acrbo sep mag
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Association of Computer Repair Business Owners September MagazineTRANSCRIPT
WHAT’S INSIDE Computers, Networking, Websites, Advertising, Marketing & Sales
ACRBO MAG
The Owen Lea Foundation….
Let’s Make A Difference!
Featured Member…Alan
Seymour… Kaplet
Technology Solutions
ISSUE 009 | Sep 2012
Page 12 Page 8
If you have not checked in awhile
you might want to log into the
Association website to see what
new Preferred Vendors have
joined the team.
We continually are looking for
valued vendors to bring aboard
and your emails are appreciated.
ACRBO contents
Regular Columns
ISSUE 009 | Sep 2012
3 Editor’s Letter
Welcome to the August edition.
2 ACRBO Inbox
Got something to say?
Tell us what you think.
5 Communicating With Your Followers
7 Utilizing Internet Marketing
8 Featured Member
Alan Seymour
12 The Owen Lea Foundation
14 2012 ACRBO Membership Drive
15 Your Business Checkup
21 News
25 E-mail Marketing
Would you like to have an article
published each month in the
magazine?
If so drop us a line and let us know
what kind of article you can provide
on a monthly basis.
All articles will need to be submitted
the 3rd
week of the month.
Email: [email protected]
www.acrbo.com 2
Have a product or service
you’re interested in selling?
If so drop us a line.
ACRBO editor’s letter
Holiday threw off having the magazine published in time and for that I apologize. This month we have some great content on what you can do to improve your business and hopefully become even more successful. A publication like this would not be possible without the support of our valued advertisers who provide relevant products and services for our readership. Please visit our sponsors as they know what you need to help you with all your endeavors. Lastly I’d like to congratulate you for investing your time to educate yourself by reading this magazine. We are proud to be able to help all our readers, and look forward to serving you for many years to come. Dan ACRBO
As you see the layout of the magazine has changed once again. Unfortunately Jon is not going to be able to edit the magazines future issues.
As some of you already know graphics are not my strong suit. But, we will continue to bring outstanding content which to me is what really matters.
www.Facebook.com/acrbo
www.acrbo.com
Talk to me >> Keep your valuable feedback coming. I try to reply
to every email, I appreciate your input as it helps to
make the ACRBO magazine possible.
Write to me at: [email protected]
ACRBO Magazine
Fredericksburg Virginia
Advertising enquires: Send an email to [email protected]
Contribute articles: If you would like to be a contributing author for the magazine then send an email to [email protected] and let us know what you would like to write about. Copyright 2012 ACRBO. All rights reserved. Reprinted with permission. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated or converted into machine-readable form or language without the written consent of the publisher. Articles express the opinions of the authors and are not necessarily those of the publisher
ACRBO Magazine
Director: ACRBO [email protected]
Contributors Various experts in their fields
The instructions and advice in the
Magazine is for entertainment purposes only. The creators, producers, contributors
and distributors of the ACRBO Mag disclaim
any liability for loss or lack of results from following the advice expressed herein
Welcome to the
Association of Computer
Repair Business Owners
Magazine.
ISSUE 009 | Sep 2012
www.acrbo.com 3
ACRBO inbox
Work with competitors?
This question comes up a lot
and it's usually a matter of a
business owner not being
able to perform some sort of
repairs i.e. iPhone, DC jacks
etc. My opinion is never to
hand over work to others or
refer to others if you are in
the same location. I have
done quite a few agreements
with other shops for things
like DC jacks that come into
our shop and either we don't
have time to fix them or
whatever. In cases like this
"we" take them to our
competitor and thru an
agreement we have they do
the work and the customer
remains ours. Reason behind
this is simple; if I tell the
customer to go to another
shop then in the future there
is a good chance they will
remain with that shop. So
potentially I could be turning
away quite a lot of money.
Dan
ACRBO
Follow us on www.Facebook.com/acrbo
Follow us on Linkedin Group is
“Association of Computer Repair
TO
P E
MA
ILS
ISSUE 009 | Sep 2012
iPhone repairs?
