Why You Should Hire a an Experienced Marketing Writer

You’re a small business owner and you need to communicate with your customers and potential customers.  Communication means your website, print ads, social media, newsletters, brochures and more.  A good portion of your impressions and reputation are based on what you write for and about your business.  You want to make sure your writing is a good reflection of you and your business.

You don’t want to have printed marketing pieces with misspellings, poor grammar, errors, and less than compelling content.  Advertising and marketing are important parts of your business plan. Don't waste the opportunity by not hiring an experienced marketing writer who can make your business shine.

Think you can’t afford a professional writer?  You can’t afford not to hire one, and they don’t have to be a full-time staff member.  Hiring a marketing firm or a professional freelance business writer allows you to pay by the project. And they will bring a fresh perspective to your business.  If you are interested in learning more about how the right content can help you achieve your business goals you can contact Laurie or Mary at Blue Dog Marketing.

 

Overwhelmed with all the Marketing Options Out There?

 New technologies, products and services, gadgets, websites and apps are all designed to increase the efficiency of your small business. You are told by the 'latest marketing gurus' that you must use this new social media or have the latest marketing tool.

As business owners, you are always up for the newest 'it thing' that will increase your number of leads and ultimately the increase your bottom line. You end up doing a bit of this and a bit of that, in hopes that your business will improve. But, if you spend your time trying a bit of everything, you have no real way of knowing what is working and what is not.

You don't need to do everything. Some marketing technologies will be appropriate for your business and others won’t.  Having a marketing professional work with you can help you create a viable marketing plan with objectives, tactics, and set campaigns.  Some pieces you will be able to implement yourself.  Others pieces, your marketing firm can assist you with. Marketing does not have to be difficult when you have a plan of action and then work the plan.

Differentiation and Branding of Your Small Business

There great way for your business to compete in the market place is by differentiation.  Differentiation allows you to establish a unique brand and create a niche market.  This is how your small business can attract people who resonate with your style, your values, and your product. You will then be able to charge a premium rate for your services.

The key to differentiation success is to differentiate your business so much that you are the only 'go-to' provider offering that service. You need to be the "obvious expert".  You must offer an superior mix of products, services and value.

Often, business owners don't like to differentiate themselves too much in fear of losing potential business.  There are many things that can differentiate a business, but nothing is more important than creating your unique brand. You must establish your brand, and then protect its integrity.

A brand is more than just your business name, your logo or your tag line. It's what people, including you and employees, think, feel and say about your business. It's what you stand for.

Perception is so important. It's what your customers' experience, before, during, and after sale. Your brand should consistently and repeatedly convey to your prospective customers why they should buy from you, and continue to buy from you as loyal customers.

Establishing your brand is crucial to helping you stand out from your competition; it brings your competitive advantage and value proposition to life. The best time to create your brand and brand strategy is when you start your business.  This should be part of your marketing strategy. However, this is when it is most often overlooked. The second best time is as soon as possible.  Reaching out to a marketing firm to assist you in creating your marketing strategy is a sure way to get your brand created and your marketing plan set.  This will ensure your business success.

Tips to Make Your Business Website Effective

A website can improve your company brand and attract customers with minimal cost.  Your website allows you to communicate your message to many people at the same time.  But, how do you make your website work effectively for your business?   These tips will help you you’re your website effective. 

Ideal domain name

Think of the best domain name for your website thoroughly. Your website domain name should be easy to remember. Think carefully and take your time before you register it to make sure it is perfect for carrying the name of your business. Ideallly, your domain name should contain your website keyword to gain better rankings in search engines. Make it short, simple, and use common words for easy recall. Avoid using special characters like hyphens because Internet users do not usually type them when they search. Once you have come up with a domain name, check its availability because someone else may already be using it.  I also recommend purchasing any similar domain names and purchase your domain name with the .com, .biz, and .net endings so you don’t have to worry about another company competing with you in web searches.

Professional web design

Having a good web design makes a good impression. You you’re your customers to have a good experience whenever they visit your website. Make sure your website loads fast and is mobile compatible. Many people search the internet from their tablets and smart phones so your website needs to fit all those screens.  A good website designer can help you create a website you can be proud to direct your customers to. 

Quality content

You website should educate your customers and potential customers about your company and your products.  Make sure your content contains the SEO wording that you want. 

Reach the top of a web search

Reaching the top of search engines should be your main goal. Understand that users rely heavily on search engines searching the web. You are competing against thousands of other similar websites, so you have to work hard to make the first page of a search. This can take months, but it’s not impossible. 

Hire a professional marketing company to help create your website. They can write content that help your website reach the first page of a web search.  It’s a good investment in your company’s marketing.

