I don’t want to alarm anyone, but we are officially in Christmas countdown mode. 

So of course we are going to talk about how to increase your small business Christmas sales! 

If you have a small business, you will currently be in one of two places.

You are ready to go and super excited to make more sales this holiday season.

OR

You are biting your nails and wondering how the heck other small businesses make so many sales!

The good news is, there is still time to get ready.

November is the perfect time to warm your audience up to your products. People are looking for ideas, and you are here to help!

Here are a few things you can do in the next couple of weeks to make more sales this Christmas. 

If you run a small business online, you probably know that Facebook ads are an effective method for converting sales.

They have probably even worked on you! 

But why aren't they working in YOUR business? What secret formula have you missed that everyone else seems to know? 

WHEN is the right time to start paying for Facebook ads?

In this post, I've got three questions you need to ask yourself BEFORE you throw a ton of money at Facebook ads! 

Some of you might just be starting out in your business. 

Some of you might have been in business for years.

All of you need to be able to measure your target market potential. 

Evaluating your target market will help you design offers that actually sell! 

In this post, I will talk about why it is important to do the groundwork, and some ways you can do this in your own business so you can make more sales.

​Optimizing your business Facebook page is one of the easiest ways to make sure people find you. 

Facebook currently has over 2 billion users. We can say all we want about algorithms and Instagram taking over, but that is a LOT of people. It would silly not to get a piece of that pie.

I’m all about building a biz on a bootstrap budget. My first business was run out of our tiny flat in London with basically no money- you don’t know what hustle you’ve got till you start a business run on sheer will power!

Use these 10 tips to optimize your Facebook page and you will do less work and spend less money on marketing in the long run. 

Your website copy is one of the most important marketing tools you have. 

It is the first thing customers read when they land on your website. It is the thing that markets for you while you sleep. 

And it is SO easy to get wrong!

So I’ve come up with a simple way to check whether your copy is going to convert to sales or whether it is turning people away. ​

So you know you need an email list. You've got one set up and ready to go. You've even got some subscribers! But the HUGE problem most people face? What do you actually send them? You want to provide value, you want to make sales- but you don't want to spam people or be a pest.

​Here's how to send wildly engaging emails that your list will love.

Are you desperate to make more sales in your biz? You feel like you're giving your all trying to grow your audience and make money and nothing is working? Today I'm going to share a simple process you need to do to start making more sales using social media- It's called the three P's. 

Want to grow your business using Instagram? This month our Members share their secrets to growing their audiences on Instagram and getting great engagement. 

Are you trying to grow your audience? If so, you've got to listen in to today's interview with Wick Nixon- Author, Foodie, Mum & Founder of Wicked Wellbeing. Wick shares her secrets on how she grew a 4,500 strong email list and kicked off her business online. 

If you're posting on social media and getting crickets- or not growing your following at all, this is for you! The first live Q and A of the year and we chewed the fat on how to get engagement, provide value, grab attention- the works. 

If you're reading this you're probably hoping for rapid growth in 2019 and getting in the mindset for it already- wohoo! Today I'm going to share with you the top 3 things I'm going to focus on to get me the results I want next year- and why. So let's kick off!

 Do you want to build a strong online presence and brand for your small business but you're struggling to make an impact? 

​This month in the Members Club we're talking how to build a brand with depth that differentiates you from your competitors and drive sales.

Member Michelle Sokolich has done this really well and today I wanted to share with you 3 clever things she's done that you can do too! So here goes...
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I talk about this all the time but I can't stress how important it is!

Once you know your target market you can start talking to them in a language they understand. And that converts to sales. 

When you talk to everyone, you attract no one. So get tough on yourself and narrow your niche and you might just see results.

Michelle owns Show and Tell, a content marketing agency that helps small businesses tell their story online.  

This is what she says on her Home page: ​

I love this because in just a couple of sentences Michelle has:

- Told me who her target customer is. Someone who has a small business and a dream but maybe isn't getting that across to customers very well 

- Highlighted the importance of her skill sets. How powerful storytelling is especially combined with the strength of using video

- Touched on a result- that if you get your storytelling right, your customers will feel a strong, authentic connection with you = big win!

Because Michelle knows her target customer well, she is able to speak to them in a way that resonates. She's not talking to big business here.

She's talking to small business, and she makes it clear that she 'get's your struggle. It makes her relatable and professional all at the same time.

Strong visual imagery including video, photos and graphics will help you build on your brand image and define a consistent look online. 

When you get this consistency you're telling people- hey, I get it. I am a small business but I have my ducks in a row. I know what this brand stands for, who I'm talking to and what I represent. 

