Top 7 Ways to Build Relationship with Your Prospects

Experts say that prospects need to have contact with you 7 times before they will feel comfortable buying from you. Here are 7 ways to nurture a budding business relationship.

1. Business cards often form a person's first impression. When you attend networking events and meet tons of people, your business card is something tangible your prospects can take home with them and refer to and remember you. Be sure to have your business card professionally designed with your branding and contact information including phone number, email address and website address.

2. Your website provides a professional image for your business. After hearing about you from a friend, the first thing they will do is go to your website to learn more about you and your services. Be sure your website is attractively designed by a professional and has a clear call to action. Having your website optimized for popular search terms is an excellent way to increase traffic to your website.

3. Email newsletters are a great way to educate your prospects with important tips and facts about your industry. They are much more than the latest news or photos of your kids. Use email newsletters to communicate your message and announce specials and promotions. Find out how to make sure your email newsletter is being read properly by your recipients.

4. Write in your blog regularly. It’s best to have a blog right on your website. That way you own your content. If you have a blog on blogger.com which is owned by Google, it can be difficult to transfer all your blog posts to your own blog on your website. This requires custom programming. Also it is possible to lose your blog content. A colleague had been blogging for some time on wordpress.com and his account was shut down for no reason and he lost all of his content. Here at Seascape we are in the process of setting up our own blog to match our website.

5. Social Media is becoming mainstream and an important way to do business. We’ve already talked about blogging. Seascape Web Design recently started using Twitter. If you're new to Twitter, you can find us by going here: www.twitter.com/seascapeweb To follow us on Twitter, add @seascapeweb. We give important tips on Internet marketing and specials and promotions. Having a page on Facebook is a great way to keep in touch with work friends and make new contacts in your industry. Just keep those randy fun photos you took at the last party with your friends off your public Facebook account.

6. Networking groups are a great way to meet new people. Ask them about their business and how you can help them. When you receive a business card from someone, they are giving you permission to contact them. Add these contacts to your Contact database and send them your monthly newsletter filled with resources and information that your prospects will find helpful. Be sure to include your mailing address and an unsubscribe link to follow the Canadian anti-spam rules. Posting a copy of your newsletter on your website and having a link giving the reader the option of viewing your newsletter online is great. Many email tools do not display your newsletter the way you would like.

7. Send new prospects emails with questions and information that they have requested. Follow up with phone calls and request to meet for coffee to learn more about their business. This way you can provide a free consultation.

Need a more professional image for your website?

Need to increase online sales and lead generation?

Contact katy@seascapewebdesign.com or call 604.729.4227.

Seascape Web Design is now on Twitter!

Seascape Web Design is now on Twitter! You can follow us at SeascapeWeb. Keep up to date with the latest happenings at our web design and marketing company including new projects, additions to our portfolio and information on effective marketing strategies.

To view our postings on Twitter, go to http://www.twitter.com/seascapeweb

Here's a great FREE webinar coming up this month. Presented by bizlaunch.ca
Date: April 23rd, 2009
Time: 11 am PST
Topic: How to Grow your Business Online

I attended the webinar today on "Marketing & Selling in Tough Times". I learned some valuable tips on sales and marketing my small business. This is my first webinar and it worked out great. I viewed the video of the presentation online and also the powerpoint presentation of the session notes. I dialed a toll-free number and listened to the audio on speakerphone since the VoIP wasn't working properly.

Webinars are a great way to communicate with your clients and prospects. WebEx is a great tool to present your own webinar.

For more information on upcoming bizlaunch.ca webinars, go to:
www.bizlaunch.ca/cisco

7 Internet Marketing Tips for HOBN

Tonight I will be attending the High Output Business Networking group in Langley. We meet at Newlands Golf Course in the upstairs Lounge called Winner's Sports Bar. Meeting starts at 5:45 pm and the address is 21025 48th Avenue, Langley, BC.

Here are 7 Internet Marketing Tips that I will be sharing at tonight's meeting.

1. Stand out from your competition with custom graphic design. Is it time for a redesign or website makeover?

2. Stay top of mind with your prospects with email newsletter signup and distribution. Find out how you can beat the spam blockers and be sure that everyone on your mailing list can read your newsletter.

3. Educate your prospects by writing regularly in your company blog. This is a good way to establish yourself as an expert in your field.

4. Enable your prospects to find you easily because your site ranks in the top 10 for Google and Yahoo. We provide site optimization for new and existing websites.

5. Advertise online and sell your products with our easy-to-use shopping carts.

6. Keep your website current and up to date by editing it yourself with our Website Management Software.

7. Add social networking to your website. Add a product or service review section to your website. Add online chat for your customer support. Go on Twitter and Facebook to advertise your company and connect with people.

For more information, visit http://www.seascapewebdesign.com today!

SeascapeWebDesign.com has a fresh new look!

On January 15th, SeascapeWebDesign.com launched a new improved website design. The new website design features a wide 3 column layout with room for important links to the various sections of the website. We have redesigned our logo for a more colourful look and added a new slogan. Creating websites that work... so you don't have to. :-) In the main navigation menu, we added a button for the blog and a new articles section. Soon we will have an online Newsletter archive so you can catch up on our past newsletters at your convenience.

Are you happy with your website? Is it generating new leads and effectively communicating your message? We are here to help. Contact us today to learn more about how to improve your website and to get more results.

Check out our new website design at www.seascapewebdesign.com

What's your action plan for January 2009?

In December, I encouraged you to update your business marketing plan. What new strategies will you be putting into action this month? Here are a few of my goals for January 2009.

For example:
1. Attend 4 new Networking Events this month
2. Write action plan for January and review on the 31st to see how many goals I have accomplished.
3. Write and send out Newsletter to my database of contacts.

What new strategies will you be implementing this month? Please write to me and I will post them here.

Happy Marketing!

Three Marketing tips for January 2009

Talk up your business. Wherever you go, talk about your business. And talk about your website. Tell engaging stories about how you helped your clients by building their business.

Go to online chat forums in your industry and post comments explaining tips and tricks of your trade or industry. Many people have gained valuable leads this way.

Start blogging. Add a blog to your website. Afraid of giving away your trade secrets? Sharing valuable information and advice about your business will establish you as an expert in your field. People will read your valuable tips and contact you to learn more and you can start building a relationship with them. Then you will have made a valuable contact which may result in future business.