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Social Media – What a load of rubbish!
I can’t keep quiet any longer! What an absolute load of rubbish most people talk about Social Media & Networking and, more importantly, how to harness it for business use. There seems to be a whole industry growing up around myths and stories that have no basis in fact, so be warned.
Perhaps you’re still left wondering how best use it, or even if you should at all? Maybe you’ve already dived in but not finding it particularly productive or stimulating?
Let’s work backwards for a moment. Social networking is exactly about that, networking. Creating a profile, adding lots of ‘friends’ and then broadcasting your news to the world is a bit like walking into a room at a networking event standing in the middle and shouting sales messages to anyone who might care to listen. Meanwhile there are lots of people, all huddled in little groups, having interesting conversations between each other and getting to know each other.
Standing on your own spieling to the room simply doesn’t work – and you’d look ridiculous! As you might imagine, your efforts may seem a little strange and eccentric to others. Of course someone might come over and try to help you out, strike up a two-way conversation and help you get started but it’s not very likely.
You need to approach Social Networking in the same way you would a physical networking opportunity. Once you enter the space your first job is to wander about, get close to the conversations that are going on already, find the ones that interest you (and you feel you can contribute to) and then listen. Listening is the key to good Social Networking skills. It’s where it all starts. Once you’ve found a conversation you like, you can find an appropriate way to engage with it and add something of value.
This is how you can start to build a credible profile…
… which is vital if you want recognition in the Social Media space.
The Social Network across facebook
People who endlessly post comments about what they have to sell will find the Social Media landscape a very harsh and barren environment. If you’re a mega-brand and your positioning is already established then yes, you may be able to attract lots of fans and keep them entertained with the next product offering you’ve got coming up. If not, you’ll want to use Social Media to start to create that profile and help people to get to know you.
Avoid inane comments and drivel and certainly stay well away from the keyboard late at night when you’ve had one glass of wine too many but do let your tribe know what you’re enjoying right now. Be that a new product or service that you’re consuming, books, music, arts, comedy, etc., etc. Engage and comment on a range of issues that not only affect you but the people you want to connect with.
So the other golden rule is to engage… to be Sociable. It’s interesting to see people who pop into the space for just a few moments, stand there and shout about how great their product is and then promptly leave again. What would you think of a person who did this in the ‘real world’? Take time to read what others are talking about, contribute, comment, challenge if you like but above all be social. The same good communication skills are needed in this virtual environment.
Apply these simple and hopefully obvious rules and you’ll not only find the Social Media space an interesting place to be, you’ll make new connections and become recognised. Who knows… you might even find it brings you new business opportunities too.
I’m Coming Out!
I just can’t keep this secret any more. I’ve kept silent about this long enough but today I’ve found another reason to finally let you know just how I feel. I prefer to stay away from making political rants; I accept that each of us has our own perspective and that these are equally valid… however!
One more sound bite, one more quote and one more bleating individual from the Public Sector who simply thinks we can ignore the apocalyptic debt this country is in and that’s about all I can take. So here it is; brace yourself!
A spokesperson for the Health Service (yes, another one) has declared today that he can’t possibly see how they are going to achieve efficiency targets of £20M savings over the next four years. “It’s never been done before!” – nope and now you’ve got a serious challenge to work on..! So show us you’re worth the money you’re getting paid. It’s not a popularity contest, it’s your job.
Let’s face facts; this country is stony broke. The current deficit is of massive proportions and the interest alone is costing the UK over £120million a day… let’s just say that again… £120 MILLION EACH AND EVERY DAY! We’ve never seen this sort of scale of debt before, ever.
How on earth can any sane-minded individual claim that by making cuts we’re risking a recovery to the economy when we have such a mammoth debt to repay? What do they think the alternative is, close our eyes and it will go away? Even if we could stimulate growth and deliver a massive up-turn in the economy where will the benefit of all this go? On repaying the debt of course – now or in the future (when it’s even bigger and assuming we actually get there).
Basic economics – the sort I learned and understood at school – teaches us that we need to reduce expenditure, control costs and raise production. It’s really not rocket-science (and I promised I’d never use that in a blog..).
So why can’t these people see it, or more to the point, why do they pretend it just doesn’t exist?
