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Consumers change the companies they do business with for a host of reasons. This is why listening to what they say can help you avoid their departure.

Drew Neisser, founder and CEO of Renegade, said on Forbes, “Listen Like Your Life Depends On It (Because it Does).”

Applied Marketing Science (AMS) is holding a training workshop titled, “Listening to the Voice of the Customer” to help you do just that. The act of listening to your customers sounds easy enough, but it is what you do with this information which is critically important.

In the workshop, AMS will introduce you to Voice of the Customer (VOC) market research and teach you how you can use the data to accelerate the innovation of your business.

You will be exposed to hands-on activities and practice exercises to use the applications of these techniques in machine learning and journey mapping.

The workshop will take place on October 16-17, 2019 at the University Club of Chicago.

Enter Discount Code SMALLBIZ and you can get $100 off the course registration price.

Register by clicking the red button.

Register Now

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Featured Events, Contests and Awards

Maturepreneur Today Virtual Summit
June 11, 2019, Online

Maturepreneur Today is holding its full day virtual event on June 11, 2019. The summit is for new, existing and budding entrepreneurs in their 50’s, 60’s and 70’s. Visit our website to view the entire list of renowned speakers. #MaturepreneurToday

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Listening to the Voice of the Customer
October 16, 2019, Chicago, Ill.

Led by veteran product development and market research experts, this course will introduce Voice of the Customer (VOC) market research and teach you to use it to accelerate innovation in business-to-business markets. The workshop uses a lively, interactive format with numerous hands-on activities and practice exercises to build skills and will also expose you to the latest applications of these techniques in areas such as machine learning and journey mapping.
Discount Code
SMALLBIZ ($100 Off)

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More Events

• TECHSPO Silicon Valley 2019
  May 23, 2019, San Francisco, Calif.
• Breaking Through: Taking Your Consulting Business to New Heights
  May 29, 2019, Waltham, Mass.
• The Brand Marketing Summit West 2019, San Francisco, USA
  May 30, 2019, Burlingame, Calif.
• ProSeed
  June 01, 2019, Singapore
• DigiMarCon South 2019 – Digital Marketing Conference & Exhibition
  June 05, 2019, Houston, Texas
• Small Business Expo 2019 – NEW YORK CITY (June 5, 2019)
  June 05, 2019, New York, NY
• TECHSPO Los Angeles 2019
  June 12, 2019, Los Angeles, Calif.
• Predictive Analytics World Industry 4.0
  June 16, 2019, Las Vegas, Nev.
• Predictive Analytics World for Business – Las Vegas – June, 2019
  June 16, 2019, Las Vegas, Nev.
• Marketing Analytics Summit Las Vegas 2019
  June 17, 2019, Las Vegas, Nev.
• Digital Growth Unleashed Las Vegas 2019
  June 17, 2019, Las Vegas, Nev.
• TECHSPO Chicago 2019
  June 20, 2019, Chicago, Ill.
• DigiMarCon Midwest 2019 – Digital Marketing Conference & Exhibition
  June 20, 2019, Chicago, Ill.
• Entrepreneurs Cruise 2019
  July 07, 2019, Cape Canaveral, Fla.
• DigiMarCon Cruise 2019 – Digital Marketing Conference At Sea
  July 07, 2019, Cape Canaveral, Fla.
• New York School of Real Estate Finance
  July 15, 2019, Online
• SkySprout Summit – Columbus Marketing Conference
  July 16, 2019, Columbus, Ohio
• World Blockchain Roadshow
  August 26, 2019, Multiple Cities
• TECHSPO Sydney 2019
  August 28, 2019, Sydney, Australia
• DigiMarCon Europe 2019 – Digital Marketing Conference & Exhibition
  September 12, 2019, Amsterdam, Netherlands

More Contests

This weekly listing of small business events, contests and awards is provided as a community service by Small Business Trends.

You can see a full list of events, contest and award listings or post your own events by visiting the Small Business Events Calendar.

Image: Depositphotos.com

This article, “Learn to Listen to the Voices of your Customers at this Chicago Event” was first published on Small Business Trends

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We’d be remiss if we let National Small Business Week go without mentioning the event’s champions, as it were.

