Bridget Willard | SaaS Marketing Agency

Author: Bridget Willard

Why San Antonio Businesses Should Bother With The X Platform (Twitter)
While talking with a friend a few months back, raving about my research into how many people might be using Twitter here in Alamo City she said,

“But Bridget, why would any San Antonio Business bother with Twitter?”

To that, I replied, “How much time do you have?” (I have a tendency to launch into TEDTalks.)

She wasn’t questioning my reasoning – she believes in the power of Twiter for small businesses. After all, that is precisely how we met back in 2015. As a former resident of San Antonio, she says, “San Antonio is the biggest small town you’ll ever know. Everything here is a handshake and who you know.”

To me, that reinforces why a small business in San Antonio should use Twitter. Either, you’re part of that “it’s who you know” club and you can use Twitter to amplify the word-of-mouth you already have, or you’re new to San Antonio and you need to stand out to even be competitive.

“Twitter offers a different model however to YouTube and Facebook but it still has enormous potential to support a thriving and innovative ecosystem of users, business and media outlets and to enable them to engage in discussion on topics relevant and important to them.” (Curran et al) (1)

How Many People Move to San Antonio Every Year?

As of March 1, 2020, Census data reports that 1,434,625 people live in San Antonio. It’s the 7th largest city in the US. Yes. We are in the top 10 and that’s part of the reason why I moved here and started by LLC here (I was previously freelancing). I wanted to live in a city, not a suburb, and enjoy my quiet, walkable Southtown Life for the rest of my days. (Yep, I even got a Texas tattoo!)

“Greater San Antonio is a region of choice. Military, blue collar, white collar, hikers, bikers, students, foodies, animal lovers, tech-heads — people from all walks — love living here.” greater:SATX

Whether people grew up here in Texas or were based here during their Military career, people love San Antonio and even move here from other counties in Texas. According to a 2020 KENS5 article, 66 people move to San Antonio every day. That means that approximately 24,000 people move to San Antonio every year. That’s a lot of people! We’re projected to add another million to our population by 2040.

“The San Antonio area is now home to more than 1.5 million people and the city’s population is projected to add 1 million more by 2040.” TPR

How Many Businesses are in San Antonio?

There are 117,546 businesses in San Antonio, and 44,295 of those are women-owned according to Census data. (You go, girl!) That tells us that about 8% of the population owns a business here in San Antonio.

So, if 8% of the population are business owners, and 24,000 people move here every year, it’s reasonable to say about 1,920 new businesses are coming to San Antonio every year. When you count the surrounding area, it could be much higher. According to greater:SATX’s Q3 2021 report for Bexar County (pronounced “bear”), 34% of the businesses here have 1-4 employees. Thirty-four percent! WOW!

“San Antonio and Bexar County are home to approximately 34,000 small businesses and approximately 145,000 sole proprietorships. These small businesses and sole proprietors account for 34% of the local workforce.“ COSA

How will you compete when you’re the new business in Alamo City?

Will you rely upon word-of-mouth, Meetups, Billboards, or Instagram to build your business in San Antonio? Those are all fine. And, of course, you should join the Chamber of Commerce. We have 4-6 chambers of commerce here in San Antonio. I’m part of the North SA Chamber along with Rhonda Negard of Fat Dog Creatives – another San Antonio business that relocated here.

But when you consider the time and effort needed to grow your brand awareness, Twitter is the best tool for small business owners – hands down. Well, right next to your website. (You have a website, right?)

My real estate client in Phoenix had doubts about shifting our marketing budget from Facebook to Twitter – until he saw the numbers. By the way, I wrote a case study about that. Would you like 600 people to see your Facebook post or 4,000 people to see your tweet?

To me the answer is clear.

Do People in San Antonio Even Tweet?

Yes, people in San Antonio tweet. Ever seen the news here? The anchors have Twitter accounts, they even show screenshots of tweets on the news. Even Spurs Coyote tweets. Rhonda Negard uses Twitter because of emergencies as well. Admittedly, she is my friend and a Twitter convert.

During the freeze of 2021, I was live Tweeting about the boil water notice (I was watching the meeting on Facebook). She heard about it from me a good hour before SAWS tweeted.

Back on Topic – Do People Tweet in San Antonio?

