Archive for May, 2009
Why associate with associations?
Strategic marketing is built upon the quantity and quality of names written down in that “little black book”. To coin an overused cliché, it’s all about who you know. That means it’s important to fill up your database file (Rolodex, Microsoft Outlook address book, ACT or SalesForce) with as many prospective clients, industry professionals, mentors and business partners as possible.
And gathering contacts is all about three things: networking, networking and networking. However, you cannot simply go to a Web site and sign up for a contact subscription list. Building relationships takes time. And most movers and shakers or designated sales/marketing targets don’t hang out at the same place.
Or do they?
One step ahead of Hitler-a child’s story of the holocost
Experiences during WWII have been written about, filmed, avidly discussed and memorialized. But yet another perspective brings new insight into the atrocities that one set of humans thrust upon another. Fred Gross has written a newly released book One Step Ahead of Hitler, and this time, the experience is from a child’s point of view. Only three years old when his family was forced to flee Antwerp and outrun/outsmart the Hitler regime, Fred tells the story of his family’s plight through France staying one step ahead of Hitler. Fred is an excellent story teller, and this book was a sit down and must complete it type of read. And now, it seems that more should read and understand how fragile our freedoms are, and that we must pay attention so we do not repeat history. (more…)
Creativity is the mastery of simplicity
It’s one thing to launch a marketing campaign to sell bananas. After all, bananas have relatively straightforward selling points: they’re nutritious and delicious. That’s about it.
But what about promoting more complex products … like word-processing software, or a reengineered hybrid vehicle, or home health care? In situations like these, the complexity of the product often obscures the marketing message. Instead of a clear understanding of the product or service and why he should buy it, the prospective customer sometimes gets an overwhelming barrage of irrelevant information – everything from an in-depth analysis of how the technology works to a long-winded narrative of the product’s history to inundation with industry vernacular that is meaningless.
A ‘diamond in the rough’ is not – for a Web site – a good thing
It’s difficult to overestimate the importance of a good online marketing presence. A successful Web site is so much more than just a brochure site for your business, or a way to show off bells and whistles. To be found by those who seek your products or services, a Web site needs to be designed with SEO – search engine optimization- in mind.
Suppose your company builds widgets and you design the snazziest widget Web site ever to hit the information superhighway. There’s Flash video of dancing widgets on the home page. The resources page is stocked with dozens of white papers informing visitors of all the different types of widgets available. There’s even a message board where widget lovers from around the world discuss how the invention of the widget has changed the course of manufacturing forever. This site should, without a doubt, establish your company as the world’s foremost authority on widgets.
Providing Respite Care Gains in Need
One of the more crucial selling points of home care is the fact that an agency can relieve some of the pressure on family members who try to administer that care on their own. According to this article written by Jayne Williams of the Port Clinton (Ohio) News Herald, and backed up by solid statistics, a lot of family members are going to need a lot of relief in the near future.
Williams cites government statistics that indicate that the odds are more likely than not that an adult will serve as an unpaid caregiver to a family member at least once in their lifetime. Roughly 44 million Americans will do so in a given year – that’s 21 percent of the adult population. According to the article, 80 percent of the long-term care in the U.S. is provided by non-professional family caregivers, 61 percent of whom are women and 13 percent of whom are aged 65 and older.
