DIY Marketing

This month is 'Do It Yourself Marketing' Month.  So what is your marketing strategy?  Do you do it yourself or do you have someone else doing it for you?  Or a combination of both?  Either way, do you know what is working?  If not, that should be your first action item.  Start tracking what's working and what's not.  This will save you lots of money over time.

Below are some strategies for marketing that I recommend.  I believe they will work for most any business.

• Know Your Target Market.  Get very specific.  Who can use your products and services?   Consider the demographics of your perfect client.  Often times the more specific you can be about your perfect referral, the better the chances of receiving a referral.

• Networking is a great way to market your business and build relationships in order to gain business.  It is recommended to be part of a closed networking group like BNI (one industry represented per Chapter) and 2 open networking groups (multiple of the same industry), i.e. The Chamber of Commerce, Business Alliance, etc. and perhaps a service group like Kiwanis, Rotary, etc.  Building relationships by seeing the same people over time creates visibility which builds creditability in order to receive word-of-mouth referrals.

• Keep in touch with prospects and clients.  Not everyone you meet may need your product or service right now, but if you stay in touch with them, perhaps in the future if they have a need, you will be top of mind because you kept in touch and will be the one they call or refer.  In my a previous blog, I covered tips for Customer Loyalty which gave information and tips.
• Methods for keeping in touch include Social Media, Newsletters, Greeting Cards, Phone Calls, drop by visits, etc.

• Marketing Materials that represent you, your products, and services well.  Make sure your branding and message is consistent across all platforms.  Whether you are marketing face to face or online ensure your logo, photos, tag line, colors, are consistent.  You can be a one person show, but the little things can make you look like the 'big guys.'

• Track Everything.  Go back through your last 6 to 12 months of business and determine where the business came from.  And depending on the answer would determine where to focus more.  Ask each new client, how did you find us?  Let the stats drive your future marketing efforts.  

 Much of this you can do yourself, but do you have the time and the skill set?  It's always best to consider what you do best and like and enjoy doing and delegate the rest.

I hope you have found this to be helpful. Your comments are welcomed and appreciated.

To Your Success,

Annette

Painted Lady Enterprises

'Helping You and Your Business Look Good'

Starting a New Business

Tips, Tools, Recommendations, and Things to Consider.

So, you think you want to start a business.  Be your own boss. You have a great idea for a product or service.  Being your own boss can be fulling and satisfying, but before jumping in, here are some tips, tools,* and recommendations* to consider. 

(* I have referenced people, businesses, tools, books, etc. in this article which I recommend.  Also, see the reference list at the end of the article and yes some are affiliate links).

-        Do your due diligence.  Whether you think you have a new idea for a product or service or a new twist on a current product or service – Research.  Ask questions.  Talk to the business owners who are currently doing what you want to do.  Find out the pros and cons.  Especially the cons.  Perhaps talk to a business consultant or a business coach.

-       Target Market.  Who’s going to buy your product or service?  Not who needs it, but who has the money to buy.  There may be people who need your product/service, but not have the means to buy it.  Get very detailed and specific with the demographic you wish to target.  This will help you with your marketing plan. 

-        Create a business plan.  Think about it.  Would you build a house without a plan?  A business plan is creating your vision.  All the steps to get your business up and running to the day to day operations.  If you’re a ‘big picture’ kind of person, then have someone who thinks about the details to help you. 

-        All the Legal Stuff.  How should you set up your business?  What permits are needed?  Trademarks?  Copyrights?  Licenses?  Best to consult a business attorney or a CPA.

-        Company Structure.  Think of your business as you as the bus driver.  Where are you going, and do you need help and if so when and how much?  Will you need full-time employees or part time contractors?  Seasonal help?  Outsourcing?  Virtual help?  When considering who will help, consider what you do best and delegate the rest to the best possible source.  You can’t know it all or do it all.

