PSPINC Official Company Blog

What’s New Newsletter Vol. 142 “Social Issues”

11月

18日

Over the last decade, some companies have announced their support for or opposition to a social issue. And it’s happened much more in the past few years as there’s been more evidence of customers purchasing based on where brands stand on certain issues. But as a small business, it can be a risky move to do so. Even though there are many successful examples of brands achieving this, there are also many who have failed. If you decide to take a stance as a small business, extensive research and testing are necessary before you announce it publicly. But it’s also important to point out that even after all of that, it can still fail.

That’s why many companies, especially small businesses, opt to completely stay out of it. Sometimes, companies don’t realize just how smart customers are. If it seems like your company is just supporting or opposing something just to say something, your customers will pick up on it. And they won’t be happy about it. For any company, regardless of size, having something like this backfire on you can be catastrophic. So, sometimes it’s better to just stay out of social issues.

Pacific Software Publishing, Inc.

1404 140th Place N.E., Bellevue, WA 98007

PSPINC Creates Tools For Your Business

Pacific Software Publishing, Inc. is headquartered in Bellevue, Washington and provides domain, web, and email hosting to more than 40,000 companies of all sizes around the world. We design and develop our own software and are committed to helping businesses of all sizes grow and thrive online. For more information you can contact us at 800-232-3989, by email at info@pspinc.com or visit us online at https://www.pspinc.com.

#blog #brand #branding #business #businesstips #digitalmarketing #marketing #marketingdigital #marketingtips #newsletter #politicalissues #politics #pspinc #pspincwhatsnewnewsletter #sales #smallbusiness #socialissues

Why Your Company Website Might Need a Redesign

11月

16日

The end goal of every company website is to drive conversions, increase website traffic, and grow sales. So, it’s important for every company, regardless of industry or niche, to update its website regularly. But your business website could also use a complete redesign every two or three years to stay up to date with everyone else. If you don’t, you risk keeping website elements that not only fail to convert users but also cause your visitors to leave before exploring the rest of what your site has to offer.

Before you go about the redesign process, consider what goals you want to achieve. Some examples include:

Being more visually aligned with your brand

Improving navigation on your site

Keeping users from bouncing off your pages so quickly

What Goes Into a Company Website Redesign?

Blue Pen Beside Black Smartphone on White Paper

When looking at your current site, what works, and what doesn’t? To better determine this, take a closer look at your target audience and your competitor sites. The content on your site should cater to your target audience and highlight what you offer. And the design should revolve around that, making sure it’s easy for your users to navigate. Looking at competitor sites will give you a better idea of industry standards. Plus, they’ll likely have a similar target audience, so their designs influencing some of your design decisions isn’t such a bad idea.

After that, it’s much easier to create a list of requirements. Some will involve the basic elements of a website like a simple navigation bar. But others will include industry-specific or even niche-specific features or add-ons. The clearer you are on your overall vision for your business site, the easier it will be to redesign. Once you have all those, you can implement those changes. But it also comes with a certain amount of risk. To help reduce the risk, try testing those new features to see what helps your site’s website traffic and what hinders it.

Outsource Your Website Redesign

Woman Wearing Red Top Holding Silver Macbook

Unless you’re like us, website development and design are probably not in your wheelhouse. Luckily, there are professionals who can easily take on the task of redesigning. People like us here at PSPINC. We specialize in helping small businesses grow online as a software design and development company. And redesigning your entire business site is a big overhaul. Outsourcing to a company like ours gives you more time to focus on other efforts in growing your business.

If you're looking to update or redesign your website, let us know! We're experts at helping small businesses grow online. And that starts with having a great website for your business.

Pacific Software Publishing, Inc.

1404 140th Place N.E., Bellevue, WA 98007

PSPINC Creates Tools For Your Business

Pacific Software Publishing, Inc. is headquartered in Bellevue, Washington and provides domain, web, and email hosting to more than 40,000 companies of all sizes around the world. We design and develop our own software and are committed to helping businesses of all sizes grow and thrive online. For more information you can contact us at 800-232-3989, by email at info@pspinc.com or visit us online at https://www.pspinc.com.

