Category: Marketing Automation

What is good software to use for a that I can input a spreadsheet of emails or phone numbers of potential clients and send one out message? I can’t seem to find what I’m looking for. They want the receiver to be a subscriber first but I can’t find software where I can initially send out the message first. submitted by /u/prestige-dugg [link] [comments]

 

 

First, there was Lean Manufacturing, then Lean Management. This constituted the common understanding of the term Lean, which means achieving goals without costly waste or surpluses—of time, resources, or effort. Lean Marketing is about all that, plus it draws from the Agile project management style. Lean Marketing is also much easier to do when you have a customer data platform (CDP).

 

Where did it come from?

 

The term lean marketing was popularized in the book The Lean Startup by Eric Ries. Although the lean concept is popular in the science of management, thus far it has been associated mainly with the context of lean manufacturing, which boils down to reducing waste in the production process and keeping stock at the minimum possible level, or lean management, where it means “shortening” decision-making processes by, for example, changing the organization from a lean form (multi-level, bureaucratic) to flat (with a small number of levels and a small distance between the management and the crew).

 

Lean or agile?

 

You may also hear of lean marketing as a startup term, or maybe you’re familiar with Agile Marketing, which takes cues from the agile processes used by software developers and offers valuable lessons for CMOs.

Lean Marketing closely resembles the Agile style of project management, with its focus on a single task at once and its emphasis on iterations.

As eCommerce must, at some stage, meet the concept of Agile software project management, its principles should be easily understandable and possible to adapt and absorb.

 

What is Lean Marketing?

 

According to the original concept, lean marketing means reaching the customer at the lowest possible cost without involving “expensive” media (i.e., through modern channels). In the simplest terms, lean marketing is an analysis of what the recipient truly cares about and cleans the entire communication process, removing waste of time and money and eliminating activities that do not bring value to the target customer.

Known as a startup term,Lean Marketing works well in most small and medium-sized enterprises, as practice shows. Lean Marketing allows you to spend limited marketing expenditure on activities that increase the effectiveness of acquiring potential customers.

 

The difference between traditional and lean marketing

 

In traditional marketing, the final effect of realizing the marketing plan is determined beforehand, and teams cannot adjust and adapt throughout the creation process. Marketers often repeat certain activities without regularly measuring their effects. This means a lack of improvement along the way, as well as a lack of adaptivity to changing levels of customer engagement. This results in the customers ultimately being pushed away due to not precisely targeting them with personalized activities.

When examining the Agile project management roots of Lean Marketing, traditional marketing closely resembles Agile’s chief opposition – Waterfall.

Unlike in Waterfall, where the final effect is determined upfront, Lean Marketing:

Prioritizes based on reality to deliver marketing actions that meet customer expectations.Breaks big, long-term goals into mini-projects. Focuses on small wins every few weeks and iterates toward an optimal solution.Demands that the time between concept and delivery be counted in weeks instead of months.Assumes frequent status meetings focused on what is working, what is done, and what is keeping a team from doing more.Makes quick corrections possible if things change or people go off course. 

 

Lean marketing cycle

 

Planning an effective Lean Marketing campaign first requires setting a specific organizational goal. It is best to check it with the SMART rule to determine whether the goal has been formulated in a way that will allow for its effective implementation. Then, in the idea phase, try one of the methods for group idea generation, such as brainstorming. Next, move on to the iterative process of creating, testing, and improving the adopted solutions. 

 

 

How to Lean Marketing?

 

Your actions start more or less the same as in classic marketing activities. It is necessary to segment the market and define the target group for your product. To lay a solid foundation for further activities, you should include the following factors:

Psychographic aspects – purchasing patterns, fashions, associations with the productGeographical context – a place of residence, the population in a given areaSocial and demographic factors – gender, income, educationBudget limitations – financial limits that were defined for the campaign

 

The difference shows when you start planning subsequent actions based on these criteria. To plan them in a lean way, you should remember the following key lean assumptions:

