A Devolution Of Power From Big Business In The Marketing World?

Traditionally, most companies employing more than thirty or so staff would have their own in-house marketing department, dedicated to market research and running marketing campaigns. In a post credit crunch world however, the face of in-house marketing is changing as departments have their budgets slashed and workloads increased. Exactly how this is affecting UK companies is an interesting tale.

In the past, SMEs were the main clients for a typical marketing company. Whilst larger companies outsourced to some of the more global players in marketing, traditionally marketing campaigns were run in house by specific marketing departments. Since the economic downturn, however, marketing departments have shrunk whilst workloads have increased meaning marketing companies are suddenly seeing an increase in business from medium and larger companies.

A report published this year by Charterhouse, the market services company, surveyed 200 marketing professionals in the UK and Western Europe. The results were music to the ears of marketing companies although rather unwelcome news to some marketing departments.

The results of the survey largely suggested that marketing departments in medium to larger sized firms are struggling to cope and, as a result, outsourcing more and more work to their respective marketing company. As a result, personnel in marketing departments have become more like administrators than marketers, coordinating the relationship between the department and the marketing firm.

On the other hand, the report is fantastic news for the UK’s marketing companies with 52% of UK respondents stating their departments were now dependent in some capacity on marketing companies. Over a third of respondents said their companies were entirely dependent on third party marketing firms for creativity in their marketing campaigns, with over half saying they had outsourced creativity in some form or another. One might argue that this devolution in power from some of the larger companies is no bad thing and in line with the governments call to SMEs to prop up the UK’s flat-lining economy.

Moreover, the report signals good news for the marketing industry on the whole, with 67% of respondents agreeing their companies or departments were doing more work. Social media was at least partly responsible for this increase in work, with 61% of respondents agreeing that this relatively new marketing tool had contributed to their increase in workloads.

In conclusion, the report’s findings polarise opinions within the marketing world. Whilst large companies with sizeable marketing departments have to outsource more work as their current staff levels cannot cope, smaller businesses and third party marketing companies are benefiting as a result. For the marketing industry on the whole, however, the news seems positive with more work and jobs in small businesses as a result.

What Can Marketing Companies Do For My Business?

Running or starting up a business in the current financial climate is not for the faint hearted. With any business venture there is always so much to think about and never enough hours in the day to get through the longest ever to-do list in history!

That's why it's good to know that help is out there for existing and new companies who are struggling to get themselves noticed in the busy and competitive world of commerce. Whatever product or service you sell, no matter how good it is or how much you believe in it, if nobody knows about it, you will have problems.

This is where marketing companies can help. A good marketing company is one that helps you to grow your business successfully, using a blend of technical expertise, business know-how and experience. Using tried and tested methods,  marketing companies can successfully formulate strategies that will project forward to where you envisage the business in the future.  Marketing professionals are familiar with advertising methods, public relations and how the influence of media and digital marketing is growing in business – with the help of those in the know, your business can be elevated to the top position it deserves.

By employing the services of a marketing company, you are actively helping your business to succeed. An objective and experienced marketing team will immediately identify areas in your company where improvements can be made. Sometimes being so close to the action, you are unable to see where things are  not working as well as they could. A skilful marketing pro will make an initial assessment of how your business is performing and offer suggestions as to how things can be changed to achieve positive results.

Of course the one positive result all businesses crave is more sales, higher turnover and customer growth.   Many angles are covered by marketing companies in their role to improve your trading position. From troubleshooting to mentoring, formulating digital strategies to elevating your company's name into the top search rankings,  there is plenty of fire-power in the marketer's arsenal. They can also analyse the corporate image and customer service levels of your company,  and offer suggestions where improvements could be made.

More business is done over the internet these days than face to face, and the importance of having a strong  online presence can not be over-stated. Don't allow your business to fall behind simply because you don't  possess the technological know-how. Internet marketing specialists can increase your visibility with the right target audience by using tried and tested methods –  following a thorough digital marketing re-vamp it is often the case that business queries via the internet quickly overtake those of more traditional means.

