7 Tips For an Effective Lead Generation Strategy

For any marketer, lead generation is the biggest goal. Apart from this, this task requires a good deal of time and effort. You may be surprised to know that only a fraction of marketers say that their campaigns for lead generation are working effectively. If this sounds like you, below are 7 tips that may help you with your lead generation strategy.

1. Use the correct data for best targeting

If you have the right data, you can target the right audience. In fact, the more you know about your target customers, the better it will be. Apart from this, communicating with your customers in the right tone is also very important if you want them to pay attention to you.

2. Use some tools to track your leads

Make sure you know how to find out your ROI. Besides, you should set aside some money to measure and trace channels to attract your customers whether you are going to use your site, email, direct marketing or social media to attract them.

With Google analytics, for instance, you can identify the pages that are generating a good deal of traffic for you. You can also use other lead generation software as well.

3. Focus on quality

This is obvious; however, most people just don't give any importance to this factor. Make sure you focus on quality instead of quantity. In other words, your sales force shouldn't spend too much time on people who just won't buy from you no matter what you do. You should only target potential customers or clients.

4. Have a solid grading structure

Your activity should have a solid structure, such as a short-term and a long-term campaign. This will help you concentrate on one type of prospects at a time. Aside from this, you may want to have a criterion to find out who can be your potential clients.

It's also a good idea to nurture your leads. You should also educate your customers using information so they can understand your products better.

5. Research your competition

You need to find out more about a product or service that your competitors have launched recently. You should keep an eye on the activities of your competitors and use the information you collected to run circles around them.

6. Develop relationships

You should aim high. You may want to create a list of customers that have gone through a chance in circumstances like a merger or a restructure. Apart from this, you should make sure you have a few big organizations that you can work with.

7. Use your site

You need traffic if you want to generate leads from your own business site. According to experts, you can use a number of techniques in order to make visitors click on your site. Below are two basic techniques that can help a lot.

• Use forums: you can use forums in order to capture the data of your prospect customers, especially smart forms that can help you develop your database.
• Make an effective call-to-action: your CTAs should be effective enough to turn visitors into customers. This is the only way you can make more sales.

Hopefully, these 7 tips will help you with your lead generation strategy.

https://ezinearticles.com/?7-Tips-For-an-Effective-Lead-Generation-Strategy&id=9900986

Why Content Is King-Top 4 Reasons

Content is King - it's a well-known fact. It's the content that mainly decides if your message will eventually reach your prospects, and if your services/products will find buyers and users in the market.

In short, the very existence and success of your brand, and making it more exciting, depends on the content supporting it.

If the content is relevant, of a high quality, and peppered with the right keywords, at the right places, it will help your business find its feet and flourish.

No wonder, Content is called King even while there's a high demand for effective and result-oriented content writers.

Why Content is King and what makes its use so vital?

Content matters for many reasons even as its clever use is critical.

Content Helps You:

1. Draw Visitors

Nowadays, most people surf to find what they could be interested in, and so offering information--through crisp and easy-to-understand language on the Internet--is the surest manner of drawing the targeted traffic to your business website.

In case you pepper your text with the words or phrases that the common users may use to get information through the search engines--like Google and Bing--your website will figure in the search results, with high rankings, perhaps, on the first pages.

2. Build Trust

Content helps build trust with your prospects. It may not be easy to sell your products or services sitting hundreds of miles away from your prospects.

The problem becomes acute when your prospects don't even know you, and have no idea how good (or bad) your products and services are.

But quality and well-written content, gives you a chance to overcome this hurdle, and connect and build trust with your would-be buyers and prospects.

It helps you show your guests who you are, how you care, and why you care. Content helps you show to your site visitors that they are special and matter for you.

The result: your prospects begin to trust you even as this shows in the success and growth of your business.

3. Exhibit Your Expertise

When you offer high-quality content that's related to the subject of your site, you not just draw your targeted prospects, you also show your proficiency in the field to those who matter for your business.

You inform your visitors that you are expert on the issue and know it inside out.

Your guests will obviously listen to you to improve their life, and follow your advice by using your services and buying your products.

4. Share Your Passion

If you are in any specific business, chances are high that you love it, because without having a passion for it, you will never run it in the first place, right?

Through your content, you get a chance to share your passion and love for your services or products with your prospects.

Minus the supporting content, it will be tough for you to do persuasive online marketing even as your prospects will find it difficult to figure-out what motivates you and keeps you in the business.

https://ezinearticles.com/?Why-Content-Is-King-Top-4-Reasons&id=10221896

Top 6 Digital Marketing Trends That Will Helps to Grow Your Business in 2020

Who would have thought that digital marketing will come to this far? With the onset of digital marketing, there were many marketers who had predicted that this would not go too far as it does not involve audiences face to face. But now look where we are. Today’s world is driven by digital technologies only. Whether it is the lifestyle, profession or marketing.

