3 Ways to Position Yourself as an Expert

Did you ever wonder how somebody becomes an expert? Is there a governing body with a magic wand that deems people as experts in their fields or is this something that the average business owner can do? These are questions that many business owners ask and the answer to all is that positioning yourself as an expert in your industry is much easier than most think.

By simply taking advantage of these three tips, you too can become an expert in your field.

Be Visible and Strut Your Stuff.

Experts are seen everywhere. They are master networkers and implementers and available to answer questions openly in their area of expertise. Be seen in social media forums and discussion boards, write articles, write a book and call into talk radio.


Strut Your Stuff by Educating Not Selling.

Experts have opinions, methods or a process that achieve results and they educate others. You can do this by providing classes, workshops, teleclass or guest lectures at your local universities or Chamber of Commerce. They never lead in for the sale, they understand that the business will come as a result of this action.


Use the Media to Get the Word Out.

Experts use PR as a valuable marketing strategy. They know how important it is to get their name and their personal brand out. They pitch to the media, get on talk radio, are guest on local and national TV programs and they are very visible outside of their space.

Once you successfully position yourself as an expert, you must follow the Rules of Engagement in order to sustain your image of an expert.

1. Experts are always “on” – They understand their reputation is on the line and that people depend upon and will act upon what they say. They own that responsibility.

2. Experts are busy – They are not hanging out on social media sites all day long. They are master implementers and time managers.

3. Experts are professional – They never talk down to people and position their opinions as an alternative point of view.

Master these simple three tips and abide by the rules of engagement every day and you too will become the expert in your field. With expert positioning, you are able to enhance your credibility, build trusting relationships with your target market and customers and attract new opportunities to you and your business. The goal isn’t to be seen as an expert once, but to build a reputation that lasts a lifetime.

Kellie D'Andrea , The Guru of Positioning, teaches small business how to attract and retain more customers. She is the creator of the BLAST Marketing System that teaches you how to position yourself and your business as the leading expert in your industry. To learn more and to sign up for her free 5 part mini course on becoming an empowered entrepreneur go to http://www.KellieDAndrea.com.

9 Marketing Strategies to Blast Your Profits

Every business owner, even the really successful ones have been guilty of making mistakes in their business. The difference between the truly successful ones and those that aren’t are that they learn from their mistakes and are not afraid to take the risks to deploy strategies to take their business to the next level. Here are nine strategies for you to start using in your business today.

1. Don’t Work Without A Plan You wouldn’t take a vacation without planning your days, activities and your budgets so why would you run your business without a plan. A solid marketing plan is the foundation to every successful business and if you want to achieve greatness, you must be thinking about how you are going to accomplish this each and every day.

2. Stay True to Your Mission and Be The Leader Every business has a brand identity. A reason they went into business and an impression that they want to leave with their customers. Do not sway from your mission. To be the leader in your market, you must be the first to try new things. Do not do what your competition is doing by mimicking their marketing and advertising. Stand apart from the masses and be unique.

3. Consistency is the KeyOnce you have a powerful message, shout it from the rooftops and shout it out often. Your message has to be repeated over and over again and in every communication the business sends out into the marketplace both internal and external – Your marketing material, your website, your employees and every client touch point should be screaming the same message every time.

4. Follow Up, Follow Up, Follow Up To really accelerate your business, you must build a business based upon referrals. To obtain referrals you must master the art of the follow up. You business will grow from your existing client base either engaging additional services or referring you to others. Keep in touch with them often.

5. Don’t Be A Super Hero Do not try to go at it alone. You are not a superhero and will eventually burn out quickly. Surround yourself with talented people and lead them to victory. You focus on what you do best and outsource other tasks to topic experts who can help advance your business.

6. Wow ‘Em The best activity you can focus on is to wow your customers. Create an experience that they will remember. The best customer experience is generated by the details. Those little things that make all the difference in the world and usually doesn’t cost the business owner much to do.

7. Leverage Your Systems From this point forward, you should be thinking about how you can leverage your business. Everything that you do should be able to support multiple efforts and activities. For example, if you are marketing, how can you use that same marketing in other venues. If you write an article, can you turn that content into other pieces like an ebook, a blog post or a white paper that you can give to your customers.

8. Network Every Day Business is built by the people you meet. Make a goal for yourself to network each and every day. A good system is to commit to reaching out to five new people a day to introduce yourself and to see how you can assist them with no expectation of a returned favor.

9. Build Alliances with Influencers Chances are there are other businesses that complement your offering. Align yourself with those other business owners and collaborate on how you can help each other’s business. This will give you an opportunity to reach a new market, offer new products and build your network within your industry.

Gain the Ultimate Edge by Working With a Business Coach

As business around the world has become increasingly competitivethe demand for innovation, quicker service turnaround and compressed pricing models, has created an environment where business owners must be creative, develop new solutions and manage stressful transitions. They must remain focused on moving their business forward without eroding into their profits, keeping their customers happy and their employees motivated. This great demand for immediate results is a classic precursor to seeking a small business coach.

