As the UK and US celebrate Womens Enterprise Day today (17 Nov), it seems like a good opportunity to celebrate women in business and highlight the need for more support for female entrepreneurship. When we started Active Marketing & Design in 2006, we were fortunate to benefit from start-up help from organisations like the Womens Enterprise, Education and Training Union (WEETU) and Women in Rural Enterprise (WiRE), but their resources are sadly limited by continued funding cuts. Other organisations like Enterprising Women have offered free business support to women in Norfolk in the past but now charge an annual membership fee. As part of Women in Rural Enterprise, we were recently invited to make a representation to the Enterprise Minister, Mark Prisk MP, to showcase the success of women in business and highlight the types of support that we need from organisations such as WiRE.
According to BERR statistics, only 15% of the UK's 4.7 million enterprises are female-led. With commentators suggesting that public sector redundancies will hit women hardest as their (commonly) part time roles are first to be axed, this presents an excellent opportunity for women to start up a business with the right support. In my experience, women starting up in business need significant support to boost their confidence and encourage them to take the plunge. One to one advice, training and networking certainly helped us to believe in our abilities to run our marketing company. In the long term, female-led businesses are often more sustainable as we tend to have more conservative ambitions for growth and therefore are less likely to risk losing it all in the pursuit of financial success. Yet it is very difficult to quantify and recognise the contribution to the economy of the numerous female-owned microbusinesses, especially if they are home-based and fall beneath the VAT threshold.
We have supported a number of Norfolk's female-owned businesses to start up and grow through marketing activities such as branding, web design and advertising. Some examples of our successful female clients include:
Igloo Shoes
Karen Eason
Dare To Fly
Care Motoring
Adepta
The Retreat
Make it Count
We have to keep highlighting the importance of female entrepreneurship and can only hope that our current Government will recognise the importance of supporting women to make the first steps into business as part of the bigger economic picture.
Active Marketing & Design is a full service marketing & design company with offices in West Norfolk & Broadland. We specialise in supporting growing businesses in the rural economy through high impact design for print, cost-effective social media strategy & web design.
Wednesday 17 November 2010
Wednesday 3 November 2010
Social Media for Rural Businesses
I was interested to read in the Eastern Daily Press Business Supplement today of a survey regarding small business use of social media which claimed only 6pc of businesses in the East describe social media as very useful in their business. I deliver a number of workshops and presentations across East Anglia outlining the business benefits of social media which are regularly over-subscribed, clearly indicating a thirst for knowledge of this evolving technology among the Norfolk small business community.
I was disappointed with the generalisations made by the survey authors - Forum of Private Business - that social media is "less likely to benefit" rural businesses such as those in farming. In my experience the online communities of Twitter, Facebook, Linked In et al are extremely powerful tools for combating rural isolation and allowing geographically disparate business people to communicate in a virtual space. My recent Twitter clients include an equestrian public relations consultant in the Kent countryside and a marketing consultant in the Pennines for example. I first heard about social media at the Women in Rural Enterprise annual conference 2 years ago and the one hour workshop was packed with women from the countryside keen to learn more about this "new" technology. At a recent Rural Business Showcase with Mark Prisk MP (organised by the same superb womens business organisation), all six of the businesswomen invited to attend were regular tweeters.
While we would all benefit from faster broadband speeds in rural areas to allow us to effectively share some of the rich social media content like video, we can effectively use many social media channels despite our poor connection speeds or weak mobile phone signal.
To achieve value from any form of marketing activity (social media included) you must enter the exercise with clear aims and objectives, plus strict rules on customer targeting and avoiding diversions. Using this approach, I have gained valuable new marketing and design clients through Twitter alone, and I know that other rural businesses could benefit by marketing in the same way.
Some excellent rural tweeters:
@breckland
@brays_cottage
@yours2share
@pennylindop
@stonemejeweller
@growingdirect
@RS_Tor
@equineman01
@moobaacluck
I was disappointed with the generalisations made by the survey authors - Forum of Private Business - that social media is "less likely to benefit" rural businesses such as those in farming. In my experience the online communities of Twitter, Facebook, Linked In et al are extremely powerful tools for combating rural isolation and allowing geographically disparate business people to communicate in a virtual space. My recent Twitter clients include an equestrian public relations consultant in the Kent countryside and a marketing consultant in the Pennines for example. I first heard about social media at the Women in Rural Enterprise annual conference 2 years ago and the one hour workshop was packed with women from the countryside keen to learn more about this "new" technology. At a recent Rural Business Showcase with Mark Prisk MP (organised by the same superb womens business organisation), all six of the businesswomen invited to attend were regular tweeters.
While we would all benefit from faster broadband speeds in rural areas to allow us to effectively share some of the rich social media content like video, we can effectively use many social media channels despite our poor connection speeds or weak mobile phone signal.
To achieve value from any form of marketing activity (social media included) you must enter the exercise with clear aims and objectives, plus strict rules on customer targeting and avoiding diversions. Using this approach, I have gained valuable new marketing and design clients through Twitter alone, and I know that other rural businesses could benefit by marketing in the same way.
Some excellent rural tweeters:
@breckland
@brays_cottage
@yours2share
@pennylindop
@stonemejeweller
@growingdirect
@RS_Tor
@equineman01
@moobaacluck
Thursday 14 October 2010
Social Media Workshop for Beginners - Norwich
Mon 29th Nov.
Progress House, Plantation Park Sports Club, Blofield, Norfolk NR13 4PL
Duration: Half day (9.30am – 12.30pm)
Suitable for: Beginners
£40+ VAT per person (limited to 10)
Following my recent presentations and talks in and around Norwich about social media, its clear that there is a real thirst for further knowledge so we have introduced a basic social media workshop at beginner level to blow away some of the myths of social media.
This half day training course near Norwich is for anyone who is keen to learn the basics of online marketing and using social media to raise the profile of a business or organisation. Suitable for small business owners from across Norfolk, senior managers or staff with marketing responsibilities.
The rapid growth of the internet in recent years coupled with a surge of interest in social media has led many businesses to explore ways to use the diverse free resources available online to reach more customers. By the end of the course you should understand some of the basic principles of using effective online activity to benefit your business. If you are troubled by Twitter or frustrated with Facebook then this course is the ideal place to learn the basic principles of social media activity for business.
The course is delivered by a small business owner and marketing professional which gives the content a very practical, hands-on perspective. Delivered by a blend of presentation and practice online – to get the best out of the workshop a basic understanding of computer operation and internet browsing is useful.
Course Content
Introduction to social media and background
Social media usage – key statistics
Overview of key social media sites including Twitter and Linked In
Practical ideas for social media applications in business
Equipment
Please bring a (wi-fi enabled) laptop with you to enable interaction and participation. Please endeavour to open an account (free) with the following websites before attending the course:
www.twitter.com
www.linkedin.com
www.facebook.com
It will also be useful if you can bring a photo of yourself and a copy of your company’s logo on a memory stick or on your laptop if possible.
For further information or to book a place call 01603 716700
Progress House, Plantation Park Sports Club, Blofield, Norfolk NR13 4PL
Duration: Half day (9.30am – 12.30pm)
Suitable for: Beginners
£40+ VAT per person (limited to 10)
Following my recent presentations and talks in and around Norwich about social media, its clear that there is a real thirst for further knowledge so we have introduced a basic social media workshop at beginner level to blow away some of the myths of social media.
This half day training course near Norwich is for anyone who is keen to learn the basics of online marketing and using social media to raise the profile of a business or organisation. Suitable for small business owners from across Norfolk, senior managers or staff with marketing responsibilities.
The rapid growth of the internet in recent years coupled with a surge of interest in social media has led many businesses to explore ways to use the diverse free resources available online to reach more customers. By the end of the course you should understand some of the basic principles of using effective online activity to benefit your business. If you are troubled by Twitter or frustrated with Facebook then this course is the ideal place to learn the basic principles of social media activity for business.
