We have now awarded the second website in our Community Website program.

Following from The Dood Foundation site which was awarded in January, the second site awarded is for Community Care International who focus on assisting children in underprivileged  countries.

If you are involved in a not-for-profit group and would like to apply for a website under our Community Program, jump across to the Contact page or call us on 1300 884 757 and let us know who you are.

We’ll be posting CCI site live very shortly but in the meantime, you can see it on the Portfolio page.

A client faxed me a letter last week that looked for all the world like a legitimate Domain name renewal invoice - until you looked a little closer…

Think about the offer:

“Receive a FREE iPod Shuffle with every 2 year registration”

I did a quick Google search on ‘buy ipod shuffle’ and found that I could get a 1G Shuffle at OfficeWorks for $65.00.

Interesting, so how do they make money when to register an Australian domain costs less than $65? Then I read the financial aspects of the offer:

They were asking my client to register a .com domain for $249.00. They’re worth $20 or thereabouts! So if they’re buying them direct from the USA for about $12, even with the free iPod Shuffle, there’s a huge margin.

So I called their promoted number only to get a voicemail saying that all their sales team were busy and would I leave a message?

Nice one guys…

No names, no pack drill here; the message is simple - check with us before you pay any unsolicited domain name registration invoice. And to my little furry friends who initiated this masterpiece of deception, I hope you send me one of your letters for one of my / our domains. I’d love to write you a response letter…

It’s March already and Queenslanders go to the polls in just a couple of weeks to tell the two combatants who they most trust to manage our economy for the next few years…

Amidst talk of doom and gloom, we’re really busy here at Mediaglue. That’s a great sign that our customers see that they need to work on their marketing image when others around them are waiting to see what’s going to happen next.And that they trust us to help so Thank You to all of our customers!!

The reality is that for those who are smart, the time to get aggressive in the marketplace is when others are playing it down.

Now is the time to be investigating AdWords campaigns, to be investigating affiliate marketing, banner advertising and joint ventures. What’s more, now is the time to be speaking with people who have been there before and know that “economic downturns” pass. Now is the time where experience comes to the fore, when a Bachelor of Bitter Experience  (B.Be.)is a bankable commodity.

More than a positive mental attitude, a (B.Be.) comes with calmness and confidence. Exactly what you need when looking at how to move your marketing forward in 2009.

If your business is bricks-and-mortar based; if you’re selling real world products and services, right now is the time to revisit those old sales skills the younger members of our business community don’t have.

Remember the old line, “It’s about relationships”? Well, right now, it is. It’s about establishing and maintaining trust, about understanding the issues your marketplace faces and delivering what you promise and staying true to your core values.

Sales training is a necessary, almost mandatory skill for business owners as well as salespeople. As a business owner, how can you expect to manage or coach a salesperson if you don’t understand the process yourself? How do you know where they’re going wrong?

I was talking to well-known Brisbane sales trainer Stuart Ayling last week and made the comment that the next year or two will be very profitable for well-trained, professional consultative salespeople. He agreed and so I though that, seeing I’m no longer doing sales training workshops, you might like to take a look at Stuart’s site and his offerings. His approach to the sales process is very similar to mine and he’s a darn nice guy as well.

Success in sales in 2009 will be celebrated by those who can both generate high quality leads and convert a significant percentage of those leads into loyal, paying, repeat customers who refer others.

We can help with the lead generation; get Stuart to help with the conversion process and then ask me to introduce to another colleague, Charles Alder of Dynamic Rewards to manage the repeat business and customer loyalty.

At the end of the day, you can have the best darn whatever it is you sell BUT if you haven’t got anyone to sell to, you’re unemployed.

Stay in the game in 2009 by talking to us about lead generation so you always have someone to sell to!

Call us on 1300 884 757 or complete our Contact Form.

To your fantastic 2009!