Granted, a large piece. But it is not, alone, the solution to the marketing challenges of any business.
At Star Power Connections, we offer a wide array of services to meet online business needs including strategizing, web design and development, social media training and support, email marketing and analytics. During our training sessions and webinars we frequently hear stories of folks being contacted by an 'online marketing' company that 'guarantees' front page Google ads with nothing more than monthly social media support. Of course, it sounds like a great deal; pay $500 and receive $5000 in business. The problem is that they NEVER deliver page one on Google and often actually harm search engine rank by the careless techniques that are used.
To get the results that you need, you must coordinate the direction of all of your marketing channels - networking, email campaigns, social media, traditional advertising, etc... - so that every aspect of your business is sending the same, consistent message in a timely, well-organized way. Rather than think in a campaign-oriented manner, focus your attention on how you can best serve a community of people who need your products or services. There is no benefit, for example, in building up a huge online community through Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn and rolling out a massive online marketing campaign for your upcoming product line if you are directing them to a site that does not offer fresh, relevant content, is not user-friendly and does not provide a place for them to immediately acquire your services and/or products. You are not serving your online community, just corraling them through a series of pointless maneuvers with no useful destination. You may have a great number of 'followers' or 'friends', but if there is no benefit to being in your community, they will not be loyal and will neither become your clients nor refer others to you.
The next time that you have an event or promotion, sit down and think it through to coordinate all avenues of marketing for the benefit of your community. What do THEY need to see/hear/learn? How can you reach them? Where are they getting - and sharing - information? After they see your ad/postcard/Facebook/email will they be able, within 2 clicks of the mouse, to see and purchase the products or services being offered?
Use your social media channels to announce in advance, create an interest and provide post-event details. Create how-to or informative videos and post online. Send out a great email to your contact database with your social media 'badges' at the bottom. Hand out flyers and cards that include the social media URLs. Provide samples, when appropriate, and network IN PERSON prior to the event, exchanging business cards and information. Advertise in local online and print media - there are still many free and affordable places to do this. Face to face communication is still the most powerful method of communication. Step away from the computer and go talk with your community members.
Sound like a lot of work? It can be at first. But, once you start listening to your community and learn where they 'hang out', you will quickly define a few relevant places to distribute and post your information for the best results. You will establish yourself as THE resource for your industry and folks will seek you out and send others to you. For a great example of how to coordinate the marketing channels to serve your community online, I love this link:
http://www.simplyzesty.com/social-media/butcher-increase-sales-social-media/
You can strategically and affordably utilize the tools that are available to you for the promotion of your business with a little research, planning and strategy. Contact us if you have questions, need help getting started or would like to know more about our services.
Stacey Rayos
Star Power Connections
Twitter: @GetStarPower
http://www.starpowerconnections.com/
while others go out and make it happen!
Sure there are a lucky few who make it BIG with very little effort… it seems, but in most cases an enormous amount of time and money go into it, not to mention the confusion involved with all the tactics, tools and techniques to sort through and change daily. If you’ve been watching the new hit reality series, Shark Tank, you see that entrepreneurs pour a lot of time, money and energy into what may seem like an overnight success from the outside looking in. It can be brutal in the business community and with today’s uncertain economy; there are more obstacles than ever before. There are also many new opportunities and unlimited possibilities if you can get a handle on your sales and marketing efforts and design a simple plan to communicate in a relevant manner with your target industry. Statistics show that the top three most effective methods of marketing are:
1) Client Referrals
2) Seminars/Events
3) Online Social Networking
At Star Power Connections, we recommend using a strategic plan designed especially for your business using these three methods while keeping your target market in mind. While this may seem an impossible quest for a small business owner or independent professional, with a few basic strategies, and by following us, we will help position you for celebrity status online (or at least slightly famous), while giving you valuable tools to monetize your efforts. Hmmmm….now that’s an interesting thought, isn’t it?
Stop for just a few minutes and answer the following questions to find out how prepared you are for stardom.
Do you have:
¨ a clear and precise branding message?
¨ a clear picture of your ideal customer?
¨ a strong fan club of talkers, advocates and champions?
Do you have time to:
¨ consistently stay in touch with your fan club?
¨ take part in conversations and network online regularly within your target industry?
¨ track and measure the results of your efforts?
Are you prepared to:
¨ make special guest appearances on a regular basis?
¨ give a presentation that sizzles on short notice?
¨ present a press kit that stands out in the crowd of competition?
Have you thought about how to monetize your efforts by:
¨ creating additional services, products and resources?
¨ holding virtual and live events to promote your products?
¨ maximizing your affiliations, associations and links with others?
As you answered these questions, you probably started thinking about how overwhelming it can be to keep up with all the marketing and promotional activities which need to be done, didn't you? Our goal is to bring awareness to what it takes to get to propel your success to the next level in an affordable and logical manner while eliminating wasteful marketing practices.
Stay tuned for weekly posts full of resources, actions and suggestions for becoming the celebrity professional you were meant to be.
Sure there are a lucky few who make it BIG with very little effort… it seems, but in most cases an enormous amount of time and money go into it, not to mention the confusion involved with all the tactics, tools and techniques to sort through and change daily. If you’ve been watching the new hit reality series, Shark Tank, you see that entrepreneurs pour a lot of time, money and energy into what may seem like an overnight success from the outside looking in. It can be brutal in the business community and with today’s uncertain economy; there are more obstacles than ever before. There are also many new opportunities and unlimited possibilities if you can get a handle on your sales and marketing efforts and design a simple plan to communicate in a relevant manner with your target industry. Statistics show that the top three most effective methods of marketing are:
1) Client Referrals
2) Seminars/Events
3) Online Social Networking
At Star Power Connections, we recommend using a strategic plan designed especially for your business using these three methods while keeping your target market in mind. While this may seem an impossible quest for a small business owner or independent professional, with a few basic strategies, and by following us, we will help position you for celebrity status online (or at least slightly famous), while giving you valuable tools to monetize your efforts. Hmmmm….now that’s an interesting thought, isn’t it?
Stop for just a few minutes and answer the following questions to find out how prepared you are for stardom.
Do you have:
¨ a clear and precise branding message?
¨ a clear picture of your ideal customer?
¨ a strong fan club of talkers, advocates and champions?
Do you have time to:
¨ consistently stay in touch with your fan club?
¨ take part in conversations and network online regularly within your target industry?
¨ track and measure the results of your efforts?
Are you prepared to:
¨ make special guest appearances on a regular basis?
¨ give a presentation that sizzles on short notice?
¨ present a press kit that stands out in the crowd of competition?
Have you thought about how to monetize your efforts by:
¨ creating additional services, products and resources?
¨ holding virtual and live events to promote your products?
¨ maximizing your affiliations, associations and links with others?
As you answered these questions, you probably started thinking about how overwhelming it can be to keep up with all the marketing and promotional activities which need to be done, didn't you? Our goal is to bring awareness to what it takes to get to propel your success to the next level in an affordable and logical manner while eliminating wasteful marketing practices.
Stay tuned for weekly posts full of resources, actions and suggestions for becoming the celebrity professional you were meant to be.
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