Are you a sole trader wondering whether or not you should incorporate your small business? Hopefully this article will spell out some of the key benefits that you could expect to see from small business incorporation.
Incorporation could be the right step for you if you're planning to grow your business going forward. Incorporation will make it easier for you to attract additional funding, either in the form of capital investment or loan finance. Also, should your business hit financial difficulties in the future, incorporation will give you limited liability protection from the company's debts and liabilities. We'll discuss these benefits more fully below.
Firstly, let's discuss why incorporating your small business makes it easier to raise additional funding for the growth of your company.
Incorporation provides your business with a formal share structure, and so the issuing and valuation of shares becomes significantly more straightforward, making it easier to raise funds via additional capital investment.
Incorporation also gives your company increased credibility with the financial institutions and therefore makes it easier to attain additional finance.
Next let's look at the subject of personal liability protection.
When you incorporate your small business, it's status changes to become a totally independent legal entity. As a result, you get personal liability protection from any debts incurred by the business. Once incorporated, as a shareholder you will only be personally liable for the debts of the company up to the amount of equity you invested in the newly formed company.
In other words, the business's creditors will only be eligible to payment of amounts owed from the assets of the incorporated company and not from the personal assets of the shareholders and directors.
Personal liability protection is obviously one of the most attractive benefits of small business incorporation. It effectively removes the risk to your personal assets that comes with being the owner of a small business.
As well as the benefits already mentioned, there may also be tax advantages to incorporating your small business.
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Marketing in a Recession - How to Keep Your Small Business Growing When the Economy Isn't
If you're concerned about how you're going to navigate your business through the economic minefield that's expected to last for the foreseeable future, you've got good reason to be. Running a small business isn't a picnic at the best of times, and with consumers expected to tighten their belts and employees bracing for corporate cut-backs, your first reaction may be to retreat, cut your marketing, downsize, and trim expenses.
For smaller companies, there usually isn't much fat to trim, and if your business takes a dip it can make for extreme financial pressures and gut-wrenching decisions. So what's the best strategy to keep your business moving forward when the economic outlook is doom and gloom? Reassess your plan, maximize low-cost promotional opportunities, be as creative as possible, and stay aggressive with your marketing.
1. Don't wait to see if your business is going to suffer because of global economic issues, take immediate action now. Review every detail of your marketing programs and prioritize each one to determine where you can reduce expenses if you absolutely have to.
2. Focus your advertising. If you can't track measurable results from your advertising, cut back in favour of other opportunities. In tough times you need to focus more on initiatives that deliver direct results and target the exact audience you want to reach, at the expense of ads that look good but aren't generating any direct sales.
3. Get creative. Creative promotions, offers, and ideas attract more attention, generate more interest, result in more word of mouth advertising, and have a longer 'shelf-life'. Use your imagination or borrow ideas from other industries to keep your marketing as fresh and creative as possible.
4. Connect (and reconnect) with your customers. Re-introduce your company to past customers and work closely with your current clients to let them know you care about their business, to find out what new services you could offer, to help generate more referrals, and to determine where you should focus your resources.
5. Become a guerrilla marketer. Host a seminar, write an article, network more than ever, develop partnerships with other businesses, and use your size and speed to your advantage by responding quickly to the needs of your customers.
6. Ramp up your online marketing. Google's predicting their business will continue to soar even as the economy sours because they offer low-cost advertising tools that will be embraced by businesses looking to save money during the current economic downturn. Now's the time to capitalize on e-marketing to reach new markets, closely target your customers, and get more value out of every dollar you spend.
Believe it or not, a shrinking economy can create an opportunity for your business as consumers and companies alike look for new ways to save money. And as many businesses will inevitably cut back and reduce services to preserve their bottom line, this opens the door for someone else to steal their customers by offering new services, adding more value, and going the extra mile.
For smaller companies, there usually isn't much fat to trim, and if your business takes a dip it can make for extreme financial pressures and gut-wrenching decisions. So what's the best strategy to keep your business moving forward when the economic outlook is doom and gloom? Reassess your plan, maximize low-cost promotional opportunities, be as creative as possible, and stay aggressive with your marketing.
1. Don't wait to see if your business is going to suffer because of global economic issues, take immediate action now. Review every detail of your marketing programs and prioritize each one to determine where you can reduce expenses if you absolutely have to.
2. Focus your advertising. If you can't track measurable results from your advertising, cut back in favour of other opportunities. In tough times you need to focus more on initiatives that deliver direct results and target the exact audience you want to reach, at the expense of ads that look good but aren't generating any direct sales.
3. Get creative. Creative promotions, offers, and ideas attract more attention, generate more interest, result in more word of mouth advertising, and have a longer 'shelf-life'. Use your imagination or borrow ideas from other industries to keep your marketing as fresh and creative as possible.
4. Connect (and reconnect) with your customers. Re-introduce your company to past customers and work closely with your current clients to let them know you care about their business, to find out what new services you could offer, to help generate more referrals, and to determine where you should focus your resources.
5. Become a guerrilla marketer. Host a seminar, write an article, network more than ever, develop partnerships with other businesses, and use your size and speed to your advantage by responding quickly to the needs of your customers.
6. Ramp up your online marketing. Google's predicting their business will continue to soar even as the economy sours because they offer low-cost advertising tools that will be embraced by businesses looking to save money during the current economic downturn. Now's the time to capitalize on e-marketing to reach new markets, closely target your customers, and get more value out of every dollar you spend.
Believe it or not, a shrinking economy can create an opportunity for your business as consumers and companies alike look for new ways to save money. And as many businesses will inevitably cut back and reduce services to preserve their bottom line, this opens the door for someone else to steal their customers by offering new services, adding more value, and going the extra mile.
Monday, December 1, 2008
How to Attract and Keep Customers in Your Small Business - (Do the Marketing)
1. Understand what you do. What makes your business special? What is unique, different, important? Be able to clearly answer the question, "Why should I choose to turn my money over to your business when there are so many other choices." Remember that business is all about serving others. They are the only ones who will put money in your bank account. The more a business is about serving others and the less it is about you and your needs the better it will work.
2. Customers are the focal point of your business. Who are they? What motivates them? Are they rich or poor? Educated or not? Where are they? Create a mental image of a customer you would like to serve and use this image when you are creating marketing campaigns. Make sure that you direct you message to this customer and not to some general population. Really try to connect with people.
