10 Tips on How to Get More Leads Generated

While consumer confidence has dipped slightly due to recession scares, for the most part, this year's economy has been extraordinary. There are still a lot of leads out there for your business.

Given that fact, if you have had a soft year, you shouldn't have. There is more opportunity to grab new customers than ever before and things are going to get a whole lot harder as we push further into the digital age.

Fortunately, the year isn't over yet. If you want to pick up some new leads and finish the year strong, look no further than our lead generation suggestions below. We will lead the way...


1. Lock Away Your Premium Content

If you provide well-researched content on your website that is targeted at B2B audiences, don't just give that information away for free. Make people exchange their email information for access to your business content.

Getting a B2B representative's email address means that you have the opportunity to market to them for years to come which could prove to be lucrative for your company. What is better is that most people don't put stock into the value of their email address which means that they will willingly share it in order to see a case study, whitepaper, or another premium piece of content. To learn more about B2B startup news strategies and industry trends, visit our marketing section on this blog.


2. Start Getting Published in 3rd Party Publications

Most business owners have a blog where they post valuable content for their customers. If you have already checked that box, great! In order to expand your reach, you are now going to want to start publishing on other businesses websites.

When people write blog content for another website or blog, it is called guest posting. While guest posting may not be mentioned as much as it was a decade ago, it is still an excellent way to get in front of a new audience and score backlinks to your website which can improve your Google rankings.


3. Advertise on Facebook

Google used to be all the rage when it came to digital advertising. While Google is still a good place to invest some of your advertising dollars, we have to say that our preference these days is to buy Facebook ads.

Facebook has richer data on its users than Google does which means that if you are targeting odd interests like movie preferences or political affiliations, you can. Also, we find Facebook's ad tools to be a lot easier to work than Google's, especially for beginners.


4. Optimize Your Landing Pages

All of the Facebook ads in the world aren't going to get you new leads if your landing pages are poorly done.

For the uninitiated, your landing page is where you send a prospective lead when they click on one of your ads. In theory, your landing pages should get your prospect hyped on a product or service that you're selling which will hopefully lead them to buying.

A great landing page is one that is concise, motivational and has clear call to actions that seamlessly guide your target towards an intended action. There are a number of great landing page optimization guides online that you can sift through to help streamline your page's performance.


5. Launch a Referral System

Word of mouth recommendations are incredibly powerful when it comes to bringing people into your business. The problem is that most of your customers are too busy to go around telling people about your company. In order to incentivize satisfied customers to spread the news about you, reward them through a structured referral program.

A good referral program is one where the person that refers somebody to you gets a reward for bringing a customer through your doors and your new customer also gets a reward for coming in. Rewards can be anything from discounts on services to gift cards.


6. Invest in Personal Marketing

Given the amount of digital clutter that's out there, many of the most successful marketers are transitioning towards personal marketing. Personal marketing is any means of marketing that is tailored to a specific customer.

For example, companies look at who their top customers are and regularly send them postcards thanking them for their business and offering them special coupons to make another purchase. When attracting new customers, you might modify that strategy and write hand-written letters to members in your community letting them know about what you are doing and asking them to support your goals.

Anything that makes a piece of marketing feel like it is intended for somebody and not for anybody can go a long way in grabbing people's attention.


7. Make Sure You Are SEO Optimized

It is the digital age of lead generation. Your online presence should be SEO optimized by now.

If you have no idea what we are talking about, read our guide on SEO to start getting on good terms with Google. With good SEO in your corner, you will notice that the number of passive leads that pour into your website go up dramatically.


8. Add a Chatbot to Your Website

If a customer lands on your website outside of business hours and has a question, how can they get them answered? If your answer is for them to "wait until tomorrow morning", you're losing business.

Chatbots are digital assistants that can answer most customer's general questions 24 hours per day, 7 days per week. That additional support can go a long way in netting fringe leads that are looking to make an impulse buy but need a push.


9. Work With an Agency To Load Up On Leads

Getting new leads can be tricky business. If you are not well versed in today's tech-focused landscape, you may find yourself spending a lot of money to roll out a lead generation process that never picks up steam.

To make sure that the time and money you spend on getting leads actually lead to results, consider hiring a marketing agency to help you with your B2B and B2C marketing efforts.

While agencies will set you back a few bucks, the extra investment for guaranteed traction is worth the spend. 

10. Purchase Pay-Per-Click (PPC) Advertising 

Pay-per-click advertising like Google Ads, Bing Ads, YouTube Ads, or Facebook Ads are about bidding on certain search or content keywords to drive relevant visitors to your website landing page. 

Once you figure out your target keywords and conversion rate, you can begin to create a lead generation and sales machine. You want to get to the point where you bid $5 on ads and earn $10-15+ in the end after lead conversion so your online ads are always profitable.


Get New Leads and Give Your Business New Life

Nothing reinvigorates a business quite like landing new leads! Use our tips to get your lead generating efforts cooking and feel free to check out more of the content right here on our blog if you would like additional business advice. 

Visit the Sales section of the Frugal Finance Blog to learn more about lead generation and sales strategies. Lead the way!

7 Rental Property Marketing Ideas To Get Tenants Fast

Being a property owner is one of the best financial moves you can make in the world of entrepreneurship. As long as you keep the home updated and maintained, there will always be a market in this industry. In fact, 40% of renters say they never intend to buy a home. 

