How to Create a Logo
Friday, August 3, 2007
Thursday, August 2, 2007
Top 10 Tips For Using Web 2.0 To Promote Your Business
We hear a lot about "Web 2.0″ these days. It sounds neat and it's trendy to talk about blogging and social media. But does it really affect our businesses? Is Web 2.0 just for kids and tech-hipsters or is it something we business owners should use to help promote our businesses?
I can't tell you if Web 2.0 is right for your business but I can tell you it's something to be aware of Ignoring it means ignoring a possible tool that could be valuable in helping you get more customers.
So, to help you get started in thinking about Web 2.0 for your business, here are some things for you to consider.
1. Have a plan.
Don't dive in just because it's cool or because you read an article about it. Be clear about what you're trying to accomplish, how much you're willing to invest and what time frame you are working on. Like any aspect of your business - plan ahead.
2. Make sure your target audience is online.
Web 2.0 tools are fun but useless if the people who see your stuff don't want what you offer. Or if they don't look to the Web for information to help them buy what you sell, then your efforts will be less effective. Like any marketing channel, it only works if your prospective customers are there to see (or hear) your message and they are receptive to it.
3. Create good content.
Web 2.0 is the social web but it's still content-driven. Lousy content leads to lousy marketing, no matter how flashy it is. Make your content relevant, interesting and real. Put yourself in your customer's shoes and answer their questions with your content.
4. Don't sell.
Help, inform, educate but do not sell. Web 2.0 is all about people connecting by helping each other. No salesman allowed! Think education, not advertising. Deliver useful, nuts and bolts stuff or honest opinions they can believe. That's how you build credibility and trust that lead to new customer relationships.
5. Start with a free hosted blog.
www.Wordpress.com and http://www.Blogger.com both have very useful and simple blogs you can setup for free. Use them to start blogging and get a feel for how it works and how people use Web 2.0. Dip your toe in the water before diving in.
6. Talk to kids
Chat with some kids (ages 8 to 18) and find out how they use the web. They are the trend-setters. What they're doing now, the rest of us will be doing soon. Learn what they do and why. This helps you understand the web from a different perspective.
7. Do it yourself.
Web 2.0 is about being real. It's real people connecting with each other. It's okay to hire a pro to advise you. But to keep it genuine, make sure you or your employees create the content and do the work. Otherwise people will know you're faking it.
8. Buy a camcorder and start shooting
Go to Best Buy or Radio Shack and buy an inexpensive camcorder, tripod and lapel microphone. Buy 20-30 tapes too. Then take a weekend and shoot film. Practice, practice, practice. Get comfortable being on camera so you're not nervous or dorky. Then, write a funny or useful how-to sketch and film it. Use Microsoft MovieMaker to edit and then upload to http://YouTube.com.
9. Buy an inexpensive audio recorder
MusicBarn.com has a package that includes M-Audio's MobilePre USB recording interface. Add a microphone and you have a high quality setup to record podcasts and MP3 audio files whenever you want. Then buy NGWave sound editing software to make it sound professional and you're in business.
10. Surf 'till it Hurts
Surf blogs, YouTube, Google Videos, http://Del.icio.us, Digg, Reddit, StumbleUpon, Technorati and other social media websites. Get a feel for how they work and who goes there. Become part of some social media communities. Make new friends online. Immerse yourself in the Web 2.0 culture so you know how it works and if it might fit your marketing plans.Friday, June 29, 2007
Top 12 Proven Tips to Strengthen Your Marketing Muscle
The more you stretch it the stronger it becomes. And that will make you a better marketer, and more confident to generate more and more business.
Listed below are my top 12 proven ways to strengthen your marketing muscle. I realise you may find some of them challenging to undertake. That’s the whole point. If you don’t stretch your marketing muscle you wont improve it.
Ready… knees bent…breathe in…
Website:
- Try running a few pay-per-click advertisements on Google (Google Adwords). It doesn’t cost very much at all. You will learn a lot, even if you don’t get an immediate flood of business.
- Optimise the home page of your web site by fixing the page title, using a few descriptive headings, and sprinkling key words in appropriate places on the page.
- Ask your typical customers what they think of using your web site. But don’t just ask. Run a low-cost user-test by having one person sit in front of a computer and navigate your site. Ask them to do a typical task at your site. Talk with them about how easy (or not) it was for them to do the task.
Advertising:- Investigate an important customer niche market and find the main publication, website, or professional journal they read. Contact the publication and ask about their advertising options.
- Choose one topic that you know your potential customers will be interested in, related to the services you provide. Write a brief article of 500-600 words explaining how they should approach/manage the topic you selected. (This article is 750 words.) Include some useful action-oriented tips. Add the article to your web site. Email it to your contacts. Add it to one of the many online article directories so that other people can access it and publish it on their website.
- Approach your local business group, networking club, social group, or community group and ask if it would be possible for you to present a short talk to them. Pick a relevant topic that you can cover in the time they allow (usually 15-20 minutes would be enough).
- Create a value-added offer and mention it during all your sales discussions over the next week. Don’t forget to tell your networking group as well, if you are a member of one.
- Focus on one event you run, survey you conduct, or client success story you have, and write a media release around it. Focus on the people in the story. Include a photo – with people – if possible. Send that to appropriate publications and websites.
- Start a newsletter. Make it monthly so you do not get overwhelmed. Decide on a few topics you can write about, then select one as the first subject. Even if you don’t have a large list of contacts. Make a start. Be sure to follow good email practices.
- Contact previous clients and tell them you are updating your marketing material, and you are approaching them to get their feedback on how they found your service. Get the testimonials in writing, or write one for the client based on what they tell you. Be sure to ask if it is OK for you to use their words and name.
- Meet with one person over coffee who offers a complementary service or product. Keep it casual. Get to know their business. Make sure you also explain how you help clients. Don’t expect an order from them. Discuss possible future opportunities with them as a referral or alliance partner.
- Create a one or two-page summary of your services and the benefits you offer. Don’t just list features, or your credentials. Include a testimonial or two. Use this document as the main follow up after you meet new people, or when contacting prospects. It is important to have it as a PDF document (not Word, Publisher or other program) so that you can send it via email and everyone can open it.
Sunday, June 24, 2007
7 Surefire Ways To Increase Your Traffic Starting Yesterday
To help you out in generating more traffic for your site, here are some seven surefire ways to increase your traffic starting from yesterday.
1) Invest in good advertising with search engines
Google's Adwords and Yahoo's Overture provide great advertising schemes that are very truly popular and assures great traffic. Although with this surefire way to increase your traffic would cost some money. While some would shy away from spending money to increase traffic, it is imperative in this case to do so because Adwords and Overture is the top surefire way to increase your traffic.
2) Exchange or Trade Links with other sites
With exchanging links with other sites, both of you will benefit from the efforts both of you do to enhance your sites traffic. When one site features another sites link, they could provide one another with the traffic one site generates. The efforts are doubly beneficial because it would seem like both of you are working to generate more traffic. The more links traded with more sites the more traffic could be expected.
3) Use Viral Marketing
Viral marketing allows you to spread the word about your company and product without any costs or if ever low costs only. This is a marketing method that can be quite sneaky; you can attach your company's name, product or link to a certain media such as a funny video, entertaining game, an interesting article or a gossip or buzz. With this method, people get infected with the creativity and entertainment of the medium that they will pass it on to many people.
4) Search and use proper keywords or keyword phrases for your sites content
Search engines look for certain keywords that they would show in their results page. In doing so, having the right keyword and keyword phrase is a high requirement in ranking in high in search engine results. You could write your own content or you could hire someone to do it for you.
5) Write Articles that can lead traffic to your site
Submit articles to sites that would contain the same subject that your site deals in. If you sell car parts write press releases and articles about cars and car parts. Attach your sites description and services at the end of the article as well as the link.
6) Join forums and form online communities
Capture a market and show your expertise and credibility. When you found a good foundation for your site, people will trust you and your site and will pass on to many people their trust. Traffic will certainly increase because they know that you can provide what they need.
7) Lastly, Offer newsletters.
If many people know what you are about and your existence is shared with many others, you will find a loyal traffic that can provide you with more traffic by recommendation. If you arouse the curiosity of your customers they would be pushed to help you with your traffic.
