Tag: business planning

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Be Aware of and Follow FTC Guidelines

If you don’t know yet, you have to follow certain guidelines before working with and sharing influencer marketing posts or anything to do with internet marketing.

FTC what they do

The Federal Trade Commission Act is used to protect both the consumer and the business owners. Its main purpose is to protect the credibility of information being shared on the internet while maintaining transparency.

 

You can expect the following consequences for not following the FTC rules:

 

  • Cease and Desist Orders
  • Fines Up to $43,792 per violation
  • Injections by federal district courts
  • Refunds to consumers
  • Costs associated with damages

 

Here are a few main points to be aware of and practice to avoid any legal fees and responsibilities:

 

  • Don’t Share Deceptive or Fake Information – If you do not know for sure that the information you are sharing or promoting is 100 percent legitimate and true and not fake, do not share it. If you do it, it will make you look untrustworthy, cause many controversies, and maybe even cost you money.

 

  • Always Display a Disclaimer – Disclaimers are not meant to allow you to mislead or lie, but they can help protect you from problems. For example, if your product is a special neck pillow, you may want to add a disclaimer that this neck pillow, while it helps you personally with your neck pain, is not a medical device, and you’re not giving medical advice. But, again, talk to a lawyer to help you with your disclaimers.

 

  • Don’t Fake a Product Demonstration – If you’re going to demonstrate anything, never do it in a fake way. If the product doesn’t work as you state it works, then the buyer will find out. Just be real and ask that the influencers you work with are too.

 

Be sure to visit the Federal Trade Commission website to fully understand the guidelines as much as possible before you get started. Knowing and following the law is your civil duty, and you can’t use a lack of knowledge and understanding to protect yourself.

 

 

 

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Top Social Media Platforms for Influencer Marketing

When you start using influencer marketing, it’s important to understand that not all platforms will be viable for your needs. Only the platforms that have influencers who market to your audience will work for you. It will help you understand what the personality is and the audience is of each platform to make the right choices.

 

Instagram

 

This visual social media platform has grown so fast that hardly anyone hasn’t heard of it. Over a billion people use the platform at least monthly, and most of them are based outside of the USA, with 140 million residing in the USA. Even during the 2020 pandemic, Instagram grew by leaps and bounds. So if you have a visual product or know how to make your offers visual, this platform will work for you.

 

YouTube

 

It’s hard to imagine life without YouTube. It’s only been here since 2005, but it has changed the landscape of media. Anyone can truly get their “15 minutes of fame” by starting their own YouTube channel. YouTube is still growing its influence by expanding its member base by 14 percent in 2020, and it’s still growing. Today, there are almost 2 billion active users on YouTube. So there is no doubt that your audience is also on YouTube. Even if you don’t have a particularly visual niche, you can usually find what you need here.

 

TikTok

 

As a micro media visual platform, this social media network has taken off in a big way. Some of the explosion is due to “bad press,” which proves that there is no bad press if you’re ready to use it for your needs. This platform is in over 150 countries and is most loved by the younger generation.

 

Twitter

 

One of the most long-lived platforms on social media platforms has gone from a text-based solution to a multimedia solution used by millions every day. Many people use Twitter to get all their news and information. The audience on Twitter is mostly from the USA, and in fact, more than half of all citizens in the USA are using the platform regularly.

 

Blogs

 

You may not initially think of a blog as a social media platform, but it is because you can have plenty of engagement through the comment section of any blog. Influencers who have very popular blogs can help you get more views for your offer just as easily as a YouTube influencer can. If they have an engaged audience that needs your solutions, it will work for you.

 

Research each platform to see if you can find influencers who entertain or inform your ideal audience who wants and needs your offers. If so, you can surely work out a deal to get the word out that is beneficial for you both.

How do YouTubers Make Money?

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Work On Your Funnel Each Week And Continue To Branch Out

You should already have at least some very basic funnels set up for your online business. To make sure we are all on the same page, let’s quickly define what a funnel is when it comes to your website. It’s a way for people to work their way through what you have to offer. This could be going from the content of your blog, to signing up for your email list, receiving a series of emails and getting an offer for one of your products or services. That’s one simple funnel and I hope you already have that one set up.

