Are you active on social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram? One easy way to make your website more interactive, interesting and up to date is by embedding social media widgets. With this I mean for example a live Facebook, Instagram or Tripadvisor feed. So instead of just displaying the Facebook or Instagram logo, your website visitors will see your latest posts. It also encourages them to LIKE you, which is what you want! Do you want to know how to add this to your website? If you have a good content management system, you should be able to do this yourself. Otherwise, get your webmaster to do this for you! Here are the links with instructions on how to do this: For Facebook: https://developers.facebook.com/docs/plugins/page-plugin For Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/developer/embedding/ For Tripadvisor: https://www.tripadvisor.co.nz/Widgets Till next week, Marijke 20 April 2016: Tourism Marketing Bootcamp Queenstown: learn all about the latest tourism marketing trends. Don't miss it! A few places left! Click here for more info!
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The next time you go to a café or restaurant, take a closer look at the pricing on the menu. Some restaurants have really thought about about the way they price and display their pricing (or got someone to help them think about it!)
Rather than focus too much on the display of the price with dollar signs and cents, they streamline the amount by simply putting 12. This is instead of for example $12.50, reminding customers too much that they are spending money. The other trick they use is to have some higher priced dishes on the menu purely to make to other ones look more reasonable. Diners apparently go for neither the cheapest nor most expensive items on the menu. So by having some more expensive dishes purely for that reason, they get their customers to spend more. So, have a look at your pricing and whether you could apply this principle. It’s worth a try and may get your customers to spend more with you! Till next week, Marijke Do you write a regular newsletter or blog to your customers? If not, you may think of doing so as it’s a great way to keep in touch with past, current and potential customers.
As you may be aware, I have written a Weekly Marketing Tip for the last seven years. Over the last six months or so, I have done something that is increasing my mailing list steadily. It’s very simple and doesn’t require any extra effort on my part. Do you want to know what it is? It's a pop-up box! And it works. They say a 600% increase in subscription rate, but this is probably different for everyone. I have one on this website and it appears 5 seconds after someone opens the site for the first time. As a result, I get new subscribers every week! It's that simple! Have a great weekend! Marijke Over the last few weeks I’ve been doing research into buying a particular type of specialised software. I narrowed the choice down to two options. I’ve tested both programmes and have been in touch with the two companies who develop this software, both large corporates.
I’ve asked both why I should buy their product and not their main competition’s, as they are both very similar. Both of these companies gave me unsatisfactory answers and I am still in limbo about which programme to buy. What I am trying to say with this example is: customers will compare your product or service with other ones (you do the same when you make a buying decision). It is very important you know your own unique selling points and why people should choose you. But from a customer’s perspective, it’s also important to know what your competition offers and what their strengths & weaknesses are. If you know this, it’s much easier to sell your own product! This doesn’t mean you need to put down your competition, just highlight what makes you unique and why the customer should buy from you. Ways to research your competition are: - Google them and see where they pop up! - their website & promotional material - talk to customers - review sites such as Tripadvisor - social media pages - keep an eye on how they are perceived in the media (you can set up a Google alert for this: www.google.com/alerts ) NOTE: registrations are now open for the 2016 Marketing for Success Programme. Click here for more info! Limited spaces! Till next week, Marijke We are now well into February and chances are that if you started setting a few goals or resolutions at the start of the year, you are already lacking the motivation to stick with them. Whether it be actioning your marketing plan, updating your website & social media, getting more exercise, or just planning to do more fun things, once you’re back into your daily grind of urgent and important activities, it’s easy to lose motivation to focus on a new and exciting goal.
So, here are some ways to get motivated and achieve a new goal. And wow, how great would that feel!
So, what is your ONE goal going to be for the next few months? Till next week, Marijke Did you know that women influence 90% of all travel decisions - and close to 90% of all consumer buying decisions as well? (the guys reading this will probably nod…)
Girls like to shop, that’s no secret. We also think differently than men and make buying decisions in different ways men do. A few things to keep in mind when you work on your website content, social media, put together brochures or any other marketing for your business:
Is your marketing meeting these needs? Does your website provide enough detailed information? Does it encourage your customers to communicate with you? Does it say anything about the people working in the business? If you keep women in mind in marketing your business, more will buy or book your product and your business will grow! NOTE: registrations are now open for the 2016 Marketing for Success Programme. Click here for more info! Limited spaces! Till next week, Marijke One of the most flattering things is when someone that you’ve only met once briefly remembers your name the next time you meet!
