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Why Your Successful Local Business Needs Digital Marketing

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Why Your Successful Local Business Needs Digital Marketing
8Apr
Social Media

Making a local business successful is never easy—congratulations! You feel stable and you’re netting a nice profit, so you might not realize how important it is to invest in social media while you’re ahead. Let me fix that for you.

Too many times I’ve been talking to a potential client who insists that they’re successful and don’t need social media, only to look them up a year later and find that they went out of business. And they weren’t entirely wrong; these were successful local businesses! But ultimately, it doesn’t matter how successful you are, because you will always need social media.

Here’s why.

Competition Is Everywhere
Sometimes local businesses luck out and won’t have any competition for stretches of time. That’s great and makes your job easier, but you can’t count on that lasting. Let me share a real example that I’ve seen happen over and over again.

I was trying to get an Italian restaurant (let’s call them “Pastasciutta”) signed on for a social media package, but their numbers were good and they didn’t see any reason to put money into their digital marketing. And I assume that worked fine, until three months later when a new Italian restaurant moved in just a couple blocks away.

I don’t know if the new place’s food was actually better than the original’s, but they were more active on social media, so they started to get a good local following. They weren’t taking all of Pastaciutta’s customers, but a big enough portion left that the restaurant was noticeably emptier even at their peak times.

Without their own social media presence, Pastaciutta just couldn’t compete. The new place ended up moving 8 months later, but by that point, Pastaciutta had lost so much revenue that they had to close.

What’s the moral of this story? 1. Give your Italian restaurant a better name than Pastaciutta and 2. Your local business is not too good for social media. Just because it’s feast today doesn’t mean you’re safe from famine tomorrow!

I think there’s another lesson that we can pull from this story, too.

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Customers Are Fickle
If brand loyalty isn’t dead, it’s certainly on life support. A common mistake I see is assuming that people are going to support your business unconditionally. After all, if someone makes a purchase from you and you know it’s a great product, you can count on that repeat business, right?

You can’t.

It doesn’t matter if you’re the best deli/bar/haberdashery in the county; customers care infinitely more about who your brand is than what you’re selling. That’s where social media comes in! Social media marketing isn’t, at its core, about pushing your latest products or talking about how great you are (although that’s definitely a part of it). The goal of any social media campaign is to engage with the audience to form connections, and if there is ANY way to earn brand loyalty in 2019, that’s the way to do it.

And “mom and pop” store owners, don’t think you’re immune! Great customer service is nice, but people are forgetful. Unless you’re keeping your store’s name fresh in your audience’s mind, they’re not going to remember how you helped them find the perfect product or how friendly your smile was when they came through the door.

Yes, Social Is Right for You
If you want to maintain your local business’ success, then social media marketing is just non-negotiable. Don’t wait until it’s too late! Start looking into how your local business can succeed with social media.

Do you need some help planning your new social media strategy? Schedule your free consultation with The Go! Agency!

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Build Up Your Flock: 5 Ways To Be The Top Bird On Twitter

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27Oct
Advertising, Business, Copywriting, Social Media, Social networking, Tailwind, Twitter, Uncategorized

Since its incarnation in 2006, Twitter has become a major social media marketing staple. Few businesses use social media for marketing without utilizing the microblogging platform. We call it “microblogging” because it mainly performs the feature of a regular blog, only at a microscopic scale. Are you able to tell your story with 140 characters or less?

Twitter is the place for speed, efficiency, and effectivity. You need to hit your readers hard and don’t let them forget it! Are you looking for the best ways to approach the platform that has over 310 million users?

1. Use an Image – EVERY TIME. Good news! Twitter no longer counts visual media against a tweet’s 140 characters. Because of this new advantage, you have no reason for a bland, image-less tweet. None. Make sure you incorporate eye-catching imagery, so people hone in on your update.

2. Analyze trends. Twitter is the king of current events. As such, incorporate contemporary happenings into your content. While treading controversial waters can leave you burned, there’s plenty of positive, unbiased news you can use.

3. Call Upon Your Team. The beginning of a successful social media marketing campaign is your team’s efforts. Ask them to help your marketers promote their brand with their own following. Their genuine marketing efforts can go a long way.

