Market-Guru

LinkedIn cheat sheet

2011-12-03T13:04:00.000-08:00

21 hidden tricks to market, promote and grow your business
http://tiny.cc/cicfn

Use LinkedIn to grow your business:

2011-12-03T13:03:00.000-08:00

Announce your new products and services, offer advice, join groups, and start discussions
http://tiny.cc/xfxa6

Make your business intelligence visual and interactive

2011-12-03T13:01:00.000-08:00

Get answers in real-time, take action, and shrink your decision-making window.
http://tiny.cc/11fwd

Are you in the best-fit job / career?

2011-12-03T13:00:00.000-08:00

This free test shares some keen insights. My scores: Creator 85, Persuader 80, Thinker 70, Doer 50. What's yours?
http://tiny.cc/r5d7i

Tweet your professional services offering

2011-12-03T12:58:00.000-08:00

Don’t let your professional services marketing go stale -- 17 tips from the pros.
http://tiny.cc/3x2e2

Social media meets B2B marketing

2011-12-03T12:57:00.000-08:00

Social media comes of age: the medium is considered a standard direct marketing and bus dev tool -- even for B2B organizations
http://tiny.cc/3cwrq

Monetize your customers' insights

2011-12-03T12:55:00.000-08:00

Forrester Research "Voice of the Customer" -- Ways to monetize insights through a CSAT (Customer Satisfaction) survey
http://tiny.cc/ze7vt

Mocial survey results

2011-12-03T12:53:00.000-08:00

Key trends on how companies are using Social, Mobile, Local and Email to communicate with customers and prospects
http://tiny.cc/80xe4

The "Generosity Experiment"

2011-12-03T12:52:00.000-08:00

#TED Sasha Dichter of the Acumen Fund shares the results of his month-long experiment where he said "yes" to every request for help
http://tiny.cc/yapcx

B2B content marketing drives awareness and engagement.

2011-12-03T12:49:00.001-08:00

This survey from uber-blogger Holger Schulze shares which channels deliver the most leads - and more
http://tiny.cc/snbxm

Non-paid marketing: get found everywhere for free

2011-12-03T12:48:00.000-08:00

Grow followers: share your ideas and tweet others' content in your niche. Readers will enjoy and re-share.
http://tiny.cc/eyu1q

Your customer's service experience

2011-12-03T12:45:00.000-08:00

Do you offer exceptional customer service? Method Products establishes connections through emotional differentiation & shared values - i.e., “the love of (safe) clean.”
http://tiny.cc/6te6b

8 timeless business development tips

2011-12-03T12:43:00.000-08:00

Focus on referrals, sell solutions, understand biz drivers, build a niche, network!, view your business as a franchise, use a service methodology, and offer training.
http://tiny.cc/ttsik

Make your presence known

2011-12-03T12:41:00.000-08:00

Companies big and small: do things that attract attention and generate a buzz. Think/act outside the box - or your business will be buried alive.
http://tiny.cc/r9i94

Social media marketing

2011-12-03T12:39:00.000-08:00

9 important sites http://tiny.cc/zy4eu
... and 9 other not-so-obvious (but cool) social media sites
http://tiny.cc/huljf

5 business development tactics that don’t change

2011-12-03T12:35:00.000-08:00

Market knowledge. Prospect research. Teamwork. Presentation. Delivery.
Read more: http://tiny.cc/0f9k0

Social media comes of age

2011-10-20T14:29:00.000-07:00

The medium is considered a standard direct marketing and bus dev tool -- even for B2B
http://tiny.cc/3cwrq

Monetize customer insights through a CSAT

2011-10-20T14:27:00.000-07:00

Forrester Research Voice of the Customer: Customer Satisfaction Surveys
http://tiny.cc/ze7vt

Mocial survey results

2011-10-20T14:24:00.000-07:00

Key trends on how companies are using Social, Mobile, Local and Email to communicate with customers and prospectshttp://tiny.cc/80xe4

Organic marketing works - and it's free!

2011-09-29T13:04:00.000-07:00

"Non-Paid Marketing: How to Get Found Everywhere For Free" Fantastic webinar, great tips - e.g., Grow followers: share your ideas AND tweet others' content in your niche. Readers will enjoy and re-share.

http://tiny.cc/eyu1q

Improve your customers' experience

2011-09-22T16:54:00.000-07:00

Do you offer a rigorous customer service experience? Method Products establishes a connection through emotional differentiation and shared values - i.e., “the love of (safe) clean.”

http://tiny.cc/4euf4

Join new LinkedIn Group! Professional Services Bus Dev

2011-09-14T20:03:00.000-07:00

Learn and share strategies, tactics, and tips to engage prospects/customers & grow sales!
http://tiny.cc/3jjfr

Emotions influence decision-makers

2011-07-16T20:49:00.000-07:00

A k a, why jurors found Casey Anthony "not guilty."

