Category Archives: Brand

5 Things That Will Destroy Your Small Business in a Flash

Contributed article in our entrepreneurial series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

According to many entrepreneurs, running a successful business can be challenging and very exciting at the same time. When due diligence is observed, financial gains from the startup are almost guaranteed.

Unfortunately, some business owners end up choking the business unconsciously by doing some things that are unsuitable for the organization. In most cases, this is as a result of insufficient experience which is a conspicuous characteristic of new entrepreneurs. Making slight mistakes in management can be corrected if they are discovered early enough and you can recover in a short time.Continue reading→

Take Your Website to the Next Level

Contributed article in our business series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

No matter the content, the themes or even what you use it for, more and more people are making use of their own website these days. With tools and resources available for everyone from the most devout Luddite to the most tech-savvy coder, personal blogs and online stores are rife in the digital age. However, if the key to your personal branding is the appreciation of luxury, then you need to take a step back and have a look at what your website says about you. No matter if you’re an entrepreneur selling specialty chocolates for the connoisseur, or a blogger providing reviews of the latest fashion show offerings, it’s time to have a look at how you can increase your own level of professionalism to reflect your target demographic.Continue reading→

Why Making a Good First Impression is Crucial in Business

Contributed article in our business series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

Despite all the hard work that comes after it, it can often be the firmness of a handshake and the straightness of a tie that forms alasting impression in business relationships. First impressions are vitally important in everyday life as well as business, but where there are custom and profits on the line, it is even more crucial to get it right when it comes to getting an idea of you and your brand in the minds of those you work with. Here are some reasons why a good first impression is vital in business.

It Communicates Professionalism

Being smartly dressed or immaculately turned out for a 9 am business meeting communicates confidence and a steady hand is navigating the ship, whereas flying into the meeting one minute late with hair askew and shirt hanging out communicates unreliability and a liability to let down customers. This fine line is the line between planning ahead and being caught off-guard; making sure you’re always looking and acting professional will encourage people to do business with you and will avoid any awkward first impressions in which you tar your professional image.Continue reading→

4 Ways To Keep In Touch With Your Customers

Contributed article in our business series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

It is said that around 80 percent of your business will come from just 20 percent of your customers – that means it’s easier, and more cost effective to keep your current customers happy, contented, and loyal than it is to try and find more customers. Keeping in touch with your customers is a great way to ensure loyalty and good feelings, but how can a business do that successfully? Here are some ideas.

Newsletters

Having a newsletter that your customers can sign up to (or one that they are automatically signed up to) is a fantastic way to keep your company and your products and services in the mind of the people who will hopefully spend money with you. Keep them in touch with what is going on with your business, run competitions, give them discount codes for loyalty and so on. As long as you send out your newsletter regularly (perhaps once a month), then your company will easily stick in their mind.Continue reading→

The Top Business-Related Success Stories of 2017

Contributed article in our entrepreneurial series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

For many would-be entrepreneurs, the notion of success appears as a mythical plateau in the distance as opposed to an achievable concept. However, there are many others who have possessed the confidence and the acumen in order to realise their loftiest visions. It often helps to highlight these stories so that the rest of us are able to find the motivation to follow our very own visions. Let us look at some of the most amazing business success stories of 2017.

The Mobile Recycling Community

One of the most surprising leaps forward in terms of success involves what is known as the market for refurbished mobile devices such as the iPhone. Continue reading→

4 Small Businesses with Simple Propositions

Contributed article in our business series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

Life can get a bit chaotic — between holding down jobs and caring for families there’s scant time to decode complex marketing messages. So clear and concise marketing is the most effective way to let customers know exactly what your business does — fast. Research proves that 62 per cent of customers are prepared to pay more for a simple experience and 61 per cent will recommend a brand if it has a clear proposition that saves them time. And big hitters like Aldi, Ikea and Amazon have built powerful reputations based on a core ethos of simplicity that informs their customer service, products and services. But smaller businesses also punch above their weight when it comes to clear offerings that solve everyday problems perfectly.

Here are four small businesses with simple propositions that customer love.Continue reading→

5 Reasons Your Small Business Should Focus More on Local SEO

Contributed article in our business series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

Local search engine optimization is often seen as the purview of big businesses helping people find the locations of their stores or restaurants. However, local search engine optimization is incredibly important while offering a very high return on invested effort. Here are five reasons your small business should focus more on local SEO.

Continue reading→

The Best Ways to Market Your Small Business on a Budget

Contributed article in our business series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

When starting your own small business, marketing is exceptionally important. You can have the best products or service in the world but that isn’t enough to make your business a success. You need to make sure people know about it. Big businesses have a huge budget to employ a marketing team to do it all for them. You might not have the resources to do this in the beginning. Fortunately, there are many great marketing strategies you can implement yourself.

Image Ref: Creative Commons CC0

 

Social Media

Social media is absolutely massive. As well as the main platforms, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest, there are 100’s more you could use. Continue reading→

Marketing Tips for Startup Businesses

Contributed article in our business series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

Getting your business off the ground is hard work, regardless of how experienced you are and what industry you are hoping to break into. Those first few months of operation can take their toll, with registering your business, developing a business plan, investing in equipment, etc. The list is endless!

However, one important factor you must consider is your marketing strategy as it is a major element you simply cannot neglect. The marketing strategy you choose and develop is the difference between your businesses unwanted anonymity and having too much work to cope with.Continue reading→

The Importance of Having a Targeted B2B Email List

Contributed article in our business series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

By targeting the right business at the best time with the best offer, you will dramatically increase your B2B prospecting success. It will also help with the overall growth of your business. Not only does careful B2B targeting help maximise the chances you have to make a sale, it will also prevent you from wasting your money.

There are several steps you can follow that are cost effective, easy and profitable ways to help you build a targeted B2B prospect list.

Know Who Your Customers Are

The first thing that you will need to do is take some time and think about your current list of customers. Who are they?
While thinking about this, you will be able to complete a picture of your prospects by looking at all of the information you have about them. Some of the things you should look at are:Continue reading→