The course is delivered by a small business owner and marketing professional which gives the content a very practical, hands-on perspective. Delivered by a blend of presentation and practice online – to get the best out of the workshop a basic understanding of computer operation and internet browsing is useful.
Course Content
Introduction to social media and background
Social media usage – key statistics
Overview of key social media sites including Twitter and Linked In
Practical ideas for social media applications in business
Equipment
Please bring a (wi-fi enabled) laptop with you to enable interaction and participation. Please endeavour to open an account (free) with the following websites before attending the course:
www.twitter.com
www.linkedin.com
www.facebook.com
It will also be useful if you can bring a photo of yourself and a copy of your company’s logo on a memory stick or on your laptop if possible.
For further information or to book a place call 01603 716700
Tuesday 12 October 2010
Marketing for Charities - Free training in Norwich
Monday 18th October
10am - 4pm
Voluntary Norfolk, Pottergate, Norwich
FREE*
Effective marketing is critical for charities and voluntary organisations in Norwich, especially in tough financial times when income may be reduced. Pro active marketing can help to raise the profile of your organisation which should have a direct impact upon income and also improve levels of awareness within the wider community. Marketing is often misunderstood and perceived by many to be a rather dark art, but there are some basic principles and theories which can be simply applied to many organisations with measurable results.
I will be delivering an introductory course about marketing for charities in Norwich which is fully funded (free!). By understanding some of the basic principles of marketing you should be able to evaluate your current marketing activities and identify areas for improvement.
The course will introduce some simple marketing concepts such as the marketing mix, market research and market segmentation, before providing practical examples of how you can apply these principles simply within your own organisation. It will look at both conventional marketing techniques such as printed marketing materials, and more modern approaches such as online (internet) marketing. The learning outcomes include:
· Gain a basic understanding of the key marketing principles
· Learn to recognise good and bad examples of marketing
· Evaluate current marketing activities and begin to formulate a marketing plan
This programme will also help organisations that are commissioning external marketing companies or web designers to ensure that they are receiving best value service.
As Marketing Director of Active Marketing & Design, I aim to bring a very practical perspective to this session, drawing upon live examples of my daily work to ensure that the content is very current. I have previously delivered marketing training to new business start ups through Broadland District Council and also have experience of the charity sector through a wide range of voluntary and employed roles. I was closely involved in the setting up of World Horse Welfare's £2m visitor centre at Snetterton, managing the visitor experience and delivering a programme of fundraising events. In 2010 I managed the marketing of Party in the Park, a large outdoor music event which raised £14000 for the East Anglian Air Ambulance.
* To book a free place on the Marketing for Charities course you must be living or working in Norfolk to be eligible for funding through the Seamless Support project (usual cost of the course £95 + vat per person). If you have already had fully funded, non-accredited training via SM Associates or Voluntary Norfolk in the past 6 months, you may not be eligible.
To book please telephone Clayton Anderson, Training Manager on 01603 762523 or email kim[at}sm-associates.org.uk
10am - 4pm
Voluntary Norfolk, Pottergate, Norwich
FREE*
Effective marketing is critical for charities and voluntary organisations in Norwich, especially in tough financial times when income may be reduced. Pro active marketing can help to raise the profile of your organisation which should have a direct impact upon income and also improve levels of awareness within the wider community. Marketing is often misunderstood and perceived by many to be a rather dark art, but there are some basic principles and theories which can be simply applied to many organisations with measurable results.
I will be delivering an introductory course about marketing for charities in Norwich which is fully funded (free!). By understanding some of the basic principles of marketing you should be able to evaluate your current marketing activities and identify areas for improvement.
The course will introduce some simple marketing concepts such as the marketing mix, market research and market segmentation, before providing practical examples of how you can apply these principles simply within your own organisation. It will look at both conventional marketing techniques such as printed marketing materials, and more modern approaches such as online (internet) marketing. The learning outcomes include:
· Gain a basic understanding of the key marketing principles
· Learn to recognise good and bad examples of marketing
· Evaluate current marketing activities and begin to formulate a marketing plan
This programme will also help organisations that are commissioning external marketing companies or web designers to ensure that they are receiving best value service.
As Marketing Director of Active Marketing & Design, I aim to bring a very practical perspective to this session, drawing upon live examples of my daily work to ensure that the content is very current. I have previously delivered marketing training to new business start ups through Broadland District Council and also have experience of the charity sector through a wide range of voluntary and employed roles. I was closely involved in the setting up of World Horse Welfare's £2m visitor centre at Snetterton, managing the visitor experience and delivering a programme of fundraising events. In 2010 I managed the marketing of Party in the Park, a large outdoor music event which raised £14000 for the East Anglian Air Ambulance.
* To book a free place on the Marketing for Charities course you must be living or working in Norfolk to be eligible for funding through the Seamless Support project (usual cost of the course £95 + vat per person). If you have already had fully funded, non-accredited training via SM Associates or Voluntary Norfolk in the past 6 months, you may not be eligible.
To book please telephone Clayton Anderson, Training Manager on 01603 762523 or email kim[at}sm-associates.org.uk
Tuesday 7 September 2010
Confused about colour?
We are currently working on an interesting brand refinement exercise for a Norwich organisation and it has highlighted a question about colour matching that I thought might be useful if I explained a little. This client is keen to match the colour on their website with the colour in their printed materials. Not as easy as you may think....!
There are three different ways of making colours that we come across in our graphic design work for Norfolk businesses.
CMYK - This is the process used most commonly in printed documents to make a colour. In essence it involves mixing variable quantities of cyan, yellow, magenta and black ink to produce the final colour.
RGB - This is the process used in screens such as televisions or computer monitors, so it is predominant in web design. It involves mixing red, green and blue pigments to produce the colour. RGB colours tend to look more vibrant because they are projected on a screen rather than a flat piece of paper.
Pantone - This is an alternative way to produce a colour in print and involves using one of a large number of unique, individual inks to ensure an accurate colour match time and again. These inks are referenced in a pantone book which all good graphic designers should refer to - these books alone cost in the region of £200! Using a pantone colour is often referred to as printing in spot colour.
If you are using CMYK then there is still some room for error as one printer may print heavier on colour than another printer. The best way to safeguard against this is to ensure that you always have a high resolution printers proof to cross check colours against before you proceed with a full print run. Pantone is the safest option for ensuring consistent colour which is key to consistent branding, but you will pay a premium for it. Even then, there is scope for the substrate material (eg paper, vinyl etc) to affect the final shade and the addition of a gloss or matt laminate can also impact upon the tone of the colours too.
Top tip for consistent colour: Print as many documents as possible on the same print run to improve colour consistency. If you are having folders produced for example, run some business cards at the same time on the same card so that the colour matches consistently when they are inserted. This will also save on print costs.
There are three different ways of making colours that we come across in our graphic design work for Norfolk businesses.
CMYK - This is the process used most commonly in printed documents to make a colour. In essence it involves mixing variable quantities of cyan, yellow, magenta and black ink to produce the final colour.
RGB - This is the process used in screens such as televisions or computer monitors, so it is predominant in web design. It involves mixing red, green and blue pigments to produce the colour. RGB colours tend to look more vibrant because they are projected on a screen rather than a flat piece of paper.
Pantone - This is an alternative way to produce a colour in print and involves using one of a large number of unique, individual inks to ensure an accurate colour match time and again. These inks are referenced in a pantone book which all good graphic designers should refer to - these books alone cost in the region of £200! Using a pantone colour is often referred to as printing in spot colour.
