Sunday 13 October 2013

7 steps are among the most effective marketing techniques

Sevensteps are among the most effective marketing techniques in the world :
 
1. Define marketing methods and actions that will be taken customers to buy your products.
2. Determine the main benefit of your product that will provide a competitive competition in your other competitors.
3. Define the target market for your product.
4. List of marketing weapons you will use.
5. Determine your product niche.
6. Write your corporate identity.
7. Budget for your marketing.

Saturday 12 October 2013

Business News

Local technology companies to benefit from technology transfer research and development (R & D) countries, MIMOS Berhad (MIMOS) is expected to generate revenue of up to RM100 million this year through business contracts won their respective companies.

Vice President of Commercialization MIMOS, Faisal Ahmad said local technology transfer agencies to qualify before the affected companies integrate with their innovations for commercialization.

 MIMOS target acquisition contracts won by local companies reach RM100 million for 2013 after the signing of the Agreement.

So far, 46 local companies will be qualified for MIMOS technologies in various technology segments.

Friday 11 October 2013

It is true you need experience first to start business ?

It is true you need experience first to start business ?
It is very important to prevent your from bankruptcy!

Entrepreneur Tobias van Amstel, 29, said :
"I would advise everybody just to get started and fail at your first company and learn as much as you can and then start your second company," he says.

Now a days, so many business owner starting their own business without gain any experience or try to learn about business.

The worst things is when the entrepreneur starting business and the end they saddle them self with a load of debt because of the wrong way managing their business.



Thursday 10 October 2013

5 Tips to Quickly Gain the Trust of Your Subscribers By Eric Ackley

Many people go to great lengths to keep spam or junk mail out of their inboxes. However, they may welcome news of products or ideas they are interested in. These people want to or need to be kept up-to-date on their interests. They may be business, personal or hobby related, but they must have the latest info in their field of interest.
Businesses really like these types of customers. In order to get these customers, you must have them trust you. If customers trust you, they will be loyal to you and your brand.
By utilizing an opt-in email list, you can be reasonably sure your emails will reach your intended recipients. They, in turn, will be able to respond in the manner you want, making the information transfer successful. To be able to do this, you need permission-the 'opt-in' portion. To get a customer to 'opt-in', you need to gain their trust.
Getting that trust, given today's internet environment of spam and distrust, is a big achievement.
Building a large opt-in list requires trust; building a list quickly means you must gain their trust quickly. The faster you build your list, the faster word about your company or product will spread. The bigger your list, the more profit you can make.
The more trust you generate means more opt-in subscribers. More subscribers means more opportunities for responsible selling. More sales means more profit.
They key is the trust of your subscribers. 5 ways to gain that trust are:
1) Gain trust based on expertise.
People rely on other people who have skills or knowledge they do not. Be the expert in your field. Be the 'go-to' person that people turn to get answers to their questions.
2) Show your experience to your customers
Give hints or tips regarding what you are selling. For example, provide hardware use or installation tips on equipment. Give helpful articles about your product or service. If your customers see you provide quality, accurate information, they will quickly trust you.
3) Provide guarantees
With all the marketing hype on the internet, providing guarantees will provide a measure of trust. It will lowers the customer's natural skepticism about new products or suppliers.
Guarantees come in all types and durations. Some are 30-, 60-, 90- or lifetime durations. Some offer money-back or free replacement of product upon dissatisfaction. Some are 'for any reason', while others are for manufacturer's defects only.
Obviously, the stronger your guarantee, the more trust will be generated.
4) Gather testimonials from satisfied customers.
A satisfied customer will recommend you to others. A person trusts those they know; this trust is transferred to you when they refer your company or product. You must be sure to maintain your product or service quality over time, or else the satisfied testimonials will stop coming in.
How do you get testimonials? Ask the customer directly after a sale is completed, or after a certain period of time has elapsed. Publish these testimonials on your website and literature. Be sure to get your customers permission before publicizing their content.
5) Provide and easy way to opt-out
Many people are afraid to opt-in because they may be unable to quit your mailing list. Make it easy for them by providing a visible, easy method to opt-out, and honor that request.
Just remember not to lose the trust you just gained. If you promise not to sell or share their information, keep that promise. If you don't, you will lose both subscribers and their trust.

