When it comes to efforts such as marketing, advertising, or social media, crafting the right message is essential. You need to communicate effectively with current and prospective customers. It takes great writing to do that. Penning interesting, engaging, and relevant copy might not be your strong suit. In fact, this may be a time when you look for some outside help. Thankfully, you can find reliable, competent copywriting services to take your ideas and present them to your audience appropriately and effectively. If you’re not sure it’s worth your effort to hire a service, consider the benefits that such a team could offer.
Experienced, Skilled Professional Writers
A copywriting service knows how to write craft dazzling copy, no matter what you’re trying to communicate. Whether you’re introducing a new product or service, whether you’ve got big company news, or whether you’re simply trying to expand your reach and improve your visibility, professional copywriters can bring your ideas to life. Copywriting services don’t employ amateurs who may have dabbled in blog writing here or there, or whose experience is limited to writing college papers. Instead, you’ll be happy to find talented writers who have a proven track record of producing excellent copy for companies like yours. The best services have a team of writers who collectively have decades of experience. These writers are adept at taking your conceptions and putting them to print and electronic media in dynamic ways.
Accustomed to Deadlines
Good copywriters have a lot of skills and abilities. One of the things they’re most familiar with is sticking to tight deadlines and providing a finishing product on time. Experienced copywriting services commit to delivering for their clients promptly. Writers know full well that missing deadlines reflects poorly on their work and reliability. It also puts clients in a bad position. The best services will honor your deadline needs by staying on top of every project, regardless of how complex it might be.
Good Communicators
Just as copywriters need to communicate messages to the audience through powerful writing, they also need to communicate well with the client. The service you hire should be dependable in this way. While meeting deadlines is essential, there are times when unforeseen situations arise and the writer must make adjustments. In these cases, you can’t afford to be caught by surprise. A good copywriter will always let you know the progress of the progress and whether he or she encounters any obstacles. Regular contact is critical, whether that’s through email, messaging app, phone calls, or even an in-person meeting.
Flexible, Adaptable
Just as the scope of a project may change on the writers’ end, you may want to go a different direction at some point too. Budget constraints, changes in your goals or vision, or other circumstances may require you to instruct the writer to do things differently, even after the writer has already started writing the copy. This won’t derail the efforts of the best writers. Instead, the writers will understand your needs and create the winning piece you envision. A professional writer should have the skill to switch tracks right away and continue moving forward, even if there are significant changes to the style or tone of the content.
Worth Your Investment
Paying for copywriting services does require a financial commitment from you. However, you can rest assured that you’ll get an equal or larger portion of what you put into this relationship. By delivering excellent copy, a professional can help increase traffic on your website, widen your customer base, and ultimately help your company’s bottom line.
Now you know that professionals can offer these benefits. It’s a no-brainer to hire a copywriting service today.
https://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/revolt-m2JlMXdqb3s-unsplash-scaled.jpg25601707Rebecca Caroehttps://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/CAS_Logo_1line_RGB.jpgRebecca Caroe2020-11-01 14:17:032020-11-13 11:51:38What You Can Count on From a Good Copywriting Service
Business to Business marketing is my specialism. The key to robust B2B social media marketing return on investment is persistence, diligence and flashes of genius!
Having said that, you need more that just posting regularly to enable social media ROI. Allow me to explain.
Your customer pipeline
Building authority and demonstrating empathy are the messaging goals that will start prospects moving up the sales pipeline.
LinkedIn updates need to have a balance of product/service information combined with industry discussions.
I set up Google Alerts for key words which are triggers for my client’s industry. One is “Tax” and so we can track that against mainstream news. Here in New Zealand we just had an election and so adding “Tax + election” we can either start discussion threads about this OR answer other people’s questions.
Another is “Health & Safety” and we can look at newsworthy situations where failures happened and start a discussion about lessons and learnings.
Following hashtags can also be beneficial for niche industries.
What B2B marketers get wrong on social
The key for businesses who sell advice is not to give advice on social media.
They should ONLY demonstrate expertise.
The key for businesses who sell products is not to push their products – only to demonstrate the key features of good products (which of course they supply).
The inference is that you are experts and prospective customers should seek you out if they see relevance in what you write and it aligns with their immediate area of interest.
I got responses in public from Mercury, Meridian Energy and Our Energy Limited and in private I messaged Electric Kiwi, Power Compare and ChargeNet. So about one sixth of the local retail electricity supply industry brands.
The discussion was really interesting and a mix of industry insiders and consumer remarks, including this gem from the CEO of Our Energy Ltd – a disruptor startup in the energy supply industry.
Comparing tariffs is only one part of the EV power story
So electricity companies are all watching, tracking and listening to customer conversations.
And you should be too.
Social selling is not a silver bullet
Many advisers will counsel using “social selling” an irritating phrase meaning sell your services on social media. This is such a problematic term for B2B because when on social, most people do not want to be sold to. They aren’t in “buying” mode on social.