Yes, people in San Antonio tweet. Have I said that enough yet? In my article, “How Many People Tweet in San Antonio,” I came up with these answers.
- Approximately 255,296 adults in San Antonio use Twitter.
- Approximately 329,264 adults in Bexar County use Twitter.
- Approximately 383,538 adults in the Tri-County area use Twitter.
According to HubSpot, the average Twitter user follows five businesses. That seems low to me, but let’s accept that number as truth. Why shouldn’t your business be one of those five? Why would you deny yourself the opportunity to engage with a quarter of a million people who follow brands on Twitter?

“Twitter is an undeniably powerful platform to increase your business’s online reach. The average Twitter user follows five businesses, and 80% of all Twitter users have mentioned a brand in a Tweet.” HubSpot

Okay, fine, Bridget. I get it. How will anyone even notice me?

How Do You Cut Through the Noise and Get Noticed in San Antonio?

The best way to cut through the noise on Twitter and get noticed in San Antonio is to do three things:
1. Create Twitter lists and engage with those people.
2. Follow and use hashtags like #SATX, #AlamoCity, #SouthtownSATX, etc.
3. Reply to Tweets. The Retweet Button is lazy. I said what I said.
I have a simple 3-2-1 plan for Twitter.

Every day log into Twitter during the morning.
- Follow 3 new people (and list them).
- Reply to 2 tweets.
- Write 1 original tweet.
If you want to level up, do that after lunch, too. You should be able to do this consistently in 15 to 20 minutes each day. You get faster at it. Believe me. You will. Then you’ll write me a letter telling me how much it changed your life. Or you’ll send a tweet. Or write a LinkedIn Recommendation.

“Bridget’s Twitter coaching has been transformational.

I used to use Facebook exclusively and avoided Twitter at all costs. After a single session with Bridget, I understood exactly how to wrangle Twitter and make it work for my business.

Now Twitter is a key part of my social media marketing. I’m building relationships and growing my online visibility. I even, I dare say, prefer it to Facebook somedays!

If you’ve ever wondered how to get more out of your existing social media presence, reach out to Bridget. She is a wealth of knowledge and practical experience.” Jocelyn Mozak, deceased

The only way Bridget Willard, LLC can compete as a marketing agency in the 7th largest city in America is because of Twitter and the relationships I built with people before I moved here and since I moved here.

“Twitter provides a platform for businesses to see what customers really feel about their own brand and also their competitors and in near real time. In addition to this Twitter allows businesses to connect directly in near real time with customers, which gives them the opportunity to build and enhance customer relationships. More businesses are using Twitter as a research, marketing and customer support tool.” (Curran et al) (1)

Are You Ready to Learn Twiter for Your Business, San Antonio?

If you’re ready to learn (or re-learn) Twitter, I have a free course, right here on my website that goes step-by-step. It will not only show you how to use Twitter but the WHY behind the HOW – which is often not taught.

Once you’re finished with that, you may appreciate my short book, “The Definitive Guide to Twitter Marketing (I Double Dog Dare You To Try It)” available on Amazon.

Once you start using Twitter, follow me. I would love to get to know you.

Article Citation
1. Curran, Kevin & O’Hara, Kevin & O’Brien, Sean. (2011). The Role of Twitter in the World of Business. IJBDCN. 7. 1-15. 10.4018/jbdcn.2011070101.
March 20, 2022
How To Use Launch With Words to Pitch and Build Roofing Contractor Websites
If you’re wondering how to niche down in your website development business, why not go after roofing contractor websites? Launch With Words is the perfect companion.

* Become a Launch With Words Affiliate and earn 20% commissions.

Roofing Contractor Websites – The Riches are in the Niches

If you google roofer marketing, you’ll likely come across a few ads but the number one agency for integrated marketing for roofers (at the time of this post was Roofer Marketers. (They were acquired by JobNimbus in 2022.) Brian, Jim, and the team there are amazing and they do a great job in their PPC-based website builds. I used to write for them.

Core and More Technologies also offers integrated marketing including website builds, social media, CRMs, and PPC.

Certainly, these two companies have been successful by targeting a specific demographic: roofing contractors.

According to IBIS World, there are over 100,000 roofing contractors in the United States alone. If those two companies have even a 25% market share, that leaves 75,000 roofing contractors who need basic, functional websites that inform, sell, and convert. That’s a big market share waiting for you. Yes, you.

