Marketing
Consultant’s Corner: How Do I Market My Business Better?
Q. Where do I get started figuring out how to market my business? Marketing considerations. Generally speaking, marketing plans are influenced by the industry, local competition, target customers, available capital, customer base, and other factors. Also, trial and experimentation is usually required to determine the most effective promotional methods for a particular market. Businesses normally…
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Is Good Ever Better Than Perfect?
“A good plan violently executed now is better than a perfect plan executed next week.” – George S. Patton I have been thinking and talking a lot lately about how to build marketing plans. So let me share a little secret with you all: The perfect marketing plan does NOT exist! Let me give you…
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Business Mentoring: The Most Powerful Marketing
Thanks to the internet, customers today have more access to the opinions of other people, and more outlets to share their own opinions. As a result, the value you create for your customer is the most powerful part of your marketing today. Happy customers will share their experience and lead to more customers, as Joe…
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Business Mentoring: Find the Next Differentiator
Whatever you might come up with that gives you a competitive edge today, remember that your competition is never far behind. No competitive edge is permanent, Joe Calloways says, so it’s important to always be looking for the next differentiator. Winning is fun, whether it’s in business or sports. But winning never comes without pain—failures,…
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Capitalize on Your Brand’s Social Media Presence
It’s a rare business that can exist today without some sort of social media presence –that’s how customers expect to find out about products, brands and companies. For small businesses, social media is particularly attractive since it’s usually very affordable and, in many cases, free. But it’s easy to get overwhelmed. There are so many…
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Is Customer Service the New Marketing?
The line between customer service and marketing is becoming blurred, and some companies are even counting customer service as a marketing expense. Although in the past there were definitive marketing and customer service “departments,” it makes sense to acknowledge their relationship and interaction for the overall good of the company. An investment in customer service,…
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Business Mentoring: What Do People Say About You?
Social media gives businesses a chance to reach more people and build more relationships than ever. But what you say about your own business is not nearly as important as what other people are saying about you. The most valuable social media engagement comes from getting other people talking about you, say Joe Calloway. People…
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Midweek Reading: Young Entrepreneurs and Business Networks
Young entrepreneurs are finding business opportunities, and I’m not talking about 20somethings. These are 10 year old franchisors, teenage lotion moguls and other child entrepreneurs learning financial literacy and starting real businesses from bank loans on up. A giant national chain might seem like it stands apart from the small businesses all around it, but…
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Innovation Requires Risk
The engine of American business is small business and entrepreneurism. And the engine of small business is innovation. To generate an atmosphere of innovation around your business, you need to have a sense of desperation and willingness to take risks. Despite their massive resources, huge R&D budgets, armies of employees and consultants, and other advantages,…
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A Quick Guide to Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing is becoming increasingly popular online today. It’s important for small business owners of all kinds to learn about what it is, and whether and how it might be able to work for you. First up is clearly defining the key industry terms: An advertiser is the company whose goods and services are being…
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