Jason Griffin Aims Higher
Griffin’s Taekwondo program targets character, higher grades, and self esteem
Meet Jason Griffin. A 7th degree blackbelt (Senior Master) in Tae Kwon Do, an active member in his church community at Broadmoor Baptist Church in Madison, and a husband and father of three children. If you ask Griffin “What is your main mission in life?,” he will tell you teaching and leading by example, whether it is at home, in his academy, at church or in the community. Jason Griffin’s Tae Kwon Do studio is an icon on the corner of I-55 and County Line Road. Many have driven by in wonder at the two story figures of kids high kicking in their uniforms, wondering what exactly goes on inside. (more…)
Marketing and Sales: The Secret Power of the Bell Curve
A powerful idea that, when applied, can make your marketing and sales efforts sing.
We all know of the bell curve. Most of us learned about it in the context of school where it is often applied to normalize grades. The bell curve applies in marketing and sales as well.
The Bell Curve of Performance
The idea of the bell curve illustrates the notion that there are a few that always succeed no matter the circumstances and a few that do not succeed no matter the circumstances. In terms of performance, this occurs without adjusting scores. There are always outliers on the over-achiever (over-performance) and the under-achiever (under-performance) sides. The school and classroom may be poorly run, the teacher may not be organized, but over-achieving students, regardless of the situation, will succeed. Likewise, there are those on the other end of the bell curve who, in spite of an excellent educational environment and in spite of having excellent mentoring and teaching, just will not make it. (more…)
Connect With Your Customers
Many advertisers make basic mistakes. Make sure to get your message and your presentation right: Connect With Your Customers!
Whenever you advertise as a business you have the opportunity to make a real connection with your customers. The most powerful connection you can make is through a meaningful message. Connect With Your Customers to increase brand awareness and goodwill.
There is a tendency in advertising to go for exceptionally clever ways to present company messages. Unfortunately the focus often become the “clever,” not the message.
Cleverness and pretty don’t count if there is no real underlying value or if they get in the way of what you are trying to say. We have all seen “over-the-top” advertisements. They are only effective when the value is communicated. Some of the best good examples of over-the-top advertisements that work are those at the half-time during the Super Bowl. These are messages that have been cleverly crafted at great cost and are being presented to an audience that is expecting something over the top to begin with. In fact, the more over the top the better! There is a world of difference between Super Bowl moments and the rest of life. It is also not uncommon for advertisers to run their Super Bowl commercial only at the Super Bowl, then choose to run different campaigns outside of the Super Bowl. (more…)
Customer Loyalty begins with Trust.
Consistency is the Key.
Customer Loyalty begins with customers that trust you with their business and become the best customers to work with, because they allow you to do what you do best!
Have you ever wondered how some businesses just seem to have their act together? Have you ever felt confidence in a business more quickly than anticipated? Have you ever felt your confidence and trust in a business fade, perhaps without a coherent reason? The causal function of any of these circumstances can often be explained by consistency which builds customer loyalty. (more…)
Be Known for Something
Is Your Business a “Go To” Place for Something? Just one thing? You should be. This and Two Other Golden Rules to Do Business By.
One of the keys to business success, start-up and otherwise, is to be known for something, just one, single something. It allows you to specialize rather than be simply categorized.
Rule Number One: Be known for something
Five Guys is known for burgers and fries. Abner’s is known for chicken. Batteries Plus is known for batteries! By being known for a thing, a business can accelerate its market presence more than with any other single strategy. It allows businesses like Batteries Plus to compete with category stores like Walmart. That is not to say that Walmart is not successful or known for anything. Walmart spends a lot of money pushing the message of low prices. McDonald’s is undeniably the fast food king. However, it is not known for a single item, such as hamburgers. They promote fast food items from salad to fish to wraps to McRib Sandwiches. Category businesses are known for more general attributes such as price, speed or convenience. Again, by being known for a single thing a business can more easily draw business from category leaders. (more…)
Get the Message Out!!
Are You Doing Everything You Can To Communicate With Your Customers?
Today’s landscape of communication options can be overwhelming for any sized business, let alone small and mid-sized businesses that already feel crunched when it comes to time and resources for self promotion. However, the plethora of options has also come with advances in the technology that can be used to manage those communications.
In Ridgeland, Mississippi, thinkWEBSTORE is helping clients face these challenges and understand the tools that make it possible to communicate with customers in many new ways.
Digital Makeover Give your Company the Gift of Business
How does your website stand up against your competition’s? Does it play well with your social marketing sites?
A website can just sit there like a dusty can on a shelf. Or, it can be a vivid expression of what you want your business to be and how you want it to compete with others. More and more small to mid-sized companies are realizing that how they express themselves online is crucial to how well they perform in today’s economy. Increasingly today’s messaging isn’t about shouting louder, it’s about speaking smarter. This means targeting the message and the medium to the right audience. Online, you can. (more…)
Carter Executes Detailed Plan Perfectly
by Martin Willoughby
Originally Published August 9,2010 in the
Mississippi Business Journal
>>Download PDF Scan of Article with Pics
Marketing is a very common business concept, but one that I find is interpreted and applied very differently by business people. Marketing is often seen as a luxury, and not a necessity, so it is often first on the chopping block during budget cuts. Hundreds, if not thousands, of marketing books are published each year trying to influence the way business leaders plan and execute their marketing strategies. Over the years, Al Ries, Jack Trout, Robert Cialdini and Seth Godin are a few of the authors and consultants that have risen above the pack to make a major impact on the way we think about marketing. For most entrepreneurs who don’t have a direct background in marketing, sorting through the various theories of marketing can be a difficult thing. Part of the confusion lies in how we think about advertising, public relations, sales, and marketing.
Competitive Advantage In Ridgeland
thinkWEBSTORE.com And Sister Store Advanced
Microsystems Help Local Businesses Compete
Ridgeland, Mississippi
This small business team is hard to beat. Small and large businesses alike are utilizing thinkWEBSTORE.com and Advanced Microsystems to boost their business and add stability to their technology solutions. And, the budgetary benefits can be significant.
In today’s ultra-competitive environment, where businesses are streamlining operations and costs, here are two local companies that are always busy. In fact, they have continued to grow despite the down economy. Both companies have developed a solid reputation in the tri-county area as the “go-to” places for websites and computer support. Bryan Carter, managing partner for thinkWEBSTORE.com, explains, “We make technology easy and marketing make sense. That is always our goal.”
The Twitter about Facebook
Social Media meets Mainstream and Businesses go to Market
You heard about it from your kids months ago. Then you heard it mentioned in the news in passing. Suddenly, within a matter of weeks, Facebook and Twitter icons began popping up on everything from Fox, CNN, and major networks to mainstream publications and restaurants.
Social Media Marketing has hit mainstream. And, while MySpace has been thrown under the bus, Facebook and Twitter are thriving. How well? Well rumors of Google’s interest in Twitter are all the rage and if Google’s track record of picking winning online strategies is any indication then don’t expect this wave to end anytime soon. (more…)