Tag Archives: strategy

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Content That Captivates

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It is said that content is king—agree? I’ll bet you do. But are you aware that not all content is equally able to move viewers to respond to its verbal or visual messages? Most content does its job, which is to increase awareness of the brand within the target audience. But certain marketing content has a heightened impact on viewers; that content is perceived as uniquely relatable, credible, or even inspiring— it captivates. Captivating content has been known to persuade some who experience it to step into the buyer’s journey of the product or service it promotes. Content that captivates can motivate your prospects to actively explore the possibility of doing business with you.

Content strategy

Are you motivated to actively explore how to create content that captivates your customers and prospects? Then devise a content strategy, a plan that functions as a road map to guide the creation, delivery and management of marketing content that promotes your company’s sales and branding goals. A content strategy is the most important element of your content marketing campaigns. Without a strategy, you’re vulnerable to losing your way and becoming overwhelmed by the dizzying array of content possibilities that are available. While almost any form of content may be persuasive and also captivating, but not every format will effectively advance your sales and branding goals.

A content strategy is essential to the process of defining basic who, what, when, where and why questions that refine your understanding of marketing activities and distribution channels that your customers and prospects will gravitate toward. A well thought-out strategy will provide focus and direction to your content marketing activities and how and where you deliver your message. The questions below will help you identify content that will resonate with your target audience.

  • Who will view your content?
  • What solutions do content readers/viewers need, what goals must they achieve?
  • What types of content and which channels can be expected to attract readers/viewers?
  • What brand voice (tone and personality) can be expected to facilitate communication with your audience?
  • What goals do you want to achieve with your content?

Email marketing

Email marketing continues its reign as one of the most effective marketing tools available to transmit marketing messages and build trust in your products, services and brand. Moreover, email marketing campaigns are excellent generators of qualified leads and enable ongoing communication with customers, existing and lapsed, allowing you to nurture relationships and encourage repeat business.

Marketing emails are more likely to be read than other types of content and their average return on investment triumphs over other types of content. According to the Cambridge, MA inbound marketing giant HubSpot, email marketing communications are more likely to be read than all other types of content and have an average open rate of 46-50% and click-through rate of 2.6-3% — metrics that surpass the appeal of social media and all other forms of digital content.

Furthermore, because email marketing lists are opt-in and consist of those who want to hear from you, the email list itself is a valuable marketing tool that you can use to distribute additional communications, such as your blog or newsletter. For that reason, email list-building is an ongoing activity practiced by savvy marketers. Make a plan to grow your email list with these tactics:

  • Create a premium library: Promote your expertise and build your email list with a special offer that’s available only to those who sign up to receive a link—to a webinar or podcast you’ve participated in, a case study or e-book you’ve written, for example—sent in exchange for a name and email address.
  • Online subscriber forms: Your blog, website and social media accounts have a mechanism for visitors to add contact info and receive your published content or follow you.
  • Invite subscribers in-person: Whether you are on a sales call or, as discussed in the previous post, you attend a trade show or other in-person event, as you meet and greet you may find colleagues who would appreciate being added to your email list—subject to an opt-in, because you want their permission. If you teach or speak somewhere, make an attendee sign-up sheet available so that you can collect more contact info to grow your list.
  • Call-to-action: Invite those on your inbound marketing buyer’s journey to receive a free 30-minute consultation with you, to discuss their needs and goals and your company’s solutions. Invite those who would like to attend a workshop you’re scheduled to teach or panel you’ll moderate to RSVP by way of your CTA. When you decide to hold your own MeetUp, also discussed in the previous post, ask those who plan to attend to sign-up. All CTA responses can deliver contact info.

Webinars and podcasts

More than simply marketing content, these formats can be classified as professional development. With an engaging topic and a skilled presenter or host, these formats can generate a substantial audience. When the webinar or podcast topic relates to solutions your company offers, you can create a seamless transition into how viewers/listeners can solve their most pressing problems.

Webinars and podcasts can be even more effective when cross-promoted with other content, such as an e-book. Furthermore, webinar registrations are an excellent method of collecting email addresses and other information from qualified leads who are genuinely interested in not only the topic, but potentially your category of products or services. Webinars continue to be a popular digital content option and when promoted to the right audience, they can become far more engaging and attractive to qualified leads than a blog post covering the same topic would be.

Social media

By adding relevant, authoritative content, including videos, surveys, blogs and user-generated content such as customer reviews and testimonials to this very personalized content resource, you can effectively leverage social media to attract qualified leads.

According to a March 2024 report released by Forbes Magazine Advisor, 78% of prospects and customers research social media platforms first when seeking information about brands, a trend that demonstrates social media’s pivotal role as a leading source of brand-related content. Social media’s interactive nature allows prospective customers to get behind the scenes and learn backstories that provide an informative and intimate experience that can foster a deep connection with a brand.

Social media promotes community-building, a bonding among customer peer groups whose members participate in discussions, post product reviews and happily share their brand experiences. Social media platforms are where brands can interact with customers in real time, to foster a sense of community around their products or services with a goal of building and nurturing relationships.

Marketers join in and participate in groups and conversations, responding to comments and messages they receive and facilitating meaningful communication with their target audience. By enhancing the influence of this highly personalized format by posting content that engages and captivates, you can leverage your brand’s social media presence to deliver qualified leads.

