ReportWire

Tag: Marketing Strategies

  • 7 Ways to Help Your PR Provider Help You | Entrepreneur

    7 Ways to Help Your PR Provider Help You | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    I recently watched Jerry Maguire with my kids. They’d never seen it — and I hadn’t watched it from beginning to end in ages.

    When the film came out in 1996, a famous line was born. No, I’m not thinking of “Show me the money” — though that one is a fan favorite. It’s the “Help me help you” line that’s been on my mind.

    Working with clients on public relations initiatives is often an isolating experience. The client hires you to make things happen. The expectations are high — but what is their role in creating success?

    Related: How to Make PR Work For You

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    Michelle Garrett

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  • 6 Ways Spreadsheets Can Hinder or Ruin Your Business | Entrepreneur

    6 Ways Spreadsheets Can Hinder or Ruin Your Business | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Spreadsheets are one of the most versatile and widely used tools in the business world. They offer an easy way to organize and manipulate data, make calculations and create visual representations of information. However, when used for inappropriate tasks, spreadsheets quickly become a crutch that hinders progress and accuracy. While they undoubtedly have their place in basic budgeting, they are unwieldy and dangerous when used to define process or for complex decision-making. To put it simply, spreadsheets are a great tool for individual tasks, not for tackling jobs that require a large-scale systematic approach.

    Have you ever tinkered with the formulas in a company spreadsheet? We’re all guilty of it. Without a centralized guarded process to keep everything in order, data management turns into a waking nightmare. Not only does it waste time and fatigue your staff, but the absence of proper data management is also actively dangerous for businesses. Why? If your data is incorrect, partially missing or out of date, you’ll quickly fall out of touch with the marketplace and won’t be able to conduct effective decision-making for your brand.

    What would happen if your organization shut down its ERP or CRM and did everything on spreadsheets? The answer is obvious: It would be the equivalent of a zombie apocalypse.

    Related: Become a Data Management Pro by Becoming Proficient in Microsoft Excel

    Marketing departments are particularly susceptible to spreadsheet overload as their business is not controlled within the organization’s ERP or CRM. These teams handle massive amounts of data from multiple sources like endless GTM (Go-To-Market) cycles, operations, dealers, distribution and more. When spreadsheets fail, the marketing team becomes crippled by the immense task of sorting multiple years’ worth of messy and inaccurate data. The consequences of this failure are utterly disastrous and blatantly obvious when conducting reports.

    What are some of the harmful consequences of spreadsheet failures? Let’s discuss six of them below:

    1. Hinders decision-making

    In the GTM cycle, data plays a crucial role in enabling brands to make informed decisions and improve their processes. This data encompasses a wide range of information, such as sales, feedback, product insights, channels and more. Successful brands recognize the importance of using data to tighten and enhance their GTM cycle each time.

    A spreadsheet is not designed to define process or naturally capture data on this scale as it struggles to remain current and consistent due to human “tinkering.” Additionally, it only collects basic surface-level information, foregoing the detailed operational data needed to improve the next GTM process. Without a centralized system, brands risk falling behind their competitors due to sub-optimal decision-making that relies on guesswork rather than data-driven insights from past work.

    2. Blocks scalability

    Spreadsheets are not designed to handle the complexity of marketing data, such as customer interactions across multiple channels, demographic information, and campaign placement and performance. Forcing staff to haphazardly cross-reference thousands of numbers in multiple sheets in order to glean basic insights is simply unsustainable and uneconomical. Sounds obvious, right? But you’d be surprised by the number of companies that still attempt to operate this way.

    3. Threatens security

    Spreadsheets lack the necessary security features required to protect sensitive data, leaving businesses vulnerable to data breaches. To avoid this, businesses need to adopt a more sophisticated data management system that can handle large amounts of data, provide robust security features and allow for encryption with easy data analysis and reporting. Can the bulk of your marketing numbers be passed around on a thumb drive? If so, you have a huge issue.

    Related: Data Security: How To Protect Your Most Sensitive Asset

    4. Lacks efficiency

    Using spreadsheets to record marketing data is a colossal waste of time. Creating and updating spreadsheets is time-consuming, unstable and costly (as it must be done manually by humans who are flawed by nature). A more efficient approach to managing marketing data is to use a dedicated marketing automation platform that can handle the entire marketing process. This approach streamlines data collection and provides powerful analytical tools to help businesses optimize their marketing strategies. What would have taken a staff member days to complete can be done in a matter of seconds.

    5. Prone to errors

    The chance that human error will occur at some point is inevitable. Mistakes are easy to make, and even a bona fide spreadsheet wizard is bound to slip up sooner or later. A single typo or minor miscalculation can lead to recurring inaccuracies in your data. Trying to keep track of information in multiple spreadsheets can also lead to duplication and inconsistencies, making it difficult to get a clear picture of the business’s performance. Using an automated platform will eliminate these errors.

    6. Siloed system fatigue

    Employees often have to maintain multiple spreadsheets, each with its own set of data, formulas and formatting. This creates silos of information, where data is not shared effectively, leading to inefficient processes and duplication of effort. Moreover, employees may struggle to keep up with changes to the spreadsheets, leading to confusion and errors. Over time, this leads to system fatigue, where employees become frustrated with the complexity of managing data in spreadsheets and may resist using them altogether.

    By adopting a more integrated approach with a system that allows for easy collaboration across departments, businesses can streamline their processes, improve data accuracy and reduce the burden on employees.

    Related: Why Un-Silo-ing Your Data Will Boost Your Company’s Efficiency and Productivity

    So, what’s the alternative?

    Today, there is a wealth of technology available to organizations. If you’re still using spreadsheets for anything other than simple data entry for small tasks, you are consciously making the decision to slow the process and put your company’s operational fluidity at risk.

    Spreadsheets certainly have their place in the business world but should NEVER be used to drive process, collect substantial masses of data or for complex decision-making. Fortunately, platforms like Regulator automatically gather and amalgamate data from multiple sources and present it in an easy-to-use format. Adopting a system like this takes the burden off staff and allows them to focus on making data-driven decisions, rather than struggling with data management.

    It’s time to move beyond spreadsheets and embrace the future of data management.

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    Jamie Calon

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  • Limited PR Budget? Here’s How Employee Advocacy Can Help. | Entrepreneur

    Limited PR Budget? Here’s How Employee Advocacy Can Help. | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Startups and small businesses know that creating effective PR and marketing strategies can be challenging, especially when working with limited budgets. Traditional advertising can be expensive, and reaching new customers through social media can take time and effort. However, there is a solution that you may have yet to consider: employee advocacy.

    Explore how employee advocacy can help you overcome the challenges of limited budgets by turning your employees into powerful advocates for your business. I will discuss employee advocacy, why it’s essential and how you can implement a successful employee advocacy program for your business.

    Related: Employees Are Your Biggest Brand Advocates

    What is employee advocacy?

    Employee advocacy encourages employees to promote your business through their personal and professional networks. This can include sharing your company’s content on social media, attending industry events and conferences to represent your brand and referring new customers or clients to your business.

    When your employees become advocates for your business, they can help increase brand awareness, boost engagement on social media and even drive sales. But employee advocacy is about more than just getting your employees to talk about your business. It’s about building a culture of engagement and empowerment that benefits your employees and business.

    Why is employee advocacy important?

    There are several reasons why employee advocacy is essential for your business. Here are just a few:

    1. Trust: According to Edelman’s Trust Barometer, people trust employees more than they trust CEOs, journalists or government officials. Employees sharing positive messages about your business can help build trust with potential customers.

    2. Reach: Your employees have networks of friends, family and professional connections. When they share your content, they can help extend your reach to new audiences.

    3. Authenticity: People are more likely to believe recommendations from people they know and trust. When your employees share their experiences working for your business, it can help build an authentic and relatable brand image.

    4. Engagement and satisfaction: When your employees feel empowered to share their opinions and ideas about your business, it can help increase their engagement and job satisfaction.

    Related: Here’s How Employee Advocacy Benefits Brands

    How can you encourage employee advocacy?

    Encouraging your employees to become advocates for your business can be a challenge, but there are several strategies you can use to make it happen:

    1. Provide training: Many employees may feel uncomfortable sharing information about your business on social media or in other settings. Providing training on social media best practices and company messaging can help build their confidence and expertise.

    2. Recognize and reward participation: Recognizing and rewarding employees participating in your advocacy program can help incentivize others to get involved. Consider offering prizes or other incentives for employees who refer new customers or share a certain number of social media posts.

    3. Make it easy: Provide your employees with pre-written social media posts, email templates and other content they can share with their networks. This can make it easier for them to participate in your advocacy program without feeling like they need to create content from scratch.

    How can employees connect with customers and share their knowledge?

    One of the most significant advantages of employee advocacy is that it lets employees connect with customers personally. Employees who share their experiences and insights about your business can build trust and establish relationships with potential customers.

    Here are a few ways that your employees can connect with customers and share their knowledge:

    1. Customer service: Your employees who work in customer service can share their knowledge and expertise with customers with questions or concerns. This can help build trust and establish a reputation for excellent customer service.

    2. Industry events and conferences: Send your employees to events and conferences to represent your brand and share their knowledge with others in your industry. This can help position your business as a thought leader and build relationships with potential customers.

    3. Internal knowledge sharing: Encourage your employees to share their knowledge and expertise. This can help build a culture of collaboration and innovation within your business, ultimately benefiting your customers.

    Related: 5 Ways to Make Your Employees Your Greatest Brand Advocates

    Measuring the success of your employee advocacy program

    Measuring the success of your employee advocacy program is essential to ensure that you are achieving your goals and getting the most out of your investment. Here are a few metrics you can track to measure the success of your program:

    1. Engagement: Track the number of employees participating in your program and the frequency of their participation. You can also track engagement on social media by monitoring the number of likes, comments and shares on your employees’ posts.

    2. Reach: Track the number of people reached through your employees’ social media posts and other advocacy activities.

    3. Referrals: Track the number of new customers or clients referred to your business by your employees.

    4. Sales: If your employee advocacy program is focused on driving sales, track the sales generated through your program.

    By tracking these metrics, you can measure the success of your employee advocacy program and adjust as needed to ensure that you are getting the most out of your investment.

    The saying goes, “When employees win, we all win.” This rings true when it comes to employee advocacy. When employees are willing to speak highly of their company, its products or services, and its overall mission, it can significantly impact its success.

    Companies that recognize and value their employees’ advocacy efforts are more likely to attract and retain top talent while reaping the benefits of increased brand awareness and revenue. In this way, when employees win, we all win.

