Successful Blog

Your Business Story Can Change The World

by

By Chris Craft

My story began on February 12, 1979.

The light bulb in my head for story’s business case in content marketing went off only about a year ago.

Yes, I was late to the party but hey … it’s my story. At Nao Media, we focus on story because we know story drives our clients’ connecting with their community.

Stories inform, instruct, inspire, entertain, and motivate. Everyone from parents to CEOs can use story to not only get results and gain awareness, but to change the world. I want your business to focus on telling its story so our global community can be empowered by your example.

beacon of light from mountaintop

Businesses really have a story?

Yup! A business’s story is usually best told by its founder(s). Your business’s story shouldn’t focus on what it does. Your story, for it to be compelling, should be centered on why the business was started and why it exists today.

Other questions to answer:

  • When: when did you know that your business had real potential?
  • Which: which decision did you make that made your business viable?
  • Who: who started the businesses and who and/or what kind of talent makes up your team?
  • How: how does your business impact its community?
  • Where: where does your business have the most impact? (consider thinking outside of revenue)

Changing the world is hyperbole though, right?

Nope. If your business doesn’t aim to have a positive effect on the world, then you should really think about your business model.

Your business won’t change the world by news-jacking on Twitter for the pure sake of attracting eyeballs.

It won’t change the world through direct mail coupons.

It won’t change the world by shilling your product or service without an interesting backstory.

Your customers want to know about you. They want to be intrigued by your beginning, middle, and end (which is usually the “reveal” or “present state” of your business). Your customers and the community you aim to impact want to know how they fit into your story. Some might even want to learn how your business contributes to the betterment of the world.

Businesses have a huge opportunity with story because of the resources they can put into production and distribution. If you have the resources for scaling the distribution of your positive story to the masses, do it! Especially if you know your story can change lives.

Knowing your story is not enough.

It must be told and shared. You can’t afford to ‘die’ with your story in you. And that goes for individuals and businesses. Though I’m a writer and lover of books and blogs, I must admit the best medium for telling your story is video.

Video simply appeals to more senses (if we take a reader’s imagination out of the equation). A high quality “About Us” video can cost $5000+ USD. If you’re not quite ready to invest in a video, call on a writer to get your story on paper. Your written story (or a portion of it) can be used for website copy, books, periodicals, and more.

Need help telling your story? Download Nao Media’s latest e-book, “The Nao Blueprint: How to Develop a Content Creation Machine.”

Author’s Bio: Chris Craft is a believer in the greatest story ever told. He’s also the Founder and Chief Visionary at Nao Media, an Atlanta-based content creation agency. Follow him on Twitter at @ChrisQueso.

Photo Credit: 8#X via Compfight cc

Four loyalty programs worth following

by

By Diana Gomez

Every day I read about how to grow your business and expand your clientele. And sure, getting new customers is an important factor in any marketing tactic, but what about the ones you already have?

Hand with loyalty cards

One look at how phone companies are rethinking their treatment of already-loyal customers is proof that those are the ones who need attention. Don’t just give new customers the chance to get a new phone at a good deal. Offer those perks to the people who you already have on board, and they’ll be spreading the good news rather than telling their friends to steer clear.

Don’t limit yourself. Stop thinking of ways to get newbies when the key lies in your current customers — that is, if they’re satisfied. And they will be with a simple thank you. Reward them with experiences worth bragging about. Points-based loyalty programs are fine if the reward is clear, but it’s the reward experiences that will help grow your business via good old word-of-mouth, from your currently thrilled customers.

Here are some examples of companies that apparently get it:

Starbucks

It didn’t take much convincing for me when a cashier first told me how much I could save with My Starbucks Rewards. The idea is to download the app, which keeps track of every purchase. With each purchase, you get a star, and on the 15th, you get a free drink. Keep collecting stars and you can get extras at no cost. You know all of those adjectives we use to order a coffee? They cost money, and it all adds up.

So rather than pay extra for soy milk and vanilla, I accrued 50 stars and got all of that stuff for free. And it genuinely feels like I’m doing a friend a favor by informing them that their latte could be cheaper. Everyone wants a cheaper Starbucks coffee, don’t they? But get this: not only do you get rewarded for purchases through the app, but you can also make purchases within it and avoid the queue. Quite the game changer when you need a quick coffee en route to the office at 8:45 in the morning.

Orange

One of the most successful, widely used loyalty programs is offered by Orange. Formerly known as Orange Wednesdays, two-for-one Wednesdays have staying power with the deal of a deal: two movies for the price of one. Not only do you have to tell a friend (because you have to bring a friend), but that person will be equally enthusiastic about the reward of a free night out.

