I’m starting a small business -the products are jeweled/beaded bookmarks, fabric purse organizers and little girl hair bows. They will be sold in hair salons, book stores, antique shops and boutiques. We need a name for the business and any other marketing ideas.
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Jay’s Answer: Here are some names to play with:
We have the best solution for web conferencing: robust, simple and economic. What is the best way to promote it to non-using clients? We already have 30 days free trial for the full version and free trial for 3 person web conferences.
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Jay’s Answer: You have two potential groups: people that use a competitor’s product (but are unsatisfied) or people that haven’t used a web conferencing product (because of techno-fears).
It’s easy to find the first group: they’re already searching for web conferencing products online. The second group is harder: they may be using teleconferencing products (for simplicity’s sake) or only face-to-face meetings.
The problem is that you want results fast. Neither of these groups is likely to come in droves quickly for your product, because few clients need to regularly web conference. The “regulars” have found a solution that is acceptable (if yours is much better than the competition, and you can prove it, then that’s your USP). The “occasionals” may need education to teach them WHY online meetings are much better than face-to-face, and how to make money doing online meetings. This takes time, though.
Your best bet is to start networking with businesses in your community to find those that do frequent meetings, and build testimonials. Alternatively, create an affiliate program to encourage others to help you sell the services.
Photo by Hamed Saber
You already know that a strong headline gets people to start reading your (advertising or marketing) copy. You also know that the purpose of every paragraph is to get people to continue to read the rest of the copy. But what happens when people get to the end of your copy?
Each of Aesop’s Fables end with a brief moral (“One bad turn deserves another” or “Appearances are deceptive”) that summarizes the point of the story. Does your copy end with a moral-like statement? I think of this phrase as a “toeline” (the opposite of a headline). While a headline focuses on the benefit to the reader, the toeline focuses on your offering with a reminder about the benefit.
For example, if you’re selling raw, organic cat food (called Purely Cat Food), your headline might read: “Keep Your Cat Healthier Naturally“. Your copy would describe why most commercially available cat food is bad for cats, and by feeding your cats this food they’ll live longer and be sick less. Most people end the copy with “Now available at your local store”.
Instead, create a toeline that echoes the headline. For example, “Purely Cat Food Ensures Your Pet’s Health”. Notice it starts with the offering, then mentions the benefit.
Are you on Twitter? Facebook? MySpace? LinkedIn? Other social networks? Posting regularly? Checking your email every 15 minutes (and immediately responding)? Check your RSS reader daily? Is it helping your business? Cellphone on all the time? Is it helping your quality of life?
We get caught up trying to keep up with the latest ways to boost our business. In some cases, a small effort has a major benefit (for example, a website allows people to find your online 24/7). But when we spend too much time focusing on trying to keep up with “the world”, we lose sight of our intimate network (people who truly know and care about us). Hyperconnectivity is giving us the feeling of doing something (having thousands of Twitter followers) but at the expense of meaningful relationships (both in our personal and business life). It’s also decreasing the amount of creative “unstructured” time that we need to think deeply about issues. If we’re always reacting to a stimulus, we have no opportunity to actually do something novel.
Before you jump into the latest business “fad”, find out the true cost (time/money) and the real world results (profit, goodwill). You’ll always hear stories about the person who made $100,000 overnight from a Twitter feed, but remember that these stories are passed around because they’re not typical. Focus on what works for you, experiment on new things, but balance your return on investment (ROI) of your time/energy.
Everyone is looking for buzz – people talking about their offering. We all know that word of mouth marketing is the strongest form of marketing: it’s free, it spreads, and it’s personal. But how can you get your message to be spread virally?
Emanuel Rosen has been studying buzz for over 10 years (the accidental, the intentional, and the incorrect) and has amassed a lot of rules/tips to help you increase your “buzz factor”.
Today, the common advice you’re given is: go on a social media site (such as Facebook or Twitter), befriend a lot of people, join their conversation, and tell your story. The hope is that by sheer numbers, your story/message will go viral. The problem is, that advice only works if: your message is viral-friendly and if you have the right audience.
Is your message viral-friendly? People tend to talk about exciting products, innovations, personal experiences/interactions, complex products (that take an expert to understand), expensive products (to validate the price/value ratio), and visible products (things that they see in their environment). We are programmed to talk with each other, and we’re always looking to connect our lives with others’. A viral-friendly message is something that would naturally occur in our day-to-day interactions and whose purpose is to establish a positive social connection.
Do you have the right audience? The right audience may not be who you think they are. The the essence of any marketing strategy: identifying your target market to ensure you solve the problem they’re facing. Most people, after identifying their target market, try to target it with buzz directly. The problem is, not everyone that’s reachable is listening to you (an unknown or someone with a vested interest in the message). Instead of trying to try to target everyone – target the influencers. In the past, the influencers were editors/writers of newspapers and magazines. While these people are still influencers, there are now a large number of other people (“network hubs”) that are listening for something new/interesting to share with “their people”. It may be their Twitter followers, their blog readers, the eNewsletter subscribers, or their social group.
All network hubs share the following qualities: Ahead in adoption, Connected, Travelers, Information-hungry, Vocal, and Exposed to the media more than others (ACTIVE is the acronym). The book focuses on how to find such hubs:
Once you’ve identified the hubs, you need to give them something worth talking about and encouragement to share the message with others. And by all means, make sure that what they’re talking about is something of true value (otherwise, your buzz will turn negative on you).
If you’re interested in more information about buzz, you may also want to check out WOMMA.
I’m a general contractor that sells and completes the build of modular homes, multi-family dwelling and commercial buildings. I also do remodels. I use just a family name for business, so I would like a catchy tagline. My business name is GJ Fletcher Construction, Inc.
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Jay’s Answer:
Jay’s Answer: Start by creating a marketing strategy. Identify the groups of people most likely to be interested in the book, and choose the best ways to have your message in front of them. It could be simply to identify editors of magazines and send them your book for review, find people interested in interviewing you for their TV/radio/Internet show, etc. If you haven’t written a press release, consider this as well – it’s one source for sources for articles. But be warned – there’s a huge number of people who are asking for (free) PR. If you want to ensure your message to be seen, you’ll also need to spend some $ advertising (pay-per-click, etc.).
We are setting up an outlet store on our website, www.seekwellness.com. We currently have a store already set-up, but we have decided to set-up a second store on the site that offers volume discounts, buy-in-bulk, free products, etc. It’s our way of helping our visitors during the tough economy. Where we need assistance:
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Jay’s Answer: I think you’re going about this backwards. Why not combine the two stores into one, and offer a category of “specials” or “closeouts” for many of your outlet items (or offer product suggestions based on price range)? Right now, people shopping one store won’t see the other offerings, and since you’re targeting the same people, you have the potential for missed sales.
I am working towards my Masters in Integrated Marketing Communications at WVU. My current employer provided a 90% student loan, but now that the economy is so bad, I’m not sure they will be able to continue. I hope to teach at the University level after my career in B-to-B marketing; anyway, if the company doesn’t make it, I’ll need my Masters to get another job.
Do you know of any graduate scholarships for 55 year old graduate students? 99% of scholarships are designed for kids, not older people, yet we need to continue to update ourselves throughout our careers.
I promised my boss to do the best that I could to find scholarship money, I will appreciate your experience, thoughts and suggestions.
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Jay’s Answer: Have you talked to the financial aid office for ideas?
Have you looked online? There are lots of sites that may have information of use, for example:
Looking for new ideas to the “Trailer Headquarters of the Midwest” slogan. Any ideas?
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Jay’s Answer: