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There was a time when cell phones and computers were both mammoth sized objects that were a rarity to own. Back then, you probably communicated on a landline telephone if you needed to talk to somebody. But now, thanks to the development of cell phones and tablets, we have the opportunity to reach someone in seconds. And with access like that, it just may be a great way to reach your customers.

By now, most companies are utilizing mobile technology in a variety of ways, but many have yet to take it to the next level. Many of the traditional marketing methods such as direct mail and point of purchase support the mobile environment. Most times having a mobile version of your website created is all many businesses need. But other businesses can benefit from building a mobile app. Here’s how to get started.

Why It’s Easy
If you’re willing to put some money into developing your mobile app, then it’s probably best to hire a developer, especially if you have complex functionality for what your customers will do online. If you’re looking to save a little money, there are services online that make it relatively easy to build an app on your own.

What You’ll Get
There are a variety of marketing advantages when it comes to having an app for your business. Anytime your customers download the app it’s good for your business, as long as you’ve created a trustworthy app that functions properly. You’ll be able to reach the growing audience of smart phone and tablet users who download a variety of apps for different reasons.

One advantage to having an app versus simply a website is that an app can be accessed in places without Internet once they are downloaded. If you store company information and things your customers would need to know on the app, they can have access to it anytime as long as they have their device with them. Creating an app may not be just for your customers either, as you could build apps that help make your employees more efficient in their job, especially if you have some workforce in the field.

Is It For You?
If you’re struggling to maintain other technology friendly marketing strategies, an app might be too extreme of a move for your company. However, if you’re ready to try something new, the possibilities are endless when it comes to making your own app. From internal company use to on the go information for your customers, an app could provide opportunities you’ve never had access to before. If the funds and the timing are right, it’s definitely a venture for your marketing team to investigate.

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When you’re on the job, you do everything you can to reach out and drum up new business. Maybe you’re managing multiple social media pages to reach consumers. You’ve sent direct mail to new markets where you can find potential customers that would benefit from your products or services. But just because you’re doing all you can on the clock doesn’t necessarily mean you should rule out after hours networking. Think of the advantages of getting out there to meet new people while your competitors are confined to their businesses. Here are some easy networking strategies to consider next time you’re off the clock.

Don’t Be Bashful
Let’s face it. Being shy is not an option when it comes to networking. So you’ve got to put yourself out there and think of every interaction as a networking opportunity. And if you’re on the shy side, you can overcome that by being prepared. Unless you engage, you never know if that stranger beside you on a plane or the table next to you at a restaurant could be a customer. So don’t just think of traditional wine and cheese networking events as the only place to find new business. Volunteer opportunities, for instance, are a great way to get connected to others with similar interests. Also, remember to always have business cards handy for any unexpected opportunities you meet.

Perfecting Your Pitch
Studies show that the younger generation, an up-and-coming portion of the consuming population, have short attention spans because they were raised in barrage of information from the readily available content the Internet puts at their fingertips. They may not be the only ones. As technology continues to expand, consumers have more options to become distracted and don’t have time to listen for elongated periods of time. That’s why you should never rule out your best elevator pitch.

Make the pitch short, simple and relevant to the person you’re engaging. People want to know what you have to offer without sorting through information to get to your main point. Give it to them up front instead of dancing around what they’re really looking for. Remember that although you’re trying to be concise, you also need to find a way to stand out from everybody else.

How to Keep Them Hooked
The best way to keep people engaged is to find commonalities. If you talk about a shared hobby or passion before you talk business, your new connection is sure to remember you and possibly follow up to work with you. When you’re out there networking, never attempt to force a business relationship. But that doesn’t mean you should stop talking with them just because you don’t see potential. The personal connection may eventually result in a referral or at least a substitute fourth for your golf league.

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If you’re looking for a revenue-generating powerhouse for your business, you’re looking for direct mail. Direct mail campaigns are the Old Faithful of marketing—businesses count on them because they’re dependable and promise a consistent ROI.