Wednesday is now a crazily crowded night at the theatre, but Orange also offers discounts on other events. From theatre to comedy to music, users get a chance to have all kinds of cheap nights out. Again, the idea of offering an actual experience proves effective in gaining loyalty. How many people stick with Orange solely due to the two-for-one deal? A lot.

KLM, and Most Airlines

Although airline rewards programs have been popular for years, they’re worth mentioning because it’s a tried and true example of how customers will keep coming back again and again if there’s a reward worth getting. And cheaper tickets, upgrades, and VIP treatment in airport lounges are definitely perks people want.

Sure, I can find a lot of great deals from a competitor, but wasting miles on an airline that I haven’t done a lot of business with is a no-brainer: I’d rather stick with the program I’ve built the most miles with. When those points accrue and inevitably pay off, it’s entirely worth it to get an entire free flight one day rather than a few slightly cheaper ones along the way.

Costa Coffee

So many people love a tangible rewards card, and the Costa Coffee card is a pretty popular one. Simply registering for a card alone will earn your tenth coffee on the house, and that immediate gratification is just the hook that will leave a customer instantly…hooked.

Keep using the card, and every nine hits gets you a free coffee. Sometimes, a simple free coffee is worth shouting about on a Facebook status. Anyone can give away things people may not need, but there’s a guaranteed smile in store for anyone whose day is made brighter by a complimentary cup of something that is entirely necessary for the day’s survival.

So there you have it. Follow in the footsteps of programs like these that have earned their own following and kept it, and you could very well see the numbers rise without spending a second focused on anyone other than the customers you’ve already snagged. Offer incentives that are actual experiences worth shouting about, and they probably will. People appreciate a thank you now and then, and showing that your company is generous will speak to your customers the most. Ultimately, the benefits will boomerang right back at you.

What loyalty program do you use the most?

Author’s Bio: Diana Gomez is the Marketing Coordinator at Lyoness America, where she is instrumental in the implementation of marketing and social media strategies for USA and Canada. Lyoness is an international shopping community and loyalty rewards program, where businesses and consumers benefit with free membership and money back with every purchase. Check out Lyoness on Twitter.

Are You Dialed-in to Telecommuting?

by

atele

Communications technology is making the notion of working from home or other remote locations commonplace in today’s business world.

If your business and its employees are missing out on the convenience of telecommuting, then it’s time to give the “work from anywhere” approach a shot.

To give you a better idea of how the telecommunications atmosphere works, here are just a few advantages of going the telecommuting route with your business:

Keeping up with the Trend

Businesses all across the country are adopting a telecommuting mindset and the trend is continuing to grow.

In fact, according to the Telework Research Network, nearly 30 million Americans from all walks of life telecommute on a regular basis.

In addition, the number of telecommuters in the U.S. is expected to increase by more than 50% in the five years.

If your business is looking for a convenient, effective work alternative to the 9 to 5, then telecommuting has a number of built-in benefits for both your company and its employees.

Cost Effectiveness

Sure, telecommuting saves your employees’ money in terms of lunches, office attire, and daily commuting costs, but it also saves your business money.

Not only are telecommunication systems affordable, but telecommuting employees also reduces your business’s overhead costs.

Telecommuting employees free up more space in your office, which means you’ll save money on leased square footage.

As the following article shows, in terms of “How business phone systems can make telecommuting work”, your business can also route calls directly to your employees’ home offices. This means each telecommuter will save you money on office energy costs and your clients won’t even know they’re dealing with someone outside of the office.

Improved Productivity

Ask anyone who works 9 to 5 and they’ll likely tell you the same: schedule flexibility leads to improved productivity.

Although it may not seem like it, working from the office comes with plenty of distractions, such as disruptive employees or an environment that’s not always conducive to continuous work.

But, telecommuting provides your employees the quiet comfort of working from their own home, which oftentimes improves productivity.

With the right home environment, telecommuters can work continuously and without interruption, which means tasks, projects, and daily assignments will be completed much faster.

Increased Availability

The schedule flexibility and improved productivity that telecommuting provides leads to an increase in availability.

Telecommuting employees are able to get work done faster and more efficiently, which means they’ll have the opportunity to increase their workload. Likewise, by working from home, your employees will have the opportunity to take on assignments at any time without any 9 to 5 constraints.