This has been a very active
topic on weather or not to do
these types of repairs. First
and foremost you have to
remember these are typically
not going to be 5 minute jobs
until you have quite a bit of
experience and even then
they probably won't be quick
jobs. Plus, do you have the
proper tools required to do
these repairs. Lastly, and
most important do you have
the time. In our case right
now we don't have the time.
But, I have an agreement with
someone local who does have
the time and only does these
types of repairs. So we can
still take on the job and also
make a profit.
Dan
ACRBO
TO
P E
MA
ILS
www.acrbo.com 4
Communicating
With Your Followers Do your messages tend to be a little self-centered?
Many people fall into a rut of producing content that is
only self-promoting and "salesy." This is the worst
possible way to build an online community. Don't just
drone on about how fantastic you or your company is -
it's not as reliable coming from you as when other
people say it anyways. Instead, try providing your
followers with educational, valuable and engaging
content. People are going to be much more willing to
share educational information than a self-promoting or
"salesy" message. So go ahead and set a goal to start
creating content worth sharing.
Are you a repeat offender?
Nobody wants to be bombarded with the same
message over and over again. Repeatedly posting
similar messages will not only prevent new people from
following you, but you might see a drop in your fan
base. In theory it might seem like a good idea to remind
people of an important message or try to reach new
people who may have missed your first posting, but
really you are just spamming your followers. There are
a few occasions, such as event promotion, when you
need to send similar messages over a couple months
to remind your followers. But this is the exception not
the standard. Don't think you can "sneak repeat"
content by folks - most of us will remember and not be
pleased. Be original each and every day, and for those
days when you can't be original, don't post.
Are your messages a little text heavy?
One of the best attributes of social media networks is
that it provides snap shot views on the latest news.
People tune into your social media channel for quick
updates. For those days when you have content that
won't fit in the 140 character Twitter message, put your
content in a blog post. Once the blog is ready send a
short message through your social media accounts to
check out your blog post. A short and catchy title in
your social media message will help capture the
attention of your followers. To keep your social media
profile pages from getting too text heavy we
recommend posting videos, photos, or links to content
with photos in the headlines. These photos and videos
will help break up the text on your profile pages and
give visitors a quick glance at what you and your
company are about. Keep your messages short and
sweet, and post images to add some personality to
your profile page.
Are you a social media spammer?
We all have that friend who sends 10+ Facebook status
updates a day. Don't become that friend or company that
continuously spams its followers. Since there is no golden
rule for the "appropriate" number of postings on social
media accounts, it is recommended to check different
sources to determine your optimal frequency. Here are a
couple practices to find out what might work best for you.
First, you can take a look at your competition and see
how frequently they post and determine if they are
building a good community with their schedule. Another
idea is to research what people in the industry are saying
about the recommended frequency on each platform.
Recent studies have shown that people on Twitter expect
to receive more updates than people on Facebook and
that 5-10 Tweets a day is expected. Facebook is entirely
different than Twitter when it comes to messaging
frequency. With its current set-up it is pretty easy to tie up
your Friend news feed with messages. So be respectful
and try only posting Facebook updates a couple times a
week up, or up to once a day. Lastly, try asking your loyal
followers what they think about your social media
communications. Do they feel like they could use more
information or less? A blend of all these techniques above
should help you find the right amount of frequency for
sending messages on your social media platforms.
Social media
accounts for
25% of all time
spent online
over 35 minutes
per hour
www.acrbo.com 5
Utilizing Internet Marketing
SEO is by far one of the most effective tools in
the internet marketing scope and can truly
bolster traffic to your company’s site.
The internet is a seemingly endless resource for a company of any
size and, whilst the opportunity to reach out to millions of potential
customers is certainly great, most companies will find they are met
by stiff competition on the web. With so many companies now
online it might be difficult to see how yours could ever stand out
from the crowd. After all, what does your website have that others
don’t?
The key to it all is an effective internet marketing strategy. You need
to utilise every tool and potential outlet you possibly can. The
beauty of internet marketing is that it does not have to be expensive
and can be accessed by any business of any size. Here are a few
hints to steer your company towards a successful campaign.
