Posts Tagged ‘training’

Our Jess becomes a fully accredited Business Link trainer!

Wednesday, March 17th, 2010

It’s the news we’ve been all been waiting for here at Intune: co-owner Jessica Kemp has been granted the status of fully accredited Business Link trainer, meaning audiences of business people across Yorkshire and the rest of the UK will be able to hear her talk passionately about her very favourite subject - that is, how businesses large and small can go about getting the very best out of the internet.

The first event Jess will be holding is called ‘Stay in tune with… Intune Media!’ and will be taking place at Park Inn, York on Tuesday 15th June, from 6.30pm - 9.30pm. You should attend. Really you should. Why? Well…

1. Er, it’s free

2. Jess isn’t your ordinary presenter: don’t let all that effervescence and eccentricity fool you: she’s sharp as needle, has her finger right on the pulse of everything to do with online marketing and is also a highly experienced lecturer, having lectured at Newcastle Uni

3. She’s got the interests of your business at heart: she’ll be explaining the importance of a keen eye for cost-effective marketing opportunities and demonstrating  why it’s so vital that companies of all sizes (from each and every sector) explore new and emerging marketing techniques and tools

4. Online marketing is well and truly here, and here to stay, so it therefore pays to be aware of which emerging technologies and channels can take you to the next level, for the least amount of spend and in the shortest possible time. Jess is in ‘the know’. Ridiculously so

5. The event is designed to inspire those looking to set up or further develop a business who want to know the most effective online and social media solutions that not only attract more customers, but that will also support a growing business through an upturn in the economy. That’s YOU

6. Jess isn’t one of those presenters that skips over important details just so that she can get to the end of presentation and jump in her car. The girl/woman/lass/non-gender-specific person loves questions and will answer them to their fullest

7. England haven’t got a World Cup match on 15th June, and the cakewalk that Brazil have against North Korea that night really won’t be worth watching

8. Like everyone at Intune, Jess wants to help you make money online

There’s a already a great buzz surrounding Jess’s debut Business Link event and, ongoing, the talks she gives are likely to be some of the most popular in the Business Link event calendar, so get yourself booked in at www.businesslinkyorkshire.co.uk or on 08456 048 048 - you won’t regret it!

Tags: , ,
Posted in Digital Strategy, Emarketing, Marketing

1-2-1 Intune Search Engine Marketing Training for your Ecommerce Website

Sunday, June 28th, 2009

I’ve recently been discussing the subject of online business optimisation to improve profits with a good friend Brian Allmey. Brian helps businesses, aspiring entrepreneurs and ambitious managers to develop their business and themselves. On the subject of ecommerce, Brian suggested business owners ask themselves the following questions:

Is your webstore empty, or are people queueing to get in?

Do you have a market stall, or a heaving high street store?

Does everyone cheer when you make a sale, or are your ears drowned by ringing tills all day?

We both know what the correct answer should be to ensure your long term profitability. In the current economic climate your website should be a huge supportive arm to your long term business goals, reaching out, grabbing people’s attention and encouraging the measurable growth of your business.

Understanding the basics of search engine marketing can benefit every small business owner. When done correctly, search engine optimisation can be the most cost effective and most time efficient way to drive traffic and customers to your website; encouraging visitor interaction, contact and ultimately sales.

When you know the ways to get onto the front page of Google, you’ll be amazed at the difference it can make to your business. There are things that you can do straight away to help Google find you and index your content.

