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  • Grow Your Business NOW! A How-to-Guide

    Grow Your Business NOW! A How-to-Guide

    Successfully growing your business in a global pandemic is challenging. However, some of the most impressive businesses, inventions and innovations were born in times of distress and hardship. 

    We’ve put together a guide to help you chart a course for customer growth through adhering to strategies and tactics applied to the customer journey to engage with your business. 

    Attracting and retaining new customers is much different today versus the days of taking out an ad in the local newspaper and hoping for the best. Today, business owners of all sizes across all markets need creative marketing strategies to compete in the current, dynamic market.  

    In a time of uncertainty, two things remain the same: 

    1. Consumer expectations remain high:  You must deliver a product or service that is efficient, has timely and courteous customer service, provides transparency, and creates a 1:1 relationship with the customer.
    2. Winning at the “basics” is key to success. 

    Achieving this may sound daunting, but with a healthy appreciation of the five stages of the customer journey and the key marketing actions within each, success is more than achievable. We’ve outlined the five stages and key marketing actions below. 

    Your marketing plan must address each phase of the customer Journey

    1st: Discovery– how consumers discover your product  

    • Achieved through:  Online lists social media & search engine optimization 

    2nd:  Validation: how consumers validate why you are the best choice 

    • Achieved with: Education via blogs, online guides and live chat

    3rd: Conversion- helping consumers make the purchase and gaining the right insights

    • Achieved by: Customer relationship management (CRM)

    4th: Retention- maximizing the post-purchase experience 

    • Tools used: Email marketing and data analysis 

    5th: Loyalty-Retaining customers and turning them into advocates 

    • Key Tactic: Influencer marketing 

    To further define: the customer lifecycle is a term that describes the different steps a customer goes through when they are considering, buying, using, and remaining loyal to a particular product or service. 

    This lifecycle has been broken down into five distinct stages: reach, acquisition, conversion, retention, and loyalty.

    1. Discovery

    This is when a customer begins searching for a product or service.  It is said that discovery most often begins online.  This is when customers compare products across competitor brands, as well as research  customer reviews, ratings and articles. Eventually, the customer will reach out to a certain brand with questions and concerns.  When your marketing materials and content are in the “right places” this will make you more discoverable and help potential consumers become aware of you. 

    Ways to Improve your discoverability: 

    Local Listings
    There are three major online local listings you should be represented on. Firstly, and most importantly, there’s Google Places. You want to show up on Google searches, and you want to be included in online listings, so you need to be registered on Google Places. This is doubly important if your business is a retailer or a restaurant.vThe other online listings are Yahoo! Local and Bing’s online listing. All three of these online listing services are free, and they’re a great way to get your business out there. Consider getting your online presence up and running through these services.

     

    Social Media: If you are not engaging on social media, now is the time. There’s no two ways about this: either your Facebook, Instagram  and Twitter accounts need to be on point or you’re leaving money on the table. Social has replaced many forms of traditional marketing (e.g., newspaper advertising) and helping many companies achieve great success.  If you are debating hiring a social manager or agency, it is worth the investment.  

    • B2B MUST:  Make sure your company LinkedIn profile is professional and clear.  Have all employees update their personal profiles with the same brand message. 

    Search Engine Optimization
    Search engine optimization, or SEO, is a process of making your website’s pages easier to find in search engine results. This involves using specific keywords and repeating the keywords in headers, titles and meta descriptions. A web developer, site designer or some similar type of professional would be ideal to tap in this sort of marketing push.

    Consider hiring a freelance web designer to make sure your business has a webpage that is ideal for search engine optimization. They’ll be able to go in and make your site look great, and make it more searchable on sites like Google.

    2. Education

    This is when and how a brand “responds” to “inquiries” from the potential customer, as well as inquire for more information on the customer’s needs. Following that, the brand will offer the best products or services to satisfy the customer’s needs, as well as educate the customer on the uses of those products or services.   Responding comes in many forms and businesses are smart to offer multiple response styles (e.g., online materials, live chat, easily accessible customer service phone lines or email). 

    Online materials: For example, if a customer is exploring new sneakers a running company would be wise to provide a product comparison chart addressing typical runner demands – tread, ankle support, width, etc. 

