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Every year it seems, one of the Super Bowl advertisers does something to give us all great small business lessons. Yesterday’s game was no different. 84 Lumber was yesterday’s teacher, sending millions of people to a website to watch the end of their controversial commercial, only to have the website crash. If ever there was an […]

The path of one-upmanship is a treacherous road. You either have to keep improving, almost exponentially, or eventually you’ll lose. Alas, our society is too far down the path to turn ‘round now. And that only means one end. Facebook has become a putrid sea of hatred and bile. One side wants to prove its […]

Our focus on helping small businesses with their digital marketing takes a leap forward today! I’m proud to announce a new event product you can bring to your community to help the small businesses in your area. The Small Business, Smart Marketing Workshops are half-day workshops that focus on the important strategic steps to take […]

“I just don’t get social media,” one small business owner told me recently. He was lamenting the fact that if it doesn’t lead to direct revenue, then he has no time for it. I can certainly respect that no-nonsense approach, but he’s looking at social media for small business all wrong. And, he does get […]

Keeping up with the Joneses is a hard task. In business, keeping up with your competition is an even greater risk. Not because your competitors might have more customers, funding or revenue, but because of a subtle factor we never consider: Our competitors might not actually be our competition. Allow me to explain: Let’s say […]

Many small businesses need foot traffic more than they need leads. For them, digital marketing seems like an bother more than a necessity. Your business may not need digital marketing to open its doors and operate. But at some point the flow of Relationship, Referral and ‘Round here customers will dwindle. What then? Digital marketing […]

A vision statement is as important to a small business as the products you sell. The vision statement serves as a simple guide for you, your employees and even your customers. Vision statements tell the world what you stand for. If well-defined they can be the trigger that makes people want to do business with […]

On Wednesday of this week, I turned 44 years old. I don’t say that for acknowledgement. My birthday isn’t a big deal anymore. My kids make more of a fuss over it than I do. Once you get that big car insurance break at age 25, there really isn’t that much to look forward to. […]

Finally there is small business social listening platform that is affordable. Mentionlytics has arrived on the scene after a quiet launch in July of last year. The startup, originally begun in Greece but with offices in New York and London now, offers a strong set of social listening features for under $50 per month, putting it […]

GPS is a wonderful thing. I revel in the fact that anytime someone tries to give me directions I can just hold up a hand and say, “No worries. I know how to get there.” I don’t, but Google Maps does and has yet to fail me. However, GPS has turned us into complacent journeymen […]

Most small businesses think building a lead generating website takes thousands of dollars and hours of work. But all you need to have a lead generating website is a page with a form. Certainly, the lead generating happens faster and more effectively if you have a great piece of content to lure in those leads. […]

Humanizing marketing automation is one of those topics I get really passionate about. The term “marketing automation” actually irks me. To think that your customers are so unimportant to you that you would build a system so  you don’t have to engage with them kind of makes me sick to my stomach. But I get […]