What you will learn with Intune Search Engine Marketing Training:

1. What Google is looking for
2. How you can optimise your own website
3. Terminology and acronyms
4. Truth and fiction
5. How you can drive traffic to your website
6. How you can get and retain Google’s attention
7. Tools you can start using immediately
8. Measuring your website’s results

Why you should take Intune Search Engine Marketing Training:

1. If your website is not on the first page of Google you have very little chance of being found
2. SEO is the cheapest way to market your business
3. SEO is within your ability
4. You can start getting results straight away
5. You will know what to write for your website
6. You will get a taste of how to use social media to your advantage

Intune Media are advocates of transferable skills, a registered learning provider and offer a 1-2-1 introductory training courses to help you understand what you can and can’t do yourself, where you should be focusing your attention to get the best results for your business and how to get your website noticed now and in the future. 90% of people in the UK use Google to find what they are looking for; enquire about our training to make sure that they can find your business. Increase your knowledge, increase your exposure and increase your profits. Contact jessica@intune-media.co.uk for a no-obligation online business health check.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Ecommerce, Marketing, Search Engine Optimisation

it’s not what you’ve got, it’s how you use it…some recent observations on digital marketing

Tuesday, June 23rd, 2009

How agile is your marketing? How fast can you respond to online trends and drive your business forward whilst sustaining your market share, developing new revenue streams and improving your long term profit? Yes, there’s a bar up there and the serious strategists amongst us are setting it wayyyyy up high, but there’s a good reason. There’s a lot at stake here.
In the current climate and an increasingly competitive online environment, there is little time for weighty approval processes and the sign off of every piece of external communication before it goes live. Competitors are dangerously agile and it’s a no brainer that the web rewards people who are nimble and adaptable.
Technology is changing consumer behaviours and the perception of value. Whilst this is the main driving force behind creating new technology and opportunities (which we’re all for by the way), we are witnessing products and services increasingly lacking tangible value, whereby they are a commodity that simply competes on price alone. When a business model is commoditized, it is forced to sell on quantity to scale the business. We’ve never been fearful of competition, but while competitiveness is good for most industries, excessive competition or lack of competition is resulting in business’ having to change their model at short notice.
A good web proposition doesn’t stay under wraps for long and there are opportunities, short lived as they are, for business owners to interact with potential clients with compelling communications if they can only realise, partner with the right people (hint hint) and act.

With social media topping the most popular digital marketing tactics of 2009, there are many challenges and opportunities for business owners. As well as understanding the tools themselves, one of the largest challenges and opportunities is the idea of being agile, a quality that defines brands and individuals who have leveraged the web to become industry leaders.

Intune Media utilise agile web development and marketing techniques. Let us guide you, inform you, teach you, to harness your strengths online so you’re not pipped past the post by the competition. Contact Jessica@intune-media.co.uk for a free no obligation consultation.

Tags: , , , , , ,
Posted in Digital Strategy, Marketing, Search Engine Optimisation

Intune LinkedIn Coaching and Training - enhance your personal brand, increase your business exposure

Friday, June 5th, 2009

Posted in ‘best practice’, ‘productivity’ or simply in ‘ things that work’, a range of professionals are increasingly shouting about the benefits of LinkedIn for personal brand development and business exposure.

I rather liked a description I once read that LinkedIn is ‘facebook for adults with jobs’. It made me smile… I am often asked, ‘what is my return for the time spent blogging and networking?’ - the age old ‘you get out what you put in’ answer springs to mind, but i always try to hammer home the point there has to be focus and an end business goal in mind when we are online, as it is so easy to be side tracked, where time spent can do more harm than good.

The mechanics of using LinkedIn are pretty simple: sign up, fill out your profile, invite your business associates, search for people, request/forward/receive introduction requests, etc. But turning that into effective business strategy can be a challenge, especially when you hear so many mixed messages online.

Ten Ways to Use LinkedIn by Guy Kawasaki is a good starting point in understanding the opportunities to be had from regular use of this site; to strengthen your online brand reputation and leverage your professional network. Even though most of the ten are relatviely obvious, its well worth a read:

  1. Increase your visibility.By adding connections, you increase the likelihood that people will see your profile first when they’re searching for someone to hire or do business with. In addition to appearing at the top of search results  (which is a major plus if you’re one of the 52,000 product managers on LinkedIn), people would much rather work with people who their friends know and trust.
  2. Improve your connectability.Most new users put only their current company in their profile. By doing so, they severely limit their ability to connect with people. You should fill out your profile like it’s an executive bio, so include
    past companies, education, affiliations, and activities.You can also include a link to your profile as part of an email signature. The added benefit is that the link enables people to see all your credentials, which would be awkward if not downright strange, as
    an attachment.
  3. Improve your Google PageRank.LinkedIn allows you to make your profile information available for search engines to index. Since LinkedIn profiles receive a fairly high PageRank in Google, this is a good way to influence what people see when they search for you.To do this, create a public profile and select “Full View.” Also, instead of using the default URL, customize your public profile’s URL to be your actual name. To strengthen the visibility of this page in
    search engines, use this link in various places on the web> For example, when you comment in a blog, include a link to your profile in your signature.
  4. Enhance your search engine results.In addition to your name, you can also promote your blog or website to search engines like Google and Yahoo! Your LinkedIn profile allows you to publicize websites. There are a few pre-selected categories like “My Website,” “My Company,” etc.If you select “Other” you can modify the name of the link. If you’re linking to your personal blog, include your name or descriptive terms in the link, and voila! instant search-engine optimization for your site. To make this work, be sure your public profile setting is set to “Full View.”
  5. Perform blind, “reverse,” and company reference checks.LinkedIn’s reference check tool to input a company name and the years the person worked at the company to search for references. Your search will find the people who worked at the company during the same time period. Since references provided by a candidate will generally be glowing, this is a good way to get more balanced data.Companies will typically check your references before hiring you, but have you ever thought of checking your prospective manager’s references? Most interviewees don’t have the audacity to ask a
    potential boss for references, but with LinkedIn you have a way to scope her out.

    You can also check up on the company itself by finding the person who used to have the job that you’re interviewing for. Do this by searching for job title and company, but be sure to uncheck “Current titles only.” By contacting people who used to hold the position, you can get the inside scoop on the job, manager and growth potential.

    By the way, if using LinkedIn in these ways becomes a common practice, we’re apt to see more truthful resumes. There’s nothing more amusing than to find out that the candidate who claims to have caused some huge success was a total bozo who was just along for the ride.

  6. Increase the relevancy of your job search.Use LinkedIn’s advanced search to find people with educational and work experience like yours to see where they work. For example, a programmer would use search keywords such as “Ruby on Rails,” “C++,” “Python,” “Java,” and “evangelist” to find out where other programmers with these skills work.
  7. Make your interview go smoother.You can use LinkedIn to find the people that you’re meeting. Knowing that you went to the same school, plays hockey, or shares acquaintances is a lot better than an awkward silence after, “I’m doing fine, thank you.”
  8. Gauge the health of a company.Perform an advanced search for company name and uncheck the “Current Companies Only” box. This will enable you to scrutinize the rate of turnover and whether key people are abandoning ship. Former employees usually give more candid opinions about a company’s prospects than someone who’s still on board.
  9. Gauge the health of an industry.If you’re thinking of investing or working in a sector, use LinkedIn to find people who worked for competitors—or even better, companies who failed. For example, suppose you wanted to build a next generation online pet store, you’d probably learn a lot from speaking with former Pets.com or WebVan employees.
  10. Track startups.You can see people in your network who are initiating new startups by doing an advanced search for a range of keywords such as “stealth” or “new startup.” Apply the “Sort By” filter to “Degrees away from you” in order to see the people closest to you first. [Republished from: Ten Ways to Use LinkedIn via "How to Change the World" -- Guy Kawasaki's blog]

If you have time, i would then recommend a visit to LinkedIn Intelligence for 100+ Smart Ways to Use LinkedIn…

If you don’t have time, rest assured, at Intune we’re big believers in encouraging transferable skills. We offer training and coaching to help you learn how to use LinkedIn more effectively. Let us guide you through developing your online profile - send us an enquiry and we will be delighted to give you a call at your convenience to gather your requirements, to best meet your needs now and in the future.

Tags: , , , , , ,
Posted in Marketing