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How to Create A Brand Identity That Sells

How do you stand out in a saturated sea of competing brands? Your brand identity is what separates you from the rest. It shows your audience who you are, instead of just telling them. These tips will help you establish your brand’s identity.

There are pros and cons with how businesses operate these days. One of the biggest pros that can also be a con is that everybody can run a business online. If you have a decent enough amount of knowledge on a subject, the odds are that you can get a business up and running in a short amount of time. However, the key to longevity is building up a consistent and recognizable brand. Some of the most successful and iconic brands, like Apple and Coca-Cola have mastered the use of branding to attract a loyal fan base. Their use of icons and symbols helps set them apart. What can you learn from these brands to create your own brand identity that survives the test of time?

Give your audience the full picture.

Your brand identity is extra-important when you’re trying to stand out online and elsewhere. Many consider the logo that you choose to be the face of your company, but everything else that goes into your branding could arguably be your company’s face as well.

Think about it. Everything from your color palette, to the voice you use to write copy, to the way that you choose to advertise is going to be someone’s first impression of you. Ideally, that someone would be a lead that goes through your sales funnel and follows through. So, why not make sure that your first impression is polished and professional. But, speaking of logos…

It’s more than a logo.

A good logo will get you far, but you can’t rely on it to tell your brand’s story. Your logo is, however, almost like the face of your company. Think about iconic logos that you’ve seen before. Amazon’s logo, for example, has a smile hidden within it to allow customers to associate Amazon with happiness. This logo is easily recognizable, along with the brand’s assistant tool, Alexa.

Colors also tie into the visual aspects of branding. For example, the orange in Amazon’s logo (namely the smile itself) is supposed to represent friendliness and playfulness. Their serif font ties the package together with one of their gift-wrap bows. This all culminates into Amazon’s overall goal of appearing approachable, reliable, and user-friendly.

Your logo will likely be the first piece to your visual branding puzzle. Consider the following when you get started:

Color helps give off psychological effects. Target’s bright red invites a younger and more passionate crowd. This is seen within their avid fanbase.

Fonts also represent your brand’s personality. Serif fonts represent trustworthiness, as seen in the Amazon example above. Sans serif literally means “without serif.” This helps you appear more modernized. Cursive fonts are very whimsical in nature and help if you are trying to appear as youthful.
Shapes also determine the demeanor of your brand. Stiff lines are great for financial advisors, as they represent efficiency. However, don’t make yourself seem too stiff! You still want your audience to know you. Circles evoke feelings of togetherness. This would be good for a coach, because you would already appear to be approachable.

Target also uses shapes and fonts to their advantage. Their sans serif font and circle logo brand them as whimsical and playful, which works well with their dog icon that they use in other forms of marketing. Next time you’re online shopping, pay attention to the brand’s logo. See what techniques they used to tell their story quickly to make a good first impression.

We can help you create the perfect logo for your business. Together, we’ll go over everything that makes your brand stand out and conceptualize it into a tangible logo. This way, you won’t have to sit through the process of trying out many different options before one sticks.

Getting down to business

Now that you understand the basics, it’s time to create an actionable plan. The first thing that we do is create a blueprint for you. Mapping out your ideas and create a branding kit. First, we do a research of your customer personas. Knowing who your brand will or already appeals to helps you create items like your logo.

Then, it’s time to create the blueprint itself. Lay out everything that we know about your brand. This includes the emotions that you want to evoke as well as the stories you want to tell. Referring to your brand’s mission helps here. The whole thing should encompass your overall goal as well as core values. We help you refine these values and create branding that sells.

Finally, it’s time to put your brand’s voice to use. Think about things like tonality. How serious do you need to be for your specific services or products? Do you need to get a little more sentimental? This is another place where understanding your demographic is important.

When we work together, you’ll be able to get it right the first time. Eliminating the trial and error process puts you ahead of the learning curve. Working with us can get you several steps ahead of the game.

