Knocking on doors.....

That sounds awesome, I would like to know more. Keep me posted, look forward to the post.

YOu have to have something whether you go door to door or not. What are you going to give out: a business card? If so, it better be a doozy.

Actually, now that I think about it, what do I know about going door to door? Oh, yeah, people door to door me all the time. Some get through most don't. I always give them a chance to hit me with something worth hearing.

So when you go door to door it may be best to say something useful really really quick - to hook 'em.

If you are there solve a problem, solve it. I remember the RAM guy showing up with a bottle of RAM and a cloth. He just walked in and started cleaning stuff that obviously hadn't been deep cleaned in a long time - and got it very very clean. I am still using RAM and ordering it by the case.

I also sometimes buy pictures from folks who sell door to door. There, it helps if the pictures are great - and the sales people are interesting to look at and talk with.

I've sold many accounts door to door and I never had any preprinted material to hand out. I found that type of thing to be a total waste. Mainly people will either talk to you or not. If they aren't going to talk to you than that hand out goes right into the recycling bin. If you are going to have some type of hand out don't over print them and give them only to serious prospects. Dennis also has some very good tips for you from the customers point of view. So think about that as well when going door to door. Art T.

Not all 3PL companies are the same. Some are web based and offer NO service at all. there are some fairly large 3PL's offering cheap rates and POOR service. It is the old adage you get what you pay for. We offer excellent service at reasonable rates.

Arthur's comment reminds of a guy I met recently who "doesn't carry business cards." I understand the point that almost all the time almost anything you hand out will end up in the garbage.

It is also true that it's a numbers game. You never know for sure where that card will end up, who needs it or how the person you hand it to will put it to use.

Even more to my point though is that the card makes it easy for the other person to take actions favorable to your interests (and theirs hopefully).

A business card is a place to write pertinent info reminding the other person of why they have your card. It gives all the info they need to contact you again and follow up and hopefully refers them to other info (your web site). (Obviously this may not all be true: some people have cards you can't write on either because they are full of text and graphics or because they are glossy. And some people have cards that fail to include critical contact info - I don't know why.)

A business card can be a lot of things. Different for each of us according to our needs and the needs of our clients/customers/patients. For many folks the card itself is suppose to generate massive emotional impressions about how wonderful they are - that's fine, especially if they can back the impression with equally impressive other stuff: whatever that may be, I'm thinking office, website, location, whatever. The card is part of a system.

The question was about pamphlets or brochures. So it's really about the thought process about and creativity around creating that material: the graphics and text, organization and so forth. I personally think the reason most paperwork ends up in the garbage is that most of it is of such poor quality.

Lastly, just because you have a card or a brochure doesn't mean they get one. Whatever you have, it isn't for everybody so qualify them. (Arthur's point I think.)

I think you absolutely need some kind of brochure, pamphlet, etc. when going door to door.

However, it is a huge mistake to think that the purpose of going door to door is to hand out your materials. Talk to people to get them interested, and only give the materials to people who ask for them.

Make sure you're talking to the right people. If the boss (or other decision maker) is out, try to schedule a time to come back.

And whatever you do, don't make a pushy sales pitch. I remember several people/companies by name that I will never buy from even though I want their kind of products/services - they tried to push the sale at a time when I wasn't ready to commit. I have several other people/companies where I've got their business cards in a special filing place. When I'm ready to buy, I'll go with them.

I guess I didn't clarify; you need to have business cards. I'll pass out business cards like candy on Halloween. That other stuff is expensive though. You can have it but you need to make sure it gets into the right hands and its good (Dennis's point). Art T.

I am constantly putzing around with my brochures, but to be honest, they're pretty useless. In my corporate days, salesmen would moan and groan if they didn't have their brochures. In one business we were selling $10 to $50 million automated systems. I doubt any one made a decision based on a brochure. As a small businessman, I want my own brochure and they're probably just as useless.

The bottom line is that the real impression is going to be made by you and the brochure is a crutch. If it makes you feel better to have a brochure take one, but remember that the purpose of a call is not to get the brochure in someones hands. When you get face time, use it to learn what the prospect's needs are and what you can do to help. Convey as much information as you can on how you can help meet their needs so that they don't have to refer to a brochure to remember who you are or what you can do to add value to their business.

Brochures are "collateral" — in other words, they take the place of you when you're not there. If they don't impress, then yes, they're useless. Worse than useless, really. Poor sales literature makes you look bad and can actually unsell your company.

High quality sales literature, on the other hand, can impart and sustain credibility in the eyes of prospective customers.

If you are going door to door without appointments or pre-qualifying, you have only seconds to introduce yourself and establish whether a prospect has any interest or need for your services. Statistically you will not have time to complete the sale. Further, no matter how marvelous your presentation, they will have forgotten your elevator speech minutes after you disappear.

Your leave-behind brochure keeps you in the game until your next contact, communicating precisely what you do and who you do it for. Pertinent product, service and contact information are at the prospects fingertips, inviting her to your website, making you look good even when you're not there.

So while it's unlikely a brochure will close the sale for you, it is an excellent communication and credibility tool.