Julie Herndon
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Lunch & Learn

Think about how your Instagram followers want to feel.

5/19/2017

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Think about how your Instagram content will make someone feel! You need to think about your target customer and how they want to feel. Ultimately, if your images inspire positive emotions, then you’ll get followers.

Another wrinkle is to include images of your personal life. This is useful for bloggers and entrepreneurs who want to create a personal brand. 
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Actors, bloggers, digital marketers, musicians, gurus, YouTube stars and more all have Instagram accounts that show what they’re up to.

The objective here is to allow your fans and followers a glimpse into your lifestyle so they can feel like they know you. This will build your brand loyalty and your authority and it will make you more likeable, thus increasing the chance that someone will buy from you. 

While the objective here is to provide an honest insight into your lifestyle though, remember that you also want yourself to appear knowledgeable and if you’re promoting a certain lifestyle or product then you want to imply that this actually works.


Selfies are really popular on Instagram of course and this is the perfect place to use them. Just be sure your content goes deeper than just selfies over and over again! Be dynamic. Be creative. Be yourself!
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There is a right and a wrong way to do Instagram for your business! Done well, you get loads of free traffic that will bring you the growth you are looking for. Done poorly, you will find yourself frustrated at the lack of engagement and growth! Enter the Instagram Kickstart Toolkit by Socially Inclined, the most complete, up-to-date guide for profiting with Instagram available online today! ​​
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You don't need a great camera for great content!

5/18/2017

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​Sometimes, people get hung up on the quality of their camera... forget that... If you have a smart phone made in the last 4-5 years, it's good enough!

What 
does matter is the subject and what you’re going to be taking photos of. For a brand, this can be a difficult question, and some brands will have it easier than others!
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​Obviously, Instagram caters very well to creative brands and to companies that sell crafts, clothing, ornaments or anything else that is aesthetically appealing and likely to appeal to an audience that likes beautiful things. ​


If you knit plush toys, or design shoes, then you can upload pictures of these to show off your products in a very stylish way. Restaurants and food companies meanwhile can be highly successful showing images of what they’re cooking or preparing.

Surprisingly, this will also work very well for technology companies, car manufacturers – even companies creating kitchen cutlery. Technology nerds can get surprisingly excited about some ‘sexy’ new hardware and if you compose the shot correctly, this can be very effective. Services might also work – whether you show photos of the beautiful websites you’ve helped to create, or you upload images of your team looking over the shoulder of someone working at the computer (for a consultant).

Another angle is to think of the lifestyle and the ‘value proposition’ surrounding your brand. Remember that you ‘don’t sell hats, you sell warm heads’. What is the equivalent of your ‘warm head’?

In other words, if your company sells fitness equipment then you can upload photos of the equipment but you can also upload photos of the lifestyle. Take people there... what does it mean to be a part of that lifestyle?
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There is a right and a wrong way to do Instagram for your business! Done well, you get loads of free traffic that will bring you the growth you are looking for. Done poorly, you will find yourself frustrated at the lack of engagement and growth! Enter the Instagram Kickstart Toolkit by Socially Inclined, the most complete, up-to-date guide for profiting with Instagram available online today! ​​
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Instagram's lack of sales features is a good thing!

5/16/2017

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​Continuing my series on using INSTAGRAM for business... Instagram's lack of selling features is its selling point! 

​You see, people are very cynical of businesses and they’re very tired of seeing the same marketing message over and over again.


Remember, people want to disconnect on social media... not be bombarded!
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It’s incredibly annoying to scroll your newsfeed here on Facebook (to see photos of your friends) only to then be bombarded by offers for products saying ‘CLICK HERE!’, ‘ENTER YOUR EMAIL!’, ‘BUY NOW!’. Is it any wonder people aren’t engaging?

On Instagram though, there is no ‘click here’ or ‘buy now’. Rather, there’s just – here’s a photo of us working in our office, a funny meme, a picture of something that encapsulates the subject you’re interested in, a new product framed artistically… This is far less invasive.

As such, brands on Instagram come across much more genuine and don’t appear to have the same obvious ulterior motive.

At the same time, because you’re forced to create something artistic and interesting on Instagram, that will help to make your business seem much more trendy, artistic and interesting itself. A company that is constantly uploading pictures of sunsets, of their products in amazing lighting or of inspirational messages is going to seem much more savvy and in tune with their customers as opposed to a company that keeps just featuring large banners telling people to buy stuff…
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There is a right and a wrong way to do Instagram for your business! Done well, you get loads of free traffic that will bring you the growth you are looking for. Done poorly, you will find yourself frustrated at the lack of engagement and growth! Enter the Instagram Kickstart Toolkit by Socially Inclined, the most complete, up-to-date guide for profiting with Instagram available online today! ​
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Why you should use Instagram for your business!

