Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Increasing Home Party Plan Sales Tips - The Elements Successful Home Party Business Marketing

Home Party Business Marketing is largely a matter of understanding what one is getting into. The party plan method is the use of social events - home parties to parade, demonstrate, show off and sample products used primarily to sell items whose main appeal is to women by women, such as Tupperware, Mary Kay Cosmetics, kitchen utensils, home decor items e.g, home garden & party, jewelry, skincare e.g, Arbonne International, candles e.g, Mia Bella. Recent additions to the field include lingerie, and sex toys e.g., Passion Parties.
It is very evident that the home party plan traditional business idea is fresh once again as a new generation of sellers open their homes for direct sales.
Home parties now account for approx. 30 percent of the nearly $30.8 billion in U.S. direct sales, and 15.2 million Americans bought or sold goods from home in 2007; according to the Direct Selling Association, the premier resource for all thing direct sales.
With the growth of the internet, customers find that they continue to benefit from a personal and convenient way of purchasing products. The Internet is fast becoming an essential element of home party plan business success. It gives both the home party consultant and their customer each a worldwide base. The growing trend is to host virtual parties online. Internet sales account for 14% of all home party sales!
The 4 Elements Of A Successful Home Party Plan Business
1. A Home: As with real estate, location, location, location matters. Let me share with you some statistics. Home parties account for roughly 70% of the 78% face to face sales made in the US. Cozy, comfortable, social always wins out! So be sure to host home party plan fun monthly meetings at the least.
2. It's A Party: Success with home parties lies in the fact that it's a party at your home--or better yet, at someone else's. Customers socialize, and you make money. Need more convincing? Make fun is the order of the day. Party like a rockstar!
Home Party Plan Success Tip: Fundamentals are the building blocks of fun
3. Plan(ning) : When you fail to plan, you plan to fail. You need to plan the party elements. You need to plan your business element i.e., marketing, business plan, training, education & development. Your party plan hostess must be coached and prepared. The Home party demo must be planned before hand. Don't get side tracked and have a show that goes on for 3 hours. No one makes great purchases when they are tired
4. It's A Business |?biznis| (bus.):
2 the practice of making one's living by engaging in commerce : the world of business | whom do you do business with in Manila? | [as adj.] the business community | [with adj.] the jewelry business.
o trade considered in terms of its volume or profitability : how's business?
As Max Sanborn asserts, "The ultimate objective of a business is profit. The primary purpose of a business is to create customers. Profitability without customers is an impossibility."
You are a home party consultant, you are in this of course to have fun, partying in your home or that of a hostess for the express purpose of making and increasing home party sales and profits.
And now I'd like to offer you and you can claim At NO COST to you, your own personal guide on how to create home party and direct sales business success. You can get INSTANT access at http://www.homepartyplansuccesstips.com 10 Deadly Home Party Plan Business Mistakes provides you with 10 factors, which if avoided will sky-rocket home party sales and direct sales profits!
Get Your Copy TODAY 10 Deadly Direct Sales And Home Party Mistakes!
To Your Success,
Party Plan Pat
Home Party & Direct Sales Marketing Expert

Home Based Business Marketing Methods

How many tools and techniques do you take advantage of for your home based business marketing strategies? Do you limit your home business to merely a few marketing methods? Worse yet, are you trying to teach everybody in your sales force how to work with the exact same home based business marketing method? If you have not entirely learned yet that not everybody will be victorious using all the same tools, I invite you to read my preceding post named - Home Based Business Marketing - The Delusion of Replication.
Once you understand why you want to increase your home based business marketing toolbox, the subsequent inquiry is how. Many individuals don't offer alternative types of marketing as they either don't know what is at hand or they do not understand the way to train it. You will learn more facts about the miscellaneous options up for grabs and so you can move your sales force to make the appropriate choices for themselves.
Why should you give heed to what I am sharing? For the reason that if you do not expand your home based business advertising knowledge and allow your group increased plans to function with, they will eventually identify someone which will. To put it plainly, you must give up to go up. Which means not merely sacrificing for the larger target, but it also indicates you need to be willing to concede that you do not know everything and that you are not good at everything. Your team will appreciate you more in the long run if you hold enough tenacity to be honest with them and point them in the appropriate path with reference to who they may learn whatever they like to learn from.
Don't Overlook These Important Home Based Business Strategies
Every home based business marketing toolbox ought to involve both offline and online methods. The truth is, many people like traditional face to face marketing, and another group of people favor the internet and telephone. Not everybody possesses the technical abilities to plunge into online marketing right away. You'll also function with others that don't by and large take to sitting in front of a pc or staying connected to their phone steadily.
Many individuals take to communicating in front of a room brimming with people, however innumerable individuals become faint and nauseated just at the thought of public speaking. One home business owner may favor selling merchandise, and another may enjoy recruiting additional people. You could have a few team members which are unusually good at developing advertisement copy, and team members who have never drafted an advertisement in their career. As you can see, the formation of your hbb is made up of all unique parts which all function in a different manner. It is your basic reason for developing a multiple method platform.
Examples You May Entertain For Your HBB Promo
The 1st and most accepted form of Home business marketing is direct marketing. This is marketing that targets your concise market directing your ideal prospect to assume action, either it is going to your internet website or phoning you.
Home based business promotion uses both online and traditional methods to exercise such. Offline examples could be snail mail promotions such as postcards, a letter, plus newsletters. Another example would be to use print ads such as newspaper classifieds, bulletins, or magazines. Those with a larger advertising budget might work with radio stations or even TV. Currently I have encountered some creative methods like lawn signs (like the ones you see during political campaigns.) Alternative types of conventional strategies are networking meetings, referral organizations, meetup groups, conventions along with trade show booths, drop-boxes or fish bowls and you will not neglect cold calling.
Internet options may include but are not limited to: emailing, social networks, submitting articles, promoting videos, PPC, hosting a blog, free classified ads, ezine ads, forums, list builders, and so on. Online strategies used for home based business marketing can also include online versions of postcards, newsletters, etc.
Home based business marketing is not limited to direct response marketing. Other methods can be applied as well such as reverse marketing and indirect or passive marketing. Regardless of which methods you personally use and teach, I highly advise investigating one method called attraction marketing. In a nutshell, attraction marketing is the method in which customers are drawn to you and magnetically desire to work with you, free of you actually soliciting them to. Attraction marketing should be your fundamental method of operation with any promotion options you use.
Your HBB Advertising Action Plan
Before you take off in ten different directions, there is something you need to know. You can't be an expert in all hbb advertising strategies. You should though, come to be well-rounded with reference to what is actually accessible to take advantage of. The reason you have to do this is so you may point your partners to the best hbb marketing options for them, based on their strengths and gifts.
You become profitable by helping others become victorious. The best way to help more team members prosper is to supply them the options and direction they need suited to their personality. You throw them the football, however they have to hustle. Your first step is becoming familiar with what is out there. You do not have to know everything. For your own individual victory, concentrate on becoming truly great at one thing, and good at the rest.
Get the home business coaching you need today to fully succeed in your business with instant access here. If you are wishing to expand your marketing knowledge this is the best place to start. You will receive admittance to Free coaching each week by first-class leaders in the industry.

