newsletters

Newsletter sign ups a must at your next trade show

This past weekend I checked out the Live the Smart Way Expo that was happening here in Ottawa. I had quite a few friends exhibiting and I was excited to check out a show that was getting great buzz.

My friend Julie of The Magic Fridge at the Live the Smart Way Expo

My friend Julie of The Magic Fridge at the Live the Smart Way Expo

Because I can never quite turn off my work mode, as I walked around the show I couldn't help but notice how many people had nothing at their booths that would give them an opportunity to follow up with the people that they met. Thousands of people would walk by and might even take notice of them, but how many of those people would ACTUALLY take the printed materials you give them and later get in touch?

A trade show is the perfect place to get new email subscribers onto your newsletter list. It allows you the opportunity to follow up with them and then to continue staying top of mind moving forward. Here are a few tips to help you do this effectively at your next trade show:

Have an incentive

People don't WANT to be on hundreds of mailing lists so you need to give people a reason to sign up. A giveaway is a really great way to do this. The important piece here is to make the giveaway applicable to what you do because while you want as many email addresses as possible, you don't want email addresses of completely unqualified leads. 

A great example of a giveaway that isn't a good fit for most people is an iPad. Why? Everyone wants an iPad. They'll sign up and then unsubscribe as soon as you send them anything - all they wanted was the iPad. Instead, offer something that relates to your business i.e., a gift certificate for your business, access to a free class, an hour of consulting, a free rental, etc.

Tell people 

Have signage and verbally encourage people to sign up. When you talk to people and they seem interested in what it is you do, let them know they can sign up to get updates, promotions, and other great information - and also let them know that they might win whatever great thing it is you're giving away.

If you have a big booth with things for people to touch and feel and see, make sure that you have signs at the different sides of the booth, or possibly multiple sign up sheets and/or ballot boxes to make it as easy as possible for people to see the opportunity and take advantage of it.

Follow up

It's great that you got all those email addresses, but you need to make sure that you follow up within a week of getting all the email addresses.  

Why? Because if you wait too long they could forget how they got on the list and be frustrated when your email does show up. Not only that though, it's an opportunity to reinforce what they learned at the show.

Tell them it was great to meet them, send them some links and extra information on what you do and that they might find interesting, and offer them a special time-limited promotion. That one-time email to just the people you met at the show will then set the stage for future emails you send.

A quick note about the Canadian Anti-Spam Legislation. To make sure you stay compliant, make it clear with a check box for newsletter that someone is agreeing to get emails from you by giving you their name and email address. Then keep that documentation, either by scanning it and saving it or just keeping paper copies permanently.

So, next time you're at a trade show, don't miss out on this great opportunity - get those email addresses for your mailing list!

 

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Three Reasons Businesses Hire Wellman Wilson Consulting

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Have you ever thought about shooting us an email or giving us a call, but you are not quite sure what you need help with? Perhaps you are an entrepreneur or small business owner and you have a website (yay!), but haven’t the faintest idea how to set up a Facebook page for your business (or perhaps you accidentally created it as a Group), or maybe you have a page, but it hasn’t been updated since you created it… two years ago.  Then there are those other social networks you know you should have an account with, but don’t know which ones are the best to reach your target market. And let’s not forget about your blog… and a newsletter! 

Businesses, like yours, hire Wellman Wilson Consulting because of our ability to break down social media and e-marketing into manageable pieces and teach you the tools and methods you need to make them work for you. Here’s how we do it:

1) Teaching businesses how to use social media

We don’t just teach people how to use Facebook ads or promote your business on Twitter, we teach you the value social media has in making connections with your clients, online and in person. Our Simple Start programs walk businesses through learning how to connect, promote, endorse, engage, and interact with customers. We teach you how having a conversation with a perfect stranger online can result in sales for your business.

We have had clients come to us afraid of social media, but by the end of the Simple Start program they not only have multiple social media accounts set up, but also have a solid plan in place to keep their social media current and relevant.

These same clients go on to expand their digital marketing to include newsletters and within weeks they have learned all the tools they need to start, create and send regular newsletters to their audience.

2) Creating a plan and making sure businesses stick to it

Every business needs a social media plan and we make sure it meets your business’ objectives. We take a look at who your audience is, where you can reach them, what your key messages are, what your goals are, and how we can make social media work to reach your audience and your goals.

We then take this strategy one step further with our Accountability Program. We have helped numerous clients stay accountable by helping them develop an action plan, keep track of their monthly activity, examine their content, and talking to them on the phone every month for a full year to review how things are working for them (and making sure they are doing what they say they are going to do).

3) One-on-one feedback, guidance and support

Our coaching programs are all about accountability, encouragement and feedback on your social media and e-marketing efforts. We help train clients, implement strategies and develop content. We also customize our coaching programs to fit our clients’ needs – because we know that not every business has the same problems.

