Diligence Law

The Vikings were famous as explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates, who raided and colonised areas of Europe from the late 8th to the early 11th century. These Norsemen used their famed longships to travel as far east as Constantinople and Russia, and as far west as Iceland, Greenland, and Newfoundland.

The Vikings lived by a set of laws known as Viking laws, which Diligence thinks is just as relevant in today’s business world as they were in Viking times with a few tweaks of course to bring them in line with the modern business environment.

Diligence Law

Be Brave and Aggressive

Be direct
Grab all opportunities
Use varying methods of attack
Be versatille and agile

Attack one target at a time
Don`t plan everything in detail
Use top quality weapons

Be Prepared

Keep weapons in good condition
Keep in shape
Find good battle comrades
Agree on important points
Choose one chief

Be A Good Merchant

Find out what the market needs
Don`t promise what you can`t keep
Don`t demand over payment
Arrange things so that you can return

Keep The Camp In Order

Keep things tidy and organised
Arrange enjoyable activities which strengthen the group
Make sure everybody does useful work
Consult all members of the group for advice

Diligence in Kent move

East Sussex based marketing agency Diligence Media and Marketing is expanding its operations by announcing the opening of a satellite office in Maidstone, Kent.

The new office represents a remarkable success for Diligence which was established in November 2007, as a result of a merger between two long established companies – Nice Work and Pixel Puppet.

Since its launch Diligence has built a formidable reputation and boasts an impressive client list which includes Legal & General, Kent Air Ambulance, Sea Space, KPMG and Orbital Marketing to name but a few.

“Our new Maidstone office represents an important part of our continued expansion plans” said Martin Burke, Marketing Director.

“Although our roots lie firmly in East Sussex we now have a large number of Kent based clients and the new office will allow us to better service them."
For more information on diligence visit www.diligencegroup.co.uk

Alternatively call us 01424 447858 or e-mail martin@diligencegroup.co.uk.

E-marketing the direct approach.

Internet and email technology could be a key enabler of making all forms of marketing more direct, according to one expert.

Lisa Turner of the Institute of Direct Marketing said;

"Technology is playing an important role in integrating previously distinct advertising techniques and shaping them into the broader field of internet marketing."

"Direct marketing used to be just one of these techniques: now with email and the web, everything has the potential to be direct marketing," she explained.

One example of technology's effect on the marketing industry is the fact that research shows that more than eight in ten television adverts carry a website address, while this trend is also prevalent in newspaper and magazine advertising Ms Turner added.

According to the Direct Marketing Association, email marketing is received significantly more positively by consumers than businesses tend to believe.

A study by the organisation suggested that such messages receive a 33% actual positive response compared with a 17.6% perceived positive response.

The Marketing Manager has many years experience of helping companies market their services- why not get in touch if you'd like to know more? call 01424 447858 or e-mail martin@diligencegroup.co.uk

Pixel Puppet launch

Diligence Media and Marketing launch a new service designed to help small businesses and start up companies gain a foothold on the internet. The new service also sees the reappearance of the Pixel Puppet brand.

Speaking about the launch Marketing Director of Diligence Martin Burke said: “We have worked with many start up businesses and small businesses over the years and understand that budget is important. That’s why we have developed a range of cost effective websites which are perfect for those looking to get online for the first time".

"In time these companies can look to expand their online presence and incorporate more sophisticated features like an online shop”.

"The launch of the new service is designed to complement the existing range of Diligence design services, including website design, traditional advertising and brochure design".

The Pixel Puppet range includes a choice of three web design packages, with price starting at just £149.99 + VAT or £14.99 month for 12 months.

For more information, please visit www.pixelpuppet.co.uk.

Alternatively, call 01424 447858 or e-mail info@pixelpuppet.co.uk

Online marketing soars

The online marketing industry grew by almost 40% in 2007 according to new figures from the Advertising Association. With companies increasingly releasing the benefits of cost affective e-marketing.

With any winner there`s always a loser and in this case its direct marketing. The industry saw a drop in year-on-year growth of 6.5 per cent.

The Advertising Statistics Yearbook 2008 confirmed that digital marketing has now overtaken direct marketing as the third largest channel by market share. Digital expenditure represents 15.6 per cent of advertising expenditure while direct marketing now accounts for only 11.2 per cent.

The direct marketing industry was worth £2.17bn in 2007. Press advertising was still the biggest channel with expenditure of £7.71bn, and a 39 per cent share of the market. This was followed by TV at £4.6bn and a 24 per cent share.

The UK advertising industry grew by 4.2 per cent in 2007 to a total of £19.4bn.

We have a wealth of experience in e-marketing and offer a complete e-marketing service from website design to HTML e-mail campaigns. Talk to one of Diligences experienced professionals today on 01424 447858 or visit www.diligencegroup.co.uk and let us get your business moving in the right direction.

Data is King.

E-marketing is a really effective way of reaching your customers – and it can also be the cheapest option for a targeted campaign.

