image of hand reaching out with words servant leader imposed

Authenticity is a buzzword that’s been so overused in marketing that it has nearly lost all meaning. But right now amid the global pandemic that is COVID-19, authenticity should be the cornerstone of any brand communications your business undertakes right now. I’m going to voice a controversial opinion here. It’s one that I’ve already been…

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remote office setup to work from home

NOTE: This article is one in a series of excerpts from the forthcoming book, Work From Home (Like a Boss), by Üma Kleppinger. Thousands of small and medium businesses are suddenly facing the growing reality that their workers are likely to have to work from home in the foreseeable future. The global pandemic known as…

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image of woman holding five stars review

Social proof is an undeniably powerful tool in any business owner’s or marketer’s toolkit. And of all forms of social proof, nothing converts more effectively than customer testimonials. Whether you’re selling services or product, and regardless of whether your audience is b2b or b2c, testimonials work. They work because people tend to take the word…

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money in soil representing financial growth

I’ve been putting off writing about making your business recession-proof because frankly, the economy is doing okay, despite the trade wars, tarriffs, and market indicators. But in the last month, what had been tentative whispers about a coming recession have become more like a rhaspier, louder smokers cough, barking out caution. From Fortune to Forbes,…

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content strategy illustration

Content marketing involves a lot of moving pieces, each as relevant and critical as the next. You need SEO value, good images (with ALT tags), and solid writing at a minimum. But more important than all the above, you need a plan. This means you need a content strategy. Many small business owners taking the…

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strategy without tactics quote

If I had a nickle for every time a client came to me and wanted content marketing but didn’t have an optimized website (or vice versa), I could have retired a number of years ago. Too often I see start-ups taking a do-it-yourself approach to both, then wondering why their sales are still low, or why…

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marketing integration image

  So you’ve finally decided to take your small business or emerging brand to the next level. You’ve decided to overhaul your 10-year-old website and make it responsive. You’ve started to emailing newsletters to customers now and then. You’ve got a Facebook business page and you post something once a week. Maybe you’ve set up…

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mobile shopping illo

Recently I had a conversation with a local small business owner who suggested social media marketing was on the decline. “People are burned out and tired of it,” he said. “I’m not sure it’s worth the effort.” This is not an unfamiliar refrain; I‘ve heard it many times, usually from a solopreneurs or start-ups and…

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