Small Business Resource » Credibility

Blogging as a Part of Your Online Marketing Efforts.

admin — Wed, 09 May 2012 18:06:52 +0000

Blogging is the latest craze in Internet marketing and SEO circles. User generated content now rules. This article gives six good reasons that you should consider blogging as part of your online marketing efforts. The rise and rise of blogging as part of the web 2.0 phenomenon has taken the Internet by storm. Savvy web marketers are now using Blogs as an additional weapon to generate leads, add credibility and improve their search engine rankings.
Blogging is great fun! Yes, blogging can be great fun. Just open you posting window and go for it without the restrictions of corporate style guides and other impediments to creativity . Got something to say? Just say it. The other fun aspect of blogging is that people can post comments about your blog posts. You posts plus reader comments all become valuable food for the search engines.

Blogging is cheap. The most powerful blogging systems are free. Word press seems to be the blogging standard and now comes standard with many cheap web hosting packages. For less than $100 per year anyone can get their own domain with blogging included.

I wouldn't use one of the free blogging services unless you are really desperate. You can't be sure if they will always remain free and your posts will be building up someone else' asset rather than your own.

Blogging is fast and easy. If you can use notepad you can blog. The user interface is very intuitive and allows you to add and edit text, pictures, and videos, whatever you want. Want to change the look and layout of your blog? There are literally hundreds of themes available that take less than a minute to upload and install.

Blogging gives you products and services personality. People like to do business with people they like. By blogging you show your target market that there is a real person behind the company you represent. By reading you blog posts that get an idea of what you're all about - warts and all. The personal aspect of blogging is one of its most powerful characteristics.

Your blog becomes another Internet asset. For more help visit to: www.bloggers-guide-to-profit.com. Some blog sites get thousands and thousands of readers each day. This traffic can be converted to hard, cold cash through Google Adsense advertising, affiliate programs and straight advertising space sale. Once you blog increases it's Google Page Rank, you also get the benefit of linking out from your blog site to other web sites you want to promote.

Search engines just love Blogs. It is said in many SEO forums that Google staff are great bloggers and subsequently Google spiders and indexes Blogs more frequently that normal web sites. This may just be a rumor, but I have found it to be true in my case. If you blog every day there's a good chance Google and the other major search engines will spider your blog every day looking for that new content.

Convinced? Give blogging a try. There are stacks of free resources listed in article directories like this one that will help you get into blogging.

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Management 101: Providing Constructive Feedback to Employees

webkriti — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 06:45:17 +0000

Criticism has a bad reputation. People tend to associate it with negativity and hurt feelings. However, as a manager, it is your job to help your employees perform at their best, and also to help remedy their underperformance. Therefore, you must provide some form of criticism. There is a right way and a wrong way to do this. Here are some tips for providing constructive feedback to employees:

Don’t put it off. It is not a good idea to wait until review time to address a problematic situation. Nip it in the bud, before it gets out of hand, by speaking up as soon as you notice the need. Also, be consistent in providing regular feedback.

The right time and place. Don’t make the mistake of speaking to an employee about a sensitive issue at the employee’s desk, where others may be able to hear it. Choose a meeting place that is private, and separate from coworkers. You may even want to consider meeting outside of the workplace altogether – say, for coffee or lunch. Also, it is a good idea to approach such a discussion after work hours, so that you don’t send your employee back to work feeling flustered.

Facts and supporting evidence. When you plan on addressing a problematic circumstance with an employee who needs to improve, you should be able to provide documentation of the issue. Not only will this help your employee better understand the causes of the problem, but it also adds to your credibility and makes it harder for the employee to deny responsibility.

Balanced criticism. Sure, the purpose of constructive criticism is to point out ways in which your employee can improve, but you need to remember that you are dealing with a human being – a human being with feelings. Make sure you balance your criticism with positives about your employee’s performance and capabilities. These positives should support your assertion that you know your employee can remedy the situation. For example, if your employee has a problem with timeliness, you may say something like, “I have noticed that your work is coming in behind deadline lately, but I see how great you are at helping others organize their timeframe schedules and I am confident you are capable of doing the same for yourself.” You need to be a reputationdefender.

Ask questions. It’s a good idea to find out from your employees themselves where they think they are going wrong. Once you address the issue at hand, ask, “How do you feel about this, and what do you think the contributing factors are?” Not only does this give you added perspective, but it also encourage your employees to self-evaluate.

Critiquing others is never easy, but as a manager, you simply cannot escape this tough duty. Fortunately, there is an effective way to provide such feedback, and without producing negative results. Follow these tips to provide constructive criticism to employees.

