Submit Electronic signature PDF Simple

In states which have passed it, the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (UETA) would govern this.  Section 7 of UETA, in particular, specifies:  SECTION 7.  LEGAL RECOGNITION OF ELECTRONIC RECORDS, ELECTRONIC SIGNATURES, AND ELECTRONIC CONTRACTS.       (a)  A record or signature may not be denied legal effect or enforceability solely because it is in electronic form.       (b)  A contract may not be denied legal effect or enforceability solely because an electronic record was used in its formation.       (c)  If a law requires a record to be in writing, an electronic record satisfies the law.       (d)  If a law requires a signature, an electronic signature satisfies the law.So, assuming that a signature is required for a contract to be valid, an "electronic signature" suffices.  UETA defines "electronic signature" as follows:(8)  "Electronic signature" means an electronic sound, symbol, or process attached to or logically associated with a record and executed or adopted by a person with the intent to sign the record.In basic language, this means that when you type out your name and click on the "submit" button, you've electronically signed the record, and the official comments to UETA (not technically law, but extremely persuasive) back this up:This definition includes as an electronic signature the standard webpage click through process.  For example, when a person orders goods or services through a vendor's website, the person will be required to provide information as part of a process which will result in receipt of the goods or services.  When the customer ultimately gets to the last step and clicks "I agree," the person has adopted the process and has done so with the intent to associate the person with the record of that process.  The actual effect of the electronic signature will be determined from all the surrounding circumstances, however, the person adopted a process which the circumstances indicate s/he intended to have the effect of getting the goods/services and being bound to pay for them.  The adoption of the process carried the intent to do a legally signNow act, the hallmark of a signature.Although not every state has adopted UETA either in part or in whole without modifications, I believe every state now has similar or identical provisions in its body of law.  Assuming that this type of waiver would otherwise be legally enforceable (and many jurisdictions don't allow a waiver of liability for injuries under certain circumstances) then it would not be rendered unenforceable simply because it was signed electronically.Of course, in order to ensure the enforceability of any contract, one should generally consult with an attorney who is familiar with contract law in your jurisdiction and who could recommend a set of best practices for the storage and preservation of any contract stored as an electronic record.

Yes, you can.

I’m a full-time freelance writer. I’ll give you a few tools that make life easier for me…Wave Apps: I use this for accounting and invoicing. It allows me to accept credit cards, checks, or cash payment and still keep track of things. If a client pays by credit card, the money is transferred to my bank in 2 business days, which is awesome. It’s also 100% free.Paypal: Some of my clients prefer to pay by Paypal, which is fine by me. Get a business account (which is free) and you can use the built-in invoicing tool. When I get paid through Paypal, I can transfer the money to my business bank account and it shows up the next business day (although that will depend on the bank you’re using.)The “Speech” feature on Apple Notes: You remember how your English teacher told you to “read your writing out loud” to yourself? Well, I have my computer do that for me. When I write a piece, before I send it to the client, I’ll copy and paste it from Google Docs (where I do most of my writing) to Apple Notes on my Mac. In the upper toolbar, then I’ll click the Edit dropdown, then I’ll click where it says “Speech.” I’ll then hear my piece being read to me through my headphones. I catch a lot of mistakes this way.(By the way, if you’re on a PC, you can copy and paste content into Google Translate’s website, ignore the translation feature, but click the speaker button in the bottom right of the translate box to have Google read your work back to you.)Free Screencast Recording for Gmail: Sometimes its easier to say what I’m thinking than to type it out. Screencast Recording is a free Chrome plugin from cloudHQ (a company I’ve done some work for and think very highly of) that adds a screencast recorder to my Gmail account.I can just click record, talk about what’s happening, then embed the video in an email and send it to my client. I can’t tell you how helpful this one is or how many hours its saved me creating and sending emails.They have a whole library of tools for Gmail. I have many of them installed and use them often.Hope that helps. If you want to know more about any specific process in my business, just leave a comment. I’ll be glad to give additional details.Thanks!

