Marketing In A Virtual World

Before the Internet, small business owners like yourself were usually limited to a local market -resorting to expensive advertising and brochures, direct mail, cold-calling, networking at the local Chamber of Commerce or Rotary. You hoped customers found you through word- of- mouth or a Yellow Pages ad.

Today, you can work with a consultant, a financial planner, or a business coach across the country as easily as someone across town. In the Internet age, prospects often find you (instead of the other way around).

This is the age of the virtual customer. Yet, although the Internet has made it perfectly reasonable to land a major client you've never met in-person, it has also created new expectations among consumers.

Prospects now "Google" around to find someone with your skills. They expect you to make a good virtual "case" for yourself. If you don't pass the test, or make a bad impression, or appear lackluster compared to your competitors, you will lose the potential client.

The only way to be truly successful in business is by establishing a good reputation. And understanding the way business has shifted in the Internet age can help you bring the potential of marketing your business into the virtual world.

The Virtual First Impression

The Internet has increased the expectation among consumers that businesses will have a credible online presence.

Many of us now form "first impressions" of people and companies via our Internet browsers. From the moment your name and business appear in a Web browser to the moment your Web site loads, your first impression often means the difference between a shot at your prospect's business, or being shut out.

Think about it. You have probably used the Internet to research a company or a person you're considering doing business with. Certainly potential clients and customers are checking you out online, too.

Prospects you've never met are forming opinions about your business at the click of a mouse. Internet first impressions are not just influenced by how your Web site looks, but also by how often your business appears or how high it ranks in a web browser.

Become an Online Center of Influence

We all know people who command rapt attention whenever they speak. Others want to listen to, learn from, and emulate them. They are centers of influence, a distinction you can pursue online by developing the following qualities:

Share inside knowledge with your target market;

Participate, listen, contemplate, and offer thoughtful responses;

Be willing to voice an opinion;

Assume leadership positions in your industry

Certainly, experience counts. But this is not the only prerequisite to becoming an online center of influence that will earn you the distinction of 'trusted advisor' within your target market.

Start by making your Web site a resource for your industry. Feature lots of useful information, including articles, links, downloadable files, customer resources, and anything else of use to your target market. Be generous and give, give, give!

This post provided by Net Insiders, taking you to a new level. The Internet's best marketing blog is here:
http://www.netinsiders.com/

How To Boost Your Email Delivery Rates

There has been a lot of discussion on the subject of email deliverability and I wanted to share some important suggestions to help you improve your e-mail marketing campaigns. Before we discuss guidelines for boosting your e-mail delivery rates, it is important to understand what deliverability is and what it means to your e-mail marketing campaigns.

E-mail deliverability represents the probability that your e-mail campaign will successfully reach a recipient's inbox and that it will arrive in a legible, presentable fashion. Ultimately, higher delivery rates will increase your chances of seeing a return on your marketing investment.

Unfortunately, few marketers today can expect to achieve perfect deliverability. For many, deliverability can be a confusing and painful issue. But by configuring things correctly from the start, adhering to best practices, and monitoring industry trends you can feel confident that you are achieving the highest relative deliverability for your industry, brand, and type of messaging. Now, here are some important rules to follow in your email marketing efforts. Class is now in session.

Get Permission From Your List

This is the most important step of the e-mail marketing campaign. Make it clear to subscribers what they will be receiving from you and why it is they are receiving your messages. Of course, make sure they have an easy way to unsubscribe. And it's the law to remove recipients after an unsubscribe request within 10 days or less.

Maintain and Cleanse Your Lists
Be sure to remove undeliverable e-mail addresses that bounce on an ongoing basis. A clean e-mail file will help your reputation. Be sure to process your list through a hygiene service and make sure addresses comply with ISP standards. A good rule of thumb is to always keep hard bounces below 10% of the total messages being sent.

Focus on Authentication

Authentication lets ISPs know who you are. When they know that, your chances for reaching an inbox are much better. Authentication prevents the forgery of e-mail messages and allows senders to build a positive reputation with receivers based on e-mail behavior. DK, DKIM, and SPF are probably the most well known and adopted authentication methods.

Follow the Rules and Regulations

It is important that all of your messages meet legal approval and follow all of the Federal CAN-SPAM laws. There are several important ones to follow, so make sure you are familiar with each of them. The FTC authors these and has a good online resource site to help guide you through the legislation. Also, be aware of what state level e-mail laws exist.

Develop the Right Creative

What you say has an effect on your deliverability, and of course an effect on response. Don't use language associated with negative marketing tactics. Do not promise anything you can't actually deliver. Use images sparingly and avoid sending attachments. Ensure your subject line is relevant and pops especially for preview pane viewing. And having a text version keeps your recipients using text only email viewers from being alienated.

These base email tips should help you improve email deliverability success and generate the success you're looking for.

