“On Facebook, we can ask our customers what’s the next location they want,” Nelson said. “What do they think of our next flavor? It’s an amazing way to communicate with our fans.”

Facebook is not just for friends anymore. The free social networking site — blocked in some workplaces as a potential time-waster — is increasingly becoming an inexpensive marketing tool for small businesses.

Sprinkles is among a growing number of small businesses taking advantage of a relatively new program on Facebook, one that allows them to claim their name, become visible even to folks who aren’t on the site, and stay in close contact with their customers. The business, in effect, can act like any other person on Facebook, posting status updates and seeing what its fans are doing.

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“You need to be where your customers are and your prospective customers are,” said Clara Shih, author of “The Facebook Era” (Pearson Education, 2009). “And with 300 million people on Facebook, and still growing, that’s increasingly where your audience is for a lot of products and services.”

Start Small

For most businesses, Facebook Pages (distinct from individual profiles and Facebook groups) are the best place to start. Pages allow businesses to collect “fans” the way celebrities, sports teams, musicians and politicians do. There are now 1.4 million Facebook Pages and they collect more than 10 million fans every day, according to the site.

Businesses can easily create a Web presence with Facebook, even if they don’t have their own Web site (most companies still should maintain a Web site to reach people who don’t use Facebook or whose employers block access to the site). Businesses can claim a vanity address so that their Facebook address reflects the business name, like www.facebook.com/Starbucks. Facebook pages can link to the company’s Web site or direct sales to e-commerce sites like Ticketmaster or Amazon.

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These companies, including Etsy, JetBlue, NakedPizza, Pepsi, and Levi’s, are leading the way and showing small and large businesses that micro-blogging can be a powerful sales tool. From coupons to simple product updates, Twitter offers an opportunity to connect and maintain customer relationships.

Among the many case studies of companies that use Twitter to increase sales is Dell Outlet. Dell Outlet, which refurbishes and sells Dell computers, uses coupons to drive traffic directly from Twitter to its Web site. The Twitter Web site case study states: “Do the coupons work? Big time. Not only do they get retweeted and picked up by coupon sites, both of which spread the brand name, they also drive sales. Dell Outlet has booked more than $3 million in revenue attributable to its Twitter posts.”

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Jason Sadler - Wearing T-Shirts

I was intrigued by this article here. Don’t feel like a fool!

From the why-didn’t-I-think-of-that file, we present Jason Sadler, a man whose full-time job is wearing T-shirts.

[We’ll pause for a moment to give you a chance to kick yourself.]

Here’s how it works: Every day, he wears a T-shirt from a different company. He blogs about it. Tweets about it. Uploads photos. Plus, he does a live-streaming video on YouTube every day at 3pm, where he answers viewer questions.

“I am a full-time T-shirt wearer,” Sadler explains.

Companies pay him anywhere from $1 to $365 to wear their shirt, based on the day of year. Jan. 1 is $1, the 2nd is $2, and so on, until Dec. 31, which is — you guess it — $365.

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Anita Campbell from Small Business Trends is running a short information-packed webinar entitled:

Getting Found in Search Engines, for Beginners

These two bullet points jumped out at me, since I have clients who are trying to navigate this new frontier:

• Simple techniques you can do yourself to improve your website so you can get found by potential customers in the search engines more easily

• When and how to hire SEO professionals — over the years I have hired a number of search optimization and marketing experts and I will share some tips for what to look for

I’m planning to listen in and tweet about it. Please join in, if your schedule allows. If not, you can check the Twitter feed using the hashtag #SMBTOOLS. I’m a fan of TweetChat.com for these sorts of events, so you can use the hash tag to enter the room, as they call it.

For most people, especially for those just starting in business, the business card is the only marketing tool used.

People frequently think a business card that can be designed and printed on their home computer will be a good enough tool to get them noticed and remembered.  The truth is business cards are one of the most overlooked of all business tools.  A well-designed, professional card makes a professional presence; a homemade business card typically gives the impression of an amateur taking a stab at being in business.

Please post your comments below:

In great news, Google, Yahoo and MSN have agreed upon a XML sitemap standard.

What’s this mean to you? Well, you just need to create one XML sitemap and you can submit it to all three engines. I’ve been doing that for a while and didn’t seem to have any problem but now it’s official.

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Tech publishers, which led the way online with visionary Web sites such as ZDNet in the 1990s, have long been bellwethers for other sectors of b-to-b media. With that history in mind, the departure of these brands from print raises the question: Are these tech magazines functioning as canaries in a coal mine, indicators that b-to-b marketers will see the number of trade publications in their sectors begin to decline?

That’s a partial list of business technology brands that have recently abandoned print.

Tech publishers, which led the way online with visionary Web sites such as ZDNet in the 1990s, have long been bellwethers for other sectors of b-to-b media. With that history in mind, the departure of these brands from print raises the question: Are these tech magazines functioning as canaries in a coal mine, indicators that b-to-b marketers will see the number of trade publications in their sectors begin to decline?

“I don’t think print survives,” said Greg Strakosch, CEO of Tech- Target, which shut down its three print publications in the past year. “I just don’t see how that happens.”

