Psst... Have you heard...

...about this thing called the internet? It's not going away. It's always there. It doesn't sleep.

And it never forgets. (Marty Fahncke has a great example.)

What's your brand reputation? Do you know? Do you google yourself to see what the masses are saying? Do you know that doing just that, googling yourself, is part of marketing? (Here's something to get you started: sign up for Google Alerts. Put your business name in as the criteria and see what ends up in your inbox each day.)

You can spend big bucks on big agencies to advertisie your product. You can spend massive dollars on focus groups, pilot projects and traditional marketing campaigns. You can spend years trying to tell the world how your product is different than your competition's. The thing is, you're no longer in control. This isn't traditional media. It's the "new" internet. It's Web 2.0. It's social. It's collaborative. Consumers aren't just sitting back believing what the masses are telling them. They are the masses. They're connecting with others, networking online, creating and sharing information - on Facebook, on Digg, Twitter, forums and message boards...the list goes on.

It's a shift from advertising to PR. It's consumer-driven. It's fascinating. It's exciting.

We find it thrilling!

Shake it up. Do things differently. See where it takes you!

Let us help you, this is what we love, this is where we shine!

Don't just think out of the box. Step out of the box.

If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys.

I'm all for bargains. Completely. Love 'em.

The best possible price for the best possible outcome.

But when that doesn't happen, when I don't get the outcome I had desired, I get frustrated knowing full well that I should have just went about it the right way the first time. Did some further research to save me the time and the money. Shopped around a bit more. Got on the Internet, found out what people were saying about this particular product. But I didn't. You know why?

Because it was $13.97 dishwasher detergent.

Last night I was unloading the dishwasher and to my dismay I found that about 1/4 of the dishes were not completely clean. So I ran it again, using the same detergent. This morning what did I find? Same thing. (Fool me once shame on you, fool me twice....) So I have about 100 pellets of high-phosphate detergent sitting under my sink and I don't know what to do with them. That's 100 pellets that I am probably going to get rid of. That's like opening my wallet and shredding money. Sure, it's only $13.97, but it's the POINT of it all. It's aggravating.

Here I am, focussed on going green and yet I bought this harsh detergent that was extremely disappointing and did not have the desired outcome, just to save a few bucks.

I've recently discovered that a very trusted brand has developed a line of green, and economic!, products and dishwasher detergent is one of them. I'm wanting to run out and purchase right now, but I'm going to do my due dilligence first. Research, and research some more. Find out what people are saying. Perhaps see if I can purchase a smaller quantity to test it out.

All of this made me think of you, of other business owners, of my clients and potential clients. Are you doing your due dilligence? Where are you spending your money? Are you getting the desired outcome? Why not?

Drop us a line or give us a jingle. Let's work together to see what's happening with your business; what's working and perhaps even what needs working on. Let's look and your processes and what can be expanded or streamlined. Let's brainstorm to get you headed back in the direction you originally set out on.

Let us Mind your business so you can Grow your business.

Want a test-drive? We have a 2-hour tester available to purchase at a discounted price. Visit our pricing and policies page for more information.

Want a 6 & 1/2 week vacation?

Thought that would catch your attention!

Wouldn't we all like six and a half weeks to ourselves over the summer. Heck, six and a half weeks anytime sounds delightful!

Hiring Scratchpad Secretaries for only five hours per week can give you 6.5 weeks back! You'll gain 6.5 weeks! Imagine what you could do with that. Imagine if you had 6.5 weeks to nurture your client relationships. To follow up on those hot leads that you just didn't have time for. To attend those trade shows you know you should be a part of, but just couldn't swing it with how busy you were. Or imagine how your golf game could improve. Or perhaps you could finally put that pool in the backyard.

Five hours a week. Only five hours.

What can we do to help you? What do you want to give us so you can use that 6.5 weeks in a more productive way?

6.5 weeks.

Imagine.

Blogging for Business

Are you not getting the attention you deserve? Do you need to get a new product in front of a crowd? Have an announcement to make but don't know how to tell the world? Don't even know how or where to start?

You need a blog. And we can help!

A blog is like an online dairy. It can be about, and be used for anything at all. It can be used for personal thoughts and opinions, news, reviews, keeping in touch with family... but we're talking about Blogging for Business.

Quite simply, it's a method of quickly updating content on your website. And the search engine spiders LOVE eating up fresh content! It automatically increases your exposure.

Automatically.

There are many ways to get your blog seen and read by people, not just via the search engines. There's a whole new world out there, Web 2.0, where people are collecting information and sharing it with their friends, contacts, etc. It's a digital word-of-mouth. And you know you can't pay for word of mouth.

At Scratchpad Secretaries, we can set up a Blog for you. Better yet, we can update it for you if you're too busy to write yourself. We can submit it to social bookmarking sites. We can add the RSS Feeds. We can make it happen for you.

Make sure you get noticed. Call us for your free 30-minute consultation!

Social Networking

Facebook. Ryze. Linked In.

Networking associations. Trade publication memberships. Online forums.

So much to do!

But what exactly is it? What is this buzz that is Social Networking. Social Marketing. Social Media?

It's networking.

To infinity.

Six degrees of seperation.

The concept is you know someone who knows someone who knows someone who may be interested in your services. Right from the comfort of your own home/office.

Globally!

You set up a profile, people visit, you add each other as contacts, connections, fans, friends, or whatever it may be called in that particular medium (pretty much, you're making business contacts). Next thing you know, one of their contacts peeks at your profile and adds you as a connection, friend, etc, and we're back to the basic concept of knowing someone who knows someone who knows someone!

There are also various groups you can join within the social networking group (for example, with Ryze I joined multiple groups: Women Business Owners, Small Business Owners, Small Business Think Tank... the list goes on!), and now, what do you know, you're connected to all of this particular groups' membership base. You're shopping your business, globally, from the comfort of your computer and you haven't had to balance appies, wine, business cards... you get the drift.

Perhaps it may just be that you meet alot of interesting people doing interesting things. You grow your network, in whatever way, shape or form you choose. The boundaries are simply not present that exist with traditional networking (and you don't have to suffer the embarrassment of having 1/2 of an appetizer stuck between your teeth!)

You may learn new tools, not just make new business contacts. You learn of new technology. New associations. The latest trade publication. The list goes on. Everyone is wired in. And it's global! It's 24-7. I might pop into one of the groups I belong to on a Thursday night at 11pm, and I'm online with many, many people who are plugged in, starting their day or 1/2 way through their day on the other side of the world.

It's a global marketplace. It's a global community. It's fantastic! It has unlimited potential, and we're just at the tip of the iceburg. How exciting!

I can see why there are virtual assistants who are offering Social Media Management as a service these days. It can be terrifically time-consuming. You can get lost in the networks, groups, profiles, connections.... give me a couple of weeks to delve further, and I do believe I'll be offering it as a service as well. It's not just the latest trend, it may very well be the future.

Won't you be my friend?