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| Basic Marketing for Exporters |
Basic Marketing for Exporters
A quick look at marketing and promotion for exporters.
What is marketing?
Marketing is many things and has many purposes and, therefore, many definitions. Kenneth D. Weiss defined marketing as, "the composite of functions needed to move goods from the producers to consumers to satisfy consumers wants and needs." . Analysing the phrase we would see that there are the wants and needs, the goods and the transactions, for there to be an exchange of good from the producer to the consumer messages or information about the product has to be communicated.
All marketing activities are generally aim towards communicating products message to the consumer , these message are directed towards informing the customers or potetials about the product benefits, values and satisfaction that the consumers will experienced. There are both psychological as well as demographical influences that will determined how each customer will behave towards any marketing message. In Exporting there are other barriers that will determined a succesful campaign, such as language, economic stablity and purchasing power etc.
Marketing should be look at as everything you produce, from communications (including emails) , products , advertising and promotions. In every task or business decision, you are directly or indirectly delivering your companys offerings, image and reputation to the market for its evaluation. Your business image and your results are always on the line. Marketing is important because it can directly affect a business performance and, particularly for small to medium enterprises engaged in global trade, its livelihood.
Owning your own company email domains and a proper website.
The invent of internet with its websites and emails has created a termendous change in the way communication is conducted today. Cost of ownership for a domain with your own email address has reduced from thousand of dollars to a mere tenths or hundred of dollars . Thus for exporter having your own website and email address i.e www.yourcompany.com and you@yourcompany.com are a MUST ! The reason are very simple, how could I trust you if you cant even afford to have your own website!
Planning your promotion and market presence
One of the most cost-effective and immediate ways to get responses to your offerings is to take advantage of the variety of online promotion options available, including registering as a seller on Halal2all.com which offer space (your own mini-website) for you to place your product catalog. Halal2all also offer communication tools that enable you to be in direct contact with potential buyers.
You can also:
Search online for companies looking to source products as well as their buying leads
Attend trade shows in your own country or overseas and talk to buyers directly
Differentiation through service
One important part of ongoing marketing efforts is your companys perceived level of service in the eyes of your customers and partners. A high level of service is hard to maintain but invaluable in setting your company apart from your competitors. Some tips include:
Quick Response to phone calls and emails .
Responding to enquiries should be made as soon as possible. The longer it takes you to respond show your level of seriousness in doing business. Just imagine ourself on the other site of the line, you would definitely wants your suppliers to provide information to your as fast as possible. To be effective make sure that all communication chanel in to your company are manned. You could also create an area on your website specifically for your customers. A testimonial or success story area, or even a discussion board, draws customers to you.
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