Focus On Renewals After the Sale

There have been times when my marketing colleagues sit in a room and discuss current customers who have subscribed to a service - wondering how to get them to renew. Unfortunately, this is the wrong conversation to have.

The best time to renew a client is from the first day after a sale. You need to provide evidence of value to your existing customers from day one... not just day's before their service expires. Do you have products or services that must be renewed on a regular basis?

Think about engagement. Do you engage your customer in a dialog throughout the year? There are a number of tactics for doing so that will help you engage your customer, develop a relationships and prove value.

1. Newsletters or announcements. Each month, give yourself and your company a reason to reach out to your customers with information that's valuable to them. Don't underestimate the power of frequent communication. Be flexible with your content and include opportunities to solicit feedback from your customers.

2. Customer surveys. Ask your customers through an online survey what matters most to them. Show them that their opinion matters. But don't stop there. Once you ask them to complete a survey, college the responses and analyze them. Once you have something meaningful to share, distribute your findings. Customers will see the value your provide and develop more trust in you and your services.

3. Share best practices. Whether it's a white paper, brief, or forum, share information you've learned from you customers and distribute to a larger group. Share these findings in various formats. This shows that you value your customers' time and want to make them successful.

These are just a few of the tactics for communicating the value of your products and services to your customers. When it comes time to renew, you won't have to sell. Your customers will inherently know and feel that value you've provided over the past year.

Remember, the time to renew is now. Don't wait until days before the subscription is about to end to make your first contact. As they say, get out in front of the curve. Over time, this strategy will help you exceed your sales goals and allow you to develop a large following.

Successful Product Launches: A How To Guide

We have all heard the expression "The Perfect Storm" and it refers to the situation where all weather elements come together at the same time to produce a perfect storm. But is there an equivalent of the perfect storm in the marketing world? A situation where all elements come together to produce "The Perfect Sale?"

For the moment, we will conveniently ignore the current world economic meltdown and look only at positive situations where this event may occur. Perhaps, the closest thing we have to the Perfect Sale is the online product launch. But unlike the natural phenomenon, this event is carefully planned and orchestrated by a whole army of web savvy marketers who know exactly what has to be done to create this Perfect Sale.

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For this "sale" doesn't just happen, professional web marketers create their own system of events that lead up to this Perfect Sale, earning themselves enormous profits in the process. This is an orchestrated marketing effort that bring potential buyers onto their contact lists and into their marketing funnels; heading straight towards their Perfect Sale.

These online marketers use a whole array of marketing tactics to bring potential buyers to their sales page. One of the most effective methods is the JV or joint venture with other established marketers who have long lists of interested buyers, and for a percentage of the sales, the JV partner promotes your sales page or product.

A certain date is set for the release of your product and all potential partners/affiliates promote to their lists and on their sites. A buying frenzy can be whipped up especially if the product is limited and only a certain number of sales will be accepted. Also a high quality free sampling or teaser is usually given away to build up massive contact lists of interested buyers, this freebie is used to pre-sell to these buyers. There may even be a countdown clock to further create excitement and urgency in the mind of the buyer.

On launch day, everything is synchronized. JV partners mail out to their massive contact lists, enticing all their subscribers with extra bonuses to buy the product now before it's gone. The sales letter page goes live and the sales pour in... creating "The Perfect Sale."

For the non-marketing reader, this may seem a bit far-fetched but in actual fact these product launches are occurring online every week - creating the "Perfect Sale" over and over again. And these launches have been around for many years, one of the most famous being John Reese's "Traffic Secrets" which was released in the summer of 2004 and earned over 1 million in revenue in one day.

There are even some savvy marketers who have perfected the product launch system into an art form, mainly Jeff Walker (Product Launch Formula) and Frank Kern (Mass Control) just to mention a few of the top marketers out there teaching and applying this marketing technique.
Key Elements Of A Product Launch

However, just like the Perfect Storm, in order to create this Perfect Sale many factors have to fall into place and come together. Some of these main elements are:

1. A high quality product which is in demand and desired by the potential buyers. It must solve a problem or meet a need within its niche market. Bit obvious but without this demand the product won't sell in any great numbers, no matter what tactics you use.

2. A perfectly written sales letter that converts. Your sales page must convert into actual sales of your product. Again, quite obvious but if your sales page does not convert, it's game over.

3. A whole motivated group of JV partners with enormous lists and bonuses to offer to potential buyers. Many product launches now offer special prizes (anywhere from a luxury sports car to the latest tech gadget) for those partners who can bring in the most sales.

