5 Online Marketing Basics Every Entrepreneur Needs to Know

Entrepreneurs spend a considerable amount of time learning how to boost their businesses. Marketing is key to the success of a business and online marketing is ever so important. According to Constant Contact,  84 percent of people say that the biggest difference in small businesses between now and five years ago is the use of more online marketing tools.

Every entrepreneur needs to be familiar with this five concepts to maximize online marketing results.

1. Upselling and customer loyalty are profitable.

The standard online campaign is expected to sell products profitably. This is also referred to as "single sale campaigns" because each sale is meant to be profitable. These campaigns can turn out to be unprofitable due to rising advertising costs and price wars. One solution is to make it profitable with upsells and the life time value of a newly acquired customer.

It is much easier to sell to existing customers than to acquire a new one. Consequently, create a strategy that increases the amount of items or services they order once they have come to trust you.

2. Look-alike audiences do work.

Let someone else do the heavy lifting. By installing a few pixels you can allow advertising platforms to collect data about your customers and learn more about their online behaviors. These pixels will then work as a targeting tool and help the advertising platforms to find additional users with similar online behaviors with the goal to increase your online sales.

Typical examples are the Google Display Select Targeting and Facebook Lookalike Audiences. Google Display Select targets people who are similar to the ones that visit your site through the search campaigns. It works best if your campaigns have had traffic and conversions for a couple of months.

Facebook Lookalike Audiences target either people who are similar to those who already like your page or profiles similar to the profiles of your existing customers.

3. Social media is good media.

Many businesses worry social media might be not a good advertising tool. However, social media offer so many targeting methods that it has become a good advertising platform for most businesses.

Social media can work better for some businesses than others. As a rule of thumb, test Linkedin when marketing to businesses and Facebook when marketing to consumers, though many B2B businesses have been successful with Facebook advertising. Try Twitter Video Ads, Stumble Upon’s Paid Discovery, Promoted Pins, +Post Ads for Google+ and more to reach your target audience.

4. Testing is not immediately profitable.

Testing new advertising channels might not be profitable at first but that doesn’t mean that you should pause it right away. You should expect to have new advertising channels converting up to 50 percent more than existing ones. 

This implies that they have potential and simply require tune ups or optimizations before scaling up the budget. Testing is especially advantageous for accounts that are successful but require more traffic volume to boost sales.

5. Expand campaigns based on what you learn.

Using a platform such as Google Analytics is a must for collecting data such as what pages people visit, what products they bought after their first purchase, how much time they spend on certain pages, what pages they visit after, age, gender, geographical area of your customers and more. The trick in using Google Analytics is to take this data and use it across platforms to scale up results.

For instance, generate traffic through Facebook, find out what portion of this traffic is behaving well on your site and show ads to only this portion via the Google Search Network. A concrete example would be to find out what services or products people who came from Facebook Ads bought. Step two would then be to make a list of the people who spent the most and show ads to those people on Google with a traditional Google Search Network Campaign.

by Matthew Goulart, Founder if Ignite Digital

The 7 Tenets of Branding

In today’s competitive marketplace, entrepreneurs—tasked with raising capital, attracting talent and getting their businesses off the ground—are up against a staggering statistical fail rate. But by following some basic principles related to design, marketing and user experience—tenets of some of the most powerful businesses out there—you can increase your odds of starting and maintaining a successful brand.

1. Simplicity

While it’s tempting to try to be everything to everyone, one of the most impactful ways to stand out in a crowded marketplace is to do one thing well. Vrai & Oro is a jewelry line that shucked the categorical norm of creating marked-up, seasonal items, focusing instead on a limited line of classic, timeless pieces—no gimmicks. The brand name translates to “truth and gold,” and that’s exactly what consumers get—streamlined offerings that are pure and unadulterated, with a simplicity that cuts through the clutter of competitors’ offerings. Even the straightforward web design and ordering process are a seamless extension of the company’s dedication to transparency. 

