Expanding On The Grapevine Method

communication with consumersThe small business world is collectively holding their breathe in anticipation for what could possibly happen with the health care reform bill.   Till that time comes to pass, it is all about communications.

All business sizes rely on the classic concept of communication. The aim of communicating that a business exists involves television, social media networking, Internet advertising, business websites, and a slew of other methods.   However, the old ways are still the best ways for small businesses.

The power of communicating, via electronic methods, are well-documented to hold new keys to success.   Businesses that have something to offer to the public have taken to the net and expanded mega empires.  …

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How Social Media Can Affect Your Business in 2010

social media in 2010Social media websites grew at exponential rates in 2009. According to a report where Twitter grew at a staggering rate of more than 1000%, Facebook also achieved a growth rate of 228%. 2009 was also a year when most businesses joined social media websites like Twitter and Facebook to promote their brand. It is a well known fact that social media would be one of the most important factors which will affect all business either online or offline. So here are some tips that businesses should follow in 2010 for their social marketing campaigns.

Web 2.0 Customer Support: – Since most of your target audience would be using these websites, you have to make sure that you provide information about your products and customer support to your clients on such websites.…

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10 Tips For Integrating Social Media Into Your Marketing Mix

social media marketingFor most small businesses, social media should be one weapon in your arsenal – not your entire marketing strategy. Look for smart ways to integrate social media into your current marketing efforts. Just like any other tactic, it has its own benefits, advantages and shortcomings – you can’t rely on it for everything, so play to its strengths. Here’s some tips for smart social media integration.

1. Always connect the dots – link back to your website from all your social media profiles.

2. Where possible back up the contacts you make on social networks. Myspace recently acquired and promptly killed Imeem leaving millions of users without access to the contacts they had developed on that network.…

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8 Reasons Why I Made A Custom Landing Page For My Facebook Business Fan Page

customizing facebook business fan landing pages

1. Create a strong first impression on people who are not logged into Facebook but are finding me on Facebook.com/InternetStrategyClub via Google or via an email. Dropping them on my Fan Page Wall which is active and full of comments, links, and photos etc might be way too much for somebody who just found me.

2. Make my page stand apart from hundreds of thousands of Business Fan Pages to Facebook users who are not fans of the page yet but are finding me either via Facebook Ads or word of mouth mention from another fan.

3. I took some very popular blog content that I had written, assembled it by topic and put it in a free report to give away on the landing page, so no additional work and I could get it done and out on Facebook in two days.…

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7 Ways to More Effectively Use Twitter for Business

twitter for business tipsTwitter has not only received quite a bit of press in the past year, but it has also become an important tool for many trying to market their business, product or personal brand. Of course, people and businesses alike are doing this with a varying degree of success and some have a much better handle on the whole social media for marketing thing than others. Here are a few tips to improve your Twitter experience if you’re floundering or if you’re not seeing the results that you had hoped.

1. Read what your followers are saying. The point of social media is that it should be a two way street.…

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Making Every Penny Count with PPC

PPC advertising - every penny countsIn tough economic times, businesses are looking to cut corners and boost ROI in every way they can, and often the first thing to be cut is the marketing budget. The irony of such an approach is that marketing is necessary to achieve consistent sales and growth. Rather than completely cut marketing from your company’s budget, the smarter choice is to optimize your marketing strategy and calculate returns, and hiring a PPC management firm can help “¨you do just that.

The risks involved with traditional advertising

When you place a print ad in a newspaper or magazine, you are taking a risk.…

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Are Your Customers Satisfied? – Using Online Surveys Effectively

online customer surveysSmall businesses are famously agile and attuned to the wants and needs of their customers. But as they begin to grow, or as market conditions begin to change, staying on top of customer requirements can be a tricky feat. If relationships become too tenuous, an aggressive competitor will prey on those weaknesses and poach “at risk” customers.

Online surveys are an excellent tool for gauging customer satisfaction and identifying at risk customers, as well as for clarifying new trends in the marketplace and unearthing changes in the customer base. With the intelligence gathered from a strong survey program, you can modify your product or service based on real-time feedback, thereby improving satisfaction, loyalty, and profitability.…

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Social Media Strategy: Free Is Nice, But Is It Good For Your Business?

free social media marketingSocial networking technology has made it very easy for people to share their opinions, rate favorite products, and communicate with others. This activity is happening every day, everywhere, and for practically every product that exists. No matter how big or small your company is, if you have customers, you can bet they’re talking about your brand or product somewhere. So what are you doing to influence that conversation?

As a small business, you probably have limited budget and resources and you need to be sure any investment you make in social media is worthwhile. Does it make sense to pay for a branded online community or can free public social sites deliver the same benefits?…

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Getting More Out of PPC Advertising: 5 Tips for Optimizing Your Landing Page Now

optimize landing pages for PPC advertisingSo you think you’re ready for PPC management? Fantastic. But before you throw the kitchen sink at it, make sure you are prepared to succeed.

If your company is showing signs of growth, one of the first things to evaluate is the quality of your landing page. While PPC advertising can do wonders for your business by boosting your online visibility, driving qualified traffic to your website, and reducing wasted advertising spending, bidding on keywords and placing text ads in the search engines are not the only steps. Before you go on the hunt for the perfect PPC management firm, make sure you are sending people to a landing page that gives them what they want and makes it easy for them to take action.…

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