Today, every business marketing revolves around digital marketing. Every marketer takes the help of digital marketing trends to achieve their goals.

Make no mistake, we all live in a digitalized world. Marketing technology moves lightning-fast and the consumer’s behaviors and interests are as dynamic as ever. Marketers cannot wait at their store that the customers will come to their brands and make their buying decision.

It is the opposite of that now. The marketers have gone out to the people themselves to convince them to consume their products and services. But do not take me in the wrong way, here I am talking about digital methods that marketers are using to engage with their audiences.

Digital marketing trends in 2020

2020 has come up with many surprises. As a professional digital marketer, you must be aware of all the new trends that digital marketing is blessed with. Here are the surprises that it has come up for the digital marketing industry.

1. Voice Searches

“Alexa, ho many of America own a Smart Speaker”

“66.4 million”

That’s right you heard the Alexa correct. More than 66.4 million Americans own a smart speaker like Google Home or amazon echo. In addition, more than 40% of the searches on Google were voice query searches in 2019. And it is also estimated that this number will cross the 60% mark by the end of 2020.

So now you are getting my point. How much change does this voice query searches will be going to make? 2020 is the year that all digital marketers have become sensitive to this change and are implementing methods that can help them with the query search results.

2. Shoppable post

By you must have known how effective social media marketing is in online marketing. But the things that you do not know about social media marketing is the numbers.

How many people use social media for shopping? Which platform is suitable for running an influential marketing campaign? Which platforms help the audiences to discover new products and services?

These are some of the questions that most people ask themselves but cannot come with the answer. Then let me have the honour to answer you all.

Instagram is a platform that is widely used for influential marketing. And when it comes down to which platform helps audiences to discover new products and services, then that would be Pinterest.

Most of the social media platform has noticed that the audiences are using their platform to buy products. And have started using this opportunity to act as a bridge for the marketer and the audiences.

3. Interactive content

More than 90% of the audiences look for interactive content that appeals to them. Content like shoppable posts, VR/AR, 360-degree video, quiz, polls, contests and much more. People look forward to these kinds of content.

And if you are thinking about why attractive content, then here are the reasons:

• This type of dynamic content interacts with the people on a personal level.
• It gives then to stay on the page for a longer period of time
• As the content are sharable, people can share with their close one to have fun.
• These shares create your brand awareness.
• And tell me one thing, who does not like to interact with others.

4. Smart bidding in Google ads

Google automation is nothing new in the market, but thanks to the Google ad updates, we can expect new automation technology and smart bidding system to become a norm in the digital marketing world.

Google ads use Artificial intelligence learning technologies, to help you with the efficient bidding system. The latest announcement of the google ads makes it clear that google marketing lives will optimize your bids for the most prominent results.

This new update will increase the efficiency of the bids and reducing the irrelevant conversation.

5. Social messaging apps

The social messaging apps like Messenger, WhatsApp, WeChat, are now not limited to messaging only. These apps are being used actively by the marketer to communicate with their audience at a personal level.

If we consider only the Facebook messenger, more than 10 billion conversations happen between the audiences and brands. Messaging apps are getting popular nowadays for the customers because they think that it is more convenient that way to interact with the brands.

Here are the things messaging app do for the businesses:

• Establish a strong relationship between the brand and the audiences.
• It helps in educating the audiences about the brand.
• It helps in boosting the sales
• Attract new customers
• Retain loyal customers
• This way you will also be able to provide high-quality customer support to the customers.

6. Personalization

Personalized marketing is at a peak in 2020. Whatever ads, posters, banners, paid campaigns you see all around you are all personalized for a certain kind of audience. This is being down to attract the most relevant audiences that match your buyer’s persona.

There was a survey made on 1000 people, out of those thousand people, more than 90% of then confirmed that the ads or the paid campaign they have strictly matches with their need. This is what helped them to make their buying decision.

To do personalized marketing, you must be aware of what kind of audience you want for your brand and then create a plan of action to attract only those kinds of audiences that matches with your buyer’s persona.

Digital marketing is constantly changing. The trends that I have talked about in this article are some of the fresh trends that can be the next big thing in 2020. But that does not mean that we will stop looking at the new trends that might pop up in the middle of the year. Remember that, to be a successful digital marketer, you need to be proactive and flexible to cope up with all kinds of changes that digital marketing has to offer.

https://www.promotionworld.com/articles/digital-marketing/200413-top-6-digital-marketing-trends-will-helps-grow-your-business-2020

Why Visual Content Marketing Matters

30.7 million. 

That’s how many small businesses are in operation in the US, according to the U.S. Small Business Association.  And there, squat in the middle of them all, is your own startup. There are probably thousands competing just in your little niche corner, vying to be heard by your target audience with promotions, announcements, and ads. This means consumers are bombarded with all of these conflicting messages, and even if they catch a glimpse of you now and again,  they’ll forget you as soon as you’re not directly in front of them. 

