I heard the other day that "marketing costs for small businesses are just not justifiable."  Many businesses often think that marketing is not one of the more important costs within the business--small businesses especially.  However, small business marketing is often what makes or breaks companies. 

Small businesses should have a very cost effective marketing strategy.  It should include email marketing, building a website, maintaining SEO, and blogging for sure.  While in the office, I help a lot of mainstream businesses who can afford at least a good majority of the marketing services that we provide, there are companies and groups I deal with outside of work don't or may not want to devote as much money to their marketing as they should. 

Since I am very involved in the horse world, I will use that market as an example.  As the horse world continues to grow rapidly, it is important more than ever now that riding stables, show facilities, and trainers use marketing to their advantage.  It is important to create websites and pages on MySpace and Facebook for them since their main target market is teenagers.  Especially for those barns located near college towns and major universities, SEO and website enhancement are EXTREMELY important.  High school students looking to ride after school often make sure that their university either has an equine program or has a riding facility near by. And how do they find that....the Internet of course!

So while people may think that marketing is not always worth the money put in, I'll tell you from a market that I never thought would make it online, it is! Marketing is important to all businesses--especially small businesses who think that they cannot afford it.

Getting my feet wet within a new company has allowed me to gain a lot of knowledge in a short period of time.  I have learned more about internet marketing in two weeks than most college graduates do in half a year.  That being said, I have noticed a very interesting trend among companies both in the Cincinnati area, and through research and time spent playing on the internet, companies across the world--Websites.  While many companies put a lot of thought and time into making sure their website not only educates readers, but is aesthetically pleasing, many do not. 

A lot of content among websites is either poorly written or is not helping the company in any way, shape, or form.  Content among websites is extremely important for companies to get ahead among their competitors.  Not only does it tell a story about the company and their mission, but it is an essential tool when pulling customers to the site.  Through techniques, such as search engine optimization, companies can see how the content and the way it is written, helps the website become top ranked among search engines like Google and Yahoo.  By having their site toward the top of the searched sites, companies can draw consumers to their website easier and hopefully gain an advantage over their competitors. This is the same with the aesthetics of the website as well.  Sure a website may have great content and be extremely well-written, but without a good layout and a strong color scheme, the website can be easily over looked.  It is important for companies to create an attractive page that is not cluttered or one that makes your eyes jump from an important part of the page to a less important part.  For example, taking the customer's eyes away from content related to the product/service to look at a picture in the opposite corner.  Clearly, we need more websites to capture an audience for more than just graphics!

It also amazes me that many companies are unaware of the advantage gained through strong websites--especially when they only have a small marketing budget to work with in the first place.  I feel as though many companies cut corners to save money and time by creating their own website without the proper knowledge of how effective their website can be.  Little do many people know, even just taking the time to write an effective and detailed script for websites will help draw consumers more than one that is written so poorly it cannot make it to the top of the search.  I believe more marketing consulting companies need to focus on this branch of a company's marketing strategy.  They need to push this idea of a stronger website so that companies can get ahead easier and more effectively. 

Blogging...It certainly is an interesting marketing tool.  Effective...yes.  Yet, not taught often enough.

Throughout college, I learned about both traditional and nontraditional ways of marketing.  I even learned about many of the new strategies within social media tools, but yet, blogging and the importance behind it were left out of the curriculum.  Sure  professors taught students the definition of a blog and where we can find them, but they left out a lot of pertinent information about their ability to strengthen businesses. 

In the last week and a half, I have been working a lot with this concept of blogging for business.  I find the marvels behind the importance of blogs to be mind-blowing.  It is amazing to think that these small writing times allow for interactive marketing between business and consumers and to help companies with their search engine optimization. Had I known all of the benefits of blogs, I would have suggested them within small business marketing plans I have developed for the other employers I have worked for.

Blogging not only allows businesses to get a step up in internet marketing, but they allow bloggers to throw around ideas with others interested in the same areas.  This alone has the potential to create an area where new marketing ideas, concepts, or strategies can develop further.  They serve as a great way to get feedback or suggestions. And they certainly are a way to get what is in your head out on paper (figuratively speaking anyways).

