Tag: building your business

5 Ways To Market When Cash Is Tight

Nancy Boisvert Newsletter , , , , , , , , , ,
create buzz

Most businesses experience tighter cash flow issues from time to time…

Whether as a result of the economy, something related to their niche, or perhaps from some changes to internal processes, how do you create some buzz?  

I’ve spoken before about the fact that marketing is often the first place that businesses will cut back when they are experiencing cash flow issues. And, I’ve also spoken many times about the fact that this is one of the worst things a business can do.

Not only does this put the brakes on attracting attention to your business, but it also put you behind for the time when either the economy or your cash flow improves.

Regardless of whether you are an established business feeling the pinch or a startup experiencing difficulty accessing capital, the five tips in this article will show you that marketing does not have to be expensive to be effective.

1. Content Is King

I know we keep hearing this over and over again, but it is a fact. One of the most effective things that you can do is to publish quality content. Regularly posting content that resonates with your target audience is extremely cost effective and is a great way to build trust and to keep you consistently on the radar of your clients and prospects. Posting regular content is also a great way to improve your search engine results, improving your ranking.

2. Network, Network, Network!

Never underestimate the value you and your employees bring to your business. Every experience that brings you in contact with others is an opportunity to network, so don’t overlook these occasions. Attending a conference? Be sure to take long some business cards. Tradeshows, lunches, spontaneous or unplanned meetings-these are all great opportunities for you to promote your corporate brand and let people see the human face to your business. And remember that networking is a two way street. Offer something of value to those you are connecting with and they are more likely to reciprocate.

3. Borrow On Your Line Of Credit

While there are many opportunities to market your business for free, or at least inexpensively, it is misleading to think that marketing doesn’t require any budget at all. There are nearly always some costs attached to marketing strategies, whether it is printing costs, outsourcing writers, hiring employees, or utilizing various tools and subscriptions. If it makes sense, consider using a line of credit to get access to immediate capital needed to fulfill your more pressing marketing needs. Used cautiously, this can help keep your marketing engine running until your cash flow improves.

4. Take Advantage Of Social Media Platforms

Social media platforms are a great way to reach out to multitudes of people over the Internet. Just make sure that you are utilizing the appropriate channels to reach your target audience. And remember that you don’t have to be on all social media platforms. Choose the top 3 to 5 platforms for your niche and your target audience and stick to them. Post relevant messages and links to draw your target audience back to your website. Be sure that you are responding to any messages, requests, or comments that you get on these platforms as they can be a double-edged sword. Remember that they are social, and interaction is expected.

5. Do You Ask For Referrals?

Although the dollar figure may vary from business to business, we are all very well aware that it costs much more to obtain a client than it does to keep a client. And nothing is more effective in bringing business through the door than a solid referral from a satisfied customer. People do business with people who they like know and trust, and a recommendation from a happy client translates to a pre-determined trust by the new business prospect. Create some type of referral or loyalty program among your customers and let them help market your business through their satisfaction.

So as you can see, it’s easy to market your business effectively even when times are tough. Adhering to a marketing program will ensure that your company will not only survive, but will thrive.

Until next time…

Are you ready to grow your business now? If you’re ready to take the next step and make your business more profitable, contact us today.

If you like the information you are receiving, please consider forwarding this post.

3 Reasons You Shouldn’t Ignore The Homepage

Nancy Boisvert Newsletter , , , , , , , , ,
homepage

Reports of the death of the homepage have been greatly exaggerated.

Once upon a time, the homepage was a valued part of the website. It served as the gateway to the company’s brand and was the driver of client engagement. In fact, it was so important that some companies had designated employees to manage their homepage.

Then everything changed. Along came our new best friends, “search” and “social”.

For several years now the way information is found over the Internet has evolved dramatically. Google, the dominant search engine, has continued to create more and more intuitive ways for information to be searched online.

Let’s add in the rise in social. Hundreds of social sharing platforms now exist, with the major players maintaining a stronghold on users and engagement. Indeed, in some instances, these social platforms have created entirely new ways for brands to engage with clients and prospects without them ever having to visit company’s homepage.

Thanks to leaked data from the New York Times in 2014 that showed a plunge in its homepage visitors, it soon became a commonly accepted belief that the homepage had lost its value.
Based on recent data, it has been found that as little as 5% of website visitors actually enter through the homepage, with the other 95% landing on specific pages that are mentioned via search or social media postings. This has led to marketers focusing their efforts in these areas, and rightfully so. However, ignoring the importance of the homepage can be a detriment, as it still serves an extremely valuable segment of your client and prospect pool.

