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Education
Marketing: Getting It's always best to research thoroughly and select resources
that meet your specific needs. Regardless of which
your brand out there program you choose for your website, take advantage of
Google Analytics (www.google.com/analytics), a free service
Google Inc. provides, no matter where you host your
By Michael Gavin site or which platform you use for development. Google
Analytics provides insights on your online visitors, where
Merchant Warehouse they come from, how they interact with your site and what
information they find most valuable. It's incredibly robust,
hether you're an established ISO or a new free, and easy to add to any website.
merchant level salesperson, marketing your
business and yourself is critical to your suc- Reach out via email
W cess. Marketing is the action or business
of promoting and selling products or services, including Email marketing is likely another tool you will need to
market research and advertising. execute your marketing plan. As with website creation and
hosting, numerous high-quality email marketing tools
Typically marketing professionals will reference the four are available. From the largest of the large – ExactTarget
P's and use them as the basis for their marketing plans: (owned by Salesforce.com), Eloqua (an Oracle company)
Product (solution); Promotion (information); Price (value); and Marketo – to the smallest of the small, there's
and Place (access). something to fit everyone's needs and budget.
Write down your plan Several specifically cater to the small and midsize business
including:
As a sales professional, you might be daunted by the task
of creating a marketing plan. Don't be. Just keep it simple. • MailChimp (www.mailchimp.com): free and low-
Remember, the plan is designed to make you strategize cost versions, user-friendly site, simple templates
in advance and create a road map – and to hold you • Constant Contact (www.constantcontact.com): low
accountable cost service; myriad templates with customization
capability; easy to use offerings; ancillary options
Liken it to setting goals. It's been proven that individuals – including surveys, event management and offers
who don't write down their goals don't typically achieve • iContact (www.icontact.com): affordable options,
them. An accountability factor is inherent in putting pen simple templates, drag-and-drop email creation
to paper. The same applies to the marketing plan. Myriad tools, contact management
resources on the Internet can help guide you through • Vertical Response (www.verticalresponse.com):
the process. If you search for "writing a marketing plan" affordable pricing options; easy to use offerings;
a 2010 Inc. magazine article will be one of the top hits. I full suite of email, social media and event
recommend that, as well as the free tools available from marketing tools
MarketingProfs.
And, there's so much more, especially in the world of social
Once you have a marketing plan in place, you're ready to media, with free (and paid) marketing opportunities on
go. If you are inexperienced in marketing and lack the Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and LinkedIn. I will cover these
financial resources to hire a full-time professional, online in more detail in an upcoming issue of this publication.
tools and resources can help you execute your plan.
Create a website So, have an attainable plan. Start small. Take advantage
of online resources. Have fun. And remember. You can
One of the must-haves for anyone in business is a great recommend, or even resell, the tools to your customers as
website. Ten years ago, this would have required a well.
significant financial investment. Today, a variety of free
or low-cost, easy-to-use online development and hosting
resources enable users to build professional looking As Merchant Warehouse Senior Vice President, Sales, Michael Gavin
websites in just weeks. A few standouts include Wordpress is responsible for day-to-day management of the company's direct
(www.wordpress.com); Google Sites (http://sites.google.com); sales, as well as leadership of all sales activities within the company's
Wix (www.wix.com); and Weebly (www.weebly.com).
agent channel. He has served as a key leader within the organization
since joining the company in late 2000. Merchant Warehouse's Genius
These work well for brochure-type sites containing Customer Engagement Platform is a single, intuitive platform that inte-
primarily content about you, your business, your offerings,
your differentiation, etc. However, if you're looking for grates every transaction technology, loyalty program and more. Contact
web specialists that offer online sales, check out Shopify Michael at mgavin@merchantwarehouse.com. For more information
(www.shopify.com); Prestashop (www.prestashop.com); and on the company, visit http://merchantwarehouse.com.
Magento (magento.com).
