Other Added - Business

Corporate Identity - A Rough Guide
A rough guide to corporate identityThe tabloids report the millions spent by large corporate companies on their logos as a scandal... Those small swathes of colour adorning British Airways’ tail fin, ICI’s letterhead or Sainsbury’s checkout seem to come at a huge price.So do these companies have too much money and not enough common sense? Are they victims of designer indulgence, or are they getting a good deal?This isn’t rocket science, but it is often misunderstood, as the tabloids flagrantly show. Let’s s

es. Plan based on projections. What was your annual revenue last year? By what percentage do you expect to grow this year? Keep your expectations in line with your business plan. Trying to grow by 50-100% in a year is asking for management, employee, service and quality issues. If you do not have the business plan and marketing plan working together expect employee turn over, customer complaints or worse… loss of cust

Winning and Losing in the Pit Stop
Frontline service providers are key drivers in great service organizations. But don’t forget the power of the ‘back-end’ to win or lose the race!In every insurance company you’ll find actuaries, policy administrators, IT professionals and clerical support staff. These folks have little contact with external customers, but they can certainly set the mood and the pace for the insurance agents and brokers who work out in front.In a theater you enjoy actors on stage. But there would be no play without writers, directo

All too often I run across the hungry talented entrepreneur with a great product or service who has the drive and determination to get a business off the ground but they do not know how to plan for their business future.

What happens when the doors are open but the customers are not calling or worse, not buying? Desperation sets in and money soars out of the bank account but with little return.

If you do not have a solid marketing plan with actionable and quantifiable measures you are looking down a very skinny funnel.

Instead of hurriedly creating a website, buying advertising, hiring fulfillment or marketing agencies to get you customers, take the time to make your plan. Hire a qualified marketing professional to consult you on best practices for your industry.

A website is not just an online brochure anymore. I don’t think it has ever been but more than half of the small business sites I visit do not have call to action or lead generation tools on their site. This is a must have if you are online and you can truly get a return on investment from an online presence if your site is designed with generating leads and sales in mind. Online advertising is another hot marketing campaign these days but is still so new there are a lot of opportunities to get taken advantage of by unscrupulous scammers. If you do not understand how different advertising and marketing techniques work you are out to spend big bucks with little return. Arm yourself with knowledge or hire a trustworthy and reputable consultant to assist you. Executing different campaigns without consistency will make it hard to measure what works and what does not. Measuring a campaigns success is the key to driving future sales. Plan based on projections. What was your annual revenue last year? By what percentage do you expect to grow this year? Keep your expectations in line with your business plan. Trying to grow by 50-100% in a year is asking for management, employee, service and quality issues. If you do not have the business plan and marketing plan working together expect employee turn over, customer complaints or worse… loss of custo

Marketing Lessons from a Rabid Chipmunk!
A relative of mine is a mail-carrier for the United States Post Office. Like any place of employment, there are all sorts of colorful characters working there. They're all very good people - friendly and enjoyable to chat with.A gentleman working at the same post office as my relative is a happy, cheery kind of guy. I met him on a few occassions back when I was basically a rebellious high-school hoodlum. I noticed his pleasant demeanor. And that he was bald - much like I'll likely be in a matter of a few years. His co-wo

arketing plan with actionable and quantifiable measures you are looking down a very skinny funnel.

A Freelance Lifestyle - The Pros of Pursuing One
A freelance lifestyle isn’t for everyone. But, if you are dissatisfied with your current career, you might want to try it. Here are some of the pros that work for me in my freelance lifestyle:Flexibility and Autonomy (being in control). I love having the flexibility of doing what I want and need to do, when I want to do it. I can work late into the night, early in the morning, or all afternoon. It is up to me. As part of my schedule, I teach fitness classes most mornings, so work my projects and meetings ar

