Is Your Content Dusty?
Is Your Content Dusty?
We’re all for holding on to threadbare t-shirts, despite what your significant other might say. But old website content? Not so much.
Chances are, you’ve created dozens or even hundreds of pages of website content since you launched your business. Product descriptions, landing pages, blog posts, videos, press releases—they’re all there to inform your audience, drive traffic to your site and sell your product or service.
But this information can get stale. And stale content can hurt your business, because poorly performing content—content that doesn’t answer your customers’ questions, contains information that is duplicated on other pages or has very little information Google’s algorithms find useful—can negatively impact your search engine rankings. That’s a bummer, because it means your customers and prospects will have to dig to find you online. And chances are they won’t. Statistics show that somewhere between 71 and 92 percent of clicks occur on page-one results.
If it’s been six months or more since you reviewed your content, it’s a good idea to conduct a content audit. It’s time consuming, but at the end of the exercise, you’ll know which content to keep, which to update and which to delete or redirect. You’ll also be able to identify gaps in your content—information your prospects and customers may be searching for that you’re not yet addressing.
How do I conduct a content audit?
Step 1: Inventory your content
Start by opening a new spreadsheet and making a list of your indexable content. If you need help finding this information, take a look at your sitemap, or, if you don’t have one, use a sitemap generator tool.
Next, add the following columns to your spreadsheet to create a dashboard. (It’s okay to customize the columns to whatever you find useful.) Your spreadsheet could include:
- Content title—the name of the piece
- Publish date
- A short description about the topic
- Content type—white paper, blog post, image, video, product page, etc.
- Location (if you haven’t already organized the document by URL)
- Audience—who the piece is intended to address
- Funnel stage (awareness, consideration, decision, purchase, post-purchase)
- Keywords you’re targeting
- Call to action—what you’re asking people to do after they view your content
Once you’ve filled out your spreadsheet, you’ll have a snazzy new content inventory that will help you develop a plan to regain your status as a content superstar in no time.
Step 2: Analyze your results
Now it’s time for the fun part—the content audit, where you gaze at the spreadsheet until your eyes glaze over. Just kidding. Take a peek at the data you’ve compiled to see what kind of adjustments you need to make. Are certain pieces missing a call to action? Are product pages outdated? Have you overloaded the top of your funnel with content but neglected to create materials for prospects who are nearly ready to make a purchase?
To help you prioritize next steps, consider adding another column called “PRIORITY.” Then, assign each piece of content a number (from 1 to 10 or whatever system you want to use) so you know which pieces to tackle in which order. For each piece of content, ask yourself:
- Does it deliver what it promised? (Does the body of the content match the title/intro?)
- Is it accurate?
- Does it answer your customers’ and prospects’ questions?
- Is it well written? (Check for typos, grammar mistakes and inconsistencies.)
- Is the formatting inviting (lots of white space, line breaks, subheads, etc.)?
- Do title tags, metadata, headings and image tags conform to SEO best practices?
- Does the content contain dead links?
- Are people finding and interacting with it? (Use your web analytics here.)
- Are they taking the desired action?
Step 3: Take action
Now that you’ve ranked your content, create one more column—“ACTION.” Here you can enter steps like “Update,” “Delete,” “Redirect,” etc. Make sure not only that you address problematic content, but that you poke around for holes, too. Updating stale content is critical, but so is creating new content to answer the queries your prospects and customers are typing into Google and Bing. Pro tip: Repackage your best-performing content by, for example, turning your top 10 blog posts into an e-book. Then promote the heck out of it. You can also re-promote content that performs well. (It’s actually a best practice.)
Do you have any content tips for your fellow entrepreneurs? Let us know!
Check out these quick videos with marketing expert, Amy Hourigan. She answers key questions regarding a content reboot.
Why is a content audit so important?: https://vimeo.com/343034870
What types of things should I be looking for? https://vimeo.com/343031856
How do I start a content audit? https://vimeo.com/343031680
Further Reading
https://www.semrush.com/blog/content-audit-for-content-marketing-strategy/
https://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2018/08/simple-content-audit/
How to Avoid Burnout
When we asked for advice about avoiding burnout, our inbox just about blew up. We received more tips on this topic than any other we’ve written about so far, and the emails are still coming. Read on for the best of the bunch, from entrepreneurs who have never lost their way to those who have succumbed but managed to reignite their passion. Then drop us a line and let us know how you stay resilient.
“As a serial entrepreneur and someone who’s managing multiple businesses simultaneously, I have firsthand experience with burnout—and how to avoid it. My top pointers: (1) Pare down to square up. List each month’s top 10 absolute must-do tasks. Whittle them down to three. Accomplish these first. (2) Don’t prioritize your schedule. Schedule your priorities. Ignore the rest. (3) Do something dissimilar. Cultivate an enjoyable discipline or hobby, which will refresh and reinvigorate.”
—Chetan Rao, co-founder, Wodehouse Tea
“As an entrepreneur who ended up in the hospital from adrenal failure, I have definitely been there. Business owners have to work long, hard hours, especially in the beginning. You would think I would have slowed down, but I still work 12–14 hours a day. The difference is the level of stress. If I’m working long hours without too much stress, and if I make the work fun, I can handle it. But you have to know your own body and when you need to slow down or stop. That’s a hard thing for a business owner to do. If you can’t figure it out, take frequent breaks. Do something mindless. It makes a big difference.”
—Julie Austin, CEO, Creative Innovation Group
“You may be tempted to cancel plans with friends, take business calls while out and about, or even spend family dinners on the computer—all to prioritize your business. But far too often entrepreneurs hit a wall and burn out by working this way. Having a work-life balance will increase your overall satisfaction and will likely lead to more productive time spent on work. The trick is to set a schedule for yourself and make sure you stick to it. Over time, you’ll start to focus on the most important work because you will treat your time off more seriously and will have to prioritize accordingly.”
—Siavash Ghazvinian, entrepreneur and owner, EthicalTree
“The advice I would give a founder on the edge of burning out is to immediately step away from work. It is much better to take a holistic attitude about trying to accomplish tasks over the long run than trying to cram too much work into a short period of time. Immersing oneself in work when in burnout mode is counterproductive.”
—David Reischer, Esq., CEO, LegalAdvice.com
“I’ve burned out twice, and am now more productive on a 40-hour work week. I work less but am substantially more productive. Silicon Valley has built an unhealthy culture of ‘hustling’ that looks good on the surface to investors and the market, but ultimately the quality and pace of output isn’t where it should be. Working smarter, shorter hours has led me to the most productive years in my career. I now operate two businesses and am at peak productivity.”
—Adrian Del Balso, CEO, Little Universe
“You have to learn to take a step back and ruthlessly prioritize. Here are two things I found particularly helpful: (1) Stop doing unnecessary work. Not everything you are doing is adding value. Have you heard of the 80:20 principle? It shows that with 20 percent of the work you can deliver 80 percent of the value. Take a look at everything you’re doing, automate what you can, and stop doing the stuff that isn’t adding value. (2) Be generous and give to others. I know it seems counterintuitive to add something to your already full plate, but trust me, it’s worth it. From my own experience, I have found volunteering to be hugely beneficial to my mental health and stress levels.”
—Claire Whittaker, product manager, Amazon UK; writer, Artificially Intelligent Claire
“Burnout was a constant struggle until I made a simple behavioral change: taking one day per week off from working. I tend to burn the candle pretty hot through the work week and then often much of the day on Saturday as well, but I take Sunday completely off. No email, no calls, no work-based productivity of any kind. For me, this day of ‘not being allowed’ to work is incredibly restful because I don’t have to worry about whether I need to be working. The decision has already been made, and now I can just enjoy the rest.”
—Grant Hensel, CEO, Nonprofit Megaphone
“The key to avoiding burnout, especially as your company grows, is the ability to delegate. If you want to grow, you have to learn to let go! One of the things that has helped us enormously is creating playbooks for each of the positions in our office. This is a full how-to, complete with screenshots, so it’s very easy to onboard new employees and ensure that what you expect from them is 100 percent clear.”
—Serena Holmes, president and CEO, Tigris Events Inc.
“This is a really important topic that has a bit of stigma attached to it. Being an entrepreneur is no easy feat. Before I start to burn out, I look for a little pick-me-up. It’s never a substance—rather, it’s a social interaction. My team members know I’m their leader, but that doesn’t mean I have to be rock solid 100 percent of the time. I have identified several team members who I’m able to turn to, each for a different purpose: one I go to for advice, another for a funny story or quick joke, someone else when I just need to blow off a little steam, and yet another when I need someone who’s always game for a little physical activity to reenergize. This strategy might sound simple, and it is. It is okay for a leader to be human and to need social support.”
—Reuben Yonatan, founder and CEO, GetVOIP
“My company, Robin, launched as a B2C startup in 2016. A little more than a year later we recognized that regardless of how much effort and how many hours we invested in making the business work, we simply didn’t achieve sustainable growth. Thus, we decided to transform Robin into a B2B business. In the process of admitting defeat…and starting from scratch, I experienced enormous stress, insomnia and even panic attacks, especially before meetings with investors. To get back on my feet and avoid a complete burnout, I [engaged in] substantial self-reflection, which resulted in a complete change of my personal habits. I started maintaining a sustainable routine that included eight hours of sleep, less coffee, less alcohol and a healthy balance between time invested in [work] and my personal life.”
—Adam McIsaac, CEO, Robin Media Inc.
“An extremely valuable process to learn about and perfect is time management. By moving your mindset from a constant state of trying to find more time (which is a major contributing factor to burning out) to understanding how to best structure your time, your conception of success could look a little healthier.”
—Kate Brodock, CEO, Women 2.0
“Prior to founding my business, I was involved in several early-stage, venture-backed startups. To say that I’ve ‘been there’ is an understatement! For me, the thing hanging between staying sane and balanced versus being burned out is avoiding the temptation to try to do everything. That meant drawing clear distinctions between which activities I or my team would manage, and which activities we were knowingly putting on the back burner. In my current business, we are focused on three key marketing areas: research, strategy and operations. The know-how exists internally to do a whole host of other marketing activities, everything from content writing to social media to PR. But we’ve learned to say ‘no’ and stay focused. Trying to tackle everything means no activity gets the full, undivided attention it deserves.”
—Laura Troyani, founder and principal, PlanBeyond
“Human brains were not designed to multitask. Focusing your mental energy can help you get more things done without burning out. I recommend starting each Monday by planning out your must-do projects and blocking out non-negotiable work time (in segments of 1.5–2 hours) on your calendar. You’ll be able to sprinkle in smaller to-dos throughout the week while ensuring you’re accomplishing the biggest tasks that are most impactful to growing your business.”
—Kara Fasone, PhD, co-founder and chief wellness officer, Wise & Well Academy
“Having been an entrepreneur for 20-plus years with three different businesses, I have been through several burnout periods. Most entrepreneurs I know are excited by new challenges, and when you are in the weeds trying to address those challenges, it’s the most thrilling part of being an entrepreneur. You may be working crazy hours, but the adrenaline and drive to solve the problem keeps you motivated and moving forward (well, that and lots of coffee and bourbon). It’s only after the challenge has been addressed and the post-surge hangover sets in that burnout starts to rear its ugly head. There are two ways I have found that keep this roller-coaster ride from turning into burnout. One is to cap my workload at 55 hours. After 45 hours, I’m not very productive, and I have found that the law of diminishing returns applies once I hit 55 hours. The second way I keep myself motivated is by never finishing a project without having the next challenge already in mind. For example, we recently revamped our product offerings and overhauled our website for the first time in four years, which was a big undertaking. But before we finished that project, I already knew that my next project would be implementing a better lead-gen process. I am really enjoying it, and it’s opening up new ideas and strategies, which I find exciting.”