Small Business Trends was able to catch up with the duo the U.S. Small Business Administration named the 2019 National Small Business Persons of the Year. They’re Jennifer and Jeffrey Herbert. They own Superstition Meadery, a company they started in Prescott, Arizona, only back in 2012.

In our interview with them, we find out the key to their early success in business and you can find out how you can emulate it.

For the rest of the week in small business news, check out our weekly roundup below:

Small Business Operations

Nextiva Launches NextOS Suites for Small Business Communication

Nextiva just announced a new set of tools for businesses called the Nextiva Business Suites. And this includes the Nextiva Business Communication Suite and the Nextiva Customer Relationship Suite. What Nextiva’s New Suite Can Do Basically, the Nextiva Business Communication Suite combines Nextiva’s voice communication solutions with CRM.

Startup

FirstData Launches CloverAchievers to Boost Small Businesses

Welcome to Clover, the cloud-based payments platform from FirstData. Clover just announced a new initiative called CloverAchievers. Check out this contest designed to reward business owners who are striving to grow beyond the status quo. All different types of small businesses may enter the contest.

50 Really Weird Restaurant Ideas from Around the US

You’ll currently find more than a million restaurant locations across the U.S. And the industry brings in more than $825 billion a year. But forget about all those restaurants in seemingly every location across the country. Room for growth still exists. Find yourself interested in jumping into the restaurant industry? First find a unique angle.

Thinking About Applying for an Industry Award? Here Are 11 Things to Consider First

One of the best ways to connect with potential clients and investors is through business or industry awards. Awards can give your brand or company weight, validate your skills and abilities, generate buzz and give those spending money with your company the confidence that they are contributing to an already successful project or product.

Nextiva Names Former Apple Executive Marc Stoll as Next President and COO

Nextiva has a new President and Chief Operating Officer. Marc Stoll previously worked at Apple. Stoll served as VP Worldwide Sales Finance during the Steve Jobs era. Small Business Trends contacted him via email to find out about his plans for the cloud communications company.

Technology Trends

Fascinating  Predictions about Facebook Messenger Marketing That Can Help Your Business Grow

When it comes to Facebook Messenger chatbots, we as marketers are in the thick of it. We’re devising Messenger strategies, assembling chatbot sequences, and racking up wins for our companies and clients. But what’s the future of Facebook chatbot marketing? We have some predictions.

Marketing Tips

3 Quick and Easy Website Personalization Tactics to Boost Conversions

Personalization lies at the heart of delivering a great user experience. You’ll find this true whether you run a blog or SaaS business.Or whether you operate an e-commerce website. Your visitors will always appreciate getting personal attention from you. No one likes to be cast into a “general” category and treated as “just another user”.

Attention: Social Media Marketing is No Longer Enough for Your Business

I was recently listening to the Social Media Examiner podcast where Mike Stelzner, founder of SME was talking about the launch of his annual report on the state of social media marketing. The nutshell, from what I can remember, is as follows: Facebook use and overall advertising is declining. Sure, it’s still being used but it’s getting harder and harder and more expensive.

How to Get Customers to Your Small Business

As a new business owner, the question that keeps you up at night is: How will I get my first customers? The specific answer varies depending on the type of business you have.

Product Lists

20 Places to Find Online Entrepreneur Courses

A well-chosen entrepreneurship course can equip you with the skills you need. They help you develop your idea or concept into a viable business venture. Many courses also provide ongoing resources. They help turn your dream into reality. And they help you avoid many of the common pitfalls that affect new start-up owners.

20 Places Small Business Owners Can Take Online Accounting Courses

Small business owners should master the art of accounting. Because a simple online accounting course can equip you with skills to create more professional financial statements. Or let you forecast financial trends. And all this will benefit your business. But you can also learn how to read key performance indicators. Or understand and interpret data.

