by Melissa | Sep 12, 2017 | website
When someone lands on your website, you want them to stick around and stay awhile. You want it to lead them to making a purchase or signing up for your email list. You want them to feel right at home. But are you making some website mistakes that are keeping those things from happening? Let’s find out!
Website Mistakes You May Be Making
Not creating an intuitive user experience. When someone arrives at your website, what do you want them to do? Do they know what to do and where to go? Can they easily find the information they are looking for? Do the design and aesthetics lead them where they should go? Is it easy to read and easy to navigate? You should think about all of these things when you are designing your website, so that you create an exceptional user experience (UX). Think about the navigation of your site, the buttons, links, etc. Make sure it is easy to read and easy to find information. What kinds of information will your customers or readers want to be able to find? Is it easily accessible? Go look at your site and think about it as if you were one of your customers. Look through all of the pages and links, and see what kind of experience your users are having. You can even ask someone not super familiar with your site to check it out and give you some feedback as well! Oh, and yes, you want users to be able to easily find information, but don’t overwhelm them either, mmkay? No more than 6 options on your navigation bar. If you have more than that, you can always add drop down menu options.
Read When Should a Direct Seller Start a Blog? (And How To Do It)
Not optimizing it for search engines. You could be missing out on a whole lot of potential traffic to your site if you have not considered your SEO (search engine optimization). The plugin Yoast SEO is a very good and very popular plugin that can help with this! It is pretty easy to use once you get it installed on your site and start messing around with it. If you haven’t already installed Yoast (or something else for SEO), go ahead and do that now! You should start using keywords on your pages and posts, adding alt text to your images, adding inbound and outbound links (as appropriate), and more! For more information on SEO, my friend Vivian from Vivian Says has a fantastic course you can check out!
Not having a CTA (call to action). You want to make it clear what you want your visitors to your website to do. Do you want them to sign up for your email list? Sign up to download an optin/freebie? Join your Facebook group? Send you a message? Sign up for a discovery call? Purchase something? Tell them! Give them a link, a button, an easy way to do whatever it is you want them to do. Each page should have some sort of call to action, so the visitor knows exactly what they should do next. This will also help keep them on your site longer, looking around, and will make them more likely to join your list or make a purchase! It will also help with your analytics, which in turn, will help with your SEO, if it looks as if people like your content and want to stick around!
Check out my mini course, It’s All a Bunch of DS to learn how to stand out in your direct sales business!
Not mobile responsive. Many website themes these days automatically account for mobile responsiveness, but not all. If you have not checked your site to make sure it is set up to be mobile friendly, you will want to go check! Check it on both a smart phone and a tablet. You’ll want to make sure it is looks right and easy to use on both kinds of devices. If not, you will want to check with your theme, designer, etc and get it fixed asap! Many people just use their phones or tablets to surf the web, browse Pinterest, check Facebook, etc, so many of your website’s viewers will be on some sort of mobile or electronic device other than a computer. Make sure it is intuitive for them, as well! They will not stick around if it is hard to navigate.
Not updating or backing up your site. This may seem like the least important item out of this list, but it is a biggie! You need to make sure you are keeping your site updated, and make sure you are backing it up regularly! If you don’t access your site regularly, you need to make a plan to at least go in once a week and check to see if any plugins, your theme, or WordPress needs to be updated. You should also make sure to back up your site often, so you don’t ever lose anything! There are plugins like UpdraftPlus, which will help you to do this easily. Go download this plugin, or a similar one, right away and get your website backed up if you haven’t done so! What other websites tips do you have? Which of these are you going to work on first? Leave me a comment…I love to connect with my readers! 😉
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by Melissa | Jun 26, 2017 | branding
I talk a lot about branding. I am a web designer and brand strategist, after all! But why is brand consistency so important? How do you achieve it? Here are some tips.
Be recognizable
You want to be recognizable in your business! You want people to remember you, refer you to others, and come back to do business with you over and over. One of the best way to do this (apart from your customer service) is by being consistent in your branding. This is important because when your customers or clients are scrolling through their news feeds, they will easily recognize you, especially if your visual branding is on point. When they recognize your brand they are more likely to stop and read what you have to say. You want them to stop on your page and get to know you, so you can begin to build a relationship with them.