4. Consistency. There are several social media poisons. Radio silence is one of the worse. NEVER let more than two days go without a post. People will quickly move along to the next best thing.

5. Make Your Tweets Self-Contained. A common trend in the Twitterverse is to tell a longer story in a series of tweets. This is a big no-no. What happens if one of your tweets is read out of context? “(cont’d)We would love to see you there! Make sure to come early so you get a good spot so you can see…”  Do you want something like that popping up on your feed? It’s against the laws of Twitter.

6. Promoted and Sponsored Tweets. There are paid options available on Twitter to give your marketing an extra boost. Once you have a grasp on how Twitter works, advertising is the next natural level.

7. Study Data. Don’t be a dodo. Study your current performance and see how you can improve. Is news related content doing better than promos? Maybe videos are getting more attention (they most likely are). You won’t ever know if you don’t look at your data at least once a week.

As you can see, Twitter is a bit like chess – easy to learn, hard to master. At the Go! Agency, our social media experts handle over 100 Twitter accounts for clients. Contact us today to discover how our expertise will land your company on cloud nine!

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The Single Most Heinous Crime Of Social Media Marketers

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12Sep
Social Media

As much information there is about how to use social media out there, there’s just as much about what not to do. It seems like everyone has an opinion about how to handle this social media marketing thing. Some ideas are great while others could sabotage the reader. Regardless, most professionals agree there’s one thing that no marketer should ever do…
Trying to market on social media without a strategy.

The heart and soul of your campaign should be a thought-out plan. Without a plan, your content will be aimless, and your followers will notice. However, a good strategy can usually rectify any problems marketers may come across.

As your team plans, ask the following questions:

– What results do we want from social media marketing? From an archaic viewpoint, marketing = sales, right? Seems like a simple strategy. Well, social media adds the human aspect of communication, which means that it’s all going to be a bit subjective. Engagement and brand awareness should be the biggest goals, rather than straight sales. It’s just not how the game is played anymore.

– What tone are we trying to strike? This also depends on your audience. What language, keywords / phrases, and imagery pulls in your desired customers? Figure that out and stick to it!

– Which platforms are best? Not every brand can be on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Pinterest, and Google+. Marketers need to figure out what sites are right for them. The answer may lie in the target demographics, industry, and resources available.

– How often should we post? When you decide on your platforms, your need to figure out how often you’re publishing content. Usually, social media is best with two posts a day, but you may wish to do more or less as well as sharing others’ content. Just remember, there is such a thing as too much and inconsistent sharing.

–  What tools are at our disposal? Does your marketing department have access to mobile devices such as a tablet or smartphone? If so, you can access Snapchat and various third-party apps that help create engaging content. Do you have original photos or a copywriter? There are many aspects of social media marketing that could use a professional touch. You should also realize that advertising is your friend. It will help place your updates in the spotlight.

–  What content is best for you? Which updates does your audience respond to the most? Interesting news articles, quotes, coupons, funny pictures? How about all of the above? This step is one of the most important when creating a strategy. Check out our blog post about the five types of social media posts here!

Making a social media marketing strategy requires some serious brain power. Your team has some thinking to do. Once you devise the best possible plan, your journey into online marketing will be much easier and more effective.

How do yo make a social media strategy? Comment below!

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8 Steps To Conquer Social Media Writer’s Block

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28Aug
Copywriting, Social Media

Social media marketing requires a large amount of creative juices and sometimes, the well runs dry. It’s okay, it happens to the best of us. Unfortunately, the internet isn’t going to wait for inspiration to strike once more. You need to jumpstart your imagination so you can make fresh, engaging content for your Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn and send it out to the content-hungry masses on a daily basis. How is this possible?

