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Monday 23 April 2018

April 23, 2018

The A-Z of Digital Marketing





If you are looking into digital marketing for your business, then you have probably heard many terms being thrown around that did not quite make sense to you. That's because the world of Digital Marketing is a huge place. So to help you on your journey, we have put together an A-Z list of a few of our favorite terms within the digital world.

A- AUTOMATION

The assistance of technology performing processes or procedures. We are seeing more and more automation within the world of technology as time goes by, which is making things easier and working as a time saving tool. If you don't understand automation yet, or implement any automation tools into your business. Now is the time to start!





B- BACKLINK

Backlinks are created by outside websites, linking directly to your website or deep link.
These can be a very good tool in optimizing your search engine visibility when done correctly.


C- CMS

Content Management System allows users to create, update and publish content on a website.

D- DATA

Data can be obtained to gain knowledge into customer behavior, audience types etc.

E- EMAIL

Email, and email marketing is an important tool in communication within your business, to both your customers, and suppliers.





F- FACEBOOK

A well known social media platform, used by many businesses around the world to connect and network.




G- GOOGLE

The number one search engine. If your business is not appearing here on Google, its time to start looking into ways to make it happen! Google features such as google ad words, makes this possible.




H- HASHTAG  #

Labels used throughout various types of social media, to help user experience when searching for a particular business, service, person or phrase.




I- INSTAGRAM

Popular social media platform in which images are the main focus, a great platform to use when trying to get a point across or showcase a portfolio.

J- JARGON

Special words or expressions used by a group that are difficult for others to understand. Probably not the best thing to be doing within your business publicly, that is if you want people to understand what you are on about!

K- KEYWORDS

Words, ideas, topics that best describe your page. Used in the digital marketing world to direct traffic to a specific source.

L- LANDING PAGE

The main entry point of a website, or particular section of a website. Great SEO implemented on your landing page is extremely important.

M- MARKETING

A simple one, yet an important one. The art of simply promoting ones business, services, website, products. This includes market research and advertising.

N- NFC

Near field communication allows smart devices to be connected, by bringing the two items closer together.

O- OPTIMIZATION

The action of making the best, or most effective use of your website tools. Implementing keywords, etc to direct traffic to your website by making it easily found on the world wide web.


P- PAY PER CLICK

A business model where a specific company places ads on your website and offers to pay a sum of money for users clicking on the advertisement.

Q- QR CODES

A machine readable code consisting of an array of black and white squares, typically used for storing URLs, or other information for reading by the camera on a smartphone

R- RETARGET

Also known as remarketing can help you keep your brand in front of bounced traffic even after they leave.





S- SEARCH ENGINE

Collation of information, website links, videos, pictures etc that can be searched for using keywords. This is the reason your key word selection is so important.

T- TESTING

Testing, A/B testing  a click, a form being completed, newsletter, a sale. Various goals business owners want to achieve and the various methods used to achieve them.

U- USER EXPERIENCE

The ease in which customers will have when using a website, and the feedback provided.

V- VERO

A new social media platform, recently introduced and set to change the game of social media.

W- WWW

We have all seen the letters www typed at the start of a link. Do you know what it stands for?
world wide web.

X- X-RAY

Yes, it is commonly used in the medical field, but also quite frequently in the digital marketing realm when you are searching for data within your social media networks.


Y- YOU

You are the most important aspect in your business, which is why we have included this one! Without your drive, determination and persistence you wont succeed.




Z- ZIPPY

Every so often its important to give your social media bio, website, blogs a bit of a Zippy. Yes this is a created word by us! But basically the point we are trying to make here, is that its important for you to spruce things up every now and then, always ensuring your customers are having the best user experience possible.



Now that you have your A-Z all sorted, its time for you to start your business. If you haven't already then check out our other blogs that may help you too:


How to: Choose a Niche Market

Shopify for beginners

Our Top Picks for Digital Marketing



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Thursday 19 April 2018

April 19, 2018

7 Mistakes that are destroying your business




Whether its your very first business, or you have run business all your life, eventually you are going to run into mishaps, and even make mistakes.
But can certain mistakes be avoided?  You have probably heard numerous times about how creating an initial business plan is an important tool in the growth of your company. But did you know its equally important to have a contingency plan.

