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This is probably the best analysis I've seen for creating an effective call to action for your website. According to Ann Smarty, "With calls to action everything is important: the color of your buttons and supporting elements, the language you use to describe the action, the place on the page where you locate them, the additional elements that e Read More

Last week I read the story of how the state of Pennsylvania wants to shut down the thriving eBay auction business of single mom Mary Jo Pletz, which enables her to stay home with her 6-month-old daughter Julia, who has a brain tumor. The Pennsylvania Secretary of State's reason: Mary Jo does not have an auctioneer's license. Having sold 10,000 ite Read More

While there is no single element or component that accounts for a mailing's long-term chances, analysis of long-term controls received by the Who's Mailing What! Archive—a direct mail library and competitive tracking service—reveals one common messaging tactic: a strong emotional appeal. Here are three examples of long-standing control packages an Read More

To get a general idea of what comparable businesses are listed for, you can look somewhere like Business Valuation Resources. However, he cautions: "With a business like yours, seeking a strategic buyer, the usual multiples go out the door." Regardless of your industry, multiples are a very dangerous way to value a business, says Cathy J. Durham Read More

Are we in a recession? Maybe, maybe not. However, let's assume that the US economy will be in a recession and that as marketers we need to work within that reality. Here are some tips for what you should do. Read More

TowerGroup estimates that of the $97 billion worth of plastic gift cards purchased in 2007, nearly $8 billion has gone unused. Just what happens to that pile of cash has become a matter of some controversy. A lot of states—roughly half—claim that at least part of the unspent balances should go to them under their unclaimed-property laws. Other sta Read More

This is about the guy who started TheFunded.com, a Web site that lets entrepreneurs anonymously rank, review, and post comments about venture capital firms. Not only can you use the site to find VC firms, but you'll get the inside scoop of how they'll treat you. Read More

Do we really need another post about how great Apple's marketing is? Absolutely! I thought this was a great summary. There are a lot of things small businesses can learn from Apple's success, and most of them easily translate from the corporate world to the small business world. The strategies that set Apple apart from its competitors are strate Read More

There are no magic bullets when it comes to job interview questions, but the way you structure your queries is important: It's the interviewer's job to create a framework for the discussion and prevent it from running off the rails. Every company's needs are different, but a good basic strategy is to ground the interview in questions about past Read More

The Web is ushering in a new way of communicating with customers, but instead of the breathless hype of the old days designed to make one sale, we need to solve a customer's problem to create one relationship. If we truly help people, you can be sure that few of them will remember to buy from us. Unfortunately, more and more of our target markets Read More