Monday, July 1, 2013

7 Key Reasons Printed Newsletters Are Still a Great Marketing Tool

One of the books I've been reading recently is all about the benefits of using newsletters in your business. Let's take a look at a few of them now:

Newsletters can build your reputation as an expert 

A regular newsletter to your customers and potential customers builds your relationship. Month after month your newsletter full of tips and useful information arrives. Firmly establishing you in their mind as an expert. (Make sure it's a quality newsletter though!)

Newsletters help you build your brand

How many times does a person have to see your logo or company name before they ask about your services? At least 7 times is most commonly believed. With the number of advertising messages competing for attention out there today it's probably a higher rather than lower figure too. Remind your customers and potential customers that you are still around by sending out a newsletter regularly. By doing so you will be able to build your brand

Newsletters help keep customers

Your customers have bought from you before so your goods and services are already seen as providing value. A regular newsletter helps you stay at the top of your customers minds when they need your type of business. This will help stop them from going to your competition. In addition a newsletter is a way to inform your customers about products and services that they may not know about. Potentially increasing your sales.

Newsletters help you get new customers

Including good informative articles in your newsletters encourages them to be passed around. Referrals are one of the best forms of promoting your business. A good newsletter encourages customers to refer you more often. In addition find places to put your newsletters in front of your potential customers.

Newsletters help build credibility

When people read a brochure they may treat it as a throwaway. A newsletter has a higher perceived value. A well written newsletter enables you to write stories about what you do and how your products provide solutions to your customer's problems. Including testimonials provides added credibility.

Newsletters help you stand out from your competition

In a fiercely competitive world anything you do that makes you stand out from your competition can be a good thing. If you're the only company in your industry or area that is consistently creating valuable newsletters you'll be seen as providing more value. The perception of giving a better product or service than your competition.

Newsletters last longer and therefore promote your business longer than many other forms of marketing literature.

A printed newsletter can be taken anywhere and read anywhere. When they are informative and interesting they are less likely to be thrown away. They are kept and referred to again and again.
here you have it 7 benefits to using newsletters to promote your business. I hope it gets you thinking about how to use them in your business.
For a Free subscription to Your Internet Marketing Guide designed to help local businesses harness the power of the internet to grow their business visit us Your Internet Marketing Guide

Saturday, June 29, 2013

The Importance of Business to Business Marketing

Business to business marketing, or "B to B marketing" as it is sometimes referred to in the business sector, is the term used to refer to the marketing of either products or services to other companies or other businesses within the industry. The idea behind this element of marketing is to develop and promote products in a way that is beneficial to both parties. The practice of Business to business marketing occurs more often than you may be aware. Some companies manufacture products and sell them directly, but most companies at least sell to distributors who then sell their products as retail. This is the most common form of business to business marketing that occurs within industries. However, just as important is the strategy of marketing a product directly to another business for their personal use. The key to succeeding in either of these steps of marketing is truly presenting an offer that is attractive to both you and the other business.
When a company manufactures a new product, decisions must be made regarding how to market the product within that industry. Unless the company plans to sell only directly to consumers through a website or store, the manufacturer must find a distributor who is willing to buy the products and sell them. These operations within an industry are a form of business to business marketing. In order to do this effectively, the manufacturer must produce a quality product that consumers are willing to buy as well as present a clear picture of the advantages that carrying their product will give to a distributor. Most distributors will not be willing to purchase and sell a product for retail without some proof from the manufacturer that the product is popular among consumers. Finding distributors is a time consuming process for manufacturers. Research must be conducted regarding the demographic of customers who frequently shop at the location and their likelihood of buying the product. Making the right decision in finding distributors is important to both the retail distributors and the manufacturers. If a poor decision is made, the manufacturer is also affected since time was spent on a business relationship that may not prove to be fruitful, and products were not placed in locations where they could be sold.
Marketing between different businesses is the less common version of business to business marketing, although this strategy is being used more frequently today than in the past. In some ways, this is similar to marketing to consumers, because the business is the consumer. However, there are some important differences between selling directly to another business and marketing to consumers. When marketing to consumers, the manufacturer typically advertises a general product and attempts to attract the attention of consumers, waiting for those who are interested to make contact. When marketing directly to a business, however, the burden lies with the manufacturer to present a case to the business manager, proving why the product will be beneficial. The practice of developing products directly by use for other businesses rather than the general public is becoming increasingly common.
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Friday, June 28, 2013