If you are using CMYK then there is still some room for error as one printer may print heavier on colour than another printer. The best way to safeguard against this is to ensure that you always have a high resolution printers proof to cross check colours against before you proceed with a full print run. Pantone is the safest option for ensuring consistent colour which is key to consistent branding, but you will pay a premium for it. Even then, there is scope for the substrate material (eg paper, vinyl etc) to affect the final shade and the addition of a gloss or matt laminate can also impact upon the tone of the colours too.
Top tip for consistent colour: Print as many documents as possible on the same print run to improve colour consistency. If you are having folders produced for example, run some business cards at the same time on the same card so that the colour matches consistently when they are inserted. This will also save on print costs.
Monday 6 September 2010
10 low cost marketing ideas for independent retailers
As part of a presentation to the Norwich Lanes group of independent retailers, I came up with 10 marketing ideas which any small independent retailer (or other business) can simply implement to improve the marketing of a small business. These are focused on marketing for small independent businesses in Norwich but they could be easily adapted for other locations.
1. Give away free samples
Easy if you are a food outlet – simply stand on the street corner with a tray of bite size samples of the food that you make and start wafting them in the face of passers by. Slightly more complex if your products aren’t edible – talk to your suppliers about sample size packs of their products.
COST: Free - Cost of product only
2. Take a look at your kerb appeal
Poor “curb appeal” can put even the most dedicated customer off entering your shop. Even in Summer, you need to make effective use of good lighting to make sure that your shop looks open and welcoming from the outside. Something as simple as a sticky door can send a perfectly good customer away – get your WD40 out and if weather permits, leave your door open. Pick up a tin of paint and smarten up your exterior or perk up your sign. If you can’t stretch to buying a tin of paint, try Freecycle or your dad’s shed.
COST: Free if you beg, borrow or steal the paint!
3. Work on your window display
Attractive merchandising can make a massive difference to the impact of your window display. Makes sure that you change it regularly, in line with the seasons or to highlight new product ranges for example. Rotate items in the window to avoid sunlight damage and to attract the interest of regular passers by. Keep an eye out for dummies or props in local charity shops or ask your suppliers about professional point of sale display equipment such as racks or banners that they can supply you with.
COST: Free with some creativity!
4. Know your customers
Marketing is all about selling stuff that your customers want to buy – simple! Talk to them! Find out where they come from, why they visit you, what else they would like to buy from you and so on. Go one step further and ask for their contact details (postal or email address) so that you can mail them directly with news about special offers, new products and so on. Use a monthly competition as an incentive (cover) for people to part with their contact details. Use address finding software available online so that you don’t need to get their full address, just a house number and postcode.
COST: Free
5. Build customer loyalty
In simple terms, you can build customer loyalty simply by looking after your customers well and always focusing on excellent customer service. Changing your range of products or just your window display on a regular basis will also encourage regular customers to pop back in. To incentivise customer loyalty, set up a simple loyalty scheme using a basic postcard or business card for them to collect “stamps”. After multiple purchases, reward loyal customers with a free cup of coffee or discount voucher etc.
COST: <£100
6. Shout about your expertise
Expertise and advice is one of the key selling points for independent retailers. Use it to leverage more customers away from larger chain stores who offer little expertise in customer service. Enhance the message by running workshops, speaking to groups or getting involved in special events that further distinguish your offer for example a restaurant could participate in the Norwich Wine Festival to show that they have a real interest in good wines.
COST: FREE
7. Engage with existing customers
Engagement is a key word in modern marketing - get your customers involved in your business so that they feel a part of it. Ask them to help you to choose your new product range by welcoming suggestions for new products. Use a customer newsletter (email or printed) to share expertise and further engage with your customers and their lifestyle. A newsletter might include:
Top tip or fashion trend (with illustrated example from your shop ideally)
Info about events in the Lanes, diary dates
Latest news from the shop – new product ranges with pics
Staff news/updates
Topical national news that can be adapted to your shop eg BBC2 Queen of Shops programme
Seasonal news (eg Christmas products, Summer etc)
Contact information
Discount voucher or special offer
COST: Basic e-newsletter <£50 - more professional options around £150
8. Use social media
Social media provides a wide range of opportunities to promote your message via the internet and is a lot more localised than you might expect so it definitely has value for local businesses. Most of it is free too which is great, though it can be costly in terms of time! Use a Facebook business page to reach your customers – post photos of products, updates from in store and news. Twitter is a popular choice for broadcasting short sales messages and engaging in conversation. This is where a lot of people go to seek advice as well so if you are in on the conversation then you can help people and this helpfulness is a key principle of online brand building.
COST: Free (time only)
9. Get in the news
Look for free publicity opportunities in your target media – local newspapers or BBC Radio Norfolk are a great place to start. Read and listen and look for opportunities to get involved by approaching them about new products or interesting news that you think will interest their readers. This type of publicity is free but again can be time intensive. Use the seasons or national events - a Norwich fish & chip shop might use National Chip Week to hang a story from - and start building relationships with local journalists.
COST: Free
10. Its nice in the niche
Be clear about your unique selling points (USPs) and carve your niche carefully. Too narrow and there may not be enough customers to sustain you but too broad and customers wont understand what you stand for or what they can buy from you. This includes keeping your product range tight and “on topic” – be very ruthless with product ranges and don’t let it all get too vague. By all means be creative and diversify but make sure that there is always some logic behind your product choices. Think carefully about your customers and ensure that they would be interested in most/all of your range.
COST: Free
1. Give away free samples
Easy if you are a food outlet – simply stand on the street corner with a tray of bite size samples of the food that you make and start wafting them in the face of passers by. Slightly more complex if your products aren’t edible – talk to your suppliers about sample size packs of their products.
COST: Free - Cost of product only
2. Take a look at your kerb appeal
Poor “curb appeal” can put even the most dedicated customer off entering your shop. Even in Summer, you need to make effective use of good lighting to make sure that your shop looks open and welcoming from the outside. Something as simple as a sticky door can send a perfectly good customer away – get your WD40 out and if weather permits, leave your door open. Pick up a tin of paint and smarten up your exterior or perk up your sign. If you can’t stretch to buying a tin of paint, try Freecycle or your dad’s shed.
COST: Free if you beg, borrow or steal the paint!
3. Work on your window display
Attractive merchandising can make a massive difference to the impact of your window display. Makes sure that you change it regularly, in line with the seasons or to highlight new product ranges for example. Rotate items in the window to avoid sunlight damage and to attract the interest of regular passers by. Keep an eye out for dummies or props in local charity shops or ask your suppliers about professional point of sale display equipment such as racks or banners that they can supply you with.
COST: Free with some creativity!
4. Know your customers
Marketing is all about selling stuff that your customers want to buy – simple! Talk to them! Find out where they come from, why they visit you, what else they would like to buy from you and so on. Go one step further and ask for their contact details (postal or email address) so that you can mail them directly with news about special offers, new products and so on. Use a monthly competition as an incentive (cover) for people to part with their contact details. Use address finding software available online so that you don’t need to get their full address, just a house number and postcode.
COST: Free
5. Build customer loyalty
In simple terms, you can build customer loyalty simply by looking after your customers well and always focusing on excellent customer service. Changing your range of products or just your window display on a regular basis will also encourage regular customers to pop back in. To incentivise customer loyalty, set up a simple loyalty scheme using a basic postcard or business card for them to collect “stamps”. After multiple purchases, reward loyal customers with a free cup of coffee or discount voucher etc.
COST: <£100
6. Shout about your expertise
Expertise and advice is one of the key selling points for independent retailers. Use it to leverage more customers away from larger chain stores who offer little expertise in customer service. Enhance the message by running workshops, speaking to groups or getting involved in special events that further distinguish your offer for example a restaurant could participate in the Norwich Wine Festival to show that they have a real interest in good wines.
