Category: Marketing

Some companies don’t use testimonials from loyal clients because they don’t have any. Some companies have got them and they still don’t use them. When it comes to selling, not using testimonials is like going into the ring with your hands behind your back. You’re going to be knocked out fast.

The reason that testimonials are so effective is that what others say independently about you is 100 times more powerful than what you say. Here’s a quick guide as to why and how you must use testimonials in your selling process.

Many people in commerce are familiar with the idea of a “USP” or “Unique Selling Proposition”, that is, a benefit which is unique to your product or service that will attract new customers. Of course coming up with a “USP”, in today’s market place, is not easy when the competition is so fierce.

If you’re going on a long journey, there may be many ways of reaching your final destination (both in terms of the route chosen and the method of transport). Your ultimate choice may depend upon factors such as speed, cost and convenience.

Similarly, there are many ways of promoting awareness of your company and/or its products and services. The one you choose will depend upon factors such as:

Most people in business have the (usually misguided) notion that they can write well. After all, they learnt English at school, so there’s nothing to it, is there? That’s a bit like saying that we all learnt maths at school, so none of us need accountants…

In this article. Phil Allcock looks at a specific type of writing – copywriting. (This shouldn’t be confused with copyright, which is an entirely different subject!) Copywriting refers to the production of words for different types of marketing material.

SEO stands for Search Engine Optimisation. It is the art of making your website communicate well with search engines. It plays a crucial role in gaining the right sort of visitors to your website, so it should be the first thing to think about when you start to build one.

New Year has come and gone and all around the World talk inevitably turns to resolutions. Are you looking towards a slimmer you? Giving up smoking? Perhaps you have decided to dedicate more time to others.

It’s also a good time to sit back and review your networking. Is your current activity working for you? Are you in the right networks, getting the referrals you want for your business?

Take the time to check you are on the right track. Even the top networkers do it. I spoke to some of the UK’s leading networking experts and heads of networks to find out what they expect to happen in networking in 2009 and their own plans for the New Year.

Andy Lopata, networking specialist, talks about the rise of social networking for business gain.

Marketing accountability should be a priority, but in reality there is a lot of talk on the matter, and less action.   Given access to large corporate budgets, marketing staff have promised returns on investment and increased market share.  However, the evolution of the dot.com era has contributed to the fact that marketing staff can no longer get away with promising big results without quantifiably measuring them.

Almost nine out of 10 UK web users watched video online in December, according to comScore, whose data revealed the dominance of YouTube.

In the UK, 28.7 million web users, or 87% of the online population, watched video in December, accessing 3.1m videos.