“Your content is your marketing.”
In this episode of #QandAwesome I answer a question I get every single day. What the heck do I post on my social platforms? It begins and ends with getting clear on your brand and your audience.
Periscope vs. Facebook LIVE
“Be where your clients are.”
UPDATE: Facebook LIVE is now available for Facebook business pages as of April 5, 2016. Yay!
With the influx of LIVE streaming platforms and apps, I have been getting several questions on this topic and while LIVE streaming and broadcasting is nothing new, with the launch of Periscope, it seems to have been gaining momentum in some business categories.
So here are my thoughts….
As with any social platform, I always recommend starting with a clear objective of why you are engaging, how you are engaging, who are you engaging with, a content plan and a commitment to consistency. If you can only commit to one platform, then do that, and do it awesomely.
And with all of that, comes the last, and maybe most important thing, be mindful of how and when you choose to broadcast. Too much noise? You lose people. Too much TMI? You lose people. Too much sharing of events where people paid to attend, well, you know the answer to that one. #notcool
Periscope
App based (Periscope)
Links to Twitter
Lots of trolls
Save video option (but be mindful, context is key, so saving them and posting to YouTube may simply be out of context for the viewer)
Potentially high engagement
User can set notifications of broadcasts
Disappears from page in 24 hours
Sometimes poor quality
Comments feed for engagement
Hearts as likes
Light analytics in app
Facebook LIVE
App based (Facebook)
Available to verified pages and personal pages only, not business pages (yet)
More qualified audience (if you have been using your personal page for business as well)
Save and share video option (can share to biz page, if relevant, as well as embed on your website, but again, be mindful of the context when sharing to other platforms)
Stays on your timeline as long as you want it to
Can be edited post broadcast (Go to videos, select video, select edit)
Users can “subscribe” to get notifications of future broadcasts
Potential high engagement, depending on your personal page following and sharing plan
High quality
Comments feed for engagement
Likes as likes and comments as comments
No analytics per se (since its done via your personal page) but as with any Facebook native video, you can measure views and of course, measure likes, comments and shares.
At the end of the day, I will go back to be where your clients are. Are they on Periscope? Go there. Are they on Facebook? Go there. But always be mindful of your intention for broadcasting and the value you are bringing to the conversation.
My take? Facebook LIVE could be a game-changer, as there are a billion more people on Facebook than Periscope. I love the “no trolls” aspect, as well as the quality of experience for the broadcaster and the viewer. And at the end of the day, quality is what our audience wants, quality of content and experience.
Time will tell. And with all that is happening on the social web, it will change in a blink. Again.
Love + Awesomeness-
Nina
PS: Do you want to catch my Facebook LIVE chats? You can follow me by searching Nina L. Kovner or click here to follow. Thank you!
7 Gotta Do’s To Up Your Instagram Game
“You are what you share.” Unknown
So you wanna up your Insta game? Here are 7 gotta do’s that I promise will help make your Insta game strong…
1. Determine Your Theme
All good social pages tell a story. What will yours be? Your look, feel, and story are the foundation of creating awesome on Instagram. And on the topic of look and feel, please post quality photos, quality, I mean quality!
2. Up Your About Section
I want to know your biz name, your location, your “short” story, and please, how do I contact you? An online booking link is the awesome if you have that.
3. Use Hashtags Consistently
PLEASE. Without these, you cannot be found. My three rules for hashtags;
Use popular hashtags for your subject matter. Not sure, search for them and see what’s popular.
Use your branded hashtag always.
Why? So people can see your stuff and it keeps your content super organized, and allows others to use your hashtag so you can see when people are posting about you and you can say THANK YOU!
Use your local hashtags.
Like where the heck are you? By using local hashtags, people in your area can find you. Yay!
BONUS time saving tip- Put all your hashtags in your notes section of your mobile device and just copy and paste them in the comments section of your post. #yourwelcome
4. Add Your Location
Please add your business location to your posts. Why? So people can find your business and you can also search people who are in the area. And while you can no longer do custom locations on Insta, your business should be on there. And that is the location you want to use so peeps can find you.
5. Engage, Deliver Value, Engage, Deliver Value
Please spend more time listening then talking. Like, comment and share content as it relevant to your business, authentically, not randomly, but with intention and purpose.
6. Be Insanely Consistent
Yep, nothing can replace your consistent presence of posting and engaging with others on Instagram.
7. Measure, Learn, Adjust
I love Iconosquare.com but please remember, this is not about lost or gained followers or popularity, it is about engagement, relationships, and two-way communication. If your work is on point and you focus on that, the referrals and revenue will follow. #promise
Happy Instagramming!
Love + Awesomeness-
Nina
PS: Are we connected on Insta yet? If not, you can follow me @passionsquared I promise to deliver consistent and awesome value to help you create a more awesome biz + life, plus a few goat videos, cause I mean, goats! Right?
This On-Demand Life
“The future of business lies in experience architecture and you are the architect.” Brian Solis
Today is Cyber Monday, which was created in response to Black Friday when e-commerce became a thing. And can you even believe that was in 2005? Exactly 10 years ago. Ten. Years. Ago! And now look at the world. E-commerce has now become on-demand anything. Think the W Hotel, whatever, whenever. Wow!
As I was scrolling through Instagram last week, I happened upon an ad, yes, an AD, done well, and seemingly timely and relevant to me, good job ad.
This ad was for Zeel, what I will call the Uber of Massages, yes, in home massages on demand. Breakthrough? No. Not now at least, as we are living an on demand life. And e-commerce has become more than just a transaction; it has become a way of life. We are consuming 24/7 via our mobile devices. All day, every day. We are even paying for our beloved Starbucks with our phone, without a wallet. Think about that. No money is exchanging hands. None.
