Tag Archives: inbound marketing

Markethive and Valentus: Organic Leads and Coffee Partnership

Image result for markethive 

The apex of automated marketing blogging platforms and “skinny coffee” known as Valentus Slim Roast are ready to launch; however, only those who recognize this unique opportunity are really wanted.

Au Naturale, Markethive and Valentus have joined forces to create a symbiotic relationship between two business entities that are fed up with traditional MLM Industry.  Yes, Bee & Coffee are about “empowering both the little guy and gal” to market and sell a product the World consumes daily only after water.  Try going 72-hours without H-2-0 and watch your body breakdown.  Guess what, people feel the same way if, they don’t have their “Cup of Joe” and react like they’re going through withdrawal. 

The Digital Age is here and entrepreneurship continues to explode thanks to technology and those innovators who embrace risk, while providing a solution to a problem.  Guess what you’re one of them because you became a renegade and willing to face the unknown, while incurring the costs in business.  Respect is given to you but, not the industry (MLM), due to its dubious reputation and need for change.     

Yes, it’s time for a change because MLM doesn’t have the best reputation as indicated by the recent Consent Decree Settlement between Herbalife and FTC .  Hey, $200 million dollars isn’t chump-change and sends a message to the industry that “product and consumers” must exist and not “product and distributors”.  Yeah, verification will be needed in the future and old business models will no longer be accepted unless, they can prove that their product is being retailed to the masses.  Guess what, old methods of marketing like “Outbound Marketing” are increasingly ineffective in generating sales and more importantly, establishing a trusting business relationships between consumers and proprietors.  New business models and new marketing methods like “Inbound Marketing” have emerged and increasingly becoming the norm because educated consumers like Millennials, who have purchasing power of $200 Billion dollars are sick and tired of being sold. Yes, these kiddies are tech- savvy and research everything before digging into their debit/credit-cards (nobody uses cash, anymore) and if, your product or service doesn’t address their needs or resolve a problem then, they happily tell you, “hit the bricks”.  Well, if you want to avoid the proverbial MLM Cemetery for Dead Dealers who, operate a Non-Profit Agency then, you better embrace “Customer-Centricity”, like the industry leader Amazon.     

Yes, in the Digital Age of Technology for a business to succeed then, it must embrace the idea of the customer being the priority and less so, shareholders, which is a revolutionary concept among corporate profiteers.  However, Amazon valued at $230 Billion dollars realized that success was centered upon "focus relentlessly on our customers."  Needless to say, title of World’s Largest retailor isn’t by chance.

So, do you want to be part of the “customer-centricity’ trend and be at the forefront of a new era of Ecommerce where relationship building is key to creating a WIN-WIN for both owner and customer.  To learn more I invite you to review our information: http://www.SuccessRoute.biz/?rd=ct1VzwV7

Contributor,

Vaurn James

The info shared here has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to diagnose, cure or treat any illness or disease.

MarketHive Services, Tools and Benefits

Markethive makes advertising online more fun, more productive with marketing solutions that work. While they have many tools and services that you can use in a huge social network setting, I like to bring your attention to 3 of their tools. Whether it's Inbound, Outbound and or Automated Marketing, you really should be using vital marketing tools such as a Lead Capture tool, Auto-Responder and a Website Rotator. Markethive provides you the latest technology in these tools and everything that they do.

One beautiful thing of a website Url Rotator is that you can showcase your multiple websites in your marketing campaign. As long as your multiple websites have your lead capture form or widget, you can get a better idea of what people are responding to the best.  As each of your websites are being rotated for viewing online, you can get a better idea of what people are responding to the most as you acquire people info via your lead capture tool on those pages.  Now you can streamline your marketing campaign in a more productive and hopefully lucrative manner. This can start the inbound marketing funnel process in a great way.

Lead Capture Pages are often utilizes social media platforms, email campaigns and even search engine marketing campaigns . These pages are designed to market something in return of getting a prospective viewer name, email, phone and other personal info for future contact for more information. It's really simple as provide a compelling idea, photo or video with a few words and then place a capture form box at the bottom of the webpage for an interested viewer to leave their info. Unfortunately in today's world many people are getting more leery about giving up this personal not knowing who is getting their personal info. Markethive has the perfect solution by creating a lead Capture widget (Icon). The Markethive lead capture widget allows that same potential customer to get what they want with 1 Click while never typing in any of their personal info. The cool thing is that using the Markethive lead capture widget still connects you to that potential customer in such a way that you can still get that personal info for you to utilize their state of the art auto-responder marketing system.

When you think of automated marketing many people think of "auto-responders" as a key and vital communication tool for many reasons. Research says that it may take 5-7 times (or more) of a potential customer viewing info of interest before they may make a decision to commit. An auto-responder  can be used as a perfect way of  automatically delivering pre-written messages over a short or long period of time to a prospective customer that is looking at what you have. While nothing beats the telephone conversation, but dripping periodic pre-written messages every other day or so keeps the lines of communication open and info flowing to a engaged prospect.