Creating negative brand perceptions is to be avoided.
Having a robust, well-rounded tactical marketing and brand building programme will give you ample opportunity to sell. But only after you have built brand credibility and trust. Therefore multi-touch and multi-channel campaigns are the best route forward for B2B brands. Use with care, is my advise. Oh, yes and do ask an expert what they think about “social selling” BEFORE you hire them.
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https://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/John-Campbell.png536768Rebecca Caroehttps://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/CAS_Logo_1line_RGB.jpgRebecca Caroe2020-10-28 14:50:292020-10-28 14:50:29Effective social media tips for B2B
The advertising industry has a reputation in some quarters as a bunch of liars.
And I hate marketers being tarnished by association.
Advertising is not Marketing
Well advertising is not ALL of marketing: it is a part of marketing.
Good marketing offers products to prospects with robust positioning and offers features and benefits.
The psychology of how to present your pitch is deeply studied and understood.
And you can choose to lie or tell the truth or part of the truth, or a slanted version of the truth, backed by statistics, or dodgy arithmetic or you can choose not to do this.
Marketing does not have to be this way.
Let me introduce empathy into the marketing mix.
Prompts around brand positioning
In marketing messaging there are two big issues which the well-informed marketer and consumer needs to understand before they made the purchase decision
The problem of manipulation. Sales copy that gets the customer to do something they later regret. But if they knew what you knew would they still buy?
The problem of “better”. We are taught that there’s only one answer to this – that a cashmere sweater is better than a fleece; a Rolls Royce is better than a Nissan. but better is not linear and not necessarily accurate because people actually make decisions on axes not on linearity.
How can we take a robust and honest assessment of our brand positioning and add empathy into the mix in order to facilitate prospect buying decisions that are not manipulation and are not [always] about a linear scale of betterment?
What does the customer do and why?
When you make a product purchase decision and I made a different decision, remember it’s possible the you are right and I am wrong in my purchase decision.
Reading the Board of Innovation article about what matters when pressing consumers to adopt sustainable products, the decision drivers are how your product makes ME feel; and how I think your product makes OTHERS feel about me.
Two drivers, two different motivations and both are under pressure from modern lifestyles and constrained budgets.
But actually I think this dual analysis is misplaced.
A linear product decision is incorrect
Representing decisions in a branched “decision tree” is not how the real world works. Individuals’ value systems affect how they choose between brands. If status doesn’t matter to me, your cashmere sweater brand offer is not going to stand up to scrutiny for me. And if I’m worth it matters a lot, then my choice is made regardless of the brand positioning of a substitutable product.
You are the marketer – don’t lie
Another consumer is not you and they don’t think like you think and know what you know.
This is why empathy is such a giant challenge to marketers.
If you genuinely know your brand and product set, you are at an immense advantage.
If you genuinely know your customer persona, you are at an immense advantage.
Merge these two and what do you get?
Axis of purchase decisions
We make our value judgements on a scale. It’s not black and white, on or off. There’s a gradient of choices.
And so let’s consider the how does a brand make you feel – saying it’s ‘better’ does little for your self-appraisal. It may do something if you are more motivated by what others think of you. BUT if their values differ from your own, the result may not be what you hope.
Our brand choices are not in a single direction (linear) nor are they along a single axis.
We make our decisions on at least 2 axes – like a graph. It might be price and convenience, or environmental impact and design.
And so lets re-assess whether all marketing is lying.
Marketing as a service
We as marketers offer you, the consumer, a service. We can make an assertion about a choice which you might want to make.
We can help busy people to see that there’s a product which is an alternative to what they have bought or previously chosen.
This is neither manipulation, nor lying and it’s not on the good/better/best axis either.
As marketers (and copywriters) we can know and understand our product and our ideal customer really well. And by empathising with prospects we can position products appropriately to appeal to the audience who will value our marketing service. Our descriptions, videos, explanations and photography of the product are a service to the customer. We offer a new choice which has resonance and meaning on the axes which matter to them.
Can you put your hand on your heart and say your brand does this?
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https://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/margit-umbach-SZOToqeG1SY-unsplash-scaled.jpg17012560Rebecca Caroehttps://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/CAS_Logo_1line_RGB.jpgRebecca Caroe2020-10-19 12:48:342022-12-19 13:51:30Is all marketing lying?
It’s always nice to have some past clients who either write testimonials or provide references or act as references for new clients.
I was asked recently who my client references are and what I did with and for them.
Armour Safety – supplier of health and safety workplace protection whose PPE stocks blasted off the shelves during lockdown. Now lead importer / distributor for global brands like 3M and Hellberg
MethSolutions – launching a completely new service, meth amphetamine testing in rental properties. Created a “cause” and persuaded property managers and real estate agents that this was a necessary precaution as an ongoing service.