-        Financing.  Whether you’re buying a franchise or starting from scratch, ‘it takes money to make money.’  How much is it going to take to get up and running?  How long is the expectation before the business shows enough profit to be self-sustaining?  Equipment cost?  Marketing?  Salary for yourself and wages for help?  Office space?  Merchant Services?   And the list goes on.  Even if you start out as a one-person solopreneur, all these costs need to be a consideration.  Talk to a financial advisor well versed in business startups.  Also, consider a business loan rather than use your life savings.  

-        Keeping it all Straight.  Bookkeeping is a must so that you maximize all your finances and take advantage of all tax benefits.  Intuit Quickbooks is great to ensure all the I’s are dotted and the t’s are crossed. 

-        Marketing.  Getting ready to make your debut and putting your best foot forward.  It’s important to ensure all your marketing elements are in place, i.e. your website, social media, business cards, brochures, signage etc. Whether you are a brick and mortar business, or your office is in your home or your vehicle, you want to ensure your professional image is represented well across all platforms.

-        Networking.  Getting the word out and meeting the right people who want you to succeed as much as you do is very important.  In today’s market, it’s not enough just to build a website and hang out a sign, especially if you’re not the only ‘mousetrap’ in town.  And we would all prefer a warm referral rather than a cold lead.  One of the oldest and best networking organizations is Business Network International.   I also highly recommend ‘The Networking Guru’ by James Barber.  It is a good short read and explains the basics of networking to build relationships in order to build a business.  In fact, James has written a 2^nd book, ‘The Networking Guru – The Next Level’ that also goes over some of the other aspects mentioned above, i.e. business plan, business coach, networking, etc.   I recommend reading his second book first.  It’s more about setting up the infrastructure for a business to succeed.

Yes, there are a lot of things to consider starting a business.  It can be very scary as well as exciting and rewarding.  Seek out those who are doing what you want to do and who are successful.  Pick their brain.  And be sure and ask the question, ‘What do you wish someone had told you before you started your business?’  Learn from those who have gone before you.

To Your Success,

Annette

Painted Lady Enterprises

‘Helping You and Your Business Look Good’

Resources Referenced in this article:

Business Coach – Russ Young with Action Coach

CPA – Robin Rudisill, CPA with Kenneth D. Rogers, CPA

Staffing - Kim Holland – KC Staffing Solutions

Virtual Assistant for Relationship Marketing, Social Media, Email Marketing, Admin Services, Basic WordPress Website – Annette Mason – Painted Lady Enterprises

Banker – Joy Riddle – Bank of the Ozarks

Bookkeeping/Invoicing – Intuit Quickbooks

Merchant Services – Randy Amerson – Netcom PaySystem

Website Domains and Hosting – www.DomainsMadeEZ.com

Signage – Alpharetta Sign Company

Networking – Business Network International – BNI.com or for Georgia – BNIATL.com

Books – James Barber – The Networking Guru – Traits of Champion Networkers and The Networking Guru – The Next Level

Need other recommendations?  Please let me know.  I would be glad to provide a reliable source for you.

How to Build Your Social Media Following

Oftentimes when I meet with clients and review their Social Media sites I discover they don’t have very many followers. In order to get your message out to your target market, you have to build a following. So how do you do that given the constraints and algorithms of social media, particularly Facebook and Facebook business pages.

First, we must understand why people are on Facebook. Why are you on Facebook? To connect with your friends, to be entertained, look for recommendations, sell stuff, get information? It’s different for everyone. So, if you have a business fan page, you need people to ‘Like’ your page, so that when you post on your business page, some percentage of those who ‘Like' your page will see your posts. And you also have to realize that not everyone who ‘Likes’ your page will see your posts. With that in mind, is it worth your time?  The answer is yes, if you’re willing to do the work to get a following.

Here’s some recommendations to help to build your following:

-        First make sure you have a complete

Facebook business page. Complete your about section and describe your business. There is a place for a short description and a place for a long description. Hours of operation. Complete all the sections.

