Category: Marketing Automation

It’s fair to say that not many people grow up dreaming about working in customer support. It’s not the typical aspirational career path! Indeed, some see a customer support role as a stepping stone to something else or a short-term job in a break from college or Uni. After nearly a decade working in a support role here at Buffer, I’ve come to think of customer support as a career in its own right, and I’m more passionate about it than ever.I’ve been working in the support team at Buffer for nine years, which is a significant and unusual amount of time in one job! In the tech world, people switch roles and employers more than in almost any other industry, making me even more of an outlier. There have certainly been times when the thought of moving on has popped into my mind, and I wondered if I should consider starting a new chapter. I want to share more about why I’ve stayed at Buffer and have no plans to leave.First of all – why support?I’ve always liked figuring things out, understanding how things work, making things better, and helping people. I feel satisfaction when I’ve been able to use my knowledge, experience, and skills to make a difference. I’ve previously worked in healthcare, where I made clinical diagnoses (focused on people) and in IT security roles (focused on tech). My customer support role at Buffer is in a sweet spot for me, where I use skills from both areas.Working in customer support can draw on many skills you wouldn’t combine in other roles. In just one day’s work, you can use a wide range of skills: emotional intelligence, predictive communication, technical knowledge, troubleshooting/diagnostics, and testing. There’s also a lot of cross-team communication: we work directly with the finance team on sales admin, with the marketing team on launch planning, and we work with the product and engineering teams to support their work in improving our product and bringing new features to our customers. We’re far from being an isolated team!Another awesome thing about support is that we need to know about the whole product, not just functionally. We need to know the ins and outs of how to use each feature, and we need to understand multiple use cases for each feature, the associated bugs, which bugs have recently been resolved for that feature, how features interact with one another, how our features differ from native features, etc. There’s the potential for infinite knowledge growth. You’ve never ‘arrived’ as a knowledge expert across the entire product due to continual changes, so there’s a constant challenge. However, amidst that challenge, your understanding of the resources which are at your disposal grows and gives you the confidence to continue navigating this ever-changing environment.Second – why I’ve stayed at Buffer.I joined in 2014 when we were still a start-up (Buffer was founded in 2012), and we were fewer than 20 people. The support team is currently bigger than Buffer was when I joined! I started out covering Saturdays and Sundays as a “Weekend Warrior” (we used to have slightly more jovial names for our roles, and we had a strong love of alliteration back then). I covered the email inbox and conversations coming in via social, and after a while, I transitioned into a more traditional work week.Some people know Buffer as much for our culture as for our product. We’ve been fully remote since before my time, and being able to work from wherever you feel most productive has been incredibly powerful. To me, it’s the biggest perk! I’ve been able to stay with my Dad, working from his place when he was unwell. I’ve also had the luxury of serving customers while poolside on a Spanish island. The flexibility and potential to find your best version of work-life balance without having to commute or being tied to an office is something I treasure. More recently, we transitioned to a four-day work week without a drop in salary. You might be starting to understand why Buffer is an exceptional company! Beyond these things, we’re a values-led company, and despite being spread around the globe, there are key things we all have in common.The work we do in support has always been focused on empowering people. We want to be there to help, but we also want to get out of the way as soon as possible. There are a few ways we do this:We offer the same level of support to our Free plan users as any paying customer, which means we can be there for people just getting started. That’s incredibly powerful.SourceWe invite customers to review their support experience, and we pay very close attention to how they score us. Our customer satisfaction score is currently 97%!Buffer CSAT request to customersWe use a system to review and rate our support conversations and make sure we’re delivering a really high standard, focusing on three tenets: Awareness, Clarity, and Empowerment.Buffer internal quality reviewsOver the span of 9 years, Buffer has changed a lot. Our product is more powerful and more complex, and our company has grown to just under 80 people. All this change has kept my role interesting, with fresh challenges and shifting team structures as we’ve evolved and refined our work and experimented with new approaches and tools. At the same time, we’ve maintained our small team mindset and focused on our core values.In the last year, I’ve taken on a Product Liaison role (more on that here), working as a link between our support team and our fantastic product team. I’ve learned so much! I make sure that the support team knows about all the customer-facing changes being worked on, as well as pass on customer insights that come through the inbox – such as areas of product friction and feature requests. I’m also getting more involved in pre-release testing and learning about the whole process of bringing new features to market. It’s been eye-opening, and the last 12 months have been the most exciting and rewarding of my career.How I avoid stalling and keep my motivation freshOnce or twice a year, I’ve intentionally stepped back from my work to reflect and ensure I’ve not gotten stuck in a rut or complacent about what I do. I’d never want to work on autopilot; that just isn’t me. Luckily, my work keeps me on my toes! There are also some proactive things I’ve done, that have greatly enriched my work and career in support:Take time to connect with the broader support community. There are Slack communities and real-life opportunities, such as meet-ups and conferences. Building a network of support professionals outside of Buffer’s customer Advocacy team worked well for me. It started out very organically, at a Customer Support meet-up one evening in London. I was chatting with some lovely people who also worked remotely about how nice it might be to co-work regularly. This was the start of the Support Breakfast, an informal co-working event based around breakfast in various venues in London. We worked from all kinds of locations, including coffee shops, hotel lobbies, and museums, and formed close friendships over time. We had such great chats about the common themes in our work and the different ways that we approached some of the challenges we faced, that we started recording our conversations and sharing them as a podcast.Be aware of working on autopilot. I’m not thinking of ‘getting in the zone’ here, more about coasting through the day. I’ve had jobs like that in the past, and it’s just not me. I don’t think that most people want that from a career. Some level of challenge that you can feel good about at the end of the day or week.Review available roles at other companies from time to time. The role description and requirements can help frame your current role and inspire you in terms of personal growth and the skills you want to develop. Not only will this enrich your current work, but it will also ensure that you’re market-ready if you decide to move on.Take on new challenges and projects within your capacity and with your manager’s support. Find areas within your team or adjacent teams where you can help out. For a while, I was wary that as Buffer had grown, our roles became more defined, with less variety in our work or opportunities to do something different. In small companies, you often do what needs doing, whether in your job description or not – in larger organizations, your role is more clearly mapped out and defined, and there are fewer opportunities to ‘wear many hats’. However, even in larger organizations, there are always going to be gaps that need filling, new initiatives or experiments that are worth exploring, or people or teams that need help.Finally, I recommend reading books and articles and listening to podcasts to expand your knowledge. Customer support has really been coming into its own as a career, and like all careers, there are emerging trends and opportunities.I ended up working in the support world because I like to help, and I’ve ended up surrounded by some of the kindest and most supportive people I’ve ever met. There are many directions that a career in support can take you and so many areas that you can get a taste of and perhaps go on to specialize in: marketing, customer research, community management, sales, and account management. You can go deeper into technical skills and engineering, as well as progress into an operations or leadership role. I didn’t grow up expecting to follow this path, but I’m fueled and encouraged by how dynamic and fulfilling my career in customer support has been. I’ll be here for a while!What thoughts come to mind for you on this topic? Come chat with me over on Mastodon,  Twitter, or LinkedIn!

