Small Business Blog

Never underestimate the value staying in touch with your existing customers has on your business. Not only is it easier to sell to an existing customer, they can also refer new business to you or provide testimonials to help you draw in new customers.

Did you send out a holiday card or gift last month along with every other business owner? If so, yours might have gotten lost in the shuffle. A great way to have more of an impact is to choose an alternate holiday to express your appreciation of their business.

Some of my clients like to send Valentine’s Day cards/gifts in a “we love our customers!” campaign. Others choose offbeat holidays like Groundhog Day or April Fool’s.

Since Valentine’s Day is upon us, here are some suggestions for memorable customer appreciation gifts on February 14:

• One of my favorite companies, Affirmagy, is offering their “Love” fleece blankets for $19.99 for the holiday. This is a great gift for your best spa or beauty salon clients, or if you work with newlyweds or brides. Affirmagy is a woman-owned company.
• M&Ms now offers a customizable choice. Buy dozens of packages imprinted with your favorite message or even your logo and give to your customers. If you have an office, keep them in the candy dish in your lobby.
• Show your love for your favorite charity or cause while advertising your business. At Specialty Roast Coffee you can design your own label (with your logo) for a freshly roasted bag of coffee, choose the charity for your donation, and have it sent directly to your customer - all online! One of my customers sent this to me recently, and I love that her gift also benefited one of my favorite charities. Let your customers appreciate your company and a worthwhile charity while enjoying many cups of great coffee.

Do you have a great idea for a memorable and affordable client appreciation gift? Please share it in the comments below. Start planning now - Valentine’s Day will be here before you know it!

Do you advertise just like your competitors do?  If you do, you have to hope that you are the first ad they see or most convenient option for your intended audience or else you won’t get the business.

This week I took the Metro bus to a seminar in downtown Seattle.   While walking to the bus stop afterward I noticed a large, burly homeless man holding a sign that said “Former Supermodel - Need Money for Wine.”  Strangers were stopping to give him money, smile at his wit, and some even to take his picture.  I had to wait about 10 minutes for my bus, so I was able to observe him for some time.

This guy is smart.

• He knows how to stand out from the other homeless people in the area looking for contributions
• Pedestrians are wary of homeless people and made himself more approachable with the sign
• He continued to smile and laugh in a hearty way, making everyone feel good about giving him money

As I watched him I thought of my own business.  How do I stand out from people with a similar business as mine?  How do I overcome their objections to working with me (price/commitment/control)?  How do YOU?

We can’t all be former supermodels, but this is a great example of making a positive impression and overcoming customer objections to get to the sale.   

Attention all authors, wannabe authors, and people who dream of someday writing a book. Cathy Goodwin - author, copywriter, and marketing guru - will be hosting a free teleseminar for you on Thursday, January 24 at 5 p.m. Pacific/8 p.m. Eastern.

She will be discussing the single biggest reason books miss best-selling status and 5-star reviews and how you can avoid this pitfall. Yours truly will be the guinea pig of the call as she coaches me through this process.

I am a little nervous to have my book critiqued, as most people would be, but I know Cathy and she really knows her stuff. If you want to become an author you will be reviewed at some point - wouldn’t it be better to have it happen before you write instead of after it is printed so you can make the necessary changes?

If you can’t make the call at the scheduled time go ahead and sign up anyway - you will get a link afterward to listen to the recording. Hope to “see” you there!

Have you heard of Squidoo? It is an online community of single-page websites discussing everything from the best Thai food in town to the latest in technology. The founder of Squidoo is Seth Godin, who is one of my favorite marketing gurus.

The single-page websites are called “lenses” and are the viewpoint of the creator. You don’t need to know how to build a website in order to create one - in fact, you can have a lens ready to publish in under 10 minutes! You can even set up a feed to have your regular blog show up in your lens like I did.

Check out the lens I wrote today in response to Seth Godin’s blog post on digital coaches. It took me less than 10 minutes to put together. I will keep you posted on the amount of traffic it brings in over the course of the next couple of weeks.

Since it is free, can help your search engine optimization, and introduces you to a new audience of potential customers, there is really no reason why you shouldn’t Squidoo.

Have you developed a Squidoo lens? Share it in the comments below so we can all visit.

Editor’s Note: This is the first of a series of guest posts by Jonathan on website optimization.

Did you know you could do most of what an SEO (search engine optimizer) would do for you free of charge? For those true entrepreneurs out there these are the tools you should add to your bag of tricks.

First get the knowledge about SEO from Google. Google offers a wealth of free web-based applications such as calendars, analytics, local business listing and of course Google Maps.

