Pen Porter

If you are a business owner, you are focused on the best ways possible to make money. You know your product or service, and you are confident you can provide excellent customer service to those who buy from you. But how do you find those customers? You even know the answer to that is "marketing." If you have been in business awhile, you probably have tried some of the "traditional" methods for marketing. Things like putting ads in the local newspaper or Yellow Pages, cold calling the people you want to serve, joining community organizations like your local Chamber of Commerce and service clubs, and telling people everywhere you meet what you do. I actually recommend all of them except the cold calling, and that's only because I don't like telemarketers and I live in a guarded community where you would not be permitted to go door-knocking. But these tactics do work for some companies. But ask almost any marketing expert, this one included, and we will tel...

I hear this often. But, my question to those who make this statement would be “Is that the best use of your time?” Usually, the answer is no. Let’s take the one I hear it from the most often, a real estate broker. She is the owner of one of the most successful agencies in my city. There are two reasons for that. First, she and her agents actually canvass neighborhoods, asking people if they want to sell their homes. Second, for those listings they already have, they provide excellent customer service to the sellers. Third, they provide excellent customer service to people who contact them about buying a home. Fourth, she also has a strong advertising campaign, both on real estate websites like Zillow and in media local readers will see, like the advertisements in the movie theater. Yet, she could do a little bit more. A few months ago, she gave a free seminar to other real estate agents on how to market. She took the time to draft a flier and send it to about 100 agents, title...