Missouri Small Business and Technology Development Centers Blog

I’ve reached a new level of frustration today with some websites that do their best to make it hard for users to navigate, make purchases or gather information. I’ve been keeping a list of pet peeves. It’s time to share.

Why can’t I use my email to register on your site? I can’t keep track of all of the user names and passwords I have to generate. I can remember my email.

If you’re going to make me decipher some silly little distorted word, don’t make it so distorted that I can’t figure it out. Believe, a couple of rejections, and I’m gone. I’ll buy my stuff someplace else.

If you really want to make me mad, make it difficult to UN-subscribe from your newsletter or feed. Make it easy, and make it work the first time.

Don’t make me register for everything. I can guarantee you, that I will leave, and go buy the product from someone who doesn’t make it so hard.

I sometimes think some companies and organizations don’t want anyone to find them, talk to them or send them anything, because there is no contact information listed, or if it is, you have to dig like an archaeologist to find it.

If your website is guilt of any of these sins, rethink your strategy. Competition makes it soooo easy to go elsewhere. Get me there, and keep me there by making your site as friendly as possible.

Then, I’ll be back!!!!

The Representative Ike Skelton Procurement Conference is scheduled for May 29 at the University of Central Missouri from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Now in its 21st year, this day-long event has become a tradition in Missouri, as hundreds of business owners and vendors converge on Warrensburg to learn about government contracting, small business programs for veterans, small business management and SBA regulations and financing.

More than 200 government contracting officers and contractors are invited to exhibit each year. It’s a great opportunity to learn what those agencies are seeking and how your small business might be able to enter the government contracting market. In addition, you can hear from successful government contractors and from contracting officers from the US Navy and Air Force.

Registration is only $49 and includes breakfast and lunch, as well as access to all sessions and exhibitors. Call 660/543-4402 to register or email sbtdc@ucmo.edu.

You’re looking for low-cost ways to spread the word about your business, your products, your services. That’s particularly important in this time of recession when the money to support marketing is just not there, but you know you need to keep your message circulating.

Online social media seems like the perfect solution — after all, there is no cost, and you can reach a lot of people with no investment. Right?

On the surface, that’s true, and you’re wise to include social media in your marketing mix. But don’t believe it’s entirely cost-free.

Because for social media to be effective, it has to be repetitious and content-rich. And that takes time — lots of it. Either you or someone you assign has to maintain that online presence with frequent updates, new submissions, new content and continued relationship building with your “friends” and “followers.” And time, whether it’s yours or an employee’s, costs money. Something else will not get done.

That’s why, before you embark on social media marketing, have a plan. Create a schedule and know who is responsible for sticking to that schedule. What is to be said? When? In what context? How will you use these vehicles to share your information, special offers, promotions and calls to action?

If you just set up a facebook page or create a Twitter account without a solid plan, before long you will let other things crowd out using these tools to their best advantage. Online media has to be up to the minute, timely, succinct and useful. If you can’t maintain that, you’re better off not using it until you have the time.

One of the most interesting dynamics we have discovered in working with and educating entrepreneurs is that what they say they need or want — and what they actually use or attend — are often two different things. For instance, many tell us that they want to attend sessions on human resources, but we have difficulty filling the room when we offer that instruction.

That led me to think about customers of your businesses in the same way. What they tell you they would be interested in is not necessarily what they buy. That’s why surveys and focus groups — while useful — may just be part of your market research equation. It’s just as important to study what actually moves from your shelves as well as what prospective customers tell you they could pay for.

Look at your inventory and customer purchases. Do you see trends? Do you see some items moving well in spite of the economic downturn? What are your customers “voting for” with their dollars? What items, even if discounted, are not winning?

Sometimes what we think we would like to do is not what we actually commit to do. It’s good to have both sets of information. Customers are telling us; our job is to listen.

I get some interesting information from time to time from a variety of consumer behavior websites and demographic resources. Here are some interesting recent findings:

• Percent change in average household spending on cable service, 2000 to 2006, after adjusting for inflation: +43.
• Percentage of American women who pray at least once a day: 68.
• Percentage of men who favor requiring a police permit before a person can buy a gun: 73.
• Householders aged 55 to 64 spend 25 percent more than the average household on women’s shoes, more than any other age group.