Staying on top of your competitors is one of the things you have to do but don’t have time. Don’t worry; we’ve got that covered. Completter is a bi-weekly newsletter that keeps you updated on competition and significant market shifts. Our AI engine tracks your competitors’ activity, curates the most relevant information and delivers it straight to your inbox. It’s your new morning read. Signup for only $20/month. Try the first one for free (No credit card required). Best, Dan submitted by /u/Dancomyns [link] [comments]

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Hello friends, I’m always fascinated by the power of OpenAI and GPT-3. Especially when it comes to boosting our productivity. This post is a combination of both information and promotion, so please bear with me. One of my friends is a health coach and had a huge list of clients in a spreadsheet. Each client had a unique issue that they needed help with. My friend wanted a way to write custom text messages and schedule appointments with all of his clients. But he didn’t want to do this manually. This is the perfect example of how AI can help save someone’s time. I created an AI prompt for him and included it in my app. Now, he just had to select the data from the spreadsheet, press a button and the text for each text message would be generated automatically. The main advantage is that it can automatically parse the text according to instructions. For example, just taking the first name, or expanding the pain point. And make it sound as if it’s been written by a human. This can be extended to many use cases, such as removing invalid duplicates or auto-filling certain information. This is quick video of how it looks in action – https://reddit.com/link/10xtsbt/video/9hnbytycr5ha1/player The AI prompt I created for him went like this – https://preview.redd.it/1s6uw3ger5ha1.png?width=1500&format=png&auto=webp&s=407667a45fc42ec55be81941385d8b264f1add99 You can create as many such prompts as you want to let AI do the tedious work for you. There are so many such use cases in our daily workflow that boost our productivity with the help of AI. If you’re interested, you can try my app for FREE for 30 days from this link – Elephas. Do try it out and share your feedback. Happy to make improvements and add features based on what you need to improve your daily productivity with the help of AI Thanks submitted by /u/juliarmg [link] [comments]

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Welcome to HubSpot Marketing News! Tap in for campaign deep dives, the latest marketing industry news, and tried-and-true insights from HubSpot’s media team.
Rihanna is no stranger to good marketing.
In the late 2010s, she made the transition from recording artist to billionaire mogul with the growth of her Fenty-label brands. Her portfolio of businesses includes:

Fenty Beauty: a cosmetic brand that quickly gained popularity for its shade range and inclusivity.
Fenty Skin: the skin and body care counterpart to Fenty Beauty.
Savage X Fenty: a lingerie subscription brand that now includes lounge and activewear.

