Tailored Consulting Articles

• Sydney To Surfers Bike Ride - My 1,000 Km Charity Ride

One of my goals for 2007 is to ride from Sydney to the Gold Coast (home). A distance of about 1,000 km (621 miles).............click here for Sydney To Surfers Bike Ride - My 1,000 Km Charity Ride

• Why, oh why, do people spend 4-5 years at University, but they can't get a job? Edited

It's happened again today. It happens quite a lot. It happens about three- (3) times a week. It usually comes in the form of an ...click here for more

• How To Run The Gold Coast Half Marathon On 40 Days Training NEW

Right now I'm completely unfit. I'm a fat pig about 15 kilograms (33 lbs) overweight. I've been struggling for motivation over the past few years with fitness, but I've just found some. So I'm back.

I need a decent goal and the Gold Coast Airport Marathon is a major local event (some 12,000+ athletes). It's (now) 36 days away. I'll be running the Half Marathon. Assuming, of course, that I don't drop dead from the exertion first... click here for How To Run The Gold Coast Half Marathon On 40 Days Training

• Why Pay Per Click Advertising Is Better Than Print Or Radio NEW

According to data released by the UK Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB), total online advertising expenditure in the UK totaled 1.4 billion pounds ($3.4 billion AUD) in 2005 - a huge 65.6% increase on 2004.............click here for Why Pay Per Click Advertising Is Better Than Print Or Radio

• The Secrets To Top Search Engine Rankings NEW

Achieving top search engine rankings for competitive terms - that is terms that are searched for a lot - is extremely difficult............click here for The Secrets To Top Search Engine Rankings

• Why High Search Engine Rankings Are Even Better Than Pay Per Click Ads NEW

As good as Pay Per Click advertising is (and it's fantastic), getting high search engine rankings for the terms people search for in relation to.............click here for Why High Search Engine Rankings Are Even Better Than Pay Per Click Ads

• Qualitative Data Analysis For Marketing

When you're marketing a product or service it's essential to ensure your qualitative data is reviewed and analysed in the appropriate way..............click here for Qualitative Data Analysis For Marketing

Qualitative research software site.

• I Love This Sort of Controversy

As a guy who has a bit to do with the media, I love to see controversial actions get coverage. Stuff like what Richard Branson does............click here for I Love This Sort of Controversy

• Why The Heck Does He Want Me To Manage Him?

I had a meeting today with a businessman and his manager. They flew up from Sydney to have a chat. They were great guys. Both very intelligent, very switched on and very committed. Good and decent people. They came to discuss us...........click here for Why The Heck Does He Want Me To Manage Him?

• An Excellent Problem To Have

I was speaking today with a client after we suggested some specific advertising for his business. His reply was this (now this is a nice problem): "We can't handle any more customers! The car-park is overflowing and the business simply cannot logistically cope with increased numbers!'...........click here for An Excellent Problem To Have

• FREE, FREE, FREE

Yesterday I started a "FREE shipping" special on one of the web sites we own and manage. Sales went through the roof. They usually do. It's a fact that ...........click here for How Free Shipping Can Boost Your Sales - An Example

• Are you easy? Simple steps to more customers

Making things as easy for your customers is essential to maximise your sales. After last night's dinner, I had a little sleep in. I woke about 9 a.m and, with my daughter, wandered down to ...........click here for Are you easy? Simple steps to more customers

• I Don't Like It - We'll Take It

Here's a promotional card (it's a pdf file) we are having completed. The look of the card is settled, I just need to work on the copy and we are ...........click here for How To Hire Professionals

• How To Lose 20 lbs And Market Effectively?

I was chatting with a friend of my wife's today and she asked how I could possibly eat as much as I do without putting on weight. She says she watches what she eats and still puts on weight. .........click here for How To Lose 20 lbs And Market Effectively?

• The Chicken Or The Egg?

I had an interesting conversation today with some people. The first guy was a prospect I was pitching web site marketing to. We were discussing the merits of.........click here for The Chicken Or The Egg?

• Gold Coast Accommodation

Here on the Gold Coast, Queensland there are literally hundreds of holiday accommodation resorts - after all, the Gold Coast is Australia's playground and we get millions of ...click here for more on Gold Coast accommodation

• Why Your Marketing Should Be Cheap.......Real Cheap

People I talk with often assume that the marketing we recommend will be expensive. After all, they reason, only the big boys have the.........click here for Why Your Marketing Should Be Cheap.......Real Cheap

• What To Do When The Customer Complains

Mistakes can happen and they can happen a lot. We all try to minimise them in our business, but nobody's perfect.........click here for What To Do When the Customer Complains

• How To Write An Effective Ad

I'm sitting here reading a marketing magazine (the creative genius behind it called it....'Marketing'. I actually love the name. Perfectly descriptive and you know exactly what it is about). Anyway........click here for How To Write An Effective Ad

• Best Value Dinner I've Ever Had - But Up The Creek Doesn't Have Any Customers

My wife and I went out for dinner on Saturday night with some friends. We went to a little restaurant near our home called 'Up the Creek'. (Yes, it is indeed situated next to a large......click here for Best Value Dinner I've Ever Had - But Up The Creek Doesn't Have Any Customers

• Statistics - Sweet or Stinky?

