So, I have a confession to make. I’m a closet workaholic. Despite me talking about work/life balance and how I have time to spend with my son, I find myself sneaking in to my office on the weekends to check email. Why? I don’t know, honestly. I guess I’m afraid something exciting will come in while I’m relaxing. But I honestly enjoy what I do, so it’s not a stretch for me to want to work all the time.

So I’d like to make a pact with you other work-from-homers. This Fourth of July, we shall not work. We shall shut down our laptops and close our office doors. Are you with me?

I know it’s not easy to just turn off the entrepreneur side of you, so here are some tips to help.

• Look at your workload for the next week and divide it out so that you finish everything pressing before the holiday.
• Don’t be afraid to put things off until after the holiday. No one else is doing work around a holiday, so no one will expect it of you.
• If it makes you feel better, set up an autoresponder saying you’ll be out of the office for the holiday. Not that anyone will be emailing you, but if it makes you happy, do it.
• Mentally prepare to not think about work for a few days. I know it’s hard, but disconnecting yourself from the computer and your work can help you rediscover something special: your family!

Step 1: Make a list

Make a list of all the attributes of your ideal client. Make her/him into a character, if that helps. If it’s important to understanding your target, describe the kind of clothes she wears, what she enjoys doing, what she eats, where she lives. Also how old she is and how much money she makes are key. If you sell high end jewelry, you are probably not selling to broke college kids.

Step 2: Look at where she shops

Now that you have the first list, make another list of where that person would shop. Banana Republic or Wal-Mart? Macy’s or Target? This can give you an idea of how your audience makes its shopping decisions. A Wal-Mart shopper is probably swayed more by price than brand loyalty, while Banana Republic shoppers are likely to stay loyal to the brand.

I know it may be difficult to come up with some of this information, but don’t be afraid to generalize or assume, if you have nothing in the way of research.

Step 3: Do some research

Visit Google Ad Planner to get statistics to help you if you’re looking to promote online (and of course you are!). I’ve written about this resource before, so go back and study it. It will help you search for the websites that your demographic (based on age, income, education, and/or geography) visit the most. This can help you decide what websites you need to have a presence on.

It’s important to know how your target audience likes to be marketed to. If the results show up that your demographic is heavily into Facebook, then it’s a no brainer that you need to be on there. It doesn’t matter if you’re not into Facebook: if you want to sell, you have to speak your customers’ language.

You can also research those companies you listed in step 2 and see what their websites and ad campaigns look like. If they’re motivated by sales, that needs to be part of your marketing strategy. If they are brand oriented, you need to work on building your brand so that customers become evangelists.

Need help figuring out your target audience? Let’s brainstorm together.

Let me tell you Egg’s story.

After finding myself out of a job in investor relations, I started freelancing. I wrote a few press releases, then realized that I’d probably get more work if I started a company versus being an individual. So I set out to find a name.

I was watching Funny Face, with my role model, Audrey Hepburn. She works in a bookstore at the beginning of the film…something like Embryo Books. I liked the idea that the word ‘embryo’ portrayed: giving birth to something. But Embryo Marketing was kind of gross. So I kept thinking. What else gives birth or life to ideas? EGGS!

And so Egg Marketing & Public Relations was hatched.

Since then, I’ve added staff and services, and we now offer everything from press releases to social media management. I’m proud to have survived the bad economy (and just barely at times) and been able to work from home. I love what I do, and hope to have many more birthdays.

My Gift For You

Now, I have a tradition to give others gifts on Egg’s birthday. So what I want to do today is offer you any of my marketing ebooks in The Marketing Eggspert Library for just $3 (Egg is 3, $3…get it?). They’re normally as much as $30, so this is a tremendous opportunity for you! But the offer expires at midnight tonight so get on it! Start your birthday shopping now!

PS The products are already marked down, so everything’s $3 today only!

What about a video?

I have devised a storyline for Ima Iosafe, a personalized external hard drive looking for a little getaway from the drudgeries of being blasted with flames and dunked in water. She’ll have many adventures, and I don’t want to give away too much right now, but here’s a sneak peek of Ima IoSafe.

