Australia Post is that large conglomerate that we all know very well – they probably visit your home and office more often than most members of your family. Your local postie brings you you’re birthday cards and bills – the best and worst of both worlds.

But, how well do you really know Australia Post?

We all know about their letter service – go to the post box drop in your letter & it gets there. Yes – it’s one of 21 million items delivered every day. But do you know what’s a large letter, medium letter or a parcel? Do you know what you can and can’t send via the mail? How come some mail is called clean mail? – Those envelops don’t look too dirty to me! These are just some of the dilemmas and questions that industry professionals solve and answer each and every day.

So here are a few points to think about as you think about how you should deal with Australia Post:
• Do I want my own postal account?
o You’ll have your own account manager but their job is to maximise the revenue they can obtain from you. Ask yourself – who’s going to help me save money on my postage bill? Australia Post or my fulfilment company?
o Will they tell me about any other courier companies’ services? Some of these services might be better than Post.

• Budget for a percentage of articles not to arrive.
o Over 21 million articles are delivered every day but if 99.9%? Get to their destination OK that still leaves 21,000 that don’t.

• Budget for fraudulent claims
o Not every one of your customers is honest – some will claim non receipt because they know from a customer service point of view it’s easier for you to resend than argue. Don’t forget, many people live in shared houses – we all remember that drunk guy – they don’t only steal your last beer from the fridge. Needles to say there are many value for money “signature on delivery” options.

• Size Matters
o Australia Post has a virtual monopoly in postage but for them size is important so the volume of parcels being mailed by a fulfilment company the size of NPF gives them a lot more bargaining power with their suppliers than many clients. You therefore have the ability to take advantage of this extra bargaining power.

The best way to save money with Australia Post is to have a good Account Manager or to deal with a company who has a good Account Manager , we at NPF were lucky enough to get a good team to work with

When marketing, there are 3 ways a prospect can contact you: call you on the phone, travel to your location, or visit your website.

Have you ever called someone to inquire about a product or service and received a “less than enthusiastic” greeting? How did that make you feel? Worse yet, were you abandoned on hold? The most out-going, personable Team member in your organization should be answering the telephone. He/she should use the same initial greeting (scripted) and ask permission to place the caller on hold.

If you have a retail location or office, how does the facility look from the street? Is the building bright and clean? The parking lot—is it free of debris, the parking lines clearly striped and potholes patched? What about lighting, signage, and landscaping? Regular maintenance assures a consistent image. Once your guests are inside, pay particular attention to layout and appearance. In the food industry, 85% of the customer’s perception of cleanliness is the condition of the floor. What message is yours sending? Another area which leaves quite an impression is the restroom. Many of us have been “turned off” by filthy restrooms. Make sure yours are clean and properly stocked with soap, towels, etc. One more thing: How does the Team present itself? Are they similarly dressed (with logo apparel if appropriate)? What about name tags?

Here’s a tip—if you were suddenly informed that a TV film crew was on its way to interview you and feature your business, what would you change before they arrived?

When a prospect visits your website, how quickly does the page load? If it takes more than 10-15 seconds, many will not stick around to wait. Is the landing page easy to navigate and are the tabs clearly marked? Can a prospect find what he/she needs quickly without having to scroll down? When they fill out the “contact us” form, where does that inquiry go and who is responsible to respond? Make sure you have a process for timely response and appropriate responsibility assigned.

One last thing—if you have company vehicles, remember that they, too, convey an impression. Make sure they are clean, well-maintained, and most importantly, that the driver is well-mannered! Bad driving habits, cutting other drivers off, etc, will sabotage your good faith efforts.

All things being equal, people do business with those they know, like, and trust. Make sure your prospects like the first impression you make!

It’s a cliché in business but it’s none the less describes the role of a strategic alliance: it allows a smaller company to “punch above their weight.” By joining with another entity, the (usually) smaller company has the potential to have much greater outcome than they would otherwise have in the absence of a strategic alliance.

A strategic alliance means that the two partnering organisations are involved in something that is of deep importance to both. It’s an ongoing relationship. Often the initiator of an alliance is the smaller partner. Indeed many start-ups have pursued a strategy by focusing on core activities while doing the rest by partnering with others.

