Style of Business - Page 15

Tips on Creating Effective Product Messaging

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Focus on delivering the whole nine yards

In the age of multiple social media websites and opportunities for people to review you, there are a few cautions for the entrepreneur that could mistakenly drift into a bad message channel. For instance, if there is a promotion that you are running involving freebies or giveaways, don’t follow one commonly followed path.

A lot of new brands want to create hype and in doing so they create gimmicky events that have carefully created fine print. They assume that people will be beating down the door and excited to see a new place, and maybe with the state of the economy, that they will in turn not worry about you not making good on your offer. Don’t follow this path! Even if a few customers stick around and don’t mind what you did, the ones that were looking forward to the event or giveaway will vent about it. There are brands with massive potential that go this route and ruin the future for themselves; especially in the domains involving travel and music merchandising.

Incorporate lots of examples

When you are first involved in the process of conveying a message, there are many consumers who may not believe your claims right away. When you make moves like including graphs and other visuals that may appeal to their emotion, their analytical side can kick in and make a last minute decision for them to buy your product. It has also been widely proven in the world of successful advertising that if you have a point to make in the world of branding and marketing, make it in three’s. It has been said many times that even with a stellar product, the most important motive is to not have the main message put people to sleep. In essence, creating a sense of urgency could be the hardest work involved in creating your message.

The art of really knowing your buyer

In some cases the persona and entire culture of a buyer must really be examined. Of course demographic research is the most traditional way to do this, but even logging on to some social media sites and checking out a product’s following can clue you in. If you truly are going to deliver a message that will resonate for a long period of time, there are a lot of attributes you have to figure out. When dealing with a company like VW or a hip sneaker brand, figuring out what your target market’s buttons are can take you across the finish line in the final hour.

In a well-known technology company that now has a large share of market sales’ research, at the very last minute before a new commercial dropped on the web and on air, it was learned that the target buyer had a bit more competitive edge than previously thought. With not a whole lot of time to spare, a spot was tailored for them that involved two alpha type males playing a game against each other, instead of a typical product pitch. In the end, it really paid off; even though the two guys’ competitive edge was a bit quirky, the audience recognized the call to action and really lined up to purchase the product.

Another attribute of great strength is fully understanding your target market’s next choice down the line. Whether you are in the business of outsourcing, coaching, or perfecting a product line, when it comes to creating a message, there is much more to be done than just offering a quick peek at your strong points. Sometimes in the line of insurance and service providers, the most important part of the message is voicing what “They” AKA the “competitor” can or cannot fulfill compared to your product. Part of a product message is clarity and strength building, and your product or service may really be able to spread its’ wings when sized up against another that offers the same thing with a few pitfalls.

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Great app for Marketers: Statigram

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statigram_image Everyone knows that marketing on Instagram is getting to be the rage; you can truly develop organic traffic with it due to the ways in which people find your content. But what ways are available to track what’s happening, and make it fun, even?

Statigram truly is “Instagram made more comfortable”, and also can integrate with Hootsuite. Managing contests, conversations, great analytics about content, community, and activity are also just some of what it offers. Seeing what the best times to post are, average life of a photo, and how to really edge in and track follower growth make this invaluable. Realizing that it’s so much more than just a place to post pictures is the beginning; really capitalizing on the tools available will make you the guru you dream of being.

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Awesome marketer’s Presentation Software: Prezi

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prezi_horizontal This software starts as an open canvas but is really so, so much more rocks the socks off many others. What is really the ultimate info graphic preparing powerhouse brings to life anything you literally have imagined or dreamed of in the marketing or business realm. You can collaborate, share, import from Powerpoint, and have invisible frames along with multiple layered text and objects. Packed with great tips, examples of dynamic others’ creations, all you need is an overall desire to make your claim or proposition out of this universe, and you will with Prezi.

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Marketer’s Top Reads: Content Rules

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This is a book that really does its job well of telling marketers how to create stories, blogs, videos, and content that people are curious about and want more of. Content Rules: How to create Killer Blogs, Podcasts, Videos, Webinars, (and more) that Engage Customers and Ignite your Business is the title of this great resource. Authors Ann Handley and C.C. Chapman use examples of companies that have practiced what they’re is preaching, which gives the reader a sense of what they can accomplish if they use these tactics. Podcasting in particular is really gaining in popularity, and is a great avenue for heightening interest on the web.

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Great Apps for Marketers: Locale

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An app that seems simple in what it does at first but really saves you from some awful moments, Locale changes your phone’s ringer settings based upon where you are located. If you are stuck in an important class or meeting, it will automatically know, and adjust your ringer. What started out as a mere embarrassment solution got more popular as people loved being able to use the GPS features on their phone so it would know when they couldn’t be bothered. Another great feature is having the VIP caller list that always lets certain people get a hold of you no matter what type of business you’re attending to!

