Tag: communications

Snapchat for Business?

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snapchat

What?  Snapchat can be used for business?

Yep, believe it or not, you can leverage this platform for your business.

This social media platform allows you to take and share videos.  But the videos disappear after a short period of time.  It was initially very popular with teens, but has now expanded its reach and proven itself to have applications that can help your business.

If it’s appropriate for your business, don’t hesitate to think outside of the box.  There’s nothing wrong with making your advertising fun.

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.

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5 Questions For Optimizing Email Marketing

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email marketing

Hard to believe, but email as a means of communication has been around for well over 20 years now.

Since the mid-1990s, people have been communicating with each other via cyberspace. In fact, a whole generation has grown up accustomed to this method of communication, as opposed to sending letters and messages in a physical format.

Oh yeah, there were growing pains!

Internet service providers came and went, various email providers came and went, but eventually electronic communications became the norm, overtaking the “old” traditional way of interacting.

And as marketing online became more and more accepted, email became a preferred way to reach out to prospects and clients.

In the early days of email marketing, it was kind of like the old West. Anyone with an email address was open to receiving unsolicited emails from any number of businesses. But as this method of advertising services and products became more and more common, boundaries and rules had to be established. Anti-spam legislation is now in place in most countries, and a new kind of business has evolved – the email service provider.

As businesses have turned more and more to email marketing, inboxes have become repositories of unwanted and unsolicited emails, not unlike “junk mail” of past times. Most of us in business are used to receiving dozens, if not hundreds, of emails each day.  The big question is, how do you ensure that your email is not lost among these emails, and how do you improve your open rates?

So, to optimize your email marketing, ask yourself the following five questions:
  • Why are users opening some of your emails more than others?   Do you find that some of your emails are being opened more than others? Most email service providers provide the opportunity to do A/B split testing for your email campaigns. What subject lines in treat more people to open? Is there a day of the week, or a time of the day that your recipients are more likely to open emails? Reviewing these types of questions can dramatically improve your open rate.
  • Will your target market understand and engage with your next email campaign?  When planning your email campaigns, make sure that you are providing something that is relevant to your target audience. Sometimes we can get caught up in what we want to tell our prospects and clients, rather than responding to their needs and desires. Make sure that when you are planning out your next email campaign that you are delivering something of value to the recipients. If necessary, split out your email list, based on specific messages relevant to subsets of your target market. The closer you get to solving a prospect or client’s problem, the more likely your email is to be opened and engaged with by your target audience.
  • What would users change about your emails if they could?  Are your prospects and clients satisfied with the emails that you are sending? Consider asking your email recipients to respond to a quick poll. Ask them if they like the content they are receiving, the format in which it is delivered, or the frequency with which they are receiving it. The key here is to give your recipients what they want.
  • Do your users receive emails from other companies in your industry?   It is highly likely that your clients and prospects are also being targeted by your competitors. Do your research. See what your competitors are sending and make sure that your emails are more engaging.
  • What do the users like and dislike about those emails?  Just like question 3, find out what your email recipients like and dislike about the emails that they are receiving from your competitors. If your competitors are successful at sending emails that are engaging a larger percentage of your list, you need to find out what they are doing. Discover their strategies for email marketing and see what you can implement to improve your own open and engagement rate.

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.

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5 Ways To Ensure Your Content Is Effective

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effective content

Is your content being read?

We are all familiar with that proverbial saying, “if a tree falls in the forest and no one hears it, does it make a noise?”

Well, we can apply the same question to our content.

You can spend all kinds of time, money, and effort compiling and posting content, but if no one reads it, what’s the point?

Creating relevant content that speaks to your target audience, as well as presenting it in an attractive and easy to read format is critical to gaining readership and loyalty online.

We have put together five questions to ask yourself to ensure that your copy is effective and is being noticed by your target audience.

