sales process Articles
March 11th, 2013 :: Rieva Lesonsky
By Rieva Lesonsky
Does your small business need a mobile app? If you’re a retailer or etailer, maybe so. A new study from Flurry measured the time consumers spent using more than 1,800 iOS and Android shopping apps between December 2011 and December 2012.
The study divided apps into five categories:
- Retailer Apps (such as Walmart, Target, Macy’s, Victoria’s Secret, Gap, Saks 5th Avenue)
- Price Comparison Apps (such as RedLaser and Grocery iQ)
- Purchase Assistant Apps (such as ShopSavvy and ShopAdvisor)
- Online Marketplace Apps (such as eBay and Amazon)
- Daily Deals Apps (such as Groupon and Living Social)
Time spent on all five types of apps grew quite a bit, but time spent with retailer apps skyrocketed the most (by 525 percent). That percentage far outstrips the overall growth in the use of both shopping apps (274 percent) and apps as a whole (132 percent).
The time consumers spent with Price Comparison and Purchase Assistant apps also grew significantly, by 247 percent and 228 percent, respectively. Even Online Marketplace and Daily Deals apps grew, though at 178 percent and 126 percent, respectively, the growth rate was far less.
The big winner in the growth of app use is retailers. Overall, in 2012 consumers spent 27 percent of app use time on retail apps (up from 15 percent in 2011). By contrast, the share of time spent on Daily Deals shrank from 20% in 2011 to 13% in 2012, and the share of time spent on Online Marketplace apps decreased from 25% in 2011 to 20% in 2012.
Flurry concludes that smart retailers will begin examining their customer relationships through the “mobile-first” lens. The rise in mobile app use—and especially in retail app use—shows that it’s more important than ever to extend your customer relationships to a variety of channels.
Instead of focusing solely on getting customers into your store—or even onto your website—you need to also focus on attracting them via their mobile devices. “In the new mobile app economy, devices are always with you, always on and always connected,” Flurry writes. Yes, 95 percent of sales still occur in physical stores, but mobile allows you to intercept customers in store aisles and affect their purchasing decisions before they ever reach the cash register. Consider tapping into apps that let customers save their credit card info, apps that let them ship an item to their homes, or apps that let them scan an item with their phones to place an order.
How are you using mobile apps to enhance your customers’ retail and e-tail experience?
Image by Flickr user Dru Bloomfield – At Home in Scottsdale (Creative Commons)
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Tags: Marketing, sales process, small business, Technology
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March 8th, 2013 :: Maria Valdez Haubrich
BizShark
Finding business contacts online can feel like looking for a needle in a haystack, but Bizshark makes it easy. BizShark is a new B2B search platform that targets small businesses by offering an affordable way to search for contacts without a bunch of complex analytics. The BizShark database has roughly 40 million business contacts and more than 14 million company listings, and is searchable by individual and company name as well as by email address. The easy-to-read contact profiles include title, department, phone number and email information. Additional features include company revenue estimates and built-in company directories by department and geographical location.
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March 8th, 2013 :: Rieva Lesonsky
By Rieva Lesonsky
You know that Hispanics are a huge, and growing, market in the United States—but did you know that your business might be missing out on profits if you aren’t targeting an unexpected group of Hispanic customers? I’m talking about Hispanic men.
While conventional wisdom might suggest Hispanic moms are the primary decision-makers about household purchases, a new study from Mintel reports that 42 percent of Hispanic men and 55 percent of Hispanic fathers are primary decision-makers on household expenditures.
The older the men are, the more likely they are to be key decision-makers in the family or household. Among Hispanic men aged 45 to 64, 54 percent make the final household purchasing decisions; among those aged 35 to 44, 50 percent do; and among those 25 to 34, 44 percent do.
“Everywhere we look, marketers are directing their focus on Latinas, but brands are forgetting to talk to Hispanic men,” explained Leylha Ahuile, senior multicultural analyst at Mintel, in announcing the research. “Ignoring Hispanic men is an unwise mistake as this growing group, like most men in the U.S., has taken on a greater role with household chores, caring for children and shopping for the household.”
In addition to having the primary say in household purchases, Hispanic men from higher-income households were the most likely to actually take on shopping duties. More than three-fourths (78 percent) of Hispanic men in homes with incomes over $100K report purchasing clothing or food products in the last year, compared to 67 percent of those with household incomes under $25K.
How can marketers more effectively target this niche market?
- Don’t stereotype. Two-thirds of Hispanic men believe that advertisers unfairly stereotype them. In contrast, half of them believe that the media largely presents positive images of Hispanic women. If necessary, enlist an advertising agency or copywriter familiar with Hispanic culture to ensure that your ads are culturally sensitive.