A common myth around alliances is that because a potential alliance partner operates in the same or related industry they are potential competitors. In most situations alliances are forged around the notion that the alliance partners are interested in the same target market but have complimentary rather than competing interests.

An alliance should never be assumed to be straightforward. Alliances are all about relationships because their very foundation is built on trust and mutual interests. They require the respect and interaction of people in each organization. Strategic alliances, like good personal relationships, require effort to build, and once they’re in place, you can count on them.

All relationships are based on a degree of give and take.” It is no different for strategic alliances. Each party has to give something and get something in return. If you are the instigator, it’s important to be clear about what you have to offer the potential partner.

Skin. Each party needs to have some skin on the table. This does not necessarily have to be money but each needs to be prepared to dedicate resources to the alliance. Someone needs to be recognised in each partner business as having responsibility over the strategic alliance.

Time. Alliances take time to build and also to maintain. The optimal path is to work together on a small project or at least establish a beach head that can be named as a strategic alliance – some activity that can be readily translated and scaled later after some “chemistry” is established and parameters defined.

Communications. Good communications are always more about listening than telling. Be all ears. Listen to your potential partners. What they tell you will not only give you clues to their needs but may influence your thinking in ways you’ve never even imagined.

While alliance building does have many immediate benefits, it can be ruinous if not approached in a strategic manner. A noted earlier, when it comes to intent alliances are all about “punching above our weight”. The risk is more about not taking the appropriate intent:

• Thinking too small. Too often, a business owner risks the potential partner for an endorsement in return for putting the partner’s logo on the company’s Web site. That’s not strategic.
• Thinking only of what the potential partner can do for your company. Strategic alliances have to create a situation where both parties gain something; otherwise, they’re not partnerships.

Business owners, particularly if they have a sales background have some skills in negotiating. Experienced negotiators are generally comfortable working out the terms of a strategic alliance: They bargain for the best price, haggle over share or revenues, profits, and iron out detailed exit clauses. But they should also not neglect compatibility issues between the partners and the spirit of the deal. So while the parties agree to the same terms on paper, they may actually have very different expectations about how the agreement will work in practice. Without their arriving at a true meeting of the minds, the deal they’ve signed or verbally agreed on may sour.

Risk factors

The most common causes of problems with alliances are a lack of clearly defining expectations. The parties involved inevitably form expectations about how the deal will be carried out, whether they discuss them or not. Even if initially compatible, those expectations can silently shift in response to actions taken, even though no overt negotiation takes place. It’s clearly in the parties’ best interests to make their expectations explicit and negotiable.

Some Tips:

• Discuss expectations before signing off on a deal can greatly increase the odds of its success.
• Discuss how fully, formally, and frequently do you expect to consult with the other side? Who will be involved in decision making? And how will disputes be resolved?

Get the right info. Use customer surveys, competitions and promotions to give you access to new prospects.

At any event you organise, sponsor or participate in, actively seek out contact details. Extend any invitations to friends of clients and remind them when you follow-up for RSVPs of any other events you are running yourself.
Using your database to increase sales from current customers is mainly about making them feel valuable. Make sure you follow up with a client after a purchase or completed project. Regular contact helps ensure that you are in constant conversation with customers and prospects increasing the likelihood of repeat purchases and referrals.
Your current customers are your most valuable resource for finding new ones. To generate referrals, you need to actively create them, not just through providing a great experience for your existing clients, but also through your systems. To do so, consider adding an annual survey to your marketing activity calendar and implementing a client loyalty or referral program. But don’t forget you must ALWAYS acknowledge a referral. Online services such as www.sendoutcards.com now make it very easy to create and send a thank you card.
So you’ve built a great database and set up a system to drive sales and referrals from it – but how do you measure success?

Keep an eye on:
• Traffic to your referral offer/page
• Repeat purchases
• Number of referral appointments
• Number of referral closed deals, and
• Overall comparative cost of acquisition.
You’ll know you’ve got a valuable asset on your hands once you look at the numbers!