Small businesses often have a primary goal of driving sales - and why not? They don’t have to worry quite as much about branding, monitoring mentions for national PR purposes, customer service, and all of the other things that come with being a large company. As a digital marketing consultant, I work with small businesses [...]
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Since Crystal was kind enough to make me an honorary “babe” I thought I would talk about what I know best, managing people.
The cycle is so predictable that it is both humorous and sad. As the economy starts to pick up the drums are beginning to beat with the refrain of “OMG, how do I [...]
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I had to laugh yesterday when Google’s infamous Gmail went down for a few hours – literally it was just a blip in time, but you’d have thought the world was coming to an end. Immediately, I sent a Skype to the person who convinced me to sign up with Gmail. He said his was [...]
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Posted in Competitive Forces on Mar 2nd, 2009
With unemployment up and the economy down, individuals everywhere are looking to save a few bucks. Unfortunately, this often means people choose products that have been imported from places like China – the cheap stuff – over locally produced high quality goods. If you’re the little guy, you might be wondering what you can [...]
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Posted in Competitive Forces on Feb 19th, 2009
Cut-throat competition comes in various forms but the most difficult to overcome are those who drastically cut prices to garner more business. It can be detrimental to existing businesses, particularly those operating in price sensitive markets. Called “low-balling,” competitors who enter a market with prices substantially lower than others (or those who suddenly [...]
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With user-generated content (UGC) now mainstream and the ability to post comments as simple as a click (or two), it’s easy to get a little carried away online. But what happens when you stumble upon a blog post or article where your number one competitor has decided – for whatever reason – to leave [...]
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Below is a response I posted to a question on WikiAnswers (www.wiki.answers.com) about feasibility studies:
In order to make wise investments in a marketplace experiencing increasing levels of risk, companies are turning to feasibility studies to determine if they should offer new products, services or undertake a new business endeavor. The purpose of a feasibility study is [...]
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Going into 2008, there are some key niche markets (narrow group of customers) that you don’t want to overlook. They offer an opportunity for you to garner a competitive advantage and build upon a specialized service or product offering. While baby boomers, high net worth individuals and women all remain viable niche markets, consider these [...]
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