Recently, I’ve heard two series of local radio ads that I found refreshing.

One is for a siding company and another for an HVAC firm. They send a similar message: “We’re trying to keep our business going until things get better. Call us now for special deals and even better customer service. We want to keep our guys working.”

It’s unfortunate that the economy has required these firms and others to develop such direct messages, but I personally like that directness. These companies are making no secret of the fact that times are tough right now, particularly for folks in their business, but they are intent on surviving it through a blend of optimism, determination and very hard work. And they are reflecting one of the tried and true strategies for marketing during a recession – keep talking, and when things improve, you’ll still be standing while your competitors may have thrown in the towel.

I was fascinated by a list I found the other day of the companies who had actually started or thrived during past recessionary periods. The leaders of these firms saw a market opportunity and capitalized on it – good advice for prospective and existing business owners regardless of the economy’s health. (more…)

The perils of a baby boomer in an online social network

Late last year, some friends of mine convinced me that I needed to create a profile on Facebook and another one on LinkedIn, which is supposed to be like a Facebook for business people.

“This is not for me,” I thought. “No one needs to know about me, or what I do in my spare time, or what books I’ve read.”

But the needling continued, so I finally just went “out there” and set up a page and went on my happy way. (more…)

I love baseball, and I love NASCAR. My idea of a fun afternoon is listening to Mike Shannon call a Cardinals game on the radio while I watch Dale Jr. and Carl Edwards round the track on television.

Lately, I’ve noticed that attendance numbers are slightly down for both of my favorite pastimes. So, I thought I’d look at what impact the economic downturn is having on these two industries.

There’s no question that climbing gas prices, unemployment and the housing crisis are affecting the amount of disposable or recreational income we all have. So, it’s logical to assume that ticket sales for major league baseball would be down, although they have not dipped as far as some would have predicted. Apparently, a bad team will keep fans away faster than a bad economy.

However, baseball as an industry seems to be fairly recession-proof, probably because a large share of its income is derived from other sources, such as television contracts and sponsorships. Some experts feel the latter may be hard to come by if the economy doesn’t improve with a new administration. (more…)

This just in from our Department of Understatement: I’m not athletic.

After tryouts for my junior high softball team, on which I longed to be the catcher, I was named the “refreshment girl.” That pretty much says it.

But I love athletes, and like millions of others around the globe, I love the Olympic Games. I’m glued to the coverage. I’ll even watch table tennis. Rowing. Fencing. Whatever. I’m in awe of the discipline, dedication and tenacity of the athletes. That’s half of my fascination.

The other half is with the incredible creativity in the marketing strategies that surround this worldwide competition. I love to watch the play on emotions, the unique approaches and the way technology has changed this greatest of all sales platforms. (more…)

This is a test.

What product, service, corporation, movement or campaign is associated with each of the following?

1. “It’s morning again in America.”
2. “Who knows what evil lurks in the heart of men?”
3. “What happens here, stays here.”
4. “A little dab’ll do ya.”
5. “A chicken in every pot, and a car in every garage.”
6. “Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.”
7. “Generations of Style.”
8. “There is nothing wrong with your television set.”
9. “Think small.”
10. “Perfection has its price.”

According to Steve Cone, these are “powerlines.” Beyond mottos or slogans, these are word combinations that deliver “an electric surge, a current that charges the mind long after the initial message is received.”

In his new book, Powerlines: Words that Sell Brands, Grip Fans and Sometimes Change History, Cone provides a fresh approach to creating promotional mechanisms that will set your company’s message above the rest.

Cone says powerlines tell a compelling story, ring true and create a memorable “sound,” meaning they evoke a particular emotion or experience as a result of their unique cadence, inflection, tone or pattern. In a world dominated by silent communication via email or the Internet, Cone reminds us that the actual sound of the spoken powerline is often what makes it memorable. (more…)