Prolific video blogger and digital marketer extraordinaire, Neil Patel, recently talked about how passion drives him and should drive you too. Here are some key outtakes to get you motivated:
Passion is All You Need
Today, I’m shooting a lot of videos, probably 20-25. There are moments when I’m tired, I am human. It’s not like I am a machine where I can keep going forever. People ask me do you want coffee? I don’t want coffee, I don’t need caffeine. If you haven’t tried giving up coffee in your life, the first week or two or even a month is a bit tough, but it gets easier.
Here’s what I found is the best form of energy. It’s passion. If you love what you are doing you will keep going no matter how tired you are.
Passion Drives Personal Efficiency
I was talking to a buddy last night and he was mentioning to me, hey sometimes I only work like 43 hours in a week, because if I work 60 hours that other 17 hours are really inefficient, and I’m not really getting much done. What I’ve found is that if you are truly passionate about what you are doing, you’ll be efficient with all of your hours. It doesn’t matter if you are tired, you will still figure out how to grind through, put in all that you have, and get the job done.
Yes, you could take vacations, you could take breaks, but I believe the best form of pushing through and accomplishing your goals is having passion. And if you don’t have the passion for whatever you are doing, stop doing it, life is too short. You’re going to regret it in the future, the question is just when.
How to Find Your Passion
Keep trying out different things. When you are a kid you’re like, I want to be a doctor, I want to be a firefighter. Then you grow up, you may go to college, you may not, but you’re not still like I want to be a doctor or firefighter. Most people are lost. A lot of people 50 or 60 are still lost. Most people don’t know what they want to do, they just don’t admit that.
The way you figure out your true passion, what you want to do, is you try a lot of little things out and you will eventually figure out what you are good at, and usually what you are good at is also what you are passionate about. And if not, quit, go onto the next thing. As long as you keep trying new things you will learn what you’re passionate about, and then you will do well and you won’t need the coffee.
One of the most important topics for retailers is getting your listings to the top of eBay search results, or in other words, eBay SEO. For many businesses, learning how to do effective eBay SEO can literally mean the difference between making a few hundred bucks or thousands of dollars.
JR Business recently talked about how they have risen to the top of very popular eBay search results and offered their insider advice for you to do the same. In fact, on one recent listing, they have made over $70,000 in just two months. Below are some highlights from their recent talk on how to do eBay right:
Getting Started with eBay SEO
We’ve been using eBay for ten years now and are very successful on the platform. We have hundreds of listings that occupy very high SEO rankings on search results. For example, there’s a search result with 1.8 million results and we occupy two of the top three slots. eBay SEO is very tricky, they are constantly changing things, tweaking things, updating the platform, so you have to stay up-to-date and if you don’t make certain changes when they need to be made you’re gonna drop in SEO ranking. It’s very hard to stay relevant and at the top but we’ve managed to do it by following 3 important steps.
The 3 big things are the performance of your account, the listing set up, and your customer satisfaction. eBay SEO really falls into those 3 categories and those are what’s going to make up your ranking.
Becoming a Top Rated Seller
eBay is not going to put their number one listing as somebody who has 4 seller feedback points, 40 points or even 400 points. You need a lot of seller feedback points to get to the top of eBay search results.
Being a top rated seller or a power seller is going to help immensely. However, becoming a top-rated seller is really tricky to get. You have to accept refunds, you have to have a certain shipping time and can’t be delayed on shipments, and you have to have a high customer satisfaction. You have to meet all these standards and also have a certain number of transactions and also hit a certain dollar amount in sales. All these things have to be there to become a top rated seller. Once you are there, you get a discount on seller fees and again it helps with SEO.
Pay for Everything eBay Offers
It is important to pay for everything that they offer sellers on eBay. If your listing is going to do super successful long-term, you’re going to make a ton of money from it, then pay for the $2 subtitle, the $4 bull title, the secondary listing category, the enlarged images for a dollar… all that stuff! It is very little in the grand scheme of things. If you’re gonna be making a lot of money for that listing, like its a cash cow listing, then you need to throw the money at eBay.
My theory is that since you’re paying eBay more then they may help you out a little bit. More importantly, in the buyer’s eyes, when they see a bold title, an enlarged image, and they can find you in two categories, this will increase engagement with your listing.
Pack Your Titles Full of Keywords
I also can’t emphasize enough the packing of your listing title full of keywords that people are going to search for. Based on what industry and niche you’re in you should know what keywords are going to do the best. If you’re selling iPhone chargers, you better know to pack that title with “works with iPhone six, seven, eight and ten, etc.
When you’re done with the title there should be zero characters remaining. You need to pack that thing full. When somebody searches something on eBay it is referencing off the title unless they do a description search, but otherwise, it has to be in the title to show up.
The subtitle isn’t searchable but it’s still important. Once they find your listing, you want to make sure they stay on your listing and that they have enough information.
Create Extremely Long Descriptions
They need to know about the product, so not only are you packing in information into the title and the subtitle, but also the item specifics. Those are the pre-fill in little boxes that eBay gives you based on what category you selected. So fill in that information but also the description, it’s one of the most important parts of the listing.
Please do not have a four-sentence description! I see it all too often, but that’s just gonna kill your listing. If you not giving them all the information they need to know about the item and if you’re not keeping them on your listing, they’re gonna go somewhere else and find one that explains it better.
You should have a nice attractive title, maybe inlay a picture or something in the description, but also just have paragraph upon paragraph about the item. Then talk about your shipping methods and if you’re an experienced account say so. We always say that we’re a trusted eBay seller for the past ten years with thousands of feedback points. We tell them to look at our recent feedback, reassuring confidence in them.
Ship as Fast as Possible and for Free
It’s unbelievably important to have quick shipping times. There’s no reason not to be shipping within one to two days, and you shouldn’t ever need three-day handling time because it starts to hurt your sales. Anything above five days or more is really going to affect your performance.
If eBay sees that you’re a fast shipper and that’s what you described, at the top of the listing they’ll post fast and free shipping and estimated time delivery. People want to get their stuff quick!
You should also offer free shipping. Personally, just about every single one of my items is free shipping. That helps with the algorithm because eBay can tell the buyers free shipping and they see it as a better deal.
Improve Listing Performance with Deals
One other big tip for listing performance, I have found a lot of success with using sales promotions. It may not even be that much of a sale, but something about buyers seeing sale is going to Incline them to buy. Sales also plays into eBay SEO as well.
Experiment with Sponsored Listings
One other thing that you can experiment with is the sponsored listings with eBay. I promote some of my listings and have found good success because it helps them move up in search results quickly.
To get the ball rolling I throw some sponsored ad budget through eBay and they’ll often bump it up to the first page. Then people start to see it and then some solds will start to appear. Once you start selling some items and you have good buyer satisfaction on that listing and people are leaving good reviews and they’re not returning the items that will help immensely with your eBay search ranking.
Keep Your Customers Satisfied
If you have 6 five-star reviews on your listing people are gonna feel super safe buying. We all know we feel reassured when we see good reviews on an item. Alternatively, if you see only one-star reviews on an item that will hurt your customer satisfaction. That’s why having good communications with your customer, working out problems and just making sure everything is top-notch with the transaction is so important.
