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Hub You - Why Santa's Marketing Works Better Than Yours!
Payroll tax software programs help you to deal with your payroll taxes and take benefit of any unknown deductions, credits and exceptions that you may otherwise be ignore off. The greatest advantage of using payroll tax software is speed and accuracy with modest human resource utilization.There are a number of payroll tax software products available in the market and most are designed to handle various tax forms and rates. Some provide tax saving tips with IRS (Internal Revenue Service) forms and tax reference library, in some you can directly fill on-screen IRS forms, some has single user and multi-user versions, some provides vendor reports, earnings reports and unemployment reports which makes payroll data entry easy. Almost all payroll tax software programs have the alarming option to informing you the right time to file the tax. The software also helps you in scampering through the numerous tax calculations.Many companies have incorporated the tax rates in their payroll software programs which enable calculating and printing payroll and tax amount simultaneously. Thus these software programs assure that your business is in correct direction in terms of tax and payment. Payroll tax software programs are upgraded annually to meet the new tax laws and changes on tax forms. Thus you have to make sure that you use a payroll tax sof
The deepest core of human emotions is fear. Every single product or service, without exception, is sold on the basis of turgid fear. The only known antidote to fear is TRUST. When trusts struts upwards, fear banishes itself to penguin land. The more you pile up the trust, the more you can do business.
Wouldn't Santa be able to sell you just about anything? Would he be able to cross-sell and up-sell product? Santa could knock on your door next summer and you'd be more than happy to have him join your barbeque.
It's up to you to build up the trust one Lego block at a time. Identify your clients and see what you can give them. It could be information, time or even a chocolate covered scrumptious cookie. It's the old 'What's in it for me?' theory. If you can't find something calorie-ridden for their minds or bodies, they won't want to see you.
Play Santa. It works.
He Knows if You've Been Bad or Good...
Heck Santa knows his customers. He even knows when you are sleeping, or awake.
Then, the
If you run a nonprofit group an e-mail newsletter to supplement your regular paper newsletter makes a lot of sense. You should ask all community leaders, local politicians and other nonprofit groups to subscribe to your e-mail newsletter. Additionally in your newsletter you should have listings of things that you might need for your nonprofit group that you would like to have donated and the amount of money that you're trying to raise for upcoming events for initiatives that you are sponsoring.By using e-mail newsletters as a way to communicate with the community you will develop a following and a group of people who also know a lot of other people and this is one good way to increase the word of mouth advertising. You just never know where your e-mail newsletter might be forwarded to or who might end up reading it.If your nonprofit group needs a new desk then you should list that in your newsletter because you just never know someone may be moving their office and perhaps has an extra desk to give to you. If you are close to your financial goal you should state that in your newsletter in case someone out there wishes to help your nonprofit group reach its goal. Perhaps you share a common mission in life. You just never know. I certainly hope he will consider this in 2006.
If you don't believe in Santa, you'd better change your mind, because the fat man from the north pole rocks on and you too can do the same if you stick to the basics. Find out if your product or service matches up by reading the article below.
Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle All the Way...
If you go to the heart of Santa's marketing, the one word you come away with is 'consistency'. Generation after generation have been exposed to one brand, one message, and the same powerful imagery. Just like Mercedes own the term 'luxury' and Volvo owns the term 'safety', Santa owns the word 'hope'. Every kid worth his Nintendo, hopes he's got enough points on the goodness scale to justify a mountain of gifts.
Yet, most companies get tired of their own brand. They chop, change and pour thousands (if not millions) of dollars into a bottomless pit of mindless change. Take a look at McDonald's advertising, for instance. McDonald's own the word family outing yet their ads have been straying down the teenager path.
Does it make sense to consistently occupy one niche? You bet it does! Families go out with their kids to McDonalds. These kids sprout into budget-conscious teenagers that hang out at McDonalds. They have kids and grandkids and guess where they all end up. At the big yellow 'M', that's where!
Santa doesn't waver. His customers are kids. Like several marketers, he might have been sorely tempted to enter the gift market. With bad advice, he would have tried to get to teenagers, adults and everyone. Can you see the magic still working? Even the tiniest of niches is huge and niches have a way of expanding by themselves.
At the end of the day, it's the consistency that takes the jingle all the way to the bank. Too many companies lose focus and give you seven reasons why you should buy from them. Santa sticks to one: Be a 'good' kid or you can keep hoping!
