Dean Mercado

5 Factors To Look For When Choosing The Perfect Target Market

By Dean Mercado As a marketing coach and consultant, one of the biggest and costliest mistakes that I see small businesses make time and time again is that they're neck deep in their business and they still haven't clearly defined their target marke... Read >

Secret, Yet Powerful Marketing Weapon Revealed

So you've tried direct mail, advertising, you've got a web site, maybe you've even tried networking as a marketing strategy. These and many other marketing strategies are all good and if performed properly will most likely bring you favorable results. A... Read >

Dare to Be Different: The Evolution of an Ezine

As a marketer, and for the record, I do believe that we are all full-time marketers; I am always looking for ways to connect more regularly with and add value to my target audience – I want top-of-mind awareness for myself, my business and my offerings. ... Read >

Fear of Failure: For a Marketer, It's the Kiss of Death

Susan B. Anthony was once quoted as saying "Failure is impossible". And you know what? I believe she was right because regardless of the outcome of whatever action you take, in anything you do, you always gain something from taking action. On the oth... Read >

Warning: 'Casual Marketing' Leads to Business Casualties

Let's start out by defining exactly what 'casual marketing' is. In a nutshell, it's trying a marketing tactic once, maybe twice, and when you don't see immediate or expected results, you drop that marketing tactic and either try something else or worse y... Read >

Differentiate or Die - 3 Keys to Eclipse Your Competition

Quite frankly there are very few ways to really differentiate yourself from your competition. You make a great product, so do they. You provide top-notch customer service, they do too. Worse yet, there's probably a competitor out there that already pla... Read >

Networking for Success: The 3 Phases of Small Talk

In my mind, small talk basically consists of 3 phases: The ice breaker Get to know you better Graceful exit So let's go ahead and briefly touch on each phase and in turn give you some concrete takeaway strategies that you can apply immediately for ea... Read >

Sell Your Successes: 3 Techniques That Can Lower Your Marketing Costs & Energize Your Business

I attended a seminar the other day at a local trade show and one thing that they mentioned almost in passing that inspired me was the critical concept of "selling your successes". Hmmm… "Sell your successes" – What could that mean? Simply put, when... Read >

Jumpstart Your Marketing With The "Rule of 5"

Let me ask you and be honest with yourself here, are you getting the results you want in your business? If you are great, this message will be helpful in getting you to the next level. If you're not, don't worry, it will certainly put you on the right p... Read >

7 Reasons You Need to Market with Articles Now

by Dean Mercado Looking for a simple way to get an edge on your competition? Successful businesses who are in it for the long haul continually apply innovative marketing strategies and tactics to differentiate themselves and get that edge. Two such k... Read >

9 Marketing Credos for a Thriving Business

by Dean Mercado 1. Differentiate or Die! You Must Stand Out From the Pack. Don't become another "me too" option for your prospects to choose from. When you allow this to happen, you position yourself to compete only on price – a tough arena to play... Read >

Internet Marketing: 10 Deadly Sins of a Poorly Designed Website

By Dean Mercado Face it. There are tons of websites out there but very few that actually pull their weight and get results. Effective website design is not easy. If it was, every business that put up a website would realize enormous success. It tak... Read >

Marketing: Your Brand Is About More Than Just Good Looks

by Dean Mercado First let's clear up a common misconception of what a "Brand" really is. A brand is more than just your company's name or logo. It's more than just a particular type of product you offer such as Q-tips brand of cotton swabs. It's mor... Read >