If you are going through the annual marketing planning process and realize that you have not completely analyzed your firm’s position in the marketplace, it may be time to begin situational analysis.  Situational analysis is the process of evaluating the firm’s situation as a whole and by market sector.  The intent is to develop a sharpened marketing strategy which includes: understanding where the firm is today, envisioning where it wants to go, and determining how it will get to where it wants to go. This process requires a keen sense of the firm’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT).

It is the season for taking a closer look at the annual marketing plan. The annual marketing plan is essential to meeting next year's strategic business goals. The plan is a formalized statement detailing the actions needed to meet specific marketing goals and objectives.  

Every firm wants to attract attention and portray its services and experiences favorably. Blog posts and press releases cover a range of company messages. These tools are communication methods for maintaining a positive image and are essential to building a solid reputation. 

Are you starting to generate blog content for your firm? While you're drafting material, optimizing each post to attract the attention of desired audiences is important. A blog post is an effective communication tool for providing information to enhance and stimulate business development efforts. As you increase the number of posts, you will see an increase in blog traffic and the probability of converting a site visitor into a prospective client.

Did the 10 Benefits of Blogging for Professional Services Marketing convince you to launch your firm’s blog?  Hopefully, the answer is “yes” because this post offers ideas for generating blog content. 

Are you contemplating a blog for your professional services firm?  According to a 2012 State of Inbound Marketing Report by HubSpot, in a survey of 972 marketing professionals, 81% of businesses reported that their company blog is helpful to critical for their business.  

Marketing automation focuses on nurturing leads from the top of the inbound marketing funnel to becoming prospective clients at the bottom of the funnel. Prospects typically get a score based on their activity level when provided with regular campaign messages via email. These periodic campaign messages nurture the prospective client from initial interest to services award.  Marketing automation combines email marketing with a structured business development lifecycle.

Are you interested in getting an instant return on your website investment?  If the answer is "yes!" you should consider adding landing pages and content that delivers value to your website.  These website elements will help you “pump up the volume” of prospective clients.

Let's imagine a prospective client is looking at your firm's statement of qualifications. We'll assume you presented an incredible body of work. Your prospect skims through the content, browses the impressive case study images, and admires the incredible layout. After reviewing the material, the prospective client concludes that you are a qualified resource for professional services. 

A competitive analysis aims to report competitors' strengths and weaknesses in your market. A thorough evaluation will greatly assist any firm looking to create strategies that will help gain an advantage, identify ways to hinder competitors from entering the market, and exploit any weaknesses in a competitor's service offering.