by admin | Feb 6, 2012 | Blog, Promotion
If you are the owner or founder of an SME (Small and Medium Enterprise) or are the person responsible for sales or business development in any size organization then your reputation – your personal branding is paramount in your personal success and the success of your organization.
‘Brands are like people’ is an analogy often used to describe the companies they represent. Virgin is the brand built by Richard Branson and the two are hard to separate. Consumers buy into the personality of the founder and what it represents and promises.
In many cases however ‘brands are people’ – every celebrity is a brand, from Oprah to Dr.Phil, to rock stars and actors to sports people like Beckham.
Business brands take on or communicate the values of their founders. This is especially true for start-ups and new businesses, professional services firms where the names of the founding partners make up the brand names. Although this is not the best way to brand your services business this is still the dominant reality for many.
So the brands are designed and communicated by people. People, especially in services industry is who we all buy from! So it makes sense that ‘these people’ have an optimal representation of who they are and what makes them special in the place where it matters most, the place where positive perceptions are formed – online!
Your online identity and representation is made of your online assets:
- LinkedIn
- Twitter
- Facebook
- Blog / Website
- YouTube Channel, etc
The most important of these in the SME (B2B & Professional Services) is LinkedIn, and we’ll cover this next.
by admin | Jan 31, 2012 | Blog
As discussed previously, reaching your prospects and customers with your message is today the single greatest ‘cost of doing business’.
If you are a small business, selling to other businesses (B2B) or a professional services firm and even when selling directly to your customers and clients (B2C), then here are our top 11 ways of getting your message to them most cost effectively.
In my past life, when working as a media planner buyer for one of the largest advertising agencies in the country, I quickly realized that when it comes to a media budget – there is never enough money! And I am talking about big national and international brands, with tens of millions of dollars who had to quickly make choices about media channels, geographical markets, length and intensity of their campaigns.
Yet the sad truth is that most small businesses do not plan their promotional budgets with anywhere the same level of professionalism. Even more importantly, the smaller your budget the more creative you have to be with your communication as you don’t have the luxury of being able to drum in your message through the sheer weight of your media budget. And you have to be more vigilant with capturing and analyzing data to understand what works and what doesn’t.
You will notice that Social Media, the most talked about development in the marketing arena and consumer lifestyle is ‘missing in action’ as a separate point in this list. The reason is simple. Social Media Marketing is so important and so pervasive in attracting customers, that aspects of what is now deemed social media marketing should be present in each of the 11 points below!
1. REFERRALS
- Existing customers
- Influencers (who are not customers)
This of course implies that you have both a strategy and an offer / incentive to get these 2 audiences to refer business to you.
The media you use to get the message and offer to them may be made up of one or combination of the following:
- Face to Face Conversation (Personal Sales)
- LinkedIn
- Facebook
- Twitter
- YouTube
- Email
- Telephone
- Direct Mail
- Promotional Products
2. NETWORKING
- Physical – Dedicated Networking Groups, Industry Associations, Expos, etc
- Virtual (LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, etc)
3. YOUR ONLINE ASSETS (Website, Blog, YouTube Channel, Twitter, Facebook, etc)
4. SEARCH ENGINE MARKETING
- Paid Search / Pay Per Click
- Search Engine Optimization
6. PR – ONLINE
7. PR – TRADITIONAL
8. DIRECT MAIL & TELEMARKETING
9. NEWSPRINT
- Trade Press
- Local Paper
- Niche Magazines
10. POINT OF SALE & PACKAGING
- If you are a retailer or supplier then getting this right is paramount
- Window displays and merchandising in general are still under utilized by most SME’s
11. OUTDOOR
Strategically placed traditional out of home and ambient media can be very effective. Consider the following for inspiration:
- Large Traditional Super site Billboards on Freeways purchased at distress rates
- Gyms, Medical Rooms, Lifts, Cafes, Restrooms, etc anywhere where there is a ‘captive audience’
- Business Signage (outside and inside your premises)
- Make sure the medium ‘drives the message’. This means craft your message creatively to address the medium it is in. E.g.: If you have a sticker on the mirrors of all the local hairdressers advertising your Personal Training Services Business then you should be connecting the message and offer to the mirror, or to the experience of getting a haircut, e.g.: “Do you like what you see? Get your Free Fitness Assessment at XYZ Personal Training and get on the road to looking and feeling good – inside and out”
by admin | Dec 19, 2011 | Blog, Design, Promotion, Strategy
I am sure that you can put your hand on your heart and say that your new product or service is different and unique.
You have a point of difference that would convert a prospective customer in seconds. But how?
Here’s a checklist to ensure that you convert your prospective customers with the proper positioning strategy:
1. Look reputable:
- Have you got a logo that looks substantial?
- Do you have a tagline/slogan/positioning statement under your logo that communicates your point of difference?
- Does your website wow your customer?
- Is the content on your website relevant and proof read?
- Is all your marketing material consistent and themed?
- Do you have an office address and customer service number?
2. Build confidence:
- Do you offer guarantees and or warranties?
- Do you have testimonials from existing customers?
- Can you use the logos of existing customers to create instant credibility?
3. Get noticed:
- Do you have and regularly update a blog, to exhibit thought leadership and improve your SEO?
- Do you update your customers through email and LinkedIn/twitter/facebook?
- Do you have listings and or advertisements in business directories?
- How is your Google ranking?
- Do you do sponsored(Pay Per Click)advertising on Google?
- Do you regularly communicate through email and direct mail with your customers and new leads?
- Is your point of difference obvious and consistent in all your forms of communication?
