5 Google+ Marketing Tips for Your Small Business

Posted on April 24, 2013 by Staff Editor

Your small business only needs to maintain a presence on Facebook and Twitter, right? Wrong. Even though Google+ can seem like an afterthought in social media, ignore it and you’ll miss out on an enormous audience. There are five things you can do on Google+ to promote yourself in a new and exciting way and boost your brand’s awareness:

1. Use the “About Page” to link your website

Take advantage of this opportunity to tell the audience about your company. This is the perfect place to add important keyword links for your site. Another cool feature is that Google+ allows you add bullet points, so you could simply list your products and services and have them link to pages on your website, which go into more detail.

2. Plan events

Gmail accounts are ubiquitous, and Google+ has really neat optimized features for users. Their event feature, for example, is a great tool to use if your company would like to plan webinars, parties or other events. Regardless of whether or not they are Google+ users, their invitation will sync up with Google Calendar and help you track attendance. It’s also a great way to keep track of planning and logistics related to the event before, during and after!

3. Create frequent optimized posts

By including keywords in your Google+ posts, you will ensure that you show up whenever your followers search for that keyword. This feature is called social search and it is especially effective for those with a large following. By frequently posting relevant content, you are increasing your chances of coming up in Google search results, which is one of the biggest benefits to maintaining a Google+ page.

4. Be a Google Author

Google is constantly looking for new ways to authenticate content. By setting up Google Authorship, you are establishing yourself as a credible source for content. This means that you will be trusted by Google and will be able to reap all of the SEO benefits that come with that. By simply adding a photo of yourself and a miniature bio, you can drive tons of traffic to your page and significantly boost awareness.

5. Talk to the right people

Google+ is all about talking to the right people, and it makes it pretty easy to do so. One way to do this is to join communities that are relevant to your company’s industry and interests and becoming a valuable part of the conversations. Once you have done this, you can begin to form relationships with people, and when they add you to their circles, you can add them to your company’s. Once they are in your circle, the things you post will show up for them.

Danielle Pacelli is the Marketing Coordinator at MycroBurst/Logo Design Guru. MycroBurst is based in Langhorne, Pa. and is an online marketplace for graphic design. MycroBurst provides custom designs through crowdsourcing. Follow Danielle and MycroBurst on Twitter @MycroBurst.

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3 Ways Social Media Can Help during Tax Season

Posted on February 21, 2013 by Staff Editor

In the midst of tax season, it’s easy for some aspects of your small business to take a back seat. Since it’s important not to lose focus, sometimes the best solution is to utilize the convenience of social media.

Here are three simple ways social media can help during tax season:

1) Schedule Content in Advance

Although most experts indicate that real-time posts are the most effective means of engagement via social media, there is no harm in scheduling content from time to time to stay connected to your customers.

Free tools such as TweetDeck will allow you to write posts for future publishing and enter the precise moment when you want them to go live.

If you already subscribe to any paid tools for social media, most of them also include this functionality, so be sure to investigate that possibility as well.

2) Keep an Eye on Key Updates

As a business owner, you naturally want to stay abreast of any tax tips tailored specifically to your purposes. A great place to see a comprehensive list of new tax-related stories is on the popular tech and news site, Mashable. This group, known for their social media savvy stories, has a category dedicated to tax articles.

3) Ask the Experts

There are a bevy of thought leaders who regularly contribute via social media platforms and may be able to offer you personalized advice. For example, there are open LinkedIn groups that offer answers to common business tax questions, and hashtags such as #taxtips that offer free help on Twitter.

Just remember to breathe and digest all of the information one day at a time. During tax season—and beyond—social media allows for faster responses, more outlets for help and increased online activity for the business in your absence.

Tassoula E. Kokkoris is the social media manager at Guidant Financial. She is published in The World According to Twitter, and has contributed to several publications including the Digital Solutions Blog and Startupchamp.com. She tweets for Guidant via this handle: @guidant.