Video

Video has emerged as a leader among content marketing formats. The power of video marketing reflects a growing customer preference for visual and auditory storytelling that gives the format great influence in capturing audience engagement. When marketing video is used in tandem with other digital marketing formats—marketing emails and social media posts, for example—their sales conversion rate is substantively enhanced. Product demos and explainer videos, case studios, testimonials and videos of your previous podcasts and webinars provide opportunities to enhance the inbound marketing power of your company website.

Video marketing has proven to be highly effective and 95% of marketers observed an increase in brand awareness when using the format. As a result, 90% of marketers credit their successful lead generation campaigns to video content and 87% link the format to sales revenue growth. The viewer engagement rate for marketing videos posted to YouTube in 2024 is 5.91%.

In particular, short-form video content is especially adept at gaining audience attention—attention spans are brief and viewers don’t always have the time or patience needed to watch longer videos. It’s been shown that marketers have 2.7 seconds to capture audience attention with your video. While engagement is valued and viewers want to learn about your company, they want to learn fast. BTW, 75% of video views occur on mobile devices, so optimizing for mobile viewing is crucial.

Within its abbreviated time frame, video content can deliver enticing visual options that captivate your audience and keep them coming back for more. You can record yourself in an explainer video or product demo discussing how your solution solves problems and supports the achievement of customer objectives. Or you may want to record customer testimonials or even record a case study, podcast or webinar—content you can upload to your website and social media accounts or invite browsers to request in exchange for contact info that builds your email list. You can also film a live event.

Live videos are in-the-moment exciting and authentic and especially well-suited for generating engagement in the viewing audience, creating relationships and building the brand. You can use the live video tool available on your social media apps to announce a new product or service or show viewers new items from your product line. Because there is little to no editing done, live videos often have a raw and edgy look; however, you’ll need a space that you can keep quiet and private as you record your live video. Furthermore, if live streaming is your intention, you’ll also need the right technology.

Now here’s a surprise—the arrival of silent videos. When you think about it, you’ll realize that many people watch videos in public spaces: waiting in line at the bank or grocery store, taking public transportation, or even while in a company meeting. Earbuds may not be handy or politically correct; it’s been reported that 92% of users watch videos with the sound off. Silent videos solve the problem so you can communicate your message without audio and make the visual component of the video the main focus. Close caption text (subtitles) allows you to make the most of the visuals and incorporate on-screen captions for necessary text info.

If your budget allows, speak with a marketing company to discuss your goals and the type of video that can be expected to deliver your desired ROI. Remember that your video can be posted to multiple platforms, from your website to email marketing communications, your newsletter, blog and social media accounts. If budget is an issue, or if you’re confident of your creativity, by all means grab your smartphone or tablet and experiment with making a video in-house. Taking an online tutorial is sure to be helpful and there are dozens to choose from. Here’s one you might like.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

Image: © The Richard Avedon Foundation. Model Stephanie Seymour wears Chanel in a 1990 photo by Richard Avedon (1923-2004)

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Think, Plan, Do: How to Think and Act Strategically

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By now, I’m certain you’ve figured out that life is a game of chance that’s impacted by luck (good or bad) and planning (strategy or happenstance). You cannot really “make your own luck” (only lucky people think you can), but by thinking strategically and implementing your strategies, you’ll be able to influence certain variables that may tip the outcome in your favor.

Strategic thinking is an essential skill that promotes success both in the business world and in your personal life. Business owners and leaders rely on strategic thinking to make informed decisions and plan for the future, to promote innovation, respond to changes in the marketplace and recognize good opportunities. Strategic thinking depends on reliable information that you’ll analyze to identify the potential outcomes of a decision and ensure that decisions align with your company’s long-term goals. Strategic thinking can begin when you address three basic questions:

  • Where are you now in terms of achieving your preferred outcome (the goal, success)?
  • Where do you want to be (the preferred outcome)?
  • What actions will you take to bring about your preferred outcome?

Rich Horwath, author of the New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller Strategic: The Skill to Set Direction, Create Advantage and Achieve Executive Excellence (November 2023) and founder and CEO of the Strategic Thinking Institute, a strategy workshop facilitator where he is an executive coach and strategic advisor, defines strategic thinking as the ability to Think, Plan and Do. Horwath believes that strategic thinking leads to insights that allow us to recognize or create competitive advantages that lead to success. His coaching experience has shown him that strategic thinking can be learned, that we can assess our own strategic fitness level and apply the skill to create value for the business.

Acumen

Howath points to acumen, the way you think, as the basis of strategic thinking, along with context awareness, insight and innovation. Acumen gives you the ability to size up a situation, see the big picture and generate new ideas that move the organization from its current state to your preferred future. The components he assigns to acumen work in tandem and are what separate strategic thinkers from the rest:

  • Context awareness—informs your vision of the big picture and reflects your understanding of both your internal situation (culture, purpose, processes, guiding principles) and external situation (market trends, customer behavior, competitive landscape, business conditions). This awareness and perception informs your choices to allocate the resources you’ll use as your pursue your goals.
  • Insight —the ability to learn and draw conclusions, however preliminary, from current conditions and past experiences. This requires curiosity and an exploratory mindset. A key trait of strategic thinkers is their discipline to continuously record, categorize, share and reflect on insights.
  • Innovation —can occur when you focus your awareness and insights to create new value. It typically generated by the brainstorming or problem-solving involved in overcoming a challenge or obstacle.

To evaluate your acumen, ask yourself:

  • Do I regularly assess my business’s current situation, both from both the internal and external perspectives?
  • Do I share valuable insights with my team?
  • When problem-solving, do I stick to the tried-and-true, or do I look for new approaches?