Saturday, June 23, 2007
3 Easy Steps for Gathering Competitive Intelligence.
It's important to complete a competitive analysis during the start-up phase of your new business, about the time you're putting together your marketing plan. In fact, if you get underway without performing a competitive analysis, you run the risk of creating marketing tools and product or service offerings that are way off the mark. This can cost you valuable time and money during the critical early months. You should also plan to gather competitive intelligence as your business grows, in order to 
Who's Your Competition?
One of the biggest mistakes new entrepreneurs make is failing to recognize the range of competitors for their businesses. Your new company will have two types of competition-real and perceived. For example, imagine you're a former college athlete who's decided to start a personal fitness training business. Your competitors will fall into two categories: other personal trainers, and gyms and health clubs that offer trainers or advisors on staff. Although you'd directly compete only with the other personal trainers, your prospects-people who want to shape up-would perceive the gyms that offer these services as a viable alternative to hiring you. So to complete your competitive analysis, you need to evaluate the marketing materials and services both types of competitors offer.
Get the Facts.
The first step in your competitive analysis is to collect all the marketing materials used by your competitors-both perceived and real. Begin by clipping your competitors' ads. Then request copies of their brochures and other marketing materials-not so you can copy their ideas, but so you can check out marketing strategies and formats, competitive pricing, special offers, the key benefits (or promises made), and clues to marketing niches that may be underserved.
If possible, you may even want to "mystery shop" your competitors-go out and actually buy their products or services so you can experience the purchasing process with their store personnel or salespeople. If your competitors are large enough, you can gather information about them on the Net.
Use major search engines to look for recent press releases and articles about them. There are even free sites on the Web that allow you to customize your own daily news page, such as NewsPage by NewsEdge Corp. (www.newspage.com). And don't forget to check out your competitors' Web sites. How do your direct and perceived competitors use the Net to attract customers and sell products? This will give you important clues about information a Web site of your own should contain.
Put It All Together
Now you're ready to draw some conclusions about the types of competitive offers and pricing your new business should use. Best of all, you'll have clear guidelines for developing your marketing tools. Complete your analysis by answering these questions: * What size are their materials? Do most of your competitors use standard mailing envelopes, or are they using large folders with inserts? * Do your competitors use photography or illustrations in their materials? * Do they have Web sites, and how deep are they? Do they sell products online or just offer information? * How are your competitors' products or services similar to yours? How are they different? * What key benefits do their marketing materials communicate? Can you offer additional benefits that are valuable to prospects? * What special product, service or pricing offers do your competitors use to stimulate responses to brochures and ads?
Once you find answers to these questions, you'll be in the perfect position to create marketing tools that work as hard as you do.
This article originally appeared as "The Spying Game" in the October 1999 issue of Business Start-Ups magazine.
Friday, June 22, 2007
How to Take advantage of online marketing sites and watch your business grow.
There's no question that consumers are using the internet to navigate their way to local brick-and-mortar retailers. A recent study by ROI Research Inc. and Performics shows that online searches influence 20 to 30 percent of purchases made at retail locations--and that number is only increasing. More and more sites, like Local.com, are making their presence known by competing against major search engines like Google and Yahoo!. So study up, plan your budget and get in on the online advertising game.
How It Will Help You: AdWords helps you target local online customers by setting your pay-per-click ads to appear only when people search a particular city, state or region. There's no minimum spending requirement--your daily budget is up to you.
2. Website: Yahoo! Local Listings
How It Will Help You: Local Listings will promote your business to customers looking for information in Yahoo! Local. Choose from three different plans (one is free) to meet your company's needs.
3. Website: CitySearch
How It Will Help You: CitySearch offers online advertising tools to easily open your account, manage your daily results and receive ad placement on MSN, Yahoo!, Google and Ask.com. Similar to the idea of pay-per-click advertising, CitySearch offers two paid plans, "Web Connect" and "Call Connect."
4. Website: Ask.com's AskCity
How It Will Help You: Ask.com recently launched AskCity, a new local search application that's a one-stop destination for making plans. In one screen, consumers can map a route, make dinner reservations, purchase movie tickets and e-mail plans to others. Pricing for advertising on Ask.com varies.
5. Website: AOL's CityGuide
How It Will Help You: AOL's CityGuide specializes in providing local entertainment information to AOL service members. Advertising with AOL allows marketers to target consumers specifically by lifestyle and market.
6. Website: Craigslist
How It Will Help You: Craigslist gets an estimated 10 million unique visitors per day. With an online classified ad format organized by region or city, Craigslist connects buyers and sellers in more than 300 communities; for the most part, posting on the site is free.
7. Website: MerchantCircle.com
How It Will Help You: This free site offers a local business listing service that allows you to better manage your online reputation and become more visible in search engine results.
8. Website: Dotster
How It Will Help You: Dotster is a web domain registration and hosting company offering a local web advertising package called "Local Site Promotion." You set your monthly budget and Dotster will make your ad visible on all the major search engines.
9. Website: Local.com
How It Will Help You: Advertising on Local.com will give you access to their 10 million-plus monthly customers. Choose from a free basic listing or pay-per-click options.
10. Website: Froogle Local
How It Will Help You: Google's shopping search engine allows users to search for specific products by location. It's a great way for users to find retail stores regardless of whether you use e-commerce.
11. Website:ReachLocal
How It Will Help You: This site provides a central location for businesses to set-up, maintain and track local search advertising campaigns. Pricing varies.
12. Website: RegisterLocal
How It Will Help You: RegisterLocal is a service, costing $199.95 per year, that allows you to create a master profile they submit to search engines and directories on your behalf.
13. Website: TrueLocal
How It Will Help You: This local search engine features full-text searching and offers advertising opportunities for businesses. Currently indexing more than 13 million local businesses, TrueLocal starts at just $1 per month.
14. Website: YellowPages.com
How It Will Help You: YellowPages.com is a large online local directory site featuring city guides and advertising solutions. Basic listings are free.
15. Website: Web.com's MyEzClicks program
How It Will Help You: MyEzClicks lists your business on more than 30 major search engines, including Google, Yahoo! and MSN for a monthly fee.
Thursday, June 21, 2007
5 Simple Rules of Logo Design.
Easier said than done, you say? Maybe. Luckily, there are time-tested guidelines you can follow in your quest for a great logo. Whether you hire an agency or decide to create it yourself, commit these rules to memory--or at least bookmark this web page:
1. Your logo should reflect your company in a unique and honest way. Sounds obvious, but you'd be surprised how many business owners want something "just like" a competitor. If your logo contains a symbol--often called a "bug"--it should relate to your industry, your name, a defining characteristic of your company or a competitive advantage you offer.
What's the overriding trait you want people to remember about your business? If it's quick delivery, consider objects that connote speed, like wings or a clock. Consider an abstract symbol to convey a progressive approach--abstracts are a great choice for high-tech companies. Or maybe you simply want an object that represents the product or service you're selling. Be clever, if you can, but not at the expense of being clear.
2. Avoid too much detail. Simple logos are recognized faster than complex ones. Strong lines and letters show up better than thin ones, and clean, simple logos reduce and enlarge much better than complicated ones.
But although your logo should be simple, it shouldn't be simplistic. Good logos feature something unexpected or unique without being overdrawn. Look at the pros: McDonald's, Nike, Prudential. Notice how their logos are simple yet compelling. Anyone who's traveled by a McDonald's with a hungry 4-year-old knows the power of a clean logo symbol.
3. Your logo should work well in black and white (one-color printing). If it doesn't look good in black and white, it won't look good it any color. Also keep in mind that printing costs for four-color logos are often greater than that for one- or two-color jobs).
4. Make sure your logo's scalable. It should be aesthetically pleasing in both small and large sizes, in a variety of mediums. A good rule of thumb is the "business card/billboard rule": Your logo should look good on both.
5. Your logo should be artistically balanced. The best way to explain this is that your logo should seem "balanced" to the eye--no one part should overpower the rest. Just as a painting would look odd if all the color and details were segregated in one corner, so do asymmetric logos. Color, line density and shape all affect a logo's balance.
Many logo gurus insist your logo should be designed to last for up to 10 or 15 years. But I've yet to meet a clairvoyant when it comes to design trends. The best way to ensure logo longevity, in addition to the rules I've listed above, is to make sure you love your logo. Don't ever settle for something half-baked.
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
The 6 Web Traffic Techniques.
Building a great website is not enough; visitors must be able to find it. Successful sites build links, optimize their sites for the search engines, build partnerships online and use all other means available to extend their reach. These sites generate more traffic, leads, sales and create greater exposure.
