The latest buzz is all about Social Marketing! Everyone is either doing it or wondering how to do it. The goal for all entrepreneurs and business owners is to bring in new business cost effectively. Can social marketing do this? Is traditional media more effective or is the grapevine correct that traditional media is on the way out? Well, I've been dabbling in just about everything and am learning as I'm going. All I can do is share my experience and opinions. I'm sure on the fast developing topic, my opinion will undoubtedly change with time. (Please excuse my use of the word,"suck" in this blog but I believe it is the best term for the context in which I am using it)
As an entrepreneur with a limited advertising and marketing budget, I am always looking for ways to get Free PR! So far, we've been pretty successful at it. You can go to the "Articles and Appearances" tab of our website (http://www.yogastickysocks.1shoppal.com/art.html) and see all of our editorial placements, blog placements, and TV appearances over the last year and a half. This doesn't even include the national radio giveaways we participate in.
However, over the last 3 - 6 months, I've been spending alot of time on Social Marketing. I have an old YouTube page that unfortunately hasn't been updated in a long time; a Facebook page that is very active and a Twitter account. I also have been running continuous ads on the sidebar of Facebook.
In the last week, in an effort to separate my friends from my colleagues on Facebook I launched a Yoga Stick-e Socks Fan page. This will allow me to send direct messages, information, offers etc... to people who are truly interested in my product line. It also provides you with demographics of your Fans which is very interesting and useful info. Best of all, it's Free! Facebook has also added a new feature which will allow you to have your Facebook posts automatically feed into your Twitter account! (As I was writing this, I received an email from MySpace, telling me that they've just added this feature as well).
As an entrepreur, you'll find managing all of the social marketing websites can be a huge "time suck" thus killing your daily productivity. I'm learning about all sorts of short cuts. For example, with TwitRobot, one can write a bunch of "Tweets" and have them automatically posted on Twitter at whatever time interval you want. TwitRobot, also will grab my headlines from this blog and randomly post them with links to my blog. Thus, I'm hoping I am adding valuable and worthwhile content to my Tweets. That is an important aspect to Tweeting. I think unless you are a HUGE celebrity, no one cares if you just had a great cup of coffee at Starbucks or just dropped your kids off at school! Nor do they want to keep getting a sales pitch. The content does need to add value to maintain a following.
Additionally with Twitter, I think it's important to search on people who actually have an interest in your area of specialty. For example, when I got started, I just started following anyone and everyone to get followers. However, I'm now learning that was a mistake and I'm gradually dropping those who I am following that appear to have no interest in Yoga, Pilates, Entrepreneurship or PR. These are the only people for which my Tweets will be relevant.
It's also important with Twitter to be able to reply as soon as possible to Direct Messages. I didn't get this at first. Initially it seemed all of the Direct Messages were just nothing mail of people saying "thanks for following me". However, as I eventually went through my 205 ignored direct messages, I found 2 that were from bloggers and journalists wanting to interview me! So, lesson learned, like all mail you must go through it or you'll miss opportunities! Fortunately it wasn't too late for my reply.
One of the great things I like about Twitter is that you can see if anyone is talking about your product. I've found that some of the radio stations using my products for contests have been tweeting about them. I also found people recommending them to other people on Twitter.
Again, how do you manage this without it becoming a complete "productivity suck"? I found a tool called, "Tweetdeck". This tool is free and allows you to have a console on your computer screen that constantly updates you with prompts of any direct messages or mentions on Twitter. Now, you don't have to sit and monitor Twitter at all hours to make it useful!
Lastly, one of the facets of Facebook I am most pleased with is their advertising opportunities. With Facebook, you are able to run the sidebar ads for whatever your budget can manage. For example, I run ads anywhere from $1.00 - $3.00/day. What do I get for this? Well, I started running ads in mid June, since then I've had over 1.2 million impressions and have reached people in my targeted demographic. I call this BRAND BUILDING.
Bottom line thoughts on social marketing currently -- I think it's currently great for Brand Building. However, I think it can be a "time suck" and one needs to recognize how much time is being spent on it. I think one needs to use tools to enable shortcuts to allow for the most "bang for your buck".
What is it not? In most cases it will not bring immediate dollars in the door (of course there are exceptions). If you are an entrepreneur of a consumer good and you think this method of advertising is going to immediately generate revenue, I think it's unlikely. The tried and true, in my experience, is still the only way to bring in revenue -- call those buyers directly, participate in tradeshows, and get free editorial in the traditional BIG PUBLICATIONS!!! To date, my best ROM (Return on Marketing) has come from editorials in Better Homes and Gardens (pg 122 of January 2009 issue) and Fitness Magazine with television spots coming in next.
So, Follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/StickeSocks. Or become a Fan on Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Yoga-Stick-e-Socks/132863094860 or just click on the side bar to the right of this blog on Blogger and click on the Yoga Stick-e Socks on the top of the Facebook window.
Go get some business now, you've spent long enough reading my blog!
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Entrepreneurial Commitment & Expectations
I am often asked by would-be entrepreneurs what I think of their new business idea. Alternatively, I know new entrepreneurs who started businesses and then wonder why the business did not work out. I believe that there are several misconceptions as to what is required to build a successful business. This post is an overview of the questions I believe one should be able to answer affirmatively before diving into a new business as well as have realistic expectations. Please keep in mind this is based on my experience and my conservative approach to risk taking. I believe in running a business on what you can afford and not putting your family's livelihood in jeopardy. So, start with what you can afford and invest your profits to build the business!
Many people think, "If I build it they will come". I think that is the biggest misconception. First, a product or service must meet at least one of the following criteria:
1) is it cheaper than the alternative?
2) is it faster/saves time/saves money/is easier/makes life better in some way than the alternative?
3) if there is nothing like it, do people need it?
4) how many people would find it beneficial?
Assuming, you can answer these questions with your business idea, the biggest question I have learned is, how will your consumer learn about the new business/product or service? I think this is the area that probably trips up most entrepreneurs. You can have the greatest new business idea but if no one knows about it and understands the benefit, you won't have customers.
This is where dedication and commitment from the entrepreneur becomes important. Many people think they can "hire a great manager with the proper incentive plan" or "get sales reps that already have account relationships" or "build an impressive looking site and people will come". You can get lucky and maybe this will work. You can also buy lottery tickets. After all, someone is going to win, right? However, the truth of the matter is that no one else is going to sell your product or service like you will. No one else will have the passion and enthusiasm no matter what their incentive plan is. The entrepreneur must expect to work all day, every day, for years (most likely without a paycheck) to build the business. This must be the expectation to make sure that the passion and commitment are there. Building a brand that is sustainable and sellable does not come over night.
Building consumer awareness, there are several methods of doing this and much will depend upon the kind of budget you have. Assuming you do not have a budget for a television and magazine advertising campaign right off the bat, you will have to approach marketing using PR, viral marketing, grassroots, and/or social marketing. This is where the entrepreneur's time will be spent, driving marketing and building consumer awareness. Each day, I ask myself what I did to move the ball down the field.
At Stick-e Brands, we have been diligent about doing all of the above. We are regularly featured in editorials in major magazines and trade rags, we get media spots on local network affiliates, we participate in Radio product giveaway contests, do Facebook ads, blog, write and submit press releases and get major players in the yoga and Pilates arena to promote our products. (See our press release titled, Entrepreneurs Expand Marketing in a Down Economy through Networking).
If you need to reach the wholesale buyer, you will need to participate in industry appropriate tradeshows. You might think that you can avoid this cost by just getting sales reps and paying them on commissionable sales but the reality is, sales reps aren't generally ground breakers. They want an established product with an install base. They want the easy sale, not the one they have to work for. OK -- you sales reps, don't yell at me for that but I've seen it over and over again. It's the rare rep that is a ground breaker. It's actually smart time management from a rep perspective to work with established products. So, without a sales force, tradeshows become the best way to for the entrepreneur to reach the wholesale buyer. Do your homework to identify where you'll get the most bang for your buck. For the first two years of my business, I packed everything, shipped it, set it up, worked the show every day all day alone, and packed and shipped and sent everything back. However, it was my business and the positive feedback at the shows kept the passion alive!
If you've gotten this far, and are still committed and passionate about your business, you do need to think about infrastructure. At Stick-e Brands, we have outsourced virtually all aspects of our business which enables us to stay lean and mean. If your business involves a consumer product, you will have to figure out how you will handle inventory acquisition, warehousing, quality assurance, shipping, insurance, and billing.
I believe being an entrepreneur is one of the most thrilling, exciting, and rewarding jobs a person can have. When you have a success, it's your success! However, the reverse is true as well so you must be thick skinned. So, plan ahead, be prepared, have proper expectations, have fun, work hard, and reap the rewards! For more on Stick-e Brands, visit http://www.yogastickysocks.com/!
PS - Have you watched the new show, Shark Tank? I think it's really worth watching!
Many people think, "If I build it they will come". I think that is the biggest misconception. First, a product or service must meet at least one of the following criteria:
1) is it cheaper than the alternative?
2) is it faster/saves time/saves money/is easier/makes life better in some way than the alternative?
3) if there is nothing like it, do people need it?
4) how many people would find it beneficial?
Assuming, you can answer these questions with your business idea, the biggest question I have learned is, how will your consumer learn about the new business/product or service? I think this is the area that probably trips up most entrepreneurs. You can have the greatest new business idea but if no one knows about it and understands the benefit, you won't have customers.
This is where dedication and commitment from the entrepreneur becomes important. Many people think they can "hire a great manager with the proper incentive plan" or "get sales reps that already have account relationships" or "build an impressive looking site and people will come". You can get lucky and maybe this will work. You can also buy lottery tickets. After all, someone is going to win, right? However, the truth of the matter is that no one else is going to sell your product or service like you will. No one else will have the passion and enthusiasm no matter what their incentive plan is. The entrepreneur must expect to work all day, every day, for years (most likely without a paycheck) to build the business. This must be the expectation to make sure that the passion and commitment are there. Building a brand that is sustainable and sellable does not come over night.
Building consumer awareness, there are several methods of doing this and much will depend upon the kind of budget you have. Assuming you do not have a budget for a television and magazine advertising campaign right off the bat, you will have to approach marketing using PR, viral marketing, grassroots, and/or social marketing. This is where the entrepreneur's time will be spent, driving marketing and building consumer awareness. Each day, I ask myself what I did to move the ball down the field.
At Stick-e Brands, we have been diligent about doing all of the above. We are regularly featured in editorials in major magazines and trade rags, we get media spots on local network affiliates, we participate in Radio product giveaway contests, do Facebook ads, blog, write and submit press releases and get major players in the yoga and Pilates arena to promote our products. (See our press release titled, Entrepreneurs Expand Marketing in a Down Economy through Networking).
If you need to reach the wholesale buyer, you will need to participate in industry appropriate tradeshows. You might think that you can avoid this cost by just getting sales reps and paying them on commissionable sales but the reality is, sales reps aren't generally ground breakers. They want an established product with an install base. They want the easy sale, not the one they have to work for. OK -- you sales reps, don't yell at me for that but I've seen it over and over again. It's the rare rep that is a ground breaker. It's actually smart time management from a rep perspective to work with established products. So, without a sales force, tradeshows become the best way to for the entrepreneur to reach the wholesale buyer. Do your homework to identify where you'll get the most bang for your buck. For the first two years of my business, I packed everything, shipped it, set it up, worked the show every day all day alone, and packed and shipped and sent everything back. However, it was my business and the positive feedback at the shows kept the passion alive!
If you've gotten this far, and are still committed and passionate about your business, you do need to think about infrastructure. At Stick-e Brands, we have outsourced virtually all aspects of our business which enables us to stay lean and mean. If your business involves a consumer product, you will have to figure out how you will handle inventory acquisition, warehousing, quality assurance, shipping, insurance, and billing.
I believe being an entrepreneur is one of the most thrilling, exciting, and rewarding jobs a person can have. When you have a success, it's your success! However, the reverse is true as well so you must be thick skinned. So, plan ahead, be prepared, have proper expectations, have fun, work hard, and reap the rewards! For more on Stick-e Brands, visit http://www.yogastickysocks.com/!
PS - Have you watched the new show, Shark Tank? I think it's really worth watching!
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Against All Odds
Hello! I want to slightly go off topic here. A big congratulations to Dana Stevens who just landed the lead role in a soon to be produced Indie film named "Street". Dana will now be adding acting to her singing and dancing repertoire.
I really admire Dana. She is a person that sets the bar very high and constantly is astonishing me with her attitude, commitment, persistence, optimism, and charitable contributions. She is always striving to better herself, improve her family's standards and help those less fortunate. She also is raising 4 children from the ages 1.5 to 11. I honestly don't know how she accomplishes it all! However, her story on how she earned the lead role in this film demonstrates the traits that are required to be successful.
Dana's real passion is in the arts. Despite having to do other jobs (like work for me :)) to pay the bills, she is always pursuing her passion on the side. Dana saw a posting for a casting call and decided to go for it despite never having acted! The audition was to be held in Chicago so Dana made arrangements for childcare and took the train into the city. Unfortunately, she had the address wrong and once in the city took the bus(es) North to what she thought was the correct address. Due to the logistics in getting to this address, she was a few minutes late and at the wrong location! Many people at this point probably would have thrown in the towel. Not Dana, she got back on the buses and arrived at the correct address an hour and a half after the casting call!
As she got off the elevator, no doubt flustered and a little panicked in the rush, a man noticed her as he was getting on the elevator to leave. He asked if he could help her. She said that she was there for an audition. The man said that the auditions were done and everyone had left. Dana, though, still would not give up. She explained why she was late and asked if she could audition still. She then said, "I will sing for you here in the hallway". How could the man deny that? So, he said, "Go ahead". Dana sang a song that she had written herself. The man stopped dead in his tracks. He asked her, what song it was and she answered that it was one of her own. He asked if she had any others and she said that she loved composing and had quite a few originals. The man pulled out a sheaf of papers lined with signatures of all of the people who'd auditioned that day. On the last page, on the last line, Dana signed her name. He said he would call her next week for second rounds.
Of course, Dana got that call and went back for the the second round of auditions and was asked to try out for the lead role. She had to memorize 5 pages of a script and perform them. When she returned, she was on time but again the last to audition. She performed her role opposite the man that she'd met in the elevator, who happened to be the Executive Producer! She learned later that she was the only candidate that did not have to look at her lines during that audition. On her way out, she overheard the Executive Producer tell the other judges, "That was the girl I told you about who auditioned in the hall!". She was told that she wouldn't be called with an answer for a week because they had another girl to see.
However, less than a week later, she got the call she'd been waiting for! She will be the lead character, Street, in the film titled "Street". Congratulations Dana! Your persistence, determination and unwillingness to give up is why you are and will be successful in life! We can all learn from you! For more on Dana, please see, www.yogastickysocks.com/dvd.html.
I really admire Dana. She is a person that sets the bar very high and constantly is astonishing me with her attitude, commitment, persistence, optimism, and charitable contributions. She is always striving to better herself, improve her family's standards and help those less fortunate. She also is raising 4 children from the ages 1.5 to 11. I honestly don't know how she accomplishes it all! However, her story on how she earned the lead role in this film demonstrates the traits that are required to be successful.
Dana's real passion is in the arts. Despite having to do other jobs (like work for me :)) to pay the bills, she is always pursuing her passion on the side. Dana saw a posting for a casting call and decided to go for it despite never having acted! The audition was to be held in Chicago so Dana made arrangements for childcare and took the train into the city. Unfortunately, she had the address wrong and once in the city took the bus(es) North to what she thought was the correct address. Due to the logistics in getting to this address, she was a few minutes late and at the wrong location! Many people at this point probably would have thrown in the towel. Not Dana, she got back on the buses and arrived at the correct address an hour and a half after the casting call!
As she got off the elevator, no doubt flustered and a little panicked in the rush, a man noticed her as he was getting on the elevator to leave. He asked if he could help her. She said that she was there for an audition. The man said that the auditions were done and everyone had left. Dana, though, still would not give up. She explained why she was late and asked if she could audition still. She then said, "I will sing for you here in the hallway". How could the man deny that? So, he said, "Go ahead". Dana sang a song that she had written herself. The man stopped dead in his tracks. He asked her, what song it was and she answered that it was one of her own. He asked if she had any others and she said that she loved composing and had quite a few originals. The man pulled out a sheaf of papers lined with signatures of all of the people who'd auditioned that day. On the last page, on the last line, Dana signed her name. He said he would call her next week for second rounds.
Of course, Dana got that call and went back for the the second round of auditions and was asked to try out for the lead role. She had to memorize 5 pages of a script and perform them. When she returned, she was on time but again the last to audition. She performed her role opposite the man that she'd met in the elevator, who happened to be the Executive Producer! She learned later that she was the only candidate that did not have to look at her lines during that audition. On her way out, she overheard the Executive Producer tell the other judges, "That was the girl I told you about who auditioned in the hall!". She was told that she wouldn't be called with an answer for a week because they had another girl to see.
However, less than a week later, she got the call she'd been waiting for! She will be the lead character, Street, in the film titled "Street". Congratulations Dana! Your persistence, determination and unwillingness to give up is why you are and will be successful in life! We can all learn from you! For more on Dana, please see, www.yogastickysocks.com/dvd.html.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Entrepreneurial adVenture
Hi! I've decided to start my own blog rather than outsourcing it to a fitness professional. It's important to me that I share my personal views and experience. Melissa Baumgartner is a great fitness resource and I will continue to rely on her expert opinions. However, I was afraid that sometimes another person's opinion on my website might seem biased or almost like a paid advertisement even though that was not the case!
My blog will cover an array of topics. What I am most knowledgable on and what people will find most interesting is my experience as an entrepreneur and inventor. This will be the main topic of my blog. I'll give tips on how to start a business, source products, patent, trademark, get PR, results of advertising, website creating and promoting, tradeshow experience etc....However, I'm a very opinionated person so when I feel strongly about another topic I may have a tangental blog entry.
If you have any comments or questions or specific areas of interest, please let me know and I will do my best to address them. I have been playing around with Twitter and Facebook and will try to get my blog to feed into Twitter. I hope you will follow me on Twitter. You can find me as "Stickesocks". You will also receive random posts of discounts that can be used on my www.YogaStickySocks.com website.
I will also introduce websites and services that I have found useful. None of these websites or service providers have made any arrangements with me to promote them. As a matter of fact, they have no idea I am doing this.
First tip for inventing a product: 1) Check out that your idea isn't already patented by searching the www.USPTO.gov website (United States Patent and Trademark Office). This is also where you can find information on copyrighting, trademarking, and filing patents. Just because your idea is not on the market does not mean that someone hasn't patented it or filed for a patent! I also am a strong believer that your Trademark is ultimately more important than your patent so make sure you get a great Trademark name and start promoting it from the word GO! As your new product takes off and you expand your line, you want people looking for your brand. Wouldn't it be great to be the next "Kleenex" or "Google" or "Coke"? That's the goal for whatever segment you are entering. My goal is to have people look for "Stick-e" when they need non -slip Yoga products or non-slip sporting goods products in the future.
One question I am frequently asked is, "Do you need an attorney to file a patent"? My answer is probably not for a Provisional Patent but definitely for a Utility or Design patent. The Provisional patent will give you one year before you have to decide if you want to take the plunge and really go for a patent. If you file a provisional patent, you may also mark your items as "Patent Pending". I suggest doing a provisional patent and using that year to test if your product is really viable. My Yoga Stick-e Socks is patented and it took 2 years and many legal bills to get the patent. Our other products are patent pending but we have started moving forward on the utility patents for them.
Next blog post will be on "Trademarks". Please let me know your comments and questions!
BTW -- My husband also has a patent for Thirsy Randy -- which is a Christmas Tree Watering ornament that looks like a reindeer and its nose lights up when the tree needs water. It eliminates bending over and crawling under the tree, breaking ornaments, and spilling water on your floor! Now you can water your tree while standing and know when the tree has enough!
My blog will cover an array of topics. What I am most knowledgable on and what people will find most interesting is my experience as an entrepreneur and inventor. This will be the main topic of my blog. I'll give tips on how to start a business, source products, patent, trademark, get PR, results of advertising, website creating and promoting, tradeshow experience etc....However, I'm a very opinionated person so when I feel strongly about another topic I may have a tangental blog entry.
If you have any comments or questions or specific areas of interest, please let me know and I will do my best to address them. I have been playing around with Twitter and Facebook and will try to get my blog to feed into Twitter. I hope you will follow me on Twitter. You can find me as "Stickesocks". You will also receive random posts of discounts that can be used on my www.YogaStickySocks.com website.
I will also introduce websites and services that I have found useful. None of these websites or service providers have made any arrangements with me to promote them. As a matter of fact, they have no idea I am doing this.
First tip for inventing a product: 1) Check out that your idea isn't already patented by searching the www.USPTO.gov website (United States Patent and Trademark Office). This is also where you can find information on copyrighting, trademarking, and filing patents. Just because your idea is not on the market does not mean that someone hasn't patented it or filed for a patent! I also am a strong believer that your Trademark is ultimately more important than your patent so make sure you get a great Trademark name and start promoting it from the word GO! As your new product takes off and you expand your line, you want people looking for your brand. Wouldn't it be great to be the next "Kleenex" or "Google" or "Coke"? That's the goal for whatever segment you are entering. My goal is to have people look for "Stick-e" when they need non -slip Yoga products or non-slip sporting goods products in the future.
One question I am frequently asked is, "Do you need an attorney to file a patent"? My answer is probably not for a Provisional Patent but definitely for a Utility or Design patent. The Provisional patent will give you one year before you have to decide if you want to take the plunge and really go for a patent. If you file a provisional patent, you may also mark your items as "Patent Pending". I suggest doing a provisional patent and using that year to test if your product is really viable. My Yoga Stick-e Socks is patented and it took 2 years and many legal bills to get the patent. Our other products are patent pending but we have started moving forward on the utility patents for them.
Next blog post will be on "Trademarks". Please let me know your comments and questions!
BTW -- My husband also has a patent for Thirsy Randy -- which is a Christmas Tree Watering ornament that looks like a reindeer and its nose lights up when the tree needs water. It eliminates bending over and crawling under the tree, breaking ornaments, and spilling water on your floor! Now you can water your tree while standing and know when the tree has enough!
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