A Marketing Strategy That Works: Shaping Consumer Perception
Perception is reality.
Sure, this is a phrase we’ve all heard before but marketers know better than anyone how true the phrase actually is. You can have the greatest product in the world but when it comes to getting others to purchase and use that product, what matters most is how your customers view it. Read more
Is Now the Time to Open up a Small Business?
As the economy looks to gain steady traction, national unemployment hovers around 9.2 percent and the debt ceiling talks drag on in Washington, D.C., some potential small business entrepreneurs wonder if this is the time to open up their first venture. Read more
Three Options for Small Business Payroll
When starting a new business it is very easy to forget, during the budgeting stage, one of the most important costs a company will accrue. At the heart of every business, perhaps even more so than the services provided and products sold, are the people who undertake the day to day running of the operation. Read more
Reputation Management for Small Businesses
At one point, the company website was the stopping point for consumers interested in a specific business. They would type in a business’ name or a specific product carried into a search engine, and it was the only platform that your company could be viewed. Read more
5 Most Unusual Office Desks
1. Mini Cooper Desk
British designer Glynn Jenkins has transformed the classic British Mini, now popular in the United States, into a modern piece of office furniture. This desk, about $4400, costs about the same as the original Mini Cooper car. Each mini desk is custom built to the buyer’s specifications. 
Purchasers have their choice of desk top materials from leather, wood, metal or any color of vinyl, and can pick from a variety of tires and license plates. The body of the car can be painted to match the décor in your office. Although not exactly necessary for most office spaces, it is cool that the mini desk comes with fully working headlights, hazards and spotlights. A stereo is set into the dash and speakers are incorporated. This desk just may be too much fun for most offices.
2. The House on the Table
The House on the Table, designed by Soojin Hyun of Design Mong, is a retreat for any office worker. No larger than the typical cubicle, this modern desk literally is a house-type structure situated on a lar
ge square desk. It combines bookshelves, a vaulted ceiling, four walls, portals, interior lighting, and a door, allowing its occupant to have a measure of privacy previously unknown for many pod dwellers.
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3. Treadmill Workstation
Steelcase‘s new treadmill workstation incorporates a desk, computer, and treadmill into one unit. The design of this workstation is based upon the research of Dr. James Levine, of 
the Mayo Clinic, who is an expert in non-exercise activity thermogenesis– the calories people burn during everyday activities such as standing, walking or even fidgeting. Dr. Levine’s research showed office workers can lose up to 57 pounds a year simply by walking 1 to 2 miles per hour while working on their computers. The treadmill workstation is available in a stationary design or an adjustable one that lets you go from walking to sitting if you desire.
4. Plane Part Desks
What happens to retired military jets and bombers? Would you believe that some of them are recycled into office furniture? MotoArt has transformed a variety of airplane parts into modern, 
functional desks. One of its models is the Douglas DC6 Cowling desk, made of the airplane part originally used as housings for Pratt & Whitney engines. Now, it has been transformed into a sleek, contemporary-looking piece of office furniture. Also available is the limited edition B-25 Mitchell Bomber Airplane Desk. This desk, designed for executives, features tempered glass covering the aluminum frame of a portion of the plane’s wing, revealing the details of its elevators and rudders.
5. Nethrone Ergonomic Workstation
Nethrone, a leader in designing ergonomic workstations, has created a sleek workstation with a tilting chair and monitor. Nethrone’s Classic Workstation, although eerily resembling a dentist’s chair, comfortably cradles workers’ bodies in a massage chair while automatically 
adjusting the screen and keyboard angle as the seat moves. Designed to cause the least amount of strain for its occupant, the workstation, available at a base price of $1999, is customizable with 3 screens, speakers, and an extra side arm.
About the Author:David Ching is a marketing strategist at EQA Office Furniture, a San Fransico-based office furniture company. Package pricing and free 3D virtual walkthroughs are available on EQA’s site.
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PR Gaffes That Can Sink a Company’s Ship
As every business knows, getting the right quantity and quality of public relations material out about one’s company is paramount to being successful.
On the flip side, sending the wrong message can lessen one’s impact and even lead to damage control at times.
The first and most important thing to recognize is that PR is different from advertising and marketing. That being said, you would be amazed at how many company heads still don’t get that fact.
For those executives who still don’t quite get it, your PR efforts should go towards portraying your company in the best light. Quite simply, reach out to those who can assist in promoting what you do and be your mouthpiece for all to hear.
If you’re an outside agency or a PR pro in-house and the company suits are still a little out in the dark as to why they have you in the first place, remind them of why public relations plays a key role in company perception.
