Top Reasons Why Companies Should Be Using Social Media

Posted on May 16, 2012 by nishajp

At Wise, we offering social media services to our business partners. One of the first questions I always get is, “Why should I use social media?” There are so many benefits for using social media even if you are B2B company. So below I gathered the top reasons why companies should be using social media.

b2b social media

  • Share your company’s success through different platforms. You can tell your followers and potential business partners about company insights such as, the employee of the month, your company’s success volunteering at a community program or new staff  members. This type of information bring a human element to your company which encourages people to engage with your company.
  • People are talking about your business on social media weather or not you are present on social media. This is a great place to find out what people are saying about you. You can use Google Alerts to help you find when your company is mentioned.
  • Register your company name before someone else does. Sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin allow users to personalize their URL’s, so you don’t want someone else taking your company name.
  • Social media is the new way to provide customer service. It lets you address questions, concerns and suggestions in a new way 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. People are not calling stores when they have issues they are sending tweets and writing on timelines.
  • Get your coupons delivered faster and reach more people via social media. Providing coupons on social media sites allow your customers to share with their friends, there is a chance your deal could go viral!
  • Social media can assist you when hiring new employees. You can post jobs on LinkedIn and announce that your company is hiring. This is also a great way to check out potential new employees before bringing them on board.

Social media success does not happen over night, so it’s important to get started now! Remember, it’s not about the number of likes or followers you get, but it’s about the small conversations you are starting to have with your network that really make the big difference. Have you started your social media efforts?

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Blogging Ideas for Printers

Posted on May 10, 2012 by nishajp

In our last post we covered why it was important that printers get involved in blogging. In this post we are going to cover different topics that you can write about. One of the biggest challenges writers have is coming up with fresh content on a regular basis. The tactics below will help deliver fresh content for your target audience and gain more subscribers.

  • Share a story from a thought leader or customer in your industry. People are able to connect with these types of post on an emotional level and will be more likely to forward or comment on.
  • printing blogWrite a list. People love skimming through list because it doesn’t take long and they can learn some useful information. For example, you can write a list about top products or customer service issues you are facing and how to solve each one.
  • Post a video. Interview people in your company about current events going on or upcoming events in the industry. It’s a great way to mix up the type of content you are offering, so readers won’t get bored.
  • Share a post on “how-to” post. This is a great way teach others your skills and gain credibility. It positions you as a thought leader when you share useful information. It not only gets the attention from customers and people within your industry.
  • Spread the word about contest that you may be running at your company. People love winning!  Offering deals and special offers are great for customer retention and increasing your exposure.

What types of blog post do you like reading the most?

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Blogging: Why Printing Companies Should Be Doing It

Posted on May 3, 2012 by nishajp

Blogs can serve many different purposes. A person can use to it promote themselves as a thought leader. Printing companies can benefit from blogging because they can use it to show their customers what they are all about. A blog provides the perfect medium to describe your thoughts and explain what you have to offer. Below are some more reason why it’s important for your printing company to maintain its own blog:

  • Increase traffic to your website - According to a recent study by inbound marketing firm, HubSpot, businesses who blog have 434% more pages indexed in search engines, 97% more inbound links from other sites, and 55% more traffic to their websites than businesses who don’t blog.
  • print companies bloggingCover common questions or concerns – I know we have all been through a time period where our customers or prospects are asking the same question over and over. And you start giving a programmed answer to them. Instead write about the questions that you are being asked and then direct your customers or prospects to your blog. This way they can get a thorough answer and maybe find other helpful information as well.
  • Show how your products can solve specific problems people are facing - Write an article about why your product or service is important and what value you specifically bring to the table.
  • Creating brand awareness - Blogging provides an opportunity for you to develop an exciting and engaging brand around your business. People won’t see you as just another printer; they will start seeing you as a publisher and resource for their industry needs.
  • Humanizing your company - You aren’t a business. You are a business person. Customers are less likely to leave a company if they have a personal relationship with the people within the company. Blogging adds personality to your business, because it’s written by you or your team — not your company.

Do you have your own blog? If so, what it the url? We’d love to check it out!

