From the creation of campaigns to the execution of the various streams of marketing and analysis of completed campaigns, all areas of marketing fall under this category.
This week, one of my favourite blogs out there, Neuroscience Marketing, shared an answer to a controversial question:
Do web searchers pay attention to the domain name (the registered name in your browser address bar) where the link in the search results leads them?
His first response was what we would have expected, “No.”
But Roger Dooley says the numbers suggest otherwise. Stanford and Microsoft recently published a study showing that domains are in fact a variable in consumer buyer behavior.
So companies with lesser known domain names aren’t going to see the work get easier for them. The big consumer brands, so long as they stay relevant, will retain advantage.
But for smaller companies with a growing or established community of their own and a branded domain name, this can be highly advantageous. Seeing a brand-focused URL has more value than ever. The idea that multiple landing pages or micro sites are the key is waning. There are no numbers to suggest it, but the scrolling landing page with a benefit derived domain name might not be around for too much longer.
In my years online, I have noticed that a freshly named landing page selling a singular product doesn’t earn much of my trust. But if that domain still had the original brand in the address, I would assume that I could contact them for additional service or assistance, should I need it.
But I think the other lesson here is that for most things online, the shortcut to winning customers and search engine rank and revenue can no longer be sold as a get rich quick scheme. New benefit-focused domains, shoddy search optimization and limitless landing pages can all bring the search engines hammer upon you. It is only through the sincere effort of building great content, sharing it accordingly and turning visitors into ambassadors that you can stay on top of this fast paced industry.
And yes, the long way to build a trustworthy domain is still the best way, and it will only become more and more true as time goes on.
If you want to learn more about how we might be able to help you establish, refresh or rebuild your online trust, get in touch with us.
No flashing detour sign here...
So, this week being my birthday week, I like to spend it reflecting on my successes and challenges. It can be harrowing and humbling, but I do find it valuable.
Of our successes, the growth of our business has been joyous and exciting. The support from our clients and our network has been nothing short of amazing.
But I have one “challenge” that needs work, and I am setting the record straight, up front, for all to see.
The truth is, I haven’t been working hard enough on my blog, and it shows.
It’s not as if I don’t have enough to say. It’s not like I don’t already post blog content and social media messages for our clients. In fact, we have more blog content subscribers than ever. We find ourselves pushing 3-4 posts a day, which might seem a challenge, were it not for having a good editorial calendar to work from.
But this inconsistency on our blog has done some damage. Our traffic has dropped noticeably. The page views, the number of phone calls and email contact forms are not what they once were—even from a few weeks ago. Though we are still working hard on the more “personal” sales, we haven’t concentrated on the one thing on our website that moves people through our sales process—that magical point where they say to themselves, “We want Red Paper Clip!”
Last week, I had a conversation with a new client about their challenges with starting and running their blog. They have suffered similar consistency issues, but those were moreso focused on them not knowing what their audience wants to read.
It’s especially important for busy businesspeople to get results from every activity they perform, and blogging, when done effectively, is one of the best means of converting visitors to buyers and buyers to ambassadors.
So here is my gift to you. The seven snags that can stagnate a new or established blog. These quotes were taken from clients of ours (and our own team), so enjoy!
Few of us are James Joyce or Anne Rice, and frankly, the web doesn’t need them. Your posts don’t need to be perfect. They need to be relevant. They need to be clear, and they need to sound like a person is on the other end of them.
Getting some help from a professional is a definite possibility (in fact we encourage it), but technology can help if budgets or timelines are tight. Consider recording your posts using a speech to text app like Dragon Dictation. You can clean up the writing after the fact, but talking into your smartphone for 3 minutes would yield an ample sized blog post, and the art of blogging, whether spoken or written, improves with practice. More is better!
We understand that sometimes people work in highly specialized fields. Engineering, architecture, parts manufacturing, software development…. Clients coming from these endeavours often complain that no one wants to learn the inner workings of their industry. Sadly, they couldn’t be more wrong. People are generally curious, and any opportunity to explore how things work tantalizes that curiosity. Share those human-interest insights in your business, and reveal how things come together. Just be sure that it remains focused on what your buyers want to know.