Your brand personality will start to shine through. 
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This is what Michelle is amazing at and you can see how she uses imagery herself by: 

Using video on her homepage, Facebook page and Instagram accounts to tell both her own story and the stories of her customers.

Using high quality, professional brand images that help you get to 'know' her and feel familiar and welcomed to her service.

The clincher is that once you have created your content you actually need to share it! Don't let your content get sucked up into cyber space- if you find creative ways to share it with your audience you will start to make an impact. 

Michelle is also amazing at telling people about her services consistently. She knows how to share her own journey and regularly shares to our community on Marketday:

Check out the responses she gets to her posts- amazing!

For some of you promoting your business online might feel overwhelming. There is a fine line between 'spamming' people and sharing your business details. 

But you can be clever with your online marketing strategy using Facebook groups and I've shared a few tips here on how to do just that. 

How you can start using these strategies

If you're reading this and thinking "YES! I definitely need to up my game. But all of this sounds time consuming and expensive" don't worry, there is a way forward.

Being a successful small business owner is all about having big dreams and working in small steps! So you could break it down into phases and do this over time. For example:

PHASE 1 (allow 1-2 months):

Research and read up on how to develop your brand strategy, niche and core messages. Give yourself time to learn about these things and get to know your own business and key strengths better.

Hone your messaging on your own and if you feel like you need to, reach out to a copywriter or coach to help you fine tune your message. We've got some great copywriters on The List who can support you with this if you need guidance.

PHASE 2:

Once you've got strong core messages in place, reassess your visual presence and decide if your existing branding and imagery do the trick.

If you need to and you can afford it, now is the time to reach out to designers who can help you develop a visual brand, or to a storyteller like Michelle who can help you prepare to get your message out there online with video. 

PHASE 3:

Once you've got your core messaging and smart visuals ready, it's time to start getting that message out there.

Research online FB groups filled with your target market. Some- like She Owns It if you're a Members Club  Member- (doors will be opening again soon- get on the waitlist here), will allow you to directly promote your service. You should make note of those groups.

Other groups that don't allow promotional posts you may still be able to make use of by creating a presence as a regular contributor and adding good value. 

And then of course you can use Facebook Ads and your own FB page and social media platforms like LinkedIn and Instagram to drive traffic to your site. 

The important thing to remember is that sales posts don't sell! Don't forget to check out this post on how to create engagement and interest online using storytelling, it'll give you a great idea of how to generate sales without yelling 'buy me buy me!'

Good things take time

Developing a strong presence like Michelle can take time for a small business owner. Not everyone knows about branding, copywriting and marketing their business so the learning curve might be steep.

But if I can give one piece of advice it is this. No matter how interested or good you are at marketing right now, if you are a small business owner, the biggest gift you can give your business is to better your understanding in this area.

You are the driving force of your business and even the best products and services can get lost without good promotion. That does no one any favours! Your business loses out, you lose out and the amazing customers who would've loved your product lose out if they never find you. 

So apply yourself to learning about these things and you never know- you might find you enjoy it and I certainly know you'll enjoy the results! 

Do you ever see a brand that really stands out from the crowd and wonder why? What special magic are they using that makes them so remarkable? And how can you get your hands on summa that?! 

If you want to be one of those brands then read on because today we're talking three simple things you can do right now to up your branding game.

I'm so passionate about this topic because once I figured this out in my business I went from tentative, shy marketer (who generally felt scared of 'spamming' people) to confident, passionate brand ambassador happy to shout to the rooftops about why my business is different (and better for my target customer) than the rest.

So here goes! 
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So you've decided you're ready to take the leap and get that Facebook sales funnel working- wohoo! But there's just one problem.

​You log into the Facebook Ads interface and freeze. It looks just a tad overwhelming and all you can see is your precious dollars goin' down the drain... 

Because you're reading this I'm picking you're either thinking about starting an online business or you've done and you're finding it's not quite as easy as some people make it look online right?!

Well, I've done it and today I'm going to share with you a few key tips I learnt along the way- plus some truth bombs about what really has to go down in order for you to start making any sort of serious money with this. The truth hurts ladies so beware!
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So you've started your dream business, you're busy trying to 'get the word out there'... and you're finding it's just a little bit harder to than you imagined? The budget is tight, you don't have enough time in the day and the learning curve is so steep it is starting to feel like too... much... hard... work. 

All of a sudden, things aren't so fun anymore. This has become serious- your dream, your income and your pride are on the line. The fear of failure is real. So, what do you DO about it?!