Branding your business successfully will not only cause your customers to recognize you and your brand, but it will help them to remember you as well. When they remember you, they are more likely to buy from you or refer you to others. And repeat buyers are huge for your business, so stand out and be remembered!
Brand message
Branding is not just about the visuals, although that’s what most people thinking of when they hear the word branding. Visuals are important, but first you need to know and have a consistent brand message. If you haven’t already done so, take some time to sit down and write down your brand’s mission, vision, goals, values, etc. These are all going to play a part in your brand message. Make sure you know your “why” and what your business stands for. What do you hope to accomplish with your business? How can you serve your customers/clients? What problems do you solve? You can even think about your personality and how that is incorporated in your brand. Is it fun, light-hearted, humorous? Is it serious and professional? Make sure whatever it is, it is authentic! Authenticity is huge, because that is how you will connect with people!
Read How Branding Your Direct Sales Business Can Grow Your Business
Know your niche
A lot of people talk about knowing your niche, your target market, and “ideal” client, and there’s a reason why! It is important! If you try to market your business to everyone, you will end up appearing watered down and appealing to no one. Know exactly who you are targeting, then “talk” to them in your posts and emails. Be specific when you are coming up with your ideal client. Is she single? Married? A mom? Younger? Older? Working? What kind of problems does she have that you can solve? Write down the answer to all of these questions and more, and figure out exactly who you are going to be creating content for and marketing to. This does not mean that only those people will buy from you, but you will have greater value on your page and in your content if you know your niche.
Consistent visuals
This is where the visuals come in. They are an important part of your brand and are typically what people see first. If you don’t yet have a logo, find a professional to help you with one if you don’t have the skills to create it yourself. Investing in a logo and brand elements is a good thing for your business. You will also need to have consistent colors (think three to five), patterns, brand elements, and fonts. Be sure you think of your target market and your brand message when you are coming up with these. If you realize your brand is going to have a very professional image, you probably don’t want lots of bright, neon colors!
Read Dos and Don’ts of Visual Branding
Branded graphics
Now that you have figured out your brand visuals, you are going to want to create some branded graphics! Make sure you stick to your brand visuals for every graphic you make! If you want to create your own and not pay to have someone else do it for you, Canva.com is a fantastic and easy-to-use site to create graphics! There are others, such as PicMonkey, and lots of phone apps you can use as well, but Canva is my go-to site for most all of my graphics. You can use the free version, or you can upgrade to the paid version to save your brand colors and fonts (my recommendation). You will want to make sure your graphics have a consistent look, style, and feel to them so that when people see them, they start to immediately recognize them as yours.
These are just a few tips for achieving brand consistency. Which of these ideas have you already implemented? Which are you going to work on? Tell me in the comments!
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by Melissa | Jun 15, 2017 | direct sales
Is it possible to do direct sales without being spammy?
You may be in direct sales or network marking or thinking about joining, and you may be wondering if there is a way to do direct sales without being spammy. I’m here to tell you, there is! It seems like everywhere you turn online, there are direct sellers spamming like crazy, on their profiles, in groups, and everywhere they can. Is this the only way to get sales and do business? Absolutely not! There are much better ways! Here are a few tips.
Business page vs personal profile
First things first. Do business on a business page, not your personal page! Facebook created business pages for a reason…for businesses! It is actually against Facebook’s terms of service to business on your personal page. You could risk getting put in Facebook jail. And yes, that is a real thing. Don’t risk it! It’s not worth it.
Besides, people don’t get on Facebook to be sold to! If you are doing business on your personal page, your friends and family are going to get annoyed and unfriend or unfollow you. You don’t want to lose friendships because of your business, do you? I didn’t think so. Using a business page for your business allows people who are actually interested in it to follow you and engage with you over there, and allows you to build relationships and stay friends with everyone else! Which in the long run is better for you business, anyway!