Also, building and maintaining an editorial calendar will help you to narrow the topics that matter, and keep you on top of deadlines.
Blogs are one of the easiest ways for people to find out quick information and move ahead with whatever they were doing before they clicked. This is why tips-and-tricks blogs are so bloody effective.
That said, we need to know what people are seeking to do when they come to visit, and at that point, you can set goals for how many of those people you want doing things. Set measurable goals that you can track and make them timely goals (consider page ranking in search, conversions, audience interaction or social media sharing). It gets easier to attract more page views and conversions if you’re setting goals, analyzing the results and making changes.
Investing in your blog can be highly profitable if you do adequate research, track and measure movement and post content regularly. This last item is what we’ve struggled with recently, and frankly, it will be the last time we do so. Seeing the irregular dates and blog posts makes a website look unkempt, like having a shabby storefront. Those lovely souls who made the trek to come see our blog are suddenly unwelcomed by the sloppy site of it.
One post a week is enough to keep it looking fresh, and it is the minimum for maintaining a solid business blog, in my opinion. And yes, it’s a commitment that we’re making to our blog. 
One of the most important measurables to study when looking at your blog data is your actual readership. Google analytics is helpful in determining where they are and where they click, and your comments section is a great way to learn about the sites they represent, as most comment threads require readers to list their websites before they comment. Thank them for participating, check them out and add them on Facebook, Twitter and/or LinkedIn (if possible). Comments are open invitations for introduction; embrace them.
This is a consistent problem that we see with established blogs. They have great content, and they have a following, but the inquiries are just not coming in.
At this point, it’s important to learn what people are coming to your pages to do. Are they researching possible providers of your product/service? Are they looking for tips, tricks and ways to solve their problem immediately? Are they friends or clients just popping by to support you?
More importantly, do your buyers know what you want them to do once they get to your website?
Calls to action play an important role here, and offering easy ways for people to go where they want to comes into play as well. But meeting your readers’ expectations comes first. How are you asking them to move forward? Have you enquired about what people want to see (or see more of)? Surveys, polls and other interactive touch points are useful for learning this, but be careful not to overdo it.
I hate the thought of my posts being published only to fade into oblivion hours later. This is where social media sharing can minimize that possibility. I use Buffer to load up my future tweets (you can use hootsuite or tweetdeck as well), and this guarantees that my posts (as well as our clients’ posts) get in front of people without annoying anyone. I also use SocialBro [link] to determine the best times to post, marking which days in the week would get the best exposure.
We also like to post comments on LinkedIn groups, on other blogs, and on popular Facebook pages. This is a great way to expose your blog to new audiences. Remember that your comments need to have perspective and not just be you shouting about your stuff on high; otherwise, you run the risk of looking like a spammer, and your credibility goes out the window. Also, for those souls with the time and chutzpa, guest blogging on relevant (and more famous) websites can bring even more eager eyes to your blog. It’s a greater investment, but guest posts immediately boost your credibility with new audiences, simplifying the equation for those ready to read your work or buy from you.
So there is my confession. At the end of my birthday week, I pledge to do more for our blog, and arrest the neglect that has plagued it these many weeks. When I consider what it’s done for us, it makes sense that I ask you to join me on this journey, and consider what things you can do to make your blog work better for you.
Oh, and remember, you can ask us anything. Just leave a comment below with your question or send us an email and we’ll get back to you.
Here’s to your blogging success!
Id
"A blog-blog-blog..."
Tomorrow is going to be a great day. Mack D. Male, one of Edmonton, Alberta’s blogging elite will be hosting a seminar downtown at the Alberta Business Link. For those who can make it, there is no need to RSVP. Just show up with some business cards and GET YOUR LEARN ON.
In honour of Mr. Male’s upcoming session, I would like to share some perspective on business blogging and where the Red Paper Clip team sees it going.
The consistent growth of business blogging over the last few years is impressive. Email marketing and social media promotion of business blogs are new but essential methods to build leads, authority and community. Their flexibility through the use of platforms and services like WordPress, MailChimp and Aweber makes it easy for even the most novice of content creators.