4. A whole array of orchestrated, pre-launch tactics building up interest in your product with free high quality giveaways to get your buyer's attention and contact information. Even a newly created blog to keep everyone informed about your product launch is often used.

5. Most of the above tactics have to do with creating the potential buyer with the right mind-set for buying your product. Creating a limited number of products or setting a certain time-frame for selling, and offering special deals or bonuses will further create demand for your product.

PPC Bully Shows You How To Improve Your Pay Per Click Results

In the last couple of years, most marketers have increased their spend on Pay Per Click advertising at a faster rate than any other type of marketing. Why? Because Pay-per-click advertising, a.k.a PPC, is one of the most effective ways to target your prospects with the right message at the right time. And the greatest aspect of PPC? It's measurable.

As an online marketer, I have companies asking me to review their products on a daily basis. To be truthful, I only review those products that I think can provide benefit to whatever I happen to be working on at the moment. I know it might seem selfish, but I'm only interested in tools that are going to improve my marketing results.

Enter PPC Bully. For the last couple of months, I've been spending a lot of time improving my pay per click results. I think the major driver is that sales on some of my key products are slowing - due to the lagging economy and reluctance of consumers to spend. As a result, I've been looking toward PPC to help manage my marketing budget and improve results.

What I found unique about this product is that it helped me to create profitable, fully optimized PPC campaigns, the minute I launched them.

As you already know, pay-per-click campaigns take a lotof trial and error. You set up your keywords, write yourads and track conversions until you find just the rightcombination that works the best.

PPC Bully, a brand new research and analysis tool, allows you to know up front what works - and what doesn't. You get to see exactly what your competitors are doing, cash inon their "test" and launch with the most lucrative combinations possible. To better understand how PPC Bully works, check out the demo video on their homepage. It walks you through the basic process.

I guarantee that you will be amazed at how helpful and beneficial this tool can be for your marketing efforts. I was using two other tools to help with my PPC and I've stopped using them in exchange for this one.

Enjoy,

Michael - Internet Marketing Expert

Do Search and Direct Marketing Mix? You Bet!

Many of my readers have been wondering about the role search marketing plays in direct marketing campaigns. This recent articles sheds some light on the subject.

The marketing role of search is to capture prospective customers who actively seek information in three generally applicable groups: brand, product and category information. Prospective consumers are searching for information at various stages of their conversion process. Each marketer approaches these categories differently. Many ignore a specific group because of notions about search and how it should be used. These mar­keters miss out on huge opportunities because the rules by which search is utilized are set by the marketplace.

A prospective customer uses search in several ways. Many begin searching for product information on a general level, typing words like “cell phone” or “jewelry” into a search engine to locate products they may want to purchase. These words describe a category of products and have a great amount of searches associated with them, often called “head” terms. Most prospective customers don't convert on head terms; they move to more specific terms.
In the case of someone looking to purchase a cell phone, this progression might lead to terms representing a particular type.

These product-level terms narrow the prospective customer's consideration set and provide a price, features and benefits com­parison.

The final step in most search and purchase experiences is the search for the chosen product's brand. A consumer would search for Verizon Wireless for cell phones or Cartier for jewelry. The prospective customer purchase at this point is usually associ­ated with the branded keyword, sometimes giving dis-proportion­ate weight to such names.

Should marketers spend their time and energy on branded terms, because of their place in the conversion process? Should they ignore the head terms and the product terms because the majority of conversions take place on the branded terms? The answer is no. Most marketers have figured out that a portfolio approach, which takes the high-cost head terms and low-cost brand terms and balances the keywords to arrive at a desirable success metric, is best. Many search marketers simply absorb the higher cost of head terms and reach consumers at every stage of the process.

Some marketers have avoided this approach and assign a cost to the brand, product and head terms, separately. This effec­tively reduces the sum a direct marketer would spend on all but the most efficient terms. Marketers should always opt for a portfolio approach, rather than restricting their campaigns to only one phase of the conversion process.

Andrew Lovasz is search marketing director for Moxie Interactive.

7 Pillars of a Good Marketing Plan

If you're beginning to develop your own marketing plan, you'll need some guidelines to ensure thtat you're successful. Working within a framework helps you plan accordingly and consider all aspects of a plan.

Your plan does not have to be elaborate, nor does it have to be set in stone forever. However, it should specifically define key information including your target market and value proposition, as well as tactical ideas and action steps you will take in order to acquire customers and/or increase sales.

Here are 7 basic components to include in a Marketing Plan:

1. Product/Service Definition
Describe your product or service in simple and easy-to-understand terms. Consider this message to be a written version of your 30 to 60-second “elevator speech” that clearly describes your company's mission. Include your point of difference and communicate the intrinsic benefit/value your customer will receive

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2. Target Audience
In conjunction with your company's product/service definition, take the time to clearly describe your target audience. Be specific as to the demographics and psychographics of your ideal buyer. Focus your company's resources and marketing tactics on these groups.

