.: Dean Mercado Profile and Articles
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1). Networking for Success: The 3 Phases of Small TalkIn my mind, small talk basically consists of 3 phases:
The ice breaker
Get to know you better
Graceful exit
So let’s go ahead and briefly touch on each phase and in turn give you some concrete takeaway strategies that you can apply immediately for each.
Phase 1: The Ice Breaker
So you attend a networking event… you make eye contact with someone you want to meet, you approach them and introduce yourself… now what?
Well having a few powerful, open-ended ice breaker questions should certainly do the trick.
2). 7 Reasons You Need to Market with Articles Now
Looking for a simple way to get an edge on your competition?
Successful businesses who are in it for the long haul continually apply innovative marketing strategies and tactics to differentiate themselves and get that edge. Two such killer marketing strategies are positioning and relationship building. And guess what? Article marketing is a proven tactic that just happens to address both of those marketing strategies.
3). Dare to Be Different: The Evolution of an Ezine
As a marketer, and for the record, I do believe that we are all full-time marketers; I am always looking for ways to connect more regularly with and add value to my target audience – I want top-of-mind awareness for myself, my business and my offerings.
Now for years, I’ve known that publishing my very own newsletter would be an optimal way to do that and more however, as an innovative marketer, I kept coming back to the fact that there are already a ton of newsletters out there – and some of them are excellent.
4). 9 Marketing Credos for a Thriving Business
1. Differentiate or Die! You Must Stand Out From the Pack. Don’t become another “me too” option for your prospects to choose from. When you allow this to happen, you position yourself to compete only on price – a tough arena to play in.
2. You Are in Two Businesses... The Business of DELIVERING Your Products and Services AND The Business of MARKETING Them.
5). Internet Marketing: 7 Killer Tools You Can Use On A Shoestring Budget Without Having a Website
When most people think of Internet marketing, they think solely of websites. Are they right or wrong? Well both. While websites are a key component of Internet marketing and in many cases are the only Internet marketing tool businesses use, they are not the “be all, end all”. They are not required for Internet marketing. However, I do highly recommend them as they are best suited to sit at the core of your Internet marketing plan, the hub so to speak, but that’s a topic for another conversation.
6). Internet Marketing: 10 Deadly Sins of a Poorly Designed Website
Face it. There are tons of websites out there but very few that actually pull their weight and get results. Effective website design is not easy. If it was, every business that put up a website would realize enormous success. It takes many different skill sets to pull together a killer website.
That being said, here is a list of website design sins for your edification.
7). Differentiate or Die - 3 Keys to Eclipse Your Competition
Quite frankly there are very few ways to really differentiate yourself from your competition. You make a great product, so do they. You provide top-notch customer service, they do too. Worse yet, there’s probably a competitor out there that already plays a bigger and better game than you. So what can you do about it? Well, here are 3 keys you can start applying immediately to differentiate and separate yourself from the pack:
Positioning.
8). Sell Your Successes: 3 Techniques That Can Lower Your Marketing Costs & Energize Your Business
I attended a seminar the other day at a local trade show and one thing that they mentioned almost in passing that inspired me was the critical concept of “selling your successes”.
Hmmm… “Sell your successes” – What could that mean?
Simply put, when you walk the talk, talk the walk. Adjust your marketing and sales conversations and materials to reflect how your product or services helped someone achieve what they wanted.
9). Jumpstart Your Marketing With The “Rule of 5”
Let me ask you and be honest with yourself here, are you getting the results you want in your business? If you are great, this message will be helpful in getting you to the next level. If you’re not, don’t worry, it will certainly put you on the right path.
Now I’ve read the studies too that state the lack of capital as the main reason most small businesses fail however, I’m going to go out on a limb and say that although I can’t prove it, I believe one of the biggest reasons business fail or underachieve is due to lack of effective marketing.
10). Fear of Failure: For a Marketer, It’s the Kiss of Death
Susan B. Anthony was once quoted as saying “Failure is impossible”. And you know what? I believe she was right because regardless of the outcome of whatever action you take, in anything you do, you always gain something from taking action.
On the other hand, fear of failure typically shows up as procrastination or inactivity which is the complete opposite of what fosters great marketing which for most of us requires properly targeted consistent and persistent action.
11). Internet Marketing: 5 Reasons Why Your Business Must Have an Online Presence
The Internet has officially changed the face of business and in case no one has done this for you already, let me be the first to formally welcome you to the “Information Age”, or should we call it the “Internet Age”.
The Internet is simply not a fad or a flavor of the week. It is the real deal and it is here to stay. It may morph in one way, shape, or form however, it is here to stay and the most successful businesses are taking advantage of it.
12). Marketing: Your Brand Is About More Than Just Good Looks
First let’s clear up a common misconception of what a “Brand” really is. A brand is more than just your company’s name or logo. It’s more than just a particular type of product you offer such as Q-tips brand of cotton swabs. It’s more than just the look of the packaging of your product. In a nutshell your ”Brand” is the culmination of everything your prospect’s 5 senses can pick up on about you.
13). Warning: ‘Casual Marketing’ Leads to Business Casualties
Let’s start out by defining exactly what ‘casual marketing’ is. In a nutshell, it’s trying a marketing tactic once, maybe twice, and when you don’t see immediate or expected results, you drop that marketing tactic and either try something else or worse yet don’t do any marketing for a while – hoping clients will just magically appear. This is the old “build it and they will come” disorder.
14). Secret, Yet Powerful Marketing Weapon Revealed
So you’ve tried direct mail, advertising, you’ve got a web site, maybe you’ve even tried networking as a marketing strategy. These and many other marketing strategies are all good and if performed properly will most likely bring you favorable results. A word to the wise here though, some of them can run you a fortune in marketing costs. And in my experience, cost has a lot less bearing on effectiveness than one would like to believe.