A small business coach is an independent and objective partner who provides one-on-one interaction, guidance and motivation to a business owner or executive who is looking for feedback and guidance on how to reach a desired goal. A coach is similar to having a partner who holds you accountable, keep you on track, and keep you progressing forward. Coaching is effective for business owners who know what they want to get done, are open to feedback and change but aren’t sure the path to take to get there. A small business coach will work with their clients to help them find the answers and offer them the support and motivation to take the necessary steps.

Some additional benefits of working with a strong business coach are as follows:

·Objective Point of View: One of the biggest benefits of working with a business coach is that they are independent and not linked to the organization; they are linked to only you and where you want to go. Sometimes those that are closest to you cannot provide a truly objective assessment of your situation and won’t be able to guide the business owner effectively. According to an ICF survey, 28% of those surveyed commented that an independent point of view was the most valuable result.

·Idea Sharing, Creativity and Brainstorming: Information is one of the most powerful assets a person can posses and having the ability to leverage a coach’s knowledge and experience is exponentially better. Having the ability to brainstorm and be creative with a coach who is focused on helping you solve a problem is one of the biggest benefits you will experience from a business coaching. 28% of those surveyed commented that brainstorming was the most valuable result.

· Sustained Improvement: Working with a business coach focuses around a goal or a series of goals that will provide a foundation for continuous improvement. A coach helps you leverage your strengths and to become more effective at process and communication improvements and holds you accountable for the results. According to an ICF survey, 15% of those surveyed commented that being accountable to the coach was the most valuable result.

· Motivation: A successful coach will be able to ignite the passion inside and to help you create the positive change necessary to move forward towards your goals. It is a motivational process that brings you through a series of discussions to help find that passion and focus. According to an ICF survey, 15% of those surveyed commented that an encouragement and motivation was the most valuable result.

Business coaching is one of the most effective ways of achieving growth, change and development in both people and organizations. It involves a process and a sounding board for decision making and helps give you more clarity and focus in your day to day operations. Lastly, it will improve your interpersonal skills and your ability to handle tension between business, family and personal needs. When a business owner feels like they are on an island by themselves, a business coach will motivate them to build the raft to get them to safety.

©Kellie D’Andrea & Associates

Want to use this article in your newsletter or web site?You can, just include this complete blurb with it: Kellie D'Andrea is the creator of the “BLAST 90 Day Coaching Program”and publishes "The Marketing Edge" a FREE award winning ezine for small business owners who want to gain the competitive edge with strategic marketing and branding techniques that actually work. For a limited time she is offering a FREE 5 part mini course on entrepreneurship offered at http://www.kelliedandrea.com/.

BLAST Marketing Tip # 2: Give Something Away

Do you know the old saying “there is no such thing as a free lunch”, well the same holds true for marketing but in this case, you offer a free gift to entice people to your business in exchange for the opportunity to “Wow” them with your services. People love free stuff! Byoffering a small taste of what it is like to do business with you gratis, you are reducing any perceived risk that potential customer may have. It is sort of a “try before you buy” approach and Internet marketers and retailers have been doing this for years.

How many times have you seen a free e-book or video series in exchange for your email address? or How many times were you given a sample of the newest flavor at your local ice cream store in exchange for you trying their product?

In all of my businesses, both on line and off line, I often give away something to sweeten the pot. For example, in our Ice Cream Cake Business, we would give away free cake cutting knives and calendars – each with our logo, phone number and website address. In my Coaching Business, I give away a free 5 part mini series on starting your own business and a free report 23 mistakes entrepreneurs make.

People these days still remember the simple gestures. Next time your customer comes to you, throw in a little something extra and watch your revenue soar from referrals and repeat business!

BLAST Marketing Tip # 1: Know Your Target Market

Nothing is more important than knowing your target market. By knowing your target market you are able to drill down and offer solutions specific for their demands. The more you can drill down and create a niche, the more successful your marketing messages. For example, if you say your target market is women, you are not drilling down specifically enough, but if you say my target market is women who operate a small business out of their home, you are more targeted. You can even go down one layer further – women who operate a small coaching business out of their home. The more specific you can get, the better.

Knowing your target market allows you to have a laser focus on your customer and provides you an opportunity to sell directly to them rather than to large groups. Imagine searching for one exact fish in a very large pond and all you have is one “hook” to reel that fish in. Now next to your hook are thousands of other hooks that your competition has casted into the same pond. If you don’t know what will make that one fish bite on your hook, you will be landing your fish by luck rather than by skill. Most certainly over a longer period of time. Being able to develop your marketing “hook”, specific to your fish will require you to know exactly who you customer or fish is and entice them to buy from you.

4 Proven Benefits of Successful Joint Ventures

In today’s economy and competitive environment successful businesses are reaping the benefits of one of the oldest strategies – partnering. On line marketers have been using this strategy for years to catapult their sales to unbelievable heights and now, Joint Ventures are making a comeback in the bricks and mortar world of business.

