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Archive for e-mail

Is IMAP Better Than POP?

Yes, yes it is. Especially if you have your own e-mail domain name.

IMAP vs. POP

With IMAP your e-mail is stored on your host’s server while with POP you download your e-mail to your own computer, which is then deleted from the main server (unless you tell it not to). Therefore IMAP is better if you are getting your e-mail from several computers or devices like an iPhone or iPad.

With IMAP your e-mail is in the same condition from wherever you get it. For instance, if you read your e-mail but didn’t delete it, it will still be on the server as already read, no matter where you are viewing it. But if you are using POP and you read your e-mail on your iPhone and then later checked your mail on your iMac, it will show up again as unread. How very annoying. UpperHost has a simple explanation of IMAP vs. POP.

It is best to start out with IMAP.

Switching from POP to IMAP can be quite a challenge. Here’s my tale.

I was using a local hosting company, then switched to GoDaddy. I always used POP because the local company didn’t want me storing e-mails on their server. One of the reasons I switched.

I read an article in MacWorld Magazine on The IMAP Advantage and decided to make the switch. At the time I had over 13,000 e-mails in my main e-mail account. It was suggested I save these in a folder on my computer. Sorting out 13,000 e-mails would take too much time so I tried dragging them to a generic folder and received an error message.

GoDaddy said they it would be okay to make the POP account inactive while activating the IMAP account. And this worked fine. But then something happened and a few days later all 13,000 plus e-mails became blank. They were missing. Yikes, I said to myself.

With frantic calls to Apple Support I managed to restore most of my old e-mail to my computer from my Time Machine backup. How ironic that the main reason I switched from POP to IMAP was to have a safe back up for my e-mails and in the process I lost (temporarily) all my old e-mail.

So always be sure to save your e-mail to your computer if you are switching from POP to IMAP. And have a backup plan. Hard drives do fail and e-mails do disappear.

11 Jan

Don't Panic… Market. Now.

Unemployment may be at 7%, but that just means a greater majority of people who want to work, are working.

Anyway, the point is that there are still employed people spending money. Sure a lot of people have cut back. But the best way for you to increase your sales is to let more people know what you do. What is your service? Where are you located? What do you do that’s better than anyone else? How can you help them?

If you don’t advertise or market your business in some way, no one will know you exist. Or worse, they’ll think you’ve gone out of business. And these days there’s a lot of that happening.

Update your website and let people know what is going on with you and how you can help them. Promote your brand. Keep your image at the top of people’s minds.

If you don’t already have a website, you’re missing out on one of the most cost effective ways to showcase your business or service.

If you do have a website and it’s out of date, you need to update. And fast. A tired, out of date website show’s you are not on top of your game. You may be perceived as irrelevant.

Remember, when you cut your marketing and advertising, you are essentially giving your competition a clear advantage. Is that really what you want to do?

Don’t forget to call Creative Juices if you need marketing and advertising advice. 310-791-5803. Did you know weekend appointments are now available?

Advertising Business Practices Marketing 101 Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

03 Dec

How to survive the recession…

First thing, don’t panic. The economy may be tanking but your business doesn’t have to. Unless you let it.

Now is the time to market your business. Actually marketing your small business should never stop. The trick is to focus your marketing. Now more than ever you have to budget your money. To be successful you need to figure out what types of marketing to do, and then do it.

Direct mail pieces such as postcards, sales letters or brochures are a great way to reach your target market. Create your own mailing list. You can find dba’s in the newspaper for new businesses. Or you can look in the phone book (the old yellow one) or online. Send out a few each week.

E-mail blasts are great. And there’s no postage. Or printing costs. Add a form to your website to collect e-mail addresses from people who want to subscribe to whatever you have to say.

Don’t forget ads in local newspapers and throwaways. Ads need to be seen a multiple of times before people remember them and respond. Placing an ad once in a while will be a waste of time and money.

If you must cut costs, don’t skimp on your marketing. Just focus your efforts.

Advertising Business Practices Marketing 101

20 Nov

10 Reasons why you should use E-mail Marketing

E-mail marketing is relatively easy to create
The fundamentals of e-mail marketing are relevance, strategy and testing
Most recipients accept and even welcome targeted, opt-in e-mails
A survey from Jupiter Research says “60% of business decision makers prefer e-mail and the internet over other mediums for receiving marketing messages”
E-mail is cost-efficient for nurturing your existing leads
E-mails are personalized
Using an e-mail service comes with built-in tracking features with statistics on bounce rates, delivery and open rates, click-through analytics and more
Using e-mail is a quick and cost-effective way to test market your messages and offers
Sending an e-mail message before delivering direct mail pieces helps boost awareness
A great way to follow up on direct mail deliveries