Small Business Marketing Savvy

Let me ask you, have you received an SMS Text message from your hairdresser, dentist or favorite sporting club recently? Did it contain information which was helpful or you could benefit from such as an appointment reminder or a free offer/discount? Or did you have a similar experience to me and receive an SMS Text message which gave totally useless information and didn’t even provide a means of opting out! As you can tell, I was not amused and I’m sorry if this happened to you too.

For a business who sends out a message which is not relevant or doesn’t provide a means of unsubscribing, the impact can be crippling and FAST.

Permission-based SMS Text Message Marketing

For those smart business owners who get it right and use permission based Local Business Marketing correctly, the rewards can be extraordinary. Just ask your local Stockton Butcher, NSW, Australia Luke Jones. Relatively new to Stockton, Luke has made a lasting impression on locals, providing a fun; jovial and very friendly welcome to his butcher shop while delivering a quality product of which he prides himself. He was looking for a way to develop a long relationship with regular customers and thank them for their loyalty together with growing his customer base and wholesale butchery. That’s where the SMS VIP Club has proven golden.

“Most of my customers have a mobile phone. Being able to reach them wherever they might be, whether it’s dropping the kids at school, on their way home from work or at home thinking about what they’re doing for meals over the weekend. Whatever they might be doing, they can receive a text from me and decide if or when they will stop in and take advantage of the offer when it suits them. It’s great, they don’t have to cut out a coupon or get online, they just show the text to me or one of the boys in the shop…it’s on their mobile which they have in their back pocket or handbag. If they decide they don’t want to be in the VIP Club anymore they can just hit reply and text the word stop – they’re taken off the list automatically – too easy”

It has been great for those savvy Local visitors who belong to Luke’s – Hunter Meat Wholesalers – new SMS VIP Club and would’ve received a significant discount on Leg Lamb or half a dozen gourmet rissoles for joining.

Understanding the Value In Customer Loyalty

Luke and his staff understood the value of customer loyalty and that’s why his SMS VIP Club is working so well. After introducing SMS Text Message Marketing into his business, In just a few short weeks Luke’s SMS list has steadily grown with more than 20% of customers enjoying irresistible deals weekly in addition to the specials Stockton Family Meats extends to all. Not to mention a growing, highly targeted database of customers who have given their permission to be contacted via SMS with exclusive information. For a small business operator, this is incredibly valuable and surprisingly rare.

Adding extra ‘value’ to your business where possible to ensure customers return and tell others is a major key to the life of a business, especially in this economic climate. Using Text Message Marketing is a low cost, effective way to show customers how much you appreciate their business and continued loyalty.

To understand how your business can use Mobile Marketing to connect one to one with prospects and customers, create a ‘buying’ database and capture the sales from mobile device searches, please register Mobile Marketing Link

FREE videos are also available Local Small Business SMS Marketing.

Businesses simply cannot ignore the need to be “mobile ready’. Whether you have a mobile app or not, if you’re not capturing those visitors who are not using your app…you’re probably losing $dollars in a big way.

Connecting with your local Mobile Marketing Consultant who can get you mobilized quickly is a worth while exercise. See increased cash-flow and grow your business to it’s full potential and beyond. Keep the end in mind and go for it!

Article Source: EzineArticles.com

QR codes can be very effective marketing tools. Printed on business cards they can give your contacts access to all sorts of information instantly when they scan them with their smart phones. They make for interesting graphic design possibilities and reduce the amount of text you need to include. So let’s look at the various ways to incorporate QR codes on business cards

1. The meCard and vCard
These are codes that include all your contact information, so that it can easily be scanned in by your contacts – it doesn’t replace your printed details but is added to them to give a quick way for people to enter our information into their phones without having to type it all in. This is a great way of ensuring that your details aren’t lost or discarded before they can be acted on. The difference between the two is in how much information can be included. The meCard includes basic contact information such as email and phone number, while the vCard adds job title, full postal address and so on, and is a denser code with smaller dots.

2. The URL QR code
Placing a URL within a QR code gives you endless possibilities. You can lead your contacts to a free download, to a special offers web page, to your website home page, to a business review site and so on. The great thing about these codes is that they are track-able, meaning that you can get lots of useful information about the results of your networking. Another great use is that new contacts can scan your code as you are chatting to them, look at your products and services on your web page through their phone and ask further questions then and there – a very potent marketing tool. One very important thing to remember if you plan to use this tactic – make sure that the web page you link to is optimized for mobile phones!

3. GPS Map coordinate codes
This can be included to give the location of your business and will usually connect with your Google maps app on smart phones to give directions.

