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Showing posts from February, 2023

“Borrow” These Excellent Examples of Content Marketing

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You know doing content marketing can help keep your client pipeline full this year… But if you’re like most creative business owners, you may not know what to say, or how to start. Content marketing doesn’t have to be complicated. While there are a dozen different formats that “content” can take, the easiest way to start is to create a post on LinkedIn that shares useful information. Then make another post the next week. And another one the next. And you just keep going that way. If you have time, think about starting up a newsletter. LinkedIn makes easier than building a list with email software. Once you get rolling, remember this: It doesn’t matter if you’re getting loads of engagement, or crickets. What matters is that you’re showing up on a regular basis and staying top-of-mind to potential clients. Need some ideas to get started? Watch this video from our last Office Hours to see excellent examples of content marketing, using: LinkedIn Posts LinkedIn Newsletters Email Newsl

Twitter Payments Head Esther Crawford Has Been Laid Off

WebProNews Twitter Payments Head Esther Crawford Has Been Laid Off The carnage at Twitter continues, with Twitter Payments head Esther Crawford laid off, along with most of her team. Esther Crawford was head of Twitter Payments, putting her in charge of Twitter Blue. According to Platformer’s Zoë Schiffer , Crawford is the latest to be purged from Twitter since Elon Musk’s takeover. Crawford’s departure is especially surprising since she was viewed as a Musk loyalist. in fact, she was one of those employees that answered Musk’s call to fully commit to the company. Source: https://t.co/WB53Ora7cv — bö (@ThBenkoe) February 26, 2023 The Verge’s Alex Heath says the layoff extends to most of “product org.” Lots of speculation among ex employees that Musk must be about to install a whole new regime and that’s why he is cleaning house. Otherwise the cuts don’t make sense. “Hard to keep the lights on with the people who are still left,” one ex manager told me. — Ale

Should you clean your email list?

If you use MailChimp's free plan to send out your email newsletter, this post is especially for you because on March 10, MailChimp will  reduce the number of contacts allowed on their free plan, which is prompting lots of people in my circle to rethink their email marketing.  Here's what some of my super smart members had to say: Tricia brought it to our attention (thanks Tricia) and said, " In my case, I’ll have to upgrade because I have 679 contacts on my list, so it’ll cost me $27/month. That said, maybe it’s time to cull the folks who don’t read my newsletter that often. What say you all?" Nancy, of Creatives Roundtable fame, wrote, " I think it will be difficult to remove 179 people and then you will grow again. If you can afford it - pay for it. With paid plans (at least mine) you get chat support which I find very helpful now and again." Rebekah chimed in with some excellent advice: " It  is  a best practice to cull an email list every so

Level Up Your Marketing Game in 2023 with These Expert Tips

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The start of a new year is an ideal time to look at your current marketing strategy and create future goals. This requires both looking back at the outcome of previous campaigns and looking forward to new industry trends. Get tips for leveling up your marketing game in 2023 in this roundup from members of the online small business community. Consider Your Top Marketing Takeaways from 2022 Before the start of a new year, it often helps to look back at the previous 12 months to determine what worked and what didn’t. In this MarTech post, Ryan Phelan goes over a few top takeaways for marketers in 2022. Look Back at Some top Resources from 2022 It can also be beneficial to look at some top resources and articles that helped business owners over the past year. Check out this helpful roundup from Kim Moutsos of Content Marketing Institute. Optimize Your Digital Marketing Strategy Your digital marketing strategy probably brought about several wins in 2022. But there were also probab

My Worst Investment Ever

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A couple months back, I received this message out of the blue from Andrew Stotz, who calls himself the "Worst Podcast Host." "I'm a fan of The Marketing Mentor Podcast ! Great podcast! I wonder if you're willing to join me on my podcast, and share your worst investment story and what you've learned from it. On My Worst Investment Ever podcast, 600 guests have shared their worst investment stories with me to help others learn from those mistakes. I know it's not for everyone but will you be brave enough to share yours?" Of course I said yes! And here's what came out of it ! The story I shared was from very early in my self employment, when I did not yet know I could (and should) be using my business as a laboratory for my personal growth and therefore had not yet learned to speak up and stand up for myself.  You can: listen to the audio here watch the video below and/or read the transcript below If you like what you hear, we’d lov

How to Build Momentum in Your Creative Business

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Some days, even when you know exactly what you need to do to market your business, it’s hard to get yourself to do it. And then there are those perfect days when you check off your to-do list and call a friend to meet for lunch because you magically have time to spare. Life as a creative business owner is an ebb and flow. But sometimes - especially in the beginning - it can feel like your business is all ebb and no flow . If that’s you right now, here’s something that might help… In one of my new favorite books, The Smallest Lights in the Universe , astrophysicist Sara Seager shares this simple thought: Momentum is a powerful force. When you have momentum in your marketing efforts, finding clients and gigs that fit your goals can almost feel effortless. Because you’re already moving forward. And to continue moving forward takes far less effort than to begin. But momentum doesn’t happen on its own. Here are two things you need to know about building momentum in your small business ma