COST: FREE
7. Engage with existing customers
Engagement is a key word in modern marketing - get your customers involved in your business so that they feel a part of it. Ask them to help you to choose your new product range by welcoming suggestions for new products. Use a customer newsletter (email or printed) to share expertise and further engage with your customers and their lifestyle. A newsletter might include:
Top tip or fashion trend (with illustrated example from your shop ideally)
Info about events in the Lanes, diary dates
Latest news from the shop – new product ranges with pics
Staff news/updates
Topical national news that can be adapted to your shop eg BBC2 Queen of Shops programme
Seasonal news (eg Christmas products, Summer etc)
Contact information
Discount voucher or special offer
COST: Basic e-newsletter <£50 - more professional options around £150
8. Use social media
Social media provides a wide range of opportunities to promote your message via the internet and is a lot more localised than you might expect so it definitely has value for local businesses. Most of it is free too which is great, though it can be costly in terms of time! Use a Facebook business page to reach your customers – post photos of products, updates from in store and news. Twitter is a popular choice for broadcasting short sales messages and engaging in conversation. This is where a lot of people go to seek advice as well so if you are in on the conversation then you can help people and this helpfulness is a key principle of online brand building.
COST: Free (time only)
9. Get in the news
Look for free publicity opportunities in your target media – local newspapers or BBC Radio Norfolk are a great place to start. Read and listen and look for opportunities to get involved by approaching them about new products or interesting news that you think will interest their readers. This type of publicity is free but again can be time intensive. Use the seasons or national events - a Norwich fish & chip shop might use National Chip Week to hang a story from - and start building relationships with local journalists.
COST: Free
10. Its nice in the niche
Be clear about your unique selling points (USPs) and carve your niche carefully. Too narrow and there may not be enough customers to sustain you but too broad and customers wont understand what you stand for or what they can buy from you. This includes keeping your product range tight and “on topic” – be very ruthless with product ranges and don’t let it all get too vague. By all means be creative and diversify but make sure that there is always some logic behind your product choices. Think carefully about your customers and ensure that they would be interested in most/all of your range.
COST: Free
Monday 16 August 2010
Making the most of social media
Getting started in social media can seem like a very daunting task - I am often asked for advice or tips on how to make the best use of this valuable marketing tool. Following on from my post translating Twitter terms, here are a few pointers to help you make the best use of your social media activity to raise the profile of your business:
* Watch & listen before you “speak” - you don't have to join the conversation straight away.
* Integrate with your current website - using links to your current website is crucial if you want to use social media to drive sales - www.bit.ly and www.tinyurl.com are great space saving link tools.
* Competitions and offers - use social media to publicise special offers or run a competition for everyone that shares or retweets (RT) your post.
* Encourage and engage conversation – it doesn't cost anything to be helpful but users will remember you for it.
* Market research - social media is a great place to get up to date with your industry and find out what your competitors are up to.
* Select your tone of voice – keep it consistent with your brand. That means you can't use frequent foul language if you work for a very straight corporate company.
* Don’t be too “salesy” – communicate not broadcast. People hate to be sold to on Twitter as much as they hate it elsewhere.
* Time-saving tools – Use applications like Hootsuite, Tweetdeck etc. to save time and schedule your activity
* Watch & listen before you “speak” - you don't have to join the conversation straight away.
* Integrate with your current website - using links to your current website is crucial if you want to use social media to drive sales - www.bit.ly and www.tinyurl.com are great space saving link tools.
* Competitions and offers - use social media to publicise special offers or run a competition for everyone that shares or retweets (RT) your post.
* Encourage and engage conversation – it doesn't cost anything to be helpful but users will remember you for it.
* Market research - social media is a great place to get up to date with your industry and find out what your competitors are up to.
* Select your tone of voice – keep it consistent with your brand. That means you can't use frequent foul language if you work for a very straight corporate company.
* Don’t be too “salesy” – communicate not broadcast. People hate to be sold to on Twitter as much as they hate it elsewhere.
* Time-saving tools – Use applications like Hootsuite, Tweetdeck etc. to save time and schedule your activity
Thursday 12 August 2010
What is marketing?
When I'm delivering my training courses on marketing for small businesses and start ups across Norfolk, we usually start with a fairly simple question - "What is marketing?" I ask everyone to jot some ideas down to try and get a picture of the level of knowledge in the room (and also to give my voice a break from talking all day!) This exercise is also hugely valuable to get people "into the groove" and "thinking marketing". I truly believe that marketing is so much more than just a process like accounting or administration, its a whole way of thinking. Those that srtuggle with the concept will often start by putting advertising down on the blank sheet of paper but marketing is so much more than simply advertising.
Some of the most successful small businesses and start ups are those which think marketing all of the time. By this I mean that they are open-minded to creative ideas - anything from giving some products away to a charity to forming alliances for referrals or collaborating to host an event. So here are a few of the more unusual things that some of my training course delegates think are marketing that you might not have thought of:
1. Giving away free samples of your product - this could be at an event, in the street or even mounted onto the front of a magazine
2. Holding an open day
3. Writing an article in a magazine
4. Writing a blog or using other social media
5. Setting up a customer loyalty scheme - use a simple business card to collect stamps and give loyal customers a free drink etc on their 6th visit.
6. Clever packaging and point of sale (POS) - a dull product can look totally different in a clever box or display stand
7. Incentive schemes - encourage word of mouth from existing customers by rewarding them for referring a friend to you
8. Giving away branded promotional gifts such as pens, stickers or carrier bags
Can anyone suggest any other smart marketing ideas?
Some of the most successful small businesses and start ups are those which think marketing all of the time. By this I mean that they are open-minded to creative ideas - anything from giving some products away to a charity to forming alliances for referrals or collaborating to host an event. So here are a few of the more unusual things that some of my training course delegates think are marketing that you might not have thought of:
1. Giving away free samples of your product - this could be at an event, in the street or even mounted onto the front of a magazine
2. Holding an open day
3. Writing an article in a magazine
4. Writing a blog or using other social media
5. Setting up a customer loyalty scheme - use a simple business card to collect stamps and give loyal customers a free drink etc on their 6th visit.
6. Clever packaging and point of sale (POS) - a dull product can look totally different in a clever box or display stand
7. Incentive schemes - encourage word of mouth from existing customers by rewarding them for referring a friend to you
8. Giving away branded promotional gifts such as pens, stickers or carrier bags
Can anyone suggest any other smart marketing ideas?
Thursday 22 July 2010
Translating Twitter Terms
Twitter seems to have spawned a whole new language, somewhere between text speak and auto-shortening, which can leave us all a bit perplexed at times! Here's a glossary of some of the key terms to help you make head or tail of it all.
Twitter helps people communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick, frequent, 140 character messages. Its like a mini blog.
Tweet
A tweet is a Twitter message (140 characters max.)
Tweep
A tweep is a person who uses Twitter. Every tweep has a username and a unique url eg http://www.twitter.com/activemdkate
Following
Following someone on Twitter means getting their updates in your personal timeline. If you follow Tina, you'll get her updates on your homepage when you log in, or on your phone if you've added an app. To start receiving messages from a person, visit their profile page and click "follow" or send a text message to Twitter with the words "follow username" from your phone. You'll get messages from the people you've followed as soon as they update, and you can stop following anyone at anytime. There is a general courtesy to follow people back who follow you, but you don't have to follow everyone who follows you and you can follow and un-follow who ever you want whenever you want.
Followers
Followers are people who receive other peoples' Twitter updates.
RT
RT is short for retweet, and indicates a re-posting of someone else's tweet. This is a key part of Twitter’s viral nature. RT isn't an official Twitter command or feature, but people add RT somewhere in a tweet to indicate that part of their tweet includes something they're re-posting from another person's tweet, sometimes with a comment of their own. It’s a bit like an endorsement or a recommendation and is an important way of “sharing the love” and making friends on Twitter.
