Day: September 26, 2022

6 Freelance Writing Tips to Try in 2022

8 Tips for New Freelance Writers

Becoming a freelance writer means many things. It means hard work, independent income, pursuing your passion, and constantly developing your skills. There’s a lot to it, but there’s no reason to fear it. You’ll be delighted at the opportunities that will show up for you once you get started as a freelance writer and find your writing niche. But first, you need to make sure you know how to get started on the path to success. To help you set a plan in place, we’ve put together some of our best advice for new freelance writers.

The first step to becoming a truly successful freelance writer is managing your time. There are several ways to do this, and the steps you take will vary depending on your personality. However, there are a few basic things you should keep in mind:

• Make lists – The Type-A person knows them well, but even if that’s not your style, in this case, it’s probably a good idea. Making a list of each writing job you need to finish, the research you must accomplish, and the other daily tasks that you can’t ignore should be top of the list for what you need to be a successful freelance writer.
• Don’t multitask – We’ve all done it, but scientists have proven that multitasking can actually cause you to lose up to 40% of the time you could be productive. In reality, our brains can only focus on one thing at a time, so multitasking is ultimately hours of our brains starting and stopping. In the long run, this usually causes more problems instead of increasing productivity.
• Track your time – With a time tracker or other similar program, you can keep track of deadlines, how much you work, and what you’ve accomplished. This is an essential step to making every second count in your freelance business.

Learn how to market yourself

To stay in the freelance writing business for the long haul, you need a marketing plan. A freelancer is technically an independent contractor, not an employee, which means that, in order to make freelance writing sustainable, your ideal clients should be able to find you.

As briefly mentioned above, a freelance writer is an independent contractor who usually works for multiple clients simultaneously. To land freelance gigs that pay decently, set up a freelance writing website — particularly if you want to build a business out of freelance writing instead of just having a side gig.

• Gets your name out there: A client can’t hire you if they don’t know you exist. A website that’s regularly updated signals that you’re open for business.
• Captures the attention of your ideal audience: One common freelance marketing term you’ll hear is audience targeting. Not everyone looking for a freelance writer is a good fit for you, which makes identifying your target audience fundamental to your website’s success. Ideally, you want clients in an industry you enjoy writing about. If you want to write for the fitness industry, for example, your website should reflect that.
• Builds authority: Writer websites usually come with blog sections you can use to publish articles or opinion pieces that aim to address client pain points or questions. This way, you can showcase your knowledge of specific topics and solidify your reputation.
• Showcases your portfolio: Potential clients will want to know what you’ve already written to see if you’re the writer they’re looking for. Select the writing clips you’re most proud of and upload them as a portfolio on your website.
• Features client testimonials: Leveraging social proof is a powerful marketing strategy. Ask clients for testimonials that you can publish on your website.

Get started today, and remember you aren’t alone!

Are you an aspiring freelance writer? If so, there are so many other writers out there who are willing to help. Don’t be afraid to reach out and ask them for advice and tips as these could prove invaluable further down the road. We also recommend finding a successful freelance writer to follow on social media who will help motivate and inspire you when you’re working on a tough brief or a new pitch.

Main image credit: Free-Photos

Internal image credits: geralt, Janeb13, AbsolutVision

Jess Thistlethwaite

Jess is Content Director at Copify. Her main interests include writing, copy editing, and social media marketing. Holding a journalism degree from the University of Chester, she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in 2016. With a passion for both art and music, Jess enjoys playing the clarinet and sketching or painting when she’s away from her desk.

Sources:

https://weareindy.com/blog/8-tips-for-new-freelance-writers
https://www.fool.com/the-ascent/small-business/articles/freelance-writing-tips/

6 simple freelance writing tips for beginners

Top 10 B2C Marketing Strategies That Works Like A Charm

What is a B2C Model?

In 1979, English entrepreneur Michael Aldrich invented online shopping, or teleshopping, to enable online exchange processing between consumers and businesses, or from one business to another. Aldrich’s technique later became known as e-commerce; it didn’t become economically viable until the Internet came to be.

A B2C model means a business-to-consumer model of selling items or services. As the name suggests, this refers to any business that takes place where the consumer directly receives the goods or services. Chiefly, we may very well see it in the case of restaurants or with lawyers.

What is the difference between B2B and B2C?

As referenced above, the crucial difference that wins between B2B and B2C models is the method that the companies use to offer their products to the purchasers. The pricing design of the two models is marginally unique.

Additionally, in a B2C model, the value-based relationship is significant as to give a coupon in return for feedback on the following purchase, yet in the B2B model during the deal time, individual relationships are significant.

In a B2B model, there is no compelling reason to stress over the branding as a retailer consistently manages many brands, yet in a B2C framework, this becomes crucial to have a brand’s name, acclaim, and components.

B2B requests that the master become familiar with the language or the phrasing, yet in a B2C model, to draw in shoppers, one needs to sell a message or an idea that is genuinely associated with the brand

Top 10 Business-to-Consumer Marketing Strategies

What do business professionals think about different types of marketing strategy to reach consumers? We took a look at recent survey results and reports that compiled data on the topic, and created a list of 10 B2C marketing strategy examples commonly recognized as successful regardless of industry. Here’s what we found, in no particular order:

Social Networks and Viral Marketing

Social media marketing focuses on providing users with content they find valuable and want to share across their social networks, resulting in increased visibility and traffic. Social media shares of content, videos, and images also influence Search Engine Optimization (SEO) efforts in that they often increase relevancy in search results within social media networks like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram and search engines like Google and Yahoo.