We all know that marketing online is definitely a numbers game. This is why so many online marketers are scrambling to create and promote their blogs, websites and capture pages on multiple platforms hoping they can reach more people. The greater the “Reach” can bring success to what you’re promoting. A big question is, how many people would you like to reach? The biggest question is and will always be is How do I do that?

MarketHive is the simple answer for many reasons. MarketHive makes it simple, easy and more affordable than any other option out there. Before WordPress, Aweber, Constant Contact, Facebook and other marketing solutions is the CEO of MarketHive. He ushered in the industry of automated marketing back in the early 90’s who is known as the “Godfather of Automated Marketing”. Now he’s at it again with his new Inbound Marketing Social Network for all entrepreneurs, built by entrepreneurs called MarketHive.

As you may see the ever growing list of the many tools and services below, more are coming. 

  1. Capture Widget
  2. Pre-Built Lead Capture Pages
  3. Short URL compression
  4. Website Widget
  5. Auto responder
  6. Back-link Tracking
  7. Blogging Platform
  8. WordPress Plugin
  9. Website Rotator
  10. Webinar Conference room
  11. Google Calendar Integration

No matter what you're building, promoting or branding, Markethive is your most sensible solution. If someone tells you of another company that provides the above services (more coming) that’s integrated into a social network setting with support, training and expertise for free, they lied. Take Markethive for a free spin and see all of the Markethive  services, tools and benefits it has to offer by visiting https://Markethive.com/90hivejacobs

 

Bruce Jacobs (Markethive Developer)

The info shared here has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to diagnose, cure or treat any illness or disease.

Markethive: Multi-Million Dollar Social Marketing Platform- In Pre-Launch

Multi-Million Dollar Inbound Social Marketing Platform In Pre-Launch

Markethive has created a Multi-Million Dollar inbound social marketing platform that will rival the existing social media platforms in many ways.

Many times change comes along and we don't recognize it until its too late. Internet Marketing has changed with the advent of Millennials all searching for information specific as to what they want, no longer does SEO [Search Engine Optimization] play a major role in getting noticed on the internet. Millennials want to find information, not have it jammed down their throat.

They are seekers not persuaders!

The new trend of getting noticed on the internet is through referral basis. No longer do you have to pack your articles or website full of key words and hope the search engines notice them and give them top ranking, today you just have to make sure your message gets out to the public in a social way where people notice it, and then come to you for more information. Social Infusion Marketing is the new way to market your goods and services with people seeing what you are offering, and when the time comes that the person needs your offer they will take action.

Markethive has perfected Social Infusion Marketing with a unique social platform that allows anyone who is interested in marketing their products or company to be able to do it without paying huge sums of money to get noticed. No longer does anyone have to put up with the confusing language of the SEO guru's who charge outrageous sums of money with little results, you can do it yourself!

The Markethive platform is Free to join and use, and is funded partially by an advertising platform that enables the entrepreneur to get a huge reach with low cost. Markethive is built for the Global entrepreneur, and gives them a level playing field in a world that is cluttered with everyone trying to get into each others pocket financially.

So if you have read this far, Markethive is rolling out a Pre-Launch offer, before it goes to Crowdfunding, to anyone who want to join up and learn how to use this platform to grow their business. The Social part is being built by adding as many people as possible and assisting them in growing their business through Social Infusion Marketing.

To join just click here and you will be directed to a sign up page where you can enter the platform and poke around. Here is the secret, when the platform goes to CrowdFunding the people responsible will share in the rewards, so don't waste time this launch will be HUGE!

Thanks for reading,
Dr. Raymond Jewell

PS: Dr. Raymond Jewell is a leading Economist specializing in the Small and Home Based Business Marketplace. He is a Alpha Founder with Markethive and manages several blogs on the hive. Dr. Jewell is a professional Network Marketer and represents several companies successfully. He can be reached through Markethive.

The info shared here has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to diagnose, cure or treat any illness or disease.

Reach Massive People by Blogging

There are more and more bloggers created every day. If you have a point to share about a product, service, business, events (the list goes on), many people choose to expose it online via their blog. With so many blogging services and platforms out there, how do you choose one? Even after you have chosen a blogging platform, service or network, can you still "Reach" enough people to make a difference.

We all know that blogging is definitely a numbers game. This is why so many bloggers are scrambling to create and promote their blogs on multiple platforms thinking they can reach more people. The greater the "Reach" can bring success to what you're promoting. A big question is, how many people would you like to reach? Now that you have that number in your head the other questions is How do I do that?

MarketHive is the simple answer for many reasons. MarketHive makes it simple, easy and more affordable than any other option out there.  Before WordPress, Aweber, Constant Contact, Facebook and other marketing solutions is the CEO of MarketHive. He ushered in the industry of automated marketing back in the early 90's known as the "Godfather of Automated Marketing".  if that wasn't enough he then created the first Inbound Marketing Network in the mid 90's. Now he's at it again with his new social Inbound Marketing Network for all entrepreneurs, built by entrepreneurs called MarketHive.

Don't just take my word for it, see his video blow that talks about reaching massive people by blogging. This is just one component of his new business network and how it can impact any bloggers reach in a massive way.

