Category Archives: Marketing

It’s Time To Poke The Box Says Seth!

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Everybody loves Seth, myself included. What’s not to love? The man is a brilliant strategist, author and entrepreneur.  He’s also the guy who took it upon himself to create an entire online community such as Squidoo to connect people to ideas and businesses. Linchpin and Tribes are two of the most talked about titles in Seth’s impressive collection of published books. Even so, if you never read another book again, I suggest you get your hands on his newest gem, Poke The Box

In his recent interview with Bryan Elliott, the host of Behind the Brand, on Failing Until You SucceedGodin points out that Poke The Box is like a permission slip that says, that it’s ok for you to fail and to pursue your passions. It’s all about being ready to ship. When you have a desire to stand out from the rest and continue to take appropriate risks you will succeed.

A large part of the problem is that too often in our world says Godin, somebody does something amazing and we don’t wonder how they did that? You probably have a calling that you’ve been wanting to pursue. Unfortunately as a culture, we have been conditioned to follow and take orders.You have to dare to think outside of our comfort zone; poke the box.  

It’s Time To Poke The Box: There is no time like the present to let your idea out into the open. Whether you’re running a business or are on your way to a new discovery you need to acknowledge that failure is integral to your path to success because if someone else fails more than you do, they win.

Be A Serial Starter-Upper: Never stop starting; make it a habit. Timing is everything and knowing exactly when to start and when to simply absorb the information around you. We are too used to playing it “safe” says Godin. We are live in a conformist society, where it’s assumed that not doing anything is safer than the alternative of taking action. What if you were to take every opportunity do what you want and not ask permission?

Failure Is Fatal: Society has taught you that failure is not an option. Therefore you, like many of us might be terrified of not doing something right.What if you make a mess? What if the sky comes crashing down? Fear is a real barrier says Godin, on the path to creating and implementing new ideas. By turning off the fear switch in the back of your head you too, can begin starting; confident in your ability to get things done. By poking the box, you say yes to taking action instead of waiting passively on the sidelines for someone else to tell you what to do.

Poke It With Purpose: Now that you’ve squashed your fear of failure It’s time to do something extraordinary. Take your passion; something worth changing, something worth making a noise about. What can you bring to the table that is uniquely you? No more of the same old, same old, it’s time to inject newness into the everyday. Take the initiative and make things happen. It’s ok to pursue the unexpected; in fact, it’s more than ok. You owe it to yourself and your community to stop being a follower and follow your true calling.

Go Ahead, Poke The Box: Seth Godin, is a true motivator. He’s an enabler of positive thought and a cultivator of new ideas. This book like most of Godin’s previous works is a testament of how important it really is to continue starting. It’s an encouraging reminder that failure is a kind of stepping stone on the way to success that should not be feared.

In the meantime, if you’re ready to start poking the box, let our team of experts provide you with professional feedback and advice to help you find your path to success!  You can also follow us @wizof_biz or post your comments on our blog

We’re here for you,

The EntreBahn team.

 

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Under the Influence: Terry O’Reilly

influenceTerry O’Reilly, is one of the most popular broadcasters for CBC Radio One.  His independently produced show, Under the Influence, delves deep into both the cultural and social impacts of marketing and advertising on modern life. His offbeat approach to business, marketing and creativity has kept listeners engaged for years. As a quirky radio personality O’Reilly has a unique ability to inject modern day trends and ideas with a dose of older tradition.

The latest episode presents some of the best elevator pitches ever used, from the world of business, books and movies.  It clearly explains why elevator pitches make marketing campaigns better, how to distill a selling idea down to a few words and how to make you money.  

Under the Influence is an incredible resource for anyone involved in business, marketing, promotion or anyone just interested in the unique and often surprising history of advertising. I highly recommend you check out the show.  

I also invite you to browse through our blog for more amazing podcast suggestions, book reviews, business tips and more! Feel free to chime in on Twitter @wizof_biz

 

 

 

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WizOf.Biz Out In The Open: In Conversation With You!

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The WizOf.Biz team of business mentors  along with CEO Reg Cherney have attended a MEGA Networking event series, which took place on March 31, 2014 at the Spirale Convention Centre in North York.

This popular series is run by The Networker, an online business and networking community which offers attendees a weekly networking newsletter chuck-full of exciting news and events happening in your community, an online interactive experience and a fantastic opportunity to connect and share with other industry professionals in the Greater Toronto area

One of our goals in attending this networking event was to talk to you about who we are, what we do, and how we assist businesses like yours to achieve entrepreneurial success. In a nutshell, WizOf.Biz is a unique online business consulting platform comprised of experienced mentors who are here to provide you with the feedback and advice you need to stay on top of your game.

We get corporate businesses and SMEs, quick and measurable results when it comes to their financing, sales and marketing efforts. Best of all, we are always motivated by a desire to inspire, enlighten and guide you through the content assessment process with confidence and ease. Our services are personalized and tailored to your specific needs and objectives.

Why Should You Care?

