5 Ways To Grow Your Business by Kelley Weir

5 Ways to Grow your Business in 2013

 

October 11, 2012 Kelley Weir   

Like the old adage says, “If your small business isn’t growing, it’s shrinking.” So we’ve put together a list of five ways to help you review your marketing goals, and make plans for growth in 2013.

1) Review your product offerings. If you have the time, analyze your sales figures from the last 12 to 18 months and figure out which business products or services are your best. You don’t have to be all things to all people. Next, look at adding complementary products or services to the mix and focusing more on your most successful products or services. If you sell leather goods, try adding waterproofing or leather conditioning products to help add a little extra in sales.

2) Sell online. According to Forrester Research, e-commerce sales grew to $200 billion in 2011. The same study also predicted online sales would continue to grow from 7% of overall retail sales to nearly 9% by 2016.¹ If you haven’t added e-commerce to your website, now might be the time to consider it. The Internet has made it easy to reach retail customers around the world—without opening a traditional retail store. Thanks to third-party processing companies such as PayPal, small businesses can accept credit card payments online without expensive shopping cart programs.

3) Offer coupons. NCH Marketing’s annual consumer survey claims 80.6% of consumers reported using coupons regularly. They also found that more than a third of respondents said they used more coupons in 2011 than during the prior year. ² And while traditional print coupons still dominate 3 to 1, the use of digital coupons has been growing. In fact, Experian Simmons reports that 22% of all U.S. adults say their household uses digital coupons obtained from email or the Internet. ³ That’s why companies such as Dex One have added the ability for businesses to offer customers digital coupons right in their online directory listings. Try testing a coupon and see if it doesn’t move your business’s needle.

4) Loyalty programs. Everyone from airlines to coffee shops has loyalty programs these days. Customers love getting rewarded for making repeat purchases. A loyalty program can be a punch card method, or giving customers money back when they buy more. When done properly, loyalty programs can improve customer retention, enhance brand loyalty, encourage repeat business and increase sales per customer.

5) Automate forms. Make it easier to communicate with your customers by adding forms to your website. Forms can help streamline customer inquiries, registrations, event RSVPs and more. Make it easy for customers to subscribe to your e-newsletter, mailing list or contact you by adding a simple form box on your homepage. It will also help you gather leads generated from your website. You’ll save time and communicate your brand to customers when you give your customers options like forms.

Keep on growing. Online tools like digital coupons and forms can help you grow in 2013. Businesses can grow when some new strategies are tested and it doesn’t take major capital investments or improvements. It just takes a little foresight and some smart planning.

Small Business Insight by Kelley Weir

Small Businesses Use Social to Find and Keep Customers

Kelley Weir’s picture

April 12 Kelley Weir

Small Businesses Use Social to Find and Keep CustomersIn the ever evolving world of social media and marketing, it’s tough for time-starved small businesses to keep pace when it comes to the best tools to reach customers. While there is no “one-size fits all” approach, a recent study done by Constant Contact shows that small businesses believe social media (60%) is one of the top three tools to engage existing customers and attract new ones.1

Here’s how to make your social media marketing a success.

Have a Goal.

The first thing every single business should think about before they embark on setting up a social media campaign is their goals and objectives. Without a clear vision of your objectives and what you want to achieve from your campaign, your efforts will be unfocused and the results will be weak and disjointed. Remember your social media efforts are a part of your overall marketing campaign so make sure your social media goals and objectives are in line with your overall marketing goals.

Seventy-four percent of consumers rely on some type of social media network to guide their purchasing decisions.2 As you grow your network on sites like Facebook and Twitter, you’ll improve your chances to reach new customers through social by word-of-mouth. For example, you can grow your network by engaging the most active users on your social site in conversations by asking their opinions and reporting back how you used their opinion to make improvement to your business. By implementing the suggestions of your customers they might be more willing to talk to others about you just because you listened.

Be Where Your Customers Are.

It’s important to have a presence where your customers are looking to interact with you and other businesses. Want to know where your customers prefer to be on social networks? Ask them. If asking isn’t an option, find out through a feedback survey or a form on your website.
According to Constant Contact, 90% of your time on social media should be spent on the networks you know your audience already use and the other 10% should be spent trying new things like Pinterest or Vine.2 Testing new waters can help you catch new customers.

Join in Conversations.

The power of social media marketing is building relationships, staying top of mind with existing customers, and helping and educating others. Social media allows you to humanize your brand and show your customers and prospects that there are real people behind your product or service – just like them. While 30% of your conversations can be about your business, 70% need to ask your social connections, “tell me more about you.” Keep in mind though; be authentic in all that you do on social, because social users are keenly aware of insincerity.

