Tag: undefined

It's only 7 weeks in and it's already been a roller-coaster of a year. I am already exhausted. Everything imaginable has happened to me this year, but somehow exhilarated at the same time.

There have been so many changes; life, business and game. I feel like I have lived through so much, yet there is still so much more to achieve.

Yesterday, I had the privilege of spending half an hour with a young entrepreneur by the name of Kylie Marie, who is inspiring, ambitious, energetic and ready to take on the world. I now know why older people liked spending time with me when I was new to business, because that energy is contagious. I couldn't help but smile and be totally inspired by what Kylie is doing and her fearlessness in business. Her brow bars, Browco Brow Bar, will be everywhere in the next year or so, along with her eyebrow products that are to die for.

It's that time of year where companies are back hiring new recruits.

As someone who is always too busy, I have left the on-boarding to our previous CEO and Area Managers, with my role being minimal other than an introduction.

However, like most entrepreneurs, January is a time to re-think your business in every way; finance, recruitment, human resources, marketing, sales, products/services etc.

This has given me an opportunity to see just what is going on and I have to say, we have some gaps. As a marketing and communications based company, Marketing Eye plays a pivotal role in communicating a company's brand and culture to employees of our clients. We develop and design on-boarding manuals, podcasts, corporate videos and interactive presentations on the company, people and history.

What I have realized is that we are not dissimilar to a mechanic who never finds time to fix their own car. 

With that, off came the gloves and I rolled up my sleeves to have a better insight into our on-boarding processes. 

Here are some clever best practices that we teach our clients and implement on their behalf:

THE INTERVIEW

• When writing an advertisement for a position, include a link to your website which talks about the company culture and the type of person that will fit in. This is great for the applicant and even better for your company as it sends people to your website and drives traffic and engagement.

• Ask applicants to like your company on social media. If they don't want to do this, then they are definitely NOT interested in your brand, culture or the future promotion of your company - so strike them immediately off the list.

• When an applicant comes for an interview, ensure that someone from your team rings them the day before, introduces themselves and talks to them about a normal day in the office. It's a great way to give the applicant an idea what it is like to work for your company and also shares with them an insight into the culture and type of people that they need to fit in with.

• Do something clever to get the applicant to remember your company like sending them an inspirational email with a famous quote. Ensure that it is written on a picture to give your brand  a "lift"

• On arrival at the interview, give them an iPad with a presentation and video of what it is like to work for your company and what type of people perform best. 

• In the interview, present your company like you would present the company to a client. Then ask for the applicant to talk about themselves; share insights that do not come across clearly in their CV's and ask them to explain why they think that they would be a good fit.

• When they leave, give them a company brochure and any literature related to your company that may be of benefit to them.

What makes me #happy? The sun shining. My dog giving me a cuddle. Spending time with my family. Children. Winning. Getting sales. Building my company. Walking in the park. Reading a book. Being in love. 

The United Nations was onto something when they declared March 20, as the first International Day of Happiness. Aimed at encouraging countries to "better capture the importance of the pursuit of happiness and well-being in development with a view to guiding their public policies", #happyday has certainly struck a chord.

Our in-house social media expert tweeted feverishly in both Australia and US on consecutive days about #happyday with great results. People from around the globe retweeted, shared and commented. People simply want to be happy.

I asked a few people in our office what makes them happy. 

It's already March. In fact, today is the 1/3/13. 

The  year has begun and is going too fast for my personal liking. Having reviewed the figures for the financial year from July 1, 2012, I am impressed that our sales are up 40% and even more pleased that I haven't been in the office for more than 4 months of that time which means only one thing - that the team at Marketing Eye rock! Seriously. Great work.

But on another note, the year is speeding along and I feel as though I need to stop and take a deep breath and make sure that everything is in order to continue down this path of high growth.

Does anyone else feel the same?

When I think of Valentine's Day, I think of rose petals and champagne, caviar and strawberries. Soft music playing in the background and a handsome, romantic man laying beside me looking up at the stars.

It's a dream, one that I would never want to wake up from.

Happy Valentine's Day to all. I hope your Valentine makes your day memorable.

As business owners and managers in an ever evolving world, our jobs become more challenging every day – every hour – to cut through clutter and make consumers notice our message.


How many times do we find ourselves repeating what we say to co-workers to get a message across?  For most of us, this isn’t a reflection of how we’re gauged as professionals or individuals but 95% attributable to the ‘151 rule’.


They say a person needs to hear new information at least three times before it registers into his/her mind for immediate recollection.  This has been taught over and over again to us and you can test it by saying aloud a new name you come across three times consciously.


When you target a market with a specific message the same rule applies, all except your target isn’t one person and those three times won’t cut it.  It’s all about repetition.  You have no control over which people are listening at what time of the day - so the logical bet is to be accessible and available 24/7/365.

Do you have plans to grow your business in the next 12 months? If you do, then we should talk.

There are many compelling reasons why businesses don’t achieve their goals; finance, people and marketing to name a few.

In the past 12 months, my business has embarked on global expansion. In that time, I personally have gone through everything from over the top excitement in signing a new deal, to dreading opening my emails - just in case something doesn’t go to plan. It’s part of the journey of any entrepreneur or businessperson that is on a high growth path and willing to take a risk.

We have all stumbled upon a myriad of marketing and social media latest phases and without hesitation either jumped in and had a go, or stood back and watched what our competitors have achieved before investing valuable cash and resources to the latest, hottest marketing platform.

In Atlanta, particularly, there is so much to consider when it comes to marketing but the reality is simple: content marketing driving sales through a better understanding of clients and prospects. I say, in Atlanta because every region is different and the demographics from one city in America to another is inherently different. Marketers that take the same course of action that they would in NY, LA or Chicago will find that their content marketing strategy is not effective and will not draw the results that your management team is looking for.

There has been one consistent marketing platform that has been more central to a marketing strategy in the past couple of years, than any other marketing activity bar social media.

Content Marketing

If you have been hearing this buzz word for some time, and haven't done anything about it, then you are in a minority. Unlike the phases of social media platforms and apps popping up into our strategies then quickly falling to the way-side, content marketing underpins all online marketing strategies, whether we like it or not.

After a highly successful trip to AT & T for a new mobile phone, I ventured towards the car through the shopping mall Lennox in Buckhead Atlanta.

My eyes were captivated by the lights and colours that shine so brightly from Victoria Secret that my one year ban from going into the store, became a distant memory.

The challenges of 2011/12 have been more worrying than ever before. There are some real reasons for this. Italy and Spain are in preparation ot sell debt amid concerns that Europe's fiscal crisis is infecting bigger economies, debt levels are more than 25% higher than the Great Depression and the US - well, we are all aware what is going on there.

For many small business owners, we are now down to the business end of the year. To make a dollar or for some, to survive another year.

While it has been tough and most small businesses can attest to this, those who are investing in their product and service offering, are fairing better than those who are saving every penny and hoping for a better day.

I am an optimist in every sense of the word. My glass is half full and there is a lot more left in the jug. But as I use positivity to spearhead my next steps, I am acutely aware that 'having all your ducks in a row' is paramount to not only surviving but growing your business and moving forward.

As a small business owner, there are many things to consider: