Every day you are given the gift of time (OK, so there is never enough of it, I hear ya, but all you can do is make the most out of what you do have). So what are you going to do during that time?
There are so many demands on your time, your To Do list is growing rapidly and there is always a fire to put out. Again, I hear ya. BUT what happens is you become too reactive and not proactive enough. We all spend so much time reacting to things, we never get to being proactive about the important things – the things that will help grow a business.
So let’s set aside some time each day and let’s pick 3 things that will help grow our businesses.
There is no magic pill or fairy dust that produces traffic. But there are a bunch of activities you can engage in that will produce traffic. There ARE 3 things you can do today to help grow your business. Then there are 3 more things tomorrow. The next day you could try doing 3 more things. You get the idea. Daily action puts you a step closer to your goals.
So what are the 3 things you could do? Let me give you some ideas:
1. Check on your exposure in the search engines – there is usually something you can do to boost your SEO efforts. Add content, check for broken links, look at web stats and Webmaster Tools and identify problem areas, build links, ask your SEO firm how you can help (if you’ve outsourced the work) etc.
2. Get active on Facebook. Some ideas:
- a. If you don’t have a Fan Page – get one. (Need help with that? Email me and I’ll get you a quote).
- b. Invite new friends and fans so you can network and connect.
- c. Post to your Fan page and engage fans.
- d. Look into a contest to grow your fan base.
- e. Make sure your Blog, Facebook, Twitter and site are all working well together for maximum benefit.
3. Get active on Twitter:
- a. If you don’t have an account yet, get one started.
- b. Writer tweets and engage your followers.
- c. Connect with industry leaders.
- d. Share content.
- e. Build followers.
Get your free Ebook “How to use Twitter for Business” from Hubspot
4. Build content for your site or Blog. Make it interesting, engaging and be sure you include calls to action.
5. Write a newsletter or email offer for your list.
6. Check your Blog’s backend and be sure it’s properly configured with the right plugins to get maximum benefit.
7. Check your web stats and find areas you can improve your site to increase your bottom line.
8. Check for 404 errors and clean up your site. Not as fun but important none the less.
9. Review Webmaster Tools and see what you can learn to improve the optimization of your site. (Notice I mentioned it in the first suggestion and then slid it in there again? It was worth repeating)
10. Review content and make sure there are no errors, make sure your copy is clean and tight and prepared to sell your site visitors when they enter your site.
11. Test your shopping cart to make sure everything works and is user friendly.
12. Invite Guest Bloggers to add some interest, different perspectives and fresh content to your Blog.
13. Check on your PPC campaigns and see what you can improve.
14. Set up split tests on landing pages to improve results.
15. Find opportunities for you to be a Guest Blogger.
16. Make sure your product feed is working and up to date.
17. Look into mobile search and mobile marketing.
18. Make sure your local listings are all accurate, up to date and optimized for maximum results and exposure.
20. Follow up with leads and prospects (follow up is a key area that most businesses fail)
21. Identify opportunities that you have been too busy to take advantage of and get on it!
22. Get a press release out there.
23. Write an article for syndication (just know the rules and guidelines so this doesn’t end up working against you)
24. Get a video online and promote it like crazy.
25. Check out your competitors and see what you need to do to beat them out.
26. Build links. (Yep, another repeat but again worthy of the repeat)
27. Check out Google+ (ask for an invite if you don’t have one)
28. Add “Like” and “+1” buttons to your site and Blog.
29. Network and comment on Blogs and forums. No spamming allowed. Offer real insight and contribution to the conversation.
30. Plan a webinar or conference call to present to prospects.
31. Create a Whitepaper that people can get after they opt-in and promote via social media to build your list.
32. If you prepare written proposals for clients, look at your template and make sure it’s clean, easy to understand, full of benefits and error free. Your proposal is going to be what either excites them to talk further about doing business with you or it turns them off because it doesn’t look professional or grab their attention.