About the Author: Natisha Milbradt is a manager in a group of Bronx executive suites. She knows how tough it can be to give feedback, especially when an employee is generally defensive. Take the time to listen and your job will be much easier.

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Small Business Tip: How To Solicit A Customer Testimonial

admin — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 06:23:12 +0000

Customer testimonials for your small business can be a valuable marketing tool … if done the right way. But how do you get a customer testimonial that is meaningful?

I’ve found that politely asking long-term clients for feedback works best. When they let you know how pleased they are with the work, ask them if they would mind if you featured their comments on your website or in a brochure. I’ve yet to run into a client that said “no”. It increases their visibility as well.

If you have clients who indicate that there may be problems with the work your company has performed (and in my experience, there are always some clients who have requests for improvement), you can use that information to perfect your business.

Another way to handle this is to work with 2 or 3 clients for which you’ve solved a pressing problem (preferably one that was costing them money …. or one for which the solution increased their profit or client list …. or one that benefited their business in some way) to develop their stories into case studies, ending with a short testimonial.

Another longer term strategy is to build in the opportunity for client feedback through all of your systems – at the end of each sale, ask the client how their experience was.

You could also consider other methods of creating credibility in addition to testimonials – for example:

- before and after case studies (with data)
- showing media appearances on your website
- using 3rd party expert endorsements
- using charts and graphs to back up your claims
- show your product/service in action via video / pictures / flow charts etc.

Here’s one that’s a bit more proactive. Always serve your customers/clients with the objective that you will be soliciting their feedback and assistance in the future. This will allow you to approach them at any time during your relationship with them. If you have a “big win” with them, I’ve found this to be a great opportunity to ask. It is human nature not to be indebted to anyone…when you do a favor for your client its a great time to cash in on that favor and ask for a testimonial. They will be glad to oblige.

5 Tips to Choosing a Design Company

webkriti — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 06:01:06 +0000

We are all aware that who we partner with is important to the success of our business. When logo, branding, and image design is concerned, your partner is extremely important to the success of your company. Whether you are self-employed or have thousands of employees, your company image is what people remember. Therefore, when choosing a design company you must take the time to choose wisely. Here are 5 tips that will help in choosing a design company you can be confident about.

Credibility:

The reason I am starting with credibility is simple, it is the most important. If you get into business with a design company that doesn’t hold your best interests at heart, you will find yourself regretting it. Credibility should be the first characteristic you should look for.

This could include the way they conduct business, their customer service, response time, conflict resolution and any guarantees for satisfaction. Ask as many questions as necessary to assure you feel right about their credibility. You don’t want to count on a design firm that won’t keep you updated, answer your questions or concerns, or deliver when promised.

Portfolio:

A design company’s portfolio is their product. If you are considering doing business with the company, request to see their portfolio. It is rare for a design firm to deny this request and if they do, move on. They know the importance of showing their previous work and should be proud to do so.

Previous Clients:

There are some big names in business out there. Many of them outsource their designs to firms so they can concentrate on their true business. This is a good way to gauge a design firm based on the previous clients they have had. If you see a big name you recognize or even a small business you have seen because of their logo or brand design, you will feel more comfortable in choosing them.

Innovation:

Logo and brand design is an industry. Like all other industries it is in constant transition to offer their services to growing technologies. This is why their innovations and trending is important. If the firm you are looking at is behind the times, your logo and branding will be as well. Choose a company that is actively following their industry and adapting to the changes.

Services Offered:

There are many needs that should be met by a design firm. From business cards to stationary and even mobile wallpapers, your design company should be able to facilitate all your needs and offer the services you require. If you settle for less you will receive less. Take a look at all their services offered and ask if special requests are possible as well before deciding to offer your project.

Designing a company image is a lot of work but hiring the proper design firm can ease the load. Make sure you carefully choose the right company for your business to assure you get a product you are happy with. Never pay fully upfront and check out their satisfaction guarantees in case there is a problem later on. Choosing wisely will help you portray your company the way you always dreamed.

Finding a professional design agency that you can trust with your logo design can be difficult. Avery Petersen helps his customers weed through all the options and find the most affordable options. Logomojo.com is his trusted partner. Click here for your next logo design.

Finding a Trustworthy Site is Like Finding a Good Lawyer

admin — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 17:24:10 +0000

There are thousands of websites available, and in just a couple of minutes a potential client can fly through ten to fifteen different sites all offering the same products and services. So how can you create a website that captures a potential client’s? For consumers, finding a trustworthy site to do business with is just like finding a good lawyer. So take a few lessons from some Miami attorneys, and ask yourself the following questions when you are wondering about the credibility of your own site:

Does Your Site Look Professional?