-        Brand your business. Invest in a logo and corporate colors. Ensure your branding is consistent across all social media sites. When someone goes looking for you on their favorite social media site, you want to be easily recognizable.

-        Have a custom professional banner. If you want people to call you, make sure your phone # is in the banner. If you’re a plumber, no one wants to scroll down the page to find your phone # if their toilet is running over.

-        Set up a custom URL, i.e. www.facebook.com/nameofyourbusiness - not something that ends in a bunch of #s and funny characters.

-        Make sure your Facebook page is verified.

-        Start with your family, friends, employees, clients, and prospects. Invite them all to like and share your page.
-        Send an email or snail mail to all your clients and prospects and ask them to 'Like' your page.

-        If you have a brick and mortar place of business, post a sign in the window, at the counter, and print it on the client’s receipt - Like us on Facebook - Follow us on Twitter.

-        Make sure all your marketing material, website, business card, email signature line, etc. has your social media links on them.

-        As you start posting content on your page, ask your closest family, friends, and employees (if you have them) to ‘Like,’ Share, and Comment. The more ‘Likes’, Shares, and comments you get, the more Facebook with show your posts to others. It’s called engagement. The more interesting and engaging your material is, the more Facebook will show it.

-        Post images. Original interesting images. Original engaging content. Yes, you can find material on the internet to share, but Facebook likes originality best.

-        Videos are great. Again, original material. No more than 3 to 5 minutes. Also, go back and edit and caption your videos. Sometimes people are in places where they do not want to turn up the sound on videos, so if it isn’t captioned, they won’t watch.

-       For your content, don’t just post about your business, but post about yourself, your community involvement, a day in the life of, your story, your passion, demonstrations, before and after, etc. Think in terms of reality shows. Your Facebook Business page is your business reality show. People want to know about you, so don’t make it all about your business. Think ‘Infotainment.’
-        Feature some of you clients on your page.  Tag people in your posts.  People love recognition.

-        Post about current events, holidays - especially the ones that have something to do with your business. If you’re into healthy eating, Aug. 8th was ‘NATIONAL SNEAK SOME ZUCCHINI INTO YOUR NEIGHBOR’S PORCH DAY.’

-        Hashtag your posts, i.e. #hashtagyourposts #socialmedia
#morelikesandshares. Why? This makes your content searchable especially if it relates to some current event or trend.

-        Be consistent in your posting. A Facebook business page is not like a website. If there are no consistent posts, then Facebook, after a period of time, has the right to shut down the page. So be active. At least post a couple of times a week. You can schedule posts to a Facebook business page.

-        Link pages together when possible, i.e. link your Facebook business page to a Twitter business page, so that when you post on one site, it will appear on the other.
-        On LinkedIn you can post links to all your social media sites. 

-        Set up a YouTube channel. Link your Facebook page to your YouTube channel.

-        If you have a visual product like a florist, set up an Instagram account and a Pinterest Account.
-        Use an application like Hootsuite to manage your social media and to only have to post in one place. 

-        Study your ‘Insights,’ and your stats. See what gets more ‘Likes’, comments, and shares? Post more material like that. For instance, I have a travel agent that I post for, but when she posts about some of her personal travels, those posts get more ‘Likes,’ shares, and comments.

-        Follow those in the same industry as you to see what they do. Don’t copy them, but use it to learn better what to post for you.

-        Be social as your page - ‘Like,’ comment, and share other’s pages posts especially if it’s in the same general field as yours. This helps with your following because it’s not always about you. You have to give to get.  Hopefully they will return the favor. 

-        Join groups that relate to your business, local sites, Women In Business’ allows you to post links to your Facebook page, website, post specials, etc.

-        From time to time, boost a post. Spend $20 bucks from time to time (not all the time) and boost a post in order to gain a larger following.

-       Get Reviews.  Those clients that praise and rave about your product or service, ask them to write a review on your Facebook business page.  Be sure and thank them when they do.  The more positive reviews you have the more creditable you will appear to your followers.