Firstly, make the most of cheap internet marketing tools before
spending large amounts of advertising and web hosting. Social
media has already become the ‘go to’ move for many large
companies but it can still be accessed and used by a company of
any size. Offer your potential customers something no one else can
and get people talking about your company. Giving out a number of
free samples is a great way to get people clambering to follow you
on Twitter or Facebook.
Secondly, optimise and optimise well. With so
much written on the internet about Search Engine
Optimisation (SEO), it is easy to believe you are
quite the expert. Sadly, there is a whole science
behind SEO and simply filling your homepage
with keywords will not cut the mustard. Consider
enlisting the help of an SEO company to truly
boost you company’s performance on search
engines or risk wasting valuable time on
achieving very little. SEO is by far one of the most
effective tools in the internet marketing scope and
can truly bolster traffic to your company’s site. A
lucrative relationship with an SEO company will
establish your company’s site at the top of related
searches and keep it there.
Blogging is another extremely effective internet
marketing tool. A professionally written, well
researched blog can be your company’s way of
letting customers and potential customers see
your ethos and passion for your industry. Over
time, a good blog will build up a subscriber base
as well as clock up a whole host of search engine
traffic. What is more, your company will be able to
share with the world any good news, awards or
accolades it has picked up.
Finally, pay per click advertising also has
potential as part of an internet marketing strategy.
Whilst some experts will swear against it, pay per
click campaigns can be an effective short term
strategy to boost traffic to your site. In the same
breath, it is essential you plan the campaign well
as a poor choice of key words can end up costing
your company a small fortune with very little
returns. As before, enlist the help of professionals
to ensure the best results for your company.
Whatever techniques you decide to incorporate
into your company’s internet marketing plan it is
essential you stand out from the crowd.
Inspiration and imagination will help your
company go far and be the difference between a
very successful and a very expensive internet
marketing campaign.
www.acrbo.com 7
“
ISSUE 009 | Sep 2012
Family: I a married with 4 children, though one passed away as a baby. We miss him greatly.
Education: Ph.D. in Psychology.
What did you want to be when you grew up? I wanted to be either an ATF agent or a
Detective (Profiler).
Worst job: Worked at McDonald’s for one day.
First job: Mowing lawns around my neighborhood.
How did you end up owning your business? I was teaching in Bangalore, India and became
very sick, to the point they were not sure of my life. It took me one year to recover and while
recovering I wanted to get into business and the opportunity presented itself to me. I love
technology and it was a perfect fit.
What is next for your business? We desire to continue to grow and offer new IT Solutions to
the companies and individuals we serve. We are looking at adding some new social
networking solutions, as well as new programs to be developed.
Who was your hero as a child? My Grandfather.
Featured Member
Name: Alan Seymour
Business: KAPLET Technology
Solutions
Location: Indiana, PA
Website: www.kapletinc.com
www.acrbo.com 8
If you would like your business to be featured in the ACRBO Magazine
then drop us an email and we will get back to you with what details are
needed.
--Dan
www.acrbo.com 9
What business book do you recommend the most and why? This is actually a very hard
question, because there are so many good ones out there, but from what I have read
lately, I would say The Four Obsessions of an Extraordinary Executive by Patrick Lencioni.
I would recommend all his books.
What advice would you give someone thinking about starting a business right now? If
you have family, make sure they are in agreement with you as it will take a lot of time.
Make sure you enjoy what you are doing and that you always put the customer first, even
when you think you are right. Customers are the key to our success.
What are you most likely to be doing when not working? I can be found counseling
those that cannot afford it, as I still want to use my degree. Otherwise I am with my
family enjoying them. Lastly, I read like crazy.
Where do you want to be five years from now? I want to continue the growth we have
been experiencing currently, by offering more solutions and better service to our
customers. Striving to be the best in our field, working with and learning from other
technology solution companies.
Who would you rather spend time with, Bill Gates, the late Steve Jobs or Warren
Buffett ? This is another tough one, because they all have their merits, but I think I would
like to spend time with Warren Buffet because many business men seek out his advice
from a variety of industries and he is very gifted in predicting the future of business
growth.
