Infographic: How Small Businesses use Software to Manage Contacts

We surveyed small businesses across the U.S. to find out how they manage contacts, and what they do with them. Read our full findings in the new whitepaper under Featured Articles.

What You Need To Get Right On Your Website To Generate Leads

Ways To Generate Leads

1. You need to develop online offers - Something of value. Not a free consultation. We are trying to get as many people in the sales funnel as possible. We want a soft yes. A free consultation (A.K.A. sales call) is a hard yes. What can you offer that will educate your target market as to why they should be buying from you instead of your competition. Explain the apples AND the oranges.
2. Online offers become lead bait - Lead bait could be industry specific case studies, whitepapers, buying guides, etc. The Headlines to these pieces of lead bait are key! Take your time on lead bait production and it will pay off down the line over and over.
3. Lead bait allows you to educate your prospects - Lead bait collects the contact information and when you have the contact information your triggered educational email/direct mail campaigns can begin. Now you have their ear and you can begin class.
4. Website copy needs to be customer-centric - Make sure to double check the copy of your site to make sure it’s all customer-centric. Answer their questions, ease their worries, explain how you do business. Getting down in the weeds and explaining what you do in in detail isn’t what your prospects want. Show the benefits, not the features. Stay away from brochure-speak or business jargon.
5. Your “About Us” page needs to explain why you are better than your competition - Next to your “Home” page, your “About Us” gets the most traffic on your website. You need to be very clear here about what your unique selling proposition is to your prospects. Take your time here. Show your key personnel off here and how to contact them.
6. Back up your assertions with testimonials - Post relevant testimonials on each your service or solution pages. Like it or not, you are presumed guilty before innocent so testimonials are key!
7. Video, video, video, did I say video - Words are great, a picture is worth a thousand words, and video is an educational nirvana! Find the budget!!!!!
8. Tips 1 through 7 don't matter if you can't get traffic to your website - You need a mix of online and offline marketing tactics to get people to your site.

The best ways to draw traffic to your website.

• Networking (1-1,Group, Events, Etc.)
• Joint Venture Marketing
• Content Marketing (Blogs, Posts, Email Marketing)
• Search Engine Optimization
• Most everything else is too costly for small businesses or just old fashion advertising (consumers don't want disruptive advertising in most cases)  

This is a guest blog by Dan Hahn, Owner of Main Street Marketing.

Saving Time with Social Media: Find Resources

If you're in search of a great web designer, you may want to skip Elance and go directly to Twitter, do not pass go. Finding recommended vendors and freelancers for your business may be as easy as asking the hundreds of folks in your social media network who they recommend. Here's a breakdown of ways to find trusted contractors, by social media outlet:

1. LinkedIn. One of the most powerful elements of LinkedIn is the “recommendations” feature. You can write, read, and request recommendations from others in your network. It may take a little legwork, but you can use this feature to find a great copywriter, and read what others have to say about him or her. Think of it as a Yelp for people.

2. Twitter. While you're missing out on the depth of information available on LinkedIn, you can get instantaneous responses. For instance, tweet “Looking for a great online bookkeeper” and you should get a bunch of responses within minutes. Give more weight to those that come from inside your network, though, as often a request for referrals will generate automated responses from a spammer. It looks like it comes from one of your friends, but is actually just an ad.

3. Facebook. You can post requests for referrals, just like on Twitter, and you can also search for people with those keywords in their profiles. Beware, though; just because someone is listed as “Penelope Bookkeeper” doesn't mean they're an expert. You could also post your request in groups that are associated with the topic (post a request for a logo designer on a graphic artists' Facebook group wall, for example).

4. YouTube. It might seem a little strange to put out a call for resources via video, but why not? Especially if you have a significant following, you could get a tremendous response. Added benefit: If the project you have in mind has a visual aspect, you can demonstrate it right on the video (think office organization, website overhaul, kitchenette remodel).

Even if fourteen people recommend the same web designer, make sure to do your due diligence. Get a written quote and scope of work, ask for a list of projects completed, and confirm that that person will be doing your project personally, not outsourcing to another. With these tips in mind, you should be able to find great outsourcing resources at the click of a mouse.

This is a guest blog by Joanne Westwood, Owner of Westwood Virtual Associates, LLC.