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    Diana Gauthier

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  • 4 Ways Marketing Can Improve the Customer Onboarding Process | Entrepreneur

    4 Ways Marketing Can Improve the Customer Onboarding Process | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Digital identity verification is a critical step in customer onboarding, especially for businesses operating in highly regulated industries such as financial services or payments.

    However, the traditional methods of identity verification, such as a person reviewing government-issued IDs or conducting manual background checks, can be time-consuming and expensive. Onboarding is an opportunity for businesses to make a strong first impression, but those methods can lead to poor user experiences and customer abandonment. Yet if onboarding processes are not well-designed, they can open the door for fraudsters and lead to significant financial losses.

    In the current economic environment, companies are striving to onboard the right customers at the right costs. That requires help from all areas of the business, and it’s where marketing can play a role.

    Marketing is all about understanding customer needs and behaviors and using that information to create strategies that help businesses achieve their goals. By applying marketing principles to identity verification at user onboarding, businesses can make the process more efficient and create positive customer experiences that build trust, enhance the brand reputation and reduce abandonment.

    When responsible, ethical marketing intersects with identity verification at onboarding, customers and businesses can reap the benefits. Here are four ways that can happen.

    Related: 7 Strategies to Revamp Your Customer Onboarding

    1. Simplifies the verification process

    The marketing team can help its colleagues simplify identity verification by providing clear, concise instructions to users so they know exactly what to do and are more at ease during onboarding. That can be especially helpful for those who may not be familiar with the verification process or who may have limited access to technology. The right tone and voice from marketing can help a user through a daunting process while leaving a positive association with the brand.

    Recent research from Trulioo, for instance, found that 53% of payment service providers consider empathy — showing an understanding of customer needs, concerns and values — a top factor in building trust through identity verification. The same research showed that 92% of consumers consider empathy to be as important or more important during onboarding, compared with how they felt two to three years ago.

    Marketing also can support product design teams as they create intuitive user interfaces that guide customers through the verification process step by step. For example, businesses can use visual cues, such as progress bars or check marks, to indicate to customers their progress in the verification process. Those cues can create positive experiences that encourage customers to complete onboarding. When the cues use a visual system that aligns with a company’s brand promise, yet another strong positive association is made between the company and customer.

    2. Creates a sense of urgency

    Marketing can help create a sense of urgency around the verification process. For example, businesses can use messaging that emphasizes the importance of verifying identity, such as highlighting how it helps prevent fraud.

    When it’s appropriate, businesses can use techniques such as countdown timers or limited-time offers to give customers a stronger sense of engagement with the onboarding journey. Offering incentives for completing the verification process can encourage users to continue through the onboarding steps. This may not make sense in all industries, but it can help reduce the number of people who abandon the onboarding process.

    Related: 7 Common Customer Onboarding Mistakes to Avoid at All Costs

    3. Builds trust

    Identity verification is a critical element in building trust between a business and its customers. By verifying digital identities, businesses create a safer environment for customers.

    Marketing can convey that message clearly throughout onboarding to enhance the brand reputation and ensure customers understand exactly why they’re providing information for verification. The messaging can emphasize the security benefits or leverage social proof, such as customer reviews or testimonials, to demonstrate the process is secure and efficient.

    That type of communication can pave the way for positive user experiences and customers who believe the company is taking steps to ensure their security and data privacy. When companies showcase their commitment to a secure digital environment, customers are more likely to trust the process and provide the necessary onboarding information.

    Businesses also can use branding elements such as logos or color schemes to create a consistent and recognizable user experience. That can help reinforce the business’s brand identity and create trust with customers.

    4. Builds personalized and customized experiences

    Businesses can leverage marketing tactics to personalize and customize identity verification workflows. When a company understands its customers’ needs and behaviors, it can tailor onboarding steps to each person, striking the balance between security and meeting consumer expectations for speed and convenience.

    Personalization can also give people the feeling that a business really knows them, such as when it greets them by name or uses messaging specific to their industry or interests. Those nuanced techniques can create more engaging experiences that encourage users to complete the verification process.

    Related: How to Turn Strangers into Loyal Customers With User Onboarding

    Marketing forms the foundation of long-lasting relationships

    Harnessing best-in-class marketing techniques for the identity verification process can create a more positive onboarding experience and strengthen the relationship between businesses and their customers.

    When businesses truly leverage this type of holistic approach, they can realize the benefits of increased customer satisfaction, retention and trust. Clear communication, an engaging process and personalized experiences help ensure businesses onboard the customers they want while building trust and confidence in the brand.

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    Dawn Crew

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  • Why This Unique Marketing Strategy Can Build a Cohesive Brand Message | Entrepreneur

    Why This Unique Marketing Strategy Can Build a Cohesive Brand Message | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Marketing is a very important part of running a business. To succeed in the competitive world, you need a strong marketing strategy that connects you with your target audience and helps you achieve your business goals.

    But it’s important to note that marketing isn’t just about promoting your products or services. It’s about creating a clear and consistent message that speaks to your audience, no matter where they are. That’s where integrated marketing communications (IMC) comes in.

    What is integrated marketing communications?

    Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) is a powerful strategy that allows entrepreneurs to bring together all of their marketing efforts into a unified and consistent message. So, instead of having disjointed and confusing messages, IMC combines advertising, public relations, sales promotions and digital marketing to create a seamless and cohesive brand message.

    This strategy helps businesses connect with their target audience and build brand awareness, ultimately driving more sales and revenue. Therefore, by implementing an integrated approach to marketing, entrepreneurs can create a memorable brand experience for their customers and stand out from the competition.

    Benefits of integrated marketing communications

    There are several benefits to using an integrated marketing communications approach for your business. Integrated marketing communications help create a consistent brand message that resonates with your target audience. And by delivering a consistent message across all channels, you can increase brand recognition, build trust with your audience and improve customer loyalty.

    It also helps you save time and money by combining all marketing efforts into a cohesive strategy. You can streamline your marketing efforts and avoid duplicating efforts. This can also help you save money by eliminating the need for multiple marketing agencies or vendors.

    Related: How An Integrated Marketing Approach Can Help Generate Greater Brand Impact

    How to implement a successful IMC strategy?

    Elements of an effective IMC strategy include messaging, brand identity, audience segmentation, media channels and data analytics. However, implementing a successful IMC strategy involves several steps.

    Here are the steps to follow:

    1. Define your target audience — Identify and understand your target audience to create a successful IMC strategy. You need to fully understand who your audience is, what they want and how they want to be communicated.
    2. Develop your brand identity — Develop a strong brand identity that represents your business and resonates with your target audience. This involves creating a brand style guide that outlines your brand’s tone, voice and visual identity.
    3. Create your messaging — Create messaging that resonates with your audience and is consistent across all channels. This includes messaging for advertising, public relations, personal selling, sales promotion, direct marketing and digital marketing.
    4. Choose your media channels — Select the appropriate media channels for your marketing efforts to reach your target audience. Choose the channels your audience uses most that align with your brand messaging.
    5. Measure success — Measure the success of your marketing efforts using data analytics. This will help you track your results and identify areas for improvement to make informed decisions for future campaigns.

    Related: Why Customer Communication Makes a Difference During Inflation

    Tips for creating a successful integrated marketing communications strategy

    Creating an effective integrated marketing communications strategy can be overwhelming, but there are several tips that can help you succeed.

    Here are some actionable tips that can help you create a powerful IMC strategy:

    • Create a compelling message: To create a powerful IMC strategy, you need a compelling message that resonates with your audience across all channels. Your message should be clear, concise and aligned with your brand identity.
    • Understand your audience: Knowing your target audience is critical to creating messaging that connects with them. Conduct market research and audience segmentation to identify your target audience, their needs and preferences.
    • Use data to measure success: Use data analytics to measure the success of your marketing efforts. This will help you make informed decisions for future campaigns and track metrics such as website traffic, conversion rates and social media engagement.
    • Stay ahead of trends: Keep up with the latest trends and technologies in marketing to stay ahead of the competition. This includes staying updated on social media trends, email marketing best practices and emerging technologies like AI and machine learning.
    • Collaborate with your team: Collaboration is essential to creating an effective IMC strategy. Work closely with your team and vendors to ensure a cohesive message and consistent branding across all channels.

    By following these tips, you can create an integrated marketing communications strategy that resonates with your audience, drives results and helps your business succeed.

    Related: Maximize Marketing and Communication Strategies With the Largest Generation on the Planet

    Conclusion

    In conclusion, integrated marketing communications is a powerful strategy that entrepreneurs can use to build a strong brand identity, connect with their target audience and ultimately drive sales and revenue.

    By creating a consistent message across all channels and using data analytics to measure success, businesses can save time and money while creating a memorable brand experience for their customers.

    By following the steps and tips outlined in this article, entrepreneurs can develop and implement an effective IMC strategy that helps their businesses stand out from the competition and achieve their marketing goals.

    It’s essential for entrepreneurs to understand the importance of IMC and invest in a robust marketing strategy to succeed in today’s competitive marketplace.

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    Mohamed Elhawary

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  • Grow Your Art Business Using These Fortune 500 Strategies | Entrepreneur

    Grow Your Art Business Using These Fortune 500 Strategies | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Since Fortune 500 companies are the biggest in the United States by revenue, you probably picture them as big, powerful, faceless corporations. We think of artists, on the other hand, as humble bohemians who make just enough to get by on their own. Because it’s all about the art, not the money.

    What happens, though, if we set aside these two stereotypes? There’s nothing wrong with finding success through your art. Why can’t you use Fortune 500 tactics to grow your art business into something thriving and sustainable? Why can’t Fortune 500 companies treat their business like art?

    You can. And artists, as a whole, can learn quite a bit from some of the most profitable companies in the U.S.

    Related: 5 Non-Negotiables When Building a Successful Art Business

    Advanced planning

    We artists are all about feeling the moment and embracing our creativity. So, left-brained activities like budgeting, planning ahead and doing taxes (kidding!) are a big snooze.

    However, planning ahead is crucial for growing your art business. It’s something that the top companies in the country all do. None of them are making up a social media strategy on the fly or introducing a new product last minute. Can you just imagine the chaos?

    Fortune 500 companies dedicate a lot of their time, resources and energy to their marketing strategy. They create a plan well in advance of any new releases or re-releases of their offers.

    Take Nike, for example. They don’t just launch a shoe next month and wait for sales to roll in. Everything else they do otherwise through marketing and branding supports their launches. They have a brand loyalty program, a consistent email newsletter and a strong social media presence. They run specific ads. They create an experience for their customers.

    You can do this, too. To get started, all you have to do is look forward … and have a strategy in place.

    Strategic planning

    How can you plan ahead for a successful art event or new collection launch? By having a strategy in place.

