Part One

1.The first thing any serious marketeer must do above anything else is to build a list of subscribers. Your list is like a golden asset to you if utilized correctly.

2.Writing top tip articles, such as, ten easy tips to help and improve your golf swing. People love ''How To'' articles very much like these your reading now, there very popular. You can then submit your articles to the abundance of article directories that are out there.

3.Buying traffic from the search engines by utilizing one of their PPC campaigns is also very popular and can yield high returns done correctly.

4.Something which I have done in the past is to open up a myspace account and find targeted friends so that you can promote your services to them. However a word of warning, please, do not spam people because myspace is cracking down on spammers and they are starting to sue people for the practice.

5.Soliciting a link from your local chamber of commerce would be worth your while and could yield great returns for you. Also getting involved in your local chamber of commerce's promotional days and offering your and your businesses services is a great way of attracting free advertising.

6.This tip may seem to be one of the most obvious ones but a lot of people are still getting it wrong, 'Big Time'. You must have an easy to remember domain name. If your domain name is too long or not memorable then people may forget your site and you wouldn't want that to happen now would you.

7.Add a bookmark option to your website or blogs. Bookmarks are a good form of free advertising and I bookmark everything, all my websites, blogs, ''EVERYTHING''. Another thing to do is to leave fictitious reviews in your blogs under an assumed name when you first set them up in order to draw attention to them from the search engines. And get friends and family to leave comments too. There's nothing the search engines love more than a popular blog.

8.Something I always do is try to think of the most obvious ways people might misspell my domain name and then I purchase those misspelled versions of my domain name and have them redirect to my main one. It would be a good idea if you were to do the same and don't think you will have to buy hundreds of domain names. Just think up one or two, three at the most, of the obvious ways someone may misspell your domain name. For example if your website was called Joe Blogs Inc then someone might type into there search engine Doe Blogs Inc or Joe Blogs Pinc. I'm sure you get the picture.

9.Always make a point of using keywords in your image alt tags.

10.Make sure to include appropriate keywords in your title tag, search engines show more prominence or importance to keywords here than just about anywhere else.

You have to admit that we all like a freebie whenever we can get one. Items of promotional gifts are given out at corporate events or allocated to potential customers as a type of business incentive. Within the vast ranges of promotional gifts are promotional sweets that can make very effective advertising products. A printed promotional promotional sweets is the type of clothing that many people wear so what better product to place your company brand on? Give out promotional sweets at the next corporate event and they`ll repay your initial outlay by bringing in free advertising whenever they are given out.

Personalised printed sweets are usually very popular at exhibitions and they can come in a variety of colours which can blend in with your company logo. You`ll find that printed promotional sweets are very affordable and they can be with you and ready for distribution in no time at all. Great quality printed personalized sweets can be sourced through suppliers who specilaise in all types of promotional gifts. The high quality promotional printed sweets will be just one type of product that is available to help promote your company with style. We might all like freebies when we can get them but some freebies are better than others. Give your customers quality promotional sweets with your company logo on and they`ll certainly be appreciated. You can spoil your clients with these trendy corporate treats.

Businesses know that a great way to get their brand message across is by using personalised sweets at fundraising and corporate events. Having plenty of logo sweets with the company`s brand on will help them to advertise their products and boost their sales figures. Items like personalised sweets make brilliant gifts as they are practical and can be used frequently by plenty of people. What finer way of displaying your company logo than by using personalised sweets given to customers and clients? This riveting range of promotional sweets will go down a storm when the heavens start to open.

You can pick from plenty of promotional sweets types to suit a variety of applications and the range of promotional sweets, are proving to be extremely popular. Imagine that promotional sweets with your brand on; what type of message would they be putting across? You`d have instant advertising power and all it would cost you is the price of a few sweets which surely makes great business sense? The next time you have a corporate event why not use the promotional sweets to good effect? With all the exhibitions and shows within the UK there`ll be plenty of opportunity for the sweets to be used. They can keep your customers sweet when they are out and about, and they`ll be advertising your brand for free.

Promotional mouse mats are a great investment because they are cheap to buy and easy promotional items or gifts to distribute. Everyone who uses a computer needs a mouse mat, and some people, especially those with laptop computers, like to have several! These promotional mouse mats can be a great boon to your business, but only if you can get your customers to use them. Advertising in the form of promotional mouse mats is great, but how do you ensure that you customers will throw away their old mouse mats in favor of the ones that you are kindly providing for them?

Almost everyone who has a computer with a mouse will already have at least one mouse mat that they make regular use of, so your challenge is to find a promotional mouse mat that will be attractive enough to them to cause them to get rid of their old design in favor of the one that you are providing. You could do this by pairing your mouse mat with something else for their desk such as a coaster or set of coasters, or you could do this with an incredible and attractive design. Both of these methods work wonderfully and can be incorporated by most businesses.

Another great way to get your customers to use your promotional mouse mats is by adding a feature to your mouse mats that they do not already have, but would like to have. Making the surface of the mats hard can be a great help for using the mouse, as can the addition of wrist rests for your clients’ tired arms.

