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What makes a good networker?

At my morning networking meeting today, I was reminded of the top 5 traits of a good networker.  These are:

1. Follow up on referrals
2. Have a positive attitude
3. Be enthusiastic and motivated
4. Be trustworthy
5. Ensure good listening skills

Follow up on referrals

It never ceases to amaze me, how clients spend a fortune generating leads and then never prioritise to actually follow up and get back to people.  I have seen clients attend exhibitions spending weeks developing bespoke purpose built stands, to gain signficant number of contacts, but fail to follow up properly on these people.

It is vital to ensure you have a process to generate referrals and to follow up with referrals and one which reminds you (if relevant) to thank your contact for the referral.

Have a positive attitude

Do you adopt a "glass half full" approach or is it "always empty"?  People like to network with people who are cheerful, upbeat and positive.  There is enough negativity in this world with the news and people who moan about everything, positive people are much more fun to be with.  If you want to be successful at networking - be a positive, be a can do person.

Be enthusiastic and motivated

When you meet people, be enthusiastic about what you do - if you have enthusiasm and passion - this will come across.  Show you are a motivated person, fellow networkers will feel more likely to engage with you and pass referrals on.  There is nothing worse than standing at a networking event with a person who is "bored" and lacks enthusiasm.

Be trustworthy

Be reliable and honest and do what you say you will.  I am unlikely to pass a referral to a person I do not trust. 

Ensure good listening skills

Networking is about developing relationships and you cannot do this by talking about yourself all the time.  Ask open questions - "who, what, where, why, how" etc., and listen to the answers - get to know the people you are networking with, what makes them "tick"?, what is their unique sales proposition in business? and how might you be able to help them?

These are not all the traits of a good networker, but they are 5 key ones - does anyone else have any other thoughts?

I would look forward to hearing them.

Cheers for now

Ann Goodwin

Tags: Networking skills | what makes a good networker

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Today is World Sight Day, an annual day of awareness to focus attention on blindness, visual impairment and rehabilitation of the visually impaired and is held on the second Thursday of October.

Maybe its time to put yourself in the shoes of your customers and look at how they view your company, what would you expect from your company if you were a customer? What would you do to improve the user experience?

As marketing professionals, we understand what customers what from a business, so why not have a chat with us and see for yourself, with our help, what your customers want.

Tags: Marketing professionals | World Sight Day | marketing

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Jo:

Jo has been pretty busy over the past few weeks as she took control of the fort whilst Ann jetted off to New Zealand for the Rugby World Cup. 

Tags: web design | marketing | Win Marketing | pr | Rugby World Cup | social media | restoration uk | online marketing strategy

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So, the first week of July proved to be hectic for all of the team here at Win Marketing with Jo trekking around London, George editing lots of graduation video footage, Nad perfecting and launching the new Shapaclean website and Ann mixing work with pleasure in Spain!
 
And with everyone so busy, it’s time for me, otherwise know as temporary team member Jen to fill you in on all the goings on this week!
 
Ann was in the sunny Costa Del Sol having a working holiday, taking a bit of time to relax but also sorting out marketing audits and strategies left, right and centre, while also making sure she was up to date with all the news in the office and keeping us all on our toes. She managed to fit a bit of time in with her friend San though. San Miguel that is...
 
Nad turned his talents to more websites this week, including Med-Innova, Sharpaclean and our very own shiny, new Win Marketing website, working hard to get the Sharpaclean site up and running, seeing it go live on Friday afternoon. Make sure you check it out to sort out all your cleaning needs.
He also gave a bit of market research a go, calling businesses on behalf of East West Link and helped out with technical issues from helping Audrey, our accounts lady with her computer, to supporting me with a binding machine with a mind of its own!
 
George was up to his elbows in NEBOSH videos, editing footage of a graduation ceremony at Warwick University, filmed the week before. He also collected data from clients for a big power point presentation, and developed a new logo for Real Russia, which was swiftly printed onto new hats for the company! He also prepared several website templates to go onto Nad to bring his designs to life!
 
