I know what you're probably thinking: oh, great, another trends post. Personally, I think trend-watching is interesting because it can give you new ideas for your business. But, a little bit of trend-watching goes a long way. When it comes to the web - and specifically, websites - there are plenty of trends.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download Marketing podcast with John Gerzema Sheryl Sandberg's runaway best seller Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead has really caused some interesting discussions and debates about women in the workplace.
I was recently talking to a group of small business owners and marketers about the notion of creating a better customer experience and I asked members of the group to share what works for them.
Every site owner and blogger wants their content to rank highly in the search engines for key terms. A lot of that has to do with the quality of the content, how well it's optimized and how many other well ranking sites think it's worth linking to.
My weekend blog post routine includes posting links to a handful of tools or great content I ran across during the week. I don't go into depth about the finds, but encourage you check them out if they sound interesting.
If you're not getting the customer referrals or repeat business you hoped for, something's wrong. Maybe your product doesn't deliver the benefits customers expect. Maybe your service doesn't meet the standards they expect. Or maybe your technical support doesn't provide the solutions they expect. Do you see the pattern?
It's funny but a lot of people don't think about their social profiles until they're looking for a new job or new business situation. I'd like to suggest that you look at your social profiles as a key starting point in building a stronger digital footprint.
Okay, maybe spy is a little strong but experience tells me that most small business don't know much at all about what their greatest competitors are up to when it comes to marketing. I know you don't really have any competition because you provide such a superior product and experience, but setting up a competitor specific listening station can uncover some useful insights.
My weekend blog post routine includes posting links to a handful of tools or great content I ran across during the week. I don't go into depth about the finds, but encourage you check them out if they sound interesting.
What's the most common complaint of the small business owner? There aren't enough hours in the day. Everyone is short on time Between providing your customers quality products and services, handling your invoicing, managing employees, prepping for quarterly taxes, etc. - where to you find the time to squeeze in the new stuff you need to learn?
Podcast: Play in new window | Download Marketing podcast with Sally Hogshead Value propositions are a sales and marketing staple. It's very difficult to get a purchasing conversation started unless the potential buyer understands some way in which a product or service they are considering adds value in a way that is somewhat unique from other offering.
It's official Google Reader is no more. For those now scrambling to find an alternative I present the crowdsourced List.ly list of Google Reader Alternatives. Still want to access your subscriptions and other Google Reader data?
Podcast: Play in new window | Download Marketing podcast with Jay Baer - author of Youtility. Integration and convergence are the two concepts I've been drilling on most for the past few years. Quite frankly, marketing has always worked better when integration is considered, but today's markets, buyers, humans want and expect more than consistent messaging across platforms. What's driving the market today?
My weekend blog post routine includes posting links to a handful of tools or great content I ran across during the week. I don't go into depth about the finds, but encourage you check them out if they sound interesting.
Regardless of whether you are a small business owner or the CEO of a Fortune 500 company, without customers, you no longer have a business. Therefore, when it comes to any business, the customer experience is essential. This fact is why many business owners have emphasized (or attempted to emphasize) the importance of the customer always being right.
As has been widely reported, Google Reader is shutting down July 1, 2013. Now, in typical Google fashion, no one really knows what will actually happen on the that date, but as I it see you have about three choices if you are to continue to consistently consume blog content.
I believe in the power of hiring business coaches. The practice is proven and pretty much a mainstream behavior for many in business today. But, simply hiring a coach to help you work on some aspect of your business, career or life does not guarantee success or even progress.
My weekend blog post routine includes posting links to a handful of tools or great content I ran across during the week. I don't go into depth about the finds, but encourage you check them out if they sound interesting.
Social media allows businesses to take their products and services to the next level by actively harnessing the power of the crowd. More typically this involved turning users into unknowing promoters, but it can also be an excellent way to target strategic business partners.
If you're stuck in the rut of selling your time, do yourself a favor and grab this free eBook I've cosponsored with my friends from FreshBooks - Breaking the Time Barrier . Very early on in my consulting career I learned an important lesson about time - You only have so much.
It's been a big week at Facebook. Hashtags rolled out to most users causing quite a stir in the marketing world. (It's yet to be seen how much utility they actually bring to the everyday user.) And, Graph Search finally got turned on for my account.
So, for starters, the title to this post poses a bit of a trick question because significant research suggests it is in fact a fact. Buyers have become so adept at doing initial purchase research that they no longer need or have the patience for a sales presentation on the benefits of your widget.
My weekend blog post routine includes posting links to a handful of tools or great content I ran across during the week. I don't go into depth about the finds, but encourage you check them out if they sound interesting.
Marketing podcast with Tom Asacker A few months ago I started a series of posts I'm calling Recover You. The series is focused on practices and habits that I believe lead to a healthier mind, body and spirit, a healthier business and ultimately a healthier economy. This is the final post in the series.
When it comes to content marketing, nothing is better than a good webinar. You can educate, inform, engage and convert your target market - all at once. Independent reports from inbound marketing experts indicate that webinars can significantly boost your expert status, build meaningful and engaging relationships with your customers, and turn your audience into high converting prospects.
