I saw DELL Insperion machines on sale at Tesco today. I am confused. I thought DELL only sold direct!!?

The simple answer: Because customers love them.

Nothing more important than that, right? Of course, I would not expect you to take my word just like that. So, here’s the explanation. It’s all about word-of-mouth marketing. What’s the first you thing you do before buying anything which you do not have much knowledge about? Get recommendation from your network of family and friends.

Now, translate that to the online world. According to the information gathered by Future Now (this is a really cool site by the way), about 70% of customers check more than 4 reviews before buying anything. More than half of them spend more than 10 minutes to read these reviews. Because reviews are honest opinion from recent buyers, their insights do matter to shoppers looking for the best product in town.

That’s why you should not tweak product reviews just to favor your products. Aside from being unethical, it destroys the trust between customers and sellers. Be brutally honest all the time.

Product Review Prototype

Luckily, big e-tailers have spent money and time testing different Product Review models that will help improve sales and build credibility. Of course, Amazon.com is one of the best in this field. Do not just copy the whole template but adjust it according to your needs.

Circuit City is one good example for product reviews. It is multi-dimensional, meaning it evaluates and sums up the key attributes common to a group of products. In this case, the item is Toshiba Satellite Laptop. Using different measures like battery life, performance, and display, it gives interested buyers a glimpse of the strong and weak points of the product.

For more details on how to optimize your Product Review section, visit Future Now.

In this very competitive business world where cutting through the clutter is the name of the game, many entrepreneurs are trained to sell, sell and sell. They would rather talk about their products or services. No wonder active listening is often referred to as a lost art.

Shut up! Gag your mouth if you can’t help it. Then go out or pick up the phone and talk to your customers.

Contrary to popular misconception, marketing is not all talk. It’s about paying attention to WHO really matters – your customers and employees (if you have). Researching about your customers need not be expensive. But it should be well-planned. Otherwise, it will lead you to the wrong direction.

The first and most difficult thing to do when listening is to remove all your faulty impressions about your target market. It’s unfortunate that some brilliant entrepreneurs believe they know their customers by heart. Start with an empty mind and try not to contradict the insights. Clarify but not contradict.

Basic questions

In case you don’t notice, consumers like to talk about themselves as much as entrepreneurs love to talk about their products. If such is the case, why not indulge them by asking open-ended questions? This will not only create an impression that you care but also give you free access to multitude of insights. Here are some questions to break the ice:

1. How do you use this product? How often?
2. Are there similar products you’re also buying?
3. Where do you buy these products? Why?
4. Where do you gather information when buying this product?
5. How different is this product to competitors?

Don’t act surprised. These are not magic questions that will direct you to the winning formula. Rather, they are so simple that many undervalue its importance in marketing.

There are many ways to increase your Web traffic and improve conversion rate, to a point it is sometimes confusing for starting entrepreneurs. Good thing MarketingSherpa has released the results of its new SEO study which improved lead conversion by 58%.

In essence, here are the 4 basic tactics you can easily implement to your online site:

1. Develop new language versions of the website or multilingual content if you have non-English speaking customers
2. Create new white paper to qualify leads or add more contents regularly
3. Boost incoming links from relevant sites
4. Test design and placement options for links to Web forms

You can check out the details at MarketingSherpa to fully understand its implementation. Since we’re already touching this subject, you can also check out these highly recommended blog posts about Internet marketing and see if it applies to your business:

The Ultimate Guide to Building the Perfect Link
11 Guidelines for Getting Authoritative Links
Would you like a 14.56% Conversion Rate?
The Facebook Marketing Bible: 24 Ways to Market Your Brand, Company, Product, or Service Inside Facebook

Of course, not all strategies will apply to your online business but the idea here is to find the similarities of these strategies/tactics and apply it immediately. Sad to say, many entrepreneurs are so engrossed about SEO and other Internet marketing lessons that that they failed to use it to their business. Pick out at least 5 items to work on and monitor your progress. In that way, you can easily analyze what’s working and what’s not.