Mike Parker, managing director of media investment bank AdMedia Partners, is far less pessimistic about the state of trade magazines. “If, in a sense, they [tech publications] are canaries in a coal mine and harbingers of the future, I think it’s a long-term future.”

TRADE PUBLICATION NUMBERS DWINDLING
There’s no disputing that the number of b-to-b publications has dwindled. In 2007, 137 closed, according to MediaFinder, a database of publications. In 2008, 120 folded. The pace seems to be picking up this year, with more than 20 business magazines being closed in the first two months of the year as marketers shift dollars to the Internet, especially to search engines such as Google.

In the past week alone:

? Penton Media announced the closure of Direct and Promo, saying it plans to fold their content into a new title, Chief Marketer. Penton shuttered six publications in 2008, according to MediaFinder.

? Crain Communications Inc., parent of BtoB, announced the closing of the print versions of Automotive News Europe, Business Insurance Europe and RCR Wireless News. In December, it shut down the print version of Financial Week.

? Vance Publishing said it was closing Design & Décor and Furniture Style.

The consensus is that the economy will force the closure of more trade publications, especially in industries hit hard by the recession, such as finance, construction and marketing.

“Any publication in real estate is going to suffer, depending upon how much they have in the bank,” said an industry observer, who spoke on condition of anonymity. “The same can be said for publications covering Wall Street. Look at Double Down.” Double Down, which published Trader Monthly, folded earlier this year.

There does, however, appear to be a difference in how tech and nontech magazines are being folded. The nontech books are being pushed into closure by the economy, while the tech publications are jumping of their own volition–at least in part–and landing on established Web properties. “It came a little bit sooner than they wanted it to, but they have been preparing for years,” Parker said of the discontinuation of the print versions of PC Magazine and Computer Shopper.

“It’s not a transition you can do overnight,” said Jason Young, CEO of Ziff Davis Media, adding PC Magazine had been preparing for a digital-only future since the 2001 downturn. The title published its last print edition in January.

Young said the decline of the print version of PC Magazine (whose ad revenue dropped by $16 million between 2007 and 2008) and the rise of PCMag.com were inevitable as its audience and advertisers migrated to the Internet. He added that PCMag.com is up both in traffic and revenue so far this year. “I think we’re quite happy with that decision [to go online-only],” he said.

Similarly, Josh London, general manager of ComputerShop-per.com, said SX2 Media Lab acquired Computer Shopper from CNET in 2006 with the goal of transforming it into an Internet-only brand. “Our best quarter online was the fourth quarter of 2008, and that allowed us to take this important step,” London said. The final print edition of Computer Shopper will be published in April.

ComputerShopper.com now has 1 million unique monthly visitors and 3 million page views, London said. The versatile site generates revenue from cost-per-thousand, cost-per-click and cost-per-acquisition models.

Stamats Business Media published the last print issue of Archi-Tech, a publication about the intersection of architecture and technology, earlier this year. The brand is alive as a Web site and a weekly e-newsletter. “It’s a bold new experiment for us,” said Tim Fixmer, president of Stamats.

Meanwhile, Vance Publishing doesn’t appear to be keeping the décor titles it closed alive as Web businesses. In an internal memo, Vance Chairman Bill Vance and President Peggy Walker said the moves were driven by the “worldwide recession” and designed to bolster investment in other sectors in which the company competes. “The moves we announced today will allow us to continue to profitably serve the agriculture, beauty and wood industries,” according to the internal memo.

Reed Phillips, co-managing partner at media investment bank DeSilva & Phillips, said of nontech magazines that have shut down: “If they haven’t established a viable business in print that connects readers and advertisers, then they’re probably unlikely to do it on the Web.

“If they haven’t already got that presence on the Web and they’re killing the print version, they’ve probably decided not to publish in that sector any longer.”

Reach in your wallet and pull out your business card. Your Small Business Information guide has put together the business card test. Learn if your business card will pass or be trashed.

Size: Does your business card conform to the traditional size of 3.5″ by 2″? Anything greater will not fit in wallets or most business card holders. End result trash.

Paper Quality: Is your business card design of professional quality or is it flimsy with perforated edges? Cheap cards are trashed.

Ink: Drop some liquid on your business card. If the ink runs, it’s in the trash.

Color Test: Colorful cards can add to your professional image. Too much color can be detracting. Trash your card if it is black and white or has more than 3 colors unless it’s a photograph.

Message Design: Your business card should clearly tell people what you do and offer a meaningful benefit. No message adds confusion so your card ends up in the trash.

Image Match: Your business card design should match your business image. If you’re a designer, then the card should be creative. If your card is out of synch with your image, time to toss it.

Font Size: Is your card crammed with information? White space on the card will make it easier to absorb your message. If you have a lot to say, add it to the back of the business card. Is the print so tiny you have too squint to see it? This one is heading for the trash.

Contact Information: Your clients or potential clients should have as many means as possible to contact you based on their preference. Your business card design should include: voicemail, phone, fax, email, and website. Lack of contact information puts your card in the trash.

You only have one chance to make a great first impression. Make sure you invest in the best business card design you can afford. The business card is your introduction to a client, for the low cost per card that is money well spent.

By Darrell Zahorsky, About.com