The Power of Postcards

What's the fastest, simplest and cheapest way to promote just about any business? The answer is postcards sent by direct mail. You can get your message to a targeted group of prospects or to your existing customers for a cost of about 25 to 30 cents each including postage. You can actually send someone a postcard every 30 days for only three dollars a year. You can generate leads, create sales, ask prospects to give you a try or convince existing customers to buy more or buy more often.

What are the 2 biggest secrets of marketing with postcards?

1. Regular, repeated mailings are the way to create big predictable results. When you mail every 30 days for a year you will cause a dramatic growth in your business. People respond to repetition. If you are a parent you know how hard it is to refuse repeated requests for a cookie or a desperately wanted toy. If you are not a parent, I'm sure you remember asking, even begging for a toy, treat or permission to stay up past your bedtime until your parents finally gave in. Your customers and prospective customers are similar. They need to be asked repeatedly too.

2. There are really only 4 reasons people don't buy your products and services. Look at your own buying behavior and see for yourself if you believe me when I tell you these 4 apply to you too.

a) No need.

When people don't buy from you, it's because they don't want what you are offering. They may need what you are offering and not know or acknowledge that need, but the bottom line is they don't want it. Save lots of time, effort and money by targeting your postcard mailings to groups of people who have demonstrated they want your product or service or one's similar to yours and then mail to them. Follow at least this one piece of advice and become more profitable immediately.

Examples of those who have demonstrated they want your products and services are:
1. your own customers,
2. your competitor's customers and
3. people who have bought products and services which your products and services supplement or complement.

Target your marketing. Promote your business exclusively to people likely to have a strong desire for the benefits provided by your product or service.

b) No money

Businesses and consumers don't usually avoid purchases because they don't have or can't get the money necessary to purchase. They usually don't buy because they decide buying something else is more important to them (like food). You can get them to buy from you by making it clear to them that buying your product or service will get rid of something they don't want or will get them something they do want or will get them more of something they already have that they like having.

It is your job to get your people and businesses to see that your products and services give or get them what they really want. Consumers and businesses rarely avoid buying something because they don't have (or can't get) the money needed to make the purchase. They avoid buying what you offer because they place a higher priority on spending money for something else. What is the most nagging problem you can solve for prospects in your targeted market? Make it real to them how they'll feel when your product or service eliminates that problem. Use postcards to communicate how they can get their problem solved.

c) No hurry

People tend to drag their feet after they decide to buy something. The longer they wait to purchase the more likely they are to forget why your product or service is valuable or even absolutely necessary to them. Keep your message in front of them with repetitive mailings. If you don't...You'll lose the business.

The reason repetitive mailings are so effective is that they remind your customers and prospects of what they are missing by not having your product or service working for them in their life. You can avoid losing sales because of "no hurry" by rewarding customers for taking immediate action and penalizing those who don't. For example, offer a special discount price or a special bonus for ordering before a deadline. Do repetitive mailings to targeted customers and prospects and you will make more sales.

d) No trust

Most people's fear of losing something is a bigger concern than getting something that they want. This fear causes them to frequently avoid buying something they truly want. They don't want to buy and then find out that your product or service won't solve their problem. They don't want to be or even feel ripped off or still at a loss over the solution to their problem. You must take away their risk in doing business with you. You must provide a way that they can "trust" you. If you don't they won't buy and you will lose business.

Most peoples' fear of losing something is a bigger concern than getting something that they want. This fear causes them to frequently avoid buying something they truly want. They don't want to buy and then find out that your product or service won't solve their problem. They don't want to be ripped off, feel cheated or even feel at a loss for not getting a solution to their problem. You must take away their risk in doing business with you.

You must provide a way that they can "trust" you. If you don't they won't buy and you will lose business. 1. Eliminate the risk with an unconditional money back guarantee. 2. Give them testimonials from satisfied customers and/or provide references that prove the quality and reliability of your product or service. 3. Make it easy for your prospects and customers to communicate with you and get their questions and concerns answered. Let them see you and your business are real and that you value getting and keeping their trust and present and future business. These are really the only 4 reasons why people don't buy from you.

You can increase your sales and profits by knowing them and doing everything you can to mail your postcards to the people and businesses most likely to want and benefit from your products and services, make it clear to them how valuable the benefits of your products and services are to them, get them to see the urgency of getting the value of your products and services now and finally that they can trust you to help them get the benefits you promised your products and services would give them. When you do all these things, guess what? People will buy from you like crazy.

Postcards are a perfect low cost medium to overcome the 4 reasons people don't buy from you. Use postcards in repetitive mailings and make your business soar.