Clients come to Wellman Wilson Consulting because they know they are not just getting a regurgitated written social media strategy. They are offered a personalized social media and e-marketing plan that not only includes a strategy, but the training they need to implement the strategy, the accountability support needed to make sure their plan stays on track, and the option to outsource content creation and graphics to us.

So, if you are not sure what you need from us, but know you need help with social media, we have given you three reasons why businesses just like yours took the next step and contacted us. They didn’t regret it and neither will you, so email or call us today!

We look forward to hearing from you.

3 tips to help you get that newsletter out

Newsletters are by far one of my favourite online marketing tools (which is why I talk about them so much!) but sometimes they can be hard to get done. I asked our community for some of the common reasons that people don't get their newsletters sent and I'm going to give you some tips on how to deal with those reasons.

I can't find the time. 

There are so many things to get done as a business owner that vague deadlines are the ones that often get pushed off the fastest. A "January newsletter" means that you just have to find the time at some point in January to get a newsletter ready and it will often get pushed off the priority list over and over again.

Set specific dates for when your newsletter will go out. It can be once a month (third Wednesday of every month) or more frequently (every Thursday morning). Once you have a set date that your email is going out, you have a deadline that isn't as easy to push off. The bonus is that your audience starts to expect your emails on those dates and are more likely to open them - that's extra incentive to get the newsletter out on time.

My list size isn't big enough to bother. 

Quality over quantity - we say it a lot, but it's true! You can have a list with 200 people that converts way better than a list with 2000 or even more. Spend time finding the people who you actually want to have on your list and then build relationships with them. Give them valuable content that they appreciate and in time they will become your biggest cheerleaders.

The other thing to remember is that the more newsletters your send, the better you get at it. Practice and perfect your style by sending consistent newsletters even when your list is still small.  

I'm not seeing results. 

It's easy to feel discouraged when you don't see a lot of sales that are directly related to newsletters you're sending. There are a few things you can do here:

- Realize that with a lot of online marketing, it's a slow build. People need to see your name, your content, your product, etc., multiple times before they buy. Don't get discouraged if it doesn't happen right away.

- Analyze what IS working. Make sure you're including links so you can see where people are clicking, test different kinds of subject lines to see what people open, and check your stats. You can learn so much from what you've already sent so you know what to keep sending moving forward.

Leave a comment and let us know if you have any other reasons you don't send your newsletters.

 

Three words for 2015: Teach, Create, Grow

Happy New Year!

I love starting out a new year with picking three words.  We've done it severals times in the past and the words don't often change significantly, but taking a little bit of time to think about the direction we want to head in to the new year with really helps us focus on what and how we do things.

This year our three words are Teach, Create and Grow and I'm really excited to see where they take us.

Teach

Teaching is definitely one of our passions at Wellman Wilson.  Helping you figure out how to use social media to grow your business online with simple step-by-step processes is something we pride ourselves on doing well.

In 2015 we will continue running our two online courses - Simple Start and Simple Start Newsletters, and we will also launch a third course, Simple Start Blogging.  These courses are designed to walk people through the steps of learning to post on Facebook, Twitter, start sending email newsletters or posting regular blog posts, without feeling like it's an overwhelming and unachievable task.

We will also continue running webinars, taking on speaking engagements and running our own workshops. (Be sure to stay tuned for one coming up early this year!!) If there is anything in particular you'd like us to teach, whether that be as a course, a webinar or a speaking engagement, leave a comment or send us an email and we'll see how we can fit it into our 2015 schedule!

Create

Creating content, courses, videos, blog posts, etc., is something we do a lot of and will continue to do.  But this year we're going to be creating even more than that because we understand that no matter now organized you are, and how well you come to understand the importance of social media and online marketing and how it works, you sometimes just don't have the time to create your own content. This year we're taking on more clients that want us to do the work for them.

Don't let the overwhelm of content creation slow you down.  If you'd like to chat about how we can help you with content creation email us and we'd be happy to set up a call to talk about how we can help meet your needs!

Grow

Most of us hope to grow our  businesses but we've chosen this word because in 2015 we really want to continue to focus on growing our knowledge, growing our services, and growing our business. In 2014 we hired an amazing virtual assistant (now business manager) who has helped up have more time to focus on content creation of all kinds and we intend to keep on that path with more support and more staff.

We want to move forward into 2015 with a lot of serious intention to grow to a place where we can provide you with amazing content and service and grow is the word that will help us get there.

What are your three words?

Leave a comment and share your three words, as well as anything you'd like to learn more about this year.  You are who inspire us in our business. Understanding how you're working on your businesses as we move forward helps us make sure we're creating the right content for you.

Happy New Year everyone!  Here's to an amazing 2015!