<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?><rss version="2.0" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"><channel><atom:link href="http://platinummix.com.au/RSSRetrieve.aspx?ID=4127&amp;Type=RSS20" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" /><title>Blog</title><description>Blog</description><link>http://platinummix.com.au/</link><lastBuildDate>Sat, 26 May 2012 21:21:43 GMT</lastBuildDate><docs>http://backend.userland.com/rss</docs><generator>RSS.NET: http://www.rssdotnet.com/</generator><item><title>Congratulations to Zublin for winning the WA CFF Earth Award 2011</title><description>&lt;p&gt;Excellent News - the award submission Platinum Mix assisted Zublin Australia with won at the &lt;a href="http://www.civilcontractors.com/EarthAwards/" target="_blank"&gt;CFF Earth Awards &lt;/a&gt;2011 last night.&amp;nbsp; A great achievement.&amp;nbsp; Well done Zublin!&amp;nbsp; The submission showcased Zublin intake and outfall&amp;nbsp;tunnelling project on the Binningup Desalination Plant.&lt;/p&gt;
</description><link>http://platinummix.com.au/RSSRetrieve.aspx?ID=4127&amp;A=Link&amp;ObjectID=127864&amp;ObjectType=56&amp;O=http%253a%252f%252fplatinummix.com.au%252f_blog%252fBlog%252fpost%252fCongratulations_to_Zublin_for_winning_the_WA_CFF_Earth_Award_2011%252f</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://platinummix.com.au/_blog/Blog/post/Congratulations_to_Zublin_for_winning_the_WA_CFF_Earth_Award_2011/</guid><pubDate>Sat, 06 Aug 2011 04:54:00 GMT</pubDate></item><item><title>And Nobody Likes You</title><description>&lt;p&gt;So I was flipping through my issue of Marketing Mag, I came across a very funny article by the very clever Geoffrey McDonald Bowll who wrote a relatively long article about the lack of popularity for the 'most misunderstood, maligned profession in the world'.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
I would have to agree that marketers aren't the most popular people at all - in fact we have been rated less popular than accountants! I found this to be quite shocking at the time, and working with accountants on a daily basis - this popularity ladder still astounds me!&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The public feel they can trust other professions, and think that they can't trust marketers. Marketers who are trying all day long to give the public exactly what they want, at the price they want, with as little wastage as possible. I believe they are hating the wrong people!&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
A few anti-marketing cliches:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Shallow as a Blond in a Shower&lt;br /&gt;
Marketers have no depth of thinking - reaching for the blindingly obvious. Thin girl. Red sports car. Big diamond.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Trying to Brainwash Me&lt;br /&gt;
They try to tell us X,Y and Z is more important than the things you believe no matter what.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Sexist&lt;br /&gt;
Anybody who uses sex to sell things obviously thinks that gender is less important than their own.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Can't Add Up&lt;br /&gt;
Marketers, who really ought to be women - 'cause it's not a real man's job - get all fuzzed up when you ask them to do anything with numbers.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Full of Bullshit&lt;br /&gt;
Marketers use long, meaningless, weird jargon to make themselves look smarter. Like 'target market' instead of 'people' or 'ageing demographic' instead of 'old people'. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
You Can't Trust Them&lt;br /&gt;
They will tell anybody anything. They don't understand the concept of confidentiality any more than they understand the idea of privacy or trust. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
...by this stage, I'm starting to have my feelings hurt - but wait - there's more!&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Salespeople with Tickets on Themselves&lt;br /&gt;
Marketers kid themselves they are more important than salespeople, when the reality is, they are salespeople who aren't very good at selling.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Lazy.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Mad Men - Their Life&lt;br /&gt;
The entire marketing industry thinks it's living a Mad Men lifestyle.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Anybody Can Do It - No Skills&lt;br /&gt;
You just need a good act at sucking up, more hubris and fewer brain cells.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The list goes on:&lt;br /&gt;
Up themselves&lt;br /&gt;
Don't do anything&lt;br /&gt;
Wankers&lt;br /&gt;
No consistency&lt;br /&gt;
Code of ethics?&lt;br /&gt;
Demotivate&lt;br /&gt;
Waste money&lt;br /&gt;
Wannabe creatives&lt;br /&gt;
They don't even know what they do&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Less popular than traffic wardens, used cares salesmen or lawyers.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
What we DO have is the power to affect behavioral change - so the above list is what I'll be sure to continue to tackle each day.