Deliver faster in less time by breaking large, long-term goals into small tasks; deliver small pieces every few weeks, and iterate toward an optimal solution. There are two meanings of fast. First, when limiting your work in progress, you start working on smaller batches, and, because of that, you can see the fruits of your work faster. With that, you’ll be able to test and launch them faster (if we are talking in the context of a marketing campaign). The second aspect is fast iterations. By iterating multiple times, you can dramatically improve every cycle compared to the previous one.Conduct frequent status meetings to discuss what is working, what is done, and what is keeping your team from doing more. You can start with daily stand-up meetings—this is a short (up to 15 minutes) gathering of the team that is held every day to sync what is happening between the team members and keep everyone on the same page. Every member must share what they have done the day before, what they will do this day, and what challenges they have faced or think they will face. Daily stand-ups are an essential part of the Lean Marketing machine. Besides helping your team remain in sync, these meetings also help you find and resolve your teammates’ challenges before they turn into problems. Stay focused. Lean has no place for multitasking. Research shows that multitasking generally reduces productivity. Since the goal of Lean Marketing is continual improvement, team members cannot work on multiple things at once. Do not rely blindly on plans. Lean Marketing is based on flexibility and readiness to adapt to changing circumstances and resources. In the context of Eric Ries’s methodology, this is called “pivoting.” The decision of whether you should pivot or preserve your current state must be backed up by data and not be the result of impulsive urges.

 

5 key elements of Lean Marketing strategy

 

We can safely call it a strategy because switching to a Lean Marketing process is a strategic move that will completely change the way your team works. Such a strategy should include five key elements. Knowing these elements at the beginning will allow you to apply Lean Marketing more easily to the current flow of your process. Without any frustrating changes, Lean advises you to start with what you do now, work with what you have, and gradually build upon it.

Personas: Make a precise identification of the types of customers you will be interacting with; it will save you time that would otherwise be lost on reaching uninterested consumers.Marketing process: Remember to regularly analyze the results of already implemented solutions and the need to constantly improve them.Measurements: Always use at least one application or website that allows you to conduct analytics and measure behaviors and interactions with your customers.Testing and measurement tools: Use technological solutions that automate your marketing processes and check the quality of the content on the website, like A/B testing. Check your progress regularly: Remember, your goal should not be to create the perfect solution right away but to enter the path of small, regular improvements that will allow you to achieve perfection in less time than you think. Lean marketing is always iterative. Build small ideas, take them to the market, measure results, learn, and repeat using the lessons learned.

 

The most often reported benefits of Lean Marketing strategy

 

According to the CMO’s Agenda research, 67% of CMOs using Lean Marketing methods report increased profits and revenues. Lean Marketing does this primarily by:

Keeping the organization customer-focusedImproving speed to marketMaking teams more productiveEnhancing prioritizationDelivering better, more relevant end productsIncreasing throughput/velocity of work delivered

 

… and how does it all relate to Customer Intimacy and CDP?

 

First, remember that to lay a solid foundation for further Lean Marketing activities, you should include the following factors: 

Psychographic Geographical SocialBudget

 

Second, some of the key elements of the Lean Marketing strategy are as follows:

PersonasMeasurementsTesting and measurement tools

 

These are either customer data or marketing tools. Furthermore, modern CDP is more than able to provide you with the means to create the following:

Superb segmentation, called Hyper SegmentationHyper-personalized segments, which are much more effective than personasCutting-edge measurement and testing tools

 

Using Next-Gen CDP, you are able to transcend the ordinary level of customer knowledge and reach Customer Intimacy, which will effectively bolster your Lean Marketing strategy. How exactly can you intertwine a CDP with Lean Marketing strategy? This will be discussed in our next article.

 

Hey guys, I seem to be in a pickle. I need to make 7.5K unique posts per day from different Twitter accounts and was wondering if any of you know a tool or perhaps an automation script that can help me here? Thing is, I have found some tool and they let you schedule posts & what not. But one of my requirements is that I need to log in multiple Twitter accounts, is there any tool that allows multi account login and post scheduling, or can someone point me to the right direction? TIY! submitted by /u/Darthmute [link] [comments]

No matter how great you and your marketing team are at advertising your products, the simple truth is that these days, 75% of consumers will do their own research before committing to a purchase. And, it just so turns out that this research will include seeking out examples of social proof that confirm that your…
The post 6 Ways to Use Social Proof to Grow Your eCommerce Business appeared first on Benchmark Email.

submitted by /u/anno-NL [link] [comments]

Big Idea or Enduring Question: How to display logged-in user information in the lightning web component?  Objectives: After reading this blog, you’ll be able to: Data Binding in a template Display logged-in user information in the lightning web component (lwc) Get use details from lightning web component (lwc) JavaScript Understand
The post Get Information About the logged-In User in Lightning Web Component appeared first on Automation Champion.

submitted by /u/linked_camp [link] [comments]

What does it take to be a good manager? Some say it’s empathy, others will say it’s transparency. The truth is, it’s a combination of many elements.

