Social Media Marketing is still relatively new and we’re all still learning how best to use it for our businesses.

The Profile Photo Faux Pas

Sam recently wrote a very comprehensive post on the importance of completing your social network profiles. I’d like to add a plea to use a profile photograph (also known as an avatar) that gives the message you really want it to. Cute animals and family groups are fine, but only if you don’t intend to use that profile professionally. And while logo avatars are suitable for company pages, owners of small businesses might be better off using a photo of themselves if they are the recognised ‘face’ of their brand.

I’ve been using the same avatar on all my social media profiles since I set them up back in 2007. While I may not look exactly like that photo any more – people still recognise me from it when I meet them at networking events for the first time. Would they recognise you from your avatar?

The Lack of Consistency Clanger

In order to get good results from social media marketing, stay on message and deliver tweets and updates on topics relevant to your audience. While it’s certainly a good idea to voice your opinion on occasion, try to avoid using your blog as a platform to post too many personal rants. We’ve spoken many times on the need to publish blog posts and email newsletters regularly. This can be made easier if you have a plan and use an editorial calendar, not only for blog posts but for all your social media updates.

Having a plan would result in fewer profiles being hastily set up on the latest networks and promptly abandoned. Or perhaps an initial flurry of activity followed by nothing at all for weeks or even months. If you aren’t ready to use a particular social network, then don’t publicise it on your website or blog. That’s almost worse than not setting up a profile in the first place.

However, it’s important not to become too noisy either. Tweeting or updating every few minutes will annoy your followers. No-one has that much good stuff to share, nor do people have that much time to read it all.

Other Assorted Social Media Clangers

Self promotion and little else becomes a turn-off after a while. For example I find that the links shared by some people always go through to a website home page, sales page, an ‘under-construction’ page, or to an error message. Their links don’t lead to content of value to my followers, so I rarely feel inclined to share them.

Tweets which are too long to retweet won’t be retweeted as often. It takes time to carefully edit them down to be within the required character count. If you want people to be able to retweet you, make it easy for them. Keep the character count down to 110-115 to allow for your RT @name and any link to be included.

Too much automation and not enough conversation. While many social media tools are free, that doesn’t mean everything should be set up to run automatically. You still need to work at social media and chat with people if you want to form any kind of relationships online. Being ‘social’ means sharing, liking and commenting on other people’s stuff too. It’s a two-way street.

A lack of social share buttons on a blog can mean missed opportunities. I can’t tell you how frustrating it is to read a really good article, want to share it with my online followers, only to find no social sharing buttons to click. Fortunately I have Buffer and Hootlet (from Hootsuite) installed on my Chrome browser, but even the free WordPress.com and Blogger platforms both provide sharing options, so there is no excuse!

What are the biggest mistakes you’ve seen small businesses make using social media? 

Photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/bigdrumthump/3214172131/

Whether you face a blank computer screen or a pristine sheet of paper

You sit there with the cursor blinking mockingly, or perhaps doodle hopefully in the margin of your notepad….. 

Sometimes, in spite of diligently keeping an Editorial Calendar, you cannot think of a single word with which to begin your article. And with newsletter and blog post deadlines looming, it’s no fun at all to find yourself suffering from the dreaded ‘writers’ block’, as it is commonly referred to. This condition can also affect the production of audio podcasts and videos, so could perhaps better be named ‘creative block’.

If you’re stuck for topics to write ABOUT, then there are plenty of sources for ideas some of which we covered recently.

What I’m talking about today is a bit different. It’s when you have ideas and topics galore, but the words won’t form into intelligent phrases for you to type or write down.

Some people say that you need to ‘just start writing’ which may work fine for them. And if you’re determined to stick it out, then have a go at mind-mapping or doodle some more, both activities have been known to break through the block.

But there are other times when I suggest the best solution is to stop struggling and walk away from your desk

Literally go for a walk! Let your mind switch off from business for a while. Just being in nature can trigger the inspiration which was absent all the time you were sitting dutifully at your desk. Capture those ideas either in a notebook or as an audio note on your smartphone.

If a walk isn’t possible, then relax and listen to some music, or read a couple of chapters from a (non business) book. I often find that once I stop forcing myself to write and rest for half an hour or so, my subconscious will continue working away on the task in the background. And when I return to my desk, the article outline will form in my head and the words start flowing again.

I realise that what works for me may not be the answer for you. But it’s a good idea to have a few different tactics to try out when writer’s block strikes.

Do you have any suggestions that have worked for you? Please type them in the comments below so they can be shared – thank you

Further articles you may find helpful:

Writer’s Block – Try this Quick Tip

Overcoming Writer’s Block

Here are a few of the benefits we’ve discovered and hope will encourage you to set up your own Editorial Calendar.

