AGIS | Web Development & Marketing Blog

You finally won a brief introduction with a potential client. Do you have your elevator pitch ready?

Wikipedia defines an elevator pitch (or elevator speech or elevator statement) as a short summary used to quickly and simply define a product, service, or organization and its value proposition. The name “elevator pitch” reflects the idea that it should be possible to deliver the summary in the time span of an elevator ride, or approximately thirty seconds to two minutes.

The elevator pitch comes in handy for any occasion where a concise presentation is needed. It can be used by a variety of people in business or personal scenarios and may be presented in oral, written, and video formats.

Keep in mind that as your business grows and changes, your pitch will need to also be updated. Your language, approach and what you choose to highlight should reflect these changes. Keep it fresh. Always be prepared to deliver your pitch. You never know when the opportunity will arise. Practice your pitch so it will be delivered smoothly and confidently. The pitch should reflect the passion you have for your business.

Remember the elevator pitch is not a full-blown presentation. It’s an overview and a pitch meant to catch the attention of a potential client and have them asking for more.

With the prevalence of web-enabled mobile devices out there it’s becoming more important to have a solution in place to reach that market. Whether your business sells designer hair clips for lap dogs or consults multi-million dollar companies, chances are that a large portion of your customers own a smartphone. Since you probably already know this, the next question might be which solution is best for your business, a native application or a mobile website?

One of the biggest determining factors of which route to take is really what you want your clients/customers to be able to do. If you really just want to be able to have your customers easily find your nearest facility or easily find your phone # or email address, then a mobile website seems like a good fit. If you want to leverage the functionality of a smartphone for things such as using the camera, microphone, Bluetooth, or accelerometer, then you’ll most likely need to develop a native application. The benefit of building a native mobile app is that you are no longer confined to the restrictions of a web site, you can really get creative with all of the tools that a smartphone has to offer.

So with my two example companies you might at first think that it would make the most sense to have the doggie hairclip boutique build a small mobile website and the consulting business have a full blown app that can be found and downloaded from an app store. But after learning the needs and vision of those 2 businesses, it could be that the consulting firm really just wants their clients to easily find the contact info for their consultants while the boutique wants to let their customers snap photos of their pets and use a virtual dressing room to see what different accessories would look like on them. So now a mobile website would be perfect for the consulting company and the boutique will really need an app to do everything they want.

Another consideration is that a mobile website can load on all web enabled devices while a mobile app has to be built for each of the major mobile platforms out there (Apple iOS, Google Android, RIM BlackBerry, Windows Phone 7). So it could take some time to get a version of your app into all of the major markets for users to download while a mobile website will start working on all devices as soon as it’s deployed.

In the end you could very easily wind up with both. Starting with a mobile website is a good first step to help you determine the size of your potential app’s user base. By using tools such as Google Analytics, you will be able to see what devices your customers who visit the site use (like Android vs iOS). Having that information will help you determine which mobile platforms to develop an app for and which one to do first.

So like everything else in life, there is no simple answer. But don’t just assume you need one or the other without doing a little research and consulting with the experts!

You might have seen these black and white squares popping up on many printed pieces. They are used on product packaging, magazine articles, advertisements, posters, brochures, etc. What are they? QR codes are a two-dimensional barcode that can hold large amounts of data such as a URL (web address), text, or other information. It can be read by a QR code reader.

How can I obtain a QR code reader?

Sounds expensive, doesn’t it? Well it is free! If you have a smartphone, go to the app store and search for a QR code reader. Download the free app onto your smartphone. Run the app and then hold your phone’s camera over a QR code to read it. Most likely the QR code will redirect you to a web page with additional information.

Why do I need additional information?

Knowledge is key! If you scan a QR code you could possibly receive promotions, surveys, special offers and subscriptions with just the click of a button. For example, if you scan a QR code on a package of graham crackers you might get a coupon, a reciepe, nutritional facts…the possibilities are endless. 

QR codes are great marketing tools to share information about your company’s products or services to the public. Nowadays, people do not leave their homes without their smartphone so their handy QR code reader will always be close by. Call AGIS to see how we can help you reach your target audience through a QR code.

Is it Worth it?

That is a question you may ask yourself everyday, perhaps even multiple times a day.

…is it worth doing this load of laundry now, knowing the kids’ practice clothes will be in the clothes hamper in four hours?

 …is it worth washing the car even though there is rain in the forecast tomorrow?

 …is it worth going to the gym this morning when the entire house needs cleaned and exercise will be obtained via vacuuming and scrubbing floors?