@reply and :D direct messages
An @reply is a public message sent regardless of follow-ship that anyone can view. An @reply can be used to ensure that someone specific sees a tweet or to draw someone’s attention to a tweet or retweet of particular interest to them. A :D direct message can only be sent by someone you follow, and is a private message that only the author and recipient can view.
Examples
@activemdkate Enjoyed your tweet about Beckham and branding http://tinyurl.com/kqtu62
:Dactivemdkate What time shall we meet for lunch?
Favourites
The star * is a way for you to mark an update as favourite. People can view your favourites, and you theirs, by clicking on the Favourites link in the profile page.
# hashtags
Twitter hashtags like #followfriday help spread information on Twitter while also helping to organise it. The hashtag is a favourite tool of conferences and event organizers, but it’s also a way for Twitter users to organise themselves: if everyone agrees to append a certain hashtag to tweets about a topic, it becomes easier to find that topic in search, and more likely the topic will appear in Twitter’s Trending Topics. In some situations a hashtag can become part of a brand and may even feature in other marketing environments such as your website.
Lists
Twitter Lists are a relatively new feature which allow Twitter users to group together people they follow or are interested in hearing from under one simple heading. Twitter lists are integrated Twitter streams from a specified selection of users.
Follow Friday
#followfriday (#ff) is a “game” in which people suggest who to follow on Twitter. It helps everyone find interesting Twitter users. You list the users you recommend following and add “#followfriday” anywhere in the Tweet so others can find it. The “#” is very important – don’t forget it!
Example
#followfriday @mashable @adamostrow @sharonfeder @jbruin @adamhirsch @benparr @brett @tamar
#followfriday can be enhanced by giving just one name per tweet and then a brief explanation of why people should follow them
#followfriday @lambdafilms – great local video company and fun fellas too!
Interesting people to follow – Norfolk
@activemdkate
@lambdafilms
@elaine_maslin
@edpmary
@enjoynorwich
@sarajgreenfield
@chris_greenf
@norwich_broker
@brays_cottage
@Breckland
@BBCChrisgoreham
@LCDParkHouse
@redwingsHS
@lucieMD
@thewindowcoffee
Twitter helps people communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick, frequent, 140 character messages. Its like a mini blog.
Tweet
A tweet is a Twitter message (140 characters max.)
Tweep
A tweep is a person who uses Twitter. Every tweep has a username and a unique url eg http://www.twitter.com/activemdkate
Following
Following someone on Twitter means getting their updates in your personal timeline. If you follow Tina, you'll get her updates on your homepage when you log in, or on your phone if you've added an app. To start receiving messages from a person, visit their profile page and click "follow" or send a text message to Twitter with the words "follow username" from your phone. You'll get messages from the people you've followed as soon as they update, and you can stop following anyone at anytime. There is a general courtesy to follow people back who follow you, but you don't have to follow everyone who follows you and you can follow and un-follow who ever you want whenever you want.
Followers
Followers are people who receive other peoples' Twitter updates.
RT
RT is short for retweet, and indicates a re-posting of someone else's tweet. This is a key part of Twitter’s viral nature. RT isn't an official Twitter command or feature, but people add RT somewhere in a tweet to indicate that part of their tweet includes something they're re-posting from another person's tweet, sometimes with a comment of their own. It’s a bit like an endorsement or a recommendation and is an important way of “sharing the love” and making friends on Twitter.
@reply and :D direct messages
An @reply is a public message sent regardless of follow-ship that anyone can view. An @reply can be used to ensure that someone specific sees a tweet or to draw someone’s attention to a tweet or retweet of particular interest to them. A :D direct message can only be sent by someone you follow, and is a private message that only the author and recipient can view.
Examples
@activemdkate Enjoyed your tweet about Beckham and branding http://tinyurl.com/kqtu62
:Dactivemdkate What time shall we meet for lunch?
Favourites
The star * is a way for you to mark an update as favourite. People can view your favourites, and you theirs, by clicking on the Favourites link in the profile page.
# hashtags
Twitter hashtags like #followfriday help spread information on Twitter while also helping to organise it. The hashtag is a favourite tool of conferences and event organizers, but it’s also a way for Twitter users to organise themselves: if everyone agrees to append a certain hashtag to tweets about a topic, it becomes easier to find that topic in search, and more likely the topic will appear in Twitter’s Trending Topics. In some situations a hashtag can become part of a brand and may even feature in other marketing environments such as your website.
Lists
Twitter Lists are a relatively new feature which allow Twitter users to group together people they follow or are interested in hearing from under one simple heading. Twitter lists are integrated Twitter streams from a specified selection of users.
Follow Friday
#followfriday (#ff) is a “game” in which people suggest who to follow on Twitter. It helps everyone find interesting Twitter users. You list the users you recommend following and add “#followfriday” anywhere in the Tweet so others can find it. The “#” is very important – don’t forget it!
Example
#followfriday @mashable @adamostrow @sharonfeder @jbruin @adamhirsch @benparr @brett @tamar
#followfriday can be enhanced by giving just one name per tweet and then a brief explanation of why people should follow them
#followfriday @lambdafilms – great local video company and fun fellas too!
Interesting people to follow – Norfolk
@activemdkate
@lambdafilms
@elaine_maslin
@edpmary
@enjoynorwich
@sarajgreenfield
@chris_greenf
@norwich_broker
@brays_cottage
@Breckland
@BBCChrisgoreham
@LCDParkHouse
@redwingsHS
@lucieMD
@thewindowcoffee
Thursday 15 July 2010
Making sponsors feel special
I recently responded to a forum post from someone who was worried about losing her corporate sponsor. Its something that is absolutely critical within public relations activity, not least in the current economic climate where corporate cash is very hard to come by. The example related to a show-jumping rider and her sponsors who run a video company, specialising in stable CCTV but these principles can be applied in other scenarios too.
Here are a few thoughts from my experience of looking after both companies and riders public relations campaigns. You need to think carefully about embedding the sponsor into your business so that the two are inter-linked and therefore they feel more engaged and are much less likely to pull out. It should be quite easy as this sponsor is so closely related to the business. Its far more tricky if your sponsor is in another sector eg insurance!
For starters, the rider should be using their video service and it should be live on both rider and sponsor websites. The rider could also post clips from this free of charge to youtube and other video sharing sites. Have either party got a facebook page? They are free for businesses and you can then post links and video clips etc here promoting both sponsor and rider.
Pitching a news story/feature about using their video service within the rider’s business will also be much more interesting to papers and magazine editors than something overtly commercial like "I'm really grateful to my new sponsor...".
Mention them in your blog. This sounds much more natural and less sales-like so adds value for the sponsor if its in context eg "The stableview video captured Coryn doing something naughty/unusual/snoring etc..."
Send the sponsors a nice framed photo (or a canvas print is cheaper and more trendy) of your top horse with a caption like "Team X sponsored by Stableview" to display in their offices if applicable. Add a lock of the horse's hair to make it really unique.
Can you arrange any hospitality through any shows where you compete etc? If its smaller local events that don't have sponsors areas then consider doing a posh picnic by the lorry or invite them to stay over at a show for a real experience if they are quite practical people. All stuff that money can't really buy but that can make the sponsor feel really important and won't cost the rider a fortune either if you are smart about it.
Kate Elliott is Marketing Director of Active Marketing & Design Ltd which specialises in delivering practical marketing solutions for the rural sector. Kate is also a keen rider and regular contributor to leading equestrian magazines including Horse & Hound.
Monday 5 July 2010
Examples of work we don't do!
I recently spoke at a networking event whilst feeling a little overwhelmed and frazzled with our current workload. As I sat and waited my turn to speak for 60 seconds I started to anxiously jot down my to do list for the day. This resulted in a slightly humorous pitch in which I detailed all of the things I hadn't done that week to give an illustration of the sort of work we are involved in. I finished the pitch by saying: "My name is Kate Elliott from Active Marketing and Design, but please for this week at least, we don't do marketing and design!" This presentation actually attracted a lot of interest in our work by default and a lot of people seemed to get a better understanding of what we do and started to trust us more.