</description><link>http://platinummix.com.au/RSSRetrieve.aspx?ID=4127&amp;A=Link&amp;ObjectID=115607&amp;ObjectType=56&amp;O=http%253a%252f%252fplatinummix.com.au%252f_blog%252fBlog%252fpost%252fAnd_Nobody_Likes_You%252f</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://platinummix.com.au/_blog/Blog/post/And_Nobody_Likes_You/</guid><pubDate>Thu, 21 Apr 2011 07:56:00 GMT</pubDate></item><item><title>3 Hot Marketing Strategies (that apply to all businesses)</title><description>&lt;p&gt;
The bottom line of all businesses is to make a profit. That&amp;rsquo;s why a business exists in the first place. It sounds nice for someone to say that the reason they&amp;rsquo;re in business is to help other people, or to provide some needed service, but in the end the real bottom line is that the business owner wants and needs to realise a profit.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
If a business expects to remain in business for any length of time, or to grow, the business owner must master the skill of getting customers to do business with them. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
That includes new customers; those with whom they have never done business before.  Current or existing customer; those who patronise the business regularly and past customers; those who have done business before, but may have taken their business elsewhere. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The process of getting people to do business with you is called marketing. Unfortunately for many businesses, this process, as critical as it is to the success of the business, is one of the tools business owner&amp;rsquo;s least understands. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Here are three, good, useable marketing efforts that work will in any economic climate. These strategies can be put to work in your business today, and help move your business forward regardless of the economy of your available financial resources. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;h2&gt;
&lt;/h2&gt;
&lt;h2&gt;Marketing Strategy #1&lt;/h2&gt;
&amp;ldquo;Do what you do so well, that when others see you do it, they want to see you do it again, and will bring others to see you do it.&amp;rdquo; Walt Disney. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Broken down it means: it&amp;rsquo;s important that you do the things you (or your business) does the best, add your own personality and adapt successful business traits to your own business and do what you do with excellence. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The key is not to &amp;lsquo;meet&amp;rsquo; your clients&amp;rsquo; expectations, but to &amp;lsquo;exceed&amp;rsquo; them &amp;ndash; to give them more that what they expected. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Make sure that the &amp;lsquo;service&amp;rsquo; always outweighs the &amp;lsquo;price&amp;rsquo;. Be sure to always give more service than the customer perceives they should be getting from their transaction with you. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;bull;	Do I offer the best quality product or service I possibly can?&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;bull;	What can I do to improve it?&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;bull;	What is the best benefit to my customers that each of my products or services have to offer?&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;bull;	How can I better convey that to my customers?&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;bull;	What can I offer my customer above and beyond the product or service they purchased?&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;bull;	Do my customers trust the advice and suggestions they get from my staff, and do they feel comfortable dealing with us?&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;bull;	Why should they do business with my establishment instead of any and all options they have, including doing nothing?&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;bull;	Would I purchase this product or service if I were in the market for it?&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;bull;	Would I purchase it from my company if I didn&amp;rsquo;t own, or work for the company?&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;bull;	Would I feel comfortable referring my friends, relatives and associates to this company?&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;h2&gt;
&lt;/h2&gt;
&lt;h2&gt;Marketing Strategy #2&lt;/h2&gt;
Use the testimonials of other satisfied customers to help pre-sell your prospects.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Testimonials are one of the most powerful tools any business owner can use, but also one of the most under-utilised.&lt;br /&gt;
Testimonials are not difficult to get. One of the most effective ways is to send users of your products or services a questionnaire or evaluation form that asks for their feedback on how they&amp;rsquo;ve benefited from using the product or service.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The questions should be in &amp;ldquo;open-ended&amp;rdquo; form, and ask for them to write their feelings about their experience with your product or the service they received from you, and not just for &amp;ldquo;yes&amp;rdquo; or &amp;ldquo;no&amp;rdquo; answers.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Using testimonials is one of the most effective ways you can eliminate fear, increase the believability and credibility of your offer, and add to the number of sales or inquiries to your advertisements or promotions. Whatever you do, don&amp;rsquo;t overlook this important and valuable tool!&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;h2&gt;
&lt;/h2&gt;
&lt;h2&gt;Marketing Strategy #3&lt;/h2&gt;
Build a database of current, past and prospective customers and keep in touch on a regular basis.&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;bull;	Who are your current customers?&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;bull;	Do you know?&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;bull;	How do you know?&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;bull;	Do you have a record that shows who they are, what products or services they regularly purchase, what their last purchase was, when it was, and how often they make purchases from you?&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
By knowing exactly whom you have dealt with in the past, who you currently deal with, and who you would like to deal with in the future can dramatically change your business, your profits and your bottom line.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
If you&amp;rsquo;re not currently using a computer to keep track of these and other categories of customers, you should be.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Targeting your marketing efforts to the right people can make or break your entire advertising or marketing campaign. And if you&amp;rsquo;re a small business, you can&amp;rsquo;t afford to have that happen too many times. It&amp;rsquo;ll drive you right out of business!&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Keeping in touch with your customers&amp;hellip;past, current and prospective, is one of the best marketing tools you can employ. It doesn&amp;rsquo;t have to be &amp;ldquo;hard-sell.&amp;rdquo; It can be as simple as any of the following examples:&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;bull;	Send birthday cards to your clients.&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;bull;	Send postcards on the anniversary date of their first purchase with you.&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;bull;	Send a questionnaire asking for their evaluation of the product or service they purchased, or feedback on how it could be made better.&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;bull;	Send an informational newsletter on a regular basis.&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;bull;	Involve your customers in a contest or promotion&amp;hellip; perhaps a referral generating promotion.&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;bull;	Sponsor client lunches with guest speakers that address subjects of interest to your clients. Have them bring a friend.&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;bull;	Send announcements of &amp;ldquo;preferred customer&amp;rdquo; sales or events by special invitation. Include an invitation for someone who is not one of your current customers.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;h3&gt;&lt;span style="color: #e36c09;"&gt;Make your current customers feel special&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Make your past customers feel missed&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
And make your prospective customers feel wanted&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Use your internal database to keep in touch with these groups of customers. Let them all know how much you care, and how much you appreciate their business, and this will take your business to new levels faster than nearly any other method you can think of.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
If, for some reason you don&amp;rsquo;t have the time or desire to learn the latest marketing techniques, don&amp;rsquo;t just drop the ball. Your business and your customers are too important. Make sure you find a qualified consultant that can help you analyse your business, decide which strategies will work best for you, then set in motion a systematic plan that will help you skyrocket your business to the next level.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
These three strategies will start you on your way. Apply them in your business, and your competition won&amp;rsquo;t stand a chance!
