Wow! Build a content distribution strategy!  That sounds pretty heavyweight ...right?

Well it's not heavy, but it is important it takes only three primary steps to get started:

1. defining your ideal audience
2. finding out where they like to congregate online as well as offline
3. choosing your communication channels accordingly

You'll find that when you send the right message to the right audience, at the right time, in the right place, you will experience more success in reaching your goals.

Let's take a more in-depth  peek at each step:

  Defining your ideal audience -  According to Inc.com this is the formula:

1. Look at your current customer base
   
2. Check out your competition
3. Analyze your product/service
4. Choose specific demographics to target
5. Consider the psychographics of your target
6. Evaluate your decision
7. Use Additional resources as needed.

If you are any like me when I read that list I was ready to close up shop!  But then, I took a deep breath and began to di-sect each of the components. I soon realized that what they are describing are parts of a business plan.  So don't let the terminology frighten you.  Yes I do recommend that you learn more about any elements that you are not familiar with, but overall the more you know about each element and how it relates to your business goals the more likely you will be to succeed.

Finding out where they like to congregate online as well as offline
Well needless to say if you know who your looking for it will be easier to find them!  Still there can be some challenges here, so let's say your target audience loves to hang out at the country club and for some odd reason you don't have membership ... I'd dare say that many of the other vendors for the club are not members either, but that doesn't stop them from making business relationships and it shouldn't stop you either!

Choosing your communication channels accordingly
We know that communication is the key to most great relationships, but if we use the "Country Club" crowd as an example, how can you realistically build communications channels with them?
A Forbes.com article describes ways to overcome this challenge very nicely with:
The 7 pillars of connecting to anyone:
1.    Be genuine
2.    Provide massive help
3.    Pay ridiculous attention
4.    Connect with people close to the people you want to connect with
5.    Persistence wins most battles
6.    Make real friends
7.    Remain unforgettable

These may seem like lofty goals, but they are necessary building blocks Content Distribution Strategy!  Whether you are aiming to pitch to your neighbors or preparing your curtsy for a meeting with royalty, if you want to strategize about it, let's do it!

If you've ever been in a conversation with me about marketing your business, then you've probably heard me mention Alignable®.

Alignable is a fast growing, non-nonsense business networking platform...very much like  LinkedIn®, the Alignable platform is very bright on the horizon today.  Every part of the platform offers ways for you to bring more visibility to your business or organization. My philosophy is ..."they have to see you in order to connect with you"; and Alignable helps you get seen in the community.

With hundreds of networking platforms available, it's difficult sometimes to see why one sticks out from another and time constraints for many small business owners don't allow for managing dozens of platforms. Your business should be enrolled only in the platforms that can clearly help you reach your goals. So let's dive into it.

First out of the gate...your Alignable profile should be perfectly in place.  The platform has a Profile Completion Meter, so you can easily see what's needed to complete your profile.Please don't go in thinking that you can omit your profile pic and half-way fill in your profile data to get great results.  You won't. Your completed profile means you are there to do business. A profile with no logo or profile pic, no Web site, no products or services, only indicates you are not seriously looking to network with others...but even more critical, your lack of information can bar others from networking with you!

As a part of your set up, keep in mind that Alignable is a local centric platform. If you have a national business, you'll want to build your profile on your headquarters and then spread  out from there.  Watch this 2 min Video from me to see just one of the ways I use Alignable.  I'll show you how the "Ask and Learn" feature can help you build business relationships!

Now that you watched, my recommendation is to just browse the "Ask and Learn" section to see how others are using it and benefiting from it. Then set aside about 15 mins once a week to become an active participant. You can take longer if you'd like (it is seductive), but you don't need to spend lots of time there to reap the benefits.

My best advice:
When posting questions in Alignable, you'll be notified when a member responds to you...try to visit the responders profile BEFORE you reply to them. Send your reply ASAP with a "thanks"  and a "nod" that you have visited their profile.  Add an invitation to take the next step in connecting with them ...especially if it seems appropriate, and mutually beneficial.

When answering questions Alignable, again FIRST visit the profile of the person who is asking the question. In your answer try to stay on point, be honest, be helpful, be positive and open for further business discussions.

In all, it's a business platform where people want to network and share business ideas, resources and ultimately make referrals and sales!

Sure you may meet a few people who only came to "test the waters" but that's okay too!

The DonPaul Business Directory Has Joined Alignable!
We'll help you spread the word about your business through-out our Network!

