I think its hard to deny that mobile phones are here to stay. That said, have you thought about leveraging smart phones and mobile devices to expand your local marketing reach? In this post, I am going to give you a few tips that I think will help your small business leverage mobile marketing to dominate your competition.

Did you know that “smart” phone users are 60% more likely to be making more than $100K per year? Do you want more customers for your business making more money and willing to spend more money with your business?

Um, yeah. I think I know the answer there. So where do you start?

Tip #1: The first place I would start is getting your local profiles updated online. At a minimum claim your Google Places, Bing, and Yahoo local search listings. What will happen is when mobile users are using the map feature on their phone and using the mobile web browser, they will find you on their map. BUT, you have to claim your profile.

Tip #2: Create a mobile version of your website. When mobile users are surfing the web on their smart phone, you want to make sure they can see your website. This is really straight forward to do, and will cost about $300 to convert you current website to allow mobile users to be able to view and get your contact information without massive scrolling.

Tip #3: Use text messaging. This isn’t just for the teens folks. Leverage text messaging and prompt your customers or prospects to text a specific number. You can text them offers, specials, personal messages. You name it! Get creative and leverage this technology. It’s simple, intimate, and works great for most all businesses if leveraged correctly.

Ok, that’s just a start but I think if you start adding mobile to your marketing system you will be glad you did.

If you need any help getting started, email me at matt@marketfin.com

To Your Success,

Matt

I was listening to a great online training session last Friday about being more productive. One of the quotes that resonated with me was the statement that “It’s Not Your Fault!”. Not that I am promoting a lack of ownership here…

If you think about it, our entire environment is setup to distract us. Cell phones ringing, Facebook, Twitter, Email, Text Messaging, Drop In’s…

It’s amazing that we can even get one solitary thing done in a day.

From a Marketing perspective, this is important. We can have the best strategy in the world but if we don’t actual do the work, you won’t get the results you desire for your business. As Seth Godin says, you have to “ship it”.

Here’s where we get sidetracked…And hey, I’m in the same boat.

We sit down to execute our marketing strategy and we check our email, then our phone rings, a text message comes in. Then we hop on the web to check the local news.

Oh crap, 30 minutes goes by and we beat ourselves up because we didn’t get the newsletter written. We didn’t write that thank you card to a key prospect. I will say it again, It’s not your fault!

Here are two (2) tips to get more content created for your business:

1) Block the distractions. A friend of mine Monika at DIY Home Organization turned me on to a program that will help you. Go to www.rescuetime.com and check it out. It is imperative that you do this for your business. Start at 15 minutes, then expand from there. Work in bursts and build from there. You will be surprised with what you can accomplish in 30 minutes of focused and productive content creation.

2) Leverage content online for ideas to get your content flowing. Check out http://www.ezinearticles.com or http://www.goarticles.com Don’t copy the content, but use it to seed ideas for your audience. Blog posts, newsletter ideas etc..

You can do it! Get your focus back on providing timely content and execute your marketing strategy like you never have before.

Your biggest fan,

Matt

BTW – If you don’t have a “swipe” file of marketing samples, you need one..

I was going through a book called “Ogilvy On Advertising” and samples of dozens direct mail campaigns that have proven the test of time. The bottom line here is that human nature is human nature, not much has changed there. The thing that has changed is all of the marketing vehicles that we have at our disposal.

So here was my discovery…

The same marketing headlines to catch attention, create interest and desire still work like clockwork. With all of the buzz about online marketing, Facebook, Twitter and the like we often lose sight of the basics. If you are trying to re-create the wheel each and every time you are missing out.

If you want a glimpse into how the “old school” marketers approached lead generation and marketing go pick up a copy of a book called “Scientific Advertising” by Claude Hopkins. After reading this book, you will realize that not much as changed.

On to my discovery…

Here’s what I am doing right now to generate leads like never before. First off, I am going back to leveraging Direct Mail. Postcards, letters, and good old fashion print newsletter. I am leveraging proven headlines and good old fashion curiosity.

But…

Instead of having them make a phone call. I am leading them to a web page to leverage video, email opt-in, and leveraging technology to follow-up on a regular basis.

If you are not leveraging offline marketing as part of your overall marketing strategy you are missing out big time. Especially if you are a local business.

Get out there and be interesting. Merge both offline and print with the power and efficiencies of online marketing and you have yourself a winning strategy.

The key here is strategy before tactics. I know I have said this many times, but get clear this year about who you are marketing to and get after it.