But the continued growth of business blogs hasn’t slowed down the readership. In fact, it continues to blossom in ways that puzzle even the craziest economists. The readership resource is far from extinguished. For new bloggers, the water’s still warm.
Don’t ever let a content strategist, social media person, or anyone who has a job on the Interwebz tell you that data doesn’t matter. One of the greatest advantages of the internet is that everything is trackable. Use this to your business blog’s advantage. Track clicks through Google Analytics, search socially trending topics on Twitter trends and Google Alerts, and get a sense of what people really want to know. Your relevance to them—and your popularity—will skyrocket within a few posts.
We’ve entered a really interesting time in content creation and management. Today, it’s easy to post images, diagrams, client testimonials, comments, questions, videos, clickable links and audio conversations. Take advantage of these content possibilities by looking at your business blog more like a magazine and less like a sidebar newspaper column. I’ve seen industrial business blogs that look more like climbing magazines (by design, of course), and they earn a much higher yield of leads and traffic than their more conservative counterparts.
The fact that I have to further explain so-called Real Simple Syndication (RSS) feeds to new and established clients is proof that they are never going to catch on. I can’t be bothered to tome on their history (since I predict that their death knell might be in 2012), but here is a great explanation. I always suggest that companies keep their email lists close to their hearts, because it’s where some of your best leads will always come from.
I like imagining mobile and smartphone communication like I imagine Zooey Dechanel’s recent explosion on television. Dechanel’s been in film for a few years, and she’s been working her skills on the big screen just fine. But since earning the lead role in The New Girl, she has been surrounded by a crack team of comedy writers and producers that has really shaken the industry up. Mobile phone use is the same. We’re sitting in a perfect storm of mobile market advantages (ease, cheap prices, easy applications, ubiquity) and the world has thus responded. Keep mobile users in mind when preparing your blog topics. Avoid anything that might not translate well to mobile users, and they will continue to visit.
The proliferation of business blogs has created one problem: There is so damn much information out there, readers often don’t know who best to follow. Many of us in the same profession may have similar views on best practices. So how do you keep those lucky few who visit? Tell your story and keep it up top in your messaging. Readers like to connect with people more than information. Be human. Be courteous. Be professional. Be yourself.
People will read only what they can find. Using simple and effective search engine optimization practices will ensure that you rank where you need to, captivating the right audience to build those leads. Great content is invisible without good SEO. We’ve a few good articles on the matter here.
So for those of you in Edmonton, I look forward to meeting you at the Business Link seminar tomorrow!
Bests,
Idris
This should be on every "exit."
We’re having a lot of fun right now.
We’re working with X5 Management on their blog and website. They are an outstanding team. And as we have been working with them on their website content, blog strategy and blog writing, their understanding and skills have grown at a rapid rate. (We highly recommend you visit their site and enjoy their offerings on taking business to the next level.)
When we work with our clients, we tell them that their improvements in creating content is a great thing. It doesn’t matter what level anyone begins at, progress is a wonderful thing.
But when it comes to your blog, what should you be doing with your old blog posts? You know, the ones you might have thought were fine at the time, but you may be afraid to revisit for fear of wanting to alter them altogether.
Ouch! But seriously, you don’t have to go there.
One consideration worth examining involves revisits and possibly a few edits, but rest assured, you won’t have to make faces about your writing.
Instead, you can optimize your old blog posts using a few tricks for SEO (search engine optimization). Cleaning your posts up for search saves you having to do any heavy content editing while still giving you a leg up in marketing your blog to your community and beyond.
It’s possible that your blog posts haven’t really been optimized at all. Not to worry, you need not focus on every post—just the ones that get the most traction.
If you are familiar with Google Analytics, try running it through your posts and track the ones with the most views. This will give you your to-do list.
You might want to go through the blog posts that you feel are the strongest posts, the ones you want shared and found. Add these to your list, but put them at the TOP.
Next, find out what these posts are optimized for by running Wordle. This forms the keywords into a tag cloud. The largest words in the cloud are the most often used terms or phrases.
