Once I had written an article regarding a guy I heard of, Nick was his name. He was in the gravestone business, and he was effective with marketing that was, at best, macabre. He would make jokes about people dying to get his products. Regardless of the twist on marketing, he was hugely successful. However, not everybody can get away with that idea, just as not everybody can produce something that looks like a Picasso and expect to sell it. However, every sales representative can find a way of ensuring that the prospect remembers him when he needs something. This skill of making yourself memorable is the definition of Top of Mind Awareness (TOMA).
What do you sell? Think about the associations that can be made with the product/service. Maybe you can think of associations with your company name or logo. The idea of TOMA is to create a scenario where when a prospect needs something that you sell he immediately thinks to contact you. Yes, instantly you want him to think of you, and certainly not one of your competitors. Therefore, if you can create a picture, in their minds, you are well on your way to a client for life.
There are firms that create TOMA through their enormous advertising campaigns. Think about the "brands" that you are bombarded with everywhere you go. Whom do you think of when you think about fast food chicken? You probably thought of the immense KFC bucket and branding. If you want to drink cola, which brand comes to mind? Now this branding depends on if you are a Coke or Pepsi drinker. If you want blue jeans, which designer springs to mind? Levi's used to be the most popular brand of jeans, however, designer jeans are challenging the original TOMA all the time!
All these businesses have evolved TOMA into an art form, so much so that their name has become interchangeable with that of the product. Take Kleenex, for instance. A kleenex is a brand; the product is a tissue. However, you ask for Kleenex. The same thing applies for a Xerox copy. You often ask somebody to Xerox something for you, when you want a copy from any brand of copier available to you. Other companies make use of prestige as their TOMA tool. Perhaps they've got a corporate box at Yankee Stadium and invite top multinational prospects there alongside their top sales people to watch a game. All the while, the sales people gently soft sell their product by doing little more than placement of advertisements on the wall and brochures on the table.
Creating TOMA doesn't have to be on such a grand scale, however. It might be something as unembellished as being the sales representative who always offers candy to the prospect, or the one who always asks for tea with milk, or the one who tells groan jokes that get the prospect plus points with his 8 year old son. Perhaps your business never forgets the prospect's birthday, or that of his secretary! If you've got a quirky letterhead, or name, I'm sure that it doesn't hurt, but the main thing that you need to remember as a "Sales Superstar" is that your name must come immediately to mind when the prospect finds he needs whatever it is you sell!
"The difference between try and triumph is just a little umph!" Marvin Phillips
What do you sell? Think about the associations that can be made with the product/service. Maybe you can think of associations with your company name or logo. The idea of TOMA is to create a scenario where when a prospect needs something that you sell he immediately thinks to contact you. Yes, instantly you want him to think of you, and certainly not one of your competitors. Therefore, if you can create a picture, in their minds, you are well on your way to a client for life.
There are firms that create TOMA through their enormous advertising campaigns. Think about the "brands" that you are bombarded with everywhere you go. Whom do you think of when you think about fast food chicken? You probably thought of the immense KFC bucket and branding. If you want to drink cola, which brand comes to mind? Now this branding depends on if you are a Coke or Pepsi drinker. If you want blue jeans, which designer springs to mind? Levi's used to be the most popular brand of jeans, however, designer jeans are challenging the original TOMA all the time!
All these businesses have evolved TOMA into an art form, so much so that their name has become interchangeable with that of the product. Take Kleenex, for instance. A kleenex is a brand; the product is a tissue. However, you ask for Kleenex. The same thing applies for a Xerox copy. You often ask somebody to Xerox something for you, when you want a copy from any brand of copier available to you. Other companies make use of prestige as their TOMA tool. Perhaps they've got a corporate box at Yankee Stadium and invite top multinational prospects there alongside their top sales people to watch a game. All the while, the sales people gently soft sell their product by doing little more than placement of advertisements on the wall and brochures on the table.
Creating TOMA doesn't have to be on such a grand scale, however. It might be something as unembellished as being the sales representative who always offers candy to the prospect, or the one who always asks for tea with milk, or the one who tells groan jokes that get the prospect plus points with his 8 year old son. Perhaps your business never forgets the prospect's birthday, or that of his secretary! If you've got a quirky letterhead, or name, I'm sure that it doesn't hurt, but the main thing that you need to remember as a "Sales Superstar" is that your name must come immediately to mind when the prospect finds he needs whatever it is you sell!
"The difference between try and triumph is just a little umph!" Marvin Phillips
About the Author:
James Malinchak, Showcased on ABC's Hit Television Show Secret Millionaire, is regarded as by many specialists as the World's #1 Big Money Speaker Coach and Trainer. For Totally free Video Trainings regarding how to get money to speak and ways to turn into a public speaking tips, try see page and learn more.
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