tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-56802000844592318152024-03-13T03:21:04.026-05:00Inspired by Growth BlogPresented by Augment Marketing Group to help Entrepreneurs find quick tips and helpful hints in marketing their business.AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.comBlogger39125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-29354432050101673652009-12-18T20:17:00.001-06:002009-12-18T20:17:30.547-06:00Why should you be a ‘thought leader’ in your industry?<p>As <a href="http://www.augmentgroup.com">Augment Marketing</a> explores thought leadership strategies, we wanted to deliver ideas that could be used within departments and organizations immediately. We found the following points at Go-To-Marketing Strategies Web site:</p> <p>According to <a href="http://www.gtms-inc.com/tip_thoughtleadershipmarketing.htm">Go-to-Marketing Strategies</a> author Steven Van Yoder -</p> <ul> <li>Thought leadership centers on sharing your knowledge and giving your expertise generously and frequently in a  variety of formats. </li> <li>Thought leaders position themselves as centers of influence who are always "present" within their target markets. Seek opportunities to be seen, read, and heard on a regular basis by the people who matter most to your  company.</li> </ul> <p>Thought leadership is creating a great deal of buzz. In fact, we're seeing a movement among leaders in respective fields that explore what makes a thought leader in an organization? We discovered some important points:</p> <ol> <li><strong>Be accessible and freely share best practices to those in your department or field</strong> - in today's competitive economy where every job is on the line, individuals may be afraid to collaborate or offer insight that could help another person in their organization for fear of losing value if they do. The total opposite is true. You can ensure your 'thought leadership status' by authoring documents and getting your ideas in front of people. By holding back, you cannot be successful - no one even knows you exist. </li> <li><strong>Establish yourself as an expert</strong> - Anyone who feels shy, timid or afraid to share ideas need not apply. To establish yourself as a thought leader you must be front and center. If you aren't easy with putting yourself out front, start by establishing social media and small speaking engagements within your organization. Once you find your groove, you'll feel more comfortable presenting your ideas to larger audiences. There's no easy way to becoming a thought leader, either way you slice it... it takes time. </li> <li><strong>Deliver value to your organization</strong> - Always being aware that the information you bring to an organization should offer some kind of value i.e. increased productivity, better customer relations, reduced inventory, enhanced ROI. The goal is to define the value when presenting your ideas to upper management to be seen as a thought leader. Most high-level executives want the bottom-line right up front. </li> <li><strong>Promote innovation and align with your company's vision</strong> - Thought leaders are always aware of innovative new technologies and ideas that can align with the company's vision. This may be in the form of analyzing or introducing new software, new business models or new products. Again, the idea is to lead your peers and fuel innovation and growth that contributes to a sustainable future for the company.</li> </ol> <p>Thought leadership is an increasingly vital driver of business success.The term was first coined in 1994, by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thought_leader">Joel Kurtzman</a>, editor-in-chief of the magazine, Strategy & Business. The term was used to designate interview subjects for that magazine who had contributed new thoughts to business. There isn't a better time than now to become a thought leader and deliver valuable insight in helping your company evolve.</p> <p><font color="#808080" size="1">Trisha Ahlman is the CEO of Augment Marketing Group and has nearly 20 years experience in marketing for corporations and small businesses. She sits on several creative and strategic development boards nationwide. "Inspired by growth" from its inception, Augment's mission is to inspire growth in all businesses large or small when developing strong brands. We believe in inspiring, learning and growing please contact for more information: </font><a href="mailto:trisha@augmentgroup.com"><font color="#808080" size="1">trisha@augmentgroup.com</font></a><font color="#808080" size="1">.</font></p><div class="wlWriterHeaderFooter" style="margin:0px; padding:0px 0px 0px 0px;"><br /><br /><script type="text/javascript"><br /></script><br /><script type="text/javascript" src="http://tweetmeme.com/i/scripts/button.js"></script></div> AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-25710989884435410192009-12-18T20:04:00.001-06:002009-12-19T02:06:46.563-06:007 Steps to Promote Innovation within Your Company<p>In today’s competitive environment, companies must cater to the changing needs and wants of the consumer. New, innovative ideas are vital to the growth and success of your business. Maintaining an inspired creative team requires dedication, education, and communication. Here are seven simple steps to foster the growth of innovation in your business:</p> <ol> <li>Encourage Ideas </li> <li>Designate Creative Time </li> <li>Have a Submission System </li> <li>Keep Track of Current Trends </li> <li>Combine Need and Technology </li> <li>Implement and Incentive Program </li> <li>Communicate </li> </ol> <p><strong>Encourage ideas <br /></strong>Ideas are the foundation of creative innovation! Encourage creativity and be receptive to all ideas- even if they aren't that great. Employees should never feel embarrassed or afraid to submit their thoughts or creative suggestions. It only takes one idea, good or bad, to be the starting point of something big.</p> <p><strong>Designate creative time <br /></strong>While it's certainly not cost effective to let employees sit around all day staring into space while they dream up the next great invention, it IS a good idea to set aside some time to let the creative juices flow. Whether it's once a week or once a month, designating a certain amount of time for employees to brainstorm and share ideas is a great way to promote creative thinking. </p> <p><strong>Have a submission system</strong> <br />Good ideas will never grow into something tangible if there isn't a process to keep track of them, so adopt a system for employees to use in order to submit their ideas. This system will keep submissions from getting lost in the shuffle, and will make sure that they reach the appropriate department that can make the necessary steps to bring the idea to fruition.  </p> <p><strong>Keep track of current trends <br /></strong>Sometimes good ideas are not altogether new- they are simply inspired by a product or practice that already exists. Keep track of what other businesses in your industry are doing; know what works; know what has already been tried, whether or not it was successful, and why. </p> <p><strong>Combine need and technology <br /></strong>New and improved technology is being produced at an increasingly rapid rate. However, if it were to no one's benefit, what would be the point? Make sure your team knows where innovation is needed most within your industry, and keep them up to date on current technological trends. This information can then be used to your company's benefit, as your team can effectively combine all this new, advanced technology with the existing needs of your target audience. Be sure to look for technology that can drastically improve efficiency. In times of economic turbulence, improving productivity is the key.  </p> <p><strong>Implement an incentive program</strong> <br />Use an incentive program (which does not necessarily have to include monetary compensation) to motivate your creative team. Recognizing staff members for innovative thinking can go a long way, and rewards based upon various levels of achievement are always a great way to encourage hard work and promote employee loyalty. </p> <p><strong>Communicate <br /></strong>Communication is extremely important. Listen to your consumer and be aware of their current needs and wants. Make sure that the lines of communication are open between staff members, C-level leaders, and vendors. When employees are appreciated and acknowledged for bringing valuable innovation and profit to your company, they will be motivated to continue on the path of creative thinking. </p> <p>If you’re on LinkedIn, you can watch this SlideShare show on “Making the Competition Irrelevant” - <a title="http://tinyurl.com/yfxd4xh" href="http://tinyurl.com/yfxd4xh">http://tinyurl.com/yfxd4xh</a>.</p> <p>Written by Ruth Netanel of <a href="http://www.adgination.com" target="_blank">Adgination</a>.</p> <p><font color="#808080" size="1">Trisha Ahlman is the CEO of Augment Marketing Group and has nearly 20 years experience in marketing for corporations and small businesses. She sits on several creative and strategic development boards nationwide. "Inspired by growth" from its inception, Augment's mission is to inspire growth in all businesses large or small when developing strong brands. We believe in inspiring, learning and growing please contact for more information: </font><a href="mailto:trisha@augmentgroup.com"><font color="#808080" size="1">trisha@augmentgroup.com</font></a><font color="#808080" size="1">.</font></p><div class="wlWriterHeaderFooter" style="margin:0px; padding:0px 0px 0px 0px;"><br /><br /><script type="text/javascript"><br /></script><br /><script type="text/javascript" src="http://tweetmeme.com/i/scripts/button.js"></script></div> AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-33359837863421122402009-09-20T13:57:00.001-05:002009-09-20T14:02:07.379-05:00Building Credibility as a NEW Business<p>As a new business your main focus is to appear larger than you are until you are able to grow your business. Think of it as an illusion. You’re not trying to get one over on anyone but quite frankly, you have to fight your way up the ladder when your small and this is the only way to do it.  Building credibility can be a daunting task but it’s very doable if you put the right strategies in place.  Building credibility starts with these few concepts: </p> <ul> <li>Becoming an <a href="http://augmentgroup.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=57:become-the-expert-and-win-business-&catid=1:latest" target="_blank">expert</a> is merely taking charge of what you know and demonstrating it to the world. If your field is marketing, management, finance or decorating, begin building credibility by writing about it and educating consumers.</li> <li>Building your <a href="http://augmentgroup.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=73&Itemid=163" target="_blank">credentials</a> is a must as you begin growing your business. Every seed you plant right now will probably not come to fruition for a year or maybe more down the road. </li> </ul> <p>At last week’s “Building Credibility Seminar” at Jesse H. Jones School of Business at TSU – Entrepreneurship Center, local companies learned these three things to start building their reputation as a leader:</p> <ol> <li><strong>Begin blogging</strong> – blog about what you know. Do not be afraid of writing if you are not a writer. You have to practice in order to hone your skills. There is no time like the present. Have a friend or colleague read your blogs until you are comfortable with writing. Blogs are more educational and conversational than anything else. They are short and to the point information that is easily digestible; making them easier to write than articles. Once you are comfortable, you can venture into writing articles, guest writing, editorials and perhaps even whitepapers.</li> <li><strong>Have a strong image</strong> – make sure you go above and beyond the call of duty on building your image. Invest in nice business cards, letterhead and envelopes. Invest in a domain name so that your email is your company email and not xxx@yahoo.com or xxx@gmail.com. If you can invest in a simple Web site with at least 4-5  pages of informative, brochure like material, then you can have Web presence to demonstrate your professionalism. If all else fails, start a company blog – at least you will appear to have information on the Web when potential clients are searching for you.