3. Attract new customers. There are many ways to do this. Depending on who your customer is, some methods will work better than others. Once you understand who your customer is you will better be able to identify where he is to be found. The better you can focus and direct your marketing efforts to those people most likely to actually pay for what you do the better it will work. Some different media that may be useful to you:
* Direct Mail
* Newspaper and Magazine
* Yellow Pages
* Signs and Billboards
* Website
* Pay Per Click
* Vehicle Wrap
4. Get more customers. Once you have a few customers that like what you have to offer, enlist them to help you. This is known as acquiring customers by referral. Most happy customers will gladly tell others about you, but most of the time they will not think about it unless you give them a reason or incentive. If you find ways to reward or recognize your customers for sending you new customers, they will do so more frequently and with greater zeal.
* Give them a reward for each referral.
* Praise or otherwise recognize their help.
* Provide incentives for them to continue referring others.
5. Keep your customers. A customer is like a prized possession. Do not forget about your customers. Everyone loves attention and has a need to know that others care about them. There are many ways to keep in touch with your customers.
* Mail A Newsletter
* Fax A Brochure
* Use email to communicate
* Use the telephone
* Remember their birthday
* Send them holiday cards (especially offbeat holidays like Thanksgiving)
* Operating a successful small business always means that the business owner spends much or all of his efforts working on the business rather than in it. Learn about marketing by reading books, attending seminars, watching videos and so forth. There is an amazing amount of information available at no cost. Consider subscribing to some marketing newsletters. Read those that actually give you something rather than sell you something.
* If you want your small business to succeed, you simply must spend a portion of your time marketing your business. Successful entrepreneurs agree that working ON your business is the most important work you can do.
While there is a great deal of marketing information for sale, be choosy. Research the author of anything your are getting ready to pay hard to come by money to. Many will promise you riches, but only a few deliver really useful information.
2. Customers are the focal point of your business. Who are they? What motivates them? Are they rich or poor? Educated or not? Where are they? Create a mental image of a customer you would like to serve and use this image when you are creating marketing campaigns. Make sure that you direct you message to this customer and not to some general population. Really try to connect with people.
3. Attract new customers. There are many ways to do this. Depending on who your customer is, some methods will work better than others. Once you understand who your customer is you will better be able to identify where he is to be found. The better you can focus and direct your marketing efforts to those people most likely to actually pay for what you do the better it will work. Some different media that may be useful to you:
* Direct Mail
* Newspaper and Magazine
* Yellow Pages
* Signs and Billboards
* Website
* Pay Per Click
* Vehicle Wrap
4. Get more customers. Once you have a few customers that like what you have to offer, enlist them to help you. This is known as acquiring customers by referral. Most happy customers will gladly tell others about you, but most of the time they will not think about it unless you give them a reason or incentive. If you find ways to reward or recognize your customers for sending you new customers, they will do so more frequently and with greater zeal.
* Give them a reward for each referral.
* Praise or otherwise recognize their help.
* Provide incentives for them to continue referring others.
5. Keep your customers. A customer is like a prized possession. Do not forget about your customers. Everyone loves attention and has a need to know that others care about them. There are many ways to keep in touch with your customers.
* Mail A Newsletter
* Fax A Brochure
* Use email to communicate
* Use the telephone
* Remember their birthday
* Send them holiday cards (especially offbeat holidays like Thanksgiving)
* Operating a successful small business always means that the business owner spends much or all of his efforts working on the business rather than in it. Learn about marketing by reading books, attending seminars, watching videos and so forth. There is an amazing amount of information available at no cost. Consider subscribing to some marketing newsletters. Read those that actually give you something rather than sell you something.
* If you want your small business to succeed, you simply must spend a portion of your time marketing your business. Successful entrepreneurs agree that working ON your business is the most important work you can do.
While there is a great deal of marketing information for sale, be choosy. Research the author of anything your are getting ready to pay hard to come by money to. Many will promise you riches, but only a few deliver really useful information.
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Twitter - Not a Waste of Time For Small Business Owners
Social networking has changed the way we do business and the biggest change has been for small business owners.
Small businesses usually have one person who makes a great representative for the company in the social networking arena. And this makes small businesses a perfect fit for a social networking tool called Twitter.
Twitter is a micro-blogging tool in which you have 140 characters to answer the question "What Are You Doing?"
At first I was reluctant to join in on Twitter and wanted to make sure I would see business results from it. Since connecting through Twitter I have seen these results: more Website and Blog traffic; product ideas from my target market; and an increase in expert status. Another bonus, Twitter makes working from home not so isolating and I feel as if I'm in an office talking around the water cooler.
So how can you obtain these results for your business?
1. Create a Compelling Twitter Profile - Add a professional photo to your Twitter profile, because no one will follow you without a photo. Include a link to your main website and create an interesting bio that entices people to find out more.
2. Create Interesting and Useful Tweets (a Twitter message) - Don't just write about your personal life, but also include blog posts, links to articles and anything else your target market would be interested in.
3. Follow Others - Start off by following others in Twitter and return the follow when they follow you.
4. Automate It - Use your cell phone with Twitter and update your status while you're on the run. Within Twitter click on the settings tab and then the devices tab. Within this section you will be able to add your and setup your cell phone to work with Twitter. Also, I have my blog set up to automatically post new posts to Twitter. This is a great time saver and generates a lot more traffic to my blog.
5. Is Your Target Market on Twitter?Before jumping in on Twitter I would consider if your target market is there yet. If you target small business owners then, yes, Twitter will work great for you. Also the younger generation is very involved in Twitter. So think about your target market and where they are. and you can start off by following me @jhaubein. I look forward to connecting with you.
Small businesses usually have one person who makes a great representative for the company in the social networking arena. And this makes small businesses a perfect fit for a social networking tool called Twitter.
Twitter is a micro-blogging tool in which you have 140 characters to answer the question "What Are You Doing?"
At first I was reluctant to join in on Twitter and wanted to make sure I would see business results from it. Since connecting through Twitter I have seen these results: more Website and Blog traffic; product ideas from my target market; and an increase in expert status. Another bonus, Twitter makes working from home not so isolating and I feel as if I'm in an office talking around the water cooler.
So how can you obtain these results for your business?
