6 Affordable Strategies to Build a Cash CowWritten by Sharron Senter
Small businesses must be extra imaginative with their marketing efforts in order to attract customers and get them to open their wallets. Even more challenging is that most entrepreneurs have shallow pockets and shoppers are being more selective as a result of sluggish economy and volatile stock market. The following are six proven low-cost marketing ideas that help small businesses increase sales and generate referrals, ultimately helping you build your cash cow, while spending very little.Get Out and Walk -- Next time you walk down a street with high foot-traffic, pay attention to storefront windows underutilized. Approach store owner and offer to pay a small fee to advertise your business in their window. Imagine, you pay $50 per month for a location that costs someone else $2500 a month in rent. This idea also works in reverse. If you’re store owner with great window visibility, approach other entrepreneurs and offer them an affordable advertising opportunity. Special Deal Today Only -- The next time business is slow, try sending out an email to your prospect list that reads, "Please call me. I have a special deal I can offer you if you call me today. You'll be glad you did! (978) 346-4086. Thanks, Sharron." This method really works. Prospects call because of urgency you create using such a short deadline and to make sure they don’t miss out on a worthy opportunity. Be careful. You’ll lose credibility with your prospects if your offer isn’t aggressive enough, i.e., 10% off won’t cut it! Under Your Nose -- Are your vendors doing business with you? Why not? Here’s a short list of prospects you should contact within 48 hours of reading this article, your: accountant, attorney, plumber, electrician, daycare provider, housekeeper, greens keeper, mechanic, realtor, friends, family, minister/priest/rabbi, etc., dentist, physician, gynecologist, nail technician, hairdresser, Mary Kay Consultant, marriage counselor, coach, personal trainer, financial advisor, and so forth. If you and your vendor are not a match, he or she probably knows someone who should be doing business with you. Now, all you have to do is ask your vendor to provide some word-of-mouth about you. At minimum, ask to display your business cards and flyers at their office. Take a moment and make sure people in your immediate circle understand what you’re selling for a living!
| | Can You Trust That Site ?Written by Larry Johnson
Knowing which sites are trustworthy is very important to anyone who works online. After a while you begin to develop some touchstones to apply when deciding whether a site is legitimate and worthy of your trust.I have had very few problems with purchases made online, but it can happen to you and me both. Here are five things to look for in a site: 1) VIRTUAL DOMAIN NAME-- Does site have a virtual Domain name like this ? http://www.goodbusiness.com Or is it based at a free host address like this? http://www.angelhair.com/9985409/?cgi/interpol/geodcities.com/xppd.gsr/ Well, I don't know where your thinking is, but I am definitely going with identifiable virtual address here as an indicator that they are legitimate. They at least thought enough about their business to invest a few dollars in a name. 2) TESTIMONIALS-- Are there any good testimonials of others who have done business with them ? Can they be contacted ? If there are, chances are you are on right track to having a good experience with them yourself. Beware, however, of made up testimonials that cannot be verified. 3) HOW LONG ONLINE-- How long has site been online ? This may take a little researching on your part, but it may well be worth it to know how long this business has been making it's offer for products, software and/or services. An easy way to verify how long domain name has been registered is simply to a search at: http://www.allwhois.com/ You will find lots of information including who owns domain name, their address, who hosts domain name, and when it was registered.
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