If you're a entrepreneur that specializes in helping others to succeed online, you owe your viewers this info. To get inside the MarketHive system for free more details is as easy as connecting any of your favorite Social Profiles by Clicking Here Now

Now is you want to be telling others about MarketHive before they start telling you and others they know.

 

Bruce Jacobs
MarketHive (Partner/ Developer)

The info shared here has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to diagnose, cure or treat any illness or disease.

Alpha Legacy Ending Soon

The MarketHive Alpha Legacy Phase launched is ending soon. Your opportunity to be a part of what is shaping up to be the biggest event to occur within the industry of Internet Marketing is literally passing through your eyes right now. The most powerful Inbound Marketing system that's integrated within a state of the art Social Network ever built is now passing the "Soft Launch". This 4 year project that was initially funded by over $500,000 of investment capital from serious entrepreneurs from around the world. Heading up the development and release is the founder who's also known as the Godfather and Originator of Automated Marketing from over 20+ years ago name Mr. Thomas Prendergast along with his state of the art engineering department.

You know many business and personal social networks out there right now, don’t you. You probably use one, two or e few of them, haven't you? These networks all started from somewhere and now are worth millions if not billions of dollars that you can’t get a dime from them, can you? What if this new Inbound Marketing Social platform is as successful as the others? How would you feel knowing you had an opportunity to receive your share of the company incoming multiple revenue streams for years to come but missed out all because you never took a few minutes to take a free look inside?

There are still a Limited number of Alpha Legacy positions available for real entrepreneurs. Many networkers are already spending hundreds of dollars in marketing advertising and memberships each month. Why not spend that same money in a one-time fee with an opportunity of becoming a Alpha Legacy Founder. You will not only get thousands of free advertising credits each month but you will also be able to build and brand whatever current business in what is shaping up to be the most powerful inbound social marketing network that online marketers have ever seen to date. The MarketHive integrated inbound marketing social network has been built by some of the most knowledgeable marketing entrepreneurs for all entrepreneurs like yourself and others you know.

If you're a serious entrepreneur or serious leader, you want to be telling others about MarketHive before they start telling you and others they know. To get inside the MarketHive system for free more details is as easy as connecting any of your favorite Social Profiles by Clicking Here Now

 
Bruce Jacobs
Partner & Developer

The info shared here has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to diagnose, cure or treat any illness or disease.

Govt Monetization of Marriage…. Try, Entrepreneurship or Home Business Instead!!!

Govt Monetization of Marriage…. Try, Entrepreneurship or Home Business Instead!!!

“Marriage is a contract but, admitting it means the institution is really a business” …Vaurn James

Times are tough and if, an Oxygen Tax could be implemented governments at all levels would be charging us a fee to breathe; however, the cost benefit analysis wouldn’t be advantageous for generating revenue if, your clientele suffer from Anoxia (die from suffocation), I think, I am light-headed, right now. Now, oxygen remains free for now; however, man’s other form of oxygen or more accurately, carbon dioxide (NEVER ingest because you know the outcome) the female provides an ideal opportunity for the extraction of a man’s resources via his ultimate commitment in life known as tying the noose… I mean knot, i.e., better known as marriage.  Yes, it’s an institution and confirmation it’s a bloody nuthouse.  Hey, Gene Simmons of Kiss said it best, “the biggest financial pitfall in life is divorce and the biggest reason for divorce is marriage”.  Not a very wise investment by signing a contract that mixes business w/pleasure.

“What About Love”, as per Ann Wilson, “Dreamboat Annie” & Nancy Wilson of the Rock & Roll sister act group known as Heart.  Forget it, love is a bonus, if you have it in your relationship but, marriage is and always has been a business contract.  If, you doubt it then, ask any attorney who can recite the old saying, “litigation is the basic legal right, which guarantees every corporation/business its decade in court”.  Clearly, a quick, easy and amicable divorce is not profitable for attorneys, courts and the economic mercenaries who initiated the proceedings.

Nothing like having access to your former partner’s 401K, IRA and/or Life-time alimony as a parting gift.  Property Distribution Laws in theory are about equitable division of assets and resources earned during the marriage; however, the concept of Standard of Living has led to essentially lifetime alimony even after the marriage.  Imagine being responsible for ensuring your ex’s standard of living is commensurate or even better than your own despite, forfeiture of 50% of your accumulated wealth.  Sounds like governmental incentivized dependence on a system that promotes continued litigation and no accountability for eventual, financial independence.  Charles Dickens was accurate when he said, “the one great principle of the English law is, to make business for itself”.  "It's just as easy to love a rich man as a poor man", yeah, right.  With marriage being a significant source of revenue for government then, it’s time to look at the institution from a pure legal and cost-benefit analysis which is more honest.           

Yeah, with a 50% divorce rate and women initiating 70% of the divorces, investing in the Institution of Marriage appears to be reserved for the very wealthy, naïve, religious or very stupid.  Fortunately, many of us in the middle-class now recognize that signing a marriage contract results in the automatic forfeiture of half of our goods/properties/assets accumulated during the marriage.  Christ, Asset Forfeiture Laws under the Reagan Administration were more equitable than most divorce hearings but, if you want out the relationship then, you have to pay the ex-wife and her new baby-daddy (Government) a significant portion of your net worth.  Oh yes, alimony, child-support and other monthly maintenance costs are more easily acquired with assistance of feminist judges, mangina politicians, equitable distribution of property laws, gender-bias laws and the social policy, “best interest of children” (consider Parental Alienation).

