Click below to read some of her favorites:
You do not have to be a pack rat or hoarder to want to get more organized this year. Whether you have stacks of paper on your desk or piles of unread e-mails clogging your inbox, you know you will feel better if you could just get them sorted out and organized.
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Something I always tell my clients is to measure what matters most because you will get what you measure, that’s for sure. Make certain you are rewarding the right customers and employees for the right behavior...
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I grew up in Louisiana and there are millions of cool things about having lived there, but one of my favorite terms is the title of this month’s column, lagniappe (Lann Yapp). For those of you unfamiliar with this word, it means something extra, like a baker’s dozen or a gift with purchase. It is very much part of the culture at home and I just love that way of life...
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Living in Boston, which is the ultimate college town with 250,000 students flocking to the city each September, you really feel like the start of the academic year is a fresh start in business too...
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At the Sports Museum at Boston’s TD Garden, where I serve as chair of the board of trustees, we’ve launched an initiative called Boston vs. Bullies to help at risk youth learn ways to combat bullying using lessons from sports.
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I started my company more than 10 years ago and like any business that has survived for more than a decade, you have to keep reinventing yourself and add new tools to the toolkit if you want to stay relevant and thrive. …
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I did not take more than a long weekend off for 4 years, afraid my hard work would disappear...
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Be Aware of Changing Economic Tides. When the recession began in late 2008, Paige Arnof-Fenn, the CEO of the strategic marketing consulting firm, Mavens & Moguls, went on what she calls a “listening tour” among her customers and prospects.
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I think this is so true, you only really learn concepts, facts, figures, data, etc. in school when you dig into it and you never forget those experiences when the point is driven home by example.
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Here’s why so-called babevertising has declining influence – and what’s next.
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In the first few years of my business I had pitched a CEO about a month before I ran into her at a networking event where she was the keynote speaker and her topic was about being a woman leader in a traditionally male-dominated business.
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Paige explained how she used a listening tour to grow her PR business when the global financial crisis hit a few years ago...
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Leading into the holidays families get together often and I recently spent time with my nieces and nephews and they begged me to tell them stories several times a day. It got me thinking, people of all ages are naturally interested when you engage them with an entertaining story...
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Having good manners
Writing thank-you notes, saying please and thank you, following up and keeping promises go a long way in business relationships.
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The main reason clients hire us or any firm is because they believe we can help them solve their problem.
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If you start a blog then post on it regularly. People do not realize they do more damage than good and dilute their brand when they come out of the blocks strong then within a short time period taper off and lose interest.
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We’ve all been in those meetings where people love to hear themselves talk and they make every excuse in the book about how hard it is to get the meeting. .
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I started a global marketing firm 15 years ago and for me after my website went live the big thing was to fill the pipeline and find clients so I could get some reference accounts to sell more business...
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Paige Arnof-Fenn spent her time in corporate America, heading up marketing for three different startups. However, she felt life was passing her by...
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Jobs and job leads can come from anyone anywhere anytime. You should always be on your best behavior & make a great lasting impression. You’d be amazed where some of my best contacts have come from over the years...
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My advice is to go on a Listening Tour! Politicians do it all the time and it is great for business too. Make a list the movers & shakers, people you admire and prospects, ask a few smart open-ended questions then sit back and take notice.
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As many of you know I grew up in New Orleans and one of my favorite things every spring as a kid was going to the Jazz & Heritage Festival. When i was young this was basically a local event celebrating the city's jazz, zydeco and blues music...
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Serving on a nonprofit board not only is a way to give back, but it can also generate good will toward your company’s brand while also providing a new avenue for networking with important contacts. Here are 8 reasons CEOs give for getting involved in nonprofit boards.
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A maven, according to The Joys of Yiddish, is “an expert; a really knowledgeable person; a good judge of quality; a connoisseur.” A mogul is a very rich or powerful person, so it struck me that the name of this web site was a fantastic start to building a platform.
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wanted to start a business I could leave when I went on vacation and not worry about or let consume me so that I could relax and enjoy myself...
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To quote a Zen Buddhist thought “The Master in the art of living makes little distinction between her work and her play, her labor and her leisure, ..."
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in professional services like marketing consulting, our story is our clients’ story, our success is their success. Our goal is not to win awards and accolades for our work, we are happy when we build our clients’ business so that they see marketing as an investment in their brand not an expense.
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“I started a global marketing firm 14 years ago and I built the brand mostly through speaking engagements, writing articles, networking and word of mouth..."
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They come out of the blocks strong with a lot of energy and ideas and start blogging regularly then after a few weeks it starts to drop off...
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We’ve got 75 entrepreneurs in the house, discussing all the different hats they wear, the creative energy that comes with the role, and how every day is a new adventure...
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Are you happy at the moment?
If you could go back and say anything to your 16-year-old self now – what would it be?
What’s the most important thing you’ve learned this year?
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I grew up in New Orleans and was a huge Saints fan as a kid, even when they were called the Aints 😉 I have now lived in Boston for 18 years and have adopted the Celtics and Red Sox too (New Orleans did not have an NBA franchise while I lived there).
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Samsung can't risk things getting worse and people hurt. Customers have great options in this category, and Samsung's not the only game in town. They need a clean slate -- a fresh start to begin winning back trust.
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As she leads her brand into its next stage, Ivanka reveals how she's navigating the drama around her father's presidential campaign
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I got my first passport at age 16 to go to France as an exchange student and it was a pivotal moment in my life. It opened my eyes to a whole new world both figuratively and literally and from that moment on I knew that overseas travel would be part of my life forever.
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Does “play time” or “me time” seem sinful luxury? An informal survey of women business owners indicates that play time isn’t just essential to your health—it can boost your bottom line.
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How does one become an accidental entrepreneur? Paige Arnof-Fenn, founder and CEO of Mavens & Moguls, knows the answer. She calls herself the accidental entrepreneur as she “never wrote a business plan” or “raised any outside money.”
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For me, the whole work-life-balance debate is tired and overused. And I agree with a point Anne-Marie Slaughter [president of the New America Foundation] makes that it is not a women’s problem but a workplace problem...
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I’ve been studying Tai Chi and Qigong for the past decade or so and it’s been helpful for me both mentally and physically to learn to relax my body and calm my mind in new ways...
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Make sure your profiles tell a consistent story. When you try to be a cool partier on Facebook/Instagram and very buttoned up on LinkedIn, it may raise questions as to who you really are. Authenticity is key, personally and professionally.
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My advice is that the people you start with are not always the ones who grow with you. The biggest mistake and hardest lesson I learned when I started my company 15 years ago is not getting rid of weak people earlier than I did in the first few years of my business.
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Use the information about your existing customers to develop a target audience for your business in its drive to win new customers and increase sales. "While there are core customers you are trying to reach, often there are other markets that are also important to address,
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“We are constantly negotiating in business, and you have to always keep in mind what your best alternatives are and be ready to walk away,” says Paige Arnof-Fenn, founder and CEO of Mavens & Moguls, who nominated Getting to Yes for our list.
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Oh, the thing about flip phones. Pull it out, and two things will happen. First, people will say, what is that? And when they get that you plan to use it as a phone, "they laugh,
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Jobs and job leads can come from anyone anywhere anytime so you should always be on your best behavior & make a great lasting impression. Be nice to everyone & make friends before you need them, you never know who is in or will be in a position to help!
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I started doing a listening tour during the Great Recession in late 2008, early 2009 to strum up new business.
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I would look and see if the ads with Olympians like Apolo Ohno, Michael Phelps, etc. and the one with Mike Trout tested well...
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...There is risk in attaching a brand to a human being, who is inherently flawed.
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Finishing college is not the end of your education, you will be a student for the rest of your life so never stop learning new things...
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Paige Arnof-Fenn: Mavens & Moguls Tackling Marketing Problems
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Quick Tips from Local Biz Experts...
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It is best to give before you get. A great way to build your business is to be the first one to give away something of value to your prospects.
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It really is a marathon not a sprint so do not set arbitrary goals like being named 30 under 30 or 40 under 40 because it may take you longer than Mark Zuckerberg to hit your stride and that's ok...
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I asked lots of successful online entrepreneurs what was the best piece of advice they have ever received. I got a massive response and the cream of the crop is here for you...
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...another part of maintaining a professional tone is staying on message in your interactions. “Do not clutter your followers’ feeds with what you ate for lunch or your coffee habits,”
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We've been asking entrepreneurs to tell us about jobs that defined them, from childhood daydreams to that first gig. Meet Paige Arnof-Fenn, the founder and CEO of Mavens and Moguls, who worked her way from the mail room to a global marketing firm.
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Growing up, both of my parents have been such wonderful influences in my life. My father definitely had an entrepreneurial spirit and I watched him foster ideas, create inventions and tinker with electronics and prototypes...
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I had never heard the word “entrepreneur” until I went to college in California in the ’80s. As a kid, I wanted a career in international business because I spoke French and thought jobs in finance sounded cool (my father and both grandfathers were commercial bankers).
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Mavens & Moguls, a network of 48 independent marketing professionals founded by Paige Arnof-Fenn, Zipcar’s first CMO, has won work from Delta Airlines, Colgate, Sprint, and Virgin, among others.
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If there’s one thing people like more than hearing a good story, it’s the chance to share one...
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I started a global marketing company 14 years ago with the goal of working with people I respect and admire for people I want to help succeed.
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Paige Arnof-Fenn is the founder and CEO of global marketing firm Mavens & Moguls, based in Cambridge, MA. Her clients include Microsoft, Virgin, The New York Times, and Colgate, as well as nonprofits and venture-backed startups.
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I do not believe in failure. The most successful people I know will admit they’ve all hit bumps in the road, suffered major setbacks along the way and learned from each of those experiences–if they were smart.
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“At year end, I always check in with everyone who was interested to hire us during the year but didn’t. Many times companies find “use it or lose it funds” on the books at the end of the year and if you hit the timing right..."
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I have benefited tremendously throughout my career from mentors. They can be colleagues, professors, bosses, and senior people in organizations.
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"I always come back to Dale Carnegie’s How To Win Friends And Influence People for all things related to my business. It is a classic and the advice holds up over time...”
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During the peak of the dot-com boom, I was looking for a key member of my team who needed to have a strong background in customer service. I got literally hundreds of resumes. I picked my top 10 to bring in for interviews...
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It should not take a personal tragedy or setback to appreciate your life and be grateful for all the things you love.
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What advice do you have for women aspiring to be entrepreneurs?
1. You will work harder and longer than ever before, and you have to be better prepared and more qualified than the guys, but it is totally worth it.
2. Never compromise your integrity or values.
3. Do not let the haters or the voices in your head get the best of you.
4. Get thick skin - negative feedback can be very helpful.
5. Go for it.
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Get rid of weak people quickly. I knew in my gut they were not up to snuff, but out of loyalty to them, I let them hang around much longer than they should have. ..
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I started my company 14 years ago and I think the most common trait among successful business owners is… Perseverance.
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Giving talks at conferences: "I started my firm 12 years ago and have gotten dozens of clients over the years by giving talks at conferences, trade shows, industry events, universities and others. I have also written articles for online publications, mainstream media and blogs."
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Even the most successful small businesses have faced their fair share of challenges. The issue isn’t always how to avoid challenges, since some are inevitable. The key is figuring out what to do when you come face-to-face with one...
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Social media is so pervasive now, traditional marketing and PR can seem dated. When I started my marketing career in 1990 there was basically only print, radio, TV, outdoor, and direct mail.
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In a virtual world, even very small businesses can convey a “big brand” image, and it doesn’t have to take a lot of time, energy or money to do just that
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On today’s episode of The Boomer Business Owner, Charlie interviews Honorary Baby Boomer and Mavens & Moguls CEO, Paige Arnof-Fenn.
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“For me it is Italy. I have rented a 17th century farmhouse with no wifi or internet access, stayed at villas with no computers, etc. ..."
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I was an exchange student in both high school and college. I lived with a family in southeast France for several months during my junior year of high school...
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I started learning Tai Chi & Qigong about 10 years ago and have gotten progressively addicted over the years...
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This time of year always reminds me of when I was a student and the excitement I felt when finishing up another year of school.
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Last spring, in preparation for the 50th anniversary of women being admitted to the School's full-time MBA Program, we invited the HBS alumni community to identify alumnae who stood out as leaders, mentors, and role models...
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My advice is to go on a Listening Tour! Politicians do it all the time and it is great for business too. Make a list the movers & shakers, people you admire and prospects, ask a few smart open ended questions then sit back and take notice.
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Don’t wait too long to fire bad employees
I started my company 14 years ago. My biggest mistake was not getting rid of weak people earlier than I did in the first few years of my business.
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“The key ingredient to successful customer acquisition strategy is…”
Listening tour.
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“I run a global marketing company I started 14 years ago and we use Paychex..."
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Need a list of what to look for in your domain name? Use these eight questions to poll your team for the perfect domain...
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Question: What career advice do you have for today's female MBAs?
"Always be the most well-prepared person in the room. You will never regret it, and you'll build a strong reputation."
Question: Whom do you admire in the business world?
"Richard Branson, for turning his learning disability to his advantage; also, for his courage, creativity, and enthusiasm for the great brand he built."
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The most successful people do create and, in fact, become brands. Their brands are based on the experiences they promise and the values they live by and share.
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How to Win Friends & Influence People” by Dale Carnegie.
“It is a classic with timeless advice on manners and people/human nature,"...
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'Facts are boring,” says Paige Arnof-Fenn of Forbes.com, “but putting facts into a context with emotion makes them memorable. Stories help you connect with people on a sensory level.”
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'Great marketing is about motivating your customers to buy more of your products and services it is not about winning awards or creating buzz or attracting more eyeballs or clicks unless they are buying too...
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As the calendar changes soon to 2013 we have an opportunity to start anew. That is one of the exciting things about a clean calendar, it is a blank slate to start the year fresh with a renewed sense of purpose and optimism...
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With the holidays approaching, the season of giving is upon us. The old saying that "the more you give, the more you get" has certainly been true in my experience. I grew up in a family of business people who valued volunteerism and being involved with the communities in which we live and work.
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Simplicity & Calmness, Buyers in Control & Complicated Channels
The roles & responsibilities of marketing are in transition and will certainly be very different still down the road. Here are a few observations & predictions I have...
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First of all you have to set your naming criteria and decide what is important to you. Do you want a short name (max of 8 characters for example)? Real word or made up word?...
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I worked at Procter & Gamble, Coca-Cola, and ran marketing at 3 successful startups before I started a global marketing and branding company 14+ years ago. Here are a few tips from my 20+ year career in branding...
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Now that I’m older and a little wiser, I can’t help but think about all the encouragement, support and great advice my mom gave me that has helped me become a successful entrepreneur.
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Cinque Terre on the Ligurian Coast and Positano on the Amalfi Coast are probably the very top of the list. Both are incredibly beautiful coastal areas, watching the sunsets and moon is spectacular, taking walks and boat rides truly stunning.
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I’ve been a sports fan since I was a kid, and living in Boston now has made it fun and easy for me to continue following teams I love…
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I grew up in New Orleans and have lived in Cambridge, MA since 1999. You might not think Louisiana and Massachusetts have a lot in common - one is hot and humid known for its food, music, parties and hurricane season and the other has four distinct seasons, known for its foliage, Nor'easters and world famous universities...
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A weekly roundup of small-business developments.
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As an entrepreneur and business owner I see examples of innovation everywhere, I think it is part of the entrepreneurial DNA…
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I am a long time fan of late night television and wanted to get David Letterman as our graduation speaker…
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Every month is a good time to celebrate love so why not reflect on what you love about your business now? Ask yourself, are you doing work you enjoy most of the time? What parts of your job energize and motivate you?
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The days are getting longer, we change the clocks again soon! As much as we hate to lose an hour's sleep the payoff is well worth it with more daylight to enjoy. Business tradeoffs happen regularly too with one step back then 2 steps forward.
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At a late morning meeting recently with a fellow entrepreneur, as we were wrapping up I mentioned my next meeting had been postponed and asked if he had time to grab a bite to eat.
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I wish I had realized that my definition of success would change over time so that I would not have gotten so hung up on things that really did not matter...
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If you could go back and change anything about the way your business got its start, would you do it? It’s totally okay to admit you would...
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We often say that PR is all about relationships. While most often in reference to media relationships, as a service-based business the relationship between publicist and client is perhaps the most important one of all.
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Highlight the stories that captivate your customers. Facts are boring but putting facts into a context with emotion makes them memorable.
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I have a confession to make. I am not on Facebook, I do not Tweet and I still consider myself a marketing expert…
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Paige talks with Anaezi Modu for the REBRAND Expert Interviews Series.
Read her thoughts and tips below and get her sound advice for small and large businesses at Forbes Magazine...
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I would tell people that jobs and job leads can come from anyone anywhere anytime so you should always be on your best behavior & make a great lasting impression...
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According to Paige Arnof-Fenn, Founder & CEO of Cambridge-based global marketing firm, Mavens & Moguls, lots of people think you have to be famous to have a personal brand...
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Ask any entrepreneur and he or she will tell you that they keep a couple tricks up their sleeve to help keep their business running smoothly...
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Creating Effective Value Propositions
For the second block I chose Jack Derby’s session on creating value propositions. Jack is a sales legend and teaches this stuff at MIT and Tufts so I knew I would learn a lot listening to him....
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Brains & Bliss: How to Build Happier and More Productive Teams
My morning started with a session on happiness and gratitude. What a great way to start the day! Jo began his career in VC in the late 90s and Anne spent 15 years in venture as well. She decided to step off the treadmill that had become her life and went to meet with an executive coach to figure out her next move. What she realized is she wanted to be the coach, that is the job she was most excited by....
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unConference Session: Michael Skok on Start Up Secrets, Building a Compelling Value Proposition
After years of hearing great things about the unConference, I finally attended my first one on Friday November 16 at the Hynes Convention Center and it was fantastic! As good as I had heard it was, I found it to be even better in reality...
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For entrepreneurs, luck is a lot like snowflakes – no two instances of it are alike. Today, we’ve got a panel of small business owners on our blog who have experienced some seriously serendipitous moments with their companies...
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I use Paychex because it is easy, convenient, low cost and they have the tax paperwork ready right away.
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Paige Arnof-Fenn is the founder and CEO of Mavens & Moguls, a global marketing strategy consulting firm whose clients range from early stage start-up to Fortune 500 companies including Colgate, Virgin and The New York Times Company.
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"[One of] the main things I think about is will it matter six months down the road,” says Arnof-Fenn. Thinking in terms of a finite time horizon often provides better insight to the right solution.... "
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That Subaru might someday build an honest to goodness sports car has long intrigued diehard fans. ..
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There’s that old saying: When life hands you lemons, make lemonade.
But what about when life hands you repeated snowstorms? Get Cooking...
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What I love about Cambridge
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Boston is a bit of the Rodney Dangerfield of cities. After all, the Bay Area and NYC get all the good press but “truly Boston is where a lot of the tech and VC world started.
Read article »You must exist online today to be taken seriously,” said Paige Arnof-Fenn, founder and CEO of marketing consulting firm Mavens & Moguls. But that doesn’t mean you should be active on every platform...
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Now an international company, Mavens & Moguls provides creative and virtual marketing, PR, and advertising services for businesses. Paige gave us the inside scoop on her earliest triumphs and tribulations, the company’s character and future goals, and the story behind that catchy name.
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For my company when I started the firm I jokingly referred to the women as the Marketing Mavens & the guys as the Marketing Moguls & for short I called them Mavens & Moguls as a working name but never expected it would stick.
Arnof-Fenn shared a little about her early working experiences and her dreams of one day becoming the boss.
Paige Arnof-Fenn has started a global marketing firm as part of her entrepreneurial journey. Maven & Moguls specializes in global marketing strategy. She has gone further than most marketing firms by offering personalized packages to help companies achieve a global reach.
Another strategy is to ask people to meet for a cup of coffee so you can pick their brain. Don't make it about trying to sign them as a client. Just ask if you can take them out to ask a few questions – and then just listen.
It can be easier to work a room when you have someone to tag team with. But make sure you focus on chatting with new people not each other.
We do a lot of competitive analyses for our clients as part of our branding exercises.
One way we do this is by conducting a SWOT analysis which highlights the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats.
I started a global marketing firm 16 years ago and to me being an entrepreneur means: (1) Real customers are willing to pay real money for your product or service, then you have a real business...
I would recommend NOT spending money on things like fancy brochures, letterhead, business cards, etc. Until you know your business is launched I would say to put your budget into things that help fill your pipeline with customers.
My dad walked the halls every day and he knew everybody's name, not to mention their kids' and pets' names, birthdays – you name it.
It is an important reminder that stumbling is part of the journey to success. As an entrepreneur you just have to keep going and pick yourself up and be smarter every time you get up and try again. It was true for Thomas Edison, Steve Jobs, Sara Blakely and it is true for me too!
I predict that there will be more integration between online & offline marketing breaking down marketing silos inside organizations.
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I am a big fan of Tai Chi, but I also do water aerobics, massage, acupuncture, knitting, reading, hanging out with friends, and watching TV to de-stress.
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If you know your subject well and can tell compelling stories then you will build your brand and following using Content Marketing in 2017, this is your year!
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I started a global marketing firm 16 years ago and I grew it by going on a Listening Tour. Politicians do it all the time and it is great for business too. I made a list of the movers and shakers, people I admire, and prospects
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My tip is to plan well in advance and deputize your team to problem solve in your absence
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...the best tip is to practice your presentation until you can do it with total confidence..
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I honestly did not know if I would have a business to come back to. When I returned, I realized that my company had not just survived but thrived in my absence.
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There are professional women's groups that get together and network over games of golf in major cities.
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Not all mentoring relationships need to be so formal or follow the chain of command. When Paige Arnof-Fenn ran the Olympic Coin Program, which raised funds for the Atlanta Olympics, her mentor was her assistant, Beverly Spears.
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Abe Lincoln* once said, "If I had six hours to chop down a tree, I'd spend the first four sharpening the axe." Whether or not you agree with the proportion of time that Lincoln would have you spend on preparation, it's hard to argue against the idea that doing your homework will serve you well.
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Paige Arnof-Fenn is the CEO of Mavens & Moguls, and exactly the sort of person we love to speak to at FS Local. Experienced, open, willing to share, and with a resume that demands attention.
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Arnof-Fenn shared a little about her early working experiences and her dreams of one day becoming the boss..
People always tell me I am great at networking which I find strange. I think what makes someone effective at networking happens to coincide with things that just come more naturally to me.
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For me the way to get energized throughout the day is to get up from behind my desk and walkaround, go take a walk outside if possible or pick up the phone and make a
call to someone who I enjoy talking to (could be for business or pleasure). I am also a big fan of Tai Chi so sometimes I just do a few moves to get my chi flowing and that helps too.
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We are all busy these days. Being over-scheduled is just the way we live our lives. For years, when I wanted to squeeze something into my calendar, the first thing to go was my work out. A convenient excuse I could use, but really, I was the only one paying the price.
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“I predict Content Marketing will grow in importance with the quality gap growing as well so that good/relevant content leveraging influencer marketing strategies will be more important than ever.
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I think post-election people have fake news fatigue and feel they have wasted too much time on these sites which suck their energy and make them feel depressed.
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Another common way businesses thank their clients and big spenders is with gifts. But Bell warned that gifts can move into insincere territory (another fruit basket?) when they’re not personalized..
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As entrepreneurs we can be very tough on ourselves so I try to remember that at key times too. Stay calm and you will get through the tough times. Don¹t panic. Pause, breathe, reflect and be patient so you do not do anything brash.
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Make friends before you need them. Jobs and job leads can come from anywhere, so be nice to everyone along the way. I have had some of my best introductions from people in non-traditional ways.
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... I would choose Arianna Huffington. She has become a media powerhouse in both traditional and online outlets with books, speeches, HuffPo, TV appearances, etc. She is well respected, thoughtful, smart, opinionated, and puts her money where her mouth is.
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The name came to me when I referred to the women in the group as marketing mavens and the guys as marketing moguls, so for short I said mavens & moguls in all my early e-mails to the group and as we were forming, it stuck.
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I did not plan on starting a company. I always wanted to go work for a large multi-national business and be a Fortune 500 CEO. When I was a student I looked at Meg Whitman & Ursula Burns as my role models.
For Arnof-Fenn, the best tip is to practice your presentation until you can do it with total confidence. “When you know the material cold there is no need to be nervous,”
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"I am strong because I have been weak.
I am fearless because I have been scared.
I am wise because I have been foolish."
-Unknown
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I started a global marketing firm 16 years ago so have plenty of advice for aspiring entrepreneurs or ones who have already launched and may be looking for some advice and inspiration.
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When I started the firm, I jokingly referred to the women as the Marketing Mavens & the guys as the Marketing Moguls & for short I called them Mavens & Moguls as a working name but never expected it would stick.
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The hardest lesson I learned when I started my company is not getting rid of weak people earlier than I did in the first few years of my business. I spent more time managing them than finding new customers.
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I started my career at Procter & Gamble and Coca-Cola. Then I left the corporate world in 1997 to join the first of three startups and have never looked back. Fifteen years ago I started a global marketing firm out of the 3rd floor of my home and love running my own company.
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"Williams measures key metrics and analyzes important details after every game,” Arnof-Fenn says. She may start out with unusual athletic talent, but it’s her routine of analysis and correction that keeps her winning tournaments..."
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...entrepreneurs often find it harder to take a vacation. “It’s harder to turn it off when you know there is always more to do..."
It took me years to take a vacation,”
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The first guy who responded sounded nice, and since his dad’s machine had just died, he said he’d come over the next day. The guy was a firefighter from a neighboring town and told me he would not leave until I knew basic things about my new house...
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In my experience the biggest mistake companies make when starting a blog is…
They come out of the blocks strong with a lot of energy and ideas and start blogging regularly then after a few weeks it starts to drop off and a month or so later a few weeks go by and they just can¹t find the time then before you know it it has been months and no new postings.
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Tip #37: People don' t care how much you know until they know how much you care.
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“More virtual teams have managed to create enough of a footprint that they can tackle really big projects.”
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Like many entrepreneurs, Paige has found that the harder she works, the luckier she gets. You need to pay attention to serendipity since prospective customers can come from anyone anywhere anytime. “Be nice to everyone & make friends before you need them, you never know who is in or will be in a position to help!
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If you are not feeling great you cannot do your best work. My goal is to always give my very best in every situation. I know when I feel great I am at my most creative and productive so I will be able to do my best work. Make sure you eat, sleep and exercise so that you can be at your peak performance level.
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“Every meeting needs a PAL — Purpose, Agenda and Time Limit — to be successful. When everyone invited to the meeting knows why they are there and gets the agenda in advance, and it clearly states how in-depth each topic covered will be discussed, you are well on your way to a great meeting!
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Even though I always went to co-ed schools as a kid, was never a Girl Scout and never joined a sorority in college, I joined several professional women’s groups as an entrepreneur and found a great community for learning, growth, support and fun.
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“I have my web site, URL and web hosting all with Web.com, they keep it simple and organized. They can renew it for a decade at a time so I do not have to think about it. They have been around for a long time and are very professional.
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Does Tai Chi count? I started learning it about 11 years ago and have gotten progressively addicted over the years. I now know the choreography of 2 different forms and I absolutely love it.
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[The] first thing I do when I wake up is turn on NPR so I can catch up on the news while I shower and get ready for my day. Then I check email and get going.
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The most successful entrepreneurs and business owners do create and, in fact, become brands. Their brands are based on the experience they promise and the values they live by and share
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My biggest challenge as an entrepreneur is not getting rid of weak people earlier than I did in the first few years of my business. I knew in my gut they were not up to snuff, but out of loyalty to them I let them hang around much longer than they should have.