    Let’s say you’ve already decided to plan ahead for the next year by breaking your calendar into quarters. Fill in all your important events on their respective dates. Next, you’ll need to identify what your marketing campaign needs up to that date.

    Take Apple, for example. No one can deny that they’re a marketing powerhouse for their products. One strategy they often rely on is media buzz and hype for their new products.

    Every commercial they produce for their new iPhone showcases how beautiful, minimal and functional their products are. The commercials are usually memorable with catchy beats, too. Do they linger on how much Apple products cost more than their competitors’? Nope! That’s all part of their strategy.

    To apply this strategy to your business, think about ways you can drum up excitement for your new collection launch. Think about what you offer to your customers that no other artist does.

    Maybe you post teasers of new pieces on your Instagram or show behind-the-scenes videos of a work in progress on TikTok. Maybe you talk about what inspired your new pieces in a blog post or a YouTube video.

    Use the power of others to help, too. Guest host podcasts, or get interviewed by other artists in your industry. Co-host a giveaway or a contest on social media. Share testimonials from happy customers.

    Don’t forget to fill in all these ideas on your calendar. And then, execute them.

    Related: How to Build and Maintain a Successful Art Career

    Build excitement

    As you can see, there are lots of creative ways to build buzz for new products or new releases. But be aware: A thin line exists between creating a buzz and being gimmicky, insensitive or seemingly desperate. This is a mistake that even top companies still make to this day.

    We’ve all seen great Super Bowl ads and marketing campaigns that pack a punch. And then there are the rest.

    One way to create excitement and avoid a marketing fail is to connect with your audience. Stay active on your other platforms in live time, answering questions via comments or DMs as they roll in. Host a Facebook Live or Instagram Live.

    You could get even more involved by hosting a giveaway, asking poll questions or creating an easy game to generate excitement and keep your followers hooked.

    Quite simply, be there for your audience! Don’t just promote your new products and then leave. Show them why they should buy your work and support your artistry.

    Serve your customer

    How do top companies like Costco or IKEA serve their customers in more ways than just offering their services/products? It’s one thing to sell. It’s another thing to offer a top customer service experience that will ensure they come back again and refer more people to your business.

    Let me be clear: “Outstanding customer service” doesn’t just mean providing refunds, no questions asked. Many top companies do offer that type of customer service, but that’s not the only way you can make your customers happy (as an artist, that would be pretty hard to do!)

    Here’s an example. Pharmacy company CVS had the Good Samaritan Van, where they help stranded customers with car troubles. All the customers have to do in return? Fill out a comment card.

    Think outside the box when it comes to serving your customers through your art business. What can you offer along with or outside of your pieces that customers would love? It could be art courses, merchandise, exclusive content — the choice is yours.

    Related: What a Famous Artist Taught Me About Business

    Stick to your brand and values

    Authenticity in your business is more important than ever. Inauthentic art or business practices won’t get you far. Some key questions to consider for your art business:

    The answers to these questions will help form your brand. A brand is more than just your visuals. It’s more than your artistic style and medium and more than the logo you create and the fonts you choose for your website.

    It also has to do with your reputation, behavior, what you stand for and how you communicate with your audience. A brand shows what the goals and direction of your business are. It’s the first impression you give and the last one you leave.

    Don’t forget about your values, either. Whatever is important to you in your personal and professional life should reflect in your business. Like:

    With values, you need to be able to talk the talk and back up your words with thoughtful actions. Your values and the actions based upon them will set your art business apart from the rest and spark genuine connections with your audience.

    Remember what your values are, the brand you’ve built around them and your mission. Whenever you feel lost or unsure if you’re doing the right thing for your business, look back at your foundations, the core of what you’ve built.

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    Jodie King

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  • Why Brands Should Control User-Generated Content | Entrepreneur

    Why Brands Should Control User-Generated Content | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    User-generated content (UGC) is a sweeping trend at the intersection of social media, ecommerce and short-form video’s explosive growth. For brands, it’s also a marketing opportunity. Brands want relatable human beings with whom their consumers can identify to create content that promotes their products and values.

    But now, in the age of millions of user-generated social media posts, how can brands account for all of the content out there that’s associated with their name? The dawn of generative AI tools only adds to the problem, piling on unrelatable, machine-built images and videos, leaving brands to sort through mountains of artificial content.

    If brands can’t assess the landscape of their associated content online, how can they leverage the opportunity to move the needle on their marketing goals with relatable human narratives while avoiding brand-unsafe associations?

    A new kind of UGC is taking shape: brand-directed user-generated content. With it, brands can still leverage the local connections and relatability of everyday customers and creators, but they can also shape UGC messaging, review the content to ensure brand safety and own the content to control how it’s shared.

    Here’s how brands can exert control over their UGC to leverage it for their advantage, why safety and standardization must underpin shared solutions between brands and creators, and how companies can activate hyper-local creators to drive business outcomes in local communities and stores.

    Related: The Beginner’s Guide to User-Generated Content

    Give clear instructions for content creation

    As brands explore the possibilities of partnering with everyday creators, a number of benefits immediately present themselves. The cost savings of working with accessible creators versus big-name influencers or even traditional advertising agencies speak for themselves. Affordability makes it easier for brands to experiment with new messaging strategies in their video content without breaking the bank.

    But how can brands ensure that the content they’re getting from affordable, relatable creators conveys the desired message and aligns with the brand’s specific vision?

    Communication from brands to creators is a relatively new area of growth that’s bolstering the viability of UGC as a marketing tool. For instance, a brand could clarify to creators that they want video content that explicitly highlights their new sustainable packaging. Controlling the narrative through clear creative directives is crucial for brands, particularly those with established reputations that want to uphold a certain level of quality and consistency as their content multiplies.

    Another benefit of brands giving creators clear instructions for video content is speed. A brand can specify its parameters to a creator and get a usable piece of relevant content back the very same day. In the traditional world of promotional video production, that process could take weeks or even months. But by collaborating with creators and communicating clear guidelines, brands can get new content for their websites, social media accounts or advertisements in mere hours.

    In contrast to influencer-posted UGC, brands that control the creative process and own the final product get far more marketing versatility from the piece of media. For example, the brand could use the video to quickly and affordably test and learn, share on social media accounts to stay active, integrate into paid advertising campaigns or embed into ecommerce sites to organically connect with consumers across the digital landscape.

    Related: If You’re Not Using This Type of Content in Your Marketing, You’re Missing Out

    Ensure brand safety and validated workflows

    Once a creator makes a video for a brand, what happens next? For brands, it’s optimal to set up an arrangement that allows the company to own the content after its creation and control how it gets shared or posted. When brands own the content, they get to determine how it gets used. This is another distinction from influencer marketing, where brands pay internet celebrities to not only create content but also distribute it.

    But as UGC grows in prominence and popularity, it’s becoming clear that both brands and creators need tools to efficiently connect and do business. A clean workflow that sits between the creator and the brand ensures that content is produced in accordance with clear goals and brand safety, creators get paid fairly for their work, and brands ultimately own the content and control its distribution as a piece of marketing material.

    New marketplaces are emerging that allow brands to quickly find the right creators for the content they’re seeking and efficiently communicate their creative requirements. With these new marketplaces also comes new technology that’s able to validate the actors on both sides of the contract and safely deliver the content through a secure platform, bringing standardization and legitimacy to UGC to maximize its efficacy.

    Related: How to Upgrade Your Digital Branding With User-Generated Content

    Work with hyper-local contributors

    When brands are seeking out creators, they don’t have to cast a wide net. In fact, brands can identify creators in specific areas or communities to deliver hyper-local messaging and relate to residents of the area even more. Brands and retailers can even send creators to a local store to pick up the product to feature in the video, eliminating the process of shipping it to them and expediting content creation.

    Local UGC doesn’t have to just come from creators or customers. Brands and retailers are starting to realize the potential of their own people, from sales associates to product managers. Companies can leverage existing talent to make videos that speak to products in their work environment and leverage their unique knowledge of the product. This also lets workers earn some extra money on top of their hourly rates, uplifting employees and fostering loyalty.

    As brands continue solving the puzzle of empowering creators, customers and employees to generate useful and valuable content, they’ll discover the benefits of clear communication, efficient production and safe workflows. This will unlock a whole new arena of scalable, highly relatable video content for brands.

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    Mya Papolu

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  • This New Approach to PR Is a Game-Changer for the Industry | Entrepreneur

    This New Approach to PR Is a Game-Changer for the Industry | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Public relations (PR) agencies and firms have long been instrumental in shaping the public image and reputation of their clients. Traditionally, these agencies have operated through a variety of mechanisms that relied on long-term contracts and bundled service packages to deliver results. However, the PR landscape is witnessing a significant shift with the rise of the a-la-carte approach, allowing clients to purchase on-demand publications in major outlets like Maxim.

    This article explores how this new method is poised to revolutionize the PR industry and explores its benefits, challenges and potential implications.

    Related: 10 PR Trends That Will Explode Your Brand in 2023

    Traditional PR agency and firm operating mechanisms

    At the core of traditional PR practice is media relations. PR agencies have cultivated strong relationships with journalists and editors, enabling them to pitch stories and secure coverage for their clients. This has been supplemented with press release distribution to announce new products, services or company news, with PR professionals crafting compelling press releases and distributing them to various media outlets.

    Crisis management has also been a critical component of PR services. Agencies are called upon to handle sensitive situations, such as negative press or scandals, in order to minimize damage to a client’s reputation. This involves crafting appropriate responses, coordinating with legal teams and managing media inquiries.

    Other key services include content creation, event management and influencer marketing. PR firms generate content on behalf of their clients, such as blog posts, articles and social media updates, to maintain a consistent brand image and engage with target audiences. Additionally, they plan and execute events designed to generate media coverage and raise awareness of their clients’ products or services. As social media has grown in importance, PR firms have increasingly collaborated with influencers to promote clients’ products or services, leveraging the influencers’ large followings for maximum exposure.

    The challenges of traditional PR models

    While traditional PR models have proved successful in the past, they often come with their own set of challenges. Long-term contracts and bundled services can be expensive, especially for small businesses and startups with limited budgets. Moreover, the lack of flexibility in these models can make it difficult for companies to adjust their PR strategies as their needs change.

    Additionally, the traditional PR approach may not always provide the best value for clients. Companies may find themselves paying for services they don’t necessarily need or not receiving the attention and customization they require due to the “one-size-fits-all” nature of bundled packages. This has led to a demand for more tailored and flexible PR solutions.

    Related: 4 PR Trends You Need to Know for 2023

    The a-la-carte revolution

    The a-la-carte approach to public relations is disrupting the traditional model, offering clients the flexibility to purchase on-demand publications in major outlets. This new method presents several key advantages.

