Many small businesses have long enjoyed Twitter’s free ability to connect with customers. Now a Nielsen study shows that promoted tweets can bring social media marketing to the next level with increased engagement, brand lift and message association. But if you’re on a limited marketing budget the big question to answer is whether stretching your reach is worth stretching your dollars. What are Promoted Tweets? According to Twitter promoted tweets are just your everyday tweets bought with … [Read more...]
How to Use Big Data in Your Marketing
May 7, 2014 by
By 2015, companies will spend nearly $17 billion on big data technologies. Are you wondering if big data has any place in your small business—or are you not quite sure what big data actually is? Big data is about collecting, analyzing and utilizing business and consumer information to better target your market and increase sales. Fortunately, you don’t have to be a big business to collect and analyze volumes and volumes of data. If you haven’t been in business long enough to collect that much … [Read more...]
Secrets of Writing Effective Email Subject Lines
April 16, 2014 by
If you believe you’ve mastered the craft of writing SEO-rich headlines, congratulations are in order. But if you’re trying to write email subject lines that get your emails opened, that’s another animal. Unlike SEO, you're not trying to get to the top of any rankings, but you still want to be engaging and personal. Here are three subject line tips to increase your email marketing open rate: What’s the big secret? Actually, “secrets” is one of the most-clicked, most lead-generating subject … [Read more...]
How to Profit from a Buy Local Campaign
January 9, 2014 by
Buying local is, once again, a prominent theme in the 2014 Culinary Forecast from the National Restaurant Association. And with Small Business Saturday celebrating its 4th successful “Shop Small” campaign (consumers who were aware of Small Business Saturday spent $5.7 billion with independent merchants on the Saturday after Thanksgiving in 2013), shopping locally is a hot trend. For consumers, spending locally keeps tax revenues in their communities and leads to booming local economies. … [Read more...]
Marketing to Millennials: How to Sell to Gen Y
December 31, 2013 by
If you aren’t between the ages of 18 and 34, you might feel a little lost when marketing to this group of fulfillment-seeking, digitally-social consumers. But you better figure it out: Millennials (or Gen Y) are the largest generation in the United States, larger even than the Baby Boomers. They are projected to have more spending power than any other generation as well—$200 billion annually by 2017, and $10 trillion in their lifetime. Here are three ways to reach this powerful market: 1. … [Read more...]
Tips for a Profitable Small Business Saturday
November 15, 2013 by
Finally there’s a day to celebrate you, the small business owner. Actually, Small Business Saturday has been around since 2010. Started by American Express and falling on the Saturday after Thanksgiving every year, the day was created to drive awareness of and customers to small businesses. The day’s purpose is to remind consumers to “Shop Small” at local, independent businesses instead of in big-box stores. Even though Small Business Saturday is November 30, you still have time to make some … [Read more...]
Are You Playing Catch-Up with Your Holiday Marketing?
October 10, 2013 by
If you haven’t started planning your holiday marketing strategy yet, and are worried that you’re behind, you’re right. Take a look around and you’ll notice most businesses large and small have already initiated some kind of seasonal marketing plan. Most hiring managers who plan to hire seasonal help are doing so this month and, if Deloitte is right, this holiday season will see retail spending rise between 4 and 4.5 percent compared to last year. So where should you concentrate your holiday … [Read more...]
