Q&A WITH…MediaWise’s Theresa Wiseman: The Power of PR

Posted: November 4th 2011 in General

Public relations, or PR, has played a major role in the success—and failure--of many businesses. Whether you have a new hire, are unveiling a new product or service, are celebrating an anniversary or donating time or money, every business has a story to tell. But many business owners are unsure about how to share that story, particularly in light of the dramatic changes wrought on the public relations landscape by emerging new media.

To help you better understand—and leverage--the power of PR, JigSaw sat down with industry expert Theresa Wiseman, president at MediaWise, Inc., who defines the importance of PR and the role it plays in your business.

Q: Why is PR so important to the success of not only large corporations but small businesses as well?

A: Public relations is reputation management. While advertising has its place in the communications mix, public relations facilitates third-party endorsement and is much harder to secure. ... Read More »

5 Minute Marketing Tips You Can’t Afford to Miss

Posted: October 19th 2011 in General

Missed last month’s Small Business Survival Summit? Luckily, you don’t have to miss out on the practical and effective ideas featured in JigSaw’s own Kathy Walsh’s popular 5 Minute Marketing session. Perfect for today’s crazy-busy business owners, 5 Minute Marketing features 20 simple, effective ideas for marketing tactics you can implement in 5 minutes or less to help grow your business.

Watch the PowerPoint of Kathy’s presentation on You Tube by clicking here.

Q&A WITH…E-Moxie’s Gina Mabry: Adding Up What Google +1 Is All About

Posted: October 14th 2011 in General

So just when you’ve accepted that social media is here to stay and set up your business Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn accounts, Google throws you an unexpected curve ball: +1, the newest sharing button on the web. While Google’s +1 can offer more opportunities to grow your business, at this point it offers at least as large of an opportunity to reveal just how clueless most business owners are about the best way to tie social media in to a broader web marketing strategy.

To help you start to figure it out, JigSaw sat down with industry expert Gina Mabry, website designer and project manager at E-Moxie Data Solutions, who presents a helpful primer on what you need to know about Google +1 and how it impacts your web presence.

Q: We’ve been hearing a lot about the Google +1 button; could you tell us what it will mean for websites?

A: The ... Read More »

Q&A With Blog Series

Posted: October 10th 2011 in General

Inspired by the many components that define a successful business, JigSaw Marketing Solutions is proud to present its “Q&A With” series of interviews with industry experts on topics our blog readers and website visitors are most interested in. 

To kick off the “Q&A With” series, JigSaw sat down with website design and development expert Gina Mabry from E-Moxie Data Solutions to find out everything you need to know about Google’s new “+1” button and how it impacts your business’ web presence. The results will be posted very soon in an upcoming post.

We look forward to sharing advice with you from industry experts on a variety of topics. If you have any questions or suggestions for future “Q&A With” ideas, please contact us at info@jigsawmarketingsoltions.com.

Grow Your Business with QR Codes

Posted: September 28th 2011 in General

If you haven’t noticed yet, many of today’s advertisements are beginning to feature a small, barcode like graphic called quick response, or QR, codes. Originally designed in Japan, QR codes are a two-dimensional, matrix barcode that require special readers (which you can download for free in your smartphone app store) which decode them and link to a web page that shares additional data. QR Codes are being used among a variety of businesses and industries due to their ease of use, versatility and effectiveness.

Some of the benefits of QR Codes include:

1. Convenience - QR Codes can be read anytime and anywhere with any mobile phone camera and a free reader app. Once scanned a mobile phone will then present the information contained in the codes in a website format.
2. Versatility – The codes can be used in a number of ways, including directing consumers to websites, providing coupons, giving directions, ... Read More »

Small Business: Standing at the Summit

Posted: August 29th 2011 in General

Have you been consistently reading our monthly e-newsletter and taking advantage of all of our great 5-minute marketing tips? Are you interested in learning about other ingenious 5-minute marketing ideas? If so, you will be happy to know that JigSaw’s own marketing guru Kathy Walsh will be presenting an entire session on 5-Minute Marketing at the 2011 Small Business Survival Summit on Sept. 8.

The Small Business Survival Summit will be held at the Baltimore Convention Center from September 7-9, 2011. This three-day conference is designed to encourage, motivate and train small business owners to reevaluate business practices, identify resources and foster relationships. Successful business leaders and experts will be presenting on a variety of topics affecting small businesses. In addition to the informational seminars, attendees will have the opportunity to network with businesses both large and small.

Click here to register for the Small Business Survival Summit. Don’t ... Read More »

The Power of Keywords

Posted: August 15th 2011 in General

Even after investing in a well-developed website your business still may not be achieving its highest potential. In the constantly changing world of Internet marketing, a mere website presence is not enough. What most professionals may not realize is that including the right keywords in your website, blog and social media content are what drives traffic to your site and boosts your all-important search engine rankings.

What exactly is a keyword? Simply, keywords are the words or phrases users type into search engines such as Google. For example, if someone were looking to purchase homeowner’s insurance for their new home they might type in ‘homeowners insurance Harford County’ or ‘local insurance company’ or any of many other variations on that search term. So if I owned a local insurance agency, you can be sure these would be just some of the keywords I would want sprinkled throughout my website to help ... Read More »

JigSaw Featured in Bmore Media

Posted: August 3rd 2011 in News

JigSaw Marketing Solutions is featured in the latest Bmore Media in its "Innovation and Job News" category. The feature profiles JigSaw's philosophy of working with companies from start-ups on up and showcases some of our recent work and clients. Read the whole feature at the Bmore Media website.

Is Your Marketing On Track or Derailed Yet Again?

Posted: August 2nd 2011 in General

With the third quarter of 2011 quickly winding down, I thought it might be a good time to check up on those of you who made it your New Year’s resolution to become a better marketer before NEXT New Year’s rolls around! If you have been following our monthly e-newsletter I have no doubt you are beginning to see some positive changes; if not, let me remind you how important it is to be marketing consistently.

It happens all the time: many business owners get sidetracked with other pressing matters, like budgets and daily business tasks but when these items begin to fill your workload marketing gets pushed to the back burner because it seems less important. However, that is where business owners go wrong. While running your business is of course your first priority, following through with marketing should be close to the top of your to-do list.

For example, ... Read More »

JigSaw Campaign Wins Marketing Excellence Award

Posted: June 13th 2011 in General

The results are in for the 28^th annual Marketing Excellence Awards, and JigSaw is proud to have been recognized for its work on Floura Teeter Landscape Architects' philanthropy-driven 10 Years, 10 Causes anniversary initiative which received the “Best Service Industry Category Campaign.”

Each year, the Baltimore Chapter of the American Marketing Association recognizes individuals or organizations in nine different categories who plan and implement the best regional marketing campaign and can demonstrate the campaign’s success with measurable results. JigSaw's idea for a philanthropy-inspired anniversary campaign backed by extensive social media and a culminating event featuring business partners and non-profits alike helped Floura Teeter raise its profile and its revenues, with the firm on track for a projected 30% increase in revenue over the year prior to the campaign.

JigSaw president Kathy Walsh joined Floura Teeter principal Joan Floura in presenting highlights of the campaign at the Marketing Excellence Banquet held on June ... Read More »