Had I known what I know now about Blogs, I probably would have created one a lot sooner and I certainly would have informed other small business owners about their ability to help businesses grow.  I also, for the sake of future business owners or motivated employees, will be contacting several University professors and reminding them of the importance of a Blog.  I believe that more time should be spent teaching students about these new nontraditional and social media strategies since the wave of the future lies within technology and the importance of being unique and buying unique items within consumers.

Since graduation I have spent a majority of my time this summer focusing on horseback riding and my tan...not so much on my business skills. However, in the last two days I have been reminded of how the real world actually works. 

While in class at Miami University, I sat through many lectures in which i came out thinking: "That was useless."  I never thought I would actually have to use a majority of the small bits and pieces of information I learned from the classroom.  Boy, was I wrong!  Coming out of college I had every intention of joining a smaller, more entrepreneurial work atmosphere--preferably one that focused on marketing tools that help other small businesses get on their feet and get their name out to the public. 

Upon my arrival here at R.O.Why! Marketing, I have had to not only learn the ropes of working in a marketing consulting firm that specializes in internet marketing consulting and search engine optimization, but I have had to reach far into my memory for those small skills I obtained within the classroom.  I used to joke with a buddy of mine about his over abundance of knowledge in IT and computers, but now I am envious!

These first few days on my new feet have been a lot of fun, yet extremely tiring! The amount of knowledge I have acquired within the last three days has been nothing short of monstrous.  yet the amount and the different levels of difficulty have only left me wanting to come to work and learn more about ROI marketing and internet marketing.  I have a feeling this will be a fun and long journey here in the office!

What do you love?

Hate?

Think?

Believe?

Feel?

Wish?

Really interesting project going on right now that's cataloging what people think about.  Culling through thousands of Tweets, Twistori is unearthing what's in our hearts and minds.  What we dream about, yearn for, what we would like more of.  What keeps us up at night.

What about our customers?  Do they really care about blogging for business?  Are their hearts on fire for their brand?  Is event marketing really what makes them tick?  Do they really need more email marketing tips?  Each day, are they incessantly hunting for a new Cincinnati advertising agency?

What do they yearn for?  What keeps them up at night?  How much do we really know about what our customers truly want? 

At the end of the day, I don't think our customers here at R.O.Why! Marketing really care about any of that.  They're not out there trying to buy internet marketing consulting services.  They're not looking for another marketing firm, a print advertising campaign that wins an award (for their agency) or the next great interactive marketing campaign.

Here's what they do want:

1.  More sales
2.  Higher profits
3.  Better service
4.  Fewer hassles
5.  Less bull
6.  Someone (dare it be their agency?) to take their hand and lead them

What's fun about my job is cutting through all the crap, thinking like a business owner for our clients, and leading them to efficient, profitable business growth.  But to do that, you have to know what your customers really care about.  You need a Twistori that reveals your customers' hopes, dreams and fears. 

Alternatively, you could just set your agenda aside and listen to them.

As you embark upon selecting an advertising or marketing agency, is their physical location important?  As a marketing agency in Cincinnati, Ohio, we serve clients across the country, in addition to many here locally.  There are definitely some cases where I would say that location is important, but as communication and technology evolve, for many the location of their ad agencies doesn't matter much.

We just began work for two firms based in Atlanta, and they definitely were not looking for a Cincinnati ad agency.  What they were looking for was the right mix of marketing strategy experience, creative talent, business acumen, and knowledge of their industry.  For both clients, R.O.Why! Marketing fit the bill very well.  We've delivered branding, email marketing, search engine optimization, event marketing, advertising and other interactive marketing programs for companies in their industries.  We were familiar with the challenges they're facing, so location was much less of an issue.  In fact, we even offered to visit one of them for the project kickoff meeting and the client didn't feel it was necessary.  They work very well on the phone and over the web.