The problem, as it appears to me, is that so many people of this country really don’t seem to grasp just how bad the fiscal situation is and that without US ALL making an effort to resolve it, things will only get worse. Sure, harsh cuts will affect many people and some of the most vulnerable in our society.
So what are WE all going to do about it. What will YOU and I do to pick up the slack and do we really care enough? I’m deadly serious!
I’m certain that Cameron and Co. completely failed with the Big Society campaign (I hope the marketing team responsible got the royal boot for that one). However the sentiment was valid. We all have a part to play in getting this country back on its feet. Of course there will be large proportion of people who simply can’t be bothered, just like those who think it’s someone else’s job to sort out the mess. I’m sure the Big Society failed because the nation just didn’t see the point. The pain just isn’t big enough yet.
We’ve created a political culture that supposed to solve all our worries, keep us fed and warm and make sure the bogey-man doesn’t get us. For a nation with such heritage how have we receded into this adolescent and dangerous mind-set? Where have the real leaders gone?
This form of childish and immature thinking is at the very root cause of so many of the problems we face now. We borrowed heavily and created a boom in credit and the property market, now it’s got to be repaid we’re blaming the people who gave it to us. The economy was built on unsustainable growth through lending and now we’ve got to fix it. Don’t blame Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae, don’t blame the Greeks, the Icelanders or the Irish.
Gordon told us we were safe, with “the best Financial Services Market in the world” and then sold off nearly all our nation’s gold reserves for a fraction of their value. It’s happened, accept it, move on. Now we need to produce – that’s the best place to start.
Just because we drag ourselves off to the polling booth once in a blue moon doesn’t mean we’ve the right to abdicate all responsibility to this ‘super-class’ called politicians. I think we can see that so many of our politicians have adopted values and ethics that fall far below the standards we should and do expect of them. The fact remains though that it’s not reasonable or mature to expect them to wave some sort of magic wand and make the problem all go away. It’s here and now and we all have to face facts and do something positive to change it.
Cost cutting, waste reduction and the focus on increasing productivity are all elements of real-world economics; ask any shopkeeper, business owner or Managing Director. The Private Sector lives with this reality day in and day out and has always done so. If you don’t manage your finances and you consume more than you produce… your company will perish, simple. It’s exactly the same for the UK economy.
I’ve had my fill of listening to people from Public Sector who seem to believe that they exist in some sort of parallel universe where the laws of economics simply don’t apply. Of course I recognise that not all Public Services could or should be run with a commercial focus to make profit but they must at least be sustainable.
They also need to accept that the Public Sector only exists because of the production and output from the Private Sector; where do they think tax revenue actually starts its life? We have an essential need for a viable economic structure that can keep the wheels turning.
Nial Adams - PUSH Marketing Partner
Like so many others, all this concerns me deeply and I can see the serious challenges ahead. Even the abnormal weather we’ve been enjoying in early Summer this year is potentially bad news; food prices will skyrocket later this year, that will put pressure on inflation and the Bank of England will almost surely need to increase the Interest Rate as a mechanism of control. And that’s just it; it’s the weather, we can’t do anything about it. We’ll all just need to eat less and pay more attention to balancing the domestic books.
Isn’t it time that we took a long hard look and decided what WE as each and every individual, can do to improve the situation and work towards getting back to where we all want to be? The Public Sector will just need to accept the gravy train is over, that time has passed. The Private Sector will also need to ‘buck up’ – every small business in the land will need to raise its game, sharpen up and pay more attention.
Delivering real value and great service standards will set the best apart from the rest. Staff, at every level, will need to be more diligent and look to deliver that little bit more. This is in our own self-interest as well as part of our society as a whole.
I’ve visited and worked in countries where the majority of the population wake up each day and wonder where their next meal is going to come from. They need to be effective, driven and focused. They also need to be creative and take complete personal responsibility for their situation and what the need to think and do every day to survive. This is the true reality of living.
Finally, I have every faith that as a nation the British people can and will respond… eventually. The question is, how much pain will they need to suffer before finally accepting the reality we live in today and DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT?
And breathe….
Increase Your Productivity, Instantly!
Over a number of years I’ve watch hundreds of business men and woman chain themselves to some sort of penal system called… self-employment.