“
Check out Iain Mcdonald’s website:
>>
www.acrbo.com 12
The Association of Computer Repair Business
Owners is pleased to announce that we have
chosen a cause to support. Obviously there are
thousands upon thousands of different causes
that one could select, but due to the purpose of
this one in particular we have chosen it to become
our cause to support.
The name of the cause is “The Owen Lea
Foundation”, it was established to provide
support to families living with Neuroblastoma, a
rare and difficult to treat form of childhood
cancer. As of now, there is no cure.
No matter how business is, either good or bad, as
well as other things in your life, “giving” is
something that has always made people feel good
as well as just the right thing to do. With The
Owen Lea Foundation the Association of
Computer Repair Business Owners is making a
commitment to just that; “giving”.
The Owen Lea Foundation:
http://owenleafoundation.org/index.html
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-
Owen-Lea-Foundation/183575405798?ref=ts
Donate: At the bottom of the website you will see
"Help Support The Owen Lea Foundation"...Click
it and make a difference!
The Owen Lea Foundation
Waffie is the official logo and
mascot of the Owen Lea
Foundation
Owen Scott Lea
This months winner will receive the video
series BetterPCTech from Lalo!
We will randomly choose a winner and e-
mail the winner.
Just send an email to [email protected]
and in the Subject line put: Lalo
Last Months winner is: Deans Computer
Vancouver Island,
British Columbia, Canada
If you own a computer business you can’t afford
not to be kept up to date with the latest news
and techniques being used by others. Check out
all the Podnutz series and see what you’ve been
missing. Visit www.PodNutz.com
ISSUE 009 | Sep 2012
www.acrbo.com 13
www.acrbo.com 14
2012 ACRBO Membership Drive
The Association of Computer Repair Business
Owners membership drive for 2012 is now
underway. We just passed our 3rd year as an
Association and it’s our first membership drive
so let’s make it successful.
As we continue to grow, we look forward to
welcoming new Premium Members. We are
having a great year for the Association of
Computer Repair Business Owners, I trust
you’ve been able to participate and take
advantage of the many benefits of membership.
We are continuing to build on our vision to
become the premier Association for computer
repair business owners. With over 3,400
members worldwide, we have tremendous
potential.
Preferred Vendors are continually coming
aboard along with other features to enhance the
Association. Right now we have over 40
Preferred Vendors and are continually adding
more. Some of the vendors are also offering
better discounts to Premium Members vice
regular members such as GFIMax who give
Premium Members 20% off monthly billing vice
the normal 10%.
Our goal would be to have all members become
Premium Members; we made the yearly fee so
low that everyone would be able to afford it,
unlike some other associations that charge in
the hundreds. Plus, you can write it off as an
advertising expense.
Our goal would be to have all members become
Premium Members; we made the yearly fee so
low that everyone would be able to afford it,
unlike some other associations that charge in
the hundreds. Plus, you can write it off as an
advertising expense.
Please consider becoming a Premium Member,
all you have to do is login and click on "Upgrade
Account". If you have any questions or require
additional information, please do not hesitate to
contact me. My contact details are below.
Benefits of being a Premium Member
Featured Listing on
ComputerRepairLocator.com
ACRBO Membership Card
ACRBO Sticker
ACRBO Certificate
Participation in ACRBO Scholarship Fund
Larger discounts from select Preferred Vendors
Monies collected have been used in the past
year for various things to name a few; Owners
shop broken into, helping an owner with legal
fees, 2 scholarships awarded, gift to owner that
was going on a humanitarian trip to build schools
in a village, filing of 501© paperwork, and
website hosting and maintenance.
Dan
Whether you’re thinking it’s Spring Cleaning
Time or time for an annual checkup, your
business needs to undergo a checkup each
year. No matter how large or small your
business is, you cannot gauge the
effectiveness of any changes you’ve made
without analyzing the benefits and bottom
line.
