Never underestimate the audience. Green consumers are inquisitive, experimental and very informed. Your communication must address them as such.

Don’t make misleading or vague environmental statements in the name of advertising or you may be labeled as a company that is “greenwashing”; a negative connotation.

Be transparent. Don’t say you’re green and be dumping toxic waste because green consumers have a way of finding out.

Respect the strength of the Internet. Say what you mean and bear in mind that one mouse click can relay information to millions of green consumers faster than the speed of light.

Green consumer buying power is steadily on the rise and the market may reach $1 trillion dollars over the next few years so perfecting your green communications now is the smart way to avoid common mistakes in the future.

It’s true that word of mouth is a powerful marketing tool but customer referrals offer some of the best prospects for a variety of reasons. First, because your customers already have a relationship with you and can speak volumes about the quality of your products or services because they already patronize you.

Second, because it’s widely recognized that existing customers are more likely to provide a valid prospect that turns into a new customer because there’s often an incentive for them such as a discount, bonus or other form of reward.

So now is a good time to look in your own database of existing customers and start to work on your marketing campaign that gets customers busy sending in referrals for new prospects.

These three easy steps will help you to create a lead qualification checklist for use with all future prospects:

Step 1 – Analyze your prospects. Look for similarities they share with your best existing customers.

Step 2 – Gather basic contact information and at least 7 characteristics that are critical to have. Make sure you share this list with your sales people.

Step 3 – Creating a hierarchy ranking where existing and new prospects are gauged by the characteristics developed in step 2. Make sure that you are not neglecting good leads or spending too much time on cold leads that have no potential.

Because the initial aspect of brainstorming does not require the process of elimination, it is the perfect tool to get as many ideas as possible in front of everyone in writing. This first round of thought gathering and sharing often stimulates more brainstorming on a more heightened and informed level.

When you turn on the creative aspect of brainstorming, everyone is enlisted and becomes a part of the process. This creates buy in and ownership and interest in seeing the best ideas brought to fruition. To make the most of brainstorming, provide a creative atmosphere and keep brainstorming sessions short.

The main reason these stories work so well is because the relay to the reader some challenge or trigger that is successfully solved by the use of your product or service. One important factor to consider is that writing the story yourself is the best way to ensure that you get the wording and convey the idea you want readers to embrace.

Because most people are busy, this also ensures that you’ll get the story from them because you’ve written it. Consider asking the customer to include a quote when you submit it for their approval. Try to develop a cross section of stories and use them in all of your marketing efforts.

Consider a handwritten thank you including with a shipment as a way of saying thanks. Let your company’s appreciate come from the top management as well as the entry level employee. Give your customers personalized “thank you” considerations in between purchases to remind them of your business.

Holidays are great times to say “thank you” when virtually everyone is in a festive mood but to garner more focus on your product or services, send a special thank you with a birthday or anniversary notice.

Think about how many pieces of “junk” mail you receive in your mail box. They come like clockwork and if you’re like most people, you don’t even look at some types but toss them to the recycle bin straight away. This isn’t what you want to happen to your direct mail so format plays an important role.

In order for the impact to be the highest, your direct mailing must be done strategically. The least expensive format may not be the best. Study your market to know it geographically in terms of what individuals are buying, especially from your competition. Then, whether you choose postcards, US Priority Mail, Fed-Ex or UPS packages , #10 envelopes or another customized size, you will be able to aim directly and with more success.

Start by understanding spam triggers. Make your subject line short, don’t use attachments and avoid filter words like “free” and “click here”. Next, offer value-added content in every email. Have an email newsletter and re-use the content in all other email campaigns that are promotions.

Avoid tiring out your list by segmenting and making targeted email campaigns to each individual segment. Research to find out when is the best time to email and adjust the time accordingly when things change. Be sure to include an opt-out link in every email as this is a must.

When you make introductions that help people in your network to get what they want, you are spending your currency. You can gain some very powerful referrals when you accomplish this type of networking.

If you aren’t sure about your social currency, you need to take a look at the influence you have over all of your networks, no matter if they are friends, family or professional. What strengths do you bring to these networks? Focus on building upon the skills, gifts and abilities that you have to expand and increase your networks, thereby increasing your referrals and worth in each network.

Qualify your prospect first. Your sales team will thank you with productivity that shoots through the roof if they are given an opportunity to understand which prospects to focus on as well as the level of interest and need before they make the call.

Use a list of a list. Whether purchased or created in house, take a list and create a call-down list before advancing to an actual direct marking call.

Do your homework. Conduct an outbound campaign to understand prior experience of the customer with your sales force and website.

Using this super simple approach helps to eliminate unnecessary cold calling of unqualified individuals.