I suppose its all part of the know - like - trust - buy idea. That is people need to first get to know you, then begin to like you and finally grow to trust you before they will buy from you.
So in a continuation of that theme here are some examples of the work we have done in the last few weeks:
Branding and Postcards for The Business Base
Design and produce spiral hats for Easton College to distribute at Royal Norfolk Show
And here are some of the things on the to do list:
PR plan for animal first aid products
Social media activity for healthy furniture store
Write text for a website of a repair company specialising in emergency vehicles
Design a poster in Polish about onions
Design packaging stickers for pest control products
I suppose its all part of the know - like - trust - buy idea. That is people need to first get to know you, then begin to like you and finally grow to trust you before they will buy from you.
So in a continuation of that theme here are some examples of the work we have done in the last few weeks:
Branding and Postcards for The Business Base
Design and produce spiral hats for Easton College to distribute at Royal Norfolk Show
And here are some of the things on the to do list:
PR plan for animal first aid products
Social media activity for healthy furniture store
Write text for a website of a repair company specialising in emergency vehicles
Design a poster in Polish about onions
Design packaging stickers for pest control products
Thursday 17 June 2010
What on earth is ambush marketing?
It's almost as (un)popular as the vuvuzela and its certainly got the media talking: mission accomplished! Why has a couple of dozen pretty girls in orange mini-dresses caused such an almighty stir? As the official beer of the 2010 World Cup, you can't really blame Budweiser bosses for being a little put out that the efforts of the Bavaria Brewery to "highjack" publicity for their mini-dress stunt have proved so effective when they have spent millions on an official sponsorship deal.
Ambush marketing in its broadest sense means piggybacking a brand onto the back of an event for which the brand is not an official sponsor. As in this example, it can be more effective than official sponsorship or it can completely backfire. Some would argue that the fact some of the minidress-clad girls ended up in front of a South African court is negative for the brand but in many respects it just gets more column inches for the story.
Sports events seem to be a magnet for this type of campaign - I experienced ambush marketing at first hand when I visited Wimbledon Tennis Championships a few years ago. Tabloid newspaper The Sun had printed a few thousand flags of St George (complete with red and white Sun logo) onto A4 card and were handing them out with bottles of sun cream to the assembled Henman fans in the Wimbledon queue. On entry to the All England Club we thought our bags were being searched for bombs - in fact the stringent security staff were confiscating these promotional flags along with almost anything else with a logo on it.
The London Olympics will no doubt bring this type of marketing to our attention again - I suppose my challenge as a marketing person is to come up with a superbly creative way to get my clients' brands in front of this global audience without the hefty sponsorship deal. Better get my head down for the next two years to come up with some ideas...
As reported in many places, but you can read more from the BBC on the subject of Ambush Marketing here
Ambush marketing in its broadest sense means piggybacking a brand onto the back of an event for which the brand is not an official sponsor. As in this example, it can be more effective than official sponsorship or it can completely backfire. Some would argue that the fact some of the minidress-clad girls ended up in front of a South African court is negative for the brand but in many respects it just gets more column inches for the story.
Sports events seem to be a magnet for this type of campaign - I experienced ambush marketing at first hand when I visited Wimbledon Tennis Championships a few years ago. Tabloid newspaper The Sun had printed a few thousand flags of St George (complete with red and white Sun logo) onto A4 card and were handing them out with bottles of sun cream to the assembled Henman fans in the Wimbledon queue. On entry to the All England Club we thought our bags were being searched for bombs - in fact the stringent security staff were confiscating these promotional flags along with almost anything else with a logo on it.
The London Olympics will no doubt bring this type of marketing to our attention again - I suppose my challenge as a marketing person is to come up with a superbly creative way to get my clients' brands in front of this global audience without the hefty sponsorship deal. Better get my head down for the next two years to come up with some ideas...
As reported in many places, but you can read more from the BBC on the subject of Ambush Marketing here
Tuesday 27 April 2010
Competition for Publicity
I'm often asked for some (free) marketing advice and find myself giving out tips and ideas readily. I gave a talk on PR to The Business Club in Norwich recently and one of the ideas I suggested seemed to spark a lot of interest so I thought I would expand upon it here.
I really love using reader competitions to generate PR coverage for clients and projects. Printed publications (especially newspapers) are getting a bit less keen on this type of coverage as their staffing is limited with marketing posts often made redundant, but there is still plenty of scope for this type of promotion through online and offline outlets.
Competitions offer many advantages to companies looking to raise the profile of their goods or services:
* Usually free to insert - cost is only in prize value
* Opportunities for data capture - every entrant is expressing an interest in your product or service and can therefore be considered a warm contact
* Impression of kindness and goodwill bestowed upon your company for giving away stuff
* Editorial style coverage which is a lot more discreet than advertising
* Implication of endorsement by the magazine etc by association with your product/service
Many publications will have a minimum prize value which can often be in the region of £500 - consider though that this is the retail value and the cost to you as a company is only perhaps half of that. Offering a money can't buy prize such as a VIP experience can also negate this prize value. Competitions are often given a generous amount of editorial space and frequently a full page of coverage plus front cover teasers so this still represents excellent value for "money".
Entry levels for competitions vary by publication - we only had one entry to a competition to win a martial arts lesson some time ago but we had 150 entries to another to win a hamper of spring bulbs from a garden centre.
Top Tips for Running a Reader Competition
1. Give plenty of notice to the publication - magazines are often running 2+ months ahead
2. Don't bother with BBC radio stations - they no longer run listener competitions since the bad publicity surrounding fake entries on Blue Peter etc.
3. Commercial radio stations will generally charge a fee to run a listener competition - expect to pay £300-500 plus the prize value.
4. Check with the publication to make sure they comply with Data Protection laws and ensure that there is a relevant tick box to allow you to share data captured.
5. Use Twitter to run a competition by asking people to spread the word about you by re-tweeting (RT) your message in exchange for a free entry into your competition
6. Follow up, follow up and follow up
You can arrange a competition yourself with some research or we would be delighted to help you to arrange a reader competition. Speak to Kate on 01603 716700 or email kate@activemd.co.uk for information
I really love using reader competitions to generate PR coverage for clients and projects. Printed publications (especially newspapers) are getting a bit less keen on this type of coverage as their staffing is limited with marketing posts often made redundant, but there is still plenty of scope for this type of promotion through online and offline outlets.
Competitions offer many advantages to companies looking to raise the profile of their goods or services:
* Usually free to insert - cost is only in prize value
* Opportunities for data capture - every entrant is expressing an interest in your product or service and can therefore be considered a warm contact
* Impression of kindness and goodwill bestowed upon your company for giving away stuff
* Editorial style coverage which is a lot more discreet than advertising
* Implication of endorsement by the magazine etc by association with your product/service
Many publications will have a minimum prize value which can often be in the region of £500 - consider though that this is the retail value and the cost to you as a company is only perhaps half of that. Offering a money can't buy prize such as a VIP experience can also negate this prize value. Competitions are often given a generous amount of editorial space and frequently a full page of coverage plus front cover teasers so this still represents excellent value for "money".
Entry levels for competitions vary by publication - we only had one entry to a competition to win a martial arts lesson some time ago but we had 150 entries to another to win a hamper of spring bulbs from a garden centre.
Top Tips for Running a Reader Competition
1. Give plenty of notice to the publication - magazines are often running 2+ months ahead
2. Don't bother with BBC radio stations - they no longer run listener competitions since the bad publicity surrounding fake entries on Blue Peter etc.