Here are 10 questions to get you started:
How do your year-to-date sales compare to
the last couple of years? Don’t be satisfied if
you managed to match them because if sales
stayed the same then you’ve achieved zero
growth. With inflation, this flat growth line is
a warning sign for more trouble down the
road.
What percentage of your business is from
repeat customers? This is important to know
because if it’s too low, then it needs to be
improved. The estimated cost of getting a
new customer versus retaining an existing
one can be as much as five to one in terms of
dollars spent. Keeping customers is more
cost-effective than constantly seeking new
ones.
How long has it been since you offered a new
product or service? Loyal customers like to
see you changing and progressing with the
times. If you’re stuck for an idea, ask your
customers what they need.
Do you consider marketing and advertising
expenses or investments? How you look at
the money spent in these areas affects your
willingness to spend money at all. Would you
look at prescriptions as a waste of money?
Marketing is really investing in you, your
vision, and your company. The old adage
that you must spend money to make money
is true, but you must spend it wisely. Spend
it on ads that are pulling responses and
orders, and if they’re not maybe you need to
change publications.
Do you know what PR is and how to use it to
positively position your business in the
media? I’ll bet that at least one of your
competitors does. Nearly every mention of a
company or business in the newspapers and
magazines is a direct result of publicity
efforts. Being quoted or featured in an
article speaks volumes to your clients and
readers who are your potential prospects. A
good PR consultant can do that for you and
show you ways to extend the shelf life of that
article beyond its publication.
Are you listed in the yellow pages? If you
only have a line listing, consider including a
small ad in the yellow pages. If you can
afford it, it will pay dividends throughout the
year.
Do you treat your regular customers better
than your drop-ins? You should. If your
customers don’t feel special when coming to
you for products of services, why should they
remain loyal to you? Have a customer
appreciation day or a special invitation only
sale for your regulars. Create a mailing list of
your regulars. Send occasional post cards or
greeting cards for special events or just to
keep in touch. Learn to recognize them on
sight and greet them by name when they visit
you.
How long has it been since you really talked
to one of your customers? Just as you
appreciate when your Doctor takes time to
talk to you, your customers will appreciate
you if you take an interest in their needs. If
you have a service business, have lunch or
coffee periodically with some regulars – even
if they only contact you once or twice a year.
The personal touch in an impersonal world
will be remembered.
www.acrbo.com 15
Your Business Checkup
How is your business doing compared to your
competition? Every company, no matter
what the size, has competition – even home-
based businesses. Is their business growing
or downsizing? Is their pricing or service
better than yours? If so, what can you tell
potential customers about the price
difference? Think about how you can
improve your service to meet or exceed your
customer’s expectations.
Are your employees happy? Don’t ask them
directly, but observe them throughout the
day. Watch, listen and learn. Employees
who like their jobs don’t watch the clock for
quitting time, aren’t habitually late, don’t
have poor body language, don’t spend time
on personal phone calls, and don’t look like
they never smiled. Observe how they
interact with customers. Not everyone is a
match for direct contact with the public, so
make sure you don’t have an employee who
is driving business away.
I can remember when I was working at my
very first job out of school. It was a service
business with just the owner and me at work.
There was direct contact with the clients, and
there was never a problem with smiling when
talking face to face with them. I was given
the best business tip of my life by that
employer, when he pointed out to me that
when talking to clients on the telephone I
should smile too. For some unexplainable
reason, when you smile as you talk on the
phone, the exchange with the client becomes
more pleasant and more productive. It’s as if
that smile went right through the phone
wires to the person to whom you’re talking.
www.acrbo.com 16
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migration)
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for IT Consultants / VARs / MSPs to monitor
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providing ACRBO members with a perfect
solution that can easily fit in, and adapt to
their current workflows and backup/restore
guidelines.
Gillware Gillware, Inc. is now expanding our offerings
in providing a cutting edge offsite backup
solution with many options for you as a
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Visit the “Vendor Specials” page for
full details and for all other Vendor
Specials.
DO WRITE OUT ALL DETAILS in your ad
offer. Read it, edit it, and re-write it for a
shorter, money saving effective ad.
"Think small".
