business

Have You Thought About Sending A Newsletter?

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If customer engagement is first on your agenda, you’re probably already set up on the top social platforms for your business. But there’s another format you might be overlooking. An e-mail newsletter is a simple yet effective way to maintain regular communication with your prospects and customers, which allows you to send out relevant content, event schedules, updates, and promotional offers. Whether you send out a bitesize blog or weekly news, it’s a valuable tool to have under your belt.

Creating website traffic

Your site visitors will rarely come from a direct browser search. Unless your company is known on a global scale, most of your visitors will originate from a previous call to action, a social media link or a referral. Once you have taken the plunge and designed your newsletter, it is important that the content is mostly taken from your business website and guides the reader to your domain with a simple call to action.

Improving customer relations

An e-newsletter is a sure way of giving your customer and prospect relationships a solid boost. It not only creates an opportunity to hold the readers undivided attention while presenting your prepared content, but also provides the feeling of exclusivity for them. Personalised touches such as using a first name, or a signature sign off, can be a subtle but effective way of establishing a growing bond.

Establishing credibility

One of the most crucial factors behind establishing a successful audience is trust. Your subscriber has taken the first step in trusting your company with its contact information, and now it’s up to you to provide relevant and beneficial content. Incorporate seasonal topics, current trends or newsworthy updates but always keep it on brand to avoid disassociation from your audience.

Consistency over quantity

Your newsletter doesn’t have to be super long, in fact bitesize newsletters often perform better. A regular send out is what really counts! Just like social media posts, your newsletter can either be scheduled or sent out manually following a designated day and time. If you’re unsure of the frequency at which you should be sending out your newsletter, the best people to ask are your own customers! Set up a poll or a questionnaire and find out what your target audience wants to see. Remember that consistency reaps more benefits than an overload of emails which are more likely to end up in the spam folder. Find the right balance and start a routine with your subscribers.

Get planning

As it stands, a newsletter can be a fantastic marketing tool for your business, all you need is a plan and regular content to help you hit your targets. Make sure your template design is clear and on brand and keep things current. Don’t forget that an eye-catching title and straight to the point subject line can often be the deciding factor behind your open rates. Remember to make the most of newsletter analytics and keep monitoring your open/ click through rates for that real time feedback.

If you’d like to find out more about e-newsletters or require any business support, get in touch. We run a weekly newsletter ourselves and have first-hand experience in promoting a small business. We would love to answer any of your questions and discuss your ideas, we’re looking forward to hearing from you.

E: makeithappen@mbsmih.com T: 01903 688789.

Grow Your Business with Twitter Hours

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What is a Twitter Hour? 

A Twitter Hour is a public Twitter event that enables you to connect and share with other users by using one unique hashtag. Each Twitter hour is regularly held at a specific date and time during the week. 

Why Should I Use A Twitter Hour? 

Taking part in a Twitter hour will allow you to promote your business, products and services, as well as socially interacting with other like-minded business people. Not only that, it’s also great for your engagement and reach on posts. 

How Do I Get Involved In A Twitter Hour? 

It’s simple! To get started, include the Twitter Hour hashtag in your tweet to join in and get noticed. Get involved by keeping an eye on the Twitter Hour hashtag and the latest tweets that are being shared. Take a look at who is joining in the conversation and what topics are being discussed – like, retweet and interact with users to engage with the Twitter chat. 

Here we have compiled a list of some of the Twitter Hours that are currently running at the time of publishing. Of course, there are more and more Twitter hours popping up each week – so if you know of one that you would like listed here, just leave us a comment below! 

Each Wednesday evening between 8pm – 9pm, we run our very own Twitter hour #SMESupportHour. We host different interesting topics each week, so be sure to pop by and get involved! 

Twitter Hours: 

Everyday  
12-1pm #UKBizLunch  
1-2pm #1pmLunch 
2-3pm #BizHour  
2-3pm #UKBizHour 

Mondays 
8-10am #Back2WorkHour 
1-2pm #HerefordHour 
2-3pm #SouthWestHour  
3-4pm #NorthWestHour 
6-7pm #WomenInBiz 
7-8pm #CumbriaHour 
7.30-8.30pm #DorsetHour 
8-9pm #NorthEastHour 
8-9pm #OldhamHour 
8-9pm #LincsHour 
8-9pm #WorcestershireHour 
8-9pm #PrestonHour 
8-9pm #ApprenticeHour 
8-9pm #StHelensHour 
8-9pm #PBoroHour 
8-9pm #MarketHour 
8-9pm #CreativeBizHour 
8-9pm #DevonFoodHour 
8-9pm #EnterpiseHour 
8-9pm #HarrogateHour 
8-9pm #CheshireHour 
8:30-9:30pm #BrightonHour 
8.30-9.30pm #WightHour 

