Saturday, December 19, 2009

New Watch and Jewellery Catalogue

Turner Associates, along with sister company Samuelson Wylie Associates, have just completed the latest issue of their magalogue Flawless. The magalogue is a mix of luxury lifestyle magazine and premium product catalogue. Turner Associates handled the design, production and distribution of over 20,000 copies and then produced this online version using the latest turn-page technology which includes live links to all the contributors and links to online purchasing for all the products.

Partners in the project included Banks Lyon Jewellers, Bateman BMW, Blandford Fine Arts, Breitling, Chopard, Gucci, Hipping Hall, Omega, Rolex, Tag Heuer and Willow Water

You can read a copy online by clicking the graphic below.


Click to launch the full edition in a new window.

Monday, December 14, 2009

New Turn Page Technology

See below for an electronic copy of my newsletter using the latest turnpage technology. You can also add video, audio, animation and a whole range of live links to various website or individual pages. I am working on some of these for clients at the moment and will also upload them here when finished.

Electronic copies of existing brochures can be easily done and a link emailed out to clients and prospects you could choose to do a bespoke multi-media version for an innovative new campaign.

If you're interesting in using this for your business call me on 01483 283810 or email simon@turnermarketing.co.uk



Click to launch the full edition in a new window.

Monday, November 23, 2009

Interested in Global Warming?

Another non-marketing topic but one i'm finding increasingly interesting.

Having read Nigel Lawson's excellent book 'An Appeal to Reason: A Cool Look at Global Warming' I was interested to see him promoting a new think tank promoting rational debate on the subject at www.thegwpf.org

The Global Warming Policy Foundation (GWPF) is an all-party and non-party think tank and a registered educational charity. Our main purpose is to bring reason, integrity and balance to a debate that has become seriously unbalanced, irrationally alarmist, and all too often depressingly intolerant. The GWPF's primary purpose is to help restore balance and trust in the climate debate that is frequently distorted by prejudice and exaggeration. Our main focus is to analyse global warming policies and its economic and other implications. Our aim is to provide the most robust and reliable economic analysis and advice. We intend to develop alternative policy options and to foster a proper debate (which at present scarcely exists) on the likely cost and consequences of current policies.

Monday, November 16, 2009

The true cost of the EU

You might like to view this light hearted view on the very real costs of the EU which features a number of brief scenes exploring different ways that the EU rips all of us off.



The film, by The Taxpayers Alliance, promotes a book called 'Ten Years On' which is available free here.

Confidence up for online businesses


Ebay have just published the findings from their latest Online Business Index here.

The Autumn index has analysed the views of 508 online businesses and found that 69% of online businesses expect sales to rise over the next three months and 77% expect to be able to improve their profit margins. One of the stand out facts of the 'new economy' is that 79% of traditional 'bricks and mortar' businesses that have an online presence believe the ability to sell online has made their business model more sustainable and therefore instrumental in allowing them to survive the recession and be in a strong position to take advantage of any upturn.

From a political standpoint, and with a general election not far off, it is interesting to note the overwhelming support for a conservative victory with 67% of online businesses believing that David Cameron's team have the best poilicies to support small and medium sized businesses while only 18% supported Gordon Brown and Labour. Despite the high profile of Vince Cable, the Liberal Democrats were only supported by 4% of those polled.

Monday, November 9, 2009

New Affinity Marketing Project Completed


Flawless is a unique lifestyle magazine produced for affluent consumers in the North West and Lake District. Editorial contributions come from the two main sponsors, leading independent jeweller and watch retailer, Banks Lyon Jewellers and Bateman BMW who have won BMW’s prestigious nationwide customer satisfaction survey six years running. Additional editorial contributions come from Blandford Fine Arts, the North’s most important contemporary art gallery and Hipping Hall, a luxurious and exclusive boutique hotel and restaurant. 6000 were printed and sent out to the customers of the editorial partners while a further 14,000 copies were sent out with subscription copies of Lancashire Life magazine.

The magazine is supported by some of the world’s leading luxury brands, such as Breitling, Omega, Chopard, Gucci, Rolex, TAG Heuer and Willow Water.