So relating this back to you, don’t necessarily do what everyone else is doing when it comes to marketing. Think of something wild and crazy that will get people’s attention and curiosity.

What kinds of marketing have you done that was outside the box?

Welcome to Spark an Idea Thursday.  Each week we’ll be sharing some great ideas for a topic of interest to our readers.  We invite you to grab our image and carry the tradition through to your own blog!  If you do, please link back to this post so we know where you were inspired!

Regular readers of my blog know I love email marketing as a way to establish yourself as an expert and stay on top of the minds of your future customers. I wanted to give you some quick tips to help you get the most out of email marketing for your business.

1. Send out a newsletter once a month, then a promotional (or announcement) email 15 days later.

2. Send your email Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday, after 10 am if you’re sending to people’s work addresses. Any day in the evenings is fine if you’re sending to consumers. You’ll get the best open rate during these times.

3. Offer free articles and advice relating to what you do. If you have a cleaning service, offer quick tips for cleaning carpets, getting out wine stains, etc.

4. Include a special offer that only your email subscribers get.

5. Anywhere you encounter an email address (your inbox, business card, trade show), put it in your database. Send an initial email to new contacts asking if they are ok with receiving emails from you.

6. Mark your calendar with the days you put out your emails each month to be consistent.

7. Use a program like Constant Contact to send professional looking emails, NOT your Outlook (screams unprofessional).

8. Organize your contacts into groups, like Past Clients, Present Customers, Met at XYZ Conference. You can customize the emails you send out to each group.

9. Pay attention to your stats. What emails got a really high open rate and clickthrough rate? Can you put out similar ones in the future? Which ones had a lower rate?

10. Offer a signup box on your website.

11. Offer a freebie, like a whitepaper or ebook if people sign up to get your emails.

Do you have any tips to share?

It’s important to get organized after the event. I know, I know, I’ve had business cards scattered all over my desk and not done anything with them for a week after an event. But it’ll help you in the long run.

Step 1. Organize your contacts. Sort your new business cards into different piles:

• Potential client
• Same industry
• Good to know

Anyone who you even touched on business with (as in you providing them with it) goes in the potential client pile. If they work in your industry, put them in the same industry pile. And for everyone else, including those people you’re not quite sure how they might be able to help you, keep in mind that they can refer business to you even if they don’t need it. Put them in the third pile.

Step 2. Send a handwritten note. For each person you meet, send a handwritten card or note saying it was nice to meet them. Include something that lets them know you’re paying attention, like a reference back to your conversation or a comment about their website. Send the very next day after you meet them.

Note: While handwritten notes stand out more than email, I do make an exception sometimes, especially if the contact is web savvy (and they contact me first via email or social media). Depending on how casual the relationship is, you can also send a note on Twitter or Facebook once you find and connect with them there.

Step 3. Connect online. As I just mentioned, Twitter and Facebook are a great way to keep up with your new contacts, and if you’re active in the social media space, it’s a great way for your new contacts to see what you’re up to. Send a note with your friend request reminding them where you met.

Step 4. Add contacts to your database. However you manage your contacts, be it in Outlook or your email program (PLEASE don’t tell me it’s a Rolodex), add your contacts with notes. If you send out an email newsletter, add them to the list.

Step 5. Checking in. Decide on a schedule to check in with contacts. Maybe it’s once a month for warm leads, every other month for everyone else. Just drop a line in whatever method of communication they like best (more and more, this ends up being social media) and just see how they’re doing. Often this can remind them of what products or services you provide and be a good source of sales.

You might need to move contacts from one category to another as you develop your relationships with them. The more you reach out, the more sales you’ll get!

We all have those projects that never got finished. Maybe it was a quilt, or in my mom’s case, a crochet project she bought before I was born…31 years ago! As a business owner, it might be your business plan, a book, or a revamp to your website.

Last week I wrote about achieving your goals, which goes a long way to this week’s objective: finishing what you start.

But let’s face it, goals or not, sometimes you’re just not motivated to get the job done. Here are a few tips to help you.

