Making Direct Mail Work for Small Businesses

by: Sky Maya

If you own a small business, then you know the value of affordable and effective marketing. Unfortunately, many traditional and online advertising methods are becoming quite expensive. This article will explain direct mail guidelines and methods.

Direct mail is an often over-looked method that can be very effective if executed properly. There are three guidelines to follow when conducting an effective direct mail campaign:

1. Catch the reader's attention immediately. You only have a few seconds to do this before your mail ad is thrown away as junk mail. Therefore, opt for postcard mailings instead of sending your offers in an envelope. If your business is relatively small and unheard-of, the reader will never open it unless your company's name is familiar to the reader. Envelope advertising is cheaper than postcard advertising, but is only effective if you have already built up name recognition.

When using the postcard method, you will need to be able to print images on the card. I highly, highly recommend investing in a quality home photographic printer. You will end up saving money in the long-term, and your printer will be right where you need it whenever you need it. Whenever you have materials printed professionaly, you pay for labour, expensive inks, and expensive equipment.

When searching for images to print on your postcards, remember the the point of this first guideline: catch your reader's attention. Of course you don't want an offensive image for your cards, but you do want one that is slighly "controversial". When choosing images for your cards, ask yourself these questions:

Does it stand out among the rest?
Does it contain bold colors (but isn't an eye-sore)?
Does the image relate to my business or current offers in some way?
Does the image request user interaction? (ex. a face staring directly at the reader, someone pointing at the reader, etc.)
Does the image have enough white-space for some large text?

2. Offer the reader an incentive for responding. Unless the reader is and has been genuinely interested in your services/productsfor a period of time before receiving your postcard ad, they will never repspond unless you offer some sort of incentive. For instance, you postcard could also serve as a coupon; tell you reader to bring in that post card for a discount. Also, you could use the postcard ad as an announcment for a storewide sale. Be creative when offering incentives to your readers.

Be sure to make your incentive very visible on the postcard. Let's say, for example, your postcard is also serving as a coupon for 20% on your products/services. Print that "20% off" in large text with the image, along with your product type, such as "20% all dog beds". Then, on the other side of the card, usually with the recipient's address, print the discount again with any terms that may apply.

3. Target your readers. The best way to waste advertising money is by sending your direct mail to random people, paying no attention to whether they would actually buy something from you. This is much easier when dealing with business-to-business advertising. When it comes to consumers, find out their interests is a little difficult.

Test out the waters first. A good place to try first is InfoUSA. They sell mailing lists of consumers and businesses and may provide targeted consumer lists. You may be able to create interest in someone who has never heard of your products before, but when you are starting a new direct mail campaign and you have a very small budget, keep your list targeted. You don't want to try to sell a web site to a business that already has one, or try to sell a dog bed to someone who only keeps cats.

I hope this article has given you some ideas on making your next direct mail advertising campaign more successful.

About The Author

Sky Maya is the author of Best SEO Tactics - an excellent guide to optimizing your web site for high search engine rankings using proper and ethical tactics. Proven techniques! Buy it today and watch your site traffic explode!

This article may be reprinted freely as long as this resource box with all active hyperlinks remain intact.

info@bestseotactics.com

Why Small Business Must Turn to PR

by: Robert A. Kelly

Please feel free to publish this article and resource box in your ezine, newsletter, offline publication or website. A copy would be appreciated at bobkelly@TNI.net. Net word count is 670 including guidelines and resource box. Robert A. Kelly © 2003.

Why Small Business Must Turn to PR

If small business had no important outside audiences, it wouldn’t exist.

But since they do have external “publics,” it’s doubly unfortunate when those same small business owners seem unconcerned about the very outside folks whose behaviors can place a choke-hold on their business!

And worse, are so casual about public relations, the best way to move those behaviors in their direction.

Is that you? What’s the problem? Can you think of any other way to marshall those groups of people you need so badly if your business is to succeed?

Face it. You must turn to public relations if you are really serious about getting those important outside people to support what you are trying to do.

And the best part is, there’s no mystery about how to do it!

Start today by listing your important outside audiences in priority order. No doubt, customers and prospects will place #1 and #2. But think carefully about your local and trade media as well as community residents and leaders, suppliers and the like. The test for adding an external audience to your worry list is this: if left unattended, could its perceptions and behaviors hurt your business?

Since there is no other affordable way to find out how each of your target audiences perceive your business, products, services and operations, you must take the time to do it yourself along with your colleagues. Interact with members of that key target audience and probe their perceptions with plenty of questions. Watch for misconceptions, inaccuracies and rumors that need to be corrected. Stay alert to negativity of any kind.

This will let you decide how much you will try to alter perceptions among each audience. It also becomes the behavior modification goal against which you will measure your progress.

Now it’s message time. What will you say to members of your target audience to alter that negative perception that surfaced during your conversations with them? Your message must be persuasive, so stick with the facts and present them clearly. By identifying honestly what is really at issue at the moment, you impart a sense of credibility to your comments, and their timeliness adds a compelling dimension to your message.

What’s the best way to get that message to the eyes and ears of members of your target audience?

Here, you have an embarrassment of riches with dozens of communications tactics including news announcements, op-eds, letters-to-the-editor, speeches, community briefings, broadcast and newspaper interviews and many, many others.

Progress can best be tracked by interacting all over again with members of the target audience. While you’ll ask questions similar to those you asked in your earlier monitoring sessions, this time you’re looking for signs that your message got through. In other words, signs that your message succeeded in altering any negative perceptions of your business.

You should also monitor print and broadcast media, key customers and prospects for similar indications of success.

Should progress not be fast enough for you, you’ll want to consider increasing the number of communications tactics you employ as well as the frequency of their use. Your message should also be re-evaluated for its factual basis and clarity.

Gradually, your monitoring will playback perception changes among that target audience, and that means the behaviors you seek will not be far behind.

It is this kind of success that tells us very clearly why small business must turn to PR if it is to realize its potential.

end

About The Author

Bob Kelly counsels, writes and speaks about the fundamental premise of public relations. He has been DPR, Pepsi-Cola Co.; AGM-PR, Texaco Inc.; VP-PR, Olin Corp.; VP-PR, Newport News Shipbuilding & Drydock Co.; director of communications, U.S. Department of the Interior, and deputy assistant press secretary, The White House. mailto:bobkelly@TNI.net. Visit: http://www.prcommentary.com

Successful Small Businesses Use PR

by: Robert A. Kelly

It’s obvious when a small business has accepted the fact that its most important outside audiences need lots of care and feeding. They do something about it.

There’s a sense of urgency and a recognition that those “key target publics” have behaviors that really impact the business, and that they had BETTER do something about it!

What about you? Are you ready to follow the winners and get public relations working for your small business?

The payoff can be significant – key audience behaviors that directly support your business objectives and make the difference between failure and success.

But, as always, there’s some work connected to reaching that pot of gold, but it’s really worth the effort.

If you’re willing, begin by listing those most important outsiders in a priority ranking. Probably, customers and prospects will take #1 and #2 positions. But others rate a spot on that list depending on how crucial they are to the success of your business. In fact, an audience only makes the list if, left unattended, its perceptions and behaviors actually can hurt your business.

You’re at a disadvantage when you don’t know what those important external audiences think of you and your small business. And the only affordable way to find out is for you and your colleagues to talk to members of that key audience by interacting with them. Ask questions about what they think of you, your business and its products or services. Especially watch for any negativity, misconceptions, inaccuracies, wrong-headed beliefs, or rumors. And monitor local print and broadcast media, especially local talk shows and newspaper pages, for similarly negative signs.

The responses you gather help you set your public relations goal. For instance, correct that wrong-headed belief; fix that inaccuracy; or straighten-out that misconception. The goal, by the way, will also become your behavior modification marker against which progress can be tracked.

But how do you get there? You select a strategy from the three available to you: create perception/opinion where none may exist, change existing perception/opinion, or reinforce it. The public relations goal you just set will lead you directly to the right choice of strategies.

The message you send to your target audience is crucial, and writing it can be hard work because it must alter the negativity you found when you interviewed audience members.

Above all, it must be persuasive while clearly presenting the facts. It must be credible, believable and timely as it explains truthfully what is at issue at that moment. In short, your message must be compelling.

Getting that finished message to the right eyes and ears is your next challenge. And that means selecting the right communi- cations tactics, and you have dozens of them available to you. Speeches, press releases, emails, meetings, radio and newspaper interviews, action alerts, brochures, newsletters and so many others.

Before long, you’ll be looking for indications that your new public relations program is making progress.

After the communications effort has had six or eight weeks to take effect, it seems obvious that the best way to determine that is to go back to members of your key target audience, interact with them again and ask more questions. The difference this time, however, is that you are looking for signs that your carefully prepared message is really altering the negativity you discovered during your interviews with those target audience members. And once again, keep an eye and ear on local media for similar signs that your message has been heard.

