Lunch & Learn |
Social Media posting… We all know we need to be doing it. And so we post.
But is your posting effective?
Is anyone seeing your posts?
Is the audience you are reaching the audience that can actually be converted to customers?
There is so much more to posting on social media than just shooting a picture on your phone and then putting it on instagram with a catchy caption. That is, if you want social media to be a vehicle to grow your business (HINT HINT: as business owners this should be your goal!)
Jacqueline Jones of One Degree MMM shared with Forge the Must Do’s for creating a plan before you post anything on social media.
1. Who
Build a Customer Avatar!!
You must know everything you can know about about your customer. Everything…
Age. Gender. Family Life. Where they live. What they do for a living. When they drive to work. What they listen to while driving. How much they spend…
Gather as much data as you can. Then use that data to inform all decision making.
Do not assume that you are your target customer! Marketing can often break down when that happens. Look at your data, see who is buying your product or using your service. See who is spending the most with you and how often. This information is going to guide every decision you make for your social media and marketing strategy.
It is possible that you will have a few different avatars. Know them each and market to them each.
2. What
What is the goal you are trying to achieve with your marketing efforts. Pick a goal and then stick with it for a quarter so you can see realistic results. Now there is always the case where you determine a goal and realize quickly you need to change directions. But generally speaking, it is best practice to choose a goal, build your strategy and then give your efforts time to perform. When you do this, you get more QUALIFIED DATA about who your customer really is!
3. How
How are you going to get in touch with your customer? How are you going to get your information to your perfect customer. If you just put out a blanket post (on any platform), you will not be able to reach the people that you really want to reach. Each post must be intentional. Your tone and voice must reflect who you want to reach and why you want to reach them. Speaking of tone… always communicate on your posts the way that you would communicate in person.
4. Where
Which platform should you use? The best way to answer this question is to figure out which platforms your customers are on. And then kill it on those platforms! Don’t try to be everywhere, you simply cannot do. Or at least you cannot do it well.
As you are planning out your Social Media strategy, here are a few things that you should CHOOSE NOT to do:
- Choose Not To get caught up in frequency suggestions. Do not be lured in to believe you must follow all the advice out there. The best thing to do is be consistent. Consistency for you could mean once a week, once a day or five times a day. Determine the capacity that you have to create and post meaningful, strategic posts and then stick to it! When you are building your community on social platforms, this community is built on relationships. Relationships are trusted through consistency.
- Choose Not To create blanket content. Create content that speaks to your Avatar!
- Choose Not To be everywhere. Your customers are not everywhere, you should not be everywhere either.
- Choose Not To be fake. Do not try to be who you think people want you to be. They want you! Be you!
- Choose Not to be afraid to ask for help or guidance. As a business owner you cannot do it all. There is no shame in getting someone to help you with your Social Media Planning and Posting.
We are thankful for the work that Jacqueline is doing to help Small Business Owners grow! If you would like to contact Jacqueline to get more information or learn how she can help grow your business, you can email Jacqueline at info@onedegreemmm.com.
If you are interested in diving deeper into your business, Jacqueline is hosting Boiling Point: A Group Marketing Strategy Session, at Forge on March 11. Use the code APLAN to receive a $30 discount!
Member Spotlight |
Jacqueline Jones is a well-loved Forge member and today we’re reposting this valuable post from her personal blog! Jacqui started her company One Degree MMM which focuses on marketing and branding for small businesses and organizations. We loved this timely post as we change our mindset entering into spring!
Finally, Spring has officially arrived. Never mind the, still, bi-polar weather. It’s here, so says the calendar. Newness in any form is something we as human beings thrive off. We love to start fresh, launch new, and get rid of the old at the beginning of… well, anything. Spring is one of those times of newness, renewal, and restarting.
Many equate spring with gardening. Spring is the time to sow seeds, turn over soil, and create room for new blossoms and growth. Your branding shouldn’t be any different. So, let’s prepare your brand for growth and new heights in 3 steps!
Pick Your Flowers
Take a moment and decide how you want your new garden to look. Landscaping is an art. Marketing and landscaping are very similar during a time of transition. The goal is to take what exists and alter it in a way that makes it more attractive. To prepare our brand for greater things, we must start with a renewed vision. Now is the time to do some benchmarking and decide how you want your refreshed brand to evolve. Don’t just start implementing new things with no forethought. Let’s take a moment to create a full picture before we attempt to start painting. If you’re a One Degree FIRE Starter, you know how important goal setting is to me. I practically mention it in every email I send.
Prepare The Soil
You know how the new grand and fantastic brand will look. GREAT! What groundwork needs to be done for this transition to be successful? Just like in gardening, you may have to take some time to research what you’re putting in the ground. Many skip this step in their business in general. This process is commonly referred to as “investment.” Invest in yourself and your brand. Take that class, hire that service provider, or buy that packaging. Set yourself up for success from the beginning of this new season. Don’t just go plopping stuff in the ground with your fingers crossed and your eyes squinched expecting a miracle. Do the research. Do the work. Do what it takes to see a clear and positive change in your brand. Invest the time, money, and resources you have into your brand and yourself.