Paid Media Advertising

Paid media is a tool that companies use to grow their website traffic through paid advertising. One of the most popular methods is pay-per-click (PPC) links. Essentially, a company buys or “sponsors” a link that appears as an ad in search engine results when keywords related to their product or service are searched (this process is commonly known as search engine marketing, or SEM). Every time the ad is clicked, the company pays the search engine (or other third party host site) a small fee for the visitor — a literal “pay per click.”

Internet Marketing

Internet marketing, or online marketing, combines web and email to advertise and drive e-commerce sales. Social media platforms may also be included to leverage brand presence and promote products and services. In total, these efforts are typically used in conjunction with traditional advertising formats like radio, television, and print.

There’s also a lot to be said about online reviews and opinions. Word-of-mouth advertising is unpaid, organic, and oh-so-powerful because those people who have nice things to say about your product or service generally have nothing to gain from it other than sharing good news. A recommendation from a friend, colleague, or family member has built-in credibility and can spur dozens of leads who anticipate positive experiences with your brand.

Email Marketing

Email marketing is a highly effective way to nurture and convert leads. However, it’s not a game of chance, as to whether your message winds up in spam filters. Instead, email marketing is an automated process that targets specific prospects and customers with the goal of influencing their purchasing decisions. Email marketing success is measured by open rates and click-through rates, so strategy comes into play, particularly when it’s used as a component of a larger internet marketing initiative.

Direct Selling

Direct selling accomplishes exactly what the name suggests — marketing and selling products directly to consumers. In this model, sales agents build face-to-face relationships with individuals by demonstrating and selling products away from retail settings, usually in an individual’s home (e.g., Amway, Avon, Herbalife, and Mary Kay).

Point-of-Purchase Marketing (POP)

Point-of-Purchase marketing (or POP marketing) sells to a captive audience — those shoppers already in-store and ready to purchase. Product displays, on-package coupons, shelf talkers that tout product benefits, and other attention-getting “sizzle” often sway buying decisions at the shelf by making an offer simply too good — and too visible — to pass up.

Cobranding, Affinity, and Cause Marketing

Co-branding is a marketing methodology in which at least two brands join together to promote and sell a single product or service. The brands lend their collective credibility to increase the perception of the product or service’s value, so consumers are more likely to purchase and willing to pay more at retail. Secondarily, co-branding may dissuade private label manufacturers from copying the product or service. Similarly, affinity marketing is a partnership between a company (supplier) and an organization that gathers persons sharing the same interests — for instance, a coffee shop that sells goods from a local bakery.

There is no shortage of co-branding partnerships, but several more recent examples demonstrate particularly good natural brand alignment including the adventurous GoPro and Red Bull, luxurious BMW and Louis Vuitton, and fashion-forward Alexander Wang and H&M.

Likewise, cause marketing leverages and enhances brand reputation. Cause marketing is a cooperative effort between a for-profit business and a non-profit organization to mutually promote and benefit from social and other charitable causes. Cause marketing is not to be confused with corporate giving, which is tied to specific tax-deductible donations made by an organization. Cause marketing relationships are “feel goods” and assure your customers you share their desire to make the world a better place.

Best B2C Digital Marketing Strategies to Apply in 2022

Business-to-consumer, shortened as B2C, is the process of selling goods and services directly between businesses and consumers. And, consumers here are the end-users who stand at the bottom of the product chain, and actually consume the product.

So, B2C marketing is the practice of promoting a company’s goods and services directly to individual buyers. B2C digital marketing tactics often involve brands’ ability to capitalize on their value, trigger emotional responses, and generate social proof.

However, B2C products are not only sold in physical stores. The products like e-learning websites, knowledge commerce products, membership websites are traded and advertised through digital platforms.

Difference between B2B and B2C digital marketing strategies

The fundamental difference between B2B and B2C marketing strategies lays down on the technique that companies use to sell their products. In B2B, sellers offer smart solutions to simplify work processes, now automate business processes and gain efficiencies. It requires industry knowledge and the use of the field language to market those products.

But in B2C, you need to sell an idea that emotionally connects you with customers. Sellers need to have their name and style known among the audience, as there are a wide array of providers of similar products. Though consumers make impulsive purchases at times, a message that you deliver has a great impact on either case.

In B2B, consumers are more likely to purchase a product than in B2C. Because businesses always seek efficient and agile approaches to maximize their productivity. They are already in search of better solutions. The role of B2B marketers is to introduce their unique selling propositions (USP) tailored for customer needs.

How to develop B2C digital marketing tactics?

Setting reliable B2C digital marketing strategies comprises a holistic approach. It starts by introducing consumers to your brand, encouraging them to engage with your brand, and leading them to make purchases. If you use a pipeline model, these stages are awareness, conversion, consideration, and retention.