Turner Associates helped to develop the original idea for the magazine which is owned by our partner company, Lancaster and London based PR agency, Samuelson Wylie Associates. The workload for each issue involves producing media packs for all the potential contributors and then managing the entire design, production and distribution process including liaising with the various editorial contributors and luxury brands to ensure the tight deadlines are met. In this issue, we even commissioned actress and photographer Emma Samms, best known for playing Fallon in Dynasty, to illustrate some of the editorial pieces with her own brand of stunning photography.

Finally, the magazine has also now been turned into an electronic magazine using the latest on screen turn-page technology. This allows a link to be emailed to many more contacts who can then access the publication online and link directly to the internet to purchase products or visit advertisers’ websites.


"Turner Associates have yet again done us proud with a stunning production to an almost impossible deadline"
Ben Samuelson, Senior Partner of Samuelson Wylie Associates


"It’s like Christmas in here!"
Rodney Banks-Lyon, owner of primary sponsor Banks Lyon Jewellers following the release of the previous issue.

If you would like to know more about how affinity marketing might benefit your business, please call on 01483 283810 or email simon@turnermarketing.co.uk
http://www.turnermarketing.co.uk/

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Small firms investing in their websites

New Business magazine reports that small businesses are investing in their websites in a bid to combat the economic downturn, according to research by Amplify Research.

The survey found that 43% of small companies in the UK are now investing in improving their websites in a bid to increase online sales. Just under 30% of respondents said that social networking sites such as LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook are good business-to-business networking tools.

It is important to understand what you should be looking to achieve with your website and this might not be what you’d think. Simply having an online brochure will get you nowhere.

Many businesses don’t actually sell anything on their website. And those that do will receive a huge number of visitors who aren’t ready to buy – they are simply browsing or looking for information about something they think they may buy in the future. All well and good you may say - when they’re ready to buy, they’ll come back. Only they won’t.

When it comes time to purchase, or to use your services, they’ll have forgotten all about your site, and the others they looked at. They’ll either start again, or they’ll naturally return to the one site that bothered to take their details and then kept them up to date with news about the product and regularly sent interesting snippets of information. In short, the company that bothered to nurture a relationship by giving you something of value for free - sharing their expertise and information, without any hard sell.

Whether you sell online or not, the main purpose of your website should be allowing you to begin that relationship with your prospect. You need a way of capturing your visitors’ email addresses and a compelling reason for them to provide it, with their permission for you to email them later. Any business can do this, and any business can create information that the prospect will value. Be generous with your knowledge, keep the selling to a minimum and when the time comes to buy – it’s you they’ll come back to.

Turner Associates can help your business evolve its website into an effective marketing tool. Call us on 01483 283810 to discuss further.

Thursday, September 17, 2009

Get Networking

Went to the Chamber of Commerce speed networking event today in Guildford. It was great fun and met some really interesting people. Networking is one of those things that people often don't view as marketing but it should actually be an essential part of your marketing plan and the great thing is there are so many opportunities from breakfast clubs to exhibitions.

Networking isn't about talking to someone with the aim of selling them something - it's about building relationships and nurturing them. The more people you know, the more people will know about your business and all manner of unexpected things can crop up.

You will often find people who, rather then buying from you direct, will help you to open new doors that you couldn't have opened on your own and introduce you to even more people which, in time, can be worth far more than a quick sale. It's also a great way of building your contacts on social networking sites such as LinkedIn.

Collect those business cards, make sure to follow up any interesting ones by phone afterwards, and make sure you keep in touch and continue to build the relationships.

Friday, September 11, 2009

Keep your existing customers happy

There was an interesting and timely article in NewBusiness magazine this week on the importance of looking after existing customers, especially in a downturn.

Why it pays to reward your customers

"...by far the most vital [lesson] is making sure that customers remain happy.

The logic for this is unassailable. Marketing people will tell you it costs anything from five to seven times more to gain a new customer than keep an existing one. According to some, reducing customer defections by as little as 5% can result in a profits increase of between 25% and 125%.

