Going Organic Article–Looking For Candidates to Interview

Posted by Kristie Lorette | Posted on 30-06-2010

Category : Uncategorized

Student:

I am writing an article on Going Organic: Is it possible to eat organic on today’s college campuses? for College PreView magazine. Since the demographic of the magazine is African American, Latin, Asian and Native American, I am looking to interview three undergraduate students that fall into one or more of these ethnic groups. The students should also be successfully managing to maintain their organic diet while in college.

Along with answering interview questions, the students also have to supply the publication with a high-resolution photograph to print along with their profile in the article.

Expert:

I am writing an article on Going Organic: Is it possible to eat organic on today’s college campuses?

I’m looking to interview nutrition experts that can share information on how undergraduate students can maintain an organic diet while in college and/or what college campuses are doing to cater to this group of students.

Marketing Ideas for Financial Services

Posted by Kristie Lorette | Posted on 29-06-2010

Category : Marketing

Tags: ,

When you work with people’s finances, people tend to me a bit more sensitive than when making purchases of another nature. Whether you’re a financial advisor, banker or offer a financial product, reaching your target audience is more about forming a relationship with them through your marketing efforts than it is accomplishing a transaction. Financial sector marketing ideas tend to come to ways in which the bond can be formed and solidified. Once a year, Senior Market Advisor compiles the top 100 marketing ideas from your fellow financial experts from which you may be able to draw some inspiration.

Go Back to Basics

Pick up the phone every once in a while and touch base with your clients when you’re not actually trying to sell them something. Making contact by phone without the specific intent to give them a sales pitch is an indirect form of marketing. You can schedule your calls for special occasions such as client birthdays or anniversaries or schedule it according to a season such as a “spring cleaning” checkup call. Some of your calls will turn into business because it reminds clients or prospects of some point of business they wanted to discuss with you. If you wish to take more of a direct marketing approach, you can call with a specific financial product or service that the prospect or client may be interested in for their own personal financial situation. In general, though, a more indirect approach can work in your favor.

Ask for Referrals

Either with a letter that goes in the mail or an email blast to your list, send out a letter to your satisfied clients asking them to refer others who may be in need of your financial product or service. Clients who have worked with you know first-hand how you can benefit them, so they are more apt to refer you to other people they know. People who are alike and have like needs also tend to run in packs, so the chances are good that your clients and prospects that fit into your target market know other people you fit into your target market too. It is in human nature to want to help others, so when it comes to financial situations, emotion motivates many clients to refer people to you they know you can help and vice versa.

Book Speaking Engagements

With speaking engagements, you can speak at other events or book your own speaking events. Find events in your area that attract your target audience. Many organizations, associations and others seek professionals to speak to their group. Some event hosts pay an honorarium, but others do not. Your goal in booking speaking engagements is not to get paid, but to get in front of groups of people that are your potential clients. Speaking builds credibility because it paints you as an expert in your financial sector. People are drawn to working with the best of the best, so speaking engagements allow you to establish a platform of expertise and provide you with an opportunity to turn attendees into clients. Make sure you have some way of collecting the names and contact information of attendees, such as holding a prize drawing.

My fellow writers: Beware of ZSB Writers

Posted by Kristie Lorette | Posted on 24-06-2010

Category : Uncategorized

<a href=”http://www.freelancejobopenings.com/job/freelance-writer-las-vegas-nv-zsb-ebc54ffc2f/?d=1&amp;amp;source=share”>Freelance writer at ZSB (Las Vegas, NV)</a>
This company hires writers and then does not pay them for completed work. DO NOT do business with them and expect to get paid! They have owed me $400 for months and keep promising to pay me, but never do.

What a SWOT Analysis Does for a Business

Posted by Kristie Lorette | Posted on 21-06-2010

Category : Marketing

Tags: , ,

Whether starting a business or working on a business plan, it is likely that the term SWOT analysis has come up at some point. SWOT stands for strengths, weakness, opportunities and threats. The SWOT analysis is a tool that businesses use to start a business, grow a business or bring new products and services.

