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Rebecca Carroll-Bell, Owner at RCB Mediation Services
Whichever one I am spending most time and attention on. Currently that is Facebook. I have also had great results from Google+. I am in the process of finding the balance and chooseing my main 3 on whihc to focus.
Jef Lippiatt, Owner at Startup Chucktown
We really enjoy Twitter and find it to be very engaging. The key is to put in effort to make tweets a dialogue. Ask questions. Respond to others you follow or that just post interesting and related content. There is nothing wrong with streamlining your posting process, but don't work toward total automation. It's about thoughtful conversation.
LinkedIn groups are also very useful in the same way. You can learn a lot by lurking and just reading the content, but you'll get much more out of participating.
The last network I'll mention is focused more at Entrepreneurs and Startups (however, you can just join as an individual). It's called Teamstory (currently only on iPhone but they are looking to expand). If you are looking for feedback from other entrepreneurs or just looking to connect with others going through the same struggles, it's a great place to checkout.
Lastly, I'm going to double down on saying approach social networks as two-way conversation (not a rant, monologue or diatribe). It is called Social media for a reason, so be social.
What's your trick to increase click though rate from your landing pages?
How to increase the CTR of your landing pages? What tools do you use besides landing page builder?
Jill Brennan, Founder at Harbren Marketing
Split-testing is the best way to work out what is going to make a difference to your conversion rate. A simple A/B test (this is where you create two variations of your landing page and send equal amounts of traffic to each until one is declared the 'winner' with the best conversion rate) is a great place to start.What to test depends on a few variables. Depending on the volume of traffic the page receives, you'll probably want to start with testing one variable at a time. If you're using a landing page builder and the design is sound then you could start with trying different headlines, then move to images, call to action text, button colour. If you're interested in finding out more about how to approach testing, I've written an extensive article about it.
Beau Ushay, Owned Media & Content Specialist at USHAY CONSULTING GROUP
This question approaches the customer experience question in the wrong way. Businesses should focus on optimising what you can control first - Owned assets, such as your website and landing page, then work outwards to attract eyeballs/traffic via Earned, Paid then Shared Media. In that order.To make your owned assets attractive to customers and hence, encourage them to click through beyond your landing page, businesses need to provide something of value. Know your customers, what drives their actions and motivates their decisions, then create an environment which speaks to those motivations.
Tom Valcanis, Owner at I Sell Words
I'd say some "non-number" scorecard at a glance. What's coming in, what's set to go out, and a graph to track it all.
Best Accounting Software For Business That Uses Or Needs POS?
For retailers and hospitality small businesses, POS solutions may be necessary, whether they trade online or in real life. What's the best accounting software for a small business that needs POS or already uses a POS solution.
Steven Freeman, Owner at Evolved Sound
Among many relationships your marketing spend needs to be viable enough to return a justifiable accountable profit. By keeping a close eye of the two, can help you stay on track.
What are tax implications for employees starting a business?
What are the tax implications for an employee starting a business part-time whilst still being employed full-time ?
Will Li, Director at SF Capital
One of the first things you should check is to ensure your employment contract does not place any restrictions on you carrying out your part-time business. A lot of part time businesses start by doing something that is related to their main field of work, so it is important to know what you are permitted to do and not permitted to do. Failing to understand this can land you in hotwater with your current employer as well as legal implications for your new business venture.
Paul Zisson, Founder & CFO at mobileCFO
Employees are paid a salary or wage by a company and subject to PAYG tax withheld at tax rates depending on the salary level. The annual payment summary showing gross wages and PAYG tax paid is included in the employee's individual tax return. Their is no GST/BAS implications here.
If that same person started a business part-time then it all depends on the legal structure of that business - sole trader, partnership or company and the income levels. If a sole trader (contractor or small business owner), then your business income (net of business expenses) is added to your salary & wage income in your annual tax individual return to work out the final income tax you pay. If you are a partner in a business, then your share of partnership business income is added to your salary or wage in your annual individual income tax return. Both sole traders & partnerships are not legal entities in their own right so their is no legal separation of income, assets & liabilities of the business from yourself.
If your part-time business decided to incorporate a private company then that business income & assets and liabilities are limited to that legal entity. You can pay yourself a salary or wage out of the business but then you are responsible for taking out the correct amount of PAYG tax and submitting to the ATO, paying super, pay company PAYG tax if at a certain level. Or you can take a drawing to reduce the capital you contribute into the business or you may decide to pay yourself a dividend if the company makes a profit. Salary/wages, PAYG (payment summary) and dividends from this company are then added to your other payment salary in your individual annual income tax return. There are obviously additional costs of setting up and maintaining a company vs a sole trader/partnership but it gives that business legal protection and it becomes a more cleaner cut, saleable vehicle should you wish to exit that business.
If you carry on a business in any shape or form, you must register for GST if your business turnover (sales/fees) is at, or above the GST turnover threshold, of $75,000 or more. If your GST turnover is below $75,000 you can choose whether to register for GST or not but you must stay registered for at least 12 months if you choose to register. Yes, it means doing a BAS either annually or quarterly or monthly, depending on your turnover levels. You can claim the GST on all your outgoings/expenses but must collect and pay the GST on your business sales. Your employment salary has no bearing on this as it is not business income.
