Leads or not?
A client of mine has a small company that sells a consumer food product. On the web site, there is an offer for free samples. For many months, they would get a few requests for a free sample every...
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Being an Expat
I received a phone call from a guy looking for advice. Free advice can be fun to give, particularly when doing so brings back good memories.His company was buying a company in Korea and offered him a...
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Book suggestion for those dealing with other countries
From time to time, I have taught Global Management classes for the University of Phoenix. The class I did the most, and enjoyed the most, was called Internal Environment of Global Business. The focus...
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Start-up book recommendation
My work for consumer businesses recently has outpaced my B2B work. This is a bit of a surprise, given that the vast majority of my experience has been in the B2B world.One client has been working in...
View ArticleWhat B2B marketing activities to do first
It is not uncommon to hear someone with a new company ask me what marketing they should do first. Sometimes the question shows up a bit backward - they heard that a certain activity (like branding...
View ArticleHow to price a new product
One question I often hear is "how do I price my new product?" Assuming a goal of maximizing profit, how can you determine the optimal price to set? This is always an interesting question, and not an...
View ArticleOther B2B marketing activities to do first
In a prior post, I talked about how direct sales is often the most cost effective first step a B2B company should take. In this posting, I will talk about other cost effective marketing programs that...
View ArticleB2B activity *NOT* worth doing
I have two posts that talk about what cost effective activities are worth doing for B2B companies. In this one, I am going to talk about some of the activities that most small B2B companies should NOT...
View ArticleTargeting customers
A common issue that shows up with people who start businesses is that they don't target their customers. If I ask the question "What customers do you want to target first?", and they answer anyone and...
View ArticleIntellectual property primer
Intellectual property (IP) generally falls into 4 categories in most countries in the world:Copyright - rules on copyrights protect artistic, written, and musical works. The owner of the copyright can...
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Book recommendation for those doing business in China
China is both a huge potential market for products, and a low cost source for items we sell elsewhere in the world, but doing business there can be a huge challenge. "China can be a scary place to do...
View ArticleMcAfee thinks out of the box
I have to applaud McAfee for thinking out of the box. Prior to 2005, the major makers (Norton, McAfee, etc.) of virus protection software sold using the same model. People would buy the product with 1...
View ArticleRick's Law - advice for people thinking of starting a company
Before I started the start-up software company a few years ago, I went for advice from just about anyone I thought might have good advice for me. One person I visited was a guy I know through bike...
View ArticleMarketing is not equal to Advertising or Sales
I am a member of the Silicon Valley Product Management Association, and while attending a meeting last week, I heard a common issue - that people (generally Engineers) think that marketing and...
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Sources of Funding
Recently, a question was posed to me about sources of funding for a start-up, and I figured this would make a good posting for my Blog.The general sources of funding for a start-up in the order they...
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Hints when Traveling to Japan
As of last count, I have taken 16 trips to Japan during my career, and have spent over 6 months of cumulative time there. This has given me some insight into traveling to Japan, which I thought I would...
View Article"Expanding into a new country" equals "Start-up"
When people ask what I do, I tell them I focus on start-ups in 2 areas. But, isn't my company name "expand abroad" which is related to countries, not start-ups?You are correct. It comes down to a bit...
View ArticleExpanding abroad takes time and effort
A while back I wrote an article on the Basics of Expanding Abroad which was published on the AsiaPreneuer web site. That article talks about the different levels of expanding abroad starting with...
View ArticleBrand and branding
Way too often, you hear someone say that they are trying to improve their brand, so decide to update their logo. This helps keep logo firms and print shops in business as new letterhead and business...
View ArticleCost, quality, and speed in product development
There is a saying in product development that goes something like Cost, quality, and speed - pick any two. And this is so true - the best you can do is 2 out of 3 (and most can't even get that).I hit...
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Business Magazines
A client of mine, along with having an import business, is also a lecturer at San Francisco State, and invited me to come in and speak to her students about my experiences when I was Asia Marketing...
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Good site for info on other countries
Australian Trade Commission (Austrade) site is meant to help Australian Companies do business with other countries. Some of the site is Australia specific, but much of what they say would be valuable...
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Trade Show Focus
I went to a sports trade show last weekend and saw some booths that it was obvious weren't going to succeed. Basically, a trade show booth needs to have a specific goal, and then take steps towards...
View ArticleNiche is nice
It seems that in times of economic downturns, there are lots of people who become "consultants". Some are serious. Some are just looking for some income until they find a new full time job at a...
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Ads in a new publication
From time to time, I have answered questions on selling ads from others looking at starting a publication.Figured I'd take some of the answers I have given and provide them here, in the hopes that this...
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