10 Big Marketing Predictions For 2010

If you read one article on where marketing is heading in 2010, then this is it. It’s already been tweeted 627 times as I write this into! It’s written by David Garland of Rise To The Top and I think he’s nailed it – from claiming the 30 second is FINALLY dead, to big brands [...]

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5 Reasons To Invest In Marketing

There are many reasons…here’s 5 to kick things off:

Marketing is the quickest way to a sale. Great marketing identifies a problem your customer or prospect is experiencing and then provides them with a solution that gives them every reason to buy from you (and not your competition). Think of it like this…the marketer of a [...]

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Mixing Things Up To Benefit Our Customers

Whether or not this shoe (Tweeker!) is real or not doesn’t matter, what I love about it is the tailored offering. It mixes two themes up and creates something special.
Tailored offerings keep things interesting for the business owner and shows your customers and prospects that you’re always on your toes.
I think we sometimes forget that [...]

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4 Hurdles To Doing Business

I just visited a local graphic designer who had on her office door…By Appointment Only.
It got me thinking how, as business owners, we can have systems and structures in place that actually make it hard for people to do business with us. Here’s four that come to mind:
1. Not making your contact details freely available…they [...]

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What’s the cost of a smile?

I like shopping at warehouse type stores.
Chemist Warehouse. JB Hi-Fi. Bunnings.
You know, the stack ‘em high, sell ‘em low set-ups?
In doing so I actually feel as though I save quite a lot of money.
Unfortunately though, as a general rule, the customer service stinks. Does it really cost more to smile? To look someone in the [...]

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The World of Real Estate Marketing Has Changed. Forever.

Are you online? Or do you just have a website?
The world of real estate marketing has changed forever. And for the better.
Running ads, installing boards, printing fliers and having a website are still valid methods of marketing properties and attracting listings, however opportunities abound for the smart Agent who is willing to roll his or [...]

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Handling Customer Complaints

How often are you pleasantly surprised by great customer service? If you’re like me, then sadly not very often. But recently, I had a good customer service experience that demonstrates the best way to handle customer complaints.
Last winter I had a fire grate made. For $170 I got what appeared to be [...]

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10 Things You Need To Do To Build A Healthy Brand

I speak to Clients and groups of business owners weekly about what it takes to build a strong brand.
The first thing I respond with is that BRANDS ARE EARNT…not bought. You buy a business name…you create a brand.
The second point is that it’s important to agree on a simple definition of a brand. [...]

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Is This The #1 Business Mistake To Avoid?

This is a story about a small business getting it terribly wrong…and how you can avoid the same mistake.
My local Chamber Of Commerce recently distributed a brochure on behalf of one of it’s members. The brochure asked…“Does Google ignore you?” It then went on for 6 pages explaining how they could ensure this didn’t [...]

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How single-minded is your marketing?

There’s a key question in any good marketing communication’s brief that asks something like…”What’s the single most important thing you want to tell your prospects?”
It’s based on some consumer behavior theory that states that as humans we aren’t overly good at taking in too much information at any one time. Ironically, as Marketers we often [...]

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