Fireflies and bonfires, farmer’s markets and county fairs – summer is here! Some ideas for heating up your marketing efforts during this great season in the Granite State: 1) Think “back to school” when others aren’t. A realtor could blog about taking school districts into consideration when looking at New Hampshire homes this summer. A café owner could offer lunch …
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Jul
3 Must-Dos for a Successful Small-Business Event
By: Heather Clifford
Category: Doing Business, Marketing
Tags: event planning, event websites, promotional banners
With advance planning, you can host a successful event no matter the size of your business. Here are the basics: 1) Define your audience. We can’t design a print ad or a brochure or a website for a client who has never formally identified the business’s ideal customer. (Although the Infusion Studio team can help you with that definition!) Nor …
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Jun
Should You Be Blogging?
By: Heather Clifford
Category: Marketing
Tags: business blog, small business marketing, social media
So now that everyone seems to be blogging, should you follow the crowd? Here’s why… and why not. 1) DO BLOG… if your business frequently has news items to share. The more often search engines find new content when they check out your website, the more you’ll show up in rankings. And by news, I mean anything your business has …
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Apr
Market Yourself… as Being Prepared for Anything
By: Heather Clifford
Category: Doing Business
Tags: disaster preparedness, disaster recovery, workplace emergency plan
From blizzards, tornados, hurricanes, and floods to riots and acts of terror, the unexpected can leave small-business owners floundering – often for much longer than necessary. In fact, many businesses forced to short their doors temporarily during such times of crisis never reopen. From dealing with simple hurdles (cell phone dead and power out) to major problems (“I’ve been meaning …
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Apr
3 Low-Cost Ways to Get Your Business Name “Out There”
By: Heather Clifford
Category: Marketing
Tags: church festivals, Cinderella Project of New Hampshire, community marketing, town fairs
Small-business owners don’t need big marketing budgets to spread the word about their products and services – just a little research and creativity. 1) Donate – and feel great! Whatever your business, there’s a cause or charity out there that could use what you have to offer. Hair salon? Offer your services for the Cinderella Project of New Hampshire (providing …
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Mar
You don’t know the answer until you ask, as the saying goes. But that doesn’t make the idea of cold calling potential clients any less dread-inspiring for most of us. A few tips to get you on track…. 1) Face that worst-case scenario! So, someone hangs up on you or says something not so nice. That’s not nearly as embarrassing …
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Mar
Spring Clean Your Business in 5 Satisfying Steps!
By: Heather Clifford
Category: Doing Business
Tags: business tool box, IRS refund, spring cleaning, tax refund
Spring is in the air – but if spring cleaning your garage or closets doesn’t have you too excited, check out my easy suggestions for spring cleaning your business. 1) Deep clean that e-mail in-box! For the next week, turn off the phone and turn on some music for the last 10-15 minutes of each work day and start sorting, …
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Feb
1) People respond to advertising no matter what your business is. Advertising is not the same thing as marketing. Advertising is one kind of marketing. I have some clients for whom ads – in newspapers, on the backs of city busses – are absolutely the way to go. I have many more clients for whom such efforts would be a …
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Feb
3 Ideas for Maintaining a Stress-Free Work Environment
By: Heather Clifford
Category: Doing Business
Tags: home office space, stress management, work environment, working at home
Stress management is all about setting limits! Let’s talk about a few easily implemented ways to set some limits and prevent your work from intruding into your personal life and space. 1) Don’t mix home and office spaces. Whether you run a home-based business or are a small-business owner who conducts much of your work at home, you must define …
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Jan
A colleague down in the Monadnock Region captured this cute business sign on her camera phone recently. For every parent whose child imagines the dentist being like those crazy scenes in Finding Nemo, this sign suggests that Monadnock Pediatric Dentistry is the calm, kid-oriented environment they are looking for. First, the moose. What kid doesn’t love a friendly moose? He’s …
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