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Local Business Marketing – When to Use Facebook or Google

July 1st, 2011 by bstoller

The local business marketing arena is confusing. We’ve gone from a transition from newspapers, magazines, radio, yellow pages to lower cost, more effective and targeted advertising mediums. Sounds great!

HOLD ON!!!

Most business owners are too busy running their businesses to become marketing experts in all the new methods. And certainly, they don’t have the time to become SEO (search engine optimization) experts!

If You Built It They Will Come – WRONG!!

This may have worked in ancient days, but today there are too many options for the average consumer. You can’t just build a website and expect that people will come – they don’t!! Today you need to have a plan to bring traffic to you – or better yet, take your message to people where they “hang out”.

In the modern world of marketing, there are two main ways to use the internet – Google and Facebook.

So how do you choose which one to use??

First off – you need to realize what your market is – who are your customers and how are they going to normally find your products and services. Your customers are pretty much going to fall into one of the categories below and possible into a little of each:

The Yellow Book searchers – These are the people who have a problem right now and need to find some to take care of their problem. For example, a kitchen sink all of a sudden has a water line break – DISASTER!! They need someone to fix their problem right now. Google Search is the place they will probably be going to to find a plumber.
The Impulse Buyers – These people aren’t necessarily looking for anything, but will buy if they find something that catches their eye – kind of like the candy bars and magazines at the grocery checkout. Facebook is a great way to build awareness of your product or service which can lead to impulsive response.

Of course, I’m way oversimplifying this, but it illustrates the differences between Google and Facebook and how your business can utilize one or the other (or both).

To summarize – Facebook is great for creating awareness of your products or services – building your brand. Google is better to reach those customers who are ready to make a purchase.

In a perfect scenario, you would use Google to “reel in” all the buyers. In reality, most people are not ready to buy today or don’t have a need today. Facebook can create an awareness so when people ARE ready to buy, they will already have someone in mind – YOU. For those who are ready to buy – Google is great!

There are many various strategies and, of course, there are also many other marketing mediums to use. Discovering Profits specializes in helping small business understand how to utilize the methods to maximize your return on your marketing dollars.

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Top Internet Advertising Predictions – Here Comes Bing and Facebook

June 14th, 2011 by bstoller

The Top Internet Advertising Predictions Include A Change in the Way We Search

Google is Still the King of Local Search – almost 70% off all searches done on the internet are still on Google. Google will probably remain the “gorilla” of search, but there is a major change happening – it’s already started, yet very few people even know about it.

…. Recommendations from Facebook Friends

Here’s how it is working and why you should pay attention. Facebook and Bing have partnered few months ago. Now they are changing the rules when you search to find a local business. We’re starting to see some results now that show recommendations from a person’s friends from Facebook. This model is beginning to change the way local search is being done – in fact, Google has now modified their algorithms to include social media recommendations.

If you notice in the picture below, people can now use Bing through the “Facebook Connect”. Once they do, they can see what others are recommending through the pages that they “Like”. In this illustration, Jump It Party and Play shows up under the search phrase “birthday party ideas Lafayette IN”. In this case, their actual Facebook page shows up, as well as my personal Facebook profile image, as I have personally liked this page. If any of my friends would have “liked”the page, their profile pictures would also have showed up, in effect giving me a recommendation from one of my friends.

So What Does This Mean for You?

#1 – If you don’t have a Facebook Business Page (not a personal page), GET ONE NOW!!

#2 – If you already have a Facebook Business Page, you should make sure that you have a program that encourages people to become fans, or “like” your page.

Facebook is still in its infancy stage when it comes to business. The good news is that those who take adantage of Facebook now, will be many steps ahead of their competitors who choose to ignore the power today.

Let us know if you need any assistance with setting up or reviewing your business’s Facebook Business Page – the future of your advertising budgets may depend on it!

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How to Use Marketing to Grow Your Business in Any Economy

June 4th, 2011 by bstoller

Marketing your small business is very confusing to most small business owners and advertising managers. How much should I spend? WHERE should I spend it? Should I not spend anything and only work on social media? So many questions about the changing face of marketing that many businesses have forgotten that there is more to marketing than simply spending money to attract traffic.

The essence of effective marketing is the ability to attract the customers attention and once having attracted it, to deliver an experience that will assure you that they will come back to repeat it again and again.

From my experience with many business owners, there are many who have simply forgotten this rule. Many believe that simply getting people to their doors is all it takes. The truth of the matter is that you have competitors who DO understand this rule and are probably going to end up with some of your customers at some point.

There's more to marketing than spending money

Unless….

