Successful Blog

Do Your Customers Speak Your Language?

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The teacher sent me a lengthy email about the upcoming DBQs the kids would be working on, as well as the IGPs that were coming up. While I appreciated the proactive communication, I had NO IDEA what she was talking about.

I’m picking on educators because she was in the top of my inbox this week. But it’s not just educators who use “inside baseball” jargon.

Your industry probably has concepts, acronyms, and special names that mean something only to insiders. If you’re sprinkling them into your marketing communications and content, you may be talking straight over the heads of your prospects and customers.

Remember, this problem can pop up in your emails, marketing copy, website content, presentations, sales materials, and verbal communications (like product demos or pitches).

5 Ways to Get out of the Jargon Trap

  1. Run your copy through a readability tool or jargon detector. Many of these tools are free online, and you can get a paid subscription if you write a lot of copy. While you’re at it, check for buzzwords too!
  2. Show it to someone outside your industry as a “sanity check.” It’s great to have an editor as a second set of eyes, but if your editor is someone who sees through the eyes of your target customer, even better.
  3. Spell out the first instance of any acronym. Especially in long-form writing, don’t assume that your reader knows the meaning of your acronyms. Spell it out the first time, and then use the acronym afterwards. Ideally, limit your use of acronyms in the first place!
  4. Do more reading outside your industry bubble. Don’t get caught in the rut of only reading industry insider journals, blogs, and news. The more you permeate your thoughts with the limited culture of your particular niche, the less you will notice the buzzwords and jargon. It will be normalized for you. Make an effort to consume content that is outside your comfort zone.
  5. Pay close attention to the way your customers write and speak. Set up a repository in your notes where you can track key words and phrases they use (bonus – these can then also become keywords if you’re running ad campaigns). This will help you write in the voice of your customer, which will feel familiar and attractive to prospects.

Conclusion

Writing is a critical skill, whether you’re a solo entrepreneur, creator, or small business owner. Incorporate some routine checks before you hit “publish,” and you’ll be speaking your customer’s language in no time.

Photo by That’s Her Business on Unsplash

Does Fun Lead to Funding?

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Things have been serious lately.

But my spidey senses are telling me that there’s a lot of pent up desire for fun, flamboyance, and originality.

If you’re having fun, you attract other people who also want to have fun.

What does this have to do with entrepreneurship, or building a business?

If you’re struggling with getting attention or traction in your business, try injecting some chaos, some fun, some of your own unique personality or life experience into it.

This is one reason TikTok is exploding; it’s a never-ending stream of raw personality. Most TikTok creators don’t do a lot of polishing, in fact, the more raw and real, the better. It’s common to find a business expert doling out tips while putting on their face of makeup.

The new world of marketing and business-building offers a Golden Corral sized buffet of tools and venues to express your mission and brand. Don’t be afraid to experiment with some of them. 

Life is not a dress rehearsal. You should be playing full-out, without worrying about the judgment of others.

Follow the Fun, the Money will Chase You

For example, there’s a friend-group of women who jumped into the wilderness of Clubhouse (the audio-only app) and decided to create a dating-game style “show” on the platform just for kicks. 

When most of the conversations on Clubhouse were boring, “How to Get Rich Today” style, these women started “NYU Girls Roasting Tech Guys.” They’re now contemplating brand deals and sponsorships for a business that invented itself because they were having fun.

If you’re struggling against the voice inside your head that doesn’t want you to have fun because it might be embarrassing, watch this video.

Homework

  1. Do an hour without input (https://www.deprocrastination.co/blog/block-out-input-free-time)
  2. Write down 3-5 things you used to do as a kid, but you don’t do anymore. Sometimes those old hobbies and interests are still lurking there in the background. Do I need to mention Gary Vee’s sports cards and garage sale content?
  3. Read through the latest marketing copy, emails, website content, or customer responses you’ve written. Could you shift those words to be more real, more fun, less jargony and corporate? Take a peek at two brands I have a fun-crush on: Goodr and Chubbies for inspiration.

Let’s Get Real. And Fun. And Really Fun.

In the name of realness, I’ll tell you that one reason you haven’t been hearing from me on this blog for a while is that losing Liz Strauss (our fearless founder) really socked me. I needed time to process, time to re-read her book, time to figure out the path forward with my own writing. And I can feel her not-so-gentle nudge to “just do it.”