One frequently asked question is where to place your QR code on your business card.

The answer is that anything goes. If you have a good graphic design team creating your card they can come up with endless creative solutions. Some people like to have a traditional business card look on one side and a code version of the same card on the other to cover both old-style and tech-savvy approach.

Do remember that the QR code isn’t familiar to everyone yet, so it is a good idea to make it clear what it’s about. A funky ‘Scan this’ arrow can be all you need, or you might prefer to include more detailed instructions with the details of where to download a QR code scan app, especially if most of your contacts and clients are likely to be QR code newbies or technophobes. Not everyone is going to want to scan it, so you do have to make the information available the old-fashion text way too.

If you plan to use more than one QR code on your card it is even more important to make it clear what they are for. You might want a code with your contact details on the front and another one linking to a free download or your website on the back. Get your graphic designer to come up with clever ways of making this work for you. Once the novelty of QR codes wears off people are less likely to scan everything just to see what’s there – they need a little encouragement, so saying something like ‘Scan for special summer offer’ or ‘Scan for free download’ might just be the nudge they need to follow your marketing QR code to its page.

Deep Design is a top brand design agency, digital and print studio based in Cape Town. Contact them for business cards in Cape Town incorporating QR codes and for any other print and design needs.

Article Source: EzineArticles.com

Small business Marketing requires a strategy that not only simplifies your effort but saves time and limited resources.

There are so many ways you can go about promoting your business online and offline: guest blogging, social media, networking, speaking, introduction letters, seminars and workshops and the list goes on; but the one thing you need to remember is that each of these activities are just a means to an end, and not a end in itself.

You need to understand why you’re using a particular channel. It’s not okay to hop on to Twitter or LinkedIn because everybody else is doing it, and it’s just the thing to do; you’ll need to set goals which will then determine which marketing channels / activities will get the best results.

Here are 4 steps to help you create a marketing strategy that produces great results.

Step 1: Identify your low hanging fruit

You need to know who your warm prospects are. Be clear on who is ready for your services NOW. There’s no point pitching to people who aren’t ready to be plucked. The result of not getting a clear idea of your ideal prospect is a marketing and social network that is big, messy and does not CONVERT well into sales and profits.

It is always better to have a smaller list and network that converts than a large list and network that is irrelevant.

To identify your ideal prospects:

a. Be clear on who exactly it is, that needs you or your service. Is it a business owner or VP of marketing? Do you work with only women? Exactly what sort of problems and issues should they have, to be considered ideal clients

b. Next you need to know where they hang out. What events and seminars do they attend? What publications do they read? Are they social media savvy or not? If they are, which channel do they use?

Step 2: Start with what you already know

Once you’re clear on who you ideal prospect is, what their issues are, and where they hangout, you’re ready to start establishing conversations that matter. Before you start selecting any new marketing activity to add to your plan, you may need to look at what you’ve been doing in past that worked.

It’s easier to ramp up what’s already working than trying to start something totally new. Have a look at your previous marketing activities, what has been working, and what hasn’t? Ditch what hasn’t and start your marketing campaign by ramping up what has been working.

Once you’ve done that, you can start adding new marketing activities that are centered around where your ideal prospects hang out. If Facebook is where it’s at, then that’s where you need to be. Forget LinkedIn and Twitter for now.

If they read certain blogs and publications, try to get your articles in those publications. If they attend certain events, then you or your representative will want to be there as well.

Step 3: Establish conversations with value and build relationships that matter

You need to know what sort of conversations will build relationships that convert to sales. People do not buy the first time they see a service, and just because you’re talking to them, does not mean that you have a relationship.

You will need to gain rapport and build a relationship. You’ll have to be consistent in turning up at the different marketing channels you’ve selected. These varied interactions between you and your ideal prospect are what builds trust and credibility.

Imagine the path your prospect could take on the journey to converting to a client. They visit their favourite blogs and read the articles you’ve written, you also take time to comment and answer questions in that channel.

They go to an event and you’re there having conversations. You’re also speaking at their local business event, and you have free seminars on a topic that solves one of the major problems you know they have.

Each of these activities is what builds trust and moves that prospect from just a prospect, to someone who visits you in your own space, to someone who subscribes to your list, to someone who goes to your free webinar, who then bites when you make the offer.

Step 4: Track everything

If you don’t know what works and how well it’s working, how can you improve your decision making and profitability? It doesn’t have to be anything over the top, but just as you need to know what the life time value of your customers are (total amount of money you expect to make from one customer during the lifetime of your relationship), you’ll also need to know how effective your activities are over a certain period.

