They were expecting much more and are extremely disappointed.  Take an honest look at how you are promoting your product or service.  Is your marketing exciting and satisfying, or do your potential customers walk away unimpressed?

Spices offer a creative way to view marketing.  The new trend in nutrition is to add more spices to foods–for example, adding chipotle to chocolate–not just for the taste, but for increased health and improved well-being. Did you know that chipotle, a smoke-dried jalapeno pepper, is proving  to be a weapon against certain cancers, diabetes and heart disease?

If this makes you seriously consider adding spices to your diet, then you should also explore how spicing up your marketing could change the way customers you are targeting respond to your advertising. There is a three-fold parallel that marketers should act upon. Just as spices add Heat, Health and Happiness to eating pleasure, smart marketing can do the same for your business.

• Heat:  This is the pleasurable “kick” that your taste buds experience when just the right spices are blended into your food.  You come away from that meal with memories that linger and, most likely, you will want that meal again.  Marketing that has a pleasurable “kick” will make your prospects enthusiastic about what you are selling.  It will prep them to buy, and could have them coming back for more.
• Health:  Spices produce amazing health benefits, such as lowering blood pressure, reducing the risk of heart attack and improving digestion.  If your product or service can make people’s lives better, more comfortable or more productive, then your marketing needs to express that boldly and clearly.  Once customers realise that what you are offering can make a positive difference in their lives, they will get excited and respond to your calls to action.
• Happiness:  A meal prepared with tantalising spices leaves diners not only full but satisfied.  Moreover, they are happy with their experience.  When your marketing meets a specific need that your prospect is trying to fill, you not only satisfy him in the short run, but pave the way for that prospect to become a happy and loyal customer.

How can you “Spice Up” your Marketing?

Too often, businesses attempt to copy advertising that is already out there.  You might want to take this strategy with a grain of salt–no pun intended.  Copying the methods of other companies often results in bland, ineffectual marketing.  Customers grow weary from being approached the same way over and over again.  They tend to tune out these ads.  Hence, the expense that you invest in imitating what everyone else is doing will probably not get you the ROI you were anticipating.

Instead, brainstorm with your team to see how you can “spice up” your marketing.  This does not mean having “in your face” hard sell ads or trashing competitors.  It does mean keeping the “Three H’s” in mind.

Heat.

Start by integrating compelling action verbs, creative imagery and memorable phrases into your marketing to describe what your company’s product or service can do for your customers.  Highly visual and interactive web marketing “heats up” their senses.  YouTube videos and mini webinars are great venues for your marketing arsenal.  Use them to demonstrate how one of your products works or simply to provide free helpful information to potential customers.  By doing so, you immediately activate their thinking on multiple levels;

1. You demonstrate that you care about their particular situation.
2. You prove that you can solve a problem that they might have.
3. You introduce your company/product/service in an intriguing and engaging way.
4. You start building their trust by being straightforward and honest about your services.

The more senses and emotions that you trigger with your marketing, the more likely prospects will make the decision to buy.  One caution, however:  The purpose of marketing with “heat” is far more than simply trying to grab customer attention.  Rather, like spices, your marketing should create an irresistible joy in your prospects that prompts them to respond enthusiastically to what you are offering.

Health.

It is critical that you focus on knowing your potential customer’s needs and explain through your marketing how you can meet those needs.  In order to accomplish this, you must first find a way to get them to talk about the problem they need solved.  If your marketing is interactive, you can probe with key questions and get honest feedback from your prospects.  Assuming that you have isolated the demographics of your target customers, start reaching out to them personally with online questionnaires, email queries or phone and post card surveys.  Encourage their cooperation by offering a sample or coupon upon submission of their responses.  Your investment of time and money into this is well worth it because the answers you receive will enable you to fine-tune your marketing to meet the specific needs that they have expressed.

Businesses that pay close attention this way to the “health” of their prospects are rewarded with repeat customers and positive referrals.

Happiness.