Why Build Roofing Contractor Websites in WordPress?

Simply speaking, 500 WordPress websites are built every day, according to research done by Austin-based WPEngine. WordPress isn’t going away and is one of the best platforms to build upon – especially for small businesses like roofing contractors.

What is Launch With Words and Why Does Blogging Matter?

The Premium Pack for Roofing Contractors has twelve fully-written blog posts following SEO best practices. These are not boring, fluff pieces. They’re meant to answer frequently asked questions by consumers looking for roofing repair and reroofs.

These blog posts, when scheduled regularly, give Google the cadence they’re looking for (SEO) to show that your client’s roofing company is in business and has engaging contact. Your client will say that their “website works.”

The roofing articles are imported as drafts. Backdate one of the posts and schedule the balance for the next eleven months. Boom, a year of content is done. Or, backdate one article, and schedule the balance of the roofing contractor blog posts for the next eleven weeks. Launch the site with words. Get it? Launch With Words! How you schedule those drafts is up to you.

That aggressive publishing schedule post-launch will give the new website quite a lift and your agency 10 weeks to get some more content written and published on that site – all under the SEO budget for your monthly maintenance contract. (You have a maintenance contract, right?)

Launch With Words is similar to Private Label Rights (PLR) content. However, all of the tedious work is done for you with Launch With Words. No copy/paste. No reformatting. No finding outbound links — that are not competitors.

Each article is formatted and once you import the pack, each article is on the WordPress website as a draft. It’s not an RSS feed. It’s not syndication. You now own the content. Customize the content or leave it as is. It’s up to you. The difference between the definition of traditional PLR from The Balance is that the

Launch With Words articles are written to be specifically generic. No revisions are needed.

“You don’t have to blog for long to know that coming up with new ideas is difficult. PLR content provides you with ideas and the basics of an article. All you have to do is revise.” The Balance Small Business

Who Wrote the Launch With Words Roofing Articles?

I wrote the content. I did not outsource the writing of the roofing contractor content pack. I’ve been writing about roofing and construction for the last 22 years. I started working with roofers in 2000 and eventually moved to a general contractor. I left the construction industry in 2015 to work for an advertising agency that specialized in the franchise industry.

Why do I include my resume? Because the franchise industry uses syndicated content on their multisite installations all day long. They don’t worry about duplicate content issues. Do you know why? It doesn’t matter as much as we think. Duplicate content isn’t their issue; no content is.

Get to the Point. How Does Launch With Words Help Me Sell Roofing Contractor Sites?

So Mike Demo, formerly from Codeable, gave a talk about how to make $125,000 by selling $500 sites every business day. You could definitely do that with roofing contractors. Then again, you can also offer a $950 website as a value-add and for price anchoring (psychology FTW). This puts you in a league of your own.

As far as I know, no agencies are doing this with content that scales the way private label rights (PLR) content does. The big agencies do this with the franchise industry every day of the week. And they pay a pretty penny for it, too. Or is it a pretty hundy? Or Maybe a pretty bitcoin? But you get the point.

Okay so here are the four steps to making money with Launch With Words.
1. Find Roofing Contractors who don’t have a website. Searching on Google Maps is a great way to do this as I demonstrate in this video. Mike Demo recommends being part of your Chamber of Commerce or BNI networking group as the roofing web person.
2. Pitch them a $950 site. How? You’re the one who builds websites. Butch Ewing does a great job in his video. Maybe that will inspire you.
3. Buy the Launch With Words Roofing Pack for $497. It comes with a home and about page template. Wait. What? Yes! Fill in the blanks (no waiting for clients to give you content).
4. Build the site in a couple of hours.
Here’s A Breakdown of the Math!

$950 – 497 = $453 profit.

Rinse and repeat. If you did 3 sites, you would make $1,359 in profit.

Or buy the unlimited site license of $2,000.

Build 3 sites.

$950 x 3 = $2,850 less $2000 for the licence = $850 in profit.

The fourth website is $950 in profit. The fifth is also $950 in profit.

The total profit for the four websites is $1,800. Profit for five websites is $2,750.

To put it another way, if you build ten of these sites and purchase the roofing contractor pack separately, you can make a profit of $4,530. That’s not bad for ten quick websites. Imagine if you did that every month!

