Taking What I've Learned...

It's not often that you take a class and have an almost immediate real life application for it . I'm looking to turn a hobby/interest of mine into a business that already has a full marketplace.

However,I believe the demand for the product is so great that I still stand a chance of being successful. What is going to set me apart will be me utilizing the tactics that I learned in this course. I will definitely have to use video marketing. I will also have to use content marketing. I will have to find influencers who can love and share my product with their network. 

I've already joined several groups on Facebook so I can put myself in the spectrum of people who are interested in the products that I will be selling. I have also been checking out my competitors and seeing what of their methods that I like and what I don't like in an effort to decide how I'm going to set myself apart from  them. Over the holiday season I'll be sitting down and devising a social media marketing plan for this business. I will identify goals and strategies I will thoroughly evaluate my competition's performance and identify their SWOTs. I will devise content and  come up with a plan for implementing that content. I will have a full implementation plan for all of the various social media platforms. 

I plan to use more than just YouTube or Facebook which are the two primary platforms which my products are marketed. I look forward to growing this business in 2017 thanks to info garnered over this semester! 

Semester In Review

A Vlog based upon what I learned this semester.

Boost Your Business in 2k17

In our ever changing world, businesses must adapt constantly to stay ahead of the tide. Moving into 2017, businesses need to focus on two main things, 1) Customer Engagement and 2) Customer Generated Content.

Customer engagement involves interacting with customers in real time. Live-streaming on social media, conducting live webinars, and other live events enables businesses to connect immediately with their consumers. Providing relevant and interesting information will keep the consumers invested in the presentation. Another integral piece to customer engagement is follow up. Too often businesses lay the groundwork and provide the content but do not close the deal. Reach out to participants in your live events via social media, email, text, or whatever medium they prefer and deepen the connection.

Customer generated content pertains to building a strong brand image that is recognized as having a high moral composition. Content created with the user in mind is relevant because the creator has listened to the consumer to ascertain their likes and dislikes. Third party validation of the content is a sure fire way to gain weight and recognition for the brand. The key rule in this new spectrum of marketing is ensuring that your audience is interested. If they are not, all of your hard work will be for naught.

Text M@rketing

Oftentimes, when you visit a retailer or their website you are often asked to opt-in to receiving text messages. As a consumer, I will tell you that initially I did not give my cell phone number out. I envisioned salesmen calling me on the phone and hounding me to buy products from across the spectrum. Nowadays I find myself opting in to everywhere I like to shop.

Over the past weekend, I've received texts from Kohl's (offering a mystery coupon), JoAnn Fabrics (50% off), VS Pink (Get an Outfit for $40), Express ($25 off $100), and Gap (25% off Purchase). Of these five text message, three elicited actions from me and one an unplanned purchase. Kohl's mystery coupon brought me to their website to see if they had anything I wanted to buy today as the coupon is limited to 12/12 only. JoAnn's 50% off one item coupon was too good to pass up. Especially since I had been eyeing a Silhouette Cameo 3 machine and 50% off would bring my machine to $150 at the most. Sadly, when I read the coupon's fine print I discovered 2 things, 1) The coupon could not be applied to machines, and 2) the coupon is only available for use in store (where my machine wasn't sold.) VS Pink yielded my one purchase thus far. The $40 outfit was more than 50% off and was on y daughter's Christmas list. As a result, I couldn't pass that deal up.

 The other coupons were good and useful if I was planning to make a purchase from that store but the deals weren't "can't be missed" deals. Leveraging potential sales with the revenue "lost" from the value of the coupon is something businesses must decide whether it works for them. Since the text messages came to my phone they were much more effective than email marketing.

Content With Your Content

A large part of social media marketing is content marketing. Content marketing is the process of creating and/or distributing relevant and consistent content which is usually targeted to a specific audience. Entrepreneur offers 6 tips for content marketing on Twitter. I've included the 5 that I most agree with below and my interpretations of them.

1) Create Content used as a service. Provide uses for your products and or services beyond the traditional use. For example, Pop Secret the popcorn company could post a graphic or write an article about the various ways you can use pop corn during the holiday season. (i.e. string it and place it on a tree.)

2) Map your moments. Look at a calendar. Identifying upcoming events and holidays then devising content around them is instrumental in content marketing. Creating specific and relevant content is step one in going viral.

