Should I Be Blogging For My Business?

Many people have asked me if I think creating a blog for their business is a good thing to do. In order to answer that question, it's important to understand what a blog is.

If you look it up on Wikipedia, you will find this definition: "A blog is a type of website or part of a website. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video."

To help you better understand how to leverage this medium, you need to also understand Social Media. Online presence is critical for your business and blogs can help you to establish your credibility. By creating and posting content that is beneficial to your clients and prospects, you are effectively generating awareness and building relationships with your target audience.

When people need something, they search the Internet for similar information. What a great opportunity for you to connect with them when they need something that you can provide! Think of your blog as making a first impression to your prospects and building/maintaining credibility with your clients. In addition, it's one more way for you to bring awareness to your community about your business and/or services!

People can also search for your blog by looking for specific content through the following sites:

* Placeblogger
* Outside.in
* Bloglines

There are many blog hosting sites, but I recommend Blogger.com if you're just getting started as the interface is very intuitive. Make sure your content is helpful and don't forget to include a link to recent posts on your Facebook business page, Twitter and Linkedin profiles. The more places people see you, the more awareness you generate! Happy blogging!

New Swiping Technology

Sometimes technology impresses me. Sometimes service impresses me. This time, I found something that impresses me on both counts and I just had to share it with you.

I just discovered a device called Square. This device plugs into the audio port of your iPhone or Android and, with a downloaded app, you can swipe and process credit cards.

Which credit cards? Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover - all at the same flat rate.

What are the processing rates? 2.75% per swiped transaction. 3.5% + .15 for keyed-in transactions.

The benefits go on and on, so I encourage you to check it out at www.squareup.com.

Work/Life Balance

I am a fan of TED and watch videos of the speakers each year. Their tag line is "Ideas Worth Spreading" which speaks to my marketing heart. I've always enjoyed sharing ideas. Brainstorming is one of my favorite hobbies.

I came across this particular video on work/life balance by Nigel Marsh. Not only was I interested in the topic, but I liked the message regarding the lives of corporate warriors today. For those of you who currently work for a corporation, take note. Your employer, no matter how good they are, will do what they can to get the most out of you. They could care less about your health or personal life.

Here are the four points that Nigel makes in his presentation at TED:

1. Most people work long, hard hours at jobs they hate to buy stuff they don't need to impress people they don't like.

2. If you don't design your own life, someone will do it for you - and you may not like their idea of work/life balance.

3. Be realistic regarding timef rame. You can't do it all in one day, yet don't wait until you retire either.

4. The small things matter. Balance does not require a dramatic upheaval.

If you would like to watch Nigel's video, CLICK HERE.

Nigel Marsh is also a published writer. His book "Overworked & Underlaid - a seriously funny guide to life" has received pretty good marks.

So, maybe it's time to take stock of your miserable existence and make some small changes that help you to enjoy life more. And for all you entrepreneurs out there, you're on the right track!

Who Is Really Marketing Your Company?

Something just occurred to me. I've been learning about social media for a while now and I am always looking for ways to communicate to businesses why it's imperative that they should add this medium to their marketing plans. Awareness campaigns. Promotions. Target large audiences. Test the market. Yes, these are all good reasons, but I just realized what social media sites have really done to our society to make this strategy enormously effective:

Social media has turned the typical consumer into a marketer for products and services.

Congratulations! You are now in the marketing profession! With social media, word-of-mouth marketing has been amplified! Not just by sharing recommendations and testimonials, but also being able to easily provide links to videos, articles and websites for products and services.

If I were a business owner, I would be crazy not to participate in this on-line movement. Consumers are savvy! They want recommendations and information. They search for and read testimonials. If your business doesn't have an on-line presence in the places that your consumers are tapped into (Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin), guess what happens? You don't get their business. And your company isn't promoted to the people that they know - which is an average of 250 potential prospects.

Consumers are marketers.

That means that every person that purchases from you is a marketing campaign for your company. Can you wrap your head around that concept for just a second? Has your cranium exploded yet? Talk about mind-blowing!

I'll let you sit with that thought for now. But before you jump in to the social media pool, let me know. I wouldn't want you to drown.

Marketing Trends for 2011

It's a fact: Customers are continuing to search for information and make increasingly more purchases online. This is where consumers are, so it makes sense that marketers arrange their budgets to involve more Internet marketing efforts. And what's not to love? Internet marketing allows us to reach targeted audiences online, it's more cost-effective and it's easy to measure the results!

What does this mean for your marketing plan? It means that the traditional marketing you've been investing in is going away. What is replacing it?

1) Mobile Marketing - Who doesn't use their smart phones to check their email and search the Internet these days? You've seen the "Text to #12345 and get a free " campaigns. Welcome to the future of mobile marketing.

2) Social Media - Companies are integrating social media into their overall marketing plan now that they've realized it works. Plus, they've expanded it's use from just brand management and customer service to using it as an effective target marketing tool and to collect customer data!

3) Optimized Websites - Just because you have a website doesn't mean people can find you. If you haven't had your website optimized or it's been over a year, it's time to talk to a Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Specialist TODAY! Websites can be more than just an online brochure. It can generate leads for you if it's optimized appropriately.

As you begin or continue to utilize Internet Marketing as a primary source of lead generation for your business, remember this: Relationships will always drive loyalty and sales. Keep this in mind as you are planning your marketing communications. It's the relationships you want to develop and maintain that will be key to the success of your business.

May success find you in 2011!

Marketing Planning for 2011

I think most of us business owners are done for the year and gearing up for next year. If you haven't started planning your marketing activities for next year, now is the time to get squared away.

Successful business owners are planners. It's important to get your business strategy down on paper and review your plans quarterly, making adjustments along the way. Maintaining a marketing calendar helps you execute your marketing efforts and keep you focused on your goals in a structured and thought-out manner, making your job much easier.

Download: Monthly Marketing Calendar

If you decide to fire yourself as the Marketing Director of your business in 2011, I am here to help you find the right marketing vehicles to promote your business.

Good luck to you in 2011! May you prosper and live life abundantly!

Storytelling: Make An Impression

On Monday, November 29th, I went to see Roger Waters at Staples Center. For those of you who don't know Mr. Waters, he was a founding member of the band Pink Floyd. My friends and I were in a suite straight across from the stage - what an incredible view.

This post is about marketing, I promise.

The stage was set up like a partial wall with blocks missing. My impression was that, hey, he's playing songs from The Wall album - this makes sense. However, what he did with that wall during the performance was the most visually stimulating thing I've ever seen at a concert.

Roger Waters - The Wall

After the first couple of songs filled with pyrotechnics and crashing planes, he stepped up to the microphone and told the audience that he had done some calculating back in his dressing room and realized it had been 30 years, ___ months and ___ days since he had performed The Wall in Los Angeles. It was at the Sports Arena. People cheered and I'm willing to bet many of them had attended that performance.

The smell of pot was wafting through the Staples Center. I watched in awe as the wall became a projection screen. Perfectly timed with the music, the images flashed before my eyes sprinkled with quick audio and visual clips of Martin Luther King and past presidents' speaking. There were B-52 bombers dropping religious, Mercedes and Shell symbols, pictures of people who perished because of war, common graves and starving children.

One video clip in particular really hit me hard. An American girl was sitting in her classroom clapping to welcome a mystery guest. Then, slowly, there was a look of shock that took her over as she recognized the person who just walked in the door was her dad, still in his fatigues, who had just come back from the war. She slowly rises, hands over her mouth, and stumbles into his arms.

The images continued through the performance - answering questions that he asks in the song "Mother", goose-stepping hammers, Pink Floyd icons as the wall was gradually built... together, the all told a story and no one left that concert with some level of awareness.

Review of Roger Waters' Concert

Yes, it was a million-dollar production with a huge crew, lights, music, imagery, flame cannons and a really tall wall that came tumbling down at the end. We may not have this at our disposal, but it helped me to remember there are many marketing tools at our fingertips that we may not be using to tell our story.

Video commercials posted on websites and social media sites are becoming more and more popular. It's because a video is worth a thousand printed words. Combining images, music and well written scripts, you have a chance to impact your audience like never before.

If you want to take your marketing to a new level, video commercials will do just that. I know an amazing videographer. Let me know if you would like me to put you in touch with him!