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Are South African Businesses Using Instagram Accurately And Effectively?
Mon, 26 Sep 2016 13:36:56 +0000
Instagram is becoming increasingly popular. It is no longer about editing your photo’s with multiple different filters; it’s about sharing visual moments
If you have exciting things to sell then there is no reason for you not to capitalise on the Instagram market by sharing visual moments.
#SHARE VISUAL MOMENTSRegular posting of great images is the first step to getting started. Ensure that your pictures are creative; Instagram is not a place for boring pictures.
It is all about the visual; instead of selling your customer a product, sell them an experience and take them on a journey with you.
Show your followers some behind the scenes action and do not be scared to use the video feature as well.
#ENGAGE, LIKE AND FOLLOWUse a few hashtags to increase your engagement. Hashtags are great for increasing your following and engagement and we recommend sticking to 5 hashtags as a maximum.
Stats have shown that hashtags work but only if it’s done right. And remember, hashtags are searchable.
#HYPERLINKSThe Instagram application is constantly being updated and we are hoping in the near future hperlink within comments will be allowed but unfortunately for brands, you are limited to one hyperlink only.
Tip: Don’t forget to change the link regularly, based on what you’re posting.
#PARTNER WITH INSTAGRAM CELEBSCompetitions are always an excellent way to increase your followers. Team up with Instagram celeb bloggers who have a high following; there are tons of South African bloggers using this platform.
They might be interested in product reviews and giveaways via their Instagram account. There are over 1 million active Instagram users in South Africa and local brands are finally catching up.
Perfect South African examples of brands doing well on Instagram include Yuppiechef, South African Tourism and Woolworths. Use these as examples and learn about what works for them before applying it to your business.
Ref: http://www.mashupmarketing.co.za/
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6 Ways Vision Will Inspire Your Employees And Culture
Mon, 26 Sep 2016 13:32:30 +0000
1) VISION IS MISSION PLUS TECH STRATEGY
True vision involves a clear mission that informs every strategic action and decision. Bring that into a talent management context for a moment.
If a CEO’s vision includes attracting the best and the brightest minds to the organisation on a global scale, a visionary talent strategy will include a platform that’s social and mobile, agile and timely, shaped with this clear target group in mind.
If it doesn’t, the strategy isn’t supporting the vision.
2) VISION SHOULD COME FROM WITHINConsider our iconic leaders. They appear to be so filled with their vision that they’re incandescent with it; lit from within.
Steve Jobs is a great example: he lived and breathed his vision; such a part of Apple’s mission that “Think Different” could have had a black turtleneck as a flag. Such distilled strength gives a brand coherency and momentum. But to transmit your vision to others and inspire them, you first have to be filled with it yourself.
3) VISION IS CREATIVEWhat makes a leader stand out is that their ability to conceive of an objective that may not even exist: stores serving nothing but fancy coffee, cars a working family can afford to buy, a system of storing data without physical form or shape, yet nearly infinite capacity and capabilities.
Then, when it comes to problem solving, where one person sees a dead end, the leader sees a road ahead. Bolstered by an unshakeable faith in their own vision, leaders see obstacles as opportunities.
4) VISION TAKES TENACITYIt takes tenacity to adhere to a vision and defend it against the prospect of failure. But leaders roll up their sleeves and the world throws in behind them. It’s not hard to imagine the resistance such a strategy could come up against within the organisation, and how hard fought the battle to get it done.
5) VISION TAKES VISIONNo, it’s not a typo: vision requires a sense of the big picture and a laser-sharp view of the future. This kind of foresight takes practice, but it’s part of what keeps the train on the track.
Leaders need to be able to look at past performances, whether successes or failures, and be able to use that to predict future outcomes.
Further, a leader can envision more than one possible outcome, and still have it adhere to their stated objective.
6) VISION REQUIRES COMMUNICATIONNone of this will go anywhere if a leader doesn’t also have the tools to convey that vision to the organisation, and inspire them to get the job done.
That may also be why marketing has taken such a hold on the term: marketing is about creating the most engaging expression of an idea. Implicit in our ability to convey our vision is that vital compact that leadership needs to have with employees: one of consideration, and inclusion, and respect.
Together, we can do it, as the slogan goes. And that, drives employee engagement and helps talent attraction and retention across the board.
Ref: http://www.talentculture.com/
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Employee Engagement 101: Does Your Culture Value Humans?
Mon, 26 Sep 2016 13:29:22 +0000
What’s the distance between your company culture and your brand? Answer: There shouldn’t be any
A company culture that’s authentic and deep will translate through the employer brand, conveying the same tone, the same mission, the same values to job seekers and new hires that it does to fully entrenched (and hopefully engaged) employees.
If your employees aren’t engaged, that’s a serious detriment to your employer brand, and that’s what going to translate down the pike.
Proof is in the pudding — or not — an organisation without a strong company culture will lose out to companies that do.
HERE ARE TWO VALUES IT’S KEY TO TRANSMIT: 1) SUPPORTING YOUR EMPLOYEES AS PEOPLE WITH LIVESCompanies like Apple and Google clearly align employer brand with workplace culture. Why are we still talking about these more mainstream brands you ask?
Because they have historically embedded themselves into our collective brain. Innovation, creativity and teamwork are part of that culture, as is the message that to keep people inspired, fresh and happy, the organisation has to support them.