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10 Tactics To Build Your LinkedIn Network

Posted on April 26, 2012 by nishajp

LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional network on the Internet with more than 130 million members. A LinkedIn Company Page provides an ideal platform to tell your story, engage with followers, and share career opportunities. It also helps generate leads by being able to showcase your products and services. If you’ve been on LinkedIn, but haven’t seen an increase in following for your company page, below are some tactics that you will benefits from reviewing.

  1. Complete your LinkedIn profile. Wrote out the details of your life, such as past experience, education and skills. And don’t forget  to add yourself as an employee or member of your company.
  2.  Create a company overview description.  It’s important to add the most relevant information first because only the first 8 lines are visible.
  3. LinkedIn TacticsOptimize your page’s internal SEO. Help people searching for companies like yours within LinkedIn find you by clarifying exactly what you do. Use key words that are related to your industry and services that you provide.
  4. Edit your profile URL.  To do this, click on “edit” next to your public profile URL, and then “edit” once again on your public profile settings page.
  5. Ask for Recommendations. Endorsements from colleagues, partners, and clients will highlight your experience and validate your credibility.
  6. Add specific information about your products. The “Products” section of a LinkedIn is great because it provides an opportunity explain each of your products and services. And don’t forget to ask existing customers to “recommend” your products.
  7. Join groups that are relevant to you. LinkedIn groups offer a great opportunity to connect with others in your industry and to keep-up on industry information and trends.
  8. Once you join groups get active and engage in existing group conversations and use your blog posts to support your engagement.
  9. Add Blog RSS Feed to your page. LinkedIn has very easy instructions to do this and it will only take a few minutes. The feed will automatically update your page with the latest blog articles published on your website.
  10. The most important tactic is be authentic! People want to build relationships with humans not companies. Be yourself and try to help others out wherever you can.

What other tactics would you add to our list above?

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Marketing for Small Businesses – 5 Strategies That Work.

Posted on April 19, 2012 by nishajp

If you are the owner of any small business, the most serious problem that you face is to disperse the required finances. In most cases, marketing always gets the least amount or no money at all because many times the ROI is not tracked. Through proper and intelligent marketing you can open the various channels to sell your products. This in turn helps you raise your business revenues. Below are some marketing strategies that you should consider implementing. They can help grow your business and are cost effective methods for marketing you small business.

  • Use social media platforms.  Social media platforms have opened up excellent opportunities to promote your business. Various social media websites offer you a free way to market your products and services. These platforms can be used to grow business connections, gain leads and to bring in more business. You can also participate in various online forums to gain more knowledge and exposure.
  • marketing cloudWork with you current partners. Look for cross promotion opportunities for your products and services with other business owners located in your area or in your target industry. The goal of this marketing strategy would be to increase exposure and gain new business leads.
  • Market through your writing skills. Share your insights on article writing and blogging websites that relate to your industry. You can write articles about common problems people are facing and how the products and services that you sell will solve their issues. It’s a great way to get people to your website.
  • Stay up to date with your press releases. Write press releases and send to the appropriate people. After people see your press releases on a regular basis, they may become more interested in the products and services that you offer. If you don’t know anyone at the publications that you want your press release published in, then go meet them. Take them some a small gift and start building that relationship, so they start publishing your articles.
  • Go to networking events. These events are a great opportunity to meet new clients and business partners. Look at each event like a mini-marketing campaign. Figure out what your goal for the event and stick to our plan. For example, if you want to just meet more people, but not get into your products, keep your business cards on hand and make sure to ask for people’s as well. After the event find these people on LinkedIn and start building a relationship with them.

All of the strategies above can be done at very low costs, but they take up time. A lot of our clients don’t have the time to network online. It’s essential to claim your small business on various sites such as, LinkedIN, Facebook,  and, Twitter. If you don’t know where to start or don’t have the time Wise offers affordable services that can help you get started in the right direction. You can email npatel@wbf.com for questions.

Did you find these marketing tips useful?