Check out these 5 questions:
              • What does your homepage tell people about what you are offering? Always try to think like a first-time visitor to your website. Make sure that your homepage is designed in such a way that it clearly represents your brand and your offerings. This will ensure that visitors to your website will know immediately if this is a site that they wish to explore further.
              • Is your content written for consumption by the average reader, and free of jargon? Every industry and profession has its own jargon. We converse regularly with our colleagues and our peers using this jargon. But sometimes we can get so used to speaking in these terms that we forget that those folks not involved in our industry or profession don’t understand what that terminology means. If your clients and prospects understood this jargon, chances are they wouldn’t need you. Make sure you are communicating in plain language to your prospects and clients.
              • Does your choice of language within your content “speak” like your target audience speaks? Aside from simple common sense and personal experience, there is times of research out there that proves that when you communicate in the same terms and language is your intended audience, you create a better rapport. By building this relationship, you build trust and community among your audience, which translates to more readership and a loyal client base.
              • Are your calls to action effective? Content without a call to action is nothing more than an article or an advertisement. Let’s face it, 99% of us are using online methods and strategies to promote our businesses and convert visitors to customers. Make sure that you would include a clear, effective CTA within your content. Measure the effectiveness of your CTAs with the use of analytics and software tools such as heat maps and content analysis.
              • Are you effectively communicating your unique value proposition? Differentiation of your business from all others offering the same or similar products or services is the key to building your business and keeping clients. Review your website content regularly to see that your message is clearly defined. But sometimes we are too close and can’t really see how it is being perceived. Consider polling some of your clients to see if they believe that a first-time visitor to your website could define and describe your UVP in their own words

 

  • 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.

Six Questions to Measure Your Brand

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measure your brand

How is your brand perceived?

Presenting a unified brand – one that resonates with clients and prospects – is perhaps the number one element that will determine the success or the failure of your business.

As mentioned in previous articles, a brand is so much more than simply a logo. Your brand should define your company; what it represents, the guiding principles, and how you do business. It is a combination of colors, logo, and a clear representation of your core values.

When considering your brand, consider these following six questions to ensure an accurate depiction of your business.

1. How do clients and perspective clients perceive your company?

This is perhaps one of the most important factors. How your clients and prospects perceive your company will determine their interest in doing business with you.

2. What words would they use to describe you?
From time to time, ask your clients how they would describe your company. Also, you could consider an online poll to reach prospective clients and gauge their response.

3. Do those words match the way you want to be perceived?

Once you have the feedback from your clients and prospects about how they describe your company, compare their responses to what your intention is with your brand.

4. Does your brand appear trustworthy?

More and more, business is being done online. You must be sure that your brand is able to convey that you are trustworthy. But also remember that your off-line presence is just as important, so be sure to develop your brand to show authority and that your company can be trusted.

5. Would they recommend you?

One of the most important ways of marketing is that of word-of-mouth. Aside from the fact that it is the least expensive type of marketing, it is also more likely to create a better relationship with new clients due to the implied trust from the person who is recommending you. When reviewing your brand, engage your clients and ask them if they would consider recommending your business.

6. What do they like and dislike about the way you present your product or service?

Another key question that will help develop a strong, trustworthy brand is to ask your clients what they like-or don’t like-about how you are presenting your products or services in the marketplace. People like to do business with “winners”, so determining how you are seen through the eyes of your clients is critical.

Whether you are just starting your business or re-branding your business, keep these six questions in mind to help develop an identity that has strength and authority.

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.

Brexit –Mistaken Marketing?

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brexit

UK Votes to leave the EU.

You’d have to be living in a cave to not know this news!

Now, the purpose of this article is not to argue the merits on either side of the debate. It is not only not my place to discuss what citizens of  another country should do, but the decision has been rendered, making any argument moot in any event.

Rather, I wanted to make the point about the importance of marketing your product appropriately.

When most people think of marketing, they envision advertising. As I have repeatedly commented, the true essence of marketing is the development of a strategic approach to entice a specific, targeted audience to “purchase” what you have to sell. Advertising is merely one method undertaken to get this strategy in front of your audience.

And when I talk about what you have to sell, I don’t limit it to a product or a service. As you might know, I spent some time in federal politics several years ago. During this time, I acted as campaign manager for a period of about 18 months, leading into a federal election. I approached this role as I do any marketing campaign; in this case, my “product” was the candidate. As I said to her, we needed to approach our target audience (the constituents) and demonstrate to them why they should “purchase” her politics, rather than the politics of her opponents.

Brexit is no different.

Most pundits observing the lead-up to the referendum agree that both sides ran campaigns based on negativity. The Stay side argued that to leave the Union would result in extreme financial hardship, perhaps even a deep recession. Those in the Leave camp argued that to stay in the Union would continue to erode their wealth and their culture.

The politics of fear, in my view, created the outcome that they received; a close vote, with 52% opting to leave the Union. And now of course, there are many exclamations of regret. But democracy is what it is.  And, without any prior determination of what would constitute a win, anything more than 50% rules the day.

So let’s bring this back to the role marketing.

Perhaps both sides of this referendum misread the public. What if, instead of resorting to the politics of fear and hoping to frighten people into voting their way, the argument focused on positives.