Good reviews and good feedback on your account is so big because once you get some products sold on the listing everything is gonna compound pretty quickly. You’ll start getting some reviews on your products, you’ll start to get some sold quantity.
I Made $70,000 With One Good eBay Listing
Two months ago I added what I thought would be a good listing, nothing crazy, but I knew it’d be a decent cash cow listing. I probably spent about six hours making a full thorough description. I went really really detailed on that and I paid $12 for extra eBay boosts as I described above.
So $12 and six hours of my time and within a couple weeks it was starting to sell. I sold 30 or 40 quantity on this listing and each item is over 50 bucks apiece, so I was making some money. I’m like okay that’s pretty good, and then that point of compounding came and things just started to hit and the listing took off. It went crazy with people loving the items, had great reviews and eBay could see that fast and free shipping with timely deliveries tracking.
It was a perfect listing and it really started to take off and now two months later that single listing has sold over $70,000 worth of product!
Every year, millions of new websites are launched, and they’re directly or indirectly competing for the same visitors you are. That makes driving traffic your website, increasingly more difficult. Even major social networking sites like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are having trouble generating organic reach. But that doesn’t seem to be a problem with Pinterest.
Pinterest has become more than just a visual search platform. It’s more of a search engine now where prospective customers go to look for products.Statistics have revealed that 93 percent of account holders use the platform to plan what they want to buy while 50 percent have actually bought something after seeing a Promoted Pin. And with 20 million monthly users, it makes sense for marketers to take advantage of Pinterest’s power.
These seven marketing tools are among the best for helping generate more website traffic with Pinterest in 2018:
1. Canva
You need captivating images if you want people to notice your Pins, and Canva is just the design software to help you achieve this. Canva offers ready to use Pinterest Pin templates with a variety of layouts to choose from. The layouts are customizable, so you can easily change the font, text, and background image. You can also add more graphics or take out elements that don’t fit with your vision or website theme. You can use the app for free and just purchase new images or assets for $1. However, a paid version will give you more designs and photos to choose from, as well as the option of saving your logo or brand to make designing a board go quicker.
2. Hootsuite
Hootsuite makes it possible for you to create boards, make a publishing schedule, and post pins directly to Pinterest from its dashboard. You can also manage several accounts using this tool, making it easier and safer for your team since you’re just using one secure workflow. This full integration on a single dashboard saves time and makes it easier to reach a wider audience.
3. PicMonkey
Eye-catching images are what sets Pinterest apart from other social platforms. Retailers and service-based companies willhave more impact on this platform if they use a visual format for their content. PicMonkey is an online image editor that can help with designing and editing your brand’s images so that simple shots become more compelling. You can give photos a quick touch-up, resize images, create image quotes, and overlay photos with text. More importantly, it’s free so you won’t even need to hire a digital artist or invest in Photoshop.
4. PinFollow
You need a lot of followers to establish your brand’s credibility, influence, and popularity. One way to get more followers on Pinterest is to follow other Pinners and hope they will do the same. PinFollow will help you weed out which Pinners are not following you so you can unfollow these accounts. This will streamline your list and leave you with more loyal followers.
5. PinGroupie
One of the fastest ways to make connections on this social media platform is through groups, but finding the right group board to join is tricky. PinGroupie helps you establish the best Pinterest Group Boards for your brand. This tool lists live group boards, allowing you to reach out to the owners and see if they are willing to let you join or contribute to the board. PinGroupie also has an industry sorting feature that you can use to check what kind of content other brands are offering and see if there’s anything unique that you can provide.
6. Pinterest Analytics
This tool provides Pinterest users with the basic metrics about their Pins, like reach, impressions, and what people save from their website. It also shows how much traffic your site receives and indicates what your customers want. It’s very simple to use; just click on the stats icon on your Pins to get an overview of the essential metrics. You can use the tool to improve your marketing strategy and come up with ways to get more clicks, saves, and impressions.
7. Tailwind
Tailwind is one of the most essential tools you need to successfully market on Pinterest. This analytics and campaign management tool will help you do everything, from scheduling the content you need published, to pinpointing your most influential followers to determining the most popular pins. It can also monitor your competitors and track the engagements on your account. What’s more, it seamlessly integrates with Google Analytics.
Google and Unskippable Labs cooked up a new project that has marketers salivating with new ideas.
The company created a fake pizza brand, “Doctor Fork,” as a way to challenge conventional marketing strategies and see how far they could push the advertising envelope.
According to TechCrunch, Google conceptualized and ran 33 ads on YouTube. The clips were made from stock footage and images, focused mainly on two things—the perfect “man vs. food” ratio and whether the number of sensory cues affected the effectiveness of the ad. In layman’s terms, the former deals with the ratio of human images against shots of food while the latter deals with the cues that stimulate our senses (ex. shots of stringy mozzarella, the sounds of vegetables being chopped).
Google created a fake pizza brand to test out creative strategies for YouTube ads
Google’s Unskippable Ads team has been testing out ad effectiveness in a compelling new way: It created a fake pizza brand called Doctor Fork, used stock footage to create… https://t.co/iVlG5SonJhpic.twitter.com/UOM8g0Yp8F
The bogus Doctor Fork ads generated 20 million impressions and led to some useful and revealing conclusions. For one, the experiment showed that immersive experiences that utilized multiple senses provide better recall. This means advertisers should try to stimulate all of the consumers’ senses (ex. audio, text, and video).
The company also concluded that separating audio and visuals has more of an impact in terms of brand favorability and recall. So does giving explicit instructions to the customer.
The Doctor Fork ads also showed that when it comes to food commercials, close up shots of food get people’s motors running. The experiment also proved that the bite and smile axiom that has been strictly followed by marketers is not the sole way of presenting a pleasant food experience. This finding gives food sellers more leeway when it comes to showing people enjoying their food.
Google’sdecision to use a fake company to study how people would react to their ads was an inspired one. Legitimate companies are constrained to following certain ad styles. For instance, food commercials usually don’t show someone chewing their food while looking at the camera. But this unspoken rule has never been tested so it can’t definitively be said that chewing and looking at the audience is bad. Unfortunately, brands are not willing to branch out in terms of style since an ad that flops is costly.
Since Doctor Fork is not real, Google didn’t waste valuable ad time or lose any real customers. The fake pizza brand provided the company with the freedom to take risks. Ben Jones, the creative director of Unskippable Ads, explained it quite well when he said that “Doctor Fork can do whatever he wants.” He added that they used “the freedom of the unbranded ad to be wrong, to push in directions and ask questions that a brand will not.”
Facebook Messenger is only about three years old and it’s already one of the most popular messaging platforms in the world. With the right marketing strategy, the app can easily convert leads and drive sales.
Since its unveiling at the 2015 F8 conference, more than one billion messages have been sent to Facebook Messenger by businesses and their customers. Analysts expect this trend to continue and have predicted that the app will have139.2 million users by 2020.
Number of Facebook Messenger users in the United States from 2014 to 2020
There are about 1.3 million people using Facebook Messenger now. That’s a number that marketers should not ignore, especially since the app is a great marketing tool.
