Offer Coupons and Deals to New Customers With BeFrugal

Offer Coupons and Deals to New Customers With BeFrugal
What Did We Learn From Black Friday And Cyber Monday?
Content Marketing Trends to Adopt in 2013
Evernote Business: Know What Your Team Knows
Bloomberg Mulls LinkedIn Purchase

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 01:00 PM PST

With the holiday shopping season in full swing, many small businesses are searching for ways to make themselves stand out from the competition. Online startups have offered a lot of new ways for retailers to get the word out about their products, and one of those startups is BeFrugal.

BeFrugal

BeFrugal gives businesses the opportunity to create coupons and other offers to promote their products and draw in new customers. In recent months, the site has offered some new features that could be useful to online merchants, such as store alerts that update customers when their favorite merchants post new offers, along with a "guaranteed savings program" that ensures customers are getting the best rates and deals so that they'll be more likely to actually take advantage of them.

Becoming a verified merchant on BeFrugal allows businesses to upload up to 20 coupons, in addition to other benefits like custom logos and descriptions, banner ads, and store listings in up to five categories on the site. Signing up as a merchant is free and BeFrugal has more than 250,000 visitors per month.

The photo above shows a weekly ad page, where customers can view current sales and deals and sign up for updates via email or social media.

BeFrugal also has a Facebook application that allows businesses to add a custom tab on their Facebook page that updates with coupons and offers in real time.

Other sites such as RetailMeNot offer similar opportunities for businesses to alert customers to sales, coupons, and other deals. Although this is not the only site to offer this type of service to online merchants, every promotional avenue can be valuable for small businesses trying to compete with the bigger players in today's economy.

The site also recently launched a small business section, with offers and coupons from merchants that can help save money on business expenses such as office supplies and transportation.

BeFrugal was originally founded in 2009. The team of 20 is based in Boston.

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What Did We Learn From Black Friday And Cyber Monday?

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 11:00 AM PST

Black Friday shoppers are inspired to spend and motivated to dig for the deals. The truly committed, hit the highways with empty vehicles and come back with a heavy load and a happy shopping cart — I mean heart. Now, who wouldn't want a customer with an enthusiastic wallet in their store on Black Friday or on their website on Cyber Monday?

Thank goodness for Small Business Saturday, the heavily promoted day between Black Friday and Cyber Monday. It's just a beautiful weekend of shoppers.

But did you make the most of it? And what can we learn from this year’s holiday season to make the most of it next year?

In a recent article, Small Businesses Hit It Big With Cyber Monday, for USA Today, Oliver St. John, stated:

"While small businesses have trouble steering Black Friday shoppers out of the malls and into their stores, they're only a click away online during Cyber Monday."

He went on to highlight how social media promotions helped level the playing field for many smaller companies.

After watching some of my favorite spots make the most of the weekend and others failing to get involved at all, I'm thinking since people are ready to spend during that time, give them a reason to spend with you.

Map out your next Black Friday strategy – today.

When Does Black Friday Really Begin?

It starts when you say it starts. In an interview with Aaron Task for The Daily Ticker Lindsay Sakraida, Director of DealNews.com, exposes the Top Black Friday Myths, including the fact that many sales actually begin before Black Friday.

Regardless of the type of business you run, give yourself a chance to become a part of their holiday spending. Offer your black Friday goods or service-packages early. Let your clients know via email, your website and social pages that you have something to offer, but make it time sensitive. If you start early, then your can make your small business sales before your shoppers and their wallets head to the mall on Friday.

Why Should Your Clients Spend With You Right Now?

People need an incentive to act now. For the best impact your sale needs to be irresistible and restricted.

Depending on your business model you can limit the amount of time that the product is available. Like Disney, after Cyber Monday or Black Friday or Small Business Saturday, your holiday product goes back into the "vault" or the sales price goes away forever or for a really long time — but keep your word on this. You can restrict the number of items or service-packages that are available at that price.

The possibility of selling out is a motivator.

What's The Real Secret To Black Friday?

Just because you have a product or service to sale does not mean your target audience will automatically spend money with you. Black Friday is not a magic pill. You have to market. Let your people know what's going on:

"We're having a Black Friday sale and it begins on Wednesday."

Then describe what you have to offer, the price and when their access to this product, service or price point ends. Give them a reason to drop by your place of business and shop on your website (before they go to the mall).

Black Friday Photo via Shutterstock

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Content Marketing Trends to Adopt in 2013

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 08:00 AM PST

The end of the year is quickly approaching, and before long 2012 will be behind us. Sure, there is a lot of talk about the end of the world coming in December. But I think it is safe to assume that most of us believe we will be ringing in the new year as usual, and going about our lives in 2013.

Work isn’t going to be stopping any time soon, so it is better to keep ahead of the game and get prepared now.

Already we are seeing certain content marketing trends that are turning heads and building a buzz. Content marketing is changing like it always does, and there are a couple of methods that will obviously be building steam over the next twelve months. Trends that you should be doing everything you can to follow and utilize early.