DO FOLLOW ALL THE RULES when writing
your classified ad. Use these ideas.
Attention Interest Desire Action
DO USE A NAME with each classified ad
including your envelopes.
DO NOT CHARGE for sales letters or
circulars.
DO BE HONEST with all your classified ad
claims.
DO IDENTIFY your product.
DO WRITE YOUR CLASSIFIED AD simple,
clear and direct.
DO USE WORDS EVERYONE KNOWS and
everyone will understand what you are
saying.
DO USE A WORD that will benefit a
reader.
DO NOT OVERPRICE your product.
DO ADVERTISE FREQUENTLY. Constant
exposure creates a familiar offer with
better response.
DO OFFER A MONEY BACK GUARANTEE in
your classified ad, salesletter or circular if
possible. An excellent sales technique!
DO TEST YOUR AD in 2 or 3 smaller, low
cost publications.
Record results. Code each ad.
DO READ PUBLICATIONS that relate to
your product. Write for ad rates, paid
circulation, discounts and closing dates.
Keep records.
DO HAVE ALL YOUR LITERATURE AND
PRODUCTS ready for mailing when our ad
appears in the publication of your choice.
Do not delay in responding.
DO USE THE COPYCAT METHOD. Do what
other successful advertisers are doing,
only with a slight twist, idea or offer.
DO RUN SEVERAL ADS worded
differently. Keep records of results.
DON'T OVER ADVERTISE. It can be
expensive. If you want to, do it gradually.
DON'T PRETEND YOU KNOW ALL THE
ANSWERS. Because you don't. Take time
to find out what you need to know.
DON'T TRUST YOUR MEMORY. A thought
will leave you as quickly as it came.
Always write down a good idea!
DON'T PLACE YOUR AD in the wrong
classification.
www.acrbo.com 17
DO 'S AND DON'TS OF WRITING CLASSIFIED ADS
DON'T WASTE YOUR MONEY on ad words
to amuse or entertain, but use words to
persuade, inform and sell your product.
DO USE A SHORT BUSINESS NAME. Make
it easy to pronounce and remember.
DON'T FORGET THE M.E.D.I.C.S.
Motivation. Enthusiasm. Desire. Image.
Creativity. Success!
DON'T GIVE UP. If your ad doesn't pull
after a fair exposure, try re-writing it.
One or two different words may do the
trick.
DON'T SPEND THE PROFITS. Re-invest the
money in more continuous advertising.
DON'T FORGET, an ad that offers "FREE
DETAILS" means writing a sales letter or
circular.
AVOID HIGH TYPESETTING COSTS AND
MISTAKES
Getting your price lists, brochures,
catalogs or newsletters typeset does not
necessarily have to be a costly procedure.
Keep in mind that the main cost in type
setting is the time involved in setting
type. By minimizing the time needed to
create a typeset piece you can effectively
keep your cost down.
The following suggestions can help
reduce your typesetting expense.
Know what you want the FIRST time
around. Have a picture in your mind.
Trial and error can be costly. Don't have
a typesetter set it one way, then decide a
different format would look better.
Reduce and eliminate author's
corrections by thorough proofing and re-
proofing.
Avoid minimum charges by combining
small jobs and having them set at the
same time.
Try to use one family of type to save time
and money by avoiding font changes.
The consistent look is better.
Give explicit instructions on marking up
copy: type styles, column
widths/margins.
With a large job, such as a brochure or
annual report, request a style setting
proof sheet to get approvals before the
entire job is done.
Avoid super rush jobs, especially if you
don't really need them.
Avoid lengthy corrections on the phone.
You might end up paying for corrections
later that could have been avoided if you
had done your editing on proof sheets.
Get the layout finished and approved
before having type set...the same goes
for copy, of course.
Don't depend on the typesetter to read
your mind. Be specific.
www.acrbo.com 18
ACRBO Deals
Laptop Repair Videos
Some of you may have already heard
but Steve Cherubino has disclosed
that he is going to be coming out
with the NEW Computer Repair Tech
Website Builder.