But surely all this expertise can't come cheap - how much does it cost to employ the services of marketing companies? The short answer is, whatever you invest on marketing services, you almost always make it back in increased revenue. It is wise to look at the long game and to have some kind of marketing plan. Whether you sign a long term contract with a firm of marketers who have a lengthy and detailed strategy mapped out for your business, or an outfit who offer short-term, quick-fix solutions, both are equally valid and have their place.

Marketing A Marketing Firm

One would hope that a firm specialising in the subtle art of marketing would be fully capable of carrying out their own marketing and advertising strategy. Whilst in the boom times this is usually the case, many marketing companies are currently failing to reach out to their potential client base in these tough economic times.

The trouble is many firms cut back on what they consider to be luxuries in times of economic downturn. Unfortunately for marketing companies, their services are often deemed so; particularly in smaller businesses across the UK.

It is therefore essential for marketing firms to not only offer affordable marketing plans to their clients but also address the fact that their services are indispensable and could even be the difference between profits or loss, particularly as our economy struggles to start moving once more.
How? It is not always that straight forward.

First of all, for a company to even consider extending their current contract with a marketing firm (let alone enter into a new one) it is going to require the budget. This could mean offering current clients a better deal or even reducing the agreement to meet their tighter financial constraints.
New potential clients are going to need to see a marketing package that they can afford, whilst of course a marketing firm has profit margins to maintain. Offering deals such as an ‘internet only’ package at a reduced price is one example of a reduced package that could attract companies with smaller budgets.

Whilst anyone in business should appreciate the need for a sound marketing strategy, not all companies believe that they require the services of a marketing firm to develop or implement one on their behalf. As mentioned, this mentality often leads to a drop in companies outsourcing their marketing requirements and hence a fall in the potential client base for marketing firms.
It is on the onus of such marketing firms to address this belief and ensure that their entire potential client base have full confidence in the firm’s ability to increase sales and revenue for their customers. This can be done in a number of ways.

Client testimonials and success stories are always a sure fire way to encourage confidence in potential clients. They allow companies to see first-hand the work a marketing company is carrying out and the success it is delivering to its clients.

Blogging is another method a marketing firm can employ to attract customers. Keeping a blog on the company website allows the firm to share details of any accolades it achieves, any notable success stories as well as discussions about the very latest marketing techniques it is employing. All of these inspire confidence in potential clients and increase their likelihood of approaching a specific marketing firm.

At the end of the day, there is little point preaching to the choir. The majority of marketing firms are very clued up on how to sell their own business. In such trying economic times, however, it is always wise to take a step back and question just how suitable one’s own products are for potential customers.

The questions to ask are ‘can our customers afford our services?’, ‘are we offering them great value for money?’ and ‘will we really add value to their business?’
If the answer to these questions is yes, you might just be on track.

Kickstart Your Business Growth With Expert Marketing Assistance

Have you recently launched a new business or are you about to launch? No matter how confident you are in your product or service, getting your new business out into the world can be a daunting prospect.

According to an article by the National Business Association, marketing is cited as the major reason 64 per cent of new businesses fail. It doesn’t necessarily follow that these companies that went under did not spend any money on marketing, but rather in some cases that the marketing they did was inconsistent or ineffective.

For some inexplicable reason, some business owners view marketing as a ‘bolt on’ activity – a ‘nice to have’ – when the stark reality is that marketing is a ‘must have’ for every single business that wants to survive in these ultra-competitive times we live in.

So should you use marketing companies to take on your marketing for you, or should you take the DIY route?

For any new business, having a marketing expert on board from the start can be a great way to kickstart your company’s growth. The main advantage here is that those marketing companies which are experienced in your trade or industry will have accumulated a wealth of knowledge which can readily be put into practice. Not only will this save you a huge chunk of time over the coming days and weeks, but you will not be wasting your efforts going down blind alleys in trying out marketing activities which may not bear fruit.