News for Alyssa Milano

News for Alyssa Milano


News for Alyssa Milano

she auditioned for the female lead as a homeless teenager in the independent film, where the day takes you. Although the crew refused to sign a former child star, she has a small role as a prostitute in the production, they may play in the summer of 1991. Even if he's afraid to admit people as "princess Who The Boss",  has through the media, which helps the country, the controversial role of Amy Fisher in the TV film profiles that look high sacrificial love. Long Island Lolita Story  Milano said his interpretation of the Amy Fisher is more based on the viewpoint Joey Buttafuoco, and that the film "is the most" Alyssa "s" everything [they] do ".  The film was shot in the fall , 1992. at the time, ended her role in Who's the Boss, and he was afraid of difficulties in obtaining other roles, aware of the fate of many of these children during this period.  However, it was. excited when I learned that the show was canceled, ready "to move forward"  and enthusiasm to "prove" that they are able to  Looking back eight years in the same role play, Milano said, is doing "creative, it's very difficult. I gave him more personality. I changed my wardrobe, hair cut to give everything to give him a new life.

The Power of White Papers - Convert Your Expertise Into Cash Today

White paper marketing works. They generate sales leads, build trust and even close sales. And executives and decision makers find them important.
· In a survey by Eccolo Media, 84% of B2B executives rated white papers as moderately to extremely influential in making purchase decisions.
· In a Content Marketing Institute survey, 61% of B2B marketers said they use white papers.
According to Gordon Graham, "... no other piece of content can generate so many business benefits for so long - when it's done right."
Bottom line - white papers, also known as special or technical reports, get the job done.
What Makes White Paper Marketing Powerful
All-in-One - As a marketing tool, special reports cover the bases. They help carry prospects down the sales funnel from lead to conversion. They do that because they appeal to a diverse group of prospects. Executives, technical analysts, and engineers prefer special reports to other Marcom collateral. Since white papers reach their target audience, effectiveness is high. Finally, inbound marketing is about 62% less expensive than outbound marketing. They are the Swiss Army knife of marketing collateral.
Versatility - Special reports provide both technical and marketing information. Because they are more in depth, they're viewed as educational and "soft-sell" documents. This makes them "stealthy", as they penetrate gatekeepers to reach executives and decision makers. Special reports focus on a target market, making them more tailored and more relevant. Finally, special reports have a long and durable lifespan, and you can re-purpose them. Think presentations, web content, and articles.
Distribution - Many companies use printed copies. But, in today's digital world, large-, medium-, and small-sized businesses post their documents online. They're found on websites, blogs, social media, and as email attachments. Given social media's potent distribution capabilities, well-written technical reports can go viral, boosting sales leads. In the Eccolo Media survey mentioned above, 89% of respondents shared their special reports. Their reach and use will also grow, as online marketing mushrooms.
Thought Leadership - Special reports help businesses establish industry thought leadership. Writing thought pieces on future industry trends helps promote your company and your solution. This helps build credibility through perceived expertise. In turn, this builds trust. Becoming a thought leader further helps establish your brand, benefiting your overall lead generation. You'll gain industry dominance over time. In a nutshell, thought leadership helps you gain recognition with prospects. You'll stand out from the industry competition.
Google2 - Content marketing with technical reports helps you gain competitive advantage. But when you combine that with SEO, the results multiply. When you write a technical report, SEO included, and post it online that makes it easier for Google to find your homepage, landing page, etc. This juices your website's search engine rankings. As your Google rankings rise, as you attract more prospects to your website, increasing your leads and sales even more.
Trending - With content marketing's increasing popularity, the trend for white paper marketing is also rising - quickly. Initially, IT technology companies used this form of marketing. Today, many other industries have adopted this form as well. Companies selling complex, expensive products with a long buying cycle make ideal candidates for selling with technical reports. As products complexity increases, more and more buyers independently research a product before buying. These emergent trends suggest a robust future for this form of marketing.
As you can see, many influential benefits accrue when you write special reports. However, Gordon Graham cites three reasons many special reports fail to engage and persuade: "... too much selling, too much hype and too much focus on the vendor".
To write a successful, lead generating special report, your content must engage and persuade prospects. Writing white papers places a premium on expertise not seen in any other marketing collateral.
Special reports must clearly explain complex concepts and details. Conveying expertise only comes with in-depth knowledge of the product or service. And as with other Marcom collateral, you must also know your customer intimately.
Address these two criteria and you'll unleash the dynamic, pent up power white papers command in generating leads, building trust, and closing sales.
Alex Milo, http://www.b2bcopywriting-alexmilo.com, is a professional B2B Copywriter and Certified Professional Logistician. Alex has worked in transportation and logistics operational and business development assignments. He now spends his time writing B2B marketing content and consulting with a focus on generating leads for transportation and logistics companies.