</description><link>http://platinummix.com.au/RSSRetrieve.aspx?ID=4127&amp;A=Link&amp;ObjectID=113471&amp;ObjectType=56&amp;O=http%253a%252f%252fplatinummix.com.au%252f_blog%252fBlog%252fpost%252f3_Hot_Marketing_Strategies_(that_apply_to_all_businesses)%252f</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://platinummix.com.au/_blog/Blog/post/3_Hot_Marketing_Strategies_(that_apply_to_all_businesses)/</guid><pubDate>Mon, 28 Mar 2011 04:13:00 GMT</pubDate></item><item><title>NAB's Break-up Campaign: Lessons to Learn</title><description>&lt;p&gt; I was thoroughly entertained and very impressed by NAB's recent break-up campaign, it's not often you see such an innovative, clever, well timed and well executed marketing strategy. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
NAB's huge push to differentiate itself from Australia's other big four banks has quickly become an early candidate for marketing campaign of the year - and with good reason.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
In today's media-saturated world, it's no secret that it's difficult to grab the attention of consumers for any substantial period of time, let alone an extended campaign such as this which lasted closer to four or five days.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The campaign started the Friday just before Valentines Day (perfect timing!) with what looked like an very unusual tweet from NAB's corporate Twitter account suggesting that there was going to be a difficult break-up. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The next day, newspaper broke the story that NAB intends to pay subsidies up to $700 to assist customers switching mortgages from Commonwealth Bank and Westpac in order to pay exit fees. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
On Valentines Day - it launch the break-up campaign, followed by a number of marketing, advertising and PR stunts. CD's full of break-up songs were handed out at railway stations, signs on footpaths, and actors performed mock break-ups around the country...to name a few. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
It really was a multi-media blitz which was no doubt worth the millions it cost to pull it off. There's some lessons SME's can learn here (even without the millions of dollars).&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;strong&gt;1. Co-ordination in key&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
NAB coordinated a number of mediums starting from Twitter, through to print followed by guerrilla marketing stunts all backed by media interviews and TV appearances. All these elements worked together to create a bang!&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;strong&gt;2. Social Media&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
Starting the campaign with Twitter was brilliant because it immediately reached the younger customers NAB wanted to attract. The use of video and YouTube also helped send the campaign viral - nothing flash necessary, just home-made style videos of break-ups.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;strong&gt;3. Unique&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
Lets face it - it was unique and so very un-bank-like, which is one of the reasons it was so successful. NAB's willingness to experiment and take risks has meant that I look at them a little differently now...do you?&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;strong&gt;4. Address customer directly&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
NAB very openly talked about and to its main rivals - which in Australia in particular - makes for a refreshing upfront change. The danger was that the competitors will get free publicity out of it - but when your trying to differentiate yourself from your competitors, sometimes you just gotta do it.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;strong&gt;5. Setting Expectations&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
I'm going to be a little disappointed if the next marketing push is more reserved or doesn't have the same willingness to experiment outside the box, so that a risk you run when taking risks.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Georgina Sainer
Marketing Co-ordinator
Check out some of the stunts below - kept me smiling all day!
&lt;iframe width="640" height="390" frameborder="0" title="YouTube video player" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/iBoXvgysltw"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;
&lt;iframe width="640" height="390" frameborder="0" title="YouTube video player" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/OA2M9U8wo-0"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;
&lt;iframe width="640" height="390" frameborder="0" title="YouTube video player" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/0BZl21_2tuo"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;
&lt;iframe width="640" height="390" frameborder="0" title="YouTube video player" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/8RfyAxnC3NY"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;
&lt;iframe width="480" height="390" frameborder="0" title="YouTube video player" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/XEk3V_Pw8Ts"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;
</description><link>http://platinummix.com.au/RSSRetrieve.aspx?ID=4127&amp;A=Link&amp;ObjectID=110891&amp;ObjectType=56&amp;O=http%253a%252f%252fplatinummix.com.au%252f_blog%252fBlog%252fpost%252fNAB's_Break-up_Campaign_Lessons_to_Learn%252f</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://platinummix.com.au/_blog/Blog/post/NAB's_Break-up_Campaign_Lessons_to_Learn/</guid><pubDate>Tue, 22 Feb 2011 07:54:00 GMT</pubDate></item><item><title>10 lessons start-ups can take from Oprah</title><description>&lt;p&gt;
I was just browsing through todays news and found this article:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a target="_blank" href="http://money.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=8183426"&gt;10 lessons start-ups can take from Oprah&lt;/a&gt; and found it to be a very interesting read. Now, I'm not a crazy Oprah fan, but there is great deal of respect for her and her business model, and after months of hype, I am glad she's finally hit our shores and very proud of Tourism Australia and it's affiliates for developing such a major coup for Australian Tourism.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
What are you thoughts on Oprah and her visit?&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
</description><link>http://platinummix.com.au/RSSRetrieve.aspx?ID=4127&amp;A=Link&amp;ObjectID=105260&amp;ObjectType=56&amp;O=http%253a%252f%252fplatinummix.com.au%252f_blog%252fBlog%252fpost%252f10_lessons_start-ups_can_take_from_Oprah%252f</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://platinummix.com.au/_blog/Blog/post/10_lessons_start-ups_can_take_from_Oprah/</guid><pubDate>Thu, 16 Dec 2010 03:08:00 GMT</pubDate></item><item><title>iReading: The Demise of Books?</title><description>&lt;p&gt;The iPad came out relatively recently and now that the dust has settled it looks like a good time to seriously consider the effect it will have on the traditional book.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Whenever I go shopping I look forward to visiting a book shop and perusing the latest titles. As is often the case, I couldn&amp;rsquo;t decide between a numbers of books the other week. So I asked the shop assistant what they&amp;rsquo;re thoughts were, and she recommend a wonderful book worth reading, but more than anything else, it was her enthusiasm for the products that lead to excellent customer service, and consequently I had a wonderful experience within the store.
