Best practices for chambers to identify the needs of their members.

1. Learning to think like a digital marketer For the tech savvy and the not so tech savvy Intro Survey

2. Over the course of this seminar you’ll Gain better insight on how to identify the digital needs of your chamber and its members Take a tour of some of the most dynamic marketing tools on the web (which also happen to be free) Learn of some useful resources for keeping up with emerging trends in digital technology Have some fun!

3. Who are you listening to?

4. What is Symbiote? Sound marketing strategy combined with the latest digital technologies to provide four key areas of services. Online Strategy and Planning Symbiotedigital.com Most Recent Sites: Bestcoolseeds.com Dublinsquare.net Bellisimabridalboutique.com Web Development Mobile Technology Digital Marketing and PR

6. For 2010 we assembled a collection of 15 pre-designed Michigan Themed Gift Baskets that feature products from over 20 local Northern Michigan farm markets and orchards

7. Customizable Gift Baskets

8. Through our website’s “Design a Basket” feature, customers can mix and match over 100 products to design their own custom baskets of all shapes and sizes. All with local products

9. Hand Made Orchard Gift Crates

10. We hand make wood orchard crates out of our workshop located in Ellsworth, MI. Originally designed for our own line of gift baskets we have recently designed and built crates for Friske Orchards, Brownwood Farms, and Royal Farms and are looking to expand our crate operationMiFarmMarket.COM

11. Identifying the Needs of your chamber and it’s members

12. The Role of a (good) Digital Marketer Help clients find long term solutions which help them achieve their business goals Stay one step ahead of the client De-mystify digital marketing best practices Make themselves available for consultation How can a web developer do this and expect to stay profitable?

13. What Not to Do: Volume 1 The Breakup

14. What not to do: Volume 2 Don’t give them everything they want Popular things I hear “I need to get on facebook” “I need a cheap web developer” “I need a website that pops” Translation: “I want to engage in dialogue with my consumers” “I don’t have a lot of money for a website” “Style is important to me… I think”

15. 3 Rules to keeping up: Flexibility - Don’t need to have the right answers as long as you can ask the right questions Relevancy - Just because everyone else is doing it is not a good reason to do something Never pass up an opportunity to learn something new

16. Getting to know your audience: Level 1 The Northern Michigan advantage 3 Questions to ask a chamber member: What’s your budget? What’s your time availability? What’s your level of understanding when it comes to technology?

17. Getting to know your audience: Level 2 Who is the target audience? targeting audience members and turning them into consumers What would you like to say to the target audience? (and how often?) Simple calls to action How can they say it as cost effectively as possible? – Best free digital channels through which to engage my consumers

18. 1. Who is your audience? The more you can segment your audience, the better chance you have of reaching them Does not have to be complex Geographically (Local vs. Non-local) Age Level of technology use (email, mobile devices, social networks)

19. 2. What would you like to say to your audience? Buy my product! - Increase Sales Hey we’re here! - Raise Awareness Stay in touch and you’ll be rewarded! - Gain repeat business These are the benefits of joining us! - Increase Membership

20. Tour of the Tools Free First

21. Website Builders webs.com Free site builder Built in SEO Business Apps Upgradeable

22. Website Builders Wix.com Free Flash websites Built in SEO Facebook page templates

23. E-mail Marketing MailChimp Free email marketing service Upload email lists Easily create email campaigns Tracking and optimization tools

24. Customer Feedback Survey Monkey Free online survey application Gain valuable customer feedback Embed questionnaires in to your website Analytics tools

25. SMS Marketing Google Voice Business/Voice Services Free call forwarding Free voicemail service Text message capabilities

26. Facebook A few quick points If I build it will they come? Quality of engagement > Number of “Likes” Facebook.com/mifarmmarket

27. Facebook Engagement 3 Essential Apps for Chambers Social RSS: Automatically pull in updates from your site’s blog (Careful not to duplicate content) YouTube for Pages: Connect your YouTube channel to your Facebook page Scribd: Upload and share documents with your Facebook followers

28. Other options for small businesses Google Places / Bing Local / Yahoo! CitySearch Yelp Group Discounting Check-in apps Professional Lead generators (service magic, angie’s list, etc.) PPC Advertising – Google Adwords Sales websites – ebay, amazon, specialty sites *A quick note on SEO

