💪 Here is this week's challenge to build our businesses. This one may take 30 minutes or more, but your gains could be huge with increased productivity. 🗓️ DAY 14: Check out new features with the business apps or tools you are already using. Software apps are constantly coming out with new and improved ways to save you time. 👩‍💻 You might also consider learning or improving a skill with your business app by viewing YouTube or other sources from experts in that industry. Do the same with other tools that you've already been using, but not at full capacity. For me, I know that my accounting software has functions I've never explored, so I'd make time to see how it could help me. 🤔 Is there a tool you'd like to learn more about but haven't made the time to get to it yet?

💎 Here’s a nugget of truth from Gary Vee @garyvee, otherwise known as Gary Vaynerchuk. He urges us to stop trying to convert the unconvertable 🧏‍♀️. 🗣️ Instead, take that time and reach out to as many people in your industry as you can. Give valuable content to the ones that are intrigued, and spend your time there, with the ones who cared. Gary legitimately wants anyone to be able to text 📲 him for anything, and he responds! His number is posted right there on his homepage. 📈 Gary continues to tell us social media platforms are hugely valuable for getting your business’s content and message out to the world because it’s so incredibly affordable. He grew his family’s wine business 🍷 this way on a shoestring budget, and continues today to market his own brand using all the platforms. So go ahead and give 🎁 to people without expecting anything in return, knowing that developing people-to-people relationships will have a future return. 💗 And hey, I'm here and ready for any marketing questions or struggles you wanna throw at me. Book a free discovery call with me through the link 🔗 above, I'd love to help!

🎄 When do you put up your Christmas decorations? Mine are going up today! My daughter is home, and we’re gonna decorate and celebrate this calm time together before the Christmas activities hit! ☃️ We’re rapidly heading into the Christmas season, AND the end of the year. It’s also time to start reviewing what worked and what didn’t work out well with this year’s marketing strategy. Did it go well, or was it lacking? This year has been quite the ride 🎢 for many of us, don’t you agree? I think it’s ok to say we got through the year, and that is enough in and of itself. 🌟 Now let’s start looking ahead at next year, and figure out what we learned, and where we want to head. And in this reflection🕯️, I don't want to forget to cover all the important bases for Christmas too! 🎁 Are you a last-minute Christmas prep person, or have you finished it already?

👩‍🏫 Your customer acquisition cost (CAC) is the cost of convincing a potential customer to buy a product or service. Tracking this is important for your business, as you can see whether your marketing dollars 💰 are being spent wisely or not. You may discover you need to reallocate some of those dollars toward a more successful channel. 🧮 The CAC can be calculated by simply dividing all the costs spent on acquiring more customers (marketing expenses) by the number of customers gained in the period the money was spent. To get an accurate report, don’t forget to add these costs into your formula: 🔹 Ad costs 🔹 Contractor and employee costs 🔹 Creative costs (SEO, blogging) 🔹 Technical/software costs 🔹 Publishing costs 🔹 Production costs 🔹 Inventory upkeep 💰 So, let's say you've spent $100 last month on acquiring 1 customer. Your CAC is $100. If the gain is a $500 service purchased, that's a $400 profit, a good investment. If the gain is a $10 product, that's a loss of $90, not a good investment. 💸 🙌 Some of the best returns on your valuable marketing investments are in repeat buyers and loyal customers. Keeping them happy should be a high priority. 🥰 I love helping people with their marketing strategies. Do you have any marketing questions for me? DM me, or leave them in the comments, 👆 I'd love to hear them.

🤑 In case you missed it, today is officially 'Buy Nothing Day.' Oh, and yes, it's also Black Friday 🛍️. Hmm, these days might have some issues with each other, lol. 📰 Buy Nothing Day was first celebrated in 1992 as a protest against consumerism💰 (and, duh, Black Friday). In contrast, Black Friday dates back to the 1950s and promoted sales in Philadelphia before Saturday’s big Army/Navy game. 🏈 Funny how those days started. I don't know about you, but I'm going to do a little deal surfing 📦, and then depending on the weather, either take a hike 🥾 in the crisp Colorado weather with the kids, or hit up those Christmas movies 🎄 everyone is talking about. You know, the sappy ones that never fail to make you feel happier with the world. 💝 What are you doing on Black Friday?

🍁 Here is this week's challenge to make our business stronger. This one buys you a much-needed break from daily repetitive tasks. 🗓️ WEEK 13: Spend an hour with your new productivity app. See how it can help you grow your business, and practice using it. If it takes more time than it's worth, ditch it and go find a different one. 🖥️ Technology helps us in so many ways. Keep trying new things, you'll find one that suits your style of working. 🦃 And HEY, don't forget to have a GREAT Thanksgiving 🥧, if you're in the States. I am so grateful for all of you! 🥰

🍁 Together is a pretty good place to be today. In all things, giving MUCH thanks. In the words of Charlie Brown: “What if, today, we were grateful for everything?”👐 🤗 Hey y'all, I'm HUGE on gratitude. I'm grateful I can be an entrepreneur, I'm grateful for my husband and family, I'm grateful to be here today! 🥲 🍂 What are you all grateful for? @charliebrown.snoopy.peanuts

💝 Giving my clients an easy plan to market their business is my guiding principle! This is what I went to school for, what I got my Master's Degree in! 🥲 I know marketing a business is overwhelming, time-consuming 🕰️, and expensive. I want to help you love your business again, and find joy in marketing. I've developed a service specifically to attack 👊 all your marketing needs in one day, it's called BOOK MY DAY. 👩‍💻 We can cover branding, strategy, design a logo, design and launch your website, create your social media and business systems, the list could be anything and everything you need. 🕵️‍♀️ Find out how we can get your marketing done at BOOK MY DAY here at https://bit.ly/32revDS

📣 NEW Black Friday statistics are in for this year, and can I say WHOA….?? 🔸 55% of Americans will start their holiday shopping before Thanksgiving 🔸 24% will spend more this year than last year. 🔸 50% will use search engines to shop for gifts. 🔸 31% will use Facebook and 22% will use Instagram to look for products. Say what? So much is now riding 🚗 on Google search engines where people go for gift shopping and reviews. Blogs and social media channels are going to ROCK the spending this year. 🗣️ Let me emphasize this again: BLOGS, Facebook, and Instagram are the BEST ways to get your services and products out there for people to find using Google! 🙌 They will be looking, trust me. Let's get ready for them!

🐶 My evening routine is simple and only a few steps, but it helps me wind down for bed 🥱 and feel like my day is truly finished. Here’s what I do. 👩‍🍳 Evening wind-down: Workout, shower, cook dinner (I love cooking). After dinner I watch 📺 something with my hubby (Ted Lasso, Only Murders In The Building, 9 Perfect Strangers, The Morning Show, etc). Usually my pups 🐶🐶 are cuddled on my couch with me. Then we get ready for bed, I wish my kids goodnight and I am off to dreamland.💤 🛌 What do you do at the end of each day❓

💪 Hello challenge people! Here ya go, your 12th task. Remember, these tasks grow a stronger business week by week. 🗓️ WEEK 12: Remember the app or software program from last week that can make you more productive? Spend an hour each day really getting to know this solution. It's too easy to just use the basics of a new tool without diving in and realizing all its benefits. ⏰ Does it actually save you time once you've mastered how to use it? Is it worth investing in? How can it help you grow your business? 🕵️‍♀️ A willingness to try new things will pay off as you discover what works best for your own work style. And every day, new apps are being invented to help businesses succeed. 🕺What app or software helps you be more productive?

🤩 Mark Twain just never disappoints on stating how things are, doesn't he? This ties into my emphasis on checking in with your BUSINESS GOALS, breaking them down into bite-sized steps, and keeping after them. 🌠 2022 is coming up fast, and it's time to analyze what's working and what didn't work out that great in your marketing strategy this past year. 🎢 Or maybe things are so crazy busy you're just hanging on for dear life right now? Which is it 🤷, are you feeling reflective and dreaming about how to rock this next year, or are you just holding on to the faucet until Christmas is over? I'm kinda somewhere in between. Head over to my website for help hitting your marketing goals. It’s not too late! Hit the link in my bio to get there.👆 Leave a comment and let me know how you are thriving/surviving. 👇👇👇

🥳 Let’s celebrate🥂! This day honors people like us who've built an empire 🏰 from absolutely nothing. According to the latest data, 31 MILLION Americans are starting or running new businesses. That’s 20% of working Americans! And if you’re one of them, give yourself a big high-five 🙌 , we’re in the company of entrepreneurs like Oprah, Walt Disney, Steve Jobs, and more, and we're gonna change the world! 🎉 I absolutely LOVE the ability to work while having the flexibility to put my family’s needs first. What are you especially proud of?