Image: Superstition Meadery/Facebook

This article, “In the News: Catching Up with the Small Business Persons of the Year” was first published on Small Business Trends

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A well-chosen entrepreneurship course can equip you with the skills you need. They help you develop your idea or concept into a viable business venture. Many courses also provide ongoing resources. They help turn your dream into reality. And they help you avoid many of the common pitfalls that affect new start-up owners.

The United States’ home to many of the world’s best universities and most successful businesses. So it shouldn’t surprise anyone there are so many excellent courses here. And an aspiring entrepreneur pick from them all. Take the ones allowing you to make the most out of your business ideas.

Online Entrepreneur Courses

Here are 20 entrepreneur courses you can study online and on your own time.

Entrepreneurship Essentials Certificate – Harvard Business School Online

This online entrepreneur course teaches you to develop ideas into viable business plans. So the month-long course teaches you to develop a concept and then refine your business strategy. But the course also covers raising the necessary capital to expand your business.

Wharton’s Entrepreneurship Specialization – University of Pennsylvania (Coursera)

This beginner’s level course covers the conception, design, organization and management of brand new businesses. And you can take it through the online learning platform Coursera. The program consists of five modules. And it takes two months to complete. But the package also includes guidance from Wharton’s top professors.

Launching an Innovative Business – University of Maryland (Coursera)

This entrepreneurship course offers an in-depth three-month look at the entrepreneurial mindset. But you will also learn how to identify innovation opportunities. And you’ll see the steps needed to bring innovations to the marketplace. Then use this to establish a competitive advantage.

Career Success Specialization – UC Irvine (Coursera)

The Career Success course offers a flexible schedule. And this allows you to work through the four modules at your own speed. Because otherwise it would take three months of full time study. The program teaches you essential skills for the workplace. So it could also improve your ability to find work.

Business Design for Social Impact – Parsons School of Design

This entrepreneur program costs over $2,000 for a six week course. So this makes it one of the more expensive of its kind. But you can expect some of the best modules available for budding entrepreneurs. Develop the skills to prototype and validate a proof of concept. Build leadership skills. And create effective business models.

Inspired Leadership Specialization – Case Western Reserve University (Coursera)

Use this eight-month business leadership course to learn important concepts. You’ll learn to develop ideas and concepts. But you’ll also acquire the skills necessary to inspire and engage other people. And this will improve your team’s performance too. Work at your own pace. Each module costs approximately $50.

LinkedIn Brand-Building and Lead Generation – Udemy

The LinkedIn marketing course takes just one day to complete. And it costs $200 in total. But you’ll often find it heavily discounted. The course focuses on creating a great LinkedIn profile. So this helps build a brand and generate email business leads.

Sustainable Business Enterprises – University of Illinois (Coursera)

The course makes up part of the Global Challenges in Business Specialization series. And the program looks at current challenges and opportunities facing firms in the area of environmental sustainability.

Entrepreneurship: How To Start A Business From a Business Idea – Udemy

This course stresses entrepreneurship fundamentals. And the cost equals little over $200 for two full days’ worth of courses. But you will learn stress-free strategies to quickly turn your idea into a successful business.

Innovation: From Idea to Marketplace – University of Maryland (Coursera)

Use this two-month entrepreneurial innovation course to learn to bring innovations to market. And use it to develop insights into the creative process. Learn the skills to go from original idea to finished product. And master all the steps in between.

Entrepreneurial Mindset Certificate – Babson College (edX)

Discover the secrets of the entrepreneur mindset. And learn to create value for your stakeholders. This course covers a variety of business settings. The entrepreneurial mindset certificate takes four weeks of study to obtain. And it costs just under $100.

Entrepreneurial Operations: Launching a Startup – Babson College (edX)

This Babson College and edX collaboration focuses on the role of operations in launching a start-up. And you’ll learn the potential operational risks. But ultimately you’ll discover how to successfully launch your own start-up business.

Build a Shopify Dropshipping Business from Scratch – Udemy

You can take this program through online learning site Udemy. And you will learn to start your own business using Shopify. But the course offers even more. You’ll also get advice from a six-figure e-commerce Shopify entrepreneur is also part of the experience.