You can push direct mail’s ROI from consistent to record-breaking with a focus on personalization. Some online marketers mistakenly think their methods are more personal than direct mail. But thanks to Internet cookies, over-sent emails and Google Ad Words, consumers are turned off and tuning out. Direct mail bests digital marketing tactics in the area of personalization because, to the consumer, it feels more human.

The simplest way to personalize direct mail is using variable printing to address your business’s leads by name. But you can go even further than that.

The key to effective personalized direct mail is to get as much useful information as you can from your customers and prospects. Use sales records, surveys and social media to collect good data about your mail leads.

Now it’s time to personalize your direct mail piece. To craft a message that’s relevant to the prospect without being creepy, you’ve got to use your data carefully. Let’s say, for example, that your jewelry store wants to market diamond engagement rings. You’re working form a list of young people who you assume—or hope, for your business’s sake—are single (and you should know that from your data).

It makes sense to write copy that speaks to a buying audience in the mail piece you will send to males. On the other hand, the mail piece sent to females should feature different photos and copy. Although who will buy and who will receive such a gift varies, catering the message of the direct mail according to gender is a subtle method of personalization.

As this examples shows, the best marketers have to interpret the data and use it in a way that tactfully shows consumers that your business is just what they need. But you don’t have to be selling jewelry to personalize direct mail skillfully and in a non-intrusive way. Think about your audience and how their demographic information may affect their buying habits or business needs.

Work from your recipient data to go beyond names in personalizing your business’s direct mail. When you personalize your direct mail piece with a name, you’re working to catch your prospects’ attention. Go one step further—and one-up online marketers—by letting demographics inform your direct mail piece.

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There is a time for everything in the marketing business. A time to stick with your current marketing strategy, a time to change your plan just a little and a time to try something completely different. The beginning of the year brings an exciting time to implement new strategies that could ultimately improve your company’s bottom line. Here are some ideas to help get your marketing in gear for 2012.

QR Codes
Technology rules the world these days, and consumers want information at their fingertips. QR codes are just that, a quick response code that your clients will love. The small square codes can contain a large amount of information, and anything that you would like to program into them. You can place them on direct mail, business cards, posters and even buildings. In terms of marketing, you can direct customers to a coupon, contact information or a link to a special promotion on your website. The possibilities for creativity are virtually endless.

Personalization
Nobody likes to be treated as just another number. And with variable data, your customers won’t feel like a number at all. Variable data printing allows you to personalize your mailings towards each of your customers. The more information you have on your customers, the more personal you can get. And in today’s social media world, there’s more information to get. This marketing strategy allows you to deliver messages that matter to your customers, meaning they won’t automatically ditch your mail because they find it irrelevant.

Content is King
With all of the information we ever need—and then some—readily available to us online, many think the traditional printed newsletter is dead. Oh, contraire. Consumers are information hungry and a well-produced, quick-read newsletter is just the ticket to keep your brand on your customers’ mind.

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Presenting information is a key part of marketing your business, and communication is the key to success when it comes to presenting. But it doesn’t matter if you have the best product or idea in the world. You need your prospects to understand your pitch. No matter what your goal is, if you can’t present your information properly it just won’t click with your audience. If you’re looking to impress with your next presentation, avoid these presentation don’ts.

Don’t Read Your Slides
We’ve all been to this presentation. As you sit there wondering why you showed up when the presenter could have emailed you a list of bullet points, you probably lose interest because they handed you a printout and you can just read it later. Instead, keep your audience interested. Use keywords and phrases that keep your audience wanting more elaboration. Pass out note-taking materials before you start so that your audience will jot down your main points and feel obligated to stay intrigued in your presentation.

Don’t Phone it In
Think back to that monotone professor you had that made you fall asleep, no matter how interesting you found the subject matter. The same can happen in your presentation. If you aren’t excited about what you’re presenting, then your prospects won’t be excited either. Don’t be afraid to use some humor if appropriate for the subject matter. Make sure that overall, your presentation team has a certain spark that will please the potential customers.

