Tag Archives: Marketing Strategies 

Periodically, all business owners should conduct a SWOT analysis of their enterprise. This is an identification of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats that relate to your organization. One of the main reasons for doing this is that it gives you clear goals to work on to improve your commercial future. But how do you go about doing it?

There is no "set" way to undertake a SWOT analysis. Here are some suggestions to get you going.

Set aside time to do it . I think it is important that the key people in your enterprise focus on this issue at a set time. This will highlight its importance and enable you to make best use of your time. It is best done away from your normal place of work, phones and e-mail.

Have someone facilitate the process . Someone (who knows what they're doing) should guide your people through the process. Without structure, the process of analyzing your business will become a time-consuming talk-fest that will probably achieve little and frustrate a lot. The person facilitating the process should be skilled at drawing out people's opinions and making sure that everyone has ample opportunity to express their views. If you can afford it, I recommend that you get someone external to your business. A person who is facilitating the process from within the business may have their own agenda or may get spoken up in the politics of the organization. Also, they may not have the skills I have just mentioned.

Start with a "secret" process . Often the SWOT analysis process commences with a group of people sitting near a whiteboard or flipchart paper and letting the ideas fly. There is nothing wrong with this, but I prefer that each participant in the process wrists down their thoughts about the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats prior to the discussions starting. The reason that I favor comming with a secret process is that you are more likely to get honest views that are not influenced by dominant personalities in a group or pet agendas. You could use a stack of system cards where each idea is written on one card by each person. These cards can then be put in piles of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. You might like to use different colored cards for each of the four categories.

Discuss the "secret" contributions . Once you have gone through the "secret" process described above, the facilitator should then permit open discussions about the ideas. But, prior to those discussions starting, there should be some sort of the cards into ideals. The facilitator should check with the participants that the groupings are indeed the same idea. Otherwise this might override someone's valuable opinion. The discussion should be free-flowing, informal but professional and respectful of all opinions. It is the job of the facilitator to keep the discussions on track.

Categorize the points into a small number of important issues . Following the discussions, the ideas for each part …

Self-publishing has been done by people for years now. Previously, publishing used to be done for books. Books have been the oldest source of written information available. Later on, magazines were authored as a very comprehensive piece of work. If people have been self-publishing books, then it is possible to do the same with magazines. For those who find novels lengthy and time consuming, for them magazines are a blessing. They are colorful, picturesque, humorous, informative and entertaining. It is a fabulous idea to start your own magazine. Have the courage and go ahead!

Most importantly, you need to have sufficient funds, to start your own magazine. Whether you wish to start your own magazine with a small edition or a bulky one will depend on your finances. Resources are important. You can always take the assistance of a friend or family member who has sales or marketing experience. They could chalk out a great sales plan and a cost effective one. From how to go about production and advertising to ways to promote your magazine. Every bit of information that you can get from people you trust, would be beneficial to your magazine.

There are people who have different websites, running their own magazine. Log on, to see what they have to offer. Check out all the areas of work. You can get enough information from them who are running a successful magazine or who have knowledge about the same. They can post their advice and opinions online. Go ahead and look for it. Take what is of value to you and reject the rest. It could also give you a lot of ideas, on what to do and what not to do. This is called disaster management according to me. Make sure of everything to give you less chances of making a blunder.

You must also have the ability to write. If you have not done a course in journalism, then you must have basic writing skills. When you own a magazine, there is a lot of matter you can come out with. It is not possible, if you do not have the ability to write. It is one of the most serious aspects for your business.

It is not expensive to purchase your own domain and take your magazine online. It is a much faster and easier way of promoting your magazine, as it cuts down costs. Make a great and attractive subscription plan, where people could subscribe to it for 6 months or maybe a year, at discounted rates. Your magazine will really sell.

Make sure, it has a great cover with every edition with colorful and great pictures and illustrations inside. This can be a great way of catching the attention of potential buyers and customers. Finally, have the courage to go ahead and do what you always wanted to do, in a systematic, methodical and unique way. You will need ample patience and forbearance, before your magazine gets a name of its own. And …

One way to get your lawn care business off to a great start is to get a great looking logo design. This helps you to establish your brand right from the start and to slowly grow your reputation over time.

Like any other business, in lawn care you are relying on making a catching the customer 'eye and making a good impression when you run an advertising campaign. Some consumers are very irrational in their decision making and their decision on whether or not to call your company may come down to whether or not they like the look of your logo.

This article looks at the importance of having a professional looking logo in the law mowing and maintenance business and offers some advice on what to consider when you start to talk with your graphic designer.

As a business business operator you will find that your vehicle is constantly out there in the public eye every day. Savvy lawn care operators use this to their advantage by placing their company branding all over their vehicle. Your logo can draw attention to other signage on your truck and then next thing you know somebody in need of your services spots your truck, can see that you are working the area and decide to give you a call.

When you first sit down with, or start emailing a logo designer it is important to tell them as much as you can about your company, your target market and what message you want to convey to that market. Try to project an image to prospective customers about what it is your company does in the lawn care industry and how you do it differently from the others.

While some lawn care business prefers a basic text logo, having an image as a part of the logo can help to grab attention. Traditional images that lawn businesses use include blades of grass, lawnns and trees but modern lawn care business logos are starting to break from convention with some players now preferring louder, modern images quite often with animal mascots.

Do not forget that the lawn mowing business is about people too so using a simple image of a satisfied customer could also work.

While you can check up on what other lawn businesses are doing with their logos to get ideas, going with something totally original will give you the best chance of standing out in the marketplace.

While green and it's various shades seems to be the number one color choice for lawn care business logos a few companies are starting to come out with logos that also use warmer, summertime colors.