As ever, it takes a major downturn like this one to remind all businesses of the importance of caring for current relationships and keeping customers loyal. Difficult times are already probably forcing your customers to reduce expenditure and look at ways they can save. Creating a solid, trusting relationship with them can reduce the chances of your company being first on the list of cutbacks."


I've seen stats that show 70% of lapsed clients leave because of lack of attention and communication rather than poor products or service - they just felt ignored. A PR friend of mine has just done a survey which shows that figure may actually be as high as 85%.

The reason is that many businesses concentrate mainly on making a quick sale from new customers, and very quickly come to take existing customers for granted. They forget that their competitors will be trying as hard as they themselves once did to woo that customer, yet your existing customers can be your richest source of future profit.

Showing that you value your customers is easy by sending an email or printed newsletter with articles on how to get the best out of their purchase. Maybe you also offer different products that would add value to their lives in the same way the first product did. It shows you are thinking about them and care about keeping them as a happy customer - an attitude that can prove to be extremely rewarding... as well as profitable!

Thursday, September 10, 2009

Best Guerilla Marketing Adverts



The best guerrilla ads are those found at the least expected places. They create buzz and stimulate curiosity and are simple yet brilliant. They are never dull but always never quite fit in.
Here are 25 of the best collated by US agency, Penn Olsen.


Saturday, September 5, 2009


Every year thousands of hopeful entrepreneurs decide to take the plunge and start up their own business. In How I Made It 40 successful entrepreneurs explain how they managed to defy the odds and turn their dreams into reality. It describes how they got started and what made them successful but it also reveals their doubts, their mistakes and their frustrations - the good bits that many books leave out. Any book recommended by Richard Branson has to be worth a look!

At only £6.99, this is a great gift for anyone you know who is thinking of starting their own business. Click the link in the bookstore on the right to buy your copy now.

“Rachel Bridge’s inspiring book has perfectly summed up the passion, the commitment and the sheer excitement of being an entrepreneur and will help encourage many others to do the same.” Sir Richard Branson

Friday, September 4, 2009

SMEs to market themselves out of recession

A new survey of nearly 1,000 small business owners by YouGov and printing company HP has found that 38 per cent plan to invest more in marketing to make sure they survive the recession rather than panicking and reigning their marketing budgets in.

This is bad news for the 62% of businesses that aren't planning to strengthen their businesses through marketing, as history shows those that market themselves well during a tough economic climate are better positioned to make the most of the recovery, when it finally comes.

If you'd like advice on how to increase both your level of enquiries, and your success rate at converting those enquiries into paying customers, please give me a call on 01483 283810. Download your free guide ‘Top 5 tips for generating new enquiries’ now at www.turnermarketing.co.uk

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

New 3x3 Marketing Consultancy

Turner Associates have just launched a new introductory 3x3 marketing consultancy to help businesses increase the number of new enquiries and the also the conversion success rate.

3x3 = 3 days a month for 3 months and will provide you with:

- Full audit of current marketing materials
- A new Marketing Strategy and Tactical Plan
- Implementation plan to strengthen weak marketing areas
- Objectives and results tracking process for new campaigns
- Implementation plan for additional types of marketing
- How to use low-cost online marketing techniques
- Email list-building and prospect communication strategy
- Opportunities for affinity or joint venture marketing
- Customer retention and referral programmes


Call me to discuss on 01483 283810. http://www.turnermarketing.co.uk/

Is your firm making the most of internet marketing?

Useful article from NewBusiness magazine here which includes a bit about online marketing.

"The internet is a great leveller; with a good website any small firm, no matter how niche, can compete with the more established players in their market. But the website is only the first step. Online marketing tools today offer a plethora of information and feedback from which to continually tweak your marketing strategies, from feedback on who opened your mailshot and information as to who they forwarded it to, to website analytics showing exactly how long someone spent on your product pages. Sophisticated online marketing tools are no longer the preserve of big businesses, so SMEs should leverage them as much as possible."

Many businesses don’t actually sell anything on their website. And of those that do, a huge proportion of their visitors won't be ready to buy – they are simply browsing or looking for information about something they think they may buy in the future. All well and good you may say - when they’re ready to buy, they’ll come back. Only they won’t.