2. Disruption

Strategies that break from norms can force an entire category to reevaluate its behavior. Having grown up in a family of pharmacists, TJ Parker was frustrated by the complexity of the business. His company, PillPack, is the first online pharmacy designed to help people take the right medication at the right time. The Somerville, Mass.-based service prepacks medications and delivers them to customers in convenient time-stamped packets, ensuring that there are no gaps in care. The company’s design, from its medication-scheduling system to its user interface, packaging and website—is simple, intuitive and human, challenging the confusing and alien design language of traditional pharmaceuticals. Rather than just improving on its competition, PillPack has reinvented a category and infused humanity back into a sector that had lost touch with it.

3. Original Expression 

A bold statement or expression can establish a new narrative and original attitude. Tina Roth Eisenberg was inspired to start Brooklyn-based Tattly after her daughter came home from a birthday party with an unsightly temporary tattoo. As a designer, she was more upset than many would be by the offending clip art, but from this she unlocked an opportunity. Tattly is now a profitable business of “designy temporary tattoos” with a cult following and retail partnerships with Forever 21, Urban Outfitters, J.Crew and the Museum of Modern Art. It’s a niche industry, but Tattly is making an impact in a bold way.

4. Big Ideas 

A groundbreaking idea that evokes emotion can generate brand loyalty in unexpected and lasting ways. Spirits company Johnnie Walker sponsored Future, a gallery of “artwork not yet created.” Ten artists displayed blank canvases, promising to produce incredible work upon them, and challenged buyers to buy the pieces in advance, taking a chance on talent. The auction sold triple the amount expected. 

While Johnnie Walker is not known for art, Future was a physical manifestation of the brand’s personality, showcasing the company’s “belief in people’s potential, transforming the way art collectors buy pieces of art and changing how new artists start their career.” By stepping out of its comfort zone with a big idea, Johnnie Walker humanized its brand while supporting and inspiring a section of its core demographic.

5. Symbolism 

Powerful symbols transcend words to trigger emotions and create a meaningful impression. Lego’s business is built on child’s play, yet the brand captures the fancy of pretty much everyone, regardless of age. More than just elemental colored bricks, the iconic Lego blocks inspire creativity in a way that can resonate with adults—from artist Nathan Sawaya’s Lego sculptures to the award-winning The Lego Movie,whose humor spanned generations. The Lego brand symbolizes more than toys; it represents a world of possibility.

6. Meaning

Commit to making a genuine connection with your audience, and you better your chances of evoking an emotional response. The founders of New York City-based Warby Parker aimed to provide consumers with stylish, affordable eyewear that is also mission-driven. For every pair of glasses Warby Parker sells, it makes a donation that enables optical training in developing countries. Aside from the disruptive stance of challenging a long-stagnant category, the social-impact dimension of the business model was a novel approach that set an example for many companies to follow. By rooting the brand in something meaningful, Warby Parker passes on that meaning to its consumers, making them feel empowered by a purchase that not only looks amazing without breaking the bank, but also contributes to the greater good.

7. Depth 

Layers of meaning and purity of purpose create a sense of warmth and emotion around a brand. When San Francisco-based Airbnb introduced its new logo last year, it wasn’t to the greatest of fanfare. But while the new identity may have fallen flat, what the brand did around the redesign process was powerful. In a live webcast reveal, the company walked viewers through the redesign strategy, outlining the brand’s many facets, identifying core values and objectives and reinforcing the dedication to an honest user experience. While the intention of the webcast was to reveal the new logo, those 45 minutes became a deeper experience, forging a sense of community, home and culture.

Airbnb continues to build out its brand in a deep and emotive way, updating security measures with full transparency and regularly communicating with customers through curated offerings and multifaceted messaging.

from Entrepreneur Magazine

The First Step to Starting Anything Is Getting Over Your Perfectionism

Oh, the joy and pain of starting something new. When Jared Easley,host of Starve the Doubts podcast, asked me if I planned to attend this year’s Podcast Movement conference I couldn’t say “no” fast enough. Jared didn’t take it personally, even though he’s one of the co-founders for the conference. He knew I wasn’t podcasting and had never expressed any desire to create a podcast, he just thought I “should” be getting into the podcast space.  