Advantages to Using Facebook Messenger
Consumers today use messaging apps like Messenger, Viber, and WhatsApp more often than social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter. This means that brands who can successfully use these apps can enjoy advantages like:
Improved Communication With Clients: Reaching your customer is faster with Messenger since you don’t have to wait in queue or be placed on hold. OneFacebook study also revealed that people nowadays prefer to send a message than to call customer service. A majority of customers also tend to purchase online from brands that they can easily reach through chat.
Raised Awareness of Your Products: You can raise more awareness about your products or services via Messenger. This is because you can swiftly start a dialogue regarding the products or services you offer with your prospective customer.
Better Customer Service: A lot of customers prefer to send Private Messages instead of publicly posting their questions in the comments section of the Support Page. With Messenger, you can quickly reply to your customers and provide them with the information or answers they need. Plus, 63 percent of consumers surveyed by Facebook were found to have developed a good impression of brands that they can easily chat with.
Faster Transactions: It’s also simpler to conduct transactions with the help of Messenger. You can sell your products and services directly to your customers. Theapplication can also assist you to immediately take orders, book appointments, invite prospective clients, and send product photos, receipts, and shipping information.
[Graphic via Facebook IQ]
4 Ways to Use Messenger to Boost Sales
1. Use a Welcome Message to Initiate a Conversation
When you enter a store, you are always welcomed in by someone, whether it’s the owner, the manager or a sales personnel. You can do the same thing with your online shop. Consider setting up a welcome conversation so that when a customer sends a message to your page, you can greet them automatically. You can then proceed to inquire about what they need and assist them in finding it. A welcome conversation will make your customer feel appreciated and supported. It also provides a good experience that will entice repeat business.
2. Send a Reminder About Abandoned Carts
Buyers abandoning their carts is a big concern. Facebook Messenger has been found to be more effective than email in converting abandoned carts to sales. Set up a message that will ask the customer if they would like to complete their purchase. You can even put options like “Remind me tomorrow,” “Still thinking,” “Thanks” or even a “like” or “heart” icon.
3. Drive Traffic With Pop-Ups
This is one of the mostpopular strategies to drive traffic and accumulate opt-ins. It’s easier for users to just tap on a button to opt-in instead of typing out their whole name and email address.
4. Set Up an Auto Reply Feature
Aside from a chatbot, companies can also utilize the Messenger’s Auto Reply feature to send a custom message to customers and prospective clients. People today don’t want to waste time listening to messages that they can just read. With Facebook’s Messenger app, you can program and send messages based on the consumer’s requirements in a quick, interactive and convenient way. This can also boost the chances of opening a conversation with the client over what you’re offering.
Your business has the potential to grow bigger if you use Facebook Messenger, especially since the company continues to develop new ways to interact with consumers. So integrate the app into your marketing campaign and give yourself an edge over your rivals.
Most small businesses want to spread the word about their product or service to as many people as possible. But after covering the cost of inventory, employee wages, utilities, taxes, and a host of other expenses, many of these businesses simply don’t have enough money left over to launch widespread advertising campaigns. The good news is…even if you’re running a business on a tight budget, you can still afford effective advertising; you’ll just need to think local.
Local marketing, or location-based marketing, is the process of optimizing your company’s website and online presence to drive traffic to localized areas. This is particularly useful now that Google’s algorithm utilizes location in its search results. People looking for goods and services online get results for nearby businesses relevant to their search request. This is a highly targeted, low-cost way for businesess—big and small—to reach customers.
7 Ways to Increase Your Revenue With Local Marketing
1. Optimize Your Website for Mobile
Small businesses need to capture the attention of mobile searchers. Increase the odds of converting these leads by optimizing your website for mobile so that whatever screen your site is accessed on, it will still be displayed seamlessly.
2. Get Your Business Listed
One of the first things you can do for your small business is to get listed on Google’s My Business or Facebook. Doing this will enable you to update and manage critical information like your business address, contact details, opening hours, and images.
3. Build Bridges With Local Businesses
Align yourself with an established shop in the area and come to a mutual marketing agreement. For instance, a consultancy group could offer a discount on one of its seminars to the top clients of a local accounting firm. Working with these businesses enhance your credibility and gives prospective clients a chance to learn more about your company.
4. Secure Testimonials
A lot of people rely on online reviews when they’re trying to assess whether a business is trustworthy. Try to secure a testimonial from a resident since it will carry more weight, especially if it’s from someone known in the area.
5. Use Social Media to Engage With the Locals
Social media has made connecting with people so easy. You can integrate platforms like Facebook or Instagram into your customer service and outreach efforts. For instance, you could use hyper-local keywords in your posts or hashtags to establish your current location or put the focus on local stores that you have partnered with.
6. Work With Local Publications
Work with local publications to engender more face time with the area’s residents. Find a publication that ties up with your product or business model. Check if they’re looking for ad placements or even guest blog writers. You can even ask them if they can do a write-up about your company.
7. Sponsor a Community or Charity Event
Sponsoring an event is an effective way to utilize one of the most fundamental advertising tactics—putting your name on something. Consider sponsoring a neighborhood team or donating to a known charity in exchange for putting your brand’s name on the marquee or t-shirts from the event. You’ll be giving money to a good cause while ensuring that your company’s name is seen by a captive market.
A local marketing strategy can be an effective way to generate sales for your small business without spending too much. Get your brand noticed by interacting with the community, whether it’s through local influencer, partnering with an established shop, or sponsoring an event.
The Internet and social media have made it easy for brands to get their message out to millions of people. In fact, the average American is reportedly exposed to 4,000 to 10,000 advertisements every single day. But this accessibility has also led to “Banner Blindness,” a psychological effect wherein people become blind or indifferent to the ads they see.
Banner blindness is essentially the consumer’s defense mechanism in the face of an abundance of information. This means that at some point, your ads will no longer be effective as your audience starts to suffer from ad fatigue.
Understanding Ad Fatigue
Ad fatigue occurs when your target market becomes so used to your advertisements that they become bored and stop paying attention to them.
One platform where ad fatigue can be felt is Facebook, where account holders frequently see advertisements fighting for space amidst the numerous statuses and photos on their News Feeds. Marketers understand the impact ad fatigue can have on a company’s investment. When the Frequency rate of a Facebook ad goes up, its click-through-rate (CTR) tends to go down. Conversely, the cost-per-click for the company will increase.
Luckily, the platform’s robust rotation display and audience-targeting network mean there are strategies that can be utilized toprevent ad fatigue from setting in.
5 Ways to Prevent Facebook Ad Fatigue
1. Change Your Headline and Use Power Words
Mix up the wording in your ad. Consider changing your headline to include a question, your brand name or even a call-to-action (CTA). Another option would be to change the language to target a specific audience. For instance, men would prefer a more humorous content while women opt for something subtle. Power words like “Instantly,” “Sensational,” “Free” and “Now” can boost the odds of having a more positive response to your ads.
2. Tweak Ad Displays
Tweak the design of your ads tocapture your audience’s interest once more. Something as simple as changing the background color can make a huge difference so try experimenting with different hues. You can also utilize a simpler image to catch people’s eyes. A photo of a happy woman apparently works best in Facebook ads. Avoid images with lots of details and keep the use of text in the picture to a minimum.