1. Create a Compelling Twitter Profile - Add a professional photo to your Twitter profile, because no one will follow you without a photo. Include a link to your main website and create an interesting bio that entices people to find out more.
2. Create Interesting and Useful Tweets (a Twitter message) - Don't just write about your personal life, but also include blog posts, links to articles and anything else your target market would be interested in.
3. Follow Others - Start off by following others in Twitter and return the follow when they follow you.
4. Automate It - Use your cell phone with Twitter and update your status while you're on the run. Within Twitter click on the settings tab and then the devices tab. Within this section you will be able to add your and setup your cell phone to work with Twitter. Also, I have my blog set up to automatically post new posts to Twitter. This is a great time saver and generates a lot more traffic to my blog.
5. Is Your Target Market on Twitter?Before jumping in on Twitter I would consider if your target market is there yet. If you target small business owners then, yes, Twitter will work great for you. Also the younger generation is very involved in Twitter. So think about your target market and where they are. and you can start off by following me @jhaubein. I look forward to connecting with you.
Monday, November 24, 2008
Five Reasons Marketing a Small Business is Like Playing Football
Marketing a small business is one of the most difficult activities any entrepreneur will face. It's full of challenges and obstacles that demand preparation, dedication and determination to win the game. It's just like playing football - success will ultimately be determined by your commitment to win and your desire to compete.
Running a business is a lot like playing an intense game of football. Essentially, both are organized chaos with competitors who aim to prevent you from gain ground and scoring points. In business, you win the game by scoring mores sales than your competitors rather making touchdowns or field goals. The one who become the champion of your industry is the company with the best marketing which attracts the most clients or customers.
here are five key similarities between marketing and football that every business must implement if they want to become champions:
1. Preparation and Planning
Any successful football coach will tell you that preparation and planning is the key to winning. It's not the will to win, but the willingness to prepare to win that is important. Countless hours go into scouting opponents, developing plays and practicing for specific situations before the game is ever played.
As a business owner, you must also invest the time to research and planning. The only way for you to create competitive advantage is to understand your market, know your competitors, and create a plan that will score consistent sales. This begins with committing to working on your marketing every day. By dedicating an hour each day to marketing your business you'll create momentum that your competitors can't stop.
2. Aggressiveness
It's simple - you can't compete if you don't play. Marketing your business demands that you get in the game and take on your toughest competitors. To achieve victory you must be aggressive and execute marketing plays which positions your company as the best choice, lowest risk option to fill a need or solve their problem.
Being aggressive is a positive, go-for-it attitude. It's not about being out of control and acting recklessly with your marketing dollars. Instead, it's about being focused and taking action before your competitors have a chance to beat you.
I tell my football players, "Be the hammer, not the nail." This means you deliver the hit and not take it. During a football game the more aggressive team wins, just like in business.
3. Positioning
Football is a game of exploiting gaps in the defense to advance the ball down the field and across the goal line to score. Marketing your business is the same - you must find a gap in the market that is not being filled with a product or service that people are looking for. When you have an offer which none of your competitors can match you position company as the obvious choice.
You'll score more sales and become a champion quicker by finding a gap in the market that is currently unfilled and not crowded with competitors. Creating plays which have an easy path to a score is the goal of every football coach. Your goal as an entrepreneur is to score a sale every time you execute a marketing play. Understanding the value and strategy of positioning is the best way to achieve it.
4. Play Calling
In football, calling the right offensive play in the right situation against the right defense becomes the highlight which is shown on SportsCenter over and over again. When marketing your business the offer that attracts a huge response and generates massive sales is very similar in stature.
A marketing play is any advertisement, promotion or communication you execute to get a prospect to take action. Calling the right marketing play that meshes with your audience is essential to your success. However, this takes time, testing and persistence. Most marketers give up after their first marketing play fails. Entrepreneurs become champions in their industry because they persistently try new marketing plays until they find the ones that perform and score consistently.
Legendary football coach Vince Lombardi said, "Perfection is not attainable. But if we chase perfection, we can catch excellence." Marketing champions are the ones who never stop chasing perfection no matter how big the challenge.
5. Consistent Scoring
An old football coach once told me, "It's hard to win if you don't score!"
In business in scoring a sale is not only important but the required to survive. Without people buying what you offer, you will soon be out of business. All of your business activities should be in support of creating sales. Accounting, production, engineering, distribution and any other area of your business must help to create the conditions to make more sales.
Unfortunately, most business cut marketing when business slows down. This is a big mistake! No other activity in your business can increase your sales except for marketing. This requires commitment to the marketing process and understanding how to play the game. Like football, reaching a sale is usually a sequence of steps that gets you closer to the goal line and the score - not a one shot "Hail Mary" pass. By focusing all aspects of your business as part of marketing you will no doubt become the champion in your industry.
These five keys are a few of the essential building blocks of creating winning marketing. However, the biggest point of leverage any business owner can have their marketing attitude. Are you marketing offensively or defensively? Are you the aggressor or accepting what the competition dictates? How you approach your marketing is the single biggest determining factor of your success.
Running a business is a lot like playing an intense game of football. Essentially, both are organized chaos with competitors who aim to prevent you from gain ground and scoring points. In business, you win the game by scoring mores sales than your competitors rather making touchdowns or field goals. The one who become the champion of your industry is the company with the best marketing which attracts the most clients or customers.
here are five key similarities between marketing and football that every business must implement if they want to become champions:
1. Preparation and Planning
Any successful football coach will tell you that preparation and planning is the key to winning. It's not the will to win, but the willingness to prepare to win that is important. Countless hours go into scouting opponents, developing plays and practicing for specific situations before the game is ever played.
As a business owner, you must also invest the time to research and planning. The only way for you to create competitive advantage is to understand your market, know your competitors, and create a plan that will score consistent sales. This begins with committing to working on your marketing every day. By dedicating an hour each day to marketing your business you'll create momentum that your competitors can't stop.
2. Aggressiveness
It's simple - you can't compete if you don't play. Marketing your business demands that you get in the game and take on your toughest competitors. To achieve victory you must be aggressive and execute marketing plays which positions your company as the best choice, lowest risk option to fill a need or solve their problem.
Being aggressive is a positive, go-for-it attitude. It's not about being out of control and acting recklessly with your marketing dollars. Instead, it's about being focused and taking action before your competitors have a chance to beat you.
