Clean Code is Merely the Beginning of a Good Website

Guest post by Jonathan Parker There are always people out there looking to make quick money with services based not on uncompromising quality but minimalism or mediocrity. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is no different of an industry. I learned years ago that there is this “website designers vs. SEO” mentality. For real results, SEO must… Read More »

Dress and Code Required

By Chuck Sink Being found by your target audience on the web is a great way to keep your new business pipeline full. There are several ways to raise your search visibility and page rankings. Ideally, all of them should be practiced. They include developing authoritative status; excellent content using keywords including contextual and situational long… Read More »

Be So Good They Have to Try You!

By Chuck Sink “You cannot be serious!” Imagine if John McEnroe had a meltdown about something he couldn’t believe was so… good! Every once in a while there’s a new product or service so damn good it’s hard to believeit’s available without an inordinate cost. For example, I’m amazed by the value of email marketing on Constant… Read More »

One salesperson = 2,000 more. Sound good?

By Chuck Sink This is important and serious business. Social Media – Facebook and Twitter in particular, have a bad rap in some business circles. Here’s why you need to consider some combination of Twitter, Google Plus, LinkedIn, Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram, depending on what business you’re in. The holdouts still abound! There are many in small business… Read More »

Isolation is Desolation

By Chuck Sink In the early years of my selling career, I was lucky to have a decent smile, a sharp suit and manners instilled by my parents. Just showing up at the right time enabled me to take orders from prospects and customers. It was luck (to me, Providence) because all I really cared about… Read More »

Showing up is fine. Helping unexpectedly is priceless!

By Chuck Sink There is a lot of volunteerism and philanthropy going on all the time. Most businesses I know devote time, energy and money to showing up at fundraisers, volunteer events and simply giving for the sake of helping the less fortunate among us. Thank God for the generosity of so many in the… Read More »

No Product, Pill or Person

By Chuck Sink There are these really old guys out there, some passed like Zig Ziglar, who no longer appeal to new generations striving to succeed in business. A new breed has come along. They promise miracles if you will only follow their formula to the letter. If you try and fail, it’s your fault for… Read More »

Marketing is (Almost) Everything!

By Chuck Sink Executives and business owners will often call in a marketing company for ideas to help rejuvenate sluggish or declining sales. “We just need help attracting some fresh new leads for the sales team and we can handle it once we get them talking with us.” It’s a commonly expressed sentiment. My experience has… Read More »

There’s a better way to design your website.

By Chuck Sink There is web design and there is graphic design. These are two completely different disciplines. Avoid melding the two. There several different definitions of the word, design. Let’s consider a few of them: Design: to prepare the preliminary sketch or the plans for (a work to be executed), especially to plan the form… Read More »

Make them want to be there.

By Chuck Sink It occurs to me that marketing and sales have more parallels to teaching than people may realize. As an adjunct professor I’m learning a lot about audience engagement. Students sit though class because they have to, not because they want to. Their parents are paying good money for them to be there.… Read More »