Function

A SWOT analysis has four main functions to a business. The SWOT analysis is used for strategic planning purposes, to help the company improve its chances of succeeding, determining how to organize the development of the business and to identifying the competitive advantage of the business over its competition.

Characteristics

Essentially, the SWOT analysis is a list or chart of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of the business. The business owner, the business plan writer or a combination of company employees may be involved in putting together the SWOT analysis. Creating the list helps shape the direction the business needs to take to ensure success.

Strategic Planning

Once the business owner has a clear picture of what the strengths, weakness, opportunities and threats of the company are, he or she can create a business and marketing plan that addresses each of these areas. For weaknesses, the business plan may and should contain the ways in which the business plans to overcome its weaknesses in order to turn it into a strength—or at least to diminish the weakness. The strengths should be used as leverage points for the company to promote its products or services. The plan should also contain information on how the company will take advantage of opportunities and how it will deal with or overcome the threats to the business.

Chance to Succeed

Conducting the SWOT analysis permits the business owner to evaluate the situation in which the business exists. A business can only overcome a challenge or issue when knowledge of the issue exists. Pre-planning on how issues are dealt with and how the company plans on pursuing business provides a guide for the company to use to propel it toward reaching the company goals and objectives. Without the SWOT analysis, it would leave the business owner to deal with an issue as it arises rather than being prepared for the problem when it occurs. Lack of awareness may also prohibit the business from achieving success because it’s not leveraging its strengths.

Identifying the Competitive Advantage

Placing the strengths and weakness of the business and the strengths and weakness of its competitors out in writing, allows the business to formulate its unique selling proposition (USP), which is what makes the business stand out from its competition. This is vital information because it allows the business you use the USP as leverage in all of its marketing, promotion and sales efforts.

Business Yellow Page Ads: Does it Bring in Business?

Posted by Kristie Lorette | Posted on 08-06-2010

Category : Marketing

Tags: , , ,

Online search engines, such as Google and Yahoo!, have changed the way that customers search for business information. Despite the ease of online information, however, the yellow pages remain firmly in use with companies purchasing ads and relying on customers to utilize this medium for locating companies. Some argue the yellow pages will soon be obsolete, but it shows no sign of disappearing. The print version of the yellow pages remains a convenient and solid advertising option for many businesses.

The Facts

The yellow pages industry is unquestionably experiencing something of a decline. Statistics indicate that yellow pages users have decreased consistently since around 2005, with no signs that the decline is ending soon. The problem, of course, is one of the immediacy of the information. It is easy up company information on a mobile phone than it is to haul a complete book of yellow pages around every time you need to look something up. At the same time, the yellow pages feature not only company information but also useful information about company pricing, ads and specials, and licensing details about the company. As a result, business have the option to include an array of specifics within an advertisement that will appear in the yellow pages but might never appear online.

Benefits

The print version of the yellow pages is perhaps most useful for small local businesses. Chain companies provide standardized service from place to place, but when a customer is looking for a service with a local company it can be harder to choose the right one. The yellow pages offers these businesses the opportunity to present potential customers with their company information and assist the customers in making a decision.

Disadvantages

One of the biggest disadvantages to the yellow pages actually has less to do with the industry and more to do with the nature of information. In other words, information moves – and changes – quickly, and what might have been accurate company information a few months ago can quickly become obsolete in the yellow pages. As a result, businesses that advertise in the yellow pages have to remember that any company information provided in the yellow pages will remain static while the current book is active.

Considerations

Despite the convenience of mobile phones that connect to the internet, many customers in smaller areas do not have such luxuries. In fact, many customers in rural areas have limited internet access within their homes. And while this is a smaller demographic than those who live in large metropolitan areas, these customers are still in need of information about local businesses. As a result, the print version of the yellow pages provides a necessary service that enables them to do business in their community.

Expert Insight

Experts recognize that the yellow pages industry might continue to decline unless there are some changes. One of the more revolutionary changes might be the target audience for the yellow pages. Instead of yellow pages creators producing one large book with all area businesses, some have suggested that they produce “mini” yellow pages, focusing on different audiences with different lifestyles, such as a yellow pages for those who want to find environmentally friendly businesses or those looking only for a new church.

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