Spade: a tool used for digging and moving dirt
The gardener prepared the new flower bed with his spade.
Spayed:the process of desexing an animal to prevent unwanted young.
The vet spayed three cats and one dog today.
Definitely not two words you want to confuse the meanings of!
I seem to be getting more emails about search engine optimisation (SEO) services lately – all of which I delete without any consideration I might add!
Why do I delete them?
What worries me more is that some of them will convince other business people to take up their services. Not only would it be a waste of money most of the time, some SEO strategies can actually penalise your site (and if Google or Yahoo cuts you out, it is very hard to get your site recognised.)
So if you get made an offer to ‘put your site at the top of search engine listings’, please consider carefully if it is worth pursuing. In fact, if they convince you of the need to have SEO help, go online to find a company to use instead of trusting an uncalled for solicitation. Finding a company gives you the chance to decide how reputable they appear.
Alternatively, take some time to work on your content to make it useful and relevant for humans and read up on other ways to help your page rankings.
I have just added this blog to a directory (the suitably named Web Link Directory!) I came across while researching things online for a client.
What directories have you added your business to? Have you noticed any significant results (positive or negative) from any directory listing?
Admittedly, I did a lot more in the way of directory listings when I first started in business and needed some exposure to get started. I’m not sure I ever got any work from those ads, but I believe they may well have helped get my site noticed by Google and friends. Of course, having relevant, human-orientated content made more difference to my eventual rankings but some initial incoming links helped.
Now, I have less time to look for directories! But more importantly, I take more care in choosing where to place links – relevant sites and sites I consider to be reputable are much more likely to get my notice. Many experts say these links will benefit me more than lots of suspect links, and I don’t disagree with them; besides, I think they are more likely to attract the types of clients I want.
Yesterday, I described an email where past events were advertised – and suggested it was not a great idea!
Yet running or being involved in events such as seminars can be a very effective marketing tool. Assuming the event is well run and provides useful information, the event shows you as an expert, professional, helpful and possibly generous with your knowledge.
Obviously, in the lead up to an event you need to promote it to attract people to the event itself – not much of an event if no one turns up because they didn’t know about it!
However, you can also promote an event to market your business as well as the event – and this marketing can follow the event as well as lead up to it. Worst case, people know you run seminars and may be able to attend your next one; best case, people give you more respect and trust in you, and are more aware of your business.
Some ways you can use an event afterwards to promote your business and credibility are:
What other ways have you used or seen used for promoting events after they have happened?
Summary: an outline or overview of something
He gave a quick summary of the lecture to date.
Summery: relating to the summer season
The coconut oil and filmy curtains gave the room a summery feel.
What an appropriate pair of words to define this week as they are predicting 37 plus degrees (Celsius of course) tomorrow and Wednesday – summer has certainly reached Melbourne!
Remembrance tip – summer heat is summery.
Yesterday, I wrote about the value of giving clients some tipsto develop a relationship with them as a form of marketing. Of course, the tips need to be useful for your clients and presented well to be an effective marketing tool for you.
Try the following tips to make your tips effective:
Taking some effort to get your tips good is worthwhile as you can use the list over and over. It can be given to clients as a printed page or emailed as a pdf.
Do you already have a tips sheet? Have you checked it recently for the above points and to make sure it is still current and accurate?
Catching up on some reading over the break, I came across Melissa’s post on using welcome kits to help get repeat customers. It is an interesting idea, and one used by membership places and some real estate agents.
Melissa gave a number of suggestions of things to potentially be included, one of which was a set of tips or an article to help customers maximise what you’ve sold (or at least told) them. I think it’s a great idea – you are providing a value beyond the expected as well as keeping your name & brand in front of them, and the cost is minimal. In fact, if you compare it with the cost of marketing and advertising for new customers, it is a real bargain!
Tomorrow, I’ll post some tips on making your tips valuable 🙂 But here are some ideas of tips you could produce:
What tips/articles do you give out to new clients – or what have I just inspired you to produce? 🙂
Use your words wisely!
Seam:a line where two edges join. Often used for the stitching and area beyond the stitching where fabric is joined in clothes.
The pattern allowed for a 5mm seam.
Seem: to appear
It seems he is selling his home.
seemly: to appear in a fitting or proper manner
“It would not be seemly for a woman to wear pants” said Queen Victoria.
Building a brand is an important way to develop your business and attract customers, but I read a blog post recently that reminded me of branding even the small things to match your style guide.
Kylie posted that customising and branding your invoices is useful, and quite easy. Personally, I have always had my logo and other details in my invoices, but I hadn’t thought about changing the font. Many people would say that invoices are boring and nuisances rather than marketing tools – and that no one would ever notice what font the dollars are printed in – but it still part of being consistent and reinforcing the look of your business. It also shows an attention to detail for anyone who does notice the details of your invoice.
So, is your invoice branded? Does that include choice of font, wording style and colours/backgrounds?
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