Blog
5 Ways Branding Can Help Your SEO
Posted Wed, 30 Sep 09
The internet is predominantly a direct marketing medium. It's driven by databases, direct response and customer relationships which means it's highly targeted, highly accountable and very efficient. The trouble is, it's so effective that many businesses don't even consider the importance of a brand online. Big mistake.
The Kokoda Challenge 2009: The Analysis
Posted Thu, 17 Sep 09
By Rob
A couple of months ago, NBM's team competed in the Kokoda Challenge. To recap and reflect on this experience, I decided to take a look at our Tweets from our Twitter page over the course of the challenge and show you just what we were thinking at the time.
Before the Challenge
Before the event had begun, we were feeling pumped. We had done some good training and bought some top notch gear. As far as we knew, we were good to go.
Bring on the the Kokoda Challenge!
With a little more preparation
Testing twitter from sms. Adam
We were set to go. As we drew near the event, the gravity of the event became clear and a little trepidation set in.
All set for the challenge! I'm tired just thinking about it!! - Mitch
You should go to bed then Mitch - Adam.
The Challenge Begins
On the morning of the event, we awoke to a pretty nice day, no rain, harsh winds or any bad weather was forecast. We had packed everything we needed and we felt set to tackle the challenge.
What a awesome kokoda morning! Waiting for wez to pick us up. 96km here we come. Adam
We arrived at the event and unfortunately not everything was kosher, I suddenly realized that I forgot my pants. Luckily, I had my skins on and while they looked a bit strange, we managed to begin the race with a good start.
Off to a good start. Rob dropped everything including his pants.
The first part of the event was pretty straight forward, we were in unfamiliar terrain, but quickly approaching Polly's Kitchen our training ground for the challenge.
Over 10k in and Halfway to polly's can't wait to get there. Kokoda. Rob.
Unfortunately, on the way to Polly's we took a wrong turn which cost us valuable time.
Missed a turn off.. Had to do 1k extra. Now 97kms! Wez
Fortunately Mitch's dad and wife were waiting for us with refreshments and a refuel. Just around the corner, Polly's was also waiting. As expected, we smashed it and hurried towards the next checkpoint.
we just smashed pollies! All the training paid off. Need to move fast to make the hall before dark. Otherwise no lights. Adam
The Pain Sets In
On the way to the Hall we were struggling, but some nice flats allowed us to pick up our pace to reach the hall on dark.
At the enviro, the boys are struggling, need to keep pushing through. Kokoda Adam.
Making good pace along the flats. Should be at the hall just after dark. Kokoda challenge bring it on.
Mitch is thinking about something to eat. Apparently lentil soup is on the menu thanks to wez's mum!
At hall just on dark.
At a refreshing stop, Wez's mum and Eirin came, armed with lentil soup and general support. We wanted to stay a little longer, but the cold was setting in and we needed to keep warm and focused on our goal, we had officially walked over 50km.
After a nice break, we're back on the move. Over halfway. Kokoda. Rob
Conquering Syd Duncan Park
The pain by now was really setting in and some of us were close to OD'ing on Nurofen. We were aiming to reach Syd Duncan Park, which was about two thirds in. On the way, Wez's knee began to play up and he was struggling up the mountain. In addition, our light batteries began to dwindle and we were walking half blind through mountainous, rocky terrain – as you can imagine, not ideal for your knees or ankles!
After not too long, the pain became unbearable for Wez and he pulled out of the challenge.
68km in. Feeling awful but going to push thru. Wez is gone. His knee went. Kokoda. rob
The climb to Syd Duncan didn't get any easier. We were tired and wrecked, but we eventually made it to the major check point. Wez's mum and Erin were waiting for us with more food and support. I was feeling out of it and I think I fell asleep here. As good as this checkpoint was, Adam urged us to move on.
The Final Stretchp
Mitch and I began to struggle, but still, Adam's encouragement drove us on. We pushed past another checkpoint and at this stage we were really feeling it. At one stage we were about to pull out, but Adam convinced us for just one more check point. I'm glad we pushed through.
Unfortunately, we just couldn't do it. Our feet and legs were completely shot. We'd been awake for 24 hours and we gave it up. Our disappointment couldn't even be contained within 140 characters and yes, it was a low point.