• Think of the end result. If you complete that web design project, your website will look sleeker and bring more business. Cha ching!
• Take a break. When I wrote my books, I had to take breaks. After all, a writer has certain times when creativity flows better. Step back from the project, get coffee, then come back.
• Get feedback. Talk to employees and co-workers about the project to get new perspective.
• Delegate. You don’t have to get this done on your own. Break up the project into smaller tasks and assign them to others.
• Eat chocolate. This works for just about anything!

Have ideas for getting the job done? Leave a comment!

Click here to view the embedded video.

If you have examples of good product packaging, leave a comment and we’ll discuss.

For some reason, this seems to be the hardest part for people. On today’s How to Tuesday, I want to help you decide on a topic for your release.

Why is it so hard to toot your own horn?

I guess when you’re in a business, it’s hard for you to see it from above. You may not recognize your achievements as such. You may not think that promoting an employee is newsworthy. That’s where this post comes in handy (as does this one, which gives you lots of ideas to start with).

1. Review your last 6 months. Go back through old emails, documents, et cetera, to refresh your mind about what your company has done. You’ve likely forgotten some good press release fodder.

2. Make a list. As you come across items like securing a new client, adding a new product, or donating to a charity, write it down.

3. Talk to employees. Get another perspective on press release ideas. Your sales department may be pretty proud of exceeding its sales goals. That’s a great release to show your company’s success. Or R & D might want to share its recent discovery that will cut costs by 35%.

4. Look to the future. Don’t only focus on the past. You can write a press release before something happens, such as announcing plans for expansion, or the start of an important project.

5. Map out your releases. Decide how often you want to put out a release, and assign dates to each topic. If you’ve followed these steps, you probably have enough releases for several months. Put them in your calendar so you can remember what you decided to write your release on.

6. Don’t be afraid to change. If some major news happens out of the blue, don’t be afraid to bump a scheduled release in favor of the more exciting news. You can always add to your list and change it around.

Whether it’s personal or professional, we all have goals. And I’m willing to bet that some seem insurmountable to you. Impossible. You’ll never achieve that one. You should just give up now.

Or not.

What I do (or tell myself that I do, even if I don’t always) is break it down. Make the overall goal. The big one. The Mecca of goals.

Then I figure out how to get there. What can I do today, right now (or stop doing) to get closer to the goal? It might just be opening a website so I can read it when I have time. Or contacting someone. Or getting my hair cut. Whatever. It has to be digestible and doable.

Then I find the next step. Maybe it’s just thinking and planning what’s next.

You get my point. Take tiny steps until you achieve your goal.

• It may help to write down your goals. If you blog, blog about the goal so others can hold you to it.
• There are websites where you can post your goals and others will help you stick to them.
• Review your goals just as you would a business plan. Make sure you’re still moving toward them.

How do you achieve your goals?

So as I sometimes try to do, I decided to take some lessons on being loyal to a brand from him.

1. If the customer is happy, he won’t look at other brands. By providing a stellar product and excellent customer service, you can keep your customer’s eye from roving.

2. A true brand evangelist tells everyone about your product. Max obviously has discuss Hondas at school, because he came home and reported that Olivia’s dad also had a Honda.

3. Keep it innovative. If every Honda was a green CRV, Max might get bored. But there’s diversity, and new models coming out all the time.  Keep your customers wanting the latest and greatest version of your products.

Do you have any brand loyalty tips? Please share them!

1. Research. First you need to decide on the publications you think would be a good target for your press release or product. What do your customers read? What industry are you trying to target? First make a list of these magazines, newspapers, blogs, and websites.

2. What section? Knowing the media source alone isn’t enough. If you notice, every magazine has different sections. Many have product review sections as well as news and others, so decide which is the best fit. Also don’t overlook product placement. Gardening publications have articles on gardens, so if you have a hose or garden product, you might be able to get it placed in the photo with attribution in the back of the magazine.

3. Now, who do I contact? Search the website (even if it’s a newspaper or magazine) for the editor over the section you decided on. Editors are better than journalists for your efforts, because they’re the decision makers. If you can’t find the editor, use the journalist who writes the section. Make sure to spell the contact’s name correctly and get their email and phone number. You can easily do this in a spreadsheet.