Baucher Tax Consultancy – became the go-to media commenter on tax when they don’t want a ‘Big 4’ voice. Started him on twitter, podcasting and blogging.
Interest.co.nz – independent media website focused on “the NZ Economy” – customer survey and migration to paid subscribers, and daily podcast as a new channel.
University of Auckland Connect [computer department] – external profile raising as a leading innovator and a great place to work for recruitment
You’ll have a lot of things on your plate once you decide to start a business. For starters, you need to hire the right employees for the right positions to ensure that every facet of your business functions perfectly. However, if you want your business to be productive, it’s not enough that you only focus on your manpower. You should also implement the right accounting techniques.
Accounting is vital in every business because this allows you to maintain a systematic and accurate record of your financial transactions. Accounting will make it very easy for you to make data-driven decisions and assess whether your business is earning or losing money.
For your business to remain productive, make sure to implement the following accounting techniques:
business chart showing financial success at the stock market
1. Start By Learning The Basics
Accounting is generally a complex topic as you’ll be dealing with numbers and many other financial transactions. Keeping track of your business’s accounting can also mean complying with the necessary paperwork requirements and submitting them to several government agencies.
If you want your business to effectively implement several accounting techniques, it’s best if you start by learning the basics first. If you’re still a novice in accounting, spend some time to know how accounting works and the processes involved in accounting. You should also educate yourself about what 3-way matching is, how a ledger is used, and what you should prepare during the tax season. The more adept you are in the basics of accounting, the easier it’ll be for you to make the most out of different accounting techniques.
2. Separate Personal And Business Finances
As an entrepreneur, you should prioritize setting up different bank accounts for your personal and business finances. This is one of the simplest accounting techniques you should implement the moment your business starts operating.
Having separate personal and business finances will make it very easy for you to assess the progress of your business, without compromising your personal finances along the way. You won’t have any problems assessing if your business is earning or losing money if you have another bank account solely for this purpose. Moreover, having a separate bank account will also help you come up with better business decisions as you’ll know how much your business can afford to spend.
Regardless of how taxing it can be to comply with requirements to open another bank account for your business finances, you should still do it. You’ll be able to reap the rewards of your efforts once your business starts operating.
3.Keep Accurate Records
In order for your business to grow, it’s important to keep track of all business receipts and payments. Regardless of how small the amount is or how minor the transaction is, if it involves your business’s finances, you should keep records of it.
Keeping records will also help business owners like you to easily review your expenses. Doing this will enable you to identify areas that are costing your business too much money, and come up with solutions on how you can cut down expenses.
It’s also a good idea to create a ledger for you to easily keep track of all business income and expenses. The ledger can be used to provide a more in-depth overview of the expenses incurred, as well as the amount of revenue generated by your business during a certain period.
4.Use Accounting Software
As a business owner, you’ll have many things to juggle at the same time, too many that you won’t have the time and energy to handle all these things altogether. From developing new ideas, to executing them, to attending meetings, and to managing to keep track of all the activities in your company, there are too many things to consider. If you can’t do them all by yourself, then, it’s time to turn to accounting software to help you out.
With an accounting software at your disposal, you’ll be able to manage all of your accounts in one place. Moreover, an accounting software will also enable you to check on all of your books, find errors in any of your financial data, and make changes right away.
Since everything is automated, an accounting software will also provide data that you can easily print out, so you’re always aware of where your business stands financially. Furthermore, you can schedule time to sit down, analyze your finances, and decide on what changes you ought to make in your business.
Be Committed To Learn
There are many accounting techniques you can use for your business today. You just have to implement ones that suit the size and nature of your business, and spend time to master these techniques. Accounting can’t be learned overnight, so make sure that you’re willing to exert effort to learn these techniques and implement them consistently in your business.
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https://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/AdobeStock_10224613-scaled.jpeg17022560Sudip Mutthttps://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/CAS_Logo_1line_RGB.jpgSudip Mutt2020-10-07 17:12:552020-10-13 17:51:124 Accounting Techniques That Benefit Your Business Productivity
Back in the day I moved to Auckland in 2012 and since I am networked into the tech crowd, I was an early participant in LetsLunch. An opportunity to meet people face to face for a quick lunch and a business ‘get to know you’ discussion.
Now there’s the opportunity to do it again – virtually.
Introducing Lunch Club
I can’t wait.
The chance to approach people in my locale and to ask them for lunch was so powerful and gave us all a chance to grow our networks alongside the pleasure of eating nice food is something I’d like to do again.
Lunch Club for Auckland – let’s get started
So will you join me?
We need 450 people to join the group before a New Zealand Lunch Club can launch. Click the link to subscribe to an “Auckland” club…. don’t worry if you don’t live here – as long as you and I are in New Zealand I think we can make this work.
Lunch anyone?