Emotion.

Caylee Anthony

Compare and contrast defense attorney Jose Baez’ words, tone, and passionate approach with the serious and contrived demeanor of the lead prosecutor, Jeff Ashton.

Baez keyed in on what all marketers know – people make buying, and virtually all other, decisions based, in large part, on emotion.

Conflicting “want vs. need” (i.e., guilty vs. not guilty) emotions tugged at each juror's head and heart, especially while being subjected to countless illustrations of courtroom theatrics.

How many times did you see Baez passionately pound on the witnesses?

Jose Baez, Casey Anthony's defense attorney

In his opening statement, Baez bellowed as he described a scene depicting Anthony’s father, George, as being furious when he found that Caylee had (supposedly) drowned.

“Look what you’ve done! Your mother is going to be furious!” Baez yelled as he re-enacted what he presumed George said after finding Caylee’s dead body.

How did Ashton respond to these theatrics?

He didn’t.

Ashton’s stone-cold, fact-based presentation and face-covered snickering during Baez’ closing argument alienated the jurors.

Prosecutor Ashton laughing at Jose Baez

Ashton’s performance (let’s face it, that’s what attorneys do) left them feeling nothing – no sympathy, no empathy, and no emotion – for what Caylee endured, more likely than not at the hands of her very own mother.

Also this: on February 18, 2009, documents released by the State Attorney's Office in Florida indicated that the same type of laundry bag, duct tape, and plastic bags discovered at the crime scene were found in the house where Casey and Caylee resided. An entry from Casey Anthony's diary was also released. The prosecution stated that Casey Anthony had written it in 2008 immediately after murdering her child.

The entry, dated June 21, states: “I have no regrets, just a bit worried. I just want for everything to work out okay. I completely trust my own judgment & know that I made the right decision. I just hope that the end justifies the means. I just want to know what the future will hold for me. I guess I will soon see -- This is the happiest that I have been in a very long time. I hope that my happiness will continue to grow -- I've made new friends that I really like. I've surrounded myself with good people -- I am finally happy. Let's just hope that it doesn't change.”

Casey Anthony living "the beautiful life"

The defense warned the jury not to make a decision based on emotion – anger would presumably bias the jury toward a guilty verdict. Instead, jurors went in the opposite direction and, purportedly, made a “technical, legally correct decision.”

However, the jurors appeared not to possess an ounce of common sense. Perhaps they also lacked the tolerance to take the time required to closely study the facts and make a judicious decision. After less than 11 hours, they returned a not-guilty verdict on the case’s three major counts.

The jurors heard a great deal of evidence – 30+ days of sequestration and isolation are difficult to endure.

However, chances are that – whether the jurors’ based their decision on Baez’s convincing theatrics, Ashton’s soul-less arrogance, or their own self-serving desire to rapidly end this seemingly solution-less case – the verdict was not solely fact-based.

Defense attorneys and, in this instance, a certain prosecutor, needed to account for the fact that jurors process and incorporate emotional information into their judgments.

Human decisions – jury verdicts and otherwise – are never completely void of emotion.

B2B content marketing trends

2011-05-24T20:26:00.000-07:00

Holger Schulze's 2011 B2B content marketing survey reveals interesting results, but misses an important angle. What about market surveys, studies, intellectual capital (IC) / thought leadership pieces, briefs and white papers? These projects drive industry & media alliances, survey results, top line finding PPTs, keynote/panel presentations, and many other business development opportunities. The genuine power of IC projects that produce content is the project's bus dev process that establishes and enhances relationships, sows bus dev seeds, generates qualified leads, and adds sales.

Facebook update: connect with your market

2011-04-16T11:37:00.000-07:00

In this eBook you'll learn how to: * Optimize the Facebook page for search * Use iFrames for custom Facebook page content * Optimize the Like button and the Open Graph to improve engagement * Create a contest that will accomplish almost any conversion goal.