    Live chat:  Zendesk offers real-time out reach – reach out and talk to customers before they even ask a question. Innovative clothing rental company Le Tote uses an automated trigger to offer help to customers who are lingering on the checkout page. By proactively engaging customers during the buying process, Le Tote is able to reduce cart abandonment and increase conversions.

    Accessible customer service: Sometimes “picking up the phone” is the easiest way to confirm your questions. Business with clear contact information and smart, well trained customer support ready to help will have better odds at winning the customer, building loyalty and gaining advocates. 

    Services like Ruby help make this possible, even if you are a 1-man show: 

    Ruby is a 100% US – based virtual receptionists business service specializing in making the most out of every customer conversation. They understand that when clients call, it’s important, urgent, or both and offer  daytime and after-hours call support, helping put customers  at ease, taking  down messages and information, and answering questions. Ruby’s got you covered 24 hours a day with live coverage. They can direct calls to you, your staff or take messages at any time everyday of the year. 

    Blogs
    Another great way to support the education phase is a blog, it also helps drive SEO and your google rating.  Things that a blog could cover are quite varied and could depend on your business’s specifics. For instance, if your business is a restaurant, your blog could cover recipes, specials, events and news relating to the restaurant. Whatever makes your business tick, that’s what you should blog about.

    3. Purchase

    Wohoo!!!  You won them over, they have all the information necessary and make the big purchase or commitment.   Congratulations, your marketing efforts to attract them worked!  Now the fun begins, it’s time to keep them, encourage repeat purchases and turn them into brand advocates.   This is more easily achieved when you have the right tools integrated into your purchase platform, so that when they make the purchase you gather the key information from the get-go. Thankfully, many ecommerce and POS systems offer CRM (Customer Relationship Management)  solutions or have an open API system to allow for integration. 

    A great example of a CRM tool provider is bridg.com. Bridg helps gain rich insights into your entire customer base (known and unknown), segment and create optimized audiences, and drive direct revenue generation through targeted personalized marketing with closed loop measurement.  

    4. Post-Purchase Engagement (phase II of your marketing strategy)

    This is when you begin building a lasting relationship with your customer. Great ways to engage are email followup asking for feedback on the customer service experience, their level of happiness with the brand and/or if they would be willing to follow you  on social media. This information can also help you improve your product, service or gain insights on more needs.  You should also plan to follow-up in the next 30-60 days to introduce a new product or additional service. 

    • ENGAGEMENT TIP: Take a look at your customer orders to see if certain products pair well together and create your own “Regularly bought together” or “Customers who purchases, also liked” 

    Email Marketing
    Email marketing allows you to email your customers directly when they’re on a mailing list. You could email them news about new offers and deals, or coupons for hot new items. You could also email them to keep them abreast of news relating to your business, potentially increasing customer engagement with your brand.

    5. Retention & Advocacy 

    Retention begins when the customer is happy with their first purchase or engagement, feels good about their purchase and feels as though that you took care of them or listened to their feedback. The customer feels like an important asset to the brand and makes additional future purchases with the brand.

    From a local popcorn shop to a venture backed technology advocacy is one of the best forms of marketing.  This is the stage of the relationship, where the customer feels fully vested with your product or service and even if there is no need for them to make an immediate secondary purchase, they are happy to recommend your business to their friends, family and colleagues. Spreading awareness amongst social circles is easy to do once a customer is loyal to a brand, and if they continually spread positive recommendations, their extended network is more likely to convert as well.  This was the original form of “influencer” marketing. 

    TIP:  Influencer marketing is a hot topic these days, but it simply bowls down to advocacy, which we know is critical.   In the world of social media, “influencers” those who have a large following or are admired for their style or professional experience (think a successful marathoner or photographer), it often requires a financial investment as well as free product/services. If you are not ready to go down the paid path, you can engage your customers and encourage them to share their experience with shopping with you. This might not have the same impact as someone with a huge following, but it does help your brand get in front of more eyes.  


    In short, there are a number of ways you can leverage the internet to make your business more recognizable and to increase your business’s performance. Really, the biggest mistake you could make is ignoring your online presence. 

    There’s money to be made: you only need to capitalize on online marketing so you can make it!


