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10 New Business Resolutions For The New Year

by Dr. Rachna D. Jain, Sales and Marketing Psychologist

As we begin the new year, it's a good time to set some resolutions for your business. Based on my work with many solo entrepreneurs and small business owners, here are the top 10 business resolutions you should consider for your own business success in the new year.

1) Resolve to create a profile of your ideal customer and stick to it. Figure out who you can best serve and use this understanding as a guide for determining who to work with and who to refer to elsewhere. Anytime you feel tempted to take a “not quite right” client, refer to your profile and focus on marketing to these people.

2) Commit to working with only your ideal customers for this year and those after- you'll feel happier and your business will be more joyful. Ideal customers save you time, effort, and money, while being joyful and good to work with.

Do you have some advice or tips for "going green" in your business or home environment? Tell us now -- and see what other industrial marketers are saying -- in the ThomasNet Marketing Forum…

'Going Green' . . . How This Business Trend Affects Industrial Marketers

The concepts of "going green" and promoting "sustainability" are fueling a global trend that permeates the business landscape. As industrial marketers, we can do ourselves a big favor by taking advantage of the advice offered by both the environmentalists and the experienced business professionals who are "going green." Both parties recommend that we take an approach that involves educating ourselves (and our co-workers, customers and, perhaps, the local community) about this trend and, through this educational process, we develop or change our perception of "going green" to be a positive, beneficial experience.

Let's start with the basics. Exactly, what does "going green" mean for businesses? A recent iMediaConnection.com article states, "The business world is awash in green. Companies big and small, private and public, that sell products to all markets and audiences are considering how to make their brands, companies and marketing messages appeal to a public increasingly interested in protecting our environment and reducing its collective carbon footprint."

A report on b2barticles.com reported, "The majority of people believe that green marketing refers solely to the promotion or advertising of products with environmental characteristics. This is only part of the equation. Green marketing incorporates a broad range of activities, including product modification, changes to the production process, packaging changes, as well as modifying advertising."

In the September issue of Fast Company Magazine, environmentalist and former Sierra Club president Adam Werbach offered a "stripped-down definition of sustainability: 'having enough for now, while not harming the future.'"

75.6

The percentage of marketers planning to increase their online budgets in 2008. Click here to read more.

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