Articles by Ted Raymond on ArticleSnatch.com

QR Codes Integrate Print and Online Software

Tue, 02 Mar 2010 19:03:15 -0500

QR codes are the next step in interactive media. Set up as 2-dimensional codes, QR codes are printed codes that serve as doorways to web pages. They essentially bridge the digital and print media gap, creating a media without traditional limits. Why limit communication to only one type of audience? Until now, you've had two different media vehicles- print and the web. One was aimed at those who rarely deal with email or utilize the web, the other for the generation that was obsessed by it. QR codes mix the two, creating a print media that has digital capabilities. The codes are 2-dimensional and can be printed on a brochure, direct mailing or even a billboard or poster. By taking a picture of the QR code with a cell phone, users can then bring up web pages that actively promote the product. A QR code comes in a 2-dimensional printed form, but is actually a gateway to Internet resources. This technology places no limits on media, whether printed or featured on a computer screen. QR codes are matrix codes originally developed by the Japanese corporation Denso-Wave in 1994. **End Summary** Topics: qr codes]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Ted Raymond is Vice President of Allegra Marketing & Print, a leading marketing company in Scottsdale, AZ, providing innovative services and products to clients since 1982. For more information about QR codes and strategies , visit our website.

CRM & Data Management Using a Central Resource Provides Usable Answers

Mon, 01 Mar 2010 19:57:29 -0500

When it comes to Customer Relationship Management (CRM) & Data Management, a lot of wires can get crossed if you don't use a central repository that streamlines all your customer management information down to a simple to use format. Customer relationship management can get complicated. You are managing your entire company's interactions with customers and sales prospects. You need to keep track of successful contacts, those that faded into oblivion, and those that hold greater potential. You're looking to judge satisfaction as well as times services might have missed their mark. Without a central repository to get a cohesive view of customer habits, CRM & Data Management becomes an entangled and unwieldy mess. At the same time, CRM & Data Management provides key information to marketing. If done well, it lets you know what you are doing right and what you can strive to make better. It improves the effectiveness of your marketing campaign, ideally creating a wider customer base by making the most out of your prospects. Yet there's so much to manage in the campaign. **End Summary** Topics: CRM]]> Data Management]]> customer relationship management]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Ted Raymond is Vice President of Allegra Marketing & Print, a leading marketing company in Scottsdale, AZ, providing innovative services and products to clients since 1982. For more information about CRM & Data Management , visit our website.

Email Marketing In Phoenix Can Benefit Businesses

Mon, 15 Feb 2010 10:36:37 -0500

If you are business owner from Arizona and want to promote your business, you may be considering email marketing services in Phoenix. We all receive a couple of e-newsletters and other promotional materials, but do we notice all of them? Some may even avoid all of them just by reading the subject line. Being a businessman and Internet user, you probably know this already. So, are you not sure if using one email marketing company in Phoenix is a good idea to promote your business? Well, the good news is that email marketing can be a very good method that can be used for successful business promotions. E-newsletters can attract potential customers especially if the customer subscribed for your newsletter. It is important not to focus on any e-campaign that sells random mails to customers because chances are more for these mails to get deleted. If you approach this method to convey something to customers in your local area, try to build a newsletter on a friendly perspective rather than the commercial aspect. If some readers already know about your business, chances are high for them to read it. **End Summary** Topics: email marketing]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Ted Raymond is Vice President of Allegra Marketing & Print, a leading marketing company in Scottsdale, AZ, providing innovative services and products to clients since 1982. For more information about email marketing , visit our website.

