Welcome to WordPress. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging!

When I was a teenager my friends and I set up a fanzine.  We were interviewing bands, reviewing records and passing commentary on our area of expertise – the new-wave mod movement.  We didn’t realise it back then, but we were content marketing.

Nowadays everyone is blogging.  Maybe you are too, but sometimes it’s easy to get carried away with what you want to say, and forget about your market.  That’s most likely what my friends and I did with our fanzine, but we were self-absorbed teenagers and even if our readers (our friends) told us they didn’t like our fanzine we wouldn’t have stopped producing it.

When it comes to content marketing for your business, whether that’s blogging, vlogging, social media marketing or any other format you need to be a lot more focused on pleasing your audience.

Looking back through the history of content marketing, which is easily done thanks to Joe Pulizzi, of Content Marketing Institute, for his infographic and article on The History of Content Marketing, you can see what works best.

So here are 3 tips, or rather questions to consider, that will help you create valuable, crowd-pleasing content.

• What Are Your Customer’s Needs? –  Michelin hit the nail on the head with their customers needs – providing them with a guide to help them maintain their vehicles and where the best places are to stay when they’re out on the road.  Can you light a path for your customers like Michelin?
• What Will Add Value? – Lego provided content to help their customers get as much fun out of their product.  They showed them what they could build and gave them step-by-step instructions on how to do it.  How can you help your customers get even more value out of your product or service?
• Who Can You Partner With? – A Joint Venture with Nike and Apple resulted in a win:win situation.  A solution for runners who wanted to map and track their progress and extended reach for both businesses.  Who could you JV with?

I’d love to know if Joe’s article sparked some new ideas for your business, so add your comments below.

Like this infographic? Get more
content marketing information from the
Content Marketing Institute.

Want more tips and advice on Internet Marketing

The Social Networking Site, Pinterest, has been grabbing the headlines for a while now in the world of internet marketing.

The reason it’s grabbing those headlines is because of the monumental referral traffic the site’s been grabbing for retailers.

So, if you’re a retailer, you’re probably excitedly jumping up and down wondering how you can get started.

Well, that’s exactly where Bill Ross from Linchpin SEO can help you out with his 11 ideas for using Pinterest to drive traffic and sales.

And an infographic too – or should that be pinographic

Pinterest Infographic, an Infographic by Linchpin SEO

When someone you love tells YOU how much they love you it sends a wave of fuzzy warmth all over your body.  You can’t help but smile, and for hours afterwards that warm glow of happiness remains with you.  You’re now wearing the armour of love and as you glide through the day you’re able to deflect any negativity (a bit like Wonderwoman did with her wristbands).

Since Valentine’s Day is a day of love how about spreading that love a little further.  No, no, no – not like that.  I’m not suggesting you jump the postman or smooch your neighbour (unless of course you want to, and they want to).

But how about you let that coffee shop know how much you LOVE their coffee – how scrumptious their cupcakes are.  How about you tell that hairdresser how much you LOVE your hair now that they’ve styled it how you’ve always wanted it.

How about you give back to those people who’ve given you something special and let the world see the LOVE.

Businesses thrive on great reviews – it helps them get found online boosting their local SEO. Getting your review, which only takes a few minutes out of your time could mean more business for them.  That equates to more money in their pocket.  Wouldn’t that feel good – that you’d helped a business with their internet marketing just by sharing the LOVE about how great they are.

Tell Them You Love Them

Think of the last place you had great service and go and share the LOVE.  Write a review on Google Places, TripAdvisor or any of the other review sites.

Help a business with their internet marketing today.  Go on – do it now.  You’ll feel the LOVE.

Happy Valentine’s Day.

Click for more posts on the topic of Internet Marketing

What you plan to do this month – in January – will set the scene for your entire business and personal year.

But, every year poor old January hears a whole bunch of promises and resolutions and then has to watch as will-power fades, excuses grow, bubbles burst and the remnants of tattered dreams are scattered across the whole year.

The reason so many people fail in their resolutions – business and personal – is because resolving to do something is not the same as having a GOAL and following it through.  GOALs are way better than any New Year Resolution. (this kid would not be smiling so much if he was holding a resolution)!

Goals Are Better Than Resolutions

I know this from experience because it wasn’t until I set myself a massive GOAL and followed a plan that I got my first taste of success.

Here’s my story, and tips I discovered along the way.  I hope it inspires you.

Name Your Goal and Think Big

Say it out loud and you’re committed to it.  The very first time I went to Space (a nightclub on the island of Ibiza) I said, “I’m going to DJ here one day”.   I’m pretty sure nobody believed that I’d actually achieve this.  But I believed it.  I believed that I could take my DJ career from semi-professional onto a world stage.