Tips

• Keep your lists updated. If you have an old list, make sure the contacts are still with the publication.
• Spend time reading each one. There’s nothing worse than pitching a publication that’s a bad fit because you didn’t do your homework!
• Don’t bug. Send a preliminary email and follow up by email or phone a week later. Don’t bombard your contact.
• Take good notes. If an editor asks not to be contacted, make a note.
• For the contacts who reply, put them in a special file, like in your Outlook, with notes on their friendliness. Makes it that much easier next go ’round.

The book starts out pretty technical, but don’t get turned off by that if it’s not your language. The second and third parts are where it gets good. Shih walks you through how to use Facebook to grow your business, including step by step instructions on how to create profiles and pages (and why one would be better than another).

She also talks about why social networks are important, and how they’re growing exponentially and can’t be ignored. She gives great case studies of brands who are successfully using Facebook, including Victoria’s Secret, as well as a New Orleans school that uses Facebook to update students, parents, and alumni.

And if you haven’t tried Facebook ads, her book has a coupon for a free $25 credit to try it out. Unfortunately, I didn’t realize you had to be a first-time ad user to redeem the coupon, which I am not.

Not to toot my own horn, but it’s rare that I find a book on marketing or social media that actually teaches me. Shih succeeded in teaching me some new things, and got me curious about others. I made a list of things I want to learn more about, including using apps as an advertising mechanism.

So buy the book and become a fan of the book on Facebook.

I get a lot of pitches, and I actually blog about 1% of them. But when I was approached about Xerox’s IOS site, I thought it was clever enough to share. And there’s a prize involved, so keep reading!

So apparently Xerox has discovered this rare disease called Information Overload Syndrome. Here’s what they have to say about it.

Information Overload Syndrome is a condition affecting business people everywhere. It is the result of trying to manage 281 Exabytes (eighteen zeros) of non-stop information that comes in form of emails, attachments, text messages, thought-starters and FYIs. As a result, sufferers of IOS will find accomplishing the simplest of everyday tasks nearly impossible.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Why I Like It

The fact that this spoof site is sponsored by Xerox is subtle. You are aware that they’re the owner of the site, yet you don’t feel like it’s a ploy to get you to buy.

I love viral videos. Just something to make me smile. And pass on to my friends.

And they get your email in a clever manner. Send it to them and they customize the video for you.

Why You Should Like It

Xerox wants to help you, oh suffer of IOS, by giving you a $50 SpaFinder gift card to relieve your symptoms. Want it, don’t you? So give me your best tale of Information Overload Syndrome. I’ll choose the best story on June 19 and announce the winner.

I’m a big believer in showing my customers I appreciate them. I can’t always afford to send them lavish gift baskets, but I try to do so at the least for the Christmas season.

Why should you send your customers a token of appreciation?

It’s important to remember that your customers have a choice. They can buy from anyone, but they choose you. That might be because you have a superior product, or amazing customer service, or are convenient. Whatever the reason, be grateful.

Sending a little something can actually bring you more business! While it shouldn’t be your goal, often just by sending a gift or thank you card, your customers are impressed at your thoughtfulness, and are ready to give you even more business.

What should you do?

It all depends on your budget. Let’s start with a budget of $0 and go up from there.

No money

If you don’t have any money, you can still impress. Send a handwritten thank you card, or if you find a website or news article you think your customer would be interested in, send it with a note in an email. This lets them know you’re thinking of them.

A little money

You can get a bar of chocolate, candle or other small gift and send it to a customer as a small thank you. A Starbucks gift card (even for $5) is a great way to make someone smile.

More money

I like to send gift baskets of chocolate. Probably because I like to eat chocolate. Flowers or cheese baskets work too. Before you buy, search for coupon codes online to save money, especially if you’re placing a big order for multiple clients.

What about you? What do you do to show customers appreciation?

The XShot is your solution to using your arm stretched out to take a photo of yourself or you and a friend (c’mon, we all have those). It makes it easy to take photos, and I was surprised that every one I took came out good (didn’t cut my head off). Here’s my video review.

Click here to view the embedded video.