Alright, we now have a clear picture and Briffaults Law remains staunch and triumphant in its stance.  I recommend that any relationship building on your part should be directed towards entrepreneurship or home-based business.  The benefits are obvious and most importantly, no DNA paternity testing required (Cuckoldry)…you know this is your baby.  “It’s nothing personal but, business is business”.

8 Reasons Why Straight Men Avoid Marriage

You’ll Lose Respect, today’s fathers are considered to be less than needed because they have no value that enhances the quality of their family’s lives (feminist perspective).

You’ll Lose out on Sex, married men are at the mercy of their wives when it comes to intimate relations and acts of infidelity can trigger divorce proceedings that can cost him more than 50% of all his assets accumulated during the marriage and sometimes into the future.

You’ll Lose friends, once you tie the noose then, contact with your friends decreases dramatically because of familial responsibilities.

You’ll Lose Space, a man’s home is his castle; however, his man-cave is often commandeered by the wife and kids leading to the garage as his only sanctuary

You could lose your kids and your money, with gender-bias laws executed by the Family Court and child custody given to mums 90% of the time with court-ordered child-support then, the risk of becoming a father is evident.

You’ll Lose in Court, The Family Court is often viewed by men as bias against them and only concerned about raping them financially because Title IV-D of the Federal Social Security Act, essential allows judges to increase child-support orders and will receive direct fund matching funds from the Federal Govt.        

You’ll Lose your Freedom, At least, if you’re charged with child support that you can’t pay, you can be put in jail – and if you can’t afford a lawyer, you don’t have the right to have one appointed because, according to the Supreme Court, it’s technically a civil matter, never mind the jail time. Fathers and Families found that it’s the men who are jailed rather than women: “A new report concludes that between 95% and 98.5% of all incarcerations in Massachusetts sentenced from the Massachusetts Probate and Family Courts from 2001 through 2011 have been men.

Single Life is better than ever, the value of marriage continues to decline in popularity, while personal freedom has no price and men are increasingly appreciative of it’s importance in maintain their sanity.

Well, the cold and hard reality of marriage is evident and men must make a decision if, they want to risk it all financially, emotionally, psychologically and legally.  I recommend they function like hard-core inbound marketers, who conduct thorough research on a topic and learn everthing about an audience to better provide them quality content that solves the problem of “I, do or I, do not”.       

Vaurn James

Contributor

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The info shared here has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to diagnose, cure or treat any illness or disease.

The Ultimate Gift for Mom: Financial Freedom via Inbound Marketing

The Ultimate Gift for Mom: Financial Freedom via Inbound Marketing

Well, it's Mother's Day (okay, May 8, 2016) and time to honour the Old Girl, who gave birth to you and plays or played a pivotal role in your success or failure throughout life, just ask her.  Oh yes, your FATHER; likewise, deserves the same honour and respect on June 16th 2016, despite less media and corporate advertising on TV and Online.  Anyway, time to get down to business and demonstrate the ultimate act of L-O-V-E for one's parent.  Learn how to achieve and then, teach mum the fundamentals of financial freedom through Inbound Marketing. 

In fact, duplicate the process with other family members so it becomes a generational practice.  More importantly, you create the Ultimate Gift for Mom, that keeps on giving and giving.  It’s only fitting because she was your first teacher of Inbound Marketing.  Mum was an expert in Inbound Marketing?  Yes, she was because her task was about developing and training the “inner you” to become the best man/woman you could become, believe it or not. Additionally, she was your first teacher of Inbound Marketing because she did the following things in preparation of your arrival: researched, developed data, consulted with experts (grand mum), created strategies specific to the individual (yourself) and executed strategies to achieve a resolution to daily problems.  Should sound very familiar from both a marketing and mother perspective. Both give birth to their babies and responsible for their developmental growth which later impacts society.   

By now the symbiotic relationship between mum and Inbound Marketing should be clear, I hope. Now, let’s jump ahead in time and show the interconnectivity between technology, inbound marketing, mothers and their kids (Millennials).  So, with the massive acceleration in technological devices (computers, smartphones, IPads, Kindle, Mac Books, etc.,) and impact on social media, significant changes in societal behavioral conduct have occurred and businesses are scrambling to make appropriate adjustments to meet the needs of their consumer base.  Unfortunately, many businesses still engage in an old strategy called Outbound Marketing where companies (buy leads, pay for TV commercials, flyers, door-to-door salesman, etc.,) initiate contact by sending their messages to their desired target market.  Nothing wrong with traditional marketing (outbound marketing) if, the strategy generates new and consistent customers; however, consumer behavior has changed and attracting them requires a more individualized approach that earns their attention. It’s the intimate touch that’s so critical in today’s market (yeah, just like mum). 

