The adsonvids Blog: Communicating

Showing posts with label Communicating. Show all posts

Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Reputation, Integrity & Business Ethics

Confucius (illustration from Myths & Legends o...

[Image] Do you want more sales? Then relationship selling is a great way to accomplish that goal. However, you must be prepared to consistently demonstrate your reputation, personal integrity and unquestionable business ethics if you truly embrace this sales strategy.

What makes relationship selling such an advantageous sales strategy? Simply speaking, it is all about people relating positively to other people. When I can relate to someone, I have the opportunity to begin to build trust. People buy from people that they trust before they buy from complete strangers.

The key to effective relationship selling is understanding how business ethics or values, reputation and integrity when united build a competitive advantage. Laurel Cutter was quoted as: Values determine behavior, behavior determines reputation; reputation determines advantages. When you consistently demonstrated those non-negotiable business ethics and personal values, you will create your own competitive advantage.

Read more of this article at Relationship Selling Unites Reputation, Integrity & Business Ethics to Increase Sales By Leanne Hoagland-Smith

Email Marketing

[Image] Stay at the forefront of your customer's mind. Be remembered by staying in regular contact with clients after purchase.

Email addresses of customers and prospective customers may be collected at your web site, or personally. You could provide web or storefront visitors a free gift for providing you with their email details.

Various methods can be used for email marketing, such as the regular distribution of newsletters or mass mailing of offers related to the company's product or services.

Email marketing is essentially the online equivalent of direct mail marketing. With the new spam regulations in mind, it is best to use a double opt-in method and my preferred email software is Aweber. They also give you lots of information at their site, to help create successful email campaigns.

Blogs are not a business elective

[Image] Blogs Will Change Your Business. Look past the yakkers, hobbyists, and political mobs. Your customers and rivals are figuring blogs out. Our advice: Catch up...or catch you later

Editor's note: The May, 2005, cover story, "Blogs Will Change Your Business," continues to receive lots of attention online. But many of the details in the story are out of date. So we've called many of the original sources and asked readers to help provide fixes and updates. For the version of the story with 2008 annotations, please visit www.businessweek.com/go/08/blog.

Go ahead and bellyache about blogs. But you cannot afford to close your eyes to them, because they're simply the most explosive outbreak in the information world since the Internet itself. And they're going to shake up just about every business - including yours. It doesn't matter whether you're shipping paper clips, pork bellies, or videos of Britney in a bikini, blogs are a phenomenon that you cannot ignore, postpone, or delegate. Given the changes barreling down upon us, blogs are not a business elective. They're a prerequisite.

Source: Blogs Will Change Your Business by By Stephen Baker and Heather Green

Thursday, July 17, 2008

When a reputation nightmare happens

[Image] While the online world is transforming business, it is also transforming the way potential customers, employers, employees, and mainstream media is finding out information about your business. The blogosphere has begun transforming search engines into conversations about your reputation.
When a reputation nightmare happens, companies face the challenge of removing those negative results off the first few pages of the search engines or with getting information out there that provides a balanced dose of positive articles.
Unfortunately it is often impossible to get a negative article removed from search engine results, but it is possible to make sure that it is hard to get information to show up instead.

Here are 10 recommendations for establishing a healthy presence and reputation on the search engines.

Control and creativity within Australia’s media

A woman reading SMS messages on her mobile pho...

[Image] Many television programs can only be produced because of the revenue generated by viewer interactions through telephone or SMS voting. News services extract surplus value from the costly business of journalism through repackaging and representation on the Internet and, more profitably, through mobile phones.
It is within the following three characteristics that we might begin to discern the battleground for control and creativity within Australia’s media:
* interaction is the new content: by which I mean that there is an increased significance within the media of human interaction, as opposed to the previously dominant processes of creation, distribution, reception or discussion of content;
* distracted and fascinated: by which I mean the rise of user or audience behaviours that simultaneously embody much greater levels of engagement with media while at the same time reflecting an attitude in which users are easily distracted; and
* you can get it for “free”: by which I mean that media consumers understand that while some media and some information must be, should be, and often is paid for, that equivalent, similar or better media and information products can be obtained at no apparent or extra cost.

Read the full article at Traditional media and the new media audience By Matthew Allen

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Building Bridges Between You And Your Customers

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If you're serious about your site (and therefore, your business) being found by your target clients, that is, people most suited to your product and online visitors who are specifically seeking what you have to offer, then search engine optimization is something in which you need to take interest.
Or, you must find someone very good at getting your business to rank highly in the search engines, like adsonvids.com.au for example, to help you be seen online.

Competition for reputation is a significant driving force

A Bas relief potraying members of the Praetori...