—Jeff Kear, owner, Planning Pod
“Go to sleep with a clean mind (and inbox). I’m a big believer in not letting your inbox pile up, causing you stress overnight. Finish your work for the day, and then turn the phone off for a solid couple hours before sleep. Celebrate small wins. It’s super important to recognize the ups, because you are for sure worrying about the downs.”
—Adam Tishman, co-founder and CEO, Helix Sleep
“Avoid shiny object syndrome. As entrepreneurs, it’s so easy to get overwhelmed by all the social media platforms and marketing strategies out there. Trying to master them all will just lead to burnout. Pick a few strategies that play to your strengths, and focus on those.”
—Taylor Mack, owner, SilverFire Books; social media marketing strategist, Small Biz Refined
“Find the ‘why’ behind your business. If you’re just in business for the money, then you might as well have a job. Why did you start your business? What would your customers lack if you didn’t do what you do? I can honestly say that I could die tomorrow and know my life mattered because every single day I am blessed to impact my clients’ lives and businesses. They say when you love what you do, you never work a day in your life. That’s true. It’s not the coaching that wears me out—that energizes me! It’s the networking and selling and billing and collecting and taxes, etc.—all the stuff that’s NOT coaching. But then I come back to why I do that stuff—to impact people’s lives and businesses—and it’s all worthwhile.”
—Elene Cafasso, MCC, Enerpace, Inc., Executive Coaching
“It’s incredibly important not to forget about self-care. When you’re starting a business, you really do put every bit of yourself in it, and days can get extremely long. When I got an angel investor and was able to hire full-time staff, it reduced stress dramatically. I hired good people I could trust and offloaded responsibilities to them, and now am able to work a 40-hour week. Another thing is, treat yourself like you treat your employees. Take that darn vacation. The company will not fall apart without you.”
—Michael Sunderland, managing director, Full Stack Talent
“I founded a business in my parents’ garage after leaving a lucrative job in finance. I worked on my businesses for several years without seeing any reward, and on many occasions experienced burnout. I poured everything I have into my businesses. I have plenty of experience with managing stress and finding an effective way to recharge my batteries: (1) Delegate smaller tasks. I hired a part-time executive assistant purely to manage my calendar, emails and appointments. (2) Mandatory Sundays off. It’s the only way to get a real breather each week. (3) Start work early. I noticed that I am incredibly inefficient when I work later at night, so I force myself to go to bed relatively early so that I can get up at 5 a.m. The early morning gives me a chance to work without interruption. (4) Do not listen to podcasts. I used to incessantly listen to podcasts throughout the day, during my commute and when I got home. I noticed that they were contributing to my stress since they kept my brain constantly firing. I’ve since switched to music.”
—Jeff Rizzo, CEO, RIZKNOWS and The Slumber Yard
“We don’t take on clients or jobs that aren’t the right fit for us. We know who our customer avatars are, and if an opportunity presents itself that isn’t a great fit, we won’t take it just because the money is there. We won’t let money be the force that drives us to burnout.”
—David Gafford, founder and CEO, Fusion Creative
“I take a break during the day to take a walk or do a workout. While I’m walking I’ll listen to a podcast about entrepreneurship. The physical activity helps my body relax, and when I’m listening to an inspirational story from an entrepreneur, I get back to work energized and ready to face any challenges that come my way.”
—Raya Khashab, co-founder, EzClocker
“Psychology is without a doubt the hardest part of being an entrepreneur. I’ve been able to keep up my fighting spirit despite often working long hours. There are a few things that have really made a difference: Being passionate about the business itself, not the end results; taking care of my physical fitness with challenging workouts, enough sleep and a healthy diet, and having great co-founders and colleagues. Since you’re going to be working a lot, it’s really important that you enjoy spending time with the people you work with.”
—Jesse Nieminen, co-founder and chairman, Viima
New Research Reveals That Social Media Use Among Businesses Is Declining Slightly
What’s Your Move?
Back in January, we asked entrepreneurs whether social media was important to the success of their business. The results were decidedly split, so we asked Dave Wurzer, CI’s chief investment officer, to weigh in. “For certain products, social media plays a major role, but for B2B it plays less of a role than people think it does,” he says. “It’s better to focus on your website.”
It seems that the fastest-growing companies in the country agree. While the use of social media among the Inc. 500 (Inc. magazine’s list of the 500 fastest-growing privately held small companies in the United States) remains high, it is starting to decline, according to a recent report from the Center for Marketing Research at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, which tracks companies’ social media use annually. The study found that:
- 94 percent of the Inc. 500 use at least one social media platform, vs. 96 percent in 2017
- LinkedIn and Facebook both experienced double-digit declines in use in 2018 compared with 2016 and 2017, but were ranked as the most effective platforms.
- Twitter and YouTube were ranked as the least effective platforms.
- Instagram adoption declined from 49 percent to 47 percent in the past year—the first decline for the photo- and video-sharing social networking service since 2013.
- Companies’ top two concerns regarding their use of social media are return on investment and privacy issues.
- Nearly half of the companies reported that the value of free social media has leveled off and that they’re seeking alternatives.
- Half of the Inc. 500 use blogs to engage their audience.
Should you go whole-hog on a blog?
If you want to widen your reach and you’re concerned about your social media return on investment, starting a blog may be a good idea. Weblogs, or blogs for short, offer startups a fairly easy way to build and engage an audience—and they don’t require any investment other than time. (You do need a platform, though, such as WordPress, which you probably already have for your website.)