However, just because there is a market out there for you, it doesn't mean people will come flocking to your rental. You need to learn how to advertise your home for rent and attract the right renters. You need to master the art of rental property marketing. 

We are here to get you started with profitable rental properties. Check out our top seven tips to help you rent your property fast. 

1. Know Your Target Audience 

Effective rental property marketing demands insight into the ideal renter for your home. This can be based on rent, size, location, community, and more. For example, you wouldn't want to market a four-bedroom home to a single bachelor. 

Once you have defined your target audience, you need to write an enticing description of the property to post throughout various marketing platforms. Highlight the important features that will grab the attention of potential renters, such as: 

• Updated kitchen/bathroom 
• Number of bedrooms/bathrooms 
• Utilities paid 
• Proximity to parks 
• School districts 
• Garage parking 
• Etc. 

Obviously, this list will change based on the type of tenant you are trying to attract. If you are looking for families, focus on the safety of the community, the local school districts, and nearby parks or playgrounds. If you are looking for single renters, be sure to highlight the proximity to town, paid utilities, and lower rental rates. 

2. Use Social Media 

Social media is one of your biggest assets for rental property marketing. Nearly 70% of American adults are on Facebook. The best part is, you have the option of both free and paid advertising. 

Even if you don't have a rental company, you can advertise your rental through organic social media. Simply use your personal profile and share the rental home with your friends and followers. Request that they also share it to expand your influence on their audiences. 

You can also get onto community pages where people can buy, sell, trade, and share information. Post your rental here (assuming the page allows it) for thousands of members of the community to see. 

If you have a business page on Facebook, you can boost your posts and pay for greater exposure. Facebook ads allow you to target a specific demographic of people based on location, age, gender, and more. This can be helpful for finding the ideal tenants for your home. 

3. Advertise In The Local Newspaper 

Even though social media has largely taken over the way people get their news, newspapers are still quite popular. Partially, this is because most newspapers have kept up with the times and publish their content online. They also have profiles on social media that people can follow. 

By taking out an ad in your local newspaper to be printed and published online, you can reach a lot of readers. You can post it in the classified section relatively inexpensively for weeks at a time. 

4. Take Quality Photos 

Whether you're using a website, flyers, or social media, you must take quality photos of your rental home. As a society, we've gotten pretty spoiled with the internet and online shopping. It's convenient, but it's made us all a little lazy. 

While most people will eventually take a tour of a home they plan to rent or buy, the first thing they'll do is look at the online photos. This "virtual tour" can literally be the deciding factor on whether or not you get any calls about your property. 

If you have the ability and equipment necessary, you can take the photos yourself. However, it may be worth it to hire a professional to take a few dozen stock photos you can use indefinitely. 

5. Plan Ahead 

When learning how to market a rental property, it's important to think about things in advance. For example, most rental units require at least a 30-day notice from tenants planning to vacate the property. As the property owner, the second you receive this information, you need to start creating interest in that unit. 

Use the stock photos you already have to start advertising the home on social media. Just make sure you post when it will become available as well. 

This can be a great rental property marketing tactic to avoid lapses in renters. You can pre-screen applicants and get deposits in advance to make the transition as smooth as possible. 

6. Put Up Signs On The Property 

One of the most common marketing ideas for apartments or rental homes is using signs on the property. This is great for advertising to people in the neighborhood, pedestrians, and drive-by traffic. 

Signs are incredibly affordable. You can buy customized rental signs online or buy generic ones from your local hardware store. 

It's also a good idea to place flyers or pamphlets under the rental sign with information about the property. People walking or driving by can stop and get immediate information about the size of the home, rent, number of rooms and bathrooms, and anything else worth noting. 

7. Use A Professional Service 

Finally, consider using paid property management marketing ideas. There are listing agencies out there designed to help property owners like you find a tenant as quickly as possible. 

You can list your home through their website. There, potential renters can find your property, look at the description, and even apply online. Some of these property management companies offer extra services, such as rental analyses and eviction services. 

Looking For More Rental Property Marketing Tips And Other Homeownership Advice? 

Being a successful property owner takes more than simply knowing your way around rental property marketing. You also need to know how to manage your finances, keep your home stylish, make repairs and updates, and more. Our blog is dedicated to helping homeowners perfect their properties, whether for private use or for renting. 

Before you go, be sure to check out some of our other articles for everything on cleaning tips to staging advice. Visit the Real Estate section of the Bootstrap Business Blog to learn more about rental income properties, property marketing tips, and much more.

7 Tips to Marketing Brands Online on a Budget

About 45% of small businesses spend just $10,000 or less on digital marketing. 

Most small businesses market their brands on a budget due to a lack of enough funds. Others do so to test the conversion rates that the marketing will trigger. 

Nevertheless, it is advisable to avoid dumping your worth into the brand's marketing without a great financial plan.

If your business is short of marketing funds, worry not. Here are top tips for marketing brands online on a budget. Choose the most applicable marketer tips for your niche.


1. Create Appealing Videos

Video marketing is one of the best yet affordable methods of digital marketing. According to Forbes, more than 90% of customers buy a product if the video interests them.  