As there are now many hundreds of marketing companies online which you may choose to employ, it’s well worth checking out their websites as the first port of call (particularly the sections on achievements and testimonials) to see who might be a good fit for you.

Something you might want to consider: is your preferred marketing company on the first page of Google for all the main ‘marketing’ keywords and phrases? If not, can you reasonably expect they will be able to achieve this for your business?

Once you’ve narrowed it down (anything from 3-6 potential ‘partners’), then why not call up your shortlist of marketing companies and ask them what they can do to kickstart your new business?
One final thing to bear in mind: don’t sign up with anyone who won’t let you have a trial period or who tries to tie you into a long contract. Any marketing professional worth his or her salt should be confident enough in their abilities not to have to resort to these sorts of underhand tactics.

Marketing Companies – Not All Are Created Equal

Googling “marketing companies” will yield you 8,910,000 results (as at the time of writing this piece). These range from the one-man or one-woman bands, to those with a dozen or more staff. Some of these companies will have been around for a decade or more, while others will have been operating five minutes.


So how do you know you’re hiring the right people to market your business effectively?

What do you look for in a competent marketing outfit?

You might decide you prefer to deal with a local marketing agency for the added convenience of having them on your doorstep. However in practice, you can rarely nip in and check up on their progress without making an appointment. Plus technological advances such as Skype means you can still conduct meetings whenever and wherever suits.

Initially, it’s a good idea to spend a couple of hours or so researching on the Internet. Most marketing companies’ websites will include case studies of the companies they have worked with and will frequently include testimonials.

From your research, draw up a shortlist of 3-5 agencies to meet with. If you’re requesting that they pitch their services to you, bear in mind some agencies will charge a fee for this. Also establish whether the team pitching will be the same people working on your account should you appoint them. Rapport is all important and you don’t want to appoint an agency only to find someone you haven’t been introduced to is in charge of your account.

When inviting agencies to pitch, it is helpful to give them some background to your business, the key objectives you want to achieve and an idea of your budget. You should also provide them with an outline of the sort of contractual agreement you are seeking.

During the meeting/ pitch you will need to consider:

• Is the agency right for you in terms of size? Bigger doesn’t necessarily mean better.

• Which fields are they expert in? Is this compatible with your needs?

• How do they charge? By the hour? Based on results? Are their fees negotiable?

• With regard to fees, how do they measure effectiveness?

• Are they a full-service agency? Or are they limited to traditional advertising elements?

• First impressions (most important) . . . do you like them?

At the end of the pitches, it may become quite apparent who the most suitable marketing company is for you. Either one agency will be obviously better in terms of ‘fit’, or you will have to choose solely on grounds of the likeability factor.

Appointing the right marketing company for your business can be a daunting task. By following the above process you should have a good indication of the agency that would be a good partner for you. Don’t underestimate the power of gut reaction – it has frequently been proven a reliable indicator when determining winning partnerships.

How Marketing Companies Can Boost Your Web Presence

Marketing companies that specialize in building and maintaining first class websites can be brilliant news for your business. Having a great website that is easy to navigate – and easy on the eye – is an absolute must for every organization or business. Any business without a web presence will not be taken seriously and will probably be viewed with suspicion.

A really effective website can bring so many positives to your business. Having a website that works for you can improve your reputation by telling more people what you do and how well you do it.

Here’s how you can help your chosen website designer create the perfect business website for you:

1. Using your business goals, clearly define what results you want your new website to deliver.

2. Identify which audiences your website will cater for (customers, prospects, researchers, investors) and define what needs and expectations each type of visitor will have when they come to your site.

3. Make sure your website is built from your customers’ point of view. Too much of the ‘what we do’ approach can be a turn off.

