Start-Up Guide

Effective Networking: What you need

Getting ahead in business is of the utmost importance when you are trying to secure and grow your position within an industry, business or marketplace. Additionally, staying ahead of your counterparts, peers and competitors is just as important. Because of this effective networking tactics must be routinely employed to help ensure your continued success. Business networking is the methodology associated with meeting and forming relationships with people to expand the network of people you know for current, future and potential business or professional engagements, endeavors and opportunities.

The first step in business networking is to design business cards online and have a stash of business cards at the ready, making sure to always carry at least a few cards with you at all times. You must always be aware of who you are talking to, even if the conversation is about something very general. Providing your business card to people you meet out and about in daily life is a basic, primary and important method of staying connected and growing your networking base. You should willingly and readily hand out business cards to those you meet which may prove helpful or beneficial in business dealings down the road. One extra way to stay ahead is to always make sure you have plenty of cards on hand and ready to go; and always update business cards as necessary to reflect new contact information, social media sites and phone numbers or email addresses. .

Though business cards are the basis for continuing networking connections, you should make sure to utilize various other forms of networking to truly reach the potential audience you seek to further your career advancement. Social media, web sites, blogs, forum postings online and face to face meetings and events are all additional ways to help you effectively network both yourself and your abilities.

 

Christmas Cards For Your Customers: A Great Business Decision

In this increasingly competitive and uncertain economic environment, businesses everywhere are fighting for market share and the goodwill of their customers. The good news is that with the holiday season upon us, owners of customer-focused businesses everywhere can utilize one of the most time-honored and cost-effective means of thanking their customers--and drumming up future business in the process.

Sending company Christmas cards to one's customers takes only a little time and effort but has the potential to produce big results. After all, it's hard to resist the charm of a simple Christmas card. Rather than making holiday-season phone calls to your customers, which can put them off and more often than not take the tone of a sales call, Christmas greeting cards are a simple, unobtrusive way of saying thank you.

And they're effective, too! Here's an example: sending Christmas cards to your 50 best customers at a bulk rate of $1.50 per card plus $.44 shipping will cost you $1.94 per customer for a total of $97. Say your average customer spends $60 per order. If even ten of said customers--a 20% response rate--answer your Christmas greetings with an order, that's $600 in revenue and $503 in profit going straight to your bottom line. It's hard to replicate those kinds of margins in the course of everyday business.

As a way to show genuine emotion at a special time of year, company Christmas cards are hard to beat. The holidays are a time for your customers to gather with their families, reflect on what has happened over the course of the year gone by, and set goals for the following year. What better way to remind them that your company is a big family of its own than with Christmas cards? Including a group photo of staff and management and a personalized Christmas message to each of your customers is a great way to drive this point home. Be sure to inquire about their families--you'll be surprised how many will return the favor come next Christmas!

Christmas cards may not require much effort to prepare and mail, but it's important to send them out before it's too late. The best way to attract holiday business from your customers is to make sure they have their company Christmas cards in enough time to place orders before they start planning their own Christmas festivities. Start looking for your perfect card today!

How to Market a Start-up Business

Launching a start-up business is a labor intensive and stressful time for the business owner. One of the primary challenges that new businesses face is generating enough exposure to maintain profitability. At the same time, traditional marketing campaigns (such as television or print advertising) can be very costly. Instead many business owners are turning to the Internet to create a cost effective marketing campaign for their start-up. There are a variety of different techniques that can be used to generate interest in your business.

Website Development and SEO

In this day and age, many people rely on the internet to find businesses in their local area. Without a website, potential customers will only find your competitors. A common misconception is that developing a website is very costly; however, this is typically not true, as there are a variety of tools that will allow you to create a professional looking website at a very small cost. Additionally, consulting with a search engine optimization expert will help you design the website so that it returns as one of the top results when people search for your specific keywords on a search engine. 

Facebook Marketing

Social media websites like Facebook are extremely popular, generating hundreds of millions of page views every month. Facebook in particular offers a special option for business owners to create a Facebook Fan Page for their small business. This page is completely free and opens up a direct line of communication to your customers. By spreading your Fan Page amongst the community, you can create a loyal following. Consider offering special discounts or incentives to customers who "Like" your page, as this will allow your network to expand and create an opportunity for you to follow up with them again in the future.

Pay Per Click Marketing

Another technique that is often very successful for small business owners is utilizing pay per click marketing. Similar to search engine optimization, you will be able to target specific keywords and phrases that buyers tend to use when looking for businesses. You can target specific geographic regions, so only people in your local area will see the ad. A key benefit of this model is that you only pay an agreed upon rate every time somebody clicks on your link. This way, you are paying directly for performance instead of throwing money at a traditional medium of advertising that may or may not be effective.

 

Get Ready for the Holiday Season: Email Marketing

As the holiday season approaches, many companies and businesses look inward, looking for new to ways improve for the new year. For start up companies, the beginning of a new year can be a great way to reflect on existing practices, build new strategies, and leverage relationships with clients to build a consumer base.

For start ups looking to reach new clients, email can be an effective medium for building business. When creating an email marketing strategy, it’s important to approach each email in terms of potential value for a client. Modern spam filters will usually block messages containing only advertising, unless the message is solicited from consumers.

Build a goal for your marketing strategy that has measurable actions. For an email marketing plan to be successful, it’s important to maintain statistics on campaign effectiveness. Some email strategies may lead to lower response rates, while others may prove valuable for future use.

A great way to build a list of clients is by offering clients valuable information in exchange for their personal information. Any business can offer valuable information for a customer, ranging from an e-book for real estate agents to an online guide on effective parenting strategies.

In order for website visitors to view the information you have provided, they must provide a valid email address, name, and any other requested information. By providing you this information, it’s possible to create an email marketing list of clients with a viable interest in your products or services. Under the form requesting their personal information, have a pre-marked check box asking if it’s acceptable for the company to send them more information in the future. Many website visitors leave check mark boxes in their default setting, which allows you to send them permission-based email messages in the future.

When creating a marketing email, it’s important to concentrate on consumer value. A client or customer may unsubscribe from an email marketing list if he or she doesn’t find it helpful. Ideas for useful information include product reviews, ways to use a company’s services, and tips relevant to a consumer’s interest.

By integrating advertisements seamlessly with valuable consumer information, it’s possible for a start up company to provide value for clients while advertising their services. If an email subscriber finds true value in the information a company provides, he or she may refer others to follow a marketing list.