Run those terms through your keyword tool (if you don’t have one, try Google’s Keyword Research Tool) to find other terms that will fit well in the post. Build a short list and keep it handy.
Have a look at the post and make sure those terms end up in the content in your titles. Make sure those terms use title tags H1 and H2, and they are not just bolded body content. Make sure the best keywords or phrases end up in your image tags and your URL, too.
Once you get through the content, you might want to do a little housekeeping for those few blogs that are lacking:
Yes, it might still seem like extra work and effort to make any of these changes to those pieces that are parts of your website’s past. But remember: You shouldn’t worry about doing it all in one swoop. Any adjustment you make to them will make a difference to the algorithms that rule the web.
Also, it saves you having to make any heavy edits to your already-posted content—because none of us have that kind of time!
If time is an issue for you making your blog or website a success, please visit our Contact Page, fill our the form, and we’ll get in touch with you.
Idris
This week, we were generously invited to a networking event held semiweekly by the BoB Clubs (Business over Breakfast) midday group of Edmonton. Geneve and I didn’t sit together, and so we managed to really work the room, though she got first dibs at our shared lunch plates. I longingly stared from across Expressionz Cafe.
As the members and guests talked about their respective businesses, I diligently jotted notes about each presentation. As we finished our meals and began networking, I got into a spirited discussion about web content, blogging and how to build website traffic.
The chatter attracted a gentleman who came right up behind us and began asking pointed questions. He was in the healthcare industry and had a fair share of news related content on his website, but he was curious if there were possible advantages for him to be blogging.
I was careful.
I didn’t let myself wax endlessly, and I did tell him that we could have a detailed conversation about his clients might be seeking and how that might work for him.
He hasn’t returned my email—it was only thirty hours ago. But I wanted to share a few ideas about what has made me so excited:
This is a big question, and it wouldn’t be easy to answer broadly. The gentleman I spoke with on Friday was an independent service provider for patients, so I will try to answer his question succinctly.
It’s not news that people prefer to surf the web for information and answers to their problems and ailments. The alternative, a trip to the doctor’s office, is even less desirable now that we have this modern convenience. An additional complexity to this issue is the plethora of incorrect or outdated information ranking on Google’s pages. When patients act upon this information, things can escalate to perilous possibilities.
That said, a little guidance from a healthcare professional could go a long way to providing reliable sources for health information. Building a solid blog archive of relevant content, reliable search sites, and new symptom detection sources would be a great start. Additionally, practitioners could share their experiences and professional opinions on changes within their industry, studies that have been published or reviewed, and what possible implications might surface because of those studies. The added advantages of audio, video and guest posts could provide patients with safe, compliant information through a more human medium.
There is huge potential and opportunity for healthcare professionals who merge social media into their content marketing. Social platforms can leverage your reach from your immediate circle and outward. There are possible caveats concerning professional compliance and privacy that practitioners would need to research and understand. But the thought of any real time interaction with a healthcare practitioner frankly is, as a 30-something male, pretty attractive to me.
In fact, I dare say that in our collective near futures, blogs and social media for healthcare practitioners will be more the norm than not.
Building a relevant, respectable and goal-busting online presence is more than possible. And building the right strategy to get things started is a few letters away. If you are in a professional field and you are still unsure of how content marketing could work for you, please fill out the floating form on the left.
If you know what you need, please visit our Contact Page and we’ll get in touch.
Have a great week.
- !dris
"That Guy" or "That Company." It's all the same in the world of social media!
Whatever you call them, they’re your people—your online community.
Do you treat them as such, or has your company’s Twitter feed, Facebook page, blog and email newsletter turned into a spam machine, with update after update after update about new products, services and company-held events?
While some may view social media as a means of distancing ourselves from one another and taking the personal out of personal relationships, the opposite is true when it comes to marketing. Once someone has liked, followed or subscribed to you, they have essentially brought you into their circle. They have not only granted you access to their personal or professional online network and presence but they have also gone out on a limb to show all of their followers, friends and fans that they in some way identify with your company and its message. Respect this.