Check out the following three reasons why you should not ignore the homepage:

1. Visitors to your homepage spend more time on your site.

Visitors who enter your website through the homepage signify loyalty to your brand. Based on some recent research, although only 5% of visitors come through the homepage, they actually account for 50% of all page views. This same data shows that visitors entering from search and social only view an average of three and 1.8 pages respectively per session, while visitors who enter from the homepage are more likely to view 10 to 30 pages per session. Research has shown that the longer people engage with the brand’s content, the higher the conversion rates, the larger the purchases, and the better the loyalty.

It’s true that “everything old is new again”. Companies are now starting to recognize that their homepage offers the opportunity to improve engagement with occasional visitors and convert them to loyal users. A corporate homepage is easy to personalize to provide visitors with content that will encourage them to engage, based on their interests.

2. Homepage visitors are interested in a wider range of information and offerings.

It makes sense that those visitors to your website who entered through social media or search results are there for one thing: to check out that article or product that was shared via social media postings. The visitor drops in to check out the article and then immediately leave your site.

When a visitor enters through the homepage, it is generally because they are looking for a number of articles pertaining to a specific issue. They usually have a broader scope of interests, making it easier for companies to showcase their content. Viral content, such as that shared on social media platforms, is most likely clicked on because of a compelling headline, whereas articles found on a homepage are more likely to be clicked on because of the topic.

Many publishers are beginning to recognize and knowledge that the homepage has been ignored and is largely an untapped resource. By curating content on a homepage, your business can provide visitors with the most recent and relevant articles, making it easy for them to find those topics that interest them. While search and social can deliver a visitor to your website, a compelling homepage can encourage an ongoing relationship.

3. Check your website statistics. Homepage traffic indicates your marketing successes.

There are three things to focus on when it comes to your website: developing an audience, acquiring new users, and existing client engagement.

Perhaps one of the most difficult challenges today is getting the one-time visitor to return to the website for more information after they checked out that article that they found on social media. Measuring the number of visitors who end up on the homepage after finding the site via search or social is a good indicator of how well those campaigns are performing.

Investing in a well-designed, thoughtful homepage is simply good business. Although it may not pull the traffic numbers, there are other ways to measure its value. And experience has shown that a great homepage experience can deliver an extraordinary result that search and social simply can’t produce.

Until next time…

Are you ready to grow your business now? If you’re ready to take the next step and make your business more profitable, contact us today.

If you like the information you are receiving, please consider forwarding this post.

Content Marketing Made Easy

Nancy Boisvert Newsletter , , , , , , , ,
Content marketing

Providing informative, useful content should be the driving force of your marketing.

We all know that the face of marketing has changed significantly over the past several years. Sure, at its core the fundamentals and the principles of marketing remain the same. But how clients and prospects engage has shifted, thanks to the advancement of technology, and content marketing is the best way to reach them online.

Clients and prospects now, more than ever, have control over what they see. TV remotes and DVR’s have allowed us to skip advertisements and channel surf to find those shows that we find most engaging. Traditional cable is also suffering, as more and more people see the advantage of streaming the shows and content that they want to see, without being locked into packages and programming that is dictated to them by the cable companies.

Savvy marketers who have kept up with the times understand that they need to adapt to this ever-changing landscape to keep their clients relevant within their niches. And one of the best ways to do this is with content marketing.

Simply defined, content marketing is a strategic marketing approach focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly-defined audience — and, ultimately, to drive profitable customer action.  The purpose of content marketing is to attract and retain customers through the consistent creation of relevant and valuable content intended to sway or enhance prospects behavior towards your business.

Content marketing is not something that you do once and walk away. Just like the more traditional forms of advertising, repetition is important. By providing consistent, interesting and valuable information to your clients and prospects, you develop an engaged audience that learns to trust your authority.

But remember, content marketing is not about selling; it is the art of communicating with your clients and prospects. Rather than pitching your products or services, the focus is on providing information that helps make your prospective client more intelligent. This strategy is based on the belief that through the delivery of consistent, ongoing content that provides value to your prospect, you will be rewarded with their business and loyalty.

repeat-customer-marketing

And history has shown that this strategy works! Content marketing is being used successfully by some of the largest global organizations. But the beauty of content marketing is that you don’t have to be a big player to implement this strategy successfully. Properly developed and executed by small businesses, content marketing has proven itself to work over and over again.