People who use the computer all day every day often develop symptoms of soreness and stiffness because of their excessive typing and use of the mouse. A wrist rest for the keyboard or for the mouse mat can make a great deal of difference in how a person feels at the end of the day. If you are the one who causes your customer to feel better than usual when the day is done, they will be thinking very highly of you the next time they need a service of the kind that you provide.

Promotional mouse mats are great advertising because they can hold more advertising than a business card or other small item, they are almost always visible on top of the desk, and they are constantly reminding your customers of your generosity and thoughtfulness in providing something so useful to them. The promotional mouse mats are also a great deal for them, since they will not have to go out and buy a mouse mat for themselves.

In addition to your customers, anyone who can see your clients’ desks will have a great view of your advertising, and will feel as if your client is endorsing your products or services because they are using the gift that you have sent. Adding a wrist rest to your promotional mouse mats might be more expensive, but it is worth the effort if it means that more people will be using your mouse mats.

Mouse mats are great for keeping the mouse doing what it’s supposed to do but where is a compulsive computer user supposed to put his or her sweating drink? Simple, on the matching coaster you’ll give your clients, vendors or employees. With mouse mat and coaster sets, you can advertise your business all over office desks.

When you choose mouse mat and coaster sets as trade show giveaways, you can rest at ease knowing your product will be used for months or even years after the convention doors have closed. Think it’s out of your budget? You might be surprised.

The DuSoft mouse mat coaster sets are very inexpensive – as little as £0.74 per set. These circular, foam and fabric mouse mat and coaster sets speak volumes about your business.

Brite mouse mat and coaster sets are affordable, available in a single imprint color for as little as £0.95 per set. For a full four color process imprint, you pay just £1.19 per set. You choose between a round mouse mat and coasters or square.

Square mouse mats are about seven and a half inches tall and about nine and a half inches wide. Round mouse mats are just under eight inches in diameter. All coasters are about three and three quarter inches tall and wide. Coasters and mouse mats are printed with the same matching design and same color layout.

The Brite mouse mat and coaster sets are constructed with a non-slid foam bottom covered with a soft fabric top. These are ideal for ball mice and optical ones as well.

If your recipients stay on top of technology advances, they are likely using optical mice rather than traditional ball and socket mice. For these customers or vendors, you can spend just a little bit more to provide them with a hard top mouse mat and coaster set – perfect for optical mouse users. These are much thinner than the Brite mouse mat and coaster sets and lighter. This equates to lower shipping fees should you decide to send them out in addition to giving them away at trade shows, job fairs and to vendors.

For just over £1.05 per set, these hard top mouse mat and coaster sets are affordable to order for gifts, prizes or to sell. For a little more, £1.17, you can opt for the full four color printing process.

You can even go a step further for major promotions and holiday gifts by coupling customized mouse mat and coaster sets with customized computer mice. You’ll be hard pressed to find another promotional product that will offer as much exposure as a mouse, mouse mat and coasters with your name on them.

Customized mice typically start at £2.94, including a single color imprint. For less than £5, you can send a mouse, mat and coasters to your clients, customers or vendors. Edibles and quality clothing items will cost at least that much and will either be consumed or in the back of the closet within a week.

Promotional mouse mats are a great way to generate interest in your company because they are large enough to hold a decent amount of advertising. They take up a prominent place on your customers’ desks when they are used, and can keep your business in the minds of your customers for as long as they are in use simply by existing. It is in your best interest to make your promotional mouse mats out of quality materials, and design them to be attractive and possibly even useful in other ways to keep your customers using them.

Promotional mouse mats can be paired with coasters or wrist rests to increase the interest in them, and you should consider it money well spent if you are getting additional clientele out of your use of these tactics. Another great way to generate interest is to hand them out by hand, but how do you do this without it seeming odd?

Promotional mouse mats should be high quality and easy to look at, meaning that they should be good enough for your own employees to use happily. If your own employees are using these promotional mouse mats in sight of your customers, your customers would feel easier about taking and using one of your promotional mouse mats on their own desks. This is where generating interest at home comes in.

Your own employees should use as many of the company’s promotional items as possible, from pens to mugs and certainly extending to the mouse mats that the company is handing out. They should also take an active role in distributing your mouse mats to the clients. Each time an employee sits down with a client as his or her desk, the employee should be seen using the promotional products. He or she should start a conversation about the promotional mouse mats, and if the client does not state that he or she was given one, your employee should be quick to offer one to him or her.

This does not mean that your employees should keep stacks of promotional mouse mats on their desk, but having them nearby either in a drawer or in another room close by will make it easy for your own employees to talk about how much they like the promotional mouse mats and to give them away to your customers.

Promotional mouse mats might have lots of talking points from the great design to the hard top that makes mouse use easier to the special design of the top that makes it even easier to use optical mice. No matter what the talking point, your employees should be ready to share all that they know about the mouse mats, and interest your customers in taking one home for themselves.

Genuine interest in the products at home will allow you to distribute your promotional mouse mats to your customers in a simple way and will make them more likely to use the mouse mat that they receive, too.