Allocation

Howath sees allocation as how you plan. Strategic thinkers set goals, distribute resources, recognize the risk and tradeoffs when making decisions and create advantages that bring value. Where you invest your resources — time, talent and capital — is a primary driver of your effectiveness and it requires the following components:

  • Ability to focus resources: Resources are usually limited and should be used judiciously in service to achieving your goals. An effective strategy involves the ability to focus resources, confirming that resources are sufficient to produce the desired impact and confirming how the resource should be applied to achieve the desired effect.
  • Decision-making: Strategic thinkers generate and evaluate a range of viable alternatives. Since trade-offs are being made with each decision, they analyze the pros and cons of each alternative, as well as the level of acceptable risk.
  • Competitive advantage: A competitive advantage is created when the value created by your resources and actions exceeds the value that prospective customers assign to your competitors. Once an advantage is attained, strategic thinkers continue to refine it in order to stay ahead of the competition.

To evaluate whether you allocate effectively, ask yourself:

  1. Do I recognize when it’s time to redistribute resources from underperforming areas to projects that show more potential?
  2. Do I spend time on activities that align with my goals?
  3. How do I measure myself against the competitors?

Action

Action is what you do, that is, carrying out your plans. Preparing a business strategy is but one step; how you execute your strategies is pivotal to your success. Action requires the ability to collaborate with others and optimize your performance.

  • Execution involves using your resources to achieve your goal. It requires focus, discipline and follow-through, as well as monitoring to ensure interim results and a contingency plan to salvage a plan that fails to produce the expected result.

To assess your ability to take action, ask yourself:

  • When it comes time to implement a strategy, how prepared am I to take action?
  • Do I ask others what their goals are at the beginning of the conversation?
  • Do I easily get side-tracked by other obstacles along the way?

Merry Christmas and thanks for reading,

Kim

Image: Jackie Gleason as a fictional pool hustler in The Hustler (1961).

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10 Under $35: Client Gift Ideas 2022

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Your final marketing tactic of the year will be the December holiday card and gift you give to all clients whom you billed at least $500 in this calendar year. It’s also smart to send a holiday card to those you’ve worked with over the past four or five years.

Your client outreach at holiday time goes a long way toward enhancing your brand, playing a part in your client retention/ repeat business strategy. Find the time and money to show appreciation to those who trust you enough to pay for your expertise. At this time of year, take the readily available opportunity to contact current and lapsed clients and demonstrate less visible aspects of you and your brand—thoughtfulnesses, generosity, happiness, authenticity.

  1. Yucca Cane Plant $24.99

Studies show that plants at home or in the office can reduce stress and stimulate creativity. The Yucca Cane is a long time favorite that will make a dramatic conversation piece. Its upright spineless hard leaves sit atop a thick wood cane in multiple clusters which creates an exotic tropical look. In addition to its bold look, the Yucca Cane is an easy care plant that requires low watering and enjoys high to medium light spaces. The spineless yucca loves sunlight and watering about once a week. Make sure the soil dry’s out before watering again. To beautify your plant use containers with drain holes to drain excess water and keep your plant healthy.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/United-Nursery-Yucca-Cane-Plant-in-9-25-in-Grower-Pot-21955/307739456

2. Tunisian Tile Snack Tray. $30.00

Whisk yourself away to the Mediterranean for a midday tea or coffee break. This handmade serving tray is part elegant decor, part transportation device. Tunisian artisans carve the base from olive wood and add two hand-painted ceramic tiles. No matter what you serve–coffee and pastries or wine and cheese–you’ll enjoy your pick-me-up snack that much more. Handmade in Tunisia.

https://www.uncommongoods.com/product/tunisian-tiled-snack-tray

3. Sari Patchwork Apron $30.00

Your clients who got into coking during the pandemic will appreciate a lovely and practical apron. The item began its life as a sari and has now been repurposed into a double-sided apron featuring a blend of patterns and colors to inspire the cook who wears it. Handmade by artisans in Bangladesh who stitch repurposed sari swatches together, then decorate the aprons with traditional kantha stitches in contrasting colors. Each stunning patchwork is a one-of-a-kind work of art and no two are identical. Machine wash cold, line dry.

https://www.uncommongoods.com/product/repurposed-sari-patchwork-apron

4. Sound Machine $26.00

The Yogasleep Travel Mini Sound Machine combines robust white noise options and a night light in one sleek and lightweight pocket-sized device, ready for travel anywhere. The travel mini offers six lush soundtracks created to promote relaxation and improve your sleep environment, including white noise, brown noise, and three nature-inspired sounds.

https://www.ongoody.com/business/browse/brands/yogasleep/travel-mini-sound-machine-with-night-light

5. Picture Frame $19.99

Classically attractive photo frame is crafted with a sun ray style design and ribbed texture that complements the decor of any office, corporate or home. It’s hand made of sustainably sourced bone and features an easel back and will brighten a desk, book case, or table top. Holds one 5”x7” photograph.

https://www.worldmarket.com/product/white+sunray+bone+frame.do?sortby=ourPicks&from=Search

6. Cherry Pit Muscle Therapy $18.95

Did you know this is a thing? I certainly didn’t but while I was sleeping, millions of people have been using hot or cold compresses filled with cherry pits to relieve muscle aches. Chill pits the freezer or warm in the microwave and they’ll hold and slowly release therapeutic cold or heat that’s good for what ails you.

http://cherrypitstore.com/index_files/Page796.htm

7. Key Chain $18.00

Why not give a simple and practical gift? This compact, durable and stylish key chain has a 100 % genuine leather exterior, silver in color and tastefully accessorized with solid brass hardware.

