RIP The Firestarter 6th March 2019 11:25 AM
Yes that looks likely I think! And also Luke Perry died, women of my age everywhere are weeping!
PostsRIP The Firestarter 4th March 2019 11:56 AM Keith from The Prodigy died! Are you a phone-a-phobe? 2nd March 2019 9:30 AM We have one as it's cheaper to have it than not with Virgin bizarrely, but we don't have a phone connected to it. No-one uses it at all. Totally defunct. Are you a phone-a-phobe? 28th February 2019 9:21 PM
“um , I am always in trouble at work as I always always either leave my phone in the van or never answer it.”
Haha oh dear! Maybe you need to change your ways Andy. Friday funny for sure 28th February 2019 1:21 PM
Friday funny or weather gone mad? 28th February 2019 1:14 PM
Are you a phone-a-phobe? 28th February 2019 11:57 AM We are addicted to emails. It is just so easy, on your phone, instantly you can reply and it’s ticked off the to do list….or is it?
You don’t know if the person has received it let alone read it, okay so you can add a read receipt, but when will they reply? Are they thinking about your proposal? It’s too much so they are ignoring it, or they have been distracted and won’t reply…who knows! The wait for the reply before you can action what needs to be done continues. So, why don’t we just pick up the phone!? When someone sends a message to enquire, why not ask if you can call them back and discuss it? You will save a possible lengthy text or email discussion and you will establish if they are a viable client or not much faster. How many times have you misread the tone in a text or email? It is easy to do and to avoid it we tend to keep work emails more professional in general. Whereas on a phone call you can be much more yourself and get to know a potential client a bit better, building up a rapport. People buy people and if you get on you are much more likely to make a sale. Phone calls give you a better chance to sell yourself in a more organic way as well, if you type a list of benefits or start listing the skills you have on an email, it may come across badly. On the phone you can chat and drop in experience or ideas you have about their business, whatever is relevant in your sector, and give someone a much better idea of what you are about. I often forget the power of a call, and as my background is telesales and debt collection by phone, you would think I would be the first one to dial a number! I am now reminding myself to do it more often, and the results are already showing it is working. So, stop emailing everyone all the time, put the phone to your ear and connect, you won’t regret it.
How to Market your new Business on a "Shoe String" budget? 25th February 2019 4:05 PM Thanks for contributing, some good basic tips there for everyone. Reviews are so essential! Obviously this business directory and the other free ones that are less known than Yell can be really good for getting you out there too. With my admin hat on I took out your self promoting web links as we have the village marketplace for self promotion and try and keep the threads more neutral. Which social media platform do you favour? Are you running your business or is it running you? 25th February 2019 1:01 PM
“Excellent topic and the trap of many business owners.
If your business can't run without you, then you have created a job, not a business. I was very resistant to this line of thought and it took a business coach to point out the error of my ways, but it's a fascinating view when you think about it. You should be working on the business, ie growth, strategy and direction, not in the business doing functional work that can be done by others. Otherwise it's just a job.” I guess you are right! Which is a bit scary! Currently I do everything but hopefully not forever What's your favourite Social Media platform and why? 25th February 2019 10:41 AM Mine is now LinkedIn! Obviously, it very much depends on your business which one is most useful but here are my reasons for liking or disliking each one plus a useful tip, feel free to add yours on this thread.
Facebook - or Fakebook as I like to call it due to the way people represent their lives on there (among other things!) It can be a great platform for your business, you can use paid for advertising by boosting posts (something I have always failed to get any work from even when I get responses). Some people do incredibly well, I use it for reviews and interaction in networking groups and as a presence for my business. I have had some leads but never found the adverts work, this may be my type of business or my poor targeting. Top Tip - Groups are what Facebook likes at the moment according to the algorithm rumours - if they are busy and full of interaction - so get an interesting group up and running or join a good one and that is where you will get best visibility. Twitter - Best for networking and interaction, people generally hate being sold to on Twitter so I wouldn't even try if I was you. The Twitter community likes a rant and rave about controversial subjects so you can jump on board if you have the gumption or perhaps amuse everyone with the gifs, as they are always a winner. Use it to make contacts and share information and ideas with local businesses or others in the same sector as you. It is a great place to make friends and we all do better business with people we get on with, so play the long game. Top Tip - Find a local networking hour and tweet in it every week, I am in #covhour and it is brilliant (Thursday 8-9pm). If there isn't one, set one up! Bonus tip: Don't use scheduled tweets and automated DMs, people hate them.. LinkedIn - Always known as the professional place to network and has a reputation for being dull and boring. This is changing rapidly, and there is much debate on whether it is becoming too much like Facebook as some people hate that! I think it is a great place to talk to fellow business owners and experts and a font of really high-quality advice and information. Top Tip – Connect to people you think will be of benefit to you or who you can benefit, don’t just add people randomly. If you build up a reputation as someone who can be trusted and who is an expert in your field, you can do really well on here. I am working on it! Instagram – I see it as one for the kids, but it really is used by many businesses to great effect. Visuals work and you may have to think creatively if your business doesn’t lend itself to visuals, but it can be a great way to reach a lot of people, if you build up a following. This takes time and funny or quality content though, it is very competitive. Top Tip – Link it to your Facebook page then you can b posting in both places at the same time. Google+ - Don’t bother they are scrapping it!! Overall, be yourself on social media as people buy people! They need to like you first, and if you are genuine then it comes across and it will work. Also, use hashtags, it works across all the platforms mentioned, people search for things by hashtag, so it is silly to miss out. What tips and experiences do you have?
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I have always quite liked them, saw them play at Reading Festival one year.
