Crystal Media

Marketing Clarity.

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Your Store Might be Closed, but Your Business Isn’t 🛍

As we navigate this new strange reality we’re in, one that is directly affecting you and the way you do business, we at Crystal Media were called to look at what we could do. We asked, what can we do NOW to help our small business retailers, the people that we’ve helped and worked with for over seven years? I think you’ll love what we came up with. đŸ‘«

Crystal and I spent hours the past week on the phone (self-quarantine anyone?đŸ˜·) talking about our options. We were about to close the doors to our Insider Membership, but we decided to keep them open indefinitely so retailers can still join and get continued support and training. We’re confident Insider membership is the best place for retailers to start, but we decided to offer some free ways to support you, too. Crystal sent this out last week:

I released a digital version of our 12-Month Social Media Planner and I’m giving it away to all retailers who need help with social media. If you have to close your store keep in mind your store might be closed, but your business isn’t. Stay top of mind by consistently posting, build your audiences and even sell through social. My planner will help you. Click here to get your planner now.

Also, Crystal was a guest speaker on the Management One webinar sharing several strategies to stay in front of customers and continue to sell to them through social media and other tools. You can watch the replay by clicking here.

Finally, early in March, we did a 5-Day Social Media Challenge, helping retailers set up a social media plan in just 5 days. We were going to take this training down but we decided to keep it up because we had so many retailers tell us how helpful it was. Below are the links to access all five days:

These are three incredible resources and they are yours for free, we’re happy to help and hope you utilize these tools. If you have any questions please email us at hello@crystalmediaco.com, all of us at Crystal Media is here for you. ❀

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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:

via GIPHY

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.