https://www.primecutbags.com/keychains/silver-leather-keychain

8. Mobile Device Ring Light $24.99

Maximize the benefits of mobile with a great little accessory that makes you look good when you Zoom on the go, sun up or sun down. FYI, read a review. https://freelancetheconsultantsdiary.wordpress.com/wp-admin/post.php?post=24120&action=edit

https://getolumiring.io/offer-01/?lpid=0621&utm_source=11335&utm_medium=&utm_term=621&utm_content=&utm_campaign=0&aff_id=11335&camp_id=0&sub_id=&req_id=5d503ba5990b4080899e5dd885958a82&contract_id=0&oid=621&device_type=PC&country_name=United+States

9. Skin Moisturizing/ Winter Therapy $28.05

  • SKIN CARE PRODUCTS: Pamper from head to toe with this giftable set including Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream Hand Salve Original Beeswax Lip Balm Res-Q Ointment Shea Butter Hand Repair Cream and Coconut Foot Cream.
  • HANDS & FEET: Pamper and soothe dry rough cracked skin with moisturizing hand salve cuticle cream hand cream and rich foot cream.
  • LIP MOISTURIZER: Made with Beeswax Vitamin E and a hint of peppermint oil hydrate and nourish dry lips with the original favorite lip balm.
  • MULTIPURPOSE OITNMENT: This gentle Res-Q Ointment is made with a blend of herbal ingredients to create an everyday salve that soothes and comfort dry skin and minor cuts.
  • BURTS BEES GIFT SET: These natural, moisturizing skin care products gifted in a Burts Bees tin nourish skin throughout the winter months and make the perfect holiday stocking stuffer.

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Burt-s-Bees-Classics-Gift-Set-Open-Box/920571603?irgwc=1&sourceid=imp_XB0zf034fxyNTw0wVCwYvw4MUkA0LJS8eSbIzo0&veh=aff&wmlspartner=imp_3006986&clickid=XB0zf034fxyNTw0wVCwYvw4MUkA0LJS8eSbIzo0&sharedid=&affiliates_ad_id=565706&campaign_id=9383

10. Designer Coffee Mug $22.00

If you must give a coffee mug, make it this one! The innovative design and sturdy durability of Cloud Mugs bring a smile with every sip. The mugs are also microwave safe. Hand wash and avoid submerging the mug in water to keep them looking and feeling their best.

Cloud Mug

Hope the list helps your relationship and brand building strategy. Happy Holidays and thanks for reading.

Kim

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Get Noticed: Tactics to Spotlight Your Brand

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If you’ve been trying to increase the visibility (and in the process, credibility) of your brand and Freelance consulting business, you’ve probably realized that standing out against competitors is difficult to achieve. The noise level in the marketplace is deafening and big fish grab nearly all the PR. But all is not lost. There are a few smart moves that will help us little fish to make a splash. Below are a half-dozen mostly low-cost and often successful marketing tactics that you can consider and maybe enact over the next four quarters.

Get On a “Best of” list

PR pros love the fast pay-off and long-tail benefits that getting added to a “best of” list brings. Every business that’s won a “best-of” award over the last 5 years (or more) shouts it to the rooftops. The citation is placed above the fold on website and social media landing pages.

Investigate local or regional “best of” lists, especially those featured in popular or prestigious publications. Some choose candidates by an open nomination process. Touting your inclusion on a “best of” list is cat nip when promoting any other of your marketing tactics—-speaking at a business or professional associations, teaching a class, appearing as a panel speaker or moderator, becoming a guest blogger or a guest spot in a webinar or podcast.

A “best of” list is a great opportunity to be discovered by people who’ve probably never heard of you and your business. Receiving a “best of” award allows you to reach and attain instant credibility among a whole new group of potential customers. “Best of” list readers customarily browse list categories when they’re looking to do business, from finding the best ice cream parlor to the best five best business blogs in your area.

Now listen to this— if you are a contributor to a particular publication, with your publisher’s or editor’s approval, you can launch your own annual “best of” list! While you’re at it, you can also create an advertising campaign around it and make your editor or publisher twice as happy. Creating a “best of” list has the potential to facilitate building and sustaining relationships with ambitious movers and shakers and greatly expand your influence and credibility.

Enter a business award competition

This tactic has a not insignificant cost of time and money, but it’s often a reasonable avenue to pursue because there are more ways to win than you might think. Sponsoring organizations are typically generous with the number of awards and categories they choose to honor. More awards and more categories are an incentive for business owners and leaders to become contestants because there will be more opportunities to win.

Be advised that as with any marketing campaign, there are expenses involved. You’ll be required to join the sponsoring organization. You must pay the award entry fee for every award category that your company pursues—-best new product launch, business of the year, best workplace, social responsibility award and so on. You must buy one or more tickets to the ceremony (even when it’s virtual). The awards process could represent the entirety of your outfit’s annual marketing budget.

After compiling a draft list of possibilities, check the award entry criteria. It’s likely that candidates must join the organization in order to compete for an award and that will be your first expense. Annual dues may run from a few hundred dollars to $1000 or more, depending on the sponsor. Confirm also when new members will be eligible to compete for an award. Next, investigate other entry facts—-the entry application deadline, the fees and whether candidates must be nominated to compete for the award.

Be a podcast guest

There are dozens of podcasts popping up like wildflowers after a summer rain and every host is on the lookout for smart, savvy and entertaining guests. That can be you!