Of course, I went. Partly because I was curious and partly because I knew he was right -- podcasting is showing itself to be a vehicle for reaching people and touching lives. I would be short sighted to ignore it.

It was easier to decide to attend Podcast Movement than it was to admit to myself, or anyone else, why I’d resisted. I was scared. 

First, I have had some clinical issues with my voice and what was once a well-trained emotive instrument sometimes lets me down after only  a couple of hours of work.

Second, I have a love-hate relationship with technology; I love it, it hates me. So embarking on an enterprise that is tech-dependent seemed a tad risky.

But, third, there was the real fear, the one I don’t like to talk about. Perfectionism. I wasn’t scared I wouldn’t be perfect. I knew I wouldn’t be perfect. I was scared about what it would mean to not be perfect.

So I said “yes” to Jared. I even said “yes” to a podcast. I started getting excited about using a podcast as a way to collaborate with my life partner. But under the excitement was the fear. Not fear of failure. But fear of being less than I wanted to be. Fear of not being perfect.

My partner and I thoroughly enjoyed the sessions. The conference was exceptionally well structured, the staff and attendees were helpful. While there was a lot of tech talk floating around, there was none of the tech elite attitude I had expected. I started to think maybe I could do this thing.

Then we attended Jeff Brown’s session; “How to Prepare, Polish and Execute Great Interviews Every Time (i.e. How not to Suck at Interviewing.)”

Jeff is the guy behind the Read to Lead podcast, he teaches all things podcasting through his Podcaster Academy, and he’s been at the mic in radio for more than 26 years. Plus, this topic was one I feel strongly about, having been on the guest side of the interview equation for many enjoyable, and not so enjoyable, interviews. If there was any part of podcasting I wanted to be perfect at, this was it.

Jeff had barely gotten started when he shattered my excuses, and invalidated my fears. He opened with two points about starting a podcast, or anything else:

One, excellence comes from preparation. Athletes spend 90 percent of their effort in preparing for the game and 10 percent playing the game. If we used that ratio of 90 percent preparation to 10 percent performance we would achieve excellence.

Two, perfection is a moving target. But excellence is within reach.

Two simple and inarguable truths. Excellence comes from consistent improvement. Dedication to preparation and practice yields increased excellence. Perfection cannot even be defined, let alone achieved.

At that moment, sitting in the back of that packed room, I let go of my fear. I won’t be perfect, I might not even be excellent when I begin. But I know how to achieve excellence and that is as close to perfect as I ever need to be.

At the end of the conference I was introduced to Jeff Brown by a mutual friend. During our brief chat he mentioned that the point he made about excellence was inspired by a comment on a Facebook post. A comment that I had written on a post by one of his friends. I didn't remember writing it, but he still had the screen shot of the comment. He was kind enough to send to me. Here’s a part of what I had posted:

“Perfection is a moving target designed to prevent launch. Excellence is just a way of saying ‘this is how I approach anything that matters to me.’ Basically, be better, do better, but don’t let fears of not having done well enough keep you from doing anything.”

What is the quest for perfection keeping you from launching? How can you aim for excellence instead?

by Dixie Gillaspie

Stimulate Creative Juices in Short Amount of Time!

What’s the secret to jarring an organization from being a slow-moving giant to a nimble idea machine?

Give folks a ridiculously short amount of time — we’re talking less than 24 hours — to solve a major problem.

It might sound crazy in this city more accustomed to bureaucracy and gridlock, but it’s one of the lessons officials learned at D.C.’s Sibley Memorial Hospital last year. A year ago, they launched the Sibley Innovation Hub, a place to encourage employees come up with ideas to improve health care.

“We don’t want to ramrod ideas. We don’t want to be a bull in a china shop. But it gets you past that past hurdle where people get stuck,” said Nick Dawson, the Hub’s executive director about the tactic. “In 24 hours, you can say, ‘There’s an idea here. We have something.’”