They’ve developed a twisted mentality that if it doesn’t hurt, they probably aren’t working hard enough. Sure, as every small business owner will tell you, if you want the results you’ve got to be prepared to work hard. Some of the hardest working and most dedicated people I’ve ever met have been self-employed.
However… I want to share with you an idea, a mentality, that I and many of my clients have found a powerful way to change your approach to working long hours as a self-employed individual. Above all, I’ve found it a powerful way to significantly increase productivity and reduce stress and risk of burnout.
Of course, there is a range of different styles and approaches to work. Some people are extremely disciplined and use structure to ensure they chunk through the work to get the results in time. Others are more scatter-gun and reactive; when it comes in the task gets dealt with according to (perceived) priority. This is never really a good idea, as it means your business and perhaps your customers or suppliers (or even your staff) are actually more in control than you are.
Finally, there are the smart ones out there who simply focus on each task but rely upon a second person to assist in the management and priority – having a PA or secretary who manages your time can work incredibly well. This method seems to be ideal for more creative types who find little satisfaction in structure and focus more on the process and even more on the final product.
You might well have guessed by now that much of what I’m sharing here with you now is very close to my heart. As a person who started in self-employment at the age of 19 I didn’t really know what to expect, or have any experience of being employed (self- or otherwise). I worked harder and harder but still struggled. I needed to learn more and increase my skill sets before I could deliver good results quickly.
After eight successful years of self-employment I returned to the UK and switched to become an employee and eventually entered corporate life. I’m pleased to say that my return to self-employment (about 10 years ago) has been the ideal move and I know I’ll never return to the ‘dark side’. I’m simply not employee material.
As an employee I worked for and with a mixture of different managers, all with different styles. For the most part managers seem to quickly develop a mentality that suggests that employees should never be trusted and if you’re not squeezing every last moment of time out of them you’re not ‘managing them’. Again, I fully accept that there are some employees who are simply lazy and they will find every opportunity to skive. But I’ve seen this mentality destroy real enthusiasm and form bitter, untrusting and even divisive relationships.
I’ve worked for bosses who demand punctuality to the minute and would rather measure your dedication by how many lunch-breaks you are prepared to give up, rather than by the results you actually output. I’ve also work for self-employed people who believe their own insane desire of working 14-16 hours a day should extend to people with far less investment in the business.
One boss would start his working day at 5:30am or even 4:30am (in the office) and take perverse pleasure from reminding all his staff that he had already put in half a day’s work before others had turned up! His life was consumed by work, he had no social life as he went to bed at 9pm every night, no friends and eventually watched a business worth millions collapse in front of his eyes.
So here’s my radical thought; if business productivity is all about results, sales, profits and growth, why do we always tend to measure work rate by in-put and not by out-put?
It's all about your Output, not how many hours you work that really matters!
The number of hours you work is nothing more than a measure of time it’s taken you to complete the given task(s). I’ve met some people who are clearly workaholics and their biggest frustration is that 24 hours in a day just isn’t enough. If you’re running your own business and working more than 10 hours a day I would seriously question your business model. ‘Work should be boring and predictable’ and most of all it should be able to run without you; that’s called having a business, not owning a job.
As the majority of what we do day-to-day is broken down into tasks and the fact that being task-focused is a good way to stay on track, it’s tempting to approach these tasks by the measure of time required. The reality is though, it’s the actual out-put of the task that creates the result, the sale, the profits, etc. The amount of time expended is almost irrelevant. Arguably the longer it takes the more it costs and your profit margin shrinks as a result of inefficiency. Always remember, even if you own the business, your time is (or should be) a cost to the business too. Do you include this in your calculations?!
Instead of looking at each day as a set of tasks to be completed in a set amount of time, why not focus on how best to achieve the output you want for each? This will help you to think about production and problem solving in a far more creative way. I promise you; you’ll also find you complete tasks far quicker and with lower stress – and you’ll probably enjoy yourself a lot more too!
Now I approach my working day very differently. Sure, the days and weeks still fly past for me and I’d still like to create more. However, rather than looking at the next busy week ahead and thinking about all the hours it’s going to take to achieve the desired result, I now look at the end outcome and decide how can I quickly, efficiently and effectively create the result wanted. It’s also a great way to recognise that teamwork and collaboration are the key to business growth and stability.
