Stacy Karacostas Articles
Business-Building Lessons Learned in 2009: What Highly-Successful Small Business Owners Are Doing that You Can Do Too - Click To Read Article
I know some small business owners who’ve experienced unprecedented growth this year. I’m talking growth that would be considered stellar in a good economy. So, what are successful entrepreneurs doing differently?
The True Cost of Free Marketing, and How to Choose the Right Marketing Tactics for Your Business - Click To Read Article
No matter what anyone tells you, there is no such thing as “free advertising”, and even cheap advertising usually isn’t. At the very least you have to count your own time costs to create your promotion. Plus you may need to hire a graphic designer, copywriter or even a marketing consultant to get the results you need. So don’t base your marketing and advertising decisions solely on initial cost. Instead you want to consider your goals, the true costs and the potential gains or ROI.
The Secret to Staying Booked Solid - Click To Read Article
Tired of feast or famine? Wish you had a long waiting list of new clients? If you provide a service like consulting, graphic design, Web design, Interior Design, copywriting, etc. you can book yourself out weeks or even months in advance. All you have to do is follow the airlines’ lead…
The Right Way to Respond to a PR Query - Click To Read Article
What's truly mind blowing is that most of these came from PR firms pitching on behalf of their clients. I can maybe understand how someone who isn't a PR professional could make these mistakes...But these people are hired to do this!
So today I want to show you the right way to respond to PR queries so you can get more press with less effort.
#1 - Only respond to queries that truly relate to you and your expertise. No off target pitching.
Seven Secrets of Writing That Sells - Click To Read Article
Even in today’s tech-savvy world information is spread through the written word. Customers have to know what your product, service or idea can do for them—or they won’t buy. So whether you’re writing brochures, Web text or anything in between, you need clear, concise, benefits-oriented copy that really sells.
Reaching Your Small Business Sales And Marketing Goals - Click To Read Article
“A goal without a plan is nothing but a dream”
Is Temporary Insanity Keeping You From Growing Your Small Business? - Click To Read Article
Successful people, and businesses, recognize the need for change early. They embrace it. And they go looking for it. Because of this, they are also usually quick to see when something is not working and not afraid to change it.
How to Write Articles at Light Speed and Use Them to Market Your Small Business - Click To Read Article
The easiest articles to write are tips and how-to articles. Everyone loves to read them ‘cuz they are quick and easy. And you’ll love writing them for the same reason.
How To Choose The Best Marketing Strategies For You - Click To Read Article
Instead of making your marketing decision based on price, convenience, or familiarity, you need to look at your goals, the results you are likely to get, the true costs and the potential gains.
Effective Small Business Marketing is About Building Relationships…Not Just Making Sales - Click To Read Article
So the key to getting more people to buy from you—especially high-dollar items—is to create a series of smaller steps that let them wade in and test the waters before taking a bigger, more risky leap.
Don’t Go There-6 Small Business Marketing Mistakes to Avoid Like the Plague - Click To Read Article
Every promotion you do should give people a good reason to want to know more, and an incentive to do it-right now. Fixing even one of the following 6 mistakes is sure to catapult your marketing results.
10 Pieces of Business-Building Wisdom I Wish I’d Known Years Ago - Click To Read Article
It’s sad to say but true…Most of what you learn about starting and running a small business before becoming an entrepreneur is dead wrong! You can spend years figuring this out on your own (like I did), or you can read this article and benefit from my mistakes…
10 Cheap Ways to Create a Professional Impression with Your Small Business Marketing - Click To Read Article
These days, the Internet has created tons more competition in any field than there was just 5 years ago. So you’ve got to have your marketing ducks in a row before you try to sell a thing. Otherwise someone out there is sure to be making a better impression than you. Thankfully, creating a top-notch impression with your marketing doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg.
Three Types of Marketing Your Small Business Needs to Grow - Click To Read Article
When it comes to marketing and advertising your small business, you need to focus on more than just attracting new customers or clients. In fact, that’s the most expensive and difficult way to grow your business.
Instead try using a mix of these three types of marketing tactics to get new clients and keep them coming back for more…
How to Get Your Marketing Materials Read - Click To Read Article
When you sit down in your favorite chair after a long day, do you pull out one of your old term papers for a little light reading?
My guess is, probably not—unless you’re suffering from insomnia. Because any of these would make an excellent sleep aid…But that’s about it.
How to Get All the Clients You Can Handle Banging Down Your Door - Click To Read Article
Article Writing: If you like writing, articles can quickly increase your standing as an expert. Write your own newsletter to regularly get your wisdom in front of clients and prospects. Articles published in magazines and newspapers make you an instant expert. And posting articles in online article databases and social networking sites gets your name out into the world.
Are Your Marketing Materials Selling the Wrong Things - Click To Read Article
What do prospects really need to know to hire you?
Well, let’s start by thinking about what you would want to know…
Competitive Analysis - The Secret To Creating A USP That Sets You Apart From The Competition - Click To Read Article
If you can’t tell your prospects why what you offer is different—or better—than the competition, they have no reason to buy from you other than price.
Planning For Small Business Success - Click To Read Article
You see, successful people don’t just wait around for things to start happening…they
make things happen. And not just any old things—the right things.
3 Simple Steps to a Powerfully Effective Case Study - Click To Read Article
The idea here is to give readers an idea of why the client bought your product or
service. You want this to really hit home with the reader and get them
thinking, “That’s me!”
Marketing Your Ideas - Click To Read Article
Remember, every entrepreneur must do sales and marketing whether they like it or not. Because that’s what brings in customers. And without customers, you don’t have a business—you just have an expensive and time consuming hobby.
