Retiring This Blog

After 6 years of bringing you small businesses Internet marketing tips and the latest small business trends, I'm officially retiring this blog.

Many of you have been faithful readers for years, and for that, I thank you. 

It's time to move my efforts into other areas of my business. I will still occasionally share tips with those of you who are on my email list. And I will continue to share my tips on Facebook. If you'd like to stay in the loop and continue to get tips, LIKE my Internet Marketing page here: https://www.facebook.com/BonelliEnterprises

To see the other things I'm up to these days, and to stay up on what I'm doing next :-), visit my main Web site: http://bonellienterprisesllc.com/
There you'll find several different ways to LIKE or FOLLOW me!

Thanks again for your readership and for sharing it with your associates.

Happy Holidays and Buon Natale!
Ciao, Paula

2 Quick Marketing Tactics

Small Biz Marketing Tips
source: office.microsoft.com

 These tips are excerpted from a recent article in Web Marketing Today. I find that many of my small business clients don't do them at all or don't do them consistently.

1. Get Email Addresses - give something small in return for a customer sharing their email address with you people. People get lots of emails and many won't give out  their email address unless they feel they will get something of value in return.
2. Ask for Reviews - testimonials had a part in the marketing role. Today they take on the form of online reviews. Ask for reviews by email, newsletter, your Website, your social media platform, or by a printed sign at your place of business.

Here are some other often overlooked tactics you might try --

• Put links in your email signature to your Web address and any social sharing sites like LinkedIn, Facebook or  Google+.
•  If you have a storefront, put a sign with your Web address near the checkout.
• Many people have smartphones with them at all times. Place QR codes in your place of business with links to special offers, your Website or social sharing site(s). Create QR Codes free here.
• First impressions count on the phone or in person. Make sure all employees know where you are on the Web and how to encourage sign-ups to your mailing list, etc.
• Offline achievements add a trust factor. Don't be shy about letting your customers know about honors or awards by displaying them in store and online.
• Probably the most important -- provide consistent information across all platforms.

How to Schedule Posts on Facebook

source: office.com

This, also from the blog archives of AWeber, provides instruction for how to schedule your posts to Facebook. Finally!

I know many of you have been using 3rd party apps for this, like TweetDeck or HootSuite, and they still work great. Now Facebook has added scheduling and targeting to Page's functionality.

Read the full blog post at AWeber for a quick, visual walk-through of how to do this so you can work smarter, not harder. :-)

Ciao for now,
Paula

Holiday Email Marketing

Holiday Email Marketing

2011 in Review 

(This is part of an email opt-in series. See graphic in detail and 
get the rest of the Holiday Email Marketing tips from AWeber)

Data and infographic by AWeber Email Marketing

Create More Email Leads

In a recent blog post, AWeber gives us 5 ways startups (or any biz) can create more email leads.

source: office.com

1) Integrate email into your offering
2) Provide informative resources to your readers
3) Promote your resources
4) Invite a guest to post to your blog
5) Use your blog real estate wisely

Get the details for each point above by reading the full article here.

Using Video in Your Business

Are you using video in your business?

Since most of my small business clients sell something, whether it's products or services, I thought I'd share some quick video stats with you that are hard to ignore from Invodo.com.

Using video for business

This is how video is being consumed by your customers:

• 52% of consumers say that watching product videos makes them more confident in their online purchases; 85% are more likely to buy
• 3 out of 5 consumers will spend at least 2 minutes watching a video that educates them about something they are planning to purchase
• Videos appear in 70% of the top 100 search engine listings
• Video views increase time on site as well as conversions/sales
• Online video is the fastest growing ad format in 2012

As you think about adding or optimizing pages of your website, why not include video? It doesn't have to be professionally made. Most point-and-shoot cameras, phones and laptops have perfectly suitable cameras for shooting a quick video.

For most small businesses, creating a YouTube account and uploading your videos will be the simplest solution. There are many easy-to-use features within YouTube that allow you to edit the video, add music and optimize it for search.

Before you get started, read these 4 tips for optimizing your videos to increase views and sales from ReelSEO.

Start experimenting and tracking your results. If you get stuck, contact me. I'm experienced in using YouTube and I can help you upload and optimize your videos.

