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Archive for Helpful Hints

16 Jun

The Importance of Social Media Marketing

8 types of social mediaSocial Media Marketing is the most popular way to get your business seen in today’s world. You must have a social presence on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and LinkedIn at the very least. There are many other social medial outlets which are constantly changing, including Snapchat, Instagram, WhoSay, Periscope and much more. It’s better to have a strong presence in a few social outlets than to spread yourself too thin.

You need to spend time daily marketing on these networks. That means coming up with fascinating content that people will want to read on a regular basis. That can be a challenge.

Some ways to get your name out there in social media land are:

  • Reviewing Products
  • Bookmarking or promoting other people’s sites that are related
  • Joining social and interest based networks
  • Create videos for YouTube
  • Publish your own books

I’ve curated the following articles for some helpful tips on promoting your business.

8 Types of Social Media and How Each Can Benefit Your Business

How Often Should You Post to Social Media

Sensible #SocialMedia Marketing Checklist for Business

LinkedIn For Business

Expose Yourself To Marketing

How to Write a Professional Email That Gets a Reply

Amazing Benefits of Instagram for Your Business

Email Marketing Helpful Hints Marketing 101 Online Marketing Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
20 Aug

6 Reasons You Must Redesign Your Website

Is your website looking old and stale?

Website DesignIs it responsive to the various tablet and smart phone sizes or does it look strange and unprofessional?

Technology is constantly changing and so must your website. You cannot just let it sway in the online breeze.

Here are some tips on what makes an attention grabbing, quality website:

  1. Make it easy to read. Are the fonts large and clear? Is the content easy to skim? Use headlines and bulleted items.
  2. Create a unique experience. What makes your site stand apart from the competition?
  3. Include a search box visible on all pages.
  4. Eliminate animated graphics. Flashing, garish graphics are quite annoying, slow down your site and should be avoided.
  5. Simplify your navigation. Get to the point. Allow the user to find what they want immediately.
  6. Choose your design layout and color scheme wisely. Consult with an expert for best results.

Remember that viewers decide in an instant whether to read your website or click away. Make sure your site really grabs and keeps their attention.

What are your pet peeves about websites?

Advertising Branding Design Graphic Design Helpful Hints Logo Design Marketing 101 Online Marketing Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Website Design
02 Jul

A Clear Call To Action Gets You Results

Demand Action to Get Action

social media marketingWhenever you advertise or write on your blog or add a landing page to your website, you must always ask the reader to do something.

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Don’t Ask, Do Tell

“When it comes to getting prospects to take action, tell them what you want them to do. It is important to give clear and definitive direction to make sure your marketing messages have a strong call to action. Use simple phrases such as “download now” or “sign up” so your audience knows exactly what to do.” – Manta

Do you include a Clear Call to Action in all your Marketing Messages?

 

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For Email Marketing you can trust

Advertising Blogging to promote business. Business Practices Helpful Hints Marketing 101 Online Marketing
21 Jun

7 Ways to Promote Your Website and Keep it from Disappearing

The days of setting up a website and forgetting about it are over.

I think I should spend more time marketing my business. What shall I do next? Hmmm. Perhaps a tweet or two.

You must get your name out there on a regular basis. If not, no one will ever find you. You will be sucked into an internet black hole with billions of other websites.

Don’t let this happen to you! Follow these 7 steps and you will have a better chance of staying relevant.

  1. Include title tags, keyword phrases and meta descriptions on all your pages. Also add alt tags on your photos so they show up on searches. If this doesn’t make sense to you, call your neighborhood webmaster for help (or Chuck at Creative Juices 310-791-5803… just saying).
  2. Submit your site to the major search engines, primarily Google, Bing and Yahoo! It takes time for search engines to register this new information.
  3. Create a site map for your site. It helps the search engines and your visitors find all your pages.
  4. Write valuable, relevant content on a regular basis. Give tips, write reviews, how-to’s, etc. Give people a reason to come back to your site.
  5. Add videos and photos. People like visuals. Don’t forget to tag them with relevant keywords. Perhaps add a 6 second Vine or Instagram 15 second video.
  6. Set up your social media marketing. That means Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus and LinkedIn, for starters.
  7. Collect Email addresses. Email marketing continues to be very effective.
  • Social Media marketing involves creating constant new and helpful content. That’s what will get your site noticed and ranked high. Google and other search engines look for this new content. People search for sites that can help them meet their needs. If your site just sits static it will disappear. No one will find it because there is nothing new.
  • It is important to build relationships with others, especially those in your niche. You must create a sense of community with your audience.
  • Unfortunately there is no easy and quick answer. Google is always tweaking their algorithms. Recently they changed the way links to your site are viewed. It’s important that you have outside links to your site, but they must be good, natural links, not links you paid for.
  • The take-away is to update your website often. Keep it alive and relevant. It’s not easy, but with that kind of information, people will find you!