🤔 How often do you review your business goals? Just your friendly coach here reminding ya to check this! We're heading towards the end of the year quick, and one thing I see is small business owners so busy they forget to check in on the progress of their goals. I recommend reviewing your goals at least once a week. 📆 Post them up near your desk so you can see them every day. 🤷‍♀️ If you only think about your goals sporadically, guess what, they won't happen! I use the SMART Goals strategy👌, which helps me focus and take action steps that are within a specific timeframe. Renee Ferguson @reneehferguson has a great blog explaining SMART Goals and is a helpful resource for learning how to create them. 🎯 Don't let small distractions stop you from achieving your goals, re-focus and start again this week, it's not too late!

🎥 SPOILER ALERT: No one out there is reading every single post you EVER post.🙇‍♂️ Instead, I believe if we focus on consistently providing valuable content, mixing in some fun and personal stories that show who we are, potential customers will begin to trust us. 🤳 Instead of mindlessly scrolling today, take a minute to focus on what you have to be truly grateful for, and let that soak in. I'm BIG on being thankful and counting up all my overflowing blessings. We're in this together, friend, and we're all doing the best we can -- I'll be here like a dance mom 💃, rooting for you every step of the way! Reach out if there's anything I can do for you, K?

Hello 💪 challenge people! The 11th challenge task is ready for you. Take 10 minutes a week to strengthen your business, and enjoy the results! 🗓️ WEEK 11: Find just one app or software program that can make you more productive (hint: look back at those time-suck tasks as a place to start). Sign up for a free trial. That might include: 🔵 Accounting software 🔵 Social media management 🔵 Customer relationship management 🔵 Inventory software You know there are plenty of apps and tools out there geared toward small businesses, but it's hard to take the time to research them or try them out. This is your week to do just that. I've been working on this one, and am happy with my results. Anyone else loving Evernote? 💖

🤪 Are things getting crazy, and you're finding yourself feeling 🌪️ out of control? According to "The Art of War" by Sun Tzu, chaos is good because it means you have momentum, which you can use to work in your favor. It's an opportunity. Speaking of chaos, I've designed my BOOK MY DAY service for people to gain control over their marketing challenges in just one day. We take the biggest and hardest chores and check them off those crazy to-do lists.✔️ 👩‍💻 From branding to website creation, we take great pride in providing our clients EXACTLY what they want, even if they don’t know exactly what that is. We design together in real-time via Zoom to ensure every detail is taken care of. And you get a full hour of work time with us for follow-up needs after your day. Your satisfaction is 💯 percent guaranteed. Things we can do in a day: ✅ Full branding design and strategy ✅ Build a simple website ✅ Create graphics and copy that supports your strategies ✅ Work on automating your business admin ✅ PITCH an idea, we may just be able to score a win! 👩‍🍳 Also lunch is on me! 😋 Helping people gain control and momentum in their marketing is what 💡 lights me up💡 and gets me excited to go to work! Find out more about BOOK MY DAY by clicking my bio☝️to my website.

🎄 You know it's coming at ya, the holidays, amirite? It’s not too late to craft your strategy, and boost your end-of-year bottom line, woot-woot🍾 . Here are 10 ideas for promoting your business for the holidays. 🌠 1. Revisit last year’s holiday performance. 🌠 2. Create a timeline. 🌠 3. Decide on offers, and craft your message to fit. 🌠 4. Review target audience, has it shifted from last year? 🌠 5. Plan your marketing message around the needs of your audience. 🌠 6. Create a sense of urgency. 🌠 7. Run a contest or giveaway. 🌠 8. Create a holiday themed quiz. 🌠 9. Consider collaborating with a related business or influencer. 🌠 10. Partner with a charity (💝 my favorite idea). Take the time and try something new! You may be surprised at what works this year. 😜 Let me know what you find helpful in the above list, thanks!

🏴 Black Friday is November 26! This is consistently the busiest shopping day 🛍️ in the US since 2005. But just in case you missed it, there's Small Business Saturday on Nov. 27, and Cyber Monday on Nov. 29. 🤑 And if you have a problem with the consumerism focus on all the above days, there's something for you too, the Buy Nothing Day, a day of protest of overconsumption which is also held on Black Friday. ✴️ Generally, it's best to start notifying your prospective customers about your promotions a few weeks before Black Friday. Use your email list, post about your specials on social media, and use #blackfriday, #cybermonday, and #smallbusinessmonday to draw more traffic. Try a sneak peek if you are able, and offer 📦 free shipping if you sell products. 🎁 One new trend I'm seeing is offering to donate a portion of your sales to a charity. This sends a positive message to your audience and may help you stand out in the midst of all that Black Friday consumerism mentioned above. ⬛ Have you created a Black Friday marketing strategy?

🍂 FALL BACK this Sunday! The sun’s setting early on Sunday, and I’m ready to go to bed at 9pm. It’s cozy season here in the San Juan Mountains at 4,000 feet -- can’t wait to watch college football 🛋️ on Saturday with my hubby. Go Dawgs! It’s time to start getting ready for winter. 🌬️ What’s your favorite way to snuggle up?🧦🧦

Hey 💪 challenge people! As promised, here is our 10th challenge task. Taking on a new task each week to strengthen our business is a good investment💰💰. And who doesn't want more people attracted to their business? 🗓️ Day 10: Block off a couple of hours to write several blog posts, then schedule them. Ya, this will take more than 10 minutes, but blogs are free leads to your website. They sit there for years continuing to show up in SEO searches, directing customers to find you. 📣 This is such a valuable way to prioritize your content marketing; when you schedule your blogs in advance, you ensure that an unexpected event won't keep your content from being published ⏰ on time. 🙇 And content is what draws your target customers to your business. I know I've got to do a better job of posting blogs, how about you?

🍂 “There is no season when such pleasant and sunny spots may be lighted on, and produce so pleasant an effect on the feelings, as now in October.”🍂 -- Nathaniel Hawthorne I mean, ol’ Nate was right, because fall sunlight dancing across my window is making me catch feels. 🤗 Love my job and clients so much! 🍁

🗣️ "Social media is about word-of-mouth," says @NeilSchaffer, a social media marketing expert. He states businesses need to understand how to capitalize on 👄 word-of-mouth 👄 marketing through social media. Brands are now democratized and consumers depend on the opinions of friends and people they know, not paid advertisements anymore when making purchasing decisions. 💬 Creating online relationships and collaborating with followers and viewers is what the 'social' in social media gives us. Social media allows us to have this dynamic relationship between our customers and our business. 🎙️ This is why social media is such a crucial part of your marketing strategy. Develop your brand’s social media voice and become an influencer in your own right!

💁 The first thing I recommend small business owners do to find customers, is to develop and refine your business persona. 🦸‍♂️ Your business persona is your target customer, your prospective client. What would the person who would enjoy your product or services the most be like? Who has the problem your business solves? This hypothetical person is your persona. Your persona has feelings, 😰 pain points, thoughts and views. Each time you make a marketing decision, ask yourself: “Would my customer persona like this?” And where does this person hang out? Make sure to run all of your business and marketing decisions by your persona first. I’ve put together a 💯 FREE Persona Development Worksheet to help you figure it out. Click the link in my bio to my website, and scroll down to get yours! 👆👆👆

🍭 PSA: If you haven't bought it already, (or if you've already eaten it, lol) the candy's not gonna buy itself. 🍎 Don't be the house giving out apples. I hear the kids aren't a big fan of that move). What was your favorite 🍬 candy growing up?? I was crazy for Reese's Pieces. Peanut butter never fails, whatever you put it in. What are your sweet tooth habits now? 🎃 Happy Halloween Eve Eve! ✨ Photo by Jasmine Star @jasminestar ✨

💪 Here is this week's challenge to make our business stronger. This one will take more time, but buys you a much-needed break from daily repetitive tasks. 🗓️ WEEK 9: Spend less time managing social media🙇‍♀️. Schedule your updates in a social media dashboard like Buffer, Hootsuite or PLANN. They allow you to choose your date and time to post,📬 and you can post a whole month at one time, or even a quarter. Facebook's Business Suite Creator Studio, which is free, also allows you to 📅 schedule postings. That's the one I use. With your new content calendar, you'll have all your posts mapped out so you can copy and paste those babies into your dashboard to schedule them. These dashboards allow you to switch posts around or add a new post when you want to put something current in, the flexibility is terrific. ⏳ Experiment with posting times and run your analytics to check your traffic and see how effective they are. Saving time posting on social media gives you the freedom to focus back on your business.