</li> <li><strong>Make news – </strong>write a press release on your business each week. Even if you never publish them, you are forced to think about newsworthy content to promote your business. Making news plays an important role in building credibility for a new business. Another reason you should be writing news releases is to get better at writing and taking charge of the future of your business. You can post them to your blog or Web site. Your company will be searchable in search engines and potential clients can find relevant information about your business.</li> </ol> <p>You’ll be relieved when you begin to see all of your hard work pay off. Again, building credibility isn’t an overnight strategy but a long-term positioning strategy that will ultimately grow your business beyond belief. Be proactive and follow these tips and you’ll see improvements over time. If you need more advice like the information in this article, <strong>FREE events</strong> take place at the Entrepreneurship Center each week. It’s open to the community and general public at no cost.   To get updated on upcoming events, please email your request to be added to our mailing list at <a href="mailto:trisha@augmentgroup.com">trisha@augmentgroup.com</a> .  </p><div class="wlWriterHeaderFooter" style="margin:0px; padding:0px 0px 0px 0px;"><br /><br /><script type="text/javascript"><br /></script><br /><script type="text/javascript" src="http://tweetmeme.com/i/scripts/button.js"></script></div> AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-5439118371620087232009-09-12T23:59:00.001-05:002009-09-13T10:33:47.553-05:00Eight Ways to Augment Your Sales Process and Win Business Today<p>These eight basic elements will help you to start augmenting your sales efforts. If you are new to business, you’ll learn a great deal by implementing these measures. If you are a novice, not to worry, you may need to brush up on your closing or networking skills. Either way, these eight steps will move you one step closer to closing the deal.</p> <p>1. <b>Dream big and never give up</b> – This is the first step because without believing you can win and working to achieve the highest goal you set, you will surely never get there. Shoot for the stars and if you get to the moon you are halfway there.</p> <p>2. <b>Commit to building your capabilities and portfolio without being concerned about money – </b>Of course we all want to make money but sometimes taking steps is a learning process and worth the price you get for a project just to get your name out there. Don’t be afraid to ‘volunteer’ your services on the front-end. Only follow this advice if you intend on producing results. It doesn’t work with poor quality. Try organizations, non-profits or even business-to-business (B2B); for example, you can offer your services on <a href="http://www.elance.com/" target="_blank">e-lance.com</a> at a competitive rate. </p> <p><b>3. </b><b>Don’t forget sales 101</b> –<b> the natural buying process </b>– Buyers do not purchase products or services they do not know or trust; therefore, when developing your sales process, you must think of sales as a funnel. The wide mouth indicates the level that consumers just want to get to know you down to the bottom of the funnel where trust is strong enough to buy. You may have learned this concept in marketing 101… It’s called Awareness. Interest. Trial. or (A.I.T.). <a href="http://www.augmentyourmarketing.com" target="_blank">Augment Marketing</a> has coined this as B.I.G.™ - Build awareness, Increase interest and Generate results. All this means you need several levels of buying options to gain trust from your clients.<b></b></p> <p><b>4. </b><b>Know your target market</b> – two fundamental questions you must answer – who are your customers and what do they want? Again this is marketing 101 – But, it’s the hardest to identify. The reason is because you may have several targets and segments. Without research and analysis, you may not have a good grasp of your competitors or your customers. Do yourself a favor and focus on one or two targets and expand from there.<b></b></p> <p><b>5. </b><b>You have to know it before you can grow it</b> – before you can go out and sell your product, you should have already thought about your <a href="http://ezinearticles.com/?Seven-Things-Entrepreneurs-Can-Do-to-Create-Brand-Strength&id=2567302" target="_blank">vision and core values.</a> It’s important to understand what you stand for because while you are out networking or meeting potential clients, they will want to hear your elevator speech. <b></b></p> <p><b>6. </b><b>Develop an elevator speech</b> – Be able to say who, what, when, where and how in 10, 15, 20 or 30 seconds. No doubt, you will have to be prepared to deliver a compelling message to get your audience to listen.<b></b></p> <p><b>7. </b><b>Image is everything</b> – Never leave home without it. Meaning, a polished business card and brochure. If you can invest on the front-end, you definitely need to make that happen. If not, it’s better not to take a chance on <a href="http://micropreneurinsight.net/?p=42" target="_blank">cheap materials</a>. Get their card and tell them you will be in contact.<b></b></p> <p><b>8. </b><b>Close the deal</b> – Make sure to plan out your calls, contact messages and emails. Once you have their attention, don’t be afraid to close the deal. Create a sense of urgency. If all else fails, tell them you have another project and need to make a decision. You would appreciate their diligence and timely response. If they say, not at this time but maybe in two months, great – you have a solid commitment and can move on to bigger fish in the sea.<b></b></p> <p>Good luck to all businesses and entrepreneurs. You truly are the real American heroes.</p> <p><font color="#808080" size="1">Trisha Ahlman is the CEO of Augment Marketing Group and has nearly 20 years experience in marketing for corporations and small businesses. She sits on several creative and strategic development boards nationwide. "Inspired by growth" from its inception, Augment's mission is to inspire growth in all businesses large or small when developing strong brands. We believe in inspiring, learning and growing please contact for more information: </font><a href="mailto:trisha@augmentgroup.com"><font size="1">trisha@augmentgroup.com</font></a><font size="1">.</font></p> <p><b></b></p><div class="wlWriterHeaderFooter" style="margin:0px; padding:0px 0px 0px 0px;"><br /><br /><script type="text/javascript"><br /></script><br /><script type="text/javascript" src="http://tweetmeme.com/i/scripts/button.js"></script></div> AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-8788053701534851402009-09-05T03:35:00.001-05:002009-09-05T03:35:21.078-05:00How Logic Models Set You Apart from the Competition<p>When presenting a contract or report to potential clients or board of directors, Logic Models can demonstrate your preparation and understanding of how you came up with a process and how it will impact results.  If you are responsible for writing contracts, Logic Models can set you apart from your competitors.  How you ask? While some are focused on what they provide and how they provide it, you can go the extra mile by demonstrating the impact to the organization. This is important for stakeholders because it means that you have considered not only specific actions to take but measureable results.  It’s just one more step to implementing projects more effectively which clearly sets you apart from competitors.  If you want to learn more about Logic Models, please email <a href="mailto:trisha@augmentgroup.com">trisha@augmentgroup.com</a> in order to receive a free report on how to develop logic models.</p><div class="wlWriterHeaderFooter" style="margin:0px; padding:0px 0px 0px 0px;"><br /><br /><script type="text/javascript"><br /></script><br /><script type="text/javascript" src="http://tweetmeme.com/i/scripts/button.js"></script></div> AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-74535156735662160922009-09-03T02:23:00.001-05:002009-09-03T02:53:57.525-05:00New Event Coming Up<p>Trisha Ahlman will be presenting this Friday at Jesse H. Jones School of Business at TSU in the Entrepreneurship Center – room 109 – 3100 Cleburne St.. The topic is on Logic Models. Many contracts require logic models in order to demonstrate goals, actions and tactical plans. The meeting time is 5:30 – 7:00. To learn more, visit <a href="http://www.augmentgroup.com">www.augmentgroup.com</a> for more details.</p> <p>Attendees will learn how to structure a logic model, how to apply a logic model and how logic models are used to develop strategic plans more effectively. </p> <p>The event is FREE and anyone can attend.</p><div class="wlWriterHeaderFooter" style="margin:0px; padding:0px 0px 0px 0px;"><br /><br /><script type="text/javascript"><br /></script><br /><script type="text/javascript" src="http://tweetmeme.com/i/scripts/button.js"></script></div> AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-35570749802445415952009-07-03T09:19:00.006-05:002009-07-03T11:12:12.152-05:00The Elements of Value Innovation<meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 12"><meta name="Originator" 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table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0pt 5.4pt 0pt 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0pt; mso-para-margin-right:0pt; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0pt; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;">Have you ever wondered how some companies achieve sustainable growth while other struggle to keep up? W. Chan Kim and Ren<span style="">é</span>e Mauborgne stated in an article from the Harvard Business Review, <i style="">Value Innovation, </i>“In a five-year study of high-growth companies and their less successful competitors, we found that the answer lay in the way each group approached strategy”.<span style=""> </span>The authors go on to explain that the conventional way of thinking, beating the competition, wasn’t the type of strategy that high-growth organizations adopted but rather the strategic process of making the competition irrelevant. The article explained in detail that it didn’t matter what size the organization was but how they logically approached strategy that impacted growth. What can we learn from this as small business owners? The lesson is that we truly have a great opportunity. We, the small business owners, are more flexible, more agile, and more creative and we have less bureaucracy. That’s why entrepreneurs still have a chance to create successful businesses even in the most uncertain economic times.</p> <p style="font-family: georgia;" class="MsoNormal">Let’s talk more about the elements of value innovation. To innovate value you have to skillfully integrate an idea, competitiveness and emotional value for consumers. Ask yourself these questions:</p> <ul style="font-family: georgia;"><li>What do you stand for (value proposition)?</li><li>What makes you stand out (marketability)?</li><li>What makes you compelling (brand story)?</li></ul> <p style="font-weight: bold; font-family: georgia;" class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p><p style="font-weight: bold; font-family: georgia;" class="MsoNormal">Consider this value innovation model when developing value innovation for your company:</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;" align="center"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoe53qzrqUxjP3cciMdHAzJW_H4uWy_K4puK_l4VzJBR5_cJYSPq5YM4yMf3pVzdfXpuiyfgHG8WuiEnBd8Tk8Sx_JcgslD6W8dcgrB0ZbNDeZxHaVVROJ1SCOAXQtMswsRJBKURIR9L46/s1600-h/Value+Innovation+Model.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 206px; height: 235px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoe53qzrqUxjP3cciMdHAzJW_H4uWy_K4puK_l4VzJBR5_cJYSPq5YM4yMf3pVzdfXpuiyfgHG8WuiEnBd8Tk8Sx_JcgslD6W8dcgrB0ZbNDeZxHaVVROJ1SCOAXQtMswsRJBKURIR9L46/s200/Value+Innovation+Model.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5354263543673194210" border="0" /></a><span style=""><!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shapetype id="_x0000_t75" coordsize="21600,21600" spt="75" preferrelative="t" path="m@4@5l@4@11@9@11@9@5xe" filled="f" stroked="f"> <v:stroke joinstyle="miter"> <v:formulas> <v:f eqn="if lineDrawn pixelLineWidth 0"> <v:f eqn="sum @0 1 0"> <v:f eqn="sum 0 0 @1"> <v:f eqn="prod @2 1 2"> <v:f eqn="prod @3 21600 pixelWidth"> <v:f eqn="prod @3 21600 pixelHeight"> <v:f eqn="sum @0 0 1"> <v:f eqn="prod @6 1 2"> <v:f eqn="prod @7 21600 pixelWidth"> <v:f eqn="sum @8 21600 0"> <v:f eqn="prod @7 21600 pixelHeight"> <v:f eqn="sum @10 21600 0"> </v:formulas> <v:path extrusionok="f" gradientshapeok="t" connecttype="rect"> <o:lock ext="edit" aspectratio="t"> </v:shapetype><v:shape id="Picture_x0020_2" spid="_x0000_i1025" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="Value Innovation Model.png" style="'width:252pt;height:283.5pt;"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\Users\Trisha\AppData\Local\Temp\msohtmlclip1\01\clip_image001.png" title="Value Innovation Model"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="">