Here on the Gold Coast, Australia, the 3 major FM radio stations have just been surveyed to see who has the audience share in the various categories........click here for Statistics - Sweet or Stinky?

• Google Ranks Us As Number 1 Web Designers

On May 11, 2005 I wrote an article on the web site titled "World's best web designer - Brendon Sinclair". I wrote it after seeing a web site say they are...click here for Google Ranks Us As Number 1 Web Designers

• What Every Customer Wants To Know

When we're off selling our services - whether they be web development, marketing, whatever - the most important thing to do is demonstrate the value we can bring to the client....click here for What Every Customer Wants To Know

• World's best web designer - Brendon Sinclair

In this article I'll show you exactly how I'll become the "world's best web designer" according to Google (and my mum).......click here for World's Best Web Designer article

• Getting The Most From Your Web Site! An article specifically for the accommodation industry, but useful for all web owners

A basic overview on how to effectively utilise the web ...click here for more

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• Linking For Web Sites - Article 4 in the series

In this article I'll show you exactly how to get quality links to your web site (and why)......click here for Linking For Web Sites article

• Industries Auswide Booming

Wow. That's really all you can say when a big company in a big industry here in Australia announces a profit for the year of over $13 billion dollars. Yep, that's ...click here for Industries Auswide Booming

• Web site development business - making a go of it

I know I shouldn't be surprised anymore. But I still am. I'm surprised at how many web developers just don't "get it". And by "it" I mean......click here for Web site development business article

• On Page Ranking Factors - Article 3 in the series

Making On Page Ranking Factors Work For You - The way your web page is structured, particularly in regard to how you use your key words or phrase on the page (called on page ranking factors), is important for the ......click here for Article 3 in the series - "On Page Ranking Factors"

• Free web site promotion - Article 2 in the series

Page Titles, Meta Keyword Tags & Meta Description Tags - Okay, so we've selected the most relevant key word or phrase for our web site. And that key word (or phrase) is also one that is ......click here for Article 2 in the series - "Free web site promotion"

• Web Designer For Brisbane

Having trouble finding a quality Brisbane web designer? ......click here for details on one of the best web designers in Brisbane.

• Web site marketing - Article 1 in the series

.....I'd like to mention the goal of this article series. At the end of the series you'll have a great idea on the basics of marketing any web site. And what I'll talk about here are......click here for Article 1 in the series - "Web site marketing"

• Simple Steps To Web Site Success

One of the more frequent questions I get asked is "How can I get my web site working better?" The answer is simple: just do 2 things. These things aren't......click here for "2 Simple Steps To Web Site Success" article

• Establishing The Culture Of A Business Is Monkey Business

This is apparently a true story. A real study. Scientists studying behaviour placed 5 monkeys in a cage. This cage has a ladder. At the top of the ladder is a bunch of bananas.......click here for "Establishing The Culture Of A Business Is Monkey Business" article

• How To Get A Book Deal

Getting a book deal is not the easiest thing in the world, but by following the below guidelines you'll give yourself a better than average chance of success. The guidelines below are.......click here for "How To get A Book Deal" article

• Web Design Jobs - 1 Great Tactic To Win More Design Jobs

Some things are so obvious that kind of just hit you in the face. I don't know if I've ever thought about this strategy before in any depth (I may have. I have such a bad memory that I struggle with my own name most days......click here for "Web Design Jobs" article

• "My Web Site Doesn't Work - What Do I Need To Do?"

This is probably the most common question I get asked. And it's a good question. Web sites that don't work are common. Developing a quality and successful web site - and then getting it in front of the right people - takes...click here for "My Web Site Doesn't Work" article

• Best Book List - My Top 14 Business Books

I've always been a big reader - have been for as long as I can remember. I read thousands and thousands of books, mostly business orientated, and my bookshelves at home are filled to...click here for more

• $100,000 a month - What's Your Expectation?