Generally, Millennials (Generation Y or Net generation) are the target population most desired by most major corporations because they are some-what “fresh meat” with great potential purchasing power; however, they are also, very entitled and opinionated in their beliefs which have impacted corporate culture, media and certain parts of society when dealing with various social issues (equal pay, abortion, war, etc.,).  Being in a westernized capitalist society when money is involved or potential to generate massive revenue then, positions quickly change at least publicly because business is business.  So, mum’s little millennials are impacting the society and possibly the World be it good or bad.  So, she should be rewarded for her dedication.

Now, the research suggests that rearing a child from birth into adulthood (18-years old) costs approximately $250,000 dollars and the cost continues to increase yearly.  Yes, you are worth it but, what about Dear Old Mom?  She and the Old Man could use that money for their retirement.

How about offering Mom the ultimate?  Mother's Day gift and I don't mean a card with chocolates and roses.  No, give her the means to retrieve the investment cost of rearing YOU and your siblings.  Give Mom and Father (don't forget him) access to the essential Tools, Training, Traffic and Resources needed to generate, Consistent, Predictable and Long-term Residual Income in the Information/Computer and Social Media global economy.  Start on May 12th 2016 or sooner.

Oh yes, since Father's Day is shortly after Mother's Day give the Old Man an early bird special.   Since he already “Tied The Noose” it's best he has a backup plan in the event of divorce, which is likely in today's reality.

Behind every great man is a man greater, his father.” 
― Habeeb Akande

Vaurn James

Contributor

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The info shared here has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to diagnose, cure or treat any illness or disease.

7 Tips For An Authentic And Productive Writing Process

7 Tips For An Authentic And Productive
Writing Process

 

Richard Tipsword, Contributor

 

Does this sound familiar?

You’re sitting in front of your laptop, staring at a blank screen.

The deadline for the article you need to write is approaching, and you’re struggling to get started when you should be in the final editing stages.

As you sit there trying to put your expertise in writing, a strange insecurity creeps up your spine. You see yourself changing before your own eyes, transforming from a confident expert into a self-conscious amateur.

It’s your own Dr. Jekyll to Mr. Hyde transformation experience.

I’ve been there.

I used to hate writing

Well, actually, it was more like loathing than hating.

Anytime I needed to write anything I’d procrastinate, pretending that avoiding the project would make it go away. Needless to say, the procrastination led to a flurry of rushed writing at the last minute to meet my deadlines, resulting in less than my best work.

But my real problem wasn’t the act of writing. It was fear. Fear of making mistakes, fear that what I wrote would sound stupid, fear that my writing wouldn’t make sense to the reader, etc.

My insecurities were turning me into a monster

So there I was, a guy with more than 15 years of experience, who has won some awards and is even a judge for three international design competitions, worried about sounding stupid.

It sounds ridiculous, but my fear of screwing up made writing a miserable experience for me.

I even used to try to compensate for my fears. I’d use stiff, formal sentences and large, important-sounding words to try to “prove” I knew what I was talking about. Unfortunately, all that did was make me sound like a pretentious jerk.

It was like I was changing from Dr. Jekyll into Mr. Hyde anytime I had to write something.

Then one sentence from my college professor changed everything

I had a job that offered tuition reimbursement benefits, so I decided to take some college classes. One of my classes was a composition class, and the professor gave me the best writing advice I’d ever heard.

“Write the way you talk.”

Wait. What?

It can’t be that easy! Seriously? What a liberating idea! That one piece of advice helped me break free of my fears and relaxed my writing style. No more procrastination. No more using large, unnecessary words to try and impress the reader. I could just relax, be myself, and write.

Now before you get the wrong impression, let me explain something: writing the way you talk does not give you permission to write poorly, or to publish content that sucks.

What it does is help break down the mental barriers of fear and procrastination that keep you from being a more engaging, and more productive writer.

Here’s how to use “write the way you talk” to squash your insecurities and avoid sounding like a pompous idiot:

1. Imagine yourself having a chat with a trusted friend

Good writing is like a conversation between the writer and the reader. So when you’re writing, think about how you would explain your topic to a close friend who was sitting next to you.

If you were having a conversation with that person, what words would you use? What would you talk about first? What examples would you give to help them understand your topic? What questions might they ask?

Approaching your writing this way will help you write copy that’s more informal and conversational in tone, that better engages your audience. As it happens, it’s also the best way to write sales copy.

2. Record yourself talking about your topic.

Not sure what you sound like in a conversation? Try recording yourself talking about your topic.

This is especially helpful for people who have clients they talk to on the phone regularly. The next time you’re explaining something to a client on the phone, record the call and listen to it later (Be sure to check the laws in your state first. Some states require you get the other party’s permission before you record). The easiest way to do this is with one of the many available plugins for Skype that do call recording.

3. Take a deep breath, relax, and just be yourself

By writing the way you talk, you can’t help injecting a little of your personality into what you write. After all, you’ll be writing in your own voice, using plain English everyone can understand, and a tone that makes you seem more human than textbook.

Combine that with a few relevant, well-placed personal stories and you have the makings of some irresistible content.