10 Keys to Successful Marketing With Postcards

10 Keys to Successful Marketing With Postcards
With virtually a 100% exposure rate, postcards are read the moment the mailbox is opened. There are no envelopes hiding your message, so it's useful to think of them as tiny billboards carrying your message to targeted, highly qualified prospects.
Postcards can be incredibly effective, but to maximize response rates, you must first understand some proven marketing principles.
1. Buy the right List
Every battle is won before it is ever fought and the success of any mailing campaign is pre-determined as well. Carry the right message to the right people and you will be successful; however, even the most brilliant marketing piece mailed to the wrong prospect will be a failure.
2. Go big or go small
One of the strategic decisions that must be made is whether to spend money on a highly targeted list or take advantage of the incredible postage discounts provided by the U.S. Postal Service's Every Door Direct Mail (EDDM) program. Both strategies have advantages and can be successful.
3. Use sequential mailings
Every direct mail campaign should contain a series of well-planned mailings. The mailings should not repeat the same card, but should reference previous mailings and work to develop a strategy, marketing message and brand.
4. Minimum of three
The minimum number of postcard mailings in any campaign should be three. There is no predetermined maximum, but mailings should continue until response rates drop below acceptable levels.
5. Give them one big idea per postcard
When writing the copy for your postcard, limit the focus to one big idea. If there are many advantages to your product or service, develop a campaign highlighting each of them. Focusing your copy in this manner will produce a clear message that hits your prospect with power.
6. Focus on writing a great bold headline
The first 10 words of your postcard will have more impact on the success of your campaign than the rest combined. Make your headline unique, compelling and bold enough to interrupt your prospect. Your goal is to stop them from whatever they are doing and concentrate 100% of their focus on your postcard.
7. Establish trust
Your prospects are bombarded with marketing messages every day, why should they believe you? Give them reasons to trust you including testimonials, studies and independent third-party endorsements. A policy offering a money-back guarantee can also be incredibly effective.
8. Make a simple compelling offer
Within the context of your one big idea, you need to make a simple, compelling offer. Tell them what to do and how to do it. Motivate them to take immediate action by offering additional benefits of responding promptly.
9. Make it easy to contact you
Provide your prospect with a contact name, email address, phone number, web address and physical address. Allow them to choose which media they prefer to use for response.
10. Understand you're in the marketing business
Regardless if your business is a dry cleaner, stock brokerage or insurance company, you must understand you're first and foremost in the marketing business. Every business needs new customers and the more efficiently the can be produced, the more successful the business will be.
Chain restaurants like McDonald's and Pizza Hut aren't successful because they have the best products; they are successful because they have great marketing. By following these 10 keys to postcard marketing, you'll be successful too.
Doug Dickson is the Chief Energizing Officer of Print Source One, a leading Phoenix printing company specializing in commercial printing, direct mail and postcards. http://www.printsourceone.net

Thursday, June 27, 2013

Creating Year Round Sales Consistency

Every business has natural fluctuations. Airlines sell more tickets around the holidays and in the summer; marketing companies tend to get very busy after the new year, when new budgets and new resolutions come into play. The issue is that in most cases, these businesses have to keep employing staffs and working hard all year round, which requires a constant, consistent cash flow. Is there any way to overcome these natural fluctuations in sales? Of course. But it requires some bravery.
For many people, it can be scary to spend more money when sales are dipping, but that's exactly what needs to be done. When you know you're coming into a slow period, you need to ramp up your marketing dollars, not down. During your peak periods, you can even scale back. In most cases, there's enough natural demand-people want to go home for the holidays on airlines, businesses want to make the most of new budgets-to carry you through. Instead of using the bulk of your marketing budget during high periods, save it for when you know things are going to get quiet. That's when you spend.
What your marketing needs to do during those quiet periods is to create that demand. It's not that people don't want to travel on airlines during the fall, it's simply there's no natural compelling reason for them to do so. As a savvy marketer, it's your job to show them all the fabulous places they could be going, the vacations they could be enjoying. You need to remind them how great it is to unwind, how much better they'll feel after a brief getaway. Creating demand where there is none is the true sign of a great marketer.
One way to jazz up your off-season marketing is with, you guessed it, direct mail marketing. It allows you to create a steady flow of persuasive information and content starting just before your slow period and continuing, ramping up and up until you've built a compelling case for making the purchase. It allows you to create pieces that are lingered over, postcards that people can put on their fridges to fantasize about the vacations they can be having. It's a more immediate, more emotional marketing tool that ephemeral email or irritating phone calls.
Spending more money when you know you're about to be quiet can be frightening, but it's usually the right move. Just as the government pumps money into the economy to stimulate it during dry spells, so you need to stimulate your down cycles.
For more information on evening out your cash flow, contact Premier Advantage Marketing. We'll help you figure out the best way to create a consistent customer base and great marketing that creates demand.

Tuesday, June 25, 2013

Direct Response Marketing For Newbies

Direct marketing is one of the easiest ways to reach out to your customers and get a quick response from their end.
Though such type of marketing approach is really simple, it requires a planned strategy and is mainly focused on how well a marketer can identify then communicate effectively to their key prospect.
There are many business owners who uses direct marketing for their services or products and sadly there are many that don't.
If you are not marketing direct, then you're more then likely a participant of what i call blind marketing. Having a planned approach is essential.
Knowing exactly who's ready to buy your stuff is like having a deadly weapon. Its a huge advantage on your part.
To ensure proper growth in your business, it is very necessary that the best and apt marketing technique is followed.
Before you plan any approach, it is essential to get familiar with the concept as What is Direct response marketing all about. It is a different form of marketing wherein marketers can directly come in contact with their key prospects and present different products they are offering and the excellent deals available on them.
As there are no intermediates therefore it becomes quite simple to target your audience in a better way. What the best entrepreneurs focus on is [ROI], Return On Investment not exactly how much money the business is bringing in.
There are thousands of companies that waste marketing dollars on ads that will never get read by the majority of the people they send it to. If you notice, most news paper readers will never read the entire news paper.
There's always a specific section they refer to ie. sports, classifieds, beauty etc. Therefore, wasting money by printing ads for people whom will take one glance and ultimately discard it makes no sense. It will leave you little to no ROI.
A planned approach - the real success mantra
Direct marketing is simple yet not easy. If you have a well designed Direct marketing plan, it will be easy to focus on your goals and the results will be visible soon.
Similarly if you just get into this field without any prior experience or knowledge, it will just be a waste of time.
Therefore, entrepreneurs usually rely on the experts as they have lots of information about the current market trends and employ the best strategies to get top notch results.
Structuring any Direct marketing campaign takes a little time and patience. To avoid wasting money and enhance your chances on getting ROI, it only makes sense to look to men who are already experts in this field.
If you want to serve your Direct marketing list the best ways possible, refer to Massiveprofitsystems.com to take advantage of THE MOST INCREDIBLE FREE GIFT EVER from direct marketing expert Dan Kennedy.