I'd love to hear how video has impacted your business. Share your comments below, now or after you try it.

Ciao for now,
Paula

Is Your Business Real?

No matter what type of business you have, are you taking it seriously?    

Here's a few tips from David Bullock for knowing if you have a real business or simply an income opportunity (hobby):

image courtesy Microsoft.com

• A business has its own clients/customers
• A business is not dependent on one channel for traffic
• A business can be sold later
• A business can run without me
• A business needs people working it (whether you call them employees, contractors, outsourced vendors, etc.)
• A business needs infrastructure (financial, marketing, customer systems, etc.)
• A business has "flow", a way to sustain a level of income
• A business is scalable

 If what you are doing does not fit with the statements above, then you don't have a business.

If you want a real business, focus on connecting with people and learn what they want from you. Then provide it.

Use the Internet as a vehicle to connect with these people. David says, "do things that are beyond business as usual." Find ways to create meaningful connections with people to grow your business and keep it moving forward.

Web pages: Tunnel Vision

This information from Jakob Neilsen shows how users interact with the information on Web pages "Users don't see stuff that's right on the screen. Selective attention makes people overlook things outside their focus of interest."

web image courtesy of Microsoft.com

He goes on to say, "...Selective attention is really a survival instinct; if people had to pay attention to all stimuli in the environment, they'd never get anything done. They are also more likely to overlook something important...It's only human: focus on a few things and ignore the rest."

The most important information often gets overlooked.; focus on it when analyzing the layout of your page(s) and test your pages with real users.

If you're redesigning your site or just a page or two, get some real users and test it before taking it live. And read his entire article on the subject here:
Tunnel Vision and Selective Attention (Jakob Nielsen's Alertbox)

Increase Revenue by Using Your Website

Listen up all you small, local businesses! I've been telling you (my small business clients) this for years, but it is falling on deaf ears so it bears repeating.

Your Web site is a great marketing tool/channel. It isn't simply an online brochure. You must use it as a marketing channel and treat it like any other marketing effort by tracking the return on your investment (ROI). You must also be fervent about constantly improving it. It will cost you far more money to guess than it will to actually know what's working.

Your Web site is open 24/7. You're not limited to retail hours. If you don't already sell from it, consider what you could sell online. It doesn't have to be every product you have, just something that you feel is easily sold online. This will allow you to work smarter, not harder [hmmm....where have you heard that before? :-)] and to increase sales with little extra effort.

A BIG plus to adding eCommerce to your Website? It increases your revenue AND it makes your business more saleable!

Here's 10 things you'll want to track:

• number of sales (orders, leads, phone calls, etc.)
• number of unique visitors (all visits except repeat customers)
• conversion rates (traffic divided by sales)
• traffic from search queries (people using a search engine from their desktop or mobile device)
• direct traffic (they already know your Web address and type it directly into their browser)
• visitor loyalty (are your customers returning to your site and buying again?)
• traffic from social media sources (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn - anywhere you have a social profile)
• traffic from email newsletters (Please tell me you're building an email list and communicating regularly with your customers.)
• traffic from offline marketing campaigns (radio, TV, newspaper, etc.)
• traffic generated for online advertising (paid online advertising like Google AdWords or Bing adCenter)

Most of the areas listed above can be tracked by setting up a free Google Analytics account and connecting your Website URL (Web address) to the account.

If you would like assistance setting up and monitoring the data, let me know. I've provided these services for many clients and I work in it daily. I can help you get set up and interpret the data.

Challenge for August:
Find 1 thing from your local business that you can sell online.

Note: It doesn't have to be costly to sell from your Website - you can do it using a simple PayPal account. In fact, you don't even NEED a Website to use PayPal to sell products.
I can help you get started!

Excellence: A Vast Wasteland?

Do you wonder what happened to people striving for excellence? Does it seem like everyone around you is apathetic or does just enough to get by?

Sometimes I feel as though no one has what it takes to stick to something, to run the race, to give a task or project their absolute best. As Jeff Haden of Inc.com put it, "The extra mile is a vast, unpopulated wasteland."

