How to Decide What Products to Create

How to Decide What Products to Create

Marketing Strategy
In order to have a business, you need to have something to sell. I think we can agree on this right? When many entrepreneurs start out, they often sell their knowledge. People often need advice and expertise to help them solve a problem. After having a conversation with someone who needs help, a not-yet entrepreneur who sounds like an expert is often asked "how much would you charge to help me " or something along those lines. Has this ever happened to you? Have you had a conversation with someone, they ask what you would charge, and you have to do some quick thinking on the fly? If you can think on your feet, you come up with a fee and a service package on the spot. Yeah, I've done this! How Many…
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A Definition of Multichannel Marketing for Non-Marketers

Marketing Strategy
You have probably heard the term multi-channel marketing before. Do you know it means? Do you know why it's important to understand? Multi-channel marketing is jargon that most non-marketers don't understand. Simply put, multichannel marketing is getting the message out about your products and services through many methods. The goal of multi-channel marketing is to get the information into the hands of as many of your audience as possible. How many channels you use will depend on the ways in which you sell your products as well as where your audience is located. The different ways you can market and sell products today include: Retail Website Social media Mobile commerce Call centers Catalogs (online and offline) What are the benefits of multichannel marketing? The benefits of multichannel marketing are many,…
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The 3 Phases of Growing Your Email List

The 3 Phases of Growing Your Email List

Marketing Strategy
How do you go from no e-mail list at all, to adding a few people here and there, to adding hundreds or thousands at a time? Here are the 3 phases of list-building as I see them, and some of the most effective list-building tactics in each stage… PHASE 1: Getting Started When you’re just starting out, I recommend reaching out to your sphere of influence and inviting them to receive your special newsletter or tips (whatever valuable free goody you offer on an ongoing basis). Here are some places to start: Stacks of business cards you’ve collected Contacts in Gmail (or whatever e-mail provider you have) People in your cell phone Facebook friends LinkedIn connections Send them an e-mail message to reconnect, inviting them to opt in to your…
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27 Proven Marketing Strategies for a Small Marketing Budget

27 Proven Marketing Strategies for a Small Marketing Budget

Marketing Strategy
Search the term marketing strategies on Google and you're likely to get over 69 million results. (That is not a typo.) Have you searched the term? If you're on the hunt for marketing strategies for your business, you can easily be overwhelmed with the abundance of suggestions, all of which can run the gamut anywhere from free to the price of a small country. How many times have you thought to yourself, I wish I could afford  to <insert fancy marketing tactic here>? How many times have you seen a company do some quirky marketing and thought to yourself, one day I hope I can afford to do that? Are you using social media for marketing, but you're just throwing out random posts, crossing your fingers hoping someone sees you and makes you famous? It's ok, as most, if…
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How to Write Million Dollar Headlines

How to Write Million Dollar Headlines

Blogging, Marketing Strategy
The right headline can draw in even the most disinterested reader, luring them in to read the rest of your sales pitch.  In the same way, a bad headline can totally turn off a reader who might be very interested in what you’re trying to sell. While it would be nice to have, there is no specific rule on how to write headlines. That’s because it depends on what your topic is, what the goal of your writing is, and several other factors. There are, however, some basic rules and guidelines that can help you get started. [Tweet "Having trouble writing hot headlines for your blog posts? Learn a few tricks here."] How to Write Headlines That Sell 1. Tell them what they’re getting If you have an interesting or…
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5 Ways to Use Social Media to Build Your Email List

5 Ways to Use Social Media to Build Your Email List

Marketing Strategy
Are you using social media to get more visibility for your business? Are you using email marketing to turn interested prospects into buyers? Have you integrated social media into your email list building efforts? If not, you are missing out on a huge opportunity to promote your business! Social media presents an opportunity to build your list of subscribers with a wide range of different people and cross-promote your business from different traffic sources. If you integrate your social media marketing with your email list, you can harness the power of both of these sources for even more traffic and engagement.   5 Ways to Use Social Media to Build Your Email List Let Your Social Networks Know On all of your social networks, let everyone know about your email sign-up…
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How to Amplify Any Online Content [Infographic]

How to Amplify Any Online Content [Infographic]

Marketing Strategy
You’ve crafted the perfect marketing content. It’s creative, clever, and you’re sure that your audience will love it. But, for some reason it hasn’t gotten the likes or shares that you expected and no ones seems to be paying attention. Is the content not as good as you thought, or worse, are people just not that into your message? Maybe it’s not you, it’s them. With about FOUR BILLION shares on Facebook and forty five million photos uploaded to Instagram and Flickr every day, the internet is a sea of information and it’s easy to get lost. To get your voice heard over the noise, you need to yell and scream. You need to plug in the amplifier and crank up the volume. The infographic below discusses how to amplify…
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Reach Your Target Market and Climb the Marketing Ladder

Reach Your Target Market and Climb the Marketing Ladder

Marketing Strategy
To new business owners, starting a business is often its own reward. They are thrilled to be able to be their own bosses, and to successfully get a business up and running. Often they are happy just to keep the dream alive. But every business needs to grow. That doesn't automatically mean you have to reach out to a larger market - it could mean working toward increasing your share of your existing target market. This will keep your business healthy enough to survive obstacles such as tough economic times.   In order to keep moving forward, we need to market our businesses constantly. We need to dedicate a certain percentage of our resources to building our brand and reaching our target market. Here are some simple things you can do to…
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