Conclusion:

Marketing is what gets the clients through the door. Remember that you are a marketer that just happens to be a specialist at what ever activity it is you do.

If you’re not targeted about your marketing strategy, then you will struggle. It’s as simple as that. Keep everything as simple as you can and change your mindset on what marketing really is. You’re not an interior designer, you’re a marketer that specialises in making spaces look beautiful….

YOUR TO-DO TASK:

1. be clear on who exactly you want to work with

2. pick 8 -10 marketing activities that will give you exposure to a large crowd of your ideal prospects at lower cost

3. be consistent in establishing relationships and having conversations that matter.

4. Track everything.

What if you just can’t get those clients through the door? It can be trying to get clients consistently into your small business if you do not know what you really need to get the job done.

if you want to really start getting more clients and customers in your business, you’ll need to learn a few strategies that work amazingly well. These methods are simple to pick up and it doesn’t take much practice, you can read how to do it in my free report here: How to Get Clients

Elizabeth Archibong is a small business marketing expert at Minted Creative who teaches small business owners that struggle with marketing, how to get clients consistently without pushing too hard.

Article Source: EzineArticles.com

So many of us got into our areas of practice because we love what we do – we have a real passion for our areas of expertise. Or we wanted to be of service and to make a difference in the lives of others; we felt a true calling to our professions. Many of us decided on becoming solo professionals because we value our freedom and the opportunity to be our own boss. We also saw becoming a solo professional as an opportunity to earn an income that could support the kind of lifestyle we desired.

All these reasons are value based and they are truly excellent reasons to take on the role of solo professional. But these values alone do not make a practice successful and profitable. Our practices are more than just an expression of our values – our practices are also businesses. And all businesses have to follow the same rules of commerce whether they’re big box stores, fast food restaurants, internet-based companies or sole proprietors. Not knowing these rules or thinking that they don’t apply to your kind of business – a practice – can keep you from achieving the level of success you desire. Some of the rules of business are:

1. You have to be very clear about whom you serve (aka your “target market”).
2. You have to continuously find clients or customers within this target market.
3. You have to have a way to consistently reach and stay in touch with your target market.
4. You have to offer products and services your target market needs and wants.
5. You have to have multiple ways in which to serve your target market.
6. You have to stay in touch with trends and changes within your target market
7. You have to make clear to your target market why you are unique and why are the best choice among your competition.

So, if you haven’t done so already, it’s time to start thinking of yourself as a business owner, not just as a solo professional, solo practitioner, clinician, etc. These are the two hats you will always wear as long as you are a solo professional; this is a paradigm shift you will have to make. These roles as business owner and professional are not incompatible and one is not more intrinsically valuable than the other; it’s just that both have to be present in order to have successful, profitable practices.

And once you see yourself in these two roles, you have to begin to take action as a business owner. These actions go beyond keeping good practice notes, maintaining accurate financial records and paying taxes – which are all very necessary and important – these actions have to do with promoting your business on an ongoing basis and generating revenue in as many ways as you can in your practice.

Now here is where service-based professionals can begin to feel a little uncomfortable. Many of us are heart-based, client-centered people and have a hard time with putting the needs of our businesses first. We worry that placing emphasis on our own success and profitability will somehow take away from the quality of service to our clients. This isn’t true. Being a savvy business woman and a skilled solo professional are not mutually exclusive. And I believe that the more successful we feel and the better we are doing financially, the better practitioners we are.

Being a skilled solo professional is not enough to insure your practice’s success and profitability – you have to be skilled and savvy. Kate Sanner combines her skills as a coach, teacher and clinician and her marketing and practice building know-how with her passion for empowering women to help women solo professionals become business savvy and create successful, satisfying and profitable practices. Receive your FREE Audio “Your 7 Keys to Creating a Successful and Profitable Practice” by signing up at http://KateSanner.com.

Article Source: EzineArticles.com

Most small business marketing is done blindly. Sad, but true. If business owners aren’t busy copying each other (not realising the copiers are themselves being copied by the ones they’re copying), then they’re trying to emulate the marketing strategies of the giant corporations, with their deep pockets and limitless budgets.

Small business marketing – 10 secrets of the top companies

Alas, this form of marketing simply doesn’t work for small businesses. There’s no accountability, no tracking and so no way of knowing what’s working and what isn’t working.

But don’t despair. Small business marketing done the right way is profitable, quick and very easy IF you follow the rules. So let’s look at the 10 small business marketing secrets of the most successful small businesses.