&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Boutique music stores have a very similar ambience with knowledgeable staff that live and breathe music &amp;ndash; however these are disappearing, mostly as a result of the internet, which has made music as easy to get as a couple of mouse clicks. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Much of the discussion about the iPad has centred on it doing to magazines and books what the iPod and MP3 did to CDs and records. And I for one hope it doesn&amp;rsquo;t.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;There&amp;rsquo;s something special about walking into a book store, choosing a title and carrying it home &amp;ndash; eager to get stuck into it. There&amp;rsquo;s also something so peaceful about getting cosy in bed after a long day and disappearing into the words and pages. You also can&amp;rsquo;t gift-wrap a digital book! &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The demise of physical reading material may well eventuate, but I think it will take a lot longer than music.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;When you buy an album on iTunes, it costs a great deal less than a CD does, because there is no packaging involved in the cost. The price of a book is, give or take a few dollars, roughly the same as the digital version. Which is fine if all you want is a book to read, but the experience of books is much more than the reading. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;When it comes to magazines, it gets a little more complicated. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Many publishers are starting to create magazine applications for the iPad. These generally feature extra content, video and access to lots more photos. This comes at an extra cost at the moment &amp;ndash; but that situation will change once publishers become more efficient in producing digital magazines.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;When it comes to books &amp;ndash; I guess we&amp;rsquo;ll just have to wait and see.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10px;"&gt;Georgina Sainer&lt;/span&gt;
&lt;span style="font-size: 10px;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10px;"&gt;Marketing Coordinator&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
</description><link>http://platinummix.com.au/RSSRetrieve.aspx?ID=4127&amp;A=Link&amp;ObjectID=104753&amp;ObjectType=56&amp;O=http%253a%252f%252fplatinummix.com.au%252f_blog%252fBlog%252fpost%252fiReading_The_Demise_of_Books%252f</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://platinummix.com.au/_blog/Blog/post/iReading_The_Demise_of_Books/</guid><pubDate>Wed, 08 Dec 2010 02:09:00 GMT</pubDate></item><item><title>The Gruen Transfer</title><description>&lt;p&gt; So I've finally managed to catch The Gruen Transfer, airing on ABC1 Wednesday nights, and have been wondering to myself - why it has taken me so long to discover this show for myself -&amp;nbsp; it's brilliant!!
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;span lang="EN-AU" style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: &amp;quot;calibri&amp;quot;,&amp;quot;sans-serif&amp;quot;;"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;'The Gruen  Transfer&lt;/em&gt; (TGT) is a show about advertising, how it works, and  how it works on us. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Brilliantly hosted by Wil Anderson, who is even
taller than he looks on TV, TGT decodes and defuses the commercial
messages that swirl through our lives, with the help of a panel of ad
industry experts.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Each week on the program, Wil is joined by some of the best and
brightest minds of the advertising industry, experts prepared to share
the ideas and insights that drive them.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;We catch up with news from the world of advertising
and examine the tactics used to sell a particular product; it could be
cars or chocolate or cleaning products. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;In a segment called 'The Pitch', agencies compete to fulfill a seemingly impossible brief.'&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;So after watching it religiously, I thought I'd spread the word and share a couple of my favourite 'Pitches'. You can also catch recent previous episodes online at &lt;a href="http://www.abc.net.au/tv/gruentransfer/default.htm" target="_blank"&gt;http://www.abc.net.au/tv/gruentransfer/default.htm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Check out this first clip:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;h1 id="watch-headline-title"&gt;&lt;span title="The Gruen Transfer: The Pitch, Let's Invade NZ" dir="ltr" id="eow-title"&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9kkVo7Rv8g&amp;amp;feature=channel" target="_blank"&gt;The Gruen Transfer: The Pitch, Let's Invade NZ&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h1&gt;
Then take a look at a little retaliation:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;h1 id="watch-headline-title"&gt;&lt;span title="The Gruen Transfer: The Pitch, Anti-Oz Tourism" dir="ltr" id="eow-title"&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UfY7VzO0AFI" target="_blank"&gt;The Gruen Transfer: The Pitch, Anti-Oz Tourism&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h1&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="font-size: 10px;"&gt;Georgina Sainer&lt;br /&gt;
Marketing Coordinator&lt;/span&gt;
&lt;p&gt; &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
</description><link>http://platinummix.com.au/RSSRetrieve.aspx?ID=4127&amp;A=Link&amp;ObjectID=95028&amp;ObjectType=56&amp;O=http%253a%252f%252fplatinummix.com.au%252f_blog%252fBlog%252fpost%252fThe_Gruen_Transfer%252f</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://platinummix.com.au/_blog/Blog/post/The_Gruen_Transfer/</guid><pubDate>Wed, 15 Sep 2010 05:28:00 GMT</pubDate></item><item><title>Election 2010 - Interesting New Sphere</title><description>&lt;p&gt;This years election has definitely been interesting. The Australian reported that media expenditure exceeded $50M for the 5 weeks of election campaigning, with this to continue due to a hung parliament. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Harold Mitchell, executive chairman of Mitchell Communication Group said, &amp;ldquo;I think it is the biggest election advertising spend in history and for the TV networks, the biggest spend they have ever had.&amp;rdquo; *&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
And yet it has been felt that this campaigning has been relatively fruitless &amp;ndash; with many Australian&amp;rsquo;s feeling disillusionment about the government and their policies. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Another dimension has been added to the election campaign this year, which definitely spiced things up a bit &amp;ndash; social media. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Nielsen has released its analysis of social media discussion around Julia Gillard or Tony Abbott becoming the next Australian Prime Minister, focusing on data from Twitter, YouTube and Facebook. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
