Hitting the Target Market
When they opened their business , Bobbie and Mark O'Neill knew their top priority: attract customers. So they invested in print advertising in local publications.
"That wasn't the most effective use of money," recalls Bobbie O'Neill, co-owner with her husband, Mark, of Cruise Center Hill, a Nashville, Tenn.-based company that offers lake cruises for corporate clients.
It was only after she took the FastTrac course two years later that Bobbie crafted a better marketing strategy. Instead of running broad-based ads, she started to target her audience more precisely and take more aggressive steps to reach them.
She sells to business owners, chief operating officers and sales executives of companies that reward their salespeople and staff by treating them to a cruise. To introduce this exclusive group of high-level businesspeople to her services, Bobbie launched a monthly "VIP Cruise" in which she invited local bigwigs to enjoy a free three-hour boat ride.
"It serves as a showcase to introduce our target market to what we do," she says. "It's a way for us to get to know decision-makers and give them a sense of what we offer."
Because they run a seasonal business that operates from May to October, the O'Neills each make 30 to 50 cold calls every business day from January to April. They scour business journals, newspapers and other sources for lists of companies to contact, and they send materials to each prospect before making the call.
Bobbie uses the executive's first name when she calls. If the gatekeeper asks, "Is he [or she] expecting your call?" Bobbie replies, "I'm following up on information I sent."
If she makes 50 calls a day, she may get through to about eight executives. She finds that 20% become customers, so that means she averages one or two new clients per day.
"My favorite four-letter word is 'next,'" she says. "If they say no, I just move to the next call. I don't stop. And after a no, I still ask, 'Whom do you know who might be interested?' and I get referrals."
By harnessing all their marketing efforts to reach the most senior decision-makers, the O'Neills have built relationships with key clients throughout the area. Some of the executives whom they initially met via cold calls have become repeat customers, and they in turn provide referrals for new business.
Their targeted marketing pays off. Business nearly tripled the year after Bobbie went through the FastTrac class.
Running a seasonal business forces the O'Neills to maximize their marketing efforts during their limited window of opportunity in the early months of the year. Thanks to FastTrac, Bobbie learned to develop a systematic approach to selling in which she tracks results and measures her return on investment.
She keeps in touch with many of her FastTrac classmates, and they share their marketing challenges. "We all know that we have to start with a clear strategy on reaching the precise market we need to reach and hit the bull's eye."
Your FastTrac Connection: Bobbie O'Neill, co-owner of
Cruise Center Hill in Nashville, Tenn. E-mail: bobbieoneill@comcast.net.