Happiness is a state of mind that stems  from reduced anxiety and increased self-esteem.  It is a sign of contentment and well-being. How do you reduce prospect anxiety about trying your product or service?  Offer both emotional and logical reasons to trust your company.  Reduce purchasing anxiety by providing stellar customer service from your very first contact with your target customers.  Create marketing that opens your prospects’ eyes to your top-quality merchandise and personalised service, share testimonies from satisfied clients, give your prospects iron-clad money-back guarantees, and, through specials and coupons, allow them to experience what you are offering.  As prospects interact with your marketing and your company, at some point they will realize that they have enough information to  make an informed decision.  The more control they feel they have, the higher their self-esteem, and the more likely they will buy. They experience happiness when they purchase your product and discover that it is exactly what they were looking for.

By spicing up your marketing with these “Three H’s,” you will get the attention of your prospective buyers by immediately involving them through their senses.  This makes them more receptive as you demonstrate how you are the “go to” company to solve their problem.  Best of all, “spiced up” marketing tends to motivate prospects to buy, resulting in a base of happy customers who keep coming back for more.

References:
organicfacts.net/health-benefits/herbs-and-spices/health-benefits-of-chipotle.html
nutrition-and-you.com/healthy_spices.html

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This handy infographic  was created by Branching Out Europe to help you understand the power of LinkedIn in 2015 and how you can drive your business’s success with it.

The post Infographic – How to use LinkedIn for lead generation. appeared first on Web Design Newcastle, Digital Design Agency Newcastle upon Tyne. NE1 1SG. UK.

Let’s think about that for a moment…

Plus recently, Google changed it’s algorithm to make mobile friendly sites appear higher in searches and those that aren’t lower (and certainly not on first page results).

Now let’s ponder both of these facts for a moment.

Ok so the conclusion I come to, I’m sure you will agree is that this year really is the time to get a site that is responsive to mobile devices (if you have one already feel free to stop reading!).

In case you don’t know, ‘a responsive website’ isn’t one that answers you back each time you visit it.

What we mean when we use the term ‘responsive’ is a site that changes its appearance and layout according to the users’ device. The days of desktop users dominating the virtual world are pretty much over. Today, laptops, tablets and mobile devices dominate. Screen sizes and design requirements come in all shapes and sizes and responsive design allows your site to detect the device and present the most ‘user-friendly’ layout.

A responsive website is one that looks good across all devices and keeps its’ visitors happy! So what are the benefits of responsive design to you and your company?

•    More Search Traffic – Google announce a mobile specific update to its algorithm in April 2015. While many suspected mobile friendly sites were already being favoured in SERPS – the update made it official; if your website isn’t mobile-friendly it won’t show in mobile search results. Ooch!
•    Social Traffic – Content from a responsive site can be easily shared when a website visitor decides to tell their friends about your product or service. This in turn can result in better SEO as Google values user experience as a ranking factor. Shares, comments, likes and time on page all play a part in ranking your website ahead of the competition.
•    Better Brand Awareness – Your site will be seen across all devices, creating greater exposure and an ongoing increase in brand awareness. Don’t let your competitors get ahead of you because their site can be seen across all devices and yours cannot!
•    Happy Customers – let’s face it, there’s nothing worse than a site that doesn’t display correctly. It’s frustrating for people to have to scroll and all directions to read your content. The reality is that most won’t. They’ll simply click away and find a site that’s easy to use.
•    Increased Sales – more traffic will result in more sales. It’s that simple! (well, not quite).

Sales are becoming harder and harder to make online. We know from research carried out in recent years, that customers don’t buy from the first exposure. They look for social proof and validation. They research the company and look for reviews before making a purchase. They look for every reason NOT to buy from you before they will spend a single penny with your company.

