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Have you ever wondered how brands are so quick to jump on a trend? I know I have! But then I realised if they can do it... surely, so can I. Big Brand Trend Strategy When investigating how big brands hop on trends, what I uncovered was far simpler than expected. Firstly, a lot of trends that hit big, can be anticipated. Secondly, you have to be reactive. Meaning, thirdly you need to be flexible in your approach ALWAYS! Knowing your audience well, will give you an insight into what external content you could add into your own marketing mix. Huge trends from this year that you could of anticipated include: The Oscars, Superbowl, and Met Gala. Look forward to things you know are going to happen, that will interest your audience and likely to be trends, Think: movie releases (remember Barbie), new TV seasons (hello Bridgerton), annual events (sporting, fashion, film etc.). Two biggies just around the corner, the Euros and Olympics. When you know something is going to happen, you can plan to be reactive. Plan to be Reactive Being reactive is a key marketing skill. Not just when it comes to leaping on trends. But for changes in your marketplace, budget updates, supplier delays, just to name a few examples. This is why I will always advocate flexibility in every marketing plan. How Does a Flexible Marketing Plan Look? It's layered! Layer 1, is a constant: Consisting of the stuff you know will happen (products and services you're currently selling). You can plan a whole 12 months of this, you won't use it all, but it's there as a buffer. Layer 2, is new: What stuff do you want to happen (product/service launches). You will have an ideal time for this to happen, but things don't always go to plan. So, you pick up on layer 1 again, because you've got 12 months of goodness there. Layer 3, you don't even know: This stuff you don't even know about yet (trends/news). Yes, you can plan for this by not being set in stone. And be predictive with what is happening in the months to come. Don't be afraid to deviate from layer 1 when the perfect marketing opportunities present themselves. Be ready to jump! Like this, sign up to my newsletter: https://www.lka-marketing.co.uk/email-sign-up

If you’re going to do something, do it with purpose! It’s More Than Copying & Pasting Yes, repurposing your content is a time-saver. But that doesn’t mean just copying and pasting followed by crossing fingers. Your audience’s expectations will differ depending on what platform they are on. If you just copy and paste content across you will be missing opportunities. Start by tweaking for the win. By making small changes to your content you will be creating a greater chance of making the most impact on each marketing platform. Modify Content to Make the Most Out of It When you have a juicy bit of content that can be utilised across other platforms. Take a newsletter for example. You can easily turn a monthly newsletter into blog posts and multiple social media posts. Understanding the rules of long and short format content will help you immensely with making the most out of your content. The way you write a blog post differs greatly from a social media caption. Think Structure, Then Disrupt When taking your newsletter main topics and expanding them into long-format content as blog posts to help boost your organic SEO, it is all about structure. The readability of your blog post impacts its online performance, so structure it with: captivating headlines, flowing paragraphs and a clear to call action. However, social media captions, you need to throw the long-format rulebook out. Disruption will stop the scroll and help hold the attention of your audience. Intentionally break your copy into sharp, snappy one liners. Remember, if you can make a single image social media post, you can turn that into a reel (or other video content) and expand for carousel posts (make sure you make them pdf docs to work best on LinkedIn and images for Instagram). Now, go forth and repurpose!

Recently I was reminded of a film from back in the noughties when those Hollywood ensemble casts were all the rage. The movie was He's Just Not That Into You and it was based on a popular relationship book of the same name. You're probably wondering what a 00's rom-com has to do with marketing... Well it's a particular exchange between Ginnifer Goodwin's and Justin Long's character. Ginnifer's character, a hopeless romantic is brought back to reality by Justin's (a cynical realist) when he explains to her, all the amazing love stories she clings all her hope on are the 'exception' not the 'rule' of romance. It's OK to be the Marketing 'RULE' Comparison is the thief of joy is a quote I constantly make myself remember, because so often we are comparing ourselves, our businesses, our lives to others. In business: especially with our marketing efforts. But how often are we comparing ourselves to the 'EXCEPTION'? I bet all the time! A viral Instagram reel will not create longevity for your business. Consistently creating content and sharing it on platforms where your ideal audience is, will. You Are Not Beyoncé Beyoncé's country music pivot has made the world sit up and listen. So, of course Texas Hold 'Em is the number 1 trending audio and already has 241,000 reels made with it - this will grow exponentially over the coming weeks. With influencers and businesses alike jumping on this trend. When you inevitably jump on this trend, whether on Instagram or TikTok don't get hung up on the numbers. Remember: anything over 100,000 plays/views is the exception. I took a minute and scrolled through the audio page and the vast majority of the reels using this audio have under 5,000 plays/views. Instead of being underwhelmed by your number of views/plays, I want you to imagine you have a physical shop. Now you're in your imaginary shop, how good would it be to have the amount of people walk through your door, who have viewed your reel. It's not bad, is it! No exceptions needed here, because you totally RULE! Sign up to my monthly newsletter for more marketing insights

