In my last article ‘Guide to Getting Found,’ we discussed four steps to create a strong foundation for your business' online presence: building a website; listing your site with only directories and search engines; developing a metatag strategy and the importance of creating content. With these blocks in place we can really start to pump up reach and begin measuring ROI. So today we're going to discuss how the heck to keep up with everything your website is doing for you (which is probably a lot more than you think!) using the basic features available in most analytics packages and later talk about how to begin using you site as an effective sales tool.
Track Everything
One of the beauties of Internet marketing is that every interaction can be tracked clicks. With the right tracking (analytics) devices in place, you can easily tell where your website visitors are coming, learn which pages on your site are the most popular, determine where you [...]

ac·count·abil·i·ty : the quality or state of being accountable; especially : an obligation or willingness to accept responsibility or to account for one's actions re·spon·si·bil·i·ty 1 : the quality or state of being responsible; as a : moral, legal, or mental accountability b : reliability, trustworthiness 2 : something for which one is responsible

That’s Right, 2 cents a contact! What is it? Email Marketing. The fastest, easiest, and most effective way to communicate with your customer base is also the least expensive. Creating a customized campaign is not as difficult as you may think.

The meat market in Lewisville, Texas is a landmark. Not only does the meat market sell meat, it serves great lunches, including outstanding BBQ, homemade pies, etc. Every year, we hold a “Rib Off” at the Service Roundtable where we buy ribs from three different restaurants and conduct blind taste tests for the sauce and meat. The meat market wins every time it’s in the competition.

Salespeople are paid hourly according to skill level and licensing or skills training achievement. Aim for a consistent hourly rate for the position. Overtime applies according to state and federal wage and hour laws. Use a Bonus Plan to reward production over Goal. Performance at Goal is what is expected of those who hold the Position of Salesperson.

I’ve spoken with a number of Nexstar® Network members who’ve asked for ideas to get the phone to ring. Together, we’ve come up with thoughts that we have gotten quite excited about, and I’d like to share some of them with you.

Sooner or later it happens to everyone in the business. A disgruntled customer notices the prices of parts and merchandise sold at the retail stores and complains about the big markups charged by the contractor. This is a bigger problem for time and material firms, whose prices are itemized for all to see at a glance. However, even we flat raters face it from time to time.

At the end of every year I put together a list of goals. Not a list of resolutions, but goals I want to accomplish during the upcoming year. (great article on those differences here and why resolutions tend to be forgotten here). One of my goals for 2012 is to improve the ROI of ShuBee's Internet marketing efforts.
My first step towards accomplishing this goal was to establish benchmarks of where we are currently as well as document what helped us achieve that success. From there it was on to numbers crunching so I could establish a budget for 2012, then on to growth projections and finally planning some new strategies.
It was at this point in the process that I remembered an article I had written for theBuzz in 2009 about getting found online. As often as Google keeps changing the game when it comes to businesses getting found online, keeping first page rankings and determining what they feel is most [...]

Having read a great deal of books on businesses and what it means to operate a successful one, we’ve come to the conclusion that everyone has a great deal to say on the subject. Enough to fill aircraft carriers, in fact. So where does one start? That’s why when we work with a contractor to help improve his business, we try to summarize the best of what we’ve learned and what we’ve seen work in successful companies. And we have found that the best place to start is with the knowledge that every act, every day, requires accountability.

Do you know if your prices are right? Do you know if you are properly bidding your Jobs? The bottom line is the bottom line. Hurray for you…if you are making all the money you want, if you are providing a real retirement investment program for yourself and your team members and if you could take a major hit to your business (disaster, disability, divorce?) and still be in positive cash flow. If so, you can stop right here.