To start, you will only need a good camera for video recording. You can also use your smartphone for the initial days, and then get yourself a good camera if the marketing trick works out well.

You will not need to hire a professional cameraman provided that you can capture the right videos, edit them well, and post.

For best results, ensure that your videos are clear for better visuals. After recording and editing, you can post the videos on your social media accounts. 

Alternatively, you can post them on your YouTube channel. A good video marketing strategy will increase your traffic, increase your conversions, and help you get more backlinks.


2. Consider Customer Referrals

A customer referral program can be a major boost for your marketing branding exercise. You will not spend any amount in launching this project. Instead, you will only need to ask your customers to refer you to their friends and relatives.

Multiple surveys show that many customers trust what their friends or relatives tell them regarding a brand. This means the strategy will drive more people to your business than when you market the product on your own.

For motivation, you may give your regular clients a small discount when they bring in more clients to you. You can also give them a small commission for the new customers they bring in. 

Treat your new customers well too, and they will be motivated to bring new ones too.


3. Consider Guest Posts

You can reach your target audience through guest blogs, in addition to your website. When you write guest blogs, you will increase your chances of getting backlinks to your site.

Guest blogging will also expose you to better opportunities, mainly if you choose a great site for the blogs. Find out the best sites you can consider for your guest blogs, understand the terms, and start the process.

If you decide to invest massively in guest blogging, do not hesitate to get a loan to hire the most reputable writers. Learn how to raise your credit score to qualify for the highest possible amount.

For more exposure, you can consider guest posting on numerous sites.


4. Post-High Content Quality Content

The quality of your content will determine the number of viewers you will attract. Comprehensive and catching content will bring in more traffic. Conversely, poorly researched, and boring content will be a turnoff.

Content writing is free, and you can even do it yourself. You will only need to find the best topics which your customers could be looking for online. After that, research well and craft and engaging content.

Include statistics and infographics in your regular blog posts. If you don't have time for the writing, find a reputable freelancer to help you craft the content. The cost of writing will be very low compared to the benefits you will get from it.


5. Be Active on Social Media

Social media marketing has been a major boost for small businesses. It gives the small firms on a budget the chance to compete with the already established businesses. 

The initial step to marketing your brand on social media is to sign up. You may sign up with the leading platforms, which include Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. You may also create an Instagram account which boasts nearly 1 billion daily active users.

The sign-up process is free, hence no cost. Add your picture and create a short description of your business. After that, find followers, and ask your friends to help you gain more followers.

Keep your account active by engaging your followers online. You can also stay active by posting regularly and replying to your followers' concerns. 

If you are busy, set the automatic updates to keep your account active. You will be surprised by how effective marketing will be.


6. Don't Forget Email Marketing

Just like social medial, email marketing is an effective and affordable marketing strategy. You can use it to reach all your past customers.

The best tactic for this method is to collect all the emails from your clients. Save them well and add them to your notebook. Keep sending regular emails to them regarding your business if you have a busy schedule; use the available tools such as Constant Contact and MailChimp.

These tools are affordable and automated to help you get the best from your email marketing strategy. You can also ask the clients to subscribe to your email. 


7. Manage Your Online Reputation

Your marketing efforts might not be fruitful if you don't manage your online reputation. How do your clients view you? What about the entire online businesses?

If your reputation is poor, you will end up spending millions without any conversions. 

You can manage your online reputation in many ways. Firstly, handle your client well. Secondly, deal with the negative reviews well. You cannot impress everyone, and often, you will find out negative reviews about your business.

Handle the complaints positively to keep your reputation on track. If your business name in shiny, it will be easier to initiate other online marketing tips for your business.


Choose the Ideal Practices for Marketing Brands Online

From above, it's evident that you can apply many affordable tips to market your brand. However, all the practices may not be suitable for your business, hence the need to choose well. 

Understand your business first, target an audience, and choose the most affordable ways for marketing brands online. Be patient, too, as the strategy may take some time for it to work well.

Marketing is not the only business management aspect. As an entrepreneur, you will still need to keep your finances on track to prevent your business from collapsing. 

Read our informative guides on how to save money in your business and how to invest in the right projects. Visit the Marketing section of the Frugal Finance Blog to learn more about frugally marketing brands online successfully.

Social Media Marketing Checklist for New Businesses

If you are just getting started with social media marketing for your small business, it can feel pretty overwhelming. Which platforms should you focus on? How often should you update your content? How can you keep up with changing trends? 

Currently 80% of marketers say that they are now relying on social media as a key tool for raising brand awareness. So you can't ignore it, even if you feel like you are late to the party. 

By following a simple marketing checklist, you can put a plan in place to get your social presence established, engage with your followers, and attract more customers. Read on for tips to help you get started with your social media marketing checklist. 

Marketing Checklist for Social Media 

The critical first step you need to take is to set your goals. Are you most interested in building an engaged online community around your brand? Or are you focused on establishing your brand's presence and attracting more customers? Start with the end in mind, then follow these great tips for each stage of your campaign. 

Choose Your Channels 

Not every platform is going to be the most appropriate for your business. It is easy to get caught up in the hype of every platform. But you need to get beyond social media basics and understand which platforms are best for your industry. 

It can also be more time-efficient and effective to focus on a small number of channels that best suit your niche. You might not have the resources to manage multiple accounts. 