🗣️ I know, I know, this quote has been going around on people’s posts for awhile, and it sounds cheesy... BUT I LOVE this!! ❤️, and I believe it speaks truth to someone who needs to hear it. Even if it’s just me. 😘 🌤️ Hope you are all having a good week. Keep charging ahead with those dreams, you’re doing it! 🙌

🌪️ We know that a top-performing sales funnel is the way to go to increase your customer conversion rate, but how do you create it? Build (or update) your sales funnel relationally. Who, What, Why, and How, referred to here as WWWH, are the questions to ask in your funnel stages, and the way to do it. 👥 You must relate directly with your customer. It’s important that anything your prospective client sees speaks to them on a personal and individual level. This can be done using WWWH. WHO is your ideal customer, whom do they trust, and who should you put on the page to embody them (client reviews)? WHAT do they want out of your product or service? What are they trying to escape from or find a solution to? Remember the hell 🔥 and the heaven 👼. 💬 WHY do they want it? What are the deeper emotional needs and pains, the hell, they’re currently experiencing? Why is the cost less than the benefit, or the heaven? 🤷 HOW can your images and words bring it to life? Remember, your customers don’t want to be sold to; they want to receive value. 🗣️ And they don’t want to put all that much effort into solving their problem either; they want you to make it easy for them. Introduce your CTA here. Spend the time to ask these questions and to structure your sales funnel content with WWWH.👍

🌟 Christy Wright's @christybwright message is so good, I have to share it again. She says the biggest obstacle between us and our dreams is FEAR. 🤦‍♀️ As women, we underestimate our abilities (what's up with that??). We struggle more than men with perfectionism. We minimize our performance and contribute our success to outside factors. We don't want to get in trouble, or stir up the water, and we end up with imposter syndrome. Gals, this is a problem! 💪 The solution to facing our fears is COURAGE. Courage to TRY is the difference. Christy says: 1. Assume that you can. 2. Believe that it's possible. 3. Control your thoughts. 4. Change your words. 5. Change your actions. I've just gotta add one more cool tip she shared. If you want to feel confident, ACT confident 👠. If you want to feel happy, ACT happy! 💃 If you get a chance to see the replay of the 2021 Business Boutique Conference, do it! There is so much more encouragement to be gained from it. Again, such a fan of Christy Wright, who truly cares about inspiring women entrepreneurs 👜 to be courageous. Comment if she's inspired you too.

🙌 I really, really love working together with a client via Zoom on their branding or their website. Sometimes they have a picture in mind of what they want, but other times they can’t picture or verbalize what they want. We try out different logos, fonts and colors until they see exactly what they’ve hoped or imagined. The light goes on, 💡 they know it’s right because they can see it, and we both enjoy that zen moment together. It’s soooo 🧊cool🧊! With our Book My Day service, we work together to accomplish an amazing amount in just one day. We can tackle 🎨 branding, strategy, traditional and digital marketing, social media templates, and update or create a brand new website. What’s your marketing challenge? We can fix it! 🤸‍♀️You will be delighted🤸‍♀️ how much we can accomplish together in a day, and see in real-time what you’ve imagined. Click on the link in my bio👆 for more information. I’d love to show you what you’ve pictured!

💪 Hello challenge people! Here ya go, your 8th task. Remember, these tasks create a stronger business in only 10 minutes a day! 🗓️ WEEK 8: Create a content calendar. On it, plan out content 📅 for your blog posts and social updates. If you have promotions, build those in and create content around them. Plan out a month at a time, or a quarter at a time. Choose content pillars and branch content that is valuable to your target audience. ⏰ Most entrepreneurs either don't have time to focus on their social media (and think they can't afford to hire help) or business is booming and they don't think they need it. Neither is a good excuse! 🙇‍♀️ Save yourself lots of last-minute stressing by having a plan for what to post, and having a consistent social media presence.

🏔️I’m sitting here on my way back from beautiful Telluride, running an errand, and I’m thinking how many new entrepreneurs feel overwhelmed😱. They know they need to market their business, but don’t know where to start. Here’s my best advice for you. Figure out who your target audience is, and go where they are. Don’t waste your marketing $$💰 and efforts on all the other people. Tell them you understand their problem, and educate them about your solution. 🎯 Make yourself known on social media so people have a place to find out more about you. Choose the social media platform your target audience hangs out in, and hang out there. Heads up, it may not be your favorite platform! 🤔 You must also define your business identity, your mission, vision, and positioning statements. Lock in your elevator pitch, and your one-liner so you can be ready when someone asks about your business. 🌎 Then network like crazy and let the world know you are there. This is where to start your marketing plan. Have you done all of these things❓Do you need help moving past these first things? Send me a message if you need more help, I would love to work one on one with you.🥰

😇 This quote is so good. Great landing pages describe in explicit detail the problem your prospective customer has. Content master Aaron Orendorff @aaronorendorff says it best. Here’s his whole quote: “The industry doesn’t really matter. What matters is that your landing page is written directly to real people with real problems in search of real solutions. At the end of the day, people are people. We all have universal desires as well as universal fears. It’s always about finding the pain — the hell 👿 — your audience is experiencing (right now). Leaning into that pain. Bringing it to life. And then delivering your solution as the answer — the heaven👼.” 🔥 If your potential customer can relate to that specific pain, they are then open and curious to hear the solution presented in your sales funnel. 🌪️ Your funnel also needs to build trust in your solution. Bring them from hell to heaven in this funnel. Prove it with testimonials and data. Solve a real problem with your product or service. That's why we do what we do!

🙋‍♀️ Don't you love this quote by Eleanor Roosevelt? Christy Wright @christybwright shared this with us at the Business Boutique Conference in Nashville last week. Christy shares it's not inborn talent the 'chosen few' were born with that makes people confident, it's COURAGE. Facing our fears 😱, going forward, and doing it scared. You get confidence from doing the thing you were scared of. 🎸There were so many ⭐ rock star ⭐ presenters (like wow, @jasminestar 🌟) who shared the same thing and achieved crazy success in their ventures, how could we not get pumped up!💃 And funny, they all took the leap scared, and chose not to shrink back but do it in spite of not knowing what they were doing, or when people said it was impossible, or when it was too hard. 👩‍🍳 Maneet Chauhan 🔪@maneetchauhan of Chopped, said she took "Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained" for her life motto. She's made a habit of saying 'YES' to most all of the opportunities that have come her way, some of them crazy things she never imagined she would do, like accidentally agreeing to be an actor in a movie!😲 I aim to emulate them and charge ahead with my business goals and dreams. 🦄 Are you charging ahead with your own crazy dreams, in spite of your fears? Can you share any here?

🌟CALLING ALL ENTREPRENEURS AND BUSINESS OWNERS:🌟 I’m conducting a little market research and would really love to hear your thoughts on this! 🙌🏻😊

What a fun and enriching weekend learning how to serve my customers better, comrade, and finally meeting some of my favorite clients in person! So grateful for this amazing journey in business serving YOU! 🥰

🧲 Lead magnets, which are freebies that draw people in to your sales funnel, need to be attractive and specific to your target audience. They are the carrot on the stick.🥕 📋 So for example, if you are a coach you could offer free discovery calls, quizzes and assessments, mindset tips, checklists, etc. to attract them to your landing page, and hopefully to click for the free offer. If you are a graphic designer, your lead magnet could be free icons, Canva templates, educational PDFs, art prints, etc. A financial coach could offer a debt calculator, eBook, demo video, or anything else their customer would find valuable. Have you taken full advantage of lead magnets 🧲 to draw traffic to your business? Leave me a comment to share what your best-performing lead magnet is.

Hello 💪 challenge people! As promised, here is our 7th challenge task. Taking 10 minutes a week to strengthen our business is time well-spent. 🗓️ DAY 7: Find one new marketing channel you haven't tried before. It might be Instagram. LinkedIn. Social media ads. Press releases. Just try something for three months and then check those analytics again to see if it was effective. A big thank you to Susan Guillory of Egg Marketing for the idea. 🙌

🤷‍♀️ What can I say... YES!! A Landing Page is a single web page that has only 1 goal: to get visitors to accept a special offer that pops them into a sales funnel. Landing pages contain a 🧲 ‘lead magnet’ or special offer, ie: the reason a prospective customer has clicked over to it. This freebie (or thing of value) is offered in exchange for a visitor’s email address, which once gained, is entered into the business’ sales funnel. Landing pages are different and separate from a business’ website. They are strictly for promoting a 🧲 lead magnet and moving the visitor into a sales funnel. Websites are busy with lots of information about a business and a brand. In contrast, a landing page gives visitors only what they want, the free thing of value they came for. We spent quite a bit of time talking about landing pages in Monday’s session of the Canvana Community Collective group, and it was good. Many of us have built lead magnets, and we’re now working ✍️ on how to use them on our landing pages. 👩‍💻 These LIVE weekly coaching sessions may be just the thing you need to get custom marketing coaching at an affordable price, under $50/mo. The first 30 days is FREE with no obligation to stay if it’s not what you’re looking for. The collaboration is great, and I hope you consider joining us! Hit the link in my bio for more info.👆

