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What is a Customer Value Ladder and Why You Need One

What is a Customer Value Ladder and Why You Need One

When working on online marketing strategies, have you come across the term “Customer Value Ladder” as an online engagement and buying journey?

If you are not familiar with the term yet and are just starting out to discover digital business strategies, this article will help explain what it means and why we should look into preparing one as part of your digital enablement and online sales and marketing funnel plan.

Customer focus journey-planning tool

In general, a value ladder is a visual representation of your product and service offerings and its different tiers of engagement. It co-relates to the lifetime value of a client and continued transactions with you online and offline.

By working out a customer value ladder for your business as a key marketing plan is to determine the journey a potential customer takes to become a loyal and potentially high value advocate.

The customer value ladder as a process

A value ladder is a process of mapping out what you offer visually and thinking of ways to introduce them to your customers with the ultimate goal of increasing the value exchange. In a simple sense, as the customer or client ascends the ladder, the value of the product and services increases, and your level of engagement ultimately increases too. Through a value ladder, you can create a map to nurture prospects into customers to follow, plan the level of service value they will receive as they move through your sales funnel.

In the process of the customer value ladder, you are building a prospect and customer’s trust, as they move up the ladder.

Here’s a short description of how the ladder works when plotted visually:

  • At the bottom of the ladder, the customer or client learned about your products or services. You may offer a free “taster” or samples at a low-cost fee to capture their interest. This could be a podcast, a free discovery meeting, a low-end product.
    Here, they became aware of your business and they either engage or subscribe to continue to receive something of value like an email or a free online course or service delivered online. 
     
  • When the customer or client has seen the value of what you offer, you can start by offering ongoing promotions and other offers via email marketing or group calls, product sales webinars, or in-person consultations.
    During this time, they have an interest in buying a higher level of service or engage your services at the next stage to help them solve their problem or achieve a higher need. At this level, you start to convert customers to have gotten to know, like, and willing to dive deeper into your offering.
     
  • When a customer or client reached the top of the ladder, they have entrusted you and engage and experience your offering.
    They start to make repurchases, move to higher level partner program or service offering. They could also potentially be an advocate or affiliate partner who co-promote your products or services to others via their testimonial or referer you to their networks in person or online.

Putting time and effort into creating a good visual representation for your value ladder is something worth investing in.

This will ultimately help you determine your steps in building customer trust and eventually increase your product or service value. Here, you can identify what works best in terms of conversion. This will also help you build long-term relationships with your customers.

How we can help

Revive Me Web & Marketing is always ready to help you build your customer value ladder, if you are interested to have one for your business, send us a message and we can review which area of building your online marketing funnel that we can be of assistance.

Top 3 reasons to refresh or redesign your website

Top 3 reasons to refresh or redesign your website

Thinking about updating your website?
Should you
A) work on updating the content and refresh the style and theme on your existing website, or
B) opt for a total make-over and redesign your website?

There are several considerations to make, as your website plays a very important role in communicating your business and services to both existing and potential customers.

If making your website attractive is a priority read about the top 3 reasons to refresh or redesign a website with Revive Me Web & Marketing.

1) Improve User Experience & Update Brand Promise

To review your website is to take the time to consider what are the most important elements that your audience is looking for.

When you start to review your  “User Experience”, we start to review our web visitor’s experience. Are you presenting the impression of your business point of difference from the others? Is your website simple to use? Is it intuitive for the users to navigate around and find the information that they want? 

Once your  users find the resources that they may be looking for, does your website have the capacity to lead them to do specific actions you want them to take? Like check up online courses available or surveys on your website?
Website redesigning is essential generally once every four to six years, especially when visitors and the audience needs changes and we want to serve
their needs and actions online with ease.

This includes ensuring that the website has a pleasing design and colours to the audience it wants to attract.
Well written information and visual content that connects well to your audience. And easy navigation to common services, pricing information,  your process or methodology, quality assurance, the opportunity to give reviews and feedback, and frequently asked questions.

If people are arriving on your website, perusing but not taking an action, then your website structure and content strategy needs to be reviewed.

If you have an existing website with plenty of well-served and read content, but you like to get more online sales , then ensure that you have both outstanding user experience and relevant brand promise.

Note: Quite often, it is easier to set up a new demo website. either as a replica of an existing website to change its structure and theme. Or set up a totally new website with a new theme and rebrand with a whole new brand promise, web structure (also sometimes known as a wireframe), colour scheme,  typography, images and site navigation plan.

2) Remove the outdated content & backend codes

With a website redesign and content management upgrade, you will be able to remove codes that have become outdated and use older server versions that slow down the website’s loading and functioning time. This impacts your SEO rankings by as much as 18% according to Google’s 2020 algorithm rankings.

Upgrading your website and the system can help to increase download speeds.

(Note: If your content management system is subscription-based, for example, Wix, Squarespace, Rocketspark, or Shopify for eCommerce sites then you don’t have to worry about obsolete code).

On the downside, you could be limited by the design of the template and need 3rd party integration or not sure how to get some tools working properly. We can integrate content and look for opportunities i.e plugin booking systems on the website as required.

Since 2017, Google has also suggested that websites use caching and minify (reduce file sizes) CSS and Javascripts. This action will enable your website to load faster.

3) Improve web structure and visibility

The third reason to redesign your website is to strengthen the domain and website security, by improving your web structure. This includes removing any obsolete links, create a mobile-friendly website, as most people are browsing through their smartphones on the go, or use multiple screen sizes and devices.  Improving your website structure would also help with visibility- which also means your search engine ranking position (SERP).

Use a tracking application called Hotjar. Hotjar allows you to record actions of website visitors and be able to see how they currently peruse the site. From Hotjar, we can review actual web visitors behaviour, the clicks throughs and page actions,if the web session resulted in a positive action, or were they deterred and abandon the site as they were not engaged with your website content, or had difficulties or are distracted and abandon the site search.

How Revive Me Web and Marketing Team can help

When we work on a client’s website refresh or redesign, the first part of our process is to review how visitors are using your website.  We start by capturing a recording of visitors with an application called Hotjar (web traffic analyzing application).

We then map out the top content and links that a visitor clicks on while perusing your website. Next, we identify and remove any redundant information, redirect error or missing pages, recategorise services, or remove unnecessary or separate content that could be ‘hurtful’ for your search results.

It is important to note that if your content management system is a subscription-based one like Wix, Squarespace, or Shopify for eCommerce, then you don’t have to worry about obsolete code, but you will be limited by design and delivery customisation and will have to rely on what is available to you. Upgrading your website and system helps to increase download speeds.

If you like to improve your website and turn on your web sales and booking engine, Revive Me Web and Marketing Team can help you refresh or redesign your website.

We can integrate smart applications, research content topics and maintain your website for better rank position and attract traffic (SEO), as well as implement Google Search or Display Ads to attract more high-value and repeat clients.

Get a free website audit and chat with us today.

Get our 9-point checklist to help you redesign and refresh your website when you book a 30min Discovery Consult.

What is your brand archetype and brand story?

What is your brand archetype and brand story?

 Building a relationship with your customers can ensure a long and healthy relationship.
By defining what your brand stands for (your brand archetype) and its’ brand personality, you can build stronger brand affinity with your tribe of customers and key partners to support the growth of your business.

Brand affinity describes consumers who believe a particular brand shares common values with them. These shared values help build a relationship that tends to retain loyal customers for longer. This helps increase their emotional reasoning behind their purchase decisions.

The key is understanding the audience you are selling to and selling them a consistent message.

Is there a particular brand that you are attached to? Have you ever felt how connected you are to that brand?

 

A brand can sell or provide similar things or services but there will always be that one brand that appeals to you more than the other.

Take luxury brands Chanel and Louis Vuitton for example. Chanel tells the story of beauty, of a sensual, loving, yet powerful woman. Louis Vuitton on the other hand, tells about success, control, and refinement.
The two brands may sell similar products but they appeal to two different markets: those who admire the beauty and those who appreciate success.

In marketing, this is what you call the brand archetype or the personality that the brand portrays.

Top brands work and continue to work hard to perfect their archetype.
They may constantly re-brand but their brand personality remains the same.
They work hard to develop this personality that would appeal to their target audience even in the long run.

Are you in the process of building your own brand archetype?
How would you create the right character and persona that would perfectly fit your brand and company?


The concept behind the Brand Archetype

The overall concept of the brand archetype of brand personality began with Carl Jung, a psychologist who was working with Sigmund Freud, the famous Austrian neurologist. According to Jung, every individual has a dominant personality or trait. By embracing a personality to embody a particular brand, a company can connect to its target audience on a more personal or emotional level. They are able to show their customers or target market that they understand what they need and want.  There are 12 brand archetypes according to Carl Jung: The Innocent, Everyman, Hero, Outlaw, Explorer, Creator, Ruler, Magician, Lover, Caregiver, Jester, and Sage.  1. The Innocent.
They are honest, optimistic, simple, and joyful. They are into promoting joy and good vibes. One classic example is Coca Cola which promotes spreading happiness all around.


2. The Everyman.

They are friendly, casual, and authentic. They don’t want to stand out from the crowd and just basically enjoy being normal and average. Ikea is a good example of this brand archetype that offers affordable and easy to use products for the average people.


3. The Hero.

They are inspirational and courageous and wish nothing but to make the world a better place to live in. Nike’s ads and campaigns focused on this one. 


4. The Outlaw.

They love their freedom and personal choices. The outlaws are aggressive and value change. Harley Davidson is an example of the outlaw archetype. Their campaigns focus on encouraging their audience to be bold. 


5. The Explorer.

They love travelling, exploring, and the thrill of discovering. They find fulfilment in their freedom to thread in a different path. Car companies usually have this type of brand archetype because they promote smooth journeys and adventures. 


6. The Creator.

They are imaginative and would often want to create things with great value. Apple and Lego are two of the most well-loved brands with the Creator archetype. Apple is innovative and wants to provide products that appeal to personality. Lego on the other hand encourages people (especially children with great imagination) to build. 


7. The Ruler.

They are powerful, refined, and organized and they know what they want. They have the ability to influence other people by being dominating ones but almost always in a good way. Luxury brands like Louis Vuitton and Rolex that promote wealth and success are good examples. 


8. The Magician.

They are all about making dreams come true. The Magician brands always work to turn ordinary things into something magical and a classic example is Disney which is able to insert all things magic on their films, ads, and campaigns. This does not necessarily mean an escape to reality but finding also ultimate joy in simple things. 


9. The Lover.

They are sensual, passionate, and romantic. They enjoy emotional connections. Brands that focus on beauty and aesthetics use this as their brand archetype. Chanel is a good example with extremely beautiful and attractive ads targeting women. 


10. The Caregiver.

They are warm, nurturing, and compassionate. Baby brands usually use this brand archetype to promote what they have. Two classic examples are Pampers and Johnson and Johnson’s whose campaigns always focus on providing security and protection. Just like what a mother would always do to her child. 


11. The Jester.

They love to have fun and take things lightly. They always encourage people to laugh and loosen up a little. Jester brands are usually found in entertainment and food just like M&Ms which advocates bringing the fun to where you are with their chocolates.