Don’t State the Obvious
If your audience already knows the information you’re trying to feed them, they will lose interest within the first few minutes of your presentation. Give them something they don’t know, and show them why you deserve their attention. There’s a reason behind your presentation, and the audience is there to hear it. So give them something new and exciting to keep them hooked.

Don’t Use Different Styles
If you’re trying to put together a book, you wouldn’t use different fonts on every page. It seems pretty self explanatory, but make sure that you use common features so that your presentation is pleasing to the eye. Make use of a common color scheme, but don’t go too colorful and loud. Your information should be the main focus, not rainbow colored fonts.

Don’t Rely on Spellcheck
Having misspellings or any grammar flaws will quickly lose credibility with your prospects. If you can’t get the presentation right, how are they to trust you to do work for them? It can be easy to rely on spellcheck, but that doesn’t mean spell check will catch everything, especially if sentences don’t make sense. Make sure to look over your presentation multiple times for the best results.

All of these presentation don’ts can be avoided by practicing your presentation in front of coworkers or even family members. Have them tell you what you can improve on and what you may be missing. By recognizing these flaws, you should be able to see better results. And always remember to gain feedback from your audience so that you can continue to improve your presentation skills.

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Many employees come back from the holiday break with a renewed ambition to do their best. So take advantage of this opportunity to channel this energy into your marketing plan. After all, marketing your organization is everybody’s business.

Push the Envelope
You might find that your company has been doing the same marketing for years, simply because that’s how it’s always been done. If that’s the case, it’s time to question your company’s tactics. There’s one certainty: things change. And such is the case with marketing. There are a variety of new marketing mediums you can incorporate into your marketing strategies. Take a look at how your competitors are using new tools like social media, variable data printing and QR codes. Then determine how you may be able to use them to grow your business.

Figure Out What Works
It’s great to know what is working from the past year’s marketing plan. One of the easiest ways to do this is to simply ask how you’re doing. Seems simple, right? That’s because it is. You can conduct surveys online, make phone calls or even ask customers in-person.

Once you gain feedback from your customers, you have to actually listen. It can be difficult to hear that something you thought would be a promotional success didn’t work out as well as you had planned. But remember that it’s better to make a change to your marketing for the betterment of the company’s bottom line.

Be Positive
When considering a new marketing plan, it’s important to consider your Return on Investment (ROI). According to Web Pro News, it can be beneficial to look at each marketing activity individually and determine if you had a positive ROI rather than evaluating a comprehensive budget. If not, it’s time to implement a new strategy for the places that are lacking. Keep the positive ROI activities the same, or think of ways that you can improve them.

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We can’t fault you for focusing on adding customers to grow your business. In fact, it speaks to the ambition that drove your business to the success you currently enjoy. But as the year wraps up and you’re running out of time to sign new customers, we’d like to redirect your focus to the people writing your paycheck each month—your current customers.

We’ve all heard over and over again that it costs more to add new customers than to keep existing ones. That makes upselling to your current customers critical to keeping your business in the black. Upselling keeps you relevant to customers even after you solve the problems they initially came to you with, and it makes your business relationship more profitable.

So rein in your marketing efforts toward the client you already have. Keep reading for four tips on increasing sales with upselling.

Be Inclusive
If you assume that your customers are aware of all of your products and services, you’re only hurting yourself. It’s not their job to assess what they need from your business’s suite of services. It’s yours. So don’t just market new services to leads. Include current customers in your mailing list when promoting a special. Alert clients to the new product you just rolled out. Never underestimate the potential for new business in an old client.

Happy and In It for the Long-Haul
Not losing current clients is too humble a goal. Not only do you need to keep them, you need to keep them happy. Offer customers training and support to help them get the most out of the products and services you sold them. The trust you’ll build by taking the time to educate them will prove invaluable when their looking for upgrades down the road.

Just Checking In
Make it a priority to stay on current customers’ radar, because so much of the upsell depends on your being attuned clients’ every wish or need. Keep in touch to stay in the know about the challenges they face, their changing target audience and their biggest worries as a business. Talk to customers regularly. The conversation should be a low-pressure, sales pitch-free discussion about their problems. Listen to them carefully then identify upselling opportunities consistent with their needs.