What else have you found that helps to build your following? Your comments and feedback are welcomed and appreciated.

Here are some other articles I have written in the past. They have some of the same information, but also have additional tips not mentioned in this article.

- 'Social Media - It's about being social'
- 'How are you building your following on Social Media'
- 'Tips for Growing Your Business with Social Media'

Building a following is not rocket science, it just takes time, work, and a little creativity.

If you need a little help, let us know, that is what we do.  

We appreciate your comments and feedback.  Send us an email, or you can provide feedback on our Facebook page as well as our blog.

 

Oh and BTW - We would appreciate it if you would 'Like' our  Facebook page.

Happy Posting,

Annette

Painted Lady Enterprises

'Helping You and Your Business Look Good'

Are You a Hostage?

Do You Own Your Website and Domain Name?  Or are you a hostage?
   

This month's topic comes from conversations I have frequently with business owners wanting to get a new website or get their current website updated. 

  

Have you trusted all the aspects of your website to someone else?

In working with one of my clients recently, they wanted me to make some updates to their current website.  They provided me with the log in information, however it did not work.  They tried numerous times to get in touch with the company that built their site, but to no avail.  Now my client has learned the dreadful truth, they do not own their hosting or domain name, and they cannot get access to their site to make changes or updates.  This is a dilemma that many businesses have after having shelled out big bucks for a website, etc.

So what should a person/business do?

Here are my suggestions:

- Buy your own Hosting. So you own it and have access
- Buy your own Domain/URL names so that you own them
- Get all your log in/pass codes for all your accounts
- Keep up with your accounts to ensure they are up to date and renewed in a timely manner
- Make sure you deal with someone reputable and ethical
- Check their references
- Research their reviews on the internet
- Ask for references

If you do the above, you will protect yourself from an unethical Webmaster and/or one that goes out of business or retires. 

I work with many clients and I know they trust me, however every account that I set up, I provide all the log in credentials.  I jokingly tell them, that when I win the lottery and disappear, they will have access to all their accounts.  As a small business owner myself, I would be very upset if someone held me hostage.

We want to help the small business owner have a web presence for an affordable cost.  We provide  website services, domain names, hosting, etc.  So whether you want to learn to do it yourself or want someone to do it for you, we are here to help and we will provide you with ALL your account credentials. 

Here is a short video about choosing and purchasing Domain names - Click Here to watch

 

To purchase hosting and domain names we recommended - www.DomainsMadeEZ.com (Yes this is an affiliate link).

We appreciate your comments and feedback.   We would also appreciate it if you would 'Like' our  Facebook page.

Happy Connecting,

Annette

Painted Lady Enterprises

'Help You and Your Business Look Good'

 

  

Organizing Your Marketing for the New Year

The New Year typically brings on new resolutions and goals both personally as well as for our business.  But as with any goal, in order to stick with it and achieve it, we must have a plan in mind.  According to SmartSimple Marketing, the first step in making a plan is to de-clutter and organize our mind.  We need to focus and get pass our mental blocks and clearly define our goals, what we want the end result to be, and what action steps are needed to achieve our goals.

The new year brings on the opportunity to get rid of the old and begin the new, i.e. new goals, new plan, new actions, new thought process.  Reviewing what worked, what didn’t work, where improvements are needed and what new ideas and strategies we need to put in place.  Get rid of the notion, well I tried that and it didn’t work.  Sometimes it’s not that it didn’t work, maybe we didn’t implement correctly and with a little tweaking, it becomes a great idea/strategy/action.

One of the things I tell my clients is, you have to be persistent and consistent.  Oftentimes I see business owners try something new, but because it didn’t have instant results, the idea/action was dropped and they were on to something else or gave up all together.  Relationship marketing takes time.  Yes, sometimes there is ‘Love at First Sight,’ but it’s rare.  Relationships whether personal or business take time.  It takes time to get to know, like, and trust someone before you refer to them or buy from them.  In being persistent and consistent in our marketing, we are saying to our clients as well as our prospects that we are reliable and trustworthy.  That we are going to be around awhile. 