🙋‍♀️ Hey small biz owners, do ya want to have to rely on external factors outside of your control and wait for business to come to you? Many startups and new businesses begin this way, as they don't have a marketing strategy that includes a sales funnel. 🎯 Sales funnels lead a prospective customer through a targeted plan. The first thing you need to do is reach your desired audience. 🏹 This is the Awareness Stage and is determined by market research on where they are and how best to reach them. Could be ads, could be emails, social media, etc. You need to nail this, it’s critical. The 2nd stage is called the Relationship Stage, where ​​you build trust and authority so people will feel comfortable buying from you, the guide. You can do this through emails, social media, targeted ads, video or webinars that educate them. This could include a freebie. 🤝 The 3rd stage is the Sales Stage, where you close the sale with how to buy info and a bonus or promotional offer. This is typically done through your website. The 4th stage is the Upsell Stage, where you sell additional related products or services. This is also where you add value to their experience, and build a strong relationship with them. 🌪️ So there ya have it, a typical sales funnel. Sure there’s a lot more to it, but I’m just explaining the basics in this small caption. I’m here to coach you through it, this is what my passion is! ❤️

🌪️ The key to making consistent sales is a sales funnels. Think of sales funnels as a virtual salesperson that works 24/7, 365 days a year without complaining or asking for time off. Businesses that use funnels identify their target customer. They do their market research 📊 and figure out where prospective customers are and how to reach them. These businesses then have a plan of action for cultivating these leads and turning them into paying customers. They may also have a plan to sell them more products or services and to consistently refer even more leads. Don’t wait around for referrals and word of mouth marketing, instead use sales funnels to attract and keep your customers. Sales funnels do the work while you spend your time building your business. 📺 Stay tuned for even more on sales funnels this week, they are THAT important to your business. If I’ve convinced you to start using sales funnels, please leave me a comment👇. If you need help building one, please click the link in my bio and schedule a call, I’d love to help you.

🤔 Have you been wondering what a sales funnel is and if you need one? Here’s my short answer, HECK YES!!! 🙌 This definition by @WildAudience tells us, “A sales funnel is a step-by-step process that allows you to bring your potential customer one step closer to your offer and a buying decision through a series of marketing actions like automated emails, videos, articles and landing pages that will do the selling for you.” A well-made sales funnel 🌪️ can generate new leads and sales while you focus on growing your business, providing great service, or upgrading your products instead of spending all your time marketing. 💃 ⚙️ And the best part about it is once it’s set up, it’s automated. I’ll be posting more about sales funnels, so check back and consider the fact that you NEED one in your marketing strategy. Are you already using a sales funnel? Could you share with me how it’s working for you👇?

💪 Here is this week's challenge to make our businesses stronger in only 10 minutes a day. This one gives you much-needed marketing data, and as a marketing coach, I get excited about data! 🗓️ DAY 6: Look at your website analytics 📊 to understand which marketing channels are driving traffic to your site. If there are any that aren't netting the results you want 📉, make plans to stop putting attention there. Also note any that are getting great results, because you might want to double your efforts there. ⚙️ Dial in your target channels with this info, possibly switching more focus to email newsletters, blogging, your social media, or Facebook group posting. 📈 Website analytics keeps you from wasting money 💰 on channels that perform poorly. 🗣️ Remember -- shouting this out now -- 📣 we can't afford to stop marketing our businesses!! Even if it's only 10 minutes a week, it's a good investment. My best channel, so far, has been a startup business FB group. What marketing channel has been your best investment?

🙌 I really, really love working together with a client via Zoom on their branding or their website. Sometimes they have a picture in mind of what they want, but other times they can’t picture or verbalize what they want. We try out different logos, fonts and colors until they see exactly what they’ve hoped or imagined. The light goes on, 💡 they know it’s right because they can see it, and we both enjoy that zen moment together. It’s soooo 🧊cool🧊! With our Book My Day service, we work together to accomplish an amazing amount in just one day. We can tackle 🎨 branding, strategy, traditional and digital marketing, social media templates, and update or create a brand new website. 🤸‍♀️You will be delighted🤸‍♀️ how much we can accomplish together, and see in real-time what you want. Click on the link in my bio👆for more information. I’d love to help show you what you need!

💬 Building strong relationships with potential customers and answering their questions is called lead nurturing. A Lead Nurturing Campaign is a way to engage with non-sales-ready leads during the sales process with the end goal of winning a new customer. Here's a strategy for nurturing your potential leads in each stage of your sales journey. 👋 ENGAGE a new lead. Use a welcoming email or other method to respond to their inquiry. Introduce these new prospects to your company, product, or service at a comfortable pace, instead of flooding them with information right off the bat. 🗣️ Then EDUCATE your prospective customer with a Product-Focused Campaign. As prospects move through the sales process and begin to seek out more information, make sure they’re getting that content from you, and not a competitor or biased third party. 📈 To close your nurtured prospect, REINFORCE that your company is the right choice. Use data, testimonials, reviews, etc. Consider offering a promotion, special discount, or expanded services. RETAIN your customers. Provide excellent onboarding with introductory training resources, a list of next steps after close, timelines for product kickoffs, and FAQs. And don’t forget about upselling or cross-selling to expand your products or services with them. Lead nurturing is personal, timely, and repeatable. Surprise customers with your attention to detail, delight them with your content, and engage them by listening before responding, and you’ll gain a customer and earn their loyalty. 🤔 Did you find this helpful?

🍁🍂🪣 My Fall bucket list: Saturdays cheering on my fav college football teams, hot apple cider in the evenings on the porch, s’mores by the fire pit, and a whole lot of raking leaves because, let’s be honest, somebody’s gotta do it. What’s on your Fall bucket list? 🥸 Need help getting up-to-date with your marketing strategy? I lead a Collective of small business owners on Mondays who are working on their marketing. It's a place to get valuable coaching and inspiration. The first month is FREE! Hit the link in my bio👆for more info on the Collective, we'd love to see you there. 🥰

💪 Hello challenge people! Here ya go, your 5th task. Remember, these tasks create a stronger business in only 10 minutes a day! 🗓️ DAY 5: Start putting your tasks on your calendar. 📅 Block off a chunk of time ⏰ and focus only on that task. Research shows that once you flip from one task to another, it takes you 25 minutes to get back to being productive on that first task. Close your door🚪. Turn off notifications for your email. Just focus. 🚶‍♀️Take breaks between tasks. When you move from completing one thing to another, your brain doesn't get a break. Go for a walk or coffee break ☕. Clear your head. Come back. 🧠 What tips can you share that have helped you focus❓

🍏 This month has been jammed with setting up a new, under wraps enterprise (ssshh🤫!!), assisting Book My Day clients, preparing for the #BusinessBoutique conference, collaborating with entrepreneurs, and teaching our Canvana Collective coaching community. And on top of that, we're headed quickly towards the holiday season.🎃 Obviously, that means doing my best🥤to stay fueled up and healthy, so I've been riding my Peloton bike 🚴‍♀️ like a crazy woman over here. 🦃 As we get ready to enter the last and possibly busiest quarter of this year🎄🎄🎄, let's get a little health-focused thread going on -- how are you staying healthy and boosting your immune system this season?

👀 We've all seen these black boxes called QR Codes, so what do they do, and more importantly, should my business be using one? Hello, trade shows... QR codes are scannable barcodes that allow people to gain access to your information quickly. The 'QR' stands for Quick Response. These codes enable a smartphone's camera to link a URL to a website, PDF document, social media account, YouTube channel, or other targeted link, a marketer's dream!💃 As mentioned yesterday, QR codes are making a huge comeback because of Covid-19 and the public's desire to have contactless information-sharing. There are 2 kinds of QR codes to choose from, STATIC and DYNAMIC. Static codes are free, and dynamic codes have fees and lots of options with them. Many businesses offer a QR code creation app, including Google Chrome (the QR Code Extension). Static codes have a 🔐 locked-in destination, once set, you can't change your QR code URL link. Dynamic codes allow you to edit the link (such as changing to a different website, document, or image) anytime you want. So one day it can lead users to your website, and the next day to your Facebook page or a YouTube video. Your QR code stays the same, no need to reprint anything. 🔎 You can also track data from a dynamic QR code, and find out where it was scanned, which device it was scanned from, and when, among other things. This tool makes a marketing coach super stoked!! ⏰ Is it time to start incorporating them in your business material? Notes: Color Canvana QR Code created with @qrtiger. Black QR code created with Google's The QR Code Extension.

📅 Let's spend this last week of September getting into the headspace of prepping for upcoming events and holiday business needs. This last quarter is coming soon, ready or not! In-person group activities, fairs, holiday-themed events,🎃 and special occasions are opening back up. 📦 Plan what you are going to do and what you will need. It could be you offer special sales and deals (Black Friday or Cyber Monday anyone?), or need to order merchandise, gifts 🎁 or printed materials, or optimize your website and marketing strategy for the 🎄 season and its events. Don't forget to take full advantage of those QR codes in your marketing material. They're coming back in style as Covid has made contactless information-sharing popular and in some places required. I will be posting more specifics about QR codes tomorrow. 💝 Are you ready to start prepping for the end of your year?

