Author: Ron Prochner

#Video is the Key for Success

Facebook Live can be an important marketing tool for your business to showcase the latest updates and trends, it will help to attract new customers through increased engagement for your targeted marketing Persona.  Video is a key to attracting viewership it has three times the engagement over an organic post.  With Facebook Live you are connecting with an audience which is loyal to Facebook and using the platform daily.

If you are wondering about topics ask your audience on Facebook, gather their feed back and take the time to answer their questions. Another idea you could create a poll and have a list of three items and have them select which would be most interesting to them.  This will help to keep the Live event on track and interesting for your key audience.

Before the event pre-promotion is a key and tease the audience with a specific question mention some of the key highlights.

Key to Success Facebook Live Tips

#Build your Brand

Before the actual Facebook live session planning must take place if you want to present a professional approach you should follow a plan. What are you trying to accomplish and what goals are you looking for?  Awareness, Consideration, Conversion, Loyalty, Advocacy. 

 I would recommend starting at the Awareness level, to be able to maximize the Facebook Live events you will have to have a social following first. Build your brand, tell the viewers what you are all about and the key benefits for them. 

Ensure the video is educational and informative and targets interests of your key buying Persona, It is also an opportunity to offer tips and suggestions on how to use your product.  I would recommend sharing photos of your key products and tagging your business name in them. 

Keys for a successful Video Marketing Strategy

Generate a script with the pertinent information and then practice, practice, practice before going live.  Test the lighting and overall sound quality and avoid any outside noise.  You will also have to decide whether you will shoot the video horizontally or vertically depending on the overall view you are looking for.     Schedule the timing of the event for when most of the key Persona group will have the time to view.

#Social Listening

Once you are live, ensure that you are answering questions as they come up from your audience.  If you run out of time, let the audience know that you will answer these later online or on another Facebook Live event, this will keep the group coming back. Social media should be two- way communication.

Put some thought into this and use other channels to pre-promote the Live Event the overall strategy is to grow the overall market for your business.  Twitter, Instagram, and other key social sites could help grow the overall market and provide a direct link.

After the event analyze the results and check to see if your key target market was reached, unique views plus other key analytics.

#Connect with your Persona

It will be important to suggest to the viewers to engage with you directly, one suggestion would be to ask the viewers to send you their e-mail addresses, and you could send them out a newsletter of upcoming Live events and relevant updates, this will help to keep your business front and center, and provide this key Persona, with the information that they are looking for.  It will also help you build a valuable key target market which you could help use to build your business.  The audience will help you plan and decide how often you should be doing Facebook Live.   Keep it interesting and focus on what the audience is looking for and it should be a beneficial marketing tool for your business and help you to generate more leads and business.

Listen, Learn, Adapt.

# Increase Sales and SEO

#Alberta Business

Blogging can be beneficial for businesses to gain market share by establishing themselves with a potential audience as the industry experts.  To be most successful the blogs must be focused on the key audience tell them what they are looking to find out steer away from hard selling.  Teach and educate and the readers will keep on coming back.  Cover off issues the audience might be confused about in your industry.  It is a great opportunity to build loyalty and at the same time your overall sales funnel.

You can build your business as the authority gaining increased exposure and therefore more consumer confidence.  You can stand out from your competitors talk about your uniqueness and how you differ in the marketplace.  Highlight your value and experience.

#Customize your Blog to your Key Target Market    

The current market is fractured, it will be challenging for small business to survive without having a plan.  The customer base is comfortable at home ordering from their favorite stores, how can you tap into that.  Blogging is a way to reach new markets, with key information and will help businesses who put in the effort to be able to engage with markets they otherwise would have totally missed.

The main point to achieve optimum success is to have a plan heading in, what are your goals and what target market are you looking to reach. Set a clear purpose and set objectives the best way to do this is to strategize who your key customer is.  Put in the research and pinpoint the key buyer persona who is the target you are trying to reach and then target the blog to that person.

Buyer Persona  reminds you to put your audience’s wants and needs ahead of your own.

This will help you to brand your business and help to build customer loyalty be more than just a logo. You can learn from the audience to gather feedback and gain insights on how to improve your business. 

It is also important to be consistent, it will take time to build up the loyalty and trust of the audience you are trying to reach.

#Conversion Sales Funnel

The initial blog will create awareness of your product and help to build the brand but then what’s next?

Keep in mind when you are blogging that the overall goal is to generate more traffic and customers what is the plan?

One suggestion is capture e-mail addresses or have a call to action this will help generate more engagement with hot leads.

Connect with your key customer base away from social media you can do this with e-mail.  But the key is once you gather the email addresses not just to spam with specials, discounts, what is the value?  Keep in mind you gained the trust of the reader to give you the e-mail address deliver value back to them. 

The e-mails must include key specific content targeted to the audiences main interests.

To recap do the research first, know who you are trying to reach, keep it reader focused and have a plan to move customers into the sales funnel.  