Subject Line + Preview Text = Improved Email Open Rates When you begin to write your next email for your subscribers, make sure you’re giving it the best chance to be opened with these tips on how to improve your email open rates. The first time your subscriber is going to encounter your email is with your subject line. This make or break first step may only be a few words long, but those few words need to command attention. Craft a bold subject line which stands out in a busy inbox and talks directly to the recipient. Now you have their attention, persuade further with a hint of what they can expect in your email, with preview text. So often preview text is overlooked, when in fact it is the ultimate deal closer when it comes to email opens. No one really likes surprises, they want to know it’s going to be worthwhile opening this email, give them a little spoiler, to tease them to open your email. What Are Their Preferences? By marketing through email you can segment to your heart's content. In order to do this well, you need to ask your subscribers what they want!! Now this can make some people uncomfortable, surely it is better to ask, then to assume. Find out what you need to know, to curate personalised emails which will convert into sales. A simple way to find out about your subscribers is by including a preference form as part of your welcome sequence. Just a short form with a few thoughtful questions which will give you insight into your subscriber. Keep Your CRM Tidy! Admin, yuck! It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, however if you're not keeping your CRM (customer relationship management) up to date, this will impact your open rates. Frankly speaking if your delivery rates are low, so will your open rates. The higher the deliverability, the higher the open rates, tidying your CRM regularly is worth it. Remove Those Who Are Unengaged What should you do with subscribers who are no longer engaging in your email content? It’s brutal, you need to get rid of them. You want an email audience who opens, clicks, buys. If you have a subscriber who is no longer interested and you’ve tried to re-engage, you’re better off no longer having them on your list. Allowing you to focus on those who are engaged. Getting your emails opened is the biggest battle, strengthen your chances with these tips. Do you want to know more? Sign up to my mailing list.

3 tips to improve brand consistency across all marketing content. With 3 elements you can establish the beginnings of brand consistency, and reap the benefits it will provide. It will help build recognition, trust and relationships with your customers. Colour Palette Using your main logo colour as a starting point, create a palette of up to 5 complementary colours. If you are in need of inspiration, Pinterest is a great place to start. Have fun with this, show your brand's personality through the colours you choose. Once you have decided on your colours, the usage of them will tie your website, email, and social feeds seamlessly. An important note, is to know your colour references. For each colour chosen make sure you find out the HEX, RGB and CMYK references. These are how colour are created across different mediums. RGB uses the primary colour of light (Red, Green and Blue) to produce imagery on digital formats. HEX is an extended version of the RGB reference and is often used online. CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black) these are the four colours needed to print anything. A website I have used is Rapid Tables to convert colour, so you only need one as a starting point and your colour will be the same across all mediums. Font Choices There are so many fonts to choose from, knowing where to begin is a bit of a mindfield. You only need 2 or 3 to keep your branding, that's right consistent. So let's break it down into logo, headlines and text. The first font you should be looking for is your main logo font. Think stylish, attention grabbing, in sync with brand personality. Now the next font can be your logo font too, it's to make those headlines stand out, be bold! Headlines are important on your website, articles, email campaigns and blog posts. How else will people know they want to read what you're writing about? Finally text, switch off the fancy font button here. You need something that is clear and easy to read, no one will persevere with the most gripping of reads if the text is unreadable! Language Style The language we use speaks volumes about our brand, this is why we need consistency paired with creativity. One of the easiest errors is: is your brand an I (as in you're the brand) or We (there is a team behind the brand). There is no wrong one, you just need to make sure you stick to one. Otherwise you may cause confusion, and this can lead to mistrust, a big no no, when you're trying to sell. Grammar is your friend, it gives your content structure and clarity. Do not be afraid of it, if you are unsure, trusty Google can always help. You can even check your sentences where you get prompted for grammatical errors, like your email or a word doc. The more you use grammar the more confident you will become in using it, and add extra depth to your writing. Finally keep your USP consistent, repetition will help cement this in your prospective customers' mind. However keep the description creative, by using different adjectives to describe your work whilst keeping the facts straight, will keep your customer engaged. Branding Armoury Now you have these techniques in your branding armoury, your brand has a strong starting point to grow and develop, whilst keeping consistent and creative!

Remember it's called Social Media for a reason. When using social media for business you still need to remember to be sociable. Fitting this into your busy working day may not be the easiest or seem like a task to prioritise, but trust me it should be. Engagement is key - you not them Whichever platform you've chosen to promote your business, you must stay active. If you would like to create more engagement for your page/feed you must engage too. Like, comment, share and be real! Not just the odd emoji or share without tag, take a little time and create connections online. There are people behind posts Selling and therefore marketing boils down to relationships and connections between people. This is the same for social media, behind every post there is a person working just like you to promote their business. So this provides a great opportunity to offer support, and in turn receive engagement back. When someone takes the time Most importantly, when someone has taken the time to engage with your post, whether a comment or share, take the time to thank them. If someone complimented your work in person, you wouldn't ignore them, so don't online. But I have a business to run You probably already have a to do list a mile long, but I strongly urge you to add to the list, engagement time. This might be before you start your day, or in the evening when you have a little extra time. It can be once a week, just like clearing the inbox or other admin tasks. Get engaging, you won't regret it !