This often involves posting great articles and links you think your people can use, not just updates about you. It’s also about talking to your people. Asking questions is a great way to build community. If you’re a coach, ask them to share or send you a story about a time they surprised themselves by achieving what they thought was unachievable. If you’re a clothing designer, ask them to share the worst clothing trend they fell for in high school. Just get them talking!
When someone does use your social media channels to talk to you or share your material, don’t ever ignore them. A meaningful reply is best (too many “thanks for posting!” comments will feel automated), but any acknowledgment is better than none.
Just as you’re using social media as a networking tool to boost your online presence, your people are too, and it’s all about give and take. Take the time to look through your list of people and see what they’re up to. It’ll give you some great insight into who they are and what they’re looking for, but it’ll also give you an opportunity to talk directly to them or to share their material. When they see that you care enough to pay attention to them, they’ll care enough to pay attention to you.
Tip: If you have a lot of followers, it can help to use a program like SocialBro to create lists of people to keep an eye on. You may not have time to pay close attention to everyone, but even if you can create a list of 50 contacts whose engagement would be a real asset to your company, you’ll still come out way ahead of the game.
In essence, what we’re talking about here is the Golden Rule. We all want our friends and acquaintances to see us as people and to put in the time to stay connected, even if they’re not our bestest best friends.
After all, if you wouldn’t want to be your friend, you can’t expect anyone else to.
Photo credit goes to Rick Marazzani at MindPosts
Recently, Lululemon began distributing shopping bags with “Who is John Galt?” printed on the sides, following up with a blog post explaining the company’s decision. Unsurprisingly, this has put Lululemon at the center of controversy as some identify with the message and others paint it in a less favourable light, as a libertarian message endorsed by a company that sells a lifestyle based on conscientiousness and harmony.
I’m not here to discuss Ayn Rand’s politics. Instead, what interests me in all this is whether Lululemon is really all that off base in using such a loaded and controversial literary symbol.
In its blog post, Lululemon explained itself by saying that it’s John Galt’s pursuit of greatness over mediocrity that is behind its latest marketing inspiration.
Fair enough. No little kid responds to, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” with, “I want to be mediocre!” And hey, the notion that we can all be whatever we want to be and rise up above circumstance with the right mindset is soothing, kind of like a comfy pair of yoga pants and a cup of hot herbal tea, no?
What’s contentious here is the philosophy of how such greatness is achieved. According to Rand, it’s by acting in self-interest and having a government that stays well out of your way. It’s political.
Using politics in your marketing is ballsy, and those behind the campaign had to have known this would earn the company some enemies.
Or has it?
Something tells me that the people passing Lululemon’s blog post around on Twitter and Facebook and talking about how disgusting this all is aren’t regular Lululemon customers. Lululemon lost the love of the leftist and hippie yoga crowds long ago with its pricing, upscale locales, sweatshop labour allegations, and ubiquitous presence on the bodies of well-to-do so-called “yuppies” and “yummy mummies” in line for an extra-hot skinny latté at Starbucks.
And it is those bodies that Lululemon is marketing to.
Chances are, if you’re the type to have a hate-on for Ayn Rand, you’re not—and never have been—Lululemon’s target market.
The reason so many people are upset at Lululemon’s “Who is John Galt?” campaign isn’t because their much-loved athletic wear provider is a turncoat. It’s because it further reinforces what they already know Lululemon to be: A corporate retailer that has found its niche in high-end, fashionable athletic attire and that aims to profit off of the latest trend in all things yoga, pilates, and dance.
Fact is, Ayn Rand, or at least Lululemon’s interpretation of John Galt, likely resonates with those who are able and willing to spend $100 on a pair of stretch pants. There’s nothing disingenuous about Lululemon’s marketing here. People are strongly divided on the issue, to be sure, but those on the side of Lululemon are exactly the ones Lululemon sought to appeal to.
When it comes to everyone else, well…
No love lost, right?
Having not looked at Lululemon’s market research and having not consulted them on their choice of words, I can of course only guess at the company’s motives and provide distant assumptions about the campaign’s effectiveness. However, if you’d like to see how you can use the written word to connect with your best people, contact us to arrange for a free consultation.