Monday, June 24, 2013

5 Secrets to Enhance Your Direct Mail Campaign

Even in the digital age, direct mail is still alive and well. With email being so easy to send, most of them go unread and ignored. But direct mail continues to have a better ROI, and generally stands out in a way that e-mail marketing can not. But like any form of marketing, direct mail is only as good as the idea behind it. And if you're looking to run your first direct mail campaign, there are certain enhancements that you may not realize are available to you. These small changes can help improve your response rates and ultimately bring in more customers.
  • Include a Branded Gift: A small gift, such as a cell phone cleaner or USB drive is a great way to ingratiate yours company to potential customers. Plus these items can be custom branded to feature your logo and contact info. So even if the recipient doesn't take advantage of this particular deal, they'll have a reminder of your business, and may use it to contact you in the future.

  • Data Variable Printing: You've most likely received a letter with your name or some other piece of personal information printed on it. This process is called Data Variable Printing, and it allows you to print each recipient's information on their specific mailer. Personalization is an excellent way to get a recipient's attention.

  • Personalized URL: A personalized url (or PURL) will display the recipient's name as part of your URL. This PURL will then send that recipient to a custom landing page. So for instance, you could print a URL on your mail piece that looks like this: recipientsname.youwebsite.com.

  • Follow Up with an Email: While direct mail on its own is more profitable than email, when combined you can create an even more successful campaign. Try sending out an email roughly one week after your estimated time of arrival for the mail piece (and make sure to remove those people who did respond). It can be a short and quick email. If anything it should seem as if it's a handwritten note sent just to them. Just ask if they had a chance to check out the offer and if they had any questions about it. Those recipients who might not have given it a second thought may now consider it with a little extra push. If you don't already have their email address, try sending another direct mail piece, or if you have their phone number give them a quick call.

  • Reduce Your Mail List: Got a huge mailing list with everyone and anyone who's ever given you a business card? Great! But are all of them going to be interested in this specific deal you're offering? Probably not. Knowing that, mailing your mail piece to everyone you know is a waste of money. Cutting your list down to those most likely to make a purchase is a great way to save money on your campaign and thus, increase return on investment.
Patrick Coyne is the manager of http://precisionenvelope.com/. Order Custom printed envelopes for your direct mail campaign online and get free shipping with the coupon code FREESHIP.

Sunday, June 23, 2013

Branding to Generate Leads - 7 Strategies and Tactics to Build Your Brand and Boost Your Leads Now

Work smarter - not harder.
You can work smarter to generate more leads by employing smart branding strategies and tactics. However, many companies fail to employ new strategies and tactics that consider today's marketplace and technology.
As a result, businesses fall short in building their brand and boosting their leads, conversions, and sales.
In today's competitive markets, branding and lead generation work best when they reinforce one another. If you view brand awareness and lead generation independently, you may be relying on dated strategies and tactics.
Before identifying how your business can improve its lead generation through branding, let's look at a definition of branding.
Business Dictionary.com defines branding as: "The process involved in creating a unique name and image for a product in the consumers' mind, mainly through advertising campaigns with a consistent theme. Branding aims to establish a significant and differentiated presence in the market that attracts and retains loyal customers.
Let's break that down:
• It's a process
• It identifies a unique name and image
• It consists of regular messaging through differentiation
• Its purpose is to attract and retain customers
With the purpose of "attracting" customers, branding implies emotional appeal. Lead generation, meanwhile, is more left-brain oriented.
With that in mind, let's explore seven easy-to-implement branding strategies and tactics.
Branding to Boost Your Lead Generation
1) Develop a "relevant" Unique Selling Proposition (USP) - A USP reflects the essence of your company and may be condensed into a tagline like Nike's Just Do It. But it's more than that. It also promotes company image. Therefore, your USP must be current and relevant. An outdated USP can cause more harm than good.
2) Promote Brand Awareness Consistently ­­­­- Someone once said, "Trust is built with consistency". Effective branding comes from consistent messaging in content, delivery and differentiation. Generate buzz online and off. Get your message out with Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. When you promote your brand consistently, you'll build trust and leads.
3) Integrate Branding with Your Marketing Communications - Integration goes beyond brand awareness. It means weaving your brand into your Marcom, such as white papers and press releases. White papers are especially effective because they position your business as an industry thought leader. This further builds trust translating into more leads. Also, create buzz with press releases and super-charge your Marcom by optimizing for search.
4) Integrate Branding with Your Marketing Events - Integrate online and offline events. Employ different platforms and delivery methods to reinforce your messaging. Publish a press release about a future promotional event. Broadcast it using LinkedIn Groups. Distribute brochures at a trade show. Later, follow-up with prospects by email.
5) Enlist Your Customers - Cut your rabid brand fans loose. Brand Advocates author, Rob Frugetta, says raving fans are 50% more influential than other customers. Nothing beats "unbiased" marketing. Let customers tell their stories about how your business solved their problem. Publish case studies often and consistently to generate more leads.
6) Develop your community - 80% of profits comes from 20% of customers. Go one step further. Build on your customer's brand enthusiasm. Publish a blog to engage them. Solicit their input and feedback and build that emotional connection on Twitter or Facebook. And, address concerns in more depth with email.
7) Put it all together - Leverage all the above. Employ them in a coherent, strategic, and holistic manner. This combines left-brain and right-brain marketing. Results from this synergy outperform results from pursuing just one or the other.
These strategies and tactics have additional benefits. You can implement these tips without a huge budget. As you transform your lead generation program, you'll meet little, if any, resistance from your boss.
Building brand awareness and boosting lead generation are not mutually exclusive. They work more effectively and efficiently with a holistic approach. Include them in your branding strategy, and you'll see results.
Alex Milo, http://www.b2bcopywriting-alexmilo.com, is a professional B2B Copywriter and Certified Professional Logistician. Alex has worked for over 25 years in transportation and logistics operational and business development assignments. He now spends his time writing B2B marketing content and consulting with a focus on generating leads for transportation and logistics companies.