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How to Create a Cult-Like Following for your Brand, Engrossing Followers to Elevated Status

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FantasyFootballLogo_300x300 The Appeal of Hordes following your brand

As the purveyor of a brand, you would honestly love almost nothing more than achieving a form of cult status. Social media brands like Facebook have achieved this, as well as activities tied into brands like NFL Fantasy Football. Recently with about 35 million followers, the activity of fantasy football along with shows like “The League” has more than reached out and grabbed the attention of consumers. At a certain point, marketers have realized that people want to be a part of something that goes beyond just the sphere of themselves.

Once you reach a cult following, if it happens overnight, you may even run out of product. If you can keep the product stocked, you will see more users talking about your brand than maybe ever imagined. Shoe purchase portals like Zappos, Soft drinks like Coke, beers like Dos Equis and many more have achieved this status with more than just placement and protocol. They have sometimes gambled everything to create a persona that people will not only never forget, but tell everyone they know to consume. The initial feeding frenzies drive up IPO’s and in some cases, get the product out of the red forever.

Dreaming at the drawing board

Creating a cult brand is something that is much harder than just creating any brand. One of the pinnacles of the industry, Harley Davidson, formed their cult status because people literally formed groups based on the brand. At the time and even still, it didn’t matter that some of them were perceived as a bit on the outlaw front. When you are really thinking about taking a brand to cult status, envisioning it as a group activity (Think Pinterest) is sometimes a great first step. Along the realms of cult status success in transportation is Vespa, the Italian made scooter that was a driving force in gaining many people the ability to get from A to B after the Second World War.

When you are trying to create a cult following for your brand, it is hard not to imitate directly, but there are some great brands to take a beginning nod from. Trader Joe’s created an incredibly loyal fan base with “Two buck chuck” wine, and a selection that feels like a local market, has uncommon items, and tries to shy away from steep prices. When looking at truly becoming a cult brand, there are really two most important elements to investigate; creating a community of customers, and selling an overall lifestyle.

How could my brand do these things?

One successful thing that brands have done to create a community of customers is by encouraging them to show off their wares. Toms shoes has done this, by encouraging customers to show off their loyalty and their pairs of Toms in pictures they personally take. Even though to be truly iconic there has to be a lot of other appeals, sometimes risky and weird works. A whole culture has sprung up since about the late 1990’s that embraces coffee, quirks of life, imperfection, and noticing the oddities in the workplace. Having a scrapbook themed sharing platform and/or finding a way to reward people posting the coolest photos of your brand is a great start.

If you feel in any way that your product is limited or not as good as others, don’t panic. One thing that entrepreneurs have really seen help with cult status is creating the “fun factor”. Cars like Volkswagen have mastered this. It needs to be a careful blend of engineering & design, and then perhaps spreading around some examples of the fun and savvy ways people use your product. There are some small startups, pet companies and others creating loyalty and driving good reviews by having over the top customer service. These companies must really hire only the best of the best, and know how to be perfect ambassadors even when times are stressful.

It is true that some companies have been lucky enough to stumble upon these quirky ideas that make their product stand out. There have been many brands that really start to rise up and then can’t accomplish the next level of true attachment to the brand. While there are many things about a product like food that can attach a customer to a brand, examples like Zappos show us that any niche can work. The absolute best strategy is providing something different. In this day and age there is always another person doing what you are; the challenge is dripping originality, and creating a desire for what you have that is unparalleled.

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David and Goliath; Malcolm Gladwell’s New Release Advocating the Advantages of the Underdog

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“The acquisition of success can sow the seeds for failure”. This thought provoking quote was just one of the pieces of knowledge Malcolm Gladwell shared on a CSPAN BookTV interview. Named one of Time’s 100 most influential people and an individual who really explores the forces of our actions; he is one high grade and influential intellectual. Writing now for the New Yorker, and previously The Washington Post, this son of a mathematics professor stoked his massive interest in research and literature while wandering around the vast offices of the University of Waterloo.

His other four books were all on the coveted New York Times best seller list. What The Dog Saw: and Other Adventures, The Tipping Point: How Little Things Make a Big Difference, Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking, and Outliers: The Story of Success are the other incredibly provoking and interesting predecessors to the new book. Particularly in Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking, marital relationships, pop music, gambling, and new trends like speed dating in what he describes as “thin slicing”, where he talks about very rapid judgment having an effect on our actions and issues of psychological priming.

