Direct Response websites are websites designed to get a visitor to take action, whether that is calling your 800 number, filling out a form to get a specified incentive, joining your email list, signing up for your monthly newsletter or making a purchase.

More Than Just A Pretty Picture

Nowadays, just having a pretty website is not enough to compete in your industry. You also need a targeted web strategy that will draw traffic to your site, meet the visitors’ thirst for information or solve a problem and generate leads & sales.

Any designer with a handful of web design skills can give you a site with Flash animation and pretty pictures. But as a small business owner, you need a site that is more than an overly hyped online brochure. You need a site that performs for you, generating leads and converting those leads to sales. You need concrete online marketing strategies which deliver measurable results and generate profit for you…guaranteed.

But of course, since it is your website, you have the final say. So if it is flash & dazzle you want, you can always hire a designer to give that to you too. (We just don’t recommend it as a solid online strategy.)

Before you ever start building your site, know your company and your industry from the inside out by utilizing comprehensive surveys, research and competitive analysis. Always get the results in an easy-to-understand format so that you have a record of what your competition is doing and how you can have the ultimate competitive advantage.

For example…

* Is Your Website Optimized for Google, Yahoo & Bing?

* How Do You Measure Up To Your Online Competitors?

* One-Third Of Website Visitors Drop Off From the First Page, Are Your Visitors Sticking Around?

Direct Response websites are designed to get you more Internet visibility, qualified traffic to your site, higher conversion rankings and even first page rankings for Google local searches. Having a website that works to grow your business is the most effective use of your marketing dollars, provides a cost-conscious way to communicate with your potential customers or clients and positions you miles ahead of your competition.

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If you’re still relying on the Yellow Pages or “word-of-mouth” to advertise your business, then the answer is probably not. And even if some of them are, you’re loosing a large amount of potential business by not being “found” in the local search directories.

Luckily, services like Google Places make it super easy to harness the web’s vast demand for instant gratification and access. If you are a local business, then it’s imperative that you list your business in the online directories. Granted, this does take some time, but the good news is that you can get started right now with the biggest player on the world wide web for FREE and achieve instant local celebrity status practically overnight.

Visit Google Places or click on the image to get started…

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Hey, What’s Your Problem?

I have a quick question for you…

1) As a business owner or entrepreneur, what is the most pressing question/concern you have about marketing your business?

2) If you were to attend a workshop on marketing your business, what top three topics would propel you to make time in your schedule to attend?

Let me know by joining me in the Comments. I WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!

The Shotgun approach to marketing is when you market to the masses. Examples: TV and radio ads.

Sniper marketing is when you deliver your marketing message only to those most likely to want what you have to offer. Direct mail and web video marketing are two great examples of the sniper approach.

“Majority of businesses find that they simply receive a better return on their investment (ROI) of marketing & advertising dollars with the tactical approach of a sniper as opposed to the broader shotgun approach.”

So which approach are you using to market your business?

[courtesy of The Print Concierge]

If all it took was a click, would you do it?

Pitch.co Create Your Opportunity Contest wants to give us $50,000 in start-up capital for an amazing business idea. But we need your votes in order to rise to the top and get noticed. Please visit the site and vote, right now!!! Hurry, the deadline is coming up soon.

Click Here for direct link to the OfficeFlexed entry…

(Clicking on the image works too!)

Recently released Iron Man 2, based on the Marvel character of the same name, continues the story of playboy wunderkind, industrialist and brilliant engineer, Tony Stark as head of his deceased father’s military weaponry company, Stark Industries.

In the initial installment, Tony becomes a technologically advanced superhero by building his own computerized exoskeleton and using it to escape hostage of a terrorist group in war-torn Afghanistan. In its sequel, Iron Man 2, the film opens as Tony Stark reveals to the press that he is indeed Iron Man and much fanfare ensues which plays masterfully into Stark Industries’ 365 day, cleverly orchestrated campaign to promote the splash and spectacle that is the Stark Expo.

