Fundation, LendingClub, & PayPal Can Fund Your Small Business

  Unless you’ve undergone some catastrophe or have awful credit, you can absolutely get funded to do business. This post explores three options for you to receive funding to move forward with your small business, but there are quite a bit more options available for businesses in all fields, under just about any circumstances. The key to get started is to avoid coming up with an arbitrary amount of money that you want, but instead figuring out exactly what you need and find a lender that will give you that–no more, and no less. Let’s take a look at how you can hit your mark and get funded now for whatever you need.   What Kind of Funding Do You Need?   The kind of funding your business needs will determine the type of lender that’s best for you. Obviously, you can still probably get the money you need, even …

Basics of SEO and Finding the Best Keywords

SEO is something that most business owners think they understand but probably don’t really have a firm grasp on it. It is definitely an area of online marketing that is foundational. The of this article is to instill a working understanding of SEO while concentrating specifically on how to use the correct keywords that will guide web visitors to your content who are likely to convert to your customers. SEO is Key to Building Your Blog A rough definition of SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is the set of Internet search protocol that you can exploit to make your online (blog) content more visible to web searchers. This is the primary machine that drives people to your blog content, in turn bringing more people to your business’ website. You can go back to the following additional post to learn more about how this relates to your business blog: https://talkroute.com/why-does-every-business-have-a-blog-now/ So, to …

Zendesk: One of the Best Business Tools for Customer Support

After even a short time using Zendesk, you see that they put a lot of thought into making the platform as densely packed with tools for support service as it could possibly be. Zendesk doesn’t just give you a way to efficiently interact with customers; it clearly makes it the first priority to let businesses interact with customers in such a way that they feel as if your support representatives are right there with them every step of the way. We’re going to look at all the services and features you get with Zendesk, but the goal here is to illustrate how the platform gives you all the tools you need to interact with your customers just as closely as you would if they were in a physical store with you. Email & Chat Support in One Package The primary reason you’re going to be using Zendesk will most likely …

The Secret to Writing Great Blog Headlines

  It’s tough to say what is the most important element of a blog article, but your headline is certainly a top contender. You could be Ernest Hemingway, but if no one wants to click on your headline, they’re never going to read it, anyway. There is a kind of science to writing effective headlines. A good one will describe, in very short length, what the content is going to be about, while being interesting and clickable at the same time. This is harder than it looks, which is why we’re offering this post to give you some good ideas on how to build your headlines so that they will perform well.   Spend More Time On Your Headlines   Like the title of a book, the headline is what first hooks someone and draws them in. If you’re scratching your head trying to figure out why your articles aren’t …

Why VoIP Phone Service is More Trouble than It’s Worth

There are many different types of phone service. With our technology today, you can literally have your pick of a variety of service providers that will fit your particular business the best. Given that advanced technology, however, VoIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) systems are beginning to trail behind because the virtual phone systems available now have everything you get with VoIP, but better and more versatile. There are still applications where VoIP has value, for sure. The only problem with them, though, is that you can get more while investing less with a virtual phone system. If you’re in the market for a VoIP service provider, here’s why you may want to reconsider that. There May Be More Cost than You Bargained For Where a virtual service usually just needs you to sign up, and be up and running in an hour at most, a VoIP service isn’t that simple. …

How to Use the Local Press to Grow Your Small Business

Since you probably put most of your marketing efforts into online media, there is an outlet you most likely haven’t paid much attention to–local mainstream media. You definitely should be paying more attention to online content marketing, but at the same time, it’s advantageous to devote some energy to local media and news outlets, as well. There are opportunities in that area which also have the potential to give your business a boost of exposure. It’s easy to overlook it. Of course, content marketing is the primary method of reaching new customers these days, but people still consume content through the traditional channels, too. Mainstream Media Channels Are Not Dead Local or wider news media channels probably don’t even enter your mind for marketing your business, but they can still be useful in the age of the Internet. It may seem pointless, but there are ways in which your business …

Mailchimp vs. Constant Contact: Email Marketing & Automation

  Email marketing: One of the most surprisingly effective methods of gaining attention for your company that actually translates to new sales. Even though it was one of the first uses that people found for the Internet, email has somehow kept some momentum from the 90s, to the present day. Now, it has come back in a big way with the development of online marketing technology, which marries perfectly with email. If you’re of the mind that email is dead, then you need to disabuse yourself of that idea. Email marketing, along with the automation provided by a service like Mailchimp or Constant Contact, is one of the best drivers of sales currently available. Both of these providers have roughly the same tools and functions to inspire increased web traffic for your business, but each one has its own advantages. Let’s see which one comes out ahead.   Bang for …

Working from Home? Learn How to Separate Your Work & Home Life

Running a business out of your home can be a great experience and a tremendous advantage, but there are also some drawbacks and pitfalls that most entrepreneurs don’t foresee when they embark on their home business venture. Most of these drawbacks involve adjusting to the working environment. Whether you started a home based business or you temporarily have to work from home, there are many things you can do to set yourself up for remote success! Ultimately, the biggest mistake you can make is to jump right into it without taking much thought for how you will manage it and what your days are going to look like. You will definitely need to separate your work from your personal life, even though those two things will be happening in the same place. This is how to do it: Understand the Psychological Effects of Working from Home For those who have …

7 Ways to Improve Your Phone System with Automation

Automation for phone systems was one of the most important things that was ever created for businesses. It’s honestly kind of crazy not to take advantage of automation for managing your business calls because it does nothing but add value for you, across the board. It saves time, saves labor, gives the caller a better experience, and prevents you from losing sales due to confused or frustrated callers. There are a variety of ways that automation can enable your phone system to function better, and here are a few of those benefits. 1. Create a Company Directory Even if you only have a small number of employees, adding a company directory allows you to professionally direct callers to the right person, right away. With a directory, there is no need for them to speak to a representative before they can be transferred to the right person because you can eliminate …

How to Be a Better CEO

So, you’re the CEO of your own company. That’s a huge accomplishment and a fantastic position to be in, but just being in the position doesn’t mean that you’re automatically good at it. It’s easy to just sit back and revel in the fact that you’re the boss, without putting too much effort into the continual improvement of yourself, your company, and the way you do business because after all, you don’t answer to anyone, right? Technically, you still answer to your customers (or shareholders), but that’s not the point here. The point is that to be a highly successful CEO, you have to do a lot more than just take a seat and watch the cash roll in, and in fact, if you do that, the cash is bound to stop rolling in at some point. You need to be actively involved in all aspects of your company while …