So much of the Internet is about connecting with people but sometimes we spend so much time trying to reach people across the globe that we can forget about our own local community. There has been a big push toward local focused sites like foursquare, facebook places, and of course Groupon. These sites are all about where you live and how to bring your Internet life and connect…
How Do I Advertise Online and Find Customers?
by / ⠀Finding Customers• Startup Advice / January 25, 2011“How do I advertise online?” is the question I get all the time. If you’re starting an online company, bringing a brick and mortar operation online or looking to expand your existing online presence, I’ll try to answer that question. Every business is different but there are several ways you should approach your digital marketing campaign. There is no single solution. Advertising should be approached like an investment…
Besides providing the right tools or platform for collaboration to take place, any organization must ask what will motivate its customer network to participate. Why would anyone contribute an article to Wikipedia? News footage to CNN iReport? A T-shirt design to Threadless? In some cases, customers may be motivated by curiosity, personal interests, or deeply held social values. In other cases, they have more commercial goals or a…
How To Market Your Company With 5 Simple Videos
by / ⠀Finding Customers• Startup Advice / January 6, 2011Regardless of what type of company you have, or what type of product you’re selling, there are always online videos that can be used to up your marketing and sales. Here to help us is Producer/Director, Jon Hyatt. Jon is currently Producing/Directing a reality show in Boston called Making Moves. “Every company can affordably increase marketing and sales with the help of online videos.” Hyatt says, “Nowadays more…
Top 7 Websites to Submit Your Startup Company to for Free Publicity
by / ⠀Finding Customers• Startup Advice / December 19, 2010Entrepreneurs are always looking for an easy way to make a big PR splash. If you are a local business that only serves a specific geographic area, then your local newspaper is still probably your best option for some free publicity. On the other hand, if you offer a product or service that is available in multiple locations or via the Internet, then you must consider the following…
Business is buzzing with talk about hyper-local websites, and it is likely affecting you & your business. It can be overwhelming for any young entrepreneur to attempt to navigate through the rapidly changing world of media. Now, with the latest hyper-speed evolution of hyper-local media, following the industry is more challenging than ever. Since co-founding a lifestyle blog based in a suburb of Philadelphia, my business partner and…
Hold The Press! PR Tactics That Don’t Rely On the Media
by / ⠀Finding Customers• Startup Advice / December 8, 2010Many people think of PR as getting your product or service mentioned in a particular publication, and while this should be a large part of any PR strategy, there are many other tactics which can be equally effective at increasing awareness of your products/services and generating a favorable impression of your company. Below are just a few ways that you can influence the way people think about your…
Over the last decade, there has been a significant reduction in the popularity of print media advertising. The free and low costs option of internet marketing and advertising has made it a more attractive option for many business owners who are working hard to cut costs without sacrificing their outreach efforts. While this is understandable, print media advertising is still a valuable marketing tool for reaching out to…
Take 10 Minutes a Day and Do Your Own Public Relations, Here’s How
by / ⠀Finding Customers / October 15, 2010When you’re building a product or a service company, trying to focus on increasing the quality of what you’re selling, trying to build your sales team and looking at securing funding, the last thing you probably are thinking about is doing PR. More common are the entrepreneurs who would love media coverage but can’t afford to hire for it or are tight on internal resources to manage the…
What the MTV Video Music Awards Show us About Creating Buzz
by / ⠀Finding Customers• Startup Advice / September 15, 2010The 2010 MTV Video Music Awards were aired this past Sunday. The event is big in the music scene but also draws a big audience from the younger generation. If you watched the awards you were sure to notice that at times the artists, hosts and producers just seem plain crazy with what goes on. But there is a reason behind this and a reason why MTV likes…