Twitter is a good starting point for most businesses and is a great way of engaging directly with customers and handling customer feedback quickly and effectively. Instagram is a must for any company relying on attractive visual content; designers and artists use it as a way to show off their wares. 

Keep Your Profiles Up-To-Date 

Once you have chosen the platforms you are going to focus on, you need to make sure that the profiles are totally up-to-date with no information missing. Especially on Facebook, where customer check-ins are a possibility, you want to ensure that you can be found. 

Contact details must be kept up-to-date, along with other essential information. This also makes it easier for Google and other search engines to find your page, thus bringing more customers through your door. 

Plan Your Content Strategy 

How often are you going to post? What kinds of content? When are most of your followers online? These are some basics of social media marketing that you need to get to grips with when planning your social media activity. 

You will need to check your profiles every day and reply to any comments and questions, while also keeping an eye on what your competitors are posting. You should discover what hashtags are trending and what relevant influencers are writing about. 

You might also want to realize all of these benefits by using a content calendar to plan your social media posting schedule. This can make it a lot easier to produce consistent content to promote your small business. 

Using a Social Media Checklist 

If you want to use social media to produce fresh content to boost your business, you need to move beyond the basics of marketing. Using a marketing checklist is the best way to make sure you are in control of your social media presence and optimizing all the opportunities presented by today's modern digital landscape. 

If you want to learn more about social media, SEO, and other interesting topics relating to marketing and small businesses, be sure to check out the rest of the website. Visit the Marketing and Social Media sections of the Frugal Finance Blog to keep your marketing checklist up to date!

7 Tips on Small Business Marketing

One of the greatest setbacks that recent events has caused is hurt the economy. And no one has been hurt more than small businesses.

If you run a small business that has taken a hit during the recent events, you want to figure out how to recover your business and start building your revenue once again.

You need to consider a small business marketing plan in the new economy.

But what exactly do you need to do to market your small biz in the Coronavirus economy? We have put together this guide to help you get your company back in business! Keep reading to learn more about small business marketing done right.


1. Get a Helping Hand

The first step is to get a helping hand from a digital marketing agency. A digital marketing agency will know how to keep up with the trends post-recession and will help your business adapt to them.

They will assess how badly your business has been hurt during the lockdown and will be able to advise you on how to bounce back. They will be able to analyze your marketing efforts once you reopen for business and help you devise the best strategies moving forward.


2. Create a Landing Page

You should create a landing page to promote your business or a particular product/service that you are offering.

This will rekindle an interest in your business as the public will be ready to start shopping once again. On the landing page, you should mention how as a society we have all had to endure the hardship of the COVID-19 lockdown.

This landing page should also request action on behalf of your customers. This can be asking them to come into your physical store, purchase your new product/service, sign up for your newsletter, or mark their calendars for the reopening of your business.


3. Make Announcements Through Social Media

As your business gets close to reopening, you want to make these announcements through social media.

These can be in the form of Facebook posts and/or Instagram stories. Utilize social media to inform your customers that you are back in business. You can also directly contact your customers and offer them an incentive to revisit your business. Perhaps you can offer a discount if they show up on an opening day or at any time during your first week of reopening.

You need to aggressively use social media to spread the word about your business, it's reopening, and any new products/services that you are offering.


4. Keep an Eye Out for Guidelines

Though lockdowns may have eased in your area, there is always the possibility of a second wave and further lockdowns.

You have to keep an eye out for any guidelines that your government may impose. You also have to keep in mind that though people may be eager to go out, there will still be precautions and people may still be worried about the virus.

You want to assure your customers that your business is adhering to the guidelines. These are a great way to market your business. For example, you can advertise how your place of business has followed the guidelines for reopening as required by the government. 

You can also advertise that hand sanitizer will be available on your premises or that you will require customers to wear a mask if they wish to patronize your establishment. Advertising your company's adherence to the guidelines is a great way to market the business.


5. Create a Long-Term Marketing Plan

As your business has been drastically affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, you now have to start thinking long-term.

Create a long-term marketing plan that outlines at least six months. You have to lay out your plan for how your business will adapt and recoup losses for six months.

This can include aggressively marketing your business just before reopening (as mentioned previously), updating your Local SEO information, and offering further incentives such as discounts to bring your customers in.

You may also want to specifically advertise how your business has helped customers in the post-COVID economy. You can even advertise how it has helped your employees - this shows that your business is dedicated to helping workers - many of whom have lost their livelihood due to the pandemic.


6. Reach Out to the Community

As mentioned in the previous tip, you should consider updating your local SEO. This means that your local community should have updated information on your business.

This will include updating Google My Business and Bing Ads Management information. Your business should indicate hours of operation, contact information, and any guidelines related to COVID (i.e., wearing a mask, etc.)

You also want to reach out to your community and let them know that you are here to provide a necessary product/service that can help everyone enjoy life or get back to "normal." Start calling local residents and past customers about your offering. A top VoIP phone system can help you with cold calling, telemarketing, and customer service. The cost of voip calls is very low so it is a smart investment for any small business. Keep calling consumers and return messages promptly.

If you are able to hire, now is the time to start marketing any vacancies. Creating jobs is a big help to your local community.


7. Consider a Virtual Event

Even if it's not usual for your business to have events, you may wish to consider a virtual event to market your business.

