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Why Your Business Needs A Content Marketing Strategy In 2018

December 11, 2017
By Jennifer Lobb

Content MarketingWhen it comes to marketing advice, it’s easy to get lost in all the shoulds, shouldn’ts, musts and must nots. Professionals the world over can debate the most effective marketing methods, but in 2017, those seeking the sage advice of others would have a difficult time avoiding a healthy endorsement for content marketing. In fact, 86% of B2Cs and 88% of B2Bs employ some content marketing strategy, according to the Content Marketing Institute.

Not only are businesses utilizing content as part of their overarching strategy, but they’re seeing results. In fact, when asked to rate the success of their content marketing efforts (from extremely effective to not effective), 97% of both B2Cs and B2Bs reported some level of success. Do you have a solid content marketing strategy in place? Looking to really increase brand awareness in the new year? Here are three reasons why you should include content in your 2018 efforts.

Your Brand Becomes a Resource

In case you haven’t noticed, the Internet is a cramped locale. If you can think it, you can search for, and find, it. Beyond that, businesses that want to survive in today’s overwhelmingly competitive landscape need to be online, only adding to the flooded nature of the internet as we know it. But how does one business stand out? How do you convince customers to buy in?  (more…)

Mireles Ice Plant To Manufacture 350 Tons Daily

December 4, 2017
Success Story: San Antonio, Texas

Mireles Ice PlantPackaging crushed ice into 40 lb. paper bags was the earliest stage of a business that would grow to serve clients across Central and South Texas. Located in San Antonio and opened by Jesus “Jesse” Mireles III in 2001, Mireles Party Ice is the culmination of a family business that has evolved from early roots.

In 1974, with the help of his father, Jesse and his wife Melinda Mireles opened a grocery store that catered to various events, with a high volume of requests for kegs and ice. Although the store became the largest keg distributor in San Antonio, Jesse found greater value in focusing the business on ice manufacturing. Through the 1980’s, the couple purchased ice blocks from local ice companies and packaged crushed ice in paper bags. By the 1990’s, Jesse had acquired two 2,400 lb. ice makers, and in 2001 he built his first ice plant.

With plans to leave the family business to his son, Jesse Mireles IV, Jesse IV assumed the role of vice president and contacted the San Antonio Small Business Development Center for assistance. Since working on the company’s business plan, loan preparation, distribution forecasts and projections, Mireles Party Ice has seen great progress.  (more…)

Tried & True Ways to Increase Your Cashflow in Just One Month

November 27, 2017

CashflowFormer Congressman Chris Chocola once said that one of the earliest lessons he learned in business is that balance sheets and income statements are fiction, and cash flow is the true reality.

Investopedia defines “cash flow” as the net amount of cash that moves in and out of a business. Cash flow is positive when liquid assets are increasing and negative when they are decreasing. There are only two main ways to increase your cash flow, and that is to bring more revenue in (increase sales) and/or to keep less revenue from going out (decrease your expenses). For this article, I will expand upon both concepts further.

Bringing In More Revenue

There are a variety of ways you can increase your revenue, and what makes you a strategic business owner (with a thriving enterprise) is the fact that you’ve developed your own secret sauce (business plan) to do so. Some ideas to bring in more revenue include, but are not limited to, the following:  (more…)

Adult Assisted Living Facility Opens in Lyndonville, Vermont

November 20, 2017
Success Story: Vermont

Welcome Home Assisted Living, VTKaren Thompson loves to help people. That has always been a strength of hers and something she wanted to turn into a life-long venture for some time. She recently accomplished her wish in the spring of 2017, when she opened the doors of Welcome Home Mature Adult Assisted Living in Lyndonville, Vermont.

The 24-hour elder care facility is already proving to be a great place for Thompson and other staff members to do what they love — helping people. But it has also proven a viable new Northeast Kingdom small business.

While Thompson always knew she was passionate about caring for people, she wasn’t sure how that would translate into a viable business. She needed banking advice and other tips on starting a business and quickly enlisted the help of Vermont Small Business Development Center Area Advisor Ross Hart.

The pair quickly went to work on budgeting and projections for the first year of operation, Thompson said. Hart also helped Thompson establish reasonable financial expectations and identified many helpful local business resources, she said. Thompson described working with Hart as an “educational, insightful, perfect” experience.  (more…)

7 Ways to Make a Holiday Sale Actually Work

November 13, 2017
By Eric Rosenberg

Sale signThe holiday shopping season traditionally kicks off with Black Friday, the annual shopping holiday the day after Thanksgiving that brings retailers “into the black” for the year, indicating a profitable period. But Black Friday alone is rarely enough to compete and make a profit in today’s market. Instead, many business owners run holiday sales to boost business during the busiest time of the year.

1. Start With the Math

In business, there is a concept of selling some products at a small loss to boost the sales of high margin products. These “loss leaders” can work well to boost the top line, but you can’t run a business with a focus only on revenue. You have to turn a profit to succeed in business.

Do the math and calculate margins on the products you expect to sell the most, and figure how to turn lower margin customers into higher margin customers. If you can upsell, convert, or at least turn low margin customers into leads for high profit products, you should be in great shape.

2. Improve the Customer Experience

Many shoppers try new stores, both online and offline, during the holidays. In fact, the National Retail Federation shares that 27.4 percent of all retail sales took place during the holidays in 2015 and most business expect about 20 percent of sales to come during the holiday season.  (more…)