Posted by Stephanie Valentine on May 25, 2009 in
Small Business Marketing 
Test Marketing: Try Stuff On for Size
If you’re a sole proprietor or small business owner, marketing can seem like a headache that just won’t go away. You might have lots of good ideas, but you’re not sure which ones to pursue. And, if you’re like most small business owners, you only have a limited budget to invest in marketing, so which marketing options should you pursue?
Test Marketing an Idea
A really quick and dirty way to check out your ideas is to use test marketing. When you test market an idea, you implement the idea on a very small scale to a limited portion of your customers or “audience.” For instance, if you’re in the dry cleaning business and you want to try out a volume discount idea, you might test the idea by offering it selectively to people who regularly bring orders of $50 or more for dry cleaning. The people in this test market obviously do high volume and are probably interested in saving money.
Set Time Limits
Set a time limit for your experiment and keep track of the results carefully. Look back through your records and see how many orders these people brought in, how often they came in and how large the orders were. Then, see what changes, if any, your promotional discount created. See if you get an overall increase in revenue and profit. If there are no changes, talk to those high volume people and find out what’s on their mind. It may be that they already bring all of their dry cleaning to you and have no more volume.
Next Steps
If that’s the case, then try your promotion on the next tier of customers - the people who may bring you only pants and skirts, but who take their shirts to the 99 cent place around the corner. Offer a volume discount to this group of customers and see if they will increase their volume to get the discount. Talk to them and find out what’s important to them as you hand them a coupon for the next order.
If you run this experiment for a few months, you’ll begin to really see the effect (positive or negative) on your bottom line. At the same time, the only money you’ll spend on this effort is printing up some coupons to hand to customers. If this really works, then you might consider increasing your investment in this idea and advertising it through newspapers or coupon services.
Cheap Test Marketing Allows for Mistakes
Test marketing is a great way to test out all of your ideas on the cheap and limiting any possible negative effects. Sam Walton, founder of Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club, once said that if you keep your expenses down you can afford to make a lot of mistakes and still recover. That’s the very essence of test marketing! Good luck and have fun!
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Photo credit: hair
Tags: cheap marketing, Sam Walton, test marketing
Posted by Stephanie Valentine on May 18, 2009 in
Small Business Marketing 
Oddly enough, there is a great list of small business marketing ideas on a blog called “The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur,” or TPE. No, really, it’s a great website/blog. And the list of marketing ideas is huge, with 115 great suggestions. Author Mike Michalowicz surveyed the TPE community and compiled this list.
The list ranges from basics, like participating in trade organizations or telling good stories, to unusual ideas, such as giving away free soap stamped with the slogan, “Be Sweet,” asking people to retweet!
The list is definitely worth a read, and will probably spark some inspiration for your small business. Check it out here:
115 Marketing Strategies for Small Business
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Photo credit: Everyone Poops
Tags: small business marketing ideas, toilet paper entrepreneur
How to Improve Your Small Business in Bad Times
Recessions are weird for small businesses. You see an explosion in the number of small businesses being formed. You also see a record of number of businesses going down like flotillas of sinking ships. If you’re a small business owner, the whole business landscape can make you schizophrenic, if not downright crazy.
So what do you do to help your small business in these crazy times? Well, one friend of mine, a small business owner, is going to see her doctor about getting the new “screw it all” pill that is supposed to keep you happy no matter what’s going on in your business.
That’s not going to work for me. I’m a health freak so allopathic drugs are not my gig. What is working for me and my business partners is the simple act of reaching out and touching people. Whether we’re picking up the phone and calling customers, or zipping an email to a business acquaintance, we’re seeing business pick up — a lot.
Why Reaching Out Helps Small Businesses
At this particular time, when people are frozen with fear and totally lost, reaching out to them is having a dynamic effect. People are so glad to hear from us, for a variety of reasons.
1. Economic Stimulus Incentives
Our suppliers are offering all kinds of stimulus incentives, which we can pass on to our customers. This gives us the perfect reason to call or email our customers. For instance, one of our suppliers offers a nutritional supplement that is an excellent preventative against swine flu. With swine flu splashed all over the news, this supplier is offering this immune-boosting supplement at half price for a limited time. Many of our customers still have to travel, despite the epidemic, and are thrilled to hear from us and take advantage of the discount. And this is only one example of the kinds of incentives we are passing on to our customers.