You wouldn’t hire a lawyer whose office was in a dilapidated building, would you? No, you want to give your business to someone who is obviously doing well enough to afford a nice office space. Well, the same concept applies for websites. If a website doesn’t give the appearance of being professional, then it probably isn’t going to offer very professional service. Even if you are selling the best products available, if your site doesn’t look like it, potential clients will go elsewhere. When creating your own websites, don’t skimp on design. Hire a professional.

Does Your Site Seem Trustworthy?

If your lawyer didn’t have his costly credentials hanging on the wall behind him, would you hire him? Better yet, if he received his degree from some overnight online school, would you hire him? Probably not, because you would assume he doesn’t really have the education needed to help you win your case. The same goes for websites. Potential patrons want to see a website that is backed by leading watchdog groups such as the Better Business Bureau. When they don’t see icons like this, they are more likely to assume that the business is fly-by-night or has a reputation of not practicing good business. Sites which allow you to pay online or request personal information should also be secured, so always make sure that in addition to your address including “https,” that any security feature icons are also made prominent.

Is Your Site Highly Recommended?

Most people in need of a lawyer hire a lawyer who has both prominence and comes highly recommended. The same goes for online products. Online users will generally only purchase items or services from a site that has come recommended and that has a large web presence. When creating websites, don’t be afraid to create Facebook and Twitter accounts to link to those websites as well to increase the site’s visibility. Posting customer reviews on the site is also a great way to show visitors that your services come highly recommended.

Creating a website is easy. Creating a successful website is a little more difficult; however, can quickly be done if you know what potential clients will look for when scouring through sites. Nearly 80 percent of all consumers now shop online, and you only have a few seconds to capture their attention. Don’t lose potential business simply because you didn’t pay attention to the details. Create a professionally designed website that offers security to shoppers and a great product, and you will greatly increase the likelihood of your online success.

Importance Of Property Management Companies

BUSINESS SHARING — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 05:56:00 +0000

Owning and managing a property is a tedious offer. Though you may feel proud of owning a property, the issues and matters related to property never seem to end…they simply keep on accumulating.

If you find property management and its issues going out of your hand or you are unable to keep up with the pressures, you should enlist the services of property management companies.

Property management companies have been formed to render suitable services and effective tackling of property related issues. These companies are experts in handling property related tasks and offer their services to you at nominal rates. You could begin locating a property management company which is reputed, well established and has been in business for number of years. It pays if you cross check with their clients and check out their referrals before you employ them

Services offered by Property Management Companies

Tenants – If you wish to rent out your property – be it an apartment or a house you do need to locate for tenants who are on a look out for the same. Looking out for tenant means you need to spend searching for them, showing them your property and finalizing the rent and sealing the final deal which includes rent and other paper work. The property management company undertakes to do so by publishing advertisements in newspapers, distributing flyers and various other means.

Crosschecking the tenants : The potential tenants who have evinced interest in the property need to be cross checked thoroughly with regards to their credibility and affordability. They should not be hiding from the law while being able to pay rent on time. The finalizing of the deal, the signing of the rent agreement, legal paper work and other processes will be undertaken by the Property Management Company.

Collection of Rents – Rents need to be collected on a monthly basis. You need to ensure this process is done on time and in a professional manner. This is because several other payments do follow rent collection eg. mortgage payments and other monthly maintenance costs.

Property Maintenance Issues – Owning a property and renting it out also requires maintenance. There may be issues relating to water, electricity, gas etc which may require urgent attention as and when the problem gets brought to your notice. In case if it happens at odd hours, you are likely to be unaware as to how to solve the issue as urgently as possible. At this point property management companies are well prepared to face these eventualities. They keep contact details of most local tradesmen handy and who offer emergency as well as 24 hours services. In case of an issue a simple call made to them definitely solves the matter in shortest time possible.

Well, employing property management companies does help as they are experienced and expert enough to handle most issues and problems related to property and its maintenance.

By Christian Wilson.

