by Karen Petrauskas | Aug 6, 2023
School’s out for summer! But do you find balancing the summer holidays and your social media a challenge? Here’s a few tips which you may find useful over the coming weeks…
Schedule your posts in advance
Plan your content ahead of time and use a social media management tool to schedule your posts. This way you can maintain a consistent posting schedule even if you’re busy enjoying summer activities. I have a few which we use and can recommend, drop me a message if you’d like to know which ones we enjoy.
Utilise summer themes
Create content which aligns with summer themes, think about outdoor activities, holidays, and beach days. Use hashtags to increase your visibility and engagement.
Engage with your audience
Summer is a great time to interact with your followers (well, any time of year is really but summer is a fun time!) Respond to comments, answer messages, and participate in conversations. Show genuine interest in your audience which will strengthen your online community.
User-generated content (UGC)
Encourage your followers to share their summer experiences with your products or services. Repost UGC with proper credit, as it boosts engagement and fosters a sense of community.
Summer-themed contest or giveaways
Engage your followers by running contests or giveaways related to summer activities or products. This can help increase your reach and attract new followers. It’s also a great way to gain momentum before we hit the autumn and festive season (ready for the sales!).
Optimise posting times
Know and understand your social media insights to determine the best times to post during the summer. Routines change during this season, so posting at optimal times can increase your content’s visibility.
Balance promotional and fun content
While it’s essential to promote your products or services, don’t forget to share lighthearted and fun content that resonates with your audience during the summer.
Go live
Share real-time experiences and behind-the-scenes moments. This can create a sense of authenticity and create a deeper connection with your followers. Plus you can do it on the spot and don’t necessarily need to create a plan (although you might want to), and this can be a good ad-hoc way of keeping content flowing on your channels.
And here is the most important one …
Take breaks when needed
Remember to take some time off and enjoy your own summer! If you need to, let your audience know that you’ll be taking a short break from social media. People generally understand and appreciate when you prioritise self-care.
By forward-thinking and implementing some of these strategies, you can effectively manage your social media presence while enjoying the summer season to the fullest.
If you’re a small business owner trying to balance out the summer holidays and social media marketing, these tips could save you some time and energy. Get ahead of it now while it’s fresh in your mind and give your business a chance during the holiday season. And if it’s not right for now, you’ll have an idea and way to plan for the next set of holidays!
In the meantime, why not join our weekly newsletter to get extra tips and advice direct to your inbox or contact us for an extra pair of hands.
by Karen Petrauskas | Jul 15, 2023
Grow and scale your small business with our tips for improving your marketing strategy.
If you’re struggling to get the attraction, interaction and of course ‘results’ you need to promote your small business – there are many things you can do to improve your marketing.
We’re all aware of social media, most people have a Facebook personal account, if not Facebook, then one of the other channels – depending on your age!
But social media can be a great tool for small businesses to promote their brands, products and services too – it’s not just for personal use, utilise what’s out there for the greater good.
By creating a strong social media presence, small businesses can reach a wider audience, attract potential customers, build relationships with existing customers, and increase brand loyalty.
Here are 6 ways you can improve your small business marketing through social media:
#1 Increase brand awareness
Social media platforms allow small businesses to reach a much larger audience than traditional marketing methods and it’s much more cost effective than other means. Starting with creating engaging content, a business can increase brand awareness 100-fold and reach out to potential new customers.
Tell your story, showcase your ideas, shout about what’s going on behind the scenes, share your expertise and knowledge, talk about past projects, highlight your values… the list is endless. But it’s all about being unique and creative. People have heard it all before but when you put your own spin on your business, it becomes authentic and new.
#2 Build customer relationships
Social media can be used to create a community around your brand and engage with customers on a personal level. By responding to comments and messages, small businesses can build strong relationships with their customers, which can lead to increased brand loyalty. Think about you feel when a brand takes an interest in you, not just for the sake of a sale, but truly values you as a customer. This is all part of a customer’s journey, and every interaction plays a part.
