A marketer is only as good as the tools they use.

That’s easy to say, but it glosses over one of the real challenges that small business owners must face.

With so many marketing tools to choose from, how do you know which ones are worthwhile?

It’s a good question – and I’m...

As Facebook Groups continue to evolve, Facebook will be giving preference to groups with higher engagement rates.

This means that if you want your group to be promoted by Facebook, you need to make sure you’re maintaining an active community of happy members. If you’re not sure how to...

A friend invited you to lunch and said it was her treat. You showed up at the restaurant and spent a few minutes in small talk... 

But after the drinks arrive, your friend starts with the sales pitch. She’s trying to sell you her latest product.

You feel trapped. It’s not that you...

What’s Instagram to you?

If your response is something like “a platform to share selfies” or “something my kids use,” then guess what? You’re missing some exciting marketing opportunities for your business.

The truth is that more small businesses using Instagram...

Starting a Facebook group lets you connect with your customers in new and exciting ways.

You can create Facebook Live videos and encourage members to respond with a video of their own. You can start conversation threads and get feedback from your members within just a few minutes.

But before you...

In a perfect world, everyone who buys your products would talk about them to everyone they meet.

The problem is, we don’t live in a perfect world. And, while some of your customers might be ardent fans, others may need a bit of coaxing to get there.

The good news? You can turn customers...

Snapchat is just for teens, right?
Wrong!

While Snapchat isn’t as big as Instagram or Facebook, it’s still a huge social media site with millions of users. And if your target audience includes Millennials, then you can’t afford to ignore Snapchat.

The trick, of course, is knowing...

When it comes to Facebook marketing, most solopreneurs are savvy enough to have a fan page, where followers can like your content and interact with you. Creating your own Facebook page is good and can help your business grow.

But it’s easy to overlook another important aspect of Facebook...

What are your competitors doing that you don’t know about?

That might sound like a paranoid question, but it’s not. It’s a marketing must. If you don’t know what your top competitors are up to, you can’t beat them. It’s that simple.

Of course, you can’t...

Is your marketing strategy helping you accomplish your goals?

I’m willing to bet it isn’t – at least not all of them. And, if it’s not, that means there are things you could be doing better.

The tricky thing, of course, is figuring out what those things are. It’s not...

Once you’ve started a new Facebook group, it’s time to recruit your first members. You’ll want to begin by personally inviting people who will be interested in your niche.

Send a private message to friends and followers that love your content. Ask them to join and give them a...

You can’t read anything about marketing these days without reading about engaging your customers. But what does that really mean?

Engaging means capturing someone’s attention – connecting – and having a conversation.

Not easy to do on the internet, particularly when there...