Wow… the past several weeks have been surreal. So much has happened in our lives, so much emotion and uncertainty. Even as we get used to the “new” normal, the uncertainty of the future still looms over us.

Admittedly, the first few weeks during the pandemic, I struggled emotionally and mentally on how to approach my business. People were dying at rapid rates, companies were furloughing and laying off employees, a worldwide financial destruction was looming.

Who really cared about marketing, right?

Now that I’ve come out of my fog (slightly) … I am starting to see things differently. As I listen to news reports about the importance of small businesses to our economy and more phone calls from new clients begin to come in for marketing help, I realize that this was not the time to back down from marketing, but to ramp up marketing efforts.

Below are a few lessons learned over the past several weeks:

1.) Digital Marketing – Every business should seek to have a digital presence. Even if the presence is not perfect, it is important to be found and connected to your audience in various ways. If you are relying on your audience primarily by events, networking lunches or dinners, you probably found yourself a little lost. Digital marketing is more critical than ever.

2.) E-Commerce – Creating something to sell online and extend your services and brand is important. Most of my clients sell or offer a service. However, I do encourage all my clients to think of a product to add to their services. This can be a book, candle, clothing, hair products… anything. Having another option for selling is critical.

3.) Social Media – When the world shuts down – everyone turned to social media for content and information. LinkedIn usage increased by 52% over the past month. Many people who had a presence on social media, but was not actively using it, suddenly found themselves trying to figure it out.

4.) Business goes on. It truly does. And it needs too. The economy is a powerful thing and affects everyone in varoius ways (financial, emotionally, physically, etc.) But even in the depths of a recession, there is continued investment and new spending. We want to be a part of that spending, therefore NOW is the time to build your pipeline.

Go visit and like my FB page this weekend. I will share a video on tips to improve your marketing during a crisis. There are may things we should consider doing.

Oh.. and if you have time – check out my online time management course for working marketing into your business and life. Lots of practical tips! Click here to start your online course.

If you need assistance with your marketing efforts, please reach out to me! I would love to chat with you.

Hashtags are a popular and effective marketing tool in social media. However, so many people focus on being clever and cute with hashtags that they often ignore the power and strategy in using them.

The purpose of a hashtag is for your content and brand to be discovered. It helps to create a comm

unity and pull other like-minded individuals and interests together. For example if you are a personal trainer and you use the hashtag #fitness on a picture – you will attract others that are interested in fitness. Hashtags used strategically can expand your brand, audience and your content… and remember… content is KING. If you are going to market effectively, you must have content..and you must have content others can find.

Below are some reminders on using hashtags.

1.) Keep it simple: We have all seen the long hashtags that either gets misspelled or we have to read and review a few times before we retype it. Just like taglines, for a hashtag to be effective, it must be memorable and easy to use. It is okay to create unique hashtags for your business or organization, but it also should be memorable and easily repeated. If it takes time for people to “get it” or “understand” the hashtag – then you are diluting your brand.

2.) Use trending hashtags: If there is a trending hashtag that relates to your business or organization, don’t be afraid to use that hashtag and join in with energy and trend. You can find trending hashtags each day, several times a day on Twitter. By using this strategy, someone may discover your organization or movement.

3.) Use it everywhere: If you have a hashtag specific to your business or organization, be sure to use it everywhere and encourage your team and audience to use it, as well. You want people to understand your brand and spread the word. Use it in your posts, website, signature, etc.

4.) Don’t use too many: Using too many hashtags, as many often do on Instagram and Twitter, will dilute your interests, your focus and your message. It is often seen as spam, as well. Try to think strategically about your hashtags and keep it within 3-5 hashtags.

Hashtags, if used strategically, can expand your brand and amplify your content. Take some time to think about your audience and who needs to see your content and use your hashtags #strategically.