The time you put into your working life is nothing more than a measure of how much of your life you are giving it. So surely it would be better to maintain a focus on what you want to actually achieve, for you and others around you?
Nial Adams
What’s the Deal?!
Are you really getting your message across?
A client coaching session on Skype last night threw up some very interesting and fundamental questions. The client, who runs a career coaching service, has a real depth and breadth of knowledge. Harnessed with the passion she has (and I mean serious passion) she produces some amazing results with her clients.
She’d admit to still being a novice when it comes to marketing and promotion, hence the reason for our coaching sessions. Last night’s session was very different though. The end result was a culmination of some vital concepts that she’s now ready to adopt and apply in her marketing.
I’ve spent many an hour talking and writing about the need for every business to create a ‘compelling proposition’. This is one of the most important things I’ve learned in marketing over the past fifteen years. I’ve met so many business people who have immense knowledge of their subject, have a real ability to deliver the goods but the most crucial element in their marketing strategy is still missing – a killer product offering.
It’s been said many times that selling a service is significantly harder than selling a product. This should be obvious. Allow me to digress for a moment to give you a powerful example…
I’ve just helped a client open a new retail space, a Coffee Shop. He’s an award-winning Barista Maestro and what this guy doesn’t know about serving great coffee really doesn’t count. In the past six years of his career he’s helped a major national chain make hundreds of thousands of pounds in profit. He’s highly successful and now has a very bright future ahead in his own business.
This is because he has a fundamental grasp on the three main aspects of his business; 1) knowing his subject, 2) knowing his business and 3) knowing what customers really want. Let me expand on this for a moment:
Knowing your subject – if you want to position yourself in the top end of your market, and if you want to sell a premium product offering (and why wouldn’t you?) you really need to know what you’re talking about. The best way to approach this, as I’ve found, is accept that you will always be studying and learning about your subject.
If you think it’s time to stop reading, listening and learning then you’re going to watch your competitors pass you and pull ahead. You’ll simply perish.
Knowing your business – again, I’ve said it many times before, too many ‘business people’ just don’t understand that you need a cast iron grip on the day-to-day management of your business and that all starts with the core figures. Our Coffee Shop owner is fanatical about margins and labour costs. Even if you only ever focused on these two elements you will immediately surpass about 95% of the business community out there. (And remember labour costs include YOUR time too!)
Knowing what customers want – I know this is probably stating the obvious but when was the last time that you really, openly asked a customer how you could improve the offering you give? Or, what process do you have for measuring the satisfaction of your customers on a daily basis? For the Coffee Shop owner it’s really simple; fresh food, a top quality coffee and made well (he’s even had his own roast blended to his exact recipe!), an immaculate and clean store and, most important of all… a smile for every customer!
Honey's Caffe in Fakenham
Returning to my original point, about the Career Coach – we agreed last night that her knowledge was significant and her delivery produces tangible results. The one ingredient missing to-date is a clear and concise proposition.
You see, if you want to take your prospective customer to the point where they are ready to buy you need to ask them a very direct question – every good sales person knows that ‘asking for the business’ is crucial. And yet you can only do this effectively is the consumer knows what they are being asked to buy and why they should go ahead.
Take five minutes and step back from your business. Ask yourself this very direct question; ‘if I were a prospect, would I recognise a clear sales proposition? Would I be totally clear about what this company or individual is asking me to buy?’ – ‘could I confidently give a Yes or No answer?’
Then you might want to go a step further and ask yourself these questions – known as the Key Buying Criteria (here are just four of the seven):
1. What actually is it? [the service or product]
2. Why do I need it? [again, the service or product]
3. What will it do for me – how will I benefit?
4. Why should I buy it from this company and not somewhere else?
Trust me, this is concept is responsible for creating quantum shifts in results from marketing and promotions – I know, I’ve proved this with hundreds of clients for over a decade. If you want to get a better result you might just need to take a different approach and being clear about your offering and proposition, or Essential Sales Argument, as it’s sometimes called, this is the best place to start.
Nial Adams
Please don’t tell me what you do!
