More than a Few Words

#792 The Long Game

When it comes to content marketing you need to be playing the long game. It is unrealistic to think  you're going to throw a blog post out there today and get results tomorrow. But, if you invest in consistently creating good quality content it will pay off eventually. You're not going to double your traffic overnight but those blog posts will build value over time.  You will see content  you wrote a week or maybe even a month ago, start to be found in niches and continue to drive traffic for months and even years to come. Search engines may not notice the first article you write on a topic. But once you have a series of articles suddenly you begin to be perceived as an authority on that subject and and you will see your search traffic increase.  As that begins to occur, your inquiries will go up as well. And so my friends you need to be patient and play the long game.  If you'd like help building out your content be sure to check out all of the tools the Digital Toolbox

#791 Life Cycle Marketing

Your customers go through many steps and phases as you work with them, so your marketing needs to reflect where they are in their customer journey.   Guest, Ellen McDowell shares tips on how to segment your customers into three groups and create marketing messages for those looking to get to know you, those ready to take the next step and those who have completed their journey,    If you enjoyed this conversation, be sure to check out other's with Ellen:  The One Philosophy - Part One and Part Two Authentic Automation 

#790 Invite me In

When I was a kid and the doorbell rang I would jump up and fling the door open in the hopes of entertaining a neighbor, friend or unexpected guest. But things have changed. We're a lot more cautious these days about who we invite into our homes and into our businesses. This creates real challenges for companies, particularly in the home service industry. How do you overcome this reluctance? The trick is to look for ways to make customers feel like they know you.  To do this, you could add photographs and bios of your team members to your website, show a little personality on social media and encourage reviews. There's nothing that will reassure a prospective customer about inviting you into their home like seeing a friend or neighbor say they've worked with you and would do it again.  So the next time you provide a service for someone be sure to ask them to leave a review.  And if you've enjoyed this conversation you can leave one too!

#789 Empathy and Action

Since we were in middle school there's always been someone who said something negative about us. You'd think after all this time we'd learn how to respond but the truth is when you get a negative review or a negative social media comment it still hurts.  This week, guest David Oates shares some tips on how to deal with negative reviews and comments.  It all begins with empathy and action.  It is important to acknowledge the person writing the review is unhappy and open a dialogue, offline, to resolve the issue so others see you are willing to take action.   

#788 The Follow Up Process

When the phone rings, there's always that moment of excitement. This could be a customer! I've been through enough sales training so I feel comfortable moving prospects through that conversation. But at some point, the phone call ends. So what do you do to continue that conversation? While it will depend on how the conversation went, it's always helpful to have some resources ready to send as a follow up. What should you send? Regardless of the business you're in, think about what people need to know to make a good decision.  Perhaps there are common questions that don't come up in that first phone conversation. If so, create a blog post entitled FAQs. Google will absolutely love that. It'll give you authority and search. But also at the end of the call, you can say to someone "Hey, I bet you're going to have a few more questions when we're done. So I'm gonna send you a link to FAQs" The fact that you're anticipating their needs, reassures them and makes them feel comfortable that they're not the only ones who don't have the answers. And so, the next time you answer the phone, start thinking about what you're going to send when you finish the call.

#787 MEGA Position

This week we are talking about positioning. I know that sounds like some techie, marketing thing that you need an MBA to figure out but it really isn't. Your position is simply what you want people to think about you when you're not in the room and to have that conversation.  My guest, Reuben Swartz shared his simply acronym MEGA as a way to think about your position statement in four simple pieces M- Magnetic - The key thing to remember is a magnet has two poles of equal strength. People make the mistake of trying to attract everybody. You can't do that. Your position should be a really powerful magnet that attracts your ideal clients and repels people who aren't so you avoid wasting time on bad fits.  E - Easy -  The job of positioning is to make sales and marketing easier. G - Gorilla -  You want to select a market where you can be the 800 pound gorilla in the room.  So define your brand and you niche narrow enough so that you can dominate.  A - Authentic - Your position should reflect you. Don't try to copy others, be you.   Learn more about Reuben: http://mimiran.com  and The Sales for Nerds Podcast     

#786 Lessons from Improv

A friend of mine who is an improvisational artist, and a marketer told me there were many things he learned when studying improvisational comedy that he could apply to marketing. The first is the rule of the Yes. And…. In an improvisational interaction, anytime someone says anything, you immediately say yes. This behavior allows you to build on the ideas of others. That’s actually how the internet works. If you’re looking for content ideas, find something someone else has written, and apply the rule of yes and.  Create your own blog post by talking about what they said and add your own information on top of it. The second rule in improvisational comedy is to tell the truth. When an artist speaks about things that are true to them it is easier to connect to the audience with these shared experiences. The same can work for your content marketing. So as you’re getting ready to work on your next blog, or piece of content,  watch an episode of Saturday Night Live to channel your inner improvisational spirit.

#785 Copywriting Style Guide

In this episode Lorraine chat's with Maddie Osman about style guides. But the conversation is not about colors and fonts. Your brand is more than just colors and fonts, it is also about the words you choose. Your style guide sets tone for your brand.  Your word choice can be inclusive or exclusive, depending on the objectives of your content. Standardizing your word style will also help you save time as you create and edit content. 

#784 New Tech - Finding What is Right for You

It seems like every day there is some new tool or trend. So how do you decide which  new technology, software tools and digital trends deserve attention and resources and which don’t?  Over the years, I have developed a simply strategy to figure out which new technology and tools are right for me. Explore The first part of the strategy is staying ahead of the curve by reading, reading, reading. There’s no single expert in the field so I have several websites I check on a regular basis. Evaluate When I find new software tools which pique my curiosity, I switch over to evaluation mode.  I dive in and start  reading product reviews and searching for discussions on Twitter and LinkedIn. Then I kick the tires for myself to see if the product works the way they say it will. Next I evaluate  how this addition fits with the rest of my marketing program.  This is where many exciting ideas get sidelined because even if a tool looks great, if it doesn’t fit with everything else you’re doing, it’s not a great fit for you. Embrace And finally I embrace the tools I think are a great fit. This means making a decision to go big and commit the resources needed to make it successful. If you are not willing to do that, just don't play with the tool.

#783 Measure Your Email Results

I know you think we've talked about email a lot but we're going to dive into  one of the most overlooked parts of your email marketing, the metrics Guest, Emily Maguire shares lessons learned over a decade sending successful email campaigns generating millions of dollars in revenue. She suggests that falling in love with open rates is a mistake. It doesn't matter how many people open your email, it only matters what they do next.  You can game the system to change your open rates, or use click bait headlines, but that won't actually help you sell more.   Engagement metrics, clicks, downloads, replies and even unsubscribes are much more reliable predictors of how well your email campaign is really performing.   LOOK FOR EMILY:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/mcguireemily/