The only companies that need to worry are the ones that have been living off the systems and business models of the past. As the world changes the status quo is not too comfortable right now. So where can you make some changes?

1. We recommend companies stay as close to the money as possible, either making it or saving it. If you’re a cost line item, you may get cut.
2. Stay close to your customers. How can you be even more beneficial to your client base?
3. Look for ways of using technology to go after niches, cut costs and generate revenue.
4. Look for opportunities. If you’ve built a good strong business model, others in your industry will begin to waiver. Good employees will become available. What opportunities can you take advantage of?

Good times and bad times are just different sides of the same coin. It’s creating value in either market that keeps the world moving. Up or down, it doesn’t matter. What matters is how you’ve positioned your business in the flow of the market. And the status quo is not where to be right now.

There is a new market reality. As greater numbers of individuals, businesses migrate to the internet to communicate and conduct research, a company’s internet strategy has grown in importance. In a relatively short period of time the internet has become serious business. Websites are now more than simply internet brochures. Gone are the days of entrusting a relative or the young neighbour to build a website. It’s become just to important. Enter the years of strategic targeting and advanced internet marketing methods. Leading edge companies can now examine what search terms people are searching on and then create marketing and web strategies to capture niches.

Websites that were considered leading edge just a few years ago can now hurt a company’s business. Search Engines like Google continue to update their algorithm. Strategies that worked in the past can very well penalize a company today. They should be reviewed a minimum of once every 3 years. Well tested and Web standard compliant websites have grown in importance as new browsers like Mozilla Firefox and hand held communication devices like the iPhone and Blackberry continue to advance and grow in popularity.

Websites have entered a new market reality. One that gives them the respect they deserve.

Marketing is not an exact science. Marketing methods that worked 5 years ago might not work at all today. Some of the new technologies that are being touted as the latest marketing craze might look fancy and innovative but do they actually generate business?

A general target ROI for money spent on marketing is at least $4 in revenue for every $1 spent. As a business owner, I want only one question answered.  Is my marketing budget working for me?  Unless you measure what’s working and what’s not, how do you know where to spend that $1?

One of the most effective ways of finding out which marketing methods are working is simply to ask customers when they email or call. If you use a form on your website to gather requests from prospects, include a field asking how they found your site.

Another good way to discover if a current campaign is driving people to your website is to examine the site statistics from your hosting provider. Good providers make traffic details available to their clients.  A quick look at your traffic will help you discover if that recent ad purchased in the local paper increased your website visitors. Also look to see if there is a trend as to where the visitors were coming from. Maybe that link you put on another website is generating more than you realized.

Once you measure you’ll be able to spend more on what’s working and eliminate the ones that aren’t. Simple? Yes.  Is it done?  No.

How do you get people to actually read what you’ve written?  Burn these two important words into your brain: make it personal and practical to your target audience.  If a person doesn’t connect personally with what’s written and can’t actually use the information written, chances are they’ll click away.

And, here’s the secret. If it’s really good, chances are they might even forward it to someone else. This type of forwarding is called viral marketing, a powerful way to spread the word. A good example of viral marketing is video clips. Forward any lately to a friend or colleague?

Next time you write anything, ask yourself “Is this personal and practical to my target audience?”.

Advertising can be confusing when you’re thinking of starting a business.  Advertising can work or it can be a big waste of money. If you’re thinking of advertising once and having the phone ring off the hook, save your money. Advertising needs co-ordination and thought. Here are some quick tips to make it work for you.

• Use repetition and consistency. It takes 7 times for someone to actually notice your ad once. It may take another 7 times for them to notice it again. And, it takes noticing your ad 7 times before they’ll act if they are interested. That’s 49 ads!
• Ensure there is an offer in your ad. Offers that motivate people to act work
• The better you target the ad to an audience, the less expensive and more effective it will be. The days of advertising to the masses are over. There’s just too much battling for the consumer’s mindshare.
• Co-ordinate your advertising with other marketing efforts. For example, while your advertising is running, publish an article in a targeted publication, issue a press release about a new product or service and bump up your presence at networking events.
• Ensure you have an attention grabbing headline. People respond better to loss prevention and problems than solutions. (See headline at top of this article)
• Advertising is used for Business-to-Consumer sales. Business-to-Business products or services generally requires a traditional sales approach.
• Measure effectiveness. Put more money where it’s working.