Marketing Tips & Tricks
Instagram Myths Demystified, Algorithm Explained [article] Instagram is a powerful way to keep your fans in tune with your latest news and updates, but their algorithm seems to always be changing. Here's the latest updates you DEFINITELY need to know as previous best practices and functions are no longer, here's the low down from Later, who also has a great free course on all that's Instagram. Read the article.
Easily Re-Send MailChimp Eblasts With 1 Tap [tip] Mailchimp is a great resource for keeping your followers, clients and/or fans up to date, but as inboxes continue to overflow, and open rates decrease, don't you wish there was a trick to get more opens? There is, just tap the "Campaigns" menu item at the bottom of their app, open your recently sent campaign, and voila, you'l find a "re-send to non-openers" at the bottom. It allows you to easily update anything before you re-send. We had trouble finding on their desktop version, but in their app, it was front and center.
Top FREE Cloud Storage & Syncing Systems for Storing Files, Especially Video [articles] If you're jumping into doing more video, you're probably quickly realizing that there's got to be an easier way to store and manage those large files. Here's an article by Zapier on their top finds. Read the article. We also follow a great video logistics/strategist on youtube, called Primal Video, and their recent how-to video on how to easily transfer video from phone to pc and vice versa was awesome, we love their VLC recommendation, it makes it so easy!
Easily Re-Send MailChimp Eblasts With 1 Tap [tip] Mailchimp is a great resource for keeping your followers, clients and/or fans up to date, but as inboxes continue to overflow, and open rates decrease, don't you wish there was a trick to get more opens? There is, just tap the "Campaigns" menu item at the bottom of their app, open your recently sent campaign, and voila, you'l find a "re-send to non-openers" at the bottom. It allows you to easily update anything before you re-send. We had trouble finding on their desktop version, but in their app, it was front and center.
Top FREE Cloud Storage & Syncing Systems for Storing Files, Especially Video [articles] If you're jumping into doing more video, you're probably quickly realizing that there's got to be an easier way to store and manage those large files. Here's an article by Zapier on their top finds. Read the article. We also follow a great video logistics/strategist on youtube, called Primal Video, and their recent how-to video on how to easily transfer video from phone to pc and vice versa was awesome, we love their VLC recommendation, it makes it so easy!
Instagram TV Is Here, Upload 60 Sec to 60 Min Videos [article] This is huge news for those of you who are producing video and hate to be limited to just 60 seconds of it on Insta. You now have the ability to have your own TV channel, literally. Brands are jumping on it like crazy, here's the scoop on all the details. Read the article.
Social Media Stories are Hot! You Can Now Advertise in Them [articles] Stories are huge as we've previously reported, but now as a business/brand, you can advertise in them. In the Facebook ad manager, you simply check a box and they'll reformat your ad for Instagram & Facebook stories. And if you're using Snapchat, here's where you need to go to get started. And if you're new to stories on Instagram, here's a super article from our favorite tutorial folks over at Later.
Here's How to Find LinkedIn Profiles More Likely To Respond [article] We're beginning to watch a lot more videos and read a bit more from Linkfluencer out of Australia. They're LinkedIn experts and have a step by step blog on how to search for profiles that are active on LinkedIn, which translates into increasing your chances of someone responding to your inquiry . Read the article.
Home Improvement Professionals Take Notice [article] Startups Handy, HomeAdvisor & Porch have partnered with Facebook as the initial rollout of various industries being able to let FB users book services as well as products with their listings. Get listed and leverage the power of Facebook. Read the article.
Manage/Discover Your Instagram Hashtags & Schedule Your Insta Posts [article] Later.com has a great service for managing your Insta account, plus they have all sorts of tutorials to get your program optimized. In this article read all about how to streamline the hashtag process and get your Insta streamlined. Read the article.
GDPR? It's Not Only For European Companies, Get The Details [article] If you're collecting people's information, especially those from overseas, you should take a read of how to be compliant. These changes are coming soon for U.S. consumer-based companies, so it's worth a read. Read the article.