This can be as simple as having a Zoom conference call where a few select customers can have a chat about your business and what you offer. Or it can be a live stream where you can discuss what the business is doing to reopen. You can discuss your new products/services (that you've also marketed on social media) and how you have been adhering to post-COVID guidelines.

These virtual events are becoming more popular among brands and its a great way to interact with your customer base. You can also use a virtual event to recruit any potential new employees in the age of the Coronavirus pandemic.


Back in Business With Small Business Marketing

Now that you know the steps for the perfect small business marketing strategy, you are ready to be back in business. Follow these steps and you'll surely see your business thrive once again in the post-COVID economy.

7 Modern Business Card Design Trends

Technology has changed the design world. It has completely transformed the way we communicate with other people.

Many of the world’s population use mobile devices and active social media users. With all this digital connection going on in the world, you may think that business cards are useless.

However, business cards are still relevant and can be a great way to attract new customers. Business cards are all about their design. They used to just contain basic business contact information, but nowadays, businesses and professionals can design a business card in a creative manner to suit their personal taste and business branding.

Continue reading below to find out the modern business card trends that are expected to make an appearance. 

Top 7 Modern Business Card Designs


1. Minimalism

Minimalism is a longstanding design trend that is going to make a re-appearance. This design makes things simple and easy to read and communicates the basic information only. 

Designing a minimalistic card is an art in itself. It’s crucial to only put the necessary information on the business card and leave plenty of white space.

Take a look at top modern product options to design a minimalist business card today. 


2. Interactive Design

This design included business cards that make customers interact with the card in one way or another. 

It’s a great way to get your customers talking about you or the business. 

It works as ‘free’ advertising, as people are more likely to pass on or show other unusual designs. 

You could also make part of the card useful, like incorporating a USB drive or a multitool.


3. Nautical Stripes

Nautical stripes are always trendy, providing they match with your business branding. They are a simple and professional way to include color in your business card design. 


4. Smart Cards

As we mentioned, the digital age of smartphones and developing technology may mean that some people won’t be interested in the old fashioned business card. If your target market is mostly Millenials, then it may be worth investing in smart cards. 

You can use the smart card to feature a basic design, but include a QR code for further information or coupons. 


5. Big Fonts

Big fonts are another trend to watch out for this year. Big, bold fonts really catch the eye of potential customers. They are also very memorable. 


6. Clever Symbols

Including clever symbols in the design is another way to make your business stand out amongst your competitors. Think about your logo and branding, and see if there is any way you can include a clever symbol or play on words into your business card.


7. Perforated Cards

Perforated cards are great for promotional deals or ‘refer a friend’ deals. Simply tear off the perforated edge and hand it to another person. Technically, this type of business card gives you a 2 in 1 card. 


Design a Modern Business Card

Get ahead of your competitors and design a modern business card today. Whether you are looking for a smart card, or want to try the nautical stripe, contact a designer to lend a helping hand. 

How To Build A Sales Funnel That Converts Leads

Want to sell more products or services and increase revenue? 

Do you need to take your sales volume to the next level?

Sales funnels are one of the most powerful tools a business can use to achieve success. Without a well-designed modern sales funnel, your business can fall behind the competition and lose valuable leads or customers. 

To avoid this, if your company does not have a sales funnel established, you need to change this fast. But before you do that, you must also understand how to build a sales funnel.

So, all of you who are not interested in bigger profits and booming business, get out of here—and the rest of you buckle up for some super actionable info on building sales funnels.


Analyze Your Target Customers

The first step to creating a sales funnel is to analyze your target customers. Target customers are the people that your offering is designed for and to whom it will sell most easily. 

For example, if you sell a solution to a specific problem, then your target customers will be the people that have this problem and have enough money to buy your product/service.

To sell your site is offering like hotcakes, you need to figure out where these people are hanging out. Are they on Facebook? Are they Googling for solutions? Or are they Instagram and TikTok consumers that buy what influencers are selling? 

You also want to pay attention to how potential customers behave when they land on your site. What pages do they view the most, and at what points do they click away? Analyzing our potential customer’s movements was crucial to fix errors and smooth out the customer’s experience in our early days.

Once you have compiled data on who your target customers are, where they can be found, and how they interact with your page, it is time to move onto the next step. 


Get Their Attention with Content and Ads

Now it is time to get the attention of these target customers. 

To do this, you need to set up a system of content creation that broadcasts across any platforms where your target customers can be found. This can take the form of blog posts, videos, live videos, podcasts, white papers, ebooks, emails, and social media posts. 

If you want to ramp it up a notch and get more fast-paced results, you can also invest in advertising. 

Advertising will allow you to target people who are potential leads across the web. You also won't have to wait for your social presence to grow before you see traction. 


Lead Them to the Perfect Landing Page

Once you have the attention of a potential lead or target customer, you need to take them somewhere. 

This is where your landing page comes in. The landing page that you direct leads to shouldn't just be the front page of your site. Instead, it should be a page that is tailored to the ad that is leading to it, and to the lead who lands on it.

In most cases, the landing page also shouldn't be trying to sell the customer anything right off the bat.

But wait—isn't the whole point of a sales funnel to sell your product?