3. Rotate Demographics and Audience Network
When you keep utilizing the same group on the platform’s Audience Network, desktop, and mobile iterations, the ad frequency will increase, thereby raising the dangers of ad fatigue. Separate your ad groups for every placement. This will make tracking bidding and frequency rates more effective. You should also consider rotating your ads and the target audience every few days to reduce individual ad frequency and keep things fresh.
4. Try Out Different Call-to-Actions
Your ad requires a strong call-to-action if you want to nab those conversions. Test five to six distinct CTAs as you rotate your ads and see which one gives the best result. For instance, you can start with a straight CTA this week (ex. Take that vacation now!). You can then try one that begins with a question (Need a break from work?) the following week.
5. Stop Underperforming Campaigns
If all else fails, you have the option to stop underperforming campaigns until you can develop something better. Evaluate every aspect of your marketing campaign, from the images you used to the target groups to the value proposition, to see what is causing the sluggish conversion rates. You can also freeze your ads once the frequency becomes too high and wait until people don’t recognize them anymore.
Fighting ad fatigue on Facebook is crucial to the success of your campaign. Utilize a variety of strategies like changing background colors or rotating the audience network to keep things interesting. Bear in mind that these ads are pay-per-click, so you have more than enough leeway to try something different.
Amazon has concluded its record-setting online shopping event this year. Called Prime Day, the 36-hour shopping period that ran from July 16 to July 17 was said to have surpassed Cyber Monday, Black Friday, and last year’s event. In a recentpress release highlighting its success, the company didn’t disclose sales growth or exact figures but reported that Prime members bought more than 100 million products during the sales event.
According to CEO of Worldwide Consumer Jeff Wilke, Prime Day was an opportunity to reward its members with the best deals and exclusive access to Amazon’s new products. In fact, two of the bestsellers during the worldwide event included Amazon’s Fire TV Stick with Alexa Voice Remote and Echo Dot.
Aside from Fire TV devices, other Amazon products that made a killing were Kindle e-readers and the kids’ versions of the Fire tablet and Echo Dot.
Other than electronics, members also purchased millions of toys, beauty care, computer accessories, apparel, and kitchen products. Since it’s back-to-school season, buyers also stocked up on school supplies and household essentials, taking advantage of the convenience of buying online with low shipping rates. After all, Amazon Prime members enjoy same-day delivery and free shipping on millions of products.
Prime Day also put the spotlight on small and medium-sized businesses that sell on Amazon’s platform. During the event, total sales from these businesses surpassed $1 billion, which reportedly exceeded sellers’ expectations.
Despite its successful run, Prime Day actually began with a glitch that prevented customers from checking out their purchases during the first few hours of the sale. Amazonrecognized the problem but skirted disclosing the reason for it. Others pointed out that it was probably due to the unusually heavy traffic on Amazon’s site as the sale began.
July is considered a slow month for retail, but with Prime Day, Amazon upped the ante and spurred shopping activity. Taking advantage of the bargain hunting hype, some of the larger retailers, like Walmart, eBay, and Macy’s, also ran their own sales campaigns and offered a few bargains online.
Target, for instance, had a couple of promotions on July 17, which generated this year’s highest single-day traffic and sale on its website, Target.com. The retailer even took a jab at Amazon Prime’s $119-membership fee, saying that buyers don’t have to pay to enjoy the site’s deals.
With the upcoming holiday season, large retailers are bracing themselves for faster sales growth as more buyers turn to online shopping for convenience and experience. Until other retailers catch up with the online giant, Amazon will likely break its Prime Day 2018 record.
Online shoppers will soon be shelling out more money for their purchases now that the US Supreme Court ruled that states can demand e-businesses collect sales taxes.
The case, which will have a profound effect on the consumer economy, saw the country’s Supreme Court justices voting 5 to 4 that states have the right to impose taxes on online sales even if the retailer does not have a warehouse or a physical store in their jurisdiction.
Brick-and-mortar shops have been blaming online stores and the apparent tax break they enjoy for slow sales. Meanwhile, eCommerce businesses have claimed that their success was because of the convenience they offer, not the sales tax (or lack thereof).
Doing Away with Years Worth of Laws
The surprisingruling ended years of legislative battles as it overturned a 1992 decision. It also answered the question of whether the law had fallen behind the digital economy. According to the Supreme Court ruling, the requirement that sales taxes are bound to retailers with a “physical presence” in a state was “unsound” and outdated.
South Dakota is a clear winner in this ruling. The state had petitioned the court to uphold recently passed legislation imposing a sales tax on online retailers. Marty Jackley, the state’s attorney general, defended the law by claiming that South Dakota was “losing millions for education, healthcare and infrastructure” and that the unfair playing field was hurting its citizens.
The ongoing issue that eCommerce businesses had an unfair advantage over brick-and-mortar shops was pushed to the forefront again when President Donald Trump tweeted in April that online retail giant Amazon was paying “little or no taxes to state & local governments.” It should be pointed out, though, that Amazon has been collecting sales taxes from customers in 45 states since April 2017.
Impact of Supreme Court Ruling on eCommerce
The decision to levy sales tax on online retailers had traditional retailers celebrating while the stocks ofecommerce companies took a dive.
Wayfair, an online furnishings retailer, saw its shares drop 3.8 percent while Overstock.com and eBay fell 2.5 percent and 2 percent respectively.
Amazon’s shares also took a hit, going down 1 percent. However, the retail giant’s situation is more complicated. While the company enjoyed the tax exemption for several years, a policy change in 2012 has seen it collecting tax on its own sales in the District of Columbia and 45 other states. But its third-party sellers haven’t been required to do so and thus will feel the impact of the court’s decision.
President Trump has declared the Supreme Court ruling as a “big victory for fairness” in the US and a “great victory for consumers and retailers.” However, consumers would be paying more once this ruling is implemented.
Big Supreme Court win on internet sales tax – about time! Big victory for fairness and for our country. Great victory for consumers and retailers.
There’s no telling yet how the new ruling will affect the retail landscape as this will largely depend on how states choose to exercise their authority regarding online sales. Some experts have noted that the emphasis placed by the justices on South Dakota’s law provides small online businesses with some protection as only sellers that engage in transactions of 200 or more or those that deliver goods worth more than $100,000 will be taxed.
However, the numbers could vary as $100,000 can be considered quite low from a company income tax perspective. But it’s safe to say that states will try to implement these tax sales, whether via existing or new legislation.
If you’re managing a small business or start-up brand on social media, getting people to interact with you can be challenging. This is where polling comes in handy since it encourages engagement and improves the visibility of your brand. Social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, have polling features that you can tweak and use to listen to your target audience, similar to doing marketing research. Because choices are provided, users can participate in the polls without fear or apprehension of giving a wrong answer. And since replies remain undisclosed and anonymous, users tend to be more honest with their responses.
Here’s how you can use social media polling to improve your marketing strategy and boost your brand on several platforms:
1. Gather feedback and insights.
Creating a poll is one of the ways to know what your audience likes and dislikes without disrupting their user experience. By posing a quick question, your brand will be able to get instant feedback from customers about the products and services you offer. If users feel that their opinions are valued, then they are more likely to beloyal to your brand. Gaining invaluable insight from a poll also allows you to identify areas for improvement and factor in suggestions from customers.
