Marketing Strategy Experts

Psst, hey you. Yes, you. Did you know there is a phenomenon that is affecting entrepreneurs from all sizes of companies? Yes, it is true. It’s called Inability to Ask for Testimonials Syndrome. If this affects you, never fear because the testimonial machine is here!

Here’s a quick formula you can use to create a questionnaire to give to your clients to quickly and easily extract testimonial gold.

1. Please share with us how you would describe your company to a person you don’t know. Example: We have a large manufacturing company with four locations.
2. Please share the problem you had when you first began working with us and what your thoughts were about this problem. Example: Our sales were at a standstill, and we didn’t know what to do. We weren’t even sure who to call.
3. What result have you experienced from working with us? (Please be specific if you would like). Example: Our sales have increased 22 percent in only six months.
4. What would you tell others about working with us? Example: If your sales are down and you want to increase them without adding a bunch of ‘stuff’ to the mix, then you need to call right away.

My experience tells me that people who love you want to help you. They will sing your praises to the mountaintops, they will refer, they will tell others how amazing you are, and with all of this, they will usually rarely give you a written testimonial unless it is solicited? Why? My hunch is that it goes back somewhere around second grade when everyone started to think that they couldn’t write. Regardless of the origin, this template can help you capture more testimonials and will help your clients give you one that really speaks to the hearts of your prospects!

For years I’ve sourced printing for clients. Usually, no matter where they are in the world (yes, we have international clients), the company has a printer relationship that works great for the day-to-day needs for stationery, forms and such. It gets a little trickier when need a short-run of post cards or flyers for an event. We’ve been working with PrintingForLess.com for more than six years and find they are really great to work with. You’ll need to plan ahead because total turnaround for a job is about two weeks, but it sure beats the cost of a local digital printer (usually) and since this is offset printing, you can get four-color printing for about what you would pay for two-color at a local source.

The site is super easy to navigate and no matter what time it is or where you are in the world, you can get a print quote in a matter of minutes!

Mention us, and get 20% off of your first order of brochures! Code NC20PB

Ever wish there was an easier way to jot a note down while those amazing thoughts, ideas and brain flashes that come while you are driving down the road?

Good news – there is! It’s Jott.com and, guess what? It’s free (for now). This is a great little tool for those of you who call and leave yourself messages you don’t want to forget.

Get Jott.com and see your voice messages turn into text messages delivered straight to your email box!

Ever think of writing a book? I’ve dreamt of writing books my whole life. For whatever reason, I kept thinking of it as a ‘one day’ item. Sure, I’ve written lots of short stories, articles and everything else in between for years (I even won a contest once!). But, it wasn’t until this past June that I seriously considered REALLY doing it. That’s when I met Gail Richards, creator of AuthorSmart.com – just one of an amazing panel of people dedicated to helping people get their dream books out to the world.

Gail puts out a nifty newsletter chock-full of great ideas. I just love how her creative mind works. This week’s newsletter had this great article – Branding Outside the Box (sign up for her newsletter for more great ideas). Use these great ideas for your business, new product, upcoming holidays – get jiggy with it!

Branding Outside of the Box

By Gail Richards, Creator of AuthorSmart.com

Here are some out-of-the-ordinary ways you can put your branding or book cover out into the world to get noticed:
CafePress.com lets you put your branding on a wide variety of items. The best part: you can order one or 100 and order as you need them, no inventory, no risk.You can even create merchandise and link to a shop from your website.

PhotoStamps.com  · Put your postage to work for you. For slightly more than the cost of a regular stamp, you can put your own artwork or branding on your mail. Click on the graphic below for more info.

Totally Chocolate · Need I say more?
Jones Soda · This is my personal favorite. This company’s labels are already fantastic—each emblazoned with a photo submitted by a fan. Why not customize your own Jones Soda bottle labels with your book cover?

I always love to connect clients to great resources. There’s no greater resource than www.marketingbestpractices.com. It’s chock-full of great ideas, advice and how-tos. David Frey is a great person, all-around good guy, and expert marketer.

He’s running a complimentary special right now for his super popular site, which he has just converted to a membership model. If you go there now, you can get a membership for FR*EE.

I don’t make a dime from Dave, this is all for you to tap into more advice than you could implement in a year!

What’s 23 years old and read all over? Justine Ezarik, that’s who. Who is Justine Ezarik you may be asking. She’s a dynamic Internet “it” girl who made her debut far and wide with her 300-page iPhone bill. She is also one of the hottest bloggers on the web and her blog – tastyblogsnack.com – is moving her popularity far and wide.

So why do I want you to know Justine? Simple. It’s because blogging is here to stay, I know you’ve got something to say, and finding your unique way to speak to those looking for you is the way (to total marketing dominance)!

The point is that not everyone is a writer. Some of us are talkers. Some of us are performers, and some of us speak in our own combined language of these. Find your way, get your blog and git going. It only takes about 10 minutes a day!

Justine is a great example of one girl who is letting her voice flow and though by all accounts she is a drop-dead-gorgeous example, there are many others out there who aren’t and have lots of people tuning into to see what they have to say, too.

Make your mark – and check in often to see what tips iJustine has to share with you!