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https://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/lunch-club-Auckland.png8742438Rebecca Caroehttps://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/CAS_Logo_1line_RGB.jpgRebecca Caroe2020-10-05 16:11:182020-10-05 16:11:18Lunch for business networking
Basically, don’t expect this to be an amazing source of new business.
However, I have an other option to offer you which may work.
Quora expert profile
5 Quora tips for marketing
Answering questions around your topic of expertise and interest and inspiration is definitely somewhere you can shine. It’s not open source, so nobody can edit your submissions and you can get upvoted and become an “expert” on the platform quite quickly.
The key is to start in an established niche where you are confident.
Here are 5 easy tips on writing Quora replies with a marketing slant.
Read all the other answers first and upvote / or reference good parts which you agree with
Then add your own slant which is hopefully something not already mentioned
Find something in your own published content which could be linked from your answer and which adds more detail. This is key because a skim reader won’t follow the link, but someone who is really interested will click to follow and land on your site. So you filter out the tyre kickers quickly.
If you haven’t already got something you can use from your own content write it now. Write it on your website / blog, publish it, and link it inside your Quora answer before you hit save in Quora.
All Quora links are nofollow but real people will click on them – so they give you customers instead of immediate SERP rank juice.
Tick the box to follow the answers and get alerted when someone else joins the thread so you can come back in later if you need.
Now what’s stopping you?
Oh, and if you came here from Manaaki – welcome. You’re following exactly the technique I recommend for use on Quora.
And you can use this technique on other forums relevant to your niche. I have three which send me traffic and build my profile as an expert in new business development.
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https://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Quora-profile.png8161194Rebecca Caroehttps://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/CAS_Logo_1line_RGB.jpgRebecca Caroe2020-09-18 16:06:202022-12-19 13:51:29Using Wikipedia and Quora for marketing
The New Zealand National Party manifesto just published with some pledges to help the small business sector. We know we are important to the economy – but this really shows clarity of purpose and thinking, which I disagree with.
Read the full document
Get people back to work
Kiwisaver by New Zealand Government
One of their proposals is to provide New Zealanders who have lost their job with up to $30,000 in capital to put towards a new business idea through a BusinessStart package. Sounds good.
But won’t this be focused on people who may not be right for self-employment or business ownership? Where’s the filter?
The proposal states $1,000 for getting a business plan together…. but I think the Business Start package is going to create a raft of new revenue streams for accountants (who are not business advisors) writing those business plans. Just like the gravy train of Regional Business Partner advisors [disclosure I’m one of them].
Fund through Kiwisaver
A second layer of the programme allows folks to use their savings to fund the new business. Accessing Kiwisaver money to start a business should be contingent on there being an age sliding scale of kiwisaver deposits – this could let people spend their pension on a business which won’t fly and will leave them worse off at retirement…. And then who’s responsible?
The third layer is $10k of tax credits once profitable. This is interesting but may postpone business failure – but is a low risk strategy from a Government.
Lastly they want the fund managers of Kiwisaver funds to invest as if they were angel investors. Kiwisaver providers are not experts in private equity – so don’t let them invest their funds into areas they know little about (well – really they are OUR funds as it’s OUR savings). I worry about this because it puts retirement savings at risk for folks like me whose savings go into other people’s businesses.
What do you think?
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https://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/kiwisaver.jpeg130311Rebecca Caroehttps://creativeagencysecrets.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/CAS_Logo_1line_RGB.jpgRebecca Caroe2020-09-16 09:14:002022-12-19 13:51:29National's SME policy
With the availability of the internet and technology that we have today, more and more companies are operating remotely. There are plenty of advantages for employees working remotely. They can work from home and care for their family. They don’t have to deal with rush hour traffic during their daily commute. The organization also thrives from a remote work setting because they can generate more revenue without the costly overhead for brick and mortar. There can be a bit of a learning curve for businesses that are making the transition from an office setting to a fully remote environment.
Thanks to Roberto Nickson for sharing their work on Unsplash
1. Logistics
There are several factors to understand when working out the logistics of creating a remote working environment for your employees. You should structure your business by keeping in mind the current market conditions. Create an operations plan for your organization including how many employees you need. You should do payroll calculations to know how much compensation the company can afford for each employee.
2. Training
Remote working is a different experience than working in an office setting. Many people have not experienced working from home and may need training in various programs and software that your business uses daily. Provide online training to your remote workers so they know what is expected. This helps to better equip them to provide their best work. By helping to improve your employees’ skills, you are also helping your business grow.
Remember that remote working also involves remote communication. Staff can talk to each other but group messages may get overlooked with email. A better solution is a desktop system like SnapComms which enables a diverse range of getting employee attention when everyone is busy.
SnapComms features include alerts, desktop tickers, wallpaper, lock screens and the important panic button.
