Author Archive
Social Media Sites – Which Ones Do You Use?
Posted by: | Comments
Professional Women in Building held a NAHB webinar today on using social media to reach one of the hottest buying demographics in America – Women.
We did an online poll of the participants. The question posed was, “What types of social media are you using for your business?” The poll results are pictured, but I’ll post the results as well:
Blogs – 22%
LinkedIn – 51%
Facebook – 73%
Twitter – 19%
YouTube – 24%
Other – 14%
Ok, so in terms of what I do on a daily basis, this is HUGE! With only 22% of the companies on the call using a corporate blog, that means that 78% need one! Having the blog work as the engine of your social media program integrates your program. It makes the program less work. Companies can reduce the amount of time needed in social media management by 50% while increasing their website traffic by 25 – 50%. Integrating this piece is key!
This seminar is part of a 5 part NAHB webinar series called Building Conversations, so make sure to check it out!
It’s Not Personal, It’s Business
Posted by: | Comments
How many times have we heard this? I love this page from Seth Godin’s What Matters Now. It is by Mitch Joel the President of Twist Image and author of Six Pixels of Separation.
Compassion:
“It’s nothing personal, it’s just business.”
We spend more than 50% of our lives at work. Why would anyone want to wake up in the morning and go to work with that attitude? If you don’t make it personal, and if you don’t make it count, what’s the point?
Business is missing one important core value: compassion.
“Between work and family, I have no time for community.”
This is is something everyone feels at some point in their lives. But think about it: What if we made community an integral part of our business? What if we recognized that we can’t have strong businesses without a Read More→
10 Tips to Attain and Manage Power
Posted by: | Comments
This post is for all the business owners and entrepreneurs in my life. My friend Karla Sinclair, Publisher of Atlanta Daybook shared this information from the Possible Woman conference held recently in Atlanta. It is really great information and I hope it will provide you with additional motivation to continue to be the shining star that you are.
Political commentator Donna Brazile gave the keynote address which focused on women attaining and managing power.
Ten Tips from Donna Brazile:
- Know your power and believe in yourself.
- Be true to yourself and visualize.
- Identify role models and mentors.
- Nourish your ambition.
- Dare to dream and communicate clearly.
- Set a strategy for success and write it down.
- Remove stumbling blocks and remain steadfast despite the obstacles.
- If you get knocked down, get back up.
- Don’t be afraid of controversy.
- Stir the waters. Sometimes making waves is the only way to move forward.
Your Web site and SEO
Posted by: | Comments
My Brother Built It. Why Doesn’t it Work?
Have you ever wondered, “How effective is my company’s Web site?” The mRELEVANCE team runs across companies every day that had their Web site built by a relative, typically their brother or brother-in-law. This is great if your brother or brother-in-law works for an Internet marketing company, but chances are, he doesn’t.
Many of these companies don’t see results from their Web sites and simply have a hard time proving or justifying the effectiveness of their sites. In the worst cases, they can’t get their sites to work at all.
During an upcoming seminar on Web sites and SEO (Search Engine Optimization), I will cover the five most common reasons why Web sites do not produce leads, prospects or buyers:
- Not built to drive traffic
- Difficult to Navigate
- Content and Branding
- Proper Call to Action
- Tracking and Analytics
Best of all, during the presentation I’ll provide constructive direction on how to fix them.
For more information on this Lunch & Learn on Friday, May 21 at 11:30 a.m., call the Cartersville – Bartow County Chamber of Commerce at 770-382-1466.
If you can’t make the seminar, but need help with your Web site, let me know. We love helping companies become effective online! 770-383-3360 or carol (at) mRELEVANCE.com
Purse Power
Posted by: | Comments
I don’t think anyone underestimates the buying power or influence of women. In fact, I recently Retweeted sheconomy, “Men, The Female Consumer is in Control. Listen or Perish. http://ow.ly/1zjvB.” My friend Aaron Hoffman quipped back quickly, “I think we understand that given that there’s 20 women’s stores to every guy’s store in the mall.”
Women influence all the major consumer purchasing categories from home furnishings to vacations to new homes. Here are the percentages:
- All consumer purchases: 85 percent
- Home furnishings: 94 percent
- Vacations: 92 percent
- New homes: 91 percent
- DIY (do-it-yourself projects): 80 percent
- Consumer Electronics: 51 percent
So, what is the best way to reach out to this influential demographic? Well, the Internet of course. Here of the statistics on where you can find us.