Thanks for the A2A. The answer depends to a small extent on the place you're applying to, and to a great extent on the cover letter. I personally find them going the way of the dodo, and for the right reasons, but every once in a while I read a cover letter that genuinely benefits me as the interviewer. Remember the principal aim of the cover letter is to make sure we don't bin your application. We'll get to know you during the interview, so this isn't the time to tell us about your passion for breeding Wyandotte chickens. Rather, it's a way to add some context to things that would normally result in circular filing. Wherever I've conducted interviews, I've insisted we read all cover letters and discussed them, separately from the CV, and after the CV. In quite a few cases, it's hurt more than it helped, but sometimes, especially for people from minority backgrounds in tech (women, persons with disabilities, African-Americans, Hispanics, etc.), a good cover letter showing ambition and hunger can make up for a lot of lacking experience or seniority.DO NOT write a cover letter if:You're applying for a specific job via an online interface, and it's not explicitly requested and there's no separate upload slot for it. That means we don't want it. Some people STILL put one in front of their CV. I don't care, but to a number of data scientists, some fairly senior ones, this is a sign of an inability to follow simple instructions, and you're already starting from a disadvantage.You have nothing of substance to say in it. If you're putting it in because you've learned that it's customary to have a cover letter, or because you see you can upload one (but it's not necessary) and you are just going to put in some two-line string of courtesies, save some electrons and skip it.You don't know how to write a good one. A cover letter can hurt you, and hurt you real bad. Communicating insights is an essential and indispensable part of being a data scientist, and if your cover letter is formally ugly, badly written or full of grammar errors, fix it or skip it. If you have a recruiter, ask them to help you with the content and formatting, and use someone reliable for fixing your grammar. There are CV consultants who also can advise on cover letters, but these are often pricey services for that first DS job.You get to submit a free-form CV, e.g. via PDF upload, and there are no other circumstances that justify it. A free-form CV means you get to talk about whatever you'd like to, in as much detail as is fit to print. So if you've written a Latent Dirichlet Allocation based text classifier in Brainf.ck, I'd expect to see that on your CV, not the cover letter. Don't repeat stuff.You intend to lie. Someone at some point spread the weird meme that you can't lose your job for being less than truthful in your cover letter, as opposed to your CV. That's nonsense. Be honest. Always. ALWAYS.You know, from your recruiter, that the place you're applying to doesn't like them, or doesn't read them. Your recruiter, if worth their salt, will know this. In general, startups prefer impressive CVs and no cover letters if they can at all be avoided.You lack an essential skill. Emphasis on essential. These days, most job descriptions are a little over the top, sometimes asking for 5 years' experience in technologies that have been around for no more than three. So if the job description asks you for five years' experience but you've spent two years leading development on a successful, major project, the cover letter is a good place to explain this. But if we're looking for a PL/SQL developer and you can't tell your `SELECT` from your `UPDATE`, don't even try. Rarely, if you lack one of several required technologies, and it's a relatively small chunk, it might be useful to say 'I don't have a lot of experience with KNIME, but I have been taking online classes on it, worked through tutorials and I expect to be up to speed in a few weeks, plus, I've worked a lot with Orange, which is similar'. But when you offer alternate skills, make sure they're relevant. When looking for a SQL developer, not knowing PL/SQL but being good with embedded C is not really going to work – sorry.You want to spend it kvetching. A year ago, I interviewed a young man for a data science role. His CV was ok – actually, well enough to hire. But his (optional!) cover letter was a long list of grievances about his current employer. Even if true, this is not the time or the place. The same goes for cover letters that tell a long sob story about being hard done by life. I don't mind mentioning adversity and how you overcame it and grew from the experience, but if the whole thing is a ten-page history of every misdeed of this universe against you, I will have some serious doubts. People who make it big in data science are resilient, because so much of our job requires us to be resilient. Models break, data quality is often bad, and so on.You are banking on pity points. No good company hires out of pity. When describing less than optimal circumstances, be objective and neutral. Chances are, somebody on the interview committee did have it worse than you.You are going to make wild promises. Our job is to assess your potential. We do an ok job of it, and the HR professionals who back us up are consummate professionals at it. So when I see promises in cover letters that tell me you're going to revolutionise data science, double our revenue, bring in six hundred clients and create a new deep learning framework in the process, I get red flags.You intend to write more than a page. Just don't. It's a cover page. Together with address bars etc., it should not be longer than a page. And please, please make sure it has a signature, and you get the addressing right. If you begin with `Dear Sir/Madam`, then you conclude with `Yours truly`, otherwise it's `Yours sincerely`. A good cover letter is addressed at a specific person, usually the HR contact person you've been in touch with.DO write a cover letter if:This is your first data science job, and you don't have a relevant degree. This is a great time for us to hear a little about why you shifted to data science, and how you accomplished it. Don't turn it into a sob story, but I'll always be very sympathetic towards a candidate who tells an uplifting story about overcoming adversity to get where they are.You have a signNow employment gap. It may be enough to just say 'I spent 2012–2013 on maternity leave with my first child' or 'Between 2015 and 2017, I had to take care of my terminally ill grandfather, but took the opportunity to return to full-time employment after his passing." There, now we know what was up. It's a little more complicated if you have been away for health reasons. As