Congratulations and Good-bye to our Graduate!

n.b. marketing has provided work placements and experience for several students and graduates over the years. All have gone on to secure places in their chosen career or study path. Our most recent Marketing Graduate, Maninderjeet, wrote this blog at the end of her 4-week placement:

Well this is my final week of work experience, and it has gone by so quickly!

I have learned a lot during my four weeks at n.b. marketing.  Much of what I have learned has come from just being around in the office and listening to the interaction with clients, the professional manner and the management of the workload. Also, just talking to Barbara, Paula and Nigel has made me so aware of how marketing and Public Relations works in companies, and I have a much better understanding now.

LinkedIn Profile Top Tip

We’re big fans of LinkedIn for building business contacts with professionals we want to connect with. It’s a great research tool too. The search engine allows you to find contacts and be found, provided you complete your Profile with the right sort of information.  Here’s what we recommend:

For your Professional Profile

Add a recent, professional picture of yourself. This is an absolute ‘must’ if you are on LinkedIn. No picture says you aren’t interested or open to connecting with new people or reconnecting with former contacts who you may have lost touch with. A professional photo makes it much easier for interested parties to see who you are and start developing a relationship

Is there such as thing as a ‘USP’?

In my opinion, too many organisations are told they need to have a USP – a Unique Selling Proposition or Point - and are getting hung up on this concept, spending too much time in the wrong direction - looking inwardly to find something that they can claim to be truly unique.

In today’s fast moving environment I argue USPs no longer serve a purpose as it is rare to be truly unique, and where there is a uniqueness it is more often than not short lived…

Twitter Tip - What's in a name?

What's your purpose for being on Twitter? Do you want to expand your professional network and make connections? Are you acting as a liaison representative of your company? Do you want to promote your expertise through updates on work projects? Do you want to share aspects of your personality? It's easy to become confused between your professional and personal personna but choosing a Twitter username can help to set the scene.

Your username is very important. This name will how people will refer to you on Twitter, and potentially how people will acknowledge you if you ever meet any of your Twitter followers offline. It may sound obvious, but making your Twitter name as close to your real name makes it easier for you to be found and recognised by people who meet you and decide to follow you on Twitter.

Is Customer Service your ‘Leaking Bucket’?

So often the focus of business development is on acquiring new customers, but retaining customers and building their loyalty is just as important to keep their business. What can be learned from organisations that deliver great customer service?

Social Media Tips – Using Twitter to encourage conversation

Twitter is a great tool for engaging in conversations and commentary about events of all sorts, whether they are taking place online or offline. Setting a hashtag (#) allows people to follow a campaign, event or speech remotely and is a great way to spread the word, even when in a business-to-business application.

Will Digital Marketing Crumble under new Cookie Law?

You may be aware that from May 26, 2012, the new EU Cookie Law comes into effect. What you may not be so aware of is that this law affects Email marketing as well as Website marketing. Are you ready, as the ICO is threatening substantial fines to anyone falling foul of the new regulations?

To Advertise or Not Advertise - Part 3

Here are the last of our 5 Advertising Tips.

To Advertise or Not Advertise - Part 2

Here's our third tip for successful advertising:

To Advertise or not Advertise – that is the question (Part 1)

A client recently told me that he’d come to realise that the time to advertise is when you’re busy, not when business is slow. In lean times you may feel that you ought to try and drum up some sales enquiries by advertising, but advertising can be an expensive and not always effective way to try and turn on the sales tap. Advertising is best used when you have a specific offer for a niche or targeted market that will give you a good response rate?

So here are the first of 5 Tips to help you decide where and when to advertise.