One of the best ways to get organized with our marketing is to write everything down, especially if we have a million ideas running through our mind.  Make a list of ideas, evaluate how much time and money each with take.  Whether you can do it yourself, or would it make more sense to outsource.  Keep all ideas in one place and as you take action, record the results, i.e. what worked, what didn’t, etc.  Does the idea/action need more time, does it need to be changed, tweaked, etc.  Remember the saying the definition of insanity is to keep doing the same actions over and over and expecting different results. 

Now is a good time to devise a marketing plan for the year. 

Here are some ideas to consider.  These can be used for social media, blogs, newsletters, special offers, etc.

• Depending on your business, you might think about a theme a month.  Refer to an online calendar like Brownielocks.com  to find ideas that are appropriate for your business.  For example:  January is ‘Get Organized Month.’

• Write down all your ideas and organize as appropriate.  Use a notebook and/or online document like Evernote, but keep everything together in one place in order to reference when needed.

• Go ahead and research and write your content for your blogs and newsletters.  Oftentimes when I start writing about one subject, several others seem to spawn.  Rather than trying to do a brain dump with one article, divide the material into smaller ‘bite size’ pieces.  If you’re doing video, 3 to 5 minute segments are suggested.  Same with written articles.

• Schedule posts to social media when possible.  Link social media accounts to cut down on time spent posting.  There are also social media scheduling tools where all social media posting can be done from one place, i.e. Hootsuite, Buffer, SocialOomph, etc. 

• Be prepared to be flexible.  You may have something come up that is more relevant.  Something may happen or be trending in the news that triggers an idea.  Adjust your plan and actions accordingly.

• Track your progress and results against your plan, re-evaluate and keep moving forward being persistent and consistent.

How do we achieve our resolutions and goals? 

-        - Get organized

-        - Make a Plan

-        - Take Action

-        - Be Persistent and Consistent

-        - Be Flexible

-        - Track our results

-        - Rinse and Repeat

      We would love to hear about your plans for marketing for the new year.  Your feedback and comments are welcomed and appreciated.

Happy Marketing,

Annette

Virtual Assistant

Painted Lady Enterprises

How to Give Outstanding Presentations

What is your greatest fear?

One of the greatest fears in life is public speaking – right up there with heights, snakes, spiders and being buried alive.

Recently I was asked to do a presentation on ‘How to Give an Outstanding Presentation.’

I believe there are 3 Key Elements for giving an outstanding presentation

•        Knowing Your End Goal

•        Prepare and Practice

•        Being Enthusiasm and passionate

Starting with the end goal in mind helps to determine what you want the outcome of your presentation to be.  Ask yourself – What are you trying to accomplish? i.e. schedule appointment, sell a product or service, get donations, etc.?  What will be the ‘Call to Action’ at the end of the presentation?  Knowing the answers to these questions will help to build the outline for your presentation.

Preparation - 'Success occurs when preparation meets opportunity.'  Zig Ziglar

- Logistics - Most great speakers are taught to visualize their surroundings and a successful outcome.  Always try and find out as much information about what you parameters will be for your presentation, i.e. How much time will you have?  Will you be able to use Power Point?  Will you have a white board (if you like to draw)?  Will an easel be available (if you need to capture information)? 

- Decide on Your Approach - Who will be your audience - prospects, customers/clients, business colleagues?  Male/Female?  Age?  Industry?

- Prepare for Everything - 'Whatever can go wrong, will go wrong.'  Hopefully not but be prepared just in case.  I've had situations where my power point would not work, lost my notes, etc.  So Prepare and Practice, Practice and Prepare - so you can do it from memory.

All of the above will help you to prepare the outline and foundation for your presentation.

