This Week in Small Business: The Importance of Selfies to the Survival of Western Civilization and much more…
Marketing today is like the Space Race back in the 1960s. There’s more research being devoted to developing new models than ever before and that’s reflected in this week’s news.
Also, pundits continue to hedge their bets on which way the economy will trend in the medium and long term.
Marketing
Nemo Chu outlines a four-phase marketing process that he used to build two seven-figure companies in three years. Lots of specific details included. Of course, word-of-mouth marketing is always fantastic and these tips should help.
Does the term “marketing” make you think “expensive” and “no measurable results”? If so, you’ll benefit from Neil Patel’s article How to experiment with marketing without ruining your business.
Know the difference so you can create the right content: Content Marketing for Lead Generation vs Demand Generation. And if you’re new to blogging, these five basics will help you avoid looking like a newbie.
Are “selfies” more important than we think? Steve Colquhoun believes they make the marketing world go around. That’s the micro view. For the macro view, study these six transformational changes that are coming to the marketing world.
There’s been a lot of talk – both positive and negative – about marketing on Facebook, but one thing is certain: You need to know how to make its graph search work if you want any chance at success.
Re: Email subject lines. Here are the ones with the best and worst open rates. And here’s an infographic on the biggest email marketing myths.
If you need a solid primer in how to do keyword research, the Moz blog has this one. And since we’re talking fundamentals here, unfortunately most fail at digital marketing. This Forbes article sums it up and offers solutions.
Inspiration
“Reports of my death are greatly exaggerated,” said Mark Twain never, but here’s the true story on how small biz has made a comeback.
They say the first step is the most difficult. Larry Alton offers tips on how to start following your passion and Kimanzi Constable helps you transition out of your day job and into the life of an entrepreneur.
Odd, but true
Did you know that the NFL didn’t have a YouTube channel until just before the SuperBowl? That tidbit is included in these revealing digital marketing stats.
Management
Your finances get audited, why not audit your business looking for ways you can innovate?
Silicon Valley professionals are mostly white or Asian men. Here’s how a one tech company managed to hire a more diverse workforce.
If you own valuable intellectual property you have to be able to get the most value from it yet protect it at the same time; Should you assign it or license it?
Falling gas prices give small business owners opportunities to expand and try new strategies.
If you need a primer on how to use “big data” this is an overview and there’s also a related white paper.
Need a location for your small business? Washington D.C. posts the highest earnings for small biz owners.
Conference attendance costs both time and money. I offer six tips to maximize your ROI in this article I wrote for Chamber of Commerce.com. And speaking of events, MarTech, the Marketing Tech Conference, is set for March 31-April 1 in San Francisco.
Economy, politics, investing
Paypal and Dunnhumby are sinking $1.2 million into a location marketing startup. Think beacons. Warren Buffet is looking elsewhere to buy small businesses, namely Europe.
In this article for The Week, Jan Hansen astutely observes that surveys about the future are meaningless. He then gives small business owners some pretty sound reasons to be confident about their future. The news on consumer spending seems to paint a bright picture too, at least if you discount the last downward tick on the graph.
However, to temper our optimism, global deflation seems to be worrying the monetary policy makers, with China an especially big wild card, where some think there might be a tech bubble, unlike Silicon Valley where the hot tech economy is on a solid foundation.
Uber and Airbnb led the way in 2014’s 14-year high in venture capital investments. Peer-to-Peer startups are the new black. Here’s an economic overview of this new business model. Speaking of Uber, if they’re successful with a self-driving car, some say it will cost millions of jobs.
If you want to know what the Gray Lady (NY Times) thinks about the economy’s performance and near term future, here it is. Have they ever been wrong?
Small business growth has tapered off but earnings are up and employees are putting in more hours.
Capital Hill Update: Here’s a list of tax bills in committee that would impact small businesses and families.