1. Direct Response Marketing.

The most effective form of marketing is direct response marketing, which, in contrast to “ordinary” marketing seeks to elicit a specific response from the target market rather than just hoping, usually in vain, to grow the “image” of the business or promote that most pernicious of frauds, “brand awareness”.

2. Testing and measuring.

Successful businesses track all their marketing, from the humblest email to the most sophisticated direct mail or Adwords campaign. They can tell, with a very small margin of error, exactly how many sales and how much profit every single piece of marketing they’ve done has ever made them. And by a process of stepwise-refinement, they can take so-so ads and turn them into formidable marketing machines that churn out vast profits like clockwork, year in, year out.

3. Accountability.

Because smart small business owners track everything they make every ad carry its own weight. There is no guesswork or estimation. If an ad isn’t paying its way or it can’t be measured… then it’s cut, ruthlessly.

4. No such thing as failure.

When an ad fails to make a profit, your average business owner falls into despair and feels he or she has failed. Not so your smart marketer. Smart marketers realise they have just learned something very, very valuable: how NOT to write an ad for that market. It means they never have to make that mistake again. Leave your emotional attachment to results behind, and you’ll fare far better in your marketing, that’s a promise.

5. Always make an offer.

Smart marketers realise every single piece of marketing they do MUST have one offer (and one offer only). It must be specific, clear and unambiguous. Moreover, for best results it must be time- or quantity-limited to make it more desirable. This is completely counterintuitive but it works. It’s called “scarcity” and it’s perhaps the most powerful weapon in the marketer’s armoury.

6. Offer guarantees.

The most successful businesses understand and embrace the power of guarantees to drive sales. Ordinary business owners run scared from doing this in the mistaken belief they are going to be ripped off or cheated by unscrupulous customers and clients.

Yes, it happens sometimes… but so rarely the extra sales vastly outweigh the losses. But the emotional reaction to being cheated can be so strong it actually stops business owners from using guarantees. If you can master your feelings about this… you’ll dominate your niche, no question.

7. Relentless follow up.

Successful business owners follow-up with their leads, customers and prospects relentlessly. They’ll keep making them offers day in, day out until they buy, die, or tell the business owner to stop. Most business owners are too thin-skinned to be this forthright… but as the old saying goes… “timid salesmen have skinny kids“.

8. Focus on buying customers, not making sales.

The value of customers and clients is always in the long term. So rather than focusing on sales, sales, sales, smart marketers invest the time, money and effort in getting a customer or client for the longer term. Hence the emphasis is always on service, not sales. And another way of looking at this is to say they are buying customers with their marketing expenditure.

9. Focus.

Reason for being in business is to make a profit. Even a “non profit” has to make enough to meet salary and keep the lights burning. And that means the focus must always be on making sales. This isn’t to contradict the last point, because it’s assuming the long view… and the long view in terms of sales is always better served by growing a trusting relationship.

But the point is this: the focus, long term, must always be on profits and Return on Investment (ROI).

10. Premium prices.

Finally, savvy business owners realise competing on price is a dumb, dumb way to run a business, because a price cut is a self-inflicted and often fatal wound. Truth is, “low price” is important to only around 14% of people. The other 86% are more interested in things like reliability, good service, quality and convenience. Get those down pat, and your customers will gladly pay whatever you ask of them — and those who won’t… then refer them to your competitors with a smile.

So there we have it. Just 10 simple strategies you can put to work for you in your own small business TODAY and start enjoying an immediate increase in sales and profits.

Want to discover more about marketing your small business?

Then… visit my website now and take just three of the 52 FREE small business marketing ideas I’m giving away today, say the ones you think make most sense, and actually put them to work for you… and you’ll be delighted by what you see.

They’ve all produced substantially better results for small businesses just like yours, selling both to businesses and consumers, in the last two years.

And they’re free.

Your free tips are waiting for you here:

=> http://www.small-business-marketing-tips.com/52-small-business-marketing-ideas

Article Source: EzineArticles.com

Have you been following the “overnight” meteoric rise of a Canadian indie band called Walk Off the Earth? They are currently experiencing fame over their viral cover video Somebody That I Used to Know. You’ll be massively entertained by the energy and creativity in their music videos. You’ll be even more fascinated by their marketing savvy.

The methods that make a video go viral are the same methods that you can use to make your business go viral.

Success in the music industry can be foreshadowed by a video that goes “viral”. And, if you are into videography, your business could be dramatically boosted by a viral video you create. But even if you never create any videos, you can use the same strategies promoters use to make a video go viral to promote your business.