56
Marketing: Getting It's always best to research thoroughly and select resources
that meet your specific needs. Regardless of which
your brand out there program you choose for your website, take advantage of
Google Analytics (www.google.com/analytics), a free service
Google Inc. provides, no matter where you host your
By Michael Gavin site or which platform you use for development. Google
Analytics provides insights on your online visitors, where
Merchant Warehouse they come from, how they interact with your site and what
information they find most valuable. It's incredibly robust,
hether you're an established ISO or a new free, and easy to add to any website.
merchant level salesperson, marketing your
business and yourself is critical to your suc- Reach out via email
W cess. Marketing is the action or business
of promoting and selling products or services, including Email marketing is likely another tool you will need to
market research and advertising. execute your marketing plan. As with website creation and
hosting, numerous high-quality email marketing tools
Typically marketing professionals will reference the four are available. From the largest of the large – ExactTarget
P's and use them as the basis for their marketing plans: (owned by Salesforce.com), Eloqua (an Oracle company)
Product (solution); Promotion (information); Price (value); and Marketo – to the smallest of the small, there's
and Place (access). something to fit everyone's needs and budget.
Write down your plan Several specifically cater to the small and midsize business
including:
As a sales professional, you might be daunted by the task
of creating a marketing plan. Don't be. Just keep it simple. • MailChimp (www.mailchimp.com): free and low-
Remember, the plan is designed to make you strategize cost versions, user-friendly site, simple templates
in advance and create a road map – and to hold you • Constant Contact (www.constantcontact.com): low
accountable cost service; myriad templates with customization
capability; easy to use offerings; ancillary options
Liken it to setting goals. It's been proven that individuals – including surveys, event management and offers
who don't write down their goals don't typically achieve • iContact (www.icontact.com): affordable options,
them. An accountability factor is inherent in putting pen simple templates, drag-and-drop email creation
to paper. The same applies to the marketing plan. Myriad tools, contact management
resources on the Internet can help guide you through • Vertical Response (www.verticalresponse.com):
the process. If you search for "writing a marketing plan" affordable pricing options; easy to use offerings;
a 2010 Inc. magazine article will be one of the top hits. I full suite of email, social media and event
recommend that, as well as the free tools available from marketing tools
MarketingProfs.
And, there's so much more, especially in the world of social
Once you have a marketing plan in place, you're ready to media, with free (and paid) marketing opportunities on
go. If you are inexperienced in marketing and lack the Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and LinkedIn. I will cover these
financial resources to hire a full-time professional, online in more detail in an upcoming issue of this publication.
tools and resources can help you execute your plan.
Create a website So, have an attainable plan. Start small. Take advantage
of online resources. Have fun. And remember. You can
One of the must-haves for anyone in business is a great recommend, or even resell, the tools to your customers as
website. Ten years ago, this would have required a well.
significant financial investment. Today, a variety of free
or low-cost, easy-to-use online development and hosting
resources enable users to build professional looking As Merchant Warehouse Senior Vice President, Sales, Michael Gavin
websites in just weeks. A few standouts include Wordpress is responsible for day-to-day management of the company's direct
(www.wordpress.com); Google Sites (http://sites.google.com); sales, as well as leadership of all sales activities within the company's
Wix (www.wix.com); and Weebly (www.weebly.com).
agent channel. He has served as a key leader within the organization
since joining the company in late 2000. Merchant Warehouse's Genius
These work well for brochure-type sites containing Customer Engagement Platform is a single, intuitive platform that inte-
primarily content about you, your business, your offerings,
your differentiation, etc. However, if you're looking for grates every transaction technology, loyalty program and more. Contact
web specialists that offer online sales, check out Shopify Michael at mgavin@merchantwarehouse.com. For more information
(www.shopify.com); Prestashop (www.prestashop.com); and on the company, visit http://merchantwarehouse.com.
Magento (magento.com).
56