Let’s make 2011 our best year yet!

~Matt

I’d like to add something extra to the promotion: support your local small business, not only on Nov. 27, but throughout the holiday shopping season. When you shop locally with Seattle area businesses, your dollars go to work in your town;  not only for jobs and business owners in the greater Seattle area, but in many cities, your local sales tax helps support essential local services such as transit, emergency services or business development. So shop small and local – and keep your money in your community!

Come on folks. Let’s support our local Seattle area businesses in a big way this Holiday season and BOYCOTT this recession. Oh wait, the recession is over right! Damn right it is.

Go figure, an unhappy prospect! I know, I know, we should be treating all of our suspects and prospects with respect, but this went a little far and has a good lesson attached to it.

So the email goes on to say that he sent an email promotion to his list of prospects that are on his newsletter list with a “Happy Holidays” promotion and discount. This prospect actually “opted-in” to his email list.

So my client is rattled. He has on prospect out of 800+ that have emailed him saying, “Please don’t send me any more of these sales emails. I am tired of being sold to and really don’t appreciate you sending me these promotionally emails all the time”.

Obviously had a bad day, no doubt. But here’s what shocked the heck out of me next.

My client asks me, “Should I keep sending email promotions to my list, it seems like people don’t appreciate it.”

And here’s where I lost it…and my response with a different name to protect the innocent.

“Hi Bob,

This is going to come across somewhat direct. That is the way I intended it.

If you are going to let one person that had a bad day stop you from achieving your goals and dreams you should go work for someone else.

I’m serious. Sales and Marketing your products and services is an honorable job. You create jobs. You support the economy.You have 1 prospect out of 800+ tell you to stop sending “sales promotions” and you want to hand up the towel?.

Don’t quit selling. Don’t ever quit marketing. And by all means, don’t let one single person or anyone for that matter get you off track. Insulate yourself from criticism and put the headphones on and keep doing what you are doing.

Your Coach,

Matt”

I bet Bob isn’t alone either. If you have a spouse, employee, friends, or families getting in your head put on the force fields.

NOTHING gets done until something is sold. NOTHING! I believe the business owner, sales person, and marketer is the most honorable job on the planet. If we don’t sell, nothing gets done.

Never stop marketing or selling. That is your number one job as a business owner.

To your success,

Matt

Well, as much as I hate to admit it…It happened again. I started the year with a well laid out marketing plan, a good strategy, and a solid list of tactics. Just as I coach and consult my clients.

Then it happened…

I started seeing some success with the strategy, engaged with a few clients, and here we go riding that “wave” again. Two months fly by and I’m sitting here revisiting my marketing plan and berating myself for not following my own advice.

I’ve delayed several core strategies and tactics that started seeing some initial success. As much as I am beating myself up, I see this with my clients all of the time. They start getting a little momentum, and a small road block hits.

They incur a small failure and the train comes right off the tracks. They stop working on their marketing. The guilt sets in and they move on to other pastures in their business.

I can say I haven’t given up, but it is time to reset. Enough berating for now.

Here’s what I am doing:

1) Re-visiting my initial business and marketing goals and revising them for the last two months of year.

2) Re-assessing the reality of what I can accomplish in the next 2-3 months.

3) Getting my core strategies and tactics back on track. Blogging, writing, etc..

As frustrating as it is, it is more important to not beat yourself up and just keep trucking on. Keep laying down your marketing system one brick at a time.

I wish I was my own model student.

Back to work…

To your success,

Matt

I remember growing up playing sports, I always had to have the number 10. That number was worth scrapping for I tell ya…

Something just felt right about that nice crisp even number 10. Well in honor of the number 10 on today 10/10/10, I had to pay tribute.

Wrapped in a marketing lesson of course.

Ok, so here we go.

The top 10 signs you need a marketing plan right now:

10.  You tell your sales team to go SELL…they continue to come back empty handed.

9.  You are starting to get a reputation as the “annoying pest” vs. the “welcome guest”.

8. You frequently get referrals from your best clients and you can’t seem to convert them consistently.

7. Your prospects ask you what you do and your response could be mistaken as your nearest competitor.

6. Your nearest competitor is “stealing” all the business in your area using the Internet.

5. Your Employees all have a different answer on why a potential client should do business with you.

4. You can’t define your ideal client in 2 sentences.

3. Growing your business is always on your New Years goals but it never seems to happen.

2. You don’t invest in marketing because you can’t define the ROI.

1. The Economy has changed forever. If you don’t have a marketing plan, you will get eaten alive.

I know, that’s probably not what you wanted to hear but it’s the truth.

