Archive for January, 2010

January 29th, 2010

Business Marketing: The Most Important Aspect Of Your Business

You’re currently at the situation where you have built up a company based on products or services that you genuinely believe will provide great earning opportunities. Before you get ahead of yourself, however, you need to gain the attention of the market to make them pay notice to what you’re selling first. And this is not an easy thing to do.
Here are 6 tips for your first attempt at business marketing:
It is not all about the money – Many business owners make the mistake of believing that the bigger and flashier a marketing campaign is, the more market attention it will gain. And true, and expensive advert will capture your market’s notice, but it may not retain it long enough for them to buy into what you are offering and to trust in you.
Don’t delegate – You should only trust yourself and your partners to build the marketing foundations to your company. Your employees can’t possibly know and love your company as much as you do, no matter how qualified the employees are. You can ask for advice from outside sources such as experts, and they can create a marketing business plan for you, but make sure that you work closely with them and don’t just wait for their outcome.
Be ethical in business marketing – Whatever you do, avoid using illegal or deceptive methods whilst carrying out your business marketing. If you want your company to be successful, you must learn to love and respect your customers. You may be tempted with quick money-making schemes but these won’t work for your business in the long term and it may lead to the company going bankrupt.
Don’t be shy – There’s no room for shyness in the business marketing industry. Now is the time to overcome your inhibitions and face the world. You will need to stand up for your company, if you want to market your business effectively. It is crucial to sound convincing and actively promote the many wonderful benefits you are offering. People want to be engaged, and the only way to do this is to be assertive and forthcoming.
Bring your target market closer – In business, you need to think of your target market as your own family. By doing this, you will gradually learn which ways to reach customers and keep them interested in your company’s products or services. It is important you learn everything about them including what they like and what they dislike. You should get to know them so well that you can almost perfectly predict how they would react in any situation.
Focus on benefits and not features – Remember this when it comes to business marketing as it is important. Make sure you focus on the benefits of your ad campaign or marketing strategy as apposed to the features of your product or service. Customers are more likely to remember how their life can be made better or easier by what you are offering, rather than how your product or service works.
One last point to note is that evaluating the results of your marketing strategy should be high up on your list of priorities for the business. One can always learn a large amount from past successes and failures and this knowledge can serve your company greatly.

January 23rd, 2010

5 Steps to Massive Profits – A Business Marketing Tip

Here’s a business marketing tip to gain maximum profit from any
product or service in your business marketing lineup, and how
you will gain extreme profits when you follow these 5 simple,
LAZY steps;
1. Look not at what you are offering through your business
marketing efforts – look at WHO WILL BUY your product/service.
Make a picture of your ‘typical buyer’ – who they are, their
age, what they like to do, etc.
This is often known as the ‘target market prospect’, yet, the
more detailed you define this ‘target’ in your business
marketing, the better.
I’ve even gone to the point of giving this ‘target market’
person a name and put a picture up on my computer monitor (find
a ‘friendly face’ on the Internet somewhere and ‘tag’ it as your
target market prospect) – get your business marketing centered
around every aspect of your target – the more you know them, the
easier it is to chat about what they need.
2. Develop a list of your target market prospect’s likes and
dislikes as it would relate to a product/service similar to
yours. (You’ll get a ‘third party’ look at your competition, as
well as some inside looks at their business marketing efforts. )
Consider some questions they would have, or some typical
objections to buying this similar product/service (this may come
from your previous research, or you may have to simply do some).
One way to personalize the business marketing research of your
‘target market prospect’ is to ‘role play’ – think about your
prospect as a good friend that you are having a picnic with (or
even a co-worker at the water cooler, etc. ) and in passing, your
friend brings up that ’similar’ product/service.
What do they say about it?
What are their questions/concerns?
Is there a ‘running joke’ about the competition’s
product/service that defines a hole in their business marketing?
(i. e. , “Did you hear about the lady that used X?”)
All these things need to be addressed, and documented.
Let your mind be creative and wander, but keep it to a time
limit – about 15-20 minutes per business marketing ‘play’
session. Think of nothing but this ‘conversation’ during this
creative (often fun) time.
It might even be helpful for you to say everything that comes to
mind out loud during these business marketing planning
sessions(as silly as that sounds, it works. . . ) and record it, as
some of the best business marketing ideas get overlooked when
you are trying to write them down quickly.
Listening back for those ‘nuggets’ might even trigger other
‘bits of business marketing gold’ for you to work with.
3. Figure out how your product/service and business marketing
plan is similar, yet different than the competition. Just how
does your solution overcome all the questions, concerns and yes,
even ‘jokes’ from your target?
If you can’t answer these questions for yourself, how would you
expect to answer them from your prospect?
The beautiful part about this business marketing exercise is
that, if you go through it with commitment, you will already
know the answers to the prospect’s questions BEFORE they ask
them – which quickly eliminates any fears you might have about
talking with them.
4. Continue this simple exercise – every couple days for a week
or so. Giving 15-20 minutes of serious thought to your business
marketing plan and role playing every couple days will stimulate
your conscious mind, as well as keep your unconscious mind
actively thinking about it.
You’ll be surprised at the outcome of taking these steps
seriously.
But be forewarned – you will very likely have a very different
outlook about your prospect after one week of this simple, yet
extremely effective business marketing, ‘target market’ finding
tool!
You will know them as well as you know yourself, so you will be
able to talk with them about things quickly, simply and with the
best, consistent results of your business marketing efforts.
5. Now, take a look at your product/service and business
marketing plan – through the prospect’s eyes (now that you can
clearly see through them. . . )
Does it fit your prospect’s needs?
Does it answer their questions and eliminate their fears?
Is it priced right for your target prospect?
Is there a market for your product/service other than your
personalized target market prospect? (This step is vital as a
‘reality check” – and one that many business marketing planners
miss)
When you follow these five steps faithfully, you will have
credibility, knowledge and successful long-term relationships
with your customers (who used to be simply ‘target market
prospects’ before you understood the power of this business
marketing tip!).
Steve Majors – To-the-point training and coaching for business
and wealth creation through creative Real Estate investing.
Known as “The Lazy Investor”, with courses and training sessions
to slingshot your success. http://SteveMajors. co