I remember a childhood saying that has stuck with me. My mother probably said it many times -- if something is worth doing, it's worth doing right -- whether it's cleaning a bathroom, waiting on a customer, answering a phone, or filling an order. It didn't matter what the task was, I was expected to do my best.

Don't be discouraged - give it your all. You may find that you are the only one there, but don't give up. It may be a lonely place, but it's filled with opportunity.

I've had the chance to manage employees. I always had a rule for myself. If I wasn't willing to do it, then I couldn't expect my employees to do it, and certainly not to do it well. 

Tips for Managers

What's different about great managers?

• They draw on an employee's strengths rather than trying to fix weaknesses.
• They select staff based on talents, over education or experience.
• They believe that every employee has the ability to make a positive contribution.

So go ahead and be different - go the extra mile - it will set you apart and make you successful. :-)
__________________________________________________________

In Facebook News:
What are promoted posts?

In May, Facebook enabled you to pay for an individual post to be seen in a fan's news feed. Your posts are only seen by a portion of your followers/firends at any given time depending on the amount of items in their news feed.  Promoted posts reach more of the people who like your Page and their friends, and are available to Pages with 400 to 100,000 likes.

In Small Biz News

Small Biz News headlines:

Ways to Measure Your Brand's Social Media Health

Why Mobile Will Dominate Future of Media and Advertising

What Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast!

Fear

Are you afraid to take a risk in business?
Do you resist good advice?

A recent post by Perry Marshall got me thinking about how we're all protective of what we've worked so hard to accomplish; to the point of being afraid to take a risk, or ignoring sound business advice from a colleague.

Or maybe your sounding board is a spouse, but you can't get them to see the "big picture" as you see it. They simply see a HUGE risk and can't understand it or get behind it.

Resisting risk is a very common problem for all of us as small business owners. But be honest with yourself - what risk or advice have you been resisting? If you don't power ahead and work through it, you'll have that unsettling feeling that will continue to gnaw at you until you resolve it.

What big decision are you putting off? Is it selling a business? Starting a new division? Attending an expensive industry seminar? Take some time away from the office and grab a notebook. Don't think too much, just start writing out all the reasons why you think this WILL work and why it's good for your business.

Then come to a conclusion - are my concerns valid and should I listen to them? Or can I find a way to make it reasonably fit into my business? If it's the latter, just do it. :-)

Ciao for now, Paula

In Small Biz News:

Combine Photos and Social Media for the Best Exposure

How to Create Real Relationships with Social Marketing - OK, so this is a no-brainer. Treat Social Media Marketing like a relationship with a friend and have real conversations with your customers.

Musings by Top eMarketers:

7 Marketing Sins by Seth Godin - common sense, really. Read the 7 Sins and be sure to take 5 minutes to watch the video - good stuff. Make something or build something people will talk about - brilliant!

How Committed are You? by Perry Marshall - relentless passion for learning and personal development.

Google+

Did you know that Google+ is already 1 year old? It launched in June 2011 and amassed more than 90 million users in 6 months.

What does this have to do with you as a business owner? In November 2011, Google+ introduced business pages, some say to compete with Facebook. Be that as it may, creating a business page may expand your footprint on the Web (your Web presence), and help customers find your business.

Here's some quick facts about Google+ business pages and my PRO, CON or SAME vote as it compares to Facebook:

1. Pages can't +1 (LIKE) other pages and they can't +1 content on the Web - CON
2. You can't receive notifications via email or text for a Page - CON
3. Pages don't have the option to share to extended Circles (FRIENDS) - CON
4. Pages can't mention you unless you're connected - PRO
5. Pages can be made for different entities; profiles can only be made for people - SAME
6. Local Pages have designated fields that help people find your business' physical location - SAME

Once you get a Page set up, the posting is very similar to Facebook. I just set up a basic page. See it here and find the link to a free guide - How to Use Google Plus For Business by Hubspot. In that guide you'll find step-by-step instructions for setting up your own page.

In other Small Biz News:

• Tools for Twitter Users (hard-core users)
• 6 Tips to Boost Your Web Presence
• Google+ merges with Google Places for Local Search

Talk to me...I've been penning this blog especially for small businesses for years now. While I have quite a few readers, I rarely hear from any of you. If you find the information I provide helpful, I'd love to know. It will help me write about things you want to know about!