  • Best Study Laptop for Students: What to Look For

    Best Study Laptop for Students: What to Look For

    When you’re shipping off for college, you want to make sure you’re bringing the best gear with you. Of course, you want only the best backpack, binders, pencils and such, but that’s not where you need to really worry about quality. The most important consideration you need to make for your college gear is in your laptop.

    When you’re studying, you’ll need to use your laptop to find the information. During class, when you’re taking notes, you’ll need to be able to quickly navigate your note-taking app and get everything in order while the professor is lecturing. When you’re writing essays, you need to be comfortable with the laptop’s keyboard. And, of course, you’ll want to make sure you’re aptly entertained when it comes time to unwind.

    Weight

    First off, when you’re shopping for a laptop for college, make sure it’s light and easy to throw in a bag and carry around with you. You’re already going to be sporting a ton of books and carrying all of your scrap paper and pencils to and from class. The last thing you need is to also have to worry about lugging a heavy laptop with all of this stuff.

    Remember, though, that a lot of your time using the laptop will involve typing and writing essays. This means you’ll want to have a good-sized trackpad and keyboard for the most ergonomic experience. If you do have to sacrifice on keyboard size to keep the laptop to a reasonable size and weight, of course, you can opt for a USB keyboard and mouse to keep in your room for heavy-lifting tasks.

    Screen

    You probably don’t need a massive, 17-inch OLED screen for the laptop you’re going to be using mostly for schoolwork. Also, per our last tip, you probably don’t want a laptop that big taking up so much space in your backpack. A 13- or 15-inch screen will likely be more than enough for scholastic purposes, so don’t go overboard when you’re looking at screens.

    If you’re looking for something to serve as a great entertainment device for when you’re back in your dorm, consider getting a Roku and a small HDTV. Alternatively, if you’re wanting to play video games, you could probably find a good deal on a Nintendo Switch, which would dramatically lighten your load compared to buying a full-fledged gaming laptop.

    Memory

    When you’re considering what kind of storage your laptop needs, make sure you’re getting a solid state drive. SSDs are more expensive than conventional hard drives, but they are well-worth the extra money. That’s because SSDs are stationary, unlike hard drives that spin in your computer, and so they travel much more safely. The less moving parts a portable computer has, the better!

    SSDs also load information significantly faster than hard drives. Keep in mind, however, that it’s hard to notice this bump for the types of tasks you’ll likely be using a school computer for. If you often use Photoshop or render graphics, such as for video games or design, however, you’ll see a marked improvement in speed for SSDs.

    Power

    Finally, we get to the big question. What kind of power should your school laptop have? Budget-conscious students will say “nearly none,” while gamers and tech fiends will say “all of it,” but neither is accurate.

    For the purposes of research, writing papers and browsing the web, all while not tearing too hard into the laptop’s battery life, the best option is more measured. A Coffee Lake processor, for instance, will offer a great balance of power and performance. However, if you’re looking for a more budget, school-focused machine, something like a Chromebook might be the best option.


  • Best Kids Internet Monitoring Programs

    Best Kids Internet Monitoring Programs

    It can be hard to parent effectively in the age of information. The internet is a big, unregulated place full of things kids probably shouldn’t see. While the simplest solution is to simply keep young children away from the internet, that’s an unlikely solution. That’s where these internet monitoring programs come in!

    Best Internet Monitoring Programs

    Net Nanny Review

    This service is so well-known that its name is almost synonymous with internet monitoring programs in general. This service costs $40 a month, which makes it a bit on the pricier side. However, it works across multiple platforms and offers control directly from an app. If you have Android, that is! Sorry, iPhone users.

    Net Nanny allows you to choose from a variety of filters to stop access to tons of different types of content. Most monitoring services prevent access to nudity or violence, of course. Net Nanny lets you increase the granularity of what is filtered, however. This allows you to rest easy knowing your children’s particular fears or phobias are being filtered out.

    Symantec Norton Family Premier Review

    Norton, well-known for their antivirus software, also has a well-regarding internet monitoring service. This service is highly recommended, due to its high-quality web interface and strong filtering tools. You can monitor and filter access from all devices that are connected to a network. This allows you to keep your children safe no matter what device they’re using.