I surveyed and spoke with internal and external employees to discover the makers of a good manager. Whether you’re currently managing a team or are interested in doing so, keep reading to discover what we found out.

7 Skills People Managers Must Master
Tips on Being a Good Manager
How to Be a Good Sales Manager
How to Be a Good Marketing Manager
How to Be a Good Project Manager

7 Skills People Managers Must Master, According to HubSpot Employees
Why do people really quit their jobs? Many will say it’s because of salary, benefits, or workload. However, studies show it’s usually due to management.
Studies show companies need good managers to retain good employees.
But what exactly does a good manager look like? What skills or strategies can you develop to ensure you’re considered a good one?
To explore this issue, we polled people and asked them to check off all the qualities they felt were most important for a great manager.
Respondents listed these top three qualities or skills:

58% said, “They trust me to work autonomously.”
46% said, “They are empathetic and understanding.”
45% said, “They give me useful, clear feedback.”

Other answers included a willingness to teach, interest in career growth, strong communication skills, awarding credit, and inviting fresh ideas.
Along with this data, I consulted my colleagues to get their thoughts on what makes a people manager effective. Here are 7 crucial qualities of a great team leader.
1. Good managers help employees navigate change.
Consider the last time you experienced change within your organization.
I’m willing to bet the change felt daunting at times. Fortunately, good managers can mitigate the negative or ambivalent emotions that arise from change.
“The strongest managers are ones who can help their teams navigate change in a very personal way,” Christine McLaughlin, a senior project manager on HubSpot’s Sales Leadership Enablement team. “I’m a firm believer that every challenge presents an opportunity. But, because we’re human, we can’t always see the opportunity from the start.”
McLaughlin adds, “Our personal life, mental health, physical health, the last meeting we had, the next meeting we’re preparing for, all play a role in influencing how we perceive change. Do we view it as a challenge? An opportunity? A setback? A relief?”

“Strong managers can translate change for each individual on their team. They meet their teammate where they’re at and help to answer their questions and concerns to bring them to where they need to go.”

How can you do this? Start by fostering psychological safety, so your employees feel comfortable mentioning how they feel about a certain business change. Then, listen carefully to their concerns and work on providing solutions for those issues.
For instance, let’s say your team has experienced a reorg and one of your direct reports is concerned her role is going to change as a result.
To mitigate those concerns, consider creating a document that outlines which (if any) of their responsibilities might change as a result of the reorg — along with some new opportunities they can pursue to continue developing their professional skills.
2. Good managers are open and transparent.
Trust and transparency are undeniably critical components of good leaders — and, post-pandemic, this is continuing to rise in importance.
In fact, Edelman’s most recent 2021 benchmark barometer on trust in leaders found employees ranked “good employee communication” 44 points higher than in the previous year.
Keri Polmonari, HubSpot’s Manager of Customer Success on the SMB team, believes transparency to be one of the most important attributes a good leader can possess.
“Business changes — like changes in department goals, processes, or personnel — can be difficult and overwhelming,” she says, “when everyone understands the why behind these business changes, they are more open and understanding of implications this could have on their jobs, both positive and negative.”
She adds that transparency builds trust, fosters relationships, and creates organizational alignment, all key components of a company’s and individual’s success.

3. Good managers encourage vulnerability.
When was the last time your manager started your 1:1 with a slightly more personal question, like, “How was your birthday this past weekend?” or “Read any good books lately?”
These questions ultimately help encourage vulnerability by creating space for you to share information about your life outside of work — and they can go a long way toward creating stronger bonds.
“Whenever I start a new role or inherit a new team, I begin by enabling and encouraging vulnerability,” said VP of marketing at Trusted Health, Jill Callan. “This helps me forge strong bonds with my direct reports and allows them to be comfortable to share ideas and admit weaknesses.”
Callan adds, “I’m also very intentional about getting to know my team as individuals and learning about their lives outside of work. Taking the time upfront to build a strong, authentic relationship with my direct reports helps us tackle inevitable tough challenges down the line.”
To encourage vulnerability, consider how you might increase your own openness with your team. For instance, perhaps you admit when you’re feeling overwhelmed with childcare duties, mention a Netflix show you’ve been binging, or simply chat about the gardening hobby you’ve picked up.
And embrace vulnerability by admitting when you’ve made a mistake or you’re feeling overwhelmed — it will help your employees feel comfortable admitting the same.

4. Good managers find ways to supplement their team member’s weaknesses.
I once had a manager who repeatedly sought out learning and development opportunities for the areas we’d determined as weaknesses of mine. She would often email me public speaking courses, or data & analytics workshops.
As a result, I continued to grow professionally, and I felt challenged. This is what a good manager does: Continues to keep a direct report’s weaknesses in mind, and provides guidance to help them improve.
Former HubSpot Senior Manager Christina Perricone concurs.
“Good managers find ways to supplement their team member’s weaknesses,” she said. “Each of us has skills that come naturally to us, as well as skills we’re not so great at.”

“An attuned manager can identify an individual’s weak areas and will surface resources or offer guidance to assist in those areas.”

With this in mind, take stock of your team’s weaknesses and actively pursue resources that can help your team develop their weaker skills.
Additionally, use the hiring process to create a more well-rounded team by identifying the strengths and weaknesses of existing employees.
As Perricone says, “Good managers are skilled at balancing out their teams by recruiting talent that can fill in the skill and experience gaps, thereby creating a more well-rounded unit.”
5. Good managers work for their employees — not above them.
You might be thinking, “Managers work for their employees? Isn’t it the other way around?”
Actually, a manager, like an employee, is more effective when they’re an active team player.
While an employee’s job is to fulfill tasks within a job description, a manager’s job is to make their team successful. To do this, a manager shouldn’t be afraid to chime in during meetings, assist on projects, or help their team grow or succeed in other ways.
For instance, consider asking your direct reports during a 1:1, “Is there anything you need me to do?”
This question can be translated in multiple positive ways, including:

“Are there any blockers I can remove for you?”
“Are you waiting on a decision from me on anything?”
“Are you working on an idea that you want to share with me?”
“Is there something going on in your world outside of work that’s competing for your time and attention?”

Ultimately, a good manager considers it their primary job to make their employees successful.
6. Good managers are always aiming to improve their emotional intelligence.
Emotional intelligence — or the skill that requires you to understand your own emotions, learn how to manage them, and know how to respond to the emotions of others on your team — is a vital component of good leadership.
Emotional intelligence can help you ensure you’re giving clear directions and allows you to be empathetic to the needs of others. In short, it can help you foster stronger professional relationships and communicate effectively.
Most importantly, emotional intelligence enables you to stay calm during high-stress or unexpected situations — which can prevent you from making rash decisions as a leader, or stressing your team out unnecessarily.
7. Good managers can establish and promote psychologically-safe environments.
The ability to cultivate psychological safety is a critical asset that Jennifer Brault, team manager on HubSpot’s social media team, values in her own people manager.

“Feeling supported, heard, and understood is the foundation I need to be able to come to work every day with the right mindset to do good work,” Brault says.

Brault adds, “Genuine empathy and psychological safety are hard to fake, and it’s something that I think everyone should master before they consider the people management path.”
Psychological safety fosters innovative thinking and the ability to adapt well to change — and yet, according to a 2020 McKinsey Global Survey, only a handful of business leaders often demonstrate the behaviors associated with psychological safety.
If you’re a manager or hoping to be a better leader, it’s important you take time to identify aspects of your management style or overall office culture that could benefit from psychological safety.
For example, rather than using language that makes your team members feel scared of missing deadlines or goals, keep an open and supportive dialogue.
You’ll find that they will confidently come to you with successes, learnings from failure, or concerns while they’re working on high-pressure projects.
Alternatively, if a team member is having trouble with a project, you should offer advice or assistance to help them remove blockers, rather than telling them to just get it done.
Supportive communication with team members allows them to learn from mistakes and grow as employees, rather than work tirelessly on projects because they fear that they’ll lose their jobs.

Tips for Being a Good Manager
As outlined in the data above, there are a few key traits required of any good manager. These include:

Providing coaching and mentoring when necessary, but enabling your team to work autonomously and trusting them to get the job done.
Showing empathy toward your direct reports as people with lives outside of work, and creating a sense of psychological safety for your employees to feel comfortable admitting when they’re struggling or need help.
Being clear and direct with feedback.
Going the extra mile to help foster your employees’ professional growth through training, learning & development opportunities, or 1:1 sessions in which you coach them on certain skills.

However, a good manager looks different depending on the department or role — a good sales manager, for instance, requires different skills than that of a good marketing manager.
Let’s dive into those, now.