1. Avoids the “What Shall I Write About Today?” syndrome and helps you stay motivated to sit down and produce new content.
2. Enables you to tie in your blog post and newsletter topics to specific marketing campaigns.
3. See at a glance if you’re focusing too heavily on a particular topic or category, and also if you’ve been neglecting others.
4. Enables you to produce content ahead of publication time to allow for breaks, taking holidays, and any unforeseen circumstances which may get in the way of regular content creation.
5. Planning ahead means you can target special events and holidays, as well as refer to forthcoming product launches and special promotions.
6. Gives you the opportunity to forward plan and schedule tweets and updates to Facebook & LinkedIn and other networks, because you know what to put in advance.

How to Create Your Editorial Calendar

As with most business processes, the simpler it is the more likely you are to use it.

The humble Spreadsheet is ideal for creating and using as an Editorial Calendar. If more than one person is involved in creating content, then consider using a Google Docs spreadsheet that you can share and jointly contribute to (as Sam and I do).

A useful PlugIn, if you use WordPress, is WP Editorial Calendar

For more ideas & further reading:

The Right Content Strategy Tools Create Better Content

How to create a successful Editorial Calendar

If you’d like to learn more about email marketing and improve your campaigns, then check out our Email Marketing Guide in the Savvy Marketers shop or get in touch to see how we can help you!

Just as we think we’ve seen all the Email Marketing mistakes

Spelling & punctuation clangers. You’d think having built-in spell checkers would mean better spelling, punctuation and grammar, unfortunately that doesn’t seem to be the case (as Sam found out recently). A well written email marketing message is more likely to be read and speaks volumes for the professionalism of the sender.

Boring Subject Lines. These are so often treated as an after thought and written in a hurry before hitting ‘Send’ – big mistake! The Subject Line is the text that is seen in a list of unread emails and can be what prompts the recipient to open your message. It can also be the only thing that stops them from pressing the ‘Delete’ button.

Mystery ‘From’ Field. If I don’t recognise who an email is from, the likelihood of clicking to open it and find out is much reduced. For example, contact@ or info@ aren’t very friendly are they? As for noreply@ – personally I find this most off-putting!

Lack of or Confusing Call to Action. Every piece of your marketing needs to have a purpose and a clearly defined ‘Call to Action’ (CTA). Email Marketing is no different. Not including a CTA is a waste of your time and effort. Almost as bad is to provide so many options of things to click on or look at that your reader becomes confused – and does nothing as a result. That’s a waste too.

Collecting Email addresses and then not making contact until you want to sell something. This is a crazy phenomenon I’ve noticed recently. I signed up to receive updates on a couple of blogsites and weeks later was still waiting (I did check my spam filters). Then suddenly, BAM! Email after Email promoting a webinar or product launch. No thank you. This practice is just plain bad manners and, as I’m likely to have forgotten who the sender is after such an interval, their messages run the risk of being reported as spam.

We’re certainly not immune when it comes to making mistakes in our Email Marketing campaigns, but we do try our best to keep them to a minimum.

Further reading:

How not to do Emails

7 Basic Email Newsletter Mistakes (and how to avoid them) 

How not to send out Email Promotions

What Email howlers have you come across? Please share in the comments below.

No matter how many followers you have on Twitter, friends or fans on Facebook and connections on LinkedIn, Email Marketing is still a more direct way to get people’s attention. That isn’t to say you can afford to ignore social networking, because you can’t. But the different media will complement each other and work well together.

There are many ways to build a list of email subscribers, although we would strongly advise against buying a list as we covered in previous posts. Building your own list needs to be a priority objective if you want to take advantage of this very cost effective method of online marketing.

Try different ways to encourage people to subscribe to receive your Email Newsletters and marketing messages

Business Card – Use the reverse of your card to promote the free give-away available when people go to your website and fill out the sign-up form.

Email Signature – Add an invitation to get your free give-away to your standard email signature. This is easy to do both in Microsoft Outlook and if you use a service like WiseStamp (for GMail, Hotmail, etc.) Here’s a screenshot of mine:

Article Marketing – When you submit articles to other sites and to article directories, use the link in your Resource Box to take people to a page that tells them about the benefits of signing up to your list, and has the form there too.

Blog Posts – Within the body of your blog post, occasionally make reference to an article which is only available to subscribers and provide a link to the sign up box. Take care not to overdo this tactic as you don’t want to upset your blog subscribers!

Facebook Page – Don’t forget to provide a sign-up page linked to your Email Service Provider (as we have – see below) for fans to subscribe to receive your email newsletters and messages. If they already like your page, they’ll want to get more of the good stuff you share!