I'd also like to hear about your personal experiences so that we might all learn from them.  Small businesses survive when we stick together.

Do you have questions? Ask. I'll do my best to answer them based on my experience. 

So please.....talk to me. :-)

Google Engage

Each day, people go to Google to find businesses like yours. Make sure your business shows up!

My company partners with Google to allow small business owners the opportunity to run an easy-to-create ad on Google that appears to potential customers searching your area for exactly what you offer.

If you're interested in receiving $100 in free advertising, get in touch with me and I'll mail you a coupon code with additional information from Google about how to get started. This is for new customers only with self-managed accounts.*

Don't delay...accounts must be established and coupon code applied BY JUNE 30, 2012.

*I am an AdWords specialist. Soon after you've established an account, it would be wise to consider hiring me to manage your account. I've been managing client accounts for 7 years and can optimize your campaigns to get the best ROI for your business. There is simply SO much to learn! By hiring me you'll save money by getting my experience and knowledge behind your campaigns.

P.S. If you're interested in advertising in Facebook, email me. I can establish and manage an ad campaign for you.

Tips for Starting a Business After 50

Over 50? Thinking of starting a business? You are the only one. Several big business owners like McDonald's, Kentucky Fried Chicken, and the inventor of ramen noodles all got their start well after they were 50!

Read this article for tips on getting a business started or buying an existing business.

50+ Entrepreneurs article at SBA.gov

Motivating Employees

Key points for motivating your employees by American Express' Open Forum:

• Hire people with a high level of self-motivation and convey goals of your business.
• Do little things in your work environment that shows you appreciate your employees. Not everyone is motivated by money. A small business owner in NY, Dixon Schwabl, writes encouraging post-it notes to her employees every Friday and holds ice cream Thursdays.
• Don't wait for review time to reward an employee's performance with a pay increase.
• Share sales goals and involve employees in important decisions.
• Schedule regular talk times with employees to improve communication (outside the work environment, if possible). Regular feedback is crucial.
• Don't use fear as a motivator.

In Small Biz News:

Apple's iOS 5.1.1 Update
Facebook Adds Services for Vets and Military Families
Google Sites Top Facebook on Mobile
New Barnes & Noble Subsidiary to Do Battle with Amazon and Apple e-Books

Interesting Small Biz tidbit - According to a survey from the Kauffman Foundation and Thumbtack.com, Texas, Idaho, Oklahoma and Utah are the most small business-friendly states.

5 Productivity Apps for Android

I'm in both the Android and Apple worlds when it comes to apps. When I work from my desktop, I Play (no pun intended!) in Google so I often turn to apps in the Android market that will help me be more productive.

Here are 5 free Android Productivity Apps to try:                

1.  Adobe Reader - allows you to view PDF docs. I use it to view email attachments when I'm away from my office.
2. Evernote - I've blogged about this useful app before. I use it for SO many things that I have it on all my mobile devices and my desktop.
3. Dropbox - a useful file sharing tool for photos, videos and documents.
4. Bar Code Scanner - scans bar codes for comparison shopping or special offers. Also scans QR codes you find in magazines, business cards, etc.
5. PayPal - I use this to send money and pay bills. Super fast and easy!

What apps do you find useful? Share them by leaving a comment!

Ciao for now, Paula

In Small Biz News

Top Small Business News

Facebook Buys Instagram
Facebook has just finished a deal to acquire mobile photo sharing app Instagram for approximately $1 billion in cash and stock.

6 Habits of Strategic Thinkers
You're the boss, but you still spend too much time on the day-to-day. Here's how to become the strategic leader your company needs.

 The Best of Pinterest Campaigns So Far
With Pinterest exploding over the last few months, it was only a matter of time before brands got on the bandwagon.

10 Ways Successful Entrepreneurs Beat the Odds
Did you ever wonder why some entrepreneurs always seem to have all the luck and success, while others never seem to catch a break?

 Thoughts on Being a Female Entrepreneur
It's never too late to drastically change careers, especially if your happiness is at stake.