2. Drive product decisions.
With polls and surveys, you can determine which products or promos interest your target audience right away. This real-time information can be crucial for driving product decisions and possible sales leads for your company. Last Halloween, Hello Fresh used an Instagram Stories poll to help determine which one of its recipes customers preferred most. This simple poll not only helped generate positive sentiments towards the brand, but it also allowed customers to feel that they made an impact or contribution to the company’s meal kit options. You could do the same for your brand, too.
3. Get ideas for content.
Coming up with fresh content on social media can be a big undertaking but polls can help you overcome that hurdle. By asking what your audience wants to see or read next, you encourage engagement by listening to their opinions. Consider a cross-channel approach in creating social content, like using Instagram Stories in polling what to include in your next Facebook post. Users are more likely to be pleased by seeing curated content across platforms based on their interests.
4. Break the monotony.
Polls that are too focused on business can cause your audience to lose interest in your brand. So even though this type of polling offers a wealth of marketing data, try to come up with entertaining and fun polls every once in a while that strengthen your brand’s voice and maintain engagement. Furthermore, this makes your brand look moreapproachable.
5. Increase engagement.
You don’t have to limit your brand to a specific market since social media polling allows you to tap into a larger audience. When users check out your poll, they tend to visit your profile as well, thus increasing your visibility on the social platform. Remember to beresponsive to every comment or like, even after the poll has ended, to keep up a dialogue between you and your audience and increase the likelihood of future engagement.
As social media polls become increasingly useful to understanding your audience, it pays to use the feature as part of your marketing strategy. Learning from and listening to your market will help you take the next step in scaling up your business.
Entrepreneurs today are busier than ever, working even when they’re away from the office. A good Customer Relationship Management (CRM) program goes a long way in helping to keep track of client information, manage data on deals (both past and present) while still giving access to all the tools they require to stay productive.
But with more business professionals on the go, there is a growing need for comprehensive mobile CRM apps that will give them a competitive edge. Here’s a list of the top five:
1. Agile
This CRM platform can easily automate your company’s marketing, sales, and customer service. The Agile mobile app also lets users get a real-time idea of your business process, track deals and manage relevant milestones. Managing tasks becomes simpler as the app allows users to check pending items, create new tasks, manage and respond to social media mentions, start email campaigns, place calls to customers and jot down notes minutes before a meeting. This CRM app is available for both Android and iOS. While it’s free for up to 10 users, you’ll need to sign up for the Premium plan if you want more people to use the app. Price: Starts at $8.99/month/user (also offers free service)
2. amoCRM
This cloud-based CRM solution assists users in managing their sales pipeline. They can receive reports and feedback regarding the performance of other people on the team, sales analytics, email integration, and lead scoring. AmoCRM also lets users organize their contacts and deals using unique tags and customized fields. Existing customer details are also uploaded from databases like Gmail and Outlook. The app can be downloaded on any Android or iOS device. Price: Starts a $15/month/user
3. HubSpot CRM
HubSpot initially made its mark developing marketing automation tools. Now the company has brought its expertise to customer management with Hubspot CRM, widely considered one of the best free CRM apps today. Get the information you need about a client or company by simply adding a contact’s name and email address or a company’s domain name. You can also customize fields by dragging and dropping them in the order you want. Use Hubspot CRM alone or alongside the company’s premier marketing services. Price: Starts at $50/month (also offers free service)
4. Pipedrive
Sales teams will undoubtedly find Pipedrive a godsend. The CRM platform is designed around activity-based selling. The app’s primary interface allows users to stay organized and in total control of the sales process. With the Pipedrive app, you can arrange and manage your contacts and to-do lists via a simple search. Get access to your deal history, create new tasks and take down notes wherever and whenever. What’s more, any changes made using the mobile app is immediately synced to the Pipedrive web platform. The program runs on both iOS and Android systems. Price: Start at $15/month
5. Salesforce
Salesforce is the largest CRM platform out on the market today. And now the company is extending its features to mobile. Take advantage of its easy to assemble custom apps and create features that are perfectly aligned with you and your client’s requirements. The app also allows you to easily access crucial CRM information, productivity tools, and customizations anywhere. Your dashboards and reports are also on-hand whenever you need them, thus ensuring that you have everything you need to make an informed decision. Salesforce is available for both iOS and Android systems. Price: Starts at $25/month
A mobile CRM app can do wonders for your company’s productivity and sales pipeline. While the five mobile apps we listed above work well for most entrepreneurs, there are dozens of CRM systems on the market to choose from. Depending on what you need to track and how you manage your team, you may find other apps that suit you better. So do your due diligence and carefully research your options before choosing.
Walmart delivered on the online sales growth it hinted at after its less than stellar performance during the last holiday season. With its eCommerce sales seemingly ready to bounce back, the retail giant’s stocks traded higher on Thursday. Business analysts also believe that Walmart is in a position to take advantage of a cyclical boom that will hit discount retail in the next few years.
Walmart recentlyreported its first quarter earnings and the numbers are positive. Earnings have reached $1.14 per share and on revenue of $122.69 billion. The numbers have exceeded estimates of $1.12 in EPS and $120.51 in profits. What’s more, profits are up 4.4 percent compared to last years. Same-store sales received a 2.1 percent boost, a bit ahead of Wall Street’s projection of 2 percent while WMT stock grew by almost 2 percent in pre-market trading on May 17.
— Walmart Newsroom (@WalmartNewsroom) May 17, 2018
More importantly, online sales growth have increased to 33 percent this first quarter. It’s a massive improvement after falling 50 percent and 23 percent in the third and fourth quarter respectively. The numbers have undoubtedly caused investors to breathe a sigh of relief.
Walmart’s Sam’s Club performed admirably in the first quarter, with the company reporting same-store sales boost of 3.8 percent and a commensurate 5.6 percent increase in traffic.
International sales were also robust, rising up to 11.7 percent to $30.3 billion. It’s not so surprising though, as the company has been aggressively trying to stake claims on high-growth regions like China and India through acquisitions and partnerships. Just this month, Walmart revealed that it’s taking majority ownership of Flipkart, a leading eCommerce company in India.
“Our investment will benefit India by providing quality, affordable goods for customers, while creating new skilled jobs and fresh opportunities for small suppliers, farmers and women entrepreneurs.” – Doug McMillon, CEO Walmart. pic.twitter.com/8izGoP3nYX
In a statement, Walmart CEO Doug McMillon said that the company has shown a solid start to the fiscal year and that they’reencouraged by the momentum Walmart has.
“ We are changing from within to be faster and more digital, while shaping our portfolio of businesses for the future,” McMillon added.
That’s clear from the improvements Walmart has been making. The company has recently revamped its website, acquired online brands like Bonobos and added known brands like Lord & Taylor. Walmart has also equipped more of its branches to handle grocery pickup for online orders and made changes to its app. The company is also using more sophisticated software to better manage their inventory. This has allowed Walmart to prevent stock shortages while also avoiding having a glut of merchandise in stores that could lead to a slow down of new stocks.
Cloud computing company Salesforce is reportedly working on a blockchain product. If all goes well, the San Francisco-based company might even announce the newest addition to its services during Dreamforce, Salesforce’s yearly customer conference.