Job seekers are savvier than ever and will turn on a dime: a company that touts “long hours in the trenches” translates as “doesn’t respect my need for a life outside of work.”
One that doesn’t address childcare and benefits for a family translates as “we are more important than your family.” That won’t work, particularly given this intensely competitive recruiting culture, not to mention ever-increasing workplace options.
2) LIVING YOUR MISSION STATEMENTIntegrity is key among the values external job candidates are shown to hold dear in a prospective employer. That’s what happens when the mission statement is clear, authentic, and transparent.
Make sure your employees are part of the mission statement so it aligns their engagement with the company goals — they are the embodiment of your employer brand.
And make sure the same clear goals and values in that mission statement are part of your recruiting strategy, your videos, your mobile and social platforms.
There are more ways than ever to convey employer brand, whether to active or passive candidates: social, mobile, onboarding, video.
Ref: http://www.talentculture.com/
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The Top 7 Mistakes Companies Make With Clients
Mon, 26 Sep 2016 13:22:31 +0000
1. Not knowing what’s special about your brand
You might think you’re different but too often brands look the same to customers. Then you’ll often be bought predominantly on price.
What’s the real or perceived difference between you and competitors? Are the differences important to the customer? Are they real or perceived? Is it about being better? – Not necessarily.
Apparently in blind tastes tests Pepsi is preferred to Coca-Cola. Yet Coca-Cola sales dominate.
2.Not Understanding Your ValueIt is easy to become focused on the product or service rather than the result or impact of your brand. Customers want to buy the result of the brand. Value is in their eyes, not yours.
We want to buy the ‘after’ or benefit of the product. I don’t want to buy cough mixture – I want to get rid of my cough. I don’t want to buy household content insurance – I want peace of mind. I don’t want to buy champagne – I want to celebrate. What’s your ‘after’?
3. Focusing On Revenue Over ProfitAs a commercial company, making a fair profit is a fundamental business goal. Revenue growth without profit growth is nuts. Don’t be too focused on the top line revenue rather than on the right balance between revenue and bottom line profitability. Focus on long term, sustainable, profitable growth.
4.Under-Pricing – A Massive And Costly MistakeBy under-pricing we set a precedent with that customer going forward and it will be hard to increase our price with that same customer for subsequent work. Price is the No.1 factor to influence profitability.
5.Over-DependenceIf a customer represents more than around 15% of your business there is a danger that you avoid increasing your prices, avoid challenging the customer. Instead we play it safe and avoid ‘rocking the boat’.
Just because you’ve had a customer for 10 years is not a guarantee of the future. Most businesses typically lose 10-15% of their customers each year. Don’t let your businesses be destroyed or decimated by the loss of one or two major customers. Hope is not a strategy! For many businesses their biggest customer is often not their most profitable.
6.The Succumbing To The ‘Busy-Ness’ DiseaseEveryone is so busy, but are they effective and productive? The risk is, we lurch from meeting to meeting, crisis to crisis. Too often we don’t take time to stop, think and plan. Because of our busy-ness we then make a secondary mistake of short-termism. We become too focused on today and not enough on tomorrow.
Of course, hitting our current sales target is vital, but not at the expense of the future. Don’t ‘mortgage’ the future for the sake of today.
7.Not Understanding Who Your Ideal Customer IsIf you are a premium brand then don’t chase customers who simply want a cheap price. Many businesses have lost their focus on who their ideal customer is in a drive to grow overall sales. Blackberry was THE businessperson’s mobile phone. They then pursued the youth market and lost their way falling between a rock and a hard place.
Ref: http://www.brandquarterly.com/
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Personal Branding: Why Leaders Should Take It Seriously
Mon, 26 Sep 2016 13:16:27 +0000
EMPLOYEES ARE YOUR BEST ADVOCATES
While influencer marketing is becoming more and more of a successful channel for brands, what leaders are forgetting is that those influencers have exceptional personal brands. 90% of us are bound to trust the word of a friend, family member or peer.
Encouraging employee advocacy through their personal brands can increase exposure and trust in whatever you have to say or sell, and having a positive social media policy will go a long way to achieving that.
As a leader you can’t be everywhere and all things to all people. Encourage your teams to become mini-evangelists and it will pay dividends.
LINKEDIN IS A POWERHOUSELinkedIn should no longer be feared as the place where your employees go to seek a new job but it’s also a gold mine of knowledge and engagement. According to LinkedIn, their audience visits are from over 200 countries.
You have a huge opportunity – not only to reach a critical mass of people with ideas and news about your company, but also to encourage feedback and sentiment through individuals within your organisation.
AUTHENTICITY IS PARAMOUNTBeing true to yourself, your professional experience and your abilities, this is crucial to growing your brand.
The key to success is through authenticity, a proven track record and the ability to have empathy and listen to your audience, as well as broadcast your message.
THE FUTURE OF PERSONAL BRANDINGWith the arrival of virtual reality on a more affordable scale with companies like Facebook and Microsoft creating technology for the living room, imagine a world where you could be in more than one place at once.
Virtual assistant technology like Apple’s Siri, Microsoft’s Cortana, and Amazon Echo’s Alexa know more and more about our personal and professional needs and preferences.
Company leaders need to embrace the magnificent opportunity digital and social media presents them, their employees and their businesses to become more discoverable, shareable and memorable. People are any company’s best asset.
Ref: http://www.brandquarterly.com/
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Video Ads on Yellow