I tell my football players, "Be the hammer, not the nail." This means you deliver the hit and not take it. During a football game the more aggressive team wins, just like in business.
3. Positioning
Football is a game of exploiting gaps in the defense to advance the ball down the field and across the goal line to score. Marketing your business is the same - you must find a gap in the market that is not being filled with a product or service that people are looking for. When you have an offer which none of your competitors can match you position company as the obvious choice.
You'll score more sales and become a champion quicker by finding a gap in the market that is currently unfilled and not crowded with competitors. Creating plays which have an easy path to a score is the goal of every football coach. Your goal as an entrepreneur is to score a sale every time you execute a marketing play. Understanding the value and strategy of positioning is the best way to achieve it.
4. Play Calling
In football, calling the right offensive play in the right situation against the right defense becomes the highlight which is shown on SportsCenter over and over again. When marketing your business the offer that attracts a huge response and generates massive sales is very similar in stature.
A marketing play is any advertisement, promotion or communication you execute to get a prospect to take action. Calling the right marketing play that meshes with your audience is essential to your success. However, this takes time, testing and persistence. Most marketers give up after their first marketing play fails. Entrepreneurs become champions in their industry because they persistently try new marketing plays until they find the ones that perform and score consistently.
Legendary football coach Vince Lombardi said, "Perfection is not attainable. But if we chase perfection, we can catch excellence." Marketing champions are the ones who never stop chasing perfection no matter how big the challenge.
5. Consistent Scoring
An old football coach once told me, "It's hard to win if you don't score!"
In business in scoring a sale is not only important but the required to survive. Without people buying what you offer, you will soon be out of business. All of your business activities should be in support of creating sales. Accounting, production, engineering, distribution and any other area of your business must help to create the conditions to make more sales.
Unfortunately, most business cut marketing when business slows down. This is a big mistake! No other activity in your business can increase your sales except for marketing. This requires commitment to the marketing process and understanding how to play the game. Like football, reaching a sale is usually a sequence of steps that gets you closer to the goal line and the score - not a one shot "Hail Mary" pass. By focusing all aspects of your business as part of marketing you will no doubt become the champion in your industry.
These five keys are a few of the essential building blocks of creating winning marketing. However, the biggest point of leverage any business owner can have their marketing attitude. Are you marketing offensively or defensively? Are you the aggressor or accepting what the competition dictates? How you approach your marketing is the single biggest determining factor of your success.
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Yahoo Small Business is Powerful!
Are you tired of not getting customers or traffic to your small business or website? Are you tired of banging your head on the keyboard trying to find the solution to your small business or web site's success? Are you tired of working long, dreadful hours on your website or business only to find out that your getting nowhere? Or maybe your website or small business has had some success, but you just want to take it to the next level. Well, if you answered yes to any of these questions, then Yahoo Small Business is the perfect solution for you. There are lots of great benefits from this program that make Yahoo Small Business a powerful entity. Let's take a look at some of the benefits:
Yahoo Small Business works for your business. They provide products and services that help your website thrive on the internet. This is one of the reasons why they are considered a powerful entity. Their web-authoring tools continue to get simpler and more intuitive so that building and maintaining a site is accomplished with ease. And being part of a web hosting plan with unlimited features is simply awesome. Here is a look at some of the benefits of Yahoo Small Business:
For webmasters or website owners:
* Easily create a professional looking website with easy to use web-authoring tools.
* Create a great looking functional website, even if you are a novice or rookie.
* Low, competitive rates for hosting your domain.
* One size fits all web hosting plan with a powerful punch!
* You can always count on secure, reliable, quality service.
* And much more...
For small business owners:
* Build a professional e-commerce Yahoo Store site for just $39.99/ month
* Very easy to design your own Yahoo Online Store with a Yahoo Merchant account.
* Offer domain forwarding and locking to keep your domain name safe.
* State-of-the-Art marketing tools (such as Yahoo Search Marketing) which allows your website to get listed in the search engines quickly.
* Utilize an outstanding pay-per-click advertising program, which means that you only pay when your ad is clicked, and with the excellent site design tools, this will definitely turn into customers.
* Lots of extra features that will surely get the job done.
* And much more...
Yahoo Small Business works for your business. They provide products and services that help your website thrive on the internet. This is one of the reasons why they are considered a powerful entity. Their web-authoring tools continue to get simpler and more intuitive so that building and maintaining a site is accomplished with ease. And being part of a web hosting plan with unlimited features is simply awesome. Here is a look at some of the benefits of Yahoo Small Business:
For webmasters or website owners:
* Easily create a professional looking website with easy to use web-authoring tools.
* Create a great looking functional website, even if you are a novice or rookie.
* Low, competitive rates for hosting your domain.
* One size fits all web hosting plan with a powerful punch!
* You can always count on secure, reliable, quality service.
* And much more...
For small business owners:
* Build a professional e-commerce Yahoo Store site for just $39.99/ month
* Very easy to design your own Yahoo Online Store with a Yahoo Merchant account.
* Offer domain forwarding and locking to keep your domain name safe.
* State-of-the-Art marketing tools (such as Yahoo Search Marketing) which allows your website to get listed in the search engines quickly.
* Utilize an outstanding pay-per-click advertising program, which means that you only pay when your ad is clicked, and with the excellent site design tools, this will definitely turn into customers.
* Lots of extra features that will surely get the job done.
* And much more...
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Small Business Internet Marketing and SEO
In today's competitive environment, Internet marketing and SEO for small business is one of the fastest growing marketing/advertising techniques, used to meet the goals of your online business. Fine-tuning your small business site helps your site rank high in search engine results. Thus promoting your business website through Internet marketing improves the effectiveness of your website and makes your site more visible.
Internet marketing has two parts - social marketing and search marketing. SEO is an integral part of search marketing as it makes your business site more visible on search engines. A high search engine ranking enables your small business reach the ultimate goal by accessing new customers and markets.
Professional Internet marketing and search engine optimization companies offer result oriented website optimization and Internet marketing solutions to small businesses of all types. To do ethical search engine optimization service, Internet marketing companies make use of the best Internet marketing and SEO tools including keyword research tool, keyword ranking tool, website page rank checker, website evaluation tool, back links builder and dead links checker. With a strategic Internet marketing plan, Internet marketers design and develop a website that is search engine friendly.
