Advertising (entrepreneurs) that Doesn’t Pay
No commentsBy Mason Hinton
Is your business bombarded by sales and other marketing professionals telling you that the products or services they are offering are in the best interest of effective and cost reducing methods to market your organization? Finding your way through the maze of offers, opportunities and avoiding potential money pits highlights the importance for all businesses regardless of size to have a strategic marketing plan that is implemented and followed.
It is a tough market place for any small business and information is the key to making wise marketing decisions and for the survival of any business or organization. The relevance of a strategic marketing plan can not be under stated. It is unfortunate but all to common that people under the disguise of professionals in marketing and sales will boast their products and services as the most effective and cost reducing methods to market your business. Additionally, by writing articles or giving lectures for example, they attempt to give their claims a form of legitimacy. Beware of people making extraordinary claims, a true professional wants to sell you their product or service but also retains the integrity to learn your business and knows when the product or service is not a good fit. The benefit for this type of sales or marketing professional is your loyalty and trust in future business transactions.
A strategic marketing plan helps a business to avoid potential money pits that waste valuable marketing dollars in expenditures that may appear to cost less but have minimal or no measurable results. Simply because something may cost less and other businesses are participating does not make it a solid marketing decision for your organization and certainly does not guarantee successful results. Regardless of the ticket price if it does not produce measurable results and drive business to your establishment it is a money pit.
There are many good examples on the internet of people under the disguise of professionals boasting their products or services as sound marketing advice. One of these claims is that a business could inexpensively build brand recognition through the purchase of low cost promotional items with the organizations name or logo embossed on them; items such as pens, tablets, calendars, magnets, and much more. The problem is that this technique offers minimal to no measurable success in brand building, but more importantly does nothing to draw new customers into the business.
In terms of simple math, if an advertising business were to spend the same money that would be spent on embossed promotional items in traditional media channels such as print, radio, or television for example with an expected 2% rate of return and a minimal exposure of 12,000 individuals gives the advertising business the opportunity for 240 customers for that expenditure. If only 30% of the 2% actually make a purchase that provides the business with 72 new transactions. A business can multiply its average transaction price by 72 to see the real potential income from this one marketing expenditure. Another benefit is brand awareness that would be gained through the advertisement and the opportunity to build customers for life. Furthermore, to entice repeat business and brand loyalty the organization can offer its customers coupons. This method promotes customer appreciation and can be a low cost marketing method.
Moreover, with any marketing expenditure a business should always perform a cost benefit analysis in correlation with its strategic marketing plan. Simply, if it does not offer measurable results, drive new business, and build brand awareness it is a money pit.
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A Bargain to Buy the Iraqi Currency?
By Bruce Shaw
If you do an Internet search for companies that trade in currency, you may be surprised to find that there are dozens, if not hundreds, of web sites dedicated to promoting the purchase of the Iraqi currency. Many of them tout it as a get rich quick scheme. Others say that it is a patriotic way to support the new democracy of the Iraqi people and their government. Still others base their marketing on the notion that buying the Iraqi currency (the dinar) is like buying a penny stock - it is so cheap that you can afford to buy huge quantities, so that even a slight increase in value will guarantee huge yields on your original investment. But buyers beware, because there is no proof that the dinar will make a comeback anytime soon.
Here are a few things for would-be investors to consider before venturing into ownership of the dinar. First of all, there is still no official and organized market for trading the Iraqi currency. This means that even if you want to buy and sell the dinar as a currency trader, there is no way to ensure that you will be able to find a market for it. Without buyers and sellers coming together in an organized fashion, the currency lacks liquidity - if you need to sell your dinars to convert them to dollars, you may have to wait days, weeks, or months to find a buyer to take them off your hands. And without such liquidity, those who broker the notes will be taking big commissions, to make it worth their while. All of these things will factor into your ability to make a profit from trading the currency.
Many who advertise sales of the dinar will not buy the same currency. That should make you somewhat skeptical, because if it is such a good deal, traders would not only sell dinars, but also be interested in purchasing them. And they claim that even a fraction of an upward movement in the currency can make you a millionaire. That may be true, but it is no insurance that the currency will go up. And meanwhile, currencies of other, more economically stable countries in the world - like Turkey, for instance - are cheaper to buy that the dinar, so why not invest in those currencies instead? The fact is that Iraq’s economic outlook is bleak, and the possibility of making huge profits by buying and selling the dinar remain slim - at least for now.
Of course if you want to show your support for the country - and buy a souvenir for your grandchildren in the process - there is nothing at all wrong with buying dinar notes, as many of them as you want. They are very inexpensive - you can buy them for pennies - and they have some historical value as keepsakes from an interesting time in the long story of Iraq’s civilization. But to buy them strictly upon their upside price potential is another thing altogether, and the inherent risk of such a purchase makes it more of a gamble than an investment.
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The Essentials of Good Banner Design
By Mason Hinton
Imagine this - you were talking to your friend about a new product launched by an already established company in the market. You learned about this new product when you were surfing the net but the problem is you cannot remember the name of the product. You tried every possible way you can think of to remember that name but your brain won’t cooperate. And then you remember seeing this leaf-like image that you are sure has got something to do with the company’s name. And then something ignited in your brain and then BOOM! In a split second you remembered the name of the company and its new product. Amazing isn’t it that a simple image left embedded in your mind can help you remember the name that you are searching for. Well, it is probably for this reason that business owners have to put extra effort in designing and choosing their promotional materials.
Banners are promotional materials that can help effectively market your company and its products and services. Most businesses need a good banner because it is what your target customers will see mostly when they are getting familiar with your products. Banners create name recognition, hence when designing your banner it is essential to remember that banner design is not only about graphic creation. There is more than design to banner creation. An effective banner is not only about color, text or images. Effective banners combine quality graphics with special working elements to create exceptional and productive banners.
By far, banner marketing is the most widespread in the Internet. When you have the right elements, banners can be a good way to make customers interested in what you have to offer. Here are a few tips and tricks to make that banner really interesting. First off, conceptualize. As with any advertising material, you must start with a great concept to help you produce a banner that will clearly communicate your products and services. It is important that when you conceptualize you take into consideration your customers. Your banner should be able to speak to them and recognize their needs and desires. And again keep the design simple. Remember that simple is always better. As much as possible don’t crowd your designs. Leave a space for your customer to use their imagination. Leaving something for your customer to think about can be a good tactic to make them interested.
You can also use colors or styles that are in contrast with your design. This way you can effectively entice curiosity to every individual that sees your banner. Additionally, make sure that your banner can be easily read and understood by the reader. Since a reader would typically spend only a few seconds before deciding whether to check out your products or move on, it is important that your banner is concise, simple and legible.
On a final note, be consistent and relevant; consistent in terms of building your brand and relevant when dealing with your customers. Sometimes when developing your banner concepts you tend to forget abut your customers. Remember that you are creating your banner for your customers so keep them always upfront and make propositions that address their needs and desires. So take advantage of the opportunity to create a relationship with your customers by offering them relevant, captivating and effective advertising tool. Once you have come up with good banner designs you would be surprised with what it can do to boost your business.
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Sunday, February 28th, 2010 at 6:15 pm and is filed under business. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