Wednesday 9 October 2013

4 Things that Make Facebook Like Campaigns Work




When we boil it all down, there are just four things that you need to succeed with Facebook Like campaigns:

1) A Well-Targeted Audience – You will be looking for “likes.” Therefore, you want
your ad to show to the most relevant audience who are most likely to “say yes,” or
“like” your Page when you ask.

2) An Attention-Grabbing Image – Your ad image is the key to getting your
prospective fan's attention. It is the image that will draw them to your ad, so that they
can read your headline and text.

3) A Logical Headline – The headline of your ad should serve as a qualifier. It helps to
establish relevance and interest to your prospective fan.

4) An Appropriate Call to Action – You will seal

Like this Tips? Share and comment.

Tuesday 8 October 2013

How To Climb In Your First Sales Job By Valeria Stephens

A good salesperson is a good people person. If you already have your first job in sales, then you probably have already proven to your employer that you know how to deal successfully with people. Moving up in to a sales management position takes more than just great people skills, however. It takes a drive to succeed, coupled with sales management training.
Make your ambitions known
Don't be shy. If you have the desire to rise in your sales career, you need to let your employer know that right off the bat. Find a mentor in your company who can guide you. Talk to other sales managers and ask their advice. They can tell you what sales training courses are most beneficial.
The right people can tell you the steps to promotion and what you need to do to get to the next level. Every company is different, so having a clear path with all the right steps pointed out is important.
However, don't be too pushy in your climb to the top. Letting your employer know your ambition is one thing. It shows that you have leadership qualities, or at least aspire to be a leader. However, making your employer think you will leave the company if you are not promoted quickly is another story. Instead, be eager to learn from senior sales people and managers you talk too. Be thankful for any help they may be able to offer you.
Stay on top of the latest sales techniques and trends
Another great career strategy is to take advantage of sales management training. Your company many already offer good sales management courses, so be sure you take advantage of any internal sales training that is offered to you.
Outside sales training courses can be beneficial too-especially to learn a variety of sales techniques. Investigate what courses are available and approach your employer about them. If your employer knows that you have ambition to be a sales manager, and that you already have the drive and the basic skills, then they will most likely invest in your future success. Sales trends change and they understand that it is important that you stay on top of them.
Train yourself too
There are other training tools you can take advantage on your own time. Do you have a long commute? Invest in a training tape and listen to it on the way to work. Read the latest books on sales too. Or investigate blogs. There are many ways you can keep abreast of the latest in sales on your own. This too, shows your ambition and drive. 
Stay focused, invest in relationships and find good sales training along the way-there are no limits to how far you will go.