5/15/2017

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​Smile and take a selfie... it's time for a fun series on using INSTAGRAM for business! After several requests, I gave in and created a fun guide to Instagram. Stay tuned for the next few tips and also be on the look out for a free eBook for your guide and reference! So let's get started!!!  
Instagram was created by Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger in October 2010. It reached 100 million active users by April 2012, reaching that number faster than Facebook or Twitter.
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In 2012, Instagram was purchased by Facebook for $1 billion in cash  and stock and currently outpaces all other social media networks in brand adoption.  In April of 2017, Instagram had grown to over 700 million members and is still expected to have rapid growth as more and more people use mobile devices to connect to the internet!!! Wooo... so that is WHY you should consider Instagram --- there is quite a market there! 

Here's what it is: 
Unlike other social networks you can only upload to Instagram from a mobile application. So, to take advantage of this powerful network for your business you will need a mobile device like your smart phone, or a tablet, and an Instagram account. Then you can snap, upload and edit your photos on the fly for sharing on multiple social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, Flickr and Tumblr.

Whether you have a mainly online or offline business, it is not enough to have a social media presence, you need to make sure you are tapping into the massive mobile market. Instagram is a great way to do that, and take the pictures and videos you make and integrate them with the rest of your social media networks including Facebook, all from the convenience of your cell phone.

Tomorrow I'll dig into tips on how to increase your impact on this awesome platform! Who already uses Instagram in their business?
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There is a right and a wrong way to do Instagram for your business! Done well, you get loads of free traffic that will bring you the growth you are looking for. Done poorly, you will find yourself frustrated at the lack of engagement and growth! Enter the Instagram Kickstart Toolkit by Socially Inclined, the most complete, up-to-date guide for profiting with Instagram available online today! ​
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How do I create better content for Pinterest?

4/14/2017

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​​How do you inspire people with your images? You need to think about the value proposition of your business, the mission statement and the lifestyle.
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A value proposition for a business essentially refers to the way that its products and services make life easier or better for the end user. It’s about why your users buy from you.
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Someone does not buy a hat – they buy a warm head, right?! Likewise, they do not buy a computer – they buy a tool for creativity, for media consumption and for accessing information. People do not buy fitness books, they buy amazing abs and the opportunity to look and feel great about themselves.

Likewise, your images should not just show off your products then, but the lifestyle around them. 

People need to see how your items can change their lives and make them happier, healthier, fitter, more successful or more attractive. They need to feel good simply by looking at your Pinterest account and then they need to associate that feeling with the products you are selling and with your brand.

If you are in the fitness industry, your images should be inspiring and they should display the lifestyle and the mission statement you’re attempting to promote. 

If you are selling books on making money or products for businesses meanwhile, then your imagery might revolve around success and corporations. Thus, your images might be of offices, of people standing at the top of high-rise businesses, of people in smart suits etc.

If you are in the wedding industry on the other hand, your boards should be filled with people looking beautiful and happy in stunning venues. You want to help them picture that perfect, magical day that they have dreamed of and to feel like it is a possibility just by following you.

When you do this, you will inspire your visitors and followers and this will encourage them to actively follow you and to want to learn more about your brand and your items.
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Growing your small business with Pinterest can be hard... It takes knowing what to spend your time on and what to skip! Fortunately,  the Pinterest Kickstart Toolkit by Socially Inclined is here to the rescue! You won't find a more complete, up-to-date guide for building your business on Pinterest anywhere! Check it out! ​​
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How do I get more followers on Pinterest?

4/13/2017

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​Now you have both an understanding for how Pinterest works and the basic knowledge you need to create a business account with useful marketing features.

The next challenge then is to make people actually want to follow you and want to engage with you. So how do you accomplish this?
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​The secret is to remember the basic objective of Pinterest and what users are looking for here. Generally, the answer is that people are looking for inspiration and for ideas. People come to Pinterest to browse images that they can use to get ideas for their own projects, or to feel inspired and moved.

At the crux of any business activity is the need to provide value. If you provide value, then people will have a reason to follow you, to pay for your products and to keep coming back. This is no different when you’re on Pinterest. Here, your objective is to provide value again only this time the way you do that is by providing ideas.

HOMEWORK! Spend a few minutes thinking about what images inspire you? Have you ever had a goal and were inspired by an image? What was it? Capture that... write it down... and TOMORROW we will talk about specifics for bringing together your Pinterest Marketing strategy!
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Growing your small business with Pinterest can be hard... It takes knowing what to spend your time on and what to skip! Fortunately,  the Pinterest Kickstart Toolkit by Socially Inclined is here to the rescue! You won't find a more complete, up-to-date guide for building your business on Pinterest anywhere! Check it out! ​​
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Is a business account important on Pinterest?