Jo was London bound at the end of the week, heading to the capital to meet with the team in the offices of Real Russia, and working with Real Russia’s Brigitte to do a bit of mystery shopping.
Earlier in the week saw Jo and George put their heads together to work on the NEBOSH video, as well as her doing market research for Hegarty solicitors and taking the reigns and becoming Ann mark 2 to keep everything running smoothly with Ann by the pool in España!
 
Jen. The week saw me getting a nick name (Jaydot 2!) and helping everyone as much as possible in this very busy week, carrying out market research for both Real Russia and Hegarty, following up on a press release we sent out for Air Fuel Synthesis which has been published in both the Australian and US media and working on blogs and social media updates for companies all across the board! 

Keep an eye out on Facebook and Twitter for all the news from us here at Win Marketing and all of the companies we are working with!
 
See you next week!

Until then, here is a great photo of George modelling his latest logo development on ont of the caps for Real Russia, what do we think, can he pull it off?

Tags: website | sharpaclean | marketing | NESBOSH | warwick university | designs | market research | air fuel synthesis | facebook | twitter | video editing

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I was recently asked to give a presentation at the Leicester Business Club on how small and medium sized businesses could market themselves in a cost effective manner.

My presentation, entitled cost-effective marketing is attached.

It is important to develop your strategy, but in order to develop a marketing strategy, you must first confirm your market place.  Ask customers questions, assess your position in the market and your sales proposition against your competitors and your customers' needs and wants.  Try to understand what problems they have that you can solve.

The presentation covers, how you determine your planning gap and how you can achieve your marketing and business growth objectives.

In order to achieve a greater response rate from your marketing communications activities, it is important to focus not just on the features of your prodcut or service.  The F.A.B approach of features, advantages and benefits should help to communicate your marketing messages in a manner that customers are more likely to respond to.  If you can say "So what" at the end of a sentence you have probably made reference to a feature - you need to follow it up with, "which means that ..."

The presentation provides some practical marketing and promotion tips on getting noticed in a cost-effective manner.  It provides useful tips on how to be effective in your public relations and web marketing.  Covering some creative ideas on gaining exposure and tips around search engine optimisation, social media marketing and blogs.

The presentaiton concludes with a summary that you should maintain a U.P.I.R approach to your marketing.  Your proactive infra-red system which means you can be one step ahead of the competition. 

U = Understand the market

P = Plan your marketing activities

I = Implement your plan

R = Review your activities, adjust, increase your understanding and start the cycle all over again

Download the sideshow (1.3 Mb, PPS)

To print this document:
Save the slide show to your documents
Open Microsoft PowerPoint
Locate the PPS file and click "Open."
Click "File" and choose "Print."

I hope you find the material useful

Regards
Ann Goodwin, FCIM, DipM, Chartered Marketer

Ann is a marketing practitioner of over 30 years experience and has spoken at conferences, delivered marketing and sales training in the UK and internationally in the Middle East and the Caribbean.

Tags: cost effective marketing | practical tips for marketing | effective public relations | marketing planning | features advantages and benefits

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Does your website comply?

In the UK, we are all familiar with the code of practice relevant to advertising - you cannot just advertise without following guidelines.  The  Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has a range of rules to protect consumers and ensure organisations do not make false claims in their advertising.  Any marketing communications practitioner is well aware of these standards.

As from 1 March 2011, the ASA’s online remit has been extended to cover websites and other non-paid for space under an organisation's direct control, which includes social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter.  

As with traditional advertising, the UK Code of Non-broadcast Advertising, Sales Promotion and Direct Marketing (the CAP Code) now applies in full to marketing messages online, including the rules relating to misleading advertising, social responsibility and the protection of children.

This new code should be seen as positive for both consumers and businesses as it will ensure high standards across digital media communication. The CAP Code includes rules that help to ensure marketing communications remain legal, decent, honest and truthful.

The code is relevant for any UK company promoting itself online (including their website), regardless of its market sector, industry, business type or size of organisation.

The code is not intended to catch organisations out, or to provide a "big brother" approach, it is designed to protect consumers and businesses alike. To that end, it promotes and preserves organisations’ right to advertise responsibly – and those that do, shouldn’t find it burdensome to comply with.