It’s who you are that counts, not what you do!
A few years ago I learned about the concept of ‘be, do, have’. Like most of the really important lessons in business (and in life!) it can sometimes be a few weeks, months or even years before you really understand their true value.
In my work helping businesses, organisations and people to promote their products and services, I naturally start by looking at the individuals themselves. After all, people buy from people, right?! Perhaps as a result of this I’ve carved out a successful reputation for helping people to create strong personal profiles and focus on personal branding.
So I often find people, and especially those starting out, who tend to want to tell the world about what they actually do. The fact is that there are lots of people who are really good at their specialist subject; they know their craft and could be described as experts or specialists in their field.
The thing is, it’s not what you do that people are really interested in, they want to know how it could affect or benefit them. They also want to know WHO you are. I’m sure you’ve heard of the need to articulate benefits over features. Your customers and clients don’t buy what you do, they buy the end result – the how is much less important. This is all good marketing sense and something that every smart business owner needs to embrace if they want to get powerful results from marketing and promotion.
So you’ve helped the (would-be) customer or client understand what the benefit is, or the ‘WIIFM’… What’s In It For Me, now you need to help them understand why they should buy it from you, and not just anyone else. You see, there are always TWO elements to every sales message and so many people either forget, or are completely unaware of this.
- Tell them why they need to buy your product or service, and
- Tell them why they should buy it from you!
It’s with this second element that WHO you are becomes so important. Factors such as trust, confidence, credibility and my favourite (and possibly the most powerful) ‘Social Proof’ are all centred on who you are, not what you do or sell. Above all, they want to get to know and like a person who is truly authentic…
Be authentic and let others see who you really are
So here’s my question for you; how do you describe yourself to others? Are you making the most of the personal brand assets you have as a person and are you really articulating these to the audience?
If you want to significantly dial up your profile and ‘position yourself’ effectively you need to BECOME that expert, you need to BECOME the person other people will trust and value. This creates a powerful effect; when you BECOME that person, you will start to DO the things that reflect this and, as a result, you’ll start to HAVE the outcome you’re looking for.
This concept may appear very simple and perhaps you already follow a similar ethos but my challenge is “how are you getting this message out to your audience and what could you do more to dial this up?”]
Nial Adams
The New Email Marketing Revolution is here, will you be joining us?
Find out how every business can harness the power of EFFECTIVE Email Marketing… today!
A 60-minute presentation that lifts the lid and shows you how you can steal the advantage!
For too long email marketing has been ineffective and hard to measure accurately. Many businesses still see email as a way to just stay in touch; however, significant new advances in email marketing technology have changed all this. The smart business owners and managers are using this already, are you?!
“Since we’ve been using the new system we’re getting results that are 100-200% better than anything before”
Email marketing is still rated as the most cost-effective way to get your message right under the nose of your target audience. Even more than this, it can deliver a number of ways to accelerate your business.
Nial Adams, acclaimed marketing specialist and public speaker will be delivering this presentation and sharing his knowledge with you.
“This guy knows what he’s talking about and shares everything!” – Previous Seminar Delegate
Attend this presentation and find out how properly managed Email Marketing can help you:
- Sell more and increase your profit margins
- Reduce waste in your current marketing
- Refine and grow your prospect/client data
- Help you find out what your customers actually want
- Build your client community and relationships
- Ensure email is integrated with your other marketing
Email Marketing has been around for years and for many the perception is that it simply doesn’t generate results and can alienate potential customers. New ways of managing and distributing your email campaigns can significantly increase the results you get and help you build on this month after month. Best of all, you can be up and running, in control, with your new email campaigns in a matter of days, and with low start-up costs.
People tell us:
“I don’t want people to see us as spammers”
“How can I effectively measure my results?”
“I don’t know enough about it to be confident”
In this fast-paced sixty-minute presentation you’ll find out how the new PUSH Email Marketing System is generating controllable results, today, that significantly beat the competition.
You will see a live demonstration of how powerful systems can help you run a campaign in the morning and start making sales in the afternoon. You’ll also find out why most businesses that use email marketing currently are actually damaging their brand, losing out on simple ways to increase results and letting their profits end up in the pockets of their competition.