SnapComms features for employee comms and remote working effectiveness
3. Team Building
It is beneficial to the company to develop a team mentality among coworkers. Businesses that have a cohesive attitude tend to become more successful in meeting their objectives. It can be more difficult to build strong bonds among online personnel because they lack the one-on-one in-person face time that people have in a traditional office setting. It is helpful to provide online team-building exercises to help create a stronger bond among your personnel. A cohesive team works effectively and efficiently.
4. Communication
Good communication is key to a successful organization. Be sure that every employee you hire has exceptional communication skills. An online business needs to run their operations in a way that is conducive to good communication channels. Provide communication tools that provide an interactive platform for employees to easily correspond. Make a clear structure for the chain of command so that everyone knows how to properly escalate items as they arise.
5. Efficiency
A strong work-life balance provides employees with peace of mind which helps them to work more efficiently. Remote workers do their best work when they can work a flexible schedule that enables them to meets personal needs. Keep your employees’ mental and emotional health in mind, as people that work from home often have less personal interaction in general which can cause stress. Implement an environment that is conducive to the mental and emotional health of your staff.
It is important for workers to feel valued for their hard work. This is particularly true for remote workers since they do not have the same interaction with employers as office workers. Show gratitude towards your employees for their hard work frequently by rewarding them with recognition.
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What You Can Count on From a Good Copywriting Service
/0 Comments/in Marketing /by Rebecca CaroeWhen it comes to efforts such as marketing, advertising, or social media, crafting the right message is essential. You need to communicate effectively with current and prospective customers. It takes great writing to do that. Penning interesting, engaging, and relevant copy might not be your strong suit. In fact, this may be a time when you look for some outside help. Thankfully, you can find reliable, competent copywriting services to take your ideas and present them to your audience appropriately and effectively. If you’re not sure it’s worth your effort to hire a service, consider the benefits that such a team could offer.
Experienced, Skilled Professional Writers
A copywriting service knows how to write craft dazzling copy, no matter what you’re trying to communicate. Whether you’re introducing a new product or service, whether you’ve got big company news, or whether you’re simply trying to expand your reach and improve your visibility, professional copywriters can bring your ideas to life. Copywriting services don’t employ amateurs who may have dabbled in blog writing here or there, or whose experience is limited to writing college papers. Instead, you’ll be happy to find talented writers who have a proven track record of producing excellent copy for companies like yours. The best services have a team of writers who collectively have decades of experience. These writers are adept at taking your conceptions and putting them to print and electronic media in dynamic ways.
Accustomed to Deadlines
Good copywriters have a lot of skills and abilities. One of the things they’re most familiar with is sticking to tight deadlines and providing a finishing product on time. Experienced copywriting services commit to delivering for their clients promptly. Writers know full well that missing deadlines reflects poorly on their work and reliability. It also puts clients in a bad position. The best services will honor your deadline needs by staying on top of every project, regardless of how complex it might be.
Good Communicators
Just as copywriters need to communicate messages to the audience through powerful writing, they also need to communicate well with the client. The service you hire should be dependable in this way. While meeting deadlines is essential, there are times when unforeseen situations arise and the writer must make adjustments. In these cases, you can’t afford to be caught by surprise. A good copywriter will always let you know the progress of the progress and whether he or she encounters any obstacles. Regular contact is critical, whether that’s through email, messaging app, phone calls, or even an in-person meeting.
Flexible, Adaptable
Just as the scope of a project may change on the writers’ end, you may want to go a different direction at some point too. Budget constraints, changes in your goals or vision, or other circumstances may require you to instruct the writer to do things differently, even after the writer has already started writing the copy. This won’t derail the efforts of the best writers. Instead, the writers will understand your needs and create the winning piece you envision. A professional writer should have the skill to switch tracks right away and continue moving forward, even if there are significant changes to the style or tone of the content.
Worth Your Investment
Paying for copywriting services does require a financial commitment from you. However, you can rest assured that you’ll get an equal or larger portion of what you put into this relationship. By delivering excellent copy, a professional can help increase traffic on your website, widen your customer base, and ultimately help your company’s bottom line.
Now you know that professionals can offer these benefits. It’s a no-brainer to hire a copywriting service today.
Creative Agency Secrets provides copywriting services.
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Effective social media tips for B2B
/1 Comment/in B2B, Social Media /by Rebecca CaroeBusiness to Business marketing is my specialism. The key to robust B2B social media marketing return on investment is persistence, diligence and flashes of genius!
Having said that, you need more that just posting regularly to enable social media ROI. Allow me to explain.
Your customer pipeline
Building authority and demonstrating empathy are the messaging goals that will start prospects moving up the sales pipeline.
LinkedIn updates need to have a balance of product/service information combined with industry discussions.
I set up Google Alerts for key words which are triggers for my client’s industry. One is “Tax” and so we can track that against mainstream news. Here in New Zealand we just had an election and so adding “Tax + election” we can either start discussion threads about this OR answer other people’s questions.