Setting up the Ground Rules

As with implementing any new protocol into your business, you will need to set up some telecommuting ground rules for your employees. These might include requiring your employees to have an adequate, dependable workspace in their home.

Additionally, you may have to require your telecommuting employees to check in with you or their supervisor at least once a day. This will cover any accountability issues that may arise with employees who might take advantage of their newfound freedom.

When it comes to workplace efficiency, it’s plain to see that telecommuting can improve your business and the lives of your employees.

Photo credit: Image courtesy of Ambro at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

About the Author: Adam Groff is a freelance writer and creator of content. He writes on a variety of topics including employee health and workplace productivity.

Good, Better or Best?

by

By Lisa D. Jenkins

How do you invite customer feedback on the products or service you offer?

Whether it’s through an online form, a digital survey or a personal conversation, the way you frame the request for feedback can affect the way your customer answers you — and the quality of the feedback you receive.

A story about food … and feedback.

cold cocktail glass

It’s no secret I’m a foodie. I’m always on the lookout for new experiences with food and drink, so when I noticed a relatively new restaurant had opened up near my neighborhood, I was all in. I’ve been there several times to try out different brunch and lunch items.

The unique menu isn’t overly large because the owner/chef makes it a point to prepare everything from local sources. The ketchup is made in-house, the coffee is roasted just four doors down from restaurant and the staff is genuinely interested in whether or not we’ve enjoyed our meal.

The servers are attentive but not in a hovering way. They take our order, serve our meals, then disappear for a couple of minutes. I’m not sure how they time it but they return after everyone has had at least two bites of their meal to ask, “Is everything delicious?”

Not “Is everything tasting okay?” or “How is everything?” or “Is there anything else I can bring you?”

They ask if everything is delicious.

And they wait for an honest reply from everyone.

If something isn’t delicious, polite but pointed questions are asked so the server can get to the heart of the issue as quickly as possible. What kept this dish from being perfect? Was it temperature, spice, or texture? Too savory or too sweet? What isn’t working?

Over the past months I’ve seen a couple of item descriptions change ever so slightly. I’ve also seen a few items disappear.

Because I’m friendly with the staff, I know this is due to customer feedback. If an item isn’t received as delicious 90% of the time, it’s adjusted according to the feedback servers get or it’s removed entirely. As a customer, I feel incredibly valued.

In this way, the restaurant has been able to stay true to its mission and vision while providing a better experience for the diners who ultimately keep the doors open.

It’s simple and brilliant.

Which brings me to the point.

When you ask for feedback, do want customers to help you be good at serving your market, or to be the best at serving your market?

Author’s Bio: Lisa D. Jenkins is a Public Relations professional specializing in Social and Digital Communications for businesses. She has over a decade of experience and work most often with destination organizations or businesses in the travel and tourism industry in the Pacific Northwest. Connect with her on Google+

Five ideas to supercharge Q4 for your business

by

Ah, Q4.

This is when you told that vendor you’d get back to her.

This is when you were going to have saved enough to give out raises to your staff.

This is when you were going to have published that e-book.

Remember January and all of its promises?

In the early part of the year, “we’ll take care of that in Q4” is an easy answer.

Now those IOU’s are coming due. It’s September.

Don’t sit back and cry into your pumpkin spice latte. Roll up your sleeves and fly through the finish line like a sprinter at full speed.

sprinters lined up

Five Ideas for Finishing the Year Strong

1. Re-read and update your annual goals document

Hopefully at the beginning of the year you started executing on a plan, working toward goals for the year. Have you been checking in on those goals and updating your progress? If not, now is the time to do a checkup. Depending on the type of goal, use analytics, sales reports, financial statements, or whatever will help you measure.

For goals that are on-track, high five yourself and your team. For goals that are languishing, huddle with your colleagues and figure out what’s happened. Ask these questions:

  • Is the goal still important? (perhaps something has shifted in your strategy that makes the goal unimportant
  • If it’s still important, do you need to adjust the metric? Consider whether your original goal may have been unrealistic.
  • If the original goal was realistic, and it’s still important, have the difficult meeting. Gather the team and ask hard questions about why things went off track. Is there a process that must be changed? Did you not align the right resources? Do you have a staff problem? Was the goal unclear? Work through these and come up with solutions that will get you moving toward achieving the goal with renewed energy.

2. Find the thing you’ve procrastinated all year and do it

If you have that sinking feeling that you’re ending the year with a whimper, ask yourself why. Is there something you really hoped to do, but failed to commit to as a priority?

Take that one thing, break it down into a few steps, and put one foot in front of the other.