2. Bartering is Cheap and Good
Money may be tight but there’s still plenty of talent floating around out there. We are reaching out further and deeper than ever into our business network, seeking out bartering efforts that will be mutually useful. We recently traded services with a lawyer friend. We needed some help advising one of our clients on the issue of incorporation (should he go with an LLC or an S Corporation?). We asked the lawyer, who provided us with a succinct and decisive answer. Problem solved. In return, we sent the lawyer an ebook that we had written and he wanted. It was hugely useful barter, and not a cent changed hands.
3. Referrals Still Drive Business
I recently wrote about some studies that indicate that word-of-mouth still reigns supreme as a marketing method. Referrals are still an awesome way to expand business. A few weeks ago I made three referrals that earned me nothing but good karma. That good karma has since paid off. Yesterday, out of nowhere, a business acquaintance from a long time ago sent us a fabulous new client for one of our online businesses. Amazing.
Recession often has the effect of causing a small business owner to shrink back, like a turtle hiding in its shell. Don’t fall prey to that temptation. Instead, reach out and touch someone in your business network. Even if you do nothing more than make a single contact per week, you’ll be surprised at the chain reaction that sometimes happen. We are seeing it happen in the most surprising ways.
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Photo credit: Reach Out and Touch Someone
Tags: networking, reach out and touch someone, Small Business Marketing
Posted by Stephanie on Apr 30, 2009 in
Small Business Marketing 
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) for Small Business
If your small business has an online presence then you have probably heard people talking about SEO, or search engine optimization. SEO is a way of fine-tuning your website so that it appears at the top of search engine rankings. If your website tops the list on a major search engine like Google, chances are that you’ll get a lot of traffic.
These days, SEO is a cross between art and science. It is a deeply-specialized niche and it can be confusing for the small business owner who just wants to tweak their website for better rankings and more traffic.
If you are truly a do-it-yourself small business owner, and you want to learn more about SEO, check out the SEO Design Solutions website. They have a great blog with a great library of useful and practical articles for SEO.
For instance, I just read this great article on how new content affects search engine rankings. The article is titled “How New Content and Post Frequency Impact SEO,” and offers very specific tips on how to “freshen” the content on your website without driving yourself crazy. There are some great shortcuts listed there. Read and enjoy!
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Tags: search engine optimization, seo, small business online presence
Posted by Stephanie on Apr 29, 2009 in
Small Business Marketing 
Guest post by Jackie Nagel, Synnovatia
The process of client acquisition is rarely a short, straight line. Given the wide range of suppliers available, a potential client can easily veer off course on their path to buying your product or service-especially when making a virtual connection.
Prospective clients pass through various stages of assurance when interacting with your company. Each stage provides an opportunity to develop trust and move a prospective client to a satisfied client. When executed successfully, each succeeding step develops more trust and establishes the credibility you need to sustain long-lasting relationships.
1. Unaware to aware when a person sees your LinkedIn updates posted on their LinkedIn home page, reads your answer posted to a question, studies your post in a group discussion forum, or receives a private reply to their question.
2. Aware to curious when a person is touched/affected by the content you provide. They click through and read your profile.
3. Curious to interested when a person discovers something you provide that might help them. They read your LinkedIn profile and click through to your website and/or blog.
4. Interested to believing when a person begins to believe that the business owner/company is real/legitimate. They read your LinkedIn profile, click through to your website and/or blog and register for your RSS feed or online newsletter.
5. Believing to wanting when a person sees what you are doing/offering and wants to move forward to see what you have to offer. A meeting is requested (or offered) to discuss your product/services.
6. Wanting to in-motion when a person responds to something you have offered and replies by phone/email. This is a very BIG step. A meeting is agreed upon to discuss what your product/service.
7. In-motion to buyer when a person believes/trusts you, wants the product/service you provide, and begins to pay you.
8. Buyer to satisfied customer when a person is happy with the product/service you provide and their trust in you is rewarded. They post a recommendation on your LinkedIn profile.
9. Satisfied customer to advocate when a person gets more/better service/benefits than they expected and it occurs on many occasions. He or she then begins to refer you to others.
When clients become advocates, you’ve proven that your brand is strong, that your product/service is needed and valued, and that you serve your clients with their success in mind.
The original author is unknown. Modified to fit the LinkedIn experience.
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Jackie Nagel, Founder of Synnovatia™, energizes entrepreneurs that are stuck, stalled, starting up, or stretching with a pioneering coaching approach that drives profits, productivity, and performance.
Tags: building trst, jackie nagel, linkedin, Synnovatia
Posted by Stephanie on Apr 28, 2009 in
Small Business Marketing 
I just read a fantastic post about branding written by Jonathan Mead on the Lateral Action website. He describes branding as “being paid to exist,” which, when you think about it, is how people like Chris Brogan, Brian Clark, and others make their money. They write, people read them, and they get paid to speak. They get asked to “be” at certain places (and get paid for it, of course).