[Image] ...the reputation stakes have never been so high. Indeed, the more intimately business seeks to address us through traditional relationship marketing, or the more powerful corporations seek to become through globalisation, the greater the scrutiny and responsibility required of them. A simple injustice or misconception can destroy a reputation overnight, or at the very least, insidiously undermine it. Consequently there is a pressing need to constantly re-evaluate a firm's activity across its entire enterprise so that the good achieved in one area does not conflict with the bad of another.

Learn more about how reputation is today's business critical asset

Start Communicating with Consumers

[Image] The survey, Brand Engagement: What Consumers Really Think, shows not only the desire consumers have to engage with brands, but also the benefits brands may receive from communicating with consumers.
A main takeaway from our survey is that consumers want to talk to brands – and lots of them. But even more interesting is that 55% of survey respondents would prefer to have ongoing communication with brands, as opposed to one time.

See more about the survey results at Why Brands Should Start Communicating with Consumers by David Rubinstein

Use your blog to help your online business

[Image] So how exactly can you use the blog to help your online business?
Here are a few ideas to get you started:
• Use the blog to discuss things related to your field of business. For instance, if your business provides web hosting services, you could discuss things related to web hosting, thus showing potential customers how much of a guru you are.
• Let your employers have their own blogs to talk about your services/products. The more active blogs that reference your business, the more exposure you’ll get.
• Use your business blog to keep current customers updated on new services/products available.
• Post news about your business, as well as start rumors about potential happenings in your online business.
• Get feedback from current and potential customers on your products/services. For instance, you could make a post on a new product, giving details about it. Then your existing customers or potential customers could give their opinion on it.
• Promote your online business on your blog by making blog posts with information on what your business offers.
• Install Adsense on your blog and make extra revenue from ads clicked, thereby helping your business to be more profitable.

Source: The Benefits of Blogging by Fahwaz

Monday, July 14, 2008

Winning Customers

[Image] If you want to know the secret to winning customers, the answer is simple:
1. Respect your customer’s time.
2. Keep the promises you make.
3. If you can’t keep promises, deal with them proactively and enthusiastically.
4. Make activation and use of your product simple and instant.
5. Empower your technical and service support with the training, infrastructure and culture to execute on the promise.

Read more at www.socialmediatoday.com

Inspiration, Anyone?

Microsoft’s Digital Advertising group builds on their earlier efforts called Bring the Love Back. While it is a fun piece, there is obviously a serious agenda at play here.

The new movie is all about the possibilities of online advertising as an effective medium for reaching out to consumers and it’s started a real conversation which you can check out at bringtheloveback.com

Source: toddand.com

Internet Usage In Australia

[Image] ...broadband penetration in Australia has been rising dramatically over the past several years. A clear majority of households had a broadband connection in 2007, and in 2008 more than 63% of homes, numbering just over 5 million, are expected to be high-speed Internet subscribers. ADSL is by far the most popular broadband technology, projected this year to be installed in almost 4 million households. The use of cable technology for broadband access is a distant second, with 785,000 users projected for 2008.
Across the board, whether via ADSL, cable or other technologies, broadband penetration is expected to continue to climb through 2012, when more than three-quarters of households in Australia are projected to have broadband access of some type. It is safe to say that Australia, despite its small population, is poised to take a top spot among the giants of the industrialized world with regard to broadband penetration.

See all the pretty graphs at Broadband and Internet Use in Australia

Thursday, July 10, 2008

Advertiser vs Consumer

This funny MSN ad shows the relationship between the advertiser and the consumer today. The clip was part of a presentation shown at Idea Forum 2007. It should give you a few ideas with regard what you're achieving with your current marketing strategies.

Future of Marketing

[Image] According to a recent BusinessWeek article, 11.2 percent of online adults in the U.S. publish content on a blog at least once a month, 24.8 percent read blog content and 13.7 percent comment on it. And the younger the demographic, the higher the number. The days of mainstream media monopolizing information is long gone, with certain blogs attracting millions of visitors each month as people seek out a more personal spin on information. And as the web becomes more social, people are beginning to value relationships and conversations more than the passive consumption of information. BusinessWeek’s concluding advice: “Catch up…or catch you later.”
Social media is a lot more than just blogs, however, and a combination of blogs, social news and networking sites, along with new ways of consuming media online (YouTube, Flickr, Last.fm) have changed the world of marketing and advertising.

Read more of the article by Muhammad Saleem at For the Future of Marketing, Look to Social Media

The Times They Are a-Changin'!