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There are many existing problems out there that need to be solved that customers are willing to pay for today.
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Attracting more customers is really about listening to their needs, not being a solution looking for a problem.
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Instead of meeting up with your local friends at a coffee shop or bar, or chatting with them on the phone while you are snacking or sipping wine, meet them for a bike ride or a walk, so you can catch up while you are getting some exercise, too.
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If you're not passionate about what you're doing, then why should anyone else be?
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Then there’s Paige Arnof-Fenn, who exceeded expectations in a series of positions at P&G, Coca-Cola , the U.S. Treasury Department, and Inc.com. Today she is CEO of Mavens & Moguls, a global marketing strategy firm.
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I started my company 15 years ago, and the hardest lesson I learned was not getting rid of weak people right away. I spent more time managing them than finding new customers...
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These down-home expressions have plenty of advice to offer new business owners. See what you can learn from these nine sayings.
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These eight tips prove that courtesy does count for small businesses.
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Want to make this the best year ever? It's time to make some changes that'll set you up for success.
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Are business board meetings getting stale? A company retreat may be the answer to pump up your team and get the creative juices flowing.
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Less isn't always more. An oversimplified website may be driving away business.
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Sometimes, seeing the silver lining is all you need to keep your business burning bright. If you believe the saying that what doesn't kill you makes you stronger, then the people in New Orleans have got to be among the strongest people in the world. I went back home several times in the past year and each trip brought a new level of appreciation and gratitude for what my friends and family have been dealing with for the past few years...
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Incorporate the lessons of Tai Chi and Qigong into your daily life as an entrepreneur...
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Spending time reflecting away from work can help you find clarity on your business and life. Read article »
Hire smart by looking past what references say about former employees and finding out what they mean. Nonverbal cues can often tell you more about a person than what that person spells out in an e-mail or conversation. One area where this comes up for many entrepreneurs is in hiring. When you ask most CEOs or business owners what keeps them up at night, it's either that they don't have enough good employees to grow or the ones they have are driving them crazy...
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You never thought you'd admit it, but Mom was right. So sit up and pay attention to how her lessons growing up will help you become a successful entrepreneur today.
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7 things my dad always did that helped me succeed in business today.
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Do you know what sort of impact you want to make on the world and how your business and your life factor into that.
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Whether you're selling your expertise or the face behind a product, your image directly affects your customers. Here's how to create a brand when the brand is you.
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Don't let a failed startup kill your entrepreneurial dreams. Get back in the saddle again with these encouraging words of wisdom.
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Planning--and taking--a well-deserved vacation the right way can refresh your spirits and your business.
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Building a business based on what you value most--not what you earn--will guarantee its success and your happiness.
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Whether you're just starting out or struggling through a rut, relearning your ABCs may be just the attitude adjustment you need to take your business to the next level.
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Apply the rules of romance to your business relationships and win your clients' hearts.
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Frivolous litigation is a fear that strikes the heart of every business owner. Here's what you can do about it...
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Letting go is a resolution that will save you time, money and heartache in the long run...
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Make a resolution to get organized--and stay that way--the entire year with these four tips.
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Is summer your slow season? It doesn’t have to be.
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Recharge your batteries, connect with your team in a new way, and have some fun while the summer sun lasts.
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When my favorite local coffee shop made a few too many changes, it forced customers away. How can you avoid this same mistake?
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Sharpen your presentation skills with these simple steps to make the most of your meetings.
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This month I talk about celebrating my 20-year college reunion. I love any kind of reunion. They're great opportunities to reconnect with old friends and meet new ones with whom you share some common history. Gatherings like these allow you to rejuvenate, relax and remember people, places and things you enjoyed in the past and can still relate to today. Read more...
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There's a lot of press today about people in their prime career years being the sandwich generation--caught between aging parents and growing families. I'm here to tell you that there can be open-faced sandwiches (no kids), as well as club sandwiches, with businesses layered in between family obligations. These can lead to high pressure situations for even the most prepared and organized entrepreneurs...
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You still hear a lot about sharing best practices across categories and industries. There are consultants and firms that have built entire businesses in this area. For example, I often see aspects of a technology firm that apply to a consumer products company or a nonprofit, despite their seeming differences...
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Start thinking about the holidays long before they hit so you’ll be cool and collected come December.
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It can be lonely at the top. Get help for your toughest business decisions by joining other fellow business owners.
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This successful entrepreneur points out five signs that will help you determine if it's now or never for your big business idea.
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Get the update on the writer’s resolution to get organized, plus tips on making your promises a success.
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How to decide if you should fly solo or not: the second in a two-part series on business partnerships.
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7 questions to ask yourself when considering a partnership.
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These seven lessons will help keep you on track during the early stages of your business.
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Avoid upsetting flight delays and lost luggage with these 6 tips for business travelers.
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Launch and Grow Your Small Business Now
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Read interview with Mavens & Moguls CEO here
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Paige talks with Anaezi Modu for the REBRAND Expert Interviews Series.
Read her thoughts and tips below and get her sound advice for small and large businesses at Forbes Magazine.
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Paige sees herself as a brand strategist who loves building strong brands and great teams, she also happens to have a terrific rolodex and stellar reputation so she can pick up the phone or connect with just about anyone based on the strength of her relationships.
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Every meeting planner has that stomach-dropping moment when they have a room full of people waiting for a speaker that doesn't show.
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Abe Lincoln* once said, "If I had six hours to chop down a tree, I'd spend the first four sharpening the axe."
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This quote really resonates with me, it is paraphrased from the Bible I think:
I am strong because I have been weak
I am fearless because I have been scared
I am wise because I have been foolish
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Articles have headlines, brands have tag lines, Twitter limits you to 140 characters – so why is it so hard to sum up your life in one sentence? Does it feel too much like a tombstone or dating profile? Too morbid, cheesy, trite, or limiting?
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If you can help customers fix their biggest problems then you will always be a partner not just a vendor.
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My advice is to go on a Listening Tour! Politicians do it all the time and it is great for business too.
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I've been married 25 years and have never woken up one day in my life wishing I had kids," she reflects.
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Start listening with no strings attached, you'll be amazed what you find.
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Having a wonderful, fulfilling day starts with resting the night before. "A great day for me starts after a good night's sleep, so I wake up refreshed and full of energy.
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I started getting lots of requests for help right after 9/11 when marketing was the first thing to get cut across the board. I had more work and clients than I could service by myself so I started calling the best people I worked with in my career. I jokingly referred to the women as the Marketing Mavens and the guys as the Marketing Moguls and for short I called them Mavens & Moguls...
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As a marketer, Paige understands that value of information but also tries to reconcile that with her desire for privacy (remember that concept – ha!). She employs a bit of what Selia Yang described as the No-Yes by looking for ways to give useful information without compromising too much...
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It was at the December meeting of an organization for women entrepreneurs and business leaders that Paige Arnof-Fenn learned her marketing strategy company had won a lucrative contract.
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I started a global marketing firm 13 years ago and my best tip on being productive is to first & foremost be happy. Here is my advice to get started...
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One of Boston's finest jazz trios will make a rare appearance in Chambersburg thanks to drummer Scott Goulding, a Chambersburg native who plays in the group and is coming home for a holiday visit...
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Paige Arnof-Fenn got a crash course in weeding out tire kickers when she founded Mavens & Moguls and sometimes found herself spending 15 or 20 hours preparing a pitch for a prospective client and answering elaborate follow-up questions. “At the end they would say, `Thanks so much. You’ve really educated me. I think we’re going to use the agency we’ve always used.’...
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In order to successfully develop a marketing plan to reach new customers, you need to better understand what the needs are of those potential customers.
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The demand for outsourced direct marketing and sales are increasing. Hype Initiatives have exceeded sales targets by 8% and improved retention rates by 16% since their establishment in Australia.
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As an entrepreneur, I can be selective. Less really is more. i've chosen quality over quantity. It sounds trivial but it is true. I am happier and healthier than I have been in more than a decade. As a marketing consultant I am able to write articles, contribute to books and speak at events to share my experience and lessons learned.
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Be original. What makes you unique or special? Be creative. How do you want people to think & feel after interacting with you vs. your competition? Be honest. Let your brand be known for speaking the truth, and you become the trusted advocate and go-to source. Be relevant. Brands aren't created in a vacuum.
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I would ask Warren Buffett what keeps him up at night. He always seems to be very thoughtful and at peace with very little stress but I wonder if he is really as calm as he seems with all the craziness going on in the world and political uncertainty.
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It is true that you should hire slowly and fire quickly. I did not make that mistake again later on so learned it well the first time. I wish I had known it even earlier though but lesson learned for sure
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I started my company 16 years ago and have now worked for myself 5 times longer than I ever lasted working for anyone else! In 5 years I do think I will still be running my company and am excited by the possibilities of where the business will go.
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While there are core customers you are trying to reach, often there are other markets that are also important to address, Make sure you know who the gatekeepers and influencers are; they will affect the decision makers and you will most likely need to sell to them differently than to the end user.
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Go on a Listening Tour. Attending networking events without a strategy takes time, money and doesn't guarantee you'll meet the kind of people you need to improve your business.
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The people you start with are not always the ones who grow with you. The hardest lesson I learned is not getting rid of weak people earlier.
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If you have any excuse to go to Quito for work make sure you tack on a few extra days to visit the Galapagos Islands. I have traveled all over the world including Europe, Asia, Africa, etc. and that trip was one of the best ones I have ever taken. It is incredibly special and unlike any place else. Each island is different so try to see as many as you can. You will not regret it. Have fun!
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PAIGE Arnof-Fenn, is the founder & CEO of Mavens & Moguls, a global marketing firm she started 13 years ago based in Cambridge, MA. Her company helps organizations who want to increase their visibility, profile and awareness with a differentiated message and value proposition. Paige is a popular keynote speaker and panelist at various organizations and hosts online webinars to share her marketing expertise with business owners around the world.
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Highlight the stories that captivate your customers. Facts are boring but putting facts into a context with emotion makes them memorable
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I did not plan on starting a company. I always wanted to go work for a large multi-national business and be a Fortune 500 CEO. When I was a student I looked at Meg Whitman & Ursula Burns as my role models
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Summer is my favorite time of the year. The days are long, the weather is great and people tend to balance work and play better than any other time of the year.
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"I am strong because I have been weak
I am fearless because I have been scared
I am wise because I have been foolish"
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The first chapter of my career was in corporate marketing within Fortune 500 companies where budgets were large there was lots of staff and infrastructure in place. Then I moved to the startup world where I was the head of the marketing department and built the team from the ground floor.
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Another classic that makes you think and ask the right questions every day to build a sustainable business for the long term.
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Crowdsourcing taps the wisdom of the community for the answers you need...
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Have you been trying to find ways to transform your business? If your thinking tape has run dry and you think you have used every idea out there to help your business grow read this article it is all about helping business work through the hard times.
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Not sure what you’re selling? It’s yourself. You don’t have to be Oprah or Rachel Zoe to think of yourself in this way.
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In order to successfully develop a marketing plan to reach new customers, you need to better understand what the needs are of those potential customers.
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By now, small business owners should have new strategies in place to find new customers and thereby increase their sales. If only we were living in a picture perfect world, where we would have an unlimited budget, every lending institution would give us loans, luck would favor us and our touch would turn everything into gold.
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My advice is not to just take business classes, explore other areas of interest while you are in school. Study what you are passionate about. Steve Jobs studied calligraphy, which ultimately made him a better businessman. So follow your heart, which will make you more successful down the road.
Use the information about your existing customers to develop a target audience for your business in its drive to win new customers and increase sales.
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Your company or product name should also correlate to the price points you’re aiming at...
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We often say that PR is all about relationships. While most often in reference to media relationships, as a service-based business the relationship between publicist and client is perhaps the most important one of all...
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The publishing industry—particularly on the b-to-b side—is filled with confusingly similar brand names. ..
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By whatever definition, marketing consists of activities designed to get a product or service from the producer to a consumer. Hand copied flyers delivered door to door, simple giveaways at trade shows or business expos, a basic radio spot, a Facebook page, or a sophisticated and expensive web design with the use of multiple media…it’s all marketing...
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When making a big decision, thinking beyond the “right here, right now” is a vital first step toward avoiding a big stumble.
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Favorite inspirational quotes:
"The harder I work, the luckier I get." (My grandfather had this quote on his desk)...
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"Going on vacation and earning money at the same time means you have built a company, not just a job."
...
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It’s tough to stand out in this competitive market for investment management services, products, and job
openings.
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When rebranding, you don't want to lose your loyal customers. "Reach out to current customers separately; they are your first priority.
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I got my first passport at age 16 to go to France as an exchange student and it was a pivotal moment in my life. It opened my eyes to a whole new world both figuratively and literally and from that moment on I knew that overseas travel would be part of my life forever.
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In 2007 I was in Ecuador for a week to attend a conference that was hosted by a global professional women’s group I am part of. A few of us from the group flew there 5 days early to go to the Galapagos Islands. It was a magical trip.
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I jokingly referred to the women in my group as the “Marketing Mavens” and the guys as “Marketing Moguls’ and my nickname was “Mavens & Moguls” and it stuck.
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Slide Show: The CMO's World In 2020
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had never heard the word “entrepreneur” until I went to college in California in the ’80s. As a kid, I wanted a career in international business because I spoke French and thought jobs in finance sounded cool (my father and both grandfathers were commercial bankers).
I have a confession to make: I am not on Facebook, nor do I tweet — and I still consider myself a marketing and communications expert in 2015.
Believe it or not, minding your manners really does make a difference in business these days.
This time of year always reminds me of when I was a student and the excitement I felt when finishing up another year of school.
Maybe you are still in school, or maybe you just graduated, but unless you’re Taylor Swift, LeBron James, or Barack Obama, you probably don’t think of yourself as a brand.
If you ask Paige Arnof-Fenn ─ this year‘s Entrepreneur in Residence and founder/CEO of Cambridge-based marketing strategy consulting firm, Mavens & Moguls ─ about her path to an entrepreneurial lifestyle, she‘ll tell you it was a bit of a circuitous path but at each juncture the decision seemed like the right one at that time.
Sua definição de sucesso vai mudar. Ao longo dos anos, você encontrará o que realmente importa para você.
I did not plan on starting a company. I always wanted to go work for a large multi-national business and be a Fortune 500 CEO.
The best entrepreneurs I know are passionate about what they are doing, persistent/never give up and creative/innovative. Having a good sense of humor helps too!
Paige Arnof-Fenn is the Founder & CEO of Mavens & Moguls, a strategic marketing consulting firm based in Cambridge, MA. The firm has 4 dozen experts in 14 cities across the US as well as overseas. Paige has built world class brands at Procter & Gamble, Coca-Cola and 3 successful startup companies on both the West and East Coast (all dotcom survivors). Paige has been quoted recently in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Fox TV and is a thought leader and sought after speaker.
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I created the Mavens & Moguls brand from scratch so if anyone has heard about it then it was from something I did which is incredibly rewarding.
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I want to fill my dance card every day with people, activities, and conversations that energize and excite me. I have to make time for the people who matter to me, and I can pass on the big networking events I used to go to multiple times every week.
We are constantly negotiating in business, and you have to always keep in mind what your best alternatives are and be ready to walk away...
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It can be hard to let some people go but it really is best for them and the business and critical for the culture if you want to attract the best talent. You are only as strong as the team you build.
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...give before you get — send them an article, make an introduction, etc. before you ask them for anything, it sets you up as a kind and generous person and also find a networking buddy to attend events with so you can work the room together, it is more fun and easier to chat with folks that way.
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...But he could not understand why the 10th one was even being interviewed because she worked as a chef and did tech-type work on the side.
I explained to him that working in successful restaurants (and she had worked at all the best ones) required a tremendous sense of customer service and she clearly had the tech skills, too. Plus, she studied in Italy in college and spoke Italian (I did too), so I thought she would be cool and fun to work with. I just had a feeling she was going to be the best, and after talking to her, I knew I had struck gold
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It had long since come to my attention that people of accomplishment rarely sat back and let things happen to them
We do a lot of naming work and the first step is to create the committee or team in charge, identify who else should be involved in the process, and then set the criteria.
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This is the toughest stage of life by far. But you can make it easier by being honest about emotions (yours and your parents') and taking advantage of every resource you can, including the sage advice from caregivers who've been at it for a while. Real-world eldercare experts can provide actionable advice and insights to help you reduce anxiety and build confidence, and to realize you're not alone in this.
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After putting in 100 hour weeks and achieving top-notch results, she discovered that she was only in the second-tier bonus pool. "I looked my boss right in the face and said … 'you should pay me what I'm worth'," she tells Moneyish. "I don't always get it, but I always ask."
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...Tennis and golf are great ways to learn about people, including their:
How do you achieve this? Paige Arnof-Fenn, Founder and CEO of Boston- based Mavens & Moguls has this 'quick fix' list of what email marketers should be paying attention to. They include:
After 9/11, Arnof-Fenn's marketing job was eliminated, but clients were still tracking her down. "It was like a red flashing sign in front of me," she says. So, she learned more skills in the field, upped her entrepreneurial know-how and hung her own shingle, founding marketing consulting firm Mavens & Moguls.
"Now the buck stops with me," Arnof-Fenn says. "When you believe in your core that a bad day on your own is better than a good day at your desk job, you've got nothing to lose."
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My sales prospecting tip is to go on a listening tour! Politicians do it all the time, and it is great for business too. Make a list of the movers & shakers, people you admire, and prospects, ask a few smart open ended questions, and then sit back and take notice.
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What entrepreneurs are thankful for
Your DNA is in every part of the business, every client, every sale. I love knowing I matter and can make a huge difference in the direction and trajectory of my business and my clients too. It is a reflection of my values, blood, sweat and tears. It is great to see your passion have impact every day and makes being a small business owner so meaningful.
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People genuinely appreciated the thought that went into the gifts that were tailored to their personal interests. Whenever I run into them at networking events they almost always comment on how much they enjoyed their gift even years later.
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If it feels like you're not comfortable or saying things that do not sit well with your or roll off your tongue, then it is time to pause and review," she says. "People know when they are being lied to or sold a bill of goods. Protect your reputation at all costs—it is your biggest asset.
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Determining which influencers to work with is a challenge many marketers will face in 2018. It's easy to make the mistake that the only influencers are household names or A-list celebrities.
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Make sure your profiles tell a consistent story. When you try to be cool/a partier on Facebook/Instagram and very buttoned up on LinkedIn, it may raise a question as to who you really are. Authenticity is key personally and professionally.
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A supportive spouse who always has my back. A career I enjoy that clients value and are willing to pay for. Great clients I enjoy working with...
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Less is more, a targeted small audience can be more powerful and effective than blanketing the masses, getting to the right people gives you the best multiplier effect and going viral is still the goal.
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In 2017 I got much better at limiting distractions so I could focus on my business.
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Make a list the movers & shakers, people you admire and prospects, ask a few smart open ended questions then sit back and take notice.
They will be more than happy to tell you what is on their mind.
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Market research, specifically going on a Listening Tour to talk with prospects about their marketing needs, what is working, where the gaps are, and ways we might be able to help. It is old fashioned and low tech but very effective.
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Paige Arnof-Fenn, the founder and CEO of the Mavens & Moguls marketing consulting firm, will be checking emails, organizing paperwork and dialing into conference calls from her home office every day this week, including a few hours on Christmas Day. And she's already got a meeting scheduled for the 26th.
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Top customers got one kind of gifts; mid-tier and small got another. But then she came up with a twist: customize the gifts.
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Many of our clients have big plans for the new year and budgets have been allocated so fingers crossed we can rest up and hit the ground running in early January.
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My Personal resolution would be to reach out by phone or e-mail to one old friend every week to reconnect and say hello...
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I started a global marketing & branding firm 16 years ago and here is what I have learned:
Be original. What makes you unique or special? Be creative. How do you want people to think & feel after interacting with you vs. your competition?
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I always felt frustrated in my corporate jobs and was always trying to bend, break or change the rules," says Paige Arnof-Fenn, founder & CEO of strategic marketing firm Mavens & Moguls. "When I worked at startups I often had ideas that the founders chose not to pursue...
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I am excited about the new year and plan to treat myself as well as I treat my best customers. I want to respect my time on my calendar as if it were an important meeting with a VIP because it is! I no longer want to sacrifice my time to write, think, exercise, plan, etc. to squeeze more meetings and calls into my day.
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I wish the political noise and distractions could take a back seat so the focus can be on growing and strengthening the economy
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Call me old fashioned but I still like the tried and true LinkedIn best. It is the most professional platform, my clients and prospects all use it, it is a great way to stay in touch with your contacts, exhibit thought leadership and do research on people.
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When the time comes to expand your business take this new step slowly. "I started a global branding and marketing firm 16 years ago, and I learned that the people you start with are not always the ones who grow with you."
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I found new customers by going on a listening tour. Politicians do it all the time, but it works for businesses, too. All it takes is a few open-ended questions over coffee or a meal, a pad and pen, and just let them talk. It's amazing what you can learn, the themes that emerge, and ways you can follow up to help.
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Make sure your profiles tell a consistent story — when you try to be cool/a partier on Facebook/Instagram and very buttoned up on LinkedIn, it may raise a question as to who you really are. Authenticity is key – personally and professionally.
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Be passionate. Everyone loves to work with people who are passionate about what they do; it makes life much more fun and interesting. Filling your pipeline is the key and prospective customers can come from anyone anywhere anytime so you should always be on your best behavior & make a great lasting impression.
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I used to run, do step aerobics, kickboxing, use the Stairmaster or elliptical machines, bike, row, ski, you name it. But low-impact exercises make the most sense for me now. As a hardworking entrepreneur, water aerobics and Tai Chi keep my life low-stress, which helps ward off weight gain. Taking a daily walk is good, too. It doesn't need to be long or fast—every little bit helps. And you really do feel great afterward.
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My experience overseas made me more culturally sensitive and relevant," she says. "I believe I got better assignments, faster promotions, and more interesting projects because of it.
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My top tip is that I try to find creative ways to multitask that incorporates exercise, you'll be amazed how much more energy and time you have!
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I started the company 16 years ago and am the face and heart of the organization, I sell most of the work and make sure all the agreements get signed and everyone gets paid. I love that my DNA is in everything we do. Since starting the business we have worked with great clients helping them with their toughest marketing and branding challenges.
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I got my first job in marketing in 1990 and back then marketing was mostly consisted of traditional print, television, radio and outdoor advertising. It was all expensive, so only big brands like car companies, airlines and major consumer products companies were able to afford it. Today there are so much more online options with social media and it does not have to cost a lot of money.
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In a mobile-first world, you have less time to grab people. Attention spans are shorter than ever so video will be used even more.
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Being an entrepreneur provides me a platform to do work I truly enjoy with and for people I respect.
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It takes drive, creativity, energy, passion, chutzpah, and resilience. As the founder and CEO I know there are going to be times when doors close or I have to pivot to turn my vision into reality.
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I would recommend NOT spending money on things like fancy brochures, letterhead, business cards, etc. Until you know your business is launched I would say to put your budget into things that help fill your pipeline with customers.
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I took the leap right after 9/11 when the company I worked for cut their marketing. I had nothing to lose. Being an entrepreneur provides me a platform to do work I truly enjoy with and for people I respect. I get to set my priorities, I have time to travel and hang out with my inner circle, and work out every day.
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Start Me Up by Rolling Stones
It energizes me, I have seen them in concert and they always put on a great show. They are still going strong decades later. They are timeless, classic, inspiring, so talented, and always seem to be having fun together. It is a great reminder of what I aspire to do. I am a huge fan and find that song motivating. It gives me a shot of adrenaline every time!
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Get rid of team members who have weak skills. In my business, I spent more time managing bad employees that finding new customers. That was a big mistake.
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I"Invest in stationery and business cards, then you need to network like crazy, do something every single day to get your business off to a great start and build your brand."
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was speaking at a conference in Boston 2 years ago in February, the winter of historic snowfall in the area. A major storm hit the day before the conference so several speakers could not make it into town because the airport had cancelled so many flights. I am based locally and ended up speaking 3 times on different topics the day of the conference...
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Not all mentoring relationships need to be so formal or follow the chain of command.
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I try to find creative ways to multi-task that incorporates work and exercise. Instead of meeting up with your local colleagues at a coffee shop, over a meal or chatting with them on the phone, meet them for a walk so you can catch up while you are getting some exercise too.
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If you start a blog then post on it regularly. People do not realize they do more damage than good and dilute their brand when they come out of the blocks strong then within a short time period taper off and lose interest.
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While you may not necessarily expect to ever be in a long-distance relationship, many people are at some point, either for a short or long amount of time.
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I started a global branding and marketing firm 16 years ago and the easiest thing about running a business is if you don't like something you can change it
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I realized it was not sustainable, effective or smart and if I did not pace myself or take vacation I would burn out. I had to set boundaries so I started blocking time to exercise, I turned off the computer at a reasonable hour (vs. working until midnight regularly). I even took a vacation
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I started a global marketing firm 16 years ago and have been in marketing since 1990. I recommend ANY book written by Seth Godin, David Meerman Scott or my old boss at Coca-Cola former CMO Sergio Zyman.
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Be smart — one went to college and one did not but both encouraged me to read a lot, find areas I was interested in and learn everything I could, travel to experience life first hand and have an opinion I can defend.
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Being a successful woman in business means that you are sharing your talent and helping others achieve their goals while leading a fulfilling life on your terms.
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Make sure your social media profiles tell a consistent story. When you try to be cool, or a partier on Facebook or Instagram and very buttoned up on LinkedIn, it may raise a question as to who you really are. Authenticity is key personally and professionally.
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...listen more than talk, show empathy, and try to look at the situation from the customer's perspective.
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My marketing advice is to go on a Listening Tour! Politicians do it all the time and it is great for business too. Make a list of the movers & shakers, people you admire, and prospects, ask a few smart open-ended questions then sit back and take notice.
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My top tip is that I try to find creative ways to multi task that incorporates exercise, you'll be amazed how much more energy and time you have!
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Make a list of potential clients and prospects, invite them to coffee or a meal, ask a few open-ended questions and let them tell you what they need. You will get a lot of great ideas and feedback.
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Mavens & Moguls is a virtual marketing department for organizations that need access to great talent on an as needed basis. We do anything an ad agency, PR firm, market research group or marketing team does and can help you scale quickly.
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Thought leadership is also a great way to build your brand, increase your visibility, raise your profile and attract more clients. Activities like speaking at a conference, writing articles, building your following on social media, all contribute to increasing your awareness with potential customers and building your credibility with a larger community
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Not firing weak people early enough. Bad employees can destroy productivity and morale at a startup faster than anything else
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19 Ways to Find Success in Your First Year as a Woman in Tech
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She was the anchor of my team, and my boss marveled at my ability to pick her out of the pile – truly a needle in the haystack. She is still one of my closest friends today, more than a decade later.
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She was he haystack. She is still one of my closest friends today, more than a decade later.
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...A targeted small audience can be more powerful and effective than blanketing the masses, getting to the right people gives you the best multiplier effect and going viral is still the goal.
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When in doubt, overcommunicate. Especially at the beginning, when you're still building the relationship.
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I used to run, do step aerobics and kickboxing, use the Stairmaster or cross-trainer machines, bike, row, ski, you name it. But low-impact exercises make the most sense for me now
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For me innovation is a fresh approach, new idea, product, service or method that addresses your market¹s needs or desires. To be innovative it should be relevant and add value.