However, if you purchase the multisite license, ten websites will yield a profit of $7,500. That’s a pretty penny. Makes you kind of want to niche down in the roofing industry, right?

Bonus: Put them on a maintenance contract and charge for hosting and content. Use affiliate hosting links the way Mike Demo recommends and then gain that revenue as well.

https://twitter.com/mpmike/status/1481786200214097924

Are You Ready to Make Money With Launch With Words?

What are you waiting for? Go find some roofing contractors in your local community who need websites. It’s a win-win-win. You get a client, they get a website, and I get a sale. They make money, you make money, I make money. Boom. Done. Get it.

*Not a tax advisor. Obviously, there are additional costs to running a business and building websites. But you get the idea.

Launch With Words. Because that’s what works.
January 17, 2022
Why It’s Important to Be Part of Your Local Community – Even the Press

So I’ve lived here in San Antonio for just over a year now and have been featured in two articles by San Antonio Magazines. Why? I’m convinced it is because of my active and local presence in the online and offline community. And when I say “presence,” I mean this: I interact with the local community online. This means I comment on posts from businesses on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and, of course, Twitter.

I’m also a member of quite a few local community groups on Facebook. This is all very helpful when the press wants to reach out for a story. They have deadlines, too.

So why should you be part of your local community and take advantage of seemingly fluff pieces and press opportunities?

San Antonio Report’s Where I Live Series

Shortly before Fiesta happened here in 2021 (scheduled for June last year), I was contacted through Instagram by the San Antonio Report. They have a series called “Where I Live” that talks about the different neighborhoods here in Alamo City. Of course, since I live in Lavaca, that wasn’t covered yet. Right place. Right time.

Bridget Willard moved to San Antonio from California last summer. In her Lavaca neighborhood, she feels like she's finally home. https://t.co/7kyqmHXZ0B
— San Antonio Report (@SAReport) May 1, 2021

That article was published on May 1, 2021, and I love that I had just put up my Fiesta banner for the balcony photo!

“The Where I Live series aims to showcase our diverse city and region by spotlighting its many vibrant neighborhoods. Each week a local resident invites us over and lets us in on what makes their neighborhood special. Have we been to your neighborhood yet? Get in touch to share your story.” San Antonio Report

Voyage’s Inspiring Stories Series

Back in April of 2021, I was contacted by Stephanie Rodriguez of Voyage LA to be part of their Inspiring Stories features. I mentioned that I moved to San Antonio and then was contacted Camila Sanchez in December. That article was published on January 5, 2022.

Is it an in-depth piece from a local news station? No. And by the way, most of those news interviews are paid promotions. Personal branding and brand awareness for your company don’t come cheaply, so take advantage of these types of media opportunities when you can.

Below are five tips on how to be a good subject for a press or podcast interview.

Tip 1 – Try Not to Copy/Paste Your Same Boring Story

Each press interview is different. Some will call and interview over the phone like the San Antonio Report did. Voyage sent me a link to answer questions. Sure, I’ve answered “my story” questions before like for Cloudways, WPFounders, and a ton of video podcasts. It would be easy to copy and paste from a Google Doc. But we evolve, our story evolves, and the questions are different. Cutting and pasting answers will be really boring. That’s the opposite of interesting.

When you have an opportunity for an interview by the press – especially in your local community – localize your answers as much as possible.

For example, The San Antonio Report asked me why I chose my neighborhood. This is an opportunity for me to name-drop my favorite Mexican Restaurant.

“I chose to live in Lavaca because of its walkability and proximity to Rosario’s. While on vacation, I went to Rosario’s after a suggestion from Google maps based on a restaurant I liked in California, and it did not disappoint. The Griselda’s tacos are amazing – so good I knew I had to live nearby so I could visit often. I like that I can go sit at the bar and have lunch and some drinks, chat with the bartenders, and watch some football.“

The Voyage chose to ask me about my struggle as a business owner – which I am always happy to talk about. That’s always an opportunity for an interesting answer.