4. Use the same words that you do in your everyday life.

If you write the way you talk, you’ll be more inclined to use common, everyday words that you would normally use in conversation.

This prevents you from sounding like Captain Jack Sparrow using (in my best Johnny Depp impersonation) obtuse and generally confounding speech that makes your readers wish they were drinking rum.

So keep your writing simple and clear without artificially inflated language. A good rule of thumb is: if the average person would need a dictionary to know what your word means, then you need a different word.

5. Toss out the rule book and just start writing

If all the rules about grammar, writing styles, active versus passive voice, and punctuation are adding to your insecurities about writing, toss out the “rule book” for awhile and just write.

Focus on getting the main points of your idea down in your first draft, and don’t worry about anything else.

Once you’ve done that, you can go back and edit the heck out of what you wrote.

Do you notice any obvious errors? Is there anything that could be rearranged to bring more clarity to what you wrote? If so, now’s the time to fix it along with any grammatical, spelling, or other writing problems.

After you’ve made those corrections, leave the article to sit overnight and look at it again in the morning with fresh eyes. Is there anything you can do to make it even better?

6. Enlist the help of a close friend to keep you honest

Want to make sure that what you write actually sounds like you and not someone else?

Enlist the help of a close friend. Have them read what you write, and tell you if it sounds like someone else wrote it. This will help keep you true to yourself, and will force you to be authentic with your writing.

7. Read what you write out loud

One of the first editing tests I put my writing through is reading it out loud. Doing that makes awkward sentences and bad punctuation become obvious, because as you read, you’ll naturally “stumble” over the parts that need to be fixed.

So as you read your writing aloud, pay attention to those places that tend to trip you up — they may need some additional work.

The moral of the story

Get over the fears of messing up or sounding stupid. Just write the way you talk and you’ll be able to knock out your first draft in no time.

If you’re willing to do that, you’ll find that you’ll dread writing a lot less and be able to get more writing done because you’re working on it instead of fearing it.

I’ve been using these tips to guide my writing for several years now, and today I got the best evidence yet that they work.

I was talking with one of my clients on the phone about blogging, and as we were discussing the content for her blog she told me, “Whenever I read something you wrote, you always sound like such an expert. Like you really know what you’re talking about. ”

Need I say more?

So go ahead. Dive in. Who knows? You may even start to like writing.

Written by: Logan Zanelli

 

The info shared here has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to diagnose, cure or treat any illness or disease.

Many tips for finding customers in the Digital Marketing Field.

Many tips for finding customers in the Digital Marketing Field.

Ready to tap into the power of digital marketing to help your business succeed?

Check out this list of the top 10 digital marketing ideas from our FedEx Small Business Grant winners, including ideas for social media marketing, content marketing and more!  

Even better, not only are these digital marketing ideas easy to implement, they’re even easier for your business to afford.   

1: Run contests through social media
Nicole Snow is the owner of Darn Good Yarn, an online retailer of specialty yarns. She has achieved incredible success with social media marketing by allowing her social fans to pick the names of new yarn colors. The winner gets a free ball of yarn — and even better, bragging rights. Nicole claims that she’s able to track sales back to participants in the contest, sometimes even up to a year later.

Susan Buchanan, the owner of Humdinger Kettle Corn, a business that sells flavored popcorns, also asks users to provide feedback via social media and help her pick new flavors to develop. The advantages to her business go beyond fan participation — she’s also essentially getting free insight into what her customers are looking to buy. With that knowledge, she is better able to successfully roll out new product lines.

#2: Create a YouTube channel
YouTube allows just about anyone to set up an account, brand it with their business identity and post videos, all for free.

For a business like Catullo Prime Meats, a YouTube channel was a pretty logical fit.  Danny Catullo, the owner and operator of this specialty butcher shop, uses the channel to offer his customers recipes, how-to-guides and other fun and useful stuff. He’s even created family videos and had the good fortune of having a turduken video turn into a viral video marketing star — resulting in a five-fold increase in sales one year.

#3: Tap into star power
When Patrick Whaley, the owner and founder of TITIN LLC, a creator and retailer of high-tech workout gear, wanted to grow his social media audience, he filmed videos featuring well-known athletes.

Because those stars had already built up their own social followings, TITIN essentially leveraged the popularity of their social media marketing and realized a massive spike in views on their YouTube page.

With some smart cross-promotional messaging, TITIN was able to turn YouTube views into visitors to their website and a corresponding increase in sales, making the digital marketing campaign an easy expense to justify.    

#4: Treat content like king
If you’re setting up a website for the first time, you obviously want it to look nice, perform well and be easy for customers to use. But don’t forget about your content marketing!

Content marketing essentially means creating content in order to acquire customers. In order to do that, Danny Catullo advises making sure that your website is built so that it’s easy for you, or someone on your staff, to add, delete and update content. Most modern websites are built on a content management system (CMS), which is essentially a publishing platform for your site.

If you’re paying a vendor to set up your site, make sure right from the start that you’ll have access to your CMS and discuss whether or not training is included in the project quote. If you’re setting it up yourself, consider open-source alternatives, like WordPress, which also has the advantage of being free. 