At the New Yorker in 1996, on a first assignment writing about fashion, Gladwell wrote about a man who made 8 dollar T shirts as opposed to more expensive craft. This and other articles landed him a hefty advance; and major clout as well as divine appreciation among readers worldwide. In the new book, he takes on the poignant parable of David and Goliath, and asks a lot of questions about current business environment and society. Also writing a great article in 2002 about “The Talent Myth”, he did a great job of asking questions regarding management styles and the ways in which employees are rated. Accurately pointing out that egocentric types who pass the blame and take false credit for achievements are promoted under current climate tactics, he argued that experience should trump all in the dog eat dog workplace culture.

His books being heralded by many as some of the best of the decade, his new work examines how our nation was humbled over the course of the Vietnam War, and other interesting subjects like business owners who succeed in spite of dyslexia. The piece he wrote with the same title for the New Yorker four years ago chronicles an Indian man who coaches a young woman’s basketball team, who are an amazing group of underdogs. Using very unorthodox methods, he actually takes them to a national championship.

Closely examining the idea that being in a position of power makes the holder much more precarious than the general public would imagine, the new book to be released October 1st promises to be provoking and insightful. In times where we dream of being the ultimate entrepreneur, yet want so bad to connect rightfully with others and sustain the life of our Earth, an author who wants to investigate the man behind David’s armor should inspire readers in droves; as all his other works have. As he says in the poignant interview with BookTV, his main desire it to get his readers to step back and examine their own experiences; a project many startup business owners could learn light years worth of information from.

Home Office Productivity Boosters; 5 Apps that can put the ‘Can-Do’ Attitude in your Den

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Whether you are an entrepreneur, freelancer, office worker that occasionally brings some work home, or full fledged owner that has to watch every aspect of the business around the clock; many things abound in the tech realm to lend a hand. There comes a point at which you realize that organizing the information you are gleaning, your password protection, or marketing material is just getting out of hand. Many times we are told enthusiastically about things that can turn our situation around, but we put it off to the last minute because we worry about adapting to change.

The Windows Suite really does come with amazing basics. PowerPoint, Word, Movie Maker, and Publisher can fulfill your needs for months if not years. You can create documents, move info around, and draw up presentations. But at some point in the game, you’re going to be on the phone with someone at an unexpected time, and you are going to wish suddenly for some apps that could save you a few minutes or data input, and large amounts of it. From drawing diagrams to illustrate your workflow, to predicting what you may key in next; we concocted a list that will save you tons of time. All you have to do know is keep the creative juices flowing and your product in stock. Here are some of the best that we found in our search for home office success.

1. Last Pass Password Management

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This is one free application that is definitely a no-brainer on how helpful it is. Once installed, it generates passwords for email, things like PayPal and Facebook, and other productivity platforms. Quite possibly the best thing about it is that it generates them often, and someone would have to be willing to go through a bit of effort to phish or hack from you. Once downloaded, it affixes itself to the browser and when you choose to turn it on, it automatically populates different passwords for different applications. Even those who for some reason favor to have all their passwords written down and quickly enter them in; once you get used to them auto populating quickly and doing less work, you will be saving tons of valuable time.

2. Checkmark, for the ultimate in reminders

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The shining difference in Checkmark from other reminder apps is that it has a timer feature which goes off even when you arrive in certain locations. The grouping of your to do list in locations lets you set a radius with places that are in close proximity of each other, and in terms of the small business owner, could be great for setting reminders about when to ship things, and stop for important supplies. When you start to use brilliant apps like this in conjunction with others, it’s almost as good as having an assistant; which is what most entrepreneurs are ultimately after. Until you make that leap, this app has a lot of people who enjoy it more than the built in iPhone “reminder”.

 

3. Slice; Tracking package shipping and even pricing change

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As a business owner or anyone trying to squeeze more productivity out of a home office, you’re going to start ordering things that you need, and things that catch your eye. This powerful and useful app scans your email and finds your proofs of purchase, helping you stay on top of things that are en route. Lifehacker called it “The best package tracker for iPhone” and it received much praise from Business Insider as well. It even begins to tell you what kind of shopper you are after tracking your habits, and is one of those apps that can save your sanity when you don’t want to take the time to look up the individual tracking number. Also as far as things like Christmas and Black Friday are concerned; this is the direction you want to be pointed in for solutions and sanity.

4. Houdini: one of the Magicians of De-Clutter

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What users love most about Houdini is that it closes selected applications after a certain period of time. When you are working from home there are a lot of things that you want to stay open, but after a certain amount of time, some of them get stale to say the least. All you do is adjust the activity time of each app depending on whether you want them completely hidden, or a five to ten minute limit on each. What a lot of hyper-productive individuals do is log themselves out of things like messenger after awhile so they can really focus, and when it comes down to it; even out of social media like Facebook. For those that create content or have to monitor the bottom line, sometimes you have to go deep; and Houdini can make the unnecessary apps disappear into thin air, at least while needed.

