Week six - watch it all fall into place.

Graphic designs.

This week I want to share with you some links to practice marketing magic. Canva, the app or the browser version is software I use every week and have been for years. Find it, bookmark it and use it. Take a look at some ideas of what you can create then hop over to Canva and get creative!

Social Media headers
The consistent look and feel of a brand is key to earning the trust of your audience. Using the same eye-catchy, creative images over all your social media channels will build a connection between your readers and your brand.

Info or Quote graphics
Info graphics or quotes are a great way to connect with your network. They are also very effective when you want to grow your following because they are easily shared by your readers.

Newsletter/Email header graphics
Use the same brand images you use on your social media when sending email or newsletters to your readers, creating a consistency and familiarity with your brand.

Launch graphics
And create some images to promote the launch of your website. Sprinkle these around everywhere you can so that everyone knows and gets to see your magic.

Building your brand.

Building your brand takes time. There is no way around this.

Of course there are a million ways to “boost your following” and gain new followers and I do advice you to research what ways feel good to you and give them a try, but in the end it’s about building a connection, gaining trust and being authentic. Gaining fifty new followers a day sounds awesome, but if none of them really read your blog posts or purchase your offerings, it’s pretty pointless. So I advice you to create from the soul, stay real and invest time into building your brand. 

Below are some of the ways I like to use when I invest in my brand and business.

• Writing epic content for others! Writing pieces for other websites is a great way to get your name out there. Your words will reach a new audience and hopefully this will lead to new connections. Soul check : Only write for websites and people that resonate with you. 

• Let others write epic content for you! The opposite is also a good strategy, let other people write pieces for your website. When you publish a guest article, the guest will most likely share this on their own social media which gives your website new exposure. Soul check : Again…it has to resonate with your own work. Stay true to your own vibe.

• Who doesn't like a fun giveaway? I absolutely LOVE running giveaways! There is just something beautiful about sending gifts to people that you have never met before. If you are putting up offerings on your website it might be a good idea to run some giveaways and introduce people to your offerings in this way. If you are looking to build a bigger network, you can also ask people with a bigger following then you if you can run a giveaway on their social media! (If you want me to run a giveaway in our Nabalo FB Group let me know!) Soul check : Always. I repeat, always send out the price to the winner.

• Be generous and grateful. This one doesn’t need a lot of explanation…we all like freebies! So be generous, create some awesome content, pdf it and put in on your website for free. Run a discount on your offerings once in a while. Make something and just give it away to someone you connected with online. Send out some handwritten cards if that is your thing. Soul check : Choose quality over quantity!

• A monthly reminder to keep them up to date. Sending out monthly newsletters is a great way to send a lot of information straight to your followers. If you promote your blog posts or work on social media, you have to follow their rules and regulations, and we all know that social media channels have a lot, but when you send out your own newsletter you can design it to your own liking. Soul check : When someone trust you with their email address, don’t spam them!

• Build trust between your brand and your readers. Why would someone sign up for your newsletter if they can also catch your updates on social media? Make it worth their while! Create a fun little ebook or guide with a few tips or some knowledge on the topics you like to talk about and send that to them when they sign up. Soul check : Spend time, energy and love on creating this free sign up offering.

Facebook tips.
I always advice my clients to create a separate business profile on Facebook and keep this one “clean” and focused on your business, and not your personal life. Keep it professional, go easy on linking to the work of others, no “funny videos”, no cute puppies, maximum of 3 posts a day. 

Instagram tips.
How you handle your Instagram feed differs from your Facebook. Instagram is all about snapshots and seeing those “everyday” moments. You can be a bit more personal here. But still, keep it professional, don’t “repost” often, maximum of 3 posts a day. And one of the most important ones...use high quality pictures. 

The 80/20 Rule.
This rule is my motto, both on personal (80 % veggies, 20% chocolate) as on a business level! When posting on social media : 80% information and musings, 20% offerings. When sending out newsletters : 80% information and musings, 20% offerings. When sharing your knowledge on your website : 80% free basic knowledge, 20% paid.

I always come back to this rule and it always works!

Some apps that I love using.

Unum : Visually plan, manage, and schedule all your Instagram posts. 
Evernote : Write your blog posts with our distractions and to keep track of all your ideas.
Creative Market : The market place for all your design assets.
Squarespace Campaigns : The email marketing tool that allows you to create a newsletter.
Adobe Creative Cloud : The best choice when Canva can't do it.
Project Broadcast : When you want to send text messages to your followers without giving them your phone number.