What Are the Best Marketing Tactics for Growing Your Small Business? - Click To Read Article
The best marketing tactics in the world aren’t going to do diddley-squat to grow your business unless they are part of a bigger strategy.
Seven Tips to Amp Up the Power of Your Marketing Copy - Click To Read Article
In order to write copy that does all that you have to know a good bit about the art and science of copywriting. Otherwise, it’s really hard to develop the kind of marketing materials that grab people by the eyeballs, keep them reading, and inspire them to take action or buy from you.
10 Things You Should Know Before Hiring A Freelance Copy Writer - Click To Read Article
If it's a large project, ask to see a draft of the first piece or section before the writer does any more work. That way if you need to make any major changes you can do it before they get too far along and costs go up.
8 Simple Ways To Start Writing - Click To Read Article
Having trouble focusing? Try setting a reward for yourself like "When I finish the first draft, I'll go out to lunch (or buy new shoes)." Or, "I'll edit this one more time, then go for a walk."
Why Sizzling Hot Prospects Suddenly Go Stone Cold…And What to Do About it! - Click To Read Article
You go from excited about this hot knew prospect, to slightly deflated, a little frustrated, or possibly even incredibly worried about where your next client is going to come from now.
Are You Making This Costly Marketing Mistake? - Click To Read Article
After all, what happens when the reader is searching for the phone number and their doorbell rings, or their kids barge in? They are on to other things instead.
Tailoring Your Marketing to Different Audiences - Click To Read Article
Whether you’re looking for a job or trying to find customers, you are engaging in a sales and marketing presentation. The only difference is, when you’re job hunting, the potential employer is the customer.
Simple Solutions for Making Sales When You Hate Selling - Click To Read Article
You’ve got to sell your partner on your ideas…Your employees on doing it your way…Your clients on the value of your products or services…
The list goes on.
Increase Sales and Marketing Response with an Irresistible Call to Action - Click To Read Article
The real goal of marketing and advertising is to get people to take action. Whether that’s calling for an appointment, going to your Website, walking in your store, or busting out a credit card and buying something right now.
Take Your Elevator Speech to the Next Level in 5 Simple Steps - Click To Read Article
If you do much networking, chances are you’ve delivered
your elevator speech before. But even if you never go to a networking meeting, you still
have plenty of opportunities to harness the power of a persuasive
elevator speech.
10 Ways to Beat the Deadly Procrastination Demon - Click To Read Article
Unfortunately, not everyone is lucky enough to discover how to stop procrastinating at an early age. So I'm going to share my secrets with you right here and now.
Top 7 Things You Have to Know to Market and Grow Your Small Business Effectively - Click To Read Article
My experience working with hundreds of small business owners has shown that while you might get by for awhile solely on referrals and word of mouth, typically that’s not going to be enough over the long haul.
A Dead Simple Way to Get More Free Advertising for Your Business and Website - Click To Read Article
Would you like a simple way to promote your business—and drive traffic to your Website—for free? One of the best things you can do is something far too many small business owners aren’t doing...Learn what it is and how you can take advantage of it in this sassy article from Practical Marketing Expert Stacy Karacostas.
How to Create an Offer Your Prospects and Customers Can’t Refuse - Click To Read Article
When it comes to making sales with your marketing or advertising materials (or even live and in person), a big part of your success hinges on the offer. Because if you don’t offer something people want, they’re not going to buy. And if you don’t give them a good reason to take action now, they probably won’t!
Reuse, Repurpose, Reduce: The Secret to Making More Money with Less Effort - Click To Read Article
Are you struggling to constantly reinvent the wheel when it comes to marketing and growing your small business? Are you so swamped with running your business you can’t even think about putting together new products? If so, then you need to start following the successful small business owner’s secret of reusing, repurposing, and reducing to get more done with less.
5 Easy Ways to Upsell Your Products and Services - Click To Read Article
Are you leaving money on the table because you aren’t letting people know about your other products or services? If you own a small business, chances are the answer is yes! Because most small business owners and their employees have yet to master the art of the upsell. Maybe it’s that you don’t know how. Or maybe it’s that upselling (or even selling for that matter) makes you uncomfortable. If so this article is sure to change your mind and give you the tools you need to use totally non-pushy upsells to make your clients happier AND more money.
Get More Clients by Making Your Marketing Materials the Life of the Party - Click To Read Article
When you sit down to write your marketing materials, you’re really getting ready to have a one-on-one conversation with the person who’s going to read them. It’s up to you to decide what kind of conversation that’s going to be. If you make it sound like your typical, formal, boring, all-about-me marketing, people aren’t going to stick around to read the whole thing…
12 Ways to Tell If Your Website Needs Work - Click To Read Article
Wouldn't it be nice to wake up and find emails from 3 hot leads who are dying to hire you? Or that you made $300 in online sales while you were sleeping? Duh, of course it would! And it doesn't take a rocket scientist to make it happen.
Transform Technical Jargon into Reader-Friendly Marketing Materials - Click To Read Article
Turn 50-cent words into 5-cent words. Go through your writing and find every word with three or more syllables. Then try to replace it with one or two shorter words. Of course, sometimes technical jargon needs to be in there. But you can always explain the techie bits using less technical lingo and shorter words.
Getting Started with Online Video…The Easy Way! - Click To Read Article
Below are exactly the steps I take. I’m not an online video
expert by any means. But I’ve had people who saw my videos get
in touch because that got them interested in hiring me. You can
do the same.
Market Your Small Business for Free by Harnessing the Power of Online Forums - Click To Read Article
According to a report on the internet research firm Website eMarketer.com, more than 260,000 small businesses in the U.S and Canada use Social Media marketing tactics. Yet only 28% of them use forums to market their businesses. I believe you should be part of that 28%!
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