“There have been tears. Many tears. And I have a therapist to work through these things as well as a few close friends in the business. You can’t control what happens within a client’s internal structure. You can’t convince them to believe in Twitter. What you can do, is understand yourself.” Bridget Willard

Tip 2 – Be Helpful, Be Available, and Be Interesting

Back in the day when I worked in construction, I signed up on HARO (Help a Reporter Out) to be a source. I may do that again. I should do that again. The point is that being a helpful, available, and interesting source in your local community will only increase press inquiries. It also doesn’t hurt your brand awareness to be listed in the “news” section of a Google Search. I’m personally working on that as well. (Twitter won’t verify your account unless you’re “noteworthy.” Apparently, I’m not “noteworthy” enough.)

Making friends with the press isn’t a bad thing. Join your local Chamber, attend volunteer and ribbon-cutting events. Have distinct opinions that make you a good interview – and this can also go for podcasting. But that would be another topic. If you don’t have an opinion, there’s nothing to talk about. I used to joke with my friend Jen Miller about how our show was a bit boring since we agree too often – except for the Oxford Comma. (Don’t even get me started. Or her. HA!)

It's Wreaths Across America Day! Yesterday, some of our NSAC team and Ambassadors volunteered for Wreaths Across America & placed wreaths for veterans. Thank you, Ambassadors, and Happy Holidays! #holiday #volunteer #veteran pic.twitter.com/vGkQ4wjnMc
— North San Antonio Chamber (@NorthSAChamber) December 18, 2021

Tip 3 – Recommend Other Sources for Local Interviews

It could be said that this is a side tip for Tip 2. Be helpful by recommending other people the press can interview. For Voyage, I recommended Fat Dog Creatives and Zen, Sweat and Cheers. For San Antonio Report, I’ve made suggestions for “Where I Work” and introductions through email. I’ve also done with this when I see podcasters looking for guests. Suggest other people, they’ll always be happy to invite you as well. Whichever order it comes, be helpful.

Tip 4 – Ensure You Have Background Info At the Ready

Whether it’s an official Press Kit or an up-to-date bio in the third person on your website, be sure to have background info at the ready. Most press interviews – and podcasts – will want your official headshot, additional interesting photos, as well as short or long bios. It’s much easier and reads more consistently across the internet if you’re using the same language and style. This is where copy/paste works well for you.

Tip 5 – Good Interviewees Share Their Interviews On Social Media

If you want to be a good interviewee (or a good podcast guest) then you’ll want to share those interviews online. And not just once, either. Keep sharing those links. Do it in different ways. Mix up the share with quotes, not just headlines. Write a blog post linking to that show (or those like I’m doing now). As altruistic as we all want to believe we are, reaching out to guests is a way of extending our brand. Why wouldn’t it be the same with the local community press?

The meandering of my career has culminated in finding my niche, using my passion to fuel my why, and building my legacy.https://t.co/KpSvtU3djj #SATX #Marketing
— Bridget Willard (@BridgetMWillard) January 6, 2022

Bridget Willard: The Hospitality In Social Media Marketing https://t.co/TvHWRkTU83 via @mattlevenhagen
— Bridget Willard (@BridgetMWillard) January 8, 2022

How Will You Be Part of Your Local Community and Press in 2022?

How much you want to be found online depends upon you. Twitter, interviews, organic backlinks, name dropping is all part of your long-term goals of brand recognition. I started my first Twitter account in 2007. All of this didn’t happen overnight. So how will you start the ball rolling?

January 8, 2022
How Many People Use The X Platform (Twitter) in San Antonio?
Since I’ve moved to San Antonio in 2020, I’ve been following and talking to businesses here. Actually, I’ve been managing Rhonda Negard’s Twitter account since before I moved. I’m always building Twitter Lists for local businesses, so my heart has been in Alamo City for quite a while. But I digress.

As I talk to business owners and local folks, I’ve been quite surprised at how few businesses use Twitter here in San Antonio or believe it to be useful in their marketing stack.

So I thought I would do a bit of digging to see what the potential audience is for those in San Antonio on Twitter. I used Census data and information from Pew Research.

So, How Many People Use Twitter in San Antonio?

According to the Census, 1,547,253 people live in San Antonio, Texas, 25% of which are under the age of 18. That leaves 1,160,439 adults.

Pew Research shows that 22% of American adults use Twitter.

It’s reasonable, then, to project that 255,296 adults in San Antonio use Twitter.

How Many People Use Twitter in San Antonio? from Bridget Willard

Why Should I Care About Twitter Users?