- Focus on value. Discussing how Hispanic men, and Hispanic dads in particular, can gain good value from buying your products or services can set you apart from the competition. Value doesn’t just mean low prices; Hispanic men are more willing than Hispanic women to pay a little more for their favorite brands, so showing them how your product or service is worth the extra cost can pay off.
- Use sampling. Some 44 percent of Hispanic men say they bought a new product after first sampling it in a store.
- Market with social media. Word-of-mouth, both online and off, is important to Hispanic men. Some 42 percent say they made a purchase after a friend or family recommended the product. Make it easy for your target customers to pass on emails, share information about your product on social media or otherwise let their friends and family know what they think of your product.
- Use niche media. Nearly one-third (32 percent) of Hispanic men say they are more likely to be influenced by ads on Spanish-language TV than on English-language TV. Also consider advertising in Spanish-language magazines, newspapers and websites.
Image by Flickr user Moodboard (Creative Commons)
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March 7th, 2013 :: Maria Valdez Haubrich
Ontraport
So many tasks to do and so many software programs handling them all, if only there were a way to combine it all into one easy technology. Ontraport wants to be your solution by tackling the challenge with an integrated business and marketing automation platform including content management, sophisticated lead tracking, social media scheduling, marketing analyzing data, online payments, billing and more. A new interface and workflow tool is easy to navigate even for the non-technically inclined.
And if you have to leave a task in the middle, you can bookmark your progress so you can get back to the task when you’re free.
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March 4th, 2013 :: Rieva Lesonsky
By Rieva Lesonsky
With Black History Month just behind us, multicultural marketing agency Ameredia took a look at the buying power of the African-American consumer in America. Here are some of the interesting statistics they cite regarding the power of black consumers.
- The total African American population is 42.6 million, or 14,468,417 households.
- Cities with a large proportion of African Americans include New York City (the leader, with a population of 3.2 million African Americans), Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, Memphis, Detroit and Houston.
- The median household income of African American families is $33,460.
- Some 24 million African Americans age 25 and up are pursuing higher education. 18.3 percent African Americans have a bachelor’s degree or higher; 32.6 percent have an associate’s degree or have attended some college.
African Americans make more shopping trips than the average consumer. They are more likely than average to buy beauty and ethnic products, children’s cologne, toiletries for both men and women, frozen meats, and fresh vegetables and grains.
As shoppers, African Americans are influencers and trendsetters whose purchasing habits affect others. They set trends in their purchase of apparel, autos and food and in their use of social media.
Speaking of social media, nearly three-fourths (72 percent) of African American adults have a profile on more than one social media network. Twitter is extremely popular with African Americans.
When they are using social media, African Americans are likely to be doing it on a mobile device. More than 54 percent own smartphones, and these consumers are heavy users of mobile data—they’re likely to be texting, emailing and surfing the Web, along with downloading music, videos and photos to their devices.
How can you reach this important niche market?
- Be positive. Ameredia cites Nielsen research that 51 percent of African Americans say they are more likely to buy a product if its advertising portrays the black community in a positive manner.
- Use niche media. A whopping 91 percent of African Americans in the Nielsen study say that black media is more relevant to them than generic media outlets. Advertise with cable TV shows, radio shows, blogs, websites and publications targeting the black community.
- Don’t “lump” all African Americans into one category. As Ameredia points out, the black community in the U.S. comes from many different backgrounds, including Africans, African Americans, Afro-Latin Americans and Afro-Caribbeans. “Each distinct group contributes their unique diverse cultural experience, language, identity and migratory journey to the mix,” Ameredia cautions.
- Know your market. Depending on where your business is located, you may have many different subcategories of African American consumers in your market, and you will need to understand how each group wants to be communicated with, sold to and marketed to.
Image by Flickr user Abode of Chaos (Creative Commons)
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Tags: Business Development, Marketing, niche marketing, sales process, small business, trends
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March 1st, 2013 :: Rieva Lesonsky
By Rieva Lesonsky
Is your small business reaching out to Hispanic consumers on their mobile devices? If not, you’re missing out on a big opportunity. New research reported by eMarketer shows that Hispanic consumers are not only far more likely than non-Hispanics to use mobile devices, but are also far more likely to use them to shop.
A study from Acosta Sales & Marketing found that Hispanic consumers, in particular, are more likely than the average shopper to use a smartphone (51 percent of Hispanics vs. 41 percent of all consumers), regularly use text messaging (47 percent vs. 42 percent) and use mobile apps (19 percent vs. 14 percent).
According to a study from Leo Burnett and Lapiz, Hispanic consumers are 7 percent more likely than non-Hispanic consumers to use their mobile phones to shop (56 percent vs. 33 percent of non-Hispanics). They’re also more likely to shop with a tablet (43 percent of Hispanics do so, vs. 25 percent of non-Hispanics).