Post Relevant Information.

You can and should reuse content from other sites or connections when it’s not possible to post relevant content you’ve created. You don’t want to drop out of the social conversation entirely, so content from third parties is an option. They key is to provide content that provides value to your followers and keeps them engaged. Otherwise they could tune out or stop following you altogether. Keep in mind though, that there are rules to posting third-party content. Here is a great article on five simple tips to keep in mind: Content Curation & Fair Use: 5 Rules to being an Ethical Content Curator from Curata, a content creation agency.

Be Consistent.

How often to post is a grey area in social media circles. Do too little and followers may not notice you and post too often and they may get annoyed. But the best advice is to find the right balance of what you can handle consistently and stick to it. Start with once a day on Facebook, a couple of times a day on Twitter. Make sure to provide content your target audience will value – not just product promotions. Examine the results (response to types of posts, best times for responses) and modify your posting timing and frequency based on what you find.

What social tools do you think engage your customers most? Let us know, we’d love to hear from you.

Sources: 1 Constant Contact: Small Business Technology Pulse Survey, March 2013.
2 Constant Contact: 10 Strategies for Social Media Marketing Success, 2013.

Well, this is a new networking platform that

Well, this is a new networking platform that I am starting and it will open up a network world-wide is my vision.  It will consist of members that are business owners, entrepreneurs, as well as aspiring business owners and entrepreneurs and of course the public will eventually join this membership program and open themselves up to and trusted group of people whom have already established themselves.  This network is much bigger than what we see on paper.  I am encouraging everyone that I sent this out to get involved early because once it gets rolling prices will change and so on and so forth.     For example you have a business and you join this membership.  Well, people will be able to find out about your business around the world.  Let’s just say you were selling “hats” well, because you are a member in this network and you have a website.  All the members will more than likely do business with you because you are a member and by you posting a picture on the website that goes along with this membership, you are opening it up to this network.  Can you imagine how many hits you will receive and not to mention sales.   Let’s say you are a member and just recently lost your job, well this network is will be comprised of hundreds of occupations.  And all the members are in one of those job fields.  They may even be the owner of the company or a recruiter looking for candidates.  The recruiter will be able to post jobs within the network for a very low cost oppose to newspaper ads, and other media outlets that may be costly.  Prestige Clientele Connection will be the inexpensive conduit to connect employers with recruiter and recruiters with employees.  There will be blog spots, social media outlets links like Facebook, MySpace (fyi: MySpace is coming back) Backpage, Craigslist.  The great thing about my concept is its inexpensive- at a minimum of $15 a year at the most $95 a year for the best package.    There will be so many ways to for people to make money on this especially in the beginning stages.   So, we need more and more members….how you make money is every person you get to sign up at a $15 package you get $5.00   on a $30 page you get $10 on a $45 package you get $15 on a $60 package you get $20 on the $95 package you get $30 paid monthly.  All members receive a membership card and business cards to promote the “Connection”.  There will be a video coming soon to explain things in details.  Look out for the WORDPRESS NEWS ABOUT PRESTIG CLIENTELE….THE WEBSITE WILL BE COMING SOON TOO.

FUTURE MEMBERS, THERE IS SO MUCH MORE TO THIS, I CAN ONLY GIVE YOU PIECES AT THE MOMENT, BUT MUSIC WILL BE INVOLVED, ART, AND A MEMBER CAN RESIDE ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD.  AND YOU WILL BE ABLE TO CONNECT WITH THEM  

qpolle.com

SISTER SITE

Clothing and accessory retail site

Prestige Clientele Crest

The opportunity is yours….CREST

PRESTIGE CLIENTELE “PCCMCA”

English: Prestige-sunglasses. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

English: Paradise cove pier in Malibu, CA Español: Playa en Malibu, California (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

$95 a year (Very small investment for a “Life-time” of business success)

• One year membership listing your business in our Prestige Clientele database, where you will be searched by millions all over the world.
• Free membership card that establishes your credentials with Prestige Clientele.  (additional cards will be at a cost of $10 per card)
• Ability to connect with other members in the network system.
• You will be given the opportunity to post one (2) promotion of your

product or service to millions around the Globe (This will increase your foot traffic, website hits, and placement on various search engines.) (Additional postings will cost you five dollars ($5) per post. You will be considered a “The Green-Sponge” business owner.