<br /><!--[endif]--></span><span style="font-family:georgia;">To consider each of the strategies surrounding your value proposition look at:</span></p> <ol><li><b style="">Core Capabilities </b>– Look at what value you have to offer your clients. Are you capitalizing on your strengths? Each of the following strategies will strengthen your core capabilities making you more marketable to your clients.</li><li><b style="">Partner Network – </b>Develop partnerships and alliances so that you can win more accounts. Think outside-of-the box. Remember, the goal is to make the competition irrelevant if you want to master value innovation. Bring in more partners and alliances and you will build your core capabilities for a unique client experience.</li><li><b style="">Customer Relationship Management – </b>How will you manage your clients? What unique value do you offer over the competition? Start by knowing the competition and defining how your CRM strategy will differ. </li><li><b style="">Distribution Channel – </b>Distributing your product or service is the one of the most important strategies to consider. Think about the many products and services you can offer to build your core but more importantly determine how accessible will it be for your client.</li><li><b style="">Target Customer – </b>The idea is to have a niche market. Define a small or narrow target and it’s much easier to offer them precisely what they need. Again, you may have several target customers if you have a variety of core capabilities but the idea is to identify each segment skillfully.</li><li><b style="">Cost Structure – </b>Determining your cost structure will contribute to your competitive advantage. If you are a small business you have less overhead than larger companies and can add more value at the same time.<span style=""> </span>Never price yourself out of the market or below. Investigate pricing strategies that will work for your clients.</li><li><b style="">Revenue Streams – </b>Consider multiple revenue streams and structures. Think about funneling buyers through the buying process. First you have to build <b style="">awareness</b>, then <b style="">interest</b> and ultimately <b style="">trial</b> (A.I.T.). So, if you think about your revenue strategies you might want to think about different packages you can offer your client to <a href="http://www.augmentgroup.com/">augment your business</a>. Start with a small package to build trust and win them over for repeat business in the future. </li></ol> <p style="font-weight: bold; font-family: georgia;" class="MsoNormal">An Example of Value Innovation:</p> <p style="font-family: georgia;" class="MsoNormal">Amazon’s business model or value model combines an idea, competitive pricing and an emotional experience for the customer:</p> <ul><li>Shopping convenience</li><li>Ease of purchase</li><li>Speed</li><li>Decision-enabling information</li><li>A wide selection</li><li>Discounted pricing</li><li>Reliability of order fulfillment</li></ul> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:georgia;">It’s the integration of all these processes and emotional benefits that makes Amazon a great value to consumers. Your business can do this too! You just have to plan to strategically position your company and products. Understanding that high-growth companies approach strategy differently really helps new companies create a sustainable model from the beginning. If you want to attend a free seminar on Value Innovation see our </span><a style="font-family: georgia;" href="http://www.facebook.com/inbox/readmessage.php?t=1173995703495#/pages/Augment-Marketing-Group-Inspired-By-Growth/94009298033?ref=nf">FaceBook Events</a><span style="font-family:georgia;"> page for more details.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153); font-size: 85%;">Trisha Ahlman is a marketing strategist and small business owner. She has worked in just about every marketing function possible for nearly 20 years. Augment Marketing Group's specialty is helping small businesses build strong brands, increase visibility in the market, and generate sales - this is called our B.I.G. (tm) system. To contact, email <a href="mailto:trisha@augmentgroup.com">trisha@augmentgroup.com</a>. </span> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-68994131703620656572009-07-01T08:53:00.000-05:002009-07-07T08:54:04.412-05:00Like this? Share it!cin3bwx57zAugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-15827876236509056482009-07-01T07:33:00.004-05:002009-07-01T08:56:11.597-05:00Repositioning a Brand - It's Going to Be a Long RoadA long road? It doesn't have to be. Today, branding is such a broad term used loosely to explain a concept that for some isn’t so easy to define. In our entrepreneurial training classes, we explain that the only way to describe branding is to say that ‘branding is everything’! From the way your employee answers the phone to how you dress and even how the company is structured internally. In fact, described by many professionals like LaCosta Lolly of <a href="http://llsic.com/index.html">LL</a><a href="http://llsic.com/index.html">S International Consulting</a>, a international strategic firm, “developing a strong brand starts from the inside out”. I couldn’t agree more. I have taught in many courses that in order to brand or reposition an existing brand you must start from the inside out.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">First, we analyze the brand through the process of what we call the branding wheel model which first starts with the company’s core philosophy. At that point we determine the organizations unique selling proposition moving into the entire brand architecture; ultimately, determining what that looks like and sounds like to the world through creative imagery and messages. To reposition a brand we have to take it a step further and redefine what the organization looks like to its stakeholders. This can be done through the perceptual mapping process. As you probably realize at this point, it isn’t going to be an easy task. It takes a highly skilled professional or consultant to help entrepreneurs step away from the business long enough to develop the foundation of a strong brand.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNPwyYXeDjdFhzTyUk7d7unta4bW-i001TUPOCKhXK9D11TE1uaUPz54vTHQ0BI_EzPO8FeReTKIHFTMIHCc-RhQyBO_UNJUC_lJf1Rl_5AwuB19a2paLnM7f5g9nIawCdjM8tJVMPlke9/s1600-h/Branding+Wheel.png.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 260px; height: 173px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNPwyYXeDjdFhzTyUk7d7unta4bW-i001TUPOCKhXK9D11TE1uaUPz54vTHQ0BI_EzPO8FeReTKIHFTMIHCc-RhQyBO_UNJUC_lJf1Rl_5AwuB19a2paLnM7f5g9nIawCdjM8tJVMPlke9/s200/Branding+Wheel.png.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5353489675344870994" border="0" /></a>The question is what can you do? The best thing you can do for your company is envision its future. Without your leadership and understanding of where you want to take the company – most likely you will not gain support from those who drive your vision. It doesn’t have to be a long road if you play the visionary role in your business. When repositioning your brand it’s best to understand how to shorten the path to successfully build positive brand equity in the minds of stakeholders.<br /></div><br />Here are the top ten things you need to do in order to start:<br /><br /><ol><li>Follow the branding wheel process</li><li>Develop scenario’s or what if situations</li><li>Take action (seems simple but many small businesses fail because they do not ‘TAKE ACTION’)</li><li>Hire someone to help you (a coordinator, an intern, a friend or relative or a consultant)</li><li>Review the trends 5-10 years out for your industry</li><li>Develop a spreadsheet that captures the benefits, features, advantages and disadvantages of your competition</li><li>KNOW the competition better than they know themselves</li><li>Network, network, network (both online and at events)</li><li>Remember the 5 P’s of marketing (Product, Placement, Price, People, Promotion) </li><li>Analyze your internal structure, your vision for the company and how you manage your people</li></ol>If you want to learn more about branding or repositioning your brand, you can attend one of our <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/edit/?id=94009298033#/pages/Augment-Marketing-Group-Inspired-By-Growth/94009298033">free workshops (see events on our Face Book page)</a> or you can visit our <a href="http://www.augmentgroup.com/">Web site</a>. We offer a wealth of information to help small to mid-sized businesses augment their marketing and their brands. Learn from some of the brightest consultants in their fields of expertise like <a href="http://llsic.com/index-1.html">LaCosta Lolly</a>, <a href="http://micropreneurinsight.net/">Harry Futch</a> and others. These consultants have joined our team to deliver sound advice to our readers. Each of them have a passion for helping entrepreneurs realize their dreams.AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-73203787156775584112009-06-30T21:58:00.002-05:002009-07-01T09:11:31.687-05:00Connect with Us - Get the latest updatesAugment Marketing continues to provide the most relevant data to our clients and readers. You can follow us on Twitter to get #365 tips on augmenting your business or you can stay in touch by visiting our Face Book page where we post upcoming events that you can attend for free in most cases. If you want to connect with us on LinkedIn just click the link below. You can follow us now on all the social networking locations (click links below):<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.linkedin.com/companies/351070/Augment%20Marketing%20Group"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 49px; height: 51px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuPUONTQJAuCym_bCnchyYVyuOVEmLdQdaVXbSpWLv3tyOc-Y3i7ckz0Nd1qTDu5UBmOHGrFn6Jtkpj9Zv_8IDb6nd2M52Ie3DFy5hdR0aMM66QS9aS8_DjiD9BO_Kh-1BKUks4qgTR5IE/s200/LI+Button.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5353492055820400754" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://twitter.com/augmentmktg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 49px; height: 49px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2XMloLo0crq_vzL_aQD3vz6twFJ-Gzcnz3CWAlmxhIyp64i4Z76kzofmudInuTy5QnTOFH4EVr38A5CRELVWw-I5GtSlOQO2CypnAUDIuqHfEmySVvdmk_ocz5-e-xWvZ0xc_OZwLgbVy/s200/Twitter+Button.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5353491525078656674" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/edit/?id=94009298033#/pages/Augment-Marketing-Group-Inspired-By-Growth/94009298033"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 47px; height: 47px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikYRojyzXJW-MUvj6jivfd3jqcUh9zPZdM5V64OWwZOu5dv9mb76PR4iSMVDjrBliJkJ336pMZvMUnsqi9ykJW6X3YST7YDhjS55uCO3jiamUwucnHDzLoWGcNOjIPOjgFC4xJVIqeSLy-/s200/SMallFBButton.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5353492520580769602" border="0" /></a>AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-48038074464166195812009-06-30T00:04:00.007-05:002009-07-01T01:26:57.219-05:00The Tell-Tale Signs of Poor Brand Strength<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAbeWzwItGzUwNt3fShljiud-F-sdJZTaqZ8A3n67kzYiOzZVluUdSn-UdkBwUOfNeYFf4NhE5DFgTB8C2ydoC51TLieuV3Wtsrxrd0m-aB1OO6NzztL-WC9dYUlcwjT04x3wW0spRA39q/s1600-h/iStock_000006476620Small.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 133px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAbeWzwItGzUwNt3fShljiud-F-sdJZTaqZ8A3n67kzYiOzZVluUdSn-UdkBwUOfNeYFf4NhE5DFgTB8C2ydoC51TLieuV3Wtsrxrd0m-aB1OO6NzztL-WC9dYUlcwjT04x3wW0spRA39q/s200/iStock_000006476620Small.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5352988690692398450" border="0" /></a>
