It’s almost 6 months into 2009 and a great time to reevaluate resolutions and goals. Honestly, I don’t even know how these first months passed so quickly, I’m still getting my feet wet! But really, businesses at this point have a better idea of where their company is going during this recession, what major final decisions they will be making, and whether or not it’s a good time for their company to make any “investments.”

Continue reading About 6 months down and 6 months to go – what’s your business up to?

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A few recent calls with clients and prospects inspired this post. After discussing our programs with some companies, their true hesitation to move forward was revealed: They had been badly burned before with other conversion optimization companies, and weren’t ready to give it another try. This is disappointing for several reasons, but mostly because the complaints were straightforward, ABC business relationship complaints!

For all you consultants some advice, for all you unhappy clients of consultants, finally, retribution:

Continue reading It’s Consultancy Stupid!?!

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We have a light travel schedule over the next few weeks. But if you are attending one of these conferences and would like to meet, drop us a line.

I am speaking at the ACCM 2009, which is “the Largest Conference for 360 Marketers.” I will be part of two web clinic sessions.

We will be speaking at Refresh Detroit on May 19th. You can read Ayat’s full post.

We will be attending the IRCE 2009 at Boston this year. The Invesp team is part of the pre-show clinics held on Monday 6/15.

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The grim realities in Detroit, thousands of auto workers being laid off and foreclosed homes flooding the markets, make it seem as if there is little to no hope for this city. But there are sparks of inspirations that I see on a daily basis that tell me, it’s not over and I’m not giving up on my city just yet!

Whether it’s local entrepreneurs taking initiative, people coming together to plan the next big thing, or local artists just trying to make a difference; Detroit is always buzzing with ideas and passionate individuals. Every week there are tweet-ups and meet-ups of sorts. People are connecting, networking, and trying to bring business to each other because we’re all in this together.

Most recently I was approached by a group called Refresh Detroit asking for a talk to a group of business owners and professionals on conversion optimization. I was happy to see locals tapping into the many resources we have available within a short distance from our offices. For all you Michiganders, Khalid and I will be giving a great presentation at Wayne State University, May 19th @ 6 pm. Don’t miss out.

For everyone else in the blogsphere, don’t give up on MI just yet – there’s something great happening in this state and in particular, in the city of Detroit! 

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Two heads are better than one. It’s true.

Continue reading With a Little Help from Our Friends

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One of the parts of any type of business that confuses people is making a mental split between tactics and strategy. This is important, both from a planning point of view, but also surprisingly for your morale.

Continue reading Why the Strategic Win

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Getting on prospects’ white lists is the name of the game for many marketers.

Yet, I often come across marketers doing exactly what they’re not supposed to be doing when they send out emails.

I think it’s time for a mini-primer on email practices that contribute to getting on white lists.

First, I should warn you that some of these five tips may be considered common knowledge, but I don’t see them implemented enough. I can only think that marketers don’t do them because a) they assume that prospects have a familiarity with the processes associated with white listing or b) they’re just careless. Either explanation results in a throwing away of leads and warrants a reminder post.

So without further adieu, here are the basic things that marketers should be doing every time initial correspondence is sent:

Continue reading Avoid Blacklisting and Get on Your Prospects’ White Lists

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It is obvious that any business or marketing campaign needs a leader. Without a leader your efforts become rudderless.

Entrepreneurs often take charge when there is a leadership vacuum, just because someone has to. Sometimes this works, sometimes it doesn’t, but at least some direction is applied. In larger organizations the structures in place can often work against your success.

See if one of the following applies to your situation:

1. You have too many bosses – This is the “too many cooks” problem, where you do not know where your priorities, metrics, tactics or goals fit, or even if they make sense. Often this is caused by “management by committee”. Try to get one person to take responsibility with ultimate sign off, and get them to sign off.
2. You have one obstructive boss – It’s pretty difficult to work around an obstructive boss, but sometimes they either just need proof or some education. Most bosses actually want to make progress, much as it can seem otherwise. Work with them rather than butting heads. Butting heads just gives you both bruises and a bad mood. Communicate, and test. If you get small but promising results with tests, they will normally see sense for larger tests.
3. You are using the competition as the leader – Just because another company is bigger doesn’t mean they are smarter. Also another company might employ a tactic that will just plain ruin yours. For example, if you are up against Walmart you can’t discount because they have deeper pockets. Instead raise the perceived value of your offer to meet your price!
4. Trying and failing to listen to the market – Listening to your market does not mean taking the advice of the one lunatic who keeps calling to complain. If you are going to use the market as a guide do real, consistent and effective research, and most of all test before betting the whole company on your findings.
5. Relying on focus groups – Related to point 4, focus groups are not listening to your market. They can be useful in a limited capacity but all too often focus group participants will tell you what they think you want to hear or are lead by the loudest and most opinionated member of the group. If you must run a focus group, make sure you run your groups with an experienced focus group leader who takes no nonsense and has a tried and tested methodology.

The best way to avoid most of the above is to educate yourself and to base your direction on sound principles based on actual success and experience rather than any biased egos that surround you. Any ideas you are not 100% sure about test with a limited trial campaign, just keep what works then tweak, tweak and tweak.

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How much of what your business does is out of fear versus taking risks and confidence in the future?

There is always a case for mitigating risk, but right now many organizations seem to have curled into a ball and turned the light out.

Problem is, success often requires taking a risk and investing in your own success.

Continue reading Does Your Business Run on Fear or Confidence?

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Have you noticed how some of the people who ought to achieve the most in any kind of market seem to plateau, lose steam, or outsource the life out of their business?

One of the worst things that can happen to an entrepreneur is they lose their “mojo”, ethusiasm, drive, passion, whatever you want to call it.

Sometimes events our out of our hands and impact us profoundly – I was reminded of this as I read the awful things that happened to Michael Arrington recently.

How can we keep our fires burning even in the face of setbacks and dismay?

Continue reading The Importance of Continuous Curiosity

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