Thank you for reading, and for being part of this community.

I hope to get back to a regular weekly posting schedule here, so feel free to comment with your questions and thoughts.  And ideas for having fun while making a living.

Photo by Josiah Gardner on Unsplash

How Your Small Business Can Go Global

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Bill Gates described the Internet as the “town square of a global village”.

It’s made the world seem a much smaller place, connecting roughly a third of the total population. And for small businesses it’s opened up huge opportunities.

Reaching potential customers in Sweden or South Africa is almost as easy as communicating with those across a (literal) town square.

But although national barriers are becoming less important, language barriers remain. The idea that everyone speaks English online is no longer the case.

In the last decade, the number of Arabic speakers has soared by 2501%, while Russian use has risen 1826%. This compares to just 301% for English-speaking users, according to Internet World Stats. And Chinese is soon set to take over as the dominant online language.

While only a quarter of users speak English, it accounts for roughly half of all web content. Although many people speak it as a second language, research by the Common Sense Advisory found that 85% of online consumers wanted information in their mother tongue before making a purchase.

This means monolingual companies and content marketers face a huge amount of competition to reach a dwindling proportion of users.

Getting your blog or website seen in the crowded English-speaking marketplace can seem an almost impossible task. In contrast, it’s much easier to climb the search engine rankings in foreign languages.

For small businesses, this means marketing in Portuguese or Japanese can be an easy way to win new customers. Whether you’re selling handmade jewellery or web design services, you can tap into demand all over the world. It might seem daunting at first, but here are a few tips on getting started.

1. Choose your markets

If you’ve already got a well-established website, the chances are you’re picking up visitors from other countries. There are plenty of free tools such as Google Analytics which can tell you where your web traffic is coming from.

But if you have a hunch that your ebooks or vintage clothing might be popular in Japan, then there are several ways to test the waters.

Start by translating your main keywords into the target languages, and use  tools such as Google Adwords to analyze the search demand and competition.

If you’re undecided, translating your homepage and information about your main products can give you a feel for the demand. If customers “bite”, then it’s worth translating the rest of the site.

Use your web analytics to identify countries that are driving your highest-quality traffic. Here’s a screenshot of Finteza reports on which locales are currently working well for a business:

2. Don’t get lost in translation

A little local knowledge goes a long way, especially in online marketing. While automatic translation tools offer an easy, free solution, they tend to produce over-literal results, with no awareness of context. It’s best to find native-speaking translators who can make sure your carefully written prose sparkles in the target language.

And don’t forget the value of appearing local. If you’re targeting French Canadian speakers, remember there are many differences from the language spoken in France. Getting the spelling or  vocabulary wrong can be jarring to readers. For example, Canadian shoppers magasiner while their Parisian friends faire les courses.

 3. Optimize and localize

Search engine optimization is the key to making sure customers can see your website. Localize your title tags and meta descriptions. Although translating your main keywords is a good start, it’s important to remember that direct translations aren’t always the best choices.

Italian searchers will often mix in English keywords – for example, using “voli low-cost” for “low-cost flights”. It’s a good idea to check your list of keywords with native speakers.

Search engines tend to prefer sites that appear to be local. Registering a top-level in-country domain name, such as .fr for France or .de for Germany, will help put you on an equal footing with local competition.

The good news is, there’s generally less competition for top-level domains in other languages. There’s a much better chance of securing the top prize of a website name with your main keywords, such as mykeywords.ru

It’s also worth considering speakers of other languages in your own country. BestBuy and Amtrak (as well as numerous smaller American companies) have seen huge surges in sales by targeting the growing Spanish-speaking population in the United States.

Use Text Optimizer (English and French) to identify key concept around your niche and craft your SEO strategy accordingly:

4. Make it easy for customers

The way we shop (online and offline) varies across cultures. Learning about local preferences can be a big part of persuading customers to buy.

While Americans love their credit cards, Germans tend to be wary of using them online, and often prefer bank transfers or invoices. The French still like to use checks, while PayPal is popular in many countries.