The goal of creating a viral video is to blow up a business. This, of course, means that there can be a strategy to make it happen. And you can easily employ these same strategies to blow up your business. Contrary to popular notion, not all viral videos happen serendipitously. There are companies devoted exclusively to making videos go viral on behalf of businesses.

Since there is a strategy for making videos go viral, wouldn’t you like a little bit of that jamba juice for your business?

The greater part of a successful marketing campaign is first getting the attention of a large audience. How to get the attention of a large audience is what all businesses can learn from, whether they do it by creating a video or not.

Here’s how a little known Canadian indie band called Walk Off the Earth created a major marketing and YouTube sensation “overnight”.

Gianni Nicassio, the creative energy behind Walk Off the Earth, his band members and crew have spent the better part of a year doing “covers” — recording their own versions of popular music videos and posting them to YouTube. They’ve garnered hundreds of thousands of views for their covers and most intentionally for their own original songs by linking themselves to the hottest musicians on YouTube.

The strategy has worked. It has worked because of four key elements:

1. Raw talent honed over years of making music

2. Passion for making music translated into a sharable product

3. Marketing know how

4. Going to the office every day and getting it done.

Some might say they got lucky by having the actor Russell Crowe tweet about their “brilliant” performance on their cover video Somebody I Used to Know by Gotye. But in reality it was just a matter of time.

Walk Off the Earth has done everything right. They studied what worked for other bands/brands and they got busy. They’ve relentlessly followed the formula for success they had identified. If Russell Crowe had not discovered them, some other celebrity would have. The luck came, not in whether they were going to be discovered, but rather who was going to discover them first.

Social media has been a major factor in Walk Off the Earth’s success strategy.

Walk Off the Earth has made excellent use of social media. If you take a look at their videos, you will see how they creatively entice viewers to:

1. Subscribe to their YouTube Channel

2. “Like” them on their Facebook business page

3. Encourage viewers to post comments by responding to their commenters

4. Follow them on Twitter

In many of its videos, Walk Off the Earth creates a post-video piece that is just as entertaining as the music video itself. It keeps the viewer watching while it encourages the viewer to subscribe, like, follow and comment. Brilliant indeed!

Band leader Gianni listens to his audience. The band creates new covers based on YouTube commenters’ requests. And the band is rewarded with loyal fans and even more exposure when more and more fans repost their videos through social media.

Social media has worked for Walk Off the Earth. As of this writing, their viral video cover Somebody I Used to Know has garnered 23,901,428 views in just 11 days.

What does it take to make a viral video?

To become popular, “Like”-able and ultimately go viral, a video usually has a combination of a few key ingredients. People are drawn to things that are unique, new, provocative, edgy, passionate, entertaining and humorous. A “pattern interrupt” is often an important component.

In Walk Off the Earth’s video, the pattern interrupt is that five people are simultaneously playing one guitar and making beautiful music. It’s new, unique and entertaining. It leaves people wondering “How do they do that?”

Their genius did not stop there however. They astutely chose an original tune to cover that has itself been one of the most viewed videos on YouTube for some time. People discovering or going back to listen again to the original will also find Walk Off the Earth’s version. The viewer’s next step is to listen to more of Walk Off the Earth’s videos and become hooked on their music. And thus, a fan is born.

And Walk Off the Earth’s popularity and profits begin to rise. Mainstream media clamor for interviews. Publicists and promoters want to sign them. Advertisers want to advertise on their videos. Tour dates, a recording contract and more interviews are bound to follow. When will Ellen DeGeneres have them on? Creating a buzz is the first step.

Your business can go viral too. And for your business to “go viral”, you don’t need 20 million people coming to your website. You just need a few thousand to create the success you want. Take a look at what a couple of guys in this Canadian indie band have done. Follow their strategies for your business. Emulate their work ethic. And you too will create the success you deserve!

Learn from and utilize the success strategies of this marketing-savvy indie band and have fun marketing your business right into viral profits!

Start your own buzz today beginning with Facebook (easy – no videos required!) Get simple directions you can follow at http://theNAE.org.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Linda Barnby is a multi-business entrepreneur with diverse companies including a successful law practice. Linda is the founder of the National Association of Entrepreneurs and editor and publisher of Rich Life Happy Life, a twice weekly inbox magazine for entrepreneurs and other business owners. Receive your complimentary subscription at http://theNAE.org

Article Source: EzineArticles.com

Every business that is set up today is meant to make profit and thrive. There is no business that is set up to fail; hence, every aspiring business entrepreneur would need to engage some local marketing approaches on their business to ensure a good set up, kick start and expansion in the near future.