If branding has always been a confusing topic when it comes to your small business, check out Jonathan’s post. It’s quite fascinating. Here’s a little chunk of it:
“You don’t tell people why they want to be like you, or why they want to connect with you. You show them. It’s not about trying to win a popularity contest. It’s about boldly emitting the frequency that you resonate on. Sending the signal “This is what I’m about and why it matters.” When people pick up on that authentic wavelength, if they connect with it, they will naturally be drawn to you.”
This isn’t a mamby-pamby post, either. It gets down to the heart of the matter, of why you have a small business and why you work, because the “why” is an important part of your brand. He even takes you back to the cave-man days, and points out that the old reasons for working (like food and security) aren’t such a big deal anymore. We get food shipped in to us and we could get hit by a bus tomorrow, so who cares about security?
So why should we work? Passion. We should, as he puts it, “give a damn.” If we give a damn about what we do, if we are passionate, then we are halfway to being branded. There’s tons of good stuff in that post and I won’t spoil it for you by spilling all the beans here.
Go read Jonathan’s post and, by golly, give a damn!
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Photo credit: Give a damn: Banned Books Week 2008
Tags: small business branding
Posted by Stephanie on Apr 27, 2009 in
Small Business Marketing 
Guest post by Jackie Nagel, Synnovatia
Connecting virtually can be disconcerting. Those in search of service providers through www.linkedin.com may not know, or have previously met you. With limited information, they have to rely on other approaches to vet your ability.
Just as the number of link up’s in your network expands your reach, strong recommendations elevate your trustworthiness. From reinforcing your profile for viewers to improving your ranking under Service Providers, the depth and breadth of your recommendations strengthens your credibility.
In Search of a Service Provider
With the growing popularity of Google, it’s becoming increasingly challenging to find service providers amidst the online content. More and more, people are turning to LinkedIn as their trusted resource for vendors.
Click on the dropdown menu of the Company tab in the upper left hand side of your LinkedIn home page. Here you’ll find Service Providers, a conveniently located ‘yellow pages’, of sorts, for any vendor you might need.
In need of a Writer/Editor? Hunt through lengthy search engine listings no more! Just locate the Writer/Editor category on the right hand side of the Service Provider page and, as if by magic, Writers/Editors appear complete with recommendations, degrees away from you, location, and top qualities. What could be easier?
From here, you have a number of ways to narrow your search including degrees away from you, top results or date of the most recent recommendation - all features located along the thin green line/shadow in the middle of the page.
Rock Your Recommendations
Your goal as it relates to recommendations is two-fold: acquire strong recommendations in the category representing your service and, obtain the number of recommendations that would conveniently rank you on the first page of the network of your choice - either 1st or 2nd degree network or Recommendations for all LinkedIn Users.
Your immediate client base holds the greatest level of clout when endorsing your work. However, don’t forget to tap those with whom you have worked side-by-side whether it was on client assignments, community projects, or through organizational membership.
When you’re looking to be found, nothing says ‘you can deliver’ as well as recommendations from those who have first-hand knowledge of your skills, expertise, and ability to deliver on your promises.
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Jackie Nagel, Founder of Synnovatia™, energizes entrepreneurs that are stuck, stalled, starting up, or stretching with a pioneering coaching approach that drives profits, productivity, and performance.
Tags: jackie nagel, linkedin, Recommendations, Synnovatia
Posted by Stephanie on Apr 23, 2009 in
Small Business Marketing 
Guest post by Jackie Nagel, Synnovatia
With each question asked in the content-rich Answer section of LinkedIn, several response options exist, each with its own unique advantage.
Posting an answer publically allows everyone in your network to read your response. This is an excellent practice if your LinkedIn objective is to demonstrate your expertise and the answers are consistent with your brand.
Connecting One-on-One
Some questions just don’t lend themselves to a general answer. The question itself generates more questions in order to provide an appropriate response.
The Reply Privately feature, located immediately beneath and to the right of the question, provides an opportunity to connect directly with the individual asking the question.
Replying privately with an offer of a no-cost/no-obligation face-to-face/phone-to phone consultation of a set amount of time is an excellent way to deliver value to your network, demonstrate your expertise, and, if the individual likes what they hear, acquire clients or, at the very least, extend your network.
Caution: Do make sure your intention is to deliver value. Underhanded sleazy or salesy approaches will damage your brand and undermine your credibility.
