Online Incentive Marketing Strategies

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Posted on 5th July 2010 by Susan Venancio in Business Tips |Marketing |Social Media |email marketing

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Online incentive marketing strategies are an affordable and powerful marketing tool. These are the online promotional contests such as, sweepstakes, giveaways and special offers companies use to get their customer’s attention. Going online with this type of marketing is taking over; it is quick and easy for the user and cost effective for your company, saving on postage, paper and printing costs. When planned well with clear goals your return on investment (ROI) is worth it.

Online incentive marketing campaigns can be created for a small or large scale plan, something for any budget. Your promotional contest sweepstake, giveaway or special offer prizes can range from company logo items (pens/pencils) to coupons, gift cards, products and/or services and vacation destinations, just make sure that it is FREE. People love to win FREE stuff! The idea is to generate customer interest and enthusiasm. Campaigns that create a strong emotion (make your contestants laugh) will get recognized and passed along through the various channels; email and social media networks, etc.

Here are 10 reasons to plan an online incentive marketing campaign:

  1. Find future new customers
  2. Increase website traffic
  3. Build your marketing prospect list
  4. Strengthen your loyalty with existing customer relationships
  5. Immediate sales increases
  6. Company gets exposure
  7. Increases new/existing product or service exposure
  8. Increase marketing research survey response rates
  9. Improve product/services using contestant ideas
  10. Testimonial responses

This is a great tactic to generate an online buzz for whatever you decide to promote. As said before: People love to win FREE stuff! This should be a win/win. To be sure of a win/win measure your efforts. You want your efforts to get the attention it deserves. Creating a landing page or a micro site will make it easy to track your measurable desired data.

Best wishes for a successful online incentive marketing campaign. Cheers!

Market your Testimonials

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Posted on 28th April 2010 by Susan Venancio in Business Tips |Marketing |Social Media |Web Design |Web Development

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Customer testimonials have the potential to be a powerful marketing tactic for your business. Collecting letters, cards and emails of positive, believable testimonials can be put to good use to build a glowing marketing portfolio for your company. Constantly be on the look out for that positive, believable feedback. Please ask for it too! See if you can get your customer on video. Most satisfied customers would not take the time to proactively provide testimonials, so just ask.

There are many characteristics that make up a great testimonial. Use a testimonial that addresses a specific benefit &/or addresses a personal situation, overcomes objection, especially where a customer admits to it, the more dramatic, the better. It’s best to show off the detailed and specific ones, but not the overly long ones. Keep it short and sweet.

When it comes time to use your testimonials make sure you put them in a relevant place. The possibilities are endless; ads, direct mailers, brochures, Facebook, Youtube, blog, on-line business directories, newsletters, web site homepage, product page, landing pages or group your testimonials on one page. Anything else?

Remember to get written permission from your customer, quote the lines you are requesting to use and state what media form will be used. To increase your believability, include your customer’s full name, city, state, job title, company. For top rate believability use your satisfied customer’s photo and email address. That’s what I call a “WOW!” factor.

It is a little bit of extra work, but powerful advertising for your company.  You can even encourage your customers to share their success stories by offering rewards for their testimonials.

Have fun with it! Cheers!

Video Blog – Finding Time for Facebook

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Posted on 20th April 2010 by admin in Business Tips |Marketing |Social Media

Blogging Inspiration

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Posted on 13th November 2009 by Susan Venancio in Business Tips |Social Media

InspirationBlogging inspiration sometimes needs a little help. Plan ahead! When you are inspired, fill a folder with completed blog material to save for a blog blocked day. Feel inspired yet? If not, try these ideas.

  • Keep an eye on new trends. Go to Google Alerts to register to be notified of breaking news. Then create a new blog post with your unique angle.
  • Use your blog as a vehicle to push your expertise and niche. Be controversial! Look at a topic to pitch your unique angle. Your blog post could prove get peoples attention, which means traffic control.
  • Visual image is important. Post and distribute videos to related ideas, problems and solutions. People are always seeking “how to’s” and “where can I’s” to help with their inspirations. This too will generate attention, get you bookmarked for return traffic.
  • Invite guest writers to author a blog. Use other members from your company or outside experts in the field of your topic.
  • Top 10 lists – people love’m. Use this occasionally for a new angle.

Remember, ideas for your next blog post will come. Happy blogging!

10 Steps to Generate More Leads Online

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Posted on 12th October 2009 by Jose Bono in Business Tips |Marketing |Social Media

leadsIs your website a lead generation machine? The optimal way to make sure your website is producing as many leads as possible, you need to evaluate your website from the visitor’s perspective – not yours. I’ve said this before – it’s not rocket science. However, sometimes we need a gentle reminder.

