Would you like to grow your FaceBook likes? Do you want more Twitter followers? Regardless of the social network you are targeting, these principles will help you grow awareness and increase traffic to your website and business.
Add Value
The number one principle is to always add value. Whether you are writing a blog post, an email newsletter, a tweet or a FaceBook post, always try to say something that would be of value to your target reader. There are a variety of ways to create value. You can provide inform people regarding current events or happenings in your industry. You can educate them about your category of product or service. Or you can provide entertainment (this is a tricky one, of course, because not everyone finds the same things funny). (more…)
Where does your business fit in the overall scheme of your marketplace? Are you the market leader? Are you the low cost leader? Do you have the most premium offering? These are just a few of the ways you can describe your market positioning. Good market positioning insures that you are differentiated sufficiently within your market and therefore have a strong platform from which to attract customers. 
When most small business owners think about marketing their business, a punch list of potential marketing activities usually comes to mind. “I need to update the web site, get a FaceBook page and maybe I should try advertising on the side of buses,” they think to themselves. This is the wrong approach to marketing. Here’s why… 
Not all web site development companies are equal. Therefore, getting a proposal from one company for all the things on your wish list does not mean that the end result will be the same as with another company, even if the proposals are similar in scope. The experience and talent of the people in each company will determine the quality of the final product. How can YOU make sure you are picking the best company for the job?
The saying “he could sell ice cubes to Eskimos” is usually said with one part envy and one part disdain. The ability to sell, whether it be your services, your company’s products or an idea is an important skill and people that do it well are often very successful. It’s one of the most essential skills of an entrepreneur but I believe it’s a skill that everyone could benefit from improving. That’s because on the most basic level, “selling” is just enrolling someone in a course of action that you would like them to take. This applies as much to convincing your family or friends to go to Cancun for a vacation as it does to convincing a prospect that they should buy from you. 
Mobile web usage is increasing rapidly. As of this writing, nearly 30% of the 4+ billion mobile phones are smart phones. By 2014, it’s predicted that mobile Internet usage will overtake desktop Internet usage. That’s a lot of users that you don’t want to miss out on. However, most smart phones will pull up your regular website, so why would you need a mobile website?
Many people feel that having a job at a good company is one of the most secure forms of income and that working for yourself is one of the least secure. I’ve always felt the exact opposite. Having a job is like having only one customer. All of your eggs are in one basket and if you mess up or if your employer falls on hard times, all of your income goes away in one fell swoop. 
Improving conversions on a non-ecommerce site should lead to more prospects which might lead to more customers. However, improving conversion rates on an ecommerce site means more money DIRECTLY in your pocket. These simple tips will help almost any ecommerce site improve sales. 
Most small businesses get by without putting very much deliberate thought into marketing. A lot of business owners will proudly proclaim that they don’t do any marketing; they get all of their business from referrals. This is definitely something to be proud of since it means they have built a business and have happy customers. That’s a huge accomplishment.