Rihanna’s business ventures and music career were largely siloed — until now.
Back in September, it was announced Rihanna would be headlining the Super Bowl LVII halftime show, signaling her return to music after a six-year hiatus. As kickoff approaches, we’re seeing Rihanna use her family of brands to promote the upcoming performance.
The Fenty Marketing Engine
This week on the Fenty Beauty social media accounts, the brand shared an ASMR football-themed video to promote the upcoming halftime show. This came a few weeks after the brand offered a collection of football-themed products in its Showstopp’r line.

@fentybeauty
That #FENTYGAMEFACE never fumbles! 💯🏈 Start the play with a layer of #HYDRAVIZOR to tackle any SPF worries 🌞 Then, touchdown on #PROFILTRFOUNDATION for that fresh AF, soft matte flex 💪🏿💪🏾💪🏽 #GAMEDAY is just 6 days away, so re-up on the essentials now to prep for the big day at the 🔗 in bio, @sephora, @sephoracanada, and #sephoraxkohls 🏆
♬ original sound – Fenty Beauty

In January, Savage X Fenty launched a Game Day collection of halftime show-inspired pieces and hosted pop-ups to sell the merch in Los Angeles and Phoenix.

 

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by SAVAGE X FENTY BY RIHANNA (@savagexfenty)

Over the past few years, Rihanna’s brands have caused major shifts in their respective industries.
The wide range of shades offered by Fenty Beauty made other makeup brands increase their shade ranges to remain competitive, and ushered in a new generation of celebrity beauty product lines.
The annual Savage X Fenty fashion show is known for featuring models of all body types and backgrounds, which is a far cry from Victoria’s Secret fashion shows of the 90s and 2000s and may have inspired the latter company’s rebrand to focus on inclusion.
The Fenty marketing engine is effective. With an entire Fenty ecosystem of businesses ready to offer marketing support, the next phase of Rihanna’s music career could signal a shift in how recording artists promote their music.
Marketing Snippets
The latest marketing news and strategy insights.
Google and Microsoft announced plans to add AI functionality to their search engines.
Twitter announces plans to offer advertising revenue sharing to Twitter Blue subscribers.
Social platforms to watch: what the data tells us about which platforms to invest in.
YouTube’s ad revenue sees an 8% year-over-year drop.
Video marketing: the latest data to help you get the most out of your video marketing efforts in 2023.
Content creation tools: a list of must-have tools for creating content in 2023.

The Bookmaking and Sportsbook are one of the most stable areas of the iGaming industry. There are a lot of new areas in iGaming industry, but the Bookmaking is always demanded in industry Click here submitted by /u/RiseWorth7373 [link] [comments]

