The reality is, businesses need paying customers to stay afloat. But, as the marketing machine continues to churn out new ways of attracting them, often times, as business owners, we find ourselves moving further and further away from the very people we’re trying to connect with – customers. As a marketer, I’ll admit, things…
‘Tis the season for holiday cheer. A time to enjoy family, friends, good food, presents and more. And for many small business owners, it’s a time to reflect on months gone by. The things we’ve done right, the things we’ve done wrong, and especially those things we said we were going to do, but never did….
Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday has officially kicked off the holiday shopping season. Email inboxes are bursting with special promotions, discounts, and coupons, just waiting to be redeemed. That’s right – email marketing. While social media and mobile marketing get all the attention, email marketing is still one of the most effective and least…
Have you ever wondered how some businesses get so many Twitter followers and you’ve been stuck at 10 for months now? Well, you’re in good company. That’s a challenge for many small businesses, including my own. Building a social following takes time. But, while time certainly is a factor, so is effort. Building a social…
Blockbuster video stores are closing. It was recently announced that the remaining 300 US stores will close by January. For those of us who can’t remember the last time we’ve walked into a Blockbuster, this is no surprise. But you wonder. How can a company that once dominated the movie rental market, employed 60,000 people, and had 9,000 retail locations at its peak in 2004 be down…
“The customer is always right.” A classic saying championed by retail moguls like Marshall Field way back in the 1800s and is still alive and well today. In fact, empowered with smartphones and tablets, customers are supplying feedback on their experiences at the point of sale and sharing it with the masses. So, it seems as if the balance of…
Through online efforts, today’s tech savvy small business owner has an opportunity to reach well beyond their local footprint to find customers. In this new and exciting digital age, small businesses can become global businesses, with customers and resources from all over the world. And they do so by knowing how to be found on…
LinkedIn has well over 200 million users and is the 13th most viewed website in the world. For business owners, professionals, and job seekers, it is the place to be and be seen. When you get in there and figure out how it works, LinkedIn can be a great source for generating leads, nurturing client relationships, driving traffic to your website,…
Creating content takes work. Blogs, videos, eBooks, white papers, infographics, even the snippet of text you send with an article you’re sharing, that’s all content that you can use to brand yourself and your business in the minds of your existing and potential customers. When one engages in content marketing, you’re making a deliberate effort, not to…
Women are leaving the corporate workspace. Tired of having to juggle working eight-hour days stuck behind a desk only to go home and pull a second shift with the house, husband, and kids, many women have taken the leap of faith to become business owners.  Whether they’re following their passion, want to see what they do done better, are seeking…
As marketers, we love to tell our clients that they should be on Google+. It’s the second largest social networking site in the world. It’s indexed by Google, which means that having a business page on Google+ can help your customers find your business faster and easier. In fact, adding +1’s to your web pages can get you up…
One of the biggest challenges facing smaller businesses today is raising brand awareness. It’s a tough market out there and smaller names tend to get lost in the shuffle. And while most of the buzz about branding revolves around social media, for smaller firms, especially those that serve a local, maybe regional, market, adding event sponsorships to your overall strategy…