Experts Share How to Make Your Content Marketing More Impactful

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Each business’s content marketing plan is likely to look a bit different. There are many strategies that can boost your impact or get your content in front of more eyes. Here, members of the online small business community share some options to try if you’re ready to improve your marketing efforts. Boost Your Content Performance Content creation can require a significant time commitment. So you want to get as much benefit from each piece of content as possible. Learn how to boost the performance of your content in this Platter of Gold post by Adeyemi Adisa. Get Your Content to Rank Without Backlinks Backlinks can quickly boost the visibility of online content. But you don’t have complete control over the links that point to your content. To get your content to rank anyway, read the tips in this post by Erik Emanuelli. Then head over to BizSugar to see what members are saying. Use These Link Building Tactics to Promote Your Local Business Though you cannot control every elem

5 Sales Follow-Up Email Examples

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If you’re like most sales professionals, you spend a lot of time crafting your initial email pitch. But what happens after that? Unfortunately, many sales reps simply stop communicating with their prospects, assuming that they’ve lost interest. However, this is often not the case! In fact, follow-up emails can be an extremely effective way to re-engage inactive leads and close more deals. In this article, we’ll reveal five follow-up email templates that will help you keep your prospect conversations moving forward and increase your chances of landing new clients. Let’s get started! What Is a Follow-up Sales Email? Sales email follow-ups are a key tool used by sales reps to further relationships with clients, potential customers, and a prospect’s company. A follow-up email sequence is an effective way of personalizing sales conversations, even if they happen completely online. While sales reps may work hard to create the perfect sales pitch, many don’t realize how powerful a follow-u

Twitter Blue Users Can Now Tweet 4,000 Characters

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WebProNews Twitter Blue Users Can Now Tweet 4,000 Characters Twitter Blue users received a major new feature today, with the tweet character limit raised to 4,000. Twitter has always strictly held to short posts, limiting users to 140 characters before eventually expanding to 280. While it has helped keep Twitter in the “micro blogging” territory, it also leads to long threads of multiple posts in an effort to share more in-depth information. The company is now making it easier to do that…at least for Twitter Blue Users: need more than 280 characters to express yourself? we know that lots of you do… and while we love a good thread, sometimes you just want to Tweet everything all at once. we get that. so we're introducing longer Tweets! you're gonna want to check this out. tap this … https://t.co/lge9udRzLE — Twitter Blue (@TwitterBlue) February 8, 2023 Twitter Blue Users Can Now Tweet 4,000 Characters Staff * This article was originally published here

5 Sales Email Templates

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When it comes to selling, email is still a powerful tool. But crafting the perfect email can be difficult, time-consuming, and frustrating. That’s where our five sales email templates come in handy! These free sales email templates will help you close more deals in less time. Let’s dive in! What Is a Sales Email Template? A sales email template is a pre-crafted set of messages used in cold email outreach campaigns. It is designed to help businesses engage their target customers in an efficient manner by providing consistent messaging and branding across multiple emails. Through the use of a well-crafted template, a business can quickly establish effective communication with potential customers, making it easier to nurture leads into paying customers. By using templates, businesses can also save time on creating and formatting emails, ensuring that their email communications are consistent and professional looking.   READ MORE: 7 Cold Email Template Ideas How to Write Sales Ema

Deadbeat Company? Twitter Faces New Lawsuit for Unpaid Bill

WebProNews Deadbeat Company? Twitter Faces New Lawsuit for Unpaid Bill Twitter has defaulted on another bill, this time for Innisfree M&A Incorporated, the company that advised it during Elon Musk’s purchase. According to The New York Times , Innisfree has sued Twitter in the New York Supreme Court for $1.9 million, which it says the company owes it for advisory services during Musk’s buyout. “As of December 23, 2022, Twitter remains in default of its obligations to Innisfree under the agreement in an amount of not less than $1,902,788.03,” the lawsuit says. Since Musk’s purchase, Twitter has been defaulting on multiple financial obligations. One of the company’s landlords in California sued Twitter for not paying $136,250 in rent it owes. Musk has also failed to pay severance packages to fired executives, and Twitter has been sued for not paying a private jet company for executive flights. At the rate Twitter is going, it’s quickly earning the reputation of

Twitter Charging Businesses $1,000 to Keep Gold Verification

WebProNews Twitter Charging Businesses $1,000 to Keep Gold Verification Twitter is reportedly implementing another major change, one that would see it charge $1,000 for businesses to maintain their gold verification. Since Elon Musk purchased Twitter, the company has been looking for new ways to monetize its platform. According to Matt Navarra, Social Media Consultant, the company is already contacting businesses to tell them it will cost $1,000 to keep their gold verified status. In addition, it will cost $50 per month for each affiliate account. Twitter is reportedly emailing businesses offering gold check mark verification for $1000 PER MONTH! And affiliate account verification for $50 each per month pic.twitter.com/hohTPKLKdi — Matt Navarra (@MattNavarra) February 3, 2023 Twitter Charging Businesses $1,000 to Keep Gold Verification Staff * This article was originally published here

50 Small Business Advertising Ideas to Consider in 2023

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Advertising and marketing campaigns help businesses in nearly every location and industry spread the word about their offerings. The marketing strategy of a local business is likely to look different from a company that sells mainly online. Luckily, there are tons of different advertising avenues for each business to consider. Read on for a guide. How Do You Advertise for a Small Business? Creating an advertising plan to reach potential customers starts with outlining your target audience. Once you know who you’re trying to reach, consider where those individuals are likely to gather, either in person or online. And think about the type of content and messaging you can share at local events, online directories, or on social media. Best Traditional Advertising Ideas for Small Businesses If you’re trying to reach a local audience or one that doesn’t spend all day online, there are still plenty of traditional and local advertising ideas to utilize. 1. Print Ads Print ads can includ