Marketing approaches

There are many ways to market a business that is set up; local business marketing gurus are available to assist if the business entrepreneur has the funds to hire or engage some of the best in town. Otherwise, one must learn from the books, schools, Internet or on-the-job training.

Depending on the business core, the entrepreneurs would need to identify one or more local marketing strategies that will establish and grow. The wise entrepreneurs would be discerning about the needs of consumers and their demographics. Not every business will do well in all places as there may not be the right consumers for that type of products or services. For example, a butcher will not have any business in a Muslim community as pork is abhorrent to Muslims.

Hence, the right local marketing approaches will bring on success while bad choices of marketing strategies will bring along downfall.

Advertisement

All businesses need some form of advertisement or marketing which is a promotion of the offering. Whether a product or service, it must be promoted or made known to the right community for sales to be transacted. Local marketing advertisements need not be expensive today in the technology era; the Internet platform proves to be a very attractive media of advertisement for all types of businesses regardless of their size and establishment.Local search engine marketing tools can integrate the business offerings to the consumers’ needs for the best results.

The Internet platform is a cheap environment to advertise any offering today as the cost of web hosting is getting lower with the increasing webhosting competition. Many web entrepreneurs are also quite well versed with technology to set up their own local business marketing advertisements, websites and e-Commerce transactions. This gives them greater savings as they do not need to depend on commercial webhosting providers if these web entrepreneurs are web savvy and skilled in implementing the appropriate local marketing plans and strategies on their web business effectively.

There is never a lack of commercial local marketing experts in the market for any owner to call on for some professional assistance in marketing the business products or services.

Orange Webmart – A platform to help small companies in local business marketing. We offer excellent local search engine marketing campaigns to get more customers and business. Get local SEO for your website and get more leads, sales and more profits.

Article Source: EzineArticles.com

What’s in store for small businesses marketing in 2012?

Good question.

It’s something I’ve given a lot of thought to recently. And after a little debate, I decided to chime in with a few of my own predictions for what’s in store for small business marketing this year. Keep in mind this is not every prediction rolling around in my noodle.

But it is a few of the biggies.

Give this short article a read to see for yourself.

3 Small Business Marketing Predictions for 2012:

1. The relationship is KING

It goes without saying that the relationship you have with your customers (and are building with your prospects) is important. It’s been this way since the dawn of business. But in 2012 it will become vital. I’d say maybe even 80 to 90% of the buying decision will be made based on this alone.

Why?

It’s simple:

People are bombarded from every nook and cranny with marketing messages by business owners claiming to be the best at whatever they do. The internet has made this even worse. And the only way to make sense out of who’s telling the truth is to go based on that relationship.

2. People will tune OUT Social media more and more

Mark my words, Social Media (like Facebook and Twitter) will get tuned out more and more.

Really?

Yeah, and let me prove it to you.

Anytime a “new” media hits the scene, it’s fascinating to people. And slowly but surely more and more people give it a try. Then what happens? That’s right, the marketers move into the realm because they want in on the action too.

Who can blame them?

Problem is this leads to even more messages being blasted which annoys people.

Need an example?

Email.

I remember when email was this cool and novel idea. But what happened to email? It’s become cluttered like your grandma’s shoe closet.

So anyways…

I’m not against Social Media for chatting with friends and things. But I am strongly against it as tool that small business owners rely on for getting new customers.

3. Direct mail makes a huge comeback

Huh?

Yeah.

In fact, I’m on a lot of mailing lists. And I’ve noticed that my stack of mail is piling up. Why? Because direct mail is one of the best (if not THE best) media for attracting new customers, and savvy marketers already know this.

And with the postal rates going up, it’s only going to get better.

Why?

Because only the best and brightest marketers will be able to afford direct mail which makes it “the elite” marketing place to be.

Compare this to Twitter: How much does it cost to blast a tweet to your list? Zippo. Which is why the least talented marketers use Twitter as their bread and butter tool for growing their business.

So there you have it.

3 small business marketing predictions for 2012.

One last thing:

If you own and operate a small business and are serious about growing it, then what’s holding you back? That’s right. Good information. Truth is you may be one good idea away from having a breakthrough. But you must be careful who to turn to for that breakthrough idea. Can I help you? Maybe… maybe not. To decide go to my website which is located in my author’s box below.