The small business Internet marketing and SEO services aim at making your businesses more competitive on the web by optimizing your website for most popular and relevant keyphrases/keywords that target your business, be it new or established. The services involve various procedures such as website evaluation, keyword discovery and research, keyword density, website content development and management, website optimization, sitemap creation, creation of themed link pages/directory, development of Meta tag, Alt tag, title tag, keyword tag and description tag, choosing effective web page title, anchor text linking, link analysis, HTML modifications, image and hyperlink optimization, submission to search engines and directories, code streamlining and social bookmarking - all aimed at increasing the business for a website. While optimizing your business sites, it is ideal to use quality links from topic specific sites, authority sites and content related pages.
High search engine ranking draws many new and existing visitors and converts them into leads and sales. The main aim of small business Internet marketing and SEO service is to achieve marketing goals such as:
• Maximize your web presence
• Expand your small business
• Revitalize your brand
• Long term positioning
When you need Internet marketing and search engine optimization solution, run a search on the Internet to choose a high quality provider that suits your budget and time.
Internet marketing has two parts - social marketing and search marketing. SEO is an integral part of search marketing as it makes your business site more visible on search engines. A high search engine ranking enables your small business reach the ultimate goal by accessing new customers and markets.
Professional Internet marketing and search engine optimization companies offer result oriented website optimization and Internet marketing solutions to small businesses of all types. To do ethical search engine optimization service, Internet marketing companies make use of the best Internet marketing and SEO tools including keyword research tool, keyword ranking tool, website page rank checker, website evaluation tool, back links builder and dead links checker. With a strategic Internet marketing plan, Internet marketers design and develop a website that is search engine friendly.
The small business Internet marketing and SEO services aim at making your businesses more competitive on the web by optimizing your website for most popular and relevant keyphrases/keywords that target your business, be it new or established. The services involve various procedures such as website evaluation, keyword discovery and research, keyword density, website content development and management, website optimization, sitemap creation, creation of themed link pages/directory, development of Meta tag, Alt tag, title tag, keyword tag and description tag, choosing effective web page title, anchor text linking, link analysis, HTML modifications, image and hyperlink optimization, submission to search engines and directories, code streamlining and social bookmarking - all aimed at increasing the business for a website. While optimizing your business sites, it is ideal to use quality links from topic specific sites, authority sites and content related pages.
High search engine ranking draws many new and existing visitors and converts them into leads and sales. The main aim of small business Internet marketing and SEO service is to achieve marketing goals such as:
• Maximize your web presence
• Expand your small business
• Revitalize your brand
• Long term positioning
When you need Internet marketing and search engine optimization solution, run a search on the Internet to choose a high quality provider that suits your budget and time.
Brainstorming Your Small Business Idea
If you have been thinking about starting an online business but just have not come up with the business idea that knocks your socks off then it is perhaps time that you consider brainstorming. Brainstorming your small business idea may very well set you on the path to financial freedom.
Webster's Dictionary defines brainstorming as a problem-solving technique that sparks a spontaneous generation of ideas. Brainstorming works through the power of association by offering ideas around a particular subject or problem.
Brainstorming has these basic components:
A. Generating as many solutions to a problem as possible
B. Listing every idea presented without comment or evaluation
C. Grouping and evaluating ideas to reach consensus
D. Prioritizing ideas.
Brainstorming your small business idea can help you choose a topic, develop an approach to a topic, or deepen your understanding of the topic's potential. This is why brainstorming can be extremely beneficial.
Brainstorming your small business idea helps you think outside-of-the-box! Remember that the purpose of brainstorming your small business idea is to generate ideas so avoid other idea-squashers. Do not evaluate or pass judgment on the ideas as you think of them.
Brainstorming your small business idea can be an extremely effective way to generate lots of ideas on a specific issue and then determine which idea - or ideas - is the best solution. This can be particularly useful in providing creative solutions to problems that have defied traditional problem-solving methods as well as in such applications as new product development. However, brainstorming your small business idea requires a comfortable, non threatening environment to work effectively.
Brainstorming your small business idea is very well suited to internet marketing because it can be very manageable to serve a niche, something that would have been more difficult prior to the internet revolution which began in the late 1990s. And small business creates 75% of all new jobs and anchors our communities. Small Business' are the largest employers in America.
When brainstorming your small business idea creativity is enhanced, because individuals are encouraged to bring up all ideas - even those that might appear outrageous. The Site Build-it (SBI) manger brainstorming tool is a very powerful tool for keyword research for your site concept.
Problem solving in small business requires brainstorming of options and alternatives and problems are defined better as questions arise. Thinking challenges in the form of puzzles and other fun activities can get your creative juices flowing before brainstorming. And creativity can be enhanced if individuals are encouraged to bring up all ideas - even those that might appear outrageous.
When brainstorming your small business idea listen to other ideas, and try to piggy back on them to other ideas. List at least 25 practical uses with explanations if necessary. List or describe (in a sentence or two each) at least ten consequences. List the attributes of the problem, object, or situation as you would in a standard attribute analysis. List at least six attributes and at least six alternatives for each. Listing each condition to be met or the part to be covered will assure that none are overlooked. List the concept(s) you chose to use, and describe how you'll use them.
Asking questions are one of the best tools for unlocking creativity. Questions are the best way to get brainstorming started. Brainstorming is a skill that comes with practice and is not a cult or a ritual so use it to your advantage and begin brainstorming your small business idea.
And keep in mind that brainstorming isn't coming up with an end finished idea, its about creating the ideas that spark the ideas. Brainstorming is creating a list of whatever comes to mind.
Brainstorming your small business idea is most effective when you come up with many possible solutions to overcome one specific obstacle instead of thinking up many unrelated ideas.
Brainstorming your small business idea is particularly effective when others provide different views, ideas, and solutions around one problem.
Webster's Dictionary defines brainstorming as a problem-solving technique that sparks a spontaneous generation of ideas. Brainstorming works through the power of association by offering ideas around a particular subject or problem.
Brainstorming has these basic components:
A. Generating as many solutions to a problem as possible
B. Listing every idea presented without comment or evaluation
C. Grouping and evaluating ideas to reach consensus
D. Prioritizing ideas.
Brainstorming your small business idea can help you choose a topic, develop an approach to a topic, or deepen your understanding of the topic's potential. This is why brainstorming can be extremely beneficial.