When the business you represent is trying to promote a campaign or run damage control, there are several factors to take into account:
- Timing of your campaign – When handling a PR campaign, remember that your audience will need some leeway. If you’re wanting announcement of an event coming up, let newspapers, online sites, magazines etc. know well in advance so they can make room for an announcement;
- Release filled with grammatical issues – Nothing is more embarrassing than sending out a release with typos, incorrect dates and times, wrong contact info etc. While your company may not have a proofreader on staff, make sure the release or video is checked for errors before releasing it;
- Random release – The chances of your release getting picked up improve if you have a targeted individual to send them to. Sending off a release to “whom it may concern” can end up going nowhere. Take the minute or two to locate the right contact person so the release gets to them, along with giving you a point of reference for follow up;
- Follow up on your campaign – It is inevitable that some individuals will have additional questions regarding your campaign. Be ready to provide the answers so that your release isn’t dispatched to the round file. You also want to have a follow-up email and/or phone call to make sure the release was received;
- Damage control quality – No company likes having to do damage control, but it is almost inevitable if one is in business for a long period of time. The important key here is not making it a personal attack. Whether you’re responding to the media or discussing a competitor, keep the comments professional. The last thing you need is bad PR that leads some to wonder about ever doing business with you again.
As any PR professional can tell you, a company isn’t made in a day and a problem is not solved overnight.
Whether working for in-house or outsourced PR, come together on a unified message, a message that will resonate with your audience.
About the Author: Dave Thomas is an expert writer on items like business copiers and is based in San Diego, California. He writes extensively for an online resource that provides expert advice on purchasing and outsourcing decisions for small business owners and entrepreneurs at Resource Nation.
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Is Google+ a Facebook Killer?
Google+ are currently asking business to withhold from signing up to the new service until it is fully rolled out with all the bugs beta’d out of the application. Which makes sense as over the past five years social media has taken off as the key means to develop relationships with users, clients and business partners, it’s far easier to follow some-one or invite them as a friend than it is to develop a relationship over the phone or via email.
Google Dominance
A quick search of search engine market share reveals that Google commands 83.62% of the global use of internet search facilities, next most popular is Yahoo, Microsoft’s Bing comes in fourth with 3.5% of internet users choosing it above all the others.
While Google offers free search which can be tweaked to suit your preferences, free email which doesn’t have adverts in the body and is easy to navigate without doing unexpected actions if you click too many boxes when you finally get around to cleaning out your inbox (Yes Hotmail, I’m looking at you!) with the introduction of Google+ they’ve essentially guaranteed their ownership of the web (top layer at least, the invisible web is another story).
Many Issues with Facebook
Social media is a fundamental part of many people’s lives now but many people have a trust issue with Facebook, when it started it seemed that it was only going to let you network with people you really did know in the Real World but as the opportunities for business and marketing were realised each user became a potential target for marketing so change after change was introduced. Now many users find that things happen to their account and they have to opt out rather than opt in. They don’t always appreciate that kind of meddling.
But Facebook is a free service and they have to make their money somewhere so we can’t complain… But now we have a serious option. MySpace was once Facebook’s only relevant competition yet it’s been sold for a fraction of its purchase price from a few years ago and last week saw a search for MySpace directing immediately back to Google’s home page. Today things seem back to normal but you can probably remember the media frenzy when Facebook dropped out for a few hours some time ago. When it happens to MySpace: not a peep.
What Does This Mean for You?
But what does all that mean to consumers and users?Essentially, once business is able to register on Google+ Facebook could go the same way as MySpace. I’m already going through the long and drawn out process of migrating my data from Facebook to Google+, I like Chrome as a browser, I have been a big fan of Gmail since I started beta-ing that too so why wouldn’t I? And many other people will too, even if they don’t delete their accounts they will surely migrate away from Facebook and set up a new account, link it in with their RSS reader, calendar, email and docs and find that they have very little reason to look at Facebook, in much the same way that people don’t tend to look at MySpace any longer. Google will have achieved its master plan and taken over complete control of the internet.
Again, like Facebook, Google is a free application and if you don’t like it you can always use the other products which are available but if you’re in business and you’re involved in digital marketing or an active social media aficionado then getting a presence within Google itself, via Google+ is going to be far more important to SERPs than trying every-one to ‘like’ you on Facebook.
About the Author: @DanCash is a feature writer and SEO copywriter focusing on social media training. Follow me on Twitter for my views on the impending battle to the death of one or other social platforms.
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Top Tips to Staying Motivated When Working from Home
People who trek to an office everyday often bemoan the fact and wish they could work from home. And while many home-workers are quick to point out the advantages of a stay-at-home job, they will relay the downside just as quickly. So really, it’s not all it’s cracked up to be. Read more
Why Your Email Funnel Should Have a Custom Thank You Page & How to Start One if Yours Doesn’t
There are many reasons why you should consider creating a custom Thank You page for your email funnel. For one thing, a custom thank you page is more personal, creating a one on one atmosphere between you and your visitor. Read more
Six (non-sleazy) Steps to Networking
Networking has, over the years, gotten a bad name. This is probably because of the sleazy behavior exhibited by too many people at networking events. Some people are pushy, others are obviously phony, and worse, they want something from you, without even considering how they might provide value to you. Read more
