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Get Engaged through Social

Creating a following can be a daunting task. Here are six ways to stay engaged...or provoke engagement on social media.

Clients are always asking “how can I take better video with my phone?” or “how do I avoid the black bars on the sides of my videos?” and finally, “can you use this video for social media marketing?” Of course we can – the question is if you want to pay for enhancements or just start off from the beginning with a good, high-quality video. Let’s be honest – phone capabilities today are wonderful! Many of the cameras in our phones are better than the DSLRs and professional cameras out there (like my Samsung S21 Ultra – 8k video? Yes please.) Let’s dive into using our phone like a pro.

#1 – Landscape capture.

Those two black bars on the sides of your video are unsightly and distracting. To avoid this, make sure you always record in landscape orientation and not portrait. What does that mean?
Keep your phone horizontal (my kindergarten teacher called this the hamburger way) instead of vertical (how you would normally hold it to text, make a call or swipe through Facebook.) Keeping your filming landscape captures more of the scene you are recording and is easier to view on your monitor, tablet or television.

#2 – To center or not to center.

Framing in your subject is another important trick. You can completely fill the “frame” or video with just your subject. You can also film them to the left a little or to the right – which can be dramatic and look cool. Practice and go with what you prefer. Your brand may be more professional and formal – thus you should film centered… And you may want to avoid filming with the garbage can in sight or a pile of boxes.

Concerned about shakiness or need to record yourself? Invest in a desktop tripod or one that extends to the floor. These are well worth the investment – and it may only cost you around $10!

#3 – Zooming in or out.

Zooming causes pixeling. You just learned how to make your video look more professional using the landscape method- but now by zooming in, it is getting real ugly… I mean grainy. Instead of pinching and zooming – you need to move. Yes, there are tools and methods for zooming using your phone, but it should be avoided. The person doing the filming should be the one to move. You’ll avoid that over pixeling and instead you’ll have a very crisp picture.

#4 – Lights, camera, action!

Does your subject look like they have jaundice or lasers coming from their eyes? Are they in a well lit space but the video makes it look dark? It’s their lighting. Smartphones have wonderful LED lights…that are not conducive to filming. ***Aside, since I wrote this phones have really made strides! Take a test shot – your new phone may not need as much lighting assistance than I’m offering.*** Try to find a well-lit room instead of using your flash.

One thing to keep in mind though when fiding a well-lit room is to have the window or light source be behind you and not your subject.

#5 – Editing.

Editing is a necessary evil but luckily you don’t need to be versed in the Adobe Suite to leave your mark. There are apps for every phone (Android, Windows and iPhone) that will make your video look professional with trimming, transitions, titles and effects.

Remember to tell your subject “Chin up and smile!” because you are ready for basic filming!

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True Target Audiences

Do you know who you are marketing to? Are you producing content that you like but that your page visitors say “meh” to? Stop. Knowing your exact target audience is crucial to saving time, money and conversations!

“When you speak to everyone, you speak to no one.” – Meredith Hill

Target audiences are your followers. They are your brand advocates, your influencers, your fan club. Making content that fits what they are looking for and need creates a win for everyone. You may close a deal faster, and they will be more empowered and listen to you for the answers! Knowing who they are, how they think and what they care about will help you two to connect better.

Here are four beginning steps to uncovering your target audience.

Perform some market research.
Execution of a target market research program doesn’t have to be overly expensive or time-consuming. Craft a simple questionnaire that seeks answers to some basic questions such as:

How is your product/company perceived vs. other options in the marketplace?
What are the most critical attributes your customers look for when considering a purchase?
What keeps your customers/prospects up at night?

The key is to seek thoughtful answers from the research participants to gain real insight and increase your marketing knowledge of your customer base.

Who do they care about?
Who influences them? People are putting more stock in those they know, not ads.

It has become standard knowledge that people are not responding to traditional ads. A Nielsen study from 2015 showed that the top four most-trusted sources of advertising were: people you know, branded sites, editorial sites, and reviews. People you know. Who are the influencers for your brand?

Communicate as they communicate!
Our audiences expect that organizations will interact with them in the ways they like. Communicating like our audiences and where they like to communicate is so important for marketers to be aware of their customers’ communication preferences. Social media? Print? Emails? Phone calls? Figure it out. Ask questions. Save your time and money and invest where they want to be communicated.

Do you know you?
What is your core offering to your audiences? Who benefits from what you have to offer? If you are unsure about what makes you great, that will significantly impact your message and how yours will stick out in their inbox, web crawl or from their friend’s recommendations.

There are so many tips, tricks, and methods for understanding your target audience. The above four are a good start. If you need help, contact us! We have more advise, resources and the industry experience to help you hone in on your ideal audience.