A contingency plan otherwise known as a backup plan, is what you are going to do when facing issues within your business, and just how you are going to go about avoiding or resolving these issues.

Here are 7 mistakes that are destroying your business.
How many are you currently doing?

MONEY

One of the biggest and most obvious issues within business especially in the early stages is money! You either lack money or you are spending it in the wrong places.  Its all too often that small business owners get credit card happy, and create huge amounts of debt for themselves, by using credit cards or loans to obtain unnecessary items in the early stages of your business. New computers, large office space, warehousing and fast cars are some of the items in which business owners purchase to early on in their business career. Does it sound like a silly move? Well this isn't the only one. Some smarter moves like advertising costs can also send you into a dangerous spiral, by not budgeting or spending the money on the WRONG type of advertising.



KNOWLEDGE

You have heard it before, but I am going to repeat it once again, "knowledge is key" without this you are diving into unknown waters, and this isn't safe for even the most experienced business man.
Many millionaires and even billionaires will tell you, that reading books is such a valuable tool within their business modules. Some of which even research unrelated topics to scale their businesses years down the track. Knowledge is the preparation your business requires to succeed.
There are numerous things you NEED to know when starting a business, but here are just a few. And if you have a business/ or are starting one and don't have the answers to these questions, well... you better get your research cap on.
  • Who is your target market: Including ages, sex, countries, hobbies, etc.
  • How much will your business cost to start and maintain over a 6 month- 1 year period
  • How much will you spend on advertising
  • What type of advertising will you be doing
  • How much competition do you currently have in your industry, and what makes you a competitor.



MOTIVATION

All to often business owners go on a rollercoaster of emotions, very early on in their journey. It is normal to play out the motions of excitement, confusion, nervousness etc. But how you deal with these situations is what is really going to determine the outcome of your business.
Generally the scale of emotions goes a little something like this:
Business launch- Leading up to, and upon the launch of your business the feeling of excitement and nervousness is also clouded by a sense of confidence. You wouldn't be starting the business if you didn't initially believe in it.
No sales- Then comes the confusion when the sales aren't rolling in, as you had such a strong product right?
You then may go back to the drawing board and rewrite marketing techniques to better advertise. This is when your rollercoaster ride becomes exciting, because you now have the confidence back and are ready to make these sales.
If these efforts succeed you will continue to roll, but if the first attempt doesn't succeed then its a testing time for any business owner as they begin to question themselves, and wonder "if this is really for me"  
Motivation is what keeps us moving, it keeps our business afloat and stops us from pulling out of our dreams prematurely. Its all in the frame of mind, and how you deal with situations. Which of course leads me to the next point.



CONFIDENCE

When you lose the confidence within yourself, you lose motivation. These two points go hand in hand & it is all too often I see business owners closing shop, right before the Eureka moment. Now sure, this doesn't happen in every case, but if you have invested your time, effort and money into a business. Why would you give up after only a few attempts at success?
Maintaining the confidence to re-evaluate situations when they aren't working is a common scenario that many people forget.




DIRECTION

If your initial direction changes, that means the business is not worth having right? Because well, you had a plan? Wrong. Business plans change all the time, and your direction will too. But it is key to have a direction planned out for the series of events that can easily occur.
For example: Lets say you spend your whole budget of  $5,000 on advertising & that advertising doesn't give you the expected results, what is next? 
Imagine a map of your country. If one route is closed, generally there will be a detour. And business works the same. Get the directions and detours mapped out early on to avoid any mishaps or disappointment.




MIND BLANK

How many times have you started telling a story but all of a sudden lose your chain of thought? This commonly happens in business. It takes a lot of will power to stay on track and stay focussed in what your end goal is. You are only human, and these things happen... to all of us. Hey I'm pretty sure it has happened to me a few times whilst writing this blog! A great key to helping with this issue is keeping a pen and paper handy. Write down your ideas as they pop into your head and look at the best possible opportunities at executing them within your plan.