While there are literally dozens of options for getting in front of your ideal visitors, here are some key web marketing techniques to promote and drive traffic to your site. In some cases you will be pulling traffic in from search engines and ads; in some cases you are pushing your site out to new audiences.
Write compelling Title tags for each page. Place the most important keywords within META tags (description, keywords tags). Develop keyword-rich Alt attributes for images. Define page headings that include important keywords. Create keyword-rich anchor text for links. Optimize page copy. Clean up HTML coding errors.
PPC (pay per click) PPC refers to a site's paid listings in the sponsored results of the search engines. Pay per click advertising works by charging you each time someone clicks on your listing. When a user searches for a particular keyword, site ads are displayed according to how much they bid on that particular word or phrase. The beauty of PPC advertising is that you only pay when someone clicks through to your site.
PPC campaigns can be set up and begin generating traffic in less than 24 hours, but can be complicated, competitive and require constant monitoring. Competition for position and keywords drives click prices up. PPC is not for every business, it is up to you to determine how PPC fits into your overall marketing campaign and combine it with SEO or other online marketing techniques to drive targeted traffic to your site.
Directory Listings There are thousands of online business directories where you can submit your site. Backlinks from directories are very important, helping drive traffic to the site and helping to improve a site's status in the search engines. Directories fall under two cateogories: general directories which provide general authoritative information about sites, and topic specific directories that target specific interests and industries. Find the most appropriate directories that relate your industry and get listed.
Email Marketing Email can be a very cost effective tool for promoting your business. Because the nature of email marketing is immediate, a message can be tracked within hours of a campaign being launched. A monthly newsletter, weekly product or promotional update to your clients or prospective customers will generate return traffic, as well as enhance the relationship between you and your visitors.
Additional Traffic – building techniques: Write and submit authoritative articles about your products or services. Research content related sites to place ads on that will bring your site additional traffic. Begin a business blog that positions your business as the expert in your industry. Advertise your site in free and paid classified sites. Include your site's URL on all online and offline business materials. Join online forums that are related to your industry. Create a custom advergame highlighting your brand or product.
By using the techniques and methods outlined here you can get the ball rolling and begin experiencing growth online. Which option you choose depends on your own marketing goals.
Saturday, June 16, 2007
20 Factors to Consider Before Going Global
As with any new business plan, the first step you should take before crossing borders is to do your homework. Take these 20 critical factors into account before you begin:
Factor 1: Get company-wide commitment. Every employee should be a vital member of your international team, from the executive suite to customer service through engineering, purchasing, production and shipping. You're all in it for the long haul.
Factor 2: Define your business plan for accessing global markets. An international business plan is important in order to define your company's present status and internal goals and commitment, but it's also necessary if you plan to measure your results.
Factor 3: Determine how much you can afford to invest in your international expansion efforts. Will it be based on ten percent of your domestic business profits or on a pay-as-you-can-afford process?
Factor 4: Plan at least a two-year lead-time for world market penetration. It takes time and patience to build a great, enduring global enterprise, so be patient and plan for the long haul.
Factor 5: Build a website and implement your international plan sensibly. Many companies offer affordable packages for building a website, but you must decide in what language you'll communicate. English is unarguably the most important language in the world, but only 28 percent of the European population can read it. That percentage is even lower in South America and Asia. Over time, it would be best to slowly build a site that communicates sensibly and effectively with the world.
Factor 6: Pick a product or service to take overseas. You can't be all things to all people. Decide on something. Then stick with it.
Factor 7: Conduct market research to identify your prime target markets. You want to find out where in the world your product will be in greatest demand. Market research is a powerful tool for exploring and identifying the fastest-growing, most penetrable market for your product.
Factor 8: Search out the data you need to predict how your product will sell in a specific geographic location. Do you want to sell a few units to a customer in Australia or ten 40-foot containers on a monthly basis to retailers in France? Doing your homework will enable you to find out how much you'll be able to sell over a specific period of time.
Factor 9: Prepare your product for export. You should expect to adapt your product to some degree for sale outside your domestic markets before you make your first sale. Packaging plays a vital role in enabling international connections. Make yours the best in its class, and you'll be able to sell it anywhere in the world.
Factor 10: Find cross-border customers. There is no business overseas for you unless you can locate customers first.
Factor 11: Establish a direct or indirect method of export. It all boils down to export strategy and how much control you wish to exercise over your ventures. On the other hand, readiness to seize an opportunity is more important than having your whole strategy nailed down beforehand.
Factor 12: Hire a good lawyer, a savvy banker, a knowledgeable accountant and a seasoned transport specialist, each of whom specializes in international transactions. You may feel you can't afford these professional services, but you really can't afford to do without them.
Factor 13: Prepare pricing and determine your landed costs. Be ready to test out your price on your customer. See what reaction you get and then negotiate from there.
Factor 14: Set up terms, conditions and other financing options. Agree on terms of payment in advance, and never, ever sell on open account to a brand new customer. No ifs, ands or buts. Just don't.
Factor 15: Brush up on your documentation and export licensing procedures. If you find it too time consuming, hire a freight forwarder who can fill you in on the spot. Ask a lot of questions. Use their expertise to your advantage.
Factor 16: Implement an extraordinary after-sales service plan. The relationship between your company and your overseas customer shouldn't end when a sales is made. If anything, it should be just the start of a long relationship which requires more of your attention. The "care and feeding" of your customers will determine if they keep coming back for more.
Factor 17: Make personal contact with your new targets, armed with culture-specific information and courtesies, professionalism and consistency. Your goal should be to enter a different culture, adapt to it and make it your own.
Factor 18: Investigate international business travel tips. The practical aspects of international business can make or break the success of your trip. In preparing to go boldly where you've never gone before, plan accordingly.
Factor 19: Explore cross-border alliances and partnerships. In charting your global strategy, consider joining forces with another company of similar size and market presence that's located in a foreign country where you're already doing business, or would like to. Gauge your readiness-or willingness-to take on a 50/50 partnership and what it can and cannot do for you.
Factor 20: Enjoy the journey. Never forget that you are the most important and valuable business asset you have, and that the human touch is even more precious in our age of advanced technology. Take the best possible care of yourself, your employees, your suppliers and your customers, and your future will be bright, prosperous and happy.
Going global doesn't have to be a scary proposition. By considering and developing these twenty essential factors before going global, your organization can realize the full potential of globalization and capture dramatic revenue growth.
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
4 Easy Branding Tactics to give your small company a big, professional image.
To successfully brand your business, you should project an image of strength and stability--traits often associated with big companies. Customers need to trust that you can and will deliver on your promises. They have to feel comfortable with you. You can tell customers you stand behind your products and services, but if your marketing materials scream "amateur" or "mom and pop," forget about it.
It's not about looking conservative; it's about looking professional. After all, big companies don't fall into a one-size-fits-all mold. There's plenty of room for creativity. Consider Apple Computer vs. Microsoft. While their branding couldn't be more different, both project big-company professionalism.
Content Continues Below
Fortunately, looking like a big company isn't rocket science. The cardinal rule to looking big is to coordinate your promotional materials--from your business cards to your website and everything in between. If your marketing materials don't match, potential customers may believe they're looking at different companies. Here are four easy ways to tie your marketing materials together:
1. Create a clean and uncomplicated logo. Consider the logos of Fortune 500 companies like Nike, Sprint and Target. These huge companies didn't pick clean, simple logos by accident. They chose them because they fit the key requirements of solid logo design: They're easy to remember, they can be resized without losing detail, and they work in one color (for instance, when used in faxes). They're unique and meaningful as well, proving you don't need complex artwork and intricate details to leave an impression.
A good logo is essential because it'll appear on--and should match--all of your marketing materials. From a graphics perspective, your logo is your brand foundation. Build it wisely.
2. Make one color yours. Choose a color--preferably one from your logo--and use it throughout your marketing materials. Again, look at the big guys: Target focuses on red; Sprint uses yellow. Notice that each has chosen one color, not two or three.
Color plays a huge role in memory recall. As much as possible, your color should set you apart, work with your industry and image, and relate to your brand promise. Most important, the color you choose should appear as the predominant color on every promotional piece you develop.
3. Work with only one or two fonts. Again, your goal is to get customers to remember you and associate your materials with your brand attributes. Fonts, like colors and graphics, project different images. For example, if you want to appear conservative, I would recommend Helvetica.
