Jane Brocklebank

Your Facebook page is a community of people who have chosen to receive your updates – imagine you’re hosting a party and you want to make sure everyone feels included and there is something to interest and entertain them. You will need a variety of styles and different types of “conversation” to keep everybody interested. You will also need to respond and add comments to other people’s comments in the interest of keeping the conversation going.

The more you can get people talking, the more popular your page will become as others will see the interactions going on and want to join in. Here are some ideas (based on a garden centre) to get you started: (more…)

I am on the mailing list of a printing company, but I’m signed up with my hotmail account, and I don’t check that very often.

However, every now and again, I catch up on the various newsletters that come in, and last time I checked I found a newsletter from these printers, promoting the idea of “twitter cards” – little business cards that feature your twitter username and say “you’re now face to face with (username)”

I thought this was a cute idea, so posted a link to the article on twitter. Evidently several other people also thought it was a good idea as they re-tweeted the post to their followers. And who knows if their followers forwarded it again! So what can we learn from this? (more…)

Whether you are a household name, or a small local business, the principles of getting yourself noticed are the same.  The key is to be seen repeatedly, and in more than one place.

If you think about the brands you’re currently aware of, you’ll find that they are on TV, radio, in the printed press and probably online too. Big brands never do anything in isolation – they create promotional campaigns.

So how can you re-create that impact if you’re a small business? (more…)

Promotions can be a good way of generating interest in your product or service – a discount, 3 for the price of 2, buy one – get one free … a trip round your local supermarket will give you lots of inspiration.

I was struck today by an “early bird discount” promotion which seemed to be the opposite of the norm.  My children have been begging me to get “Alvin & The Chipmunks – The Squeakquel” (Just the title alone is enough to put you off … wait till you hear those squeaky little guys sing!)  But I got caught out! (more…)

In a nutshell, it’s a more positive way of writing and yes it is important!

Using active voice in your communications makes them more direct and engaging. Passive voice can be seen to be avoiding the issue somewhat. For instance compare the sentences:

1. Your invoice will be paid next month

2. Our accounts department will pay your invoice next month

The first one sounds like an exercise over which you have no control – the invoice will be paid. Somehow, it leaves room for doubt and you just have to hope that it will.

However, the second one sounds much more positive with a definitive action. (more…)

Networking is another form of marketing. It’s an opportunity to get you and your product or service in front of new people, and to build relationships that could be mutually beneficial. However, it is not a sales tool!  If you go along to a networking event and start selling, it will be a shortlived exercise. The focus should be on meeting new people, finding out about them and making business contacts.

I can honestly say that most of my business comes through networking – but that doesn’t mean I go to a networking event and come back with a new project. (more…)

It is a well known fact in marketing that people need to see something 7 times before they take action. And in today’s world with technology and mobile devices sending us ever more messages, that magic number 7 could be even higher.

So what does this mean for you and your business?  Well, if you’re promoting something, you need to think in terms of the maximum number of opportunities you can generate for people to see your promotion.  Because of course, just because you advertise something 7 times doesn’t mean everyone will see it each time… so you have to advertise it many more times than that. (more…)

If you work alone, it can be difficult to motivate yourself when things are quiet. Joining forces with someone else could inject new life into your business.

As is often said, two heads can be better than one.  So, who can you join up with?  Ideally it would be a business that complements yours but does not compete. It should be something that appeals to a similar target audience so that you can combine your marketing efforts. (more…)

Last night I went to a Boden clothes party. This is something new. Boden have been selling clothes via their colourful, quirky catalogue for almost 20 years, and in 1999 introduced a user-friendly website so you can buy online.  They even have the odd shop (well two actually).  But generally it’s hard for most of us to see and feel the clothes before buying them. 

So the prospect of seeing them “in person” before buying them was very attractive, and the fact I could do so at a friend’s house with a glass of wine – even better!  This is why I think it’s a stroke of genius on Boden’s part… (more…)

My husband is a keen gardener, and spends much of the winter collecting packets of seeds and planning what he’s going to plant when. It struck me that this is not dissimilar to marketing planning. In order to generate results you need to plant some seeds. But much like gardening, you need to spread your activity out over a number of months to ensure a sustained outcome.  (more…)