One who has weathered the storm on many occasions, and mastered the management of your resources.  You may have already Made millions or on your way to reaching that financial freedom becoming “Recession-Proof”.   You are more than likely someone, whom has already accomplished his/her goals, and now looking to invest in others.  Prestige Clientele will be providing access to “free” information on how to find those potential candidates; grow your business; increase your profit margins; Identify the tale-tell signs of  market shifting before it’s too late.  We will also provide you information and coaching of implementing Lean Management Principles into your business and “maximize” your profit potential, as well as efficiency.

You will have full access to your own page on The Prestige Clientele Connection Malibu, CA (PCCMCA) network online.  You will be able to promote your business on the Main page for and additional fee (of $250 a month.)  You will be able to interchange promotions as often as you like (This promotion has to be approved by “PCCMCA”)

You will receive one(1) Free “PCCMCA” T-shirt (additional ones will be at $14.99).

All other products sold on the site you will receive additional savings.

If you have a product to sell we will post your product for sale on the site (fee will be assessed 15%-20% per item sold)

You will be considered the elite “Green Sponge” member

PRESTIGE CLIENTELE “PCCMCA”

    Prestige Clientele Connection Stage 4 Package 

 $60 a year (Very small investment for a “Life-time” of business success)

 

• One year membership listing your business in our Prestige Clientele database, where you will be searched by millions all over the world.
• Free membership card that establishes your credentials with Prestige Clientele.  (additional cards will be at a cost of $10 per card)
• Ability to connect with other members in the network system.

 

• You will be given the opportunity to post one (1) promotion of your product or service to millions around the Globe (This will increase your foot traffic, website hits, and placement on various search engines.) (Additional postings will cost you ten dollars ($10) per post.

 

• If you have a product we can post your product on one of our sister sites: http://www.qpolle.com (fee will be assessed typically 15%-20%)

 

• You will be considered a “Veteran” business owner whom has weathered the storm on many occasions, mastered the management of resources.  You are someone that already accomplished his/her goals and now looking to invest in others.  Prestige Clientele will be providing you access to “free” information on how to find those potential candidates; grow your business; increase your profit margins; Identify the tale-tell signs of  market shifting before it’s too late.  We will also provide you information and coaching of implementing Lean Management Principles into your business and “maximize” your profit potential, as well as efficiency.

PRESTIGE CLIENTELE “PCCMCA”

    Prestige Clientele Connection Stage 3 Package

$45 a year (Very small investment for a “Life-time” of business success)

One year membership listing your business in our Prestige Clientele database, where you will be searched by millions all over the world.

• Free membership card that establishes your credentials with Prestige Clientele. (additional cards will be at a cost of $10 per card)
• Ability to connect with other members in the network system.
• You will be given the opportunity to post one (1) promotion of your product or service to millions around the Globe (This will increase your foot traffic, your website hits, and placement on various search engines.) (Additional postings will be at a cost of ten dollars ($10) per post.)
• You will be considered a “Seasoned” business owner whom has weathered the storm.  Prestige Clientele will be providing you access to “free” information on how to grow your established business and information on implementing Lean Management Principles into your business and “maximize” your profit potential, as well as efficiency.

 

 

 

PRESTIGE CLIENTELE “PCCMCA”

    Prestige Clientele Connection Stage 2 Package

 $30 a year (Very small investment for a “Life-time” of business success)

 

• One year membership listing your business in our Prestige Clientele database, where you will be searched by millions all over the world.
• Free membership card that establishes your credentials with Prestige Clientele.  (additional cards will be at a cost of $10 per card)
• Ability to connect with other members in the network system.
• You will be given the opportunity to post one (1) promotion of your product or service to millions around the Globe (This will increase your foot traffic, your website hits, and placement on various search engines.) Additional postings will cost you ten dollars ($10) per post.
• You will be considered an “Established” business owner.  Prestige Clientele will be providing you access to “free” information on how to grow your own business and “maximize” your profit potential.

 

PRESTIGE CLIENTELE “PCCMCA”

 

    Prestige Clientele Connection Stage 1 Package………

$15 a year (Very small investment for a “Life-time” of business success)

Includes:

• One year membership listing your business in our Prestige Clientele database, where you will be searched by millions all over the world.
• Free membership card that establishes your credentials with Prestige Clientele. (additional cards will be at a cost of $10 per card)
• Ability to connect with other members in the network system.
• You will be considered a “New Entrepreneur” with intentions of starting your own business. Giving you access to free information on how to start and grow your own business.