If you’re going to make conversions, you’re going to have to stand out in the crowd. Here’s the trick: since the brain processes images 60,000x faster than text, the best way to get seen is by using unique, eye-catching visuals in your marketing that promote engagement and make your consumers feel they’re building a relationship with someone real instead of a corporation.   

Since unique, creative messaging is so crucial, it’s not surprising that the typical marketing budget for a successful business is extensive. Many companies are spending big bucks on graphic designers to come up with a steady stream of quality, professional promotional content. It is expensive and not always within reach of smaller businesses but it is no longer the only way to get the graphics you need.

Professional, eye-catching content is now available for anyone willing to spend fifteen minutes in front of the computer-- and you don’t even have to pay anything for it.  With online graphic design programs, design has become easy, quick, and affordable.  

Professional Graphics, Affordably Made? Yes Please!

Online design programs take graphic design from the realm of the professional and make engaging, stylish graphics attainable for everyone. Take PostermyWall as an example. It’s an online graphic design software that provides thousands of ready-made, professionally designed promotional design templates and millions of high-quality stock images, all in an easy to use, intuitive editor.

Think of it as a free graphic maker where all the ground work is done for you - you don’t have to hire a design expert or spend hours on your own trying to create engaging marketing visuals for your brand anymore. You can simply choose a template you like, customize it to your needs by changing anything from the text, fonts, colors to even the imagery of the template. 

Don’t forget to ensure that all your marketing graphics are on-brand so that your brand identity is strengthened and your audience is able to identify your brand more easily. Upload your logo and add your brand’s fonts to all your designs for consistent branding, or create a logo using any of the hundreds of logo templates available in the gallery. You can pick fonts that reflect your brand from the wide range available in the editor, and select clip art or images from the extensive built-in libraries.

Making a Splash on Social Media

You can use your online graphic editor to put together traditional marketing materials, but that’s only the beginning. As a small business, you stand to gain most if you center your marketing campaigns on social media - and if your social media game is good, you’ll have it made. A Texas Tech study showed that brands that engage on social media have stronger, more loyal followings. And with all the people on social media these days-- just Facebook, alone, is boasting 2.45 billion monthly users in 2019 - that gives you the potential to build a very large loyal following. 

What does it take to win on social media? Real, personable posts that your target audience can relate to. Engaging, eye-catching visuals. And consistency - regular posts, and a regular presence, that your fans discover they can count on. 

That’s digital marketing strategy for startups, 101. But it isn’t as hard as it might sound. If you’re authentic, on and offline, you’ll have the first one taken care of. Online graphic editors like PosterMyWall, with their full catalogue of social media templates, will set you up for success on the second. Choose stunning templates, customize to your needs, and then resize for any platform you need - for free. 

A little bit of planning in advance should enable you to keep your brand marketing on target when you feel like it and when you don’t. Even if you can’t count on yourself to remember to post those visuals when you mean to or need to make posts according to different time zones, you’ve got another good option: social media scheduling. With PosterMyWall’s Premium plan, you can schedule all your posts as you create them. They will appear, automatically, on the designated day. 

But wait, there’s one thing more. Pictures aren’t everything anymore. That scroll-stopping social media post that you pause to look at, finger poised in mid-air? More likely than not, it’s a video.

Visuals that Move, Visuals that Win

Video used to be the niche of the favored few; the few who could afford to hire spendy videography teams to shoot and produce promotional clips that sold their ware. Not anymore. In fact, the very same tools you’ve just learned how to use for your graphics can be used for videos too.

Videos are important for social media. Research shows that, when faced with a choice, 72% of consumers prefer to learn about a product through video than by any other means, 87% want more video from brands, and 79% of people have been convinced to buy a piece of software or app after watching a brand’s video.  72%. 87%. 79%. Those are very tidy majorities. So, take full advantage of online video-production tools that let you create stunning, professional videos in a matter of seconds. PosterMyWall, for example, has a huge library of thousands of video templates, easy to customize and resize for different platforms.

Not just on social media, small businesses can also make use of digital signage videos to put themselves on the map. Digital signage templates - in 4K resolution - are available on PosterMyWall, and it only takes a few minutes on your computer, laptop or mobile phone to brand one as yours. 

If you’re out of inspiration, a scroll through the template options will probably be enough to get your creative juices going. One feature to love about this video editor is the way you can mix and match galore - upload your own video for business and use their stock audio options, for instance, to liven it up. Or take an image design you love and turn it into a video by simply replacing the image with a video from the stock video library. The sky is the limit, and you’ll surprise yourself with the winning combinations you dream up. 

https://www.promotionworld.com/articles/digital-marketing/200423-why-visual-content-marketing-matters

How to Use Instagram to Promote Your Business in 2020!

