Looking for the Digital Marketing 101 seminar, click here to register.

Digital Marketing has grown exponentially the past 10+ years since Mitzi started helping non-profits and small businesses with social media. 

The question at that time was, "Should we do social media?"

Now, the question isn't should, but how. With so many different platforms, apps, and strategies, it is hard to determine where to start and what to do.

However, for all small businesses there are foundational practices in digital marketing that are necessary to establish an online presents. These are the 5 most important areas for businesses to invest to compete online:

• Website
• Google My Business
• Social Media
• SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
• Reviews

In the Digital Marketing 101 Seminar on Thursday September 24, 2020 (10AM-Noon), Mitzi will walk business owners through what every business needs to be doing in digital marketing in the areas listed above. She will also highlight...

Covid-19 has forced the world to go home and go digital. A paradigm shift has occurred in which we are all navigating the best way we know how.

The businesses that have made a pivot or digital native businesses have weathered the Covid-19 storm and are ahead of the curve. Those that were first to market with needed products and services related to Covid-19 are seeing a revenue returns like no other time in history.

I spoke to a entrepreneur in Birmingham yesterday who has worked with several successful startup. He was working on a million dollar second round in the spring when the investor pulled out of the deal. He has used his knowledge of the start up world to pivot to onsite Covid-19 testing technology. He is set to be first to market on this technology and make millions. 

What about the rest of us? What is the next step?

We have weathered the worst of Covid-19 and we are dealing with the aftermath and a divide world and divisive culture.

It is time to reassess...

Inside the Teenage Brain

As some of you may already know, teenagers can be very stubborn. Their psychological thinking process goes so much deeper than it may seem, especially when it comes to buying a product. This can affect how businesses should market their products to teenagers.

Businesses have to be very careful with how they present their product to teenagers if they want sales in this age group. Using the "mom and dad," tactic won't work, for example; If a 14-year-old wanted to begin an Instagram account but their mom won't allow them to, they are going to want it even more. No matter what the mom's reasoning may be, even if it's for their own well being and there is valid evidence of why they shouldn't, the opposite of what teenagers are being told is very alluring.

Teens can be very defiant when it comes to the wants of the "dominant party," such as your business. If you are trying to sell your product to them and use facts to do so, most times will...

How do you attract the teen audience? 

How to market to teens and millennial marketing is an area that many business owners and marketing professionals are asking questions about. The answer starts with going deeper, catch their eye, and keep their attention.

These are the areas addressed in this blog and I will address more strategies in this series of blogs.

Hello, I'm Lydia and this summer I'll be interning for MitziJaneMedia: ) I hope that this will be a very helpful resource for you, enjoy!

To start off, let's talk about the basics of marketing to teenagers online.

Go Deeper

Today's teens have a passion for voicing their opinion and letting their viewpoints be known. Plug yourself into their world and interests. To establish trust and comfort, brands must acknowledge and seek to connect with them as a person. Teens should know that your main objective isn't just to sell your products, but also to discover more about their audience. This is beneficial because the more you...

I had the opportunity to talk with Adam and Nancy Bassett, co-founders of Sweeple Cleaning Service, about their business and how the COVID-19 Pandemic has effected them.

While some businesses are struggling, Sweeple is busier than ever.

Let’s get to know Adam and Nancy a little better.

SPOTLIGHT

Mitzi: Tell me about your business?

Adam & Nancy: Sweeple is a service in Birmingham that provides high-quality, trustworthy cleaning services to residents and business owners in the Metro area. Our business vision is to help our customers clean and sanitize their spaces while providing flexible, high-paying jobs to local UAB students who are experienced in cleaning.

“We help our customers clean and sanitize their spaces while providing flexible, high-paying jobs to local UAB students who are experienced in cleaning.”

Mitzi: How are you marking sure your employees are not infecting the homes and offices that are going into to clean?

Adam & Nancy: Prior to the...

My heart has been breaking for small business owners since Covid-19 shuttered most in March. This has been compounded by recent riots that have literally destroyed many small businesses as they were starting to reopen. 

The PPP, grants, and loans have been a lifesaver to many small businesses, but money does not replace the loss of relationships and customers that being closed for two or more months and new safety protocols have caused.

Five things to keep in mind about small business owners:

1. They are human. Behind every business is a human with a life and with feelings.

2. They struggle to make ends meet. The majority of small business owners are not wealthy people that have a business on the side to become more wealthy. Most are running businesses that make minimal profits after paying for inventory, supplies, rent, employees, taxes, healthcare, SSI, insurance, etc..., (the list goes on). Most pay themselves last, if any.

3. They want to support their...

The Covid-19 crisis has shut down many companies around the world permanently and temporarily. Over the next months, many small businesses will be reopening to a totally different market climate. How a small business chooses to reopen will greatly matter to their brand image, their employee and customer's safety and the future of the company.

Although essential businesses have remained open, they have been required to do business very differently to protect their employees, vendors, and customers. 

As we seek to reopen our business, we have examples of how essential businesses have been effective at communicating a paradigm shift in how they deliver their products and services to guide us.

Before you create your communication plans, please keep in mind that people are experiencing and responding to this crisis in unique ways. Others may be experiencing this very differently than you are. Your guiding factors in how to respond and communicate should not only be based on your...

Many of us are practicing social distancing or directed quarantine due to the Coronavirus/Covid-19. The quick paradigm shift of working from home can be challenging. However, the tools to transition from office to home should be easy to implement for your team and simple for your vendors and customers to access. 

Two months ago, I begin working from my very own office. I spent 8 years working remotely. Here are 5 of my favorite tools that were foundational for me or my clients to work remotely. 

1. Zoom

I have used Zoom for online meetings, webinars, and MasterMind groups for years. The app is easy to set up on a computer and create and send out invitations for meetings. It is also easy for the people you invited to attend the meetings from their phone or computer.

Zoom has the option for muting audio or video. There is a free version and several options for businesses and organizations with many upgrades for webinars and large online events.

...