Saturday, June 22, 2013

Build Your Home Business for Success

Building an online home business is a very important and consuming task so you will need to spend considerable time planning and organizing details. Remember that an online business is constantly open and in front of searching customers ready to buy what you have to sell. That fact implies you have ready to serve them 24 hours a day.
You should always keep in mind that traffic to your website is one of the most import keys for home business success. A good equation to remember is that: Traffic = Customers & Customers= Sales which = Cash for your business profit statement.
Below are some great ways to use network advertising and marketing to bring visitors to your site.
Building a great track record with consumers is essential in online home business marketing. The Internet is above all else a tool for people to communicate with each one another. Clients pleased with a certain internet site will discuss it favorably all over the Internet. Conversely, disappointed consumers will register their displeasure far and wide. An excellent web marketing strategy is to make the most of the former and minimize the latter.
You can make your home business presence known by finding other authority sites to link to. There are many places where you can study linkbuilding and when you become proficient at the strategies involved you will find it is one of the most valuable skills you will learn about marketing your online business.
Keep your website clear of distraction so that you can encourage your customer to focus only on the item you are marketing. Post new content on the home business website as regularly and as often as you can to keep people coming back to see what you are up to. Consumers should be able to scan your posts and sales pages and immediately determine what you are selling and why they'd be interested
A cluttered and uninteresting page will cause prospective buyers to lose interest very early and without any possibility of making your offer to them.
It's important that your website is either very plain or simple or very well designed. You could hire someone at fiverr.com to do this for you fairly cheaply. Depending on your budget you might hire a website developer to build your home business website.
Flash is among the most advanced and expert website production tools that you can make the most of if you choose to try your hand at developing your own business website. You may find opportunity to use this tool to develop websites for others as well.
This can become part of your home business service for your clients and at the same time adding a second income funnel to your primary home business. Using a tool like Flash will ensure a streamlined internet site and enhance the total viewing experience of your consumers.
When you are writing a post you should be don't hesitate to express your opinions due to the fact that it will help you get in touch with readers. You should avoid acting like yours is the only opinion that matters. You can make it clear to your customers that it is just your viewpoint and not necessarily the way others will see it.
At the bottom of every page on your site, do not forget to include a back to top button. This is just one of those little things that make it convenient for visitors to explore your page at their leisure.
Online marketing is the finest method to obtain attention on the internet. By making using of these suggestions, you are making your best effort to ensure your business is going to pull in new prospective customers or clients and that you can sustain your home business and build a future for yourself.
Owning a successful home business, marketing products you believe in on the internet is often the very best of two worlds between work and home.
Doris is a registered Social Worker and has been involved in her developing affiliate marketing online business for the past 5 years.
You can view her website at: http://incomewithaffiliatemarketing.com

Thursday, May 30, 2013

WARNING! You Could Be Losing 52% of Your New Customers and Not Even Know It

According to a study done by Google, 52% of users said that a bad mobile web experience made them less likely to engage with a company. They just leave the website and never return. But unfortunately you do not even know about it. Think about the last time you were home watching tv and saw a commercial for something that interested you, and in the commercial their website was given. What did you do, go to your computer turn it on then visit the site? Of course not you picked up your smartphone from the table beside you, and went to the website right from your chair. Now you are on the site but what do you see? The company's main website, that is slow to load, hard to read, you have to pinch and scroll to read it and some of the pictures or videos will not load. You get frustrated, your show comes back from commercial you leave the site and do not return.

Most websites today are not mobile optimized, which causes your website to not work properly on a mobile device. This is a major problem because it is estimated that by 2014 mobile internet usage will overtake desktop internet usage. In that same study by Google 67% of mobile users say that when they visit a mobile optimized site, they're more likely to buy that site's product or service. So it is vital for your business that you have a mobile optimized site. There are several key things your site must have to provide a good mobile experience for your visitors:
  • The site must be quick to load - 50% of mobile internet users will only wait 5 seconds for a site to load before they leave.
  • The site must have clear and simple navigation - Most people are in a hurry when using a mobile site they want to be able to find what they are looking for quickly and easily.
  • Contact Information - This is very important! Your business contact info must be easy to find and must be set up as click to action. Click to action is a way to program the site so that when the info is clicked, the appropriate action is taken on the phone. so if they click on your phone number it opens the dialer on the phone and calls you automatically.
  • The site must be thumb friendly - Mostly everything on a smartphone is done with the thumbs so you site must be easy to use with the thumbs.
There are two main options for getting your mobile optimized website, the first option is to have a separate mobile website designed, and use a mobile redirect script to connect it to your main website. The mobile version of your site is created on a subdomain of your site. If someone enters the subdomain url they get the mobile site. When someone enters your main domain url, the site detects what type of device you are using and if it is a mobile device it gives them the mobile site. If it is computer it gives them the main site.
The second option is to use a responsive design template on your website or a plugin. Using this option the site detects the type of device you are using and shrinks your site to fit the screen. The plugin is a template that gets loaded when using a mobile device.
Choosing the best option for your business is highly dependent on your individual business and current website design.
To learn more about mobile marketing visit my site at http://trevorlang.com. There you can get your free copy of The Mobile Marketing Game Plan Report.

Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Do You Really Need A Unique Selling Proposition?