It constantly amazes me how much time and money small businesses waste on marketing. Time and again you will find a small business owner spending time and/or money on the latest gizmo or fad without any idea of how it will benefit the business - in other words the decision is a straight thumbsuck. Very often it's a case of the business surviving despite the marketing!

You need to realise that your small business is impacted, either positively or negatively, by your marketing. This marketing might be the result of a conscious decision on your part,such as deciding to sponsor a golf day, or it could happen by default e.g. you forget to attend the AGM of your local business association.

Either way, you have sent a message to your potential clients about your business.

The trick then is to ensure that all your marketing actions, and inactions, are designed to benefit your business. Enter the one small business marketing tool you cannot do without: The humble Marketing Plan.

Before you yawn and reach for the TV guide, let's briefly consider how this business tool can benefit your small business.

1) A properly constructed and considered marketing plan defines what your target market is. It tells you who you should be targetting with your marketing efforts. If you know that, then you are not going to spend time and money on marketing efforts that aren't going to reach your target market. Result: Marketing Plan 1, Thumbsuck 0.

2) A marketing plan gives you control. You know ahead of time what, where and how you are going to do your marketing. This allows for better allocation and control of budgets and human resources.Result: Marketing Plan 2, Thumbsuck 0.

Many people envy the financial and time freedom of online marketers and home based business owners and complaint about their 9-5 work, and wanted to get out of the rat race. However, when asked why they don’t start their own online business and homes based business, their answer is always,

I Don’t Know How to start an Online Business?

But when asked further, “Do you know people who don’t know any thing about Internet is making a comfortable living online?” Most answer is affirmative, either their have friends or know someone who have earn extra income online. They just never ask them how they started and build their online business. And when they are asked to emulate their successful friends foot path, they back off and given the excuse that online business is for the technically savvy and not for the ordinary people. And they continue to envy the online businessmen or women who own an online business and wish that they also have this freedom of spending time with their family and at the same time running a lucrative business at home.

If you are one of these people, there is something that you need to know. When online business is concerned, a lot of people just freak out when they saw the technical jargons on domain, url, html, java etc etc,. They believe that online business is for the technically competent people who had learned the programs language. To many, it is like rocket science and only those limited privilege people can succeed in online business.

So if you are one of these people stop your wishful thinking and land yourself on the ground! Ask again, “Do I know any person who doesn’t know any thing about Internet is making a comfortable living online?” If the answer is affirmative, you will have a good start, just ask this friend or associate how they do it. Many people are reluctant to ask for fear of being ridicule, if you are one of those, discard this thinking. Just remember, most successful people are more than willing to share their success stories and how they make it. Wealth grow faster when share. Make an appointment to meet them, or perhaps buy your friend a good lunch or dinner to listen to his success story.

If your answer is negative, do some research online, you will be able to find lots of cases on ordinary people making a living online and enjoying time and financial freedom. These people know how the online business works. They knew very well that they do not need to know everything to start a business, let alone online business. All you need to know is what success in online business can bring to you and your family.

Creating an online income and start an Online Business is not rocket science and anyone of average intelligence, willingness to learn and have the desire to succeed can and will make it. It is like driving a car, you don’t need to know how the fuel is being burn, how the pistons being push by the burning fuel and move the engine. All you need to know is; start with the ignition keys, press the accelerator, you will be able to reach the destination of your choice. When you learn to master building an online business like mastering driving your car, you will realize that many of the driving skill is subconscious, as in Online Business, many of which is on autopilot when you set it up properly. That is the beauty of Online Business.

Author Note: This is article 3 on series of articles on Get Your Life Back! For Part 3a with work solution, please visit enlightening Your eBusiness Direction a blog that share the resources and information on making extra income on Internet.

One of the ways in which a small business can leverage income is to do business with other businesses, rather than with individual members of the public.

There can be several advantages such as: potentially bigger and more consistent orders for your product or expertise; Increased visibility for your business in the business environment; usually (but not always!) less hassle getting paid etc etc.

There can also be serious disadvantages for a small business doing business with other, especially bigger, businesses. These include a squeeze on monetary and human resources when suddenly faced with delivering your biggest ever job;prolonged credit terms - you will get paid but possibly only in 120 days!;increased collateral damage to your name and image if things go wrong, and so on.

It is the classic capitalistic conundrum - high stakes with high rewards if you get it right, but a big, potentially fatal, problem if you get it wrong.

Most small businesses, if they are to grow, will have to adopt the "nothing ventured, nothing gained" attitude and become involved in doing business with other businesses. But they need to load the bases in their favour as much as possible beforehand.

This is where a business to business marketing strategy comes in. In reality a small business should re-look it's marketing plan and recognise that there must be a difference between their marketing strategy for individuals and their marketing strategy for other businesses because they represent 2 entirely different target markets.

By taking the time to relook their marketing plan and adjusting their marketing strategy to deal specifically with other businesses, small businesses will benefit through recognising new marketing opportunities and restricting the wasting of resources on marketing efforts that might not be appropriate for businesses.