How to Target Professional Niches

When selling promotional products to professionals, keep in mind that most want more than a vendor. They want a marketing partner.
Nov 21, 2008

By Dawn McMullan, Contributing Writer

Professionals such as attorneys, doctors and financial advisors are all experts in their respective fields. But what they need is an expert in the promotional products field. “What I find when working directly with professionals — as opposed to the marketing department in a law firm or a corporation — is that they desperately need to be working with an expert,” says Bob Lilly, Jr., president/CEO of Dallas-based Bob Lilly Promotions. “They’re obviously smart people, and they rely on their brains to do what they do. But they don’t have a lot of extra time to become an expert in either promotional merchandise or the integrated marketing arena.”

What professionals want is a marketing partner. Depending on the size of the firm, you may work with someone who has a marketing background. But more often, your contact will be an office manager, nurse or the professional whose name is on the door. “They want to touch and feel everything,” Lilly says. “They want to feel they have a handle on what is going on with their brand.”

Generally, in law firms with five or more attorneys or with accountants in a big firm, an office manager or marketing director orders promotional items. Most banks have a marketing director or vice president in charge of promotions. In doctors’ offices, it’s often a head nurse or office manager. Knowing who your direct mail should target is key, advises Steve Grubbs, CEO of VictoryStore.com, Davenport, Iowa. “To market directly to a doctor, attorney or CPA is not as effective as finding their office manager,” he says.

When marketing on a Web site, remember that doctors go to different sites than nurses and office managers, who mostly are women. You may want to change the images and wording you use to draw in women.

Once you’ve found the correct contact, these professionals (although certainly unique in some ways) have much in common as a market, despite their respective niches. “Whether they are a law firm, architecture firm, accounting firm or consulting firm, they share many similarities,” says Mark Yokoyama, director of marketing and merchandising for New York-based ePromos Promotional Products, Inc. “At the core of any professional service firm is its employees, who are the most important asset. Attracting and retaining top talent typically is the key driver for success, so that’s where we see much of their logo merchandise budget allotted.”

Top talent, Yokoyama points out, is expensive. So those in the professional segment tend to opt for high-quality logo merchandising. “In addition, much of the work done is business-to-business, and clients pay a premium for professional services,” he says. “Logoed products need to reinforce the quality and professionalism of the firm.”

Most professional companies use promotional products for recruiting, employee gifts and recognition, as well as event giveaways. Classics for professionals include brief bags, weekenders, apparel (with subtle embroidery) and unique golf gifts. High-tech options also are popular, including USB drives and digital photo frames. “Typically, the sweet spot is usable, classy gifts that aren’t extravagant,” Yokoyama says. “If you have the time, customizing overseas can turn a solid product into a uniquely compelling promo. Of course, it isn’t easy to get that kind of advance notice.”

With the current state of the economy, promotional products companies need to be flexible with this segment. For sale by owner, out of business and foreclosure signs are big hits right now. Grubbs says his company is adjusting its message and products, changing what is featured on the Web site or what target words are used.

Yokoyama finds that the economy certainly is putting a strain on some professional markets, but oftentimes, they just shift priorities. Some professional industries take different business avenues during tough economic times. A corporate law firm, for example, may replace mergers and acquisitions with bankruptcies. “Budgets are tight within the banking industry right now, for example,” he says. “On the other hand, because the cost of salaries is so much greater than other budgets, logo merchandise will still find a place in most budgets.”

Differentiating your company from others is key, especially in this economy. Lilly says his company does well by not being a me-too distributor, of which there are plenty. Instead, his company is an integrated marketing solutions provider. “We’re not just an order taker,” he says. “We want to be a solutions provider. Recently, we worked with a law firm that wanted to print T-shirts that had been used in the past. So we offered to increase the overall perception with upscale packaging.”

His company rolled up the T-shirts, wrapped them in textured paper and added a fake retail tag with the law firm’s brand values and a note from the CEO. “It’s just a little different way of doing T-shirts,” Lilly says. “We were able to connect some more dots and provide more product. We sold ourselves on being the kind of company that would be bringing those [unique] ideas.”

Yokoyama says it’s important to understand the professional niche you’re pitching, as well as your company’s strengths and weaknesses. “If you get the chance to try to make the sale, be prepared to make an impression,” he says. “On the flip side, if you’re not up to the challenge, this is one area you might want to pass up to focus on clients you can sell to effectively.”

Dawn McMullan is an award-winning freelance writer based in Dallas. She has written for national, regional and local magazines, as well as provided commentary for Dallas newspapers and radio stations. She can be reached at dmcmullan@sbcglobal.net.

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