How to Be a Good Sales Manager
Being a good sales manager requires a few unique skills outside of those listed above.
Along with setting clear expectations, communicating effectively, and inspiring your sales reps to perform at their best, a good sales manager needs to demonstrate a positive mindset, build team unity, and learn how to best support each sales rep in the unique way that will serve him or her best.
Good Sales Manager Examples

Using a dashboard or task management tool to easily track metrics for each sales rep. With this approach, you avoid taking up too much time in your meetings discussing metrics and focus on how you can help, support, and coach your reps.
Planning team outings or events that allow your team to build relationships with one another. Sales can be high-pressure and stressful, so it’s important you provide dedicated time to enable your sales reps to connect with one another and feel that they’re part of a support system.
Looking for training and development opportunities so your sales reps can continue to improve. In 1:1 meetings, focus on how you can help them achieve their goals; in team meetings, figure out what types of training can help the entire team perform better.
Motivating your team by focusing on the ‘bigger purpose’ to ensure they feel intrinsically motivated. Sales isn’t just about hitting quota and making money — remind your team of your company’s bigger purpose to ensure they feel fulfilled and motivated.

Looking for more sales manager tips? Take a look at what sales leaders should prioritize in 2022 and things every sales manager should know.

How to Be a Good Marketing Manager
Marketing managers are often responsible for a content property or program, which means their tasks can vary greatly.
Good Marketing Manager Examples

The ability to think big-picture by leveraging data to create a strong long-term strategy.
Knowing when to pivot when an existing strategy isn’t working out as expected.
Communicating effectively with various stakeholders — this includes inspiring and motivating your direct reports, communicating team goals cross-functionally and to leadership, and creating clear external communications, as well.
Delegating and organizing tasks effectively.
Facilitating your direct that growth by giving them projects that align with their interests.

To learn more about managing a marketing team, take a look at What Is a Marketing Manager?
How to Be a Good Project Manager
To be a good project manager, you need a few additional technical skills compared to the other managers on this list.
A few other project management skills and responsibilities include:

Setting realistic goals and understanding what resources are required.
Having good organization and communication skills. A good project manager is organized and detail-oriented to effectively delegate tasks to the right teams, and can clearly articulate the full scope of a project to various stakeholders to ensure alignment on the larger strategy.
Analyzing and determining potential risks. A good project manager foresees potential roadblocks in any given project and analyzes metrics and data to determine the best way to mitigate those risks.
Using the best project management software options at their disposal to create a streamlined process and keep track of responsibilities and timelines.

That’s it! With all of this information, you’re well on your way to becoming a better manager.
Remember, like any other role, becoming a good manager requires time, patience, dedication, and a consistent desire for feedback from your direct reports to iterate and grow over time.

A
leaked TikTok for Business deckstated that the average user spends 89 minutes per day on the platform.

Eighty-nine minutes is, inarguably, a long time to spend on an application. However, eighty-nine minutes means that businesses have invaluable opportunities to capture audience attention and generate interest.

If you’re hoping to get in on the action, read on to discover high-quality ideas for content to post on TikTok.
What is TikTok?
As a refresher, TikTok is a social media platform where users can record, edit, and share video content. These videos can be anywhere between 15 seconds to three minutes long, creating ample opportunity for all types of content to take center stage.

What to Post on TikTok
Let’s go over some high-quality ideas and examples of content you can post on TikTok.
1. Day-to-day routine videos.
Daily routine videos give viewers insight into how work happens at your business.
It shares the processes that bring your product or services to life, and it can be a fun way to build a connection through a behind-the-scenes look. If you leverage this tip, it’s a best practice to create a daily routine video that features everyday tasks most related to your business.
Glass Half Full is a small business in Louisiana that diverts glass products from landfills by collecting used glassware and recycling it into sand and glass cullet. It uses TikTok to generate awareness and interest in its business, and the video below demonstrates what a day of glass collection and recycling looks like.