Finally, remember…

Originality is key! You don’t want to copy your competitors. We’ll make sure your designs are original as possible. Not only is this the morally correct thing to do, but, you won’t be able to stand out if you look just like everybody else.

As long as you’re consistent with all of your branding, leads will be able to see that you’re a reliable voice in your field. Now that you know all the steps to create your branding kits, it’s time to put them to use! Your homework is to begin outlining your ideas, and complete our New Client Questionnaire so that we can see if we are a good fit. We can’t wait to help you bring your visions to life!

17 MayFor the recordSystems & Workflows

5 Common Mistakes That May Be Interrupting Your Workflow

When you run any kind of business, it’s important to consistently keep up with your workflow and monitor what’s working and what needs fine-tuning. These 5 common mistakes can be easily avoided by implementing these tips!

Workflow processes are crucial in keeping your sales funnels running smoothly. When you update your processes frequently, it’s like putting oil in a machine. Everything runs like butter when everyone knows what they should be doing. That’s kind of a given, though, right? Creating a well-oiled machine takes time and effort, but it doesn’t have to feel like an uphill battle. Allow yourself to be ahead of the learning-curve when you are creating your workflow processes!

1. Plan, and then plan some more

Planning your workflow spares you from redundancy. You’ll need to know what the workflow system does, and why it’s going to be used in the first place. We use Diagrams as they are useful for this step. Visual representations help you understand whether or not this workflow will help you progress or add more unnecessary tasks to your day!

2. Emphasize effective communication

Any stage in sales relies on effective communication between you and your team. Whether you’re a team of 1 or 100, each notification sent between all relevant participants needs to be actionable. I’m sure you’ve had days where it feels like you just don’t stop getting email notifications or texts! It’s overwhelming, and I bet that on those days, you may neglect a message or two…or ten. It happens! In your workflow, though, you need to make sure your team is not bombarded with notifications, and that the ones they do get are important enough to do something about them.

3. Optimize your website

So, you’ve created this amazing lead magnet on social media. Your traffic has never been higher. Your lead magnet has a specific conversion goal in mind. That could look like getting subscribers for your mailing list (*wink wink*) or signing up for a particular service directly via a link. Make sure that the landing page is optimized to be distraction-free. There shouldn’t be a menu or anything beyond the end goal in plain sight.

4. Drive more traffic

Driving traffic to your sales funnel could be as simple as uploading an Instagram post with some easy promo. What’s the point in going through all that effort to create the funnel and the lead magnets if you aren’t going to drive traffic to them? Once you are able to drive traffic, the goal then becomes to convert the leads. But, before you get into that step, it’s important to make sure that the tools you’re using to drive traffic are effective for you in the first place. Maybe take some time to rethink the platforms that you use to increase traffic, and see what works and what doesn’t.

5. Remember to follow-up

On a similar note, forgetting to follow-up with your leads can be just as detrimental to the sale. You have to nurture a relationship with your leads from the very start. Imagine offering this amazing free content. You’re showing your expertise, establishing yourself as a credible source, but you’re not following through with the people who are already impressed by you. Don’t be shy about sending content to your mailing list. You want to remind them about why they were interested in you in the first place.

Whether you need to fine-tune your workflow process, or you are creating one from scratch, it’s so easy to miss these steps. We are here if you needed us so don’t let that discourage you! Instead, use these common mistakes as tools to further establish a workflow process that works for you. They can be avoided so long as you’re made aware of them! And, now that you are, there’s nothing stopping you from being the well-oiled machine that you’re destined to be.

Does your workflow need a tune up? Complete our New Client Questionnaire so that we can understand your needs and provide the best fit solutions.

16 MayContent DevelopmentFor the record

How to Boost Conversions and Create Leads That Last with Storytelling Content

Service professionals have a shocking advantage when it comes to the benefits of content creation. They can use their expertise as well as human connection to drive sales in ways they may not have thought of before. The trick is finding the balance that will grasp attention spans. These tips will help you get one step closer to achieving just that!