A joint venture is when two or more business, individuals or projects come together to co‐market an opportunity, project or product to each other’s client list and new prospects. It allows you to leverage the relationships and goodwill already established by your partner to the benefit of both parties. So in layman terms, a joint venture is when you join forces with another business to make some money!

With joint ventures, you want to identify people who are selling into your target market with a non competitive product or service but who are working deals with the same individuals who make the decisions on your products or services. Develop a proposal that is mutually beneficial for both parties and a marketing strategy and hit the road with your co-branded offer.

Did you ever hear the old saying “you are only as good as the people you know”. This holds true for forming successful joint venture partnerships. People want to surround themselves with successful, positive and magnetic people and businesses with a strong brand so it is critical to align with a business with comparable values and goals.

Although this one of the quickest way to enhance your market presence and boost your profits, there are many other benefits to forming a partnership with another business in your space.

Benefit # 1: New Client Acquisition

Joint ventures are a great way to acquire new leads and new clients at no additional cost. By having new subscribers, you are able to continuing building a relationship with these people and even if they don’t buy from you right away, chances are they will eventually. Not a bad way to build a prospecting list without incurring any fees. Some new online marketers may benefit greatly from giving away all profits from their first joint venture just to build their list for future opportunities.

Benefit # 2: Enhanced Credibility

You gain instant rockstar status and enhanced credibility. One of the keys to an effective partnership is selecting the right partner. If you joint venture partner is reputable, trustworthy and has already established a great following, their followers will trust you based upon that recommendation. This is why your “list” is sacred. Do not partner with just anyone, make sure you select someone who is worthy of your list and make sure that you are worthy of theirs.

Benefit #3: Increase Breadth of Services

Joint ventures are a great way to offer your clients and prospects additional products. By jointly co‐branding a product, you and your partner are able to bring new solutions to your current client list increasing your breadth of services you offer. The more solutions you can bring to your customers, the more valuable you are to your customers.

Benefit #4: Improved Conversion Rate

You will enhance your conversion rate. One of the goals when you get your list is to convert those prospects into buying customers. With a joint venture partner, you will increase your conversion rate. Your joint venture partner will be endorsing you and your product and by that testimony alone, will convert more of their leads into sales in their own list. Since they already have an established relationship, their subscribers trust their endorsements and you can leverage that trust by offering a high quality product that will benefit the joint venture partner’s subscriber list.


©Kellie D’Andrea & Associates

Want to use this article in your newsletter or web site?You can, just include this complete blurb with it: Kellie D'Andrea is the creator of the “Build a Better Ezine System”and publishes "The Marketing Edge" a FREE award winning ezine for small business owners who want to gain the competitive edge with strategic marketing and branding techniques that actually work. Learn how to become the empowered entrepreneur with a FREE 5 part mini course offered at www.kelliedandrea.com.

Twitter, Facebook, Linked In, Oh My!

Twitter, Facebook and Linked In, Oh My”, “Twitter, Facebook and Linked In, Oh My”.
These days, I imagine if Dorothy was lost in the internet jungle that is what she would be saying
as she skipped down the yellow brick road trying to figure out social networking sites.

Similar to a cocktail party or event, social networking is the act of meeting and engaging with people with one slight difference, it is in a virtual environment. Websites such as Twitter, Facebook, Linked In, Friend Finder, You Tube and much, much more, exist to create an environment for individuals who share a common interest to meet and discuss those interests. It also provides an environment to share information, photos and news as it is happening. From a business perspective, it provides a new media to engage customers, monitor customer feedback and provide a centralized online meeting area to engage and market too all at once. Social media and networking sites are not a fad and will eventually be a integral part of business, customer service, marketing and sales and if you are not involved in it now, you need to get started right away! Here are some tips to getting started with social networking.

1. Get Started: The best way to get started is to simply sign up and follow along.

a. If you are joining Twitter – select a few people to follow and watch what is being said, who is following who and when you are comfortable, join in the conversation. To help you get started, follow me www.twitter.com/keldandrea.

b. For Facebook, sign up and look for “friends”. Chances are there are tons of people you know and Facebook will help you find them and begin making connections on your behalf. The great thing is, you get the option to accept a friend invitation or you can just ignore it and nobody will know. To help get you started on Facebook, send me a friend request www.facebook.com/kellie.dandrea.

c. For Linked In, sign up and “connect” with business associates, family and friends by sending an invitation to connect. Since this is a professional networking site, you will keep your tone and your messages professional. Search for business associates and send them an invitation to connect. Connect with me www.linkedin.com/in/kdandrea.


2. Write a great profile and include a picture: Social networking is about connecting and networking. Make sure you include you picture and write a powerful profile. Each social networking site has its own requirement for how much you can write, so write as much as you can and make it interesting. Include items that people can relate to and so that people can engage with you in conversation, but be cautious. Same rules apply when meeting strangers, don’t disclose too much personal information and always use your common sense.