Yes, it is, but according to research, 92% of people visiting a site are not yet ready to buy. If you try to sell a new visitor something on the first page they land on, they will most probably click away out of annoyance. 

Instead, offer something on your landing page that will provide value to your leads. For example, you could offer them a free e-book for their email address. 

The more valuable the free offer is to visitors, the more likely they will be to enter their email address, and ultimately the more successful your sales funnel will be. So don't skimp on the offer.


Build a Relationship via Email and Woo Your Leads

Once you have the email address of a lead, it is time to send them an automated series of targeted emails. This is termed a drip campaign in the sales world.

Once again, don't hard sell too often or too soon. At this stage, you are building a relationship with your lead and impressing them with the fact that you are the one to buy from if they ever got a product or service like yours. 

The way to do this is to provide leads with amazing content. 

Be sure not to overdo it, as nobody likes to be bombarded with emails. One to two emails per week is considered an effective but non-invasive amount. 

Once your drip campaign is complete, its time to make an offer. Again, make it a good offer. If there isn't that much value for the customer in the offer, then they are more likely to ignore it and fall out of the funnel. 


Don't Forget to Up- and Down- Sell

Make sure you up-sell and down-sell to the leads that click on your offer. Up-selling offers customers the option to go bigger or better on whatever you are offering. Some customers, who can afford it, and trust your brand by that point, will go for the up-sell offer, meaning you make a bigger sale. 

Down-selling means offering customers a less powerful and smaller version of the product or service that is cheaper. This is great for customers that clicked on your sales link but might drop out before purchasing because of budget constraints. 

Guess what sellers?

This is the end of the sales funnel, the place where your hard work pays off! 


Rinse and Repeat

After the point of sale, don't forget about your customers. You can begin again by making them part of another drip campaign, targetted to customers who have already made a purchase.

Keep up the relationship and then later on down the line make them an offer they can't refuse, once again. 

If you want to learn even more about how to build and maintain a killer sales funnel, you can get more info in the Sales section of our blog.


Now You Know How to Build a Sales Funnel!

Congratulations seller! You are all set to create one of the most powerful sales system that a business can operate. Because you now know how to build a sales funnel that converts more leads!

A high performing sales funnel takes time to set up and tweak to perfection, but it is well worth it.

If you enjoyed this article on sales funnels, share it on social and bookmark this site for more informative reads. Also make sure to visit the Sales section of our blog right now for more tips on lead generation and selling online!

5 Frugal Ways to Promote a Business

Almost 44 percent of local businesses have said they rely on social media to generate brand awareness. 

That number means that social media is a great place for you to travel to promote your business. It doesn't have to be expensive, though it can be a bit time-consuming. Saving money marketing, however, is worth a little extra time. 

Read on for the five best frugal ways to promote a business and create more awareness for your brand. 

1. Set a Goal 

Setting a goal for your brand—or just truly knowing your intent for it—helps customers recognize that you know what you are doing. You come across as stable, and they appreciate that feeling in a business they are interacting with. 

Think about online ordering. People reach for Amazon or Etsy first because they know those vendors are going to do their best to provide a quality customer experience. That is why people come back. 

Taking that goal and turning it into a plan that you can readily execute is the next step. Take it step-by-step so you don't get discouraged, and remember that it's OK for you to veer off course if necessary. 

The next few tips can even be implemented in your step-by-step plan to create an audience you can market to. 

2. Interaction 

Interacting with your followers on social media builds a reputation. If you are polite and take the time to have an actual, intentional conversation with them, it gets remembered. 

People enjoy intimacy on its most basic level, and creating a sense of it allows you to take their needs and meet them. Not only do they feel heard, but you are also letting them know they have been seen. 

This kind of marketing gets noticed, especially if you are someone your target audience can relate to as a creator, business owner, parent, or even just person. 

Taking those needs and meeting them can be seen in the products you create or the services you begin to offer. You can talk about a specific issue openly on social media to attract attention and then offer a simple way for people to reach out and speak to you. 

3. Free Stickers 

Vinyl decals are a great way to promote your business—especially if the stickers are free to those taking them. They're easy to put on car windows, lunch boxes, water bottles, laptops, even phone cases. 

They spread the word about your business and give customers a physical memory of your brand that isn't a business card. They can also hand them out friends and family, and it's a great way to start word of mouth advertising. 

4. Start a Blog or Channel 

Did you know that 78.8 percent of marketers consider YouTube to be the most effective platform? Video marketing provides a decent return on investment, but here's the thing: you don't need to invest a lot of money into creating videos. 

Now, if you want to hire people to make these videos for you, then that's a different story. But that iPhone camera of yours is just as good nowadays. It's more about the effort that you put into the creation of your videos. 

Show people into the everyday life of your company or provide them content they can learn something from. 

Starting a blog is also effective—especially if you have a niche blog. Choosing one topic to hone in is going to drive more traffic than a blog with a myriad of topics that don't seem to have a set focus. 

It goes back to feeling seen. Having a niche that people understand is going to make your target audience more willing to hear what you have to say, whether they are reading it or watching it. 

With your blog, pay attention to Search Engine Optimization. Your website can gain a lot of traffic with SEO and conducting keyword searches is a great place to start. 

5. Create a Course 

Creating a course allows you to combine everything we've covered so far, and it can be done on a budget. 