29. Keeping Up with the trends

30. Useful sites for chambers Ad Age - Tech Updates and trends Media Post - Consumer behavior trends Online Communities - If you can’t find the answer you’re looking for, just ask LinkedIn Google

31. Useful sites for chambers and chamber members Provide resources and content AMEX Open Forum - An online community consisting of small businesses and business professionals Entrepreneur Magazine - Articles and Forums relating to specific small business issues LinkedIn Communities – Discussions regarding best practices in small business marketing, management, and communications

32. Case Studies

33. Dublin Square Irish Pub East Lansing, MI

34. Dublin Square Irish Pub Brief: Jim is the manager of a fairly successful Irish pub, located in East Lansing, MI. In the past he’s paid large monthly fees to a web developer to make updates on his web site. Lately he’s spent more time trying to contact his web developer than he would making changes to his own site. He’s decided that he wants his website to have a fresh look but he’s hesitant to hire a developer due to his past experience. He has a pretty good idea of the kind of website he wants: He wants to be able to keep people updated with his food and drink specials, display photos of events, and keep updated menus. He also wants to keep a regular email newsletter. Since 90% of his customers are college students, he wants to use any and every means necessary to communicate to them. He’s pretty sure he needs to be on facebook but isn’t quite sure where to get started. Does Jim Need a web developer?

35. Dublin Square Irish Pub What is Jim’s level of availability / knowledge Who is Jim’s audience? What does Jim want to say and how often? Solutions…

36. Solutions Does he need a web developer? – No Free website builder –webs.com Branded Facebook Page – Wix.com E-mail marketing – MailChimp.com Facebook updates and photos SMS marketing – through Google Voice

37. Interior Solutions of Winter Park Orlando, FL

38. Interior Solutions of Winter Park Brief: Jim is the owner of a new interior design shop in a major city. His grand opening is scheduled for a few weeks from now and he wants to raise awareness amongst area home owners and building contractors. Although he is fairly tech savvy, he hasn’t had time to do much research regarding his website as he’s been concerned with several other aspects of his startup business. He has not yet hired a web designer but he has an idea of what kind of site he wants. Although he doesn’t expect a very complex site, he would still like something flashy that catches the eye of prospective customers. He wants his website to feature images from his interior design showroom and a tips section where he can add DIY info for prospective clients. It would be nice if he had a way to keep his clients and prospective clients updated on the work he’s done. Finally, because the client courtship process is so long in the interior design business, he would like to be able to gain direct customer feedback whenever possible. Jim has money allocated for a developer in hisstart-up budget, but can’t afford to waste time with someone who can’t deliver. Does Jim Need a web developer?

39. Interior Solutions of Winter Park What is Jim’s level of availability / knowledge Who is Jim’s audience? What does Jim want to say and how often? Solutions…

40. Interior Solutions of Winter Park Does he need a web developer? – Yes / No Free website builder –webs.com OR Hire a developer to create a basic website E-mail marketing – MailChimp.com Customer Feedback / Exit surveys through Survey Monkey Bonus: Google Voice to increase customer service No Facebook Page - Yet

41. Active Industrial Solutions Charlevoix, MI

42. Active Industrial Solutions Brief: This is Dean. Dean has been the owner of a Charlevoix based industrial cleaning supply company for the last 5 years. Historically he’s only sold to businesses in the immediate area, but is looking to expand his sales efforts. Not only does he want to establish an online store where he can ship his products all over the country, but he also wants a system that will make it easier for him to manage orders from his current client list, linking his inventory management system with an online gateway. Dean prides himself in being up every morning at 5am and delivering his products by hand. He has to admit though, he’s not the most tech savvy person in the world (He’s planning to switch to a smart phone before the year is out). When it comes to spare time, Dean has absolutely zero. Does Dean need a web developer?

43. Active Industrial Supply What is Dean’s level of availability / knowledge Who is Dean’s audience? What does Deanwant to say and how often? Solutions…

44. Active Industrial Solutions Does he need a web developer? Heck yes This is a case where Dean would be better off hiring a digital strategist to handle his web development and digital marketing. What questions might Dean ask his web developer before hiring?

45. In Conclusion… Identifying your audience is half the battle in digital marketing Always find out what you can get for free before investing in digital marketing resources Never underestimate the power of a good Google search

46. Thank You