1. Connect with your prospects on a human level

As we stressed above, B2B purchase decisions are made with emotions and feelings. Few brands take the needed effort to know their consumers and connect with them on an emotional level.

Knowing whom you are talking to is the preliminary step in the establishment of B2C digital marketing trends. Most brands pursue promotional content without addressing customer pain points. If you do not want to fall into this trap, get to know your customers, understand their needs. This will let you create effective solutions that communicate with customer needs.

How? Use available customer pain points shared on the internet and explain how you can address their issues. For example, if you are providing psychology therapy for teens, look for what they are concerned about. You can share the general concerns you find on the internet (without mentioning user names) and explain the causes, required treatments, and then mention your service.

2. Embrace the power of content marketing

The next step to establish effective B2C digital marketing strategies is developing a winning content strategy. Understanding consumer psychology and justifying their needs give you a leg in this process.

If you want to create brand recognition for your brand, you need to continuously generate content. Use the outcomes of your research to create engaging content that gains consumers’ attention for your product.

It can be a blog post, guest post, video tutorial, or podcast. As long as the content is clear, articulate and the brand image is given, it will be easily consumed and spread. It is vital to provide content that gives value to the reader and brings traffic to your website.

3. Use social media

Social media transformed the marketing landscape and generated tons of followable B2C digital marketing trends. It lets you expand your brand recognition and grow sales with a tied budget.

While B2C prospects want to feel close to the message you present. Educative posts can still nourish your feed, focus on delivering a valuable message that speaks to the heart of your social media persona.

When starting off on social media marketing, you can try ads to grow followings. But to show authenticity and maintain the level of engagement, you need to constantly deliver fresh content to followers.

Creating valuable content takes a big part of your marketing efforts. It takes so much time to generate ideas for social media content creation. And sharing posts to multiple platforms might ruin your time and energy for crucial tasks. Instead, you can look for scheduling tools to simplify the social media posting process.

By automating social media posting, these tools allow you to schedule posts once and enjoy your time on crucial tasks. WordPress users can attain this efficiency with the help of plugins.

4. Host creative contests

Contests work best when rules are simple and the prize is worth it. If you impose a long list of social media accounts to follow, 10 people to tag in comments, you won’t receive the expected amount of growth afterward.

And, make sure your prize is valuable to your ideal customers. If the gifts have nothing to do with your business, hosting such content will be pointless. For example, If you are an e-learning website, giving a 3-month free course away is much more suitable than a dinner at a fancy restaurant for your target.

5. Turn customers into brand ambassadors

Turning loyal customers into brand ambassadors is also one of the popular B2C digital marketing trends. It is always a good idea to let your potential customers know what your consumers think of your products. B2C customers make decisions emotion-based, yet they also need directions to find the most suitable choice.

The testimonial section of your website shows genuine comments of your customers in addition to your own words. You can display feedback from your Google My Business account, Facebook reviews, or let people mention their comments on your website.

As part of your B2C marketing strategy, you can transform your happy clients into brand ambassadors. As people are more convincing than brands, they can generate more referrals as well.

6. Build influencer relations

Influencer marketing is an undetachable part of B2C digital marketing strategies. Influencers maintain a good state of relations with their followers and have a big share in the purchase decisions of their followers.

Sources:

https://blucactus.blue/b2c-marketing-strategies/
https://www.weidert.com/blog/top-10-most-effective-marketing-strategies
https://www.fs-poster.com/blog/best-b2c-digital-marketing-strategies

How to Write a Thank You Note at Work

How to Write a Thank You Note at Work

Isn’t it wonderful to have an entire month dedicated to gratitude? November is special. One of the best parts of going to work and being a part of a team with other humans is the opportunity to express appreciation. Every person you work with brings unique value to projects and to the organization. Perhaps not everyone thinks about this, but it’s true! You are part of a unique group of individuals that can’t be found anywhere else on earth. Your organization has its own thumbprint of talent.

What Should You Say Thank You For?

So, if you’re just warming up to the idea of being appreciative at work, you might wonder, “what should I say thank you for?” The answer to this question is that you should show appreciation for any kind of behavior you’d like to see more of. Studies show that people respond well to appreciation and that it can be a powerful motivator for success. When you see someone being a good example, let them know with a thank you card and perhaps a small gift of appreciation. The following list of positive behaviors will give you some goodness to watch for. Maybe you’ll notice someone being:

Steps for Writing an Excellent Thank You Note

1. Watch and observe.

Get to know your people and their contributions. After you’ve taken a little time to pay attention, you’ll be ready to write a thank you note that is personal. After all, meaningful communication is in the details.

2. Decide on your format.

a. Email– You might choose to write an email if you want to get a thank you out quickly. If so, it’s a good idea to add “thank you” to your subject line. It will stand out in an inbox that’s usually filled with emails asking for something from your recipient rather than offering them something. It should be a pleasant and welcome discovery, and you wouldn’t want it to go unnoticed.

Are you on a first-name basis with the person you’d like to thank? If you work closely with this individual, go ahead and begin your thank you with a “Dear (first name)” or a “Hello (first name).” If you’re not as familiar with the individual, make sure you throw in a title of respect. Using Mr. or Ms. is nice, or increasingly, companies are opting to use the gender-neutral Mx. to avoid assuming gender, which can potentially lead to unnecessary tension in work relationships.