It's January 7, 2005 as I write this and I've just returned from a 2 week holiday interstate - visited my home state of Tasmania (off the bottom of mainland Australia). Whilst I...click here for more

• Don't be tight with your money - know when to spend

As you may have read elsewhere on this web site, one of my bigger business successes is a health products web site. Here's the story of how that came about...click here for more

• Measure stuff! The importance of statistics on your web site

We all know how important it is to measure the key performance indicators for our businesses. It's critical stuff. Only when we have...click here for more

• How a moron does business - the case of the "Cookies, Cakes & Cartridges" business

We had a guy called Paul come in and make his pitch for our ink/laser cartridge business. The business he is with provides free delivery and ...click here for more

• Selling cigars - all smoke and mirrors?

.....In I went for a look. After having a look around I bought a lovely Padron cigar. It's a Padron Serie 1926 # 6 cigar - a high quality cigar from Nicaragua.

That 1 cigar cost me $39 ($28 US) ...click here for more

• Why a web developer should NOT assign copyright for design or content on a web site

The vast majority of the web sites we develop for clients include the web design, photography, graphics and writing of the content ...click here for more

• When opportunity knocks, the least you can do is answer the door

I've written before about how we were doing some marketing for a gym. Costs about $1,000 a year to join. And our research showed ...click here for more

• Put yourself second the key to sales success

One of the questions I'm most often asked is how a business can grow their sales. Should the company increase advertising? Maybe ...click here for more

• How to run an Ad campaign And how to win 'The Apprentice'

Last night I was sitting in front of the TV when the 2nd episode of 'The Apprentice' came on. The series has been run and ...click here for more

• Resort web site - how to generate more online bookings

The Internet and World Wide Web is no longer a new phenomenon. Most of us use it every day, however we still don't understand the full ...click here for more

• The reason most web sites fail

I seem to be on a real Web sites that don't work theme at the moment. So I thought I'd stick with it! As an Internet expert ...click here for more

• Reasoning behind web ad

Too often web sites are developed for companies by web designers with little or no understanding of the commercial needs of ...click here for more

• Horses for courses

I went to a business lunch on Friday 16 April, 2004 (Commerce Queensland) where there were 3 different speakers. In between courses ...click here for more

• Why your marketing must NOT attract as many customers as possible

It's possible that one of the worst things your marketing can do is attract thousands and thousands of customers to your business ...click here for more

• Threesome...why they are the best

I've always liked threesomes. Make no mistake about it. They've been a favourite of mine for years ...click here for more

• Greatest ad ever written

I'm pretty modest as your probably know by now. [insert look of incredulity here]. Okay, I know I'm not really modest ...click here for more

• Death by annoyance - why email is dying

My feeling is that email marketing is losing its relevancy for many, many people. It's dying a slow and painful death ...click here for more

• 5 ways to learn your competitor's secrets

I'd suggest that you need to know how your competitor works, how they generate their business, what their ...click here for more

• Options - making it easy

Part of our marketing strategy is to develop a series of seminars for business-owners. We are currently developing ...click here for more

• I have a present for you!

I met a friend of mine for coffee and a catch up last week. We met outside the pre-arranged coffee shop and Jan, myself and ...click here for more

• Survey results from March, 2004

In mid-March, 2004 we held a survey on the Tailored site to assist us in developing the site to meet the needs of our visitors. Below ...click here for more

• 2 handy tips for New Year negotiations

This article is about providing 2 tips in business. Simple tips that make sense and work well. They are related to selling ...click here for more

• Size does matter!!

A new study out of the US confirms what short people have always feared - tall people are perceived as more successful and ...click here for more

• Expectations - exceeding them every time

People pay private health insurance so they get the best of care and the best of service. And a private room when they want one ...click here for more

• Australian Idol and the marketing lesson

There is a TV show on at the moment called Australian Idol. It's the exact same format as American Idol ...click here for more

• Dress for success - perception is reality

The good thing about having small children is that you can generally teach them to say whatever you want. In my case the question is ...click here for more

• Blow your customers away - here's how we did it for $5.50!

Recently I started a FREE shipping special on one of the web sites we own and manage. Sales went through the roof. They usually do ...click here for more

• Doing what you do best - the secret to success

There is no one secret to success. Not one. (Which kind of ruins the headline above - but I'll keep ...click here for more

• The worst customer service - Typical!

I have an 11-year-old son called Jack. Jack loves camping. It was Jack's birthday last week. He received $150 cash from ...click here for more

• Test, measure and save yourself thousands of dollars

As part of our ongoing marketing we are just about to use what's called an "Unaddressed Delivery Service. (That's a fancy ...click here for more

• The other question you should ask every customer

I know I've mentioned in these articles before about asking the 'golden' question. That question is "Why should the customer do ...click here for more

• How the Golf Putting Machine in our boardroom helped make a sale

Running your business on a day to day basis means you have a fantastic idea of what's going on. Part of that commitment to knowing what ...click here for more

• Just ask. One- (1) very simple way to make a sale.