The online platforms of today make it incredibly easy to combine storytelling and valuable, actionable information for your leads. However, many service professionals like financial advisors may not realize the striking advantage that they have in this department! Their expertise is so versatile that they can create content in many ways on several different platforms. We help you master the tactics that people use in storytelling for your brand, you can use this method beyond simply generating leads.

1. Approach it with Empathy

Think about some of the most memorable advertisements that you’ve seen. We all have at least one commercial that has stuck with us since we were kids. You may not be using TV advertising, but it’s a helpful outlet to think about in this context. You may have seen the ASPCA commercials that pop up around the holidays. Rather, they pop up more around the holidays. That’s not without reason!

People are generally more empathetic around the holiday season because they’re already in the mindset of giving. This is the perfect time for an organization like the ASPCA to gather new donations (which is their form of lead generation) because people are already actively seeking ways to donate. Plus, cute animals and sad music trigger other emotions, making them even more willing to pick up the phone or visit their website.

As a service professional, you wouldn’t necessarily go to these drastic lengths to empathetically reach your audience. However, you do need to think about what makes you stand out as relatable and sincere. What stories can you tell that would make your audience feel like they know you?

2. A Hero’s Journey

Literature has various methods that they’ve used to tell stories for generations. The more prominent ones are often taught in school. But, it doesn’t end when the books are closed. Advertising uses these tools as well, albeit with a slightly different approach. When you’re mapping out your content, think about the roadblocks that you’ve faced. If your audience sees your story as a hero’s arc, it is equal parts motivating and entertaining. Your own origin story is a great place to start. Going back to your roots and being candid about the obstacles you faced in the beginning makes you more approachable. Some of the most successful influencers have gotten to their positions of power because of their relatability.

3. You’re the Expert

When we talk about content creation, we often discuss how good content can help you establish yourself as an expert in your field. Blogs, YouTube videos, and other formats are amazing ways to do this. These places offer short and long-form platforms for you to share your knowledge and present yourself as a credible resource to your leads.

Let’s say that you have a lead who is an avid reader of your blog. They’re subscribed to your mailing list, never miss a post, and always leave you comments that just make your day. One day, you mention a service that you offer within the blog post. A little self-promo doesn’t hurt anybody! The lead in question then goes to research your service a bit more. Then, they finally take the plunge and decide to work with you. It was an easy decision because they already trusted you based on the actionable information that you provide them every week.

4. Learn About the Platforms

There are so many social media platforms these days. It can get very overwhelming trying to balance them all. But, each one can provide different things in terms of lead generation. For example, a solid base of Instagram followers can help you generate sales directly through links in your Stories. As far as storytelling through content goes, you can create your online persona or voice as someone that is consistent and reliable through anecdotes and relatable feelings or situations. Boosting engagement also works with content storytelling. The audience will feel like they’re involved in the story as they’re interacting with you in your comments section.

Social platforms like Twitter are another great source for short anecdotal content. This could be a place where you can tell stories about your struggles when you first started in business. Naturally, this comes with compliance laws, but you can leave out certain details and still make the stories entertaining and relatable.

Try and map out different ideas that you have. Think about the format that you’d need to tell these stories. Which social channel would help you tell this story in its truest form?

5. What Makes it Shareable?

Certain things will also be more eye-catching online. Memes are incredibly popular. They’re funny, often anecdotal (notice a theme here?) and shareable in nature. It’s so easy to share memes, whether that be in the form of a retweet on Twitter or sharing them to your story on Instagram. Most platforms make posts shareable by simply pressing a button. This is such an easy way to generate leads through content storytelling because when someone reposts it this way, new leads are automatically linked back to your profile. It all comes full circle!

To summarize, the biggest goal in content storytelling is relatability and reliability. Establishing yourself as a standout expert in your niche online can truly be as simple as allowing your audience the opportunity to get to know you. With all that being said… what stories do you have to tell? Let me know your ideas in the comments!

Is your brand telling an engaging story? Complete our New Client Questionnaire so that we can understand your needs and provide the best fit solutions.

06 MayBusiness TipsFinancial AdvisorsFor the record

4 Tips That Will Help Financial Advisors Generate Leads That Last

Financial advisors have a tough task when it comes to lead generation. They must modernize their approach to sales, and sometimes it can be tricky to see how these tactics will work for them. However, we have solutions that work like a charm!

Gone are the days when cold calling was an effective approach to lead generation for anybody running any business. These days, that’s actually one of the least effective ways to do it. Newspaper ads and magazines are expensive with little return while many people get their news from Social Media.

With all that being said, financial advisors have to modernize their approach to lead generation. But, sometimes it’s difficult to understand where to put your digital marketing efforts and how it will benefit your business. These tips will help financial advisors learn how adapting to new lead generation techniques will give them the growth they desire!

1. Use the Power of Social Media

Social media could easily be considered as the most helpful tool to any business owner ever. And, I know, that’s a drastic generalization to make. But, it’s true! There is just so much that you can do with it. Everyone uses it. The connections that you can make online are virtually limitless. (See what I did there?)

It’s all a matter of knowing which platforms work for you. LinkedIn is great for financial advisors. You can filter through your own contacts and find the ones that are most likely to want to work with you. Also, LinkedIn is generally used by many high-profile clients. Don’t be afraid to introduce yourself!

2. Put Yourself Out There At Webinars and Workshops

These days, we’re finding new ways to stay connected while we can’t physically be together. This is true for networking events such as workshops, where you’d traditionally gather in a hall or ballroom and interact with like-minded people.

When all this is over, we’re all likely to transfer some of these less-traditional meeting methods over to our new routines. Webinars and workshops will be a guiding light for financial advisors while they generate leads. This investment is one that’s well worth it. Beyond the connections you’ll make, you’ll also gather some valuable knowledge!

3. Rethink Your Advertisement

Did you know that the location of your ads is just as important as the quality of them. As we mentioned earlier, social media is a marketplace for leads. Imagine how much power social media ads could have for your business!

Facebook and Google are some of the most popular ad platforms out there. That’s not without reason. They’re user-friendly and their algorithm is built for business owners to get the most traction possible. Don’t forget to do some split testing of your marketing message and creatives to ensure that your audience is connecting and that you are not wasting advertising dollars.

4. Update Your Website

How long has it been since you’ve updated your website? If you’re unsure of the answer to that question, it is probably time to give yourself a much-needed revamp. A clean, professional, and user-friendly website increases the chance of leads following through. Providing them with valuable content such as relevant blog posts containing info they’d need (like this one will get them interested in what else you have to offer!

Now that you know how to generate more leads as a financial advisor, we would love to hear your thoughts! What tip are you thinking of using first? Let us know in the comments!

Are you looking to generate more leads? Complete our New Client Questionnaire so that we can understand your needs and provide the best fit solutions.

04 MayBusiness TipsFor the record

7 Ways To Create Your Own Luck In Business

Sometimes, it’s easy to be green with envy towards those who seem to have it all. You know exactly who we’re talking about. Opportunities seem to arrive to them on a silver platter. But, you can create your own luck in business— and in life. Here’s how.

Odds are, the concept of “luck” is, at least, in the back of your mind. You’ve probably grown too old to search for four leaf clovers in every grassy field you find. But, the general idea of how “luck” works tends to hold onto those magical elements that we were enamored by as children. However, especially in regards to business, you can create your own luck.

1. Understand how to embrace failures.

Failure is one of those tricky, subjective terms. Much like beauty, failure is in the eye of the beholder. Of course, mistakes do happen. Projects turn sour and don’t give the result you desired. But, what differentiates lucky business owners from self-perceived “unlucky” ones is how they handle these roadblocks.

Firstly, it’s important to learn about what went wrong in these mistakes and use these lessons in future endeavors. This strengthens your skill set in ways that can only happen through experience. Also, it’s good to thicken your skin using these less-than-ideal outcomes.

2. Stay resilient.

It’s easy to give up. In fact, giving up seems easier than staying resilient a lot of the time. Owning a business is an overwhelming job. There are so many different hats that are meant to be worn by one head. This is especially true if you’re just starting out. You don’t necessarily have your dream team backing you up just yet. So, the opportunities and wins you create are entirely on you.

It’s easy to become enveloped by the idea of “success” and how that relates to numbers. Business isn’t just a numbers game. It’s also a game of wits. Part of that is building up your endurance. Good things come to those who wait, and better things come to those who get up again when they fall.

3. Be flexible.

Flexibility is a key aspect to owning a business these days. In fact, millennial business owners are thriving because that generation favors flexibility in every sense of the word over any other that came before them. You don’t have to be a millennial to adopt this mindset, though. All business owners are encouraged to try new things and explore their self-imposed boundaries and break through them. This can start off as something small! For example, you can change your working hours to open yourself up to a myriad of different clients. Or, you can go to a social networking event to do the same. You never know who you could meet!

4. Build up your confidence.

As RuPaul famously says, “if you can’t love yourself, how are you gonna love somebody else?”

Self-confidence is just as essential in finding luck within your business as it is in finding luck in your everyday life. If you don’t believe in your work, how could you expect someone else to? The law of attraction states that the energy that you put into your projects and yourself is the energy that you receive in return. Many people simply refer to this as “karma.”

Whatever term you give it, and however seriously you take the concept, is once again dependent on you. Sometimes, people cling onto these ideas as a trial run and begin seeing results. Fake it ‘till you make it.

5. Be more outgoing.

We’ve all heard amazing stories of startup companies that began from somebody’s basement. One of the most famous examples of this is Steve Jobs and the creation of Apple. While he began his career from his basement, it’s worth it to explore your options. Now, this doesn’t mean to completely abandon your current setup and invest in an office space downtown.

But, opening yourself up to working with new people can take you to places you never dreamed were possible. It’s like the social networking events that were mentioned earlier. Allowing yourself to explore different opportunities brings luck to you.

6. Abandon excuses.

We all know one person who constantly has excuses. It’s almost like that is their job! This person seems to always have a reason to be late. And, to each their own. Excuses encourage comfortability. Comfortability won’t get you anywhere if you’re trying to increase your luck, whether that be in business or your day to day.

7. Remember the bigger picture.

One of the quickest downfalls for new business owners is that they give up too quickly. Many start to lose sight of their bigger picture goals. They forget why they started their business in the first place, and their dreams get lost in translation. Some see a few failures and roadblocks and call it quits before they can even begin to reach their potential.

People often don’t realize that success is not linear. There’s hills and mountains to climb in between every successful endeavor. And, what you get may not always be what you asked for. Sometimes, things change in-between when you started and where you end up. However, remembering the dream that you started off with can keep you motivated even during difficult times.

Michael Jordan spent many years training with coaches who had a hard time seeing past the fact that he didn’t meet the minimum height requirement. However, years of perseverance allowed him to become one of the most iconic basketball players in history.

Remember:
Luck is self-made. It’s related to the opportunities you create for yourself, but also who you surround yourself with. The people around you should be your biggest fans. They should constantly be encouraging you to conquer your goals in whatever you set out to do. When you surround yourself with the right people, luck will come to you. It’s important that they hold you accountable for your actions, but it’s more important that they hold you accountable for your potential.

Do you need a luck spark? Complete our New Client Questionnaire so that we can understand your needs and provide the best fit solutions.

27 AprFor the recordSales Pipeline

How Automating Your Sales Pipeline Can Boost Conversions

These days, almost any workflow process can be automated. However, many people are still using traditional and manual systems to get things done. With sales, this can especially slow you down. These tips can help you better understand automating your sales pipeline and help you boost your conversions.

Automation can be an intimidating transition for many business owners. There are so many different tools out there, and it may feel like they’re over-complicating your workflow processes instead of simplifying them. However, sales is an especially complex aspect of your business. It’s a fragile ecosystem. The relationships between your clients and sales reps need to be nurtured and maintained for the long haul.

Many consider manual processes to be outdated. This isn’t necessarily the complete truth. There are pros and cons to running sales manually. But, is it worth losing out on potential sales to your competitors just because they’ve automated their sales pipeline?

Let’s start by explaining how it works.

The Sales Pipeline Process

Since every business is different and runs on its own unique terms, this will look slightly different for everyone. Most are similar enough to compare at a surface level, though.

It typically looks a little like this:

The leads. Here, your team works together to generate the leads that you hope to convert to sales
Their attention. Once you have the leads, your teams will meet with them. From there, they’ll establish relevant content to send them. Ensuring that relevant content is sent to leads will grasp their attention between the conversion process
Their commitment. This is usually where your lead will begin to make their decisions before a purchase is made. They may need a bit more persuasion at this point
The sale. Finally, this is where discussions about pricing will begin and the purchase becomes finalized

The key to each of these steps is to have you or your sales team remember to send relevant content to your lead throughout the process.

The Truth About Manual Sales Pipeline Processes

The reason that the manual sales pipeline process is so broken is simplified by the fact that it is overcomplicated. In fact, it’s complicated to the point where it may be holding you back. Business owners are so set on running their sales pipeline manually because:

There is a misconception that all automation tools are pricey and over their budget
There is a false perception of how complex their pipeline process is in comparison to the need for automation
There is a strongly held belief that their specific business won’t work with automation
There is simply a resistance to change in terms of implementing new technology

While these concerns are valid, it’s important to understand how continuing to use a manual sales pipeline may be slowing you down.

The Risks

Obviously, you love your sales team! You hired them because you recognized their efficiency and dedication to converting leads. However, your team is still human. They’re going to make mistakes. These mistakes may include:

Your team could be overloaded with details to remember. There’s only so much data storage in a person’s mind. Keeping track of every detail for every sale can become daunting when it’s all held in your team’s heads.
They might forget certain things. It’s almost impossible for anyone to be able to remember every follow-up call and to send out relevant content to your lead.
There isn’t a clear way to organize metrics. With automated systems, metrics are closely and accurately measured. Since each part of the sales process is accounted for, none of your metrics have room to get lost in translation.

Automation is the only way to have completely accurate recordings of the sales process. An automated sales pipeline would help by:

Notifying your team to follow-up with leads. This takes the pressure off of your sales representatives in regards to remembering every little detail.
Alerting your sales representative with what content needs to be sent out. For example, this can include emails or brochures.
Organizing the sales pipeline process becomes foolproof because it’s all located in one place. At the end of a sale, your representatives don’t have to rely solely on what they remembered to write down, because all of that information is held within the tool.
Contacts become automatically generated. Your sales representatives would typically only be responsible for filling in smaller details within contracts for applicable sales.

Using an automated tool for your sales pipeline processes greatly reduces the risks and potential mistakes. It’s all in the organization. When everything is in one place, it is much harder to lose track of the fine details.

Does your workflow need a tune up? Complete our New Client Questionnaire so that we can understand your needs and provide the best fit solutions.

20 AprFor the recordSales Pipeline

Content Marketing for Your Sales Funnel

As you’re navigating the waters of sales funnels and pipelines, make sure you have all the materials you need to send to your leads. Each stage will require different content, and your approach to this content will help determine your conversion rates.

So, now you’ve got a fully functional sales funnel. Your ducks are in a row, so to speak! And, that’s great! This organizational method is one of the easiest ways to boost conversions and achieve those sales goals. Now, it’s time to do the paperwork. Or, rather, the digital paperwork. Nobody uses fax machines anymore.

It’s easier now than ever before to produce marketing content. Any of the materials that you need to send to your leads at various stages of a sale are right at your fingertips.

In fact, we’ve launched our own Digital Marketing & Growth Strategy Services so that you can easily produce and promote consistent content! However, we’ll talk more about that a bit later.

What exactly would you need to send to a lead during the sales process?

Emails

Emails are a great place to start. This can help hold their interest and hopefully push them to the next stage in the sales process. The key is to make these emails brief, informative, and eye-catching without spamming anyone’s inbox.

Social Media

Once you have your lead interested in your emails, be sure to link to your social media profiles! This is where you can post short-form content at least once daily. On social media, you want to be approachable and interesting without seeming like you’re trying too hard. Don’t overload on the emojis or #hashtags!

Blog Posts

A blog for your business is the best way to educate your audience while promoting your services. When you’re posting weekly and relevant content to your blog, your voice becomes known as reliable. If you’re seen as an expert in your field, your conversion rates will skyrocket.

The great thing about blog posts is that a lead can visit your blog at any stage of the sales pipeline!

How We Can Help

We mentioned earlier that we’ve launched our Digital Marketing & Growth Strategy Services. Here, we’ll work with you to create these materials so that you can convert leads like a pro. We’ll write weekly blog posts, daily social media captions, and more so that you can send them out to your leads without having to lift a finger.

Learn more about this service here!

Does your brand needs solutions to move your leads effectively through your sales funnel? Complete our New Client Questionnaire so that we can understand your needs and provide the best fit solutions.

13 AprFor the recordSales Pipeline

Sales Funnels vs Sales Pipelines: What the Difference Means for Your Workflow

There are often misconceptions about what a sales pipeline is and how it differs from a sales funnel. Hopefully, this guide will help you learn the difference and have smoothly flowing pipelines!

When you’re dealing with sales, the process can often feel daunting at first glance. There are many different steps that are involved, and understanding the terminology is the difference between having productive processes and broken pipelines.

The terms “sales pipeline” and “sales funnel” are often used synonymously. However, there are key distinguishable differences that separate the two.

Sales Pipeline

A sales pipeline is the set of steps that go into making a sale. These steps initially allow you to organize the sales process and more effectively convert leads. Pipelines also help teams track the process and amount of leads. Maintaining sales pipelines is the easiest way for sales leaders to manage their goals, as well as track data in between cycles. In our Workflow Intensive solutions we help you design the supporting assets necessary for your sales pipeline to properly function.

Sales Funnels

A sales funnel is an easy way to represent lead conversions. The funnel opens at the top with a lead’s interest in your services and ends at the bottom with a completed sale. This gets confusing to newcomers because the steps are the same, you just have to show them differently.

Sales funnels represent the volume of your sales. This is represented in percentages throughout the stages in the sales pipeline. You’ll want to check the pipeline to see what stage the sale is in, and the funnel can show you the percentage for conversions at the given stage.

Which System Should My Business Use?

This really runs on a case by case basis. There isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach to choosing which method works best for you. However, if you feel like you’re missing something at any stage in a sale, a pipeline will help you fix that. Sales funnels simply take it a step further and show you the conversion rates mathematically.

Using Sales Pipelines And Funnels

While many businesses use pipelines and funnels separately, they work well together as well! There’s nothing wrong with having multiple organizational tools. When you use pipelines and funnels together, it’s easier to determine whether or not your sales processes require more steps to run as smoothly as possible.

Now that you know the difference between sales pipelines and sales funnels, it’s time to fine-tune your processes! This all accumulates into your workflow. Once your pipelines are all fixed up, your conversion rates will soar!

Does your Sales Pipelines and Funnels need a touch-up or a full-on makeover? Complete our New Client Questionnaire so that we can understand your needs and provide the best fit solutions.

08 AprBusiness TipsFor the recordWebsite

How to Throw Yourself An Epic Website Launch Party

Your website’s launch party is just as important as your business’s grand opening. First impressions are essential, because you can never repeat them! Here’s some great ways to make your website’s launch party a huge success.

The thought of hosting a party may seem downright impossible with the current state of the world. If you can’t gather with more than 10 people, how can you host a party that will be talked about for years to come? You want your website’s launch to signify the place your business will hold in your industry. Thankfully, you can still do that online!