12. The Sage.
They are very knowledgeable and dependable. You can lean on them for information. They are the thought leaders, coaches, and mentors. Google managed to be one of the world’s most important sources of knowledge. While it does not directly give answers but gives us a variety of options through searches, individuals look up to it and depend on the information it provides.

 

On Re/Creating your Brand Archetype

When building your brand, the first step you need to focus on is creating a solid identity.
People are drawn to the brand archetype and personality they can relate with. Having an archetype can help you clarify your message and attract the right target audience to your business. At Revive Me Marketing, we believe that it starts with reflecting on your business and personal values.

For instance, do you favour simplicity or outrageous decadent styles? If you are in a service-based and/or knowledge-based business?
What qualities do you and your team currently accord to your clients? This could be personalised and of the utmost quality of care with service and experience.

When working with our clients who are redesigning their websites or setting up a new one for their current or new venture, we have found that by asking your team, customers and associates on what qualities they value as part of the experience an integral process to define and/or clarify your brand archetype and personality.

You could also review this with the qualities of the twelve brand archetypes discussed before and select the one you relate to the most.

Once you determine your brand archetype, we may check with you are currently communicating these values with consistency, both your visual brand identity (logos, images and font) and brand message (taglines, slogan, narratives) to the public.

These could include presentations such as your website, social media, brochures, videos, editorials, and even press releases.

 

On growing with your brand affinity and attraction

Growing your brand affinity and attraction has to be intentional if we are to build a growing audience and scale our business following. 

We have a brand designer with several graphic associates with capabilities to help you build your overall brand strategy, brand narratives, and messages prepared for various media and communications purposes, such as website content, press release, and social media campaigns.

By working with us, you have an on-boarding team who helps you to test and validate your message and ensure that you have consistency in your communications media going forward.

Contact us if you would like a brand assessment

We specialise in helping you clarify your brand identity and archetype, so that you can build better brand affinity, and attract the right tribe of customers and supporters to you. 

Have you read about "Top 3 reasons to refresh or redesign your website"?

How to create a brand story to build trust and connection

How to create a brand story to build trust and connection

How to create a brand story that is authentic, builds trust, and connection to your desired audience?

People are engaged by emotions and intentions.

“He who tells sells,” is a universal marketing mantra for a reason. Because stories are everywhere in our lives, we have found that business leaders who attend to their brands  – just an author write a book, or a director directs a movie – have to understand their own story, appreciate the journeys their customers are on, and connect the two worlds through shared values captured in the narrative.

Brand stories are not marketing materials. They are not ads, and they are not sales pitches. Brand stories should be told with the brand persona and the writer’s personality at the center stage. Boring stories won’t attract and retain readers, but stories brimming with personality can. 

A brand story is more than a narrative.

The story goes beyond the copy on your website, the text in a brochure, or the presentation used to pitch to investors. Your story isn’t just what you tell people. It’s what they believe about you based on the signals your brand sends and the service they receive from you and your team. The story is a complete picture made up of facts, feelings, and interpretations, which means that part of your story isn’t even told by you.

Do you have a clear brand story and personality that aligns with the audience you are trying to attract?

Think about the brands that you do consume, what is the essence of the brand that you feel connected to? Is it the perceived value, the personality, or connection that you have in the interaction and experience? Often it is all of them.  There are many ways to tell a story, in this article, we share the progressive brand story-telling method.

Every story has a beginning, a middle, and an end.
Here are the seven steps to creating a natural progression to your brand story.

  1. Beginning: Back story.
    Where in the world have you been, where are you now, and where are you going?
    Problem. Explain the problem that you have set out to solve.
  2. Middle: Hero
    Who is the hero of your brand story – and what do they care about?
    What are the obstacles they have to overcome?

     

  3. Disruptor:
    What has changed, is changing, or needs to change in your hero’s life – and in the market – to make your offering timely, relevant, and irresistible?

     

  4. Stakes:
    What does your hero want as it relates to the product or service and education you offer? Describe how the solution came about.

     

  5. Journey:
    What does the customer interaction with your brand look like?

     

  6. Victory:
    The excitement about the success this produced.

     

  7. Promise: 
    The happy outcome you promise to deliver. Tell them what your brand promises to achieve, for whom and why.

Let us know how if this article is helpful. We love to hear from you. Please leave a review via Facebook or Google My Business.

Want to find out how to identify your brand archetype to build your brand story? Read our next blog here.

More Reading Resource: The Story Cycle: A brand story template that places your customer at the center of your business storytelling  https://businessofstory.com/story-cycle/

 

Need to refresh your Brand Story?

We can assist and work with you to create your authentic Brand Strategy.

Just drop us a message or call.

Consistency with your marketing efforts starts with a content marketing and an editorial plan

Consistency with your marketing efforts starts with a content marketing and an editorial plan

Are you creating valuable content with authentic brand storytelling to attract, educate and nurture customer for increased sales? Before you start social posting, email marketing, PR and sales pitches, I believe that content marketing plan should come first.

Social advertising and marketing are becoming less and less effective by the minute; as a forward-thinking marketer and business owner, you got to find a better way. Virality with brand storytelling is almost mainstream now and if you have not caught up with word-of-mouth marketing through social media, events and develop advocates to help you create the fiery momentum in your business, then now is the time to get cracking and really strategise and build your marketing actions around it.

Instead of pitching your products or services, you are providing truly relevant and useful content to your prospects and customers to help them solve their issues, and offer them valuable content that nurtures their buying journey.

For me, as a dance teacher, and digital marketing trainer with a digital agency. These two business endeavours are very distinct and delivery a very separate brand story, but my values are similar. To help my community build dance and business confidence.

For each of them, I create a content marketing plan and a brand story to help my audience connect with me and also the valuable journey unfolds with creativity and excitement. As much as possible I try to produce content in collaboration with my audience. An example is a short video below from a survey through social media on what they like most and about coming to dance classes and favourite moments captured that is outside of dance classes. I use their words, created this collage and short impactful video in a minute. I then use this in our social media posts and campaigns to outreach for new prospect within the similar interest and seeking those values and experience.

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So here are the 3 key benefits if you employ content marketing well:

1. Increased brand and service awareness to attract customers right for you. This means higher value transactions and relationships.

2. Cost savings: Less spend on non-targeted advertising and promotions and less time spent on inquiries as people already build a trusted relationship with you online. You do need to follow through to deliver the expected service experience well

3. Better customers who have more loyalty: Acquire desirable customers that buy into the vision and valuable relations with you and your enterprise promise.

Editorial calendars can be useful for a range of content marketing tasks.

  • Can be used to help guide customers through complex buying cycles.
  • Can be used to manage the process of scaling content marketing for use in different geographic regions.
  • Can be used to align all the content-related efforts of the various teams operating across an enterprise.

Sharing your content calendar with your sales, marketing, HR, public relations, or other business partners and team members can make it easier for them to understand your efforts – and to alert your team when they are involved in an upcoming event that might inspire new content ideas.

Here is an example of an editorial planning template the I use for my business and help my clients to update and create theirs too.

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Get your own content marketing and editorial planning tool.

I create content marketing plans with entrepreneurs and their team who want to grow their visibility and brand story online. We workshop your content marketing editorial plan with a planning tool that includes generating topics that matter, content format, which will flow through to your social media plans on what to posts, campaign and email marketing. I recommend you to start planning your content strategy and map it out well with your buyer’s journey as your starting point, so the rest can flow from there.

If you have any question and would like to create a consistent and valuable plan for your business, do get in touch. I work best with wellness driven, innovation focussed businesses with positive environmental causes.

Find out about our NZTE co-funded training programs.
New Zealand businesses that are GST registered could potentially qualify up to 50% funding for training and development for digital marketing.

Have you read about 'Steps to create amazing shareable content?"

Estimated reading time is 2 minutes…

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Create amazing content that is shareable

Create amazing content that is shareable

Create amazing content that is shareable

Creating amazing content is a conscious choice. Content marketers make this choice every day, as they decide what to craft and publish on their organization’s blogs and social media platforms.

They know what great content is; something that educates entertains, or inspires their readers and followers; it is content that gets conversions, gets published on a regular basis by their followers and will be responded to and shared with their connections.

The problem is this: There is a lot of great content out there that is published every day. To stand out from the others means to go beyond the “great” and to enter the realm of “incredible,” (or awesome) that place where content is so engaging and compelling that readers cannot ignore it and must share. How do you get to this place?

Reading activity| Resourced from http://www.incomediary.com/amazing-content

9 Steps to Shareable Content Your Readers Will LOVE! 

  1. Shareable Content Is Original
  2. Shareable Content Has Killer Headlines!
  3. Shareable Content Is Actionable
  4. Always Source Your Information
  5. Engage, Engage, Engage
  6. Provide Interactivity
  7. Turn Text into Visuals Whenever Possible
  8. Have a Joke or Quote of the Day Posts on Social Media
  9. Content Upgrades are Popular, Downloaded, and Share

Social Media Marketing Introduction and Facebook Checklist

Social Media Marketing Introduction and Facebook Checklist

Getting social right in your business can have huge impact.

The importance of social media continues to grow and change how we communicate with one another. As business owners, it is not your job to be on social media ALL the time. Unless, your critical business delivery depends on it. i.e: You are a social media coordinator 100%, content marketing, posting and customer service is what you are engaged to do.

You are messing with your business growth if interacting on social media is taking up any more than 5-10% of your work time.
Your job as a business owner, managing director, administrator, marketer of your own business is to be creating the strategy for your business and making sure it is done. Your job is to be brainstorming what needs to be fixed, what needs to be improved and what needs to be done to drive your business forward. Your job is to do the one thing that no one else can do in your business.

~Leonie Dawson creator of a Shining Biz and Life academy. Founder of a million turn-over online business that depends on social media marketing as one of hers keys sales and marketing funnel.

Example of Facebook ad campaign

Social media means the collective of online communication channels, portals and websites dedicated to facilitating community-based interactions, sharing and collaborations. Through these channels, users create online communities to share information, ideas, personal messages, and other content. Social media allow people to socially interact, converse, network and share with one another online; Popular social media sites and applications include Facebook, Linkedin, YouTube, Twitter, Pininterest, Instagram & WeChat.

Social Media Marketing is defined as the process of gaining attention, interest and desire to generate website traffic, and sales conversion through social media sites.

Latest social media statistics of consumer adoption and usage:
Social networks are now so well established, that there is a core ‘top 5’ social networks that don’t change much from year-to-year. But, the most popular social media sites vary a lot by level of usage in different countries and demographics. Understanding these differences in popularity of different social networks is really important when targeting specific audiences. When comparing the most popular social networks it’s best to review them by active account usage, not just the number of user accounts. We’ll also see that some social networks are growing more rapidly than others, while some are now in decline.

Get Social Media Marketing: The 4 step plan

Are you using social media effectively to grow your business interactions, following and transactions? 

The first step starts with having intention, I have been researching and helping busineses to define them objectives and you would use this list to define what is your objectives for using social media for you business and personal brand.

