Duct Tape Marketing

Whether you're just starting your company or you've been in business for several years, chances are that you'll eventually have to invest in the services of a website design firm. This isn't a task for the faint of heart because while there are some great firms out there, but there are also some really ineffective ones. Finding the right one can put your company on the fast track to Internet success, but selecting the wrong one can leave you with nothing to show for your time, money and frustrations.

When people hear the word “recession” their reaction is usually fear, depression and uncertainty, but it doesn’t have to be that way. Companies built on weak business models are often devastated during these times, but the companies built on solid business fundamentals not only succeed, but often flourish despite the challenges in the market. If you take the steps to set your company apart from the competition, this recession can be an opportunity for you to advance instead of something to be afraid of.

More companies will begin to participate in open dialogue on a variety of business issues, such as pricing, innovation and service. Forward thinking business owners and managers are realizing that they can not hide from their competitors.

Most business owners are always looking for ways to reach new prospects while investing as little money as possible. Fortunately, there are a few ways to do just that.

Today we're going to focus on internet forums as a prospecting tool because they meet many of the needs that business owners have. They are easy to use, they cater to an extremely focused niche, and they are free to participate in.

We’ve all gone through slow times in our businesses, and many industries even have certain times of the year when things slow down for everyone. For example, it doesn’t take first hand experience to understand that few people will be investing in an air conditioning unit during the winter months (even here in sunny Florida) or a heating unit during the summer months, but as business owners, especially small business owners, we need to insure that we avoid that as much as possible since we typically don’t have the financial resources to weather the dry periods as effectively as a larger company might.

Is it a combination of the right colors? Perhaps a lot of white space? Could it be a particular style of art? In reality, it can be any of these factors, none of these factors, or even a variety of other factors. Graphic design, unlike art, generally should not be a subjective thing. Graphic design has a business purpose and that being the case, means that it should accomplish a particular goal. That may mean driving sales, promoting a political agenda, educating, or whatever applies to your business model.

When business is slow, it can be easy to avoid making sales calls, after all, business is slow for your prospects too and many of them may not use much tact when they let you know this. The thing you may not realize is that despite their sometimes inhospitable nature, they really do want to buy something from you if it will help them in a way that’s important to them.

Remember when you were a kid and you played war? You likely wanted to be the rough and tough Sergeant, despite the fact that he still had to take orders from Lieutenants, Captains and other officers. Any idea why? It's pretty simple really. It's because it was the Sergeant who got things done.