REPETITIVE ACTIONS

A famous scientist once said " Only an idiot would keep doing the same thing over and over expecting a different result" And this statement couldn't be more true. Sometimes we get an idea that we think is amazing, so we try it. And it doesn't work. You need to learn to read your customers, and not continue repetitive behaviour if you are not receiving the desired outcome.
If you try something and it doesn't work. Then learn from it and try something else! 
This is one of the largest and most reoccurring issues that business owners are facing. 






Each and every one of these occurring issues work hand in hand with each other to create a steady flow. Business changes, that's life and things are not always going to go to plan. But have you ever heard the saying "if at first you don't succeed, try and try again" ? 
This goes without saying, that sometimes despite our efforts. The business may not work. Its all a game of determination, consistency and planning. And sometimes that planning does include knowing when to shut the door.


So how many of these traits are you applying to your business? And how do you work at changing them? We love to hear from you, so leave us a comment on your ideas and opinions.


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Wednesday 18 April 2018

April 18, 2018

Beginners guide to Shopify

If you are looking to start an E-commerce website, then you have probably stumbled across Shopify.com , being one of the largest web builders, with a simple "drop and drag" system, its no wonder Shopify has such positive reviews.

And the best part about this platform is that you don't need to be tech savvy to create a professional, customizable website. Here is our step-by-step guide for beginners on creating your very own website with shopify.com

Steps to setting up your Shopify website

Shopify offers a 14 day trial in which you can implement the time into customizing your website to best suit your business needs. 

Step 1: Sign up with shopify

Visit shopify.com and use the sign up form to create your account. When you have filled out this information, hit the "Create your store" button.
You will require a store name, and email address as seen below. 




Your store name should be a reflection of your business, and I would advise that you follow your countries requirements to register this name prior to creating your store. (To also ensure the name is not taken)  You will then be asked for a few more details: Address, Phone etc.

Shopify will then prompt you to answer if you are "playing around" on the website, "Have your own products" and ask "what will you sell."

Once complete, you will click "done"

Shopify Pricing Plans are as follows:

Currency: USD

BASIC SHOPIFY $29 PER MONTH 
ADVANCED SHOPIFY $79 PER MONTH
PREMIUM SHOPIFY $299 PER MONTH

Step two: Store Setup


Once completed, you will be automatically directed to your Dashboard. Here is where you can customize the look of your store, purchase domains, add Apps, track sales etc.


Step three: Theme/ Layout


This is when the fun begins, designing the look of your new store! Shopify has a large number of themes available to choose from, to ensure your website best caters to your audience.
You also don't need any coding experience to use Shopify, and the available themes come ready with various modifications available.

If you are looking at making larger changes to your theme, shopify does have the option of a design team within their "shopify experts" who can assist.

There are various themes available including a large range of Free themes/ Paid themes and you can also search by industry or category. 

Once you have selected the theme of choice from Shopify theme store you can:
  • Check functionality of theme
  • Reviews
  • View Demo
  • Apply theme to website


Step four: Publish Theme


Once you have established the theme that fits your business model, you can now click "publish theme", and don't worry if you decide to change the theme down the track, you can do that simply too!
Once completed you will be prompted to "Theme Manager" which leads me to the next step.

Step five: Editing your theme


The next step will allow you to create a website that is not only original to you, but also suits your business requirements. So using the Theme Manager you can now change things such as:
  • Logos
  • Colours
  • Fonts
  • Header/ Footer
  • Homepage slideshow
  • Functions of the site
  • Collections
  • Product pages
  • Shopping Cart
  • Checkout






Step five: Adding your products


Return to your shopify admin page now, and click "products"  from this page you will see a button marked "Add product"  You should then add in a title for your product, description, Sku, images etc and click Save.