A great tool for addressing the issue of location of our marketing firm has been online marketing project management and client collaboration software.  We use a great produce called Basecamp from 37 Signals.  It's fast, easy to use, and our clients love it.  The product centralizes communication, files, milestones, and tasks in one place and has dramatically cut down on the email clutter & confusion.

My advice for companies selecting an ad agency in Ohio or anywhere else:  Find the marketing firm that can competently address your challenges with creative marketing solutions.  With great communication and strong marketing results, location becomes much less of an issue.

I REALLY don't like to talk negatively about people, but I absolutely hate when a few individuals give an industry a bad name.  I was talking with a company today who hired someone to do some internet marketing consulting, focused primarily on search engine optimization and pay-per-click marketing.  Months have gone by, the client has spent thousands of dollars and is getting no report of marketing results and simply being told that 'you're getting some clicks, but you need to create more content.  Oh, and by the way, you can pay me to do that for you too.'

After spending about 30 minutes reviewing the website and listening to the client, it was very clear to me that they had been taken for a ride.  Now, I do strongly believe that they need a solid search engine optimization strategy, potentially some PPC internet marketing, and definitely a lot more website content.  However, I finished the call with the client suggesting that if we were chosen, we'd advise against continuing the PPC campaign at all until the content was completed.

Now, in the current SEO's defense, perhaps the client asked for exactly what was being delivered.  Perhaps they didn't really understand search engine marketing and didn't ask the right questions.  Perhaps they agreed to everything as it was presented.  However, isn't it the responsibility of the expert to help a client make the right decisions?

In addition, I found that the search engine optimization strategy consistent of 'stuffing' the website and HTML code with keywords - otherwise known as 'black hat' SEO techniques.  Marketers that do it right know that you simply cannot optimize a website page for more than a couple of keywords, yet there were at least 15 completely unrelated phrases stuffed into the meta tags.  Why?  These techniques haven't worked in years.

Bottom line for companies searching for a marketing firm to perform search engine optimization:  Do your homework and compare approaches.  Ask for references and ask to see search engine results of current clients.  Unfortunately, there are still some out there who are willing to take your money and run.

I was talking with a client today that needs to grow its database of job candidates quickly.  We discussed several options for accessing the candidate databases of 3rd party publications and websites.  Typically these publications and websites won't actually send you their email marketing lists; they'll broadcast your message or post your ad on their site, but retain ownership of the list.

Here's a great small business marketing strategy for companies looking to not only gain internet marketing exposure, but to actually capture the list for follow up interactive marketing campaigns.

Develop a very compelling lead generation marketing strategy and a hook or offer.
Rather than just promote your product or service, focus on the goal of capturing the list.  Develop an attractive offer that encourages people to sign up.  A contest, a white paper, an email marketing educational series of topics, etc.  Give something away that the target audience cannot ignore.

Craft a focused website landing page.
Create a new website page designed only to collect responses.  Deliver graphic and text content that speaks only of the offer and the benefits of signing up.  Insert a very short contact form, requesting only the information that you need to have now.  You can collect more later.  Avoid adding links to other pages on your site.  Remember there are two objectives of this landing page:  Visitors should fill out the form or close the window.  If you give them too many options, they'll get lost in your site and never fill out the form.

Collect your data, deliver what you promised, then build a relationship
Once you've fulfilled the primary offer and delivered the value you promised, now you have an opportunity to get to know them.  Use an email marketing tool to continue the communication, ask follow up questions to gather more information, and gently introduce them to what your company has to offer.

If you pick the right offer, you'll get a high percentage of the target database to respond, you'll capture their information for your own marketing purposes, and you could decrease your dependency on having to advertise in these publications or websites in the future.

Example:  I did this very thing years ago and partnered with a major industry publication who wanted to grow their database as well.  The offer:  A new Mercedes Benz 320 AMG or a cash prize.  We obtained over $250K of free advertising in the print publication (in return for sharing the database) and generated 10,000 responses (new leads) in just a couple months.  I canceled my print advertising shortly thereafter and focused the budget on email marketing and interactive marketing strategies directly to the new database.  Result: Over $30 million in new revenue at an investment of under $100K. 

