Integrating and Using Social Media for your home Business

It's no secret that we're living and working in a digital age.

That's why it's vital that you utilise social media for your home business or company. We're already living in an age full of helpful technology and digital networking, and connecting with other people and businesses is easier than ever, thanks to the wonders of the internet.

Whether it be through Facebook, Google+ or Twitter; it's crucial to develop and maintain an online presence. Through a succerssful use and utilisation of Social Media, you'll find that not only will your customer or consumer base grow substantially, but the level at which you'll be able to develop and converse will feel much more personal, which is good for both the customer and you.

My business partner and I have recently started our own hlepful course teaching other small home businesses how to best utilise and grow through social media. All we need is your name and email address, and we will send you anything and everything you need to know.

You can sign up by clicking here.

Getting your Business to Grow through Lead Generation

When your business depends upon getting new leads regularly, there are some options that are open to you which can help you to achieve it. In today's technologically advanced climate, there are many businesses that tend to focus on electronic means of contacting potential customers, such as through social media or email marketing. Although these can be effective, you should never overlook the possibility of direct mail and using those lists in order to increase the success of your business substantially. Here are some of the benefits that will be seen when you use this type of marketing and mail your list physically instead of automatically. 

Perhaps one of the most important things that need to be considered when choosing direct mail over email marketing is that the majority of people look at their mail that they get in their mailboxes every day. Of course, some people are going to toss some of the information without looking at it but a vast majority of those individuals are going to sort through it without delay. This gets your message in front of those individuals easily and, compared to email marketing, the response can be substantially higher. 

Another benefit to using direct mail is that you can specifically target groups of people that have an interest in what you are offering. It is important for you to consider this, not only when using direct mail but when purchasing the list of individuals that you will be mailing. The more focused the list is, the more likely it is going to be that you are going to see results from that list. 

Have you thought about the customization that is possible when mailing people instead of using electronic means of contacting them? When most people gather email lists, they are only going to gather the most basic information from the potential customer. When you have a mailing list, you not only have the physical address but you often have their name and perhaps some other information as well. You can use this information in order to customize the mailing which will, in turn, increase the response. This is also something that should be considered when you are gathering a list or purchasing it from the company that generates leads. 

Finally, you can measure the results of mailing those individuals in order to see if any changes need to be made to the mailing. Of course, you would always want to consider changing the copy and testing in order to increase the response. Some of the ways that you can track the response of a direct-mail campaign include sending out coupons with specific information that either needs to be filled out on your website or to be mailed back to your company. This can assist you in doing a split test as well, allowing you to easily see which is going to be more effective so that you can make those changes and send the future mailings to a larger list to increase the response.

Should Your Small Business Advertise on Facebook?

Original Post from Mashable. Authored by Business News Daily

Conflicting reports have shown Facebook ads to be both an effective and ineffective means for businesses to target their advertising dollars. But despite those dueling findings, small businesses may not want to automatically write off advertising on Facebook, especially if it is done correctly and expectations are managed.

A report by Reuters/Ipsos which found that 80% of people said comments and advertisements on Facebook had not led them to make a purchase. On the other hand, a comScore report — which was co-sponsored by Facebook — showed that the ads did help purchases, sometimes as much as 38% over those not exposed to Facebook ads. Despite the different opinions in both those studies, they are both right… in a way.

BusinessNewsDaily spoke with several experts about what small business owners should know before deciding about whether or not to spend money on ads on Facebook.

[5 Ways to Not Lose Money on Facebook]

Are Facebook Worth it for Small Businesses?

“It really depends. They definitely can be for some, but frequently aren’t for others,” said Tom Demers, co-founder and managing partner at Measured SEM, a search engine marketing firm. “One of the strongest uses for Facebook ads is to get people in a very specific demographic to like your Facebook page so that you can then message to them over time. For instance, if you’re a small local restaurant, you can get people in the area to like your page, and then when you do things like offer coupons or promote events, you can incentivize them to share those promotions so that their friends see it, which provides a unique viral effect you can’t with many forms of advertising.”

Viral ads, however, are not the only way that Facebook ads can help a small business, Demers said.