Video Marketing, It's What You Should Be Doing [resource] If you own a business, you better be experimenting with getting your video program off the ground. Be sure to binge watch the Primal Video youtube channel for how to get started whether w/ your smart phone or full on set up, Take out your phone and get in the habit of documenting behind the scenes footage, if you say it's kid-friendly, show it's kid-friendly. If it's hand-picked, show that it's hand-picked. People love to watch TV vs. read so get on the bandwagon and start recording what you're up to, just be sure to stay relevant, leave the non-brand-relevant content for your personal profiles.
Facebook Story Advertising is Coming [article] If you haven't done your first Insta or FB story, just try it! Currently, it's one of the ways to work the algorithms that everyone is complaining about. And if you've seen the light, and have seen the benefit of FB ads, you're now going to be given the opportunity to advertise in FB stories. This article gives you the download on FB, Insta and Snap stories and the power they hold to tell your, ummm, story. Read the article.
Curious How To Set Up Your Instagram Shopping Links [article] If you haven't heard, you can actually now insert a direct way for Insta post viewers to purchase what you're featuring in your regular posts, not to mention optimize the shopping capability with your account. Here's a great article that walks you through the steps, from one of our favorite social resources, Later.
Is Your Business Ready for Voice Marketing, "Hey Alexa" [article] Here are 5 steps to prepare for what's already a huge marketing topic that if you get in front of it, learn and prepare your business, you won't be left in the dust when 50% of households and businesses in the near future are using digital assistants to make their life easier.
Quick Step to Bypass the Facebookmageddon [example] Here's a quick visual that Bike Magazine is promoting to fans to make sure they still appear in their followers' feeds. Might as well do it on Instagram too, here's our visual for Insta (see image below):
And here's a MUST READ on what you now need to be doing to get noticed as a business on Facebook, we'll be talking with our local social media pro, Karen Kefauver soon too to get the local take on what you need to be doing.
Instagram TV Is Here, Upload 60 Sec to 60 Min Videos [article] This is huge news for those of you who are producing video and hate to be limited to just 60 seconds of it on Insta. You now have the ability to have your own TV channel, literally. Brands are jumping on it like crazy, here's the scoop on all the details. Read the article.
Social Media Stories are Hot! You Can Now Advertise in Them [articles] Stories are huge as we've previously reported, but now as a business/brand, you can advertise in them. In the Facebook ad manager, you simply check a box and they'll reformat your ad for Instagram & Facebook stories. And if you're using Snapchat, here's where you need to go to get started. And if you're new to stories on Instagram, here's a super article from our favorite tutorial folks over at Later.
Here's How to Find LinkedIn Profiles More Likely To Respond [article] We're beginning to watch a lot more videos and read a bit more from Linkfluencer out of Australia. They're LinkedIn experts and have a step by step blog on how to search for profiles that are active on LinkedIn, which translates into increasing your chances of someone responding to your inquiry . Read the article.
Home Improvement Professionals Take Notice [article] Startups Handy, HomeAdvisor & Porch have partnered with Facebook as the initial rollout of various industries being able to let FB users book services as well as products with their listings. Get listed and leverage the power of Facebook. Read the article.
Manage/Discover Your Instagram Hashtags & Schedule Your Insta Posts [article] Later.com has a great service for managing your Insta account, plus they have all sorts of tutorials to get your program optimized. In this article read all about how to streamline the hashtag process and get your Insta streamlined. Read the article.
GDPR? It's Not Only For European Companies, Get The Details [article] If you're collecting people's information, especially those from overseas, you should take a read of how to be compliant. These changes are coming soon for U.S. consumer-based companies, so it's worth a read. Read the article.
Video Marketing, It's What You Should Be Doing [resource] If you own a business, you better be experimenting with getting your video program off the ground. Be sure to binge watch the Primal Video youtube channel for how to get started whether w/ your smart phone or full on set up, Take out your phone and get in the habit of documenting behind the scenes footage, if you say it's kid-friendly, show it's kid-friendly. If it's hand-picked, show that it's hand-picked. People love to watch TV vs. read so get on the bandwagon and start recording what you're up to, just be sure to stay relevant, leave the non-brand-relevant content for your personal profiles.
- Teleprompter app
- Laptop video editing software we like
- Phone-specific editing app
- Tripod that triples as compact tripod, monopod, and selfie-stick
Facebook Story Advertising is Coming [article] If you haven't done your first Insta or FB story, just try it! Currently, it's one of the ways to work the algorithms that everyone is complaining about. And if you've seen the light, and have seen the benefit of FB ads, you're now going to be given the opportunity to advertise in FB stories. This article gives you the download on FB, Insta and Snap stories and the power they hold to tell your, ummm, story. Read the article.