We’ve been writing this blog for long enough, and it’s time to dole out some secrets.
I struggle in malls.
It’s not because my dashing good looks are bringing throngs of new fans chasing me from store to store.
But the same things happen, whether I am at Walmart or Shoppers’ Drug Mart.
I get shocks. All the time. If I walk along tile floors, regardless what I wear, I get shocks whenever my hands near a metal surface. The surface might be touching the ground, it might be elevated, it doesn’t matter. Heck, the metal could be beneath rubber, I still get shocks. And sometimes, they can be painful (and bright).
How does it happen? Friction. I blame the friction for the days I wander through the aisles and hallways hoping for a positive experience, but getting nothing but the opposite. Instead I build a daylong static charge that releases in small, shocky increments.
I never want to touch any surfaces, people’s hands, products or even pocket change (don’t worry, I know it doesn’t conduct much electricity). The friction has became such a distraction that I can’t escape it. I often go home frustrated and without anything I was planning to buy.
Online sales experiences are remarkably similar. No, people may not be shocked away from website or subscription forms in an embarrassing display of light and awe. But in web content and web usability, friction is a reality for visitors. Inconsistencies, like rough surfaces, increase friction. Friction creates static in potential buyers’ minds. Static breeds skepticism, and prevents people from clicking forward.
What are possible inconsistencies that cause friction?
1) Your visitors’ mindset and the thoughts that enter their minds should be the source of all your creative decisions. When they are not, these cast subtle negative cues:
Each of these issues can create a climate for your buyers’ mindset, and these are either working for you, or they are working against you. It’s up to you (with people like us) to find out what parts might be doing that and what parts need to be kept.
2) Your buyers’ experience may seem a more difficult element to measure, but it is no less important as a way to reduce friction. The quality of your products and the experience of your staff has no bearing if visitors can’t learn what they want when they want it. Frustration is the ugliest emotion in web usability, so it serves you to know what to watch for:
Friction in a web experience can be a dangerous thing, but if you are watching for those inconsistencies, they can become a powerful learning tool. Using analytics to track clicks and time on pages will give you your to-do list. For many businesses, social media comments and searches are also great ways to know what people are saying about you and your site. (We recommend that negative comments are responded to quickly and with grace.) Always be thankful for people’s positions. They are a living learning tool.
As people, we have deepened our reliance on the web for making decisions and marketing to those people who are making decisions. We must remove all points of friction to make their experiences easier.
And until I figure out how to safely maneuver my way through the mall without friction, it might be where I stay, too!
Happy (Canadian) Thanksgiving!
Idris
Keyboards: The Quill of our century—at least until iPads take over.
We don’t want to come off like jerks.
But we know that there are scores of content writers out there, and there are even more writers eager to dabble in content creation for clients.
The world of copy and content writing is flourishing. In Edmonton and Alberta, we’ve grown into a community of vibrant professionals with differing skill sets and specializations.
But this is also a caveat. Being a great writing company doesn’t make us the best choice for all companies, and this can be said of every other copy or content writer out there.
We have those days when we talk to prospective clients who simply didn’t get what they were hoping for in their past content writer, or worse, they don’t get any results from their online marketing efforts. They are disappointed, nervous and out of some money.
We all know that content is the central component of any successful online presence, so we decided to create a list of tips to help you make an educated decision when considering a content provider.
You’ve likely seen Death of a Salesman, TV’s Madmen or other shows that reveals dark characters pulling the wool over the eyes of audiences and clients. Marketing can be seen as a dark art, and sometimes specialized service providers make the error of trying to razzle and dazzle buyers and clients with whiz-bang terminology. Don’t fall for it. Overuse of flashy words and phrases at best turns your website into adjective soup that doesn’t help your search ranking and at worst costs you more money for pay-per-click marketing.
Many content writers assert that the key to good marketing content is to understand the Internet tools people are using to connect with each other, which might include web, blog, or social media marketing. We agree with this point, but it’s also important to know who is using which of these tools. Why should you pay anyone to beef up your company’s Facebook page if your best clients are on LinkedIn and Twitter. You’ll be trying to connect with people that may not even be there.