    The only downside to Norton’s service is that it isn’t available on Mac. If your household doesn’t own a Mac, however, you have nothing to worry about. Another notable shortcoming is a lack of strong social media controls, but you can always just ban social media sites outright to avoid the problem. What 8-year-old needs Facebook, anyway?

    Qustodio

    A well-made and easy-to-use tracker, Qustodio works across Macs, Windows and mobile devices. It allows for strong filtering and monitoring tools, as well. It has a somewhat outdated web interface, but that’s outweighed by the strength of its monitoring and filtering. If your house has a wide variety of devices, from iOS to Android to Macs and PCs, this is the best monitoring program for you.

    The only notable downside to Qustodio is its relatively high price. The service runs $50, which is a touch expensive. However, it’s well-worth the robust monitoring and peace of mind it offers.


  • Back to School Tips: What to Buy and How to Save

    Back to School Tips: What to Buy and How to Save

    When you’re shipping your little ones off to school, the last thing you want is for them to be underequipped. In the modern classroom, things are fast-paced, interconnected and competitive. Getting high marks is harder now than ever before, so making sure your kids are outfitted with the best gear is a must to help them stay competitive. Today we’re going over the must-have tech and best deals you can find on back-to-school gear.

    Back to School Tips

    Only Shop Deals

    Between buying back-to-school clothes, school supplies and new tech the kids might need for school, you might find yourself spending a lot of money on them. This is why we highly recommend you only shop for deals this time of year. If you just buy the first thing you see every time you walk into a store, you’re going to find yourself seriously strapped for cash in no time.

    Make sure you’re getting deals on all school supplies that start around at least 40% off. For clothes, buy either steep discounts, like 30% off or better, or buy secondhand clothes that are significantly cheaper than brand-new. When it comes to tech, it’s okay to buy laptops or tablets that are a few generations behind to save a few hundred bucks. Make sure you make that cash last!

    Don’t Get Distracted

    There are tons of gadgets and gizmos that you might think the kids could need for school. Things like e-readers might seem like sensible purchases until you realize that a tablet does the same thing, but can also double as a notepad and research aid. Don’t let marketing hype trick you into buying tons of stuff that your kid doesn’t actually need for school.

    Another example of this is stores selling back to school clothes in big “sales events” without actually offering significant discounts. Remember, there are tons of stores you can go to in order to find deals on clothes. If you go to a department store and see absurdly high “sale” prices on clothes, it’s best to leave and look for better deals elsewhere.

    Power vs Convenience

    If you plan to buy your kid a laptop for school or for college, it’s best to know what you’re looking at. A lot of high-end laptops might look like they’re great for students, but think critically. How much power does a student really need to write research papers and type notes? A super high-end processor and a 4K screen might be a bit of overkill on a device meant to help with studies.

    We recommend prioritizing a smaller laptop, something like a Chromebook or a netbook. These are less expensive than high-end gaming laptops, offer a smaller, more portable profile, and don’t guzzle battery charge as quickly. These things all make them ideal for putting in a school bag and carrying from class to class to take notes. Your tech-savvy youngster might be begging for a super-powered laptop with tons of RAM and great graphics, but they’ll appreciate not lugging that heavy beast all over campus.

    Fitness Tracker

    If you’re sending a kid off to college and they seem interested in fitness, it might be worth looking into getting them a fitness tracker. Examples like the FitBit and Apple Watch are great for keeping track of time spent exercising and calories burned. They can also serve as handy ways to keep from opening the smartphone and scrolling ad infinitum when it’s study time!

    Many people who use smart watches or fitness trackers that pair with their phones have noted their time saving functionality. Since you don’t have to open your phone to see the time or check an incoming message, you don’t have the same desire to start scrolling through your social media feeds. This frees up that much more time to study and do schoolwork!


  • Get Your Degree Online- Our Review of Top Schools

    Get Your Degree Online- Our Review of Top Schools

    For many adults, it is easy to hit a roadblock in your career and the only way to advance and improve your income is to further your education. However, it is hard to find time to go back to college and traditionally finish a degree. This is why online degree programs, programs that allow you to do all of your degrees online without having to attend physical classes or worry about being somewhere at a specific time during the week, have grown in popularity.