4. Stay the course. At some point, you may get sick of your brand standards. Unfortunately, this usually occurs at the same time your brand starts resonating with your customers. Or you may want fresh material for a trade show or customer meeting and may be tempted to introduce an exciting new color or unusual font selection. Remind yourself that while consistency isn't always fun, it's the proven path to branding success.
Nowadays, your company's actual size may not matter, but its perceived size does. And looking big will pay off big-time.
Friday, June 1, 2007
20 Reasons Why You Will Never Live Off Your Affiliate Income!.
20 Reasons Why You Will Never Live Off Your Affiliate Income!
Why is it that the top 10% of affiliate marketers earn 90% of all affiliate income, with the remaining 90% left to fight over the 10% of scraps left? What are the millionaire affiliate marketers doing which is different to you?
While there are a number of ways of improving your affiliate marketing offerings, you first need to appreciate where you may be going wrong before you can improve. Listed below are the 20 most popular reasons why you are not living off your affiliate income, what to avoid and how to attract more affiliate sales.
1. Lack Of Traffic To Your Site
Many many people fall into the simple trap of thinking, add some affiliate links to my site, and over time I will surely get some sales. Why? What is the reason behind this way of thinking?
Unless you actually have traffic coming to your own site (and the more focused the traffic the better) it will be nearly impossible for you to create a regular income stream.. True, you may get the odd sale once a month, but this is not enough, you need to aim higher and bring visitors to your site to stand ANY chance.
2. Poor Affiliate Products
You would not believe that amount of people who do not actually research what they are looking to sell. There are millions of affiliate products out there, and while there are a lot of high quality offerings available, there are also lots of low quality products. If you would not buy it, why should anyone else?
3. Priced Too High
This goes back to the age old argument of selling one high valued product, and taking a commission, or selling more low value products and taking a greater number of smaller commissions. Research has shown that the one factor which can scupper a sale is the price - if it is too high your potential customer will be turned off straight away.
Why not mix a number of low value and high value products? If your visitors buy a low value product and it works, you have more chance of them returning (with more trust in you) and even contemplating buying a higher value product. The trust factor is very very important.
4. Low Commissions
As mentioned above, it can often be more lucrative to sell lower value products (with reasonable commissions), but you need to ensure you are being remunerated properly for your leads. Why send hundreds of customers to an affiliate site where they pay you only a few cents a lead? Who is the big winner in this situation ? Certainly not you!
You need to balance the commission on offer against the amount of traffic which you can send, and the split of income between yourself and the owner of the affiliate program. Do not sell be too keen to pass over your users for small returns.
5. No Investment
In order to advertise your affiliate links you will need to put some of your own money upfront, either advertising your site or your affiliate links. Those who think that traffic will just fall into their lap are kidding themselves. You need quality focused traffic, and you need potential customers to see your link before your competitors. The affiliate marketing world is very competitive and you need to ensure that you gain maximum exposure. Adsense and PPC programs are very good ways of advertising your site, and while they can be expensive, they can reap massive rewards.
6. Quality Content
Even if it takes a while longer to establish yourself in the affiliate marketing world for certain products, always ensure that you offer quality, not quantity and certainly not rubbish. One poor looking affiliate site, one bad experience and you customers will disappear over night. If you promote rubbish on your site, what does that say about you and your respect for your customers?
As they say “the cream will always rise to the top”!.
7. Lack Of Feedback
If you are looking to forever improve your site, your offerings and the image and reputation of your site, you need to encourage feedback from your customers. Is there a problem with the product they bought? Were they happy? What could be improved?
Everyone likes to have a moan, but if you actually ask and listen to their concerns, their questions, they will respect you for it - they may not thank you, but they will appreciate it. Any improvements which you are able to make, any comments you are able to pass on to the affiliate program owner, will all ensure you receive less complaints in the future.
8. No After Sales Service
Similar to feedback, it is essential that you at least offer some form of after sales assistance (where relevant) to ensure that your customer is able to get the most out of their purchase, whether this be an eBook, Software or the latest Mobile Phone.
A sympathetic ear is always appreciated, and interaction with your customers has been shown to be the best way of building up a relationship - let them know that you are human!
9. Hard Sell
As well as high prices, the so called “hard sell” is guaranteed to put off any potential customers. Do not push the offers down their throats, be subtle, be helpful, but do not exert any pressure - even if you have the best product in the world. The hard sell does not work, and your reputation will not be enhanced.
10. Not Relevant To Your Site
It is essential that your build your affiliate program offerings around the subject of your site. There is no point in listing baby wear affiliate links on a site about mobile phones. The more relevant the affiliate links on your site the more chance of actually bringing in some commission.
If you can get your readers excited about a certain subject and then show them an affiliate link for a suitable product, you will have a great chance of them clicking on the link. Keep the site AND your affiliate offerings focused .
11. Old Products
The world of affiliate marketing is moving all of the time and it is essential that you keep your affiliate products up to date. Selling yesterdays favourite affiliate product will not earn you big bucks - sell today’s favourite and tomorrow’s favourite and you are talking.
It is vital that you regularly visit your affiliate link providers to ensure that you are offering the best and most up to date products around. Failure to do so and you customers may well look elsewhere, and you will have lost a potential sale.
12. Cookie Time Limits
Many of today’s better affiliate programs will actually offer you a set time, during which any customers you pass over will be eligible to earn you commission. Where you are promoting affiliate links which may offer a vast array of products, which will keep members coming back time and time again, you need to ensure that the cookie is of a suitable length.
The cookie is basically the marker which will be attached to the user, to confirm that they were sent via your affiliate link. Some sites offer cookie lengths up to 365 days, while some may offer short 10 days periods. If a customer, originally from your site, were to buy a product after the cookie period was over, you would receive NO commission.
This is an area of affiliate marketing which is often overlooked - do not make the same mistake, and end up selling yourself short.
13. Links Do Not Work
Of the thousands of affiliate links available there are hundreds which will become invalid, or have been replaced, every day. There is nothing worse than clicking through to a non-existent link, and this does not give a very professional impression of your site. Always check that your links are valid, even on a monthly or weekly basis, and ensure that old invalid links are either replaced, or deleted asap.
14. Know Your Customer
There are a variety of statistic and traffic programs available which will give you an insight as to where the majority of your traffic is coming from - i.e. which country, browser, etc.
It is essential that you make use of this information and tailor elements of your affiliate products towards the majority of your customers. Currency is one of the major elements which you need to consider, because this is something that can put off a prospective buyer if they are dealing in a currency which they are not familiar with.
As a rule of thumb, the US dollar is the more popular currency on the internet, and seems to have a universal acceptance. Research has shown that while UK sterling buyers are willing and comfortable dealing in dollars, many Americans are not comfortable dealing in sterling (or any other foreign currency).
While you will never get this element totally correct, you need to appeal to the masses, which will most probably require offering products in US dollars.
15. Presentation
How you present and expand on your affiliate offerings has a massive effect on how successful you will be. A simple 3 word text link will be no where near as successful as an article detailing in the product, and the affiliate link at the end. Tease your customers with details, make them want the product and then offer the affiliate link when they are thinking about the product.
16. Do Not Try To Trick Your Customers
There have been many many instances of people being duped into clicking on affiliate links, and while 99% of these result in no sales, 99% of your visitors who have been “duped” will not return to your site. Trust is a major element of any business and it is essential that you treat your visitors with respect and honesty.
You may hear about people making big bucks in the short term with dubious tactics, but these people will never have a long term income stream. They will always be found out, and one bad review of your site on the internet can soon spirally into hundreds - effectively black listing your site from a mass of would be visitors.
17. No Free Products? Is Your Mix Correct?
While it may sound strange advising people to give away free products in the same area in which they are trying to sell products, there is some sense in the madness. If you are able to give away quality free products to your visitors, your trust factor with these customers will rise sky high. The more trust they have in you, the more often they will visit the site, and the more comfortable they will be actually buying a product via your affiliate links.
Too many webmasters seem to throw themselves straight into the market without a strategy, and this initial optimism soon dies with many giving up. You will not build up a quality income stream overnight, it will take time, you will have to build up trust, and be patient.
18. Have You Tested The Product?
If you were selling one of your own products, you would have tested the format, the product and the feedback before launch. It should be no different with affiliate links - ensure you are familiar with the offering, how it is presented, the standard of service and if it actually delivers what it promises.