@glasshalffullnola
It was a busy busy day recycling glass 😅
♬ Pennies From Heaven – Remastered – Louis Prima

2. Share content that reflects your brand values.
Content that reflects a brand or business’ values performs best on social media and has the 3rd highest ROI of any content type. Customers also care now, more than ever, about the causes that their favorite businesses stand for and use them as a factor in their purchasing decisions.
As such, sharing your brand values on TikTok is a valuable way to connect with your audience. Those who stand for the same causes as you will take notice, and you have the potential to draw them in as a customer.
Ensure that you’re genuine with this practice, though, as consumers see businesses that make false claims as exploitative and opportunistic.
3. Spotlight your employees.
Spotlighting employees puts a face to your brand and shows audiences the people behind the products and services they love. It also humanizes your business and shares an exciting and exclusive peek into your operation.
4. Educate your audience on relevant topics.
You can share information with your audience on TikTok that will educate them on things related to your industry or niche. If you’re committed to always educating and helping, you’ll build authority, and people will return to you as a source of truth to continue learning more.  
Jeeves is a dry cleaning service that shares helpful, educational content with its audience. In the video below, an employee explains the importance of separating light and dark colors when doing laundry.

@jeeves_ny
This is why washing your light and darks clothes separately is a good idea. It’ll keep darks darker and lights brighter #laundry #clothes #explained #chores #stain #cleaning
♬ original sound – clean freakz

5. Create product campaigns and tease new launches.
Running product campaigns or teasing upcoming launches on TikTok can help you generate excitement. Viewers know that they can expect a big reveal on your page, and they’ll be waiting on the edge of their seats and returning to your profile to see if you’ve released more information.
A pro tip is to combine a product campaign or launch with a related and relevant sound or hashtag to get more visibility from users scrolling through current trends.
6. Share a unique business story.
Sharing a narrative story about your business is an engaging way to connect with your audience, as these videos represent something that they can only find in your business. For example, customer spotlights or success stories, explaining the lifecycle of your products or services, or an exciting story about related industry news all uniquely relate to your business and what you offer.
One of the great things about TikTok is that audiences don’t expect high-production-value from videos, so you can simply generate an idea and turn on the camera and start filming.
7. Answer audience questions.
Answering questions is a great way to connect with your audience and build relationships. TikTokers often ask questions without being prompted, so you can browse your comments and create video replies to questions or leverage TikTok’s native Q&A feature.
A bonus is that answering questions gives you insight into customers’ troubles with your business. If you see the same asks repeatedly, you might learn that you need to update your FAQ page or provide additional information about specific topics on your website.
In the TikTok below, Franziska, founder of Glass Half Full, answers a comment in a video reply about the business’ practices when it comes to throwing products away.

@ecofran
Reply to @sparkingshadow we try to reuse and recycle everything that comes to our facility !
♬ original sound – FRANZISKA ♻️

8. Product Demonstrations
Product demonstrations help your audience learn how to use your products in a digestible way. Instead of reading an instruction manual and deciphering pictures or being walked through the process over the phone, they can actually watch someone take the steps and follow along.
9. Partner with relevant influencers.
Influencers have audiences that trust them and their values, so partnering with one related to your niche is a valuable tool for generating brand awareness and building your following on TikTok. These partnerships are also a valuable form of social proof for viewers, which is a big factor in purchasing decisions.
You can leverage this tip and post influencer content to your profile, but you can also have influencers share content on their profiles to expose you to a new audience group.
Small Business TikTok Ideas
As a small business, you may be wondering if it’s worthwhile to create another social media profile on another app.
Considering that 92% of global TikTok users take action after watching a video and are 1.5x more likely to immediately go out and buy something they discovered on the platform, you have the opportunity to really build your brand if you use the app.
The ideas mentioned above are valuable for large and small businesses alike, and you can leverage many of them without a large budget. However, there are specific content ideas that are relevant for small businesses, and we’ll discuss them below.
1. Share your origin story.
Sharing your small business’ unique origin story humanizes your business and helps you connect with your audience. They’ll clearly see how you came to be and why you care about what you offer, and your video can also be a source of inspiration for your followers starting their own business endeavors.
As mentioned before, TikTok viewers don’t demand high production value, so you can tell your story however you see fit.
In the TikTok below, Pierce Woodward explains how his jewelry business, Brand Pierre, began its journey and grew into what it is today.

@pierce_woodward Its been excatly one year and a week since the first drop 💍🤯
#smallbusiness
#entrepreneur
#businesstips
♬ Buttercup – Jack Stauber

2. Highlight your production process.
Showing viewers what goes into creating what you offer is exciting because they’ll see how the things they care about come to be. It also shows the hard work, dedication, and care that goes into creating what you offer, demonstrating your commitment to giving value to your customers.
Victoria Adrian is a textile artist who creates custom rugs and embroidery projects. She frequently shares her production process on TikTok, displaying the care and thought that goes into creating her products.