1. The Facebook Like Button and the Open Graph - Mark Spangler
2. IFrames for Facebook Page Custom Content - Janet Driscoll Miller
3. Optimizing the Facebook Page for Search - Ann Smarty
4. Facebook Contests and Competitions - Brian Honigman
5. Using Facebook Connect for Ecommerce - Linda Bustos
6. Facebook Location Based Marketing: Places and Deals - Jeff Ente
7. Facebook Comments - Jeff Ente
8. Advertising on Facebook - Kelly Gillease

Web 3.0

2010-06-14T20:25:00.000-07:00

Some Internet experts believe the next generation of the Web -- Web 3.0 -- will make tasks like your search for movies and food faster and easier.

Instead of multiple searches, you might type a complex sentence or two in your Web 3.0 browser, and the Web will do the rest. In our example, you could type "I want to see a funny movie and then eat at a good Mexican restaurant. What are my options?" The Web 3.0 browser will analyze your response, search the Internet for all possible answers, and then organize the results for you.

Some experts believe that the foundation for Web 3.0 will be application programming interfaces (APIs). An API is an interface designed to allow developers to create applications that take advantage of a certain set of resources. Many Web 2.0 sites include APIs that give programmers access to the sites' unique data and capabilities. For example, Facebook's API allows developers to create programs that use Facebook as a staging ground for games, quizzes, product reviews and more.

One Web 2.0 trend that could help the development of Web 3.0 is the mashup. A mashup is the combination of two or more applications into a single application. For example, a developer might combine a program that lets users review restaurants with Google Maps. The new mashup application could show not only restaurant reviews, but also map them out so that the user could see the restaurants' locations. Some Internet experts believe that creating mashups will be so easy in Web 3.0 that anyone will be able to do it.

Source: How Web 3.0 Will Work, by Jonathan Strickland

Brand Building through Closed-Loop Marketing and PR

2009-12-13T10:24:00.000-08:00

A brand is the emotional shortcut between an organization and its clients.

It is critical to know and communicate to clients the emotional and rational connection you want them to make with your firm. Reinforcing your brand through clear and effective marketing communications and packaging is essential. “Solution branding” will help...

Click here to read knol >>

How to Market Professional Services and Grow Sales

2009-12-13T10:13:00.000-08:00

It's all about smart, compelling communications and "closing the loop."

Create a memorable email cover letter, spot-on meeting agenda, and innovative proposal. Make sure you understand your client's wants and needs. Summarize what you think you know and ask for confirmation. Then under-promise and over-deliver. Most important...

Click here to read knol >>

Advertising in the 21st Century

2009-07-20T14:47:00.000-07:00

The article below was published in “Lowe’s for Pros” July 2009 issue.

Advertising in the 21st Century
Social media has changed the way companies advertise. Now more than ever, small businesses can promote themselves online by targeting customers and expanding their networks, often for little or no cost.

By: Clare Curley
Issue Date: July 2009

As more customers go online, Internet-based tools like Facebook and LinkedIn can help contractors promote their businesses—at little or no cost—by fostering new connections and showcasing their industry expertise.

To use the tools themselves, the cost is generally free, although making the most of social media requires a time commitment. “Your success depends on how much focused effort you put in,” says Barbara Rozgonyi, owner of Cory West Media, a Chicago-based media consulting company.
Businesses can promote themselves through a variety of techniques: Targeting customers by demographics, contributing to online discussions and drawing attention to new services.

They’re not the place to blast ads, though. “What you really do is add value,” Rozgonyi says. “For example, home owners always want to know what everyone else is using,” she says. Therefore, a remodeler can draw more attention to himself by posting the top seasonal colors or countertop materials—whether through Twitter, Facebook or a blog—rather than simply advertising his or her services.

Here’s a rundown of the most popular social media sites, and how they can help your business:

1. Twitter.com
Users post frequent, casual updates, making Twitter a time-intensive tool. First, create a profile. Then, from a computer or cell phone, start “tweeting”—posting information that can be a mix of project updates, expert opinions and consumer tips. You can even provide links to photos of past projects or useful articles. Also, do key word searches to locate upcoming projects in your industry, and seek out potential clients.

Twitter enables you to gain “followers” by browsing other profiles to find people with similar businesses or interests. “Over time, you can become a personality people want to know more about,” says Rozgonyi.

Tip: The more relevant your entries are to your industry, the more connections you will attract.

2. Facebook.com
Are you trying to expand business into a specific area of town? Facebook enables you to search people by zip code, among other demographics—and for others to find you the same way.
With more than 200 million active users, Facebook is the fastest growing social network in the world. Use it to create a group of like-minded people in your industry, and unlike Twitter, you can actually upload images and post longer comments.