4/12/2017

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​Today is all about a few features Pinterest has to help you with your business efforts! The first thing you will need to do as a business if you want to get the most from Pinterest, is to open up a business account.

Once you have a business account, you will then be able to have your business or website name as your account name (rather than your real name). 
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You will be able to verify your website, which means you will be able to see when people are sharing your content on Pinterest. This is very useful as it allows you to see which of your content is performing best and getting the most engagement and shares.

Another advantage is that verifying your website allows you to add your URL to the top of your profile. This makes it much easier for people who discover you on Pinterest to follow through to your website. That in turn creates a new ‘in-road’ for traffic to discover your website, which is one of the big advantages of using any form of social media marketing.

Finally, business accounts also give you the right to run contests through Pinterest, which can be a great tool for promoting your company.

To set up your business account, all you need to do is visit https://business.pinterest.com. From here, you’ll then either be able to convert your existing account by clicking ‘Convert Now’ or sign up as a business by clicking ‘Join as a Business’. Either way, it takes a couple of seconds and it is completely free.
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Growing your small business with Pinterest can be hard... It takes knowing what to spend your time on and what to skip! Fortunately,  the Pinterest Kickstart Toolkit by Socially Inclined is here to the rescue! You won't find a more complete, up-to-date guide for building your business on Pinterest anywhere! Check it out! ​​
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How does Pinterest work for my business?

4/11/2017

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​Yesterday, I shared an astonishing stat on Pinterest that hopefully made you perk up and give Pinterest (as a marketing tool) a second thought, but you might be curious as to how it might fit into a business... 

So let's say you are a wedding services business that provided catering, dresses, flowers or anything else for weddings. 
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In this case, you could fill your own boards with images of your work and users would then be able to take what you added and place it on their own boards. 

This would then encourage more and more people to find your brand and thereby help you to get more exposure. And if someone really likes the work you’ve done, they might click through to find their way to your brand and perhaps make a purchase.

Fortunately, Pinterest adds a ton of features and tools that you can use in order to accomplish this end even more easily and effectively… and best of all, it's slated toward making your life as a business owner easier!
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Growing your small business with Pinterest can be hard... It takes knowing what to spend your time on and what to skip! Fortunately,  the Pinterest Kickstart Toolkit by Socially Inclined is here to the rescue! You won't find a more complete, up-to-date guide for building your business on Pinterest anywhere! Check it out! ​​
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Should I use Pinterest for my business?

4/10/2017

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You asked for it and here it is! My much requested series on ​Pinterest for your small business!
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If you need to market a product or service and you’re not on Pinterest, then you’re missing out on one of the biggest and the most flexible/powerful platforms out there.

So what is Pinterest anyway? ​
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To put it simply, it is a social network that focuses on visual elements such as images or animated gifs, incorporated in small, descriptive posts called “pins” to deliver information, entertain, or share insight relating to various topics and themes. And users can collect their interests (pins) in something called a board! Neat, huh?

So hopefully, you have used Pinterest before on a personal level, and maybe you even tried to use it on a business level but lost momentum for whatever reason... Here's why it's vital for growing your business:  

According to Forbes, as of Oct. 16, 
 Pinterest had 150 million users worldwide and 70 million users domestically spending about 15 minutes per day on average checking their profiles and updating their boards – a staggering amount.

Can you see how that  can have major influence on your business? I hope so! Which is why Pinterest deserves your attention and it's why I will be delivering some great tips over the next few days. 

I want to hear from you! What do you think of Pinterest? Do you use Pinterest? For personal or business? Both? 
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Growing your small business with Pinterest can be hard... It takes knowing what to spend your time on and what to skip! Fortunately,  the Pinterest Kickstart Toolkit by Socially Inclined is here to the rescue! You won't find a more complete, up-to-date guide for building your business on Pinterest anywhere! Check it out! ​
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Lunch & Learn

1/18/2017

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It's time for Lunch & Learn! 

​In order for your social media accounts to be successful, you need to keep doing the right thing over and over again. It's part of the patience and time component we discussed earlier! What’s more, is that once you’ve established a pattern, you need to stick with it... . For starters, posting regularly and engaging regularly etc. is the only way to slowly grow your followers. This can be tiring and disheartening at first as it will always start with a very slow trickle of new fans. Over time though, you will find you’re able to build momentum and eventually it will start to see exponential growth. . The key is to stick with it until then, and while you do, to make sure that you’re following the same blueprint... You need to have a plan. One important reason for this is that any big pause in content, or any sudden change in what you post, can very quickly lead to a loss of fans. . I'll talk a little bit more about WHY that is tomorrow. I think EVERYONE struggles with consistence at some point... What makes it hard to be consistent? I'd love to hear I can share or find some times to help :-)
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    Author: Julie Herndon

    Real Advice for Real Business Owners. The best advice I can give is to Take Action! Take Action... one small act at a time. You can do it. 

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