Archive for the ‘Business Development’ Category
Tuesday, May 31st, 2022
Years ago I was fortunate to be able to work with one of the true gurus in the field of direct marketing copywriting—Herschell Gordon Lewis. A marketing genius, a horror-film writer! (he’s actually known for creating the “splatter film” sub-genre of horror, according to Wikipedia)— (more…)
Tags: Advertising, content marketing, copywriting, copywriting tips, Herschell Gordon Lewis, verisimilitude, writing copy
Posted in Business Development, Content Marketing, Marketing and Branding | No Comments »
Thursday, May 26th, 2022
A recent LinkedIn question resonated with me—”Why don’t people like to talk about pricing UPFRONT?” Why indeed?
Have you ever been frustrated when trying to make a purchase decision because you can’t get pricing information from coy salespeople or cryptic web sites? In my opinion, (more…)
Tags: how much does it cost, marketing strategy, Pricing, pricing strategy, sharing prices, strategic marketing, Strategy
Posted in Business Development, Marketing and Branding | No Comments »
Monday, March 21st, 2022
Elevator pitches have been a mainstay of business networking for decades. Initially named because they were likely to be delivered while riding in an elevator, requiring a short, pitchy and impactful statement for that brief span of time, today’s elevator pitches are just, if not more, likely to be delivered via Zoom.
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Tags: Business development, connecting online, elevator pitch, elevator speech, making connections, Zoom
Posted in Business Development, Marketing and Branding, Remote Work | No Comments »
Tuesday, December 7th, 2021
We’ve been managing our own, and client, LinkedIn profiles and company pages for several years now. I’ve always been a big LinkedIn fan and I’ve seen interest in using LinkedIn for business development grow significantly during the pandemic as opportunities to connect in person with clients and prospects has diminished, or disappeared in some cases. As we work with clients who are new to LinkedIn we tend to see a lot of the same issues that are hindering their ability to use this powerful business-to-business (B2B) social media channel most effectively. After working with a couple of new clients to help them develop and fine-tune their strategy, I thought I’d share some of the most common missteps I see and offer some advice for others who don’t feel they’re getting enough traction on LinkedIn (or other social channels—the same best practices apply there as well). (more…)
Tags: best practices in social media marketing, communicating on social media, LinkedIn best practices, LinkedIn marketing, marketing with social media, Sales, Social Media
Posted in Business Development, Content Marketing, Internet Marketing, Marketing Communication | No Comments »
Thursday, December 2nd, 2021
One of the most common mistakes I see many businesses fall prey to, and especially small businesses, is focusing too much on getting in new customers/clients and not enough on nurturing the customers they already have. I think most businesspeople are widely familiar with data that indicates that existing customers represent more value in terms of repeat business, at less investment of time and money, than seeking new clients/customers. Yet far too many small businesses, perhaps because they’re worried about keeping the customer pipeline full, neglect the customers they already have.
Savvy small businesses can take steps to nurture those new customer relationships by being proactive and process-oriented in their approach. For instance:
(more…)
Tags: attracting and retaining customers, attracting customers, building customer relations, communicating with customers, customer appreciation, Customer Communication, Customer Service
Posted in Business Development, Client Relations | No Comments »
Tuesday, November 30th, 2021
So you want to be an expert? Seems like just about everybody does these days, and social media makes it relatively easy, and very inexpensive, to take steps to gain expert status, or thought leadership. We work with a wide range of clients, primarily in business-to-business (B2B) related industries, many who are business consultants wishing to establish themselves as thought leaders in various industries. Here are “3 Steps for Gaining Traction as a Thought Leader”: (more…)
Tags: becoming an influencer, content marketing, influencer, media relations, pr, public relations, thought leader, thought leadership
Posted in Business Development, Career Advice, Content Marketing, Marketing and Branding | No Comments »
Tuesday, November 16th, 2021
First there was AIDA, then the notion of a sales “funnel” emerged and the concept of a buyer’s journey that began at the top of the funnel (TOFU), moved to the middle of the funnel (MOFU) and ultimately ended with a sale at the bottom of the funnel (BOFU). But is this concept too simplistic—and too linear—to truly represent today’s buyer’s journey? Was this model ever relevant in a business-to-business environment? Are content marketers wasting their time attempting to create copy that focuses, discreetly, on TOFU, MOFU, BOFU?
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Tags: Advertising, AIDA, buyer's journey, Marketing, marketing strategy, Sales, sales funnel, sales strategy, top-of-funnel
Posted in Business Development, Client Relations, Internet Marketing, Marketing and Branding, Marketing Communication | No Comments »
Thursday, November 11th, 2021
There is often tension between marketing and sales in many organizations. But why? Shouldn’t these two functions be closely aligned to most effectively achieve the revenue and ROI goals of the organization? What causes this tension, why is alignment important, and what steps can you take to bring these two important organizational functions closer together? (more…)
Tags: Business development, coordinating sales and marketing, effective sales, Marketing, marketing sales, Sales, sales and marketing
Posted in Business Development, Marketing and Branding, Promotions | No Comments »
Tuesday, August 17th, 2021
I do a lot of presentations (and since the pandemic emerged, webinars) on marketing-related topics. When I do, I try to provide as much practical and useful advice as I can. I don’t worry about “giving away my secrets” for a couple of reasons:
- They’re not that secret—they’re just good, proven, elements of effective marketing and communication.
- Telling someone how to do something rarely translates into the ability to actually do that something.
- The small business owners and entrepreneurs—and, often, even senior and very seasoned marketing executives in large organizations—simply don’t have the time to do it themselves.
They often need to call upon others—agencies or freelancers—to help them out. (more…)
Tags: finding an agency, finding freelancers, help with marketing, hiring an agency, marketing assistance, marketing consultants, marketing contractors, social media consultants
Posted in Client Relations, Content Marketing, Marketing and Branding, Small Business Strategy | No Comments »
Tuesday, June 29th, 2021
I saw a very interesting question in an online group I monitor recently: “Is it ever a good idea to give your work away?”
In this case, the question was related to consulting services but the question could just as easily apply to companies selling tangible products. And, perhaps, it is in comparing the two ─ services and tangible products ─ that this answer can make the most sense: “Yes, there are definitely times when giving your work─or your products─away can be a good idea!”
But when?
(more…)
Tags: Business development, charging for your services, charging for your work, Customer Communication, giving your work away, pro bono, product sampling, speaking fees, Strategy
Posted in Business Development, Client Relations, Marketing and Branding, Small Business Strategy | No Comments »