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Marketing Monday

MarketingOnAutopilot

Marketing on Autopilot: Planning Ahead So You Can Vacation

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I’ve noticed that sometimes, I get behind on my own marketing. Blogging, Social Media, Email Newsletters, etc. can just get tossed by the wayside when I get busy, or when I want to enjoy some time with my family while they are on summer vacation.

What if you could put it on autopilot?

You can – and it starts simply. Make a plan, and work ahead.
If you aren’t working ahead with your blogging and your social media, then you need to carve out a time to write some content, and make your plan for how you are going to distribute that content.

I like to start making my plan by using Google Sheets or an Excel Spreadsheet.
I lay out my first column with dates, like a calendar, and then each column will be fo my various social media and marketing outlets. Short posts, or blog titles and topic will go in each cell – so that I can lay out what will post when and where.

If you work ahead enough on your plan – you do what you need to execute that plan – you can put that marketing on autopilot and let it do the work!

Tune in next week for “Marketing on Autopilot: What to Write About”
Subscribe so you don’t miss the next post!

BrandingBasics

Branding Basics: Website / Social

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Your website and your social media neet to accurately represent your brand.
That means your logo  / branding colors / verbage needs to be present and consistent.

Your blog and your social media can be very effective in terms of creating repeated and consistent communication of your brand.

For example- if you operate a car detailing business – and your slogan is “Sparkling, from the bottom to the top!” you can find ways to work that into all of your web / social content! The more you communicate it – the more it sticks in the minds of your target!

Tune in next week for Marketing on Autopilot
Do you need some help with your branding? Let me know!
Josh Hatcher
mail@joshhatcher.com

BrandingBasics

Branding Basics: Collateral

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There are so many things that you might need to market your business. Flyers, brochures, business cards, email newsletter templates, websites, billboards, etc.

We call these designed elements “Marketing Collateral.”  While you may refresh these designs fairly often – it’s a good idea to make sure that there is some branding consistency across the board. Colors, textures, fonts, slogans, etc. should relate to each other.

Maybe you use different campaigns frequently – which means your designs may change. You might still want to layout certain rules or a “styleguide” that brings that consistency across the board.
Tune in next week for Branding Basics: Website/Social
Do you need some help with your branding? Let me know!
Josh Hatcher
mail@joshhatcher.com

BrandingBasics

Branding Basics: Logo

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Before anything else  –  I recommend having your logo professionally designed.
I know you think it sounds like I’m trying to sell you somethign – and maybe I am. Full disclosure – it’s how I make my living –

but whether you have Hatcher Media create your logo, someone else create your logo, or someone else create it – there’s a few things you need to think about.

1. Is it readable at a glance? If it’s on the side of your truck, and I’m driving down the highway – can I read it? Can I clearly understand your message in 3 seconds?

2. Is it timeless? Some companies update their logo every few years – and you certainly COULD do that. But you also might consider creating a logo that will be around for awhile. I recommend the timeless option.

3. Is it scale-able?
Your logo needs to be able to be blown up. That means you need to create it as a vector file. If you don’t know how to do this – hire someone who can. If you have to blow up your logo – and it looks grainy – then you are going to look cheap and unprofessional.  (Also note – please make sure that your logo is resized properly – and not in such a way that stretches it out of proportion!)

4. Does it work in one color as well as multiple colors? Sometimes your logo needs to work in one color. Make sure that you keep that in mind.

Tune in next week for Branding Basics: Collateral
Do you need some help with your branding? Let me know!
Josh Hatcher
mail@joshhatcher.com

BrandingBasics

Branding Basics: Philosophy

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People often associate your “brand” with your logo – but branding is really about more than that.
Branding is happening whether you intend it to or not – it’s the SUM of all of your communication parts, including the reception of that communication, and the image of your company in the mind of your target audience.

Before you start throwing fonts and colors at a logo – you need to know what your branding philosophy is.
Who are you, and why do you exist?
What do you want your target audience to think about you?
How do you want to be portrayed in the marketplace?

As you define these things, you want to make sure that you are communicating them across all of your marketing is consistent. Not just the message, but the design itself needs to have that consistency.

Tune in next week for Branding Basics: Logo
Do you need some help with your branding? Let me know!
Josh Hatcher
mail@joshhatcher.com


Why Wordpress

Why WordPress? Versatility via Plugins

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Wordpress is a fantastic and versatile platform for building your website.