In Small Biz News

The latest headlines in Small Biz News:

How to Protect Your Company's Data

The New Small Biz Website

Is the Health-Car Law Hurting Small Business? (video)

 Why Relationship Marketing is Important for Business

Guide to the New Facebook Pages Timeline

If you haven't already previewed or updated your Business Page to the new timeline, you'll have until March 30 to customize and preview it.

I've put together a quick Guide for finding your way around the areas of the new Timeline.

Get the Guide on my site: Get the New Facebook Timeline Guide 

P.S. Take the quick poll above. Are you using Google+?

In Small Biz News

Top headlines in Small Business News this week:

Google Privacy: 5 Things the Tech Giant Does With Your Data
  
iPad Is Still the King of Tablets, But Kindle Fire and Others Are Catching Up

Accounting tools for a growing business

The best credit card for your small business 

Don't Forget About Your Website

Facebook Pages Getting a Facelift

If you have a personal Facebook, you've already seen the new timeline. Facebook pages will get a similar update by March 30, 2012.

These changes will impact how you interact and maintain your page. I'll help you sift through the information and tell you how to customize your Page using the new layout in an upcoming post.

One thing you can always be certain of using Facebook - there will be changes! One day you'll log in to do what you always do and find things have moved around. It's a given in this social environment.

We'll learn together how to use these changes to our advantage!

Small Biz Tool: Evernote

Evernote is a great tool for so many things. Use it to take notes, sync files across your devices, save Webpages, capture inspiration, and share ideas. It's a great tool for sorting and keeping track of all kinds of things for business or personal use. It's available for your desktop, mobile device or smartphone.

PRODUCTIVITY:
I'm going to use it to streamline some of my processes to save time, both personally and professionally -- notes, pictures, snapshots, websites, recipes -- the list is endless.

MEMORY-JOGGER:
I don't know what it is about getting older that doesn't allow me to remember as much as I used to; I used to be so good at that! Maybe it's just because I take life at an easier pace now that I'm an empty-nester, or it could be that I just don't try to remember every little thing any more. I've gotten into a pretty good habit of intentionally "purging" information long before it reaches my brain or writing it down so I don't have to remember it until I need it.

I'm going to start using Evernote for this -- little things that need to be done around the house, garden calendar reminders, phone calls that I need to make, or that bright idea I had while I was driving. That way I won't have a bunch of disorganized lists and post-its lying around.

WRITING/BLOGGING:
I also do quite a lot of writing for all areas of my work. When an idea hits me, I can just make a note of it and get a jump start on my next writing project. That way, regardless of where I start my writing, I’m always sure to have a copy in Evernote, available to work on whenever I’m ready and wherever I am.

WEB:

I've use the Evernote Web Clipper for saving bits of information I like to share with you, my fellow small business owners, as well as clipping recipes or gardening/birding info for my other businesses. It lets me save anything I find interesting that I see on the Web. No more bookmarks, tabs or open browser windows. Woohoo! Now if I decide I want to switch browsers, I don't have to figure out or hope all my bookmarks can be imported. See something you like, clip it and you’ll have it forever. The Web Clipper is optimized for whatever browser you use.

RESEARCH/COMPARISON SHOPPING:
I have a friend who recently purchased a new vehicle. As my vehicle is aging, car replacement has been at the forefront of my mind too. It's a big purchase decision and I plan to use Evernote for comparison shopping and research. I can clip reviews, prices, features and pictures. All my research and info is in one place, fully searchable.

MEETING NEW PEOPLE:
Here's another great idea - if I attend a conference, trade show or networking event, and want to remember who I've met AND remember their name, I can snap a picture with my phone along with their name tag (or their business card) and now I have a virtual, visual rolodex. Pretty neat! Evernote automatically makes text in images searchable.

TRAVEL:
I'll be able to keep all my itineraries, air and hotel confirms, location addresses and any other details about my trip in Evernote.
 

STUDENTS:

It's great for note-taking or capturing images of whiteboards for studying later. Many schools are already using it.

Do you use this tool? Share the ways it makes your life easier by commenting below.

Ciao for now, Paula

Are You Paying Too Much to Accept Debit/Credit Cards?

The usual method for a business to accept credit cards is terribly expensive for small businesses.  It can really cut into your profit margin!