Twitter users are a different demographic. People who choose Twitter are slightly different than other social media users, according to Pew Research. They spend time on Twitter to read and engage. They’re learning, researching. They are looking to make connections. I have had the same experience managing client Twitter accounts since 2009.

You don’t have to care about Twitter. But you should ask yourself if you care about that demographic. Can your business afford to not reach 250,000 people who are highly educated with a higher income than the US population at large? Can your San Antonio business afford to ignore the social media users who believe in true diversity and inclusion?

“The analysis indicates that the 22% of American adults who use Twitter are representative of the broader population in certain ways, but not others. Twitter users are younger, more likely to identify as Democrats, more highly educated and have higher incomes than U.S. adults overall. Twitter users also differ from the broader population on some key social issues. For instance, Twitter users are somewhat more likely to say that immigrants strengthen rather than weaken the country and to see evidence of racial and gender-based inequalities in society. But on other subjects, the views of Twitter users are not dramatically different from those expressed by all U.S. adults.” Pew Research

Do You Think 250k People are Tweeting in San Antonio?

Of course not. That’s only an estimate based upon the Census data available to us and Pew Research’s 22%. Thanks to privacy laws, it’s not entirely possible to know how many people in San Antonio have Twitter accounts, or how many are duplicated (I have three accounts myself).

About 10% of people (users) create most (80%) of the tweets. However, that doesn’t mean that people aren’t looking at Twitter.

People see screenshots of tweets in text messages, on Facebook, and on Instagram. It’s also possible to view tweets in a Google search, as well as hear and see tweets read aloud on talk radio, sports radio, network, and cable TV, and so on.

According to this site that reports real-time data, San Antonio is Number 10 in cities that tweet at the time of this writing (December 15, 2021, at 1:57 PM Central Time). There are more tweets here right now than in Austin or San Diego. Houston and Dallas are a bit ahead of us.

How Many People Tweet in Austin, Houston, or Dallas?

If we keep the 22% of adults number who tweet, we can easily compare these numbers to other cities in Texas by their census data. San Antonio is only second to Houston.

How Many People Tweet in the Greater San Antonio Area?

The Greater San Antonio area comprised of Bexar, Comal, and Guadalupe County has a population of about 2.3 million people. Of those, 1.7 million are adults, and likey there are 383,538 people in the Greater San Antonio Area who tweet. That’s a lot of eyeballs not seeing your business on Twitter.

Who Tweets in San Antonio?

Almost every part of the government, including utilities, museums, universities, big companies, and news stations and anchors use Twitter. Other people who tweet are small businesses, social media & marketing folks, podcasters & gamers, as well as politicians & realtors.

Do a few hashtag searches and you’re bound to find some folks to follow and engage with. With this SparkToro audience, the top three accounts people are engaged with include Keep SA Real, SA Tomorrow, and Liberty Bar.

It’s interesting that the most engaging podcast is Making it Up as I Go, City of San Antonio YouTube Channel, and My SA as far as news goes.

SparkToro’s Listing of Top Twitter Accounts that Talk about San Antonio

Top 20 Accounts to Follow in San Antonio, TX
Is there a Hashtag for San Antonio?

Yes of course there are local hashtags for San Antonio. The hashtag I most commonly use for San Antonio is #SATX. Though, I use #SomosSATX sometimes. People also use #SanAntonio, #GoSpursGo, #Spurs, #UTSA, and #KSATNews.

According to SparkToro’s database, 1,293 people in the Greater San Antonio Area use the #SATX hashtag. That shows plenty of opportunities since 380,000 adults are estimated to use Twitter here.

What does that mean for you or your business?

It means you have a huge potential to grow your audience on social and help your SEO efforts.

Are You Ready to Learn Twitter?

The numbers speak for themselves and your San Antonio-based business should be using Twitter in its marketing efforts. So the only question is: are you ready to learn Twitter?

Along with my book on Amazon, I have a free Twitter course for small businesses. So there’s no reason not to start learning to use Twitter for your small business today.

What do you have to lose?

More Links
December 15, 2021
Bridget’s 10 Commandments of Marketing for Success in 2022 and Beyond
Well, the new year is approaching and you’re probably already thinking of ways you can optimize your business for 2022 and beyond. Much of optimizing your business comes down to not neglecting marketing. Double negatives, I know. But if there are business sins, then maybe there are some commandments as well. Let’s reinforce the positive.

