As promised, I am sending notice of my review of Marketing Plan Pro 11.0 powered by Duct Tape Marketing before deactivating the emailed newsletter list. I found 11.0 to be different — and more effective at producing a viable strategic plan — than 9.0. I especially liked the new options of producing a: (a) quick, 30-minute plan, (b) a bit more involved basic plan, or (c) the traditional standard plan. The software has always been invaluable to businesses with enough resources to produce the traditional-length plan, but is now much more helpful to the very small business or solopreneur. Read about my Marketing Plan Pro 11.0 purchase and use experiences — and more about my conclusions — here.

If you would like to continue tracking my posts and other WebsiteMarketingPlan.com activity, please subscribe to the blog. You can receive it through your favorite feed reader or through email.

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To reiterate: If you are currently subscribed through the emailed newsletter list, this will be the last you hear from me unless you subscribe to the blog.

Regards,
Bobette Kyle

http://www.websitemarketingplan.com/NewsletArch/newsletter8_28_08.htm

Hello Folks -

I recently received a request asking my opinion of different marketing planning products. As I wrote a detailed response, it struck me that I’ve never published any planning tools reviews (duh!). Consequently, I’ve chosen two to review ― which I like for different reasons ― as we enter the planning season: Marketing Plan Pro software and Marketing Builder toolset. The Marketing Builder review is in this issue. You will be able to read my review of the just-released Marketing Plan Pro 11.0 next week on the blog (More about the blog at the end of this note). You’ll also find my article on three different approaches to marketing planning in this issue.

Continuing a previous theme, today’s final two articles address new media. “Social Marketing Leads ― Don’t Make These Online Mistakes” covers some missteps you may make as you become active in online social networking. Paul Burani’s “Web-Based Video Marketing for Small Businesses” is an incredibly helpful piece that demystifies marketing with online video.

On a melancholy note, this will be the final issue of Web Site Marketing Plan News. I have decided to discontinue the formal newsletter, but continue with the Marketing Strategy Thoughts blog, where you can read about marketing planning and Website promotion strategies. The main WebsiteMarketingPlan.com site will also remain.

If you are like me and have trouble remembering to read blogs, don’t despair. You can receive blog posts via email. Just submit a subscription request from the URL below, then follow the directions in the the verification email and you will be all set: http://www.feedburner.com/fb/a/emailverifySubmit?feedId=2318012&loc=en_US

If you prefer to use a feed reader or subscribe through a blog service, access the feed here: http://feeds.feedburner.com/MarketingStrategyThoughts

I’ll send everyone a reminder to subscribe to the blog when I publish the Marketing Plan Pro review next week (Then I’ll be deleting the newsletter subscription list).

Enjoy!
Bobette Kyle

http://www.websitemarketingplan.com/NewsletArch/newsletter05_22_08.htm

Hello Folks -

While the US economy is not officially in a recession, most customers are becoming more cost-conscious as prices in key areas increase. Their needs are changing, but as a marketer how do you know what, exactly, has changed? My “Marketing Strategy for a Tough Economy” explains a method for projecting and integrating change into the marketing mix. Matthew Parente takes it a step further, addressing how to continually create new value ― no matter what the economy ― in “Turning a Down Economy into Opportunity.”

Other keys to thriving in a weak economy involve: (a) keeping the customers happy (so they’ll not only become repeat customers but will also spread the word about your products and services), (b) effectively getting in front of customers on their terms, and (c) interacting with customers through research.

“Everything You Need To Know About Word of Mouth Marketing” from Andy Sernovitz, “Social Media Content Creation Process” from Geoff Livingston, and “Qualitative Market Research - Attract Quality Respondents With The Four W’s” by Mark Goodin address these, respectively.

Enjoy!
Bobette Kyle

http://www.websitemarketingplan.com/NewsletArch/newsletter03_25_08.htm

Hello Folks -

This issue is all about attracting the right people for your product or service. Each of today’s articles addresses how to attract customers using a different marketing method.

Currently, the hottest methods involve interacting with potential customers and fans directly through social networking. Approaching this like advertising won’t cut it. People in social networks are looking for genuine interaction and interest in them. 18-year-old Country music star Taylor Swift, for example, is a phenomenal example of how social networks can prove wildly successful. Taylor’s career exposure began on the Internet as she diligently cultivated a growing fan base through her MySpace page. According to CMT News, “She said she closely supervises her MySpace page, even going so far as to personally write her biography in first person for it.” Taylor also says she spends an hour each day personally answering comments and emails. A look at her blog and MySpace page (myspace.com/taylorswift) quickly reveals another aspect of her networking success: the imagery and her writing style appeal to her online fans, predominantly teenage girls like her. “I have beautiful friends. Be one,” she quips. And they all love her ― 661,458 of them. Social networking success will look a little different for each of us ― because each of us appeal to a different type of person ― but the underlying constant is connecting individually with your customers. For more tips about social networking online, take a look at Nancy Marmolejo’s “7 Tips to Build Your Visibility and Credibility with Social Networking.”

As long as there are search engines and Websites, SEO will be a source for new business. For those who benefit from attracting search customers from specific geographic locations, Marcia Yudkin discusses specific on-site methods for improving geographically focused search rankings. If you are thinking about outsourcing local search optimization, read Scott Buresh’s analysis of Sams Club’s local SEO service.

Having your work published in print publications can bring attention to your business as well. In “Why Don’t Magazine Editors Like My Article Ideas?” Marcia explains ten common barriers to becoming published in print and how to overcome them. She discusses magazines specifically, but you can apply the general techniques to publishers in any medium ― print, digital, audio, or visual.

Publicity and press releases are another media-driven source of attention. In her third article this issue Marcia Yudkin explains how media releases can help attract customers when releasing a new product.

Enjoy!

Bobette Kyle