As a small business today, you have a lot of challenges, including contending with competitors.
A strong marketing strategy will help you reach customers and create a loyal customer base.
General Resources | Market Research | Online Marketing
General Resources
These resources offer assistance in writing marketing plans and offer pointers on marketing in general.
*All books listed are located at the African-American Research Library and Cultural Center.
For additional assistance or to place books on hold, please contact Darcia Scates at dscates@browardlibrary.org or call 954-357-6227 (Reference Desk).
Books
 Marketing plan handbook: develop big picture marketing plans for pennies on the dollar
Author: Robert W. Bly
Call number: 658.8 BL 2009
Summary: Marketing consultant Bly, lays out the rules, secrets, case histories, worksheets, charts and how to analyze the competition. More...
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 Marketing for Dummies
Author: Alexander Hiam
Call number: 658.8 HI 2009
Summary: Excellent tips, tricks and wisdom for small business owners trying to market their own businesses. Great for beginners or as a refresher! More...
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 How to Write a Marketing Plan
Author: John Westwood
Call number: 658.802 WE 2006
Summary: Westwood uses a real marketing plan to clearly illustrate the steps to creating your own plan. This workbook also covers how to carry out a marketing audit, devise a budget and implement your plan. More...
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 Why customers do what they do: who they are, why they buy, and how you can anticipate their every move
Author: Marshal Cohen
Call number: 658.8342 CO 2006
Summary: Marshal Cohen is an authority on consumer behavior and in this book, he explains his groundbreaking action plan for reaching consumers. He explains major trends in consumer behavior and how this can impact your business. More...
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Suggested Links
Marketing - Entrepreneur.com
Entrepreneur Magazine's website is a great resource for your small business needs. This section provides timely articles on all aspects of marketing
Marketing - Inc.com
Inc.com, Inc. Magazine's website, has some great articles for marketing your business. Many subtopics are covered, such as guerrilla marketing, event marketing and public relations. This site is update frequently.
Marketing Basics for the Small Business - About.com
An About.com guide, which is updated by a community of users, with links to additional articles at the bottom section titled "Explore Marketing".
Developing a Marketing Plan - SBA.GOV
A thorough resource to explore for marketing ideas and business needs. Maintained by the SBA, an agency of the Federal Government. Make sure to check out the related articles section at the bottom of the page!
Market Research Back to Top
Market research is a very important part of your business strategy and goes hand in hand with developing marketing and business plans.
The Broward County Library system has chosen to subscribe to databases that may prove helpful in marketing and your market research. Please explore them and ask our business librarian if you need any guidance!
*All books listed are located at the African-American Research Library and Cultural Center.
For additional assistance or to place books on hold, please contact Darcia Scates at dscates@browardlibrary.org or call 954-357-6227 (Reference Desk).
Books
Satisfaction: how every great company listens to the voice of the customer
Author: Chris Denove and James D. Power
Call number: 658.8343 DE 2006
Description: From global powerhouse, J.D. Power and Associates, comes this book on how to have satisfied costumers. Includes case-studies of successful companies that are ranked high in costumer satisfaction. More...
Suggested Links
Market Research - Entrepreneur.com
A comprehensive collection of articles covering the basics of market research and many other areas related to targeting your customer base.
Market Research - Inc.com
Another great site with a research primer, articles on how to do research on a budget and more!
Start Market Research using the U.S. Census
and
Tips from the Census Bureau for Small Businesses
The U.S. Census can provide detailed information regarding the size of your market, trends in your industry and other economic related info. This is an invaluable resource for many of your small business market needs!
Online Marketing Back to Top
It might seem that everywhere you turn, someone is talking about Facebook, Twitter or other social media sites. Many businesses (and even libraries!) are creating an online presence as part of their marketing strategy. You might wonder, "Is this right for my business?" or "How would I use these tools successfully?" Certain tools might be better for certain types of businesses, for example, Yelp for restaurants.