You go back to the principle and and brush up on your business strategy for keeping your most profitable customers and having a process to handle incoming new customers (or potential customers) from your advertising programs.

Too many times I have seen where businesses have the belief that more customers will equal more profit. Some of that time, it is correct. However, if you continually gain more customers only to have them visit you once and never come back, you are probably going backwards.

Your marketing dollars should factor in not just the advertising expense, but also factor in the system to handle new customers.

If you have a hair salon, for example, a first time visitor is probably going to have a lot of questions. Some questions they will ask, but many will be simply questions like, “Do I feel comfortable here?… Are these people going to be able to listen to my hair care wants and desires?” …. and so on.

As a business owner, it is up to you to climb into the mind of your customers and figure out what questions they are going to have during their first visit to your store. You must take care of those questions and concerns or your first time visitor will not be a second time visitor!

Once you have determine the questions and concerns you believe your first time visitors may have, then your second step is to design a system for your business to handle them. Even if your business is typically not a high repeat business, let’s say a real estate business, by taking the time to understand what your customer wants and needs you will have another form of repeat business – referrals.

I hope this makes sense – marketing is not just getting people to your door. It’s the entire system that your business uses to process potential customers without alienating your most profitable ones you already have.

If reading this stimulates a little thought or questions, please visit our Facebook Page, become a fan, and post any questions or ideas you may have that could help others.

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Small Business Marketing Has Changed – Will You?

March 29th, 2011 by bstoller

Small Business Marketing has changed. For those business owners struggling to understand how to get customers in the door in today’s environment, we have some good news and some bad news.

The Good News

Social Media and Local Search are Taking Over Small Business Marketing

The good news is that your advertising budgets should decrease!! Traditional marketing and advertising used to involve spending money on ads for the newspaper, radio, tv, magazines, etc. While there ARE still applications to these mediums, the internet is quickly changing this.

This is good news for small business owners, as they can actually keep up with the larger companies that have historically dominated with their large advertising budgets. Social media (word of mouth) is now the top method for people to hear about your business – and it doesn’t cost you a dime. At least once you get the hang of it. Search engine marketing is a great opportunity for businesses as well.

The Bad News

Ok – with the good there always seems to come the bad. In this case, how many business owners know how to optimize their Facebook pages? How business owners even know how to SET UP a business page? How many business owners know how to optimize blogs, blog posts, press releases, videos, etc.???

There is a LOT of confusion as businesses are going through this new marketing transition. Social media managers are becoming vitally important to even the mom and pop stores out there.

Back to the Good News

Getting back to the good side, business owners can cut back on the amount of traditional advertising spending and invest that money into higher impact marketing. There currently aren’t enough good marketing consultants out there who specialize in helping small businesses, but you can contact Discovering Profits to help. We specialize in small business. There is normally upfront setup fees to get everything going, but once you are set up, you normally have to only pay a small maintenance fee to keep rankings and social branding going.

More Good News

Discovering Profits offers a free consultation to help business owners understand the new trends in marketing and how they can not only save you money in the long run, but take an aggressive position in your particular market niche. Call us today or e-mail us for more information at info@DiscoveringProfits.com

Categories : Marketing Strategies
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Online Marketing Messages for Small Business

February 5th, 2011 by bstoller

Online Marketing for Small Business – It’s All About the Message

Small businesses must make sure that their audience hears what the business is trying to tell them. Of, course they have to make sure that their message truly represents their company’s vision.

Here are some of the all time blunders in marketing, as found in LeftLifeIn.com.

1. Coors put its slogan, “Turn it loose,” into Spanish, where it was
read as “Suffer from diarrhea.”

2. Scandinavian vacuum manufacturer Electrolux used the following in an American campaign: “Nothing sucks like an Electrolux.”

3. Clairol introduced the “Mist Stick”, a curling iron, into German
only to find out that “mist” is slang for manure. Not too many people had use for the “shit stick.”

4. When Gerber started selling baby food in Africa, they used the same
packaging as in the U.S., with the beautiful Caucasian baby on the
label. Later they learned that in Africa, companies routinely put pictures on the label of what’s inside, since most people can’t read.

5. Colgate introduced a toothpaste in France called “Cue”, the name of a notorious porno magazine.

6. An American T-shirt maker in Miami printed shirts for the Spanish
market which promoted the Pope’s visit. Instead of “I saw the Pope” (el Papa), the shirts read “I saw the potato” (la papa).

7. Pepsi’s “Come alive with the Pepsi Generation” translated into
“Pepsi brings your ancestors back from the grave”, in Chinese.