An Elephant Never Forgets (But Clients Do)
Remind customers of all your company offers to help their business grow. Write a personal letter to clients in whom you see potential for spending more on your services. Include a list of everything your business offers, with the products they’ve already purchased checked off. It’s a subtle way to show clients that you can fulfill more of their business needs, even ones they might have missed.

Share these ideas for increasing revenue through current clients with your sales and marketing team. Focus on the art of the upsell for a last-minute boost for your 2011 income.

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As for social media sites, LinkedIn is too boring to bear for many individuals. But for businesses, the professional networking site is a goldmine. That is, it’s a goldmine for businesses that know how to use it. Keep reading for four ways your business can use LinkedIn for greater lead generation.

#4 All Aboard
Encourage your staff to participate in your LinkedIn marketing push for the best results. Your company’s visibility will be higher when more professionals associate with your company on the site. Tell your staff to claim their own vanity URL so that it includes their names rather than random letters and numbers no one will remember. Make sure your staff maintains a professional image on LinkedIn, too.

Don’t let your team treat LinkedIn like Facebook or Twitter by sharing party pictures and silly personal information. Prospective leads will be unimpressed and far less likely to give you their business.

#3 Get the Word Out
With all of the effort you’re putting into marketing your business on social media, it’d be a shame to neglect publicizing your LinkedIn presence. Make a focused effort to spread the word about your availability on LinkedIn. You can promote your profile on your blog and Twitter feed. And print QR codes on the back of your business cards to drive traffic to your profile. And don’t forget to include a link to your profile in your email signature. Finally, add clients as connections to see their contacts (also known as your new prospects).

#2 Group Think
Position yourself as an expert and get noticed on LinkedIn by contributing to active group discussions. Don’t waste your time on groups with many members but little to no participation, either. Avoid discussions full of sales pitches—quality leads won’t waste their time there. Attract promising leads adding thoughtful, expert responses to questions. Don’t pitch your services on LinkedIn—save that for the follow-up.

#1 Follow Up
Using Google Analytics, track who’s viewing your company website. Then check
LinkedIn for executives you can pass along to your inside sales team. Likewise, track those viewing your LinkedIn profile and your staff’s—potential leads may already be researching your company. Keep leads interested and attentive by following up with a phone call, email or LinkedIn’s InMail.

Lead generation on LinkedIn definitely requires an investment of your time. But if you and your staff concentrate on engaging with professionals from relevant industries on the social media site, your list of prospects will grow and your sales will soar.

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From the well-respected brand that has been around for ages to the small business that is just taking off, branding is a vital part any business. Whatever stage of life your company is in, video is a tool that could be utilized to brand and market your company. If you’re not a video pro, don’t stress. These tips will help you use video to reach consumers you’ve never found before.

Find an Angle
Finding your angle applies to video in two ways. Don’t do video because all the cool kids are doing it. Find an angle you could use to achieve your marketing goal. Whether you’re creating a demo or doing a special promotion, the video needs to serve a purpose with a clear reason for the viewer to do something as a result of watching. Also, consider the tone of your video and correlate it with your company culture. If you’re a fun group, you could make a humorous video. But if you’re seen as a prestigious company with a longstanding traditional brand, you’ll want to portray that in the video. Once you’ve found your angle, it’s time to find your angles with the camera.

Lights, Camera, Action
If you’ve never done a video to market your business, do some background research. Find some other companies to see what types of videos they’ve been producing and determine what you like and dislike about them. You should always shoot for professionalism, but you don’t necessarily need professional equipment. Many companies shoot their own videos these days. You probably have a budding videographer on your staff. You might find that investing in an outside business to help can be a good investment.

You Can YouTube
After you’ve made your video, it’s time to let the world see all of the great things your company can do. YouTube is a great resource for businesses. You’ve probably been shown funny videos, looked up music videos or watched clips from your favorite movies. But YouTube is also a great resource to market your business. Once you have it posted to YouTube, you should post it on your website and link to it in social media. If you can make your video noticeably different, then you will get more views and your popularity will grow. So get out there, think outside the box and shoot a video that your business can market and take pride in.