In early 2013, the internet was captivated by six-second clips they’d come to know as Vines. While these videos were fleeting, they told an entire story and entertained audiences in a few seconds. Today, Vine is no more, and TikTok dominates the short-term video space.But whereas Vines had a fixed length – six and a half seconds to be exact – there’s much more wiggle room when it comes to TikTok lengths, which can be confusing when trying to figure out the optimal length for your videos.Recently, while filming a TikTok video for one of our Buffer articles, I wondered about the ideal length. Should I be quick and snappy or go into detail and make the TikTok a bit longer? This led me to the idea for this article, where I’ll tackle the question of the right length for a TikTok. Let’s get started!How to find the right TikTok lengthTo figure out the best length for your TikTok, you need to consider a few things, including the app’s algorithm, understanding user preferences, and factoring in the type of content you’re creating.What video lengths perform the best on TikTok?TikTok has never publicly come out about which video lengths perform the best. However, we can make a reasonably accurate guess based on data and research.In mid-2021, internal data from TikTok that was given to creators said the optimal TikTok length was 11 to 17 seconds. However, by the end of that year, that number had increased to 24 to 31 seconds. According to Wired, a TikTok survey also found that users felt videos longer than one minute were stressful. All of this indicates that shorter videos perform best with the TikTok community, however, the platform has recently been pushing for longer videos for different reasons.The reality is, while user attention spans are shorter now, TikTok wants longer videos to help sell more advertising revenue (this is partially why Vine shut down – it couldn’t sustain its business model) hence their recent move to allow up to 10 minute-long TikToks in early 2022. So over the years, TikTok video lengths have increased: from 7 seconds → 15 seconds → 3 minutes → 10 minutes.With this being said, the consensus is still that shorter videos perform better on TikTok. Not only is the platform still known for short-form content, but you don’t want people to be scrolling past your videos without finishing them, meaning it is probably best to stick to shorter TikToks.Social media is constantly changing, however. And because there is a financial incentive for TikTok to venture into long-form content, there is a realistic chance that the app’s algorithm may prefer longer videos in the near future – so stay flexible.What video length suits your TikTok content the best?We’ve already established that shorter videos perform best on TikTok – but this doesn’t necessarily mean that longer videos don’t have a place on the app. The length of your TikTok will depend on the message you want to convey.While it’s best not to drag a video on for too long, you also don’t want to cut yourself off before you can effectively get to the point. When I was filming this TikTok on AI writing tools for an article I wrote on our blog, I wanted to give an accurate summary of the article, and the video turned out to be over 1 minute. We still received good engagement on TikTok and our Instagram, where we cross-posted the video as a Reel. Had I shortened the length of the video, I don’t think it would have been as effective. @bufferapp Spoiler alert: Content writer Umber does not like AI writing tools 🙅 AI is incredibly popular right now, but Umber, one of our content writers here at Buffer, hasn’t been excited to see its growing popularity lately. We don’t normally share personal pieces for the Buffer blog, but this essay is Umber’s attempt to tackle her complicated feelings about AI head-on and potentially find a middle ground. What are your thoughts on AI? 💬 #ai #artificialintelligence #chatgpt #aitools #personalessay #contentwriter #contentcreator #writingtools ♬ Storytelling – Adriel But even longer videos can perform well, too. This TikTok from Jess Hunt, founder of makeup brand Refy, lasts for over six minutes. Jess tells a story time on how she founded her company. The TikTok received over a million views, over 100,000 likes, and 342 comments. @jesshunt02 Replying to @Dreamy Homes how I started my brand @REFY 🤍 get ready with me! #storytime #brand #refybeauty #grwm #makeuptutorial #business ♬ original sound – Jess Hunt Similarly, if you want to highlight a product, talk about your company culture, or share a story time  video, you probably are going to need to make a bit of a longer video, and that’s totally OK! Longer TikToks can also get great engagement, so don’t feel like your TikToks always have to be bite-sized.The importance of adding a hook to your TikTokBy now, you’ve probably realized that there is no magic number when it comes to TikTok lengths. However, one thing we can say for sure is that TikToks that open with a strong hook during their first three seconds tend to perform the best.Specifically, research directly from TikTok says, “over 63% of all videos with the highest click-through rate (CTR) highlight their key message or product within the first three seconds.” This means you want to start your TikTok off strong and quickly introduce the topic or thesis.This TikTok by content creator Naomi Burtt is 46 seconds but opens with a hook quickly – “This is my Chipotle hack.” Its received over one million views. @naomiburtt my $4 dinner at chipotle 🤭🥰🫡 #chipotlehacks ♬ Escapism. – Super Sped Up – RAYE Here, content creator Kevin – also known as the CEO of Chai – has an immediate product hook. The TikTok opens with a clip of Emma Chamberlain highlighting her chai poweder mix. In the video, Kevin reviews the product and talks about the chai for one and a half minutes. Note that even at a longer legnth the TikTok performed well and garnered over 180,000 likes. @crossculturechristian Emma Chamberlain Hummingbird Chai Review while this is not a traditional #chai brewing method, its a better chai powder than the ones ive tried ( fully acknowledging that “instant chai” is a western, commodified version of the real thing). The flavor might be better iced. This might do well as an additive to a coffee situation than a standalone chai alternative. Have you tried this? Thoughts? 