If you’re anxious to speed up the process, boost the number and variety of the communications tactics you’re using, as well as their frequencies.

What you want is for your second monitoring go-around to show marked perception change which tells you clearly that the behaviors you really want are on the way.

In the PR business, that creates success.

end

Please feel free to publish this article and resource box in your ezine, newsletter, offline publication or website. A copy would be appreciated at bobkelly@TNI.net. Word count is 735 including guidelines and resource box. Robert A. Kelly © 2003.

About The Author

Bob Kelly counsels, writes and speaks about the fundamental premise of public relations. He has been DPR, Pepsi-Cola Co.; AGM-PR, Texaco Inc.; VP-PR, Olin Corp.; VP-PR, Newport News Shipbuilding & Drydock Co.; director of communications, U.S. Department of the Interior, and deputy assistant press secretary, The White House. mailto:bobkelly@TNI.net. Visit: http://www.prcommentary.com.

Small Business 'No' How - Don't Give Away the Farm

by: David A. James

You're pretty proud of yourself! After all, only four months ago you came up with the idea of opening your own business - "Jenni's Interior Design" Your friends have always said you were gifted when it came to arranging furniture and picking out colors, and you love to do it, so you decided it was time to get serious.

You went to a few "Starting Your Own Business" seminars, picked out a name and registered it, had your nephew build a great website, printed up some business cards, got a second phone line, and took out an ad in the local paper - "Are Your Walls and Furniture as Stagnant as Pond Scum? You Don't Need to Break the Bank for a Fresh Look, You Just Need a Makeover!"

Then you crossed your fingers and waited. Day one, no calls. Day two, no calls. Day three - the phone rings! Success! Your heart is pounding as you pick up the phone. The conversation goes something like this:

"Hi! This is Jenni with Jenni's Interior Design, how can I help you?"

"Hi, my name is Celia, I saw your ad in the paper. What do you charge for your makeovers?"

"Well, my rate is $25 per half-hour for consultations or $100 per room to redesign the entire room. If we decide on new furniture or paint, that is your cost of course"

"Hmm, I have a lot of rooms I'm thinking about changing. Can you come over for a free consultation just to see what I have? If I do more than one room, can I get a discount?"

"Umm… sure, that's fine. If we do more than one room I can do a discount too, no problem"

Hold on. Maybe Jenni hasn't given away the farm yet, but she's on her way. When Jenni hangs up the phone she's going to realize a few things:

1. She is committed to spending her time and gas money to visit Celia.
2. She has no agreement or commitment from Celia
3. She indicted that some of her time is "free" time.
4. She let Celia know her price could be bargained down.

The problem here isn't that Jenni was caught off guard, the problem is that she instinctually began to doubt herself and her prices. You can't blame Jenni, after all, this is her first potential customer and while she's talking on the phone she's probably thinking "Gee, am I really worth $25 per half-hour? I do this for my friends for free. I don't know if I'm really qualified to charge that kind of money"

The potentially bigger problem is Jenni pretty much threw her pricing structure out the window when questioned. There is nothing wrong with bartering and making deals, but it shouldn't be your standard business practice. Without a doubt, if Celia likes Jenni's work and recommends her to a friend, Celia will be sure to brag about the great deal she negotiated as well. Now, Jenni is probably stuck with this "free consultation with a discount" policy for any referral customers. Jenni is setting herself up to run all over town free of charge, give good advice, and potentially not make a dime.

What Jenni should say is, "I would be thrilled to come out, but I'll have to keep the consultation charge in place. What I can do is credit your consultation towards the first room we makeover, each additional room would be at the regular rate. I'm sure I'll have some great ideas that we can work on together"

Of course it takes confidence in yourself to come back with that kind of a reply. Jenni is only going to have that kind of confidence in herself by knowing her competition, what they charge, and that fact that she is as good, or better, than they are.

So here's the key to not giving away the farm:

Know your competition and the commonly established rates for your service.

If you are competent, confident and know you have as much skill and talent as your competitors, there is no reason why you should be charging any less than they do. In fact, some people believe if you charge more it's a sign that you must really be good!

But let's not get carried away, the point isn't to see how much you can charge before you run yourself out of business. The point is, "Don't sell yourself short"

One great way to measure your competition is to call and try them out. I personally did this not long ago when I was thinking about opening a software consultation / training business. I found a small business specializing in software training and had them send out an employee for two hours of Microsoft Access training. The friendly lady who arrived spent two hours reading the 'help' screens (to herself) and flipping though the paperback user's manual trying to figure out how to show me some rather simple tasks I had questioned her about. Hardly what I would call expert training. However, it served its purpose - I knew I could do a better job.

Do your research and provide an efficient, professional service. Show them that you're worth every penny. If you build that kind of reputation, price will not be much of an issue. Your customers will admire your confidence and work ethic and be happy they're doing business with you.

Oh, and keep the deed to the farm in your drawer where it belongs.

About The Author

David James is the editor of "Home Income Digest", a publication updated quarterly which presents more than 40 of the best home-based businesses currently available in the country. Located at http://www.homeincomedigest.com, Home Income Digest includes only well-researched, established, small business opportunities. For more information about the author, visit http://www.homeincomedigest.com/aboutus.htm
dave@homeincomedigest.com

Success Tips for Small Business Owners

by: Lorraine Pirihi

Running a small business requires many skills. However, to do this successfully you need to organize yourself first. Avoid procrastination - read the following and take action.

Successful Small Business Owners Look After Themselves First

Exercise regularly, eat healthily and be around positive people. Feed your mind by attending personal development courses. Read self-help and motivational books, listen to tapes. Stress management levels will be much more effective when you look after yourself.

Do the right thing by yourself and you'll have heaps of energy, be motivated, have more balance in your life which in turn will help you be more productive and successful.

Successful Small Business Owners Clean out the Clutter Regularly

You will save yourself heaps of time, energy and money if you clear out your work and home environment…paperwork, books, old equipment etc. You'll be able to find things, save money because you won't have to buy what you already have hidden somewhere, plus you'll be less stressed. Organize your office and your small business premises regularly…keep the clutter out. Eliminating clutter will help you to avoid procrastination. It's too easy to avoid getting things done if you are overwhelmed with clutter.

Successful Small Business Owners Use the Right Tools

It's no good having the latest whiz-bang computer when the desk that you sit at is too small to accommodate it, or the chair has poor back support, or the lighting is dull causing you eyestrain and fatigue. All these factors heavily influence how you work. Invest in a decent desk, purchase a desk lamp or change the light globes.

Don't avoid the warning signs your body gives you. Take action now before you have eye, back or neck problems.

Successful Small Business Owners Use a Diary or Digital organiser

With so much to organize in your small business, you need to record your appointments and things to do and goals somewhere. Preferably in a paper diary or digital organiser that you can take everywhere. This is the most effective way to get things done, plan your work and your life. Balance is extremely important. Top achievers are great at time management (even if they have to pay someone else to organize them).

Successful Small Business Owners Learn to say "No"

To dramatically improve your productivity and do more of the things you want, you have to be firm with others and let them know if you cannot, will not or are unavailable to fulfil their requests. If you constantly say "yes" to everyone else's requests you will never have the time to do what you really want to.

Book yourself into a self-assertiveness course to learn these skills if you feel you need to.

Successful Small Business Owners Do What They Do Best and Delegate the Rest

See what tasks you can delegate tasks which would suit someone else's talents. Many small business owners are spending heaps of time on mundane secretarial tasks which would take a person who is trained in that area a quarter of the time to undertake. Stress management is an important part of running your small business. Reduce the stress by delegating or outsourcing wherever you can.

Use a bookkeeper, personal assistant or virtual assistant. Always ask yourself, who else can I get to do this? Use your time management to focus on what you do best.

Successful Small Business Owners Only Have Meetings if Necessary

Make sure the meetings you organize in your small business are relevant and run effectively. Avoid procrastination - always make sure there is an outcome and all actions are followed through.

The Final Word

By following these simple yet very effective time management tips for small business owners you will have more control over your work and your life. You'll have more balance, experience less stress and be more proactive.

Avoid procrastination…take action today!

About The Author

Lorraine Pirihi is Australia's Personal Productivity Specialist and Leading Life Coach. Her business The Office Organiser specialises in showing small business owners and managers, how to get organised at work so they can have a life! Lorraine is also a dynamic speaker and has produced many products including "How to Survive and Thrive at Work!" To subscribe to her free ezine visit www.office-organiser.com.au

This article may be reproduced providing it is published in it's entirety, including the author's bio and all links. For further information please contact Lorraine Pirihi.
lorraine@office-organiser.com.au

How to Promote Your Small Business Without Spending a Fortune!

by: Glen Smyth

Through starting my own small businesses, I have learnt that what the marketing books tell you is not necessarily always appropriate for your business idea.