I must admit it’s not my biggest strength, but I’m working on it! I have a friend who I think must have a photographic memory for names. She probably doesn’t, but she is committed to remembering people’s names. If you are dealing with customers (most of you are!), what a great impression would you make if you remember their names and how good would it make them feel! I used to have an optometrist whom I visited only briefly twice a year to pick up contact lenses. I would come in and they would greet me with: ‘Hi Marijke!”. That would always impress me greatly and made me feel 'important’ as a customer. On the other hand, there is someone I regularly deal with and this person never seems to recognise me. I might have a common face, but this makes me feel like this person is totally disinterested, even though we work in the same industry. So my point is, don’t just say: “I’m terrible at remembering names…”, that’s just too easy. Work at it and it will make the people around you feel good about themselves and you! It creates goodwill and opens the door to successful relationships. Here are a few tips: 1. Commit yourself to remembering names. Make it a conscious decision to remember people's names. 2. When you meet someone for the first time, concentrate on what the other person is saying and look at them. If you didn’t hear their name, ask again. 3. Repeat their name and use it occasionally during the conversion (without overdoing it!). Also use it when you leave. 4. If you can, write it down afterwards. You can always add a few pointers about their physical characteristics. 5. Try to make an association between the person's face and an image the name suggests. If you remember visual images most easily, try creating an image based on the name and linking it to some physical characteristic of the person. If you are more comfortable dealing with sensory feelings and gut instincts, try linking the name to the impression the person makes or to a reaction you have to the person. So, try to make a conscious effort to learn people’s names, it makes them feel good and you too! Till next week, Marijke NOTE: registrations are now open for the 2016 Marketing for Success Programme. Click here for more info! Limited spaces! To put a smile on your face, here are a few examples of bad business names! Well, some may be ok in their language, but sound funny in English! Have you ever had to come up with a name for a new business or product? If you have, you know it’s not an easy thing. There aren’t really any rules when it comes to business or product names, but there are some things to think about that will make it easier. Whether you are setting up a new business or are developing a new product, you’ll have it for a while (hopefully)… Here are some tips to help you come up with a good name:
The do’s: • Make sure the name is simple, easy to pronounce, memorable and easy to spell. • Research the web, the companies websites etc. to ensure the name isn’t already taken • Ensure the domain name you want is available (and relates to your name – preferably the same word as your name so it’s easy to find online) • Ensure it’s different from your competition • If you’re considering trademarking the name, ensure someone else hasn’t already done so The don’t’s: • Stay away from negative connotations • Make sure the name doesn’t mean something negative or inappropriate in other languages • Don’t restrict your name too much (with the eye on future growth) or limit yourself to a place name (in case you move!) Ideas on how to generate names: • Brainstorm words that relate to the product / service • Words that relate to the benefits for the customer • Words that relate to the values/quality of the company and products • Words related to colours, animals, plants, your industry, your types of customers etc. • Use a thesaurus to look up related names/words • Consider combining words • Ensure your name is meaningful rather than too generic • Use adjectives • Use humour • Does it evoke emotion? A little plug for the 2016 Marketing for Success Programme, starting in April. Don't miss it if you want to bring your business to the next level! Click here for more info! Till next week, Marijke I tend to spend more money when I get great service (and the other way around!). So do most people! Recently, I experienced how nice it is when service is personalised. It depends a bit on the type of business you’re in. If you deal with a limited number of clients, your service is easily personalised. But if you deal with a larger number of customers it can be done too. I enter a clothes shop. After looking around for a minute or so, a shop attendant comes over and, after introducing herself: “Hi, my name is Amy, I’ll be helping you today!” she asked me what I was looking for. (Amy was also wearing a name tag). She was then very helpful in finding it and when I wanted to try the item on, she asked me for my name and escorted me to the changing room. She then checked on me several times and would ask: “How is the size, Marijke?”, and: “Would you like to try some other models, Marijke?” After I had decided what I wanted to buy I went to the checkout to pay. The friendly checkout guy asked who had helped me. I said “Amy did”. There is obviously some kind of incentive for the sales Amy gets. I paid and left the store. Amy said on the way out: “Have a nice day, Marijke.” How nice is that? It made me feel special and comfortable to be in that store. And, more importantly, it made me want to buy something! So, have a think of how you could personalise the service in your business. It works! Till next week, Marijke NOTE: registrations are now open for the 2016 Marketing for Success Programme. Click here for more info! Limited spaces!
Till next week, Marijke Do you remember the tip I posted 2 years ago about the Westjet Christmas Miracle ad? If you can't remember it, it's worth watching again. Click here to view it on Youtube. By the way, this ad has had almost 44 million views! Talking about great viral marketing! And creating that emotional connection with customers. Well, Westjet have done it again. Below is the ad that they only put online 6 days ago. It has had over 1.2 million views in just 6 days. It's not easy to keep coming up with creative campaigns, but this one is pretty cool too. Have a look: So, if you can come up with a creative campaign where you pull at your customers' heart strings, you are likely to earn some brownie points, and hopefully more customers! Merry Christmas to you, your team and your family... and fantastic 2016!
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