Here are common objectives that brands and business have:

  • Create Awareness
  • Build a community and following
  • Turn following into potential customers or advocates
  • Get more website traffic and online store visits
  • Educate with content and curated posts to nurture your prospects interest.
  • Create events and attend events
  • Be part of social networking and listening
  • Promote sales and offers of products and services
  • Generate leads and sales interest to nurture with email marketing
  • Generate PR opportunities and monitor reputation online
  • Use it as a channel to receive feedback

Like some help and guidance to get you started?

If you have been dappling with Facebook, Instagram or Linkedin before and not have a written and clear plan for engagement to build and nurture an audience to become a customer, we can help.

Get Social Media Marketing Workshop

is designed to work with you to plan and take action with support from plan, to customer targeting, brand design and action a campaign.

Attend this comprehensive Social Media Training workshop conducted by Revive Me Marketing to level up your social media marketing skills and actions, specific to your business and industry.

Give your business the best chance at realising good returns on investment into social media marketing, and avoid the common pitfalls many brands and businesses make.

  • Activate better Social Media Marketing actions with a strategy and monthly plan
  • Prepare a Social Media Marketing Plan for the year, integrated with offline marketing efforts.
  • Save time by using tools and apps demonstrated in the course.

Outcomes of Get Social Media Marketing:

  1. Profile update: Get a Facebook Marketing checklist to guide your actions
  2. Create a Strategy: Define your objectives and target audience
  3. Launch a Facebook Ads Campaign: Get support and guidance to launch a campaign
    Website Traffic | Lead Generation| Brand Awareness| Post Engagement| Online Store Visits

Investment: $900+GST |$450+GST with NZTE Capability Voucher.

To register, please email rosalina@remc.co.nz

Sharing my business journey

Sharing my business journey

Rosalina Pang shares her business and personal journey in a reflective journal.

“I started my career 20 years ago in events and promotions marketing for an agency servicing IT and blue-chip consumer brands such as Hewlett Packard, Motorola and Adobe. Back in Singapore, and in my early 20s,  I started a boutique marketing company with an ex-colleague. We were engaged by clients to build products branding stands and displays, set up exhibition booths and promotional events for consumer and industrial brands.

After a year into my business. I realised that I needed more international marketing exposure and went back to employment when my business partner who had a lot more financial commitments decided he needed the security of a job.

Soon after, at the age of 24, I was headhunted to join Singapore Technologies Electronics, innovation and science focused manufacturing company as a Marketing Executive. The company was marketing Satellite and Sensor products to over 60 countries, and I was managing a marketing budget of under half a million. Given the international shows and exhibitions, the company has a lean marketing budget and I had to look at cost-effective ways to increase business and products brand position online. My interest in digital marketing was sparked and learnt the importance of SEO, Google Adwords and Analytics from 2007.

I moved to New Plymouth in 2008 and had to start from scratch. I came with no prior networks, friends, relatives or a job. My first opportunity was with Contours New Plymouth, an all women’s gym. The stint was to relieve a dance exercise instructor Judy, who was going on holiday to take her 6 am morning workout and dance class.
It was only an hour and then I pretty much had no other paid work left to do for the day. For six months I worked on creating my first blog website and started an Asian Food Network to blog about my home cooking and recipes that I tried and found. It had Google AdSense put onto it so I had a little pocket money in the form of advertising dollars through impressions and clicks. However it wasn’t great as I wasn’t keen on sharing and posting more as I feel quite isolated for a while, I got a bit down and depressed as I wasn’t socially connected. So I thought to myself what other skills do I have that I am passionate about and can trade my time and connect with the community? I was dancing part-time in Singapore and had also enjoyed Oriental, Middle Eastern and world music. Relieving at the ladies gym ignited my passion to get women in my community connected with their body, mind and spirit. Hence, I went to an existing Tribal Bellydance class and then realise that I should impart what I learnt and I founded 5th Element Dance with two others. I also realised that in the dance community many looked to it dance as a competition and quite like ballet with examinations and grades. In Eastern cultures, dance is a form of expression and freedom. A way to express joy and love and not feel oppressed by the struggles of life. Hence, my deep seeded philosophy is to build a dance community of like-minded women to dance and be able to express themselves from within.

Shortly after a neighbourhood TOM magazine publishing my article introducing who I was and asking for expression of interest for belly dance class, on August 2008, I gathered in Oakura Board Riders club a group of 7 women from various backgrounds, As I begin to impart to them the art of belly dancing movement through music and rhythm, I shared my philosophy that it is important to connect within. Be present both physically, mentally and spiritually. Little did I know that this had multiple healing and empowering benefits to us women. To celebrate our freedom to dance without the need for intoxication. Fast forward 10 years, my dance sisters and I have evolved into a multi-ethnic community of women coming together weekly to foster this commonality and support each other to connect physically, mentally and spiritually through world music and dance.

How I became a Marketing Trainer

In 2009, I was given the opportunity to teach ‘Fundamentals of Marketing” as a contract tutor with local polytechnic,  WITT. After continuous job hunting for further six months, I took on the role of Small Business Accounts Manager with Orb communications, the local telecommunications distributor of main Telco provider here in New Zealand.

Though I enjoyed the work and opportunity to meet with business owners to update them on technology and latest plans and re-sign their contracts, there were a lot of politics and unhappy middle management employees with their own personal issues. It wasn’t a very pleasant environment as it fostered sales morale and incentives as competing against each other, through glorying who sold the most devices or contracts.
When I did land one valuable corporate client, I had it taken away from my portfolio as I was meant to be serving small businesses only. I left and went on contracting myself in supervising and marketing contract roles.
In 2013,  I caught the entrepreneurship bug again and founded Revive Me Marketing. I started networking, creating and updating websites, branding and content and grow my portfolio of clients.

Digital Marketing with accountability with my clients

My mission and natural attraction to the type of clients has evolved into one with partnership and collaboration in marketing. I found myself tired of chasing clients that are not aligned with similar shared values, to begin with. I am learning to define how I would like our business relationship to work and with much joy and positive flow. This flow is in the form of 3Cs: Creativity, clear communications and cash flow in our contracts.

Clients that don’t take responsibility and that need to be chased consistently, late for payment are hard work.
I have learnt to stop chasing after them. I still have full respect that we all have personal challenges from time to time and it does impacts how are run our business. If it is emotional, physical or spiritual, I would try to help by referring them to people and other business that could potentially help them to remove those barriers to success. I also term them as ‘abundance blockers” as I believe they translate often to financial challenges. It is also important to check what is our relationship with time and money.

My personal entrepreneurial goal from 2019 going forward.

As long as we are alive as are still on this journey. For me the journey is not about bragging and achieving next 5, 6 or 7 figure income. It is about positive impact that we can make collectively by activating our passion and purpose for good of our communities, people wellness, spiritual fitness, cultural harmony and peace for our planet.

Yes we all want freedom. And to me freedom to choose to consume just enough and more to give and make a difference and support positive Change Makers and innovations that do good.

I am on a journey to measure my impact, build a better business so I can raise my positive influence.
The important note for us is to stay positive and keep working on the spirit of our business with balance.

To conclude this blog sharing of my business journal, I like to quote from one of my clients, Annie Evans, co-founder of Rock-it Boards.”

The most important thing is how much we have loved.

360 degrees photos capture

Last week of April, I was at King and Queen Hotel Suites in New Plymouth, taking 360 VR photos to promote the establishment as an Accommodation Support Partner to Taranaki Arts Trail, as part of the annual 3 day Artist Open Studios event in June 2018.

Sharing 360 degree photos on Facebook on YouTube seem pretty straightforward. And I started to research on how to embed these media onto a web page.

There are plenty of options, and the web researcher in me had to scowl for the best practice, applications, hosting and social sharing available for these stunning 360 images.

Self hosting option
The first article I read was from Google and it takes about needing to add scripts and using Javascript API on code and host the files somewhere else of viewing.
It then requires the web developer to add image as an iframe with html.

The easy way:

Other way is to use 3rd party application providers that allow you to upload the file and then generate a html file for embedding.
There were a few providers out there. Theta360, the device manufacturer has sharing uploads but caps files at 5MB, so not ideal for 360 video captures.On the Theta360 forum, one user mentioned that he noticed that 360 degree video uploads onto YouTube had varying results.
‘Videos play fine in 360 on YouTube, but the embeds seem to sometimes work and sometimes not when put on pages elsewhere.’Another user advise to ’embedding 360 photo on a website using Kuula’ https://blog.kuula.co/embed-editor-on-kuula/

I have noticed that some VR videos on YouTube have logos embedded on it and videos are being edited and stitch as this is starting to get more popular and mainstream to reocrd and post 360 media onto 3rd party applications providers with player app, like Kuula, if you need to add your own logo to the embed, you will need to get a PRO (paid) subscription as a service.

My mission was to look for a provider that offer an easy upload and sharing solution, which allow setting the orientation of the image, ability to auto-pan around the image when it first loads and potentially create a collection of images that link to each other as a virtual tour.

So here are my test embeds for two of the images I captured.

1st embed I have used is from 360player. 360player.io


The 2nd embed is with roundme.com/ which provides virtual tour and multiple panaroma pictures shown as a collection. To get a pro embed, it cost $15US for the lifetime.

roundme.com

They also offer a full screen version.

It was first to sign up and claims to be forever free to use. There some first to add as you would when you upload any media on to a hosting provider for web. There was title, description, tags fields to fill in. However I was disappointed at the orientation the picture has default to and could find easy way to lock the viewing orientation the the right angle that I wantedhttps://360player.io/.

This third one embed is from Veer.tv. 360 photos are uploaded as individual files, with description and #tags field options.

Frames can be resized easily. This image of the Premium Suite at King and Queen Hotel Suite is sized at 480px by 350px.

Top three Video Marketing Trends that should be a part of your marketing toolbox!

Top three Video Marketing Trends that should be a part of your marketing toolbox!

If you own a business – small, mid-sized or even large – there are three goals you are undoubtedly want to achieve:

1. Driving more traffic

2. Educating your customers about your products or services

3. Converting the users into customers and earn their loyalty

And, how are you making it happen? Online and offline marketing? Hiring professionals in the sales department? Email marketing? Or even cold calls? And, we believe that you must be having a strong social media presence as well and doing everything that is in your power to make the most out of your online presence? Great!

Now, what?

You have to keep one thing in your mind that the online market is a very competitive space and if you were not catching up with the new marketing trends and offering the best avenues to your customers to consume fresh content, your brand would soon be an old story.

What if we told you that there is one more marketing tactic that can help you to achieve your goals mentioned above, drive more traffic and generate more qualified leads?

No, it’s not a “magic trick.”

It’s also not a “black hat” method.

It’s none other than Video Marketing, and it works amazingly well.

Well, when it comes to an article about Video Marketing, almost every individual in business probably has the following response: “Yes, we get it! Video IS important!” We know that you very well understand the power of video marketing. However, the chances are, you are not using it effectively.

Why is your company ignoring this incredible tactic?