Step six: Collections


You may want to categorize each of your products into their own collections. So to do this you will need to Set up collection (choose name for collection) Shopify will then prompt you to choose which products shall be added to this particular collection.


Step seven: Money, Money, Money


If you are setting up your online store, you probably want to be able to receive payment from your customers too! This is when you will set up your payment gateway.

In the Settings tab on your dashboard, you will find the payment setup. Shopify has a few options for this such as Paypal, Shopify Pay (automatically set up). But you will need to choose the best payment option for you.

Ensure you look at the various fee's associated with each method, cards accepted and countries.


You are almost ready for your website to go live. Before you do there are a few things you need to check off your list and all of these can be found in the Settings Tab.

Taxes: Depending on your country requirements you will need to select the Tax / GST applicable.
Shipping: Here you have the option to set shipping prices, worldwide/your country, based of size, weight etc.
Double Check: Preview your website, to ensure everything looks the way you want it to prior to going live.


Step eight:  GO LIVE!!


In theory your website should be complete and ready to go live. Now you can simply publish the website. Keep in mind that without purchasing a domain name you will be using the standard one provided by shopify.com and this will look something like:

yourcompanyname.shopify.com

You may want to purchase a domain to add to your website prior to going live.





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Monday 16 April 2018

April 16, 2018

Advantages of Social Media Marketing for your Business




Social media has quickly become one of the largest go to tools when looking towards promoting your business online. Gone are the days of long struggling hours and door knocking to get your brand recognition.
What if you could spend as little as 7 hours a week online and increase your brands awareness, traffic and of course sales! 

 Many businesses now are claiming that social media marketing has really changed their business and the way they look at advertising.  And its safe to say that social media marketing SHOULD be a large part of your marketing strategy when building your initial business plan.

 O.K so its pretty easy to say that social media is an important and valuable tool to use within your business marketing, but you are not alone if you are the type of business owner that has no idea where to start or how to apply these skills to your business.

 Before explaining the do's and dont's of social media marketing, lets establish the advantages of using this magnificent tool within your business structure.

 1. Increased brand awareness
Yes, with the millions of people scrolling through their news feeds on a daily basis, commenting, liking and sharing posts they find engaging. Its no wonder that increased brand awareness is on this list. This is something that all business owners strive for. Because without anyone knowing you exist, how will they shop?
So creating engaging, interactive content and representing your brand to the best of your ability is key!




 2. TRAFFIC
With millions of people logging onto their social media accounts on a daily basis, the target market in which is sitting at your doorstep is something that would once seem unattainable. 
It is very likely and most certainly possible to target 1, 2, even 3 million people a day using social media marketing. Which should always direct to your place of business, be it a website, store, etc. 

 3. Improved Search Engine rankings
Now while social media is our key focus here today, lets not forget that you will need to put in effort outside of these platforms to keep your search engine rankings up. Implementing a strong SEO campaign, landing pages, and key words can all fuel your ranking. But yes, social media does help too. The more people sharing your content, liking your content and even speaking about your brand is being picked up by search engines all the time. Therefore can slowly, but surely increase your rankings.




 4. Conversion rates
With increased visibility, your business is now gaining opportunities on a daily basis to grab a conversion. Every post, image or link can drive traffic towards your business website and increase traffic with possible conversions.
As mentioned above, if your content is worthy of a comment, like, share or even a tag, you are putting yourself on a digital map which can lead to many conversions.

 5. Customer rapport
With features like "recommendations, tagging, hashtags and even comments" you're potential customers can see what others have said about your business. Rated you and even sometimes the bad points towards your business. So its important even when receiving negative feedback, to address this accordingly and always maintain a professional attitude. 
Although the internet is an extremely large place, many ears and eyes are watching your business at all times.





 6. Online Insights
The online insight feature allows you to have a feel of the data based around views, clicks and conversions to your social media sites and website. By analyzing specific age groups, countries, interests to provide you with a detailed information sheet at the end of each week or month. This tool can also be used to gain feedback on which posts are working, which products are showing the most interest, and the amount of website clicks you are receiving from specific sites. 
7. Cost effective
Of course, every business owner wants to save costs wherever possible. Well social media is FREE! Yes, there are upgrades, automation businesses, and of course paid ads which i believe add a tonne to your business, however if you are a start up or trying to cut costs, you can most certainly still get a huge benefit from social media at no cost at all.
Now lets get started!!!

