Four Ways to Market Your Business in 2009

By Bill Tamminga

Your success as a business owner or executive will be largely determined by how many high quality clients you can attract and retain. Following is a detailed discussion about how to use different sales and marketing techniques to draw attention to your business. The key to all of these marketing strategies is to provide good information to a targeted group of people. To see how large your target market is, simply google "consumer demographics" or "direct mail target market" and you will find several companies who will provide this service for you. These companies should be able to tell you how large your target market is and other helpful information including where your prospects live by zip code, how much income they earn, and more. You can use this service as a tool to gauge how large your market is and, if you buy the list, you can use it to fill your pipeline with the right kind of leads.

Now let's move on to four proven ways to market your business in the first quarter.

Seminars and Workshops

Seminars and workshops that offer quality information about your business, market, or industry, are becoming popular ways to build a client base. You can differentiate yourself by showing how clients how to use your services and how you fill a need that your competitors cannot. Do not be discouraged if your first seminars do not draw a crowd. If you find a systematic way to incorporate them into your marketing plan, people will show up over time.

Mailers

Some service business owners have done well marketing their businesses through direct mail. Others I have talked to aren't fans of it at all. If you are going to do it, make sure you take the time to do it well. Your mailer needs to be eye-catching and to-the-point. Here are some pointers on direct mail advertising.

• Use a targeted list.
• Set an objective. Do you want prospects to call for a free consultation? Do you want them to R.S.V.P. for your next seminar? What type of action do you want them to take?
• Write a good headline. Try to strike an emotion (pain and fear are often used) from the start.
• Include a specific call to action. "The first 10 callers will receive...". "Call (555) 555-5555 now for your free consultation." Those are the types of words you'll want to use.
• Test your mailing before sending it out to thousands of prospects. A random sample of 500 postcards or letters should give you a good feel for how the market will respond to that particular mailing.

Several companies have samples of quality direct mail pieces on their website. Google "direct mail sample" and a list will come up.

Radio Shows and Podcasts

Several top service business owners create regular podcasts or even host their own radio show. If you want to see what one of the best in the business is doing, visit John Dvorak's site called crankygeeks.com, click on "Episodes" on the left-hand navigation bar, and download the podcasts. Podcasts can be a great alternative if you don't want to go through the process of starting your own show.

Write Articles

If starting a radio show or podcast isn't your cup of tea, maybe article writing is more for you. Local business journals or newspapers are almost always looking for expert writers on a regular basis. If those channels don't work, you can publish your articles at a number of online submission companies.

Get a jump start on your marketing in 2009 by implementing at least one of these strategies into your business plan.

Bill is the creator of the GR Business Growth System and the author of Advanced Business Triage, a set of white papers that explain Bill's systematic business assessment and growth plan for service business owners and managers, high end sales professionals, and independent financial planners. GR corporate training offers reasonably priced leadership, management, sales, and marketing courses. The course texts come from leading institutions including Harvard Business School, the University of Southern California, the Gallup Organization, and others. Visit http://www.GoalRevolution.com for more information and to order your FREE subscription to the GR Newsletter. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Bill_Tamminga

First Impressions - Make Sure Your Website Follows These 10 Things

By Kimberly Reddington

When someone first visits your website, you have 10 seconds to WOW them. It is in those first 10 seconds when someone decides to either leave or look around. Here are ten things to think about when analyzing your website:

1. Your website should appear professional, clean and simple.

When you walk into a physical store, you are more apt to buy from a store that is clean, easy to walk around the aisles, sells quality products that are neatly placed on shelves or racks, and has a friendly yet well-established feel. Your website should have a similar look and feel. Avoid clutter, allow for white space around items and make it easy for the visitor to move around.

2. Your navigation should be easy and simple.

If your visitors are having trouble finding what they are looking for immediately, it is much too easy for them to return to their search and find a competitor with easier navigation. Keep navigation in a prominent location with simple to use tabs and links.

