Work That Tradeshow! (Part 2 of 4)

Vonetta Booker-Brown — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 16:28:11 +0000

In Part 1 of my “Work That Tradeshow” blog post series, we discussed doing your “referral homework” and thinking outside the “lunch box.” In Part 2, we’ll be talking about the importance of having a backup in place, and having the right promotion tools.

Have a backup in place. While you’re going from table to table networking and meeting vendors & potential clients—make sure there’s someone such as a partner, associate, friend or assistant (someone you’ve brought along who knows your business) who’s manning your company table while you make your rounds. If they’ve done their homework, other vendors at the tradeshow have the same networking/partnership ideas as you—so make sure there’s someone at your own table to greet them and talk business!

Bring your calling card. One of the most important factors of a strong tradeshow is having the right items to properly represent your company. Of course, business cards are a must, especially when you’re visiting other booths throughout the floor. You’ll want to leave at least two with each vendor that you meet (one for them, and the other(s) for them to pass onto colleagues, if they wish). Be sure to get a couple from them, as well—jotting down any notes about them that you’ve learned and can later mention during your follow-up reachouts. Back at your booth, make sure your associates do the same with your visitors, and you can later share the cards and notes you’ve collected. Other items to consider handing out at tradeshows: Coffee mugs, t-shirts, pens—you want your company name on anything people like to use on a regular, daily basis so that they’ll be reminded of your services whenever they do!

Next, I’ll be talking about mixing it up…and following up!

Work That Tradeshow! (Part 1)

Vonetta Booker-Brown — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 16:28:04 +0000

(Part 1 of my 4-part “Work That Tradeshow” blog post series on how to take advantage of them & grow your business…)

If you’ve been in business for any period of time, you’ve probably experienced tradeshows somewhere on your calendar, either as a visitor yourself, a participant, advertised in your network or as mentioned by your colleagues. You’ve probably already surmised that it’s a great place to network and market your business—as hundreds (sometimes thousands) of different vendors, companies—and yes, potential clients—converge in one spot for a common purpose.

The networking opportunities are endless—but are you ready to take advantage of it all—adding to your client base & mailing list–and increasing your sales? Read on for tips to really work that tradeshow!

Do your referral homework. Tradeshows are practically client supermarkets—so work those aisles like a customer! But do your homework first. Whenever possible, visit the conference’s main website to see which companies are on the roster as vendors. Then visit their websites, check out their press/media pages, Google them and see what’s been going on with each company in terms of news and happenings. Once you’ve done that, do a little brainstorming session in which you come up with all the ways possible that you can partner with this company. In what ways can you compliment each other? Depending on the type of business that your company is in, what services can you offer these tradeshow vendors? Have as many ideas possible in mind when you get to the tradeshow and visit their tables.

Think outside the lunch box! All that tradeshow table-visiting has probably worked up your appetite—but before you run off to do lunch solo, consider getting some networking in along with your grub. Why not ask to lunch a vendor or two with whom you’ve hit things off well? Once the meal’s underway, don’t just talk business. Get to know him or her, in terms of real-person stuff—aspects about their lives, interests, etc.—the real-person stuff that has lead them there to your tradeshow meetup. And let them get to know you, likewise. People like to do business less with a faceless company than the real person behind it.

Next, I’ll be talking about the importance of having a backup in place, and having the right promotion tools.

Valentine’s Day Ideas for Business Owners

Vonetta Booker-Brown — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 15:14:40 +0000

Happy Valentine’s Day! It’s not just a day to show appreciation for your significant other & loved ones—you can also show your employees & clients how much their work and business are valued. Here are some ideas:

A Valentine’s Day office lunch, complete with balloons, candy and other sweets. (Party411 has a good article on additional Valentine’s Day office party ideas.)

Gift cards for employees & clients are great ideas that won’t break your budget. A very convenient idea as well, since most supermarkets & pharmacies sell gift cards for nearly every store & restaurant imaginable (Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts, Best Buy, Olive Garden, etc.)

(Also, if you’re on a budget, consider “gently-used” gift card sites such as PlasticJungle.com, where you can buy, sell & exchange gift cards from popular retailers like Pottery Barn, Home Depot, PetSmart, AMC Theaters and many more.)

Consider offering your business services as a Valentine’s Day gift. You can make your own gift certificates that include discounts and freebies for valued clients and customers. VistaPrint, for example, has custom printed gift certificates starting at $3.99.

Question: What are some creative Valentine’s Day gift ideas you use for your customers & clients?

Cool Resource: The “Make a Living Writing: The 21st Century Guide” ebook

Vonetta Booker-Brown — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 13:41:40 +0000

Can you do it? Make a decent living as a writer, that is?

Not if you buy into the popular “starving artist” perception.

But fortunately, it’s a misconception–and freelance writer Carol Tice sets out to prove that with her ebook, Make a Living Writing: The 21st Century Guide. If you’re interested in becoming a professional writer, the 200-page book features advice, tips and examples of making a good living through writing. Written for new writers, experienced writers new to freelancing, and established freelancers who aren’t earning as much as they’d like, it features three main sections: Writing for Publications (both print and online), the Copywriting Crash Course, and Make a Living With Your Blog.

Click here for more info and to order the book.