  1. Establish Your Business’ Credibility – your content should speak to your passion. Visitors need to know right away your the right resource. Earn their trust with positive statements. They need an answer to their question – What’s in it for me?
  2. Respond to Online Inquiries Quickly – Visitors are expecting a quick response online, so give it to them.
  3. Give facts and Promote Benefits – State the fact and explain why it’s good for them, their business, their products, etc.
  4. Provide Information During Each Phase on the Buying Cycle – Keep your visitors informed during their research, evaluation and buying phases.
  5. Address the Pricing Question – If you don’t tell them how much, then say goodbye.
  6. Include Images of Your People – A personal touch will help. You can use your business’ Facebook Business Page for this as well. Don’t have one? Don’t know how to use it? That’s another post, but feel free to contact us.
  7. Make it Easy for Prospects to Contact You- This speak for itself. If the visitor have to click 3 times to get to your contact form or phone number, you’ve lost.
  8. Make Action Steps Obvious – This is a design issue. Seek professional help if you don’t understand this fully. Call to actions need to be very obvious. You need to put yourself in the visitor’s perspective to see.
  9. Link Actions with Benefits – Don’t just say Submit at the end of your form. For example “Let Us Help You Succeed Now” is paired with “Please Contact Us” button.
  10. Keep Your Online Forms Brief – Collect the bare minimum. You are more likely to have visitors willing to send a little versus a lot.

Questions on these and other thoughts – feel free to connect with us at 800-482-8224. Find us on Facebook at facebook.com/guavagraphics.

Source: Website Magazine

Social Network Advertising for the Small Business

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Posted on 9th July 2009 by Jose Bono in Business Tips |Social Media

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imagesHow does a social network like Facebook ( www.facebook.com ) gain so many users in so little time when you have other networks like MySpace and Friendster working so well. Simple, it represents a specific type of user base. One that’s just a bit more productive than the mySpace user, which makes it a better candidate for certain types of advertisements.

That’s where you come in… The small business, the stay at home mom or dad running a sole proprietorship, the website looking for new juice on the web. Facebook is teeming with customers and it’s easier than ever to market directly to them. (more…)

Succeed With Social Media in Five Easy Steps

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Posted on 30th June 2009 by Jose Bono in Business Tips |Social Media

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  1. Listen: Whether you or someone else in your organization does this, you need to listen to the actions on the network. You can use simple tools for monitoring and get a better understanding of what customers are saying by PAYING ATTENTION.
  2. Ambiguity is a Good Thing: Visitors will always have good things and bad things to say about your company or your products. Your concern shouldn’t be how to respond to every comment, but how to organize them all. Positive and negative responses should be welcomed and give a sense of real CUSTOMER SERVICE when you reply.
  3. Test Your Purpose: Ask five people in your organization what they think your product is all about, what it stands for. If they all say the same thing, you’re safe. If not, it’s time to rethink your company mantra and stick to it. It becomes even more apparent when you try to convey on your social networks what you and your products stand for.
  4. Influence, don’t control: There’s a reason dictatorships don’t work well with the majority. Don’t try to control the conversations, just show up and take part.
  5. Be generous: Take some of the things that don’t seem valuable to you or the company and let your customers check it out. Behind the scenes tours, samples, etc. Don’t try to hide mistakes … openly apologize on your social networks and treat them like gold. Customers really are that important=)

Guava Digest for Monday June 21

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Posted on 21st June 2009 by Jose Bono in Social Media

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Can shared interests — food, books, the Big Apple — forge a bond? – Boston Globe
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Coldplay invasion via social media – Vancouver Sun
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OUR VIEW: The social media revolution – StandardNet
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Video shows surveillance protesters bundled to ground by police – guardian.co.uk
twitter (feed #2) 9:33am Posted a tweet on Twitter.

Happy Father’s Day : http://holidays.net/father
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Social media is key for professionals in a weak economy – WTN News
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OMMA SOCIAL: MAKE MONEY MAKING FRIENDS – 6/23/09 – ADOTAS
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Early Adopting Agencies Stealing Charge with Social Media – Turk Internet
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Social Media Content Marketing Lists – SYS-CON Media (press release)
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Apple fans are prepared for a part-time Jobs – The Associated Press
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Apple Rejects Commodore 64 Emulator – Escapist Magazine
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Apple’s $30 apology for iPhone activation delays – CNET News
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Twittering Tehran Doesn’t Mean Social Media Has Inherent Value – North Star Writers Group
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Is a better screen next up for the iPhone? – Computerworld
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Behind the NRDC’s Social Media Strategy – Huffington Post

Business Is A Contact Sport

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Posted on 15th June 2009 by Jose Bono in Business Tips |Social Media

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These days, it’s all about  leads. While larger companies with significant overhead continue to adjust with layoffs and cutbacks, smaller business remain agile and busy. Gaining new customers at a lower COA (cost of acquisition) becomes even more important than ever. Contacting potentials and existing clients can be a full time job in of itself. So where does a business focus it’s efforts to gain new leads?

To help you in your lead ventures, I’ve compiled five key points that all small businesses can use. Already tried some of these? Then try the ones you haven’t yet. (more…)

Social Networks – The Rundown

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Posted on 2nd March 2009 by Jose Bono in Business Tips |Social Media

To succeed in this new social, your products and brands need to move from taking tried and true marketing tactics and retro-fitting them for the new environment. You as a business owner need to stop thinking about talk and buzz. Instead, there is an imperative that marketers engage publicly by collaborating with their audience towards a shared desired outcome. (more…)

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