I met a good friend of mine yesterday for a breakfast meeting at a local First Watch restaurant.  I have to say, I do love this place.  Great menu, fast, attentive and efficient service.  Perfect for a business meeting.  Well, almost perfect.

We were discussing a variety of approaches to marketing strategy and small business marketing in general, and different methods used by advertising agencies and marketing firms in Cincinnati, Ohio.  Our conversation soon turned to blogging for business.  His client is interested in developing a blogging strategy and internet marketing effort to gain market awareness, position the company as an expert, and to attract search traffic.  Blogs can be a great tool for B2B companies to dominate market niches.

As we were talking I wanted to show my friend some example blogs, including this one and proceeded to try to connect to the free WiFi service at First Watch.  The problem?  We were short on time and when attempting to connect I was asked to register first.

Now, I'm a marketer, so I fully appreciate the desire to collect a small amount of information from customers wishing to connect to the service, but it struck me that this initiative went against some of the things that I like about First Watch.  To me, First Watch is fast, easy, comfortable, and accessible.  Yet accessing the WiFi service was slow and painful.  We asked our waitress if there was a quick way to connect without registering since we were short on time and she politely said she'd be happy to get me a pamphlet.  Huh?  I didn't want a pamphlet, I wanted to know how I could get online quickly.  It might have been better if she would have showed me just how fast I could be online by registering, and if she helped me understand that if I registered, maybe the next time I tried to access the service it would recognize me and log me in right away.

But wait.  I was already registered.  After filling out the registration form I learned that First Watch already had my email address in their system.  Then why was I asked to fill out the form again?  Why didn't it recognize me as a frequent user?

A Missed Marketing Opportunity
Long story short, we did get online and were able to conclude our meeting.  And the friendly staff efficiently cleared our table so we could meet without the mess, but I can't help think that First Watch may be missing some great internet marketing or email marketing opportunities here. 

First, get rid of that registration form.  Everyone gives away WiFi access and most don't make you jump through hoops to get it.  In my view, First Watch should take the opportunity to make everything they do as fast, friendly, efficient and comfortable as their restaurants.  If you can't take away the form entirely, consider asking for less information.  What information do you need from me right now to a) let me do what I need to do, and b) start to market to me with email marketing or offers or some type of interactive marketing that strengthen our relationship?  That will work to further develop the brand, it will make a mark that customers won't forget, and it will have them (and me) coming back for more.  Can we say ROI?

Second, you've got my email address.  Why haven't I received any communications from you?  Invite me back.  Make sure I know how many locations you have that are close to my business.  Remind me of how easy it is to conduct a business meeting at First Watch.  Throw me a coupon from time to time.  Ask me some questions about how you could serve me better.  Deliver some value in return for me giving you my contact information. 

I must say, First Watch gets it right on so many things.  I really do love the place and I bring many clients and friends there for a meeting.  But could they take another step or two and making sure I leave with a 'wow'?  You bet.

First Watch:  You know who I am.  Now, get to know me. 

How to Grow Interest, Attention, and Sales Using Strategic Customer Events 

As marketers, we are faced with innumerable opportunities to promote our brands while at the same time challenged by shrinking budgets and increased scrutiny over the marketing ROI of our campaigns.  Our universe of decision makers, influencers and supporters is growing as more people within the corporate enterprise play a role in purchasing decisions.  Finally, our customers and prospects are exposed to internet marketing, direct mail, advertising and other promotional messaging of all kinds more than ever before.  We’ve got to find a way to cut through the clutter, demonstrate real value, and build relationships based on our ability to solve today’s business problems.

If you want to quickly grow awareness in your target market, attract the right decision makers and influencers and build the level of credibility that only known experts attract, try using events to create lasting customer experiences. When used properly, strategic customer events can position you as the expert in your markets by creating a sense of urgency, addressing specific, current needs, and, delivering powerful educational information that your customers and prospects can’t get anywhere else.

Get the article & a case study here.