nk it has ever been but more than half of the small business sites I visit do not have call to action or lead generation tools on their site. This is a must have if you are online and you can truly get a return on investment from an online presence if your site is designed with generating leads and sales in mind. Online advertising is another hot marketing campaign these days but is still so new there are a lot of opportunities to get taken advantage of by unscrupulous scammers. If you do not understand how different advertising and marketing techniques work you are out to spend big bucks with little return. Arm yourself with knowledge or hire a trustworthy and reputable consultant to assist you. Executing different campaigns without consistency will make it hard to measure what works and what does not. Measuring a campaigns success is the key to driving future sales. Plan based on projections. What was your annual revenue last year? By what percentage do you expect to grow this year? Keep your expectations in line with your business plan. Trying to grow by 50-100% in a year is asking for management, employee, service and quality issues. If you do not have the business plan and marketing plan working together expect employee turn over, customer complaints or worse… loss of cust

Three Ways To Differentiate Your Service Business
True differentiation continues to elude many service businesses today. The competition, given enough motivation, can duplicate or worse, beat the price, terms or features you offer. The bottom line is that your products and services seldom create lasting distinction in the marketplace.The one factor your competition can’t easily duplicate is your employees. Referred to as “Cultural Capital” by leading management experts, a service firm’s employees represent vast untapped potential and the strongest variable to achievi

taken advantage of by unscrupulous scammers. If you do not understand how different advertising and marketing techniques work you are out to spend big bucks with little return. Arm yourself with knowledge or hire a trustworthy and reputable consultant to assist you. Executing different campaigns without consistency will make it hard to measure what works and what does not. Measuring a campaigns success is the key to driving future sales. Plan based on projections. What was your annual revenue last year? By what percentage do you expect to grow this year? Keep your expectations in line with your business plan. Trying to grow by 50-100% in a year is asking for management, employee, service and quality issues. If you do not have the business plan and marketing plan working together expect employee turn over, customer complaints or worse… loss of cust

Points to Consider Before Franchising A Restaurant
Companies are booming one after another. An example of a successful industry is the business format franchise.Most people believe that franchise businesses often pertain to food. The growth and success of various big and recognized fast food franchises is the reason behind this impression.If you are a businessman thinking of franchising a restaurant, you must focus on the business and its characteristics you would like to invest in. The first step is to determine if this industry is appropriate for you. Amidst all

There is a difference between a business plan and a marketing plan. Marketing plans are an incredibly important component of any business but many small business owners tend to neglect them because they do not have the time or resources to put one together or manage it. I have seen the difference between companies that invested in planning vs. companies that took the approach of jumping into the next big idea in marketing. Companies that plan grow at a manageable rate that keeps them prepared because they have a forecast of the future. The companies that take the unstructured approach and do not plan, typically have high growth at first then see a tremendous drop in sales after some time due to internal politics, customer dissatisfaction and employee turnover. The company never has a grasp on their financial projections and is 1-3 years from closing their doors.

Final food for thought. How much money did you spend on marketing last year? How much are you willing to invest? For instance the average direct mail campaign has a gain of 2 -6% return on investment. How many direct mail pieces will you mail out? What will the cost be?

If you are struggling with how to get the phone to ring, website visitors not making conversions to sales, it may be time to invest in some solid planning.

Know your goals and limitations before you give your money away to the first marketer that promises you big sales.

All campaigns are not equal. You need to know what type of campaign will work best for your product or service.

Marketing for services is different than marketing for products. Make sure you ask the

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Imagine two customer service agents, Bill and Megan, who sit on the far sides of a room containing about 200 of their peers. Bill struggles on every call to provide the best care possible, going out of his way to curb his temper when customers inappropriately challenge or even insult him. Megan is wrapped up in herself and it shows. She sounds curt and impatient and gives off the impression she’d rather be doing anything but taking calls. These two sit so far away from each other, more than 150 feet to be exact, that they could almost be working in different buildings. Nonetheless, they’re impacting each other in very meaningful ways, according to Dr. Gary S. Goodman, President of Customersatisfaction.com, top speaker, international consultant, and best-selling author.

If you can get past family issues, the cost of living, housing, and the thought of being in an undesirable area - the rest is easy.

All teams are groups but not all groups are teams. There are very specific traits that all teams have. Learn if your group has what it takes.

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