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If you haven’t jumped on the social media marketing (SMM) bandwagon as part of your brand-building strategy because you think it’s just a fad with no real bottom-line benefit, think again. SMM is a vital addition to any PR campaign. It can lead to more customers and higher sales — the exact payoff every business needs. Read More

In a public speaking role, your goal is to deliver a specific message and make it stick with the audience. But in an effort to save on travel costs, more businesses are shunning in-person events for webinars — live presentations delivered over the Internet. So how do you catch and keep listeners’ attention? Read More

When devising a business development strategy, one of the most valuable things you can do as a business owner is make your employees feel like they have a stake in the company. Creating a sense of ownership among employees helps ensure an organization runs more efficiently and less expensively, which drives results. Read More

Countless studies show that satisfied customers will defect in a heartbeat if they think they can get a better deal somewhere else. In today’s marketplace, you have to create completely satisfied customers whose loyalty can’t be swayed by the competition. Joe Calloway, a partner at Engage Consulting Group, offers these tips for better customer service... Read More

In a recent survey by JPMorgan Chase & Co., 80% of small businesses described their outlook for 2010 as “pursuing a moderate or aggressive growth strategy.” This should come as no surprise as many financial experts believe the economic recovery will begin on Main Street. You don’t want to be left in the dust... Read More

In a do-it-yourself integrated marketing communications and PR strategy, mistakes are likely to happen. Every mistake you can avoid will help your business stay on course. That’s especially true with media relations. If you sell your business the correct way, you will gain valuable media attention and the publicity results you deserve. Read More

Branding is about being specific. A strong brand identity will set your business or product apart from its competitors in consumers’ minds. Experts recommend that the following principle be implemented throughout your strategic brand-building efforts: no business can be all things to all people. Follow these three steps to boost your brand strategy... Read More

Though it’s the goal of every company to create a recognizable brand identity, it’s especially important for growing businesses because they must compete against competitors large and small, says brand management expert Sara LaForest, cofounder of Kubica LaForest Consulting. But a brand is much more than a name — it’s “a look and feel about the company and what it stands for,” LaForest points out Read More

Selling is no easy task, and in a down economy, getting people to part with their hard-earned money presents an even greater challenge. Bob Burg and John David Mann, co-authors of "The Go-Giver," suggest approaching sales as an effort of giving, not getting. Read More

While every company may have its own unique process of selling, hiring the right people to do the selling is essential. Here are 5 helpful sales management techniques. Read More