Tuesdays 
2-3pm #NorthEastHour 
4-5pm #IpswichHour 
4-5pm #MerseaHour 
7-8pm #WhitbyHour 
7-8pm #SolihullHour 
8-9pm #DoncasterHour 
8-9pm #HampshireHour 
8-9pm #MerseyBiz 
8-9pm #MusicHourUK 
8-9pm #UKEtsyHour 
8-9pm #ChesterHour 
8-9pm #BristolHour 
8-9pm #EdinburghHour 
8-9pm #MaidstoneHour 
8-9pm #StaffordshireHour 
8-9pm #SheffieldHour 
8-9pm #FoodHour 
8-9pm #PetworthHour 
8-9pm #WyreFyldeHour 
8.30-9.30pm #KentHour 
8.30-9.30pm #WiltshireHour 
9-10pm #BlogHour 
9-10pm #SmallBizHour 
9-10pm #SkiptonHour 

Wednesdays 
11-12pm #HRHour 
2-3pm #NewcastleHour 
2-3pm #CoDurhamHour 
7.30-8.30pm #CornwallHour 
7.30-9.30pm #HandmadeHour 
8-9pm #SMESupportHour 
8-9pm #WorthingHour 
8-9pm #MNCHour 
8-9pm #YorkBizHour 
8-9pm #YorkshireHour 
8-9pm #NorthWestHour 
8-9pm #EastMidlandsHour 
8-9pm #GlosHour 
8-9pm #MidlandsHour 
8-9pm #CambsHour 
8-9pm #CharityHour 
8-9pm #MidlandsHour 
8-9pm #DevonHour 
8-9pm #WolverhamptonHour 
8-9pm #StaffordshireHour 
8-9pm #TravelHour 
8-9pm #WarwickHour 
8.30-9.30pm #OxfordshireHour 
8.30-9.30pm #NorfolkHour 
9-10pm #WeddingHour 
9-10pm #ScotlandHour 
9-10pm #EventHour 

Thursdays 
3-4pm #AycliffeHour 
4-5pm #ChelmsfordHour 
4-5pm #BexleyHour 
7-8pm #OtleyHour 
7-8pm #LoveLichfield 
8-9pm #LancashireHour 
8-9pm #HullHour 
8-9pm #BarnsleyHour 
8-9pm #LiverpoolHour 
8-9pm #CovHour 
8-9pm #ExeterHour 
8-9pm #ManchesterHour 
8-9pm #SouthWestHour 
8-9pm #SomersetHour 
8-9pm #UKStartupHour 
8.30-9.30pm #SussexHour 

Fridays 
10-11am #ConnectFriday 
9-10pm #NorthWestHour 
9-10pm #SciFiHour 

 Saturday 
11-12 Noon #WeekendHour 
6-7pm #SatChatUK 

Sunday 
11-12 Noon #WeekendHour 
8-9pm #CoDurhamHour 
8-9pm #WalesHour 
9-10pm #EnglandHour 

5 Reasons Why You Should Be Using Business Directories

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It’s not enough to set up a business and hope the right clients or customers will find you. You know it takes work and a whole lot of promoting! Which is why you’ve probably been out networking all hours, getting active on social media and paying for ads in local or national publications. But, have you also thought about getting your company listed in the UK’s top online business directories?

An online business directory is a website listing information about businesses by industry, niche, product or other category. The amount of information detailed about a business can vary from directory to directory, but will often include the basics (name, telephone, address, location, etc.) plus additional information such as: description; opening hours; services or products; offers; images; testimonials; reviews; and so on. Users can then search these directories and find relevant companies providing a particular product or service.

There are plenty of reasons to list your business in an online directory, but here are our top five:

It’s Free!

Before we even get started with all the real benefits, it’s good to note that many of these listings are either completely free, or at least have a freemium (free with a premium choice available) option. So the only investment you need to make is time.

Lead Generation

Most of the directories have a search function and many have a specific option that allows users to request quotes or further information from company’s they are looking to work with. It hasn’t cost you a penny to be listed but could very well send some leads your way – it’s a no-brainer, surely!?

SEO

With competition for webspace in every industry high, it’s all about Search Engine Optimisation. SEO is all about increasing your website’s traffic in an organic way. When someone searches the web for the services or products you provide, you want your website to be one of the first results returned to that user. With that in mind, legitimising your business across the internet is extremely important, and business listings are an excellent way to help do that.

