CaliberPulse

Zeroing in on your target customer is essential to the success of a marketing campaign. However, reaching potential customers for your business, product or service can be a difficult task. First, consider the 80/20 rule: It’s likely that 80 percent of your most profitable business comes from 20 percent of your core customers. Ideally, you want to identify who those 20 percent are so you can target your marketing and advertising to potential customers who are similar to them. The key is to identify who these core customers are and then determine where they are. Ask yourself, “Who is my ideal client?” Are they a man, woman or child? How old are they? Relationship status? What does their lifestyle look like? Likes? Dislikes? Hobbies? Education? Job? Income? Remember, “everyone” is not your target customer. Decide who your best customer really is and then identify the best way to target them with your message. Consult these tips to learn how to define and find your ideal customer.

A growing percentage of your customers have become online journalists, reporting their experiences using your brands in their social networks. Are you listening to what they are saying and responding to their suggestions? Social media can provide valuable insights about your customers and their brand preferences. To learn more, check out this article published in Inside Tucson Business by Caliber’s CEO…

DISCLAIMER: This blog is written as a guideline to highlight legal issues when integrating social media into a business. We are not attorneys nor has this been reviewed by an attorney; this should not be considered legal advice. More businesses are using social media as a marketing and public relations tool to communicate with loyal and prospective customers. As with any business communication tool, there are guidelines that should be followed when using social media, and legal ramifications are possible if certain rules are not observed. To stay out of legal trouble while communicating via social media, here are seven issues to keep in mind:

“Failing to prepare is preparing to fail.” – John Wooden Seven out of ten people surveyed said they would rather die than speak in public, according to Eileen Shenker. Shenker has been a professional public speaker for thirty years. She has developed several workshops to coach and train sales/customer service professionals to build rapport and relationships to increase sales. At a recent workshop in Tucson, Shenker shared tips for overcoming the fear and discomfort that often accompanies speaking in public. She shared advice for speaking to large groups, incorporating naturalness and humor, overcoming nerves, and more. Here are the top takeaways from Shenker’s enlightening performance.

Clients and seminar attendees frequently ask us when the best time to send email and post social media content is. The answer often depends on the business and the target market, but data have been released that reveal timing patterns of email and social media engagement. We recently participated in a HubSpot webinar discussing this very topic. Here are seven valuable suggestions.

To market effectively to a target audience, organizations must not only capture the attention of the audience, but do so with a message that resonates with their specific age group and characteristics. Every generation has its own distinct set of characteristics that are developed from their social environment in their prevenient years. Research has shown that each generational group has different values and beliefs regarding family, career, work/life balance, training and development, loyalty, gender roles, and expectations of a leader. Marketers should note that these generational preferences and social values influence purchasing behavior as much as common demographic factors such as income, education, and gender.

Though our vehicles of communication have changed, proper etiquette remains a key to successful interactions. In this three-part series, we will provide tips to help you become more etiquette savvy with Facebook, Twitter, and sharing tools such as Digg, Delicious and Reddit. In the first post of the series, we offered suggestions for managing your Facebook profile and tips to keep you on the appropriate social networking etiquette path. In this second post of the series, we will offer the etiquette guidance to follow for your Twitter presence.

Newspaper layoffs; One reporter on three beats; The journalism landscape has changed and the practice of public relations has to change with it. These days getting a lead story comes down to relationships. Or, does it? Perhaps it comes down to seeing the right lead at the right time, to putting yourself and your client in the way of opportunity. PR pros must be more “plugged in” than ever before. HARO will help. HARO, or Help A Reporter Out, has changed the way public relations professionals pitch journalists. Over 5,000 journalists nationwide use HARO to locate experts for on-air interviews, article quotes, and more via an email blast distributed to over 56,000 resources three times a day. The best part: HARO is free.

JC Penney recently got its proverbial hand slapped by Google and has been banished to the bottom of organic search result listings. The company’s website was utilizing practices that while not illegal, are considered unethical in the practice of online search methods. These unethical practices are known as “black-hat” tactics, and while they can boost organic search rankings temporarily, they can also hurt the brand and reputation. Presumably such a well-known brand would have experts on their team that would know better than to engage in these strategies and only use “white-hat” or universally accepted practices. However, the company claims they were unaware anything unethical was taking pl

With all the technological advances at our fingertips, proper etiquette is still a key to successful interactions. In this three-part series, we will provide tips to help you become more etiquette savvy with Facebook, Twitter, and sharing tools such as Digg, Delicious and Reddit. In this first post, we offer suggestions for managing your Facebook profile and tips to keep you on the appropriate social networking etiquette path.

I’m an avid motorcyclist. The current business environment feels a lot like some of the roads I’ve traveled, filled with sharp turns and unexpected hazards, but also plenty of promising pavement ahead. The events of the past few years have brought our profession into a new era of doing business. The pressure to perform is high. We’re asked to help business partners in ever-increasing ways—yet often with fewer resources—to anticipate change, enhance reputation, and deliver results that provide greater impact on business goals. Change of this magnitude also presents new opportunities for all PR pros. The trick is whether we’re “looking through the turn,” a fundamental principle of motorcycling that offers a great business insight. As you approach a turn, you must look where you want to go, rather than fixate on potential hazards within the turn itself. The challenge is keeping your eyes focused on where you want to end up while using your instincts and experience to make necessary adjustments—all at a moment’s notice. My firm is continually focused on looking through the turn for clients to help drive their business—and ours—forward in spite of the current environment. What’s working for us? Here are our five “driving” tips.

John C. Maxwell once said, “Feeling appreciated brings out the best in people.” We all want to be appreciated in our relationships; at work by our staff, boss, and clients, and at home by our family and friends. Eileen Shenker recently gave a seminar called “Romancing Your Relationships™” at the February Women’s Financial Group hosted by National Bank of Arizona. Shenker reminded attendees that we have to make a conscious effort to appreciate those around us. She pointed out that often times, we think about calling someone up and saying thank you or think about sending a small gift, but never end up following through. In this case, it is not the thought that counts. Shenker’s mantra is “When you think it, act on it.”