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67698691 67698693 67698689 67698691 67698693 67698689 67698691 67698693;} @list l1:level1 {mso-level-number-format:bullet; mso-level-text:; mso-level-tab-stop:none; mso-level-number-position:left; text-indent:-18.0pt; font-family:Symbol;} ol {margin-bottom:0pt;} ul {margin-bottom:0pt;} --> </style><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0pt 5.4pt 0pt 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0pt; mso-para-margin-right:0pt; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0pt; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal">by Trisha Ahlman
<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">One of the most important steps of branding is the measurement of internal perception and organizational structure. Change is, no doubt, a very important concept when beginning to rebrand or reposition a company, product or service. The question becomes is your organization ready for change, are you poised for new ideas to flourish, are you aware of the tell-tale signs of poor brand strength? All of these questions could create a war – <b style="">a tug of war</b> – between what you are trying to accomplish and what might actually happen because of poor internal perception.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Have you ever heard the phrase, “don’t put the cart in front of the horse?”<span style=""> Unfortunately, I see this more times than not in some organizations. </span>Before you can position or market a product or service effectively in the marketplace, you need to look within the organization first. Review the list of <b style="">tell-tale signs</b> and let’s discuss how to combat internal resistance to change.</p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style=""><span style="">1)<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Inadequate communication or education within the organization</p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style=""><span style="">2)<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Have direct opponents of change because of self-interest not necessarily in the best interest of the company</p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style=""><span style="">3)<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Low tolerance to change because of the fear of an unstable environment </p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style=""><span style="">4)<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Lack of morale and teamwork</p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style=""><span style="">5)<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Strict and rigid policies that prohibit creativity</p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style=""><span style="">6)<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Lack of vision <span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style=""><span style="">7)<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Lack of <a href="http://www.augmentmarketinggroup.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=52:leadership-builds-a-strong-brand&catid=14:news-display">leadership</a> that fosters poor professional judgment</p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style=""><span style="">8)<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Poor customer service reviews</p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style=""><span style="">9)<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Internal perception reveals poor assessment of leadership and management</p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style=""><span style="">10)<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Unnecessary bottlenecks that cause frustration throughout the corporation</p> <p class="MsoNormal">The list goes on.<span style=""> </span>But, these are some of the most common distractions that go against the grain of change. The most important thing for survival in the current state of the economy is to get a handle on internal processes. If you think that you can identify with anyone of these factors, it’s time to take an <span style="font-weight: bold;">internal audit</span> of your business. You cannot position your business or brand without understanding that marketing starts from the inside out.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Based on some of the most profound findings by business pioneers like Kotter and Covey, here’s what you can do:</p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family:Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Set specific objectives from the start</p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family:Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Have a sense of urgency (be proactive)</p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family:Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Buy-in and direction from leadership and top management <span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family:Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Develop and communicate a clear vision (begin with the end in mind)</p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family:Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Build a coalition for change (internal buy-in is critical)</p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family:Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Empower people to have an ownership environment (think win-win)</p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family:Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Learn from mistakes and develop an environment of responsibility</p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family:Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Encourage education and training within the organization</p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family:Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Create personal development plans that allows individuals to be a part of the decision making process</p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family:Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Don’t let problems foster for a long period of time</p> <p class="MsoNormal">This all sounds great but how do you start, how do you manage this, and what result should you expect? First, start by taking an assessment. What is internal perception? There should be a person assigned to manage the assessment within the organization that is a supporter of change – perhaps the brand manager – who understands the long-term vision of the company and what the leadership is trying to achieve. Second, you need to develop a team (a coalition) that is scientifically formed. Scientifically means that teams are formed based on personality, results, and synergy among the group and not formed by mishap.<span style=""> </span>The coalition will be responsible for managing change and implementing new standards to support the end goal. Lastly, you should expect a renewed sense of ownership, loyalty, teamwork, personal discipline, improved morale, and continuous quality throughout the company.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Right now, this methodology is even more important than ever. Everyone is fighting for job security so what we’ve been witnessing is internal chaos as our brands will ultimately deteriorate over time as a result. The leaders of businesses, large or small, must take corrective – proactive action. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">If you want to reposition, rebrand, brand or simply be more efficient and effective throughout your company – you have to start here. <span style=""> </span><a href="http://www.augmentgroup.com/">Augment</a> has worked with many organizations to help them align internal practices to match external goals when positioning the brand for long-term success.</p> <p style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153);font-family:arial;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:78%;" >*References: concepts derived from <b>John Kotter</b> concluded in his book "A force for Change: How Leadership Differs from Management" (1990), the <b>Kaizen method</b> of <b>continuous incremental improvements</b> is an originally Japanese management concept for incremental (gradual, continuous) change (improvement), and the <b>Seven Habits model </b>of management and leadership by author <b>Stephen Covey.</b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153);font-size:85%;" >Trisha Ahlman is a marketing strategist and small business owner. She has worked in just about every marketing function possible for nearly 20 years. Augment Marketing Group's specialty is helping small businesses build strong brands, increase visibility in the market, and generate sales - this is called the B.I.G. system. To contact, email <a href="mailto:trisha@augmentgroup.com">trisha@augmentgroup.com</a>. </span>
<br /><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:8;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p> AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-51622237154133667012009-01-14T10:22:00.006-06:002009-07-01T01:24:57.470-05:00Action Plans - Why do we procrastinate?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzIqYC-9yq7dj4di4Q0dDaJfeBIK4Ted-DGTcy7O_lILw5qseS3EOQYwbmm3FYYuB3mIQNUmz4GM3pBTX_lPHMx9RckOHUwEzs0POxQh8SXPsCYEL70X4ErVQs7pbqgb8zdmHVQBgeZBkf/s1600-h/iStock_000006001673XSmall.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 132px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzIqYC-9yq7dj4di4Q0dDaJfeBIK4Ted-DGTcy7O_lILw5qseS3EOQYwbmm3FYYuB3mIQNUmz4GM3pBTX_lPHMx9RckOHUwEzs0POxQh8SXPsCYEL70X4ErVQs7pbqgb8zdmHVQBgeZBkf/s200/iStock_000006001673XSmall.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5352988207463174738" border="0" /></a>Everyone tells us that business plans are the best way to navigate and build our business - so why is it so difficult to accomplish? And, what about the plans we do find the time to write down but never come to <a href="http://www.augmentmarketinggroup.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=73&Itemid=163">fruition</a>. Unfortunately, these obstacles are the realities of being an entrepreneur or new business owner. We wear many hats and we tend to let our businesses consume us. Action plans (or business plans) tend to be plans that are reactive rather than proactive for small businesses. Sound familiar?<br /><br />Let's start with the types of plans first, how we can start the process, and how to eliminate waste and get the plans working for you rather than sitting on the shelf.<br /><br />The following plans are considered to be relevant to small and growing businesses. Depending on the size of your company, these plans may only consist of a one page document or even just a statement. They are:<br /><br />Business Plan<br />Marketing Plan<br />Strategic Plan<br />Productivity Plan<br />Tactical Plans<br />Budgets<br />Sales Forecasting<br /><br />As explained by business strategist, LaCosta Lolly of LLS International Consulting, "a comprehensive plan should be developed even if you have to implement in stages". Whether you have the resources to implement the plan or not, planning is still essential. Ms. Lolly goes on to explain, "For the small or mid-sized business seeking to grow or expand, planning is essential. It is important not to focus solely on acquiring new customers without being prepared for those customers and the reverse is true in that preparation without new customers creates unnecessary expenses. Strategic planning will help your business plan for growth from the inside out and determine what is necessary to take your business to the next level." To read more about strategic planning visit <a href="http://www.llsic.com/">LLS International Consulting's</a> NEW informative Web site.AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-15378630808252370152008-09-03T13:34:00.010-05:002008-09-03T14:39:02.769-05:00How Can Marketing Help My Competitive Advantage?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtvJUy4azWqi-Ian2kmrXzGuEzafF7iwcZ3nGhcgth0lM9gKVgg-n2NIZbxi3SQk-WqL5B6RCXy-YUlu77RJEDt2HYruILdOMIws8e0KHmMf1Alm64hJ0bPJ2hX-UCQNSCIPcj_G-h3VvS/s1600-h/iStock_000005472335Small.