How much time are you focusing on Instagram for your business? Small businesses are always looking to make the most of their marketing dollars. Generally, their budgets aren’t huge, so they need to make the biggest impact possible for the lowest investment. That’s why you should be on Instagram! It’s one of the most effective, budget-friendly and hottest platforms right now! Instagram will reach 112.5 million U.S. users this year! That’s a 5.4% increase over 2019! It’s the fastest growing social media platform with 37% of American adults using it. And the gender mix is pretty fantastic with 52% of…
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What does the word “marketing” mean to you? Over the last few weeks, countless companies have been in a scramble. Trying to figure out a way to communicate with their customers during COVID-19. Their marketing used to be focused on big money spent on billboards, posters, and other traditional forms of marketing. Unfortunately, that would be money wasted while everyone is under stay-at-home orders. So, now they are putting their money into a highly-effective form of advertising that small businesses have been using for years: Enter digital marketing. Digital Marketing is an umbrella term that covers all aspects of marketing…
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Do you feel like you’re getting a little less “bang for your buck” from your marketing strategy plan lately? Digital marketing is one of the fastest moving targets on the internet. Things are constantly shifting and changing. New services appear and old ones disappear constantly. Google+, for example, was a “must” just a few years ago. Today? Uh, what’s Google+? This rapidly changing digital landscape means that you need to update your marketing plan every year (if not more often). If you’re basically doing the same thing you did in 2017, your digital marketing strategy is beyond ancient. But that’s…
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Ok, pop quiz time! What exactly is branding? I wouldn’t bother trying to look online for the answer. You look at 100 marketing websites, you’re going to find at least 100 slightly different ideas. Why is it so difficult to nail down a single definition of branding? It’s because branding… is huge. It’s massive. It encompasses everything about your business. Trying to shrink that down to a single sentence is nearly impossible. So I’m not going to try! Instead, I’m going to break it down that massive concept into some smaller pieces, helping you understand what branding means for YOU…
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Back in the early 80s, there was a saying that gained tremendous popularity in computing circles. Today, we would call it a meme. “Print is dead.” It was so popular that it was even used as a joke in Ghostbusters. Back then, the concepts of the paperless office and electronic mail was just starting to pick up steam. Of course, we know now that it wouldn’t be until the mid-90s that email would really take off, and decades until the paperless office became a reality. So, here is the question: now that digital technology has reached the point where we…
Read MoreLet me ask you a hypothetical question. Imagine you are looking for a virtual assistant to help with your small business (a fairly good bet, seeing as you’re here right now). You narrow your choices down to two VAs. To make your decision, you bring up their websites. Both of the sites look good. They are cleaned and polished, not looking dated at all. There are lots of services offered, some solid testimonials, and the graphics and copy are all high quality. Ah, but then you visit the “Blog” sections. In one of them, you see that they haven’t updated…
Read MoreOne of the most common questions that I get asked in free consultations is, “How do I grow my business?” And boy, is that a loaded question! As a virtual assistant, there are a ton of ways that I can help you grow your business, ranging from taking advantage of my digital marketing services to business coaching. But I have always found that one of the most effective methods is to host a webinar. A webinar is essentially an online seminar, and there are so many benefits to creating one! Figure Out What Aspect of Your Business You Would Like…
Read MoreThere’s a great Jerry Seinfeld comedy bit that perfectly sums up how some people feel about public speaking. “According to most studies, people’s number one fear is public speaking. Number two is death. Death is number two. Does that sound right? This means to the average person, if you go to a funeral, you’re better off in the casket than doing the eulogy.” In my experience working with clients, I’m afraid that I have to agree. Speaking in front of people is a fear born right out of “show and tell,” back when they were a kid. Getting up in…
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As small business owners, the internet has given us so much. It’s often used for procrastinating, with cat videos on YouTube or reading random articles on Wikipedia. But that’s the “bad” stuff. It’s also given us social media networks that we can use to connect with clients directly.
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Ad-blockers are on the rise. Boy, there’s a phrase that puts cold fear into the heart of any marketer or business owner! Marketing has been in a Cold War with ad-blockers ever since the early days of the internet. Ad-blockers are browser extensions that will automatically filter out all of the advertisements on a website before it loads. The result is that the viewer will get a website completely free of any ads. Great for the viewer, but not for the businesses that are buying ads on the site. Thankfully, there are a few ways that marketers can combat ad-blockers…
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