email liz@isbe.org.uk

http://econsultancy.com/events/jump

http://www.slniw.com/SLNIW_Call_for_Papers.pdf

http://www.smallbusiness.co.uk/events-calendar/257710/protecting-your-business.thtml

Every website has the aim of increasing traffic. There are many different ways traffic can be increased, improving SEO, off and on page optimisation and PPC campaigns are just a few. At Ortegra, we have recognised that by far the most effective method of directing traffic to a website is an innovative and creative social media strategy. This article will explain how exactly you can use social media to direct traffic to your website.

Before we start explaining how to use social media in order to drive traffic, it is vital that two factors are recognized. These are the facts that increasing the number of links to your website, thus also optimising SEO, is crucial to driving traffic. The second point is that social media should be used to increase awareness of your website. This article is heavily influenced and written in context of these facts.

One of the best ways to get more hits to your website is to write articles. If you have read any of our previous articles, you will know that articles have many benefits, such as becoming an authoritative source in your industry area. However, articles that are written in the correct style, will drive traffic to your website. Articles allow you to submit a link to your site at the end of the article. If your article is informative and interesting, people reading it will be more inclined to click on the link to your site. If your article is mundane, or purely written for promotional use, it is unlikely many people who read it will view your website.  It is of critical importance then, that articles are well written and provide an insightful viewpoint, if they are not, traffic will not be increased.

Social bookmarking is another excellent way of driving traffic to your site. You are able to bookmark articles that you have written or pages from your website. The article will again display a link to your website; naturally the page from your website will also count as a link. By creatively bookmarking( i.e. bookmarking other content from competitors and other relevant  pages) you can increase the number of links to your site across the web, thus also encouraging more traffic to your site.

Creating a presence on Facebook, Twitter and if applicable Linkedin, will also drive traffic to your site. You are able to post links to your site through your Facebook Fan Page as well as via tweets. Furthermore, these two sites allow for ‘friends’ and ‘followers’ to be made.  A successful Facebook Fan Page, may quickly have 1,000 fans or in the same way, you may have 500 Twitter followers. These people are all likely to visit your site as they are interested in what your site is about. Furthemore, their friends on Facebook will see that they have joined your page and Twitter followers may also recommend your site. These two platforms will give your website more exposure and awareness across the internet, which will help to drive more traffic to your website.

A presence on Linkedin may also aid traffic to your site. Linkedin provides the opportunity to create groups and a personal profile. Any article that is written can be posted to the group, with a link back to the article. In addition, you are able to ask the whole Linkedin community a question with a link to your website at the end of the question, you may also answer any questions, again including a link at the end of your answer. In the same way as Facebook and Twitter, this social networking site will increase awareness as well as links.

A great avenue which is often left unexplored is commenting on various blogs and articles that are related to your industry. This again has a two fold advantage of increasing awareness and also the number of links back to your website. Every time a comment is left, you are able to provide a link back to your website. If your comment is well made and adds value to the article, then the person who wrote the article is likely to respond. By commenting on many articles, you will increase the number of people who know about your site and also the number of links. The writer of the article, or indeed anybody else, may click on the link attached with your comment, if your comment is well written and provides further insight into the content of the article.

By combining these social media platforms, a huge amount of exposure can be created, as well as significant number of links to your site. It is vital that as many of these social media platforms are used as possible, as they all work in conjunction with one another. If used in the right way, social media can be a huge contributor in driving traffic to your website.

Small and medium sized businesses should look at graduate unemployment as an excellent opportunity. Here is a large group of people, who have been educated to university level and have gained many transferable skills. Naturally, there will be a number of these graduates who have specific degrees and have a set industry they wish to work in. However, there are many who completed arts or humanities courses, who would bring a number of invaluable competences to benefit your business. These include research, analytical, interpretive, communication, written, presentational and verbal skills, in addition to many other talents, depending upon the nature of the degree undertaken.

Due to the shortage of graduates currently in employment, wages can initially be kept fairly low. Graduates recognise that competition for jobs is fierce, thus may take jobs based on the experience and opportunities they can gain, rather than for financial reasons.  Furthermore, many will accept an initial internship or trial period. This allows you to make an assessment of the potential employee, judging whether or not they will be successful at the job you have in mind for them, and if they will fit into your business.

Another of the many advantages about employing a graduate is that they are willing to learn and will work hard to prove themselves. They know there are thousands of people waiting to take their job, giving them an extra incentive to be a success in their internship or trial period. Additionally, university teaches students to learn, especially in the arts and humanities degrees. This results in the fact that many continue this trait in the workplace, and will be keen to learn  about your business as much as possible.

Employing a graduate in undoubtedly a risk, and as much as this blog has made a case for employing a graduate, employing an experienced person is far less risky. However, in business it is important at times to take risks. Currently graduates represent a cost effective solution to employment in small and medium sized business, so taking one on could be the best business decision you will ever make.