For some people, traveling is not complete without a visit to a souvenir shop. Perhaps they want something to symbolize that wonderful experience or something they can bring home for their loved ones waiting. But do you know that there is a very valuable marketing lesson you can unravel at souvenir shops?

Yes, it’s called the art of TIMING – one of the most under appreciated aspects of marketing. How? Those who are selling souvenirs know that they must sell to customers when they are at the peak of their emotions or when they still feel deliriously happy about their trip. Otherwise, there will be no sales at all.

These guys know that when a tourist leaves the vacation spot in Japan, for instance, they will forget how exotic and interesting the Japanese decorative lanterns or paper umbrellas are. Once he boards the plane, his emotions dwindle and it’s game over.

The same is true regardless of the nature of your business. The old adage, “timing is everything”, is more relevant in this digital world cluttered with marketing noise and multitude of distractions.

Take time to know the peak emotions of your customers, seasonality of your products as well as buying frequency and habits . It’s important to understand the concept of product life cycle and relate it to your customers. If you’re operating a brick-and-mortar business, finding the right location is a very crucial success factor.

In running your email marketing campaign, some experts advise it’s better to send your campaigns between 11 AM to 3 PM. Or during weekends where your customers have more time to read and consider your offer.

What’s the common advice you will hear if you want to win in politics, war or sports like basketball or martial arts? Aim for the heart. However, this notion comes in different flavors. But that’s the essence. In the words of Blaise Pascal, “The heart has its reasons which reason knows not of.”

In war or any competitive sports, famous military strategists like Sun Tzu emphasize the need to break the morale of the enemy to ensure victory. Take away the spirit of a team and they will definitely lose. Aim for the heart, my friends.

On the other hand, this concept is more apparent in the ongoing US Presidential campaigns, particularly Obama’s passionate and catchy “Yes We Can” slogan. In fact, some even tout him as the next Nike of politics. Why? Because he appeals more to our emotions, not reasons. Aim for the heart, my friends.

There’s even an old experiment conducted in 1935 to study the contrast between emotional and rational appeal in political persuasion. Judging from my line of thinking, the result is quite obvious – emotions influence people.

The same is true for entrepreneurs, experienced or startups. It’s disappointing that some are still solely pitching about affordability and limiting market segmentation in terms of demographics. To make matters worse, some do not bother finding out the real sales drivers – the needs and motivations of the target customers. So, the next time you craft your message try to add more emotional hooks.

When it comes to selling, the confusion about consumer needs is very evident. Just take a look at some of the hottest selling digital cameras at Amazon.com and you will be bombarded with too many technical details about its superior product features. That, my friends, is the disease called hard selling.

Though the geeks would surely love to get all the info, many potential consumers do not really understand the benefits of having a “9-point AiAF, single point AF, and Face-priority AF” or “7.1-million-pixel CCD sensor”. Can you?

Blame it on sales and marketing guys for some are constantly looking inward, filling their marketing materials like case studies, white papers and other literatures with technical jargons and R&D superiority. Alas, they forgot that their target consumers are ignorant and worse, do not give a damn about these things. In short, CONSUMERS DO NOT CARE ABOUT YOU; THEY ONLY CARE ABOUT THEMSELVES.

The concept of hard selling is long dead yet its applications continue to flourish. Why not? It’s very easy to do, just list all the technical specs and pray that consumers will understand its significance.

Change Perspective
Leave the technical details to “Technical Specifications” section of your communications materials. Instead, concentrate on understanding the emotional and psychological reasons why people buy your products and mold your message according to those cues.

Why do you think the old and grouchy business executives buy cutting edge mobile phones like BlackBerry or Nokia N95? Most of them do not even know how to use push technology or Wi-Fi connection. Still, they bought that item just to showoff social status.

These are some of the insights that you should focus on if you want to sell. If you unlock that mystery, don’t be surprised if consumers will pay you even if they could get for free.