4. Flash introductions may have a reputation for being cool, but the majority of your customers hate them (sorry.) I read recently that the second most clicked on words on the Web are ‘Skip Intro.’

5. The same goes for music or audio introductions. Some people will be at work when they land on your site and could be embarrassed by a sudden blast of Katy Perry, or whatever you have as your musical welcome.

6. Include prices where you can. People are automatically wary of sites which don’t include prices. They might be led to think you’re too expensive for them and try one of your competitors instead. If you can’t provide exact prices, aimed at least to offer a ballpark figure.

7. Avoid pop-up windows. Does anyone like them?

8. Make your website easy to navigate and include a call to action on every page. Make sure your website copy is easy to read. Use bite-sized chunks of text or short sentences.

9. Review the success of your website at regular intervals. At worst the content should be revised monthly, at best, daily. Providing fresh, engaging content at regular intervals will keep your visitors coming back for more of the same.

10. Advertise your website (and email address) on all your marketing and promotional materials. Also use it on all online and offline communications such as direct mail, ecommerce and news releases. Now you’ve got a great website, be sure to spread the word!

A successful website requires time and commitment. It’s not enough simply to build a website and leave it to its only devices. It’s like planting a tree and expecting that tree to grow and bear fruit without having any care and attention lavished on it.


So once you have your great website up and running, don’t forget to plan your content, plan your marketing and watch your business grow and ‘bear fruit’.

Lights, Camera, Action...How Movies Are the Perfect Inspiration for Business Success

For a good example of how the constituent parts of a marketing campaign come together to support the greater good of a much larger entity, you need look no further than that of the movie industry.

The script and story of the movie can be compared to that of a company’s initial ethos, charter and objective, while a film’s teaser trailers, billboard posters and website are similar to those first tentative steps when a company is promoting itself properly for the first time.

A movie, just like a company, is geared towards making as much money as possible and that means exploiting every last revenue stream to its limit – whether it’s box office, merchandising or external funding. That means that films, costing in-excess of 100s of millions of pounds are backed by the studios who have produced them, with equally ambitious promotions, campaigns and events.

That’s the way you have to look at your business.

Marketing companies will give you the necessary resources and expertise so that your ‘brand’ is as strong as it can be in the online stratosphere and really break those box office records, creating a blockbuster of a company.

A good online communications company will be able to put together a marketing strategy tailored specifically for the needs of your business. They’ll research obvious and not so obvious competitors and support you in gaining an edge over them.

Online is key. But it’s not just about having a great-looking and easy to use website. Social media such as Facebook, Twitter and dedicated company ‘channels’ on Youtube are the building blocks of communicating to your business to business customers, consumers and staff. A web marketing agency will have the skills to enable your company to fully embrace this.

For an ideal fit when it comes to your company’s online marketing, have a look online for that Oscar-winning combination.

Picking a UK Marketing Company - Essential Tips

Are you looking to hire a UK based marketing agency to help you with your design and marketing? Here are some tips to help you find the right company to deal with.

The Web as Your Guide

Yes, it can be smart to use the web as your guide for just about anything nowadays. As a consumer you can find out a lot of information to help you choose a product or service provider through the internet. Search at your leisure from the comfort of your computer without having to wait for return phone calls. Tip: Deal locally so you don't have to worry about time zones. Sure, it may seem like an overseas company is priced right but do you want to wait for return calls because they're in a different time zone? Do you want to deal with someone in the area of marketing that has no idea what it's like in your geographical area?

Find a local marketing agency that has a good online reputation. That's another great thing about the web... it tells a story. You can follow bread crumb trails that lead to professional service providers that tell you how well their work is received. Testimonials, reviews, complaints, kudos...they can all show up online. If you are hiring a marketing agency, try looking up the name of the company and / or the principals to see if they have a good online reputation. Finding a lot of information or published articles could be very telling and help make your decision about whether or not to hire them an easier one to make.