What is a “Digital Footprint”?  Most of the time when we hear the term, we start thinking negatively and personally.  But we should think differently  about DF’s when it comes to organizations.

Our  digital footprint is all the stuff we leave behind as we use the Internet. That includes, but is not limited to, our comments on social media, Web visits, online shopping, smartphones, tablets, laptops, Skype calls, app use, emails and on and on.

Just to be clear, there are two primary classifications for leaving DF’s; passive and active.  A passive digital footprint is created when data is collected without the owner knowing, whereas active digital footprints are created when data is released deliberately by a user for the purpose of sharing information. [1]

While we do want to use care, especially with “passive” DF’s, because these become part of our online history and can potentially be seen by other people, or tracked in a database, there is a positive side to creating “active” DF’s; especially when it comes to building professional relationships in LinkedIn.

LinkedIn is the undisputed world’s largest network for professionals.  When you are building your organization’s Digital Footprint, LinkedIn can provide some very powerful stepping stones for increasing your nonprofit’s visibility at the same time it can strengthen individual profiles.

So what are some very small but potent actions you can take to help your organization’s profile as well as its member’s on LinkedIn? 

1. First, be sure to update your own profile to include a reference to your organization’s company page on LinkedIn. (The head of your organization must create the company page).

2. Follow your organization's company page on LinkedIn. You will see all of the other members who are following the company.

3. Connect with other members of your organization by sending them an invitation on LinkedIn. You will be given an option to select your organization when making your request.
 
That’s it! You’ve just started a Digital Footprint to create relationships to last a lifetime for your personal use as well as a benefit for your organization.  So get started right now; Log into your LinkedIn account to update, follow and connect.

If you are looking for ways to improve your organization’s professional profile on LinkedIn, connect with us…let’s talk about it!

 Ref:  Wikipedia, Internet Society, Forbes

No, it's not your CMO, CFO, or even YOU. It's your assistant. These unsung heroes are the ones who really run the show.  If you plan to run a business, then you need to get really serious about this concept, early on.
 
Over time, I’ve assisted hundreds of businesses, organizations and sole-proprietors to start and grow their passion.  One of the most challenging aspects of the process has been getting the business owner to acknowledge and accept the fact that they need assistance in their back office.
 
There are dozens and dozens of applications and tools to run your business including, Microsoft,  Adobe, WordPress, officeVP, Constant Contact, QuickBooks, Weebly, WordPress and on and on.  Every application has a support team and quite frankly many of these programs are DIY (Do-it-Yourself) to virtually and literally “run themselves".

With a Virtual Assistant,  you will have NO concerns or expenses typically associated with hiring an employee. Things like payroll taxes, vacation pay, sick days, worker's compensation and employee benefits such as health, dental insurance and OSHA regulations are not issues.

So if an administrative assistant is so beneficial, why are so many small business owners resistant to hiring one? 

The two most likely reasons: 
1.) Business owners don't want to lose control. I've had assistants. I've been on both sides of the desk. It's scary for small to medium sized business owners, who have lived and breathed their business that's their dream, passion and vision, and all of a sudden give control to another person who isn't even their co-founder.

2.) Business owners don't know where to start the process of hiring (especially a Virtual Assistant).

Once you finally take the leap and hire an administrative assistant, you’ll be on your way to a more organized, thriving business. Until you do, consider every day that you are in business ….a day that you could have done better in your business!

Connect with us if you need a virtual assistant we’ll share with you some smart ways to select the best assistant for your business category and we’ll put you in contact with some very reliable resources virtual assistants.
 
Expert References:
http://www.skilledvirtualassistant.com/virtualassistantbenefits.html
http://www.skilledvirtualassistant.com/virtualassistantbenefits.html
Https://www.chrisvanpatten.com/hiring-your-first-virtual-assistant

Sharing letters - Campaigns that are successful for a team in one location can be successful in other locations.  You need a system that let's you build on your success and not start from scratch with each campaign.

Sharing media files  -  Social network videos are great, and even necessary at times, but how do you handle the videos that you want to keep private ...just for your team and your groups?

Sharing Banners and Graphics - Images are powerful ...however they can be time consuming and expensive to produce.  Being able to share media is important.

The Privacy of Password Protection - Controlling access to the gateway for your teams/groups and adding/removing members with ease.

Affordability and Scale-ability - Your system must work with your small business budget and work well with grow spurts as your company/organization gains momentum

CRM cohesiveness - Customer Relationship Management features to manage all of your contacts in one place, recording when they connected, how they connected and how they relate to multiple programs inside your organization.

