“Nothing is original. Steal from anywhere that resonates with inspiration or fuels your imagination. Devour old films, new films, music, books, paintings, photographs, poems, dreams, random conversations, architecture, bridges, street signs, trees, clouds, bodies of water, light and shadows. Select only things to steal from that speak directly to your soul. If you do this, your work (and theft) will be authentic. Authenticity is invaluable; originality is nonexistent.”
Jim Jarmusch
(image by Austin Kleon, Steal Like An Artist, discovered on Google)
We LOVE Austin Kleon. He masterfully shares in his book Steal Like An Artist how to use your creativity in the digital age. With the gazillions of images, articles, and information being shared, is there a right way to steal? The graphic above is an awesome illustration the new “rules of engagement”.
Your content is your marketing in the social + digital age, so understanding how to creatively create and curate (find + share) content is now a super important part of how you engage on your social pages.
If you love books like we do, click here to purchase Steal Like An Artist. It’s awesome!
(shared with LOVE from your passionistas Nina + Gordon)
PS: A big shout out of love and thanks to Austin Kleon for teaching us how to steal like an artist. We heart you.
“Tell me and I’ll forget; show me and I may remember; involve me and I’ll understand.”
Chinese Proverb
In the world of the social + digital web, many of us are still unsure of how to engage for our business on social platforms in terms of “context”.
The Definition of Context
n. Context
1. The part of a text or statement that surrounds a particular word or passage and determines its meaning.
2. The circumstances in which an event occurs; a setting.
You may have seen the graphic around the web using donuts (doughnuts), but we found this super fun explanation of the context of engaging on social platforms using bacon (for our vegetarian and vegan friends, click here for the donut edition).
Now its your turn. Using this graphic as a guide, try putting your business into context. Try it, you will be amazed how much you really know and understand about the context of engaging on the different social platforms you use for your business. Ready. Set. TRY!
Once you have created yours for your business, we would love if you shared them on our Facebook page or via email.
A big thank you to Corey Smith for creating this awesome and easy to understand graphic, and for putting engaging on the social web in context.
(shared with LOVE from your passionistas Nina + Gordon)
PS: We use the term “social web” vs. “social media” as we believe this revolution is a global movement to engage and connect to world, it’s not just about media. The web is about “we”, while media is about “me”. We choose WE.
“We believe that everyone has the right to feel safe, to be empowered and to make a difference in the world. Together, we will move towards acceptance, bravery and love.”
Born This Way Foundation
October is National Anti-Bullying Month. There is an alarming trend both online and off of people being mean and hurting one another. We believe we can all do something to stop this trend and empower our youth, to encourage acceptance and love.
There are several organizations that are doing something to help our youth hold their head up high, to be strong and brave and to show them there is hope. One of the organizations that we love is the Born This Way Foundation, created by Lady Gaga and her beautiful mother, Cynthia Germanotta.
Check out this video, which shows some staggering stats on the state of bullying in our world. We love that Lady Gaga chose her song Hair for this video.
While cyber-bullying is something new to our world, the online space has also given organizations like this the ability to reach millions of young people where they live, online. This is the empowering part of the social + digital revolution, and we are so inspired by these movements and how they are truly making a difference in the lives of young people.
If you have been a victim of bullying, know someone who is, you know how horrible it is and the sometimes fatal consequences. Its time to stand up to bully’s, to show our youth that it’s cool to be your authentic self, and there are millions of people who love and accept them, just the way they are.
“Excuses don’t make things better. Excuses only offer a rationale to avoid trying.”
Simon Sinek
Marketing is the activity and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging products and services that have value for customers, clients, and society. So, yes, we are all marketers, whether we own a salon or are a beauty professional. How cool is that?
You may have heard about the 4 P’s of Marketing at some point, we actually believe there are 6. Yes, we added 2, why? Because we think they are the most important parts of the marketing mix.
The 4 P’s of Marketing plus our 2 P’s
1. Product (service)
2. Place (salon)
3. Price (price points of product/service)
4. Promotion (how you will promote product/service)
5. People (you, your team, your clients)
6. Passion (you got this, yay!)
Yet many times, we hear people say, I’m an artist, not a business person. I’m creative, not a sales person. Well guys, the fact is, marketing is all about art + creativity, so congrats, you are a marketer.
Here is a super cool infographic on Facebook Marketing. So, no more excuses, its time to jump in and start trying.
If you want to learn more about marketing in the social + digital space, or just how to better market your salon, we offer one-on-one coaching and mentoring to help you craft an effective and engaging plan. Click here to learn more about our services. We look forward to helping you achieve your dreams, and yes, to become a better marketer.
(shared with LOVE from your passionistas, Nina + Gordon)
“Things that help others is what gets the most shares.”
Chris Brogan
Even though this video was shot over 2 years ago, it’s still so relevant as Brian Solis speaks about the social value of “checking-in”. It’s a super simple way to understand “social currency” and the “social value” our interactions on the web play into growing our salons, businesses and brands.
“Social currency is represented in the resulting value and sentiment that stems from the exchange of social objects: words, videos, reactions, links. Social currency is a combination of actions and words.”
Brian Solis
So what does that mean for us?
Every time a client has a social interaction with our salon, every time they comment, share, like, and yes, even check-in, they are giving their endorsement of your salon to their group of friends. Sound familiar? Of course it does, it’s good ol fashion word of mouth, it’s just happening online.
When we provide engaging, relevant and valuable information and content on our social pages, people will take action.
Here are some examples of social actions: Facebook
Likes, comments, shares, RSVP’s to events, check-in’s
YELP
Reviews, checking-in
Foursquare
Checking-In, reviews
Twitter
Tweets, re-tweets, @ mentions
Pinterest
Likes, comments, re-pins
Instagram
Likes, comments
So, what are you doing on your social pages to create “social value” and “social currency”? Are you creating and delivering valuable content for your fans and followers or just trying to sell them something? In the end, the more value you deliver, the more actions you will get.
If you are ready to learn how to connect your offline efforts with your online efforts, we offer one-on-one coaching and mentoring to help you craft an awesome social + digital plan designed to increase your social value, currency and ultimately more word of mouth and referrals. Click here to learn more and get started!
(shared with LOVE from your passionistas, Nina + Gordon)