A logo allows your company to make a great first impression, to look more professional and can even make your lawn care business look bigger or more established than it really is. A great logo is one of the first things that will put you on the path to success in the lawn care business. …

Business letter reiterates to a form of communication used when writing to corporations or any institution that has a formal structure. The letter is commonly made for inquiries or correspondence between companies and external parties, clients or customers. Below are the guidelines that can be used if you want to make an interesting, formal and impressive business letter.

How to Write a Business Letter

For your convenience, you can use some computer applications or programs that can be helpful when writing a formal letter. One of the programs that can be used is Microsoft Word. This application has versions that provide formats for writing business letters. If the word processor that you are using does not have formats, then you can follow the style and format that is discussed in this article.

Paste or copy your preprinted letterhead on the top center portion of the paper. If you do not have a special letterhead, you need to indicate your full name, job position or title and return address three to six lines from the top. Use a block style when writing a formal letter. Indicate the date three lines from the return address. Make sure that you align the information that you have written. You can justify or left align the data.

Indicate the full name of the recipient, two lines after the date. Below the name, type the business title or job position of the recipient. Press enter and indicate the recipient's business address. Write an opening salutation two lines after the business address.

Start the letter with a formal greeting, three lines after the salutation. Double space and start the first paragraph of the body. You should introduce yourself in the first paragraph if you are not yet acquainted with the recipient. It is also necessary to include a reference for your letter. For example, you can write that the letter is in reference to a former telephone conversation between you and the recipient about a certain topic that you want to further discuss in the letter.

Double space and begin with the second paragraph. The second paragraph should include the reason for writing the letter. The reason can be to compliment the company for the product that you purchased or to file a complaint about the products or services offered by the firm. Make sure that this paragraph is concise and brief.

Double space and write a closing salutation like 'Respectfully, "and" Thank You. "Sign two lines after the salutation. …

What is a personal business letter? It is a letter that and written by an individual and mailed to a company, business, or government agency. It is more formal than a personal letter or note.

There are eight parts to a personal business letter as follows:

1. Return Address: this is your address, do not include your name, and list your street address, apartment number if applicable line 2, your city, state and zip code all on one line. Spell out the full name of the city and state (the official Post Office Abbreviation is acceptable also) and add the zip code. Note: if you are typing the letter on letterhead that already includes the address this part is not needed.
2. Date: Enter today’s day on the next line. Spell out the full month, comma, date, comma and the year in 4 figures such as “2011”
3. Letter Address: This area has whom the letter is sent to and their complete address. Write out the person’s full name on the first line:The street address goes on the next line or two as required.Write out the full name of the city, the Postal Abbreviation for the State followed by the zip code.
4. Salutation: This is a formal greeting. Usually “Dear” followed by formal titles, i.e.: Mr., Mrs., Miss, Dr., or Reverend. If you are writing to a woman and do not know her martial status or which title she prefers “Ms.” Is acceptable. Follow the title by either the full name or just the last name.
5. Body: This is the most important part of your letter. Use paragraphs properly. Be short and to the point so the recipient quickly knows the purpose of your letter. Give enough detail, but don’t use more words than needed.
6. Complementary Close: Use phrases such as “Sincerely yours,” or “Yours truly”. Capitalize the first letter of the first word, lower case for the second word followed by a comma.
7. Sender’s Name: This is where your name goes, skip four spaces between the complementary closing and your typed name. Use your first and last name.After printing the letter, sign your name between the complementary close and your typed name.
8. Enclosures: If you are including any documents with the letter, such as a resume, product sample, or other explanatory documents, show that there is an enclosure by typing “Enclosure(s)” one line below the closing. You may list each enclosure by name, this is a good way to make sure that the recipient knows exactly what is in the envelope.

These are the parts and order of a personal business letter. It is assumed that you are personally typing this letter yourself, so there is no need for the typist’s initials.…

Usually I spend many hours at the computer. For this reason, I have a pain in my back. Every day I have a desire to visit the massage salon and to remove all muscular stress which has accumulated after day of work. That's why I have decided to open my own massage salon. The business essence consists in rendering of medical services (east and traditional massage, a physical massage and other kinds of medical massage) and consulting services (doctor-professional) to clients.

Your potential customers can be both people healthy, and people with various diseases. To one client to take off the weariness which has accumulated for the labor week enough to visit your salon once in 7 days. To another, having problems with health, it is reasonable to pass along rate of medical massage.

Your competitors are the institutions rendering similar services. As a rule, it is the state medical institutions, for example, polyclinics. However, they do only medical massage. You offer more a wide range of services. It is necessary to pay special attention on the massage salons rendering similar services on a commercial basis.

The given type of activity demands obligatory receipt of allowing documents on conducting this kind of business. First of all, it is necessary for you to obtain the license of state health organization. All this procedure will demand certain financial expenses, and time also.

At first you will need to rent an area of ​​30-40 sq. yd. You can try to lease 2-3 empty rooms at the nearest polyclinic. Probably, you will have to make a repair at your own expense. Costs will pay off quickly, thanks to a favorable arrangement of your massage salon. It is necessary to acquire 2-4 couches, 2-3 armchairs, a coffee table for a reception, and also a table for the professional doctor. Beside, you need to acquire a special cream and gel for the massage.

The special attention should be turned on experience of candidates. They must have diplomas about average medical education. It is desirable, that among your employees was a professional doctor as well. Hang out advertisements in an area adjoining to your massage salon, also use local newspapers.

You should have a sum necessary for rent payment, for purchasing of the equipment and expendable materials. It will depend on that enthusiasm with which you will get down to business. In some months, the salon will start to make a profit. In due course opening of several more massage salons is possible. And the main thing, when working with bodies of clients, do not forget about their souls! …