Do you have doubts about this trend and questions like; ‘is it even worth to create videos for promoting your business?’

The answer is simple: Yes, it is; every single penny and time spent on it.

Here are three powerful reasons that will establish the power of video. It is one of the most effective digital marketing tools today that can drive more traffic and convert hesitant users into loyal customers.

Video Boosts Conversions, Sales, and More Organic Traffic

When Hubspot surveyed the amount of video content users watch in a typical day, the average response they received was 1.5 hours. However, 15% told them that they watch more than 3 hours per day. It clearly explains that if you are NOT tapping the Video Marketing domain, then you must be losing out on the traffic that could be grown organically without being too sales-y.

For instance, create a video of your offerings (product or services) and educate your users and make them aware of your strength. Let them know what to expect before they commit to your services. In short, videos not only helped in increasing user engagement but also convince the users to buy a product or service helped them in making a better buying decision.

Here’s a fascinating example from Taranaki Arts Trail to showcase the event to visitors :

We embeded this on the customer website, facebook page, event post and ran a Facebook Ad campaign to drive excitement and attract customer awareness to come to this free event.

 

Videos Show Great ROI

Someone rightly said, “The play button is the most compelling Call to Action on the web.”

Adding a product video on your landing page can increase conversions by manifolds and provide a good return on investment. According to the study, “adding video on a landing page can increase conversion by 80%.” Even though producing a professional video is not yet the most straightforward or cheapest task, but once you invest your time, it will surely start paying off big time. Besides, it’s not necessary to always create a perfect video. You can use your mobile and put out a spontaneous video to entertain your users, and that’s the beauty of this medium. Moreover, if you Google, you will find many online video editing tools that are affordable and can add a billion stars to your video.

Some of the online editing tools that will get your videos looking and sounding incredible are: Movie Maker Online, ClipChamp, WeVideo and Online Video Cutter.

Videos Build Trust

Why do we need content marketing? Well, it all boils down to creating trust between the brand and users and videos play a critical part in it. Trust is the foundation of conversions and sales, and the whole purpose of content marketing is building long-term relationships with the users on an emotional level. A video does it all; it engages the audience in a better way and ignites emotions. When they start trusting the brand, get useful and interesting information about your company and then you don’t have to coax them into buying your product or service.

An excellent way to use videos to build trust with your customers is to capture your best customers singing your praises. Just record the interview with your customers and show their side of the story.

 

Another great example of creating trust and increasing user base is what all the YouTubers do; they literally bare their soul in front of their audience and try to win their hearts and trust. People look up to them before trying new cream or a car or even check out their reviews on a particular restaurant. Big companies hire them to review their products and work to drive traffic back to their website.

Video Usage is on the RISE.

  • 99% of those who already do use video, say they’ll continue to do so in 2018.
  • 65% of those who don’t currently use video, say they plan to start in 2018.

We all watch a lot of videos.

We all love to share videos.

Marketers are advocating video marketing, and they know how to do their jobs.

Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram – video is ruling everywhere.

From virtual reality to live streaming to 360-degree videos, marketers are going immersive. Consumers can step into both the real-world views and fantastical experiences that brands are creating as they have never been able to before. All the awe-inspiring and boundary-dissolving video marketing trends are changing the way businesses produce and consumers consuming content, and this is just a start.

Ready to find out how 2018 is going BIG on Video Marketing?

Top Three Video Marketing Trends in 2018

  • Live Video or Live Streaming

No less than 13% of web traffic from video comes directly from live videos.

Are you familiar with the latest terminology – FOMO (fear of missing out) or in other words – Curiosity? Live video is gaining popularity day by day, and the only reason behind this is users’ growing inquisitiveness. They want to know what’s new and what’s happening in people’s lives, they are fascinated about ‘behind the scenes’ video clippings, and that’s how companies, celebrities and almost all are gaining popularity through feeding on the Humans’ natural characteristic.

Live video is the most prominent trend of 2018, and it is continuously picking speed. With live videos, you give exactly what your followers want: instant connection, feedback, and indulgence. You can boost excitement and promote engagement through live Q&A sessions, hosting live how-to sessions, offer helpful tips, showcasing product launches, sneak peek of important events or even making customers a part of your daily activities like gym sessions or food.

The thrill of interacting in real-time with a celebrity, brand, or friend is what pushes the increased engagement rates, and that’s why marketers suggest to NOT missing out the opportunity to make users a part of your life by going live.

With tools like Facebook Live, Instagram Live, LinkedIn Live and a range of streaming apps like BeLive and Zoom for beginners and OBS Studio and Wirecast for more seasoned videographers, live streaming is 100 percent accessible for everyone.

The companies can enjoy numerous advantages of a live video:

  1. Live videos are more economical. No need to edit the video.
  2. Live streaming is fun.
  3. It brings out the human side of a brand and users could connect emotionally.
  4. Live video increases the quality of views.

In 2018, the trend is expected to get even more intense and more interactive.

 

  • 360-degree Videos

The 360-degree video was first introduced in 2014, and however, it had a slow yet exciting start, today you will witness more and more brands using this tactic to create a sense of thrill for their customers. Whether it’s a product launch or an adventurous sport, 360° videos are making a big comeback in 2018. The use of omnidirectional cameras is used to grasp a spherical video capture of a space. You get new paths to interactive customer experience through an immersive technology. AR engages users far beyond many of mobile technologies we’ve seen in the past. There are numerous ways of implementation: interactive print, augmented commerce or, for instance, live activations.

360 was already a trend in, but it is set to explode in 2018. Considering 360° videos, Google has found that despite lower view-through rate they had 46 percent higher click-through rate compared to standard video versions, which makes them cost-effective with its lower cost-per-view. However, not everyone is ready to adopt such technologies just yet, but the trend is catching up, and companies are acknowledging the engagement rate it brings in.

For example:

Fly side-by- side with astronauts in this the first ever 3D Virtual Reality film shot in space.

 

  • Explainer Videos Won’t Stop Being a Hype

Studies show that 74% of users who watched an explainer-video about a product subsequently bought it.

Explainer videos continue to be a great way to get a brief yet memorable summary about your product or services. In just a few minutes, viewers get a fair idea of your expertise and how the brand could be their choice, or not. The effectiveness of explainer videos is enormous: they are short, showing a definite problem and a viable solution and leaving space to bring out your creativity and impress the audience with an overall video watching experience.

The cost of producing explainer videos may have prevented marketers from using them in the past. But advances in technology make it possible to create a high-quality explainer video using the camera and software on the phone in your pocket.

According to Wyzowl’s survey, “74% of the people interviewed who watched an explainer video to learn more about a product or service ended up buying it.”

An explainer video is an excellent way for a brand to tell its story.

For example: Yum Yum’s explainer video for their client explainer video for their client Stack that Money is short and very interesting.

 

Final words? Better start crafting your exciting brand videos NOW!

There is no denying that we all love to watch videos more than reading content. A Video makes content consumption easier and fun. Today, there are numerous and attention-grabbing ways to disseminate information about the brand, products, and services. From Live streaming to 360-degree videos, there is no limit to attract the target audience.

If you think about it, the effectiveness of video is not even that surprising. Visual content plays an integral part in transmitting information to our brain. Users remember a video more than an article that could sometimes be boring or too lengthy to finish. So, if pictures can boost massive engagement then imagine what videos (moving images) could do to your business.

Let’s just say ‘video is like a PIZZA, even if it’s not perfect, nobody says NO to it.

If you are serious about digital marketing, you must consider video into this mix too.

Watch out for our Video Marketing Capability Development Training. We are working on it and launching it as a live workshop on 31st May 2018.

Register your interest here.
Learn the Right Way to Ask Your Clients for the Video Testimonials

Learn the Right Way to Ask Your Clients for the Video Testimonials

Do you have customers who are loyal to your brand and love talking about your company?

Would your customers happily recommend you to others? 

A Video Testimonial has the power of show and highlights the significant transformation you brought in your customer’s life with your services or products. It is one of the best ways to tell your potential customers that “You Rock!”

Well, who doesn’t like to hear good things about their services and products but when you have such customers, how exactly you amplify their experience and use as a social proof to attract more customers?

Learn How to get a Powerful Video Testimonials to Boost your Online Credibility and Sales ConversionA testimonial – written or a video – brings social proof onto your digital media channels and boosts the credibility of your brand with client endorsements.

Capturing exact emotions of your loyal customers via a video testimonial could be really beneficial for your business.

According to statistics:

  • Testimonials and word of mouth are the driving force behind 20-50% of all purchasing decisions and yet only about ⅓ of businesses are actively seeking & collecting customer reviews on an ongoing basis. -Source: Mckinsey.com- ‘a new way to measure marketing effectiveness.’
  • According to an article in Econsultancy, when a site has customer reviews, 63% of visitors are more likely to make a purchase & reviews produce an average of 18% uplift in sales. -source: econsultancy.com- ‘e-commerce-consumer-reviews-why-you-need-them’

However, as fancy as it sounds, asking for video testimonials come with its own challenges. Many business owners hesitate to ask clients for a testimonial, especially a video one. Also, video requires lots of other preparations like right questions; proper filming and an eye for editing that could put your brand under a spotlight. In short, bringing up the best of what you do through your loyal customers. Let us break down the whole process for you and make asking for a video testimonial easier and a rewarding activity. Here are some helpful tips for asking your customers for a video testimonial. Discover how to prepare them and debut a video testimonial once they said YES to your request.

How To Ask and When To Ask

Asking for a testimonial could be a tricky job but not impossible. You just have to be consciously aware and grab the opportunity when it arrives. How? Let’s take two entirely different fields – one, a Marketing Company and another a Dance Company. Both have different work areas and different target audience, so one style of asking for the testimonial may not work with other. Let’s learn effective ways to ask.

For a service-based business with one-on-one transactions:

  • It is usually a great idea to ask the client personally (over the phone is also perfect especially when you are talking about work experience.) The moment your client compliments you about how your service has been helpful to the business, that IS the time to bring up the intended conversation.
  • Do not lose this opportunity and politely ask if it is okay for them to record a video testimonial with you. Wait and allow them to say, “Yes”. Later on, follow up with them through email or a phone call before this conversation dies off.
    You may even send a detailed written email and include prompting questions you would like for them to answer.
  • Give them ample time to digest your request and suggest ways and times to obtain the video testimonial.
  • Remember to maintain a “nice” attitude while you are asking for a testimonial. Positively encourage them by telling them how you intend to distribute the video, and how it would benefit them as well. i.e. Growing their exposure. Avoid being too assertive. It may put them off, so some tact is good.

For Event-based businesses with groups of people:

A dance class or any other group activity-oriented business has a different atmosphere and different kind of customer psyche. It’s usually easier to get a video testimonial in such businesses, however, it still requires you to “seize the right moment” to ask for video testimonial” as a skillset.