3) Give consumers a live look. Live video started with Ustream and has ventured off into Periscope, Snapchat, and Facebook Live. These services offer real-time video. Presening a behind the scenes look into the inner workings of a business is often engaging and informative to consumers.

4) Employ creators. In today's world of technology, those with average technical ability may not be able to bring the dynamic ideas they have to life. Partnering with gurus, influencers, and those with the abilities that are lacking is an effective method of filling the gaps that may occur when stepping into any new forum.

5) Always optimize. Reviewing the content metrics from content that has already been created and shared will enable a business to determine the success or failure of their current campaign. They will also have the ability to isolate the posts that do well and can devise future content based off the analysis of the successful posts.

Creating Buzzzzzzworthy Events Socially!

In today's world, marketing on social media is a free or low-cost, yet effective method of reaching hundreds of potential attendees. Many traditional business have accepted that they must utilize social media to maximize exposure of their event.  After reading Buzzworthy Events I decided to discuss their suggestions which resonated most with me.

1. Engage/Invigorate: Interacting with your attendees prior to the event is a great way to build rapport and excitement about the event before it begins. As time draws near, offering teasers and social event specials can lure even more attendees.

2. Intrigue: Using free event platforms such as Eventbrite and Facebook Events provides event organizers with a medium for connecting with attendees and prospective attendees. Facebook events often expand their reach organically through fan interaction with the page. Eventbrite provides the option to sell tickets to the event. Upon purchasing a ticket (which can be free).

3. Integrate: Creating a Hashtag and beginning social contests will yield  excitement and begin the social buzz about the event.

Lastly, Propagate and Aggregate: Create your own content. Use mediums such as Facebook Live, Periscope, or Snapchat. Once its created... distribute it! Share links across social media. Offer attendees incentives for sharing event content. Reach as any people as possible. At the conclusion of the event, review the tactics used and determine what worked and what didn't. Take that information and prepare for next year!

A Devil's Advocate

Should EVERY business, small or large have social media? While I am of the opinion that all businesses need social media, I stumbled across an article that made some valid points of why small businesses may not need to engage in social media.

Once upon a time, social media = free marketing. An organic reach enabled businesses to reach their fans friends based on their activity. According to the article if a business doesn't have $200+ per day to plug into their social media marketing they shouldn't go into the social media realm. I disagree with this principle. While having a budget for social marketing is important, it is not necessary for small businesses to plug hundreds per day into social media. 

Secondly, the article suggested that businesses without a social media strategy should not use social media. This is a premise I can agree with. Without a road map how can a business determine where they are going. A social media strategy covers critical aspects such as content development, post frequency, response plan, and monitoring metrics. A business that has not identified these critical pieces, is doomed to fail or be overwhelmed by their social media and let it fall by the wayside. 

Lastly, the article states that businesses who cannot afford to dedicate an employee or several employees to focusing on social media, shouldn't venture into it. To an extent, I agree. Small businesses who are not familiar with social media definitely need to get familiar or hire someone who is. Hiring an individual who is well versed in social media will help you prevent item 1 and help with Item 2 while satisfying item 3. Personnel is key. This may be why so many jobs now are looking or employees who are also versed in social marketing. Social marketing is now a viable and marketing skill in the current workforce.

Reference: http://marketingland.com/3-signs-small-business-forego-social-media-174349

The Right to Yelp!

I stumbled across an interesting subject in my email, "The Right To Yelp." Yelp is a social media platform that allows users to share reviews about their customer experience with businesses. Many businesses use their Yelp ratings as third-party validation when marketing to new customers.

Last week, Congress passed a bill that will reach President Obama shortly. It prevents Yelp businesses from threatening and retaliating against negative reviews. There was an instance of a consumer who refused to take down a negative review. The business threatened him, hit him with a lawsuit, and fined him. He didn't pay and the business reported the fine to a credit bureau as debt which negatively affected his credit score. All because he wrote the truth of his customer experience and the business didn't like it. As a result of the law, businesses will be fined up to $40,000 for retaliating against consumers for honest reviews.

This law makes me feel more confident in the Yelp reviews I see as I know they have not been tampered with and are a true representation of a real customer's existence

Reference: Yelp!.