Understanding A Service Level Agreement

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 18:04:12 -0500

Service Level Agreement can bring mutual understanding between the sales and marketing departments of an organization. It is often debated whether sales is important or marketing is important. This question could be puzzling and the right answer is both are important to achieve successful sales rates. This is why Service Level Agreement is very important for an organization. The SLA defines the level of service expected from a department. Service Level Agreement (SLA) can be a legally binding formal contact if market and sales are done by two different firms but inside organizations it is often a set of rules that should be followed to attain successful sales. This agreement brings a common idea about services, responsibilities and duties of the department. Sales and marketing are two separate functions that result in the final sale of the product. Marketing deals with building strategies to attract customers toward a business or product. Nevertheless the final sales of the product are done by the sales department. Both are very important because the brand name built by the marketing department determines the product value among customers and a salesperson can negotiate only based on this. **End Summary** Topics: creating a Service Level Agreement]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Ted Raymond is Vice President of Allegra Marketing & Print, a leading marketing company in Scottsdale, AZ, providing innovative services and products to clients since 1982. For more information about creating a Service Level Agreement , visit our website.

Identifying Prospects for Multi-Channel Marketing

Tue, 12 Jan 2010 16:16:38 -0500

The complexities of multi-channel marketing can be daunting with the number of variables a marketer must manage, but for many companies, a multiple channel strategy leads to significant profit growth. This article will provide you with information about identifying prospects for multi-channel marketing and achieving results. Who is a good prospect for multi-channel marketing? In the ever-evolving world of marketing, many service providers struggle to understand who an ideal prospect is. While there are no hard and fast rules that determine what type of client will receive benefit from a multi-channel approach, there are a number of criteria that do help ensure success. Client profiles can vary, but the following criteria will help to ensure you are targeting prospects who will most likely benefit from your services: 1. Look within your own database for multi-channel marketing prospects. The greatest opportunities are generally those clients that you have an existing relationship with. If you have been providing them other services you probably have trust and credibility within the organization. Leverage your relationship to get to the right people (see point two). 2. Seek multi-channel marketing prospects. This type of marketing approach requires a more strategic level of thinking. **End Summary** Topics: multi-channel marketing strategies]]> lead generation]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Ted Raymond is Vice President of Allegra Marketing & Print, a leading marketing company in Scottsdale, AZ, providing innovative services and products to clients since 1982. For more information about multi-channel marketing strategies , visit our website.

What is a Sales-Ready Lead?

Fri, 08 Jan 2010 21:13:31 -0500

Did you know that most of the leads generated on your website are not yet ready to talk to a sales person? In fact, most of them are searching for information and are soft leads at best. This article will provide you with information what a sales-ready lead is and how to nurture leads and turn them into qualified buyers. Increasing the number of sales-ready leads is a top priority for nearly half of marketers in the U.S. But unfortunately, up to 95% of prospects that come through your website are not yet ready to talk with a sales rep, according to research by Brian Carroll, renowned lead-gen author. What is a sales-ready lead? Well, it depends on who you talk to! To most sales people, a sales-ready lead is any prospect that has a business problem your company can solve at a price it can afford now or later. But to marketers, a sales-ready lead might be any prospect that has achieved sufficient lead rank over time based on pre-defined criteria and is ready to buy. **End Summary** Topics: sales-ready leads]]> lead nurturing]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Ted Raymond is Vice President of Allegra Marketing & Print, a leading marketing company in Scottsdale, AZ, providing innovative services and products to clients since 1982. For more information about sales-ready leads and lead nurturing , visit our website.

Nurturing Leads for Better Sales Success

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:40:21 -0500

Did you know that most of the prospects generated on your website are not yet ready to talk to a sales person? In fact, most of them are searching for information and are soft leads at best. This article will provide you with information about creating a successful lead generation strategy that includes nurturing leads and turning them into qualified buyers. Increasing lead generation success is a top priority for nearly half of marketers in the U.S. Many marketers generate leads through forms or surveys on their respective websites and unfortunately, up to 95% of those prospects are not yet ready to talk with a sales rep, according to research by Brian Carroll, renowned lead-gen author. The truth of the matter is that many of your website visitors are just looking for information about your products, your services, your brand or your industry. Perhaps you have an offer of some kind tied to your lead qualification survey and the prospect is simply trying to take advantage of the offer. Either way, as a marketer or sales rep, you're stuck with a soft lead at best and it's hard to know where to go from there. **End Summary** Topics: nurturing leads for better sales success]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Ted Raymond is Vice President of Allegra Marketing & Print, a leading marketing company in Scottsdale, AZ, providing innovative services and products to clients since 1982. For more information about nurturing leads for better sales success , visit our website.