@victoriaroseadrian
The many angles of #rugmaking #rugtok #customrug #rugtufting #tufttheworld #rugcarving #tufting
♬ original sound – VictoriaRoseAdrian

3. Use trending sounds and hashtags.
Using trending sounds and hashtags helps you build brand awareness for your small business as your videos are visible to a broad audience. People browsing through the sound or hashtag will see all of the different videos that were uploaded and have the potential to land on your video, click on your profile, and learn more about what you offer.
4. Duet and stitch videos.
Duets and Stitches are ways to build on existing TikTok videos. With Duets, you add on to another user’s existing video, and with Stitch, you clip specific scenes from another user’s video to add to your video.
As a small business, using these native TikTok features allows you to engage with existing related content and incite conversation with your audience. You can Stitch and Duet videos from anyone on the platform with the feature enabled, so you can even begin conversations with users that may not know you exist.
Jeeves expertly uses the stitch feature to answer audience questions. The video below is a stitch from a video where someone asks how to take care of an item of clothing.

@jeeves_ny
#stitch with @taramariagonzalez tricky one. But color matching and spraying may help. Lemme know if you need a hand Tara!
♬ Cariño – The Marías

5. Partner with relevant content creators.
Partnering with content creators or influencers helps you gain exposure to a new audience relevant to what your business offers. By working with a content creator, you’re also benefiting from the trust they’ve built with their audience that the products, services, and businesses they work with and use are trustworthy and worth doing business with.
about time coffee in New York City partnered with a group of sisters, sister snacking, who are influencers in the New York Food scene. The business posted the video to its profile, and so did sistersnacking, featuring some of the store’s products to their audience of 147.6K followers.

@sistersnacking
Obsessed with everything they’re serving, but these fresh fruit spritz’s are so perfect for summer. The cheese pocket pastry was also a 10/10 #coffeeshop #nyccoffee #nyccoffeeshop #nyc #abouttimecoffee @about time [partnership]
♬ Island In The Sun – Weezer

6. Showcase what makes your business shine.
A great way to get people excited about what your small business offers is to showcase how well you do what you do. This shows viewers exactly what they can expect from you, generating excitement and maybe helping people decide to work with you based on your expertise.
The Pool Guy, Miles Laflin, is a swimming pool engineer in the UK who often posts videos of the pool cleaning process and the effectiveness of his work. He shows a before and after picture that clearly demonstrates how he brings pools from green and swampy to clear and ready for swimming. He shows that he’s good at his job, alerting potential customers he can bring their pool back to life.

@thep00lguy
Green-clean!! 😎 #hollayaboy #thep00lguy #satisfying #oddlysatisfying #fyp #asmr
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TikTok was once the app to watch in 2019.
Now, 52% of social media marketers who leverage the app plan to increase their investments in 2022. If you’re hoping to get in on the channel for the first time or improve your presence, the business examples on this list are a great source of inspiration for you to get started.

Over the past few years, consumers have become increasingly concerned with how companies use their data. And many feel passionate about protecting their privacy — in fact, HubSpot’s Blog Research found 80% of consumers believe data privacy is a human right.
Data security has become a critical component for long-term customer retention and loyalty. So it’s vital brands behave responsibly when it comes to collecting and protecting consumer data.
But many marketers have relied on third-party data for years, so the phaseout of Google’s third-party cookie in 2023 will likely cause some concern. Fortunately, it doesn’t have to.
Here, let’s explore the effective strategies marketers will implement to ensure they’re still reaching new audiences and connecting with customers even without third-party data.

How Marketers are Preparing for Google’s Third-Party Cookie Phaseout
1. Marketers are enhancing or developing their data collection operations and management models.
One surefire way to prepare for the third-party cookie phaseout? Begin developing or refining a strong first-data party data strategy.
As Microsoft Advertising’s Head of Evangelism, John Lee, told me, “Microsoft Advertising is working with the digital advertising industry and its clients to evolve and uplevel data privacy maturity for a privacy-first cookieless world. While there is no market-ready solution available today that manages data end-to-end, our guidance for our clients is to take steps now to prepare a first-party data strategy and to conduct robust data management practices.”