To find out how we help our clients to play with the big boys, contact us now. We are a marketing agency and advertising agency, all in one and our website is full of information on brand identity and styling, content development and campaign development. By working on looking reputable, building confidence and getting noticed through the right positioning strategy, you’ll look just like a big player in your market, on a small budget. Remember ‘Perception is Reality’! We’ll help you to launch your brand successfully and maximise the return on your marketing investment.
by admin | Oct 20, 2011 | Blog, Strategy
Social Media is all the rage, it is generating buzz online and in traditional media and every man and his canine is either a self-proclaimed “guru” or is ready to hand over their hard earned dollars to someone that claims to be one!
It wasn’t too long ago that we went through the same experience with websites and everyone who was able to “get you on the first page of Google” – oh wait that is still happening today! Sarcasm aside here are some facts and recommendations that will assist you in making sense of what to do next!
DISCOVER THE THREE MOST IMPORTANT REASONS TO GET EXCITED ABOUT SOCIAL MEDIA
There is a lot to be excited about, and most small business owners, and professional services firms are getting in on the action; setting up Facebook Fan Pages, Twitter profiles and forming connections on LinkedIn.
Much of the excitement however is based on the fallacy that Social Media is free and easy, neither of which is true. However there is much to get excited about. Marketers who have been using Social Media have achieved some great results* for their brands:
- Increased Exposure – 85%
- Increased Traffic – 63%
- Qualified Leads – 52%
- Closing Business – 48%
*Ref: 2010 Social Media Marketing Industry Report – www.socialexaminer.com
Here are some more statistics that should make you excited if you are an SME business owner or a marketer working in the SME space…THE OPPORTUNITY is greater than your wildest dreams:
1. Between 40-65% of Australian SME’s still do not have a website.
The stats vary drastically depending on which research you subscribe to, however one can safely say that at least 50% still don’t have a web presence. An out of the 50% that are now online at least 90% have a website that is:
So just by having a professionally designed website that does the above you will be in the top 5% of your industry segment!
Unfortunately in 95% of cases engaging with a “professional web design agency” will not solve many of the challenges above – for this you will need to work with a marketing specialist that assist you in answering these questions. Start by downloading qubePartners Check and you will see what we mean!
2. Almost 25% of Australia’s full-time workforce now has a LinkedIn profile and almost 11% of this 2 million-membership figure, reached this week, are small business owners.
This means that 89% do not have a profile. As someone that looks at hundreds of LinkedIn profiles every day and runs both free and paid “The Art & Science of LinkedIn” workshops on LinkedIn, the 11% who are on LinkedIn do not have profiles that are optimised to “doing business” online! To see how you can use LinkedIn to find, attract and retain customers, register for our Free 1 Hour Workshop
3. This week The Age Small Business ran another article “Social Media for Small Business:
Where to Start – what was amazing about it was the Comments by the readers and the result of the Survey, which highlight that many of the readers (professional white collar professionals and small business owners) still don’t understand how Social Media fits into their Marketing landscape and hence do not see the benefits! Another massive opportunity for those that gain this understanding now – ahead of their peers and competitors!
by admin | Mar 22, 2011 | Blog
| Today, LinkedIn is the single most powerful marketing tool for professional services and business-to-business organisations. Whether you are new to LinkedIn or have 500+ Connections, if you have not used this social media platform to seriously improve your business or your career, then this is for you.
Learn More
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Date: TBA
Time: TBA
Venue: TBA
RSVP: Enquire Now
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If you have any interest in this event or have a interest in a marketing topic for an event, contact qubePartners on 03 9018 7224.
Further Information
| Benefits |
Key Deliverables |
DISCOVER HOW TO USE LINKEDIN TO GAIN EXPOSURE, ENGAGE CUSTOMERS AND GROW YOUR BUSINESS:In this 60 Minute Free Workshop You Will Discover:
- Why LinkedIn is the most powerful yet underutilized Social Media platform for Business-to-Business (B2B) enterprises and Professional Services Firms
- Why LinkedIn is the perfect marketing hub that links the top 3 social media tools in the B2B and Professional Services space; Twitter, LinkedIn and Blogs
- How much time you will need to invest into social media marketing to reap the benefits?
- How to make your message stand out and be noticed?
- What are the marketing Do’s and Don’ts of Social Media
Who should attend?
Whether you are new to LinkedIn or have 500+ Connections, if you have not used this social media platform to seriously improve your business or your career, then this is for you.
Business owners, Independent Consultants, C-Suit Executives and Recruitment Firms have all been benefitting from LinkedIn in the USA for the last 3-4 years. Flying under the radar and noise of Facebook, LinkedIn has been the quiet achiever, but now it has reached critical mass, even in Australia, with 1,500,000 members!
LinkedIn, like all other forms of Social Media is still in its infancy, yet now even students are jumping onto the channel to research employers and to get advantage in the market place. If you own, manage or are responsible for marketing in a Professional Services firms, like Accounting, Law, Architecture, Engineering, I.T., Financial Planning, etc or Industrial & Technology firms, ranging from Manufacturing to Software & Hardware then you will benefit greatly.
Marketers who are reasonably new to Social Media have been getting amazing results and you can too!
RSVP:  |
- Presentation Notes
– Who should attend?
- Increased Exposure – 85%
- Increased Traffic – 63%
- Qualified Leads – 52%
- Closing Business – 48%
(Ref: 2010 Social Media Marketing Industry Report.) |
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qubePartners runs events for clients and the SME business community to assist business owners and managers increase the return on their marketing investment:
Events and Free Workshops include:
- Brand Design and Marketing Strategy
- Social Media Marketing (focusing on LinkedIn)
- Referral Generation
- Legal and Intellectual Property
- Business Networking
Currently we are re-evaluating our events to make them relevant to your needs. If you have any interest in running an event or have a interest in a marketing topic for an event, contact qubePartners on 03 9018 7224.
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