Research everything from consumer rights to postage costs before launching your site to avoid any surprises. For example, German consumers usually have no less than 90 days to complain and ask for a refund after purchase!

Fixing your slow site is another great way to get more customers, regardless the locale.

5. Hire international teams

I know it is easier said than done, but having people from other countries in your team will give you an insider’s perspective into those locales.

Fiverr allows you to see which countries freelancers are from, so does Upwork. Hiring international employees and freelancers is easier than ever.

Make it a good tradition to talk to all of them on a weekly basis and let them collaborate among one another. This is how your whole team will understand different cultures and regions better.

Setting up a cloud PBX system will allow you to effectively manage your international team and keep everyone aligned.

6. Be social!

Social media used to be seen as a fun way of passing the time, but not serious enough for business. Of course, this has changed, and companies of all sizes now find it’s an essential marketing tool. According to Maxwell Hertan of Megaphone Marketing,

The right social media marketing strategy can net your business MAJOR wins. Whether those wins are sales, sign-ups, leads, whatever. Social can do it for you.

And this isn’t just in the English-speaking world – more than half of tweets are in foreign languages.

It’s relatively easy to set up separate Facebook and Twitter feeds in different languages. If you don’t have the time or linguistic ability, hiring locally based social media managers can be an easy solution.

While these are the most popular worldwide, they aren’t the only ones. LinkedIn is a good way to reach the business community, while the Japanese love Mixi and Cyworld is wildly popular in South Korea.

Find  blogs and forums where you can share your interests. They’re great ways to pick up knowledge, share expertise and start to build your reputation.

It can be tough at first to find your footing in the international marketplace. But a little time and effort can put your small business on the path to global success.

How to Use What You Have

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The baby beaver scurried back and forth between the shower stall and the doorframe. Between his teeth was a mop.

Then came a bucket and some other household items, creating a makeshift dam-like structure in the doorway. He was intent on his task, spending quite a long time constructing and tweaking the arrangement of the items.

His human “mom” was exasperated but understanding. You see, “Beave” is a rescued baby beaver. The rehabber is encouraging him to perform his instinctive tasks, even if it blockades her bathroom.

I encountered Beave and his mom on TikTok. The other people in the comments suggested that she give him building blocks, to see whether his construction would be more solid.

No, Beave wasn’t interested. Instead, he continued bringing household items from all around the home, building a beautifully messy “dam” made of buckets, toys, shoes, and anything else within baby beaver-reach.

It doesn’t have to be perfect.

There’s not even any water.

What can you do today, with the resources at your command?

If you’d like to obsess about Beave with me, you can find him @beaverbabyfurrylove on TikTok, or on their channel on YouTube: Raising the Wild.

Raising the Wild, Beaver Rehab

Where the virtual meets the irresistible force of Liz Strauss

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Terry and Liz - SOBCon

Terry “starbucker” St. Marie shared his thoughts about Liz during “Gathering Stardust for Liz Strauss.”  You can watch the video of the gathering here. Terry also sent us a copy of his speech so that we could share it with you here on Successful Blog.

 

Hi everyone, I’m Terry “starbucker” St. Marie talking to you from smoky Portland, Oregon.

I was blessed to go on a 7 year journey with Liz as a business partner.

Liz inspired me from the very first time I read her blog way back in 2006.

It was a post entitled – “The Ferrari Analogy for Organized Writing”.
In it she said,

“A great blog post is like a car date. We spent time together sharing your view. I follow your logic and then, if we connect, we talk about it.”

I was intrigued to say the least by this very unique insight, so I very shortly thereafter participated in one of Liz’s Open Comment Nights

It was classic Liz, Macguyver-ing her comment box into a real-time communications platform and inviting everyone to join the spirited conversations, led by her selflessness, kindness, and passion for learning & growing as a human.

This was before Twitter or Facebook mind you, so as usual she was way ahead of her time.

We quickly became online friends and as one lively comment night led to another, in late 2006 someone put “it” out there.

The “it” was a simple musing – “hey, wouldn’t it be cool if all of us could get together in person?”

That was the official birthing of what became SOBCon – the Successful and Outstanding Blogger Conference.