Another is “Health & Safety” and we can look at newsworthy situations where failures happened and start a discussion about lessons and learnings.
Following hashtags can also be beneficial for niche industries.
What B2B marketers get wrong on social
The key for businesses who sell advice is not to give advice on social media.
They should ONLY demonstrate expertise.
The key for businesses who sell products is not to push their products – only to demonstrate the key features of good products (which of course they supply).
The inference is that you are experts and prospective customers should seek you out if they see relevance in what you write and it aligns with their immediate area of interest.
Is this a selling opportunity? Case Study
I posed a question on LinkedIn and garnered a lot of views and comments.
Electricity tariffs for electric cars in NZ
Is this a selling opportunity? Yes for sure.
I got responses in public from Mercury, Meridian Energy and Our Energy Limited and in private I messaged Electric Kiwi, Power Compare and ChargeNet. So about one sixth of the local retail electricity supply industry brands.
The discussion was really interesting and a mix of industry insiders and consumer remarks, including this gem from the CEO of Our Energy Ltd – a disruptor startup in the energy supply industry.
Comparing tariffs is only one part of the EV power story
So electricity companies are all watching, tracking and listening to customer conversations.
And you should be too.
Social selling is not a silver bullet
Many advisers will counsel using “social selling” an irritating phrase meaning sell your services on social media. This is such a problematic term for B2B because when on social, most people do not want to be sold to. They aren’t in “buying” mode on social.
Creating negative brand perceptions is to be avoided.
Having a robust, well-rounded tactical marketing and brand building programme will give you ample opportunity to sell. But only after you have built brand credibility and trust. Therefore multi-touch and multi-channel campaigns are the best route forward for B2B brands. Use with care, is my advise. Oh, yes and do ask an expert what they think about “social selling” BEFORE you hire them.
No related posts.
Is all marketing lying?
/0 Comments/in Strategy /by Rebecca CaroeAdvertising is not Marketing
Prompts around brand positioning
In marketing messaging there are two big issues which the well-informed marketer and consumer needs to understand before they made the purchase decision
How can we take a robust and honest assessment of our brand positioning and add empathy into the mix in order to facilitate prospect buying decisions that are not manipulation and are not [always] about a linear scale of betterment?
What does the customer do and why?
When you make a product purchase decision and I made a different decision, remember it’s possible the you are right and I am wrong in my purchase decision.
Reading the Board of Innovation article about what matters when pressing consumers to adopt sustainable products, the decision drivers are how your product makes ME feel; and how I think your product makes OTHERS feel about me.
Two drivers, two different motivations and both are under pressure from modern lifestyles and constrained budgets.
But actually I think this dual analysis is misplaced.
A linear product decision is incorrect
Representing decisions in a branched “decision tree” is not how the real world works. Individuals’ value systems affect how they choose between brands. If status doesn’t matter to me, your cashmere sweater brand offer is not going to stand up to scrutiny for me. And if I’m worth it matters a lot, then my choice is made regardless of the brand positioning of a substitutable product.
You are the marketer – don’t lie
Another consumer is not you and they don’t think like you think and know what you know.
This is why empathy is such a giant challenge to marketers.
If you genuinely know your brand and product set, you are at an immense advantage.
If you genuinely know your customer persona, you are at an immense advantage.
Merge these two and what do you get?
Axis of purchase decisions
We make our value judgements on a scale. It’s not black and white, on or off. There’s a gradient of choices.
And so let’s consider the how does a brand make you feel – saying it’s ‘better’ does little for your self-appraisal. It may do something if you are more motivated by what others think of you. BUT if their values differ from your own, the result may not be what you hope.
Our brand choices are not in a single direction (linear) nor are they along a single axis.
We make our decisions on at least 2 axes – like a graph. It might be price and convenience, or environmental impact and design.
And so lets re-assess whether all marketing is lying.
Marketing as a service
We as marketers offer you, the consumer, a service. We can make an assertion about a choice which you might want to make.
We can help busy people to see that there’s a product which is an alternative to what they have bought or previously chosen.
This is neither manipulation, nor lying and it’s not on the good/better/best axis either.
As marketers (and copywriters) we can know and understand our product and our ideal customer really well. And by empathising with prospects we can position products appropriately to appeal to the audience who will value our marketing service. Our descriptions, videos, explanations and photography of the product are a service to the customer. We offer a new choice which has resonance and meaning on the axes which matter to them.
Can you put your hand on your heart and say your brand does this?
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Client references
/0 Comments/in B2B /by Rebecca CaroeIt’s always nice to have some past clients who either write testimonials or provide references or act as references for new clients.
I was asked recently who my client references are and what I did with and for them.