3. Get involved. If you sit in the corner at a party and do not speak to anyone, you’re not networking. Most of these sites center around one theme “What are you doing now” and depending upon the site, you have limited number of characters to include in a text message to answer that question. Comment on other people’s thoughts, messages and ideas. Ask a question and see what answers you get back. Look at the photos, the web links and the blog posts that people are pointing too and provide your feedback. Join groups and participate in Q & A forums.

4. Make the Time Commitment. Networking and relationships are built over time, so you will need to make a commitment to invest in growing your network. This is not something you can do seldom and requires a level of commitment to truly maximize the results, but beware, social media is addictive and can take all your time if you let it. Schedule a few hours a day in intervals to participate.

5. Post Often and Frequently. How often should I post? This is a question that I get asked often and my answer is, all depends. On Twitter, it is expected that you send short messages about what you are doing a few times a day, but that is not the same expectation for Facebook and LinkedIn. I usually post a few times a week on Facebook and on Linked In. I post to Question & Answer forums frequently and I always supply comments and feedback to people I am connected with on all sites.


©Kellie D’Andrea & Associates

Want to use this article in your newsletter or web site?You can, just include this complete blurb with it: Kellie D'Andrea is the creator of the BLAST system and publishes "The Marketing Edge" a FREE award winning ezine for small business owners who want to gain the competitive edge with strategic marketing and branding techniques that actually work. Find out the 23 Common Mistakes Most Entrepreneurs make with a FREE report offered at www.kelliedandrea.com.

Add More of You to Your Content

By now you are probably familiar with email marketing and may even be familiar with an
ezine (pronounced e –zeen from the root electronic or e – magazine), and may even be
using these marketing techniques in your business already. Some marketers may tell you that ezines are dead, a thing of the past. I would tell you that ezines are one of the most cost effective and strategic marketing techniques out on the market today.

So why aren’t more entrepreneurs grabbing onto to this wonderful idea and running with. Most likely, because of the fear that they need technical expertise or will need to hire a graphic designer not to mention a lawyer to understand SPAM laws. With all that, online marketing and ezine publishing may appear that it is going to cost you a lot of money so why bother?

Because you do not need technical expertise, a graphic designer or a lawyer specifically to manage SPAM not to mention the most important reason why – your competitors? Right now, many of your competitors are setting up an online marketing system or are thinking about it. Here is your opportunity to beat them to the punch, own your market and reach far more customers than you could through traditional methods. Online marketing is not something you should ignore, it is something you should embrace and has the potential to boost your business and profits very easily and without technical or graphical expertise.

The single most important item in successful ezine publishing is your ability to produce useful, informative and entertaining content for your readers on a consistent and frequent basis. From the words of Shoeless Joe Jackson in the 1989 movie “Field of Dreams”, “If you build it, they will come”, or in our case “If you write it, they will come”. People have a natural tendency to seek out information and a need to learn about new things. By offering valuable content, you are filling this need and developing a relationship with each of your readers and you will eventually develop a following.

Here are some tips to help you successfully connect with your readers.

1) Write your articles with your readers in mind. When you write, you should write from the customers’ perspective and be able to answer the question, what will my reader get from this article and how will it benefit them.

2) Try reaching your readers through personality – yours and theirs. To create emotional ties, you need to appeal to your readers on an emotional level, something they can relate to. Add a piece of yourself to your ezine and make it real. You want your readers to feel a sense of kinship to you and to feel they are just like you. In order to that, show a bit of your personality, humbleness and humor.

3) Be Real and Authentic. It is okay to share something about yourself and to share your opinions. No matter what your beliefs, politics or views are, it is okay to share a little bit with your readers so they can get a sense of who you are. Just make sure not to use caution when discussing strong topics such as religion and politics and be sensitive that not all may share your views. Let your readers know that it is okay for some readers to be different and still connect with you.

4) Show you care. Ask your readers for their opinions, ideas and views. Share the results of a survey in your next ezine issue and write an interested article based upon the results. Not only does this fuel ideas for new content, it helps you keep a pulse on what your readers are looking for.


©Kellie D’Andrea & Associates

Want to use this article in your newsletter or web site?You can, just include this complete blurb with it: Kellie D'Andrea is the creator of the BLAST system and publishes "The Marketing Edge" a FREE award winning ezine for small business owners who want to gain the competitive edge with strategic marketing and branding techniques that actually work. Find out the 23 Common Mistakes Most Entrepreneurs make with a FREE report offered at www.kelliedandrea.com.

“Give ‘em the Pickle”

Pickles are those special extra things you do to make people happy. It’s a
special phone call you make to your customer or a handwritten thank you note That you include with every order. It is taking the time to walk the customer down the isle to find the item that they are looking for rather than pointing them in specific direction to the back of the store. It is offering them a special promotional item or even just calling them by their name. It is the art of finding out what your customers want and making sure they get it.

The Pickle Philosophy is the brainchild of Bob Farrell of Farrell Ice Cream Parlour fame. He was a pioneer in the resteraunt industry, having created one of the first national full service chain resteraunts opening and managing over 150 locations before selling the chain to Marriott. It is Farrell’s belief that businesses are in the “people business” and that it is not what you sell that is important, it is how you take care of the people who buy your product. It is about figuring out what would make your customers happy and giving it to them. That’s the pickle.

