F: ii) Products, Customers, and Marketing

The products/services that you will sell or provide:

• How much will they cost and what gross profit are you aiming for?
• Can I purchase them more efficiently through a trading organisation or by changing supplier?

How will your customers come to know about you?

You may be about to launch the best product or service in the world, but unless your potential customers know about you, you might struggle to survive.

Your customers could find out about you through the following ways:

Passing Trade
Passing Trade is a window of opportunity that you should exploit to the full. People talk, particularly if new premises are opening.  Even if your building is undergoing renovation, use the opportunity to advertise your services, by informing people through notices about what is happening.

When people are passing your premises, they should quickly know:

• What your business is
• What service or product you supply 
• Your opening/trading hours
• How to contact you

The image you are presenting should be reflected in both the interior and exterior appearance of the building. 

Advertising/Publicity
Your advertising can take many forms. Anyone working for you, your premises and your vehicles are all adverts for your business.  A smart clean vehicle, well driven with a polite and helpful driver or an efficient receptionist/telephone operator can be a glowing advert for you company. Equally the opposite is true! Both good and bad new make impression.

Advertising can be through:

• Newspapers (local and national)
• Specialist Publications
• Advertising platforms (static and moving) such as billboards, bus stops and buses, vehicle and premises signs.
• Local radio and television channels.
• Sponsorship (especially competitions organised through local radio and television
• Discounts for groups/organisations. Offering discounts to large appropriate organisations (i.e. hospital staff, major office buildings, specialist groups, trade unions etc) can be an effective way of business promotion and volumes gained could make up for any discounts given.
• Recommendation/word of mouth is the best free publicity you can have!
• Newspapers, (esp. free local ones) are often short of good news.  By supplying short newsworthy items, you can often gain publicity in the area you want.  (I.e. the DIY store that bricked up its entrance, and asked a local karate club to do a DIY opening!).
• Assisting and sponsoring local charities or causes are a great way of obtaining free or low cost, advertising and publicity.