My apologies for the weird sound and bad quality video. I couldn’t use my Flip because it doesn’t have a tripod mount!

This week I want to talk about TweetDeck, an amazing Twitter tool.

A lot of newbies to Twitter are overwhelmed with the stream of updates coming at them on their page. They don’t realize there are applications that help make it easier to sort different groups of Tweeple. There are many of these, but the one I really like is TweetDeck.

Why do I like it?

I have over 2,000 people I’m following (don’t worry; you’ll get there), and that is a lot of noise. I need a way to separate people out.

• Some people I’ve met in person and like to keep up with.
• Some people I identify as leaders in social media or marketing, and want to know what they’re saying.
• Some people I don’t really connect with (yet) and are less important to focus on.
• Sometimes I like to do a search on something like “marketing” to see what people are saying.

TweetDeck lets me separate all these groups out.

Ready to try it? It’s free, so what have you got to lose?

1. Visit http://tweetdeck.com/beta/ and download the free program.

2. Once you have it set up, decide how you want to group people. It might be Business and Personal, or you could do a search for a topic you’re interested in. If you do this, any tweet that contains that word will appear in that column.

The toolbar at the top of your TweetDeck is pretty easy to follow. It lets you:

• Send a tweet
• View all friends
• Reply to someone
• Send a direct message
• View favorites
• Create a group
• Search for a word or phrase
• Use TwitScoop to see what words people are talking about the most
• Share a video with 12seconds.tv
• Get stock updates with stocktwits
• Update your Facebook page at the same time as Twitter

I really like the ability to post something to Twitter and Facebook. Before TweetDeck had this function, I used a Facebook application to update my Tweets to Facebook. Problem was, whenever I replied to someone, it would post my half of the conversation, so no one in Facebook knew what I was talking about!

There is also a nice shorten URL field, so you don’t waste your 140 characters with a long URL. You can’t do this on Twitter’s page.

Try it for a week and let me know what you think.

Enjoy!

Intuit has given us 5 copies of Quickbooks Pro 2009 to give away to Sparkplugging readers! That’s a $199 value, baby! One copy will be given to a lucky Marketing Eggspert reader, and four others will be given away elsewhere on the Sparkplugging network.

Read Brandie Kajino’s QuickBooks 2009 review here.

So, now you can get your bookkeeping together and get your digits and customer information organized!

So, I bet you’re wondering how you win? That’s easy. Here’s how:

1. Leave us a comment below by the deadline, June 1, 2009 at 12:00pm (noon) PST / 3:00pm EST. (Be sure to include your email address so we can contact you if you win!)

2. Subscribe to this blog (if you haven’t already).

That’s it!

Winners will be announced Tuesday, June 2, 2009!

Please be sure to visit our giveaway sponsor:

They are running a Small Business Grant Contest - go and vote for your favorite HERE. There are some great small businesses up for some great prizes! Also, check out the Intuit Twitter peeps: @SharnQuickBooks, @kirasw and @rkeuretig

Good luck everyone!

For work-at-homers (and non-work-at-homers), the summer can be a slow time for business. If you’ve got kids at home, it’s easy to get distracted from working on your business. I know it’s hard for me to stay focused. Here are some tips for avoiding that summer slump.

Start New Projects

Make a list now of things you’ve been putting off. For me, it’s writing a white paper. Good project for the summer. Maybe you need to brush the dust off your marketing and business plan and update it. Or clean your office. Schedule one project every month, and break down the tasks into weekly chunks.

Hold a Promotion

If business is slow, hold a promotion to boost sales. Maybe it’s a Summer Slump Sale! Send out an email to your contacts announcing the promotion, as well as a link on Twitter and Facebook.

Work on Change

We can all stand to grow our businesses, but during the rest of the year, who has time to work on change? Use the summer to decide where you want your business to be and how to get there.

Get Out of the House

Even a change of pace can make you more productive. Work from the coffee shop around the corner for a day or even just shut off for the day and hang out with your kids. You’d be surprised how that will get the creative juices flowing!

I’d love to hear your ideas for avoiding the summer slump! Share your tips in the comments.