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How to Celebrate Holidays on Social Media

Posted on February 20, 2013 by Staff Editor

The digital community expects you to stay on top of major holidays year-round. It looks pretty bad when a business overlooks a widely celebrated holiday and just goes along with the usual content and strategies. Holidays are a great way to create excitement, make noise, and even boost sales. Here are some ideas to get you started:

1. Change your cover photo

Whether you are trying to spread some Valentine’s Day love or some Christmas cheer, a great way to start is by updating your cover photos to reflect that. Social media is becoming more visual by the day, so give the people what they want – pictures! Find or create an image that reflects your business and the holiday and make it your cover photo on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and any other platform.

2. Tweet festively

Maybe you just want to say “Happy Halloween,” but there is an easy way to get attention for doing so. Get in on the trending topics on Twitter by using hash tags. When users search for the holiday or click on it, they might just come across your tweet and re-tweet it and follow you. Get creative and get noticed!

3. Pin to win!

Pinterest is building quite the following and is an excellent tool for your business to use. A great way to promote your business during the holidays is to host a “Pin It to Win It!” sweepstakes and let your audience get their hands on a generous gift – promote it as a holiday gift. Simply have them follow you, re-pin a certain pin, and include a hash tag for a chance to win something your business offers or some other great prize. Users tend to keep their eyes open for these types of offers when holidays roll around.

4. Offer an exclusive discount

Offering a coupon is an easy way to get a boost in sales. Offering a coupon code that is exclusively for your social media following will make them feel appreciated and help gain loyalty. Make the offer fan-gated in order to ensure that only your fans and followers are able to redeem the offer.

5. Give helpful advice

The holidays can be stressful, but maybe you can help. Remind them of the goods or services your company provides or offer them useful tidbits. An easy way to do this is to write a holiday-themed blog post and promote it on all social media platforms to get the maximum amount of readership.

Don’t miss out on a golden opportunity for your company to shine by missing holidays and looking cold and unwelcoming. Open up your digital door and invite everyone in!

Danielle Pacelli is the Marketing Coordinator at MycroBurst/Logo Design Guru. MycroBurst is based in Langhorne, Pa. and is an online marketplace for graphic design. MycroBurst provides custom designs through crowdsourcing. Follow MycroBurst on Twitter @MycroBurst.

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5 Places You Should Be Focusing Your Brand

Posted on January 23, 2013 by Staff Editor

It is not uncommon for businesses to feel overwhelmed when trying to create an effective brand. There are so many factors that play a role in your brand’s growth that it might seem like there are too many little things to worry about in the process before you get to the more important areas. But never fear – focusing on these five things will help you stay on track when it comes to your brand.

1. Get a Logo Design
Having a logo design created is one of the first and most important tasks you should focus on when developing your brand. The logo will be the face of your business and will either stick in consumers’ minds or be easily forgotten. Work with a professional designer to come up with a design that will speak to your target audience and represent your brand well.

2. Don’t Forget Stationery!
Once you have the perfect logo design for your company, be sure to stock up on pieces of stationery that use the design. It’s important to have business cards, envelopes and letterhead that feature your logo in order to maintain consistency and professionalism. If you plan to build trust and loyalty with customers, it is important that they see how serious you are about your business. Stationery is a simple way to convey that message.

3. Launch a Website
Today’s consumers spend a great deal of time on the internet and they research services and products before purchasing anything. Building a website that is professional and easy to navigate will guarantee more sales. This will also make it easier for customers to refer your brand to others. Be sure to provide plenty of information and organize it on your site it in a natural way.

4. Get Blogging
Creating a blog as an extension of your brand’s website is a great way to get noticed quickly online. It’s important to update the company blog at least on a weekly basis. Writing blog posts will update your customers on your brand and enable you to discuss topics that are of interest to them. And as a bonus – searching for keywords found in your blog posts could also drive new customers to your blog!