If you are unsure as to whether your website and digital marketing activity complies, or you feel the time is right to address your digital marketing strategy then please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards
Ann Goodwin FCIM, DipM

Tags: New code of practice for websites | CAP code | website compliance | new advertising rules for websites

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I am pleased to report that there are still some business development grants available for any business operating in Leicetser City Centre.

There are some pre-requisites as to how you obtain this grant, but there is 60:40 fund matching for any business based in the city centre who has not had any direct contact with Business Link.

The purpose of this grant is to help businesses grow and succeed in the City.

If you are interested in developing your business and think a grant would help you to:

• Conduct market research to help you understand more about your customers and market place
• Formulate a marketing strategy to help your marketing direction
• Generate new marketing promotional materials
• Develop your website
• Conduct a Public relations campaign
• Implement an online web marketing campaign using search engine optimisation techniques and social media

Please ask one of the consultants at Win Marketing for advice.  We are currenlty helping a number of clients to benefit from this grant and to help them grow their business.

Tags: Grants for marketing in Leicester | growing your business in Leicester | Website development in Leicester | Marketing in Leicester | Market research in Leicester

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Having written copy for sales and marketing material for nearly 30 year and for websites for 10 years, I was asked recently how tdo I generate content.  I come at it from a marketing perspective first and foremost - which means I think of my clients' customers.

I try to get my client talking about his customers and why they use his products/services? I try and let my client give me all the features of his business and turn these into advantages and benefits relevant to the different audiences he deals with.

If is important to keep asking "why" to really get through the features and facts and get to the benefits. You need to ask who else is involved in the purchasing decision to ensure that the features and benefits are relevant for the different stakeholders. For example, if you client is a medical equipment manufacturer, you will need to think about the benefits for the patient, the clinician, the nursing staff, the procurement team and the financial people.

Having gone through thinking about the messages to the customers, it is then important to ask the client - what makes you different from the competition? Out of the content which he has given to you - what could be applied in similar way by the competitors?

A good question I ask - is: Why should customers and prospects use you over company X or Y?

I look for the top level message (the elevator pitch message) - by asking if you met a prospect in the lift and had 30 seconds to tell them about your business what would you say. This helps to steer more detailed content for other pages or either a website and/or literature.

it is important to understand the tone and style your client likes in the written word. Friendly, professional, technical, etc all need to be considered along with do you write in the third party or singular tense. I try to write more content focusing on the client and the word You rather than me and we.

Other questions may include

    * If your client does not use you - what are the alternatives?
    * What are the long/short term advantages of using your company?
    * What types of individuals benefit from your product/service?
    * Why do they benefit?

When I have got the facts and raw information, I then use competitor analysis, key word research, check industry magazines and blogs to understand more about the terminology and what is fit for purpose, e.g., for Search Engine optimisation purposes and for relevant target audiences.

I am sure there is loads more that we could think about, but hope this blog helps as a starter.

Regards

Ann Goodwin

Tags: writing content for websites | copywriting for websites | copyriting for sales material | content for promotional material

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This week, we have facilitated a communications workshop for a professional membership organisation.  It reminded us of how easy it is to use our own terms of reference and assume knowledge when communicating with others, especially amongst our team members.

The famous saying of be aware of assuming - ASSUME - it can make an ASS out of U (you) and ME is as true today as it was years ago.  The danger today is that with communication having to break through more noise than ever before, we often "assume" things which can result in a whole raft of problems. 

Assumptions ar a key barrier to effective communication  We can assume our partners are listening, when we asked them to pick up the children; or that staff know what they need to, in order to complete a task efficiently and effectively.

It is easy to make various assumptions that can have a detrimental affect on our ability to communicate. Here are some common assuptions:

• I know your views on the situation
• The other person is to blame for the problem
• We need to solve the others person's problem
• We are right and they are wrong
• You know how to do something
• You know what I am talking about

What are the assumptions you make in the workplace or at home on a daily basis?  How efficient and more effective could you be, if you just stopped and checked your assumptions?  Feedback is a vital element of the communications process.  If we gathered feedback more often and clarified understanding of our communications, we might be more effective more of the time.