3. Goals & Objectives
Set the bar as to what you want to achieve. Establish both short term and long term objectives for your company. Make your goals meaningful, specific, and measurable. Concrete goals such as revenue and new customers will help you keep an eye on the ball at all times.

4. Identify the Competition
Is your competition a series of small local vendors, or is it a group of large national companies with ample resources? Or, is your product/service so unique that the resistance is really a lack of awareness? Either way, learn about and understand the competitive landscape. It will enable you to better position and target your message.

5. Pricing
A guidepost for setting price involves estimating the monetary value your customer will receive, and understanding your financial goals and objectives. Also remember to price your product/service at a rate higher than your fixed and variable cost (don't forget -- you are in this to make a profit).

6. Establish a Marketing Budget
Marketing expenses can add up quickly, so set aside a specific dollar amount per month or per quarter. Evaluate your marketing decisions such as advertising in the yellow pages or hiring sales representatives based on the amount of business that a particular initiative generates. Track each initiative and keep what works.

7. Set Timing for Each Step
Listing action steps is not enough -- you must establish a timetable for each step. Be realistic so that you do not set unreasonable expectations, thereby creating frustration for yourself. At the same time, be careful not to set goals so far out in the future that there is no sense of urgency for you to take action.

Creating and sticking to a marketing plan is the best way to keep you and your business focused, and on track for success. Writing the plan is the easy part, sticking to it tends to be more difficult for most people.

It is highly recommended that you enlist the help of a trusted associate or coach to provide open and honest perspective/feedback as you work through the elements of your plan. More importantly, if you are serious about success, direct your coach to “hold your feet to the fire” and make you accountable for your actions. You will be glad you did.

Post provided by Engelman Management Group. a marketing and management consulting firm geared toward helping small to mid-size businesses plan, design and execute their growth goals.
For a FREE consultation contact Rob Engelman, President, Engelman Management Group, at either 847-945-7573 or via e-mail at rob@engelmanmanagement.com.

Have You Noticed What Google's Been Doing Lately?

Many people have been asking me about the change in Google results that we've been seeing this year. When doing a search for “Amazon” or other leading authority websites, you may notice that Google has a search box embedded with the results. In this scenario, you are directed to the website via search results.

The search button in our Amazon example says, “Search Amazon.com” and the results that are displayed are upon the Google site of different keywords results for the Amazon.com website. The same holds true when doing a search for DMOZ.

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But you’ll notice that when searching for DMOZ, Google has an additional feature. Not only is there a handy-dandy site specific search box for DMOZ, but there are also sitelinks listed as well. Google Sitelinks is another feature that is rolling out more broadly for older authority websites tthat serve specific popular pages.

Generally, a website has to be online for more than 2 years, be in the number one position in the SERPs and have many back links to it before Google will generate site links for a website. By offering two methods of searching an authority website, Google is doing both searchers and authority sites a favor.

We’ll have to wait though, on how those in the number two through 10 positions feel about this extra real estate devoted to the website in the number one position. With the added exposure, top search engine results are bound to attract even a larger share of organic traffic.

What can you do about this year's development? Focus your Internet marketing strategy around a few key sites. Get those sites ranked in the top position and focus on keeping them there. There may require some consolidation of sites and a refocusing of your attention on link building and other off page optimization techniques around a single theme.

Stay posted for more online marketing updates!

Email is Effective With Segmentation

One of the strongest advantages of e-mail is its ability to leverage segmentation. Here’s how the NFL uses e-mail to reach millions of devoted fans.

For a quarterback, getting the football to reach the targeted receiver's hands is the key to winning the game. For the National Football League, reaching the right target — a variety of enthusiastic fans — is also essential for marketing success. So, as football fans gear up for the new season, the NFL has made better e-mail segmentation a top priority.

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Tim Maloney, director of NFL direct marketing says, “Email is strong because of its ability to target. Our fan base is tech-savvy and it's about getting the right product to the right people at the right time, which e-mail does very well.”

The NFL fan database includes about 20 plus million names and, obviously, not all of these football aficionados are alike. For instance, loyalties are spread among the league's 32 different teams.

So, the NFL segments email recipients based on their personal profiles, including favorite team, demographic and location. An average NFL email, for example, is only sent to about 342,000 people, despite the huge number of fans in the database. This type of segmentation makes the information more relevant and helps avoid over-sending, which can lead to an increase in unsubscribes.