The type of products which may need the most investigation, and possible purchase, are eBooks and software downloaded from the internet. If it works for you, and is clear and concise then you can do no more, although if it does not work, or does not do what it promises, you should not be promoting it.
19. Internet Feedback - Forums, etc
Before you sell any product it is essential that you search the internet to see if there has been any negative feedback about the provider or the product. Popular sites such as www.sitepoint.com and forums.digital point.com are very useful sites to search. They often provide great feedback about affiliate providers and products.
Know you product, know your customers, and you have a firm basis for success!
20. Do You Really Know What You Are Talking About?
There are many many products on the internet which are being sold by people who do not even have a basic understanding of what they are selling. Many are blinded by the commission figures, the potential for sales, and forget about researching the actual product.
A focused site with a good knowledge base, and unique content will go a long way towards building up a rapport with your readers, increasing the trust they have in you, and ultimately increasing your chances of a sale. Even a bit of basic knowledge about a product goes a long way, although the more professional you come across, and the more information you can pass to your readers, the better.
Conclusion
While there are many reasons as to why your affiliate sales may not be what you expected, you probably have the basis of a good income stream. Small changes to the presentation, your promotion of the site, and your mix of products can and will have a massive effect on your sales. If you do the basics well, the rest will follow, and once you have the basis of a good affiliate sales income, you can replicate this time and time again on other sites.
Multiple, smaller income streams, are more consistent than one large income stream which may well stop tomorrow if a competitor beats you to the market. Spread the risk, and increase the reliability of your income - but do not forget to reinvest back into your site, your design and your affiliate offerings, do not stand still as the market is forever on the move
Thursday, May 24, 2007
4 Tips Getting Visitors to Read Your Article and Increase Your Web Site Traffic
Article writing should be a major part of your internet marketing strategy. In most cases, depending on the content, articles can greatly increase traffic to your web site. But there is a problem.
The internet was built for those of us who love to surf through the information rather than read volumes at a time. Since many people do prefer scanning, there is a pretty good chance your entire article will not be read. Visitors usually look for sentences or paragraphs that capture their attention, and then return to the search engines to continue surfing. If they happen to come across a poor or mediocre article, they will leave even sooner. You can bank on that.
So what does it take to get your visitors to read more than a few sentences and view your article as a quality resource? The answer is to provide a well written article with plenty of useful content. You can get more web site traffic by using the following tips.
1. Use Sub-headings
A good sub-heading can peak the curiosity of your visitors and get them to read more of your article. Do not try to be too cute. The sub-heading should be relative to your subject without overwhelming the content of article. The whole purpose of a sub heading is to lead the visitor to the next section of your article. Integrate your subheadings without allowing them to be distractions.
2. Use Bullets and/or Numbers
For whatever reason, people like lists. Most of us will take reading articles with bullets and numbers over those with long drawn out paragraphs. With so much information available today, attention spans are not what they used to be. People get bored very easily, so you must capture their attention fast and hold it. Formatting with bullets or numbers allow you to keep the pace and momentum of your article moving forward. Think in terms of the soundbytes you see on television; descriptive and catchy but very brief. Apply that to your article writing.
3. The Hook
Each paragraph of your article must hand off to the next one. Develop a main point for each paragraph without giving too much information away concerning the rest of the article. Think of each paragraph as steps that get your visitors to take action. The action in this case is you want them to continue reading your article and click on your web site link in the resource box. Give your readers just enough in each paragraph to get them to the end of your article.
4. Your Credibility
This by itself can determine your site traffic. If you are just starting out, the best credibility is to provide good content. The product or service you offer might be great but let us face facts: among millions of websites, people do not know you. Earning credibility does not happen overnight. It is going to require a steady flow of unique content before you stand out from the crowd so get started writing now.
Whether immediate or long term the point is get readers to go beyond just scanning your article. Utilize these tips while staying focused on providing informative content and watch your web traffic steadily increase.
Sunday, May 20, 2007
The 10 Laws of Sales Success.
A recent Gallup poll on the honesty and ethical conduct of business professionals found that insurance salespeople and car salespeople ranked at the bottom of the list. Bet you're not surprised to hear this. But did you know that it's not just car salespeople who have a bad reputation? Bill Brooks of the Brooks Group estimates that more than 85 percent of customers have a negative view of all salespeople.
But it doesn't have to be that way: You can prove the masses wrong, and learn to develop the skills that will have people thinking differently about the selling process. In fact, selling can be one of the most rewarding tasks you'll undertake as a business owner-but only if you follow these 10 tactics:
Law #1: Keep your mouth shut and your ears open. This is crucial in the first few minutes of any sales interaction. Remember:
1. Don't talk about yourself.
2. Don't talk about your products.
3. Don't talk about your services.
4. And above all, don't recite your sales pitch!
Obviously, you want to introduce yourself. You want to tell your prospect your name and the purpose of your visit (or phone call), but what you don't want to do is ramble on about your product or service. After all, at this point, what could you possibly talk about? You have no idea if what you're offering is of any use to your prospect.
Law #2: Sell with questions, not answers. Remember this: Nobody cares how great you are until they understand how great you think they are.
Forget about trying to "sell" your product or service and focus instead on why your prospect wants to buy. To do this, you need to get fascinated with your prospect; you need to ask questions (lots and lots of them) with no hidden agenda or ulterior motives.
Many years ago, I was selling CDs at a music festival. It didn't take me long to figure out that it wasn't my job to sell the CDs-it was my job to get the earphones on every person who walked by my booth!
I noticed right away that whenever people sensed I was attempting to "sell" them a CD, their walls of defense immediately went up and they did everything in their power to get as far away from me as they could.
So instead, I made it my job to introduce new music to anyone who wanted to put on the earphones. Once they heard the music, they either liked it or they didn't. I didn't do any "selling," and I made more money that week than any other CD hawkers at the festival.
Back then, I didn't know anything about sales, but I knew enough about human nature to understand that sales resistance is an oxymoron: The act of selling creates the resistance! Which leads us to the next principle:
Law #3: Pretend you're on a first date with your prospect. Get curious about them. Ask about the products and services they're already using. Are they happy? Is what they're using now too expensive, not reliable enough, too slow? Find out what they really want. Remember, you're not conducting an impersonal survey here, so don't ask questions just for the sake of asking them. Instead, ask questions that will provide you with information about what your customers really need.
When you learn what your customers need and you stop trying to convince or persuade them to do something they may not want to do, you'll find them trusting you as a valued advisor and wanting to do more business with you as a result.
Law #4: Speak to your prospect just as you speak to your family or friends. There's never any time that you should switch into "sales mode" with ham-handed persuasion clichés and tag lines. Affected speech patterns, exaggerated tones, and slow, hypnotic sounding "sales inductions" are never acceptable in today's professional selling environments. Speak normally, (and of course, appropriately) just as you would when you're around your friends and loved ones.
Law #5: Pay close attention to what your prospect isn't saying. Is your prospect rushed? Does he or she seem agitated or upset? If so, ask "Is this a good time to talk? If it's not, perhaps we can meet another day." Most salespeople are so concerned with what they're going to say next that they forget there's another human being involved in the conversation.
Law #6: If you're asked a question, answer it briefly and then move on. Remember: This isn't about you; it's about whether you're right for them.
Law #7: Only after you've correctly assessed the needs of your prospect do you mention anything about what you're offering. I knew a guy who pitched a mannequin (I'm not kidding)! He was so stuck in his own automated, habitual mode, he never bothered to notice that his prospect wasn't breathing. Don't get caught in this trap. Know whom you're speaking with before figuring out what it is you want to say.
Law #8: Refrain from delivering a three-hour product seminar. Don't ramble on and on about things that have no bearing on anything your prospect has said. Pick a handful of things you think could help with your prospect's particular situation, and tell him or her about it. (And if possible, reiterate the benefits in his own words, not yours.)
Law #9: Ask the prospect if there are any barriers to them taking the next logical step. After having gone through the first eight steps, you should have a good understanding of your prospect's needs in relation to your product or service. Knowing this, and having established a mutual feeling of trust and rapport, you're now ready to bridge the gap between your prospect's needs and what it is you're offering. You're now ready for:
Law #10: Invite your prospect to take some kind of action. This principle obliterates the need for any "closing techniques" because the ball is placed on the prospect's court. A sales close keeps the ball in your court and all the focus on you, the salesperson. But you don't want the focus on you. You don't want the prospect to be reminded that he or she is dealing with a "salesperson." You're not a salesperson, you're a human being offering a particular product or service. And if you can get your prospect to understand that, you're well on your way to becoming an outstanding salesperson.
