Marketing on a tight budget

How to attract, win and keep your customers

To maximise your marketing spend, you need to focus on satisfying your current customers, encouraging past customers and attracting new customers to your business. Identify your unique selling point (USP) - what's especially good about your product or service - and use it to make you stand out from the crowd.

 

Get more from your customer base

Your regular customer base is critical to your business' survival and growth, so you need to seize chances to build and maintain your relationship with them on each interaction or sale.
There are many ways to do this when on a tight budget. Think about how you communicate - for example, you should:

• talk to your customers and focus on their needs and wants
• be specific, honest and clear about what you can offer
• keep in touch - send email updates or a newsletter
• get to know your competitors and what they are offering

Think creatively about your selling techniques. For example, you could:

• encourage people to 'buy now' by offering lower prices for immediate/bulk purchases or bookings
• use coupons or e-vouchers that are easy and cheap to design and distribute
• offer gifts, free trials and tasters
• reward your customers with loyalty schemes

Make sure your staff are fully aware of your customer base, products and services and are inspired about your business.

 

Encourage referrals from existing clients

Referrals from satisfied customers endorsing your business are the best way of getting new customers. So if a client tells you they're happy with some work you have done for them, ask them to recommend you to other potential customers.
Consider offering incentives - such as a discount off their next order - for every new customer an existing client points in your direction.

 

Find new customers 

You should always be thinking about how to attract new customers. You need to:

• let potential new customers know who you are and what you offer
• aim to provide an exceptional experience on the first sale
• offer options and solutions to increase convenience
• position yourself as a leader next to your competition - give a reason for customers to buy from you

Try to price your products or services according to their quality - you want to avoid under pricing them.


 Public relations on a budget
 You don't need to blow your budget to keep your business in the public eye. Even a cash-strapped business can use public relations (PR) effectively and reap the benefits.
When setting out to promote your business, it's important to be clear about what you want to achieve - for example, increased sales, increased visits to your website or more awareness of your product or service.
Some of the more cost-effective ways to promote your business can be to:

• make your business stand out - eg by offering a unique product or service, or by offering savings
• join relevant professional or social groups so you can network with other people
• tell people or write a press release if your business wins an award or contract
• specialize - you will be more attractive to customers if you are an expert in what you do
• promote yourself as an expert to local media, write an article or start a blog - see the page in this guide on how to use technology to reach your customers
• lead a trend or solve a problem that you have spotted
• volunteer to speak at meetings or seminars related to your field

If your budget allows, you could try these PR methods:

• relaunch your website, shop or product/service
• if you have a car or van, use vehicle branding or magnetic signs to advertise your business' phone number or website
• get involved in charity - offer to host an event on your premises and invite the media
• get involved with the community - try fundraising or offer your product or service as a competition prize
• survey your customers - get to know their needs and future wants

With a little time and creativity, you can create effective PR campaigns quickly and cheaply.

 

Use technology to reach your customers

When planning your marketing, look at how you're using technology. Are you getting the most out of what's currently available?

 

Email marketing

Traditional marketing methods - eg direct mail - are expensive and often wasteful. Email marketing can be a much more effective alternative, because e-newsletters are cheap - or free - to produce.
If your email subscriber database also contains demographic data, and/or information about buying habits, you can accurately target your messages to specific and relevant groups. For more information, including the legal considerations, see our guide on email marketing.

 

Text marketing

Text marketing - ie targeting customers using mobile phone SMS messages - can be a very powerful marketing tool when used appropriately.

 

Social networking

You can promote your business for free using social networking websites like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. If used well, these sites can also be an excellent tool for interacting with your existing customers and making new business contacts.

Internet blogs

If you're an expert in your field, think about sharing that expertise online. Offering advice or opinions on your own internet blog can be a fantastic way of promoting yourself and your business.
Blogs also tend to get high rankings from internet search engines, so having one can make it easier for potential customers to find out information about your business.

How to Whiten Yellowed White Clothes

Even if you follow all the rules on keeping white clothes white, they can still become yellowed over time. Yellowing quite often occurs on clothes that are stored improperly and react with the cardboard box or wooden shelves. So what to do?
The first step for washable clothes is to mix a solution of warm water and oxygen-based bleach (Oxibleach, Zonrox Color Safe Bleach). Submerge your white garments and allow them to soak for a day. Cover it with plastic and sealed. It is much effective if you will let it sit under the sun.
Then wash as usual, adding 1/2 cup distilled white vinegar to the rinse water.
If possible, dry the clothing outside in the sun. The ultraviolet rays of sunlight will help to whiten the clothes.
Chlorine bleach can be used on cotton fabrics. However, the overuse of chlorine bleach can actually cause clothes to yellow. Only use chlorine bleach if you are familiar with how to use it properly.