Read How branding your direct sales business can grow your business
Facebook groups
Second… DON’T ADD PEOPLE TO GROUPS WITHOUT THEIR PERMISSION! Sorry to yell at you, but this one is a big no-no. People are starting to get very annoyed, to say the least, at getting added to groups that they don’t want to be in. This will not only hurt your relationships with your friends/family, but it will also hurt your business and your group, as well. Many, if not most, of the people you add are not actually interested in being there. If they do not leave the group, then they are just empty group members, not engaging with your group or buying from you. Adding people to groups is just a great way to make people mad and turn them off from your business. Let them request to be added themselves, or send them a message first and see if they are interested in being a part of it!
Relationship building
My first two points touched on this, but one of the most important, if not THE most important, things you can do is to build relationships. Building relationships is really the key to growing your business. People don’t want to do business with a company. They want to do it with a person. And they don’t want to buy from just anybody. They want to buy from someone they know, like, and trust. So build that relationship (AUTHENTICALLY!) and let people get to know, like, and trust you. The real you. Engage them in conversation, get to know them and let them get to know you, serve them, provide value, etc.
Read Is your direct sales business ruining your friendships?
Selling all the time
Don’t just try and sell your product all of the time. 80-90% of your social media posts should be about things other than selling, and only 10-20% should be about your product. This means that you need to be providing value and engaging your followers. No matter what product or service you are selling, you will get better results when you shift your mindset from “how can I get customers/clients/sales” to “how can I provide value for my followers.” Ask questions, share info and tips and tricks, share behind-the-scenes photos, etc. Think about what other things your followers are interested in other than your product and talk about that. Build the relationships first, and the sales will follow.
It is very possible to do direct sale without being spammy, but it takes a mindset shift and implementing these tips. Tell me…what do you to to make sure you are not being spammy in your business?
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by Melissa | May 28, 2017 | business tips
We all could use more productivity in our lives, amiright? You know, you get on your computer planning being super productive and get lots of work done….but then Facebook. An hour later, after you’ve caught up on all 101 groups you are in, you decide you really need to get down to business, but then you realize you left some laundry in the washer you need to take care of. Or your kids are still up and it’s past their bedtime. Or *insert a thousand different reasons here.* Sometimes you get to the end of the day and realize you really haven’t done any work at at all.
Here are a 3 simple ideas to be more productive.
*This post contains affiliate links to things I use and love.*
Set a timer
If you’re having trouble getting started and getting down to business, set a timer for 25 minutes (or however long you choose). Work for those 25 minutes, then let yourself take a 5 minute break before setting the timer again and working for another 25 minutes. This technique actually has a name… the Pomodoro Technique. Traditionally, the timer is set for 25 minutes, but you can set it for longer if you think that works better for you. After a few work sessions you can give yourself a longer break. Having a set (short) time to get work done can help you be more productive, less distracted, and give more attention to the work that needs to be done. Try it and let me now how it goes!
Stay organized and have a system
Another tip is to make sure you stay organized! This way, when you sit down to work, you know what needs to be done. Having a system for things like graphics, content creation, etc, will help tremendously as well! One of my favorite sites to use is Trello. I love how it helps me stay organized. I can keep track of to do lists, keep track of my blog post ideas or social media posts, communicate with clients, and more! It is easy to move cards around to different lists and I can easily access it from either my computer or my phone. It’s a great way to keep myself organized!
I have also found that having a list of content ideas and content calendar has helped a whole lot! This is something that I invested in to have someone help me with….definitely a valuable investment for me! (Shoutout to Abby Herman – Write Solutions!) She helped me come up with lots of content ideas and put it together into lists and a calendar for future posts. So whenever I need to write a blog post, I can go to that file and find an idea to write about.
Batching and Automation
Batching and automating my posts and graphics is another thing that helps me to be more productive. I often sit down and create content and graphics for my Facebook page and Instagram all at the same time. My goal is to get at least a week’s worth created, then schedule them out. I create and schedule at least one post a day for the next week on each platform, then go back and a second post for each day if I have time.
I use Facebook’s business page scheduler for my page and Planoly for Instagram. (You can’t have a scheduler automatically post to Instagram for you, but this makes it super quick to post when it’s time!) I also use Tailwind for Pinterest (you can use it for Instagram, too). Once I get this done for the week, I know I don’t have to worry about creating and posting content on my social media pages for the week and can focus on other things I need to do.