New segmentation strategies

While the league has segmented by favorite team for some time, this year, it has honed in on new ways to break up its e-mail list. One way is to send e-mails in conjunction with specific events.

For example, an e-mail was sent to football fans in the New York area to promote the America's Game series, an event at which highlights from last year's Super Bowl were screened. The e-mail was segmented by location to make it relevant to area recipients.

“The NFL is really trying to tie in a fan's favorite team and location to an event to make it relevant to the recipient,” explains Matt Hart, account director at eDialog, an email service provider that works with the NFL to send e-mails for various programs year-round. These include NFL.com newsletters, Fantasy Foot¬ball e-mails, NFLshop.com emails and co-branded partner emails.

The NFL also segments its lists with its welcome messages. Recently, the league began to send introductory emails branded with the NFL's loyalty credit card, Extra Points, to fans that opted in to a database of consumers who shop at NFLshop.com. Once a month, new subscribers receive a welcome email and an offer to sign up to for the credit card.

Fans can use their Extra Points card to earn loyalty points that can be exchanged for football-related products and experiences, including autographed memorabilia, sideline passes, golf games with players and Super Bowl tickets.

Even with those tantalizing options, credit cards can be a tough sell in today's market, Maloney says. “People don't look at an ad in a magazine to sign up for a credit card, but with e-mail, a recipient can click back to a site to learn more about the benefits of a loyalty card program,” he explains.

In July, the NFL sent out an email promoting the Extra Points card in advance of the upcoming new season. This email saw a 24% higher open rate than the average open rate of an Extra Points e-mail. “We only targeted people who have previously shopped online and segmented by favorite team, which is why it went so well,” Maloney says.

Another segmented e-mail was also sent in July, targeted towards people who had visited NFLshop.com, but who have never used their Extra Points cards to shop at the online store. This e-mail, which was meant to build interest in team merchandise for the upcoming season, offered football fans a chance to save 20% on products if they used their Extra Points credit card. It was sent to 395,000 people and saw an 18% to 20% open rate.

As the season moves forward, the NFL will test different campaigns through the season. “One of the benefits of e-mail is its speed to market,” Hart says. “A marketer can look at the response rates and analytics from a campaign within a day.” And, email programs can always be mildly tweaked based on how customers respond. This can help make email more relevant and make content more dynamic, resulting in greater performance.

Email is an effective tool if used properly.

Post provided by DMNews

Market Your Products On EBay: Making Money In Tough Times

As times get tough more and more businesses are turning to ebay. Whether you’re trying to sell your own inventory, or trying to make big money selling products or services from other manufacturers, ebay is thriving in these uncertain times.

There are a variety of marketing programs to help you succeed on ebay. Here are the most popular:

1) SaleHoo Wholesale/eBay Directory. Stop spinning your wheels and join one of the largest, safest wholesale communities on the internet. Over 50,000 other online sellers, retailers and bargain hunters have discovered the best place to find legitimate, pre-screened wholesalers, drop shippers, liquidators and manufacturers for every type of product imaginable.

2) Build A Niche Store. Succeed as an eBay affiliate. Build A Niche Store (BANS) is a store / website development platform which enables you to create content based sites that generate income through the eBay affiliate programs. Over the past year and a half our "Niche Store" concept has really evolved and BANS has grown into a "proven" product with lots of positive feedback and success stories scattered across the web.

3) Auction Acrobat - eBay Delivery Automation Software. The most viable solution to eBay's digital product ban. Auction Acrobat is not just a software but an automated sales machine that delivers CD/DVD's, build a buyer list, and much much more... Now you can make long term residual income on eBay without selling!

4) Make Money On eBay And Your Own Website. Access 500 true drop shippers! This free turnkey ecommerce website is stocked with 200,000 drop ship products, allowing you to sell online without purchasing any inventory of your own. Free hosting and free domain names are available.

5) Content Website Builder. Create a website in 2 easy steps for eBay. Content Website Builder is an easy to use website creation software. You can make websites with hundreds of self-updating dynamic pages with keyword rich text, images, and videos. Integrated eBay, Adsense, Amazon, Yahoo!Answers and YouTube.

6) Auction Classified Cash. This product shows you how to create the perfect eBay classified ads that put more cash into your pocket and more subscribers on your lists. This program is most effective for those new to eBay or looking to improve the profitability of their sales.

7) The Silent Sales Machine Hiding On EBay. This top selling products is approaching 100,000 copies sold. Called one of the "most creative eBay ebooks ever written" by leading affiliate magazines, The Silent Sales Machine Hiding On Ebay is your key to eBay success. The product includes free upgrades (version 6 Releasing Soon).