Undeniably, this coming US presidential elections will be one of the most memorable events in modern history. No, this is not one of the many blog posts about political beliefs and self-serving agendas. Rather this is about taking lessons from the world of politics and applying them to running a successful small business.

Whether you are for Obama, H. Clinton, MacCain or Huckabee, it doesn’t really matter. What matters is you take off your favoritism and learn from their best practices. Here are some give away lessons:

1. Say it right the first time. Politicians like Obama and Clinton are infamous for their superb communication skills and ability to move people with words. In business, using the right communication mix from call-to-action words, headlines to niche keywords (for online businesses) helps close the deal. No wonder copy writing tips are in demand these days. Seldom will you hear politicians say the words “I” or “Me”. It’s all about “us”, “you” or “we”.

You can check out Obama’s Yes We Can video on YouTube and analyze how the speech was crafted. The rhetoric is very similar with the “I Have a Dream” speech by the late Martin Luther King Jr.

2. Embrace technology. Politicians have learned to exploit Web 2.0 sites like YouTube, Facebook, Flickr and MySpace for all are powerful channels to network, share opinions and reach out the tech-savvy people and communities. In small business, your online presence is critical to survival and networking is the lifeblood of success.

3. Put others in a bad light. If you’re confident that your product or service is far more superior compared to competition, it’s never enough that you brag about it. You should learn to hype the flaws of your competitors. Most politicians will not only say “I’m great” but will also tout the weaknesses of their enemies. The key here is to do it in a very subtle way. Otherwise, it will be viewed as manipulative and wicked.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjXyqcx-mYY 290 238][youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRJWmAS7z2I 290 238]

Choosing the right color or color combinations for your small business as well as brand is very crucial. You may find it hard to believe but there are several studies proving the psychological and emotional impact of colors. Sad to say, many entrepreneurs still overlook this seemingly trivial angle.

Because colors can affect our moods, it is important to learn how to combine these colors effectively in your logo design, brochures, Website, uniforms and other marketing materials. More importantly, you have to adjust it according to your target market, competitors and to the nature of your business.

Colors and its meanings vary according culture, location, gender or race. According to SBInformation, these are the corresponding meanings of the following colors in the context of American culture:

White: Pure. Clean. Youthful
Black: Power. Elegant. Secretive
Red: Passion. Excitement. Danger.
Orange: Vibrant. Energy. Play.
Yellow: Happy. Warm. Alert.
Green: Natural. Healthy. Plentiful.
Purple: Royalty. Wise. Celebration.
Blue: Loyal. Peaceful. Trustworthy.

Other helpful links about colors and small business:

Color Your Call To Action
The Effect of Colors on Business and Marketing
How to Energize Your Marketing With Colors
Your Brand’s True Colors

Consistent marketing is one of the key factors in running a successful small business. Though this is a fairly common advice you get everyday, many entrepreneurs still believe marketing is a quick-fix solution to get things moving.

On the contrary, marketing is a like a habit that you should do every single day. It takes a lot of time, planning, patience, and discipline to make this work. No wonder many fail at this aspect. Here are some of the simple things you could add to your regular schedule to make your marketing more consistent:

1. Talk with at least one customer every day to gather feedback and even fresh perspectives.
2. Send at least one e-mail or make one call to your prospects every day.
3. Follow up on at least one prospect every day.
4. Update your customer database regularly. The more you know about your customer, the better your chance of survival.
5. Conduct surveys periodically to gauge customer satisfaction.
6. Send personal cards to loyal customers and offer rewards through discounts or freebies.
7. Share your expertise to your customers by providing intelligent counseling through e-mail newsletters or blogs. You can also provide case studies on how your products or services helped customers solve their problems.
8. Host a free seminar, podcast or webinar relevant to your target market.
9. Actively participate in associations, online forums, and networking events connected to your industry.
10. Monitor the strategies and tactics of your competitors. A more detailed discussion will be dedicated to this aspect later