TO RESERVE YOUR SEAT PLEASE CALL - 0843 289 1590
OR EMAIL – briefing@pushemailmarketing.co.uk
Book Your Seat(s) Below. Powered by Fast Secure Contact Form
Does email marketing really work?!
Email Marketing – Scourge or Saviour?!
Today email has changed the face of modern communications. We have the ability not only to open and read our emails at our desk or on our laptop but with mobile technology, our email accounts (and we’re sure to have more than one) can live in our pockets. Smartphones and netbooks mean we can take our email wherever we go. And who knows what the new iPad from Apple will do for it!
So how has all this affected the power of email marketing? Well, firstly there has been a significant change in the way smart marketers are using email. Sadly, there will always be the spammers, happy to spew out millions of emails a week with completely non-relevant subjects to every possible address on the planet. However, new technology and greater access to it now allows everyone the opportunity to harness email as it should be used, following that well-worn marketing mantra of Right Message – Right Person – Right Time.
With a stronger move towards the powerful concept of Permission-Based Marketing, good marketers out there are looking for ways to get appropriate messages in front of potentially interested customers. More than this, we can learn about our customers too.
Email marketing, used properly, can become a cornerstone of a solid marketing strategy. It can be used to attract new customers, as well as maintain effective contact with existing ones. It allows us to deliver the right message in a timely way and, most importantly, to the right individual.
Other reasons why email marketing is still among the top tools for SMEs include:
Speed; there really is no other way (with the exception of SMS Marketing perhaps) of getting a campaign running faster. You can release a campaign in the morning and start making sales in the afternoon. You also get very fast (real-time) statistics that allow you to fine-tune your marketing campaign as you go.
Split-testing; I can’t believe there are still people out there who continue to run the same adverts week after week, month after month, with no plan to test them. This really is CRITICAL and split testing is the easiest way to achieve this. If you’re not aware of how to do this, FIND OUT and stop wasting your money.
Return on Investment; because email marketing can be so much cheaper than other forms of marketing, if you USE IT PROPERLY, you’ll see an amazing ROI. It’s no longer about ‘spray and pray’ it’s all about getting the mix right.
So what is the magic mix? Well, I’m going to give the game away at my next seminar on email marketing but here’s a sneak preview of the elements that I’ve found have a massive impact on results:
Get good data – This really is rule number 1. You will want to collect and source data in the right way and if you’re buying/renting data then use good suppliers, there are many out there.
Use a good email system – Forget about trying to manage your emails through standard applications like your Outlook account, you’re wasting your time and money. A proper email marketing tool will give you amazing power and control over your campaigns and help you to build progressively. Try this one!
Know how to play the game – Understand how email marketing works and what the ‘rules’ are. These are really quite simple (when you know them!) and will help you double, treble or more your campaign results.
Get strategic as well as tactical – Ensure that you build your email marketing into your overall sales and marketing plan. It will never work effectively for you if you just do it occasionally and with little thought or attention.
And lastly…
Always remember to use email to appropriately – It will help you to build your community and maintain contact with it. Stick to the guidelines and you’ll ensure your emails are seen as positive communication, not intrusive and annoying.
STOP PRESS: Watch this space… PUSH Marketing Partners will be running a competition and giving away 1 License for their new PUSH Email Marketing System and 1 years worth of free support and training, worth £1480..!
Let’s face facts; it’s probably time to do something different!
1) The vast majority of business owners are NEEDLESSLY wasting staggering amounts of money every month on marketing that just doesn’t work for them. Lots of business people see their marketing as a cost, never really knowing where the money goes, or why!
2) Lots of businesses are leaving thousands of pounds of untapped profits on the table because their approach to sales is missing some simple but essential marketing elements at the front end of their business.
3) Understanding how select the most appropriate marketing tools for your business work can make the difference between massive business success and wealth, or failure and bankruptcy. This is often the most overlooked but vital element in a business.
These areas are all essential to running a healthy, successful and above all profitable business – one that will last and stand the test of time. You might be shocked to know nearly 80% of all new companies will fail in the first year of trading. Of the 20% left about 80% again will go bust in the next five years. In nearly all cases it will be for the same reason – a lack of profitable customers… Good marketing strategy and tactics can prevent this!
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