Commit To Watering Your Garden
One of my favorite phrases in life is “start out how you plan to hold out.” As you prepare for these new things within your brand’s marketing efforts, commit to seeing them through. You have to be realistic with yourself. No one requires anything of you for your brand, but you. Whatever you choose, be sure you can stay motivated (or employ whatever tactics necessary) throughout the entire season. Your dreams, visions, and plans may get the seed in the ground, but your daily commitment to them are what make them grow into your beautiful garden.
It’s time to get going. March is nearly over. The 2nd quarter of the year is just around the corner. Ready, set, GROW!
Lunch & Learn |
We all know what a sales funnel is but we don’t always know how to best implement it. Will Yarbrough of Fleetio came to Forge to teach us more about structuring your specific sales funnel and the model that Fleetio has found success with. We will hit the high points for you- be sure to check out the YouTube video of his presentation too!
A sales funnel is just a road map- where ultimately money makes it into your bank account. The road map has to be unique to your business!
Big concept: your funnel is your growth strategy
There are 3 Funnels to Rule Them All:
Marketing Funnel (this is one-to-many communication)
- Education
- Brand awareness
- Lead nurturing
- Re-engagement
Lead Funnel (also one-to-many communication, familiarity with who you are)
- Suspect/prospect
- Levels of qualification
- Post sale (helps you get additional customers)
Opportunity Funnel (one-to-one communication)
- Qualification
- Discovery
- Product
- Pricing
- Commitment
Big concept: your funnel is your key to time management
(Time is your most infinite resource!)
In the ‘awareness and consideration’ phase you focus on activities like building brand awareness and domain expertise such as blogging, videos and social media. In the ‘decision and commitment’ phase you focus on other activities like building value and bolstering your company’s credibility through webinars, case studies and business intelligence.
Remember: What gets measured gets done. If you aren’t measuring and tracking, it’ll be hard to understand what you need to do differently. Ask yourself: Where are the leaks? Where are these people coming from? (If leads are coming from social media, focus on continuing your social media and making it better!) Who should we be talking to? What’s scalable? What’s working? What’s not working? What can we tweak?
Big concept: your funnel is your fortune
Typically it takes 18 touches to reach a buyer! You must align your process with your specific customer. Continue to motivate the behaviors that are going to lead to the results you want.
What ideas you should take away:
- “No” doesn’t mean “never”- be persistent!
- Follow up and follow through (if you don’t, they’ll assume this will be their experience as a customer too)
- 50% of sales people never follow up- don’t be that person!
- Figure out your TAM (Total Addressable Market) and break it into niche pockets to focus on!
Lunch & Learn |
Corbitt Chandler of Apex Current taught our first session of March Sales Funnel Madness at Forge! Apex Current focuses on performance-driven Facebook ads so Corbitt is certainly knowledgeable about how to establish an effective sales funnel for different types of companies.
Check out our PDF that summarizes Corbitt’s Lunch & Learn. Complete with information on how to structure your landing page, the anatomy of a sales funnel, the importance of retargeting your audience and a link to Corbitt’s personal ROI Calculator.
Lunch & Learn |
In March Forge is focusing on the importance of sales funnels! Sales funnels illustrate the journey that your prospective customers go through on their way to buying your service or product. You have to take people through the funnel journey in order to get a new client! Josh Rhodes emphasized this when he talked about the importance of sales and the sales funnel at our last Business Breakthrough Session.
“Sales is the oxygen mask of your company.”
Josh Rhodes, CEO of Big Lead Gen Inc.
We have two Lunch & Learn events planned for March 13 and March 20. First, we’ll be hearing from Corbitt Chandler- the Founder and CEO of Apex Current. Apex Current uses data and analytics to create highly targeted digital marketing campaigns for your audience and CRM automation to generate qualified leads, sales, new customers and repeat buyers. Before Apex Current, Corbitt was the Vice President of Marketing for Iron Tribe for nearly three years. Iron Tribe is a fitness chain with nearly 40 locations across the Southeastern United States. Corbitt knows the importance of sales funnels! He’ll be teaching us “Effective Sales Funnels” – check out the Facebook event for more information!
Our second event will be taught by Will Yarbrough, the Sales Manager of Fleetio. Fleetio Manage helps you control the chaos of fleet operations, it’s an all-in-one fleet management software for fleets of all sizes. And Fleetio Drive tracks drivers and monitor driving behavior using only smartphones. He will be focusing on “Feeding the Funnel and Making it Count.” In our second Business Breakthrough Session, Tony Summerville (Founder of Fleetio) emphasized the importance of the sales funnel for his company. Will is here to expand on the journey their customers take! Click here to RSVP to the event.
As Josh Rhodes said, “You must perfect your funnel! These are the progressive micro commitments that your customer takes as they progress toward purchasing.” Let’s focus on sales funnels and learn together. Join us at Forge for these two events!
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