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Thanksgiving has barely passed, and yet planning for 2012 is already overdue. But it’s not too late to treat your marketing strategy to a much-needed makeover. All of the fresh starts and New Year’s resolutions that accompany a brand new year make it a great time to implement a new and improved marketing strategy. So forget the old standard resolution to lose weight. Instead, decide that 2012 is the year you’ll trim the fat on your marketing strategy. Read on for five steps to your 2012 marketing strategy assessment.

Articulate Your Goals
How will you craft a more effective marketing strategy if you don’t know what you’re working toward? Go over your business plan to identify areas to which marketing can contribute. Check your current marketing strategy for any tactics that aren’t related to those goals. Revise your strategy to ensure that it’s doing exactly what you need it to.

Pinpoint Weak Spots
Improving your marketing strategy according to your business’ goals naturally leads to addressing weaknesses. Recognize the areas that need a little help and market the company with those in mind. If your company needs to increase visibility, adjust your marketing plan to do just that—focus on word-of-mouth initiatives, customer rewards and SEO. If client retention is far from your strong suit, plan customer loyalty programs and invest in advertising that promotes your excellent customer service.

Know Your Audience
Before you can woo your audience into buying your product or subscribing to your service, you’ve got to really know them. Can you paint a picture of who would buy your product? Do you know how much they’re willing to pay? What does it take to convince them? Answer these questions and adjust your marketing strategy accordingly.

Measure Up
The tighter the money, the more careful the consumer. Get used to the fact that when consumers spend less, they scrutinize your business and your product more carefully than ever. Does your marketing strategy speak to your expertise and your company’s credibility? If not, what can you do to fix that? Maybe it’s spotlighting testimonials of happy customers, or rewarding customers who refer leads. Maintain a content-rich website and develop a PR strategy to showcase your trustworthiness and persuade the tight-fisted to bite the buying bullet.

Know the difference
Your business plan and your marketing plan are two completely different tools. The former describes the whole of your business—your customers, your budget and your goals. A far more focused document, the marketing strategy, consists of the concrete steps your business takes to achieve the goals in your business plan. Both tools work best when they’re separate but in harmony.

Guide your marketing strategy revisions according to these five considerations, and you and your business will have more to celebrate next year. Get to it!

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QR codes are everywhere. If you haven’t noticed them on signs, direct mail pieces or store windows, you’re just not paying attention. QR codes (Quick Response codes) are a way for your prospects to interact with your marketing, and your business should consider getting on board.

Every business has the potential to use QR codes in an unexpected way. If your business innovates its marketing campaign with QR codes, your bound to enjoy a healthy ROI in addition to increased customer interaction. Keep reading for our list of six interesting places we’ve found QR codes.

Menus
Print a QR code on your menus to engage restaurant diners. The QR code could direct them to a video of the chef preparing an entrée or even nutritional information. Somewhat obvious caveat—if the food’s fatty enough to make guests lose their appetite, stick with a server bio or something else to spark a diner’s interest.

Invitations
Event invitations with QR codes can link to a landing page where invitees can RSVP or check out directions to the venue.

Real Estate Lawn Signs
Realtors are attracting passersby by printing QR codes on their listings’ lawn signs. The link leads potential buyers to sites with video walkthroughs of the house and all the details included in a sell sheet. QR codes help realtors hook prospects before they walk past the home and forget about it. Sold!

Receipts
Most consumers research a business online before patronizing it. Make sure your online presence is strong and then print QR codes on your business’s receipts. Link to a landing page inviting them to comment on your stellar service and enjoy a boost in your number of online reviews.

Coffee Bags
Starbucks recently rolled out a QR code campaign that takes an educational approach to the QR code trend by linking to videos of coffee experts or music samples from the region where the coffee beans are picked. Faithful sippers now have even more reason to congratulate themselves on drinking coffee.

The Back of Your Head
We don’t really expect that you’ll have a QR code shaved into your head, but it’s been done before and it gained a lot of attention. The entire starting lineup of the UK’s Bromley football club had shockingly realistic QR codes shaved into their heads for a recent match. No word on whether any fans actually tried to scan them.

