Englund Studio
Hello
Promotion
  • Dec28

  • Aug17

    Mobile Marketing

    Posted in: Blog

    Mobile marketing is here!, we are developing mobile versions of websites for Rhode Island businesses as well as creating way cool advertising campaigns that will benefit businesses and their customers alike!

    “It’s hard to imagine that in 1992 there were only 50 websites in the world, and by 2014 web searching on a mobile device will surpass desktop searches”

    A “gold rush” is happening right now in mobile marketing that will rival the launching of websites.

    Call if you want more info on how we can design your RI mobile website and put your business in the hands of your future customers!

    -David Englund 401-345-9036

     

  • May9

    When I check the Englund Studio website analytics, I’m not surprised to find that the 3rd most popular page people visit is the testimonial page.

    The Testimonial Page is a page that cannot be overlooked when developing your website, it’s especially true in the service industry as would-be customers who visit tend to believe those you’ve served. I believe it’s the biggest bang for your buck – the most powerful web page on a service based site. Imagine where businesses would be without Yelp?

    Here’s a few recent testimonials about me (yeah, I’m being a little shameless today):

    “Dave is very creative, professional and intuitive in knowing exactly how to grow your internet storefront and to be user friendly to web visitors. Dave really is an out of the box thinker, which lends to his success in creating websites for his clients.”

    Michelle Peixoto, Account Executive, Citadel Broadcasting

    “Dave has always exemplified professionalism, loyalty and courtesy. His passion for his field is unparalleled! It shows in his finished product. I highly recommend Dave to anyone looking for a job well done. I give him nothing but stellar praise!”

    Susan Santoro, Account Executive, Atrion SMB

    “Dave is a creative, passionate designer with a real-world business sensibility. His results oriented, professional attitude make collaboration a true pleasure, and his work is always outstanding. I recommend Dave highly.” March 29, 2011

    Greg Hall, National Account Executive, Display World Inc

    I find the best way to get testimonials is through LinkedIn, first give someone else a testimonial and soon the law of reciprocity kicks in and they’ll write one back to you, but don’t be afraid to ask them for one, I find people really want to help people.

    -David Englund

  • Apr1

    I just have to get this off my chest, my cousin has a cake decorating business, she called me yesterday to inform me of an apparent letter sent to her by Google, yes THE Google. Not sure if anyone is aware of this but Google does not typically spend time sending letters to cake decorators – this had my cousin smelling Devils Food Cake!….just a thought, anyway, “fake-google” told her in this letter that she is not ranking as high as she should and that they’d be happy to help her – for a fee!. Not only is this NOT Google, but if you went to the site of this naughty deception of a company you’d clearly see that they are conducting some serious branding rip-off tactics, complete with Google’s famous rainbow colors. I’m sure some innocent business owners have fallen prey to this “Big Brother” type scare and I’d like to warn everyone that if something doesn’t seem right, then it might not be.

    -Dave

  • Mar14

    Pay-Per-Click advertising (or PPC) is a common advertising method used by webmaster and business owners who want to establish or strengthen their online presence. If you’re a business owner and  know nothing about Pay-Per-Click advertising, this article is for you. I broke it down to 4 basic reasons why you need PPC. Feel free to contact me and I’ll help you understand a bit more  how it works.

    1) You get to see fast results.

    As you probably know, search engine organization or SEO is one of the best ways to drive traffic to your site by boosting your search engine ranking. However, you probably also know that it can take a while before you get to see the results of SEO. If you are looking to attract traffic to your site as fast as possible then PPC might just be the right idea for you. With pay-per-click advertising, you can see an increase in visitor numbers within hours of your ad going live. Of course, this doesn’t mean that you should completely discontinue your SEO efforts. Instead, you can take advantage of the benefits of PPC while you are waiting for your SEO methods to show results.

    2) You have full control over your advertising expenses.

    Another benefit that advertisers love about PPC is the fact that it allows you to control how much you spend over your advertisements. Since keywords are obtained through an “auction”, you also get to decide how much you are willing to pay for each keyword. Naturally, you will bid most on the keywords that are most relevant to your site. You have a better chance of paying less per click for your keywords if your business is in a niche as opposed to a common product or service being sold – for instance if you sell “Auto Insurance” (like thousands of your competitors) then you’ll be expected to pay more for the keywords “Auto Insurance”, but if you sell “auto insurance to the hearing impaired” then your advertising budget can be more flexible “PPC ads are also relatively more cost-effective because you only pay when a user actually clicks on your ad (hence the name pay-per-click). With PPC, you can also control which aspects of your business you invest in. For instance, you can spend more money in the advertising of product while cutting back on the ads for product B.

    3) You decide when your ads appear.

