March 2018 - Rafferty Pendery

Becoming a Digital Entrepreneur: Top 5 Tips

Mar 28, 2018

Are you thinking about quitting your job to become a digital entrepreneur? You may be onto something. The average entrepreneur in the United States earns over $170,000 a year and the opportunities to make money in the digital world are growing every day.

As attractive as this may sound, it’s far from easy. You’ll face many challenges and there will be times when you want to throw in the towel.

However, if you’re serious about your passion and are willing to put in the work, success is totally possible. These five tips will help you get started.

1. Get Your Finances in Order

Before you leave the world of traditional employment, you must get your finances in order. Pay down your debts and save up a sufficient emergency fund. This lifestyle rarely comes with a steady paycheck, so you’ll need enough of a cushion to get you through the short times.

2. Learn as Much as Possible

A great idea isn’t enough to ensure your success. Take the time to read as many books and blogs as you can and seek out the advice of those who have already succeeded at building their own digital empires.

Knowledge is power. Enroll in an online class, listen to podcasts, and talk to anybody who’s willing to share their experience.

3. Set Up Your Site

You can’t be a successful digital entrepreneur without a strong online presence. You’ll need an attractive website that’s optimized for speed. If you’re not an expert at website development, it’s well worth the money to outsource this critical task.

Once your site is live, test it to ensure it’s mobile-compatible.

Work with an SEO expert to help ensure your potential customers can find you with a simple online search.

4. Develop Your Idea

Spend some time really diving into your idea to make sure it’s viable. Use online surveys and focus groups to further narrow it down until you’re sure you’re on the right track.

Conduct online research to learn about similar products or services already on the market. Determine your appropriate price point and develop a clear profile of your ideal customer.

5. Market Life Your Life Depends on It

One of the biggest mistakes entrepreneurs make is failing to market enough. You’ll need to take steps every day to boost your brand and build up your social media following. Eventually, you’ll want to go one step further by exploring other tactics like paid advertising or guerilla marketing.

A Final Piece of Advice for the Digital Entrepreneur

Once you’ve achieved success, it’s important not to rest there. Always look for ways to diversify your business and stay on top of the newest developments. The digital marketplace is constantly changing, and complacency can be your downfall.

Your new business endeavor will definitely not be easy, but it’s also likely to be one of the most rewarding things you’ll ever do.

Are You Ready to Take Your Business to the Next Level?

Thriving as a digital entrepreneur requires constant effort. It’s not easy to stay on top of everything you need to know, and new information comes out every day.

Explore my blog to learn more about marketing, entrepreneurship, and other business topics all in one convenient location.

4 Telling Signs Your Business Need a Social Media Specialist

Mar 21, 2018

Having trouble keeping up with social media?

Wondering if it’s time to hire a social media specialist?

There’s not a lot of debate about social media these days. Most businesses have realized that it can be a great tool for promoting your brand and an essential marketing tool for getting more sales.

However, there is still a lot of mystery surrounding social media and many businesses still have trouble managing it well. If this is true for your business, it may just be time to get a specialist involved.

Below we’ll look at the 4 telling signs that your business needs to hire a social media specialist immediately.

1. Social Media Distracts You From Other Tasks

Let’s face it. Social media, while being a great marketing tool, can also serve as a big distraction. If you or another team member has taken on social media duties on top of other tasks, it can be a problem.

If you find that social media has taken important time away from other pressing business needs, you may want to hire a specialist.

A specialist will be able to devote 100% of their time to social media, instead of just a small part of their day. This can really improve the impact of your social media efforts.

2. You Have Trouble Connecting With Your Audience

If social media is only one of the tasks you or another team member focuses on throughout the day it can be hard to truly get it right. You may not have the expertise to create the posts that really get a lot of engagement. It may be hit or miss at best.

A specialist will be able to get to the heart of what your audience wants on social media and can identify what types of content they connect with. They can also spend their day replying to customer comments and questions.

Additionally, a specialist will also know the nuances of each platform, whether it be Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or any other social media platforms.

3. You’re Inconsistent

Social media may be the last thing on your to-do list for the day. It can be easy to simply cast your social media tasks aside and put them off to the next day’s to-do list. And then the next. And the next.

Inconsistency with social media is one of the most common social media mistakes businesses make. Inconsistency can lead to much smaller returns and engagement from social media.

A social media specialist can improve your business by post consistently. They’ll even be able to recognize what the best times of day are for posting to your audience.

4. You’re Behind on the Latest Trends

Social media is always changing and new trends are arriving all of the time. If social media isn’t your main focus you may easily become overwhelmed trying to stay up-to-date on all of the latest trends and happenings.

Trends become even harder to keep up with when each social media platform is so different. Trends on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and Youtube all vary and aren’t usually aligned.

Social media specialists know this and work hard to keep up with trends. This increased knowledge and insight can help your business become more effective and engaging on social media.

Making the Decision to Hire a Social Media Specialist

While it can be hard to make that initial decision to hire a specialist to manage your social media, it will likely improve your business more than you realize.

A specialist can save you time and money and can boost your social presence in many ways, helping you to build a greater community around your business and get more sales.