The most important reason a campaign needs to include variety is so that the business does not get typecast or stereotyped. If a business only uses Twitter to promote the latest offers, the Facebook Fan Page to advertise services and a blog, which only ever talks about the business, then there is a high chance that the campaign will fail. People will not bother to read tweets or the blog as they know the content is only trying to sell something or advertise a product or service. If the campaign is run along these lines, people will become disengaged and the campaign will be unsuccessful.

Social media marketing campaigns must attract people to actively participate in different mediums. This can be a response to a tweet, clicking on a link from a tweet, a comment on a blog or a like on a Facebook Fan Page. The way to encourage this participation is to have extensive variation in the campaign strategy.

This variation includes asking direct questions through a tweet or Facebook Wall Post, displaying news stories relating to the industry area, using polls, posting pictures, asking for opinion and insight, commenting on industry issues, posting a news story in the form of a question and varying the content and issues raised in a blog.

By combining a degree of advertising and promotion with the kinds of interactive features just mentioned, people will be encouraged to interact with the social media marketing campaign. This will create brand awareness and a following on social media platforms. However, as stated throughout this blog, this will only occur if there is variation in the campaign.

Twitter is now used by many businesses as a marketing tool. If it is used in the correct way it can become a very powerful weapon in a marketing strategy.  Its presence on the social media platform will only continue to grow; of this there is no doubt. However, many businesses are unaware of how to tweet effectively. Tweeting is an art, a significant amount of businesses are unaware of this. The purpose of this article is to give advice on how to tweet, so that your Twitter marketing campaign can as effective as possible.

The first point to make about tweeting is that it is essential you tweet regularly. This can be done through tweeting regularly on Twitter, or through Twitter software, which allows the tweets you come up with to be tweeted at regular intervals. If you do not tweet regularly people will lose interest in what you have to say. They will also become less aware of your business and therefore not have an interest in what you are tweeting, thus it is vital that you are consistently tweeting.

Many businesses are unsure of exactly what to tweet. They only create promotional tweets about their business and post links to their site. Whilst some promotional tweets are needed, it is important that the business recognises that the tweets need to be varied in nature. Tweets should be about related news items: take a piece of news from the internet, tweet with what you think of it, then post the link. Tweets can also be about your opinion on a subject within the industry the business is in. Many companies in the motor industry have regular tweets regarding their opinion on the predicament of Toyota.  By varying your tweets, it allows your twitter campaign to encompass many different areas; people will see that it is not purely a promotional campaign and are more likely to read your tweets and become a follower.

Tweets should encourage interaction. Tweets that are just statements do not encourage people to respond to your tweet. Interactive tweets allow for some customer insight to possibly be gained and also for you to analyse other opinions in the industry. For example, a recent tweet I did for Ortegra was ‘Do you agree that measuring social media marketing success is the biggest challenge social media faces? Have a read!’ There was then a link to an article discussing this question. Rather than just posting a comment on the article, this tweet actively encourages other people to respond back by directly asking for their opinion. This allows for opinion to gauged on this topic and for social interaction. The whole notion of social media is that it allows people to connect, if your tweets are just statements, then you are not utilising the potential of connecting with people through social media.

When tweeting it is crucial that you are creative in your use of language. Whilst you want people to understand the content of your tweet, you also have to encourage more followers.  However, you only have 140 characters. Again a recent tweet I did for Ortegra can be used to demonstrate this point: ‘Some great examples of how social media can save your business money! Have a read and start saving now!’ Again a link was posted to the article. This use of language entices people to read the article, whilst also detailing exactly what the article will be about. By using the word ‘great’, people are able to see that I would recommend the article, thus it already has a positive review. The ending of the tweet further encourages people to read the article; ‘Have a read and start saving now’ is a very persuasive piece of text. To start saving, you must read.  In this tweet there is information on the content of the article, as well as some language, which is designed to persuade people to read the article. These tweets show how in 140 characters, you can be persuasive in your language; the key to this is being as concise as possible.

There are of course many other factors relating to the nature of tweeting for a business, this article only details a few. However, it is of significant importance that when starting a Twitter campaign for your business, you analyse your tweets in great detail, many companies make the mistake of tweeting for the sake of tweeting. This is pointless and a waste of a valuable marketing space. By being thoughtful about your tweets you will be able to make far better use of this incredibly powerful social platform.

Entrepreneurs have many great ideas, some go on to become hugely successful businesses, whilst other fail. Sometimes the idea fails because it is simply not a good idea and not a viable business opportunity, others may lack the resources needed in order to turn them into a business.  However, some fail simply because they are not researched well.  This article will explain how researching your business before you start, is crucial to its success.

Evaluating the size and nature of the market your business idea will enter, plays a significant role in its future success. If the market is saturated with other similar businesses, then competition ill be fierce. This may mean that the idea needs to be altered so that it offers something slightly different to other similar companies. It could also mean that pricing needs to be changed in order to compete in such a competitive arena.  However, in a large market there will be more potential customers, this is always good for new businesses.