Content marketing represents the current and the future state of marketing.

Remember our earlier definition of content marketing?

The key difference between content marketing and other types of marketing is that content marketing is not focused on selling your “stuff”.

Keep in mind that companies are sending us information all the time. But is it relevant? Most of the time it’s not, so clients and prospects become conditioned to delete so much of this. What makes content marketing so in trading in today’s marketing space is that one key point of differentiation – relevancy. Good content marketing engages the audience, changing the way they think and behave in reaction to the materials they are being sent.

You just can’t market without great content.

I’m sure you are using many different types of marketing tactics. But regardless of what you are doing, be sure that content marketing is a part of these processes not something distinct and separate.

Indeed, quality content is a part of all types of marketing. Consider the following:

• Social media marketing: integrate content marketing into the posts on your social media profiles
• SEO: Search engines love businesses that publish quality, consistent content.
• PR: Successful PR strategies address issues that people care about. PR is not about selling.
• PPC: PPC is an expensive experiment that is unlikely to give you a proper ROI without great content behind it.
• Inbound marketing: to drive inbound traffic and leads, you need good content.

To be effective at content marketing, it is essential to develop, create and follow a documented content marketing strategy. We can help you with the development of this strategy.

Until next time…

Are you ready to grow your business now? If you’re ready to take the next step and make your business more profitable, contact us today.

If you like the information you are receiving, please consider forwarding this post.

Entrepreneur Series – Paralysis By Analysis Podcast

Nancy Boisvert Audio Blog , , , , , , , ,
paralysis by analysis

Last week, I posted an update to the Entrepreneur Series, presented by Frank Thomas of the Small Business Tips Show and myself.

The episode was entitled “Paralysis By Analysis“ and we spoke about how small things can become big obstacles in moving your business forward.

Today I am posting a link to the podcast of this episode so those of you who don’t have the time to watch the video can download it and take it with you.

I hope you find it inspiring!

Listen here or listen to the podcast.

Until next time…

Are you ready to grow your business now? If you’re ready to take the next step and make your business more profitable, contact us today.

If you like the information you are receiving, please consider forwarding this post.

Paralysis By Analysis

Nancy Boisvert Video Blog , , , , , , , ,
analysis

Paralysis by analysis – guilty as charged?

Today, we continue our new Entrepreneur Series by discussing the issue of paralysis by analysis.

I’m sure we have all been guilty of this at one time or another. We have an idea, create a plan and get all the back end prepared, and then? We do nothing with it, or shift views, or something…

What makes us do this, and how can we avoid it? Join Frank Thomas and me as we explore this aspect of human nature and talk about ways to avoid falling into this trap.

Watch our video here or on YouTube.

Until next time…

Are you ready to grow your business now? If you’re ready to take the next step and make your business more profitable, contact us today.

If you like the information you are receiving, please consider forwarding this post.

Entrepreneur Series – Intro Podcast

Nancy Boisvert Audio Blog , , , , ,
entrepreneur success

About a month ago, Frank Thomas and I launched our new series for entrepreneurs,

and I posted the introductory video here, on our website.

As a reminder, the series is focused on helping small business owners and entrepreneurs to be successful. The first video is an overview of what to expect in the series, as well as a discussion on roadblocks on your path to success and how to overcome them.

We are back on track with our schedule (at least for now) and look forward to presenting Part Two of our intro to the series on Thursday.

Meanwhile, as a refresher, you can watch the video by checking our earlier article or listen to our podcast of the episode.

Listen to our episode here, or listen to the podcast.

Until next time…

Are you ready to grow your business now? If you’re ready to take the next step and make your business more profitable, contact us today.

If you like the information you are receiving, please consider forwarding this post.

7 Reasons You Should Be Using Video To Market Your Business

Nancy Boisvert Newsletter , , , , , , , , ,
video marketing

There are many reasons why you should be using video to help market your business.

But for the purposes of this article, let’s focus on the top seven:

1. It works!

Those of you who have been following my articles and post page for the past year have seen me struggle with video. Like most of us, I’m not the biggest fan of the camera and was concerned about getting my face out there in front of everyone. But the reality is, video works! So it’s important to “get over yourself” and start integrating video into your marketing plan.

