7 Tips for Small Business Owners

7 Tips for Small Business Owners

1. Learn from your Customers.  Negative comments sting but that's where you learn the most.  I chose a mechanic based on how he responded to the One Star Reviews he received.  He was sincere and laid out plainly how he had offered to resolve the conflict.  Google Reviews is a start but don't forget comments on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and any Social Media Channel your customers use.
2. Make Customer Service your priority.  This is related to point #1.  Respond quickly when you hear from a customer with a problem.  Thank them for bringing their issue to your attention.  Acknowledge their problem and offer to fix it to their satisfaction.  This is a person who purchased your product or service...you worked hard to get them.  It's cheaper to keep them!
3. Stay in your lane.  You're a small business owner, not a global conglomerate.  You worked hard to find your niche. It's how you differentiate yourself from your competition and why your customers pay for your products and services.  Replicating your successful business model is how you maximize profit.
4. Be time-efficient.  There are 24 hours in a day, 7 days a week.  You already work more than the average corporate employee.  Don't waste time on unproductive, time wasting tasks.  Hire professionals to do the tasks that don't focus on growing your business and taking care of your customers.
5. Don't fear larger competitors. The bigger they are, the less agile they can be.  Take advantage of your ability to move quickly. If you can deliver the product or service before they respond to the quote, you win!  
6. Market like a pro.  Focus on three things:  email marketing, SEO, updates to your website.  Email is the underappreciated and underutilized marketing tool for small business.  Use MailChimp or Constant Contact to send professional emails to your customers and prospects.  Keep on top of what search terms your prospects are using to search for your business to keep your SEO fresh.  And...update your website with fresh content based on keyword search results.  Add a weekly blog post for more relevance.
7. Be flexible.  It's important to stay within your niche but be ready to pivot if the market changes...or if an opportunity presents itself.

Until next time...

Chris Morales

Chris Morales Author

In high school we had to take a 'Creative Writing' class.  I didn't enjoy it.  Having to write 'creatively' seemed ridiculous. All writing is a creative exercise. Telling a story, fiction or non-fiction is 'creative'.  I didn't right much but I had stories swirling in my head!

In broadcast school at Conestoga College we learned that before we could speak we had to write.  That was true for the newscasters as well as the radio DJ's. At my radio gig in Guelph, I learned to write what I planned to say before I flipped on the microphone.  Great experience! 

In 2005 I took up blogging.  It was the dawn of Social Media and online blogs were all the rage. My first posts were awful!  Thank you to those of you who endured my early ramblings.  But I stuck at it.  Writing allowed me to get stuff off my chest.  

Writing this third book, 'Growing Up:  Canadian Jamaican' was cathartic!   It's raw!  Writing the stories was the easy part...pulling the trigger on publishing it was hard.  I hope you enjoy reading the stories from growing up in Jamaica and Canada.  I'll be ecstatic if I can help even one person!

Until next time...

10 Small Business Marketing Tactics for 2020

Last week I spoke with a couple of budding business owners.  They are in the planning stages for a new business venture in the food and beverage industry.  This is a crowded field with a high failure rate.  Their business will compete with National Chains and Independent operators.  It will be challenging.  But they have a secret weapon:  They have stories.  Real stories from their travels around the world that they can use to market the uniqueness of their business.  That's an edge...and it may be just what they need as they take the leap of faith to start it up.  

Stories...content...one of the top 10 marketing tactics for small business owners.

Until next time...
Chris Morales

Sports Marketing Tourism Still Growing

Sports Marketing tourism is still growing globally.  Reggae Marathon, the experience I am most closely related to, runners from over 40 countries made their way to Jamaica to participate in the 2019 event.  That is an increase in over 10% in one year.  The three things that stand out:

1. Runners come for the experience.  For most it's a warm weather destination where they can escape winter at home, have a great vacation and run in a well executed event.
2. Local culture is important.  At Reggae Marathon we take a bus tour to visit a number of off-the-beaten path bars and restaurants.  Some are in people's homes!  Definitely get to experience a bit more of the local culture on these excursions.
3. Digital Media, particularly the 3 biggest Social Media channels, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter extend and expand the experience.  Participating runners share their photos and stories using specific hashtags and that in turn exposes the event to more people.  And so on...

For more, here are ten future trends in sport tourism:

Until next time...

Chris Morales

5 Marketing Trends for 2019

5 Digital Marketing Priorities

The 5 digital marketing priorities harken back to the basics:  Being in the right place at the right time with messages that resonate and are engaging

B2B Marketing...Hungry For Content

Content, content, content...If you've heard it once...

The appetite for content is unending especially in Social Selling.  Showing thought leadership and sharing content relevant to prospects is at the core of helping prospects navigate the buying process.  Professional selling gets a boost when sales people leverage content about their products and services that differentiates them from competitors.  White Papers, Articles, Blogs, Webinars, Product Demos...Content!

Chris M Morales

chris.morales@bell.net

@ChrisMoralesTO

647 393 3855

The opinions expressed on this blog are my own and are not associated with any other group or organization

Content Marketing to grow your Business

What is Content Marketing? 