5. Be Social
One of the easiest ways to communicate with your audience is through social media. Once you have established a logo for your brand and have developed a brand voice (funny, informative, techie, etc.), you should get your brand on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest, and other social media platforms. Make sure you post content regularly and engage with users to establish good rapport.

Branding your business can be tricky, but making sure you accomplish these five things will keep you on a path towards success! These goals are easily attainable with some time and thoughtfulness, so don’t miss out on building a great brand and creating a loyal customer base.

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Guest Post: How to Shift Your Mindset from Cutting Costs to Generating Revenue

Posted on January 16, 2013 by Staff Editor

As small business owners become increasingly uneasy about the removal of tax breaks, increased taxes and potential new costs for employee health care benefits, there are a plethora of articles cropping up everywhere on how to tighten the belt on the budget. Cutting costs on your insurance policies, voice and data plans, and credit card processing are always advised on the “to do” list and companies are often told to avoid cutting costs on customer service, marketing and employee perks.

These are all viable ideas, but they all miss the target. Instead of only concentrating on reducing expenses, why not focus on what you can do to shift your mindset over to increasing revenue?

Mindset Shift

The things that you are passionate about and give your time, attention and energy to often wind up paying it back in your favor which is why making the mindset shift from what costs you can cut to how you can generate your business more revenue is so important. If you concentrate only on reducing costs, where is your focus? You are pursuing a mindset of reduction when you give all of your energy to focusing only on financial matters. Is it good to be certain you have the best plan and the most effective use of your money? Of course!

Ask yourself what it is you really want. When you focus your time and energy on generating more revenue, you’re working to surround both your business and yourself with a financial means that can help you both grow and excel together. Focus mainly on cost-cutting and you are working on a reduction rather than an expansion mindset. Concentrate on staying positive and working to give your business what it is that it really needs.

How to Begin Generating Revenue

1) Marketing Campaigns

Was it the campaign where you targeted your database of repeat customers? You looked through your most successful campaigns for the last few years, sat down with your marketing team and designed a printed postcard which followed a clear, specific theme and hit the key buying triggers of the best campaigns. You may have even had so many good ideas that you designed a series of campaigns and hit several buying triggers. For the coming year, if you find that with all available marketing channels you no longer have as much time to design campaigns from scratch, why not check out free downloadable templates online? Design sites like PrintPlace make for great options with less generic, more professional print-ready postcard templates you can easily customize for your business.

2) Taking a Personal Approach

Perhaps one of your most successful marketing campaigns involved making personal visits to each of your top customers. Should you decide to repeat this again, it’s important to remember to take the following steps:

Call ahead and set an appointed time to do lunch or coffee.

Ask them questions displaying genuine interest in them and their business.

Bring along your latest product brochures and explain how your products work to serve them the best.

Follow through on your pre-determined call to action and depart with an order in your hands, knowing that you provided the best possible customer service.

Online Marketing

Twitter, Facebook, Splurgy, Pinterest or Google+ campaigns could all push traffic to your special offer. Guy Kawasaki’s book What the Plus is a comprehensive guide to Google+ and a comparison of Google+ to other social media sites.
You could increase their awareness to watch for your special offers. Anyone who called in the special code from the campaign could receive an extra bonus product or special discount rate.
A special QR (quick response) code could be placed on your business card, brochure or postcard campaign. This QR code could direct them to a specific page on your website to receive a special only available with that code.

Be Creative to Generate Revenue!

Combine the most successful campaigns of the past and test them in combination with new marketing methods to achieve the best of all possible worlds.

Elaine Love’s expertise is in small business, marketing, branding and publishing. Her credentials include Masters Degrees in Communication, 30 years of entrepreneurial awards including “International Innovator of the Year,” World Class Speaking Coach, and author of 3 books. Elaine prints her business cards, stickers and brochures with PrintPlace.com. Contact Elaine on Google+ at +Elaine

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LinkedIn Endorsements: Useful or Useless?

