The potential for localized and location-based marketing is high – especially with estimates of retail sales from “beacon-triggered messages”, which grew from $4.1 billion to $44.4 billion between 2015 and 2016, according to Statista. Coupled with 77 percent of U.S. citizens having a smartphone, based on a November 2016 Pew Research Center survey, the ability to reach consumers is the best it’s ever been[P1] . With technology and smartphones making sales ripe, how can businesses make the most of localized and location-based marketing to reach consumers and business clients?

Maximize a Localized Consumer Experience

With a mobile website, there’s no one-size-fits-all design. However, there are some common elements that provide better functionality when viewed on a mobile device. These include the ability to press a phone number for assisted dialing or an email address right on the screen to email the business instantly. Other elements include fewer but larger buttons to search the website, navigate between pages, and for easy access to the address, operating hours and social networking sites connected to the business.

Creating a mobile optimized website is the first step to help locals and travelers find nearby businesses. While location-based marketing certainly includes targeting nearby customers as a first priority, it needn’t be limited to potential customers within a defined area. When anyone is looking on the internet for a business in a particular city or town, it is found by a search query for a product or service. For example, a targeted keyword phrase might be “Tampa coffee shop” or “art galleries near L’Enfant Plaza.”

Another way to localize a marketing campaign is to work with one’s location, along with calendar or seasonal events in conjunction with keywords. This can either take the form of marketing campaigns that take advantage of well-known events, such as Mardi Gras in New Orleans. You can target mobile users seeking Mardi Gras information with keyword optimization for, say, festive clothing or regional foods. It can also work with weather events, such as unusually warm spells during Midwest winters. This type of weather event could be leveraged to target customers for fans in the case of heat spells.

Put the Consumer in Control

One way for retailers to take advantage of location-based marketing, especially in a store or a defined area near a retail or business establishment, is to let the consumer control his options. Whether using an app, a push notification or text messages, it’s a good idea to ask the user for permission to receive notifications in order to gain his trust. This puts the customer in control of how many messages he’ll receive and when, making them more effective.

Another way to better connect with customers through location-based marketing is to create a fast and convenient experience. Using an app, a brick-and-mortar retailer can ask if the customer would like to place an order and pay for it before he visits the store. All that’s left is to pick up the item in the store or through curbside delivery, if it’s available with the merchant.

Remember, localized and location-based marketing technology can be used effectively to target and increase sales with both local and out-of-town consumers.

[P1] Sources for statistics: 

https://www.statista.com/statistics/428420/us-beacon-triggered-retail-sales/ 
http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/01/12/evolution-of-technology/

You can pay off your mortgage, never again seeing a bill from the bank for principal or interest, but you can never pay off your property taxes. Property taxes also, unfortunately, only seem to go one way – UP! You’ll never be able to get rid of your property taxes completely, but you can take steps to lower them or reduce increases.

Understanding how you can fight to lower your property taxes can be extremely valuable, especially if you live in a high property tax state. According to wallethub.com, the 10 states with the highest property taxes (ranked with the last being the most expensive) are:

• Rhode Island
• Vermont
• Michigan
• Nebraska
• Texas
• Wisconsin
• Connecticut
• New Hampshire
• Illinois
• New Jersey

Hawaii came in as the least expensive with an average effective real estate tax rate of 0.27 percent, which translates into $483 in annual taxes on a $179,000 home. At the other end of the spectrum, New Jersey comes in with an effective rate of 2.35 percent and $4,206 in annual property taxes on a $179,000 home. Obviously, different states have different relative housing costs, so a $179,000 home often is not an equivalent house. To put it in perspective, the median home price in Texas (46th most expensive) is $136,000 and comes with $2,578 in annual property taxes, whereas New Jersey (most expensive) has a median home price of $315,900 and comes with an annual property tax bill of $7,410.

Property taxes are higher in some places versus others depending on how much of the local tax burden (particularly schools) falls on homeowners versus the business tax base. Regardless of your situation, you’re probably ready to read about what you can do to potentially lower your property taxes. Here are three things you can do:

1. Take every exemption you’re allowed

Often, states, counties or municipalities give out tax exemptions for a primary residence. Sometimes they are general and referred to as a homeownership or homestead exemption. Other times, they are available for only certain classes of people, such as senior citizens.

Learn what exemptions are offered where you live and make sure they are factored into your annual assessment or property tax bill. Sometimes you can go back retroactively for a few years to claim the exemption. This won’t always be allowed, but it’s worth a try if you discover you’ve missed out on an exemption. In any case, make sure you get it going forward.

2. Understand how your property value assessment and appeals process works

Dates and time periods for assessment changes and appeals vary depending on where you live. Often, reassessments are performed every three to five years. Other times, towns will render assessments on new construction or reassessments if you’ve made significant additions to your house (which is also a reason they require you to get building permits – so they know you’ve improved your property).

After an assessment or reassessment is issued, you have only so long to contest any changes through the appeals process. Approximately six to seven weeks is a typical time frame in many states – and the clock starts ticking from the time the notice is mailed. Check your municipal or county assessor’s website or call their office to find out the specifics for where you live.

3. Ensure your home is compared to similar properties

Professional appeals experts know they need support when challenging an assessment. You don’t win an appeal by simply showing up and claiming your assessment isn’t fair – you need to find comparable homes with lower assessments to prove your case.

