We’re here with practical marketing information for your business.

Marketing essentials

How to create a marketing plan for your small business - build a brand, target customers and set prices that will maximise sales.

Online marketing

The internet has transformed business marketing. No matter what you do, the internet is likely to be at the heart of your marketing strategy.

Social media

Social media is firmly established as a marketing tool. Having a presence opens up new lines of communication with existing and potential customers.

Advertising

Good advertising puts the right marketing message in front of the right people at the right time, raising awareness of your business.

Customer care

Customer care is at the heart of all successful companies. It can help you develop customer loyalty and improve relationships with your customers.

Sales

Sales bring in the money that enables your business to survive and grow. Your sales strategy will be driven by your sales objectives.

Market research

Market research exists to guide your business decisions by giving you insight into your market, competitors, products, marketing and your customers.

PR and promotion

Exhibitions and events are valuable for businesses because they allow face-to-face communication and offer opportunities for networking.

Tools

How I set up an online wine business

How Rowan Gormley and some like-minded friends set up Naked Wines - an online wine business that allows customers to call the shots.

Marketing and sales training

Marketing and sales training can deliver significant business benefits. Training your employees helps boost sales and improve customer satisfaction.

Marketing and sales recruitment

Marketing and sales recruitment is a vital part of building a solid marketing and sales team that can move your business to the next level.

Managing marketing employees

As a business owner you have a vital role in leading the marketing effort and maximising the effectiveness of your sales and marketing team.

How to use online directories to attract customers

Online directories can be a low-cost way of driving potential customers to your website. But how do you know which you should be advertising in?

Ten tips for approaching cold leads

Cold leads are difficult to convert into buyers. So how do you approach a cold lead to give yourself the best chance of making a sale?

Turn your customers into your best sales people

Good customer service can turn customers into evangelists for your product or service, spreading the word and bringing in new business.

How to handle customers that ask for compensation

How to handle customer complaints and what to do when a dissatisfied customer asks for compensation

Get an affiliate to promote your business

Affiliate marketing can boost traffic to your site, but you only pay for visits that result in sales. Find out how to set up an affiliate programme.

Create an effective sales forecast

Sales forecasting is essential for short and medium-term business planning. An accurate forecast can help you manage your cashflow.

Winning back customers: making up is hard to do

Your business will never be able to keep everyone happy all the time. But even if you've let someone down, the relationship doesn't have to be over.

Know your customers better

Creating a loyal band of customers through good service is a great achievement, but you've got to keep working at your relationship. Find out how.

Keeping customers - the importance of loyalty

Keeping customers makes good business sense but it's not always easy. Here are our tips on how you can keep customers coming back to your business.

Web copy that works

Simply having a website is rarely enough: you need to ensure the content is fresh, relevant and accurate. Find out how to produce effective web copy.

Using CRM to build customer relationships

It’s more cost-effective to cultivate existing customers than look for new ones. CRM can help you sell more to your existing customers.

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