Saving Time with Social Media: See What People Are Talking About

Large corporations spend millions of dollars, prowling the streets, seeing what the trends in fashion, music, and culture are. They rely on feedback from companies like Gallup, the Nielsen Ratings, and American Consumer Opinion to see what's hot and what's not. As a small business, you don't have the same level of resources. But that's okay – you can get your own “feet on the street” feedback, quickly and easily, using your social media networks. Here are some of the tools you can use to see what's hot, right now:

Twitter Trends. Go to http://search.twitter.com/ and right below the search box, you'll see a list of trending topics (as of this writing, the trending topics include “White People Hobbies,” “Black People Hobbies,” “Wendi Murdoch,” and “Louise Mensch”). If there's a topic you want to track, you can click on the name and subscribe to the RSS feed to keep constantly updated on a trending topic.

Hashtags. If you want to follow a particular topic (“internet marketing,” “redsox,” etc.) via Twitter, you can simply follow the hashtag (#) associated with that subject. You can also subscribe to the RSS feed to be notified whenever new tweets on that topic are posted.

Facebook and LinkedIn Groups. It's a little more difficult to see what's trending on Facebook or LinkedIn, but you can see what groups are growing and what topics are hot. Do a search on either site for results, and join groups that look interesting and pertinent to your business. You can receive messages directly to your email inbox or opt to log in to your account to read. Either way is a great tactic for keeping tabs on what people in your niche are talking about.

Yahoo! and Google Groups. Go to groups.yahoo.com or groups.google.com to view thousands upon thousands of groups for interests as varied as recycling, Santa Clara University alums, and Justin Bieber fans. Join the ones appropriate for your interests, browse topics, and see suggestions at http://custom.yahoo.com/bestofyahoogroups/.

YouTube “Most Viewed.” Head over to http://www.youtube.com/videos?feature=mh to see the most viewed videos of the day. You can even see top results by category (Education, Howto & Style, Nonprofits & Activism, News & Politics, Comedy, People & Blogs, etc.) The results may surprise you!

Stumbleupon, Technorati, Alltop. Check out any of these blog aggregators to see what others find interesting, read-worthy, or titillating. You can see hot topics, trending news, and just plain weird stuff.

As you can see, no need to hire a beat reporter to tell you what's happening in your target market. You can easily track it all from your computer – no reporter's notebook required.

This is a guest blog by Joanne Westwood, Owner of Westwood Virtual Associates, LLC.

Saving Time with Social Media: Get Fast Feedback

Everything online happens at the speed of light. Decisions that used to take weeks or months to make are now a matter of mere minutes or seconds. There is no time for a group consensus or “sleeping on it.” But with your social media network, you can still get input from a number of people, quickly. There are literally millions of people on-hand, ready and able to give you feedback in the moment.

For instance, want to know if the font on your homepage is too small? Send a tweet with the page link and ask what the general public thinks. Wondering which header graphic better conveys your business? Post them both on your Facebook page and ask for input.

The benefits of turning to your social media network:

• You'll get an interesting cross-section of respondents: Friends from high school, curious passers-by, coworkers.

• It's fast. Depending on the size of your network, you could have responses within minutes.

• It's free. You don't have to pay a penny for the input.

• It's informal. No need to prepare a five-paragraph overview, ten-slide Powerpoint presentation, or other background information. Just ask and wait for input.

• It's objective. The people you're asking have little or no vested interest in the outcome.

Of course, this method is better for some queries than others. There are drawbacks:

• You have no control over the responses or who they come from. You could get input from people who aren't part of your target audience, or who offer goofy suggestions.

• By soliciting opinions, you can make people feel like they have ownership in the process. If you don't take their advice, they can feel slighted.

• You make some of the inner workings of your business public.

As a result, soliciting fast feedback via social media networks is best for the following situations:

• When the decision is relatively minor. You don't want to ask the general public what you should do about selling your business, or responding to a law suit, or customer service issues.

• When the results will be public anyway. If the decision is behind-the-scenes, keep it there. Our examples above – font size, header graphics – are public anyway. Don't post private information, or anything that might breach confidence.

• When you need a variety of opinions from different people. If you need feedback from a certain segment, you're better off emailing them directly rather than putting out a public call for feedback.

Your social media networks can serve as your own personal focus groups. Asking their opinion can also make them feel closer to your business, and part of the process – both good things!

This is a guest blog by Joanne Westwood, Owner of Westwood Virtual Associates, LLC.

