Blog Author Mellissah Smith - Page 71

Don't be fooled to think that in 2013 you have time to waste. Everyone is now faster, smarter, better - all with extraordinary tools at their disposal.

Embarking on global expansion has been the most fascinating experience and in particular, working in what is one of America's most untapped entrepreneurial hubs of Atlanta has not only been rewarding, but also very invigorating.

Atlanta isn't the sleepy town that some of the cities counterparts seem to think it is. In fact, it is quite the opposite. The city is full of promise, spirit and an attitude that is less ruthless than say New York, Chicago, San Francisco or Los Angeles. Behind the politeness and accomodating attitudes of Atlanta's business folk are smart, determined, ambitious and thoroughly capable people who drive small businesses in an endeavour to become big businesses.

Capitalizing on an ability to cap salaries and deliver products and services to a national and international audience with America's most proficient transport hub at its disposal, Atlanta entrepeneurs are dreaming big. You heard it right - they are dreaming big. Not too dissimilar to their New York small business friends who have inspired a national through a carefully executed tabloid and magazine advertising campaign that let's the world know that in New York "This is no place to dream small."

What strikes me about the people of Atlanta is their attitude to helping others and in turn, helping themselves. It seems that those who don't come from here, tend to be the one's to watch, whereas if you do business with a true Atlanta local, you are guaranteed that the good old fashion handshake on a deal is exactly that. 

Today I had lunch with two talented mergers and acquisition partners at Deloitte. They both are very busy people but were kind enough to take time out of their day to have a chat about business, tax and the run of the land in setting up in Atlanta, buying a home and a motor vehicle.

Let’s start this blog with a simple exercise. Go to your Facebook page and look at the last 10 statuses you posted. What are they mostly about? You may want to think before posting if most of your statuses revolve around work complaints, drunken weekend antics or overstate political opinions.

A study by University of Scranton and UC San Diego researchers found that Facebook status updates stick in the minds of readers for longer than you think – one status alone is 1.5 times more memorable than sentences from books, and 2.5 times more memorable than faces of strangers, representing a remarkable difference in memory performance.

Insert question marks here…  Sometimes even the odd exclamation mark for frustration’s sake.

You spend all your time on your business, client relationships, communications.  You’re investing a lot in your marketing to spread awareness and build a reputation.  Where’s the conversion?  Where’s the new business?  Where’s the Twitter following?  Where are the likes on Facebook?

Know.  Like.  Trust.

No matter how big and experienced you may be, a lot of people don’t know about the X-Factor of communication - that recent Chanel ad featuring Brad Pitt is a great example (making it to the ‘Business Insider’s 10 Worst Ads of 2012’ list).  Before you sell anything, you need to get known, you need to be liked and you need to be trusted.

How?

However, the work you put into it is extremely beneficial when it comes to your company’s branding, giving the world an insight into what’s behind the scenes. On top of that, writing a blog can grow your business as you position your company as a thought leader in its industry.

After speaking with Marketing Eye's CEO for an hour and a half last night on the businesses direction and any challenges that the company may face now and in the future with its current growth path - a startling revolution occurred.

Our expansion plans and the hard work that has gone into making it happen is a GAME CHANGER.

Based on now real marketing other than a website, the forecast is that the business will double within 2 years and that's being conservative - because we actually think this will happen within a year to 18 months. 

Everything you do from design to search engine optimization and social media, online advertising and content marketing, effects your ability to increase your market share and drive sales online.

If you look at your website, it is the home base. The place where you want everyone to come "home to" and feel comfortable to let their hair down and take off their shoes. In fact, you don't even mind if they put their feet up on the coach - as long as they feel comfortable enough to want to come back time and time again.

To get your visitor to feel this way, you have to be hospitable. You need to make them "feel" at home and as if your place is theirs. They need to have all of their home comforts and you have to keep them entertained.

It was opportune that I met with Jennifer Guarton from Atlanta Business Chronicle last week because without her, I would not have been sitting at this morning's 2013 Eggs and Issues Breakfast.

My belief is that you cannot market to a market you don't understand. While marketers tend to understand the psychology of why people buy, they can often be caught out by glazing over the state of the economy and not understanding both Government influence and Economic  conditions in regions in which they market.

In today's New York Times, there is a full page advertisement that says:

THIS IS NO PLACE TO DREAM SMALL.

IN NEW YORK STATE, A BUSINESS CAN GROW
AS BIG AS ANYONE CAN POSSIBLY IMAGINE.

THIS IS A PLACE WITH A WHOLE
NEW APPROACH TO BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT.
WITH THE FASTEST-GROWING TECH SECTOR IN THE U.S.,
ONE OF THE BEST EDUCATED WORKFORCES IN AMERICA,
AND OVER $1 BILLION IN INCENTIVES AND TAX BREAKS,
IT'S NOT SURPRISING THAT OUR ECONOMY LAUNCHED OVER
50,000 NEW BUSINESSES LAST YEAR ALONE.

NO MATTER WHO YOU ARE,
OR WHAT YOU DREAM OF BECOMING,
REMEMBER THIS:
NO ONE EVER CAME HERE TO TAKE A BACK SEAT,
PLAY SECOND FIDDLE,
OR MAKE IT SMALL.