The Wax Blog

We're excited about the progress women leaders in the workplace have been making this year with news of GM's C-suite leadership and other announcements like Pepsi's charge to have women constitute 40% of its management team. Aspiring women leaders may still be discouraged by poor statistics, however. Less than 5% of Fortune 500 companies listed female CEOs in 2018 (source).  Under-representation of women in the business world can mean continued wage inequality, poor company policies on health and maternal care, and an inability to reach female customers effectively. Luckily, companies like Toptal are making strides to change those numbers and help smart, talented women earn the roles they deserve. Toptal, an exclusive network of top freelance software developers, designers, finance experts, and project managers, has a scholarship program for aspiring women leaders in 2018-19. Aspiring women leaders are eligible to apply for a $10,000 grant and a year of mentorship from a Toptal expert. 

There’s never a shortage of tips and advice - e-commerce hacks - on improving e-commerce sales. And while some are indeed valuable, others are just outdated suggestions that produce little to no results. And with every year introducing a new wave of marketing trends and technological advances, it becomes obvious how adaptability plays a crucial role in keeping businesses afloat. In this post, we’re offering the latest emerging trends within the field of e-commerce that every forward-thinking marketer should be aware of.

1. Create and identify your ideal buyer persona.

A buyer persona lets you create a marketing strategy that resonates more with your target customer, as opposed to generic marketing tactics that can hit or miss.

For any business to succeed, you need to retain your customers. Once you win your customers’ loyalty, you can expect a good amount of revenue from repeat purchases. However, if you fail to retain your customers, your sales and profit margins are likely to suffer. It is more cost-effective to retain your existing customers than to acquire new ones. Acquiring a new customer can be five times more expensive than retaining existing customers. Customer retention strategies differ from industry to industry. However, regardless of the industry, data, artificial intelligence, and predictive analysis can help you improve customer retention. Here are a few ways to use predictive analysis to retain your existing customers.

1. Personalize Offers for Your Customers

Hilary Topper, President of HJMT Public Relations and author of Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about Social Media gives us the inside scoop on conducting successful influencer marketing campaigns. 

Along with her successful PR practice, Topper teaches Media Studies, Journalism, and Public Relations at Hofstra University. A prolific content marketer, she also curates  two successful blogs - NY Lifestyle and A Triathlete's Diary - and records her podcast "Hilary Topper on Air". In the latest Wax Q&A, Hilary providers her insights on one of the hottest marketing trends right now: influencer marketing. Wax: Why do you think influencer marketing has become so popular in the last couple of years? HT: Influencer Marketing has always been popular. In recent years, the phrase has been coined but since the earliest public relations campaigns, PR professionals have used celebrities, experts, sports figures, etc. to build brand awareness. Just recently, the “average” person who has lots of followers have been targeted to help in the mission.

Digital voice assistants are takingoffe off. From Amazon's Alexa to the Google Home, it seems like it won't be long before a digital voice assistant is going to be a crucial piece in everyone's home and office. Marketing with voice technology is not far behind. According to a study from  Pew Research Center, 46% of US adults say they use some type of voice technology to interact with devices, and that percentage is only going to grow.  With more people integrating digital assistants into their everyday lives, marketers can now leverage the technology in voice app development to raise brand awareness and create new, personalized experiences.

Google+ is Google's social networking platform that launched in 2011. As of November 2016 Google+ had 440 million active monthly users. Although it's sometimes forgotten by marketers there are several ways to boost search wiht Google+ . Google has always denied any correlation between Google+  activity and Google search rankings. But many marketers claim that Google+ engagement seems to result in better rankings on Google. Let’s take a look at 7 of the best ways to optimize your Google+ page and improve your search engine rankings:

1. Post Valuable Content Consistently

Google always rewards the relevancy of content. Therefore, consistently posting useful content for your followers is of the utmost importance for improving your search engine rankings. But be careful not to overshare your content as Google considers too much sharing as spam. Share only your best posts with appropriate and attractive images. Make sure they are posted to public as well as shared with your existing circles.

If you started an online retail business from scratch, or first ventured in selling products from your brick-and-mortar store, it will have been a daunting challenge. The choices are overwhelming in setting up an e-commerce website ranging from do-it-yourself solutions, seemingly low-price website builders, and pricey developers, to full-service companies. The quotes you will get will range from a few hundred to tens of thousands of dollars. All these suppliers will tell you that their e-commerce website solution is precisely what you need, and in most cases, will scale fully when your business takes off.

It’s hard to build a loyal client base for any business, but new businesses definitely have a long road ahead of them. Without a long-standing reputation, it can be hard to gain the trust of potential clients. That’s why it’s so important to build solid relationships with every single customer you receive so as to ensure that they stick around and improve the overall reputation of your business. Let’s talk about some smart client retention techniques. Solve a problem in the industry. The world of business can be brutally competitive. You can either stand back and let rival companies overtake your business, or you can be brave enough to take the lead in your industry. There are only so many potential customers to go around in your specific market, so you need to attract consumers who are currently buying similar goods to yours from your competitors. That’s the key to client base growth. But the only way you’re going to achieve this is by solving a problem that consumers face when they buy goods or services from your competitors. Perhaps the price is too high, or perhaps they’re not getting a completely ethical service.

America is the land of opportunity and nothing proves that more than the entrepreneurial spirit of small business owners. But as any business owner can tell you, the path to a successful business is long and not without its share of difficulties. Small business owners often dedicate their lives to their businesses. While big corporations are still asleep in their beds, small business owners are already tolling away to meet their sales goals for the day. The demands of running a small business often require owners to stretch their resources, like time, money, and manpower. So, having resources to show them just how to do that are essential. Resources for Success Small business owners often walk a tightrope in allocating resources and trying to find the right formula to keep their business profitable. Those resources aren’t always obvious. With over 50% of businesses in the U.S., the small business world is a competitive one, so finding the right information to help make your business a success critical. Fit Small Business was designed with the small business owner in mind. Their site is an encyclopedia of information for business owners that answers questions about everything from how to start a small business to how to expand their brand. Owning a small business can feel like you are navigating the open sea alone. That’s why Fit Small Business has real tips from small business owners included in all their content, giving business owners the guidance they need from others that are on the same journey.