3. Select an attractive and comfortable color palette.

Learn what colors your audience prefers, as well as the impression you are trying to set off. If you want to relax your visitors, then use subtle and light colors. If you want to excite your visitors, then use vibrant colors. Stick to colors and shades that work well together. Use a color wheel to see which colors complement each other.

4. Create a branding statement and utilize that statement throughout the whole website.

Your business should have a special brand that makes you stand out from competitors. Your brand is your unique look that grabs your visitor's attention. Place your brand prominently near the top of your home page or landing page. Make sure to keep you brand throughout the whole site to give everything a consistent look and feel.

5. Display what your business is all about.

Your visitors will only spend 10 seconds perusing your site before deciding to move on. Make sure that they learn what your business is all about within those first 10 seconds. If your url or business name doesn't easily explain your business purpose, then make sure to create a tagline and use that as part of your branding statement.

6. Make sure that important "calls to action" are in places where the user can see them.

Most visitors will not read your entire home page. People tend to peruse a web page quickly. The use of colors and bolding can make important words and phrases stand out more and catch the reader's attention. Make sure that important links or buttons are easy to see, stand out, and are not too far down the page.

7. Prominently display quality graphics and images.

Graphics and other images on your website will grab your visitor's attention much more than text. Make sure that your images are high quality graphics and are optimized for fast loading.

8. Use photos to display the quality of your products.

Since visitors cannot pick up your products to look at them, they rely on images and graphics. Use attractive images and photos that are large enough to show important details.

9. Use stand-alone web pages.

Unlike a magazine or catalog, you cannot predict which web pages your visitor will read first, next, or last. Avoid having content in your pages that is dependent on your visitor having seen another page first. Make sure each page can stand on its own.

10. Test your navigation and links.

Test your completed design by showing it around to others. See how they navigate. Asking your testers open-ended questions will help you to get a feel for how they are perceiving your look and the navigation. Are they having trouble finding certain features of your site?

Your website may be your visitor's first impression of you and your business. Colors, images, fonts, text and other visuals will bring out certain feelings and thoughts the second a visitor views their first web page of your site. You want to be sure you are sending out the right messages that are inline with what your niche is expecting.

Kimberly Reddington, Moms in Business Thoughtleader for CereusWomen.com, teaches moms how to turn their skills and talents into a successful home-based service business and to find a balance between their business and their family. Discover Kim's popular special report by visiting http://www.CereusWomen.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Kimberly_Reddington

Why You Should Build Your Reputation

By Helen Dowling

Reputation in business is everything. It helps you build trust and credibility with your customers and contacts; it can help persuade someone to buy from you if they're not sure and it's also far easier to raise your prices if people perceive you as an expert.

Building your reputation is one of the most important things you can do in your marketing. There's nothing more powerful than this - I'd much rather buy from someone who looked as though they knew what they were doing. Wouldn't you?

So, if it's that important, how do you go about doing this?

Well, there are lots of ways you can build your reputation as an expert in your field. Here's just a few - I'm sure you'll be able to think of other things you can do too:

1. Speaking on the radio
2. Commenting on a subject in the press
3. Speaking at an event or a conference
4. Having a letter that you sent to a newspaper or magazine published
5. Being associated with a major organisation
6. Participating in on-line forums
7. Entering awards
8. Being seen on your local television news
9. Writing and publishing articles
10. Having a regular column either in the press or on-line
11. Writing a blog or contributing to the blogs of others
12. Writing e-books, reports and tips sheets
13. Holding an event and giving a demonstration
14. Being an expert on a talk show (go on, be brave!)
15. Write and publish a book

I know not all of these ideas will appeal to you, but if any of them do, go out there and give them a go. The more you concentrate on building your reputation, the more people will perceive you as an expert - and that can't be a bad thing at all.

Exceptional Thinking (http://www.exceptionalthinking.co.uk) provides help, advice and support to small businesses on their marketing and to people starting up in business.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Helen_Dowling