Tell a trusted colleague about the task and why you’ve found it daunting. Getting input from an outside perspective may be enough to get you unstuck. There’s a really great app called Unstuck that can help too.

3. Start a project

This one sounds really counterintuitive, but it works.

Pretend it’s January first and tackle a new project. Breathe energy into your business by starting something that will take your business to the next level. Don’t fall into the trap of saying, “we’ll start that next year.”

4. Talk to all of your clients/customers before the end of the year

Talk about paying huge dividends. Challenge yourself to see every one of your customers or clients before the end of the year. It may not be feasible to travel to all of them, but it’s so easy to set up Google Hangouts or Skype conversations.

Taking this one step will build your relationships, strengthen your business, and end the year on a fantastic note. Reach out to your customers with no agenda other than saying hello and asking how they’re doing. Then listen.

5. Use the budgeting process to speak to prospects at the right time

The other magical thing about Q4 is that many companies go through their budgeting process for the upcoming year.

This is an excellent time to reach out to prospects or people who have expressed an interest in your services. Get the cost of your services built into their budget right now, and you’re ready to hit the ground running next year.

You also have an opportunity to act as a coach for a prospect at this time of year, helping them solve problems and end their 2014 on a high note. Make them look like a hero by providing advice at the moment they’re looking for it.

What steps are you taking to make sure you’re building momentum through the end of the year?

Author’s Bio: Rosemary O’Neill is an insightful spirit who works for social strata — a top ten company to work for on the Internet . Check out the Social Strata blog. You can find Rosemary on Google+ and on Twitter as @rhogroupee

Photo Credit: Lim CK via Compfight cc

Why is SEO Not One of Your Top Priorities?

by

aseo

Name your top priorities as a business owner.

There is a good chance items like keeping your finances in the black, hiring and retaining the best employees and having the best customer service going are among things you zero in on.

With that said, where does maintaining a strong SEO presence rank? Wait, you are not even up to speed on SEO for starters?

For those a little late to the game, SEO means Search Engine Optimization. If you are not familiar with it, take the time to get familiar sooner rather than later.

With more and more consumers turning to online browsing and buying, business owners must have a solid website that ranks high on Google and other search engines.

When that is not the case, your site can be hard to find in generic searches, oftentimes leaving your competitor/s to rake in the business.

Finding the Right SEO Agency

In order to get your SEO game on and rank at or near the top of your respective industry when consumers search online, working with a knowledgeable SEO Agency is a necessity.

With many business owners glued to their finances, employees and more, knowing how to pick the right SEO agency can be a daunting challenge in some cases.

Among the factors to look at include:

  • The agency’s history and reputation. Do they have a good record or a laundry list of customer complaints;
  • What kind of service are they going to offer and is customer service a top priority? Bad customer service can be detrimental to your company;
  • Does your SEO consultant/company stay on top of various changes in the industry? If they don’t, you could find yourself getting the necessary advice a day late and a dollar short. From content to links, stay on top of what Google and others do and do not like (see below), allowing you to create the best SEO plan.

Need to Change is Important

Just as you have to make alterations in how you run your business, it is also important that your SEO provider adapt to ever-changing Google moves.

Keep in mind that Google is continually providing updates to its search algorithm during the year, so your SEO expert needs to stay abreast of such changes. If he or she doesn’t, your search ranking will suffer for it.

While your SEO provider should know all the basics from A to Z, it doesn’t hurt you as a business owner to be clued in on important facets of SEO. Keyword research and density, important backlinks, relevant content and how often you update your website are among the items you want to stay on top of.

So, feeling a little more up to speed on SEO?

If you’re still facing questions without answers, consider some of these following benefits in having a strong SEO game plan:

  1. Website experience – You want consumers coming to your site to have a positive experience. If your site does not provide this, you may not see them again, but your competition likely will;
  2. Avoiding penalties – If your site’s content is stale and/or duplicative or has that spam feel to it, Google could very well hit you with a penalty that impacts your PR (page ranking). Once that happens, it can take some time for your site to get back to a positive PR;
  3. Optimization – Last but not least, having a site that is correctly optimized gives you the ability to enhance both your search engine visibility and also your stature within the online community. Google Analytics also allow you to get a better feel for who is visiting your site, therefore helping you customize your advertising and marketing outreach.

Making SEO a priority in your daily business tasks should not be an option, it should come as a necessity.

Photo credit: Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

About the Author: Dave Thomas writes for a variety of websites on topics such as social media and marketing your business.