Trends That Are Still Going To Be True In 2013

Mobile Content

content marketing

When was the last time you came across a phone without at least basic mobile web capabilities? It is a rarity, and a survey conducted by Nielsen found that the number of people who own smart phones has increased dramatically in just the past year alone. Nearly 50% of mobile phone users own a model of the smart phone variety!

Another study, conducted by Google and written about by Mobile Sales head Jason Spero showed that one billion people would be using their mobile phones as their primary internet source by the end of the year. A prediction that isn’t difficult to believe, when viewed in combination with the Nielsen report.

The consequence to companies and websites that are not converting their content to mobile-friendly formats will be severe. Just think of how much potential visibility you could be using if the estimation of a billion mobile web users is really correct.

Video Content

content marketing

For those looking to create viral content (which I would assume is all of us), there is no better medium than video. Highly shareable, eye-grabbing and effective, you don’t have to look far to find clips that have become incredibly successful. Including from businesses, who have been able to generate a lot of visibility from even a single ad.

Even if it is only a rehashing of old content, or making something incredibly low budget, it is worth it. If something shot on a cellphone can go viral, then something you make for a little petty cash can, as well.

Content Curation

With so many channels to serve, collecting and promoting brand-relevant content is not an easy task. It has always been the general rule with social media marketing that you want to share as much of your own content as possible.

While there are some fan pages on Facebook or Twitter accounts dedicated to sharing only third party links and acting as a hub for a cause or purpose, most of us are more concerned with direct B2C marketing.

That being said, content curation is becoming increasingly more relevant to a modern marketing strategy. For those who don’t know, curation is when you:

“. . .collect and catalogue only the most interesting things about a subject so to share it for the common benefit.“

While it doesn’t replace your own content, it is an effective means of engaging your customers and inviting their attention.

It is also a potential way to catch the eye of their friends lists, as consumers share the links with others on their own social media pages.

Most Recently “Hot” Content Marketing Trends

AuthorRank

AuthorRank is nothing new. In fact, search marketers have been discussing it for years. However now that Google is talking more about AuthorRank and bloggers pick the topic up discussing the AgentRank patent, more and more focus will be put on personal author brands.

To make sure you are not missing out, here are a few content marketing tactics to start implementing in 2013:

Identify and promote talented authors within your company;
Make use of rel=”author” markup and Google Plus authorship information
Identify most powerful authors in your niche and start building relationships with them now (here are few tips to approach journalists and authors using)

Content Marketing is for Everyone

content marketing

Content has won. It has proved to be the most reliable and effective way to ensure stable web presence. Nowadays more and more industries realize the power of content. There are no boring niches that cannot produce generally popular content.

Today a plumber can maintain a great blog. Content marketing campaigns have become more creative while the scope is getting broader.

Content Re-Purposing

content marketing

With content streams becoming multiple and content formats getting diverse, constantly providing great content to serve all available channels is hard. That’s where content format “re-purposing” comes into play. Via re-purposing you can use the existing research or stats data to create various formats of killer content: an article, a video, an inforgraphic and possibly a quiz, contest or other interactive mash-up.

Every piece of content can thus be promoted through a unique channel providing additional exposure.

Conclusion

Over the next couple of months you will definitely be seeing instances of the trends above growing and spreading. Not only that, but they have actually been gaining momentum for years, continuing on into the next year and bringing many benefits to those who jump on board.

That alone should be enough to convince you that watching these content marketing trends is a good idea.

Image Credits: 1, 2, 3, 4

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Evernote Business: Know What Your Team Knows

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 06:00 AM PST

Earlier this fall, SmallBizTrends writer Annie Pilon got us excited about a new business version of Evernote that was said to be on its way to business owners. Well, during last week's Le Web conference, business owners received their holiday gift just a little bit early when the new business-focused app was unveiled to the public.

Evernote Business is designed to help small- and medium-sized businesses take advantage of their internal knowledgebase by giving them the tools they need to collect, discover, collaborate, search for, and share ideas within their organization for a more productive environment. The new Business version of Evernote makes use of the features free and premium users already loved, while adding a suite of business-only tools and capabilities including:

Smart Data Ownership: In Evernote Business, organizations have the right to access, use, manage and modify any Business Notebook and its contents. All Personal Notebooks and their contents remain completely private and controlled by the user who created them. Users fully retain the rights to their Personal Notebooks and Personal Notes, which cannot be accessed by the business in any way.

Simple User & Data Management: With the Evernote Business Admin Console, Admins can invite new users and manage existing users, as well as view and manage all of the Business Notebooks created by members of their organization, all in one place.

Companywide Business Library: Every Evernote Business account includes a Business Library, which is a collection of Business Notebooks that are available to all team members. The Business Library is the place where employees can share, discover and leverage the collected knowledge of their colleagues.

Simplified Billing: Pay as you go monthly by credit card, or pay for a whole year by credit card or invoice. Your company can easily increase or decrease the number of users at any time by contacting our Customer Success Team, ensuring that your Evernote Business account always meets the needs of your organization.

Store Everything, Access it Everywhere: Use Evernote to capture everything important to your business in a single place, including notes, research, presentations, documents, and more. You can even save entire webpages with the Evernote Web Clipper. Evernote works on smartphones, computers, tablets and via the Web, so everything your company captures can always be accessed in the office and on the go.