Saving Time with Social Media: Get Answers to Your Burning Questions

It used to be that all answers to your questions could be found on Google. Then, when Google became overrun with junk sites and advertisements, Wikipedia became the guru of choice. But even Wikipedia won't give you the answer to every question you have. Sometimes the information is too arcane, or sometimes you don't want the facts; you want an opinion. So what better place to turn to than social media?

Social media is great for the following types of questions:

1. Opinions. Heading to Dallas and want to know where to find authentic Tex-Mex? Wikipedia won't help you and Google is full of sponsored ads. So instead of doing a fruitless search, post a query on your Facebook page, and within hours your followers will have chimed in with a variety of suggestions, depending on your appetite, allergies, and budget.

When you want an opinion or suggestion, ask your social media network. They tend to enjoy giving help and assistance, and the resulting information may be more appropriate to your circumstance than a review written by a nameless, faceless entity.

2. New technology questions. Your brand-new video camera won't boot up after the last charge. You could spend an hour or two on the manufacturer's website, searching the FAQ pages for an answer. You could google the problem, but all the answers you get are for the previous model. So you send out a plea for help from the Tweetiverse, and within minutes you have a handful of suggestions, as well as site to go to for expert help.

Google often doesn't help much with tech questions because there either aren't enough answers out there to make it to the first page of the search results, or the resulting pages are all scams, junk sites, or sponsored posts for services that will fix your camera for a small fee. That's why you can often save time by asking your network first.

3. References and Referrals. Looking for a great handyman in Manhattan can be like looking for a needle in a haystack. You can go through the Yellow Pages or check online, but are any of these guys any good? To know for sure you need a personal reference or referral, and that's where your social media network can really help out. Post a Facebook query or tweet it out there, and you'll get answers that will steer you in the right direction.

We often think of social media as a way to just hang out with our friends and colleagues, but it is actually one of the greatest examples of the wisdom of crowds. Take advantage of it, and save time, too.

This is a guest blog by Joanne Westwood, Owner of Westwood Virtual Associates, LLC.

Saving Time with Social Media: Connect with Customers

These days, business is all about the relationships. We buy a car from the guy our neighbor's husband recommended. We hire the contractor our friend's accountant used. We go see the movies that everyone on Twitter talks about. So finding ways to take business relationships beyond transactional is a sure-fire way to implant yourself in the minds of your customers.

Social media – blogs, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, and the like – are all ways to connect with people. And if you can use these tools to establish and enhance your relationships with your audience, you've got a leg up on your customers. Here are a few examples:

• The yarn store owner who tweets her new customer to ask how the new sweater is coming along...

• The car salesman who leaves a link for $10 off an oil change on a customer's Facebook wall...

• The homeschool curriculum vendor who records a short video showing how to set up a classroom in the home in a back bedroom...

• The golf instructor who holds a Skype party during the Masters...

The possibilities are as vast as the world of Internet Marketing. You will notice some commonalities between the ideas above:

1. They're relevant. They are directly applicable to the niche or industry you're in (the golf instructor, for instance, isn't sending out oil change coupons; the yarn store owner isn't hosting a Masters chat).

2. They're personal. Each interaction connects with the audience in a manner beyond a simple “buy my stuff” way.

3. They're useful. Each interaction provides value to the recipient. In some cases, it's a dollar savings (the coupon); in others, it's informational (the video and the sweater inquiry). And even the Skype party is useful in terms of entertainment. The recipient is better off for having taken part in the interaction.

4. They're free. They don't cost anything on the part of the person reaching out.

5. They're relatively low on the time-investment scale. A tweet or Facebook post takes seconds; the video, a bit longer, but actually saves time in the long run as the vendor is answering a question she receives over and over again. The Skype party takes place during an event the golf instructor was going to watch anyway.

In sum, social media provides ways to reach your customers on an intimate level, quickly and inexpensively. People want to be treated as individuals, not as numbers And social media provides a way to do that without spending your life on the phone.

This is a guest blog by Joanne Westwood, Owner of Westwood Virtual Associates, LLC.

Redefining Vacation

The Christmas and New Year’s Day holidays both fall on the weekend this year. For many large businesses, that’s a perfect excuse to shut down for the week and let employees recharge for 2012. But small business owners don’t necessarily have that luxury. In some cases, the slow week is the perfect opportunity to catch up.

A recent survey of small business owners by RingCentral asked if they planned to take time off. Of those polled, very few were planning to completely unplug. Fourteen percent planned to take a legitimate vacation; the rest intend to maintain some level of activity. In fact, many look at the week as the perfect time to get up to speed on administrative tasks and long-term planning. And with many small business owners believing that the economy is on the cusp of a noticeable rebound, no one wants to get caught unprepared. 

