12 Nov 08 Use “Soft Marketing” to Promote Financial & Professional Services

There are any number of industries where “hard sell” tactics don’t work, and potential client’s may even develop the wrong impression about your firm. This is where “soft marketing” comes in.

Buyers, whether they are consumers or business people, have been turned-off by discount offers and high-pressure sales efforts. As someone looking for a long-term relationship and not a one-time sale, you need a different approach.

Soft Marketing, as has been typically defined, is easy to implement and involves the following three tactics:

Become known as an “expert” by posting articles, press releases and opinion statements which demonstrate your command of the facts.
Give away a free report or position paper. This is another way to build credibility and trust with potential clients
Partner with related, non-competing businesses. Not only will you get exposure from someone else’s efforts, but potential clients can learn about your services from a “friendly source”.

The information is based on an article posted by Charles Hopper on the EZILON website. We would like to add one more tactic to his list:

Get out and try it. No matter what type of marketing efforts you have been accustomed to, Soft Marketing can be implemented in days and for very little money. It won’t take away from your other marketing efforts and can only complement them.

Stay tuned. Next time we’ll discuss the costs of using the Internet to roll-out your Soft Marketing campaign.