Accept Credit Cards with Your Mobile Phone! I've been using Square for quite awhile now. It's very efficient for me. In addition to accepting cash or check, I can also accept credit and debit cards. All you need is an account (free) and a smartphone with a headphone jack.

Get an account, install the app on your phone, plug in the device and you're all ready to swipe a card. See if this is right for your business. It could save you some money.

• One simple rate, all major cards -- 2.75% per swipe flat fee
• Direct deposit to your bank account -- next day payout after the successful processing of first few transactions
• For iPhone, iPad, Android -- free reader and free app
• Take your first card in minutes -- fast setup

P.S. If you are a QuickBooks user, Intuit has a similar service called GoPayment. Check it out if you're already using QuickBooks. Easy to implement and it integrates seamlessly with your existing accounting functions.

Pinterest: The Next Big Thing for Business?

logo copyright Pinterest.com

Probably  not. It can be a tool for your business. But just like any new and shiny thing, it should be just that--a tool, not a strategy.

If a tool fits with your overall marketing goals and your customers are there, then it may make sense to use it. Pinterest is working well to drive traffic for online retailers, fashion magazines and Etsy merchants. It can be a great source of traffic for those with visually-oriented goods. Pinterest is all about sharing your own or others' pictures (pinning) on your virtual, themed bulletin boards.  I've found it a great resource for DIY ideas or how-to's about the things I love.

If you're thinking about using it to expand your business reach, sign up and just start pinning and observing first. After a couple of weeks, you can decide whether this is an appropriate spot for you to share photos of business products. But keep in mind, Pinterest is not for business. It's a social sharing site where people go to have fun--they aren't looking for things to buy and don't want to feel as though items are being promoted. Plus you may just get yourself banned.

As with all social networks, it's about the conversation. If you can't add value to the conversation going on around your boards and pins, no one will be interested. At the very least, it's a great place to see what people are doing, see how they are using it, and maybe you'll get some new ideas to use in your business. But beware -- this, like other social tools, can be a big time sucker.

In the words of John Jantsch of Duct Tape Marketing, "The big message in all of this is clarity of purpose. Until you’re clear on your marketing strategy every new tactic will sound like the next big thing."

If you want to venture into the pinning world, you'll need to be invited. Pinterest rolls out free accounts a little at a time. So go to the site and click the red banner at the top that says "request an invite". It should only be a matter of days before you receive an invite via email. Once you sign up, you can add the Pin It bookmarklet to your browser's toolbar making it easy to pin anything you find around the 'net and wish to share.

I'm using it strictly for fun at the moment. Since I'm a gardener and foodie, I'm finding great fun in pinning visually appealing pictures I'd like to refer back to later. The possibilities for themed boards is endless. It's an easy, fun form of self-expression!

Ciao for now and Happy Pinning!
See my Pinterest boards.
Paula

Productivity: Tools I Use

With all the mobile devices available today, seems like we all use at least 1 to connect to our businesses on a daily basis.

There are some apps and plugins that I've used to save time so I can work smarter and not harder. See if any of these can help you be more efficient.

WordPress  - if you have a site or blog built with WordPress you can set up a post-by-email feature so you can make updates on the fly. Find it under Settings/Writing/Post by Email.

Facebook app - get the Facebook app for iPhone, iPad or Android to access and update a mobile version of your Facebook or business page. The app also allows sharing of photos or videos. If you use text messaging, you can set up your account so that you can post updates from your smartphone via text message.

GMail - I like this web-based email service better than my old Outlook. It's easier to access no matter where I am. Get GMail using your Google account or sign up here.
Warning: I don't have this automatically sync to my device. I don't want to be that connected! But if I need to access email on-the-go, I have the option.

Evernote - I have this add-on to my Firefox browser as well as an app on my mobile devices. It allows me to save my notes, ideas or a web page. This free service is available for your computer and almost any phone or mobile device. Bonus = the things you save are searchable by keyword even if the text is within an image! Really handy way for me to keep notes since a large part of what I do for a living is consume, distill, write and share information.

LogMeIn - when I go to a meeting or travel, some times I need something from my computer at home. I use this free service to log into my computer and get what I need (your computer at home has to be on in order for you to use it remotely). If that's not practical, try DropBox. You can save any file using this free online file storage service and access it from anywhere.