Kokoda challenge is over for nbm, 82k only 13k to go, the boys couldn't do it. Disappointed. But there is always next year
Very disappointed we got so close but couldn't finish, i think my feet would have fallen off if i walked any further though! Mitch
The Aftermath
We ended up hurting for many days after
They didn't register our last check point? Mitch
my legs hurt - wez
Reflecting back on it now, 82kms was quite an achievement, one that, I'm sure, we'll all look back on for many years to come.
Is the customer always right?
Posted Wed, 16 Sep 09
by Gary Jeffress
This month's guest post is by Gary Jeffress from The Maverick Project. As the name suggests Gary is on a mission to change the way people think about business and life. He offers business and life coaching services, is also a public speaker and presenter. To get in touch with Gary visit www.maverickcoaching.com.au
I had an interesting experience recently. After ordering a meal at a local leagues club, I went to a bar to purchase a lemon squash and a glass of wine. The wine list displayed the house wine which was De Bortoli Chardonnay - $3.50. I ordered this and a lemon squash. The bar attendant, went to the refrigerator, took out a bottle and poured a glass. With the lemon squash, it came to $8.70. This was more than I expected.
When I queried the amount she charged, she replied "You asked for De Bortoli Windy Peak Chardonnay didn't you?" I said that I had asked for the $3.50 house wine listed on the wine list. She was most annoyed. She grumpily explained that she had poured the more expensive and better one. She then put it aside and poured the correct wine which was "on tap".
Although I looked at the wine list as I asked for the order, I did not mention it was the $3.50 house special. I used the De Bortoli brand name instead, which was on the wine list. In customer service training programs, I will often discuss the notion that the customer is always right – but there are many variations.
Business owners are aware that "The right customer is always right"
What response should have been used by the attendant at the time?
Another example was when I had ordered a takeaway chicken meal with specific choices of the pieces I wanted in the pack of 2. The attendant refused and said they were specific pieces put into the packs and could not be changed. This I challenged and after some arguing and the young person not budging, I left unhappy. That person had a perceived win in the moment and stood his ground. And in this day of competition with everyone wanting to do better than the next person perhaps it was a smart move on his part.
Although in a take-home environment isn't everyone the "right" customer? What young people are not taught is that a "life-time" customer is paramount and businesses should be training their people with this view. I walked out of that situation saying I will never go back there again and telling all who would listen of my experiences. If you were the owner serving at the time, would you have treated me that way, given a desire to see the same people in your store as many times as possible is most important to you. If some flexibility was shown I would not be spending a painful $10 just once. I would be in your store possibly 20 times per year. If I only spent $10 how much would that be per year. If I lived in the area for 10 years how much would that mean to you? Then multiply it by the amount of customers that walk through your door daily.
5 year plan? You mean 5 year guess.
Posted Wed, 15 Jul 09
A great post on the 37 Signals blog.. Why not to spend too much time planning.
"Let's just call plans what they are: guesses...So next time you're working on a business plan, call it a business guess. And that financial plan? It's a financial guess. Strategic planning? Call it with it really is: a strategic guess. 5 year plan? You mean 5 year guess." http://www.37signals.com/svn/posts/1805-lets-just-call-plans-what-they-are-guesses
Will You Join The Online Business Gold Rush?
Posted Fri, 10 Jul 09
by Wez
It's the modern day gold rush - the wild wild web. When you think that the web has only really been around in mainstream use since the beginning of the new millennium, not even 10 years ago, it's frightening to think where it will be in another decade. Think of the TV in its first 10 years and now look at the 50inch wide screen plasmas we're now used to.
World wide Internet users have trebled since 2000 (http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats.htm), and there's still plenty of room for growth. In terms of what the web has to offer I would think its only currently at 10% maybe 20% capacity of what it will be in the coming years.
Opportunities for Online Businesses
It's unrealistic to try and create the next Facebook or Twitter, however I can bet if you focus on your industry there will be an opportunity to create an online business to solve a problem or make things easier. We've already seen examples of these with the more obvious online businesses being created in Australia including sites such as www.realestate.com.au, www.seek.com.au and www.wotif.com.au
Once off the ground a good online business, combined with a revenue model like a subscription based service, can mean a high profit margin with ongoing revenue -- and provide great leverage possibly marketed nationally or even world wide.
My few quick tips for creating a successful online business:
- Focus on simple idea's, don't get too complex
- Stick to what you know best, using your current knowledge, experience and connections.
- It needs a clear business/revenue model (which Twitter is still trying to work out)
- Be prepared to spend the time and money to get it afloat.
- Start with the essentials only, focus on the core service. Do one thing and do it well.
