http://www.isnare.com/?s=author&a=Lauren+Hobson Marketing Lauren Hobson Thu, 10 Sep 2009 00:00:00 +0800 http://www.isnare.com/?aid=408908&ca=Marketing Before the web came along, small businesses often had very little control over the publicity they could generate in the press, even when sending out press releases. They had to submit their news to a traditional press distribution or media wire service, which was often expensive and provided no guar... Internet Lauren Hobson Mon, 17 Aug 2009 00:00:00 +0800 http://www.isnare.com/?aid=398388&ca=Internet For small businesses today, the web is a significant tool for promotion, advertising, lead generation, customer relationship management, and many other business-related activities. But there’s more to a successful web site than just the web site itself. For instance, you may have the best site ever... Internet Lauren Hobson Mon, 17 Aug 2009 00:00:00 +0800 http://www.isnare.com/?aid=398390&ca=Internet If you had to guess, how many web sites would you say that you visit in a typical day? Only a few? Dozens? Too many to count? If you are like most people, you visit multiple sites each day whether doing research, getting news, socializing, shopping, or for any number of other reasons. Most likely, y... Marketing Lauren Hobson Tue, 28 Jul 2009 00:00:00 +0800 http://www.isnare.com/?aid=398389&ca=Marketing I’ve been reading a lot lately about the “summer slow down” that many businesses experience during the summer months. While not all businesses experience this, it can be a serious problem for those that do have to deal with fewer customers, slower sales cycles, and decreasing revenue during the summ... Business Lauren Hobson Thu, 09 Apr 2009 00:00:00 +0800 http://www.isnare.com/?aid=367846&ca=Business Many small businesses today have seen their target audience’s behavior shift toward using the web for communicating (email), getting news (web), and performing pre-shopping research (Google). You may be tempted to think that if potential customers want information about your products and services, t... Internet Lauren Hobson Wed, 21 Jan 2009 00:00:00 +0800 http://www.isnare.com/?aid=339887&ca=Internet If you’re like most small businesses, your web site is an investment. And like most investments, you'd like to see a nice return on that investment over time. But unlike other investments, your web site doesn’t gain any value if it just sits there untouched – you have to maintain it and re-invest in... Marketing Lauren Hobson Wed, 03 Dec 2008 00:00:00 +0800 http://www.isnare.com/?aid=325013&ca=Marketing Customer Loyalty programs have been around for many years, but recently it seems they have been experiencing a bit of a resurgence. Popular programs such as the Staples Reward Program and those CVS “Extra Bucks” give members extra benefits just for doing their everyday shopping. But if you’re lookin... Marketing Lauren Hobson Wed, 03 Dec 2008 00:00:00 +0800 http://www.isnare.com/?aid=325014&ca=Marketing You may think that blogs and other social networking platforms are used mostly by teenagers who like to discuss their lives online with their friends, but it turns out that businesses are becoming part of the blogging trend as well, and finding big benefits along the way. Blogging has become a globa... Marketing Lauren Hobson Wed, 03 Dec 2008 00:00:00 +0800 http://www.isnare.com/?aid=325016&ca=Marketing Most small businesses put a lot of time, thought, and marketing budget into creating a web site that not only gives users a great web experience, but also the necessary information to turn web visitors into new (or repeat) customers. With marketing budgets being tightened (or cut) for many businesse... Internet Lauren Hobson Fri, 27 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0800 http://www.isnare.com/?aid=266750&ca=Internet How many types of “anchors” can you name? I can think of News Anchors who bring us the headlines on TV each day, those wall-anchor thingies that you hammer into a wall before hanging a heavy shelf, and of course my summer favorite – boat anchors. But the most valuable type of anchors for most small...