someone who was in this situation, I usually used a turn of phrase that worked quite well: "Between x and y, a rare disease forced me to abandon full-time employment and focus on my health. Besides overcoming my illness, I have during this time also taught myself Python." This is great because it points out that you're all better now, and you used your time wisely. For advice on dealing with such a gap in employment, please talk to your recruiter.You have a serious issue, such as a felony conviction. We will find out, so this is your chance to mitigate. A less serious version of this is if you dropped out of university/college. Explaining why is going to make sure we won't assume. Use this chance to give us your position. To a much lesser extent, this goes for bad grades.You have a lot of short stints. Recruiting is expensive. An interview with a senior and a mid-level to junior member of the average data science outfit, including prep, costs about $5,000 in lost productivity. We are not going to spend this on someone who is going to leave after three months. If you developed so fast that you went up the ladder each time, we may consider you, but if you have a good reason (and 'I still haven't found what I am looking for' might be tolerable song lyrics, but an insufficient reason to hop jobs), we'll understand. Tough economy, willing to learn new technologies, contract jobs, niche speciality, etc. – these will all work fine.You have a unique or interesting motivation for going into the field. "It's interesting" and "curiosity" are good but not unique. When I ran interviews for my law school alma mater, I heard a young man from a Caribbean family recount how his older brother was falsely convicted of a burglary he did not commit in face of overwhelming exculpatory evidence, and how this made him want to become a lawyer to assist others in his situation. That's the kind of story I like to see. But keep it to no more than a paragraph.You have some super cool achievements that you couldn't squish into your CV, such as being a Python core contributor or, to reuse an example from above, writing a deep learning engine in Brainf.ck.You are a signNow open source contributor with some really high quality work, but there's no place to link to your Github profile. Just slip it in somewhere that you hope that in the meantime we'll peruse your Github account.You're doing some signNow outsignNow in your free time, such as teaching disadvantaged urban youngsters to code. Again, don't go overboard with it, but this is your chance to weave it into your life story.You need to send your application by post. In this case, it's customary.The application expressly requires one.I hope these principles have helped you decide whether to use a cover letter or not. In general, I have maybe seen cover letters make a difference twice out of hundreds of interviews, but in some cases, they can explain some situations that would at the very worst get your application binned before an in-person interview. As always, a good, strong CV and a strong professional record, including a website where you write about data science, is more helpful. So is a 'show and tell' – I always bring some code to interviews, or a little app I've developed, or something similar to show off. It's a fun icebreaker and makes the whole thing more memorable. These are all great ways to show your individuality at an interview, but before that, if your CV doesn't allow you to do so, and you need to clarify something, the cover letter may be your best chance.

Everybody can apply for a new Indian passport online by following these easy steps.Apply for a new Indian Passport onlineThe Indian passport is a travel document issued by the government which certifies the identity of its holder primarily for the purpose of international travel. You need a passport to enter and exit the country you wish to travel. A Traveler must have a valid passport with him/her if he wants to travel anywhere on the globe.If you want to travel to any country, then you must have an Indian passport. Governments all around the globe accept passports for travel purposes. If you do not possess a passport, then you should follow the following steps for Indian passport online application. Check: Visa free countries for IndiansSteps to apply for a new Indian passportYou must follow these four steps to apply for a new Indian passport:STEP 1- Indian Passport Online ApplicationThe first step that leads to the making of a new passport is an Indian Passport online application. You need to apply online for making of your passport. For this:You have to register yourself on the passport Seva website.After you have registered, log in to your account.Now you can see there is an option to apply. It must be of two types, a fresh passport or re-issue passport.You can fill the form both, online or offline.It is referred to fill your Indian passport form online on your own.The system will ask you various details like your personal details, family details, residential address, contact number (that must be working), etc.Proofread your form. Please make sure to check each and every detail twice or thrice to avoid any problem.You will be asked to upload some documents, which is not obligatory at all. After you have filled the details, you can pay the fee.Now you can schedule your appointment.If required, you can reschedule the appointment. You are not asked to pay any extra charges for this.STEP 2- Visiting PSKPSK is short for Passport Seva Kendra. It is a place where the fresh application of the applicants is processed for an Indian Passport.Make sure to visit the PSK at the mentioned time.You have to show your appointment message(SMS) at the entrance. You can also show the printed payment receipt.The basic requirements to show are the certificates of 11th and 12th standard or Aadhar card.In most cases, only these two documents are checked. In case there is an exception, other documents are also checked.On entering the PSK, you have to show your SMS at the reception.Then, they ask you for a self-attested photocopy of above-mentioned documents.They will give you a token number.Now, you have to follow the counters A->B->C. (In one of the Indian cities, token numbers were displayed on LCD screens with the counter numbers on which the applicants were supposed to go)Counters descriptionAt counter A, the attendant will scan the Xerox copies of your documents after comparing it with originals. Then, he will take a photograph of you and check your record of biometric details. The person will ask you whether you want to opt for SMS alerts or buy protective cases. You have to pay in cash for these services.At counter B, token numbers are again displayed on LCD