3. Commercial radio stations will generally charge a fee to run a listener competition - expect to pay £300-500 plus the prize value.
4. Check with the publication to make sure they comply with Data Protection laws and ensure that there is a relevant tick box to allow you to share data captured.
5. Use Twitter to run a competition by asking people to spread the word about you by re-tweeting (RT) your message in exchange for a free entry into your competition
6. Follow up, follow up and follow up
You can arrange a competition yourself with some research or we would be delighted to help you to arrange a reader competition. Speak to Kate on 01603 716700 or email kate@activemd.co.uk for information
Thursday 15 April 2010
Shouting Success from the rooftops!
Mary Jane Kingsland wrote an excellent Women in Business column in the EDP on Weds 31st March filled with insightful observations about the challenges of being a “successful” woman in business.
I was recently fortunate enough to reach the finals of the East of England Young Businesswoman of the Year Awards. Now I guess what I should say rather than fortunate was that I was “successful enough” or just plain good enough to be recognised amongst these other outstanding ladies, but I’m a woman and shouting about my success doesn’t come easily. In the run up to the finals, every time someone congratulated me on my nomination or introduced me as “potential businesswoman of the year” I blushed and made some kind of derisory comment about having no chance of winning and it all being some kind of mistake. I was interviewed on local radio but couldn’t help feeling like something of a fraud as my slot came straight after a heart-wrenching discussion about coping with terminal illness and I almost felt I should apologise for being there. All that despite the fact that over the last 4 years, I have worked jolly hard with my business partner, Claire, to establish our marketing and design business from scratch but until recently we have never shouted our success from the rooftops because its simply not our thing.
I ended up missing out on the young businesswoman award but it ignited a competitive spirit which means we intend to enter an EDP Business Award and may also have a stab at the Future 50 too. With words of encouragement from inspiring ladies like Mary Jane I hope that we won’t be the only women putting ourselves forwards.
I was recently fortunate enough to reach the finals of the East of England Young Businesswoman of the Year Awards. Now I guess what I should say rather than fortunate was that I was “successful enough” or just plain good enough to be recognised amongst these other outstanding ladies, but I’m a woman and shouting about my success doesn’t come easily. In the run up to the finals, every time someone congratulated me on my nomination or introduced me as “potential businesswoman of the year” I blushed and made some kind of derisory comment about having no chance of winning and it all being some kind of mistake. I was interviewed on local radio but couldn’t help feeling like something of a fraud as my slot came straight after a heart-wrenching discussion about coping with terminal illness and I almost felt I should apologise for being there. All that despite the fact that over the last 4 years, I have worked jolly hard with my business partner, Claire, to establish our marketing and design business from scratch but until recently we have never shouted our success from the rooftops because its simply not our thing.
I ended up missing out on the young businesswoman award but it ignited a competitive spirit which means we intend to enter an EDP Business Award and may also have a stab at the Future 50 too. With words of encouragement from inspiring ladies like Mary Jane I hope that we won’t be the only women putting ourselves forwards.
Friday 9 April 2010
Networking Queen of Norwich
As the unofficial networking queen of Norwich, I seem to be asked with some degree of regularity to recommend networking events for people in business looking to raise their local profile. I can usually be relied upon to give a fairly frank appraisal of those that I have attended. Unfortunately I am not prepared to share those honest appraisals here but may give you some gems of wisdom in person if you ask nicely!
I thought I would share my latest list of Norfolk business networks, in no particular order before you go getting over-excited! Apologies in advance if I have missed anyone off but I think this list is probably still more up to date than the one in the press!
I thought I would share my latest list of Norfolk business networks, in no particular order before you go getting over-excited! Apologies in advance if I have missed anyone off but I think this list is probably still more up to date than the one in the press!
- Norfolk Netwalking - Monthly walks mixed with informal business networking www.norfolk-netwalking.co.uk
- Norwich Business Womens Network - Monthly lunches, contact Margaret Gotts 01603 751930 www.nbwn.co.uk
- The Womens Business Clubs – Kings Lynn www.thewomensbusinessclubs.com
- The Business Club www.the-businessclub.org Fortnightly evening meetings at Airport Hotel, Norwich plus social events. Contact kate[@]activemd.co.uk to come as a guest (free).
- Buy Local – Social Enterprise encouraging small businesses to trade with each other, approx quarterly meetings and events www.buylocalnorfolk.org.uk 01603 766166
- The Antidote Network - Monthly meetings at Holiday Inn Airport Hotel, quite friendly and informal www.theantidotenetwork.co.uk
- Mid Norfolk Enterprise Forum run by Conservative PPC George Freeman www.thenorfolkway.co.uk
- Norfolk Network - www.norfolknetwork.com 01603 663340 Monthly meetings
- Federation of Small Businesses www.fsb.org.uk and then follow links to regions.
- WEETU (Womens Enterprise, Education and Training Union) - www.weetu.org 01603 878343 Centre meetings approx quarterly, very friendly and informal plus a new professional network also recently started.
- Everywoman 0870 746 1800 www.everywoman.co.uk – Regional seminars
- Women in Business Forum - Contact Sharon O’Mahoney, Meetings around Thetford area www.wibforum.co.uk
- Enterprising Women - www.enterprising-women.org – occasional networking events
- Wire (Women in Rural Enterprise) - www.wireuk.org - friendly networks in Kings Lynn, Norwich and South Norfolk.
- Little Acorn Network – monthly meetings for small businesses and artists in North Norfolk www.little-acorn.net
- BNI (Business Networking International) www.bni-europe.com - formal membership-only networking group with networks across Norfolk
- Norfolk Chamber of Commerce – large selection of formal events across the county www.norfolkchamber.co.uk
- ABC Network http://www.abcnetwork.biz/ Weekly breakfast meetings in Norwich, Bury St Edmunds and Watton
- 4 Networking http://www.4networking.biz/events/kings-lynn/ Regular meetings in King’s Lynn and Norwich (breakfast)
- Cambridge Network – regular meetings in Cambridge http://www.cambridgenetwork.co.uk
- 25AM
Thursday 8 April 2010
Where are the female role models?
I recently read a brilliant article making astute observations on female role models. It cited the less than superb examples set by women like Jordan and Cheryl Cole who live their lives in the public eye and are regularly cited as Woman of the Year or Mum of the Decade.
Its a topic which I feel really passionate about as a woman trying to make my way in business - fours years after setting up Active Marketing & Design, I am still looking for a truly enterprising female role model who I can relate to and aspire to be like but its been a pretty tough search. And I know what I'm looking for - imagine if you are a young teenage girl with a relatively restricted view of the world and I certainly don't think good female role models would cross your path very often. The media has a part to play in promoting these role models of course and is certainly not guilt-free when it comes to pushing dubious examples forward for the plaudits based largely on their attractive appearance or their "illustrious" private lives.
In fairness, we have had tv shows like The Apprentice which has pushed some savvy businesswomen into the limelight a little (anyone still remember Michelle Dewberry or Ruth Badger?) but has also created some horrors like Katie Hopkins who famously fluttered her eyelids and failed in the stern face of Sir Alan Sugar. High profile shows like Big Brother have also created supposed role models like the late Jade Goody who didnt always set the best example for smart women. I was recently approached to audition for Big Brother out of the blue - it turned out that my name was put forward as i was a finalist for a young businesswoman award and they were looking for some "real" role models. I declined the offer for the sake of my sanity but was intrigued by the approach that this tv company was using.
Historically there were some stunning examples of savvy women - sterling ladies like the late Anita Roddick or Emmeline Pankhurst - and how we desperately need more of them to triumph over the false celebrity women in the future!