*All books listed are located at the African-American Research Library and Cultural Center.
For additional assistance or to place books on hold, please contact Darcia Scates at dscates@browardlibrary.org or call 954-357-6227 (Reference Desk).
The following is a list of books and websites that might help you choose how (and if) to implement these tools:
Books
 How to say it: marketing with new media: a guide to promoting your small business using websites, E-zines, blogs, and podcasts
Author: Lena Claxton
Call number: 658.872 CL 2008
Description: A primer on the different ways to promote your business online. More... |
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 Social media 101: tactics and tips to develop your business online
Author: Chris Brogan
Call number: 658.872 BR 2010
Description: What are the best businesses doing with social marketing? Chris Brogan has been researching this and in this book, he presents his findings and offers you tips on how you can implement their successful practices into your own marketing strategy. More...
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 101 ways to promote your Web site: filled with proven Internet marketing tips, tools, techniques, and resources to increase your Web site traffic
Author: Susan Sweeney
Call number: 658.872 SW 2009
Description: This book explains the concepts behind Search Engine Optimization (SEO), link trading, online advertising, cybermalls, web rings (and so much more) and how you can use these to build the traffic on your site. This really is a must for anyone with a website. More... |
Suggested Links
For Social Media
10 Small Business Social Media Marketing Tips
On Mashable.com, Ross Kimbarovsky, co-founder of crowdSPRING (a group of graphic designers that help small businesses) lays out 10 basic tips to help you utilize social media for marketing.
Marketing Small Business with Twitter
By Claire Cain Miller, on NYTimes.com. In this article, Miller explores the possibilities of Twitter for your small business, with real-life examples.
Social Media Are Easier Than You Think
From the New York Times blog, You're the Boss: The Art of Running A Small Business, MP Mueller gives the blog readers more tips on how to be successful marketers with social media. This is also a great blog to bookmark and check regularly for current, insightful articles.
Description: 10 Easy Ways to Supercharge Your Small Business' Yelp Presence
On the HubSpot Blog, which focuses on internet marketing, Pamela Seiple talks about 10 ways that you can utilize Yelp.
How to Deal with Negative Feedback in Social Media
Another article from Mashable.com, this one by Josh Catone. So you've decided to utilize social media for marketing… Now you must keep up with your accounts and part of that is dealing with negative feedback. This article takes a look at how to deal with bad reviews and complaints.
For Search Engine Optimization
The Beginner's Guide To SEO
Covers every area of Search Engine Optimization - from what it is to how to do it and everything that comes with it.
A Google Starter Guide to Search Engine Optimization
If you have any experience maintaining your website, this is a more advanced guide to SEO.
Entrepreneur.com's Expanding Your Online Presence
Articles that explore a variety of areas related to your online presence, including how to make your business' website a daily destination for people and creating a blog for your business.
Gravity Search Marketing interviews Matt McGee
An expert in SEO, McGee offers advice and gives examples of small businesses that "got it right.”
Top 10 Small Business Search Engine Optimization Tips
Advice on getting your name "out there" on the web with free search engine optimization tips.
3 Things a Day Can Help to Promote Your Website
Nikki Pilkington gives you 3 easy ways to boost your site.
Google's Matt Cutts Gives Tips to Small Business Owners
This YouTube video is an interview with the head of Google's Webspam. He talks about how to optimize your website for Google searches and what not to do!
Google's Matt Cutts on How to Get Better Visibility on Google
In another YouTube video, the head of Google's Webspam, Cutts discusses visibility for your small business website on Google with USA Today's Jefferson Graham from Talking Tech.
Note: These are only some of the library's books on marketing for businesses. To find others, do a keyword search using the subject “marketing”. You can narrow your search results by location in the top left corner.
Please e-mail dscates@browardlibrary.org for any questions or call 954-357-6227 (Reference Desk). We are here to help!
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