It can handle ecommerce, integration with social networks, mailing list integration, and any number of functionalities you want your website to do.

You should be careful with some Third Party Plugins, though, because they can create vulnerabilities or conflicts – but as long as you go with highly rated plugins from trusted developers, you should have a problem.

I also get a lot of requests to build websites at a base rate – but with the goal of building more onto it later – ie – ecommerce, etc. WordPress makes that process work. It’s a site that will grow with you!

If you need any help with a website, let me know! I’d love to talk to you about what your needs are – and how I can help you achieve your marketing goals! Give me a call today! 814-636-0152

Why Wordpress

Why WordPress? It’s effective for Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

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WordPress is one of the leading platforms for web development – and it’s definitely the best way to get your website built.

Hatcher Media works exclusively with WordPress for website design, and one thing we’ve seen is that it yields excellent and effective Search Engine Optimization.

I highly recommend using the Jetpack Plugin and setting up the Advanced Distribution Feature – as well as the Yoast SEO plugin – which can help you measure your site, and see what kind of ranking each post can get!

Even without the extra plugins, the way WordPress is built is structured well for SEO – assigning categories and tags to posts to assign them to keywords.

Many of my clients have seen tremendous SEO results because of WordPress!

 

Why Wordpress

Why WordPress? It’s simple to use for updating your site

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If you are wondering about using WordPress as a Content Management System for your website, there is definitely a reason that Hatcher Media works with it exclusively.

The fact that it is simple – and allows a novice to keep a site updated is one of it’s biggest selling points.

If you know how to use facebook, gmail, and a word processor like Microsoft Word – then you can keep your website updated. There is a reasonable learning curve, and I’m usually able to show my clients how to update in under an hour.

That being said – installing, configuring, designing, and troubleshooting your site really needs to be done by a professional. The behind the scenes stuff takes some experience and knowledge – and if you get into the inner workings, you can break your site! I have found that the wordpress forums have been a great resource for finding answers to common breaks – but for what you NEED to do with your site on a daily/weekly basis – it’s fairly basic.

Updating your blog and your static pages is not complicated, and you can even download the wordpress app on your phone!

Why Wordpress

Why WordPress? It allows for beautiful design

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Why WordPressIf you are thinking about a website – you’ve probably heard a pitch for all kinds of Content Management Systems, and why theirs is the best.  After years of trial and error, I’ve settled on one platform above all the others: WordPress

There are a number of reasons that WordPress is king – and over the next few weeks, we will discuss those together. Today, I want to focus on what I think is the most important feature:

Design.

WordPress sites don’t all look pretty, but there are some amazing things that you can do with it. Let me show you some examples of websites that Hatcher Media has designed using wordpress.

http://www.secret.openarms.tv

http://www.openarms.tv

http://www.nannenarboretum.org

http://www.reisscountryproperties.com

http://www.justinwilloughby.com

http://www.patruckingins.com
I usually work with a theme pack that I purchased that has great support, beautiful clean design, and that are highly customizable – so that I can make each site unique and relevant to my clients’ target audience.

 

StartUpMarketingBasics

Startup Marketing Basics: Persistence Matters!

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StartUpMarketingBasicsI can’t tell you how many times people are ready to QUIT marketing after a short run.
This is a marathon. Not a sprint. You may have short bursts of marketing capaigns – but if the theory of touches is accurate – it’s going to take quite a while for people to hear about you!

If you are starting up – be prepared for it to take some time before you start seeing a return.

Patience is one thing, but PERSISTENCE is what you need. Keep at it – keep pushing – keep talking about your business. If you don’t keep reminding people, then those “touches” that you were shooting for will be forgotten, and you’ll have to start all over again to win them over!

What tends to happen with a lot of startups, is that they work hard on their marketing, then get really busy doing the work to please their new clients and customers, and then they stop marketing all together! I know I have made this mistake myself! Even if things are going well – you have to persistently keep pushing, so that if things slow down – your past marketing will continue to yield results!

I propose carving out the first part of your week for marketing. Every Monday morning – the first thing you should do is spend 15 minutes, an hour, or a few hours doing the marketing work. Make #MarketingMonday a thing – and you’ll have the discipline you need to keep it going!

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