Author: Franz Malten Buemann

Your value proposition is the core of your competitive advantage. It clearly articulates why someone would want to buy from your company instead of a competitor.
It’s also one of the most important conversion factors (learn all about conversion best practices with this free guide). A great value proposition could be the difference between losing a sale — and closing it.
So how do you actually write a value proposition that’s strong enough to lift conversion rates and sales? In this article, you’ll learn the definition of a value proposition, what a value prop isn’t, tactics to create amazing value props, and examples of some of the best value props we’ve seen.
Ready to dive in?

Your value proposition is a unique identifier for your business. Without it, buyers won’t have a reason to purchase what you sell. They may even patronize a competitor simply because that business communicates its value proposition clearly in its marketing materials and sales process.
While your value prop should help differentiate you from the rest of the industry, keep in mind it’s not a slogan, tagline, or mission statement. Those types of copy are important accessories to your brand, but your potential customers and employees don’t choose one business over the other solely based on these elements.
Your value proposition goes deep into the problems you want to solve for buyers, and what makes your product or service the perfect solution.
The Elements of a Value Proposition
There are three main elements of a value proposition: the headline, the subheadline, and a visual element.

Headline
The headline of your value proposition describes the benefit the customer will receive as a result of making a purchase from your business. The headline can be creative and catchy, but it should be clear and concise first and foremost.
Subheadline or Paragraph
The subheadline or paragraph should explain in detail what your company offers, who it serves, and why. In this section, you can elaborate on the information in the headline.
Visual Element
In some cases, a video, infographic, or image may convey your value proposition better than words alone can. Enhance your message with these visual elements to capture your audience’s attention.
Step 1: Identify your customer’s main problem.
While this will require some upfront research, you can get a head start on this aspect of the value proposition by speaking with different members of your team. Customer service reps, marketing specialists, and salespeople can fill in the gaps about what problems your customers are looking to solve by using your product or service.
For example, let’s say your business sells tax software on a subscription basis and automated templates are included in the software package. Your ideal customer is looking for an affordable and user-friendly way to access complicated tax documents for their business. In this example, your business’s offerings could be the solution they need.
Step 2: Identify all the benefits your products offer.
This step can be as simple as listing out every product you sell and describing its benefit. The benefit should be concise and focused on a single customer need.
In our tax software example, you’d list each tax template, explain the benefit it provides, and why a customer would need it.
Step 3: Describe what makes these benefits valuable.
Next, add another sentence that explains why this benefit matters to the customer.
Using the same example above, the value would be that customers have affordable tax documentation at their fingertips — something that would normally cost them thousands of dollars.
Step 4: Connect this value to your buyer’s problem.
Next, pair the buyer’s problem to the elements that make your product or service valuable. Do they align? If so, you’re ready to refine your value proposition to differentiate your offerings from the competition. If they don’t align, repeat the steps above until you find a valid buyer need and a viable solution your business offers to meet that need.
Step 5: Differentiate yourself as the preferred provider of this value.
Finally, polish your value proposition to make it unique. Is there a specific customer service offering your business provides that others don’t? Do you offer any additional services that other companies charge for? These elements can help differentiate your value proposition from competitors while keeping the focus on the buyer’s needs.

1. Conduct research to determine the value proposition of your competitors.
Because your value proposition is the differentiating factor between your business and the competition, it’s important to research the propositions of your closest competitors. You can use the value proposition canvas below to determine how each company meets the needs of your buyer persona.
Be honest here — it’s tempting to focus on the areas in which your competition doesn’t excel, but you’ll have a better idea of where your product or service fits within the market if you key in on your competitors’ strengths.
2. Explain the value of your products and services.
You’re probably familiar with outlining the features and benefits of your product and service offerings. This tactic takes that concept a step further. By matching the benefits of your offerings to specific values that your customers have, you’ll be able to align what your business provides with what your customers need.
3. Describe the benefits your ideal customer will experience when they choose your product or service over the competition.
When crafting this part of your value proposition, include details about how your product or service will benefit the customer and use examples where you can. Videos, photos, and live demonstrations are all effective ways to illustrate your value proposition because they show the customer exactly what they can expect from your business.
4. Develop a unique value proposition for each buyer persona you serve.
Ideally, you’ll be focusing your marketing efforts on a specific target audience. You’ll also find that this audience will have different needs based on their buying behaviors. Buyer personas can help you segment your larger audience into groups of customers with similar desires, goals, pain points, and buying behaviors. As a result, you’ll need a unique value proposition for each persona. Different products and services you offer may solve certain customer pain points better than others, so developing a value proposition for each persona will better serve each one.
5. Test your value proposition with your audience using various marketing channels.
Each of these tactics will likely be developed internally by your team which means you’ll want to validate your work with your target audience. Your value proposition will be communicated through various marketing channels like your website, social media accounts, video, audio, and in person. Test your proposition with members of your audience (both existing customers and non-customers) using each of these channels. Tools like UserTesting can help you streamline this feedback process so that you can implement changes quickly to finalize your value proposition.
What makes a good value proposition?
Clear Language
Your value proposition should aim to address a primary customer need. This limited focus helps keep your value proposition clear and easy to understand. With just one main idea to comprehend, your audience will be able to quickly decide whether or not your product or service will be the best solution for them.
Specific Outcomes
Next, you’ll want to communicate the specific outcomes your customer can expect to receive from your product or service. Will they save time? Demonstrate how. Will their workflow become more manageable? Show a before and after workflow diagram. The specific outcomes will be critical components of your value proposition as they’ll exemplify exactly how your customers will use your solution to solve their problems.
Points of Differentiation
Not only are your potential customers evaluating your business’s offerings based on their own needs, but they’re also comparing what you offer against competitors. As a result, your value proposition will need to include detailed points of differentiation. These key points will help customers understand exactly what sets your company apart.