4. Say your thanks.

Now, for the fun part: expressing your gratitude. Use your introductory sentence to cut to the chase by explaining the purpose of your note. Example: Thank you for __________. Then, follow up with the “why.” This is the part that will help your recipient feel good about their contribution(s). It’s a warm fuzzy in written form. It lets them know the good they’re doing is being noticed and appreciated. These details are validating and go a long way in encouraging more of the same behavior in the future. Remember, it doesn’t have to be long or wordy.

5. Can you reciprocate?

Now might be the perfect time to mention you’d like to be helpful in return. Something to remember, though: Don’t offer unless you’re willing and able to follow through. If you’re sure you can, go ahead. Offering your help is a great way to strengthen relationships and build reciprocal friendships at work. I’ll scratch your back if you’ll scratch mine—together we’ll be itch-free and happy at work.

6. Wrap it up.

7. Sign off.

End your letter with a complimentary close such as: “Sincerely,” “Best,” or “Regards.” Follow this with your first name if you’re on a first-name basis with the recipient, or your full name for a formal thank you letter.

8. Spell and Grammar Check.

In a business setting, a thank you can be offered in any direction, up the ladder, down the ladder, and side to side between coworkers. Everyone is equal and deserving of appreciation, no matter their position in a company.

Someone in leadership might be thanked for their generosity, example, encouragement, mentorship, and for being observant of the needs and desires of employees. Employees can receive thanks for many of the same things. Clients, customers, contractors, or anyone who provides a service within or for the company is also worthy of notice and appreciation.

Successful businesses are always looking for ways to strengthen connections and build their network. Appreciation is an excellent foundation material for building lasting professional relationships. The following are some things you might say to express appreciation to those in various positions at work:

Thank You Examples

Hello Kiara,

Thanks for anticipating and offering the additional information I needed to complete my portion of our project together. Your foresight saved us both a lot of time.

Let me know if you’d like me to set up the tech for next week’s presentation at our off-site meeting.

Once again, thank you for thinking ahead. I appreciate the opportunity to work with you.

Step 1: Identify the Recipient(s)

Identifying who’s receiving your thank you note should be the easiest part. However, perhaps you have a lot to be thankful for lately — and a lot of people to thank. This is great. However, getting in the right headspace to write all of these notes in one or a few sittings may benefit you. Thank you notes don’t have to be for traditional exchanges or relationships, either.

It’s likely you’d feel compelled to thank a physician or a care provider, for example, and may wonder how to write a thank you message to a doctor . You’re also more than welcome to have a less-structured approach to your note writing and send them “just because.” This can also be a great approach. People love to be thought of and appreciated, if even for “nothing.”

Tip: Keep a running list on your phone, on your counter, or wherever you’re likely to not miss it. Jot down the names of people and keywords of what you’d like to thank them for. This can save you time and help you to not forget anyone over the holidays or on a birthday, for example.

Resource:

https://www.spoonfulofcomfort.com/blogs/corporate/how-to-write-a-thank-you-note-at-work
https://www.joincake.com/blog/thank-you-note/

Uncategorized by Janice

How to start a difficult conversation. Never dodge a conversation again!

How to Start a Conversation: 12 Easy Ways To Start a Conversation With Anyone

It’s not all about the words, though. A big part of a successful conversation has to do with what the rest of you is doing while your lips are moving (or while the other person’s are).

So, whether you’re struggling to think of topics to talk about, or you’re preoccupied with whether you’ll manage to alienate this new person in record time without even trying, take a moment and read the tips that follow.

Then, when you’re faced with someone new, try to remember that you have at least as good a chance at making a good impression on the other person as they have of making a good impression on you.

So, smile and focus on the present. Take a moment to breathe, and stop worrying about past mistakes and future unknowns. They’re not invited to this conversation. You are invited, and you decide how you’ll respond to the next new person you meet.

How to start a difficult conversation

1. Ask permission

Use a simple phrase such as “I’d like to catch up, do you have a moment?”, or if the conversation is likely to be longer and a meeting would be better, “I’d like to schedule some time next week to discuss ____, is that OK?”.

Asking permission creates buy-in and commitment on the part of the other person. You’re starting with a mutual commitment to the conversation, which is exactly where you want to be.

2. Keep it short

When you launch into the conversation you many feel nervous, it’s tempting to ramble. Also, it feels safe to talk, you’re in control. But the longer you are talking the more the emotions are rising, and the more likely it is that the other person is shifting negative.

3. Keep your tone light, let the message speak for itself

It’s a difficult conversation. It’s not going to get any easier if you plaster anguish all over your face and weigh down your tone with too much gravity. Keep it conversational, keep an easy expression on your face.

Downloadable and Printable List of Best Flirty Conversation Starters

What makes a good flirty question?

Good flirty questions are open-ended. While yes/no questions are much easier to ask, especially when you are trying to do a pick-up style of flirting, open-ended flirty questions encourage better communication.

What’s a good flirty way to start a conversation before asking out your crush?