The alleged blockchain product was revealed during an interview conducted by Business Insider’s Julie Bort with both of Salesforce’s co-founders Parker Harris and Marc Benioff. The interview touched on various topics before touching on the company’s foray into blockchain technology.
According to Benioff, thedecision to tap into blockchain technology was due to serendipity. The 53-year-old Benioff recounted how he was at the World Economic Forum in Switzerland when he got to talk with a participant from a crypto conference that was being held at the same time. The fortuitous conversation soon led to Benioff thinking about Salesforce’s stand on blockchain and its “strategies around cryptocurrencies and how will we relate to all of these things.”
Benioff said that the more he thought about the technology, the more it cemented his belief that Salesforce can utilize blockchain. A sudden epiphany had him realizing a way toput blockchain and cryptocurrencies to work in the company.
“A lot [these ideas] comes from paying attention, listening,” Benioff said. “There’s new ideas coming all the time.”
Salesforce’s chief is hoping that they will be able to roll out a “blockchain and cryptocurrency solution” by Dreamforce. The company’s yearly customer conference is set to be held in the City by the Bay from September 25 to 28.
Blockchain is an electronic ledger that is utilized to track digital currencies like Bitcoin. However, it can also be used in a more general role. The technology, which is becoming increasingly popular, can also track anything of value and record transactions in an irrefutable way. A lot of states are already legitimizing blockchain technology. Arizona, for instance, has amended a bill that validates data stored and shared on blockchain.
Walmart will continue its buying spree of digital brands in 2018 as it aims to build and differentiate its online inventory in competing against Amazon. Marc Lore, eCommerce head of the world’s largest retailer, revealed that there’s a bigger strategy involved with Walmart’s bullish acquisitions during the Shoptalk conference in Las Vegas on last Tuesday.
“[We’re] trying to create a portfolio of these brands that give us proprietary content for a reason for [a] millennial to come shop inside the Walmart ecosystem,” Lore explained. “We’re not going out making billion-dollar acquisitions. We’re buying companies that can help accelerate us to the fundamentals.”
The retailer’s acquisitions are targeted to expand its reach into new demographics—a younger and hipper clientele of millennials. Jet was acquired for more than $3 billion in 2016, while online startups ModCloth and Bonobos were purchased in 2017 for about $50-$75 million and $310 million, respectively.
Lore said that Walmart is prepared to spend about $50 million to $300 million, or more, for future acquisitions. Since Jet appeals to affluent millennials in urban areas like New York and San Francisco, adding more digital brands to its roster makes it all the more attractive.
“We’ll continue to push the assortment,” he pointed out. “We’re working on a lot of premium partnerships right now that will augment and uplift the assortment and of course add Bonobos, Allswell [Walmart’s new bedding and mattress brand] and ModCloth to Jet as well.”
But having few digital brands with their own unique inventory is not enough for Walmart as they continue to be on the lookout for more startups. “We’re looking and talking to more companies now than we ever have,” Lore said. “We’re looking for the right opportunities.”
While the aggressive acquisition of independent brands allows Walmart to learn about merchandise expertise in specific categories, these online startups will also benefit from the retailer’s supply chain infrastructure.
“The concept is let’s cross pollinate talent. Let’s cross pollinate learnings and let’s have a common backbone and backend through Walmart’s supply chain infrastructure. This wasn’t about let’s figure out how to rip out costs. It’s about how to play offense,” Andy Dunn, founder of Bonobos and Walmart’s SVP of digital consumer brands, emphasized.
Dunn joined Lore on stage to refute reports that his colleague was being ousted following Walmart’s disappointing online growth in the last quarter of 2017. Despite the holiday shopping season, online sales growth decelerated to 23 percent from previous quarter’s 50 percent. Moreover, Walmart’s fourth-quarter results missed Wall Street’s forecast earnings, causing shares to drop by more than 10 percent.
Marc Lore, CEO of @Walmart E-Commerce discussing the slower growth during Q4 in 2017. Focus was on long term growth. Plan is to continue doing what they are doing. Goal is 100 metro markets that offer same day delivery. #shoptalk18#ecommercepic.twitter.com/oLl0QIVHEv
But Lore isn’t worried about the lackluster results. “Basically that Q4 was largely planned. We attempted to create a healthier Q4. We told The Street we’d do $11.5 billion in the year, and that’s what we did. We also said we’d have 40-percent growth this year and we recently reiterated that growth.”
He downplayed the speculations of an early exit as well, reiterating his commitment to staying for five years, and possibly more.
In today’s ultra-competitive business environment where customer satisfaction is key to success, every company needs to have a proper Customer Relationship Management (CRM) strategy in place to stay ahead of the competition. This explains why the services of CRM-focused cloud computing companies such as the San Francisco-based Salesforce is in demand as they help other businesses polish their brand’s image while tapping into the full potential of their existing clientele.
But even CRM experts must evolve with the changing times to stay on top of the game, and this sometimes includes the plain old mergers and acquisitions route. Recently, Salesforce announced that it is willing to shell out some serious cash to buy API expert MuleSoft.
The deal is valued at awhopping $6.5 billion, which is expected to be finalized by July this year. At $44.89 per MuleSoft share, Salesforce is even willing to pay 36 percent on top of the current market price to sweeten the deal. However, it won’t be a pure cash transaction; Salesforce will pay $36 in cash as well as 0.0711 of its shares for every MuleSoft share.
Given the multitude of applications available to businesses,MuleSoft makes it easier for companies to connect, utilize and make sense of the jumble of data generated by their horde of apps and devices. The company is an industry leader in terms ofintegrating different APIs, making them work seamlessly in any cloud-based platform. Obviously, the company’s technical expertise is invaluable for Salesforce’s CRM and marketing services.
Aside from tech, the deal will alsobring MuleSoft’s clientele within Salesforce’s reach. As an industry leader in cloud integration, Mulesoft runs a globe-spanning operation with around 1,200 clients across 60 countries, which includes Fortune 500 firms such as Coca-Cola, VMware, GE, Accenture, Airbus, AT&T, and Cisco.
The deal is ultimately geared toward improving Salesforce’s bottom line and, hopefully, help the CRM giant meet its rather ambitious revenue target. The company aims to increase its annual revenue to $60 billion by 2034. While MuleSoft only posted $300 million for its 2017 sales, Salesforce could tap into its tech expertise to improve its service and further boost its future revenue.
Millennials and those in Generation Z are the most avid users of social media. Almost everyone in these demographics has one or more social media accounts. So the news that an increasing number of people from these two groups are quitting social media is surprising to many marketers.
Millennials are known for their affinity for technology and communications. The same could be said for Generation Z, or those born around the mid-1990s to the early 2000s. Also dubbed the Linkster Generation for always being linked to social media, they have grown alongside the Internet and are very comfortable with it.
However, a recent survey revealed that millennials and linksters are either taking a break from social media or deleting their accounts altogether. It also appears that Facebook and Twitter are bearing the brunt of the exodus. But surprisingly, SnapChat is still going strong.
Why Are They Leaving?
According to Origin, a Boston-based market research group, 34 percent of Gen Z’ers are saying goodbye to social media while 64 percent have decided to take a break from it.
The respondents in their survey also shared what was motivating them to give up on social media. Forty-one percent said they were wasting too much time on these platforms while 31 percent admitted they weren’t using them often. Meanwhile, 35 percent said the negativity on the platforms was too much while 26 percent found the content uninteresting.