Instagram Basics for Business

Instagram is a popular photo sharing service you might have seen your teenager using. Companies are using Instagram successfully, too. Here's an introduction to Instagram and how you can use it to market your business and engage your customers.

You’ve likely heard of Instagram but how do you use it for your business? We have all of the information you need to leverage the platform to drive customer engagement online.

What is Instagram?

You might be embarrassed to ask that question but before you know how to use it, you should know something about the platform, right? Don’t worry, you’re not the only person with that, question; everybody else is afraid to ask just like you.

As the “insta” implies, the platform is built on right now. You’re not going to find an amazingly convenient app that allows you to schedule your Instagram posts like you can with just about every other social media platform because what you post is supposed to be from right now.

Instagram is all about images. You’re not going to post an excerpt from your last blog article or a “we’re having a sale” message. This platform is where you post pictures that will entice emotion and send a brand message that is everything but salesy.

Instagram is candid. Think about what happened in your business in the past hour or day. Did somebody do something funny? Did a customer come in that you would like to highlight? Those are perfect Instagram moments.

Instagram is about video too. Not only can you post photos, but videos are fair game as well. Short, one-minute videos are all you get but don’t feel constrained. As you get used to it, you can tell a great story in one minute. Remember, it’s all about candid with everything Instagram. What happened in your business today that could make a great video? How about a happy customer who would speak for 60 seconds about his or her experience with your company?

How to Use Instagram for your Business

Enough of the explanations, you want to know how to put it to work for your company so let’s do it.

Tell Your Story with Images- A picture paints a thousand words, right? That’s the key with Instagram. How can you tell a story with a picture? In this picture from General Electric’s Instagram feed, a giant aircraft engine evokes the idea of “go big or go home.” Your business isn’t the size of GE but what happens as part of your day that is large and extraordinary? Every business has stories that have some “wow” factor.

Use Video- People love short, fast-loading videos that elicit emotion. A customer saying thanks, an employee talking about how much they love their job, a video from a charity function, and a “behind the scenes” look at your manufacturing process are just a few ideas.

Hold a Contest- How do you get people to your site? One way is to hold a contest. Tell customers to submit their best Instagram image using your product or service and a weekly winner will receive something.

Secret Codes- Closely related to the contest, place an image on your Instagram feed that has a code. Anybody who shows up with the code receives a discount or free gift.

How to Get People to Your Page

You’re probably thinking, “what good is it to put time and effort into my Instagram page if nobody notices?” Valid question! You have enough to do without adding Instagram to your daily activities but there are ways to do it that don’t take a lot of time.

First, advertise those contests and secret codes in your store, on your trucks, on your invoices, and everywhere else that customers see your company information.

Second, use your other social media channels, that may be better developed, to push people to your Instagram feed.

Next, be intentional about what you post. It’s better to put an hour into one great picture or video than it is to put an hour into a ton of uninspiring pictures just for the sake of getting something online. If you’re not the artistic type, ask somebody on your staff, a family member, or pay somebody a small amount. In business, quality is better than quantity in most cases.

Follow others. Find other businesses in your community and follow them. This will give you ideas as well as gain followers on your own page.

Also, follow the big brands. They pay agencies big bucks to devise a social media strategy. Shamelessly copy the strategy. If you see a cool idea, copy the concept using the branding of your own images.

Finally, be realistic. It will take time and effort to gain a following but if you’re giving your customers something valuable, it’s going to be well-worth your time.

You have a business to run and social media can’t be the center of your day. Do a little each day and you’ll see your efforts pay off with better-engaged customers that will lead to sales

https://www.businessknowhow.com/internet/instagram.htm

How to Get Your Business Found on Google

No matter what kind of business you have, you will benefit if people can find your business on Google because Google is typically the first place people search when looking for whatever it is you sell. Here are five things you can do to improve your search visibility on Google.

Depending upon the type of business you own, there are going to be marketing tools of more interest to your industry. Retailers may find a marketing haven on Pinterest, while B2Bs make valuable connections on LinkedIn. The one great unifier of all businesses? Google. Regardless of what type of business you run—B2B, retail, service, etc.—your customers and potential customers are going to search for you, or a need your business can fill, using Google. So, having higher visibility in searches is key to getting your business found. But how do you do you improve visibility on Google?

Think about it this way: Google is a business just like yours (well, maybe a bit bigger). Just like you strive to provide your customers with great service to keep them coming back, so does Google. This means that as a search engine, Google wants to have the best, most reputable and most relevant content listed first. Understanding that concept, there are steps you can take to improve your search visibility:

Social media matters

Helping you get discovered is one of the advantages of sites like Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest that’s often overlooked. Google recognizes that the size of your social media audience and the number of people sharing your content are reliable factors to consider when determining a source’s credibility. By maintaining an active social presence, sharing content on a regular basis, and engaging with your audience online, you’ll not only grow your community, but will strengthen your relationship with Google as well.