8) Money Animal. Don't let the name fool you. This product just launched and includes an exceptional member network and affiliate support. Learn to work from home by following step-by-step instruction for traffic using Adwords and EBay for online income. Full support is provided. See there sales page!

9) Auction Inspector. Niche software for eBay. If you are struggling to find profitable products to sell on eBay, then the Auction Inspector is for you. They guarantee to find you products that will make you money and that you can actually sell on eBay.

10) Become An eBay PowerSeller In 90 Days. This program has helped 1000s of people gain eBay PowerSeller status and achieve their online goals. Work from the comfort of your own home and earn the income you deserve.

Selling on ebay is a great marketing solution in today's tough economic times. Learn to sell on eBay and your business will thrive even though the market continues to tumble. Marketing on ebay is easy to do and requires little or no startup costs.

Is Your Website Customer Focused?

You’re at a dinner reception. The stranger next to you strikes up a conversation.

It only takes a few minutes before you realize: “This guy’s completely self-absorbed.” No matter how hard you try, every topic leads back to him. Soon, you find yourself inching away.

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Guess what? You can find the same thing on the web. Sites that are egocentric. More interested in talking about themselves than solving customer problems. However, unlike the dinner reception situation, your escape from a self-absorbed website is quick and painless.

(Although there are offenders across the board, the biggest culprits seem to be business-to-business companies and small- to mid-sized firms.)

To heck with product benefits or helping prospects and customers solve their problems – the narcissistic website dwells on the company’s spectacularly engineered offerings, their superior manufacturing techniques, the brilliance of their people, the company’s offices. Is there a place for bragging? Sure, but it’s secondary to the customer’s issues. Too many websites forget this.

When you consider that the average visitor has an attention span measured in seconds, and that he scans the web instead of reading every word, a narcissistic website has the same effect as a narcissistic tablemate: it turns people off.

In contrast, an intelligent website doesn’t leave a visitor stranded, searching for the customer benefits of the company’s products or services. It:

¨ Provides clear statements that are customer benefit oriented

¨ Supports its claims (often using customer and third party support)

¨ Proactively addresses potential objections

¨ Ushers the visitor into a dialogue

Let’s look at a very simple before-and-after example.

We’re at the website of a widget manufacturer. Their target market? Widget buyers from manufacturing firms.

The homepage leads off with:

"Since 1908, Acme Widget has precision-manufactured more than 10,000 varieties of widgets. What’s the Acme difference? State-of-the-art technology – including the latest laser manufacturing techniques – along with six sigma processes to ensure the highest quality."

Sound good to you? Where does the customer fit in?

While prospects and customers care a lot about the companies they deal with, they care first and foremost about their own needs. In this instance: “How will Acme Widget solve my problems?”

Here’s another take on the copy:

“Whether you are looking for red, green, purple or color matched widgets, no other company offers a wider selection, faster delivery or more production-friendly engineered designs than Acme Widget.

Independent tests show that using the Acme ViperWidget can result in improving your production speeds by as much as 35%, while significantly reducing defective rates over traditional widgets.

Great selection. Fast delivery. Increased production speeds and reduced defectives for lower overall manufacturing costs. One name. Acme.

Download our free white paper, ‘Increasing Your Production Speed while Lowering Defectives with Better Engineered Widgets,” highlighting the recent tests of more than five hundred widgets conducted by independent testing laboratory, International Widget Laboratories."

This time, the copy speaks to the interests of the customer. Customer problems – and Acme’s solution – stand front and center. Note, I still referred to the Acme's engineering abilities. The difference here is that the reference to engineering is now linked to customer benefits.

Imagine a widget buyer visiting two sites: one with the first copy, the other with the second.

¨ With the first site, the buyer learns a little about the company, but not enough to differentiate it from the competition. And not nearly enough to understand, and appreciate, the benefits of doing business with the firm.

¨ At the second site, the buyer learns about the company’s wide selection, fast delivery, exceptional production speeds and lower defect rates. All strengths she can quickly grasp. What’s more, the white paper provides third-party support – validation – for the company’s claims.

The underlying concept is simple and an underlying marketing communications truth. The most effective marketing communications puts your customers and prospects first, not your company. By focusing on customer and prospect needs, you are more likely to fulfill your company's needs.

As obvious as this statement would appear, it is similarly obvious that many marketers don't really follow it.