Share the Wealth
Is a question fitting for someone in your network? Rather than pass it over, use the Share This feature, located beneath and to the right of the question, and offer to a specialist within your network to respond.
It demonstrates your dedication to the true spirit of networking. Hopefully, those with whom you are linked are of the same mindset with a willingness to reciprocate.
Networking, at its very best, is about giving, sharing, adding value, building relationships and working together for the betterment of everyone’s business.
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Jackie Nagel, Founder of Synnovatia™, energizes entrepreneurs that are stuck, stalled, starting up, or stretching with a pioneering coaching approach that drives profits, productivity, and performance.
Tags: connection, jackie nagel, linkedin, Synnovatia
Posted by Stephanie on Apr 21, 2009 in
Small Business Marketing 
Guest post by Jackie Nagel, Synnovatia
The LinkedIn network is loaded with expertise. Most would pay top dollar for such well-versed talent. It’s an exceptional spot to request vital information, seek assistance, compile opinions, gather industrial data, or position your know-how.
So Many Categories - So Little Time
Situated on the right side of the LinkedIn website are twenty-one subject matter categories. Within each category, three - eight sub-categories exist. These help to further refine your inquest into this robust knowledge-base.
The ideal place to start is by identifying the top three (3) categories that best support your pre-determined objective for LinkedIn. Next, select at least five (5) sub-categories in which you would like to participate - whether it’s asking or answering questions.
Purposeful Perusing
The ways to use the Answer segment are as numerous as the Q & A’s posted. Here’s my strategy for this information-rich component.
With the primary objective of positioning our expertise for business development, and the minutes ticking by, questions are identified from the various categories and sub-categories that reinforce our brand.
Questions selected for response meet the criteria of being posted within the past 24 hours and have no more than 2-3 answers. This improves the probability of eyeballs viewing the answer - and, if compelling and pertinent, lead to visiting my profile and/or our website.
Whenever possible, I provide resources (documents, templates, checklists, assessments) that can be accessed at www.Synnovatia.com with the intention of creating further company exposure.
Don’t Mess With Your Brand
With each question asked or answered, one’s reputation is broadcast to your network - the 1,802,900+ nearest and dearest professionals to whom you’re connected. Each posting strengthens or dilutes your brand. A strategic approach to the Answer feature is critical to preserving the integrity of that brand. Like toothpaste, once squeezed from the tube, it’s a little tough to get it back in the tube.
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Jackie Nagel, Founder of Synnovatia™, energizes entrepreneurs that are stuck, stalled, starting up, or stretching with a pioneering coaching approach that drives profits, productivity, and performance.
Tags: jackie nagel, linkedin, Questions and Answers, Synnovatia
Posted by Stephanie on Apr 17, 2009 in
Small Business Marketing 
Guest post by Jackie Nagel, Synnovatia
Your Profile is your face to the world. When your Profile aligns with your LinkedIn purpose and pursuit, it adds to the productive use of this new media by strengthening your overall brand.
First Impressions Make Lasting Impressions
Profile Header: This is the box bordered in light blue that looks like a business card. It contains your name, title, location, picture, and a text box entitled What are you working on. It is comprised of the information most viewed by your network whether you are joining groups, securing recommendations, adding connections or answering questions. It’s significant real estate!
- Given the visible reach, your position title should be short and descriptive, leaving the reader with a quick, clear snap shot of your occupation, business or responsibility.
- A picture is worth a thousand words. Consider what you want to communicate to your network before uploading yours. It’s a trust and credibility builder.
- What are you working on is a great tool to demonstrate your expertise and/or highlight your qualifications. Update it weekly. The number of characters is limited so make your message succinct and clear. While creating your post, and before your hit save, check Visible to: to confirm your postings are visible to the connections of your choosing.
WIIFM
Profile Summary: This is where you shamelessly shine. Most online readers are scanners so you have but a few words to convey your expertise.
- Craft a synopsis of your competence using three (3) paragraphs comprised of 2-3 sentences each. And, remember. Write your summation to communicate the What’s in it for Me (WIIFM) to your readers.
- The Specialties feature can be likened to keywords. List the more prominent words and/or phrases by which you want to be identified through a search.
Your Profile sets the stage for your networking efforts. It is always present - even when you’re not - demonstrating your value to all interested parties.
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Jackie Nagel, Founder of Synnovatia™, energizes entrepreneurs that are stuck, stalled, starting up, or stretching with a pioneering coaching approach that drives profits, productivity, and performance.
Photo credit for black and white photo: funny faces
Tags: jackie nagel, LinkedIn profile
