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Posts Tagged ‘blog’

The Cents (and Dollars!) of Using Online Marketing

Monday, November 2nd, 2009

piggy-bank-on-money-md1As we constantly move towards a society where daily tasks such as paying the bills, ordering food and shopping for clothes are being performed online, new opportunities to approach, reach and target your clients are beginning to emerge. Online marketing has a number of benefits, especially for small business owners. It’s fast, efficient, environmental friendly, but most of all, it’s cost-effective!

Besides the obvious benefits of eliminating mailing and printing costs, here are some important factors to take into consideration.

The two-way communication process. The feedback from your consumer makes it easy to adjust and update your online campaign. If you notice that certain copy or images needs to be changed, this is an easy fix. Imagine doing a print campaign and realizing along the way that you’re not getting the results that you’re looking for. The cost and time it would take to make the necessary edits would probably mean a financial setback for your business.

To receive feedback from the consumers while doing an offline marketing campaign requires the consumer to mail or call. People don’t have the time to do this and valuable information gets lost. Online marketing allows clients to have an ongoing communication with the actual company, and most importantly the company can very fast adapt according to their audience.

Another way to track the results of your campaign is to set up SEO keywords. The campaign can get customized and constantly updated based on your consumer’s reaction and feedback.

There are numerous communication channels to be utilized in online marketing. The primary channel is  the web, but also e-newsletter, social media platforms audio and video. Speaking of email marketing, there’s nothing easier for a potential client to forward and/or share the email that is being sent out. Today, an increasing number of companies are integrating social media with e-marketing. TopRank’s online marketing blog featured an interesting post about the so-called “Share to Social” (S2S) link tonlinemkt3hat can be imbedded in an email marketing campaign. When sending out an email simply include this link, which tells the receiver to instead of just sending or forwarding the email, he or she should also make sure to share it with more people by utilizing social media platforms. Links to the platforms are imbedded in the email, which makes it easy for the receiver to spread the word about your products and/or services!

The Aftermath: Post-Networking Event Follow Up

Thursday, October 8th, 2009

people-networking2So, you did your research and attended a networking event that you were well-prepared for. What’s next? Networking doesn’t stop when the cracker plate is empty and everyone has gone home. The steps you take after a networking event are an essential part of effective networking. Next time you return from a networking event, follow these steps to make the most of your new found contacts.

1.      Reflect on your experience. Make note of what you did well and what you need to improve on. Networking events can be a great learning experience!

2.      Add all new contacts and their info into your Rolodex or contact management system. All details that you remember are important such as where they work, how long they have worked there, any common connections and noteworthy attributes.

3.      Send a follow up email to all new contacts and reach out to them on social media. Further explore their networks on social media to see if your networks overlap by looking for your new contacts on Twitter, Facebook and Linkedin. Also remember to send a thank you to the host of the event if applicable.

4.      You can also post about the event on your blog or tweet about it.  Post any photos you may have taken from the event as well.

5.      Begin to strategize on how you can make the most of your new connections. What can you do for them? Can they do anything for you? Perhaps you can work together on an upcoming project. The possibilities are endless.

6.      Begin you plan of attack for the next networking event you are attending. If you don’t already have one scheduled, now is a great time to do some more research and start networking!

Maxamize Your Blog

Wednesday, September 16th, 2009

blog-boardPeople read blogs to learn, for entertainment, for news, or simply to see what’s going on. With that in mind, it’s important to keep things current in your blog. Make your content engaging, interesting, topical and thematic. Using credible links can add validity to your blog and attaching images creates visual stimulation for your viewers.  When attacking your blogs be sure to include buzz/key words that will generate ultimate SEO.

Ultimately, your blog is a channel used to expand your professional network and it allows you to develop a status of expertise in your chosen field. To do that, you must familiarize yourself with your audience and write what you know.  Creating a successful blog can lead to new clients, more business, and it allows you to establish a name and credibility in your respective business. So get out there, captivate your readers, make it a must-read, and have fun doing it.

Navigating the Social Media World: Tricks and Trends

Monday, September 14th, 2009

social-media-wagonSocial Media is THE word, THE trend, and THE future of our world. Just like the internet, it’s here to stay. It’s an unstoppable movement and it’s everywhere! Blogs, Facebook, Twitter, Linked In, You Tube. Young kids use it, college students, CEOs, entrepreneurs, moms and dads: social media stretches across all ages, all places, and it has ultimately changed the way people communicate, how business is operated and how the world goes round.

Food for thought:

  • 100,000,000 – number of YouTube videos viewed per day.
  • Facebook had 250 million users and 35-and-older was the fastest-growing segment.
  • Social networks and blogs are now the 4th most popular online activity ahead of personal email.
  • In June, the top 10 social media sites had 480 million unique (individual) visitors.

Social media provides a venue where people can communicate on a social or business level like never before. From a business standpoint, social media’s accessibility, transparency and widespread reach allows companies to engage with their specific niche market and communicate directly with their consumers.  The user-generated content and managable publishing techniques is non-discriminating and can be practiced by nearly anyone.

Social media has created a venue where interactive marketing becomes attainable. This platform permits companies and consumers to interact with one another almost immediately (in real time), and feed off one another in order to get the best results. Social media is the future of marketing and its vital for company growth. In today’s economic state, social media is a cost effective way to increase public awareness, buzz, and brand recognition. By using social media platforms, small businesses can get in the foreground and build their brand with their target audience and expand their business.

Welcome to Perks Consulting Blog

Monday, December 29th, 2008

We want to hear from you! You will find members of the Perks Consulting team will post information about business, marketing, or strategy concepts we are using, researching, and/or contemplating for our clients. Please feel free to post comments or questions. We will respond as quickly as possible.

Best,
The Perks Consulting Team