Content Marketing:  "A type of marketing that involves the creation and sharing of online material (such as videos, blogs, and social media posts) that does not explicitly promote a brand but is intended to stimulate interest in its products or services. Social media is an integral part of content marketing".  "Stimulate interest in a product or service" is the key to understanding the power of Content Marketing:

Chris M Morales

chris.morales@bell.net

@ChrisMoralesTO

647 393 3855

The opinions expressed on this blog are my own and are not associated with any other group or organization

The Content Marketing Mix

Effective content marketing is all about understanding the strength of each touch-point and channel...then using each appropriately

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Chris M Morales

MarCommTO

chris.morales@bell.net

647 393 3855

Linkedin:  Chris M Morales 

The opinions expressed on this blog are my own and are not associated with any other group or organization

3 Steps to Effective Content Marketing

Content marketing has been growing as companies big and small, online and bricks-and-mortar experience sales results.  The 3 steps to effective marketing?  Pick a topic, produce, promote on Social Media Channels:

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Chris M Morales

MarCommTO

chris.morales@bell.net

647 393 3855

Linkedin:  Chris M Morales 

The opinions expressed on this blog are my own and are not associated with any other group or organization

What to Share and Say on Social Media

Here's a handy tip sheet on what to say and share on a number of the major Social Media Channels.

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Chris M Morales
MarCommTO

chris.morales@bell.net

647 393 3855

Linkedin:  Chris M Morales 

The opinions expressed on this blog are my own and are not associated with any other group or organization

Content Marketing drives more Leads than Paid Search

"Per dollar, content marketing produces 3 times more leads than other online mediums like paid search".  That's a strong claim.  It's substantiated by the three primary benefits of Content Marketing:

1. Drive inbound traffic to the web site
2. Improves natural SEO with original content and links
3. Brand Awareness through Engagement

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Chris M Morales
MarCommTO

chris.morales@bell.net

647 393 3855

Linkedin:  Chris M Morales 

The opinions expressed on this blog are my own and are not associated with any other group or organization

Digital Marketing Trends 2015

We're nearly 6 months into 2015 and the predictions in marketing trends keep coming. Three that top my list of trends to plan for:  

1. Mobile.  Everything available anytime on my mobile device.
2. Visual Storytelling.  Being able to tell a story well is the new baseline of marketing.
3. Acting on Data.  It's not good enough to be able to measure everything, tell me what it means.

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Chris M Morales
MarCommTO

chris.morales@bell.net

647 393 3855

Linkedin:  Chris M Morales 

The opinions expressed on this blog are my own and are not associated with any other group or organization

Content Marketing: Strategy first then Tactics

Way too often Strategy is confused with Tactics.  After all we all like to talk about the how's of how to get things done...sometimes at the expense of defining the strategy first.

So Strategy first, then tactics.  Works every time.

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Chris M Morales
MarCommTO

chris.morales@bell.net

647 393 3855

Linkedin:  Chris M Morales 

The opinions expressed on this blog are my own and are not associated with any other group or organization

Content Marketing and Social Media

The current topic in Digital Marketing and Social Media Marketing in particular is Content. Creation, distribution, sharing;  Original and User-generated.  And while challenging to measure in terms of hard ROI, Content Marketing via Social Media is growing both in importance and effectiveness.  At the heart of Content Marketing is an 'old school' concept:  Word-of-Mouth!  Amplified many times over by effective use of Social Media.

For Brands and Marketers looking to maximize Content Marketing, three words are key:  "Create, Curate, Optimize".  Here's an Infographic that does a good job of showing how:

Chris Morales

chris.morales@bell.net

647 393 3855

Linkedin:  Chris M Morales 

Content Marketing Explained

In the 'Good Old Days' it was about 'Awareness, Consideration, Preference'.  'AD' or 'After Digital' it's the same.  Marketing practitioners need to know how to connect with their target customes emotionally...Content Marketing steps up to the plate.  Here's a visual that explains how Content Marketing  works:

Clients are now competing with Advertising Agencies to find and hire talented Digital Marketing people who know how to integrate Content Marketing into their business.  Contact me if you're looking for this Talent.

Until next time...

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Chris Morales

chris.morales@bell.net

647 393 3855

Linkedin:  Chris M Morales 

Content Marketing: The New Norm

A few years ago Social Media was all the rage.  Big, faceless institutions rushed to get into Social Media. Some spent time developing 'Roadmaps';  most set up Facebook Pages, Twitter accounts and even Blogs; a few actually thought about the Content.  Fast forward a few years and we have the new norm, Content Marketing.

Content Marketing is Marketing:  Working strategically to get someone to prefer and hopefully buy your product or service.  We've seen an increase in demand for people who understand this and more importantly know how to do it. This particular position for a Toronto-based Client is typical of the jobs we are working on now:  Demand Generation/Inside Sales.

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Chris Morales

chris.morales@bell.net

647 393 3855

Linkedin:  Chris M Morales 

The Top 5 Challenges in Content Marketing

More and more frequently I get asked to find Digital Marketing people who Content Marketing. It's the latest buzzword in digital marketing and CMO's in every sector from Banking to Retail to eCommerce talk about their Content Marketing Strategies.

The challenge in business and marketing today is the same as it always has been:  There's never enough time, information or resources. The secret to success is how a business overcomes these challenges by leveraging effectively what resources they do have to provide real value to their customers.  

For more information on these top 5 challenges in Content Marketing, here's the link to the article:  The Top 5 Challenges in Creating Effective B2B Content.

For a easy-to-understand Infographic on the Content Marketing Delivery funnel, go to this link: Content Marketing.

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Chris Morales

chris.morales@bell.net

647 393 3855

Linkedin:  Chris M Morales