Everyone likes to be appreciated, so try to throw out a compliment or two. Tell them that they look great in the shirt they’re wearing. Comment something nice about them, their hair, or whatever you see. These compliments will unarm them, giving you a better chance at asking them out.

What are some seductive words?

Whatever word you say, when you say it seductively, they become “seductive words.” With this in mind, when we’re with someone we like, our voices tend to go higher, and we speak faster. When you want to say something seductive, try to lower your voice and speak a bit slowly.

How do you throw hints at your crush?

Showing affection is the best hint to throw at your crush. Smile at them, lightly brush the small of their skin every once in a while, give them compliments- these are some of the usual hints you can throw at them. But they won’t be entirely sure unless you tell them directly of your feelings.

How do you flirt but stay classy?

Keeping distance is the key to keep your class while flirting with your crush. A true lady knows when to wait and hold back. Don’t try to spend the whole day with him, but only give him some of your time. When you hold back, and he realizes that he’s missing your company, he’ll come for you.

How To Pick The Best Flirty Conversation Starters

Anything that makes us want to flirt can be overwhelming. These openers are hard to dive into if you’re not sure about your goal. However, you need not worry because we’ve got what you need to consider when choosing the most suitable conversation starters for you.

1. Who Are You Talking To?

Consider the person that you’re talking to. Is he someone that you’re already close to, or is he someone that you just met? Choose lines that you know would be appropriate to the person you’re talking to. Don’t choose ones that would be too forward for someone you just met.

2. What Makes You Comfortable?

You also have to consider yourself when choosing the right questions. Choose the lines that you know you’ll be comfortable saying and talking about. You won’t be able to flirt effectively if you don’t feel comfortable.

3. What Will Help You Have Fun?

These are questions to help you flirt, so have fun! Don’t be too focused on hitting it right. Let loose and enjoy yourself. That’s the most important thing when you’re trying to flirt and start a discussion.

Resource:

https://liveboldandbloom.com/01/self-confidence/how-to-start-conversation
https://www.skillpacks.com/how-to-start-a-difficult-conversation/
https://www.galtelligence.com/flirty-conversation-starters/

Business Impact Analysis: A Guide for Identifying Potential Risks and Creating a Business Continuity Plan

Business Impact Analysis: A Guide for Identifying Potential Risks and Creating a Business Continuity Plan

Risks are inherent in any business. And as the business expands, the risks also multiply and have a greater potential to cause damage. While an enterprise cannot insulate itself completely from every possible worst-case scenario, a business impact analysis can help you analyze and predict the operational and financial impacts of disruptions.

By preparing for potential fallout from risks, an organization has the best chance at recovery. Business impact analysis is also crucial to any business continuity planning (BCP), which describes the steps organizations should take when an outage or disruption occurs. Without a sound business-impact analysis, it would be difficult to identify which systems and processes are most crucial and which dependencies exist within the critical systems.

What is Business Impact Analysis?

Business impact analysis (BIA) identifies critical and time-sensitive business operations and predicts or evaluates the effects of disruption or interruption on those operations. The disturbances can be a result of either man-made or natural disasters. Team members use the information to create business recovery strategies, as we’ll see in the next section.

Basic Business Impact Analysis

The Basic BIA is a shortened version of a Comprehensive BIA and is done for less critical systems and applications, meaning it can be restored later than 24 hours after the disaster hit.

Comprehensive Business Impact Analysis

The Comprehensive BIA is the full business impact analysis conducted for all critical systems or applications, meaning that they must be restored within 24 hours after the disaster occurs.

Business impact analysis is like risk assessment, and the two are often discussed together. While it’s easy to confuse the two, remember that a BIA emphasizes business continuity requirements, resource dependencies, and justifying the identified business requirements by showing how downtime will impact the organization. Risk assessment, on the other hand, identifies potential disasters and setbacks (cyber-attacks, fires, IT/network failure, natural disaster, supplier failure, utility outage, etc.) and identifies areas of vulnerability.

What Kinds of Business Impacts Are We Talking About Here?

It Takes up Too Much Time

Unreasonable or Outright Wrong Recovery Time Objectives

The Business Grows and Evolves, but the BIA Doesn’t

There’s Too Much BIA-Related Data to Analyze

The Data is Irrelevant or Useless

Uninvolved Management

Many organizations outsource their work to a third-party consulting provider that specializes in business impact analysis. Businesses that prefer conducting their BIA in-house should employ a business continuity manager and/or representatives from IT or related groups, such as a business analyst. Business analysts are particularly valuable since they have many useful business analysis techniques at their disposal.

The process should also ideally include the business owner or a representative, the technical application manager, and individuals who have the relevant system or application expertise, presented from a business or technical perspective. These analysis team members are referred to as subject matter experts (SME).

FREE Course: Introduction to Data Analytics

Optimizing Your BC/DR Strategy With BIA

When it comes to emergency preparedness and your disaster recovery plan, speed is everything. How quickly can you identify potential threats? How quickly can you communicate with employees? How fast is your response? How long does it take you to restore business operations?

Your organization’s ability to rapidly respond to and recover from business disruptions is directly related to the effectiveness of your business continuity plan. And every effective business continuity plan is rooted in business impact analysis.

