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What is “CRM” and why does your business need it? You could get lost in all of the information available online concerning CRM systems so we are going to break it down for you. Simply put, Customer Relationship Management is using data analysis to help you understand (and communicate with) your customers better and more efficiently. Collecting vast amounts of data on current (and potential) clients is absolutely useless unless you have a way of converting the data into profits!

Customer Relationship Management has been a piece of business culture since the 1970’s. Throughout the 90’s & 2000’s it has evolved immensely with the advancement of technology and our social obsession with being “connected” to everyone & everything 24-7. Research over time has shown that just a 5% increase in customer retention increases lifetime profits of companies across multiple industries by 50%. Since most companies are in business to generate profits, having a CRM system that works for you is essential.

WHAT DOES A CRM ACTUALLY DO?

• Collects & analyzes data from customers
• Shows companies the needs of their target audience
• Allows companies to make better decisions in order to retain customers
• Studying customers behaviors & habits is a good way to create marketing strategies
• Uses customer profiles to target them for future marketing campaigns
• Maintains relationships with current, happy customers who will most likely maintain Brand Loyalty when a new product comes out
• Helps sales people do their jobs quicker & faster by automated actions
• Data analysis is proactive in problem solving
• Keeps businesses connected throughout the life cycle with a customer
• Handles repetitive processes
• Expands customer base
• Enhances sales & support teams
• Information is easily accessible in one place for different departments
• Instant snapshot of past, present & future relationships with customers

When searching for the best CRM system that matches your needs, you will need to figure out what exactly you’re trying to assess and outline what your goals are. We recommend mapping out what the path looks like, along with a flow, so you can make a more informed decision. Depending on your business needs, there are apps you can download to your phone, as well more a complex integrated system. Some interact with you Website and how people are using it, they have api’s that work with your site’s forms, email systems and other sales tools you may be using. Some have all of those feature built into their solution and others can be custom built. CRM systems really run the gamut, and are priced accordingly. Geolocation technology is also available which creates campaigns based on your physical location & may integrate with location-based GPS apps.

ZAPIER.COM identifies four main types of CRM software.

1. Conversation CRM – Built off customer conversations (email / phone)
2. Leads & Deals CRM – Tracks leads which hopefully turn into deals
3. Contact CRM – All contact info pertaining to your customer (birthday, position etc.)
4. Marketing CRM – Traits of the other CRM’s listed above with automated next steps in each process

ACTIVECAMPAIGN.COM identifies three types of CRM

1. Operational – Automated sales & marketing data on each customer’s journey with the company
2. Analytical – Identifies patterns by analyzing data to make better future decisions
3. Collaborative – Organizes and shares customer information with internal & external partners 

TECHTARGET.COM  identifies three types of CRM Automation

1. Marketing Automation – Handles different tasks in the lifecycle of a customer
2. Sales Force Automation – Tracks interaction with a customer
3. Contact Center Automation – Reduces repetitive action (pre-recorded audio / info for problem solving)

“We recently transitioned  a large client from one CRM system to another due to cost concerns. After a lot of research we found that SharpSpring was the right tool for our client’s needs, says Founder and Managing Director of The Karlyn Group; Amy Zucchi-Justice. The marketing automation feature allows the client to set up trigger campaigns that pushes a prospect through a marketing funnel until they become a customer. Before switching to a CRM system, this task would have taken hours to be performed by hand by an in-house marketing team.

Customer Relationship Management can be an extremely valuable tool in the growth of your business when used properly. With all of the options available today, there is a CRM system out there for every type of company big or small, it just takes a little research. Don’t have time to research the CRM that will ultimately increase your profits? Contact The Karlyn Group and we will find the CRM system that’s right for you!

The Karlyn Group is a full-service marketing & sales firm that is available to assess your business and growth needs. Whether you need guidance with social media, event planning, marketing & branding or website design & development, we will customize a plan to bring your business to the next level! Check out some of our work and contact us to set up a free consultation.

info@karlyngroup.com

#karlyn101 #crmsystems #marketingsolutions #customerexperience

Customers being able to recognize your brand is called Brand Awareness. PERIOD. Sounds simple enough but there are many ways to establish your brand in the marketplace and this post will focus on attending or hosting an event. Events are one of the best ways to connect with current customers and potential new ones. Brand Awareness builds trust and a loyal following – people like products they feel safe and familiar with. By showcasing your product or service at an event you are not only building Brand Awareness but also aligning yourself with other brands in the industry. Meeting people face to face is the best way to build relationships, and the first step in gaining TRUST. Whether it be answering questions, swapping ‘war’ stories about your industry or just a casual discussion, the benefits of face to face interaction is priceless.

The first step to promoting your business at an event is figuring out what event idea fits best with your brand. Should you sign up as a vendor at an established event, host your own event, or present as a speaker? Whichever you decide – the goal of Event Branding is to put your business in the spotlight while creating a relationship with your target audience. The importance of Event Branding is to engage the consumer, offer them an experience, educate them, and show them the “personality” of your company.

WAYS TO INCREASE BRAND AWARENESS AT AN EVENT

• Storytelling – History of the company (the good/bad/ugly) or how your service has benefitted a customer (people like honesty and stories they can relate to)
• Benefits – Offer discounts or free products for sharing the event (photos, collect emails for future coupons)
• Word of Mouth – Since WOM is the #1 referral for people to search or purchase something online, offer discounts or samples to people who refer a friend & to the friend who contacts you at a later date (referrals add a level of trust and doesn’t cost you a dime)
• Customer Comfort – Offer items in your booth that are welcoming – free water, snacks, a charging station (people remember little things)
• Create an experience – Depending on your product, offer interactive displays, goodie bag, free items with company name on it (people remember engaging activities)

EVENT IDEAS TO CREATE BRAND AWARENESS

• Collaborate with non-competing brands – to host an event (share event costs & resources)
• Collaborate WITH competing brands – to host an event (local restaurants offer sidewalk samples etc.)
• Host a workshop event – Teach people knowledge & skills relating to your business (consider bringing a client so the audience can relate & it is less of a sales pitch)
• Host a fundraising event – Raise money for a charity that relates to your brand
• Lecture / Celebrity event – Hire professionals who can offer solutions & educate in relation to your brand
• Host a holiday event – Educate people on your product & offer discounts

Engagement Marketing, Experiential Marketing, Event Marketing, Participation Marketing… all mean the same thing. A live one on one interaction that allows consumers to connect with brands which in turn builds Brand Awareness. The options are endless as to what type of events you can attend or host yourself. If hosting an event seems overwhelming, there are plenty of options for outsourcing pieces or specific parts of the process.

The Karlyn Group is a full service marketing & sales firm that is available to assess your business and growth needs. Whether you need guidance with social media, event planning, marketing & branding or website design & development, we will customize a plan to bring your business to the next level! Check out some of our work and contact us to set up a free consultation.

#karlyn101 #eventmanagement #eventmarketing #buildingyourbrand

“What time is it?” is one of the most popular questions that has a variety of answers. Time to go to work, to lunch, the gym, a meeting, catch the train, meet a deadline – the options are endless as to what you have to do next and when. Building your company’s social media presence online is just another area of your life where TIME definitely matters!

Numerous companies have spent hours researching the social media engagement of millions of active user accounts over a variety of on-line platforms. The data and metrics collected can be mind boggling & a little confusing if you’re new to the game. All networks are different and while you want to get your content to every corner of the globe, there are different ways and times you should do it. Don’t try to be everywhere – follow some basic guidelines and then research what works best for your business!

We have compiled a brief list of the most popular sites & when they get the most engagement from their users.  Remember to keep your content relevant, your topics focused to your audience, and don’t be afraid to show a little personality. People LIKE when they can relate to a topic but more-so when it sounds like it is coming from a trusted reliable source!

TWITTER: Over 300 million active monthly users

• Posts with a picture get more engagement (1-3 #hastags)
• Lunch time between 11am – 1pm during the typical work week (Monday-Friday)
• Wednesdays have the highest engagement
• Weekends are the lowest engagement (people are enjoying their time off work)

INSTAGRAM: Over 500 million active users daily

• 11-15 hashtags get the best visibility (you can have up to 30)
• Lunch time between 11am-1pm & 7pm-9pm after work (Monday, Wednesday Thursday)
• Wednesdays have the highest engagement
• Weekends are lowest engagement (Saturday afternoon engagement for fun activities)

FACEBOOK: Over 2 billion monthly active users worldwide

• #hashtags on FB are used but not as popular since a lot of accounts are private
• Post during work hours 1p-4pm (people are bored at work & it’s probably open on their desktop computer)
• Sundays have the highest engagement (checking out what everyone else is up to)
• Tuesdays have the lowest engagement

LINKEDIN: Over 250 million monthly active users

• #hashtags aren’t as effective as on other platforms but using 5-6 is acceptable
• 10am – noon (Tuesday – Thursday)
• Wednesdays have highest engagement
• Worst times to post are after work hours and weekends

PINTEREST: Over 250 million monthly active users

• 4 #hashtags when posting – no more than 20
• 8pm-11pm during the week
• Post all day Saturday & Sunday (people love hobby related stuff on the weekends)
• Worst times to post are during work hours during the week

YOUTUBE: Over 150 million monthly active users

• #hashtags are gaining popularity on YOUTUBE so don’t use too many
• 12pm-4pm during the week so video will be indexed when people want to watch at night
• Post Saturday & Sunday morning
• Highest engagement is on the weekends

Depending on the day of the week and time of day, higher engagement times differ for each platform. Experiment to see what works best for your audience, keep in mind the time zone where the majority of your customers are located, and even sneak a peak at your competitors sites to see what times are working for them.

Still not certain what time it is? Let The Karlyn Group–a full service marketing & sales firm assess your business needs. Whether you need guidance with social media, marketing & branding or website design & development, we will customize a plan to bring your business to the next level! Check out some of our work and contact us to set up a free consultation.

info@karlyngroup.com

#karlyn101 #socialmedia101 #socialmediastrategy

I’ll be the first to admit that I didn’t expect reading “IN TOUCH” magazine would spark an idea for a Social Media article. I purchased this and a few other gossip magazines while waiting to board a flight to NYC with my 14-year-old niece. I figured this should keep her occupied on the plane for five hours since this is what teens like these days right?

Turns out I was more interested in the information I found between the glossy pages than she was. One article alone made my $4.99 investment on IN TOUCH magazine worth every penny. The article was a summary of random statistics from 2018. Not your typical boring, complicated stats, but pretty & fun and EASY to comprehend.

MOST TWEETED ABOUT 2018: K Pop band called BTS. What’s K POP? Who is BTS? If your target audience for your business is teens/young adults then you need to know who and what this is. Go to their twitter and engage with some of their followers…

MOST LIKED TWEET 2018: A tweet sent out by yup you guessed it – the K POP band called BTS…

MOST BINGED SHOW ON NETFLIX 2018: On My Block (teen audience)

MOST WATCHED MOVIE ON NETFLIX 2018: The Kissing Booth – A romantic comedy for young adults.

Am I the only one noticing the trend here??

MOST STREAMED ON SPOTIFY: Drake who had 12 billboard top 10 hits in less than 12 months for male artist & Ariana Grande for female artist with her huge hit “Thank U, Next”. How can this information help you? If you are creating music of similar genre to theirs, start engaging with THEIR Twitter and Instagram followers. Again, if your company creates products for this target audience engage, engage, engage!

MOST VIEWS ON YOUTUBE 2018: Luis Fonsi’s “Despacito” video was viewed more than 6 billion times which happens to also be THE most popular clip on YOUTUBE ever. Is his audience similar to your audience? Hmmmmm?

MOST LIKED INSTAGRAM POST OF 2018: The Instagram Egg. When Kylie Jenner introduced her baby Stormi she had over 18 million likes which was the most liked post on Instagram at the time.  You’re not interested in the Kardashians or their babies? That’s OK, stay with me… Chris Godfrey a British Advertising Creator came up with the idea for The Instagram Egg. You can check it out on Instagram @world_record_egg and see for yourself how The Instagram Egg not only beat out Kylie Jenner’s post with over 53 million likes, but it also turned into the most liked online post on any social website IN HISTORY. Still not interested? When Godfry posted the initial egg he said in his post “Let’s set a world record together and get the most liked post on Instagram. Beating the current world record held by Kylie Jenner (18 million)! We got this” That alone probably caught people’s interest right there. Even though Kylie has a HUGE following, there are also plenty of people that aren’t interested her life. Chris Godfrey caught the attention of THE WORLD and he had a goal. In the posts that followed he posted other egg pictures and one had some cracks. He’s now established a huge audience for his message which most of us thought was just a funny egg to knock Kylie off the world record. He had a few more egg posts and then the big reveal to his now over 9 million followers: “Recently I’ve started to crack, the pressure of social media is getting to me. If you’re struggling too, talk to someone.”

The Creator of The Instagram Egg then posts talkingegg.info which takes you to a website that has useful mental health links for organizations and help lines in over 50 countries. PURE GENIUS.

Gossip magazines may not be for everyone, but the point is you can gather information from just about anywhere to help grow your business.

Now you can’t stop reading the newsstand mags? Let The Karlyn Group–a full service marketing & sales firm assess your business needs. Whether you need guidance with social media, marketing & branding or website design & development, we will customize a plan to bring your business to the next level! Check out some of our work and contact us to set up a free consultation.

info@karlyngroup.com

#karlyn101

Every time you turn around there’s a #. Maybe you saw someone walking down the street and their tee-shirt said #coffee. Perhaps you saw a cute picture of a dog online and a caption under it said #doglife. You’re seeing the good old fashioned ‘tic-tac-toe’ board taking over society and you want to know what’s up. You need to know what’s up because one little #hashtag can change the life of your business!

You can spend hours reading statistics online concerning the importance of adding a #hashtag to your social media posts. We definitely recommend you do that to figure out what process and outlets work best for you, but for now here are the basics to get you started.

PURPOSE OF #HASTAGS

• Engages your audience
• Sparks conversations
• Makes your content visible to people interested in what you’re offering
• Builds your brand

 

TIPS IN USING #HASHTAGS

• BE RELEVANT to your business
• BE RELEVANT to the topic
• BE RELEVANT to current trends
• BE RELEVANT to the day of the week
• BE RELEVANT to the platform you are using (Twitter 1-2 #, Instagram 11+ #)

 

HOW TO PICK A #HASHTAG

• Search pages you like to see what #hashtag they use
• Look at Influencer & Experts’ #hashtags that are relevant to your topic
• Check out Hashtagify.me for all kinds of stats & search for keywords (fee)
• Sign up for Ritetag.com & see instant #hashtag suggestions based on real time data (free with limited options)
• Create a Tagboard account & see how your #hashtag is used across multiple networks (fee)

 

POPULAR #HASHTAG IDEAS FOR THE WEEK

• #mondaymotivation #mondayfunday #mondayblues
• #traveltuesday #tiptuesday #transformationtuesday
• #wednesdaywisdom #workoutwednesday #humpday
• #TBT #thankfulthursday #thirstythursday
• #followfriday #fridayfact #TGIF
• #saturdayshoutout #saturdayswag
• #startupsunday #sundayfunday #sundayreads

 

Adding #hashtags to your posts make you more noticeable, but it is also a creative fun way to help you expand your thinking about your current business. Remember to keep your #hashtags RELEVANT to your topic & take the time to research and engage in #hashtags that relate to your company. Don’t feel like sitting on-line for hours a day staring at #####?

Let The Karlyn Group–a full service marketing & sales firm assess your business needs. Whether you need guidance with social media, marketing & branding or website design & development, we will customize a plan to bring your business to the next level! Check out some of our work and contact us to set up a free consultation.

Your small business is growing, you’re making money, your website looks professional, so let’s take a break! No! This is the time to expand your brand and grow grow grow! Lots of successful businesses are guilty of not using all their options to bring in even MORE business. Including us! When you’re always working on projects or filling orders it’s easy to get content and neglect your social presence. You don’t think about ways to expand and perhaps you think you don’t have TIME to build a social media following.

How do you figure out which outlet is best for you? How do you stand out in a very crowded space where everyone else seems established with hundreds or thousands of followers?

Quick basics to figure out your social media goals:

WHO is your target audience for your service or product?

WHAT kind of content can you offer them on social media?

WHERE does your audience spend their time online (what sites)?

WHEN (and how often) should you engage with your online audience?

WHY should people follow you?

HOW are you going to turn these followers into customers & clients?

Quick summary of the most popular sites:

 FACEBOOK hit your current contacts, good for online business’

INSTAGRAM fastest growing network, #hashtags for topics

TWITTER communication in real time, current issues & trends

LINKEDIN connect with corporate clients, share expertise

PINTEREST content is searchable & lives forever

YOUTUBE video blogs & “how to” channels

SNAPCHAT engage a younger demographic (18-24) with short videos vanish after 24 hours

Social media has over 3 billion users and that number grows daily. Doesn’t your business deserve a piece of the action? The name of the game with social media is engage the audience with relevant content & turn the lead into a satisfied customer! With proper research and dedication every business can grow with social media.

Sitting online for hours a day building a following isn’t practical when you are launching or running a business.  Let The Karlyn Group assess your social needs and figure out what channels would be the most effective for your company.

About the Karlyn Group
Whether you need guidance with social media, marketing & branding or website design & development, we will customize a plan to bring your business to the next level! Check out some of our work and contact us to set up a free consultation.