    There are many different options for online colleges, but not all of them will provide a high-quality education that you need to further your career. Here is our review on some of the best online colleges:

    1. University of Florida

    If you are looking for an online college that is affordable and has great name recognition, then look no further than the University of Florida. While there is an online campus, UF offers 24 fully online programs that will lead you to your Bachelor’s degree. Most of the online programs offered include nursing, public relations, emergency services, communications, and business.

    As an online student from the University of Florida, you can enjoy added flexibility for creating a schedule that works around your time. UF provides policies that allow you to customize your course loads and study schedules while supporting the success of their online learners. You can even get complete access to the Career Connections Center to help you find advanced job search support, career coaching, and networking opportunities.

    The Benefits

    • 24 programs to choose from
    • Customize your schedule around other obligations
    • Affordable with great name-recognition
    • Provides exceptional career support as you finish your degree.

    The Drawbacks:

    • Hard to know when you will graduate if the scheduling changes.
    • Distance learning can be intense through this program for those not prepared.

    The Cost:

    The cost of attending UF online is $129.18 per credit hour or $28,659 annually.

    The Reviews:

    The Positive: Most students agreed that UF provided them with the best education online possible. The coursework is interesting and the professors gave more time and attention than many other online options. The online programs are mostly geared towards providing Bachelor’s Degrees, though some Master’s programs are not available as well.

    The Negative: Some students found that it was hard to connect with the professors, especially if the teacher of a class was not in the same time zone or the same city. This made it difficult to seek help or get recommendations after graduation.

    2. LeTourneau University

    This online university is based out of Texas and promotes itself as a Christian polytechnic university. Their goal is to combine a Christian worldview with a practical and innovative approach to education online. Any distance learner who works with this college can choose from more than 20 online programs in subjects from education, theology, business, and even theology. It also ranks high in aviation and aeronautical science education, providing five blended or fully online programs in these disciplines.

    Even if you have already started your education somewhere else, LETU will count you as part of their student body. In fact, out of 3175 students, hundreds are transfer students, which has led them to maintain an inclusive transfer credit policy. It is possible to waive 75% of your degree requirements if you have taken classes in other locations.

    The Benefits

    • There are more than 20 degrees to choose from.
    • Provides the best in aviation education if you choose to work with that degree.
    • Set up to work well with transfer students who want to finish there

     

    The Cost

    The annual tuition for this online university is between $9585 to $12,825 depending on which degree program you choose to use. Books and supplies will cost more.

    The Reviews

    The positive: The online school provides effective teaching from highly-qualified professors. Some worried about finding hands-on experience through the online portion, but the work is intense and prepares students for their future.

    The negative: The biggest complaint with this one is the lack of social life for both on-campus and online options. This makes it hard to meet others to network and meet others in your chosen career path.

    3. Keiser University

    This college was founded in 1977 and operates 21 campuses through Florida. The mandate of this college is to provide affordable, practical, and convenient career training to any adult learner who wants to expand their career options. This is still the object found in Keiser University today and they show this by providing 25 fully online programs for adult learners. It is also the third-largest nonprofit university system so they know what they are doing, serving more than 20,000 students.

    If you want to work with an online school that focuses on improving your career, then Keiser is a great choice. Keiser’s health science programs are some of the best in the area. Some of the degrees you can earn online through Keiser includes nursing, health services administration, health science, and health information management.

    The Benefits

    • Provides 25 online programs that are designed for adult learners who want to advance in their careers.
    • Their focus is all on helping adult learners so the classes are flexible and easy to use.
    • Has the rare Level VI designation because it awards degrees at all levels.

    The Negatives

    • It is specific in the types of degrees it offers, which can make it hard for certain degrees to work online.
    • The cost is a little higher per year than other options.

    The Costs

    The average cost each year to complete your degree online through Keiser is $16,690.

    The Reviews

    The positives: The professors are there to help and provide feedback on all assignments to help make sure you fully understand the material, which is a common issue in other online colleges. They are fast-paced and challenging so you know the material that you are learning. The online format relies on Blackboard, which makes it easier to interact with other classmates and knows when assignments are due.

    The negatives: Because this is a private college more than a public one, the costs are a little higher.Other options in Florida providee more affordable tuition for online classes.

