Facebook, Twitter, and various other social media sites are are great way to spread the word about your business offerings and services. Check out the stats below:
* The primary activities online are Searches on search engines (i.e. Google) and Social Media (e.g. Facebook) and hold an average of 23% and 22% (Hitwise) respectively.
* What ranks well in Google is relevant (keyword density, targeted pages on site etc), engaging (more comments etc.) and authoritative (more link backs) content
* Naturally, most of this content is starting to come from social media (blogs were the first of many strong linking strategies etc.)
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Monday, March 29, 2010
Dr. Joyce Brothers Quote
The person interested in success has to learn to view failure as a healthy, inevitable part of the process of getting to the top.
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Marketing During a Tough Economy
In tough economic times, you shouldn't be pulling back on your marketing and sales efforts. There is no time like the present to get out there and be pro-active! We've put together a list of 5 things you can do during the recession to stay in business.
1. Do NOT pull back on marketing dollars - If you are serious about staying in business, then get out there and find those customers that are not longer being serviced by other businesses who have failed.
2. Low Cost Alternatives - If your income is feeling the pinch, don't be afraid to use low cost marketing alternatives. There are many free and inexpensive resources out there that will garner the results that you are looking for.
3. Creating strategic partnerships - Find other businesses in your community that are also struggling and promote their services, while they agree to promote yours. Don't be afraid to offer a finders fee or sales commissions to these businesses.
4. Get in touch with your current customers - Let them know that your business isn't going anywhere and that you are ready and willing to service their needs.
5. Stay Calm - With all the tales of woe and failure, it can be easy to get caught up in the panic and hype of the recession. However, the worst thing that you can do to your clients is to let them smell the fear on you. Staying calm and maintaining a "business as usual" attitude can make you stand out among all the negativity, and will most likely draw an audience to you.
Keep your head down, continue to persist and don't be afraid to get a little aggressive when finding new business!
1. Do NOT pull back on marketing dollars - If you are serious about staying in business, then get out there and find those customers that are not longer being serviced by other businesses who have failed.
2. Low Cost Alternatives - If your income is feeling the pinch, don't be afraid to use low cost marketing alternatives. There are many free and inexpensive resources out there that will garner the results that you are looking for.
3. Creating strategic partnerships - Find other businesses in your community that are also struggling and promote their services, while they agree to promote yours. Don't be afraid to offer a finders fee or sales commissions to these businesses.
4. Get in touch with your current customers - Let them know that your business isn't going anywhere and that you are ready and willing to service their needs.
5. Stay Calm - With all the tales of woe and failure, it can be easy to get caught up in the panic and hype of the recession. However, the worst thing that you can do to your clients is to let them smell the fear on you. Staying calm and maintaining a "business as usual" attitude can make you stand out among all the negativity, and will most likely draw an audience to you.
Keep your head down, continue to persist and don't be afraid to get a little aggressive when finding new business!
Monday, March 22, 2010
Friday, March 19, 2010
10 Ten Ways to Waste Money on Business Cards
Found a great .pdf that lists 10 Ways to Waste Money on Business Cards
"Your business card should enhance your brand and be welcomed by your target market which is relatively easy to accomplish. However, many people needlessly waste money on business cards - money that could be put to better use in other areas of your marketing and business development. As such, here is my list of "Top Ten Ways to Waste Money on Business Cards".
Click Here to Read Entire List
"Your business card should enhance your brand and be welcomed by your target market which is relatively easy to accomplish. However, many people needlessly waste money on business cards - money that could be put to better use in other areas of your marketing and business development. As such, here is my list of "Top Ten Ways to Waste Money on Business Cards".
Click Here to Read Entire List
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
How to Apply for Small Business Loans
With the recent banking crisis, headlines have been screaming that small businesses are struggling to get loans and lines of credit. The news is depressing and daunting to those who might be struggling with the sluggish economy. However, we found a great article by Entreprenuer that outlines some of the basic things you need to successfully apply for loans.
"Things have not changed so dramatically. A business owner should follow the same guidelines they've needed to follow for years.
No. 1 is have a business plan, spend some time on it and understand it. Understand your financial situation--if it's a brand-new business, have an accountant help you prepare business projections so you can demonstrate to a lender you have the capacity to repay the loan.
Also make sure you have as clean a personal credit [record] as possible. We're looking at the personal credit as well as the business credit."
Click here to Read Full Article
"Things have not changed so dramatically. A business owner should follow the same guidelines they've needed to follow for years.
No. 1 is have a business plan, spend some time on it and understand it. Understand your financial situation--if it's a brand-new business, have an accountant help you prepare business projections so you can demonstrate to a lender you have the capacity to repay the loan.
Also make sure you have as clean a personal credit [record] as possible. We're looking at the personal credit as well as the business credit."
Click here to Read Full Article
Monday, March 15, 2010
Putting Together a Presentation that People Will Remember
Are you feeling like your sales pitch has lost it's luster and shine? Presentation Zen has put together some ideas that will help you spruce up your presentation pitch.
When it comes to learning and genuinely retaining something, nothing beats experiences. Formal educational or speaking settings don't always allow for actual hands-on experience with the content, but almost every learning situation — including presentation in various forms — does permit the use of stories. Stories, that is, that illustrate the content and bring people in, enabling them to "experience" the material in an engaging, visual, and imaginative way. A way that will be remembered. One can use analogy, or metaphor, or the depiction or verbal reenactment of actual, relevant events that illuminate and make the material more real and more memorable. Stories have an emotional component and when you engage people's emotions, even just a little bit, you stand a better chance of them paying attention and remembering your point (whether or not they agree with you is another matter entirely).
