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In today’s tough economic times, medium-sized businesses are required to think outside the box and find tools to help sustain and grow their business. The Medium Business Alliance provides Information, Education, Resources and Network- ing to do just that. 2009 was an extremely challenging time for our nation, and medium businesses were hit hard. It was a year of penny-pinching and coupon clipping and “staycations”. Consumers were spending less and earn- ing less. Businesses were forced to cut back on employees and spending, and many had to close their business for good. It is our goal to help the medium-sized businesses of America succeed in today’s economy. We have put together newsletters to provide education and information to our members. We also have a web- site that provides a list of resources to help businesses utilize companies, that we have researched and trust, for all business needs, many of these offering discounts. Along with the newsletter and resources, we have a member directory for members to browse in order to network with other medium busi- nesses. Please take some time to read through this sample newsletter. We hope that you find it to be informa- tive and helpful. If you have any questions, please contact us at member- [email protected] . Letter From The Editor Special Points of Interest: Why Ethics Matter Drive Food Sales in A Tough Economy Why Franchises Should Buy Their Own Property Inside this issue: February 2010 Volume I, Issue III Technology: Can Web Design Be Optimized? By Ajay Prasad Technology 1 “How To” Series 3 Human Resources 4 Financial 5 Legal 6 Member Spotlight 8 Sales & Marketing 9 New Members 10 Your web design is the face of your business online. Through designing, you are going to make an impact on your customers. While creating any website, the basic aspects of web design are- 1. Content-The content is the substance of the website and should be relevant to the site. It should target the customers and visitors. 2. Usability-The site should be user-friendly with the interface and navigation system simple and reliable. 3. Appearance-The graphics and text should include a single style that flows throughout for consistency. 4. Visibility of the site-The site should be easy to find via most search engines. Optimization is a process of making something functional and effective. Web design optimization is a continu- ous process of improving the design to achieve business goals. An optimized web page loads quickly on the client’s system, so your website visitor can quickly get the information they (Continued on page 2)

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In today’s tough economic times, medium-sized businesses are required to think

outside the box and find tools to help sustain and grow their business. The

Medium Business Alliance provides Information, Education, Resources and Network-

ing to do just that.

2009 was an extremely challenging time for our nation, and medium businesses were hit hard. It was a

year of penny-pinching and coupon clipping and “staycations”. Consumers were spending less and earn-

ing less. Businesses were forced to cut back on employees and spending, and many had to close their

business for good.

It is our goal to help the medium-sized businesses of America succeed in today’s economy. We have

put together newsletters to provide education and information to our members. We also have a web-

site that provides a list of resources to help businesses utilize companies, that we have researched and

trust, for all business needs, many of these offering discounts. Along with the newsletter and resources,

we have a member directory for members to browse in order to network with other medium busi-

nesses.

Please take some time to read through this sample newsletter. We hope that you find it to be informa-

tive and helpful. If you have any questions, please contact us at member-

[email protected].

Letter From The Editor

Special Points of

Interest:

Why Ethics Matter

Drive Food Sales in

A Tough Economy

Why Franchises

Should Buy Their

Own Property

Inside this issue:

February 2010 Volume I, Issue III

Technology:

Can Web Design Be Optimized? By Ajay Prasad

Technology 1

“How To” Series 3

Human Resources 4

Financial 5

Legal 6

Member Spotlight 8

Sales & Marketing 9

New Members 10

Your web design is the face of your business online. Through designing, you are going to

make an impact on your customers. While creating any website, the basic aspects of web

design are-

1. Content-The content is the substance of the website and should be relevant to the site. It

should target the customers and visitors.

2. Usability-The site should be user-friendly with the interface and navigation system simple

and reliable.

3. Appearance-The graphics and text should include a single style that flows throughout for

consistency.

4. Visibility of the site-The site should be easy to find via most search engines. Optimization is

a process of making something functional and effective. Web design optimization is a continu-

ous process of improving the design to achieve business goals. An optimized web page loads

quickly on the client’s system, so your website visitor can quickly get the information they

(Continued on page 2)

Page 2: Sample Newsletter

had come for.

