Ask anyone in business what their plans are for the upcoming year? Chances are good that most will say, “I’m planning on taking my business to the next level”. What does that mean exactly? What measures have they taken, to achieve this goal? First off, they would have to establish exactly what the “next level” means. All of these questions need answers. Taking their company to the next level, regardless of what is meant by the term involves careful planning. I have found that every one in business LOVES to plan. They love to visualize – to dream of just…

Let’s face it. We already know that you are not going to get everything done, in terms of marketing that you should or you want to. I know…hardly a jolly way to approach the start of a new year. But that’s our reality. We’ll never get to it all. So rather than lament about what we aren’t going to get to…let’s focus on what absolutely needs to be done. By the end of THIS week, identify the one thing you could do that would have the most significant long-term impact on your business in 2008. Is it finally defining and…

It’s funny how clearly you see in an emergency. Monday morning, after about four weeks of ear infections, our one year old son was vomiting and had a nasty bout of diarrhea. All of you parents know this can spell trouble for a little kid. We were worried enough to take him to the doctor, who promptly told us that either the antibiotics or a stomach bug had caused him to become dehydrated and that he was sending us to the hospital straight away. Any time you check into a hospital they run a barrage of tests, they put in…

1) Lead found in the toys manufactured in far east plant. This has been quite a challenging year for his Chinese elves. How they correct this issue will speak volumes to brand values. 2) Are they Santa’s elves or Santa’s little people? For a time, contact with political correctness almost side-lined our industrious little friends. But the cache associated with their centuries of tireless service to children won out over the PC zealots. 3) Remember the annoying complainers worrying about the safety of the reindeers having to land on slippery snowy rooftops in the wee hours of the morning? If…

Direct mail may be a familiar option for most small business professionals. Only a fraction of them, however, leverage this medium to its full potential. The flexibility of its usage, as well the ability to measure results, make direct mail an attractive marketing tool. Perhaps you are trying to raise awareness about your products or services, or you are looking to generate new customer leads, or maybe you are simply reinforcing your message to existing customers. Direct mail campaigns can serve a myriad of strategic objectives. Here are a few suggestions to consider before your next direct marketing campaign: Begin…

When you’re a solo entrepreneur or a small-business marketer, you can’t afford to blanket the airwaves with advertising, casting a huge net with the hopes of landing some fish. Your outreach to potential customers has to be count. It has to be focused, well-targeted, and efficient. Therefore, when determining your target audience, you should ask yourself a sequence of simple questions: 1. Who needs my product/service? 2. Who knows they need my product/service? 3. Who knows their need and can afford to purchase it? 4. Who, in that last group, can I actually reach? That is your target audience. Everyone…

Do you find yourself wondering, ” What else can I do to get more business?” You know all to well how frustrating it is to pump good money into marketing programs only to realize lack luster results. Chances are good that your marketing mix is sound but your message isn’t resonating with your targeted audience. What you need is what is called a positioning strategy. Your positioning strategy refers in part to what differentiates your company from the competitors. Not only what differentiates you, but how you are going to exploit that difference to make you more money. You have…

One reviewer’s opinion of “Punching In” a book by Alex Frankel. If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to work at UPS, The Gap, Starbucks or Whole Foods? Well Alex Frankel takes us on an inside journey in his new book: “Punching In”. In 200 pages, Frankel gives you some very good honest insight into the cultures that makes these companies stand-out brands. In many ways the experiences remind me of the rash of reality shows we see on television. Corporate voyeurism at the front-line level. I found it an amusing read, quite unlike many books I’ve read…

Ok so I’ve already given you A,B,C and D…so here’s the next (hopefully!) insightful instalment into my A-Z of business. Experts. So you’ve set up in business and your probably producing a widget or providing a great service and that’s the thing you will be an expert in your given area. That does not necessarily mean you will be an expert in all areas of business, especially if you are just starting out by yourself for the first time. Still not sure what I’m talking about…? Ok when you set up a business it will be something like this -…

A number of years ago I had the privilege of having dinner with Tony Buzan the originator of mind maps. Tony has written over eight books on the mind and how to use more of it. He has coached olympic athletes, business people and even Governments to raise the intelligence level of a whole country. Lets just say he has had a positive influence on the lives of thousands, if not millions of people. During the dinner we got talking about purpose and what it means. He asked me what was mine, I said “to help people”. He looked at…