It all started with a letter:

“Dear Mr. Farrell,

I’ve been coming to your restaurant for over three years. I always order a #2 hamburger and a chocloate shake. I always ask for an extra pickle and I always get one. Mind you, this has been going on once or twice a week for three years. I came into your restaurant the other day and I order my usual. I asked the young waitress for an extra pickle. I believe she was new because I hadn’t seen her before. She said, “Sir, I will sell you a side of pickles for $ 1.25.” I told her, “No, I just want the extra slice of pickle. I always ask for it and they always give it to me. Go ask your manager.”

She went away and came back after speaking to to the manager. The waitress looked me in the eye and said, “I’ll sell you a pickle for a nickle.” Mr. Farrel, I told her what to do with her pickle, hamburger and milkshake. I’m not coming back to your restaurant if that’s the way you’re going to run it.

The customer

Mr. Farrell was successful at responding to the customer, apologizing and asking him to come back and has taken this letter to create the war cry “Give ‘em the Pickle” so when something happens with a customer and you are not sure what to do? Give them the pickle. Do what you have to do to make things right.

This story applies to all businesses that want to put in strategies to keep the customers coming back. Focusing on providing excellent customer service at every touchpoint and building an organization whose employees are trained, motivated and informed about the company’s approach to customers will exceed the customers expectations with each and evey opporutnity. So create an enviroment for your employees to excel at customer service by following the pickle philsophy:

1) Service: Make serving others the number one priority of your business.

2) Attitude: Choice a service-oriented attitude. How you think of your customers is how you will treat them.

3) Consistency: Set high service standards and live them every day. Customers return because they had a positive expierence last time.

4) Teamwork: Commit to teamwork. Find ways to make each other look good. In the end, everything ends up in front of the customer.

When you are in doubt on how you should handle a customer, remember “Give ‘em the Pickle”!

©Kellie D’Andrea & Associates

Want to use this article in your newsletter or web site? You can, just include this complete blurb with it: Kellie D'Andrea is the creator of the BLAST system and publishes "The Marketing Edge" a FREE award winning ezine for small business owners who want to gain the competitive edge with strategic marketing and branding techniques that actually work. Find out the 23 Common Mistakes Most Entrepreneurs make with a FREE report offered at http://www.kelliedandrea.com/.

It’s Not What You Know, It’s Who You Know!

In business, you often hear the statement “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know!” In the early 1900’s, Napoleon Hill introduced the concept of a mastermind group in his timeless classic “Think and Grow Rich.” He wrote the Mastermind Principle: “the coordination of knowledge and the effort of two or more people, who work toward a definite purpose, in the spirit of harmony.” Hill also wrote, “No two minds come together without thereby creating a third, invisible intangible force, which may be likened to a third mind.” The powerful result of a mastermind group is that there is a synergy of energy and excitement that partipants bring to the group therefore raising the bar by challenging and encouraging other members to create and implement their goals. Being part of a mastermind group has proven to have many benefits to enterprenaurial success:

Idea Sharing, Creativity and Brainstorming

Information is one of the most powerful assets a person can posses and having the ability to leverage other people’s information is exponentially better. Each group member will come with different experiences, perspectives and ideas that will most likely be your next big money making idea. Having the ability to brainstorm and be creative with a group of people all focused on helping you solve a problem is one of the biggest benefits you will experience from a mastermind group.

Accountability and Responsibility

Most goals are not achieved because as business owners, we are not held accountable to anyone to achieve them. It is our business and we want to procrastinate or put task on the backburner because of other operational issues we deal with, which is our prerogative, right? The second biggest benefit of a mastermind group is that they hold you accountable to reach your goals and monitor your actions to ensure you are on the right path. They act as sounding boards, gatekeepers and test groups all the while asking you where you stand with your plan.

Motivational Support

Staying positive and motivated is a big challenge for some business owners especially after the excitement of starting a business has worn off and the business becomes work. Businesses have many different sides to it and not everything runs smoothly all the time. This can be very frustrating and cause many entrepreneurs to become unmotivated. By surrounding yourself with a mastermind group, you will receive positive encouragement no matter how you perform and the active discussions you will participate in will most likely inspire and stimulate you to move forward.

Networking and Business Relationships

A big part of being in a mastermind group is developing solid relationships with your group members. These relationships have been proven to last a lifetime and be the catalyst for millions of dollars. You will form friendships and connections that will provide you more than just business benefits; it will provide you with a sense of belonging and being part of something special.

Additional Resources

In a year where time is money, having access to additional resources is critical to any business owner’s success. By connecting with peers in your mastermind group, you will be provided with access to the resources that others in your group are using to achieve similar results. This will reduce the time required to find alternative solutions as well as the learning curve usually associated with implementing new solutions. Not to mention, you will save time working within a group versus trying to figure something out on your own.