Whether you sell online or not, the main purpose of your website should be allowing you to begin that relationship with your prospect. You need a way of capturing your visitors’ email addresses and a compelling reason for them to provide it, with their permission for you to email them later. Any business can do this, and any business can create information that the prospect will value. Be generous with your knowledge, keep the selling to a minimum and when the time comes to buy – it’s you they’ll come back to.

If you would like to talk to me about how to improve the performance of your company website, call me on 01483 283810. http://www.turnermarketing.co.uk/

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

UK economy contracts 0.7%

http://www.newbusiness.co.uk/news/uk-economy-contracts-07

"Britain's economy contracted 0.7% in the second quarter of the year, according to figures released by the Office for National Statistics.This decline is less than the 0.8% that economists had predicted and the annual drop in GDP was also revised up to show a 5.5% fall - the initial estimates had suggested a 5.6% decline.The British economy has contracted in the second, third and fourth quarters of 2008 but the second quarter's decline of 0.7% is a marked improvement on the first quarter's contraction of 2.4%."

Trading conditions might still be a bit gloomy, but its still possible to significantly increase the number of enquiries you get. The answer usually lies in how you present your business and your marketing messages to your prospective customers. Simple changes can often bring about a fast and noticeable turnround in the success of your marketing.

You can download my FREE guide Top 5 Tips for generating new enquiries’ here. Register for the guide and you'll also get my FREE weekly marketing tips offering you ideas to help generate more enquiries quickly at little or no cost.

2009 Business Pulse

BT Business, Natwest and the British Chambers of Commerce are among those sponsoring the 2009 Business Pulse - the UK's largest ever survey of small and medium sized businesses.

It will aim to measure the current health, drivers and inhibitors to successful business in the UK and create a better understanding of what's needed to enable the UK to recover faster.

Marketing is one of the major issues concerning small businesses, with many companies not having the skills or resources in house to take advantage of the opportunities open to them meaning a lot of potential leads go wasted. If you would like advice on how to resolve this problem, go to Turner Associates Marketing Services Surrey.

You can enter your thoughts on the survey here:
http://www.smallbusinessweek2009.co.uk/businesspulse Last date for entries is Monday 28th September

Friday, August 28, 2009

Make Sure Potential Customers Get The Message About Your Business



In this episode of smallbusinessadvice.tv, Mark Borkowski, one of the UK’s most successful PR practitioners, will explain how simple, low-cost PR and marketing activity can help your business through economic crisis and strengthen your brand and reputation.

Mark is the founder and head of Borkowski PR. With his lengthy experience of working with names like Sony UK, American Express, Vodafone and Virgin Mobile, Mark is perfectly placed to advise on how you can make your Marketing and PR budget stretch further, reach your audience more effectively and the tools you can use to achieve this.

Sean will also be joined by Dan Matthews – business owner and journalist with around 10 years experience editing and writing for the likes of the Financial Times, Guardian, Real Business Magazine and his own online title LaunchLab.co.uk, which has seen him interview such notable public figures as Gordon Brown, Alan Sugar, William Hague and Duncan Bannatyne.

As always, we will also have our regular round up of all the latest small business news from the British Chambers of Commerce. Sean Walsh is joined live by Mark and Dan Matthews to discuss how simple, low-cost PR and marketing can help your business.

Content courtesy of

How to make every single sales lead count

Everyone has found business tough over the last twelve months but confidence seems to be returning slowly and many companies are reporting increased levels of interest from new prospects. It is therefore vital that you make the most of any new leads and don’t waste a single one.

Many business owners wish they could improve their conversion rate and this can often be simply achieved through matching your marketing material more closely to each stage of your sales process. Each piece, whether it is an advert, direct mail, brochure or website should clearly lead the prospect one step closer to becoming a paying customer. All too often the sale can be lost because the marketing material is unfocussed and the prospect hasn’t been encouraged to respond properly - the result being that they don’t visit your website, they don’t phone and they end up going somewhere else.

The result of having more tightly focussed marketing material is often better sales success at the same time as reducing your print and advertising costs. If you would like me to provide a free initial evaluation of your current marketing material, please email me at simon@turnermarketing.co.uk or phone me on 07940 305300

marketing advice for small businesses