Sure, I know what you’re thinking: Yet another annoying web acronym I’m supposed to master. Just when small business owners were gaining confidence and traction with search engine optimization, or SEO, along comes this explosive social media “thing” that’s making it all even more complicated than it was before.

Do small businesses really need to know about this stuff?  Can social media help me attract customers, keep the ones I have and make more money? Will social media be even more important in the future? Read the full entry

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No matter what your small business sells, there’s one thing you can count on today:  customers and prospects who are already overwhelmed with marketing messages wherever they are, 24/7. Some may be short; just 140 characters long coming via Twitter. Others are much longer.  But all of the messages that bombard us are trying to shape our opinion, elicit some action, or both.

Today’s technology — and especially social media — fosters constant communication. But easy communication doesn’t necessarily translate to messages that are received, understood, and capable of driving action.  With so many messages competing for attention, it’s all the more difficult for any one message to resonate with your target market. Read the full entry

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Selling cars takes more than a handshake and a smile. It takes data. That’s why Alan Fink, Internet sales manager at Freeman Toyota in Santa Rosa, CA, built a FileMaker Pro database. “I needed a way to keep track of my customers, inventory, commissions, taxes, payroll – everything to do with sales here at the dealership,” says Fink. “Now it’s an integral part of my job and it’s used in the dealership every day.”

Fink can also access the database wherever he is with a mobile version of the software called FileMaker Go. “This job is really seven days a week,” he says. “If I get an inquiry from a customer on my day off, I need to respond right away. With FileMaker Go, I have all the information I need on my iPad and I can answer immediately.” Read the full entry

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