Luckily, assessed values are public record and you can find out nearly everything you need to know by going online (although in some places records have not been digitized yet). You’ll need to look for homes of similar size, age, amenities and tax classification that are paying lower taxes.

When it comes to lowering your property taxes, the government is not here to help. You can hire a professional appeal expert or do it yourself; but no matter what, you need to be proactive.

When it comes to selecting a domain name, there’s more than just registration involved. Selecting the right domain name involves a lot of consideration. This includes making sure it represents the company and its products or service correctly, making sure it doesn’t create an intellectual property conflict, ensuring the name resonates with customers and ensuring it can become search engine friendly.

Making it Memorable

When it comes to selecting a domain name, one consideration is to make is memorable. The first recommendation is to not include any hyphens because doing so makes it harder for people to pronounce, recall and therefore brand a domain name. Something to avoid are words that might sound distinctive but are hard to pronounce or spell, such as anemone or onomatopoeia. It might end up being counterproductive, especially when it’s said fast or flashes across a screen for a few seconds before it’s gone.

Easy to Enunciate

Much like making a domain name memorable, another way to make it stick in people’s heads is to make the domain’s word or words easy for people to say. Through the so-called “processing fluency,” the easier it is to pronounce a word or phrase, the more likely an individual is to remember and create a positive associate with the company and its domain name.

Purchasing an Existing Domain Name

Another consideration when selecting a domain name is determining if it’s been blacklisted or is heavily penalized from a search engine rating. A domain name might be blacklisted if it was previously in the hands of an owner who used it to generate and distribute spam. Similarly, an existing domain may be penalized in search engine rankings, reducing the likelihood of being found by users through a keyword search. Depending on how poor a domain’s search engine optimization (SEO) ranking is, that would be another factor when looking to purchase an existing domain name.

Intellectual Property Considerations

Generally speaking, in order for a name to be trademarked, it must have distinctive characteristics. This could be accomplished by the name being used in a subjective manner or if the name is invented for a business’ use.

Along with a good fit for a particular industry, it’s naturally best to double check the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to determine which trademarks currently exist and if any trademark applications are under review. Similarly, abbreviations and modified spellings of a trademark should be explored. Looking through business name registries is also advised to ensure all iterations of a potential trademark are explored before selecting a domain name.

One important point to keep in mind when selecting a domain name, especially with trademark issues, is to ensure there are no similarities with it that may cause customers to confuse it with the trademarked domain name. The following are some questions to ask that, along with legal help, can reduce the likelihood of trademark issues for a domain name.

Will your domain name be in the same industry as the trademarked domain name? What’s the likelihood of the intended domain name being confused or taking sales away from a similar one? How common or similarly spelled or sounding is another domain name to the intended domain name? These questions can help determine if any similarity exists.

While these are just a few considerations when selecting a domain name, understanding how the selection process works can undoubtedly save time and money for entrepreneurs.

One of the first steps in conceptualizing and building a business is branding. An important component in branding a business is creating a name that makes a great first and lasting impression. For many startups, especially in the Internet Age, it’s critical to get the name right the first time around, especially when domain names and social media platforms are fiercely competitive.

Important Considerations During Branding

When it comes to naming your business, there are different routes you can take to develop your brand. The first way a company can name itself is by using a descriptive name. As the designation implies, the business’ name gives readers a clear and succinct description of the company’s products or services. A second approach to naming a business organization is to use an acronym. Whether it’s GE for General Electric or IBM for International Business Machines, an acronym can become more well-known than a company’s full name. Benefits of this approach include easier ability for individuals to remember, pronounce and even trademark the name.

Another approach is to create a new word for a businesses’ name. Whether it’s a name for a search engine, such as MetaCrawler or Excite, or a social media platform such as Twitter or Facebook, new names don’t have any background. This can be advantageous because it won’t have any negative connotations; however, there will be no initial consumer or user association of a company’s products or services.

Companies that choose this route have great potential for the business’ name to be associated well with the performance of the company’s products or services. One example from the past is MetaCrawler. The name implied using an expansive search engine to gather information. If a search engine company similar to this one exceeded their expectations, users would be more likely to become loyal if the search engine performed well. Similarly, businesses may pay and add larger advertising campaigns on social media platforms if they provide clear instructions on best practices to target customers based on relevant demographics, geography and interests.

Naming for the Digital Age

When it comes to reaching customers through the Internet and social media, there are some unique considerations. With the advent of search engine optimization, using a search term such as “Security” as part of a company name might provide more competition for a business to rank on the first or second page of search engine results. As more and more people use voice assistants versus typing search terms, voice processing technology can struggle with users who mispronounce a brand name borrowed from a foreign phrase or a last name that’s not pronounced as written.

Additional Considerations

Don’t forget to consider the color of the text. Depending on a brand’s mission and intended audience, red is known to create an environment with more energy, while green text may create feelings of positivity and balance. Another suggestion to create instant brand name recognition includes a consistent style for the company’s logo, especially with fonts and colors. The greater the consistency with which a company presents itself, the faster and more easily recognizable a name and logo becomes.

Making a name for a business is an important part of the branding process. No matter the business environment, making a good first impression with a business’ name is the first step in maintaining a lasting impression with customers and clients.