Monday 7 October 2013

Sales Professionals Make It Look Easy By Rene Zamora

Developing sales professionals is what I love to do. Watching a seasoned professional in action is very exciting to me. Last week I had the privilege of doing just that. Every gesture, comment, question or conversations lead the buyer toward an informed and intelligent buying decision. It was all done with grace, ease and confidence. Let me share what I found most important during the demonstration appointment I observed.
The SP was working with a current customer who was looking to upgrade their phone system and was shopping around. The discovery process had been done earlier and now it was time for show and tell to flush out more needs and concerns. The SP had invited her sales engineer along to lead the demonstration and address any technical questions.
Here is a list of practices the SP did during the demonstration worth mentioning:
Have a goal in mind: Before going into the meeting a sales goal was stated. "We need to show him the benefit of utilizing his existing hardware with some upgrades to meet his objective."
Confirm Understanding: The first thing done was to review a "written" document outlining the goals and priorities of the customer for the system to be demonstrated. The customer was given the opportunity to confirm or modify at this time.
Set Expectations: An agenda of the demonstration was outlined so the buyer understood the purpose of the meeting. This also allowed the buyer to request a change to agenda or request to cover points of "their" interest.
Keep proposal a "Work in Progress": The SP had prepared a proposal in case all things lined up the way she anticipated during the demo, but also left room to make changes. She informed the buyer that many times different needs or wants arise during a demo, so it was best to wait until the end of the meeting to see if the "Work in Progress" needed some tweaking. KEY PIONT - Always be prepared but don't back yourself into a corner.
Use the power of your Sales Engineer: A good sales engineer who can speak "Tech Talk" and English can be a great asset. Buyers listen to engineers more openly than they do with sales people. The SP allowed the sales engineer to run the demo. She did not override the engineer or create any cross in communication. Unity was always presented to the buyer.
Flush out Competitors Advantages: This was my favorite part. The SP asked who else they were looking at and the buyer was open with his answer. At the conclusion of the demo the SP asked the buyer what he saw in the competitive systems that they had not seen with theirs. He had an answer and so did the SP. The SP had the engineer demonstrate the feature the buyer was looking for and removed the competitor's advantage.
In addition the SP did all these basics:
  • Confirmed buying time-line
  • Asked about other buyers and what the buying process involved
  • Asked about the dollars budgeted for this project
  • Reviewed every page of the proposal so the buyer understood what was included and could use the contents to sell other buyers the SP would not be able to reach.
  • Confirmed buyer's acceptance of ballpark cost of system.
  • Confirmed the next step toward closing deal.
  • Left on a positive note and was off to next appointment.
  • Adequately informed the Sales Engineer to the sales situation prior to the appointment.
  • Was well educated on her products and services.
Apply these practices in your meetings and you will be on your way to being a Sales Professional and earning top dollars in your field.
If you are a manager or owner, creating a sales process that includes many of these steps is important to realizing consistent desired sales results.


Sunday 6 October 2013

3 Factors That Devalue Your Business By Tiana J Wilson-Buys

Thinking of selling your business? Maybe you are just feeling the need to move on to something new, or you might want to retire after running your business for many years. Whatever your motivation, the sale of a business can be a long, complicated and emotional process if you are not properly prepared.
It is estimated that 10-15% of the UK's 3 million businesses are looking to sell or change ownership at any given time. The sad fact is that only one in 10 businesses that go to market will actually end in a sale. To give your business the best chance of a successful sale, at a fair price, you need to ensure that you avoid all factors which could potentially devalue your business.
Non-Confidentiality
The sale of a business can often take longer than a year to complete. Openly disclosing the fact that it is in the market can have a detrimental effect on the business. Suppliers might get nervous and doubt the strength of the company's cash flow, resulting in a reduction of credit lines. People in general have a tendency to expect the worst and your customers are no different. They might think your business is in financial trouble resulting in decisions to rather "jump the sinking ship" before it is too late - thereby taking their business elsewhere. The same can be said for employees. You do not want to find yourself in a position where most of your key employees leave the company before the sale is concluded. Confidentiality is vital for the successful sale of a business.
Changing the way you run the business
Once the decision is made to sell your business, don't stop what you are doing. It is easy to fall into the trap of leaving issues to be sorted out by the new owner. This can result in the sale of the business falling flat shortly before completion. Buyers are most critical of your most recent activity so don't cut back on marketing or customer care. Run the business as if you will still own it in another five year's time. Run your business in the same manner as you did when you built it up to be the successful venture you went to market with.
Taking out too much cash
If you own a cash business, it could be tempting to take out cash which you do not declare. Apart from the legal implications of this action, it also affects the value of your business. In effect you declare that the business turns over less than it does in reality, which means your profit is reflected as being lower than it is. Since the value of a business takes into account the turnover and profit, taking undeclared cash out will have a massively negative impact on the value of your business.
Making the decision to sell your business a few years before bringing it to market is a good idea. This gives you the time to ensure profitability is at a maximum and provides for the time to plan the sale carefully, avoiding all factors which could potentially devalue your business.