Bulk Email communications - No matter the business category, numbers matter.  The number of people you can easily communicate with on a daily basis can make all the difference between success and failure.  Being able to communicate with one, some or all of your assets in an automated system allows more freedom, flexibility and growth.

Connect with us  - Now that you know a little more...why not take the time to connect with us and discuss some of  your many options? Maybe the one you're using now is working just fine for you and maybe you could be saving time, money and energy by looking at a system that's better suited for you. There are lots of  systems available (I'm not going to drop any names here) but I promise you'll benefit from a free consultation. 

November 14 - WOMEN IN NEED Charity Social - This is a networking event for women entrepreneurs and women-owned startups for a worthy cause. We will be collecting personal items to distribute to homeless women on our city streets. More Details in the Humanity Buzz Mobile App

November 16 - Eat Wings, Raise Funds  - Help our Homeless Heroes. Get a coupon in the App and . On October 19, 10% of your Buffalo Wild Wings bill goes to help Veterans. More Details in the Mo's Heroes  Mobile App

November 18 - Charity Water - a nonprofit organization aimed at bringing clean and safe drinking water to developing nations.  Learn how clean water means health, income and education - especially for women and kids. More Details in the Humanity Buzz Mobile App

November 23 - Face-to-Face in DC - Charity Water, a nonprofit organization aimed at bringing clean and safe drinking water to developing nations.  Learn how clean water means health, income and education - especially for women and kids. More Details in the Humanity Buzz Mobile App

Do You Know How Many Ways a Customized Mobile App Can Help Your Business?

Your Customers Are Never More Than Six Feet Away From Their Mobile Device...

Is YOUR LOGO There Yet??

Everywhere we look these days we see advice on how to turn our Facebook presence into a cash cow overnight.  Raise your hand if you believe that’s true. Now everyone who raised their hand, please leave the room.  

Occasionally we see more realistic articles; and while they may accurately describe challenges that a lot of small business owners face when it comes to attracting quality leads, sadly at the end of these articles, there are no real solutions.

That’s why I’m eager to share this video…a short list of REAL actions you can take to attract your target audience, build relationships and make conversions.  You’ll see in less than 10 mins exactly what you can do and how you can do it!  

These tips are geared towards local brick and mortar businesses, but virtual business owners will have no problem seeing the benefits in following this strategy, plus you can start right now.

Thanks to Inferno Marketing & Design for Providing These Awesome Tips!

When it comes to mobile app development, your marketing strategy needs to start before your app even goes live on the app store. Similar to any successful product, understanding exactly who your customers are and where they can be found is one of the most important aspects of app marketing. Manish Jain - http://www.konstantinfo.com is right on, with these 9 steps and insightful advice:

1. Know Your App

Start off by looking up a list of successful and popular apps and try to figure out exactly how they are affected by their name, design, icon, and other such aspects. Try to gain as much information on this subject as possible.

● Collect a list of successful apps.
● Checkout how they are profiting by the Name, Design and icon of the app.

2. Select Important Keywords:

Keywords play an important role in successful app marketing. The term keyword can mean a lot of things in the app world, but generally speaking, a keyword is a representation of a term used by customers, which they will use to recognize what your app does. For example, the most important keyword for a game based on chess would be “chess”. Similarly, the most crucial keyword for a dictionary app would be “dictionary.” Of course, these are just simple and common examples, but for some apps, the keywords might be a little less obvious.

3. Choose A Good Name

A good name for your app is highly important. The perfect name can make miracles overnight. Your app needs to be named in a unique as well as memorable manner. However, keep in mind that this name needs be termed with the most important keywords as a part of that name. The perfect name matters a lot in app store searches. Another thing to keep in mind is to make sure you are not infringing on someone else’s copy righted name. In such cases, there is a high chance your app may be rejected or removed from the app store.

● Memorable
● Include Most important keywords
● Don’t infringe on trademarks

4. Find Your Competitors

Once you have decided what keywords to use, you can move on to carrying out some research on your competitors. Ask yourself some questions; which apps have the highest ranks when searched using your keyword? What features do those apps contain? Do they target any additional keywords? These and other questions will help you figure out how to refine your app.

Irrespective of how unique you think your app idea may be, given the number of apps on the app store, chances are strong that there will be several apps similar to yours. Keep track of all your initial competitors without filtering any out. Carry out research on these potential competitors and scale it down to the top 4 or 5 heavy contenders based on similarity to your app and the competitor’s success.

