Inside the Envelope

Yes, being a drama queen is typically a negative. But there is one instance where it is actually a big positive. Imagine you are in a stadium filled with your most ideal prospects. You have one chance to present and pitch your product or service. Say the right thing, and every one of them will become a client. Say the wrong thing, and you'll lose them all. That's the potential power of communication. There are many ways to get your message across. You can bore them to death, or you can entertain them. The chances that a prospect will stick around and listen are much better if you do the latter. People are drawn to those who can share, teach, and even sell something useful. They are most attracted to the ones who can entertain them while presenting. Like it or not, we live in a society that needs and wants to be entertained. If you want to stand out and succeed, you have to be able to give them what they want. This is where injecting drama into your sales cop...

It's easy to see why peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are a nationwide favorite. After all, PB&J offers creamy, sweet, smooth (or crunchy) goodness that is fruity, satisfying, filling, inexpensive, and fairly good for you to boot. Sure, peanut butter is delicious by itself (as is jelly), but when they are joined together, they create a flavor-packed, winning combination that can't be beat. When it comes to marketing, a blend of print and electronic media can easily be compared to peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. While they can both function effectively on their own, they pack a more powerful punch when joined together. For example, print promotions -- such as postcards, newsletters, flyers, or brochures -- are a great way to grab attention, increase awareness, and encourage readers to visit your website for in-depth information, product ordering, survey completion, webinar and event registration, and more. When it comes to combining print with electronic me...

Some companies think that a beautiful new website will instantly attract visitors like a moth to a light bulb. However, unless you turn the light on and direct them where to go, your visitors may wander aimlessly into your competitor's backyard. Here are a few mixed media marketing tips to draw visitors to your website: Create a "web card" that highlights your site's benefits and entices readers to visit. Mail them as postcards, hand them out at trade shows, distribute them with purchases, and so on. Create videos and post them on YouTube. Not only does Google index your content, but viewers can embed your videos on their blogs and share them via social media. Offer free original content or blog postings to other publications in your niche market. Be sure to include a link to your website to draw new visitors from these high-traffic sources. Distribute news releases to print and web periodicals in your industry. Your website link will remain in news databases fo...