Saturday 5 October 2013

Keep Your Customers Close By Kim L. Clark

Adopting customer-centric business practices is now THE survival strategy of choice for solopreneur consultants. Particularly for service providers, the battle to escape the dreaded label "commodity" is on. No one can afford to be just another replaceable face in the crowd. The "me, too" era is over.
To keep customers coming back for more, solopreneur consultants are compelled to consistently demonstrate unique value to clients and prospects. It's the best way to stay ahead of the competition and increase the chance that you are at top of mind when projects arise or referrals are made.
While providing top drawer service that meets or exceeds customer expectations is a given, another important mission is to evaluate business practices from the sight line of the customer---from the outside, looking in. It is useful to assess the experience that customers have when doing business with you.
To make that happen, find out all that you can about what really brings customers both to your door and to the doors of competitors. What assumed yet unspoken expectations do they have? What alternatives exist that might allow them to achieve their objectives without you? How easy, or cumbersome, is it to do business with you?
Your website plays a role in this process, especially in an online business, or a business where prospective customers typically visit the web when in search of information about your category of business. Invest in responsive design for your website, so that the site will be easy to read on smartphones and tablets.
Sign up with Foursquare, GoogleMaps and Yahoo Local to help prospective customers find you. Algorithm-friendly long tail key words will give your web presence a boost and help to bring your business to the first page of the search.
Your website should promote and reflect your brand well. Display core products and services prominently, along with information that will answer frequently asked questions and make it easy for the customer to get on the road to doing business.
Keep time-sensitive material updated, e.g. your list of speaking engagements. Allow interested parties to read your blog or newsletter directly from your website and also sign up to receive new issues or posts. Present a website that is easy to read, is not text heavy, contains an appealing call to action and is easy to navigate.
Wherever appropriate, leverage social media tools to provide additional communication channels for your customers. 2.0 is not only for communicating your brand and message, but also for letting customers holler back and dialogue. Another method to get the heads-up on customer priorities is through an online survey. A brief, well-designed survey will elicit useful information and may shatter a few illusions.
A thriving business is built on the customer: retention, satisfaction and growth. The products and services provided, how these are delivered and the price charged are all based on what customers need and accept.
To keep the cash flowing, stay current with customer priorities and learn their thoughts about what your business does well, what competitors do poorly, what you can offer to make customers' lives easier and what they would be willing to pay to acquire that ease. Freelance solopreneurs who solve those mysteries will create for themselves a good business.


Friday 4 October 2013

Work at Home Job Versus Work at Home Business By Robin M Hoopes

The use of the internet has opened up opportunities for people to start businesses at home or to have a work at home job. Even though these types of opportunities are available, people still remain cautious when taking these types of opportunities seriously. The risk involved in working from home is not knowing if the company is legit or if someone is scamming you out of your money. There is a huge difference between a work at home business and a work at home job.
Work at Home Job- A work at home job is when a person is working from their home for someone else. Examples of work at home jobs would be call center positions, administrative work, data entry, etc. With these types of opportunities there should be no up front cost. If the opportunity clearly states that the position is a job, where you will be working for a company and they require you to pay them money, then it is a scam. You should never pay for a work at home job.
Work at Home Business- A work at home business is where you are running your business. You decide when you want to work your business, how you want to market your business and what type of advertising techniques to use. With the use of the internet, many companies, usually direct sales companies, can offer a partnership with you to have your own business. With these types of opportunities you are paying an up front cost or a monthly cost. This is normal for a business. The money you are paying the company is letting you use their logos, products pictures, product information, etc. in any way you choose to advertise. You are not working for the company, you are partnering up with them. It is the same if you have a brick and mortar store; you are ordering products from a company to sell in your store. With direct sales companies it is the same thing you are selling their products.
Do your research on any opportunity that comes your way. A work at home job is not the same as a work at home business. Read all the information on the opportunity and contact someone from the company to ask questions. You never have to pay for a job, but you will have up front costs and you may have monthly costs as well when running your own business. There are great opportunities out there you can do from home. Step out of your comfort zone and take a risk; you may be surprised at the results.


