Ready?

Write down every method you currently use for marketing your business. Take your time. Put down every technique you employ. Let me know when you’ve finished.

All done? Swell.

So, what’s on your list? Chances are you have usual marketing tools: newspaper, radio and television ads; showcase videos; web sites; business cards, etc. You probably have some of more “advanced” techniques, too: writing a regular column for a newspaper/magazine; vehicle placards/window detailing; regularly attending professional/association meetings; teaching classes; sponsoring community events; referrals agreements; etc.

All are useful tools for marketing your business. But there’s another “must have” that you need on your list. I call it “ultimate marketing secret” because an amazing number of businesses overlook it. So what is this remarkably effective marketing method?

Simple: CUSTOMER SERVICE.

I don’t just mean simple customer service. I mean honest-to-goodness, 110% knock-your-socks-off-before-during-and- long-after-the-sale, gotta-love-this customer care. Or, as marketing guru Jay Conrad Levinson says, “customer bliss.”

Too easy an answer, you say? Doesn’t matter, it’s true. Whether you believe it or not, fact of matter is, everything you do is marketing! And customer service is primary “contact point” for customer. It’s what they will remember most about dealing with you and your business. If any aspect of your customer service falls below their needs, you’ve lost. Sure, you might have a contract that keeps your from losing their business -- this time. But you won’t get it again. And you probably won’t get business of anyone they know, work with, or talk to for next few years…

1) selling $100,000 of software in two weeks -- for a marketing cost of $50

2) $400,000 of revenue as an unexpected result of a promotion

3) three books becoming best sellers.

Each resulted from a different application of "Outrageous Marketing."

A Very Brief Introduction to Outrageous Marketing

These days, in order to get attention for your marketing message, you need to be outrageous.

Now, I don't mean being outrageous just for sake of being outrageous. And I don't mean just being off-the-wall.

Instead, I'm talking about being outrageous -- to produce outrageously successful results.

Let's talk about three most powerful ways to be successfully outrageous.:

1. The outrageous offer.

2. The outrageous headline.

3. The outrageous claim.

As you read this article, think about how these examples can apply to *your* business.

1. The Outrageous Offer: Turning Premiums on their Head

Using premiums is hardly outrageous, but here's how to use them in a unique way to make an outrageous offer.

Bundling software to sell hardware is a classic, technique used every day. However, reverse is very rarely done.

Let me give you an example of how my first company sold $100,000 of software in just 2 weeks -- with marketing costs of under $50 -- using this approach!

Here's how we did it:

We sent each of our clients a two-page letter (for a total cost of $50). However, rather than focusing letter on software, we made them an outrageous offer: they received free desirable computer hardware when they bought our software!

Our software cost $20,000 for a 25-user license so we could afford to bundle a computer. Since hardware cost us about $30,000, we made $70,000 profit in just 2 weeks.

Premiums don't have to be expensive. They just have be perfectly matched to your market and they have to have very high perceived value. The important point is to make sure that offer is outrageous.

Let your imagination can really go wild. Just make sure premium is tied into product that you're selling, and that it is something your market is dying to have.

Adding these outrageously great offers is probably best way to quickly increase your sales and profits.

An irresistible offer can increase your sales by 200% to 300%!

You just have to ask yourself: "What can I bundle with my product that will make it incredibly attractive to my customers?" Write this down now.

2. The Outrageous Headline: Sometimes Outrageous Promotions Get Different Results Than You Expect

In 1990, my first company, Micro Dynamics, was looking for a Chief Operating Officer. We were an unconventional company, and weren't getting results we wanted using conventional recruiting methods. So, we ran a full-page ad in our local regional edition of Wall Street Journal that started like this:

Fast-Growing, High-Tech Company Looking For The Right COO To Move To MARS

Are you a successful, dynamic executive who would like to help grow an exciting company in an exploding market? To really make a difference?

If so, read on.