Here are a couple of general points to bear in mind when creating the sign-up forms, that have been proven to increase willingness to subscribe.

Keep your form as short as possible: just email address and first name are really all that’s needed in most cases. If you make the form unnecessarily long with lots of ‘required’ fields, people are less likely to sign up as they may be reluctant to provide too much detailed information about themselves.

Also, reassure them that you will store their contact details securely. State your privacy policy and link to it as well. Here’s a link to ours, feel free to model it.

There are more tips on list building and Email Marketing in our Guide.

Email marketing campaigns work well for some, less well for others

So how do you get your newsletters opened by more people?

Sender or ‘From’ field – make sure you use a recognisable name here, either your own name or business name. Don’t use your email address or a vague name such as ‘contact’ (yes I get a newsletter that just has ‘contact’ in the from field). If the recipient isn’t sure who the newsletter is from, they’ll probably view it as spam.

Subject line – this has to be one of the most important aspects of email marketing and one of the main reasons that people will choose to read or not read your newsletter. If your subject line just states ‘February newsletter’ or something equally uninspiring, then it’s not going to get many opens, however interesting the content is inside. You need to arouse curiosity, make people want to open it and this is where the subject line plays such an important part. Take a look through your email newsletters and see which subject lines have made you open and want to read more. A subject line such as ‘why your granny is better at social networking than you are’ is more likely to make people want to click and read the contents, instead of an alternative more bland subject such as, ‘top tips on social media’ for example. Whatever you do, don’t be vague either, your subject line needs to be to the point and convey what the newsletter will be about, what your readers will expect when they open it.

Over enthusiastic spam filters – I check my spam filters most days for the odd genuine email that may have ended up in there and this is a problem for email marketing campaigns. Asking people to white list your newsletter helps, if they remember to do it, but there are times when for whatever reason, your newsletters may end up in spam filters. It’s definitely worth reminding your subscribers to white list your newsletter from time to time.

What tips do you have to get more people opening your newsletter? Please share them in the comments!

When you go to all the trouble of crafting word perfect, interesting articles for your newsletter

With so many beautiful templates available from popular Email Service Providers such as MailChimp (aff), Vertical Response, Constant Contact, AWeber, et al, it can be difficult to know which to choose. Especially as, with most providers including the free ones, you can easily customise colours to your brand and add your business logo.

It can be tempting to go for every bell and whistle – just because you can! But depending on your audience, that might be a step too far, and leave you lamenting a trail of unsubscribes. While a more technically savvy audience will happily explore as many new bells & whistles as you can throw at them, a more traditional reader will be happier to simply find familiar features in each issue.

The complexity of design of your email newsletter is also going to depend to some extent on what device your audience is using. You’ll need to consider the growing number of people who will be reading on their mobile phones for example; their needs will be different to someone reading on their desktop, laptop or tablet. Fortunately the professional providers take care of that for you by offering a mobile friendly subscription option.

But no matter what device your readers are using, or their level of tech savvy-ness, there are a few basic design considerations which will make reading your newsletters a good experience for them, and so that they look forward to future issues.

Design Checklist

Your Email Newsletter is not the same as your website so it shouldn’t look like a web page. This style of template shows too many options, some of which look like tabs to click, and are generally too busy and confusing.

Should you use one column or two? Think about how you read on the screen – one column is easiest without a doubt. But two columns do look attractive and can be useful. Just make sure your most important messages are in the left hand (fatter) column, and keep items short in the right hand (skinny) column.

Provide a brief list of contents. This lets readers see at a glance what is included in each issue and gives them a chance to go straight to the content that piques their interest. Otherwise they may well consign your email to the ‘read later’ folder – which is basically a staging post to the delete folder….

Divide your newsletter into clear sections and keep these consistent in every issue as readers will have their favourites. Some will look out for your ‘Quick Tips’ to take away and apply immediately, or book recommendations, events, etc.

Use their first name two or three times in the newsletter. This is a good relationship building tactic, but don’t over-use the personalisation feature to the point that it comes across as smarmy and false. Inject a little of your personality by uploading one or two of your own photos in each issue; your readers will enjoy seeing them and learning about the person behind the newsletter.

The template and design should reflect the visual elements of your brand (logo, fonts and colours), in other words be easily associated with your business. While refreshing the design periodically is a good idea, changing it out of all recognition every month probably isn’t.

Make your page easy for your readers to navigate and keep the overall appearance simple, with lots of white space between columns, sections and paragraphs.

