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A recent article in the Birmingham Business Journal profiled two local start-ups: Dorm Suite Dorm and Consignment Chic. Even though both companies took different paths to build their online presence and brands, we can learn a lot from them. Read More

Webinars — live, interactive online seminars that allow an expert to make a presentation and answer questions from customers who have signed up — are becoming a hot choice for small businesses looking to boost their niche marketing efforts. Done right, webinars offer a powerful way to build a stron Read More

Face-to-face contact with customers is the crux of a guerrilla marketing strategy. You could, for example, surprise them with an unannounced dance-in at your town square on a Saturday morning, or dress your employees like bears and have them hand out product samples outside a store. You can also us Read More

When it came time for Roto-Rooter, the largest provider of plumbing and drain cleaning services in North America, to consider its annual outreach campaign in 2009, the company knew it wanted to use multiple marketing channels to reinforce its brand identity. Roto-Rooter hoped to increase one-to-one Read More

Building a brand identity is a marketing necessity, regardless of the size of your business. It’s how your customers will remember your company, and it plays an important role in keeping them coming back again and again. Your “brand” is a separate entity from your products or services — it’s actual Read More

It’s no coincidence that Disney is one of the most recognizable and beloved brands in the world. The company places customers at the center of every business decision, and the result is pure magic. Consider Disney’s online brand-building strategy. At a time when most kids are growing up with cell p Read More

Even in times of economic trouble, Walmart manages to come out on top, and not only in sales. According to a recent survey of U.S. companies by MSN Money, Walmart is rated near the top for excellent customer service. Walmart has gone from a 45.5% positive customer service rating in 2008 to 56.9% in Read More

Once you have a strong understanding of your typical customer profile, you can begin developing a marketing strategy. Confidence in your knowledge of what your customers want and how they think is essential to building a successful marketing plan, but how do you get the most value out of the data a Read More

Has your business ever acquired a new customer only to look back a while later and wonder where they went? This is a common head-scratcher for small businesses. But the key to building a base of steady customers is to prioritize building long-term customer relationships over finding new customers. Read More

One surefire way to market a product well is to know that product inside and out. Rather than focusing on the “fluff” — the less important aspects of a product — it’s essential that a marketer know the substantial details that affect the customer’s experience. And the best way to learn about that i Read More