The value proposition canvas is made up of two major components: the customer profile and the value map.

Customer Profile
The customer profile makes up the first half of the value proposition canvas. When performing this exercise you’ll want to start with this section first so that their wants and needs can influence the overall value proposition canvas.
The customer profile consists of three areas that we’ll detail below.
Customer Jobs
What is the task your customer needs to complete or the problem they’re trying to solve with your product or service? The answer to this question sums up the “customer job” or the purpose of your product or service in the eyes of the customer.
Gains
No matter what you sell, your ideal customer will have an expectation of what that product or service will do for them. In this section, you’ll use research to explain what your customers expect from you in order to purchase your product.
Pains
As your customer completes their “customer job”, what pains do they experience? Do they take any risks while they do the customer’s job? Do they experience any negative emotions? These pain points should be considered so that you include the most helpful products and services on the value map side of the value proposition canvas.
Value Map
In this section of the value proposition canvas, three specific sectors help describe what the business offers to the customer.
Gain Creators
These are features your products or services have that make the customer happy. Think creatively about the elements of happiness your customers experience. Consider their financial and social goals as well as their psychographics.
Pain Relievers
In the section above, we discussed customer pains. This section will define exactly how your business will help them overcome those pain points.
Products and services
While this section won’t list every single product or service your company offers, it should include the ones that will create the most gain and alleviate the most pains for your customers.
Determine Value Proposition-Customer Fit
Once you’ve completed the value proposition canvas exercise, the next step will be to determine how your value proposition fits with the customer profile. To do this, you’ll use a ranking process that prioritizes products and services based on how well they address the customer profile.
The Best Value Proposition Examples
Because value propositions are typically internal information and rarely stated verbatim publicly, finding a value proposition example to model yours after can be difficult. We’ve taken the liberty of using the value proposition canvas and applying it to some successful companies that have been recognized by the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ASCI).
In these examples, you’ll see real-world instances of customer gains and pains aligned with well-known products and services offered by these companies.
Our Take On FedEx’s Value Proposition:
Headline: Manage Your Home Deliveries
Subheadline/Paragraph: Sending and receiving packages is convenient and safe for individuals who want to ship ideas and innovations across the globe.
Visual Element:

Image Source

Customer Profile for FedEx

Customer Jobs

FedEx customers want to share ideas and innovations with other individuals by shipping goods around the world

Gains

Customers want a hassle-free way to return online orders
Customers are looking for a safe and secure way to receive their packages

Pains

Returning a package at a FedEx shipping center can be inconvenient
Managing home deliveries can be a hassle

 

Value Map for FedEx

Gain Creators

Customers can drop off their FedEx packages at the places they shop most like Walgreens and Dollar General
Customers will have peace of mind knowing where their package is at all times, even when they’re not home

Pain Relievers

Thousands of FedEx drop-off locations across the country
Receive notifications when a package is en route and inform the driver where to leave the package

Products & Services

FedEx Drop Box locations make returning packages convenient
FedEx Delivery Manager reroutes or reschedules deliveries to work with the customer’s schedule

Our Take On LG’s Value Proposition:
Headline: State-of-the-art Living Experience
Subheadline/Paragraph: LG SIGNATURE delivers an innovative product design that creates an exceptional living experience for people who want to achieve a state-of-the-art living experience.
Visual Element:

Image Source

Customer Profile for LG

Customer Jobs

LG customers want simple, yet innovative technology that helps them achieve a state-of-the-art living experience

Gains

Customers have an intuitive and responsive experience with each appliance they interact with inside their home

Pains

There are too many unnecessary buttons and features on appliances that get in the way of a simple living experience

 

Value Map for lg

Gain Creators

Customers can use technology to enhance their home experience without needing to read a manual

Pain Relievers

A simple design that focuses on the user and their lifestyle

Products & Services

LG SIGNATURE delivers an innovative product design that creates an exceptional living experience

Our Take On Subaru’s Value Proposition:
Headline: The most adventurous, most reliable, safest, best Subaru Outback ever.
Subheadline/paragraph: The 2022 Subaru Outback takes drivers to the most adventurous places in style with the most advanced safety technology.
Visual element:

Image Source

Customer Profile for subaru

Customer Jobs

Subaru customers want to explore the world’s most adventurous places in a reliable and safe vehicle.

Gains

Customers want to explore the land in a stylish and spacious SUV
Drivers are looking for advanced technological elements in their vehicles including those that enhance performance and safety

Pains

The safest vehicles are not the most visually appealing
Some SUVs are not equipped for all-weather or all-terrain environments

 

Value Map for Subaru

Gain Creators

Stylish exterior and interior with ample ground clearance that protects the vehicle against damage from the environment
Advanced technology to reduce crashes and make long road trips safer

Pain Relievers

Rugged blacked-out trim for style and protection
9.5-inch ground clearance for better stability and performance
Driver-assist technology that helps drivers see better, prevent crashes, manage cruise control, and brake automatically in emergency situations

Products & Services

2022 Subaru Outback
Standard EyeSight Assist Technology
Automatic Pre-Collision Braking
Adaptive Cruise Control with Lane Centering

Compose a Remarkable Value Proposition
The factors that influence a potential customer to become a loyal customer are limited. Whether your industry has a lot of opportunities to differentiate (like retail) or virtually no unique identifiers (like dairy), you’ll find that a value proposition will help you understand your ideal customer and position your business as the best solution for their needs. Use the tactics, tips, framework, and examples in this post to craft your unique value proposition.
Editor’s note: This post was originally published in June 2018 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.

If you are leaving your job, you’re not alone.
In April 2021 alone, around 4 million people quit their jobs, according to the Bureau of Labour Statistics. That number is the highest recorded since the bureau started recording such rates.
Even though millions quit their jobs every month, we understand that telling your boss that you’re leaving the company is never an easy conversation. A respectful resignation letter can mean the difference between an awkward goodbye and a chance for a long-term professional connection.

Ideally, you’ll provide a resignation letter two weeks before you leave the company. A resignation letter lets you officially announce your termination at the company and also offers essential housekeeping information, like your last day and other details about your departure.
An effective one helps you ensure a positive conversation with your boss and a smooth transition to your next journey.
But how do you write a good resignation letter? What should you include and exclude?

Writing a resignation letter can feel like a daunting task, so we’ve created a professional resignation letter template to get you started and included examples for inspiration.

What do I include in a professional resignation letter?
Writing a professional resignation letter starts with understanding each of its components:
1. Statement of Resignation and End Date
Begin your letter by stating your position at the company. This might seem redundant if you work at a small company and your boss knows you well, but it’s essential to include it since the letter is your official termination. Along with this information should be a simple statement of your resignation. 
Also, providing an end date in the first body paragraph is helpful since that’s one of the first questions your employer is going to have.
Here’s what this first paragraph may look like in practice:
I would like to inform you that I am resigning from my position as [Position Name] for [Company Name], effective [Date].
2. Gratitude
Take the time to consider how you’ve grown or what you’ve appreciated most about your time at the company. Be as specific as possible — perhaps the company provided professional development opportunities, or maybe you’ve enjoyed the climate the company fostered and the supportive atmosphere.
It’s also nice for your employer to receive a thank you for the time and resources they’ve used in supporting your career growth. Here’s an example of what this may look like:
I appreciate the opportunities for professional development that you have provided me over the past two years. I have enjoyed my tenure at [Company Name] and particularly feel honored to have been part of such a supportive team.
If you’d like, you can include where you’re headed next, too. For example, if you’re switching industries to pursue a passion or going to graduate school, it might be appropriate to include that. For example:
I accepted a position as a [New Job Title], and I’m looking forward to [pursuing my passion in X or continuing my work with a focus on Y].
However, if you’re leaving the company for a competitor, it’s better to omit such information.
3. Transition Details
In the third paragraph, mention your willingness to make the transition easier. For example:
If I can be of any help during this transition, please let me know. I am available to help train my replacement and ensure that all my reports are updated before my last day of work.
This sentence might look different for you. But regardless of what you write, it’s good practice to include specific details regarding how you’ll help.
As an optional follow-up paragraph, briefly review the work you’ll be surrendering when you officially leave the company. Although it’s technically your manager’s responsibility to pick this work up and determine how it will continue, it’s helpful to list all the projects and tasks you’ve been in charge of to make the transition even easier on the company in the interim.
If you didn’t serve in a managerial capacity or collaborate with other departments, you could skip this part.
4. Personal Contact Information
This last paragraph is optional and doesn’t need to be included all the time, particularly if you have no desire or need to use your former employer as a reference. However, many candidates choose to maintain their professional networks, so such a closing may look like this:
Thank you again for the opportunity to work at [Company Name]. I wish you all the best and look forward to staying in touch. You can email me at [Email Address].
Professional Resignation Letter Samples
With the above template in mind, let’s look at a few sample resignation letters for different positions, each taking a slightly different but amicable tone to their resignations.
1. Gracious Resignation Letter Sample

2. Brief Resignation Letter Sample

3. Immediate Resignation Letter Sample
While the best way to quit a job is to give at least two week’s notice and offer to help with the transition, sometimes circumstances make that impossible. If you need to leave your job immediately without notice, you need an immediate resignation letter.
Here is a sample that can help you:

Free Professional Resignation Letter Templates

Download the Templates Now
Sometimes the nature of your position merits a more specific letter of resignation when you leave. Below are a couple of templates that help these more dynamic roles make a graceful departure from the company.
1. Contractor Resignation Letter Template
If you work freelance, you might need to adjust the focus of your resignation letter so it addresses your final assignments and how exactly you’ll be parting ways with your client. This includes your current duties, which tasks you won’t complete, and how you’ll accept your final payment.

2. Executive Resignation Letter Template
If you’re in an executive- or senior-level leadership role, a quick email or two-paragraph notice to your superior might not suffice as an official resignation. Because these roles are harder to fill, you might play a more significant role in the transition period — especially since you manage more people and decide on the direction of more projects.
The template below separates the resignation into two sections — the first is the resignation itself, and the second is how (and with whom) the resigner’s work will continue. It is just one of the different templates we have on offer.

Ready to Write Your Resignation Letter?
No matter your role, why you’re leaving it, and who you’re informing, be polite in your resignation letter. Gratitude and support during your departure go a long way with employers, and the last thing you want to do is leave the company on a sour note — even if you’re leaving for sour reasons.
By drawing inspiration from resignation letter samples and templates, you’ll protect your bridges and keep your professional network intact as you start your next adventure.
Editor’s note: This post was originally published in October 2018 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.

Trying to convince people to click on a long, jumbled link is almost as bad as a door-to-door salesman trying to sell people financial services.
If your audience sees a link they perceive to be spammy in one of your social media posts, they’ll do the digital equivalent of slamming the door in your face — scroll past it.
To avoid being perceived as spammy or sloppy when you have a legitimate link to share, check out our list of the best link shorteners that’ll turn your links into clean, consistent, and clickable URLs.

What are the benefits of using link shorteners?
Shortening your links makes them easier to share and track their performance. They’re an excellent choice for business owners, marketers, individuals, and anyone who’d like to post links that are easy to read and remember. 
URL shorteners benefit your brand in several ways:
Shortened links are more user-friendly.
When you post long links on social media, it can look like spam or deter users from clicking on something they don’t recognize. In particular, adding tracking parameters (such as UTM codes) to your links can result in URLs that look long and confusing. Link shorteners can turn spammy-looking links into clear and user-friendly links.
You can track your links’ analytics. 
Many link shorteners let you track your links’ performance and analytics, which can help you understand which pieces of content perform best on specific platforms. Typically, you’ll be able to see the number of people who clicked on the link in a preset amount of time and where most of the clicks are coming from.
You can include shortened URLs in your social posts.  
Every social media network limits the number of characters you can include in your posts. Twitter and LinkedIn have the shortest character limits at 280 and 700 characters, respectively, so if you need to squeeze a link or an extra hashtag in one of your posts, link shorteners can help you stay within the limit.
Shortened links don’t need anchor text. 
Anchor text refers to the word or phrase that’s hyperlinked. Marketers use anchor text to optimize their link and ensure it indicates the content that the link leads to. If you’re adding an URL in a place where you can’t add anchor text (such as in a social post or social media bio), you can opt to shorten the link and include the keyword in the slug. 
Shortened URLs count as backlinks and improve your SEO. 
Because shortened URLs are essentially 301 redirects, they count as backlinks, because they’re still pointing to your website. Using a link shortening service improves your SEO because it gives you the ability to link to your blog posts and pages in more places. 
Convinced? Let’s take a look at the top link shorteners you can use. 
1. Bitly

Image Source
Bitly (sometimes referred to as Bit.ly) is a link shortener platform that features a comprehensive dashboard that displays your links’ performance metrics, such as click-through rates and channel stats. It also shows you the geographic information of the people clicking on your links. 
The tool also offers branded links and has integrations with social media management software (such as HubSpot) to help you seamlessly distribute your shortened links through your social media profiles.
Bitly’s free account offers up to 1,000 unbranded links and link reporting for 30 days, which is ideal for small businesses. Its enterprise plan lets you brand 10,000+ links a month and provides all the data and metrics mentioned above. This subscription tier is best for large businesses that want to brand and track every link in their marketing campaigns.
Best For 
Individuals and small to enterprise businesses. It offers the advantage of being free while also allowing you to add custom slugs, making it ideal for both general and business use.
Pros 

Ability to shorten links without signing up
1,000 shortened links included in free version 
Ability to add 50 custom slugs per month in a free subscription
Good choice for getting started with link shorteners

Cons 

You can only customize the slug once you sign up

Pricing: Free; $29/month (Basic); $199/month (Premium); Custom (Enterprise)
2. Bl.INK

Image Source
As one of the more robust link shorteners out there, Bl.INK offers smart branded links that contain relevant words and not just a random string of characters.
It also provides analytic reports that can track clicks by date, time, language, referrers, device, and location. The tool integrates with web analytic tools like Google Analytics and Adobe.
Bl.INK offers five subscription tiers. Starting at $48 per month, it prices its plans based on the number of links you’d like to create and track.
Best For 
Enterprise businesses with an established link shortening strategy. That way, you can use its wealth of features right away. 
Pros 

Extensive list of features that are ideal for avid link shortening users 
Cheapest subscription offers 10,000 links — triple of what Bitly offers in their lowest subscription
Ability to bulk edit links 

Cons

No option to shorten links without signing up
It only tracks a limited number of clicks (starting at 7,500)

Pricing: $48/month (Expert+); $99/month (SMB); $299/month (Team); $599/month (Business); Custom (Enterprise)
3. Rebrandly

Image Source
Trusted by over 250,000 customers, Rebrandly is a link shortener platform that can brand your links, track their performance metrics, or integrate with over 50 other platforms to seamlessly distribute your links. 
With three plans for individuals and two plans for teams, Rebrandly offers link shortening solutions for small businesses that have a high potential for growth. For instance, its free plan offers 5,000 tracked clicks, 500 branded links, and 5 custom domain names, while its premium plan offers 150,000 branded links, 20 custom domain names, and 1,500,000 tracked clicks for $499 per month. 
Note, however, that some services, such as Bitly, offer unlimited tracked clicks. If you expect to receive a large number of clicks, consider using those services instead. 
Best For 
Small businesses that want to start building a link shortening strategy. Rebrandly’s starting price is low, but its features rival and even exceed those of its top competitors. 
Pros 

Ability to shorten links without signing up
Includes a UTM builder in the free version — Bitly and BLINK do not 
Includes custom URL slugs in the free version 

Cons

No unlimited tracked clicks available 

Pricing: Free;  $29/year (Starter); $69/year (Pro); $499/year (Premium); Custom (Enterprise)
4. Ow.ly

Image Source
Developed by the social media management platform Hootsuite, Ow.ly is a link shortener that’s included in every free Hootsuite account. With Ow.ly, you can distribute your links and track their performance metrics directly in the Hootsuite platform, which allows you to shorten every single link you post to all your social media profiles. Ow.ly is a great option for anyone who already uses Hootsuite as their social media management platform.
The one limitation of this tool is that there’s no information on the features that Ow.ly offers, including the number of tracked clicks. A UTM builder is available within the platform. 
Best For 
Current Hootsuite users or those who are interested in managing their social media presence using Hootsuite. The best part is that it’s free, making it a good choice if you’re just getting started with Hootsuite. 
Pros

Integrated right in the Hootsuite platform 
Ability to see link analytics alongside other social analytics 
UTM builder available within the settings
A natural choice for those who are using Hootsuite 

Cons  

No option to shorten links without signing up
Not a great choice for those who aren’t using Hootsuite; other options offer more robust features

Pricing: Free
5. Linktree

Image Source
Linktree isn’t strictly a URL shortening service. Rather, it’s a service where you add a list of links to a profile (like this one). Instead of listing all of the links you want to promote on every social post or profile, you add them to your Linktree. You then add the Linktree URL to your social bios.  
This tool is ideal for platforms such as Instagram, where you can add only one link to your profile. The best part is that Linktree offers a short and user-friendly URL structure (e.g. linktr.ee/yourname) so that it looks and feels like a shortened link. You won’t have to clutter your Instagram profile with a long and spammy-looking URL. 
It also offers analytics that allow you to see which links get clicked on the most and how much traffic your Linktree profile is getting. 
Best For
Avid Instagram users who want to keep all of their links in one place. It offers analytics as well, so you could potentially use it for business and marketing purposes.
Pros

Allows you to keep unlimited links in one place 
Short and user-friendly profile link is easy to remember 
Best choice for Instagram users

Cons 

Not a good fit if you’re trying to shorten individual links 
Free version doesn’t allow you to see detailed analytics 
Wouldn’t count as a backlink, while a traditional shortened link would 

Pricing: Free; $6/month (Pro); Custom (Enterprise)
6. TinyURL

TinyURL is a free link shortening platform that’s perfect for users who want to shorten links every once in a while.
Using TinyURL is simple. All you have to do is go to TinyURL.com and follow the instructions. You can quickly fill in the link you want a short URL for and add a custom alias. If no one uses your alias, the link you will get will look something like “tinyurl.com/alias.” Once you fill in the URL information and press submit, you can rename, edit, and share the URL.
Don’t be tricked by the tool’s simplicity: It also allows you to track key metrics and analytics for your links after you sign up for a free account. Even if you only use it for a one-time project, you can track the success of the campaign with ease. The one limitation is that it only allows you to keep one active TinyURL at a time unless you upgrade to a paid subscription. 
Best For 
Hobbyists who want to shorten links only once in a while. Because of its emphasis on its plug-in-and-go link shortener, it’s a much better fit for you if you’re planning to trim one link at a time and use it for a short while. 
Pros 

One of the easiest link shorteners in this list, with an emphasis in its plug-in-and-go tool 
Includes analytics in case you want to track clicks and performance  
Allows you to establish a custom slug right away — Bitly only lets you when you sign up 

Cons 

Only allows you to keep one active TinyURL at a time on the free version

Pricing: Free; $9.99/month (Pro); $99/month (Bulk 100K)
7. Tiny.CC

Tiny.CC is another free link shortener that allows you to create temporary short links by simply pasting your long link into a text box and pressing Shorten. Like TinyURL, you can also customize the slug.
If you register or become a paid subscriber, you can have non-expiring links and edit URLs later. If you’re a free user, the link will eventually expire and you cannot edit them once they’re generated. While it’s the most limited tool in this list, it’s also the easiest to use. 
It has the added benefit of having a short domain name.  Consider the difference between “TinyURL.com/example” and “Tiny.CC/example.” While the character count might not be so different, the shortened URL from Tiny.CC looks a lot more concise and trim. 
Best For
Quick and easy one-time link shortening. If you’re interested in more robust features, you can upgrade to one of Tiny.CC’s premium plans.  
Pros

The easiest link shortener in this list — simply plug in and go
Ability to customize the slug without needing to sign in 
Paid options start at a cheaper price point ($5 versus Rebrandly’s $29, as an example)
Easy option for quick link shortening

Cons

The free tool is much more limited in scope and features than other options 

Pricing: Free; $5/month (Basic); $25/month (Business); $44/month (Pro); Custom (Enterprise) 
After you master shortening your URLs, you might also want to look into a similar process of creating QR codes, which acts like a shortcut to your website — but from print materials instead. 
Navigating Link Shorteners
If you have to share a few ginormous links, there’s no harm in shortening them because the process is quick and simple. Aside from being easier to look at, shortened links can also be helpful for print ads, physical signage, or places where you can’t link to another site.
There is a handful of free or affordable link shortening websites out there. But you might be wondering which to choose. To help you, we’ll leave you with a few quick tips. 

If you don’t use website analytics software, you might want to use a link-shortener that includes basic stats like page views and clicks to measure your traffic. 
If you want to customize your link, choose a shortener that allows you to edit the URL slugs. All of the options on the list allow you to do that, but some, like Bitly, require you to sign up for an account first. 
Branded shortened links look and perform better than unbranded shortened links. Rebrandly and Bitly are two of the best options to brand your shortened links. 
Use Tiny.CC and TinyURL for quick link shortening. They don’t require you to sign up and allow you to edit the slug in one simple step. 
You won’t be able to transfer a link from one link shortener to another, so choose one wisely. 
If you’re looking for the cheapest premium option, Tiny.CC starts at $5 monthly and offers comparable features to more expensive options. 

Use an URL Shortener to Drive More Referral Traffic 
Link shorteners allow you to place a link on places with limited character count and space. By using a URL shortener, you can ensure your site is visible on all of the platforms you’re on, boosting referral traffic and increasing leads from your marketing efforts. 
Editor’s note: This post was originally published in January 2019 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.

DevOps has been a growing topic in the community, especially since Salesforce announced they were working on the DevOps Center last year, but there’s already a new kid on the block—AppOps.  In this post I’ll attempt to explain what each is, the key differences between them, and how you can
The post AppOps: NextGen DevOps Built for Admins appeared first on Automation Champion.

You have a list. You have a boatload of engaged readers. You have the tools to send out great emails. But there’s still something missing that’s not generating the engagement you wanted.
59% of marketers say email marketing provides their best ROI. If that’s not the case for you, it may be time to zoom out and see what’s wrong. 
How can you get back to the email marketing best practices that generate the kind of excitement you had when you first created your list? Here are a few ideas.
From now on, start split-testing everything you send out
You’re probably already familiar with split testing. It means sending out different variations of the same email to see which gets the better response.
For example, you might isolate the email subject. Same exact emails, different subject lines. 
Which one gets a higher open rate? Which one generates more sales? That’s the style to use on your next campaign.
But here’s the thing. You can apply the same testing principles to anything in your campaign.
At Campaign Monitor, we’ve even been known to split test entire templates. In one case, we saw a click-through-rate increase of 127% from that change alone.
Split-testing is a great way to get back to basics. Consider:

39% of companies don’t split-test your emails. Start this habit and you’re immediately in the top 61%.

Split-testing makes each email campaign a constant learning process. Even if you don’t get engagement from your current campaign, a split test might give you insights to carry to the next.
You’ll learn about your subscribers’ preferences. Do they respond to a coupon code more often than a personalized subject line? Do they want contests? Valuable information? Do they open an email more often when it’s “from the CEO” or from your entire brand?

What’s more, A/B testing will introduce you to more email campaign best practices.
At Campaign Monitor, we’ve learned…
…personal subject lines get higher open rates.
…for nonprofits, demonstrating impact is critical in driving engagement. (See below).

Source
…CTAs should differ depending on your industry and sales stage.
Chances are, there are some additional best practices unique to your industry. And you can only learn them if you start split testing.
To hook your audience, start telling them a story
Split testing is important. But if you lose touch with why people sign up to your newsletter in the first place, you can slowly drift away from your core message.
The solution: remember the story you want to tell.
Here’s an example from parkrun:

Source
Notice it only takes a couple of paragraphs to figure out what they’re all about. They tell their “zero to hero” story in the span of a few sentences as soon as you sign up.
Email marketing software like ours is important. It will get your message out there. But remember it’s just the template. 
You have to fill in that template with the human side of your story.
Don’t forget to include an element of intrigue or mystery in your story. Think of the great opening lines in the history of literature. They hook you right off the bat with a little bit of mystery. 
Call me Ishmael. Why not “My name is Ishmael”? What’s Ishmael hiding, anyway? We have to read more to find out.
In your emails, the same principle is at work. The two most important sentences you’ll write are the subject line and the opening sentence.
Take the time to consider the best way to hook your readers. Want some tips to make this work? Consider the open loops technique. 
In essence, the open loops technique means starting your email with an element of mystery. One study even says that we get feelings of anxiety when there’s a disparity between what we know and information we don’t know, but want to know.
What’s the little bit of intrigue and storytelling you can incorporate into your next subject line? Your first sentence? Keep trying until you’re certain it will intrigue your readers.
Write a “welcome” email with personality
We’re talking about best practices here, so let’s continue with one of the foundations: writing a good “welcome” email.
This refers to the email your readers receive upon confirming their subscription. There are two essential elements every “welcome” email should contain:

A personal note. You can get super-casual here, or you can simply thank them for signing up. Either way, let them know there’s a human on the other end of the inbox.

A description of what they’re about to receive. Remind them what they signed up for. Below, look how Monica Vinader’s newsletter reminds them why they signed up, then directs people to a CTA:

Source
Think of your “welcome” email as free real estate. It’s an opportunity to engage, personalize, and direct to a CTA. Why not make full use of it?
You can also incorporate a re-engagement newsletter for people who haven’t responded in a while. Check out how Morning Brew keeps it casual:

Source
It looks like a breezy, firsthand, personalized letter from the CEO. Who could say no to that?
Stay out of the “spam” folder and “promotions” tab
Email marketers have two natural predators: the spam folder and Gmail’s “promotions” tab.
Avoiding spam filters is one of the core best practices in the entire industry. Without it, you won’t get your meticulously crafted emails read.
Email providers like Yahoo and Gmail may categorize your emails as spam if they don’t meet quality guidelines. And yes, they can use formulas and “scores” to measure your success. Here’s what you’ll need to know:

Aim for high open rates. When users frequently open your messages, it’s a healthy signal. It means that your emails are valuable and people are more likely to move them to the inbox when they see them in the spam folder.

Be valuable enough so people call you “not junk.” One of the top numerical indicators of a high-quality email newsletter is how often your own readers rescue you from the junk box.

Remind your readers to add you to their address book. This, too, will help the email providers award you a higher score.

Divide your list into segments
A segmented list can increase revenues by as much as 760%.
Think about the math for a second. Two nearly identical lists can generate different revenues, almost at a ratio of eight-to-one.
Why is that? 
Personalization. If you split customers into segments based on shopping preferences, or which types of emails they prefer to receive, that alone can drive higher conversion rates. 
Here are some ways to do it:

Behavior-specific segmentation. Do some customers buy small-ticket items, while others prefer the larger ones? Do some spend lots of time on your website, and others less? You might start crafting different emails and promoting different products on their established behavior.

Content-specific segmentation. If you have data on your specific contacts, you may be able to create new segments based on the content they prefer. For example, if one reader prefers to download eBooks and guides and another prefers to make product purchases, you have enough information to create entirely different campaigns.

Some email marketers even ask their customers directly: which do you prefer? 
They then ask their customers to visit their link preferences. This gives the email marketer the knowledge to split customers into different groups based on their individual “votes.”
Optimize your email marketing frequency
No one likes to hear from you too much.
And others won’t want to hear from you too little.
It’s the classic Goldilocks quandary in email marketing: how often should you send out your email blasts? 
26% of people respond that they unsubscribe from email lists because they get too many emails in general. 19% say they do it because a company specifically sends them too many.
On the other hand, you don’t want to send out so few that you never make any sales.
Split testing is one way to cure this common problem. But you might also consider adding a footer to your emails that let users gauge their own frequency preferences.
Wrap up
Email campaign best practices can work so well that it’s easy to get away from them. You figure you’ve got this email thing figured out, and no updates are necessary.
But if your habits have gotten too far out of whack, it’s time to get back to the bread and butter. 
With these best practices in hand, you can either grow an entirely fresh list or inject some life into an existing list. Either way, chances are your readers will notice. And they just might reward you with higher open rates.
The post Email Campaign Best Practices in 2021 appeared first on Campaign Monitor.

You didn’t think we’d launch a podcast network without a new HubSpot show, did you?
We’re excited to announce our new flagship podcast, The Shake Up, featuring comedian Alexis Gay and Venture Capitalist Brianne Kimmel. It’s produced by Senior Producer, Matthew Brown and brought to you by the HubSpot Podcast Network. 
The Shake Up offers business leaders unfiltered insights into companies that dared to be different. Alexis and Brianne talk with business leaders from disruptive companies like Square, Daily Harvest, and Nerdwallet about their investments and go-to-market strategies.
Sounds pretty cool, right? Well, now we’re going to tell you how we did it, including:

Our planning process
Building the format of the show
The structure of a successful podcast team

Let’s dive in.

How Can We Be Better and Different?
Once we know our business objective, audience, and budget we set out to put together a show concept that will resonate with our audience and help us hit our goals.
To do that, we needed to know what our audience is listening to today.
According to Chartable, there are over 8,334 branded podcasts on Apple Podcasts.
While we couldn’t audit all of them (we’re only human), we did want to understand the tactics used by the top podcasts in the business category. So, we did an audit.
We evaluated 20 high-performing business podcasts and gained five insights.

Male Voices: 87% of the hosts were male.

News & Commentary: 18 out of 20 podcasts provided commentary on industry news.

Broadcast Communications: Very few shows used audience engagement tactics to connect the audience with the hosts.

Business & Academic: The tone of the shows was lackluster and many used jargon.

This audit gave us the context to define our strategy.
How would our show be better and different?

Diverse Voices: A commitment to diverse voices across hosts and guests.

Research & Stories: Focusing editorially on relevant stories with added depth.

Audience Engagement: Featuring our hosts and implementing tactics to engage the audience on social media.

Business & Entertainment: We don’t have to be boring and unfashionable to talk business.

These became our editorial guidelines for the rest of the show.
Deciding on the Show Format
Next, we set our show format.
There are a few common podcast formats that have the ability to grow an audience.

Interview: A show type that brings on an expert guest for a Q&A.

Chat Cast: A co-hosted format where hosts provide commentary and criticism on a variety of topics.

Debate: A co-hosted format where hosts take one side of the argument. Debating the facts, figures, and opinions on a given topic.

Narrative: A journalistic-style podcast that includes research, scripts, and a strong storyline.

After exploring various formats, we went with a hybrid format — Chat Cast + Interview.
Bringing together the energy of a chat cast with the expertise of an interview.