Do you use social media? Has it helped your website and marketing?

Advertising Blogging to promote business. Helpful Hints Marketing 101 Online Marketing Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
23 Apr

6 Tips on Running a Home Based Business

Creative Juices Rose Garden Entrance

A lovely rose garden leads to the entrance of Creative Juices.

Running your business at home sounds great. I started my business in 1981 out of my parents home. From there I moved my office several times. From store fronts to industrial parks, then to an office building and now my own home.

Too Many Distractions

I love working at home. The commute is very easy. I work off my living room in what once was a one car garage. Two glass French Doors lead off the driveway into the office. A blanket of rose bushes guide the way. In Spring and Summer it’s quite beautiful.

It also means lots of distractions. It’s easy to take a few minutes to prune the roses and pull a few weeds. My Chihuahua loves to sleep on my lap, preventing me from moving.

Occasionally my two foster boys, ages 5 and 7, are home from school with lots of needs.

Then there’s laundry, cleaning, mail, dog walks etc. It’s not easy to keep your mind focused on actual work.

How to Get Work Done

So here’s my suggestions for working at home and staying on track.

  1. Set aside a dedicated workspace. Having your own room would be ideal. If not, create a little nook somewhere.
  2. Start and stop work at specific times. Give yourself a schedule and stick to it.
  3. Turn off the TV and iPad. You’re there to work, not play.
  4. Take a break (after several hours of working, of course). Walk around the block and clear your head.
  5. Tell the neighbors, children, dog, cat that you are not to be disturbed when you’re “on the clock”.
  6. Only answer your business phone. Forget the telemarketers on your home phone (if you still have one).

Easy peasy. Feel free to share your tips too.

Don’t forget to sign up for my newsletter. Free tips on how to market your business.

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Business Practices Helpful Hints
13 Feb

5 Simple Ways to Achieve Amazing Small Business Success

Social Media Marketing

Image courtesy of Ohmega1982 / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Running a small business is an art. You have to trust your instincts and use your talents to achieve success.

It takes a lot of hard work, research and study. Never give up on your dreams.

I’ve been running Creative Juices for over 32 years. It never gets easier. In fact, with today’s economy and the changing field of graphic design, it is a daily challenge to stay up to date and relevant.

That is why I am constantly reading and studying the news for anything related to social media marketing and changes in technology for website design and function.

Here are five simple ways you can increase your chances for business success:

  1. Engage the readers of your website with a variety of content. Make sure it’s helpful and useful.
  2. Try using pictures, polls, tips, facts or even videos in your social media mix.
  3. Sign up with all the social media you can keep up with. Try Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn as the minimum.
  4. Give great customer service and you will retain your customers. And they’ll tell their friends.
  5. Keep your website current and active. You want customers to keep coming back for more.

Check out the following articles. They will help you reach your goals of business success.

Facebook Marketing: Why Less Is More

7 Ways to Beef Up Your Sales Strategy

5 Ways Small Businesses Get Social Media Wrong

The 10 Commandments of Using Pinterest for Business (Infographic)

Advertising Helpful Hints Marketing 101 Online Marketing Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
30 Jan

How to Take Charge of your Business Success

It’s not easy running your own business. Especially if you’re doing it by yourself, like me. Don’t let your business run itself into the ground. Take Charge.

One way to do that is by checking out what other people are saying about your business. Whether good or bad, it’s important to know where you stand. Then you can act upon that information.

