Small Business Revitalization Blog

Via Flickr: Intersection Consulting

Marketing guru Seth Godin has said ‘Content marketing is the only marketing left.’   New technologies mean traditional mass media is fast being overtaken by brands as publishers of content.  It’s easy to publish content online, but much more challenging to achieve tangible business results (like sales!)  Why?

As a business coach, I see a common marketing mistake that many small businesses make – they mistake participating in social media for actually having a content management strategy.  Here’s seven reasons why small business owners need to start with the strategy rather than the social media networks…

1. Activity (or busyness) in social media domains does not equate to goal achievement. It’s expensive to create content (time and/or money) – if your content distribution strategy isn’t clear you’re shooting blindly and wasting valuable resources.
2. Publishing is now marketing and marketing is now publishing. Your influence stems from your value.  Your value stems from your content and your relationships.
3. Until you answer the why… e.g. What are the informational needs of my customers?  What pain points can my brand address?  What brand story are we telling?... your strategy will be incoherent and won’t deliver results.  Relevance is key.  Listening is core to success.
4. Google already pushes Twitter updates through their organic search results and in February 2010 it was announced that Facebook Fan Page content is next – what keywords, key messages and topics will you be found for? The rules for being found by organic search are changing quickly!
5. Without a clear and relevant content marketing strategy, you’ll attract followers who are irrelevant to your business – there’s no point having 50,000 followers if they aren’t in your target audience.  How do you feed your ‘ideal client’ into your traffic generation strategy?  With content your ideal client needs!
6. Productivity – without a clear strategy, there will be no clarity about how all the pieces of your social media marketing connect together… which means it’s impossible to manage the distribution and flow of content in a meaningful way for your prospects and partners.
7. The answer to every question you have about online marketing of your business will come back to ‘it depends… on your content marketing strategy.’  Without one, your ship is rudderless.

Want to explore how to develop an effective content management strategy for your business?  Attend the Revive Coaching Playshop in Brisbane on 8 October 2010 - Book today.

What is your best strategy for managing content?  Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Via Flickr: Annie Mole

If you are publishing content on a blog, you need a strategy.  Without one you are shooting at moving targets and missing opportunities to hit the triple jackpot of being visible, valued and visionary! John Batelle, creator of Wired magazine recently stated that for brands to stay relevant and develop a true online experience for their customers, they must master the art of content creation.

Here are a few tips to take the mystery out of blogging... whether you are a technophobe, unable to string a sentance together or just completely confused... ;-) successful blogging is possible!

• Blogging technology:  If your website does not have its own inbuilt blogging system (many content management systems do) then it’s better to use www.Wordpress.org with your own domain name rather than other free software.  You can use sites like Facebook or a Ning site as an alternative however you cannot use your own domain name and you lack control over your content – far from ideal!
• Content marketing strategy:  It’s essential to have a clearly developed content marketing strategy… why, what, how… etc! Without a strategy you’ll waste a lot of time and resources.
• Valuable content: You should only blog if you have plenty of valuable content that your target audience would be interested in.  Contrary to some of the advice out there, writing inane dribble about nothing won’t do you any favors in the search engines or elsewhere!
• Writing alternatives:  It doesn’t matter if you can’t write – use audio / video / photos and put just a few words around each idea.  Or, record your ideas and have someone transcribe and edit them.
• Developing connections: Get over the idea of ‘I don’t know what to write’ by talking to people about their challenges in the area your business serves.  Write about the solutions to those challenges in a way that invites people to respect you and share your ideas with others.
• Meeting deadlines:  invite other related professionals to ‘guest blog’ on your blog on a monthly basis – gives you more great content and they’ll probably promote your blog to their followers.
• Promoting your content: ensure you promote your blog posts in other social forums – ‘build it and they will come’ is generally only true in the movies!!!  Your blog offers the core content, social media are the outposts that create visibility.