The reasons for optimization are varied. These include increasing download speed, increasing its search engine ranking

and applying modern web standards.

Now the question arises-whether optimization of web design is possible or not. Here, we are going to discuss the ways

for optimization.

1. Optimize Graphics For Web Use-Even today, a large number of people use dial up connection for web use. With slow

browsing speed, they don’t want to wait for pages to load. And as a business owner, you can’t afford to lose a single cus-

tomer. If you have a graphic intensive site, all you need to do is optimize your graphics for web use. Here optimizing

means compressing the size of graphics for fast download.

2. Emphasize On Content-Make sure that the content of the website is laid out effectively. If you only concentrate on

look and ignore the content, you can’t make an impact on your customers. You need to provide a concise, convincing

message and information about your website, if you want your visitors to buy your product or service. Make sure that

your content is simple and easy to understand.

3. Install A Navigation System That Compliments Search Engines-Navigation systems are built to help visitors find their

way around your website. Therefore, they should be designed carefully to make them search engine friendly. Search en-

gines need a chain of hypertext links starting at your home page that will take them page by page in your entire site. The

problem is that if JavaScript and flash systems replace plain hyperlinks, the search engine may not be able to find the un-

derlying pages. You can optimize the flash and images for better use and quick downloading.

4. Emphasize On Color, Shapes And Font Size-Things like color, shape and sizes of font can make a big impact on overall

message. Using blue, green, silver, grey as color can create a calm effect. Using rounded corners instead of hard edges

within your design can enable a soft and personalized feeling.

5. Keep It Simple- Look at some successful websites like Google that is very simple. Do not use bloated features. Keep

your goals as well as visitor’s needs in mind when adding a feature.

Page 2

Ajay Prasad is the President of GMR Group of Companies. GMR Web Team is a http://www.gmrwebteam.com based in

Orange County, California. The company’s purpose is to provide small and medium businesses website design and main-

tenance services at affordable rates. They have been in this business for the past 7 years.

Medium Business Alliance Volume I, Issue III

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Page 3 Medium Business Alliance Volume I, Issue III

1. What is the quickest/fastest way to get more sales quickly during

tough economic times? LARGE TO GO ORDERS. When sales slow the

best way to get them back up quickly is to land yourself large to go or-

ders. Try taking samples of your menu items to area car dealers and big box

retailers (Best Buy, CostCo, etc.) and introduce yourself to the general manager. Ask if they would like to place an order

with you for Saturday. Most every car dealer in the U.S. brings food in for their staff on Saturday’s since employees don’t

leave for a lunch break. This is your chance to land some BIG sales EARLY on a Saturday. Call to ask for their order Fri-

day evening or Saturday morning. If you get several orders take them yourself and offer something extra (free soda, cook-

ies, chips). Then keep this up each week with retailers and car dealers. You can make your sales goal on a Saturday be-

fore you even open for business with large to go orders.

2. Why is discounting NOT a good idea in a tough economy? Looking desperate will only hurt your brand and

your value. Guests will NOT understand after a particular menu item is discounted and then afterward when you raise

the price back to regular. You will be left with the only one option...to continue discounting. DON’T discount or cut

prices. Try other tactics before doing ANYTHING drastic.

3. When it’s time to lean it is time to _____(finish the sentence). When its time to LEAN, it’s time to

CLEAN. During slow business it is a good time to have your staff get your restaurant spotless. Create a chore list and

keep them busy making the kitchen, bathrooms, dining room and parking lot clean. Maybe your kitchen needs a major

steam cleaning and dishes polished. Keep track of the accomplishments and give the team an incentive to keep up the

good work.

4. What is the best way to drive TRIAL? SAMPLE, SAMPLE, SAMPLE. During slow times it is a perfect opportunity

to take samples of your best tasting menu items out to area businesses, groups, organizations and teams. Before lunch,

take samples of your food and menus to area businesses, after lunch try visiting banks, chamber of commerce and non-

profits and discuss upcoming events to participate. Before dinner, try sampling at sports fields, gyms, and hand out free

appetizer or drink coupons to get them in!

