Blog

Six mistakes that will make your website look unprofessional

You don’t have to be a scientist to avoid these unprofessional mistakes. You never get a second chance to make a first impression. It’s true in life, it’s (mostly) true in business and it’s true on the internet. As a small business owner, you can’t afford to make the mistakes that might drive away potential... Read More

Where to find photos for your social media posts

Good graphics will increase your engagement, no matter what platform they’re viewed on. It’s no secret that posts with graphics tend to get more attention than text-only messages. In fact, according to bufferapp.com, photographic posts get 39 percent more attention than text-only or even video posts. There are a number of reasons for this, and... Read More

How nostalgia marketing can help your brand

  Everybody remembers the ‘good old days.’ Holidays like Memorial Day certainly usher in the feeling, but no matter how old you are, there’s always time that you refer back to fondly, whether it was the 90s, 80s, 70s—or further back still. Nostalgia is part of the human condition and it’s also becoming a part... Read More

Five great social media monitoring sites

Your social media channels won’t do you much good unless you’re paying attention to them. In order to use them effectively to build your brand, you have to know how effective they are, in the first place. That’s where social media monitoring comes in. There are a number of ways you can track how effective your content... Read More

Survey says: local, online reviews are crucial for your business

According to a recent study by brightlocal.com, online reviews are more important than ever and, when it comes to the origin of those reviews, the closer to your business, the better. Brightlocal has conducted the survey every year since 2010. Last year, they polled more than 1,050 individuals to get insight on how online reviews... Read More

5 easy steps to improving internet security

If you’re a business owner, it’s important to take information security seriously. As a small business owner in particular, you and your customers are at risk. About 43 percent of all cyber attacks target small businesses, according to smallbiztrends.com. Fortunately, there are several relatively easy—and cheap—steps you can take to protect your information and your... Read More

How to maintain brand consistency–and why you should

You may think your business isn’t big enough to be a “brand,” but you’re wrong. Any business, from the smallest mom-and-pop operation to a corporation like Coca Cola, is its own brand. A brand is defined as what people think about your business—the impression they get when they see or hear its name. It’s more... Read More

How to write effective Calls to Action

Having an online presence or social media business page is just the first step in the process. When customers find you, either through a google search, by following a Facebook ad or some other means, what do you want them to do? That’s your call to action: essentially the purpose of your online efforts. It’s... Read More

Four ways social media can help your CRM

Marketing with social media is effective because it can help build or strengthen your connections with existing customers. Used properly, it can enhance your Customer Relationship Management (CRM) results and build a solid, loyal customer base. There are plenty of reasons to improve your CRM, of course. The biggest is the cost factor. According to... Read More

SEO trends for 2017

The Search Engine Optimization market, like the algorithms that power it, are constantly in flux. Google’s algorithm is almost constantly being updated, which keeps business owners and marketers alike on their toes. This year will be no different. Here are a few things to keep in mind if SEO marketing is one the main ways... Read More

Should you give up your Facebook business page?

You may have noticed that the organic reach of your Facebook business page is dwindling. It may seem like no matter how creative, graphic or entertaining your content is, the vast majority of your customers do not or will not see it. Well, you’re right. The Facebook newsfeed algorithm is constantly changing and, it seems,... Read More

A quick social media checklist

Social media has long been an important way to market your business. There are almost as many available channels today as there are channels on your television, but you don’t need to be active in all—or even most—of them. Here’s a quick checklist of the best ones and a couple questions you should ask yourself.... Read More

6 ways to persuade customers through social media

Your business’ social media pages are perfect places for you to persuade customers to visit your shop, use your services or buy your goods. It’s more of a soft sell that other forms of marketing, like direct advertising or cold-calling; you’re trying to foster a relationship to build up trust to bring customers into the... Read More

How to avoid social media burnout

Social media is a 24/7 proposition and creativity….isn’t. It’s easy to get burned out when you’re trying to come up with new content every day—or even more often. There are several things you can do, however, to produce good content even when your social media muse is quiet. Get our staff involved. When in doubt, farm it... Read More

Top 5 social media business trends for 2017

The social media industry can be difficult to predict, year in and year out. New platforms come and old platforms go–and the ones that stick around are almost constantly changing. Last year saw an increase in the use of video, the rise in the importance of telling stories and creating mobile content and the decline... Read More

How to organize your content calendar

Creating and keeping track of social media posts can be a daunting exercise for any business owner. It’s easy to let the needed tasks of running a business push this necessary task to the back of the line, leaving you (or your staff) to post content without a lot of thought behind it. It’s not... Read More

Digital marketing trend for 2017: Permission Marketing

When it comes to marketing in 2017, one early trend is becoming clear: if you want attention, you’re going to have to earn it. That’s particularly true in the digital world, where more and more people are hanging out and advertisements are increasingly getting ignored. Banner ad click-through rates continue to decline, your organic reach... Read More

Is your website mobile enough for 2017?

If you’re still planning your marketing strategy for 2017, make sure you answer a simple question, first. Are you mobile enough? Mobile internet users have outpaced desktop users for more than two years, now and trend will only increase this year. That means more and more people will be using their smart phones and tablets... Read More

How to set a marketing budget for 2017

Setting a marketing budget can be a challenge for any type of business, large or small. It can be even more difficult when you are operating a small business, because you often have to make these decisions on your own, without a team of experts to advise you or back you up. As we look forward to... Read More

How long is a web surfer’s attention span?

  How long do you think you have to grab someone’s attention? In the fast-scrolling world of social media, it is not long, at all. What started out as the five second rule for websites has deteriorated even more for social media channels like Facebook, Snapchat, Twitter, and more. It’s more like a case of ‘blink... Read More