I caught up with officials this week to talk about some of the lessons from The Innovation Hub, which they say resulted in new inventions, improved safety, better patient satisfaction scores and a design-driven culture when it comes to problem-solving.

What are some of the other lessons for the Johns Hopkins Health System hospital? Here's what officals said:

1. Try to understand what really different industries are doing: After seeing a spike in accidental needle sticks last year — likely due to improved reporting, officials said — Sibley decided to hold one of its 24-hour "sprint" events around the serious and costly health care problem. Officials started by talking to the surgical nurses. "We brought them bagels and said, 'Show us everything you can about how needle sticks happen in surgery,'" Dawson said. Before long, nurses were acting out the scenarios in the operating room for them.

Armed with the information, the Hub team raced to a local Chipotle to see how workers avoided hurting themselves as they quickly cut meat for burritos. An employee showed them a chain-mail glove used to protect their hands. The nurses balked at the idea. There was no way they could sacrifice that dexterity in their hands during surgery, they said. So dressed in their work attire, the Hub team headed through throngs of tourists to the Smithsonian National Zoo. "We cornered a reptile room worker and said, 'How do you protect yourselves?'" Dawson said.

The secret, the Hub team learned, was not in protecting the zoo workers' hands. It was in “neutralizing” the snake’s fangs by covering their teeth. The reptile team also used a call-and-response process to increase communication while handling the snakes, Dawson said.

Time ticking down, the team raced back to the hospital and — borrowing an idea from the Apple iPad cover — created specially magnetized needles that would land point side down when dropped on an array of magnets. It was a rudimentary prototype. But it was something. “When the nurses saw that, they said, ‘That could work,’” Dawson said. Sibley’s team filed for a patent the next day.

2. Discuss some terrible ideas: Back in January, the hub began a one-month project at the request of Sibley’s Chief Nursing Officer Joanne Miller to find ways to improve the hospital discharge process.

It's a difficult problem across health care as patients — anxious and still healing — forget their most important questions as they head home from the hospital. “People have been trying to take a swing with this bat for years,” said Sibley’s Chief Medical Director Lawrence Rammuno. “I’m not sure anyone has gotten it quite right yet.” The Hub team started with an idea to create a Candy Land-inspired game where patients "follow the journey" to discharge. The idea was not well-received. "People said 'That's really childish,'" Dawson said. "But sometimes you have to throw out these sacrificial ideas and say, 'Just react. We'll start there.'"

They tested having individual “discharge ambassadors” as each patient left the hospital. It worked in theory, but was totally unsustainable, Dawson said. Finally, the team examined some of the ways hotels improve guest satisfaction. Many have small questionnaire cards in their rooms, asking for feedback with suggested prompts to help guests remember specific issues they want addressed.

It inspired what was dubbed the “Ready to Go" card at Sibley. Nurses began giving a small sheet of card stock to every patient prompting them to mark which questions they had before they were discharged.

“We thought it was just a first step along the way,” Dawson said about the idea. Instead, they saw a notable jump in internally reported patient satisfaction data, not yet publicly available. Between March and May, for instance, the hospital's patient satisfaction score regarding its discharges rose to the 66th percentile of all hospitals, up from 47 in the quarter between December and February.

They are working to further improve the process, Dawson said.

3. Give a serious deadline — then g et out of the way."Sprint" challenges don't replace longer-term projects. But they create serious energy and buzz, Dawson said. They force those in problem-solving mode to consider possible solutions when they might usually find 100 reasons why it wouldn't work.

"Speed forces people to clear their minds and focus," Rammuno said. It also helps creates a safe environment where failure is a learning tool. That may be cliche in Silicon Valley — but it's still pretty new in the health care world. I asked Rammuno what it was like in the room during the needle-stick challenge. He couldn't tell me because he stayed out of the way once health workers got into problem-solving mode. “The last thing senior leadership should do is go in the room and say 'What's going on?'" Rammuno said. "We're trying to break down that hierarchy. We want them to know it's OK to try something."