screens. The documents uploaded by counter A are cross-checked here.At counter C, the same procedure is repeated as done on counter B.STEP 3-Police VerificationPolice verification is the third step to Indian passport making.After being done with formalities at PSK, you will get a notification that your form has been shared with the police station you mentioned and they are soon going to be in touch with you.Then, you will get a call from the police station and you will have to visit the police station will all the required documents (Electricity bills, aadhar card, index-2)The police officer will ask you some basic questions like what is your name? where do you live? What do you study and in which institute? where do you stay? Since when are you staying there? What does your father do? Do you have any police case against you? Have you broken any traffic rules?Then he will take a photograph of you and your signature.Next day, you will receive a call from the police commissioner’s office asking whether the police station you visited co-operated with you for the passport verification process. SMS alerts will be received regarding your Indian passport status from time to time.STEP 4- DispatchThe local police station verifies your details for Indian Passport.It is then sent to the commissioner’s office.The commissioner’s office forwards it to the ministry.After this process, your passport is ready to get printed.You will get your passport within 15 days.Note: You will be informed by your Indian passport status by SMS alerts. Make sure that somebody is present at your mentioned address when your Indian passport is to be delivered. If nobody is present, you may have to again face a hectic process to retrieve your passport.Documents required for a new Indian PassportProof for date of birth certificate and citizenship.An HR certificate on the letterhead, or a Bonafide Documentation from the School/College.Electricity bill, Gas connection bill, Telephone bill or Water bill in your name with a valid residential address.Bank account statement and a Voter ID card.Points you should remember while filling-up the Indian Passport FormFew things that must be taken into consideration while filling up the registration form (Indian Passport form) are as follows:• Always use block(capital) letters and leave a blank box between two words.• Fill the form carefully.Thailand Visa On Arrival for IndiansRenewal of Indian PassportWhen anybody wants the renewal of Indian passport, he/she can do it very easily due to online service. This facility is very useful for Indian expats. Anyways you can complete this task by following these steps.1. Register Yourself Online at the Passport Seva WebsiteRegister yourself with the Passport Seva Website for the renewal of Indian passport. You can do this by going to the website and clicking “New User Register”. When you register you will have to:Select the passport office that is connected to your present residential address.Enter your name, date of birth, email, login ID and password.Activate your account using the email they sent you so that you can access your account.After logging in, you will see an option in the menu: “Apply for Fresh Passport/Re-issue of Passport”. Click on this link and you will proceed to fill out the application.2. Fill out Your Online ApplicationFilling out your application is the primary part of your passport re-issuing and renewal process. You will see two options to fill out the application form and they will be presented as two alternatives. These alternatives are:Option 1 will put your application in a PDF form so that it can be downloaded and filled offline.Option 2 will put your details directly into the form you are using.It is recommended to choose the first option with the PDF form because you might not have some of the details of the form available to you at the time.If you are using the PDF form option, you will need to enter the city you are in and then click Validate and Save. You will then have to save your file as an XML file.The information you need includesCurrent residential addressInformation of your Spouse as requested by the documentTwo references including their full names, addresses, and phone numbers3. Get Ready for Your Indian Passport Renewal AppointmentSubmit the Indian passport renewal form and click the option on the left that says: “View Saved / Submitted Applications”.Select your application by clicking on the radio button.Click on “Pay and Schedule Appointment.”Select your time slot. Set your appointment and you will then be directed to the payment page where you can select which source you want to use to pay for the application.4. Requirements for Indian Passport RenewalIn the home page where Document Advisor for renewal / re-issue is listed; you will find some options listed for you.Click the respective option that is similar to your case and the documents you need will be enlisted. Here are the documents:An online form that you printed out.Original expired passport.Proof of address.The utility bills.Ration Card with a residential addressBank Statement and the passbook of a bank account with the address on it.Aadhar card(If your address is changed, you will also need a copy of the first, last and ECNR page of your passport that will require the self-attestation. You must provide proof of the change in address.)If you want to change any details of spouse’s information, the original marriage certificate and its photocopy signed by you will be required.Post for you: Check Iqama validityNew rules for Indian passport renewal in UAEThe online application is mandatory to seek passport services for Indian missions. Expats seeking for Indian passport renewal in UAE will have to submit their applications online before visiting any application processing centers.The online application was made mandatory for Indians living in Dubai and other five emirates under the influence of the consulate from the start of April 2019.The applications for passport services have to be submitted on the portal of Passport Seva at Indian Embassies and Consulates at the website: https://embassy.passportindia.go...The assimilation of the Passport Seva Project in India with the passport service system in UAE is an initial step towards issuing chip-based electronic passports. This project is meant to eliminate paperwork and cut down the time for issuing passports. The diplomats said that the integration was completed with the support of a technical team that came over from India to accompany the UAE team.And yet there was no public announcement, the consulate has posted the new rules for mandatory online application for Indian passport applicants on its website. BLS website has also listed the new procedure for