👇🏾👇🏾 #veganchai #emmachamberlain #emmachamberlaincoffee ♬ original sound – Kevin | CEO of Chai We recently went viral on TikTok with a fun video our social media manager Mitra made about remote work. While the video is short – only five seconds – the visual hook is immediate as the first thing people see is the text, “POV: You’re a remote worker vibing at Target in the middle of the work day.” @bufferapp Mid day Target runs are worth the risk #CapCut #targetrunsarethebest #remotework #remoteworklife #wfh #wfhproblems #workfromhome #targettok #targetrunsbelike #targetruns ♬ original sound – Buffer A good hook will captivate the audience’s attention right away, meaning these users will be more likely to finish your video instead of just scrolling past it. This is important because the TikTok algorithm will ding you if users aren’t engaging with your video and watching it in its entirety.Examples of different TikTok lengths from small businessesWhile shorter TikToks may be your best bet, exploring with and diversifying your content is a good strategy, too. In this section, we’ll go over how these small businesses create both short and long TikToks.Buffer’s TikToksOn our TikTok, we cover various topics, including social media management, remote work, and the 4-day work week.Here, Mitra shared a funny and relatable TikTok about social media managers, which lasted only five seconds. The video received over 270,000 views, 3500 likes, and 32 comments. @bufferapp “Wait let me film this for TikTok” – our social media manager all week #buffer #socialmediamanager #remoteteam #remote #remotecompany #marketingteam #marketing #socialmediamanagerproblems #teammeeting #wfh #teammeetup #remotework #fullyremote #smm ♬ original sound – Heather 🍯 In this TikTok, Tom Redman, a former Director of Product at Buffer, filmed a TikTok about a job opening. In the video, which lasts 46 seconds, Tom opens with Buffer’s benefits and goes into more detail about the job. This TikTok received nearly 300,000 views, over 17,000 comments, and 550 comments. @bufferapp We’re hiring a Growth Product Manager! Apply now at buffer.com/journey #buffer #techjob #productmanager #hiring #4dayworkweek #remotejob #remotework ♬ Canyons – Official Sound Studio Saie’s TikToksThis is a fun and casual TikTok by clean makeup brand Saie, which lasts only five seconds. Here, Saie talks about a trending topic – the Sephora sale – and highlights their blushes in the caption. This video received nearly 7,000 views and close to 200 likes. @saiebeauty I got 30 Dew Blushes hbu #sephorahaul #sephorawishlist #saiebeauty ♬ original sound – KingZony This TikTok on the other hand is more educational and lasts for over two minutes. Saie’s Ceo, Laney, gives users her best marketing tips. The video received over 11,000 views, 700 likes, and 60 comments. @saiebeauty Marketing 101 with our founder @Laney 💜 #beautymarketing #marketingtips #saiebeauty ♬ original sound – Saie Foton Pearled Candle’s TikToksFoton Pearled Candle has a thriving TikTok which showcases helpful tips and tricks for users who purchase their products. This TikTok on candle safety lasted only nine seconds and received over 27,000 views, nearly 1,000 likes, and 10 comments. @fotoncandle Love candles but worried you, your kids, friends or pets would spill them and cause a fire? Introducing a safer way to enjoy candles, pearled candles that self-extinguish when tipped over. Follow to learn more! #candle #candlesafety #firesafety #fire #candlefire #fotoncandle #fotonpearls #eventdecor #eventcandles #weddingcandles #candledecor #candletok ♬ Ring of Fire – Johnny Cash On the other hand, This TikTok explaining the benefits of pearled candles is a bit longer at 26 seconds and received over a million views, 130,000 likes, and 257 comments. @fotoncandle Worried about the mess? Pearled candles are actually easier to clean off carpets than regular candle wax. Please note this video is for demo purposes only, always review and follow fire safety guidance before using candles! #fotoncandle #fotonpearls #candlesafety #carpetcleaning #candlehacks ♬ Play with Fire (feat. Yacht Money) – Sam Tinnesz The consensus here is that both long and short TikToks have their place, and both seem to perform well.Comparing TikTok lengths to Instagram ReelsInstagram’s hard push to Reels last year was a direct result of its competition with TikTok, so it’s no wonder the two mediums feel very similar. In fact, it’s common for creators to cross-post their TikToks directly onto Instagram Reels and we even recommend doing so for more visibility on your posts.In this regard, a lot of content that performs well on TikTok can perform well on Reels and vice-versa. But there is one key difference. Currently, Reels can only be up to one minute long, whereas TikToks can be much longer at ten minutes. This means Reels are more fast-paced than TikToks, and they also tend to be more polished, whereas TikToks can have a more off-the-cuff feel to them.Hopefully, you’ve found this article helpful! Instead of focusing solely on your TikTok length, remember you have to produce quality content on TikTok, too. As long as you’re making TikToks that users find entertaining, insightful, and educational, your videos should perform well. If you’re interested in growing your TikTok presence, we’ve got you covered! We’ve written about TikTok best practices, strategies to gain more TikTok followers, and the best time to post on TikTok.Get started with Buffer for free and schedule your TikToks today!

There’s no denying that if you don’t continually acquire new customers, your profit margins will plateau or decline. Remember: more customers mean more income — and more income means more profit.  There are many ways to win new customers, and acquisition email sits right up there with the most effective methods.  In this guide, we’ll…
The post What is an Acquisition Email and Why You’re Under-Utilizing It appeared first on Benchmark Email.