We welcome comments as to what assumptions you have made and where it has caused you or your organisation problems in the past?

Tags: Communications; communications trai

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What a difference Winter tyres have made to some of the team at Win Marketing.

After visiting Poland last year in the depths of winter, Win Marketing's Managing Director Ann Goodwin was so impressed with the difference that winter tyres made, that as soon as the bad weather arrived in England last week, she invested in a set of winter tyres for her automatic, rear wheel drive car.

As Ann said, "without winter tyres, my car was not driveable, I kept skidding and sliding everywhere and my car got stuck in my village.  When the snow cleared a little, I was able to get the car out and went straight to the local tyre fitters and had winter tyres fitted.  The difference was amazing, I was so impressed that I also purchased a set for the company pool car as well".

It is important to the team at Win Marketing that they can get out and about to see clients and that the bad weather does not have too much of an advserse affect on our business.  With some of our clients operating in the health and safety sector, we have promoted health and safety issues for over 15 years.  As such, we are more than aware of the importance to assess the health and safety risks and where possible trying to put in procedures to mitigate risk.

If anyone is thinking 'should I invest in winter tyres in the UK?'  Our answer would be yes, definately.  We just cannot believe that the tyre companies are not promoting the safe benefits of winter tyres.  A lot of people we have spoken to have never heard of winter tyres at all.  Come on tyre companies - promote the benefits and help people to be safer on the roads this winter!  You never know if the demand increases, they may increase supply and result in cheaper winter tyres in the future.

Tags: promoting health and safety | promoting benefits of winter tyres | safer driving | Winter tyres

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What a shame.

Here at Win Marketing we are all gutted that we didn't get the result to bring the Football World Cup home to England.  We thought our bid had an excellent chance of winning and it was great to see HRH Prince William, the Prime Minister, the Rt Hon David Cameron and David Beckham working together.  The speeches sounded brilliant, well thought out from a script perspective and delivered superbly - a lesson for anyone in business who needs to deliver a high quality, meaningful presentation.  Commiserations to all involved.

Congratulations to Russia and to Qatar.

The team at Win Marketing has delivered a number of marketing projects in the region and has excellent links in Doha, helping clients with their marketing and promotional activities in Qatar and the Middle East region.  I know the Qataris and the ex-pats will be delighted with the decision.  It proves that Qatar is a country to be taken seriously as its economy continues to grow. 

So where will England go from here?  At least we have the Olympics in 2012 and the Rugby World Cup in 2015 to look forward to.  Staging two out of three major sporting events is not a bad place to be so we shoudl not be too down hearted.

Tags:

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What are you doing to integrate your social media marketing into the rest of your marketing communications?

Social media as we know is a powerful opportunity to engage with customers and influencers.   Do the benefits far outweigh the risks?  How are you engaging with you audiences?  How do you protect your brand online, whilst at the same time developing advocates?

Do you monitor the trends in your industry?  What are people saying and how can you improve your products or service offering based on this invaluable feedback?

Developing a social media strategy is fundamental to helping you gain the most from social media.  Like any business strategy, it is good practice to understand where you are now and where you want to be? 

So what are you trying to achieve from social media?

Are your implementation tactics keeping you on course to meet these objectives?

How do you monitor your tactics to know if you are llikely to achieve your objectives?

What will you do differently if you need to?

Developing any business strategy is about identifying where your business is, where it needs to be and determining a range of solutions to help you meet your objectives.  You need to set up evaluation and monitoring processes to assess the performance and adjusting accordingly to keep your business on track.  Is a social media strategy any different?

Tags: developing your social media strate | Social media marketing strategy

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How are you protecting your reputation online?

In today's fast moving online world, individuals can post comments related to a service they receive or their employers.  These comments can have a positive or negative impact on a brand and a company.  So how are companies adapting to this potential threat?

Win Marketing is researching into how a company can protect their brand and their reputation online.  What guidelines are companies adopting with regards to social media to help protect themselves?  And, how do companies manage the issues of risk related to social media from a legal perspective?

If anyone has any thoughts on this, please tweet us your comments or post them onto this blog.