While there are many ways organizations can improve emergency preparedness—from developing comprehensive preparedness plans to regularly conducting tabletop exercises—the world’s most resilient organizations are constantly looking for ways to accelerate how they detect, validate, and respond to any threat to their people or business. With a business impact analysis supported by modern emergency communication and threat intelligence technology, organizations can maintain organizational resilience, protect the bottom line, and keep business operations running as smoothly as possible during unexpected disruptions.

Sources:

https://www.parallels.com/blogs/ras/business-impact-analysis/
https://www.simplilearn.com/what-is-business-impact-analysis-article
https://www.alertmedia.com/blog/business-impact-analysis/
Business Impact Analysis: A Guide for Identifying Potential Risks and Creating a Business Continuity Plan

What is a business impact analysis (BIA)?

A business impact analysis helps you predict the consequences of disruptions to business processes, so you have the data you need to proactively create recovery strategies. For example, a manufacturing company could create a BIA to measure how losing a key supplier would affect company operations and revenue.

Simply put, a BIA identifies the operational and financial impacts of disruptions—like what would happen if your servers crashed or a global pandemic changed the market landscape. The data you collect during a business impact analysis helps you understand and prepare for these potential obstacles, so you can act quickly and face challenges head-on when they arise. For example, you could use the insights from your BIA to create a business continuity plan, which outlines how your team will respond to unexpected business changes.

Business impact analysis vs. risk assessment

A risk assessment analyzes potential threats and the likelihood of them happening. A business impact analysis measures the severity of those threats and how they would affect business operations and finances. In other words, a business impact analysis is essentially an extension of a risk assessment report—a BIA identifies potential risks, then also measures their impact.

Business impact analysis vs. project risk management

Project risk management is the process of identifying, analyzing, and responding to potential project risks. In this case, a risk is anything that could cause project failure by delaying the project timeline, overloading your project budget, or reducing performance.

While project risk management is focused on predicting and responding to roadblocks within a specific project, a business impact analysis is broader in scope. A BIA doesn’t focus on a single project, but rather overarching business functions and processes. For example, you would use project risk management for a cross-functional initiative to redesign your company app, but create a BIA to investigate how disruptions to your staffing may impact production for your company app.

What is Business Impact Analysis?

Business impact analysis (BIA) identifies critical and time-sensitive business operations and predicts or evaluates the effects of disruption or interruption on those operations. The disturbances can be a result of either man-made or natural disasters. Team members use the information to create business recovery strategies, as we’ll see in the next section.

Basic Business Impact Analysis

The Basic BIA is a shortened version of a Comprehensive BIA and is done for less critical systems and applications, meaning it can be restored later than 24 hours after the disaster hit.

Comprehensive Business Impact Analysis

The Comprehensive BIA is the full business impact analysis conducted for all critical systems or applications, meaning that they must be restored within 24 hours after the disaster occurs.

Business impact analysis is like risk assessment, and the two are often discussed together. While it’s easy to confuse the two, remember that a BIA emphasizes business continuity requirements, resource dependencies, and justifying the identified business requirements by showing how downtime will impact the organization. Risk assessment, on the other hand, identifies potential disasters and setbacks (cyber-attacks, fires, IT/network failure, natural disaster, supplier failure, utility outage, etc.) and identifies areas of vulnerability.

Sources:

https://asana.com/resources/business-impact-analysis
https://www.parallels.com/blogs/ras/business-impact-analysis/
https://www.simplilearn.com/what-is-business-impact-analysis-article

10 Tactics to Boost Your Organic Social Media Reach

How to Use Social Media to Grow Your Business: 22 Must-Know Strategies and Hacks for Growth

If you’re a brand owner or marketer there’s a high chance you’re already using social media to grow your business. If you’re not… It’s time to fix that; in 2022, almost 92% of marketers are using social media for their businesses.

According to the latest statistics, there are 4.65 billion social media users worldwide in 2022—a 4.8 percent increase from a year ago. Each user spends an average of 2.5 hours per day on different networks.

But it’s not enough to simply be on social media and post for the sake of posting. In order to grow organically, stay ahead of the competition and convert your target audience into paying customers you need a rock-solid strategy in place.

10 ways to increase your organic reach on social media

1. Focus your efforts on the right places

Simply ask

The best way to get accurate info about your audience is to simply ask them. Try using a survey, put it in an email, or even give some of your best customers a quick call to see how they’re doing. While you’re getting caught up, ask them which social platforms they use for business and personal purposes.

Look at your share counts

If you have a blog, then you should be using share buttons already. Many of these tools will provide analytics that show who’s sharing your content and more importantly, where they’re sharing it. Follow these numbers to figure out which platforms to focus on.

Look for your competitors

2. Optimize your social media profiles

Earlier I drew a connection between social media algorithms and the ones used by search engines like Google. When we create content for those engines, we optimize it with all kinds of on-page SEO tactics.

Every aspect of your social media profile can be tweaked for better visibility and optimization. If you want to be a social media rockstar, you need to know the ins and outs of these elements.

When posting, use these same factors to decide which images you use, what keywords you include, and how you phrase your call-to-action. This applies to any and all social media platforms.

