As Theo Paphitis, King of the high street, self-confessed Shopkeeper and Dragons Den star celebrates his 60th birthday, a group of over 160 businesses from #SBS, an initiative of Theo’s, have come together to say happy birthday and thank him in a rather unique way by supporting the #NHS70/ThankYouNHS campaign of fellow #SBS winner, Nigel Richardson of Secret Hamper.
This group of businesses have contributed towards sponsoring 70 bespoke sharing hampers for the staff at Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital (RMCH), a hospital that Theo has supported over the last 10 years and is a cause close to his heart. These generous businesses have come from the North of England to Scotland and as far south as France to show their thanks in many ways. Nigel said “Theo has given so much to small businesses over the years who are part of SBS, some of which have had life changing opportunities. When I realised that this year saw his 60th Birthday I knew we had to do something special, but what do you get a multimillionaire?”
The aim of the #NHS70 project is to invite businesses, celebrities and individuals throughout the UK to recognise and celebrate 70 years of the NHS. Recognising the wonderful care given by the unsung heroes working at all levels within the organisation by sponsoring bespoke hampers to say a big Thank You for dedicating their lives caring for others.” Once the hampers are delivered, the contents are shared out and can reach 1000s of staff, giving the morale in the hospital and wards a real boost.
Having previously taken part in the #ManyHands appeal for RMCH that Theo spearheaded, Nigel thought how apt it would be to get #SBS winners involved with the #ThankYouNHS initiative. Nigel went on to say “RMCH was always going to be on our list but how special would it be if that specific delivery was just made up of SBS winners? With it also being RMCH’s 10th Birthday too. It was like it was meant to be!”
#SBS, Small Business Sunday, is a weekly initiative set up by Theo in 2010 and it now has well over 2200 winners and supports small businesses in the UK. Both the SBS and NHS initiatives are passionate about giving back and the feel good factor as well as raising profiles, recognition and exposure and increasing awareness. Happy Birthday Theo and Thank You!

When you are looking to outsource a project or piece of work or even a department, then what do you look for in that person or business?

Experience is one of the main areas. For me and Pinpoint Marketing, we believe we are a choice and an option to be considerd by small business owners looking for a consultant and an agency to outsource their marketing to. Why? During our many years of marketing experience, we have worked on the client side of the business as well as for the agency itself. Therefore we can bring all this experience, understanding and empathy to you and your business, so you get the most well rounded, thorough and experienced answer and marketing service.  With us being a small agency, you also get that personal touch and will benefit from working 1 to 1 with us and therefore we will nurtue a great working relationship together. Therefore, adding value.

We have also set up our own business too so we are well aware of the pitfalls in running a business as well as the great side of being a business owner too. We are also award winning too as a business, not once, but twice! Find out more here.

If you are wondering how and if we can help you and your business then the answer is yes we can and when do you want us to start. We would love a conversation with you and your business to help you move from where you are today and where you want your business to be, marketing wise. Get in touch.

To all you working mums with #backtoschool and the start or return of the school runs, you’ve got this! Whether it is your child’s first day or they are returning to the same school but in a new year, try and not get overwhelmed by mum guilt. Easy to say I know.

Most of us need to work for financial reasons whether we are employed or self employed. And we strive for that elusive work life balance with our family life and home and our jobs or businesses. My advice, and I am professing to being an expert, is to just do your best and that’s all you can do.

Try and take if you can, the positives from working and having a career or being a business owner. For example, in my mind, you are showing your children that hard work pays off and demonstrating the importance of a good work ethic. These are life lessons they will learn from. The children I’m sure will benefit in the end from your good example.

On a more tongue in cheek moment, it is ok to sometimes accept some days you can’t submit the perfect proposal AND cook a homemade dinner from scratch. Neither somedays will you be able to pick the kids up from school if they are ill or need you and make that client meeting. Being a working mum (and of course a working Dad!) is a juggling act and one that sometimes isn’t easy. But, be the best version of you that you can be and I’m sure your children will then be this too!

Have a good term!

Dr Jeffrey Lant, a marketing expert, developed a concept called the ‘Rule of Seven‘.  Within this concept, Lant states that to penetrate the buyer’s consciousness and to make significant penetration in a given market, you have to contact the prospect a minimum of 7 times within a set period.

This concept or process can also be referred to as drip fed marketing. This way looks at constantly feeding marketing messages to the receiver. This consistent approach ensures that the message gets through slowly but surely, which feeds perfectly into the notion or theory of the 7 touches.

So, what could these 7 “touches” look like in reality? Here is an example:

1 Send Email marketing eg automated newsletter (if receiver consented to receive)

2 Make a phone call/telemarketing (if receiver consented to receive)

3 Social media connection

Or you could break down this connection to:

LinkedIn connection

Facebook connection

Twitter connection

Instagram connection

4 Social media retweet or comment/like/share

5 Networking event attendance or meet up

6 PR/article of interest/share

7 Send a letter or postcard (direct mail)

These 7 touches or types of contact can be implemented according to your budget, resource and experience. They can be adjusted depending on your timings and what social media profiles you use etc etc. Remember, quality over quantity.

Marketing, dare I say it, isn’t rocket science but it is very much a case of being organised, proactive and have a well thought out and well rounded strategy in place. events to make contact with the right contact and to further build on the relationship

A well-rounded Marketing strategy or a multi channel marketing plan will include all activities within the marketing mix, from offline marketing such as networking to online marketing such as social media.

Pinpoint recommends getting into routine of weekly/monthly or regular marketing activity and developing a process you can roll out time and time again. Pinpoint Marketing offers packages covering marketing planning and strategy brainstorming, so take a look as to how we can help … http://pinpointmarketingconsultancy.co.uk/packages.html

 

 

 

 

 

See Pixabay

When I am working with clients, I am getting asked more and more about social media posts and feeds and stories. What are they? What is the difference? Why do one and not the other?

So here is a brief overview for you.

Facebook

According to a Facebook help post, stories on Facebook allow you to share photos and videos with your friends and followers that will only be available to your selected audience for 24 hours. After 24 hours, you can keep the stories you’ve shared in your story archive, which will only be visible to you.

A BT.com article says stories is effectively another News Feed, but one that relies on visual rather than written information. It requires you to select the Stories section, rather than just posting to Facebook as you normally would. Stories can be shared with friends and to groups.

Instagram

Instagram Stories is a feature that lets users post photos and videos that vanish after 24 hours. The feature feels much like Snapchat Stories according to this article I read. And like Snapchat, the photos and videos shared can’t be viewed once 24 hours have elapsed.

Instagram Stories appear in a bar at the top of your feed — and all Instagram accounts will be able to share stories, from your best friends to your favorite popular accounts. When there’s something new to see, their profile photo will have a colorful ring around it. This article is also a guide on “how to”.

There are some key considerations of note – for example, did you know that most users scrolling through their Instagram feed watch videos without sound, yet around 70% of Stories are watched with the sound turned on. The subtle differences in behavior and presentation can make be significant within your posting strategy. Look at this cheat sheet.

Here at Pinpoint Marketing, we use news feeds rather than stories. We feel this way is more established and more in keeping with our brand, our message and the service we sell. However, each to their own and it is always worth considering other options.

Get more social media advice here or ask me for trainer/workshop recommendations.