A unique selling proposition or USP has been around since the early 1960's. Famous advertising guru, Rosser Reeves popularized this idea in his book, Reality of Advertising.
A USP identifies the prime quality of your product or service to distinguish itself from the competition.
He said a USP must consist of three deceptively simple elements:
· An advertisement must make a proposition
· It must be unique
· It must sell
That's it.
To help you understand this more clearly, here are some well-known and successful taglines that capture the essence of their product's USP:
· FEDEX - When it absolutely, positively has to be there overnight!
· BMW - The Ultimate Driving Machine!
· Nike - Just do it!
Why Having a USP is Important
The USP is more than a half century old. Do you really need a USP in the 21st century?
To answer that let's look at today's marketplace.
Management guru, Jack Trout, wrote a book called Differentiate or Die! Survival in Our era of Killer Competition. The title says it all. In his book, Trout clearly makes the case for having a USP as a means to deal with hyper-competition.
In the early 60's we had regional and national competition. Today we have global markets. That's resulted in increased trade, further adding to the product explosion. Trout says it will only get worse. That's the new normal.
Do You Really Need A USP?
During the Great Recession, competition in the transportation and logistics industry has been brutal. To survive a driver shortage, rising fuel costs, and downward price pressures, many trucking companies expanded their service offerings.
Acting as a booster, economics as well as technology and innovation further fuel expansion of services. And it's no different in many other industries. In competitive markets, successful businesses combat the competition by standing out from the crowd.
The choice explosion from the 1970's to the 1990's makes this even more difficult.
McDonald's had 13 items on its menu in the 70's and 43 in the 90's. The number styles of Levi's jeans went from 41 styles to 70. Vehicle styles went from 654 to 1,212. This unbridled growth applies to all manner of products and services.
Philip Kotler, professor of marketing at Northwestern, says that successful companies have adapted to this hyper-competition by adding a twist to the USP called a UESP. They identify an "emotional" association with their product or service.
He points to Ferrari as a prime examples. Cars perform the same function, so there's little differentiation. But Ferrari has an emotional appeal other products don't have. That's what separates it from the competition.
How effective is marketing with a USP? In a study of more than 4,200 businesses by Stevens Consulting Group, 81% of executives said a USP is more effective than a sales campaign. This overwhelmingly supports the value of a USP in today's marketplace.
The Bottom Line
Competition will continue to intensify. Given that reality, savvy marketers have no choice but to identify and market their USP.
If that falls short, add a twist and market with a UESP.
In Jack Trout's words: Differentiate or die!
Alex Milo is a professional B2B Copywriter and Certified Professional Logistician. specializing in generating leads for transportation and logistics companies. You can reach him at amilo@b2bcopywriting-alexmilo.com or phone him at 256-886-4684. He can also be reached via fax: 256-217-4483. His website is at: http://www.b2bcopywriting-alexmilo.com. Alex Milo is also on LinkedIn at: http://www.linkedin.com/in/alexandermilo.

Sunday, May 26, 2013

How to Win At Trade Shows

Trade shows are your chance to double your market overnight - or go home empty handed. In many industries, trade shows are one of the few events where massive numbers of potential customers will be concentrated all in one place, in a mood to buy - or at least listen to your message.
But just showing up at a trade show with a great product doesn't guarantee you any kind of results. There are many aspects to trade show success, but we want to focus on one of the simplest yet most overlooked: presentation.
Many companies give all their attention to the pitch and the collateral, both of which matter greatly. The reality is that hundreds of other booths offer products that, to the busy attendee, seem a lot like yours. They won't take the time to hear your 30 second hook or look over your brochure unless you stand out in the first glance. That's where your display and booth setup come in, and in many ways it is the first (and therefore more important) impression you're going to make.
That's why use of a slatwall and other professional display equipment is a game changer.
A slatwall is a modular booth structure made for optimum display area. It fits onto a base sized for standard booths and can be reconfigured as a simple backdrop, a wrap around display or a walled room to give your booth a more enclosed feeling. Every inch of a slatwall is designed for hanging your brand message, whether that be with oversize display images of individual collateral hung up for perusing.
Slatwalls work well with stand-alone banners and display pieces, but they are also self-contained so that you still have your full display in action if a trade show confines presenters to their booth space. Nothing sprawls out into the aisle unless you want it to.
Many companies try to cut corners by showing up with homemade displays, flimsy stands or nothing more than a table and flyers. In most industries these are the same booths that are passed by. Major buyers are pulled in toward the large, professional booths that clearly have something to offer.
No slatwall or banner will make up for a weak product or a poor pitch. But they act like a marquee pointing to the most serious companies, and if your sales team is ready for the rush they will open the door to serious prospects.
Deniel Benson writes for Display, leading providers of trade show displays in US. Displays and Exhibits is known for flexibility and creativity, including slatwall designing portable displays. Deniel is an author for a Business of Presentation and graphics issues or topics.