Be An Opportunist

After I announced my GOAL to play at Space, I had no clue of how I was going to achieve it aside from marketing myself relentlessly on forums and social media.  But then the Gods of Ibiza placed an opportunity in my lap.  A competition to win a gig at aforementioned nightclub Space.  Opportunity knocked and I responded – entering the competition.  I could now see that my dream was possible.  Which takes me onto the next important point.

Visualise

I made a flyer that advertised my DJ Gig at Space.  It wasn’t the prettiest thing ever and it wasn’t real, but I began to believe it was.  I also pinned a note above my decks that read, “I’m DJ Lunik and I’m a World Class DJ”.  I saw this every time I practiced.  And I practiced a lot.

Have Faith and Never Give Up

Nothing worth having comes to us with zero effort on our part.  So I won right?  No, I didn’t win.  I was one of the 6 finalists but  I didn’t win the public vote.  Don’t give up reading though because this is where it starts to get more interesting.  I was distraught!  OK, it actually gets a bit depressing here.  It was the end of the world.  Oh, yeh, it gets kind of dramatic too (sorry)!  It was my last chance to have this opportunity, because I wasn’t young in DJ terms.  I wasn’t about to be taken out the back and shot (I don’t think) but I was in my 30s – that’s old for a DJ – in fact it’s about 96 in normal human years.  But then I had this realisation.  In any business there are people out there hoping and praying that you’ll give up when things get tough because it’ll make it so much easier for them to win this race, without you in it.  I could hear Billy Ocean’s voice singing in my head, “When the going gets tough, the tough get going”.  And that was enough to spur me on -  I’d come so far – I also had contacts that it would be ridiculous to waste.  So with confidence brimming about my ability as a DJ – because let’s face it, if you don’t believe you’re good enough to achieve your GOAL, nobody else will – I emailed the promoter.  I wrote the BEST sales letter I’d EVER written and I GOT MYSELF a gig  – way better than a competition-winning gig – this was a professional PAID gig at one of the world’s super clubs – just in case you forgot the magnitude of this

I’d literally propelled myself onto a WORLD STAGE.  Boin-oin-oing!

Woohoo! Goal Achieved

Make a Date With Reality

Settings dates for making your dreams become reality means that you’re definitely working towards something and not just drifting along.  But I have to admit I was a little late to deliver.  I originally said I was going to achieve my goal by 2008.  As it turned I didn’t achieve it until 2009.  Although it took me an extra year I still achieved what I set out to do and the nearer I got to it the more determined I got (and that’s goes back to my earlier point about Never Giving Up).

Realise that Sometimes Life Throws a Curve Ball

You might wonder why I’m not still pursuing my DJ career after all the effort and after reaching my goal.  Well, 3 months before this amazing opportunity – the gig of a lifetime, at this world class club – Space – life threw me a major curve ball.  It knocked me off my steady path – a path that I was so certain about, a path that mattered.  My Mum died.

BOOM!  Yeh, not so much a curve ball as a freakin’ damn-busting bomb ball.

I’d achieved my goal, I played at Space, but suddenly it was unimportant.  What did this teach me about life, about goals?  Way more than I’m going to write here (you’re probably relieved to hear).  And I know that some of you reading this will have lost a loved one, and know exactly where I’m coming from and perhaps you’ve begun a new journey along a different path.

I’m not claiming to have any more wisdom about life than you.  I don’t know if, as predicted, the world will end this year or not.  I sincerely hope it doesn’t end because I have made plans

But I know something for certain.  I know that if YOU’RE truly passionate about something, if YOU set yourself a GOAL, if YOU follow your DREAM – and if YOU NEVER GIVE UP YOU CAN ACHIEVE BIG.

Life may, in fact it will definitely, continue to throw us all curve balls, here and there, but the feeling of accomplishment, of knowing that even the thing that others thought was impossible YOU turned into the possible.  Wow!  That’s something!

My Final Point Is This:

I’m the difference between imPOSSIBLE and POSSIBLE!

Now you say it! 

Happy 2012 people – enjoy achieving your GOALS and please share them on here.

Post a comment about the GOALS you’ve already achieved, and inspire me and others.  I’m also excited to hear what GOALS you’ve set for this year, so share them too.

All the best

Nicky

Have you heard of Taggingitis?  It’s a nasty affliction that some Facebook Business Page Owners have succumbed to.

Taggingitis:  [Facebook- Tagging-v to tag + -itis suffix.] An uncontrollable urge to tag lots of people in an image, even when they do not appear in the image.