5. Choose the Right Category

Choosing the right category for your app is yet another important aspect to successful app deployment. Landing on the app store’s Top Chart helps drive an immense number of downloads, which makes choosing the right category imperative for the app’s success.

Before choosing a category, it is important to weigh the pros and cons of every category. Categories like Lifestyle apps are easier to climb as opposed to categories like Social media apps, simply because the Social media category attracts more downloads and users. Climbing the Social category is no easy task due to the intense competition; however if you do manage to do so, you will drive a serious number of downloads. Therefore, sit down and calculate the risks of every category and its pros and cons before you decide on which category is best suited to drive the highest number of downloads for your app.

● Estimate the numbers of downloads you will need to rank.
● Calculate Your Strength: The More competitive a category, the more downloads you will get.

6. Create an Amazing App Icon

An app’s icon is the very first thing that a user will notice about your app and good business sense dictates that the first thing that a user notices should leave a lasting impression. Design your icon is a manner that conveys your apps purpose in a clear and concise manner. Additionally, your icon should also leave a positive impression on a viewer as that is how the user will recognize your brand. Refrain from going with a stock or boring icon as this will only serve to lower your downloads. It is a well know fact that viewers are more likely to respond positively to icons that stand out and have their own unique touch.

● Your Icon Matters a lot!
● Make it amazing and eye-catching.
● Deliver style and purpose.

7. Take Great Screen Shots

Screenshots! Good screenshots drive a high number of downloads. Convincing your visitor to check out the details of your app is not enough to land a download. You need to offer them more and entice them into hitting that download button. Screenshots are a good way to achieve this goal. Make sure that your screenshots are not only memorable and informative, but also peak the visitor’s interest.

Apart from exciting the visitors, your screenshots should also give them a clear idea of what your app is all about. Given the hustle bustle of today, not every visitor is going to go through the trouble of reading your entire app description. Make sure your screenshots provide this information to the visitor in a visual form.

8. Make An Attractive App Demo Video

● Explain what the app does.
● Make them memorable informative and exciting.
● Convince users to download/buy the app.

9. Build a great landing page

Do not underestimate the power of your website in terms of what it can do for your mobile app. The web is a great way to increase your potential customer base. If someone was to write an article or blog about your app, chances are, they will provide links to either your app page on the app store or your website. Unfortunately, the app detail page on the app store is limited and non interactive. Creating a web page that provides this functionality is a great way to gain conversions.

Your web page could even include a web version of your app that lets users get an interactive feel for your app by engaging with it on the web. This is a great way to show the users exactly what they stand to gain by downloading your app.

● Write Good Title and Description.
● Optimize the Web Page.
● Include Screenshots and App demo Video.
● Ask users to put the email ID so when app went live you can send them emails.

And now you’re ready to launch your app on the app store and watch it climb the popularity charts.

We are experts at helping small business owners in planning, promoting, launching and getting the best benefiting from their Mobile Apps….it is one of the most exciting journeys you can experience in taking your business to the next level.   

Outsourcing (or hiring a VA Virtual Assistant) is one of the most popular buzzwords in business today. While it can be a great solution to help grow your business inexpensively, it also has its own challenges which need to be known before one can use it effectively. Here are some tips to help guide you through a successful experience:

Trial more than one VA for the same job - determine an identical project or task that can be assigned to several different people...a single task that takes up a significant portion of your time...this would certainly depend on the type of operation you are running, but for an example we'll say your daily or weekly news publication or perhaps your media postings.  Chances are, one or two of the the several VAs will fail miserably leaving you with 3 or 4 worth keeping around. Repeat this process of elimination until you're left with the one person that seems dependable over the medium to long term.  This will be your go-to VA for a start.

Remember to assess the value as well as the cost. - many small business owners are just going around in circles …they have a desire to grow their business but they also want to keep total control of every aspect …which is actually the core of what’s holding them back.  A great VA can help you to cut those strings or at least loosen them!

Certainly there will be some cost involved, but  your freedom is invaluable.

Keep more than one VA on your list of outsources - Now that you've set your standard and filled it with one great VA, don't stop there...keep looking and adding possibilities to your list. This is not  like a marriage, you are not legally bound to one VA relationship... as most talented VAs will not have just one client! Play the field!

Make it clear that you are looking for a long term relationship - But wait a minute ...doesn't that conflict with the previous statement? Well no...because you can have a long-term relationship with several VAs as long as the terms of your agreement are in writing and satisfactory to both (all parties).  So when you "trialing" your VAs let them know that you plan to stay connected and present your business relationship as a valuable resource; with benefits for the both of you. 