Let me illustrate by highlighting some of my mistakes!

MISTAKE NO. 1: Don’t get sucked into traditional advertising

Many who start their own business, immediately think of some of the more traditional forms of advertising.

They rush out and put an expensive advert in their city newspaper, purchase advertisements on the radio, or even invest in TV commercials!

I’ve made this same mistake!

When launching a new product I believed my best option was to put a full page advert in a popular financial magazine. Their statistics told me that 150,000 people read this magazine every month. Even if I only got a 1% response that would equate to 1500 sales!

Well either I had a bad ad, or my ad was too far into the magazine, or it was just a dumb ego-driven idea, but I spent $7,000 for this ad which was supposed to launch my product into super-stardom!

Do you know how many sales I got from this ad? TWO!!!!!!!!!

Can you imagine the wave of depression that swept over me! $7,000 for two sales! That was $3,500 for each sale – and my product only cost $100 each!

MISTAKE NO. 2: Don’t spend money just ‘building your image!’

Traditionalists will say that you are building your brand and image – but I say that’s garbage!

When you’re a young, small business struggling to cover your basic costs, you can’t afford to just ‘build your image’!

Every advertisement you run should pay for itself and make you money – otherwise don’t bother!

Imagine if you employed a salesperson who never made any sales. Would you excuse them and say – “It’s okay – You’re building my image!”

Of course not – you’d fire them and get somebody else that could give you a profitable return on your investment.

MISTAKE NO. 3: Don’t spend a dollar unless it makes you three dollars!

What’s a good measure of a profitable return?

A recently read about a young guy who has an online business and he explained that for every $1 he spends on advertising he expects a return of $3. One dollar for his ad, and two dollars clear profit!

But can you do even better than that?

There are many strategies you can use to generate business for very little up-front costs.

Here’s a list of low-cost ideas you can apply to your business promotions:

• Email Marketing – whether you send one email or 5000 emails the cost is the same! Make sure you only use names of people who have ‘opted in’ to your list to avoid spam complaints!
• Develop joint ventures with other small businesses Eg. Imagine what a Video Store and Pizza shop side by side could put together with a joint promotion?
• Learn how to write your own press releases and create free advertising for your business
• Provide a low-cost incentive for your existing clients to refer you to their friends Eg. 10% off their next purchase from you
• Create your own email newsletter (ezine) and provide useful tips and information to your market
• Can you incorporate Ambush Marketing? Eg Turn up at major crowd events and advertise your product or service.
• Turn your car into a Mobile advertisement with signage or stickers
• Use your personal adventure exploits as media opportunities. Eg Richard Branson and his hot air ballooning. (It doesn’t have to be quite as big – but you get the idea!)
• Make your building or premises an advertising sign for your business
• Write articles for your local community newspaper on your area of expertise
• Become the expert for your local or regional radio station with a short, weekly segment
• Make your service so sensational that you become ‘dinner party conversation’ amongst your clients
• Join your local business association and network among other businesses.

Be creative!!

About The Author

Glen Smyth is the author of the popular new eBook, ‘The Small Business Success Guide’. Discover how you can build your own profit-pulling small business, starting today: http://www.smallbusinesssuccessguide.com. Make sure you also sign up for the WOW! Factor Newsletter which is full of great ideas from other Small Business owners!
info@smallbusinesssuccessguide.com

Outsourcing – A Positive Approach For Small Businesses

by: Jagmohan Saluja

Outsourcing is the strategic use of outside resources to perform activities traditionally handled by internal staff and resources. Small business owners can outsource non-core functions to specialized and efficient service providers. It is required of businesses to hire special contractors for particular types of work or to meet the demands put forth by sudden spurts in the workload. Recently, the trend of partnering with firms whose capabilities complement their own giving them an access to resources that were beyond their individual reach has come up. The difference between simply subcontracting and outsourcing is that outsourcing involves the wholesale restructuring of the corporation around core competencies and outside relationships.

As a consequence, has emerged a new class of skilled entrepreneurs – the Virtual Assistants.

What is a Virtual Assistant?

A Virtual Assistant (VA) is an independent entrepreneur providing administrative, creative and/or technical services. Utilizing advanced technological modes of communication and data delivery, a professional VA assists clients in his/her area of expertise from his/her own office. A VA completes your projects using his or her own equipment, and carries out the work through email, fax, telephone and postal service. Therefore, the location of your VA is not important. This gives you a liberty to look for professionals best suited to your needs located anywhere on the globe. Since they're paid only for time-on-task, businesses can hire several VAs in dispersed locations and have 24-hour support -- paying far less than an employee or temporary would cost for such comprehensive assistance.

The services offered by each VA differ according to his/her skills. The list of services includes general administration services, database and website development, graphic design, internet research, sales support, presentation preparation, telephone answering, bill payments, travel arrangements, bookkeeping, desktop publishing, computer training, medical/legal transcription… the list is endless! Not all VAs offer all of these services. However, by being part of VA Networks, your VA can guarantee client satisfaction by a qualified VA. If your VA cannot complete your task, he/she will find another VA who can.

Why to outsource the work to a VA?

1. The primary benefit of outsourcing is economizing since the VA can do it cheaper. VAs only charge for actual time worked.
2. By outsourcing to a VA rather than hiring an in-office assistant, you will never need to pay employment insurance, vacation pay, sick pay, or contribute to retirement plans and worker’s compensation.
3. A VA has his/her own hardware, software, training, etc. thereby reducing your capital investment. So there is no wear and tear on your office equipment or a need for special equipment.
4. Engaging a VA gives you time allowing you to do what you do best. You can focus on delivering the higher value and service to your customers.
5. As skilled VAs are chosen to perform particular tasks, they can do it better as they do it all the time. It is their business.
6. Like you, VAs are entrepreneurs and understand the needs of businesses today, ensuring the success of their clients. VAs value each and every client; it is because of these clients that VAs can ensure the success of their own businesses.
7. The resources of the VA can give your business access to technical advances you would not normally have access to.

With modern day communication, projects can be accomplished without ever having to meet the client face to face. With the growing ease of the Internet, finding a VA almost anywhere in the world is quite simple to accomplish. More so in the developed nations like USA, Canada, Australia, UK and many other European countries the VA industry is highly organized. The potential of developing countries like India can too be exploited to provide skilled VA services.

About The Author

Jagmohan Saluja is a Virtual Professional providing support services to small businesses. To know more about him visit http://www.internet-researcher.com.
indianva@internet-researcher.com

Postcard Marketing Your Small Business

by: Eileen 'Turtle' Parzek

One of the best marketing strategies a business or organization can use is postcards. Even before the arrival of online postcard printing and mailing services, postcards had a good reputation amongst guerilla marketers because:

• They are fast, easy and relatively cheap - making them a boon to small business owners who are short on cash and time, yet need to build their brand and stay in front of their customers.
• A beautiful, full color glossy postcard is not going in the trash without first being read.
• You can add a personal note. Plus, postcards create a pleasant emotional response because they are usually received by friends and family.
• When you advertise your business anywhere else, your competition knows it. But when you use postcards to communicate with your customers, it is direct to them and your competition will have no idea.

  With the new web technologies for postcards, it's super- convenient to just send one or as many as you need without the effort of hand writing, addressing and mailing each one.

  What is particularly nice about postcards is that nearly any business or organization can benefit from a structured, targeted postcard marketing strategy. Take a look at some of the ways postcards can be used.

  Thank you notes. You can send a quick thank you to anyone for any reason and they will be so surprised and pleased that you took the time. If someone sends you a referral or business lead, gives you some information you needed, mentions you in an article - send them a note that shows you appreciate it!

  A follow-up offer or service. Within 30 days after a purchase of a product or completion of a service, send them a discounted offer for a related service or product. Don't miss the opportunity for an after-sale contact.

  Gift certificates or coupons. Show your best customers that you appreciate them by sending a gift certificate that they can use any time in the next year. Even better, leave a space on it for them to fill out a friend or colleagues name and give it to someone else to introduce them to your business.

  Announce a new project or completed work. Postcards are perfect for photographers, web designers, architects, graphic artists, or anyone else who wants to keep their clients in the loop on what they are working on, with something visual and tangible.

  Secret sales and pre-sales for preferred customers. Treat your existing and favorite clients to a sale that no one else knows about - or give them an advanced peak at your new product line.

  Introduce products or services. Postcards are an economical way to inform people about your product or services, or announce new ones.

  Announce a new web site. Create an announcement of your new web presence and invite everyone you know to come check it out.

  Remember special days. Send your contacts a holiday greeting or thank you note for Thanksgiving. If you keep track of special dates in your customer's lives like birthdays or anniversaries, you can send them a colorful postcard letting them know you are thinking of them.