Look at Samples

Does the marketing company have an online portfolio showing website design work or other marketing collateral that they have provided to clients? Or, can they demonstrate their expertise by showing you examples or case studies of other work that they have done? This information can help you determine that you are in face dealing with an experienced company with a proven track record.

Sometimes, you'll want a phone call or a face to face meeting despite seeing everything you want to see online. Speaking voice to voice can be very telling, letting you see whether or not you've found the right person for the job of helping your company with marketing. Once you find the right marketing agency it can make a world of difference in your company's ability to succeed. It can help you focus on what you need to focus on in order to grow and boost profit.

5 Marketing Companies' Secrets to Online Success

Marketing companies that help companies succeed online in a competitive market have quite a few trade secrets that help them achieve success quickly. They won't reveal everything unless you're a client but do you want to know a few of their secrets?


#1 Quality AND Quantity

Not only do you need high quality material to market with but you need a lot of it. A steady stream of fodder for search engines is good but it has to be good fodder. Your audience is insatiable as well. Provide plenty of quality information to them and you'll hold onto their attention for more than a nanosecond.


#2 Know Your Audience

Companies that take the time to understand their audience can market effectively to them. Marketing companies do research to find out what their client's customers want. That way they can appeal to them. When marketing online, people have the attention span of a gnat so it's imperative that you know how to find them, how to help them find you, and how to talk in a language they understand and want to speak.


#3 Use Effective Online Tools

There are dozens and dozens of tools that you can utilise in online marketing. Organic search engine optimisation tools, tools to help you execute an effective search engine marketing / pay per click advertising campaign, and tools to converse with your audience via social media. Marketing companies know which tools to use and how to put them to good use.

#4 Think Ahead

Not only do you need to appeal to your customers now but you'll need to stay ahead of them so you can be ready to present them with effective marketing material tomorrow, too. Timing is everything in marketing, especially online marketing. Market research, competitive analysis, and staying ahead of trends is vital.


#5 Provide Value

Marketing firms work to help clients demonstrate value. Today's consumer is very value-driven. They want to know what's in it for them and marketing companies help companies define their unique selling points and their value added proposition continually so that customers will want to do business with them. In a day and age where brand loyalty is harder to come by than ever, whatever you can do to appeal to your customers and prove you're a value-driven company will benefit you today and in the future. You'll benefit through direct sales, repeat sales, and word-of-mouth referrals, too.

Beware of Marketing Companies Making Unrealistic Promises

Marketing is a field requiring skill. It requires knowledge and savvy and other skills that not everyone has. That's why companies hire marketing companies --- to get the advantage of skills they don't have which will help them reach their goals. Sadly, too many companies are lured in by false expectations, though. Don't fall victim to this. Spot traits of marketing firms that should set off red flags for you.


Guaranteed Google Results

Be very careful about dealing with a company that promises you to rise to top spot on Google's (or MSN / Bing, Yahoo, or some other search engine) search engine results pages. Not only is it unrealistic to promise such a thing but there's no way to guarantee it. Even if you pay a heck of a lot of money and do achieve it, there are no guarantees you'll stay there. Further more, there are more important aspects of online marketing than just hitting top spot for a single phrase. Is it the right phrase? What will people find when they click on your link? Will your landing page REALLY entice them to buy?


Further more, what if the marketing companies' antics are considered grey hat or black hat? There are ways to get to the top of search engines fast but that aren't considered legal in the eyes of the search engines so your top spot could suddenly translate to being blacklisted altogether. A lot of time, effort, and investment could go down the drain.


Thousands of Visitors / Website Traffic

If you're promised a specific level of traffic to your website, you should ask the marketing company to be more specific. Not all traffic is equal. Watch for marketing companies making these promises because you'll want to know where that traffic will come from so you can determine how useful it will be to you. Expert marketing companies know how to get traffic that converts from a visitor to a buyer and that's the sort of traffic you want.


