April 21, 2015, marked a new beginning for how people search for, and find your website. Google, which owns 83% of the mobile-search market, will now make mobile-friendliness a major ranking criteria for websites on its search platform. The change boils down to one important distinction: whether your website is fully optimized for mobile devices.…
Pop quiz: What social media platform has the most influence on consumers as they make purchase decisions? What’s your guess? Facebook, with its billions of likes and massive user base? Twitter, with its immediacy and concise messaging? Maybe Pinterest, with its emphasis on the visual? The answer is YouTube. According to a study by Ogilvy,…
Bond. James Bond. Who out there has never thought about being part of the exciting, glamorous world of espionage and spy-craft? While Bond has spent the last 50 years fighting against terrorists, enemy nations, and Victorian morality, today’s small business person can use some spy-work of their own to take on their competition. True, the…
Let’s talk about you for the next few minutes, about your “Personal Brand,” the “Brand of You.” There’s real value in identifying your personal brand, giving yourself a recognizable voice, and then leveraging it appropriately. It can also be a very challenging, introspective, and yet rewarding process. We’re going to find out more about you,…
A business doesn’t exist until someone sells something. And sustainable sales can’t happen without a qualified lead. Generating and nurturing sales leads are the lifeblood for every company. As a small business, marketing dollars can be scarce. And when you spend those dollars on acquiring new leads, it’s vital that you convert a high percentage…
Consumer reviews pack a punch. And it’s no wonder—word of mouth has long been one of the most effective and reliable forms of advertising. Online consumer reviews? Well, those can deliver a knockout punch. The internet, combined with social media, can blast consumer comments into the “social-sphere” more widely and rapidly than ever before. Every…
Sometimes we make things harder than they need to be. When it comes to sales, we often think we have to be the flashiest, the funniest, the pushiest or the most eloquent in order to close the deal. But it’s actually a lot simpler than that. Find out what a person wants, needs, or desires…
Finding new customers can be difficult and expensive. As you look at your customer acquisition strategy, you may want to consider the classic “Loss Leader” approach. The basic idea is that customers will spend more money on additional items, offsetting losses created by under-pricing the lead item. The idea behind using a product for promotional…
The marketing plan is a critically important part of the business plan for a new business owner. Even if you don’t include a detailed marketing plan in the business plan, you absolutely need to complete one before formally beginning your new business. There are many elements of a good marketing plan, and you’ll want to…
When you start your business, you will probably be competing with a number of other companies. Why should customers come to you instead of them? The trick to setting your business apart is creating a Unique Selling Proposition. The Unique Selling Proposition, or USP, informs your entire marketing and operational strategy, and is key to…
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