Bussines Plans

Facebook is an amazing, free tool for small businesses. Your Facebook business page should be an integral part of your social media marketing tactics.

As your Facebook business page grows with more likes, it’s a great idea to take a few moments to set-up a custom URL for your page. Facebook calls this a vanity URL. It’s easy and free to set-up your vanity URL, and there are a few major key benefits:

1. A short, customized link is easier to include in printed marketing materials, such as post cards, brochures, and business cards. For example, when facebook assigns a link to a business page, it looks something like this: Facebook.com/pages/Creative-Marketing-Guru/192868497408571?sk=wall. What a mouthful! Once you customize your unique domain, it is becomes much shorter: facebook.com/CreativeMarketingGuru. See how much easier it is to write-out than the original URL? The new URL will be easier to format on a business card or post card.

2. Many business owners do not realize a vanity URL is possible, so now is the time to secure your business name before someone else scoops it up.

There’s no time like the present! Let’s get started…

How to Set Up a Custom URL For Your Business Facebook Page:

Step One: Your page must have at least 25 fans, or 25 “likes.” If you have not yet achieved the 25 like mark, start marketing your page by sending it to clients, family and friends and ask for a “like.” Note: this requirement lowered in September 2009 from 1,000 “likes” – thank goodness!

Step Two: Login to your Facebook account that you set-up your business page with.

Step Three: Visit www.facebook.com/username

Step Four: Chose your business page name from the drop-down menu, type your desired name in the box and click, “check availability.” If the name is available, confirm your choice. Be sure this is the URL you want. Once you create the URL, you will not be able to change it.

Step Five: Visit your new URL! You will now be able to direct customers and clients to this URL instead of the long less memorable URL Facebook originally provided you with.

That wasn’t so bad, huh? Your new URL can now be included in all of your printed marketing materials. In addition, the link should be added to your email signature if you have not done so already.

Nicole Hogan, president and founder of Creative Marketing Guru, helps small business owners reap the rewards of a solid marketing strategy. She provides strategic and creative services at affordable prices for small businesses such as graphic design for print and web, website development and maintenance, marketing writing and content, and marketing strategy. Nicole lives with her husband on Lake Opechee in Laconia, NH. For more information, or answers to specific questions, visit http://www.creativemarketingguru.com.

By Nicole Hogan

When you’re a company involved in the day to day of e-commerce and other retail areas, then it’s likely that sometime or another you’re going to need to take advantage of a sameday courier. However, when choosing between the many businesses that offer this service, there can be some confusing choices to make. That’s why we’ve come up with this article in order to help you make the right decision between the many firms that offer a next day delivery service, to ensure you get exactly the service that you’re looking for.

Consider the size of the goods you’re going to be sending. The amount of different goods that different companies sell can vary hugely: some firms will be sending items that can be sent in a small padded envelope, whilst others might well be sending goods that are larger and require more space. Most couriers offering a sameday servive will usually offer their own restrictions and capabilities of what sized parcels they deliver, so it’s important to make sure that you pick a courier that will comfortably be able to deal with your requirements.

Do they offer a tracking service? Whilst with many courier companies, a tracking system is considered standard, there are actually still firms that don’t take advantage of it. Tracking involves the sender and the recipient being able to monitor the location of the goods being sent to provide them with peace of mind and information should anyone need it. If this sounds like something you’ll want, then you should definitely make sure that the sameday courier you choose is happy to provide it.

What is their customer service like? One of the best ways to measure the quality of any company is how they treat their customers. If you’re a firm that regularly takes advantage of courier companies in general, then it’s possible that you’ll be looking to build up a long terms relationship with the right firm. Therefore, ensure that whichever company you choose to use is respectful, and treats you like and individual with your own needs: which is exactly what you are. If a company is uncooperative and rude, why use their services?

Are they efficient? One of the great things about the internet is that it enables you to go out and research any company that you’re considering using, meaning that you can gain an impression of them in advance: this is a great idea. If a company is unreliable, then the chances are someone will have made this fact public, and you can avoid the risk of using them yourself. Take the time to research which company offers the best sameday courier service and gain peace of mind for yourself.

Do you have any specific requirements for your goods? There are a variety of potential requirements that can be necessary for different products: for starters, you might be sending musical instruments which should not be stacked at all, or perhaps fragile objects that need to be kept in their own space. If this is the case with what you’re sending, then ensure any company that you are looking at using is able to tailor their delivery services to your specific needs. If they can’t, then needless to say they may not be the right company for you to work with.

When delivering parcels or packages for either home or promotional use, a Sameday Courier can be the ideal choice. However, choosing between the different businesses that offer this feature can be problematic. This article should help you out, offering advice on what to consider when making this choice.

By Chriss Tyrrell