I hope that makes sense.
Cheers
Paul
Lucy Cook, Solopreneur at Lucy Cook
I am curious about the type of product you have, social media can definitely fire up your business and generate more leads but allow me to give you a brief about the difference of Social Media Marketing and Social Selling, from here, decide which is more applicable for your brand:
Social Media Marketing - Marketing your brand without a face.
Social Selling - this is more of a personal approach on a prospect on social media, a real person representing your brand and has a face.
What kind of arts and crafts business is this? Is it yours or for your client?
John Eustace, Principal / Communications and Media Strategist at Bells and Whistles Marketing Pty Ltd
Social Selling has two quite different interpretations depending on who you are connected to, one can even be independent of any technology platforms. So best to define and scope your objective as Malissa suggests. Then when you have your arts and crafts business plan, you can consider whether or not one of the forms of Social Selling will be relevant to its achievement. Never decide on a vehicle before defining your destination.
Jef Lippiatt, Owner at Startup Chucktown
I believe there are some consistent things you can do regardless of the industry or size of your venture to impress clients.
- Position yourself as an extension of their business, a trusted partner not just a vendor.
- Always respect your clients regardless how they treat you
- Show them that you trust their company and the work you do together
- Show them that they can trust your company and judgment
- Be transparent with clients and respect their time
- Be authentically grateful for their current and future business
- Remind them from time to time what sets your venture apart
- Lastly, surprise them with great gestures
How to improve my speaking skills during networking events?
Hi Savvies,
As we all know, networking is an important part of a startup's life. I find myself increasingly being nervous, and end up stuttering all the time. What are some tips on how to improve on my speaking skills during networking events?
Thanks!
Ling
Jef Lippiatt, Owner at Startup Chucktown
I agree that there are some helpful answers above, but I felt the need to add to them.
Consider several things:
- You are already at the same networking event (already have common ground)
- Ask them what brought them to the event
- Ask/Mention something a speaker mentioned at the event
As noted on the pitch, practicing your pitch helps you understand it (and that is great). But keep in mind your pitch is likely to get questions. Think about what questions might be asked by the other party. This can help you prepare by having answers for their questions instead of just restating your pitch.
Have multiple versions of your pitch. I keep several versions in mind and base which one I use off the time cues I receive from the other person. I tend to believe that having a pitch between 3-5 minutes is great when already in conversation. I have a 2-3 paragraph pitch ready for short walks and brief conversations. I also have a 1 sentence version, structured to specifically and clearly state what my startup is about and why it's interesting (granted 1 sentence pitch takes a lot of time to craft well).
Another suggestion I would have is don't approach trying to sell, approach just to start a normal conversation and see where it goes (they may not be a person you want to pitch, so don't waste time or energy if it isn't a good fit).
Also, improv classes can be a big boost. Improv will help you learn how to react and act immediately. Getting comfortable with yourself is half of the battle. By putting yourself in a variety of situations you can get better at thinking on your feet and adjusting your conversation and pitch as necessary.
One last point, is attention. Don't be so focused on pitching that you steamroll the other person. When they are asking questions focus on their question, not on your answer. When they are talking, listen to them carefully instead of waiting to respond. You want people to be engaged and present when you speak to them so be gracious enough to return the respect.
Richard Schembri, Entrepreneur - Team Coach and Mentor in Network Marketing at Team Berrygood
Hello Ling, Some very good advice from the answers above already. I'd like to add that my profession offers some great Personal Development programs, and these will help you with talking to prospects and the public in general. I have seen many people change dramatically with some of the training we do.
We are Sydney based team of professionals and offer free personal development and training events that may be of help to you. Let me know if interested and I can point you our next training?
Best of luck!
Jef Lippiatt, Owner at Startup Chucktown
I'm going to add-on to Steve's answer.
The easiest way to digitize a file is to run it through a scanner. The end result (usually a .tif or .tiff file) can then be converted to other formats such as, PDF, JPEG, PNG or GIF. Doing a raw file conversion will sometimes been enough depending on the level of detail needed and what the artwork will be used for once digitized.
If your digitized file is blurry or pixelated if you are good at Photoshop or Illustrator (raster or vector) art manipulation try to clean it up yourself. If you aren't skilled in those areas look at using a freelance or in-house designer who will be able to clean up the file for you.
Keep your use in mind, as if you are using the end result in a printed work you need to think about having 300 to 600 dots per inch (DPI) or its metric equivalent for good output. Also the file will need to be created in CMYK (print) mode to ensure colors are accurate.
If you are using the file digitally, you only need between 72 to 150 DPI or its metric equivalent and the file should be created in RGB (screen) mode to ensure accurate digital colors.
Steve Osborne, director at Steve Osborne / Smarthinking
Depends whether the desired output is 2D or 3D. And what you want to use it for.
If two-dimensional, you photograph it and digitise the file into the format you require.
If three-dimensional, you convert the file into a hologram or set it up for CAD and output it from a 3D printer.