Unlike social media, which is a “shared media,” your blog is “owned media,” meaning that you own the content and the audience (your readers and subscribers). By contrast, when you share a post with your “friends” and followers on sites like Facebook, for example, you may create the content, but Facebook can use that content—and it owns the audience. Sites like these can also shut down any time (think Google+). For marketing purposes, a mix of shared and owned content makes sense. You’ll want to keep your readers—your list, after all, is marketing gold—but promote your blog via social media, which has a wider reach.
Do blogs help you grow your business? In a word: yes. Hubspot, a growth platform, found that businesses that use blogs as part of their content marketing mix get 67 percent more leads than those that don’t. It’s also been reported that websites with a blog have 434 percent more indexed pages—an important factor for getting found by your prospects online.
Other advantages of blogs are that you can update them quickly, easily mine customer insights (provided you enable the comments section) and measure the results of your effort by tracking metrics against your business goals.
Before you start blogging
Blogging is fairly easy—you are, after all, an expert in [insert your company’s niche here] and you probably have plenty to say. Before you begin, it’s a good idea to do some homework to guide your strategy. Ask yourself:
- Who is my audience? In other words, who, specifically, am I writing this for?
- What keeps them up at night? What are their pain points that I can solve?
- What keywords do they search for online? (If you don’t know, do some research using Google or a site like Answer the Public.)
- How will my business grow as a result of the blog?
- Do I have time to blog at least once a week?
This last point is important. “The worst thing you can do as a business is start a consistent dialogue with your customers and then stop,” writes Joe Pulizzi in his book Epic Content Marketing (worth a read).
Today, the average blog post takes nearly three and a half hours to write, according to new research of 1,000 bloggers by Orbit Media. (In 2014, the average blog post took about 2.5 hours to write.) And the number of bloggers who spend more than six hours on a post doubled in a year.
Does all this effort pay off? Orbit Media’s research says yes: Bloggers who spent the most time reported the strongest results.
This make sense.
“Consumers want to trust their information sources and are increasingly expecting that content to be rigorously researched, factually accurate, and worthy of their time and attention—meaning that it helps them make better decisions and confidently complete the tasks they need to get done,” writes Jodi Harris.
Just like time spent writing a blog post, the typical length of a post has increased every year since 2014. In 2014, the average post was slightly more than 800 words. Today, the average post is 1,151 words. The correlation between length and success is even stronger here, according to Orbitz’s report: “More than half of the bloggers who write 2,000+ word articles report ‘strong results.’”
Expert blogging tips—blast your blog into the stratosphere
- Aim to blog at least once a week. Research shows that greater blogging frequency correlates to stronger results.
- Spend some time crafting your titles, because they’re what entice people to read. “How-to” titles as well as those with numbers—“How to Reduce Surgery Times in Five Easy Steps,” for example, perform well. So do “Mistakes Made” and “Secrets of.”
- Write in a conversational tone, as if you were advising a friend. And be sure to break up your copy with subheads, images and bullets where you can.
- Focus on your customers and their problems—it’s a can’t-lose strategy
- Include images, but be sure you have permission to use them.
- Promote the blog via social media, your website and your email list.
- Include a call to action telling your readers what you want them to do—ask us a question, download our e-book, sign up for our webinar, etc.
- Measure subscriptions, visits, unique visits, pageviews, time on site, search rankings, inbound links, etc. to see if your strategy is working. (Blogs are a long game.)
- Make a list of the top five or 10 blogs in your industry. Read them, comment on them, and offer to guest blog. This is a great way to build awareness for your site while building trust and credibility in your industry. (You’ll want to ask for a link back to your own blog.)
- Got writer’s block? Dissolve it easily by thinking about a question your prospects or customers have asked you or your team more than once. Then, start writing the answer. You can also take a contrary position to a news article, expand on a topic your competitors didn’t explain well enough, create a list (“The Top 10 Websites on Fintech You Should Visit,” for example), or interview industry leaders. The latter tactic has the added bonus of helping you spread awareness…one expert we interviewed at CI has over a million Twitter followers and continues to share our post years after it was published.
Recommended Reading
25 Tips for Marketing Your Blog
44 Things I Wish I Knew Before Starting a Blog
Have a question about blogging or anything else? Contact us any time.
Remembering That Diversity Drives Excellence
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Remembering That Diversity Drives Excellence
MLK Holiday Reflections
Matthew McCooe, Chief Executive Officer
Given the amount of uncivil discourse in society at this moment, I think Monday’s holiday is more important than ever. It is well understood that diversity in populations and in organizations drives excellence. Creative sparks fly when people with different backgrounds and life experiences work closely together. In fact, broadening diversity in our portfolio as well as our team is an implicit goal shared across the organization. We all reap the benefits from our ongoing open discussions and active collaborations.
Embracing the Words of Coretta Scott King
In words far better than I could ever express, Coretta Scott King beautifully captures the belief system behind Martin Luther King, Jr.’s commitment to serving others. I believe this spirit of service is core to the CI ethos—it is certainly what has me leaping from bed every morning to join my colleagues at work.
The Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday celebrates the life and legacy of a man who brought hope and healing to America. We commemorate as well, the timeless values he taught us through his example—the values of courage, truth, justice, compassion, dignity, humility and service that so radiantly defined Dr. King’s character and empowered his leadership. On this holiday, we commemorate the universal, unconditional love, forgiveness and nonviolence that empowered his revolutionary spirit.
On this day, we commemorate Dr. King’s great dream of a vibrant, multiracial nation united in justice, peace and reconciliation; a nation that has a place at the table for children of every race and room at the inn for every needy child. We are called on this holiday, not merely to honor, but to celebrate the values of equality, tolerance and interracial sister and brotherhood he so compellingly expressed in his great dream for America.
The King holiday celebrates Dr. King’s global vision of the world house, a world whose people and nations had triumphed over poverty, racism, war and violence. The holiday celebrates his vision of ecumenical solidarity, his insistence that all faiths had something meaningful to contribute to building the beloved community.
Dr. King once said that we all have to decide whether we “will walk in the light of creative altruism or the darkness of destructive selfishness. Life’s most persistent and nagging question, he said, is ‘what are you doing for others?’” He would quote Mark 9:35, the scripture in which Jesus of Nazareth tells James and John, “…whosoever will be great among you shall be your servant; and whosoever among you will be the first shall be the servant of all.” And when Martin talked about the end of his mortal life in one of his last sermons, on February 4, 1968 in the pulpit of Ebenezer Baptist Church, even then he lifted up the value of service as the hallmark of a full life.
We call you to commemorate this holiday by making your personal commitment to serve humanity with the vibrant spirit of unconditional love that was his greatest strength, and which empowered all of the great victories of his leadership. And with our hearts open to this spirit of unconditional love, we can indeed achieve the Beloved Community of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s dream.
What Truly Makes America Great
I have had the honor to personally witness the greatness that can result from a national philosophy that embraces our fellow citizens of the world in their times of greatest adversity.
In 1990, I served as a member of the Jesuit Volunteer Corps in Seattle, helping immigrants from war-torn countries such as El Salvador apply for and win political asylum. I worked days, nights and weekends after the Immigration Act of 1990 was passed allowing all immigrants from permitted countries suffering war and harsh environmental conditions to live and work legally in the United States. We encouraged people to apply, knowing they would be exposing themselves to the INS/ICE, as it bought them time and peace of mind for the first time.
It is hard to now read the headlines that over 200,000 El Salvadorans are going to lose their status. Since arriving in the United States, they have paid taxes and had 192,000 children who are U.S. citizens. They have until 2019 to decide whether to return to El Salvador or risk deportation if they stay without legal protections.
Haitians, El Salvadorans, Nigerians—many of the people being targeted by the current administration have been incredible contributors to the U.S. population, and to our economy.
A Shining Example
Here in Connecticut, Oni Chukwu is a shining example of the success that can be fostered by a welcoming nation. He is one of nine children born to a policeman in the capital city of Lagos, Nigeria. Oni had a normal childhood until his family became displaced during the Nigerian civil war. They were forced to move back to their ancestral home in the east of Nigeria, leaving behind everything they owned.
Despite this tremendous hardship, Oni and his eight siblings all went to college, and then, 25 years ago, Oni came to the United States and attended the University of New Haven, where he earned a finance-focused MBA that has carried him to triumph in the business world.
Oni is the CEO of etouches, a company that provides software solutions for event management. The company, one of the strongest companies in the CI portfolio, was recently acquired at a highly attractive premium. Oni was also an EVP/CFO of Triple Canopy, which also had a phenomenal exit. Oni’s story is an instructive reminder of the vitality of diversity and the immigrant’s drive for our society and our economy.
Final Words
The life of Martin Luther King, Jr., is the ultimate embodiment of the belief that diversity is one of the principal strengths of our nation. Our ability to welcome immigrant populations and to cross cultural barriers is at the very heart of our greatest achievements.
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Is It Time to Revisit Your Social Media Strategy?
Is It Time to Revisit Your Social Media Strategy?
Almost without question, a social media strategy is a vital part of the marketing mix for most companies doing business today. But the question that remains surrounds the effectiveness of your strategy and how often and under what circumstances you should reevaluate your approach.
As social media becomes increasingly essential to business success, the Center for Marketing Research at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth continues to monitor its use. Specifically, the center conducts an annual study of social media usage among Inc. magazine’s top 500 companies—the fastest-growing privately owned companies in the United States.
The research was collected in two stages. The first stage evaluated the use of eight social media tools: blogging, LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube and Google+. The second stage involved interviewing a random sample of executives from the Inc. 500 to gain their perspective on social media effectiveness and its ability to translate into sales and revenue growth.
Key Research Summary: “We may be entering a time of great reflection, reevaluation and realignment of how new communication tools enhance not only brand awareness but sales.”
Given this broad research conclusion, how should companies react? To dive into this, we tapped the views of an industry expert, Chris Rinaldi, a digital strategist at ZAG Interactive.
RESEARCH FINDINGS
Most Active Social Media Channels
According to the research, 82 percent of the Inc. 500 companies employ at least one form of social media. LinkedIn remains the most popular for the fifth consecutive year, with 94 percent adoption, followed by Facebook (88 percent) and Twitter (79 percent). The most notable change from 2015 is the rapid increase in adoption of Instagram. Instagram jumped from 32 percent adoption in 2015 to 46 percent in 2016, making it the fastest-growing social media platform.[/cs_text][x_image type=”none” src=”http://ctinnovations.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/graph1.jpg” alt=”” link=”false” href=”#” title=”” target=”” info=”none” info_place=”top” info_trigger=”hover” info_content=””][cs_text]Source: University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Center for Marketing Research, February 2017.
These findings back the assertion that as social media continues to evolve, companies must actively evaluate which platforms are the best fit for their business and industry.
Vibrant Blogosphere
The findings of the study show that since 2007, the Inc. 500 have consistently outpaced the Fortune 500 (the largest companies based on revenue) in their use of public-facing corporate blogs. As shown in the chart below, while usage of blogs between both groups has fluctuated over the years of the study, in 2016, 42 percent of the Inc. 500 and 36 percent of the Fortune 500 had active blogs.[/cs_text][x_image type=”none” src=”http://ctinnovations.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/graph2.jpg” alt=”” link=”false” href=”#” title=”” target=”” info=”none” info_place=”top” info_trigger=”hover” info_content=””][cs_text]Source: University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Center for Marketing Research, February 2017.