Woobox - free Facebook app that allowed me to create a custom tab for one of my business pages on Facebook. Use it to personalize your Page with additional tabs. It can be hard to find within Facebook. Go to your business page, choose "edit page", then choose "Apps" from the left-hand menu. Use the search bar to find it. You'll have to walk through some permission steps to install it to your page.

What types of tools do you use to improve your business efficiency? Share them here!

Ciao for now, Paula

Tips to Build Customer Loyalty

Most local businesses know the value of customer loyalty and the relationship to profitability. It costs significantly more to gain a new customer than to keep an existing one.

Small businesses realize that it's more about building relationships than being a good sales person or even having a good product.

Inc.com's Goeffrey James shares ways to build customer loyalty simply by putting your customer's needs ahead of your own.

--find a unique niche and be the expert to your customer
--help your customer build their own business (B2B)
--deliver what you promise
--deliver IMPECCABLE service AFTER the sale

Most of this is common sense, but the last bulleted item is where nearly ALL businesses fail. In my opinion, very few local small businesses provide "impeccable service after the sale". This is critical to customer loyalty. It keeps you top of mind and lets your customers know that you truly value their business.

Challenge: What way(s) can you implement an "after the sale" service? It can be as simple as a series of follow-up emails or a phone call. You know what's best for your business--just pick one thing you can do easily and do it!

Ciao for now, Paula

Generate Leads with QR Codes

Have you been seeing QR codes everywhere? I sure have! They are on everything from ads to business cards to building signage.

Check out this article at HubSpot to see if you can find ways to use them in your business!

Ciao for now, Paula

I've been busy closing out my 2011 books, preparing data so taxes can be done, planning my goals for Quarter 1, and many other things one does with the onset of a New Year.

I don't make New Years' resolutions, but I decided to be mindful and intentional about shutting out, powering off and taming all the electronic devices I have that keep me "connected" to my business. I've overhauled my email inbox and massively unsubscribed to everything that doesn't match or fit my goals. Whew! Feels good. Now I can focus...

Have you made any business resolutions that will make you more productive in the New Year? Share them below. You never know  - your thoughts may inspire someone else!

I left Corporate America back in 1997 and I've never looked back or regretted it. Being on my own has taught me to be patient. That's a word that I'm still working on, but I'm much farther along than when I first set out.

Quarter 4 of each year is rather busy for me, personally and professionally. And then Quarter 1 hits and I have that moment (or several moments) of panic - where will my next project come from? Will I be able to pay my bills this month? Ah - the downside of being a soloprenuer - the ebbs and flows of income. One freelance writing job came to an end; another is beginning. Several contracts have reached their conclusion; there are more on the horizon.

Oddly enough, even though I've had a few moments of panic, I'm relatively calm about my bank account in the New Year. After all these years, I know that something ALWAYS comes together. It's a matter of harvesting the seeds I've planted over the years. Everything happens for a reason and exactly when it's supposed to. The best part? The requests for work just keep getting more interesting!

I methodically work in areas that I'm passionate about, to the exclusion of all else. When you do this, the work comes from the most unexpected sources! And it rarely feels like "work".

So as the New Year rolls on, I'll enjoy reaping the benefits of successfully serving my clients and partners for 15 years. The hard work pays off in the way of some pretty amazing referrals. If you are among my clients or partners, I extend a grateful THANK YOU. You've allowed me to continue doing what I love!

Ciao for now, Paula

Hello all! I'm still on blog vacation until next week. Until then I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Stay tuned for more Small Biz updates soon. In the mean time, I'm considering a partnership with a company that builds apps and I NEED YOUR INPUT, please.

Has your business ever considered an app? I need your input to help me decide whether or not my business should make the investment. Would you be willing to spend $1,000-$3,000 to have an app built? This would be initial design and build cost only. The monthly hosting fee (like your Web site) is approx. $40/month plus an annual app license renewal fee of $200.

I'm looking forward to hearing from you. Let me know if you would consider an app for your business. If you would not, please tell me why. Leave your comments below or email me directly at bonellienterprises[at]gmail.com.

Ciao for now, Paula