When you feel like you're being sales pitched, you probably are. Marketing companies should wow you with their results rather than just wowing you with their hype. Ask for proof, ask questions, and look for complete transparency so you can be certain you're dealing with a reputable company that uses ethical marketing techniques that will benefit your company rather than just benefiting the pockets of the company trying to "sell" you.

Use an Outside Marketing Company to Help You Navigate Social Media Outlets

The 21st century has brought a rise in popularity of social media and an outside marketing company can help you plug into this new way of advertising. The internet is an integral part of marketing these days so it is important to understand your options in reaching potential customers. You need to understand how these potential customers are able to shop, research purchases and share opinions about their experiences.


A number of social media sites provide a platform for users to voice their opinions, share content, information and recommendations about their favorite products, services and more. Your job is to reach these users so that they post favorable comments and reviews about your company's products and services. This is important; because of the internet's global market presence, many people depend on these reviews to make purchase decisions.


Understanding the Power of the Internet

You, like many other businesses, are likely finally recognizing the power of these global internet customers. By instituting the right strategies for social media marketing, you can produce higher branding recognition as well as personally engage those global customers.


A marketing company can help introduce you to these social media outlets. Instead of introducing a website and hoping that customers find you, you can promote your company's products and services through these outlets to reach your target audience. You can virtually shape and define new markets through the internet and encourage valuable feedback.


Boost Internet Search Results

Taking advantage of various social media outlets boosts your company's internet presence, specifically search engines. The more information and presence you have on the internet, the more likely your company will appear high on internet search rankings. This translates to a larger global internet presence and therefore, a higher sales margin.


Create an informational page in your company's niche and post articles. Develop a blog and post regularly to create a following. Post pictures, video clips and create business pages on the top social media sites. Hire people to post reviews and positive responses on forum boards and chat rooms to increase your internet presence. All of these things can help improve your placement on the internet.


The bottom line is that in order to compete, especially on the internet, you must get on the social media bandwagon. It is the wave of the future and if you cannot ride it on your own, hiring a marketing company is the best move you can make. They can get you started and train you on maintaining your online advertising and sales momentum.

Small Business Marketing on a Shoestring Budget

Businesses need to work to get noticed by potential and existing customers, even if their business is a really small business. Waiting and hoping someone will notice you and buy from you just isn't enough. Even if you have a prime location, you can't just leave things to 'chance'. Think it's too expensive to make room for marketing initiatives in your already tight budget? Small business marketing can be done, even on a shoestring budget, especially when you use the internet to your advantage. Read on for a few of the things you can do with a small budget in terms of internet-based marketing.


Search Engine Optimisation

SEO, or search engine optimisation, doesn't cost much. A bit of effort and investment will help you get free traffic. Instead of paying for every click to your website through paid advert programmes, get listed for targeted keywords and phrases that people use to look for your product. Do this to send them to an optimised website and you can look forward to traffic streams that can result in sales both online and offline.

Search Engine Marketing

Pay per click advertising sounds expensive but if you research, prepare, and do it right, a small amount of money budgeted for PPC ads could net sales. Take half the profits from those sales and re-invest and you've turned a small investment into an income stream. Don't just jump into PPC advertising without taking the time to learn how it works. A marketing consultant could be great help in this area.


Lead Generation / Email Marketing

Are you treating every visitor to your site as a lead? Don't let that visitor leave without trying to capture their info. Consider adding an opt-in form and doing something to entice people to opt-in to receiving future contact from you. If you've optimised your site well, you should be getting the right sort of traffic and by getting info you can market to that person in the future through e-mail marketing.


The above methods are just a few of the ways you can inexpensively create a small business marketing strategy. As you see results you can increase your budget, knowing that you are likely to get great return on your investment. If you are having trouble, or doubts about, navigating the world of online advertising you can find small business consultants who can advise you and do a small campaign for you to help you gauge potential and then expand on it, should it be successful.