Some of your targets may not like receiving unsolicited emails, so it is important that you structure your campaign properly – enabling those who wish to, to opt out of any future communications easily. If a data subject requests to be removed from your email list, you are legally obliged to do so to avoid contravening the Electronic Communications Act.

Whilst spam is illegal, you are allowed to send unsolicited emails to business email addresses on business matters only. If you want to promote consumer services you must buy an 'opt-in' list.

Renting or buying a list is not always the most effective way of communicating. Certainly you could expect a much better response by targeting those businesses with which you already have a relationship. That’s why it makes sense to ensure you always record your business contacts.

If you are nervous about managing your own email campaign there are a number of online services available to help you – alternatively why not talk to Diligence and let us manage your next email marketing campaign?

The Marketing Manager has many years experience of helping companies market their services - why not get in touch if you'd like to know more?

Contact us now at www.diligencegroup.co.uk

Where will you take your customers in 2008?

Looking for somewhere suitable to take your staff, your colleagues or your customers?

One of our favourite events is Glorious Goodwood - one of the highlights of the social summer scene. Indeed, King Edward VII once described Glorious Goodwood as ‘a garden party with racing tacked on’.

The meeting not only offers the very best in top-class racing - ‘Glorious Goodwood’ is a real English summer institution, where racing, socialising and fashion go hand in hand.

Goodwood is reckoned to be one of the world’s most beautiful racecourses. Set high on the South Downs with the most beautiful of views, it really is the perfect place to enjoy summer’s day. The Thursday of the Goodwood Festival is traditionally ‘Ladies’ Day’ and the feature race of the day, the Goodwood Cup, is Goodwood’s oldest race.

Our sister company, Nice Work, has been organising trips to Goodwood for some years now and are now taking reservations for a Glorious Goodwood VIP Package.

For more information, contact martin@diligencegroup.co.uk

Give your website a kick up the pants!

It’s a familiar story.

You like your website. It has some good features and looks really good.

But you are not achieving very good search engine rankings. And you don’t seem to get many enquiries.

What’s gone wrong? It’s almost certain that your site probably needs a little kick up the backside.

Your site may look a little dated and, if so, there are a number of techniques you could adopt to help boost your organic rankings on the major search engines.

Naturally, a redesign of your site would help to freshen up the look and feel of your brand. But you can also build in some additional features to help generate not just additional traffic – but additional repeat visits to your site.

The inclusion of additional pages and some more search engine-friendly content will also help to boost your rankings – for instance, more relevant product information, an up to date News Page, the inclusion of Fact Sheets or an online archive library – all these mean you'd have more relevant content that could be picked up by the search engines. More to the point, the information would help project something of the personality of your company, its heritage and its experience.



What else can you do to help drive more traffic to your site?

· A Blog

A Blog can help you to position yourselves as a true expert. It also helps you to secure an additional presence on the web, by posting a substantial amount of additional online content, with a subsequent increase in the number of search results for the company.

You can position your Blog(s) as a forum for discussing issues that concern those in your industry. In addition to being stand alone sites in their own right, Blogs can be placed on a number of other internet platforms including popular and specialist trade Blog directories.

· Backlinking

You should actively seek reciprocal links with other relevant websites – the more links you can incorporate, the higher the probability of appearing more prominently in searches and, of course, securing more referrals.

· email address generator

Why not include devices to encourage visitors to your site to register their email addresses? There are a number of devices you could use ranging from a simple contact page through to more sophisticated and engaging devices such as offering Fact Sheets or a subscription to an e-zine/newsletter.

· Updated news and events section

The facility to add updateable news, photos or event information will ensure that repeat visitors to your site will have new content to read. News of your attendance at events can provide interesting content for the site as can the introduction of new products.

Using seminars to sell your services

Seminar selling is not new and many industries use seminars or workshops to market their products or services. Some companies use the medium as their main source of new business leads yet others remain reluctant to adopt this specialised form of selling.

A reluctance to use such a public platform for selling your services can be for a number of quite valid reasons – it may be an understandable nervousness about speaking in public; it could be a concern about the effort required to organise the event; or, it could possibly be the perceived costs and benefits of holding a seminar.

If you are worried about public speaking, here's our top 6 tips

1. Know your material

2. Use personal stories in your presentation

3. Practice. Practice. Practice!

4. Rehearse out loud with all the equipment you plan on using.

5. Know your audience. Greet some of the audience members as they arrive. It’s easier to speak to a group of friends than to strangers.

6. Arrive early and familiarise yourself with your surroundings

A successful seminar offers an opportunity to present your services to an invited audience of interested prospects. They will be there because they want to find out more about the topic you are presenting and they will be there without many of the usual barriers you come up against with some of the more traditional forms of selling.

A successful seminar enables you to impart far more information than any brochure or website could do and you’ll be in a position to answer questions or address concerns immediately. Your clients can experience you, and your service, in action and make valuable judgements about your personality and the culture of your business.

