06Mar 2014 by Cindy Berrier 2 Comments

A Small Business’ Brief Guide to Car Magnets

Customer Acquisition, Marketing, Outdoor Marketing, Product Uses, Products and Services, Small Business Info
Did you know your small business can get noticed on the road or even in your own driveway with a custom car magnet? Check out six ways to turn your car into a traffic stopper! Establish your business. Unless your business’ name is self-explanatory, your magnets should clearly explain what products/services you offer. If you choose to include an image, make sure that it's relevant to your business. Choose a selling point. Use a powerful marketing message that explains why consumers need your product/service and what makes you unique. Getting to know who your target audience is will help you establish how you say your message. For example, you won’t want to speak in “chat acronyms” if your target demographic is 55-64. Include the important stuff. Make sure your contact…
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25Feb 2014 by Cindy Berrier 1 Comment

5 Steps to Building a Successful Welcome Series

Customer Retention, Email Marketing, Marketing, Monthly Email Marketing, Online Marketing, Small Business Info
You never get a second chance to make a great first impression. This is true of job interviews, first dates, meeting your future in-laws and … email welcome messages. A welcome message or welcome message series is a great way to immediately engage your new email subscribers. A well-done series can reinforce your brand, encourage an initial purchase and create a higher probability of additional purchases. Here are five steps you can take to easily create and deploy a successful welcome series. Step 1: Identify Automation Capacity Determine your ESP’s (email service provider's) level of automation ability. You will first need to know if these emails can be sent automatically, either in real-time (preferred by many) or in another time frame — be it hourly or daily. Make sure the…
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25Feb 2014 by Cindy Berrier No Comments

7 Ways to Improve Your LinkedIn Company Page

Customer Retention, Marketing, Online Marketing, Small Business Info, Social Media Marketing
Did you know LinkedIn has 277 million members? Your small business deserves a piece of this social media pie. Check out seven ways to improve and get the most out of your LinkedIn company page. Optimize. Linkedin company pages are extremely SEO-friendly. Make sure your page’s description leads off with a powerful, keyword-rich sentence. When on LinkedIn, members have the option of searching for a company by keyword, so make sure to include any words or phrases that describe your business, expertise, industry focus, etc. in your description. Showcase. Build out your products and services page to showcase what your company has to offer. This is your chance to show members what you do best and why they should follow you. Don’t limit yourself to listing only your products —…
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24Feb 2014 by Cindy Berrier No Comments

Direct Mail Isn’t Dead: Postcards and Business Flyers Work!

Customer Acquisition, Customer Retention, Marketing, Monday Marketing Minutes, Promotional Marketing, Small Business Info
In this digital age, you may be inclined to think that direct mail pieces aren't worth your time and effort. Think again! There are many benefits of direct mail items, such as postcards, business flyers and brochures, including: You can get it in their hands. Just think about how you still like receiving mail. You’re not alone. I know that I look forward to picking up my daily mail and looking through it for my favorite magazine or if I've received correspondence from a friend or family member (not so much the bills, of course). According to Epsilon’s 2012 Channel Preference Study, 73% of U.S. consumers said they prefer direct mail for brand communications because they can read the information at their convenience. These days, we seem to receive more…
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17Feb 2014 by Cindy Berrier No Comments

How to Send Killer eNewsletters – 10 Tips

Customer Retention, Email Marketing, Marketing, Monday Marketing Minutes, Online Marketing, Small Business Info
Email marketing is a fast, efficient way for small businesses to connect with their customers. Sending e-newsletters has become an increasingly crucial way to build customer loyalty through special offers and great, engaging content, and ultimately is another tactic to drive sales to your small business. I always advocate a 360-degree approach to your marketing initiatives, which means tackling each one from every corner that makes sense, such as print business flyers, social media posts, email newsletters, blogs and more. But how to send killer eNewsletters? That is the question. While email marketing can be a great marketing tactic, it can also hurt, or do nothing good your brand, if you are sending out eNewsletters that your customers really don’t care about; if you are sending them out too frequently…
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15Feb 2014 by Cindy Berrier No Comments

SEO and Small Business: Knowledge is Everything

Customer Acquisition, Marketing, Online Marketing, Search Marketing, Small Business Info
In 2014, online visibility for your small business is more important than ever.  In fact, the visibility of your brand in all market areas is essential to business expansion and growth. For our purposes, we are going to focus on some of the more preliminary tactics that small businesses should employ when establishing their SEO strategy. First and foremost, know your audience. You may think this is stating the obvious, and for all intent purposes it is. However, it’s surprising how many business owners, small and large, take this step for granted and miss the boat on potential traffic and sales.  Do as much research on potential clients, their needs and behavior as possible and discover what and why they are searching for it on your site. But what does…
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10Feb 2014 by Cindy Berrier No Comments

How to Guest Blog With a Purpose

Content Marketing, Marketing, Monday Marketing Minutes, Online Marketing, Small Business Info
Guest blogging, as you may or may not know, has long been heralded as one of the best link-building tactics for your blog and website. (If you aren’t sure what “guest blogging” is, read this. If you’re not sure what “link-building tactics” are, read this.) Well, until this guy came out and said that wasn’t true. And while I agree with him in that, these days, a totally random email from a stranger asking to blog on your site is likely to be shunned more often than it is to be accepted (“sure, random stranger, I’d love you to contribute to the heart and soul of my being that is my blog” … really?), there are ways to go about it so that it’s not so spammy. Oh, and there’s…
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30Jan 2014 by Cindy Berrier No Comments

New Year, New Marketing Calendar

Marketing, Planning, Small Business Info
With February right around the corner, your 2014 marketing calendar should already be created. But, if you are like many small business owners, finding time to plan ahead often is harder than it seems. Never fear! Creating a marketing calendar does not have to take a lot of time and the rewards you reap from advance strategizing and planning far outweigh the initial planning time. With that said, let’s get started on your 2014 marketing calendar! (more…)
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30Jan 2014 by Cindy Berrier 1 Comment

5 Tips for Creating an Effective Brochure or Flyer

Customer Acquisition, Customer Retention, Marketing, Monday Marketing Minutes, Product Uses, Products and Services, Promotional Marketing, Small Business Info
In the new online shopping world, two tried-and-true marketing techniques still have their place: brochures and flyers. Both are cost-effective marketing tools that can used for a variety of purposes: • Educational piece • Cross-sell opportunity inside a complementary product’s packaging • Handout at a tradeshow or local event • Outdoor advertising tucked under windshields and other more creative ideas • Follow-up piece to take prospects further into the sales cycle. (more…)
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22Jan 2014 by Cindy Berrier No Comments

Pay Per Click – A Smart Way of Advertising

Customer Acquisition, Marketing, Online Marketing, Small Business Info
John Wanamaker once said "Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted; the trouble is that I don’t know which half." But if we consider the situation today, the overwhelming presence of the internet does not pose this problem anymore. The internet has given us smarter and more cost-efficient methods of advertising where you know exactly where your ad budget is benefiting you. Pay Per Click: A great option Pay per click advertising is a method of advertising on the internet where you pay for each ad clicked. This model is used to direct more traffic to your website. Simply speaking, it is the amount spent to get one advertisement clicked on the internet. If your ad budget is not that great and you cannot afford television commercials and outdoor…
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