5. Quick storage and retrieval: Little Bookmark Box

This excellent storage application for Mac users lets you quickly add the links you want to save to organized folders based on a set of rules that you create. The goal is to save time spent on repeatedly clicking and dragging items; and at a cost of $14.99; still is a wonderful productivity booster. It seems at first that having a bookmark collage off to the side of your browser is no big deal, and yes you can create new folders within folders; but The Little Bookmark Box simply rules in terms of being sortable and quickly accessible. When you start to get used to it, you are moving the cursor on the mouse around a lot less, and researching or producing much quicker.

Designs for the Home Office; Modern Creations to Promote Productivity

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Whether you are lucky enough to work from home all day, or just love to spend a few hours in the evening catching up on bills, news, and email, the options for home offices have changed drastically within the last decade. There are those who want a traditional look, like something a financial baron would use as a lavish fixture to sign documents on; to an ultra modern nook that takes into consideration ergonomics and the feel of the room itself.

Earlier this year, Forbes reported that one in five Americans work from home, be it part time or full time; and that number is likely to rise 60 percent in the next five years. And the satisfaction rate of those working from the home is much higher; 47% are satisfied compared to 27% of those who are confined to the office. It can save companies up to $10,000 per employee per year, and not surprisingly they are more productive, and more likely to work when they have a minor sickness or flu bug.

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Another plus is the time spent working in large cities from home where it may have otherwise been spent stuck in traffic. Aside from the corporate structure, many artists, bloggers and journalists have been working out of the home for the last few decades, and are now being taken much more seriously as savvy entrepreneurs. So with all the options available for furnishings and desks, what are some good examples of pieces to fill the space in which you create? Here a few of our best finds.

This Black Glass Writing Table from Horchow is a bit deceiving; it looks at a glance like something you would see in a hotel for just quick letter writing and the like. But it is definitely perfect for many offices or nooks; it has glass veneers and is made of wood. It will add a stately vibe to any workspace, but still feels modern enough. Perhaps not ideal for full workdays spent at the helm, it’s still a great addition to a kitchen or bedroom that needs a nice alcove for creation or catching up on some laptop surfing.

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This Ava Wood desk from Pottery Barn (above) is an example of a nice piece to complete your work on that is budget minded, yet still has a dose of simplicity that will feel elegant and modern. Crafted from spruce with a very thick glass top, it’s finished with an espresso stain. Perfectly paired with sunlight and maybe some great photography prints on the wall, this is a perfect fixture for the home office.

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This piece takes things in an entirely different direction; one that is about as modern as it gets. The Volna floor-mounted table comes from Nuvist, a designer in Turkey. Brought to us from a duo that claims there is no specific rule to design something, the end result lives up to this, but is futuristically immaculate. As everyone raved about the TWA terminal design at JFK Airport in the 1960’s, this is the same kind of streamlined design that embraces the future. It’s obviously not for everyone that works from home, but is a conversation piece to flaunt regardless.

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This Goggle desk designed by Danny Venlet is a favorite choice among designers from Italian manufacturer Babini. Obviously above the norm and favored by very powerful people, it is admittedly quite different. It transfixes actual art into the workspace itself, and while it too is not for everybody, if you do love this desk, you will probably love it more than any you’ve ever had.

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With everything else we listed, we couldn’t scrimp and not list the ultimate space saver’s piece for the office. This wall mounted wood mini-desk is just that. Ideal for a smaller place or spare room, it looks like just a shelf, but then has the pull out area that fits a laptop perfectly. You can definitely pull up a chair underneath to get busy, and while it may seem small at first; users like it because it seems to hang effortlessly in space, and reduces clutter.

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Last but not least, this is a good item for an office or side area, from designer Marc Venot. The top unscrews and comes up so you can put magazines, papers and other goods inside. Perfect for the home-bound ad executive, product marketer or freelancer that is looking at type copy, than may want to clear it off for a quick snack or drink. No matter how much you try, everyone has clutter in their work area that is a relief to sometimes just ditch somewhere to feel fresh and creative. The designer fully understands physics and design to the T, and it shows. People also love it because none of the mechanism that unscrews it is visible; it can literally be your secret hiding place in the office.

Productivity App Spotlight: Prismatic

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We all know that news apps are very common, and frankly, not all are worth much. BetaKit calls it “A cross between a daily summary tool and a traditional aggregator”; and what people are raving about is it bases its feelers upon who you are following, among other attributes.

People in the business of finding interesting stories claim that Prismatic finds things previously unfound; and helps them lead the pack in information gathering. Ultimately, it can help with demographics, trends, and keeping on top of things quickly in specific news areas.

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