As a full service marketing agency, it’s kind of hard not to notice the marketing efforts utilized by the businesses around us. It’s great to see campaigns being launched and creativity being stretched. So we thought it would be interesting to make this a regular thing and see what companies are doing to help grow their business and increase their exposure. Today’s featured business: Office Max I received a letter from Office Max today with a nice greeting that referred to me as a “valued customer.” It’s always nice to know you’re appreciated. Of course the letter, in just under 10 sentences, ...

Small businesses are planning on doing more online marketing in 2010, according to studies from Vistaprint and Ad-ology. Small businesses are looking to increase their marketing plans for social media (14%), online and search advertising (11%). Also, only 38% of small businesses currently have a company website, but 32% of respondents said they would be interested in building a website if they had more time and money to spend on it. In a separate survey, Ad-ology found that 46% of US small businesses did not have a website. With more small businesses becoming interested in online marketing, it is critical to have a website ...

As powerful as the Internet has been in growing businesses, it has also become a digital playground for scam artists. Suspicious websites and too-good-to-be-true offers are sliding money out of consumers’ pockets before they even realize what is happening. Apparently now, we even have to be on guard against the trusted vendors. According to an article on MSNBC, Legit Web sites team up with shady operators , New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo is investigating major corporations for their marketing agreements. Some people out there are willing to do anything to scam money out of innocent consumers. It is important to protect ...

If you're looking for a new way to bring in new customers, look to the ones you already have. Referral programs are a great way to get your existing customers to bring in potental customers. By providing an incentive to your loyal customers, it will encourage them to bring in new people. This gym is not only offering $50 gift card for members who refer a friend, but the potential member has an even greater incentive to join because they get $100 for signing up. This double incentive will increase their chances of gaining new members. Look at your company and see if ...

Having inactive subscribers on your email lists can often throw off your data. These are people who have never opened a campaign, or people who haven't been active in a long time but haven't unsubscribed from the list. Segment these people into a separate list called "nonresponders" and start seeing if you can get them active again. Email a link to your opt-in form and have them sign up again. On that page, give examples of your emails so they can see what they are signing up for. Email them with a coupon for your company. The more extreme the coupon, the more ...

Emails have been sent out from "PayPal and addressed to "Dear Member" with attachments are scams, according to the Chicago Tribune. The email claims that there has been suspicious behavior on PayPal accounts and it needs you to download the attachment and complete the steps it lists. Do not download the attachment and immediately delete the email. The email has been coming from info@Paaypal.com and is not from PayPal itself. There are a few steps that PayPal takes for extra security when sending out emails. Look for your name in the greeting. PayPal always address you in emails by your first and last ...

Having a great website can easily be your best marketing tool. Potential customers can learn about your company and its products and services. Only 3% of buyers from various companies say a website has no influence at all over a purchase decision, according to a survey by RainToday.com. A professional services website has had an increasing influence on purchasing decision over the past four years. The survey reports that a website holds at least some influence over 74% of buyers' decision. This is up from 2005 where it was only 51%. A professional design with valuable content, pictures, and information can help ...

With a wide variety of channels available for advertisers, print still seems to lead the way. Almost a quarter of American adults think that the best bargains are found in newspaper and magazine advertisements, according to a new Adweek Media/Harris Poll. Only 18% think the best bargains are found in online advertisements. More than ten percent each say direct mail and television commercials are where to look while just 2% say radio. Age does make a difference in the channels used for bargain hunting. The older one is, the more likely they are to use newspaper and magazine advertisements, as 24% of those ...

When running a new email marketing campaign or strategy, it is important to pay attention to your data to see if it is successful. This is the best way to make sure that you aren't wasting your time, money, and energy on an email campaign that isn't bringing you any leads. There are a few areas you should pay attention. How much a message is opened. People who are frequently opening your messages are the ones who are the most engaged in your company and brand. See if there is a pattern between your frequent openers and use that to target ...

Creating an effective and creative pay-per-click campaign for your company that people click is only half of the battle. The other half is creating an appealing landing page that turns visitors into customers. But having major mistakes on your landing page can drive away potential customers that you worked hard to draw to your website. Here are a few mistakes that can drive people away. Spelling Errors - Something as basic as a spelling error can easily drive away potential customers. A spelling error makes your website seem unprofessional. If you cannot be cautious with your own website, how can clients trust ...

Going Green may seem like it is a phrase that companies claim, but it might help your marketing campaign. Green marketing is more effective than most marketers realize, according to a survey by Environmental Leader. The survey, which looked at green marketing, found that marketers who experimented with green messages in their marketing campaigns found it more effective than the usual marketing campaigns. 33% of respondents said green marketing was more effective than their normal marketing efforts, with just 7% saying it was less effective. More than 80% of these companies also indicated they expect to spend more on green marketing in ...

Are you driving away customers with your email campaigns? By sending out mass emails to all your subscribers, you could be deterring potential customers. Almost half of people who have ever unsubscribed from an email said that it was because the emails weren't relevant to them, according to a survey from the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Council. Also, 41% said they would consider ending their relationship with a company because of irrelevant email or mailing campaigns and 22% said they would definitely end their relationship. About 3% of opt-in emails for subscribers in the US and Canada were sent to “junk” or ...