Yesterday, PCV hosted its Marketing for Small Business seminar at Mechanics’ Institute Library (which was an awesome venue and had the coolest spiral staircase, pictured below) in downtown San Francisco. The expert panel, including representatives from Constant Contact, AdRoll and Chubbies Shorts, was curated by one of PCV’s superstar marketing advisors, Danielle Petersen, who owns Leading Momentum Consulting. The session focused on some crucial marketing tools and practices for small businesses such as search engine optimization (SEO), social media, retargeting and email campaigns.
Some highlights from the session are below, and we are more than happy to send along the full presentation if you were unable to make it to the event. Stay informed about PCV and PCV partner events on our online calendar.
Danielle Petersen, Leading Momentum Retail & Merchandise Consulting
The minimum online presence that your company should have:
1.) Website
2.) Facebook
3.) Blog (if only to improve your SEO)
Preston Rutherford, Chubbies Shorts
- Keep your message simple and consistent. If you start a weekly contest or promotion, don’t forget to make it happen on schedule. Use consistent wording and imagery to solidify the message of your brand.
- Allow your customers to tell your story for you through social media. Allow them to post statuses, photos and get involved with the brand – this will build excitement and loyalty.
- Keep track of your website and email analytics to find out what is working for you and what is not. Continue to rework your marketing efforts until you hit your stride and see success.
Ryan Williams, AdRoll
98% of shoppers will abandon a site without purchasing products. AdRoll places ads on sites that customers visit later, such as Los Angeles Times, NY Times, etc. Below are some frequently asked questions.
What kind of budget do I need?
- There is a two-week free trial that AdRoll offers, and account managers will work with you after that to make sure a retargeting program fits within your business budget.
What is the required time commitment for entrepreneurs?
- A retargeting program doesn’t necessarily take a lot of time from the entrepreneur. Most people will check their analytics once at the end of the week, which equates to only about 45 minutes a month.
How do companies create the ads?
- AdRoll has in-house designers that will work with small business owners who don’t have the capacity to hire an outside graphic designer.
Elyse Tager, Constant Contact
Insider tips for email marketing campaigns:
- The best time to send an email is Tuesday through Thursday from 10:00am to 3:00pm
- Analyze your emails with programs like Constant Contact.
- Create synergy between the marketing tools.
- A subject line is the most important part of your email.
- Anywhere you have an online presence, make sure you have a “Join our List” button for people to sign up.
- Check out free programs like NutshellMail by Constant Contact, which will aggregate all of your social media analytics – for free!
If you have any questions at all about this event, or would like to see the full presentation, please email apentecost@pcvmail.org.