    First, a-la-carte PR promotes cost efficiency. Clients only pay for the specific services they need, rather than committing to a long-term contract with a comprehensive package. This allows businesses to allocate their PR budget more effectively and avoid paying for unnecessary services.

    Second, this approach provides greater flexibility. Businesses can choose the services that best suit their needs at any given time, allowing them to be more agile and responsive to changing market conditions. For instance, a company might opt for crisis management services during a scandal and switch to influencer marketing when launching a new product.

    Third, the a-la-carte model fosters innovation within the PR industry. As agencies and firms begin to offer more modular services, they are encouraged to develop new and creative solutions to meet their clients’ unique needs. This could lead to the emergence of specialized PR providers, focusing on niche services and expertise.

    Potential implications of the a-la-carte revolution

    The rise of the a-la-carte method in public relations has the potential to significantly impact the industry as a whole. As clients increasingly embrace this new approach, PR agencies and firms will need to adapt to remain competitive and relevant in this rapidly changing landscape. Although this model is currently provisionally patented, some potential implications of the a-la-carte revolution include:

    1. Shift in agency focus: PR agencies and firms may need to reevaluate their service offerings and focus on providing highly specialized and customized services. This may lead to a more segmented industry, with agencies specializing in niche areas or services, such as crisis management or influencer marketing.

    2. Greater collaboration: The a-la-carte model could also promote increased collaboration among PR agencies, with firms partnering together to provide a more comprehensive suite of services to clients. This could lead to the rise of PR “super-agencies” that offer a wide range of specialized services under one umbrella.

    3. Emphasis on quality: As clients gain the flexibility to choose specific services, the demand for high-quality and effective PR solutions is likely to grow. Agencies and firms will need to focus on delivering exceptional results in order to retain clients and attract new business.

    4. Adaptation to new technologies: The a-la-carte revolution could also drive PR agencies to adopt new technologies to better serve their clients. For example, firms might leverage artificial intelligence and data analytics to identify trending topics, monitor client reputations and create highly targeted PR campaigns.

    5. Increased transparency: The shift to an a-la-carte model could lead to more transparent pricing structures and service offerings in the PR industry. Clients will be able to compare services and costs more easily, leading to increased competition among agencies and driving innovation.

    Related: These Trends are Going to be Revolutionary for the PR Industry

    The rise of the a-la-carte method in public relations is set to transform the industry by challenging traditional operating mechanisms and offering clients greater flexibility, cost efficiency and innovation. As businesses increasingly embrace this new approach, PR agencies and firms will need to adapt to remain competitive and relevant in this rapidly changing landscape. The a-la-carte revolution in PR is just beginning, and it will be fascinating to witness the impact it has on the industry as a whole. Embracing these changes and adapting to the evolving needs of clients will be crucial for the continued success of PR agencies and firms in the future.

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    Hanna Shanar

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  • The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Effective Time Management | Entrepreneur

    The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Effective Time Management | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    From the moment I embarked on my multi-venture entrepreneurial journey, I learned that managing multiple businesses simultaneously presented a unique set of challenges. I found that organizing my time and working efficiently became increasingly harder as my businesses evolved and the overall potential of my time became a challenging aspect of daily life.

    Each day, I found myself confronted with overwhelming to-do lists, desperately trying to divide while still dedicating my attention to my various ventures. The burden was heavy, and the lines between work, relaxation, and rest were blurring, leaving me feeling perpetually drained and disoriented.

    I struggled with prioritizing and delegating tasks, unable to move forward with purpose. As the hours of the day vanished into the ether, there was a persistent sense of inadequacy, and I was keenly aware that there was more I could do to propel my businesses forward.

    Juggling multiple businesses successfully requires entrepreneurs to maintain effective management. It’s taken me many years to forge more positive habits, and the process is an ongoing endeavor, but it does get easier. One vital aspect that often goes unnoticed is the importance of understanding the value of your time. Awareness of your time’s worth can lead to better decision-making, enhanced task prioritization and efficient resource allocation.

    Related: Here’s How to Calculate the True Value of Your Time

    Below are some effective methods to calculate the value of your time and the subsequent advantages of possessing this knowledge.

    Keep track of time spent

    The first step is to track how much time you spend on each of your ventures and different tasks within those businesses. This can be done manually using a spreadsheet or a calendar or by utilizing any of the time-tracking apps on the software market. This will help you identify where your time is currently being spent and how much time you have available for work.

    Related: Track Your Time to Get More Done

    Establish your hourly rate

    Next, divide the annual income of each of your businesses by the number of work hours you’ve dedicated to working in each. This calculation will provide you with a rough hourly rate.

    For example, if your income from one of the businesses is $1,000,000 and you work 800 hours a year, your hourly rate with that venture would be $1250 per hour.

    Assess the opportunity cost

    Opportunity cost refers to the potential gains from selecting a different course of action. As an entrepreneur with multiple businesses, consider the prospective income you could generate by dedicating your time to the highest-earning venture. Calculate the opportunity cost for each business by comparing the hourly rates and selecting the most profitable alternative.

    Consider personal satisfaction and preferences

    While earnings are crucial, personal preferences and satisfaction should also be considered. You might enjoy working on a less profitable venture more, or it could offer a sense of fulfillment or personal growth. Achieving a balance between financial value and personal satisfaction is vital when evaluating the worth of your time.

    Consistently review your time’s value

    As your businesses evolve, the value of your time will also change. Regularly review your earnings, hours worked, and personal preferences to ensure informed decision-making regarding effective time allocation.

    Related: 3 Ways to Figure out the Value of Your Time as an Entrepreneur

    Why is it important to know the value of your time?

    Enhanced decision-making: Being aware of your time’s worth helps you prioritize tasks and delegate efficiently, allowing you to focus on what is truly important.

    Greater efficiency: Recognizing the value of your time enables the identification of areas that can be optimized or outsourced, leading to increased efficiency and profitability for your businesses.

    Improved work-life balance: Calculating the value of your time assists in managing your workload and achieving a healthy balance between work and personal life.

    Stronger negotiation skills: Knowing what your time is worth equips you with the confidence to negotiate service rates or contracts, ensuring you receive fair compensation for your work and time.

    For entrepreneurs managing multiple businesses, determining the value of your time can be a game-changer as you utilise that knowledge to enhance your businesses’ performance and personal satisfaction. Before long, you will find yourself being more efficient and making smarter decisions about where and how you allocate your valuable time in every aspect of your life.

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    Ryan Godinho

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  • 3 Marketing Moves to Make Your Business Recession-Proof | Entrepreneur

    3 Marketing Moves to Make Your Business Recession-Proof | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    If you’re a business owner, a lot has happened already this year to make you stop and consider the state of your (and your business’s) money.

    Inflation has every dollar shrinking in value, federal rate hikes have made it more costly to borrow, and while recent bank failures may not have impacted your business outright, it certainly caused a justifiable stir.

    With all of this going on, my husband and I decided to meet with a mentor and financial consultant who has managed hundreds of millions of dollars in capital over the last 25 years to review our investments.

    He pointed out that, while we both have various investments, we’ve primarily been putting our money into something that has paid off many times over standard stock market returns — and that something is our respective businesses.

    After that meeting, I concluded it was wisest to invest more into my most reliable asset — my business. Sure, we have a lot of “safe” investments as well, but truly, in the long run, nothing has compared to our businesses in terms of return on investment (ROI).

    The biggest investment I’m making is in my marketing: I’m increasing our annual marketing budget by more than 20% this year to over $7 million.

    I made this decision based on some hard-won experience I gained surviving two economic recessions. The first (2008), I cut my marketing and we barely survived. The second (2020), I refused to cut our marketing and, as a result, growth in the last three years has averaged 20% after averaging only 5% in the decade previous. I learned that marketing is crucial to not only growing a business when times are good, but essential to survival when times get tough.

    If you’re like me and know that your business is your greatest asset, I want to share three marketing principles I have followed and applied in order to strengthen my business and grow revenue despite recessions and economic turbulence.

    Related: Why a Recession Is the Worst Time to Skimp on Brand Marketing

    1. Use the current economic conditions to your advantage to increase market share

    Recessions come and go, and some businesses leave legacies behind that we can learn from. Kellogg is a perfect example of that. In the late 1920s, Kellogg and Post dominated the breakfast cereal market.

    When the Great Depression hit, Post responded in fear, reducing expenses and cutting back on advertising while Kellogg did the opposite. Kellogg moved into radio advertising and heavily promoted a new cereal called Rice Krispies.

    By 1933, the economy was the worst it had ever been, but Kellogg’s profits increased 33%. Kellogg not only survived the economic crisis but became the leading cereal brand afterward — and has remained in that spot more than 80 years later. In 2017, Kellogg had a 30% market share, with General Mills following at 29% and Post at 18%.

    I experienced a similar phenomenon with my business, PostcardMania. In 2008, the recession devastated many businesses. We were heavily affected by the real estate market plummeting since mortgage brokers made up 46% of our clientele. In 2009, an advisor at the time saw how much I spent on marketing every week and said something to the effect of, “We could save a lot of money if we cut back.”

    Against my better judgment, I listened and cut my marketing in hope that we could conserve our resources and increase profits, but that made the situation worse. What was a small revenue decline in 2008 (around $150,000) ballooned into a much bigger loss in 2009 — as much as 15% of revenue and well over $1 million.

    I made a sharp U-turn and brought my marketing back up to speed as soon as possible, and we recovered by 2010. I vowed to never cut my marketing budget again.

    Then in 2020, when the pandemic disabled the economy, I knew exactly which moves to make and maintained my marketing regardless of how rough it got — and it did get rough to the tune of sales being down over 40%.

    But guess what my competitors did? Exactly as I did in 2008 — they froze or reduced their marketing. The difference between 2008 and 2020 was obvious; we grew PostcardMania in 2020, and then business got even better in 2021 and 2022. Since 2019, our revenue has been up 60% (an average of 20% growth per year) after 10 years of averaging 5% growth.

    I know it sounds counterintuitive to invest more in marketing when the economy is poor, but history doesn’t lie, and my own experience backs this up. Keep your marketing strong, and your leads and sales will remain strong as well.

    Related: 6 Recession-Proof Business Marketing Strategies

    2. Choose the marketing channels with the highest ROI to make the most of your budget

    So, which marketing channels should you invest in? The answer is simple — the ones that work.

    If you aren’t already tracking your marketing closely, commit to starting right now. It’s critical that you track what you’re spending and where leads and new customers are coming from so that you know what’s working and what needs improvement.

    Once you know which channels yield the highest ROI, you can invest more there to grow your leads, which in turn yields more sales and revenue (and you can tinker with the lower-performing tactics until they’re in a good range or pare them back to suit your budget needs).