You Can Spot Him in the Middle of a Crowded Sky
Do you know anyone who comes to visit on a sleigh in the middle of the night? With reindeer and gifts? The reason why Santa stands out so vividly in our memories is because he's different. The postman does the same thing, but leaves without the flourish.
It's really important to work out how your marketing message differs. Santa's core marketing term is not built solely on consistent branding but also on a very hard-nosed differentiation. Too much communication out there fits in with what's safe. Customers have just one slot in their mind. You have to enter that slot at such an obtuse angle that they remember you for life.
Rose Richards runs Office Doctor. The term that set her apart from all the rest of the administration crowd is the term, Small business pain relief. Can you imagine your reaction when you hear something like that? The human mind is intensely curious and a marketing statement like that is pure bait. You want to know what pain relief she brings and how she goes about it-specially if you're the one in pain. That's only half the story. The construction of the message elevates her from simple number crunching to brain surgery and makes her unique.
If you want differentiation you need look no further than the guiding light of Santa's sleigh-- Rudolph, with his shiny nose. Can you even remember the names of the rest of the eight reindeer?
One very important point, however, is that the marketing message isn't just different, but also customer-oriented. Rose takes the clutter out of administration and Rudolph provides a beacon for clearer navigation.
If you don't have a benefit for the customer, just being different is going to get you nowhere.
Give and You Shall Receive
How many of you are out there networking like crazy? Trying desperately to fill in your steadily depleting bank reserves? You want, want, want! Take a look at Santa's style.
He's into giving first. If you probe deep into your mind, you'll find the people you like best are those who have given you their time, their money or their knowledge. You trust them, and it's very hard to say no when they ask you for a favour in return.
The deepest core of human emotions is fear. Every single product or service, without exception, is sold on the basis of turgid fear. The only known antidote to fear is TRUST. When trusts struts upwards, fear banishes itself to penguin land. The more you pile up the trust, the more you can do business.
Wouldn't Santa be able to sell you just about anything? Would he be able to cross-sell and up-sell product? Santa could knock on your door next summer and you'd be more than happy to have him join your barbeque.
It's up to you to build up the trust one Lego block at a time. Identify your clients and see what you can give them. It could be information, time or even a chocolate covered scrumptious cookie. It's the old 'What's in it for me?' theory. If you can't find something calorie-ridden for their minds or bodies, they won't want to see you.
Play Santa. It works.
He Knows if You've Been Bad or Good...
Heck Santa knows his customers. He even knows when you are sleeping, or awake.
Then, ther
It's Tuesday morning after a long holiday weekend. How does it feel to be back at work?Do you wish you had a more fulfilling job or career? If so, you are not alone. Over 60% of employees are dissatisfied or unengaged at work.Most people in this situation long for a job/career that's satisfying, engaging, and meaningful. The problem is most people don't know how to go about finding such a career. Many of them spend years trying, but failing, to find the kind of career they want.Do any of their strategies remind you of your own career change tactics?1) You spend a lot of time wishing you had another job OR you spend a lot of time dreaming about a particular career. But for all your wishing and dreaming, you don't take action to implement your ideas.2) You believe "The Answer" will appear one day--so you keep waiting. The truth is meaningful careers evolve as a result of exploring your interests and trying out new experiences.3) You fall into jobs. When opportunities present themselves, you jump at the chance to leave the job that isn't working--without fully examining the realities of the new position.4) You choose a career because the people around you think it's a good move. Whether the money and status are good or the job is consistent with your education, other people think the job is a good fit,
Does it make sense to consistently occupy one niche? You bet it does! Families go out with their kids to McDonalds. These kids sprout into budget-conscious teenagers that hang out at McDonalds. They have kids and grandkids and guess where they all end up. At the big yellow 'M', that's where!
Santa doesn't waver. His customers are kids. Like several marketers, he might have been sorely tempted to enter the gift market. With bad advice, he would have tried to get to teenagers, adults and everyone. Can you see the magic still working? Even the tiniest of niches is huge and niches have a way of expanding by themselves.
At the end of the day, it's the consistency that takes the jingle all the way to the bank. Too many companies lose focus and give you seven reasons why you should buy from them. Santa sticks to one: Be a 'good' kid or you can keep hoping!
You Can Spot Him in the Middle of a Crowded Sky
Do you know anyone who comes to visit on a sleigh in the middle of the night? With reindeer and gifts? The reason why Santa stands out so vividly in our memories is because he's different. The postman does the same thing, but leaves without the flourish.
