October 2017 - Rafferty Pendery

How Giving Back to the Community can Grow Your Business

Oct 27, 2017

There are many ways to grow your business. Most of them involve doing what you can to sell more and earn more money in the process.

However, some business growth methods involve not gathering more, but giving things away. Things like your time, energy, and money can greatly benefit the people around you when shared.

It may seem counter-intuitive, but giving back can actually help to grow your business. There are many ways to give back to your community as a business, and not all of them involve donating money.

There is a lot you can do to get involved, and doing so will prove to be a very wise business decision for several reasons. If you’re wondering how giving back to the community can actually be fruitful for your business, read on.

Improve Your Reputation in the Community

Getting involved with the local community is one of the best things you can do for your business. When people in the area associate your company name with altruism and volunteer work, they will have positive feelings toward your brand.

When the day comes that your customer needs your services and they must decide between you and the competition, you want to make sure you’ve left a good taste in their mouth.

In addition, there may be a large demographic in your community that needs help, whether it’s the school system or animal shelters. If your company is the one that comes to the rescue, you will be highly regarded by everyone affected.

If you become known as the company that’s always there in times of trouble, you will come to earn the respect and admiration of many potential customers.

Build A Loyal Customer Base by Giving Back to the Community

There are many ways that giving back to the community is a powerful business tool, and the loyalty you’ll win in the process is no exception.

Some people may come to you — and you alone — for business after you have helped them out. For example, sponsoring a children’s baseball league may earn you the unyielding loyalty of all the parents on the team.

Other ways of giving back to the community also nurture loyalty and appreciation. Mentoring budding entrepreneurs for a few hours a week can make a big impact. Donating items to an organization in need will also inspire those who see your good deed to express their gratitude by becoming a customer.

Improve Company Culture

Having your company volunteer as a team is a great way to motivate and inspire your employees. Working together on a collaborative effort for the greater good will boost company morale overall, and that’s always good for the bottom line.

When getting a group of employees to help out, you may want to offer the opportunity to volunteer during work hours. Or, you could offer it as a more fulfilling alternative to meeting for happy hour drinks.

Either way, when your employees feel good about your vision and mission, they’ll feel good about working for you. You will receive the best work possible when you have earned the trust and respect of those you employ.

3 Jobs You Should Outsource to Upwork

Oct 20, 2017

When it comes to building and growing a successful business, sometimes delegation is key.

As an entrepreneur, it can be tempting to want to handle and control every task. However, you’re busy with important matters that require your attention.

Outsourcing some tasks to Upwork can be a tremendous weight lifted from your shoulders. If you’re bogged down with too much to do and need to take some things off your plate, below are the three best jobs to outsource to Upwork.

1. Best Job to Outsource to Upwork: Customer Service

In a brand new startup, handling the questions and concerns of the customer base usually falls to the founder.

After a while, however, your business should start to grow. At this point, there may be too many inquiries coming in for you to handle them all yourself.

Don’t be upset — this was the entire goal of launching your startup, after all!

If it’s time to hand over the customer service reins, rest assured that there are many capable hands willing to lighten your load. With proper training of a qualified team, customer service will be off your plate — and on its way up — in no time.

2. IT Work

IT work is another aspect of a growing business that is essential but time-consuming. It may be difficult to entrust your IT needs to a freelancer found on Upwork, but it’s an important step for your business.

Yes, IT work is a crucial peg in keeping your business running, but it doesn’t have to be something that detracts from your other important tasks. There are many other qualified people who can handle your startup’s IT needs — and maybe do an even better job than you could.

Plus, because of its digital nature, IT work can easily be completed by a remote team. Outsourcing is cost-effective for many reasons, and this is one of them.

Delegating your IT work to a third party allows someone else to perform this essential task, whether onsite or from anywhere in the world.

3. Human Resources

Believe it or not, many companies outsource their human resources tasks. As you launch and grow a startup, managing payroll and employee benefits is not something you should be worrying about.

Find a qualified freelancer on Upwork who can handle your company’s human resources needs. You will be amazed at how much space it frees up in your brain.

Plus, outsourcing human resources can be more cost-effective. You are only paying for the time needed to do the job, and you don’t need to provide an additional onsite workspace for the person doing the job.

In addition, an HR freelancer who specializes in this area will be far more helpful than someone trying to learn the ropes as they juggle other tasks. Instead of hiring someone around you who is just an okay fit, search from a pool around the world to find the best fit.

As you allow yourself to focus on brand growth, you will wonder why you did not delegate more tasks sooner.

Browse our blog for more thoughts on business, entrepreneurship, advertising, and more.

4 Tips for Finding the Best Keynote Speakers

Oct 13, 2017

So, you’ve got your audience. How do you keep it engaged?

An important component of any business growth is holding interesting events with exciting speakers. Finding these speakers might seem tricky, but don’t worry.

The best keynote speakers don’t need to be the most famous or successful. They just need to be right for your audience.

Here’s how to find yours.

1. Imagine Your Ideal Speaker

If everything goes well, your speaker is going to get a lot of credit. But you still play the most important part: you choose the speaker.