8. Frank Perdue’s chicken slogan, “it takes a strong man to make a tender chicken” was translated into Spanish as “it takes an aroused man to make a chicken affectionate.”

9. The Coca-Cola name in China was first read as “Ke-kou-ke-la”,
meaning “Bite the wax tadpole” or “female horse stuffed with wax”, depending on the dialect. Coke then researched 40,000 characters to find a phonetic equivalent “ko-kou-ko-le”, translating into “happiness in the mouth.”

10. When Parker Pen marketed a ball-point pen in Mexico, its ads were
supposed to have read, “it won’t leak in your pocket and embarrass
you”. Instead, the company thought that the word “embarazar” (to impregnate) meant to embarrass, so the ad read: “It won’t leak in your pocket and make you pregnant.”

The moral of the story? Make sure your message is what you want your readers to hear!!

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Choosing Local Online Marketing Consultants

January 30th, 2011 by bstoller

Choosing Local Online Marketing Consultants – Key Questions

Local online marketing consultants are quickly becoming vitally important for small business owners. Company owners and marketing managers are scrambling to figure out what they need to do as the shift goes from traditional advertising methods to those that offer a tremendous exposure for a much smaller amount of investment.

What should you look for when trying to decide who to use as your local online marketing consultant?

Here are some key areas that you want to know about your potential consultant:

1) Have they actually owned a business or businesses?

Business owners all know the difficulties of owning and running a business. Whether you have 1 store or 10 locations, there are things that most people just don’t understand unless they have actually had experience as an owner.

2) Is your potential consultant really out to help you or simply sell you their services?

While this may seem like a difficult question to get an answer, check out to see if the person has any testimonials posted on their website. You can ask for referrals as well. There are many “quick buck” consultants who want you to simply sign up for their directory and will offer very little help with your marketing strategy. That’s ok if you simply want to be seen on a directory, but there may be better methods for your particular business.

3) Will your potential consultant provide ongoing consulting and strategy sessions?

Part of a good marketing plan is to have someone to bounce ideas off and to help stimulate ideas. If you are simply hiring someone to set up a website and call that marketing, you are not doing your business or you any justice. A good consultant will either participate in your strategy sessions and provide recommendations at least quarterly. This is important because a good marketing plan must be able to adjust to an ever changing business environment. A good marketing consultant will be able to keep you on track and is worth far more than the fees that they will charge.

4) Do you feel a “connection” – will you be able to communicate with your potential consultant?

This may seem obvious, but don’t underestimate the importance of being able to communicate with the person who is going to help you formulate an extremely important part of your business – marketing.

5) Will your consultant provide means to track your marketing efforts?

A good local online marketing consultant will set up and provide traffic reports, normally on a monthly basis, so results can be reviews and strategies modified when necessary. This is important, as one of online marketing’s advantage is to be able to actually see results.

Choosing a local online marketing consultant is confusing because not very many business owners or advertising managers actually understand how the internet and social media works. I hope that this will help you to understand that you don’t have to know everything – you just need to be able to choose someone who does.

Call us today at 866-856-5828 or visit us at www.DiscoveringProfits.com if you want to discuss your business – we’re always happy to help. One thing that we guarantee is that you WILL learn at least one good idea from our conversation.

Categories : Marketing Strategies
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Low Cost Marketing Idea for Small Business – Facebook

January 23rd, 2011 by bstoller

Need a marketing idea for small business?

Look no farther than Facebook. If your business is on a budget, then you should consider making either a fan page or a group for your business on Facebook. You may have heard of other businesses having success with a Facebook page and you want to experience this same success. There are many benefits to having your business on Facebook, but there are also some things you’ll need to avoid so you don’t experience any disadvantages.

Doing it Right Makes All the Difference

A poor Facebook page for your business is worse than not having one at all. So if you are thinking of making a Facebook page, make sure you do it right. Don’t just spend a few minutes on it by creating it, and then leaving it alone. You need to tend to it for at least a few days, and make sure that it provides a good experience to the user. If your business has a blog, you’ll want to set it up so that your blog posts go right to your Facebook page’s wall so that there will always be some new information for people to read. Update as much information as you can, including your business hours so that people know you’re a real entity and not some scammer with a Facebook page.

If you notice in the picture above, it shows one of Nine Irish Brothers fans posting a “thank you” on their business page. This is the ultimate and shows other customers that the business works very hard to keep their customers happy. Engagement with the customers is key.

