple note will pay dividends.

As business owners, you face two important challenges each day:
1) feeling as if 24 hours is not enough to get everything accomplished and 2) engaging with your customers on a level so they know they are important and that you care. Our world is becoming more demanding of our time, and communication space is more cluttered. Rather than revolutionizing your marketing plan and falling short because you don’t have the time or resources to pull something big off, evaluate current activities to know if you are being fully efficient in the tasks you are already performing. And, more importantly, understand your customers’ worlds are just as cluttered as yours. Personalize your marketing efforts to speak to customers about what specifically interests them. By respecting their time and catering to their needs rather than cramming them into a one-size-fits-all plan, you will create engaged customers who appreciate your effort and who will remain loyal to your business.