Continuous new content

Content in various forms is the driving force behind the many ways that people can find you online. By consistently publishing new content that’s relevant and helpful to your target audience, you can begin to build authority. As your content starts to generate more traffic and engagement from your readers, Google will give your content more support. This will not only help you attract more readers, but will provide a new door in which potential customers will soon be coming in through.

Website optimization

When someone lands on your site, they should be able to tell right away who you are, what you do, and how you can help. From there, they should also be able to find the most important details about your business right away. Provide descriptions of your business, your services, and the products you sell. Add links to additional resources and make sure people can easily navigate the content on your site. The easier it is for people to find that information, the easier it will be for Google to pull your content into a search result.

Take advantage of Google’s tools

If you have a blog, or write other content, get started with Google Authorship within Google+. By setting up your Authorship, you’ll have more opportunities to build credibility as a source of information, which can improve your chances of showing up in a search result. You should also make sure to claim your Google Local Page.

Manage and update your online listings

From online review sites like Yelp, to mobile apps like Foursquare, and city guides like Citysearch, it can be difficult to keep track of all the places your business is listed online. As a result, the information that’s being found can differ from site to site. This will confuse potential customers and could make it difficult for Google to identify your business and recognize the correct information as well. Make sure your information is consistent across all sites.

Start today!

Take a quick inventory of how your activity maps to some of these best practices—are there areas you can work on? Now’s the time to get started! Become more active on social media, start a blog to regularly publish new content, and make sure your business information is accurate wherever it is listed. 

How to Improve Your Google Rankings Fast: 9 Steps to Rank Higher Using Analytics

Social Media Marketing Tips: How To Post On Social Media To Make More Sales

What Should I Post on Social Media?

Writing posts for your social media accounts - posts that people actually like and share - can seem like a crap shoot. So what should you put on social media? Here are seven ideas.

Why is social media so difficult for business owners? Why are customers so fickle? Yesterday they seemed to like your post but today, what should be a social media home run produces nothing more than the sound of online crickets.

Nobody even acknowledged the post that you put a ton of time into creating. How do the best social media managers consistently engage their customers and how can you take some of their tricks and put them to work in your business?

Don’t Idolize Them

Before you look at the big brands and ask yourself why they do so well and you don’t, let’s clear up a misconception. The giant companies that hire teams of social media “experts” have the same frustrations. The team spends a lot of time putting together editorial calendars that require well-produced media like videos and images. Then, they post it and they’re left asking why the response was minimal.

Of course, the reason is that any number of variables come into play. First, just because you post something doesn’t mean people will see it. Social media platforms look at each of your posts and decide how many people to “serve” it to. If it sounds like an ad, and you’re not paying for the ad, it’s not likely that many people will see it.

There’s also the huge amount of competition. At any given time, there are hundreds or even thousands of posts waiting for your viewer’s eyes. And let’s be honest—you can’t compete with the newest baby or engagement announcements of that person’s friends and loved ones.

Everybody has the same struggles as you. It doesn’t matter if you’re an international conglomerate throwing around billions of dollars or the smallest of small businesses. Social is crowded and tough but here’s how to maximize your chances of impressive engagement.

1. DON’T Talk About Yourself

Can we be blunt for a moment? It’s for your own good. Nobody cares that you hired a new warehouse manager. Nobody cares that you repainted your storefront, and nobody cares that you just got a new certification. People only care about things that affect their own lives. Post things that stir some kind of emotion in your customers.

2. Showcase Your Products

While you don't want your Facebook page or Twitter feed to be one long ad, you do want to share info about your products or services in a way that helps customers and prospects get a better understanding of how what you're selling can solve a problem for them. Videos can be especially useful, but photos and even customer testimonials can help you accomplish this goal.

3. Add Value

You might not see baby pictures, cute dog videos, and the latest Facebook quiz as adding value but your customers disagree. They come to social to relax, have fun, laugh a little, and learn something.

What does that mean for you? If you’re an accountant, they would love to read an article about tax tips at the beginning of the year and they would love for you to tell them how to minimize their tax bill by taking certain steps throughout the year.

Your customers would also appreciate pictures of the company holiday party, and if your business fits into this, you could post something inspirational or uplifting.

They don’t care that you just expanded your store hours. They care that you’re human. That’s what they came to social media looking for. Hard sells don’t work online. Engaging with your customers like a friend is what creates value for your business online.

4. Be Responsive

Friends don’t ignore friends that talk to them. If somebody replies to one of your posts, reply back. Even if it’s negative, take a minute to respond and offer to make it right. Because of all the competition online, somebody replying to you is a HUGE win. Start a conversation with them. When others see that you reply to all comments, they’ll start commenting too.