©Kellie D’Andrea & Associates

Want to use this article in your newsletter or web site?You can, just include this complete blurb with it: Kellie D'Andrea is the creator of the BLAST system and publishes "The Marketing Edge" a FREE award winning ezine for small business owners who want to gain the competitive edge with strategic marketing and branding techniques that actually work. Find out the 23 Common Mistakes Most Entrepreneurs make with a FREE report offered at http://www.kelliedandrea.com/.

5 Reasons to Publish Your Own Ezine

What if you had the power to increase your marketing reach by thousands for a fraction of the expense of traditional direct mail? How about the ability to position yourself as an expert in your field simply by writing an article? This is was publishing an ezine can do for you in just a matter of weeks. An Ezine is just a fancy way of saying E-Newsletter and is one of the best marketing tools available to business owners today. Now there are a dozen of reasons why an ezine can help build your business and drive profits, but here are my top five.



1. An ezine helps you position yourself as an expert in your field.An ezine is a great medium for communicating to your clients and prospects. Through articles you establish yourself as an expert in the topics you write about and by supplying informative and great content, you can create a loyal base of readers who are all potential clients. You create credibility, expertise and trust with each article by showing your readers what you know, how much you know about that topic and providing them with insight into you as an individual. By showcasing your knowledge and expertise, not only will you attract more clients, but you will also attract other media attention resulting in your articles being published in other ezines, directories, newspapers and magazines and overall, increasing your reach beyond your current client list. If you content is good, people will want to read more from you and will find out how to subscribe to your list to get it.

2. An ezine provides you a very effective way to promote your business and to stay in touch with your customers and prospects. Staying in touch with your customers is one of the most important techniques in retaining customers. You need to remind them that you are still around and that you still have a valuable product and/or service to offer. An ezine provides you with another way to reach out with very little effort. It is noninvasive and contains valuable resources with great articles and recommendations that your customers will begin to look forward to. It is great way to keep them informed of what you have been up to and what your plans are to move the business further. Do anything to stay out in front of your competition and in front of your customers at all times.

3. An ezine provides you with a method to grow your customer and reader list to market and sell your products to over and over again. The most effective way to build your business is through creating relationship and recurring revenue. One of the biggest assets a business has is their client and prospecting list. People buy from people who they like and trust. Not only will they buy from you once, if you are providing true value in your product and/or service, they will buy from you again and again. They will become your greatest cheerleaders and sales people by promoting you and your business to everyone they know, forwarding your articles and providing you with an opportunity to start the list building process over to your new audience. The greatest thing about an ezine is that you can stop marketing one to one and begin marketing to hundreds, thousands or even millions at once. Law of averages, if you increase your reach in terms of numbers, chances are you will increase your conversion to sales.

4. An ezine allows you to grow your business outside your market and allows you to spread the word about your product and/or services.The World Wide Web has had a tremendous impact on the way business is conducted today. It has provided opportunities for the little guy to play in the same ocean as the big fish. The internet has provided boundless opportunities to expand your reach and to evolve your business beyond your local radius and beyond your four walls. A reader of my ezine, brought an opportunity to me to expand my ice cream store into a mobile cart business located into the city. Another reader forwarded my ezine to a friend who happened to own an internet gift service business. This individual contacted me and together we created http://www.sayitwithicecream.com/ a place on the web where you can order ice cream cakes for your kids away at college, business associates or family members. An ezine is the catalyst for growth. Once you connect with your readers, the connection keeps on growing and your list continues to build and your reach will go far beyond your wildest dreams.

5. An ezine is inexpensive and easy to publish. Most likely you are using traditional marketing methods to spread the word about your company including direct mail campaigns. Maybe you are sending out postcards, newsletters or product announcements and go through the process of designing your piece, creating and verifying your addresses, creating labels, stuffing envelopes and bringing to the post office for delivery. After your campaign is said and done, you have spent a lot of money on design and postage and no way to verify receipt. In some markets this is a very effective marketing technique but with the onset of e-mail marketing, there is a less expensive way to accomplish the same goal and verify receipt. Email marketing allows you to consolidate your marketing for a fraction of the cost of traditional direct mail methods and gets the word out faster. In addition, with the fancy systems out there geared towards the novice but created to capture data, you will have a complete understanding of your delivery rates and even can easily measure and track who opened your email, who forwarded your email and who bought from your email.

©Kellie D’Andrea & Associates

Want to use this article in your newsletter or web site?You can, just include this complete blurb with it: Kellie D'Andrea is the creator of the BLAST system and publishes "The Marketing Edge" a FREE award winning ezine for small business owners who want to gain the competitive edge with strategic marketing and branding techniques that actually work. Find out the 23 Common Mistakes Most Entrepreneurs make with a FREE report offered at http://www.kelliedandrea.com/.