Curious How To Set Up Your Instagram Shopping Links [article] If you haven't heard, you can actually now insert a direct way for Insta post viewers to purchase what you're featuring in your regular posts, not to mention optimize the shopping capability with your account. Here's a great article that walks you through the steps, from one of our favorite social resources, Later.
Is Your Business Ready for Voice Marketing, "Hey Alexa" [article] Here are 5 steps to prepare for what's already a huge marketing topic that if you get in front of it, learn and prepare your business, you won't be left in the dust when 50% of households and businesses in the near future are using digital assistants to make their life easier.
Quick Step to Bypass the Facebookmageddon [example] Here's a quick visual that Bike Magazine is promoting to fans to make sure they still appear in their followers' feeds. Might as well do it on Instagram too, here's our visual for Insta (see image below):
And here's a MUST READ on what you now need to be doing to get noticed as a business on Facebook, we'll be talking with our local social media pro, Karen Kefauver soon too to get the local take on what you need to be doing.
Did You Hear Facebook's Big News for Business Pages? [video] In the coming weeks, there will be a change to the organic reach and placement of your content that you post, unless there are some dynamic, entertaining & conversational elements to what you're putting out there to the world. This is a video produced by a super resource and we will find out more soon. We plan on asking our go-to local, social media pro, Karen Kefauver to give us her take on how we should all prepare real soon.
Seven Retail Predictions for 2018: [article] We especially like prediction #7 as it really does serve local businesses right to develop strategic partnerships, we can't say it enough actually.
Overall Business Tip: We've tested out Asana.com as the perfect project management companion for any small business. It's extremely user-friendly, has an app that works supremely well, and it's FREE with an option to upgrade. We suggest you check it out as it's great for teams and making sure your marketing plan doesn't have anything falling through the cracks!
Using Instagram? Using Instagram LIVE? [article] Here's a great article on how to use Instagram LIVE and invite friends/followers to join your broadcast. It's Insta's latest upgrade, so take a look at the step-by-step guide.
Voice Is In The Spotlight, Here's How to Get In On It: Amazon's Alexa passed 10 million units sold in 2017, and you can imagine the numbers when it comes to its competitors. Here's a report on the extreme popularity of digital assistants, but use this article to understand how to become super-efficient as a business owner with Alexa. To get a 101 on what you need to know as a business owner who wants to be found by customers via voice, here's an intro article to get you started.
5 Ways Retail Brands Are Using Mobile Tech to Assist In-Store Shoppers [article] - If you're not already dabbling into how to optimize your customer experience for your tech-savvy shoppers, this article will get those wheels turning...this definitely needs to be on your radar as a small business owner!
Automate with Zapier.com: If you'd like to take care of one task and automatically have multiple actions take place, this is the FREE account you need to create now. Imagine being able to link LinkedIn, Facebook, email newsletter sign ups, Facebook ads and google docs together. Just a sample, check out Zapier.com.
Why Facebook Video Should Definitely Be Used [article] - If your customers utilize Facebook, this article reviews the latest Facebook app update that showcases video and they also cover the latest updates with regards to their LIVE feature that all of you should start to use...it's mentioned that app users view video content 5X longer!
Don't Forget About Your Customer Experience! [article] - Personalization of a customer's experience with you is key, if their customer journey with you isn't customized, unique and memorable, your marketing will be that much more difficult to produce results, here's some recent info on what's going on in this space.
Facebook Advertising 101 / Re-targeting With the Facebook Pixel: Starting to hear about how effective and affordable Facebook ads can be? And the added component of integrating a Facebook Pixel? We found a great article that explains it all with the "how-to" and laymen's terms explanation that we're all looking for.
Snap Chat 101, How & Why You Need to Start Using It [article] - even if your current customers don't use this platform, you should become well-versed in how it works so as it's adopted by those 34+, you'll be ahead of the game.
Why Your Website Layout is Crucial: Top 5 Things to Focus On [article] and one way to see if it's working is to use mouseflow.com, a free service that records each site visitors' journey so you can watch what they do. Plus they allow you to create funnels that are tracked so you have pure stats on whether visitors are following the path you want them on.