So how can you make that happen? Keyword search podcasters that cover topics you can address. Listen to a few episodes to get a feel for the host’s interview style, listening audience and guests. Instead of sending an email to make your pitch to the host, devise a personal and impactful appeal by creating a video or audio clip to present your proposal. Tell the host:

  • Topics you’d like to cover
  • Why you think podcast listeners will find the information relevant and the insights and benefits that will be derived
  • Elevator Pitch-style info about you to communicate your credibility—-expertise, experience, noteworthy clients and popularity—- you’ve written a book, your blog has 5000 followers, you’re a contributing writer for a respected publication, you’ve won a business award

Identify podcasts that maintain an online archive of episodes, to increase the long term accessibility of your appearance. As well, you should post the link of your podcast guest appearance on your website landing page and on the landing pages of your social media accounts. Because you’ll have the program link, you’ll add to some impressive, trust-building audio content that you can edit or serve up in its entirety.

Podcasts, whether you are the host or the guest, deliver numerous benefits to your brand and business. On the most basic level, it’s a networking and relationship opportunity for you and your host. As you negotiate your way through scheduling and topic selection, to say nothing of the interview itself, you and your host get to know one another and learn about one another’s capabilities. Potentially, a mutual referral source can ensue.

During the interview, podcast guests speak in depth about the product or service you provide, without becoming sales- y. You also describe the customers you usually sell to or work with and explain what motivates prospects to come to you and present a broad-brush overview of how you provide the solutions your customers need.

Communicate the story well and you’ll establish yourself as an industry expert, a thought leader who’s a cut above competitors. You’ll position yourself as a highly capable and dependable professional. You’ll build both brand awareness and brand trust.

Two final preparation steps for your podcast (or webinar) guest appearance will ensure communications. First, be certain that helpful technical equipment is in hand— you’ll need a decent microphone and headphones so that host, you and audience members can clearly hear one another.

Second, you’ll be expected to promote your guest spot and help your host to do so as well. Four weeks ahead of your appearance, post the podcast notice on your website and social media accounts. Help the host to promote and also introduce you to the listening audience and send a media kit three to six weeks in advance of the show.

Contribute articles

Since 2014, I’ve been a staff writer at Lioness Magazine , an online publication whose primarily female target readers (75%) are entrepreneurs, self- employed professionals and corporate or not-for-profit sector executives. How did I do it?

Starting in about 2012, once a week I posted a business how- to article on a large self- publishing website Ezine Articles. As luck would have it, the co- founder and Managing Editor of Lioness Magazine was using the site as a place to buy good content for the new magazine. There are perhaps 100,000 articles posted in the business category and by some miracle, my articles were discovered. After purchasing several of my articles from Ezine, the Managing Editor contacted me and asked to buy articles directly.

Building a solid online reputation is essential for your business (unless you are very well connected and don’t need it. I know such people). First, when prospective clients search you online, you want them to find good content. You present yourself to prospective clients as an expert and your articles are one persuasive way to back up that claim.

Second, the Google EAT algorithm (expertise, authority, trustworthiness) still impacts our SEO ranking in 2022. When you publish presumably useful, accurate articles on a regular basis, it’s a favorable act in the eyes of powerful opinion maKer Google.

Do you read business publications— local, regional , or national? If not, I recommend that you do. There is sometimes an appeal to recruit aspiring contributors. If you’re a reasonably competent writer, give it a try.

Speak (or moderate) on a panel

Appearing on a panel as either a speaker or moderator is a golden opportunity, a wonderful way to demonstrate your expertise and ability to think on your feet. Appearing on a panel is also a gateway to receiving featured and keynote speaking engagements. Seeking out programs where panel discussions are regularly featured is an excellent marketing strategy.

There is an art to panel discussions, whether you are the moderator or a speaker and if you want to be invited to participate a second time, make sure that you perform well the first time.

Make sure that you know the subject. You’re invited to join the panel to share your deep knowledge and experience and/or your intriguing and compelling perspectives regarding the subject matter. You are there to inform and enlighten the audience.

Donate to a charity auction

Many charitable organizations auction off products and services donated by local businesses to raise money at their annual fundraiser, which in most cases will draw a minimum of 100 supporters. If I might, I’ll apply the surprisingly accurate Pareto’s Principle here, commonly known as the 80/20 Rule, and predict that for every 100 guests at the charity’s fundraiser, 20 will be your prospects.

Much will depend upon your product or service line and B2C goods and services have the advantage. Research the online auction items available at any 501(C)3 fundraiser and get an idea of what bidders find interesting and what Development Directors tend to accept. You may be able to create a special service that you only offer through your charity auction marketing campaigns.

Contact the Development Office after you’ve checked the organization website to learn the approximate date of the next fundraiser and ensure that its mission aligns with your brand and values. If your in-kind donation receives a couple of auction bids, the organization may contact you to donate again next year.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

Image: © Slim Aarons/ Hulton Archive (1955) Paintings on sale at the Portobello Road Market, London

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Course Correction: Tacking Through Headwinds

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When you decide to become a Freelance consultant or business owner, your mission is to build and launch a successful and sustainable entity. To that end, there will be Important Things you must do very well and a corresponding list of Big Mistakes you must avoid and summarily correct if you fall into the trap. Our old friend the SWOT Analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities & Threats) reminds us that when leading a venture there’s always something to analyze, fix, capitalize on, or avoid. Below is a list of usual suspects that can tank a business. Be on guard!