It's really important to work out how your marketing message differs. Santa's core marketing term is not built solely on consistent branding but also on a very hard-nosed differentiation. Too much communication out there fits in with what's safe. Customers have just one slot in their mind. You have to enter that slot at such an obtuse angle that they remember you for life.
Rose Richards runs Office Doctor. The term that set her apart from all the rest of the administration crowd is the term, Small business pain relief. Can you imagine your reaction when you hear something like that? The human mind is intensely curious and a marketing statement like that is pure bait. You want to know what pain relief she brings and how she goes about it-specially if you're the one in pain. That's only half the story. The construction of the message elevates her from simple number crunching to brain surgery and makes her unique.
If you want differentiation you need look no further than the guiding light of Santa's sleigh-- Rudolph, with his shiny nose. Can you even remember the names of the rest of the eight reindeer?
One very important point, however, is that the marketing message isn't just different, but also customer-oriented. Rose takes the clutter out of administration and Rudolph provides a beacon for clearer navigation.
If you don't have a benefit for the customer, just being different is going to get you nowhere.
Give and You Shall Receive
How many of you are out there networking like crazy? Trying desperately to fill in your steadily depleting bank reserves? You want, want, want! Take a look at Santa's style.
He's into giving first. If you probe deep into your mind, you'll find the people you like best are those who have given you their time, their money or their knowledge. You trust them, and it's very hard to say no when they ask you for a favour in return.
The deepest core of human emotions is fear. Every single product or service, without exception, is sold on the basis of turgid fear. The only known antidote to fear is TRUST. When trusts struts upwards, fear banishes itself to penguin land. The more you pile up the trust, the more you can do business.
Wouldn't Santa be able to sell you just about anything? Would he be able to cross-sell and up-sell product? Santa could knock on your door next summer and you'd be more than happy to have him join your barbeque.
It's up to you to build up the trust one Lego block at a time. Identify your clients and see what you can give them. It could be information, time or even a chocolate covered scrumptious cookie. It's the old 'What's in it for me?' theory. If you can't find something calorie-ridden for their minds or bodies, they won't want to see you.
Play Santa. It works.
He Knows if You've Been Bad or Good...
Heck Santa knows his customers. He even knows when you are sleeping, or awake.
Then, the
PREPARING EMPLOYEES FOR THE PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL INTERVIEWS: Remind employees to give some thought to the purpose of performance appraisal: it is a means to learn from the past, plan for the future, and improve effectiveness and work satisfaction. The performance appraisal discussion is an opportunity to motivate, recognize, and reward your employee. It is a time for you and your employee to share perceptions about the employee’s accomplishments during the performance period. It is meant to be a culmination of all previous communications made during the performance period.PREPERATORY QUESTIONS FOR EMPLOYEES BEFORE A PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL: 1. What is the overall purpose of your job? Think about what your contributions are to the operation of your work group, department, and the university as a whole. What is the output of your job, not just the specific tasks you perform? Why does your job exist? 2. What are your major areas of responsibility? Which are the most important? Why? 3. What are the performance expectations of your job? What is your understanding of how well each part of the job must be performed? 4. How can your performance be measured? How do you know when you succeed in each critical area? What happens when the job is well done?QUESTIONS CONTINUED: 1. Which tasks or functions, if not completed, would make performance un
You Can Spot Him in the Middle of a Crowded Sky
Do you know anyone who comes to visit on a sleigh in the middle of the night? With reindeer and gifts? The reason why Santa stands out so vividly in our memories is because he's different. The postman does the same thing, but leaves without the flourish.
It's really important to work out how your marketing message differs. Santa's core marketing term is not built solely on consistent branding but also on a very hard-nosed differentiation. Too much communication out there fits in with what's safe. Customers have just one slot in their mind. You have to enter that slot at such an obtuse angle that they remember you for life.
Rose Richards runs Office Doctor. The term that set her apart from all the rest of the administration crowd is the term, Small business pain relief. Can you imagine your reaction when you hear something like that? The human mind is intensely curious and a marketing statement like that is pure bait. You want to know what pain relief she brings and how she goes about it-specially if you're the one in pain. That's only half the story. The construction of the message elevates her from simple number crunching to brain surgery and makes her unique.
If you want differentiation you need look no further than the guiding light of Santa's sleigh-- Rudolph, with his shiny nose. Can you even remember the names of the rest of the eight reindeer?
One very important point, however, is that the marketing message isn't just different, but also customer-oriented. Rose takes the clutter out of administration and Rudolph provides a beacon for clearer navigation.
