“Determining the Real Costs of Lead Generation — and Making It Work” Keys to a successful marketing program: targeted audience, sharp appearance, valuable offer. When you buy a newspaper or a magazine, are you really paying for the paper and the ink? If the paper and the ink are what you are really buying, it makes no difference if the…
“It’s a Small World After All” Getting started: a primer on international trade. When you boil it down, international trade is merely another form of market expansion. Yet selling products and services abroad gets dicey because you’re playing under a new set of rules. (See “When in Rome” in the July [2001] issue.)Choosing a path There are numerous ways to…
“Join the E-Commerce Revolution — Free” Many small businesses view the Internet as a place to level the playing field against larger competitors. Yet less than 5% of U.S.-based small businesses currently have an e-commerce Web site.If the cost or complexity has stalled your online plans, here’s good news:Bigstep.com offers free e-business Web sites to small businesses. The do-it-yourself site…
Michael Powell is just the sort of guy you’d expect to see prowling through some dusty corner bookstore on the hunt for a book.
That’s one of the warnings my Grandpa Huber always gave me, and I’ll wager you heard something similar as you grew up. As a teen-ager, I was pretty smug, and Grandpa’s caution was well deserved.But we can be just as vulnerable to egomania as adults. It’s easy for entrepreneurs to let success go to our heads, especially if you build an idea into a prosperous business. The “bad old days” fade like a cheap curtain.
“Lillian Vernon’s Million-Dollar Mistake” A fantastic failure taught this consummate catalog entrepreneur as much, if not more than, her many successes. Lillian Vernon is the stuff of entrepreneurial legend: The mail-order business launched on her kitchen table is now publicly traded with 1998 revenues in excess of $250 million.A Valuable Lesson But she and her Lillian Vernon Corp. learned perhaps…
“Your Move — Through the Looking Glass” It’s imperative to know what makes you unique and how customers perceive you. Tom ZahniserIf you’re like most entrepreneurial leaders, surviving isn’t enough. You want to take your business to the next level. But that’s no easy feat. Some people have a knack for being at the right place at the right time;…
“Nifty Products Aren’t Enough” ‘Value added’ may be an overused buzzword — but it’s an important one if you want to be a market leader. It’s not enough to have a great product or service — copycats are always on the prowl. The key to surviving and thriving in a competitive landscape, entrepreneurs agree, is to continually differentiate yourself and…
“How to Create Your Company’s Identity” Your company and/or product identity impacts your bottom line. A positive company and product identity enhances your sales and your entire marketing communications plan. This guide explains how you can create and project an image that will help you sell your product or service. WHAT TO EXPECTThis Business Builder examines the importance of your…
“Armstrong’s Secret Weapon: Creativity” When advised to “loosen up,” a sales manager at Armstrong International dreamed up an imaginative Christmas card: He was photographed in a Santa Claus suit sitting on a pump trap — one of the company’s core products.The card generated more response from customers than had a previous promotional mailer, prompting the manager to continue the creativity….