Furthermore, the content of your seminar has the potential to boost interest in your business and the messages you want to get across – the successful seminar presenter will have a real ability to inspire people to buy from them.

It is worth remembering that some people are reluctant to ask questions and would rather remain anonymous. They may be more comfortable when they are part of a crowd and will respond much more positively to you. They may dislike one to one sales situations which could make them feel under pressure to buy. Let your delegates listen to you whilst sitting with friends, family or colleagues – or with complete strangers but people who share their needs and aspirations – and it will comfort them and as a result you may find that you have much warmer prospects. Your seminar will offer them the chance to listen and to observe the reactions of other people in the audience allowing them to form their opinions with no pressure.

Seminar Selling can be extremely cost effective if you compare it with the cost of traditional prospecting. To secure an audience of 20, 30 or more interested prospects in one room at the same time, offers a highly attractive business opportunity indeed.

So, if you're looking for something different - why not try the seminar?

The Marketing Manager has many years experience of helping companies market their services via seminars - why not get in touch if you'd like to know more?

Give your website an early spring clean

The start of the year is always a good time for a spot of navel gazing!

You probably have a website - but how many times have you checked to make sure its still perfromaing well for you?

Its always worth making sure your site is still working for you and what it is you expect from your site. For isntance, is is:

To provide an online guide to your company's services?
To offer an online corporate brochure?
To generate sales enquiries?
To provide a profile for your company on the major search engines?
To encourage visits and repeat visits to the site?
To encourage newsletter subscriptions?
To be search engine friendly?

Take a look to at your design objectives.

Does your site look slick and polished - or does it look dated?
Is it inviting? Or does it take some time and effort to navigate?
Does it use appropriate imagery?

Why not give your website an early spring clean? A new fresh look for your site could do wonders for your business.

Dining out with the Marketing Manager

The key to the success of any good restaurant is its ability to continue to attract customers. Their customers will either be new people – or those who have enjoyed the restaurant in the past. Attracting additional and increased turnover from your existing customers will be much easier than trying to attract new customers.

It is just so important to build up a database of customers and prospects which you can use to attract new business. Indeed the database is the single most crucial marketing tool you possess - but an astonishing number of restaurants and pubs fail to record their customer's details!

If you can accumulate a database of around 1000 prospects and customers you will (not should, mind!) have sufficient prospects to enable you to rely on database marketing initiatives to fill your establishment – particularly for special occasions, events and themed evenings.

Segment the database into corporate and and personal data and you can personalise the marketing messages accordingly.

Securing more data is a challenge but one that should form the basis for the bulk of your short term marketing efforts There are a number of sources of data – some more easy to generate than others - but all requiring some effort! how about:

• collating all your existing customer records, business cards etc and then segmenting into corporate and personal and into customers and prospects

• visitors to your restaurant should always be asked for their contact details – either by asking them to complete a contact card, asking them to complete a 'customer satisfaction' card, by leaving their business cards – or all three! There are opportunities to secure these details by displaying material on tables, by enclosing them with the bill and by leaving a receptacle close to the till and restaurant exit for business cards. It may become a chore for staff but it should be stressed how important it is!

• initiating data capture exercises – marketing material distributed to potential customers

• capture data at exhibitions - try exhibiting at some of your local business exhibitions

• PR exercises such as competitions can also attract details that can be added to your database

Finally, you can always look to carry out a data capture exercise to source local business details – this is something you can either do yourselves by searching local directories, websites and publications or you may wish to consider outsourcing.

Once you have your database you can then begin to market your restaurant. A regular programme of both postal and electronic communications should enable you to attract enough enquiries to help you to fill your restaurant for special promotions and events.

You can also use the database for:

• special taster events for local businesses

• open evenings

• wine tastings

• charity dinners with entertainment

• launching new or special occasion menus

The Marketing Manager has extensive experience of using both electronic and postal databases to maximise business opportunities in the restaurant sector. Why not get in touch to find out more?

Made your new year's resolution?

Have you made your New Year Resolution?

Why not make 2008 the year you start the year with a proper marketing plan for your company?

A number of organisations start the year with no real plan in place and then spend the rest of the year stumbling along making ad hoc decisions on marketing and communications activity.

The start of the year is the perfect time to plan for the forthcoming year.The early days of a New Year are usually quiet, your key staff should be refreshed after the Christmas break - and enthusiasm should be at his peak, so capture it whilst you can!

So why not celebrate the new year by examining your strategy, your positioning, your communications and your marketing priorities?

A couple of hours spent compiling a 12 month comms schedule now will bring an added dimension to your new business planning - discipline!

Why not check through your 2007 marketing results and see:

• What activities worked for you?
• How did you measure your results - if at all?
• If you can't measure results, should you repeat the exercise?
• What about your company's image? Is it tired or out of date?
• And finally, what about your online presence? Does it need a brush up?