Brainstorming your small business idea helps you think outside-of-the-box! Remember that the purpose of brainstorming your small business idea is to generate ideas so avoid other idea-squashers. Do not evaluate or pass judgment on the ideas as you think of them.
Brainstorming your small business idea can be an extremely effective way to generate lots of ideas on a specific issue and then determine which idea - or ideas - is the best solution. This can be particularly useful in providing creative solutions to problems that have defied traditional problem-solving methods as well as in such applications as new product development. However, brainstorming your small business idea requires a comfortable, non threatening environment to work effectively.
Brainstorming your small business idea is very well suited to internet marketing because it can be very manageable to serve a niche, something that would have been more difficult prior to the internet revolution which began in the late 1990s. And small business creates 75% of all new jobs and anchors our communities. Small Business' are the largest employers in America.
When brainstorming your small business idea creativity is enhanced, because individuals are encouraged to bring up all ideas - even those that might appear outrageous. The Site Build-it (SBI) manger brainstorming tool is a very powerful tool for keyword research for your site concept.
Problem solving in small business requires brainstorming of options and alternatives and problems are defined better as questions arise. Thinking challenges in the form of puzzles and other fun activities can get your creative juices flowing before brainstorming. And creativity can be enhanced if individuals are encouraged to bring up all ideas - even those that might appear outrageous.
When brainstorming your small business idea listen to other ideas, and try to piggy back on them to other ideas. List at least 25 practical uses with explanations if necessary. List or describe (in a sentence or two each) at least ten consequences. List the attributes of the problem, object, or situation as you would in a standard attribute analysis. List at least six attributes and at least six alternatives for each. Listing each condition to be met or the part to be covered will assure that none are overlooked. List the concept(s) you chose to use, and describe how you'll use them.
Asking questions are one of the best tools for unlocking creativity. Questions are the best way to get brainstorming started. Brainstorming is a skill that comes with practice and is not a cult or a ritual so use it to your advantage and begin brainstorming your small business idea.
And keep in mind that brainstorming isn't coming up with an end finished idea, its about creating the ideas that spark the ideas. Brainstorming is creating a list of whatever comes to mind.
Brainstorming your small business idea is most effective when you come up with many possible solutions to overcome one specific obstacle instead of thinking up many unrelated ideas.
Brainstorming your small business idea is particularly effective when others provide different views, ideas, and solutions around one problem.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
I was thinking the other day why I have enjoyed consulting with small business owners for so many years. Talk about reality shows. What is more real than talking to the person who created, owns and operates a business? They have made their dream a reality. It's a whole different conversation and level of engagement from talking to a marketing or business development manager working for a small or mid-size company. I don't mean to imply that the marketing or business development manager knows less about the company's business than the owner. It's about the level of passion for the business. Passion or entrepreneurial zeal, as we know, doesn't always translate into being able to run a company successfully but I love to hear their story.
I enjoy the initial phase of a search engine optimization or pay per click management campaign for any new client. We call this the discovery phase where we gather quantitative and qualitative information about a business to lay the groundwork for the project. The more we know about what they do, how they do it, who they are trying to reach and what their goals are the better we can develop and implement a successful online marketing strategy for them.
One big difference I notice almost immediately when talking to an entrepreneur is the desire to talk about their business. You never have to worry about keeping the conversation going that's for sure. Entrepreneurs love to talk about their business. It's their passion. That's why they are doing it. Many businesses, if not most, are built based on the personality of the owner and more often than naught these owners have an outgoing, engaging personality. That is why social media marketing can be so powerful for small business owners.
Social media marketing is not just about creating profiles on facebook, myspace, linkedin and other social media networks to try to create buzz and links to your web site. It's about being actively engaged in the networks. Let people get to know you. Be real. Tell them about your business, why you do it and how you do it. Not from a sales and marketing stand point so it sounds like every other Tom, Dick and Harry selling the same thing but from your personal stand point - your personality - let it shine through. Just a warning here, if you are a real drone with a negative view point on the world this might not work. :>) Find people with the same interests as yours and participate in their discussions. It has to be a two way network for it to work best.
Are you thinking how in the heck am I supposed to find enough time to do this plus run my business? This is a valid point but if done correctly this can reap big benefits for your business. Millions and millions of people are participating in social media networks every day. Instead of actively participating in 4 or 5 determine which one best fits your desired demographic and focus predominantly on that one. Also, you might really enjoy it. Just talk about your favorite topic - your business.
I enjoy the initial phase of a search engine optimization or pay per click management campaign for any new client. We call this the discovery phase where we gather quantitative and qualitative information about a business to lay the groundwork for the project. The more we know about what they do, how they do it, who they are trying to reach and what their goals are the better we can develop and implement a successful online marketing strategy for them.
One big difference I notice almost immediately when talking to an entrepreneur is the desire to talk about their business. You never have to worry about keeping the conversation going that's for sure. Entrepreneurs love to talk about their business. It's their passion. That's why they are doing it. Many businesses, if not most, are built based on the personality of the owner and more often than naught these owners have an outgoing, engaging personality. That is why social media marketing can be so powerful for small business owners.
Social media marketing is not just about creating profiles on facebook, myspace, linkedin and other social media networks to try to create buzz and links to your web site. It's about being actively engaged in the networks. Let people get to know you. Be real. Tell them about your business, why you do it and how you do it. Not from a sales and marketing stand point so it sounds like every other Tom, Dick and Harry selling the same thing but from your personal stand point - your personality - let it shine through. Just a warning here, if you are a real drone with a negative view point on the world this might not work. :>) Find people with the same interests as yours and participate in their discussions. It has to be a two way network for it to work best.
Are you thinking how in the heck am I supposed to find enough time to do this plus run my business? This is a valid point but if done correctly this can reap big benefits for your business. Millions and millions of people are participating in social media networks every day. Instead of actively participating in 4 or 5 determine which one best fits your desired demographic and focus predominantly on that one. Also, you might really enjoy it. Just talk about your favorite topic - your business.
Monday, November 17, 2008
Small Business Marketing Secrets - Never Pitch Your Business Opportunity Again
Have you ever wondered how some networkers can recruit distributors literally at will, and others struggle with ideas for online recruiting. Our topic will focus on the biggest mistake most networkers are guilty of when advertising/recruiting.
