1,001 Ways to Improve Your Business #998:

 

Extend your product or service
Consider how you could add new life (meaning new sales) to your existing product or service. For example, people who buy your product might be interested in a warranty. Or there might be a whole new market for a used version of your product. Find other companies that produce similar products who do not sell in your territory, form a partnership and sell each others products respectively. If you provide a service, think of ways to be invaluable to your customers and prospects. Use your website to provide solutions and offer up-to-date information about your industry. Get out there and make it happen!

I Am Iron Man

As far as super-hero movies go, Marvel Entertainment is the top dog. Marvel has created the Fantastic Four, the Hulk, Daredevil and of course the Amazing Spider-Man. Iron Man is the latest action movie produced by Marvel that opens this week. And in the future Marvel has thousands of characters in their arsenal that could be brought to the big screen.

Get the Flash Player to see this player.

The real hero here is 3D special effects. With studios such as George Lucas’s Industrial Light & Magic, there is no limit to what can be achieved on screen. Effects such as characters flying are now so realistic, that it’s hard to believe it was actually created on a computer.

Other heroes are storytelling and marketing. Stan Lee, the original publisher of Marvel Comics in the 60s and 70s, sold millions of comics because of his ability to tell great stories about real people. Well, if you consider people being bitten by a radioactive spider and attaining super powers real that is. And he also knew his target market. If only I had kept my original Iron Man comic books #1 through 10.

1,001 Ways to Improve Your Business #999:

Develop a new brand identity
Your brand identity is how customers and prospects view your business. And if you haven’t thought about your brand for awhile, then it might be time to take a look it. Start with printed marketing materials. When was the last time your business cards, brochures and sales sheets were created? For example, if your brochures have dust on them, it might be time to get a marketing firm to help re-design your image. There are also many new and exciting ways to promote your business online. Keep a consistent brand identity on your website as well.

1,001 Ways to Improve Your Business #1,000:

The customer is always right… always 
Don’t take this phrase for granted. We all have heard of customer-service horror stories (and maybe experienced a few). It’s easy to take care of customers when things are going well. But the rubber meets the road when a serious problem arises. It doesn’t matter who’s at fault. That’s when your business can shine. Make a point to solve any problems that a customer might have immediately. The bigger the problem, the bigger the solution. Satisfied customers turn into repeat, long-term customers. Remember who pays the bills.

1,001 Ways to Improve Your Business #1,001:

Establish an annual marketing budget
You plan a budget for vacations, right? So it’s a good idea to establish an annual marketing budget for your business (and increase your budget for gas this year). Include a breakdown of all costs including website marketing and advertising placement. Include the budget as a part of your overall marketing plan and measure the results of your company’s spending during the year. This enables you to determine what works and what doesn’t. A good rule of thumb for your marketing budget is 3% to 5% of projected annual sales. Retail businesses typically budget 7% to 10% of annual sales for their marketing budgets.

Is Print Dead? No… Well… Uh… No.

When you’re thinking about where your marketing dollars should go, consider that most people are getting their information online instead of reading the newspaper or even magazines. Why? Well, it’s a lot like when cable TV first came out. CNN was the first 24-hour news program. Major events happen 24/7 and CNN was the first to report the news when it happened. The public loved it. The Internet has assumed that role now. In fact, most newspapers and magazines are posting articles in blogs online to reach that market. Content is still king however. And the best writers and editors remain in the print world.

Print isn’t the only victim. TV is being abandoned as well. ‘Online is the New Prime Time’ by Marv Pollack describes the seismic shift away from TV to the Internet. He states: “One striking finding presented in our session was that during most waking hours, more people (age 15+) are using the Internet than are watching television. It is only for the last two hours of primetime and into late night, when most people seem to wind down their Internet usage, that TV consistently surpasses Internet usage.” Truth be told, I still love to read newspapers and magazines. But when I develop marketing plans, I keep in mind exactly who the target audience is and I usually recommend a substantial amount of the budget to be allocated to online marketing.

If You’re Under 30, You Don’t Have To Read This.

Your age will determine how you feel about this article. Chances are, if you are under 30 years old, you already understand the importance of having a website to market your business. If you are above 40 or 50 years of age, you may not feel that a website is critical to the success of your business. It has a lot to do with your point of reference. My parents used to tell me about the days of radio and growing up without a TV. I grew up with not only color TV but eventually cable with 500 channels as well. It was hard for me to understand their point of view because TV already existed in my life. That’s why it’s easier for people under 30 (certainly under 20) to get it. The Internet is like a utility and they never knew what it was like to be without it.

When you look at the Internet as a utility it’s easy to connect-the-dots and see how your business website fits into the overall picture. That means your business needs a great website. Websites are replacing traditional marketing and advertising methods such as direct mail or advertising in your local newspaper. And website marketing is easier, faster and less expensive than traditional marketing methods. Recently, when I was looking for a new employee, I submitted an ad in my local newspaper over the phone and I submitted an ad online with Craig’s List. Placing the ad in my local paper took about 20 minutes to complete at a cost of $200.00. The online ad took about 5 minutes to submit. The result was that I received a couple of resumes from the newspaper while the online ad drew over two-dozen qualified responses. And did I mention that the ad on Craig’s List was free?

Take a Good Look at Your Website. Okay Now Look Away.

A fair number of people call me every week to take a look at their business website. Usually they are looking to improve the branding of their company. When I ask for the URL address of their website, a number of them preface the conversation by saying: “This isn’t what we want.” or “It’s really old.” or “Could you look at our competitors website instead”. I even had a person once say: “Please don’t look at our current website!” I guess that’s why they are calling for advice. These businesses are seeking to improve how they look to the world.

We’ve all seen websites that are successful and many that are not. How do you determine when it’s time for minor updates or wholesale changes? Below is a brief list of seven items for your review. If you answer “no” to any of these items, then it’s time for a redesign of your website.

- You are proud to show your website to anyone (not just your mom)
- The content accurately describes your business
- The information is up-to-date and relevant
- It’s easy for someone interested in your services to contact you
- Your website has been redesigned within the past year
- You’ve had more than 50 visitors in one day
- You spend more time on your own website than a competitors

By carefully looking at every page of your website you can determine the next step. Of course, if that’s a painful process then it’s time for an overhaul.

Ohio Website Design, Stop Waiting

Get the Flash Player to see this player.

Marcy Design has created 4 new commercials for marketing website design in Ohio. The fourth commercial visually shows a download bar moving across the screen. The idea is to get 100% out of your website and to attract a larger target audience. Good use of a tag-line at the end of the commercial: ‘Get more out of your website by visiting ours.’ All-in-all, these series of commercials are are successful in promoting the Marcy Design brand.

Ohio Website Design, Save a Tree

Get the Flash Player to see this player.

This is the third of 4 new commercials for marketing website design in Ohio that Marcy Design has created. Following the theme of – ’Getting More Out of Your Website…’ — this spot shows how you can re-design your website and use less paper to market your business. A wide variety of tree images helps to support the message of saving trees. Great theme. Go green!

« Previous Page — Next Page »