☕ I know, I know, the PSL came back to Starbucks on the 1st. Just please don't bring me a PSL, I HATE pumpkin, lol!! 🍂 Fall is my favorite season 🍂. Since we have all of them in my little corner of Colorado, we get to enjoy all 4 seasons. I love sweatshirts and shorts, the crisp air, warm lighting, and a hot drink in my hand. My most favorite thing to do in fall is a long, barefoot drive to look at the colorful show of the 🍁leaves🍁 changing. Fall lighting is so magical. 🥧 Okay, what’s your vote...is getting a pumpkin spice latte in your opinion required to celebrate fall, or do you have a different must-do 🍎 fall tradition?

Hey 💪 challenge people, as promised, here is our 4th weekly challenge task. And this is a fun one! Remember these tasks add up over 20 weeks to make our businesses stronger. 🗓️ DAY 4: Find one task you can delegate. What would free you up to focus more on the business? If you can’t sweet-talk a family member 😜 or friend to help out, research hiring a consultant or freelancer to take that task on. Those time-consuming tasks that drain the energy out of you are better left to someone else, and will free up your time and ✨ energy✨ towards the zone of genius 🧠 you went into business for! 🤓 What is first on your list of tasks you would 💗LOVE💗 to delegate? Mine is my own social media, and I did delegate it, YEEESSSS!!👍 A big thank you to Susan Guillory of Egg Marketing for the challenge. 🙌

😤 If you’ve struggled to create social media posts, then you are ready for content pillars! 🪣 Content pillars, also known as content buckets, are in-depth topics or themes that can be broken down into smaller topics. These create the foundation for your overall content strategy and are targeted for your desired audience. You can build out your quarterly, monthly, and weekly content calendars 🗓️ based on these pillars. Let’s say you are a marketing coach, (ahem, yours truly). You create content pillars based on the needs and interests of your audience. In my case they are small business owners and startups. So if September’s 🍂 pillar is content creation & planning, the month’s blogs and posts will be based on sub-themes of content creation & planning. Week 1 could be customer engagement. Week 2 could be blogging. Week 3 could be social media creation and posting. And Week 4 could be on reading Facebook’s analytics. Your calendar tells you what you need to post and when. 🤷‍♀️ Does this make sense? Planning and organizing your social media around your content pillar takes a load off your shoulders. 🍁 What is your content pillar for this month? Leave a comment below if you would like to share it.👇

🔎 Anytime you focus on something, you’re putting energy into that. If you are a 🕵️‍♂️ solopreneur, you know how hard it is to manage creating all your own content. There are blogs to write, social media to create and maintain and schedule, there’s video or live posting, email marketing, and SEO optimizing. The list is long. Everything needs your focus and attention. Pretty soon you‘re gonna feel 🔥burned out.🔥 👁️ Let me encourage you. Focus on one thing, one area, and do that well and build that out. Let’s say it’s your blogs, or your social media, or a YouTube channel. Rome wasn’t built in one day, right? So, neither will your business’s online marketing. Focus on that area of content. Do it well, and build some momentum before you switch over to another area. If you jump around trying to do it all well, your energy gets scattered in too many directions, and you won’t see the growth or results you want. 🌊 As Tony Robbins @tonyrobbins says so well, “Where focus goes, energy flows.” I'm choosing to work on my social media for now, what area of content are you choosing to work on this season? (PS, I snapped this photo from our hotel balcony in St Maarten. Can you see the jet ✈️approaching the runway over the beach?!!

🤯 Holy cannoli! And did you guess what the top 2 online activities are, according to @Statista? Search, and email. 🌎 So, wow, search is what 4.5 BILLION people 🌏 are doing online. Are we convinced now that our businesses need blogs? As I said last week, I can’t think of a better way to drive SEO traffic to our websites than with blogs. Blogs are proven on average to bring 55% more visitors, 97% more inbound links, and earn 434% more indexed pages!! That’s from @hubspot. Not a bad performance from articles just sitting around in our website pages. ⚙️ Dial in your buyer persona, and blog about content that's appealing to them. It may take several months or more for them to find you, but the more people that find you, the higher your ranking goes 📈 in the search engines. With 4.5 BILLION searchers, your chances are high of getting noticed. Don’t forget to promote your blogs in your social media and email campaigns. And comment if you think the 2 highest online activities are different from what Statista says. 😜

A blog post is one of the ⭐ BEST ⭐ ways to drive traffic to your website. And who wants more website visitors? Everybody!! 🤦 So why are blogs so hard to get around to posting? In Monday’s Canvana Collective, everyone was moaning about how hard it was to get around to writing the blogs. Kinda like our social media posting, we know we need to do it, and we know it’s hard to get to, and we’d much rather be doing paid work.💰 But... we all want more traffic to our websites which brings customers. So, let’s go write some blogs! 👩‍💻 Best practice is to start weekly content planning with a theme blog as the capstone, then from there create the week's social media posts based on your blog’s theme. If your website is newly launched, you will need to post 10 blogs with 500-word counts at one time, so visitors to the site will see more than one or two blogs and view you as an expert, not a beginner. 👋 A good place to be inspired and stay up-to-date in marketing is my community called the Collective. I lead this group of small business owners every Monday morning where we learn and work together on marketing strategies and challenges. 🥸 It's a place to be motivated and get valuable input to have our businesses grow. Come join us! Hit the link in my bio👆 for more info on the Collective, we'd love to see you there.🥰

💪 Here is this week's #20WeekChallenge to #BuildABusiness making our businesses stronger in only 10 minutes a day. 🗓️ DAY 3: Finish up documenting each of the steps of your time-killing tasks. 👍 You've already made a list 📋 of all the tasks you perform in Day 1 and how much time they take. Day 2 you went through that list, picked the big ⏱️ time-killing tasks, and started documenting the steps you take to complete each of those tasks or processes. Finish that up today, if you haven't already done so. In this 20-week challenge to build a business, we take one little step 👣 each week for 20 weeks. Our businesses will become more efficient and grow faster with each of these small habit changes. Just like working out 🏋️‍♂️ each week, small tasks add up over 20 weeks. 👏 Can't wait to hear how your businesses became fitter 🤸‍♂️ when we're finished!

🛠️ Who doesn't love a good productivity tool? I just switched from Apple Notes to Evernote @evernote for my notes, to-do lists and tasks, and I am loving it! Christy Wright @christybwright recommended it, now it's my new favorite productivity tool. What I love about it is having my business and personal tasks organized nicely 🗂️ in one app, it's notebooks, and it's ease of connecting with my Google and Calendly calendars. 💃 What's your favorite productivity tool? Leave a comment 👇 and share with me what keeps you organized.

🙋‍♀️ Did you catch that? I just used the first ‘A’ in the AIDA Formula to get your 👋attention.👋 What is the AIDA Formula again❓Also known as the AIDA Model, it stands for Attention, Interest, Desire, and Action, and identifies the stages that a prospective customer goes through during the process of purchasing a product or service. 🍎 This marketing formula has been successfully used for over 💯years, and is designed to lead people through a logical process that hooks them, gets them interested logically, gets them interested emotionally, then closes the deal. Going through these steps in order is one of the best ways to convince someone to buy your service or product. See yesterday’s post for more specific details on each of these steps, and how to use them in your sales tools. Hey, use this AIDA formula to turn your followers into customers! Please comment if you are using it, or click the link in my bio👆 for a free discovery call ☎️ to learn how to implement AIDA in your marketing strategy.

🎶 🎶 Umm, Aida is an opera 🎭 in 4 acts by Verdi. Oh, you mean the other AIDA? In marketing, AIDA is a very successful formula used with a series of steps customers follow when making purchasing decisions. It stands for: A- Attention, I- Interest, D- Desire, and A- Action. ❗ IMPORTANT❗Use the AIDA model when writing a piece of copy ✍️ that has the ultimate objective of getting others to take action. Your goal is to prove your product is for them and you can successfully do that by following the AIDA steps. When writing customer testimonials, case studies, rating/reviews, money-back guarantee, etc., use them in this order. ➡️ 1. ATTENTION: “Read This!” Give prospects a reason to take notice. Present a shocking fact or statistic that identifies a problem solved by your product or service. 🗣️Ask a thought-provoking question or use the element of surprise. Use elegant design, loud colors, or sudden motion. The purpose is to give prospects a reason for wanting to learn more. ➡️ 2. INTEREST: “It Affects You, So Keep Reading This!” 👩‍🏫 Explain how the problem you've identified in the attention step is adversely affecting their lives. A demonstration or illustration can help the recipients to further identify with the problem and want to actively seek possible solutions. By personalizing the problem, you're making it hit closer to home. ➡️ 3. DESIRE: 🍎“You Like It and Want It” Show how your product or service can solve their problem. Explain the features of the product or service and the related benefits, and demonstrate how the benefits fulfill the need ("before and after" technique, such as when a cleaning product makes an item look new). Prospects should now have the desire to make a purchase. ➡️ 4. ACTION: “Here's What You Do Next” 🤝 This is your 🗣️ Call To Action. Persuade prospects to take immediate action - ASK FOR THE SALE! Create a sense of urgency and give them a clear and easy next step towards making a purchase. Without a specific call to action, the prospect may forget about your offer and move on. Comment below👇 if you are confused how to implement AIDA or have any questions. Thanks to Annie Maguire for her ideas. LI: ​​maguireannie

🏝️ LOVING being in the moment here!! @onlyonsxm ⛱️ I can't think of a better way to celebrate the end of summer and the beginning of a new season of life than with my 💖sweetheart💖 on a romantic island, can you? 🩴🩴So very grateful for time with my husband in a beautiful place, and grateful for the people and relationships in my life. And wondering what you are grateful for?

