Consistent Brand Messaging When Building Your Personal Brand

Building a powerful personal brand starts with you. How you present yourself publicly and online strongly affects how your brand is interpreted by the masses. Because your personal brand is a reflection of who you are personally, you must be aware, the totality of your actions will determine your brand.

Nurturing Your Brand Through Authenticity

Your brand is your legacy. Once you establish what you want your brand message to be, you must own it. How you present yourself to the world will define your brand culture – make it memorable. Your actions, expertise, and emotional connection to your brand will define how it is viewed. Offer something valuable only you can provide to the public; live it, and you will garner true authenticity.

Build Character – Online and Off

In the digital age, your online presence with social media has become your touchstone. This is where you engage those interested in your brand. Make sure the design of your online outlets closely aligns with your character and brand message. Whether you have a design team or one person working on creative, make sure there is an understanding of your brand’s uniqueness, your character is clearly interpreted, and don’t forget, a picture is worth a thousand words and this is your moment to shine. It will aid in your social media marketing campaign.

Consistent Brand Messaging

Current and potential clients want consistency. They want to know you will deliver each time with the same or better results. Your clients want to trust you, they want to count on you to be the answer. Consistency in your communications gives clients something to rely on. If you deliver strong and consistent communications, your clients will become evangelists of your brand. 

For more information on how you can build a powerful personal brand, contact the professionals at TwoGirlsConsulting LLC. We understand your physical and digital image must exude your brand. Enticing and consistent communication of your personal brand relies on a carefully crafted strategy. At 2GC, your image is everything.

 

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The Landscape of SMS Marketing

Short-message service (SMS) refers to what is commonly known as text messaging. These messages can be sent cell phone to cell phone, or from Web-based services to cell phones. When it comes to marketing, SMS marketing is a growing trend that is still being explored and understood. Here are some of the highlights of the landscape.

A variety of industries are using SMS marketing in their strategies. This includes leisure (venue based), recruitment, retailers, software, marketing, financial services, beauty and hair salons, fast food, education, estate agencies, legal and dental and health offices, and travel agents. The industries at the top of this list use SMS marketing more frequently than those at the end, but you can see the wide variety of applications for SMS marketing.

The popularity of SMS marketing is built on the popularity of mobile devices, which grow in numbers every year. Recent statistics show that nearly 90 percent of the world’s population has a mobile device, which means around 6 billion people can be reached through SMS. Mobile marketing budgets are increasing to meet this area of opportunity. In the United States, mobile ad revenue is expected to exceed $20 billion annually by the year 2015. More than 60 percent of businesses are considering mobile marketing more than traditional methods.

SMS marketing helps reach mobile device users who do not use their device to connect to the internet — or about 76 percent of all mobile users. The number of SMS messages sent in 2013 approached 10 trillion, and more than 45 percent of mobile device users report being aware of mobile advertising. Application to Person (A2P) messaging is whenever businesses contact customers, and A2P messaging is predicted to surpass person-to-person messaging by 2016. 

For more about these statistics and the landscape of SMS marketing, click here for a graphic from socialmediadd.com. SMS offers a great window into the lives of customers, regardless of their online activity, and the future shows potential for increased growth in SMS marketing. For more information about how to use SMS marketing for your business, contact us today!

The Core Concepts of Effective Reputation Management

“Character is like a tree and reputation like its shadow.  The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing.” Abraham Lincoln.

Do you have the good reputation that you deserve? Bad publicity has always been a challenge, even to the good guys. In these days of social media that can instantly harm you there is a need for a sophisticated response strategy. Make sure people are aware of your character, and not looking at someone else’s shadow.

Reputation management can have many forms, and can require several different roles. In a large organization, the role would be filled by a full-time strategic communication advisor; but even then, the key employee may need consultation depending on the situation.

Perhaps the defining characteristic of effective reputation management is good judgment. Maintaining a good reputation involves planning your organizational structure so that you have a smooth flow of information as well as confronting specific issues as they appear in the business environment and in the media.

Any confusion caused by incorrect reporting must be addressed with authority in a timely manner.  Any roadblocks to communication within your organization must be located and eliminated.

Whether it is for a hospital board, an African nation, the U.S. Department of Defense, a corporate public relations department, or a small business operating a marketing strategy, a reputation management strategist coordinates clarifying your position. This important advisor will also assist in the formation and adjustment of policy.   