To read the article which inspired this post click here:
Its a topic which I feel really passionate about as a woman trying to make my way in business - fours years after setting up Active Marketing & Design, I am still looking for a truly enterprising female role model who I can relate to and aspire to be like but its been a pretty tough search. And I know what I'm looking for - imagine if you are a young teenage girl with a relatively restricted view of the world and I certainly don't think good female role models would cross your path very often. The media has a part to play in promoting these role models of course and is certainly not guilt-free when it comes to pushing dubious examples forward for the plaudits based largely on their attractive appearance or their "illustrious" private lives.
In fairness, we have had tv shows like The Apprentice which has pushed some savvy businesswomen into the limelight a little (anyone still remember Michelle Dewberry or Ruth Badger?) but has also created some horrors like Katie Hopkins who famously fluttered her eyelids and failed in the stern face of Sir Alan Sugar. High profile shows like Big Brother have also created supposed role models like the late Jade Goody who didnt always set the best example for smart women. I was recently approached to audition for Big Brother out of the blue - it turned out that my name was put forward as i was a finalist for a young businesswoman award and they were looking for some "real" role models. I declined the offer for the sake of my sanity but was intrigued by the approach that this tv company was using.
Historically there were some stunning examples of savvy women - sterling ladies like the late Anita Roddick or Emmeline Pankhurst - and how we desperately need more of them to triumph over the false celebrity women in the future!
To read the article which inspired this post click here:
Tuesday 23 February 2010
Social Media FAQs for Small businesses
After I delivered another successful workshop introducing some basic principles of social media to small business owners and managers, it occurred to me that there are some FAQs which keep rearing their heads in discussion. Social media is a buzz phrase at the minute and with any hot topic there are some really strong opinions being aired in the discussion. The most common point raised was "How do i find time to do all this as well as running my business, bringing up a family, walking the dog, putting food on the table etc?" 10 years ago I think people probably said the same about email... and now we can't live without checking it hourly at least. Its all about time management and the beauty of modern technology is that you dont even have to be sat at a computer to carry out your social media strategy. Mobile phones are the most popular way of "Tweeting" and within 2 years smartphones will be in the majority which makes this time-saving technology open to more people still.
Another common concern was "How do i protect my private life?" A lot of this comes down to common sense, in the same way that it would be pretty foolish to drive around with your mobile phone number in large digits on your car bonnet, so its sensible not to give away all your personal details on public social media sites. Sites like Facebook offer a variety of privacy settings that can be used to limit who sees what information so for example family photos can be reserved for viewing by selected friends only. Some bosses are wary about the implications of employees' raucous activities being published widely on the internet but no one will ever censor this completely. Instead a more open-minded view that perhaps it is best to know what employees are getting up to in their spare time rather than have them secretly getting into mischief could be a positive way forwards. Some people advocate the use of separate social media "identities" for private and professional life but I think this is rarely necessary. A small business owner or one man band in particular can use their social media "brand" to enhance their personal branding as this is a key part of the motivation of customers to buy - people buy from people they like after all.
Likewise there is always a question about "how do i get rid of negative comments and customer complaints - its not fair that these are published online." Think instead of how damaging customer complaints can be if they are spread solely by word of mouth but never raised to the business owner. While the initial shock of seeing a complaint in public is unpleasant for any hard-working business owner, at least we have the opportunity to address the issues raised, and respond with our improvement actions. Surely it is better to see these complaints for yourself by engaging with social media rather than ignoring the issue.
Another common concern was "How do i protect my private life?" A lot of this comes down to common sense, in the same way that it would be pretty foolish to drive around with your mobile phone number in large digits on your car bonnet, so its sensible not to give away all your personal details on public social media sites. Sites like Facebook offer a variety of privacy settings that can be used to limit who sees what information so for example family photos can be reserved for viewing by selected friends only. Some bosses are wary about the implications of employees' raucous activities being published widely on the internet but no one will ever censor this completely. Instead a more open-minded view that perhaps it is best to know what employees are getting up to in their spare time rather than have them secretly getting into mischief could be a positive way forwards. Some people advocate the use of separate social media "identities" for private and professional life but I think this is rarely necessary. A small business owner or one man band in particular can use their social media "brand" to enhance their personal branding as this is a key part of the motivation of customers to buy - people buy from people they like after all.
Likewise there is always a question about "how do i get rid of negative comments and customer complaints - its not fair that these are published online." Think instead of how damaging customer complaints can be if they are spread solely by word of mouth but never raised to the business owner. While the initial shock of seeing a complaint in public is unpleasant for any hard-working business owner, at least we have the opportunity to address the issues raised, and respond with our improvement actions. Surely it is better to see these complaints for yourself by engaging with social media rather than ignoring the issue.
Thursday 11 February 2010
Securing Sponsorship
I was recently asked for some advice on finding a sponsor and found myself getting quite carried away with a detailed response which i thought i would share.
When looking for sponsors I would suggest a two-pronged approach. As with any form of public relations or marketing activity, following up and persistence is critical to success. Make an initial contact by phone and ask who the best person to speak to about sponsorship. Try and gauge their level of interest briefly and then offer to send them a sponsorship pack out. Follow up with a call after the pack is received and ask if you can come and see them to explain more. Therefore the pack needs to contain the key details but leave a few gaps/questions which means the target will need to see you to find out more.
I would certainly recommend spending some money on getting your sponsorship brochures nicely presented and bound – the extent to which you spend on this will depend on who you are targeting and how much money you want. If for example you are approaching a blue chip company and are looking for several thousand pounds then the package must be smartly presented. Conversely if you are a small charity asking for a few pounds from local organisations then you may give the wrong impression if you use a plush brochure for your appeal as it looks like you are already rich! The sponsorship package must outline the key benefits to the organisation that this sponsorship association will bring. So if you are a charity you might outline your work, the opportunities for sponsor engagement (eg free tickets to an event), opportunities for sponsors to promote themselves (eg weblinks, adverts in programmes/magazines etc), the profile of existing customers and how this matches to the sponsors’ target audience and so on.
Without knowing the context of the sponsorship need its difficult to suggest anything else but if its an event that you seek sponsors for then you could ask them to attend a previous event (FOC) to see what its like before they commit to funding. Similarly if you are a sportsperson for example then invite potential sponsors to come to an open day at your training centre or watch you compete.
Good luck in your search!
If you would like further support in securing sponsorship then contact kate(at)activemd.co.uk or call 01603 716700
When looking for sponsors I would suggest a two-pronged approach. As with any form of public relations or marketing activity, following up and persistence is critical to success. Make an initial contact by phone and ask who the best person to speak to about sponsorship. Try and gauge their level of interest briefly and then offer to send them a sponsorship pack out. Follow up with a call after the pack is received and ask if you can come and see them to explain more. Therefore the pack needs to contain the key details but leave a few gaps/questions which means the target will need to see you to find out more.
I would certainly recommend spending some money on getting your sponsorship brochures nicely presented and bound – the extent to which you spend on this will depend on who you are targeting and how much money you want. If for example you are approaching a blue chip company and are looking for several thousand pounds then the package must be smartly presented. Conversely if you are a small charity asking for a few pounds from local organisations then you may give the wrong impression if you use a plush brochure for your appeal as it looks like you are already rich! The sponsorship package must outline the key benefits to the organisation that this sponsorship association will bring. So if you are a charity you might outline your work, the opportunities for sponsor engagement (eg free tickets to an event), opportunities for sponsors to promote themselves (eg weblinks, adverts in programmes/magazines etc), the profile of existing customers and how this matches to the sponsors’ target audience and so on.
Without knowing the context of the sponsorship need its difficult to suggest anything else but if its an event that you seek sponsors for then you could ask them to attend a previous event (FOC) to see what its like before they commit to funding. Similarly if you are a sportsperson for example then invite potential sponsors to come to an open day at your training centre or watch you compete.
Good luck in your search!
If you would like further support in securing sponsorship then contact kate(at)activemd.co.uk or call 01603 716700
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