This post provided by Joy Gendusa. Using a powerful, simple, extremely cost effective way of communicating with customers has earned Joy Gendusa Inc. Magazine's recognition as the nation's fastest growing direct mail postcard-marketing firm with year 2007 revenues close to $19,000,000. Gendusa began in 1998 with zero investment capital. Today, her Clearwater, FL firm called PostcardMania, employs over 150 people and prints 4 million and mails 2 million postcards representing 31,000-plus customers in over 350 industries each week. Visit at www.PostcardMania.com

Making The Most Of Free Article Directories

Free articles directories have made it easy for website owners to submit their articles and drive tons of targeted traffic to their websites. It is one of the best, if not the best, ways of improving your site traffic and, consequently, your sales.

Write Quality Articles: But you must be aware of the fact that merely writing articles haphazardly won't benefit you at all. In fact, it will ruin your credibility. Writing quality articles and submitting them to quality directories is the key to success. Writing free articles doesn't require any investment at all, as the word 'free' says it all.

All you have to do is to give valuable information to your readers and drive them to your website for more. Since you have knowledge about your niche, you are the most suitable person to write and grab the attention of your target audience.

Since you don't have to spend any money on articles, spend sometime to write quality content that will present you as an expert in your niche. Write content that will complement your product and entice readers to explore more by visiting your website.

Submit Your Article to High Quality Free Articles Directories: Once you finish writing your article, you have to submit it to high quality free articles directories. What I mean by a high quality directory is that it should receive a decent amount of traffic everyday. It should have a powerful search engine, capable of producing the most relevant results.

People prefer to use article directories, instead of Google or other search engines, in order to narrow down their research. So, when someone from your target market visits an article directory and searches for information relevant to what you have already submitted, your article will pop up. Your quality content will then keep the reader engaged and eventually bring them to your website.

Free articles and directories can unquestionably bring you paying customers for years to come, if utilized effectively. Here is a high quality free articles directory and search engine where you can submit your article and enjoy bringing the most targeted traffic to your website.

This post provided by Shaukat Ameen, a highly skilled content writer. Here is a high quality free articles directory and search engine he recommends where you can submit your articles http://www.articler.com and enjoy bringing the most targeted traffic to your website.

Building Your Brand

What do you want other people to think when they think about your business, your product, or your service? Do you want them to think about your brand as the life of the party, or the designated driver? Is your brand a trusted friend, or a famous rock star? Are you a Volvo or a BMW? So who are you really?

You may already know have a good answer to these questions. And, if that's the case, I applaud you! Many small businesses struggle with this. If, however, you need a little help in defining yourself, here are a few questions to ask yourself:

1. How am I currently perceived by my best customers?
If you don't know, do a quick focus group with a target segment of your market (10 - 20 people), customers and non-customers. Have a list of questions ready to ask.

2. How do I want to be perceived by my best customers?
Realize that your brand needs to reflect and resonate with your target market. If you want to be a sports car, but your customer wants you to be a sedan, you should probably reflect what your customer's value unless you're trying to attract a different set of customers.

3. How far apart is how I'm currently being perceived to how I want to be perceived?
What will it take to bridge the gap? Do I really need to bridge the gap, or should I enhance my current image?

Once you've got a general idea of perception, time to make your personality more definitive. So, ask yourself these questions:

4. What are my brand's human characteristics?
As crazy as it may sound to you, many branding experts suggest you do this in order to put your brand on a level everyone in your organization can understand. Is your brand male, female? Old, young? Rich, poor, middle class? Where does it work? What does it do for entertainment? These are just starter questions...you can think of a lot more yourself!
5. If my brand was an actual person, what would be its name?
Think about it, when you hear someone is names "Bob," an immediate picture comes to your mind. I bet you can think of a dozen such examples! Pick a name that personifies your brand. Daniel, Tom, Jane, Jenn, Ian, Jeff, Jamie...
6. What is my brand's "life story?"
Bob needs to know where he came from, so create a brief, fictional biography of your humanized brand.

Once you figure all this out, consider building a Personality Board. This is very helpful in giving your brand a visual personification. Cut out pictures, stories, headlines, or any other visual reference you think would work to define your personality. You may even want to find a photograph of someone who is the image of your brand personality and place it in the middle. Display it proudly, and make sure your employees know what it is.

Now, when you create your advertising and marketing materials - from print ads to tv and radio spots, from websites to packaging, and beyond - you know what personality they need to reflect. And you will be on your way to delivering a brand with which your customers can identify.

This post provided by Donna Williams. She is the founder and creator of BusinessBurrito.com - a website dedicated to helping small businesses grow to their maximum potential. She is also a 25-year advertising / marketing executive, creative director, writer, and producer. To learn more about Donna and read more of her articles, visit her website at http://www.businessburrito.com.

Enter to Win 250 Free Postcards - Exclusive Offer from UPrinting and The Marketing Blog

Everyone knows how effective postcard marketing can be. Postcards offer a great way to cut through clutter and move your target audience to action. The Marketing Blog has teamed up with UPrinting.com to offer you a chance to win 250 free postcards (details at bottom of post).