A Quick Check-up to Find if Your Company Website is Doing the Job

Pretend you are a customer visiting your company's website for the first time. Write down five key concerns you have related to purchasing these kinds of products or services or choosing a company that you feel (or marketing research indicates) reflects the key concerns of your target market when researching companies like yours. Spend up to one minute at your website. Close the browser. How many of your five key concerns were addressed? How well did they address your concerns? A brief amount of copy addressing a key concern and a link to more detail is fine; no mention of these concerns is not.

Did the web page copy get to the heart of your concern or was it focused on the itself instead of the prospects needs? Use what you have learned to further test your website in front of real prospects and customers. Find out their most important problems they are hoping your website will help them answer and re-design your website around helping them.

Post provided by Mr. Peter DeLegge, the publisher of Marketing Today. He has more than fifteen years experience in marketing and marketing communications management and marketing consulting with Fortune 500 to medium size corporations. He can be reached at peterdlAThotmailDOTcom.

Score Big With Newsletters

A newsletter is a periodically published document that informs, reminds, advices, advertises or communicates news and data on a specific topic. It can be either printed or have electronic format. Electronic newsletters are also known as Email Newsletters or eNewsletters and they are an excellent means for communicating with small to large audiences.

In short, a newsletter is an advertising instrument that provides companies with the possibility to improve their corporate identity and public perception, thus increasing sales.

How Does a Newsletter Work?

The promotional newsletters are free and should be used to motivate consumers to react to an offer made via direct mail or email.

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A well-written newsletter builds trust and confidence on a company and a brand. Each article within it should answer the five basic questions – Who, What, When, Where, Why.

A promotional newsletter can increase your image with prospective and presented clients. By providing valuable info in a professional layout, the readers will recognize you as an expert in your field.

Why Should You Write A Newsletter?

If written well, newsletters can be more far-reaching than an article or radio program. You are your own editor, being able to determinate the number and length of your articles, the content, what pictures you use, how many graphics. This allows you to control content and target your information, delivering quality content to the readers.

Newsletters are great way to advertise and serve as reminders of products or services that would be beneficial for your audience. As magazines, they are periodical, so you can contact your clients at regular intervals – keeping your brand in front of them.

How to Effectively Write a Newsletter

Know Your Audience

This is probably the hardest part and also the reason why many companies hire professional PR agencies. Know your audience – this is the first and most important rule. That means knowing their interests, their comprehension of the area under discussion and their reading level.

Write for Your Audience

- Once you know what your public is interested in, don’t deviate from the subject.

- You can get your ideas from personal contacts, phone calls, competition newsletters, press releases (see how many times a press release was downloaded – many Internet outlets provide such information), newspapers, television reports.

- Write clear, concise and interesting news. Keep your readers up to date.

- Include in your newsletter testimonials from some of your clients.
Underline their success and your role in it.

Create a Newsletter Strategy

- Research what the market needs and plan ahead what articles you are going to write. This way you have enough time to collect ideas by talking to your clients or from other sources.

- Make a connection with your reader.

- Use a personal approach – this is how you develop a trustworthy relationship with your clients. Clients need to feel that behind a business there is a person. Write your newsletter as though it was going to one individual directly from you.

- Be self-aware and don’t exaggerate when describing your business. Draw your reader into the article by using words that sell, and don’t mislead your readers. Avoid telling your company provides the best services. Try instead to underline what benefits the client can get when choosing your products.

- Self-critique shows you are aware of your borders. There are always borders nobody is perfect. If you made a mistake, admit it. Don’t lie to your clients.

- Humor can help you get to the heart of the reader. Yet, don’t exaggerate. Use it carefully. Many people have no time for clowning around. You wouldn’t like to lose the essence of your message. Sarcasm is very easy not to be taken figuratively when written on paper.

Create a Reader Friendly Layout

- Write titles and quotes that grab the reader’s attention. Use the first paragraph to intrigue and excite. You have less than three seconds to convince a reader that your newsletter is worth the time, so use your chance. If you have a meaningless lead, the clients won't take their time to assimilate the information

- Use correct grammar and spelling.

- Try to avoid jargon. People are not supposed to learn the specific terms of your business just to please you. You have to write for them and not for yourself or your staff.

- Use white space or graphics and photos to break up the page. Don’t exhaust your readers with too much text.

- Have someone else to read it too. Try finding an impartial person. Accept criticism. Don't use the ones who tell you that it is great. They aren't helping you. Ask the person who finds the errors and makes suggestions.

- Publish the newsletter regularly – this is how the readers will come to expect it. Don’t lose your credibility by failing to deliver.


Pay Attention when Publishing the Newsletters

- For printed newsletters choose quality paper and good resolution photography and graphics. If possible, do it on recycled paper – help saving our environment.

- Stick with the schedule. If your readers are waiting for the information they will be disappointed when they don’t receive it when expected.