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Brand Strategy: Key Components for Success

Posted on April 12, 2012 by nishajp

A company’s brand strategy should always closely be tied in with the company’s goals. Brand strategy is the how, what, when, and to whom you plan on communicating your product or service. It’s the stuff that feels intangible, but it’s that difficult to describe feeling that separates a powerhouse and mediocre brand from one another. We have compiled a list of key components that will help you build a long lasting brand that will give you a competitive advantage.

When creating your brand strategy make sure to have your business model in mind. Many people mistake their brand as being their product, logo, or name. Your brand is what your customers perceive about you, and how you make them feel. Determine what your company does best other than the products you sell, and make it a part of your brand strategy. Decide which aspect is the most important about your product or service, and make it a part of every aspect of your brand communication.

branding strategyConsistency is key. After determining your brand’s attributes it is essential that it is consistency expressed everywhere. Make sure that messaging across various marketing channels all tie back to your brand’s message. If they don’t, then consumers are more likely to get confused.

Reward your brand followers. I am talking about the customers that have gone out their way to write about you, to tell their friends about you, and to act as your brand ambassadors. Write them a personalized letter, send them a special discount offer or give them a gift card to show your appreciation. This little act of kindness will definitely go a long way!

Connect with your customers on an emotional level. You want to connect to your customers on a deeper level, so that they will pay a little extra to do business with you. Think about brands like Ducati or Apple, people have the choice of going out and buying cheaper options that probably work the same. But something makes them emotionally connected to these brands where they are willing to pay a little extra. Find what moves your customers and connect with them!

Is your brand strategy aligned with your company’s goals? How many of the key components do you apply from above?

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B2B Direct Marketing: 5 Steps To A Successful Campaign

Posted on April 5, 2012 by nishajp

With B2B marketing content is everything. Decision makers are being approached multiple times a day by different sales reps trying to sell their products and services. They key is you need to figure out a way to make your company stand out from the rest. This can be done by creative design matched with compelling content. It’s important to have a well thought out campaign strategy before exerting any time or energy.

Below are 5 steps that will help you develop a strong b2b direct marketing campaign. These steps are a great guideline to help you get started with your efforts.

  1. Decide on an objective. One objective per mailing is best and should be the very first thing you do. Are you trying to generate leads, nurture leads, cross-sell to existing customers or otherwise retain them?
  2. Determine your target audience. You’ll want to know what types of people make up your target list, and communicate accordingly. Are you targeting in-house prospects, or a rented list? Current or inactive customers? Senior VPs or CEOs? You want your piece to be as targeted as possible to make the most impact.
  3. b2b direct mailCreate compelling content that is easy to follow. Copy begins with developing a unique selling proposition (USP) that speaks to your target audience. A successful USP is one that promises to solve a problem and makes life better for your target audience. Your offers should be relevant and continually tested. And then be clear on what you want you audience to do. If you want them to call put a phone number on the piece or if you want them to to a URL, place a URL and QR code on the piece.
  4. Maintain consistency. You must extend a consistent brand identity across all channels, and direct is no exception. Chances are your direct efforts will overlap another campaign channel. Each of these impressions to your brand has a cumulative effect that, over time, can lead to increased recognition and recall that can make a positive impact on your response. You most likely will have multiple campaigns going on at once. Each of these impressions to your brand has a cumulative effect that, over time, can lead to increased  brand recognition which can  cause a positive impact on your response.
  5. Test your campaign as much as possible. A/B split and 2×2 testing are common tests for direct mail, and include examining things such as the creative, the copy, the offer, the list, etc. Insight from each testing will help you generate more accurate content that speaks to your target audience for future campaigns.

What other b2b direct marketing steps would you add to our list above?

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Social Media For Businesses – What To Post on Each Platform.

Posted on March 28, 2012 by nishajp

Social Media Post

When I start talking to new client, one of the first questions I get is “What should I be doing on LinkedIn or Facebook?” This is a great question! Each platform has it’s own purpose and tone, so you don’t want to just copy and paste the same post on each platform. Conversations are now real time. They are immediate and happening 24/7. If you’ve run out of ideas on what to say, a good place to start is to remember why you started your company. Find out what your customers’ needs are and how you can meet them through online communications. Below are some other ideas on what you can do on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter other than promoting specials or new offerings.