 

  • If you own a corporate to medium sized business and have a question that needs answering we are here for you.
  • If you’re not sure whether your idea is marketable submit it to our system and get instant feedback
  • Each one of our mentors is an expert in their field and is ready to provide you with confidential and timely advice.
  • Our mentors are friendly and will offer you their  unbiased perspective.
  • You have nothing to lose by signing up and everything to gain.
  • No more stress, or uncertainty about the quality of your written material
  • Select your template from a range of available formats to make your life easier or upload your own materials.
  • Avoid awkward meetings with industry stakeholders and that awful feeling of being judged.  
  • All WizOf.Biz mentors are compensated well to provide you with the best advice.
  • Get results fast from the comfort of home at competitive prices.
  • Choose the mentor you’d like to work with based on your experience and comfort level
  • All information you submit is 100% confidential and secure
  • Take full advantage of our 24 hour response time

So don’t delay your own your own future! Let us show you how we can get you where you need to go.

Other Worthwhile Biz News:

1)  We will continue to support our Afterworkshop series of events based on exciting business topics and panel discussions. It’s always a pleasure seeing so many talented businessmen, women and entrepreneurs participate in our workshops. Our Afterworshop Series are a great opportunity for you to network, ask questions, share ideas and enjoy some food and wine.

Pleased stay tuned for information on events like this one, conversations and workshops, by following us on Twitter @wizof_biz or via our blog.  You never know what might be waiting for you around the corner. Our blog is filled with useful business tips, advice, Friday cartoons, Tweets of The Week, feedback by business professionals and more!

 2) We’re thrilled about the real possibility of our upcoming new event series entitled  From Garage To Global. The objective is to provide you with practical information to help you evaluate the potential advantages and pitfall of going global whether the activities are related to marketing, production or customer service.

The details for The Garage to Global series would consist of four events which we are discussing with a large bank as we speak. In the meantime, we’d like to continue the conversation with #GarageToGlobal. Tell us your thoughts on outsourcing How, if at all, does it contribute to the success of your business venture? What are potential pitfalls or advantages of business outsourcing?

3) We would love to hear more of your thoughts and ideas. If you have any comments or feedback to help us serve you better feel free to share them through the comment section of our blog or via our Twitter @wizof_biz

We look forward to hearing from you, The WizOf.Biz team.

 

 

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Business: Why Vine Videos?

vine-mobileVine videos are the newest online phenomenon that can do wonders for your business. Why? Because they’re social, intriguing and best of all short. These thirty second visual teasers are just enough to spark our curiosity without revealing too much, too fast. Vines can be easily shared on all social media platforms. What’s even more handy is that these can then be plugged into a Twitter stream in a matter of minutes.

Today, there is a vast number of content creation tools that offer businesses like yours a tremendous opportunity to network, share and generate buzz around your product or service. By engaging with your potential audience you can help open doors and garner curiosity about your brand. Vines are going viral as we speak with nearly a half a million info beats shared daily.

Why Vines?

1) They are simple, intuitive and engaging. Vines are a fun way of delivering your message to your market segment and making an instant impression. Anyone can create impactful videos that vary in complexity and style. All you have to do is think about your brand in a succinct fashion.  

Timing:  

2) Online content must be short and sweet. Paraphrase, edit, reshape. When it comes to impactful videos, often less is more. Besides, if you’re subjecting anyone to a thirty minute video they’re likely to start chewing on a pencil, playing with their hair or worse frantically picking their nose. Tell your story within the first fiveteen seconds and make it count.

3) Be SmartPhone Smarter: Anyone can use their smartphones to create hilarious videos but how do you stand out from the crowd? Learn, advance and adapt what you know. Your know-how can be the difference between a good video campaign and a great one.

Take a look at Lowe’s short video series called Fix It In Six  It offers helpful tips and tricks for the do-it- yourselfers. Each six second tit-bit offers a hands-on solution to an at home dilemma. This video manages to do a superb job at telling it like it is while cleverly allowing prospective clients to feel like they have saved the day.

The video is presented beautifully with a clear message. Vines like this can be used in business as a unique visual representation of your values, ideas and motivations done in a snapshot that caters to your markets needs, aspirations and lifestyle. So don’t miss out. Make Vine part of your marketing strategy.

In the meantime visit us on twitter @wizof_biz for more creative marketing tips. You can also check out our blog for topics like crowdfunding, outsourcing for business, creative marketing, funding options and much more!

The WizOf.Biz Team

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Crowdfunding For Enterprises: Why Do It?

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Crowdfunding,  is one of the most popular ways to fund your project, small business or creative idea. Sites like RocketHub, Kickstarter and Indiegogo are sprouting up fast, but how can larger, enterprises use them to further their resources?

Increasingly big businesses use social media as a way to create a sense of community around their brand. Crowdfunding is quickly becoming an effective way for small businesses and enterprise level initiatives, to generate community involvement. Why? Quite simply it’s about the effective use of your most valuable and often overlooked asset; everyday people.

Why Should Large Companies Crowdfund?

