Social media sites can be incredibly useful. Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and all the rest have created new means of communication and enabled companies to connect organically with users whose interests are already vetted.

That said, they can also be destructive. The difference lies in the way you use them:

If you publish an article on your own website, tweet about it, and post a link on Facebook, that’s fantastic. If you post an article as a Facebook note and then share it, your marketing and outreach are headed for a crash-and-burn moment.

We all hate getting spam mail so it’s hard to admit that email advertising is effective, but study after study show that it’s a low-cost method of obtaining new customers and generating repeat clients. According to SalesForce.com, the average return on investment (ROI) for every $1 devoted to an email-marketing campaign is $44.25. 

That’s a very revealing statistic considering that sending an email is absolutely free. Unlike physical mailers, radio ads, print media and every other popular form of marketing, email advertising is readily available to small businesses. 

The normal staff meeting has become a colossal waste of time. No surprise, but a staff meeting is boring and even a dreaded part of the “9 to 5” world. Many consider staff meetings (or team meetings) a practical alternative to work. They feign interest and look at the gatherings as a place to jot down their grocery list or refine their drawing skills. All because there is too little thought invested in the planning or the execution of the meeting. 

When your auto repair company sends you a coupon for a discount on an oil change, or your local coffee shop rewards you with a free cup of coffee every tenth time you buy, you're seeing a promotional program at work.

A promotion is a planned strategy for increasing sales over a short period. A promotion adds value to the product or service offered. It stimulates sales for reasons other than the product's inherent benefits.