The 6 basic steps to Take Your Company Global.
Doing business around the world can seem a long way from doing business in your hometown. But each year countless small businesses make the trek. Like most long journeys, going global can be boiled down to a series of steps. Here are the six basic steps to going global:
1. Start your campaign to grow by international expansion by preparing an international business plan to evaluate your needs and set your goals. It's essential to assess your readiness and commitment to grow internationally before you get started.
2. Conduct foreign market research and identify international markets. The Department of Commerce is an excellent source of information on foreign markets for U.S. goods and services.
3. Evaluate and select methods of distributing your product abroad. You can choose from a variety of means for distributing your product, from opening company-owned foreign subsidiaries to working with agents, representatives and distributors and setting up joint ventures.
4. Learn how to set prices, negotiate deals and navigate the legal morass of exporting. Cultural, social, legal and economic differences make exporting a challenge for business owners who have only operated in the United States.
5. Tap government and private sources of financing—and figure out ways to make sure you are getting paid. Financing is always an issue, but government interest in boosting exporting and centuries of financial innovation have made getting funding and getting paid easier than ever.
6. Move your goods to their international market, making sure you package and label them in accordance with regulations in the market you are selling to. The globalization of transportation systems helps here, but regulations are still different everywhere you go.
Understanding Another Culture
One big difference between doing business domestically and internationally is culture. According to Hilka Klinkenberg, founder of Etiquette International in New York City, less than 25 percent of U.S. business ventures abroad are successful. "A lot of that is because Americans don't do their homework or because they think the rest of the world should do business the way they do business," she says. Klinkenberg offers the following tips to avoid making costly mistakes in international business meetings:
* Build a relationship before you get down to business. "That entails making small talk and getting to know one another without [immediately] getting into business discussions," she says.
* Don't impose time limits. Says Klinkenberg, "Keep [the meeting] as open as possible because it adds strength to your negotiating position."
* Do your research. Learn at least a few pointers and facts about the country; it shows you respect your potential partners' cultural heritage. Also, get comfortable with the basic words in their language.
* Bring your own interpreter. If they provide the interpreter, warns Klinkenberg, "the interpreter is going to have the other person's [interests] at heart, not yours."
* Understand body language. "People think [body] language is universal—it's not," she says.
* Dress with respect and authority. This should be self-explanatory. If it's not, seek the help of an image expert.
Financing Help From the Import-Export Bank
As with any growth plan, expanding internationally requires financing. And growing globally requires special capabilities when it comes to finances. One of the most popular sources of financing for businesses expanding overseas is the Export-Import Bank of the United States. The Ex-Im Bank, as it's commonly known, is an independent U.S. government agency that has helped finance overseas sales of more than $300 billion in U.S. goods and services since 1934.
The Ex-Im Bank guarantees working capital loans for U.S. exporters and guarantees repayment of loans or makes loans to foreign purchasers of U.S. goods and services. It also offers U.S. exporters credit insurance to protect against nonpayment by foreign buyers.
To get Ex-Im Bank help, your product or service must have at least 50 percent U.S. content. The bank will finance the export of all types of goods or services except for most military-related products.
Saturday, May 19, 2007
How to Design Memorable Logo - These 6 easy Step
Historically, logos have been more of a luxury than a necessity. Businesses once attracted customers because they were the only game in town, so to speak. But that's no longer the case. Today's highly competitive industries, global markets and visually oriented consumers have catapulted the logo to prominence. Now your logo is one of the most critical components of your brand. So how can something so little make such a big difference to the success of your business?
1. Your branding efforts not only start with your logo but are dictated by it. Your logo appears on all your sales tools, from your business cards and stationary to your website. As a result, your logo design influences the design of all your sales tools--for better or worse. A professional-looking logo can be leveraged to create professional-looking materials. A poorly designed logo can't. In other words, you need a "brandable" logo--one you can make use of when designing other materials to brand your company.
Brandable logos are scalable, memorable and meaningful. If people can't remember what your logo looks like, they won't remember your brand. Think of the logos of some of the popular brands today. Do you think of M-shaped arches, a shell or a swoosh? All are simple concepts, effectively employed by McDonalds, Shell and Nike. How can you tell if a logo's going to be memorable? If you can't look at a logo for fewer than 10 seconds and re-draw it with decent accuracy, it's probably too complex to be easily remembered. (Besides being difficult to remember, most complex logos can't effectively be reduced in size or rendered in black and white, making them useless for such elements as fax cover sheets and other business forms.)
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2. Your logo is a quick visual cue that conveys the essence of your brand in an age when image is everything and time is short. Perhaps you've heard the writer's lament that "nobody reads anymore." In today's markets, not only do you face ever-increasing competition, you also face an audience accustomed to visually stimulating media, convenience and instant gratification. Sure, a few people may read your entire ad, more may read some of it--but everyone will SEE it. The overwhelming amount of choices faced by time-crunched consumers forces them to identify shortcuts. Your logo is such a shortcut: it instantly conveys your brand message and emotional appeal.
3. Awareness and familiarity are keys to growing your business, and your logo is instrumental in both areas. Your logo is your brand's most basic graphic element. It ties together all your sales materials--in fact, your logo may be the only visual element your materials have in common. The right logo helps solidify customer loyalty while differentiating you from the competition.
4. Your logo may be the only thing by which a potential customer can judge your business. Think of small newspaper or Yellow Pages ads. Often all that fits in these small spaces is your contact information and your logo. If your logo projects the right image, it may be the sole reason someone decides to try your company. Conversely, if it looks unprofessional or unclear, it alone may be the reason they choose to look somewhere else.
5. Your logo affords a unique opportunity for you to look like a bigger (that is, more established) business than what you are. With the right logo, you can look like a larger company that's been around for awhile even if you have only one employee and just opened your doors last month. People who see it will associate the positive attributes of big companies--like security and financial stability--with your company. And you can still deliver the entrepreneurial qualities--like personal attention and superior customer service--that you're known for.
Building a solid brand identity is pivotal to success in business today. Lay the right foundation with a professional, brandable logo.
John Williams is Entrepreneur.com's "Image & Branding" columnist and the founder and president of LogoYes.com, the world's first do-it-yourself logo design website. During John's 25 years in advertising, he's created brand standards for Fortune 100 companies like Mitsubishi and won numerous awards for his design work.
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
The 7 Tips for word of mouth marketing campaign.
According to the Los Angeles Times, marketers are scrambling to create the next big viral marketing campaign. It has become one of the quickest ways to cheaply move messages from person to person. So how do you ensure your viral marketing campaign is going to be a huge success? Follow the tips below to get started.
1. Talk to consumers as if they were your friend
To reach the consumer, speak to them in their language on a personal and direct level. Be honest.
2. Seek out the experts and become friends
Seek out experts who may choose to share your information with others. With their influence, they have the capability of spreading your word to a wide variety of interested parties.
3. Make it easy to pass along
Email, forward to a friend, buttons and badges on your Website, podcasts, and funny IM or text messages that can be instantly passed along to others.
4. Don’t just do it because everyone else is doing it
Don’t just do a viral marketing campaign because it’s the latest online trend. Concentrate on our core marketing objectives and focus your ideas around ways to resonate with consumers.
5. Viral marketing + overall marketing strategy = effectiveness
Although viral campaigns have the ability to take off, they can be more effective if other elements of your marketing campaign are tied in. For example, kids are using the Internet a great deal these days. Grab their attention with a billboard first with a code they can plug in online or in their cell phone to drive them to your target outlet and keep them engaged.
6. Take responsibility
Don’t just force a message to consumers, respond and listen to their feedback. Be responsible for the crafting and delivering of your message as well as listening and responding appropriately from all customers and potential customers.
7. Measure the good, bad and the ugly
Not only do you need to monitor viral marketing campaigns for both negative and positive feedback to protect your brand, but the only way you’ll be able to determine the campaign’s success is by researching this free research data.
Source: viralvoodoo.com
5 Easy Steps to make your products irresistible?
How can you make your products irresistible?
The old cliché in business is that you should under-promise and over-deliver. But in a crowded marketplace, under-promising is a one-way ticket to oblivion. Because consumers and businesses are moving and shopping at warp speed these days, they won't slow down long enough to fully understand your under-promise. To grab their attention, you must over-promise.