In his expert opinion, Rinaldi believes that particularly for a new company, blogs represent a key way to cut through the clutter of a competitive marketplace and offer a unique point of view. He said, “I would venture to guess that Inc. 500 companies might use their company blogs more than Fortune 500 companies because it is easier for a startup to plan, implement, write and manage a blog than it is for their larger counterparts. In many cases, startups can be more agile in generating content, so these companies should take advantage of being able to relate more to readers in a distinctive way—solving potential customer problems with how-to articles, tips, industry trends and best practices to build a loyal following and increase the bottom line.”
Burgeoning Popularity of Instagram
The study revealed a dramatic increase in the adoption of Instagram among the companies researched. We asked Rinaldi what advice he would offer to companies in terms of the most effective ways to use Instagram.
He said, “First and foremost, companies should use Instagram in a way that aligns with their overall brand positioning, business goals and marketing objectives. Like all social media channels, Instagram should be utilized as another channel to reach potential consumers in a way that is authentic and engaging. Because Instagram is centered on images, companies should ensure that the photography is on point. If the image is not literally branded with the company logo, then it better be on brand—evoking the ethos of the brand in a visually arresting way. Since a picture says a thousand words, let the image do the heavy lifting, while the caption should include brand messaging, keywords and popular hashtags, as well as a call to action. Practicing these tips, companies must also remember not to come across as too canned or promotional on Instagram. Focus the posts on displaying aspirational aspects of your company, encouraging likes and comments. Lastly, commit to posting at least two times a week on Instagram during peak engagement times for your company.”
HOW TO EVALUATE SUCCESS
Moving the Dial on Sales
As part of the study, executives were asked which social media channels they felt were most effective in translating their marketing efforts into sales. Forty percent responded that they generate the most traction via Facebook. Another noteworthy trend revealed in the research was the continual drop in online advertising as well as a decrease in traditional print and broadcast media over the past three years, along with the concurrent increase in the use of social media networking platforms.[/cs_text][x_image type=”none” src=”http://ctinnovations.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/graph3.jpg” alt=”” link=”false” href=”#” title=”” target=”” info=”none” info_place=”top” info_trigger=”hover” info_content=””][cs_text]Source: University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Center for Marketing Research, February 2017.
Focus on ROI
The biggest concerns about using social media among the companies in the study were the ROI and the resources and time required to execute a compelling online presence. Of CEOs, 52–59 percent expressed reservations about whether the return warrants the effort.
Rinaldi responded, “Social media ROI can be difficult to measure, but there are both quantitative and qualitative means to do so. All major social media channels offer some degree of analytics that, when combined with overall site statistics, can indicate social media marketing effectiveness. Beyond these numbers, the benefits of social media include overall brand awareness and impressions, as well as the invaluable consumer feedback and customer service that occurs from the two-way conversation.”
Measures That Matter
It’s a generally accepted point of view that you can’t manage what you can’t measure.
We asked Rinaldi how analytics can be used to improve social media targeting and effectiveness.
He said, “The way the algorithms work on social media platforms today, companies have to pay to play. Companies need to budget for paid amplification on social media to ensure that their target markets will see their social media content. For optimal results, companies can create social media marketing campaigns focusing cover images, ads and posts on particular messages while driving to a trackable landing page for conversion. Using both social media analytics and ad tracking metrics in conjunction with site statistics, companies can measure, monitor and adjust tactics for maximum effectiveness.”
Along the same lines, the study concluded, “With the ability to target using platforms that attract either mass markets, or niche markets, social media efforts can become more efficient and possibly more effective in generating sales.”
WHAT ACTIONS TO TAKE
Because social media tools and platforms seem to endlessly evolve, adapting to change can be a challenge. That’s why the UMass Dartmouth study of social media trends across industries has been so closely followed for the past 10 years.
The findings of the 2016 study clearly indicate that companies are striving to adapt to a dynamic social media landscape, but this cannot be done without specific strategic planning for social media and active ongoing content management and monitoring.
Consider Consolidation
The study makes the case that as platforms become more and more alike in their capabilities (communities, videos, blogging, etc.), some consolidation might be in order.
Rinaldi commented, “While it does appear that many of today’s most popular social media platforms are becoming a bit homogenized, companies should still look to leverage the major channels in the manner that each specializes—Facebook (community outreach), Twitter (timely updates), LinkedIn (business networking), and Google+ (searchability). Before adding Instagram, Snapchat or another social channel to the mix, companies should see how they fare with the core four.” He added, “It is always better to do a good job on even just one social media channel than doing a poor one on a lot of them.”
Actively Manage and Monitor
When it comes to managing content, Rinaldi suggested, “Companies should make every effort to post unique content on each of their active channels, giving consumers a reason to follow each one. Companies should adhere to a content calendar, plotting out posts at least a month in advance to make it easier for their social media teams to focus on timely posts as they pop up.”
In terms of monitoring, the good news is that most executives interviewed (62 percent) reported that they do actively track their social media presence using a monitoring tool. They are reportedly following up on online conversations about their brands, products and industries. The study has shown that the Inc. 500 companies “understand how important it is to be aware of the opinions and perceptions their customers share online.” They recognize that “their brand identity and potentially their sales are dependent on having a positive online presence.” Finally, they recognize that “a lack of monitoring could have consequences for companies given the potential for viral communications now possible through social media.”
The UMass Dartmouth annual study is clearly a valuable tool to assess the most utilized channels of communication between companies and their customers and can be used as an aid to help evaluate when and whether to change course in the future.