The higher your authority, and the broader the scope of your endeavors, the more important it is that you are in position to be able to manage the public perception of your efforts. An effective reputation management strategy is much more than “spin.” The creation and implementation of good policy needs dedicated attention and support in the unpredictable climate of popular opinion.

The Possible Roles involved in reputation advisement:

• As an educator, the advisor communicates with employees and associates to make them better conduits for a policy that has been decided upon.  In order to avoid inconsistency of services or product, all people involved in implementing your service should be schooled in the philosophy of your business or social mission. This involves coordination with human resources and training of department heads as well as direct presentation to large groups.

• As a publicist, the advisor has editing, writing and speaking skills to distribute information through appropriate networks, whether through existing corporate newsletters and email systems, or media outlets. The publicist is familiar with social media and monitors interaction on strategic sites. The publicist can produce content, as well as inform others on proper responses to online forums.  The publicist has a close relationship with any formal spokesperson or media relations department for a large organization, acting as a liaison between management, media, and policy formation.

• As an analyst, the advisor suggests what information should be given to a particular group, be it employees, associates, or volunteers. The analyst assists in the timing and proper media for press releases. The analyst provides support and assembles research opportunities when adjustment of policy is necessary.

• As a researcher, the advisor is aware of trends in the social fabric regarding your endeavors. The researcher is aware of meaningful published work, and, if necessary, attends relevant summits and discussions by experts in the field. The researcher evaluates new ideas and innovations, making recommendations to you for discussion and review of policy.

• As a coordinator, the advisor makes certain that internal and external policy is consistent with your goals, and develops measuring techniques to monitor progress in accurately portraying your efforts to the public. The coordinator will be aware of budget compliance, and will be able to provide recommendations for necessary adjustments, whether in policy or implementation of existing policy.  

Give us a call, and clarify your position.

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4 Important Email Marketing Strategies

Email newsletters are an important part of any marketing campaign, particularly as people spend increasing amounts of time online. E-newsletters go directly to customers’ inbox, giving them an advantage over other forms of social media. Like other digital media, e-newsletters are inexpensive to produce and send to customers. And fortunately, there are some simple tips for writing an email-newsletter that customers will be likely to read!

1) Start with a captivating subject line. Many readers use an email subject line to determine whether they will open the email, and it is crucial that your e-newsletter stand out among the many other emails a customer receives. Including the word ‘you’ gives the email a personal touch. Make your subject line timely and short, to catch the reader’s eye. 

2) Use visual means to convey your message. Video sites, like YouTube, and applications, like Vine, are rapidly rising in popularity. Often, readers are more likely to watch a short video than they are to read lines of text. Capitalize on this tendency by creating video (or even photo) content for your readers, whether your intent is to engage the customer, sell products, or tell a story.

3) Entice customers with a special offer. Including a special offer in your e-newsletter is one of the best ways to retain customers and keep them interested in future promotions. You will strengthen brand loyalty when you help customers feel as if they are important to your business. (They are!)

4) Utilize other forms of social media. Include social media links (Facebook, Twitter, etc.) in your e-newsletter, as these digital marketing tools go hand in hand. A great way to involve customers and increase your market exposure is by rewarding customers when they share your e-newsletter (or other content) on social media. 

With these tips, you can improve your email newsletters to make the most of the opportunity you have to communicate with your customers. For the best ways to include email in your marketing strategy, contact us today!

Brand Development through Relationship Marketing

Relationship Marketing is an important part of brand development, focused on the long-term benefit of customer retention. This strategy places an emphasis on building customer relationships. In the modern age, marketing has evolved to include many technology-based methods, including email, video, and social media. There are benefits and challenges to relationship marketing across these various means, although it could be argued that connecting with customers has never been easier than it is today.

Relationship marketing is of particular importance when there is a competitive market for customers. When faced with many choices for the product or service they desire, customers seek to make a connect with a brand or company. That connection will fuel their consumer decisions in the future, and is often built on unique features of a brand. Some customers may gravitate to popular, well-know brands; others may gravitate to local, niche brands.

Relationship marketing usually features a combination of customer retention and customer satisfaction. Customer retention focuses on repeated transactions between customers and companies, building long-term relationships. Repeat customers are often less price sensitive and less inclined to switch companies. Because long-term customers are familiar with goods and processes, these relationships are cheaper to maintain when compared with the cost of attracting new customers.

An added benefit of customer retention is the likelihood that long-term customers will bring additional revenue to companies by word of mouth. Ensuring customer satisfaction, by building customer relationships with many positive associations to a specific product or brand, gives a worthwhile return on investment. Knowing the specific interests and desires of customers is done by accessing names, addresses, demographic information, buying history, and many other variables available with today’s analytic technology.