Posted on December 31, 2012 by Staff Editor

Recently, LinkedIn launched its endorsements feature, which is essentially a simplified version of the LinkedIn recommendation. But do these endorsements hold any value? I think they do, but I don’t believe they’re as useful for social proof of skills as they are for the indirect messages they convey to others.

Infinitely easier to offer than a recommendation, a LinkedIn endorsement takes one click to bestow. As a result, it’s likely that endorsements aren’t taken nearly as seriously by those who offer them as recommendations… and if recommendations aren’t all 100% sincere, you can imagine what that means for endorsements.

That being said, there is still some useful information that can be picked from them:

1) They serve as a check and balance.

Moving forward, endorsements will likely serve as another item on the checklist for recruiters and employers. Rather than give additional credit to those who have them, individuals who do not may send up red flags. In other words, just like old-fashioned references, endorsements become the norm.

2) They act as evidence of soft skills not listed on one’s profile.

A great example of this is amiability. Very few people will openly brag about how well-liked they are by their peers on LinkedIn – and those who do are probably dirty rotten liars, or are otherwise oblivious to how wrong they are. But because endorsements are given by others (who probably like you at least a little!), they can serve as a handy indicator of how easy to get along with a person is. The only exception to this is with recruiters, which in some cases receive endorsements from people who are only seeking to push their agenda and land a job. While these endorsements might very well be true, they also come from individuals who have little to no relationship with the recruiter, suggesting an ulterior motive.

3) They typically offer insight into who the person’s closest connections really are.

Again, you can exclude recruiters from this category entirely. Apart from them though, I believe endorsements to be a great indicator of a person’s inner professional circle, and here’s why: you can’t solicit an endorsement formally like you can with recommendations. Someone has to be thinking of you (or you must reach out to them informally) in order to endorse you, and for that to happen, you had to have some sort of meaningful interaction with them.

The Rule of Three

Like recommendations, it is possible to offer too many endorsements. I would argue that the rule of three serves as an excellent guideline: when offering endorsements to another, endorse up to one third of their listed skills, to a maximum of three. Anything more and your gesture won’t be taken seriously (the same as if you took a survey and rated every single question 10 out of 10 – it looks like you don’t actually care).

The Bottom Line

Endorsements should be seen more as a personal branding tool than as social proof of your skills. More than anything, they are an indicator of your professional likeability… which comes in handy when you’re trying to market yourself to others!

What’s your take on LinkedIn endorsements? Leave me a comment and weigh in!

Jason Repovs is the blogger behind The Personal Professional. He is a professional marketer who share thoughts on marketing and leadership from a Generation Y perspective. Jason has a passion for relationship building, organization management, personal branding, and affecting change.

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Guest Post: 10 Things Every Business Should Know About Social Media

Posted on October 19, 2012 by Staff Editor

The internet is full of articles singing the praises of social media. “It’s the most important thing ever for businesses. If you have it, your company will become bigger than Google; if you don’t, you’ll disappear faster than Pets.com (remember them?) and have to move back in with your parents.”

Let’s set the record straight. Can social media help your business make a name for itself, gain new clients, and forge relationships? Yes. Should you jump in with both feet even if you don’t understand social media so your company can become an overnight success? No. That’s not going to happen.

Social media is a tool, and like any other tool, you need to understand how it works or you might embarrass your company. After all, you wouldn’t try to use a nail gun without knowing how to use it, right? I hope the answer is no, or at least that I’m nowhere near you the next time you find a nail gun.

Before you begin your business’s journey into the world of social media, here are 10 important things everyone should know.

1. Ditch the hard sell. If the only things you post on your Twitter feed, Facebook page, or blog are announcements about new sales, products, and services, no one will follow you.

2. Keep the content coming. Companies who are successful in social media put out a continuous stream of quality content that allows them to steadily grow their fanbase, gain trust, and strengthen the brand. Only updating your Facebook or Twitter accounts once a week just doesn’t cut it.