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You read that right. The campy reality series spotlighting appallingly petty, chichi women in wealthy cities—New York, Beverly Hills and Atlanta among them—can teach you a thing or two about engaging your target audience. Take a hint from the network’s gaggle of nitpicking socialites to refresh your company’s marketing campaign.

Brand Consistency
Kim Zolciak is the big-haired wino and LuAnn de Lesseps the persnickety countess. The biggest Housewives personalities are popular because they developed consistent identities that appeal to their target audience.

Customers won’t remember your business if you change your colors or rewrite your tagline as often as Kim changes her wig. Resist the urge to reinvent yourself when you’re itching for attention (although that’d be a very Housewife-y thing to do).

Everything associated with your company needs to relate back to a consistent theme so that your target audience remembers you. Create a compelling brand voice and identity then stick to it.

Socialize
Almost every Housewife markets herself on social media. Grown-up (well, technically) child actor Kyle Richards makes good on her promise to answer every tweet. Keep your social media campaign active by posting to Facebook at least twice per week and tweet even more often. Never let your company’s social media accounts go stagnant. People notice.

Make sure you’re only sharing relevant content, too. For example, Adrienne Maloof asks her mostly female Facebook fans which dress she should wear to her next black-tie event. Followers jump at the chance to dress her.

Not only do the Housewives maintain engaging social media accounts, they also promote their presence on talk shows and in videos posted on Bravo’s website. Follow their cue with promotions in your direct mail campaigns, on your business cards and in every email signature.

Blog, Then Blog Some More
Housewives use their blogs for shameless self-promotion, and it’s good for business. If your business decides to start a blog, prepare for a lot of writing. Like your social media accounts, you need to post regularly to be effective. Attract target audiences with catchy headlines and telling excerpts. Invite comments and reply to them. Reward readers by announcing discounts and specials on the blog.

There’s nothing to emulate about the way Housewives interact with each other. But branding and blogging like a Bravolebrity will attract major attention to your business.

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You read that right. The campy reality series spotlighting appallingly petty, chichi women in wealthy cities—New York, Beverly Hills and Atlanta among them—can teach you a thing or two about engaging your target audience. Take a hint from the network’s gaggle of nitpicking socialites to refresh your company’s marketing campaign.

Brand Consistency
Kim Zolciak is the big-haired wino and LuAnn de Lesseps the persnickety countess. The biggest Housewives personalities are popular because they developed consistent identities that appeal to their target audience.

Customers won’t remember your business if you change your colors or rewrite your tagline as often as Kim changes her wig. Resist the urge to reinvent yourself when you’re itching for attention (although that’d be a very Housewife-y thing to do).

Everything associated with your company needs to relate back to a consistent theme so that your target audience remembers you. Create a compelling brand voice and identity then stick to it.

Socialize
Almost every Housewife markets herself on social media. Grown-up (well, technically) child actor Kyle Richards makes good on her promise to answer every tweet. Keep your social media campaign active by posting to Facebook at least twice per week and tweet even more often. Never let your company’s social media accounts go stagnant. People notice.

Make sure you’re only sharing relevant content, too. For example, Adrienne Maloof asks her mostly female Facebook fans which dress she should wear to her next black-tie event. Followers jump at the chance to dress her.

Not only do the Housewives maintain engaging social media accounts, they also promote their presence on talk shows and in videos posted on Bravo’s website. Follow their cue with promotions in your direct mail campaigns, on your business cards and in every email signature.

Blog, Then Blog Some More
Housewives use their blogs for shameless self-promotion, and it’s good for business. If your business decides to start a blog, prepare for a lot of writing. Like your social media accounts, you need to post regularly to be effective. Attract target audiences with catchy headlines and telling excerpts. Invite comments and reply to them. Reward readers by announcing discounts and specials on the blog.

There’s nothing to emulate about the way Housewives interact with each other. But branding and blogging like a Bravolebrity will attract major attention to your business.

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