💪 OK challenge people, are you ready for this week's business challenge? In this #20WeekChallenge to #BuildABusiness, we take one little step 👣 each week for 20 weeks. Our businesses will become more efficient and grow in no time with this small habit. Ready, here's your next prompt. 🗓️ DAY 2 (& possibly DAY 3): Spend an hour documenting the steps for the big time-killing processes.⏱️ You've already made a list of all the tasks you perform, and estimated the time each one takes. Now go through that list and pick out the time-consuming ones. For example, if you update your social media accounts several times a week, list out steps like this: - Step 1: Log in to social media dashboard (include user ID and password). - Step 2: Review mentions of our brand and respond accordingly. - Step 3: Schedule updates on Instagram and Facebook for the week. - Step 4: Like or follow X people on Facebook and Instagram. ✒️ You may need two days to do this if you have many time-consuming processes that need to be documented. A big thank you to Susan Guillory of Egg Marketing for the idea. 🙌

📢 Keep marketing and don’t give up! You are making a difference in the world, and your product or service is sooo needed. Growth may be slow 🐌 but people looking for solutions to their problems will find you through your marketing tools. As a marketing coach, I gotta say how important it is to stay consistent in your branding message. Does it represent your business and mission statement? Does it reflect your core values? 💫 We are coming to the end of 2021, and every year the number of people going to the internet on their phones or computers to search for solutions grows exponentially. They want authentic, honest providers to care about them, and that is where you can meet them. Your brand is their 🌟 first introduction 🌟to you, keep it clear and consistent. Just gettin’ real here!

🇺🇲 Labor Day celebrates workers and their achievements and was born out of the struggle to fix poor working conditions with 12 to 16-hour workdays, 7 days a week, during the Industrial Revolution. We pay tribute to 🌟workers 🌟 today who bring so much strength, freedom, and leadership to our economies. 👩‍💻 I'm thankful to be a small part of the workforce and especially thankful to be an entrepreneur who can choose my working conditions and how many hours a week to work. Have a great ✨Labor Day✨ everybody!💖

🧦 As sock maker Rick Levine @ricklevine states, being authentic, honest, and personally concerned for your customer's well-being brings success in the digital marketing field. 🛣️ Understanding the stages of your buyer's journey is critical (see yesterday's post). Take note how to best communicate to them in each stage of their journey, and pay close attention to the content you are using. Again, no one likes aggressive sales tactics, it's a turn-off. 😤 Have a great weekend everybody. I'm looking forward to finishing out the year strong.💪 If you need help finishing strong, drop me a DM or schedule a call through the link in my bio.👆

💪 Are you up for a challenge? 🏋️‍♀️ As small business owners, we end up doing everything in our businesses. But just think, if we took one little step 👣each week for 20 weeks and focused on making our businesses better, what results could we see in a little over 4 months? That's 10 minutes each week towards strengthening your business. As James Clear @jamesclear states in his book, Atomic Habits, "Tiny Changes, Remarkable Results!" The first 5 prompts are focused on Productivity & Processes. The second 5 will be on Marketing & Sales. The third 5 are on Technology, and the fourth 5 will be based on Growth Strategy. We're excited to get started! ⏱️ Here's our first prompt. Each prompt should take only 10 minutes or less. 🗓️ DAY 1: Make a list of all the tasks you perform on a given day and estimate how much time you spend on each. This includes checking and responding to email, creating proposals, updating social media, working on client projects, even ordering supplies. You would be surprised at how long you spend on some of these! The aim of this challenge is to give you a renewed sense of purpose to take positive action on your business and provide you with practical methods and tools to meet your goals and grow. Can you imagine the results we would see? A big thank you to Susan Guillory of Egg Marketing for the idea. 🙌

🐞 The folks at Smart Bug @smartbugmedia have broken down 3 stages of an inbound buyer’s journey. Remember these are visitors coming from your inbound marketing methods: your website, social media, SEO keywords, blog, or other content. According to Smart Bug, “customers don’t want to be sold to or talked at … prospects want to know that they’re being heard and that businesses are respecting their decision-making processes. “Inbound marketing is effective because it understands buyer pain points and challenges, how they research 👩‍💻 solutions, and how they make decisions. (It) meets prospects wherever they are by creating content for every stage of the Buyer’s Journey in order to nurture leads through the buying process.” 😳 AWARENESS STAGE - At this stage, prospects realize that they have a problem. Content at this stage should be informative, answer simple questions, and solve basic problems without any self-promotion. 🔎 CONSIDERATION STAGE - Prospects have decided to find a solution for their problem and are weighing their options. Content at this stage should help the reader by explaining the solutions available on the market. 🤝 DECISION STAGE - Prospects are ready to become a customer—they just need a final nudge to sign on the dotted line. Content at this stage takes a more direct, sales-driven approach, with offers such as product spec sheets, competitor comparisons, case studies, fact sheets, and product implementation guides. So, my friends, targeted content truly is king🤴 for every stage of the buyer’s journey. Need help with your content? Hit the link in my bio👆to schedule a free call, and let me know how I can help.

👩‍💻 Your website is probably your best, freaking awesome inbound marketing strategy. Other good examples of inbound marketing are blogs, social media accounts, eBooks, SEO keywords, video channels, etc. It includes creating and distributing valuable content that customers want. 📱 An inbound website is created to attract, engage, convert and delight your visitors. Unlike outbound marketing, inbound marketing doesn't need to fight for potential customers attention. 🙌 Win win! 🙌 Outbound marketing involves proactively reaching out to consumers to get them interested in a product, brand, or service in the hopes of lead generation or customers. Examples of this would be ads, emails, cold calling, pop-ups, etc. Outbound marketing is just as valid as inbound marketing, and it is good to leverage both in your marketing strategy. I will be posting more info on how to nurture customer relationships from inbound marketing into your business and turn lookers 👀 into buyers. Questions you want me to answer? 🙋Leave me a comment below.

👋 Hey guys! I thought it was time to re-introduce myself to you. I'm a marketing coach and branding strategist, and ❤️LOVE❤️ helping small business owners efficiently market their own businesses. 🚗 Perhaps like you, I started my entrepreneurial journey in the throws of Covid, and have not looked back since. Together with my team at Canvana Studio, I work to simplify branding and marketing development. 🕵️‍♀️ You can find out more about me by hitting the link in my bio!☝️If you need help getting your business idea off the ground, or help developing a strategically-targeted brand, let's partner together to bring your ideas to life. 🤝

🌞 I am grateful for so many things. Big and little, there is so much to be thankful for. 🌅 I want to encourage you today, to take time to reflect as we go into a new season. I'm learning to be in the moment, and to not go numb, but walk through these changing seasons together with my peeps.🌄 I'm allowing myself to feel the feelings, even if they are kinda hard.🌦️ 🌼 Choose gratefulness. Have a sweet weekend everyone❣️

✍️ I liked Carrie so much @carriecopywrites, I asked her to be part of our team here at Canvana Studio! She is brilliant to work with and she can 🗣️ speak to your audience and tell your story like no one else. Her skills in psychology and marketing are put to work when crafting her messages, 💬 and her copy is carefully written to connect and engage the intended audience. She writes email newsletters, websites, SEO keywords, product descriptions, tags, and more. 🛎️ If you find yourself needing help communicating your brand to your target customers, or converting your messages to sales, hit the link in my bio, I'd love to speak with you in a Discovery call. And no worries, it's free.