Making content for social media is another form of creative writing, which means there is a bit of subjectivity to it. As any writer can attest, crafting the right message isn’t always easy. You constantly have to figure out attractive content that will draw people to your business. How do you find that much-needed spark? Here are the top 8 tips that will help:

  1. Look into your analytics. You may have the answer lying in your previously published posts. Have videos been getting a lot of attention? Maybe it’s a sale? Try to tap into what already has been working. Additionally, just reading what you’ve already made can be enough to get the gears turning.
  2. Look at competitors. Perhaps your quest for inspiration will land you on a competitor’s social media page. Studying how they approach Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and other platforms could help you see social media in a new light. That being said, don’t plagiarize!
  3. Stick to a schedule. You will be surprised how sticking to a specific schedule will help you stay creative. Perhaps you feel like you can write better in the morning, or maybe it’s the afternoon. Either way, a schedule can give a subconscious spark of creativity.
  4. Check out what’s trending. There’s no time like the present and that should also be the case for social media marketing. Check out what’s trending on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Somewhere amongst the headlines and hashtags, you may be able to spin a topic to your company’s advantage.
  5. Stay organized. Write down any and all ideas, even if you don’t have room for them at the moment. Trust us, a time will come when you need an extra idea or two. In addition to writing things down, keep the ideas organized and at a convenient spot.
  6. Review your company’s mission. Don’t forget who you’re writing for. Head to your company’s website and review the “About” or “Our Mission” sections. Get pumped up to be a part of such a great company! You can always take a step back and watch your other employees and see if their work will inspire you.
  7. Take the first step – Just start writing! I know, easier said than done right? Trust us! Even if you begin with just random words on the page, a bit of creative gibberish will be a great exercise for the mind.
  8. Take a step back. Go for a walk! Staring at a blank screen doesn’t help. Come back after you try some of these other steps and start with a fresh. 

Social media marketing thrives on intriguing stories, engaging content, and compelling writing. It’s the core of the message you’re trying to convey. If you ever feel stuck, try out these tips to get your writing!
What other brainstorming ideas do you have? Share below!

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Learn How to Share: Sources, Subjects, and More

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23Jun
Advertising, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Social Media, Social networking, Twitter, Uncategorized

The internet is a busy and crowded place, stuffed to the brim with relevant content. Every industry has a whole world of knowledge to discover, which is available on the web. Some of it is credible, some of it is junk. It is important to do your research into what your posting and who wrote it.

As we have mentioned before in previous blogs, it is important to mix relevant content into your social media updates to balance out promotional posts. But what exactly should you share? News articles that are directly related to your field of expertise can be great tools for engagement. However, you will want to be sure that you actually agree with what the article says and what the author stands for.

Each industry has their own well-known experts, as well as blogs and news sources that are considered credible. Depending on the field that you work in, you will be able to find many articles that you can share. Of course, there are big news sources like CNN, MSNBC, and The Huffington Post  that are renowned amongst all walks of life that you can rely on for quality content. If you find yourself on a lesser-known website, be sure to scan the page for any offensive imagery or copy. Some blogs will have a mess of sketchy ads strewn about the layout, sometimes hosting spam-like material. Advertisement is a necessary evil to make the internet keep chugging ahead, but you don’t want your readers to see inappropriate content. Speaking of advertising, you should check to see if your competitors are advertising on the website. This is especially true if it is a niche news source that covers topics specific to your industry. You don’t want sharing content to backfire!

Where do you find these kinds of articles? You can search your traditional search engines like Google and Bing, however that is going to deliver you a ton of links to weed through. It is suggested to look through social media itself to find articles that are being talked about. This will help you pick the popular subjects, but you will also have access to recently published news. You will want to check the dates of the material you are sharing. If the post is from months or even years ago, the information could be outdated or irrelevant. You want to present yourself as a “mover and shaker” in your field and that means keeping in-tuned with what is happening now.

Sharing engaging and interesting content is essential to your social media activity. You want to seem involved in the community you are trying to tap into. By giving extra publicity to these sources, your name will also pop up in unexpected ways as users search for the subject matter and author. So, start sharing!

How do you find relevant and credible sources? Comment below!

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Is Your Company Making These Social Media Mistakes?

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13Aug
Marketing, Social Media, Uncategorized

With all of the information out there about social media, it is tough to know what to pay attention to and what to take with a grain of salt.  Yet even with all of this information, we all still make our fair share of mistakes when executing our social media marketing campaigns.

