Category Archives: Technology & Online

Twitter Mastery, Small Business-Style!

Cartoon blue bird sitting on rope, singing - "Tweet" comes out of its mouth in a bubble. Keyword: Twitter

Twitter – love it or hate it, you can’t get away from it. So why not learn how to use it? We asked Allan Pollett, social media consultant and the “SEO Guru”, to talk to us about stragegies for entrepreneurs to make Twitter work as hard for their small businesses as they do…and he didn’t disappoint!

Beginning with the Twitter Basics

Twitter is great, Pollett explains, because it lets us communicate with anyone in the world at any moment – no phones, no wait times for mail delivery, no need for even formal introductions. Twitter has a billion accounts, and you can send out messages, or tweets, to each of them from your Twitter account, with no charge per tweet.

You can put links, images, gif files, and videos in a tweet.

You can Like and Retweet tweets that other Twitter users have made.

You can track views of your tweets, engagement with them, and other analytic information.

Hashtag #Madness!

When you send a tweet, it shows up on the timeline of each person that follows you. You won’t have any followers when you join Twitter, and most people don’t have followers (although some do!) However, you can increase the potential audience for a tween by using hashtags. A hashtag looks likes this: #. When you add it to a word or phrase (like #ThursdayThoughts), then anyone who searches the #ThursdayThoughts hashtag, even if they don’t know you, will see your tweet and maybe interact with it. You’ve expanded your reach and joined the conversation about Thursday Thoughts!

Hashtags are a great tool for businesses, and Alan talks about a few great ways to leverage their power.

The 60-40 Rule

Because Allan is such a Twitter rockstar, he actually figured out that Twitter works best for businesses when 60% of their tweets are business-related (tweets about products, offers, sales) and 40% are other information that your customers might find useful – articles, resources, relevant humour. Great tip: People really like quotations by famous people, and tend to share them with others.

Growing Your Twitter Following

Call a tweet to someone’s attention by tagging it with @ and their twitter handle:

Hey @businesssolver! Love your webinar series!

(I guarantee that if we saw this, we would like it, retweet it, and follow you! Just saying.)

When you tag someone in this way, you leverage not only your audience, but theirs too. If their audience is very big, that could be very good for you!

Alan has a technique for finding and growing an audience that’s truly interested in you and what you have to say. Check out the webinar to see what it is! (Here’s a hint: Follow your competitors’ followers!)

Final Things to Consider…

  1. Keep your tweets engaging.
  2. Use hashtags that reach a large audience (3 or 4 per Tweet)
  3. Jump right in and make yourself part of the conversation! It’s not that scary…really!

Thanks so much to Allan Pollett for helping us out today! You can learn more about Allan and the services he offers at his website.

This is our last webinar for 2019! We’re busy getting the line-up for 2020 together, so please let us know if there’s a topic you’d like covered. Happy Holidays!

Small Business Marketing on a Small Business Budget

When you’re a small business owner just starting out, keeping costs low is a priority. But you also must let people know that you’re in business, offering products and services that that they want – you have to do marketing, and marketing costs money! What’s the solution? How can you do small business marketing on a small business budget?

Fear not – you have plenty of options for cheap and cheerful marketing, and we’ve made the replay of webinar we did on the subject available for you to study and consider. You’ll learn about easy-to-use small business marketing tools that are free or almost free, including:

  1. Your smile!
  2. 30-Second Pitch (Elevator Pitch)
  3. Your voicemail message
  4. Business cards
  5. Your email signature
  6. Demonstrations and examples
  7. Customer follow-ups
  8. Feedback forms
  9. Testimonials
  10. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tool

You’ll also learn about Small Business Solver’s Marketing Solver Tool. This assessment uses your responses to questions about your small business marketing needs (your goals, the sort of impact you’d like to create, the time span in which you want to implement a marketing campaign, your budget) you to make suggestions about which of the 300 marketing tools currently out there will work best for you. Each marketing tool suggestion comes with an information sheet you can view about how to most effectively use the tool.