How a Marketing Agency Can Make More Clicks Count

Are you anxious to get more clicks on your small business website? The web can kick your sales up a notch but mere traffic won't necessarily do it alone. Do you want to make sure that those clicks count? Consider getting some help from a marketing agency that is experienced in helping you to increase your conversion rate. It takes more than website traffic to make an online business site successful.

Clicks & Conversion Rates

Clicks are good. Conversion is better. In other words, all the clicks in the world won't help your business if no one buys from you. Your internet marketing strategy should encompass more than getting traffic. It should work on getting targeted traffic and then converting them from a browser into a buyer.

Developing a Marketing Strategy

Web marketing is about more than just traffic and the right strategy can help you achieve your desired results. Most entrepreneurs and small business owners have trouble doing this on their own. Running a business is time consuming and making time for marketing isn't easy. That's where getting help from a consultant can come in and make a dramatic difference.

Marketing companies can work closely with you to develop a website marketing strategy that transforms your website from a brochure into a sales tool. They can do this through a multi-faceted approach that includes some of the following attributes:

• Analysis of your existing website (if applicable). A few tweaks and adjustments could make a difference in your search engine rankings and in how our visitors react to your content.
• Research into your market. A marketing agency will look at your industry and your competitors. Business intelligence gathered will provide valuable info that could help them help you make subtle or maybe even major changes that could boost conversion and click through rates.
• Split testing. If, for example, a website re-design is warranted, split testing may be done to analyse reactions from your visitors. When tests are conducted it can be easy to see which ad or which landing page could make more sense. Results can be evident fairly quickly, allowing you to reap benefits of that redesign quickly.
• Proven marketing techniques that insert a prospect into a sales funnel. The prospect very often exits that sales funnel as a client.

A marketing agency can look at raw data and make sense of the statistics and the graphs. Their analysis could turn that data into an action plan that reaps substantial benefits in the area of getting more traffic and converting more traffic into sales. Consider talking to a consultant to find out what they can do for your business and your online success.

Marketing Companies Can Help You With Your Online Reputation Management

How's your company's online reputation? Do you even know? The results of a quick search could be startling for you. Marketing companies could specialise in this area, helping you manage and accelerate a positive online reputation.

Why is online reputation management important?
More people than ever look to the web to help them make decisions about everything from minor purchases to big ticket items. The internet provides consumers with a plethora of information to help them make decisions, such as: product specifications, user reviews, and information about where to get what they want. If your reputation isn't nurtured, one of two things will happen:

Nothing?
If you have zero reputation, people won't find you. Lack of a poor reputation is a good thing but in many cases, if they know about you and find nothing positive or negative, they'll keep looking. Many people want validation for their choice through reviews, testimonials, and an online presence that puts them at ease.

Of course no reputation is better than a poor reputation but if you're even moderately successful offline, you'll want to share that positive reputation online so that you can take advantage of it.

Lost Sales - £££
If you're not paying attention to your reputation and something negative is said about you, this could be even more damaging than something positive being said. Bad press can rise like wildfire in the search engine results for your name or your niche. You can't necessarily control the bad press but marketing companies could help you boost the good press so that it outweighs the bad press.

How Online Marketing Companies Help:
Online marketing companies can track what's being said, can optimise the good press, and help you encourage feedback from your clients. Feedback utilised online in the right way will help you show new prospects that existing and past customers are satisfied.

If something negative is said, your marketing consultancy firm could track it down quickly and do damage control, either by alerting you so that you can act on it or by optimizing proven reputation management tools so that the bad press doesn't necessarily stick out like a sore thumb.

Most companies experience at least a bit of bad press at some time or another. Smart companies learn from this and use it to help them improve weak points in their infrastructure. Marketing companies can help you gather intelligence, boost positive results, solicit testimonials, and spread good news virally so that those considering your products or services will see that you're an organisation worth doing business with.