3. Post evergreen content

“Create evergreen content” is one of those things that’s easier said than done. A typical post on social media, especially on giants like Twitter or Facebook, can have a widely varied lifespan.

Consider solving common and persistent problems in your industry. Even better, try to post something educational and funny. Humor, shock, or awe are great emotions to target with evergreen content.

4. Work smarter, not harder

Facebook themselves have said that the average user is subjected to over 1,500 stories per day. To increase engagement, the news feed only displays about 300 of these – those that are most relevant to the user.

No, instead we need to focus on posting high-quality, relevant content. In this case, it’s literally quality over quantity. Posting less with higher quality will increase organic reach more than spamming your page with everything you can get your hands on.

While there’s no exact science to this, the Buffer blog suggests you post twice per day. Always remember that your business is unique, so don’t be afraid to experiment with different frequencies.

5. Use targeting to maximize organic potential

This tactic will vary from platform to platform, but tweaking the settings of your posts to target specific members of your audience can give you a boost in organic potential. For Facebook, you can use organic post targeting to tweak who will see it.

The same type of options are available on Twitter. For example, with their use hashtags, which allow you to categorize your posts. Take any opportunity you can to better target your audience so the right people see your posts.

6. Post during slow hours

Another misconception is that you should post when everyone is online, but that’s just going to throw your content into the hurricane of posts that people are seeing. If you wait until non-peak hours to post, you’re less likely to get drowned in all the noise.

7. Post the right types of content

The results of their study showed that videos had the highest organic reach on Facebook by a margin of almost 3%, which is huge given that average organic reach has dropped to 1% or less.

Not only should you vary up the mix of images, status updates, links, and videos that you post, but also use tools like Facebook Insights to track your posts and see which types are performing best.

8. Promote your profiles everywhere

Every place that your business has a presence should also showcase your social media platforms. On your website, your storefront, your business cards, the signature on your emails, anywhere you can think of.
You should also consider adding follow buttons on your website so users to instantly follow or “like” your page, without having to leave your company’s blog or website.

Don’t forget, you can also cross-promote your social media profiles. Turn your Facebook likes into Twitter followers and vice-versa. You want your presence to be known everywhere which will ultimately grow your organic reach immensely.

Provide Support

Social platforms have successfully broken down barriers between companies and their customers. Now, instead of calling a customer service line, many people turn to Facebook or Twitter to solve problems or find information.

Social media is a crucial part of your business marketing, but it doesn’t have to be stressful to manage. Take the first step, create a profile, and start engaging with your customers.

As it continues to weave itself into the daily patterns of our lives, more consumers will go to new and upcoming social platforms for purchasing decisions. Those who have a strong social media presence and branding will increase conversion rates, while those without active social media campaigns could lose potential customers. Which company do you want to be?

Need Engaging Content for Your Social Media?

If you are ready to get more traffic to your site with quality content that’s consistently published, check out our Content Builder Service. Set up a quick consultation, and I’ll send you a free PDF version of my books. Get started today and generate more traffic and leads for your business.

Sources:

https://www.kontentino.com/blog/use-social-media-to-grow-your-business/
https://mention.com/en/blog/organic-social-media-reach/
https://marketinginsidergroup.com/content-marketing/why-social-media-is-important-for-business-marketing/

12 Essential Small Business Marketing Strategies

13 Cheap or Free Small Business Marketing Ideas in 2022

Elizabeth Kraus has more than a decade of first-hand experience building and growing a boutique digital marketing agency and double that in small and mid-size business marketing management. She provides expert answers to marketing questions related to branding, content marketing, web development, email, social media, and SEO.

Startups and small businesses on a budget can still promote themselves successfully with a little time and effort. We detail 13 cheap or totally free small business marketing ideas below to help you do just that, from free digital marketing tools and free advertising to events, referral marketing, and strategies to make your brand stand out. Read these small business marketing tips and find out to power your company to the next level.

These marketing ideas can be done for little-to-no-cost, but not without the investment of your time. Many of these tips can be outsourced on a project basis to professional freelancers on Fiverr, or for a more holistic (but still affordable) solution, check out Hibu.

Word of Mouth Advertising

Once you’ve laid the foundation, you can get your marketing strategies rolling. One of the most cost-effective small business marketing strategies is to tap into the voice of your customer by getting them to talk about their experience with your business. That means building a great product or service first and then delivering it in an amazing manner to your customers.

Encourage customers to talk about your small business on social and professional networks and to share their opinions. This will boost your chances of getting new customers in the door. Typically, people trust their friends and value their opinions. That is why it’s critical to tap into your customers who are willing and able to share your excellent products/services with their tribes.

Content Marketing

If marketing is the engine that propels your business, content marketing is the gas in the tank. It’s a fantastic way to bring you leads through search engines, but it also works well to educate your customers on best practices.

Content marketing is about creating interesting material that your audience is likely to engage with, be it text, video, or audio. It entails the creation of content for publishing on your homepage, blogs, product pages, landing pages, advertising channels, and social media. Content marketing allows you to show that you’re a top expert in your field. This means creating fresh content based on your audience’s biggest challenges, and curating content that is relevant to your visitors/readers .