How to Become a Strategic Planning Consultant

admin — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 03:03:00 +0000

How to Become a Strategic Planning Consultant

By Angela Stringfellow, eHow Contributing Writer

Strategic planning consultants help businesses evaluate their abilities and goals in comparison to the trends of today and the future. Strategic planning consultants then help businesses create a plan of action that will allow them to make the most efficient use of their resources for the most impact and profit. Strategic planning consulting can be a lucrative career path for those with expertise.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You’ll Need:

A three-ring binder or other materials for creating a portfolio

How to Become a Strategic Planning Consultant

Step 1

Evaluate your educational background to determine if you would benefit from additional courses or certifications. To have more credibility, you should have a degree or certification in management, leadership, planning or business administration. Online programs are available that would allow you to further enhance your skills while still working at your current job. Some of these programs even offer strategic planning certifications.
Step 2

Gain some valuable experience in the industry. To be a successful consultant, you’ll need to be able to draw from real-world experience. Try getting some experience in management or administration at a couple of different organizations before breaking out on your own. More varied experience can be more impressive to potential clients. You may even be able to get a position with a strategic planning firm.
Step 3

Develop a portfolio of achievements. Keep track of your accomplishments at all of your positions, and keep any records that prove your successes. Put together an attractive portfolio that includes your artifacts and a description of how you used your expertise in strategic planning to achieve these results.
Step 4

Create business cards and a business website. You can try to do this yourself, using a program such as Microsoft Office Live Small Business, or you can hire a freelancer or design firm to create your materials for you.
Step 5

Begin networking with your business contacts and acquaintances. Let everyone know that you are now offering your expertise as a consultant, and ask them to share your information with anyone they know who might benefit from your help. Contacts you’ve made through your previous employment are a logical place to start.
Step 6

Develop a consistent style. You may not have a good feel for your style until you’ve worked with a few clients, but you should try to identify something unique about your approach. Use this information to build a brand identity for yourself, including information about your personal style and approach to solving business problems in your website and other marketing materials.
Step 7

Work on building your business by offering your expertise through seminars and writing articles related to strategic planning. This will help make your name more recognizable and will start building your reputation.

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Tips & Warnings

Be realistic with your goals and your timeline. You won’t see results overnight, and your clients won’t either. Be up-front and realistic with your clients about what they can expect. It’s better to underpromise and overdeliver than to have disappointed clients.
Becoming a successful strategic planning consultant can take time. As with any business, it can take time to build your reputation and get enough clients to feel secure. Don’t be discouraged if you don’t meet your financial goals right away.

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Going The Extra Mile to Business Success

admin — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 22:46:00 +0000

You cannot fail when you give more than 100 percent. In whatever endeavor you are doing, always give more than one hundred percent. You will find that whenever you do this, your rewards will always be far greater than the extra effort you expended. Some people refer to this success concept as going the extra mile. What it means is that you need to give people more than they expect.

If you are working in your business and want to see it grow, the surest way to achieve it is by giving more. Customers are impressed when they discover a business that is innovative and gives them more than what they expected. Look for better and more efficient ways to do things. For example, make it easy to order from your site. Reduce the number of clicks to get to relevant information about your product or the order form.

Don’t be afraid of giving information for free. This is a crucial step in the online world to building credibility and trust. A free report or a sample (or extract) from your information product will enable your potential customer to determine whether what you are offering is what they are looking for.

Always include some free (but valuable) bonuses with every product ordered. This also promotes the perception of getting more than what was paid for. In some cases, I have purchased products on the net because the free bonuses interested me more than the main product.

Ensure that your product delivery is quick and efficient. If you sell an information product, ensure that the customer can download it as soon as they have paid for it. Provide alternative download formats and locations so that all needs are catered for. Follow up a couple of days later to ensure they received their products without problems. If they had problems, resolve them straight away and provide an additional bonus to compensate for their inconvenience.

If your product needs to be shipped, provide your customer with alternative shipping methods. You customer can then choose how quickly their order is to be delivered and they can pay for the faster alternatives. Again, follow up to ensure they received their order on time and without problems.

Go the extra mile with customer complaints. This is an excellent opportunity to turn a disgruntled buyer into a life long supporter of your business. Acknowledge problems and resolve them quickly. Thank the customer for making you aware of them. You can be sure that if one customer has had a problem, then others have also had the same problem too.

For those working directly with customers, always give them more than they expect and you will generate more sales. Sometimes just giving a big, warm smile and courteous attention to the customers’ requirements are all that is required. In the online world, prompt attention to email and courteous responses will boost your reputation and your sales. Spend the time to determine the customers’ need and then you will be in a position to satisfy it. I stress to you be sure to concentrate on satisfying the customers need.

Have you ever been into a store and everyone is glum and does not want to serve you? Do you feel inclined to buy from them? No. But go into a store where they seem glad to see you and willing to help you and you feel far more like buying their products. The same applies to the online world. A well-designed web site with easy access to information will yield greater results. Make your web site user friendly!

Don’t sit around waiting for people to buy. Ensure that your marketing communications ask for the order! Encourage responses through offering a strong guarantee. When someone makes a claim under your guarantee, honour it. This is part of the trust building process.