Don’t give them an excuse. The time is NOW for a responsive website and you should view it as a solid future-proof marketing investment. Otherwise the reality is every month that passes entails lost opportunities, and your competition will more than likely be getting well ahead of you…

Further reading:

Why responsive:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/joshsteimle/2013/11/08/why-your-business-needs-a-responsive-website-before-2014/

Google mobile ranking:
http://searchengineland.com/google-search-algorithm-adds-mobile-friendly-factors-app-indexing-ranking-215573

The post The Time Is… Now! appeared first on Web Design Newcastle, Digital Design Agency Newcastle upon Tyne. NE1 1SG. UK.

Although a flood of unique sales may initially help to steady nerves, a small business has to develop a realistic customer engagement strategy to secure its financial future.

The Problems with a Sales-Only Strategy

1. Short-term blindness:

Also known as the ‘Fighting-a-Losing-Battle strategy’. A sales-only strategy is one which results in minimal reward for maximum effort. By expending all efforts on attracting new customers a small business is only seeing short-term business development.

2. Breaking the bank:

Studies have shown it’s far more expensive to find a new customer than encourage repeat business from an existing customer. Bringing in new business involves marketing and a marketing campaign is rarely cheap. If a business does nothing but focus on new customers when does the marketing end? For a small business with limited resources the cost of a continuous marketing campaign may not be sustainable.

3. Pyrrhic profits:

A Pyrrhic victory is a “victory with such a devastating cost that it is tantamount to defeat” (Wikipedia). Chasing new sales costs money and the profits will barely cover the costs (there may even be a deficit). A loss-leading campaign is only a successful measure if a business can capitalize by encouraging customer loyalty. If the financial burden of a marketing campaign (including a discounted price strategy) does not encourage repeat sales – through customer engagement -then the business strategy is flawed.

Curing Short-Term Tunnel Vision

Play the long game:

There is no denying sales are the number one factor for business prosperity. But to ensure continuous, stable sales a business must look beyond new customer attraction. Surviving the early days of business development is probably the toughest stage of creating a successful small business and many owners become obsessed with sales, sales, and more sales. It’s important to not only have a long-term development plan but also a strategy for turning new customers into promotional advocates and repeat sales prospects.

Engage and conquer:

A small business, especially a start-up, will receive new customers by using an effective marketing strategy. But the business has to focus on customer retention as well as unique sales. Encouraging customer loyalty is the backbone of a successful small enterprise and can be achieved through product quality, excellent service, and smart marketing strategy. Once a small business starts to develop a loyal customer base it will see a steady flow of continuous sales and an increase in new sales (as a by-product of satisfied customer referrals).

Build it and they will come:

The ‘it’ in this case refers to business reputation. The impact of a positive business reputation cannot be underestimated. Small businesses are often unable to compete with larger rivals on price or product range so different tactics are required to increase market share. Quality of service and customer experience have long been associated with small business and it’s a proven fact that consumers will pay higher prices and remain loyal to a small business that excels in customer satisfaction. Business reputation is earned through quality products supplied with exemplary service. Offer both and a great business reputation will come from positive customer reviews, referrals, and loyalty.

Do’s and Don’ts of Customer Engagement

• Do create a positive online presence through a business website and social media profiles.
• Don’t create online resources and then fail to keep them updated. Customers may assume you’ve stopped trading or are simply not interested in customer engagement.
• Do use loss-leading promotions, such as: discounts, loyalty cards, and free gifts to encourage repeat custom and customer retention.
• Don’t use loss-leading marketing if you’re only looking at increasing unique sales. A loss-leading strategy must be used in conjunction with a customer retention strategy.
• Do encourage customers to sign up for online newsletters or even postal contact. Use this opportunity to advise customers of new products and money-off offers, for example.
• Don’t abuse the customer trust in giving personal contact details by overwhelming them with a barrage of emails or post. Hard sell techniques do not result in repeat customers.

A small business has to attract new customers in order to receive the sales which cover start-up costs. But to become a profitable, successful enterprise a business has to encourage new customers to make repeat purchases and positive referrals. A loyal customer base is the key to business prosperity and customer engagement strategy that promotes consumer satisfaction and appreciation will result in an increased customer retention rate.

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