If you don't have a benefit for the customer, just being different is going to get you nowhere.
Give and You Shall Receive
How many of you are out there networking like crazy? Trying desperately to fill in your steadily depleting bank reserves? You want, want, want! Take a look at Santa's style.
He's into giving first. If you probe deep into your mind, you'll find the people you like best are those who have given you their time, their money or their knowledge. You trust them, and it's very hard to say no when they ask you for a favour in return.
The deepest core of human emotions is fear. Every single product or service, without exception, is sold on the basis of turgid fear. The only known antidote to fear is TRUST. When trusts struts upwards, fear banishes itself to penguin land. The more you pile up the trust, the more you can do business.
Wouldn't Santa be able to sell you just about anything? Would he be able to cross-sell and up-sell product? Santa could knock on your door next summer and you'd be more than happy to have him join your barbeque.
It's up to you to build up the trust one Lego block at a time. Identify your clients and see what you can give them. It could be information, time or even a chocolate covered scrumptious cookie. It's the old 'What's in it for me?' theory. If you can't find something calorie-ridden for their minds or bodies, they won't want to see you.
Play Santa. It works.
He Knows if You've Been Bad or Good...
Heck Santa knows his customers. He even knows when you are sleeping, or awake.
Then, the
If you plan to be in business for any amount of time you better be able to compete with the big boys, because the competition will inspire you or immobilize you. One important thing to remember is that you will not win 100 percent of the battles, but the victories you should experience will make all the effort worthwhile.As a business owner you will compete for the best employees, best products, and to show the best value for the client. To do this you have to play the game smarter in some aspects than the big companies who may try to crush you. For the small business owner, or a business just getting started you want to carefully control some of the components of your business:Overhead – Do you really need that office downtown with the marble lobby and solid walnut doors? How might a potential client feel coming to this type of office? They might get the feeling they will be paying for your expensive tastes.Find employees who eager to expand and learn and hungry to succeed – As much as you might like to go out and find yourself an experienced person to hire, that might not be economically feasible. Instead look for employees with a wide range of abilities and drive. Try not to become fixated on age or gender either.Keep it simple – The fewer layers of management you have to better off you will be. Big corporations spen
If you want differentiation you need look no further than the guiding light of Santa's sleigh-- Rudolph, with his shiny nose. Can you even remember the names of the rest of the eight reindeer?
One very important point, however, is that the marketing message isn't just different, but also customer-oriented. Rose takes the clutter out of administration and Rudolph provides a beacon for clearer navigation.
If you don't have a benefit for the customer, just being different is going to get you nowhere.
Give and You Shall Receive
How many of you are out there networking like crazy? Trying desperately to fill in your steadily depleting bank reserves? You want, want, want! Take a look at Santa's style.
He's into giving first. If you probe deep into your mind, you'll find the people you like best are those who have given you their time, their money or their knowledge. You trust them, and it's very hard to say no when they ask you for a favour in return.
The deepest core of human emotions is fear. Every single product or service, without exception, is sold on the basis of turgid fear. The only known antidote to fear is TRUST. When trusts struts upwards, fear banishes itself to penguin land. The more you pile up the trust, the more you can do business.
Wouldn't Santa be able to sell you just about anything? Would he be able to cross-sell and up-sell product? Santa could knock on your door next summer and you'd be more than happy to have him join your barbeque.
It's up to you to build up the trust one Lego block at a time. Identify your clients and see what you can give them. It could be information, time or even a chocolate covered scrumptious cookie. It's the old 'What's in it for me?' theory. If you can't find something calorie-ridden for their minds or bodies, they won't want to see you.
Play Santa. It works.
He Knows if You've Been Bad or Good...
Heck Santa knows his customers. He even knows when you are sleeping, or awake.
Then, the
At last you have been called to interview for the job you really want.Do you think this could this be you?Confidently sitting through your interview and being absolutely sure that you can answer any question the interviewer might throw at you. No nerves, no butterflies and no worry about unforeseen questions coming up; you know the top interview answers to tricky interview questions.Most of us would love to be that relaxed, but the truth of the matter is that most of us get very nervous when it comes to interview.What causes the nervousness is lack of knowledge and information, especially about the top interview answers. If we knew more about the main types of interview that might come up or how to discover the interviewer's hidden needs we would be well on the way and better prepared for the interview.And we really need to understand the nine key qualities that most interviewers are interested in plus the important Do’s and Don’ts and then we would start to feel better.For my money the answers to the top interview questions are all I would ask for and some good closing questions I could ask to determine the right conclusion.We would then perform so much better because we have all the answers worked out to all the possible top interview questions!!Here are some practical tips
The deepest core of human emotions is fear. Every single product or service, without exception, is sold on the basis of turgid fear. The only known antidote to fear is TRUST. When trusts struts upwards, fear banishes itself to penguin land. The more you pile up the trust, the more you can do business.
