Get more sales leads from websites, not social media

facebook-ads-moneyThis maybe shocking to those who use there social media to perfection but yes your website is the main go getter when it comes to  sales.

Social media may not be the marketing gold mine it has been cracked up to be as a new survey reveals a more traditional, and reliable, source.

Although many marketing agencies, retailers and more business players are looking at social media as the last frontier for reaching out to consumers, a new study suggests that they might be wasting their time — at least for now.

A company’s corporate website was found to be the top source of new sales leads online — second only to personal referrals, according to a study conducted in partnership between marketing technology company Demandbase and online business network Focus. In fact, corporate websites are seven times more effective than social media right now. For more information your can reach me by e-mail here to discus why websites have stronger ROI.

Here’s a look at some of the other more telling stats:

  • The website was cited by executives as the top online source of sales leads (23 percent), followed by e-mail (14 percent), online advertising (7 percent), and social media (3 percent).
  • IT respondents said they are “far less aware of website’s shortcomings,” with roughly one-half (52
  • percent) reporting that it was not living up to its potential, vs. non-IT respondents, who recognized its limitations (90 percent).
  • Enterprises emphasized the importance of measuring volume (44 percent total), while small businesses emphasized quality of leads (40 percent total).

Design student’s tribute to Apple founder Steve Jobs

Steve jobs apple shilloutteA 19 year old Hong Kong student Jonathan Mak, a student at  Polytechnic University School of Design, came up with the fantasicly beautiful and simple design of incorporating Steve Jobs’ silhouette into the bite of the Apple logo, symbolizing both Jobs’ departure.

The design spread  faster in this past week then when he first created it. The design drew hundreds of thousands of posts, and even commemorative caps and T-shirts peddled on eBay featuring his design.

The logo was even used as the twitter profile picture for Hollywood actor Ashton Kutcher. Mak who had recently received a job offer because of the design said that he is speechless on twitter. Apple’s co-founder Jobs, who created revolutionary products and reshaped the way the world approaches computing and personal communications, died on Wednesday at the age of 56. Mak, who first created the logo after Jobs’ stepped down as Apple’s head in August hadn’t noticed that it made much of a splash until he reposted it earlier in the week.

“Originally, I was going to put a black modified logo against a white background,” said the bespectacled Mak who paid tribute to Jobs at Hong Kong’s Apple store.

The 7 scariest words in freelancing

 

Scary words scare this womenFreelance work can be fun. Yet the fun and excitement isn’t without an all consuming fear of bad luck, economy,  partners, clients, timing, projects, or resources.

These seven items can fuel the disaster of a freelance career. Careers are always under attack though so no surprise here.

Businesses and entrepreneurship are not exempt from this discussion either since a freelancer is technically a small business, employing just one person. A large part of this list of seven scary words is out of your hands and so you have got to roll with the punches and dodge all the silver bullets to keep your ship sailing at full speed.

Take a short look at these seven ideas, you can pick and choose which ones you really think are important. But all are singularly important so take what you will as light commentary on business.

To help here is a little more detail on these frightful words.

#1 Bad Luck

We all have had it once and it can seem to be a recurring theme with some professionals. Bad luck will put you out of commission yet doesn’t always come all at one its is in reality a combination of small faults and missteps that happen to mash together.

#2 Bad Economy

The several factors of economic boom and bust can drain your business faster than Dracula on a young maiden. She like you could be lost to the darkest depths without being aware of your surroundings. Keep your eye on the economy locally and seriously debate moving your business into new markets if you see a bad trend.

#3 Horrible Partnerships

We might have been there before and are wiser but a solid partnership is a must for all endeavours. And the scary thing about partnering is being dependant on someone else for integral piece of your business. Even great partners can good bad so be able to keep yourself afloat if one goes sour.

#4 Bad clients

You can’t classify a bad client from the start. They all seem promising and beautiful relationships. It is only after months or years of bad dealings that you have to cut bait and move your separate ways. You have to cross your fingers to find the best of the best. This scares the hell out of me.

#5 Plain Bad Timing

The best time and place for a project is out there waiting. Too bad you have no clue where to spot it. That’s the breaks for it but as bad as timing is it always turns out better over the long run. So if your timing is off now that’s no reason for it not to be better later. You’ve got to be optimistic.

#6 Losing Projects

You had it settled. The project was in your hands. Then what happened. Poor planning is usually the culprit. And losing projects can be bone chilling, freezing your bank statement with one swift blow. To deal with it take a heavy dose of variable projects that are smaller and faster on returns. Don’t be caught scrambling.

#7 Resource Loss

Raw unused funding keeps a business alive. An infusion on extra marketing cash could turn the tides in a tuff economy. You should consider the fear of not having the resources for your freelance or small business as a scary consideration.

Count ‘em all up and you get seven, a strange lucky number that will cause you a tons of strife if your not on the watch for the small trip ups in work. Do you think I’ve missed any? If so add them from the comments section below. Til next time.

P.S. For more information your can reach me by filling out this form here to discus how Creative Automaton’s freelancing mumbo jumbo can improve your business..

 

What Google Adwords can do

What google adwords can doIn the world of online advertisements you would find it difficult not to of heard the phrase “AdWords”. If you just troll the Internet a few times looking for a good marketing strategy you will see millions of AdWords references.

Books, guru’s, wizards, experts, and millionaires all viewing for a piece of your marketing budget. And with good reason AdWords makes money. AdWords makes a lot of money, for google it’s about 10,000,000,000 a year business. As for you it would probably be a lot less. This mainly because those that give advice on AdWords to people with little patients miss out on the basics of marketing in general.

With that being said AdWords can be a powerful tool if used correctly. If you have an attractive website with strong call to action you will see amazing benefits. If your ad copy and site are boring or just plain ugly you will almost never see the large type of return on your AdWords investment. This is true for all Internet marketing banner ads, Facebook ads, text links etc.

Build a strong landing page and you will have better results. Pretty boring, huh? But that’s the big idea and that’s why businesses need designers to build stronger brands. Without a powerful marketing platform like a well designed logo, website, or advertisement you might as well be throwing money at google. Because that’s all you will get out of AdWords, without solid marketing copy and graphic design.

For more Google AdWords information or a work requests you can reach me at this Form.  Find out how Creative Automaton’s freelancing mumbo jumbo can improve your business.