The in-house research department of Hill Holliday also unveiled someinteresting results. For instance, social media platforms caused 41 percent of the more 1,000 respondents to feel sad, depressed, or nervous, but 77 percent also said there are more pros than cons to having accounts on these platforms. Among the people surveyed, 22 percent said social media made them feel like they were missing out while 71 percent said they felt closer to their friends. It’s a clear case of “I can’t live with you but I can’t live without you.”
Where are They Going?
Technically, they are not going anywhere. At least, they’re not rushing to open an account on another social media platform. Millennials seem to have lost interest in social media for the aforementioned reasons while Gen Z’ers are more inclined to just take a step back from it.
Twitter, Facebook and sister company Instagram have been struggling to retain their numbers recently. According to eMarketer, over 2 million users will turn their backs on Facebook in 2018. However, the decline will come mostly from teenagers as Facebook steadily loses its cool factor among this group. Instagram has also seen a recent downturn in engagement numbers.
Interestingly, Snapchat is still doing well. Only one in every five users of the picture-oriented app has left permanently.
What Does it Mean for Businesses?
It’s understandable that the news that millennials and Gen Z’ers are quitting social media raises concerns for businesspeople. After all, these are the two market segments that rely heavily on influencers and reviews they read on social media when making a purchase.
The fact that most of Gen Z consumers are just putting their social media life on hold temporarily gives brands some breathing room. The research implies that these media platforms are still relevant and companies should still invest in them. But advertisers and marketers have to focus more on positivity, instead of magnifying the negative effect social media has on these young consumers.
As Hill Holliday’s chief strategy officer Lesley Bielby explained, Gen Z’ers don’t put value in corporations. They instead align themselves with brands they believe in, and if they’re disappointed or the brand doesn’t reflect strong ethics and values, they can turn on them. So brands have to think about how they can utilize social media responsibly and how they can supplement relevant and good brand messages.
Companies may also want to focus their marketing efforts on just one platform. That’s because social media websites like Facebook and Twitter are very different from each other in the way people use them to share and consume content. As a result, it can be challenging for brands to create content that works well on both platforms. Marketers would have an easier time and see better results from sending the right message about their product on the platform best-suited to their brand.
Amazon is now one of the ten largest retailers in the world. A study by One Click Retail also determined that the online giant accounted for about 44 percent of all eCommerce sales in 2017. These two reasons alone should be enough to convince you about the importance of integrating Amazon into your sales strategy.
However, simply creating an account and selling on Amazon is not enough. After all, there are millions of third-party sellers on the site, and a lot of them even offer the same merchandise as you. If you want more shoppers to see your product and boost your sales, you need to appear in Amazon’s vaunted Buy Box.
What’s a Buy Box?
TheAmazon Buy Box is the golden ticket for e-retailers because winning it means high visibility and amazing sales numbers. This is the white box found on the right of the product detail page, where shoppers can add the items they plan on purchasing.
When customers search for a product on Amazon, photos and details of the product appear, along with an “Add to Basket” or “Add to Cart” button. Once the customer clicks on the yellow button, the lucky seller who has the Buy Box at that particular moment will get the sale.
Image via websitemagazine.com
There’s another box underneath the Buy Box for the other sellers. However, 82 percent of shoppers tend to just click on the yellow button while 18 percent of customers really take the time to scroll through other sellers and compare prices, delivery methods, and seller feedback. So it’s easy to see why the Buy Box is a prime commodity among third-party sellers.
Advantages of Winning the Buy Box
Retailers who win the Buy Box have a huge advantage over their rivals, especially now that the majority of consumers are doing their shopping online and more often than not, they make their purchases on Amazon.
Winning the box is alsoessential now that mobile shopping is growing rapidly. As a matter of fact, shopping on Amazon’s mobile app increased by 56 percent globally and is expected to continue growing. Unfortunately, while the “Add to Cart” button can still be seen under the product image and details in the app, shoppers can’t view other sellers easily. So if you want to secure more sales, it’s vital that you win the Buy Box.
How to Win Amazon’s Buy Box
In order to win the coveted Buy Box, you have to have the following key requirements.
Have a Professional Seller account: Retailers with a Professional Amazon Sellers account are the only ones who have a shot at winning the Buy Box. The company’s algorithm does not include Basic Seller or Individual accounts. So if you want that box, make sure to upgrade to a Professional account.
Be Buy Box Eligible: You should be Buy Box Eligible for a specific product if you’re planning to compete for Buy Box sales. This means you have to have been trading for a minimum of two to six months. You should also have a history of successful sales. Closing a large number of sales proves your consistency and trustworthiness. Good customer metrics and great customer service are also needed to be eligible. You can also improve your chances by fast-tracking your eligibility via the Fulfillment By Amazon (FBA).
Products Should be New: Only new products can win a place in the Buy Box as the company wants to ensure that only products of high-quality and in good condition are being promoted. If you’re selling pre-loved items, you can be eligible for the Used Buy Box, which is distinct from the main box.
Have Enough Items: Having available stocks will certainly boost your chances here. After all, you can’t sell something if you don’t have it on-hand. Amazon also wants to minimize incidents of customers being disappointed when they reach checkout only to discover the item is sold out. So it’s crucial that you have enough stock and that your inventory is updated. Otherwise, your seller metrics will go down and your chances of getting the Buy Box will dwindle.
Winning Amazon’s Buy Box will undoubtedly help boost your sales and enhance your reputation as a successful seller. But you have to be ready for some strict competition if you’re planning to go for the box. Remember that there’s no solid way to beat your rivals and ensure you win the Buy Box. All you can do is monitor your metrics and focus on key factors like having Prime products, becoming an FBA seller, having excellent customer service and getting positive feedback from happy shoppers.
Salesforce has added another tool to their CRM applications with its upcoming acquisition of CloudCraze, a Chicago-based eCommerce platform.
The news was announced on Monday by CloudCraze. While the terms of the deal with Salesforce was not disclosed, it was revealed that the two companies had already signed an agreement.
CloudCraze president Ray Grady pointed out in the company’s announcement that the B2B industry is slated to grow to $1.2 trillion and that it’s crucial for businesses to grab this opportunity. He also added that “theaddition of CloudCraze to the Salesforce Commerce Cloud, Salesforce and its customers can now take advantage of this shift to digital commerce, enabling business buyers to browse and purchase online as easily as consumers shop today.”
The deal between the two companies is not surprising considering how intertwined CloudCraze and Salesforce are. Salesforce built its B2B software on CloudCraze’s platform and its investment division also supported CloudCraze’s $20 million round in 2017. Insight Venture Partners also backed the Chicago startup during its latest funding run.
Last year’s investor round gave CloudCraze the needed capital to scale its business and expand its team. The company’s software helps businesses produce online revenue and remain connected to their customers effortlessly. Companies that use the platform can instantly see all the relevant customer data and quickly share it across various channels. Companies like Coca-Cola, GE, Kellogg’s, and L’Oreal are all using CloudCraze.
This is far from the first startup that Salesforce bought. About two years ago, the company purchased Demandware. It also absorbed Chicago startups Gravitytank AKTA, InStranet, and Model Metrics. The company also acquired SteelBrick in 2015 for $300 million.