Banana Leaf Ironing

I remember the old way of ironing clothes.When i was like 7 year old i saw my grandmother, She would always put banana leaves underneath the iron for resting in between uses. It makes the clothes smell good like earthy, full of nature. Only people that used it understands what i am saying.
I almost forgot this technique, good thing somebody reminded me about the benefit of using banana leaf.

Now i will try to use this old method again because this is really helpful even if you use steam iron or not it doesn't matter.
It seems that the iron will move smoothly if banana leaves are used. It appears that the organic wax from the leaves enabled the iron to glide over even the stickiest of fabrics. I was also told that the leaves would also help to clean the stains from the iron.Try this at home and see for yourself.

How to wash clothes by hand

Have you been destroying shirts in the washing machine or overpaying at the dry cleaners? Washing your clothes by hand is actually the best way to save your clothes and extend their lifetime.

1. Wash clothes in a place with abundant water such as a shower head, bathtub faucet, or outside using the garden hose, etc.
2. Find a bucket/basin/bathtub/stoppable sink that is big enough to hold your clothes. Remember that clothing is smaller, heavier, and harder to manage when wet.
3. Add detergent. If you are using liquid, pour it right in. If you are using powder, it might work better to dissolve it with a smaller amount of water.
4. Add clothes. You might realize this is an important step, but don't forget to sort your clothes before putting in for wash. Clothes can be sorted on various bases like color (colored, dark, or white clothes), or you can sort based on type (put your normal clothes like shirts and pants together or put your heavier clothes like bed sheets and towels together) or any other way which you think it best fits you.
5. Cover the clothes with water. Whether you use hot, warm, or cold water depends on the type of fabric you are dealing with. Cold water is usually the best option for most fabrics and conserves energy. Warm water is better for heavily soiled clothes, but hot water can shrink cotton and wool. Luke warm water is appropriate for silks. Hot water is the best for socks because it kills fungi.
6. Let the clothes soak for about 20-30 minutes. 20 minutes is appropriate if you don't have many clothes, 25 if you have a medium amount, and 30 if you have a big bundle of clothing. Don't soak any longer because detergent will damage both the fabric and fade the color of your clothes.
7. Use a brand new, never-before-used toilet bowl plunger to agitate the clothes with a gentle up and down action. Your hand will work just as well. If you do use your hands knead your clothes as if you were kneading bread.
8. Drain out the water. Remove the clothes and let them drain for several minutes. (One way is to put the clothes in a sink, bath tub, or any clean place where the force of gravity will take the water away.)
9. It usually takes three changes of water to remove the soap. Put the clothes back in the container and cover with clean water. Agitate them. Drain the water. Repeat this step at least two more times. Rinsing the clothes until the water runs clear will also work.
10. Take out the clothes, and allow them to drain for several minutes.
11. Hang everything up to dry on plastic hangers.

Cleaning your iron

Starch and other laundry products can build up on your iron. It is important to remove any build up to prevent it from transferring to your clothing. This is a guide about cleaning a clothes iron.

Cleaning Your Steam Iron

To remove burned on starch from the iron place a towel dampened with vinegar on the ironing board and sprinkle generously with table salt. Set iron on warm dry setting and run over a towel until the stain is removed. Clean gunk off the surface of an iron by polishing gently with 0000 grade steel wool. Don't try this with a non-stick iron. If iron surface is dull, polish with Pearl Drops or other toothpaste.
To clean mineral deposits from a steam iron, fill it with a mixture of equal parts water and white vinegar. Allow it to steam for several minutes, disconnect, and let stand for an hour. Empty the reservoir, rinse well, and repeat if necessary.

Safety in the Laundry Area

A clothes dryer doesn't look scary or appear to be too dangerous. Unfortunately, it is the cause of over fires every year totaling millions of peso in damage. Regular cleaning and maintenance can protect you and your investment.

