More Than A Few Words

What if you never had to find another new client ever again?  Sound too good to be true?   If you adopt a Customer for Life strategy you might discover you don't need as many new clients as you think, as the ones you have come back time and time again, and bring their friends. 

There was a time when your home page needed to contain all that you did.  The format was much like the front page of a newspaper with a series of article snippets with links to learn more.  But the trend has shifted.  Today, the most effective home pages are designed to lead visitors to the right place with one strong call to action   This week our brief podcast focuses on what your home page should look like and what should you change.

If you were going to build a building you would start with the Groundwork. The same is true for your 2015 marketing plan. Whether you are a relatively new business or a company with a long history, it is good to stop and check your foundation as the new year begins. Here’s a list of what your marketing groundwork should include:   Discover how our new Groundwork Sessions can help you strengthen your foundation.

It is not enough to have a broad plan for your business. You need to have specific, measurable goals which you can translate into action.

How are you going to reach your goals this year? You could hire us to write your marketing plan, but then what?  You’ld have a well written document but unfortunately, the real work – figuring out how to implement it would still be ahead of you. We think there is a better way for business owners who want to be actively involved in creating and executing their strategy. Introducing Groundwork Sessions A six month program which includes equal parts training, group coaching, one on one consulting, and the hands on practice you need to build your marketing plan.

We have been talking to quite a few business owners lately who are excited about starting their new business.  Unfortunately, it seems as if they haven't done their homework.  There doesn't seem to be a plan other than opening and selling.  To us, that seems like a recipe for failure.

What type of marketing will you be doing a week or month from now? What about in six months? How will your different marketing activities work together to drive sales? If you can’t answer those questions, you need a marketing calendar. This simple one-page document is a great tool to help you stay on track with your marketing all year long. No matter how big or small your marketing budget is, a well-organized calendar will help you save time, lower costs, track progress and ultimately increase the effectiveness of your marketing efforts. Want a content calendar of your own? Download one here   Online Form - Content Calendar

Looking to jump start your business idea with a little capital infusion? With online fundraising tools like Kickstarter or Indiegogo, it is easier than ever to raise the money your need. 

I loved the website we launched in September of 2013, so why did we completely overhaul our theme just a year later? These days a year is a long time in the life of a web design company and although it looked good, it lacked flexibility on some of the interior pages. Also there are so many cool new tools and features we are building into sites for our clients, and I wanted some of them on our site as well. . Fortunately, our website is built in WordPress so swapping the theme didn't require rebuilding a lot of our existing content. I could have the new features on my wish list, without a complete overhaul. Learn about some of the enhancements we made, without giving up the design we loved. 

What started as a  joke turned in to an interesting social media experiment when we decided to use kittens in our seminar marketing campaign.  The results surprised us, and I shared them during a presentation at the Fall Social Media Dames Conference. 

Business is still about relationships.  And when it comes to the internet those relationships are measured by who links to you and to whom do you link.   While Google no longer puts the same weight on links that it once did, links from high quality sites will still bring search authority and better yet, real visitors to your site.   

Let's face it, today your website visitors have a shorter attention span than ever before. So how do you keep readers interested long enough to digest your message? This week we will take a quick look at ways to create content to be consumed quickly.    For more on this topic check out our blog post on this same topic. http://www.roundpeg.biz/2014/11/write-people-short-attention-spans/

Some of your marketing effort should be focused on people who are right on the verge of a purchase, and have made their intentions known. Do you have systems in place to make sure they jump towards the big “Purchase Now” button.

One of the most surprising events in the social media community in 2014  was a decision by Copy Blogger to close down their Facebook page. With more than 38,000 fans this seemed like a strange move for a social media/content company.    They did not make the decision lightly, but as they looked at the interaction on their social media pages, they realized their community did not want to interact with them on Facebook.  A smart decision for them with many great implications for small business owners.    Even now, almost three years later this there are lots of good lessons for any company thinking about jumping into social media and a big way.   More than a few words is a production of Roundpeg, a social media firm in Indianapolis 

When a prospective customer comes to your website or enters your physical retail store your primary  objective is to interest them in something you have to sell or share. This week we talk about ways you can do just that. 

It is a hard thing to accept, but no matter how cool your product is there are people out there who don't want it.  Instead of wasting time trying to get the attention of people who don't want to buy, use marketing resources wisely to attract people who do.    Download our Target Marketing Guidebook to learn more    http://www.roundpeg.biz/everyone-customer/  

Most customers are not ready to buy right away.  You need to move them from Just Browsing, to Interested,to On the Fence, to Hooked.  This week we talk about what to do when someone is in the "hooked category. 

Don't assume your customers know what you really offer.  Ask questions and confirm the order. 

From high touch to high tech here are some of our favorite suggestions on how to grow your email list.  This week we share some of our favorite tips.  And if the show has left you wanting more, you can download our compete list of 50 tips.