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There are so many things I have learned along the way! For starters, I recommend NOT spending money on things like fancy brochures, letterhead, business cards, etc. Until you know your business is launched I would say to put your budget into things that help fill your pipeline with customers. Getting your URL and a website up and running is key.
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I recommend NOT spending money on things like fancy brochures, letterhead, business cards, etc. Until you know your business is launched I would say to put your budget into things that help fill your pipeline with customers. Getting your URL and a website up and running is key.
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I started a global marketing firm 16 years ago and my best tips are to do as much writing and public speaking as you can, it sets you up as a Thought Leader in your industry and helps your Google ranking as well.
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Call me old-fashioned but for me the innovation I benefit from most is e-mail. I love how efficient it is for asynchronous conversations, you can keep projects moving forward, communicate key info quickly, stay in touch with people easily, share news, photos, etc. It is convenient, easy, fast and fun albeit addictive at times.
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Make time for friends, hobbies, exercise, hanging out, etc. It will never be as easy as it was in high school or college to round up a group of buddies to play, but do not let that stop you.
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As the oldest kid, it was my responsibility to make sure my siblings were safe and accounted for at all times. As an entrepreneur, you have people to watch out for, as well: your customers, employees, partners, advisors and other stakeholders. If you take care of them, they'll watch your back, too.
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Harvard Business School alumna Paige Arnof-Fenn, the founder and CEO of marketing company Mavens & Moguls, says having perfect or near-perfect grades and test scores isn't a guarantee of acceptance to a selective business school. Arnof-Fenn urges MBA applicants to remember that top-tier institutions have many applicants with stellar qualifications.
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...the Boston metro area ranks in the 87th percentile for startup growth and number of startup companies (only 1.7 percent of all businesses are startups).
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It is very easy to get distracted as an entrepreneur so you really have to stay focused on your key messages and business goals and not let noise in the system veer you off course. You have to stay in touch with your core audiences and make sure that you are not conducting market research with people who do not want to hurt your feelings or tell you the idea is bad.
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Being an entrepreneur provides me a platform to do work I truly enjoy with and for people I respect.
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Start listening with no strings attached, you'll be amazed what you find. It does not cost much, for the price of a few coffees and meals you will get an earful. I had no idea what to expect and got a lot of new work as a result.
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Thought leadership is a great way to build your brand, increase broad visibility, raise your profile, and attract more customers.
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There are so many things I have learned along the way! For starters, I recommend NOT spending money on things like fancy brochures, letterhead, business cards, etc. Until you know your business is launched I would say to put your budget into things that help fill your pipeline with customers.
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Your story will evolve as you find your market, you need to look professional and have a website to be taken seriously but embossed paper with watermarks and heavy card stock is not going to accelerate your sales cycle.
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She knew that all work and no play is not a sustainable long-term strategy so she always wanted me to make sure to leave time for some fun in my life too.
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I use my website as a credibility builder for my business. It has testimonials, case studies, background, lots of articles, videos, etc. so prospective clients can check me out, see if I have the right skills to solve their problem and just get a feel for me personally to see if we would work well together.
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She told me to negotiate for a good salary and ask for promotions," says Arnof-Fenn. "It has served me well. She taught me to stand up for myself and be prepared.
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Your customers are more than happy to tell you about their problems and if you just listen to them you can follow up with ways you can help. I periodically go on a listening tour and it is a great way to fill your pipeline.
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Keep the bar high and attract the best talent. You will never regret it.
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"A" team people like to be surrounded by other stars. It is true that you should hire slowly and fire quickly. I did not make that mistake again later on so learned it well the first time. I wish I had known it even earlier though but lesson learned for sure!
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Here are my top tips to build a great team: Hire people who have complementary skill sets Look for people who are strong where you are weak, make sure you have stars in all areas with great talent so you can cover all the bases. Test for chemistry and cultural fit.
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I am a big fan of networking. I know that even the thought of it makes some people cringe
or break out into a sweat but most of my business comes from networking. My rule is that
you should network in person duringthe business day and do it online after hours.
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I have to admit it is a lot harder to market yourself and your business when you are the brand. I went through the same process I always had doing a full audit of the messages, features, benefits, target audiences, strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats, etc. I learned to do by doing for many years.
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Be passionate. Everyone loves to work with people who are passionate about what they do; it makes life much more fun and interesting.
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Activities like speaking at a conference, writing articles, building your following on social media all contribute increasing your awareness with potential customers and building your credibility with a larger community.
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Arnof-Fenn encourages businesses to start a listening tour by making "a list of the movers and shakers, people you admire and prospects. Ask a few smart, open-ended questions, then sit back and take notice
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Almost every company has a unique story to tell about its history, conception, early customers, and bumps in the road. How can your company use your story to generate more business, explode on the scene with a new offering or launch as the memorable new kid on the block?
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There are many existing problems out there that need to be solved that customers are willing to pay for today.
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There are lots of tools businesses can use to promote themselves and although social media and online marketing are very popular I still like e-mail marketing which is a very effective way to build a relationship with customers. I am a big fan of e-mail and it does not need to be complicated to start using e-mail marketing to reach your target audience.
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I started a global branding and marketing firm 17 years ago and am a big fan of market research. I think it is a really important building block for any good marketing plan and to ignore the market or not even ask them for input is a bad idea in my opinion.
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I find when I make a good contact it sets a foundation for a strong working relationship if you give them something of value before you ask for the order.
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I wish I had been told at graduation not to be scared to fail, and if you are not terrified or at least anxious about that next step, you might not have reached high enough.
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E-mail marketing is an effective way to build a relationship with customers. I am a big fan of e-mail and it does not need to be complicated to start using e-mail marketing to reach your target audience.
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Here are the trends I am most excited about that are helping successful brands come to life and break through the clutter and noise: Using Artificial Intelligence to get your audience more engaged Finding ways to leverage Virtual Reality to get your messages to your target audience. Transparency and honesty in all communications to be a brand customers can trust, brand integrity is more important than ever before.
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I think you get the most bang for your marketing buck with Public Relations. PR is the single most cost-efficient tool you can use to increase your profile and build your visibility in my experience.
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...I try to find creative ways to multi task that incorporates work and exercise. Instead of meeting up with your local colleagues at a coffee shop, over a meal or chatting with them on the phone, meet them for a walk so you can catch up while you are getting some exercise too.
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Once I was invited to speak at a global professional women's conference in Ecuador and arranged a side trip to the Galapagos Islands with two of the other speakers I knew a week earlier," says Arnof-Fenn. "It was an amazing trip and fun opportunity to get to know these women better. I have also gone to a spa retreat with a large group of professional women on several occasions, which has been both fun and great for my business — it can be a terrific source of referrals.
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I predict Content Marketing will grow in importance with the quality gap growing as well so that good/relevant content leveraging influencer marketing strategies will be more important than ever.
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Instead of meeting up with your local colleagues at a coffee shop, over a meal or chatting with them on the phone, meet them for a walk so you can catch up while you are getting some exercise too. You'll feel great after, the time will fly & it will be a fun activity to share.
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Go with the flow, Italians work on their own time. Things close mid day for a siesta, the trains do not run on time. People eat at restaurants later there for dinner so do not ask for a 6pm reservation. They live in the moment and appreciate the world around them in a way that is lost here.
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Be creative, resilient and scrappy—you will be told no a lot but keep at it and find new ways and energy to come back with a new idea or twist and try again.
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People want to work with and buy from people they like and trust, so using e-mail marketing is a fantastic way to build long-term relationships.
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Before I go on stage I always take a few deep breaths and remind myself I have practiced a lot and know this topic well, I try to make eye contact with at least a few people in the audience as I speak and share stories from my experience to make my points.
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People do business with people they like, trust, and respect, so signal early that you are a giver not a taker.
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There's a lot of noise in every category, so if you don't have a unique story to tell and a new approach or idea that excites you, then go no further.
Business plans today come is various forms from bare bones/basic to highly detailed and thorough. Going forward it will continue to depend on how much you know (about the product, service, category, etc.) and how much time you want to spend
Ultimately I realized that there were really only a couple that it made sense to actually join because they hit on all cylinders shared values, like-minded members, alignment with the groups' mission and after every encounter I was glad I had come.
Starting a company can be lonely at times and being CEO can be scary and isolating too so finding a community of trusted people can be critical to your sanity and success.
Focus on making friends with people before you need them for their connections—you never know who is in, or will be in, a position to help you out down the line.
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Outsiders bring a fresh perspective, best practices from other categories and new energy to the team.
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Arnof-Fenn said, "Mavens & Moguls is industry agnostic. We work with consumer, tech, and non-profit companies. That means I can get involved with organizations and people I enjoy working with while I continue to write and speak. It's fulfilling."
Thought Leadership is a great way to build your brand, increase your visibility more broadly, raise your profile and attract more clients/customers.
Your mother was right, manners matter: put your phone away in meetings, always follow up and follow through, keep your promises, send thank you notes, return phone calls in a timely manner; the right people will notice and appreciate it.
First, look at your business from your customer¹s perspective. What are you selling and how does your target audience perceive you? What are they looking for and how does your product or service stack up compared to other offerings on the market?
Now that they give you 280 characters use them to expand your message and leverage video to get more exposure. The data shows longer tweets with videos are the most successful.
Every meeting needs a PAL — Purpose, Agenda and Time Limit — to be successful. When everyone invited to the meeting knows why they are there and gets the agenda in advance, and it clearly states how in-depth each topic covered will be discussed, you are well on your way to a great meeting!
Especially now with social media, you know what celebrities eat, drink, wear, have in the real world so it should be consistent with their endorsements for the best results.
Instead of meeting up with your local colleagues at a coffee shop, over a meal or chatting with them on the phone, meet them for a walk so you can catch up while you are getting some exercise too.
Exercise: anything from a walk around the block to a class, Tai Chi, bike ride, spa or retreat,
I no longer try to squeeze in more meetings or hit multiple events at night. As an entrepreneur, I can be selective. Less really is more. I've chosen quality over quantity. It sounds trivial but it is true.
A brand is a promise in the hearts and minds of their customers of a consistent experience with the product or service.
Paige Arnof-Fenn, a 1991 Harvard Business School MBA, says earning the degree gave her the confidence to switch careers from finance to marketing after graduation.
Everything communicates, not just your company name, brochure or logo but your business cards, stationery, e-mail signature, invoices, how you present yourself, how quickly you respond to messages, everything.
I think the future for women entrepreneurs is strong. In the almost 2 decades since I started my company women make up a bigger percentage of college graduates and grad school admissions, hold more board seats and have started companies in higher numbers.
I got my first passport at age 16 to go to France as an exchange student and it was a pivotal moment in my life. It opened my eyes to a whole new world both figuratively and literally and from that moment on I knew that overseas travel would be part of my life forever.
Employees, customers and clients will remember who treated them well during the crisis and they will be rewarded with loyalty from earning that trust during the bad times.
Paige Arnof-Fenn is the founder and CEO of global marketing firm Mavens & Moguls, based in Cambridge, MA. Her clients include Microsoft, Virgin, The New York Times, and Colgate, as well as nonprofits and venture-backed startups. Paige serves on several boards and is a popular speaker at industry events and conferences. She has been a columnist at both Entrepreneur and Forbes. She is a graduate of Stanford University and Harvard Business School.
As a hardworking entrepreneur, water aerobics and Tai Chi keep my life low-stress, which helps ward off weight gain.
I heard that budgets had been scaled back, so I created smaller bite-sized ways to work with companies that accommodated the new reality.
Listening tours are used by politicians all the time and most people don't recognize that they're an excellent opportunity for business, too.
I enjoy my work more than ever now. I am having more fun. Working for yourself and building a business you started is incredibly rewarding and gratifying.
I started a marketing and branding firm 17 years ago and have used Paychex from the start. The main benefits are convenience and cost. Like many small business owners I run payroll sporadically (not every other Friday or last Monday of a month).
The best thing my dad taught me was to treat everyone with dignity and respect. My dad was down to earth even though he was the president of his company he took the time to learn everyone's names and about them as people, he greeted them personally from the people in the garage to the cleaning staff to his direct reports and staff.
In a mobile-first world, you have less time to grab people, [A]ttention spans are shorter than ever. The more video and rich content the better.
These books give you the questions, mindset, inspiration and motivation to create a strategy for your business so that you are in the right frame of mind to think big and set your business apart.
I think Boston is a great place to live and to start a company. As a woman business owner and entrepreneur there are amazing groups here and I am part of many of them. I find them very collegial and collaborative. The academic community is also welcoming and inclusive even if you are not one of their alums.
I wish I had realized that my definition of success would change over time so that I would not have gotten so hung up on things that really did not matter (office politics, bad bosses, top bonus possible, etc.).
I have always been a morning person since childhood. My husband sleeps later so I shower and dress while listening to NPR to get caught up on any news then go to my home office and check e-mail until about 7:30am.
My dad
He was the CEO of a public company who showed me that leaders can be compassionate, strong and successful. I am eternally grateful for his support and advice.
I do the best I can with what I have and surround myself with great colleagues and advisors. I practice Tai Chi and Qigong to be more mindful and manage stress and just keep moving forward.
Keep the bar high and attract the best talent. You will never regret it.
Pay off your credit card balance every month. If that's not possible, stop buying stuff you cannot afford – the interest is not worth it.
The more you give the more you get. I believe it is a responsibility to give back and help your community thrive. I do my part by volunteering my time, donating money and sharing my expertise where it makes the most sense.
I would recommend NOT spending money on things like fancy brochures, letterhead, business cards, etc. Until you know your business is launched I would say to put your budget into things that help fill your pipeline with customers.
A brand is a promise in the hearts and minds of their customers of a consistent experience with the product or service.
In 2018, web designers are pushing forward and embracing new developments and challenges in the ever evolving web design world.
Don't occupy yourself with work that doesn't move the needle. Understand the difference between good or urgent and significant. Get rid of tasks that do not support your core purpose or move you closer to your goal.
I did not want to attract other bad clients so even though he signed a 1-year contract I ended it after 3 months. It sent a signal to my team that the money was not worth an unappreciative client who was a jerk and treated us poorly.
Make a list the movers and shakers, people you admire and prospects, ask a few smart open-ended questions, then sit back and take notice...
I love that I have been able to pivot as the economy and world around us changes so that we are more relevant today than we were when I started it 15 years ago.
Be kind every chance you get and be grateful for all the blessings you have. Do not take them for granted, if you are healthy you should be thankful every single day you feel good. The ripple effect of a smile or holding open a door can be tremendous so give it a try.
I know there are a lot of fancy tools and technologies out there and you can call me old-fashioned but for me the thing I still benefit from most is e-mail.
Successful businesses take what is unique about each brand and create the hook and reason to believe that product or service is worth buying. Every brand is trying to own real estate in their customers' minds so that they are thought of first when a particular need arises.
For me, I look for people who are curious and high energy. I want people on my team who read a lot and are open to new ideas and thoughts. One-trick ponies get boring fast. I want people who experiment and are not scared to fail.
When you are an authentic brand and you know who your core audience is and what is important to them you can take a stand on an issue like this. I give them a lot of credit for putting their money where their swoosh/mouth is.
Paige Arnof-Fenn tells Exhale her biggest surprise was that the people she started her company with were not always the best ones to grow with. Until she realized that, she spent "more time managing [people] than finding new customers."
I think every project is exciting! That is the beauty of running your own business, if you are not genuinely excited by the work then you can pass on it. I only take on work that I find interesting and worthwhile.
It is so easy to get stuck at your desk so commit to getting out of the office for lunch at least twice a week, whether it is an old colleague, classmate, mentor or networking contact once it is on your calendar it is a great excuse to catch up.
The hardest lesson when I started my company was not getting rid of weak people or the ones not ready to learn earlier than I did in the first few years of my business.
The Boston area is a bit like the Rodney Dangerfield of cities, since Silicon Valley in the Bay Area and Silicon Alley in New York get all the good press, but truly Boston is where a lot of the tech and venture capital world started.
Today the tagline seems to have been replaced by the hashtag, which can be much more useful in a social media-dominated marketing world. By adding a trending hashtag (like #travel or #love) or a descriptive hashtag (like #happy or #fun), advertisers can increase the likelihood of being found by customers interested in a common topic.
FIt is cost efficient because a lot of the work is sporadic (for a product launch or trade show for example) so you do not carry a salary on the books year round for short-term content projects).
Pick a few things you enjoy doing and do them really well. You cannot be everywhere all the time so choose high impact activities that work for you and play to your strengths.
The hardest lesson when I started my company was not getting rid of weak people earlier than I did in the first few years of my business. I knew in my gut they were not up to snuff but out of loyalty to them, I let them hang around much longer than they should have.
"Start Me Up" — The Rolling Stones
This energizes me. I have seen them live in concert and they always put on a great show. They are still going strong decades later. They are timeless, classic, inspiring, so talented, and always seem to be having fun together.
In a mobile-first world, you have less time to grab people, attention spans are shorter than ever so video will be used, even more, show don¹t tell for maximum impact, rich content drives engagement.
Instead of meeting up with your local colleagues at a coffee shop, over a meal or chatting with them on the phone, meet them for a walk so you can catch up while you are getting some exercise too.
In a mobile-first world, you have less time to grab people, attention spans are shorter than ever so video will be used, even more, show don¹t tell for maximum impact, rich content drives engagement.
Do not up your spending when you get a raise — up your savings instead. Also, make sure to save something from every paycheck. Just get in the habit and funnel a set amount directly into an investment account, because you do not spend what you do not see.
Maybe you are still in school, or maybe you just graduated, but unless you're Taylor Swift, LeBron James, or Barack Obama, you probably don't think of yourself as a brand. In my experience, though, the most successful people do create and, in fact, become brands. Their brands are based on the experiences they promise and the values they live by and share.
The more you give the more you get. I believe it is a responsibility to give back and help your community thrive. I do my part by volunteering my time, donating money and sharing my expertise where it makes the most sense.
Names contribute to your brand and in our case I think it has been a major plus. Maven is Yiddish for expert and a Mogul is someone of rank, power or distinction in a specified area. I like the alliteration and I think it sets us apart from other consulting firms. It shows a little personality & attitude and implies we do not take ourselves too seriously.
Fake news threats will only escalate — journalists are in a war to win back the trust of their audience, sadly what started as a punchline or tweet is now a serious threat to a free press, the bar for facts and figures is only getting higher.
I will set aside regular time to recharge my batteries and take better care of myself so that mentally and physically I will be sharp and in the best health possible to set myself up for success.
I am most looking forward to participating in more high impact activities and spending time with decision makers and key influencers in the new year. Those types of opportunities are energizing and when smart people get together at events and meetings the conversation is always interesting and inspiring.
In the past I spread myself too thin and let myself get run down unnecessarily with little to show for my efforts. I am happy to have more time to spend with the people I care about and the activities and causes that matter most to me.
Successful people have good intuition and instincts and my intuition saved me when my gut told me to beware that the people you start with are not always the ones who grow with you.
A brand is a promise in the hearts and minds of their customers of a consistent experience with the product or service. If you do not create your brand others will define it for you. Here are a few tips from my experience on how to build a strong brand...
I am a big fan of networking. I know that even the thought of it makes some people cringe
or break out into a sweat but most of my business comes from networking.
Boston resident Arnof-Fenn recalls that when her niece started taking driver ed in high school, the teacher took the kids into Harvard Square on their first day behind the wheel. "I know seasoned adult drivers who would avoid that part of Cambridge at all costs, but I guess if you are going to drive here you have to learn fast," she says.
I was speaking at a conference in Boston 2 years ago in February, the winter of historic snowfall in the area. A major storm hit the day before the conference so several speakers could not make it into town because the airport had cancelled so many flights. I am based locally and ended up speaking 3 times on different topics the day of the conference.
I started getting lots of requests for help right after 9/11 when marketing was the first thing to get cut across the board. I had more work and clients than I could service by myself so I started calling the best people I worked with in my career. I jokingly referred to the women as the Marketing Mavens and the guys as the Marketing Moguls and for short I called them Mavens & Moguls, it stuck and here we are almost 9 years later still going strong!
Now my DNA is in everything we do and I can trace every decision and sale to something I did or a decision I made and that is incredibly gratifying and fulfilling.
Since starting my business I have joined boards and volunteered at several organizations. I am a mentor to the next generation of leaders and have helped build a very successful anti-bullying program that >50,000 middle school aged kids have gone through.
When I started my company I knew it was a good idea and had customers wanting to hire us from the start so it did not seem risky to me at all at the time. Only in retrospect did I appreciate the leap I had taken so for me at least I do not think you have to love taking risks when the stars align and you see a clear path for an unmet need like I did.
Mentors have different strengths and connections that can help. I think everyone even established entrepreneurs can benefit from strong mentoring. The world is always changing and we can all learn new things along the way.
There are never enough hours in the day to fit everything in, so when something has to give, it's usually time I have allocated for myself to exercise or just relax, but I now realize that 'me' time is not a luxury, it's maintenance.
Try and use public transportation whenever possible as it helps to make time for checking your emails, listening to podcasts, and staying productive.
...there is more confidence in trusted content, friends and influencers than advertising today.
I recommend allocating time on the calendar and taking yourself as seriously as you take your most important clients, because if I am not at my peak performance I am not going to be useful to anyone else, either...
I will try to find new creative ways to multitask that incorporates work and exercise to be more productive in 2019. When you are an entrepreneur, you have to get creative to find balance. I will set aside regular time to recharge my batteries and take better care of myself. Mentally and physically, I will be sharp and in the best health possible to set myself up for success.
I have had clients tell me they could not remember anything other than my first name & one word of my company so they googled Paige & Mavens and we popped right up. I was at an event one day and a venture capitalist started waving in my direction and shouted "hi Maven!" across the crowd, everyone looked my way and we ended up getting introduced to a portfolio company that hired us!
Thought Leadership is a great way for startups to build their brand, increase visibility more broadly, raise their profile and attract more customers. Activities like speaking at a conference, writing articles, building the following on social media all contribute increasing awareness with potential customers and building credibility with a larger community.
I am most looking forward to participating in more high impact activities and spending time with decision makers and key influencers in the new year. Those types of opportunities are energizing and when smart people get together at events and meetings the conversation is always interesting and inspiring.
I made it a priority to create an ecosystem that works for me to do my best work. It was not always this way in my career when I worked for others but that is a huge benefit to starting a company. Now it all fits together well!
I created a platform to do work I enjoy and feel energized by with and for people I respect. I love the autonomy, flexibility and the fact that I know every day the impact that I have on my business.
When you do the right things for the right reasons, good things happen.
Prospective customers can come from anyone, anywhere, anytime, so you should always be on your best behavior and make a great lasting impression. I join groups, get involved in the planning and organizing of events, sponsor events, and bring clients and prospects to events as an effective networking strategy.
Being invisible online is a terrible strategy so making sure your site is keyword rich, mobile friendly, loads quickly and produces meaningful content today is the price of entry. That also happens to be a great foundation for effective SEO.
I want to respect my time on my calendar as if it were an important meeting with a VIP because it is! I no longer want to sacrifice my time to write, think, exercise, plan, etc. to squeeze more meetings and calls into my day. Wish me luck.
The people you start with are not always the ones who grow with you. The hardest lesson I learned is not getting rid of weak people earlier. I spent more time managing them than finding new customers. I let them hang around much longer than they should have.
You will never work harder or more than you do as an entrepreneur! But, because it is for your vision and dream, you will never love it more, too. People who start businesses thinking it is less work will be disappointed.
My tip is to plan well in advance and deputize your team to problem solve in your absence. You can test drive with shorter trips beforehand.
Like most entrepreneurs I started off very bold by launching my new business amidst uncertainty and blind faith that I was onto something new and exciting seeing opportunity where others did not.
"I am strong because I have been weak.
I am fearless because I have been scared.
I am wise because I have been foolish."
-Unknown
Mental toughness today means you are resilient and able to focus but also pivot as needed when you get new data and market feedback with better information. There are a lot of distractions and noise so it is key to stay clear on your mission and vision while being true to your values as you grow.
Once I covered my basics like food, shelter and financial security, my definition of success changed to find more meaning and purpose in my life. I work because I love what I do, and I want to stay active and engaged in activities I care about.
Politicians do it all the time and it is great for business, too. Make a list of the movers & shakers, people you admire and prospects, ask a few smart open-ended questions- then sit back and take notice.
Technology runs our lives more than ever but it is relationships that drive business and commerce so people will find more ways to connect in person to build trust and strengthen connections.
I love the variety of clients we work with and helping them solve their toughest marketing challenges. I love working with, and for people, I respect and have fun with every day and solving problems in creative ways.
In my experience, people genuinely appreciate thoughtful gifts that align with their lives. Plenty of companies send generic holiday gifts to everyone, but as a small business you can really stand out by tailoring your gifts to meet their needs
As the world becomes crazier and technology gets smaller, faster and more complicated, people will find new ways to simplify their lives more than ever — shorter workouts, fewer ingredients, less stuff, less is more.
...mobile e-commerce will grow in importance and mobile payments will become the standard so if your customer experience is not responsive and mobile friendly already you better get with the program fast.
Like many entrepreneurs, Paige has found that the harder she works, the luckier she gets. You need to pay attention to serendipity since prospective customers can come from anyone anywhere anytime. “Be nice to everyone & make friends before you need them, you never know who is in or will be in a position to help!
You have one chance to make a great first impression so if you are launching a business, website, new product or service and you do not have the right expertise in house then it is time to bring in professionals who can help.
Not at all I'd argue that newsletters are a very effective tool to stay in front of your audence when done strategically. It needs to go out on a regular schedule (monthly/biweekly) consistentlty demonstrating your expertise, personality, etc. so that when they need your product or serviice they think of you first.
You do not need to blog or be on all social media platforms but make sure you are active on the ones where you are. If your customers do not use Facebook, Twitter or Instagram to find you then you do not need to make them a priority. For many professional service businesses like mine, LinkedIn matters the most.
There will be an even bigger role in the future for the businesses that can connect the dots, humanize their brands and curate the wisdom from all the noise out there which is only going to be a bigger distraction down the road.
Do not be promotional, focus on advice that helps the readers solve their
problems if you give great advice and they want to talk further they know
how to find you
There are a variety of reasons a customer will talk about you. If you are offering quality service, providing them with good content, being active in your communities, and doing some leg work, people will notice and start talking.
Phone interviews can be used as screeners and should be treated just as important as face to face meetings.
Getting to know a non profit through volunteering is a great way to meet the staff and other professionals who can see your work ethic and passion.
Those are 2 key skills that have helped me succeed. People do business with people they know, like and trust so you have to get out there to build your reputation online and off.
Instead of trying to start your own blog or newsletter, try contributing regularly to existing. well-trafficked blogs in your industry, or newsletters of like-minded organizations reaching the same target audience as you.
If you have a contact in common who mentioned the person to you, I start the e-mail with a subject line of “XYZ suggested we connect” so that even if they do not recognize my name in their inbox XYZ should ring a bell.
The winners in the future will leverage the convenience, efficiency and speed of technology and still find ways to connect on a personal level with their customers.
Market research is a critical tool for business yet often overlooked or underutilized. Are real customers willing to pay real money for your product or service? If so you have a real business.
The winners in the future will leverage the convenience, efficiency and speed of technology and still find ways to connect on a personal level with their customers.
It is like asking how much does it cost to buy a car, well that depends are you buying a Kia, Honda, Lexus, Cadillac or Rolls Royce? They are all cars that can get you from point A to point B but the ride will be different.