Small Business Marketing Doesn’t Have to Break the Bank

Some tools do cost money, but you can keep your initial marketing efforts low-cost until you have some cash flowing into your business. You can then increase your marketing budget as your finances allow. Use what’s available to you effectively and re-evaluate your budget as you become able to – and please let us know what the process is like for you! You can reach us on Facebook and Twitter, and you can email us at smallbusinesssolver@gmail.com.

Was this useful? View more of our webinars on our YouTube channel!

SEO 2015 and Beyond

Search Engine Optimization keeps changing! Small business owners need to keep on top of this to make sure that their small business is found online.

There are some significant changes that happened in early 2015 that you should take note of right now!

Watch this less than 20 minute video to learn everything that you need to know now.

Contact the Expert
Allan Pollett
allanp73@gmail.com
www.allanpollett.com

How To Set Up An Ecommerce Website

If you aren’t online, then you are missing out on business.

Especially with the advances, there are some really easy ways to get started. But there are also some complexities that will creep up depending on how you are planning on setting it up.

Some things that will help you figure out what platform and set up that you need for your ecommerce site are:

1. How many products are you selling?
2. What type of products are you selling?
3. How many places are you shipping from?
4. How many places are you shipping to?
5. How many states, provinces, and countries are you shipping to?
6. How many transaction do you have?

Go through the main points of what you need to consider. See some of the options out there. And learn what to look out for.

Contact the Expert

Kagan Mustafa
kagan@smallbusinesssolver.com

SEO Now!

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is always changing. Your website is ranked based on staying up to date on these changes.

Learn the ins and outs of what is changing in SEO and how this could impact whether or not people find your small business online. If you don’t know these tips and what changes your rankings could drop!

On the flip side, there are things that haven’t changed and may never change. What this means for your small business is that if you focus on these best practices, your small business website will be protected and maintain its high rank regardless of SEO changes.

Keep up to date on all of the Search Engine Optimization changes for small business as we run online seminar like this every 6 months.


 
Contact The Expert
 
Allan Pollett
allanp73@gmail.com
 
 

Latest & Greatest Social Media 2014

Social media is always changing!! It is important as a small business owner to stay social mediaon top of these changes and how this will impact your business online.

This 30 minute video talks about how social media is changing and where it is headed. Specific new tools are reviewed and any way that you can use them in small business is discussed.

After the webinar, a few questions were asked.

1. What other goals can you have for your social media?
– you can do market research, marketing testing, and find out how your customers actually feel about your business.

2. How do you decide where to spend your time?
– start with the basic ones, LinkedIn and Twitter are more stable to invest time into. Explore the new social media platforms when you have ‘free time’.

3. How can you think out of the box and become viral in your social media marketing?
– social media isn’t as viral as we all think it is. It is all about reaching a certain threshold where your video or post is highly ranked in its search. To get there, promote to your network and friends. Once you hit the threshold this becomes easier and easier.

Contact The Expert
Allan Pollett
allanp73@gmail.com

 

Resources

https://www.snapchat.com/
https://vine.co/
https://www.houzz.com/
https://www.impossible.com/
https://www.mobli.com/
https://www.yioop.com/
https://www.linkedin.com
https://www.twitter.com
https://www.facebook.com

Marketing Automation for Small Business

When we think marketing we often think advertising. But with business becoming more of a science, there are now marketing software out there that can help grow your business.
 
Obviously technology is more than just social media and your computer, and this is your opportunity to understand what some of those tools are that could help your business.
 
Marketing automation is one of the newest techniques out there. And it is becoming increasingly important as by 2020 it is estimated that 85% of a company’s customer interactions will be automated and through technology. This means that these marketing automation best practices are only going to become more important.
 
The 10 Commandments of Marketing Automation
 
1. Be 100% customer focused. What are your customers pain points?
2. Be pressure free. Gone are the days of the pushy sales person.
3. Support the internal sale. Remember that you are working with more than the decider when you are selling. There are influencers and other stakeholders you need to communicate with.
4. Marketing automation is part of your integrated inbound marketing strategy.
5. Drive repeat purchases. Keep them engaged!
6. Content driven. Have relevant new content to keep them interested.
7. It must be multi channel. Not everyone uses one communication channels. There are many and they are growing!
8. Reflect interest, not just action. Interest is important too!
9. Accessible no matter how someone is accessing the information.
10. Cross platform. The new normal is using different devices.
 