3. Don’t drown your audience. The flip side of that coin is that you shouldn’t be overzealous in your posts and updates. If people are getting several notifications from you every day, it might turn them off and lose you fans.

4. It won’t happen overnight. Social media doesn’t work like a TV or radio commercial where millions may hear or see it each time it airs (and where you’ll pay for that privilege). Growth will occur due to word-of-mouth and through you seeking out fans and followers who have similar interests related to what your company does. Give it time and keep at it.

5. Look beyond the big boys. Everyone needs to be on Facebook and Twitter, and starting a company blog is always a smart move, but there’s a lot more out there. It’s important that you look for social networks that seem to reflect your audience. Pinterest is great for companies that have amazing visual content. Seeking dog owners? Join Dogster. Whatever your niche is, there’s usually a social network close by.

6. It’s time consuming. Generally speaking, businesses that want to stay top of mind with their audience should post at least 2 to 3 times per week on their blog and each of their social networks. Already you’re looking at several hours a week of blogging, and that’s not counting monitoring and responding to comments. Businesses that really dive into social media often find it’s worth the money to dedicate someone to the task. Because of this…

7. Social media isn’t free. Perhaps the previous tip makes this obvious, but I think it’s worth saying directly. Even though it doesn’t cost money to join social networks or start a blog, at the very least you’re “paying” with your time.

8. Be human. With so many things competing for our attention, it can be difficult for your business to stand out. People tend to respond better when they feel a human connection, so don’t be afraid to have a personality and even share your personal story.

9. Use multimedia. The beauty of social media (and the internet in general) is that it can incorporate all other kinds of media. Rather than just posting text, share pictures, put together infographics, and even post videos on your blog and social media feeds.

10. Remember: you’re a unique snowflake. The key to using social media well is to hone in on what makes your business different and focus on that. If you don’t feel like you’re finding that sweet spot yourself, it might be worth the money to consult with a social media expert.

Josh Weiss-Roessler is a freelance writer and small business marketing consultant based in Los Angeles. He’s also a contributor to Resume Builder Online and a professional resume editor. You can learn more about his work at WeissRoessler.com.

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Meet the MyCorp Team… Matt!

Posted on June 13, 2012 by Staff Editor

It’s our final Wednesday for highlighting a member of our MyCorporation family tree- thanks for tuning in each week and meeting the team here at MyCorp!

Name: Matthew

Job title: Sales

What that job entails: Educating our clients on how to form their company and protect their assets.

Favorite place to got on your lunch break and what you order: Fresh Brothers Pizza, Tomato, Basil, and Pepperoncini Pizza!

First CD you ever bought: Boyz II Men

Favorite game you played as a kid: Soccer

If you could own a vacation home in any part of the world, it would be located in: Thailand

The best thing about MyCorporation is: My clients! Everyone has a unique business and background they keep me on my toes everyday!

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Meet the MyCorp Team… Talia!

Posted on May 30, 2012 by Staff Editor

Every Wednesday, we’ll be highlighting a member of our MyCorporation family tree- check in with us every week to meet the team here at MyCorp!

Name: Talia

Your Job Title: Director of Finance

What you do at work all day: Manage all MyCorp Finances, forecasts , budgets, hundreds of vendor accounts , payroll , the list could go on and on………

Your favorite website to waste time on: I will admit it has to be Facebook

The piece of technology you could not live without: iPhone

The best thing you’ve ever eaten: The amazing Ahi Tuna Tartare from Mastro’s Steakhouse

The animal that you have always wished you could own, and the name you would give it: It would have to be a stuffed animal because I’m not really a pet person lol! …. So with that being said, I would say a monkey named Cash

Why you love working at MyCorp: I work with a really strong, close-knit group of people who all genuinely like and respect each other–that is pretty rare, in my experience. Oh and one more minor detail…… I get to wear jeans and sandals to work almost every day !

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