Failure to understand the customer

Apologies for hammering this topic in nearly every post, but it’s impossible to overstate the fact. If you plan to become self-employed or open a business (and you must make a plan, even if it’s an outline scrawled on a cocktail napkin), you must be assured that you:

1). Have an accurate description and understanding of the customer segments you expect to buy from you and

2). Verify that your choice of prospective customers has a need, if not compelling reasons, to buy your product or service at a volume that will sustain your venture. In short, you’ll need a critical mass of paying customers.

Failure to research the marketplace

First thing you do is research the chosen industry and confirm that your sector is on an upward slope because under no circumstances do you want to enter a shrinking market. Also, search for announcements of new products and services that will soon be released, to verify that a competitor will not make your product or service obsolete. Furthermore, search for updates that may reveal potential new customer groups for you, or shifting demand for current products and services. In other words, customer loyalty can wax or wane, new iterations and uses of what’s available can develop and nothing is static and forever.

Failure to choose a good business model

Create your roadmap for customer acquisition and achieving profitability. Included in your assessment will be how you’ll source, create and bring your goods or services to customers. Decide also the payment methods you’ll accept and when payment will be made (billing after the product or service has been delivered to the customer or payment when the goods are ordered?).

Failure to develop a coherent marketing strategy

It will be tremendously helpful to create a multi-prong marketing strategy in which you’ll outline basic promotional goals for what you’re selling—-sales/marketing funnel, newsletter, blog, social media, branding, PR, website messages. All paths must travel in the same direction. All elements , text and images, must advance and support the same story.

Failure to create an effective customer acquisition and retention strategy

Identifying the customer groups that you’ve confirmed are a natural fit for your products and services is only half the story (sorry!). You then need a plan to reach out to them— that’s what your marketing and brand appeal exist to do. The value of your products and services, plus the efficiency of how you deliver to the customer, along with your diligent quality control, customer service and post-sale support impact customer retention and referrals.

Failure to anticipate required cash-flow

Posts on March 15 and April 19 addressed pricing and cash-flow, as regular readers will recall. The objective is to lay the groundwork for generating sufficient revenue to pay expenses, pay employees, pay yourself and reinvest in the business. Timing is everything and money must be available when you need it most. If there are gaps, corrective action should be taken immediately.

If invoicing is how you generate revenue, take steps to invoice on time. Insert on every invoice a polite phrase to indicate that payment is due upon its receipt. Give yourself an infusion of cash by asking for 15-20 % up front on projects where you anticipate billing $1000 or more. Worse case scenario, you’ll have to take an under-the radar unglamorous part-time job or get lucky and score an adjunct teaching gig at a local college or business incubator (BTW, I’ve done all of the above).

Failure to price appropriately

Pricing is an integral component of the marketing strategy but it often gets treated as an afterthought. Your revenue projections will underperform if you don’t price appropriately. Prices must support profitability as well as be perceived as reasonable to prospective customers. They must reflect your brand, whether luxury/premium, mid-market or discount. Think carefully about the message that your prices send to prospective customers.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

Photograph: On the rocks, aftermath of a nor’easter at Lewis Wharf in Boston Harbor, October 17, 2019

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5-Star Client Onboarding Leads to Smooth Sailing

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Hallelujah, you’ve just brought in a client, and a good one. You and the team are psyched to start working and prove your bona fides but may I suggest that you slow down and present what might be called a “soft opening” for your new client? While you want to honor deadlines, it’s good business to first give new clients a proper introduction to your company, an opportunity to understand how his/her team and yours will pleasantly and efficiently get the job done.

This first order of business is a powerful move purposed to set the stage for a mutually satisfying working partnership. As it is for so many important goals, when your intention is to develop positive and long-lasting client relationships, it makes sense to begin with the end in mind. When you consider the big picture you’ll realize that an effective client retention strategy actually starts with good onboarding.

Onboarding is a series of choreographed actions that introduce new clients to your company and show them how to access and utilize the value in your products, services and organization—-everything that made them recognize you as The One. Your onboarding program sets the tone for productive client-company relationships, signaling that client expectations will be met and reconfirming that selecting you to do business with was a wise choice. Ideally, the onboarding experience you present will amplify your clients’ trust and confidence in you and your organization, resulting in referrals, recommendations and repeat business.

Onboarding is integral to client retention and limiting client churn, meaning one-and-done assignments. I don’t have to remind you that it costs at least five times the resources— your time and money—- to land a new client than it does to keep those you have. There will always be one-off projects but continually starting at zero and chasing prospects is expensive in terms of time, money and energy.

The top two reasons for client churn are 1) the client doesn’t understand your product; and 2) the client doesn’t know how to obtain the expected value from the product. Your thoughtfully designed and well-presented 5-star onboarding protocols can solve both problems. Here’s how you can greet new clients and start persuading them to become long-time fans and devotees of your organization.

Onboarding building blocks

Along with a welcome email, in which you thank the client for choosing your company over the other potential options and letting the client know how excited you are to work together, a 5-star onboarding recipe can include all or some of the following. Making the client and his/ her team feel confident in and comfortable with you and your team is the onboarding purpose.

  • Video tutorial
  • Live online or in-person product training
  • Follow-up video or phone call to confirm that the client is properly using the product or service purchased and is satisfied with the results and outcomes (and to troubleshoot where necessary)
  • In- person or videoconference meeting to introduce your project team and the client’s team, to discuss roles, milestones, invoicing schedules, reporting updates and the like
  • Company logo swag items and/ or a gift basket delivered to the client

The good news is that your new client already likes and trusts you and believes in your product or service and that’s why the decision to work with your organization was made. Build on these front-loaded advantages by creating an onboarding method that shows clients how to have positive experiences when using your product or service and working with your team. Your onboarding process is a follow-up step of the promises made in your sales talking points.