Update: This is brilliant, but mouseflow.com now has the ability for your to choose specific pages within your sales path or funnel that you're wanting website visitors to follow. They will (for free) track via all sorts of filters, your visitors' journey so you can pin point exactly where they're falling off. So not only can you watch it visually, but they'll provide specific sales journey tracts/funnels that you want to monitor...AWESOME!
Glimpse Into Why Online Retail Is Now Delving into Brick 'n Mortar & How You Can Fight Back [article]
Canva.com: If you're wanting to quickly create everything from flyers to social media graphics with simple "drag & drop" capability, those photos with wording overlays are just seconds away. Canva.com is the ultimate FREE resource, we use it several times a day, and just about every graphic on this website used Canva to get the job done. There's even a paid version for $12/month that automatically populates your fonts and colors into each design, plus there's a "magic resize" option that allows you to take a design and with a click of a button, resize it into probably 30 different types of different sized designs.
Purechat.com: We love PureChat.com because it's free and it gives you the ability to easily add a chat feature to your website. Consumers have no become accustomed to being able to get immediate answers, so with their app, you can answer potential customers' inqiries right away. And now they just added the ability to be notified when someone is on your website, which pages they're on and what they're clicking on. All pretty cool options so it's definitely worth checking out.
Automatically Track Your Mileage: Already use a mileage app, or maybe you use an excel and google directions...problem solved with MileIQ, an app that automatically tracks all your drives. You can set working hours, and when a drive is complete, you just swipe left for personal and to the right for business. So simple, and free for the first 40 drives each month. But it's only $3.95/month for unlimited drives. Pretty amazing, especially when it comes time to do your taxes.
Jump Into Doing Video Marketing: Use Your Phone: We love these guys, their videos are awesome and in this one, they explain the basics, tips and tricks to using video via your smart phone. We've used their tips and recommendations many times and while our editing and video skills are still in the works, they walk you through all the steps, enjoy!
I Love Sandwich Boards, Here's Why: Sandwich boards are so amazing because it gives you the ability to get people's attention as they're walking down the street past storefronts they've become so used to passing by, and in some cases, drivers too! Here's a quick video on the best practices of using sandwich boards, and don't forget to include a weather-proof holder on yours for people to take a reminder with them if they're in a hurry...don't rely on their memory to recall phone numbers and websites. And always be sure to create a "cool" sandwich board that matches your brand, it will stand out even more.
Keep Track of Your Competition or Clients' Online Presence: Built specifically for small business owners, the Perch app & FetchHudson.com website are constantly improving and adding more useful elements. You can now be immediately informed when your competition posts, is reviewed or updates their website. With the Perch app, you can monitor your competition's Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Yelp, Foursquare activity including that of their customers as well as their own accounts via daily emails or app notifications.
Seven Retail Predictions for 2018: [article] We especially like prediction #7 as it really does serve local businesses right to develop strategic partnerships, we can't say it enough actually.
Overall Business Tip: We've tested out Asana.com as the perfect project management companion for any small business. It's extremely user-friendly, has an app that works supremely well, and it's FREE with an option to upgrade. We suggest you check it out as it's great for teams and making sure your marketing plan doesn't have anything falling through the cracks!
Using Instagram? Using Instagram LIVE? [article] Here's a great article on how to use Instagram LIVE and invite friends/followers to join your broadcast. It's Insta's latest upgrade, so take a look at the step-by-step guide.
Voice Is In The Spotlight, Here's How to Get In On It: Amazon's Alexa passed 10 million units sold in 2017, and you can imagine the numbers when it comes to its competitors. Here's a report on the extreme popularity of digital assistants, but use this article to understand how to become super-efficient as a business owner with Alexa. To get a 101 on what you need to know as a business owner who wants to be found by customers via voice, here's an intro article to get you started.
5 Ways Retail Brands Are Using Mobile Tech to Assist In-Store Shoppers [article] - If you're not already dabbling into how to optimize your customer experience for your tech-savvy shoppers, this article will get those wheels turning...this definitely needs to be on your radar as a small business owner!
