Let’s face it:  you spend most of your time doing what you do best —-servicing your customers day in, day out.  When it comes to advertising, marketing, and promotions, most tradesmen have limited know-how, let alone time.  But that doesn’t have to be the case.

Luckily, the following four promotional strategies require little time, money, and effort.  Best of all, they are proven strategies that’ll help you grow your business and bottom line.  And who could argue with that?

Give your customers a souvenir
After completing a service, stick a business card magnet onto your customers’ refrigerator.  This will help them remember your service, all while keeping your contact information in plain sight.  Not to mention, you can never go wrong with magnets –something most people find fun and enjoy collecting!

Stay top of mind
Keep you name top of mind by sending your customers a friendly reminder every few months, and what better way than with a branded (not to mention useful) calendar magnet.  For certain months you can include helpful tips on common repairs and problems that occur during that time of the year.  For example, before hurricane season people may want to check their roof to avoid unnecessary and costly damage and leaks.

Spread your knowledge
To garner good will, send your customers helpful informational magnets that have guidelines and advice on how to maintain their homes during severe weather conditions such as tornadoes, blizzards, and heat waves.  This will show your customers that you care about their well-being, reinforcing the value of your expertise and business.

Get out in the neighborhood
When you or an employee is working at a customer’s home, take a few moments to stick some magnets to neighborhood doors and mailboxes.  This is a fun, easy, and eye catching way of getting your contact information out in the community.  But don’t just take our word for it…give it a try!

As mentioned in a prior post, we recently became the official magnet of the Backstage Artist Lounge, a private lounge installed backstage at major music festivals where sponsors connect with bands for product sampling and relationship building opportunities.  A hot act, indeed.

Fresh from our first tour, this month’s Epicenter in California featuring bands like Kiss, Eminem, Blink 182, and Big Bio (from OutKast), our magnets had a prominent role with some of music’s biggest acts.  Check out some of our pics.!

Stay tuned for more pics. of our magnets on the road with the Backstage Artist Lounge and some of music’s biggest names!

Steve from the rock/rap group Kinda Major with Magnets.com

Papa Roach w Civil Society

Magnets.com backstage at the 2010 Epicenter Festival

OutKast's Big Boi

The end of summer is upon us, and what better way to focus on drumming up extra business and sales than with a new promotion! Whether looking for business card magnets, calendar magnets, or pretty much any type of magnet, now’s the perfect time to order as we’ll take 10% off any and all products site wide, using promo code SaveMore.  This offer comes to an end on October 5, so save while you can.

Have you ever wanted a handful of magnets of, say, your dog, baby, or favorite photograph? Or maybe your garden or a lovely sunset? Your wish is our command: starting today, simply post your image of choice to our Facebook wall and we’ll print and send you a handful of magnets with your photo –completely FREE! Heck, we’ll even cover the shipping!

Free magnets -just one more reason to stick with Magnets.com.

We’re all about social media, the newest and greatest technologies, online review sites, and connecting with our customers.  If you’re reading this blog post, chances are you are as well!  So, why not take a moment to find us, from Facebook to Citysearch!?

• Facebook
• MerchantCircle
• Citysearch
• Superpages
• Insiderpages

We’re huge supporters and fans of all types of music -from local to large scale, loud to mellow.  Heck, we even have several musicians on staff.  So, when presented with the opportunity to become the official magnet of the Backstage Artist Lounge, a private lounge installed backstage at major music festivals where sponsors connect with bands for product sampling and relationship building opportunities, we jumped at the opportunity.

By major music festivals, we mean events like Sonic Boom featuring Weezer, Rise Against, and Bad Religion, and the KROQ Epicenter Festival featuring Eminem, Kiss, and Blink 182.  So, if you attend a show and happen to see some awesome magnets scattered about, chances are they’re from Magnets.com.

Stay tuned for pics. of our magnets on the road with these famous music acts!

As a prior entry detailed, we recently introduced a Value Buy business card magnet produced with the same print and finish you’ve come to expect from Magnets.com, all on slightly lighter magnetic material (20 vs. 25ml).  Given customer feedback we expected a good deal of traction, but were taken aback by their sheer popularity:  since introduction, our value buy business card magnets have accounted for over 50% of all business cards sold on Magnets.com.  Talk about a hit.

That got us thinking:  why not put our customers in the driver’s seat, enabling them to choose the thickness of their magnets?  Brilliant, indeed!  With our new Web site set for launch later this year, you’ll be able to choose from three magnet thicknesses which, like today, are composed of approximately 77% recycled raw materials:

• Premium:  a full 30ml thick.  Simply the best, highest quality magnet on the market.  Capable of holding 5 sheets of paper.
• Standard:  our current standard magnets, 25ml thick.  And by 25ml, the magnetic portion makes up 20ml and the printed paper and laminate covering about 5ml.  Capable of holding 4 sheets of paper.
• Value:  20ml thick, the same as our current Value Buy business card magnets.  Capable of holding 2 sheets of paper and great for mailing.

Choosing the thickness and price point of your magnets… just another reason to stick with Magnets.com.

Let’s say you’re knee deep designing a custom magnet for your business (as a prior entry detailed, you’ll have the option to design your magnets from scratch, customize hundreds upon hundreds of design templates, upload your own completed artwork, or have us design your magnets).  All of a sudden your boss calls and needs you to put out a fire.  Ten minutes ago.  What to do with the lovely magnet design you’ve worked so hard on?

Forget starting from scratch:  on the new Magnets.com Web site you’ll have the ability to save any and all magnets you design -no matter where in the design process you are- so you can seamlessly jump back in when the fire’s out or when you have a moment.  What’s more, with the ability to share any and all of your designs with friends, family, and colleagues via any social media platform (or even plain old e-mail), you’ll be able to receive feedback or simply share your cherished design, all with just a few easy clicks.  Talk about a practical stress reliever…

Check back to learn about additional features that will be available on the new Magnets.com Web site, scheduled for release late this summer.

We’re unleashing our inner Willy Wonka: *any and all* orders placed today through Tuesday, August 3 2010 will be shipped with your very own Golden Ticket (an actual magnet, why of course), good for 20% off your next order. Pretty sweet, huh?

To redeem your savings simply use the promo. code found on your Golden Ticket when placing your next order. It’s that easy!

Note: The Golden Ticket promo code expires on 12/31/2010, and is only good for one order.   Savor the sweet savings, and make your message stick with Magnets.com.