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When It Comes to Email, Size and Looks Do Matter

June 14, 2016
By Steve Robinson
Director of National Organizations, Constant Contact

you-have-a-new-messageBefore you hit the send button on your next email marketing campaign, here’s something to think about – the average person received 91 consumer emails each day in 2015 and that number is expected to climb to 117 per day by the year 2019.1 These days, just getting a customer to open an email can be a feat unto itself. But not if you follow these insider tips.

Getting Noticed

How does a customer choose which email to open, open first, or not at all? The first thing they look at is the sender’s name and the subject line. If they don’t know you, it makes it that much harder to inspire them to open your message.

To encourage people to open your marketing emails, take these three critical
steps. First, ask your customers for permission to add them to your contact list. Since email marketing is permission-based, meaning you should have a green light from customers before reaching out, this clears the hurdle of them knowing the sender when the message appears in their inbox.

Second, your email address should be under the name that customers know. This is most likely going to be the name of your business, such as “Patsy’s Pastries,” though in some instances it might be your name, as in “Patsy Smith.” Just be sure to use the name the customer recognizes.  (more…)

Forget Your Passwords – You Don’t Need Them Anymore

June 7, 2016
By Eric Spellmann

We all hate trying to remember a thousand different passwords. And everyone is always telling us to come up with passwords that are not easy to guess!

In this video, Eric Spellmann shows how the future of security does NOT include these crazy passwords. In fact, you will achieve higher security WITHOUT having to memorize anything!

No, this isn’t fingerprint or retinal scanning. Want to see the future? Watch this video!

Getting Started with Live Streaming and the .live Domain

June 1, 2016
By Nick Fuller

This is your cue

Live StreamingEngaging with potential and current customers creates a lasting impression. By being open and transparent with your business’s patrons, you will earn their trust. They want to have interactions that help them understand who is behind the business. And one of the more effective and emerging ways to do that is live streaming.

In a recent Brandlive survey, 39 percent of respondents said live streaming will be “important” in their marketing mix. Another 20 percent said it will be “very important.” No matter how small your business, it might be worth your while to explore the possibilities a video marketing trend that’s gaining serious momentum. (more…)

Sports Retailer Rides Rebuilding Wave in Downtown Waterbury, Vermont

May 24, 2016
Success Story: Vermont

‘Serial Entrepreneur’ Relies on VtSBDC Advising for Start-Up Support

Vt-Success-Caleb-MagoonA self- described “serial entrepreneur,” Caleb Magoon, knows a lot about doing business in Vermont. “I am always looking for my next business opportunity,” he said. And when he saw downtown Waterbury businesses rebuilding in the years after the massive flooding of 2011, another opportunity showed itself.

“We knew the community was hungry for a store,” Magoon said. And he delivered, opening Waterbury Sports at 46 South Main Street last summer. “I started this business because the possibility for a sporting goods store in Waterbury was a tremendous opportunity and something I had been looking at for a while,” he said. “Waterbury is a fantastic town riding a wave of momentum following its rebuilding after Hurricane Irene.”

The retail store offers a vast array of sporting goods and recreation products that rotate seasonally. In spring and summer products include bikes and accessories, lacrosse, baseball, soccer and disc golf products, among other things. In winter, the store focuses on alpine and cross country ski products, as well as snowboards, hockey supplies, winter outerwear, snowshoes and more.  (more…)

Electric City Coffee

May 17, 2016
Success Story: Montana

After retiring from the Air Force, Thad and Heidi Reiste returned to Great Falls and bought a local coffee shop. They purchased the recipes and equipment, relocated downtown and re-branded, then came to the Great Falls Regional SBDC for help. This is the fourth in a series of videos by the Montana SBDCs, showcasing businesses that worked with their local SBDCs to jumpstart business success!