Why not try mapping out the customer journey, this doesn’t start from when they buy from you, it starts from way back in the thinking and processing stage (even if they don’t know it!). How can you be there in the foreground, ready to approach when they are ready to purchase?
#3 Drive website traffic
Social media can be a great way to drive traffic to your website. By sharing links to your website or blog posts on social media platforms, small businesses can attract potential customers to their site. Think about the good old days when people handed out a business card to everyone they met – yes, this still has a place, but it’s much more effective to be able to direct someone via a quick link online.
The more traffic that is diverted to your website, the better your search engine rankings become too. Engagement, link clicks and interaction all help to get your business noticed!
#4 Promote products and services
Social media platforms provide a great opportunity to showcase products and services. Through visual content, small businesses can promote their products and services in a way that is personal, relatable and engaging to all those likely to want to see or hear.
Products or services can be explained, can be talked about, can be backed up by testimonials and feedback and they become more alive when being shared on social media.
#5 Multiple social media platforms
We always advise that it’s better to the best at one platform than spread yourself too thin and be inefficient on all. However, when you can master more than one, then go for it.
Think about where your ideal customer is going to be hanging out, which channels you are likely to find them on. This is where you need to base your focus. Doesn’t matter what platforms you enjoy the most – although this does help when you have an interest in it too – but your business needs to be visible where your potential customers are.
This comes down to research, understanding your audience, and discovering the best approach for the ideal client. And when you know which platform(s) to use, what type of content is going to work on them, so you need to mix up your type of content, do you need to work with a specialist who can help you create great content, can you utilise other content and re-use?
#6 Paid advertising
Another way social media marketing can increase brand awareness is through paid advertising. This offers businesses the ability to target specific demographics based on their interests, behaviours, and other deciding factors. This can help ensure that the brand message is getting in front of the right people, increasing the chances of conversion and brand loyalty. It can be a costly experiment if you don’t know what you’re doing, so always ensure that you’re working with an experienced media buyer before jumping into this. *We can help, just message us!
In summary, social media marketing can be a highly effective tool for businesses looking to increase brand awareness and see growth. When done correctly, social media marketing should be an essential part in the funnel which creates more leads & sales, and a healthy, sustainable, and reputable business.
If you’re not getting the results you need from your marketing strategy, or you’re not sure where to even start putting together a marketing plan or strategy, we’d love to sit down and talk this through with you. Simply get in touch and start a conversation, today.
by Karen Petrauskas | Jun 14, 2023
If you’re not seeing the results you need through your social media content to grow and scale your small business, what could be the problem?
Social media marketing should be fun – it’s there to attract and engage an audience. Can you say this sums up your social media content? Are you optimising your efforts to achieve the best possible results?
If not…
Step into your client’s shoes.
- What would you want to see or hear regarding that product or service?
- What would attract you?
- What would make you stop scrolling and read the caption?
- What benefits would make you want to look further?
Once you’ve answered all these questions, think how you can turn it all into content.
Video Content
Could you do create some videos which describe what you’re offering, giving a concept for people new to your brand.
Videos are great for story telling, so you can showcase what you’re doing and why, what you do behind the scenes, a typical day in the life of…
Videos are powerful.
Informational Content
But also informational content which asks and answers some of the most common questions your ideal client will be asking, either before they buy or even before they know they want to buy.
What pain points do your audience face, what struggles do they go through, how could your product or service help, and what benefit it is to them?
Information carousels are great forms of posts on social media, they talk directly into what a customer is already thinking about and feeds their need for more information. Without physically speaking to them, you are inserting your knowledge and expertise into their minds which relaxes them and lets them know that you have an insight into what they’re facing.
Utilise this to create impactful content which answers the deep questions people may not even know they’re thinking about until they see your posts. Break down each question with relevant and bitesize responses that people can take away and digest.
