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Your
own virtual marketing resources when you need them
Every
business and organisation needs to communicate - to conduct its
business, to communicate with customers, suppliers and employees,
and to market and sell its products and services.
Large
organisations have marketing and communications departments or hire
agencies to produce and control their communications, although many
smaller businesses find this beyond the reach of their budgets.
Just
as in every other field, advances in technology and telecommunications
enable marketing communications to be provided as a virtual service.
What
does this mean?
It
means that external suppliers, such as specialist copywriters, can
provide the services you need as if they were actually part of your
business, but only when you need them. Often working as individuals,
partnerships or co-operatives, virtual suppliers offer the same
quality of service as traditional suppliers, but often with vastly
reduced overheads. Instead of running expensive offices, virtual
suppliers use the power of broadband internet communications to
collaborate with clients, colleagues and associates. This capitalises
on the efficiency of the technology and reduces the amount of time
spent travelling to meetings – after all, it's the client that
pays for agencies' company cars, expense accounts and hours spent
travelling. A virtual supplier aims to spend as much time as possible
actually working on client projects and not on other peripheral
activities.
What
benefit is this to you?
If
you have a small or reduced budget, it could be the difference between
being able to use marketing communications specialists or not. Even
if you work in a large organisation, it can enable you to reduce
your costs without sacrificing quality.
Is
it possible to build a lasting business relationship with a virtual
supplier?
Definitely.
Contact by phone and email can build a very effective working relationship.
There is no reason why face-to-face meetings cannot be included,
but very often they are not required. Project briefs, interviews
and content reviews can all be handled remotely. Proofs of publications
can be emailed by PDF for review by a client and returned with corrections
annotated. This speeds up the whole production process and cuts
down on unnecessary travel.
How
can remote suppliers work with businesses?
Clients
can call upon remote suppliers on an ad hoc basis, when they need
them, or contract them for a given amount of time each week or month.
This arrangement is very flexible and ensures that the client has
full access to specialist marketing communications expertise when
needed, but does not pay for it at other times.
Is
there any risk?
Very
little. Try
out a virtual supplier on a small project. For example, ask a copywriter
to write a sales letter or edit an article. Try out a proofreader
to see how they handle a small project. If their work matches your
style, you can forge a long-term relationship.
Whatever
else, in times when cost pressures require every expense to be considered,
virtual marketing communications services offer you an alternative,
cost effective and high quality option.
Please
call or email
editorialresources
to discuss a free trial of
our virtual services
0845
200 7830
hello@editorialresources.co.uk
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