Innovative Ideas for New Companies – University of Maryland (Coursera)

This one-month online business course helps identify and analyze entrepreneurial opportunities. And you’ll learn to improve your entrepreneurial mindset. You’ll also improve your strategic decision-making. And the course even includes a module about building innovative business models.

New Venture Finance – University of Maryland (Coursera)

Learn about acquiring start-up funding. This course aims to demystify key financing concepts. And it will help aspiring entrepreneurs get the safe and secure funding their businesses need.

The Essential Guide to Entrepreneurship by Guy Kawasaki – Udemy

This one day course involves learning directly from a successful entrepreneur and investor. And you’ll discover how to launch a company with confidence and avoid the common pitfalls. The course usually costs over $100. But you’ll often find it heavily discounted. And it also offers a 30-day money back guarantee.

Killer Business Ideas: Complete Workshop – Udemy

This business ideas workshop includes 7 hours of on-demand video. The course features 13 modules. And it offers 65 downloadable resources. The course takes just two full days to complete. But course creators also claim you’ll learn to become a business idea machine in that time.

Intro to Entrepreneurship: Get started as an Entrepreneur – Udemy

This online entrepreneur course makes big claims. It offers everything you need to know to become a successful entrepreneur. The course features two full days of video and courses. And you’ll also get resources. The course costs under $225. And you can expect big discounts to be available.

Entrepreneurship Acceleration: Scaling Your Business – Emeritus

Emeritus and Wharton University of Pennsylvania offer this advanced entrepreneur course. And you’ll find it costly. You’ll pay around $2,500 for everything. But this gets you a three-month program. It focuses on developing an idea into a commercially viable business venture.

Entrepreneurship Capstone Certificate – University of Maryland (Coursera)

Individual modules for this program cost around $50 each. But this two-month entrepreneurial course teaches you to integrate tools and concepts from other courses. And eventually you’ll learn to develop a comprehensive business plan.

Image: Depositphotos.com

This article, “20 Places to Find Online Entrepreneur Courses” was first published on Small Business Trends

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The average age of a U.S. small business owner is now almost 51 years old. And this number is increasing as the life expectancy of Americans increases.

Maturepreneur Today is holding a virtual event on June 11, 2019 from 9:30 AM – 5:00 PM to highlight the growing community of like-minded entrepreneurs.

The full-day event will bring together experts who will hold a range of talks to help maturepreneurs.

The schedule will stream live talks and tracks on the SBA, starting a business mid-life: why and how maturepreneurs do it, legal and financial, marketing, and much more.

Profiled business owners will also share their experiences as maturepreneurs.

You can register by clicking the red button.

Register Now

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Featured Events, Contests and Awards

Maturepreneur Today Virtual Summit
June 11, 2019, Online

Maturepreneur Today is holding its full day virtual event on June 11, 2019. The summit is for new, existing and budding entrepreneurs in their 50’s, 60’s and 70’s. Visit our website to view the entire list of renowned speakers. #MaturepreneurToday

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Listening to the Voice of the Customer
October 16, 2019, Chicago, Ill.

Led by veteran product development and market research experts, this course will introduce Voice of the Customer (VOC) market research and teach you to use it to accelerate innovation in business-to-business markets. The workshop uses a lively, interactive format with numerous hands-on activities and practice exercises to build skills and will also expose you to the latest applications of these techniques in areas such as machine learning and journey mapping.
Discount Code
SMALLBIZ ($100 Off)