I’ve seen many a case of Taggingitis – where a Business Page owner  tags all of their friends and other people too, in a picture that these people don’t even feature in.  Have they lost their mind – why are they doing this?  Why has Taggingitis taken over?

The reason they do it is to spread their message through to as many people as possible, in as short a time possible.   When you tag someone in a photograph all the friends and subscribers of that person may see a notification of the tagging in their newsfeed.

So, it’s a clever internet marketing ploy, then?  No!  It’s actually lazy, inconsiderate marketing.  Jeez that does NOT sound good does it?  Who would want to be thought of as lazy or inconsiderate.  If you’re using your friends as involuntary WOMM (Word of Mouth Marketing) vehicles then you deserve both of those titles – you are lazy and you are inconsiderate.  Wow, I didn’t realise how passionately I felt about this issue

Avoid making your network get snappy with you, when you're tagging them in your snaps.

I’m guessing/hoping/praying that you want your Facebook Business to scream integrity, so here are some guidelines when using Images and Tagging in your online marketing:

• Most fellow-business owners and customers will be happy to be included in your pics , but it’s always best to be open about what you’re doing.  If you intend on capturing the atmosphere of your event through the medium of imagery – sketches, photography, oil paintings – let your guests know, in advance of doing this, because some people are shy, or maybe they’re in a witness-protection programme (much more exciting).
• If you ask your customers or people at your event to pose for photographs let them know, before you start snapping, that you intend to upload these to Facebook, and ask if they’re ok with that.
• If they’re happy with that ask them if it’s ok if they tag you – even share with them instructions on how to set up their privacy settings so that they have to approve any photos they’re tagged in, before they hit their timeline.  Here’s how you do that:

• If your photographs are great they’ll probably Like, Comment on them and even share them, without you even having to ask, and without you having to resort to lazy and inconsiderate marketing.  Woo-hoo!

Follow these guidelines and your Facebook Business Page will be brimming with integrity.

Click for more posts on the topic of Internet Marketing

Not That Type Of ecstasy!

Sorry to disappoint you, but this is not a guide to selling pills online.  It’s actually about the feeling that your eCommerce experience gives your customers.  Ok, they might not be so overwhelmed that they transcend consciousness, but you want to make them feel special enough that want to buy from you again, or at the very least recommend you on Facebook, Twitter, eBay, Amazon or wherever you sell your goods.

Poor Delivery Service

So, here’s where this whole thought process came from.  I recently had a bad experience with a delivery company and it got me thinking about the implications not just for me, the poor customer, but for the company who I bought the product from.  Yeh, I know, I’m always thinking of others.

Let’s first of all name and shame the delivery company in question.  They are HDNL; quite possibly the most talked about delivery company online.  That’s because they’re a delivery company with a difference.  Unfortunately the difference isn’t something positive that they can claim as their USP.  It’s more of a UFP (Unique Failure Point); a unique ability of failing to deliver on time.  As if that wasn’t bad enough they fabricate attempted delivery details, I guess in an attempt to prove to their customer (the business who supplied the product) that they’re not breaching their contract.

Whatever You Sell Make Sure It Gets Delivered

Take The Money And Run

So do businesses who use HDNL care that their customers are being disappointed with late delivery?  It appears not because although there is plenty of evidence of their poor service online, businesses everywhere continue to use HDNL.  Perhaps they offer a good deal.  So I guess that’s ok then.  So what if they’re a few days late delivering!  Why should businesses care?  After all they’ve already banked the money, packaged up the item and sent it on its merry (or rather weary) way.

Why Care?

Of course it matters.  The reason it matters is because no matter how bad the PR for HDNL it’s not the customer who’s choosing them.  After a bad experience the smart customer decides to slap an embargo (dramatic, I know) on any supplier, who uses HDNL to deliver.  Then the business starts to pay – in terms of attention and then for a better service (fingers crossed).

Do YOU Care?

If you’re involved in e-commerce/shipping to customers, please make sure that every point of contact with your customer – especially the 3^rd party contact and the delivery of the product – reflects the level of service that your company stands for.  If it doesn’t you may as well pack up shop right now, because it’s easy for people to see where the problem lies and where the lies become a problem.  You can’t ignore it or disguise it.

Does your entire eCommerce experience make your customers want to shout about you on Social Media or rant about you on Social Media? There is a big difference between the two.

Click for more posts on the topic of Internet Marketing

Why Subscribe?

Aside from the fact that you can start singing, “I’m a Subscriber, I’m a Subscriber” to the tune of Survivor by Destiny’s Child there are some genuine benefits to Subscribing.  The official word from Facebook on Subscribing is that it gives you the chance to “keep up with journalists, celebrities, political figures and other people you’re interested in too.”