Years ago Steve developed an easy
to build/edit website for computer
businesses and was greeted with
great success and praise from
business owners.
Realizing the market has changed
Steve has done a total revamp to the
Tech Website Builder and it should
be released very soon…
Below is a picture of the old format
that was used with great success.
Really looking forward to this new
release.
STAY TUNED
Computer Repair
Tech Website
Builder
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Thinking about
working on
Laptops? Then
you need this
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from anywhere without
preinstalled software. Full
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sessions, branded with your
company logo. Subscription or
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your customers. Powerful for
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“Going into business for yourself, becoming an entrepreneur, is the
modern-day equivalent of pioneering on the old frontier.” Paula Nelson
Free Trial:
www.instanthousecall.com/free-trial
More Information:
www.instanthousecall.com
Contact: 1-888-838-4050/
Visit
www.LaptopRepairVideos.com
ACRBO Preferred
Vendor
ISSUE 009 | Sep 2012
ACRBO Preferred
Vendor
News
www.acrbo.com 21
Ads on Tablets: 47%
Engage, Says IAB
Nearly half, 47 percent, of tablet users say they engage with advertisements more than once a week. That's according to a recent report from the Interactive Advertising Bureau and its Mobile Marketing Center of Excellence.
On the smartphone side, 25 percent of users said they have the same weekly engagement. Following ad engagement, 80 percent of smartphone users and 89 percent of tablet users take action, said the report.
The "Mobile's Role in the Consumer's Media Day" report studied behaviors on both types of devices, finding each used devices in different ways.
"The key for marketers is looking at how consumers use these devices in different ways, and tailoring brand messages and strategies accordingly," noted Anna Bager VP and GM for the Mobile Marketing Center of Excellence, in a press release.
Nearly one-third of mobile device owners said they were likely to respond to ads that were related to their current location. Almost half- 48 percent - of smartphone users and 59 percent of tablet users said that they regularly conduct local searches on mobile devices while home watching TV.
Smartphone users indicated devices are a crucial part of their everyday life with 70 percent of users stating they don't leave home without it. On the other side of the spectrum are tablets: 70 percent of tablet users stated that these devices only serve them as entertainment and media hubs.
Sixty percent of study participants who have both types of devices said they prefer using their smartphones to look up info on-the-go, compared to just 22 percent who would use tablets for quick mobile information. Seventy percent said they prefer to consume print and video via a tablet.
Time of day also has a direct impact on how consumers use mobile devices. Among smartphone users, 20 percent access social media when they first wake up, and 28 percent said they have free time to access mobile media during midday hours. In addition, the report said primetime television viewing hours cause a spike in both general and social media consumption.
Facebook Now Replacing
Ads on Static Pages
Facebook appears to be taking a new approach to the way it serves ads that could bring in more revenue. Attentive Facebook ad observers may have noticed ads shown in the right sidebar on Facebook pages suddenly transforming. It turns out Facebook is now rotating ads while users remain on a single page.
"We recently made a change to some pages that show ads on Facebook that allows ads to be replaced with others after an extended period of time," a Facebook spokesperson told ClickZ. "This change was implemented a few weeks ago and we think this will help people see more relevant ads."
Indeed, most likely Facebook is altering ads displayed on an otherwise-static page in the hopes of generating higher click-through rates. If a user is not clicking the ads originally served when he visits a page, Facebook may replace those with ads its system determines to be more relevant.
Traditionally on Facebook and across the web, targeted display ads are served when a page is loaded and remain constant until a user leaves the page or refreshes the page.
Since the firm's botched IPO, Facebook has dodged criticism about its ability to bring in the amount of ad revenue investors originally expected. Following a quiet period, the company has been vocal about its plans to create more ad revenue. For instance, the firm recently announced plans to launch a real-time ad exchange, opening its site up to a large pool of data for display ad targeting.
The ad rotation change appears to be a less-public way for Facebook to optimize its current approach to ad sales and services.
-Stephen Colbert
ISSUE 009 | Sep 2012
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Marketing Effectively with E-mail Marketing
Like any type of marketing, email marketing
involves a great deal of time and effort to
ensure the marketing campaign is effective.