“Similarly, some small businesses can have success in promotion,” he said. “The businesses that often get poor results with Facebook ads are those that treat them like other advertising mediums and try to push hard to a sale. Facebook tends to work much better at promoting softer offers such as free giveaways, discounts or simply getting users to become fans of your business so that you can convert them into leads and sales down the line.”

What Benefits Do Facebook Ads Provide to Small Business Owners?

“Facebook ads build a list, just like email or direct mail marketing, but with much more control and data,” said Jason Keath, CEO and founder of Social Fresh, a social media education company. “Compare this to the yellow pages, radio, TV, print where you get the ad, but you do not get the list. With Facebook ads, business owners can create a growing community of potential customers that will be with them for years potentially.”

Simply put, Facebook ads, when used effectively, are able to benefit greatly from word-of-mouth advertising in a way that other ads cannot.

“On Facebook, you see other fans of a business or product. You see your friends like them. These things matter and make for more effective marketing,” Keath said. “Lastly, Facebook offers more options and data than any other online marketing channel. Ever. I can target an ad to editors that work at BusinessNewsDaily. I can target an ad at hiring managers for The New York Times. I can target people in my ZIP code that love BBQ. The options are endless. That gives a business access to marketing gold and relevance.”

How Effective Are Facebook Ads?

“First with Facebook, there is less competition for keywords than there is on Google or other pay-per-click sites,” said Tyler Barnett, founder and president of Tyler Barnett PR. “One of the biggest benefits for Facebook advertising is that you are reaching your target demographic in their comfort zone. When a person is logged into their Facebook page, they are comfortable. When they see your ad on their Facebook page there is a certain amount of trust that is inherent and that you don’t get when seeing a random link on a Google search.”

That trust can be a particularly important factor in the effectiveness of advertisements on Facebook, Barnett said.

“Typically with Facebook ads, you can go to the person’s Facebook page,” Barnett said. “The main difference between a Facebook page and a traditional web page is you can see customer feedback. If someone clicks on your Facebook ad and goes to your page, they can actually read what other people are saying about you. That helped build trust among your client base.”

How Much Do Facebook Ads Cost?

“Facebook ads can vary wildly in cost depending on who you’re trying to target,” Demers said. “Technically, the minimum bid for a click is a penny, and according to a Google AdWords] with other advertisers,” he said. “And you’ll frequently have to pay significantly more per click. As an advertiser you can also control how much you spend by setting daily and ‘lifetime’ budgets for campaigns.”

The price of Facebook ads is among their most appealing features.

“Facebook ads can cost as little as $10 a day and as much as you want,” Keath said. “We recommend a starting budget of $500 to $1,000 to get your feet wet. Test several ad types, images, landing pages with small investments of $10 a day. When you get it dialed in, pick your best performing ad and put a larger budget behind it.”

Barnett said small businesses should at least consider the option of Facebook ads because of their low cost.

Benefits of Home Business

Running an online home business has many benefits. If you are considering researching home business ideas, here are a few of the positive things about starting a home business online.

- An online home business is very easy to start. Previously if you were to start a home business it would involve a lot of planning and work to get your business successfully off the ground.

Nowadays, with the internet that is no longer the case, as anyone with an internet connection can start an online home business.

Affiliate marketing is a good example of how easy it is to start an online business. You can join an affiliate program and be promoting your product online literally in a few minutes.

- The start-up costs are very low. It is not going to cost you much money at all, although costs will vary depending on the type of home business you start.

Affiliate programs are free to join and many residual income opportunities will cost you less than $100 to get started. If you choose to do other things like article writing or blog posting these will not cost you any money at all.

- You can outsource what you can’t do yourself. If you are new to working online you will not yet have mastered the internet marketing skills required to promote a business. But you don’t have to worry about that as it is easy to find people to do things for you at a reasonable price.

Fiverr is a great website where you can hire people for five dollars per project and Easy Outsource and Odesk are other websites where you can hire employees.

- You have the opportunity to earn unlimited income. Your goal no doubt is to make as much money as you can.

