Does Your Marketing Suck?

Marketing is one of the most important aspects of running a business. Doing it wrong can not only cost you a lot of money, but it can make you look bad in the process. MArketing is the way to get people in the door so can can do whatever it is you are trying to do. Be it selling food, sell textbooks online, or make a doctor beome your next financial client.

Learning effective marketing techniques is always beneficial, but learning what you are doing wrong is just as benficial sometimes. It is time to take a look at 10 ways why your marketing strategies stink. If you can figure out why some of them are failing, you can figure out why your next one is going to work.

Top 10 Upcoming Business Trends

Ever wonder why there are so many top 10 lists out there? It's because you have no ability to pass them over withou looking. They are one of the best ways to get people to look at your article. They are a fantastic way to get your articles ranked up at places like Digg.com, show up in a free web directory and the search engines LOVE them. Why? People link to them non-stop. They give them something to write about and help them add content to their own sites.

For us top 10 lists aren't always about marketing, but they are about learning what to look at for future business ideas. This top 10 list of upcoming trends is no different.

Forge Alliances With the Competition?

That doesn't even sound right when it comes to business does it? Most businesses spend all their time trying to out do their competition at every stretch and gain an advantage. At least if they even take the time to study their competition at all. A big mistake that a lot of business owners make is ignoring their competition entirely, sadly. Either because they are only interested in their own little world, or that they just don't ahve any idea of the 4396508 other competitors they have.

HAve you ever thought about forging alliances with your competition? Probably not. There is some strategic vbalue in getting to know, and in some cases befriending some of your competitors. Not only does it help you learn more about your own business, but there may also be situations where you NEED your competitors if things are happening to your industry.

While this article doesn't promote that you send them business, it does give you a good idea of why you would want to reach out to some of your enemies and see where it takes you.

Snoop Dog advises young entrepreneurs

Did you jsut read that right? Snoop Dog, the rap mogul, that made his way talking about how to get high and getting his homies some is talking about how to succeed as an entrepreneur.

It is no surprise that the rapper has some advice in this department. HE is rollin' in dough now and has good advce to avoid the need for anti wrinkle treatment.


He was one of the speakers at the of the second annual Global Entrepreneurship Week. Sitting on the panel was Blake Mycoskie, founder of the eco-friendly footwear company TOMS Shoes; restaurateur Stephen Hanson, founder and president of B.R. Guest Restaurants; chairman of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide and president and CEO of Starwood Capital Group, Barry Sternlicht; and rapper Cordazar Calvin Broadus, better known to hip-hop fans as Snoop Dogg. Maria Bartiromo, host of CNBC's Closing Bell, served as the moderator.

Work at Home Sams? Why Not?

I'll bet you have contemplated some sort of make money quick scam that you have seen on TV over the years. From that guy who tells you to "place tiny ads in the newspaper", to the boom in the real estate con artist game. Thinking that you are going to strike it rich and not need cozumel vacation packages, but rathe rmove there doing little to no work is a nice dream. For the people who sell these scams to you. HEre's the story of someone who got burned.

Kathy Ebarb of Stonewall, La., was having a difficult time locating a new position after losing her job last fall. She applied for at least 200 jobs, she says, and became discouraged. At 64, she worried her age was getting in the way.

Her daughter had a comfortable work-at-home position. Ebarb thought this type of situation would be a good way to make money on the side during her job hunt. She searched online business opportunities and e-mailed companies for more information.

Ebarb received a call back from a prospect she described as "an extremely good talker." She said he offered her the opportunity to earn money from a website.

How To Choose WHAT Employee Benefits You Should Have

The most difficult part about employee benefits isn't finding which institution to run the benefits plans, but more likely figuring out just what types of employee benefits to eeven offer. Not all companies are the same, but most companies do want to have some benefits to give their employees something that makes them want to stay. I don't care how much you love your job, if Company A pays you slightly more, but doesn't offer benefits for your family, Company B that does is probably a better opion for taking care of your personal needs.

Small businesses are in a bit of a predicament most of the time in that they don't believe they can even afford to offer any benefits. While benefits aren't always cost-effective, they too an find something to offer many times while not shopping for them like it is Black Friday.

Here is a good article ont he Basics of Benefits that gives some good ideas on how to decide, what to do, and how to do it when it comes to offering employee benefits.

SMall Business and Financing With Credit Cards

We all know that small businesses aren't always stacked with operating cash. Supplies, parts, listings in web directories, and things you just run out of need to be bought quickly, and something needs to be in place to make sure that you can get it. With SBA loans becoming more stringent, and less of hem being available it is no shock that many small businesses have to rely on credit cards for their fast capital.

According to Inc.com a recent survey said that nearly 60% of small business owners have use credit cards as a source of capital in the last year. So how do you go about using them, and still stay out of trouble? While you can imagine that using them are much like at the personal level there might be more options for a business owener. Take a look at the Play Your Credit Cards Right article that discusses it.

5 Rules For Selling To the Rich

In sales the whale is the dream client for anyone. A whale is the biggest being in the sea, and for sales pros they are the biggest and best clients. Many people have absolutely no idea how to interact, or even sell to the rich. Why? Well most of them aren't exceedingly rich, or successful, so they don't know how to relate, or what a very successful person has to deal with on a day to day basis. So figuring out some proper actions just to make yourself look like you know what you are doing is a big deal. I'm not talking about having a bunch of modern furniture in a big time office, but how you set up and conduct yourself when you meet with them.

Here are 5 basic rules to selling to the rich that you shoould know, and follow like your sale depends on it. It really does depend on it.

The Big Business of Halloween

Ever think to yourself when you pass one of those costume mega stores: "How the heck do they make any money if they are always open?" The funny thing, is if you are a bit like me, I actually don't really even pay attention to these stores except around Halloween so I didn't realize tha many of the mega-Halloween stores aren't actually open all year. Many have in recent years taken to opening a store on a 2-3 month lease. Starting in September, virtually disappearing a few days after Halloween.

These stores have figured out how to use the season to the most profitable, while keeping the costs of running the business a minimalistic approach by jsut being there when people actually need what they are selling.

Joe Purifico, CEO and co-owner of Halloween Adventure, a Philadelphia-based chain of 150 seasonal costume superstores and 15 permanent shops explains how it all works for him.

Not only is it a good Q&A about that aspect of Halloween, he explains why Halloween costumes have become such a big business as well. Many clubs have giveaways for best costume as a business gifts to draw in business. Adults tend to spend up to 3 times what their kids do on their costumes to go to parties.

If you look at the bottom of his Q&A there are some big numbers on all the Tricks and Treats of Halloween. Most notably the 2008 total of $5.77 billion spent on Halloween that includes costumes, candy, and Witch's Brew (booze).

Business Without the Brick and Mortar: Mobilizing Business

We live in an age where technology has advanced enough that many businesses can be run with out even haing a premises. Why have a phone system, secretary, and an office when a mobile phone itself can do most of that work for much less money?

Some just don't have the technical side to pull this off. Most of our parents were raised in a world with out the benefits of the computers we have now. They had trouble jsut setting the clock on the VCR (remeber those things?), and forget aabout setting up a DVR, or TiVO to record 2 programs at once while you watch something else. They just don't "get it" when it comes to tech.

Some do, but aren't eager to move on. Take Doug Sohn for instance, in the article discussing the gadgets to go mobile for business. He still work 50 hours a week in his shop, when he could cut that time down dramtically with the use of our new age tech.

The article lists 13 devices to help you and your business get mobile. From phones, to auto accessories, to software. Not only saving you time, but all the while making your business more productive. What are you waiting for?