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4 Accounting Techniques That Benefit Your Business Productivity
/0 Comments/in Marketing /by Sudip MuttYou’ll have a lot of things on your plate once you decide to start a business. For starters, you need to hire the right employees for the right positions to ensure that every facet of your business functions perfectly. However, if you want your business to be productive, it’s not enough that you only focus on your manpower. You should also implement the right accounting techniques.
Accounting is vital in every business because this allows you to maintain a systematic and accurate record of your financial transactions. Accounting will make it very easy for you to make data-driven decisions and assess whether your business is earning or losing money.
For your business to remain productive, make sure to implement the following accounting techniques:
business chart showing financial success at the stock market
1. Start By Learning The Basics
Accounting is generally a complex topic as you’ll be dealing with numbers and many other financial transactions. Keeping track of your business’s accounting can also mean complying with the necessary paperwork requirements and submitting them to several government agencies.
If you want your business to effectively implement several accounting techniques, it’s best if you start by learning the basics first. If you’re still a novice in accounting, spend some time to know how accounting works and the processes involved in accounting. You should also educate yourself about what 3-way matching is, how a ledger is used, and what you should prepare during the tax season. The more adept you are in the basics of accounting, the easier it’ll be for you to make the most out of different accounting techniques.
2. Separate Personal And Business Finances
As an entrepreneur, you should prioritize setting up different bank accounts for your personal and business finances. This is one of the simplest accounting techniques you should implement the moment your business starts operating.
Having separate personal and business finances will make it very easy for you to assess the progress of your business, without compromising your personal finances along the way. You won’t have any problems assessing if your business is earning or losing money if you have another bank account solely for this purpose. Moreover, having a separate bank account will also help you come up with better business decisions as you’ll know how much your business can afford to spend.
Regardless of how taxing it can be to comply with requirements to open another bank account for your business finances, you should still do it. You’ll be able to reap the rewards of your efforts once your business starts operating.
3.Keep Accurate Records
In order for your business to grow, it’s important to keep track of all business receipts and payments. Regardless of how small the amount is or how minor the transaction is, if it involves your business’s finances, you should keep records of it.
Keeping records will also help business owners like you to easily review your expenses. Doing this will enable you to identify areas that are costing your business too much money, and come up with solutions on how you can cut down expenses.
It’s also a good idea to create a ledger for you to easily keep track of all business income and expenses. The ledger can be used to provide a more in-depth overview of the expenses incurred, as well as the amount of revenue generated by your business during a certain period.
4.Use Accounting Software
As a business owner, you’ll have many things to juggle at the same time, too many that you won’t have the time and energy to handle all these things altogether. From developing new ideas, to executing them, to attending meetings, and to managing to keep track of all the activities in your company, there are too many things to consider. If you can’t do them all by yourself, then, it’s time to turn to accounting software to help you out.
With an accounting software at your disposal, you’ll be able to manage all of your accounts in one place. Moreover, an accounting software will also enable you to check on all of your books, find errors in any of your financial data, and make changes right away.
Since everything is automated, an accounting software will also provide data that you can easily print out, so you’re always aware of where your business stands financially. Furthermore, you can schedule time to sit down, analyze your finances, and decide on what changes you ought to make in your business.
Be Committed To Learn
There are many accounting techniques you can use for your business today. You just have to implement ones that suit the size and nature of your business, and spend time to master these techniques. Accounting can’t be learned overnight, so make sure that you’re willing to exert effort to learn these techniques and implement them consistently in your business.
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Lunch for business networking
/0 Comments/in B2B, Sales /by Rebecca CaroeBack in the day I moved to Auckland in 2012 and since I am networked into the tech crowd, I was an early participant in LetsLunch. An opportunity to meet people face to face for a quick lunch and a business ‘get to know you’ discussion.
It was a blast – I remember meeting Hamish Pinkham and John Humphrey through the group.
Now there’s the opportunity to do it again – virtually.
Introducing Lunch Club
I can’t wait.
The chance to approach people in my locale and to ask them for lunch was so powerful and gave us all a chance to grow our networks alongside the pleasure of eating nice food is something I’d like to do again.
Lunch Club for Auckland – let’s get started
So will you join me?
We need 450 people to join the group before a New Zealand Lunch Club can launch. Click the link to subscribe to an “Auckland” club…. don’t worry if you don’t live here – as long as you and I are in New Zealand I think we can make this work.
Lunch anyone?
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Using Wikipedia and Quora for marketing
/0 Comments/in Content Marketing, Lead Generation, Marketing ideas, SEO /by Rebecca CaroeI recently got asked about whether Wikipedia is good for marketing. It’s a high traffic website from where backlinks could be valuable.
If you do create Wikipedia entries be aware that there are rules about businesses on the platform.
The recent history of Marketing on Wikipedia
A lot of PR agencies got publicly burned while trying to promote their clients there.
Which led to Wikipedia publishing this.
And check out the PR institute rules in the UK which followed.
Basically, don’t expect this to be an amazing source of new business.