Having a goal for your business from the start can help you help others. It immediately tells potential students what you're about and gives them more time to be interested in how you can help them. It helps you better know yourself and what you can offer others. 

A course is easy to create because it's based on things you already know. Ditch the fancy slides and come prepared to speak to a room full of people. Grasp their attention with your knowledge and passion. 

Show them what you do and have done. Don't just tell them. 

If you can't find a space, hold the class or seminar virtually! There are plenty of platforms for you to work with. 

This tip combines other tips because it gives you a sense of intimacy with consumers, but you can also post about it on your YouTube channel. Writing about it on your blog is a great way to provide insight into the whole thing. 

There are Plenty of Other Ways to Promote a Business 

While these are great ways to promote a business, they are not the only ones. 

The great thing about these tips is that you can take them to build upon. Get creative with your advertising and make it your own. Combine ideas for maximum benefit, and remember to have fun with everything you create. 

The goal is to draw customers, but it's also to make sure your customers enjoy your products and want to keep coming back. 

If you're interested in reading more about business or marketing, check out the rest of our blog. Visit the Marketing section of the Frugal Finance Blog to learn more ways to promote a business on a budget.

How to Find a Venue for Your Professional Event

Preparing to plan a professional event?

Whether you are putting together plans for a conference, a seminar, a trade show, an awards show, or a product launch, there a bunch of keys to ensuring that it is a total success.

You will, of course, need to choose the right time to hold the event. You will also need to make sure the right people are invited to it. But maybe above all else, you'll need to find the right pro venue to stage your event.

No matter how meticulous you are with regards to mapping out the rest of your event, it'll all be for naught if you don't track down the right venue for it. It's why you should take your time when choosing a venue and keep at it until you land on the ideal one.

Here is how to go about doing it.


Keep Location in Mind When Looking for a Pro Venue

This should almost go without saying. But you should not, under any circumstances, rent a venue for a professional event if it's situated in a place that's going to be difficult for your guests to get to.

If, for example, you're going to be hosting an event in San Francisco, look for an event space that's somewhere within the city limits. If you roam too far outside of San Francisco, you're going to find that many of your guests might skip your event since it won't be convenient for them to get there.

You want to make it as easy as possible for all your guests to make their way to your event. With that in mind, choosing a pro venue that's located in the right place is an absolute must when you're planning out your event.


Make Sure a Venue Offers More Than Enough Parking

Once people show up for your event, are they going to be able to find a place to park?

This might not be a question that you ever consider when you're planning out an event. You'll be so worried about what's inside of a venue that you won't spend a ton of time thinking about what's outside of it.

Find out how many parking spaces are going to be available to your guests on the night of your event. 

The last thing you want is for people to show up at your event and leave when they realize that the parking situation is a nightmare.


Search for a Venue With Enough Space for Everyone on Your Guest List

One of the first things you should ask the owner of an event space when you're meeting with them about their venue is, "What is your capacity?" The capacity will let you know how many people you can fit into a venue at one time.

You should obviously do this for the comfort of your guests. You don't want to try cramming 400 people into a space that's only designed to hold 200 people. It'll lead to people spending the entire night bumping into one another.

It'll also go against all of the fire and safety codes that are in place and could get your event shut down if you're not careful. You want to make sure that the pro venue you pick has a capacity that sits well above the total number of names on your guest list.


See Which Services and Amenities a Venue Offers

There are some venues that will rent you an event space and leave it at that. They won't offer any extra services or amenities, which will leave you to bring in your own vendors to provide them.

But there are also venues that will extend all the services and amenities that you need for your event, either included in the cost of renting the venue or for an additional fee.

Some of the services and amenities that you'll likely need will include:

• Catering
• Table, chair, and linen rentals
• Audio-visual equipment

You might also need someone to help you set up a venue for your event and clean it up once it's over. You should come to an understanding with the owner of an event space as far as which services and amenities they will provide.


Consider the Layout of a Venue When Thinking About Using It

The type of event that you're planning will dictate the type of layout that you'll need inside of a pro venue.

For instance, if you're planning an awards show, you'll need a large stage for performers and presenters. You'll also need plenty of room to put chairs for your audience. This means that a venue with a bunch of smaller rooms isn't going to work for you.

By the same token, if you're holding a seminar that's going to feature different speakers talking to different groups, you might benefit from a venue with a choppy layout. It'll give you an opportunity to send those who attend your event to different areas based on what and who they want to see.

When you walk into a venue for the first time and it's empty, you're going to need to be able to picture your event taking place in it to see if it'll work. It's why it's essential for you to spend time thinking about how you envision your event going before settling on an event space.


Ask a Venue About Their Acoustics

Is there anything worse than spending tons of time and money staging a big event only to have guests complaining about how noisy it is inside? This is something that event planners don't always take into account when planning professional events.

You should speak with an event space owner about the acoustics in their facility and push them to tell you how speakers and music will sound during your event. Poor acoustics can ruin an event and make it impossible for people to enjoy themselves.

You should be especially wary about holding an event in a big, open space like a warehouse. These types of spaces don't always have the best acoustics, and the acoustics can ruin an otherwise great event in some cases.


Check Out the Accessibility of a Venue

A lot of event planners enjoy holding events in older venues that have a ton of history jam-packed into them. These venues often entice guests and get people talking about how lovely they are.