*No actual clients are shamed or targeted in this article. All data in my brain comes from years of marketing consulting, teaching, and managing client accounts.

Without Further Ado, Bridget’s Ten Commandments of Marketing
- You shall have a business plan.
- You shall choose a niche.
- You shall have marketing goals.
- You shall not compare your goals to a competitor.
- You shall stay focused.
- You shall have a website.
- You shall send email marketing campaigns.
- You shall choose at least one social media platform.
- You shall provide context for metrics.
- You shall trust your marketing team.
Marketing Commandment 1 – You shall have a business plan.

Having a business plan isn’t a “nice-to-have,” as Warren Laine-Naida would put it. It’s a must-have. Your business plan doesn’t have to be in a gold-embellished, leather binder. But it needs to exist. The plan will be used as your decision-making guide.

Should you start a TikTok account?

Answer: how does it support your business plan?

Should you hire another developer?

Answer: how does it support your business plan?

Do you need a business plan as a solopreneur?

As solopreneurs, we probably should have a formal business plan. It depends upon how focused you are and how much you remember. Another consideration is how you want your business to live on should something happen to you. The business plan allows another person to keep your business going.

Honestly, at the time of the writing, I don’t have a formal business plan. With that said, the SBA has several templates available as Word Docs (which I just uploaded to my Google Drive) so we can all get our paperwork-act together.

“A good business plan guides you through each stage of starting and managing your business. You’ll use your business plan as a roadmap for how to structure, run, and grow your new business. It’s a way to think through the key elements of your business.” SBA.gov

Marketing Commandment 2 – You shall choose a niche.

If everyone is your customer, no one is your customer. It’s not good enough to want “more sales,” or “more clients,” or “more money.” If you don’t have a niche or a specialization, your marketing will be unfocused – at best. It’ll be way too easy to run after any opportunity instead of the right one for you.

I was just talking to a friend about my hair stylist’s Instagram Account: Hair By Frank. He’s fantastic, local, gives great cuts, styles, and – of course, color. You won’t see photos of my hair anytime soon on his account, though. Why? Because though he takes clients like me who need to color their gray hair, he specializes in balayage.

Market for the customer you want; not the ones you may have.

In my case, I have a client who is a real estate professional. The messaging on my website isn’t necessarily directed toward that client. It doesn’t mean that I don’t take the client – we can all make our own decisions. It means we write the copy on our website, blogs, and social profiles, to attract the industry we want. All tech? Maybe just FinTech. All small businesses? Maybe just WordPress Plugins.

“By aligning your products or services perfectly with a small group of current and potential customers, you encourage word of mouth and positive reviews which can carry your business into a larger, potentially more profitable market.” HubSpot

Marketing Commandment 3 – You shall have marketing goals.

Marketing goals are so important. Why are you posting on Twitter? What do you want out of that TikTok video? If you don’t have a goal, you won’t know the best way to achieve it. Duh, Bridget.

Seriously, though. It’s easy to listen to experts who say you should focus on a certain age group (that’s not a persona) and, therefore, [insert trending platform here]. Your marketing goals should be tied to your business goals.

That marketing flywheel is more efficient in the long run than your funnels. Attract. Engage. Delight. When done right, the marketing flywheel becomes self-perpetuating. Wonderful. You still need marketing goals. I prefer to have quarterly goals. Most marketing efforts need at least three months to start showing a lift.
- Q1 Business Goal 2022: Increase signups by 40%.
- Q1 2022 Marketing Goal: Increase Twitter Profile Visits by 10%
- Supporting Tactic: Increase Tweets to 3x a day from 1x a day.
Marketing Commandment 4 – You shall not compare your goals to a competitor.

This is the biggest sin in all of business marketing. You have no idea what their business goals are. You don’t know their marketing budget. You don’t understand their office politics. It’s possible that the CEO isn’t taking the CMO’s advice. It’s possible that the company is throwing money at growth marketing to please their VC firms.

One of the biggest marketing sins is presuming that your competitor is a) your competitor, b) is on equal footing as you, and c) is profitable.

Many businesses purposely run low-profit margins to avoid tax liability.

Compare your marketing efforts to a) your marketing goals which should support b) your business goals.

Marketing Commandment 5 – You shall stay focused.

Lemmings – all following one another jumping off the TikTok cliff. I’m not against TikTok by any means. If you have the time to produce videos, go live, and engage with your audience do it – if it supports your business goals.

I know for a fact that small business owners can get away with spending 10 minutes a day on Twitter. Can you produce a video in ten minutes and upload it to TikTok? No? How much time? How often do you have to post? Can you hire an intern? How will you compare success? Did you optimize your TikTok bio so that your profile link goes to your website or store?

It’s okay to have a few marketing goals. It’s fun to experiment. But getting sidetracked instead of sticking with your marketing goals is where I see business owners die on the road of the distracted squirrel, chasing the newest shiny object. Marketing isn’t ideas. Marketing is consistent, focused work, over time.

Marketing Commandment 6 – You shall have a website.

A website is a valuable piece of marketing collateral. You want it to be clean, easy-to-read – especially on mobile devices, and easy to navigate. Facebook is not a website. Instagram is not a website. You need to own your website and keep it up-to-date.

From WordPress.com to WIX to Squarespace, your business has options. My own website is built in WordPress, hosted on SiteDistrict, and uses * theme, which Rhonda Negard used for a child theme. It’s achievable.

You need a home page, about page, and contact page. Bonus points for blogging once a month. If you need some free blogging prompts, consider downloading and installing the free Starter Pack for Launch With Words. I talk more about what you need for your website build in this blog post.

*Affiliate link. , I get a small fee. Thanks.

Marketing Commandment 7 – You shall send email marketing campaigns.

Email marketing campaigns are so important. I know. Everything is important. But these people on your segmented lists actually want to hear from you. It’s almost reassuring. It’s true that I sometimes delete the emails without reading them. But 9/10 I read the email. Why? Because it speaks to my needs as a business owner. Because I know he’s not full of crap. Because I trust him as a business owner.

I struggle to send email marketing campaigns regularly. That has more to do with my internal doubt than the value I provide. So, do it anyway.

Marketing Commandment 8 – You shall choose at least one social media platform.

Claim all of your profiles. Seriously. I’m looking at you San Antonio, TX. Get that Twitter account. I know many businesses in Alamo City are resistant to Twitter. Don’t be. (Also, I have a free course.) But I digress.

Go claim all of your accounts: LinkedIn Company Page, Facebook Company Page, Instagram, Twitter, Google’s Business Profile, TikTok, Snapchat, and even Reddit if you must. Sidenote: Reddit is great for Cannabiz.

With that said, Marketing Commandment number 8 is to choose at least one social media platform and be active. If you want to add platforms, then add one per quarter. It takes time to find your voice and, as the small business owner, you have to put the time in yourself if you don’t have the budget to go full bore with a vendor or employee.

Marketing Commandment 9 – You shall provide context for metrics.

Metrics by themselves are misleading at best. Metrics are a snapshot of a period of time – in the past. They only give clues to your marketing behavior in the past. If you schedule your tweets to be sent every day at 9:00 AM, the best time to send a tweet will be daily at 9:00 AM. If you only use Yelp as a digital marketing platform, then your best source of leads will be Yelp.

This sounds so obvious and, perhaps, a bit demeaning, but I don’t mean it to sound this way. This dependency on Google Analytics as an oracle from God is amazing to me.

A past client didn’t think the website was working because people called her.

The question we asked was this:

“How did they find your phone number.”

All data needs context. All metrics need a story. And none of them work independently of one another. Email Marketing helps Twitter engagement. LinkedIn helps website views. Billboards help Facebook Ads work.

Marketing Commandment 10 – You shall trust your marketing team.

Once you settle on an expert that you partner with or hire, it’s vital that you trust them. Clear communication, setting expectations, and benchmarking goals are important factors in a successful relationship with your marketing professional.

Going from consultant to consulting and rapidly switching tactics and strategy as fast as Tina Turner changes costumes at a concert (dating myself big time) is going to steal your momentum, confuse your audience, and deplete your marketing budget.

What’s the Call to Action, Bridget?

The call to action is to act. Start the business plan. Map out your quarterly goals. Keep a journal of your thoughts and record your results. Email me. I’m happy to hear your thoughts.

I need a Marketing Consultation. Are you available?

Yes, I make time available Tuesday through Thursday for paid marketing consultations. You can
December 10, 2021