On Twitter, Nielson reported that Gillard has a stronger presence than Abbott. Gillard tweets every few hours and uses Twitter to respond to concerns. Abbott goes days without tweeting. Across YouTube and Facebook, Gillard is ahead with her own dedicated channel and five times more fans than Abbott on her facebook page. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Mark Higginson, insights director of Nielsen&amp;rsquo;s Australian online division says &amp;ldquo;The most important element of social media campaigning is keeping current and Abbott&amp;rsquo;s lack of timely posts and relative absence from major social media channels has allowed Gillard to grab the social media spotlight and successfully engage with the electorate.&amp;rdquo; *&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Not sure about you, but it has definitely been an interesting battle waged not only in the traditional media but also in the cyber world of social networking, now we have to wait and see who&amp;rsquo;s going to become PM. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="font-size: 9px;"&gt;Georgina Sainer&lt;br /&gt;
Marketing Coordinator&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
*fact's gathering from marketingmag.com.au&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
</description><link>http://platinummix.com.au/RSSRetrieve.aspx?ID=4127&amp;A=Link&amp;ObjectID=93077&amp;ObjectType=56&amp;O=http%253a%252f%252fplatinummix.com.au%252f_blog%252fBlog%252fpost%252fElection_2010_-_Interesting_New_Sphere%252f</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://platinummix.com.au/_blog/Blog/post/Election_2010_-_Interesting_New_Sphere/</guid><pubDate>Wed, 25 Aug 2010 08:50:00 GMT</pubDate></item><item><title>Marketing is an Umbrella term</title><description>Hi Everyone &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
It has been a very busy couple of months for Platinum Mix, we have had new and exciting clients come aboard and as well as a number of new projects! I even had the opportunity to visit a couple of new clients in Carnarvon (which really does have yummy bananas, even if they were chocolate coated!).
&lt;br /&gt;
But this month also got me to thinking, marketing really is an umbrella term. Marketing is an umbrella term for a range of activities that span across marketing, PR
and advertising. Much of the work I previously considered to be
marketing, is in fact a combination of a number of disciplines. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;This would be because marketing can be considered a
very broad term for a wide range of activities. Within marketing plan
strategies, PR and advertising often feature prominently. &lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt; &lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt; &lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;Overall
I have realised that marketing is not specific, but can be considered a
general term that encompasses a range of projects and strategies to
cater to each persons/businesses needs.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
One of the reasons this occurred to me this month was clients asking us 'is this something you can do?' and 99.9% we can, and if we don't - we can put them onto someone who can help. But if you don't ask the question first, guess you won't know!&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;img alt="" height="197" width="246" style="border: 0pt none;" src="/Blog/Marketing_Umbrella.gif" /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Georgina Sainer&lt;br /&gt;
Marketing Co-ordinator&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;img alt="" height="230" width="307" style="border: 0pt none;" src="/Blog/34378_417953977632_581532632_4922997_3858616_n.jpg" /&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Me - taking a quick moment to get a photo with the 'Big Banana' in Carnarvon. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
</description><link>http://platinummix.com.au/RSSRetrieve.aspx?ID=4127&amp;A=Link&amp;ObjectID=92510&amp;ObjectType=56&amp;O=http%253a%252f%252fplatinummix.com.au%252f_blog%252fBlog%252fpost%252fMarketing_is_an_Umbrella_term%252f</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://platinummix.com.au/_blog/Blog/post/Marketing_is_an_Umbrella_term/</guid><pubDate>Thu, 19 Aug 2010 05:07:00 GMT</pubDate></item><item><title>Perth Lotto - What would you do?</title><description>&lt;p&gt;So yesterday I got to thinking...what if I was the $17 MILLION lottery winner? And I am sure that all of you would have had the same thought at one stage or another.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
I started considering who I would give money to (family obviously), the new Maserati and Aston Martin that would have a new home in my luxury South Perth estate,&amp;nbsp;that long&amp;nbsp;holiday around the&amp;nbsp;world&amp;nbsp;with all my friends, and all the investment opportunities I would take advantage of! &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
I then started to think, well what about work? and although I would never have to work again - I still don't believe I would quit my job. Essentially I LOVE (the majority of) my position here, and I LOVE marketing. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
I love the extensive amount of information that gets absorbed into my brain every time I complete a business/marketing plan. I love trying to formulate strategies that will really work for our clients, and most of all I love working with our clients to acheive thier goals and dreams. And before I get too cheesy - I don't believe winning $17M would be able to replace the sense of acheivement or accomplishment.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
And in case you were wondering - I didn't win the $17M!&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
What would you do if you won $17M?&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="font-size: 8px;"&gt;Georgina Sainer&lt;br /&gt;
Marketing Co-ordinator&lt;/span&gt;
</description><link>http://platinummix.com.au/RSSRetrieve.aspx?ID=4127&amp;A=Link&amp;ObjectID=87077&amp;ObjectType=56&amp;O=http%253a%252f%252fplatinummix.com.au%252f_blog%252fBlog%252fpost%252fPerth_Lotto_-_What_would_you_do%252f</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://platinummix.com.au/_blog/Blog/post/Perth_Lotto_-_What_would_you_do/</guid><pubDate>Thu, 01 Jul 2010 04:27:00 GMT</pubDate></item><item><title>Generation Y Explained.</title><description>&lt;p&gt;Social research group Mccrindle have recently published a very readable report into the employment of generation Y employees.&amp;nbsp; Some of you non-generation Y'ers may find it insightful knoweldge.&amp;nbsp; Click below to download report.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href="http://platinummix.com.au/mccrindlereport"&gt;http://platinummix.com.au/mccrindlereport&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