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtvJUy4azWqi-Ian2kmrXzGuEzafF7iwcZ3nGhcgth0lM9gKVgg-n2NIZbxi3SQk-WqL5B6RCXy-YUlu77RJEDt2HYruILdOMIws8e0KHmMf1Alm64hJ0bPJ2hX-UCQNSCIPcj_G-h3VvS/s200/iStock_000005472335Small.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5241865732959471282" border="0" /></a><br />Entrepreneurs continue to search for ways to increase their competitive advantage. Winning business from competitors isn't easy. In fact, trying to gain new clients can sometimes take quite a long time - time that most companies do not have if they intend on staying in business. In the weeks to come we'll discuss more about competitive advantage and how to increase it through specific marketing initiatives that perhaps you know - but just haven't had time to touch on in a while.<br /><br />Let's explore areas that will pollinate your competitive advantage by revisiting the following - Get a pen, write it down, or print it out for your own strategy sessions:<br /><ul><li>Increase the time it takes deliver your product or service (increase efficiency)</li><li>Survey your clients to find out their level of satisfaction (know your customer)</li><li>Build strategic alliances so that you never lose a contact (make contacts work for you even if they are not your direct client)</li><li>Lean your processes (better understand supply chain management)</li><li>Touch base with your sales force more often (treat your sales force first class, they are in many cases the first contact with client and they know their pains and needs)</li><li>Know your unique selling proposition (revisit your positioning statement to enhance differentiation)</li><li>Have planning sessions for your business (make sure to spend a time each week that focuses on your businesses no matter how busy you get)</li><li>Create a board of directors or group of people that you can learn from (in many cases, professionals will join forces to share best practices, insight, and planning opportunities)<br /></li></ul>You probably know exactly where I'm coming from, but in order to increase your competitive advantage through marketing here are a few specific items to consider.<br /><ol><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Build a strong relationship with your customer by getting to know them thoroughly</span> - do a little research, keep a database of pertinent information that will help targeted messages<br /></li><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Implement technology that will better serve your client</span> - examples include: email marketing, dynamic Web sites, and customer relations management software</li><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Create stickiness</span> - develop memberships, incentive programs, reward programs, or added value for your clients</li><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Make sure your brand is relevant </span>- meaning, make sure that your brand means more than just the offering of your product or service - for instance, community initiatives</li><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Enhance the customer experience</span> - create a culture that is customer-focused, making sure that your clients have this experience every time is developed through your systems and execution</li></ol>These are just a few things I recommend in creating competitive advantage. It has worked for hundreds of small to medium sized enterprise and can work for your business too.<br /><br />Apply these concepts and you will Augment Your Marketing efforts ten fold.<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153);font-size:85%;" >Trisha Ahlman is a marketing strategist and small business owner. She has worked in just about every marketing function possible for nearly 20 years. Augment Marketing Group's specialty is helping small businesses build strong brands, increase visibility in the market, and generate sales - this is called the B.I.G. system. To contact, email <a href="mailto:trisha@augmentgroup.com">trisha@augmentgroup.com</a>. </span>AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-74380794238337494372008-08-28T21:30:00.006-05:002008-08-28T22:28:17.543-05:00What works best for small business - PR or Marketing?I haven't written in a while - I've been just a little busy lately, but I wanted to address the question posed tonight at the Indio-American Chamber of Commerce. I was invited to speak regarding marketing and PR for small businesses. What works: Marketing or PR? Which one can set small businesses apart from their competitors? The answers that resonated are that marketing is everything you do for you business, but PR is one very important marketing initiative that can generate <a href="http://www.augmentgroup.com/"><span style="font-weight: bold;">BIG results</span></a> while gaining credibility as an expert in your field.<br /><br />I've spoken before about B.I.G. results. In essence, it means to: <span style="font-weight: bold;">B</span>uild awareness and trust, <span style="font-weight: bold;">I</span>ncrease interest, and <span style="font-weight: bold;">G</span>enerate sales. PR is a way to build trust and funnel buyers through the decision making process non-offensively. Specifically, we spoke about education marketing and educating consumers about your products and services rather than selling them. With public relations, we tend to think what we hear or see is believable or acceptable rather than a sales pitch or marketing ploy.<br /><br />I think that marketing and sales professionals get a bad wrap for the most part because of all the high pressured sales people of the world. Quite frankly, car salesman and insurance salesman have given us all a bad name. None the less, we still need to sell our products and services, right?<br /><br />How do we do this? <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">The answer is PR</span><span style="font-weight: bold;">.</span> Build credibility with your consumers. Here are a few tips from tonight's excellent panel discussion on PR and Marketing for Small Businesses:<br /><br /><ol><li>Spend time blogging or writing articles that demonstrate your expertise in your field.</li><li>Make sure you have some kind of online presence.</li><li>Use an integrated approach to marketing - if you do use traditional media for advertising, make sure that you use other guerrilla marketing tactics and online media to help support initiatives for the best results.<br /></li><li>Make a lasting impression with your clients - don't forget the old hand shake and customer relations.</li><li>Make sure you under promise and over deliver.</li><li>Be unique and make sure that your marketing mix has a specific message to a specific target - the more targeted the better.<br /></li><li>Use a platform that allows you to tell your story - you finally have it all together, you know your marketing, you know your client, you know your brand ... talk radio is just one way to utilize a platform that gives you more than just a 60 second commercial. </li></ol>These concepts and so much more were discussed this evening. Everyone participated and we all gained a great deal of insight from the conversation. If you would like to know more about tonight's meeting, please email <a href="mailto:trisha@augmentgroup.com">trisha@augmentgroup.com</a>.<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);font-size:85%;" ><span style="font-size:78%;">Trisha Ahlman is the CEO of Augment Marketing Group and has over 15 years experience in marketing for corporations and small businesses. She sits on several creative and strategic development boards nationwide. "Inspired by growth" from its inception, Augment's mission is to inspire growth in all businesses large or small when developing strong brands. We believe in inspiring, learning and growing.</span></span>AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-72920730437648497462008-06-01T09:34:00.006-05:002008-06-01T16:50:23.209-05:00How Ready Are You For A Marketing Consultant?Take the test. Yes or No<br /><ol><li>I know my 'exact' target audience?<br /></li><li>I have a marketing budget for planning?</li><li>I have a marketing budget for creative, production, and placement?</li><li>I know what stage of growth my company is in?</li><li>I understand my marketing mix?<br /></li><li>I have established the right price point?</li><li>I have supporting marketing initiatives to help with advertising goals?<br /></li><li>I have research to support my decisions?</li><li>I have someone to implement and enforce marketing ideas internally?</li><li>I have a system in place to evaluate my marketing initiatives?</li></ol>If you answered 'No' to most of these questions, you may need to start with a marketing and business plan before calling a marketing consultant; however, if you think you could quickly put these factors in place, a marketing consultant can help with determining your market, budget, and overall plan. If your resources are limited, take each of these sections and find answers. You can send your questions to "Ask The Expert" at <a href="mailto:trisha@augmentgroup.com">trisha@augmentgroup.com</a>.<br /><br />Marketing isn't an easy job as most of you know. It takes know how, validation, measurement, and just plain hard work. Chances are if you're an entrepreneur, you understand elbow grease. If you don't, marketing is a hands-on job - it's not mysterious or magical. Understanding that will not only help you initiate marketing efforts but will also help you better understand the marketing consultant you hire.<br /><br />Tell us about your experience with a marketing consultant? We want to hear the good, the bad, and the ugly. It helps all marketing consultants better when they understand their strengths and weaknesses.<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);font-size:78%;" >[Trisha Ahlman is the CEO of Augment Marketing Group and has over 15 years experience in marketing for corporations and small businesses. She sits on several creative and strategic development boards nationwide. "Inspired by growth" from its inception, Augments mission is to inspire growth in all businesses large or small when developing strong brands. We believe in inspiring, learning and growing. She can be reached at <a href="http://mailto%2Etrisha@augmentgroup.com/">trisha@augmentgroup.com]</a></span>AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-23063681462783285962008-05-31T11:22:00.007-05:002008-06-01T16:59:45.512-05:00Can Branding Be Augmented Without Working At It?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoWTQYwtlTVMwlW412ICHzjLfgL4EQckBi5qpCdyKbQPvAnD7JtZRLbIeXfmcOon20PWhdoLNFk-COlhxJ7F3MRWMDhlG_dbTjW96fmGa4o_I5Gzwe8idXi4waQToHagUfEzRRBB9JpUGb/s1600-h/Branding.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoWTQYwtlTVMwlW412ICHzjLfgL4EQckBi5qpCdyKbQPvAnD7JtZRLbIeXfmcOon20PWhdoLNFk-COlhxJ7F3MRWMDhlG_dbTjW96fmGa4o_I5Gzwe8idXi4waQToHagUfEzRRBB9JpUGb/s200/Branding.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5206590431565276338" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br />The answer in most cases is NO. Branding takes a very conscious effort on the part of the brand manager/ entrepreneur. Sure there is always an exception to the rule; however, it doesn't mean the <a href="http://inspiredbygrowth.blogspot.com/search/label/Branding%20Tips%20Online">principles of branding</a> were not present, it just means that the manager did not have a specific plan. The brand has to stand for something to build the perception in consumers mind that it is worthy. The best approach for branding is to take charge, understand your brand, and make sure that your brand tells a story.<br /><br />How do you do this? A few assignments to get you started might help:<br /><ul><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Vision, Mission, Core Values.</span> There is a direct correlation between your brand, its success, and these components. If you haven't already, write down your vision, mission, and core values. A vision statement is based on where you want to be in the next 5-10 years. This is usually derived from several factors but most importantly - strategy. Do a SWOTT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunity, Trend, and Threat) Analysis and you might learn more about your industry and the direction you need to take in order to achieve long-term growth. The mission statement should determine how you are going to get the internal and external audiences to achieve the vision (5-10 yr. plan). Core values are typically 5-7 attributes that you and your staff can buy into to achieve your goals. For instance, integrity, sustainability, environmentally responsible, etc... See <a href="http://www.bp.com/home.do?categoryId=1">www.bp.com</a> for excellent examples of how to establish strong values to drive your brand.