That means you need to be thinking of the big-picture from the start. The first thing you need to do is determine a price range: how much are you willing to pay your speaker?

If you’re not willing to doll out hundreds of thousands, don’t fret. There are many other measurements of the best keynote speakers that don’t involve cost.

What goal do you want to achieve with your speaker? What knowledge or what kind of motivation do you want to instill in your audience?

The answers to those questions should be the initial filters you use when picking out your potential speakers. Once you have that list, you’re ready to dig deeper.

2. Weigh Entertainment vs. Information

Consider the different styles of the speaker options in front of you. Many will have a special flair that electrifies the crowd, but they won’t bring much substance. Others will be elbow-deep in substance but have a tendency to drone.

In all likelihood, your ideal speaker will be somewhere between the two ends of the spectrum. You’re the only person who can know for sure what’s best for your audience.

You might already know what to look for when contrasting info vs. entertainment. But if you’re stuck, think about the people hearing the speech.

3. Understand Your Audience

Put yourself in your audience’s shoes. On the one hand, consider their expectations. Would blaring music excite them, or annoy them? They might enjoy a wordy orator–or they might be bored out of their minds.

Also, think about the context of the speech. It makes a huge difference when the speech happens.

If it’s on a Tuesday at ten AM in February, a softer presentation that crescendos might do the trick. But, on a Thursday afternoon in July, your employees might sit down ready to engage with a more energetic speaker.

4. Communicate with the Speaker

Remember how the speaker will get all the credit if things go well? Well, you might take a hit if things go poorly.

That’s why it’s essential for you to make contact with the speaker before they begin speaking. Run a quick background check on the content of the speech. If it’s not up to par, let the speaker know.

Sometimes, the “best speaker” title can be given before the speech is even made.

Navigate the Best Keynote Speakers

It’s time for you to give your audience the information they need in an entertaining way. The right keynote speaker can inject your crowd with a productive boost of energy.

With these tips, you’re more ready than ever to pick from the best. Reach out for more information on getting the right influencers for your organization.

What are you waiting for?

5 Simple Brand Promotion Ideas

Oct 6, 2017

There comes a time where every business struggles to find their footing. Whether you’re just starting out or you’ve been in business for years, a little help goes a long way.

One of the easiest ways to get back on track is through brand promotion. Getting the word out on your brand and increasing awareness isn’t as difficult as it may sound.

Here are 5 easy examples to help you get started.

1. Create Merchandise

Every brand needs merchandise in some capacity. Yes, it’s going to bring in some extra income, but it’s about more than that.

Merchandising is an easy way to globalize your brand. Think about it, how many t-shirts do you own with a logo of a business or product? Each time you wear that t-shirt out in public, you’re advertising for that brand for free.

And merch doesn’t need to be expensive, either. It can be something as simple as a shirt or blazer to more elaborate options like tote bags or hot sauces. The more products with your business’s name, the better your brand promotion will work.

2. Hire a Brand Ambassador or Influencer

As a business owner, you’re far too busy to spend your day promoting your brand. However, there are plenty of people you can hire to help out.

The influencer and ambassador markets are booming right now. Those who use an influencer are seeing higher levels of engagement and customer response.

While it can be a bit pricey, it’s ultimately worth it. 77% of businesses who hired an influencer reported more engagement surrounding their brand.

3. Leverage Social Media

Even if you don’t know much about social media marketing, you likely know that it matters. In fact, businesses who use social media tend to do far better than their counterparts.

So what’s the reasoning behind this? Well, there are a few reasons, really.

First, it keeps your name everywhere. It’s always a good idea to make sure that your brand name is on as many sites as possible. The wider the net, the better the results.

Next, you’ll gain critical insight into customers and clients who like your business page. You’ll get access to info on everything from their age group to their region. These stats can be better used to tailor your advertising for future brand promotion.

4. Create Various Types of Content

One of the easiest methods of promotion involves creating strong content. But what’s the best solution?

A blog?

A YouTube Channel?

Social media apps?

The answer is all of the above. Switching up your content is a great way to keep things fresh. While it’s a good idea to post several times a week, make sure that you’re not just posting one type.

Variety will also keep your audience from getting bored. For example, current stats show that audiences prefer video content to traditional text. With that said, likes and dislikes change all the time.

Variety isn’t just the spice of life…it’s a great way to future-proof your brand.

5. Engage Users

Finally, make sure that your brand isn’t just a nameless entity. Get out there and start interacting with your customers. People want a face to the name, and engagement is a simple process.

Even if it’s something as small as responding to social media comments, you’re showing your audience that you care and are listening.

Audiences want to identify with your brand, so give them the ability to do so. Reach out. Ask questions. Let your audience know that you’re about more than just profits.

Get Help With Your Brand Promotion

These 5 ideas may seem simple, but they’ll do wonders for your brand. Make sure that you’re talking to your audience and giving them the content they want. Be creative and learn from both failures and successes.

If you’re looking for a bit of help, don’t be afraid to reach out! I’d love to help your brand get the recognition it deserves. I’ve been working with businesses for years and I can get the results you want.

Get in touch and let me help your brand today!