CONSISTENCY IS KEY!
Brand, logo, business cards, website, website copy — everything must deliver the same message and that message needs to be the single most attractive thing that sells your business. Think long and hard about what that is, brainstorm it with staff, get your mentor’s input and thoughts, buy some of your top customers dinner and get their thoughts, what is the number ONE thing that sells your business? You then need to communicate this in a visually interesting way!
LEVERAGE ONLINE
Everyone ‘has a website’ but not everyone has one that works and not everyone uses the digital environment as well as they possibly can — the key things to consider today:
Persuasion Architecture – sit down and map out:
- What are the different personality profiles of your customers?
- What is the number one thing they will be looking for when they visit your site? Each personality will be different
- What is the process of getting them from that piece of information to a sale — map it out!
- Now match this with the flow of information on your website — does it match? If not, you need to work on your architecture and copy!
Social media – whether you like or not, you’re probably in it
- 78% of people say they’re most influenced by other people; social media can be your most powerful marketing tool
- There are lots of parts of social media and to introduce you to the world of using this channel, I’ve got a handout around social media, the channels included in it and how to use them
- To action this, write up your own social media plan – Google your business and related keywords and see what blogs come up. Get in touch with the bloggers directly and suggest pieces of content they can post that relate to your business
- Get creative! Think up ideas related to your key message and email these to the bloggers too – for example, if you own a hairdressers, create a ‘which hairstyle are you?’ quiz and email this to them — think content that might feature in a women’s magazine!
- Create your own profiles in the relevant social media networks
- Join Twitter
- Join DIGG
Search Engine Optimisation
- Everyone says they have the magic button, but what’s great about social media optimization is that it increases your search engine ranking as well!
- A good SEO program will include ON SITE optimization AND OFF SITE optimization, for example, link building
- If you support SEO with SEM you will get increased SEO rankings as well because Google will start to recognize increased inbound links to your website and will move you up the ladder
REVISIT YOUR SALES STRATEGY
- You need to re-look at your sales strategy and make sure your buying triggers match consumer sentiment today
- For example, economic downturn is no #1 in terms of consumer’s priority list when 12 months ago it was ‘green alternatives’
- As with the website, map out the journey your customer takes and work out ways to hold their hand through that journey
- Another strategy for the economic crisis is to think up a list of business alliances you can make to create more leads for yourself – and for them. Create a pack, call them and go to meet with them — they will welcome the opportunity to work with someone that is proactive in getting both businesses more leads!
My top 5 personal strategies for success?
- Set clear goals for everything you d- macro & micro – your life, your business, your day-to-day tasks
- Become an obsessive list-maker and WRITE EVERYTHING DOWN – you will feel more successful if you cross things off a list as a reward
- Give something to yourself each day: a moment with your face in the sun, eat a chocolate, go for a run, meditate – whatever it is that you give yourself, karmic-ly, this will mean you bring more abundance to yourself
- Choose a mentor wisely, it’s like a job interview. You really need to find someone that understands you, can work with you and really gives you what you need. Write yourself a Brief for what you want in a men
- Read ‘EAT THAT FROG’ by Brian Tracy – Brian is possibly one of the most efficient time managers in the world – the man writes a book every 6 months approximately. This particular book will help you get more out of your time than you ever have before with extremely action-based and practical advice
