Loading

Grow Smart Business


teaserInfographic
Close

Search Articles



Posts Tagged ‘blog posts’


5 Types of Marketing Content That Will Fuel Your Sales

January 23rd, 2013 ::

MoneyWhether your company offers a product or a service, having content on hand that you or your sales team can share with prospective customers is incredibly important. You’ll be able to showcase your capabilities and the value and benefits of working with you over someone else.

Here are 5 types of marketing content you should keep at the ready:

Explainer videos

An explainer video tells a visual story of how your product or service works. While these are especially handy for physical products you can see, they can also be used for virtual products/services, like an app or cloud-based service (check out Dropbox’s video).

If you are a professional service provider, like a real estate agent, consultant or attorney, you can use a video to quickly explain the value you bring to your clients while letting them get to know you a little bit.

Blog posts

Yes, it is OK to mention your products and services in your blog posts – on occasion. You could write about how you use your own product or service in your company, how-to guides, or a list of quick tips. You can also publish news, in which you announce important new partnerships, new products or services, or new features or updates, just like Modus Create did here.

Case studies

These are one of the best ways to market your company and convert prospective clients into new clients. Case studies give you the chance to show the value of your products and services. When I write them, I keep them pretty structured, like these that I wrote for Brighter Strategies. The first paragraph explains the problem, the second paragraph talks about the solution and how it was implemented, and the third paragraph concludes with the outcome or results.

Presentations

If you ever give presentations on your products, services, or company, whether it’s a seminar or at a conference, save them in Slideshare so you can easily share them later – and others can easily find them with a quick search. If you have a sales team, definitely create presentations for them to ensure your products and services are discussed the way you think is best.

Data sheets

Data sheets are full of information – they’re not sexy, but they are important if you sell a product. You can list product features, hardware, software, or other types of  requirements, competitive comparisons, charts and graphs that demonstrate product value, and even return on investment data.  Here’s a really comprehensive one for the Audi A3 (my car!).

What marketing content do you share with prospective clients?

Image courtesy of gurusoftware.com

How to Increase Sales With Your Blog

August 7th, 2012 ::

money

While blogs are often used to share industry or company information, build credibility, and create a community, they aren’t often thought of as a sales tool, when, in fact, they are a great way to generate leads and increase sales. Marcus Sheridan recently shared 4 clever ideas for using your blog as a sales tool in a fantastic article on Social Media Examiner.  Here are the takeaways from that article:

Success Stories

When you blog about your successful projects with clients or within your own business, don’t just toot your own horn. Share the important lessons you learned or tips on products, services, or trade secrets you used to achieve success.  By doing so, you will demonstrate your expertise in two ways – and inspire others to work with you.

Video

Yes, a video is a great way to engage your audience and share information – and you know why?  Because people like to interact with other people, and video is the best way to do that virtually.  A short video in your blog is an effective way for your potential customers to get to know you and for you to build trust with them.

Call to Action

If a major change occurs within your industry – for example, a new law or regulation or revolutionary product – don’t just blog about it; offer to help your customers learn more about that impending change and successfully integrate it into their business operations.  You could offer a free consultation, webinar, or new service or product with a temporary discount.

Comparisons

People love to comparison shop, whether it’s for a car, an airline ticket or a plumber.  Take advantage of that natural tendency by writing blog posts that compare your product or service to others’.  When someone types in a search term comparing the two, your blog post should pop up in the search results.

Have you successfully used your blog to sell your product or service?  What works best for you?  Share your story below!

Image courtesy of ScientificAmerican.com

5 Quick Tips on Writing Press Releases That Will Get Read

April 15th, 2011 ::

Megaphone on the streetPublic relations seem to be falling by the wayside—when you can connect with your audience directly via social media and blogs, why bother with press releases?  There are three reasons, actually, but when your overall goal is to stay in touch with your target market(s), writing and distributing press releases is an important part of your marketing efforts.

The three reasons to bother with press releases:

  1. Improve your website’s search results
  2. Drive traffic to your website
  3. Increase brand/company awareness

Another reason not to write off press releases (pun intended) is because writing them is easy.  If you can write great blog posts, you can write a great press release.  Your press release need not be long, just relevant to your target market.  Come to think of it, there are a lot of parallels between blog posts and press releases, so if you want your press release to be read, just follow some of the same basic guidelines you use when writing blog posts.

Grab ‘Em With Your Headline

While incorporating keywords in your headlines are important, they shouldn’t take over and make the headline awkward.  The goal of your headline is to grab the interest of your target market. Use the keywords you can, and don’t fret about leaving some out.

Too many keywords: The ABC Group Launches New Social Media Marketing Consultancy to Build Brand Awareness and Generate Leads For Small and Emerging Companies

Better: The ABC Group Launches Social Media Marketing Consultancy

Rethink the Opening Paragraph

People love stories.  They’re engaging, interesting, dramatic and memorable.  Begin your press release with a story that draws in the reader, especially since so many press releases are now read directly by your target market (rather than journalists), whether they find it through search or a PR syndication service.  The traditional who-what-where-when-why model is dated.  If you want your press release to read like a newspaper article, have at it, but if you want to engage your audience, tell your story.

Add Lots of Hyperlinks

The more hyperlinks in your press release, the more engaged your reader will be.  You can link keywords to other blog posts you’ve written and pages on your website, thus leading your readers to more information on whatever it is you are promoting.

Include Calls to Action

In your press release, ask people to do something!  Whether you want them to subscribe to your blog, follow you on Twitter, like your Facebook page, sign up for your email newsletter or download an eBook, provide them with links to it.  Add an incentive if you’d like: bonus eBook chapter, new whitepaper, free hour of consultation, whatever.

Insert Photos and Videos

Insert photos and videos in your press release for a truly interactive, engaging experience.  You can show screen shots of your new app, photos of your new product, “how it works” videos, video testimonials and more.  Be creative!

Image by Flickr user Kimba Howard (Creative Commons)