Find out more and what software is available through the video!
 

 
Contact the Expert
 
Andrea Orozco
andrea@think-kik.com
 

Public Relations for Small Business

 
Public relations (PR) is one of the most effective forms of marketing. Why? It is instantly credible and it often gets your business into mediums that you might not be able to access otherwise.
 
Think about when you read a newspaper, instantly any business that is mentioned or quoted is considered more credible or a leader in the field. The same applies if you hear someone presenting, on the radio, or even mentioned on a blog. Taking advantage of this low cost and effective marketing tool becomes critical.
 
Some of the top things to remember about PR is this;
1. Know your public.
2. Target communication.
3. Be consistent.
4. Know the tools and resources available to you.
5. Plan ahead.
 
To learn all of the details and tricks from a PR consultant, check out the video.
 

 
Contact the Expert
 
Sandra Gabriel
sandra@gabrielpr.ca
 
Like the PowerPoint presentation? PR 101
 

Additional Resources

 
Press News Release Outlets
Briefing Wire https://www.briefingwire.com/
PR Log https://www.prlog.org/
News Box https://newsbox.com/
Press Release Point https://pressreleasepoint.com/
My PR Genie https://www.myprgenie.com/
Pamper Me Network https://www.youdeservetobepampered.com
PR Link (Toronto) https://prlink.insidetoronto.com/
 
News & Articles
68 Articles https://68articles.com/
Article Alley https://www.articlealley.com
Article Base https://www.articlesbase.com/
Article Click https://www.articleclick.com/
E-Zine Articles https://ezinearticles.com/
Ezine Mark https://ezinemark.com/
Go Articles https://goarticles.com/
Scribd https://www.scribd.com
gabrielpr.ca https://www.gabrielpr.ca/wp-admin
Women’s Post https://www.womenspost.ca
Biz Sugar https://www.bizsugar.com
 