Make the effort to develop additional skills in your spare time. Studying about leadership or how to motivate people will always be of help in building your business. There is always something new to be learned when it comes to dealing with people and influencing them to buy.

However, never lose sight of your most important task right now – keeping your existing customers satisfied.

Future Africa Recommends Project Management Consultant Africa and Invest in Africa

Author:
Kevin Sinclair, CPA, of Personal & Business Success Resources. Visit his website at www.mlm.ksinclair.com.

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Consulting – Get More Prospects Using These 8 Simple Steps!

admin — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 22:21:00 +0000

Have you started your own consulting, training, speaking, or coaching business and find that your having problems getting prospects? Need a different channel to consider getting your name out there? Before even considering becoming an independent professional you need a market niche. You will need a proven track record in that market niche, something to give you credibility in what it is you plan to sell clients. If you know who your target audience is and can show results, the rest is a lot easier, clients will come to you. Most companies will not even consider a consultant, trainer, speaker, or coach without that track record.

Marketing is not only a difficult task for many consultants, trainers, speakers, and coaches, but the buying cycle of many companies and organizations is a lot longer than people think or expect. It is not unusual for the time from first meeting to start of a contract to exceed 12 months. This is a slow long journey, keep the momentum up, and keep getting your name out there.

1. To raise your profile, writing articles is a good idea, write articles for forums and journals. Make sure that the footer has a link to your web page.

2. Also, you should present at the major national and international conferences in your niche area and audience.

3. While you are waiting to get a real customer, you might volunteer to work on a worthwhile project to get some experience and start building a track record.

4. The more you get your name out there the more prospects you will get and as a result if you have a USP, the more conversions you will get. USP is your Unique Selling Point. What is it that you do better than anyone else? You do not want to be the same as every other under valued person on the market.

5. Find a niche and then major on that. People will still ask you for the other things but people remember people for the difference they bring!

6. Go to local groups and network, do not sell but just let people know you exist. Offer free solutions when they ask a question, then when they have a business need your name is more in the frame.

7. This is a game of persistence; many independent professionals focus on one or two first clients and forget the long term. Focus on long terms results but do what it takes to keep the cash flow rolling.

8. Register with any established companies that use freelance people as associates? The day rates are lowers but it helps keep the cash flow and helps you to build your name and reputation.

Future Africa recommends Business Consulting Services

Author:
George Hayes is the Founder and president of Lead-n-Learn a dedicated Career Marketing firm specializing in professional resumes, job search coaching, interview coaching and personal growth.

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Guide to Writing a Great How-To Article

admin — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 13:01:10 +0000

Writing a how-to article seems like an easy task, but forget one step and your “Simple Guide to Installing a Toilet” could end up as a simple guide to disaster! Spend a little time analyzing your subject matter, however, and the outcome will be valuable content your readers will love.

A Step-by-Step Guide to Writing a Great How-To Article:

Pick a Topic in Your Niche – Think about things that you have done that require a specific set of steps, like how to install a toilet, build a bookshelf or make a 3-bean salad.
Lead with a Great Title – What is the top benefit of your informative article? Use that as your title. Try this template: “How to [get/save/become] and [insert big reward here].” In his book, Advertising Headlines That Make You Rich, copywriter David Garfinkel gives these examples:
- How to Save Time and Get Things Done (Time Management Coach)
- How to Get a Better Job and Make More Money (Recruiter)
- How to Save Money and Retire Rich (Financial Planner)
You don’t have to use the words “How To.” You could just say “Install a Toilet Yourself and Save a Pile of Money” – or whatever.
Begin with a Simple Introduction – Maybe relating a personal experience as to how you came to know about the topic the hard way – or, conversely, how simple it was to learn.
Include a List of Supplies, Tools and/or Resources – If your reader is going to need something besides their wits to accomplish the task, tell them upfront so they can prepare everything in advance.
Write Instructions in Chronological Order – Don’t make your instructions convoluted or confusing – keep it short and simple (KISS) and don’t include more than one thought per step.
Create Mental Images – Since your article can’t include photos or illustrations, use words to paint a picture instead. Clearly describe what your reader will experience to avoid confusion … and a loss of credibility for you!
Conclude with Cautions, Tips and Advice – This is a great place to add some goodwill and wrap things up on a positive note. It’s also a wonderful way to lead readers into your Resource Box.

Using this incredibly flexible and powerful template, you’ll be able to create article after article that will not only benefit your readers, but you as well with increased traffic, credibility and exposure.