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More Events

• Experiential Marketing Summit 2019
  May 14, 2019, Las Vegas, Nev.
• Fearless in Data
  May 14, 2019, Atlanta, Ga.
• Kimberly Coates
  May 14, 2019, San Diego, Calif.
• Chief Analytics Officers & Influencers, Spring
  May 15, 2019, San Diego, Calif
• 2019 Marketing Analytics Conference ? Atlanta, GA ? May 15 – 16, 2019
  May 15, 2019, Atlanta, Ga.
• TECHSPO Toronto 2019
  May 16, 2019, Toronto, Ontario
• DigiMarCon Canada 2019 – Digital Marketing Conference & Exhibition
  May 16, 2019, Toronto, Ontario
• ComTech Forum on Network Automation
  May 16, 2019, Sunnyvale, Calif.
• 21st Annual Top 10 Tech Trends
  May 16, 2019, Santa Clara, Calif.
• QuickBooks for Business- Español
  May 18, 2019, DORAL, Fla.
• Wall Street Journal Future Of Everything Festival, NYC
  May 20, 2019, New York, N.Y.
• Advancing Preconstruction and Estimating 2019 Conference, Dallas, Texas
  May 20, 2019, Dallas, Texas
• TECHSPO Silicon Valley 2019
  May 23, 2019, San Francisco, Calif.
• Breaking Through: Taking Your Consulting Business to New Heights
  May 29, 2019, Waltham, Mass.
• The Brand Marketing Summit West 2019, San Francisco, USA
  May 30, 2019, Burlingame, Calif.
• ProSeed
  June 01, 2019, Singapore
• DigiMarCon South 2019 – Digital Marketing Conference & Exhibition
  June 05, 2019, Houston, Texas
• Small Business Expo 2019 – NEW YORK CITY (June 5, 2019)
  June 05, 2019, New York, N.Y.
• TECHSPO Los Angeles 2019
  June 12, 2019, Los Angeles, Calif.
• Predictive Analytics World Industry 4.0
  June 16, 2019, Las Vegas, Nev.

More Contests

This weekly listing of small business events, contests and awards is provided as a community service by Small Business Trends.

You can see a full list of events, contest and award listings or post your own events by visiting the Small Business Events Calendar.

Image: Depositphotos.com

This article, “Virtual Event Focused on Starting a Business Mid-Life Happens June 11” was first published on Small Business Trends

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The GDP for the first quarter of 2019 was impressive, delivering an annualized rate growth of 3.2%. To go along with that great number, in April the U.S. economy added 275,000 jobs. This has driven the unemployment rate down to 3.6%, the lowest in 50 years (December, 1969).

For its part, the small business segment added 77,000 jobs this month. This is up by a considerable margin from the 6,000 jobs created in March.

April 2019 ADP Small Business Report

Overall, owners are optimistic about the economy in the coming year despite some of the challenges attributed to the talent shortage. The low unemployment rate is making it much harder for small businesses to find the talent they need.

In the press release for April’s ADP report, Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody’s Analytics, said, “The job market is holding firm, as businesses work hard to fill open positions.”

Good Jobs and Higher Wages

Wall Street was expecting 190,000 in April, so the 275K exceeded even the most optimistic forecast. Not only was the number high, but quality jobs were being filled.

Professional and businesses led the job gains with 76K. This was followed by health care and social assistance (53K), leisure and hospitality (34K), and construction (33K).

When it comes to wages, the growth is holding steady at 3.2%. This increased the average hourly rate by 6 cents to $27.70 per hour.

Overall Employment Numbers

The year started with a bang, delivering a whopping 312,000 jobs in January 2019. February took a huge dip at 56K, followed by March with 189K jobs.

The 275K in April brings the average for the year to 205,000. This is slightly lower than the 223,000 average for the whole of 2018, but it is early days in 2019.

According to ADP, small businesses with 1-19 employees created 32K jobs, while those with 20-49 added 45K more jobs. In April the goods-producing sector created 24K jobs and service-producing sector added 53K more.

Medium-sized businesses with 50-499 employees added the largest number of jobs with 145K, and large businesses contributed 53K more.

April 2019 ADP National Franchise Report

Franchises added 5,500 more jobs in April compared to March with a total of 9,500 jobs.

The restaurant and real estate sectors and industry had positive numbers with 14,200 and 100 jobs respectively. The rest of the sectors, food retailers, accommodations, auto parts and dealers and business services were all negative.

Image: ADP

This article, “Small Businesses Add 77,000 More Jobs in April” was first published on Small Business Trends

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Sponsored Post

Great news for any small business looking to get ahead: Salesforce Research has just released the Third Edition Small & Medium Business Trends Report, sharing data and observations from more than 2,000 small and medium business (SMB) owners and leaders from around the world. The research report digs into the challenges and goals of SMB executives, analyzes how demographics shape the SMB experience, and covers the role of technology in satisfying customer expectations.

