More Than A Few Words

On a regular basis Allison and Lorraine talk about the importance of creating a content strategy which will serve two masters: search engines and people.  What do people want? We’re happy with pictures and visually pleasing things. When we’re reading, we want short, simple and to the point. Search engines, on the other hand, thrive on repetition and redundancy which, if done wrong, is really annoying to readers. This week Allison and Lorraine will discuss how to create a web content strategy for people and robots.

If you dream to start a small business but you’re stuck somewhere in the beginning stages, tune in this week to get advice from a legal standpoint. Matt Griffith of Indiana Business Law explains in plain terms what you can do to jump start your business and finally get it up and running. Matt works a lot with business owners and solopreneurs. He knows exactly what it’s like to start a business in Indiana; he is an entrepreneur, investor and business owner himself. He is the senior attorney at Indiana Business Law and he works to help small business owners  maximize opportunities while minimizing risks. One of the things every new business owner should have is a business plan!  Get a copy of ourblank outline here.

We all think we understand the importance of building business relationships with customers. But do we really know how to establish and nurture these relationships to let our business benefit? This week our guest Serina Kelly of Relevate chats with us about how to create and keep successful relationships with loyal customers that may sometimes be taken for granted.   Serina knows how to connect with past, present and potential clientele to get results. She believes in the power of consistent, useful media and good timing to build customer relationships. Don’t miss her expert advice this week.

The web has continued to expand and change.  As it does, your web design needs to change as well.  This week our extraordinary web designer Peter and I will discuss new web trends as well as the do’s and don’ts of good web design. 

f you have been reading our blog lately, you know we have been talking about email marketing, a lot.   Why?  Because this  often overlooked tool, when used properly can deliver some terrific results. There are definitely some right and wrong ways to use eMail and this week we are talking with someone we think can shed some light on the topic.   Join us as we talk with Jim Cota, president and creative director of Rare Bird, Inc. Rare Bird, a marketing communications firm, is an email powerhouse, sending out a staggering 5 million emails per month for their clients.  Jim will share some of his best email marketing tips.  The show with Jim will air live at 10:30AM on July 18th.

Marketing has always raised legal questions: Can you say that? Will I sue you if you do? The move of marketing to the internet has brought all of those questions to a new platform as well as raising quite a few more. Join us today as we talk with attorney Kenan Farrell about business and intellectual property issues, including copyright, trademark, trade secret, patent, and privacy issues. Kenan has a broad base of expertise so don’t be surpirsed if we jump from technology and new media to the  arts.

It is the week of the 4th of July, so we assume most of our readers and listeners will be taking the day off.  But just in case you are craving a little dose of marketing, we thought we would share a recap of some of  our best clips from the Half Baked Marketing ideas from Steven Shattuck. If you are a regular listener of #MTFW, you know that each week, Steven joins us for the last 10 minutes of the program to kick off a conversation about one of his half baked ideas.  Allison and I, and sometimes our guests kick around ways to refine the idea and make it viable.  Today we present three conversations: How to improve the Post Office How to improve the NPR Pledge Drive How to use marketing and social media to get Pacer fans re-engaged. This is one of our favorite parts of each week’s podcast.  We hope you enjoy the collection.  And if you have an idea you would like us to discuss, post it here or share it on Twitter using the hashtag : #mtfw. And don’t forget to join us next week, when we will be live with an

MTFW has gone international to find out if marketing different around the world? We are going to find out.  Our guest this week is Olwen Dawe -founder of  Irish Business Intelligence. She will be calling in and sharing her thoughts from her home in Ireland. If you want to hear more about Olwen, check out her latest webinar on small business planning.

You know you need to blog regularly, but how do you develop good content? This week’s we will be chatting with  TJ Furman about that topic. We will be talking about how to create good content which will serve the interests of both search engines and real people who come to your website. About TJ  has been with Marketpath since February 2008. As the business development manager, TJ is responsible for establishing strong, enduring relationships with a sole focus on client success. TJ brings exceptional knowledge and experience with search engine optimization (SEO) strategy and implementation. TJ graduated with a BS in Kinesiology from Indiana University.

From the adrenaline filled highs to the crashing lows, we will be talking about life in a Tech Startup. Our guest, Brian Deyo knows both. A serial entrepreneur, his latest venture “Last Bite” was the result of an idea pitched at a startup weekend. Join us as we talk about some of the things he has learned along the way.

Brandon Corbin is one of the most creative people I know. A tech whiz, he is also a serial entrepreneur, podcast host, and active member of the Indy Verge community. Join us as we talk to Brandon about technology, startups and more.

The results are in from our 2012 social media survey.  We will be releasing the white paper in about a week, but for now Allison and I will be talking about some of the things we learned in this year’s study. Some things we expected, but other things were definitely surprises.   Join us for what is sure to be a lively conversation.  And stay for the whole program, because Steven Shattuck will be dropping by with another half baked marketing idea.

This week, we’ll have a conversation with Jacob Schpok, the state director for the Indiana Small Business Development Center Network (ISBDC). As state director, Schpok leads Indiana’s efforts to provide management counseling and educational services to small business owners and entrepreneurs.

As a small business owner, your entire business sits in that computer on your desk. What happens to your business if the computer is lost, destroyed or hacked. While online backups like Carbonite preserve your information, they don’t protect it.

In this segment of More Than a Few Words we take a look at social media and non profit causes. We are joined by Alex Keys, Vista Corps Volunteer for Indy School on Wheels.

This is a great example of a simple voice message.

Social media sells houses.  At least it can in the hands of a real  estate agent  who understands how to use the tools to connect and promote a business or product.  Today we will be talking with Kristie Smith the founder of Indy Homes Real Estate about marketing and social media.

I caught up with Scott Case, CEO of Startup America  after his presentation at the launch of Startup Indiana, and he was gracious enough to share a few thoughts with me.  So even though you can't capture the energy of the event, you can get a feel for what it was about from the short podcast below.

Ever wonder what would happen to your business if you just “hit the road” for a month or more? Join us for today’s episode of More than a Few Words as we talk to Jon Arnold, founder of Tuitive, a truly virtual business. Last year, after more then a decade of operation, Jon shut his office, but not his business. His employees went home, and he and his family hit the road in their camper. Their goal was to spend a year touring the US before his kids were too old.

Join us for another  episode of More than a Few Words as we talk to Duncan Alney, owner of Indianapolis social media company Firebelly.  In addition to running a successful social media firm, Duncan has been a force connecting the Indianapolis social media community.  From informal breakfast meetings, to the popular social media club after hours events he has pulled us away from our computers for a series of lively face to face networking events which have helped us get to know each other a little better.