He adds, “First-party will lead the way and now is the time to ensure that you have the best resources and information available to enhance or develop data collection operations and management models. It is your ability to communicate with your customers transparently and in a personalized, yet meaningful way, that will enable better relationships and business success in the future.”
Ultimately, creating a strong first-party data management framework will enable your entire organization to transition seamlessly off third-party data while continuing to reach new prospects and leads.
To create an effective enterprise data management strategy, take a look at Everything You Need to Know About Data Management.
2. Marketers are gathering customer data through email marketing.
Cynthia Price, Litmus’ SVP of Marketing, believes email marketing is a powerful option for continuing to collect customer and prospect data instead of relying on third-party cookies.
As Price puts it, “About eight in 10 marketers depend on third-party cookies, so when they do vanish, those who haven’t adapted their data structures and their data-gathering processes will struggle to effectively personalize their email programs.”
To combat these challenges, marketers will need to shift to ensure their email strategies leverage first-party data. This will help you create a more individualized email experience. 
Price suggests, “Email can be used to gather customer and prospect data with new, evolving email software and with dynamic content templates. Forms, in-email purchase options, and customizable marketing paths are all valid, successful tactics to use in order to garner more first-hand recipient information.”
Price adds, “Brands with siloed data structures have been unable to achieve a full, single view of their customers, with data getting pulled into multiple directions.”

Price says, “The evolution of privacy regulations will put email even more at the center of the marketing mix — as the channel that offers the most comprehensive view into zero and first-party data, and the ability to use it effectively.”

She continues, “This adoption of zero and first-party data will also allow for more practical uses of AI in email, with AMP and dynamic content automation.”
3. Marketers are focusing more on customer loyalty and retention.
The phaseout of third-party cookies will impact how some marketers acquire new customers, but it won’t impact how marketers retain existing customers — which is why some marketers will adjust to this third-party phaseout by refocusing their efforts.
SVP of Marketing at Cordial, Carrie Parker, says, “The phaseout of Google’s third-party cookies is forcing marketers and advertisers to think about engaging their customers and audiences in more personal and authentic ways. With cookies going away, acquiring new customers will become more complex, but on the other hand, retaining customers will be a much more critical piece of the puzzle than in the past.”
She adds, “More marketers are increasingly focusing on loyalty and retention within their current customer base, enhancing their experience with the insights readily available that consumers have provided.”
Parker told me Cordial recently conducted a study and found 70% of consumers dislike online ads that target them using websites and products they’ve viewed — and, on the contrary, more than eight in 10 consumers are more likely to buy from stores and brands that communicate with them in personal, relevant ways.
Parker continues, “Consumers want more from companies when it comes to personalization than what they’re receiving from most brands these days. Personalization does not mean inserting a name on an email and hitting send. Instead, it requires considering the value added to the consumer and keeping them loyal customers. With cookies going away, first-party data strategies allow brands to emphasize personalization, loyalty, and retention of their customers. Brands can use their customer base and provide something of value to make them come back.”

Ultimately, the phaseout of the third-party cookie is a good opportunity to re-evaluate how you’re interacting with both new and existing customers. First-party data strategies will ultimately help you better connect with your customers.
4. Marketers will focus on the best impressions rather than the best users.
Melinda Han Williams, Chief Data Scientist at Dstillery, says, “One of the most challenging aspects of preparing for this transition is that any good campaign will include a portfolio of post-cookie solutions and technologies after third-party cookies are gone. Even the marketers who are furthest along in their post-cookie testing journeys may still have much more preparation to do.”
She adds, “New identity solutions, such as UID2 and RampID, allow advertisers to reach people who have opted-in to tracking and addressability. Marketers who have tested these solutions have progressed toward post-cookie readiness, but they’re not done yet.”
“Why? Because some people don’t want to be tracked on the internet.”
Williams points out that marketers need to prepare solutions to reach people without tracking them or compromising their privacy or preferences.
The solution here? Understanding you might not need that much data about each customer in the first place.

As Williams told me, “The good news is you don’t need to know who someone is to know whether they’d be receptive to your message. Today’s artificial intelligence (AI) enables marketers to choose the best impressions rather than the best users.”

She adds, “Once you reframe the problem this way, rather than trying to find out as much about the user as possible with increasingly limited data, it is possible to do inventory-based targeting with performance and scale rivaling the cookie-based, tracking-based solutions that will soon be retired.”
Change is always difficult, particularly when it comes to the ways in which marketers reach new audiences. Fortunately, this change is likely for the best. Shifting to a first-party data model will help your organization appeal to the majority of consumers who are hesitant to share their data with companies, and it will set you up for long-term growth after Google’s third-party phaseout.