Automate with Zapier.com: If you'd like to take care of one task and automatically have multiple actions take place, this is the FREE account you need to create now. Imagine being able to link LinkedIn, Facebook, email newsletter sign ups, Facebook ads and google docs together. Just a sample, check out Zapier.com.
Why Facebook Video Should Definitely Be Used [article] - If your customers utilize Facebook, this article reviews the latest Facebook app update that showcases video and they also cover the latest updates with regards to their LIVE feature that all of you should start to use...it's mentioned that app users view video content 5X longer!
Don't Forget About Your Customer Experience! [article] - Personalization of a customer's experience with you is key, if their customer journey with you isn't customized, unique and memorable, your marketing will be that much more difficult to produce results, here's some recent info on what's going on in this space.
Facebook Advertising 101 / Re-targeting With the Facebook Pixel: Starting to hear about how effective and affordable Facebook ads can be? And the added component of integrating a Facebook Pixel? We found a great article that explains it all with the "how-to" and laymen's terms explanation that we're all looking for.
- Facebook Pixel (scroll to #3 for retargeting, it gets a bit technical, but they explain it all)
- Overall Facebook Advertising
Snap Chat 101, How & Why You Need to Start Using It [article] - even if your current customers don't use this platform, you should become well-versed in how it works so as it's adopted by those 34+, you'll be ahead of the game.
Why Your Website Layout is Crucial: Top 5 Things to Focus On [article] and one way to see if it's working is to use mouseflow.com, a free service that records each site visitors' journey so you can watch what they do. Plus they allow you to create funnels that are tracked so you have pure stats on whether visitors are following the path you want them on.
Update: This is brilliant, but mouseflow.com now has the ability for your to choose specific pages within your sales path or funnel that you're wanting website visitors to follow. They will (for free) track via all sorts of filters, your visitors' journey so you can pin point exactly where they're falling off. So not only can you watch it visually, but they'll provide specific sales journey tracts/funnels that you want to monitor...AWESOME!
Glimpse Into Why Online Retail Is Now Delving into Brick 'n Mortar & How You Can Fight Back [article]
Canva.com: If you're wanting to quickly create everything from flyers to social media graphics with simple "drag & drop" capability, those photos with wording overlays are just seconds away. Canva.com is the ultimate FREE resource, we use it several times a day, and just about every graphic on this website used Canva to get the job done. There's even a paid version for $12/month that automatically populates your fonts and colors into each design, plus there's a "magic resize" option that allows you to take a design and with a click of a button, resize it into probably 30 different types of different sized designs.
Purechat.com: We love PureChat.com because it's free and it gives you the ability to easily add a chat feature to your website. Consumers have no become accustomed to being able to get immediate answers, so with their app, you can answer potential customers' inqiries right away. And now they just added the ability to be notified when someone is on your website, which pages they're on and what they're clicking on. All pretty cool options so it's definitely worth checking out.
Automatically Track Your Mileage: Already use a mileage app, or maybe you use an excel and google directions...problem solved with MileIQ, an app that automatically tracks all your drives. You can set working hours, and when a drive is complete, you just swipe left for personal and to the right for business. So simple, and free for the first 40 drives each month. But it's only $3.95/month for unlimited drives. Pretty amazing, especially when it comes time to do your taxes.
Jump Into Doing Video Marketing: Use Your Phone: We love these guys, their videos are awesome and in this one, they explain the basics, tips and tricks to using video via your smart phone. We've used their tips and recommendations many times and while our editing and video skills are still in the works, they walk you through all the steps, enjoy!
I Love Sandwich Boards, Here's Why: Sandwich boards are so amazing because it gives you the ability to get people's attention as they're walking down the street past storefronts they've become so used to passing by, and in some cases, drivers too! Here's a quick video on the best practices of using sandwich boards, and don't forget to include a weather-proof holder on yours for people to take a reminder with them if they're in a hurry...don't rely on their memory to recall phone numbers and websites. And always be sure to create a "cool" sandwich board that matches your brand, it will stand out even more.
Keep Track of Your Competition or Clients' Online Presence: Built specifically for small business owners, the Perch app & FetchHudson.com website are constantly improving and adding more useful elements. You can now be immediately informed when your competition posts, is reviewed or updates their website. With the Perch app, you can monitor your competition's Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Yelp, Foursquare activity including that of their customers as well as their own accounts via daily emails or app notifications.