When it comes to vacation, the core difference between the large business employee and the small business owner could be psychological. For the corporate employee, a week off is time to not commute, to not have meetings, and to spend with family. Many small business owners look at that week as a potential loss of billable hours. Accepting that you’re losing a calculable amount of revenue can be difficult to accept. Whether your clients are at their jobs is irrelevant. If you’ve been contracted to complete a project, delivering the results is the top priority.

What are your plans for the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day? Will you be taking time off or working a reduced schedule?

The 2012 Small Business Magic 8 Ball

Optimism reigns eternal in the land of small business. Though 2011 was a disappointment for many owners, recent surveys indicate that 2012 is going to be an improvement. A good sign: Business Wire reported that more than 100 million people participated in Small Business Saturday, the Thanksgiving weekend nationwide campaign focused on luring shoppers to independent retailers. The turn-out was a success, beating projections by 15 percent.

The surveys, conducted by Zoomerang and GrowBiz Media, are encouraging. About 50 percent of private sector jobs are with small- and medium-sized businesses, a core piece of an active economy. But one aspect of the results is alarming. Only 40 percent of small business owners plan to use social media; the rest either aren’t sure or refuse outright. 

One of the advantages to owning a small business is the opportunity to engage with your customers. Social media makes that possible at a negligible cost. To dismiss social tools without at least investigating how they could positively impact a business is shortsighted and counterintuitive. 

A quarter of those surveyed said they were uncomfortable with social media. If that’s the case, finding someone to operate the company’s social media platforms is easy. Sure, that adds some cost to the bottom line, but the expense needs to be weighed against the potential return. Small businesses need to use all opportunities available to promote their brands. Sometimes that means venturing into unexplored territory.

If you’re a small business owner, what’s your social media philosophy? Are you embracing the opportunities technology affords, or are you hesitant to get started?

CHRISTMAS WITH THE KRANKS: RESPOND TO MARKET DEMANDS

“Christmas With the Kranks” is a slapstick comedy based on a book called “Skipping Christmas” by John Grisham. The upshot is that the protagonists, Luther and Nora Krank (played by Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis), want to “skip” Christmas because their daughter is spending Christmas overseas in the Peace Corps. They plan to take all the money they save and go on a cruise. It’s a great plan, only they run into a few problems.

Their friends and neighbors object to their lack of Christmas spirit and heckle and bully them, attempting to force them to get back in line and get their jolly on. They successfully resist… until they learn that their daughter is unexpectedly returning home for Christmas.

The Kranks have to scurry around in order to create Christmas at the last minute, borrowing Christmas trees, pulling together an eleventh-hour party and trying to woo back the neighbors the community they’ve alienated. Of course, all ends well once the Kranks respond to the external pressures and get back in line.

So, what do the Kranks teach business owners? The main lesson is that you can make all the plans in the world, but sometimes you just need to respond to what your market wants.

Poor Luther and Nora don’t think they’re doing anything wrong. So they want to head in a different direction this year. What’s the big deal?

Well, the big deal is that the Kranks’ audience (neighbors and friends) like things just the way they are. They don’t want the Kranks to change. They want things to stay the way they always have been – even if the Kranks have different ideas.

Think about trying to change something in your business – your website, your pricing structure, your offerings. Even if you’re positive the changes are for the better, you can hit serious backlash because your customers like things a certain way. They like knowing that the “buy” button is in red at the bottom of the page, or that your podcast comes out every Wednesday – not Tuesday, and certainly not Thursday. If you mess with their routines, you may have to pay the price – just like the Kranks.

Now, this isn’t to say that you can’t ever make changes to your business. It’s just a warning that you’d better make sure the risk is worth the reward, and that you’re not changing just for change’s sake.

Don’t mess with your customers’ Christmas.