That biggest mistake is that no one should ever be "pitching" their business opportunity. That's right, don't hit people over the head to join your home business anymore, just stop selling it. Focus on selling yourself, your marketing system, and networking experience.
Why?
Because no one cares about your business opportunity. That's right, for the most part, everyone could care less. People are numb to the constant bombardment of endless business start up pitches to the point of insanity. They are just trying to find out "who" to work with that is capable of guiding them in the right direction.
Prospects are primarily looking for leadership, training, & support for their small business marketing. In other words, they will work with you , if you are a leader. They will do this because, they can see how working with you will help them get what they ultimately want.
Your small business marketing should be streamlined on letting people know you are a leader with value and someone who can get them to "the promised land". That's it.
If your wondering how to be a leader without yet experiencing success, don't worry. Just talk about the successful team/company your working with, your marketing system, training, etc. It doesn't take much to set yourself apart from the crowd.
That biggest mistake is that no one should ever be "pitching" their business opportunity. That's right, don't hit people over the head to join your home business anymore, just stop selling it. Focus on selling yourself, your marketing system, and networking experience.
Why?
Because no one cares about your business opportunity. That's right, for the most part, everyone could care less. People are numb to the constant bombardment of endless business start up pitches to the point of insanity. They are just trying to find out "who" to work with that is capable of guiding them in the right direction.
Prospects are primarily looking for leadership, training, & support for their small business marketing. In other words, they will work with you , if you are a leader. They will do this because, they can see how working with you will help them get what they ultimately want.
Your small business marketing should be streamlined on letting people know you are a leader with value and someone who can get them to "the promised land". That's it.
If your wondering how to be a leader without yet experiencing success, don't worry. Just talk about the successful team/company your working with, your marketing system, training, etc. It doesn't take much to set yourself apart from the crowd.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Voice Broadcasting Software - "The" Solution to Your Small Business Sales & Marketing Challenges
If you own or operate a small business, or you are an entrepreneur, network marketer or MLMer, you are no doubt painfully aware of the biggest challenges facing small businesses of every sort. These include of attracting new prospects, turning them into customers and then keeping them. Ideally, this should be done for free (word of mouth's fantastic) or for a low cost. Unlike big American businesses, though, you can't go out and market until you create a demand. What to do?
Relax. There's good news. Now there is an affordable, effective solution to all your small business sales and marketing woes. It's called voice mail broadcasting, or simply voice broadcasting for short. For an almost laughably small amount of money, you can send out custom sales messages to any number of potential prospects and current customers -- all in a matter of minutes, at the press of a button, and right from your desktop.
In the past, reaching hundreds, thousands and even tens of thousands of people was a daunting proposition. You either had to invest in expensive, inflexible and hard-to-use autodialer technology, or do so with the people, phones and overhead of a telemarketing operation. Neither was a perfect solution, and both are far beyond the reach of the typical small businessperson. But with the revolutionary new voice broadcasting software that is available today, you can get your phone ringing off the hook automatically without all the headache and heavy investment. Better still, nobody has to make a cold call at all! The system does the screening and sorting for you. All you do is talk to interested people and take orders.
But what is voice broadcasting, exactly? Voice broadcasting is a technology that allows you to send a custom voice message out to thousands of households or businesses with the press of a button, quickly and inexpensively. The message is delivered both live and to voicemail, meaning that even if recipients are not at home they will get the message!
It doesn't matter if your business is work at home/network marketing, brick and mortar or sales on the road, every successful business needs a steady stream of interested prospects and steady customers, and there's no better nor cheaper way to find and attract prospects and customers than voice broadcasting. In the past, voice mail broadcasting technology was an expensive proposition. The equipment cost tens of the thousands of dollars and the calls were not cheap either. But the new voice broadcasting systems allow you to reach people at a cost of only nickels per call. The best systems even include business to business (b2b) and consumer leads built in. What could be better?
Now you can deliver a custom message instantly to the masses quickly and easily. Make people aware of special events and big sales, remind them of upcoming service, thank them for their ongoing business and much more. The sky is the limit! Today, voice broadcasting software is so inexpensive to use, it even makes sense for civic organizations, churches and non-profit groups to use it too. Now they can do their announcements and even fund raising calls without tying up the valuable time of employees and volunteers!
Since a small business owner or operator typically wears a bunch of hats, it's not surprising that some fit better than others. Nowhere is this truer than in systematic sales and marketing, frequently the orphan stepchild of small business. The good intentions may be there, but often, that's as far as it goes. What with trying to keep the doors open in the face of giant, well financed competitors, not really knowing what works and what doesn't, let alone why, coupled with the ever-present budget constraints, it's all too easy to simply rely on word of mouth, flyers and hope. While this may work, we've found that it's no fast track to a booming business!
"The" small business direct marketing solution is voice broadcasting. If you want advertising and marketing that works and dependably, this is precisely the tool you need. Why? It puts you in charge of your own success, not random chance and hope!
Want your sales and marketing message heard above the million ad impressions a year the typical American is subjected to? Want to get private time with someone who could be your next prospect, sale or associate? Do you hate cold calls? Forget all that and change the core dynamics of your business via voice mail broadcasts! We've beaten our heads bloody, becoming experts on what doesn't work. Do what works. Use modern voice broadcasting software to turn your business headaches into fat profits!
Relax. There's good news. Now there is an affordable, effective solution to all your small business sales and marketing woes. It's called voice mail broadcasting, or simply voice broadcasting for short. For an almost laughably small amount of money, you can send out custom sales messages to any number of potential prospects and current customers -- all in a matter of minutes, at the press of a button, and right from your desktop.
In the past, reaching hundreds, thousands and even tens of thousands of people was a daunting proposition. You either had to invest in expensive, inflexible and hard-to-use autodialer technology, or do so with the people, phones and overhead of a telemarketing operation. Neither was a perfect solution, and both are far beyond the reach of the typical small businessperson. But with the revolutionary new voice broadcasting software that is available today, you can get your phone ringing off the hook automatically without all the headache and heavy investment. Better still, nobody has to make a cold call at all! The system does the screening and sorting for you. All you do is talk to interested people and take orders.