 

While that’s a great start, it should be your only funnel. The goal for any business is to continue to find new ways to draw in more potential customers and engage them. That may mean setting up several new opt-in offers. It may mean sending out a monthly or weekly newsletter. It should always mean creating new products, or making offers for existing things. And of course it could mean presenting affiliate offers.

 

Funnels are great and they are never done. For starters, things change. Links break, you find better offers, and you learn more about your subject matter and have more or even better information to present to your audience. That’s why it’s a good idea to audit your existing funnels from time to time, updating, editing, and fixing them as needed.

 

It’s also a great idea to test and optimize your funnels. For example, you could split test two different lead magnets and see which one converts better. Test what product you present to your subscribers when. Tweak and test to improve your overall conversions, open crates, and click-through rates. Split test your sales pages … The sky’s the limit when it comes to testing and tracking your funnels. The goal will always be the same – try to do a little better than what you have been doing. Over time, you’ll make huge improvements that translate into a bigger bottom line.

 

In addition to improving your existing funnels, you also want to set aside some time each week to consistently work on expanding and adding new ones. This could mean adding a couple of new autoresponder emails to your first funnel this week. And it could mean creating a new lead magnet next week that attracts a slightly different audience into your circle of influence. The important part is that you work on your funnels every single week. Consistency here, like in so many other areas of your online business is key. Doing a little bit each week, will help you grow, expand, and improve your funnels.

HBA Funnel Builder…

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Struggling With Social Media? A Calendar And System Can Help

Do you have a hard time with social media? Either you aren’t finding the time to get around to posting regularly and getting discouraged by a lack of results you’re getting. You know what I’m talking about. You aren’t getting a lot of new followers on your page on Facebook for example and when you post something only a small fraction of those people see the post. It can be discouraging and feel like you have to pay to play by buying ads if you want your content to be seen. Thankfully that’s not true. What is true however is that consistency can help you grow your reach on any social media platform. It can help you with Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, and anywhere else where your ideal customers choose to hang out.

 

This brings up an important point. Before you dive in and invest a lot of time and effort on every single platform, take a look around. Where are your people hanging out? What media does your tribe prefer? For example, if you’re running a recipe blog, you have to be on Pinterest, and depending on your particular niche, you may also want a Facebook presence, including a group, and possibly a YouTube channel. If you’re into sourdough, you’ve got to be on Instagram… Do your research and do your best to determine where you want to be before you get started.

 

Once you have that figured it, it’s time to come up with a posting schedule. Remember, consistency is key. You’re better off doing fewer posts and shares more regularly than overdoing it and burning out. Start with a conservative number that you’re comfortable with across all platforms and write it down. For example, you may choose to do 5 tweets per week, 10 pins, 3 Facebook posts, one Facebook Live video, and a new YouTube video every other week.

 

Once you have your schedule, it’s time to schedule the actual content using a calendar. You can use Google Calendar or an old-fashioned paper one. The key is being able to stay organized and having your social media goals in writing to ensure it gets done and posted regularly. How far out should you schedule? That’s up to you. If you like to plan in big batches every few months, go for it. If you prefer to be more spontaneous, do it once a week. Play around with different time frames and see what works best for you. When you know what you’ll be posting about and have the text and images ready ahead of time, it’s quick and easy to keep up with social media.

 

To save even more time and make social media content more hands-off, take a look at some of the scheduling tools available. I like Hootsuite, MeetEdgar, PostPlanner, and Tailwind (for Pinterest). Use them to schedule and loop posts that will go out without you having to log into your social media profiles every single day.  Instead, you can set aside time once every couple of weeks to do the bulk of your work. Then check-in from your phone throughout the week to respond to comments etc. Getting organized and figuring out a system that works for you can be such a game-changer when it comes to being consistent on social media and growing an engaged following. When you have those main posts going out on schedule, you can then pop in and interact & post in real-time as and when time allows.

 

Tools and Tips to Help You Automate Social Media Marketing

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Why You Need To Mail Your List Regularly

I have a question for you. How often are you mailing your list? Do you sit down once a month to create a newsletter for your existing subscribers? Or are you waiting to reach a certain number of subscribers before you even start to mail? If so, I think you’re making a big mistake.