2.  It’s powerful.

Video is clearly one of the most powerful ways we have to deliver our messages to our clients and prospects, and to ignore it is to miss out on a huge opportunity to market your business and get in front of more prospects.

3. It’s social.

Video has also become much easier to integrate into the major social media marketing platforms. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram… All these platforms allow you to incorporate video to share with your friends and followers. And you’ll find that many people are willing to share video content with their network.

4. SEO value.

Video is extremely effective for SEO. Indeed, video ranks higher than any other online communication method. And although SEO, and its attendant algorithms, continues to morph, it is still an important factor in being found online. We all know that YouTube is owned by Google, and we all know that Google is still the world’s number one search engine. But did you know that YouTube is the world’s second largest search engine. With over 1 billion users and many billions of views every day, YouTube actually reaches more people between the ages of 18 and 49 than any cable network in the United States.

5.  It’s a preferred medium.

Video has quickly become a preferred marketing tool because it delivers information in a way that is easy for our brains to process. It has the benefit of demonstrating, not simply outlining, how to do, use, or implement a product or service.

6.  It’s personal.

Another benefit of video is that it humanizes online experiences for people. Through the production and delivery of video to your clients and prospects, you are no longer the faceless entity behind a website. This experience helps people engage more personally, increasing loyalty and cementing your brand in the minds of your viewers.

7.  It’s entertaining.

And let’s not forget about the entertainment value of video. Even if you are providing a demonstration video, your message will be accepted much better by your audience than the written word. Through the active stimulating the visual and auditory senses of your viewers, you are able to engage them in a much more significant fashion. Additionally, providing an entertaining, educational, or informational video can reach huge audiences on a global basis, increasing your reach and your authority in ways that were previously prohibitive.

Until recently, most people obtained their visual and auditory stimulus through the television. Big brands bought commercial timeslots, which are expensive to produce and expensive to deliver to the viewer. But now, and in ever increasing numbers, people are choosing to stream their visual content, and are able to pick and choose what they want to watch, when they want to watch it. So why not start to create your own visual content and get in front of your preferred audience.

Until next time…

Are you ready to grow your business now? If you’re ready to take the next step and make your business more profitable, contact us today.

If you like the information you are receiving, please consider forwarding this post.

What A Difference A Year Makes!

Nancy Boisvert Newsletter , , , , , , , ,
rebranding

One year ago this month, I rebranded Agapi Marketing & Consulting and launched our new website.

Prior to April 2015, my website was old, not mobile responsive, and I was marketing like I had been 10 years earlier.

Some of you know that I started the new millennium by doing things a little bit differently. Although marketing was always a key part of everything that I have done, I branched out into a couple of other areas. From 2002 to 2006, I was taking advantage of the changing real estate market in Calgary and was working with the company who invested in, and then flipped, houses. I became a licensed financial planner, and focused much of my marketing on the financial services industry. From 2009 to 2013, I worked with a company that focused on taking businesses public.

And then I decided to become less dependent on individual contracts and get back to helping business owners from all verticals learn how to effectively and efficiently market and promote their companies.

But there was a bit of a learning curve involved. After being out of the marketing mainstream for many years due to focusing on individual and specific contracts, I had to rebuild my network and my reputation. At first, I tried to run my consulting business as I had prior to 2002, providing planning and fulfillment services. This proved to be a challenge; when you’re busy doing fulfillment, you can’t be taking care of the myriad of responsibilities required in the running of a business.

So I re-branded my business. I decided to focus on my core strength, which is helping people develop their strategic marketing plan. After all, without this foundation, your marketing will cost you more, be less effective, and be inconsistent.

I met and worked with business owners who could provide fulfillment services that met with my high standards. After all, if it’s not good enough for me, it’s not good enough for my clients.

I rebuilt my website and re-branded my Corporation, honing my focus to better deliver that message.

I began participating in webcasts, podcasts and interviews, and began writing articles for various publications.

I wrote a couple of books which are now sold on Amazon.

I developed and built out my corporate, as well as my personal social profiles on twitter Facebook and LinkedIn.

I began providing our “Expert Interview Series” to our newsletter subscribers.

And I got over my intimidation and fear of the camera, launched a YouTube channel and began posting videos.

And the result?