  Reminders. Businesses that rely on repeat business can take advantage of postcards to send reminders and its not just for dentists any more! Why not remind your past customers of upcoming birthdays or anniversaries, or special holidays like secretaries' day or thanksgiving, at just the right time? Or perhaps your database tells you when they have likely run out of whatever they bought so you can send them a reminder that its time to visit you again.

  Just staying in touch. People like to be remembered and postcards are an economical and easy way to say "thinking of you."

  Recognition. Send out a postcard to let people know your good news about accomplishments and awards or reviews you have received.

  Invitations to an event. Postcards can be used to announce seminars you are speaking at, open houses, book signings, and any variety of special events.

  Think about all the ways you can use postcards, and then explore the many ways that you can automate the process of sending them out quickly and cheaply. This is one of those marketing strategies which looks much more costly than it really is, and will return more than you put into it. The best part is, practically any small business can benefit.

  © 2003 Eileen P. Parzek, SOHO It Goes!

  About The Author Eileen 'Turtle' Parzek is a veteran marketing designer and online communications consultant who has been working from home and virtually since 1995. You can subscribe to her free monthly newsletter called Increase Your Reach: Infuse Your Marketing with Technology at http://www.soho-it-goes.com NOTE: You're welcome to "reprint" this article online as long as it remains complete and unaltered (including the "about the author" info at the end), and you send a copy of your reprint to ezine@soho-it-goes.com

Leverage the Power of Publicity for Your Small Business

by: Isabel Isidro

Your business is only as good as the number of people who knows about it. For your venture to grow, you need to start spreading the word about your business. You may have the best products your field, but you cannot expect your business to breach the million-dollar mark in sales if only the people in your street know about it. Some entrepreneurs start doing promotions only when their businesses are up and running, while some market their business even before the products or services are fully launched.

There are two ways to get your business noticed: through paid advertising and through public relations. In advertising, you pay to have your message placed in a newspaper, radio or television spot, or your banners displayed in a Web site. In public relations, on the other hand, the article or show that features your story or business is not paid for. Rather, the writer may have come across your story or business through research or references. The writer or media person deems it worthy to mention you or your business to bolster his or her arguments.

Hence, publicity can oftentimes be more effective than advertising. Not only is it cost-effective (oftentimes you are paying for nothing), but also people are apt to remember an article about your business rather than advertising. People find a write-up or special feature about a business more credible and objective than a paid advertising. Publicity also reaches a wider audience: if you are lucky, the national media might even pick up your story.

Even in the online world, free exposure in the traditional media - television, radio or print - can be far more effective than other online marketing strategies. Nina Munk of urbanhound.com wrote in Fuse Magazine that her site saw a dramatic increase in traffic when NBC's Today show mentioned her site - much more than the links from other web sites or postings from message boards. As she wrote in the article, "Forget the power of the Internet: it's television that counts."

Since media has a "herd mentality," once a program features your business or your story, expect other publications and shows to pick it up and use you for their own stories. The mention of urbanhound.com at the Today show led to mentions in Newsday, Forbes and Ladies' Home Journal. Without paying a single cent, Munk's site was able to reach a wider audience that his business needs.

How do you attract the journalists to use your story? Here are five ways you can do to succeed in generating free publicity for your business.

1. Carefully target journalists. Since you are courting them to use your story, don't put them off by sending bulk emails to practically all the journalists you know, no matter how totally unrelated your story is to their beat. Identify the kinds of publication that may be interested in your story, and know who in the publication does your kind of stories. Make a list of the newspapers, TV and radio programs that would be appropriate outlets. Then identify the specific reporter or producer interested in your kind of story. If you want publicity for your bonsai business, for example, send your story pitch to a gardening publication or the home living editor of your local newspaper. Find the journalists (whether print, television or radio) who are most likely to be interested in your story. Send them personal emails or letters.

2. Invest time and energy contacting local newspapers, magazines, radio and TV stations. While avoiding becoming pushy, be persistent. Convince the journalists that you are an expert in your field or your story is newsworthy. In the event that their editorial calendar does not include a story such as yours, offer your help to them and let them know that you are available when they need your expertise. Journalists always want a good, well-researched story and will always use every resource available to them. Remember, though, that not everyone will be interested. If your story idea is turned down, try to ask why and use that information to bolster your next story pitch.

3. Make sure that you really have a good story to tell. Do not waste a reporter's time. Few journalists will care if you are hiring a temporary worker, or whether you bought a new modular furniture system. Make a list of story pitches that you can offer to your chosen media outlet. Brainstorm with your family, business partners or friends to help you come up with good stories about you and your business. Sometimes, what may be "normal" for us may be inspiring for other people.

4. Have a good angle. Journalists always look for fresh, provocative story ideas. Develop story angles that you yourself would want to read in a newspaper or watch on television. If you are a caterer, for example, one angle could be the increasing number of customers who wants catered food instead of going out to restaurants. If you are a home-based travel agent, you can pitch a story on the preferences of seniors when traveling abroad.

5. Make your pitch. Write down your story angle and send it to the journalist in a "pitch letter." Your letter may start with a question or interesting fact about your business that could interest your target media's audience. This is called your "hook." Then develop your story idea, stressing how it could benefit their audience. Make your sales pitch no longer than one page, and be sure to include your contact numbers.

About The Author

Isabel Isidro is the Managing Editor of PowerHomeBiz.com, a leading online resource on home business. For information on starting a small and home-based business, visit PowerHomeBiz.com at http://www.powerhomebiz.com

Starting a Small Business: Balancing Risk and Reward

by: Richard Cunningham

In a perfect world, starting a small business would be risk free, but just as with everything else; the degree of risk determines the value of the reward.

According to the National Commission on Entrepreneurship, at any given time, 6% to 9% of the United States adult population is involved in planning for a new business. Most of these aspiring entrepreneurs, they say, will start a “Lifestyle Business” – primarily providing employment to themselves and their families. The balance will find themselves in “Entrepreneurial Firms” – those growth companies that, according to the NCE, created two-thirds of net new U.S. jobs in the 1990s.

Both are fraught with risk – and potential reward. Ask a small business veteran about the risks, and three likely come to mind: employees, inventory, and accounts receivables. These are both the bad news and good news of business. In the audiobook, “Sound Advice on Small Business,” author Jim Schell says, “The bad news is that they’re a headache to manage, but the good news is they exert leverage.”

What business would Schell, a seasoned entrepreneur and co-author of “Small Business for Dummies,” start if he had it to do all over again? With his tongue planted firmly in his cheek, he says in a perfect world it might be any business without employees, inventory, and minimal accounts receivables. Seriously, though, Schell says, “Without [them], you can only grow so far, so big. With them, the world is our oyster.”

Jim Schell offers advice to entrepreneurs on managing a small business each week in the free audio newsletter from What’s Working in Biz, http://www.whatsworking.biz/full_story.asp?ArtID=92

About The Author

Cunningham is a principal of What’s Working in Biz, http://www.whatsworking.biz, a publisher of business audiobooks and online audio programs on marketing, sales, and small business strategies.

Got a Small Business? Choose the Right Domain Name

by: Blake Kritzberg

Choosing a domain name can be daunting. Research the subject (after all, you're the type of marketer who researches, right?) and you'll be hit with a landslide of opinions, most contradictory. There is, however, two points that everyone agrees on:

Pick your domain before you launch your business.

This is especially true if your market niche has lots of competition. Research your domain before you commit to a business plan.

Don't wait too long if you like a domain.

While you're researching, you'll likely come across a couple of domains that attract you. You might be tempted to wait, since you haven't finalized or refined your business plan. Don't. A handful of domains isn't going to cost you much at an affordable registrar like GoDaddy, and once they're gone, they're gone. Chances are you can even resell the rejects at cost, if not a profit. Or "develop" them with unique content and point them to your main site for extra traffic.

Now that we have the easy part of the way, let's wade into murkier waters.

Q. Which TLD (top-level domain) is best?

A. If you're a juggernaut in the business world with a giant ad budget, the answer is dot-com (.com). If you're a smalltime business struggling for search engine positioning, the answer is still dot-com.

People do disagree on the value of a dot-com TLD. Some assert that dot-coms have no particular value in the search engines, which may be true.

However, the fact is, if you haven't yet seared your brand on the collective brow of the planet, dot-com makes you easier to remember. If you eschew dot-coms, then in some deep dark place inside, people will remember you as "that hard-to-remember URL with the ending that isn't dot-com." What's worse, if you pick an otherwise memorable domain ending in dot-net, -us, or (God forbid) -tv, some of your traffic will end up at that competitor who snagged the dot-com version of your domain. Okay, that's settled. Now for the controversial stuff. Which is best: the "keyword" domain, or the "creative-genius, snappy and brandable" domain?