Example Online Businesses
At NBM we've helped create and work with many up and coming online businesses:
www.doggyinthewindow.com.au
A pet products wholesaler created a website within their industry for breeders to sell puppies.
www.golfindustrycentral.com.au
A golf consultant saw an opportunity to create an education and information portal for the golf business industry.
www.funseekers.com.au
Event organizer created an online social and event club.
www.quickbackup.com.au
And of course Quick Backup, our web based business that we saw a need with our clients.
The Benefits of Business Twitter-ing
Posted Thu, 9 Jul 09
by Rob
Twitter's traffic is growing enormously due to all the media attention, so we thought we'd give you a few reasons why businesses are flocking to it. If you don't know what it is, it's a micro-blogging service where you answer the question, "What are you doing?" in 140 characters or less. For a great primer on twitter, checkout this quick video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ddO9idmax0o. Otherwise, here's why Twitter is so good for businesses – and why you should look into it.
Dialogue with customers
Talking with customers can be pretty insightful. In my experience, I've seen businesses use Twitter to:
- Educate customers about their product or service offering
- Provide customer support and other contact
- Ask customers their opinions
- Provide service recovery
- Facilitate online reputation management
Free publicity
Reaching almost 2.6% of the internet may seem small, but it's probably about 10-30 million unique visits per day. People also spend 0.3 minutes longer on Twitter than they do on Google each day which suggests users are genuinely involved in the site. This means you can get good amounts of targeted traffic from Twitter.
In fact, Dell found that its Twitter traffic has been responsible for over $3 million in sales http://ow.ly/dNZw.
Build customer relationships
Talking with customers also has the added benefit of building a relationship with them. For instance, tweeting everyday can help you to build top of mind awareness – people will see your brand and associate it with your tweets.
This is huge in my opinion – instead of requiring customers to sign up for your newsletter, this is much easier and less obtrusive. Every positive encounter with a customer is a brick in your palace.
A great research tool
Aside from asking customers for their opinions, you can find out what people are saying about you and your competitor's brands. Seriously, go to Twitter now, and search for some of your favourite brands http://search.twitter.com/advanced – you can find out how satisfied customers are with a particular brand almost instantly.
Networking
Since so many businesses are using Twitter these days, it's a fantastic place to network. In fact you can meet people in the same profession and follow their updates. I've even heard stories about people hiring and getting jobs on Twitter http://www.mpdailyfix.com/2009/03/guest_post_how_i_got_my_job_th.html.
A Caveat
Since I joined up with Twitter early last year, I've noticed a few things:
- It has a poor retention rate http://blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire/online_mobile/twitter-quitters-post-roadblock-to-long-term-growth/
- It's not for every business
- It can damage your brand if done incorrectly
- It's not the be all, end all channel for you online marketing
- It can be addictive http://gawker.com/5181175/jennifer-aniston-dumps-john-mayer-over-twitter-addiction
It's important to approach Twitter carefully, rather than jumping straight in. Do your research and ask questions first to see if it's right for your business. If you need a hand, let me know in the comments and I'll help you out.
Follow NBM on Twitter
Curious about what we're up to? Need to see an example of a Twitter profile for business? Follow NBM here.
We Need You for the Kokoda Challenge!
Posted Fri, 26 Jun 09
We need to raise at least $1,000 to make the challenge. All funds go towards the Kokoda Challenge Youth Program to give kids an experiential education.
Please show us your support. Donations of $20, $50 and $100 are very much appreciated (and tax deductable for this financial year)
Click here to donate to the New Business Media team now
We had another training session this morning, trekking up Pages Pinnacle in Springbrook (14kms over and back). Check out some photos below. We'll also be making updates on Twitter while on the challenge so be sure to follow us.
Reached the top at 7am this morning
Do You Want To Trial Google AdWords, FREE?
Posted Wed, 27 May 09
by Rob
Google is offering a free $75 stimulus to new AdWords advertisers. To help you take advantage of this offer, we’ll happily setup your campaign for free (Normally $360). This is the perfect way to see if Google AdWords is right for your business.
If you’re not already familiar with it, Google AdWords are the ads which you see appearing beside Google search results. Every time your ad is clicked, Google charges you a small amount. Anyway, since you reach your customers while they’re searching for you, the traffic from AdWords converts very well.
To take advantage of this offer contact Rob - rob (at) nbm.com.au
Still, if you’re not quite sure about how Google can benefit you, here are a few questions that can help you decide.