<br /></li><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Tell a story.</span> Once I understood that every brand tells a story, a light bulb went off for me. Explaining to clients what branding is can be difficult and the concept of telling a story makes sense to most people. If you aren't sure, put on your journalistic hat and write down what you 'think' your brand's story is and see if you can develop a compassionate story line to weave in the fabric of your brand if you haven't already.<br /></li><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Express your brand.</span> If you have found the story of your brand and you know where you want to be in 5-10 years and beyond - it's time to express yourself. Create copy, collateral, and ads that represent your brand from the inside out. Your brand should connect the dots for consumers. Your brand is competing with over 2000 messages a day your audience is exposed to on average. It has to be simple, make sense, and tell a story.</li></ul>Learning more about branding is critical for the sustainability of your brand. You can learn more about branding here on this blog or read the <a href="http://micropreneur.wordpress.com/2008/05/30/seven-myths-about-branding/">Seven Myths About Branding</a>. It's your responsibility to know as much as you can about how to build your brand efficiently and effectively.<br /><br />A good example of this: Cingular, BP, Coca Cola, and Starbuck's.<br /><br /><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:78%;" ><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">Trisha Ahlman is the CEO of Augment Marketing Group and has nearly 20 years experience in marketing for corporations and small businesses. She sits on several creative and strategic development boards nationwide. "Inspired by growth" from its inception, Augment's mission is to inspire growth in all businesses large or small when developing strong brands. We believe in inspiring, learning and growing. She can be reached at</span> </span><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:78%;" ><a href="http://mailto%2Etrisha@augmentgroup.com/"><span style="line-height: 115%;">trisha@augmentgroup.com</span></a></span>AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-59508325498330391792008-05-31T10:10:00.008-05:002008-05-31T11:22:42.864-05:00Is Your Design Balanced?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfOU_J3THk2GM6EXIq5oEp1UkpLvy61NYqmriWJytN59e5vnZd96Srym1LucGG3Dr9mHBoRc4U2t13BN-qHs3SMkFxLPS0YpQfgUQWpUtnEjWl8K3WelsSv1rxs20AzoXmgqS3AZj_KVio/s1600-h/Sample+Ad+Campaign.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfOU_J3THk2GM6EXIq5oEp1UkpLvy61NYqmriWJytN59e5vnZd96Srym1LucGG3Dr9mHBoRc4U2t13BN-qHs3SMkFxLPS0YpQfgUQWpUtnEjWl8K3WelsSv1rxs20AzoXmgqS3AZj_KVio/s200/Sample+Ad+Campaign.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5206565671834660178" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">The "Magic Box" by Trisha Ahlman<br /></div><br />Here's the test. In advertising, there is a theory called the "magic box". It's the place where you want to draw the consumers attention. I like to use no more than three (3) focal points (in most cases) when designing a piece of collateral. Do not over do it! This is difficult because we are tempted to get our logo, the message, the promotion and all the other important facts in our ads.<br /><br />In order to find the "magic box", you need to draw a box around the item you want your audience to notice first. For instance, if you're Coke it might be around the coke can. If you are selling diamonds, perhaps it's the hand with the diamond that is prominent. Then draw a horizontal line and a vertical line (I like to off-center the magic box). If there are other objects fighting for my attention, there are several techniques that work. All other objects outside of the "magic box":<br /><ol><li>Create smaller text and use a lighter color (i.e. gray so that it's not too prominent)</li><li>Keep it clean and take some of the other objects out all together</li><li>Using a graphic design program, make the "magic box" object more prominent</li><li>Make other objects smaller from a perspective point of view</li><li>Ask friends and colleagues if they think the ad is balanced for a quick field test</li><li>Off-center the focal points (I prefer asymmetrical design)</li><li>Blur out background images so the focal point is more prominent<br /></li></ol>Some graphic artist say that balance is achieved through symmetry... I say, achieving balance doesn't mean that you have a perfect, symmetrical ad or design - it just means you need to find the "magic box" and make sure that your focal point isn't fighting for real estate from background noise.<br /><br />Always follow the rule K.I.S.S. (Keep it Simple Stupid). Sorry to be so brash, but I see too many great ads that over do it when it comes to layout. Can you find the magic box in the ad posted here?<br /><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);font-size:78%;" ><span style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153);">Trisha Ahlman has been marketing for nearly 20 years. Out of high school, Trisha Ahlman was awarded a four year art scholarship in which she won from an impressionist painting she entered into a contest by the Houston Art Society. She has a team of designers and artists that work with her and is creatively directs nearly every project. She now teaches Visual Communication part-time at the Jesse H. Jones School of Business at Texas Southern University. Her company, Augment Marketing consults hundreds of businesses on marketing, branding, layout, and design. For more information, visit <a href="http://www.augmentgroup.com/">www.augmentgroup.com.</a></span></span><br /></div>AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-59442332361959467002008-05-15T10:30:00.002-05:002008-06-01T10:37:46.014-05:00Are You a MicroPreneur?<span style=";font-family:georgia;font-size:100%;" >Harry Futch of MicroBiz weighs in (or visit <a href="http://micropreneur.wordpress.com/">MicroPreneur</a>),<br /><br /></span><span style=";font-family:georgia;font-size:100%;" >"</span><span style=";font-family:georgia;font-size:100%;" >Business blogs are very popular right now, but we intend to focus on the MicroBiz - and for our purposes that means less than 10 employees and a burning desire to compete on the level of much bigger companies. We have assembled a talented crew of guest writers from our local area (Houston, TX). As we progress, we will be asking some of our respondents to serve as guest writers also.<br /></span> <p style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:100%;">As the CEO of a microbiz (that’s Chief Everything Officer), I’ve spent hours on the Web searching for information on running my business more efficiently and effectively. I’ve been fortunate to be surrounded by people much more talented and much smarter than myself. I have been, however, smart enough to get them to share information about what made them successful. I intend to pass along as much of that information as possible.<br /></span></p> <span style=";font-family:georgia;font-size:100%;" >Unlike many blogs, this one does not have the feel of Holy Writ. What works for one business might not work for another. The importance of this type of exchange is to keep a free and open flow of ideas and techniques. Together we are more powerful than we are alone. Let us hear from you. "<br /><br />For more information on how you can grow your business visit the <a href="http://micropreneur.wordpress.com/">MircoPreneur Blog</a><br /></span>AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-5988067587476822232008-03-02T23:13:00.005-06:002008-03-03T00:15:01.445-06:00Inspired By Growth: Augment Addresses AdvertisingA famous writer by the name of Roy Williams tells the best stories. He is literally THE guru of writing, marketing, and advertising. He created the Seven Laws of the Advertising Universe in his book "The Wizard of Ads" (excellent reading). I thought it would be fun to offer the perspective of the consultant or agency in this article. For One, I thought perhaps clients didn't know what it was like to be in our shoes and would want to hear this perspective. Secondly, I think that it will open your eyes to really great ideas that will manifest new growth in your advertising.<br /><br />I have picked four out of seven key laws and made a comment after each describing the other perspective to illustrate how best to approach or think about the law.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">1) An Energy of Words</span> has existed since the day He said, "Let there be light." Learn how to use this energy. You are created in his image. <span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-weight: bold;">Trisha's comment</span> - with the internet growing by leaps and bounds daily, small businesses have no choice but to create presence on the internet. Some clients still have not taken the plunge believe it or not. Words are our energy. Begin writing. Develop a program or guide for your clients. Developing key material for your company is essential to your success. Let words augment your growth. Do not let fear of the unknown keep you from taking the first step.</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><br />2) Intellect and Emotion</span> are partners who do not speak the same language. The intellect finds logic to justify what the emotions have decided. Win the hearts of the people, their minds will follow. <span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);">Trisha's comment </span>- this is soooo true in advertising. Some clients begin analyzing campaigns to death. I call this "analysis paralysis". Certainly, you will not augment growth if you never make a decision. Emotions or evoking emotive responses work very well in advertising. That isn't to say that you should not take an educational approach to advertising. In my experience, what works best is a balance between Education and Emotion. A winning combination.</span><span style="font-style: italic;"></span><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><br />3) Opportunity and Security </span>are inversely proportionate. As one increases, the other must decrease. High returns are gained form low-risk strategies only through the passage of time. He who will cheat time must embrace the risk of failure. <span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Trisha's comment </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">- Again, Roy Williams is superb. Number three can go hand-in-hand with number two. If clients never take a risk, how will they have the opportunity to test the market. Creativity comes from the gut many times because it is evoked by emotion. Sure, one can fail utilizing all emotion and no logic, but isn't it fair to say that great ideas are often ideas that can come literally from a vision. It can happen that fast. I say that to say, take a chance.</span></span></span><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><br />4) E</span></span></span><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-weight: bold;">ngage the Imagination</span></span></span><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, then take it where you will. Where the mind has repeatedly journeyed, the body will surely follow. People go only to places they have already been in their minds. <span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Trisha's comment</span> - <span style="font-style: italic;">I do think that the more you allow your advertising agency, your employee, your partner, or your </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://trishaahlman.googlepages.com/">marketing consultant</a><span style="font-style: italic;"> to engage in creativity and use their imagination, the more often you will gain the best they have within them. Harnessing imaginations keep creativity from flowing. Allowing it to flow can create some of the most amazing marketing and advertising ideas ever to be produced.