While watching the film, I of course was impressed with the effects and story but something far greater occurred to me. As a marketer and small business owner, there are many lessons we can “ethically borrow” from Tony’s masterful promotional antics:

1. This is no time to be timid — Whether you see the circumstances as good or bad, the economy has drastically thinned out those competing for your customers/business but it also has given your potential and current clients a much lower tolerance for mediocrity. They must know how your product/service can best meet their need and why it’s the only logical (read: emotional) choice for them. And guess whose job it is to tell them?
2. Be masterful at your craft — Continuously hone it, refine, develop it until your skill and expertise can be matched by no other. Make it so that your competition is decades behind you and clamoring just for the privilege of riding your coattails. In Iron Man 2, we saw how Tony’s fiercest opponent, Justin Hammer, would stop at nothing to knock Stark Industries off its reigning crown of military weaponry glory, but he simply couldn’t keep pace and as a result, Tony didn’t have to do much to demonstrate the inferiority of Hammer’s products. It was also evident to the masses and if you followed this strategy in your business, you’d inevitably reduce your advertising costs.
3. Invest in yourself and equip your business with the tools & technology to ensure your success. A lot of times small business owners feel pressured to have the latest whiz bang gadget to grow or expand their business (an equal amount fall clear to the other side of the spectrum where their systems haven’t been updated since they opened their doors for business), the only trouble is, a bright new shiny object seems to release every other week. Well if there’s one area that you should never skimp on, it is technology and education, especially in today’s marketplace where access to information is literally at your fingertips. These are two areas where your competitive advantage has the potential to grow your business exponentially.
4. Lastly, tune out the drones — Don’t be deterred by the same “me too” marketing used by your competitors. here’s where Tony Stark really throws us a true gem. Even amidst his arrogance and indulgence, he showed us how valuable tuning out the drones really is. All around him; the government, his competitors, even Tony’s closest confidants attempted to steer his actions in predetermined directions. But he was unwavering in his commitment to furthering his personal mission. When it comes to marketing and growing your business, don’t fall prey to copying what everyone around you is doing. Because the truth is, everyone around you is probably getting average results and you definitely do not want average results, you want extraordinary results!

So in thinking about the marketing lessons from the Iron Man 2 movie, I find that the main takeaways here are to 1) think differently; 2) not be afraid to take calculated risks; 3) be bold; and 4) reach your audience in new and unexpected ways.

Feel free to leave a comment and let us know your main marketing takeaway…

To Your Success!

Is the notion of a “cheap television commercial?” still an oxymoron?

Perhaps not, with the launch of Google TV Ads. Now your small business can have commercials running alongside the tv commercial heavy hitters. With Google’s new TV Ads program, which lets you pick and choose similar to AdWords, your television commercial can be up and airing on cable television in a matter of hours.

According to Inc.com’s website, “After hiring a local production company to produce a 30-second spot for $2,500, Hackley began planning his TV strategy. Internal research had shown that most BBQGuys.com customers are 35 to 65 years old and make more than $80,000 a year. Hackley entered that information on the Google TV Ads website, and, using data from Nielsen and other sources, the site suggested shows, times, and channels that matched the target audience — including programs on the Golf Channel,ESPN, and HGTV.” For the full article from Inc magazine, click here.

To Your Success!

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Social Media is all the rage right now. So much so, that names like Twitter, Facebook and YouTube get tossed around mainstream media like dinner conversation and have even made their way onto our local news stations.

But, these social media tools have a way of eating up quality time with little return on investment if you’re not careful.

The truth is, you should harness the power of online media and social media tools to foster your small business success, but the question is how?

By using social media strategically, blogging being one powerful strategy, you can boost your organic search engine rankings (as opposed to paid listings) and get “found” by qualified potential customers who are searching for the product or service you provide.

By positioning yourself in front of your potential customer precisely when they are looking for you, you become the expert and are one step closer to capturing the sale.

To Your Success!

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Tell the Truth, Are You Sending Mixed Messages? As the weather starts to break, it’s time do a little spring cleaning of your marketing materials. If you are guilty of sending mixed messages, no need to panic just make it a priority now to do the much needed house-cleaning and bring your core marketing message back into alignment.