33. Come up with your own list of items if you think I forgot something. Take it up somewhere in your office so you see it every day and then be sure every single day you pick 3 and take ACTION.
Jennifer Horowitz
@EcomBuffet
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Very Actionable tips… Just a little bit problem wit hthe title that must be 33 Things instead of 3… i guess…
Thanks Moosa. The title is correct, I meant pick 3 out of the 33 to do each day.
What is a white paper?
Garret, a whitepaper is an informational report on a topic – often in PDF format and usually given away for free in exchange for someone joining your mailing list.
Ok. That makes sense. Thanks for answering so quickly!! I am finding this site very useful and active.
I like the last tip of picking three to tackle a day. My boss would probably prefer me to tackle all 33 just in the first part of the day.
Add: Follow some nerds on Google+ ;)
I have tried to be active on Twitter, but just don’t think it is worth the invesment
I found your post really helpful. Thanks for posting such informative content. Keep posting.
Good 101 article. Puts fundamentals back in focus!
Nice article to make a site visible.I am totally agree with all your point.All i want to say is just that please involved your self in Social Media and make your followers engage.Informative sharing is always a worth full act to do,as it will definitely helps to sick more attention what ever information you share via blog post,article submission etc.Always share that comments or post at twitter.That will make you more respectful for your followers.And your every tweet got more priority for them.
Ture come whith you man!)
Great Points Jennifer, Now a days competition gets higher and higher. Branding and awareness is required and engaging the people who are interested in your business sector,share information in a right way and make a record of it. If you have any update than do tweet and share that tweet to your respective followers. I think there is no magic behind it just be specific about your business and go with your end term goals.
I think i was expecting more based on the title, but i hardly find something that i didn’t knew earlier. Though a good article for beginners.
Hello Mahendra that is really great that you have an idea of all the points that is really appreciative.But redefining is still very important.The same
Jennifer had done.
Cool!
brilliant post, i couldnt agree more with these tips, i imagine smaller business’ will be able to make great use of this info. Something to take into consideration is PPC ? It may suit some businesses better as they recieve faster results, and with PPC usually comes a PPC manager.
Other than that great post
Great Info
Great posting! These suggestions are pretty basic but it’s a perfect compilation of techniques that we need to be reminded of so often. I’m thinking it might be a good idea to print out this list and go through the checklist every two weeks or so.
thanks again!
Thanks for this article. When I’m on my way from place to place, I often find myself brainstorming small things I can be doing when I get back home to boost my new business. This list provides some great reminders. Thanks!
thanks for the post. i been practicing all these, though the challenge posed was time management
any tools which help to facilitate?
Nice article, the problem is focus, focus, focus!
Hello
Jennifer…giving out enlightening blog on “33 Things You Can Do To Grow
Your Business Today”. I fully agree with all of your points. I’m
trying to read daily one of you blog and enhance my knowledge with your informative
blogs on useful subjects.Regards,Lily Alex
Must say… it is truly a very informative article… only proper ways of marketing can take business to its zenith
Its really very informative article provided by you.Its very useful to increase sales of your business as well as increase the visibility of your brand.
Nice Article, Worth Reading.
Time – Your Most Valuable Asset
If you lose your savings, you can make more money. But if you waste your time, you cannot get it back. You must learn to INVEST rather than SPEND your time. As a business owner, it is important to plan your time and insure every activity you undertake during your workday is invested in doing something that only YOU can do.
Time – Your Most Valuable Asset
If you lose your savings, you can make more money. But if you waste your time, you cannot get it back. You must learn to INVEST rather than SPEND your time. As a business owner, it is important to plan your time and insure every activity you undertake during your workday is invested in doing something that only YOU can do.
wonderful article – but it needs time and fatigue to perform all these activities. EBIZSUBMIT offers hands to your mind to perform all these activities
After a long days of search, i got your helpfull content about business growth tips..
This is your 33 tips really very helpful for me.
Please give some more idea about inbound marketing and outbound marketing. Anyway thanks to you