    One of the marketing tactics I find to have a super high return on investment is retargeted mailings. Triggered mail makes the most of every lead by specifically targeting the people who have already shown some kind of interest in your products or services by visiting your website.

    Depending on who you want to target, a postcard is automatically printed, addressed and sent within 24 hours of their website visit. Targeting can be based on the length of time a visitor spends on your site, the web pages they visit, the items they put in their shopping cart or a number of other factors.

    Because you’re only targeting warm prospects and sending a few postcards a day (rather than thousands at a time like traditional direct mail), the upfront cost of a triggered campaign is relatively low — and that means your ROI potential is much higher.

    One of our real estate investment clients, Mark Buys Houses, added retargeted direct mail to their follow-up. They spent $647 to mail just over 100 postcards to his website visitors. As a result, he converted one lead into a sale and made $70,000 in revenue. That’s an ROI of 10,710%!

    If you decide to increase your marketing investment like I did, I suggest starting with tactics focused on improving website conversion or follow-up. You’ve already spent money on the hardest part — taking someone from unaware of your business to actually interested — so take the time to find out if investing a few more dollars per lead will translate into more sales. Just don’t forget to track closely!

    Related: How to Adjust Your Marketing to Survive a Recession

    3. Take advantage of free communication tools to stay in touch with prospects and customers

    Not every marketing tactic costs money; some are 100% free. Leveraging free marketing platforms during tough times not only helps your budget, it also helps you communicate better.

    First, I suggest perfecting and increasing your email marketing. Tools like Constant Contact and Mailchimp let you send emails for free up to a certain amount. Send out promotional emails that include catchy subject lines and enticing deals to increase clicks. Consider creating an email newsletter that your audience would enjoy reading. It could include valuable information about your industry, tips and tricks, recently completed projects or features about your company to keep your customers connected to your brand.

    Second, I recommend freshening up your website with new, SEO-rich content. You can write the content yourself or find a willing team member to help — or even give the latest craze, artificial intelligence (AI), a go. Just provide a prompt, and let AI do the heavy lifting (a.k.a. writing) for you, then go over it afterward and put your own stamp on it using expertise that only you could provide. Blog posts, web pages and other types of articles will not only boost your website in the search engine results on Google, but it will also increase engagement on your website.

    Lastly, get more active on social media. Post creative, informative content that draws people in and fosters engagement, like polls or questions. Facebook and Instagram also allow you to list your products and services for free on a shop page. Even though it takes a bit more time and energy to make posts every day, communicating consistently with customers and prospects is invaluable and could lead to increased revenue and positive brand image in your area of expertise.

    At the end of this economic downturn, at least you can say that you gave it your all and worked hard to build up your business to the best it can be. Invest in the right areas, and you’ll enjoy benefits that last far beyond the most recent crisis.

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    Joy Gendusa

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  • Master Public Relations With This Comprehensive Guide | Entrepreneur

    Master Public Relations With This Comprehensive Guide | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Effective public relations can be the difference between success and failure in today’s competitive business landscape. Businesses that grasp this concept will have a distinct advantage over their counterparts. This guide takes a comprehensive approach to PR, covering everything from developing your brand narrative to crafting an effective strategy to enhance your reputation.

    At its core, public relations revolves around strategically communicating to foster mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their intended audiences. The key objective is to shape and manage an enterprise’s reputation, image and credibility by leveraging various tools including media outreach, content creation, event management and crisis communication. A crucial element in any potent PR campaign is developing a compelling brand narrative that effectively engages your desired audience while differentiating you from competitors.

    Related: 3 Crucial First Steps You Need to Take to Nail Your PR Strategy

    Crafting a powerful brand narrative

    Crafting a powerful brand narrative requires a thoughtful approach centered around several key elements. To begin with, identifying the core values and mission of your organization is essential to creating a strong foundation for communication efforts. Additionally, a deep understanding of target audiences can help tailor messages toward their specific preferences and pain points. Highlighting unique selling propositions (USPs) that set you apart from competitors is also integral to crafting a compelling and effective brand narrative. Finally, authenticity and consistency in messaging are vital in ensuring alignment between an organization’s actions and values.

    Crafting an effective PR strategy

    For businesses seeking to cultivate trust with their audience and maintain their reputation, crafting an effective PR strategy is crucial. A fundamental component of such a strategy involves defining specific objectives. Do you aim to increase public awareness of your services/products, generate leads or enhance brand image? Targeted objectives are essential for crafting an effective PR strategy that resonates with your audience’s needs. Knowing who your target audience is provides invaluable information on their preferences, behaviors and demographics necessary for engaging them effectively. Through careful research into these details, you’ll be able to tailor messages around key themes crucial for aligning with brand narratives while addressing specific concerns of those targeted audiences.

    Effective public relations campaigns require precision in every aspect of planning and execution. One crucial component is communication: It should be concise, clear, and consistent across every channel you leverage for outreach. Get your messaging right by tailoring it specifically to your target audience’s preferences using their desired mediums — from traditional media outlets like newspapers or magazines (print) and TV/radio broadcasts (broadcast), as well as social media platforms such as Facebook or Twitter (digital) among others — ensuring maximum visibility where they are most likely present online or offline.

    Related: How to Boost Your Brand Awareness and PR Strategy

    Developing a crisis communication plan

    To successfully manage crises in business, one must be well-prepared and execute a solid crisis communication plan. This essential aspect of public relations can protect your organization’s reputation and limit damages incurred.

    Measuring the efficacy of your efforts via metrics like website traffic, social media engagement, lead generation and media coverage is vital for continual improvement. When a crisis hits, any organization must respond quickly with accurate information to the public. This is why developing a crisis communication plan beforehand is so important.

    In this plan, potential risks are identified, and response strategies for each scenario are outlined in advance. Transparency and accountability should be emphasized; owning up to mistakes and communicating the corrective measures being taken can help prevent future crises from occurring.

    Finally, messaging consistency ensures that all spokespeople are unified in their presentation of information. When navigating a crisis situation, it’s essential to be aware of how your communication efforts are being received by both the media and your audience.

    Maintaining strong relationships with journalists and industry influencers

    Stay on top of media coverage and public sentiment to gauge their effectiveness, making necessary modifications as needed. But even beyond crises, maintaining strong relationships with key journalists and industry influencers is invaluable for garnering positive news coverage that helps spread your brand message.

    Take a proactive approach by providing these individuals with relevant information about your company or sector, along with compelling story angles. Acknowledging the hard work of journalists who cover your brand is not only courteous but also essential to fostering positive relationships within the industry.

    Expressing gratitude for their support helps build rapport and increases the likelihood of future coverage. Remembering to hold appreciation as part of your PR strategy shows that you recognize how important collaboration with members of the media is in boosting visibility for your business.

    Social media

    The use of social media by companies is increasingly becoming a crucial aspect of modern public relations strategy. It allows brands to interact directly with potential customers, offering them exceptional opportunities to engage and communicate by sharing informative articles, industry updates or even just simply acknowledging feedback given from patrons. The success of this tool relies on wisely selecting appropriate platforms based around target demographics while maintaining consistency in regular posting schedules aimed at keeping online communities informed along with delivering meaningful, engaging content built upon genuine customer values.

    Related: 4 Guiding Principles for Building and Deploying a Great PR Strategy

    Building a successful brand reputation

    Effective public relations has long been heralded as one of the most powerful tools available for building a successful brand reputation. With strategies ranging from targeted messaging campaigns to social media engagement tactics, companies have numerous options for making their presence known among consumers while also enhancing customer loyalty over time.

    By paying close attention to feedback from customers while also carefully curating content and interactions across multiple channels, even small firms can achieve big results when it comes to boosting their image and maximizing impact on bottom-line performance metrics like revenue growth or share price valuation.

    In the forever-evolving world of public relations, success doesn’t just happen; organizations need to be proactive and authentic and also maintain consistency in their communication strategies. Proactivity enables businesses to get ahead of emerging trends rather than being reactive or caught off guard by unfavorable news cycles. Authenticity in PR communication establishes better relationships with stakeholders by building trust through transparent communication tactics that align with organizational values, strengthened by consistent messaging until they become ingrained into the brand identity.

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    Aidan Sowa

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  • 4 Strategies for B2B Marketers to Increase ROI During the Economic Downturn | Entrepreneur

    4 Strategies for B2B Marketers to Increase ROI During the Economic Downturn | Entrepreneur

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    Disclosure: Our goal is to feature products and services that we think you’ll find interesting and useful. If you purchase them, Entrepreneur may get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners.

    As the economy slows, B2B marketers are being challenged with longer sales cycles, lower deal amounts and churning customers. If that isn’t enough, many companies are slashing marketing spend.

    With that being said, CMOs can see significant short-term improvements that will help them power through the forecasted downturn by focusing on these areas of their business:

    Related: 5 Mistakes To Avoid in Your Digital Marketing

    1. Optimizing campaigns for offline conversion events

    Your most important priority should be to integrate your advertising platforms with your CRM or demand-gen platform. This will allow you to optimize your ad campaigns for bottom-funnel conversion events. This is especially important when using Google since you can use Google’s algorithm to optimize your campaigns for bottom-of-funnel events. If you have a sales team that takes inbound calls, make sure to get third-party call analytics software that can track calls by channel and down to the most granular source. Having phone tracking will let you identify which marketing channel is contributing to sales and help you make budget allocation decisions.

    2. Marketing channels with short-term CAC payback periods

    Privacy changes have made marketing attribution tools less reliable in the last two years and makes finding winning campaigns more complex. To overcome this, you can ask users on form sign-ups or post-purchase surveys how they found your business. While also not 100% reliable, these self-reported attribution workflows can help you see which channel is driving the most sales. Based on what customers are telling you and what your other attribution tools show, you can then allocate budget by channel based on their relative performance and pause what’s not working.

    3. Your best customer cohorts

    When sales performance starts to drop, investigate your data to see which customer cohorts are underperforming or churning, and exclude them from your ad targeting. This could be unprofitable business verticals, job titles, geographic regions, age or other demographic cohorts. If you have a revenue intelligence platform to listen to and/or transcribe call recordings, analyze the calls that resulted in demos and sales.

    For example, if calls show a spike in Fintech startups that are purchasing your product, test new ad creative with what they say they like about your product and test landing pages with matching messaging. On the media buying front, see if you can improve targeting for this cohort and get more ads to serve it.

    It’s also important to keep track of buyer personas. You can figure out which persona to focus on by running a report on all your customers and their respective job title, and then focus your marketing on the personas with the highest lead count. Make sure to arm your prospects with the metrics they look for — that is, you’ll need to show that the service or solution is an investment, not a cost.