 

Mailing lists only work when you use them to get in touch with your subscribers regularly. If you wait too long, they’ll forget about you. When you’re no longer relevant or important to them, they’ll unsubscribe, or worse, mark your emails as spam. Yes, even if it is something they opted in to receive. People forget. It’s your job to stay on top of mind. And you do that by emailing them regularly.

 

Mailing once a week is a good start for most people. If you’re not crafting email messages for your readers regularly right now, start there. Send out a message and let your readers know what to expect. Good mailing lists are all about setting and meeting expectations. Tell them that you’re excited to kick things off and that you’ll have something fun and valuable stuff to share with them each week. If possible, set a date and time and tell them to keep an eye out for your emails. This will do wonders for your open rates. For example, you could tell them to look for a new message from you every Wednesday morning. Then deliver on that promise.

 

Meeting expectations builds trust. Not only are your subscribers more likely to stick around, open, and read your emails, they’ll also trust you when you make an offer or a recommendation. That means you’ll start to see more clicks and sales on your affiliate links, and of course higher conversions on your own product offers. Build that relationship with your target audience and move people from prospect to customer, and eventually to a raving fan by staying in touch regularly via email.

 

And here’s a little bonus tip. Ask your readers to share you with others. Every so often invite them to share your opt-in page or even ask them to forward one of your emails to people they know who may be interested in the topic. Keep it light and casual and don’t overdo it. You’ll be surprised how quickly your subscriber list will grow when you enlist the help of current readers.

 

To get started, commit to an email schedule. Start weekly and stick to it for a couple of months. Use the email schedule features of your autoresponder service to make sure it happens even if life gets crazy. Don’t miss an issue and work on building that reputation of being reliable and consistent and see what happens. I think you’ll be hooked.

How to Optimize Your Email Subject Lines

 

 

 

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Keep Readers And Search Engines Happy By Publishing Content Consistently

One area where consistency will start to pay off quickly is when it comes to your website or blog. Putting out fresh content regularly is great for both your readers and search engines. Both will reward you for your hard work in their own ways. Let’s take a look.

 

Let’s start with the golden grail of web development. Free search engine traffic. We all want Google to send us as many new potential customers as possible, right?  They in turn want to send the freshest and most up-to-date information to their customers. Who are their customers? People who search for something via their search engine, of course. And it’s the search engine company’s job to ensure they deliver the best possible result. What does that have to do with you and consistency? Great question!

 

When you update your site regularly, you’re showing the search engines that you are up to date and relevant. This isn’t an article or blog post on a site that’s been sitting there for ten years and could be outdated. This is something you’re actively working on and the search engines will reward you by giving you higher priority over dormant sites. Of course, there are many other factors that go into ranking, but the easiest thing you can do to improve your SEO is to create content consistently.

 

Just as important is nourishing the relationship you have with these readers. Think back on the last time you’ve landed on a new blog or website through a Google search. Assuming the content was up to snuff, you appreciated the information, but you were probably a long way off from considering buying from this site or even giving them your email address. But if you were curious enough to browse around, you may have become interested enough to bookmark the site, or at the very least have it on your radar when you come across it again later. By the way, making sure that happens is becoming easier with targeted advertising like FB ads for example. But that’s outside the scope of this post.

 

When you update your site regularly, you’re training your website visitors to come back for more. They’ll get in the habit of visiting and reading often. Of course, that’s not going to happen with every single person who comes across your site, and that’s okay. You want your ideal target audience, the people who are really interested in what you have to share. You’ll get their attention by publishing regularly and as they read and engage with you on your blog, they’ll move closer to becoming a subscriber and then a customer.

10 Content Marketing Tips for Email Marketing Success

Of course, as an added bonus all this content you’re adding regularly is out there attracting new people through search engines, social media, and other people sharing links to your valuable content. That’s why you want to publish consistently to continue to grow.

 

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Learn to Laugh More Often

Sometimes you can make yourself feel happier and more successful by simply seeking out more laughter. A daily habit that will pay off big time is simply not taking life or yourself too seriously while finding ways to laugh about funny things even if they’re hard.

