Marketing tips, thoughts and expert advice for small business owners and other professionals
Make it Easy for Prospects to Say “Yes”
If yours is like many small businesses, much of your marketing program is geared towards attracting prospective clients to your business. Getting them in the door (or on the phone or at your website), however, is just the first step. Once they arrive, you need to do...
How to Get People to Pay More for Your Products
When it comes to the value of your products or services, perception is everything. This is because value is tied to meaning, and the same product can mean different things to different people. It’s all a matter of perception. Luckily there are things you can do to...
Don’t Expect People to Connect the Dots
Picture this: You arrive home to find ants crawling all over your kitchen. You whip out your phone and Google for an exterminator. You want a solution NOW, and the first company you find that impresses you in some way will get your business. You click through to the...
Presentation is Everything
What’s for dinner tonight? Will it be “beef, potatoes and vegetables” – or Orange Teriyaki Marinated Flank Steak with Herbed Oven Roasted Potatoes and Grilled Zucchini Ribbons? Quite often how you present something makes a big difference in how it is perceived. This...
5 Things Your Website Developer Ought to Tell You
Some businesspeople like to surround themselves with subordinates and vendors who will praise all of their ideas, whether or not their ideas are good. Luckily, none of my clients are like that! After all, what’s the point in hiring a professional if you don’t want...
Why is Business Networking a Successful Marketing Tactic?
Unless your business is located in a sparsely-populated area, there are probably a number of business networking groups near you. There are Chamber of Commerce groups; local chapters of national groups such as BNI, LeTip and NAWBO (National Association of Women...
Proofread Everything
When my kids were in elementary school they attended a school that encouraged students to write as soon as they could read. They wanted the kids to experience the joy of expressing their ideas on paper, without being limited to the relatively small list of words that...
Are Your Prospects Afraid to Buy from You?
In creating your marketing materials, an important thing to keep in mind is that people might be afraid to buy from you. They’re afraid that your product might be shoddy, your service might be lousy, your solution won’t actually solve their problem (or won’t solve it...
7 Things Blogs & Newsletters Can Do for You
Given the fact that I’m a marketing content writer, it’s probably no surprise that I’m a big believer in the power of business blogs and newsletters. I’ve seen that they can be especially helpful for service providers and business-to-business marketers—provided they...
Watch Out for Marketing Blind Spots
When it comes to your company’s marketing, chances are you have some blind spots. Guilty of any of the following? Now’s the time to address the issue! You don’t have a plan – If your company doesn’t have a marketing plan (even if it’s an informal plan residing in your...