Don’t just check the VA’s references, check the references …references - Obviously there are privacy issues involved, however ....most anyone who has a business has left some sort of impression on the Internet. Therefore if a VA gives you a reference from a business, you can certainly see what that reference has to say about the VA and you can go a step further to see what the search engines have to say about the reference as well!  You will find a much better relationship with a VA that has a great deal of experience with successful  businesses that operate similarly to yours.

Don't assign a task that you are clueless about! - I know what you're thinking here...."Isn't that why I'm hiring a VA?...because I AM clueless!!??

Well according to my resources, that the one big mistake you don't want to make in outsourcing!

Every task you assign should have been completed in full that is from beginning to end ...by you ....at least once…and it is suggested dozens of times and you should have the step by step written instructions for how the task should be completed. 

The more specialized your operations, the more critical this point will be.

In larger organizations it's called SOP (Standard Operating Procedures) and yes small business owners need SOPs too!

I'll get deeper into that in another issue!

_________________________________________

In summary, I've got lot's more tips for helping you to decide if you are ready for outsourcing ....and I have some great tools to help you operate alone until you get to the "outsourcing" phase of your business.
Just connect with me.

This article from PNC Bank encourages us to Extend our appreciation to strengthen existing relationships and gain new ones.

Small businesses face numerous challenges in an increasingly competitive global environment, but they have one clear advantage: the ability to offer superior personalized service to their customers. In celebration of PNC's Small Business Month and Women in Business Week (celebrated in May), here's a look at a few ways to thank your customers for their business and in the process build goodwill, loyalty and word-of-mouth referrals:

Know When to Say Thank You

Its standard practice to thank a customer upon completion of a purchase or order, but if that's all you're doing, you're missing a lot of opportunities to connect. Consider making a follow-up call or email a short time after the purchase to offer assistance, make helpful suggestions and find out if your customer has any questions or concerns. Similarly, you should follow up on any customer-service issue to make sure it has been handled to their satisfaction. If not, be prepared to escalate the response. You should also show your gratitude when someone mentions your company or product on social media, rates you on a review site or mentions you in a blog post. If the mention is a negative one, thank them for their feedback and begin taking steps to rectify the issue. In all these cases, it's important to keep on message and resist the temptation to pitch further sales.

Make It Personal

There are dozens of ways to say thank you, but they should always bear a personal touch: addressing your customer by name, referring to specifics of your relationship and being relevant and helpful to the circumstances. Any communication should include a way to reply by phone or email--preferably that will reach an actual human being and not automated reply functions. The level of personal attention you extend depends on time and resources, as well as the value of the customer to your business.

How to Say It

Given that personal thank-yous are the most appreciated, one of the best approaches is also one of the most old-fashioned: a handwritten note. Consider that customer-service reps at the phenomenally successful e-retailer Zappos are provided with stacks of blank note cards and encouraged to use them. For broader campaigns, you can automate offers such as giveaways, gift cards or discounts to go out when a customer reaches a certain predetermined threshold. Or organize an event exclusively for your best customers. The important thing to keep in mind is that any offering should reinforce your company's values and reputation. One example: a donation in your customer's name to a charity you support.

Resource:PNC Bank
https://www.pnc.com/webapp/unsec/ProductsAndService.do?siteArea=/PNC/Home/Small+Business/Women+in+Business/eNews/Better+Management/


 

"Customized Mobile Apps Help Build Relationships for a Lifetime"

Big businesses understand that generational loyalty is what keeps them around for years.  While it's quite obvious for some companies, many small business owners are so busy trying to survive on a daily basis, they rarely think about the loyalty they could be creating with clients ....30, 40 or even 100 years from now!  If that seems like a long time to you, ask anyone who has been in business for a few years already...they can attest to how fast time has gone by!! 


As far back as 2011, Daniel Walters in his post for Infomedia.com, targeted the three major advantages for a business to have a custom mobile app: speed, volume of information, and advertising.

WE totally agree...and we'd like to add one more advantage, building generational loyalty. Here in 2014 we see that the past analysis made by many experts has proven to be true That's why we believe small business owners can especially benefit from the long term advantages that come with a custom App.

So we feel very fortunate to be in a position to not only offer this tool to businesses around the world, but also to families and organizations for private, personal use...so what could make us even happier? Helping others to gain a footing in this tough economy and training others who want to become a part of this growing technology.  I'd say we have it all!

Connect with us today and see where you can take your business in the coming years. It's easy to learn more, Click on a button below .....