The Marketing Solutions Blog

Inbound marketing – is it the answer to your sales, leads and conversion dreams?

Make sure your SME doesn’t get left behind in the mobile revolution.

Don't pay for advice when there's so much of it out there for FREE!

5 steps for setting up a marketing collaboration: growing your brand on a budget.

Trading tips for small business.

Many companies now choose to set up a Facebook page for their business as a way to increase their online visibility/credibility.

We're Tweeting some basic tips every Tuesday for new or existing SMEs looking to improve their business – or find out what to consider when choosing, upgrading or improving a website.

British retail start-ups are being urged to pitch their products to top high street buyers as part of a pioneering PitchUp competition.

What can getting online do for your business?

The BT-backed Local Business Accelerators Awards has announced its local winners.

Brand Gathering – a great way to promote your business.

Take a starring role in promoting your business.

Online marketing and how SMEs can benefit from it.

In the rush to promote yourself in the virtual world, don’t overlook a skill that will serve your small business well: public speaking.

Online customer service tips for eCommerce SMEs

Is YOUR website mobile-friendly?

Paid search marketing is BIG business

Don't get lost on the internet...

How to improve your ad’s online performance

Get a world class website... because it is the only way forward.

With Santa Claus dusting down his tunic and the reindeers starting to limber up, eCommerce websites should also start thinking about getting in shape for the Christmas rush.

There’s no such thing as bad publicity – so the saying goes. But there is such a thing as NO publicity.

If your business has never considered exporting, then now might be a good time to start.

Nothing in a start-up is straightforward. In fact, the options often come in… shades of grey!

If you’re a small or medium sized business – with a lack of cash or lack of staff – then social media represents the perfect way to ‘get yourself noticed’.

If you remain unconvinced about the importance of mobile-friendly websites – it’s time to get smart.

Business blogging for the heck of it might seem like fun, but choosing what to write should be taken seriously. If you don’t get the content right, your blog will get as many visitors as an 18-30 holiday in Siberia!

If your website is in need of a bit of TLC, we’ve got five suggestions that can help boost your online presence that won’t cost the earth. In fact, most are free!

‘I want you back for good’ was penned by X-Factor judge Gary Barlow during his Take That heyday. Gary was talking about a former love – we’re talking about your business customers. But the sentiment is the same.

The countdown to the summer holidays has begun. It only seemed like yesterday I waved goodbye to my 2 little ones as they returned to school after the last half term and yet we are only 25 days off the long summer holidays (not that I am counting of course).

We’ve been catching up with business owners to find out what advice they’ve used to help them in their business.

We took to facebook last week after we'd got some feedback here in the team. It was mentioned that the term SME (small and medium-sized enterprises) might not be how most of the businesses we are talking to day-to-day think of themselves, and perhaps 'Owner-managed business' was preferred.

Online public relations is a key tool for small web businesses for increasing both sales and traffic to your website. The biggest PR aim for your business is probably to land that precious inch in the printed press, but for small businesses that can prove incredibly difficult unless you are paying someone to get you it or the magazine for coverage.

We’re taking a look at QR codes and how you can use them for your business.

We're taking a look at the importance of having an online presence.

Dee shares her top tips for SME's looking to gain media coverage.  

Dee Blick shares her clever marketing twist on the Christmas card classic. Take a look and share your thoughts with us!

Make sure you are ready for the Christmas rush with our online sales tips!

Christmas is the time of year with the highest turnover in retail! Did you know: 

Increase Revenue with Web Analytics

If you want to build a marketing plan based on insight and trends, then web analytics is the one marketing tool you can't afford to overlook if you have a website.

We are delighted to be starting a series of blogs with advice for SMEs from Dee Blick.

Dee is a multi award-winning Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing with 27 years marketing experience. She specialises in working with small businesses. Dee is the author of the Amazon number one bestseller The Ultimate Small Business Marketing Book which currently has 32 out of 32 five-star reviews on Amazon.

With UK consumers set to spend £50 billion* online in 2011, a professional online presence is no longer just a ‘nice to have’ for businesses – it’s essential.

Finding new customers and keeping your current ones are two of the hardest things for a business to do. You might have an idea of the type of customers you want to attract, but where do you start to find them? How can you stand out from the crowd? And how much time and effort is needed to get your business noticed?

And with so many advertising media available how do you decide which one to use? Should you go in a printed directory? Or should you be targeting online?