Wouldn't Santa be able to sell you just about anything? Would he be able to cross-sell and up-sell product? Santa could knock on your door next summer and you'd be more than happy to have him join your barbeque.
It's up to you to build up the trust one Lego block at a time. Identify your clients and see what you can give them. It could be information, time or even a chocolate covered scrumptious cookie. It's the old 'What's in it for me?' theory. If you can't find something calorie-ridden for their minds or bodies, they won't want to see you.
Play Santa. It works.
He Knows if You've Been Bad or Good...
Heck Santa knows his customers. He even knows when you are sleeping, or awake.
Then, there's you. Look at your biggest customer. What's her name? When is her birthday? Does she like Indian curries or sushi? In curries can she handle hot or medium? What does she think about you? What doesn't she like?
You're guessing for sure. You can't be dead certain because you've been so busy looking at dollar signs that you've missed the plot completely.
The reason why Santa's marketing works is because he intimately knows your individual needs. If you want a drum kit, you get one. If you want a Barbie, you don't end up sulking with a xylophone.
Santa knows because he's interested in giving. To give, you have to know exactly what the receiver wants or your gift is not worth the packaging it's wrapped in.
Some people worry about invading personal privacy. Hogwash! When was the last time you got upset because a supplier turned up with a big chocolate cake (your favourite) for your birthday? or with rare stamps for your son (because he loves collecting stamps)?
Santa's invades our privacy gently and uses it to give, not to take. That's why we don't mind it. The tax department on the other hand, uses our information to take and therein lies the principal difference.
Once a Customer, Always a Customer
Santa Doesn't Lose Customers. Period.
One of the primary reasons why he's able to achieve this amazing feat is because he thinks of his customer's customer. His customer is the kid, who in a few years gets a little wiser about Santa and his customer's customer is the parent who has the amazing power to get their children to be nice not naughty, if only for a short while.
Since the concept works in their favour, they do all the advertising. Without TV, radio or the internet, Santa's message gets a grip on millions of kids around the planet. These kids grow up and the marvel of Santa is handed down through the generations.
While It's OK For Santa, How Would This Work In The Real World? Say, If You Sold Jeans.
Jeans West, a jean retailer, has several of the answers. I needed one pair, but Stephanie (the sales girl) sold me two--not by hassling me, but by gently reminding me I would get $20 off the second pair. Then, with my purchase, she gave me a gift voucher of $10, for my use or to pass on. They, also signed me up for a loyalty program that offered to give me a 10% discount if I purchased over $250 worth of product in the next 6 months.
This Is Effectively What Jeans West Did to Make Me a Permanent Customer.
Step 1: The sales person asked the right questions to find out my need. Step 2: She up-sold the product giving me good value for money. Step 3: A gift voucher with a validity date, ensured an additional purchase. Or even better, the chance for me to pass it on to another person thus 'creating a customer' for Jeans West. Step 4: Tying my fickle consumer head into a loyalty scheme. They wanted me to stay with them forever.
Santa's steps may vary, but in essence he ties you into a solid loyalty program that is near impossible to get off. It's 'customer get customer', rather than 'advertising get customer.' It's cheaper and it works!
In conclusion here are the main points why Santa's customers keeps coming back. These concepts may sound old, even trite, but have been proven time after time to work well. Test them against your company and brand to see where you can learn from the man from the North Pole.
1) Solid branding:
We're not talking lease here. Consistency is the key. This applies everywhere from networking meetings, advertising to any sort of communication that goes out. Keep hammering home the same unique message and put it up front. The weather changes all the time which is why we can't trust it.
If you must change, it's because your old message isn't doing a complete job. I changed our first baseline from 'Recession proof business principles' to 'Reactivating dormant business clients.' The proposition was the same but the second line got 10 times the response.
2) Differentiation:
Santa knows he can be a courier with a difference. You, too, can create your own legend. Nike used Just Do It. Coke threw in the concept, Rum and Coke, indelibly burning the word classic into our consciousness. Sameness is in your mind. No matter how many brands exist on the market, your product has a fingerprint of its own. You just have to dig deep to find
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