5. What are the best menu items to promote during tough economic times? PROMOTE high margin, low

cost menu items. Instead of spending time and money introducing new menu items during slow periods, reintroduce your

best selling, highest margin and lowest food cost item. Keep it simple!

6. What is the most cost effective advertising medium to generate awareness during tough economic

times? TRADE! Use your food in place of cash for radio advertising! Give away gift certificates to a local radio station

to get on-air mentions.

7. What type of marketing focus is the most important during difficult economic times? Keep loyal guests

HAPPY! Even your best guests may be having a hard time with the economy, so be sure to offer them something ex-

tra. Spend some extra time finding out what they like about your restaurant and your food and get their feedback. Every-

one loves to be heard, and then make changes if the ideas and feedback warrant it.

How To:

Seven Step Quiz for DRIVING FOOD SALES in

a Tough Economy By Linda Duke, CEO, Duke Marketing

Linda Duke, one of the restaurant industry’s foremost marketing experts, started Duke Marketing in 1987 specializing in marketing for multi-

location and franchise organizations. Ms. Duke has consulted with top restaurant brands in the United States, and is a nationally recognized

speaker and educator and a published author, www.marketing-cookbook.com. She speaks frequently at restaurant industry and client conferences,

and is a member of the board of directors of the California Restaurant Association’s Educational Foundation and the Fast Casual Restaurant Ex-

ecutive Alliance. For more information please see: www.dukemarketing.com. Ms. Duke can be reached at [email protected].

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Page 4 Volume I, Issue III

Human Resources:

Tips to Reducing Employee Time Off

Medium Business Alliance

All employers have to deal with the unfortunate reality that

employees will call in sick. While a day every now and

then does not have a drastic effect on the business, long-

term sick leave can have devastating effects on the business

as a whole. Finding ways to limit sickness and loss of pro-

duction while employees are out due to sickness will

greatly benefit your company.

Employee sickness affects the business in many ways. The

primary issue is the cost of paying an employee while they

are at home and not producing any revenue. Also, when

an employee is out, other employees may become frus-

trated because they depend on the missing employee to

provide a certain duty. If an employee is out due to a long-

term sickness, an employer may have to bring in a temp to

replace them, which costs the company loss of even more

revenue.

Putting policies in place as to how your company handles

sick days is necessary. Employees should call before their

shift so that you can make adjustments as necessary to fill

their role. If the employee will be out for more than three

days, require a doctor’s note before returning to work.

This way you know that the doctor has cleared the em-

ployee to return to work and will not risk infecting your

entire office.

Employees coming to work sick have more of a negative

effect on a business than them staying home. The saying,

“Don’t call in sick, crawl in sick” does not benefit the com-

pany in any way. Employees coming in sick to work will

very likely spread the germs and the entire office will end

up being sick. Also, sick employees are not very focused

on the task at hand and sales can be missed or injuries can

occur.

Having good relationships with your employees helps re-

duce sick time and pay. Open communication between

your employee and yourself, their direct supervisor or HR

manager will help the employee be more forthcoming

about issues. How time off is managed and how comfort-

able employees feel speaking with you or members of your

staff regarding their problems and illnesses will allow you

to make better decisions.

We hear more and more about employees taking “mental

health days”; they are not sick but would just like a day off.

For a business, this is not ideal, unless handled properly.

By allowing employees to take mental health days means

that they will come in the following day refreshed and

ready to work. Because these employees are not sick,

these days can be scheduled in advance. Make it known to

employees that you allow mental health days as long as

they follow the guidelines and schedule these days with you

in advance. This will allow you to plan for a day that is

normally slow or give you the ability to schedule someone

else to cover their shift prior to that day.

Businesses will always have the inopportune task of dealing

with sick employees. However, this should not have as

detrimental effect on your business if it is managed cor-

rectly. By following these guidelines you should be able to

decrease unnecessary time off and increase overall produc-

tivity.

