I can change the world!
One famous advertising guru said, "People don't really need you. They don't need your products or services. Real success in business is being able to sell to customers DESPITE not being needed."
If that sounds cynical, it may also be the truth.
But hey, it does not mean you should pack your stuff and go home! What's great about business is that if you believe in your services and product ("I can change the world!"), you can become an evangelist of your cause. If you care about your customers, then you will become a recognized expert in your industry. Expertise builds confidence. Confidence builds votes. And votes are transformed from being unnecessary to something customers can't live without. Not only will they need you; they will also WANT your product or service. Now that's something to cheer us up!
***
The power of wall posting
Wall posting is visibility. I remember back when I was in fourth grade, my English teacher had a project called The Wall. On the wall, if you had the best handwriting, best poem, or best essay, your work would be posted on the wall for everybody to see. Wow, what a source of pride! My papers had been tacked on the wall so many times. Since then, people at school have known me for my writings.
Wouldn't it be cool if your business came up with something similar to The Wall project? Post pictures of great employees, most frequent visitors, or announcements that boost business. In some places, they even do it in public laundromats as a way for many singles in the area to meet. People like checking out things posted on the wall. Take advantage of it.
***
Curiosity, dead squirrels and new clients
In one of my online profiles, I had a motto that said "Curiosity killed the squirrel." Yikes! I just realized that so many more squirrels get killed on the road than cats, but I'm guessing it's really not because they are curious, but indecisive. So maybe a better motto would be "Indecision killed the squirrel!"
Plenty of businesses capitalize on the powerful natural instinct of human curiosity. But curiosity shouldn't equate to being (metaphorically) squashed on the road. Instead, it should be a means to gain new contacts (networking style). New contacts may mean new business. If you send some people something like brainteasers, puzzles, or anything interesting, they will respond and inquire. Fact it, we have earned new friends and clients with this marketing technique. If you haven't tried it for yourself, now is the time to do so.
***
You can never have too much information
One of the most understated but useful techniques in creating web content is research. Little do customers and even business owners know, too little or too much information can be a pain. For example, one of our latest gigs was to create content for a fashion website. However, the owner did not care to provide information on basic stuff to put on About Us and FAQs. We had to practically drill him. If the project requires a certain number of words per page and there was no information provided from the business owner, we have to do our research and be creative.
Now the fun part. Here are a few techniques/shortcuts here that I've used when researching for content:
1. When somebody called and you missed it but the other party didn't leave a message, try the Reverse Phone Lookup of whitepages.com. Chances are you'll find the owner of the phone number listed.
2. Search all the major engines. Unfortunately, I just found out a while ago that whatever you find on Yahoo will also show up exactly on Bing.
3. Forum posts. When you're researching, don't just look into articles that show up on Google search results. Read forum posts as well. They actually provide more in-depth and reliable information regarding the topic. I've fixed a virus in my computer by reading a forum about people who were looking for the same solution.
4. Yelp. Better than the BBB, you can find more detailed information about whether a business is reliable or not. Yelp.com is where people express their opinions about establishments they visited. Of course, the opinions are mixed, but it's up to you to weigh them.
5. Ctrl+F. What's simpler than using this shortcut when looking for a keyword in a document? I've passed so many exams using this. I didn't need to read the whole page but using the Find function I can zero in on what I need to know. Also, if you're looking through a whole pile of names NOT listed alphabetically, try typing the initial in the Find box and press Enter repeatedly until you find it. Smart, eh?