Get Rid of Dreaded Lint
Whether you use an electric or gas clothes dryer, you will have lint. Lint builds up in the lint trap but also inside the dryer hose and vent and can reduce air flow and drying efficiency. Lint can cause humidity levels to rise around vents causing mildew and mold to develop in walls and insulation. But most important to remember: Lint is combustible. Lint causes fires.
Fortunately, removing dangerous lint is simple. The first area to clean is the lint trap. It should be cleaned after every load by removing the lint from the screen and wiping the edges. If the screen seems clogged, it may be front the dryer sheets you have been using. Submerge the lint screen in a sink of hot water and then scrub with a bristle brush to remove all the built-up fabric softener.
The key to success in de-linting a dryer is a dryer lint brush. This long-handled flexible brush will help you reach areas that you cannot get to by hand.
Remove the dryer lint filter. In the opening - whether on dryer top or in door, use the brush to gently loosen the built-up lint. Don't force the brush if you meet resistance but be sure to cover every surface as much as possible. Remove the big chunks of lint that come out with the brush. Don't worry about the smaller pieces.
Replace the lint filter (which I'm sure you have cleaned). Turn the dryer to air only and run for a cycle. This will pull the lint into the filter or blow the loose particles out the outside vent.
At least once per year, unplug the dryer and check where the exhaust hose connects to the dryer. The hose or pipe is held in place by a clip or a steel clamp that can be loosened by pliers or a screwdriver. After removing the pipe, reach inside the dryer opening or use a vent brush to remove as much lint as possible. A shop vacuum is handy for removing the most lint and use a damp cloth to wipe away remaining lint around the connection.
Look inside the hose or pipe and clean it as well. If your exhaust hose is vinyl or foil it should be replaced with a flexible metal pipe with flexible fittings. Most building codes no longer allow vinyl or foil exhausts.
One last step is to clean the exterior vent. Again remove as much lint as possible using your hand or a shop vacuum. You may need a screwdriver or another tool to hold the vent flap open for easier cleaning. If you live in a high humidity area or use your dryer more than twice weekly, you may need to clean this vent several times per year.

Using the Dryer Safely
If possible, clothing that has been soiled by volatile chemicals like gasoline, cleaning agents or even large amounts of cooking oil should not be dried in a clothes dryer. If they must be dried in the machine, wash the clothing more than once to minimize the risk of fire. Use the lowest heat setting and shortest drying cycle possible. Use a cycle with a cool-down period at the end of the cycle to prevent ignition.

Installing the Dryer Correctly
A clothes dryer should not vent inside. The exhaust contains too much humid air and can cause problems with mold and mildew which are hazardous to health. A vent less dryer should be used if outside venting is not possible.
Be certain that you have a 220v grounded electrical outlet available for an electric dryer. A professional should used to install gas lines for gas dryers.

Never store volatile chemicals or rags near a dryer. Some liquids emit vapors than ignite. The area around the dryer should be kept free of lint, papers and stacks of clothing.

LPG maintenance

• Always keep the LPG valve / regulator switched off when not in use, especially at night after the work is done and when going on a holiday.
•  LPG should also be sealed and place inside a cage.
• Always store the LPG cylinder in an upright position and away from other combustible and flammable materials. Store no more than one spare LPG cylinder at any given time.
• Check for gas leaks regularly by applying soap solution on cylinder joints. The appearance of soap bubbles indicates leak points. Do not use open flame to detect leaks.
• Always replace worn-out or defective tubing and regulators. Half of all gas-related accidents occur due to leakages from the rubber tube. Change the tubing every two years and the regulator every five years.
• Make sure all parts of the installation are in good condition. If you should find anything wrong with any part, contact your distributor immediately and ask for assistance.
• Never tamper with your LPG cylinder.

Disinfecting Washers

It may seem strange because it always has soap and bleach swirling around inside it, but you still need to disinfect it at least twice a month. I do the regular disinfecting of washer every week because of soap residues that sticks to the washer.

Cleaning and Disinfecting

1. Locate the stuck-on detergent inside your washing machine. Don't forget to check the lid, too.
2. Scrub off all the caked-on soap gently using a non scratching scouring sponge or old toothbrush and with chlorine bleach. Be sure to feel up underneath the opening. This is an area that is often overlooked.Try to removed soap residue form the fabric softener dispenser.
3. Add 1 cup of bleach to the bleach dispenser, if the machine has one.
4. Run the machine on the heaviest cycle.