by Justin Grensing, Esq., MBA
One of the more tedious activities that falls under the broad umbrella of marketing is responding to requests for proposals, or RFPs. RFPs are typically issued by large organizations — like large corporations or government entities — that are looking for a vendor for a large expenditure or project. It’s basically a way of telling the public or a specific group of pre-screened vendors, “Hey, I want to buy something! Send me a pitch!” The sheer number of interested vendors they often receive responses from and the need to objectively compare them means they are also telling these vendors, “But…send me a pitch in this precise format.”
The process can be time-consuming and convoluted, but a winning bid can be extremely lucrative. Fortunately, there are some basic tips and strategies that can make the process more efficient. (more…)
Savvy marketers are always on the lookout for new media through which to promote their companies. From print media, to radio, to television, to the Internet, it hasn’t taken long historically between the development of a new media technology to the adoption of that media by marketers.
Most small business owners are heavily focused on their core skillset. They are bakers, event planners, lawyers – insert job – first, and accountants and marketers second. 
There’s an old saying that has been used to describe exceptional salespeople: “They’re so good that they could sell ice cubes to Eskimos.” The point being that Eskimos, living in a cold climate, really don’t need ice cubes, and are likely an audience that is going to be tough to crack. But, great salespeople could crack them.
When you think about the types of companies you typically see ads for, manufacturing firms don’t typically come to mind. That’s because, historically, manufacturing companies haven’t invested a great deal in traditional marketing. They tend to be focused more on business-to-business (B2B) sales, than business-to-consumer (B2C). Their business focus has typically been on achieving operational efficiencies to drive down costs and increase profits. They set themselves apart from competitors by providing higher quality, faster turnaround or lower cost, and they haven’t typically spent much time thinking about the end user consumers of their products. 
Business owners know that bringing in new sales can be extremely challenging and often frustrating. More often than not, a potential prospect never makes it from sales lead to paying customer. There are a number of steps along the path to purchase and prospects can be lost at any one. But it doesn’t have to be this way! At least not in the world of online marketing. Great content generation can help move prospects through your sales funnel more effectively. 
At Strategic Communications, we are big advocates of content marketing. It’s crucial to offer something of value to your potential customers rather than simply advertising to them. Blogs and whitepapers can be great vehicles for this type of marketing, but there are many, many forms of content marketing, and some might not seem to fit that label at first glance. 
People may sometimes think about marketing as the process of convincing someone to buy something they may not be initially inclined to purchase. Maybe it’s luring a customer away from a competitor or convincing someone to buy something they don’t really need.
The value proposition for a product or service is a foundational element in any sales and marketing activity. The value proposition responds to consumers’ question of “why” related to your products and services. “Why should I buy your product?” “Why should I subscribe to this service?”
Millennials have changed the face of the world in so many ways: culture, technology and business to name just a few. As this group grows to represent an ever-larger share of the consumer market, one characteristic of this cohort, in particular, can be extremely vexing for marketing professionals: they—even more than previous generations—dislike and distrust marketing and advertising. So what can you do about that? 
Subcribe to This Blog
Brand Evaluation
CONTENT CREATION
PR/MEDIA RELATIONS
SOCIAL MEDIA
STRATEGIC PLANNING