Friday, May 24, 2013

Direct Marketing Techniques - Profiling and Targeting

Direct marketing techniques have over recent years become more sophisticated in order for businesses across many sectors to be able to compete with the best or to at least maximise their potential client base. Direct marketing techniques have not become more sophisticated in terms of making drastic changes, but the way in which certain aims and objectives are approached. Profiling and targeting is just one of those direct marketing techniques in which the approach has changed over recent years.
Companies that undertake direct marketing campaigns have had to change due to other marketing techniques being not only very popular, but also very competitive. For example, over the past decade or so, on-line marketing has become one of the most used marketing methods, but at the same time it's the most competitive and can cost a fortune to 'get noticed' on-line; not always the case, but is a regular occurrence.
What does Profiling and Targeting enable Businesses to Achieve?
Profiling and Targeting enables businesses to target certain types of people; class, background, interests, gender and so forth. This certainly helps businesses to target individuals or groups of people that are more likely to be interested in the service or product that the business is offering. For example, SAGA, who specialise in services and products for the over 50's group would not be maximising their marketing campaign if half of their leaflets were distributed to home owners that are under 50.
Therefore, there is much less chance of the marketing budget being wasted. Even though a business may profile and target their clients in a professional manner, this does not guarantee a successful direct marketing campaign. Other elements of the campaign must also be enticing, relevant and stand out from the competition I.e. a company should brand their products, services etc so that they appeal to the market in which they are trying to target; you would not have a dull looking leaflet if you are promoting holidays abroad - it just doesn't work!
Whereas, if the leaflet stands out and appeals to the correct target audience, then there's more chance of maximising your profits or achieving your overall aim of the direct marketing campaign.
How Does Profiling and Targeting Work?
OK, so once you've decided upon the type of marketing technique(s) e.g. leaflet distribution, there are certain aspects that need to be analysed on an in-depth basis - no stone should be left unturned, after all it's your money that could not only be wasted, but leave you with the impression that your campaign didn't work for the wrong reasons.
These are the steps in which you need to take when it comes to profiling and targeting effectively: -
  • Quality Assurance through planning - aspects such as identifying your target market (social class etc), decide on the number of leaflets you will distribute are determined at this stage.
  • Targeted Marketing Solutions - Understand your customers; look at the demographics of similar existing customers.
  • Geo demographic targeting - some direct marketing agencies will use software that targets customers demographically and can be the difference between a very successful and not so successful campaign.
  • Analyse statistics - ensure that statistics used from data bases are analysed in-depth so that opportunities are less likely to be missed and acted upon.
Direct marketing agencies that provide targeting and profiling services should be able to give you a good insight and understanding of what is required and the steps that would be potentially best to follow.
Procedures must also be followed but also flexible when needed to be i.e. agencies should be able to adapt to problems/issues in order for your business to gain maximum exposure.
Harnek has an in-depth understanding of Leaflet Distribution and how different businesses should approach their direct advertising campaigns.

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Eye Catching Business Flyers

Every business owner knows that without advertising, a business is not going to grow very much. A lot of time, imagination and money has to go into discovering new and exciting ways to attract customers. One of the most tried and true ways of advertising, especially for the smaller business owner, has always been business flyers. Business flyers are effective and relatively inexpensive ways to get the word out about your services. In order for your business flyers to accomplish this purpose, however, you must ensure that the flyers attract an individual's attention in the first place.
Creating eye catching business flyers can make a huge impact on attracting future customers. Business flyers can easily be purchased from printing shops specializing in leaflet printing, newspaper printing and brochure printing services. Below you will find several tips to make sure that your flyers grab the customers you are after.
Appeal to Your Customers' Concerns
It is not just enough to advertise your services. You should develop the text of your flyer so that it appeals to your customers' emotions, needs and concerns. Instead of simply advertising a Mother's Day sale on flowers, you might try wording it such as "Make Mom Feel Loved This May!" The text you choose as your headline will be crucial to the success of your flyer.
Choose Colours Carefully
Whether you are choosing leaflet printing or brochure printing services, you will have a vast array of colours to choose from. Your colour scheme needs to be attractive without being overwhelming. Also, regardless of the colours you choose, you should always opt for text to be printed in traditional black.
Enhance With Images
Humans are visual creatures. Pictures are still worth a thousand words. Even newspaper printing services will offer the option of adding images to enhance your business flyer. Choose an image that will cause an individual to look twice. You want to cause curiosity. Make them ask themselves, "What is that all about?" Make sure images you choose are clear and not grainy, blurred or distorted in anyway. Let the headline and image do most of the talking. You do not need to print an entire paragraph about your services. A business flyer should have just enough information to make an individual seek more information.
Contact Information
You should make all of your contact information available on your business flyer. If there are multiple ways to make contact with your business include each one. You would hate to lose business simply because someone could not contact you. Contact information should include your company's address, email, and all contact phone numbers. If you are advertising an event, be sure to list the event date in the most easily understandable way. Also include specific event times or business hours.
For more information on expanding a company in terms of branding and marketing or to find out how print management could help your business, please get in contact with or visit PrintandDigitalAssociates.co.uk who are experts in the field.

Monday, May 20, 2013

The Usefulness of a Product Catalog

Product catalogs may sound a little old school. Most people go online these days to find information. But if you have a lot of products and your customers want something they can take with them, away from your website, you might consider going old school for a little bit. That doesn't mean that you have to actually print out the catalogs and send them through the mail, but you might consider making a digital version of one and make it available for you customers to download.
What are the benefits of having an online catalog? Believe it or not there are several. A catalog is a great way to get all your products lined up with brief information about each. Be sure to include high lights such as color and size if applicable. Of course you want to make sure that you include prices for each product so that your customers will know what to expect to pay for them.
You don't have to give detailed information in your catalog. You want to make sure that you are giving your customers enough information to satisfy their basic questions. Make sure that you include more information about each product on your website so that when your customers come to buy they can get more information if necessary. You've piqued their curiosity with the catalog but now you've sealed the purchase with the website information.
Catalogs are a great way to promote some of the items you have on your site that may not be easily found. Also if you have a brick and mortar store as well as an online site you can distinguish in your catalog which items are exclusively online or exclusively in store. This can save some frustration for those customers who see something online only to find that it's sold in stores only. You can limit your online space to items you offer only online, making the online shopping experience less frustrating.
Product catalogs take time to put together but they are a great marketing tool. If you do plan on doing a direct mail campaign having one of these handy to send out to area customers can make all the difference. Instead of simply reading a bunch of paragraphs about what you have, you can show them the products that you carry regularly for their convenience. Each copy, whether paper or electronic, should have instructions on how to purchase items, your web address, and contact information so that your customers can contact you if they have any questions.
Ds Writing Pad LLC can help with the designing and creating of your companies product catalog. Check out our website at http://www.dswritingpad.com/catalogs.html for more information.