passport application.The emissaries made it clear that the physical appearance of the applicants is still required at the centers of BLS International.The applicants have to go to the BLS centers with a printed copy of the application form submitted online and the other original documents that are required for verification.Applications are also required to be signed before their submission to the submission officer at BLS.What is BLS?BLS International Services Ltd. is an exclusive reliable partner to The Embassy of India / Consulate General of India, UAE which copes the Administrative Function of the Visa and Passport Applications process of Indian nationals.BLS website provides you with the up-to-date information of the application procedures involved in making an application for an Indian Visa and Indian Passport from UAE.All potential applicants are requested to go through the Guidelines for the various sorts of Visa, photograph specification, mandatory documents required for making a visa application and the fee structure for each type of visa prior to preparing the application for online submission. The Embassy of India has the sole and absolute decision to either Accept or Refuse your application. BLS International has no engrossment in the decision-making process of The Embassy of India, Abu Dhabi /Consulate General of India, Dubai.ADVANTAGESWith the applicants being able to fill the forms online, they can now avoid paying the service fee of Dh30 at BLS, it saves your time and money.However, the BLS centers will continue to provide the service for applicants if they are unable to do it by themselves for any reason provided.This new process has been implemented in the US, UK, and Oman.This will help the missions here to cut down the passport issuance timing from the present-day five days to two to three days.The online project is said to be a pioneer in issuing chip-based electronic passports.Recently, The Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi said that work was in progress to issue chip-based e-passports to Indian citizens under a centralized passport system.Steps for Indian passport renewal in UAEExpats can follow these simple steps for Indian passport renewal in UAE.1. Visit this website: https://embassy.passportindia.go... – the portal for “Passport Seva at Indian Embassies and Consulates.”2. Select the country that says: United Arab Emirates.3. Do single time registration by clicking the link ‘Register’. Now create a user ID.4. Log in by using the newly created user ID. It will take the applicant to his/her Home Page.5. Click on writing that states: “Apply for Ordinary Passport/Emergency Certificate/Police Clearance Certificate/Surrender of Indian Passport/Diplomatic Passport/Official Passport” to file a new passport application.6. Fill in the application form and submit it by clicking the submit button.7. After submitting the online form, take a print out of the application and keep it.8. Affix a photo at the designated place on the form9. Submit the printout along with required documents and prescribed fee at the nearest BLS Centre you visit.10. The application has to be signed before the submission to the officer at BLS.

I’ve utilized 11 different marketing strategies for each of my businesses, and I know that each of them will still be relevant from 2018 and onwards. This answer is quite long, so I’ve also included a TL;DR, that way you can pick what you want to read more about.Most of these marketing strategies will create viable growth for any organization, and are worth trying for at least a month.However, before I list them, I feel the need to make one thing abundantly clear:No matter what anyone tells you, there is no one-size-fits-all marketing strategy. You will have to experiment (it’s called A/B Testing) for as long as you want to remain relevant and profitable.So the secret isn’t SEO (search engine optimization). It’s not traditional “business card” networking. It’s not even Facebook Ads. The secret is whatever works for your business, and it’s 100% unique.TL;DR:Advertising on FacebookMaking a Google My Business ListingUsing Google AdwordsPutting Greater Emphasis on Content MarketingCouponsCreating eMail Marketing FunnelsWebinarsFree Offers / ConsultationsGuest Blogging and Writing ColumnsCreating PartnershipsKeynote Speeches1. Advertising on FacebookTwo million small to medium sized businesses like yours are currently advertising on Facebook. It’s cheap and effective so it only makes sense.As far as targeting goes, Facebook Ads are ridiculously good. They allow you to target a specific audience based on location, interests, age, sex, online behavior, and many other factors that no other platform can quite get down.The best part about creating Facebook Ads is how easy it is! You simply need to have an eye catching image or video and accompanying header. If you’re not sure what constitutes “eye catching” in your niche, you can use the Facebook Ads Manager and test multiple ads for one product — eventually going with the one that generates the most amount of money for you.Doing this will not automatically guarantee returns, but thankfully, there are plenty of 3rd party tools to use, AdEspresso by Hootsuite is the first one that comes to mind!Use it to run your campaigns and speed up your journey to positive ROI.NOTE:If your business is largely visual, don’t just use Facebook. Use its sister-company, Instagram as well. Instagram Ads allows you to benefit from having the same data base and targeting options as Facebook, while simultaneously allowing you to connect with an audience that is better primed for visual sales.Is this your ideal solution? Check outFacebook Advertising Made Simple: A Step-by-Step Guide by Neil PatelHow to Run App Install Ads On Facebook by Aki Merced2. Making a Google My Business Listing (and Ranking)A Google My Business (GMB) listing is the smartest thing that you can do for your business.Think about it; Google is the biggest search engine in the world, and if anyone searches for a particular product/service, you’ve pretty much got first dibs!Most search results on Google first include a paid ad, and if someone is looking for a service, the next results are typically GMB listings. Ranking your business in the top 3 search results will bring in ROI like you’ve never seen before.What exactly is Google My Business?If it’s your first time hearing about GMB, it can probably sound a little intimidating. GMB simply combines variously Google platforms and puts them in one place, i.e your business’ Google+profile, your Google Reviews, Google Maps, and gives you access to data like Google Analytics and Google Insights.Since typing this answer, Google is probably working on plenty more offerings…One