Knowledge Discovery & Continuity: Explore and discover the collective knowledge of your entire organization. Whether users browse the Business Library, use Evernote’s powerful search, or discover relevant content with our Related Notes features, Evernote Business makes any workplace effortlessly productive.

As both a former business owner and someone who manages multiple teams, I'm most drawn to the Business Library, which becomes a central repository for company information. Anyone in your organization is able to create Notebooks and add to them so that they're searchable to anyone in your organization. Over time, the amount of information that would rest here could become a huge hub for your business. Whether it's a human resource-type knowledge bank, a client-specific notebook documenting all work from all teams, or notebooks about company goals or milestones, aggregating the information into one collaborative environment and making it searchable will benefit many organizations.

Think of how many documents get lost in your organization. Or how useful it would be to find out a coworker solved the issue you're facing weeks ago. The best part is Evernote gives you this information without you even needing to know the information exists. You start working on your Notebook and Evernote will find information it feels is relevant to what you're doing. It does the work for you.

Another feature I like is the ability for users to maintain and leverage personal notebooks, without making them sharable to the whole organization. Performing a search in Evernote will give users access to everything they've created + everything the business has created. This is a great way to increase efficiency, while not sacrificing privacy to do it.

Of course, there are also potential problems with Evernote Business…

In order for your organization to really benefit for Evernote Business there needs to be a clear understanding of how Notepads and information are to be tagged and what the process is for creating them. Without that, it's easy to see how a team of users entering in their own information in their own way could quickly become a bit of a mess and something that is hard to navigate and understand. However, if you're able to get everyone on the same page and using Evernote for Business the same way, it could replace many of the Google Apps that business owners rely on.

What do you think of the new Evernote app? At $10 a month per user, is there a place for it in your business?

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Bloomberg Mulls LinkedIn Purchase

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 02:30 AM PST

Though many commentators insist it is not a realistic goal, business information company Bloomberg LP is reportedly considering the possibility of acquiring a major Web property like LinkedIn. Growing a business through acquisition of other businesses or expansion can be one of the most important tests of effective leadership. Today we’ll look at what goes into these decisions and more about the importance of leadership in your organization. Take a look:

Getting LinkedIn

Rumor has it. Whether acquisition of LinkedIn is just a pipe dream or is actually being considered in the Bloomberg camp, the reality is that such a purchase would represent something completely different for the multimillion dollar business network Michael Bloomberg has built thus far. LinkedIn is a full-blown social networking site with a giant non-paying user base rather than a subscription-based service for business leaders like Bloomberg. The question every business owner must ask when expanding is whether the new direction they choose fits their vision. Seeking Alpha

Decisions, decisions. In Bloomberg’s case, many would argue it does not. Start with the incredible expense of purchasing a company like LinkedIn (even with Bloomberg’s considerable resources), move on to what some see as an incompatible business model, and finish off with the differences between Bloomberg’s and LinkedIn’s core technologies, and columnist George Anders believes you won’t have a winning combination. When looking at expansion, all business owners must decide if it makes sense. Forbes

Expansion 101

Plan it all out. Like any other major move your business makes, expansion needs a good business plan to succeed. Here Leslie Truex suggests creating a document mapping out a company’s history, successes, and accomplishments. The plan should also include your company’s existing equipment, facilities, and personnel, and look at what new tools, facilities, etc. will be needed for expansion. The plan will start giving you an idea of where you are, where you hope to be, and the potential costs and benefits. The Houston Chronicle

Invest in human capital. No matter what the size of your company (whether you operate as a solopreneur with just one employee or a company with many), developing human capital can be a hugely important aspect of expanding your business and your company’s capabilities, says blogger Jenny Bhatt. This means investing in knowledge, networking, experience, and even healthcare to keep your company growing, even if your only human capital is you. Free Agent Economics

Never give up on your dreams. No matter where your business expansion takes your company, a question you must ask yourself is whether the new direction fits in with the reason you started your business in the first place. Hopefully your company is more than simply a means to an end. It is the fulfillment of a dream. And dreams, says training manager Shola Richards, are something we must never leave behind, no matter what the opportunity. Cubepiphany

Leadership Learning Curve

Be ready to refurbish your brand. Business expansion will require some changes to the way you do things, and if you are acquiring a new business, some changes to the way that company does things too. After making some adjustments, you may need to refurbish your company’s brand or the brand of a new company you’ve acquired. Diana Pohly makes some suggestions using a different example; Ford Motor Company’s efforts to resurrect its Lincoln brand. Here are some lessons about repositioning or reestablishing your brand in a changing market. Step By Step Marketing

Learn leadership from a zombie TV show. And speaking of bringing things back from the dead…Your expansion will require great leadership skills, just like running your business does. But don’t waste your money on a bunch of how-to books on leadership to brush up. Believe it or not, Gary Shouldis insists, you can learn everything you need to know about leadership from this show about zombies who have come back from the dead, and the humans who must fight to survive in their world. Enjoy! The Small Business Playbook

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