 Okay, maybe these are just the neurotic questions I tend to ask myself as I’m always looking for ways to be more efficient in time management, but you get the point! Does point 1 outweigh point 2? Does it make sense to do A, when you know what lies ahead with B?

In any business, one needs to ask questions and assess information to make good, solid decisions, especially in these volatile economic times. Most decisions directly affect bottom line, and that is where the question of “is it worth it” comes into play. Maybe the questions above aren’t the best to illustrate an “is it worth it” question from a financial standpoint (although with gas so high, daily exercise through cleaning house or jogging the neighborhood may outweigh driving 14 miles roundtrip to the gym and back). Every dollar matters today, and every decision made in business should be viewed from a financial standpoint.

 Take the situation of one of our clients. In the manufacturing sector, they and their peers, including other manufacturers, vendors, OEM’s, etc. participate in several trade shows per year. Trade shows are the perfect venue to display new goods/services, meet and greet customers, clients and prospective customers and clients, hold strategic planning meetings with vendors and distributors and generally speaking, “be seen”!

 But at what “cost” is it worth it to be seen these days?

 I’ve approximated the amounts below for a client’s participation in a recent trade show:

•  Booth space at expo hall: $33,000
• Exhibit company – prep, shipping, set-up/dismantle: $15,000
• Hotel for eight employees (3 nights/each): $5,400
• R/T airfare for eight: $6,000
• Meals, cab/bus fair, other incidentals: $5,000
• Meetings/meals for customers: $8,600
• New shirts for staff: $1,700
• Marketing firm work (i.e. advertising/press; coordination of all hotel, meetings, space, exhibit; correspondence with all staff, sales representatives, hotel staff, banquet managers, etc.): $8,000
• Other miscellaneous (i.e. shipping charges, special signage/printing, etc.): $3,000

 Total: $85,700

 Wow – a lot of ca-ching for three days of exposure! Think about the kinds of things a business could do to gain similar exposure with almost $90,000? That kind of money buys a lot of print advertising in trade journals and magazines. It would also buy a company a lot of air time on regional radio stations. A new website with all the bells and whistles, plus a mobile website for smartphone using customers? There is a good chance $90,000 would cover it! How about engaging the company in a new internet marketing plan, including SEO, PPC and a social media plan to go with? With $90,000 they’d be off to a great start!

 Now this article isn’t to knock trade shows as there is a lot of marketing benefit from gathering with peers, competitors and customers who are all like-minded in their business goals and who can share ideas, thoughts and product innovations. Instead, the point of this blog is to pose the question as you ponder business decisions for 2012…

 Is it Worth It?!

Call the internet marketing experts at AGIS for information and a quote (and yes…we do trade shows, too!)

We often get questions asking, why does a website need SEO Optimizing? Your site looks great, reads well, so everything must be fine, right? Not necessarily. It is hard to describe a Search Engine process that involves an algorithm that must be mind boggling and for the most part is a secret. Plus, beyond the basic Keyword Search the process involves Quality Rankings for the site based on traffic and links from other quality sites and so on, that can determine your position.

The first thing I try to tell a customer is imagine taking all the words and phrases in your copy or links from your home page (the most important page to a Search Engine), jumble them all around, then reading  this mish- mash, can you determine what your site is about? Also, if you throw out all the generic words that could apply to most things or most any site, is there anything left?

How does SEO Optimizing help with this aspect of your site? SEO Optimizing starts by adding or improving your; Head Tags, Links, Titles, Descriptions and Copy.

Take the example above. Let’s assume after SEO Optimizing your copy is either good or with some minor tweaking has been improved. You should now have at least some descriptive Keywords and Phrases that help explain what your site is about. SEO Optimizing of your copy has likely increased the density of important words of phrases, so highlight those in your mind.

With your Meta Descriptions added or improved, you can now highlight, or highlight more, those words or phrases that are also in the Description. Same goes for the Title. Now, highlight further anything that is a Link or with a List Tag and strongly increase anything included in a Head Tag.

Throw out the words with no highlighting and rank the rest based on the weight of the highlighting. What you have left is simple example of what a Search Engine will take away from your site. Chances are if you do this before SEO Optimizing and then after you will see a vast improvement in your rankings for Keywords and Phrases important to you, from seemingly minor adjustments.

As luck would have it for you, AG Information Systems has a wide variety of plans from Basic to Advanced. Check out AG Information Systems‘ SEO page and request more information. With so many sites dependent on Search Engines for 75% or more of their traffic, can you really afford to let your competitors rank above you?