But what is voice broadcasting, exactly? Voice broadcasting is a technology that allows you to send a custom voice message out to thousands of households or businesses with the press of a button, quickly and inexpensively. The message is delivered both live and to voicemail, meaning that even if recipients are not at home they will get the message!
It doesn't matter if your business is work at home/network marketing, brick and mortar or sales on the road, every successful business needs a steady stream of interested prospects and steady customers, and there's no better nor cheaper way to find and attract prospects and customers than voice broadcasting. In the past, voice mail broadcasting technology was an expensive proposition. The equipment cost tens of the thousands of dollars and the calls were not cheap either. But the new voice broadcasting systems allow you to reach people at a cost of only nickels per call. The best systems even include business to business (b2b) and consumer leads built in. What could be better?
Now you can deliver a custom message instantly to the masses quickly and easily. Make people aware of special events and big sales, remind them of upcoming service, thank them for their ongoing business and much more. The sky is the limit! Today, voice broadcasting software is so inexpensive to use, it even makes sense for civic organizations, churches and non-profit groups to use it too. Now they can do their announcements and even fund raising calls without tying up the valuable time of employees and volunteers!
Since a small business owner or operator typically wears a bunch of hats, it's not surprising that some fit better than others. Nowhere is this truer than in systematic sales and marketing, frequently the orphan stepchild of small business. The good intentions may be there, but often, that's as far as it goes. What with trying to keep the doors open in the face of giant, well financed competitors, not really knowing what works and what doesn't, let alone why, coupled with the ever-present budget constraints, it's all too easy to simply rely on word of mouth, flyers and hope. While this may work, we've found that it's no fast track to a booming business!
"The" small business direct marketing solution is voice broadcasting. If you want advertising and marketing that works and dependably, this is precisely the tool you need. Why? It puts you in charge of your own success, not random chance and hope!
Want your sales and marketing message heard above the million ad impressions a year the typical American is subjected to? Want to get private time with someone who could be your next prospect, sale or associate? Do you hate cold calls? Forget all that and change the core dynamics of your business via voice mail broadcasts! We've beaten our heads bloody, becoming experts on what doesn't work. Do what works. Use modern voice broadcasting software to turn your business headaches into fat profits!
Friday, November 14, 2008
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Choosing the Best Small Business Software - Find the Right Software For Your Small Business
A serious shift in how people choose the best small business software for their company is occurring; what people want and expect from software is changing and the effects of this movement can be seen in the news on a regular basis. Many governments, schools, and other public institutions have switched over to a type of software described as open source to cut costs. Open source means that the software is free to use, distribute, and modify however you see fit; the catch is that if you do change it, you must make your code available for everyone.
The writers of open source software have a different philosophy regarding what we should be able to with our computers, and what it should cost us. People all over the world, mostly in their free time, organize and collaborate on software projects that anyone who can lend a hand can become a part of. There is complete transparency in regards to how the software operates because its internal mechanics are on display for all to see. This benefits the small business owner in many ways, some of which we are going to discuss. The first and most obvious benefit is that of the huge amounts of money you'll save on licensing fees. I think this is self-explanatory and needs no elaboration. Really, one could end the argument there and likely still convince the average person that the best small business software is open source, simply due to the fact that it's free! There exist numerous other benefits as well, though.
When what is called the "source code" of open source software is able to be freely examined, you will find that the software is never malicious or ridden with spyware/malware as is the case with many trial commercial products; the program will never do anything you don't explicitly tell it to. You are in complete control over your computer. An example of the infinite adaptability of open source can be described as follows. Say you've just found this wonderful piece of software that you're ready to roll out company wide so that everyone can take advantage of it, but there's one little detail that you wish had been attended to. Maybe there's a certain functionality that you would like to see which would be very useful to you. Unlike closed source software where you just have to take what you get, with an open source program the potential exists to tailor it to your specific needs with the help of someone who is able to program. This is an impossibility with commercial software.
There are, of course, some obstacles to converting from a commercial to non commercial software environment. Most people are unfamiliar with Linux and other open source operating systems, and this means that your business members will have to be trained to use the new software which can be costly and time consuming, but it's a one time thing. The cash you save from making this investment far outweighs the energy required to undertake it. The system will pay for itself very quickly and the community that surrounds it is growing exponentially. There is no doubt that now and in the future, open source will be the place people look for the best small business software, and will only become more prevalent as time goes on. You will soon find after conversion that the flexibility and expandability afforded to you by such a setup far surpasses the environment you were accustomed to operating in.
The writers of open source software have a different philosophy regarding what we should be able to with our computers, and what it should cost us. People all over the world, mostly in their free time, organize and collaborate on software projects that anyone who can lend a hand can become a part of. There is complete transparency in regards to how the software operates because its internal mechanics are on display for all to see. This benefits the small business owner in many ways, some of which we are going to discuss. The first and most obvious benefit is that of the huge amounts of money you'll save on licensing fees. I think this is self-explanatory and needs no elaboration. Really, one could end the argument there and likely still convince the average person that the best small business software is open source, simply due to the fact that it's free! There exist numerous other benefits as well, though.
When what is called the "source code" of open source software is able to be freely examined, you will find that the software is never malicious or ridden with spyware/malware as is the case with many trial commercial products; the program will never do anything you don't explicitly tell it to. You are in complete control over your computer. An example of the infinite adaptability of open source can be described as follows. Say you've just found this wonderful piece of software that you're ready to roll out company wide so that everyone can take advantage of it, but there's one little detail that you wish had been attended to. Maybe there's a certain functionality that you would like to see which would be very useful to you. Unlike closed source software where you just have to take what you get, with an open source program the potential exists to tailor it to your specific needs with the help of someone who is able to program. This is an impossibility with commercial software.
There are, of course, some obstacles to converting from a commercial to non commercial software environment. Most people are unfamiliar with Linux and other open source operating systems, and this means that your business members will have to be trained to use the new software which can be costly and time consuming, but it's a one time thing. The cash you save from making this investment far outweighs the energy required to undertake it. The system will pay for itself very quickly and the community that surrounds it is growing exponentially. There is no doubt that now and in the future, open source will be the place people look for the best small business software, and will only become more prevalent as time goes on. You will soon find after conversion that the flexibility and expandability afforded to you by such a setup far surpasses the environment you were accustomed to operating in.
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