Look for a Business Marketing Professional to Help with your SWOT Analysis

Hire a business marketing professional to help perform a SWOT analysis on your business. This analysis can help your business move forward. Whilst your current business team can do it, hiring a business marketing professional to help conduct your SWOT analysis is beneficial. An impartial party reviewing your business to determine your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) can provide a clear, unbiased view of your current performance as well as future prospects. Self-Study Bring in your supervisors, directors or other top people to get a vision of the big picture first. Get their perspective as well as those of key customers and even major vendors. Brainstorm key issues that your business and the marketplace face. Encourage everyone to make comments and suggestions without worrying about any judgment. Observations may include strengths and potential growth opportunities as well as weaknesses and failures. Evaluate all the significant issues that crop up during the brainstorming session and outline potential action plans to address them. Your hired business marketing professional is in the best position to help with the plan of action as they will best know the marketplace and know how to capitalise on strengths and opportunities and minimise weaknesses and failures. Strengths and Weaknesses Strengths are often the easiest to identify and may include a strong financial position, excellent personnel and management, a solid marketing plan and cost-effective production. Weaknesses are often the considered the elephant in the room. You know you have them but don’t want to acknowledge them. However, with the right SWOT analysis, you can tackle those weaknesses and turn them into strengths and opportunities. Weaknesses may appear as insufficient liquid cash to use for expansion of a new product line or poor management and personnel. The products may be outdated or customer service and after-sales service may be ineffective. Poor production schedules and outdated equipment could be contributing factors. Opportunities and Threats Threats are often easy to spot and must be prepared for. It could be in the form of a key employee that leaves for the competition – with full knowledge of your business practices. Price increases from vendors, rate hikes in rent, legislative changes, market recessions and more contribute to potential threats too. Identified opportunities can mean a boost of business for you. Perhaps it is the failure of a competitor’s product line or the addition of a new sales distribution outlet. A new customer base and innovative technologies that lower production costs are additional opportunities. Every business – large and small – should perform a SWOT analysis on occasion to maintain their competitive edge. Once the analysis is performed, a clear plan of action can be put into play. With the help of a business marketing professional who is knowledgeable about the marketplace, your business can take advantage of those opportunities and minimize its weaknesses to avoid failure.

Marketing Companies -3 Secrets of Successful Online Marketing Companies Revealed

Marketing companies can help companies like yours succeed online regardless of your size or your industry. Quite often companies will outsource their marketing tasks, specific campaigns or even their entire marketing function to an outside organisaton either because they don’t have an in-house marketing department or because they want a specialty service. Marketing online is also an area where many companies look for specialised services as well because the internet is ever-changing and it can be difficult to keep up to date with information and strategies for success. Read on for a few secrets that help specialised marketing companies retain their advantage in this area: Content is King Content is a powerful tool online. People want information and articles can provide them with that. Articles can also help you gain strength in search engines so that you get what amounts to free traffic. If you can achieve the top organic spot for the keyword phrases your target audience is searching on, you can get a flow of traffic. Marketing companies know what those terms are for your niche and geographic area and they can help you come closer to achieving it through many techniques including content marketing. Content that contains quality is like cream that rises to the top of search engine rankings. People rank it, search engines rank it, and it will point back to your website and help you in multiple ways. Write good content that’s researched and that is search engine optimised and you will increase your chances of online success. Build Relationships with Your Audience Today’s consumer is highly savvy. They see through gimmicks and they want value. Companies that build relationships with their customers and demonstrate value will be winners. The web provides a massive amount of tools that can help you in this area. Social media, interactive websites, relationship marketing, permission marketing…. All sorts of areas exist for you to build and strengthen a bond with your customers. Analyse Results The great thing about online marketing is the fact that you can so easily analyse what is working well and what is not. Traditional 20th century marketing techniques took ages to analyse but in the 21st century, you can easily analyse results almost instantaneously. This maximises your marketing reach and minimises unnecessary costs. Successful marketing companies who use the web know that content, relationships, and analytics are three of the essential ingredients for success.