Chris Rinaldi, Digital Strategist, ZAG Interactive
Three Tips to Make Your Marketing Better
Three Tips to Make Your Marketing Better
CI’s portfolio companies are some of the most amazing I’ve ever worked with. Fascinating technology applied in brainy ways to effect groundbreaking innovation: Color me impressed! Despite being incredible—and vastly different—each company I consult with typically benefits from similar marketing advice. Here are my top three tips.
Assume a position. From social media to direct mail to advertising to SEO and beyond, there are almost as many marketing tactics as there are products. Want a simple guide for all of your efforts? Write a positioning statement. This short but powerful piece of prose defines your target market and outlines how you want your brand to be perceived, particularly in comparison with other options. Refer to this document, which is for internal use only, whenever you need to focus your marketing efforts. Every marketing tactic you use should support your positioning statement.
Here’s a template to get you started:
For [target market], the [brand] is [competitive frame] because [differentiator or proof point].
Zipcar’s positioning statement is hailed by marketing gurus as a good example. Let’s take a look:
To urban-dwelling, educated techno-savvy consumers [target], when you use Zipcar car-sharing service [brand] instead of owning a car [competitive frame], you save money while reducing your carbon footprint [points of difference].
Can you see how every time Zipcar makes a marketing decision it can refer to the positioning statement as a guide? For example, if Zipcar is trying to figure out whether to contact customers via Twitter or direct mail, they’ll know that their target market—urban, educated, techno-savvy customers—is probably more easily reachable and more receptive via Twitter.
Don’t make potential customers and investors work too hard. You may have the most sophisticated technology backed by the most brilliant scientists and used by the most prominent Fortune 100 companies/Yale-trained surgeons/astronauts. But, if you can’t explain it quickly and simply to your audience, potential investors—even me—you’re making your professional life a lot harder. People are busy. They’re not going to spend a lot of time deciphering highbrow prose. Keep your company and product descriptions clear and simple. Bonus points if you can write them without buzzwords.
Consider: This groundbreaking, state-of-the-art product uses breakthrough technology to offer advanced solutions for cerebrovascular accidents.
Huh?
Better: Our catheter-based retrieval device allows you to remove clots more quickly and safely than ever before, vastly improving outcomes for your stroke patients.
Focus on the customer. I see so many company and product descriptions that are well written and accurate, but simply miss the mark from a marketing perspective. Your customers don’t care what you do—they care what you do for them. This means you should use “you” a lot more than “we” or “us.”
Think you’re focused on your customers? Find out for sure at http://www.customerfocuscalculator.com/ . Simply enter your URL and the free “we we” calculator will let you know. I tested one of our former portfolio companies (I won’t say which one), and here’s what came back:
“It appears that your web page has 3 words focused on your visitor, while it has 12 words focused on your business. That means your site is focused on your customer 20% of the time, while focused on your business 80% of the time. It appears that this web page speaks about your own business more than 4 times as much as it speaks to your customer. It’s likely that this is having a negative impact on your conversion results.”
To fix it, simply rewrite your sentences so they focus on the customer. Instead of “Our platform is the best educational platform in the world,” you could say, “You need a better educational platform. Your search is over…”
Finally, focus on benefits, not features. Even better? Focus on the benefits of the benefits—the emotion behind what your product or service delivers.
Consider three examples:
- Our chef’s knife features a carbon steel blade, polypropylene handle, laser-controlled edges and full bolsters. (Marketing the features.)
- Our chef’s knife has a carbon blade which ensures that you’ll make sharp, precise cuts every time you cook, while the polypropylene handle offers you no-slip comfort. Full bolsters keep the knife evenly balanced for easier handling while you chop and slice. (Marketing the benefits—much better.)
- You’ll feel like Emeril when you use our professional-grade chef’s knife. Chopping, dicing, slicing—you’re in control and will make beautiful, even cuts every time. Bask in the glory of your guests’ admiration as you present a gorgeously carved steak and perfectly prepared crudités while they sip wine and ooh and aah over your culinary skill. (Marketing emotion—better still.)
As Harvard Business School professor Theodore Levitt said, “People don’t want to buy a quarter-inch drill, they want a quarter-inch hole.” Explain how you’ll deliver it to them.
Got your own marketing tips to share? Let us know on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn.
About the Author
Amy Hourigan is vice president of marketing and communications at Connecticut Innovations. You can contact her at amy.hourigan@ctinnovations.com.
