Monthly Archives: April 2006

Automate Your Internet Business

Posted on by

What should you start to do then? Follow these as a start:-

1. Build Your Opt-In Lists
If you want to stay in internet business, then you must really build your own targeted opt-in subscribers. Remember this basic yet critical rule by hard. But you don’t have to scratch your head hard. This can be achieved quite easily by using auto-responder system that helps to sequentially sending out a planned series of email messages to your beloved opt-in subscribers. So, what you need to do is to entice your website visitors to subscript by giving them some valuable products or service in return. Repeat these consistently by setting this process to run even without you having to look it again. That’s our goal here — Automate it.

2. Setup an Ezine or Newsletter.
Setup your very own ezine or newsletter and start collecting emails. It could be a simple and short training course, or an ezine that you would publish weekly or monthly. The important preparation is to create about 8 or 9 messages prior begin to accept subscribers. By doing this, you’ll always be several steps well ahead of the online strategy. Commonly, publishers send it on weekly basis, with their mailings that’s several days apart to keep subscribers afresh. You should keep in mind that you need to allow your subscribers a chance to digest the information.
Continue reading →

Media Report: Blog, Podcast and RSS Advertising Outlook

Posted on by

Combined blog, podcast and RSS ad spend by the end of 2005 totaled $20.4 million, a 198.4 percent increase over the 2004 levels for user-generated online media – and is projected to climb 144.9 percent in 2006, reaching $49.8 million, according to a new report, “Blog, Podcast & RSS Advertising Outlook,” from PQ Media. Total spending on user-generated online media is forecast to grow at a compound annual rate of 106.1 percent from 2005 to 2010, reaching $757.0 million in 2010.

The blog ad market is the largest of the three, at $16.6 million accounting for 81.4 percent of total advertising in 2005, followed by podcast advertising at $3.1 million and RSS at $650,000.
Continue reading →

Your Business Credit Profile

Posted on by

You can start building your business credit even before opening your doors for business. Your first step, if possible, is to establish your business as a separate entity in order to separate your business credit profile from your personal credit profile. This means you want your business to be structured as a corporation (a Limited Liability Company, or LLC, is most common for small businesses).
Continue reading →

European stocks give up week’s gains

Posted on by

European stock markets gave up most of the week’s gains in the space of a few hours on Friday, as markets went into profit-taking mode after an initial benefit from U.S. jobs data.

The French CAC 40 index dropped 0.9 percent to 5,174, the German DAX 30 index weakened 1.3 percent to 5,952 and the UK FTSE 100 dropped 0.3 percent to 6,026.
Continue reading →

Your Ideal Client? A Key Concept Small Business Marketing

Posted on by

“I don’t know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody.”–Bill Cosby

Have you ever had clients that were more trouble than they were worth? Maybe they were always late to pay, or didn’t do what they said they’d do. Maybe you just had a personality clash, or they expected more than you were able to offer. Whatever the situation, chances are you had an inkling when you first met that client…a tiny voice that you didn’t listen to, that was probably overshadowed by the bigger voice that said, “Hey, it’s business; I’ll take it!”
Continue reading →

Small Business Marketing Secrets

Posted on by

You’ve heard marketing and advertising gurus quip, “Sell the sizzle, not the steak.” Advertising initiatives best reach their target audience with benefits and the “wow” effect, not the value or features of their product or service. This may work well to get customers in the door. But once they’re in, you better have some substance. How can you ensure you uphold the integrity of your business and still maintain the “Wow Effect”? It just takes well executed strategic steps for business AND personal development:
Continue reading →

Using Technology to Manage Customer Loyalty

Posted on by

Don’t let your customer satisfaction research initiative collect dust on a shelf. Integrate technology with research to optimize the use of customer information.

The typical company spends 80% of customer research time and effort gathering information, and only 20% of that time using it. Companies conduct research to gather information, but it is only useful if it can be turned into positive action.

In the audio book, “Sound Advice on Customer Loyalty,” author Steve Walker suggests that integrating technology with research lets companies act on customer feedback intelligently everyday, translating into more loyal customers, and more profit at the bottom line.

Walker outlines three key applications of technology that help make customer research more effective.
Continue reading →

Business and Climate Change News

Posted on by

Seems to be quite a week for this… Earlier in the week, I pointed to the op-ed by airport executive Mike Clasper arguing for carbon taxes in the UK. Something similar was going on in the US, according to a Grist story this week: companies ranging from GE to Duke Energy to Wal-Mart were arguing for a carbon cap-and-trade system in front of Congress. And at Marketwatch.com (via Sustainable Log), columnist Thomas Kostigan makes a strong case for green business practices, including on of my favorite points:
Continue reading →