Extended Distribution List
www.betanews.com
www.highwire.stanford.edu
www.newslink.org
www.marketwire.com
www.editorandpublisher.com
www.prnewswire.com
www.internetworldstats.com
www.newswire.ca
www.prweb.com
www.businesswire.com
www.programmersheaven.com
www.emediawire.com
www.MYPRGENIE.com
www.threadwatch.org
www.pr-inside.com
www.24-7pressrelease.com
www.pr.com
www.mediapost.com
www.tmcnet.com
www.newswiretoday.com
www.our-hometown.com
www.prlog.org
www.pressreleasenetwork.com
www.betanews.com
www.earthvision.net
www.promotionworld.com
www.downloadjunction.com
www.press-world.com
www.majon.com
www.clickpress.com
www.bookcatcher.com
www.businessportal24.com
www.webnewswire.com
www.przoom.com
www.urlwire.com
www.billhartzer.com
www.groupweb.com
www.newspad.com
www.1888pressrelease.com
www.expertclick.com
www.gebbieinc.com
www.newsforce.com
www.imediafax.com
www.eworldwire.com
www.ereleases.com
www.press-release-writing.com
www.searchwarp.com
www.dbusiness.com
www.eceurope.com
www.devarchive.com
www.emailwire.com
www.softwaremarketingresource.com
www.seo-pr.com
www.powerhomebiz.com
www.readmedia.com
www.send2press.com
www.openpr.com
www.store.1choice4ystore.com
www.prleap.com
www.pressbox.co.uk
www.usprwire.com
www.free-press-release.com
www.ukprwire.com
www.theopenpress.com
www.prurgent.com
www.upload.it
www.storebuilder.co.uk
www.free-press-release-center.info
www.malebits.com
www.softpressrelease.com
www.promaxum.com
www.epressreleases.org
www.dime-co.com
www.softwarewire.com
www.ecommwire.com
www.lunareclipse.net
www.sbwire.com
www.pressflash.com
www.pressrelease365.com
www.ukprwire.com
www.pressreleasepivot.com
www.pressexposure.com
www.prfree.com
www.ideasiteforbusiness.com
www.thepublish.com
www.press-base.com
www.targetwire.com
www.express-press-release.com
www.profnet.org
www.thehostingnews.com
www.newsblaster.com
www.myfreepr.com
www.ideamarketers.com
www.afreego.com
www.addpr.com
www.symbcity.com
www.mediasyndicate.com
www.news.baou.com
www.eboomwebsolutions.com
www.internetwriters.com
www.webwire.com
www.mediapeak.com
www.epicinnovations.com
www.prwindow.com
www.exchangenet.com
www.onlinepressreleases.com
www.prudentpressagency.com
www.freepressrelease.org
www.pressabout.com
www.afly.com
www.pressreleasecirculation.com
www.opportunityupdate.com
www.prbuzz.com
www.africanewswire.net
www.publicrelations.uk.com
www.fastprnews.com
www.hungarynewswire.com
www.prnuke.com
www.press.xtvworld.com
www.e-syndicate.net
www.emeapr.com
www.hotmicrocap.com
www.learn-more.org
www.sanepr.com
www.baygo.com
www.XpressPress.com
www.internetnewsbureau.com
www.businessopportunity.biz
www.exactrelease.com
www.bizeurope.com
www.devpress.com
www.i-newswire.com
www.bignews.biz/
https://pressexposure.com/
https://newsreleaser.com/
www.healthprspider.com/
www.freepressrelease.com
https://freepressindex.com/
www.ideamarketers.com
www.yourfreepressrelease.net
www.pressreleasepublic.com
www.release-news.com
www.booshplr.com
www.press-release-articles.com
www.imnewswatch.com
www.prfriend.com
www.pressreleasepad.com
www.postafreepressrelease.com/
www.pressreleasehome.com/
www.pressreleaseroom.com
www.fastpressreleaser.com
www.pressreleasestudio.com
www.qualitypressreleaser.com
www.anyrelease.com

 

 

Writing For The Web

Netwriting or writing on the web is an evolving art. With more and more consumers turning to the web prior to making a purchase, it is becoming a more important medium.

Some of the questions that are answered in this video are;
– how do you write differently for web?
– how do you write differently for mobile phones?
– where do you put the most important messages?
– what are some emerging trends in online writing?

Some best practices when writing in general is to use the inverted pyramid approach where the most important or key points are at the top. Another is to use an active voice and ensure that the message is what the audience is looking for.

Web writing takes these writing best practices and turbo charges them with some other things you need to take into consideration.

1. Simplicity. Web needs to simple. Mobile needs to be even more simple.
2. Scan-able. People read websites in a pre defined order. Make sure your most important messaging are in these areas.
3. Search-able. Traditional search engine optimization best practices are no longer as important. Content (your writing!) is becoming increasingly important and providing relevant and credible information is critical. There is an entire new industry on content marketing based on this requirement.

Contact The Expert

Paul Lalonde
Content Manager
MarketingWise
paul@marketingwise.ca

Want the PowerPoint slides?

Paul Lalonde.Web writing

Starting Up Right

 
Starting up your business can leave you feeling out of your element as you are moving up a huge learning curve. There are a few common pitfalls that you need to look out for.
 
1. Business structure
2. Planning
3. Testing for your Minimum Viable Product
4. Brand Properties
5. Loyalty / CRM
 
If you have these components in place, you are much more likely to be successful. Watch the video to understand each pitfall and the best practices around them.
 

 

Contact the Expert

 
Jazz
jazz@thestartupshop.ca
Small Business Start-up Professional
The Startup Shop Prez CL
 

Want more? Here are some additional small business resources:

 
Setup
www.Corporationcentre.ca
 
Testing
Lean Start-up: Eric Reis
The Four Hour work Week :Tim Ferris
 
CRM/NPS/Loyalty
The Ultimate Question: Fred Reichheld
www.Salesforce.com
www.Zoho.com