by Carolyn | Nov 15, 2016 | Marketing Strategy
Are you a loyal consumer? Do your favourite shops reward you for consistently shopping with them?I have a loyalty card from the local coffee shop because I go there a lot for my morning coffee so I get my card stamped for every coffee purchase I make. The use of this...
by Carolyn | Oct 4, 2016 | Entrepreneur, Inbound Marketing, Marketing Strategy, Uncategorized
Crafting a value proposition statement (VPS) is a key part of defining your small business. In a nutshell, it’s a clear statement of what you do, how it benefits, for whom you do it, and what makes you unique. Without it your business offering may not be clear to your...
by Carolyn | Sep 20, 2016 | Entrepreneur, Marketing Strategy
You work hard. You deliver excellence. Your clients are happy. Your business grows. Providing proof at your skill levels and expertise can be difficult, but, prospects often require assurance to secure their business. Proving your excellence can be done in a variety...
by Carolyn | Sep 13, 2016 | Entrepreneur, Marketing Strategy
Most people that reach out to WindWater Marketing for help don’t know what they want. They only know what they want to achieve – that’s fair. However, the biggest response I get in our initial conversation is their opinion on what they DON’T want to do (number one on...
by Carolyn | Sep 6, 2016 | Entrepreneur, Marketing Strategy
I think as adults we all understand the logic of chipping away at our goals to achieve them over time – it is said to make large goals more approachable or achievable. But I think we skim past the part where consistency is pointed out as the key. We all want difficult...
by Carolyn | Mar 8, 2016 | Marketing Strategy
It’s a big mistake to think that your product or service is for everyone. Every small business should have a target audience. However, defining your audience or customer doesn’t mean that you won’t (or can’t) sell to people outside of that circle. And as a small...
by Carolyn | Feb 16, 2016 | Content Marketing, Entrepreneur, Marketing Strategy
For those new businesses out there wondering if the age of blogging is over….if they should really put in the effort to post blogs on their website…. I’m here to tell you that you should absolutely be blogging. No question. However, the answer isn’t always as simple...
by Carolyn | Feb 9, 2016 | Entrepreneur, Marketing Strategy
Though the use of the term “funnel” is a bit outdated when it comes to discussing leads and sales, I think it still has use for small businesses and entrepreneurs. By focusing on a “funnel” you are better able to set up a basic lead generating process that can be...
by Carolyn | Feb 2, 2016 | Marketing Strategy, Value Proposition
Competitive intelligence is the action of defining, gathering, analyzing, and distributing intelligence about products, customers, competitors, and any aspect of the environment needed to support executives and managers making strategic decisions for an...
by Carolyn | Jan 26, 2016 | Entrepreneur, Marketing Strategy
PR or Public Relations is often the last thing that a small business thinks of to grow their business. However, the addition of PR into a marketing plan can add a variety of benefits: Inbound link to your website: SEO is tricky business and an inbound link from a...
by Carolyn | Jan 19, 2016 | Entrepreneur, Marketing Strategy
If you were warned and handed a faster path to success, would you take it? Here are 9 common small business marketing pitfalls that small businesses and entrepreneurs have encountered – you can learn from and avoid these simple errors. Short term thinking. Planning...
by Carolyn | Jan 12, 2016 | Entrepreneur, Marketing Strategy
For small businesses that are just beginning to look at marketing it can be scary to add something a bit unpredictable into the mix. As a result, it is tempting to run a ‘trial’ marketing campaign to test its impact or success. After all, it’s a logical next step,...
by Carolyn | Dec 22, 2015 | Marketing Strategy
The holidays offer an excellent opportunity to reach out with well wishes to prospects and clients alike. And although it can sometimes seem like a drain for small business and entrepreneurs, if done well, it can lead to future business by staying top of mind and...
by Carolyn | Dec 15, 2015 | Marketing Strategy
Marketing is a broad field in business and it can encompass a lot of things: branding, lead generation, content marketing, (need more). It can be challenging for a new or small business to prioritize their marketing efforts and even more challenging to see a return on...
by Carolyn | Nov 10, 2015 | Marketing Strategy
I subscribe to Psychology Today (the magazine), it’s an annual gift from an uncle of mine, and I find the insight into human behavior fascinating! The December 2015 issue showed up at my door and I proceeded to flip through the magazine skimming articles. That’s where...
by Carolyn | Nov 3, 2015 | Content Marketing, Inbound Marketing, Marketing Strategy, Social Media
Creating content is hard work. Creating good quality content consistently is even harder. But crafting good content is an important part of your inbound marketing and making sure that the same content isn’t being plastered across all platforms is part of an effective...
by Carolyn | Oct 13, 2015 | Marketing Strategy
Very often marketing is seen as a ‘nice to have’. It’s the first piece to go when the waters get rough. And I can understand the desire to lighten the load when it’s to prevent a sinking ship. However, marketing doesn’t have to be just awareness and education. When...
by Carolyn | Sep 29, 2015 | Content Marketing, Marketing Strategy
Content Strategy is a big buzz word these days. And that whole ‘Content is King’ is alive and well. However, it’s not as complicated or time-consuming as you may think. A content strategy is simply a well-developed plan on what content you will develop, and how it...
by Carolyn | Sep 22, 2015 | Marketing Strategy
I rely on marketing research to do my job as a marketing professional. I’m constantly making tactical or strategic decisions and often rely on it to confirm hypothesis or inform my decisions. And although a percentage of my decisions have elements of ‘gut-feeling’ in...
by Carolyn | Sep 15, 2015 | Marketing Strategy
Part of my job is to listen to other people’s ideas. I listen to the ideas of company owners, founders, Presidents, VPs, CEOs, etc. I love to hear others’ ideas as it can lead to collaboration and super interesting projects, but not always. Sometimes these ideas have...
by Carolyn | Aug 25, 2015 | Marketing Strategy, Outbound Marketing
Tradeshows can be an excellent source of new business. Speaking directly to prospects can speed up the sales cycle and develop better client relationships. However, not many people can ‘work’ a tradeshow effectively. And, if you recall the last tradeshow you attended,...
by Carolyn | Aug 11, 2015 | Marketing Strategy
Of course your business is unique, and you have to be clear in your differentiation. However, many businesses deliver complex messaging that actually ends up deterring a deeper relationship with prospects. Simplifying your messaging can increase leads, sales and, by...
by Carolyn | Aug 4, 2015 | Content Marketing, Marketing Strategy, Outbound Marketing
With the introduction of CASL (Canad’s Anti Spam Legislation), I’ve had some heated discussions with other marketers. They are pretty upset that they can no longer send broadcast emails without permission. “Where am I going to get my leads from now?!” they ask....
by Carolyn | Jul 21, 2015 | Marketing Strategy
In my marketing career I’ve been lucky enough to have participated in a large amount of webinars. I’ve done everything from generating the topic, writing the storyboard, lining up the tech/software, promotion, moderating, post webinar follow-up, and webinar...
