Here’s a nice article which claims to be for very small businesses but which could, I think, teach much larger ones a thing or two. Taking Baby Steps in Marketing: Or Eating the Elephant One Bite at a Time on Branding & Marketing gives you a way of creating a marketing programme for next year, even if the idea of having a “marketing programme” is something you’ve never had the time to entertain in the past.

It gives you a few questions to ask yourself now, as well as a plan you can complete in a few minutes. Then it requires you to assign someone (possibly yourself) to tackle each task, and suggests you have short regular meetings throughout the year to check on progress. I think anyone could have a go at this.

I love testimonials on websites. They seem to look good in that context even if they don’t quite seem to fit on a company’s printed promotional material. But getting them can often be a chore. A nice article called 5 Tips for Getting Testimonials to Build Referrals on the Branding & Marketing blog will give you an idea or two about how to go about it. Actually, the simplest of all is probably the most effective: call a customer with a short customer service questionnaire, and then ask them at the end if you can use their words in a testimonial.

Today’s article won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, because I know many marketing managers in industry don’t like “big picture” marketing, and indeed can’t really get their head round it. But for those of you who think it’s important to ask yourselves the fundamental questions, have a read of Questions Every Manufacturer Should Ask about Their Marketing on the Branding & Marketing blog. If nothing else, it’s always worth reassessing how customers view your company.