Exposure

Following on from SEO, a happy additional outcome of increasing your visibility in searches is that it will increase your exposure, and who doesn’t want that when trying to grow their business…

Validation

With so many businesses out there trying to sell their wares, everyone turns to the internet to try to validate and verify. They’re looking for reviews, trading history, a good web presence, they want and need to know you’re the right fit for them, that they’re not going to be let down. Improving, refreshing and updating your online existence regularly and via as many mediums as possible will help do just that.

So what are you waiting for? Make it happen..

It’s worth noting that each listing can take up to 60 minutes to complete. To get the best out of all the benefits above you need to make sure all of your descriptions are unique to that website. No copying and pasting! So make sure you set aside some specific time to get them done.

Alternatively, feel free to give us a shout, we’d be more than happy to take on the task for you.

T: 01903 688789 E: makeithappen@mbsmih.com

Thanks for reading!

7 Steps to Customer Satisfaction

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Customers are the heart of any business. Whether selling a product or providing a service… Without them, there would be no business. Therefore it is important to look after them and keep them happy. See some of our top tips on building relationships and maintaining client satisfaction.

Interact

Talk to customers one to one, let them see the face and name behind the business. Whether communicating over the phone, through social media or email… Keep that personal touch. It reassures customers that the person/people behind the brand are genuine and care about their issues, therefore making their experience a happier one. Happy customers will generally spread the word which is an added bonus

Listen

It’s important to respond to customers appropriately. In order to do so it’s a must to really listen to them and act on their feedback. Ask them what they want and observe through various communication points. Have feedback forms available. Be sure to follow through with any changes promised. This will help assure the customer that their opinion and word matters to you

Support

It’s always an amazing feeling to have a new customer/client on board but that’s not the end of the hard work. Make sure service is always top notch and ongoing. Respond as quickly as possible and make special offers and promotions tailored to existing clientele to show their continued business is as important to you as gaining new contracts

Value

Make your customers feel valued. It’s always great to listen but if you don’t act upon reasonable requests, they won’t feel as if you’re taking them seriously. Make it clear to them that you not only want their feedback but you also value it and them as a partner. A valued customer will be more likely to increase their investment in your business

Trust

Keep customers up to date with any amendments, whether they are positive or negative. If you keep them in the loop, they will be more susceptible to adapting with the changes. It’s important to approach them carefully (keeping updates clear) if they’re comfortable with how things are. Doing so will help with building/keeping the trust

Honesty

Honesty goes a long way with customers. It’s important to be transparent so they know you have nothing to hide. Be upfront when it comes to fees and what you can offer. No one takes too well to hidden costs and feeling as if they’re not receiving value for money.

Gratitude

Show your customers you appreciate them. Tailor your thanks and gratitude to each client keeping it relevant to them. Although a simple thank you speaks volumes and will make them feel as if their custom is appreciated

As much as we want our customers to have complete trust in us, it can be demanding and time consuming keeping up with communications. At MOMENTUM we can help lighten the load with as much or as little time as you need. Get in touch; we’d be happy to help

My secret to being the ‘most organised person you know’

A written to do list on a notepad with a pen placed on top

Everyone always tells me I’m the most organised person they know. I get a lot of ‘it’s ok for you, you’re organised’ and ‘it’s easy for you, you remember everything’ or ‘you do it, you’ll remember’.

The truth is, I don’t.

I used to think I had a great memory and was super organised, but that was before I started my own business, and one role became every role!

A few years ago, it felt like my natural ability to remember ‘everything’ started to fade. The busier I got the more there was to remember and the more I began to fret about it. I’m not saying I did forget everything, and I certainly still managed to appear organised and well planned, but at a cost. Lots of late nights trying to cram it all in whilst it was still fresh. Restless nights in and out of sleep, conscious that I had: clients to support; business accounts to get up to date; invoices and proposals to get out; events to plan and manage; stationery to order; software updates to implement; and so on and more.

Sound familiar? Of course it does. You have just as much to keep on top of as I do!

So, what’s my secret to making sure I’m still  ‘the most organised person you know’?

LISTS!

I know. It’s probably not quite the ultimate all revealing ‘secret’ you were after but it’s true. Writing my to-do list and keeping it updated every day takes the pressure out of remembering. There’s so much else to do, I just don’t have time to remember any more. So every evening when I finish work, I update my to-do list. And every morning, there it is, ensuring I know exactly what I need to do to get the most out of my day – No more restless nights or undue stress!

If you struggle to remember everything, or have written your to-do list and just don’t have the time to get it all done, then get in touch. We have an amazing team who are excellent at helping others become ‘the most organised person you know’!

T: 01903 688789  E: makeithappen@mbsmih.com