On Demand Creativity: Turn the Switch On |  |
- On Demand Creativity: Turn the Switch On
- Some Moments Are Better Because of the Struggle
- No More Facebook Welcome Tabs: 10 Tips for a Painless Transition to Timelines
- When It’s Time to Fire an Employee
- Marketing Mantras for a New Business Age
| On Demand Creativity: Turn the Switch On Posted: 29 Mar 2012 02:30 PM PDT I spend a lot of time marketing my business. To be heard over the 'online noise' and reach a lot of relevant people throughout the world is a trying challenge. It requires much more than banner ads and press releases.
While I am learning about all the things that possibly work with online marketing, it seems that doing things "well" require me to be creative at all times. However, every once in a while, a lot of us get the 'creative-block.' Or is it just me? Here are a few things that I do, to get inspiring ideas that move the dial: Overcoming Writer's Block A lot of us write online – on our own blog or guest posts, business or personal. I am writing this article right now, I write product updates on my own blog and emails communicating what we do, to prospective customers and partners. However, I often stop writing when I do not have fresh thoughts. I envy folks that can produce words and articles on demand. To overcome this, I came up with "story-telling" my thoughts. If I am thinking about a topic or a discussion or my product – I start writing a story around it. The best part about this is that it is honest. It requires no superficial effort to come up with dangling thoughts. The story will be a free-flow form of writing and you can extract the facts from it to write a more concise post. Overcoming Analytics While it is great to have access to where all your website visitors come from, it can be very frustrating when a good part of them fall under "direct" traffic. This means that they came to your site by typing your company URL or feeding your company name into Google. Hence, you do not know for sure where they heard about you or what source, referral or marketing activity worked. You could try asking them during a signup form, but usually that field has to be optional. You have to use some broad-brush approach to carry on all the wonderful things you are doing for marketing. Check the day's or week's traffic and if there is a spike, try to understand what happened during that period. Did an article or review on your company get published? The point is you cannot stop doing something which will give you consistent, long-term results just because you do not see traffic coming from that activity in real-time. There are word of mouth and gradual brand building efforts, which I have seen grow to a formidable number in our business. Overcoming Rejection You are doing content marketing and high energy social media stuff. Now what? Maybe a channel partner would really make an instrumental difference. You reach out to a few suitable partners and let them know how awesome you are. Some may respond or initially you may get nothing. You need to keep reiterating on what kinds of incentives make sense for different partners. Additionally, some of these partners may respond to you when you have more traction or frequent press. Reinventing and improving your proposals is not only going to land you good channel partners eventually, but also teach you more about your industry and product. While pursuing such initiatives, the creative aspect is in thinking of how you can help others. People will help you grow, if you can help them grow as well. What do you do to stay creative at work?
From Small Business Trends |
| Some Moments Are Better Because of the Struggle Posted: 29 Mar 2012 11:30 AM PDT Here's a common analogy: If you go through the fire, then you come out as pure gold. Of course, that's only true if you survive — if you don't intend to survive, then it's ashes for you.
Here's another one to consider: Coal under pressure produces diamonds. But again, if you don't handle that pressure well, then it could destroy you. Truth Is. . .Fire Burns And Pressure HurtsBut fire purifies and pressure trains. You decide. If you're in business, then struggle is a part of the process. All great ideas have to face the challenge of surviving in the real world. The struggle, the pressure, the fire — that's the price you pay for participating. But it carries a reward if you handle it well. In fact, some moments are better because of the struggle. When you push forward no matter what and make every effort to launch, build and win – then the result can be amazing. In fact, the process may turn you into something else altogether — bolder, wiser, kinder. There's Something About the ChallengeSomewhere in the process you discover tweaks and enhancements to your business model, your team or your product, that would not exist without the struggle (without the competition). I recently saw an episode of The Voice, and I was amazed by a duet between Anthony Evans and Jesse Campbell. Their take on Alicia Keys' song, If I Ain't Got You, was refreshing to say the least. But what stood out to me was the battle that produced the ballad. If they weren't in the competition, fighting for their position, then we wouldn't have this great moment and version of the song which carries 1 million plus views on YouTube versus the 24,000 plus views for the solo version by Mr. Campbell. So how does this relate to us?Imagine what you can create in the heat of the battle if you dig in and uncover the best of you and your team. Healthy competition places you in the company of talented others where the only thing you can control is yourself. And in order to make the most of the opportunity, you have to bring your "A" game. That includes calming your nerves, managing your fear and directing your energy toward the big picture. Then pushing your team to do the same. So, who's in your market and how are they making waves? How can you improve your products, services or your marketing to make for better competition? Remember, the goal is to learn from the struggle and to use the competition to enhance (or totally redesign) what you have. Instead of running from a challenge, learn from it because some moments are better because of the struggle. P.S. I wish The Voice would let me buy that duet . . . just sayin’.
From Small Business Trends |
| No More Facebook Welcome Tabs: 10 Tips for a Painless Transition to Timelines Posted: 29 Mar 2012 08:30 AM PDT Businesses may have gotten comfortable with the brand presence they built on their Facebook Page. However, on March 30th, 2012, their page is going to change. It will be reinvented in appearance and functionality. Of course, according to TechCrunch, only 10% of page traffic is driven by default landing pages, while the remaining 90% comes from published links and ads. So there is no reason to fret over this change.