Read How Branding Your Direct Sales Business Can Grow Your Business
What tips do you have for being more productive? Share them in the comments below!
by Melissa | May 15, 2017 | mindset
Why and How To Get Over Comparison Syndrome in Your Business
Do you ever see someone else running their business successfully and think, “Why can’t I do that?” I think we all have this “comparison syndrome” at times. It may seem like running a successful business comes so easy for those people, but it so hard for us. Why is that? Let me tell you a little secret. You can do it, too! Really. You are just seeing the tip of the iceberg when you are looking at someone else’s business. If you were to talk to them and have them answer you honestly, they would probably tell you that it took a ton of time, energy, and effort to get where they are at. There is a lot of behind-the-scenes work that you are not seeing. Comparing yourself to someone else is NOT helping your business. It is hurting it.
Comparison holds you back.
When you compare yourself or your business to someone else, chances are you aren’t working your business to the best of your ability because you are too concerned with what someone else is doing. You’re only holding yourself back and not living up to your full potential. As my friend Kelly Paull from Directly Successful would say, “Stay in your own lane!” Don’t worry about what someone else is doing. If you are going to get to where they are at, you are going to have to do the work to get there. So pay attention to your own business and get moving!
Mindset Matters
Your mindset and beliefs are one of the biggest contributing factors to your business! What you believe about yourself makes a big impact on your business. You may not say anything negative to your customers/clients/followers, but if you are comparing yourself to others and doubting yourself, that is going to come across to them negatively. It will impact how you portray yourself to others and how others perceive you.
Come up with a couple positive affirmations and mantras for yourself that you can repeat any time you feel yourself starting to doubt yourself or compare yourself to someone else. Write them down, post them where you can see them every day, and say them often. Remember to think positive!
Want more mindset tips? Follow Inspired Ivy on Facebook!
Comparison robs you of joy
When you are constantly focused on what someone is doing and where you are falling short (whether it is the truth or not), you are not going to truly be happy in your business or life. You are focusing on the negative and missing out on all kinds of positive things happening around you. Chances are, there are lots of amazing things that you are doing or could be doing in your business, but if you are too focused on someone else’s business, you are not seeing those things. Girl, get back in your own lane and start enjoying what is happening in your business!
Focus on improving yourself
Instead of focusing on what someone else is doing in their business, focus on what you are doing and what you can do to improve. Instead of comparing yourself to someone else, compare yourself to where you were yesterday, last week, last month, last year. What have you done to grow your business? Look at how far you have come since you first started! What amazing things are you doing in your business? Write them down! Look at them often and remind yourself how amazing you are. What can you do to make your business better? Make a plan and get moving!
Do you.
Be you. Do you. People want to do business with you because you are you! Stand out from the crowd, brand yourself, and own who you are. As Dr. Seuss said, “Today you are you, that is truer than true. There is no one alive that is youer than you.” People will see your authenticity and confidence when you stay true to who you are. You will shine in your business when you stop comparing yourself to others and stay focused on who you are and what you do. You will grow and reach your full potential when you are working your business and not looking around.
Are there social media accounts you need to unfollow? Emails you need to unsubscribe from? Mantras you need to write and post? Whatever you need to do in order to keep the comparison syndrome at bay, do it!
Read 7 Things I Stopped Doing In Order To Grow My Business
Leave a comment and tell me…. do you struggle with comparison syndrome? What have you done to help with the comparison problem? What are you going to start doing today?
Not creating an intuitive user experience. When someone arrives at your website, what do you want them to do? Do they know what to do and where to go? Can they easily find the information they are looking for? Do the design and aesthetics lead them where they should go? Is it easy to read and easy to navigate? You should think about all of these things when you are designing your website, so that you create an exceptional user experience (UX). Think about the navigation of your site, the buttons, links, etc. Make sure it is easy to read and easy to find information. What kinds of information will your customers or readers want to be able to find? Is it easily accessible? Go look at your site and think about it as if you were one of your customers. Look through all of the pages and links, and see what kind of experience your users are having. You can even ask someone not super familiar with your site to check it out and give you some feedback as well! Oh, and yes, you want users to be able to easily find information, but don’t overwhelm them either, mmkay? No more than 6 options on your navigation bar. If you have more than that, you can always add drop down menu options.
