Starting out, we at Stone’s Throw often coach clients with smaller and medium-sized businesses to use social media initially as a way to demonstrate vitality, interest, and enthusiasm by showing activity on social media platforms. Let the world see your public face – especially if your potential customers use social media. Ensure that your posts are consistent with your brand image and messaging, and please make sure that you have a system for post approvals, monitoring, and responding.

If social media advertising will indeed add value to your marketing efforts, there are a few terms you’ll want to know:

Awareness ads: Paid social media advertising is a way to create energy and push your posts into the newsfeeds of your selected audiences. These ads are often referred to as awareness ads; they boost awareness by allowing audiences to see your ad (“impression”). Awareness advertising is often the least expensive of social media placements.

Conversion ads: To encourage your audience to take some kind of action (visit your webpage, make a phone call, complete a form, etc.), social media ads have to work harder and typically cost more. They require the user to move from a passive audience member to someone who takes some kind of action. This is often referred to as conversion.

Engagement rate: Most social media platforms use metrics to describe the types of interaction your posts generate. Engagement rate refers to the number of likes, shares, and comments your posted content receives.

Hashtag: You can supercharge your posted content by tagging keywords with a hashtag (#) – what some of us used to call a pound sign. When a # precedes a word or phrase (without any word spaces), the social media platform sees the phrase as a searchable keyword. This can be especially helpful when looking for people talking about a particular marketing issue online. #smallbizmarketing

Should your business advertise on Facebook or LinkedIn? Here are a few things to consider.

Unlike traditional print advertising in which we pay for the amount of space on a page and the number of issues in which an ad will appear (for example), social media advertising offers many avenues to get ad messaging in front of potential customers. The costs are determined, not just on a set amount per exposure to that audience, but in competition with others vying for that same audience. If it sounds like we’re talking about an auction, we are. For much social media advertising, you actually bid on getting your ad in front of your audience. You will notice terms like pay-per-click (PPC) associated with bid-based advertising. Other options of setting fixed prices to reach verified target markets on social media require a larger investment and are available mostly to big brand advertisers.

Social media platforms often say that cost is both the overall amount you spend on advertising and the cost of each desired result. This is overly simplified. However, if your desired result is to increase your number of Facebook followers or garner more LinkedIn comments, you could say that if you spend $100 a month and get five new followers each month, the cost of follower acquisition is $20 per follower. (We say this is overly simplified because there can be many other factors that influence cost, including your time, messaging development, ad and artwork creation, etc.)

When we at Stone’s Throw think of social media advertising as part of the overall promotional activity of a smaller to medium-sized business, we focus much more intently on moving prospects closer to you. How can we get that prospective customer close enough to have a conversation? That conversation can happen on a social media platform, yes, but for businesses like ours, we want to have that conversation privately. We want to ask questions that reveal challenges, exchange ideas, and answer questions as the consultative souls we are. So, one of our promotional goals is to spur a one-on-one exchange, either through email, telephone, video conference, or an in-person meeting. If social media advertising can get us to that goal, we think it could be worth a trial run. Start small. Assess. Branch out.

Just starting out on social media? Here are a few things you should know.

Larger companies typically understand how to leverage their marketing efforts to grow business. Part of that understanding is manifest in an institutionalized lead qualification and sales process. Salespeople undertake rigorous training on the features and advantages of products and services, how to use recommended marketing materials, and even how to overcome customer objections. But, having a workable sales process helps businesses of all sizes.

You likely have a sales process already, even if you haven’t memorialized it in print. Have you tried writing it down? Not only will it help you save time with each prospect, it will help you identify where you could lighten up or fortify activities. We know it’s all about making connections and building relationships, not about getting caught up in data entry and recordkeeping, but outlining your process is likely to help streamline your efforts for optimal effectiveness.

Whether you are an entrepreneur or you market a growing mid-size business, reviewing the phases of your company’s selling process will help you ensure you have all the tools necessary to build your business with increased opportunities. Download our quick guide to getting organized with your sales process.

For ideas on how to position and market your business, let’s talk. Give your salesperson all the communications material needed for optimal performance: introductory email content, an informative website, capabilities brochures, spec and sell sheets, email marketing campaigns, and even telephone scripts for initial calls and recommendations for online CRMs.

Leverage our customized marketing plan roadmap to get you started.

Spend more time on what works and less time chasing white rabbits. MarketingCare provides smaller to mid-size organizations with insightful feedback and step-by-step recommendations for marketing with impact.

You’ll receive:

•  A one-on-one interview with a marketing professional who knows the right questions to ask to help determine what your business or organization does, the market(s) it serves, where it’s been and where you’d like it to go

•  A brief overview of your company background and general marketing objectives

•  Recommendations for marketing and promotional activities geared to your business’s objectives

•  Step-by-step suggestions for creating presence, softening the market, and building relationships with your clients, customers or members

•  A review of your customized plan with a marketing professional

•  An easy-to-follow guide

Use the plan in whatever way works best for you.
•  Develop your marketing materials and promotional activities on your own.
•  Contract Stone’s Throw for the support and services you need to develop and execute one or all of our recommendations. On request, we will provide you with pricing for creative and other services at no obligation.

“Clients get overwhelmed with the day-to-day demands of running a business or organization. Marketing can become a grinding necessity or is guided by bursts of energetic focus after weeks of neglect. It’s part of our job to help them feel some relief. When that space opens up, we can see clients becoming excited again. Everything begins to click.”

We’ll provide the careful devotion to the details.

For more than 20 years we’ve worked closely with clients in fields that range from professional services to education, and from biotechnology to healthcare. We understand the unique dynamics of working with smaller companies that have the ability to react quickly to shifts in market climate or sudden business development opportunities; you want to work with a team that will help you rise to the occasion. You also value a creative partner who provides checks and balances between planned activities and expectations.

Contact us for information on our flat fee for the entrepreneur and small to mid-size businesses and organizations.

Beyond a marketing plan, how can we partner with you to move your business forward?

For a select number, Stone’s Throw provides virtual CMO support, functioning as the business’s marketing department. As a Chief Marketing Officer would, we initiate and guide marketing plan recommendations and develop communications strategies that align with the company’s overall growth objectives.  As a marketing manager and department would, we also provide the creative services, design and copywriting, art direction, production and programming that bring the company’s marketing plan to life. From broad goal setting, to day-to-day marketing tasks, we work side-by-side with you to build forward momentum. It all starts with a plan, even if that means determining a few loose parameters now, and establishing more focused guidelines later.

Over the course of nearly 25 years, we’ve had the privilege of working with many fine businesses and organizations. Those most successful at engaging their target audiences – and manifesting brand language that resonates with customers– have one important characteristic in common; they understand the power of planning.

Strategic marketing communications for your business are just a stone’s throw away.

Consultation  •  Strategy  •  Writing  •  Design  •  Integrated marketing programs  •  Individual projects

© Stone’s Throw, Inc.  All rights reserved.