#b2b #blog #business #businesstips #design #marketing #marketingdigital #marketingtips #pspinc #redesign #smallbusiness #tech #technology #update #webdesign #webdesigner #webdevelopment #website #websitebuilder #websitedesign #webtools

What’s New Newsletter Vol. 141 “Product Development”

11月

11日

When developing products for your business, it’s important to remember your audience. Regardless of what industry you’re in, customers regard you as experts. And you wouldn’t be running a small business if you didn’t have at least some kind of expertise. The product or service you create shouldn’t just serve you, but also your industry and your audience. Customers are smart, but don’t assume they know the same things you do. Because they don’t. So, don’t design your product in a way that requires them to know more than they do.

To make sure this doesn’t happen, it’s always a good idea to test your new product with someone who isn’t well-versed in your industry. As a tech company, we get our sales and marketing team to try out our new products. And it’s not only because they’re the ones who are trying to sell it. It’s also to see if there are areas where we could improve because if they don’t know how to use it, how can we expect our customers to know?

Pacific Software Publishing, Inc.

1404 140th Place N.E., Bellevue, WA 98007

PSPINC Creates Tools For Your Business

Pacific Software Publishing, Inc. is headquartered in Bellevue, Washington and provides domain, web, and email hosting to more than 40,000 companies of all sizes around the world. We design and develop our own software and are committed to helping businesses of all sizes grow and thrive online. For more information you can contact us at 800-232-3989, by email at info@pspinc.com or visit us online at https://www.pspinc.com.

#b2b #blog #business #businesstips #customerservice #digitalmarketing #marketing #marketingdigital #marketingtips #newsletter #officetips #pacificsoftwarepublishing #pspinc #sales #smallbusiness #softwaredevelopment #tech #technology #webdevelopment

What’s New Newsletter Vol. 140 “Transparency in Business”

11月

4日

For small businesses, transparency towards your customers is important. Especially if it affects a potential customer’s overall experience with the brand. For example, if one of your products is low in stock or your office reduces hours because of a holiday, it’s important to let customers know. Especially since this information could affect their overall experience with the brand. In line with that logic, being transparent with your customers also includes sharing positive news, like new product additions or sale promotions.

Being honest with your customers will help you maintain relationships between your business and your customers. And for small businesses, those relationships are crucial in establishing a great reputation for your business as well as creating loyal customers. With a solid base of loyal customers and an exceptional reputation, your business could create brand evangelists, where customers will market for you by telling people how great your company is. And if you continue to nurture those relationships, you’ll always have a constant flow of business.

Pacific Software Publishing, Inc.

1404 140th Place N.E., Bellevue, WA 98007

PSPINC Creates Tools For Your Business

Pacific Software Publishing, Inc. is headquartered in Bellevue, Washington and provides domain, web, and email hosting to more than 40,000 companies of all sizes around the world. We design and develop our own software and are committed to helping businesses of all sizes grow and thrive online. For more information you can contact us at 800-232-3989, by email at info@pspinc.com or visit us online at https://www.pspinc.com.

#advertising #b2b #blog #branding #business #businesstips #customersupport #digitalmarketing #ecommerce #marketing #marketingdigital #marketingtips #newsletter #officetips #pspinc #pspincwhatsnewnewsletter #sales #smallbusiness #socialmedia #technology

What is 3D Printing?

11月

2日

3D printing began in the early 1980s when Hideo Kodama developed a rapid prototyping system in Japan. In the simplest terms, 3D printing is the process of creating three-dimensional objects from a digital file. 3D printing starts with 3D software, which will create a printable file. Then, to prepare it for the printer, it’ll slice that file into hundreds or thousands of layers. After that, you can feed it to the printer via USB, SD, or Wi-Fi, which will print layer by layer until you get a 3D object.