🍁 The seasons of life. 🍂 This summer has me going through some hard ones! 👩‍🍼 The main thought that hit me is that 21 years + 1 day from the day I gave birth to my amazing son, I moved my youngest out of the house for college. Just like when they were little ones, I was hoping like hell that I had remembered everything 🎒 they might need. Déjà vu. It hit me as profound. 🧳 It's sad to say goodbye, and so hard to trust that the world will be good to them. But they are ready. It is definitely faith that feeds my heart.💕 And I made sure I was totally centered on being in the moment, walking through it all with them. I'm so, so happy for and proud of them. I'm also finding myself thankful for the opportunity to be a mom to these awesome people, and to be an entrepreneur with flexibility over my schedule when I need to put my family first. I highly recommend all you mamas to be 'in the moment' for your milestones. 🤗 Comment back if you wish to share.❤️

👩‍💻 As we prepare for the last quarter of this year, my job is to encourage people to really take a good look at their marketing strategy. What ISN'T working right now? What IS working now, and why? Where do you want to see growth in 2022 (dare I even bring that up, another year coming up already?)! ⏳ Now is a good time to tweek some things in your funnel, or on your website or social media, or in your Call To Action. Run a little experiment to see if it makes a difference in gaining more followers or more attention from your audience, or a new customer. Maybe change your pricing. Maybe ask your friend or spouse for their ideas. I love what Christy Wright says, "Nothing good happens in your comfort zone." 👣 Take a few small steps and see what you can accomplish! I'll be posting some of my experiments here, and I look forward to hearing about yours. Leave a comment if you have one to share.👏

📆 Yes, it’s almost that time, the end of the year is coming up. And as a marketing coach, I need to be asking these questions about my marketing strategy. Again, if I don’t continue to evaluate my strategy, I could be wasting my precious marketing dollars on something that is not working.💸 💸 💸 So, let’s get curious and ask ourselves these questions. I know we’re gonna get busy this fall, but people, these questions are important. So, what are your marketing goals? And are you on track to finish out the year hitting those goals? 🎯 Leave a comment if you can share one of your goals here. 👍

👩‍🏫 I’m taking this cue from Carney @carney, and choosing to not be afraid to try something new in my marketing tactics. Don’t get me wrong, I am careful to take calculated risks, not blind leaps of faith. 🎲 My main motivation is to experiment with something different than what I’m already doing. As Albert Einstein said, insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. 🥸 A safe place to bounce crazy ideas off other professionals is in my Canvana Collective. I am stoked to host this group of small business owners. We meet weekly to work together on our marketing strategies and challenges, motivating each other to make our businesses the best they can be. 🤪 Come join us, and keep insanity at bay. Hit the link in my bio 👆 for more info on the Collective.

🌟 Neil Patel @neilpatel is so darn prolific, it's hard to choose just one of his encouraging quotes. He works hard to create really good content that teaches and gives 💎 value 💎 to his readers. And content is what shows up in SEO queries, which directs people to your website or your blog, or your social media, and gets you noticed. If you are wondering how to build brand awareness for your business, your best bet is to generate quality content. According to Neil Patel, this will take from 6 months to a year of consistent posting and publishing to be effective. That may seem like a long time and a big commitment with little immediate results, but Neil says it will prove to be the best move for your 💸 marketing dollar. 💸 And Neil would know, he's built a not-so-small fortune 💰💰💰 doing just that. So friend, look ahead and view your company's content marketing as a smart investment. Even if it's not perfect, keep working to create free quality content, it will pay off in the months ahead. 📈

Who doesn't love ❤️ Neil Patel❤️ @neilpatel for his massive influence and expertise in digital marketing, and for his popular and free keyword tool Ubersuggest @ubersuggest? Check it out if you haven't used it! His influence on my professional marketing coaching has been profound. Neil shares these top 3 reasons why #SEO is important: 1. SEO increases traffic 2. SEO generates a positive ROI 3. SEO promotes brand awareness (many people have found him on #Google first) 🔐 Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is key for directing your desired clients to find you. Here are my top key SEO terms: canva, canvana, designer, graphic designer, web design, graphic design, cocreate, cowork, marketing, social media, economic development, business development, marketing development, community, advertising, and SEO. What top 🔑 keywords 🔑 have been your best performers? Leave me a comment! And hit the link in my bio 👆 if you need direction in finding yours, I'd love to help.

🎬 For you movie buffs, Colorado's Chimney Rock appeared in John Wayne's first 'True Grit' movie in 1969. It was the backdrop for the famous shootout scene in the original film. 🤠 John Wayne 🤠won an Academy Award here for his performance as Rooster Cogburn. Much of the film was shot in this part of Colorado, near Ridgway. This place is a very busy photo spot, as you can see with all of the photographers behind me. I'm hoping to join them soon. 👍 Keep working on your marketing strategies, friends. It will pay off. You might need some 'true grit' at times, but stay consistent, and encourage one another. Leave me a comment👇 if you can share a win you've had recently! 🙌

🥇 Mark Spitz should know something about preparing, he was the first athlete to win 7 Olympic gold medals in the Games, competing in Munich, Germany in 1972. Maybe we could call him a 'prepper'? And speaking of preparing, it's back to school time. Those of us with kids in school, whether it's preschool or college, know the stress avoided by preparing. I hate leaving things to the last minute and am checking my boxes ✔️ before dropping my youngest off at college this week.🤞 🤞🤞 Entrepreneurs and small business owners, let's ramp up our marketing strategies for this fall and Christmas season, and not leave it to the last minute. School is back in session, and folks are back to work. Track your customer's changing needs as our times keep on changing. Consider the consumer shift to online searches for information about services and products, and fine-tune or get help with your SEO so you can get noticed. 🏆 Let's go for some gold, people! (Preaching to myself mostly) 🏆

My friend Cathy Martin @WorkplaceTalentSolutions was so much fun to work with during her BOOK MY DAY experience. Helping people create successful marketing tools is what 💡 lights me up💡 and gets me excited to go to work! 📋 Our BOOK MY DAY service makes it easy to check those marketing and design boxes that have been hovering over you. You set the goals, and we get the work done.✔️ From brand vision to voice to visuals, we take great pride in providing our clients EXACTLY what they want, even if they don’t know exactly what that is. We design together in real-time via Zoom to ensure every detail is taken care of. And you get a full hour of work time with me for follow-up needs after your day. Your satisfaction is 💯 percent guaranteed. Things we can do in a day: ✅ Full branding design and strategy ✅ Build a simple website ✅ Create graphics that support your strategies ✅ Work on automating your business admin ✅ PITCH an idea, we may just be able to hit a home run! 👩‍🍳 Oh, and lunch is on me! 😋 You can learn more about BOOK MY DAY here at https://bit.ly/32revDS

🎯 Creating these 3 brand pillars will help identify who you are as a brand, and how to best market your brand on social media and elsewhere. Knowing the difference between each of them is not easy, even for marketing professionals (ahem) who mix them up all the time. Here are their definitions: MISSION STATEMENT 🔹 Your mission statement defines what you do TODAY. The mission is the core of the business, but it is about the internal perception of the brand. A mission statement SHAPES a company’s culture and it is often used in hiring materials as well as the ‘about page’ of a website. VISION STATEMENT 🔹 Your vision statement defines where you are going TOMORROW. The vision is the future of the business — and like the mission, this statement is about the internal perception of the brand. A vision statement INSPIRES you to move toward achieving your goal because you know your purpose. POSITIONING STATEMENT 🔹 Your positioning statement is about the EXTERNAL perception of the brand. What does your customer get out of working with you? How is your brand meeting your customer’s needs? A positioning statement brings in the “why” but, again, it is more about your customer’s viewpoint. This message is less aspirational and more COMPETETIVE. 🤣 🤣 🤣 Aren’t you glad we’ve straightened this all out for you? Yup, you’re welcome, clear as mud. I’d love to hear your comments on this 👇.

🙀 Analysis paralysis is an inability to make a decision due to over-thinking a problem. Having too much data, or too many choices can make it worse. Can we say perfectionism?? I'm here with 🐶 Phoebe and her baby 🐶 Bailey, my beautiful Golden Retrievers. Well actually, Phoebe is half Golden Retriever, half Lab. These girls never hesitate when making a decision to go for it, 🦴 ya think? In yesterday's group coaching session at Canvana Collective, we joked about our tendencies toward perfectionism. We'd been working hard on fine-tuning our Mission Statements, Vision Statements, and Positioning Statements (the marketing trinity) and were getting kinda stuck. When do you stop tweaking? ⏰ There's a fine line between striving for excellence, and just getting the job done to move on. How about you, when do you tend to have analysis paralysis❓

🗣️ Customer Engagement Strategy is a super important part of your marketing plan, and keeps people moving along in your sales funnel. I really like these five tips shared by David O’Dwyer @davinodwyer from Intercom. Keep these in mind when drafting your messages to your clients or prospective clients. Especially the part about getting to the point. People do not want to read a long explanation about how special you are, just give them the information they need, and keep it short (and yes, also conversational). 🤳 Whether it’s email, your CTA, a messaging app or chat, or another form, these tips work. And if you could add any tips to this, what would you add?

👥 Do you have a strategy for Customer Engagement 👥? The best customer engagement feels conversational – a friendly back-and-forth exchange that builds trust and confidence at every step. Especially if it's a relationship that already exists. I will be coaching on customer engagement strategy today in the Collective. You are welcome to check it out, we’d love to see you! No risk and no worries, the first month is free and you can cancel at any time. Click on the link in my bio👆, and join us at the Collective. We'd love to help you with your customer engagement strategy.