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Know when to Fold ’em. | Customer Acquisition Cost Blog Post

Customer Acquisition Cost is a company’s total sales/profits and marketing cost required to gain a new customer. This number should include all program and marketing spend, salaries, commissions, bonuses, and overhead linked with attracting new customers.

We want to see our business web pages high ranking on search engines. We are doing a lot of keyword research, URL structuring, and create great content…. All to lower our Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) and build an audience. Now, below is all outside of traditional marketing. It will reflect our marketing efforts, our content marketing efforts, and help us to create SEO friendly websites and content.

The Formula

Knowing your period, i.e., month, quarter or year, which you’d like to calculate.

Divide the total marketing and sales spend by the number of new customers acquired during that period.

LTV to CAC Ratio

Another metric to calculate and analyze, often more so than the CAV, is the customer lifetime value (LTV).

LTV is the predicted revenue one customer will generate throughout their relationship with your company.

To calculate LTV, you’ll need quite a bit more information to plug into your formula:

Average purchase value: Divide your company’s total revenue in a period (one year) by the number of purchases/conversions for that same year.

Average purchase frequency: Divide the number of purchases for the same year (APV) by the number of unique/new customers in that same period.

Customer value: Multiply the average purchase by the average purchase frequency.

Average customer lifespan: This is the average number of years a customer regularly buys from your company.

Lifetime Value: Multiply the customer value by the average customer lifespan. This equates to the revenue you could on paper (NOT A PROMISE) attain through this customer’s relationship with you.

Your CAC is how much it costs you to acquire a new customer. It should only take you about a year to recoup or see ROI on this cost. Your LTV should be three times higher than the CAC.

Benchmarking

We all know industries vary based on various factors. These factors could be:

Length of sales cycle
Purchase value
Purchase frequency
Customer lifespan
Company maturity

Comparing to industry standards gives us a good gauge of effectiveness. According to Propeller and Entrepreneur, here are some good numbers to compare against:

Travel: $7
Retail: $10
Consumer Goods: $22
Manufacturing: $83
Transportation: $98
Marketing Agency: $141
Financial: $175
Technology (Hardware): $182
Real Estate: $213
Banking/Insurance: $303
Telecom: $315
Technology (Software): $395

Ways to improve your CAC or LTV:

Make it easy for your customers to purchase from you. Optimize your site for mobile, optimize for ADA, test your web copy to make it legible and easily understood. It also needs to be easily understood by recommended engines like Google. Are you creating content like case studies, video content, and more; all while incorporating meta descriptions, internal linking all that appeals to your target audience? This is where a good content marketing strategy comes into play.
Add value to your customer’s experience. If they give you feedback, address it! Complementary product or service offerings are a great hook too!
Customer referral program. Reward your brand ambassadors. They are providing you with warm leads for $0 by you! Build one that your customers will want to participate in.
Are there efficiencies missing from your sales cycle? Could you be tracking your luke warm leads better?

You know you are doing this well when you start with a high number and see a gradual decline. This isn’t just for ROI, but it is a valuable sign of your sales, marketing, and your loyalty/customer service.

Want more ideas? Need a strategy? Or, is your CAC too high? Get in contact with VLC now.

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Two Unbelievable Shifts in Marketing

Where will 2019 take us? What are we preparing for and how will we get there? All big, loaded questions to tackle when thinking about next steps and growth.

In the year 2000… okay, we are well past 2000. Let’s sync quickly over where your content lives and how we can best use our knowledge to grow our businesses.

Content Over Ads

In 2015, Nielsen reported that the most trusted sources of advertising were:

People you know and trust
Branded sites
Editorial sites
Reviews on products and services

Ads were ranked towards the bottom.

Ad blockers are popping up everywhere, meaning that your paid-for ads are not getting the traction they could be. There is still a time and place for ads, but they need to be more personable and more valuable to your audience.

Your time and dollars now need to be redirected, more than ever, to content strategy, influencers helping your marketing, referrals, and valuable channels.

Create OUTSTANDING Content, Not Just Good Content

All too often I sit in seminars that tell me that digital and web-based newsletters and the information is the way to go. Wrong. My mailbox is empty most days when I get home (except during political season, but I’ve looked at every single piece of political mail in there!) but my inbox is full. I am more apt to look at my hardcopy, paper mail than I am my email inbox. In March of 2016, the USPS released their USPS Mail Moments and in short, millennials love getting mail! 84% of millennials take the time to look through their mail pieces and 64% would rather scan their mailbox than their inbox.

This isn’t to say throw digital marketing to the wayside, this is to simply say that it may be wise to invest in a printed newsletter or letter. Think about your audience and the greatest value. If your audiences are willing to give you their information, think about how best to use it.

Being helpful and authentic ads to your audience experience. So does knowing where they are looking and how to get in front of them. Need help brainstorming? Wondering what to do next? Reach out to VLC Fargo. We’ll help!