Power Point is a great tool to use (when available), however it can also be the Death of many a presentation.  I’m sure you’ve attended meetings where every power point slide was filled with text and the presenter just read the slides to you.  Kind of like the cartoon here of Dilbert.   

So if you do decide to use Power Point, keep these tips in mind -

•        Prepare slides that are interesting

•        Use photos and graphics because People are visual.  Most think in pictures

•        No more than six words per slide

•        Don’t fill with technical info and stats

•        Don’t read every slide or from notes – only use slides as talking points

•        When using charts – illustrate one key point per slide

•        Prepare and Practice, Prepare and Practice

Here are some additional Dos and Don’ts for giving Outstanding Presentations

Do’s

•        Rule of Three - 1) Explain in the beginning what you’re going to talk about, 2) Expand in the middle, and 3) Recap in the close – ‘Tell them, tell what you told them, and tell them again.’

•        Do be Enthusiastic and passionate.  Speak from the heart.  When you’re are passionate about what you’re presenting typically nerves don’t come into play.  If you’ve prepared and practiced your confidence will show through.

•        K.I.S.S – Keep It Simple.  Present the basic information and key points in the time frame allotted.  If additional facts and stats are available, but you don’t have the time, include them in a handout, email them to the audience later, or provide a resource as a reference.  

•        Make it memorable – ‘Facts Tell – Stories Sell’ -  Tell a story that is meaningful and relevant to the presentation.  This helps to make the information presented more memorable.

•        Get the audience involved especially in the beginning.  This is a good ice breaker.  Ask a question.  Get them talking about the subject that will lead into your presentation.

•        Do have a call to action – ‘The conclusion of the delivery is the beginning of the dialog.’  What was your ‘End Goal?’  It should be your Call to Action.

Don’ts

•        Don’t use technical/industry jargon that your audience might not understand.  Yes by knowing all the technical terms for your industry shows you know your stuff, but talking over the heads of your audience will not win you any points.

•        Don’t hand out material in the beginning – Why?  Because you want your audience to pay attention to you and listen to your presentation.  Save it until the end.  The exception would be if you are doing training and you need the audience/students to follow along and take notes as you do the training.

•        Don’t Read Slides – use them as talking points, reminders for you and interesting for the audience

•        Don’t go over time limit – ‘The brain can only retain what the seat can endure.’  Most people quit listening when your time is up.  Statistics state for a 20 minute presentation that’s about at 17 minutes.  Save the last few minutes for Q&A.

•        Limit Q&A – There are a couple of different ways to handle Q&A.  You can allow for questions within the time frame given, but don’t exceed the time limit.  Again when your time is up, wrap it up.  Explain to your audience that you will be glad to answer their questions after the meeting or schedule an appointment to discuss further.  Sometimes more sales are made with one to one discussions.

Some people don’t like to field questions from the audience.  Guess what, you don’t have too.  One way to handle this, so that you won’t get caught off guard is to ‘plant’ questions.  Prior to your presentation, have pre-written questions that you can answer quickly, and give them to some of the audience members (usually someone you know.)  If you do get asked a question you can’t answer or would take to long to explain, tell the person you’ll get with them later.

Another way to handle questions is hand out 3x5 cards prior to the presentation.  Ask the audience to write down their questions and to put their name and contact information on the cards.  You could still field a few questions, but you have their question and information so that you can follow up later.

Sometimes answering to many questions can turn people off.  Leave them wanting to know more information.  A reason for you to follow up with them.

I hope you found this information helpful.  What are some of your techniques you've found for giving outstanding presentations?  What presentations stand out in your mind as being unique and different?  We would love to hear about them.  Please share your comments.

Below are a few resources with some additional information that I found helpful.

•        Creative Pathfinder - http://lateralaction.com/presentation-skills/

•        The Networking Guru by James Barber –Chapter  4

•        Six Tips for PowerPoint - http://tinyurl.com/hxsj45k

•        10 Tips to be more effective - http://tinyurl.com/zelevde

Happy presenting,

Annette

Painted LadyEnterprises