Sunday, April 14, 2013

Shake Things Up With These Small Business Events and Awards

Shake Things Up With These Small Business Events and Awards

Link to Small Business Trends

Shake Things Up With These Small Business Events and Awards

Posted: 13 Apr 2013 03:30 PM PDT

Welcome to our latest curated list of events, contests and awards for small businesses, solo entrepreneurs and growing companies. To see a full list or to submit your own event, contest or award listing, visit the Small Business Events Calendar.

Featured Events, Contests and Awards

Affiliate Management DaysAffiliate Management Days
April 16, 2013, San Francisco, CA

Whether your company already offers an affiliate program, or you are considering offering an affiliate program, Affiliate Management Days offers insights into how other online retailers are successfully implementing and managing their affiliate programs. Learn about: affiliate recruitment techniques, communication with affiliates, affiliate analytics, landing page and conversion optimization, legislative issues, and mobile affiliate marketing. Twitter hashtag: #AMDays
Discount Code
SBTAM250 (Get $250 off)

2013 Content Marketing Strategies Conference2013 Content Marketing Strategies Conference
May 07, 2013, Berkeley, CA

Marketing and PR professionals from companies of all sizes will gather at the 3rd annual Content Marketing Strategies Conference, hosted by dlvr.it and Business Wire, to gain practical “how to” advice on content marketing SEO, content distribution optimization, content ROI, and learn from case studies by brands including Red Hat, New Belgium Brewing, FOX’s hit show Glee and much more.

Local University - New OrleansLocal University – New Orleans
May 07, 2013, New Orleans, LA

A half-day search marketing conference educating small businesses about local search. Local University is a training program that travels to cities around the country. The New Orleans event is provided by the local-search practitioner experts, under the support of Google, Search Influence, The New Orleans Chamber of Commerce, Greater New Orleans, Inc. and Nokia.
Discount Code
NOLAEARLY ($40 Off)

Access to Capital ChicagoAccess to Capital Chicago
May 22, 2013, Chicago, Illinois

Join us at the Navy Pier to learn how you can raise capital for your small business. Meet 1:1 with loan officers. Attend panels on traditional and alternative lending options, start-ups, crowd-funding, and more.
Discount Code
sbtrends (Get 30% off)

More Events

More Contests and Awards

This weekly listing of small business events, contests and awards is provided as a community service by Small Business Trends and SmallBizTechnology.

The post Shake Things Up With These Small Business Events and Awards appeared first on Small Business Trends.

Small Business News Stories in Perspective – Week of April 12

Posted: 13 Apr 2013 12:01 PM PDT

Here is a recap of key stories and developments this week in small business news … in case you missed them.

Much of the small business news involves economic and policy issues.  Big picture issues like Saturday mail delivery not going away after all, the Federal budget, and the use (or misuse) of taxpayer funds were the biggest headlines.

The news in social media, commerce and online marketing was relatively light this week. LinkedIn introduced streamlined search, and the world is still digesting the news about Facebook Home.

More detail is below, as the Small Business Trends Editorial Team puts it all in perspective:

government

Small Business Operations

Economy, Taxes and Lending

Social Media

Technology, Commerce and Online  Marketing

The post Small Business News Stories in Perspective – Week of April 12 appeared first on Small Business Trends.

Read “Can’t Buy Me Like” for Insights About The Relationship Era

Posted: 13 Apr 2013 06:00 AM PDT

Can't Buy Me Like bookIs it really possible that more people love Satan than Dow Chemical? Well, according to the trusty Google search conducted by Bob Garfield and Doug Levy – yes. When you type in the words "I love Satan" you get 293,000 hits, and when you type in "I love Dow Chemical" you get just 3.

And so begins “Can’t Buy Me Like: How Authentic Customer Connections Drive Superior Results.”  The book is a tale of what it takes to woo customers these days.  The narrative is skillfully woven by Bob Garfield (@onthemedia), Host of NPR's “On the Media” and Doug Levy (@douglevy1), the Founder of CEO of MEplusYOU, a leading strategic and creative agency that believes authentic relationships fuel astonishing brands.

I received a review copy of this book just this week and couldn't wait to tell you about it as soon as I finished reading it. I think it contains vital mind-shifting information for every business; large and small.

Top Down Telling and Convincing is Dead 

According to the authors, we're evolving into the relationship era. If you remember any marketing class you've ever had or marketing book you've ever read, you'll recall this timeline:

  • Marketers define their history as beginning in the 17th century with the "Product Era" which stayed with us into the 1950's.
  • Then there was the "Consumer Era" which started around 1965 and ran up until "five minutes ago" (according to Garfield and Levy). This was a time where large brands thrived by simply finding out what consumers wanted and then giving it to them.
  • “Cant' Buy Me Like” is all about the next step in marketing – "The Relationship Era." This book outlines exactly how this era has disrupted business as usual. This is a time where human needs, human values and human connections will define your success or failure. The currency of "Relationship Era Marketing" is not awareness; it's belief.

Discover How Successful Companies Are Measured 

It's not enough to say that things are changing. You already know that. What “Can't Buy Me Like” does is get to the root of what triggered the change. It’s also about why you need to have a firm grasp of these events so that you can make the necessary changes and run your business better.

You may be tempted to write all of this off as a passing fad or some kind of social media-driven drivel. This would be a huge mistake. The concepts of "authenticity" and "customer connections" may have started out that way, but they have become the DNA of successful and profitable businesses.

The book goes into detail of companies that were simply going through the motions of top-down marketing campaigns. Example: McDonald's — it created a mess by asking for authentic customer stories without building the required trust and engagement from their customers to pull it off. Or United Airlines — it destroyed 25 years and billions of dollars of Gershwin ads when over 12 million people viewed the "United Breaks Guitars" YouTube video from a dissatisfied customer.

The lessons in this book are clear and lasting.  You have to pay to play in today's likeability arena. And paying means paying attention.  It means paying attention to the core values of your company and actually living those values beyond the posters and ads that you put out in the marketplace.

You'll read about how companies that have put their values where their ad dollars are have come to reap the rewards:

  • Patagonia earned credibility with their "Don't Buy This Jacket" campaign. That campaign explained their company's commitment to their "Common Threads Initiative" and urged their customers to be conscious consumers.
  • Panera Bread doubled their per store sales by focusing on creating a welcoming environment. At the same time Panera spends just 1% of sales on advertising. (I know what they mean, I prefer Panera to Starbucks simply because there is free wifi and they don't blast distracting music.)
  • P&F's Secret Antiperspirant grew by simply rallying behind the idea of female fearlessness.

What Will “Can't Buy Me Like” Do for Your Business?

If you get anything from this book, it's that the days of "corporate speak" and top-down message control are over. The good news here is that this frees you up to really build a profitable business around your true commitments and the reasons that you started your business in the first place.

When I talk to my clients, I often have the impression that they think they have to be "professional" and they have to do things "the right way." It finally dawned on me, after reading this book. Much of that mindset comes from the now obsolete ways of top-down marketing.

I've been telling everyone who will listen that your marketing has to be a true reflection of who you are and what you are committed to. When you try to put a face on your brand that is anything less than that, you will either go broke trying or fail.

If you've been looking for the right way to inject your true values and personality into your marketing, then you have to read “Can't Buy Me Like.” You'll walk away with a whole new outlook and future for the life of your business, and for the business of your life.

The post Read “Can’t Buy Me Like” for Insights About The Relationship Era appeared first on Small Business Trends.
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