An April 2009 Women and Social Media Study by BlogHer, iVillage and Compass Partners shows that women are twice as likely to use blogs over other social networking sites for trusted information. Here are the findings from the study:
- 75% participate in social networks
- 55% were active bloggers Read More→
Chatty Cathie Replaced By Texting Tammy
Posted by: | Comments
A recent study from Pew on texting reveals that teens preferred method of communicating is by text. The study shows that boys typically send and receive 30 texts a day, compared with girls’ 80 messages. The one exception is Girls 14-17 who typically send 100 or more messages a day!
Women have always been the more social or chatty of the two sexes, but it seems that Chatty Cathie is being replaced by Texting Tammy.
Overall, girls more fully embrace most aspects of cell-phone communications:
- 86% of girls say they text message friends several times a day, compared with 64% of boys.
- 59% of girls call friends on their cell phone every day, compared with 42% of boys.
- 59% of girls send text messages several times a day to “just say hello and chat,” compared with 42% of boys. Read More→
She Says: Sell Me But Do It My Way
Posted by: | Comments
Digital strategies provider Q Interactive enlisted its Women’s Channel, a pioneer in creating an online dialogue between leading brands and ideal women customers, to conduct a survey of more than 1,800 women — 82 percent of them mothers. The result may be as amazing as the women in your life! Women actually WANT ads to be directed and delivered to them to help them find the best deals. Women are busy and they want help finding the items they are looking for from the brands they trust.
Hghlights of the study include:
- 88 percent of women polled said they wished that brands they trusted would send them more tailored offers.
- More than 65 percent of the women first think, “Cool! How did they know I wanted this?” when receiving an online advertisement perfectly targeted to them.
- 58 percent said brands need to “Give me something” in order to build an online relationship.
- More than 53 percent believe they have relationships with sites and brands they often use online. Read More→
Meet Me at Builder Books
Posted by: | Comments
Hot off the press! I don’t even have a copy of it yet, but “Social Media for Home Builders: It’s Easier Than You Think” is HOT off the press and will be available at BuilderBooks at the International Builders Show.
Stop by the BuilderBooks Store during “Ask The Experts” on Wednesday January 20th from 1 – 2 p.m. to meet me and ask your social media questions. The BuilderBooks Store is located on the Grand Concourse in the Central Hall. Open Daily.
Social media marketing doesn’t have to be a mystery. My new book will walk you step-by-step through how to build an effective program. Please come by BuilderBooks during IBS to meet me! #IBS2010
Cell Phones, Texting and Your Customers
Posted by: | Comments
85% of adult Americans own a cell phone.
52% of Americans send test messages.
A recent study on Wireless Internet use by Pew discovered that more than 50% of American adults use their mobile phones for non-voice data each day. Non-voice data includes using smart phones and cell phones for texting, taking photos, playing games, surfing the Web and sending email.
And here is a scary statistic: 25% of Americans admit that they text while driving.
Lucky for us, companies like Vlingo have invented “voice user interface” technology that allows people to control their cell phones by talking to the phone. “We often like to say 26 percent of people admit to driving while texting. We are sure that underestimates the problem,” said Dave Grannan, of Vlingo. Click here for more results of the Vlingo survey. Let’s all pledge to text only while parked.
The Pew study says, “Sending text messages remains the mainstay activity for cell phone users.” As companies seek ways to engage buyers through permission-based mediums, texting will no doubt continue to be hot. Read More→
Learning About Finances
Posted by: | Comments
We just opened a bank account for our 10 year old, so that he can start to learn more about managing money and building wealth. There are several things we want him to understand sooner than later:
- Stuff costs money and that money doesn’t grow on trees – you have to earn it, save it and work for it.
- How to balance a bank account. How to both add and subtract money. AND that checking your balance doesn’t account for checks that you have written but that have not cleared the bank.
- Having a debit or credit card should not give you feeling that you can charge, charge, charge. At some point you have to pay for it!
- Saving money and investing is the key to financial freedom and potential future retirement. Saving just 20 cents of every dollar earned can amount to a lot over a lifetime.
Hopefully we can help him learn these lessons as a child. As an aside, I know a lot of children who have cell phones but Read More→