1) Get It Out There: For starters, it’s an excellent way create a buzz around your product or service. If people are genuinely interested in what you’re selling.they will donate their time to your business. The good news, is that most online social software tools do not require financial commitment. They are put in place as a way to generate valuable data via platforms like Kickstarter and Indiegogo in order to get a better idea of what your audiences expect. It’s important to understand whether your concept is among the products and services that motivate people to take action

2) Pay It Forward: Your crowdfunding campaign supporters will get an exclusive opportunity to interrupt firsthand with your product or service. Not only will you generate advanced financial returns and encourage participants to become eager guinea pigs willing to test out your concept but you will also encourage potential funders to access special features that are otherwise unavailable. This is bound to keep investors happy and willing to spread the word about your newest invention.

3) Keep Them Entertained: Don’t forget to keep the momentum going. Both existing and prospective clients enjoy being acknowledged and praised for their efforts. One way to do that, is to frequently update them about the status of your project. You can also provide occasional previews of upcoming features and discussions related to your product. What you’re doing is asking people to opt-in and continue spreading the news. Some great examples of tapping into your community include BarclayCard and U-Haul Investors Club

4) Share Your Successes: People love knowing that they’ve contributed to something larger than themselves. Share your successes, talk about your failures and show your supporters the results you’ve been able to achieve as part of their contribution.

Crowdfunding is for everyone regardless of size or experience. When it comes to building a business community, it’s rarely just about cash flow. Enterprises often choose to do it in order to test market viability, as a way to garner support and secure the public’s commitment to the product or service and lastly and most importantly, to generate ongoing engagement with clients through shared successes.

Read more on the advantages crowdfunding brings to enterprises or visit us on twiiter @wizof_biz for more valuable tips and advice.

Mind Your Business,

The WizOf.Biz team.

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SEO & Rap Genius: The Good, The Bad And The Ugly

black-hat-seo-techniquesRap Genius (@RapGenius) a popular site for lyrics annotation, was recently caught growth hacking. The term refers to manipulating online traffic through quick SEO marketing schemes. Subsequently Google decided to send Rap Genius straight to the bottom of the search engine.  In response, the relatively young music site, had this to say: “we messed up”. My question is: is it really worth your while to employ bad SEO strategies when you can choose to focus your attention on good SEO?  Below are some great ways to employ good SEO.

 1) Make Your Site Crawlable:

Make sure that the links on your pages can be easily found through popular search engines. Don’t hide good content and be sure to make your site user friendly

2) Be Specific When Choosing Key Phrases:

 Think carefully about your audience. What are they likely to search for? For instance “business consulting”, “marketing strategies” , “business financing”. Avoid using broad terms that are less likely to appear as a search item. Present all content in plain text including your contact info and availability. Describe clearly what it is you do, so that there is no confusion as to your purpose.

3) Include Guerilla Marketing In Your SEO Strategy:

Entice people with smart guerilla marketing and community outreach initiatives. It’s important to remember that communicating with others takes much more than building links online.  

 4) Your Homepage Title Has To Be The Answer People Are Looking For:

This is about ensuring that all your important pages including the home page, use the kind of language that will enable your audience to bookmark it and use it as a reference at a later date.

5) Ask Questions, Attend Tech Conferences And Use The Free SEO Resources:  

Stay curious, ask questions, attend technology and SEO seminars and use all available online resources that will help you improve your online standing and keep your clients happy.

You don’t have to follow in the footsteps of Rap Genius. Instead, be creative, reach out to people and stay informed. As Fred Wilson of Union Square Ventures, advises,“be your own bitch” when it comes to retaining online prospects. Build your own platform and avoid relying on others to do it for you.

In the meantime, stay tuned and don’t forget to visit our blog for more practical business tips and advice.

The WizOf.Biz Team

 

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Human Marketing

After watching this short, three and a half minute video, I was truly touched. Although this is a Google India ad; to me, it is so much more than a corporate promotional stunt . It’s brilliant marketing, that brings with it, a human element, that we don’t often see in advertising. I feel there should be more video campaigns like this one, that tug at our heartstrings.

In a nutshell, this is a miniature story about two childhood friends who have not seen one another since 1947 when India and Pakistan became two independent countries. Moved by her grandpa’s accounts of his and Yusuf’s friendship, the granddaughter  arranges for their emotional reunion through the use of Google products..

Videos like this, however corporately oriented they may be, serve to validate our collective need to relate and connect to others. It’s almost a realization that there is more to marketing than a well presented sales pitch. This film is not only honest and compelling but it allows us to tap into the parts of ourselves we have perhaps subconsciously neglected; empathy, spirituality and connectedness.

The Partition, says International Business Times, is”one of the greatest forced migrations in human history”. Within a span of three minutes Google India sums up the struggles and the pain caused by the Partition, and presents it to its audience in the most gratifying manner.  According to writer Dan Lyons, whom I want to thank for writing the article in which I found the ad,“These aren’t just two friends who haven’t seen each other in a long time. This is a parable that touches on some big forces: politics, religion, geography, divisiveness”; I could not agree more.

Here are some other great examples:


 

Happy Holidays Everyone!

The WizOf.Biz Team.

 

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