  • After the class or event when everyone is riding high with myriad of emotions, this could be the right time of making an announcement that you are updating the website and would love to do a personal video testimonial with each one of them and record their incredible journey and some of the favorite experiences to share with the people who are still on the verge of deciding.
  • A group testimonial could also be a great way to show how much fun the class is. Such videos send out the vibrancy of your customers in a group environment. When they agree, you can tell them the medium you would use to capture it. It could be through FaceTime, Zoom recording, directly on a video camera, or mobile device and distributed on social media instantly.
  • We would recommend to then embed it on a webpage to maximize the longevity of the video testimonial replay and views.

What To Say

This is a vital aspect of the whole process. It’s crucial that your clients understand that the purpose of a video testimonial is to talk about their business or personal goals and how you helped them achieve them. Ask them the questions that highlight their story about how they found you (if someone recommended you to them then mention their names), how your company met their business needs or helped them overcome their specific problems, and how was the overall experience. The story should be short, simple with good narrative and in their own words. Here are some of the questions you may ask or send them across as talking points before recording to help them build a compelling story.

  1. Tell us about your business in one minute. (Get them relaxed and comfortable. Who doesn’t like to talk about themselves?)
  2. How did you find us? Did someone recommend us to you?
  3. Why did you choose us? (The reasons that helped them zeroing in on you.)
  4. How was it working with us? Tell us about your experience with our team. (Ask for the customer’s overall experience while working with you.)
  5. How has working with us changed the way your company does business?
  6. Did our competitors approach you and try to steal you from us? If so, what did you tell them and what made you stick with us?
  7. Would you recommend us to someone else? Why? (This is the crucial part of the testimonial.)
  8. Is there anything you’d like to add? (What is your favorite part of …)

The video interview questions are open to guide them on what challenges they face. The product-based companies may use slightly different questions, like main concern about buying the product, how it fits their business needs and so on. You can modify the series of questions according to your product or services, but don’t lose your focus and particularly ask about hesitations and obstacles; talking about these two points adds authenticity to the testimonial.

Testimonials are stories.

Stories usually have uninterrupted flow and attention-grabbing elements, a thrilling start, and an impressive ending and that’s what pulls people and other potential customers.

If you look around, you will find most of the video testimonials lack emotions, and they feel powerless. The reason behind such limp testimonials is that sometimes the clients don’t always know what to say and how to give testimonies, and on the other hand, companies have no clue how to get an impressive testimonial from the clients. Thus, it’s important to work on the set of questions and prepare the clients for it.

Some examples:

5th Element Belly Dance: 

In this video testimonial interview, I asked Andrea how she found out about classes, what made her interested, what keeps her coming back, what her favorite belly dance move was.

Revive Me Marketing: 

This video testimonial interview was captured as we were video conferencing and I was delivering Get Digital Marketing program that Andrew has enrolled and been working with me on. I took the opportunity to ask him some questions and told him the intention of video testimonial interview as I had worked with him to create two for his business. We were video conferencing on Zoom, which I edited and uploaded on to YouTube on my channel with a playlist, then embedded in on the same program page as a testimonial.

Omada Health:

Omada uses behavior science to help people change their habits, improve their health and reduce their risk of chronic disease. This video was just all from their customers raving about why they chose them amongst other providers.

 

Video testimonial feels real.

It shows your clients’ emotions and journey with you, they bare themselves on the video and that’s why it becomes more touching. They give you valuable feedback, and it makes the clients feel important, they know that you value their experience and story. When posted on social media platforms the influence multiplies each time someone likes or shares the video. Once you get the video testimonial, thank your client either over the phone or via email. Send them a heartfelt message and let them know how much you appreciate their time and efforts.

After recording, edit it carefully. It’s important to highlight the strongest points of your company or products. After final editing, upload the video onto YouTube, Vimeo or any other video sharing and do not forget to share it with your client.

 

Strategies on how to focus and achieve your goals

Strategies on how to focus and achieve your goals

Time is your greatest asset. We have the same 24/7 as everyone else.

By focusing on what you need to do and set it up in a way that works best and naturally for you with a rhythm is what make the difference between accomplishing business and personal goals.
Want to learn more about success principals to manage your focus, shift the way you divide your time, to achieve more?

1) Check-in questions to help you identify opportunities for personal development.

Q1. Are you setting and achieving your goals?
Yes/ No/ Like to be more consistent

Q2. Do you have a clear vision of what are your success goals & financial goals are in
3 months | 6 months | 1 year | 10 years? Yes/ No/

Q3.How are you allocating your time to every day, week, month to achieve them?

Q4. Do you have a set rhythm in how you organise your week?

Q5. How do you currently set goals?

Q6. Are there Key Performance Indicators you set for yourself or your team?

Q7. What is your critical personal and business goal?

Break your goals into weekly measurement and milestones. We recommend weekly reflections and reschedule your time plan for divine and timely execution.

“The future belongs to those who prepare for it today.”– Malcolm X

 

Download our free eGuide ‘ Power of Focus’ with a time planning tool to help you work on achieving more.

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If you would like to join our next entrepreneur mentoring meeting or book a mentoring session, book an assessment review

Best Picture-Perfect Image Sizes For Social Media in 2018

Best Picture-Perfect Image Sizes For Social Media in 2018

The sizes of the photos we share on our social media sites matter in this digital age

To help you create the right dimension and sized graphics, we have prepared a collation of updated social media dimensions. In 2018, we are looking forward to working with our clients and offer our followers great digital marketing snippets and insights. Let’s create graphics and campaigns to build your personal and business brand following. To ensure that it looks attractive and professional, sizing graphics in brand colors and the right dimension for social media sharing in 2018 is our mantra and we would like to advocate the same to you.

The best sizes for sharing images on social media

1200px*628px

1024px*576px

1080px*1080px

 

552px*368px

600px*900px

 

800px*320px

 

Want to utilize more of social media marketing to grow your following and sales in 2018?

Download ‘9 Steps To Create A Social Media Plan’.

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PICTURE-PERFECT IMAGE SIZES

Page Cover photo size

For Desktop : 820px x 312px (we recommend you create this in 1920 x 731)
For Mobile : 640px x 360px

Just be mindful of to keep important features on your photo in the centre of the image as you upload on desktop version, that for mobile view would be condense and sometimes cropped away.

Profile photo size

Personal Profile Cover size

upload 170px x 170px
851px x 315px  (we recommend you create this in 1920 x 711)
Link preview size min. 600px x 314px
Photo post size 476px x varied height, a larger one gives better quality
Group Cover photo size 820px x 250px (we recommend you create this in 1920px x 585px)
Event Cover photo size 1920px x 1080px OR small graphic at 500px x 281px

Header size 1500px x 500px for Twitter header details and free template
Profile photo size 400px x 400px for New round Twitter profile picture
Tweeted Image size 1200px x 675px
Twitter Card image size 1200px x 628px

Google+ Cover photo size 1080px x 608px
Google+ Profile photo size 250px x 250px

Linkedin Photo Size 1584px x 396px
Link share size 1200px x 628px
Linkedin Picture Quotes 792px x 528px
LinkedIn profile “background” 1000px x 425px and 4000px x 1700px
Linked in profile picture 400px x 400px and 2000px x 2000px
LinkedIn photo share 1200px x 1200px
LinkedIn Company cover photo size 1536px x 768px
LinkedIn logo size 300px x 300px

Photo Size 736px x 1104px to 2060px
Profile Photo size 180px x 180px or larger
Board cover 340px x 340px
Minimum image size that can be pinned 100px x 200px

Profile Photo size 110px x 110px minimum
Photo size 1080px width

Channel Art Photo Size 1546px x 423px to 2560px x 1440px
Video Thumbnail Size 640px x 360px to 1280px x 720px
Channel Icon Size 800px x 800px

Best Picture-Perfect Image Sizes For Social Media in 2018

 

We hope these recommended image sizes are valuable to you. We continue to learn lots about what’s best for all the different social networks, and I’ll be happy to continue updating this post with all our latest findings.

 

5-steps to prepare an effective headline and marketing message

5-steps to prepare an effective headline and marketing message

Ar you struggling to grab your prospect’s attention?

Is your headline is interesting enough to your audience?
Will you like to ensure that your marketing message cuts through the clutter of information to address a real issue and make a connection to viewers?

Here are ‘5-steps to prepare an effective marketing message, that Cuts-through-the-Clutter’.

An effective marketing copy must:

1. GRAB the prospect’s attention with a well-written headline as the opening statement

Our exampleAre you keeping your business top of mind and interacting socially? OR Are you using Social media to find new customers, boost traffic to website and sales?

2. ENGAGE the reader’s attention with a sub-headline that builds on a headline that persuades the reader to read further

Our example: No time or expertise? No worries, our social media bees can help your business get connected and grow!

3. INFORM the body copy.

Give the reader some significant information on how you deliver the promise. Give the prospect or customer enough compelling information so that he or she can make a cogent decision.

Our example: Our knowledgeable and socially savvy bunnies can help you refresh your social media attraction and get people buzzing in like bees to flowers and produce the honey of success!

Facebook is a popular free social networking website that allows registered users to create profiles, upload photos and video, send messages and keep in touch with friends, family and colleagues.

Facebook is a powerful marketing tool – it’s a great space to keep customers informed, develop brand identity, and broaden your reach. We can manage your business Facebook presence from creation of your Facebook account through to social media posts with custom graphics, cover picture updates, update of services, and additional home listings to increase awareness of the general public and prospective customers.

We are results and goals focused: 

Set specific goals to increase followers and engagement to increase exposure of content created to connect and engage. We will select the right content type at specific intervals for specific purposes:

  • Business service information and advertisement
  • Knowledge sharing
  • Contest or offer
  • Creative/motivational posts
  • FAQs and answers.

4. OFFER: Offer a crystal clear, low-risk, easy-to-take next step to take action.

Our Example: Offer for the month!

Get a refresh social media page! Go from mediocre to attractive design!

Update your Facebook profile for only $99+GST to the first 10 customers, we will help you to customise and design for an attractive cover and profile image. We will also prepare a SMART social media plan and proposal to help you get more awareness, engagement and leads. Our monthly social media marketing and management service rates starts from $300+GST. Engage us to help you with:

  • Content planning, creation, and distribution
  • Customer Service in coordination with your key personnel
  • Collaboration with the marketing team to build online presence
  • Connection-building with other groups
  • Comment and share post to community groups relevant to business profile and reputation management
  • Build referring links back to your website for sales and offers.

5. Call to action – Close with a compelling offer.

Our Example: Grab our offer!

Valid until the end of this month or first 10 customers to respond. To book your spot, send me an email to rosalina@remc.co.nz with your current message, describe your target audience and desired actions you would like them to take.

Marketing to your success,

Rosalina Pang. Digital Marketing Strategist.

*********

Does this sound like a good format to promote your services?

Would you like a sounding board and a marketing specialist to look into your next crafted marketing message? Contact me and ask what our offer is to this month and how we intent to distribute this to your prospective customers! Invest in a better marketing message and get more converting customers.

 

 

Get Digital Marketing Training to Ensure Your Business Survival into The Digital Age

Get Digital Marketing Training to Ensure Your Business Survival into The Digital Age

WARNING! Some Business May NOT Survive The Digital Age

The Internet has changed the workforce quite a bit and your business/ industry is likely to be affected (even if you have a traditional, brick-and-mortar business). Think about it — do you know anyone who has never made a purchase online?

