This is The Marion Group’s Newsletter to business people such as you who
are looking for ways to grow your business. We hope to share with you, new
ideas and marketing opportunities to achieve your business goals quickly
and economically, in print, multimedia and on the Web.
 

IMPORTANT News
For Local & Regional Businesses


If your customers are all local to your city, region or state OR if only some of
them are, you need to be on the new Yahoo! and Google Local Search as
part of your Internet marketing strategy.

Google and Yahoo! are addressing a real consumer demand for local
information online, according to the Kelsey Group research firm, which studies yellow pages, electronic directories and other local media. In a survey of online buyers announced last month by the Kelsey Group and BizRate.com, one in four online searches were to find a local product or service near the searcher's home or work. Some 44% of respondents said they were doing more local commercial searches than they were a year earlier.

The Google Local Search is currently in Beta. See it at:
http://local.google.com/lochp

Test to see if you are Google Local by entering your business US address,
city & state, OR zip, and your keywords.

Yahoo! has a similar tool. Go to Yahoo! home page and scroll down to Yahoo!
Local.

If you wish for Marion to get you listed on both Google and Yahoo! local and regional searches, reply to this email or call Aaron at
713-623-6444.



How to Turn Ho Hum into
WOW!
WOW 1. How to make learning about metal corrosion a fun experience? Well, Marion
creates a team of super heroes for kids (and some adults too) that makes a serious problem entertaining to learn about.

WOW 2. Docketing – a process that makes sure that attorneys and documents show
up at the same time at the same place – is automated by this software product and enlivened by this demo developed for a trade show to make attorneys stop in their tracks: Click here

WOW 3. Make a complex reporting product understandable? Check out this Flash demo. Click here

If you need a creative way of to get your message across, reply to this
email or call Aaron at 713-623-6444.

 

LOGO of the Month

In March, Marion created a new logo to celebrate a new sanctuary for the Unity of Church of Christianity, Houston.

In the words of Reverend Howard Caesar, “It is a wonderful new visualization of who we are and what we are about. …it includes hands, holding the earth, with our new sanctuary shining a stream of spiritual light….The hands represent humanity, symbolizing that the world is in our hands, and all life on earth is held in a sacred way.”

For your logo design needs, be it for business, organization or
association, call Aaron at 713-623-6444 or reply to this email.

 

Buy Your Way to the TOP...
Purcha$e Keywords on Search Engines

The word is getting out about the direct response strengths of search engine
advertising, especially using Google and Overture (for Yahoo! and MSN ads).
Many Fortune 500 companies are beginning to place some bets on keywords.
Business Week’s most recent list of the top 50 savvy Internet players is now
dominated by Fortune 500 players.
 

Still there is A LOT of wriggle room left for smaller players. Marion customers
using keyword purchasing as part of an overall Internet marketing strategy have found tremendous success.

CASE 1. One small local supplier and distributor of packaging products now has customers all over the nation, in Canada and Puerto Rico. Sales increased by 50% from 2002 to 2003. Monthly keyword purchase budget $120. Average cost per visitor $0.36.

CASE 2. Another Marion customer was surprised to discover they were competitive nationally in products they thought not. We simply experimented and succeeded in finding a new niche for our customer. Monthly budget $300. Average cost per visitor, $0.16.

Remember that with search engines you can catch the customer at the
precise moment they are searching for your product or service. With keyword purchases, you pay ONLY when a prospect clicks on your ad. No wonder this is the fastest growing form of advertising in the industry!

You can bet that the big guys spend in the tens of thousands if not more.
But you don’t have to if you know where to look and what to buy.

To set up a keyword purchase campaign for your website, call Aaron
at 713-623-6444 or reply to this email.

 

Anyone for Business F--O--R--M--s ?

It takes a special printer to handle multiple-part forms as forms can be
complex, as well as the machines used to print them can be hard to find. Let Marion help you with:
Invoices
• Purchase Orders
• Sales Orders
• Sales Books
• Sales Slips
• Statements
• Bills of Lading
• Delivery Receipts
• Export Forms
• Packing Lists
• Receiving Forms
• Requisition Forms
• Return to Vendor
• Credit/Collections
• Human Resource Forms

To order your next form, call Aaron at 713-623-6444
or reply to this email.

 Some of the Services Provided By Marion
  • Graphic Design – Logos – Pocket Brochures – Catalogs
  • Website Design – Search Engine Optimization – Internet Marketing
  • Writing – Technical – Creative – Scientific
  • Flash animations and presentations
  • Printing
  • Annual Reports
View complete list of services:
http://www.marion.com/services.htm
 

Regards

Aaron Ellisor
President
The Marion Group
713-623-6444 ext 101
2900 Weslayan, Suite 150
Houston, Texas 77027
www.marion.com
aaron@marion.com