This little tool is a fun 60-second diversion. It’s also handy if you want to challenge your employees or colleagues to a friendly Friday contest. After all, if people are hunting-and-pecking, they’re not getting the most from their day. http://www.typingtest.com Funny how I broke 100 wpm on another online test and only eked out 52…Read More
If you’re looking for new ways to grow your revenue, think about finding a way to identify potential strategic partners. The Wall Street Journal’s Christina Cheddar-Berk wrote a great case study of Greg Butterfield, the CEO of Altiris, a software company in Lindon, Utah. Greg took Altiris from $1 million in revenue in 1999 to $187…Read More
I just launched two new paid search campaigns and decided to test a tool I’d recently learned about. It’s a bid and ad copy comparison tool available on the Yahoo! Search Marketing (formerly Overture) site. If you’re running paid search campaigns and haven’t used this tool, it’s incredibly useful. It helps you Easily pull up…Read More
How often do you refer back to your marketing plan? Every week? Once a month? Never? If you’ve invested the time and energy into your marketing plans … great! You’ve taken the first step. Now to make your plan successful, turn it into a living, breathing part of your revenue generation process. To bring your…Read More
What would you do if you received a phone bill for two hundred trillion dollars? (Yes, trillion!) As unbelievable as it sounds, it actually happened — Reuben Swartz tells the story in his Dollars and Sense blog. Yes, billing mistakes happen. But pricing reflects your brand and invoicing errors can erode it. Think about the…Read More
If you’re marketing a technology product or service, MarketingSherpa just released a report that can help you generate more leads. Sherpa researchers asked 1,900 business technology marketers about their offers, marketing budgets, sales process and promotional tactics. They also asked 633 business execs about their technology buying decisions and their recommendations for reaching them effectively….Read More
What sets your product, service and company apart from your competitors? What value do you provide and how is it different than the alternatives? Your value proposition is the foundation of your entire business and the offers you take to market. When your market clearly recognizes (and appreciates!) the value you provide, it’s easier to…Read More
If you’ve read Chris Anderson’s The Long Tail: Why the Future of Business Is Selling Less of More, you’re probably thinking about ways to implement his recommendations in your business. This post by Guy Kawasaki, The Wrong Tail: A Checklist for Long-Tail Implementations, is a great place to start. And if you haven’t read The…Read More
If you’re looking for new marketing talent or a new opportunity, check out Monster.com’s new marketing channel designed specifically for marketing, advertising and PR positions. When you’re hiring, you can use the specialized search function and job postings to find candidates with the specific skills you need on your team. And if you’re a job-hunter,…Read More
I received several emails about my recent post on how to improve your copywriting. Rebecca Kalajian sent me a link to the UK-based Plain English Campaign, “an independent pressure group fighting for public information to be written in plain English. We have more than 10,000 registered supporters in 80 countries.” What a great idea! We’re all…Read More
June has flown by and Q2 ends tomorrow. Did you meet your quarterly goals? And are you on track to meet your annual goals? If you’re falling short, why not spend next week (minus the holiday, of course) planning the rest of your year? Even if you’re ahead of schedule, it’s still the perfect time…Read More
A reader emailed me yesterday to ask for good resources to improve her writing. Excellent request. If you want to improve your copywriting, here’s my advice! 1. Focus! What’s your point? Stay with it! 2. Show, don’t tell. Provide examples. Your readers want proof. 3. Be ruthless. Cut any word that you don’t need. Your…Read More
We often talk about the importance of branding in B to B marketing. Every time you communicate with prospects and clients – on the phone, the web, in a campaign or a meeting – you have a chance to reinforce your value proposition and differentiate from your competitors. But it’s difficult to create a brand…Read More
Could an extra spark of creativity help your business today? This week? This month? If you don’t think your team is at its creative peak, there are plenty of simple, fun exercises that will stretch their thinking, juice up their ideas, and generate more big ideas for your business. Barbara Reinhold provides 10 quick tips…Read More
Many B2B companies are just getting started with paid search marketing. If you’re one of them, you’ve discovered it can be a great vehicle for finding prospects when they’re searching for solutions. And hopefully you’re doing a great job of converting that traffic into qualified leads and sales. You’ve probably also discovered that converting traffic…Read More
I was listening to Tony Robbins last night – is he not the most infectious speaker on Earth? And it’s so easy to apply his techniques to marketing strategies and tactics. For example, how passionate are you when you talk about your company, products, experience, etc.? Are you as enthusiastic and confident as you should…Read More
I recently added the popular Lifehacker blog to my reading list and am enjoying their posts (they recently highlighted a wiki article about how to erase a Sharpie from your whiteboard — very handy). Lee’s first tip: Get your team excited! No enthusiasm, no results. They need to have a stake in the outcome and share…Read More
If you’re in the process of naming your company or a new product or service, you’re going to invest a lot in that name. You’ll spend tangible dollars on brochures, signs, marketing collateral and stationery; there are also intangible costs like name recognition, brand equity & goodwill. Before you finalize your name, make sure you…Read More
While many B to B marketers have moved their budgets from direct mail to email campaigns, I’m a huge fan of direct mail. I use it for lead generation, lead nurturing, and customer promotions, and my campaigns run from simple sales letters to creative pieces with sizzle. A key challenge in making direct mail work…Read More