thing is for sure, from the minute you list your business on GMB and get it ranking, you’ll immediately get the credibility and visibility (of course) that you’ve been looking for.If your small business is local, this is a must-do!If you’re ready to get started, read this:How to optimize your Google My Business listing: expert tips by Graham Charlton7 SEO Mistakes That Leak Money From Local Businesses by Jacob McMillen3. Using Google AdwordsJust like I said in the above strategy, no other platform gives you the type of exposure as Google. At least not in modern history.If online marketing is a baby, then Google Adwords is its godfather.Since Google Adwords has been around for so long, it’s really competitive and pretty expensive if I may say so myself — however, it works extremely well.Here’s the thing; while Adwords is expensive, it’s also really effective if you’ve already utilized on-page SEO, so start there first. SEO makes Adwords a whole lot cheaper!How does SEO make Google Adwords cheaper?For every single ad on the search engine, Google gives them a quality score based on its CTR (click-through-rate), the landing page that the ad sends traffic to, and ad relevance. The quality score also factors in the bid rate that you will need in order for your ad to be displayed. The higher the quality score, the lower the bid cost.Adwords aren’t a zero-sum game, though. You can pair your Google Adwords strategy with another strategy on this list and create a killer campaign!If that’s exciting for you, check these links out for further reading:The Complete Google AdWords Tutorial by Jerry BanfieldThe Iceberg Effect: How Your AdWords Strategy Is Slowly Drowning by Johnathan Dane4. Putting Greater Emphasis on Content Marketing18% of marketers say that content marketing has the greatest commercial impact on their business of any channel in 2016.What exactly is Content Marketing?It’s actually a process of creating and then distributing content that is high value, relevant and consistent with your brand in order to attract a clearly defined audience. You can think of answering Quora questions as a form of content marketing. Sort of.The whole point of content marketing is to focus on long-term results, instead of short-term ROI. While the initial content marketing payoff is very low compared to using Facebook Ads, for instance, in the long-term you create a reputation for your business and that in turn generates sustainable growth in visitors, leads and customers.It’s not easy, though. You still have have have the right mix of:High-quality contentPick relevant topicsOptimize your content with SEOBe consistentMind you, a lot of people automatically think of BLOGS when thinking about content, however, this is 2017 — content ranges from videos, podcasts, online courses, slides and many other ways that people prefer to consume information.To know which content works with your business, you’ll have to do some A/B Testing. There will be a format that eventually sticks.You can read some more here:Getting Started With Content Marketing by Content Marketing InstituteWhy You Need a Growth Model For Your Blog (And How to Create One) by Devesh Khanal5. CouponsBear with me here, I know this one is a bit of an unconventional suggestion, but if you sell a product or offer a service, you can use sites like Groupon as means of promotion for your business.Before anyone checks out of an online store these days, they always search for coupons, and when they’re scrolling through, they’re bound to see your offer as well.Your products will receive mass exposure, and you’ll also get targeted local advertising, increased brand awareness and a slew of new converts — even if they’re only there for the coupon, they’re still spending money.WARNING:If your deal goes viral and becomes extremely popular, you might find yourself a little overwhelmed and unable to handle the new customers, so just make sure that you the math properly.Remember, you want to attract customers with a coupon, but the proposition on your site should keep them there.Sound confusing? Here’s some additional readingDoing The Math On A Groupon Deal by Jay GoltzThe Real Cost of Groupon and What it Means to Your Marketing Planning by Mana Ionescu6. Creating eMail Marketing FunnelsIn 2018 why will this still be relevant? Good question. Simply because of this one reason: Many of the people that visit your site are not going to immediately be convinced by your value proposition. They will need some finessing.Getting their contact information allows you to send them additional marketing materials until they’re completely convinced that spending their hard earned money on your business is worth their time. And also, email is still the most high converting marketing channel — ever!How do you take advantage of this?Simple. You start with something called a “lead magnet”. It would be an offering that compels your website’s visitors to give you their email address — in exchange for something that they would view as valuable, i.e a free service trial, a free digital download, early access to a webinar, a coupon, anything.The point is to get someone to subscribe to your email list and once they do that, you will be able to display your credibility by giving them valuable content.Other benefits of email marketing include:Low costGlobal signNowEasy to automateEasy to segmentImmediate communicationEasy to setup and runEasy to track and optimizeTo be quite honest, if you are a complete newbie to marketing, you’ll notice that a lot of marketing channels are super hard to start. Email marketing is one of the strategies that are relatively simple to start.Read these two pieces to learn some more:21 Powerful Ways to Quickly Grow Your Email List by Jacob McMillenHow to Build Your Email List: The (Better Than) Ultimate Guide by Aaron Orendorff7. WebinarsIf you’re serious about your business, then you’ve probably woken up or stayed up till 2 AM at some point — to catch a webinar. If not, then you’ve got a long way to go (just kidding)!What exactly is a webinar?It’s a seminar that takes place on the web — hence the name, “webinar”. And it can honestly range from being a presentation, to a demonstration to a discussion. It doesn’t always have to be one thing.A webinar actually goes hand in hand with email marketing, because if you pick your topic correctly, you can drive a slew of subscribers into your email list and build some credibility for your business.The great thing about webinars is that they can be pre-recorded and made into standalone products (or even a series of products), which makes them a great platform for training — live and recorded.Before you maybe conflate the two, it bears mentioning that webinars and video tutorials