Which challenges are daunting for small business leaders? How do SMBs use technology to meet customer expectations? Here are three small business statistics we found especially telling. Read the full Small & Medium Business Trends Report to find out more.

Women Still have a Harder Time Raising Capital

The data shows women still have a harder time raising venture funds than men: 62% of women report that access to funding is one of the biggest obstacles they face (versus 57% of men). Female SMB leaders indicate accessing capital is their most prominent challenge, while male leaders say their leading challenge is hiring the right talent.

Business Motivations Change with Age

Also of note: The top reason SMB leaders start a business is that they want to be their own boss (55%). However, the reasons for starting a business tend to align with age. Compared with baby Boomers and traditionalists, millennials and Gen Zers are more likely to start businesses so they can pursue an idea they’re passionate about, earn supplemental income, or escape a hostile work environment.

Artificial Intelligence is Increasingly Popular

How do small businesses feel about artificial intelligence (AI)? Our research indicates that AI has truly become a competitive advantage for growing companies in 2019. Nearly half (46%) the SMB owners surveyed believe their businesses are ready to use AI. Perhaps the positive sentiment signifies these small businesses both see the benefits and are less daunted by the growing software trend.

Bottom line: If you’re looking to grow a business (or just trying to gather new data to unseat that new Jeopardy phenom), you’ve got to check out the Small & Medium Business Trends Report. Find out about the new technology trends sweeping the business world and see what factors help set your small business up for growth.

Republished by permission. Original here.

Photo via Salesforce

This article, “New Research: Trends Every Growing Small Business Needs to Know” was first published on Small Business Trends

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Product descriptions, when written well, prove incredibly powerful. They improve organic search rankings for ecommerce sites. And ultimately help sell more products.

You’ll find proof of the importance of great product descriptions. Just check the marketing statistics of Overstock.com. The internet retailer witnessed an 84% increase in organic traffic following a campaign to optimize its product descriptions. And this happened on 10% of its best-converting pages.

How to Write a Product Description

Write great product descriptions that appeal and resonate with your target audience. But realize this isn’t as straightforward and easy as you might think. Fortunately help is at hand with the following 11 tips to writing a great product description.

List Product Features and Benefits

Before you plough into writing the actual description, take the time to make a list of all the product’s features and benefits. This way, you’re less likely to miss any key selling points out when writing the description.

Include Keywords for SEO Purposes in Your Product Description

Product descriptions can be a great way to boost your ecommerce site’s Search Engine Optimization (SEO). To rank higher on the search engines through quality, well-written product descriptions, you will need to incorporate keywords into your descriptions.

Before you write the description, jot down the keywords your customers are likely to search for when looking for your product online. Subtly and naturally incorporate the keywords into the text to give your SEO a boost, which will help drive traffic to your products.

Using tools like On Page SEO Checker can be useful in determining the most effective keywords for a product.

Use Influential Words

As well as using keywords, include powerful, influential words in the descriptions that grab people’s attention and help persuade shoppers to take further action. Such words will help you create a sense of importance and urgency around your product.

In its 189 powerful words that help convert list, Buffer includes words like new, sensational, remarkable, improvement, amazing, inspires, free and instantly as being words that convert.

Make Your Description True to Your Brand

Your product descriptions should reflect the overall personality of your brand. For example, if your brand is new, funky and fun, make your descriptions fun and funky to mimic its personality. Or, if your brand is more professional, create professional-sounding descriptions to they are in-line with your brand’s image.

Think About What Your Shoppers Are Looking For

When writing product descriptions, be sure to ask yourself what it is your shoppers are looking for? Address these specific qualities in your descriptions and offer a solution to what they are looking for.

Think About Your Target Audience

When writing product descriptions, consider who your target audience is and write the descriptions in a tone that will resonate with your target audience.

For example, if your target audience is teenagers, inject a fun, younger tone into the description that will catch the eye and help reach out to teenagers.