Eye-Catching Content
Is your content eye-catching? Would your posts make you stop if you were reading it on someone else’s feed? You could have the best information out there but if people aren’t stopping to read, what’s the point?
Bold colours, fonts that stand out, captions which entice a response.
If content is hard to read, in small or scripted fonts, too much information all in one place – it’s not eye-catching enough against other social media feeds to warrant someone to stop scrolling.
Make your posts as eye-catching as possible to the reader – not just to you. What you like might not be the same as your audience – do some research, visit other pages and profiles to see what type of content is gaining the most views and interactions.
Plan your Social Media Content
A big tip we’re giving you is to plan your content. We see many small businesses creating their social media posts off the cuff. And that’s fine if you’re regular, on the ball and can think on the top of your head. But there may come a point when you’re stuck for ideas and you get fed up with posting every day… you’ll burn out! It’s not sustainable to keep that going long-term.
Invest in a social media scheduling tool, there are plenty out there and it comes down to budget and preference. But take advantage of free trials and give them all a go and then choose the one that works for you.
We’ve tried all sorts, from Social Pilot, Hootsuite, Buffer, Later, Tailwind, Social Sprout, Tweekdeck – and there are many more out there. We personally love Social Pilot as it has so many great features that it’s perfect for scaling small businesses.
Create a content marketing plan around the above ideas and get to work creating content that actually speaks to your audience.
Hire a Content Marketer!
If you’re not a creative person, you don’t have the time to create batches of posts, or you simply know that marketing isn’t your thing – that’s ok! We can help and would love to get to know you and your business in order to create a content plan for you, and help you implement. Just get in touch today and let’s talk. It all starts with a conversation.
Plus if you become a KJP client from this post, we’re offering a MASSIVE 20% off your first THREE months bill!
*Mention this post when you speak to us to qualify.
We look forward to hearing from you but in the meantime, why not subscribe to our KJP community newsletter – tips and advice sent to your inbox every Friday (plus many freebies too!)
Speak soon 🙂
by Karen Petrauskas | May 25, 2023
Who is the ideal client?
If you’re a startup or small business owner struggling to get clients, this can be a hard question to answer: “Should you work with every new or potential client that comes along?”
It’s hard isn’t it. On one hand you want the clients to be rolling in, on the other, you want to be happy and content in the work that you’re producing, but if you work with someone who’s not a good fit – it could tip the balance.
We’ve got some news for you. 🤩
Not all clients are your ideal client.
- This means that not everyone who enquires has to become a client.
- Not everyone you speak to should become a client.
- That doesn’t mean they’re not great people, or great businesses. They’re just not a good match for you.
One sure way to scale and grow your business is to be working with your IDEAL client – making sure they’re a good fit before you start working is the best way to avoid disappointment, on both sides of the fence.
You might be thinking that as a start up, or someone who struggles with gaining new clientele, you should jump on everyone you’re even close to signing. We’re going to advise you otherwise!
You see, if you’re already working with your ideal clients, and you have established the demographic or type of businesses you’re ‘good’ at working with, jumping onto something new may not work. You might clash, you may upset other clients, you may find yourself less excited about working with them. The dynamic of your business might change and your values and trust points which people know you for may suffer. The last thing you want to is to give less than 100% in anything – especially a new client – it’s not good for business!
Clients are your future, the only way for your business to be sustainable is to have regular or ongoing clients who share your goals and vision. What happens when you don’t have these coming in? You’re back to square one and the drawing board.
Understanding your ideal client is KEY to growth. I can’t emphasise this enough – work only with your ideal client. And how do you know who these are? You create a marketing strategy that digs deep into your business aims and expectations, and you research who it is you want to help. The map begins to grow from here.
If you already are working with your ideal client, and only work with this group of people, you’ll get where we’re coming from.
If you’re not and are praying for success to happen, we urge you to make this a focus in coming months.
All your marketing, your social media, your outwardly facing communication that happens to anyone who sees your content, people should know if you’re speaking to them.