are two completely different things. A webinar tends to have a start time and has live Q&As between yourself and your audience, so it’s far more interactive than a typical video or livestream.You will need webinar software to run a webinar that utilizes the following functions:2-Way Audio – the presenter speaks while the viewers are muted, but the presenter can “turn on” individual viewers so everyone can hear their questionScreenshare – the presenter can share their screen or switch to video for whiteboard teaching or live demonstrationPolls – the presenter can invite viewers to take a poll or provide feedback in other waysCaveat: Webinars do not work for all niches. You’ll really need to think carefully about whether your customers will benefit from a webinar and if not, there are plenty of other strategies that you can always go with.Do webinars fit with your niche? Great!Here’s some additional reading:Webinar Marketing: 15 Steps to Revenue Generating Webinars by Georgiana LaudiHow to grow your business with webinar marketing by Ross Beard8. Free Offers / ConsultationsPut yourself in your customers’ shoes for a second; I’m sure that when it comes to any kind of professional services, you want to have access to expertise, right?That’s why it’s important to position yourself as an expert or an authority figure in whatever your small business’ niche is. By promoting a free consultation, you can generate new leads.Here’s the thing, you shouldn’t even worry yourself about whether you’re disclosing too much free information in the consultation, because if your customers feel that your service is worth the money — they’ll stick around.Okay, it’s true that there are going to be a lot of freeloaders looking for something that they can quickly grab, exploit and go, but to be honest, those customers were never going to buy. Why stress yourself over them?If you can provide a high-quality consultation for free in 30 minutes, a real customer will think, “imagine what they can do in an hour…” and sign up.Advertising a free consultation can be done both online and via pamphlets, newspapers, signs or through word-of-mouth, and hey who’s to say that you can’t put a free consultation front and center on your website or on your social media?Which businesses does this strategy work for? ALL of them. Seriously.Here are some reading essentials:Should You Offer Free Consultations? by Courtney Johnston6 Ways To Make Free Consults Work For You by Laura Simms9. Guest Blogging and Writing ColumnsAny fairly decent writer can share their opinion through weekly or monthly write-ups and watch as this endeavor does wonders for their brand.While you won’t get paid for your efforts, what you will receive however is an opportunity to make consistent contact with an audience and potentially build a relationship with its readers. Then, that audience will immediately think of you when they encounter a certain situation, or other experts in your field.Start out with local newspapers and non-profit magazines, because they’re typically always looking for high-quality contributors who won’t seek a fee, then move on to the more exclusive publications like Forbes, Inc, Fast Company etc once you’ve got your skin in the game.Again, you’re not going to make any money from guest blogging or writing columns, but you will make bank in other ways (i.e. speaking engagements) by being able to say that “you’ve been published in such and such”.The aim of successful guest blogging is to make your brand/business/name valuable to your target audience in a not-so subtle way. Guest blogging and writing columns is an opportunity for you to build trust with your customers, even though someone else already did the hard work of building this audience.How do you get started?Write how-to guidesComment on current eventsPublish interviews with other interesting peopleCreate list-articles (listicles)Report on trends or eventsHere are some additional ideas to get the cogs turning in your brainHow to Secure Guest Posts on Big Publications (WSJ, Forbes & HuffPo) by Sujan PatelHow I Wrote for Fast Company, Copyblogger,& Entrepreneur by Aaron Orendorff10. Partner With Other BusinessesTeamwork is always more effective than singular effort, and combining resources with another business can help you do things you could never accomplish on your own.It’s typically best to target companies in your local area, even if your clientele isn’t local. Your goal is to work out a complementary arrangement that provides mutual benefit for both businesses.Some joint venture examples include:A PPC agency could partner with a CRO agency to refer clients to each other.A coffee shop could offer free coffee vouchers to a plumbing company’s customers.A marketing company could partner with an accounting firm to recommend each other’s services during new client onboarding.A beauty therapist could offer free manicures for a hair stylist’s clients.There is really no limit to what’s possible. Simply identify crossover in your audience and a non-competitor’s audience and then find a way to tap into that crossover in a mutually beneficial way.Sound interesting? Good! Check these additional links outWhy Small Businesses Should Partner Up With Other Brands by Web Smith5 Tips To Partnering Alongside A Business For The First Time by Deborah Sweeney11. Speak At EventsIn terms of branding and establishing yourself as an authority, few things are more impactful than being a speaker at popular events in your niche.While invitations to speak at larger events are often extended as a result of accomplishments or visible influence, you can also work your way into these opportunities by becoming a talented speaker and delivering great talks at smaller events.Or you can simply use it as another marketing channel, by speaking at some of these types of events:Local clubs – think Rotary, Lion’s, Chamber of Commerce.Business networking groups.Specific interest clubs (photography, hiking, sewing, etc.)Browse local events on Eventbrite and We are what we do | Meetup.Schools.Churches.Check events in your local newspaper and magazines.Big companies and their employees.Be prepared, and treat every event like a big deal.And finally, the last couple of additional reading linksHow To Start Speaking At Events by Chris BroganWhy I Get Invited to Speak at Events (And How You Can Too) by Rohit BhargavaAt the end of the day, what’s good for the goose isn’t always good for the gander — you’ll need to do a proper business audit (based on your customer demographics) to determine whether any of these suggestions will be a fit for your business, but my guess is yes.Your answers from your evaluation should lead you to at least 4 of the strategies mentioned in this answer.Good luck!