Want to develop an effective content management strategy for your business?  Attend the Revive Coaching Playshop in Brisbane on 8 October 2010 - Book today!

What is your biggest challenge with blogging?  Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.

At a recent business coaching gig for the KBN Ashgrove Network I talked about blogging.  So many business owners think they ‘should’ blog but in truth have no idea of where to start, why they are doing it or how to have their blog generate results.  

Some of the reasons you could choose to blog include:  

• Your clients will ‘get you’:  the less formal nature of blogging makes you a ‘real’ person in their eyes – who do people ultimately buy from?  People they have relationships with! Authentic communication beats a static website any day.
• You can create a forum for engagement with potential clients and others in your industry via ‘comments’.
• It is the foundation of your social media strategy. You have 100% control over your content… no-one can remove it or change it except you.
• Google rankings: regular blog posts create great link bait and encourage Google to search your site for fresh content more often.

There are many reasons to blog, but none of those matter if you can’t find a way to do it that works for you! In tomorrow’s post, we’ll explore some simple strategies that take the stress and confusion out of blogging.

Want to explore how to develop an effective content management strategy for your business?  Attend the Revive Coaching Playshop in Brisbane on 8 October 2010 - Book today.

What is your biggest challenge with blogging?  Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Peter Drucker stated that business has only two basic functions – marketing and innovation.  Successful small businesses create value.  Smart and successful small business owners create expertise that cannot be copied!

When you are known as the ‘go to’ person in your industry, it opens many doors effortlessly.  Yes, you need to genuinely know a lot - this is about 'celebrity with integrity' rather than 'splash then crash'!  You also need to keep learning and keep packaging your expertise and knowledge in ways that make you stand out.

Sounds like a lot of work...but really, what is the alternative?  Being average leads to average (or worse!) business performance.

If you aren’t the ‘go to’ person currently, but you’d like to be, here’s 10 good reasons to put time and energy into building your expert status:

1. You can market yourself with authority and establish your business as an industry leader.
2. You can make your business highly visible with ease.
3. Your referral business will grow as you are seen as a trusted resource.
4. It’s easier to gain media coverage  and this builds trust with potential clients.
5. Speaking at your industry conference is much more powerful than just attending!
6. You can help clients more productively and insightfully than competitors.
7. You can gain access to rare resources and other respected authorities in your field.
8. By sharing, you can attract respect while having fun and being creative!
9. You can convert followers into raving fans.
10. You can charge more!

If you'd like a detailed strategy for developing your expert status, the REVIVE Playshop will help turn you into a high profile expert faster than you can imagine! 16th November 2009 Bookings Essential!

Discover new perspectives on generating your business success with ease and joy at the REVIVE Business Coaching Playshop.  In this f*ree one-hour Playshop, you will:

• Become aware of common mistakes business owners are making in the current market and what to do instead!
• Learn 3 creative and cost-effective ways to increase your profits.
• Learn 3 simple strategies for attracting your ideal clients.

This interactive and fun Playshop is designed for small businesses at any stage of development.  Even if you are just thinking of starting a business, the informative style of the Playshop will help you see more possibilities for your business idea!

About the Presenter:
Lisa Murray is a business coach focusing on peak performance, business startups and helping stressed business owners regain control of their life and business. Her holistic techniques help small business owners and others facing major life issues solve their biggest challenges with ease.  Lisa has worked with hundreds of business owners in many different industries.  She has extensive marketing and management experience.

Having experienced severe burn-out, Lisa has also become an expert in work-life balance.  She helps small business owners create the life and business of their dreams through the use of fast, simple and effective techniques which encompass wellbeing, management, marketing and business strategies.

Want to Play?
Date:     Thursday 1 October, 2009
Time:     5.30pm – 6.30pm
Venue:   The Cooper Gallery, 2/235 Gympie Terrace, Noosaville
Cost:     Complimentary

RSVP:  Essential!  Please email Lisa Murray  to confirm the number of people attending, names and business name.  You are welcome to invite other business owners who may be interested!