 There are many different types of social media that can be beneficial for your business, of course we have the well known popular ones. But below are a list of social media outlets in which we find useful for marketing your business.
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Snapchat
  • Pinterest
  • Tumblr
  • Vero
  • YouTube
  • WhatsApp
  • QQ
  • WeChat
  • QZone
  • Google+
  • Skype
  • Viber
  • Line
  • LinkedIn
  • Telegram
  • Reddit
  • FoursSquare
  • Badoo
  • Myspace
  • Stumble Upon
  • The-Dots
  • Snap Fish

Now you may be thinking "I don't have the time to create and manage accounts for all of those" Well here is the good news, you don't have to create accounts on each and every one of those social platforms, have a breeze through and get a feel for which would be suitable for your business.
Now if you choose to sign up to all of these, you can of course try automation of some of your social media sites, which can significantly cut your time down.





Another key factor in social media marketing is E-Mail marketing, another huge benefit of social media marketing being a networking tool, is that you're able to gather information such as email address', and customer requirements. Thus being able to send out email mail outs with information to suit the customers needs.

Again like the social media sites, there are hundreds of companies you can use for this type of software.  Our favorites though are:  Ninja Outreach, Mail chimp  and Benchmark.

Still confused about using social media for your business? Regardless of the type of business you are currently running, I am sure we can agree with one key point. And that is that the most important thing in running a business is making sales!  
These techniques are not going to make your sales change dramatically overnight.
There are several key points that go into actually making these conversions. They are:

  1. Engaging content is key! If you saw this content elsewhere, would you share it? like it? or tag your friends? If not.. Then look for content that IS engaging.
  2. Connect with followers: If you put a post up that has an image of a book with a caption that reads " Buy this book now for $29.99" you are more than likely not going to gain the conversions you had hoped for. However if you're post is engaging, and customers can connect or relate with the content. You are one step closer to the conversion. 
  3. If you can get a customer to click on your website, they SHOULD leave with a purchase.  If not? Time to evaluate the reasons.
  4. SEO: Search engine optimization should become your best friend, there are a lot of techniques that go into a fantastic search engine ranking, and these are all things you should be constantly on the look out for when running a business. Are you using backlinks? Are you listed on directories? Do people know your brand exists? If not, then fix it. 



All in all, there are plenty of ways to gain traffic to your website. That is why you are here right? We are all looking for the perfect answer to the question " How can i get more people to my website" And the answer is pretty simple....

Work for it.

If it is the clicks your website is lacking, then start looking into more ways to advertise online, watch videos, read articles and gain as much knowledge as you possibly can from others in your field.

If it is conversions you are struggling with, then you need to find the reason why. Are your products priced according to market values? Maybe people are not happy about your postage costs, or just don't like the products you are selling.
Now this does not for a second mean you have to change any of these things. If the product you are selling is something you are passionate about, or just cannot possibly lower your costs. Then its time to start researching OTHER ways to entice customers to purchase, and get over that line.

We have mentioned this many times before, but for those who haven't stumbled across us before we will say it again "Knowledge is key"

And social media marketing is the first step to connecting and networking with customers, business owners and like minded people that could all point your business in the right direction of traffic, and most importantly Conversions.


Is there a specific thing you are struggling with in your business? We would love to hear from you. 








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Wednesday 11 April 2018

April 11, 2018

How to: Drop shipping website







Starting an E-commerce store, whilst exciting can also be a very time consuming and lets not forget expensive time for any new business owner. Lets take a quick look at the steps of a traditional e-commerce store owner:
  • Find your niche
  • Register business name & purchase domain
  • Find suppliers
  • Order samples
  • Test samples
  • Order products (bulk)
  • Create a website
  • Add products individually
  • Set prices 
  • Publish website
  • Advertise
  • Hope you get sales.
12 steps, and that's just our short version of what is required. Imagine adding in all the time spent on search engine optimization, product knowledge, advertising, and of course the expenses of packaging, labels etc.