 

Developing the habit of laughter simply requires that you give yourself permission to laugh and let go and seek out more humor. Let’s look at several ways you can bring more laughter into your life.

 

  • Spend Time with Funny People – When you really want to feel light, there are likely people in your life that you can make sure you spend time with. When you hang out with funny people, it will rub off on you.

 

  • Try New Experiences Often – One way to bring laughter back into your life is to keep trying new things. When you open your life and mind to new experiences, you also open yourself up to funny things happening to you that are out of the norm of what might happen if you just do the same thing day in and day out.

Tips to Help You Practice Positive Thinking

  • Watch Your Favorite Funny Go to Sitcom or Movie – Sometimes, you have to pull out the big guns and watch a rerun of something that made you laugh when times were good. Bringing laughter back into your life in any way you can is a healthy habit that pays off for years to come.

 

  • See The Situation from a New Perspective – Everyone sees things from their own perspective and information bubble when you realize that you can become more like a child or a baby or a first-time parent by opening up your world to new ideas and perspectives.

 

  • Go to a Comedy Club Show – Choose the type of humor you like but burst through your comfort zone and go to a comedy show near you. You may not even realize that people still do comedy shows at clubs, and you don’t even have to put up with smoking nowadays if you don’t want to.

 

  • Understand Human Nature – When you know how humans really behave, on average, it’s a lot easier to see what is happening to you through the eyes of experience. When you understand that this is just how things are, it is way funnier than when you think it’s only happening to you.

 

The great thing about bringing more laughter into your life is that it pays off in numerous ways. It will lower the stress you’re experiencing, which will lessen your chances of experiencing stress-related diseases like obesity that lead to serious cardiovascular disease. Not only that, but it’s like you’re also doing a ton of sit-ups to your stomach muscles. It’s a way to get in shape that doesn’t feel like work at all.

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Cultivate The Daily Habit of Asking for Help

Emulating what rich folks do isn’t always best for people who want to live a principled and moral life. However, you can learn how to give yourself an advantage by studying what rich people do differently from what poor people do. When morality and reality collide, it’s a sign that the habit is one that you need to incorporate into your daily life.

 

One super clear thing is that rich people are not afraid to ask for help. Of course, many rich people do not even realize how much support they get, but let’s think about this and then let’s find ways to cultivate the habit of asking for help in your life that is both moral and enriching.

 

Do Not Trade Hours for Dollars

 

While most people you hire will often provide an hourly rate, when you get paid for something, don’t charge by the hour. Instead, figure out what the value of the service is to the recipient and charge what the market will allow. A lot goes into being able to offer the service such as education, experience, connections, and so forth that differentiates you from the next person.

 

Perception, time, education, experience (and so forth) is the reason someone like Bill Gates can command a year’s average salary for a short speech, or a surgeon can charge six figures for an 8-hour procedure – it’s not just about the time. Never has been, but it’s something often taught to the average person to justify low wages.

 

Delegate To Willing Family Members

 

I don’t mean to be stereotypical so if I’m wrong, let me know in the comments, but this advice will probably resonate most with the women. Men are really good at delegating tasks to family members despite their net worth. Women are not as good at doing that, although the habit, according to research, is more prevalent in higher-income earners.

 

We can argue about it, but the best course of action is to think about and narrow it down to only considering what you can control and what you cannot control. You can only control your actions and reactions to things. You can’t control someone else at all. So, if you are feeling resentful in any way against your family because you feel like you are taking on too much work at home, speak up and start delegating just like other confident people do.

 

Outsource To Experts

 

When money is not a concern, the things you spend your money on are different than when you are struggling. Those who are struggling tend to spend more on housing, healthcare, and food, while those in higher tax brackets spend more on experiences and downtime than the necessities of life. However, even so, they are more productive, and this is because they aren’t afraid to outsource to experts to let them do what they do, giving them more free time to have amazing mind-opening experiences. Of course, having time to experience more fun and joy increases their perception of happiness. Set income benchmarks that signal time to outsource all the things you don’t need to be doing to meet those goals and beyond.