Keyword Name vs. Creative-Genius Brandable Name

A Keyword Name is the boring, workhorse kind of domain. You seem them everywhere. They bristle with hyphens: "best-anchovy-pizza-in-siberia.com." Or "super-labrador-accessories-and-golfballs.biz." On the face of it, they're hard to brand. They're hard to fit on business cards. They're really hard to explain over the phone to Aunt Martha.

On the other hand, a Creative-Genius Brandable Name is the sexy kind of domain. The successes are sparkling: Yahoo!, Google, Amazon.com. You can shout these URLs across the room and the other guy will probably get it right. But note: the dot-com road is littered with hip, snappy business who failed to brand their product successfully, or get listed high in the search engines. Now their URLs all point to the same page: "server not found …"

The debate rages on, but the first question you must ask yourself is:

How will people find YOU?

It was recently reported that "direct navigation" web traffic has started to outnumber search engine traffic. In other words, more people visit sites by typing in the URL directly than they do by combing search engines for results. So more gurus are recommending ‘brandable' domains.

But think about this. As a small business owner, how will people find you? Word of mouth? Billboards on I-95? "Corporate sponsorships" on hockey arenas? Probably not: they'll find you through search engines. They'll type in "cheap purple widgets," and as a smart marketer, you will offer them a website optimized for the keywords "cheap purple widgets."

Still, this doesn't imply you should automatically pick a keyword domain. There are pros and cons to both types.

BRANDABLE: ADVANTAGES

The brandable domain is great for business cards. In fact, it's nearly compulsory if you're planning on offline marketing. In other words, if you're printing up stationary at Kinkos, you want a brandable domain name.

If you're also a marketing genius, this is a fit challenge for your talents. Finding a memorable, apt domain to brand your business is something no software-driven suggestion tool can do.

Most "hybrid" domains -- ones that are really crosses between keywords and brandable names -- are long gone. But if you create a unique idea for your brand, you can probably snag the dot-com name for yourself. Now all you have to do is burn that brand onto the world's collective forehead. If you do, you'll benefit from type-in traffic. That means that if someone hears about you, they can probably find you just buy typing in your domain.

BRANDABLE: DISADVANTAGES

The brandable name requires solid marketing skill, research and luck. Your name should be so catchy, it's almost viral. It should also convey your actual business – or you'll have to work hard (often meaning, spend money) to associate the two. Your name should be "tested" on coworkers, cousins and dishwasher repairmen to ensure it has no undesirable connotations. Finally, your name should be available as a domain, and not suffer from competitors with similar domains. Sometimes, pulling all this off is difficult.

KEYWORD: ADVANTAGES

By keyword names, we're not talking about the glorious generic keywords – the one-keyword kings such as drugs.com or business.com. No, we're talking keyword names you can afford.

This is where you buy the domain name www.cheap-purple-widgets.com in hopes of getting a top search ranking for cheap purple widgets.

Advantages are many. First, more keyword names are available. (They're ugly, and many people feel an aversion to hyphens.) Also, they do help you place higher in the search engines. It's true that search engines only give you a little credit for having a keyword in your domain, but "a little credit" counts.

Second, keyword domains leave no doubt in the searcher's mind about what you're selling. If you decided to call your widget business "Ableeza," a searcher might not get at a glance what it is you're selling, even if your rank is high.

Finally, if you can get people to link to you, those links will be valuable. No matter how Webmaster Joe describes you, the link part will always say, "cheap-purple-widgets." This is a powerful search engine strategy for moving higher.

KEYWORD: DISADVANTAGES

You won't get type-in traffic for a keyword name. You can't really explain it across a phone. It won't look pretty on a business card, and it's almost impossible to pair up with a cute logo. But if search engine traffic is going to drive your business, the keyword name is worth a long, hard look.

WRAP-UP

Regardless of which type you choose, don't play guessing games. If you go with a keyword name, use a search tool (like http://conversion.7search.com/scripts/advertisertools/keywordsuggestion.aspx) to determine what keyword phrases people are searching on.

If you choose a brandable name instead, test it out on a variety of real people first. Pay attention to their reactions. Reserve your domain early, since brandable domains go fast unless they're very unique.

In the long run, both types of domains can work for you, especially if offline marketing is an option and you have a knack for branding. Overall, though, the keyword domain is probably the easiest path to success for the small-business owner.

About The Author

Blake Kritzberg is a web designer and small business owner. Find more on domain selection, buying and selling at www.buy-the-domain-name.com.

Create a Win Win for Small Your Small Business

by: Gary Goldsmith

Discover How Specialized Cost Containment Creates A New Win-Win Position For Property Owner’s And You

Property Management: A simple strategy to increase client loyalty

By Gary L. Goldsmith

Property managers who pro-actively employ advanced techniques to help property owners and anchor tenants reduce operating costs, will most certainly be considered a more valuable business asset. When you can achieve this with lower administrative functions and no out-of-pocket cost to you or your client’s, you’ve created additional benefits.

In the world of commercial and apartment properties there resides a constant un-ending challenge for property owners – As a savvy professional property manager, you have the opportunity to meet this challenge and potentially save your client’s considerable money. The “constant challenge” of course is how to effectively control operating costs and potentially increase the N.O.I. on any commercial or apartment property. These factors are paramount and fundamental to commercial investments and they can weigh heavily on the properties capacity to support preferred level financing as well as future value.

In a professional setting and as an investment property owner and developer, I understand the importance and the impact that effective property management can have on real estate and property owner’s. The outstanding P.M. that pro-actively controls costs is the company that creates ongoing loyalty, gets referred more often and prospers financially. The opposite is also true!

You may not be aware that you have available to you right now, a resource that you can add to your current menu of services that can potentially and very effectively reduce your monthly administrative responsibilities in a specific area of property management and similarly potentially save your property owners hundreds if not thousands of dollars in monthly operating expense.

Every month when you are paying trash waste collection invoices, you are very likely overpaying by 20% to 50% more than you should to have property dumpster trash hauled off. Contract or not, even if you believe you have negotiated cost effective waste contracts for your properties, there is a good chance you’re throwing money away. More important, owners could be throwing away their money.

The waste removal business is a lucrative multi-million dollar industry. They have the opportunity to easily take advantage of customers. Your waste bills can be inflated through many hidden areas such as; excessive pick-up intervals, incorrect container sizing, service levels, fuel service increases/surcharges, landfill increases, hidden extras and so forth. Simply asking a trash hauler to lower their fees for you – won’t work! The potential magnitude of this problem has been the topic in a number of prominent publications.

There is an excellent solution to address this problem which you can use to compliment your current practice. It takes a specialist to analyze waste removal needs, audit statements and negotiate competitive services effectively. Most property owners are not aware that waste service can be competitively open bid out and regularly audited. The only exception would generally be (city contracts) where the property owner is stuck without options. For all others the process of auditing and negotiating waste removal services can potentially save thousands.

Without any added expense or time you can utilize the specialized services and skill of a waste auditing cost containment company to easily and quickly verify the current status of all monthly waste bills, discover how much can be saved, obtain new service bids for any property and have a cost savings audit completed and you can do all of this through the internet with a click of the mouse and no cost. Take a look at (www.wasteauditing.com/commercial).

These specialists fight for commercial property owners like yours In the area of reducing the amounts paid haulers on a monthly basis. They can re-negotiate service contracts, audit bills, handle accounting and many other related services and take over this monthly responsibility. The best part for you and the property owners is that they work on a “shared savings” compensation. There is typically no additional out-of-pocket cost to the property owners or to your company. The money they will save you goes right back to the owners bottom line. An excellent win-win concept that you can provide for your clients with substantial potential savings in cost and a reduction in administrative duties for your company.

About The Author

Gary L. Goldsmith is a veteran real estate professional with 27 years experience and accomplishments. He is past president of a California development corporation, investor principal, builder, commercial finance professional and real estate investment consultant, licensed broker and builder. You can get more useful articles at www.cacommercialmortgage.com.
gary@mightybox.com

Small Business Ideas - Your Image Can Lose You Business

by: Lorraine Pirihi

What image do you and your people portray to your prospects and clients? Here's a situation that happened to me recently and hopefully you'll glean useful small business ideas that will make you money instead of costing you money.

January is always a good time to grab bargains so when I noticed that two well-known blind companies were advertising 35% off their blinds, I decided to give them a call… and it was an interesting experience.

Company A

This person turned up on time which in itself is a big bonus. She was dressed in a professional way and was very efficient in her manner. I knew what I wanted and all Mary had to do was measure up and provide the quote. She was extremely helpful and pleasant to deal with. I said to Mary to call me in a couple of days as I had also arranged for another company to quote. 'No problem', she said. "I'll ring you then".

