Most business owners hate Social Networking. I don’t blame them. They have enough to do and now there’s this gorilla in the room that refuses to be ignored. I’m going to tell you briefly how to get started in a non-stressful manner. The main thing is simply to set up a Twitter and business Facebook […]
Checklists have been with us for many years, especially in critical industries where a mistake could make the difference between life and death. We’ve all seen footage of pilots in the cockpit doing a careful checklist before takeoff. And we know the ground crew does similar check listing before each takeoff. I suspect commercial aircraft […]
You can learn a lot from watching American Idol year after year. That’s because American Idol offers real lessons about what makes a star. When the top 24 are selected, there are so many wonderful singers that I always wonder, “How will one person ever rise to the top?” But, inevitably, someone does. We, the […]
What if you had access to powerful marketing research about your company, it cost you absolutely nothing, and you didn’t take advantage of it? If you think that’s not you … then think again. If you are like many, many website owners you are not taking advantage of the free Google Analytics tool available to […]
There are times when a web site review or site audit is a great resource for diagnosing whether or not your website is under performing. The truth of the matter is that all websites can be improved, including mine. But if you have major problems, they should be attended to as soon as possible. And […]
We have an abundance of free software options that can help us make better use of our PC’s and Mac’s. Several of them are based in the “cloud” which means our information stays static while we are portable – we can access it wherever we have Internet access. My favorites can make your digital life […]
Two different types of spam attacks are increasing right now on Facebook. All users need to know how to spot and prevent them – and to fix them if they happen. Bad Apps A bad app will appear in your newsfeed as a story that someone “likes” something that looks like a video or a […]
Breadmaking can teach us a lot about social media and marketing. I bake bread, and I’m a wheat snob. We have a tabletop wheat grinder, and I buy my wheat in bulk, from Montana, in 50 pound buckets. Wheat isn’t ground until just before I make bread, to ensure the highest nutrition content and best […]
If you are under 30, you might not remember what a treat it used to be to get your daily mail. We actually got letters from people. A long distance phone call was expensive, so people still wrote to one another. And when you got a letter from someone special, you sat down, studied the […]
When participating in online forums, message boards, and blogs, please watch what you say. Social media is great for exchanging information. Sometimes criticism is a legitimate part of business. But please try to be diplomatic and temper whatever criticism you may have for another person or company. In fact, it’s best to leave off names […]
Do you think because you can hammer a nail into a two-by-four, you can build a good piece of furniture? Of course not. You know that building good furniture takes a lot more skill than simply hammering and sawing. It also takes training, equipment, and materials. Most people don’t question the high price of fine […]
Social networking via online forums is fast becoming an indispensable part of Internet marketing. For the smaller companies, I recommend starting out by joining two or three online forums and getting familiar with the territory. You can join a forum dedicated to your particular business where you swap ideas with others in your field. This […]
We have an abundance of free software options that can help us make better use of our PC’s and Mac’s. Several of them are based in the “cloud” which means our information stays static while we are portable – we can access it wherever we have Internet access. My favorites can make your digital life […]
You should put each and every one of your sale events on your website and make them easy to spot. This may seem like a no-brainer, but it isn’t unusual for retailers to build a website and then just let it sit there unused. I have often become interested in a product from a broadcast […]
While an editor busily pruned my first book, I traveled to Washington DC’s Studio Theatre after work each week. How exhausting it was to schlep downtown on those nights, especially when it snowed! After a 30-minute hike from the subway, I’d enter the classroom, lie down with my back touching the floor, begin breathing exercises […]
“How do you do it all?” a friend asked me years ago about my schedule. “I’m a lousy housekeeper,” was my answer. This year for Lent, besides thinking of what we were giving up, I tried adding something for our family: a deep clean of our house, a room a week. We have our daily […]
Many sellers are latching onto the advantages of advertising their products with Pay Per Click ads (PPCs) on the major search engines. PPCs are the paid ads that appear on a search results page. They are placed both above and to the right of the natural search results. These ads can be very effective in […]
A common mistake many small to medium size businesses make is to rely on the in-house computer whiz-kid for everything related to their websites. The whiz kid might be the controller who is also good with computers, or a sales staffer, or even the college-age son of the owner. These people may be very good […]
When a merchant opens his store, he works very hard to get everything ready. He selects, purchases, and arranges furniture, fixtures, displays, decorations, and signage. He carefully selects his merchandise and ensures that it’s displayed with proper lighting. He hires and trains personnel. He plans his marketing efforts and allocates a certain amount of money […]
The world wide web has made the other side of the planet a little bit closer place to connect. With the Internet, global is increasingly our new local. When my husband and I started Copper Lion, Inc.’s digital retouching and illustration services to photographers and ad agencies 10 years ago, we found Copper Lion, Inc. could quickly service […]
If you have a website, you need search engine optimization (SEO). But what does that mean? It sounds so complicated and technical. If you’re like me, you get a solicitation every other day from firms that want to sign you up for their “secret formula” that only they have developed to put your company at […]
“Video requires your visitor to switch from an active mode to a passive mode, which may not be the best thing to get a lead or sale.” I’ve noticed a recent trend with respect to video being used on websites. Often I will visit a home page and almost as soon as the page opens, […]
The future of print media is in flux. Newspapers and magazines are trimming their pages and their staffing as subscribers and advertisers dwindle. One thing for certain, the Internet isn’t going away. It’s foolish not to pay attention to new ways you can use the Internet to ensure the profitability of your business. One great […]
Oops, somebody did it again! A friend’s page has been hacked, with links posted across dozens of their friends’ walls. What to do and how do they fix it? Stop the Hack So It Never Happens Think before you click. Even if it’s your best friend’s wall, DON’T click on a link if it promises you […]