However, I have an other option to offer you which may work.
Quora expert profile
5 Quora tips for marketing
Answering questions around your topic of expertise and interest and inspiration is definitely somewhere you can shine. It’s not open source, so nobody can edit your submissions and you can get upvoted and become an “expert” on the platform quite quickly.
The key is to start in an established niche where you are confident.
Here are 5 easy tips on writing Quora replies with a marketing slant.
Now what’s stopping you?
Oh, and if you came here from Manaaki – welcome. You’re following exactly the technique I recommend for use on Quora.
And you can use this technique on other forums relevant to your niche. I have three which send me traffic and build my profile as an expert in new business development.
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National’s SME policy
/0 Comments/in Recession /by Rebecca CaroeThe New Zealand National Party manifesto just published with some pledges to help the small business sector. We know we are important to the economy – but this really shows clarity of purpose and thinking, which I disagree with.
Read the full document
Get people back to work
Kiwisaver by New Zealand Government
One of their proposals is to provide New Zealanders who have lost their job with up to $30,000 in capital to put towards a new business idea through a BusinessStart package. Sounds good.
But won’t this be focused on people who may not be right for self-employment or business ownership? Where’s the filter?
The proposal states $1,000 for getting a business plan together…. but I think the Business Start package is going to create a raft of new revenue streams for accountants (who are not business advisors) writing those business plans. Just like the gravy train of Regional Business Partner advisors [disclosure I’m one of them].
Fund through Kiwisaver
A second layer of the programme allows folks to use their savings to fund the new business. Accessing Kiwisaver money to start a business should be contingent on there being an age sliding scale of kiwisaver deposits – this could let people spend their pension on a business which won’t fly and will leave them worse off at retirement…. And then who’s responsible?
The third layer is $10k of tax credits once profitable. This is interesting but may postpone business failure – but is a low risk strategy from a Government.
Lastly they want the fund managers of Kiwisaver funds to invest as if they were angel investors. Kiwisaver providers are not experts in private equity – so don’t let them invest their funds into areas they know little about (well – really they are OUR funds as it’s OUR savings). I worry about this because it puts retirement savings at risk for folks like me whose savings go into other people’s businesses.
What do you think?
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5 Tips for Managing a Company With Remote Employees
/0 Comments/in Marketing /by Rebecca CaroeWith the availability of the internet and technology that we have today, more and more companies are operating remotely. There are plenty of advantages for employees working remotely. They can work from home and care for their family. They don’t have to deal with rush hour traffic during their daily commute. The organization also thrives from a remote work setting because they can generate more revenue without the costly overhead for brick and mortar. There can be a bit of a learning curve for businesses that are making the transition from an office setting to a fully remote environment.
Thanks to Roberto Nickson for sharing their work on Unsplash
1. Logistics
There are several factors to understand when working out the logistics of creating a remote working environment for your employees. You should structure your business by keeping in mind the current market conditions. Create an operations plan for your organization including how many employees you need. You should do payroll calculations to know how much compensation the company can afford for each employee.
2. Training
Remote working is a different experience than working in an office setting. Many people have not experienced working from home and may need training in various programs and software that your business uses daily. Provide online training to your remote workers so they know what is expected. This helps to better equip them to provide their best work. By helping to improve your employees’ skills, you are also helping your business grow.
Remember that remote working also involves remote communication. Staff can talk to each other but group messages may get overlooked with email. A better solution is a desktop system like SnapComms which enables a diverse range of getting employee attention when everyone is busy.
SnapComms features include alerts, desktop tickers, wallpaper, lock screens and the important panic button.
SnapComms features for employee comms and remote working effectiveness
3. Team Building
It is beneficial to the company to develop a team mentality among coworkers. Businesses that have a cohesive attitude tend to become more successful in meeting their objectives. It can be more difficult to build strong bonds among online personnel because they lack the one-on-one in-person face time that people have in a traditional office setting. It is helpful to provide online team-building exercises to help create a stronger bond among your personnel. A cohesive team works effectively and efficiently.
4. Communication
Good communication is key to a successful organization. Be sure that every employee you hire has exceptional communication skills. An online business needs to run their operations in a way that is conducive to good communication channels. Provide communication tools that provide an interactive platform for employees to easily correspond. Make a clear structure for the chain of command so that everyone knows how to properly escalate items as they arise.
5. Efficiency
A strong work-life balance provides employees with peace of mind which helps them to work more efficiently. Remote workers do their best work when they can work a flexible schedule that enables them to meets personal needs. Keep your employees’ mental and emotional health in mind, as people that work from home often have less personal interaction in general which can cause stress. Implement an environment that is conducive to the mental and emotional health of your staff.
It is important for workers to feel valued for their hard work. This is particularly true for remote workers since they do not have the same interaction with employers as office workers. Show gratitude towards your employees for their hard work frequently by rewarding them with recognition.
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