As an owner of an agency that specializes in social media marketing, everyday I speak with people who are trying to make the most out of their Facebook and LinkedIn profile, or making their “tweets” count on Twitter.  The following are a few of the most common mistakes that I have seen companies make on social media and what we can do to combat them in the future.

Mistake #1: Lack of Research on the Platform

This is a very important one.  With all of the hype around social media (and also due to the fact that creating accounts is free and easy), many of us are eager to just jump in head first.  Keep in mind that social media is a branding and visibility platform and thus needs to carry the right messaging and voice.  Before you go full speed ahead, first see what you are getting yourself into.

I suggest creating a sparse profile and taking the time to look through each site.  Where is your target market?  What is your competition doing right (which can really help you come up with a strategy)?  What applications can be useful?  How are people communicating?  What tools to I have to communicate with my market?  While Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter can work to everyone’s advantage, if you only have time to manage one or two presences, it is best to be able to pinpoint the right ones and save yourself time and effort.

Top tip: a great way of seeing what sites suit your business is by asking your existing audience via polling.

Mistake #2: Lack of Focus

When you execute an advertising campaign, you know who you are targeting.  When you do a public relations campaign, you know what market you are trying to reach out to.  When you do an email marketing campaign….well, you get the point.  Social media is no different.

Social media allows us to target with laser focus, you just need to identify who you are trying to reach.  Once identified, the key is to connect with “meaningful people” not just random people to get “the numbers.”  Come on, why connect with 10,000 people who don’t care about you?  What good does that do?  Find connect and engage with people that matter.  Focus!

Mistake #3: Lack of Consistency

If you are going to do social media, make sure to do it on a consistent basis – not whenever you can grab a free second.  By consistent I mean daily, weekly, bi-weekly…on some sort of schedule.  Since you are growing your audience, you need to be in front of them gaining that visibility and credibility consistently.  My tip?  Create a schedule of when you will be executing social media and what messages you will be highlighting.  It takes a few minutes, but can save hours of weekly work.

No time to even make a plan?  Outsource!  It’s not a dirty word anymore.

Mistake #4: Using a 100% Push Marketing Approach

Push strategies are used often in traditional marketing.  While it is a perfect fit in many instances, it is not the foundation of an engaging social media strategy.  Push marketing literally “pushes” what you want from your audience directly on top of them, while “pull” marketing using social media is about starting a conversation, engaging, enchanting and much more.  My suggestion is to use a 90% pull and a 10% push marketing equation.  This is something that I have used and it works a treat.  This way you can grow your audience and create value before offering up a special discount.  If they believe you to be credible through your pull approach, when you incorporate the push elements you will have higher levels of success.

Mistake #5: Wrong Goals

Truly look at what you are trying to achieve, and “more sales” is not enough.  Social media has many outcomes, so it is smart to have a broader scope.  Think in terms of hits to your website, newsletter signups, ebook/book sales/downloads….this is the way to go!

Mistake #6: Lack of Planning

Again, I am going back to the importance of a  plan:  without a plan, you plan to fail.  Although we know this cliche all too well, there is definitely truth to it.  Why?  Because a strategic plan saves you time and money – two things that we all can use, right?

Sit down and figure out your marketing strategy and then layer your social media strategy on-top.  Social media can support and enhance everything you do, you just have to keep the two connected.  Without the connection, you are wasting the power of cross marketing and branding.  Flying blindly in a new marketing medium could not only be risky for your reputation, but also cause you more trouble than you can handle.

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I hope that these mistakes are ones that you have not made and if you have, you will no longer make.  It is important for us to all to take a close look at our plans and strategies in order to see how strong and effective they can be.  Without strategy or planning, a social media marketing campaign takes a lot more time and a lot more effort to execute.

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Want to Market on Social Media? Do This First!

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18Jul
Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn, Marketing, Social Media, Twitter, Uncategorized

A question I am asked again and again is how does the team at The Go! Agency come up with a social media marketing strategy for our clients.  It’s one of those questions that I wish there was a direct answer to – as I know so many of you out there are eager to get started with social media marketing and are eager for some easy “quick start” advice.