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Page 5 Medium Business Alliance Volume I, Issue III

Financial:

Why Franchisees Should Buy Their Property By Chris Hurn

Despite a bleak outlook, the sky isn’t falling and all is not

lost. There are still ways to grow wealth, even in “softer”

economic times, and one of the quickest, easiest and safest

ways is to own commercial property.

Franklin D. Roosevelt once said that when done cor-

rectly, real estate is “about the safest investment in the

world.” It makes perfect sense to own the real estate

our businesses occupy.

The following are seven reasons why franchisees, when

possible, should consider owning their commercial

property:

1. You can pay yourself, rather than make your

landlord wealthy.

If you’re renting now, your rent payments are fattening

your landlord’s wallet when they could be benefiting

you.

2. You will build equity and grow your asset.

Over the past 50 years, commercial property as an as-

set class has appreciated an average of 3.5 percent per

year. This is a long-term investment that will pay off

substantially down the road, regardless of what Wall

Street does over the next several months.

3. You can control/fix your real estate expenses.

There’s no need to put up with rent escalators year

after year. When you purchase your property, be sure

to fix your interest rate for as long as possible. This

way, you’ll know exactly what you’ll pay month-to-

month and year-to-year. You’ll have much more free-

dom to better allocate resources and grow your busi-

ness when you know one of your largest expenses is

fixed.

4. You can reduce real estate expenses by up to 40

percent.

Many of the business owners we work with are able to

lower their monthly real estate expenses simply by own-

ing instead of renting, and doing it with the right financing

(more on that to come). If you take into account the av-

erage property appreciation and your fixed costs versus

an average yearly rental increase of 2.5 percent, owning

your commercial property over just a 10-year time period

is a much smarter financial decision than renting. And we

haven’t even mentioned the tax advantages and legal

“income-sheltering” this provides.

5. You’ll stop throwing away your money on rent.

As with No. 2 above, your real estate expenses could be

working to build you equity. But if you’re renting instead

of owning, you’re effectively throwing money away and

missing out on a huge opportunity to create wealth for

your growing franchise.

6. You can fulfill a dream.

The first step toward creating wealth and financial free-

dom comes when you decide to own your home. Then,

you decide to open a franchise and be your own boss

rather than work for somebody else. The next step -

what I call the “newest American Dream” - is to own

your commercial property. Author James Champy, in

“The Arc of Ambition,” wrote that Michael Dell admitted

he never dreamed of a future in technology when he was

young. Instead, he received inspiration from seeing many

(Continued on page 6)

“If you own your

commercial property, you can become the landlord, growing

rich while you sleep, even after

you’ve closed or sold your business.”

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Page 6 Volume I, Issue III Medium Business Alliance

new buildings on his way to school, and in front of each

were flags flying. He confessed that his youthful ambition

was to own such a building with a flagpole, and when

asked if he’d done that, Dell answered, “Yes, and I’ve got

three flagpoles.”

7. You will own your real estate even after you sell

your business.

If you own your commercial property, you can become

the landlord, growing rich while you sleep, even after

you’ve closed or sold your business. This passive income

can be the basis of a carefree retirement.

The franchisor’s perspective

If franchisees are able to enjoy all of these benefits by

owning instead of renting their property, it stands to rea-

son franchisors should encourage franchisees to own

whenever possible. Of course, this won’t apply to all con-

cepts, but many restaurants, hotels, day care facilities and

other brands that can occupy free-standing buildings will

see a boost from this. As franchisees increase their net

worth and grow their businesses, they’ll have the confi-

dence to open more units faster than they could if they

merely rented their commercial property.

Chris Hurn is the CEO and Cofounder of Mercantile Capital Corporation. MCC specializes in providing SBA-guaranteed 504 loans

to franchise companies. You can reach him at 407-786-5040, [email protected] or by visiting

www.TheSmartChoiceLoan.com. You can also read more of his musings at www.504blog.com.

Is now the right time?

Despite news reports that we’re headed for a terrible

recession, commercial property is still a great investment.

Now may be the best time in a long time to buy commer-

cial property. Franchisees have a once-in-a-generation

chance to make a smart investment that will benefit their

businesses, create wealth and pave their path toward a

carefree retirement.