The same Leo Burnett/Lapiz study reports that Hispanics are far more likely than non-Hispanics to make shopping a social activity, whether they’re shopping online or off:
- Nearly half (48 percent) of Hispanics use social networking sites as part of their shopping activities, while only 31 percent of non-Hispanics do so.
- Hispanics are twice as likely to share their opinions of products or brands and write product reviews on social media sites (36 percent of Hispanics do so, vs. 18 percent of Non-Hispanics).
- Hispanics are more than twice as likely to reach out to friends and family for help with shopping decisions (37 percent of Hispanics do so, vs. 17 percent of non-Hispanics).
What do these numbers mean to you? First, with Hispanics a growing segment of the U.S. population, there’s scarcely a business out there that shouldn’t be reaching out to them. To attract these super-shoppers, consider:
- Creating a mobile app for your business that lets customers do something more easily, whether that’s getting product quotes or making purchases directly on their phones.
- Making it easy for consumers to share information from your website or ecommerce site or social media accounts with friends and family, whether via email, social media or text messaging.
- Have an active presence in social media and make sure your business is represented on ratings and review sites.
- Taking advantage of text messaging, since Hispanic consumers are actively engaged in it. But be careful: Don’t overstep your welcome or send too many texts.
Image by Flickr user moodboard photography (Creative Commons)
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Tags: hispanics, Marketing, Search Marketing, small business, social media
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February 28th, 2013 :: Karen Axelton
By Karen Axelton
During this past holiday shopping season, media reports were full of stories about how brick-and-mortar shoppers were “showrooming”—viewing products in-store, then checking their mobile phones to find lower prices at other retailers or online. The trend struck fear into the hearts of retailers, but those fears may be unfounded, according to a new report from the Pew Internet & American Life Project.
Consumers are using mobile phones while shopping like never before—that much is true. The report, In-Store Mobile Commerce During the 2012 Holiday Season, found that nearly six in 10 cell owners used their phone inside a physical store for assistance or guidance in making a purchasing decision during the 2012 holiday season. But they’re not just comparing prices. Here’s what they’re doing:
- 46 percent of cell owners used their phone while inside a store to call a friend or family member for advice about a purchase they were considering. Women and young adults (age 18 to 29) are more likely to do this.
- 28 percent of cell owners used their phone while inside a store to look up product reviews to help them decide whether to buy a product it or not. Young adults (18 to 29), smartphone owners, and those with at least some college experience are more likely than average to use their phones to search for product reviews in-store.
- 27 percent of cell owners used their phone while inside a store to look up the price of a product and see if they could get a better price either online or at another retail store. Young adults, smartphone owners and those with some college experience were most likely to do price comparisons.
Altogether, more than half (58 percent) of cell owners used their phone for at least one of these purposes. As you might expect, young adults and smartphone owners led the way, with 78 percent of those aged 18-29 and 72 percent of smartphone owners using their phones for at least one of these purposes in the 2012 holiday season.
But here’s the good news: Even among those who look up prices in-store, a majority end up either buying the item in the store or not buying it at all. Some 46 percent of “mobile price matchers” report they ultimately bought the product in that store. That’s an 11-point increase from the 35 percent who said this in last year’s study. Just 12 percent ended up buying the product online, compared to 19 percent who did so in last year’s survey. So while consumers are becoming more sophisticated in using their cell phones to become savvier shoppers, what they learn from doing so is persuading more of them to make purchases in-store.
Image by Flickr user Rebecca L. Daily (Creative Commons)
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February 26th, 2013 :: Maria Valdez Haubrich
By Maria Valdez Haubrich
You know that ecommerce spending is growing—but did you know by just how much? In 2012, online shopping in the U.S. grew by 15 percent compared to 2011, reports comScore’s recently released full-year 2012 data. This was the strongest annual growth rate since back before the recession began. Overall, U.S. online shoppers spent $186.2 billion in 2012.
In the fourth quarter of 2012 alone (which includes the holiday shopping season), ecommerce sales grew by 14 percent year over year, reaching approximately $56.78 billion. ComScore had originally forecast a higher growth rate for 2012 ecommerce holiday sales, but last-minute consumer worries about the “fiscal cliff” appear to have had some effect on dampening online holiday sales just a bit.
Of course, the fourth-quarter sales are still nothing to complain about. Fourth-quarter 2012 was the first quarter ever that online sales hit $50 billion. It was also the thirteenth consecutive quarter of positive year-over-year growth and the ninth consecutive quarter of double-digit growth.
What kinds of products contributed the most to the growth in ecommerce sales? The strongest areas (those where online sales increased by at least 15 percent year over year) were digital content and subscriptions, consumer electronics, toys and hobby-related items, apparel and accessories, and books and magazines. So while digital content still leads the way (not surprisingly), most major retail areas are well-represented.
Overall, the number of U.S. ecommerce buyers rose by 6 percent, showing that more consumers are more comfortable buying online. In addition, the average spending per buyer rose by 8 percent.