Once you have created highly-relevant content, push it out where your audience is engaging, such as Linkedin, Twitter, Facebook , and Instagram. Your content distribution methods are the only way to harness the full potential of your content marketing strategy.

5. Invest in Analytics Early-On

Having a data-driven marketing strategy gives you an edge and makes your initiatives more effective. As a small business, you cannot afford to make mistakes and need to do things right the first time. That is where data and analytics can help you.

Social media analytics, for example, is available for free as most platforms have built-in analytics tools that can provide you with all essential information. Similarly, for your website, you can use Google Analytics to get insights into the performance of your different landing pages.

One thing that you should invest in is social media monitoring tools as they can help you track relevant conversations and respond to them. This is very important for small businesses as it is very important to respond to customer queries and resolve issues quickly. An established brand may still be able to live with a few negative reviews but for small businesses, it can be devastating.

7. Create and Promote Explainer Videos

Even the best of businesses with amazing products can struggle to gain that initial momentum and get people to learn about their brand. And, if you launch an innovative product, then it is even more difficult to make people understand what it is and how it can help them.

Take Panasonic’s explainer video for its ES-SL33 shaver, for example. The product was innovative and had many advantages over regular razors. However, the brand could not have conveyed how it differs from other razors, if not for this explainer video.

What Next?

If you have a small business and are struggling to meet your marketing goals, try the tactics mentioned in this post. These are tried-and-tested marketing techniques that can give you the push that you need to ace your marketing game.

Sources:

https://fitsmallbusiness.com/small-business-marketing-ideas/
https://www.benchmarkone.com/blog/essential-small-business-marketing-strategies/
https://influencermarketinghub.com/marketing-ideas-small-business/

12 Essential Small Business Marketing Strategies

13 Cheap or Free Small Business Marketing Ideas in 2022

Elizabeth Kraus has more than a decade of first-hand experience building and growing a boutique digital marketing agency and double that in small and mid-size business marketing management. She provides expert answers to marketing questions related to branding, content marketing, web development, email, social media, and SEO.

Startups and small businesses on a budget can still promote themselves successfully with a little time and effort. We detail 13 cheap or totally free small business marketing ideas below to help you do just that, from free digital marketing tools and free advertising to events, referral marketing, and strategies to make your brand stand out. Read these small business marketing tips and find out to power your company to the next level.

These marketing ideas can be done for little-to-no-cost, but not without the investment of your time. Many of these tips can be outsourced on a project basis to professional freelancers on Fiverr, or for a more holistic (but still affordable) solution, check out Hibu.

Word of Mouth Advertising

Once you’ve laid the foundation, you can get your marketing strategies rolling. One of the most cost-effective small business marketing strategies is to tap into the voice of your customer by getting them to talk about their experience with your business. That means building a great product or service first and then delivering it in an amazing manner to your customers.

Encourage customers to talk about your small business on social and professional networks and to share their opinions. This will boost your chances of getting new customers in the door. Typically, people trust their friends and value their opinions. That is why it’s critical to tap into your customers who are willing and able to share your excellent products/services with their tribes.

Content Marketing

If marketing is the engine that propels your business, content marketing is the gas in the tank. It’s a fantastic way to bring you leads through search engines, but it also works well to educate your customers on best practices.

Content marketing is about creating interesting material that your audience is likely to engage with, be it text, video, or audio. It entails the creation of content for publishing on your homepage, blogs, product pages, landing pages, advertising channels, and social media. Content marketing allows you to show that you’re a top expert in your field. This means creating fresh content based on your audience’s biggest challenges, and curating content that is relevant to your visitors/readers .

Once you have created highly-relevant content, push it out where your audience is engaging, such as Linkedin, Twitter, Facebook , and Instagram. Your content distribution methods are the only way to harness the full potential of your content marketing strategy.

5. Invest in Analytics Early-On

Having a data-driven marketing strategy gives you an edge and makes your initiatives more effective. As a small business, you cannot afford to make mistakes and need to do things right the first time. That is where data and analytics can help you.

Social media analytics, for example, is available for free as most platforms have built-in analytics tools that can provide you with all essential information. Similarly, for your website, you can use Google Analytics to get insights into the performance of your different landing pages.

One thing that you should invest in is social media monitoring tools as they can help you track relevant conversations and respond to them. This is very important for small businesses as it is very important to respond to customer queries and resolve issues quickly. An established brand may still be able to live with a few negative reviews but for small businesses, it can be devastating.

7. Create and Promote Explainer Videos

Even the best of businesses with amazing products can struggle to gain that initial momentum and get people to learn about their brand. And, if you launch an innovative product, then it is even more difficult to make people understand what it is and how it can help them.

Take Panasonic’s explainer video for its ES-SL33 shaver, for example. The product was innovative and had many advantages over regular razors. However, the brand could not have conveyed how it differs from other razors, if not for this explainer video.

What Next?

If you have a small business and are struggling to meet your marketing goals, try the tactics mentioned in this post. These are tried-and-tested marketing techniques that can give you the push that you need to ace your marketing game.

Sources:

https://fitsmallbusiness.com/small-business-marketing-ideas/
https://www.benchmarkone.com/blog/essential-small-business-marketing-strategies/
https://influencermarketinghub.com/marketing-ideas-small-business/