Tip: Use the “Status” line on your profile page to advertise new business offerings.

3. LinkedIn.com
LinkedIn is primarily used for making business connections. Check out “Company Buzz,” a feature that shows you the Twitter activity associated with your company. Then, broaden your network by recommending the work of colleagues, and in turn, they can recommend you. Update your status box regularly to reflect new contracting projects.

Tip: Use the “Search Groups” function to contact marketing groups and industry organizations.

4. YouTube.com
“If a picture is worth a thousand words, a video is worth a million,” says Rozgonyi. YouTube offers a cheap way of showcasing property or completed projects. Videos can remain on the site indefinitely, and people interested in your services can post comments through the site.

Is your personality stronger than your writing skills? A brief video can showcase your charisma as well as your work.

Tip: To avoid production costs, buy a flip camera and download video editing software to make your own.

Take advantage of search engine optimization.

“Ideally, everything you do online should match up with what people are searching for—your URL address, your IDs, your profile names,” says Rozgonyi. Google [https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal] can help optimize the use of social media and other online tools, and will suggest key words that best match your business.

Tip: For more suggestions, conduct searches using competitors’ URLs, as well.

Mix your methods

Ultimately, media experts recommend pairing online with traditional methods of communication.

Patricia Block, principal of Block Consulting, a business development and marketing/PR consultancy based in the San Francisco Bay area, suggests saving money by advertising via new and old media alike. Post an ad on Craigslist, as well as in a small local paper. Or, volunteer at a community event where you can get mentioned in online flyers advertising the event.

“Face-to-face networking and referral-building is still the most effective way for small business owners to advertise,” she says.

A trend you cannot ignore

According to a recent Forrester report, social media spending in the United States will grow from $716 million this year to more than $3.1 billion in 2014.

Source: http://www.lowesforpros.com/advertising-in-the-21st-century

Successful Marketing in Six Easy Steps

2009-04-02T11:46:00.000-07:00

Published on HR.com

Follow these steps to drive successful "closed-loop" marketing and PR program planning and execution – and achieve revenue-generating results.

By Patricia Block

Marketing and sales go hand in hand. In other words, the impetus is there to market something because, bottom line, you want to sell something, be it a product or service.

Some marketers are huge advocates of building sophisticated business intelligence platforms and CRM (customer relationship management) systems and databases, but many do not emphasize enough, in my humble opinion, the basic blocking and tackling that’s required to successfully market something. Spending a lot of time thinking about ideal strategies to market your business is great, but all the glorious visioning and whiteboard planning won’t mean a thing unless you follow an easy set of steps that help drive successful program planning and execution.

I’ve created many different sales presentations that describe the “closed-loop” approach to marketing that I recommend, but the basic steps are always the same:

1. Identify your audience. Who do you want to market and sell to?

2. Build – or buy or rent – a database of these names. You want to be able to reach out and touch and communicate with and track each and every contact you make with each and every one of your clients and prospects. At a minimum your database should include name, address, phone, email, URL, and a way to track the history of your contact and all interactions.

3. Identify the best ways to reach your audience. What do they read, what industry and community events do they attend, what web sites do they visit, what blogs do they read or post to, where do they hang out in their leisure time, and so on and on.

4. Define the activities and ways and things you can do to be present, make contact and engage your audience. Reach out through each of these venues so that the opportunity is there for them to notice you and your product/service. The more you can actively engage your audience – i.e., they feel compelled to respond – the better.

5. Create a list of programs and a calendar of activities to engage your target audience. This means writing a half-page summary for each program that explains the What, Who, Why, When and How (steps/action items). Next create a one-page 12 month calendar of these concurrent and consecutive marketing and PR programs, special events and activities. And then?

6. Execute! Marketing is all about establishing, nurturing and growing relationships. The more your targets experience “personal” interaction on an iterative basis – e.g., phone call, direct mail letter or email, meeting you at a special event, seeing you speak or participate on a panel, and so on – the more likely it is that they will keep you and your offering in mind…and ultimately buy what you are selling. Also key: Share content and ideas that are valuable (not just marketing propaganda). This will gain the confidence of both clients and prospects and help close the deal. Brand building through “closed-loop” marketing: keep reaching out and connecting with your target audience, time and time again. Don’t consider the loop closed until you have brought on a new client or sold additional services to an existing one.