What would it take for your business to be phenomenal?  (Come to the Revive Coaching Playshop to find out!!)

Internationally renowned local fashion brand Easton Pearson are celebrating their 20 year anniversary with a stunning exhibition at Brisbane’s Gallery of Modern Art.  The exhibition was amazing, but being the business coach that I am, what struck me most was the immense marketing value to the Easton Pearson brand.  

As well as the talks, tours and events for the exhibition, there were foyer and gallery displays, a children’s art activity centre (joyfully frequented by lots of ‘big’ kids who love playing dress-ups too!), extensive advertising of the exhibition by the Gallery, merchandising in the Gallery Shop and additional promotion everywhere you looked (even in the Gallery Café!).

Unless you pay big bucks, it is almost impossible to buy promotion, credibility and visibility like that!  Mediocre ‘me too’ brands never attract these types of showcase opportunities. The good news is that whilst you can't buy that type of exposure, you sure can build a brand that will attract it! 

So what needs to happen in your business for your brand to attract such opportunities?  Here’s my top 5 business coaching tips on building a phenomenal brand:

1. Your vision must be bold.
2. Your brand must be remarkable, original and desirable.
3. Your brand influence must impact your industry in unexpected ways.
4. Your brand must be sustainable and successful.
5. You must know the value of your brand and protect it – whatever it takes!

What will you do differently to build your brand from now on?  Share your inspiration in the comments below…

All businesses have rules – some are simple, smart and understood by everyone; others are stupid, senseless and resisted by everyone.  Simple rules make you efficient, they make you money and they make your team and customers happy.  Stupid rules ensure you and your brand will be talked about for all of the wrong reasons…

Let me give you an example.  On the weekend I went to the Queensland Art Gallery. My sweetheart was carrying a bottle of water.  At the entrance we were informed that the water could not be carried around – it would have to be put into a bag.  Not only that, they would supply a bag if we didn’t have one!

Further discussion with the staff member revealed that you could not drink water whilst in the gallery – for reasons which are still mostly unclear, but seemed to relate to the risk of spillage.  Less than 20 metres away, inside the gallery is a lovely water feature that is easy to splash in if you feel like it… This ‘water in a bag’ rule is illogical, inconsiderate of visitors and makes the gallery look insane.

I’ve been to some of the best art galleries in the world, and never has anyone suggested I could not have a drink of water or carry around a water bottle. Australia is one of the hottest countries in the world. Does QAG really think that people will visit for hours on end without sustenance? (And no, don’t suggest the Café – sadly it was overpriced and the service underwhelming…)

I don’t know what their marketing cost of acquisition per visitor is, but it seems to me that the benefits arising from having a staff member mop up a spill if the unlikely was to occur would far outweigh the costs. Does this rule create a thirst for art or thirsty visitors?

What crazy rules are ruining your business? What written or unwritten rules are enforced in your business that annoy your customers or staff and create virtually no value except a sense of satisfaction for the bureaucratic bore who invented them?  What would happen if you expected the best of your customers and staff instead of the worst?

Today’s task is to go find a few stupid rules and get rid of them – it is so easy to create happiness in business… why do so many make it so difficult?

Has it ever occurred to you that what you think is great service is actually only the ‘entry level’ activities which allow your clients to put you on the list of possible suppliers? If not, you may be in for a rude shock!

Recently I listened to a senior manager from a large transport company talk about the new improvements to their tracking technology and delivery service. The transport company thought they had delivered an exciting groundbreaking service.  

My business coaching client who uses this company was scratching his head wondering what was so special – these were things he’d been requesting for years!   All they’d done was fix the bugs in their systems and provide service basics that should have already been available!

Sadly this amazing new service was at best the ‘point of entry’ from my client’s perspective – so instead of being ecstatic about this news, my client took it as ‘done, thanks, what’s next…’.  