It’s essential that you align your marketing message across all mediums. Meaning that your website should have the same look and feel as your direct mail, business cards & stationery, brochures, flyers and giveaways. The goal is to reinforce your core message with every marketing piece that goes out the door. Just like a bottle of name brand detergent or tissue, you want your look to be easily recognizable and consistent.

Defining what sets you apart from the competition is essential to positioning your product or service in the mind of your clients/customers.

To Your Success!

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Guy Kawasaki’s bold and cheeky approach in his book Reality Check takes a unexpected u-turn, splashing a curbside puddle in the face of traditional business advice.

In this day and age of micro-blogging on Twitter and LinkedIn, Facebook updates, instant eBook downloads, and 3-minute instructional video snippets on YouTube, Kawasaki’s nearly 500 page opus on how to outsmart, out-manage and out-market your competition may seem daunting at first glance. However, the insights revealed throughout are well worth the initial investment of time.

From advice on how long your pitches should be and how many PowerPoint slides the average audience can manage before losing interest (it’s 10 by the way so keep your presentations limited to 20 minutes with no more than 10 slides); the top lies that venture capitalists, entrepreneurs and lawyers tell; how to suck up to a blogger; to how to tell if your manager is a butt-hole (and what you can do about it) Kawasaki fills this book with incredibly useful insights on navigating the world of business.

Oftentimes, a book will drone on ad nauseam about a particular topic and after you have invested numerous hours, you realize that there were only two or three true gems that you can clearly, directly and swiftly implement in your business. They often read in a textbook style that is better suited for bedtime reading and chamomile tea. That is not the case for Reality Check. Here you will find commonsense advice told in a clever, witty, conversational tone that is attributed more to British humor than American.

The only drawback to Kawasaki’s, Reality Check is his overuse of interview transcripts with various experts so heavily sprinkled throughout the book that it begins to feel like force-feeding brusselsprouts to a baby. Eechh! It would have been better to use less interviews and rather than transcribe the conversations word for word, Kawasaki could have rewritten them in his own words while still offering his witty insights along the way. The transcribed format and academic nature of the written responses makes for a jarring shift in the conversational tone that Kawasaki uses in the rest of the book and makes it seem like he got a little lazy at these points, perhaps using it as relief to extend the length of the book.

However, one of the best interviews was his discussion with Glenn Kelman of Redfin, in the chapter entitled ‘Financial Models for Underachievers.’ In this chapter Kelman candidly shares his company’s financials so that other entrepreneurs can get a “reality check” on what the real costs of starting a business entails (business plans be damned). This, alone, was priceless.

One thing is for certain, from reading Reality Check, it becomes crystal clear how much Kawasaki loved his tenure at Apple Computers and how being an “evangelist” for your product or service is key to making any sort of lasting impact in the marketplace.

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Grow Your Business With A $2 Fish Bowl. One of the most effective, yet inexpensive methods for growing your network of potential business is with a fish bowl lead generation strategy. Here’s how it works…

• If you have a brick & mortar store, place a fish bowl at the checkout counter.

• If you don’t, use this at your next trade show or networking event when you display at a booth or table.

Set out a fish bowl and offer an attractive prize (for example, a gift card to Starbuck’s or an large capacity flash drive) in exchange for your prospect’s business card. By collecting business cards, you’ll increase your list for your direct mail campaign and have a steady stream of leads to follow up and share your services with.

Collecting a business card is more effective than a Guestbook sign-up sheet because it eliminates the need to decipher anyone’s handwriting. Plus, you’ll have all of the information you need to effectively market to them. In exchange, you also create goodwill in the potential customer’s mind by giving away something of value for free.

To those that don’t win, you have the opportunity to share with them via email that they didn’t win this time, but there’s always next time (just make sure you indeed have a next time scheduled with a valuable offer).

For more tips on marketing your small business, sign up to receive our monthly Marketing Momentum…