Patricia Block
Principal and Owner
Block Consulting
Custom, Creative Business Development, Marketing and PR Solutions
San Francisco Bay Area Office
tel (650) 344-6691
fax (650) 344-7406
pblock@sbcglobal.net
http://www.blockconsulting.net/

© Block Consulting LLC
HR.COM - The Human Resources Portal

Market your Expertise Effectively

2009-03-28T13:38:00.000-07:00

The article below was published in “Lowe’s for Pros” March 2009 issue.

It focuses on effectively marketing one’s expertise on the latest plumbing trends and technologies (i.e., eco-friendly building) – vis-à-vis, the Sunset 2007 San Francisco Idea House, which I orchestrated by successfully marketing a green and sustainable builder and securing a joint venture with Sunset Magazine.

Regardless of industry, effective marketing is founded on a core set of strategies and tactics:

Subject matter expertise
Database of targets, industry organizations and media
Compelling programs that shine a light on your expertise - e.g., speaking opportunities, panel participation
Web site that draws people in and illustrates how you can help resolve their business challenges and "points of pain"
Consistency, Frequency and Variety in your marketing mix - e.g., Consistent messaging in all communications and collateral; Frequent outreach through scheduled client and prospect-touch activities; Variety - You don't want to put all your eggs in one basket. Best case, implement a handful of programs to optimize reach and maximize market coverage.

Market your Expertise Effectively
By: Herminia Irizarry
Issue Date: March 2009

Do you consider yourself an expert in the plumbing industry? Are you a forerunner in the latest plumbing trends and technologies? If so, it may be time to take your advertising to the next level and translate your expertise into marketing value.

“With an industry expert, you know you’re getting someone who will get the job done right the first time, and stand behind their work,” says David Schuelke, president of Schuelke Plumbing, a full service plumbing company based in Los Angeles.

Shuelke adds, however, that industry expertise takes a while to gain. Before you can even consider taking the steps towards marketing your knowledge, you need to have a solid business base.

“You really need to take a step back and fine tune the details that make a successful company,” Shuelke says. “But once you gain that reputation, it snowballs from there—it all comes to you.”
With a successful business in tow, your credibility as a plumbing industry expert will begin to build, but there are things you can do now to emphasize your expertise and then market it.

According to Patty Block, principal of Block Consulting, a business development and marketing/PR consultancy based in the San Francisco Bay area, the first step to gaining industry expert status is to compile a Customer Relationship Management database that can be as simple as an Excel spreadsheet.

“Build a list of names: organizations, people and media that you think can help you get visibility and generate business,” she says. “You really have to think, ‘Who are the industry organizations and publications I can ally with?’”

To gain entries, Block says networking is the best place to start. She recommends starting with trade organizations, and getting involved with local and national plumbing councils. Create a list of editors and reporters with the local media who specialize in real estate and construction. Once you have set up your database, Block recommends reaching out to those individuals on a regular basis.

When building your database, include information about local events and take part in them—you want to get the community aspect, Block says. She recommends sitting on a panel, serving as a speaker or renting a booth at a trade show.

“Use these events as a springboard to promote yourself,” she says. “You get a chance to get visibility and talk about your work and expertise.”

Another opportunity to showcase your expertise is to reach out to the local media with story ideas about plumbing tips or eco-friendly plumbing trends like WaterSense. Perhaps even seek out a monthly or quarterly contributing writer position with a local magazine or newspaper.

“As long as a you have a good story that will help the public, then that’s the way to add credibility,” says Schuelke, who with his twin brother Jimmy, have appeared on local television channel KTLA in Los Angeles, “Home Wizards” radio show and the entertainment news show, “Extra.” “If you can advertise in those areas, you’re going to be looked at as a company with a lot of experience that really knows what it’s doing.”

Having a good presence online is also key. “A good, developed Web site adds to your credibility and enhances your reputation,” Block says. “A Web site is one of the most invaluable marketing tools because that’s where people go to learn more about a company.”

Using imagery and customer testimonials on your Web site, Block recommends putting together a portfolio to demonstrate your expertise. Your Web site is also an opportunity for you to showcase any awards, event and media participation, as well articles or blogs you may have written.

In order to maintain your expert status, you have to back it up with a solid business, expert knowledge and superior service. According to Schuelke, the biggest testament to his company’s expertise is its A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau.

“We are in the business to help people,” Schuelke says. “We’re constantly training, and tracking our employees and the whole operation. And we’re constantly doing research on the best the industry has to offer.”

Source: http://www.lowesforpros.com/plumbers-market-your-expertise-effectively