<span style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153);font-size:85%;" > </span></span><span style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153);font-size:85%;" >[</span></span></span><span style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153);font-size:85%;" >This excerpt was taken from "The Wizard of Ads" by Roy H. Williams, renowned advertiser, marketer, and author.]</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">By no means, am I saying that all decisions are emotional, immediate responses; but, I am saying that in order for "juices to flow" to create ideas that will possibly enhance your image and increase revenues, it's a risk worth taking. Be creative, take chances, live on the edge. Cutting-edge, break-through ideas do not come around everyday. Thinking in the box will not get you there. You would never know when a campaign, a new logo, or a new tag would augment your company to an entirely new level.<br /><br />Coming from the consultant side, I hope I've given "you" the entrepreneur or small business marketer some advice on how to work with consultants and employees to produce the absolute best results.<br /><br />Inspired by Growth Blog is driven to gain insight for those seeking advice as well as receiving advice. Your marketing and advertising may be in the hands of someone else, but if you are the kind of person that is really, really good at what you do....let your consultants or agencies do what they do best and await the results. I promise if you step back, you'll be amazed at the results.<br /><br />A little perspective goes a long way sometimes.<br /><br /><br /></span></span><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);font-size:78%;" >[Trisha Ahlman is the CEO of Augment Marketing Group and has over 15 years experience in marketing for corporations and small businesses. She sits on several creative and strategic development boards nationwide. "Inspired by growth" from its inception, Augment's mission is to inspire growth in all businesses large or small when developing strong brands. We believe in inspiring, learning and growing. She can be reached at <a href="http://mailto%2Etrisha@augmentgroup.com/">trisha@augmentgroup.com</a> or <a href="http://www.marketingsoftwarebusiness.com/">www.marketingmyinternetbusiness.com ]</a></span>AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-23799354008053499472008-02-24T09:47:00.006-06:002008-02-24T22:43:07.422-06:005 Easy Steps to Follow When Marketing My Internet Business<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgixyiaxEYoWvR-fc5o6I63Iwwr6wnwKPLj1xYDBLr2cImnw6xBtT1VY9mClg8NwC-HKZrbVQi0xDMNX-QlpULFLUcv9mlrB-1KAnAhhwdjRIR_sdWPlvZECncCF58duZLMNDAWD6xgMgBO/s1600-h/Image+is+Everything.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgixyiaxEYoWvR-fc5o6I63Iwwr6wnwKPLj1xYDBLr2cImnw6xBtT1VY9mClg8NwC-HKZrbVQi0xDMNX-QlpULFLUcv9mlrB-1KAnAhhwdjRIR_sdWPlvZECncCF58duZLMNDAWD6xgMgBO/s200/Image+is+Everything.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5170591137290126114" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Marketing my internet business </span>can be challenging, especially for beginners. Let's look at some terminology and basics to get you started. The results will inspire growth when launching your internet business. Follow these 5 easy steps to start:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Step 1)</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">Find the best keywords and phrases</span>: write down a list of keywords and phrases that best suit your business. Put yourself in the consumer's mind as much as possible. These are the words that consumers use for searching for products and services, so it's important to spend some time on this task and think it through. Think of direct keywords, keywords that provide solutions, think of key phrases not just words.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Step 2) Choose a domain name: </span>Make sure your domain name is keyword driven or catchy. If you have a unique business name then you can use that as well. Three and four words are okay if they are short but easy to remember. Common names are hard to optimize as a beginner. If you have a business name like Acme, Omega, or Infinity, you're in for a real challenge to become visible on the internet. <a href="http://website101.com/Domain_Name/choosing-domain-name.html">Research other ideas</a> to make sure you make the right choice.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Step 3) Optimize your web pages: </span>Again, focusing on keywords and phrases you are telling the search engines which keywords you want to be found. Rule of thumb - optimize six pages and each page should focus on one or two keyword phrases that are relevant to your product or service. It's helpful to have software or a consultant help you to find which keywords and phrases you should use to optimize based on your competition and industry.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Step 4) Optimize your inbound links: </span>Links can be one of the most important factors for high search engine rankings. This includes links from other sites, links within your website to other key information in your own website, and links from internet directories. There is <a href="http://www.marketingmyinternetbusiness.com/">software that automatically</a> registers inbound links for you that you can research.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Step 5) Submit your website: </span>Submitting to search engines invites other sites to visit your website. If done correctly with optimizing web pages, you can move up in the rankings. It's also important to use your domain name when submitting your site and using a reliable web hosting service. Only submit actual sites versus a site that is redirected to another site. Last but not least, your url should not contain special characters for search engine submission.<br /><br />Following these five steps will help your website move up in the rankings-- guaranteed! Is it going to be easy? The answer is NO. I've learned a lot of these steps by trial and error when <span style="font-weight: bold;">marketing my internet business</span>. It's become a daily ritual to keep an eye on my rankings to make sure that I'm becoming more and more visible on the net. Don't forget, there are a lot of "free" and organic ways to market your internet business on the net that I have revealed in this blog.<br /><br />Most of all, you really just have to take the first step and that is to decide to become a part of marketing an internet business online. The reason - by the year 2010 almost every business will have presence online that includes some sort of e-commerce. Now is the time to plan for yourself and for your business. Don't get left behind.<br /><br />If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.... For more information to obtain an online marketing plan, please visit <a href="http://www.marketingmyinternetbusiness.com">www.marketingmyinternetbusiness.com</a>. That site offers a free online marketing plan download.<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);font-size:78%;" >Trisha Ahlman is the CEO of Augment Marketing Group and has over 15 years experience in marketing for corporations and small businesses. She sits on several creative and strategic development boards nationwide. Augment's mission is to inspire growth in all businesses large or small when developing strong brands. We believe in inspiring, learning and growing. She can be reached at <a href="http://mailto%2Etrisha@augmentgroup.com/">trisha@augmentgroup.com</a> .</span>AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-60357944232637868842008-02-07T07:19:00.001-06:002008-06-22T22:07:31.328-05:00Augment Marketing Speaks on the 8 Principles of Building a Strong BrandWe learned in a previous lesson that there are seven core values of a brand, according to Scott Bedbury, one of the leading brand managers in American history. He has worked with two of the largest brands in the world Starbuck's and Nike. To review his theory of building strong <a href="http://inspiredbygrowth.blogspot.com/2008/01/7-core-principals-of-branding-implement.html">core values of a brand</a>, in his book "A Brand New World", we look to build brand strength, longevity, and passion within the foundation of the brand. To recap, he states the seven core values being:<br /><ul><li>Simplicity</li><li>Patience</li><li>Relevance</li><li>Accessibility<br /></li><li>Humanity</li><li>Omnipresence<br /></li><li>Innovation</li></ul>Every brand has a core "essence" that gives the brand its substance. One thing that great brands have in common is the "experience" consumers have with the brand, but clearly you need more than that to build brand strength. It's critical to build your brand around the relationship between the brand, the consumer, and the stakeholders as a whole. As we begin to explore Bedbury's 8 principles of a brand, you should begin developing your own core values and examining each principle carefully.<br /><ol><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Relying on brand awareness has become marketing fool's gold</span> - This is the difference between brand awareness vs brand strength. Most brands think that building awareness is building a brand. Yes, building a brand from the ground up will include creating awareness some where in the plan; however, according to Bedbury, this is where relevance and resonance come into play. This is the core, the root of a brand and what it means. If you build your brand on awareness alone and the substance of the brand has shallow meaning, your brand will not survive. Building brand strength here is all about the consumers "experience" with the brand.<br /></li><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">You have to know it before you can grow it (cracking the code)</span> - Sitting on several board's for strategic planning, I have had the honor to dig deep in the core of some very astute brands. Defining your mission, vision, and core values is just the beginning of cracking the brands genetic code. You need to clearly define your goals, your vision, a snapshot of your future and how success will be measured; including consideration for your customers, your potential customers, even your employees. This is where you tell the story of your brand to the world. Make it a novel.</li><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Just because you can doesn't mean you should (the spandex rule of branding) </span>- Yes, according to Scott Bedbury, just because you have spandex, doesn't mean you should wear it. While determining when and if you are ready to grow, you should be innovative, remain on the cutting-edge and plunge into growth if research supports it. It means building intelligent brandwidth -- ie. joint ventures, strategic alliances, acquisitions, but remember "every brand has it's limitations" according Bedbury. If you are building a solid brand, growth can be exciting. If your brand is built on sand, the foundation crumbles. Know your limitations.</li><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Transcend a product-only relationship with your customers</span> - This principle builds in the emotional experience between the brand and the consumers. What emotion does your product evoke? Perhaps individuality, longing, belonging, freedom, self-actualization, discovery. These concepts are what build substance into your brand and how consumers react. Think of Hallmark or Disney.<br /></li><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Everything matters</span> - In essence, this is the environment in which you build your brand-- much like when raising a child. When you raise a child, everything you do and don't do will affect the child's ultimate outcome as a person. The same holds true for a brand. You should care about the customers, the environment, the employees, representation of the brand...everything. The dress code, the brand definition, the office space, the expectations. This is "brand excellence".</li><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Being a good leader for your brand </span>- This principle encompasses leadership, accountability, and motivation. Your brand is an asset to the organization and is just as important to protect as any other assets of the company. In many ways being a good brand parent is much like what the CEO is to the company or what the head of household is to a family. It's being the rock of the organization and leading the company to reach great things. Your role here is to live it, breathe it, and not just talk the talk, but walk the walk. First and foremost, you must believe it and then you must teach others in the organization to believe it as well.