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Customer Focus Archive
9/1/2008
Generating Buzz: Word-of-Mouth Marketing
Giving people a reason to talk about your products or services is still the most powerful advertising tool.
8/1/2008
Strategic Product Positioning
If your product positioning isn’t aligned with your customers, it may not be a strategic stronghold you can keep.
7/1/2008
Look Who’s Talking About You – Online
Online reviews are influencing your customers’ purchasing decisions. How do you respond?
6/1/2008
Sales: The First Line of Differentiation
Use your sales force to create long-term value by forging authentic customer relationships.
5/1/2008
For New Ideas, Think Categorically
To come up with fresh offerings, examine what customers really desire from entire categories of products and services.
4/1/2008
Going Global
Even for smaller companies, customer opportunities are borderless – but tapping foreign markets requires careful planning.
3/1/2008
Know Thy Competition, Part 2
You’ve collected the key information on your competitors. Now it’s time to use it to create market advantage.
2/1/2008
Know thy Competition, Part 1
Obtaining solid competitive information can enlighten your marketing efforts. Here’s what you need to know about the other guys.
1/1/2008
The Customer Isn't Always Right
By severing ties with your most difficult or unprofitable customers, you can focus more resources on your best ones.
12/1/2007
The Value Proposition: What Makes You Different?
A strong value proposition isn’t about you – it’s about the customer.
11/1/2007
Finding Out What Customers Think
A survey can help reveal customer wants, needs and satisfaction levels. Use these six guidelines to plan an effective one.
10/1/2007
Top 10 Direct Mail Miscues
It’s hand-delivered to the customer’s mailbox – so what could go wrong? In a word, plenty.
9/1/2007
Smart Marketing through Seminars
Educational presentations can reinforce your brand, build credibility, and position you and your colleagues as knowledgeable experts.
7/1/2007
Creating Websites that Engage
You may be driving traffic to your online presence, but you won’t see real ROI until you can get visitors to stay awhile.
6/1/2007
Customer Panels: A Powerful Marketing Tool
You don’t always need a pricey marketing firm or deep pockets to find out what your customers really think.
5/1/2007
Eight Classic Marketing Mistakes
Avoid these common blunders to improve your marketing effectiveness.
4/1/2007
Experiential Marketing
Giving a select group of customers hands-on experience with your new product or service can be an effective marketing strategy.
3/1/2007
Three Basic Elements of Online Marketing
If your organization isn’t leveraging the power of the Internet, here are three steps to get you started.
1/1/2007
Quality Marketing Materials Do Matter
Do-it-yourself marketing materials often don’t do your brand justice. Here’s why you should leverage professionals help for your identity materials.
12/1/2006
Five Tips for Finding Your Niche
Identifying a niche can make for smarter, more cost-effective marketing efforts. This proven five-step approach can help.
11/1/2006
Measuring Marketing Results
Measuring marketing ROI isn’t always easy, but that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be attempted.
10/1/2006
Your Customers May Be Satisfied – But Are They Loyal?
If customer satisfaction is all that your organization measures, you’re ignoring a more important indicator of long-term success.
9/1/2006
Seven Tips for Trade Show Success
Trade shows can be an effective way to sell, market, and gather leads – but success requires planning and commitment.
8/1/2006
What Customers Really Want: Simplicity
To determine which products or services to keep, find out what truly matters to your customers – and your bottom line.
7/1/2006
Marketing For Lasting Value
It’s time to rethink marketing investments, strategies, and the customers they attract for their long-term value.
6/1/2006
How to Get Started with Direct Mail
Direct-mail marketing campaigns can produce a quick return with quantifiable results - but they do require careful planning and expert execution.
5/1/2006
When Customers Complain
Ignorance regarding customer complaints is never bliss -- and proactive complaint management can bring unexpected benefits.
4/1/2006
What’s In Your Loyalty-Building Toolbox?
Keep customers coming back with these 10 low-cost loyalty-building techniques.
3/1/2006
Key Elements of Marketing Plans
Any new promotional initiative should address message, audience, medium, and measurement.
2/1/2006
Tips for Earning Customer Referrals
To harvest a bountiful crop of new customers, try sowing the seeds of word-of-mouth advertising with these strategies.
12/1/2005
Marketing on a Shoestring: 10 Tips
When the marketing dollars are few but the needs are many, it’s time for some out-of-the-box thinking.
11/1/2005
The Power of the Press Release
Often overlooked by smaller organizations, press releases can be an effective PR tool -- provided they’re used appropriately.
10/1/2005
The Secret to Customer Loyalty
To provide the level of customer service that inspires loyalty, companies must let employees engage in creative risk-taking.
8/1/2005
The Outsourced Marketing Advantage
For small companies, a willingness to entrust some marketing functions to competent contractors can provide unexpected benefits.
7/1/2005
Sales vs. Marketing
Any rift between these two customer-centric departments is wasteful and counterproductive. Here’s how to get the two sides talking again.
6/1/2005
Customer Service: Five Basic Rules
A business that neglects these five fundamental rules of good customer service is a business headed for trouble.
5/1/2005
Marketing: How Much to Spend?
When it comes to the marketing budget, how much is enough? Four basic questions can guide you to the answer.
3/1/2005
Uncovering Customer Insights
Marketing research must take some unconventional turns in order to find the next big idea.
2/1/2005
Finding the Right Marketing Leadership Match
Aligning priorities combined with a clear mission marks the start of a successful search.
12/1/2004
Touch Points
Every contact with the customer is a make-or-break branding opportunity.
10/1/2004
Making a Commitment
Leave single transactions behind, and instead, build long-term relationships.
8/1/2004
Improving the Customer Conversation
When you stop to consider who’s doing the talking, you start to improve your marketing and sales.
6/1/2004
Marketing Plans: The Core of Your Company’s Profitability
Effective marketing planning requires an ongoing, corporate-wide commitment that begins at the CEO level.
6/1/2004
Strong Marketing Begins at the Top
You and your principal management must take the lead in, and the responsibility for, marketing success.
6/1/2004
Revitalize Your Organization’s Branding Efforts
Better branding requires your involvement and a better understanding of your customers.
5/1/2004
Reaching Customers Through Cause Marketing
Create partnerships with a social cause to generate profits, enhance your brand, and increase customer loyalty.