Making the Smart choice

I would be remiss if I didn’t include some sort of applica-

tion - the “how” for all this. Again, it’s not impossible for

franchisees to get financing for commercial property. One

of the best tools available to franchisees is the Smart-

Choice Commercial Loan, otherwise known as the SBA

504. It’s designed to preserve more capital (equity re-

quirements are a third to half as much as traditional bank

loans) and have less impact on cash flow (with longer

terms and below-market, fixed interest rates). Many busi-

ness owners unwisely still view the SBA as a last resort

for financing, but smart franchisees will always promptly

consider at the 504 loan, because it really is the Smart

Choice for smaller franchise operators. It can make a

huge difference in the life of your franchise.

Legal: Why Ethics Matter-A Business Without Values is a Business at Risk By Dawn-Marie Driscoll and W. Michael Hoffman

Talking about values has become an industry. Best-selling

books promote earthly virtues for living and spiritual val-

ues for reflecting. Conventional wisdom—and opinion

leaders such as the Dalai Lama and the late Basil Cardinal

Hume—believe that the decade of greed is evolving into

an era in which many people are seeking the meaning of

life.

That’s all fine. But the last time we looked, the business

world was still engaged in delivering goods and services

and making a profit. Does that mean that business ethics

are an oxymoron? No. Values have a pragmatic place in

the business world precisely because of society’s shifting

sands. Name any of the currents that are buffeting organi-

zations today and you’ll find a rationale for values-driven

management. Here are a few:

Diversity: Individuals of different ages, religions, and

gender clearly have distinct and perhaps contrasting

ideas about appropriate ways to behave in an or-

ganization, depending upon their perspective and

life experiences. Their interpretations of the same

set of facts, as well as their response to them, may

differ widely.

Globalization: Individuals raised in diverse cultures

may have different reactions to various questions

or issues. Instead of describing some actions as

ethical and others unethical, some prefer to say

they are dealing with cultural sensitivities. But that

doesn’t help companies or their employees under-

stand what is expected of them.

Cost pressures: Often eliminated in rounds of cost-

cutting are the compliance police and structural

(Continued on page 7)

Page 7: Sample Newsletter

backups designed to prevent misdeeds. Individuals are

increasingly left on their own to make decisions.

Virtual work: With so many employees out in the field,

working from home or at other diverse locations, a

common organizational standard of behavior is diffi-

cult to assimilate from afar.

Strategic alliances: The individuals you work with on a

daily basis may not be fellow employees. They may be

customers, suppliers, or even competitors, who are

not even a part of your own organizational culture

and business goal framework.

Teamwork: Hierarchical management structures are

being replaced by teams, with leadership earned by

personal skill rather than title. This eliminates the

“because I told you so” standard of decision making.

Entrepreneurship and intrapreneurship: Many com-

panies are encouraging employees at the lowest pos-

sible level to take risks, innovate, and even spend

company resources, acting like owners of the busi-

ness. With responsibility for major decisions comes

the necessity to act responsibly.

Deregulated government: As regulation is replaced by

voluntary industry and company codes, government

laws and enforcement are no longer the only or the

complete resources for those looking for answers or

limitations. Of course, they never really were but,

more often than not, business acted as if they were.

Competitive, 24-hour media: Few organizations have

the luxury of time to figure out what the right re-

sponse should be to an ethical crisis, particularly if the

crisis is public rather than private. When a crisis oc-

curs in the public eye, the aggressive competitiveness

Page 7 Medium Business Alliance Volume I, Issue III

of a multiplicity of 24-hour media outlets makes it

imperative that the manager’s first response be the

right one.

Start With the Law Talking about values is hard work

because the meaning is subject to interpretation. The best

place to start is to consider a few basic values appropriate

to the economic structure of your company, the commu-

nity, and the industry. The lowest common denominator

is the law, and thus, is a logical place to begin. Glenn

Coleman, former director of communications and training

in the office of ethics and business conduct at EDS, pro-

poses that companies first make a list of laws, regulations,

and procedures that apply to them. It might be a short

list, but it will remind managers of obvious prohibitions.

