There is no doubt that for many businesses the past 12 – 18 months have been seriously challenging. Economic uncertainty has dominated the headlines and the minds of business owners, marketing managers, sales teams and accounts departments.  Christmas, much as we love it, meant a long shut-down period this year due to the way the dates of Christmas and bank holidays fell.

So, there we were, back with a spring in our step on 4 January ready to rock and roll. Then low and behold, the country is hit with enough snow to stop us in our tracks. If, like Mzuri, you and your team were able to work from home and retain some level of normality, you have probably had a slightly less stressful time of it than others. Many of our clients run businesses that simply cannot be ‘run remotely’ – dental practices, air conditioning specialists, retailers, opticians, kitchen manufacturers, garden design and construction companies. Whatever your business, the snow has probably caused a worrying blip in cash flow, a mountain of client work to catch up on and a large to do list for your own business with not enough time to complete it. So, how can you fight back? (more…)

Despite the snowy conditions that hit last week, it was business as usual at Mzuri (with the exception that we all had to work from home and could go for snowball fights with children, pets and partners when we needed a break from the computer!). One of the projects we worked on was sending an email marketing campaign for a client with over 6000 people on their database.

The client was well aware that their data was not the most up to date, but had permission from all entries for use of their data for email marketing. Data that isn’t 100% up to date is not unusual - it’s often a combination of having too much else to do, not having a single named person responsible for the database, members of staff moving on, and not taking advantage of website contact forms and online profile management tools that enable the database to more or less keep itself updated without too much involvement from your administrative staff. So, by going through the preparations for as well as sending the campaign, our client has not only got key messages out to their customers, they have also been able to update their database (removing almost 800 email address that for one reason or another were no longer live); the outcome being that they have refined one of their key marketing tools and with each campaign (more…)

As I gaze out the window of my home based makeshift Mzuri Design office I am confronted by a sight not often seen in leafy Surrey; an igloo!

Some inventive children in the park near my house have created an eskimo dwelling in a park full of the most snow I have ever seen since I lived in America as a child. Whilst the view is beautiful, the reality is more challenging. (more…)

One of my regular networking groups I attend is the Women’s Business Club in Guildford every month.  This month’s meeting was as lively as usual with discussions on everything from ‘blink and go’, a new eye lash extension treatment, to Linked In, the brilliant online networking site for professionals. (If you’re already on Linked In – connect to me or Katherine at Mzuri)

Our regular members were joined by four guests this month; visitors are always very welcome, we enjoy hearing about any new businesses and helping them with information and experience from our areas of expertise.  Following the usual 1 minute introductions from everyone, we discussed the customer care topic, sent out by Kelly from WBC, arriving at a few golden rules which I thought I would share with you all; (more…)

On Friday I was lucky enough to be invited to the prizegiving for the National Open Art Competition 2009 in Chichester.  The judging panel for the competition this year included Gavin Turk and Catherine Lampert and they really have chosen an amazing array of finalists. Having seen many contemporary art auction views at Sotheby’s in my time I have to say this exhibition is of an extremely high standard.  The works are all for sale and range from abstracts to figurative and really offer something for everyone.  The exhibition runs until 21 November at the Minerva Theatre in Chichester (opposite the Festival Theatre) and then the winners will be shown at the wonderful Pallant House Gallery.  I urge you to visit and see this wonderful exhibition for yourself.

Sending direct mail to potential customers or existing clients can be a powerful marketing tool for your business, but remember 70% of mail is opened over a bin! 

Here are some Mzuri top tips for making your direct mail campaign stand out: (more…)

There is a bit of confusion about when the internet actually celebrates it’s birthday, but 29th October 1969 marks the first time a message was sent between two computers in California by breaking down the data into ‘packages’ and then reassembling the data at its destination.  No doubt there will be lots of blog entries, news stories and general debate about the actual date, but in the meantime, this short National Geographic film reminds us how far we’ve come in such a short time! Prepare for a trip down memory lane…

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2009/08/090831-internet-40th-video-ap.html

One of our clients, Neil Lawson-Baker, not only is chairman of the National Open Art Competition but also a key member of the Chichester Arts and Heritage Partnership, effectively a new name for SWAG, the South West Sussex Arts Group which was set up by the Duke of Richmond in the 1990s. They are poised to make their bid for Chichester to become the UK’s very first city of culture – a bid which could bring tens of millions of pounds worth of investment into the city.  We wish them every success. Click here to read newspaper article

We are busy working on a number of websites at the moment which are due to launch soon. The first past the post this week is Grange Dental Surgery www.grange-dental.co.uk, based in the centre of Chichester. Paul Cassar, principal dental surgeon at Grange Dental Surgery, asked us to create a fresh new look for his website. (more…)