« January 2005 | Main | March 2005 »
A Snippet to Pique Your Interest
Posted on February 25, 2005 by Sarah Eaton.
Everybody's talking about Malcolm Gladwell's book, Blink. So I'm reading it to see what all the fuss is about.
So far so good--lots of interesting stuff. I'll be posting a specially B2B-slanted review of it next week sometime.
In the meantime, here's a tasty little morsel to tide you over, as posted on Boing Boing.
February 25, 2005 in award winning magazine, Blog Outsourcing, Building Customer Community, Building Customer Intuition, bulk email marketing, company newsletter, Company newsletters | Permalink | Comments (2)
Cut through the Clutter, Slice through the Saturation
Posted on February 23, 2005 by Sarah Eaton.
Skip's post on marketing for seminar attendance is excellent, thinking back to our recent webinar with the always stellar Brian Carroll. (Hmmm. That sounds a tad conceited. But really I'm just complimenting our great taste in speakers and thinkers.)
The most sage phrase in my opinion:
...we need to be smart and use the power of repetition to cut through the clutter in the overloaded, saturated environment in which we live.
Here's what we did:
We put out the invite in our e-newsletter, then Peter and I posted invites on our blogs, and then our fearless leader Todd sent out personal e-invitations. We had a full house for the event, but it took persistence and planning.
I'm not saying we did it exactly the right way and that we won't vary our methods in the future--there's nothing we love more at BeTuitive than testing and re-testing to find methodology perfection--but cutting through the clutter is key.
And, I'm not so blind that I don't realize I'm advocating cutting through the clutter by adding to it. But we really can't call genuine efforts to add value to our contacts' lives "clutter," can we? What do you think?
February 23, 2005 in award winning magazine, award winning newsletter, Blog Outsourcing, Blogs, Brand enhancement, Building Customer Intuition, bulk email marketing, company newsletter, Company newsletters, Company publication, Corporate Blogging, corporate magazine | Permalink | Comments (0)
Do you care about what I have to say?
Posted on February 22, 2005 by Sarah Eaton.
Do you care about what I have to say? And do I care about what you have to say?
Based on the theory that the answer to both of those questions is "yes" (or at least "sort of"), interviews work as great credibility-builders, no matter whether you're the interviewer or the interviewee.
Here's a link to an interesting post from Blog Business World on the subject. It comes at interviews from a distinctly blogger point of view, but non-bloggers should be able to glean some valuable information as well.
February 22, 2005 in award winning blog, award winning magazine, award winning newsletter, Blog Outsourcing, company blog, company magazine, company newsletter, Company newsletters, Company publication, Corporate Blogging | Permalink | Comments (1)
Ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-changes
Posted on February 22, 2005 by Sarah Eaton.
If you subscribe to my blog, chances are you haven't seen the changes on the site. Give it a click-through and check out the snazzy customized header--we change it every month--and a brand-new picture of me.
February 22, 2005 in award winning design, Blog Outsourcing, blog publish, corporate magazine | Permalink | Comments (0)
Here's How You Do It
Posted on February 18, 2005 by Sarah Eaton.
Peter from BeConnected recently brought up some interesting questions and ideas in response to my post about distraction. Being a bit obsessive (as may be evidenced by my love/hate relationship with my email auto-notifier), I did some more research.
Here's what Merlin Mann over at 43 folders says to do to simplify an unhealthy relationship with your email in-box:
The critical point, as ever, is to focus on action and not on the administration and housekeeping. If the action is just a response, respond. If it requires more than a return email, either do it or get it in your “next actions” and keep moving.
He lines up some specific actions for you to take to stay in control of the inevitable overflow.
February 18, 2005 in award winning magazine, award winning newsletter, Blog Outsourcing, blog publish, company blog, company magazine, company newsletter, corporate magazine | Permalink | Comments (0)
Reading faces vs. reading minds
Posted on February 16, 2005 by Sarah Eaton.