You know exactly what your monthly salary is when you have a job and this makes it easier to budget and plan your life, however, it does not make is easy to achieve your dreams.

With an online home business you can make as much money as you want. Once you are making money with your first website you can then increase your income by starting another one and so on. There is no limit to what you can do online.

Consider working with people to make money through joint ventures as well as earning off the efforts of others with network marketing opportunities.

- You don’t need high skill levels. To start and run a successful online home business does not mean that you need to have a college education

Whilst you will need to master some internet marketing skills to drive traffic to your site, anyone can learn these if they are prepared to spend the time working at it.

The above a just some of the many benefits of having an online home business. It is very easy and cheap to start an online business from home and with work can be very profitable.

Driving Traffic to your Blog - Jargon Free

In today's uber-competitive and ever-growing online business industry, getting traffic to your site can mean the difference between having your company flop so hard that you lose everything, or, quite conversely - having it blossom and potentially gaining a host of new clients!


So the first step is simple (assuming you've already got your business a webpage of it's own).
You advertise it. 
Now I don't mean spam other businesses or your Facebook friends with links saying 'click this, click this!'. I think we can all agree that's just bad etiquette. Instead, it's good to start by finding other similar businesses or blogs online within your niche or expertise. Do they have a forum? Do they allow comments on their page? 
If so - why not read what others in your business area are talking about, and what the latest news is within your niche? Engage others and maybe have a discussion on your opinions and feelings on whatever topic it is that you're talking about. Most forums and blogs that allow you to comment have a simple set-up when you write your post. They'll ask for your name, your e-mail address and then they'll ask (and this is the important bit) for your website. This is where the magic happens. You will link back to your website here, and then others can choose to click that link if they wish. This is called 'Back-linking'.


Back-linking plays a very important role in online business; especially if you're running a business from home or utilising a blogging platform (which I assume you are, since you're reading my blog right now).
I won't go into the small and frivolous details of it, but the reason you'll want to back-link is because of something called 'SEO' (Search Engine Optimisation).
What SEO means, for you - is that search engines, such as Google or Bing will check your website every day, and automatically check how many back links your site has leading to it (from other sites or forums) and put simply - the more back-links you have; the higher your website will rank when people search for whatever business it is you run.


For example, say you're running a home business like I am, and that your business sells stationary to other businesses or individuals. If you've been commenting and posting on other websites, linking your own - then Google will see this and put you higher up on the search page every time somebody searches for 'Home stationary company' or 'Home business stationary' and other combinations of whatever it that your business site is about.


So remember, the key to getting views on your site - which in turn mean more customers or clients, is first finding other similar businesses and engaging people that are interested in your niche.

5 Successful tips from Entrepreneurs

This morning whilst browsing Entrepreneur.com I came across a very handy article on the do's and don'ts of entrepreneurship. More can by found here http://www.entrepreneur.com/blog/223745

Every entrepreneur faces challenges, and many of them will tell you it's how you handle those challenges that will determine success or failure as a business owner.

 1. Put your networking skills to work. "Find people you can learn from," says Nelson, founder and inventor of the Good Nite Lite, who first created his product to solve his son's difficulties falling asleep. "What you may not need from them today, you may need tomorrow."

2. Don't be swayed by naysayers. When Rhodes was pushed by bankers and experts to start manufacturing her hand-blown glass candleholders in China to save money, the experiment backfired. "We lost a fortune," says Rhodes, founder of Glassybaby, which donates a percentage of revenue to programs that help cancer patients. "I listened to people who didn't understand Glassybaby. It's all about the story and there was nowhere to fit 'Made in China' in my story." 

3. Keep taking risks. "Our personal motto is: 'Fail cheap, fail quick,'" Nelson says. "Don't be afraid to try."

4. Hire your weaknesses. "Remember as an entrepreneur, you're probably a big-picture person and the details aren't as important, but they will be and it'll come back to haunt you," Rhodes warns. "If you're not good at [something], make sure you have someone beside you that is, as you grow."

5. Don't be afraid to share your idea. "There's always the opportunity where they may not be able to help you, but somebody else will," Nelson says.