Hiring a person to do all of your marketing in-house, or even worse, trying to do it all by yourself may seem like a slam dunk for your company. From a high level it might seem like it costs less, you can make sure that everything is done just the way you want it, and […]

Like everything you see or touch, the Internet has had seismic impact on your  sales cycle and the purchase process of your prospects.  How you deal with the changes that have occurred will dictate your success (or, hopefully not, failure). Here is the traditional sales cycle for most companies: Prospecting/lead generation Initial contact Qualify prospects […]

As the online world evolves, so must your strategy to engage visitors to your web site.  Nearly 90% of purchases now start with an online search and it is easier than ever before to search multiple sources for any given product or service.  It only makes sense to do what you can to prevent any […]

It’s human nature to use infantile language when you “talk” to babies.  It’s even cute.  Their inability to understand gives you license to be goofy. Marketers sometimes take a similar approach to creating messages to their customers.  No, not literally “googoo gaga” sort of talk, but language and content that (wrongly) assumes their customer audience […]

More and more business have finally come to the realization the providing impeccable customer service is a necessity, not just an option.  After all, business lose about $62 billion due to poor customer service performance.  Recent studies show a general improvement in how customers feel they are treated by the businesses with they interact.  Here […]

Not a great sales pitch, is it? And yet, as I was visiting a client recently, this is what was written on the marquee outside a non-brand name hotel in the area. It made me do a double take because I know that so many small businesses are still trying to combat digital marketing and […]

I know…”fake news” is an over-used term usually used in a political context.  But the phrase does capture a pervasive skepticism that people have regarding anything the see, read or hear in the media.  That includes your marketing messages in addition to the day’s latest headlines. Consumers are better informed than ever before and their […]

The marketing strategy you develop will determine the success or failure of your product/service.  Creating the best strategy requires some introspection about several issues. Find your purpose Why are you in the business you are in?  Why are you promoting a particular product or service?  If you think deeply about this subject you will find […]

Many marketers are now using blogs (web logs) as part of their marketing campaigns.  That’s a very good thing…any opportunity to create and share new content across all media platforms is a way to keep your brand current and fresh.  Due to the nature of blogs, however, they can often wander off the beaten brand […]

Many people in marketing have a serious bias.  They tend to believe that their product or service is exactly what every customer in their target market wants and needs.  They put a lot of time, effort and thought into development.  All the team members celebrate the creation and congratulate one another on their mutual success.  […]