These legal prohibitions may lead to the next level and

suggest ideas about what’s moral, ethical, and valued in

the organization. A discussion of values implies agreement

that a company will do more than just what is legally re-

quired. However, narrowing down a long list of other

values that will apply to work is not easy. Managers may

want to start with the obvious ones, such as a moral obli-

gation not to cause harm, steal, and lie. How do these

play out in a work situation? For example, if we agree we

have an obligation not to cause harm, how will that work

in our corporate culture? The Thoikol engineers who

were hesitant about the safety of the O-ring in cold tem-

peratures no doubt could point to how the attitude of the

Challenger space managers inhibited their ability to push

their concerns up to the final decision makers. After all

seven astronauts were killed in the resulting explosion,

investigators suggested that NASA officials were operating

in a “get-this-launched-at-all-costs” culture rather than

one in which “safety first” was the predominant value.

(Continued on page 8)

“Employee morale is also higher in a

company that has well-developed

values and lives by them. A

commitment to shared values,

rather than a culture that is based

on distrust of employees,

encourages employees to aspire to

success.”

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Page 8 Volume I, Issue III

Organization values can’t be selected by three top manag-

ers brainstorming in a conference room for an hour. Se-

lection of the core values for an organization should be

guided by three words: test, test, and test. If employees at

all levels of the organization don’t respond positively to

the values emphasized, chances are that the effort will be

fruitless.

Choose to Do the Right Thing

It seems clear that businesses without values are busi-

nesses at risk. Their reputations suffer in the marketplace,

depressing stock prices and eroding consumer confidence.

Recruitment of talented personnel is more difficult. Many

companies now perform due diligence on companies they

are considering as partners or suppliers, and are passing

on those that don’t meet their ethical standards.

Employee morale is also higher in a company that has well

-developed values and lives by them. A commitment to

shared values, rather than a culture that is based on dis-

trust of employees, encourages employees to aspire to

Member Spotlight

Medium Business Alliance

Excerpted with permission from Ethics Matters: How to Implement Values- Driven Management by Driscoll and Hoffman of

the Center for Business Ethics at Bentley University in Waltham, Massachusetts. The Center for Business Ethics promotes integrity

and trust in business by encouraging the establishment of organizational cultures and practices that drive ethically responsible deci-

sion making and conduct to create long-term economic, social, and environmental value. The center staff pursues this mission

through the application of expertise, research, education, and a collaborative approach to dissemination of best practices. Visit

www.bentley.edu/cbe for more information.

D & A Development and Consulting, Inc. is a full service commercial real estate development and consulting com-

pany. Founded on the principal that we live in a relationship driven world, all of their clients and business associates

are treated fairly and with the utmost level of respect. Their passion lies in creating, whether it be a project from the

ground up or a unique solution to your challenges.

D & A Development and Consulting, Inc. offers services such as project development, consulting, site analysis, market

analysis, financial modeling, project management, budget preparation, zoning/entitlements, contract negotiation, construc-

tion management and lease negotiation among many others.

To see how D & A Development and Consulting, Inc. can help your business, contact Jeff Pape at jeff@dna-

development.com or reach him directly at 404-386-5710. For more information, please visit www.dna-development.com.

success. A study by professors at Bentley University found

that among the benefits of a value-based culture are in-

creased awareness of ethical issues, commitment to the

organization, employee integrity, willingness to communi-

cate openly about problems, willingness to report an eth-

ics violation to management, improved decision making,

willingness to seek advice about ethical issues, and re-

duced unethical conduct.

Perhaps the best reason for value-based management

comes from Center for Business Ethics Executive Fellow

Emeritus John Casey, who wrote Ethical Decisions in the

Financial Marketplace.“Laws alone are a poor substitute for

morality. The greatest blessing of living in a free society is

that we have the ability to steer ourselves. Once we give

up that ability, that privilege, we risk losing sight of the

ethical spirit and the law becomes a cage. We’ll do, as so

many others have done in this century, just what we’re

told to do. The world can no longer afford that kind of

obedience.”