Sounds exhausting right. When you are starting an E-commerce website for the first time, this can be extremely risky too. Having spent  thousands of dollars of stock that may just sit in your warehouse without selling is not the dream you had when starting your business.

So what if things could be easier. Lets cut those steps in half to say:
  • Register business name & purchase domain
  • Register for drop shipping company of choice
  • Select products
  • Advertise
Yes i know, you're probably jumping out of your seat asking where you can sign up. But let me tell you a little more about the wonderful world of drop shipping first.



What is drop shipping?


Drop shipping is the act of providing (goods) by delivery from the manufacturer, direct to the retailer or customer. Therefore you no longer need to hold ridiculous amounts of stock. Quite the contrary, as you do not need to hold ANY!

How it works


You select products > Products appear on your website > Customer purchases products > Products are ordered directly from the manufacturer > Manufacturer sends directly to your customer > You get paid

Where do the products come from?


Products come directly from the manufacturer, which are usually the direct warehouses your products are made in. 

Can I set my own prices?


Manufacturers will have prices set (cost) in which you will be "paying" for the items. You can then select the price you wish to charge customers for these items. Depending on the platform you use.

Do I have to pay for stock?


Technically yes, you are paying for stock. However you don't pay until a customer orders a product, in which the original cost of the stock comes out of the received price from the customer.

How much does it cost to sign up?


There are many different sites available, in which have different features, costs etc. Below we have listed a few of our favorites with details.

Steps to starting a drop shipping website:

Step 1: Choosing your Niche

When starting any business, whether it is an online E-commerce site, a physical store or a service. It is important to choose a niche which interests you, or you have background knowledge on. If you are having trouble figuring out which niche would best suit you, then have a read of our "how to choose your niche" blog. (Click here)

Step 2: Business registration & domain

You will need to register the business name subject to your countries regulations, and purchase a domain name for your website. There are many websites that you can create a domain at a very affordable price, starting at around $1.00 Crazy Domains is a well known website for doing this, and is the preferred choice we use when creating any of our drop shipping sites.






Step 3: Choosing a drop shipping company to use

 There are many different companies you can use to make things easier for you when starting a drop shipping company. 
Shopify + Oberlo 

 Shopify is the number one E-commerce website builder in the world at present. And have recently teamed up with Oberlo to create a drop shipping option.
To use this system you simply register for a shopify account, which you will require to make your website. You then connect Oberlo using the apps provided.    
Oberlo is FREE to use with your shopify store, and has a seamless system that is simple for everyone. 


 To use oberlo: 
Open oberlo dashboard
Search products
Select products you wish to feature on your website
(Products will automatically be added to your shopify store)

 Oberlo also offers the option to use the recommended prices for each product. Which is fantastic for those who may not understand how much to up mark their products.

 Another well known drop shipping company is Alidropship  which has a similar concept.

Step 4: Advertising/ Marketing

 Once your website is complete, you simply publish this and get ready for the marketing. You can read our top picks for digital marketing here. But in the meantime, here are a few examples of ways you can advertise your new business.


Now that you have the steps for starting a Drop shipping company, you have the first steps to the little secret that is taking the E-commerce world by storm.

 Want to see an in depth tutorial on how to use any of the above programs? Simply leave us a comment and let us know!

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Friday 6 April 2018

April 06, 2018

Our Picks: Digital Marketing Techniques




Like many business owners, you too probably understand the importance of marketing within your business. Because without marketing, who would see your products/services right?

 Well with the large increase towards online businesses, worldwide shipping and of course social media; the digital marketing world has exploded. Now this can be quite a challenge for those who don't understand digital marketing, or just cannot find the time to create these strategies.