This is focus. And focus is almost always the difference between a business that grows profitably and one that never seems to gain any momentum. You can continue to hope that “next time that email is going to work better,” or you can develop a clear focus and a realistic strategy.Who is Your Target Customer?The first decision in any marketing strategy is to define your target customer. “Who do you serve?” always needs to be answered clearly before you can execute any tactic effectively. This means you have to say “no” to other potential customers who might buy from you but who are clearly bad fits for your narrow focus. This takes time to develop the discipline, but you can’t do effective marketing without it.Focusing on a well-defined target may make you uncomfortable at first, but stay the course and follow through. An accountant friend of mine changed his business from “doing taxes for anyone in Phoenix” to “a CPA who does taxes and investments only for physicians” – his best customers who have special needs. He made this change over a period of two years and tripled his business, narrowed his service offerings and strengthened his pitch.If you are spending time and money on marketing but your efforts are not driving enough sales, the problem is almost always that you haven’t narrowed your target market definition enough to be effective. The narrower you define your market so you can focus on those that you can best serve and those that can best service you, the more effective your entire business will be.What is Your Category?Your category is simply the short description of what business you are in. What few words would someone say to describe your business? Starbucks is “high-quality coffee” Chipotle is “fresh Mexican burritos.” My friend’s tax business is simply “tax accounting for physicians in Phoenix.”Most business owners can’t resist over-complicating their company descriptions. This leaves people unsure of what you actually do, which weakens your marketing effectiveness. Here’s a simple rule: If someone can’t clearly remember your category description a month after you meet them, they were never clear about what you do in the first place.Clearly defining your category helps amplify your marketing and sales efforts. Think of what it would take to be the best – the leader – in your category. You’re not the leader? Then narrow your category definition (or your target market focus) until you are the leader. A focused laser can melt steel at a distance, but the same light undirected has no effect. Be laser-like in your focus.What is Your Unique Benefit?Your unique benefit should highlight the one (or two) main things your product or service actually delivers (benefits) that your target customer really wants, not a long list of all the things your product does (features).At Infusionsoft, we know our customers don’t just want our software: They want to grow sales and save time. We don’t describe everything our software does or the hundreds of benefits, we keep our focus on those three key benefits in everything we do. And the simpler we describe it, the better our marketing works.Who is Your Competition?When someone is looking to buy a solution to a problem, they will quickly make sense of the alternatives to compare against – your competition. However, most entrepreneurs haven’t specifically defined who their real competition is and don’t focus their messages to create clear differentiation for their buyers. This frustrates the buying decision process and makes your marketing efforts weaker.You need to be clear in your own mind about what your biggest competition is. If you are a tax accountant, is your competition really the other tax accountants in town? Other CPAs or financial planners? DIY tax software? Doing taxes manually? National tax accounting chains? Each competitor type would create different comparisons, so you need to narrow it down to one or two main competitor types.Why Are You Different and Better for Your Target Customer?Once you have defined your competition, make a list of all the things you do differently and better. Then rank each of them by how important these factors are to your target customer. Pick the top one or two and put them on your homepage and include them in your elevator pitch.Don’t overcomplicate this. People just want to know one or two things to move their decision along. Is it cheaper? Do you have faster delivery? Best personalized service? Are you the only accountant who exclusively serves physicians in Phoenix?What Does Your Marketing Strategy Statement Look Like?When you put the five key decisions of marketing strategy in a sentence form, it looks like this fill-in-the-blank statement:Your company name is the leading category for target customers that provides unique benefit. Unlike competitors, your company does unique differentiator.Our growth rate doubled when we focused and committed to this clear and simple marketing strategy.Try it for yourself: Fill in the blanks to create the marketing strategy statement for your own business. Get some perspective from employees, friends and best customers. List all the possibilities and then make some decisions. Say it out loud a few times. You should feel clarity and power coming through. It will also show you a few things you could stop doing in your business that would create more focus.Can you see why it makes no sense to Tweet, to send a broadcast email or build a new website if you are not clear about your marketing strategy that has laser-like focus? Doing these tactics without a road map – your marketing strategy – will not deliver the right customers and will give you fewer sales than if you had invested the time to implement a focused marketing strategy.Here’s the real secret that successful companies practice with extreme discipline: Creating a clear marketing strategy is not what companies do after they get big, it’s what small companies do to grow and get bigger in the first place.