The response has been great! More and more people are watching my YouTube videos and connecting on my social profiles. My web statistics show that people are not only engaging with, but are expecting my twice-weekly posts. People are spending time on my website; approximately 10% of all visitors to my site are spending a minimum of an hour there. I have successfully built a following, authority, and a solid group of experts to assist me with fulfilling the needs of my clients.

So thanks for being a part of my phenomenal growth over the past year. It has been an experience – and sometimes a frustration – but always fun and always a privilege.

Until next time…

Are you ready to grow your business now? If you’re ready to take the next step and make your business more profitable, contact us today.

If you like the information you are receiving, please consider forwarding this post.

What Is Influencer Marketing?

Nancy Boisvert Newsletter , , , , , , , ,
influencer marketing

Are you taking advantage of influencer marketing?

Heck… do you even know what’s meant by that phrase?

We are bombarded every day with ads, and they hit us from everywhere; billboards, print media, buses, elevators, email, and the internet.

Yep, that’s a lot of money being spent every day to capture the attention of prospects. And more and more people aren’t trusting these ads.

So, how does a small or mid-sized business reach that sweet spot; the perfect balance of delivering your message while obtaining the most important, yet often elusive element of trust? Influencer marketing has the advantage of offering potentially huge benefits to the small business owner, at little to no cost.

What is influencer marketing?

The President of Word of Mouth Marketing Association, Suzanne Fanning, defines influencer marketing as the practice of contacting a small group of individuals to reach out to the rest of your prospects. The concept is that if you effectively reach ten percent of your prospective clients who know, like and trust you, they will spread the word to the other 90 percent on your behalf.

True, this is not a new concept, but has been largely overlooked by many business owners.

Influencer Marketing, simply put, is word-of-mouth. And we all know that a referral is the best kind of business you can obtain. To have someone who already trusts you, recommend you to their circle of influence, will provide you with more real business, not just ‘tire-kickers’.

Be smart about your marketing. Never assume that spending large amounts of money will reap huge rewards. Imagination, creativity, and demonstrating trustworthiness beats out a large advertising budget every time.

So don’t overspend on advertising. Yes, advertising is important, and yes, you will have to spend some money. But without a strategy, a budget and a workable plan, you will spend more than is necessary. And by introducing influencer marketing into the equation, you are inviting engagement.

Every single person you reach is a potential influencer. Therefore, make sure that you are participating in meaningful exchanges with everyone, and never overlook anyone. And don’t get hung up on how many followers or likes you have on social media platforms. The more important thing is the conversations and the engagement you are having with these folks.

Find out what people like about your products or services. How do they use them? A happy, satisfied customer is the best influencer available.

Consider a giveaway, such as a coupon or a sample, to encourage organic growth of your brand. Use humor when appropriate, and make sure your information is sharable. Deliver an authentic experience to every person who comes in your door or visits your website. By offering something of use to your target audience, you help build authority and trust, making it easier for them to do business with you or refer you to someone they know.  Gain valued advocates of your services or products.

As you can see, influencer marketing can be the most effective, yet least expensive, form of marketing. And it has proven itself to be the best way to grow a small business. In fact, according to a Nielsen report, 92 percent of men and women trust the advice given by friends and family over all other types of advertising. All you need to do is deliver products and services that result in happy customers, and ask them to reach out to their friends and family.

Until next time…

Are you ready to grow your business now? If you’re ready to take the next step and make your business more profitable, contact us today.

If you like the information you are receiving, please consider forwarding this post.

The Secret To Pricing Your Product

Nancy Boisvert Audio Blog , , , , , , ,
pricing your product or service

Knowing how to price your product or service appropriately can be the most difficult – and critical – aspect of your business.

If you charge too much, no one will buy; if you charge to little, you’ll go broke. And if you compete solely based on price, you’ll only attract “bargain shoppers”.

This is one of the topics that Frank Thomas and I addressed back in December on an episode of the Small Business Tips Show. I shared the video with you recently, but I continue to get many questions and comments about this topic, so thought I would share the podcast with you, which can be a bit more convenient than watching the video.

So listen in as we reveal the secrets, strategies and techniques to help position your product or service competitively in the marketplace.

Listen to our podcast here or wherever you listen to your podcasts.

 

Until next time…

Are you ready to grow your business now? If you’re ready to take the next step and make your business more profitable, contact us today.

If you like the information you are receiving, please consider forwarding this post.

YouTube
YouTube
LinkedIn
LinkedIn
Facebook
Twitter