How often do you hear people talk about their online research before they purchase something (even if they end up making the purchase in person)? Even if you don’t plan on conducting sales online, you’ll want to have a website where people can go for information about your business.

Most small and medium-sized businesses with web and social media presence do not consider a digital marketing strategy. Some business may not survive the digital economy with how rapid consumer adoption is to instant quotes and order fulfilments online.

Internationally, 2/3 business may not survive in the next 10 years.
In New Zealand, Statistics NZ Business operations survey in 2016 shows that 69% of businesses have a website, 72% have internet sales. Without of doubt, with faster internet fiber, on-demand services, internet sales, and order fulfillment are going to raise. Businesses and industries will see more disruptions in the market with sharing economies, time to market is shortening and consumer expectations are rising.

A Good Digital Marketing Strategy is Necessary to Ensure Survival of Your Business

Most business owners have invested in a website,  company and product branding, and gained followers on social media;

The challenge is to have a systematic process to convert visitors from various channels into sales.

Often business owners have not set a budget for digital marketing development or connect effectively to an online audience. Probably because they have a sales team and established channels. Or it could be a case of generational indifference, that their customer base is old-school, personal referrals or advertising has worked for the last decade, so it is a case of  ‘why change what is not broken’ mentality.

Are you keeping up with your communications and marketing processes in this digital economy?

With consumers demand raising and personalization is a growing expectation, what are your digital marketing development efforts? Do you have them sussed or are you drowning in the sea of information overwhelm?

Marketing is the process of creating your brand, communicating your story and exchange of value to meet market demand and desire.

Digital Marketing has changed the traditional marketing landscape and created an omnichannel experience. The way people search for products and services have changed. We all search for something or someone via our mobile device and make assumptions based on what we can find digitally before we decide to trade. Customer’s reviews, orders, and desires are fulfilled on the web, an app or social media channel.

Watch this video by World Economic Forum on insights into the impact of digital technologies on business and wider society over the next decade.

For your business success, and with limited time and budget, we have observed that most SMB business owners don’t yet have a clear digital marketing plan or direction. Consumers and business behaviors have advanced with technology and flow of information, also known as the ‘Internet of things’ IoT.  Industries are being disrupted by instantaneous, on-demand services, autonomous information and the sharing economy is the part of the new wave. The vehicle is through digital mediums.

Are You Lagging Behind?

We know you have limited time, but to ignore and sideline digital marketing would not be a wise decision.
This might affect your customers’ loyalty since they would also sideline your business and start following someone else more proactively. Let’s see the top four statistics and digital trends before going further:

  • 57 percent of B2B marketers stated that SEO generates more leads than any other marketing initiative — HubSpot
  • Marketing technology spend is now higher than advertising spend for companies — Gartner
  • Nearly one-third or 2.34 billion people worldwide regularly use social networks — eMarketer
  • On average, B2B marketers allocate 28 percent of their total marketing budget to content marketing — Content Marketing Institute

The statistics mentioned above clearly convey the importance of digital marketing, and after reading them, you can NOT give a blind eye to the fact that a successfully done digital marketing could quadruple your bottom-line.

View Get Digital Marketing Program

The Solution: Let’s Get Your Digital Marketing Sorted!

For just 3 hours a week, we guide you how to at least 2X your business online and get more leads and convert them.  If you are a small business owner and your marketing efforts are either scarce or aren’t getting you desirable results. Then you need help.
View our Get Digital Marketing Program.

You Need Digital Marketing Training If;

  • You are a small business or entrepreneur with an ambition to survive and grow.
  • You want to retain your customers and get more online visibility and qualified leads.
  • You want to enjoy free time and prosper.
  • You want to increase the value of your business and grow your database of customers.
  • You want to improve your brand’s online presence in order to reach domestic and global markets.
  • You have limited time and money and want more out of it.

Accelerator Program for SMBs

Are You Ready To Accelerate?

Are you ready to transform your business into a digital marketing savvy one?

Do you want to get more sales in less time and do the things that really matter? Would you like support and guidance to create a lead generation system to double your business? If you are committed, then enroll yourself in Revive Me Marketing’s Get Digital Marketing- 12-week Accelerator Program.

✔The program is for entrepreneurs and SMBs ready to accelerate sales with digital marketing and increase profits online.
✔ Outline your growth objectives, to set your goals
✔ Identify new opportunities you may not be aware of.
✔ Take action on them, in the smartest way to saves you time.

Get ready for your digital marketing transformation!

Sign up for our next program and be on your way to ensure business survival and expansion.

5 Ways Social Media Can Help Small Business Grow

5 Ways Social Media Can Help Small Business Grow

In the past year, I have increasingly used Facebook as a key communication app to message friends and customers, with almost instantaneous response. Sharing ideas, personalising messages, notifying future events and promoting offers through this medium, has been soliciting a much higher response to email marketing especially with a small and personal contact list.

For more professional matters, industry news and updates, a finely crafted eNewsletter still has a place. It serves as another medium for more comprehensive messages.

Before we delve into the 5 ways in which social media can help any small business grow, I have some 3 introspective questions for you as a small business owner:

  1. In your own opinion, what will be the greatest benefit you can get from using social media in your business?
  2. Are you willing to start using social media (if you haven’t yet) or are you still not convinced enough that it’s truly beneficial?
  3. If you have started, do you know how to enhance the use of Social media marketing to build your brand, friends and followers?

While you get a brain exercise by finding the answers, let’s learn the five ways the social media can help your business grow.

5 Ways Social Media Can Help Small Business Grow1) Monitors Your Brand’s Reputation

An infinite number of online conversations take place on a daily basis across social networking sites. Many of these discussions are about the public’s perception of various brands on the market, both good and bad. By utilising online reputation management tools, you can monitor for mentions of your brand on the Internet to promptly engage in those active conversations. This can go a long way in helping to convert a prospect that has been researching your brand to a viable customer. In the event that negative feedback is being voiced, these monitoring tools allow you to take action quickly before your brand can be damaged.

5 Ways Social Media Can Help Small Business Grow2) Positions You as an Industry Expert

By using your various social media channels to share compelling, industry-specific content that your customer base will find valuable, you can be viewed as an expert in your industry. Earning this status will help you to become the “go to” person in your domain and creating additional opportunities to expand your brand’s presence on the Internet through guest blogging or webcasts.

5 Ways Social Media Can Help Small Business Grow3) Increases Sales

Social media marketing needs to help increase sales and revenue. That’s why it’s called social media marketing and not simply social media public relations. To be fair, improving brand awareness and legitimizing a brand should, by themselves, help increase sales. But there are ways to use social media to directly steer consumers toward the sales funnel. For fans of the business, business owners can write posts that link to products, sales, etc.

Marketers can also use promoted content and advertisements to sell products to target audiences who haven’t become fans of a brand yet. The ability to target particular audiences is one of the greatest benefits of social media marketing. Social networks know a lot about consumer interests and demographics, so even though there are hundreds of millions of fans, marketers can accurately target the right people with the right message.

There are also a lot of ways that retailers can sell products directly from social networks. On Facebook, business owners can set up a Facebook store with apps like Ecwid or Beetailer. Shopify account can sync and publish a Smart Market Mobile App to for users to receive deals and buy directly on mobile.

5 Ways Social Media Can Help Small Business Grow4) Improves Customer Service

Another benefit of social media that’s easy to overlook is customer service. Even if a business has a dedicated customer service department, telephone number, or email, it’s important to handle issues via the method of communication the consumer prefers. The fact that people use social media to ask customer service questions is reason enough for businesses to ensure their ability to help customers through social media.

5) Attains Positive Reviews

Delighted customers who are interactive on social media would have an avenue to share their experiences, post, share and act as advocates for your business. Of course there might be the odd negative review posted, but this provides the business an opportunity to interact and response positively to ‘make right’ of a negative experience. Best brands and businesses are build with integrity and honesty anyways, a bad review on social media can often be made right with other delighted customers themselves responding to the criticism.

Final Words: Use Social Media to Build Attraction!

Today, NO Social Media presence means NO presence at all. Therefore, it’s important to get your social media plan right on point NOW!

if you don’t have time or resources to get set-up on a social media plan and action, you may want to look at outsourcing to someone or a dedicated company that quickly understands the nature of your business and give you a defined plan with purposeful actions.

The clock is TICKING!

5 Ways Social Media Can Help Small Business Grow

4 Tips on How to Effectively Engage with Your Interactive Community from Social Media to Website

4 Tips on How to Effectively Engage with Your Interactive Community from Social Media to Website

Following to our article on ‘The benefits of building and growing an online community on social media’, I had a few people ask me some really interesting questions.

  • How would we know if the audience visiting our website is engaged with our content or just passive readers?
  • How can we leverage on the interactive community on social media to visit our website?
  • How do we keep these interactive community engaged and continue to interact and exchange with us?

In this article, we share ideas on how to nurture passive readers, to engaged ones, interactive community to become advocates and potential customers.
Tips on How to Effectively Engage With Your Interactive Community from Social Media to Website

Firstly, let us distinguish between having an audience, and an online community. 
The key difference between these two entities is “Interaction”

Audience and web visitors are passive readers that do not actively participate in conversations.
They may visit your social media page or website every now and then and yet had not a reason to engage with you.

A community is an interactive group of like-minded individuals that may choose to be a passive audience, and more likely be enticed to actively participate in community discussions if pushed with the right tactics. Lots of community groups have grown organically and are people who share a common interest in specific topics dear to their hearts. They could share the same occupation, goals, political, commercial and non-commercial interests. Just look online for growing number of groups on LinkedIn and Facebook and I’m sure you will find a few that you are personally interested and subscribed to if you haven’t already.

Is your audience engaged with your content or just passive readers?

When reviewing your website analytic, we can view the pathways of where traffic have viewed your sites and the hot spots of clicks and views on a page.

Here’s a good example by Dan Barker. You can read the full report here

Tips on How to Effectively Engage With Your Interactive Community from Social Media to Website

1) Create quality content.

Let’s create content that is relevant, inspirational, motivational, educational or entertaining. Create content that is not about what you are and what you do, but something coherent to the community. Create unique content that is exclusive to your community.

Content may be in the form of a video, infographic, images and short but robust text filled precise information. Sweet, short and savvy is the in thing. Long articles can be boring and may tend to drive away potential engagement in a blink of an eye.

2) Design a shareable content.

You know your content is good when someone shares it. Facilitate easy sharing by designing your content in the simplest form and shareable via social buttons. Give your content a catchy heading with relative imagery. There is no rule written in stone here. You just need to be creative and explore. Add the right plugins to enable “click-sharing”.

 3) Be consistent.

Next big thing to keep in mind is consistency in content presentation. This means giving a heads-up on upcoming events, topics or promotions and posting content on a regular basis. Stick to your schedule even if you go away for a long vacation.

 4) Be active on Social Media.

Whether you are on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, Google+ or any other social media site, you have to actively participate too if you aim to build your own community. Share others’ content, comment, answer questions and connect with people in your niche and listen.