When it comes to creating a social media marketing strategy, the one thing to remember is there are no cookie cutter solutions or master step-by-step process to follow.  Social media marketing is a series of many step-by-step processes that need to be fine tuned to fit the direction and niche of your business.

There is a trick to hitting the ground running while building up solid momentum. The trick?

Getting all of the pieces together before you begin formulating your strategy.  

Here are some topics that you need to consider BEFORE putting together your social media marketing strategy.  I suggest gathering all of this information and having it easily accessible at your social media strategy planning meeting:

*How Much Do You Know About Social Media?  This is a biggie, as if you have to learn more about how Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Pinterest, Google+ and the rest work…then you have to allot  time to get comfortable with each site.  Also, your knowledge of these sites and their capabilities will come into play when you begin to formulate your plan of attack.

*Can You Name at Least 5 Target Markets? This is another major point.  As there are so many opportunities on social media, it is good to have a list of no less than 5 target markets to start out with.  You can begin your marketing focus by choosing one at a time, but it is good to have more to choose from so that if you need to change gears at anytime during the planning process, you already know where to go next.

*Company Overview. It is important to have a solid company overview, with products and services, as well as company history (when it was founded, key honors, etc).  Also include your marketing materials and marketing message, logos and taglines into the mix.  This will help to no end when you are trying to come up with your messaging strategy and content strategy at the social media strategy creation stage.

*Time is Valuable. Time is important to consider as consistency is key on social media.  How much will you be able to put aside each day to execute your social media marketing strategy?  If you figure this out AFTER you come up with your social media strategy, you will find you may have overshot the mark.

*Budgets and Costs.  See how much money you have available for your social media marketing strategy.  While you may think it is free, there are many paid options that you may want to explore such as Facebook Advertising and upgrading your LinkedIn account.  It is also nice to know how much budget you have available social media as if your strategy looks like it will be overwhelming, you may have to outsource the work to an agency like The Go! Agency.

*Do You Have a Marketing Schedule?  A marketing schedule is absolutely paramount to the success of any organization.  But….do you have one?  This should include ANY marketing activities (from advertising and billboards, to events and email blasts) and when they are going to be executed or “live.”  I know that many of you out there do not have a marketing schedule written down and understand how it can be pushed aside.  What I will say is that having a marketing plan written down will help act as a guideline when you have your social media strategy planning session.  It can naturally lead the course so that everything works in a synergistic fashion.

SOCIAL MEDIA is a function of MARKETING.  How can you create a social media strategy without a marketing strategy first?  Your overall marketing strategy MUST lead your social media strategy to guarantee success.

*Who is Going to Do the Work?  If you have more than one person executing your social media strategy, in the planning stage you need to coordinate the communication path and chop up and distribute the work.  Having this work perfectly is an absolute must as it can add time, cost and sometimes embarrassing mistakes to your results.

*Content Collection.  You should collect all of the past press articles, press releases, blog article, magazine articles, awards, pictures, videos…you get the picture.  Anything that you have that could boost your profile is good to have on hand.  As you go through the set up process you will see ample space to plug this info in, so it is nice to have it at hand.

*Keyword Lists.  I’ve said it before and I will say it again – these are SO important in social media marketing, so pull one together.  It will also do your website a world of good!

*Client/Prospect/Past Client/Peer Databases.  It is nice to know what your numbers are in these categories when you go into your social media strategy planning stage.  Why?  Because you can use this information to build your network, recommendations and much more!

*Competition!  Compile a list of your competitors, direct and indirect.  At this point do not worry if they are active on social media, it is just useful to have a competitor list handy when you get to the social media strategy planning stage.  When you are formulating your strategy, you will need to do a SWOT analysis of your competitors’ social media use and pulling out a “ready-to-go” list is a time saver.

These are just some of the top items that I would suggest you organize before you get to planning your social media strategy.  I know there are a lot of items and you probably feel that you already know these things off by heart, but here is the rub.  There are a lot of unknowns that you will come across in the social media world, some that can delay your progress.  Having everything in one central place will help you fly quicker and stall out much less.

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