In the medical field, 3D printing makes it possible to create prosthetics, devices like hearing aids, and even implants. Car manufacturers have embraced 3D printing for spare parts, jigs and fixtures, and end-use parts. And even consumer product manufacturers utilize 3D printing today. For example, 3D-printed shoes make up Adidas’s 4DFWD line. Other examples include 3D-printed jewelry, eyeglasses, instruments, and many more.

The Popularity of 3D Printing

Man Sitting on a Bench While Using a Laptop

Many have adopted 3D printing because of the advantages it gives to many industries. In most cases, it significantly reduces the overall costs, waste, and production times. While it varies, 3D printers can create something that would traditionally take a few weeks to make in a few days. It also allows people to customize objects when needed. For example, 3D printing allows patients to get prosthetics and hearing aids with tailored sizing rather than having to settle with traditional sizes. And it’ll produce less waste overall as well. For example, manufacturers create traditional glass lenses by cutting from a large block of material called a blank. Through that process, about 80% goes to waste. 3D printing significantly reduces waste as well as inventory costs.

Today, many various industries use 3D printing, as it’s no longer only used to create prototypes quickly but expanded to rapid manufacturing as well. And it continues to grow in popularity as Acumen Research and Consulting projects the global 3D printing market to reach $41 billion by 2026. As the trend continues, it will change the way production and manufacturing work. It will require fewer personnel, drive product customization, and produce less waste. 3D printing adoption on an even wider scale could even have the potential to shift mass production closer to home instead of relying on imports. But we'll have to wait to see how 3D printing will further affect mass production.

Pacific Software Publishing, Inc.

1404 140th Place N.E., Bellevue, WA 98007

PSPINC Creates Tools For Your Business

Pacific Software Publishing, Inc. is headquartered in Bellevue, Washington and provides domain, web, and email hosting to more than 40,000 companies of all sizes around the world. We design and develop our own software and are committed to helping businesses of all sizes grow and thrive online. For more information you can contact us at 800-232-3989, by email at info@pspinc.com or visit us online at https://www.pspinc.com.

#3dprinting #adidas #benefits #blog #business #eyeglasses #hearingaid #manufacturing #marketing #massproduction #popularity #production #prosthetics #prototyping #shoes #smallbusiness #sustainability #tech #technology #trend #waste

What’s New Newsletter Vol. 139 “Putting Customers First”

10月

28日

If you’re struggling to sell products or services for your business, think about your customers. After all, they’re the ones who will be purchasing and using them. How can customers use your product or service, and what benefit are they gaining from it? While you may have some initial ideas, look into other possible uses. There are plenty of products that were originally created with a specific purpose, but customers found a completely different use than it was intended for.

But it’s important to keep your customers at the top of your mind. For them, it’s about if it’s worth the money they’re going to spend on it. Determine what value your product has and how you can better serve your customers. Get feedback from them to see what they like and what they don’t like about your products. And look into improving them to better serve them.

Pacific Software Publishing, Inc.

1404 140th Place N.E., Bellevue, WA 98007

PSPINC Creates Tools For Your Business

Pacific Software Publishing, Inc. is headquartered in Bellevue, Washington and provides domain, web, and email hosting to more than 40,000 companies of all sizes around the world. We design and develop our own software and are committed to helping businesses of all sizes grow and thrive online. For more information you can contact us at 800-232-3989, by email at info@pspinc.com or visit us online at https://www.pspinc.com.

#b2b #blog #business #businesstips #customerservice #customersupport #digitalmarketing #ecommerce #marketing #marketingdigital #marketingtips #newsletter #pspinc #pspincwhatsnewnewsletter #smallbusiness #tech #technology

Back from Japan

10月

27日

Our founder and CEO, Ken Uchikura, just got back from his trip to Japan and brought back some snacks for us to try at our Bellevue office! Thank you, Uchikura-san!

