Smashing Design

Smashing Magazine has put together a list of cool product designs. Some of the products are in the conceptual phase. but all of them are very interesting. When you’re thinking about designing your website, look to the real world to find innovative solutions. The featured designs range from flexible mobile phones that you can wear on your wrist (I want one!) to modern rocking chairs. Smashing Magazine has other lists of innovative and creative designs within their blog as well. Another section titled: ‘User Experience of the Future’ is also a great resource.

Creative Baggage

YKM, one of Turkey’s largest department store has created a very eye-catching shopping bag. The most interesting feature is the handle which represents a jump-rope. The concept works whether someone is carrying the bag or setting it on the ground. Why not let your shoppers help advertise your business?

1,001 Ways to Improve Your Website #990

We live in a world of constant change. Today, it’s possible to create a website that handles a large portion of your business marketing. So start thinking about your website as the primary source for all of your marketing. Make sure that all of your printed marketing materials have your website address listed. Direct all of your clients and prospects to your website. Give them a reason to come back by making your website a valuable resource.

Before today the theme of this article was; 1,001 Ways to Improve Your Business. However, I feel that the Internet is so important that you can no longer separate your business from your website. The two are tied together. And since the next hundred articles or so from this blog will deal exclusively with website marketing, the new title seems more appropriate.

1,001 Ways to Improve Your Business #991:

Redesign your website
Name an important marketing tool for your business. If you said your website… move into the 21st century. A website is the most important method for reaching customers and prospects. First, your website needs to brand your business. Then, it should to be optimized for search engines in order to be found. Think about keywords the next time you use Google. Next, you need to create additional paths for customers and prospects to find you. See How to Drive Traffic to Your Website from this blog. Finally, hire a professional to help get your business website fired up!

1,001 Ways to Improve Your Business #992:

Measure everything
Have you ever tried to cook something new and didn’t measure any of the ingredients? Unless you’re a great cook that often leads to disaster. The same is true of marketing your business. First, set a goal. Setting a goal is like picking a recipe. You’re deciding on what you want to cook and what the expected results will be. That in a nutshell (no pun intended) is the essence of measuring marketing as well. Your business goal or recipe for success could be to have 1 million in sales this year. You may need 20 new clients billing $50,000 each annually. Or 50 clients billing $10,000 each. Choose marketing methods such as cold calling, print advertising or search engine placement. Whatever the method, write it down and measure the results every day during the year. At the end of the year see what you have baked! Adjust the ingredients (methods) and begin cooking up sales for next year.

1,001 Ways to Improve Your Business #993:

Show me the money
Money, bread, coin, mighty dollar, piece of the pie… I know this sounds funny, but many people are puzzled as to the process of making money. Being profitable is the #1 goal of business. And by the way, if you don’t make money then you really don’t have a business. Over the years I’ve heard thousands of great ideas for new businesses - and a few that weren’t so great - and at least half of the folks that I spoke with didn’t figure out a way to achieve income. Many had a great idea that they thought would make them rich beyond their wildest dreams. But no way to get there. I once got a call from a person who had “the greatest idea in the world” that would make him millions but he didn’t want to tell anyone for fear that they would steal his idea and make the aforementioned millions before he did. I assured him that he had little to worry about but he wouldn’t tell me either. The secret to making money is to ask for it. Or more specifically, to ask for the order. It seems simple but it’s hard to do. Start with identifying a target audience, fulfilling a need with your product or service and asking for the order. Give it a shot, it works.

1,001 Ways to Improve Your Business #994:

Develop a solid marketing plan
If you’re going on a vacation what do you do first? Well, the first thing you do is determine where to go. Then you figure the best way to get there. Maybe even out how to pay for it, but that’s no fun. That pretty much describes how to put a marketing plan together. Think of a marketing plan as a road map. It lays out the direction that your company should go when communicating with customers and prospects. It points you towards success. Your marketing plan should include a list of media - print, radio, TV and online - that you need to reach the target market effectively. Your marketing plan should also include measurable goals and the means to accomplish those goals. Gotta go. Time to plan for a family vacation to the beach!

1,001 Ways to Improve Your Business #995:

Survey existing customers
How do your customers feel about your product or service? A survey is an excellent way to take the pulse of your customers. Stay in touch through informal lunches or a create a professional campaign. Sample questions should include: Why do you buy our product? Are you happy with our service? What can we do better? Are you buying the same product from another company? Try to find out why (how and where) customers buy from your company. Encourage them to be honest because you will learn more from your weaknesses then from your strengths. What do you think of our blog?

1,001 Ways to Improve Your Business #996:

Be positive in your outlook
It’s important that you feel great about yourself and what you do for a living. If you have a positive attitude about your job, you will succeed by transferring that enthusiasm to customers and prospects. When you wake up in the morning, are you excited about getting to work? Even though marketing and sales are tough and there’s a lot of competition in almost every industry, a positive attitude will get you through any obstacle. Being positive opens the door to creative thinking. And creative thinking shows you new paths to success.

1,001 Ways to Improve Your Business #997:

Make a list of your strengths
Every business has weaknesses. Sometimes we are painfully aware of them on a regular basis. But your business may also be strong in many areas. Possibly even a leader in your industry. To find how your business is different list all of the strengths you can think of. For example: Are you the low price leader? Is your business the most experienced? Do you have the highest quality product or service? Try to list 50 different and measurable strengths. Use this information to brand your business as the leader in a specific category. This is a great way to develop new ideas for a marketing campaign. You’ll feel better about your business after a little exercise.

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