Cross-country marketing can be a fascinating thing. Companies can take the exact same product but market it entirely differently depending on the country they are in. For example, there might be completely different advertising campaigns for a product like Pepsi in Mexico, Canada, and the United States. This is despite the fact that they’re all located on the same continent, two of them primarily speak English, and it’s the same product. It all has to do with local conventions of the media, cultural differences, and values when it comes to marketing. Marketing on social media is a little bit like…
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Do me a favor. Go onto your Instagram or Facebook account and see how long it takes you to find a picture of a cat or dog. Don’t worry; I’ll wait. My guess is that it happened WAY faster than you expected. Pets have taken over the social media world. We might be torn apart by world events, pop culture, and trolling on social media, but there is one thing that brings us all together: Cute pictures of animals. So, the big question is, how can you harness the awesome power of pets to put a spotlight on your small…
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Get as much work done in as little time. This is the overriding goal in your head when you’re a small business owner. Time is money. If you only have a few hours every day to get everything done, you’re going to need to be super-efficient. Unfortunately, there are a ton of little, but essential tasks that can get in the way of your efficiency. For example, social media. Why You NEED Social Media Social media is a crucial part of every digital marketing strategy. Being on all of the major social media networks is how you reach out to…
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The funny thing about our social media networks is that we still don’t have any idea of their potential. Do you remember back when Facebook first made the scene? It was thought to be a digital Rolodex. Today, it’s a multimedia sharing hub and one of the premier marketing platforms in the world. Social media networks and other digital services often grow in ways that you can’t expect. Just look at Instagram. From its humble beginnings as a mobile-only Facebook knock-off, it’s emerged as the biggest competitor to Facebook (Well, sort of competitor, seeing as Facebook bought them). And we…
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When you’re a small business owner, your whole life is DIY! I remember as a kid, DIY usually meant fun “arts and crafts!” Boy, those days are long gone. As an entrepreneur and small business owner, I’ve learned that DIY means precisely that: do it yourself. Since you are often the only employee at your business, everything falls to you. For a lot of small business owners, that’s more than okay! People like us can be kind of “control freaks.” I know that I love having control over all aspects of my business! Not only does it save on the…
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Have you ever seen A Christmas Carol? The scene that always stuck with me as a small business owner was seeing Bob Cratchit having to stay late on Christmas to finish his work. Boy, I’ve been there (Although being my own boss, I guess I am sort of my own Scrooge too…)In December, there are so many things on your plate, from work to family, to the holidays themselves, that it can be tricky to get everything done by the last week of the year (not to mention stretching every dollar). But thankfully, there is a holiday miracle that can…
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We spend so much time talking about the marketing potential of Facebook and Instagram that we sometimes forget about a very popular social media service: Pinterest!Although Pinterest doesn’t necessarily have the same reach as Facebook (although that might change in the future), it does have over 200 million dedicated users who do one billion searches on it each month. That’s an incredible amount of activity and engagement. The big difference between Facebook and Pinterest is in their purpose. While Facebook is designed to bring people together, making is a fantastic way to connect with clients and customers, Pinterest is a…
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I like to think of myself as a veteran small business owner. Ever since my twenties, I’ve felt the drive to create my own work. It’s something that comes from within me, to create a business from nothing. I’m sure that many of the small business owners and entrepreneurs reading this blog can relate! I’ve been through ups and downs and have learned many lessons along the way. One of the most important lessons was the necessity of needing help. For the first ten years of my business, I did everything myself without any help. Not even a virtual assistant.…
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When was the last time that you got a really good night’s sleep? As a small business owner myself, I know what it’s like to have to have to work 12 to 14 hour days. Back when I first started my business, I would get up in the morning, work all day, and then go to sleep. It’s rewarding, no question, but also exhausting. And what choice do we have? As a small business owner, you’re responsible for everything and, if something doesn’t get done, the only person that you can blame is yourself. But what if it didn’t have…
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I honestly think that one of the bravest things a person can do is start a small business. They have to overcome so many obstacles, even before they take their first official steps. They have to deal with family and friends doubting them. They have to worry about the potential loss of income from their current job. They have to consider the current economic climate and judge if it’s a good time to open a small business. That’s an awful lot to have on your mind! As someone who has gone through it all, trust me, I know how much…
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