Email is your conversion instrument. It’s 40 times more effective than social media in this regard, so building your email list is one of the most important things you can do for your business. It pays to get started early, with a plan for segmentation and some simple automation as well.
Producing a Podcast: Pros and Cons
Have you ever thought about starting a podcast? It’s a great marketing tool, which is why I’m a big proponent of podcasting. Let’s take a look at the criteria for deciding whether or not it could be a good strategy for your business in particular.
Creating Effective Cornerstone Content
Cornerstone content supercharges your efficiency. It not only carries some the sales load, but it’s good for SEO too. With a little investment of time up front, it can pay dividends for years to come. Let’s look at why cornerstone content is so important, what it can do for your business, and a simple guide for how to get started.
GDPR and Email Marketing: A Simple Set-Up Guide
What is GDPR and how does it affect email marketing lists? Here’s an overview, with a practical way to be GDPR-compliant but not have to lose all of your subscribers. If you haven’t done this already, it’s not too late – but it’s time to take action so that you avoid a potential claim (and hefty fines).
Making the Fear Disappear
We all start out scared. But in order to be successful, you have to learn how to quiet the voice of fear in your head. It takes time, but making the fear disappear puts you in a position of power. You make better decisions, attract better customers, and produce better outcomes.
Surviving the First Few Months of a New Business
In the early days of a new business, structure is critical. Otherwise, how can you be sure that you are spending time on the right things – and that you are building something that your customers want? Episode 124 is about testing your initial assumptions to make sure you’re on the right track.
Why Pinterest Is on the Rise
Pinterest is often overlooked for business purposes. That’s a shame. Because Pinterest functions more like a “personal utility,” there’s potentially more alignment between a consumer’s goals and your business solution. Wouldn’t it be nice to have your message welcomed instead of avoided?
Finding Mentors and Models
What makes a great mentor, and more importantly, how do you know who will be the best mentor for you in particular? Here’s a rundown of the key things to look for – and key things to avoid.
Day 1 of Your New Business
The sooner you start interacting with and learning about your audience, the better. This starts on Day 1 of your new business – it’s too important to let it wait. A side benefit is that it gives you a system and structure for creating worthwhile content to serve your audience. Let’s take a look at exactly how to do that.
So You Want to Start a Business?
There’s so much to learn when you are starting a business, and the challenges that you will face are as unique as your own fingerprints. It will be up to you to chart your own path, but it helps to have a map. That’s why I created this 10-part series, taking you through my process as I built my own business.
Fixing Facebook: Why the Current Plan Will Fail
Mark Zuckerberg has vowed to fix the ills that have plagued Facebook over the past 18 months. There are 5 reasons why his plan won’t work.
Facebook Zero: What It Means for Small Businesses
In the season premiere of Marketing Without the Marketing, we jump right into how the upcoming Facebook algorithm change is going to affect YOU as a small business owner. There are 3 big ramifications, and 3 things you can do to prepare yourself.
Creativity Is a Business Imperative
You can draw people in with your creativity. Or you can repel them with annoying ads. We have a choice, and my strong belief is that the storytellers and artists will win, while the aggressors and interruptors will lose. Let’s commit to making every interaction with your audience either educate, inspire, enlighten, or entertain.
Advertising Offset Credits: Calculating the Cost of Ad Pollution
If we look at advertising like pollution, could we make the worst offenders pay a price for making us suffer bad ads? In this week’s episode, I explore the concept of Advertising Offset Credits and the cost of aggressive, self-serving advertising.
More Speculation About Facebook’s Future
There are some big changes coming to Facebook. Continuing the thread from last week’s episode, here is some speculation on how this might affect the Facebook Ad platform and a major change to the News Feed that Facebook is currently testing outside of the U.S.
Facebook Is Headed for Trouble: The Coming Storm
As the harsh spotlight illuminates dark posts, Russian ads and who-know-what-else, expect a backlash against Facebook. It may come in the form of regulations or user revolt, but it’s going to change Facebook a lot. It’s not a matter of if, but when. So if you use Facebook to promote your business or connect with customers, what can you do to prepare yourself?
From Adversity to Acceleration: Business Growth Strategies from Kelly Roach
Acceleration is something that most entrepreneurs seek, but often find to be out of reach. My guest this week is Kelly Roach, a former Fortune 500 executive who has an amazing story of career acceleration – both in her corporate career and in running her own agency. Kelly shares her story, along with strategies that you can apply to your own business.
How to Make Sure You Actually Own the Rights to Your Content
Do you have someone creating content for you? A writer, designer, video producer, or developer? If so, you want to make sure that you have clear ownership of the rights to that content. Episode 112 is about the risks of not having an IP clause in your vendor contracts.
The Customer Is Always Free to Go
You can’t force me to be loyal – that’s something you have to earn. Yet you see companies use a variety of methods to lock us in or make it difficult to leave. These cheap, short-term tactics may guarantee today’s revenue, but they will never add up to tomorrow’s loyalty.
Contracts Are Not a Trap
Signing a contract is often a big commitment for a client, and I want them to feel like the investment is low-risk. Here’s my counterintuitive approach to writing a contract that is clear and simple, fair to both sides, and starts from a point of mutual trust.