Don’t let social media drive you crazy, you do not need to be everywhere, it does not matter which platform you choose just pick one or 2 that are authentic to you. It should look and sound like you and the brand you have built.
kindness where everyone takes the high road, is a giver not a taker, gives people the benefit of the doubt, and realizes that life is not a zero sum game. If we all focused on figuring out ways to bake new pies and not just divide the ones we have we’d all be a lot better off. Just be kind. It would be a nice counterbalance to what we see in Washington and all over the media today.
Patience- It really is a marathon not a sprint so do not set arbitrary goals like being named 30 under 30 or 40 under 40 because it may take you longer than Mark Zuckerberg to hit your stride and that’s ok.
It may seem like a small thing, but good manners may be fundamental to success.
Instead of just focusing on the most popular/branded individual influencers, include internal experts, micro-influencers, niche experts prospects, and customers in your influencer marketing mix
Superstar by Luther Vandross.
Even though it is a slow song it always makes me happy and motivated because he has such an amazing voice and took a great song by the Carpenters and made it even better.
The uncertainty over the recent government shutdown had ripple effects throughout the economy that impacted the start of the new year and hurt the stock market, which has caused businesses to give pause...
Video did not kill radio and the Internet will not kill print media either. Print will have a role for better researched, longer thought pieces and stories that have longer lives than real-time relevance.
Fake news threats will only escalate — journalists are in a war to win back the trust of their audience, sadly what started as a punchline or tweet is now a serious threat to a free press, the bar for facts and figures is only getting higher
In a mobile-first world, you have less time to grab people. Attention spans are shorter than ever so video will be used even more.
Activities like speaking at a conference, writing articles, building the following on social media all contribute to increasing awareness with potential customers and building credibility with a larger community.
It is hard not to put Steve Jobs at the top of that list, he created a brand in Apple that has changed the habits of the world and made design important in our everyday lives.
Make sure your profiles tell a consistent story. When you try to be cool/a partier on Facebook/Instagram and very buttoned up on LinkedIn, it may raise a question as to who you really are. Authenticity is key personally and professionally.
You just have a minute or less to make an impact so use it wisely. My tip is to focus on the key components which are who, why, selling point, and the ask, so think about your goal to guide your pitch.
My best marketing strategy tip would be to give before you get. Give them something of value before you ask for an order. It can be an article, an invitation for whitepaper, webinar, podcast, etc., just show that you value them and want to build a relationship beyond the transaction.
I started a global branding and marketing firm 17 years ago and I did not appreciate or realize that most of my business would come from public speaking and networking.
The key is authenticity whether they embody the values of the brand. Their look and feel matter, but the main thing is do they live the brand and is it consistent with their own life choices?
I did my listening tour the old fashioned way by sending out emails & picking up the phone, then brought a pad & pen, asked a few open-ended questions then shut up and started taking notes.
Until you know your business is launched I would say to put your budget into things that help fill your pipeline with customers. Getting your domain name and a website up and running is key.
We do a lot of naming work and the first step is to create the committee or team in charge, identify who else should be involved in the process, and then set the criteria.
Plan a vacation. Buy tickets to lock in a date so you can start preparing. The mental escape of knowing vacation is coming up will help you get through the tough times.
ork with someone who does this regularly. They know the search engines and the latest algorithm changes. It will save you time and will be much more effective than trying to learn it all yourself.
People do not care how much you know until they know how much you care.” -Teddy Roosevelt
I like this customer service quote and find it inspiring because it is a simple reminder to me and my team to listen more than talk, show empathy, and try to look at the situation from the customer’s perspective.
The uncertainty over the recent government shutdown had ripple effects throughout the economy that impacted the start of the new year and hurt the stock market, which has caused businesses to give pause.
Whether it is a coupon or direct mail piece from a retailer, a sample from a food & beverage company or a clever ad for a new technology device, if you can get my attention with a compelling story for your product or service I am hooked.
Thought leadership is a great way to build your brand, increase your visibility, raise your profile and attract more clients/customers.
In a mobile-first world, you have less time to grab people. Attention spans are shorter than ever so video will be used even more.
If we all focused on figuring out ways to bake new pies and not just divide the ones we have we’d all be a lot better off. Just be kind. It would be a nice counterbalance to what we see in Washington and all over the media today.
Work with someone who does this regularly. They know the search engines and the latest algorithm changes. It will save you time and will be much more effective than trying to learn it all yourself.
avoid spending money on things like fancy brochures, letterhead, business cards, etc. Your story will evolve as you find your market.
Do not up your spending when you get a raise – up your savings instead. Also, make sure to save something from every paycheck.
The uncertainty over the recent government shutdown had ripple effects throughout the economy...
Most of my business comes from public speaking and networking so those are 2 key skills that have helped me succeed. I also recommend thick skin, a strong work ethic and a good sense of humor...
A listening tour with not only potential clients and customers but with your employees and suppliers could generate a lot of time and money-saving strategies.
There is no one size fits all here it really just depends on your goals and what level of confidence you need to make decisions and move forward. Some may work on a project basis others will require a monthly retainer so find an agency that fits your needs
I have learned that age is not the determining factor to become a mentor. It is about a willingness to share your knowledge and lessons learned so that you can help others.
I always eat breakfast and like to work out at least 3-4 mornings a week to get my day off to a strong start. I feel I have more energy all day when my heart and brain kick right in!
I had always aspired to be CEO of a business (like my father) so that was easy, but founder made sense and appealed to me as an entrepreneur starting a new business.
You have one chance to make a great first impression so if you are launching a business, website, new product or service and you do not have the right expertise in house then it is time to bring in professionals who can help.
Even when I am running errands, exercising, grabbing coffee, etc. my antenna is always up. Marketing is about spotting trends, talking to people, asking questions, connecting the dots so you always have to have your eyes and ears open.
Now Arnof-Fenn says she tells “everyone to ask their parents while they are still alive a lot of questions and have them give things to their grandkids directly” as “it will mean a lot more to them and you will get the stories of why the things are important.”
Running a global marketing business provides me a platform to do work I truly enjoy with and for people I respect. I get to set my priorities, I have time to travel and hang out with my inner circle, and work out every day. It has been a journey to get here but I am lucky to have found it. I love the autonomy, flexibility and the fact that I know every day the impact that I have on my business.
I am the founder & CEO of global marketing and branding firm Mavens & Moguls based in Cambridge, MA. Our clients include Microsoft, Virgin, venture-backed startups as well as non profit organizations. I graduated from Stanford University and Harvard Business School. I am a popular speaker and columnist who has written for Entrepreneur and Forbes.
I would recommend NOT spending money on things like fancy brochures, letterhead, business cards, etc. Until you know your business is launched I would say to put your budget into things that help fill your pipeline with customers.
The sentiment surrounding a family home may cloud any given sibling's idea of how much the home is actually worth. The solution? Have the home's value appraised to avoid a family "debacle," ...
I am a big fan of Tai Chi and started learning it around 13 years ago and have gotten progressively addicted over the years. I now know the choreography of two different forms and absolutely love it — it is a way to both relax and focus
“I want to put a ding in the universe.” Steve Jobs
Boy did he ever! He touched almost everyone on every continent with his creativity and innovative products that were beautifully designed and fun to use. What a wonderful legacy he left for all of us.
The hardest lesson I learned when I started my company is not getting rid of weak people earlier than I did in the first few years of my business. I spent more time managing them than finding new customers.
You can be active online on blogs, LinkedIn groups, and other sites, You can build a reputation online as an expert or as a witty member of the group that way.
The key is to ask pointed questions about what makes this company unique, special or different.
Leveraging LinkedIn to find out who you and a prospect know in common, then using that connection to open the door as more of a warm lead.
There are a lot of great business books out there but one I highly recommend is Start With Why by Simon Sinek. He shows how successful leaders throughout history have been able to inspire their organizations to achieve greatness by identifying the underlying motivation.
I feel very lucky to have created an ecosystem where I spend most of my time doing things I truly enjoy with and for people I care about both personally and professionally. I make time every day for some form of exercise and I laugh a lot. I know how fortunate I am.
Networking, giving talks and writing articles [can help you] become a thought leader in your industry and increase your visibility and profile relative to your competitors
Technology runs our lives more than ever, but it is relationships that drive business and commerce, so people will find more ways to connect in person to build trust and strengthen connections.
I’ve found that building relationships is what drives my business, and technology supports those relationships once they’re solidified. Technology helps advance the conversation, but it will never replace those human interactions that build trust over time.
Whenever you have the chance to say or do something kind choose that route. Being snarky or a bully may seem like fun at the time but it really is not worth it in the end.
Paige Arnof-Fenn is the founder & CEO of global marketing and branding firm Mavens & Moguls based in Cambridge, MA. Her clients include Microsoft, Virgin, The New York Times Company, Colgate, venture-backed startups as well as non profit organizations.
In my experience even if they cannot solve the problem if you feel respected and heard but the best they can do is refund you or offer a discount then at least you can say they tried.
Succeeding in the social sphere also requires that brands generate a lot of content, which in turn can help to push down any of the negative comments that might be generated, making them less visible.
It comes down to where the best place is to find your customers. Traditional marketing including, print, direct mail, etc. can be very effective when trying to reach an audience that tends to skew older, less tech savvy, or where lots of information needs to be processed and considered to make a buying decision.
People love to be asked their opinions and they will share feedback and tell you where they have problems and need help.
If I could help you solve one problem today, what would it be?
KFC has tried numerous humorous tactics for creating a stir. And quite a few of their campaigns have gone viral.
You have to kick the tires and look under the hood by talking with them, checking their references and seeing if there is a chemistry fit.
It depends. We charge by the project or on a monthly retainer depending on the scope of work, but some firms will bill clients on an hourly basis. Others may work for a success fee or for stock so you just have to ask, there is no set fee structure for agencies.
“Anything by Seth Godin but one of his latest is This is Marketing: You Can’t Be Seen Until You Learn to See. He is a master who really understands what drives people to purchase from a practitioner’s perspective using his first-hand experience and simple language not jargon”
Always be in a situation where you can learn from the best.Your work environment matters. When you work with a broad base of smart people, you never know where you'll end up. Later in life, you might find yourself getting pulled along with them on the way to bigger and better things.
There is never a perfect time to launch. I started a global marketing firm 16 years ago and recommend that first, make sure you have a strong idea
leveraging LinkedIn to find out who you and a prospect know in common, then using that connection to open the door as more of a warm lead.
Examples abound from picking up litter in your neighborhood to volunteering at a local food bank or women’s shelter to reading to children at the library to visiting with the elderly on a regular basis.
Paige talks about two inflection points in her life, the advent of the internet in the late 1990s and the resulting startup opportunities for her and the second inflection point being the economic depression after 9/11/2001 World trade center incident and the opportunity it provided her to start her own company.
I think some of the most heroic people are actually ordinary people who find themselves in extraordinary situations and in that split second just do the right thing without giving it a second thought.
It’s so important to attract the right people as clients and colleagues for the ecosystem I am trying to build. As a leader, you need the best talent, and getting the right people on the team is key to being successful.
...hire great people who are smart, have a growth mindset and share your values—then give them the tools and responsibility to flourish.
I use thought leadership as a great way to build my brand, increase my visibility more broadly, raise my profile and attract more clients/customers. If you cannot afford hiring a PR agency to get attention, activities like speaking at a conference, writing articles, building your following on social media all contribute increasing your awareness with the media, potential customers and building your credibility with a larger community.
Whether you want to help children, animals, the environment or people with special needs, just ask around your local community and you will find many ways to change the world. It starts with you.
The best ways to break through and stand out are to focus on just a few things and do them really well. It is about owning very specific real estate in your customers’ minds and constantly reinforcing a few key messages in everything you do.
I think that respecting my time on the calendar and taking myself as seriously as I take my most important clients is the least I can do because if I am not at my
peak performance I am not going to be useful to anyone else either.
Prospective customers and jobs can come from anyone anywhere anytime so you should always be on your best behavior & make a great lasting impression. Be nice to everyone & make friends before you need them, you never know who is in or will be in a position to help! Cast a wide, net the more people you know the more referrals you can get down the road.
My DNA is in every big decision that is made, I created this brand from scratch and have helped some fabulous businesses become more successful than they were before they met me.
If the team is not on the same page, as your business starts to take off the laggards will feel threatened and the culture will suffer. Keep the bar high and attract the best talent. You will never regret it.
Make a list the movers & shakers, people you admire and prospects, ask a few smart open-ended questions then sit back and take notice.
The people you start a business with are not always the best ones who grow with you. If you find yourself with people who are not up to the challenge and able to scale, do yourself, and them, a favor and move on.
We savor vacations, sharing meals with family and friends, hobbies, the simplicity of a walk on a beautiful day, a good book or a great conversation.
I like to ask lots of questions and get input from all parts of the organization because I have found some of the best ideas come from unexpected people.
To generate ideas I look at the calendar to see if there are any natural opportunities based on the season or activities like taxes, graduation, holidays and also keep a running list of topics I get asked about by my clients and other business owners.
Find those communities where you can contribute and shine. Whether you work or volunteer be part of something bigger than you.
People hate waiting for pages to load and when sites are hard to navigate, so make sure your site is mobile-friendly. All the other stuff is just bells and whistles if you don’t get the basics right.
It is critical to ask questions to show you are interested and have done your homework. You want to leave them with the impression that you are a hard worker with a lot of energy and a strong work ethic.
“Find like-minded brands targeting the same audience. You can share existing content through newsletters, websites, social media, joint promotions, and more to expand your reach.
What I have come to appreciate and realize is that to stay sane and be successful me time is not a luxury or pampering, it is maintenance!
Immediately write a thank you note/e-mail to show professionalism, interest and reiterate any key points from the interview. If you promised to send along additional info or a link then do it here. If the timing was discussed during the interview then confirm it here as well.
I think Video Marketing & Rich Multimedia Content are the most promising approach. In this digital era, you have less time to grab people’s attention. Thus, videos marketing will be really helpful, along with Gifs, Memes and other engaging forms of rich multimedia content.
Strong moral compass – you cannot compromise on ethics and values. Good communicator – able to rally the troops and keep them on the critical path. Smarts – technically competent and they work hard to earn the respect of their team. Bonus – great sense humor and fun to work with.
I think PR is the most cost effective tool in the marketing toolkit so choose high impact activities that work for you and play to your strengths. I am a big fan of Content Marketing and Thought Leadership which are great ways to build your brand, increase your visibility more broadly, raise your profile and attract more clients.
Most people take many detours on their career path before finding their true calling. Don’t be disappointed if you get to 40 and are still exploring because the journey really is a great adventure so enjoy it!
The key is to ask pointed questions about what makes this company unique, special or different.
If you have a contact in common who mentioned the person to you, I start the e-mail with a subject line of “XYZ suggested we connect” so that even if they do not recognize my name in their inbox XYZ should ring a bell.
The vision is about your goals for the future and how you will get there whereas the mission is about where you are now and why you exist...
Getting your URL and a website up and running is key. I created online stationery for proposals and invoices, ordered my cards online and made downloadable materials as leave-behinds for people looking for more information to help me find clients more quickly.
Start listening with no strings attached, you'll be amazed what you find. It does not cost much, for the price of a few coffees and meals you will get an earful. I had no idea what to expect and got a lot of new work as a result.
Instead of trying to start your own blog or newsletter, try contributing regularly to existing well-trafficked blogs in your industry—or newsletters of like-minded organizations reaching the same target audience as you.
Learn to succeed at entrepreneurship while young by reading these books for young entrepreneurs.
ou just have a minute or less to make an impact so use it wisely. My tip is to focus on the key components which are who, why, selling point, and the ask, so think about your goal to guide your pitch.
Now that I’ve got my own business, I’m hyperaware of this and am such a stickler for knowing people’s names, what their story is and what’s going on with them. It’s very important to me that people feel taken care of.
Boston-area based marketing professional Paige Arnof-Fenn and her husband weren’t actively looking to buy a home when they stumbled on an open house in their neighborhood during July Fourth weekend.
Paige Arnof-Fenn, the CEO and founder of marketing firm Mavens & Moguls, jokes that she "started at the bottom," and she did … marketing toilet paper. She says of her time in the TP business, "those are focus groups I would not recommend," but thanks to her sense of humor and drive, Arnof-Fenn was eventually able to build her own marketing firm and create the career of her dreams.
The single largest differentiator between small businesses is how strong their customer service is. Think about it: how many times has someone gone out of their way to help you?
To leave the world better than I found it and be remembered by the people whose lives I touched as a force for good in their lives.
Disruption is about breaking tradition and status quo, shaking things up and forcing people to look at something with fresh eyes.
I had great recommendations from bosses, wrote good essays, and applied in the first round so felt I had a good shot to get in," explained Arnof-Fenn — and she did.
...after completing a project when a client writes to show appreciation for our process or the deliverable, I ask if I can quote them, as well. I have never been turned down! Don't be shy when you succeed- celebrate!.
.My MBA taught me how to make decisions without all the data and build the confidence to pivot as new information became available. I learned how to present my ideas in a compelling and succinct way and to speak up.
One of the all-time great reads is "How To Win Friends & Influence People" by Dale Carnegie, which gives great advice on manners and people/human nature. You cannot go wrong with this one!
Successful businesses understand their product or service is about more than the transaction: they are in the relationship business.
Be a good listener and make sure you hear the others, their hopes, frustrations and intentions. If the lines of communication are open and everyone makes an effort to listen and be heard then collaboration will happen naturally and the information will flow.
When paid listings are shown beside organic, the click-through rate of paid ads increases. This means that clicks increase for both organic and paid listings when they are both featured and do not detract from each other.
Thought leaders are the experts who invest time and money to educate others on something they care deeply about. They create the content that is pushed to the market, their focus is on spreading the message outward.
I grew up in the Deep South so exhibiting good manners has been part of my life since childhood. I have seen that minding your Ps and Qs really does make a difference in business.
I have found that I learn more from the bad and tough situations in my career than when things go smoothly.
I wish I could tell my younger self that you will be a student for the rest of your life so never stop learning new things.
Movement is essential
I started practising Tai Chi over 12 years ago and was addicted to spending time.
The NBA, National Basketball Association
Of all the sports leagues they seem to have built the strongest global brand with players coming from Africa, all over Eastern and Western Europe, Latin America, etc.
Yikes — No Business cards! How a handwritten note landed a big client.
To be more productive, I try to find creative ways to multi-task that incorporates work and exercise.
I love solving problems and helping people so for me starting a conversation is the best way to disrupt the status quo.
The goal is not to wear them down or impress them with your smarts. The goal is to connect, communicate clearly, solve the problem and move on.
Technology has disrupted so many parts of our lives already (Transportation – taxis/Uber/self driving cars, Entertainment Netflix, Spotify, streaming, etc) and the world is changing everyday but the industries I think will change the most in the near future are Healthcare & Insurance.
Thought leaders are the experts who invest time and money to educate others on something they care deeply about. They create the content that is pushed to the market, their focus is on spreading the message outward.
I for one am glad there are still people out there who appreciate and exhibit good manners. Call me old fashioned but I think it is a lot nicer to live in a world where civility counts both online and off. I am certain I would not last long in Washington, DC these days.
It takes effort and a commitment to excellence to continually improve as you move up the ladder and especially when you get to lead. I do not think there is one silver bullet, I use a combination of reading and learning online and off, attending conferences and talks, networking, finding mentors and listening to all...
...owners trying to sell to other businesses find a way to personalize the subject line: “XYZ suggested we connect” or “Great talk at the conference this week!”
Get to know people in other functions by setting up lunch and coffee meetings to find out more about what they do and who they are, the more you connect will strengthen working relationships too.
...these transformative books are here to share the wisdom of their successful authors. Follow their footsteps and you’re bound to find a strategy that works best for your business.
Innovation and Entrepreneurship by Peter Drucker is a classic. It is filled with timeless insight and practical advice that still is relevant today despite all the new books that have followed.
Technology helps advance the conversation but it will never replace the human interaction that builds trust over time.
Customer relationship management tools are only as effective as the relationships you have built. I recommend disconnecting from technology periodically and focusing on cultivating human, face-to-face relationships.
Make a list the movers & shakers, people you admire and prospects, ask a few smart open-ended questions then sit back and take notice.
Social Media is often under-recognized as a powerful tool to further your brand, but these books show its power.
She advises B2B marketers to make sure all of their online personas synch up.”You cannot be one way on LinkedIn and another way on Facebook.”
I think Sara Blakely represents both innovation and disruption. She identified a problem women had that was not being addressed and created a new category making her a billionaire.
Paige reminded me that if non-profit work is important to me, I should just make it happen. She suggested “be creative, be resourceful and you might just surprise yourself.
Online marketing is officially relevant now. Get ahead of the curve with these top books!
Going back to school allowed me to rebrand myself, try a new area as a summer intern, gain new skills, and build my confidence. For me it was critical for finding work I enjoyed and making the transition smoothly.
It’s important, when incorporating today’s new high-tech tools into your marketing mix, to retain key marketing strategies from the so-called old days
Paige has built world class brands at Procter & Gamble, Coca-Cola and 3 successful startup companies on both the West and East Coast (all dotcom survivors). Paige has been quoted recently in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Fox TV and is a thought leader and sought after speaker.
For me, Seth Godin is the gold standard. He has a great story to tell and has created a strong platform that ties together his writing, speaking, and social media in a way that consistently builds his brand.
As an entrepreneur, I can be selective. Less really is more. I’ve chosen quality over quantity. It sounds trivial but it is true. I created a platform to do work I enjoy and feel energized by. I feel I have found my purpose because I used to work all the time and life was passing me by.
...my vote goes to Arianna Huffington at The Huffington Post. Today HuffPo is one of the most well-read and well respected online media outlets but when she started it in 2005 she had lots critics who dismissed her unpaid bloggers and editorial content. She was a visionary who was undeterred and in 2011 she sold to AOL for more than $300 million.
To me, growth for growth's sake is meaningless," said Paige Arnof-Fenn, founder and CEO of Mavens & Moguls. "But profitable growth with interesting clients solving important problems is what keeps me engaged and excited."
There is no shortage of organizations that can benefit from a well-trained businessperson who can set a vision and develop strategies, plans, budgets as well as lead and motivate the team.
Instead of meeting up with your local colleagues at a coffee shop, over a meal or chatting with them on the phone, meet them for a walk so you can catch up while you are getting some exercise, too. You'll feel great after, the time will fly, and it will be a fun activity to share
When you stop selling and start sharing it becomes much easier to have a conversation and solve problems.
Beware of trolls who try to bait you online by posting comments from fake accounts challenging your credibility or questioning your reputation online. You have to monitor sites carefully these days.
Get started with learning about business with these wonderful books
Mistakes make you smarter and teach you lessons in a deep way that success never can. I started a global marketing and branding firm 18 years ago and my biggest mistake was not realizing sooner that the people you start with are not always the ones who grow with you.
It is true that you should hire slowly and fire quickly. I did not make that mistake again later on so learned it well the first time. I wish I had known it even earlier though but lesson learned for sure!
“When I worked at big companies I always felt the ball would roll with or without me, ” Paige shares. “Now my DNA is in everything we do and I can trace every decision and sale to something I did or a decision I made.”
Another good one is Getting To Yes — I took his negotiations class in business school and this reminds me of what he taught us, we are constantly negotiating in business and you have to always keep in mind what your best alternatives are and be ready to walk away.
Authentic relationships beat marketing automation every time. Technology runs our lives more than ever but it is relationships that drive business and commerce so people will find more ways to connect in person to build trust and strengthen connections.
Balancing success with a full life and sharing it with close friends and family makes the highs even higher and provides meaning and purpose to your life.
I am 54-year-old and never wanted children. I had a very happy childhood I just never wanted to be a mom. I love being an aunt and godmother and spending time together with the kids in my life. I get all the benefits of parenthood with none of the drama and baggage.
My dad — CEO of a public company who showed me that leaders could be compassionate, strong and successful Former boss — made me defend my point of view and be tough, not to be scared to fail or speak up...
I have had great mentors and champions throughout my career. In my corporate life, I had bosses, senior women, or alums from my alma mater who took me under their wings to help me advance and show me the ropes.
Being able to share your story is critical to spreading the word and turning your dream and vision into reality. Communication goes both ways so learn to talk and listen for best results.
I have found that building relationships are what drives my business and technology supports them once they are solidified. Technology helps advance the conversation but it will never replace the human interaction that builds trust over time.
Another option is to grow horizontally and compensate people for bringing in work thereby gaining leverage through a network effect of casting a wider net.
We are a global network of seasoned marketing experts who can do anything a marketing department, market research shop, public relations firm or ad agency does on an as needed or outsourced basis.
Share some ideas to validate that passion and show strengths and creativity, then it comes down to a cultural fit and good chemistry as to whether to hire them.
Whether it is running, knitting, reading, singing, anything just make sure you carve out time to do activities that enrich your life mentally, emotionally and/or physically that keeps your batteries charged and your juices flowing.
Start by speaking at local events to get used to the public forum. Then, submit proposals to speak at industry conferences, global trade shows, and even global events. Even one conference can bring in hundreds or thousands of leads.
I did my listening tour the old-fashioned way via emails and phone. Then I got a pad and pen and asked a few open-ended questions. For the price of a few coffees and meals, you will get an earful and it’s a smart investment to learn more about people, find an authentic edge, and make a smart investment in getting your business right.
Branding is very important to growing your business because if you do not brand yourself then the market will brand you instead.
Their advice has helped me be thick-skinned, brave, kind and smart which has helped me succeed both as an entrepreneur and within organizations. I am eternally grateful for their support and advice.
Attention spans are shorter than ever, so if your site is not optimized to be mobile friendly and load quickly, you will lose visitors’ attention.
There is no one size fits all here it really just depends on your goals and what level of confidence you need to make decisions and move forward.
Make a list the movers & shakers, people you admire and prospects, ask a few smart open ended questions then sit back and take notice. They will be more than happy to tell you what is on their mind. If you listen to what they share with you there will be plenty of opportunities to help them. I did it when business slowed and picked up several new clients but you can do it any time.
Your business will not survive unless you can sell to your customers, clients, investors, employees and Board so get comfortable selling because your success depends on it!
My BHAG is to bring world-class marketing communications to worthy organizations irrespective of budget.
I never had any interest in knitting before but I guess turning 50 made me curious about picking up a new skill and meeting new people. I highly recommend it.
How To Win Friends & Influence People by Dale Carnegie – it is evergreen with insights on manners and people/human nature.
I want to help the best brands around the world find their voice so that their target audience can find them quickly when in need of their products or services.
Everyone is not going to like you or hire you but for the ones who would be a great fit for you make sure they feel and keep a connection and give them a reason to remember you so that when they need your help they think of you first.
I can see him making more money and being more successful in retirement than he did at the peak of his playing career.
Don’t forget the basics when it comes to mobile marketing. Before anything, your marketing teams needs to ensure your digital properties are mobile friendly...
Start listening with no strings attached and you’ll be amazed at what you find.
The benefit of bringing in a freelancer is that they are trained professionals who can be very effective communicating essential information quickly.
Web sites should focus on simplicity & convenience as the world becomes crazier and technology gets smaller, faster and more complicated, people are finding new ways to simplify their lives more than ever. Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication after all.
Blood, sweat and tears! I have ideas all the time. I try to write them down so I don’t lose track of the good ones. Hardest part for me is to focus and prioritize but once I do I just make lists and start crossing things off. Once I wrap my head around it and can see the vision, I have to make it happen.
...as an aunt, godmother, and mentor I am always showing and telling the young people in my life to help them find ways to integrate your work and life so that you look and feel your best so that you can reach your full potential.
...one area I think that will continue to grow with no business or economic concerns is around human kindness. Simple acts of helping a neighbor or friend and giving with no expectation or strings attached. There will always be a role in society for basic generosity and kindness where people just do the right things for the right reasons. It is part of an underground economy I guess that has roots as far back as we have been on this Earth. As Mr. Rogers used to say, look for the helpers. They will be there without any business affiliation and we are all better for it.
To make content even more attractive and drive conversion you need to understand two things. First, how customers purchase a product, experience or service; and second, we need to identify our audiences’ underlying motivations.
"When I was a student I looked at leaders like Meg Whitman & Ursula Burns as my role models. I started my career on Wall Street in the 80s.” Things changed after 9/11 when the company she worked for cut their marketing. “All the in-house marketing jobs dried up as it became harder to raise money. Companies wanted to conserve cash, but they still needed marketing help so I hung out a shingle to assist. I never wrote a business plan. I joke that I am the accidental entrepreneur."
My rule is that you should network in person during the business day and do it online after hours. People do business with people they know, like and trust so you have to get out there to build your reputation online and off and work hard to build a strong network which are the best ways to set yourself up for success.
Web sites should focus on simplicity & convenience as the world becomes crazier and technology gets smaller, faster and
Being able to optimize for voice search will be key to maximize the marketing and advertising opportunities on Siri, Alexa, Google Home, etc.
In Q4 I always circle back by phone and/or e-mail with any client who during the past year did not have enough budget to accomplish their wish list of projects with us to see if any use it or lose it money turned up at year end so that we can allocate the funds to the project for the next year.
I started a global branding and marketing firm 18 years ago and, for my clients, the biggest challenge will be breaking through the noise and distraction of a US election year.
I am on the boards of several nonprofits and gotten to know people I have hired or recommended to others. Volunteering is the ultimate way to do well by doing good. In my experience, the more you give, the more you get.
Brand enablement (Branding) is a strategy that proactively ensures a strong brand personality, identity and voice through every customer touchpoint. The core philosophy behind brand enablement is ensuring that every interaction with your brand is a good one.
Begin by building a team to own the process and ensure there is representation from all key areas of the organization. Incorporating different perspectives makes it easier to implement and disseminate the strategic plan once it is created.
Content Marketing is a great way to build your brand, increase your visibility more broadly, raise your profile and attract more clients. Regularly share quality content and to qualify it must be timely and relevant.
It comes down to priorities, respect and choosing the type of people you want to spend time with and be close to in life. Sharing genes does not mean you have similar values or give someone the right to treat you poorly and expect a free pass in my book
For me, respecting my time on the calendar and taking myself as seriously as I take my most important clients is the least I can do because if I am not at my peak performance I am not going to be useful to anyone else either.
I love living and working in an ecosystem of people who see possibilities and opportunities everywhere instead of problems.
In my experience happy employees become champions and advocates for the business and the brand. When they are happy customers will follow. If companies take good care of their people then the employees take better care of the customers.
Do a post mortem when things go badly. You always learn more from failure than success so while it is still fresh on your mind take the time to look back at the key assumptions and decisions with hindsight and see what you missed so you don’t make those mistakes again
Influencers will continue to rise in prominence so partnering and building relationships with the right influencers with content that is co-created helps brands scale and grow faster and amplify and boost their message.
The energy, vision and culture starts at the top of any organization so I see my role as setting the tone, attracting the right team and motivating them to achieve greatness together.
...a trained business professional can form compelling strategies, plans and budgets and that they can also lead and motivate colleagues.
...live streaming is available on every major social media platform and it is only getting bigger to hook in users with short attention spans.
Email is key to getting our work done, so my tip is to NEVER open any attachment you are uncertain about.
In 2020, I see increased use of voice search and mobile-friendly content being more important than ever before. I also predict affiliate marketing programs will get more of the budget as successful programs expand.
Be pleasantly persistent and remind them if you have a contact in common who mentioned the person to you I start the email with a subject line of “XYZ suggested we connect” so that even if they do not recognize my name in their inbox XYZ should ring a bell.
Like many entrepreneurs, Paige has found that the harder she works, the luckier she gets. You need to pay attention to serendipity since prospective customers can come from anyone anywhere anytime.
I think the new streaming services, 5G and other new technologies will be exciting too but until the election is behind us I find it is just hard to focus.
To make content even more attractive and drive conversion you need to understand two things. First, how customers purchase a product, experience or service; and second, we need to identify our audiences’ underlying motivations.
If you saw them speak at a conference or read an article, they wrote you can tailor the subject line to that such as “Loved your piece on ____ in HuffPo!” or “Great talk at the conference this week!l
Research shows that writing down your goals increases the likelihood of achieving them dramatically. We live in a world with technology and social media on 24/7 so if you do not keep your goals front and center it is easy to get distracted and lose focus with all the noise out there today.
Fail fast — Don’t be scared to fail, just learn from every bump in the road so you make better mistakes next time, that is where you learn the most! You learn to do by doing. Course correct and pivot along the way, it makes for a fun career path.
My priority for the new year is to find new ways to bring creativity into my life. I think as we age it is important not to become a creature of habit and to keep your antenna up to be exposed to new and fresh ideas, products, ways of thinking, people and experiences.
One trick I learned in my corporate life is that every meeting needs a PAL — a Purpose, Agenda and time Limit. One addition I made is to make sure everyone in the meeting needs to be there so that decisions can be made faster without slowing down the process.
I recommend Getting To Yes by Roger Fisher and William Ury. I took his negotiations class in business school and this reminds me of what he taught us, we are constantly negotiating in business and in life and you have to always keep in mind what your best alternatives are and be ready to walk away.
We do a lot of rebranding work for our clients and it is time to review your brand when the market changes with new products or services, new competition comes in, new tools like social media enter the scene, consolidation starts to occur, etc.
Creating a great culture when you are leading and managing a team requires a clear vision, a commitment to hire the best people, some patience to make sure you put your money where your mouth is and a confidence that comes with experience.
The stakes are high because digital dirt can stay on the internet forever. It is important to keep your customers happy to manage your reputation today.
I have never woken up one day wishing I had a child, so I know I made the right decision for me… I love children and had a very happy childhood; I just never wanted to be a mom.
For me, I started speaking at local events and then submitted proposals to speak at industry conferences and trade shows nationally and eventually global affairs too. The same advice goes for writing, start with small publications then move up the food chain to reach bigger audiences.
It is much easier to build awareness, trust, and leverage content for lead generation in my experience.
People do not remember facts and figures but if you tell them a story that touches them emotionally you get their attention and they want to hear more.
I started learning Tai Chi ~14 years ago and have gotten progressively addicted over the years. I now know the choreography of 2 different forms and I absolutely love it. It is a way to both relax and focus. I even guest teach when the regular backup cannot be there. I have met great people, it has helped my balance, improved my bone density and helped calm my mind. I just love it.
Hope provides a vision of a better future which can bring happiness and connect your current and past setbacks to a better world ahead.
Activities like speaking on a panel or at a conference build your following on social media and contribute to increasing your awareness with potential customers, building your credibility with a larger community, and sets you up as an Influencer and Thought Leader in your category.
I started a marketing and branding firm 17 years ago and have used Paychex from the start. The main benefits are convenience and cost. Like many small business owners I run payroll sporadically (not every other Friday or last Monday of a month).
More confidence in trusted content, friends and influencers than advertising — the world has been moving this way for years with people seeking their friends’ and influencers’ opinions and advice online on what to buy, where to go, and what to do more than a paid ad or fancily packaged content.
The original dream for the company started with me but if they do not embrace it too and internalize our goals we will never achieve what we set out to accomplish.
Repeat customers and referrals are key. They’re the most cost-efficient way to build a business and scale your brand.
The simple act of writing things down makes them real to me. I love crossing things off my to-do lists, it is a great sense of progress and accomplishment. I find it hard to ignore notes on the bathroom mirror or computer screen every day.
Social media and technology are 24/7 so it is easy to get sucked into it but you do not have to let it run your life! My advice is to pick a few things you enjoy doing and do them really well.
A friend mine from college co-founded LinkedIn so I was an early user. I recommend that you only connect with people you actually know and can vouch for in some way. Quality of your network is much more important than quantity.
Don”t let social media drive you crazy, you do not need to be everywhere, it does not matter which platform you choose just pick one or 2 that are authentic to you. It should look and sound like you and the brand you have built. Whether yours is polished or more informal, chatty or academic, humorous or snarky, it is a way for your personality to come through.
Authenticity is by far the top trait for an influencer’s success. Once you identify a shortlist of candidates it is best to test them with your target audience to see who is the most credible and in sync with your brand
Whether you roll out small changes throughout the year or decide to go for an entirely new look, refreshing your website can help your business stay current, gain more exposure, and boost your sales opportunities.
Voice user interface allows users to interact with websites through voice commands so it adds usability and functionality to your site making it accessible to all users including those with limitations and disabilities.
Creating a great culture when you are leading and managing a team requires a clear vision, a commitment to hire the best people, some patience to make sure you put your money where your mouth is and a confidence that comes with experience.
Machine learning, AI, and robots may be more efficient, but they can never replace human connection and relationships.
I love that I created a platform to do work I enjoy that is meaningful to me and helps my clients succeed. It allows me to share my gifts and give back in ways that uniquely leverage my strengths which makes every day fun and interesting.
Ask for input from many perspectives to see where things broke down. Was it is communications disconnect, lack of clarity around the goal or a team morale issue? Be open to feedback so people are honest with you so again you do not make that error next time.
Make sure you offer several ways to talk with customers and get to know them. Algorithms can only tell you so much about a customer, transactions are driven by relationships. Use automation where you can but do not ignore the power of the personal touch.
The [goals] ones outline several subgoals, or specific actions, that need to take place in order to accomplish the overall goal. SMART criteria can also be applied to each of those smaller goals in the same way for best results.
Monthly calls/e-mails per rep.....I like this because it shows hustle, you have to plant a lot of seeds to get them to sprout so I want to make sure the top of the funnel is full. It is about building relationships over time so the follow-up and follow-through are important.
Carve out space for work only that is separate from your living space. You and your family need to respect that when you are there it is for work but other times are for enjoying. It will also keep you more organized.
Branding is the systematic process to develop the strategy and Advertising is a piece of the marketing pie, one of the tools in the marketing toolkit to reach your target audience and help persuade them to purchase your product or service. Ads change regularly with new messages and content but the brand values remain consistent over time.
Creating a great culture when you are leading and managing a team requires a clear vision, a commitment to hire the best people, some patience to make sure you put your money where your mouth is and a confidence that comes with experience.
It is much easier to build awareness, trust, and leverage content for lead generation in my experience.
Thought Leadership is a great way to build your brand, increase your visibility more broadly, raise your profile and attract more clients/customers. Activities like speaking at a conference, writing articles, building your following on social media all contribute to increasing your awareness!
...for my business the top KPI is Customer Lifetime Value so that I can replicate my best clients, reduce churn and learn what makes them happy so I can increase the value.
Ask for input from many perspectives to see where things broke down. Was it is communications disconnect, lack of clarity around the goal or a team morale issue?
People do business with people they know, like and trust so creating a compelling brand online is key to building a strong reputation. The goal is to find the right words and pictures to tell your story.
My new favorite podcast is called Remarkable People by Guy Kawasaki. He started the series at the end of last year and so far he has talked with everyone from Jane Goodall to Phil Zimbardo to Martha Stewart.
Live video will grow in importance—live streaming is available on every major social media platform and it is only getting bigger to hook in users with short attention spans,
When used strategically, AR and VR are a big competitive advantage to accelerate the sales cycle with your customers so use it to help them answer questions and buy.
Be honest. Let your brand be known for speaking the truth, and you become the trusted advocate and go-to source.
Web pages that contain long high-quality content get more visibility and shares so becoming that trusted source and influencer with timely and helpful answers to questions gets rewarded quickly.
I recommend not spending money on things such as fancy brochures, letterhead, business cards, etcetera. Until you know your business is launched, I would say to put your budget into things that help fill your pipeline with customers. Getting your URL and a website up and running is key.
Smart speakers and voice search are growing in importance, so being able to optimize for voice search will be key to maximizing marketing and advertising opportunities on Siri, Alexa, Google Home, and more. I predict that the medical practices that are more customer-friendly, with less invasive ads, are going to win big.
I am bold by showing up every day with renewed energy and enthusiasm to find new customers and continue to delight the ones I already have with my smarts, humor and attitude./
The hardest lesson I learned when I started my company is not getting rid of weak people earlier than I did in the first few years of my business. I spent more time managing them than finding new customers.
Finding your specific focus for disseminating content is the key to being most efficient and effective with your ef- forts. You don’t need to distribute your content through every available channel—just the one(s) most likely to connect with your audience.
I predict that the brands that perfect the branded skill with more customer-friendly, less invasive ads are going to win big.
I need to feel comfortable and try to collect customer data or talk with key stakeholders to make sure I have considered the decision from multiple perspectives.
As we age it is important not to become a creature of habit and to keep your antenna up to be exposed to new and fresh ideas, products, ways of thinking, people and experiences. It is so easy to get busy and let inertia kick in so make a conscious effort this coming year to being more creative in everything you do.
Content Marketing and Thought Leadership are great ways to build your brand, increase your visibility more broadly, raise your profile and attract more clients/customers
LinkedIn is a great tool for staying in touch and for checking people out through the back channel before you meet or talk with them. I always see who we know in common and also if they are connected to people I do not respect or trust that may tell me something too.
My advice is to focus on being helpful first and foremost and making the sale later. People notice and appreciate authentic content that educates, informs and entertains which builds the foundation for a trusted relationship over time.
In my experience, even if they cannot solve the problem, but you feel respected and heard, and the best they can do is refund you or offer a discount, then at least you can say they tried. Some problems cannot be fixed, but everyone can be treated fairly and with dignity.
Don’t be disappointed if you get to 40 and are still exploring because the journey really is a great adventure so enjoy it!
We have resources in 14 cities in the US and major metro areas overseas. Everyone in the group comes out of the industry, so our heads and hearts are much more aligned with our clients than a typical agency or consulting firm.
Customers are savvy today, they are happy to buy what they want and need but they do not like to be sold things.
My best tip for a successful influencer marketing campaign is to utilize a mix of influencer types. Instead of just focusing on the most popular/branded individual influencers, include internal experts, micro-influencers, niche experts prospects and customers in your influencer marketing mix.
The team and clients appreciated the role I play better when I was not there and it is nice to feel valued and appreciated!
Attendee satisfaction and Net Promoter Score are keys to success in my experience.
Goals can change or morph over time but I respond well to having clear goals I want to achieve with the time I have.
The smaller the budget the more important it is to do PR because advertising is about reach, frequency and volume so if you cannot advertise a lot you will not get noticed or remembered at all so it can be a waste of money.
It is well known that it is cheaper and easier to keep current customers happier than always filling the bucket with new ones. I predict B2B firms will find new ways to deepen relationships and expand into more useful and connected ways with the clients they already have. There will be more cross-selling and upselling to develop existing relationships.
If I have a unique perspective to share, or any advice I think may help others, I get it out there via social media or whatever distribution vehicle makes the most sense.
I track repeat customers and referrals quarterly which are key to my business and the most cost efficient way to scale the brand.
Bake it into the navigation on the home page and make it easy to follow. Test the user interface and patient experience before the site goes live.There are many off the shelf solutions so no need to recreate the wheel here. This is very easy to do.
clients often use survey data as a hook for a blog post or e-mail newsletter headlines such as ‘Top 3 hacks CEOs use to increase productivity’.
It really is a marathon not a sprint so do not set arbitrary goals like being named 30 under 30 or 40 under 40 because it may take you longer than Mark Zuckerberg to hit your stride and that’s ok.
I am drawn to interesting people and have always loved learning new things. I ask lots of questions that gets people talking and that always gets me going.
I think the single best thing you can do in seconds is to smile. It signals you are kind and maybe a strong communicator who can share your ideas and attract supporters for whatever you want to do in life.
Affiliate marketing is very popular, but because the barriers to entry are so low there is a lot of competition in every category. It can be daunting to choose which products to sell this way.
More confidence in trusted content, friends and influencers than advertising: Authentic relationships are the future.
Every great business is built on a great story so start telling yours to potential customers and see if they buy what you’re selling. Testing should always be done with real customers, not with family and friends (who may only tell you what they think you want to hear so they don’t hurt your feelings).
To hook in users with short attention spans, in a mobile-first world, you have less time to grab people. attention spans are shorter than ever, so video will be used even more. Show don’t tell for the maximum impact.
Find reference customers quickly, use them to get testimonials & referrals; there's plenty of time later to dress things up!
I know when I incorporate time for work, rest and fun I am at my best!
According to Paige, disruption is about breaking tradition, shaking things up, challenging the status quo and forcing people to look at something with fresh eyes. It can be scary, exciting, and unsettling but one must innovate and grow to stay relevant today.
Small businesses ($2m to $75m in revenues) that need SEO to drive B2B lead generation and product sales first need to understand that SEO starts with your overall marketing strategy, which needs to be driven by the overall business strategy. Then they need to understand that 80% of SEO is strategic copywriting.
Be creative. How do you want people to think & feel after interacting with you vs. your competition? Brands like Apple and Virgin transcend the products they sell, it is about a lifestyle and way of life when you consider purchasing from them.
I have been catching up with college roommates, cousins, camp friends from childhood, basically everyone you always say let’s catch up/grab a coffee/a drink but never have or make time to do.
Whether you need to buy food, a book or a gift, office supplies and equipment, update your website, or create a video, there is probably someone in your network who is more than happy to get the business right now.
We help our clients tell their stories in compelling ways by finding the right words and pictures to create interest. We have resources in major metro areas across the country and around the world.
Getting multiple perspectives and insights always enriches the discussion and generates more activity online.
An idea I am sharing is to look at all the groups we are a part of (industry, trade, neighborhood, alumni, women, hobby, religious, non-profit, community, etc.) and suggest they start their own stimulus package by agreeing to support/buy from each other directly and refer business proactively to each other too.
Listening Tour - With things so slow they were more than happy to get together and tell me what was on their mind
Don’t schlub it up on how you dress. Attire yourself as you would if you were making an in-person presentation.
For me and my clients the biggest impact is the shutdown of travel and conferences. Spring is typically a very busy time with many trade shows, business meetings on the road, etc. And now everyone is staying put and meeting virtually instead.
Sara Blakely founder of Spanx...“she identified a problem women had that was not being addressed and created a new category by leveraging existing technology to improve products, making her a billionaire.”
In times of uncertainty or crisis, here are the top qualities in an effective leader:
Integrity — strong moral compass, honest, good character are not negotiable. Humility — the best leaders I know are humble. Sense of Humor — this is a nice to have but great when times are tough if they do not take themselves too seriously.
Everyone is struggling right now to find a new normal so the key is to show your humanity and compassion while we look out for one another. It is going to take some time to figure out the new normal going forward given the current situation and the new ads and content will emerge over time as the economy bounces back. All we know now is that the messages will be
different for sure based on the new reality.
Communication is key to our employee engagement and success so I try to set the tone upfront with one rule, when in doubt over-communicate. Especially now that everyone is working remotely it is key to set up regular video and conference calls with your team.
You have to cover all your bases to meet your audience on their preferred platform for best results. Twitter is great for short attention spans, blog posts give you more room to share your thoughts and white papers allow space for long form content and research findings.
Algorithms can only tell you so much about a customer, transactions are driven by relationships. Use automation where you can but do not ignore the power of the personal touch even if it is virtual.
If small groups on the team want to talk through specific issues (managing anxiety, kids, parents, etc.) virtual coffee meetings online have been helpful too. A few colleagues have even met online after work for virtual happy hour/beer/cocktails as well when they had more time to chat. It is starting to feel like the new normal by leveraging technology to build and maintain my relationships.
I didn’t think I took anything for granted but I do have to admit now that we are on lockdown I really miss all the people who are part of my daily flow and routine like the neighborhood restaurants and coffee shops we go to every day or so, gym/exercise class people, etc.
The world is moving to mobile-first or mobile-only, with fewer people accessing the web on big screens. So, everyone is tailoring their site, message, and content accordingly.
Especially now that everyone is working remotely it is key to set up regular e-mails, video and conference calls. If the lines of communication are open and everyone makes an effort to listen and be heard then collaboration will happen naturally and the information will flow.
Inclusion is the right thing to do and it is good for business. Smart speakers are only getting more popular going forward so being able to optimize for voice search will be key to maximize the marketing and advertising opportunities on Siri, Alexa, Google Home, etc.
For my business, the most important metric is how much repeat business and referrals I get from my clients…
Be motivated: if you are tempted to do laundry, dishes, watch TV, etc. you are going to be in trouble, stay focused and carve out work time and dedicated space and stick to it.
They were both strong women who believed women could do anything. One got her pilot’s license to fly with her husband, they were fearless and I adored them.
Happy by Pharrell Williams always gets me going, It is upbeat and contagious. You cannot help but smile and sing along. It is a burst of energy that can be just the kick in the pants I need to get started and once I am on I am ready to go!
I have started a movement for smaller businesses in my community to be part of the solution by looking at all the groups we are a part of (industry, trade, neighborhood, alumni, women, hobby, religious, nonprofit, etc.) and starting our own stimulus package by agreeing to support/buy from each other directly and refer business proactively to each other too.!
To stay positive and focus on the future, I have had more Zoom and Skype calls with clients and colleagues in the past 15 days than the prior 6 months! It works with friends and family too, I have been catching up with college roommates, cousins, camp friends from childhood, basically everyone you always say let’s catch up/grab a coffee/a drink but never have or make time to do. Well, now there is no excuse!
Thought leaders are the experts who invest time and money to educate others on something they care deeply about. They create the content that is pushed to the market, their focus is on spreading the message outward. Influencers seek sponsorships and endorsements that invite you into their world so they are more of a pull than a push.
Most of Paige’s business comes from public speaking and networking and those are two key skills that have helped her succeed. She also recommends leaders have thick skin, a strong work ethic and a good sense of humor because it is a tough job where the hours are long, a lot of people tell you no (investors, board, customers) and it can be lonely at times.
I think every project is exciting! That is the beauty of running your own business, if you are not genuinely excited by the work then you can pass on it. I only take on work that I find interesting and worthwhile.
I am still a big fan of Content Marketing and as far as messaging goes, between the pandemic and the possible recession, leaders and brands have an opportunity to further connect with anxious audiences and focus on the true relevance of their products or services.
Many people have been asking what they can do to help during this crisis. A great option is offering stimulus packages organized by communities. Buy gift cards if you don’t need goods immediately. Every small gesture counts and has a much larger impact locally which transfers to the global market in the end anyway.
Words are part of the healing process and we can see which leaders and brands are doing the best job every day with messages that touch not only the mind, but also the heart and soul. It’s inappropriate for content to appear tone-deaf in this crisis. Be careful when asking to be paid, being too salesy, or implying solidarity. It can seem cheesy, or even worse, opportunistic.
I am very concerned about the spread of this virus and the impact it will have on the global economy. This is so much bigger than 9/11 or Hurricane Katrina (I grew up in New Orleans). The biggest change for me and my clients from the virus is the shutdown of all networking events, travel, and conferences. Spring is typically a very busy time with many events, trade shows, business meetings on the road, etc. And now everyone is staying put and meeting virtually instead.
Whether it means sleeping in and saying no to an alarm clock, meditating, taking a walk, or just turning off your phone and computer, simple acts of letting yourself relax and enjoy the moment are the very best gifts you can give yourself.
So first and foremost I have learned to help small businesses to be flexible and open minded so we can keep working together during the crisis and create more flexible capacity going forward over the next year as the economy reopens. If small groups on the team want to talk through specific issues (managing anxiety, kids, parents, etc.) virtual coffee meetings online have been helpful too.
The current crisis has provided a stage for our political and business leaders to rise to the occasion. We have learned that it is about touching people in meaningful ways which may mean being less busy, not more, for a while.
Help your neighbors/network thrive and we will all get through this together, stronger by showing our humanity and compassion.
Volunteering is a great way to get to know like-minded people who care about causes you believe in. Whether you give time to a local nonprofit or join a committee of a charity you will meet others who share your values and passion. They get to know you on a personal level so it is a very natural way to network through the joint mission.
To generate ideas, I look at the calendar to see if there are any natural opportunities based on the season or activities, keep a running list of topics I get asked about by my clients and other business owners and note when I read or hear about something new I want to explore further, a trend, theme or idea that catches my attention.
Stories create fans who will help you sell! create a lot of content marketing material for my clients. My best tip is to stop selling and start sharing. If you share what you know — your passion, your war stories, the good, bad and ugly — the content will flow and pour out of you. The stories will be interesting and the lessons will be real, people will remember you and come back for more.
An online marketer is anyone trying to publicize a good or service online. Traditionally you may think of digital marketing professionals, who are experts in helping all types of businesses (online and offline) grow an online presence. They may also build build exclusively online businesses like affiliate marketing or e-commerce site.
Most of my work comes from networking and I have found that building relationships is what drives my business and technology supports them once they are solidified. Technology helps advance the conversation but it will never replace the human interaction that builds trust over time. CRM tools are only as effective as the relationships you have built.
And wear solid colors, adds Paige Arnof-Fenn, founder and CEO of global branding and marketing firm Mavens & Moguls. “A busy pattern can be distracting on screen.”
I break through with persistence, consistency and repetition. I don¹t do any paid advertising but I do a lot of writing/content marketing and speaking ...
Voice user interface allows users to interact with websites through voice commands so it adds usability and functionality to your site making it accessible to all users including those with limitations and disabilities.
My tip is to give before you get, give them something of value before you ask for their business, show that you value them and want to build a relationship beyond the transaction.
Keep a running list of topics they get asked about by clients and business owners that might make for good content ideas.
...this can include things like speaking at conferences, writing guest blog posts, or hosting podcasts and webinars. This gives you the opportunity to get in front of your potential clients regularly and show them what you have to offer.
For my business the benefit of PR is that the perception of being included in a story is much higher and more credible than a paid ad because it is perceived as more objective almost like an endorsement.
Join networking groups to meet people who are the multipliers in your industry, they talk to everybody and know everyone, they have large followings so you need to connect with them online too
Instead of just focusing on the most popular/branded individual influencers, include internal experts, micro-influencers, niche experts prospects and customers in your influencer marketing mix. Getting multiple perspectives and insights always enriches the discussion and generates more activity online
In my experience, if it is someone you care about deeply who brings joy and happiness to your life you’ll find a way to work through the disappointment.
Prospective customers and jobs can come from anyone anywhere anytime so you should always be on your best behavior & make a great lasting impression. Be nice to everyone & make friends before you need them, you never know who is in or will be in a position to help!
With only scheduled calls and online meetings, there are few interruptions and no ability to get together so I am very productive getting much more accomplished now than before. I never get back online after dinner any more which has been a welcome change.
Try to see it as constructive and that they want to see you succeed and are genuinely trying to help. How would you feel if that same comment came from someone you admire and respect like a mentor or professor?
I started my firm 12 years ago and have gotten dozens of clients over the
years by giving talks at conferences, trade
shows, industry events, universities and others. I have also written
articles for online publications, mainstream media and blogs.
I read in a recent survey that 63% of Millennials said the primary purpose of businesses should be improving society instead of generating profit.
If you do have a unique benefit to offer then create a memorable sentence to show the market who you are and what you stand for. Find your differentiators then make a promise to solve that problem your customers want to fix.
Paige Arnof-Fenn runs a marketing company in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and usually worries about client needs. COVID-19 has stretched her worries to people she will never know, including “all the people who will fall through the cracks,” like the elderly, retirees who lost savings, people with compromised immune systems, kids in low-income families struggling with online learning, limited-skill restaurant workers whose jobs may not return and small businesses that may founder.
Live video & streaming is available on every major social media platform and it is only getting bigger
Create online stationery for proposals and invoices, order cards online and make downloadable materials for people looking for more info.
I also schedule time for professional development, networking and exercise. I know when I incorporate time for work, rest and fun I am at my best!
I started a global marketing and branding firm 18 years ago and I am driven by curiosity. I am drawn to interesting people and have always loved learning new things. I ask lots of questions that gets people talking and that always gets me going.
Focus on the benefits to them not the features of your product or service. Stories create fans who will help you sell! My best tip is to stop selling and start sharing.
There has never been a more important time to provide accurate, empathetic communication with transparency, truthfulness and timeliness. It is inappropriate now for content to appear tone deaf in any way to this crisis.
Smart speakers are only getting more popular going forward so being able to optimize for voice search will be key to maximize the marketing and advertising opportunities on Siri, Alexa, Google Home, etc. Brands that perfect the ‘branded skill’ with more customer-friendly, less invasive ads are going to win big.
We have a tremendous responsibility because never before has communication had the power to help society in the way that it does now.
I am disrupting small businesses in my community by looking at all the groups we are a part of (industry, trade, neighborhood, alumni, women, hobby, religious, non profit, etc.) and starting our own stimulus package by agreeing to support/buy from each other directly and refer business proactively to each other too.
When this crisis is over, we'll find a way to incorporate the lessons of gratitude, simplicity, friendship and love into the new normal and I will be incredibly happy that we did not waste the crisis...
Outsourcing is usually done to address a skills gap within a business. Outside expertise can be used to solve a problem identified as a hurdle to the next stage of growth. Firms like mine exist to provide this expertise; we spend our time honing our craft and learning the advantages, efficiencies, and how to navigate different problems within and across all parts of the discipline.
Activities like writing articles, hosting podcasts and webinars, blogging and building your following on social media all contribute to increasing your awareness with potential customers and building your credibility with a larger community.
Before breathing a heavy sigh of relief or complaining about a bad interview, be 100% sure that you are fully disconnected.
The name of the game today is how to get your fans engaged online and here is the manual to do it..
Look at the groups you belong to (industry, trade, neighborhood, alumni, women, hobby, religious, non-profit, etc.) and support/buy from each other directly. Refer business proactively to each other.
Likening it to what politicians do when on the campaign trail, Paige notes the idea was to not speak, but hear what others had to say. She made a list of big-name players, people she admired, and prospects, and heard them out – and they responded in kind, much to her pleasant surprise.
Maybe the silver lining is that this crisis reminded us that technology does not have to be isolating, but it can be used to build real-world communities and relationships, too.
When advertising works you move the needle. Sales happen if the data is convincing. It becomes a proof point to justify the purchase. Ideas come and go but I always trust the data when it comes to ads.
My MBA taught me how to make decisions without all the data and build the confidence to pivot as new information became available. I learned how to present my ideas in a compelling and succinct way and to speak up. Working in teams successfully is also an important skill I had to master in my program as much of business requires motivating and inspiring others toward a common goal.
Brene Brown is an academic who writes and speaks about her research in very practical ways. She shares powerful insights to dare you to think big and has the data to back it up.
I love asking questions and just learning from others to spark my creativity. I find keeping white space on my schedule is great to get the creative juices flowing too.
Our country will only get fixed from the inside out, from the bottom up where everyone helps us become our best selves. Like most people today I am deeply saddened and concerned by what is going on around the country.
There has never been a more important time to provide accurate, empathetic communication with transparency, truthfulness and timeliness. It is inappropriate now for content to appear tone deaf in any way to this crisis. Everyone is struggling right now to find a new normal so the key is to show your humanity and compassion while we look out for one another.
As far as messaging goes, between the pandemic and the possible recession, leaders and brands have an opportunity to further connect with anxious consumers and focus on the true relevance of their products or services.
I have heard several people from all walks of life and ages comment recently that being forced to slow down and reconnect with the people who you really care about, spending time reading, sleeping more, eating healthier, etc. has been great while at the same time not obsessively on social media with FOMO has been a welcome byproduct of this crisis.
This pandemic has created enormous opportunities to address unmet needs in the market as we adjust to a new normal.
I feel we have a tremendous responsibility because never before has communications had the power to help society in the way that it does right now. Words are part of the healing process and we can see which leaders and brands are doing the best job every day with messages that touch not only the mind, but also the heart and soul.
I am a big fan of Content Marketing as
a gateway to Thought Leadership which is a great way to build your brand,
increase your visibility more broadly, and raise your profile which allows
you to raise your prices when you attract more clients/customers
The key is to show our humanity and compassion while we look out for one another.
Search engines notice when sites publish consistently and can see how long people stay, so building a strong reputation as a site that informs and educates pays off in higher organic search results too...
Employees, customers and clients will remember who treated them well during the crisis, and they will be rewarded with loyalty from earning that trust during the bad times.
Pivoting to online meetings, webinars, etc. is a smart and productive way companies can continue to have conversations that educate and inform, build relationships and move forward during this crisis period.
So, for me, productivity is at the end of the day feeling like you invested your time well, that you got the work done in a way that when you look back you say, wow, that was a really good use of my time.
Everything starts with market research. Identify the importance of customer data to make decisions. The job of data is to be a support point to accelerate the sales cycle.
As we move to a more remote/virtual world trust becomes an even more important currency to getting things done. Building trust will determine your success so lack of trust will be a huge obstacle I think after the lockdown ends.
Successful businesses understand their product or service is about more than the transaction, they are in the relationship business. People buy brands they know, like and trust.
I have found that building relationships is what drives my business and technology supports them once they are solidified. Technology helps advance the conversation but it will never replace the human interaction that builds trust over time.
We have to acknowledge that now things are different, so we need to communicate in a way that will give our audiences better focus, helping them to create a bridge from today to the future. We need to communicate in a way that combines information and need, synthesizing feelings and facts.
We have learned that it is about touching people in meaningful ways which may mean being less busy not more for a while. Online meetings, webinars, social media, etc. are a smart and productive way companies like ours can continue to have conversations that educate and inform, build relationships and move forward during this crisis period.
To make content more attractive and drive conversion it is important to understand not just what or how to purchase a product, experience or service but you must also be able to inspire audiences by identifying the underlying motivation.
Maybe the silver lining is that this crisis reminds us that we have always needed each other and we have learned that everyone is struggling right now to find a new normal so the key is to show our humanity and compassion while we look out for one another.
Influencer marketing is very effective in promoting software brands online and it is on the rise with more confidence in trusted content, friends, and influencers than advertising.
There are so many tools in the marketing toolkit today but I think it is redundant to say digital marketing because truly everything has a digital element since everyone is accessing and interacting with your brand online, through their phone or via the website at some point
Another one I really like is “you have to make mistakes to find out who you aren’t.” Again, making mistakes is just part of the process. Brilliant.
When the team wins there is plenty of credit to go around so be generous life does not need to be a zero sum game. Nobody cares who the richest guy at the cemetery is but everyone remembers the champions.
And wear solid colors...A busy pattern can be distracting on screen.
...soft skills demonstrating a high level of emotional intelligence can be just as, if not more, important than skills focused more directly on productivity.
For many professional service businesses like mine, LinkedIn matters the most in building a trusted brand.
The most trusted leaders and brands will have a big competitive advantage in the new normal that evolves in a post-Corona world.
With Zoom, social media, cell phones, etc. we see that technology does not have to be isolating; it can be used to build our real world communities and relationships too!
There are a lot of great leadership books out there but one I highly recommend is Dare to Lead: Brave Work. Tough Conversations. Whole Hearts by Brene Brown.
We have learned that it is about touching people in meaningful ways which may mean being less busy, not more, for a while. Once we lay this groundwork it all will be in place to continue moving forward as the economy reopens and some businesses come back quicker than others.
It is amazing how low the bar actually is today,” Arnof-Fenn said in an email. “Just getting back to someone by the end of the week, when that is what you committed to, can be considered good manners.
My rule is that you should network in person during the business day when not social distancing and do it online after hours. People do business with people they know, like and trust so you have to get out there to build your reputation online and off.
When I bought my first home in 2006 there was an old washer & dryer in the basement so I decided to buy a new one and sell the old one on Craigslist....He spent an hour going through it all with me and at the end I refused to let him pay me because he gave me such a great education on home ownership. We both thought we got a great deal!
Didn’t Woody Allen say 90% of success is just showing up! It is a strategy that has worked for me.
It should not take a personal tragedy or setback to appreciate your life and be grateful for all the things you love.
It is not that hard to identify a friend from an acquaintance. You just need to look at who you have a more comfortable and deeper connection with.
For my business, the most important metric is how much repeat business and referrals I get from my clients…
Instead of trying to start your own blog or newsletter, try contributing regularly to existing. well-trafficked blogs in your industry, or newsletters of like-minded organizations reaching the same target audience as you.
They will be more than happy to tell you what is on their mind. . . . Start listening with no strings attached, you’ll be amazed what you find. It does not cost much, for the price of a few coffees and meals you will get an earful.
Thought leadership is a great way to build your brand, increase broad visibility, raise your profile, and attract more customers. Activities like speaking at conferences, writing articles, and building a following on social media all contribute to increasing awareness with potential customers and building credibility with a larger community.
Monitor your online data to shut down trolls and misinformation. There are several free and paid online tools to alert you of potential problems.
Anything by Seth Godin but one of his latest is This is Marketing: You Can’t Be Seen Until You Learn to See. He is a master who really understands what drives people to purchase from a practitioner’s perspective using his first-hand experience and simple language not jargon.
If we can hold on to the very best parts of this lockdown personally and professionally, the world will be a better place.
David¹s new book is a real world practitioner’s guide from someone who has lived the job from the front line, he has been there and done it so he tells it like it is not theoretically but from the trenches.
I did my listening tour the old fashioned way by sending out emails and picking up the phone, brought a pad and pen, asked a few open-ended questions, and then shut up and started taking notes.
Pivoting to online meetings, webinars, etc. is a smart and productive way companies can continue to have conversations that educate and inform, build relationships and move forward during this crisis period.
Simplicity and convenience. As the world becomes crazier and technology gets smaller, faster and more complicated, people will find new ways to simplify their lives more than ever; shorter workouts, fewer ingredients, less stuff.
This is Marketing, you cant be seen until you learn to see, he is a master who really understands what drives people to purchase from a practitioner¹s perspective...
Make sure there's something special about your product or service other than the price. Own something important in your customers' hearts and minds. Being good is no longer good enough--you have to find something where you're great.
The name of the game today is how to hijack the media and get your fans engaged online and here is the manual to do it.
For me it taught me how to think, write and because it did not have as many course requirements as engineering or pre med it allowed me to take classes throughout the university and explore areas I was curious about outside of my major. I was also able to study abroad during my junior year which more taxing departments and majors precluded.
Collaboration is key to our culture of engaging our team and ultimately our success. I try to set the tone upfront with one rule, when in doubt over-communicate.
The key to becoming influential is when you can answer why they do what they do and connect with people on an emotional level.
It is a lot harder and more expensive to find new customers than to keep the ones you have happy and loyal so it is an important part of your strategy to get the customer experience right.
I am very concerned about the spread of this virus and the short and long term impact it will have on the economy. We have had a few delayed projects but no client has been lost yet but projects have slowed, everyone is still on board knock wood. For professional service firms like mine we will recover even if our revenues slow from the crisis.
Research has to be ongoing (monthly? via social media?) because things are going to keep changing & evolving as places reopen and more may get sick.
I have spent much of my marketing career working for world-class brands including Procter & Gamble and Coca-Cola. A brand is a promise in the hearts & minds of your customer of a consistent experience.
I think it comes down to having a growth mindset and valuing being in an environment where you continue to learn and grow.
Technology does not have to be isolating; it can be used to build our real communities/relationships, too!
Remote work is here to stay, teams working from home more will need to invest more in systems and platforms that allow teams to work productively from home, access files, communicate with clients and each other, etc. It is a smart investment to stay flexible with so much uncertainty around timing, instability in the stock market, possible new viruses, etc.
The data is clear on this, research shows that more diverse management teams and Boards produce better results. Having different voices and perspectives at the table makes you better
Having worked as the head of marketing for 3 venture-backed startups which all had good exits I was in a position to be able to launch without taking on any outside money.
It is important to create a seamless experience for your customers regardless of channel or device. Consumers now engage with a company in a brick and mortar store, online or mobile app, by catalog, or via social media.
Everything just becomes better, faster and more efficient, even on mobile devices with 5G. Streaming technology continues to improve as well as the internet and digital video become the focal point of our connected society.
The best KPI for a professional service firm like mine is really customer satisfaction and specifically Net Promoter Score because repeat customers and referrals are key, the most cost efficient way to build a business and scale your brand in my experience.
Any unique perspective that I believe to be useful, I get it out via social media or whatever distribution vehicle makes the most sense.
In a mobile-first world, you have less time to grab people, attention spans are shorter than ever so video will be used even more, show don’t tell for maximum impact, rich content drives email engagement.
When paid listings are shown beside organic, the click-through rate of paid ads increases. This means that clicks increase for both organic and paid listings when they are both featured and do not detract from each other.
Authentic relationships beat marketing automation — technology runs our lives more than ever but it is relationships that drive business and commerce so people will find more ways to connect in-person to build trust and strengthen connections.
You need to prioritize the platforms where your customers are maximum active, whether it is Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. For businesses such as mine, LinkedIn matters the most.
One key trend to address to grow your audience today is that smart speakers and voice search are growing in importance, so being able to optimize for voice search will be key to maximize the marketing and advertising opportunities on Siri, Alexa, Google Home, etc.
So first and foremost I am trying to help my team to be flexible and open minded so we can keep working together during the crisis and create more flexible capacity going forward over the next year as the economy reopens.
I think that using SEO and SEM together will dominate as main search engines are constantly changing their algorithms for rankings so stop thinking of SEO and SEM as rival forces.
The best way to answer that question is to tell a story about a situation that did not go as planned. Explain where and how it derailed without placing blame, show what you learned from the experience and how you grew so that the next time you were in a similar situation, it was a successful outcome.
I admire Christian Siriano’s high-end fashion business for being one of the very first companies to pivot as the crisis hit to start making masks.
The key to productivity is to find ways to stay fresh and excited without being able to plan a vacation or break to get away from your job.
I am a mentor to the next generation of leaders and have helped build a very successful anti-bullying program that >100,000 middle school aged kids have gone through.
I n business, being decisive is an important quality. You rarely have all the information or data you need to be 100% confident but to keep things moving forward and your team on track you need to become comfortable with some uncertainty.
It can be difficult to figure out which incremental profits are attributable to which programs since most companies are using a mix of programs to persuade customers to buy.
Young and old people acquire intelligence through school, work, and life experience but they do not always show good judgment but some are in fact quite wise.
While you’re a student, be sure to connect with your classmates and take advantage your student status to ask for information interviews with program alumni and people whose careers you admire. After graduating, be sure to stay connected with alumni groups as well.
Sales cycle length is key because it tells you how efficient your sales process is and helps you forecast sales more accurately.
To make content even more attractive and drive conversion further in 2020, I try to understand not just what or how to purchase a product, experience or service, but also how to be able to inspire audiences by identifying the underlying motivation.
To avoid problems, give your outsource partners the goals to achieve, then get out of the way. I file taxes in several states and prefer to have experts manage all the details, so nothing important falls through the cracks, especially with my finances!
My best tip is to stop selling and start sharing. If you share what you know — your passion, your war stories, the good, bad and ugly — the content will flow and pour out of you.
The world is moving to mobile only, fewer people accessing email on big screens so tailor your message and content accordingly.
It sent a signal to my team that the money was not worth an unappreciative client who was a jerk and treated us poorly. We replaced the income and more within a month with a much better client.
It can be personal (family/hobby), professional, or athletic as there is no right answer here. The key is what it reveals about you, your priorities, personality, and character.
A PR resource with a great reputation and rolodex can be very effective with a small budget.
Leaders and internal communications professionals don’t just push information out to employees, they create a conversation by setting up simple suggestion forms, asking for feedback, and utilizing platforms that make it easy for employees to engage in dialogue.
Send three thank you notes each week to a current or prospective client or partner for something big or small. Show genuine appreciation with no strings attached and create a culture of gratitude.
...and I became executrix which is like having another job at times. Their estate plans ranged from none to a trust with 19 amendments so my close friends were all inspired to get their affairs in order as they saw my experience from the front row. I updated my own plans too as a result of what I learned in the process.”
Confident people are self-assured, they believe in their abilities and are proud of their achievements
I love being an aunt and godmother, spending time together and then sending them home. I never wanted kids and never even expected to get married, so I am incredibly fortunate to have such a fulfilling life that’s filled with love.
Do not let their bad behavior affect you, life is too short to waste time and energy with people who do not love and accept you for who you are.
Using emotional intelligence to make emotions work for you, instead of against helps a lot too.
We need to communicate in a way that combines information and need, synthesizing feeling and facts. I feel leaders have a tremendous responsibility because never before has communications had the power to help society in the way that it does right now.
Success requires the poise to learn, refine and master patience. It’s not easy.
Sharing your expertise adds credibility and transparency and has become the foundation for building trusted relationships in the digital economy. It helps you stand out and get noticed!
Good companies fill a market need, treat their employees and customers fairly and with respect, are ethical and have a strong reputation. Great companies transcend their products and services by also doing well not just good.
I took the leap into entrepreneurship right after 9/11 when the company I worked for cut their marketing. I had nothing to lose. I have never looked back and love being an entrepreneur.
I have had clients tell me they could not remember anything other than my first name & one word of my company so they googled Paige & Mavens and we popped right up.
To be successful today you must be resilient because you get knocked around often so you have to be able to keep getting back up and trying again with enthusiasm and energy. A lot of people tell you no (investors, board, customers, candidates, etc.) so if you are easily daunted or do not have thick skin you will not last long in my experience.
The biggest change for me, my team and my clients from the virus so far is the shutdown of all networking events, travel and conferences. This is typically a very busy time with many events, trade shows, business meetings on the road, etc. and for the past few months, everyone is staying put and meeting virtually instead.
I would say if you want it done a certain way then do it yourself but if what you are trying to achieve is a goal or outcome then consider delegating which may help accomplish it faster, bigger and/or better by getting others involved who bring more ideas and energy to the process.
Leadership today is about staying agile. Great leaders are confident and humble enough to bring on board people who are smarter, more experienced, and capable of executing the vision.
Activities like writing articles, hosting webinars, podcasts and building your following on social media all contribute to increasing your awareness with potential customers and building your credibility with a larger community.
Technology helps advance the conversation but it will never replace the human interaction that builds trust over time.
Kind people tend to be generous, compassionate and come with confidence, so they do not care if other people like them because they both love themselves and care about others.
When video becomes viral it can reach well beyond any investment made to create it so it is worth the marketing dollars to get it right.
Once you have content you are happy with repurpose it to get as much mileage out of it as possible.
If you’re new to SEO and want to maximise your online presence and get ranked, consider outsourcing!
Building a strong network through various social media channels allows you to seek out introductions to new sales prospects through existing mutual connections, creating an immediate sense of trust and rapport.
Focusing on retention makes sense especially during a recession. Ideally you allocate money in your budget to stay relevant and grow. Keeping customers and clients happy is harder now than ever before.
Get sales and marketing alignment upfront and establish specific buyer personas then define what constitutes a sales-ready lead
You do not exist today if you cannot be found online. You need SEO to make it easy for customers to find you.
Chances are if you have an idea and feel it is time to shake things up or it has been a while since you did anything new it is time to at least explore through market research to see if the timing is right.
With social distancing video presentations are a popular reality now and should be treated just as important as face to face meetings.
I think “there is no such thing as bad PR” is bad advice because there are a lot of ways you can dilute or damage your brand equity.
If everyone in the world were free to travel and was encouraged to explore other cultures/ways of life there would be no more war in this world. It is hard to fight with people once you see their families love them as much as yours does you.
Everyday I hope to leverage technology to make me more productive and efficient through seamless conversations and exchanges to strengthen my relationships personally and professionally.
Authenticity, hustle, persistence, and determination. We work hard and love what we do and I think it shows.
When your articles or talks become available online, make sure to send them out via social media to all your friends, followers and contacts.
How do you want people to think and feel after interacting with you vs. your competition? Brands like Apple and Virgin transcend the products they sell.
I am a big fan of gift certificates to local shops and restaurants.
Voice user interface allows users to interact with websites through voice commands so it adds usability and functionality to your site making it accessible to all users including those with limitations and disabilities.
Choosing between too many options can cause decision fatigue where more choices make us less likely to buy, and to be less satisfied with our eventual decision.
Fast forward 20+ years and Netflix has become one of the biggest TV and movie studios in the world, with more subscribers than all the cable TV channels in America combined!
Brands that perfect the branded skill with more customer-friendly and less invasive ads are going to win big. Are you prepared when customers ask for help like, for example, Alexa, ask Nestle for an oatmeal cookie recipe, or what is the best Mexican restaurant in Boston?
One idea is a sales cadence which is a sequence of touchpoints you create with a prospect to establish a connection for an engagement or a sale. It is typically a schedule to follow up with each prospect via phone, e-mail, social media channels, etc.
In my experience, people buy products and services from people they know, like, and trust. And so your website, advertising, etc. should look and sound like your organization and the brand you have built.
While soft skills like charisma and confidence help you rise in the office environment, when it comes to remote work, groups value helpfulness and reliability over bluster and charm.
Customers are savvy today. They are happy to buy what they want and need, but they do not like to be sold things. Curated content and ideas from a trusted source beat paid content every time.
Being CEO for me is a culmination of years of hard work and building my reputation and network to lead and inspire a team of great talent to help our clients achieve their goals.
Success is very personal so your definition will be, and should be, different than mine. To me, growth for growth’s sake is meaningless, but profitable growth with interesting clients solving important problems is what keeps me engaged and excited.
Consumers now engage with a company online and via mobile so if a customer has put something into a cart, but hasn’t yet purchased, use your content to reference that intent.
When I worked for Zipcar as the first Head of Marketing we were raising money and had no budget so I had to be very scrappy and resourceful to find people to sign up and got good at guerrilla marketing.
Make sure you offer several ways to talk with customers and get to know them. Algorithms can only tell you so much about a customer, transactions are driven by relationships. Use automation where you can but do not ignore the power of the personal touch.
The whole point of doing a social media audit is to work smarter, not harder...
As a professional service firm we work on both a retainer and project basis. My clients mostly come by referral, word of mouth, networking or from articles I write and talks I give.
Everyone is not going to like you or hire you but for the ones who would be a great fit for you make sure they feel and keep a connection and give them a reason to remember you so that when they need your help they think of you first.
In a mobile-first world, you have less time to grab people; attention spans are shorter than ever, so including visual cues (video or images) has been used even more to show vs. tell for maximum impact.
With Zoom, social media, cell phones, etc. we see that technology does not have to be isolating it can be used to build our real world communities and relationships too!
The key with influencer content is to find appropriate influencers which requires a lot of research online and offline.
Activities like having key people (CEO, CMO) speaking at a conference, writing articles, building the following on social media all contribute to increasing awareness with potential customers and building credibility with a larger community.
Measuring who your Top 10 partners are is key since they are responsible for driving a significant percentage of the revenue in your program...
It is not just about complying with the ADA, responsible web design, and corporate social responsibility goals but it is also good for the bottom line by reaching a broader audience. Inclusion is the right thing to do and it is good for business.
For many professional service businesses like mine, leveraging LinkedIn matters the most.
The key to productivity is to find ways to stay fresh and excited without being able to plan a vacation or break to get away from your job.
It is impossible to time your outreach so that you are in front of potential customers exactly when they need your help so I just try to stay in regular communication with them so that when they have a problem I can help them solve they will think of me first.
So, I think to be successful, you have to have a clear vision. You have to be able to communicate very clearly what you’re trying to achieve so that you can get people to write you checks so you can raise money, so you can build your team and get others to help.
Before Covid I went to several coffee shops but now my preferred spot is Forge they reopened quickly and are not just for coffee & treats now they sell produce too so I am spending a lot more there than before.
Thought leadership marketing is an effective tool that creates great customer engagement and retention.
Customer satisfaction and specifically Net Promoter Score because repeat customers and referrals are key, the most cost-efficient way to build a B2B business and scale your brand in my experience.
My best tip is to stop selling and start sharing. If you share what you know — your passion, your war stories, the good, bad and ugly — the content will flow and pour out of you.
I highly recommend Everybody Writes by Ann Handley. She argues that in an online world everyone is a writer so you need to learn how to create content that attracts and retains people’s attention.
I was worried it was too early but they wanted press. Our first big hit came fast and the site crashed immediately. They asked me “to turn off the PR” and it was a tough lesson to learn but the developers trusted me after that!
You can fill a calendar to stay busy, but what matters most is having impact on people’s lives, which has nothing to do with volume of activity, it's about touching people in meaningful ways.
My favorite hack is to disconnect from technology and focus on cultivating human, face to face relationships when possible.
I am always glad to get involved and help raise money for a great cause (museum, youth sports program, etc.) or roll up my sleeves to paint houses (Christmas in July), garden (Habitat for Humanity) or pass out food (local food bank) in the community.
My business did not suffer. In fact, it became stronger. Downtime and vacations are not optional — you need to take breaks to be productive, creative, and energized
My advice is to pick a few things you enjoy doing and do them really well. You cannot be everywhere all the time, so choose high impact activities that work for you and play to your strengths.
If the person does not need anything special, then reach out to a group of people close to them to ask for cards, photos, poems, videos, etc. and make them a scrapbook. It will mean the world to them, trust me.
That opened my eyes and helped me make peace with food and my body. Now I cut myself slack: I enjoy ice cream and have learned to love the lines in my face. They show that I smile often!
Ryan Reynolds is a PR Superstar. His dry humor and sassy comments on social media, the exchanges between him and other Hollywood celebs are not to be missed.
The name of the game to grow today is how to get your fans engaged online and here is the manual to do it.
One key trend to address and tackle to grow your audience today is that smart speakers and voice search are growing in importance so being able to optimize for voice search will be key to maximize the marketing and advertising opportunities on Siri, Alexa, Google Home, etc.
Search engines notice when sites publish consistently and can see how long people stay so building a strong reputation as a site that informs and educates pays off in higher organic search results too.
I would love to spark a movement or create change through a new (domestic) Peace Corps (2020 version) and suggest we are all in it no application required.
In my experience the best ways to stop being indecisive are first and foremost stop trying to be perfect. Perfection does not exist so do not get paralyzed trying to find it.
Turn articles into infographics and video your talks to share over social media. Once you have a piece you are happy with it makes sense to get as much mileage out of it as possible.
Success is personal and your definition will change over time. That is normal and shows maturity, find what matters to you and don’t worry about anyone else.
I predict the most trusted leaders and brands will have a big competitive advantage in the new normal that evolves in a post-Corona world.
The key to survival for SMBs like mine in these unprecedented and uncertain times is about staying agile. The world has been forced to pause and hit the reset button while the pace of life and business has slowed
It is hard to imagine a world with more activity and shorter attention spans but PR will find new creative ways to tell stories using the latest tools and technologies to educate and inform people.
Paige emphasizes on helping the small businesses to be flexible and open-minded so that they keep working together with Mavens & Moguls during the crisis and create more flexible capacity going forward over the next year as the economy reopens.
With Zoom, social media, cell phones, etc. we see that technology does not have to be isolating it can be used to build our real world communities and relationships, too.