Customer Relationship Marketing Basics

As a small business, you like to think that your customers will automatically return whenever they need your services/products.  But, this isn't always the case. You need to take time to develop a relationship with your clients.  Finding out about their experience with your company will allow you to grow your customer retention level. There are several relationship marketing strategies that can help you.

Retention 

Studies show that it is less expensive to keep the same clients than to find new ones. Service, price and value are among the many reasons a company may retain or lose customers. Finding the right way to keep them coming back may require finding a different way to reach out to people after the sale is complete.

Marketing Tools 

There are several marketing strategies that a small business can use.  First, a customer satisfaction survey will tell you how your customer felt about their experience with your company. Mail and email marketing campaigns ensure customer loyalty and keeps you top of mind with your customers.

A marketing firm, such as Blue Dog Marketing, can help you create and execute the survey and marketing campaigns. Engaging a marketing firm to  help drive customer loyalty and satisfaction can make a difference in your success.

Facebook Marketing Tips

Facebook, used properly, can be an excellent complement to traditional marketing tools and should be part of your social media marketing strategy.  Facebook is a tool that reaches 69 percent of the total United States population; it is the second-most-visited website; and people spend more time on this platform than they spend with radio, television, newspaper and magazines combined. Use Facebook to drive traffic from your fan page to your website. It does take some thought, work and testing to make Facebook marketing pay off, but all digital social advertising and marketing takes testing.

Facebook advertising is one of the lowest priced and most targeted advertising platforms available today.

·         Facebook has more than 960 million users worldwide.

·         Facebook is used by 69 percent of Americans.

·         The largest age group on Facebook is 25-34, followed by 18-24.

·         The fastest growing age group on Facebook is 35-54.

·         The average advertising cost on Facebook is 10 cents per impression or 91 cents per click.

·         Facebook is growing 8 percent every 30 days in the United States.

Facebook offers a unique opportunity since it is a social platform and not a shopping portal. People are spending time on Facebook communicating with their friends and family and making new friends. Facebook represents real, everyday life; it’s just online.   As a business, you need to engage your fans in conversation; you need to act like a friend.

From your fans’ profiles, you can learn their marital status, age, number of children, hobbies, food interests, along with information about their education, employment, family life and other friends. All of this information and more is available on Facebook when you are building your advertising campaign. It is all there for you to leverage to create a viable advertising campaign.

“People love to purchase but don't like to be sold.” Don’t ever forget, people are on Facebook to be social, not to shop. They are very willing to learn, if they are being taught without the sales pitch.   So, make your posts educational and informative.

Consider what a person is really looking for. What is the problem they have, and how do you provide a solution to the problem they have? You must solve their problem by presenting facts so your fans can gather information and contact you to fix the problem. 

The various interest groups available on Facebook allow for so many opportunities to increase your sales. It’s so simple and exciting to think about all the ways you can drive leads with Facebook. There are so many opportunities there for the taking if you make Facebook an integral part of your marketing plan.

Using Social Media to Create Greater Impact

 In today’s business world, information sharing and distribution is becoming everything and small businesses need to embrace social media as part of their marketing strategy. Social media allows small businesses to build their brand, engage their clients in conversations and educate their clients.

Before jumping to the social media arena, small businesses should consider the following:

Develop a Solid Social Media Strategy

Just like having a marketing plan in place, your social media strategy should be a part of the overall marketing plan.  A strategic plan for your social media campaign will help in evaluating the rate of success and the overall impact of your efforts on the project in future.

Be Selective in Your Information Sharing

It is essential to define boundaries well before using social media. You don’t want sensitive information posted. Create guidelines for sharing your company information.

Social media, as part of your marketing plan, can promote your business and increase your growth.

4 Ways Small Businesses Can Maximize Their Marketing Dollars

 

Now is the perfect time to implement some proven, simple marketing strategies.  Here are five tips for business owners to maximize their marketing without busting the budget.

 

1.    Create a referral system: Getting clients is as easy as asking your best clients who else they know that would happily benefit from your services. Satisfied clients are usually more than happy to share this information--sometimes they just need to be asked!

 

2.    Create relationships with influential people:  Create relationships with natural networkers who like and respect you and who love connecting people.  They can refer you to the right people.

 

3.    Develop strategic alliances: Strategic alliances are people who share the same target audience or clients as you do, but whose company or service doesn't overlap with yours

 

4.    Build your database: If you want to build your business quickly, build your database. And use that list of clients and potential clients to offer an incentive.

Using a set of proven marketing strategies that are simple and effective will help small businesses save a lot of financial stress.  Implement one strategy at a time. When that strategy is getting results, move onto the next strategy.