London, UK ( Pressreleaseroom ) August 7, 2009 – It’s certainly something lots of marketing experts are talking about, but just how small businesses should go about building an online community is harder to understand. Ben Dyer has built a 10,000 member community for his business and he shares the lessons he’s learned in a new article on Marketing Donut.

Dyer says that while a community is a powerful way to engage with your customers, building one requires patience and perseverance.

“For every community I have seen fail due to lack of traffic, two have the plug pulled because of a perceived lack of progress” he says.

Dyer says the other key ingredients of success are: leadership, ground rules, taking criticism on the chin, and making sure the community caters to everyone, not just the “fanatics”.

“Running a community is hard work, but it can be a fantastically rewarding experience for both you and your customers. The reality is that if you have a successful company, product or service, your customers will be talking about you anyway. What you need to decide is whether you are willing to facilitate the conversation.”

Backed by Google and Royal Mail, Marketing Donut is a free marketing resource that’s been developed specially for small business. Practical and no-nonsense, Marketing Donut covers all aspects of small business marketing, from branding through to internet marketing, from direct marketing through to generating PR for your business.

Further information:

* The Marketing Donut is at http://www.marketingdonut.co.uk

Contact details:
Mick Dickinson
BHP Information Solutions
tel: 0117 904 2224
info@marketingdonut.co.uk

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London, UK ( Pressreleaseroom ) July 17, 2009 – Making your most valuable customers feel valued with a carefully-selected gift could deliver the same return as a direct mail to 1000 people or an advert in the local newspaper, says a new expert article on free small business marketing resource Marketing Donut.

“Merchandising might seem like an unnecessary cost during the recession, but if you set clear objectives and select the right merchandise for your target audience, it can generate a valuable return on investment,” says the article on Marketing Donut.

The article says merchandising delivers benefits such as: connecting with customers, raising awareness of the business, and driving sales.

Marketing Donut expert Andy Preston says that with merchandising it’s important to be clear about what you want to achieve. “For example, do you want customers to sign up to your newsletter and communicate with you more, or to drive new customers to your website and increase online sales?”

It’s also important to choose an item of merchandise that’s appropriate for your business.

“So if you’re in financial services you could portray your reliability with something practical, and if you’re in the leisure sector, you should create something fun. For example, a go-kart business could distribute wind-up mini racers.”

The article also has advice about choosing suppliers and methods of distribution.

Marketing Donut is a free marketing resource that’s backed by Google and Royal Mail. It’s got thousands of expert tools and information covering all aspects of small business sales and marketing.

Further information:

* The Marketing Donut is at www.marketingdonut.co.uk

Contact details:
Mick Dickinson
BHP Information Solutions
tel: 0117 904 2224
info@marketingdonut.co.uk

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PRESS RELEASE – For Immediate Release

Leeds, UK – 26th November 2008

LocallyCompared.com; Helping UK Businesses with online advertising

LocallyCompared.com has launched a major upgrade to their local business comparison website, extending its lead as the best UK website for comparing and choosing local businesses.

Thousands of people are visiting LocallyCompared.com each month for a simple and effective way to compare detailed information on businesses in the UK. LocallyCompared.com has built the most detailed profiles for UK businesses available in one place on the Internet. The business profiles include special offers, menus, brochures, photos, awards and qualifications, reviews and testimonials. LocallyCompared.com is the place to find the most detailed and comprehensive information on businesses, enabling the consumer to shop-around for the best local deals, offers and recommendations.

Steve Shinn, Managing Director of LocallyCompared.com said “It is difficult and time-consuming for business owners to keep up to date with the potential minefield of online marketing. Businesses who do not promote themselves online effectively are missing out on whole generation of Internet Users. Business owners understand the importance of reaching out to potential customers in an off-line world, but there is a definite knowledge-gap when it comes to making effective use of online advertising. LocallyCompared.com’s unique approach of building detailed profiles for businesses for free, coupled with top positions in all major search engines will give increased online exposure, saving them time, money and driving more customers to them. 2009 is going to be a tough time for UK businesses, so I urge business owners to go right ahead and claim their business profile on LocallyCompared.com”

In addition to appearing on www.locallycompared.com, businesses on the LocallyCompared network feature on location and service specific business comparison sites, such as www.locallymanchester.co.uk for Manchester area businesses and www.dentistsinlondon.com for dentists based in London. Businesses in the LocallyCompared.com network are optimized to achieve top positions in all major search engines, ensuring that customers can easily find the business they are looking for.

Businesses can get started on LocallyCompared.com free of charge. The Standard Package gives a business the ability to receive enquiries online, fully customise their profile, promote special offers and get more exposure on the website, and is just £79 per year. The Premium Package, from £299 per year, gives an even greater exposure on the LocallyCompared.com network.

LocallyCompared.com predicts strong growth on the back of a surge of people looking for local deals online.