This is important because an ineffective
marketing campaign of any type is a waste of
money and resources. Spending a great deal of
time, energy and money into an email
marketing campaign which is not reaching the
members of the target audience and is not
convincing recipients of the email to make a
purchase or visit your website is not
worthwhile. This article will discuss how to
implement an effective email marketing
strategy to ensure your business, financial and
personal goals are being met.
One of the most important aspects of
marketing effectively with email is to ensure
your marketing efforts are reaching the
members of your target audience. One way to
do this is to ask former customers as well as
potential customers to join your email
distribution list. This will help to ensure the
majority of members on your email
distribution list have an actual interest in your
products or services. This is important because
you are much more likely to generate sales
when you are marketing to this type of an
audience than you would if you were
marketing to a much larger audience without
an interest in your products.
Another aspect of marketing effectively is to
hire an experienced professional writer to
draft the content for your emails, e-
newsletters, email courses or any other
methods you are using to email your message
to potential customers. Having your content
written can give you a significant edge over the
competition if they are drafting their content
themselves. The quality of your content is a
reflection on your business and poorly written
content with no substance will reflect poorly
on your business.
Effective email marketing should also be
written in a manner which will appeal to the
target audience. If necessary you should
conduct market research to determine
demographical information for your target
audience. This research may also determine
preferences the target audience may have for
receiving marketing information. This may
include the type of language used, the format
of the emails, the layout of the emails and
even aesthetic appearance of the emails.
Paying attention to these details can make the
email marketing campaign significantly more
effective.
Finally, effective email marketing should not
be viewed as spam. This is a difficult situation.
In many cases an email marketing campaign
will involve distributing mass emails but care
should be taken in these endeavors to avoid
having these emails construed as spam. This is
important because many Internet service
providers include spam filters which apply
algorithms to each email account to determine
which messages are spam and which ones are
legitimate. Emails which are deemed to be
spam may never reach the intended recipients.
Emails which may it through the spam filters
may also be automatically deleted if the
Internet user believes it looks like spam. For
this reason care should be taken to ensure all
marketing emails provide quality content,
advertise only subtly and ideally are only sent
to email recipients who have specifically
requested information about your products or
services. This will give you the best opportunity
possible to reach your target audience and
have a positive impression on them and
hopefully entice them to make a purchase or
visit your website.
www.acrbo.com 25
Site: www.TechNibble.com
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Technibble is a free resource for Computer
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Technibble helps computer technicians with
information and how-to-articles published a few
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Technibble helps you by covering topics such as:
- How to start a Computer Business
- Advertising, how to get clients and keep them
- Business and legal issues
- Streamline your computer repair work
- Technician related product reviews and discounts
- New opportunities to look out for
- Stories from “the trenches” from your fellow
Computer Techs
Technibble also has a large database of Computer
Repair tools and adds a new on to its database
every week.
Be sure to check out the Archives, Computer
Repair Tools section and the Computer
Technician forum. .
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What is The Force Field?
The Force Field is the name of a podcast for IT Service Professionals, IT consultants, VARs, computer shops and anyone else in the technology field, particularly those who offer products and services to end users.
The half hour show is produced by Savoia Media and hosted by Rick Savoia, an IT Service Professional who is also a veteran in the broadcast industry.
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ISSUE 009 | Sep 2012
www.acrbo.com 26
Dennis Drew [email protected] Now available for Android and iPhones
Put simply, an app makes things easier; they make accessing information quicker and more
convenient for the user. The app market caters for everyone, apps can help customers find you,
find out more about your business and interact with you. Businesses are now putting faith in
apps to generate revenue, raise brand awareness and increase user engagement. I compare it
to the internet came about and people were wondering “Do I really need a website?”. The same
can be asked of apps, and to me the answer is yes. If it’s affordable and doable why not
implement it into your business.
Pricing is: $50 for just the Android app, $125 for the iPhone version, or $150 for both
(Prices reflect ACRBO membership discount)
Contact Dennis Drew [email protected] for more information
Business Apps
www.acrbo.com 27