 

If you don’t like doing something, stop doing it. Don’t be ashamed of not wanting to clean your own toilet. There is someone out there who values their toilet cleaning skill and who wants nothing more than to be paid good money to clean your bathroom. The same can be said about literally anything in life. If you like doing it, keep doing it. If you don’t like doing it, stop doing it and find someone willing to trade something with you to do it, either money or something else of value.

 

How to Outsource to Save You More Time

 

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Learn The SMART Goal Making Process

Proper goal setting is one of the most important skills you can learn in terms of how much goodness it’ll add to your life. By learning this goal-setting system, you’ll gain a sense of direction so that you can organize your resources in a way that helps you reach your goals.

 

When you craft a SMART goal, the way you phrase the goal helps you focus on what’s important so that you can make decisions about the actions you’re taking in a way that impacts your goal. Not only that, but the goal also provides the motivation you need to take the small daily actions toward success.

 

Example of a SMART Goal: “By Sunday night, I’m going to increase my total weekly word count from 7000 words to 10,000 words a week by adding 427 words a day to my normal daily 1000-word goal.”

 

  • Specific – The goal you set has to be very precise in order to help the person reading the goal understand and become certain about the expected impact or deliverables. Ask yourself questions to get this right, such as: What am I doing, why am I doing it, what do I need to do it right?

 

  • Measurable – As you craft the goal, you also need to use numbers that allow you to judge whether or not you’re reaching your objectives. Numbers like time, range, weight, steps, and so forth all make sense.

 

  • Attainable – Don’t bother setting impossible goals. If you have never walked an hour a day in your life, don’t start with that as your goal. Instead, start with five minutes and then craft a plan to add on a minute a day until you reach your goal of walking an hour a day.

 

  • Relevant – Also, each goal that you make has an overarching objective you’re trying to accomplish. For example, if you’re trying to write a novel writing the words is just one aspect of the novel publishing goal, but it is directly related.

 

  • Timely – Never leave a goal timeline open-ended. Even if you have to adjust the timeframe due to reality, the truth is we all fill up the time we give ourselves. If you give yourself three hours to check the mail, you’re going to take three hours. Tighten up your timelines to create a schedule that includes structured action that is easy to habituate – no motivation needed.

 

As you craft your goals, consider who will do the actions that help you reach the goal and think about what you really want to accomplish. When you do that and create a realistic time frame for it all to be done, you’re more likely actually to achieve the results you want and need.

Better Goal Setting Tips for Maximum Productivity

 

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Daily Health Habits: Mind Your Posture

Sometimes it’s truly mind-blowing how something that seems on the surface not to matter at all is really life-changing. If you want to be healthy long-term, paying close attention to the actions you take every day will make a difference, like drinking plenty of water, exercising, eating right, and so forth are all important, but if you don’t mind your posture, you could end up suffering more than you think.

 

Proper posture can help reduce lower back pain, headaches, neck, and shoulder tension, wear and tear on your joints, increased lung capacity, better circulation, better digestion, and more energy, all benefits of checking and correcting your posture.

 

Get Expert Advice

 

If you have any type of body pain, it’s important to find out from a physical therapist or a personal trainer the best way to hold your posture living the life you live. You can also find professionals talking about posture and proper posture on YouTube. Just make sure you follow someone who really knows what they’re doing and saying.

 

Buy a Good Bed

 

Don’t skimp on buying the right bed for your needs. Spending money investing in a good bed with a long warranty designed for your type of sleeping and your personal needs will be one of the main things that help you sleep well and live a mostly pain-free life.

 

Invest In the Right Furniture

 

Like your bed is important for your posture, so is the furniture you buy and use for pleasure and work. Each person has different needs, as someone with lower back pain will need a firm surface and perhaps specialized seating. In contrast, someone without issues now will simply need to buy high-quality ergonomic and comfortable items.

 

Invest In Your Workspace

 

Like you invest in the comfort of your home, don’t forget any areas you work in. It’s not good for you to work in your bed with poor posture. Instead, set up your workspace so that it’s good for long-term use and avoids pressure or repetitive injury.

 

Make a list showing items that you need to purchase or replace to ensure that you have a comfortable home and work environment that isn’t just attractive but also good for your posture. You won’t regret it. Then each day, when you first get up, do a few posture-affirming stretches so that you can become more mindful of your posture the rest of the day.