Need help developing your social media and marketing strategy? Have questions or comments? Contact me today to learn more about what I can do to help your business succeed.

How to Give a Speech That Keeps Your Audience Engaged & Entertained

Mar 14, 2018

When the topic of public speaking comes up, it’s clear that most people aren’t comfortable talking in front of crowds. Some may even dread it! There are likely two key reasons for this.

First, people are afraid to look foolish in front of others. We may feel like if we don’t know what we’re talking about, we’ll get a bad reaction.

The second reason is a bit more subtle. We’re hesitant to speak in front of crowds because we feel they may not care.

If you’re struggling with the latter, this article is for you. Here are a few tips to help you give a speech that’s both entertaining and engaging.

Know Your Audience

The first step to giving a great speech is to read the room, i.e., understand who you’re speaking to.

Every speech has a target audience, and it’s important that you know your audience ahead of time, as your speech should ideally be tailored to the crowd.

Your audience will determine the tone, language, and even length of your speech. Therefore, get as much information on your audience or event ahead of time as possible.

The better your understanding of your audience, the likelier it is you’ll give a good speech.

Inject Your Personality When You Give a Speech

Truthfully, it doesn’t necessarily matter how well-written your speech is if you don’t have the charisma and charm to back it up.

Yes, it’s important that a speech is well-crafted. But it’s even more important that the speaker uses their personality to keep the audience engaged.

Don’t be afraid to ad lib, make last-minute adjustments, or gesture. People are social creatures by nature, so body language like smiling or gesturing may seem simple, but they’ll take you a long way.

Trim the Fat

As a general rule of thumb, it’s a good idea to revise your speech as much as possible. Think of it like drafting a paper.

Your rough draft is simply about getting your ideas on paper. Self-editing will only get in the way, so save that for the primary editing stage.

Next, you’ll refine and edit as necessary. During this stage, clear up any rough or unclear ideas. Maybe find a few sources for your information, too, to make your speech more authoritative.

By the end, you should have a short, concise speech.

Use Visuals

If you’ve ever been in a long meeting, you know that peoples’ minds tend to wander after just a few minutes. Don’t take this as a slight, it’s just how our minds work.

But that doesn’t mean your speech has to bore your audience to tears.

When you give a speech, you can combat wandering minds by incorporating visuals. Charts, graphs, really anything you can think of.

As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words, so be sure to incorporate visuals.

Last Thoughts on How to Give a Speech That’s Engaging and Entertaining

Giving a speech is hard work, no doubt about it. But these tips should give you all the advice you need to make a great speech that your audience is sure to love.

Want to learn more about the entrepreneur lifestyle or public speaking? Be sure to check out my blog for more great tips to help you become the next big thing.

How to Become a Public Speaker (And Feel Comfortable Doing It!)

Mar 7, 2018

Becoming an entrepreneur and starting your own business is an exciting proposition, but it can also be a risky one. The media tends to glorify the success stories, but the reality is that the majority of new businesses don’t make it past the first year.

In order to stand out from the crowd and become part of the successful few, there are certain skills that every entrepreneur should master.

Public speaking is useful for anyone in business to master, but it’s especially important for entrepreneurs. As you begin to get your idea off the ground, you’ll be presenting to investors and sharing at conferences. You want to come across confident and knowledgeable.

For those who don’t have a lot of practice, public speaking can seem intimidating, but it shouldn’t be.

Below, we’re providing some key tips on how to become a public speaker. Read on to learn more.

1. Take a Public Speaking Course

There’s a perception that the confidence to be a good public speaker is something you either have or you don’t. In reality, public speaking is a skill like any other, and it can be taught.

If you’re really serious about utilizing public speaking as a tool to grow your business or share your entrepreneurial idea, consider taking a public speaking course. A local college or community center may offer one.

The first step to becoming a great public speaker is realizing that it’s not something only certain people can do. Everyone can become a great public speaker with the right tools.

2. Practice

The best advice for how to become a public speaker is also the most obvious. You have to practice. Find different environments to challenge yourself, and eventually, you’ll become comfortable speaking anywhere in front of anyone.

Start by yourself, delivering a presentation in front of a mirror. Work up to speaking in front of friends and family, and then try to find some smaller, local conferences or meetings that you can get on the agenda for.

Eventually, you’ll be prepared for everything, from presenting to one potential investor in an office, to delivering a speech to hundreds.

3. Be Prepared

If you’re new to public speaking, improvisation is your enemy. Certain professionals may be able to get up in front of a crowd and wing it, but you should try never to put yourself in that position.

You don’t want to sound like you’re reading from a script, but you do want to be prepared with what you plan on saying.

Try writing out a detailed outline of all the important points you want to hit. You can even draft a few sentences that you’d like to say verbatim, and memorize them.

That preparation will give you something to draw from if your nerves start to get to you, and will keep you on track throughout your presentation.

Want to Learn More about How to Become a Public Speaker?

The more practical tips you have for becoming a great public speaker, the more confident you’ll be in your ability to accomplish that goal. being able to deliver a great presentation or share a speech can help you achieve your entrepreneurial goals.

For more tips on how to succeed as an entrepreneur, please contact us at any time.