5. Move Away from Text

Sadly, Americans are reading less. They would rather consume content through images and videos. We still read but in smaller doses—like texts or short e-mails but when given the choice, an increasing amount of people prefer video or imagery. Focus on that.

6. Make it Beautiful

Your videos don’t always have to be amazingly produced but to catch their eye, a beautiful image with bright colors will cause readers to stop on your posts more often, according to research. Good news—your phone is capable of taking great looking pictures. There are plenty of photography websites that can show you how to take eye-catching pictures.

7. Ask Them What They Want

The movie business knows this all too well. They pour millions into a movie only to watch it flop. Nobody likes it despite thousands of hours of planning, millions in marketing, and production that would make anybody say, “wow!” Any time you do something creative, sometimes it works and other times it doesn’t. Ask your customers what they would like to see? You could offer free T-shirts to people who have the best post idea. Get creative with how you engage your customers.

Bottom Line

Let’s be honest—social media takes a lot of time and potentially a lot of money to do well. Some businesses have no real need for a social media presence so don’t feel like you have to do it just because everybody else is. Pick one or two platforms and post regularly. A few times per week works but once or twice daily is ideal.

Try different types of posts and keep an eye on which perform well. There are few rules that work 100% of the time. Act like a friend online and you’re more likely to see positive results than if you acted like a business.

https://www.businessknowhow.com/internet/social-media-post-ideas.htm

Improve Your Online Presence | FatFank

How to Improve Your Online Presence

For your business to be successful, your online presence needs to be strong and healthy. Even if you aren't an expert, you can use these 8 tips to build your online presence. 

Words that come to mind when you’re trying to build an online presence—overwhelming, daunting, frustrating, and stressful, right? Not only is everybody competing for customer eyes and ears online, you have very little time to invest into what has become an essential task to business growth.

The good news is that you don’t have to stress out about this. Keep calm and get started. 

1. Make it Utilitarian 

Putting a sign next to your cash register or a little Facebook icon on your website isn’t going to cut it. Printing your website URL on your receipts won’t get you anywhere. Nobody is going to engage with you simply because you asked them to. Give them a reason to find you online.

Examples: Run a contest. Ask people to post pictures of themselves using your product. If people rely on your company for information, post it on your website or social media first. Find a reason that your customers have to find you online.

2. Limited Offers

You would think that people would be too wise to fall for the hard sell limited offer. NOPE!  Customers don’t want to miss out on something that is limited. Having limited offers on the home page of your website and sending out promotions will build your customer base. There’s plenty of market research that shows that telling people not to miss out still works.

Yes, “Act now to get 50% off” still works.

3. Create Advocates

You don’t have time to build your online presence but you can put people to work to do it for you. You just need advocates. Here’s one way: Let’s say you offer a $99 service that teaches people how to cook Mexican food. (No doubt, an amazing community service.)

You could offer people a $20 discount if they post a status on social media about the class. You can even create that ad and all they have to do is hit the share button and they get a coupon code for $20 off. Pretty cool, huh?

4. Improve Your Website

Your website is a giant piece of science. Every square centimeter matters. You should craft it as meticulously as you did your product or service. Every piece of it matters. Keep these things in mind:

a. Tell your customer who you are, what you do, and how they get it. If you don’t communicate that within the first 5 seconds of them finding your site, you will lose a large portion of your sales.

b. Tell them how you will solve their problem. Why are they looking for you? Speak to their problem and tell them how you can make it better.

c. Get rid of most of the text. They aren’t reading it anyway. Every word matters. Make all of them impactful. Less is more.

d. Don’t talk about yourself. They’re more interested in themselves than they are you or your business.

When you make your online presence into something for your customer instead of something that talks about you, they’ll begin to show up.

5. Your Social Media Playbook

There are literally millions of articles about how to use social media but here are a few quick tips. 

a. Not all businesses will benefit from social media but most do.

b. Pick one social media platform that matches your demographic. A teen business might use Snapchat while a business catering to those 30 and older might use Facebook.

c. You don’t need to be on every network. Pick 1 or 2.

d. Talk about your customers. Not yourself

e. Create community. Advertise sparingly.

f. If you want to advertise, pay for online advertising. It’s cheap compared to print.

g. Respond. If people start a conversation with your brand, continue it.

6. E-mail Isn’t Dead

Uninformed “experts” are sounding the alarm that e-mail is dead but the facts are that it’s still the best form of online outreach. Here’s how to do it right.

a. E-mail quality content less often. Once per week or every other week is fine.

b. Target customers. Sending offers for children to singles or couples without children is annoying to them, for example. Know your customer and send e-mails that they want to receive.

b. Use imagery. Pictures and videos are essential for customer engagement.

c. Include a call to action. It might not to be to purchase something but a learn more button or some other way for them to further engage is essential.

d. E-mail lawfully. Ask their permission before adding them to a list. Know the CAN-SPAM laws.