  • Keep a two-way traffic going to build a strong community.
  • Engage and show you care. Remember that you are dealing with live people.
  • Be prompt in replying to comments. A simple click of emoticon would suffice.

There may come a point in time when everything will be difficult to manage. After all, you can’t be expected to sit on your computer for 24 hours. When this happens, you can always outsource the job of monitoring your social sites to professional social media marketing team from Revive Me Marketing.

Promote and create valuable content for your community by making new connections and promoting other community members and do let them know. Find sites that allow guest posts and contribute a reference or practical tips article. Be specific and do an authoritative piece. The message should be “be a reliable resource, not a brand pusher.” Media loves experts who love to share their trials, failure and successes.

Tips on How to Effectively Engage With Your Interactive Community from Social Media to Website

9-Point Checklist to Turn Your Homepage to a Lead-Generation Engine

9-Point Checklist to Turn Your Homepage to a Lead-Generation Engine

Did you know that it just takes less than 3 seconds for a visitor to accept or reject a website?

 

Since people’s attention span is consistently being clamour for, how do you ensure that you stand out as the ‘Purple Cow’ in your field?

  • Do you have the right elements on your homepage, your main landing page of your website?
  • Does it raise a visitors attention and desire to trade with you?
  • Do you have a captivating headline, engaging content, striking images,  call to actions, strategically placed with a right balance of form, function, and features to attract, capture leads, nurture and convert to sales?

A website homepage is like a storefront of your business. People assess the value of your services or products through the homepage in just a few seconds. Just like how we subconsciously make conclusions with people and first impressions. That’s why we have put together a simple 9-point checklist for you to make sure that your website homepage has the most important elements to make that great first impression to start.

 

1. A Company Logo And Captivating Headline

Ensure that your logo and an impressive headline does this job effortlessly. Try to keep both the elements clean, concise and captivating. If you like to learn more about how to create an effective headline, read this article: 5 steps to prepare an effective headline and marketing message

Can a visitor tell within the first three seconds what your business is and become aware of your value proposition? A value proposition is your highest expression of what your business mission is about.

An example: Healthpost New Zealand
I am a repeat customer of this New Zealand eCommerce site, Healthpost.co.nz. As an eCommerce website, they have to constantly update their website for products and promotions to encourage online shopping, purchase and referrals. I noticed that their promotions and product highlights are timely according to seasons, health needs as well as potential product demands. I am glad to see that they have recently communicated their value proposition more clearly and included a mission behind that message.

“We’re all about empowering positive choices for a better you and a better world. Here’s to marketing better choices, easier.”

Their logo, headline and value proposition statement is simple yet captivating.
Visitors instantly know they offer health products and free delivery is on promotion for a set period.

 

 

2. Personal Focus Design And Copy

Do you know who are your top three customers types and their personas? Personas are common characteristics for your customers that drives their behavior, motivation and purchase decisions. Copy is the written work and visuals used to communicate your point of service or product difference. Ensure that your web design and copy appeal to your target customer and their persons effectively.

An example:The Warehouse New Zealand

I did a search for the top websites in New Zealand, The warehouse homepage ranks #36 , which is top for the category of general merchandising. Other top-ranked sites were auction, media and news and banking websites such as Trademe, Westpac Bank and Stuff .co.nz. By looking at the homepage, can you make out who their persona focus design and copy?

The Warehouse’s website design and copy communicates value for money, consistent with their tagline “Where everybody gets a bargain.” For the website, their key message to online shoppers are guaranteed is ’60day money back guarantee’. Their next focus is to communicate convenience with and free ‘click & collect’ service that encourages visitors to shop online & pick up in their local store.
Who do you think their top three customer types are and their personas? Notice that the top three product categories are ‘Clothing and jewelry’, ‘Home and Garden, and Electronics and Gaming’. We think their top main customers and their personas are mothers with school children, Young adults in a new flatting situations and Remote shoppers living rural areas that want convenience and searching for bargain products for household items before they come in person or solely shop online

Another example: Airbnb

A website with a simple search bar for the people who are looking for the accommodation with local experiences – perfect design with no fuss, direct search to book home stays in city areas. There are accommodation list outside of city areas. Their persona focus design and copy is to directed to travelers who want an authentic travel experience by finding accommodation and experiences to experience with local hosts.

3. Impeccable Content and Language That Connects

Producing content in written, graphic design or on a video with an authentic language that connects with your audience is critical. We encourage you to engage a colleague or someone with copy editing experience to help you proof-read or write content. Use concise words and a tone of voice to communicate how your business can solve their problem or help them complete a job. Every word should be relevant and serve some purpose.

4. Use Strong Calls-to-Action

The  primary purpose is to attract the users’ attention and compel them to dig deeper into your offerings and eventually push them down the funnel in the buying process. Strong Calls-to-Action seamlessly guides them toward the right direction so that they don’t get lost in the mountain of information.
Strategically placed CTAs is important since they also turn your homepage into a lead generation page.
Consider effective and strong words like “Free Trial”, “Call Now”, “Schedule a Demo”, “Learn More”, “Consult us Today” and so on.

An example: Pepper Construction, New Plymouth

Pepper construction-Get Digital Marketing client

Pepper Construction was undergoing a website and digital marketing revamp. Glenn Scott, the Marketing Manager took our Get Digital Marketing program and used the 9 point checklist that you are reading to workshop this process. They added two distinctive call-to-actions on their homepage to encourage visitors who are looking for constructor company for their building project to 1) view their recent work and 2) request for a quote.

5. Use Trust Indicators To Build Trust And Assurance

Customer testimonials, case studies, press mentions; guarantee seals and 3rd party certifications like ISO certifications helps to build trust and confidence to your services and professionalism. Display them on the homepage to create a trust factor with visitors. Try to be strategic about the type of customer testimonials to highlights as well.

Taking the example from Pepper Construction:

6. Site Menu navigate easily to critical and popular content

Site navigation is your website’s “table of contents,” which is also known as your sitemap or menu.
If your website is an information-centric one and you are consistently producing a ton of content as resources to your clients, then it is important to plan the site links, user-experience to how people would find information. Is there a search bar on the top? Decide if the navigation bar (like horizontal or sticky) works for your homepage.  Be sure to check to ensure that all the links work.

7. Use Image And Videos Related To The Copy

To stimulate online growth and engagement, it’s important to produce interesting and relevant content. Text-based content is definitely an integral part of the campaign however attention-grabbing images and videos are the ones that become the cherries on the cake.
But always be cautious before adding tons of images or videos that are irrelevant and could mislead or create dullness for the users.
If you add a video talking about your product or services or relevant images that show how your services could help the readers then chances of getting qualified leads would increase profusely. It is advisable to use content types that could resonant with people.

For example:
• Freedom: https://www.freedomfurniture.co.nz/
The website has used attractive images of the furniture that would appeal the users’ sense.

8. Keep It Above-The-Fold

“Above the fold” is a fundamental component in website design and editorial plan. Make sure that all the necessary information; links and most important message or promotional content is displayed in the first fold of the page to entice readers to continue to scroll down to the content ‘below-the-fold’. Placing important content above-the-fold to encourage visitors to scroll further along and find out your brand, product story and offering.

An example:Outreach Plus

Outreach Plus grabs readers’ attention with a question that makes them think. Then it shows how the product could help solve that problem. The homepage is simple. Apart from the headlines, there’s a screenshot of the product, plus two choices of what to do next: buy, or learn more by viewing a demo.

 

9. Keep Testing And Optimising

Your website development and update process is iterative. Set a monthly, quarterly diary to run an A/B test, update copy, images, call-to-actions to see what resonates most with users. You can even create two home pages or different product landing pages to test two entirely different site designs and content to see which one is most beneficial in the long run.

Your homepage doesn’t just need “traffic”; it needs “right” traffic. One of the biggest challenges most small businesses face today is attracting the right audience on the website. A well-thought and well-designed homepage with all the right components tailored to the needs of target audience could solve this problem.  I hope this checklist would help get into action and make relevant updates you need to Convert your homepage into a leads generation tool.

 

Get specialised support with potential 50% co-funding from NZTE.

Revive Me Marketing has a free online mini-course to help you Turn your Homepage into a lead generation engine.

It is a introduction to a complete ‘ Get Digital Marketing‘  program to help business transform their business with digital marketing strategy with website refresh, content marketing plan, social media campaign and set-up video marketing actions.
To find out more about this approved for 50% co-funded program through NZTE’s Regional Business Partners program, contact Rosalina Pang at rosalina@remc.co.nz

To get started, take our FREE Homepage Essentials Makeover online course here.

6 Tips to Create Irresistible Offers

6 Tips to Create Irresistible Offers

Offers become desirable if they are exclusive, valuable and irresistible.

What is it that your customers REALLY want and how can you create offers that are irresistible to them?

The more you know about your customers the easier it is to answer the first question, so paying attention to buying patterns, marketing intel and what people are saying on your web and social media pages is crucial. To really know what they want you must uncover what turns them on and what turns them off. Once you have assessed and understand what triggers them to make their decision to buy, then creating compelling and irresistible offers is the next step.

Here are 6 tips that will help you create offers that convert to sales:

  1.  Create a sense of urgency or fear of shortage – limited time or limited quantity or both.
  2. Mention the number of people who have downloaded, purchased, signed up, etc. for the offer. There’s safety in numbers, plus it indicates how great the offer is.
  3. Align your offers with things that are buzzworthy or ‘hot’ because it naturally creates a demand.
  4. Create a great headline that grabs your audience’s attention, because a great offer with a bad title is just going to be ignored.
  5. Create offers for different buying stages.
  6. Avoid jargons, meaningless words or unrealistic claims.
 
How to Become the Go-to-Person in Your Industry?

How to Become the Go-to-Person in Your Industry?

Are you an authority?

How do we quickly establishing ourselves as a go-to person in our industry?

This term was introduced to me in 2012 when I bought the best selling book “Become a Key person of Influence’ (KPI) by Daniel Priestley.

The book explains how to get into the inner circle of any industry fast. I was drawn to the concept of 5 steps to become highly valued and paid person in my industry. (Click here for a free 2 chapters download to KPI ebook) 

  1. The first step is PITCH, communicate your idea, service or product well! ( a powerful pitch convince and gets others excited!)
  2. Next is to PUBLISH content and write about the problem that you are solving (Blogs, articles, reports for getting your message to audience)
  3. Turn your niche skills, talents and ideas into hot PRODUCTS that people love to buy.(Produce unique and valuable ways to get the right mix of product to market.)
  4. Raise your PROFILE. Stand out and be recognized! (Get active and build a profile for your business and ideas)
  5. Build PARTNERSHIPS. Collaborate and achieve with others. (Scale your business and brand through partnerships)

For the first two years of re-establishing myself as a marketing consultant in a new country, I had my fears.

My fears were about the steep hill to climb of establishing credibility as I didn’t have too many networks and past clients projects I could showcase. How am I going to be visible? Will I be able to pay the bills? Who did I want to work with, who is willing to work with me? I was trying really hard to not try too hard. Cold calling,  finding the right connections, making connections but not pitching what I stood for and why should people work with me.