Pacific Software Publishing, Inc.

1404 140th Place N.E., Bellevue, WA 98007

PSPINC Creates Tools For Your Business

Pacific Software Publishing, Inc. is headquartered in Bellevue, Washington and provides domain, web, and email hosting to more than 40,000 companies of all sizes around the world. We design and develop our own software and are committed to helping businesses of all sizes grow and thrive online. For more information you can contact us at 800-232-3989, by email at info@pspinc.com or visit us online at https://www.pspinc.com.

#b2b #blog #business #businesstips #customerservice #customersupport #digitalmarketing #ecommerce #marketing #marketingdigital #marketingtips #pspinc #smallbusiness #tech #technology

How Businesses Can Improve Their Referral Programs

10月

26日

Word-of-mouth is one of the most underrated yet effective marketing tactics today, even in the face of growing digital avenues. It’s why so many companies have a referral system or an affiliate marketing program in place. A referral system utilizes recommendations and word of mouth to grow a business’s customer base and network. An affiliate marketing program is a little more specific and is more suited for individual content creators looking to easily monetize their content via a unique affiliate link. Then, content creators make money when users purchase using that unique link.

It can be as simple as inviting your Facebook friends to download a game to get in-app purchases or adding an affiliate link in your blog post. So, it’s not surprising that affiliate marketing grew exponentially in the U.S during the pandemic, from $6.2 billion in 2018 to $9.1 billion in 2021, according to The Performance Marketing Association (PMA) and PwC. And it’s only expected to grow even more in the next few years. But just because you have a referral system in place for your business, it doesn’t mean it’s guaranteed to succeed. Referral programs only work if brands get valuable referrals and referrers get meaningful incentives to make their effort worthwhile. When done well, it can be the competitive advantage your brand has when customers are choosing which brand to go with when looking at similar products.

Components and Benefits of an Effective Referral Program

delighted black female barista serving coffee in cup in cafe<br />

When it comes time to create a referral program for your business, the most important thing to keep in mind is simplicity. Upon looking at the page, potential customers should know exactly what they’d have to do as the referrer and what they’d gain from it. Those incentives shouldn’t only be clearly outlined, but worthwhile for customers. If customers don’t find value in your referral program, they won’t want to take part in it. Once they are part of it, open communication between everyone involved will be the key to success.

The popularity of referral and affiliate programs is largely because of how beneficial they can be for businesses. It’s much easier to generate new leads when compared to other channels. Referral programs essentially ask referrers to aid in marketing your brand and products, converting them from current customers to brand advocates. Referral programs will help increase customer engagement, conversion rate, customer loyalty, and overall brand awareness. And it’ll give your business a better idea of who your loyal customers are and how to improve their overall experience with the brand.

Pacific Software Publishing, Inc.

1404 140th Place N.E., Bellevue, WA 98007

PSPINC Creates Tools For Your Business

Pacific Software Publishing, Inc. is headquartered in Bellevue, Washington and provides domain, web, and email hosting to more than 40,000 companies of all sizes around the world. We design and develop our own software and are committed to helping businesses of all sizes grow and thrive online. For more information you can contact us at 800-232-3989, by email at info@pspinc.com or visit us online at https://www.pspinc.com.

#affiliatemarketing #affililate #benefits #brand #brandawareness #business #businesstips #contentcreation #digitalmarketing #loyalty #marketing #marketingdigital #marketingtips #onlinemarketing #referral #referralprogram #smallbusiness #technology

What’s New Newsletter Vol. 138 “Simplify the Purchasing Process”

10月

21日

Regardless of what kind of business you’re in, the end goal is the same: increase sales for your company. There’s a lot that goes into getting a potential customer across the finish line. All of these are outlined in a customer journey. But even after you attract customers enough to get them interested in what you’re selling, you can still lose them during the purchase process.