I will close 2020 with more of a whimper than a bang. It has been an exhausting year so I am going to take the opportunity to rest and recharge since we will be home this year, no travels planned.
Social media and technology are 24/7, so it’s easy to get sucked into it, but I find in lead generation, less is more. I think it is a mistake to hide behind technology and CRM systems when prospectingBusiness building tips
https://www.flow-seo.com/business/18-tips-on-becoming-a-high-paid-freelancer-or-consultant/
You can fill a calendar to stay busy but what matters most is having impact on people’s lives and that has nothing to do with volume of activity, it is about touching people in meaningful ways which may mean being less busy not more.
In our family at least, the best gift was being together with the people you love and having a sentimental reminder of the time you shared.
The pandemic has forced us to pause, reflect and hit the reset button while the pace of life and business has slowed. As things pick up again after a vaccine arrives I do not want to jump back on the treadmill we were all on before.
Voice user interface allows users to interact with websites through voice commands adding usability and functionality to your site making it accessible to all users including those with limitations/disabilities.
Stay focused –strong headline as a hook with 2-3 data points as support then close with a clear call to action. It works on every platform
Until you know your business is launched, put your budget into things that help fill your pipeline with customers
The name of the game today is how to get your audience engaged online and here is the manual to do it with practical advice and relevant tips.
Before starting my PR business, I wish I knew that the people you start with are not always the ones who grow with you.
If getting takeout and a nice bottle of red makes you happy these days I am all for it! I think we have all learned to appreciate the little things more than ever.
Once a history and relationship is there only then share with them how valuable their advice and counsel has been to you and tell them you have considered them a mentor and champion for a while and see how they react.
It is so easy to get busy and let inertia kick in, so I want to make a conscious effort to being more creative in everything I do. No matter what line of work you are in, I think making creativity a priority will make life more fun/interesting.
When your articles or talks become available online, make sure to send them out via social media to all your friends, followers and contacts. Start small and build as you go.
People do business with people they know, like and trust so you have to get out there to build your reputation online and off. Prospective customers and jobs can come from anyone anywhere anytime so you should always be on your best behavior and make a great lasting impression.
Start small and build as you go. For me I started with small publications then moved up the food chain to reach bigger audiences. People need to be on LinkedIn so that they can be found too.
It’s easy to get swept up in the ‘exciting’ parts of starting your own brand and end up spending too much time and money in tiny details.
Paige serves on several boards and is a popular speaker at industry events and conferences. She has been a columnist at both Entrepreneur and Forbes. She is a graduate of Stanford University and Harvard Business School.
Make sure you create multiple touch points because research shows that the average B2B sale takes more than 10 marketing touch points from the top of funnel to a closed-won deal.
Great leaders are confident and humble enough to bring onboard people who are smarter, more experienced, and capable of executing the vision. Empowered people to take more initiative and they overwhelmingly rise to the occasion.
I want to be remembered for passing along the very best in me to others so their lives are better and happier in some way because I was part of it.
As an entrepreneur there are many ups and downs but most would agree that the excitement and joy of bringing your idea to life is incredibly fulfilling and dealing with the bumps in the road is just part of the adventure.
As we move to a more remote/virtual world trust becomes an even more important currency and building trust will determine your success so lack of trust will be a huge obstacle I think after the pandemic ends.
To be successful today you must be resilient because you get knocked around often so you have to be able to keep getting back up and trying again with enthusiasm and energy.
I am naturally curious and get energized talking to people so when I meet interesting people it is just natural for me to ask a lot of questions and when I hear about things that they are dealing with where I can be helpful I want to roll up my sleeves and jump in.
No matter what line of work you are in especially with Covid I think making creativity a priority serves you well and makes life more fun and interesting.
Paige advises emerging leaders to disconnect from technology periodically and focus on cultivating human; face to face relationships while social distancing to grow your business.
Paige says that successful businesses understand their product or service is about more than the transaction, they are in the relationship business.
David Meerman Scott is a top PR influencer who has written 10 bestselling books, including “The New Rules of Marketing and PR.
In my experience you don’t have to agree, but you need to consider other opinions and feedback is another person’s opinion. If they are willing to consider it, they may find it extremely helpful and use it for positive change — or they can choose to ignore it.
Online meetings, webinars, social media, etc. are a smart and productive way companies like ours can continue to have conversations that educate and inform, build relationships and move forward during this crisis period. Once we lay this groundwork it all will be in place to continue moving forward as the economy reopens and some businesses come back quicker than others.
How does one reinvent themselves? What hurdles have to be overcome to take life in a new direction? How do you overcome those challenges? How do you ignore the naysayers? How do you push through the paralyzing fear?
Pivoting to online meetings, webinars, etc. is a smart and productive way companies can continue to have conversations that educate and inform, build relationships and move forward during this crisis period.
I think “there is no such thing as bad PR” is bad advice because there are a lot of ways you can dilute or damage your brand equity. Stay on message and on strategy for best results.
In the frame of International Women´s Day, I celebrate 2 years of Women Who Inspire. Today I remember the interview of Paige Arnof-Fenn, founder & CEO of Mavens & Moguls, a global branding and marketing firm that has as clients, some of the world’s most well-known brands like Microsoft, Virgin, The New York Times Company, Colgate, etc, she is also a columnist of the media outlets Entrepreneur and Forbes.
My signature below is simple, clean, professional and also personal...
NPS is a valuable tool for measuring not just CX, but also customer loyalty, because it transcends single experiences. It is often referred to as a brand or relationship metric. We check it on an annual basis.
The key is to make the know-it-alls see the power in becoming learn-it-alls. Keep the synapses firing!
For me hustle is both an action and an attitude of never giving up. When you hustle you care about the outcome and will not take no for an answer.
CLV shows the value of repeat business which helps you fine tune your marketing strategy and determine how much you should invest in your CAC.
You do not exist today if you cannot be found online. Especially now with social distancing and remote work requirements, social media has become a lifeline for many. Even with a vaccine, I predict this trend will continue
Pick a few things you enjoy doing and do them really well like Content Marketing/Thought Leadership which are greatways to build your brand, increase your visibility more broadly, raise your profile and attract more clients/customers
The driving force to increased productivity is improved awareness so finding ways to appeal to your target and pique their curiosity to increase their affinity guides our strategy.
For me and my clients I have been successful repurposing content by: Turning a series of articles, blog postings or newsletters into a book or ebook. Turning each chapter of a book/e-book into a series of articles, blog postings or newsletters.
I am measuring productivity by what we get done, it is based on accomplishments not activity. People need more downtime now we are all under a lot of stress with so many moving parts.
Find reference customers quickly, use them to get testimonials/referrals. There’s plenty of time later to dress things up!
The world is moving to mobile first or mobile only, fewer people accessing web on big screens so everyone is tailoring their site, message and content accordingly. More people watch videos than TV now so adding video to your site and using the right keywords for video descriptions and headlines will insure you do better in searches too.
Every interaction a customer has with your store should be consistent and complementary.
The most important SEO tool today is Google Analytics, where businesses can track their performance across channels and understand which sources bring the most traffic to the website.
Omnichannel is only growing in importance by creating a seamless experience for customers regardless of channel or device. Consumers now engage with a company in a brick and mortar store, online or mobile app, by catalog, or via social media.
Paige Arnof-Fenn, founder and CEO of Mavens & Moguls, says the No. 1 change she—like many others—has had to make during the pandemic is a shift to remote selling.
When real customers are willing to pay real money for your product or service, you have a real business. Start with the fundamentals: Who are you and why should anyone care? If you're not passionate about what you're doing, then why should anyone else be?
Generating these backlinks over time helps boost your search engine rankings. Over the years, search engines have changed their algorithms, but in my experience, guest posting still works.
There are times when you need cheerleaders, butt kickers, or people who can be counted on for tough love. Accountability is so important and having friends and family to keep you grounded and humble is critical too, it is easy to lose perspective.
You'll need someone to maintain all of your social media platforms, create content, monitor reviews and comments, and make sure everything is running smoothly. Chances are, you don't have the time or bandwidth to do all of that and run your business so you can hire a freelancer or agency to help since they know how the world of social media works, and then sit back, relax and watch your follower count grow.
I prefer books by practitioners because they are more relevant and have current examples from pop culture vs. theories based on research.
Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.” ― Buddha
People use multiple devices during a single transaction process. Make sure that you are able to listen and respond to these interactions.
The best gifts are personal and include making time to spend together to celebrate the milestone.
Give yourself permission to say no. Whether it means sleeping in (no to an alarm clock), meditating, taking a walk, or just turning off my phone and computer (no, I will respond later on my own schedule), simple acts of letting myself relax and enjoy the moment are the very best gifts I can give myself.
My sister loves to knit so I often get her kits to make items or a gift certificate to pick out her own yarn and pattern.
I regularly share quality content based on my experience personally and professionally. To qualify it must be timely and relevant.
There are lots of options for online marketing. Using SEO and SEM together is ideal as main search engines are constantly changing their algorithms for rankings so stop thinking of SEO and SEM as rival forces.
By this age, you value your time and relationships more than anything else. Old photos and mementos from shared adventures mean much more than expensive items or gifts. The more personal, the better.
I always say the secret to a happy marriage is separate bathrooms! We have always had separate bathrooms from day 1 when we moved in together. I am a slob and he is a neatnik.
It is important to have a story to explain your transition and show confidence in your decision not to be defensive about it.
I am a mentor to the next generation of leaders and have helped build a very successful anti-bullying program that >100,000 middle school aged kids have gone through. As a marketing consultant I am able to write articles, contribute to books and speak at events to share my experience and lessons learned.
I am very concerned about the spread of this virus and the short and long term impact it will have on the economy. The biggest change for me, my team and my clients from the virus so far is the shutdown of all networking events, travel and conferences.
Out of sight can be out of mind, you do not want just the loudest voices heard so it can be a challenge to make sure everyone has a chance to contribute. You have to be more proactive and deliberate now to make sure all voices are heard.
Looking back I am guessing the ones who are made can see signs of being entrepreneurial in their previous lives so maybe there is a little part of it you are born with but the rest can be cultivated when you get inspired by the right idea.
Effective leadership communication is not just the message, but the method in which you communicate to employees that matters.
Compassionate leaders attract the best talent and I predict the most trusted leaders and brands will have a big competitive advantage in the new normal that evolves in a post-Corona world.
CRM tools are only as effective as the relationships you have built. As we move to a more remote/virtual world trust becomes an even more important currency to getting things done.
We have learned so much about ourselves, our work, our communities, our government and each other during the pandemic over the past year.
There are no short cuts, getting great PR won’t make your company famous overnight, it takes time to build stories/establish credibility/ emotionally connect with audiences. The messaging must be authentic/relevant don’t be tone deaf or you risk diluting your brand.
Don’t be scared to fail, just learn from every bump in the road so you make better mistakes next time — that is where you learn the most!
Bill Gates was once quoted as saying “If I was down to my last dollar, I’d spend it on public relations” so he sees the power of perfection too.
Can I repurpose this content in a blog post, newsletter, status update, tweet?
There has never been a more important time to provide accurate, empathetic communication with transparency, truthfulness and timeliness.
Consumers now engage with a company in a brick-and-mortar store, online or mobile app, by catalog, or via social media. Every piece of the consumer’s experience should be consistent and complementary.
When my clients’ budget tightens I have had to get creative over the years. One high end retail client outfitted me with several custom tailored suits that fit me perfectly and are still some of my favorites, a fancy restaurant hosted a holiday appreciation dinner for 10 of my best clients and another paid me in stock options.
"I recommend you know what digital dirt exists on you,” says Arnof-Fenn. To avoid being blindsided, she suggests performing a Google search and social media audit to see what comes up.
In my experience, Social Media and Thought leadership are the most cost effective ways to build your personal brand and grow your business.
It is important to have a story to explain your transition and show confidence in your decision not to be defensive about it.
I think using SEO and SEM together is ideal. So, stop thinking of SEO and SEM as rival forces.
I took computer science classes at Stanford in the 80s and joined a tech startup in the 90s, just as the Internet started to take off. Now I work with many tech clients and spend my days on the computer, and I would be lost, unproductive and bored without it. Tech runs our lives today.
More people watch videos than TV now so adding video to your site and using the right keywords for video descriptions and headlines will ensure you do better in searches too.
Another tip is that the worst time to make a cold call to prospects in any region is 8-10am when everyone is rushing to work and preparing for the day but the worst time to call is the best time to email.
In my experience Customer Churn is the most direct way to measure customer retention. It is important to understand the rate at which customers stop doing business with you.
Whether yours is polished or more informal, chatty or academic, humorous or snarky, it is a way for your personality to come through.
To ensure your shyer employees feel equally engaged, you need emotional intelligence. You need to be observant to figure out if someone is shy and might feel uncomfortable in group environments.
It all starts with a great night¹s sleep though! Nothing beats a great night's sleep to be an effective CEO, it works for me. Even if I do not always have the balance I am able to integrate my work and my life in a good way.
This all comes down to communication. “I try to set the tone upfront with one rule—when in doubt, overcommunicate.” In a remote workforce, this means regular emails and video and conference calls.
Paul and Rohan have disrupted social media by creating a casual and inclusive space for interactive discussions by putting you in the same room with interesting and inspiring people.
Keep it short and simple to grab audience attention even quicker. Attention spans are shorter than ever, so anything you can do to hook your audience in is a competitive advantage to break through the distractions, noise, and clutter online.”
If the lines of communication are open and everyone makes an effort to listen and be heard then collaboration will happen naturally and the information will flow.
Successful businesses understand their product or service is about more than the transaction, they are in the relationship business.
Everybody Writes: Your go to guide to creating ridiculously good content by Ann Handley.
Getting multiple perspectives and insights permanently enriches the discussion and generates more activity online.
Handley argues that in an online world everyone is a writer, so you need to learn how to create content that attracts and retains people’s attention.
I try to make eye contact with at least a few people in the audience as I speak and share stories from my experience to make my points.
So much has changed with the pandemic too, the old brand-building model has migrated to a digital ecosystem, from bricks and mortar to e-commerce today.
In our family at least, the best gift was being together with the people you love and having a sentimental reminder of the time you shared.
Voice user interface allows users to interact with websites through voice commands so it adds usability and functionality to your site making it more accessible to all users, including those with limitations and disabilities.
Success isn't a destination, it is a journey and if you've "made it," that means your journey is complete. The goal is to keep learning and growing.
he world is moving to mobile-first or mobile-only with fewer people accessing the web on big screens, so business owners will need to tailor their site, message and content accordingly.
Reporting is the best way for marketers to better understand what is and isn’t working so they can optimise their efforts.
My first client came from a talk I gave to a professional networking group. Someone from the audience came up to me after and made an introduction which resulted in my first project a few weeks later.
It is not just about complying with the ADA, responsible web design and corporate social responsibility goals, but it is also good for the bottom line by reaching a broader audience...
It was an outdoorsy, rugged, active adventure with hiking, mountain biking, camping. Much like summer camp but with alcohol, they had a ball!
Even though I know people who swear by them I do not have a Virtual Assistant because I have structured and streamlined my business so that it can run smoothly and be managed efficiently without one.
Before starting my company I ran marketing at 3 successful startups. In my experience the 5 things you need for a successful startup are: a great idea, a clear vision, strong work ethic/high energy, web site and resources (people/money) to help bring the concept to reality.
Fairness — athletes have to play by the rules and in PR honesty is the best policy, never hide or blur the truth.
Doing your homework, paying your dues, building a strong team and having a good work ethic are all great ways to stack the deck in your favor for success. Having good luck and good karma helps too.
Procter & Gamble’s Lead with Love consumer PR campaign is the gold standard. It includes a call to action to make 2021 the year we all come together to do more and do better — for communities, equality and our planet.
PR is the most underrated/cost efficient way to get your story out there. Thought leadership is a great way to stand out/build influence/increase your visibility/raise your profile/attract more attention from media/potential customers.
To increase retention/reduce churn my tip is to disconnect from technology and focus on cultivating human, face to face relationships when not social distancing.
In PR it is best to set big goals that keep everyone focused and work toward achieving them to stay on track.
My advice is that you have to kick the tires and look under the hood by talking with them, checking their references and seeing if there is a chemistry fit.
To measure your online reputation I recommend you set up a Google Alert for both your company’s name and your own name to notify you any time one of your press releases post, when your name is mentioned on another website, or whenever you are indexed by Google.
It works with customers, too; I have clients who play golf, so sometimes we would meet at a driving range instead of the office to discuss things, especially when you are trying to think outside the box.
I started a global branding and digital marketing firm 19 years ago and my first client came from a talk I gave to a professional networking group.
I prefer a more back to the basics approach by disconnecting from technology periodically and focusing on cultivating human, face to face relationships,
Paige Arnof-Fenn is a marketing entrepreneur who writes and speaks about the power of customizing your omnichannel messaging to reflect the customer journey.
The key is to build brand awareness and trust in your brand or business, which begins by getting your business name to appear in prospect's searches.
We need to communicate in a way that will give our audiences better focus, helping them to create a bridge from today to the future.
Technology helps advance the conversation but it will never replace the human interaction that builds trust over time.
Live video will only grow in importance – live streaming is available on every major social media platform, and it is only getting bigger to hook in users with short attention spans.
In my experience, the most effective teams attract people with growth mindsets and l have tried to create that culture in my company too.
Consumers need to be exposed to things many times before they notice it. In fact, the "rule of seven" in marketing states that a consumer has to interact with a brand seven times before they make a purchase.
Find creative ways to multitask that incorporates work and exercise. Can you take a walk (in-person or with headphones) so you can catch up while you are getting some exercise too?
The energy, vision and culture starts at the top of any organization so I see my role as setting the tone, attracting the right team and motivating them to achieve greatness together.
Strike the right balance of educating, entertaining, promoting yourself and others with your outreach. If you become too salesy or self-promoting people get turned off and tune you out.
No one likes hearing bad news, especially if they’re completely blindsided by it in a meeting. If you’re about to present to a client in a reporting meeting that includes some less-than-ideal news, it’s best to give them a heads up.
I think people do their best work in a give and take/collegial environment.
With a single page site if it does not load quickly or they do not see something that grabs their attention the opportunity will be lost. It must include enough of your value proposition to start the conversation.
Whether your business is B2B or B2C every business is P2P, and connecting on a personal level is what matters most.
Some attrition in your customer base is natural when companies are acquired or go out of business, hire an internal resource, no longer need your product or service, etc.
Find creative ways to multitask that incorporates work and exercise. Can you take a walk (in-person or with headphones) so you can catch up while you are getting some exercise too?
It takes effort and a commitment to excellence for people to continually learn/grow especially now in a virtual/remote environment.
We know how to solve your problems and get results. It is rarely too early to bring in marketing expertise, but it is often too late.
For inspiration I look to the masters like David Meerman Scott, Seth Godin, and Guy Kawasaki, they are all great storytellers who have blogs, books and websites full of ideas to make me think and pique my curiosity.
If I have a unique perspective to share or any advice I think may help others I get it out there via social media or whatever distribution vehicle makes the most sense.
Pick a few things you enjoy doing and do them really well. You cannot be everywhere all the time so choose high impact activities that work for you and play to your strengths.
You cannot go wrong with following David Meerman Scott. He has >123k followers, is a NYT and iWSJ best selling author of 12 books on PR and marketing, thought leader and practitioner so his wisdom and advice are grounded in real world experience not theories.
In the first few years of my business, I had pitched a CEO about a month before I ran into her at a networking event where she was the keynote speaker and her topic was about being a woman leader in a traditionally male-dominated business.
Having a good online reputation is incredibly important to building a strong professional service business
Would you rather hire “Strategic Marketing Solutions” or Mavens & Moguls? We are the “not your father’s Oldsmobile” of marketing firms. If nothing else our name is a great conversation starter and getting into a conversation is all it takes to open a door.
Every time a new article hits/you speak at an event/are quoted in the media there is value in that exposure/instant credibility/third party validation which carries a lot more weight than a paid ad.
Handley provides practical tips, easy grammar & usage rules that are valuable whether you are working with a big brand or startup these are best practices that will make your writing better.
The impact you can have through your work as an entrepreneur (serving on boards, writing, speaking, etc) are endless and the opportunities to make a difference are everywhere.
Market research is more important now than ever! Whatever we thought we knew or understood before Covid about our customers and market must now be checked because the world has changed so much since last March.
As a small business owner mentors can also be invaluable sources of inspiration, advice, encouragement and can help you avoid rookie mistakes (with hiring, fundraising, etc.) when you are starting out.
They can make key introductions, elevate your platform and help you with connections. Mentoring can be a wonderful experience on both sides of the equation.
People connect with brands they know, like, and trust, and employees may switch jobs. But if they have a great experience and relationship with your brand, you can keep them by staying in communication. Show them they are respected, loved, and needed. It is a smart investment to get this right.
The worst time to make a cold call to prospects in any region is 8-10 a.m. when everyone is rushing to work and preparing for the day but the worst time to call is the best time to e-mail.
Quality calls to the right target with the right message/offer results in more leads. Don’t annoy/stalk by leaving voice mails or hanging up in case they have called ID you will only be labeled a spammer/telemarketer.
Using content with incentives to help the buyer finalize their purchase decision like bonuses and giveaways is very effective in converting.
It's important to listen for and find the nuggets of information to improve, so do not discount the negative comments. I believe most negative feedback has some value because it comes from people who care about you, whether you know them well or not.
A PQL is not only someone who has used marketing successfully, they also match the characteristics of our target audience/ideal client profile, have experienced the value of marketing, and have expressed the need/buying intent.
The original Bose QC (Quiet Comfort) were discontinued but they are still available under a different name. The sound quality is incredible and they feel great too, very comfortable to wear. Not cheap but worth every penny. I bought a back up in fact.
My leadership style is collaborative and inclusive. I tend to ask lots of questions and get input from all parts of the organization because I have found some of the best ideas come from unexpected people.
Read article»Outsourcing does not solve all of your growth problems but it sure frees up a lot of time and energy that can be better spent on things I enjoy doing and can get paid well for.
Read article»The myth that you don’t need to pay for PR / publicity can be free is true if you want to do it on your own for lack of a budget.
Read article»Pivoting to online meetings, webinars, etc. is a smart and productive way companies can continue to have conversations that educate and inform, build relationships, and move forward during this crisis period.
Read article»Keep learning — Finishing school is not the end of your education, you will be a student for the rest of your life so never stop learning new things.
Read article»Omnichannel creates a seamless experience for customers regardless of channel or device. Consumers now engage with a company in a brick and mortar store, online or mobile app,
Read article»I have learned to help small businesses to be flexible and open-minded so we can keep working together during the crisis and create more flexible capacity going forward over the next year as the economy reopens.
Read article»Content marketing and thought leadership are great ways to build your brand, increase your visibility and more broadly, raise your profile and attract more clients.
Read article»Project status reports are critical for communicating updates on what you’ve accomplished and what’s still pending.
Read article»For the foreseeable future entrepreneurs will continue to build networks through online marketing and social media especially LinkedIn so that they can be found. It adds credibility and transparency when you know the people you are meeting or working with know people in common..
Read article»You can fill a calendar to stay busy, but what matters most is having an impact on people’s lives, and that has nothing to do with volume of activity...
Read article»Basically you have to open your mind and be exposed to a fresh perspective so you get the synapses firing and connect the dots in new and exciting ways. Disruption requires getting out of your comfort zone and considering new possibilities.
Read article»Online and offline events are great to network and meet prospective employees
Read article»I don't think of entrepreneurs as risky, they just see opportunity where others don't and want to make that vision a reality.
One of the best strategies to keep and grow your online audience today is through interactive marketing such as polls, surveys, quizzes, contests, or interactive videos.
I love that I created a platform to do work I enjoy that is meaningful to me and helps my clients succeed.
Online marketing is becoming more dependent on data. To tell compelling stories to your target market, important data has to be collected and scrutinized.
Brands may be better served by working with micro-influencers who offer smaller follower counts but post around niche interests, leading to more meaningful one-on-one connections with audience members.
In a mobile first/mobile only world, you have less time to grab people/attention spans are shorter so rich content drives engagement/traction/growth.
Web pages that contain long high-quality content get more visibility and shares so becoming that trusted source and influencer with timely and helpful answers to questions get rewarded quickly
Many people call themselves Influencers but a I think of a Thought Leader as a true expert in their niche, informed opinion leaders and trusted sources based on their knowledge and reputation not the number of people who follow them online.
Find creative ways to leverage your thought leadership so that your audience finds you easily.
Do not try to recreate the wheel in your category, build a network that can share best practices for best results. There is not one path to success.
We are all more aware/sensitized about life/society/the environment now and research shows the majority of people consider social purpose when buying.
Successful businesses post-pandemic must be adaptable/agile, strong communicators, and have a growth mindset.
Companies must embrace statistics and analytics, and they must use data more intelligently
Today thought leadership is really about being an Influencer with more confidence in trusted content, friends, and influencers than advertising
The vision is about your goals for the future and how you will get there, whereas the mission is about where you are now and why you exist.
I knew I had made it as an entrepreneur when Harvard wrote 2 case studies on my business a few years after I started it, we were very early to pioneer sharing resources on the marketing front (before my company it was really only done with HR, legal and accounting/finance).
A change in venue is always nice and you feel so much better when you are moving and not trapped behind your desk
Don’t let controversial company leaders defend bad behavior/business practices/weigh in on current events on social media.
One key challenge has been about the importance of focus. There is so much noise out there with social media, 24/7 news, climate change, etc. that for my clients and me staying focused with all the distractions we are bombarded with on a daily basis can be tough
Because you have history/common interests and backgrounds they are predisposed to trust/like you.
I decided right then I would not let anyone even a person with credentials define my potential in life.
My routine has changed since the pandemic began. I am sleeping much more, (10+ vs 5 hours per night) so I am starting my day much later than before.
Connect with journalists before pitching. Follow them on social networks or comment on a previous story, for best results try to understand what stories resonate with them.
OKRs are useless unless you regularly check on them. That’s why I recommend monitoring/providing updates on the actual achievement of the OKR at least quarterly is best.
PR is the most cost-efficient way to build your brand/increase visibility/raise your profile/attract more clients/customers.
It turns out that when everyone invited to the meeting knows why they are there and gets the agenda in advance and it clearly states how in-depth each topic covered will be discussed you are well on your way to a great meeting!
Give yourself permission to say no. Whether it means sleeping in (no to an alarm clock), meditating, taking a walk, delegating more work, or just turning off your phone and computer (no I will respond later on my own schedule)...
You can’t be all things to all people. Part of a successful social media strategy for nonprofits is to think about where your audience is spending time.
Post the Great Recession, the majority of our work is now project-based (it used to skew to more retainer work before) so the scope creep potential is a lot less now to be honest which makes managing expectations a lot easier.
Under his leadership Airbnb’s authentic generosity takes CSR to a whole new level. They are leading the way for innovation in the new normal, brilliant!
Transparency in regular reporting is the foundation for building trusted relationships with clients in the digital economy.
It is no longer only about churning out fresh material, refreshing existing content from prior years you not only maximize your previous investment, but the traffic drives the rankings too. Repurpose and reuse for best results; old can be new again.
I predict that SMBs will keep their customers more engaged and connected via multiple channels in 2022.
Today thought leadership is really about being an Influencer with more confidence in trusted content, friends, and influencers than advertising.
Best business advice
https://bisvue.com/articles/read/best-business-advice-your-have-ever-received-part-3_362.html
Events will no longer be about the volume of attendees, people have become pickier about how they choose to spend their time, so a more targeted approach will be essential to catching key influencers.