Now that you have the tools and knowledge what do we do with it? First setup your Google analytics. Once you have it running I recommend checking it at least once a week. If you are getting more than 100 unique visitors per day then I recommend a daily review. You will start to learn how visitors view your site both from a browser (i.e. Firefox, IE, Safari) perspective and also how much time is spent on your site and how often they visit. Using this new found knowledge you can start to tailor your website to drive the desired conversion rates.

If the Internet was a road and a website a car, you just qualified for your drivers permit. So how do I get my license? If you want to your websites future success then check back to learn more about how to be your own webmaster and SEO.

Jonathan Chicquette is the unification of creative talent, pure energy and business savvy. Quite adroit in the world of technology, never missing the opportunity to educate those around him.

Do you have the knowledge you need to reach your financial, fitness and nutritional goals? Most of us have a good idea of what we should be doing but lack the specific information needed to truly succeed in these areas. I have an expert to handle my financial health, but my fitness and nutritional plans are mostly made up of good intentions.

This month I plan to do something about it. The Women’s Wellness Resolution is an educational event meant to help women achieve optimum health in all areas of life through education. There will be 3 speakers on the topics of finance, nutrition, and fitness, and there will be vendor tables from other businesses designed to make life easier. I know all 3 of the presenters, which is why I am so excited to attend this event.

The event takes place on Saturday, January 26 from 2-5 pm at the lovely Avikai Spa in Issaquah, Washington, and you can sign up for the event here. The donation is $20 and goes to the Washington Community Alliance for Self-Help, which helps low-income women with microlending and educational opportunities to become self-sufficient.

If you plan to go let me know so I can make sure to find you in the crowd!

Last night I attended a seminar on “acting as if” I had already reached my 5-year goals. Each of the participants was asked to dress as if they were at their goal or bring a prop to demonstrate.

Since I’m writing a book, I came with a mock-up of my book cover taped to an existing book, complete with quotes from famous people (Michael Port and Seth Godin recommend my little old book - can you believe it!?) and a little star that indicated it was a bestseller.

There were a few speakers who talked about fear, determination, and eliminating the naysayers from life, but the part that really helped me was the “as if” networking portion. For 30 minutes we were instructed to imagine it was 2013 and we were at a networking event. This means I would introduce myself to people as a successful author and speaker. It sounds a little corny, but the amazing thing is that it clarifies goals in a way that broad thinking about the future cannot.

For example, instead of just saying that I wrote a book on the power of networking for women, I was able to talk about why I did it, what women tell me when I speak about the book to their organizations, and even how I fit writing into my new travel schedule. Of course none of this has happened yet, but by having a conversation with someone and imagining I had reached my goal, it made it more real to me. The details are what make it stick.

My friend Betsy Moore is writing a book about finding passion in life and work and has begun speaking on motivational topics when she is not advising homebuyers on a mortgage. She showed up with a mock book cover as well as a card announcing her next speaking engagement - on February 1, 2013 at the Seattle Convention Center!

I also spoke to an event planner who organizes music festivals around the world when she’s not on safari, a successful actor, and the owner of an NFL team. A pretty impressive group, huh?

Even though the exercise was all in fun, the intention of each person was serious. I encourage you to practice “as if” in your life - whether it is a meditation by yourself every day, out loud with your friends as a means to encourage each other, or even to adopt the attitude of that person you know you will be in 5 years. Why wait?

Editor’s Note: This post is one of a series of guest blogger articles.

“Be a good listener. Your ears will never get you in trouble.”

People ask me - “how to you build so many great relationships?” I am always amazed by this as I find relationships both personal and professional one of the best parts of life. It’s easy to have good relationships if you follow a couple of key pieces of advice.

Listen. There is nothing that people want more than to know someone will truly listen to them. We have 2 ears and one mouth for a reason. Pay attention to what people say. Instead of worrying about catching a bus, paying bills, or letting the dog out- pay attention to who you are with!

People “sense” when you aren’t listening to them - they will allow you to stray perhaps once, maybe twice. After that, you won’t be given another chance. Open up your ears and listen - you just might learn something!

Don’t judge. Being a mortgage professional, I have had the opportunity to see all walks of life, and all types of people. I learned early on not to judge others for surprises await you when you open up your mind and start accepting people. There are challenges we all face in life at all ages.

Accept that we all make mistakes - no one is perfect. Once people know they know you accept them even when they make mistakes or say the wrong thing for example, they will be more likely to trust you. That is the beginning of a long term relationship - trust.

Lastly, enjoy your moments with others. We are all here to be with people - we are not on a deserted island. We belong with others. Enjoy your times with people - they make life interesting!

Janelle Taylor Steinberg is a mortgage banker/broker in Seattle with Cobalt Mortgage (formerly Homestone). Besides having an incredible network of friends and associates, Janelle is an expert at staying in touch in creative and memorable ways. You can reach Janelle at www.janellesteinberg.com or call her at 206.274.2870.