 Digital Marketing strategies include:

  • Ad networks
  • Ad swaps
  • Affiliate marketing
  • Banners
  • Blogging
  • Email marketing
  • Mobile marketing
  • Online classified marketing
  • Pay per click (PPC)
  • Rich media advertising
  • SEO (Search engine optimisation)
  • Social media advertising (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest etc)


Now of course, running all of these at once would be beneficial to your business, but in the early stages, it may all just seem a little too overwhelming. So here is a break down of "Our Picks for online marketing techniques" perfect for a start up business.

Website

The first step to any viable business that you will be advertising online is a good website, with even better content. There are many different programs you can use to create a website yourself such as Wix, Shopify, or Wordpress. You can also hire a web developer if your budget allows for it.

SEO

Now that you have an appealing website, you need to work on SEO; Otherwise known as search engine optimization, this is a key element to ensuring your websites visibility in search engines when potential customers are searching for your products or services. 

A few places that help your business achieve a higher ranking in search engines are 

  1. Google Trends is a go to tool when searching for seo options, which provides you with keyword popularity. By using this tool correctly you are able to determine the keywords in which have the potential to drive more traffic to your website
  2. Blogs and forums are on the rise, with more people turning to online blogs and forums for information, and opinion. 
  3. Link Building and Back linking is a heavily used term in the digital marketing world, and for good reason. By having other websites link to yours you are creating back links. One of the biggest issues that newbies find is "quality back links", there is little to no point in creating back links if they aren't going to be beneficial to you.
  4. Business directories are a fantastic place to start when looking to expose your business to a larger audience, and there are many to choose from.
  5. Social media is a free way to target large amounts of people in a fairly short amount of time. These posts can be sponsored by paying for ads through your selected social media source of choice. (For that extra boost in reach)
For those looking at this list with a question mark over there head. There are of course companies that do all of this for you and save you the hassle. The HOTH for example is a fully automated SEO service that develops strategies targeted to your particular business.

Email Marketing


This is an old tool, but a good tool. By collecting emails on your website you are able to provide both potential and current customers with any updates on your business, sales you may be having, etc. Generally having this information is quite a large factor for many businesses. As one of the major reasons that websites don't receive return visitors is because they "forget you exist"

 A general rule for email marketing is to keep each newsletter, informative, interesting and always offer your subscribers something for their loyalty. This could be a simple discount code available only to subscribers. Thus keeping your current subscribers happy, and encouraging new subscribers at the same time.
In terms of frequency of newsletters, this all depends on the products you are sending. We have all signed up for a newsletter only to see an email arrive in our inbox on a daily basis. Which could be quite annoying in turn causing customers to unsubscribe or just not open the emails to begin with. However in some cases, if the information is valuable enough to the customer, daily emails are not a worry. So this is where you will need to do your research on the niche you are in, to decide the frequency of your newsletters.

There are many different programs that can be used for email marketing, some of the more popular options due to ease of application are:


Social Media


Of course using our social platforms for free advertising can be extremely beneficial, because its FREE! Platforms like Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, Tumblr, YouTube, Twitter etc be used in various ways to promote your products/services. I find that offering viewers a reason to share your post such as: 
  • Creating informative/funny videos 
  • Give away/ Competition
  • Engaging content
  • Quotes
Can be a fantastic way to reach a larger target audience online. Using appropriate hashtags can be quite effective also on specific platforms.

If you are looking for a quicker turn around, and happy to fork out a little cash, then opt into ads. Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram all have ads programs to help you reach your target audience in a faster amount of time.


Now if you clicked on this blog to begin with, its probably because you wanted to hear about our picks. There are so many programs and companies offering valuable tools to help increase the reach of your business. These are just a few of our favorites.

TOP 5

1- Benchmark- A modern interface to create eye catching, and professional email marketing or newsletters. This program is suitable for all user levels from beginner to intermediate and offers a vast range of automation tools.





Start a Free Plan

2- The Hoth-  SEO solutions for all sized companies, allowing for ease of website ranking online. If search engine optimization is not your strong suit, then this may be the program for you. 

