Escapee Speaks: Marketing Lessons from Fast Food Chains
Today I’d like to explore the lessons that we can learn about marketing from the world of fast food restaurants, and how you can apply it to your Illustration business.
Stay with me.
After all, it’s a good idea to draw inspiration from everywhere you can, both for your Illustrations and your business. The fact is that whether you eat at fast food restaurants or not, they are doing some things very right to grow their business. There wouldn’t be so many of them if they weren’t. In the future, I’ll be looking at the things that they have done horribly wrong, so that you can avoid the same mistakes.
So, for those who stuck around, let’s take a look.
Would You Like Fries With That?
The Concept
I don’t know about you, but I would ALWAYS “like fries with that.”
Fast Food restaurants know the power of upselling. When a customer is already ordering a meal, this simple question can potentially add a couple of bucks to every sale. Multiply this by billions of customers and you’ve got quite a profit.
How this applies to your Illustration Business
At any point in a project, it’s a good idea to offer further services to your client. For example, in addition to Illustration you could offer to help them with layout design, printing, website design, and even how to market their new product or business. These are all things that you might have some degree of knowledge of by virtue of running your own business. Don’t offer something that you can’t deliver, and don’t bludgeon them with suggestive selling, but let them know about other services that they might have looked elsewhere to get.
The Dollar Menu
The Concept
We’ve all been there. Stuck in traffic with a rumbling in our tummy and 2 dollars in change in the ashtray. But wait! Burger Czar has a Dollar Menu! Salvation is here.
How this applies to your Illustration Business
Sometimes a client’s budget is way below the price you’ve quoted. Rather than go your separate ways, try slimming down your services to cut their costs. For example, suggest a black & white version of their full-color Illustration idea, offer less revisions, or extend the deadline. Chances are the client never considered these options, and it can help you to get more work without compromising your rates.
The Drive Thru
The Concept
The invention of the Drive-Thru made it easier for people to buy fast food. While you may question whether or not that has been good for our health, it’s hard to deny it’s effect on increasing sales.
How this applies to your Illustration Business
Consider taking steps to automate certain aspects of your business to make it more convenient for your clients’ busy schedules. Some examples of this might be including a contact form on your website, accepting payment through PayPal, or using online invoicing services. The time you save them might make them more likely to hire you for “rush” projects in the future.
Marketing Tips To-Go
Obviously, there are tactics that you wouldn’t want to glean from fast food chains, and I’ll be talking about some of these in a future post, but there are always sources of inspiration to be found in the world around you if you’re paying attention.
Escapee has spoken.
Now it’s your turn to share.
Can you think of other marketing ideas to borrow from fast food chains?
Where do you find inspiration?
Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below.
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Read More Escapee Speaks Business
A mascot.
McDonald’s has Ronald. Burger King has that creepy masked King. Jack in the Box has Jack and Wendy’s has..well Wendy.
Not in the sense that we should all dress up into crazy costumes, but I think it helps to have an iconic type of branding associated with your services. If not a character or avatar, a star piece of illustration works too I think.
Case in point EFII has you dear Escapee… whose tastes in moody blue hues I do quite concur~
Great point, Chris. I’m glad to see that someone out there sees where Escapee is going with this. Anything you can do to reinforce your brand and plant yourself in the minds of potential clients is generally a good thing. That Burger King is creepy, though.