By over-promising, I don't mean you should promise things you can't deliver. Instead, I mean you must make an outrageous claim on which you can deliver. Most companies already have such capabilities, which is why their current customers do business with them. But their marketing teams haven't taken the time to understand exactly why their current customers really stay loyal, and then articulate their unique capabilities in an outrageous over-promise.
While doing research for my most recent book, Overpromise and Overdeliver: The Secrets of Unshakable Customer Loyalty (Portfolio), I was astounded by how many products, services and companies didn't have an articulated over-promise. If you don't tell customers why they should buy from you, but your competitors do...then guess who gets the customers?
Here are three excellent examples of over-promises you can use for inspiration:
* American Girl over-promises by offering girls dolls that will utterly enchant them...and then over-delivers by giving each doll a fascinating biography.
* Google over-promises by offering everything a customer would want to find on the Web...and then over-delivers with an average search time of 0.2 seconds.
* Hummer over-promises a driving experience that's "like nothing else"...and then over-delivers with an attention-grabbing design, extra comfort and a built-in Hummer community.
So how can you create your own over-promise?
1. Start by examining your vision for your company. Why did you start it in the first place? What was missing in the marketplace that you vowed to fix on behalf of your customers? I often find that the essence of a brand can be drawn from a business founder's original thoughts. You could feel it even if you couldn't articulate it. Now's the time to make that articulation.
2. What is your product or service's single, most important attribute? What makes it unique? What one word do customers think about or feel when they hear your company's name? Volvo means safety. Lexus means luxury. What does your product mean?
3. Ask your customers why they buy your products. Then ask them why they don't buy your competitors' products. In the chasm between these two answers, you'll find a beacon that points to what your over-promise should be.
4. Ask non-customers why they don't buy your products or services. Then ask why they buy your competitors' products. This pair of questions will give you insight into the misperceptions they have about your product or company, or will point you toward serious shortcomings in your offerings.
5. What emotions do your customers feel when they use your products? Why do customers pay a premium for a Hummer, a Lexus or an American Girl Doll? It's because of the way it makes them feel or because of the way it makes others feel about them. These are powerful brand-building insights you must consider when you're crafting your over-promise.
Once you've done your research and have brainstormed some potential over-promises for your brand, be sure to test them with your customers and your potential customers for effectiveness in both their ability to grab attention and to accurately reflect the actual brand experience. Too many companies make the fatal mistake of creating aspirational over-promises that they can't fulfill. It will take your customers a very short time to find out you can't deliver on your over-promise. You'll know when you've got the right over-promise because it will resonate with both customers and employees.
Now, over-deliver!
My research showed a clear pattern in the companies that were able to consistently over-deliver on their over-promises. They focused on creating unique customer experiences at three critical touch points: the product, the systems and the human element.
First, the product must reliably perform as promised--appropriate design is crucial. Second, the product must be easy to acquire, finance, assemble, use, store, fix and dispose of--this is the system. The greatest product in the world is worth far less if getting it is a hassle or if it's too complicated for customers to use. Finally, your people--the human element--must clearly understand the role they play in delivering the overall customer experience. How should they dress? What should they say? How should they act? Don't leave these details to chance, or your people will make up their own version of your brand.
Over-promise and over-deliver is a formula that's been proven to be successful by American Express, Pottery Barn, Samsung, Washington Mutual and many other top businesses. If you're willing to invest in the research required to get your over-promise right and the attention to detail required to get your over-delivery right, your brand, too, can join the ranks of the irresistible!
Sunday, May 13, 2007
12 Ways To Create An Order-Pulling Niche.
12 Ways To Create An Order-Pulling Niche
A niche is something that sets your business apart
from your competitors. To compete with other
businesses nowadays, especially online, you need
a unique niche. Just make sure your competitors are
not using the same niche. Below are twelve ideas
you could use to create an order pulling niche.
1. Your niche could be that you offer free delivery.
This may cost a little money, but, you will gain the
extra customers to make up for it.
2. Your niche could be that you offer a lower price.
If you can't afford to offer a lower price you could
always hold the occasional discount sale.
3. Your niche could be that your product achieves
results faster. This niche is very effective because
people are becoming more and more impatient and
want results fast.
4. Your niche could be you've been in business for
a longer period of time. People think if you've been
in business longer you have more credibility.
5. Your niche could be that your product tastes,
smells sounds, looks, or feels better. When you
target the the senses you're triggering basic human
attractions.
6. Your niche could be your product is light or
compact. People may want to take the product
on a trip or don't have much room where they live.
7. Your niche could be that you've won a business
reward. When you win a reward tell your customers
or visitors about it. This increases their trust in your
business.
8. Your niche could be that your product lasts
longer. People don't like taking the time and spending
more money buying replacement products all the
time.
9. Your niche could be that your product is easy to
use. People don't want to buy a product that they
have to read a 200 page hard-to-understand
instruction manual.
10. You niche could be that your product has better
safety features. People want to feel safe when they
use your products.
11. Your niche could be that your product was made
by hand. Most people believe that products made
by hand have better quality.
12. Your niche could be that you stand behind all
your products. People want to know that you back-
up any claims you make about your product with
either guarantees, warrantees and free replacements.
Saturday, May 12, 2007
Insert Google Adsense Into Blogger XML Post Body.
Have you ever tried to insert the Google Adsense code directly into your Blogger XML Template and get this error?
Your template could not be parsed as it is not well-formed. Please make sure all XML elements are closed properly. XML error message: The processing instruction target matching "[xX][mM][lL]" is not allowed.
So, you resolve to insert the Adsense code using blogger widgets. However that means your widgets can not appear within each post, the best spots to place your ads. Don't worry, there is a way of inserting Adsense code straight into your XML templates.
Since Blogger started using XML everything is more strict and standardized. The above error simply mean the Adsense code is not standized XML and solve it we need to 1replace all the html character such as '<' with '>' '"' with '"'. For example:
would be
1<script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX";
google_ad_width = 336;
google_ad_height = 280;
google_ad_format = "336x280_as";
google_ad_type = "text_image";
google_ad_channel = "";
google_color_border = "FFFFFF";
google_color_bg = "FFFFFF";
google_color_link = "000000";
google_color_text = "000000";
google_color_url = "000000";
//--></script>
<script type="text/javascript"
1src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script>
You can use your text editor to replace all the HTML, but Blogcrowds also has an HTML parsed that takes care of everything for you. Now with the code you can paste it anywhere in your HTML code with no error at all.
Here are some tips for where in the XML Template you should paste the parsed HTML code. I used a barebone Minima template so it should be similar in all templates. Find the normal text and then add the bolded code are added by me:
1)Next To The Post
2)After Post Before Credits
3)After Credits
Friday, May 11, 2007
10 crucial questions when naming your business, product, or Web site.
1.
Who are my consumers?
You can't expect to sell to everyone, so define narrowly who you want to sell to and make the name appeal to that group. You need to know how the members of that group think. You will make your best guesses with your current knowledge, but you must be willing to discard some personal favorites when later testing shows that they don't work. Unfortunately, your first inclinations are seldom your best. Trust your testing.
2.
What am I naming?
The goal here is to give the product a name that has appealing associations. In all types of naming it is important that the name evokes the right emotions, associations, and images. In addition, if you are naming a product that will be on a retail shelf, the name should be short enough to fit on the retail box and be legible from several feet away.
If your business, product, or service is altogether new, you will generally want its name to communicate at a glance what it concerns. For example, business names (trade names) such as GENERAL NUTRITION, SPORTSMAN'S WAREHOUSE, BURGER WORLD, and PETSMART communicate immediately what is at issue. On the other hand, if you are naming an additional product in an established business, the product name need not necessarily communicate what it is. For example, it is not necessary for names such as Mustang, Thunderbird, Marboro, and Camel to communicate that they are cars and cigarettes, because the consumer knows what they are from the company names.
3.
What type of name do I want?