- Be consistent in the layout. Consistency is the key to building a reliable image.

Newsletters are a great way to engage your audience and deliver true value. If you don’t provide a newsletter today, consider adding one to your arsenal or marketing tactics. Be sure to include a sign up form on your home page to attract the largest possible audience.

This post provided by Mihaela Lica, profitimo

Maybe It's Time to Upgrade Your Company Website

Dealing with website development issues can be an overwhelming task. There are many things your marketing team must consider, in fact, there are so many things to bear in mind that many of the most important ones never get dealt with, or are buried under competing interests.

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To avoid project paralysis you should focus on certain key areas of concern from which all other issues flow. Whether upgrading your existing website or developing a new webmedia initiative from scratch, consider these four vital questions that need to be answered:

-What content should be included?
-How should content be delivered?
-How is your website going to be marketed?
-What will visitors remember?
-What content should be included?

Content is a function of purpose. Unfortunately many websites don't have a clearly thought-out realistic purpose; and orders alone, is not an adequate website objective. Obviously every company needs sales, that's a given, but sales are a result of all the marketing elements you put in place, and the degree to which your presentation distinguishes you from your competition.

There is a prevailing view that traffic translates into sales; this viewpoint may be valid for websites whose economic model is commodity or advertising-based, but businesses that don't compete on price alone, or are more than an excuse to deliver advertising, must be structured around a purpose that is more meaningful, and far more compelling than 'give me an order or don't bother me.'

An over-emphasis on search engine friendly site design ignores the fact that when someone does a search for what you do, they'll not only find you, they'll also find many of your competitors as well. And even if you appear first in the search, nothing will stop potential clients from clicking on any of the other organic or advertised listings, or even the numerous Adword links on the side of the page.

The biggest website design problem companies have is not the amount of traffic generated from search engines, but rather how visitors react to your content. Are visitors engaged, enlightened, and entertained so that they stay on your site long enough to get your marketing message, and is that message compelling enough for them to remember it?

There are many misconceptions about advertising content, one of the biggest is that people hate it, but the truth is, what people hate is bad ad content; qualified clients actually look forward to good advertising because it presents a relevant problem, and provides a believable solution, in a distinctive memorable presentation.

If your content doesn't engage your audience with a persuasive, memorable presentation then you'll never achieve whatever website marketing goals you've set.

How should content be delivered?

We know the vast majority of people don't like to read text on a computer screen, so they scan for relevant information concentrating on bulleted points, captions, and headlines, but does that truncated information really get your message across? Website text is really designed for search engine spiders, which is fine, but how about paying a little attention to people and how they absorb and remember information?

We also know people are impatient and are ready to abandon your website with the click of mouse, often in mid sentence before they ever get to the point you are trying to make. Your clients are sophisticated media consumers raised on video games and television, and are used to making quick decisions on limited information; this kind of leap-of-logic protocol demands a clever focused presentation.

Your audience will be gone in seconds no matter how convincing you think your content is, if it is not presented in a media-savvy manner that holds viewer attention, otherwise your website is nothing more than a glorified Yellow Page ad.

Audio and video has the potential to deliver information in a form and format that attracts and holds viewer interest while it makes a memorable impression. But even audio and video will fail if it is badly conceived, poorly written, and amateurishly performed.

How is your website going to be marketed?

Everyone is concerned with traffic and how to drive it to their websites. Search engine optimization is only one marketing technique, and it's one that ignores the impact of content on your audience in favor of attracting the attention of search engine robots. By all means, build search engine friendly elements into your site but don't ignore people-friendly elements as well.

Having text-based articles on your site is an excellent way to provide search friendly information, but presenting that same information as a professionally produced audio option, or a lively video presentation is certainly more memorable.

An entertaining webmedia presentation makes a lasting impression that viewers are more likely to recommend to colleagues, thereby increasing your traffic and reputation. Word-of-mouth is the best way to generate qualified traffic, and the best way to generate interest in your site is to make your site's presentation a rewarding experience.
What will visitors remember?

In a brick-and-mortar environment, visitors are more likely to make a decision to purchase on the spot, simply to avoid driving halfway across town to save a few dollars, but on the Web jumping from New York to California is as easy as the click of a mouse. People are just more likely to shop-around because it's so easy.

Of course what people think they want is the lowest price, but providing the lowest price only attracts the least profitable buyers and ignores the biggest obstacle website businesses need to overcome, and that's credibility. Who are you, and can you be trusted? And after visiting ten different websites all selling the same thing, can they even remember who you are?