Page 9: Sample Newsletter

It is increasingly more difficult to manage communi-

cation with customers and prospects because of the

following conditions; new channels are introduced as

technology advances, old channels are made obso-

lete and perceptions change, branding and image

are no longer controlled solely by that company or

its marketing department, and the pace of business

in general is accelerating.

Social media, mobile marketing, and even common direct

mail options have created a web of customer contact that is

very complicated. Customers and prospects can still be

grouped and preferences can still be determined, but even

the performance measurement tools that are used to sort

these preferences are becoming more convoluted. Layered

on top of the communication strategy is an expanding depth

and breadth of demographics, psychographics, and lifestyle

characteristics. The groups by design are becoming more

targeted, with the ultimate goal to be marketing one to one.

Traditional telemarketing and catalog efforts have taken a

beating for their intrusive nature or lack of

“greenness”. But common best practices still exist. Not

every customer is ready to enter the on-line digital commu-

nication stream. Of a company’s entire base of customers, a

certain percentage will continue to respond as they have to

these methods for years. The trick is not spending addi-

tional dollars to move them to a channel that isn’t right for

them. Understanding in advance which groups might have a

propensity to respond to email marketing will lower the

overall investment and improve end results. With contin-

ued analysis of the off line audience, subtle adjustments can

improve the bottom line on these customers as well. The

market has changed, even small incremental savings are wel-

comed by organizations as attitudes and expectations

change toward growth and profitability.

Channel preference also extends to how a company can

receive feedback and insights from its customer base. The

blogging and tweeting worlds have given a voice to the

masses and that voice impacts branding efforts. Listening to

customers, a strategy that strongly perpetuates success has

Sales and Marketing: The Mystery of Channel Preference By Justin Jackson

Page 9

never been more critical. Marketing departments must

see and hear and react to feedback generated. They

must also be ahead of this feedback when possible.

The reason that marketing departments must stay pro-

active is because business is now moving ahead so

fast. Trends become evident and disappear in weeks

instead of months, making it difficult for a pure play

cataloger to react, when testing and implementation can

take nearly six months. Market statistics are more

readily available; the economy has been and will con-

tinue to be front page news for years, and more media

outlets are created every day. And these factors only

take into account the current market, without regard

to international growth. Innovation will be essential in

handling each of the business challenges that company’s

face going forward.

Justin Jackson is an Account Executive with over 10 years of experience in consultative sales in the multi-channel

arena. Email any questions to [email protected] or check out the website: http://

www.workone2one.com/.

Medium Business Alliance Volume I, Issue III

Page 10: Sample Newsletter

YOUR COMPANY’S NAME HERE!

New Member Listings

www.mediumbusinessalliance.com

Contact us at [email protected]

THIS IS NOT INVESTMENT, TAX OR LEGAL ADVICE. Contact your financial advisor, accountant or attorney

before making important decisions in any of these areas. Medium Business Alliance, L.L.C. Copyright © 2009. Medium

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Medium Business Alliance Volume I, Issue III Page 10

A membership with the Medium Business Alliance provides you with an information-packed newsletter,

entry into our Member Directory and use of the MBA Member Logo.

In addition, you will have access to 25 companies that offer their products and services to our members,

some of them at significant discounts. These discounts will more than pay for your annual membership

dues of $100. AND we are adding more companies every month!

Products and Services Available

Financial Services-Merchant Cash Advance, Factoring, Asset Based Lending, Loans, Payroll/Accounting,

Merchant Processing

Business Supplies and Services-Office Supplies, Office Furniture, Computers, Online Meetings/Webinars,

Printers, Insurance and more

Marketing and Web-Logos, Free Incorporation, Free Business Cards, Promotional Items, Web Design

Travel-Hotels, Car Rentals, All-inclusive packages for Business and Leisure

IT and Telephony-VoIP

Human Resources and Training-Books, Manager Training

Miscellaneous-Identity Protection, Beverages

Estimated annual savings on products and services that are used by medium businesses every day - $500

Go to www.mediumbusinessalliance.com today to join!