Today we’re talking about budgets, specifically marketing budgets. Not many people get excited when talking about numbers and money, but it’s a very important aspect of business. Successful businesses have budgets that include marketing.

Let’s keep this simple. Look at what you spent on marketing last year and set aside a dollar figure for the amount you’re going to spend this year. Look critically at what worked last year and stop any advertising that didn’t work. Check your budget numbers monthly and stick to your plan. Having a budget will help you spend you’re advertising dollars wisely and prevent impulse buys. Take a good look at your marketing numbers this week and fine tune them to do even better!

For a more in depth take on creating a solid marketing budget, check out this article written by Dave Lavinsky for Forbes magazine.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/davelavinsky/2013/06/07/three-steps-to-a-solid-marketing-budget/

Thanksgiving is around the corner and it’s that time of year where giving back and community involvement seem to spike. But community involvement is vital to your business year round.

As you’ve built your business, you’ve relied on community support. To be successful, you need your customers. It’s a reciprocal relationship--your community needs your support, too. Those who support you need to see that you have a genuine interest in them as well.

What can you do to support community? Get involved. Join the Chamber. Volunteer at special events or on committees. Sponsor a local sports team. Be active and supportive! It will help you learn more about your customers and it will tell them that you are interested in the community.

It’s a win-win situation for everyone!

What are you doing to get involved?

Are you looking for ways to make your business more visible? Have you considered hosting a free event such as a Chamber of Commerce social?

Your local chamber likely schedules after hours events to encourage members to network, mingle and get to know one another. It’s an excellent way to show off your business, your facilities, and your staff. Add some refreshments and you have the perfect set-up to showcase your company. As host, make sure you welcome everyone and that your staff chats with your guests in a casual, comfortable environment. Hand over a business card at the conclusion of a conversation and you just might get a call the next day wanting to know more!

Like it or not, advertising in print material is becoming less effective because it is impacting fewer people. You can reach a rapidly growing audience with online advertising. A well-designed, effective ad will grab the attention of web users around the world. Make sure your ad is on a website that is pertinent to your targeted customers. You also want the ad to get to the point of what you're trying to sell. Link it to your own website for reasonably priced 24/7 promotion for your business. Find out more about online advertising today. The internet is here to stay. You need to be part of it.

We have talked about various forms of social media for your business, but are you using one that was created specifically for the business world? Linkedin is a beneficial tool for professional networking. You can build up a valuable contact base of people with similar business pursuits. You can also joing groups of like-minded, business-related people. Linkedin is great when used for employment purposes - both hiring and when looking for a job. Resumes can be posted and employers can list job opportunities. You can even hunt for possible employees that match your job opening. Consider making the most of your professional network. Signing up for Linkedin.com is simple and free. You can get started today.

When you were a child and drew a picture on a piece of paper, did you feel the need to fill up the entire page? Were you told it was wasteful to leave empty space? That belief may have been okay then, but it might not be a good idea for your marketing materials now. Fewer words or less design means higher impact for the words you do use. You don't have a lot of time to catch someone's attention and too many words will get lost. Only the main words will be read anyway, so don't clutter your materials with information that won't be read. Using fewer words will help you stick to the main point. Keep it simple.

Here's something to think about when planning for 2013. Many companies spend a lot of their marketing dollars talking about their company, products and services. That's marketing from the inside out. Customers would rather know about how you can help them solve their problems, make money or save time. The most effective marketing is built by putting yourself in your customer's shoes. That's marketing from the outside in. Focus on answering the needs of your customers first and then your products and services will sell themselves.

Last week we had the pleasure of listening to a great presentation by a company that is using social networking correctly and consistently as part of their marketing plan. It has made a big difference in their company – giving them an edge over the competition in the extremely competitive mortgage industry. One of the things that impressed me the most was their ability to track where their sales leads came from and how each marketing method was working for them. One of the simplest and most valuable questions you can ask your customer is "how did you hear about us?" ask them every time – Then keep track of what you hear. Tracking will open your eyes to what is and isn't working in your business. Need any help? Give us a call.