“Navigating the Changing Winds: 6 Master Strategies to Building Customer Loyalty”

The winds – “they are a changing my friend”…. The current state of the economy, a new President, failing financial systems, fluctuating prices and high unemployment have caused many of us to pause and evaluate opportunities to reduce expenses and to optimize our performance. As our economy continues to fluctuate, controlling expenses and optimizing service levels from partners and vendors is going to become the focus for all of our customers. We all must be sensitive to these “changing winds” and enhance the experience of our customers each time we interact with them. We must go back to the basics of serving our customers and take the actions that make a difference. The simple actions – a patient ear, a please, a thank you, a quick update on status (even if you don’t’ have update to give – the fact you are reaching out to let them know you are working on their problem goes a long way) and a smile that can be heard over the phone are all simple things that we can do each and every day to stand apart from our competition.

The art of hospitality can be very profitable, but it does take some practice and effort. To succeed, you must be dedicated to customer service first, always demonstrating that you care about their issues. Although customers may not always be right, we all must agree that it is okay for them to be wrong. Treat everyone with concern and compassion. After all, our business is not about us – it’s about the people we service and that single fact is more critical now as we navigate the changing winds…

Below are 6 strategies that when applied, will evolve your customer service to the next level – customer loyalty.

Master Strategy # 1: Know your customer

Customers are not a dime a dozen…they come with a variety of different characteristics, desires, needs and expectations. It is important to know everything that you can about your customers to ensure you are offering the most value. From basic information, name, address, title and area of responsibility to wants, needs and pressures and everything in between, it is important to understand your customer to enhance communication, articulate your proposition and to develop the foundation for trust.

Master Strategy # 2: Develop a customer strategy

Companies spend a lot of time and money developing strategic plans for their business, their technology solutions, operational strategies and financial strategies but rarely develop a customer strategy. Developing a good plan to enhance each client’s individual experience will result in uncovering areas for improvement and areas where you excel that may easily translate to another client. By writing a strategy on each client and personalizing that strategy based upon what you know about your customers (Master Strategy #1), you will memorialize a systematic approach and philosophy that will be easily followed by all in your company.

Master Strategy # 3: Deliver on your promise

Customers bought your product or service based upon a promise that you or your company has made. Make sure that you always deliver on your promise and therefore maintaining trustworthiness with your customers. Customers want to purchase from companies and people they trust to deliver the product and/or service they need and with the value they expect. According to the book, Trust Based Selling, Trustworthiness consists of four factors: Credibility, Reliability, Intimacy and Self-Orientation. The combination of these factors used in the right combinations will develop a connection with your customers that will lead to a long time relationship.

Master Strategy # 4: Educate your staff

Educate your front lines with your customer knowledge. The characteristic of your customers, what they are buying, the promises that were made and train your staff on how to not only deliver customer service but how to go over and beyond the basics. They should know how to react in all situations and be empowered to respond to the customers’ requests. They should know it is okay to tell the customer that they don’t know the answers, but will find out and get right back to them. Customer service is a culture and a theme that must permeate your entire organization.

Master Strategy # 5: Over Promise and Over Deliver

Make sure you provide true customer service. In today’s market, service has become a buzzword thrown around by every company, but it is important to understand that customer service is now a baseline expectation and not considered an added value. Customer service is no longer a key differentiator but going over and above the call of duty, well that will set you apart. I recently heard of a story of a retail store owner, selling women’s clothing, overheard customers in her store looking for a place to eat. She not only made a recommendation but picked up the phone and called the local restaurant to make a reservation on behalf of her customer. – She went over and beyond the basics. Here is an great opportunity to over promise and over deliver. Set yourself apart from the competition and be unique. Be creative and personalize your service specific to your individual customer. One size does not fit all in this case and offering personalized customer service will assist you in developing your unique brand.

Master Strategy # 6: Make it easy for your customers to do business with you

Leave all the guess work out and make it easy for your customer to do business with you. Have your staff go through the same process and channels that your customers will so they can experience the same exact experience your customers will have. Make adjustments to your current process if needed and always put on your customer hat and understand how your services are being evaluated through the customer eyes. Is it easy to request your product or service? What if there is a problem? Is it easy to escalate an issue? Is it easy to check on a status? Is there a long wait time? Is there a consistency each time the customer calls? These are all important questions that you must understand in order to make it easy for your customers to do business with you.


By taking the time to apply some or all of these strategies, you will create a culture centered on top notch customer service. By educating your team on expectations and providing them the roadmap to deliver the serviced you expect, will not only make your customers more loyal but will make your business more profitable. Simply stated, happy customers buy more and tell more friends about their experience. Use that as an opportunity to build upon your already stellar brand!



©Kellie D’Andrea & Associates

Want to use this article in your newsletter or web site?You can, just include this complete blurb with it: Kellie D'Andrea is the creator of the BLAST system and publishes "The Marketing Edge" a FREE award winning ezine for small business owners who want to gain the competitive edge with strategic marketing and branding techniques that actually work. Find out the 23 Common Mistakes Most Entrepreneurs make with a FREE report offered at http://www.kelliedandrea.com/

5 Thoughts when Creating a Customer Service Strategy

Many companies work each year on their strategic plans including how to evolve their technology solutions, their marketing positions and how to become more efficient in operations. They work diligently each year on putting together annual budgets and resource plans but how often do they put together a customer service strategy? A plan that focuses on knowing what your clients want, what their pain points are and what their needs for efficiencies are.