One other thing to watch for: Many journalists are veering to digital content marketing, and their skills in story craft is very useful. But watch out. Content has a specific need to be useful, and it requires a unique set of tools and strategies to be profitable. Revealing story is only one component of that, so beware of journalists who lack internet marketing experience.
This is hard to say, but many great writers are just that, writers. Content specialists need to be more than writers. They need to understand search, research and strategy to know how people find you and who those people are. They need to know how to build audience, attract the right attention and persuade people to act. They do not need to know your industry specifically, but knowing your people and what compels them to buy will make the difference between success and failure.
One of the advantages of content is that it ends up online. You will forever be able to find it… somewhere. Use this to your advantage. Search their blogs, websites and social media accounts. Look through their client lists and testimonials and if they don’t have any, walk away. Also scour the followers and fans on social media. If there are marketing VPs on their LinkedIn account and you are a marketing VP, your needs will likely be better understood than someone with a network of solopreneurs—or vice versa. Don’t make this the big decision, though. Ask for their list of clients first, then snoop.
Searching for a solid content writer/content strategist can be daunting, but the risks of doing it incorrectly can be costly. Follow your possible provider’s posts and social media to get a feel for them, and use the list above to get a sense of their knowledge and skill. Your content and your strategy will be what you hoped for, and you will save on time and cost as you move toward your goals.
Good Hunting!
Idris Fashan
I’ve always avoided calling myself a salesperson.
Visions of plain-clothed hawks who spend their days pounding the pavement or tele-vultures swooping in on unsuspecting victims keeps me from using the terms when describing our corporate responsibilities.
Sales is often seen as a starting point for young people of talent or a career graveyard for people who lack talent. Salespeople keep their minds on the money, rake in what they can, and take a nice commission once the customer signs. Sales is something someone does on their way to doing something else, right?
This couldn’t be further from the truth.
In the last few years, we have tried different methods to promote and market our business while increasing our sales and customers. In that time we have worked for many clients who were also working their various sales and marketing channels, trying to navigate the most effective means while keeping dollars in their pockets.
One of the issues between marketing and sales is that small business owners often lump them together. But there are clear differences between them. Marketing is what you do to persuade potential customers, like advertising, direct marketing, online marketing and public relations. Sales is what you do to transact with the customers through cold calls, warm calls and building leads. Marketing is done from a distance; sales is done up close.
And this is why sales is still the shortest and least expensive way to
We like to think we know a thing or two about marketing, being professional writers and content strategists. The messages you choose to connect to your clients are often dependent upon which medium you choose to connect through them. This process can be costly in time and resources, simply because the rollout of the marketing itself takes time, and you require a team to build effective marketing.
Further to that, marketing campaigns can have several possible purposes, and acquiring new customers is but one option. Marketing is by its very nature an act of persuasion of ideas that were not clear to the reader before they encountered the work. We craft words to help companies make the case that they are a worthy choice for a new buyer.
Sales, on the other hand, can be a swift, high-yield addition to your operation that can dramatically push your bottom line upward in ways that marketing can only do in high-cost scenarios.
But sales will never cost as much.
We also understand that marketing has a magical perception to it that business owners will gravitate to, and this might be because so much talent goes into creating it. But this is marketing’s trap. It cannot do everything well, it can only do one thing well.
Sales is simple. It has one purpose and there is only one way to do it. Get an appointment, present the product, listen for the response, and move forward.
Remember, we don’t buy products just because they’re well marketed. We buy them because they sell—well. In fact, a bloated marketing campaign can sink a product if the initial sales aren’t there to prove its mettle in the marketplace.
So where am i going with this? Trust me, I am not trying to blog us out of a job, if that’s what you might be thinking. But marketing and sales should be efforts that are paired, not isolated. One bolsters the other by providing what the other can’t.
So as you prepare to roll out your next product, program or service, consider your sales strategy first, and then work it alongside the marketing campaigns you develop. Your customers and your sales will thank you for it.
If you need any ideas on how to merge your sales and marketing efforts, visit our contact page, or fill out the form on the top left of the website.
Best of luck,
Idris
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