Sales Leads: How to Revitalize Dormant Accounts

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:38:12 -0500

You put a lot of effort into developing a lead generation strategy - you create a survey, you follow up, you nurture - it's perfect. Yet some prospects don't respond or get left behind, creating a dormant sales lead. This article will provide you with information about how to revitalize dormant accounts and turn them into sales-ready leads. A common concern among sales managers and business owners alike is the cultivation and handling of sales leads. One of the biggest issues with leads is that over 50% simply sit and await a call to action. Lead generation campaigns cost time and money to every organization! It is unconscionable that so much time goes into generating leads and the accounts are left sitting there, dormant. What causes sales lead to become dormant? Most accounts go dormant because they don't know what to do. Let's say that you generated a sales lead on your website through a contact form. You followed up with an email and a phone call, but neither of them was ever returned. Did you follow up again? Or did you let the lead slip away? **End Summary** Topics: sales leads]]> revitalizing dormant accounts]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Ted Raymond is Vice President of Allegra Marketing & Print, a leading marketing company in Scottsdale, AZ, providing innovative services and products to clients since 1982. For more information about sales leads and revitalizing dormant accounts , visit our website.

Building Lead Nurturing Strategies

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:33:20 -0500

One of the biggest marketing issues in the business-to-business (B2B) space is that clients often have a long and very complex sales cycle. That's why it is critical to build a good lead nurturing strategy. This article will provide you with information about creating a successful lead nurturing strategy that why and how to turn leads into qualified buyers. Lead nurturing is the process of building a relationship with a prospect by initiating dialog that helps to move qualified prospects that are not yet sales-ready, regardless of budget, authority or timing through the sales pipeline. Building a lead nurturing strategy is basically about maintaining consistent and meaningful communication with viable prospects until they are ready to buy. How do you nurture leads and keep your company at the top of their mind when they're finally ready to buy? Unfortunately, many businesses find that their sales and marketing teams are at odds about the quality of leads produced by their lead generation efforts, and lack a defined lead nurturing process. All too often, the lead is a quality prospect, but they have been identified at a time when they are not ready to buy. **End Summary** Topics: building lead nurturing strategies]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Ted Raymond is Vice President of Allegra Marketing & Print, a leading marketing company in Scottsdale, AZ, providing innovative services and products to clients since 1982. For more information about building lead nurturing strategies , visit our website.

Lead Generation: Qualifying Leads through Surveys

Sun, 25 Oct 2009 04:40:18 -0400

Increasing lead generation success is a top priority for nearly half of marketers in the U.S. The challenge, however, is to qualify them and know which leads are ready to convert to sales. This article will provide you with information about qualifying leads through surveys so that you can increase your ROI by delivering only sales-ready leads. Spending too much time with people who cannot or will not buy is one of the top reasons sales people falter. That means improving your sales team's performance is as simple as having a steady source of good leads. Easier said than done, you might think. Or is it? "Gauging the Cost of What's Lost" is a study that suggests companies may be good at generating large volumes of business leads, but most prospects fizzle because sales is focused solely on closing the most promising and qualified short-term opportunities. According to the study, 73 percent of respondents say their company has no process for re-qualifying business leads. In today's economy, it is more important than ever to attract new business and move leads through a qualification process. **End Summary** Topics: qualifying leads]]> lead generation]]> lead qualification through surveys]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Ted Raymond is Vice President of Allegra Marketing & Print, a leading marketing company in Scottsdale, AZ, providing innovative services and products to clients since 1982. For more information about lead generation and qualifying leads through surveys , visit our website.