Emphasize Certain Words and Phrases

Don’t be afraid to emphasize important words and phrases by using bold and italic fonts to make certain messages stand out to your audience.

Make the Description Scannable

Online readers are typically short of time and like to be able to scan text and receive the information they need immediately. Consequently, you should make your product description scannable and easily digestible by using plenty of bullet points, sub-headings and avoiding making it too lengthy.

Proofread the Text

Descriptions littered in typos, spelling mistakes and grammatical errors won’t do the professional image of your brand may favors. Before publishing the descriptions make sure your proofread them to ensure they are typo-free.

Split Test the Descriptions

Use split test to test the different lengths, formats, words and more of your descriptions to help optimize your product page and improve conversion rates.

Read it Out Loud

Before you make the descriptions live be sure to read them out loud. Once you’re convinced your descriptions are persuasive, convincing, engaging, honest and convertible, it’s time to promote your products to the audience that matters.

Image: DepositPhotos.com

This article, “11 Tricks about Writing a Great Product Description You’ll Wish You Knew Earlier” was first published on Small Business Trends

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Businesses try a lot of advanced techniques to market and grow. But at the end of the day, most of your success comes from making as many sales as possible. To improve your bottom line and bring in as many customers as possible, check out these sales tips from members of the online small business community.

Book More Sales Meetings

If you want to make more sales, you first need to set up meetings with prospects. To set up more of these meetings, you need to expedite the decision making process and get those potential clients booked. Here are some prospecting tips from Jessica Greene of Databox that may be able to help.

Grow a Membership Business on Autopilot

Selling memberships is becoming a popular strategy for businesses in a variety of industries. Though you do create ongoing relationships with customers, you still need to sell to new members and keep things running smoothly. In this post, Elle Drouin explains how she keeps her membership growing on autopilot each month.

Use These Budget Friendly Audience Research Tools

Before you can sell to customers, you first need to learn about them. Audience research doesn’t need to be terribly expensive. Here are some audience research tools you can use that should even work for small budgets, from Lauren Crain and Search Engine Watch.

Create Winning Social Media Campaigns

Social media can be an invaluable tool when it comes to connecting with customers and making sales. But you first need to create a plan that will allow your campaigns to succeed. Learn more in this Startup Professionals Musings post by Martin Zwilling.

Boost Local Business Visibility with Question Research and Optimization

For local businesses, making sales requires being visible on search engines. Google offers the option of answering questions on its platform as a way of increasing visibility. In this Bright Local post, Ann Smarty shares how you can make the most of this tactic for your business.

Try These Digital Marketing Techniques

Digital marketing can help you bring in more leads and potential customers so you can make more sales over time. There are tons of different techniques you can use, including those in this post by Dan Swords. BizSugar members offered some thoughts on the post here.

Don’t Make These Heat Map Mistakes

To make as many sales as possible on your small business website, you need to really analyze how people interact with your content. Heat maps can be a powerful tool for this. But you need to know how to use them and avoid the mistakes in this Smallbiztechnology.com post by Itai Elizur.

Start a Profitable Business Website

Your business website has to accomplish a lot. It needs to be well designed, easy to use, and most of all – it needs to help you actually make money. For help building a profitable website, check out this SMB CEO post by Ivan Widjaya.

Build Your Email List Faster with These Lead Magnet Ideas

Email has long been one of the most popular tools for businesses looking to communicate with prospects. But before you can make the sale, you need to attract new leads. The ideas in this GetResponse post by Michal Leszczynski may be able to help.

Understand These Instagram Secrets

Instagram can be a wonderful platform for rustling up potential sales. But you need to understand how to use it correctly. In this Mostly Blogging post, Janice Wald offers a huge list of tips for businesses on Instagram. And BizSugar members shared commentary here.

If you’d like to suggest your favorite small business content to be considered for an upcoming community roundup, please send your news tips to: sbtips@gmail.com.

Image: Depositphotos.com

This article, “10 Expert Tips to Help Your Small Business Bring in More Paying Customers” was first published on Small Business Trends

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