    PPC also allows you to control the times when your ad appears. This can be particularly helpful if your business has a particular seasonal appeal. For instance, if you are in the wine business then you will certainly want your ads to appear during special occasions of the year such as New Year, Thanksgiving, Valentine’s Day, Graduation Day and such. PPC even allows you to decide the times of the day when your ads are most active. If you have managed to research your potential consumers well then you can certainly take advantage of this option. For instance, if you are selling weight loss products or services then you would know that a lot of internet users tend to look for weight loss information just before summer and of course in January (New years resolution).

    4) You can target your consumers geographically.

    If you wish to promote your business to people who live in a particular geographical location then PPC advertising also gives you the opportunity to geographically target your ads. So instead of hiring people to promote your business on the other side of the country, you can simply make your ads visible to the internet users in that area with just a couple of clicks.

  • Dec28

    Are you interested in discovering techniques to earn more dollars even with out having to invest much capital?

    Numerous people are realizing the significance of email marketing. Through email, an internet business can market their product directly through their customers. Typically, the principal purpose of email marketing is to reach their target audience as swiftly and as direct as possible. They have to reach their target market so as to promote their products and services that would benefit their consumers. However, some businesses use email marketing in order to maintain their contact and relationship with their buyers.

    The reason why email advertising has grown in such unprecedented rate is based on the fact that people within the virtual community are usually hungry for info. They subscribe to data that they’re interested in. On the other hand, not all of us are willing to subscribe to such information. They may be interested in your products once but might no longer be interested to acquiring again. Also, when you continue to send emails without customer permission, you will be accused of spamming.

    Right now, spamming is a serious offense, most authorities regard the privacy of each person as valuable and they continue to uphold this thinking on the web.

    The creation of an opt-in list has gained tremendous acceptance. Because of its viability and feasibility to most on the internet businesses, a lot of business owners have realized how important opt-in lists are in email advertising. Opt-in list refers to the list of email addresses of individuals who have agreed to subscribe to your mailing list. In this way, you are able to freely send emails that entail promotions, brochures, new product announcements, and every aspect of your advertising campaign. When you develop an opt-in list, you do not only improve the probability of being successful in email advertising but also boost your sales and profits as well. This is simply because building an opt in list will give you the chance to stay in contact together with your clients by obtaining their email address.

    In this manner, you can continue to promote your products and services in which they’re interested in simply because they’ve opted to subscribe to your mailing list. Whatever it is that you feed them, chances are, they’ll most likely respond positively….I’ve know business owners who go to networking events to “fish” for business cards, only to throw these cards in their email database – and bother them till they buy.

    With spamming, email advertising becomes a disgraceful activity. But with opt-in list, on-line businesses can continue to increase their businesses by way of email advertising without having to worry about being accused of spamming.

    In building opt in list, there are two kinds to be considered. The 1st one is the single opt-in and the other one is the double opt-in or the confirmed opt-in. In building single opt-in list, online businesses would just use a “sign-up tag” in their internet websites so that each and every time a person visits their internet site, he or she can opt to subscribe inside the business’ email list.

    On the other hand, a confirmed opt-in list or double opt-in entails a confirmation message after the customer had subscribed to the particular internet site’s email list.

    I prefer a double opt-in, this way I have a small number of people who are VERY interested in what I have to say…and I can grow this list over time, rather than deceive myself with thinking I have thousands of “fans”.

    To your success! -David Englund

  • Nov4

    I think every business should include podcasting as part of their marketing plan, it not only gives fans and customers interesting industry related “goodies” through an entertaining media, but the listener can listen to your podcast in their car, at work, on their iPod while exercising etc. It put’s your business on the map of guru’s – You’re now the expert in your field and the go-to person for the latest news. You can let your hair down and be real, no need to take on a crazy persona (unless you want to). Hundreds of millions of people (not millions, hundreds of millions) have devices connected to iTunes where your podcast is delivered. I’ve met entrepreneurs who had a great idea for a new product but their problem would always be distribution – not with podcasting, your potential to reach millions of people are at your fingertips – BIG distribution. I became an avid podcasting follower 3 years ago and it’s my audio drug to date, I actually get more excited getting ready to listen to my favorite podcasts than I do about a new CD from my favorite band coming out….and that’s saying a lot considering I’m a musician myself.

    Here’s a chart showing podcast demographics:

    I’m currently developing a podcast show that will focus on marketing done differently, the show will be called “Marketing Differently” (simple enough right?) It’ll be geared towards the ideal listener; male – small business owner, 35-44. I’ll keep you posted when I launch!

    -David Englund

  • Oct2

    My Last 6 Months

    Posted in: Blog

    We’ve all heard “the cobblers kids have no shoes” this is a common struggle for every business owner in every industry, and certainly my blog has fallen victim to that. My blogging fingers have been missing my keyboard so much they forgot what that blue publish button does, anyway I plan to move back into my house after 6 long months of re-building.