Cool Resource: Vimeo Music Store

Vonetta Booker-Brown — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 13:29:00 +0000

So, you’ve made a great marketing video highlighting your latest tip, event or product, but there’s something missing—music. As a relative videomaking neophyte, finding good, quality background/intro music had me stumped until I came upon the Vimeo Music Store. With a vast array of free and inexpensive music that can be licensed for use in videos, VMS lets you search for songs by genre, tempo, theme, mood or a specific instrument. If you need help getting started, VMS also has a couple of video tutorials on editing sound & music with iMovie and Windows Live Movie Maker.

Cool Resource: Blogging for Business Complete Starter Kit

Vonetta Booker-Brown — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 13:18:08 +0000

Created by Internet marketer LaShanda Henry, the Blogging for Business Complete Starter Kit is a great resource for entrepreneurs interested in getting their blog on–but kinda clueless on exactly how to get started (or improve their already-existing one). (Click here if you missed my previous interview with Henry…) With tips that come from Henry’s success at attracting new customers, getting return business from old customers, making money with Adsense and being featured in Essence and Black Enterprise, the Blogging for Business Complete Starter Kit includes multiple video series on creating your own information website, increasing web sales & online visibility, building your business with social media and much more.

Here’s a personal video message from LaShanda talking more about the kit:

For more info and to order, click here.

Cool Resource: Avoiding Disaster in Your Online Business

Vonetta Booker-Brown — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 20:53:08 +0000

If you’re a business owner, at some point you’ve probably asked yourself, “What would I do if disaster struck my biz?” That is, you should have asked yourself that question! Better yet, what’s your answer?

If you’re still trying to come up with some backup solutions, How to Avoid Disaster in your Online Business is a useful guide that offers the much-needed reality check that many online business owners need.

What is it? Written by Internet marketing diva Nicole Dean, the guide highlights the gambles that many online business owners take with their income – using easy-to-guess passwords, using the same passwords on multiple sites, not backing up their computers effectively, and more. How to Avoid Disaster also reveals simple ways to fix theses issues & make your online business practically bulletproof.

Cool Resource: Payvment

Vonetta Booker-Brown — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 20:47:57 +0000

If you’re a business owner with products to sell and you primarily operate from Facebook, then Payvment might be just what you’re looking for. Used by well-known retailers like What this FB application does is let you run your own store right from your Facebook page. There’s a free version that features unlimited product listings, social sharing, storewide “likes,” featured products, and is TRUSTe certified. The $29.95/month Premium package features full analytics and automatic item promotion to your fans, and if you’re a big player, the Platinum version lets you set up unlimited stores and offers priority email and training. If you’re into affiliate marketing, Payvment also allows you to sell your affiliates’ products, as well.

Cool Resource: Developing That Marketing Plan

Vonetta Booker-Brown — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 20:40:21 +0000

Developing a marketing plan doesn’t have to be a long, thought-out process. Since it’s mainly to keep yourself on-track when it comes to your business marketing goals (i.e. methods, timeframe, strategies, etc.), something quick and simple will do. The key is to just have some idea of what your plans are when it comes to marketing your business.

A good online resource that can aid you in your marketing plan development is the website MPlans.com. Created by Palo Alto Software, the site includes lots of sample marketing & business plans, along with how-to articles on business plan writing, marketing plan outlines, lead generation, market research, product marketing, PR & press, and more.

Look Like You’re on Twitter…Even When You’re Not

Vonetta Booker-Brown — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 19:47:37 +0000

I get it–you have this little thing called a “life,” and you’re too busy to be on Twitter or other forms of social media all the time. Well, of course you are! After all, your business isn’t going to run itself. But there are ways of keeping up with your tweets and appearing as though you’re a Twitter hopper–even when you’re not on at the moment.

Here are several free services that allow you to pre-schedule your Twitter updates:

Twuffer. If you’re new to the whole Twitter thing, Twuffer’s simplicity is probably right up your alley. The basic interface lets you schedule your tweets according to timezone; just type in whatever you want to say, schedule the date & time and click “set status.” It’s very user-friendly and also allows you to view already-sent tweets; the only issue is that once written, you can’t edit them–you have to delete the tweet and re-type it. But oh, well.

HootSuite. This is the one I personally use; the interface isn’t too complicated and it allows me to see/respond to what other folks are doing and saying on Twitter, re-tweet, etc. You can set up all of your social networks (Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.) to display on one account so that you can view & maintain all of them in one central place. It also shortens URLs and allows you to manage several Twitter accounts.

MediaFunnel is a good option for companies whose employees tweet regularly on its behalf. The site has a feature that lets an administrator review posts & maintain editorial control–and allows you to schedule tweets & manage other social media, along with managing keyword alerts and brand monitoring. There’s also a feature that lets others post to your feed through email or text messaging. MediaFunnel can also be integrated with Salesforce and Zendesk.

Twaitter’s good if you want to get your “social butterfly” on and keep up with fellow Tweeple’s happenings, events, etc. The service lets you set up #FollowFriday posts throughout the week so you don’t forget to share with others on that day, along with birthday reminders. You can also participate in scheduled Twitter conversations even if you have a time conflict involving an important client meeting. Also cool: The capability to for mass scheduling—and setting recurring tweets to run daily, weekly, monthly or annually.

Those are just some of the cool, free options that let you set a tweet ‘n forget it!