Last updated 2 days 19 hours ago
Excerpt from inc.com article: New Social Media Strategy? 5 Questions to Ask First
“If you are serious about using social media as a weapon in your marketing arsenal, then you need to come up with answers to the following five questions:
1. What do I want to accomplish through social media?
It is amazing how many business people fail to ask this question. Often the response we hear is that "somebody told me I ought to be on (fill in the blank)."
Social media can be used for multiple purposes, so identify your specific business goals. Figure out whether you are looking to drive sales, find new customers, provide customer service, or just give your brand a boost.”
Read the entire article here.
Last updated 4 days ago
Excerpt from inc.com article: Facebook's New Try at Wooing Small Businesses
“Facebook announced Wednesday a series of webinars designed to help small and mid-sized businesses understand and use the new Facebook product offerings, such as Timeline, Offers, Sponsored Stories, and real-time Page Insights. Given the company's impending IPO, and filings that show more than 85 percent of revenue comes from advertising, this looks like a move intended to help drive more usage by small and mid-sized businesses.
According to a survey last month of 100,000 sellers on Facebook by commerce platform vendor Payvment, 39 percent of respondents report having used Facebook Ads, "making this the most prevalent marketing tactic used by sellers to drive traffic to their stores beyond general Facebook marketing--such as promotions and deals posted to their wall--and nearly 70 percent of respondents say they plan to use Facebook Ads again."
Read the entire article here.
Last updated 6 days ago
Excerpt from inc.com article: Small Business Optimism Endures
“Even as corporate earnings continue to soar and big companies appear to be very profitable, I've remained cautiously optimistic about the economy, because the SurePayroll Small Business Scorecard data doesn't reveal the uptick in hiring we've wanted to see. With gas prices rising and growth slowing, the general economic climate seems to reflect what our data has said all along—any recovery has not yet created action.
The month of April was no different, with our data showing small business owners hiring a bit less (-0.1%) and paychecks down (0.3%) too. Yet, the Scorecard optimism survey shows 65% of small business owners still optimistic about the U.S. small business economy.”
Read the entire article here.
Last updated 7 days ago
Excerpt from inc.com article: 6 Tips to Managing Client Expectations
“So much work goes into winning new business, regardless of the vertical space in which you work; there is the initial prospecting, early conversations, strategic program development, budget consideration, and creation of a deliverables timeline. Unfortunately, all of that work can come to a screeching halt before the ink is dry on the contract when the same amount of time, energy and commitment isn't placed on managing the client's expectations after the business is won.
To ensure this is never overlooked, we developed the Super Six: keys to developing excellent client expectations and building longstanding relationships that can withstand good times as well as bumps in the road. After all, it's easy to keep a client when things are going well; maintaining a client when times are tough is the true test of a relationship. We believe the Super Six will aid in this process:”
Read the entire article here.
Last updated 8 days ago
Excerpt from intuit.com article: Why 3 Serial Entrepreneurs Help Other Small-Business Owners
“Susan Zimmerman operates a retail store on Cape Cod and a small tech-consulting business in Wellesley, Mass. Lori Richardson does sales consulting from her Boston office and started a successful Seattle networking event. Melody Biringer organizes networking events, celebrates women’s success in city guidebooks, and runs Biringer Farm Products, a specialty food company in the Pacific Northwest. All three serial entrepreneurs spend much of their spare time helping other small businesses grow.
The Intuit Small Business Blog recently talked with Zimmerman, Richardson, and Biringer about why they love supporting their peers, what professional questions they most commonly answer, and how they find time in their busy schedules to help others.”
Read the entire article here.