    4. Drexel University

    Located in Philadelphia, Drexel University has many online bachelor’s programs to choose from. With 19 options across 10 subject areas, you are sure to find something that suits your needs. You can enjoy degrees in subjects including business, criminal justice, and behavioral sciences. The certified teachers, the advanced expertise, and all the program options lead to the school having a freshmen retention rate of 88%.

    In addition to providing a lot of great online programs offered through this college, it is one of the largest research universities. As an online learner, you can enjoy the ability to customize your degree path and your own schedules. e flexible policies are amazing because they allow you to take some of your previous college work and transfer up to 80 s80-semesterdits. This speeds up your degree completion time.

    The Benefits

    • A research university that can help you get more hands-on experience, even as an online learner.
    • The ability to transfer over previous college credits.
    • Flexibility to choose the schedule of learning that works the best for you.

    The Negatives

    Limited on the types of degrees that are offered online.

    The Costs

    The average cost for this online college is about $13,000 a year. Some degrees are a little lower and some may cost more.

    The Reviews

    The positives: Students enjoyed being able to customize their learning experience and the ability to work online on not just a Bachelor’s degree, but also a Master’s degree in some industries as well.

    The negative: Some teachers are slow to respond and give feedback on any questions the students may have, leaving some of them feeling left behind.

    5. University of Arizona

    Students who choose the online part of The University of Arizona get to enjoy all the benefits. This is one of the highest ranked highest-ranked count countries that provides a lot of great online programs. Online students get to pay the same tuition rates as in-state students, no matter where they take these classes and 93% of the students who studied online said they would recommend this college to others. Plus data from PayScale shows that this university placed first in a review of potential earnings among graduates in the state.

    If you choose to take your online classes from here, you can pick from 33 online bachelor’s programs. There are many options that you can choose including Accounting, Biochemistry, Business, Food Industry Management d Communications. The school also welcomes all transfer students, working hard to match learners with previous credits so the transition is as smooth as possible without needing to retake any classes.

    The Benefits

    • 33 online options to choose from.
    • 93% of the student learners would recommend this to their friends.
    • Earn the highest income out of all students in the state.
    • Tuition rate for students online is the same as in-state tuition, making this an affordable option.

    The Negatives

    Even though this comes with some good name recognition, it does cost more than other online degree programs, which can make it prohibitive to others.

    The Costs

    The cost of this online education is a little higher than the other options on our list, coming in at almost $37,000.

    The Reviews

    The positive: Since the online program provides in-state tuition, it can save money compared to being an out of state student, even if you are far away from the main campus. The great reputation and easy transfer process makes this an even better place to get your degree.

    The negatives: Some students were looking for more options in majors and found that signing up and getting the program ready to go was a little complicated. The tech support provided assistance that made this easier.

    6. Mercer University

    Mercer University was established in 1833 and is an accredited college in Macon, GA. This private nonprofit school provides a great reputation, ranking along with other leading private colleges in the state. Distance learning is one of the top educational priorities in the staStudentsents can choose between 21 online programs that lead to a Bachelor’s degree.

    In 2018, a new long-term development plan was approved that gave $200 million to increase research spending. This is great news for online students who are in degrees oriented around resethe arch. Some of the majors that benefit from an online degree from Mercer University include mental health-related, social science, informatics, human development, and healthcare.

    The Benefits

    • A prestigious private school with 21 online programs.
    • Many research-focused degrees with money to back them up.
    • Accredited and challenging classes to put students at the top of their field.

    The Negatives

    Mercer University is a private university, which can make it a little harder to get accepted.
    If you want a degree that is not research-focused, your options are limited.

    The Costs

    The cost of attending Mercer University online is about $19,000 a year. For a private college, this is an affordable choice for your online degree.

    The Reviews

    The positives: Teachers were responsive and knew the material. There were opportunities to work with research, even with the online classes, so this will help online students get a great education.

    The negatives: Many students were worried that the online and traditional courses were the same so you were not getting atrulye online experience through this. This did vary depending on the class that was taken though.

    Final Thoughts

    Choosing an online college provides you with opportunities to finish your degree and advance your career, even when you do not have time to sit in class all day long with a traditional college class schedule. There are many online colleges to choose from, but not all of them will provide high-quality education and affordable degree choices check out the online colleges we discussed above to help you determine the best place to earn your education.