Last year I made a small speech to a major business group in my home town. The function was attended by 600 people (300 more than ...click here for more

• Why it doesn't matter if your business idea is already taken

As a marketing guy I get to see a lot of new business ideas. And a lot of old ideas. Do you have a business idea that could ...click here for more

• One of the biggies in selling your product or service

I'm a guy and that means I think I'm perfect! (Us guys are all ego driven!)  But I'm actually not perfect. I'm short-sighted - which means ...click here for more

• How I made a fortune in 2 hours - and you can too!

I had a call from a guy who was making his own product in his garage and wanted to sell it on the Internet. He had been ...click here for more

• Ugg boots a fashion item

Ugg boots have long been recognised as an Australian icon. Over the past year the rest of the world has woken up to the superb quality and feel of Australian uggs ...click here for ugg boots info.

• Getting free publicity to kick start HUGE sales

I could start and finish this article with two words. And in those two- (2) words you will more than likely recognise a billion dollar business ...click here for more

• Why service firms usually completely muck up their marketing! (Yes, the word was "muck"!)

It can be tricky marketing a services firm. The rules that apply to other forms of marketing simply don't apply. No matter how hard we try ...click here for more

• The top 10 mistakes most web sites make (great reasons a web designer should never develop your web site)

And why a web designer is usually the worst person to design your web site. I look at a lot of web sites. And mostly I shake my head in ...click here for more

• The WORST advertisement I have ever read - if your ad writer does this....SACK HIM!!!

I'm sitting here reading a marketing magazine (the creative genius behind it called it....'Marketing'. I actually love the name. Perfectly descriptive ...click here for more

• How to sell anything to anyone, and have them begging for more!

Okay, so I lied!! Maybe. If you read that headline above, then you're probably expecting an article on selling. But this article has nothing to ...click here for more

• What's in a name? An opportunity, that's what!

Getting your business noticed is critical. A take-away food shop underneath our offices has changed hands for about the 4th time in ...click here for more

• How to attract as many hugely profitable customers you can handle - do just 2 things!

Do you know who our best customers are? That is a ridiculous question, I know! Because you are reading this article and can't ...click here for more

• The 3 step guide to winning prestigious business awards - and getting the biggest bang for your buck

I first realised the power of winning prestigious business awards back in 1999 when my brother Pete won one of the ...click here for more

• Why your marketing should be as cheap as chips

Chips are cheap. Real cheap! Depending on the Fish and Chip shop you go to, the minimum can be as little as $1.20. That's ...click here for more

• The amazing money-making power of a $200 piece of software - no business should be without it!

I'll get straight to the point. Almost every business I work with neglects their customers. Sure, it's not a nasty thing. It's more of a ...click here for more

• How to select the best web designer for the job - every time!

The critical choice that could make or break your business. Selecting a provider for any service or product brings with it inherent risk ...click here for more

• How to blow your profits through the roof......even without extra customers!!

Most people will tell you that to increase your profits you need to do two- (2) things: 1. increase your number of customers ...click here for more

• Why you should pay me $10,000 for five- (5) minutes work

I want to say right at the start that I don't usually charge $10,000 for five- (5) minutes work. But if I did, you should pay it. As a guy who ...click here for more

• The simple way to have your newsletter professionally printed - for hundreds of dollars less than you would pay a printer!

Our business sends out a newsletter every 3 months or so, usually around 500 copies. We always used to struggle with the designing and ...click here for more

• The choices we make - understand this and you could make millions!

Whenever we develop marketing strategies for a client's business, we look very closely at the choice influences on the ...click here for more

• Why I'm the best person in Australia..........to give this speech

I do believe I am well qualified to talk about the possible impact that e-commerce could have on your business for a couple of very good ...click here for more

• The Essence of Marketing

The essence of marketing is to attract customers to a business. Good customers are okay, great customers are ...click here for more

• The Perfect Salesperson

The perfect salesman isn't some fast-talking, glib American vigorously self promoting his way to his next billion. It's not ...click here for more

• Good Things Come In Small Packages

Small business fights for survival as big operators continue to muscle in on the market. The conglomerates have the upper hand because of ...click here for more

• Loving Complaining Customers

No business is perfect. Mistakes will be made, errors will occur. It will happen, and it sometimes happens a lot. ...click here for more

• How to toss money away!

Small business continues to provide a substantial part of the national economy. Small business continues to fail at the same ...click here for more

Brendon Sinclair