Wesley Murph is the author of “The Little Black Book of Small Business Marketing: 10 Proven Ways to Add New Customers, Repeat Sales and Referrals to Any Small Business!” which includes a campaign he wrote for a client that pulled a whopping 35.7% response to an ice-cold list. He is not accepting any new clients at this time. But if you’d like more tips like the one you just read, then head on over to:

http://www.TheMarketingManiac.net

…where you can pick-up 3 free reports including:

Report #1: The 10 Most Important Elements to a BLOCKBUSTER Marketing Campaign

Report #2: 3 Effortless Ways to Get 10 New Customers using the B.I.N. Method

Report #3: The Simple Marketing Strategy that Puts New Customers into Your Business Almost Instantly

Article Source: EzineArticles.com

Modern businesses have changed from the way business was done decades ago. There are many tools available now to build business and establish relationships for future relationships and business. Savvy business people recognize the tools that can help them and take advantage. In many ways, real estate marketing has changed along with other business marketing strategies.

Realtors have now begun to use social media as a huge resource as a real estate marketing tool. Using social media, Linked In, Facebook, Twitter, and other media, is a great way to generate contacts in their field and speak with potential clients. It can be a way to reach people that they would not ordinarily have contact with.

Another great way for realtors to network and advertise homes they are selling or their services, is to use flyers and postcards. When realtors use either of those things, it puts something tangible into a prospect’s hands for them to consider. One of the first rules of sales is to put the product in the customers’ hands. Since it is hard to put a house in the buyer’s hand, an attractive flyer or postcard is a reminder of what they want. Successful sales have come from buyers receiving a detailed postcard or flyer they could keep and consider.

Not only is the use of postcards and flyers popular, internet listings are as well. Since many people do use the internet throughout the day, it is a great tool to take advantage of. When buyers go to the internet, they usually look for things they want to purchase and they are comparison shopping. Realtors that list homes online usually generate more leads that if they only used word of mouth or newspaper ads.

By using different real estate marketing tools, realtors are building a larger pool of potential clients. Realtors are also extending their brand into different areas. The more marketable and well known a realtor is, the more clients they will receive. Even if the realtor’s brand is far reaching, the use of so many different tools increases the avenues of contact between clients, potential clients and the realtor.

A savvy realtor not only fosters relationships with clients and potential clients. They also build relationships with fellow colleagues and people in the real estate industry. Its important to have other contacts within the industry to maintain current information and have a network of help if it is ever necessary. Great realtors know when they can’t handle the demands of a client and they should always a referral ready to recommend to their unsatisfied clients.

Successful real estate marketing always encourages the borrower to make the purchase. It will never encourage them to postpone their decision. The content of their tools, be it Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, will always tell buyers all they need to know about the houses they represent or the specific house they are promoting. Realtors want their viewers and followers to be informed of the services they can provide and how they can help solve a problem.

With many different strategies available, realtors have options to use in order to reach their potential clients. Diligent real estate marketing can build a realtor’s brand and allow them to reach many more potential clients. Using those tools will keep clients and fellow realtors updated on market trends and what they have available. Real estate marketing is a huge part of how realtors build their business and they should use every tool available to get as much exposure as possible.

Tori is a real estate consultant specializing in real estate marketing.

Article Source: EzineArticles.com

Every Small Business needs to have an online marketing strategy that supports their offline presence. Here’s a simple social media strategy that every small business can utilize to help grow their business.

• Social Media Presence – If you haven’t already done so, take some time and properly implement a social media strategy for your company. If your not talking about your company online, via social media, chances are someone else is. Make sure you control the story. There are many tools to help monitor what people are saying about you or your company. You can monitor what people are saying about your company’s brand, services and products by subscribing to free online monitoring services like Hootsuite, Google Alerts and Twilert. These same services are a great way to stay informed about your competition. All these services allow you to target your results by keywords, company names or general terms that help define your query. So once you realize that people are talking about your company or your competition, you’ll want to participate in the conversation so that you can help steer the conversation in the right direction. The following social media platforms are a must for every small business owner to participate in.

Twitter: Twitter just might be the greatest online marketing tool your company can have, and its free! Take a look at this video clip by TechCrunch which interviews UCF’s Dana White. Take a look at this info graphic by KissMetrics. There are over 1 billion tweets posted per week. As a Small Business owner, you have a particular expertise in a certain area. Its important for you to create a twitter account and talk about the things that can help other people. Things you can and should write about are topics related to the services and products your company offers. Always write with a flare for giving advice freely. In addition, ask your customers to follow you on Twitter. Use the platform as a way for communicating special offers and deals relating to your business. Starbucks has a great social media success story that every small business can benefit from. The Next Web did a recent story on their social media strategy here. The great thing about twitter is that people will find and follow you if you have something to say. It also allows you to follow what are people are saying. Go to twitter and sign up for a free account. They recently launched brand pages which is similar to Facebook Pages for business. It allows you to set up a brand page for your business. Don’t worry about “writers block”. The cool thing about Twitter is that you can re tweet other peoples tweets. Make sure you follow people that have similar services and products and don’t be afraid to share or re tweet their stories. Follow these Twitter steps:

1. Sign up – Reserve your name before someone else does.
2. Upload your logo: Spend a few dollars and hire a graphic design company to really make your Twitter page pop. I personally recommend Gamby Studios.
3. Link your Twitter account to your website, business cards and brochures.
4. Follow Industry Leading people that have similar interests to you.
5. Tweet: make sure to tweet or re tweet relevant information.
6. Down load a Twitter Application on your Cell Phone. I suggest Tweetcaster or Hootsuite.
7. Check out TwitHawk: A great way to send direct tweets to people who are talking about your industry, services or products…. in real time! Its kinda like Google AdWords but for Twitter. Its a great advertising platform that allows you to send direct messages to people that need or talk about your product.
8. Check out 48ers too. Free service that allows you to send direct messages back to people ( in real time). Set up keywords to track and let the application do the rest. It will show you real time results in both Facebook and Twitter. Great way to market your company in real time but just make sure you have time to manage this properly.

LinkedIn: According to several leading social media sites, LinkedIn is fast becoming the most popular “sharing” button on both business and personal websites. With over 100 million users, I rank LinkedIn as the second best social media marketing tool for small businesses. ( Yes, even better than Facebook ). A properly set profile allows users to opt in for business venture requests from other users. If your company is a b2b service then LinkedIn is the place. This is not a viral marketing strategy. Most people are professional decision makers that can be targeted based on their set profiles. My advise would be to pay for a premium service plan. Check out the ad platform and run a few targeted campaigns.

Facebook: The 10,000 pound gorilla is my 3rd pick for social media marketing. No other site with the exception of maybe StumbleUpon and Reddit gets more page views on a daily basis. By now, if your reading this you already have a Facebook account. Now take the next step and create your Brand Page. Every business is slowly but surely creating a Facebook Page and you should too. Once your page is up and running head over to Wildfire Promotion Builder for contests, coupons, group deals, and sweepstakes. Its a great way for you to have your own personal Groupon. Wildfire also has great tool for Brand Pages Design.

Google+: Google plus pages are just starting to create some buzz. Not fully released to the public but soon every business will be able to create their own page for their business. Here’s what you need to know:

1. Get Started Early: Don’t wait. Although not as popular as Facebook pages, Google+ pages will be very beneficial to your business in the long run.
2. Call to Action for customers: make sure you get your visitors to join one of your “circles” Keep them updated on interested products and services and invite them to “hangout”.
3. Don’t Confuse: Unlike Facebook, Google+ allows you to create multiple pages for your brands and products. Just be careful not to go overboard. Simple is better.
4. Website+1 button: make sure you have one on your website so people can share your website with other Google+ friends. Google also measures the relevancy of your website by several factors which now include how many people use the Google+ button on your website.
5. Use a Google+ URL shortener: The URL Google gives you for the brand page is very long and not good for marketing. Several companies offer a service where they can assign your Google+ URL a better and shorter string.
6. Its not FACEBOOK: Google+ users are a little different than most other social media users. The platform tend to attract a much more tech savvy user. Make sure your comments and content is relevant to your business and don’t deviate into babble diatribe.

Note: Facebook will be releasing a new “Coupon” application, currently in Beta. Should be a great way for businesses to start offering coupon deals similar to Groupon but much more effective and much cheaper.

Company Blog: I personally suggest Tumblr. Its a free service with great templates to choose from. Posting articles in Tumblr can automatically be sent to your Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn accounts. Blogs have much higher relevance to search engines and can be a huge boost to Search Engine Optimization for your website. make sure your articles are well written and unique in content. Don’t steal or scrape information from other sources. ( Search Engines like Google can quickly figure out that your information has been stolen. They wont index your site if they find this out. ) Take time to write good content or hire a company to do this for you. There are plenty of services out there that provide copy writing as a fee. Feel free to have one blog or many blogs but just make sure you update on a continuous basis and be the expert in your field. make your content so good that people will want to share your information with other friends and people.

YouTube: Create your own YouTube channel. Try creating something unique. If people like your video, they share it with potentially hundreds or thousands of people and pretty soon you have a viral campaign. Youtube now has a video ad platform. Online media marketing is big business. Spend some money and create a company video that explains your business and services. Its a great way for people to learn more about you without reading boring text on a website.

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Article Source: EzineArticles.com