Capitol-Air is a Caribbean Aircraft Charter operation, based in St. Thomas, USVI. They fly aircraft that accommodate a group as small as 3
or as large as 8. Convenient, confidential, safe, reliable and beautifully maintained aircraft are available 24/7.
We recently created their easy-to-use website which includes a user-friendly reservation form listing all the islands they fly to and from.
AO SKY is all about “Commitment to Excellence”And, their statement, “We love what we do,” truly sums up their passion about their charter operation.
After several meetings and discussions we came up with a visual that would “marry” their high-end charter aircraft with the purity of their vision and customer service.
The Team page gives insight into each staff member and their devotion to a job well done while at the same time providing a level of comfort required when chartering an aircraft with people you may not have met yet.
Four types of ad campaigns that sell.
In the history of the world, there have only been four types of advertising campaigns that both build brands and drive sales. They are:
When you look at a company’s website or a single print ad, at least one of these techniques should be present. If not, you can be certain of two things: 1) That company isn’t getting return on investment on their marketing spend. 2) The CEO and CFO are not happy.
These principals hold true whether you do business-to-business, or business-to-consumer, regardless of the size of your marketing budget.
To improve your marketing, you need to gain certain levels of understanding:
1) Isolate the sales moment.
Without question, every company needs to have one of these campaign types. Even when not doing major advertising, these techniques are necessary on the website, brochure, or direct mail piece, due to how people intake and remember information. Remember, these campaigns provide a handle for your company. But what campaign to use and what should it be based on? The ownable sales moment is one your competitors can’t easily steal, and one that your customers want, and one you can deliver. This is what you want to build your campaign on. Then, clearly and memorably tell that story.
2) When to change your campaign.
You change your advertising campaign only when the current one isn’t growing sales to achieve established goals. If your advertising is not working, change it. If your sales are no longer growing, change it.
However, don’t keep throwing things against the wall, waiting for something to stick. Be strategic. Advertising campaigns most often fail simply because the ownable sales moment hasn’t been correctly identified.
If you’ve ever been stuck in the checkout line behind someone redeeming a handful of paper coupons, you know that many people are still clipping them in the traditional sense.
That’s changing, though. In 2011, 53% of redemptions are still done with paper coupons, but Internet-based redemptions are creeping up. By 2014 or so, most Internet couponing will be the norm, according to research from Promotional Codes, which created this infographic. This shouldn’t be too surprising. Fewer people are subscribing to traditional newspapers and getting the Sunday edition, which is stocked with free-standing inserts.
The shift to Internet-based coupons is yet another blow to newspapers, which have lost much of their classified ad business to Craigslist and other Internet operations. For consumers, though, especially those toting smartphones, redeeming coupons has gotten much easier. If the economy continues on its wobbly course, more people who never considered coupons before will do so, and they’ll do it digitally. With any luck, that will ease the congestion in those checkout lines as well.
Do This (or at least consider it)
Well in advance, determine the purpose of the brochure. Don’t set overly ambitious goals. Brand awareness or product sales are reasonable expectations.
Keep your customer in mind. Know who you are aiming your brochure at. Make sure it relates directly to them – how the product or service can satisfy their needs.
Give the cover considerable thought so it attracts attention. This is the first part that your audience will see. It must motivate the target to pick it up and read it.
Make the cover visually stimulating with photos, illustrations or graphics. These elements raise the cost, but they are worth it. Make sure the photo, if not your product, relates directly to your product.
Go for full color all the way. You won’t save any money choosing black & white. You’re competing with a never-ending array of other brochures. Make yours as good as it can be to stand out and get noticed.
Make the copy count. Once somebody has picked up your brochure, give them the information they want. Tell them the benefits. Describe how their lives will be better. Include a call-to-action to buy, or at least get more information or make an appointment.
Make it easy to read and use. Don’t make it complicated to unfold and follow the story. The type should be readable. The layout should direct the reader. The photos should help answer questions in the mind of the reader.
Do Not Do The Following
Don’t shortchange yourself. If you are serious about your business, use professional talent to write and design your brochure. And make it a reality using a quality printer. A do it yourself project will look exactly like that and undermine your image as a professional.
Never make the mistake of thinking you can proofread your own writing. Spotting your own grammatical errors and typos is difficult. While word processing software has spell check, it doesn’t differentiate between know and no, there and their, sale and sail, etc. A fresh set of eye will be a vast improvement in the process.
Don’t expect your brochure to close a sale. A customer needs to take a journey from product awareness to purchase. A brochure is at the product awareness end of the spectrum. A brochure can prompt a reader toward the next step to purchase.
Don’t attempt to tell everything in a brochure. While a brochure allows you to provide more details than a print ad, you can’t include every last detail. The result will render the brochure a useless expense. Remember, it must be readable and you must be reasonable in your expectations of how much time someone will want to spend with your brochure.
Don’t reinvent the brochure. People have certain expectations in a brochure – for example the size. Stick to standard sizes such as full page (8-1/2” x 11”) or slim jim (3-2/3” x 8-1/2”). People are not as likely to hold onto odd shapes and sizes.
If you follow these guidelines, you steer clear of trouble and create an effective communications vehicle that should produce the results you want. The more brochures you create, the better at it you’ll become. Then, it will be your turn to give advice on making effective brochures.
Successful companies provide proactive customer service. Proactive customers service leads to increased business and loyalty. Here are a few tips to keep in mind.
Be a double checker
Customers appreciate it when a sales representative takes a minute to check on an item they’ve asked for. It lets them know they’re being listened to and cared for.Do something extra
Average service is about meeting the customer’s expectations. Great customer service is exceeding it. Give your customers more than they expect, and they’ll return to do business with you.Take the initiative
Offer several solutions to the customer’s predicament. If one doesn’t work, make sure you have multiple avenues to resolve their problems. This way, the customer knows you are trying your best to help them, and in the future will not hesitate to buy from you, since they’ll know whatever problem they have, you’ll be able to fix it.
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