The onboarding process has lasting benefits for your clients and your business. Onboarding makes clients’ lives easy. It is vital to lowering client acquisition costs, increasing client retention, increasing the average lifetime value of clients and supports business growth.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

Image: Super yacht Saint Nicolas (230′ 4″/ 70.2 m) at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival

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Make Email Subject Lines Pop

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Email marketing is an all-star player in your outbound marketing lineup. During the 15 month pandemic shutdown email marketing which, BTW, includes your blog posts and newsletters, became even more important as business leaders struggled to maintain communication with clients and prospects.

Think about it—-before you can schedule a video call to launch a full-on sales presentation, you need to establish contact with would-be prospects and open the door to the buyer’s journey. LeadGen is how to keep your sales pipeline filled and the process deserves a comprehensive inbound and outbound approach.

The challenge with email marketing is getting your message opened and read, even when the recipient knows your company. The powerful decision-makers you need to reach are pummeled with dozens of emails every day, Monday to Friday (and sometimes on the weekend). To manage the inflow, your decision-maker prospects are constantly prioritizing their inbox, often setting up filters and other gateways to organize messages that help them respond to important and urgent notes as efficiently as possible.

If you expect to persuade your intended prospect to click on your email in the midst of a typical deluge, it’s imperative that your email stand out in the best way. The way to do that is to create a stop-and-read subject line, an irresistible headline, that acts like a magnet. The subject line is the single most important part of an email because the opportunity to tell your story is lost if your email is sent to trash. The success of your marketing strategy is tied to the open rate of your sales/ marketing emails.

So, how does one create an intriguing, arresting, read-me email subject line? While every subject line is unique, there are guidelines to keep in mind as you write. In short, your subject line must tell recipients that your email contains information they’ll consider valuable, or somehow interesting, maybe a tad controversial or unexpected.

Eye-catching

Words such as free, limited offer and new are among those that can potentially make your subject line grab the reader. Providing a contrarian or surprising fact or statistic that challenges a common belief can likewise be compelling. Info that concerns a recent change in the industry is an update that many clients and prospects will appreciate.

Call-to-action

A call-to-action asks the reader to do something — learn, win, sign up, give feedback, for example. Many emails that drop into the average inbox lack an interesting, appealing subject line. It’s so easy for the eye to slide over much that is sent.

Devise an amusing, novel, or practical call-to-action that will both grab attention and either inspire or dare your intended reader to read on.

What’s in it for the reader?

Do you sell a product or service that can help your email recipients make money, save money, or save time? Can you help the reader’s organization achieve a mission-critical goal faster, more easily and maybe at a lower than expected cost? All of these scenarios offer value to your recipient and are enticing benefits to include in your subject line.

Be concise

Your subject line must do a lot of work in a small space. It must grab attention with a call to action, tempt the recipient with what could be in it for him/her and concisely getting to the point.The ideal length of an email subject line varies between mobile, desktop, and tablet devices, so keep this in mind as you craft the perfect one-liner for your sales email. On average, the maximum subject line is about 40 characters so that it can be seen in its entirety on phone, tablet, laptop, or desk model devices.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

Image: Attention grabbing front page headline in the Roswell (NM) Daily Record July 8, 1947 issue

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Crash-Proof Your Business

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If there’s anything Freelancers and other business owners and leaders have learned over the past year is that positioning your company to survive adversity is high priority. Baking in stewardship policies that include risk management strategies designed to shield the company from the effects of marketplace instability (or maybe just a tough competitor) is a must-do.

Maintain the business in the way you maintain your home—painting the deck, caulking bathroom tiles, checking the foundation for cracks, putting a sealant on the driveway. When the inevitable blizzards and hurricanes arrive, you’ll weather the storms (earthquakes and tornadoes are something else again, of course).

There is no precise formula for the process. I recommend that business owners and leaders focus on the reliable benefits derived from this short list of basic resources: human capital, operational capabilities, a healthy culture and cash reserves.

Whether a solopreneur Freelancer or leader of a team of 100 or more, know that good leadership yields the best business results, in good times and bad. Those at the top of the organizational pyramid are the responsible party and have great influence on whether the venture finds success or failure. Creating a sustainable business model and obtaining sufficient start-up and working capital are how a good business is born. But there is more.

Company culture

Creating a healthy company culture is a business-sustaining strategy. Business owners and leaders should understand that when top-down and bottom- up communication is the norm, when leaders model a strong work ethic, when transparency and best practices are followed both internally and externally in customer relationships and when respect, coupled with a degree of autonomy, is given to employees at every level, a winning strategy, expressed through a healthy company culture, takes hold. Good company culture results in employees who are happy, productive and loyal to the organization.

Human capital

Providing skills-building training and coaching is an investment that also encourages employee loyalty and enables company leaders to maximize their productivity. Such policies and practices nurture company loyalty and come as close as possible to ensuring that when the going gets rough, the company will have a team dedicated to the organization and willing to work hard and smart to support a turnaround. This strategy also gives companies a reputation as a good place to work and acts as a magnet for top talent.

Strategy

The most effective business strategies are uncomplicated. Learn to distill yours down to one page. When speaking to your banker or potential investors, potential strategic partners, or high-level talent you’d like to hire, the ability to articulate a readily understandable and relatable business strategy will build confidence in you and the company you lead. Start clarifying and simplifying the strategy that guides your venture:

Vision for the future

Big picture goals (short-term, mid-range and long-term)

Key Performance Indicators and the department responsible for each

Top line revenue and market share, two metrics that indicate the quality of the business strategy.