Company B

This sales rep. was totally different. He turns up 15 minutes early which is very unusual. I don't mind people arriving a few minutes earlier than the agreed time, but 15 minutes is a bit too early. He should have rung first to see if it was okay. John was obviously a smoker because the smell wafted through my front door before he walked in. That really puts me off. Not only that he was unshaven and dressed in a sloppy manner. John looked like he just got out of bed, got dressed, had a smoke a n d turned up at my house.

Maybe I shouldn't have been so quick to judge him, however his image gave me the perception that the company must be very unprofessional to have people like this representing them.

John had no sooner walked through the door, when his mobile phone rang. Instead of switching it off, he answered it and had a conversation for a couple of minutes with someone from his company. I thought this was rude. Wasn't it more important to focus his attention on this potential sale? He could have checked his phone when he left.

John did measure up for the blinds and provided a quote which compared to Mary's one was $600 cheaper. It appeared he hadn't included one of the measurements therefore justifying why his quote was so much cheaper.

However, I didn't bother ringing him to find out if this was why his price was much better than Mary's. I had already decided that if he's a slob then the company he works for probably supplies shoddy blinds.

Whether that's true or not, doesn't matter because that's the perception I got about the company.

What Image Do You and Your People Portray?

Image is very important. We judge people on the way they look and behave. Do you dress appropriately for your role? Do your people?

Is the image you portray professional? Does it instill confidence, trust, reliability?

Image is not just about the physical aspect of a person. The environment you work and live in also says a lot about you. So does the vehicle you drive.

For instance a cluttered environment gives the impression of chaos, disorganisation and sloppiness. Whereby a clean and tidy area portrays harmony and control.

Small Business Ideas - Points to Ponder

Do you and your people dress appropriately?

How is the telephone answered?

Is your environment uncluttered or does it look like an earthquake zone?

Your signage

Your car - is it clean on the outside and inside?

Your home - is it clean and tidy?

The Final Word

So take stock today. Look at yourself first. If you're a manager, business owner or team leader assess your own people and the environment and see what can be improved, then take action.

You only get one chance to make a great first impression. And it's that encounter which can make the difference between you gaining the business or losing it.

For more small business ideas see our website:www.office-organiser.com.au

About The Author

Lorraine Pirihi is Australia's Personal Productivity Specialist and Leading Life Coach. Her business The Office Organiser specialises in showing small business owners and managers, how to get organised at work so they can have a life! Lorraine is also a dynamic speaker and has produced many products including "How to Survive and Thrive at Work!"

To subscribe to her free ezine visitwww.office-organiser.com.au

This article may be reproduced providing it is published in it's entirety, including the author's bio and all links. For further information please contact Lorraine Pirihi.
lorraine@office-organiser.com.au

Frodo's Journey: What It Can Teach You About Marketing Your Small Business

by: Dr. Rachna D. Jain

Just recently, I took a break and caught "The Return of the King" at the movie theater. At the same time, I was pondering a topic for this article. As often happens, the themes and timing converged. Here are 10 things you can learn about marketing your small business from the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

1) The task is primarily yours. In the Lord of the Rings, Frodo must complete the task that is primarily his (i.e. to destroy the ring at Mount Doom). In the same vein, marketing your business is a job that is primarily yours. If you don't take the time or make the effort no one else can do it in your stead.

2) You will benefit from help. Throughout Frodo's journey he was supported and assisted by many people along the way. Many entrepreneurs generally avoid asking for help. Who or what do you need to ask for help so that you can be more successful than you are now?

3) The path always opened up and not usually before it was needed. In the movie, there were many times Frodo and his company narrowly escaped doom and destruction. At the last minute a path would open up that would lead them to safety. In marketing your business it's often the same way. You can see where you need to go but the path may not open up for you until the last possible moment. You need to stay the course and trust that all is unfolding just perfectly - even when it doesn't look that way in any particular moment.

4) Persistence pays off. During the movie, there were many times Frodo probably wondered, "Why me?" and several times where he was too tired to think about going ahead but he did, led on by his vision and sense of responsibility. Where in your business can you be more persistent and more responsible to your vision? How could this give you the energy to move ahead?

5) Pay attention to signs along the way. Throughout the movie, there were hints and clues about what might happen next - the same is true for your business. When you pay attention to the clues and hints along the way you are more well-prepared for any unexpected turn of events. Pay particular attention, especially, to outcomes which are significantly different than you anticipated.

6) Take advantage of the rest-stops. It's important on a hero's quest, and as a small business owner, to take periodic rest-stops in order to refresh and refuel. When you find yourself in a business lull use that time to put additional structures and supports in place. Use the rest-stops to your greatest advantage.

7) Recognize that everything comes together in due time. Sometimes, small business owners feel impatient when their business is not growing as fast or profitably as expected. Understand, though, that building a business has a certain rhythm and pattern. When you work within the pattern, rather than fighting against it, you will feel calmer and more confident. For Frodo, he needed to travel a great distance to get to Mount Doom and he needed to 'put in his time' so to speak in order to complete the quest. For example, he had to first travel to meet Galadriel or else he wouldn't have been able to move through the part of the journey when he met with Shelob. So understand that all your efforts are coming together even if, sometimes, they seem like random tangents to your path.

8) Learn as much as you can along the way. In the movie, Frodo learned about various lands by paying attention to those people he met along the way. He was able to gain assistance and loyalty because he took the time to learn from everyone he met. The most successful business owners are the ones who continually make time to learn and take the best of what they learn to propel them even further.

9) Be flexible and yet stay the course. Several times in the movie, Frodo needed to change his plans in order to appropriately respond to events as they unfolded. Similarly, small business owners need to be flexible in their planning so they can take advantage of new opportunities as they arise.

10) Success may sometimes look or feel different than you expected. In the movie, each of the main characters pursued a different path after the journey was finished. Each had a different life trajectory after playing their part in the story. For every small business owner success may look different than you expected and may require some new adjustments. For example, you might have great success with a marketing approach and then have some glitches in fulfilling the orders. Success doesn't come without lasting change.

As we move forward in this year I invite you to examine your business from these viewpoints: 1) see where you can take actions that you must take, 2) where you can allow help and assistance in a new (or bigger) way, 3) where you can find paths that open up to lead you along on your journey, 4) where you can persist in the face of adversity, 5) where you can learn from the information unfolding around you, 6) how you can better use your rest-stops, 7) where you can grasp the pattern of business unfolding as it should, 8) where you can learn from those you meet, 9) where you can be more flexible and 10) finally, where can celebrate your success and move onto a new playing field?

Follow these steps, and you will manifest a positive outcome in your quest for small business success.

© 2004 Dr. Rachna D. Jain. All Rights in All Media Reserved.

*Please note that all the trademarked terms mentioned in this article are the property of their respective owners*

About The Author

Dr. Rachna D. Jain is a sales and marketing coach, author, consultant and speaker. Sign up for her free email newsletter, "Sales & Marketing Secrets" To learn more or to contact Dr. Jain directly, please visit http://www.SalesandMarketingCoach.com.
coach@salesandmarketingcoach.com

Finding Phone Answers For The Very Small Business

by: Chris Brennan

Start-ups, small growing firms and even home-based businesses are underserved by the telecommunications industry. But there are telephone systems that fit if you know where to look.

Telephone systems have grown in sophistication by leaps and bounds in recent years, but for the most part, very small businesses have been on the outside looking in. And with the recent evolution in Voice over IP telephony (VoIP), the gap between what small business needs and what the market is offering is only getting wider.

While galloping technological advancements have ushered in amazing new features and inversely lower prices for most office equipment, full-featured phone systems have remained largely out of reach for small companies. You can afford a photo-realistic slimline desktop color printer now for a fraction of what it cost just a few years ago, and you can beam your appointment book back and forth from your wristwatch to your laptop for under a hundred bucks, but the prices of telephone systems have not decreased at the same rate. Most small companies are forced to cobble together telephone solutions with a combination of multi-line telephones, answering machines and costly monthly telephone company services.

True phone systems are far more powerful, offering flexible automated call answering features, call messaging and call routing that can improve a company’s professional image, control communication costs and increase connectivity and responsiveness.

It is widely acknowledged that small business is the engine of job creation and economic health today. With a sophisticated, mobile workforce and limited resources for dedicated phone answering staff, small business needs advanced phone systems as much as its larger counterparts do. Yet according to a recent Yankee Group study, 58 per cent of small firms in the United States don’t have a phone system at all. More than 5 million businesses have fewer than 20 employees, so there’s a big market for phone systems, but the leaders in the phone industry have never been able to produce products to fit the bill.

Why? The answer lies in the size; small business is too small for the big traditional telephone systems, and the scaled-down solutions that the industry has produced so far still have price tags that are too big for small business budgets. Big phone systems just don’t work for very small companies, and the fewer the phone users, the more difficult the fit.