</description><link>http://platinummix.com.au/RSSRetrieve.aspx?ID=4127&amp;A=Link&amp;ObjectID=86921&amp;ObjectType=56&amp;O=http%253a%252f%252fplatinummix.com.au%252f_blog%252fBlog%252fpost%252fGeneration_Y_Explained%252f</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://platinummix.com.au/_blog/Blog/post/Generation_Y_Explained/</guid><pubDate>Wed, 30 Jun 2010 06:02:00 GMT</pubDate></item><item><title>Social Media - 7 tips to introduce your business</title><description>&lt;p&gt;OK - So I know lots of you want more information on Social Media, and between the number of seminars I&amp;rsquo;ve attended for Platinum Mix and my own addiction to Facebook &amp;ndash; I&amp;rsquo;ve got the info covered and I think it&amp;rsquo;s time to share with you the knowledge I&amp;rsquo;ve gained.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
We recently did a special issue of the Platinum Mix eNewsletter covering basic information about Social Media (March 2010) &amp;ndash; here I&amp;rsquo;m going to take it a step further and give some more depth to the content. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
When it comes to interacting online and engaging with people, Social Media has grown to be one of the most effective mediums online. It is one of easiest and most cost effective ways to build and online community you can engage with, and who will talk about you and your business. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="color: #e36c09;"&gt;1. Incorporate Social Media into how you market your business. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;In the same way you account for advertising, promotional material and Google ad words, Social Media should also be included in this group. Therefore set goals for what you would like to achieve, make it priority and evaluate it. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="color: #e36c09;"&gt;2. Use a variety of social media sites &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;Establish which media sites your clients or suppliers are using then follow their footsteps and use the same. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="color: #e36c09;"&gt;3. Promote your presence &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;Don&amp;rsquo;t forget to tell people! Create, join and participate in groups on Facebook and LinkedIn and invite others to join. Promote your social network through your email signatures, websites, blogs, direct mail and offline communications. Give a client as many opportunities as you can for them to view your social media page. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="color: #e36c09;"&gt;4. Be yourself, be authentic and be true to your brand. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;When posting up or contributing to your social network page, don&amp;rsquo;t outsource content. Content is most effective when individuals from within your organisation are engaging and posting (and be interesting!). &lt;br /&gt;
As well as sharing company information, offer opinions on current events and industry news; highlight events your attending; show your personality. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="color: #e36c09;"&gt;5. Engage with your followers &amp;ndash; don&amp;rsquo;t give them the hard sell. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;Successful users of social media don&amp;rsquo;t constantly flog their products. They engage with their followers to share information, talk about achievements, offer incentives and prizes, share a &amp;lsquo;sneak peak&amp;rsquo; of a new product or feature. &lt;br /&gt;
Follow the 80:20 rule. 80% of your social media content should be about engaging &amp;ndash; replying directly to followers, introduce new staff, thank suppliers and customers, promote real world events, share information. Only 20% should be about directly promoting your products of services. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="color: #e36c09;"&gt;6. Update regularly.&lt;/span&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
Remember that if you don&amp;rsquo;t update regularly your followers will quickly lose interest. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="color: #e36c09;"&gt;7. Share your knowledge. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;Sharing knowledge helps you become recognised as an industry leader, which can lead to other opportunities. Remember to encourage your followers to share content that they enjoy. &lt;br /&gt;
Remember to put in place, methods for evaluation for each social media site you use. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
If you are not already engaging with social media, then now is a great time to join! Start with Twitter, LinkIn and Facebook. Create a simple profile. Spend time browsing each of these platforms and observe how they are used. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="font-size: 8px;"&gt;Georgina Sainer &lt;br /&gt;
Marketing Co-ordinator &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
</description><link>http://platinummix.com.au/RSSRetrieve.aspx?ID=4127&amp;A=Link&amp;ObjectID=84524&amp;ObjectType=56&amp;O=http%253a%252f%252fplatinummix.com.au%252f_blog%252fBlog%252fpost%252fSocial_Media_-_7_tips_to_introduce_your_business%252f</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://platinummix.com.au/_blog/Blog/post/Social_Media_-_7_tips_to_introduce_your_business/</guid><pubDate>Thu, 10 Jun 2010 03:54:00 GMT</pubDate></item><item><title>The Secrets of Building Customer Loyalty</title><description>&lt;p&gt;It's a well known fact that it is far more difficult to gain new customers than retain them! Unfortunately many businesses focus entirely too much on customer acquisition and neglect customer retention. Businesses must go out of their way and transform their customers into friends, advisors and partners. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="color: #e36c09;"&gt;The Importance of Loyalty&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="color: #7f7f7f;"&gt;Loyalty extends beyond repeat business. It has a larger goal of a continuous increase in business and revenues from existing customers. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="color: #e36c09;"&gt;Loyalty Isn't Built in a Day&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="color: #7f7f7f;"&gt;You may have an exceptional product that is market leading. However loyalty can be more than product superiority. Your relationship with the customer is an extremely critical factor. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Businesses need to deliver programs that reward customers for long term loyalty behaviour as well as increase the perceived value to your customer.&lt;/span&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="color: #e36c09;"&gt;Differentiate Through Added Value&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="color: #7f7f7f;"&gt;Stand out from your competition with unique value additions to your customers. Incentives and rewards represent the strongest form of customer and staff recognition. Without added value your customer will eventually question your proposition or offer. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Be sure to recognise your top spenders, by recognising them you will only encourage them to spend more. For example, send a hand-written thank-you note along with a gift card.&lt;/span&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="color: #e36c09;"&gt;Build Brand Loyalty&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="color: #7f7f7f;"&gt;The emotional power of incentive programs allows you to build loyalty to your brand among your customers, extend that further with a highly branded rewards program. Brand loyalty creates yet another value proposition to your offer which is often unbeatable. &lt;br /&gt;