Getting to Know Your Customers is Critical

If you cater mostly to baby boomers they aren’t going to care too much that your business has its own Facebook page. It’s not going to make them want to do business with you any more or any less than they already do. They’ll likely find your site through other means than through Facebook. If you cater to pre-teens, teens, and twenty and thirty somethings you definitely need to have some presence on Facebook. If you don’t, you run the risk of looking out of touch with your core market. While this trend is changing, if you cater to a target market over 60, you may not be as successful using Facebook – at least for now.

Encourage People to Visit Your Website

If you have a main website that you want be to use, you may find that they never make it there because they’re getting all of the information they need from your Facebook page. If you spent a lot of time and money to make your website, and you want people to use it and appreciate it, then you might want to limit how much you put on your Facebook page and just use it as a teaser to get people to click through to your website. Either way, it’s still one extra step they have to take to get to your website, and many people might not bother to click through. One way to get people to your website from Facebook is to provide a link to your site that is attached to your posts or pictures. If you have an interesting post and it links to your website, you have effectively used Facebook to drive traffic to your website.

There’s not too many disadvantages to having a Facebook page, as long as you follow the advice given here and do it the right way. The only thing it can do is potentially give you more visitors, and it provides another avenue for people to get to know more about you and your business.

If you are like most business owners – you don’t necessarily have the time to devote to gaining this knowledge or you may not have the time to do posts and respond to questions and comments. Feel free to call us and we’ll be glad to either help train you or be your outsourcing to handle your social media for you.

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Marketing Idea for Small Business

January 20th, 2011 by bstoller

Need a marketing idea for small business?

.
Do It Right – Or Else

A poor Facebook page for your business is worse than not having one at all. So if you are thinking of making a Facebook page, make sure you do it right. Don’t just spend a few minutes on it by creating it, and then leaving it alone. You need to tend to it for at least a few days, and make sure that it provides a good experience to the user. If you business has a blog, you’ll want to set it up so that your blog posts go right to your Facebook page’s wall so that there will always be some new information for people to read. Update as much information as you can, including your business hours so that people know you’re a real entity and not some scammer with a Facebook page.

Know Your Target Customers

Encourage People to Visit Your Website

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Top Predictions for Small Business Marketing – 2011

December 29th, 2010 by bstoller

Small Business Marketing Predictions for 2011

This is a great article from Mashable.com

About 7 days ago Erica Swallow 9

5 Predictions for Small Business in 2011

Over the course of 2010, Mashable has offered quite a few small business resources, ranging from tips on social media and marketing to resources for web design and development.

As this year wraps up, we’d like to look back at the technological advancements that small businesses have benefited from and predict how those technologies will affect entrepreneurs in 2011.

Here are my five predictions about how small businesses will continue to adapt to changing technologies as we move into the new year.

Read on and let us know what you’d add to the list in the comments below.

1. Increased Spending on Websites

Small businesses are predicted to increase online marketing spending, with websites taking the front seat, according to a recent survey. The survey found that 54% of respondents indicated that their businesses currently have websites. Unfortunately, most of those websites contain nothing more than general information, and less than half of them incorporate customer service features.

The importance of being easily findable on the Internet () has still not been fully recognized by small businesses, but increasingly, smart entrepreneurs are taking notice. Next year will be marked with increased spending on website development, lifting small business sites from their current iterations as online brochures to more prominent positions as useful resources for customers.

Those making valuable upgrades to their online presences will increase functionalities revolving around e-commerce, reservation systems, corporate blogs and social media integration. Furthermore, we may see increased attention on better web design.

2. Smartphone Revolution

A whopping 49% of small business owners use smartphones, outpacing the rest of America in smartphone adoption, according to a recent Forrester study.

As more small business owners are exposed to smartphones on a daily basis, it’s inevitable that they will begin to innovate with mobile technologies. In 2010, business owners were tweeting on the go, using location-based services and investing in mobile advertising.

In 2011, the smartphone revolution will continue to ensue, with ever increasing smartphone adoption. Mobile devices will continue to change the way that companies of all sizes do business. With most business needs at the tips of their fingers, small business owners will experience more flexibility than ever before.

3. Social Shopping and E-Commerce Advancements

While a number of small businesses benefited from social shopping in 2010, others were left wondering if group buying was really worth the risk.

Regardless, it’s evident that e-commerce is a huge advantage for small businesses taking part in it. Offering their products online, businesses have widened their customer bases beyond their local markets.

While only 30% of small business websites currently incorporate e-commerce abilities, the increased buzz around online and social shopping will probably push more small business owners to experiment with the medium in 2011.