Private Branch Exchanges

Large corporations use Private Branch Exchanges, or PBXs, which allow many phone users to share a system with fewer telephone company lines, based on the idea that not everybody uses their local phone extension at the same time.

PBXs inherently offer the best telephone system functionality available. As anyone who has ever worked in a corporation knows, PBXs handle calls impressively with features such as ring groups, call cascades, auto attendants, voicemail and more. But PBXs have traditionally been massive systems for thousands of users. When PBX manufacturers started to turn their attention to small companies, they found it difficult to scale the concept down. The big companies that make PBXs are not focused on very small business, so they don’t fully understand the space.

The result has been a little like a major auto manufacturer stripping a car of two of its wheels and most of its body and then trying to enter the bicycle market; the results are ungainly and overly expensive. Small business phone systems from the major PBX manufacturers tend to be intimidating and difficult to use, difficult to install and usually require technical staff or consultants and expensive, proprietary phones.

Limited Small Business Solutions

So where are small companies without phone systems getting their voicemail? How are they handling incoming calls? How do they integrate teleworkers and mobile workers? They may use Centrex services; telephone company voicemail and separate lines for each phone user, which add a big boost to the monthly phone bills. While telephone companies all over the country are all too happy to offer increasingly complex business services, the additional billing can add up over time to prohibitive levels.

And there’s no real integration with offsite workers other than simple call forwarding. The proliferation of cell phones in the majority of small businesses has, paradoxically, made staying in touch with customers and collaborators even more difficult. Businesses have to give customers and co-workers different phone numbers for the office and mobile phones, each with separate voicemail systems, both of which are costing the company extra money every month.

Finding Phone Systems that Fit Small Business

Not all of the news is bad, though. A select few companies have realized that the very small business is underserved, and they’ve been producing small business systems that make sense. There are excellent systems to be had in the market, if you know what to look for. The smart new generation of small business phone systems have all of the features of their larger counterparts without the big business prices.

When shopping for a system, look for the ability to easily install and configure it on your own. Installation can cost a significant percentage of the total cost of traditional phone systems. User-configurable systems allow you to control the way your phone system works without having to pay the manufacturer or a third-party technician to do it for you. The best of the new small business phone systems enable you to do it yourself and save.

Another important feature to look for is cell phone and remote phone integration. If you have teleworkers and mobile workers, you need to be able to collaborate smoothly without giving out dozens of different numbers to your clients. There are small business systems on the market that can connect all of your phones through one central system with one number.

Expandability is crucial too. Make sure that the system you buy today can grow to accommodate the changes in your company tomorrow. And the changes in the industry — with the emergence of Voice over IP technology and new advanced Internet telephony services, your phone system needs to be ready to connect to the IP network while maintaining your connections to the traditional telephone network. Look for hybrid systems that are built with SIP standards to ensure compatibility and avoid obsolescence.

One promising entry in the field is the TalkSwitch system by Centrepoint Technologies. TalkSwitch is a hybrid phone system that offers IP and traditional telephony, and it’s designed specifically for businesses with as few as one and as many as 32 phone users per location. Available online and through resellers, system integrators and interconnects, the compact, user-friendly TalkSwitch is a prime example of the next wave of systems that provide the power of PBX at prices that small business can afford.

Copyright 2004 Chris Brennan

About The Author

Chris Brennan is a communication specialist focusing on small business issues.
http://www.ctrpoint.com
information@talkswitch.com

Google AdWords and AdSense - A Dynamic Small Business Marketing Duo

by: John Jantsch

Unless you have been living under a rock for the last year or so, you probably know that Google has become the king of the search engine hill. There are many reasons for this but number one in my opinion is that above all else they put value on content. Today I want to introduce you to two very powerful small business advertising options created by Google.

These two ingenious programs have all but revolutionized the way advertising is done on the web. Warning: If you are thinking..."web advertising isn't for me, I just need a few more clients around the block"...you better read this or be prepared to have your competitors eat your lunch.

Goolge AdSense - Again content is king at Google. This program allows web site "publishers" to add some code from Google and receive "content relevant" ads on their site from other site owners. Here is an example - those ads in the box on the right of the page are delivered by Google and are matched to the content on the page. When someone surfs to the page and decides to check out one of those ads, the web site owner earns a portion of the advertising revenue that Google collects.

The key here is that if you go to a site about quilting, you will see ads about quilting and not about dog grooming. I know this sounds so obvious but Google was the first to really figure this out.

This program has worked so well that some website owners are actually building content specific sites and paying for them solely through AdSense revenue. Small business owners should consider adding this feature to pages on their site for several reasons.

I've already mentioned the fact that there is money to be made, but what many site owners are finding is that because Google is so respected and because the ads are highly targeted...they are no longer looked at by surfers as ads, they are looked at as content.

Some will even go as far as to say that by putting the Google ads on your site you actually better your chances of higher rankings with Google. Google flatly denies this claim and I don't think it is true but I do know that Google AdSense ads should be on every small business owner's site. (Google AdSense)

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Another Warning: This is somewhat complex stuff. This article is only meant to introduce you to the power of these programs. Check out Google Cash by Chris Carpenter for a deeper understanding of ways to make this work for you.

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Google AdWords - I've already talked about those ads you see on websites, well those ads need to come from somewhere don't they. AdWords is Google's program for advertisers.

Any site that wishes to participate bids for "keywords" that are relevant to their product, service, or site and then creates ads to attract hits. These ads show up on private websites, like this example, and on the right side of Google search results like this search for "Free sales letters and tools" As you can see from this Google search you received the content related sites that you searched for but you also get some related ads that are sponsored.

Now here is where Google is genius. Instead of simply subjecting surfers to any ads that anyone is willing to pay for, they actually police the ads that are running. On some pay per click programs, whoever is willing to pay to most wins. Google uses a performance model. In other words an ad that is the most relevant and therefore receives the most clicks will move ahead of an ad that may pay more but isn't as effective. This simple philosophy is why Google has quickly dominated the PPC world.

Okay...and now the really big innovation

Regional targeting. Google recently introduced a system that allows advertisers to target certain metropolitan markets only. In other words, a remodeling contractor who only wants to do kitchen remodels in say, Denver, can bid on the keyword phrase "kitchen remodel" and only have his ads show up for people who live in and around Denver.

The implication this has for local small business owners is staggering. In the example above, our Remodeler can now tap into highly targeted web traffic for pennies per lead. In my opinion, small business owner who learn the ins and outs of this medium will dominate their markets. (Google AdWords)

Look for more on this topic in the future.

Copyright 2004 John Jantsch

About The Author

John Jantsch is a marketing consultant based in Kansas City, Mo. He writes frequently on real world small business marketing tactics and is the creator of “Duct Tape Marketing” a turn-key small business marketing system. Check out his blog at http://www.DuctTapeMarketing.com/weblog.php

25 Valuable Phone Numbers For Small Businesses Success

by: BZ Riger-Hull

Starting and growing a small business can be a daunting and sometimes lonely process we have compiled a list of 25 helpful phone numbers for agencies and services that work with small businesses. They can give you information, ideas, and resources to help you be more successful.

•Small Business Administration, 409 Third Street, SW Washington, DC 20416 1-800-U-ASK-SBA Created to help America's entrepreneurs form successful small enterprises, and offers financing, training and advocacy for small businesses in every state.

•Online Woman’s Business Center this PDF lists contact phone numbers and resource information for Woman’s Business Centers all over the US http://www.onlinewbc.gov/wbc.pdf

•Internal Revenue Service, Help for Small Businesses, Live Telephone Assistance Call 1-800-829-1040 Tele-Tax recorded tax information Call 1-800-829-4477 Produces publications that offer advice to help small businesses meet their tax obligations. http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/

•Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 800-669-4000 Oversees government regulations and policies affecting equal employment opportunities.

•Occupational Safety and Health Administration, U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety & Health Administration 200 Constitution Avenue Washington, D.C. 20210 800-321-OSHA (6742) OSHA's goal is to save lives, prevent injuries and protect the health of America's workers by establishing and enforcing standards.

•United States Patent and Trademark Office, 800-786-9199 Assists businesses in protecting their investments, promoting goods and services and safeguarding consumers.

•Service Corps of Retired Executives, 1-800/634-0245 A nonprofit association dedicated to entrepreneur education and the formation, growth and success of small businesses nationwide.

•Council of Better Business Bureaus, 4200 Wilson Blvd, Suite 800 Arlington, VA 22203-1838 (703) 276-0100 Fax: 1 (703) 525-8277 Nonprofit organizations designed to promote ethical business standards.

•National Association for the Self-Employed, P.O. Box 612067 DFW Airport Dallas, TX 75261-2067 1-800-232-6273 Provides access to resources and specialists needed to answer questions, and offers material to help small business owners stay current with the latest news.