Thursday 3 October 2013

Network Marketing - The Ripple Effect System By Brandon Barclow

Network marketing, often times called multi-level marketing or MLM, is an awesome business model which allows almost anyone to build a business. The basic premise about an MLM business is word-of-mouth advertising. A person recruits or enrolls other people to use, market, and promote products.
A key ingredient to a healthy network marketing organization is a solid system. A system refers to the cycle of activity that a person goes through to be successful. This system has to be simple and very duplicatable. Although you may be gifted and talented to recruit 100 people in an hour, those 100 people won't be able to do the same.
The Ripple Effect System
The Ripple Effect System was designed in 2013 by Marshall and Ruby Gordon, professional network marketers with Unicity International. The system was developed out of a need to create continuity throughout their organization. The idea is that 1 person recruited today will be able to duplicate themselves with little effort.
Highlights of the Ripple Effect System are:
Prospecting - In network marketing, prospecting is key. Network marketing is for everyone, but everyone can't do network marketing. Under the Ripple Effect System, prospecting is taken very serious. You don't go after everyone you know.
Inviting - The first "person-to-person" activity is inviting. You want prospects to simply take a look. So if the invitation is not sound, you could lose them. Within Ripple Effect System, each partner is provided with a very simple invitation script that can be used over and over again.
Presentation - The 3rd step in a solid system is the presentation. This is the prospect's initial look. The System utilizes 1 tool for presentations. A live webinar hosted by Marshall and Ruby Gordon. This is ideal because no one in the organization has to ever present.
Follow Up - The webinar is very powerful and makes a very compelling case for network marketing. After the initial presentation, most prospects will need a 2nd "touch, and most will call the partner back wanting more information. Everyone in the organization has the information needed to answer the questions.
Getting Started - This is probably the most important step. New partners are fresh and fired up. You want to get them started right away. A delay could cost you a business partner. So the Ripple Effect System equips the partners with the tools that they need to get their partners started fast. There is no delay, and a partner can start the day they sign up.
The Ripple Effect System is a remarkable system which has created dynamic businesses. The idea is take all of the "heavy lifting" out of the hands of the partners. So 70 to 80 percent of the work is done for you.
If you are thinking about joining a network marketing company, you want to make sure that you don't do all of the work. A system should be in place to do it for you. Otherwise, you'll have a part-time job!


