Website Designers, Friend or Foe?

*As a disclaimer, I am only speaking about people that I have been burnt by. Everyone else, at the very least, you won't take offense but hear an honest girl's plea.

I think everyone keeps a list of what they are good at. If they dont, they should. I am good at a couple of things...picking out really good hotels at a very cheap price, finding really good flights (you see the travel theme here). But the one thing that I have always picked up on, believe it or not is how to fix stuff electronically. I have never really needed a manual, and I have always-almost always- been able to figure that kind of stuff out. I have always been the unpaid techie at my job usually doing the SNL Nick the Computer Guy MOOOOOOVE...

Simply, it was just easier to have you move and let me figure out what is wrong with your computer. Having said all this, I am also good at what I do (obviously)-marketing the invisible. When someone asks me what Little Blog Dress is, I try to explain to them in the lamest terms...I take care of all your marketing that has to do online. Facebook, Twitter, Online Reviews, Blogs, etc etc. You see I have very carefully left the website word out, right?? I just simply have no patience with it. So, I do have a great web girl extraordinare who is also my business partner. But, if I have a new client and I have some ideas how we can integrate what I want to do with their exiting website, I am forced  positioned to make nice with the existing web site developer. Which, in my experience (read disclaimer above) makes me want to rip my eyes out. Because in the past two weeks I have dealt with more than one designers that have basically hijacked my clients website. 

Poor Poor Pitiful Client This is a doozy that makes me want to put my head between my legs and breathe shallow breaths. My client, like most people put blind faith in someone to run her website because she  had no idea how to do it. I mean, who would? That is why you hire people to help you! Thought I would copy and paste the Ribbit Voicemail I received from this beast and let you decide how I should handle her. 

Hi. Good afternoon Darlynn. This is Melody with Mass Websites. I received a message from you about anewyou.com. I am not handling that account anymore. So I am not involved with that. And my wonderful client had left me a message that turned everything over to J which I understand as her marketing manager now. So, I have nothing to do with wonderful client and her stuff anymore. So you will need to call J, and get any information that you need from him because he is handling it all. And that's it. You know. Unless wonderful client calls and reinstates her services, there's nothing I can do to help you. Thank you.

So basically, I am screwed to make any changes to my client's website because this self serving woman has held it hostage. When did we let such an industry hold us by the you know what?? It makes me want to quit my business and go to school and become a website developer.

Because at the end of the day, I would treat my clients right. Pin It

Facebook Mistakes Every Business Should Avoid

You have your personal account on Facebook, you have found every high school friend you ever knew (or never wanted to see again). After reading many an article on how it can help your business you are now thinking about creating a business fan page on Facebook.

Facebook has taken off so successfully because it has filled a void that was needed in our daily lives. It satisfies the need to connect to friends from the past and keep up with your friends and family in the now. Many a friendship has been reconnected, established and strengthened using these non-traditional forms of media. True story-I found my brother who I had never met via Myspace. But how do you use this form of communication to market your business?

As business owners we are passionate about our brand and what we do. Using traditional media, we know that when we have a sale or a special it is time to shout it from the rooftops. While using radio, television or print this way is effective, you will fail if you try to use the same methods with your social media campaign.

Some tips to remember when building your Facebook page:

Stop Selling

This probably doesn't make too much sense to a business owner who has done nothing but put years of blood, sweat, and tears into marketing their brand for success. However, you need to understand that this new way to market your business is called social media for a reason. The best way to be effective with your Facebook marketing is to hit them on the head a 1/4, maybe 1/8 of what you are used to with traditional marketing. This doesn't mean only post 1/8 of the time, instead fill the other eighths with relative content that doesn't have much to do with your storefront. Articles in your business category that are interesting, local happenings in your neighborhood, etc. Maybe once a week you tell people something directly related to your business in the traditional form of marketing.

Show some Respect

If you are hosting an event or you have something specific to promote, for the love of God, keep it to yourself. Do not break Cardinal Rule #1 and write on someone's Facebook wall. In social media etiquette, this is the equivalent of pushing someone out of the way during a two person conversation just so you can join in. Can you think of anything ruder? Exactly. Keep it on your wall. If you want to be Crafty Cathy, for extra exposure ask your friends to repost. And I mean physically call or email and ask them, don't ask them publicly on Facebook.

Be Regular

My favorite thing to say when I sold radio was unless you are a restaurant no one thinks about your product three times a day. The way to be effective is to be consistent. A non-evasive, top of mind brand awareness campaign is how you should do all your marketing, especially on Facebook. The key is to be consistent and interesting with two to four posts a week. Soon, people will turn to your business themselves or tell their friends about "the caterer on my Facebook, or the place I saw on Facebook that rents pressure washers, etc".

If you can't be regular, pay someone to be

If I had a dollar every time I've seen this I wouldn't need to be in business. Businesses start off with the best of intentions on Facebook but then they get busy. The daily posts quickly turn into weekly posts, then biweekly, or stop altogether. They then panic because they haven't been on Facebook in two weeks and post two to three times a day for a couple of days until they get busy again. And by the way, who is running your business while you are on Facebook? Sound familiar? Sure, you can get an employee to post but you can't be assured they will do it correctly with your vision in mind. Having a professional who knows how to run an effective campaign is a good idea if you can't give it 100% all the time. Their expertise lies in knowing the constantly changing social media trends that would be beneficial to your business. Hiring a social media marketing company gives you the piece of mind that your Facebook is done properly, giving you a chance to focus on the other operations of your business.

Just my two cents. Now how can I help your business look its very best?

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Friday Obsession-Wise Stamp

I tend to get obsessed with the normal girlie things, H/M...IKEA....new found Hobby Lobby. I am sure that I am not the only one that gets that dry mouth, that oh my God I have to touch every single piece of merchandise feeling. Normal-ish, right? But, what sets me apart from most La-Las is that I also get this feeling when I find a really cool computer application or program. I felt this way when I discovered I Want Sandy (RIP) and I was googling how to embed a video in your email when I came across Wise Stamp. I think I lost a little oxygen on this one. Wise Stamp is an amazing extension for Chrome or Firefox that lets you set up your email signature, your logo, your business, and every social media link you could ever think to have....ever. I am just marveling at the potential of branding. Think about an average office, 10-20 people deep...how many emails are sent out on a daily basis? Hundreds? What if every one of these emails had your logo, your blog, your website, your you tube, or your social media attached to it? Wouldn't that take your business to the next level? Yea, I thought so.

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