Strategic Marketing

I gave a presentation recently on business strategy. We have limited time, resources and money and have to decide each day how best to allocate them to achieve our goals. In my talk, I focused on three things that are essential to success...both in business and in life: Motivation, Inspiration and Passion. We rarely talk about that in business...to our detriment: Good morning. Thank you for the wonderful introduction. I will try to live up to the expectations in my talk today. As I was preparing for this presentation I reflected on my life and many of the experiences that I have had that ... Read Full Story

originally posted on www.articleplanet.net/marketing ————————————————————————— 1. Post cards. Print your best small ad on a postcard and mail it to prospects in your targeted market. People read postcards when the message is brief. A small ad on a postcard can drive a high volume of traffic to your web site and generate a flood of sales leads for a very small cost. 2. Use buddy marketing to promote your business. For example, if you send out brochures, you could include a leaflet and/or business card of another business, which had agreed to do the same for you. This gives you the chance to reach ... Read Full Story

For a company or organization contracting a freelance designer is like having a full-time employee at your fingertips but without the overhead. No unemployment insurance, disability, medical or dental to carry, and no expensive equipment purchases and maintenance. Most projects are based on an hourly rate comparable to a full-time employee but you pay by the project. If you are a small company or organization tired of scrambling to find quality design help this might be the solution you need. There are virtually no pitfalls in using a freelance designer, but there are many advantages. From a client’s perspective, there is no noticeable difference ... Read Full Story

Don't get sucked into following the competition! A key in operating a thriving business is to know which outside influences to react to and which ones to ignore. As a business owner, you must learn how to identify, judge and estimate the risks to your business plan. I raced in the Goodlife Toronto 1/2 Marathon recently http://www.torontomarathon.com/ . I used this race as a training exercise for the Reggae Marathon in December http://www.reggaemarathon.com/index.php . My goal was to finish in under 2 hours and 15 minutes. I needed to see if I could handle the pace for the 26 kilometres, explore in-race nutrition and ... Read Full Story

Many people no longer use the Yellow Pages as actively as ten years ago, or even five years ago for that matter. Why? Because other media are taking market share away from the Yellow Pages.   Of all the competing media, the internet has had the most adverse affected the effectiveness of advertising in the Yellow Pages.   Despite the huge exodus of shoppers abandoning the Yellow Pages, the directories continue increasing rates year after year. That's like gas companies charging higher and higher rates for gas and at the same time only giving only half a gallon or worse, just a measly pint ... Read Full Story