Rewards programs aren&amp;rsquo;t new, but they work well for creating brand loyalty. Allow customers to redeem points in return for merchandise.&lt;/span&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="color: #e36c09;"&gt;Create New Channels of Communication&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="color: #7f7f7f;"&gt;Incentive programs can bring new opportunities for communication. The different phases of an incentive program for customers adds a new channel for delivering brand and product content. The positive association with the rewards creates an ideal platform for regular reach out to your key customers. Remain front of mind through effective and personal communication. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Whether it&amp;rsquo;s through forums, Myspace, Facebook or your own community site, allow your customer to interact with others or similar interests. Only time will tell if social networking continues to grow, but for now it&amp;rsquo;s in-expensive and effective brand exposure.&lt;/span&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="font-size: 8px; color: #7f7f7f;"&gt;Georgina Sainer&lt;br /&gt;
Marketing Co-ordinator&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
</description><link>http://platinummix.com.au/RSSRetrieve.aspx?ID=4127&amp;A=Link&amp;ObjectID=82390&amp;ObjectType=56&amp;O=http%253a%252f%252fplatinummix.com.au%252f_blog%252fBlog%252fpost%252fThe_Secrets_of_Building_Customer_Loyalty%252f</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://platinummix.com.au/_blog/Blog/post/The_Secrets_of_Building_Customer_Loyalty/</guid><pubDate>Tue, 25 May 2010 06:32:00 GMT</pubDate></item><item><title>Generation Y explained and  Networking - the benefits and you</title><description>&lt;span style="color: #0c0c0c;"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Generation Y explained.&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Social research group Mccrindle have recently published a very readable report into the employment of generation Y employees.&amp;nbsp; Some of you non-generation Y'ers may find it insightful knoweldge.&amp;nbsp; Click below to download report.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href="http://www.platinummix.com.au/mccrindlereport"&gt;http://www.platinummix.com.au/mccrindlereport&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Networking Benefits.&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
A special mention should go to &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" href="/marketing-specialists-perth"&gt;&lt;span style="color: #0c0c0c;"&gt;Becky Sangster, Principal Marketing Consultant of Platinum Mix&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style="color: #0c0c0c;"&gt;, for being the Business Growth Centre&amp;rsquo;s - Networker of the Month! &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="color: #0c0c0c;"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Congratulations! &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
The &lt;a target="_blank" href="http://www.businessgrowthcentre.wa.gov.au"&gt;Business Growth Centre &lt;/a&gt;has been established as a West Australian state government initiative to encourage the success of small businesses, with the aim to offer affordable, accessible advice and training to all small business owners and managers. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="color: #0c0c0c;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The team at Platinum Mix have been actively networking in recent months and have discovered many benefits of business networking. Whether you have your own small business, are employed by a larger organisation or seeking new business opportunities and sales leads, here are some reasons why it is worth investing some time, energy and effort into expanding your contacts. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="color: #7f7f7f;"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="color: #e36c09;"&gt;Generating Referrals = Increased Business&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Word-of-mouth (WOM) is generally understood to be more influential on behaviour than other sources. WOM has been shown to be up to nine times as successful and effective as advertising at converting unfavourable or neutral predispositions into positive attitudes. WOM has a high degree of influence on a person&amp;rsquo;s expectations. An average of 70% of all new business will be gained through WOM. As you build positive relationships with people, you find that you will naturally gain business. People like to pass business to those they know, like and trust - but you must establish a network of contacts first. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="color: #e36c09;"&gt;Raising your Profile&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Just by increasing your number of contacts, you&amp;rsquo;re raising your personal and professional profile. People need to know you exist, know what you do, and you will be more likely to be called upon when your services are required. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="color: #e36c09;"&gt;Free Consultancy and Advice&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
People like to help people - and generally will be willing to impart their expertise and advice to others who they know, like and trust. You will find in time that information passed to you formally or informally will exceed costs incurred by developing the relationships in the first place. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="color: #e36c09;"&gt;Knowing who to turn to when you need help&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
How much time have you wasted trying to find the right person or business to solve a problem for you? By getting to know reliable contacts that can provide you with what you want or who can be trusted, saves you so much in time and money. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="color: #e36c09;"&gt;Uncover New Opportunities&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