What if those who argued to Stay spoke of the benefits of staying in the Union, rather than the doom and gloom that they predicted would happen if they left. What if they spoke of the benefits of free and open travel throughout the European Union, and the benefits of mobility rather than the negative position of financial ruin.

What if those who argued to Leave spoke to the ability to act more independently and negotiate their own trade deals, rather than focusing on the perils of open borders.

We all know that when it comes to making a decision, people like to do business with people who they like, know and trust. We also know that people make decisions primarily based on emotions. It is unfortunate that those people who are in positions of power – those we should be able to trust – have benefited over the past several years from creating a culture of fear, and have controlled decisions through what I call “the Chicken Little approach”.

Current global affairs, whether we agree with the various positions are not, are demonstrating that the pendulum is swinging the other way, and that people are fed up with the way things have been done over the past several decades. They are looking for change.  And savvy marketers would be wise to heed this call and understand the importance of reading your target audience and responding with strategies that make sense to them.

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.

Choosing The Right Social Media Platform

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social media

In our last article, we discussed how technology and social media have changed the way we communicate and how we market our businesses.

As technology evolves, the way we communicate also evolves, and social media is a prime example of this.

It appears that social media continues to be a popular choice for businesses, as it has proven itself to be a highly effective way to reach prospects. So now, more than ever, it’s important to position your business through at least one social media platform.

A recent study showed that as of January 2016, over 70% of folks in the United States had at least one social media profile. And it’s predicted that by 2018, the number of worldwide users will increase from 2.1 billion users to 2.5. Currently, Facebook claims over 1 ½ billion active monthly users, with YouTube posting and even 1 billion, an Instagram claiming 400 million.

Clearly, with the number of people on the various social media platforms, it only makes sense for you to ensure that your business is connected to at least one of these platforms.

Which raises the question – what platform, or platforms should you be on?

It doesn’t make sense, from a time or budget perspective, to choose too many platforms or to choose them randomly.

What is it that your company does? The social media platforms that your company should be on depends on your niche, as well as your target audience. Are you B2B, or B2C? Does your product or service lend itself to images? If so, an application such as Pinterest, Instagram, or Facebook would be a good choice or your business. On the other hand, if you specialize in a specific product or service selling to other companies, an application like LinkedIn would make more sense.

One of the advantages of using social media to reach your target audience is that it is relatively inexpensive. There are a number of free tools out there, such as HootSuite, that can help you schedule updates and posts to your social media platforms, allowing you to create content for posting ahead of time. Of course, these applications also have premium versions at a cost, depending on your requirements. There are also several companies that will manage and monitor your social media on your behalf, but unless social is a big part of your final, you should be able to manage this yourself, at least in the early days.

One of the biggest issues with social media is that, although it has become more and more integrated into our lives, it is still very difficult for businesses to measure their return on investment, or ROI.

My response to this issue is that you have to be clear with social media marketing, just like every other type of marketing, what exactly it is that you are looking to measure. What is your goal? Is your intent to use these social media platforms to drive website traffic, develop broader exposure for your business, or are you looking to make sales through the platform?

Social platforms are equipped to provide you with analytics. You can find out how many people have been exposed to your posts, how they are responding to them, as well as how many people are clicking on your website links. By taking a look at the analytics, you can find out what is the best time of day to post to reach your target audience, as well as which platforms are performing the best for you.

Be sure that if you take the time to develop social media profiles for your business that you do not waste that effort by ignoring those channels. Create a calendar, or at least make a commitment to post on a regular basis. Whether it is once a week or twice a day, be sure that you commit to this schedule and maintain it. Your followers and prospects will begin to anticipate your posts, and your audience will grow.

Also, remember that social media is about being social, not just about your own products and services. Be sure to interact with the people you are attracting to your platforms, and include posts that will be of interest to your followers, even if they are unrelated to your business.

Creating your social media profiles may be free, but remember that, just like everything else, there is still a cost attached. In order to be effective, you’ll have to invest some time and perhaps a bit of money into it to make sure that you are not wasting your efforts.

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.

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Doing It Write

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writing

Communication is at the core of everything we do in life.

And writing is at the heart of all communication.

From very early times, humans have striven to tell stories in a way that is preserved for future generations. From cavemen drawing images on walls, to hieroglyphics and the Rosetta Stone, to manuscripts and books, and now to abbreviated conversations through the technology of texts, we have told our stories.

