Top 10 Tips and Tactics to Take Your Business to the Next Level

Are you a solo practitioner or small business owner, wondering what you
can do to grow your business and take it to the next level of success?
There are many proven strategies and tools you can implement to attract
prospects and clients and increase your bottom line. It's all about
attracting prospects, giving them value, and staying in touch. Most of
the tips outlined below leverage the power of the Internet and will be
familiar to you. They do not require a huge investment of resources, and
when you take action to implement any one of them, will return big
rewards in the areas of customer retention, loyalty, growth, and more
sales.

1. Publish an e-newsletter
This is one of the top attraction techniques. Publish an e-newsletter
on a topic which complements your business focus and the needs of
your clients and customers. Consistency is the key here. The more
you position yourself as an expert in your business and consistently
deliver value to your readers, the more you establish your business as
a top of mind resource and someone who can solve your readers'
problems.

2. Give away free reports
Hey, just like this one! People want to get to know you and everyone
likes free information. Make sure the report is useful, timely and
delivers real value.

3. Create and sell e-books and info products via the Internet
This is another great way to establish credibility about your expertise
and business. Again, people hunger for information about how to
make their life better, happier and more successful. What do you
know that you could write about and put in digital format? When
prospects understand what you do and get value from your products,
they are more likely to become repeat customers.

4. Teach teleclasses
This is the personal approach to reaching out to your prospects and
clients. Offer a free introductory teleclass to introduce prospects to
your business and service. Package a series of classes and sell the
course to prospects who cannot afford your one on one service.

5. Use autoresponders to consistently follow up with clients and
prospects
It's common knowledge in marketing circles that a prospect needs to
see your message at least 7 times before taking action.
Autoresponders enable you to automatically follow up sales, leads,
manage your mailing lists and create repeat customers through cross
promotion. Autoresponders are automated messages delivered in
sequence over a pre-determined period of time. There are hundreds
of ways to use autoresponders to attract and retain clients. For
example, deliver your free report on an autoresponder. A couple of
days later follow up with a message reminding the reader about your
product or service. Then, the next day send a message inviting the
reader to subscribe to your newsletter. Next, send a message with a
special offer on an e-book which relates to the report and goes into
more detail and depth. You get the idea. Note, always give the
recipient the ability to opt out of the series. You don't want to anger
your prospects by delivering messages they don't want!

6. Implement a database marketing system
This tool directly relates to #1-5 above. Capture every email address
in an integrated database marketing system that allows you to simply
categorize and broadcast targeted messages to your clients and
prospects.

7. Use a shopping cart system
Having a powerful shopping cart system enables you to easily sell
your products and services on the Internet. You can automate the
registration payments for your teleclasses, sell your e-book, and
manage your e-newsletter list all in one system. To review the best
system around that combines a shopping cart with a database
marketing system, please see 1Shopping Cart at:
http://www.1shoppingcart.com/app/default.asp?pr=1&id=37377

8. Get an internet merchant account
This is necessary to actually make sales online. There are numerous
products out there so do your research and know what you need for
your specific business application.

9. Create passive income streams selling affiliate products related to
your business
You may not get rich this way, but it can't hurt to recommend
products in which you believe to your clients and get a small
commission. There are thousands of affiliate programs on the
Internet. Choose products or services that complement your business
and only recommend things you would or have purchased yourself.
Be up front about what you're doing. Your clients will appreciate
that you have done the research to find useful products and services.
On #7 above, the link I include is an affiliate link. If you click on the
link and purchase the shopping cart system, I receive a small
commission for my recommendation. I only recommend this system
because I personally work with this system and thinks it's excellent.

10. Work with a project partner to help you implement your ideas
Here's where the rubber meets the road. What's it going to take for
you to implement just one of these tactics? As a solo professional or
small business owner, are you overwhelmed by all the things you
SHOULD be doing to actively market your business? Maybe you
don't have time or you're not sure how to go about setting up a
database system, shopping cart or autoresponder. Or, you want to
publish a regular newsletter and don't know where to start. The
solution may be to partner with an experienced project manager.
Find someone who can strategize with you, take action, and most
importantly.implement your ideas. "Ideas not coupled with action
never become bigger than the brain cells they occupied." Arnold H.
Glasow

11. BONUS TIP: Read Purple Cow by Seth Godin to learn how to
make your business stand apart from the competition by being
remarkable:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/159184021X/dlwvirtualman-20
(Yes, it's another affiliate link. This is a great book, a fast read and
will inspire you to consider ways to separate yourself from your
competition and take your business to the next level. All my new
clients receive a copy of this book when we begin our partnership.)

About the Author

Denise Wakeman is Chief Implementor of Next Level Partnership, a company dedicated to partnering with you to take your business to the next level. Denise has specific experience in leveraging Internet marketing systems to create awareness, build customer loyalty and increase the bottom line. Visit Denise's blog at http://www.biztipsblog.com to get tips and tactics for taking your business to the next level.

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