The best way to combat this problem is by simplifying the overall process. If customers find it too hard to purchase from you, they’ll simply walk away. With e-commerce giants like Amazon, it’s essential to make the checkout process as easy as possible. So, evaluate your overall purchase processes regularly to make sure there isn’t any friction that will stop potential customers from buying from you. After all, you can’t fix a problem if you don’t know it exists.

Pacific Software Publishing, Inc.

1404 140th Place N.E., Bellevue, WA 98007

PSPINC Creates Tools For Your Business

Pacific Software Publishing, Inc. is headquartered in Bellevue, Washington and provides domain, web, and email hosting to more than 40,000 companies of all sizes around the world. We design and develop our own software and are committed to helping businesses of all sizes grow and thrive online. For more information you can contact us at 800-232-3989, by email at info@pspinc.com or visit us online at https://www.pspinc.com.

#b2b #blog #business #businesstips #customerservice #digitalmarketing #ecommerce #marketing #marketingdigital #marketingtips #newsletter #pspinc #pspincwhatsnewnewsletter #sales #smallbusiness #tech #technology #web

How Businesses Can Grow with Influencer Marketing

10月

19日

Over the last few years, influencers have only become more common. More people today create content on social media in the hopes of becoming an influencer. With the growing popularity, businesses found it beneficial to engage in influencer marketing, which involves working with influencers to help grow their business online.

So, it’s no surprise how much the influencer marketing market has been steadily growing. According to the Influencer Marketing Benchmark Report from 2022, the global influencer marketing industry will reach an estimated $16.4 billion this year. With more customers spending more time online, it’s only accelerated over the last two years, jumping from $6.5 billion in 2019 to $9.7 billion in 2020.

Why Influencers?

Woman in Black Dress Sitting Beside Sofa Vlogging

Influencers are ideal partners for small businesses because many are seen as experts in their niche. But even if they aren’t, potential customers trust their recommendations more than other sources, especially brand-owned content. And despite the popularity of digital marketing tactics like paid search, 88% of people trust word-of-mouth recommendations more than digital ads, according to the Nielsen 2021 Trust in Advertising Study.

Influencers specialize in creating authentic content that people respond to. It only makes it easier for people to trust them, and to feel like they know them. In fact, the 21st Century Social Circle report from 2019 claims 50% of millennials feel they know social media influencers better than their friends do. And seven out of 10 trust their opinions just as much as the friends they know in real life.

Working with Influencers

Man with Professional Camera Filming Outdoors

While there are many influencers out there, it’s essential to choose one that fits with your brand. It’s tempting to pick the most popular one that will reach the largest audience. But your influencer marketing campaign needs to make sense to appeal to potential customers. Not just for your business, but for the influencer as well. It’s not about getting the biggest audience possible; it’s about reaching the right people. And the best way to do that is to choose an influencer with a similar voice, audience, and one that will be a natural fit with your brand. The best way of figuring this out is through extensive research into potential influencers and branded campaigns they’ve done in the past.

After that, it’s just a matter of reaching out to them. Businesses shouldn’t just choose one or two influencers to reach out to, and rather, 25-50 influencers. And this is primarily because many will just ignore your message, so contacting more will better ensure you’ll get a response. In this message, remember to point out the value you’re providing them. Other than that, it’s important to communicate clear guidelines while still giving influencers the room to be creative with the overall campaign. And if you’re lucky, it could become a consistent and collaborative partnership, resulting in more effective campaigns in the future.

Pacific Software Publishing, Inc.

1404 140th Place N.E., Bellevue, WA 98007

PSPINC Creates Tools For Your Business

Pacific Software Publishing, Inc. is headquartered in Bellevue, Washington and provides domain, web, and email hosting to more than 40,000 companies of all sizes around the world. We design and develop our own software and are committed to helping businesses of all sizes grow and thrive online. For more information you can contact us at 800-232-3989, by email at info@pspinc.com or visit us online at https://www.pspinc.com.