Imagine if this transport company had taken a little time to talk to their clients and include some ‘extras’ which would offer their clients genuine and extraordinary value based on their knowledge of the transport industry and their clients businesses.

What if they invited the top 10 fastest growing clients (yes there are plenty out there even in the GFC!) and took them away for a business building weekend…   Any business owner who has double digit growth in this market would jump at the chance to meet others with similar experiences… who knows what business opportunities could arise from such an event! Most importantly, the transport company would be positioned as the really smart operators who created further growth in their clients business…

Think about this for one second.  If these businesses grow even faster, the transport company grows too -  each of these businesses rely on transport for customer deliveries… it is a total win-win! Why wouldn’t you do it?

What extraordinary experiences and ideas can you offer your clients for mutual benefit?  Take 10 minutes to think of 5 'A List' clients and 5 phenomenal ways to add value to both of your businesses.  Then action at least one and measure your results!  My business coaching tip for this post? You may want to work ON your business more often!!!

This morning I was on the BRW site and saw a banner advertisement proclaiming 'Win a chance to meet Warren Buffett!"  All you had to do was subscribe to the Australian Financial Review.  It sounded great, but in the small print it actually stated that there was no guarantee the winner would actually get to meet Mr Buffett!!  Imagine that - you win the prize, but actually it's only the "chance" that you might run into him!  How disappointed would you be!!

AFR is a publication whose reputation and brand has been built on its high level of credibility and integrity of reporting.  What brand manager would let a promotion like that out the door?  Is the AFR so desperate for subscriptions that they're willing to ruin the credibility of their brand by being a little too 'smart' with their competition wording?  Technically they are not misleading their subscribers, but most people would not take the time to read the competition headline literally - 'meet Warren Buffett' would be the message that sinks in.

How often do you run a promotion or other marketing activity which is ever so slightly misleading for your customers?  Wouldn't you rather be a brand which values integrity in its communications? It is never the reality that matters but the perception.  Whether we like it or not, reputations are built on perception not reality.  The next time you put together a promotion, make sure you check what perceptions you are creating!

Now, at this point, many hard-nosed business owners will be thinking, "What do you mean creativity? Have you forgotten we're in a recession? Got better things to do with my time and resources!"  So, this is the moment when I’m going to ask you to forget your tunnel vision, and focus with total laser vision instead! I promise you won’t be sorry!

Marketing Guru Seth Godin says that “Ideas That Spread, Win”.  Now I bet you are thinking, yes, but my product isn’t interesting enough, isn’t innovative, isn’t new, isn’t….. whatever!

Just because what you are selling may be “boring”, does not mean you or your company should be! So, if your business was offering something boring, say a blender, what could you do to make people take notice of your offer? Take a look at this...



Is it cheesy?  Sure!   Is it cheap advertising? Well how would you like to spend $50 on props, make 5 ‘homegrown’ videos and get over six million views on YouTube within one week? BlendTec make the world’s best blenders, but until they thought creatively about their marketing, no-one knew! 

Is it worth starting a creative revolution in your business? Well, as business owners and managers, you know that results are where the rubber meets the road.  Since the introduction of the videos:

• Overall sales increased 43% in the first six months;
• Blendtec's consumer sales increased 500% in 2007;
• Website traffic increased 650%;
• The extended ‘Will It Blend’ campaign has received over 100 million views on YouTube;
• The campaign provided a breakthrough in market segmentation – previously the company was primarily a commercial blender manufacturer;
• Marketing department is now a profit centre for BlendTec!

So, what can we learn about combining creativity and marketing?

1. Be compelling, be quirky, be different.
2. Be entertaining, be surprising.
3. Be willing to experiment.
4. Solve a problem or provide proof your product works.
5. Create a personality for your business.
6. Be prepared to leverage your success.
7. Use social media to your advantage!

Creativity is about culture.  What can you do to encourage creativity in your organization?