The other day I was talking to the business owner of a medium sized Florists – she has shops in three separate locations – and she was saying how disheartened she was by the results she was getting with her advertising…

She also said how very disappointed she was with her existing marketing agency because their current advertising was actually generating LESS response than before… despite assurances from the agency to the contrary.

She told me how she had always used advertising to generate business, and while it was sometimes a bit hit and miss, she did feel that this time she was actually taking some pretty major steps back.

She was clearly more than a little worried by it all, so I offered to take a look at her ads for her, to see if there was anything I could suggest that might help. You could almost see the weight lift from her shoulders. She thanked me and said she would post me copies of the last few ads she had been using.

Sure enough, the following day, a large A4 envelope arrived in the post, which was stuffed full of copies of the adverts she had been using (looked more like the full 8 years worth rather than just the last “few”), but I could see the problem almost straight away…

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Twitter is helping small businesses to communicate…

Whether you understand it, love it or hate it… Twitter is one of the most powerful Marketing tools EVERY business should be using.

But what exactly IS Twitter and WHY is it important to your business?

[Just in case you have been asleep for the past 3 years...]

Twitter is a free service that lets you keep in touch with people through the exchange of quick, frequent short messages – of 140 characters or less – called “Tweets”.

But it’s not just about being able to send short messages to your friends (like when texting started on mobile phones), there are many different ways it can be used – especially where a lot of information is being shared – as more and more people are finding out.

Twitter has been around for more than three years and it is only now that businesses are really adopting it as a way of communicating with members of staff, clients, prospective clients and suppliers. Read More »

When I started my Newsletter back in 2006 (which later morphed into this blog) – I had a number of objectives, but one of the main ones was to answer some of the frequently asked questions I was being asked, about the solutions to Marketing issues.

Over the past 3 years, one thing has remained constant, and that is:

Readers still want answers to questions they have about marketing

• About strategy…
• About tactics…
• About thought processes behind campaigns…
• About options…

But most of all about HOW to get things done.

It can be very frustrating trying to find the answer to a specific question you have – I know because I do it all the time – and really I’ve found there are generally 2 ways you can go about getting you answers… Read More »

The one topic I’ve been asked the most questions about recently, is about how often you should contact your customers and clients.

So how often do YOU contact YOUR clients?

I’d be willing to bet that it’s nowhere near enough!

It’s my experience that there is far too much time focused on regular contact with PROSPECTIVE customers and clients, and not nearly enough time and money spent on cultivating relationships with EXISTING customers and clients.

You may think a little differently once you take the following two facts into consideration:

FACT 1 – The majority of you profits will come from the ongoing relationship you have with your EXISTING clients.

FACT 2 – 68% of people change supplier because they PERCEIVE their existing supplier doesn’t care about them.

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If you haven’t heard about social media marketing you must have been asleep for the past couple of years or else marooned on a desert island somewhere.

But do you really understand the power of using social media channels to promote your website or business and have you truly realised how powerful this strategy can be – if used correctly – to get you links, attention and massive amounts of traffic?

While there has been an explosion of different services – Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and ecademy being among the most popular – there is a BIG underlying problem…

… and it’s all centred about “follow-you-follow-me.”

Now I’ve been following the Social Media “follow-you-follow-me” debate with some interest for some time, but just in case you’re not sure what I mean by follow-you-follow-me, then this should help…

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One of the most important facts that any business should take on board in the present climate is that your existing customers are vital to the success of your business. This is not exclusive for when times are tough, but is applicable anytime.

When you consider that for an “average business,” two thirds of the clients who leave do so because they feel they are not cared about. They feel they are just another number, a monetary transaction.

The movement of customers and clients to other suppliers in your industry is normal. It may depend on the advertising, on the offers available, but rest assured it will happen.

But what would it mean to your business if you can hold onto the customers you already have for longer? How would it be if your clients stayed with you because of the value-based relationship you have built with them rather than simply being drawn away by the competition purely on price discounts?

However, being seen to care about your clients, and creating a true “Customer Satisfaction” policy in your business is challenging.

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A big concern at the moment seems to be the perceived increase in competition for every marketplace…

A recession is actually a good foundation for growth… provided you are focusing your business in a structured and targeted way.

But it does mean that it is ESSENTIAL to be able to clearly differentiate yourself from your competitors in the eyes of the prospective client, and critical that you remain (or get) client-focused.

But concentrating on customer care and client satisfaction is only part of the battle, once you have got the clients to buy from you in the first place…

You may have noticed there are HEAPS of marketing messages out there which you have to compete for attention against, and that’s not only from your direct competition.

Everyone is being more careful how and where they spend their money. It doesn’t mean they have stopped; just they are being more choosy about what they spend it on and what is going to bring in the biggest benefit.

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Getting in front of a prospect is only a part of the selling process.

This is closely followed by having to convince them that you are THE solution to their problem (assuming you have correctly identified their problem of course!)

One of the strategies you should be using to convince your prospect is PROOF that you can deliver the solution they need. But this in itself is not enough, it also helps if you can show proof of having done it before – of having helped others who have had exactly the same problem as they are having.

One of the elements you should use – and which should be in every marketing arsenal – are testimonials.
Testimonials from satisfied customers are one of the best and most powerful assets you can build, but how do you go about collecting them?

Now let’s be clear – You’re not looking for the “John is a nice guy and easy to work with…” type comment.

You are looking for a powerful rave review which you can use to attract more customers and clients.
Here are my top tips for collecting effective testimonials which you can use to add power throughout your marketing.

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