Crystal Media

Marketing Clarity.

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The Guidance You Need to Build A Marketing Plan

I just so happened to join a 30-day guided workout challenge a week before Crystal started our Social to Sale 5-Day Challenge where you can build your social media strategy in 5 days. (If you haven’t joined yet, click here, it’s going on March 2nd-6th) and the theme of today’s blog, which was determined last month, was Guidance. Interesting timing. đŸ€” So, I looked up the definition:

guid·ance/ˈɥīdəns/ noun 1.advice or information aimed at resolving a problem or difficulty, especially as given by someone in authority.

What does my workout challenge, our Social to Sale 5-day Challenge and marketing your retail store all have in common? All require work but with the right guidance, it can make that work feel easy. I believe guidance is so much more than the definition. Guidance encourages action, it saves time by taking the guesswork out, and it produces results. đŸ‘ŠđŸŒ

If you have guidance and guidelines when creating your marketing plan, it doesn’t feel like a big, scary task, it all of a sudden feels more manageable and exciting. You’ll know where and how to start, you’ll be encouraged and supported, and you’ll see results. If I were to try to work out for 15 minutes a day on my own I’d 1.) be less likely to even do it 2.) waste time trying to figure out what exercises to do 3.) not do the workout correctly to see results. The same is true with your marketing plan.

So what are you waiting for? Join the Social to Sale 5-day Challenge now and get the game-changing guidance you need to build a successful marketing plan that works for your store.

Video of my workout:

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It’s undeniable that the Coronavirus has all of us thinking about how this will impact our lives and our businesses. It’s important to be prepared, and not scared. Our dear friends at WhizBang! Training created an awesome guide and video to help you prepare. You can get the guide/watch the video here: https://whizbangtraining.com/covid-19/. If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to ask. We’re all in this together and the Crystal Media team is here to support you however we can.

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What 12 Different Retailers Taught Us

There’s nothing like an in-person event, we just finished our Social to Sale Workshop with a dozen retailers and it was awesome. 😊 Magic truly happens when you fill a room full of people eager to learn and share. We had an amazing mix of retailers, some were current clients, some were new to us, have had success, or are struggling to leverage social media. But, when I asked the team to list one thing they learned about retailers this was the common thread:

They were ALL eager to learn, adapt, and take action. This is what we refer to as the Social Selling Mindset. You either have it or you don’t, but the people that do see the most success.

If you’ve been struggling with your social media marketing or any aspect of your business, take a pulse and ask yourself this question:

Am I willing to learn something new and adapt?

If the answer is yes, you’re halfway there. Yes, you still have to take action but being willing to learn is the first step. If the retailers that were with us this week weren’t willing to learn and adapt they would have missed out on so many opportunities. Every business is unique, and while best practices are a great place to start, really adapting what’s worked well for others or things you’ve tried in the past that have failed is where you can gain traction.

If the answer is no, you’re not willing (or ready) to learn or adapt – I encourage you to watch this video and get inspired.

If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.

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I Don’t Have Time

Raise your hand if you’ve used the excuse “I don’t have time” as the reason why something important hasn’t been done.

We’ve all done it, #guilty. đŸ™‹â€â™€ïž

I know you’re busy. You’re running a store, buying inventory, hiring, training, firing, cleaning, merchandising, marketing, trying to see if your broom can stand on its own, the list goes on. But the fact remains, learning new things takes time, improving takes time, mastering takes time AND with the right training, it can also SAVE endless amounts of time.

My response to “I don’t have time to ________”? You’re not alone, try these three steps to move something from the bottom of your to-do list to the top of your done list. 

  • You need a plan: 📝 Figure out where to start so you stop wasting time thinking about the task. 
  • You need help: đŸ™‹đŸ» Get relevant training and start delegating so you stop wasting time Googling the same thing over and over again. 
  • You need to take action: đŸ’„ Invest time now to save time going forward. 

If you’re struggling with not having time to create the best social media strategy for your business, we’ve got the plan, we can help, but you’ve got to take action.

Click here to access Lesson 1 of Social to Sale: Building a Strong Foundation for FREE through March 18th. 

Imagine all the time you’ll save by following a step-by-step proven plan? You’ll want to do a happy dance!

via GIPHY

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(Video) One No-Brainer Tip to Drive Sales

Last week Bryce, our Sales and Marketing Coordinator, and I walked around Carlsbad Village to meet some local retailers in our area. It was a sunny, warm California day and you could smell the saltwater in the air (did I mention our office is across the street from the beach?). All in all, it was a great day! We met with some awesome people and left a helpful free resource, but one encounter stood out to me the most – and not in the best way. Which is why I have to ask…Are you missing out on sales by not doing this one, no-brainer thing?

By the way, I want to preface this for anyone new to the Crystal Media blog, I (Pauline) do NOT make videos, I prefer to write. But I am so passionate about this topic I thought it was best to film it.

Want the free Social Sharing Guide we were handing out? Click here to download it now.

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3 Social Media Tips and Tricks

With an increase in technological advancement comes an abundance of people spending mass amounts of time online, specifically on social media. There are more than 1.6 BILLION active users on Facebook and more than 500 MILLION users on Instagram each day. For these reasons alone, it is so crucial to have your business page represented on social media.

Ensuring your business page comes to life on Facebook and Instagram can provide a way to increase both your reach and engagement with new and existing fans. If you don’t, you may be losing out on potential customers. For some people, finding you on social media may be their only interaction with your business before deciding whether or not to purchase your product or service. That being said, take a look below at these 3 easy tips to ensure you are getting the most out of social media.

3 Tips and Tricks for Retailers to Utilize This Year

  1. Humanized Content: đŸ‘« Small businesses have a higher engagement rate when posting pictures of people, such as employees. When you post content of your employees, it allows your fans to familiarize themselves with you and your business. When they walk in your store, they’ll recognize you/them from social media. This tactic helps the customer build both trust and a positive relationship with your business before ever walking through the door. Simple as that. Pictures of you/your employees modeling your products is a way to take positive community engagement online, into the store.
  2. Regularly update Facebook & Instagram: 📍 Finding your business on these platforms may be a customer’s only interaction with you before deciding to come in. It’s important that your information is updated regularly. Posting new products and deals can drive fan excitement and, even better, them into the store. I recommend posting 3-5x a week on each of these platforms to increase your engagement and following. Believe it or not, by updating your social platforms regularly, you could actually rank higher in search results.
  3. Brand consistency across all platforms: ✅ It’s important to have brand consistency across all your digital platforms so your customers can clearly identify you. I suggest incorporating things like the same profile picture, fonts, color identity, etc. on all sites. Make sure your brand has an aligned message across all social platforms (including your website) so that customers aren’t confused!

Now that you have a sense of direction about utilizing social media for your business, it’s time to start implementing it! Be creative and have fun with it! Let’s make 2020 the best year that your business has ever seen!

Share a comment about which tip helped most or an area where you struggle. I’d love to hear from you!

Bryce