Significant changes in the way consumers prefer to receive information, coupled with an unpredictable economy, have many franchises reexamining their traditional marketing communication plans to gauge effectiveness. Both retaining Clients and attracting new Clients requires applying the latest digital tools to maximize leads received and covert them to sales. To address these goals, Sport Clips, the nation’s leading men’s and boys’ hair care franchise, has partnered with ElementsLocal™ to maximize their online solutions specifically designed for franchises. Using the latest technology, ElementsLocal™ is providing Sport Clips unparalleled abilities to market online and communicate with their existing clients through email and text messages.

Sport Clips searched the existing product offerings for a solution that would support and encourage loyalty among existing Clients and offer innovative ways to communicate with and attract new Clients. After this search, Sport Clips signed on with ElementsLocal™ to significantly improve its online presence and develop lasting relationships with Clients through local web sites and creative email and SMS campaign strategies.

With 90% of online users conducting local online searches

Our article “Is it Really That Easy Going Green” was published in Renewaable Energy World October 2009 (http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2009/10/is-it-really-that-easy-going-green).

We all know that person who fashionably expresses concern for the destruction of our environment – and then they drive off in their gas-guzzling SUV to their home that’s lit up like a Christmas tree, all while drinking from a coffee cup made from non-recycled paper. Are they lying about caring? I’d like to believe most people would prefer to be environmentally responsible; however, the fear of the associated costs paired with the confusion as to how to actually go green is enough for many to hopelessly throw their hands up in the polluted air.

This is why it can be a challenge for renewable energy companies to convey the value of their services. In addition to the presupposed higher price tags, perplexing industry jargon serves as another roadblock, as it only further bewilders potential customers trying to navigate an already ambiguous industry.

In short, renewable energy companies are often communicating too much data and not enough useful information, which is scaring away potential customers. And if a renewable energy company can’t convince the consumer of the financial, environmental and personal value of their investment, there simply is no sale.

That being said, many renewable energy companies have proactively created an online presence to better communicate to potential customers, but they are still lost in how to best deliver their message. Because of the distinct challenges these companies face in the sales process, the bar is constantly being raised in terms of creative Internet solutions designed to attract and capture valuable customers. It’s really no longer enough to just have a presence online.

Here are four specialized strategies that renewable energy companies should consider in their online

With seniors considered the fastest-growing population, America is aging, so it’s no surprise that Always Best Care – provider of in-home care and assisted living placements for seniors – is an increasingly successful franchise anticipated to nearly double its growth in 2010.

Increasingly instrumental to the company’s further expansion, however, is its ability to appear local to its potential customers, which is why Always Best Care has teamed up with ElementsLocal™ – an innovative new solution designed specifically for franchises that helps increase web traffic and online leads by creating local web sites for each franchise location.

“We are a relationship-based business, so it is very important for our franchises to have a local presence on the Internet,” said Michael Newman, founder, president and chief executive officer of Always Best Care. “Our clients want to know that we are in their local community and that we are there when they need us.”

Research company eMarketeer recently found that local search is now more popular and relevant than regular search for people looking for a

Sport Clips, the nation’s leading purveyor of contemporary men’s haircuts with 650 locations in the US has chosen ElementsLocal, by ELEMENTS, for their websites, online marketing, and software needs. The unique ElementsLocal software platform will enable Sport Clips to better utilize their electronic communications and internet presence as a strategic focus to increase brand awareness, improve marketing effectiveness and increase clientele.

Sport Clips, currently listed as one of the top 50 fastest growing franchises by

This article was published in Franchising World Magazine in August 2009. http://www.franchise.org/Franchise-Industry-News-Detail.aspx?id=47280

In a world where technology has infiltrated the very fabric of our social culture, consumers have evolved to be human spam filters, adept at tuning out the constant messaging coming in from TV and banner ads, billboards, email newsletters and the like. With marketers now realizing that the age-old premise, “if you display it, they will see it,” may no longer be viable, the current buzz throughout board rooms, marketing forums and coffee houses is whether or not Mobile Internet Marketing is the next effective and practical progression in the marketing mix.

As companies question the effectiveness of traditional “outbound” marketing initiatives like broadcast and billboard advertisements, which push a message out far and wide, hoping that it resonates with a few individuals, they’re putting more emphasis on “inbound” marketing strategies that organically attract potential and already interested customers through search engines, blogs and social media. This has spurred franchises to take a closer look at making their messaging more local. Franchisors have moved from national level marketing, to regional, and local, by way of localizing online presence for every franchisee, and are now faced with Mobile Internet Marketing and wondering where it fits and what benefits it offers.