Whether its someone to build my Ikea desk, thank you Task Rabbit, to someone to do my grocery shopping, thank you Instacart, to someone to deliver late night snacks, thank you Eat24, to someone to whisk me around town, thank you Uber, to someone to run an errand while I have the flu, thank you Postmates. On demand everything. And lets not even get started on Amazon’s new Prime same day delivery. Thank you Amazon.
The world has changed. Again. Just when you thought having a website and a presence on Yelp, Instagram and Facebook mattered, that now feels like so 2013.
With 2016 around the corner, it is imperative that we really take a serious look at our client’s digital experience if we want to stay relevant. Period.
This on demand life is creating experiences that are so seamless and awesome, there is almost no question as to why we would not just pick up our “phone” and click “book now”.
Here is a little “on-demand” quiz for your biz…
Can I book from my “phone” easily? And I mean awesomely! No bugs, easy to read, awesome to experience.
Do I have a responsive website (mobile + tablet friendly) that allows for no more than one click to connect with me?
Are all my links on my social profiles relevant? Meaning, why would you have the URL of your Facebook page on your Insta profile? I want a phone number and on online booking link.
Is your payment processing seamless and easy? Email receipts? Online sales?
Is your confirmation process seamless? And I mean without me having to pick up the phone?
Is there a system, which allows me to review your biz, not because you want a 5 star review but because you care enough to hear about my experience? Is it a one-click process?
Is it easy for me to share my experience of your biz with my friends? Like in one click?
Based on your answers, my challenge to you is to audit your entire online and offline experience, and create a plan to crate an experience so awesome, your clients truly enjoy engaging with you and shout it from the rooftops to all that will listen.
If you are thinking, screw that, I like the good old fashion way of doing business; here is what I will say…
This is NOT about changing face-to-face experiences; it is actually about making them better. This is NOT about not picking up the phone, this is actually about engaging on clients terms, not yours.
This is NOT about today; this is about being in business tomorrow. The world has changed, as have the clients seeking salon and wellness services, so my passionate plea to you is to open your mind, and focus on building the new, not fighting or defending the old. My challenge to you is to see the entire client journey from discovery of your business to entering the door of your business. What does that experience look and feel like? It matters.
Adele may try to call 1000 times, but your current and for sure your future clients won’t. #fact
Love + Awesomeness-
Nina
PS: All of the above on-demand services I mentioned are all ones I highly recommend. Of course.
PPS: If you are looking for some tools specific to the salon market, I blogged about that here and here.
Don’t Get Mad, Get A System
“We see our customers as invited guests to a party, and we are the hosts. It’s our job every day to make every important aspect of the customer experience a little bit better.” Jeff Bezos, Amazon
It never fails, each day I see a post on Facebook or Instagram about a professional being mad at a client for canceling, no-showing, etc. The fact that I just wrote that I am seeing this on a social platform should be enough to get your attention.
My great leader for over 25 years and forever mentor John Paul DeJoria taught me a simple concept. “Praise in public, coach in private.” So I ask, why in the world would we use a public platform to put our clients on blast, or better yet, why would we ever put a client on blast? I mean, they are our clients after all. Now I am not talking about abusive clients, I am speaking about clients in general.
If you find yourself in this cycle of never-ending angst, what it tells me is you simply have not found a system or process that works for you.
Here are some things to consider…
Get A Booking System
Do you have a system that works for the client and yourself? And you see, I put client first. As if it does not work for them, well, then, we have nothing to discuss, as you will have no clients.
A system could be as simple as…
1. Appointment Booking
2. Pre-booking
3. Online Booking
4. A dedicated phone line that has a human on the other end during business hours (which you get to set)
As a client, telling me you have 500 text messages and you are sorry I have not heard back is not the way to build and grow a business. It’s not my problem, it’s yours. So please don’t make it mine. I’m the client. Remember that. If the experience sucks, you’ve lost me. And the experience begins at discovery of your business. Before booking. Think about it.
Appointment Communications + Confirmations
1. Clear, easy to find and understand booking agreement
2. Text and/or email confirmations
Look, its 2015, almost 2016, so if you are not using an email and/or text confirmation and communication platform, it’s time for a wake up call. So lets consider this blog your wake up call. As an owner, its your job to make the clients experience seamless, not the other way around, and I want reminders, and I want communication, but I want it the way I want to consume it, text and/or email.
And as far as policies and agreements go, if I cannot read it, see it, and find it easily, then it’s on you as to why I did not know about it. So web design comes into play here, as does email communication and even good old-fashioned face-to-face verbal communication.
You see, as a business, it’s our responsibility to make the client journey with our business an awesome one. Not one of back and forth texts, ignored texts or emails, setting alarms to call you, or jumping through hoops to get an appointment. Nope, sorry, most will go elsewhere.
In the end, in order to create an awesome experience for our clients, we must focus on their journey. From discovering our biz, to reaching out, to booking, to confirming, to finding it, to parking, to paying, to pre-booking, all of it. So take the time to think about the journey, and do the work to make it awesome, for both you and your current and future clients. Oh, and one last thing, remember that we are on our mobile devices 24/7, so whichever system you choose to create, it must be mobile friendly, or you have lost me, again.
Change the system, change the result.
Love + Awesomeness-
Nina
PS: One of my fave go to online booking platforms is Schedulicity as they have everything you need plus the best client care. My awesome haircutter @sugarskulls uses Schedulista, which I love the user experience as a client. And of course, if you are looking for a more intensive software package, there is always Mindbody, Millennium, STX and many more.