January 23rd, 2010

7 Steps to Creating a Successful Small Business Marketing Plan

Small business marketing is all about determining the needs of your target market and then providing solutions to meet those needs.

These 7 steps are aimed at entrepreneurs starting a small business and those who want to create a successful small business marketing plan for an existing business.

Most small business promotions focus on how great their products and services are. Instead, you should educate your target market consistently and start building a relationship that will establish your credibility and trust. It is important to develop a marketing mindset. “Think Marketing” your products and services all of the time. It is very important to consistently market your products and services. Don’t fall into the trap of stop and go marketing. Some small business owners only market when sales are down.

You can’t have a successful small business without having a successful small business marketing plan. Effective small business marketing is the way to growth and profits.

If you’re a small business owner or you want to know how to start a small business in the future, this simple 7-step plan will help you understand your business and your target market.

How to Start a Small Business Marketing Plan: 7 Steps

Begin the process by answering these questions:

1) Who — Who specifically is your target market? Who is your ideal client? What research can you do to find out more about your target market?

2) What — What products and services do your ideal clients want and need? What does your product and service do for your ideal client? What problems does your product solve for your customer? What are the solutions that your ideal client is looking for? What is your area of specialty that will differentiate you in the marketplace? What are the industry trends? What type of message will your ideal client likely respond to? What are you ultimately selling? For example: Are you selling eye glasses or are you selling vision? What is your unique mix of products and services? What is your pricing strategy?

3) Where — Where is your ideal client? Where is your customer located geographically? Where will you position yourself so they can easily find you? Where are the best places to get your marketing message to them? Will you speak to groups, hold seminars, or write a blog, newsletters or articles?

4) When — How frequently does your target market need to hear your marketing message? When are they most likely to buy your products and services?

5) Why — Why are you in business? Why do customers or clients buy from you? Why should they choose your product or service over your competition?

6) How — How does your customer buy your product or service? How are you going to reach potential buyers for your services and products? How will you communicate your marketing message? How will you provide customers or clients with the information they need to make their buying decision?

7) Marketing Mindset – Practice mastering a Marketing Mindset and you will be on the path to a profitable small business.

With these 7 steps, you can take action towards starting a small business marketing plan that targets new customers. “Marketing is about testing and evaluating your return on investment. But it’s primarily about helping people get what they want. ” Master these small business marketing steps and you will be on the path to more profit and success as a business owner.