I did not have any other working partners that can market me as an authority in my business as a marketing consultant. I was, however, doing well with my belly dancing classes. Then I ask myself why? What was the stigma I had that stops me from branding myself as a marketer? Is it the competition and idealism that people don’t pay for quality consulting? Or is it the fact that I had to gain credibility and build trust again?

I realize I wasn’t in the flow.

I wasn’t focused in one area that I could present the greatest value in.

Taking a stand

Now, after 5 years of internal struggle, I made my decision on who I want to serve.

I want to support entrepreneurs who are innovative, I want to support women in business who are out there on their own, going through the same challenges I had prior. I want to work with successful business owners to develop better brands, communicate and deliver information via digital and mobile media. For my belly dance classes, I took a stand on empowering women in dance.

For my marketing business, I finally took a stand in supporting entrepreneurs and organisation who are dedicated connecting with their audience in new media.

The following is an extract from a newsletter that I received from Roger Hamilton, successful serial and social entrepreneur. (He has not multiple businesses and multiple team to support the Entrepreneur movement. I have taken up the training to be an Entrepreneur Mentor and my vision is to help entrepreneurs build global businesses and make a difference throught my specialisation in Digital Marketing )

What is your personal identity?

 

When we stand for something, we stop falling for everything. When we create a position – like in a game of football – we no longer chase the ball and people start passing the ball to us: We go from action to attraction.

Being an authority means being the No.1 go-to person in a particular niche, whether that is based on your passion, purpose, expertise, industry or location. It starts with making a decision to stay focused in one area to be of greatest value in that area to others.

Being an authority allows you to be an author of your own story. Until you make that stand, you’re only ever a part-player in someone else’s story.

The moment you make that stand, you stop chasing and losing your way, and you begin building yourself as a lighthouse lighting the way for others.

Here’s a poignant quote:

Inside my empty bottle I was constructing a lighthouse while all others were making ships.~ Charles Simic

 

To be successful is to be getting in to flow. Take a stand today and to keep focus on creating and delivering value.

12 Questions to Help Passion-Driven Entrepreneurs Outline a Business Creation Plan

12 Questions to Help Passion-Driven Entrepreneurs Outline a Business Creation Plan

Are you transitioning from a part-time passion to a profitable business?

12 Questions to Help Passion-Driven Entrepreneurs Outline a Business Creation PlanWe all know of people who have done it and made it successful in their own way. Some of us have so many business start-up ideas and just thinking about which to choose from or implement throws us into a whirlpool of doubts and emotions. There are also some of us that just do it, have lukewarm successes, try to learn from our mistakes and then get started with another business venture with the same lukewarm results. I have been there myself. I started my entrepreneur journey at 22, when I registered a boutique marketing agency called Image Conceptualist in Singapore. I ran the business for 2 years and worked with an ex-colleague. He had networks but no money to invest. We had time, customers and expertise on designing products and exhibitions stands for a small client base. We had projects and consistent job coming through. I made enough to earn a basic income. However, my business partner had larger financial needs, and decided to work full time for consistent income. I carried for 6 months as a solo business owner, doing everything and was starting to feel lost. When an opportunity of a full-time opportunity as a marketing executive with Singapore Technologies Manufacturing Company came about, I decided to take it. I was young at that time, driven and also uncertain on where or who to turn to find business support. It was the better decision for me then, as I needed to gain more life skills. That work opportunity gave me insight into international business and marketing various different brands and building identity and communications with. I had a marketing budget of 0.5 million to manage, events, product demo, launches and exhibitions to plan. That experience exponentially raised my confidence. My appetite for entrepreneurship, creating new business and connecting with what I value personally, has produced two passion-fill businesses. 5th Element Dance and Revive Me Marketing.

Fundamental Question for Personal Clarity

The  fundamental question I asked myself daily is “Who do I have to be?”

I’d like to share with you that there is great substance in that question. It has helped guide me to be true to my unique self, recognising the talents that I’m blessed with. No doubt, it takes time to grow any new endeavor. By recognising one’s passion and purpose, find out what makes you come alive! Then validate by profiling and asking your prospective customers if they are willing to purchase or trade with you and just get started. If you think there might not be enough community of customer in your immediate location to grow, find out from web-based entrepreneurs how they have worked to reach more customers, by presenting their product or service online.

As someone who has moved into a new country in 2008, I wanted to share my passion for belly dancing, wellness, balance and living a positive lifestyle. I began the challenging journey of settling in new environment, community and with a socially shy partner,  it was a challenge to make new friends. I knew I needed to get out there, connect with people and share the art of belly dancing with ladies in Taranaki, New Zealand.

After writing into local community magazine, TOM  published an article about me and my background in performing arts and desire to run a belly dancing for fitness class, if there was enough interest. Shortly after the article ran, we had a first belly dance class of 6 enthusiastic and relatively shy women. We met weekly at Oakura Boardriders club. From 2009, six years on, we now have a performing group called 5th Element Dance and 25 to 30 ladies religiously come to the classes in New Plymouth.

I had the opportunity to be a contract marketing tutor at WITT for 3 semesters, learning how to tutor an academic subject thatI learned through practical work experience. Boy, at that time, it was a huge challenge and a great sense of accomplishment!

In 2014, after working for over 15 years in marketing and building brand identities, I started working on my own identity and with introspection.
I reflected on a few questions:

  • ‘What was the biggest achievement I have till date?
  • What have I been most successful at? And the fundamental question, ‘Who do I have to be?’

So I ask the same to you. Who do you have to be?

I enjoy connecting with entrepreneurs and I would like to support them by being ‘a digital marketing specialist’ who create better web, mobile and social actions.

Carrying through all my life and business lessons this time, I knew the answers and what I can deliver is valuable. My answer to ‘Who do I have to be’ was – “besides being a dancer entertainer and instructor, I need to be a marketer and be a specialist in the digital realm.” I’m most passionate when working with entrepreneurs and businesses to raise their value proposition and market attraction with the right marketing actions.

Through better web, mobile and social action that is consistent to  build digital marketing presence. My goal in 2015 was to grow my business beyond myself, have a system of connecting brands and their value to their customers, be consistent and profitable, through digital marketing.

So here are some powerful check-in questions for you.

By answering these questions, you will find that clarity when you start working or refreshing your business plan.
I am a entrepreneur mentor and taking the GenuisU program.

  1. What is my Genuis? (Find that out with a free test from GeniusU)
  2. What is my Passion & Purpose?
  3. What is my Product or service going to be? Is it a new brand or an established brand?
  4. Who are the People that I would like to serve? Am I prepared to go out and ask them how much they will pay for it?
  5. What is the Price I can set to facilitate the exchange or sales?
  6. How much do I need to earn? Is there any established business that can help me distribute or jointly promote?
  7. What is my start-up investment going to be?
    Calculate your overheads, start-up costs in terms of time, efforts, materials to purchase items, stock or equipment for your venture
  8. Who are my mentors and advisers I can seek out for support?
    They could include Business coaches, marketing specialists, Accountants, lawyers for legal matters, business mentors on local economic development board,
  9. Which are the networks out there who can help me in both social and business engagements? Do they have an offline and digital presence
    (i.e: Local chamber of commerce, Linkedin groups, social media meet-ups, specific interest groups such as Women in Business)
  10. Which accounting program that is simple and automated, return in investments and savings to set aside for marketing, potential product development, and business growth?
  11.  What is my daily and weekly ritual to commit to the growth of my business?
    This is allocating your time that you are willing to devote in creating, communicating and actually delivering your passion, product, and service to your customer.
  12.  Who can I partner with that already have flow and success in what they do, and how I can help them be more successful?

12 Questions to Help Passion-Driven Entrepreneurs Outline a Business Creation Plan

Write your answers down, ponder on it, draw it, meditate on it, research, go out and ask potential customers, talk about it! Then put a timeline to starting and how you see yourself in 3 years time?

‘Your future success is your present imagination’

When times get tough, and when you feel it is too much to manage, come back to the question: “Who do I have to be?”

Keep passionate and pursuing!

12 Questions to Help Passion-Driven Entrepreneurs Outline a Business Creation Plan

10 Things You Can Do to Increase Online Profile and Reputation

10 Things You Can Do to Increase Online Profile and Reputation

Having a positive online presence is a crucial part of any up-to-date business strategy. Potential customers use the internet to research a company and review of products and services before making their decision to inquire or buy. As a result, a poor online reputation can have a damaging impact on sales. Fortunately, effective online management can significantly improve your business image.

Here are 10 things you can do to manage your online market reputation.

1) Stay informed

The first step in any successful reputation management strategy is knowing exactly what people are saying about your business. By conducting regular search engine checks and setting up Google Alerts, which inform you of relevant result updates, you can be proactive rather than reactive when controlling your brand image.

2) Respond to negative feedback

If you find negative comments regarding your company, it is important to respond to them quickly. Challenging a comment or being overly defensive, even if the statement is incorrect, can create a bad impression, so instead be humble in your response and, if appropriate, try to make amends in some way.

3) Encourage customer reviews

Genuine feedback from previous customers can make your business appear both trustworthy and reliable. To encourage your customers to post positive reviews online, create a visible link to review sites on your website or email newsletter.

4) Use online directories

Your business’s profile on Yahoo! Local, Google Plus Local, and other online business directories can be created and updated from time to time. In online marketing management, it is important to search out key industry directories and publications that you can add your business listing and profile.

5) Use Social Media

Social media sites provide a powerful platform for connecting with people on a personal level. By creating an interesting fan page and offering exclusive content, product info or promotional vouchers,  you can develop a positive relationship with a targeted audience of potential customers.

6) Optimize your website

Google data shows that links on the first page of search results get 89% of all click through. Making sure that your own website is ranked highly will encourage people to visit it rather than other sites that you have less control over. Here are just a couple of useful SEO techniques:

– Use targeted keyword phrases in your written content
– Create inbound links and backlinks to relevant sites
– Use keywords in your link titles
– Update the site regularly

7) Use quality content

Whether it is on your website, blog, or social media site, having well-written, meaningful content creates a far better impression than keyword-stuffed, power-selling blurb. Communicate the benefits and value of working with you by sharing your knowledge complements and help solve your customers issues or what satisfy their needs.

8) Get the word out by sharing informative articles

Blogging is one of the most effective ways to maintain a good brand image. Setting up a blog is easy. Maintain and regular posting updates will have to be assigned to someone that understands your business. This can be linked to your main website and social media profiles.

9) Keep up a good offline reputation

Unreasonable customers happen to even the best of businesses, so there is no way to completely stop all negative online feedback. However, good ethics and great customer service will reduce the likelihood of someone posting harmful comments as much as possible.

10) Be proactive

Damage from a poor reputation can be hard to reverse, so it is wise to start managing your online brand image before a problem occurs.

By following these simple online reputation management steps, you can boost your brand image, maximize your sales, and prevent long term damage to your company.

10 Things You Can Do to Increase Online Profile and Reputation