Alternatively the business idea may be entering a smaller more niche market. In this case, you must conduct extensive customer research in order to assess if the market will grow. You must also evaluate if there is indeed a demand for the service your business offers.  Additionally, a small market means that your potential customer base will decrease.  This must be taken into consideration.

Researching the nature of the market is vitally important. The history of the market should be taken into consideration.  What are common trends? By knowing the history and trends, plans can be put in place to respond to changes in the marketplace.

These factors need to be thoroughly reviewed when setting up your business.  If you do not analyse the nature and size of the market, then bad decisions are likely to be made as they will be made on limited information. By having extensive knowledge of the market, you are able to make rational decisions based on substantial information, for the benefit of your business.

Before turning an idea into a business reality, some research into competitors must be undertaken. Firstly, it is important that the main competitors are identified. Their prices need to be looked at and compared; this is essential, as pricing in a new business needs to be competitive. After reviewing this, three questions must be asked: What are competitors doing better? What are they doing worse? How can we improve the business by learning from competitors? Asking these questions then allows your business model to change. For instance, it could came to fruition from your research that competitors have a lack of focus on customer service, your business could then focus upon promoting customer service in order to exploit this deficiency.  Alternatively competitors may be offering a more comprehensive service. This would obviously mean that your business would need to respond to this and at least equal the service provided by competitors. By having this information, you are able to maximise every part of your business and compete with your rivals.

Perhaps the most crucial research you must do before you start your business is knowing who your target customer is, this will then lead to effective marketing. You must define what customers your business will be aimed at, this could be a large or small audience, depending upon the nature of your business.  Factors could include geography, demographics, gender, age, size of company or income. Once these factors and others have been analysed and a target customer identified, you can tailor your marketing campaign towards this audience. This will mean that the people who will see your marketing campaign are those likely to use your business. Without this research many people who are highly unlikely to engage with your business may see your campaign, this makes it ineffective.

Research is a time consuming process and as the saying goes ‘time is money.’ However, as demonstrated in this article its benefits are tremendous. Your business has a far better chance of success if you have researched thoroughly. This means that when you do set up the business, decisions are made faster and more efficiently, as they are based on information and not guess work. Too many start up companies fail to see the value of research, thus many run into problems very quickly.

Using Social Media to Increase Sales and Brand Awareness

Companies are continuously launching marketing campaigns in an effort to promote their brand and boost their sales. Some of these are highly successful – Carlsberg’s slogan and advertising of ‘probably the best lager in the world’ generates excellent brand awareness and reputation. This then contributes to increased sales and ultimately increased profits. However, many of these companies have large marketing and advertising budgets. What if your company can not afford these marketing initiatives? This is where Social media marketing comes in. Most social media marketing‘tools’are free to use and can provide the same amount of marketing exposure whether you are just starting out or are a giant conglomerate. This article explains how you can use social media marketing to increase sales at a relatively low cost.

Firstly, let’s just dispel the myth that social media marketing does not lead to a direct increase in sales. Here are some examples to prove this: Sony announced in February that through Twitter they had earned an extra £1million in sales, Dell announced in June last year that their presence on Twitter accounted for $3 million dollars increase in sales. You might argue that these are two big companiese and they already have a brand reputation. However, other smaller companies have also experienced increased sales through social media marketing. John Fluevog Boots & Shoes Ltd, a small shoe making company in Canada, reported a 40% increase in sales in 2009, the same year it started social media marketing, this was not by chance.

So how can social media marketing contribute to increased sales for your company? Social media tools allow you access to millions of people. A television advert will reach the people watching at that time and allows for no interaction with the consumer. One tweet can reach millions of people. Sainsbury’s for example regularly tweet their latest offers. Anyone wanting to keep up with these can simply follow Sainsbury’s on Twitter. This gives a much bigger potential customer base and allows for sales to increase, whilst also creating brand awareness. Furthermore, people can respond to these tweets which provides a forum for customer interaction and thus customer insight. Your business can emulate this, tweeting your promotions provides free advertising. If this is done creatively, it really can boost sales and get your company noticed.

Social media marketing works in a similar way to other forms of marketing; it is viral. A small company initially works on a word of mouth basis, people tell their friends. Social media, especially Twitter and Facebook, work with this ‘friend’ concept. People can give you positive reviews, recommend your product and tweet about your company. This whole social community allows your company’s name and brand to be viewed by a significant amount of people. Continuous use of social media over time creates brand awareness and thus helps to increase sales. One of our clients, PeachorLemon, a car review website, gained over one hundred followers on Twitter within a week. This is a hundred more people who know about promotions and offers, may tell their friends, visit the website or use other social media outlets to mention PeachorLemon. All this creates brand awareness and over time increased use of the website, thus increasing its value.

The effect social media can have on brand awareness is critical in the future of small businesses marketing strategy. Brand awareness is only one way in which sales are increased, there are many other important contributing factors. However, as this article has demonstrated, creating brand awareness through social media can have a huge impact on your business and revenues.