Your presentation has to be memorable and establish credibility so that when all the searching and browsing is finished, your site is the one they remember and go back to; your site must be the one visitors can trust to deliver what's promised.
How to Hire A Web Video Firm

The ability to produce an effective video or audio presentation requires more than the possession of some cool hardware and software. Owning an expensive camera doesn't make you a producer, and even the technical ability to edit doesn't qualified you as a commercial marketing expert. When the time comes to hire someone to add video and/or audio to your website what should you be looking for? Below are eight things you should consider when hiring someone to create webmedia.

-Can the webmedia provider deliver a turnkey solution from concept to implementation, or do you have to act as your own producer hiring different people with different skills complicating the project and creating both technical and conceptual implementation problems?

-Can the webmedia provider produce everything from scripts to custom music in-house, or do they have to farm-out some of the work increasing costs?

-Does the webmedia provider understand how to use verbal and visual performance to create a convincing, memorable presentation, or do they substitute expensive production techniques for cost-effective psychological persuasion?

-Does the webmedia provider just shoot video, or do they have the ability to analyze your offering and purpose, and focus it into a consistent, meaningful, branded presentation?

-Does the webmedia provider have the ability to think strategically as well as tactically? Can they implement and repurpose your investment into your existing website, create a targeted mini campaign site, and provide alternative versions ready for ad implementation?

-Does the webmedia provider have the ability to create lasting campaigns that can be rolled out and built upon, or are they just interested in making a quick buck from a one-off effort? Are they willing and able to be your ongoing webmedia marketing advisor?

-Does the webmedia provider have the ability to turn advertising into content, and content into an experience, or can they only produce nondescript infomercials?

-Does the webmedia provider understand business, marketing, branding, and what can and can't be achieved so that you have appropriate achievable expectations?

Commercial presentation production requires a multitude of skills and talents. Big companies solve the problem by hiring advertising agencies that drive the cost of production beyond what most businesses can afford. By understanding what's needed to create an effective webmedia presentation, you can look for a firm that possesses all the necessary talents in-house; an approach that keeps costs down, while producing an exciting Web video campaign that achieves corporate marketing objectives.

This post provided by Jerry Bader who is Senior Partner at MRPwebmedia, a website design firm that specializes in Web-audio and Web-video. Visit http://www.mrpwebmedia.com/ads
Contact at info@mrpwebmedia.com or telephone (905) 764-1246.

How Get Creative With Your Marketing

If you're anything like me, getting creative with your marketing can be a real challenge. Where do the new ideas come from? For most of us, the tried and true continues to perform - making it even more challenging to consider new initiatives.

How to Get Creative

When I consult for marketing departments, small or medium sized businesses, I often get asked the question, "How can we get creative with our marketing"? My response is always the same... start with the who. Often the best marketing ideas come from individuals who are not full-time marketers or simply someone who is not on your team.

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Start by compiling a diverse set of people to start the creative process. I like to involve colleagues, customers, and marketing people. This often helps to not only generate fresh ideas but to also iterate off already valid ideas or concepts.

All Ideas Are Good Ones

Don't be so quick to dismiss and idea. What would have happened if 3M dismissed the polymer used to create sticky notes? Where would we be today? Keep all of your ideas on the table until everyone has had an opportunity to express their thought related to the idea. Have everyone on the team start the exercise by writing 5 - 10 ideas on a sheet of paper. Then, in an organized manner, go around the table and place each unique idea on a white board. If someone has an idea that has already been presented, then have that individual go to the next idea on his or her list. Once you've gone around the room numerous times and all ideas have been put on the board, open the room up for dialog.

Reign in Your Ideas

There are a number of ways to sort these ideas and explore each one of them. One approach is to start at the top of the list and work your way through, allowing open dialog and debate. The key is to allow individuals to iterate off the ideas and shape new ones. Continue to build and hone your list based on comments, feedback and concerns.

After you've had ample time to share everyones ideas, it's time for a vote. Getting creative with your marketing also means getting honest. Have everyone in the room vote on the top 3 - 5 ideas. Then, get real. Which ideas have merit? Which might work for you? Which present real opportunities.

The Creative Process For Your Marketing

When attempting to come up with new ideas and get creative with your marketing, you must first focus on the who. With the right people in the room - people who think differently, you'll create new ideas.

Once the ideas start t0 flow, allow dialog and open debate. Keep a record of all ideas and start to whittle the list down one at a time. Finally, vote on the your ideas and determine which are most viable. Select the top ideas and form a group to explore each of them with an accountable owner and deadline.

Creating ideas in this way has a tangible outcome and can take your marketing to the next level. So, what are you waiting for, get creative with your marketing!