So, yeh, weren’t we already doing that via Pages – Liking them and seeing their updates in our newsfeed?   Yes, but Facebook is evolving and it’s actually going to benefit you, the business owner, as long as you’re willing to become the celebrity of your business. This doesn’t mean that you’re going to ditch your Facebook Business Page. In fact what I see as happening is that it’s going to become much more focused on the people-to-people relationship first and the business second. That’s really how this thing works in real life. If you think about it you need to know someone and like them before you’ll do business with them, and this could give you the edge.

Pages can be Faceless

Subscriptions - effectively Recommendations for Individuals

Click for more posts on Facebook

Like the Electric Pen Facebook Page

Don't Overfill the Gap with Too Much Information

There is such a thing as TMI (Too Much Information), or overwhelm.  You might have experienced it yourself, or maybe you’re the culprit.

When people are looking for your help, whether you’re a B2B or B2C organisation, they’re looking for simple solutions.  They generally don’t want the long version (there are always exceptions).  They want the quickest route to happiness that there is.  Keep this in mind whether you’re marketing online or offline, because too much information can cause dizziness.

I know this for a fact, because it happened to me.

I was at the dentist this week for a routine checkup when my dentist asked what I wanted to do about the gap that had been left by a tooth extraction a few months back. I told him that I really want a tooth implant but that I’m absolutely petrified of the procedure. The fear is all that’s stopping me.

My dentist took this to mean that I wanted a blow-by-blow account of what was involved.  This was a BIG mistake.

In his enthusiasm to impart his dentistry knowledge, and explain every minute detail of the procedure, he failed to notice the colour draining from my face.  He ignored the fact that my knuckles were turning white as my grip on the arms of the chair grew ever stronger.  He got even more animated as I began to pull myself out of the seat.  Shaking, I waived my hand over my mouth and proclaimed, “too much information” and rushed out of the room to get a drink of water.  Whilst hanging onto the water cooler my dentist eventually got the message that I hadn’t needed, wanted, or was even able to cope with, as much graphic information as he was capable of sharing.

As much as I want a tooth to fill the gap all of the information did not fill the real gap. I was seeking reassurance that everything would be fine, that the procedure would resolve my issue and that I could be knocked unconscious for the entire process if I so wished.  That was the gap that needed to be filled.

Are you resolving your client’s pain or are you just giving them more reasons to worry?  Information can mean power but it can also mean overload. Don’t overload your clients with your expertise. Use your expertise to take away their pain.

Thanks to Nikoretro and USNavy for the pictures in this blog post.

Click for more posts on the topic of Online Marketing

The Brand and Groom

My name is, my name is, my name is Slim Sha…….. No, no, no wait just a minute there.  I am not called Slim Shady.  But I am called Nicky Fraser, or I should say I was called Nicky Fraser until that minister in Vegas said those immortal words, “You are now husband and wife”.  Yes, you read that right – I got married in Vegas (last week), and now for the first time since I started planning my wedding (6 weeks ago) I realise that part of that deal was to change my name.  Well, ok, I’m not slow, I did realise that was part of a wedding, but I hadn’t considered the implications.

Implications eh?  I bet you’re wondering if my husband shares his surname with some evil dictator, or perhaps it sounds rude or maybe just plain comical.  Well, sorry to disappoint you, but none of the above: it’s a regular Scottish name.  So, I really have no aversion to taking his name, based upon the name itself.  My reasons aren’t even based upon my feminist views (surprising for some, I know).

It’s more about what his name isn’t.  You see, I didn’t quite appreciate, before Elvis walked me down the aisle, just how important my own name is in the marketing of my business.  I’m way too sane to have thought of online marketing during my wedding, but this did come to me on my honeymoon.  Although I have named my business – Electric Pen – I’ve been building up my reputation on my own name too.  I introduce myself as Nicky Fraser (of Electric Pen) and others introduce me as Nicky Fraser (of Electric Pen).  All of my online marketing refers to Nicky Fraser, as well as Electric Pen, so I’ve effectively been building two brands: my business and me.

Whilst I want to put my husband’s mind at ease regarding my joy at being forever by his side (I really do love you), I also need to consider the effect that my name change could have on my business.  Let me put you in my shoes for a second.  If you changed your name tomorrow, how would it affect your business?  If it would have a dramatic effect then you’re trading off your own name as much, if not more, than the brand name of your business.

So should I stick with Nicky Fraser for business dealings or switch to Nicky Robertson?  The jury’s still out, but feel free to add your two cents worth.

Click for more posts on the topic of Online Marketing