    Since the flood in late March, I’ve been working non-stop to catchup with all of life’s callings, as I’m rounding 3rd base and heading home I can confidently say I’m a little glad I went through what I went through.

    The phrase that kept ringing in my ears these last few months has been “What doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger” so true! I’ve been able to bring on new clients, and some very exciting ones at that, I’ve been working with my sales/marketing guru Meredith LaBove, she’s one of a kind – and uber-cool! I brought on 3 junior web designers to help with my back end (not that back end) and they’re growing everyday. I also bought a funky retro camper that I’m on the fence with moving my studio into – I’ve been guilty romanticizing long design and strategy nights inside this funky box with a bottle of Bogle merlot with my favorite internet radio station dripping out of the speakers!

    I’ve learned a lot from these past 6 months and I plan on sharing them with you, I know very few people that had their homes take in 10.5 feet of water – so you can imaging the business analogies I have waiting to come out, just stay tuned and be grateful for what you have, it isn’t meant to last anyway.

  • Aug27

    Well it’s been a while since the last time I spoke, I figured I’d get everyone up to date with what’s happening with Englund Studio. First of all a HUGE flood decided to uproot my life on March 30th 2010, old news to most but still very fresh news to me, I’m still displaced as of this post, I’m currently rebuilding my house almost from scratch – I’ve been taught a few life lessons from this 10.5′ flood that entered my dwelling – more on that later.

    In other news: I’m extremely excited to announce the newest addition to Englund Studio,  Meredith LaBove (pronounced ‘above’) – what a real firecracker this one is! I won’t tell you how I found her (nothing wrong with a little mystery) Meredith is an outside of the box thinker and a gifted salesperson, and in her words “a real shmooze machine” I liked her from day one! She’ll be co-creating and executing our marketing for Englund Studio – focusing on bringing in new web design and branding clients. Other news is that I’ve been in a giving mood lately (we’ll see how long that lasts) I’d like to give away a FREE t-shirt of this bottle cap design (see illustration above) to the first 5 people to email me – simply say “I want one of those”, and let me know your sex/size/mailing address and consider it yours! (shirt color: cream)

    It’s late, It’s time to go to bed or I’ll be giving away something I’ll regret, talk soon and remember “Marketing differently is the only way to market”

    -David Englund

  • Jun12

    Watch this video, then let’s talk!

    After watching this, I had an idea; How can you “Amish” your business? It sounds like a joke but I’m serious, the Amish have a 95% success rate within 5 years of opening a business, they must be doing something right, right?

    Here’s what I think:

    1) They are honest: It’s been said that people do business with people they Know, Like and Trust. Think about it, if I knew someone who had a business and they were my friend – it’s safe to say that I KNOW them, and what if I really LIKED liked them – so far 2 out of 3…. but I didn’t TRUST them, would I hire them? absolutely not, in fact I’d rather do business with someone I KNOW but don’t necessarily LIKE as long as I TRUST they’ll get the job done and TRUST that they wont rip me off, make sense?..So look at something that upset customers say about you and give it an “Amish” blessing by changing, there’s got to be something that you do that’s a little…..ehhh…..you know what I mean!

    1) They love their work: This is a BIG one! I know I LOVE my work, I LOVE design and marketing and graphic communication – do you? how would a grumpy Amish chair maker strike you? how about a depressed apple picker? bottom line when you love something like your job – it shows through in just about EVERYTHING you do! I’m not pointing industry fingers here but maybe one of the reasons why 90% of restaurants fail is because the people don’t love what they’re doing…just a thought, and maybe the best way to “Amish” your business is to CHANGE your business…just another thought!

    1) They are hard workers: for crying out loud, I wish I could get up at 4:00am to start my day, maybe I should buy a rooster. 2 big questions; How early do you get up to start your day? and how consistent are you? Let’s face it 90% of their businesses are farm related BUT do we really have to answer all those emails before we start work? maybe that IS part of your work but that would be like an Amish farmer jumping off the plow every time a duck quacks! Set up time to answer emails (quacks) twice a day, try it for a week to “Amish” your computer time.

    1) They have a strong brand: and I’m not referring to their logo (do they actually have one?) First off they dress differently than us, they’re completely “acoustic” no electricity for these folks, they are HEAVY on the family thing, they’re not influenced by other businesses around them etc. I could go on about this aspect. So the question here is How different are you? different isn’t always better but at least you’ll stand out, and last time I checked – giraffes are the only animal you can see above the trees, if you look, act and dress like your competition, then it’s time to “Amish” your business!

    Hope this helps, and remember Everything is Marketing and Marketing is Everything!

    -David Englund