#5: Make your content useful 
While we’re on the subject of content marketing, here’s one of the best ways you can make content resonate with customers: make it helpful!

Think about who your customers are, what problem your business could potentially help them solve, and then create content that does that (being careful not to give away your goods or service for free, of course).

Examples of this type of content include blog posts, videos, a Pinterest page, Facebook posts and more. Catullo Prime Meats hosts a YouTube channel of how-to-guides, cooking tutorials and more. Darn Good Yarn posts recipes on their Facebook wall, gives remodeling advice through their Pinterest page, and connects with younger customers on Instagram.Remember, content doesn’t just refer to writing – it can be almost anything your customers might find useful!

#6: Use website analytics
One of the best things about digital marketing is that it’s so measurable. Not only can you track traffic to your website, but you can also learn where the traffic is coming from, what they do while on your site, how long they stay – and much more.

You can also use website analytics tracking tools to measure ad campaigns, efficiently buy ad placements and more. The advantage to you as a business owner is that you can measure the return on investment (ROI) of your site and marketing, use what you learn to enhance performance and make smart decisions about what to continue and what to drop.

Ari Hoffman, the owner and founder of GOBIE H20, a retailer of environmentally friendly water bottles, uses Google Analytics, which is widely considered to be the industry standard. He’s such a big believer, in fact, that he advises other business owners to use it “like it’s part of your life!”

#7: Tap into online local search 
If your business relies on local customers, online local search could be a game changer — and compared to targeted media like TV, radio or billboards, it can be relatively cost-effective.  

Online local search marketing basically means ensuring your business is included in search engine results for your geographic area. For example, if you own a carpet cleaning business in Phoenix, you ideally want your business to come up when someone types “Carpet cleaners in Phoenix” into Google. Anyone performing that kind of search could be likely to be a potential customer, so it makes sense to have your business represented.

There are 2 basic ways to do that: 

  • Local search engine optimization (SEO), which involves creating content on your site so that it targets those keywords.
  • Local search engine marketing (SEM), which means buying keywords from search engines like Google or Bing.

Both ideas have been used successfully by the 2013 FedEx Small Business Grant winners. Danny Catullo attributes about 60% of his local business to a combination of SEO & SEM, while Ari Hoffman has used SEM to great success.

#8: Don’t take "No" for an answer
When Patrick Whaley of TITIN started his digital marketing efforts, his first strategy was to target a broad audience. Using what he learned, he was able to gain invaluable marketing intelligence, identify consumer trends, learn buying patterns and discover what it took to convert a variety of different demographics into customers.

“If you limit your sales at the start, you will never know how large your market potential really is,” Patrick said. “ I would encourage every company to try to sell to everyone they meet.  Don't be afraid to fail and don’t tolerate someone telling you ‘No.’ You will be shocked at how many new markets can be realized if you don't allow fear to hold you back.”

#9: Digital is bigger than your website
If you’ve just started your digital marketing, or even if you’re getting ready to revamp your existing efforts, there’s a natural tendency to want to go for broke with your business’s website.

But you should be careful about putting all your digital eggs in one online basket, according to Danny Catullo. Instead of spending a fortune on a flashy site, he used Shopify, a turnkey e-commerce solution, to get up and running. By paying small monthly fees, he was able to launch quickly, without a huge initial investment, and he even gets ongoing support.  

Plus, small businesses need to plan for the long term, says Ari Hoffman. Even the slickest website in the world won’t do your business much good if it can’t adapt and evolve. He advises setting aside 15% of your initial investment for future modifications.

#10: Star in your own show!
Last but definitely not least, Nicole Snow was able to turn a little bit of technological savvy into a huge marketing asset with a show on Google+.

‘Darn Good Yarn Live airs Thursday nights on Google+, and attracts an audience of die-hard fans who often become some of Nicole’s best customers. Plus, Nicole feels that the connections she creates with the public helps build a unique differentiation point from the competition – it literally helps her stand out in a “sea of yarn stores.”

With tools like Google+ and Vine from Twitter, your business can essentially host your own TV channel for free. So if you’ve got some creative ideas to share, fame (and fortune) could be just a few clicks away!

Chuck Reynolds
Contributor

 

The info shared here has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to diagnose, cure or treat any illness or disease.

Your Business is Marketing and Not Sales: What… Impossible?

Your Business is Marketing and Not Sales: What… Impossible?

Sales is the highest paid and World’s Oldest Profession, contrary to popular opinion.  Any challenge is foolhardy because selling is the conclusion of any and all transactions between individuals involving product/services.  However, the conduit is really Marketing.  Now, what kind of IDIOCY is this being presented as Truth?  After all, isn’t all the about the Benjamins Lebowski, Cash is King and it's all about the lettuce; otherwise, why are you in business?  You don't want to be operating a Non-Profit Agency which 95% of marketers are actually operating which isn’t too encouraging.  So, what kind of marketing are you conducting and how effective is it?  It’s a critical question because different methods will yield different results at different times based on your audience’s interests.  Marketers and the industry have become more competitive and sophisticated due to increased demands by consumers.  In fact, to be effective they must function both like an economist and detective addressing what I call the W5s of a campaign (Who, What, When, Where & Why); otherwise, they will not see the pay-window.        