Direct marketing has become quite costly these days. With increased printing costs, paper, and postage, making the most of your direct marketing budget is more important that ever before. That’s where postcard marketing comes into play. Postcards can cut through clutter and put your promotion in front of your prospects quickly and easily.

How can you make your postcard marketing deliver exceptional result? Follow these helpful tips for generating profitable postcard campaigns.

1. Start with your list. Develop a targeted list of prospects, either through your own campaign or via a list broker. In order to succeed, you need to reach the right audience at the right time.

2. Develop a compelling offer. Make sure that your offer is valuable enough to generate action. Free samples, buy-one-get-one offers, and so on, are most effective.

3. Make sure you’re using a quality postcard. The vehicle you use to communicate your message says a lot about your company, products, and brand. Use heavy card stock and an over sized format.

4. Provide a teaser. The purpose of most postcard campaigns is to generate some type of action. This could be a visit to your store, website, or 1-800 number. One of the most effective ways is with a teaser that encourages individuals to learn more by visiting your website or visiting your store.

5. Test. Test multiple postcard sizes, offers, and designs. The key to successful postcard marketing is to continually test and improve your campaigns with the knowledge you gain from each mailing.

To get started on an effective postcard campaign, enter our free drawing. Simply follow these instructions.

How to Enter

1. Become a Fan of Postcards by logging into Facebook.com and going to the page:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Postcards/45814380258

2. Leave a comment at the end of this blog post by clicking on the comments link, using your Facebook name/username and tell us what you would use the postcards for.

Prize

250 Postcards for 1 Lucky Reader

You can choose from any of our stocks, including the Extra Thick 14pt. Cover: Gloss (AQ), Matte or the 13 pt. Cover Uncoated (Recycled) stock at a size of 4x6.

Rules

Winners in the United States and Canada qualify for free shipping. Shipping fees will apply to winners outside these areas.

Postcards provide by UPrinting.com. UPrinting.com offers a full spectrum of printing services for postcards. We offer custom sizing and templates as well as design help through our U-Design service. We also offer mailing services to help you get your finished postcards out to your customers in an efficient, affordable and hassle free way.

Landing Pages and the Decision Making Process

Landing page optimization and testing is a complex activity that requires knowledge of many fields, including usability, copy writing, and Web design. But at its core, we're still trying to influence the behavior of people, and human nature hasn't changed.

At the end of the 19th century, Elias St. Elmo Lewis pioneered a framework for describing stages of consumer interest and behavior. In effect, he created the modern concept of the sales funnel. All people were thought to progress through four stages covered by the acronym AIDA.

· Awareness: Someone realizes that some number of possible actions is available to them.

· Interest: They actively self-select and show a preference for a particular course of action.

· Desire: Their enthusiasm grows as they investigate the course of action.

· Action: They're moved to act and reap the benefits of the course of action.

The key to properly applying this model to landing pages is to make sure that there's continuity and flow to support a visitor's progression through each of the steps. None of the steps can be skipped, and all of them must happen in sequence. That's not to say that equal emphasis should be placed on each within your landing page, or that visitors will spend an equal amount of time in each step. But there should be a clear path, and the proper support to keep them moving forward toward your conversion goal.

It's also helpful to realize that AIDA applies to different scales of tasks and different time frames. If I'm a consumer researching which computer to buy, I may take days or weeks to make my decision. My interaction with your Web site may be only one of dozens. I may have long ago forgotten about your Web site by the time I make my ultimate decision (depending on when I visited it, the intervening research that I've conducted, and the uniqueness of your company and its selling proposition).

At the other extreme, the Web supports small-scale and short-duration micro-tasks that may happen in a fraction of a second. Sometimes the task that you want the user to perform is simply to click through to another page on your site. Yet the same four steps must still happen during the visit for the conversion action to occur.

Ultimately you must help to answer two questions for a visitor to pass through all of the AIDA stages:

· Do you have what I want?

· Why should I get it from you?

This process may not happen during a single visit or interaction. The ultimate goal may be weeks or months away. But you must provide a clear path to that goal, as well as support along every step of the way. If your conversion action typically has a long delay, then try to provide mechanisms to record your visitors' progress, and restart them in the most recent and relevant state upon their subsequent return visits to your landing page.

The typical time spent in the awareness and interest stages on the Web is very short. The "do you have what I want?" question is mostly answered during the desire stage.

However, desire can't even happen without attention and interest. Similarly, although the bulk of "why should I get it from you?" is answered during the action stage, it can't even be reached without passing through the other three stages in order.

Make sure that the right people are guided through the right activities in the right order while they're on your site. If you take a disciplined approach to making sure that every AIDA step is addressed for your visitors and their specific conversion tasks, you should significantly improve your conversion rates.