All told, U.S. online spending accounted for 10 percent of total U.S. retail spending last year (excluding spending on food, gas and automotive). That makes 2012 the first time that U.S. ecommerce spending has hit double digits.
While comScore hasn’t yet made a projection as to 2013 ecommerce spending, the report says that as long as the lower-than-expected fourth-quarter 2012 sales were just a temporary setback, rather than a foreshadowing of decreasing economic confidence among consumers, 2013 is highly likely to see strong growth as well.
Image by Flickr user SamahR (Creative Commons)
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Tags: ecommerce, Marketing, small business, Technology, Web Design
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February 21st, 2013 :: Maria Valdez Haubrich
By Maria Valdez Haubrich
Social media is growing by leaps and bounds, but email is still the best way to reach out to the most customers and gain their loyalty, reports a new study by ExactTarget. Called Marketers from Mars, the study found significant gaps between how marketers think customers want to be marketed to, and how customers actually want to interact with brands.
The clear winner? Email, which was named as the most valuable marketing tool for building loyalty by both customers and marketers. Ninety-three percent of consumers subscribe to at least one brand’s email, while about half (49 percent) have made a purchase as a direct result of email messages. One-third of consumers want marketers to invest more in email marketing.
However, while marketers were highly focused on mobile marketing, customers aren’t quite there yet. About one-fourth of marketers thought mobile apps were an effective marketing tool, but just 7 percent of consumers thought so. Instead, consumers were more likely to want brands to invest more in marketing on their traditional websites.
Consumers were more likely than marketers to want to interact with brands on Facebook. More than half (58 percent) of consumers have “Liked” a brand on Facebook, up 20 percent from the prior survey in 2010. About one-third of consumers with a smartphone and one-fourth of consumers who do not own a smartphone say they prefer to interact with brands on Facebook, making it the second most common place consumers go to connect with businesses online.
While just 21 percent of consumers have made a purchase as a direct result of a Facebook message, 22 percent of consumers say they want marketers to invest in creating a better Facebook experience. This suggests that there is great potential for Facebook to grow as a sales and marketing channel.
While marketers are highly engaged with Twitter, consumers are far less so. Some 61 percent of marketers follow at least once brand on Twitter, but only 12 percent of consumers do. That was an increase of just 7 percent from the prior survey in 2010.
What’s the takeaway? If you’re involved in small business marketing, you’re on the cutting edge of new trends and technologies—so don’t make the mistake of assuming your habits mirror those of the average consumer. Always do your research to understand exactly what your target customers are doing and how they want you to market to them—it may not be how you’d like to be marketed to yourself.
You can download the complimentary research from Exact Target or view an infographic of the survey.
Image by Flickr user (Creative Commons)
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February 13th, 2013 :: Rieva Lesonsky
By Rieva Lesonsky
In spite of years of governmental efforts to help women-owned small businesses obtain government contracts, new data from Bloomberg show that in 2012, the percentage of U.S. government contracts awarded to women-owned small businesses actually dropped for the second year in a row.
While awards of contracts to men-owned firms have declined as well, the awards to women decreased at a faster rate. The percentage of contracts awarded to women-owned small businesses decreased 5.5 percent to $16.4 billion in the fiscal year ending September 30, 2012. Meanwhile, the percentage of contracts awarded to men-owned small businesses declined by 4.1 percent, dropping to $80.9 billion.
Women-owned businesses have long faced challenges in obtaining government contracts. During the Clinton administration, in 1994, the federal government set a goal that at least 5 percent of the total value of eligible contracts must be awarded to women-owned businesses; however, that target has never been met. Last year, Bloomberg says, women-owned small businesses accounted for about 3.2 percent of government contracts overall.
The irony is that just two years ago, the U.S. government launched a new effort to expand women’s access to government contracts. In February 2011, the Small Business Administration published its final rule regarding the Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) Federal Contract program. This program authorizes federal contracting officers to set aside certain federal contracts for eligible women-owned small businesses (WOSBs) or economically disadvantaged women-owned small businesses (EDWOSBs).
What can you do if you’re a woman small business owner interested in landing federal government contracts? First, don’t give up hope. Here are some places to start learning about government contracting opportunities and making your firm more attractive to contracting officers:
- You can self-certify as a WOSB or EDWOSB, or use a third-party certifier to help you through the process (since it can get pretty complex). Visit the SBA’s website to learn more about the WOSB and EDWOSB certification programs.
- American Express and the nonprofit organization Women Impacting Public Policy have launched a program called “Give Me Five,” which offers education and resources to help more women business owners access federal contracting opportunities.
- The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) has programs and training to help small businesses, including women-owned businesses, successfully land government contracts. Learn more at the GSA website.
Image by Flickr user cometstar (Creative Commons)
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Tags: government contracting, sales process, small business, women business owners, women owned business
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