You never know when a contact will be useful and will present you with new opportunities. As soon as we get to know others and become open minded to their ideas we suddenly open ourselves up to new possibilities or a new approach. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="color: #e36c09;"&gt;Contact with like-minded people and development of friendships&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
By expanding your contacts and getting to know them you'll soon develop a network of people you will want to spend time with, share ideas and learn from.&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="color: #e36c09;"&gt;Increased Confidence &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
The more you network, the more you get used to explaining what you do and how you can help others. Clear communication of how you can help is crucial to winning business and this will only improve the more you do it.&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="color: #e36c09;"&gt;Satisfaction from helping others&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;
One of the biggest advantages of business networking is the increased capacity to help others. Think about the last time you helped someone, and how it felt! &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="color: #e36c09;"&gt;The benefits of business networking just keep going...&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="font-size: 8px;"&gt;Georgina Sainer&lt;br /&gt;
Marketing Co-ordinator&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;
</description><link>http://platinummix.com.au/RSSRetrieve.aspx?ID=4127&amp;A=Link&amp;ObjectID=81060&amp;ObjectType=56&amp;O=http%253a%252f%252fplatinummix.com.au%252f_blog%252fBlog%252fpost%252fNetworking_-_the_benefits_and_you%252f</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://platinummix.com.au/_blog/Blog/post/Networking_-_the_benefits_and_you/</guid><pubDate>Fri, 24 Sep 2010 08:23:00 GMT</pubDate></item><item><title>Starting a Small Business...Where to start?</title><description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;span style="color: #595959; font-family: segoe ui;"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Starting a small business&lt;/strong&gt; is a huge life altering event. Similar to a marriage - &lt;br /&gt;
you will be living with your business 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. You will need to work at it. You will &lt;br /&gt;
have ups, downs and surprises. Commitment is key.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;span style="color: #595959;"&gt;For the right person with a solid plan, starting a small business can be the most satisfying and exhilerating &lt;br /&gt;
experience of your life. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;strong&gt;Look inside youself&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
You need to first work out whether starting a business will give you the lifestyle you wish to lead. The most &lt;br /&gt;
succesful businesses are operated by people that have the following abilities: &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;
&lt;ul&gt;&lt;span xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"&gt;
    &lt;li&gt;&lt;span style="color: #595959;"&gt;self motivation &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
    &lt;li&gt;&lt;span style="color: #595959;"&gt;business and industry knowledge &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
    &lt;li&gt;&lt;span style="color: #595959;"&gt;organisational and management abilities &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
    &lt;li&gt;&lt;span style="color: #595959;"&gt;marketing skill &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
    &lt;li&gt;&lt;span style="color: #595959;"&gt;good customer relations &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
    &lt;li&gt;&lt;span style="color: #595959;"&gt;VISION &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
    &lt;/span&gt;
    &lt;li&gt;&lt;span style="color: #595959;"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
    &lt;li&gt;&lt;span style="color: #595959;"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;
&lt;span xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="color: #595959;"&gt;Identify your customer base&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;span xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"&gt;&lt;span style="color: #595959;"&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
It is important to identify who your customers will be, and whether there are any expected changes or trends. The &lt;br /&gt;
Platinum Mix team are very experienced at completing market analysis which includes identifying target markets and trends. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="color: #595959;"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Ask around &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/strong&gt;The best way to gain a good understanding of the business and industry is to speak to the people that work within &lt;br /&gt;
it. Ask them what are the biggest issues, and what trends and changes they've noticed in the industry. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;strong&gt;Preperation and planning is key&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
Once you've decided to start your own business, the next step is to prepare. If you already know your target market &lt;br /&gt;
and your industry, try a &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://platinummix.positionmeonline.com/PlatinumPromotionalPlan" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;span style="color: #595959;"&gt;promotional plan&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style="color: #595959;"&gt;. A promotional plan will save you money, through planned promotional &lt;br /&gt;
activities. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Or alternatively if your not sure on where to begin your branding, we have developed a special package for start-up businesses with the &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://platinummix.positionmeonline.com/PM_Startup_pack" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;span style="color: #595959;"&gt;Platinum Mix Start-up pack&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style="color: #595959;"&gt;. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Give us a call today to discuss how we can help you prepare and plan for your business. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="color: #595959;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 8px;"&gt;Georgina Sainer &lt;br /&gt;
Marketing Coordinator&lt;/span&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;
</description><link>http://platinummix.com.au/RSSRetrieve.aspx?ID=4127&amp;A=Link&amp;ObjectID=73197&amp;ObjectType=56&amp;O=http%253a%252f%252fplatinummix.com.au%252f_blog%252fBlog%252fpost%252fStarting_a_Small_BusinessWhere_to_start%252f</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://platinummix.com.au/_blog/Blog/post/Starting_a_Small_BusinessWhere_to_start/</guid><pubDate>Thu, 01 Apr 2010 06:39:00 GMT</pubDate></item></channel></rss>