Check out the following link for online reputation management tips.

4 Online Reputation Management Tips for 2012

Also catch up on the latest articles from Mashable.

Mashable Weekend Recap: 36 Stories You May Have Missed

39 New Digital Media Resources You May Have Missed

Mashable Weekend Recap: 32 Stories You May Have Missed

Business Practices Helpful Hints Marketing 101
23 Nov

Thanksgiving-Eve Marketing News You Can Use

Thanksgiving is a time to be grateful for what you have. It’s also a good time to work on getting more… business that is.

Here are some helpful business marketing articles I’ve found interesting:

Measuring Offline Vs. Online Word-of-Mouth Marketing

Five New Online Tools for Finding Local Customers

Social Media: 4 Simple Principles To Convert the Harshest Critics

The Lede: 7 Writing and Marketing Links You Don’t Want to Miss


If you use WordPress to design your own website, checkout Premise:

Get Premise Ultimate for only $95.

Copyblogger Media just released version 1.2 of their Premise landing page software for WordPress, and it includes lots of cool new features and refinements.

Most impressive of all is the introduction of an innovative 8th landing page type — the social sharing page.

Premise Ultimate usually goes for $165, as it gives you:

1. All the landing pages you can build
2. Use on as many domains as you want
3. Access to ongoing optimization seminars
4. Copywriting advice from inside WordPress
5. 1,100+ custom graphics by Rafal
6. Unlimited technical support
7. Unlimited updates (you’ll thank yourself for this next year)

During their Thanksgiving sale, you can get Premise Ultimate for only $95. Yes, really.

Just use the code THANKS when you check out and you’ll save $70 on the best landing page software available for WordPress.

This deal ends promptly at 7:00 pm Pacific time on Monday, November 28, 2011. Hurry up and get Premise Ultimate before they come to their senses!

Blogging to promote business. Business Practices Helpful Hints Marketing 101 Online Marketing Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Technology Website Design WordPress
20 Nov

Helpful Articles with Marketing Tips for the Holidays

The holidays are upon us. It’s never too late to improve your business. Here are a series of articles I found that relate to helping you and your business succeed.

I regularly check out RSS feeds from Entrepreneur Magazine and other business related sites. Topics will range from running your business to marketing, social media, website design and blogging.

Check back often to my blog. You never know what you will find.

Enjoy reading these articles this Thanksgiving week.

Seven Easy Tweaks to Turn Your Site into a Holiday Sales Machine

Brian Solis on Five Common Social Media Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

More Small Businesses Extol the Benefits of Social Media

Social Media and Content Marketing

How to Create a Google+ Business Page

I believe blogging is an excellent way to increase traffic to your business website. The following books can help.

5 Good Kindle Books For New Blog Owners

Why not buy yourself or someone you love a Kindle Touch for the holidays.

Blogging to promote business. Business Practices Helpful Hints Marketing 101 Online Marketing Website Design
17 Oct

9 Tips on Promoting Your Business for the Holidays

Halloween is almost here. Do you have your costume yet? How about plans to escape trick or treaters?

Most importantly, what are your plans for promoting your products and services for the all important holiday season?

Here are some tips to get your name out there this holiday season.

  1. Blog about how your product, service, or industry will help your clients/readers.
  2. E-mail your newsletter with tips related to your products or services. Try Constant Contact or MailChimp for a simple email solution.
  3. Update your website with specials. Make sure these specials will really benefit your customers and not just you. Explain how these benefits will help your customers.
  4. Add testimonials to your product pages. Don’t make them up, though.
  5. Use Twitter to build buzz.
  6. Create a contest or auction and promote it regularly.
  7. Set up a Facebook business page with fun facts and tips.
  8. Spread the word on LinkedIn to reach more businesses.
  9. Advertise online using Google’s AdWords or FaceBook Ads. You can set how much you want to spend. Make sure your ads go to optimized landing pages.

Be sure to read the following for more information:

5 Holiday Marketing Ideas to Boost Sales

What are you planning to do to promote your business?

Don’t forget to “like” me on Facebook. Sign up for my FREE e-Newletter too.

Advertising Business Practices Helpful Hints Marketing 101 Online Marketing
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