For help implementing relationship marketing as a brand development strategy, contact us today!

 

Does Your Marketing Strategy Begin in the Right Place?

It never ceases to amaze me how many business owners spend all kinds of time and other resources creating and implementing a marketing strategy that begins at step two. They either ignore the important first step altogether, or pay so little attention to it that it contributes little or nothing of value to the final plan.

What I’m talking about here is developing a profile of your ideal customer. A good definition for the term “ideal customer” is; someone who is most likely to buy from you.

Many business owners don’t understand this essential first step in creating an overall marketing strategy. The reason it’s so important is; by having a handle on what your ideal customer looks like, you’ll be in a better position to determine which marketing techniques are likely to be effective and which are not.

For example, if you were a heating and air conditioning contractor, you would probably be wasting valuable marketing resources if you sent marketing materials to residents of an apartment complex. The apartment owner or manager would typically make decisions on such services, not the residents themselves.

Having a profile of your ideal customer and carefully considering that information when creating a marketing strategy is important regardless of what business you’re in.

So, how do you go about developing a profile of your ideal customer? By asking and answering several questions. For example:

• Is your ideal customer male or female?
• What age range do they fall into?
• What is their education level?
• Are they married, divorced, widowed, or single?
• What is their income range?
• What do they enjoy doing in their spare time?
• What challenges do they typically face?
• What are their dreams and goals?
• Do they spend time on the internet? If so, where and for how long?
• Do they engage in social media? If so, which platforms?
• What types of businesses already market to them?
• How do those businesses market to them?

Having answers to these, and other questions, will put you in a place to make educated decisions on which marketing tools and techniques will be most effective in your market.

Of course, identifying your ideal customer doesn’t preclude you from doing business with those who don’t fit your profile. You just won’t be focusing your marketing efforts on them.

If you’d like help creating a marketing strategy for your business, contact us online or call 702-738-1197.

 

Earned Media: Building an Integrated Strategy

Earned media is an elusive form of marketing in which your company is promoted by positive media that comes from outside the company itself.  News stories, radio interviews, and positive reviews can all constitute earned media.  Earned media is alluring because it costs nothing for the business, yet can significantly increase overall revenue.

While by definition a company cannot buy or create its own earned media, there are a few strategies that can increase your company’s chances of gaining earned media.  One of the best ways to increase the earned media that your company receives is to design an integrated strategy that blends content marketing strategies with earned media potential.

Make Your Business Easy To Present.  As soon as possible, spend time developing an elevator pitch for your business.  Highlight the attributes that make your business unique, and write your company’s vision.  This makes it easier for media outlets to highlight your business in a coherent manner, without causing journalists the frustration of having to unearth your company’s vision and purpose on their own.

Develop Your Own Media Marketing Strategies.  Using media strategies such as content marketing will increase your company’s visibility and thus the likelihood gaining earned media.  Making your company searchable by developing a presence on social networks and other sites makes it easier for your company to be ‘found.’

Do Something Out Of The Box.  In order to be newsworthy, your company needs to be doing something different from the competition.  What is your company doing to stand out from the crowd?  Determine your company’s unique aspects, and don’t hesitate to make them known.

By establishing a robust marketing strategy, it will be easier for news outlets to highlight your company through earned media.  Take the time to invest in your company, and the earned media will follow.  To learn more about ways to improve your small business, please visit our website and contact us with questions or comments.

PR Effectiveness: Gauging the Many Elements Beyond Sales for Your Campaign

PR effectiveness is a wide picture to be analyzed through different avenues and not strictly by how much money is made. While making money shows a campaign was successful, it may not sustain in the ever-changing social environment. Looking at exactly what prompted those sales can help decide whether it was the result of something unexpected.

Analytics on Social Media

With Google Analytics being such a useful tool in determining web traffic, a firm can discover plenty of evidence in how people reacted to something online. If it was determined the sales were from social media influence, then the main demographics can be known. And despite social media being the place where you’d expect most of the activity to be, there may be a chance sales came significantly from somewhere else.

Analyzing Other Media

Television continues to play just as strong an impact in sales as social media. Most of the time, they work in tandem though mentions from a client on a national TV show or cable news can take sales into the stratosphere. A mention like this (or in a national newspaper) can be the result of an earlier promotion on social media without having spent a dime on a television or a newspaper ad. These interconnections tell a PR firm how the inter-connectivity of today’s media can effectively disseminate enough free information to cut costs of promotion.