Now, before the core question can be answered let’s briefly examine the issue of Sales and its role in business.  Let’s look at a basic definition before we continue, “sales are sales, it’s converting any inquiry or lead into a contract or shipment”, while “marketing is not advertising.  Marketing is finding out what people want, why they want it and how much they’ll spend.  Don’t confuse marketing with advertising”.  Now, we got all the formalities out of the way, time to get to the real meat of this article.  Safe to say, sales are the final stage of the transaction but, why is the sale considered to be so important?  What was the process that motivated the buyer to complete the transaction?  There exist multiple stages involved between the start and finish and this is the sales process.  Basically, the sales process can be reduced to the following: Prospect, Connect, Research, Present and Close; however, a more in depth definition is best described by Mark Roberge at Hubspot.            

Well, it's hard to believe but, there exists an old term that holds TRUE and more importantly, an accurate measure of your ability to close a sale.  Have you heard the expression, “It’s all in the Presentation” or “you get once chance to make a first impression”?  Think about it, how do you make sales?  The process is SIMPLE (kind of); however, the execution often requires more skill to attain success.  Now, part of selling involves advertising, “promotion of a product, service or company. It features a strong call to action and promotes the benefits of that being advertised”. 

The other component of the sales process involves connecting through various methods of communication featuring your product/service.  Let’s examine some of the methods of connection: e-zine marketing, email marketing, cold-calling, videos, live webcasts, blogs, banners, online ads, search engine marketing, social networking, podcasting, twitter and mobile content, all are established methods of online marketing designed to connect with a desired target market. Again, how do you make SALES with these different methods of connecting with the masses?  Putting your product/service in front of as many eyeballs as possible with the aforementioned methods.  Seems simple but, never forget about quality content.  Sales are made based on perceived value; therefore, the most effective way of converting a prospect into a long-term customer is by educating them, addressing their interests and demonstrating how a particular product/service can render a solution to a particular problem/challenge.  Think about it, no hard-sell nor the usual rubbish by fast-talking snake-oil salesmen.

Now, back to the important question of what kind of marketing are you executing (Freebie Marketing, Word of Mouth Marketing, Close Range Marketing, etc.,) and why? The essence of the question boils down to what is called customer segmentation or segmenting customers into smaller groups to better understand their wants, needs, interests and other factors so as to provide relevant content.   Makes sense and this is why Inbound Marketing increasingly has become the standard form of marketing.

Firstly, what is Inbound Marketing and how does it work?  “Inbound marketing refers to activities (blogs, podcasts, eBooks, SEO, physical products, newsletters, whitepapers, social medial marketing and other forms of content marketing) that bring visitors in, rather than marketers having to go out to get prospects' attention”.  “Inbound marketing earns the attention of customers”.  

One primary goals behind marketing is to develop a business relationship where TRUST is established and maintained for the long-term…. similar to Marriage (lol!!!!).  Like Marriage it's not 50/50 but, 100/100 but, you are responsible for your own actions within that relationship.

When you think about that bloody insane Institution called Marriage, it's a business involving two Individuals who both marketed and sold themselves to each other and the confirmation of the Sale was “Marriage” or as I affectionately say, “Tying the Old Noose…I mean Knot”.  Like any successful relationship TRUST is vital; otherwise, no consummation of the transaction.  All transactions (monetary, personal, etc.,) involve commerce and marketing is the conduit that facilitates the process. Well, allow me now to demonstrate the benefits of Inbound marketing.

  6 Inbound Marketing Techniques Every Business Should Use

Give Away A Free Guide That’s Directly related To Your Business, what better resource can you create than a Guide that provides relevant information about the value and benefits provided by the product/services you make available to the masses.

Pick One or Two Keywords, And Optimise The Heck Out of Them, want leads and traffic then, the solution is to focus on a few keywords that are valuable, and create specific pages on your website that are for those keywords specifically. 

Build Your Personal Brand, your business is a reflection of yourself, Entrepreneurs like Jayson DeMers, Joel Gascoigne, and Hiten Shah are examples of people building businesses by means of building their personal brand. If you start a business, it’s virtually impossible to separate yourself from that business. It only makes sense to use your personal brand to build that business. Many brands such as Tim Ferriss’s and Ramit Sethi’s depend almost exclusively on the power of their personal brand. 

Ask and Answer Questions On Social Media, engage subscribers in social media sites and provide solutions, tips, suggestions to those who would benefit from your knowledge and expertise.  When you increase your presence and value online then, the benefits are soon to be received. 

Create Am Email Pop, use the popups in your business to build the email list for obvious reasons.

Guest Blog, “Guest blogging is, indeed, one of the powerful ways of building strong, high-quality relationships that may help you in multiple ways, including developing business opportunities and professional connections, setting brand value and, of course, acquisition of link juice.”Moosa Hemani, Moz

Vaurn James

Contributor

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The info shared here has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to diagnose, cure or treat any illness or disease.