Start with a Mobile Site

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images-4Running a business can keep an entrepreneur busy, so oftentimes they won’t know where to focus their next marketing campaign. There are so many different aspects of business, including print materials, advertising, website updates, and signage. Let Direct West Media Group help you to wade through your inbox, and get you started with a mobile optimized website. A mobile site is designed to work on any iPhone, Android, Galaxy, smart phone or tablet device.

If you’ve ever surfed the net from your phone, you know how frustrating it can be at times. It takes forever for a site to load, and you may never be able to pinch everything down so you can view a page within the window of your device. What generally happens is that a consumer ends up leaving the site, before they ever find their information. One of the most negative aspects of online business is that your customer could end up visiting your competitor, as their online site has been mobile optimized.

For those smart business managers who have had someone set up a mobile optimized website for them, what it means is that a customer can visit their site from their mobile phone, and be pleasantly surprised at how well it works on their device. A mobile optimized website will be streamed down, and the home page will fit within the confines of your smart phone screen. Immediate contact information will be at hand, including a phone number and address. A basic list of products or services will be available from a submenu, which should pop up with only one click.

A mobile website may list specials and have coupons that may not be available on your regular business website. This will entice customers to visit your mobile site. When your customers see the great deals that they can get via your mobile site, they’ll remember to visit again and again. A mobile optimized site is like sending a mini flyer to all your customers, but instead of being through the mail, it’s online.

A mobile website is also simple and easy to update. Specials and coupons can be added and modified at will. Some types of businesses such as restaurants or service-oriented businesses such as lube and oil, or salons may have weekly deals that can be promoted on a mobile site.

Did you know that you don’t need a website first, to get started on a mobile site? You can start with a mobile website first, then once it’s done, you can have your own online site set up. Today, most people are using smart phones, and most likely will be looking up a business from their phone, and not an actual computer. With corporate policies in place, most office workers aren’t even allowed to surf the net, so they’ll reach for their smart phone first, before doing any web surfing.

If you’ve been wading through your inbox wondering where to get started on your marketing, give Direct West Media Group a call. We’ll help you to get started on your business mobile site today.

Do It Yourself Marketing or Not?

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manatcomputerAs a small business owner, one of the most neglected areas of your business is likely having a good marketing plan. For any number of reasons, you may have neglected to set up an advertising or marketing program for your business. Perhaps you’ve been too busy on other details of your business, or maybe you just don’t know where to start. Many businesses will place advertising on hold, as there’s not enough cash left in the monthly budget. But you could be doing your business a disservice by ignoring the marketing needs of your business.

Should you be trying do it yourself marketing or not? Here’s a few reasons why you should step back and hire an advertising and marketing professional instead.

Marketing professionals have access to market research that you do not. Several business firms focus only on online market research, and publish their findings each month. Marketing firms pay a subscription fee to have access to this information, and can pass on the information at a fraction of the cost to you.

It’s more than a matter of having access to online market research. It’s also a matter of analyzing the data, to see how it fits with your particular industry. Sure, you can receive a report full of numbers, figures, and graphs, but do you know how to read it, and do you even have the time?

Time is a big factor in how a business owner divvies up their daily schedule. There’s many demands on their time, from ordering supplies, to accounting, and handling staff. By the end of the day, there likely isn’t time to figure out where you should be advertising, or what marketing methods you should be trying.

What works for one particular type of industry may not work for another one. A billboard may be perfect for a hospitality type of business, but not do so well for a dog grooming business. Websites generally are the perfect fit for all types of businesses, and mobile sites work well for many businesses as well. There are also new marketing methods, such as social media advertising, and Google advertising that may be effective for your business. Traditional businesses may benefit from a Yellow Pages listing, whereas a progressive sort of business may bomb in the Pages.

There’s nothing wrong with your initial efforts when starting out marketing your business, but the more you want your business to succeed, the more you need to hire a marketing expert to attend to the special needs of your business.

Do it yourself marketing may be fine for when you’re just starting out, but after a few months of operation it’s time to call in the pros. Why sit around in an office waiting for the calls to come in, when you can hire a marketing expert who can take your business to the next level? Please contact Direct West Media Group Inc. about how you can make your business succeed in your particular market.

Seven Signs That You Need Help with Your Marketing

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ConfusedWhen new businesses start out, they can benefit from an effective marketing campaign. There’s not one type of business that is guaranteed to pull in the customers, so advertising and marketing gets the message out to your audience. As your business grows, it’s also important to add advertising to your business plan, so you can meet your goals.

If you’ve neglected the marketing area of your business for too long, you may start seeing signs that it’s time to spend some effort on your campaign. Here’s a few signs that indicate it’s time that you need to get some help with your marketing and advertising needs.

1. If you’ve been neglecting your advertising or marketing needs, then likely you either don’t have time to handle it, or you don’t know how what to do. It could be time to call in an expert, who can help you focus on where you need to get started.

2. Are your telephones too quiet? This could be an indication that business is slowing down. Since we’re heading into fall, this could be troublesome, as the fall should be a busy season. It may be time to jumpstart a new marketing campaign, to draw more visitors to your business.

3. If your website is getting few visitors, it may not just be the overall design, but it could be because your potential customers just aren’t on a laptop computer anymore. Many people have made the switch to tablets and smart phones. If your website hasn’t been optimized for mobile usage, you could be turning away customers with your bulky website. It may be time to set up a mobile website to handle your ever-changing market.

4. If you’re starting to scribble your phone number on pieces of paper, it may be time for some brand new business cards. But don’t just reorder cards from ten years ago, order new ones with your business’s social media accounts, as well as website and full contact details. Business cards are changing with the times.

5. A coffee shop or restaurant should never be quiet. People eat at all hours of the day and night, and you can see that at busy franchises. So, if your restaurant is getting quiet, it may be time to start a new social media program to start drawing traffic your way, through a special promotion.

6. Are even your employees heading to the competition? If you own a restaurant or a store, and your employees are heading next door to do business, it may be time to dust off your signage. Perhaps you need some interior signage to spiff up the place?

7. If you’re way too busy to tackle your social media, it may be time to hire someone to do it for you. Just because your business is busy, doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t be continuing to market your company. Be sure to constantly keep your business in the public eye, so it’s never quiet.

If your business is suffering any of these seven signs that you need help with your advertising or marketing needs, now is the best time to give Direct West Media Group Inc. a call so they can help your business to thrive and grow with the times.