CloudCraze will be Salesforce’s second acquisition for the year, after taking a break from buying startups in 2017. The company acquired Attic Labs in January. It’s still unknown if Salesforce will be going on a buying spree again this year, although the company has been very open about its new revenue goals. Acquiring fast-growing startups is one sure way to hit their mark.
PayPal filed a patent last week that revealed that it is considering speeding up its cryptocurrency transactions. Based on the recently released application, the payments processing company came up with a new system for faster trades involving digital currencies like Bitcoin and Litecoin, among others.
In PayPal’s filing with the US Patent and Trademark Office, the application was for an “expedited virtual currency transaction system.”
Virtual currencies, such as Bitcoin, have dramatically transformed fund transfer and payment because of minimal processing fees, unlike exorbitant charges collected by financial institutions for international wire transfers.
Without a central repository for these cryptocurrencies, transactions involving Bitcoin have to be confirmed first before being processed. Because of the time delay, users often select another payment method to proceed with the transaction instead. This has been a consistent problem that has plagued Bitcoin and other virtual currencies.
In its March 1 filing, PayPal said, “In many transaction situations, a 10-minute wait time will be too long for payers and/or payees, and those payers and/or payees will instead choose to perform the transaction using traditional payment methods rather than virtual currency.”
“Issues like this have slowed the adoption of virtual currencies despite their advantages. Thus, there is a need for an expedited virtual currency transaction system,” PayPal stated in its application.
PayPal’s patent explains the creation of several secondary wallets with their respective private keys corresponding to “predefined amounts” transferred from the first user’s primary wallet. Fund transfer will be faster since the second user receives the secondary wallet’s private keys with the pre-set value equivalent to the transaction amount.
PayPal has always been optimistic about cryptocurrencies. Two years ago, the global payments giant filed a patent for a platform that would accept the decentralized virtual currencies. In the February 2018 interview with The Wall Street Journal, PayPal’s CFO John Rainey remained upbeat on cryptocurrencies’ acceptability as a payment method.
“The technology, there is real merit to it. I do think, though, it will be years down the road before we see the kind of ubiquity and acceptance that make it a form of currency that is used every day,” Rainey told WSJ.
A lot of people find it challenging to use the different analytics tools at their disposal. But Salesforce hopes to change all that by making it possible for businesses to extract data by using conventional conversational language.
Salesforce has been developing and filling artificial-intelligence features into its system so that users will be able to utilize their marketing and sales data to the fullest. The company introduced Einstein Analytics in June 2017. Nowit has made improvements that allow the service to accept natural-language inquiries, thereby making it easier to use.
You type: “Show me top accounts by annual revenue.”
⬇
⬇
⬇
Einstein Analytics does it.
Dubbed “Conversational Queries,” the feature recognizes popular phrases the user is typing and provides an automated method to develop queries and access data. For instance, a sales executive can type “show top accounts by yearly profit” into the Salesforce dashboard and it will immediately generate a report. Marketers previously had to set up the parameters and fields to get the data they need. Now Einstein Analytics can even suggest possible search terms to use, as well as the correct output vehicle, like a graph or a map.
Technical users have used similar tools effectively for building queries, but it does require extensive knowledge on how to extract the data you need and fashion it into a specific query. By simplifying the system and using plain language to make queries, morepeople can access key analytics.
According to VP of Product for Einstein Analytics Amruta Moktali, “Conversational Queries offers a new way to explore data and get answers to questions faster, eliminating clicks and the training required to create and drill down into charts.”
There’s no question that enterprise tech is focusing on improving AI and machine-learning but for certain services, like customer-relationship management, ensuring that people can use the technology without having to hire a data scientist or going back to school is more critical.
Salesforce’s Einstein Analytics is currently available in beta.
In the early 2000s, only established companies or enterprises could afford to conduct webinars. However, in more recent years, advances in teleconferencing have made hosting a webinar more feasible for small businesses and even solopreneurs.
It’s clear that webinars are one of the more effective and useful online marketing tools today. Industry analysts have also determined that as businesses continue to use more video and incorporate social media into their marketing strategies, webinars will continue to be a trend. But how can you use this technology to attract more customers and sell more products?
Explaining the Webinar
A webinar, or “web seminar,” is a video conference conducted over the web. It utilizes the internet to connect the host (person conducting the webinar) to the audience (viewers and listeners).
Webinars can be conducted in several ways. The hosts can choose to show themselves on camera during a live presentation or switch their screens to show demonstrations or slideshows. The webinar could also just be an audio presentation and speakers from different locations can be invited to co-host.
Instead of using the technology for seminars, businesses, schools, and other organizations can also use it to give lectures. As a matter of fact, 2 out of 3 webinars are used for educational purposes. According toClickmeeting’s research, 40 percent of webinars are staff training, how-tos, and product training while 15 percent are e-learning classes and online education courses. It could also be used as a promotional presentation to launch or sell a product and connect with new customers.
Why Webinars are Popular
The webinars rise in popularity is due to one very simple fact—it’s very effective in getting your message across.
Webinars can be utilized to provide fundamental training for employees at a lower cost. Instead of paying for a conference or class just for continuing employee education, companies can offer a free webinar. It provides the same knowledge that employees would get from a conference without having to shoulder transportation or food expenses.
This marketing tool is also very effective in allowing customers to interact with content. Customers who sign up for a webinar can quickly provide feedback or ask the company questions. More importantly, content is delivered in real-time.
How to Boost Sales with Webinars
Webinars have so much potential to do your company good. Conversely, it also has the capacity to do some damage if it’s not done right. Here are some suggestions onhow you can conduct a webinar that will boost conversions.
1. Make it Engaging With Visuals
Visuals are the way to go if you want your webinar to be engaging and memorable. People prefer infographics over bullet points, as the former is easier to understand and more interesting to look at. This has been proven to be true on social media, as more users click or shared posts with images. For example, Facebook posts with images reportedly received 87 percent of engagement among users while Tweets with images receive 18 percent more clicks that ones that on have text.
2. Keep Audience Interest Up
Webinars typically run for about an hour, with half of that time devoted to getting your message across. You want to keep your audience interested throughout the entire seminar. Remember that you can quickly lose the attention of your audience if your presentation is boring or has too many instances of inactivity.
One way to keep things lively is to opt for an interactive presentation. For instance, ask the attendees to answer a poll or write something down every 15 minutes or so. Entertain live callers who ask questions. Not only will this liven things up, it also makes the session sound more conversational.
3. Practice, Practice, Practice
Practicing a speech or a presentation, even one you’ve done a thousand times before, is always a good idea. Go over your notes and check your visuals a few days or hours before you air your webinar. Rehearse with a colleague or a friend. Record yourself. Doing these things will give you the chance to identify possible problems with your material or how you present it.
4. Keep it Fun With Freebies
Freebies and bonuses make life fun. Offering the audience a chance to win a prize will incentivize them and keep them engaged. The rewards don’t even have to be big or expensive. Cash, gift cards, discounts or a private consultation with you or one of your expert staff will suffice.
Don’t underestimate the power of webinars. If you’ve never considered using this marketing tool, perhaps 2018 is the year to give it try.