7. Join with Another Business to Drive Online Engagement

Looking for other businesses that have the same type of consumer is a great way to build your own customer base without having to pay high marketing fees. Partnering with them on a promotion is a great way to introduce your brand to more people. Work together to come up with an outreach where you could share costs and get bigger exposure.

8. Keeps Things Current

Too many business owners build a website without any plan of how to keep it fresh. People won’t pay attention if you don’t have anything new to say. Whether you build your online presence yourself or hire somebody, have a plan for constant updating. Who will own the website and social media? The ongoing maintenance is just as important as the initial build.

Bottom Line

Your online presence won’t just happen. You have to invest time and money into building a presence but also remember this: Your online presence will amplify the good and the bad of your business. If there are problems to fix in your business, don’t expect online to be the answer. Continue growing a great business and your online presence will make you shine.

https://www.businessknowhow.com/internet/improve-online-presence.htmHow to Improve Your Online Presence

Email Marketing Secrets: Here's What's Working Now!

A Dozen Guidelines for Using E-Mail

Email is one of the most-used ways of communicating in business, but not everyone knows how to use it correctly. Here are 12 e-mail guidelines that will improve your communications.

In most of the seminars I conduct for corporations and associations, I reserve time to talk about e-mail. Why? Because e-mail has become one of our most prominent means of internal and external communication. And guess what... our system did not come with a list of etiquette guidelines. So I offer these twelve tips:

E-Mail Is Not Confidential

"But," you protest, "I erased it after I read it or sent it." Yet a computer eraser is not like a pencil eraser. Those words haven't disappeared entirely. Just ask Bill Gates. He thought that e-mails about his rival Netscape were gone--until government researchers found them and used them in an antitrust case. My advice: "Put nothing in e-mail that you wouldn't put on an Interstate highway billboard."

E-Mail Isn't Always Delivered

"Bill," somebody says by phone, "guess you got my e-mail last week." I say that I didn't. "Now wait. . .it shows up on my SENT list." Even so, those words never landed on my screen. For your most vital messages, then, request confirmation of receipt.

Have Reasonable Expectations About Replies

Because some associates answer our e-mails within five minutes, we get spoiled. As a result, when others go a day or two without writing back, we feel snubbed. Remember, though, that people attend meetings, have appointments, travel and take days off. Anticipate the resulting delays.

Keep the Language Informal

A few months ago I mailed an article to an editor. In the old style of corresponding, he would have sent a five paragraph letter to respond. Using e-mail instead, he replied: "Got everything fine." What an appealing economy of words!

A warning: No sloppiness is allowed. We need to spell correctly and use acceptable grammar. As the editor illustrated in responding to me, complete sentences are not required, though. Agreed?

Be Careful with Humor or Avoid It Entirely

With e-mail, we don't have the advantage of facial expression, tone of voice or a friendly pat on the back. In person, you can get a laugh from "Betty, when are you going to learn to type with both hands?" In print, beware the reaction. Even the smiley-face sign may not prompt the lighthearted mood you are trying to create. So when in doubt, leave the humor out.

Reprimands Don't Belong on E-Mail 

Reprimands come across much more harshly in print than when spoken. Often this leads to a war of "nastygrams" (a delightful term borrowed from a public relations expert).

Unfortunately, for some managers e-mail has created a new channel for "zapping" employees. Supervisors write what they don't have the courage to say in person. The cure: Reserve negative appraisals for face-to-face dialogue.

E-Mail Should Not Replace Conversation

When e-mail first entered the workplace, this was my biggest fear. Those staff members who had become invisible by taking refuge in endless meetings added to their inaccessibility by resorting to e-mail entirely.

In one large company, the CEO noticed the trend. Wisely, he sent a notice (by e-mail, I suppose) that beginning the next day no one could send internal e-mails between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. If they had something to say during that span, they would go find the target person and tell him or her.

Be Double-Sure You Send the E-Mail to the Right Person

I failed on this once, so I know the unhappy consequences. Strange, but when you are writing about someone, they're on your mind so much that you can inadvertently address the e-mail to them. As a safeguard, check the recipient's name just before you hit the SEND button.

Train Your Employees on E-Mail Policies

It's weird that only one-third of American corporations do that. Then they wonder why employees play Solitaire, shop and send lists of jokes. Prevent these time-wasters by giving training classes and distributing written guidelines. I have helped clients establish these safeguards.

Avoid Spamming

Spamming means sending unsolicited, annoying e-mails. I am sure you don't want to do that. You can get permanently blacklisted by clients and prospects if you e-mail them without permission. Be sure your marketing communications don't make these email marketing mistakes.

Use Your Signature to Maximum Advantage

For example, mine provides contact information, along with links to my blog and Web site. Luckily, I have a system--Eudora Pro--that allows me to use the formal signature or exclude it.