⚙️ According to Alfred Lua, Product Marketer @Buffer, it IS POSSIBLE for busy people to keep up with the changes in social media tools that affect our marketing efforts. You can read his excellent article here that shows you how: https://buffer.com/library/social-media-news/ Part of marketing is the job of staying current on the latest trends and how they impact our businesses, 🤯 like Instagram's recent decision to switch to publish only reels. Say whaaaatt??? 😱😱😱 The social media world continues to change and it’s head-spinning. 👩‍💻 At Canvana Studio we take an approach different from other marketing agencies. We work alongside you 🤝 and answer your questions as they arise, while you work on your marketing strategy and creation process. Marketing coaching is what we love to do best! ✨ Have you considered a coach to help you achieve your goals? Hit the link in my bio 👆 to schedule a free discovery call where we will share how to get you up to date in your marketing.

👏 I love this quote from Matt Goulart @mattgoulart of Ignite Digital, a Canadian marketing agency. His statement has gone viral for good reason, it’s true and so obvious❣️ I love having a reminder. I guess keeping 🤗 clients 🤗and prospective clients our main focus and providing excellent service to them can get lost in the day-to-day overwhelm of running a small business. I‘m with ya! I send out a customer survey after each job to assess where I can improve. I realize I can’t be successful unless my clients are successful. How about you? How do you keep people the main thing❓

📚 Here’s another one of my very favorite books by Simon Sinek @simonsaysinspire. He challenges us to ask the questions Why? What? and How?, in that order. 💬 He proposes, "very few organizations know why they do what they do. And by why I don't mean to make a profit: that's a result...I mean what's your purpose?" Your why serves as a 🧭 compass; it gives you reason and purpose and forces you to make choices from your intrinsic motivation and your emotions🫀(your limbic system). Furthermore, a clear why statement attracts team members and customers who believe what you believe, and that is crucial when starting a business. Very few professionals can answer this question: why does your business exist? Asking this question is essential for your business, and for your marketing and sales to be effective. You can listen to Simon on YouTube or catch him on the web. If you’ve read or listened to him, do you agree? Disagree? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.👇

🧐 Does your business have a vision statement? According to the American Marketing Association, defining your vision statement is a key🔑 part of your marketing strategy. Many people mistake 🤦‍♀️ their MISSION statement for their VISION statement, or they combine them together. They are meant to be quite different. A vision statement is INSPIRATIONAL, a descriptive picture of your business’s future state. A mission statement is an ACTION statement for bringing about what is envisioned and is more customer-focused. 🕵 Here is an example, this is PepsiCo’s vision statement: Our vision is put into action through programs and a focus on environmental stewardship, activities to benefit society, and a commitment to build shareholder value by making PepsiCo a truly sustainable company. It’s an inspiration to push ahead on those hard days. Do you have one? If so, please comment, I’d 💗 love 💗 to hear it!

It's Friday!! I will be spending my weekend with this one. She's going off to college and we only have three weeks left (not counting) before she's gone. 🥺 It's a weird season for me, kinda 🤩 excited and kinda 😢 sad and nostalgic. Where did the time go? I'm looking forward to my new season and reflecting on this precious one 👩‍🍼 and how quickly she grew up. Have a great weekend, y'all. . .

🍍Here is one of my clients’ testimonials, Megan Salazar @replenishnutrition_. Megan is a talented nutritionist, and we worked together to develop her logo and website. According to Donald Miller @donaldmiller, one of the best ways we broadcast how we help our customers transform is through customer testimonials. They can tell our brand story to future customers. Client testimonials are always THE BEST WAY to 🥣 dish up your story! What client testimonials can you share? . .

😎 Have you finished (or started) planning for next month’s marketing? Do you have any new customer reviews or testimonials you can incorporate into your strategy? These are worth more than gold 💰💰💰 for drawing in new clients. I’ve put together a free Persona Development Guide to help you figure out your target customers. This link in my bio takes you to my website, scroll down to find it, or type this in your browser. http://www.canvanastudio.com/persona1 If you can brag on next month’s plans and inspire the rest of us to get it done, please comment here! 👇👇👇 . .

💬 How do we integrate storytelling into our brand marketing? Donald Miller @donaldmiller breaks down his storytelling process into 7 steps: 1. Introduce a character as the hero (your audience). 2. Identify what the character’s key problem is. 3. The hero is ready to meet the guide (that’s you!). 4. The guide gives hero a plan on how to move forward. 5. The guide inspires the hero to follow plan and take action (your CTA). 6. Plan helps hero avoid failure (show what happens when plan not followed). 7. Show ways the hero finds success by following the plan. Stories are simple and powerful tools to tell our brand story. I hope you can use these steps to engage and connect with your customers (heroes). Did you find this helpful? If so, leave me a comment.😊

🗣️ I can’t say enough ✨good stuff✨ about Donald Miller @donaldmiller and his emphasis on storytelling as the focus of a great marketing strategy. Name brands like Intel and Steelcase are using this strategy. 🎭 Your brand is a player in a marvelous story! A future customer’s problems can be solved with your product or service. How you promote your brand matters and can connect you with people who need what you are offering. We discuss how to incorporate brand storytelling in the Canvana Collective, our weekly group coaching sessions. You are invited to join us! Your first month is free. Find out more by clicking the link in my bio.👆

📚 Donald Miller @donaldmiller and his Building a StoryBrand series has been a HUGE inspiration to me and the way I do business. 💬 He states, “Your customer should be the hero of your story, not your brand – this is the secret every phenomenally successful business understands.” He then shows you how to tell the story your customers need to hear to be able to achieve a happy ending, which involves buying your product or hiring you. 📖 Pick up a copy of his best-seller, or listen to his YouTube channel, Business Made Simple, powered by StoryBrand. I guarantee you'll learn a lot! If you’ve read it, what are your thoughts about it? I’d love to hear them in the comments.👇 . .

🪄 The approach we take at Canvana Studio is different. We know that business owners are inundated with exciting courses and workshops, but finding time to do all the things these courses teach to market your business can be challenging. We aim to work alongside you and answer your questions as they arise, while you work on your marketing strategy and 🎨 creation process.🎨 ✨Marketing coaching is what we love to do best! ✨ Have you considered a coach to help you along in achieving your marketing goals? . .

1️⃣ Map out a website rebrand plan for updating your website’s copy, images, and layouts to make it more professional and strategic. 2️⃣ Craft a branded social media graphic library and short-term strategic planning. 3️⃣ Design an email newsletter template and content strategy to build an engaged email list. 4️⃣ Expert guidance to see if you are getting the most out of your 👛 marketing dollars 👛 and investing in the right tools to achieve your goals. 👩‍💻 You work really hard to succeed in your business, it might be time for a tune-up to ensure your marketing is working. When was the last time you had your strategy checked? . .

📣 Marketing a business is overwhelming, time-consuming, and expensive. And if something’s broken, how do you figure out what’s not working and how to fix it? If you have lots of followers but not customers It could be your sales funnel is not converting 😿. Or maybe your website does not direct people to a clear call to action, or worse, is broken or has conflicting information. There could be SO many things keeping your customers from you. I’m super passionate about using my 25 years of marketing experience + an MS in Integrated Marketing to help small businesses succeed in their marketing goals 📈 . You work TOO HARD to spend your budget on a strategy that does not work. Maybe it’s a great strategy, but it just does not work for YOU. And I intentionally price coaching to be affordable for startups who do not have large marketing budgets. 😺 Please reach out if you need help figuring out what’s not working in your marketing strategy, and share your victory in the comments to encourage us if you’ve fixed what was broken and figured out how to make it shine! ✨ . .

💡 From brand vision to voice to visuals, we take great pride in providing our clients EXACTLY what they want, even if they don’t know exactly what that is. We design together in real-time via Zoom to ensure every detail is taken care of. Whether we are working on branding, websites, Canva templates, or any other design, your satisfaction is 💯 percent guaranteed. � Take Rebekah’s word for it, she can share even more about her experience with us if you ask her. Click the link in my bio 👆👆👆to schedule a 📞 discovery call if you also need help with your branding needs.

💃 I get so excited when our Collective coaching group meets together and brainstorms solutions to our marketing challenges. 🎁 You are officially invited to meet together with us live at Canvana Collective on Mondays at 8:30am MST! We can help you hit your marketing goals and get your questions answered. There is no risk, as your first 30 days are FREE. Let's work together to get your business noticed. Click my bio link to my site and scroll down for Canvana Collective details.👆Hope to see you there!

🌤️ One of my guiding principles for Canvana Studio is 🍎 learning never stops.🍎 We aim to never get to the place where we stop learning, where we slack off on staying proactive in sorting out the latest trends and how that affects our clients. We aim to teach what is true in this constantly varied playing field of marketing. Who knew Covid was going to pull the rug out from everybody last year? And how do we best pivot our marketing efforts because of it? What's working now? 👯👯‍♀️👯‍♂️ Come and join us in the Collective. We talk about how to boost marketing effectiveness in these crazy, changing times. We’d love to meet you, and it’s waaaay better to figure this stuff out together! The link is in my bio.👆