There is one big problem with many older venues, though. They don't always offer the same kinds of accessibility that you will find in most newer venues. They sometimes haven't gone through the necessary upgrades to make them more accessible.

You want to find a venue that makes it simple for people with mobility issues to get around. A pro venue should have everything from ramps to elevators inside of it to allow for people to maneuver their way around without a problem.


Figure Out If a Venue Fits Into Your Budget

The cost to rent a pro venue is going to depend on dozens of different things. Some of the factors that will impact the price of a venue include:

• The location of the venue
• The size of the venue
• The services and amenities that a venue offers
• The history of a venue
• The general appearance of a venue

Prior to looking around at different venues for a professional event, you should find out exactly when you want to rent a venue. This will help you avoid falling in love with a venue only to discover that it is booked on the night you need it.

You should also crunch the numbers and figure out how much you can afford to spend on a venue based on your event budget. It will allow you to steer clear of finding the perfect venue only to find out that it is out of your price range.

Cost shouldn't be the only thing on your mind when you are shopping around for venues for an event. You don't want to take the cheapest venue you can find and learn first-hand why it was so cheap in the first place.

But you should be open and honest about your event budget from the beginning with venue owners.

They might be able to find ways to work with your budget if it means renting out their venue for your event.


Book the Best Pro Venue for Your Next Professional Event

The pro venue that you choose for your next professional event could ultimately make or break it. 

Choosing the wrong venue could leave people with a bad taste in their mouth once your event ends.

Try to start looking around at various venues at least six months before your event is scheduled to take place. This will give you an opportunity to check out and consider a wide range of options before narrowing your choices down.

Once you find a venue that suits your needs, put down a deposit for it and start planning out the other details of your event. Your venue will establish a strong foundation for your event and get the planning process off to a great start.

Check out the rest of our blog for more tips on planning successful events.

Information About Incidence Rate Market Research

Are you familiar with the incidence rate in market research? If not, continue reading this article. In market research, the incidence rate (IR) is the factor that has the greatest influence on cost, even more so than the duration of the survey. 

This post will provide you with a better knowledge of the incidence rate in market research by providing specific examples of how a low or high IR might affect the feasibility and expense of your market research project. 

In Terms Of Market Research, What Does Incidence Rate (IR) Stand For? 

The number of people who reply to a survey and end up being eligible for a study is what is meant to be understood as the incidence rate. During market analysis, the term is frequently used interchangeably with the qualifying rate. 

Your incidence rate would be three percent if you had one hundred persons at random who were eager to participate in the survey, but only three of those people truly qualified based on the screening criteria you established. 

An IR of one hundred percent may be generated from a survey of the general population if every single person in the sample pool meets the criteria. Surveys of customers and clients are specifically excluded from the purview of IR for this reason. When you conduct a customer survey by email to each and every one of your clients, those clients automatically qualify for your research. 

Your IR would fall below 100% if you choose to screen as well as qualify only customers who have placed an order with your establishment during the prior three months, though. 

If you are conducting a survey for market research and you are only interested in receiving responses from females, for instance, your incidence rate will suddenly drop from one hundred percent to fifty percent. If you narrow your focus to women who are raising kids younger than 18, you will see an even more significant decline in the incidence rate, which will fall to fewer than 20 percent. 

How Do Researchers In Market Research Make Use Of Incidence Rates (IRs)? 

Online panel businesses make use of incidence rates to make estimates regarding how challenging it will be to get in touch with the audience and how many participants would be suitable for the study. 

Assessments with low incidence rates lead to an increase in the amount of effort required to gather answered questionnaires, as well as an increase in the cost of each completed survey and the total cost of the project. This is because it is extremely challenging to gather a high number of completes from an audience that has been hyper-targeted. 

In many instances, if your study anticipates producing an IR of less than 5%, numerous panel firms will see the study as being too risky and will not bid on it. 

A low IR can provide a lot of useful information. It is possible that conducting market research incidence rate won't be possible if the audience you are targeting has an interaction rate of less than 5 percent. Think about relaxing some of your requirements so as to attract a larger number of people, boost the likelihood of success, and cut down on expenses. 

You might anticipate paying extra for a survey that was carried out with a very narrow audience, like decision-makers in B2B transactions. The majority of online panel businesses have B2C pools that are significantly larger than their B2B pools. A large decline in your incidence rate may result from your decision to target particular titles or jobs. 

The following is a list of many methods that may be used to boost IR in market research: 

Improved Targeting 

If you have a field for date of birth in your database file, you may limit the participants in your survey to those who are under the age of 30 by sending invitations to those who were born after a given year. This not only provides a better experience for your consumers by reducing the likelihood of their being disqualified, but it also raises your overall IR for the survey. Find out more by clicking on this page. 

Don’t Be Too Strict With Your Criteria 

Make an effort to relax the stringency of your criteria. If you wish to conduct a survey of customers that visit your business on a weekly basis or more, may this frequency be increased to once every two weeks? Once every thirty days? Because of this, there will be more individuals who are eligible for this. 

Maintain A Flexible Approach To The Quotas 

If you are establishing quotas to guarantee representation from a number of different audiences, you might want to consider relaxing those quotas to make room for oversampling.