Be different stand out, give it a try but most of all have fun. 

Learn, Adjust, Adapt.

#Saskatchewan

Hockey a sheet of ice, an old iconic barn in the middle of a field, it is like a religion in the small prairie towns.  Growing up in Aberdeen Saskatchewan, I spent many a day at the rink, I loved snow days, I spent more time at the rink than anywhere else.  I can’t ever remember paying for public skating but there must have been some fee.  I played hockey right through until I was 15 and then retired.  I still have my original skates. 

On my teams I played on the kids called me Shack as I was the one always to stir it up, get it going, hockey was rough back then.    Especially in Bantam and Midget you could expect a bench clearing brawl most game nights.

The coaches were also different I remember our coaches smoking on the ice and going to tournaments the coach would smell of whiskey.   Obviously back then no seat belts and through it all we all survived to play another day.  That was minor hockey back in the late 60’s no fair play back then.

Anyway, nobody from my teams ever made it to pro hockey we played for fun, but that was the starting point of where Hockey’s road trip began.    

#Bobby Orr Player for the Ages

I would always consider myself a superfan, first cheering on Bobby Orr and the Boston Bruins through their amazing cup runs in the early 70’s, then transitioned onto The Edmonton Oilers in the 80’s for their run of 5 cups that might never be matched by the franchise, too many teams and travel now to dominate like that ever again.

With every opportunity I would always take in games and it turned into a passion not only going to the games but also collecting various memorabilia from my favorite players.  I have pins, pictures, clocks, garbage cans and multiple hats.  I have stopped purchasing this sort of thing as I have run out of room.

#Hockey Road Trip

The trips have been amazing the fans in the buildings that I have traveled to have all been so very friendly you kind of hope that their teams can win someday as well.  

Most expensive by far would be Toronto, a Hot Dog and a Beer upwards of $30.00 but the atmosphere is incredible.   If you go to Buffalo stop into Ed’s and have some wings, delicious and they are even better the next day.  Vancouver very trendy crowd and I couldn’t believe how loud the crowd was compared to the Oilers games.  And finally, Las Vegas what an amazing trip got to enjoy the game in my shorts that was always a dream.   The overall crowd in Vegas is second to none they stand for most of the game, not aware of the rules, but for the most part provide great entertainment in the building it is a show.

But my heart belongs to one team the Edmonton Oilers, I have been a superfan of the team for many years now and sometimes I feel that I care more about the team than they care about me.  The decade of darkness was a tough one and the team has only made the playoffs like once in the last 15 years.

That is why when the playoffs arrived at Rogers Place in 2017 the Fans went crazy, I was able to score a couple of tickets on the bar rail for $450.00 per seat, playoff fever was in the air.

Then Perry held onto Talbots Pad and the rest is history what could have been a spot in the West Final was over.   

Here’s to hoping that someday the Oilers will win the cup, you must keep on believing right.

#Nail Yakupov

Favorite players, it is a big day when you can connect with certain players, some of my favorites include Bobby Orr, Gretzky, and probably a couple of surprises for you Nail Yakupov & Ryan Smyth.

Nail had the great slide down the ice after an overtime win over the Kings in his rookie season, that big smile and enthusiasm really had me hooked.   As a matter of fact, made a special trip in to watch him play his last season in the NHL in Edmonton when he was playing for the Avs, let’s face it after having Eakins for a coach he was never the same.

And then of course Ryan Smyth, we were lucky to be at Ryan’s send off retirement game in at Rexall Place.  The ovation for Ryan went on for probably 30-40 minutes after the game.  I know they say his jersey will never be retired, but that is a tough one heart and soul and he really connected with the community, possibly someday they will honor him in some way.

Other favorites include Derek Sanderson, from the Boston Bruins he was one of the Bruins who would smoke cigarettes all the time, it was just a different league back then, the players weren’t making the big money that they do now.

If you are a superfan you must get out to the Hockey Hall of Fame, and do the tour, get into the Broadcast booth and do play by play check out all the greats.  As well it is a great chance to see all the major trophies.

#The Stanley Cup

The one thing that is the most challenging for most fans to get their heads around is that only one team wins the Stanley Cup every year which means there is 30 losers.

Other fans can really be nasty when you team is losing, I am sure I have heard every Oilers joke under the sun.

If you a believer and a superfan you must keep the faith because one day your team will win it all heck look at the St Louis Blues winning it maybe there is hope for the Leaf’s after all.

It can get frustrating, but can you imagine how sweet it will be when your team wins!! 

It’s going to be magical.

I can’t wait to feel that who knows maybe I will this coming season.  

Keep on believing maybe we can carry Stanley home this year.       

 

#EXSM3989

Keys For Success

Use Video

• Include Graphics eye candy

 • Capture and retain the attention of the audience

• 90% of all information transferred to the brain is visual 

• After 72 hours most people only retain about 10% of what they hear

 • But by using visuals people retain 65% of the information

• This study was done by Brain rules.

Great example of a meme I created. Eye catching and hits home with a solid point and conversation starter.

First impressions are the Key

 • Hook the Audience Create Emotion

• First Impressions are vital most people will only look at your page for a few seconds before moving on 

Beginning Middle and End

• Viewers need closure

• Without Closure the audience can get confused 

Instead of telling Show them

• Let the creativity do the talking 

Other things to consider would be the story must show conflict and go on to how they address the issue.

Include human elements, try to tell the audience what it doesn’t know.

Never lose focus of the message.

A perfect example of Storytelling is to follow the Story Spine

The next time you start a story consider all of these points to have more people responding and engaging in your content.

I decided to do a story on Halloween, there was just so much content that I could find. 

I went on a road trip and started taking pictures, taking you through what most people go through with their families to get ready for one of the Biggest days of the year Halloween.

This year I noticed the decorations and pumpkins started appearing after Thanksgiving, and some really go all out with full displays of whatever is scary.   

In Grande Prairie there are 2 massive warehouse stores both set up and they have every costume imaginable for purchase.

The old favorites are still front and center, as Batman still has a costume out and so does Superman, they really have stood the test of time. 
Masks featuring Chucky, Jason from Friday the 13th Fame, plus all kinds of clown masks and T shirts.

Wherever your imagination takes you I am sure you will be able to find a costume or mask 

Being the city has an average age of 32 Halloween is a Big Deal every year but especially this year, even with the pandemic people feel caged up and want to get out.

I have seen several online polls and I believe it will be busy on the streets with the youngsters gathering up as much candy as they can find.

Some might not be aware of this, but Halloween is a huge economic driver it is one of the largest shopping seasons of the year.

I tried to have fun with this story using humour to help engagement for the overall story, I feel that people have enough pressure right now, I wasn’t into making it too serious.

Enjoy  

 Halloween

Breaking Bad series review

The TV series Breaking Bad the story featured, a chemistry teacher, who found out he had terminal cancer, and wanted to leave his family a nest egg and decided to start a new part-time job on the side as a meth cook.

The entire plot of the series follows the reading materials outlined in our course story spine

If you were faced with similar circumstance would you consider turning to a life of crime to support your family?

Most people get excited about cold hard cash, what would you do if you had 80 Million Dollars?

This is the amount of money that Walter White had stashed away.

Most would retire, travel, buy a business, donate some of it, help family, you get the point.

The overall plot of the show showed the lead charter Walter White turn from a shy unassuming teacher to a killer, who was more motivated by money than everything else.  He would keep saying that he was doing this for his family, but at the end of the series admitted that he liked cooking crystal meth because he was good at and world renowned.

His family was totally in the dark regarding his crime spree until later in the series he kept everything a secret from his wife Skyler and son Walter Jr.

Walter’s, brother in law Hank who worked for the DEA was hot on his trail throughout the series finally catching up to him near the end of season 5. 

In one of the episodes, Walter ended up burying 10 barrels full of cash valued at 80 million dollars in the desert in New Mexico.

Most of us have fears of leaving the planet before we are ready and leaving our families in a tough spot financially and we can relate to this.

He ended up working with one of his former students Jesse who turned into his full-time business partner, they would take on rival drug gangs and have many confrontations over the course of the series.

Jesse was an interesting character, a high school drop out, who cashed in bigtime as a meth cook.

Throughout the series, the life of crime took a toll on him and eventually he made a run for it relocating to Alaska.

Throughout the series Walter developed a major loyalty and friendship for his partner Jesse and would have done everything for him.

In a strange twist at the end, Walter ordered a hit on Jesse but ended up instead of having him killed he saved his life.

The major characters in the story followed the 22-rules-of-storytelling/

The story also had some comical moments to it one episode featured a fly which would have contaminated the lab where the cooking was taking place, and it ground everything to a halt for a full 2 days, as Jesse and Walter tracked down the The Fly.

Also, a highlight for me was when Walter White purchased a new Red Charger for his son, his wife Skyler made him return the car.  On his way back to the dealership he did several doughnuts lighting up the tires he turned into a total badass Walter’s Driving.

The final episode was sad, as Walter said goodbye to his young daughter Holly, he knew that everything had caught up to him, his cancer returned, and he didn’t have long left to live.   

 The final episode featured Walter taking out rival gang members before he was shot, he freed his partner Jesse.

Walter made me feel good at the end he sent a large amount of money through his former business partners to his family through his son Flynn (Walter Jr.).

To wrap it was a wild ride Five memorable seasons filled with every twist and turn imaginable and really it will test a person’s thought process of what would you do if this was you?   # 80 million dollars

Would you consider a life a crime to support your family? # Family Values Breaking Bad wrap up Breaking Bad followed the 5 W’s