Execution

Strategy is nothing without execution. An effective leader gets the plane into the air and flying at cruising altitude. To achieve that aim, properly trained staff, effective and intuitive workflow protocols, IT hardware and software that create operational efficiencies, quality control and an end-to-end positive customer experience are required. Errors, confusion and duplication of work undermine productivity, erode employee morale and result in weakened revenue and profit.

Defining the intended outcomes, practicing good communication, establishing efficient workflow organization, the required technology and the appropriate staffing level and expertise will likely repair obstacles to proper execution. Action plans, complete with departmental responsibility and due dates that the team consents to, ensure accountability and optimal results.

Cash

Small to mid-size companies would be wise to hold in reserve three to six months of projected operating expenses. That sum is meant to carry your company through a difficult time or allow you to take advantage of a business opportunity.

Bear in mind that every business is different. The amount of your company’s cash reserve will depend on where the company is. Start-up, new product launch, capital improvements campaign, or growth-expansion-scaling periods are not the time to build the reserve because available cash must be used to support those important initiatives. Discuss with your accountant about when it will make sense to start a capital reserve fund and how much it should hold.

It is also possible to use financing to build your company’s cash reserve and now may be the time to act. The SBA’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) Loan on March 30 was extended until May 31, 2021. The PPP Loan can be forgiven and essentially become a grant, but not every loan recipient is able to fulfill the qualifiers. Worse case scenario, the PPP must be repaid within two years at a 1% interest rate.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

Image: The Indy 500

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Pandemic Sales Tactics

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The New World Order ushered in by the coronavirus has forced all Freelancers and business owners and leaders to learn to be resilient and to steward our organizations in ways that are forward-thinking and flexible. Selling the company’s products and services to generate revenue has taken on an even more central role. There is heightened recognition that the roles of marketing, branding, public relations, advertising, networking and social media are to encourage sales, to attract qualified prospects and convert them to customers.

Now that the COVID era is here, whatever your company previously did to promote sales must be adjusted to get in step with the new reality. As of this writing it appears that we won’t return to “business as usual” anytime soon, if ever. Consider this the wake-up call to update the selling protocols at your organization and prepare to compete more effectively in today’s marketplace.

Selling is the purpose

As noted, it is no longer possible to put the components of a company’s sales process on automatic pilot. Nurturing the brand, revving up the social media presence, strategic networking, targeting of content marketing posts and the like are all relevant but bear in mind that those activities are the “way to the way.” The way a company survives is by making sales. The purpose of a company’s sales process is winning business and that function is the real-time measure of all your imaginatively conceived business strategies.

It’s vital that the sales team (that means you, Freelancer Friend and small business owner) the information and other resources needed to sell effectively, because there’s less business available now.

Start by learning what your clients fear and what they’re prioritizing, in response to how COVID has impacted their organizations. You have likely been in touch with your current clients at least once or twice since the shutdown and subsequent (partial) reopening but if you haven’t done so, send a New Year’s card and follow it up with an outreach themed phone call or email—you’re just checking in to see how the client is doing. How’s business? How are they managing? Listen well and empathize.

Deliver what customers value now

Dive into the social media accounts of past, current and prospective clients to get intel on how they’re communicating with their customers and discover what is being promoted now. The goal is to obtain insights into as many specific reasons as possible that might incline clients and prospects to do business with your company rather than the competition.

You want to understand the issues that may drive customer decisions. This is also your method to discover any obstacles that could potentially impact the use of your products and services, for better or worse. Remember that COVID has collapsed some industries and revitalized others.

Based on what your investigation shows, forecast the perhaps now revised client needs that your organization can address, what new (or ongoing) problems you can help clients resolve. Then, build a strategy to capitalize on what you’ve learned and repackage your offerings.

Map the new sales process

Get used to it, your sale will most likely take place by videoconference. You’ll be at an advantage when sales calls are with clients you already know. When meeting with new prospects you’ll have to work a little harder, but that is always the case. Regardless, do yourself a favor and hire a videoconference tech for three hours to set up your call and monitor it in progress, and allow yourself to focus on how to use your platform’s technology to communicate and connect with your prospect and sell.

Consider presenting a (video) show and tell for a product sale or a pre-taped video testimonial featuring a happy client who’s had a good experience with the product or service you’ll discuss (client success story/ verbal case study). Call in a guest speaker on your team who is an expert on using the product (engineer or the product manager) to provide additional information, take questions and reassure the prospect. If selling a B2B service, a few slides that show the ROI would also help the sale.

Perfect the sales experience

If the prospect is working at the office, or if you happen to know his/ home address, why not add a flourish and have lunch or coffee and pastry simultaneously delivered to the prospect and yourself? You and your prospect can still enjoy a meal together, relax and begin to bond, even if remotely. Morning meetings could benefit when coffee + is delivered at the start, but lunchtime and other afternoon meetings will probably be best served when food is delivered at around the half way point.

Thoughtful planning that keeps the client at the center of the sales process will guide your organization to refocus its sales process in ways that benefit client expectations and the experience. Relationships and referrals that will set your venture on an upward trajectory begin here, with how you manage the sale.

Thanks to all of you for reading my posts! YourHappy New Year,

Kim

Image: Actress Myrna Loy (R) sells cigarettes to actor William Powell (L) and his wife Diana Lewis at a 1940 Franco-British War Relief charity event held at the Cocoanut Grove supper club in Hollywood.