•American Success Institute, (508) 651-3303 Nonprofit educational organization offering business and leadership programs through educational workshops and motivational videos and books to help small businesses become and stay successful.

•Inc.com from the publishers of Inc magazine a wealth of useful information and how to’s http://www.inc.com/guides/ Inc Magazine PO Box 3136 Harlan, IA 51593-0317 800-234-0999

•Quill office products and business supplies up to 65% off with custom business services available, 800-789-1331

•United Parcel Service, 1-800-PICK-UPS Package distribution company offers a variety of pick-up and delivery services for small businesses.

•American Marketing Association, 311 South Wacker Drive Suite 5800 Chicago, IL 60606 (800) AMA-1150 Fax (312) 542-9001 Can answer questions and concerns about marketing new products and services or evaluate a business' current marketing strategy.

•American Bar Association, 740 15th Street, N.W. Washington, DC 20005-1019 202.662.1000 Can counsel small businesses regarding legal issues facing their companies or help locate a lawyer appropriate for their needs.

•American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, 888-777-7077 aides small businesses searching for help with taxes and other accounting issues, as well as provide assistance in selecting an accountant that is right for their particular business.

•Public Relations Society of America, 33 Irving Place New York, NY 10003-2376 Phone: 212-995-2230 Fax: 212-995-0757 From developing a news release to delivering a speech, PRSA can help small businesses with communications needs.

•American Association of Advertising Agencies, (212) 682-2500 Can provide guidance to small businesses wanting to advertise their wares, as well as evaluate the appropriateness of using an advertising agency rather than advertising on their own.

•Minority Business Development Agency, (888) 324-1551 Funds business development centers across the nation.

•Business Network International- is a business and professional networking organization that offers members the opportunity to share ideas, contacts and most importantly, referrals. 199 South Monte Vista Avenue, Suite 6 San Dimas, California 91773 (Outside Southern California) 1-800-825-8286 (Fax) 1-909-305-1811 (Inside Southern California) 1-909-305-1818

•The National Black Chamber of Commerce 1350 Connecticut Ave. NW Suite 825 Washington, DC 20036 (202) 466-6888 Fax: (202) 466-4918 Advocates, promotes, educates and develops African American Chambers.

•U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Promotes the expansion of Hispanic business opportunities. 2175 K Street NW, Suite 100, Washington, DC 20037 202-842-1212, Fax 202-842-3221

•Center for Women's Business Research 1411 K Street, NW, Suite 1350 Washington, DC 20005-3407 USA 202-638-3060 Fax: 202-638-3064 is the premier source of knowledge about women business owners and their enterprises worldwide. The Center’s mission is to unleash the economic potential of women entrepreneurs by conducting research, sharing information and increasing knowledge about this fast-growing sector of the economy.

•Small Business Advancement National Center Box 5018 201 Donaghey Avenue Conway, AR 72035-0001 (501) 450-5300 FAX (501) 450-5360 Your Center for Entrepreneurship and Family Business. http://www.sbaer.uca.edu/

•The National Business Incubation Association, 20 E. Circle Drive, 37198 • Athens, OH 45701-3571 USA (740) 593 4331Fax: (740) 593-1996 is the world's leading organization advancing business incubation and entrepreneurship.

•Bonus website - Start up Journal the Wall Street Journal center for entrepreneurs http://www.startupjournal.com/

About The Author

©BZ Riger-Hull. Author of The Soul of Success http://www.in-spiros.com For valuable free articles, mailto:A1@smartautoresponder.com Certified as a Success Coach, “Four Agreements” Facilitator, & Tele-Course leader We help you communicate powerfully, reduce stress, Strategically Attract success, & increase your financial well-being. Our coaching programs and Tele-Courses give you the Tools you need to Succeed.
bz@in-spiros.com

The Game Plan – the Difference Between Small Business Success and Failure

by: Jan B. King

It is an American dream to own a business. But sadly, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce, only 1 in 5 businesses is still in business 5 years after it opens.

A business needs a great business plan, but it doesn’t give management enough information to have a successful, profitable business. You dramatically increase your chance of success with a game plan. According to a PriceWaterhouseCoopers survey, over half of the fastest growing firms not only have business plans, but also have separate game plans to keep them focused on what must be done day to day.

A business plan gets you in the game. A game plan keeps you in the game. To use the sports analogy, it’s easy to see how you are going to win the game in from the locker room. Most businesses don’t have a working plan that takes into account what actually happens on the field once play starts.

A business plan is a sales brochure and a game plan is an instruction manual. You send a business plan to potential investors and others to excite them about the business. A business plan is about strategy. You create a business plan at a management meeting. A game plan is about tactics and is created by and for the people on the front lines. A game plan talks openly about the good, the bad, and the ugly in the business and is used by people in the business to make decisions every day. It talks about what to do in a crisis.

Here’s an example of what I mean:

The CEO takes a look at his balance sheet and decides that his company has too much of its cash tied up in inventory, so he gets his managers together and creates a new corporate objective for the year - to reduce inventory by 25%. If they do that they will all be entitled to a bonus. The managers aren’t stupid – they know the only way to reduce inventory is to sell what they can and not replace it. So they put on a special promotion for their hottest selling items, they reduce the inventory of those to almost nothing, and they get their bonus. But what has really happened here. The CEO’s company is now left with the inventory of the items that weren’t selling, and they don’t have adequate inventory of their best selling items. The CEO didn’t really lead, the employees cared more about their bonuses than doing what was right for the company, and there wasn’t a plan of action that was tied into a meaningful company objective.

A game plan focuses on these things: creating big goals that matter, giving individual employees responsibility to carry out their portion of those goals, creating a budget and a reward system that supports the goals, and tools to allow employees to measure their own progress.

Steps in the Game Plan Process

The game plan requires a series of steps, beginning with the CEO getting in touch with his or her desires for the business. Then, the management team must delve into what is real for the business today – understanding the business model (how the company makes money), having a handle on what is happening in the market, and finally, knowing what is happening in the company culture. With all this background work done, the actual creation of the game plan begins. At best, it is a facilitated process of discussions matching what is real today with what is possible tomorrow, in the long run and in the short run.

A game plan only looks out a year at most, but within the context of a much longer period of time. The company might decide where they want to be in five years – the game plan is just the next series of steps toward that longer-term goal. There is no point in setting objectives for which there aren’t adequate resources, so objectives and budget are discussed in tandem. Another challenge of the game planning process is to define success for each objective and decide how it will be measured.

This is a time for healthy argument as sales wants more resources to increase revenue, product development wants more of the objectives to be toward R&D for the company’s future, and the operations manager wants more staff to improve quality. This is also the time for managers to consider the implications for all the decisions. And it is the time for the CEO to create a connection between the objectives and each of the managers so that there is personal commitment to the success of the company. If managers are not committed, they will never be able to expect commitment from other employees.

Turning Objectives Into Actions

When the company objectives and budget are ironed out, about half the work is done. A second series of steps takes the objectives set at a corporate level, and creates specific action items for each employee that support the department and then company objectives. Just as the CEO and the managers hashed out the process of give and take between what is today and where they would like to be tomorrow, each manager must go through the same process with the departments’ employees. Each employee must have a series of actions, but most importantly, each employee should know where they stand at any time they wish to check.

For instance, if the objectives for a customer service employee are to keep call length to an average of 2 minutes, have sales of an average of $50 per customer who calls, and to return all calls within 24 hours, then you want that employee to be able to find the measurements for those objectives as often as he or she wishes. The goal is for the employee to have access to just as much information about his or her performance as the manager. An employee who can assess his or her own progress real-time will correct performance deficiencies without a manager’s insistence.

The Plan Isn’t a Secret

The final piece is constant communication about the plan and the company’s progress to the employees. The game plan is not only communicated initially, it must be kept alive throughout the year with meetings focused on measuring progress toward the goals. Successes should be celebrated frequently.

In my own company, we used something we called a Game Plan Circle to illustrate our plan each year. It was a six-foot circle with our vision in the middle that radiated out to cover company objectives, department and individual objectives. It served as a visual we could refer to in meetings to keep us on track.

The Bottom Line

Don’t let your business become another failure statistic. A business plan is a great first step in starting or fundamentally changing a business. The next step is a game plan – a translation of that business plan to each employee’s actions every day.

About The Author

Jan B. King is the former President & CEO of Merritt Publishing, one of the 50 largest woman-owned and run businesses in Los Angeles and the author of Business Plans to Game Plans: A Practical System for Turning Strategies into Action (John Wiley & Sons, 2004). She has helped hundreds of small businesses turn their business plans into game plans with her book and her ebooks, The Do-It-Yourself Business Plan Workbook, and The Do-It-Yourself Game Plan Workbook. Visit her site at www.janbking.com for more information.
jan@janbking.com