Now, I’ll admit that I’m a bit old-school. I’m a bit of a stickler for spelling, grammar, and punctuation. I prefer telephone conversations rather than text messages, especially for any conversations of length. And, if I’m looking to memorialize something, I am more likely to rely on email than on a text message.

But I also am a realist.

I recognize that technology has changed the substance of communication, if not the inherent value of it. Probably half of our current population has grown up in a world that doesn’t know what it was like before the age of computers. Although most of the younger generation can type faster than I can, none of them grew up with the experience of learning the keyboard on a manual typewriter.  These are the folks who can text nearly as fast as they speak.  Which is probably why I still prefer telephone conversation.

Typos and Auto Correct are the bane of my existence!damn you autocorrect

In so many ways, technology has improved our ability not only to communicate, but to communicate with people at great distances from us. And this communication happens in an instant.

So, how are you communicating with prospects and clients?

The art of writing is not lost. If you are not already providing a newsletter – or at least regular email updates – to your clients and prospects, I urge you to consider starting this immediately. Yes, in a world of messages of 140 characters or less, people still like to engage at a deeper level.

Don’t stop doing your short posts on social media, and don’t stop making and uploading videos and podcasts. But don’t forget the art of writing. There is something permanent about the written word; something that strikes to the core of all of us.

And although I admitted being a stickler for proper spelling, etc., language continues to evolve. Many words that were abbreviated for the purposes of text messaging have now become normal in many areas of our language. Who hasn’t included “LOL” in something that they have written?

So my final thoughts for this article are to encourage you to keep writing, in whatever form makes you comfortable. Just keep doing it!  And  100 years from now, people will have an indication of how we communicated, just as we look back in history at others.

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.

Are You Content With Your Content?

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content is king

The English language is a funny thing, isn’t it?

Many words, depending on their pronunciation, have different meanings. The word “content” in the title of today’s article is a great example of this.

To be content is to be satisfied, or happy with the current state of things. And content is also the substance of something, such as a book, website, etc.

So, back to my question: are you content with your content?

We all know that to attract prospects and clients, we have to engage them. One of the best ways to engage them is through content. But not just any content. You have to provide something of value to them, something that stirs emotion and reaction and stimulates their desire to know more.

Many business owners, although great at delivering their product or service, don’t really understand the value of providing good content on a consistent basis. Keeping your clients and prospects interested is the key to keeping them engaged.

Now, I understand that as a small business owner you may not see the correlation between the service or product that you sell and simply writing about it on your website or blog. But just think about this for a minute; if you can provide insights and help educate your client or prospect, what would you expect the result to be?

Consider your own behavior as well. If you are researching something online, do you simply find a provider and run out and purchase from them, or you check out a few different sites and interact more with those sites that are providing a more personalized experience?

We all like to do business with people we like, know, and trust. In our current world of electronic communication, it can be difficult to establish and build that relationship. Therefore, it helps your prospects and your clients understand and trust you and your business by learning about you through your content.

There are many ways that you can provide content as well. Consider sending an online newsletter to folks who subscribe to it on your website. Think about writing articles about topics that are pertinent to your business and posting them on a regular and consistent basis to your website. Determine which social media platforms your clients and prospects use, and post updates and interact with them regularly there. If you are camera shy, get over it and make a few short “how-to” videos, explaining certain processes on a YouTube channel that you set up and link to your website.

These are just a few examples of simple ways to interact and build trust with your clients and prospects. If this is an area that you aren’t comfortable with, consider outsourcing this service. You will find that you will gain a huge advantage from that small investment.

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.

Why You Need To Network!

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importance of networking

If you aren’t networking, you are losing ground!

The concept of networking can be intimidating to some people.  Indeed, many of us believe that networking can be difficult and time consuming.  It can be thought of as an unpleasant chore.

But think of it as a means to reach out and communicate with people you like.  Building your network in a genuine way not only provides the opportunity to interact with folks you share interests with, but also allows you to expand your reach and your circle of influence exponentially.

Frank Thomas and I discussed this issue on an episode of the Small Business Tips Show in late December last year.  You may have seen the webcast, but today we are offering the audio so you can ‘take it and go.’

Listen to our discussion about networking here, or connect 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.

9th Key to Successful Social Media Marketing

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accessibility

Are you accessible?

The 9th key element to help you achieve social media marketing success is accessibility.

In today’s video, we discuss how it is so important to be accessible to your audience. Are you providing them with information that matters to them on a regular basis? Setting a strategy about sharing information regularly helps develop expectation and engagement with your target audience and your social network.

Watch now and learn more about how implementing this key element will impact your online success.

Watch our video here, or watch 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.

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