Consider font size and overall readability. Larger headlines will help to clearly define the sections, keep those fun and funky fonts to use as section headers. As a rule of thumb, don’t use anything smaller than 10 point font (HTML Size 2), and 12 point (HMTML size 3) is even easier to read.

Be sure to include graphics because they will enhance your publication, be pleasing on the eye and help break up the text. As I already mentioned, do consider including your own photos which are easy to take and upload using your smartphone.

What design features do you like to see in your favourite Email Newsletters? Please share them in the comments below.

Autoresponders are something that not many small businesses use

If you’re not sure what an autoresponder is, it’s generally a series of automated email messages sent over a period of time. The autoresponders are set up in advance, and can be used, for example, when someone signs up to your newsletter and you want to follow up with a series of tips – this could be a great add on to a free report you’re giving away. Perhaps you’ve written a short course and want to deliver it by autoresponder so the people who sign up to it get their weekly instalments.

There are lots of things you can do with autoresponders and we’ve been using them for a while alongside our Savvy Marketing Tips newsletter. Until recently, subscribers received a series of tips delivered a few days apart when they signed up, but we’ve now created a new e-course. When someone subscribes to our newsletter, they’ll receive a copy of our guide ‘Content Marketing…what it is and why you need to do it”. After that the subscriber will receive a short course delivered weekly over a 10-week period to help them implement the tips in the guide.

You may wonder why we would want to give such a course away for free?

Well, it’s a great way of showing off our knowledge, helps our subscribers understand more about what content marketing is and how it can improve their online marketing, adds value to our free giveaway, plus it keeps us in the minds of our subscribers, particularly when it comes to online marketing!

Most email providers such as Mailchimp (who we use), Aweber & Contant Contact have this facility. If you use any of these providers, you can easily set up autoresponders to go out to new subscribers to your newsletter, or deliver an online course.

For small businesses these features are a great way of growing your business and can be used effectively to deliver training and add value to a free report or giveaway.

If you’d like to find out how autoresponders work, then click here to subscribe to our newsletter, receive our guide and 10 week e-course on content marketing!

Email Marketing is one of the cornerstones of online relationship building

Things have moved on a bit (about a million miles actually) since the days of rainbow coloured text emails and using the BCC field for your list while sending the message to yourself, although unbelievably some of these still occasionally drop into my inbox (bless!).

There are many excellent Email Service Providers (ESPs), including Mailchimp (we are fans & affiliates), Constant Contact, Vertical Response and AWeber. Which provider you choose is down to personal preference, but there are compelling reasons why you need to choose and use a professional ESP for your business Email Marketing.

Get More of Your Emails Delivered

Many people think that pressing ‘Send’ is all that’s needed to get their email message to its various destinations. Not necessarily so. For people still using their computer email packages, deliverability is unknown and open & click-through rates are unmeasurable.

Using your web domain host or shopping cart email service isn’t a guarantee of getting delivered either. These are OK for occasional mailings but messages are less likely to get through spam filters, so it isn’t a good idea to use as your main ESP, if you’re serious about Email Marketing.

The number of people reading their emails on SmartPhones is growing rapidly, so making sure your Emails are mobile friendly is becoming increasingly important. The main ESPs have this covered with special templates for the publisher to use and options to receive emails in a mobile friendly format for the reader.

Benefit from their Good Reputation

The best providers have a good reputation they’ve worked hard to establish. Not only for deliverability (over 99% is their proud claim), but also, importantly, for their adherence to the CAN-Spam Act, which they take very seriously.

I was chatting with an Email Marketing colleague recently and he told me the sad story of two clients who had their email accounts suspended as a result of using their computers to send out campaigns. This could have been as a result of the large number of emails going out, or because they fell foul of the Spam filters.

I don’t know about you, but the thought of being without email in my business sends icy shivers down my spine. It’s one of my primary communication channels and I’d really struggle without it.

Professional ESPs use a ‘double optin’ process to further protect their reputation – and yours by association! This process replaces the practice back in the ‘bad old days’ when you simply added all your contacts’ email addresses to a spreadsheet and sent out uninvited and unexpected promotional emails to them. “But wait,” I hear you say, “I still have some of those emails arriving in my inbox.” Yep, me too – and I report them as ‘Spam’ because that’s what they are. I didn’t ask for them.

A Double Opt-In is when you enter your details (usually just Name & Email address) onto a web based form, press Enter and are then taken to another screen with a message telling you to look out for an email which you need to act on. The email usually arrives within seconds and has a link you have to click in order to confirm that you really did fill out that form and want to receive the emails from that person.

The above are just a couple of reasons why using a professional Email Service Provider is so important for the small business owner. Check out our Guide for more information on Email Marketing, and please ask your questions in the comment box below.