Drill Bit Marketing | Promotional Consultant

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Drill Bit Marketing
By: Mike Beckman
Issue: February 2010

Are you a seller of goods or a contractor of ideas?

While polishing up for my upcoming CAS exam I came across a sales principle that really ma me think. “Every year millions of drill bits are sold in spite of the fact that nobody really wants them. They want holes.”

This rings true for promotional products on several levels. On the client level, they do not want 500 tape measurers; they want 500 brand reminders. On the recipient side, most of the prospects do not want a tape measure; they grabbed it because it was free. So, how can you tie in their need for free to your client’s want of a brand reminder?

This is where choosing the right bit and making the perfect size hole is most important. Set yourself apart by providing the hole by selling the correct drill bit. Ask yourself the following question.

Why are you providing tape measurers to clients?
A. Because they asked for them.
B. They looked nice and were in their price range.
C. There was a special on them and you could make a little extra money.
D. They made the perfect tie-in to their current marketing plan.

Hopefully, you chose D. Providing promotional items to your clients for reasons A through C places you in the category of run-of-the-mill promotional products peddler. Selling your clients drill bits when they want holes makes the perfect adage in this case. Sell for reasons A, B or C, and you are providing clients the wrong drill bit for the size of hole they want to make. You have marked yourself as a seller of goods and not a contractor of marketing ideas. This is where potential customers pick their vendor of choice based on price, driving down your profits.

Your job is to make perfect holes for your clients, big enough for sales and profit to easily fit through. Choice D places you in the top percentage of promotional marketing specialists—the contractor of choice.

To make perfect size holes you need to know more than clients’ budgets and why they want to give something away. You need to delve deeper, get more involved in their marketing plan. Ask key questions and do some research of your own into their product and service offerings. Find out what they really want from the product giveaway, which isn’t just to get people to the booth.

First, find out the need for the promotional giveaway—tradeshow, warm-up sales calls, product launch introduction, new service, etc. Then find out the name of the show, product or service and the top three to five advantages they provide with their product or service. Use these answers to set the template that will help choose the correct size drill bit.

Once you have the answers list the key words that stand out—product name, show theme, descriptive words used to describe the advantages, etc. Use these words to help with the size of hole you need. By this we mean to look for words that reference or symbolize a product you can use. The term “measure up” would make a good use of the tape measure or “save time sifting through files” makes a good case for a clock or sand timer. Get the creative juices flowing, “drive down prices,” maybe a steering wheel keychain or “more tools, less work”—multi-function tool and a cell phone rest.

Make the item as unique as your client or the product, use a play on words or simple puns to drive home your point and make the hole they need. It is a lot easier than you think, and your clients will consider you one of their top tools for their tool belt the next time they need another hole.

Mike Beckman is the owner of Proforma-BPM, a marketing agency specializing in branding initiatives, product launches, tradeshow building and promotional programs. For additional articles and ideas visit Mike's weblog or contact him directly at mike.beckman@proforma.com.