The economy has changed, and if you don’t get a marketing plan and strategy together you are going to find your competitors building relationships with your prospects and leaving you behind.

The power of 10…

In honor of 10/10/10, take 10 minutes right now and get clear on the very next steps you need to take to get a solid marketing plan in place for the next 3, 6, and 10 months.

To your success,

Matt

I think as business owners and entrepreneurs we have a tendency to let our ADD get ahold of us and jump from one tactic to the another.

What I started to realize is that I need to spend more time developing each marketing “tactic” before moving on to some of the others outlined in my marketing plan. I haven’t been building each “tactic” out long enough to really maximize the results.

Glad I realized the potential now…

When I coach others I see this often. They shotgun blast from marketing tactic to marketing tactic. When that doesn’t work they move on. In my case, I have some things working now and generating leads but I am not maximizing their full potential.

Time to regroup…

My advice is build your marketing system one brick at a time and make sure you have tested, tweaked, and built some measurable results before jumping off to the next “brick” in your marketing system. I know it’s hard at times, but guaranteed to maximize your results. More often than not the tactic won’t deliver the resulst you want right away. You are going to have to test and tweak. If you don’t, you aren’t building a system.

Here’s a quick exercise that I did on vacation that will help you:

1) Take out a sheet of paper and write down all of the “bricks” or marketing tactics you are leveraging right now.

2) Highlight one (1) tactic that is generating results for your business. Determine with one with 5-10 hours you could really take it to the next level.

3) Get er’ done. Spend the time on improving this one marketing tactic in your business this week.

4) Rinse and repeat. Take the next one on the list and work on that until you have improved the results.

This is a very simple exercise. I am already getting new ideas on how to focus in and improve on areas that are already working. The good news is I am not starting from scratch which is for sure leveraging my time.

If you have a tactic that isn’t working at all, you might want to re-assess the effort and determine the return on the investment of your time.

At a bare minimum, identify one key area and “amplify” it one brick at a time.

To Your Success,

Matt

I realized this week that this is a real problem that plagues small business owners. You get so uncertain about whether an investment is going to pay off, you never actually try anything.

If that’s the case, all you have is hope. That’s not a plan to grow a business, or survive in this “new economy”.

Let’s just get this out of the way right now. FAILURE IS GOING TO HAPPEN!

You are going to make investments in marketing that won’t pay off. I had a campaign recently that failed miserably. No doubt it sucked. The good news though is that I learned something in the process. Had I not tried in the first place, I would have never had the discovery of what actually did work to generate new leads for my business.

You don’t have to accept failure, but don’t avoid it. The key here is measuring your investment.

Here are three (3) quick marketing tips to beat the fear of marketing failure:

1) Clearly identify your target. What are their needs, wants, pains, and frustrations? How does your offer address those?

2) Create a clear call to action. Add a special offer with a deadline. Create a reason to act.

3) Measure your results. If you cannot measure your results, you are flying blind. Create a custom link on your website to track. Use a specific phone number for your offer to track how many calls were made for each specific campaign.

The bottom line here is getting really clear, executing, and measuring your results. Test and Tweak!

this isn’t about throwing a bunch of money at a marketing campaign. You can start small, measure your results, then go big. But most of all, expect failure will occur, just be ready to deal with it and move on.

To your success,

Matt

So what question freaks most of them out?

It is the one question that many business owners avoid. They deliver the product or service as promised. The customer is extremely satisfied with the results of their experience, and they drop the ball.

Immediately following delivery the service and/or results promised, you need a method for asking your customer the one question that is guaranteed to improve your income as a result…

Here’s the question:

“Do you know any others that would benefit from my product or service?”

Yep, it’s that simple. If you can, follow-up and hand them a referral card or promotion they can immediately send out to their closest friends, family, and colleagues.

If you think about it, this strategy is simple. The cost is minimal, the return huge. You already spent the money to acquire your customer, you might as well leverage the relationship and expand on it. You are crazy if you don’t start doing this starting tomorrow.

So what is it that freaks you out about asking for the referral? What is stopping you from training your entire staff on leveraging this approach immediately following delivering the service as promised?

I guarantee you that if you just start asking, you will feel more and more comfortable. Besides, aren’t you delivering the service as promised? If so, what do you have to be afraid of.

Get busy and put this into motion now. Remember, solid marketing systems are built but adding one piece at a time and measuring the results.

To higher profits,

Matt