[Image] While not yet as ubiquitous as the television or as pervasive as the telephone, in the last twenty years, the Internet has climbed out of the obscurity of being a mere "researcher's tool" to the realm of a medium for the masses.
In March 2000, an estimated 304 million people around the world (including nearly 137 million users in the United States and Canada) had access to the Internet, up from 3 million estimated users in 1994. U.S. households with access to the Internet increased from 2 percent in 1994 to 26 percent in 1998, according to the National Science Board's (NSB) Science and Engineering Indicators 2000.
Eventually the Internet will make possible a broader and more in-depth experience than is currently available. "We're taking the computer from the two-dimensional 'desktop' metaphor and turning it into a three-dimensional 'shopping mall' model of interaction," says Tom DeFanti of the University of Illinois. "We want people to go into a computer and be able to perform multiple tasks just as they do at a mall, a museum, or even a university."

Did you spot the dates in that first paragraph? It's an interesting view back, (to not that many years ago) and at a view of the future. Explore more great information at the various links throughout The Internet: Changing The Way We Communicate and you'll clearly see why you must get aboard, now. Get in touch with Josh at adsonvids.com.au today.

Wednesday, July 9, 2008

Is your market “predictably irrational”?

[Image] Dan’s book, Predictably Irrational, is a fascinating look at the behavior of prospects, namely their tendency to behave in an illogical manner when you least expect it.
But in Dan’s research, he’s found “rational” prospects will actually exhibit irrational behavior time and time again–to the point of becoming extremely predictable in their choices.
In other words, no matter what the logical brain says, we make snap decisions based on other things, like emotions and societal norms. And we do it over and over again.
So what does that mean to you?

Find out by listening to Rich Schefren's interview with MIT professor and author, Dan Ariely

Monday, July 7, 2008

Online Consumer Trends

[Image] Why is the Internet so appealing to real estate consumers? It is efficient. Instead of driving around to see homes for sale and viewing each one physically, the consumer can now get a good feel for the home (at least enough to know whether they want to see it in person), simply by viewing photos online.
Second, researching real estate online allows consumers to eliminate other marketing and sales materials. The newspaper, mail box and e-mail are full of unwanted solicitations. Online, the consumer controls the experience.
Third, and most important, the consumer can remain anonymous. Consumers curious about real estate don’t want to be solicited or sold. They want to remain hidden, and the Web provides the information they want with no strings attached.

This is relevant information to any business, not only real estate. Read the rest of Online Consumer Trends: Positioning Yourself for Success by Bill Miles

The Cluetrain Manifesto

A share entitling to 1/8 of the Stora Kopparbe...

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A powerful global conversation has begun. Through the Internet, people are discovering and inventing new ways to share relevant knowledge with blinding speed. As a direct result, markets are getting smarter—and getting smarter faster than most companies.
These markets are conversations. Their members communicate in language that is natural, open, honest, direct, funny and often shocking. Whether explaining or complaining, joking or serious, the human voice is unmistakably genuine. It can't be faked.

I hope you'll love The Cluetrain Manifesto as much as I do. At the following site you can read all about it, and download The Cluetrain Manifesto book for yourself.

Learning to speak in a human voice is not some trick, nor will corporations convince us they are human with lip service about "listening to customers." They will only sound human when they empower real human beings to speak on their behalf.

Become more 'real' for your own your customers, by using the fantastic services available with adsonvids.com.au

Sunday, July 6, 2008

What Is Social Networking?

[Image] Social networking websites help people connect with others who share their interests, build online profiles and share media such as photos, music and videos. The idea of social networks has been studied by sociologists for decades as they analyze the ties between people in families, organizations and even in towns or countries. According to Wikipedia:, “Research in a number of academic fields has shown that social networks operate on many levels, from families up to the level of nations, and play a critical role in determining the way problems are solved, organizations are run, and the degree to which individuals succeed in achieving their goals.”

Mark Glaser published Your Guide to Social Networking Online, and it has some great points for you about the history of Social Networking and an excellent overview.

Saturday, July 5, 2008

The Secrets of Corporate Blogging

A bond issued by the Dutch East India Company,...

[Image] Web logs, popularly known as Blogs, have become one of the hottest communication tools on the Web. Offering the opportunity for anyone to create their own free Web site, encouraging opinions and interaction, Blogs provide forums for individuals to create their own highly personal presentations to the Web audience, and for consortia of all types to experience the sort of online community feeling that was pioneered by early newsgroups and by the phenomenal success of AOL in the 1990s.

Blogs have reached into the corporate and government sectors as well. A prominent federal magazine suggests that some company employees spend more time Blogging than on personal e-mail, an average of over an hour a day. What started out as an outlet for teenage expression and grassroots journalism has turned into a lucrative communications tool for small and large businesses alike.

The rest of this insightful article can be accessed at The Secrets of Corporate Blogging by Karoline White

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