It's time for everyone's favorite monthly post--my article from the last newsletter! Reading it can only lead to increased knowledge on personalized marketing and how you can use it to your (and your customer's and prospect's) advantage. And who wouldn't want that?
When it comes to nurturing relationships, there's no denying that face-to-face communication has its advantages. Yet, interacting with customers by drawing similarities between them achieves something just as valuable—on both ends of the equation. You get the inside track on their thoughts, and they get information they actually want.
Read on here.
February 16, 2005 in award winning newsletter, Blog Outsourcing, blog publish, Building B2B Relationships, Building Customer Intuition, bulk email marketing, business credibility, CMO, company blog, company magazine, company newsletter, Company newsletters, Company publication, Corporate Blogging | Permalink | Comments (0)
Stop. Interrupting. My. Flow.
Posted on February 14, 2005 by Sarah Eaton.
"Deep thought for a half-hour? Boy, that's hard," Mr. Hecker said. "Does anyone ever really have deep thoughts for half an hour anymore?"
Personally, I sometimes like interruptions.
For example: I had this post all written, and then an email notification popped up in my lower right corner with a request from a co-worker. So I went off in a totally different direction for a while, came back and read the post again.
And realized it was unbelievably boring. So I erased it and started over.
I like to know as soon as I can if something has come up that needs my immediate attention. But there are times when I'm flowing along and--pop--I receive a message from a client with a list of questions. I keep writing, but now I'm thinking about the client's questions instead.
It's like my brain is cleaved in two--is it better to just break away from the task at hand and answer the questions, or should I just let the presence of the questions fade away until I'm done with my current project?
I suppose I could always turn off the auto-notifier, but then I wouldn't have the option of distraction. Hmm. Maybe this goes a little deeper than I thought.
Anyway, there are other people thinking about this, too, people with the capability to make a program to detect when the user is in a state of flow.
Check out this article from the NY Times.
February 14, 2005 in award winning magazine, award winning newsletter, Blog Outsourcing, blog publish, company blog, company magazine, company newsletter, corporate magazine | Permalink | Comments (1)
A Present Just for You
Posted on February 10, 2005 by Sarah Eaton.
Guess what? Brian Carroll, CEO of InTouch Incorporated and the mind behind the B2B Lead Generation blog, is presenting a webinar, "Lead Nurturing for the Complex Sale," and you're invited! It's free and on Feb. 15th and at 1:00 CST.
Think of it as my very special Valentine's Day present to you. You're welcome. Email me if you want to attend.
February 10, 2005 in award winning blog, blog publish, Blogging Tools, build credibility, Building Customer Community, Building Customer Intuition, bulk email marketing, Business publications, company newsletter, corporate magazine | Permalink | Comments (2)
Do the Unexpected
Posted on February 08, 2005 by Sarah Eaton.
So let's say it's your birthday, and your sweetheart wakes you up with breakfast in bed and a dozen roses. How nice, right? Except that's what your sweetheart did last year...and the year before...and the year before.
So let's say it's Tuesday, any old Tuesday will do, a nothing-special Tuesday, and your sweetheart wakes you up with breakfast in bed and a dozen roses. Even nicer. It seemingly came out of nowhere, so you appreciate it much more.
Read Todd Smart's article to see how that translates to business and customer relationships.
February 8, 2005 in award winning blog, award winning magazine, award winning newsletter, blog publish, Building Customer Community, bulk email marketing, Business editorial, business magazine, Company publication, corporate magazine | Permalink | Comments (0)
Networking: the First Step in a Long Dance
Posted on February 03, 2005 by Sarah Eaton.
One of my Technorati watch lists spat out (in a good way) this post from a brand new blog by Kevin Stirtz. He gives us ten easy ways to work toward better networking skills.
February 3, 2005 in blog publish, Blogging Tools, Blogs, CMO, company newsletter, corporate magazine | Permalink | Comments (1)