<br /></li><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Big doesn't have to be bad</span> -This is where the core value of omnipresence resonates. As you begin to grow and take over market share, you can be perceived as the Goliath-- the bad giant taking over the world. If your brand isn't about more than making money and taking over market share, sooner or later you will certainly have to fight off the competition, but consumers will see right through it. Their emotional relationship with the brand will emerge and the bad press or belittling comments from competitors will easily be overlooked. This isn't just important for larger corporations, but from a small business perspective as well -- its all relevant to the playing field. You may be considered fierce competition right now, but if your brand is more than just bringing in the revenues-- now you are building brand strength.</li><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Building your brand future</span> - Based on relevance, simplicity, and humanity, your brand's future will rise to the top of its category. Consumers relate to these components. Being simple and relevant helps consumers understand the brand. For example, Oprah Winfrey, is a huge brand and makes billions of dollars. The reason everyone loves her so much no matter how much this woman makes is because she's been so simple. She sits on her stage, a person that can now afford to buy anything she wants, and talks about buying an affordable good pair of jeans, what it means to be on a diet and work out like every other person in the world. Her audience can relate to her. Build a strong brand future on simplicity.</li></ol>The ultimate goal for Augment Marketing is to help small businesses understand the values and principles in building a strong brand that will survive in a world of giants like Kodak, Coke, Disney, Starbuck's, and Nike. We can build strong brands that hold their weight in their own right, in their own category, and in their own markets. It all starts with the foundation. We'll continue to discuss this topic because there is so many details to cover. If you have a comment about building brands, please feel free to elaborate.<br /><br />As we begin to dive deeper into building a strong brand, your first exercise is to write down your mission, vision, and core values. Augment's <a href="http://marketingmyinternetbusiness.blogspot.com/">Marketing My Internet Business blog</a> will discuss building a strong business online in the coming weeks to further expound on this topic.<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);font-size:78%;" >Trisha Ahlman is the CEO of Augment Marketing Group and has over 15 years experience in marketing for corporations and small businesses. She sits on several creative and strategic development boards nationwide. "Inspired by growth" from its inception, Augment's mission is to inspire growth in all businesses large or small when developing strong brands. We believe in inspiring, learning and growing. She can be reached at <a href="http://mailto%2Etrisha@augmentgroup.com/">trisha@augmentgroup.com</a> or <a href="http://www.marketingsoftwarebusiness.com/">www.marketingsoftwarebusiness.com .</a></span>AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-54332573950054632772008-02-06T00:14:00.001-06:002008-02-06T00:23:36.074-06:00Augment Marketing Makes the Headlines Again!Augment Marketing Group discussed the many challenges of small business owners in a recent interview. The real news came when Trisha Ahlman, CEO spoke of <a href="http://www.free-press-release.com/news/200802/1202278122.html">online marketing trends</a> for 2008. "It doesn't seem fair that small businesses have to keep up with big-time technology-driven trends this year. The fact is that without employing some of the latest marketing techniques like search marketing, social marketing, mobile marketing and others, entrepreneurs will not survive. Fact is, this years marketing trends are not going any where", explains Ms. Ahlman. She spent a lot of time deciphering the news for 2008. Viewing Trish's quick tips on our "<a href="http://www.quickmarketingtips.blogspot.com/">Quick Marketing Tips Blog</a>" will give you a brief synopsis of what we begin to break down over the next few weeks in detail.<br /><br />Inspire, Learn, Grow...AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-45166475559945508622008-02-03T20:03:00.000-06:002008-02-04T17:36:35.760-06:00Automating Internet Marketing Generates WealthWe've been talking about automating your marketing efforts over the last few weeks. As an entrepreneur, it's important to multiply your efforts. There are several ways that this can be done.<br /><br />First exam all of your processes, internet marketing, communications, sales, etc... Once you have drawn out each departmental process (i.e. 1. lead captured 2. communication starts, 3. promotions set, 4. sale generated, etc...) you then know where improvements can be made.<br /><br />For instance:<span style="font-weight: bold;"></span>. <ol><li>Generate a landing page that captures interest and builds awareness.</li><li>Use video, audio, or the like to increase interest in your site.</li><li>Have a compelling message.</li><li>Capture the leads from your site.</li><li>Begin a compelling communications and promotions campaign.</li><li>Use automated <a href="http://www.free-press-release.com/news/200802/1201983410.html">marketing software</a>.</li></ol>A clear strategy to <span style="font-weight: bold;">internet marketing</span> has to be automation. Make sure that you are using all the latest technology and tools to attract visitors. Once you have the lead, your marketing is turned-on autopilot. You shouldn't have to go back and be pressured to get your messages out. If you haven't started <a href="http://www.marketingsoftwarebusiness.com">marketing your internet business</a>, now is the time.<br /><br />Marketing consultant's are meeting their match because with this software, aggressive entrepreneurs can automate their own marketing without needing the assistance of a small business consultant.AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-84729154416672403372008-01-31T14:46:00.000-06:002008-01-31T15:05:57.862-06:00Entrepreneurs are creating massive wealth with new marketing software business!Last year was an amazing year for my company Augment Marketing Group. To top it off, I have had the opportunity to work with some of the largest universities, oil companies, and medical centers in Houston not to mention the vast number of small businesses I have consulted over the years. But what really takes the cake, if you will, is an opportunity I found to buy a <span style="font-weight: bold;">marketing software business</span> that literally turns the <a href="http://www.augmentgroup.com/">B.I.G. system</a> I created over one year ago into a true reality.<br /><br />As a marketing consultant for small businesses, I have entrepreneurs work through a comprehensive survey to develop a customized marketing plan to best suit their needs (found on my website <a href="http://www.augmentgroup.com/">www.augmentgroup.com</a>). Many of the businesses I have worked with have all needed the B.I.G. System because it helps <span style="font-weight: bold;">b</span>uild brand awareness, <span style="font-weight: bold;">i</span>ncrease interest, and <span style="font-weight: bold;">g</span>enerate revenues. What I was missing however, was a turn-key implementation system that helped small business owners implement their marketing plan. I actually even thought about developing this software on my own. Now, I don't have to - thanks to this amazing new <span style="font-weight: bold;">marketing software business</span>.<br /><br />I'm only telling you about this because if you have to rely on your own efforts to do the <span style="font-weight: bold;">marketing</span> for your <span style="font-weight: bold;">business</span> or you want an opportunity to provide marketing solutions to your clients you might want to research this grand opportunity. With a team called <span style="font-weight: bold;">Mentors4u</span> of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Passport to Wealth</span>, I have been able to provide my clients with marketing software to help implement more effective marketing strategies.<br /><br />For more information, visit the <a href="http://www.marketingsoftwarebusiness.com/"><span style="font-weight: bold;">marketing software business</span></a> website. I found that only this team provides the kind of support to really achieve massive results in building wealth with online marketing. They offer free weekly webinars, support and training to their members. Records indicate that entrepreneurs and marketers are seeing immediate results.<br /><br />As a marketing consultant, this software solution has given me a huge edge over my competitors. I can bet they are not offering this type of free training.AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5680200084459231815.post-1753756611080413312008-01-30T22:47:00.001-06:002008-01-30T23:08:54.733-06:00Aged Shelf Corps with Funding Gives Businesses a Boost<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-yV_xxTYHTO9aSmXvX5atpw8a7v2xAau8P4ggiHybj4V8stagetw4TSwAhUHgFmmAviMw4yhmFEFNVdK-umdcRZJqbqrbFXN4gAC6fe_wxjGfgsfgyM0unqfl-MLblCKoNyhYMJprh5OS/s1600-h/Money+Saving+Tips.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-yV_xxTYHTO9aSmXvX5atpw8a7v2xAau8P4ggiHybj4V8stagetw4TSwAhUHgFmmAviMw4yhmFEFNVdK-umdcRZJqbqrbFXN4gAC6fe_wxjGfgsfgyM0unqfl-MLblCKoNyhYMJprh5OS/s200/Money+Saving+Tips.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5161501789644565906" border="0" /></a><br />Are you looking for a way to boost the foundation of your business? You can actually purchase (which can be costly), an <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.agedshelfcorpsfunding.com/">Aged Shelf Corporation</a> that will give your business the distinction of being in business as long as the <span style="font-weight: bold;">aged shelf corp</span> was in business. Imagine what this can do for you when trying to obtain funding or trying to get a large contract. The credibility of being in business for over five years can play a huge role with banks, potential clients, and government requisitions.<br /><br />There is a lot of information out there. It's really hard to distinguish which companies are legitimate and which ones might not be knowledgeable. Here are some things to look for:<br /><ol><li>Full disclosure</li><li>Funding options included in the offer</li><li>Marketing packages should be included</li><li><a href="http://www.agedshelfcorpsfunding.com/">Paydex </a>scoring</li><li>Customer service and support</li></ol><span style="font-weight: bold;">Aged Shelf Corps Funding</span> is a website that I felt offered the full agreement right up front. You don't have to call a sales rep just to know more about it, you do not have to rely on someone calling you back, you don't have to wait for answers...It's simply all right there at your finger tips. I thought that was very important.<br /><br />If you can afford it, it's an amazing boost to your business. The success of a business begins with the strength of the foundation. Purchasing <span style="font-weight: bold;">Aged Shelf Corps</span> and matching that with <span style="font-weight: bold;">Funding</span> can turn your business into a profit making machine. Augmenting your business can be that easy.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Aged Shelf Corps plus Funding</span> is one solution to building a strong corporation from the very beginning. Trust me when I say, the banks care and your clients care. Wouldn't it be nice to tell them, not only do I have 15 years experience, but I've owned my corporation for 10 years.<br /><br />No that is not dishonest. It simply is a corporation that you purchased. Like a subsidiary or a franchise, turn-key business. Large corporations do this all the time to expand and so can you.AugmentYourMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164436112178995735noreply@blogger.com0