No cream is going to soothe the 5 burning questions that Enterprise Radio host Eric Dye has for HERO|farm founders Reid Stone and Shaun Walker. Listen in as the duo hit the digital airwaves on the Entrepreneur Podcast Network.
Fox 8 Live asked us what we thought were the most important trends for small and mid-sized businesses to pay attention to in 2012. We summed it up with M.S.R.P. (Mobile, Strategy, Resourcefulness and Price) Here’s the in-depth answers. All of these tactics certainly aren’t for every industry and we definitely didn’t cover everything, but we think there’s a few things in here that might be worth a look.
WHAT'S THE NUMBER ONE TREND SMALL BUSINESSES SHOULD FOCUS ON IN 2012?
Mobile – We live attached and sleep next to our smartphones. Now this stretches into the entire online universe but step back and see how your brand fits into our mobile world. For what terms are your customers searching? Is your Google Place page information accurate? When they land on your website, is it optimized for a mobile screen? If they check their Fox 8 news app, is your add there? Somewhere in the neighborhood of 7 million Android devices and iPhones were activated on Christmas day and it’s estimated that 1 billion apps were downloaded in the week between Christmas and New Years, thanks to the man in red. To say that your attention should be here would be an understatement.
HOW CAN A SMALL TO MEDIUM SIZED BUSINESS WITH A MINIMAL BUDGET CAPITALIZE ON MOBILE?
Strategy – You’ll see a lot of people point to social media, but it’s more than just a Twitter page and done. Give people a reason to talk about you. Start with the basics: Who is YOUR customer? What are they into? Maybe they’re using new apps like Pinterest or Instagram more than Facebook. Find ways to use these new mediums as a way for people to discover your brand. After all, if you don’t know how a customer SHOULD find your brand, then how will they.
Once you’ve determined who your customer is and how it is they should be interacting, make sure the process is seamless. (Aggravation can kill the buying mood faster than a credit card bill.) How are they becoming aware of your product? What attributes do they discuss? Who do they seek for an opinion? More specifically, are you reaching out with an email on a regular basis to stay top of mind? Give your customer a reason to refer their friends. Want to take it even farther? Build your own app. The site Biznessapps.com can make you a first-mover in your field for less than $200. This was our favorite tool in 2011…So please bring it back to us sharpened.
IN ADDITION TO A FAMILIARITY WITH DIGITAL MEDIUMS,
WHAT ARE OTHER MARKETING SKILLS THAT SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS NEED?
Resourcefulness – Get creative. Plain and simple. Your greatest asset as a small business is your ability to act and react quickly. Find stories in the news that apply to your industry and let the ideas fly. If you sell pants and another Anthony Weiner-esque scandal occurs, have a sale! New ideas will make sure your customers (and competitors) view you as an innovator in your field. And don’t forget the value of well-timed press release. Those are still free by the way. I don’t care if you fix cars or sell plungers, be different. We often get so bogged down in the day to day that we rarely step back and ask ourselves how we’re actually different from our competitors. Have you dropped your product from space lately? (Just no flash mobs…please.)
Also, learn your way around Youtube. It is the television now for many of us. At 2 billion views a day, you need to develop your brand’s community. It’s easy once you try.
IS THERE ANYTHING THAT BUSINESSES SHOULD BE WARY OF IN THE NEW YEAR?
Price - The Internet will be your best friend and your fiercest competitor. It’s already happening, but in 2012 you’ll see the boiling point reached for consumers who are shopping in store and then ordering online. Smartphone apps like Amazon Price Check, CouponSherpa and Red Laser make it easy for a person to find exactly what they’re looking for and order it elsewhere before they ever leave YOUR store. My suggestion, take 3 seconds to do the same research yourself. How much cheaper is it actually online?
Most consumers now understand that there is a premium to be paid for personal service. Having a living, breathing person with whom you can discuss the pros and cons of a product is worth paying a little extra and make sure your employees know this. At the same time, be wary of how much that markup is. Additional ideas for moving your customer from the aisle to the register are to plant your own coupons. Sites like Retailmenot.com and FatWallet.com are just a few of the sites that allow you to post your own. Also, promoting daily contests and giveaways that require an in-store check-in on sites like Facebook or FourSquare guarantee that you’re customers are actually coming in and that they’re interacting with your brand for their network to see. Make sure to include the URL for your website, it’s great for your search engine optimization (SEO)…But that’s so 2011, right?
Congrats to HERO|farmers Reid Stone and Shaun Walker, who are #13 on the Top 20 Young Entrepreneurs of 2011 presented by YFS Magazine! All that hard work and the envelope of unmarked bills is finally paying off!
Thanks to YFSEntrepreneur.com for the incredible honor! See the rankings here.
H|f's Brand This™ talk radio show on the Your15Minutes Radio network hits the airwaves again as HERO|farmer's Shaun Walker and Reid Stone talk with fellow entrepreneurs on the most effective ways to brand their products and services. Listen to the latest episode by clicking below.
Episode Three's Guests:
Elizabeth Edwards and Sally Eastman, Creators of the Secret Pocket Pillow
Khadi Madama, Owner of Madama Wellness and Yoga Consulting
Kathy Steck, Founder of DinerWear
Entrepreneurs—if you are interested in getting advice on how to brand your product and/or service, email Guest@your15minutesradio.com and you could be chosen to be a guest live-on-air on Brand This.
by Sofia Qureshi, Graphic Designer
As the year comes to an end, most of us are left with full bellies, empty wallets and having spent a lot of time in front of the TV. Over that time we’ve been blasted with tons of commercials, but do we really remember any of them? Here’s a short, sweet list of the most creative and memorable ads of 2011. Why do I have the authority to say they are the best of 2011? Nostradamus predicted it. And if it’s online, it’s gospel.
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BEST COMMERCIALS OF 2011
Drumroll please....da-da-da-da-da-da-da-dummm.
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It may seem simple at first but if you watch more than the first few seconds you’ll see this ad is deep. The use of basic shapes and analog symbols greatly illustrates how Nokia’s system helps make the mountains of data that surround us more useful through better personalization of services.
Each frame transitions seamlessly into the next, drawing the viewer into a world like that of a childhood picture book. No text is used and everything is illustrated with simple vector graphics, vivid colors and soothing narrative. The brilliant script and narration combined with beautiful colors and imagery help make this advertisement memorable.
Mercedes: Escape The Map
Those crazy Brits do it again. Although you won’t see this ad on TV (it was for an online microsite), we’ll let it slide since it is freaking awesome. Set in a video game-like atmosphere packed with ominous scenery and grim music, the ad pulls the consumer in with its unusual point of view (first person). You almost instantly feel less like someone is trying to sell you something and more like you’re being entertained. You’ll notice after the first few seconds you actually become vested in the story. What’s going on here? Is this a preview for a movie? Will they make it? More movie than ad, this spot gets a big thumbs up from for its out-of-the-box approach to marketing a car.
If you go to the microsite, you are forced to interact with the ad…or Maria gets blurred. Oh, and buy a Mercedes.
Kia Sol : Party Rock Anthem
Kia’s dancing hamsters are back…and doing The Shuffle. But of course they’re back. Hamsters breed like…uh, hamsters, and people like them. In a second carnation of the popular rodents, the ad begins in a war-torn, video game-like world where everything is gray and bleak—That is until the bright green Kia Sol and its passenger hamsters arrive.
Like the original spot, the furry animals dance to the infectious Party Rock Anthem by LMFAO. Though, the Kia Hampsters are nothing new, this ad makes the list because not only is there a pop-culture reference, but also a video game reference and appeals to a larger audience than its last commercial. The ad went viral, had dozens of people "shuffling" and even more wishing they had their own dancing hamsters.
Chipotle: Back To The Start
The best spots are the ones that tell a story—And this spot tells a good one without saying a single word (excluding the music, of course). Using Coldplay’s familiar and magnetic song The Scientist, the spot turns the tune on its head by having Willie Nelson cover it, changing the style of music from alternative rock to country. The visuals are anything but typical and open on a cartoon-like world that narrates a wonderful story. There isn’t any narration in the entire spot, thus relying solely on the music and graphics to tell the story of creating a better world. Not long after watching this spot, reports began surfacing that it made me cry like a baby. I can neither confirm nor deny those reports at this time.
Well, there you have it—The best commercials of 2011 as chosen by me and predicted by Nostradamus...or something like that. Now on to 2012!