Names can be categorized in various ways. Some are surnames like Anderson Lumber Company, or Covey Leadership. Others are ordinary words combinations such as New Balance Shoes, or First Security Bank. Some names are coined words like Kodak, Nu Skin, Nytol, or Intel. Others such as Taurus and Nike have been borrowed from Greek mythology. Below are some of the types of names that you may consider:
Coined names:
The trend to coin business and product names is increasing, largely because they are quite easily trademarked. Names such as Nu Skin, Computune, and Envirocare are all recent coinages that communicate the types of businesses they are. Pentium is a well-known product name for Intel's fifth-generation product. A recent trend in coining names for cars has been to select a prestige two-syllable beginning, and end the name with "a." Consider "Maxima, Accura, Altima, Integra, Lumina, and others. Observe how the names of medicines tend to end in in, possibly to evoke an association with the word medicine: aspirin, penicillin, herpecin, corracidin, pamparin, and cholestin. And, we are all familiar with two-word names written as single words as in WordPerfect, Microsoft, and WriteExpress. Thus, coining names may be done in a number of ways, and coinages often follow trends. WriteExpress PowerNaming is especially designed to help you in this creative process.
Common Words with a Twist:
New Balance Shoes, WriteExpress Easy Letters, Out'n Back, All a Dollar, Wallpaper Warehouse, and Four Seasons Flowers are all business and product names that consist of common words in short, meaningful phrases. Each name is memorable because of the associations it evokes. Such traditional names are good but sometimes difficult to trademark.
Surnames and First names:
The current trend is to avoid the use of surnames unless they are well known or you have the means to make them well known through advertising. As a general rule, they are difficult to trademark. Successful surnames include Smucker's, Fudrucker's, Albertson's, Covey Leadership, and Franklin Quest. Successful names that include first names include Oscar Meyer, Fred Meyer's Mama Maria's, and Tony Roma's. The use of first or surnames often works well when linked with another identifying word. For example, Jone's Paint and Glass, Peggy's Bridal, Crawford Electric, and Knighton Optical. Be aware that such names often work locally, but not internationally, unless they are widerly recognized.
Telescoped or Alpha-Numeric names:
Some persons refer to names that combine numbers and letters as Alpha-Numeric names. Such names have worked well for companies such as Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company that telescoped its name to be the 3M Company. Other good examples are Food 4 Less, A-1 Steak Sauce, 9-Lives Cat Food, and 7-UP. (Other examples???) Many such names are successful because the numbers carry important meanings in clever ways.
Names with deviant spellings:
Nite skool, Krazee Kids, Kandy Korn, Peteet Neet School, tuff skins, Xtreme are all examples of deviant spellings that play with sounds. The rhyming and alliteration features of WriteExpress can help you find words with the desired sound combinations, but you provide the innovative spellings. Be sure that the deviant spelling appeals to your target consumer. What appeals to one group of consumers may just be silly to another. The advantage of such names is that they are memorable, but you may find them difficult to trademark if there is a similar-sounding trademark with a more conventional spelling.
Acronyms and Abbreviations:
Acronyms and abbreviations are effective ways to shorten otherwise long names and make them unique and memorable, particularly when the name is already known. Thus NRA is recognized as National Rifle Association, aol is America on line, and KFC is Kentucky Fried Chicken. Otherwise, the acronym or abbreviation must contain other information to carry its message. For example IHC Health Care, CNN News, or M & L Rentals. In some cases a clever acronym is introduced with the product as in US West's Directory Expert called DEX.
Place names:
The key is for the place name to carry the right associations. New York Deli, Philadelphia Cream Cheese, Chicago style pizza, San Francisco Sourdough, Kentucky Fried Chicker. Ficticious place names can also work if they have the right associations and are therefore memorable. Consider The Olive Garden Restaurant, The Attic, and The Terrace. If the nature of the business, service or product is not obvious from the name, you still have an advertising problem.
Alliterative or rhyming names:
Names with alliteration are those that have the same sound at the beginning of two or more successive words. Roto Rooter, Cellular Source, Peter Piper Pizza, Water World, and Bargain Basement are words that are memorable largely because they contain alliteration. The WriteExpress rhyming and alliteration features make up the world's most powerful tool for finding such names. While this is a very positive feature, don't let it lure you into being so creative that the name is counter productive.
Prestige names:
Names such as Nike, Sundance, Lady Di, and Pierre Cardin are all prestige names. Some are from foreign languages; others are the names of celebrities. One may expect that such names are rarely trademarkable. It is generally good advice to avoid them unless you have some legal control over the name.
4.
How long should the name be?
In naming businesses and services, lengthy names with three or more syllables in more than one word should probably be avoided. Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company was wisely reduced to 3M, and International Business Machines was reduced to IBM. If you are naming a product that will be on a retail shelf, the name should be short enough to fit on the retail box and be legible from several feet away. Selecting a name that tells the customer what the product is in only a few syllables is daunting but absolutely essential. After selecting possible names, test them with potential buyers to see whether they understand from the name what the product is. If they don't, find another short name until they do.
5.
Do the sounds in the name have the right appeal?
Your name should be easy to read, spell, and pronounce, and should reflect the quality of the thing named. It is best to avoid names with uncertain pronunciations. Part of the meaning of a word is colored by its sounds. Words that rhyme or have alliterative initial sounds may work well for some products but not for others. "Tiny Tots' Toys" may work well for children's products but such alliteration may not work well for medical supplies. Would you want to buy "comfy coronary catheters?" Certain sounds such as the vowels in tipsy and teenie weenie carry light, diminutive impressions, while the sounds in crunch and plop seem much heavier. Similarly, the sounds p,t,k,ch, j, a,u,o seem harder and more masculine than do l,m,n, ng, sh,s, i,e. The sounds v,f,z,s are generally associated with speed more than sounds such as p,t,b,d,l, and m. Some experts feel that the letters q,x,z,f, and u tend to evoke negative feelings. Of course Fudruckers and Compaq have used the sounds to their advantage. On the positive side, the letters a,b,s,t and m are reported to evoke very positive feelings. Being aware of such subtleties may help you narrow your choices.
6.
What associations should the name evoke?
Would "Bud Light" be as appealing if it were "Tiffany Light?" "Bud" evokes masculine associations and "Tiffany" evokes feminine ones. Notice that the difference is communicated as much by the sounds of the words as by the meanings. The sounds in "Bud" seem heavier than ones in "Tiffany." A recent fat substitute was given the name "olean," negating any notion of fat. Consider the positive associations with a name such as "Sunkist Oranges." Some names like Ajax or Mercury evoke powerful images from mythology. Others like Castmaster or Power Bait clearly appeal to the sport of fishing. The associations that your name evokes are extremely important and should appeal to the specific consumer you have in mind.
7.
What are the foreign language implications of the name?
Without checking foreign language associations of the word, someone at GM chose "Nova," for a Chevrolet model, probably hoping to evoke a star-like association. Only later did they realize that In Spanish, "no- va" means "it doesn't go." The incident has been a lesson for all who would name products for global consumption. Successful names with good foreign language meanings include "Nike," referring to the Greek goddess of victory, and "Taurus," meaning "bull," the second sign of the zodiac. Before settling on a name, be sure to check its possible meanings and associations in foreign languages. Foreign language dictionaries will help but will not suffice. Generally they will not contain profanity. Be safe by checking with native speakers.
8.
How will I test the name?
As you narrow your name choices, involve only persons from the group who will be the consumers. Ask them what they think of when they hear the word you have chosen. You may also tell them what you think the name of your product or service, but don't dwell on it. Contact them on the following day and ask them what the name was. If several remember it, you probably have a good name. If virtually no one does, it's back to the drawing board. Other techniques include surveying consumers with a list of possible names for them to rank, interviewing consumers in the market place, and placing lists on bulletin boards and requesting responses. Also test your names for political incorrectness, negative associations, questionable meanings in foreign languages, and other connotations or associations that may render a name unwise. Remember, the name must be unique, distinctive, and memorable. And, before you use it be sure that the name will be free from legal problems.
9.
How will the name appear in directories?
If you anticipate that much of your business will come from listings in the Yellow Pages, the Internet, or other directories, it will be to your advantage to have a business name that will be listed close to the start of the alphabet, because these lists appear in alphabetical order. Of course, highlighting, adding pictures, and using other attention-getting devices can help, but their effectiveness seems to be less when placed near the end of a list.
10.
Can I trademark the name?
You will probably experience some frustration when you find that your favorite name is not legally available. Be sure you have three or four alternatives when you start your search from trademark availability. Initially, you may want to check trade journals, and directories such as the Yellow Pages to be sure your name is not being used. Most university libraries offer searching services so you can determine whether your name is already listed as a trademark. This initial search may save you time and money before you engage legal counsel. Be sure to check various similar or optional spellings for your name, because it can be denied if it is too similar to another established trademark. Large libraries will generally have books that deal with state and federal trademark laws. Trademark law can be complicated so you must get good advice on how to proceed.
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