Wednesday 2 October 2013

Using Big Data to Understand Customer Behavior By Traci Chu

Do you know what drives your customers' behavior? More specifically, do you understand the impact each marketing investment you make has on your customers' incremental buying behavior? Intuitively, you know this is a complex equation that depends of both the type of marketing treatment that reached the customer and how much time elapsed between the marketing treatment and buying event.
Unfortunately, until recently, you have been handicapped by a lack of tools of analyzing customer behavior. Hence, as marketers, we typically rely on simplistic methods for aligning marketing activities with sales results. Techniques that we intuitively know are wrong: crediting "last click" with most or all of the order value, evenly splitting credit amongst all marketing treatments within a timeframe, arbitrary rules (often based on the opinion of the most powerful person in the room) for allocating order credit to various marketing activities.
Enter Big Data
With the advent of big data, it is now possible to analyze all your marketing activity, every email, every web impression, every click and more, to build a holistic picture of how marketing impacts customer buying decisions. Analyzing this data will quite naturally lead you in the direction of advanced statistical techniques, perhaps exposing you to terms like "survivial model" but fear not, with current technologies, this brave new world is now accessible to you without needing a PhD in statistical methods!
Tip #1: Embrace complexity... your customer isn't a simple animal!
As leading marketers learn to "let the data do the talking", they are often surprised by the results. Intuitively, we all know that much of a customer's decision to purchase a particular product or service is beyond our control (for example, I'm going to buy flowers on Valentine's Day regardless of who does or does not market flowers to me). This realization that marketing isn't 100% responsible for a customer's buying decision (or even 150% in those organizations that double-count sales as an attribution technique) can be a big scare for some marketing organizations. Naturally, a model is only as accurate as the data you give it so be as comprehensive as possible when thinking about what data to look at. This will lead to a more accurate model and a better understanding of your specific customers. Be prepared for some surprises - not everything you have been doing will look positive under this new light, but savvy marketers understand that improvement can only come if they are willing to change. Avoid defending the status quo and be prepared to look at your marketing investments in a new light.
Tip #2: Trust your data and your model
Armed with a new understanding of your customer, it's time to look for results. Remember, information can lead to insight but only action can lead to results. As marketers, we all know that results are what matters. Models that explain the past can give us the information critical to gleaning new insight about our customers. However, models that help us predict future behavior can drive breakthrough results. Leading marketers understand that trusting your data doesn't mean betting the farm on some new fangled modeling technique. They combine the recommendation from new predictive models with classical techniques and A/B testing to accelerate the adoption of advanced attribution modeling inside their organizations.
Tip #3: Don't settle for a rear view mirror approach to modeling customer behavior; insist on actionable information that you can put to work to drive results for your organization.
Most marketers still use outdated attribution methods to divvy up orders, but don't know how to apply their learnings going forward. The bottom line is that big data and advanced statistical techniques now offer all marketers a level of sophistication that was previously available to only the largest of organizations. With these new tools, marketers can identify the right customers to contact in the channel that each customer is most likely to respond to at the right time for the customer.
Accurately measuring marketing effectiveness has important implications for a company. DataSong's patented approach is actionable and accurate by modeling behavior at the individual consumer level. http://www.DataSong.com

Tuesday 1 October 2013

The New Marketing Method, Relationship Building By Paul Harvie

Relationships are key.
In today's online business world there are a lot of things that a marketer has to be wary of, and keep a handle on. Every day they sit down at their computer and start to send out ads, set up email copy, write articles and work on growing their reach as a marketer. It is an exciting time to be an internet marketer, but there is something that needs to be considered in today's market economy.
Long gone are the days of anonymous marketing, and being a faceless email address that expects a person to open their wallet and fork over their limited hard earned cash. It's not like walking into a department store. It's true you don't need to know the person who is taking your cash, but you need to trust the brand of what you are buying, and you need to be able to trust the store you are shopping in. The key word you need to remember in today's market economy is TRUST.
If your list of email subscribers doesn't know who you are, then there is NO way they are ever going to fork over their cash to you. I am not referring to your Facebook persona or your Twitter persona. Those, as I have referenced in another article I wrote, are persona's that are far from real. If you want your list of subscribers to open up their wallets to you, you have to let them know YOU, the REAL you. I deal with several very well known internet marketers and the reason I trust them is because I have had one on one, real conversations with them. I know that they are real people, and I know I can count on them.
The other thing you have to do for your subscribers is provide them with value. If you are just hammering them with emails trying to sell them something you will soon realize that you are not going to make any money from these people. You are not going to get them to pay you for anything if you don't offer them something real and tangible in return. This was a lesson that took me a while to learn. I have recently learned this lesson thanks to those marketers I mentioned above. I have figured out that having something of value to offer my subscribers goes much farther to build a relationship with them. It also grows trust so that when I offer them something that costs money, they are more likely to buy it.
In learning this lesson I don't even offer to sell my leads anything in the first few emails of any email campaign. I offer them free gifts that will help them in their goals, and bring value to their lives. I even show them ways to make money for themselves without signing up under me for anything. This builds a rapport with my subscribers, and if they ever reply to an email campaign I am sending, I send a personal reply. This also works to build their trust in me, showing that I am a real person and I am interested in their lives.
The point to take away from all of this is that it is important in this day and age of marketing that you need to work on building a relationship with your leads. I also recommend that you start to offer them valuable advice and even valuable free products. As you finish reading this, start to think of ways you can build relationships with your leads!
I hope you have enjoyed this, and will share it with your friends, please also check out my resource box and head over to my blog for more great tips!