    Related: Digital Marketing 101 for Entrepreneurs

    4. Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO)

    Focus on the segments that are driving the most revenue for your business — such as landing pages, product pages and pricing pages. Use a qualitative analytics tool that can view what users are clicking on as they interact with your site. If you are running paid advertising campaigns, it’s important to not run the tests on all your campaigns. Carve out at least 80% of your budget for the campaigns that are carrying your quota and the rest for testing out new ideas.

    Next on your list is improving page loading speed. For every additional second it takes the page to load, conversion rates drop by up to 20%. A good benchmark is a loading time below three seconds. Another time-sensitive indicator to optimize for is lead response times. Ideally, you should attempt to phone, text or email a prospective lead within five minutes. Just doing this will help increase conversion rates by double digits.

    Of course, it takes resources to do these things. But making these changes during a downturn, if done right, will help you improve performance and build a data-driven and winning business.

    Related: How to Adjust Your Marketing to Survive a Recession

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    Tal Shlosberg

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  • 7 Short-Form Video Mistakes to Avoid in Your Marketing Strategy | Entrepreneur

    7 Short-Form Video Mistakes to Avoid in Your Marketing Strategy | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Over the past few years, short-form video has become one of the most engaging and fastest-growing content types across social media platforms.

    TikTok, YouTube Shorts and Instagram Reels have all seen meteoric growth, garnering billions of users. According to Statista, Shorts alone boasts 30 billion views daily and 1.5 billion monthly active users in 2023.

    Consequently, vertical short-form video has immense potential for digital marketers and businesses alike, and many now incorporate it into their strategies.

    However, there are several typical pitfalls you need to dodge to leverage the full power of vertical video. Here are the seven most common short-form video mistakes to avoid in your marketing strategy.

    1. Expecting instant results

    First off, it’s essential to keep your expectations realistic. While short-form video often gets high engagement and can go viral, don’t expect your follower count to explode overnight.

    In the vast majority of cases, growing a following through short-form content still takes time, effort, and consistency. Especially if you don’t have an existing baseline activity on your Instagram profile or YouTube channel, the Reels and Shorts algorithm can be torpid.

    An awareness of this is crucial when setting milestones for your marketing strategy, helping you draw up realistic plans and preventing disappointment.

    Related: Top 5 Not-So-Obvious Social Media Marketing Mistakes You Must Avoid

    2. Neglecting (brand) consistency

    As mentioned already, consistency is key when creating short-form content, especially if you’re setting up new profiles.

    This doesn’t just mean regularly uploading new clips. It also means producing content with consistent quality and branding.

    The quality of your videography is key for engagement. And consistent branding — everything from editing style to logos and caption fonts — determines how memorable and recognizable your clips are.

    When drawing up your short-form strategy, investing time and resources in these branding aspects in advance is well worth it in the long run.

    3. Posting irrelevant clips

    The next major pitfall for your short-form strategy is the type of content you produce.

    Ultimately, your aim is to increase brand awareness, highlight your expertise and your products — and to convert viewers into customers.

    That means your content has to be relevant to these goals.

    Let’s say you are a graphic design agency. There is little point in putting efforts into reproducing TikTok dances or engaging in challenges.

    Instead, focus on making your business relatable — e.g., “A day in the life of a graphic designer” — or showcasing your skills with hacks, demos and how-tos.

    Related: 8 Ways to Avoid Common Video Marketing Mistakes

    4. Making content too long and complex

    Short-form content on some platforms can run up to 2 minutes and 30 seconds. If you’re not used to producing clips like this, it can be tempting to exploit this limit to the fullest.

    In most cases, this is a mistake.

    While it is possible to make longer videos, shorter ones are still more successful. According to information TikTok shared with select creators in 2022, later reported by WIRED, approximately 25% of the most successful videos on the platform are between 21 and 34 seconds long.

    For Instagram Reels, the recommended duration is even shorter, with some industry experts putting it at a mere 7 to 15 seconds.

    The bottom line? Keep your content short and zesty.

    That means reducing the complexity of your message and the number of ideas you can communicate in a single clip. In most cases, focusing on bringing across one central idea is best.

    Another implication of this short recommended video length is that it’s essential to put extra effort into your hook. The first few seconds of your video have to immediately captivate your viewers’ attention — they have to pack visual panache and the promise of information and entertainment.

    5. Losing track of your target audience

    Another common mistake many businesses make when integrating short-form content into their marketing strategy is losing track of their target audience.

    Your marketing strategy should already be based around a clearly defined target audience and buyer personas. Short-form video content is no different.

    However, there are several adjustments you need to make. Short-form content is particularly popular among younger audiences, Gen Z and Millennials in particular. According to data released by Kepios in early 2023, the vast majority of TikTok’s above-18 ad audience is composed of people aged 18-24 (39%) and those aged 25-34 (32%).

    While older generations are slowly catching on to the use of short-form content, especially on Instagram and YouTube, the typical vertical video viewer is under 35. How you present your business needs to be adjusted for that.

    6. Not including captions

    On the technical side, a common shortcoming of short-form video content published by businesses is the lack of captions. It is a distinguishing feature of platforms like Shorts, Reels and TikTok that many viewers prefer to watch content on mute.

    According to recent statistics, 69% of viewers watch videos without sound, especially when in public. Consequently, they tend to scroll past clips that lack captions.

    In addition, well-designed captions with appropriate fonts, backgrounds, and colors can act as additional visual incentives and boost your overall engagement.

    Related: Add Captions to Your TikTok and Instagram Videos and Gain More Reach

    7. Forgetting your call to action

    Finally, one of the most common mistakes in short-form video for business purposes is to forget your call to action (CTA).

    Just getting viewers to watch your video is not the endgame. It’s to get them to take a particular action — to check out your services, start a trial, subscribe to your newsletter, follow your accounts, buy your products.

    That’s why including a CTA is essential, even in the shortest of your videos. You can include it in your script, captions, overlay, copy and comments. But you need to include it.

    The bottom line

    Short-form content on Reels, TikTok and Shorts has immense potential for boosting your business’ visibility.

    However, to succeed, you need to avoid the most common mistakes many businesses make when integrating vertical clips into their digital marketing strategy.

    By circumventing the pitfalls above, you’ll be able to elevate your brand using short-form content and avoid frustration along the way.

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    Hasan Saleem

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  • How to Develop a Strong Content Strategy and Solidify Your Brand’s Online Presence | Entrepreneur

    How to Develop a Strong Content Strategy and Solidify Your Brand’s Online Presence | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    There’s no denying that the way people consume content is at an all-time high and has drastically changed over the past few years. The quick morsels and tidbits of information that people seek can be found across different platforms and mediums, and the stakes are high when it comes to quality content.

    Many brands and businesses have begun to pay utmost attention to the quality of their content based on the expectations of users, and that also means getting serious about information that is put out into the digital sphere when it comes to a solid brand representation. A strong online presence through a connected and unique content strategy can positively impact your brand just by focusing on the finer details and best practices.

    Related: 4 Tips for a Successful Content Strategy

    Focus on the foundation

    The initial push that will move any project down its pipeline needs a solid foundation before it can be fully developed — this also applies to content strategy building. Before delving into writing content or its corresponding visuals and assets, it is best to dissect as a team, fundamental questions that will elevate your content.

    Preliminary conception can begin by asking internally, who the target audience is. Knowing your audience, and the audience you may want to attract, streamlines what your brand puts out into the digital space. Features such as demographics, expertise and more can reduce fluff and allow for more centralized output. Additionally, analyzing any underlining issues that your current content strategy has helps prevent creating the same mistakes. If there is a pattern that your content is not ranking high in engagement or interaction, an assessment as to why is imperative.

    From there, the layers behind the purpose of each content delivery can also be fine-tuned, and a great way to ensure this is by focusing on what makes your brand a differentiator in the industry. Spotlighting why audiences should seek your brand over others builds credibility and trust that a lot of users are often seeking.

    Drive engagement and retention via connectivity

    Against the verve and excitement that comes with the growth of digital products, a solid content strategy that drives engagement through connectivity can bring a brand full circle. Further, when audiences can attain a high level of engagement with a brand’s content, there, in turn, is a strengthened level of retention for conversion and connectivity to a brand. When a brand can magnetize, delight and engage its users, growth inevitably follows. To master this much-needed brand and marketing initiative, there must be a focus on quality.

    When thinking of content strategy, it can fall under different tiers such as web content, social media, publications, ads, visual designs and campaigns —thus all these assets should attain an equal level of importance and quality. When content is coupled with a high-quality graphic design or visual asset, for example, it only amplifies the messaging, thus micro forms of content strategy (for example, a social media post) should deliver the same standard as all marketing collateral that harbors a brand’s identity.

    Moreover, high-quality content to propel engagement can also be achieved through personalization. By tailoring content to the specific needs and interests of individual users, brands can create a more relevant experience that engages audiences’ emotions through a human-centric approach. Whether it’s web pages, email marketing and more, content that is tailored to users’ preferences on an individual level can ensure your content is much more engaging and sparks a connection with users. Ultimately, incorporating personalization into a content strategy can help brands build strong and lasting relationships with their target audience.

    Related: Why Content Marketing Is Crucial to Your Business

    Consistency and distribution

    Attaining a strong content strategy in place is only as strong as its upkeep. The pulse in which your content development strategy is uploaded is essential to not only boost SEO but to also ensure a consistent online presence. Thus, creating a content or editorial calendar that organizes the frequency of posts helps you avoid missing opportunities to stay connected with your audiences. Additionally, structuring the calendar to include where each content asset is published is key. Visibility across platforms and tiers such as paid, earned and owned publication of content further covers all your brand’s bases. A healthy balance across all three furthers exposure and traction as well.

    To further ensure cohesion, consistency in tone, voice and delivery across all platforms establishes a robust brand identity. A brand that is unified in the way in which it is represented further engages audiences and solidifies a brand’s ethos. In turn, when a brand’s internal team is on the same page about the intricacies of a brand’s overall purpose, it promotes a better sense of brand enablement in which a brand will be represented accurately across platforms, internally and externally.

    Track performance

    With a content strategy newly in place and an editorial calendar ready to ensure its frequent delivery, tracking the analytics of a content strategy is crucial for gauging its effectiveness and making data-driven decisions to optimize it for better results. Analyzing the data that arises from your brand’s content can provide a clear vision of how users are interacting with the newly established content, the bounce rates and linger times, as well as conversion rates to see what is working and what still may need to be improved on.