Sample Episode topic: Why Is Every Company Suddenly A Media Company

Segment 1: The Context
In the opening segment, our co-hosts will provide context and talk through some fun facts and stats about the episode topic Ex.) HubSpot acquired The Hustle

Segment 2: The Debate / Discuss
In this segment, we’ll give our hosts a series of questions on the topic and questions we are featuring for some off-the-cuff opinions on both. Ex.) Should more SaaS companies follow suit? What happens to media companies if all companies are media companies?

Segment 3: The Interview
In this segment, we’ll bring on the business leader of the company/topic we are discussing to get the real story behind the decision and the other decisions that have made them successful. Ex.) Kipp Bodnar about the Hustle Acquisition

Finally, we had to figure out how we were going to make this thing.  
Your Podcast Team
To build a high-quality podcast, you need to invest in a team.
There are countless things that need to happen in the making of a show. We have broken down those responsibilities into eight core roles, but there are often teams of much more, and there are also teams of much less who are doing 3-4 jobs each:

Executive Producer — The showrunner. Head of operations, creates a vision for the overall show, leads pre-production through post-production, and manages the staff and logistics.

Senior Producer — Establishes content and narrative arc for each episode, writes and edits the scripts, coaches the host, manages the production calendar, research, prep; as well as produce interviews, tape edits, and does preliminary sound design.

Producer — Booking, research, interview prep, transcriptions, edits tape, creates outlines, and works on scripts.

Editor — Oversees the development of story ideas and gives critical feedback on story frameworks and scripts.

Host — Storyteller who shapes the show through their editorial decisions and personality. They prepare for interviews and write / edit scripts.

Managing Producer —New podcast development and builds management processes/paths necessary for a successful program.

Engineer —The first and final stop in the production process. Creates the soundscape for the show by editing and mastering audio to create a seamless listening experience.

Editorial Director — Shapes the vision and leads all planning and execution for podcasts. Drives the creative conception from ideation to execution. Collaborates with company leaders on distribution.

This list does not include the folks involved outside of podcast creation, including the creative team involved with making promotional assets, the person responsible for the communication plan of the show, and more.
Another layer of difficulty here is the decision of whether to build a team in-house or search for a podcast production agency that can fill these roles for you.
Resourcing was one of the biggest challenges in the creation of The Shake Up. We’ll let you behind the scenes on some of our decisions:

Internal or external talent for hosts: A host will make or break a podcast. Simple as that. They can either draw an audience in or push them away. We had a very specific vision for the hosts of our show and for that reason, we chose to lead an external search for talent. We chose Alexis and Brianne because of their combination of dynamism and experience, among other things.

Hire a sound engineer or bring in an agency: Engineers perfect the sound of your show. Because of the quality of sound we wanted for this show, we decided to bring in an agency because of the heavy expertise of their team and the resources they have for the job.

We were also lucky enough to have a Senior Producer, Matthew Brown, on staff, who has won awards for previous shows like The Growth Show.
So if you’re looking to invest in a team to create podcasts, use this list as a starting point to gain an understanding of the different moving parts, and carefully consider the decision of hiring for these roles, or bringing in some external help.
But the list is just a starting point, and if there’s anything that we can recommend about podcast creation, it’s the quote from Lao Tzu, “There is no greater danger than underestimating your opponent.” And your opponent, in this case, is the amount of work involved in creating a show.
Invest in the resources to do it right, and understand that it takes a village.
What Are You Waiting For?
Podcasts aren’t a new medium, but they are having a moment.

Spotify has heavily invested in the podcast portion of their platform, striking exclusive deals with podcasts like The Joe Rogan Experience, and designing a total rehaul of the podcast UI.
Statista predicts the industry will have a CAGR of 17%, reaching 164 million listeners in the US by 2023.
Apple, not to be outdone, is making a bet on podcast subscriptions.

Will podcast marketing become as standard as content marketing? Will having a podcast become as ubiquitous as having a blog?
Time will tell, but it’s clear that this is the “wave” that many podcasters predicted.
At HubSpot, we have chosen to invest heavily in media going forward, and podcasts are a large part of that strategy. The HubSpot Podcast Network and The Shake Up are the first parts of that.
If, after reading this, you choose to invest in building one, here is a checklist you should follow:

Define your audience and their problem.
Decide if a podcast is a good medium to provide a solution to that problem.
Audit the podcasts in your target space, figure out how you can be better and different.
Propose the theme and format of your show.
Build a podcast team: host, producer, sound engineer.
You’re off to the races.

We are incredibly proud of the hard work that went into launching The Shake Up. Listen to it here on your favorite podcast platform.

We just launched MVP for a tool that can help you to automate YouTube channel contact information extraction and we are looking for early adopters. Prospety enables simplified YouTube creator discovery and automated standard and contact information retrieval. Our features will allow you to:
Discover over 1M of YouTube creators with advanced search and retrieve their contacts. Information is updated every 30 days, so you will receive up to date results. Extract standard and contact information from your own lists of YouTube channels. Retrieve emails even if they are protected by reCaptcha or YouTube limits are applied. Pay per successfully retrieved email. No upfront commitments. Receive your data in no time and in an efficient manner.
Early adopters will receive 1000 free credits, access to the private community group, and premium support. They will be able to request features, provide valuable feedback, and shape the product roadmap. If you are interested or have any questions – do not hesitate and let me know. Feel free to contact me via DM or leave a comment.
submitted by /u/prospety [link] [comments]