As more people shifted online during the pandemic, live streams were increasingly used to host public events and meetings on platforms like Twitch
What’s more, Google is now considering the mobile-first design as a ranking factor for SEO performance.
I'd say, keep it friendly and welcoming. People can go to the web for information from many different sources. Make your site an inviting place they want to visit.
It is about touching people in meaningful ways which may mean being less busy not more.
I started my career in Brand Management at Procter & Gamble and at P&G everything starts with Market Research. They drill into you the importance of customer data to make decisions.
Influencers today have to acknowledge that now things are different so we need to communicate in a way that will give our audiences better focus, helping them to create a bridge from today to the future
Whatever we thought we knew or understood before COVID about our customers/market must now be checked because the world has changed so much since last March.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a national treasure, every woman in this country owes her a huge thank you, her smarts, persistence and tenacity are inspiring she never stopped fighting for truth and justice for all.
Consumers now engage with a company in a brick and mortar store, online or mobile app, by catalog, or via social media
Websites must be optimized for voice search adding usability/functionality to your site making it accessible to all users including those with limitations/disabilities.
It does not take much time to repackage articles or update your keywords…the possibilities are endless and pay off quickly with increased traffic and engagement
The key is to not collect and measure everything but to focus on the 3 top drivers only and leverage the technology to gain important insights.
Given most people will be working remotely and hybrid now and more over time, the skills I look for and questions I ask have shifted recently.
The name of the game to grow today is how to get your fans engaged online and here is the manual to do it.
Every piece of the consumer’s experience should be consistent/complementary. Omnichannel creates a seamless experience for customers regardless of channel/device.
I want to build stronger relationships and communities in the new normal so will put a bigger emphasis on Customer Journey Mapping with my clients.
Customers/clients are savvy today they are happy to buy what they want and need but they do not like to be sold things. Curated content and ideas from a trusted source beat paid content every time.
There are three flowers that always brighten my day and make me happy: sunflowers, birds of paradise, and hydrangea.
With LinkedIn, you don’t have to wait for a networking event to make meaningful business connections.
Read article»When a client sees a business proposal, they want to know that the deal has a high likelihood of closing before agreeing to move forward with the proposal.
Read article»Until you know your business is launched, I would say put your budget into things that help fill your pipeline with customers.
I have no idea where my business will go post-pandemic, but I am confident I have built a great foundation with interesting clients and colleagues who value communication and want to use marketing best practices to make a difference in the world.
For me, I started with small publications and then moved up the food chain to reach bigger audiences. Blogging is a big responsibility, you have to have a constant stream of fresh content to keep it active and interesting
The key to becoming influential is when you can answer why they do what they do and connect with people on an emotional level. I have been successful for many years using this strategy.
My mom taught me early on to not stop just because someone says no. That is such an important part of being an entrepreneur and has benefitted me and. my business very well.
So much of success in marketing is about effective communications online and offline. My advice for success is to be a student for life, walk the streets and notice your surroundings.
We are measuring productivity going forward by what we get done; it is based on accomplishments, not activity.
Data and analytics are becoming increasingly important in marketing. Important data must be acquired and evaluated to create captivating tales for your target market.
I have always been a good communicator and the key skills needed to be effective and productive today as we create a new normal are around adaptability and staying agile.
I don’t really believe in the concept of failure for me it is about being resilient and finding creative ways to adapt and move forward despite obstacles. Covid has definitely made me and my business more resilient.
It is important to me to stay true to my core beliefs. Loyalty is one of my core values—loyalty to self and to others whom I respect.
People do not remember facts and figures but if you tell them a story that touches them emotionally you get their attention and they want to hear more.
Having a growth mindset is essential to building skills, and writing is a skill so practice is key to never stop learning/experimenting, staying focused on the future and seeing opportunities ahead by creating a culture of learning/growth.
I am the name, face, and voice of the brand. Communication is key to all of our community and employee engagement and ultimately our success.
I think every project is exciting! That is the beauty of running your own business, if you are not genuinely excited by the work then you can pass on it. I only take on work that I find interesting and worthwhile.
PR isn’t expensive it’s the most cost efficient way to get your story out, an investment rather than expense.
Persistence and determination are what separates the people who do and they could all tell you about people they met along the way who had/did/knew more but gave up.
LinkedIn adds credibility and transparency when you know the people you are meeting, talking to or working with, especially when you know that you have contacts in common.
The social media is now becoming a highly emotive space with regards to consumer behaviors, complaints, purchasing trends, reviews, etc.
I have learned in my career that if customers summon the courage to give you feedback, it’s because they care and/or are deeply invested in you.
There will always be new shiny objects in marketing to distract you, social media and technology are 24/7 but SEO is here to stay whether it is via Google, voice, or whatever comes next.
Remaining agile today is at the heart of survival and ultimately success.
My advice is to pick a few things you enjoy doing and do them really well. You cannot be everywhere all the time so choose high impact activities that work for you and play to your strengths.
Setting up any type of consulting or coaching business is possible because all you need is a website, logo, name, e-mail, business cards, online stationery for proposals and invoices, cell phone and a good idea to get going.
“All publicity is NOT good publicity. You can dilute/damage your brand equity quickly so stay on message/on strategy for best results.
We try to make our proposals personal to stand out from the larger agency boilerplate info drop logo here approach.
After years of decline, they each died about eight months apart (seven people in six years), and I became an executrix, which is like having another job at times.
Attention spans are shrinking -- In a mobile first/mobile only world, you have less time to grab people/attention spans are shorter so rich content drives engagement/traction/growth.
Instead of meeting up with your local friends at a coffee shop or bar, or chatting with them on the phone while you are snacking or sipping wine, meet them for a bike ride or a walk, so you can catch up while you are getting some exercise, too.
When strategizing damage control, remember to engage with your social media followers, publicize an official statement addressing the issue and demonstrate a mature response.
The risk is that they get caught saying or doing something inconsistent with your core values and your brand’s reputation gets tarnished.
Succeeding in the social sphere also requires that brands generate a lot of content, which in turn can help to push down any of the negative comments that might be generated, making them less visible.
A career in marketing and communications is about relevancy so every day I try to pay attention to pop culture, trends, etc. You have to keep your antenna up! You have to be driven, focused, intensely curious and always be looking for the next way to make something better, be a good listener to clients, colleagues, feedback, the market to show respect for great ideas, and be a great communicator.
In a virtual/hybrid environment, you want people who are independent, self-motivated, and adaptable/flexible.
Social commerce explodes -- During the pandemic shopping became more virtual with social media platforms as an increasingly popular shopping outlet.
There is so much noise out there with social media, 24/7 news, climate change, etc. that for my clients and me staying focused with all the distractions we are bombarded with on a daily basis can be tough. So my top tip is to learn to give yourself permission to say no.
If there is any one secret of success, it lies in the ability to get the other person’s point of view and see things from that person’s perspective as well as from your own.
There are so many worthy causes around the global pandemic, medical research, aid for disasters, food insecurity, homelessness, etc. I would probably pick 10 groups I thought were doing great work and donate a million to each.
Create a culture where innovation can thrive. As a colleague once said, there is no elevator for growth — you have to take the stairs.
PR is a way for adults to make more friends and help people solve their problems. It’s a great way to learn about new people and things that can improve your life.
I have no idea where my business will go post pandemic, but I am confident I have built a great foundation with interesting clients and colleagues who value communication and want to use marketing best practises to make a difference in the world.
The focus of PR since the pandemic has highlighted the urgency of translating values into results-driven communications.
People need to be educated, informed and/or entertained, so I love to figure out how best to tell a story in a way that makes people pay attention and breaks through the noise.
Technology helps advance the conversation but it will never replace the human interaction that builds trust over time.
Your story will evolve as you find your market, you need to look professional and have a web site to be taken seriously but embossed paper with watermarks and heavy card stock is not going to accelerate your sales cycle.
Reputations are built on actions and those who deliver or exceed on their promises build strong legacies, but when they disappoint, their reputations get tarnished.
Our vision is that all companies, regardless of size or budget, should have access to the best marketing talent on an outsourced basis.
The importance of being grateful, giving back and helping others who are less fortunate.
Activities like hosting podcasts/webinars, writing articles, building your following on social media all contribute to increasing your awareness with potential customers and building your credibility with a larger community
Setting up any type of consulting or coaching business on the cheap (under $1,000) is possible because all you need is a website, logo, name, email, business cards, online stationery for proposals and invoices, cell phone, and a good idea to get going.
The biggest trend is the Metaverse and the investment in virtual and augmented reality technology, it is here to stay and only getting bigger.
Virtual Reality is and will continue to be a major disruptor in marketing. In a mobile-first/mobile-only world, you have less time to grab people/attention spans are shorter so rich content drives engagement/traction/ growth.
There is so much noise out there with the pandemic, global unrest, social media, 24/7 news, climate change, etc. that for my clients and me staying focused with all the distractions we are bombarded with daily can be tough.
Like most small business owners and entrepreneurs there are never enough hours in the day to fit everything in so when something has to give it is usually time I have allocated for myself to think, exercise, read or just relax.
I do not think there is one silver bullet to keep your skills sharp and fresh, I recommend using a combination of reading and learning online and off, attending conferences and talks, networking, newsletters from influencers, TED talks, podcasts, finding mentors and listening to all feedback good and bad.
I think that respecting my time on the calendar/taking myself as seriously as I take my most important clients is the least I can do because if I am not at my peak performance I am not going to be useful to anyone else either.
My latest favorite business book is NYT bestselling author Donald Miller’s Hero on a Mission.
The more human/personalized it is, the more it can be effectively adapted to the industry/location/interests.
I was raised to be responsible, honest, hard working, and confident all great qualities for an entrepreneur. Both my grandfathers were successful entrepreneurs so I think it is in my DNA.
It’s all about figuring out which breadcrumbs drive the horse–your customer–to water–your product–and then make him drink.
When using e-commerce as a business, it’s essential to make sure that you’re taking the necessary precautions to protect your customers’ information.
Getting multiple perspectives and insights always enriches the discussion and generates more activity online.
I think as we age, it is important not to become a creature of habit and to keep your antenna up to be exposed to new and fresh ideas, products, ways of thinking, people, and experiences.
In retrospect you may look back at what you thought was a failure and realize it was a blessing in disguise.
To leave the world better than I found it and be remembered by the people whose lives I touched as a force for good in their lives.
I want to bring world class marketing talent and expertise to organizations that want to make a difference in the world.
PR is basically an endorsement/third party validation by a trusted source and perception is reality in marketing...
You can raise your profile through public speaking, writing articles, building your following on social media or contributing to existing blogs and newsletters.
rying to say/do too much, when too many cooks are in the kitchen or design by committee the result can be confusing. To avoid this mistake conduct market research early with customers on messaging and user interface for best results.
All work and no play/down time is a recipe for burnout. Staying healthy is critical for happiness and success so self-care is not nice to have it is essential.
For me committing my resolutions to writing is critical and has helped me hit personal and professional milestones and knock things off my to do list over the years.
When that exposure gets prospects to reach out/decide quicker/hire you/buy your products it more than pays for itself.
As the subhead states, he shows why some teams pull together and others don’t.
People notice and appreciate authentic content that educates, informs and entertains which builds the foundation for a trusted relationship over time.
With so much of our lives now hybrid/virtual, it can be really hard to build connections.
Her clothes are incredibly comfy and make great gifts especially after a long day. It is a gift that shows you care, like a warm hug or cup of tea with no pretense or strings attached.
I can recommend to manage your online reputation today since you have to assume everyone checks you out online before meeting/talking:
Life lessons are going to happen, and I’ve learned that it’s better to accept and learn from them than to ignore them or try to wish them away.
I am choosing very different events than before, so my goal is to live more intentionally both at work and at home in 2023.
To make SEO even more relevant in 2023, it must be optimised for multiple mediums. Searching by text, voice and image must all be addressed.
PR is becoming more dependent on data. To tell compelling stories to your target market, important data has to be collected and scrutinized.
They teach one of the most popular courses at the business school there and take an academic approach to make a compelling argument on how and why incorporating humor in your business and as a leader can be very powerful.
Humor helps achieve business objectives, build more effective and innovative organizations, cultivate stronger bonds, and capture more lasting memories.
We’ve all been through a lot the past few years; it’s nice to balance the intensity of the pandemic with a light and fun read.
I think every project is exciting! That is the beauty of running your own business, if you are not genuinely excited by the work then you can pass on it.
I was raised to be independent, resilient, tenacious, and confident all great qualities for an entrepreneur. Both my grandfathers were successful entrepreneurs so I think it is in my DNA.
Having people you trust for judgment and advice who have your best interests in mind is priceless. Entrepreneurship can be consuming if you aren’t careful.
I love the challenge of cracking the code to see what works. More challenges create more opportunities!
We have had delayed projects when the pandemic first started and things slowed, but activity has really picked up again over the past year which is exciting.
No matter what line of work you are in especially post Covid I think making creativity a priority serves you well and makes life more fun and interesting.
When you share what you know -- your passion, your war stories, the good, bad and ugly -- the content will flow and pour out of you.
Social listening is becoming more important to derive sentiments. Social media is highly emotive so there is more context on the source of ideas, complaints, purchase behavior, and macro/micro trends.
Pitches are about convincing in every situation that the more secure your pitch elements are, the better your live performance will be.
Every time a new article hits, you speak at an event, or are quoted in the media there is value in that exposure with instant credibility through third party validation which carries a lot more weight than a paid ad.
When I was a student I looked at leaders like Meg Whitman & Ursula Burns as my role models. I started my career on Wall Street in the 80s.
You get one chance to make a great first impression so make sure every section of your LinkedIn profile is complete, with no blank spaces or gaps.
I actually spent less money on the customized gifts but found they made a much bigger impact and left a stronger impression.
To get the most out of your thought leadership, the key is to repurpose content by turning a series of articles, blog postings, or newsletters into a book or e-book.
Be active on social media so you can share your talks and content and your followers can help spread the word
Ask a question that identifies a pain point + introduce what you do + state your unique value proposition.
There will always be new shiny objects in marketing to distract you, social media and technology are 24/7 but SEO is here to stay whether it is via Google, voice, or whatever comes next.
Research shows that if there are two brands that have apparently the same products, people will be more likely to choose the one they are familiar with.
For my business the most important CX metric is how much repeat business and referrals I get from my clients.
The most important digital tool today is Google Analytics. Businesses can track their performance across channels and understand which sources bring the most traffic to the website.
We are social in nature so online and offline groups are great for referrals and community.
People love to be asked their opinions, and they’ll share feedback and tell you their problems. It’s worked wonders for me.
If you can help customers fix their biggest problems then you will always be a partner, not just a vendor.
A change in venue is always nice, and you feel so much better when you are moving and not trapped behind your desk.
With the increase in AI and automation businesses are looking for ways to automate simple and repetitive processes so that teams have more time to focus on complex tasks.
...It’s important to personalize content to acknowledge an abandoned cart or recent purchase—both in-store and online.
The goal is not to wear them down or impress them with your smarts. The goal is to connect, communicate clearly, solve the problem, and move on.
Nothing beats an in-person connection and mobile showrooms vehicles are a great way to get in touch with your audience no matter where they are.
I know having an MBA helped my resume stand out to get interviews and gave me credibility as an entrepreneur.
...People who smile and say hello first often make friends much more easily than everyone else.
By repeating what makes you unique, special, and different you will drill home those points and own specific real estate in your customers’ brains.
PR is the single most cost-efficient tool you can use to increase your profile and build your visibility in my experience.
Taking a daily walk is good, too. It doesn’t need to be long or fast – every little bit helps. And you really do feel great afterward.
I think as we age, it is important not to become a creature of habit and to keep your antenna up to be exposed to new and fresh ideas...
In my experience, you can learn a lot from books which offer practical advice whether you are someone just starting a career in sales as well as anyone managing and leading a sales team.
The best answer to this question is one that is authentic to you and reveals more about your values and character.
Brand awareness is not enough anymore. You have to stand for something...
It comes down to priorities, respect, and choosing the type of people you want to spend time with and be close to in life.
…For more than two years, everyone has largely stayed put and met virtually through Zoom or other platforms instead
Even if we stay home, we always try to toast our parents over great wine and just tell stories and remember the many great times we shared with them.
Sending an email during their transit period places your email on top, among the first they see as they open their inbox.
It is easy to get distracted by the tools and technologies but the key is to truly understand the people and culture that drives their purchase decisions.
Consumers now engage with a company in a brick and mortar store, online or mobile app, by catalog, or via social media.
By repeating what makes you unique, special, and different you will drill home those points and own specific real estate in your customers’ brains.
Until you know your business is launched I would say to put your budget into things that help fill your pipeline with customers.
Providing the team with autonomy and the opportunity to collaborate on tactics generates creative solutions so hire well and get out of the way.
Successful businesses today are also adaptable/agile, are strong communicators and have a growth mindset.
The key is to find ways to stay fresh and excited without being able to get away from your job.
Mavens & Moguls is a virtual marketing department for organizations that want access to great talent on an as needed outsourced basis.
My favorite quote is “people do not care how much you know until they know how much you care.”
Like most entrepreneurs, I am working harder and longer than ever and I have never been happier.
I think you always have to have your antenna up in marketing, watching new tools and technologies, gauging new entrants in the market and seeing where there is traction.
Now my DNA is in everything we do and I can trace every decision and sale to something I did or a decision I made and that is incredibly gratifying and fulfilling.
If we learned anything pre and post Covid it is that your online presence is only growing in importance so online marketing is key and doesn’t have to break your budget.
I think as we age, it is important not to become a creature of habit and to keep your antenna up to be exposed to new and fresh ideas, products, ways of thinking, people, and experiences.
The key to growing your online business is to make yourself accessible and easy to find. Include your contact information on all your social media profiles and content marketing materials, as well as your email signature.
Publishing a book to showcase your expertise opens doors, sets you apart from your competition and makes you a go to source for media.
My mantra since childhood has always been "I think I can!" from my favorite book, The Little Engine That Could.
According to research, consumers need to be exposed to things many times before taking note, so repurposing content is a great way to achieve this goal
Boston is a great place to start a business, We are an academic, health care, and technology center of excellence, so the local economy is strong.
With LinkedIn, you don't have to wait for a networking event to make meaningful business connections.
Turn articles into infographics and video your talks to share over social media.
I used a one-stop shop to make it easy for me to focus on running and growing my business. I have dozens of contractors in various states, and their service is seamless.
By connecting your story to a viral event and piggybacking on its coverage, you can get attention and stand out.
As you delegate and coach team members through work, avoid spending too much time explaining how things should be done.
Events are great for networking when not social distancing. You can meet prospective clients/customers, employers, employees, thought leaders, etc.
It is hard to beat the original Rocky movie from 1976 for motivation. It transcends boxing and inspires you to keep working hard and pushing through the daily struggles of life, career, love, and relationships.
People tend to respect the position even before they know the person.
To stay relevant and keep growing I try to prioritize professional development to keep skills fresh and stay on top of new trends and technologies.
A brand is a promise in the hearts & minds of your customer of a consistent experience.
Not getting what you want can lead you to magical outcomes, and you learn a lot more from failure than success in life.
The bar to attend in person events is higher now post pandemic so we have to be more prepared to get as much value as possible by being together.
For many professional service businesses like mine, LinkedIn matters most.
To be successful selling, you need to understand both your company and your prospect’s company.
Successful businesses post-pandemic must be adaptable/agile, strong communicatorsand have a growth mindset.
Go on a Listening Tour, politicians do it all the time and it is great for business too.
The name of the game to grow today is how to get your fans engaged online and here is the manual to do it.
When your articles/talks become available online send them out via social media to friends/followers/contacts.
The world is more visual when it comes to consuming content now, which makes visual-driven platforms like YouTube/Instagram/TikTok gain popularity.
We each control our own narrative so if you can change your story, you can change your life and your company too.
LinkedIn has become more than an online resume or rolodex, it is the foundation for building trusted relationships in the digital economy
Expect to see internal experts, micro-influencers, niche experts, and customers in the influencer marketing mix.
Many technical skills can be learned with training. Cultural fit and attitude matter more now.
How we deliver on our vision has changed, but I think we are more relevant today than when we started 2+ decades ago; great stories never go out of style.
I have always loved fixing things and helping out where I can. I love the challenge of cracking the code to see what works.
Successful businesses understand their product or service is about more than the transaction, they are in the relationship business.
During the pandemic, shopping became more virtual, with social media platforms emerging as an increasingly popular shopping outlet...
The founder of Mavens & Moguls is a true PR and marketing maven with over two decades of experience.
Stay ahead of the curve and optimize your marketing strategies across multiple mediums!
Personal branding is very important because if you do not brand yourself then others will brand you instead.
Content Marketing is the new PR and a great way to build your brand, increase your visibility, raise your profile and attract more clients/customers.
My latest favorite business book is by WSJ bestselling author Kindra Hall, "Choose Your Story, Change Your Life."
Realizing he lacked information about how to actually make positive changes in his life, he embarked on a journey to learn how change works.
If you’re an entrepreneur, then you know this already. The job comes with a lot of struggles. Matters are made worse by the expectations placed around entrepreneurship
In 2020, the American economy suffered the biggest financial collapse in history. But while Main Street suffered like never before, the stock market continued to reach new highs.
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In order to be the most successful and fulfilled, author Aaron Brooks believes we all need to develop real, authentic, and sincere relationships, nurturing them every day.
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Use listening tours at any time and just remember to expect the unexpected. They’re a great way to connect with new audiences. Listen with no strings attached. I had no idea what to expect and got new work as a result.
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Empowered Women in Tech: Finding First Year Success: Insights and advice to help women find success in the first year of their tech career
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More women are starting successful businesses than ever before. But what makes women leaders different? And how can others learn to capitalize on their strengths? Through interviews with hundreds of women entrepreneurs, Margaret Heffernan discovered that women are more values-oriented, more flexible, and less ego-driven than their male counterparts; as a result they're creating company cultures that are better able to meet the demands of the new economy. Heffernan's stories about real women making really serious profits is a must- read for all entrepreneurs-male or female, whether well established or just starting up-as well as anyone seeking to understand what it takes to do business toda
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Paige contributed to an e-book about the best sales advice with chapters from other thought leaders including Seth Godin, Alan Weiss, Jill Konrath, Paul Dunay and Keith Ferrazzi.
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Paige also wrote the foreword to a textbook on Entrepreneurial Marketing being used at leading business schools.
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As the host of MSNBC’s “Your Business” and a seasoned entrepreneur, JJ Ramberg provides the tools to lift your business to the next level in “It’s Your Business.”
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and only female authored book in the top 25 books in business on How-to information, inspiration and empowerment for your life and career from six and seven figure women from all over the world!
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This Legacy book contains 65 heart-warming stories and sayings from over 45 people -- authors; speakers; professional athletes; a 4-time Olympic medalist; a Retired US Marine (43 years of service) who received the Medal of Honor and 4 Purple hearts -- the list goes on and on!
Likeable Business’ Offers Keys to Staying Alive in the Social Age
FINDING FULFILLMENT IN THE SPIRITUAL AGE is a compilation of tips, advice, inspiration, and stories from women who are teaching others through their past awakenings how to live in this new age (the Spiritual Age).
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In such a challenging workforce climate, “career enhancement” means many different things: procuring that first job, keeping an existing position, returning to the workforce after a long hiatus, riding the waves of unemployment, starting an entrepreneurial venture...
her own experience with that of hundreds of women to identify the biggest challenges and the best solutions that women face today. From VPs of Fortune 100 companies to entrepreneurs to women just starting their careers, she traces the patterns and themes underlying women's power, choices, love, sex, money, and many other vital topics for working women. Without sugar-coating the facts, preaching, or oversimplifying, she offers solutions and shares the truth about the working world: women's choices are limited, you can't have it all, women do work differently from men and, yes, it is possible to find success amidst all of this and feel good about it.
Failure hits you once again, what are you going to do? Run away, hide in your room, and never again put yourself out there because you simply can’t go on feeling like a total loser - rejected, embarrassed, and humiliated. For sure, if anyone else knew you failed, people will think less of you and or worse yet, give you a piece of their mind, “You aren’t going anywhere with your business idea; Go get a job and live your passion as a hobby; Your goals aren’t realistic; You’ve been working on your dreams for years… don’t you think it’s time you call it quits?” Maybe IT’S YOU who put your real dreams on hold because LIFE KICKED IN. Forget your dreams – you’re wasting your life away just trying to deal with the realities surrounding you.
Innovative Women features the top female entrepreneurs including Mavens & Moguls CEO and their secrets of the trade. It goes behind the scenes into the female-led businesses and shares the guiding principles, tools and strategies that serve them in competing.
Hot New Release in 3 categories including Top 10 in Women & Business
What do successful women have in common? And...if you learned their secrets of success, would you feel motivated to reach your personal goals or overwhelmed?
All entrepreneurs start their companies because they think it will give them freedom-freedom to work on their own terms, be their own bosses, and create a company that meets their needs. But so often the opposite happens, and they end up encumbered by businesses that bear little to no resemblance to those they had envisioned. They wind up working for their companies, but their companies don't work for them.
A proven approach to revenue-generating marketing and client development
Professional Services Marketing is a fully field-tested and research-based approach to marketing and client development for professional services firms. The book, now in its Second Edition, covers five key areas that are critical for firms that want to grow and become more profitable: creating a marketing and growth strategy; establishing a brand and reputation; implementing a marketing communications program; executing lead generation strategies; and developing business by winning new clients. You will also read real-world case studies that illustrate major points, as well as quotes and stories from well-respected professionals in the industry.
#1 New Release in the Consulting category
#2 Kindle Book in the Consulting category
#4 Overall Bestseller in the Consulting Book
MECE (ME-SEE) stands for Mutually Exclusive, Collectively Exhaustive. It is a technique used in management consulting to facilitate a structured approach to solving some of the world's most complex business problems.
Easy-to-Implement Ideas to Inspire Loyalty, Get New Customers, and Make a Lasting Impression.
30+ Tips and Tidbits from Coaches & Consultants Who Have Been There, Done That.
Filled with case studies and anecdotes, How to Talk to Customers demystifies the most critical aspect of customer service,
This eBook is a compilation of their predictions in the areas of AI and machine learning, marketing automation, mobile marketing, content marketing, marketing analytics, cross-channel marketing, social media marketing, SEO, and more.
This eBook is a compilation of their predictions in the areas of AI and machine learning, marketing automation, mobile marketing, content marketing, marketing analytics, cross-channel marketing, social media marketing, SEO, and more.
For "achieving exceptional marketing success in their local community and enhancing the positive image of small business through service to their customers and our community. These exceptional companies help make the Cambridge area a great place to live, work and play."
Mavens & Moguls receives 2013 Massachusetts Excellence Award September 16th 2013 - Mavens & Moguls has been selected for the 2013 Massachusetts Excellence Award amongst all its peers and competitors by the Small Business Institute for Excellence in Commerce (SBIEC).
Mavens & Moguls CEO honored in 2003 as one of 30 "Extraordinary Bostonians" for her ideas, actions, values and outstanding contributions to the city. Boston Event Guide featured her as one of the "exceptional people who has performed outstanding leadership in a professional, social or volunteer role, inspired one or many through donating time, money and a good heart, and had a breakthrough idea or value that has brought people together."
Feel free to contact us if our experts can be helpful sharing our knowledge and expertise at your upcoming conference, offsite or event.
Paige may tell you they are my marketing consultants but I call Mavens & Moguls my business consigliere, I do not make an important business decision without talking to one of the Mavens on my team! 