3- Ninja Outreach- Another well known email marketing company. Ninja outreach claims to help connect you with your niche audience by creating stunning advertising campaigns. One beneficial aspect of this company, is that they offer a 14 day trial.
NinjaOutreach free 14 day trial

4- Shopify- With numerous built in apps available, shopify has quickly become the number one website builder for E-commerce websites. This particular site has made it to our list because of the in app features. Both free and paid options available and the ability to integrate various applications into your website.
5- Wix- With the option of free web design, if you are happy to use a wix web address initially then this is probably a good option for you. The drop and drag options make it extremely easy to use even for a complete newbie! 

With the five picks we have just listed, you will be able to easily integrate applications into your website, get search engine optimization help, nail your email marketing and focus on the sales of your business. 

 Now although this just touches the surface in terms of digital marketing, and there are other factors such as click funnels, affiliates, deep linking and many other in depth marketing techniques, we decided that today would focus on those getting their first touch of the digital world.
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Recent Posts you may like:

 Finding your niche

 How to create a business plan

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Thursday 5 April 2018

April 05, 2018

How to: Create a Business Plan




You may of heard business owners talking about a business plan, and the importance of creating one prior to starting your business.  A business plan is a formal statement of business goals, reasons they are attainable, and plans for reaching them. It may also contain background information about the organization or team attempting to reach these goals.

 In a more simple term, a business plan is a road map or guide of your business goals and how you plan to achieve them.

Why is a business plan important?


 A business plan is essential for the success of your business, it will provide direction and keep you on track. It also comes in handy if you require financial help to obtain your business goals, as this is presented to the bank at time of loan application. Investors will often ask to see a business plan also.





How do you create a business plan?


 A business plan is broken up into a few sections. But prior to starting the business plan, you want to jot down a few simple tips

  • Decisions: Your business plan will require you to make some decisions in regards to the direction of your business, structure and marketing strategies. So its best to have some ideas of how you will arrange this before hand. This may mean doing your homework.
  • Who is the plan for:  Will you be using your business plan as a simple guide for you to follow, will this be presented to a bank or investor.  If third parties are involved, you will need to cater to their needs within your business plan also.
  • Take your time:  Don't expect to start and finish your business plan in one day, this is a detailed document that requires time and attention, a business plan will very easily become one of your most valued assets within your business, as you've got a guide to follow, and a way of ensuring you are staying on track. So take your time, and include all the relevant information.
  • Ask for help: Sometimes it can be difficult to answer all the questions. This is where asking for help comes in, do you have a business mentor, Family member or friend who can assist you with the writing of your business plan. If you are not confident at all in creating the structure of the plan alone, there are many companies that offer at home guides and tools to create a business plan using a template.
  • Figures: Now we can all sit there and make up figures in relation to our business, but is it really beneficial? Well not at all. You need to determine the realistic expenses of your business, and clearly state if these are actual figures or estimations.
  • Review: Always review your work, business plans are used to gain confidence from outside parties that you're business is viable. Mistakes or errors will only deter them from seeing your potential as a professional business.




What to Include in a business Plan?


Your business plan requirements will vary depending on the type of business, however below are a list of things that could be included within your business plan:

  1. Title Page:  General Information on your business
  2. Business Summary: A short overview of whats to be included within the business plan
  3. Management/ Operations Plan:  Covers details like structure, registrations, premises, products/services.
  4. Target Market:  Where you will provide the information in regards to your knowledge about your target market, here you can touch base on some marketing techniques and strategies.
  5. Predictions: Your future predictions, goals, and milestones.
  6. Financial Plan: How you will finance your business, outgoing costs or expenses, projections.
  7. Documentation: Any documentation to support your business plan.


Once your business plan is complete, you can put it away. But not too far from reach because you should regularly check that you are on track, adjust any changes accordingly and generally use this document to track your progress in comparison to your initial predictions.

Business plans do change quite frequently, and your initial plan is just used as a guide to get started.





Related topics:


-Haven't found your niche yet? Visit our "how to find your niche" blog 






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