No watered-down, wishy washy promotions that speak to everyone. Direct communication between you and your ideal prospect.
If you’re struggling to nail this and need a nudge in the right direction, We’d love to help. Simply get in touch and let’s talk, We’d love to coach you through this stage in your business and to see the benefits it can bring to you and your brand. It all starts with a conversation.
In the meantime, why not sign up to our weekly newsletter to ensure tips, tricks and advice are dropped in your lap every Friday. ** Freebies and extras are included on a regular basis!
Speak soon!
by Karen Petrauskas | Apr 4, 2023
Motivational / Inspirational
We all like a good inspirational quote to keep us going or to pluck us up in the morning. As a small business owner, especially if working solo, it can be hard to know how to motivate yourself or where to find the right advice.
Here at KJP Creative, we love motivational and inspirational quotes to give anyone a nudge, a spice of courage and the push you need to get to work, create great results and feel good about yourself.
In our latest Yearly Social Media Planners, which are a great resource to plan and create a workable social media strategy and action plan throughout the year, you’ll find one of our motivation quotes at the start of every month! Available now on Amazon for just £5.99, with free P&P!
But in the meantime, here’s 24 quotes to inspire you – that’s almost one a fortnight. Bookmark this page and come back and refer to them often. We hope you’ll enjoy reading them, feel free to use them in your social media calendars as well.
“Be confident to start afresh with a clear vision and mission. New year, new goals” – Karen J Petrauskas
“Every opportunity and moment is a chance to see business growth. Grab hold and take action.” – Karen J Petrauskas
“You are your brand. Everything comes together to form your tone, your voice, your passion.” – Karen J Petrauskas
“Be joyful of the things that come across your path. Everything happens for a reason.” – Karen J Petrauskas
“Give good reason for your audience to love and trust your brand.” – Karen J Petrauskas
“Growth comes from consistency – keep pushing – you’ll discover breakthrough if you keep going.” – Karen J Petrauskas
“Social media should be enjoyed! Find your sweet sport to grow your brand online.” – Karen J Petrauskas
“Trust your instincts. When it feel right, keep going and don’t look back.” – Karen J Petrauskas
“Every new day allows you to make new decisions. Follow your heart and be happy with your choices.” – Karen J Petrauskas
“Step into the shoes of who you are marketing to, what do you want to see and hear?” – Karen J Petrauskas
“Stand up and stand out, don’t be afraid to be set apart in order to get noticed.” – Karen J Petrauskas
“Use the gifts and talents you have to make a difference.” – Karen J Petrauskas
“Every opportunity is a chance to grow your business. Allow the doors to open.” – Karen J Petrauskas
“Get creative with your marketing, always be authentic, passionate and desirable.” – Karen J Petrauskas
“Pursue your passions and create a brand which represents your values.” – Karen J Petrauskas
“Your visions will become reality when you focus, believe and take action.” – Karen J Petrauskas
“Strive for what you want. Persistence will create results.” – Karen J Petrauskas
“Crazy ideas often create the u-turn to success.” – Karen J Petrauskas
“Inspiration comes when you’re not looking for it.” – Karen J Petrauskas
“Imagine a world where everything felt good.” – Karen J Petrauskas
“Know your calling. Listen to your heart. Be there for those who need you.” – Karen J Petrauskas
“Passion and drive enable you to flourish and get results. Pursue.” – Karen J Petrauskas
“Work backwards. Discover your end game and find the solution to get there.” – Karen J Petrauskas
“Turn your dreams into a new year reality.” – Karen J Petrauskas
If you’ve got a motivational quote to add to the above, we’d love to hear. Perhaps we’ll include it in our next round of social media planners!
On a separate note, if you’re a small business owner who struggles with finding the inspiration they need to create engaging social media content, we’d love to have a chat. We can discuss your needs and goals and help put a strategy and plan together. Use our contact page to start a conversation.
