Monthly Archives: November 2007

Bridge Experience, News

The Diluted Thanksgiving Experience

Thanksgiving has come and gone and I wonder if anyone really noticed?

Halloween generates a fair amount of buzz as does Christmas but sandwiched in between those two is a holiday that anymore seems to be just a pass-through day to the “real” holiday, Black Friday. Thanksgiving, the day before Black Friday, Black Friday Eve.

The most recent sales figures seem to emphasize this thought:

  • Online spending was up 29% ($272 million) Thanksgiving Day and up 22% ($531 million) on Black Friday
  • comScore expects Cyber Monday sales be even stronger than Black Friday’s and to exceed $700 million
  • ShopperTrak RCT Corp., stated total sales rose 8.3% to about $10.3 billion on Friday

Headlines in the media are all about Black Friday:

  • Midnight shopping lures Black Friday hordes CNN
  • Stores Lure Shoppers Before Black Friday Forbes
  • Black Friday carries retailers’ hopes for profitable holidays San Fransisco Chronicle

What happened to the experience of gathering together on Thanksgiving, eating turkey, stuffing and pumpkin pie, watching football and giving thanks for what is truly meaningful?

Random

7 Ways Besides SEO to Gain Website Traffic

Today, having a website for your business is an important (maybe the most important) piece of your marketing plan, both online and off. Over ninety percent of large businesses and forty percent of small businesses have a site. However, just having a site doesn’t guarantee success.

7 Ways to Gain Website Traffic

  1. Your Employees:Your website has to be on the top of everyone’s mind throughout your organization. Directing everyday inquiries to the website is the first step in gaining more usage to your website.
  2. Voice Mail: Use your “on hold” message to direct people to your website. This is extremely important when a user calls after hours or on weekends when you are running with a slimmed down, or no, staff. Ask all your employees to mention the website in their personal message also.
  3. Press Releases: Send out a traditional press release after your site is launched and then periodically throughout the year on new site features and/or services to continue generating awareness.
  4. Magazines and/or Newspapers: Submit articles to your local magazines and newspapers to get the word out about your website.
  5. Advertisements in Trade Publications: If the audience you are trying to reach is more business to business run ads in market specific trade publications
  6. Email Communications: Requesting all employees list the website address in their email signature will help keep the word out about the website as well as develop a stronger brand.
  7. Awards: Submit your website for various awards. There are numerous sites that make it easy for you to submit your website. With a little luck winning an award will enable you to generate more press opportunities.

If your website is going unused and unnoticed the amount of effort you’ve spent on determining the site goals, designing the site, planning the navigation and usability, etc. is going to be wasted.

Contact Small Farm Design to help develop a website promotion plan.

Design, Small Business

Why Design is Important for Small Business

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Simply put, design is a means for your business to communicate its value in a way that stands out and grabs peoples’ attention.

“I believe that in a crowded marketplace, design is the most potent tool for differentiating one’s products or services.” Tom Peters, Management Consultant

Your company is not alone. You have competitors, we all do. Design will help you deliver a message that differentiates your products or services from your competitors.

Perception is ultimately reality and you must show your value immediately to your customers. The effort placed into creating the design of your website, logo, business cards, etc. will be seen as soon as your customer interacts with anyone of these. This initial impression with your company will begin to formulate your customers perceived value of your company, products and/or services.

The primary purpose of design is to deliver a message. Whether you message is buy more widgets, or call to schedule an appointment, design puts organization and order into that message so that it is delivered to your customers in a way that makes sense, and is appealing to them.

Design plays a critical role in making information easy to understand and use. Anything from a website that makes ordering a pair of shoes easy to a business card that clearly indicates who you are and how best to contact you, good design streamline this process.

So, you can see design is important for your business. Design is how customers see your company. Perception is reality.