Click Here to Read Entire Article
When it comes to learning and genuinely retaining something, nothing beats experiences. Formal educational or speaking settings don't always allow for actual hands-on experience with the content, but almost every learning situation — including presentation in various forms — does permit the use of stories. Stories, that is, that illustrate the content and bring people in, enabling them to "experience" the material in an engaging, visual, and imaginative way. A way that will be remembered. One can use analogy, or metaphor, or the depiction or verbal reenactment of actual, relevant events that illuminate and make the material more real and more memorable. Stories have an emotional component and when you engage people's emotions, even just a little bit, you stand a better chance of them paying attention and remembering your point (whether or not they agree with you is another matter entirely).
Click Here to Read Entire Article
Monday, March 8, 2010
The Importance of Twitter
With so many things to accomplish daily, as a small business owner, how can Twitter help? Toyota seems to thinks so as they have most recently used Twitter to help deal with backlash from the lastest recalls.
With the recent recall of Toyota products and the ensuing backlash, they've actually turned to Twitter to help with their brand image.
“Toyota has been dealing with negative backlash from the massive safety recalls of its vehicles; and is even suffering in terms of sales. So what does the company do to repair its image? Turn to Twitter, of course! The Japanese auto giant has launched a branded channel on TweetMeme, in partnership with Federated Media, which aggregates and organize Twitter conversations regarding Toyota.
Called Toyota Conversations, the site brings together the top stories being Tweeted about Toyota, from news articles to press releases. The site also shows visitors the most popular videos and images being shared about Toyota on Twitter. And the channel includes a Featured Tweets from Toyota’s Twitter account and press room as well as AdTweets, which are Tweetmeme’s retweetable ads for Toyota.
You may notice after taking a look at all of the top stories that are being aggregated on the site, that most of the news is positive. That doesn’t seem to match the general tone of the media writing about Toyota, which has been quick to criticize the car company for its manufacturing mistakes. If you take a look at Twitter sentiment app Tweetfeel, the sentiment of Tweets mentioning Toyota lean more negative. Tweetmeme channels can be set up to pick up only certain news sources. It looks like Toyota picked the friendlier ones.
That being said, it’s definitely interesting to see such a high-profile company taking to Twitter to try to reform its image by engaging directly in a dialogue with consumers. As we’ve seen with the recent Southwest/Kevin Smith incident, Twitter is influencing public relations in unprecedented ways. Now more than ever, brands are flocking to Twitter to not only monitor and track what’s being said about their company on Twitter but to influence and participate in the conversation.”
So take some time to go to http://www.twitter.com and set up your account today.
With the recent recall of Toyota products and the ensuing backlash, they've actually turned to Twitter to help with their brand image.
“Toyota has been dealing with negative backlash from the massive safety recalls of its vehicles; and is even suffering in terms of sales. So what does the company do to repair its image? Turn to Twitter, of course! The Japanese auto giant has launched a branded channel on TweetMeme, in partnership with Federated Media, which aggregates and organize Twitter conversations regarding Toyota.
Called Toyota Conversations, the site brings together the top stories being Tweeted about Toyota, from news articles to press releases. The site also shows visitors the most popular videos and images being shared about Toyota on Twitter. And the channel includes a Featured Tweets from Toyota’s Twitter account and press room as well as AdTweets, which are Tweetmeme’s retweetable ads for Toyota.
You may notice after taking a look at all of the top stories that are being aggregated on the site, that most of the news is positive. That doesn’t seem to match the general tone of the media writing about Toyota, which has been quick to criticize the car company for its manufacturing mistakes. If you take a look at Twitter sentiment app Tweetfeel, the sentiment of Tweets mentioning Toyota lean more negative. Tweetmeme channels can be set up to pick up only certain news sources. It looks like Toyota picked the friendlier ones.
That being said, it’s definitely interesting to see such a high-profile company taking to Twitter to try to reform its image by engaging directly in a dialogue with consumers. As we’ve seen with the recent Southwest/Kevin Smith incident, Twitter is influencing public relations in unprecedented ways. Now more than ever, brands are flocking to Twitter to not only monitor and track what’s being said about their company on Twitter but to influence and participate in the conversation.”
So take some time to go to http://www.twitter.com and set up your account today.
10 Ways to Market Your Business for Free
One of the keys to a successful business is persistence. Here is a list of 10 things you can do to market your business for free!!
1. There are many online options that will allow you to post a free ad for your business...so spend a few hours looking at free online classifieds.2. Offer to give a presentation at business meetings, your local library, and/or Chamber of Commerce. Make sure to have plenty of business cards on hand to give to potential customers.
3. Use your current customers to sell for you. Don't be afraid to ask for testimonials that you can publish on your website, or brochures.4. Start a blog (you can do this for free with a Google account) to showcase your expertise, even if you don't think you have enough content for your blog. You might surprise yourself with how much expertise and info you have to offer. If possible, include video in your blog as well as text.
5. Send out press releases to both online and offline sources.6. Submit articles online to different article directories for free.
7. Talk to local business owners to see if they would be willing to 'cross-promote', meaning you promote their business to your clients while they promote your business.8. Ask for referrals. Some of your best customers can be referred to you by your Mom or a close family friend. They are most likely your biggest fans and want to see you succeed. So don't shy away from asking those closest to you for a referral.
9. Stay in touch with your current customers. If you have their address...send them promotions in the mail. If you have emails, don't be afraid to send promotions and sales via email.10. Participate in online discussion groups and forums. These are free, and will also allow you to showcase your expertise. There are a lot of people looking for help in online forums. Make sure that you are available to help them!
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