February 2012
11 posts
9 tags
STARK REALITY ADVICE
90% of SME Communication not only does not maximize ROI, but is WASTED because it doesn’t build or have a cumulative effect!
Most SME business owners do it themselves or let the job be done by the media or designers. Their expenditure lines the pockets of media companies, web developers, designers, printers who are not aware of simple and proven Scientific Advertising Principles.
Develop an...
1 tag
Marketng Communication - Clarity
People today more receptive than ever before to Clear Solutions and Clear Messages. Clarity promises Peace of Mind in today’s chaotic world!
Here is an example by a jewellery chain that produced amazing results:
A simple headline was changed from:
“We guarantee the quality of the diamonds we sell”
to:
“If the Gemological Institute of America doesn’t confirm our...
3 tags
Marketing Communication - Compression &...
Solutions we offer have to be immediately comprehensible otherwise they become problems and add to the sensory overload of our clients and prospects.
People are too stressed and busy for dense visuals and jargon - a common sin of Finance and IT industries.
Time Deprivation + Technology = Compression
Digital TV 500 channels & The Web = Life now is 24 x 7x 365
Compressed patience and...
3 tags
HOW WILL YOU SAY IT? - Effective Marketing...
Does your marketing communication:
Dramatize your brand’s most important benefit?
Communicate simply? Simplicity is powerful – less is more
Use natural, real life dialogue?
Avoid jargon?
Tell a story, leave a picture in your prospects’ mind?
Ask questions?
Provide proof and reasons to believe?
10 tags
HOW WILL YOU SAY IT? - General Principles of...
Here is a checklist for all your marketing communications. Ask yourself the following questions and see whether your marketing communication achieves the following objectives:
Does your marketing communication grab Attention?
Does your marketing communication clearly identify your brand? Does it do so immediately and throughout the advertisement?
Does your marketing communication reinforce your...
17 tags
LinkedIn - The greatest Personal Branding,...
There are 3 types of people in business: - Entrepreneurs - Intrapreneurs - Un-enterprising and all of them can benefit from LinkedIn, even the un-enterprising! It’s the often overlooked social media channel of LinkedIn! Whilst it is Facebook and Twitter that get all the media attention, it is LinkedIn that leads with results. Hubspot research shows LinkedIn being the equal leading Customer...
9 tags
The Importance of Your Personal Brand
If you are the owner or founder of an SME (Small and Medium Enterprise) or are the person responsible for sales or business development in any size organization then your reputation - your personal brand is paramount in your personal success and the success of your organization.
‘Brands are like people’ is an analogy often used to describe the companies they represent. Virgin is the...
8 tags
Is Your Website Built for Online Success?
All websites can be classified into 4 types:
1. A site that sells product(s) or service(s) by the quality of design and copywriting, which is in turn
2. A lead generation site that attracts potential new clients
3. A customer support or self service site that reduces costs by completing routine tasks, replacing or reducing human interaction
4. A content site that educates or informs...
4 tags
www - web - the great equalizer
The web allows ‘small business Davids’ to compete with corporate Goliaths.
Your website is the most flexible and accountable marketing weapon today. Usually the first thing that your prospects see and experience about your business, it is your most public face to the world, a showroom open every hour of every day.
The investment into your website is 100% measurable and hence...
8 tags
How to cut your marketing costs without decreasing...
You Need Original Ideas & More Creative Execution but more importantly you need to SHARE!
12 Half Page Print Ads are more effective than 6 Full Page Ads
One Colour, called spot colour can be used instead of Full Colour to decrease the cost without effecting effectiveness if the design is used creatively to compensate for this.
Use 30 Second Radio Ad v 60 Second Radio Ad
Decrease the...
7 tags
Importance of PR for Small Businesses (SME's)
The “birth of a brand” is achieved with publicity, not advertising. A new brand must be capable of generating favorable publicity in the media or it will not have a chance in the marketplace.
PR automatically generates greater credibility through “unbiased editorial” rather than a “paid” message.
The ultimate cost effective guerrilla marketing tool, PR can give a ‘David’ advantages over the...
January 2012
22 posts
11 tags
11 Most Effective Ways of Reaching Your Target...
As discussed previously, reaching your prospects and customers with your message is today the single greatest ‘cost of doing business’.
If you are a small business, selling to other businesses (B2B) or a professional services firm and even when selling directly to your customers and clients (B2C), then here are our top 11 ways of getting your message to them most cost effectively.
In...