Content Marketing: 55 Proven Ways to Help Your Business
[cs_content][cs_section parallax=”false” style=”margin: 0px;padding: 0px;”][cs_row inner_container=”true” marginless_columns=”false” style=”margin: 0px auto;padding: 0px;”][cs_column fade=”false” fade_animation=”in” fade_animation_offset=”45px” fade_duration=”750″ type=”1/1″ style=”padding: 0px;”][x_image type=”none” src=”http://ctinnovations.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Content-Detail-Pie.jpg” alt=”” link=”false” href=”#” title=”” target=”” info=”none” info_place=”top” info_trigger=”hover” info_content=””][/cs_column][/cs_row][/cs_section][cs_section parallax=”false” style=”margin: 0px;padding: 45px 0px;”][cs_row inner_container=”true” marginless_columns=”false” style=”margin: 0px auto;padding: 0px;”][cs_column fade=”false” fade_animation=”in” fade_animation_offset=”45px” fade_duration=”750″ type=”1/1″ style=”padding: 0px;”][cs_text]Content marketing: 55 Proven ways to help your business
Presented by Skilled.co[/cs_text][/cs_column][/cs_row][/cs_section][cs_section parallax=”false” class=”cs-ta-left” style=”margin: 0px;padding: 45px 0px;”][cs_row inner_container=”true” marginless_columns=”false” style=”margin: 0px auto;padding: 0px;”][cs_column fade=”false” fade_animation=”in” fade_animation_offset=”45px” fade_duration=”750″ type=”1/1″ style=”padding: 0px;”][x_image type=”none” src=”http://ctinnovations.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/backtocontentlibrary.png” alt=”back to content library” link=”true” href=”http://ctinnovations.com/access-content-library/” title=”” target=”” info=”none” info_place=”top” info_trigger=”hover” info_content=”” class=”back-image”][/cs_column][/cs_row][/cs_section][/cs_content]
Five Steps to Protect Your Digital Health Company’s Reputation
[cs_content][cs_section parallax=”false” separator_top_type=”none” separator_top_height=”50px” separator_top_angle_point=”50″ separator_bottom_type=”none” separator_bottom_height=”50px” separator_bottom_angle_point=”50″ style=”margin: 0px;padding: 0px;”][cs_row inner_container=”true” marginless_columns=”false” style=”margin: 0px auto;padding: 0px;”][cs_column fade=”false” fade_animation=”in” fade_animation_offset=”45px” fade_duration=”750″ type=”1/1″ style=”padding: 0px;”][x_image type=”none” src=”http://ctinnovations.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Content-Detail-News.jpg” alt=”” link=”false” href=”#” title=”” target=”” info=”none” info_place=”top” info_trigger=”hover” info_content=””][/cs_column][/cs_row][/cs_section][cs_section parallax=”false” separator_top_type=”none” separator_top_height=”50px” separator_top_angle_point=”50″ separator_bottom_type=”none” separator_bottom_height=”50px” separator_bottom_angle_point=”50″ style=”margin: 0px;padding: 45px 0px;”][cs_row inner_container=”true” marginless_columns=”false” style=”margin: 0px auto;padding: 0px;”][cs_column fade=”false” fade_animation=”in” fade_animation_offset=”45px” fade_duration=”750″ type=”1/1″ style=”padding: 0px;”][cs_text]Five Steps to Protect Your Digital Health Company’s Reputation
If you’ve been following the Theranos catastrophe, you know that the consumer healthcare technology startup has been skewered in the media for more than a year, accused of a laundry list of misdeeds ranging from promoting technology that just doesn’t work to deliberately misleading investors.
Link to PDF[/cs_text][/cs_column][/cs_row][/cs_section][cs_section parallax=”false” separator_top_type=”none” separator_top_height=”50px” separator_top_angle_point=”50″ separator_bottom_type=”none” separator_bottom_height=”50px” separator_bottom_angle_point=”50″ class=”cs-ta-left” style=”margin: 0px;padding: 45px 0px;”][cs_row inner_container=”true” marginless_columns=”false” style=”margin: 0px auto;padding: 0px;”][cs_column fade=”false” fade_animation=”in” fade_animation_offset=”45px” fade_duration=”750″ type=”1/1″ style=”padding: 0px;”][x_image type=”none” src=”http://ctinnovations.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/backtocontentlibrary.png” alt=”back to content library” link=”true” href=”http://ctinnovations.com/access-content-library/” title=”” target=”” info=”none” info_place=”top” info_trigger=”hover” info_content=”” class=”back-image”][/cs_column][/cs_row][/cs_section][/cs_content]
The ABCs of Getting Noticed (A Marketing Primer)
[cs_content][cs_section parallax=”false” separator_top_type=”none” separator_top_height=”50px” separator_top_angle_point=”50″ separator_bottom_type=”none” separator_bottom_height=”50px” separator_bottom_angle_point=”50″ style=”margin: 0px;padding: 0px;”][cs_row inner_container=”true” marginless_columns=”false” style=”margin: 0px auto;padding: 0px;”][cs_column fade=”false” fade_animation=”in” fade_animation_offset=”45px” fade_duration=”750″ type=”1/1″ style=”padding: 0px;”][x_image type=”none” src=”http://ctinnovations.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Content-Detail-News.jpg” alt=”” link=”false” href=”#” title=”” target=”” info=”none” info_place=”top” info_trigger=”hover” info_content=””][/cs_column][/cs_row][/cs_section][cs_section parallax=”false” separator_top_type=”none” separator_top_height=”50px” separator_top_angle_point=”50″ separator_bottom_type=”none” separator_bottom_height=”50px” separator_bottom_angle_point=”50″ style=”margin: 0px;padding: 45px 0px;”][cs_row inner_container=”true” marginless_columns=”false” style=”margin: 0px auto;padding: 0px;”][cs_column fade=”false” fade_animation=”in” fade_animation_offset=”45px” fade_duration=”750″ type=”1/1″ style=”padding: 0px;”][cs_text]The ABCs of Getting Noticed (A Marketing Primer)
Marketing an organization, big or small, can be an overwhelming endeavor for any business owner to consider. From paid to earned to owned media, to content marketing, to gamification and more, these terms often have simple definitions behind them. Freelance marketer Amy Hourigan takes us through the ABC’s of marketing and some of the tools that can help you along the path to success.
Link to PDF[/cs_text][/cs_column][/cs_row][/cs_section][cs_section parallax=”false” separator_top_type=”none” separator_top_height=”50px” separator_top_angle_point=”50″ separator_bottom_type=”none” separator_bottom_height=”50px” separator_bottom_angle_point=”50″ class=”cs-ta-left” style=”margin: 0px;padding: 45px 0px;”][cs_row inner_container=”true” marginless_columns=”false” style=”margin: 0px auto;padding: 0px;”][cs_column fade=”false” fade_animation=”in” fade_animation_offset=”45px” fade_duration=”750″ type=”1/1″ style=”padding: 0px;”][x_image type=”none” src=”http://ctinnovations.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/backtocontentlibrary.png” alt=”back to content library” link=”true” href=”http://ctinnovations.com/access-content-library/” title=”” target=”” info=”none” info_place=”top” info_trigger=”hover” info_content=”” class=”back-image”][/cs_column][/cs_row][/cs_section][/cs_content]