5 Key Pieces to the Internet Marketing Puzzle

There are 5 Key Pieces to the Internet Marketing Puzzle

1. Content - Content is King. Nothing works online without it. Websites, Email and Social Media marketing will have no effect without it. It’s the food that prospects and customers need to improve their businesses. It allows you to be a thought leader in your industry. It allows you to educate your prospects and customers. It’s the reason people keep coming back. If they keep coming back, sooner or later they will do business with you. Content is the most important piece of the internet marketing puzzle.
2. Website -Your website needs to be a good place for content reside. It needs to be easily searched. It needs to be categorized. It needs to be easily shared between platforms (i.e. From articles on your website to linked teasers on your social media sites.) With just content and a website the only way your articles will be found is through search engines. This is a build it and they will come strategy, which isn’t a very good strategy at all.
3. Bulk Email Software -Bulk email software allows you to communicate to prospects and customers as to what kind of content you have on your website. It also allows you to brand yourself while doing so. If your content is good; people will stay subscribed.
4. Social Media -Social Media allows you to communicate to your prospects and customers just like email but it has two very important attributes that email marketing does not. Social media allows for a two way conversation with your prospects and customers. It also allows you to have your messages spread virally to people who are liking, following or connecting with you on social media. You share your message with them and can share the message with their networks and on and on.
5. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Software - A CRM system comes into play when people start showing up to read the content on your website, getting there from search engines, email marketing, and social media updates. The CRM system allows you to collect information from those who are highly interested in your content. When a prospect or customer shows interest in a specific topic and take action by subscribing to a certain information channel, then triggered emails can be sent. The triggered emails will then move the prospects down your sales funnel from a lead to hot lead to customer and finally to a brand advocate. The CRM system also allows you to work smarter with the information that is contained within each history entry of past emails sent, past conversation notes, etc. It allows you to call on the people who are truly interested in you. The CRM system also allows you be on the same page and sharing the same information with all of your key personnel.

Many people in the marketing world provide each of these key pieces to the puzzle. It's Main Street Marketing's view that you need one trusted advisor to handle all 5 pieces for you.

This is a guest blog by Dan Hahn, Owner of Main Street Marketing.

When Should a Small Business Owner Raise Fees?

As small business owners prepare to put a bow on 2011, the time is right to consider whether it’s prudent to raise fees. Considering the move is both exhilarating and nerve-wracking. All business owners would love additional cash flow and/or improved margins. But the risk of offending or alienating clients is terrifying, especially if it’s one you count on every month. The key to making the decision comes down to positioning.

Ask yourself the following questions, and answer them honestly:

1. How good am I at my job? If you’re great at your job, raising your rates is no different than getting an annual raise.
2. Do I provide consistent value for my customers?  Consider what your customers would spend for comparable services elsewhere.
3. What would they do without me?  If your customer did explore other options, how difficult would it be for them to ramp up with a new vendor?
4. Am I working with the best-of-breed in an industry?  If you are the best, you want to be associated with the best.
5. Am I engaging in behaviors, such as frequent discounting or taking on excessive numbers of budget clients, which reduce my confidence in asking for more?  Practices like these undercut your ability to demand what you’re worth. If you know that the services you provide are worth more than you’re currently charging, you need to have the confidence to ask for more.

Before you go and announce an across-the-board rate increase, you need to ensure that your market is prepared. Send an announcement to clients indicating that rates will be raised but that they’ll still receive the exceptional level of service they’ve come to expect. For clients with whom you’ve had a long-term relationship, talk to them personally. Assure them that the increase is necessary to maintain the high quality product they value. Convey strength and confidence. You’re not asking for permission; you’re simply announcing a change in the way you do business.

The value of CRM to Small Business

Are you a small business owner still debating the value of CRM? Consider this: A recent study by Nucleus Research revealed that every dollar invested in CRM has a return of more than $5. Nucleus based the figure on 70 case studies of companies in several industries and various sizes, including giants like Microsoft and Oracle.

The study stated, “In terms of overall financial value the CRM projects studied in this analysis delivered 63 percent direct benefits, such as cost savings or avoided hires, and 37 percent indirect benefits, such as increased productivity or greater customer retention.” If numbers like these don’t make you sit up and take notice, you’re probably not paying attention.

Some of the details of the study aren’t as spelled out as I’d like, but it’s difficult to argue with the outcome. The CRM industry is growing. In 2010, the industry achieved global revenue of more than $16 billion. The 2011 numbers are currently estimated at year-over-year growth of 7.6 percent with global revenue up to $18 billion. And as social networking, mobile access, and the related analytics continue to evolve, the power of CRM will only increase.

If you’re not currently using a CRM, what’s holding you back? Up-front costs are low, delivery is simple, and you’ll be more productive. Just think about a nightmare scenario in which your current system is lost. Then ponder how relieved you’ll feel knowing that your database is completely secure.


Questions? Contact us today to learn more about AddressTwo.