    Tools such as Google Analytics or heat mapping can help determine if your users are skipping over any content that may not be in line with what they are seeking, or perhaps, might be too long in length. With the landscape of the digital world changing, keeping an eye out on user trends and how they interact with content is also essential. Understanding how your users are consuming content can also determine the analytics. For example, today, most users consume content in easily digestible formats such as short scrollable videos as opposed to, say, reading a full-length article. The shifts in which preferences turn and transform shouldn’t be overlooked.

    Content is in full force in the digital world, and ensuring that your brand has a robust and optimized content strategy in place can elevate it in new ways. The tips above will help you develop a strong content strategy and boost your brand’s online presence.

    Related: How To Create Better Content And Grow Your Business

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    Goran Paun

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  • 5 Ways AI Can Transform Your Startup’s Marketing | Entrepreneur

    5 Ways AI Can Transform Your Startup’s Marketing | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    In a world where the competition is fierce and the pace of change is relentless, startups are under pressure to find ways to stay ahead of the curve. As a startup, you need to be agile, creative and innovative to make an impact in your market. Artificial intelligence (AI) marketing tools offer a solution to this challenge, providing a new level of sophistication and power to your marketing efforts.

    AI tools can help you analyze customer data, predict future trends, automate processes and create personalized experiences for your customers. With the right AI marketing tools, startups can level the playing field and compete with larger, more established companies. In this article, we will explore the top AI marketing tools that every startup should know about to drive growth, improve efficiency and achieve better results.

    Here are five AI marketing tools every startup should know about:

    Related: Artificial Intelligence is Revolutionizing Marketing. Here’s What the Transformation Means for the Industry

    1. Chatbots

    Chatbots are AI-powered tools that allow businesses to automate their customer service and engagement processes. By integrating chatbots into their website or messaging platforms, startups can provide 24/7 support to their customers and answer their queries in real-time.

    Chatbots can also collect customer data and provide personalized recommendations based on a customer’s past interactions. For example, a startup in the ecommerce space can use chatbots to suggest products based on a customer’s browsing and purchase history.

    Some popular chatbot tools for startups include:

    2. Predictive analytics

    Predictive analytics is a type of AI technology that uses machine learning algorithms to analyze historical data and make predictions about future trends. By analyzing customer behavior and buying patterns, startups can use predictive analytics to identify potential customers, anticipate their needs and personalize their marketing messages.

    For example, a startup in the fitness industry can use predictive analytics to identify customers who are likely to cancel their gym membership and create targeted marketing campaigns to retain them.

    Some popular predictive analytics tools for startups include:

    • Google Analytics

    • Mixpanel

    • Segment

    3. Personalization engines

    Personalization engines are AI-powered tools that allow businesses to create highly personalized experiences for their customers. By analyzing customer data such as browsing history, purchase history and social media activity, personalization engines can deliver targeted content and product recommendations to each customer.

    For example, a startup in the fashion industry can use personalization engines to recommend outfits based on a customer’s past purchases and style preferences.

    Some popular personalization engine tools for startups include:

    • RichRelevance

    • Monetate

    • Qubit

    Related: How You Can Use AI to Help Market Your Products

    4. Image and video recognition

    Image and video recognition tools use AI algorithms to analyze visual content and extract relevant information. Startups can use image and video recognition to monitor social media for brand mentions, track the success of their marketing campaigns and identify popular trends in their industry.

    For example, a startup in the food industry can use image recognition to identify popular food trends on Instagram and create content around those trends.

    Some popular image and video recognition tools for startups include:

    • Google Cloud Vision

    • Amazon Rekognition

    • Clarifai

    5. Voice assistants

    Voice assistants like Amazon’s Alexa and Apple’s Siri have become a popular way for consumers to interact with technology. Startups can use voice assistants to create voice-activated marketing campaigns and provide customer support through voice commands.

    For example, a startup in the travel industry can use voice assistants to provide customers with information about flight status and travel recommendations.

    Some popular voice assistant tools for startups include:

    • Amazon Alexa Skills Kit

    • Google Actions

    • Microsoft Bot Framework

    Related: 4 Ways You Could Be Incorporating Artificial Intelligence Into Your Marketing Strategy

    In conclusion, AI marketing tools are the future of digital marketing. Startups that embrace AI are setting themselves up for long-term success. As AI technology continues to evolve, these tools will become even more advanced and accessible, making it easier for startups to streamline their marketing efforts and create personalized experiences for their customers.

    However, it’s important to remember that AI is not a magic solution that can solve all your marketing problems. AI tools require proper planning, strategy and execution to be effective. Startups must carefully analyze their business needs and goals to determine which AI tools are the most suitable for their marketing campaigns.

    Additionally, AI technology comes with its own set of challenges and ethical considerations. Startups must ensure that they are using AI in a responsible and ethical manner, without compromising customer privacy and security.

    Despite these challenges, the potential benefits of AI marketing tools far outweigh the risks. Startups that embrace AI will be able to analyze customer behavior, make data-driven decisions and create highly personalized experiences for their customers. With the right tools and strategy, startups can use AI to gain a competitive edge and achieve long-term success in the ever-changing world of digital marketing.

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    Yan Katcharovski

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  • 9 Uncommon Marketing Strategies for Startups | Entrepreneur

    9 Uncommon Marketing Strategies for Startups | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Tired of reading the same old marketing advice for your startup? When I started my journey as an entrepreneur, I knew how to build things, but marketing them was a different ball game. Every corner of the internet seemed to echo the same advice  —  paid ads, email campaigns, blog posts and SEO.

    It felt like an oversaturated market, and I began to wonder if any marketing strategies could make a difference until I implemented these nine lesser-known yet powerful marketing strategies that will breathe new life into your startup and help you stand out in the crowd.

    1. Guerrilla marketing

    Guerrilla marketing is an innovative and unconventional approach to promoting your brand, enabling you to leave a unique impression by steering clear of traditional marketing methods. It’s a really broad term, but this strategy essentially focuses on high-impact, low-cost tactics that capture the attention of your target audience in unexpected ways. For instance, organizing a human-typography event where volunteers spell out the name of your brand and have photos taken, given their consent.

    Here are some examples of famous Guerrilla Marketing campaigns:

    1. Airbnb’s “Van Gogh’s Bedrooms” Campaign: Airbnb transformed a replica of Van Gogh’s bedroom into an Airbnb rental. The company marketed the experience on social media, and it went viral, leading to a significant boost in brand awareness.
    2. Burger King’s “Whopper Detour” Campaign: Burger King offered customers a Whopper for only one cent if they ordered it from close proximity to a McDonald’s location. The campaign generated buzz on social media, and the company’s mobile app saw a surge in downloads.
    3. Coca-Cola’s “Share a Coke” Campaign: Coca-Cola replaced its logo on bottles with popular names, encouraging customers to share a Coke with friends or family members. The campaign was a huge success, generating millions of social media mentions and a significant boost in sales.
    4. Metro Trains’s “Dumb Ways to Die” Campaign: Metro Trains created a catchy song and video that showed cartoon characters engaging in dangerous behavior around trains, in an effort to promote railway safety. The video went viral and led to a significant decrease in train-related accidents.
    5. Old Spice’s “The Man Your Man Could Smell Like” Campaign: Old Spice created a series of humorous ads featuring a shirtless man showing off the benefits of Old Spice. The ads went viral and led to a significant increase in sales.

    Related: 7 Guerrilla Marketing Tactics That Will Grow Your Business When Money Gets Tight

    2. Promotional Merchandise

    At first, it may sound cliché, but get creative with your promotional merchandise. Instead of printing t-shirts for sale on your website, think outside the box. For instance, at Discovery Dose, we print beer coasters with intriguing facts about alcohol and distribute them for free to bars throughout Europe. Quite creative, wouldn’t you agree?

    3. Online directories

    Listing your startup in online directories can help you reach new customers and improve your search engine rankings. Search for directories that serve a relevant audience, such as Wellfound (formerly AngelList Talent), Product Hunt and CrunchBase.

    Related: Struggling in Local Search? Here’s What Your Local SEO Strategy Needs to Compete in 2022.

    4. Answering questions on forums

    Quora, Reddit and Stack Exchange are all popular question-and-answer platforms where people can ask and answer questions about a wide range of topics. Find questions about the problem you’re solving and provide a genuinely valuable response that also promotes your startup.

    5. Leveraging your personal brand

    Nearly 20% of the leads for my startup originate from my personal social media accounts and my online articles. To achieve the same effect, work on establishing yourself as an industry expert, cultivate an audience and contribute articles to a variety of publications.

    It can even be as simple as posting updates on your personal Facebook account  —  after all, Facebook moms are the most loyal supporters you’ll ever come across!

    6. Public speaking

    Public speaking is a powerful way to develop your personal brand and promote your startup. By sharing your insights and experiences, you can build credibility and attract new customers, especially if you stand out.

    Consider exploring the following speaking opportunities:

    1. Podcasts
    2. TEDx talks in your region
    3. Guest lectures at colleges and universities
    4. Webinars and conferences
    5. Networking events and meetups

    Related: The Complete, 20-Step Guide to Ace Public Speaking

    7. Street marketing

    Go out in public and speak to anyone who would listen. You can even organize public contests that involve people answering questions related to your line of work, then record the experience and use it as promotional material, given the participants do consent. Hit two targets with one shot!

    8. Hashtag marketing

    Hashtag marketing is a powerful strategy that leverages the potential of social media to generate organic engagement and build brand awareness. A well-crafted and catchy hashtag can inspire people to use it, effectively turning them into word-of-mouth promoters for your business.

    For instance, Coca-Cola’s #ShareACoke campaign brilliantly tapped into the power of hashtag marketing by creating a sense of connection and encouraging users to share their experiences.

    9. Marketing subsidiaries

    A marketing subsidiary is essentially a separate company with its own objectives that, through its operations, complements its parent company’s marketing efforts. Although this takes more effort and is more long-term oriented, a marketing subsidiary can be an excellent asset for boosting your startup’s marketing operations.

    For instance, if you run a FinTech startup, launching a newsletter or publication that offers valuable insights about trading and investing could build an engaged audience with a genuine interest in your field. This audience can then be leveraged to generate returns and attract new customers to your startup, ultimately benefiting your primary business objectives.

    Ready to leave your competition in the dust?

    As you venture into the world of marketing strategies that actually work, you have the potential to take your brand to new heights. It’s time to make a lasting impact and become the pioneer your startup deserves. The future of your brand’s success starts now.

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    Arian Adeli

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  • Why You Must Master the Power of Podcasts | Entrepreneur

    Why You Must Master the Power of Podcasts | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Podcasts have exploded in popularity in recent years, and for good reason. They offer a unique way to engage with audiences and can be a powerful tool in every stage of the marketing funnel. In this article, we’ll discuss how to leverage podcasts across different stages of the marketing funnel and achieve maximum impact.