Tags:

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Continuing with our connection and support of Leicester Tigers, some of the team went to the launch of the new Leicester Tigers Crumbie clothing collection last night.  The new range is fantastic and it was great to see some of the players modelling the new clothing.  The clothing is no doubt available to view online at leicestertigers.com.

Before the fasion show, Tigers hosted the rugby hour, BBC radio Leicester's weekly rugby programme, where fans could ask questions of Martin Corry, Ben Kay, Billy Twelvetrees, Jordan Crane and Ben Herring.  This radio programme will be aired on Wednesday 3rd November at 6pm.

Tags:

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The team at Win Marketing was invited by the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) to support their Islamic Research and Training Institute (IRTI) and help them to develop their international strategic marketing.

Ann Goodwin and Sandra Lawes visited Jeddah, in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to conduct market research and develop their marketing strategy.  The President and the senior management of IDB were pleased with the results and the IRTI management are now working on a process of implementating the strategy.

After visiting Saudi Arabia a few times, Ann had to quickly learn, understand and accept the unique Saudi culture including wearing an Abaya.   Ann feels privileged to have gained a greater understanding and knowledge of the culture and in particular an insight into women working in the Kingdom. 

If anyone is interested in developing their international marketing strategy they should contact the Win Marketing team on +44 1509 265890.

If anyone has any comments or advice for women working in Saudi that they would like to share please email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Tags:

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Win Marketing are delighted to be the marketing specialists and web designer in a new BNI group which is starting in Syston, Leicestershire.  We are currently looking for new members and are particularly interested in hearing from any Electricians, Plumbers, Health and Safety Consultants, Printers and Estate Agents in the Syston, Loughborough, Melton and Leicester area who are looking to develop their business.  The group meets every Wednesday morning and if you are interested to know more please contact Ann Goodwin on 01509 265890 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Tags:

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Leicester Tigers and ex All Blacks rugby players Scott Hamilton and Craig Newby visited Win Marketing yesterday.  The lads are keen to work with local rugby clubs to help with coaching and providing some entertainment with after dinner speaking.  They have asked the team at Win Marketing to help them promote their services.

More details will follow soon, but outside of their Leicester Tigers commitments, these ex All Black internationals are keen to work with rugby clubs in the East Midlands area. 

If any local rugby club would like to hire Scott or Craig for some coaching or entertainment then please contact Jo Goodwin on 01509 265890 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Tags:

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Working with a cross section of clients across B2B, B2C and FMCG accounts, the successful candidate will relish the opportunity to be part of a growing organisation, built on reputation through genuinely exceeding customer expectations.

In conjunction with the in-house creative team of a web developer, designer and copywriter, the Account Manager will be responsible for developing and implementing innovative campaigns for clients.  As a team we deliver across the whole marketing communications spectrum from strategic planning and market research through to PR, event organisation, telemarketing, digital marketing and social media.

Project management and planning skills are vital to ensure that deadlines are not missed as is the ability to develop and maintain client relationships.   The successful candidate is likely to have experience in all aspects of marketing communication having worked ideally with an agency in an Account Executive or Manager position.  

As well as having a sense of humour and team spirit, the successful candidate needs to be enthusiastic, positive, proactive, caring, flexible, presentable, diplomatic and have good communication skills and knowledge of Microsoft Office.   

Ideally, the candidate will have experience (although this is not essential) in some or all of the following activities: print buying; proposal writing; Public relations; Copywriting for media releases, promotional literature and websites; Working with content managed websites; Market research and telemarketing; and Event organisation.

Please note this position is only available to people who are entitled to work in the United Kingdom.

Salary is negotiable dependent on the skills and experience of the successful candidate.

If you are seeking to make a difference, want to be recognised, love teamwork and relish a challenge then e-mail your CV to me today This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Closing Date: 01/11/2010

Tags: Job | Marketing Account Manager

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Win Marketing are now proudly sponsoring Leicester Tigers player Robert Hawkins! Take a look at his biog.

Tags: rugby | sponsor

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Free design resources can often be helpful when setting up a new brand or service, check out the following free fonts.

ChunkFive

PT Sans

Ripe

Nadia Serif

Birra Stout

Tags: free fonts | resources | branding

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