4. More Focused Social Media Efforts

This year was a time of social media experimentation for many small business owners. Testing many social media services in the past year, small businesses are becoming more knowledgeable about which platforms their customers use most and how their companies can benefit from staying connected on each platform.

It isn’t uncommon to visit a small business’s website to find a mass of social icons pointing to less-than-utilized profiles all across the web. It seems that anxious entrepreneurs have spread themselves thin in the social media realm this year, trying out every platform that got buzzed up.

The simple truth is that not every platform is right for every business — it’s all about where your customers are.

Having answered quite a few social media questions from small business owners this year, I have a feeling that next year is really going to be about paring down to the essentials based on proven successes and strong metrics.

5. Increased Adoption of Cloud Computing

Earlier this year, a group of Internet and tech experts and social analysts predicted that Internet users will “live mostly in the cloud” by 2020. While I don’t have the expertise to analyze that prediction, I can point to the fact that I and many of my friends and co-workers already do live and work mostly from web-based and mobile apps, relying less on software installed on our desktops.

Cloud services have already simplified many processes for businesses. Google Apps and Google Docs (), for example, make hosting and collaborating on spreadsheets, presentations, forms and word processors much simpler. Box.net () and Dropbox () have also made online file sharing and collaboration much easier. Meanwhile, 37signals supports a full line of business tools for project management, CRM, internal communications and group chat.

In 2011, businesses will be increasingly exposed to cloud services as tech companies introduce more and more products geared toward moving our digital lives into the cloud.

For a link to this article on Mashable.com click here

Categories : Marketing Strategies
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Marketing for Small Business – How to Use Your People

December 27th, 2010 by bstoller

Marketing for Small Business

Marketing for small business can really be a challenge. First of all, you need to ask yourself an important question – “Why do you need new customers?”

Most will find this question strange, but think about this for a second. Do you need new customers because you are constantly losing the ones you have? Do you need new customers because you want to grow? If your answer was because you are losing customers faster than you can create new ones, your business is in serious trouble. Your business could simply be poorly run and you probably need to do some soul searching to find out what your business really wants to accomplish.

Hopefully, your answer more resembled the second answer – you want to grow. If growth is your objective, then you may want to be reminded of the terrific opportunity you have by educating your current and potential customers. By educating your customers and potential customers, marketing your small business becomes much easier.

I’ve often heard that “Your business must grow for people to grow” and also “People must grow for you business to grow”. I believe that these sayings are right on the money. If you put a little more effort in training your associates (also called “employees” by some), they will begin to educate your customers and potential customers for you. Anytime a customer learns something from the association with your business, your relationship just stepped up a notch and so did your customer loyalty!

According to William Arthur Ward, “The mediocre teacher tells, the good teacher explains, the superior teacher demonstrates, and the great teacher inspires.” You may want to keep this quote in mind when considering your overall marketing for your small business. Think of your educational training for your associates as part of your overall marketing plan!

Categories : Marketing Strategies
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Archive for Marketing Strategies

Local Business Marketing – When to Use Facebook or Google

In the modern world of marketing, there are two main ways to use the internet – Google and Facebook.

How to Use Marketing to Grow Your Business in Any Economy

The essence of effective marketing is the ability to attract the customers attention and once having attracted it, to deliver an experience that will assure you that they will come back to repeat it again and again.

Unless….

Small Business Marketing Has Changed – Will You?

The Good News

The Bad News

Back to the Good News

More Good News

Online Marketing Messages for Small Business

Online Marketing for Small Business – It’s All About the Message

Choosing Local Online Marketing Consultants

Choosing Local Online Marketing Consultants – Key Questions

1) Have they actually owned a business or businesses?

2) Is your potential consultant really out to help you or simply sell you their services?

3) Will your potential consultant provide ongoing consulting and strategy sessions?

4) Do you feel a “connection” – will you be able to communicate with your potential consultant?

5) Will your consultant provide means to track your marketing efforts?

Low Cost Marketing Idea for Small Business – Facebook

Need a marketing idea for small business?

Doing it Right Makes All the Difference

Getting to Know Your Customers is Critical

Encourage People to Visit Your Website

Marketing Idea for Small Business

Need a marketing idea for small business?

Top Predictions for Small Business Marketing – 2011

Small Business Marketing Predictions for 2011

5 Predictions for Small Business in 2011

1. Increased Spending on Websites

2. Smartphone Revolution

3. Social Shopping and E-Commerce Advancements

4. More Focused Social Media Efforts

5. Increased Adoption of Cloud Computing

Marketing for Small Business – How to Use Your People

Marketing for Small Business

Case Study and Testimonial – Bliss Salon and Spa

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