Select Your E-Mail Title Carefully

The title is the "teaser" that can increase your chances of readership. Avoid "cutesy" titles that smack of advertising. Keep your title brief enough to fit the title line.

Try these dozen guidelines for using e-mail. Share them with your staff and employees. Soon your workplace communication will improve noticeably.

https://www.businessknowhow.com/internet/email-guidelines.htm

5 Social Media Rules to SAVE YOU TIME | Social Media Tips for Business

How to Save Time on Social Media

Social media can quickly become a time suck that takes away from valuable business activities. Here are a few tips for managing the amount of time you spend working your social media sites while still maintaining a strong social presence for your customers.

Managing all your business's social media accounts takes a lot of time. As a business person trying to make your mark on the fabric of the social media landscape, you’re probably spending 5 or more hours each week posting, commenting, and building ads. That doesn’t even take into account the amount of time you spend trying to figure out what to post! Some business owners report 20 or more hours per week.

What could you do with 5 hours? Unless you run a social media management business, you’re spending that 5 hours doing something that doesn’t directly produce sales. It’s not that it’s a waste of your time—hopefully—but it’s probably not making you as much money as you make when you’re directly working in your business.

There has to be a better way than spending 5 hours or more each week tweeting, Instagraming and Facebooking. 

In fact, there is. The old saying "work smart not hard" certainly applies to social media. You can’t remove the “hard work” from anything in business but you can definitely get smarter and more efficient with how you do it.

6 Tips for Saving Time Managing Your Social Media Accounts

1. Pick One or Two Social Media Platforms

Much of the conventional wisdom says that you have to make your mark on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest. Maybe also Reddit, LinkedIn, and now Periscope. Let’s be clear: You don’t have time for all of that. Pick one or two platforms and put your effort there.

How do you know which one? Twitter is for influencers. If you and your clientele are leaders in your field or otherwise influential people, Twitter is a good one. Facebook is the common person's platform—not geared to any one type of person. When their parents got a Facebook account, young people left en masse. If your average customer is a late 30-something and older, go there. Facebook still remains the melting pot social media platform and the most popular by far. Pinterest is for women, Instagram is for youthful, kind of cool people, and LinkedIn is for professionals.

In other words, go where your people are. Of course, there is some bleed-over so the labels above aren’t meant to be hard-and-fast but the stats show them to be true.

Pick one network and max it out. If you have help or you love social media, maybe pick two.

2. Schedule EVERYTHING!

There’s no need to do things in real time. You have a business to run. Facebook allows you to schedule posts within its platform but Hootsuite allows you to schedule for multiple platforms from within its dashboard—if you’re working in more than one. It even allows Instagram now. Other awesome features include an option to allow it to post at the optimum time based on its data analysis. It’s far from an exact science but worth a try. Best of all, it’s free!

If you want something a little more substantial that analyzes your engagement, try Sprout Social. There are numerous platforms on the market to help you post and track your effectiveness. You’ll probably have to pay a membership fee for the more advanced options but if you’re serious about getting an ROI, you need a means to measure it.

3. Get Your Employees to Help

The millennial generation was basically born into social media. They know how to use it instinctively. You probably have somebody on your staff that has a substantial following because they’re witty and entertaining. That’s your person!

Equip that person to take on your social media as part of their duties. They will probably hug you for allowing them to do what they love to do while getting paid for it. If you’re a one-person business, ask a family member or pay a young person some miniscule amount to do it.

4. Ask Your Customers for Help

Statistics show that user generated images receive far higher engagement than professional-looking images. Instead of you trying to take pictures for your social media efforts, ask your customers to do it. Run a contest. Tell them to send you a picture with your sign in it for a chance to win something. If you have events, set up a hashtag and run the same contest. Get creative. If your business directly serves the public, they’re probably taking pictures anyway.

5. Partner with Others

Do you work with non-competing businesses? Maybe you have local vendors that you use for product to serve your customers. Team up. Together, you can hire somebody to work both of your social media channels. Some businesses also team up and create a single page—maybe a community business Facebook page. Your business only has the ability to reach so many people but if you team up, the potential audience is much larger.

6. Know when NOT to Use Social

Not every business needs a social media presence. If you don’t like or understand social media, you don’t want to hire anybody, or you’re a manufacturing firm or other type of business that doesn’t serve the public, you shouldn’t feel bad about not using social media. Some will argue that you’re leaving customers behind but there are plenty of businesses that do just fine without a social media presence.

Go check out Apple’s Facebook page and Twitter presence for proof. You won’t find them. They have an app store presence and some of the company’s public figures have one but Apple the company doesn’t see a need. Either do a significant number of small business owners.

Concentrate on what makes money. If social media doesn’t, don’t feel obligated.

https://www.businessknowhow.com/internet/lesstimesocialmedia.htm