PrinterBees.com

If you've never heard the "pop-by", it's time you learned about it and put it to work in your business. Valentine's day is around the corner and the perfect opportunity for a "pop-by". Let me explain.

A "pop-by" is quickly popping by to a see a client or prospect to drop off a small token of any kind. It should be something very inexpensive like; popcorn (perfect for the "pop-by"), candy, carnations, a branded promotional item, postcard or anything else your prospects and clients would find useful or appreciate. It should always include your business card, special offer or coupon, etc. The perfect "pop-by" is very non-intrusive because you're there for only a moment. If stopping by someone's home, you may Read the rest of this entry »

What comes first, the chicken or the egg? Does it at feel the same with your marketing…what comes first, the customers or the marketing? It shouldn't feel like that, but all too often it does, especially in the space of small to medium sized businesses. It should never be a matter of "if" when it comes to marketing, it should be a decision of how often, how much and by what medium will the marketing will be delivered?

The problem with with most marketing plans is that there is no real plan. Most small business owners are so overwhelmed with actually running the business, handling billing, customer service, tech support, developing sales strategies, what to sell and how to sell it, Read the rest of this entry »

Reading Google Analytics everyday is for me, is probably like checking the weather for others. It's a report I read everyday and it helps me to make business decisions about my website, the content on the site and how to convert the visitors we're attracting to customers.  I've blurred the number data because it isn't mine to share and belongs to a client.

One the greatest benefits of having a online presence is being able to easily determine who your audience is and why they are there via Google Analytics. The Analytics tell you what people are searching for, how they got there, where they came from, where they exited, how many pages they visited, how long they were on your site and so much more. It's almost like having basic background on the visitors who enter the site.

In this post, I'm going to stick with the basics and what is most important. Read the rest of this entry »

If you have a Word Press blog, which is the most widely used platform for blogs, you may actually be excluding your blog from the Google Index without even realizing it.  How upset would you be to learn you were excluding your blog from Google search results.

Two of my clients had this problem, I was left puzzled and questioning why.  It made me crazy not being able to figure it out!  Like one of those issues that I know the solution is super simple, it's a matter of identifying the easy solution.

To make sure your blog is being indexed, just search for it in Google by the URL.

Example:  www.printerbees.com/blog in the Google search bar.  If there are no search results, you should start to panic Read the rest of this entry »

With all of the distractions that happen all day everyday, it's difficult to stay focused and on task at times. Most of the time, for me!  I feel as if sometimes I am interrupted more than I actually work! It's frustrating not to get the things done I need to get done.

I had to pull out the big guns and get focused!  Use these five tips to keep yourself focused and get the most from the limited time you have.

• Block time and don't allow any interruptions during that time. Let your family, co-workers, friends and anyone else who you are in frequent contact with that you will absolutely not be available during that time. Make sure you are clear that you plan to be unavailable by any means of communication.

Read the rest of this entry »

My "inner nerd" I wanted to share some of my favorite finds this year with software and apps.  I really…really…really love technology and great apps that make things easier and faster.  This would be my shortlist for 2011 finds.

Flipboard - Flipboard is an iPad and iPhone app with a news magazine feel to it. The news reader is totally customizable and allows you to view the type of news your specifically interested in. It really is the very best way to read the Read the rest of this entry »

It could happen to anyone, Bon Jovi died the other day and is alive to talk about it, because he didn't die, it was a social media windstorm set off by a single social media post. Fed Ex recently had a video go viral of one of their drivers delivering a computer monitor by throwing it over a 6 ft. fence. The New York Times Spammed 8 million people, posted a tweet that they were hacked and then later recanted. They must have realized getting hacked was worse than admitting fault. Then of coarse there is Go Daddy which as of today is approaching 100k lost customers in just over a week due to their support of SOPA.

Three social media disasters, all handled differently, but which company handled it best? Which company did it right?

The New York Times made an absolutely mess of an already messy situation with their email blast to 8 million people offering a half priced subscription. It was meant ONLY for a small Read the rest of this entry »

I've been reading many articles, opinions, videos and blog posts lately about why it's a great idea to list a home for sale in the winter. My reticular activator must really be active right now, because I feel like I see more homes for sale in my own neighborhood now than I do in the summer and spring months. My neighborhood has really low turn over, because of a high ranking elementary school, it's shocking to see so many for sale, but I am really having a complete paradigm shift about why selling in the winter makes great sense.

• In the winter, inventory is lower by an average of 20% and so is competition
• In the winter time, people who are searching for a home are serious buyers. How many "tire kickers" do you know who are willing to get out there and search for a home in the cold, rain, wind or snow?
• In the summer is when the majority of real estate sales happen, how can a home really stand Read the rest of this entry »
  

The most common blunders with business card marketing…"business card marketing"? Sounds funny, but your business card is your most important marketing piece and the most cost effective when you consider the cost per business card and how easy it is to distribute them.

The most common business card blunders:

1. Throwing everything on your card, but the kitchen sink! The people you hand your card to don't need every phone number you have, three different email addresses or several different web addresses (unless it's the baby sitter of course!). Simplicity is best, less is more, Read the rest of this entry »

I hope you didn't take me literally with my "stop marketing" suggestion, but I really do think you need to stop "marketing" yourself at this time of year.

I probably don't have to tell you that people are just a little bit busy at this time of year and more importantly, are bombarded by marketing. I was sitting at my kitchen table last night trying to sort through the mound of mail that had accumulated over a just a few days. It was seriously ridiculous and while I looked at it, I had an epiphany about all the marketing during the holiday season. How can any one marketing piece really stand out when we are inundated by advertisements, sales and holiday specials. It's kind of insane! One ad looked just like the next, there were sooooo many of them. I don't remember any of the ads, only that I felt overwhelmed by all of them. Read the rest of this entry »