Planning

Even though a virtual party probably seems like less work in the planning-department, it’s still important to have details ready and thought-out. Make sure your date, time, and RSVP list are sorted out well in advance. Other factors to consider are:

Your hosting platform
Activities
Content to post before, during, and after your party

Once you have your basics covered, it’s time to dive into the fun stuff.

Hosting Platforms

In an ideal world, your website’s launch party would be held at the perfect venue with the perfect guestlist. However, your home really can still be the perfect venue! Let’s start with the basics. How the heck do you host a virtual party?

Well, everyone’s been using Zoom to do pretty much everything! If you’re going this route, you can design fun backgrounds to give off the illusion that you’re at your dream venue, even if you’re just on your couch!

Pro Tip: Test out your technology before you use it! Make sure everything will run smoothly before your event so that minimal errors occur.

Activities

Virtual parties don’t mean that you have to leave the fun activities behind! You can host trivia games for prizes. Or, you can host a scavenger hunt on your website. This generates clicks and interest all at the same time, while allowing you to have fun with your audience!

Prizes can include:

Gift Cards for your products
A free trial of your services
Branded merchandise

Content to post

The content you post before the event should be engaging to get people excited to sign up and share the event with others. While the content after should thank and nurture your audience into become a customer/client.

Content before the launch party can include:

Countdown Graphics
60 Second Invitation
Photos of prizes

Content after the launch party can include

Email Campaign- Thank them for joining and more…
Video Recording on Social Media
Video that your business is now Live!

Your website’s launch doesn’t have to be hindered by social distancing. In fact, the fact that more people are home right now can improve the traffic to your website upon its initial launch. So, get planning and have fun!

Are you planning a website launch party and need some support? Complete our New Client Questionnaire so that we can understand your needs and provide the best fit solutions.

08 AprConnecting with PeopleFor the record

“Virtual Hangout” is the “New Normal” Way to Meet Up

Are you feeling way too socially distant these days? Social isolation doesn’t have to mean complete disconnect from everyone you know and love. We’re trying to help make it easier for you to meet like-minded women while you’re stuck at home.

The lockdown-blues are hitting all of us pretty hard. It’s tough to stay at home for such long periods of time! Hopefully, you’ve been FaceTiming your friends and family. Or, maybe you’re inviting them to your Animal Crossing island for a little escapism. Letting yourself have fun in what is otherwise a darker time is healthy and good for the soul.

While this situation isn’t ideal for anyone, we are lucky in certain ways. Technology has made it possible to connect in ways that were never available before. Even playing video games with friends from a distance can be comforting and relaxing. It was almost perfect timing for a game like Animal Crossing to come out. Naturally, the game would have been a hit regardless. However, people found a lot of comfort in being able to visit their friends on their fictional islands when it can feel like we’re living on islands IRL (In Real Life), too.

We’ve decided we wanted to help you out on that front! So, we’ve launched a Facebook group called “The Virtual Hangout.” Here, you can connect with the group’s members and participate in fun, weekly activities. And, since these activities are weekly, there’s hopefully something to fit everyone’s schedule. Our goal is to help you stay social while social distancing. Women from all over the world connecting and uplifting each other.

Weekly activities include:

Happy Hour – the bars might be closed, but home happy hour is open!
Yoga – Find our Zen and Practice Self-Love
Game Night – a little competition is healthy!
Book Club – keep your mind stimulated while you’re physically kept inside.
Cook Along – who knows, maybe you’ll learn a new recipe?

Shout out To Kendra @locknessmonstrocity for the snapshot during our Virtual Yoga with Tiffany @Curl.Crush.Yoga

We have much more planned, too. The goal here is to keep you socialized while you’re isolated, so we’re definitely getting our creative juices flowing with ideas for activities. We’d also love to hear your ideas! Please let us know if you have any in the comments, or over on the Facebook page.

In all, we hope you and your family are staying safe and healthy. This storm often feels heavy and dark. But, like all other storms, this, too, shall pass. Remember to stay strong, stay positive, and stay connected.

We’re so excited to see you at The Virtual Hangout! CLICK HERE TO JOIN US

Get Started Here! New Client Application