    Related: 5 Reasons Why Brands Should Think About Creating a Podcast

    Top of Funnel (TOF): Attracting potential customers

    The top of the marketing funnel is all about attracting as many potential customers as possible. Podcasts can be an excellent tool for this stage as they offer a unique way to engage with a broad range of potential customers and showcase your brand’s thought leadership. By providing valuable content in the form of informative and entertaining podcast episodes, you can capture the attention of potential customers and start building a relationship with them.

    To leverage podcasts in the TOF stage, you’ll want to focus on creating content that’s informative, educational, and entertaining. Consider interviewing industry experts, providing behind-the-scenes looks at your business, or offering tips and tricks related to your niche. By providing value to your listeners, you’ll establish your brand as a thought leader in your industry and create a positive association with your business.

    Additionally, it’s essential to promote your podcast effectively to attract new listeners. Consider leveraging social media, email marketing, and paid advertising to reach new audiences and drive traffic to your podcast.

    Related: Podcast As Marketing Tool: It Creates Value For Listeners

    Middle of Funnel (MOF): Nurturing potential customers

    The middle of the marketing funnel is all about nurturing potential customers and building their trust. Podcasts are an excellent tool for this stage as they offer a more intimate and personal way to connect with your audience. By sharing your brand’s values, mission, and culture through podcasts, you can build a deeper relationship with your audience and create a sense of community around your brand.

    To leverage podcasts in the MOF stage, you’ll want to focus on creating personal and engaging content. Consider showcasing customer success stories, hosting Q&A sessions with your audience, or providing in-depth product demos. Doing so will build trust and credibility with your audience and create a sense of connection with your brand.

    Additionally, it’s essential to create a consistent podcast schedule to keep your listeners engaged and build a loyal audience. Consider releasing new episodes regularly, such as weekly or bi-weekly, to keep your listeners coming back for more.

    Related: 4 Reasons to Start Your Own Podcast

    Bottom of Funnel (BOF): Converting potential customers

    The bottom of the marketing funnel is all about converting potential customers into paying customers. Podcasts can play a critical role in this stage by providing an engaging and entertaining way to directly promote your products or services.

    By creating podcast episodes that focus on specific products or services, highlighting their features and benefits and offering exclusive discounts or promotions to your podcast listeners, you can convert leads into paying customers more effectively.

    To leverage podcasts in the BOF stage, you’ll want to focus on creating direct and actionable content. Consider featuring customer testimonials or case studies that showcase the benefits of your products or services, hosting live Q&A sessions to address any lingering questions or concerns, or offering exclusive discounts or promotions to your podcast listeners.

    Additionally, it’s essential to include a clear call-to-action in your podcast episodes to drive conversions. Consider directing listeners to a landing page, product page, or contact form to make it easy for them to take the next step and become paying customers.

    Related: The Basics of Podcasting and How It Can Grow Your Business

    Conclusion

    Podcasts offer a unique way to engage with audiences and can be a powerful tool in every stage of the marketing funnel. To leverage podcasts effectively, you’ll want to create valuable and engaging content that speaks to your audience’s needs and interests, promote your podcast effectively to attract new listeners, and include clear calls-to-action to drive conversions. By doing so, you can differentiate your brand from the competition, build trust and credibility, and reach new levels of growth. .

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    Lewis Schenk

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  • How to Harness the Power of Celebrity Endorsements | Entrepreneur

    How to Harness the Power of Celebrity Endorsements | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    When you advertise a product or service online, you’re not only competing against thousands of other businesses in your niche, but you’re also up against the millions of gigabytes of content that people are exposed to every single day.

    You can win this battle for attention in many ways: You can come up with a new hook, image or video that will make people stop scrolling to read your ad, or you can use content generated by other users — and so on.

    All these tactics work, but they take a lot of time and skill to master. Luckily, there’s another way that is almost guaranteed to make people pay attention to what you’re offering — getting a celebrity to endorse your product.

    Celebrity endorsements aren’t just a great way to boost brand awareness and build a strong reputation. A recent study demonstrated that celebrity endorsements can increase a company’s sales by 4%.

    The only downside is that it can become very pricey for small businesses to hire a celebrity and, in some cases, risky. So, how do you get a celebrity to endorse your product when you are not a huge brand without wasting your entire marketing budget?

    Related: 5 Considerations When Seeking a Celebrity to Endorse Your Brand

    What to consider before deciding which celebrity to pursue

    One thing to consider is that celebrity endorsements look very different today than they did in the past. Today, it doesn’t matter so much that a celebrity is endorsing your product, but what celebrity you associate with your brand.

    Working with a celebrity who isn’t in line with your values and what you stand for isn’t just useless in terms of expanding your brand and growing your business. It can even backfire and damage your reputation.

    So, it’s important to understand who your target audience is and what they believe in, and it’s also important to find a celebrity who is liked by your ideal customer. A good example of this is the endorsement Michael Phelps gave to the online therapy app TalkSpace™. Phelps has always been vocal about his own mental health. Endorsing a product that helps people ease their psychological pains made perfect sense.

    Once you’ve identified the perfect celebrities to endorse your product, the question is how to get them to endorse it. As you can imagine, this isn’t always easy.

    Related: 10 Ways to Get a Celebrity to Use Your Product

    How to get a celebrity to endorse your product or service

    One way is to find their agent and ascertain how much they charge for an endorsement.

    Another option is to hire an influencer marketing agency.

    Finally, you could send samples of your product to the celebrity and wait until they repost it on their social media account. Once they do so, you can reach out to them and propose a partnership. I used this method to get on the radar of people like Tai Lopez and Grant Cardone.

    Having said that, although these strategies work, they might require a big budget or the need to find a good agency to work with.

    An alternative for people with a smaller budget is to build a brand that puts you in a position to meet and work with celebrities. Being good at what you do isn’t enough anymore. If you want to access opportunities to work with bigger brands, you need to be known. You need to be invited to events and places where celebrities hang out, meet the people who handle their marketing and branding and have assets and skills you can exchange for access to their audience.

    This is the path I took. I was one of the top Facebook ads experts at the time, but no one knew who I was. It took years to build my brand — a brand that’s opened the door to working with people like Floyd Mayweather and Mike Tyson. It’s an investment that takes time (and money) but is well worth it.

    A good alternative is to work with micro-influencers who have 1,000-100,000 followers. They can grow your brand quickly by attracting the right audience. From there, you can then transition to bigger celebrities as you become more established.

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    Rudy Mawer

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  • Unpacking the Black Demographic Shift and Why Marketers Must Re-Examine Their Strategies | Entrepreneur

    Unpacking the Black Demographic Shift and Why Marketers Must Re-Examine Their Strategies | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Successfully navigating the ever-evolving world of marketing necessitates a strong understanding of consumer demographics. The ability to tailor your strategies to your audience is essential in driving engagement and fostering brand loyalty. Lately, emerging data on the Black population demographics have signaled significant shifts, bringing forth new opportunities and challenges for businesses.

    In such a dynamic landscape, marketers must remain adaptable and vigilant, adjusting their targeting tactics and ensuring that advertising messages resonate with the values and aspirations of these communities. By staying attuned to these demographic changes, businesses can tap into the potential of one of the fastest-growing consumer segments while fostering an environment of trust and respect.

    Over the past two decades, the Black population in the United States has grown by 30%, totaling 36.2 million individuals as of 2021. This significant change in demographics is characterized by the fact that roughly one-in-five Black Americans are immigrants or the children of immigrants, showcasing Black Americans’ diverse and multifaceted nature. This reality highlights the importance for marketing teams to delve deep into the nuances and complexities of this dynamic population to engage and cater to their specific needs and preferences effectively.

    Additionally, with income levels and purchasing power continuing to evolve within the Black community, businesses must adopt innovative and culturally sensitive approaches in their advertising efforts that acknowledge and celebrate the rich diversity of this expanding demographic, ultimately fostering more authentic connections and driving successful campaigns tailored to the unique experiences and backgrounds of Black consumers.

    Related: Spanning the Globe: This Digital Marketer’s Approach Caters To Different Cultures Around the World

    Understanding the diverse experiences of Black Americans

    Understanding the diverse experiences of Black Americans is an essential part of developing effective marketing campaigns. It is important to recognize Black Americans’ nuanced history and diverse culture so that campaigns can be crafted specifically with each subgroup in mind. For instance, Black Americans’ cultural values and preferences with West African roots may diverge significantly from those hailing from Caribbean nations.

    By understanding the vast array of cultural layers and embracing individualized language, subtle cultural distinctions and specific requirements, advertisers can forge a stronger connection with the diverse Black community, ensuring a more meaningful and enduring impact within contemporary multicultural audiences.

    Taking note of differences in language and cultural practices

    When formulating marketing campaigns targeted toward Black Americans, it is essential not to treat everyone as if they were a monolith. People from subcultures within the Black American population may have strong ties to their language and cultural practices, which must be accounted for when crafting an effective campaign.

    These distinctions — such as differences in language or specific customs — can provide insight into what marketing tactics will most effectively engage with the target group. Failure to recognize these subcultural variances could easily result in missed opportunities or dampened results during a campaign.

    Related: The Time for Diversity in Advertising Is Now

    Acknowledging how socioeconomic factors impact consumer habits

    The untapped potential of the Black community in America represents a significant opportunity for businesses seeking to expand their market reach and generate substantial profits. A recent McKinsey analysis has revealed a staggering $300 billion in unmet demand within this demographic, indicating a transformative possibility for companies willing to adapt their strategies and cater to these specific needs.

    In addition, with the Black American population’s buying power projected to exceed $1.8 trillion in the coming year — surpassing the annual GDPs of nations like Mexico and the Netherlands — it is evident that engaging with this lucrative market is a forward-thinking investment. Businesses that recognize the potential of tapping into this expanding revenue base will foster a connection with a powerful consumer segment and position themselves for enduring success in the future.

    Understanding the intricate mosaic of the Black American community is fundamental when developing marketing campaigns. It is critical to recognize the common threads that unite this diverse group and the distinct characteristics that set them apart. Successful companies take the time to delve into subtle cultural nuances that could significantly impact a campaign’s efficaciousness.

    For example, merely relying on images or ideas catering to U.S.-born Black Americans may inadvertently ostracize Black immigrants from other countries. A key component to bridging these potential gaps is enlisting spokespeople possessing a solid grasp of cultural competencies, ensuring that messages resonate with the full spectrum of the targeted communities. Though the process may demand a higher investment of resources and effort, the advantages of tapping into this market and solidifying customer relationships will undeniably yield a tremendous return on investment.

    Related: How Marketing Agencies Can Integrate Inclusivity Into Their Organization and Work

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    Christine Alexis

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