Facebook

  • Write about events your company is hosting or attending
  • Post pictures from events at your office or new locations
  • Like other companies in your community and write on their walls
  • Highlight customers or employees to show appreciation
  • Ask questions about certain products or services

LinkedIn

  • Join groups and participate in discussions
  • Post job openings
  • Write about company updates, events you are going to host or be involved in, charity work, etc. . .
  • Post a link to your company blog
  • Comment on other people’s posts

Twitter

  • Share relevant content that will provide value to your followers
  • Listen and watch others in your community, industry leaders, competition, partners, and clients
  • Support your clients by re-tweeting their posts or commenting on links they share
  • Create a poll and gather input from your twitter followers
  • Show appreciation and advocacy for those in your community

The majority of these ideas have nothing to do with selling your products or services. They are tactics to create awareness about your company, help gain exposure, and build relationships with customers. What other ideas would you add to our list above?

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Customer Appreciation: Best Ways To Say “Thank You!”

Posted on March 21, 2012 by nishajp

It’s a competitive marketplace, and keeping and building a loyal customer base is vital to maintaining and growing your business. Making your brand lovable is key! Through creating a strong relationship with current customers you will reap benefits such as, referrals, testimonials, social sharing, and customer retention. When was the last time that you showed appreciation for your customers? Below you will find some simple ways to show appreciation that will definitely go a long way for your business.

  • thank you bagPublish customer testimonials. Everyone likes being recognized, so show your customers off and thank them publicly.
  • Create loyalty programs with different tiers. You can base it on how long they have done business with you or the amount of money they spend. On a regular basis offer give the different tiers special incentives to show appreciation.
  • Give a one-time surprise offer to existing customers with a small thank you note. The surprise element will definitely make them feel more special.
  • Create a wall of gratitude on your Facebook page, blog or website listing all the people/companies that have helped your business become what it is today.
  • Make a call. Usually people only call when they need something, so surprise your customer with a call just to say thanks. Ask them how things are going and if they have any suggestions for your business. Asking your customers for their opinion is a sure way to make them feel appreciated.
  • Write a hand written note. Write out positive ways that their business relationship has helped your business.

If you don’t have a lot of time or a huge budget, then at least make a phone call or write a note. This will definitely help strengthen you existing relationships and increase retention. When was the last time a business you work with showed you appreciation? And what did they do?

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5 Powerful Rules For Online Networking

Posted on March 15, 2012 by nishajp

online networking

Online networking is a must and has been for a while. If you are not on LinkedIn, then you really need to get your profile created. Online networking is definitely different than in person networking. You can’t see the person’s face or hear their tone. With online networking you need to have something in common with the person, whether it’s a person you mutually know or a company you both worked out in order to create a connection. Most of the time people will not connect with you unless they have met you somewhere or you have some common ground. We know that this can get a little confusing so we are going to cover 5 powerful rules for online networking that will help you with your efforts.

  1. Don’t be a pusher. One of the first lessons you will learn very quickly when engaging in social media is that traditional forms of marketing don’t work as well as I stated above. Don’t come out of the gate pushing your products or services. You need to create a conversation, figure out how you can bring value to the table that doesn’t involve direct selling.
  2. Focus on the content because as well all have heard “content is king.” Nothing beats well-written, informative and entertaining content. Some benefits you will reap are improved search engine placement, more effective customer engagement and increased exposure.
  3. Authenticity and transparency are a must. These two words remain the cornerstones of this new-media marketing paradigm. Be real. Be open. Be honest. Admit mistakes when you make them.
  4. Think about what you can give before thinking about what you can get. Have an attitude of helpfulness in your social network activities. Doing so will go a long way toward establishing a credible name for yourself in social media circles.
  5. Be yourself. Use your photo as your avatar and your name as your handle. That’s not to say you shouldn’t have an identity tied to your brand. It’s just that in social media, people would rather relate to and build trust with other people than brands. This also means not surreptitiously pretending to be someone you are not. Remember commandment 4 about authenticity and transparency being a must.

What other tips would you add to this list?

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