Because with Liz, it couldn’t “just” be a get-together. She figured, if people were going to spend money to for travel and lodging they should get something more than just a few happy hours. “We should teach them something meaningful, and we could all teach each other”

So we somehow, someway cobbled together the first SOBCon in May of 2007. Some of you were there, and I’m sure you felt the same way I did after it.

75 people hung out together for a weekend, and talked about their craft, their passions, and their lives.

It turned out to be magical. Trust was high. Candor was abundant. Egos were checked at the door. There was a depth to the dialogue that prompted many to declare how “life changing” it was.

There were no barriers to learning. And it was good. It was magic.

And where did this magic come from? Who was capable of conjuring up the ingredients of this potent mixture of trust, humility, and candor?

It was Liz, who lived and breathed those qualities. She deeply believed in the basic generosity of the human spirit, and the magic came from her belief.

When she entered the room at that gathering in Chicago, and every other single SOBcon after that – and we did 10 of them, in Chicago, Boulder and Portland – something wonderful happened.

She was the catalyst of a powerful enabling force that unlocked that same generous spirit from everyone there.

Liz Strauss WAS SOBCon – I just had the unique opportunity to be her partner in the venture and have a front row seat for all that magic.

It wasn’t all a walk through the park – putting on conferences was a bit like walking a tightrope without a net. But somehow, Liz would rise to the occasion and just in the nick of time pull in one more sponsor, or sell a few more tickets, to get us to the across the chasm and to the finish line.

I learned SO much from her during those 7 years, and also had so many laughs and experiences. Our SOBCOn parties at South by Southwest were absolute blasts.

But what was always extraordinary to me as I went on this journey with her were the one on one conversations she would have with people that could leave such a deep mark.

I lost count of the times friends, and total strangers for that matter, would walk up to me after having a “Liz Conversation” and tell me that their minds were blown – for the better.

She just had that way of clearing through all the clutter that most humans put in front of themselves and getting right to the heart and soul of the matter.

And she was relentless in wanting to make sure that every single person who attended an event of hers was going to get something meaningful out of it.

And she was relentless as a business partner in pushing me to help her succeed with that goal.

And you know what, I believe she succeeded, hundreds and hundreds of times over.

That was her supreme gift, her superpower – helping others find meaning in their lives, and be, in her words, “irresistible”.

The tagline for SOBCon used to be “Where the Virtual Meets the Concrete”

That was wrong, actually – it should have been –

“Where the virtual meets the irresistible force of Liz Strauss.”

Love you Liz, and farewell my dear friend.

And to all of you, I will quote from a great rock band that the SOBCon community was particularly fond of –

“Don’t stop believin’”

Gathering Stardust for Liz Strauss [Video Recording]

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On September 17, 2020 many of Liz’s friends, colleagues and family members  came together in celebration of her memory. Not a funeral, but something unique in the spirit that we believe would have made her smile. Liz never wanted to be on a pedestal, nor the center of the universe. Knowing that, she touched so many lives in so many beautiful ways, and she leaves an incredible legacy.

“Gathering Stardust for Liz Strauss” was co-created and co-produced by Jane Boyd, Jeff Pulver, Gigi Peterkin, Rosemary O’Neill, and a small group of Liz’s friends, with love and gratitude from Eric T. Strauss.

We are so thankful for the community that was shared, the many stories that were told and the voices of everyone who contributed to making “Gathering Stardust” such a profoundly moving  celebration of the uniqueness and brilliance that was Liz Strauss.

As part of “Gathering Stardust,” many individuals shared stories of inspiration about the significant number of ways that Liz had personally and professionally impacted their lives. The speakers, in order of appearance, included:

Twice during the gathering, we broke out into smaller breakout rooms to have a more intimate setting to explore and share our thoughts in response to the following questions:

  • What kinds of community have you built and/or impacted because of Liz?
  • What’s our way of paying it forward?

Many friends of Liz volunteered to hold the space for these rooms and support discussion and sharing. The breakout room facilitators included:

Included above is the full recording of the main room. The breakout rooms were not recorded.

Throughout the gathering, there was a beautiful feeling of love, gratitude and community — something many commented on throughout the event and after.  

Without question, it was the kind of gathering that Liz would have loved being a part of.

And indeed she was.

 

Gathering Stardust on Zoom

Gathering Stardust on Zoom