Study the Advantages of Small Media

Sometimes sales can be the result of a simple word-of-mouth grassroots campaign or write-ups in small publications. While these might be graded as minor promotional places, it’s worth doing some investigation into these arenas and why they potentially do better than expected. Smaller and more peripheral avenues also typically conjoin with social media for easier methods of passing on information.

Survey the Consumers

Gauging information directly from those who bought a promoted product can help determine where those consumers heard about the product or client. There may be a surprise in store for where they heard about the product through the earlier examples. This may prove the underestimation in the power of fan campaigns by simple word-of-mouth. Determining it can be done through online surveys, telephone, or traditional mail.

Talk to the Client

PR firms need to think of their client and the effectiveness of the PR campaign. Does the client understand what the PR firm is doing and the procedures in how it’s being done? A happy client is a client that understands the entire process of an effective PR plan with a comprehensive understanding of why it was effective.

Contact us if you’re a company needing an effective local or national marketing campaign. Two Girls Consulting (2GC) is based in Las Vegas, Nevada. We also work on a national level. With a decade of experience, plus long-standing relationships with media and other venues, let us effectively take your company message to the masses.

Avoid These Mistakes for a Better Social Media Content Strategy

You invest significant time and money into your social media content strategy. Yet, you still ask yourself, “What can I do to secure a higher return on influence for the resources I expend on content marketing?”  There are a few common mistakes that businesses make when trying to engage clients through social media.  Here are a few to avoid:

• Not Posting Enough.  We live in a fast-paced society, and clients are constantly hungry for fresh information.  To keep people coming back to your site, make sure to post new content regularly.  Websites that stagnate will quickly lose interest and clients.
• Information is Too Dense.  People are busy and don’t want to wade through dense articles for information.  While you should avoid posting fluff, as this will generate little interest, spend time ensuring that your content is user-friendly.  Break up dense articles into smaller sections, and format your content so information appears in bullets rather than in blocks of text.
• Wasting Time Responding to all Comments.  It’s easy to become distracted on social media, especially if your audience is fully engaged.  However, keep in mind you don’t need to respond to every comment posted if you have other pressing projects on hand.  Respond to important remarks, and make sure that your comments are relevant.  Otherwise you can spend days on social media without accomplishing anything else.
• Staying Blind to Impact.  Do you know which leads and opportunities are coming from your social media marketing?  Find a way to measure social media’s impact on your business, whether by using online tools to measure page views or by asking people how they learned about your company.  Measuring social media’s impact will allow you to adjust the amount of energy you spend on social media marketing.

Companies that make these mistakes waste time and fail to fully engage an audience, while companies that avoid them see a higher return on influence in social media.  Want to learn more about successful business marketing strategies?   Contact us with any questions.

Small Business Marketing Strategies: Leverage Your Network

Many small businesses spend a large part of their budget on marketing to generate new business prospects.  For many small businesses, new clients come from referrals which is a different kind of marketing altogether.  In addition to print and online marketing strategies, small businesses should keep their networks in mind with regard to finding potential clients.  Leveraging a network is one of the most effective, low-cost marketing strategies to add projects to the pipeline.  Here are a few ways to leverage your network:

Start With Your Primary Circle

Identify connections within your primary circle — people with whom you would like to communicate regularly.  Who shares your business vision?  Who is likely to have a healthy network of like-minded people?  It’s nearly impossible to maintain strong connections with a large number of people, so focus on a group of 20 or less for your primary connections.  Once you have identified these people, make sure to connect regularly.

Communicate What You Need

In order to find business opportunities within your network, you need to communicate about your business.  Otherwise, nobody will know how to help you.  Prepare an elevator speech describing what your business does, and don’t hesitate to tell people about your professional life.  When you are looking for more business, make sure to ask for referrals and introductions when appropriate.

Reach Out and Keep Connections Alive

Do not hesitate to initiate contact with network connections, even if you haven’t been in touch for a long time.  This can be done by phone or email, or through social media sites such as LinkedIn.  Although it may be initially uncomfortable to reach out, many people are responsive and will be glad to reconnect over lunch or coffee.

Give and Take

One of the best ways to leverage your network and improve your chances of finding business possibilities is by helping others first.  By helping others, you are creating an environment in which others will be happy to return the favor, and are avoiding the trap of only interacting with others when you need something.

For more advice on marketing and communication strategies, please visit our website.  If you have any questions or would like to speak with us, feel free to contact us!