Facebook has been notifying page admins through messages on their pages and giving them a preview as well. Lisa Barone wrote an article “Are You Ready For The New Facebook Pages?“ to give you a heads up on what’s coming. Even though change is always an inconvenience, the timeline is fast becoming the story of a Facebook user/business with apps and other Facebook page elements becoming tabs. It seems Facebook’s vision is to give page visitors the same experience as a website and also encourage story telling and graphics. A few days earlier I read this article by Justin Kistner of Webtrends who shared tips on the Facebook changes and how it affects marketers. Another ebook that I found very useful is an eBook Tips for a Pain-free Transition from Munish Gandhi, CEO of Hy.ly, a startup that is building promotional tools for Facebook. There are tips for small business owners who have their own Facebook pages to transition to the new Facebook Timeline. At first, it might seem like the new format does not have too much to offer in terms of getting business and engaging customers. But a thorough investigation will update you on some features that provide you with great potential to meet online goals. Listed below are 10 tips from the hy.ly eBook that you can implement to your business page to meet your goals:
Are you ready for the new Facebook changes to your page? Please share any additional tips you may have and feel free to comment on how you feel about the new changes.
From Small Business Trends |
| When It’s Time to Fire an Employee Posted: 29 Mar 2012 05:30 AM PDT For me, it began weeks before the end. A little niggling here and there when it took one of my writers longer than it should to complete a project. Or when I sensed the stress in her tone in an email. But I ignored it, as many of us do when we’re strapped for talent. In the end, it was a mutual parting, an admission that maybe this wasn’t the best fit.
When you run a small business and have a lot on your plate, firing an employee is never at the top of your list. But what if that employee is slowing your business down, or putting your reputation on the line? First, Identify the Problem If you have a sense that an employee is struggling or is an ill fit for his role, take the time to assess how you defined that role when you hired them. Where did they stray from the path? Has this always been a problem, or only more recently? Once you’ve pinpointed from your end what the issue is, schedule a meeting to get their take on it. It may be that there are personal issues that are keeping their performance under its normally stellar level. In that case, you may be able to address the issue and move forward together. Their lack of success may be due to your processes (or lack thereof) or other work impediments. It is your job as the business owner to remove any obstacles on the work front that may be impeding his success. Next, Be Honest With Yourself Sure, it’s easier not to fire someone, but if this employee is causing extra work, or keeping your company from growing, you’ve got to get over the fear of firing and just do it. If you’ve spoken to your employee as previously suggested, the firing should not come as a surprise. Resort to firing only if you have already exhausted other means for helping him succeed. The Nitty Gritty Firing should always be done privately, away from curious co-workers. Be prepared to provide reasons why you’re letting them go. This gives them some closure and also helps them know the areas they should work on to thrive at their next job. Be compassionate, but not overly so. I tend to get emotionally attached to my staff, so I see this as being a bit of a challenge. Don’t talk too much. Say what you need to say, then zip your lip. Your employee may have some things to say, and you should listen. Be sure to go over any severance or medical benefits details in the meeting, and provide paperwork on the same (because they may be in shock and not be truly listening). As a business owner, it’s your responsibility to ensure that you have the best staff for the job. Firing is simply the opposite side of the hiring coin, and it’s a necessity for your company’s success.
From Small Business Trends |
| Marketing Mantras for a New Business Age Posted: 29 Mar 2012 02:30 AM PDT There are many things changing in small business marketing today: new partnerships between larger and smaller businesses and new marketing mediums like text messaging with which to contend. Here are some links on the latest to point the way. Meditations for StartupsBig firms can point the way. If branding and marketing aren’t your company’s strong point, perhaps a mentor from big business can help. These companies found big time advisers eager to lend a hand. WSJ New channels offer new opportunities. Take text messaging and the chance to reach a whole new audience with immediacy. If you need tips on how to wield this new marketing tool, here they are. Entrepreneur Finding Your CenterKnowing what you do is key! Susan Oakes delivers a post on what should be the easiest question for any small business owner to answer. If you can’t answer it simply, make this the first step of your marketing journey. M4B Marketing Not all e-mail marketing is created equal. If you have an e-mail marketing campaign that doesn’t seem to be working, sometimes a simple diagnostic can help. Check the list of simple mistakes. Pitney Bowes Harnessing Positive EnergyDon’t be afraid to be yourself. When marketing your business, understand you cannot be all things to all people. Here’s how to let your true personal brand shine through. Marie Forleo Communication opens doors. If you aren’t communicating with customers or clients, then all your efforts are in vain. How can you make any progress at all without rolling up your sleeves and giving it your best effort? Seth Godin’s Blog Achieving BalanceKeep your focus in social media. Social media may be easy to use, but putting it to work effectively for your business takes time, imagination and focus. Consider some simple starting points. FixCourse Don’t be a twit about Twitter. Used correctly, it can be a tremendous tool for your small business. How can you make the most of those 140 characters and how do you build the following needed? Saying It Social Focusing InwardAlways have a unique voice. One of the best ways to do this these days is through your company blog. But the first step may be to be sure your blog has a distinctive style all its own. BusinessTips.ph Create great customer experience. This is probably the tallest order your small business has to fill, but it might ultimately be the most important. How can you make sure you’re doing your best? Startup Professionals Musings From Small Business Trends |
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