Some tips:

1) Know you customer at different levels

Don't just focus on one single point of contact. Each position within a client firm has different needs. go the extra mile, learn what your customers challenges are at different points within the organization. People move around, the more you know about your customers and the more people you stay in contact with, the stronger relationship you will have with your customer.

2) Establish a group who owns the high level relationship

A customer service group that focuses on the relationship rather than the day to day problem resolution or service delivery is integral to a successful customer service strategy. Set up performance metrics and a customer communication plan and hold this team accountable for the success of the relationship.

3) Develop a customer scorecard or metrics to manage and evaluate success

By establishing a set of expectations in the beginning and agreeing on how you will be measured makes it easier to track your accomplishments. By creating metrics and service standards, it is easy to highlight you positives. How many times do you get in trouble with a customer over a single mistake? Most people live in the moment and may need to be reminded of all the good.

4) Make sure your executive team reaches out

Customers want to feel special. Have a communication plan that requires the CEO or President to reach out to say hello or to check up on how the company is performing. And not just to the customer CEO, have them reach out to your day to day contact... it will make them feel special.

5) Always ask how you can improve

Markets, trends and industry change daily. Not to mention the players in your field. Always inquire about your performance and always be prepared to make changes. What worked yesterday might not work today. What was one individual preference may not be the next.. The key is to keep communicating and be very responsive to your customers changing needs.

©2009 Kellie D’Andrea & Associates


Want to use this article in your newsletter or web site?

You can, just include this complete blurb with it: Kellie D'Andrea is the creator of the BLAST system and publishes "The Marketing Edge" a FREE award winning ezine for small business owners who want to gain the competitive edge with strategic marketing techniques that actually work. Find out the 23 Common Mistakes Most Entrepreneurs make with a FREE report offered at www.kelliedandrea.com.

3 Ways to BLAST your Profits in your Local Market

Nothing motivates people into buying your products and services like a special event or promotion geared just towards them. How many local shop owners or retailers are wasting their time away in their stores rather than "working their market". Products and services are bought based upon need, knowledge and trust. All traits of a relationship so get out there and let people know who you are and give them an opportunity to build trust in your organization or store location based upon you as an individual. You won’t regret it!

Here are 5 ideas to consider. Choose one that will work with your business and give it a try or try them all……

1. Local schools. Contact all the local schools in your area and create a promotion that is specific to them. For example, offer a % off coupon or discount for any student’s family that comes into your store. Be creative and make it worthwhile for the school, donate a % of the proceeds back or offer your product as the incentive for completing a task – a book-a-thon; completion of a test; a charity goal – whatever, just make it fun and make it beneficial for you, the students and the school. The best part about partnering with your local school is that you have an inexpensive way to advertise. Most schools have hundreds of students and communicate with the families via giving the student information to bring home. Supply them with flyers with the details of the promotion and coupon or incentive to buy something from you and “blast” FREE advertising.

2. Charity organizations. Team up with a local charity and design a program that is attractive and gives them the potential to earn a lot of money for their cause. Everybody likes to help out a charity and here is a great way to get your name out and show a side charitable side of you and your business. Your local marketing are the folks that buy from you, engaging them in a common goal will help you build trust, bring awareness to you and your brand and alert people to where your business is located. Charities have a long list of contacts and you want to make sure they contribute to the marketing of the event by sending out communications to their list in addition to alerting the media. Offer to handle that for them. Anything you can do to draw attention and to help out, will pay you back in profits in the long run. An event can be anything…be creative. A client of mine – a local ice cream store created and decorated an ice cream cake specifically for Breast Cancer Awareness and hosted an Ice Cream Social at their store and promoted the event and gave back a % of the proceeds to the charity. Send out press releases. Contact the local chamber and schools and alert them to the event, hang flyers and contact your local news anchors and “blast” FREE publicity.

3. Create a giveaway or contest. People love to win. We are a nation of competitive people and are drawn to ways that we can have fun and win a prize no matter how big or small. Create a giveaway or a contest and make it fun for everyone. A client of mine raffled off a large flat screen TV but in order to be included in the raffle you first needed to buy something but second you needed to sing when you entered the store. At first it was strange but as everyone started to laugh and enjoy themselves, others joined in and before we knew it, the word spread and “blast” NEW customers. People want to be on the winning team and they want to have a good time so create one and the customers will come.

©2009 Kellie D’Andrea & Associates


Want to use this article in your newsletter or web site?

You can, just include this complete blurb with it: Kellie D'Andrea is the creator of the BLAST system and publishes "The Marketing Edge" a FREE award winning ezine for small business owners who want to gain the competitive edge with strategic marketing tand branding techniques that actually work. Find out the 23 Common Mistakes Most Entrepreneurs make with a FREE report offered at www.kelliedandrea.com.