by Amber Miller | Jul 12, 2016 | The Team
1) I burn everything I cook. My husband says I can burn water.
2) I have a mini horse and a mini donkey as family pets.
3) I hate to be cold, and I really hate the snow.
4) My favorite dessert is warm apple pie with vanilla ice cream. I could eat that everyday!
5) I am an only child. Growing up I felt more at ease in a room full of adults than with the other kids.
6) I have permanent eyeliner. It was a pretty blue, now it has faded to turquoise. It hurt so bad I don’t want to go have it darkened.
7) I love to go to antique stores. I love finding unique things or old treasures.
8) My dream vacation would be on an Alaskan cruise. Not sure I could handle the cold weather though…
9) I’m addicted to coffee. Everyone around me knows if I haven’t had enough…
10) The craziest thing I have ever done was to go and get my belly button pierced during my lunch break with my sister-in-law. I don’t think they thought we would do it. That lasted two years until I got pregnant with my 3rd child. 
by Amber Miller | Jun 24, 2016 | Blog, Customer Service, Marketing
We wanted to let you know about an import update!
We have found out today that Gmail and Microsoft are set to adopt strict email deliverability policies similar to Yahoo and AOL. Word on the street says the policy will be enforced by June 30, 2016.
This will impact any email service provider including Infusionsoft, MailChimp, and Constant Contact.
What does this mean to you?
Basically, users who use an email address from any of the below email domains as the “From” email address when sending any type of email from these email systems will no longer have their emails delivered.
Impacted email domains: @gmail, @hotmail, @yahoo, @aol, @outlook, @live, @msn.
You will need to be sure any emails you send are coming from a domain email account such as yourname@yourdomainname.com (note – this is really best practices anyway!).
Our team has been made aware and we are making sure we are on the lookout for you if we are supporting you with email marketing.
If you have any questions please reach out!
by Amber Miller | Jun 12, 2016 | The Team
1. What you wanted to do as a kid?
(A) I grew up in a really small town and I think with most kids from a really small town, you have big dreams to grow up and enter the “big city life”. I always thought I would grow up and be an attorney. I pictured myself living in a eclectic loft overlooking the Plaza. Funny thing is that I live
10 minutes from that small town, which I would never want to leave today. I live on 20 acres with my family and would never want to be an attorney today!
2. Siblings
(A) I have one younger brother, Rick. He lives in Minnesota now, but we go visit him each summer. He is a professional Walleye Angler and placed second in the U.S. a few years back. He was ranked as one of the worlds top Ironmen in his sport 3 years consecutively. I am so happy that he gets to live his dream and he is a great uncle to my boys.
3. Wisest thing anyone ever told me was?
(A) I was once told by a good friend that you have to look at life like you looked at college. You go through life to learn and when you make a mistake, that’s your tuition, pay it, and keep learning.
4. My role model is, because?
(A) My role model was my grandparents. Salt of the Earth people who instilled in me the importance of honesty, treatment of others, love of family, dedication, hard work and always doing what was right, even when it was hard.
5. Where you were born?
(A) I live on the Kansas/Missouri line, on the Kansas side. There is a sort of rivalry on both sides of the state line. Kansans always say that Kansas is the better place and Missourians say Missouri is. My mom had traveled over into Missouri for the day and went into labor with me, called my grandparents to say she had to go to the nearest hospital in which my grandparents thought was a joke as I was born on April Fool’s Day. So, I am officially known in this area as a “Missouri Puke” or a “Missouri Jack***” Yes, it’s true! Feel free to google and you will get a great lesson on Missouri history!
6. Your favorite food?
(A) My favorite food, well, It’s a toss up between Fettucinni Alfredo and Jose Pepper’s (local KC restaurant) Chips and Salsa.
7. Scariest thing to you is?
(A) Scariest thing to me is I am scared to death of any spider of any size. Second runner up is flying. However, I have flown a time or two.
8. Favorite movie or tv show?
(A) As of now I love to watch The Big Bang Theory
9. Favorite Music?
(A) I like a lot of different genres. Country, pop, rock, christian rock, some rap. It does bother me just a little that 80’s music these days is being called “classic”!
10. The best gift I ever got was?
(A) My children. I truly never understood the magnitude in which a child changes a persons life until I had my first child. I realized then if I never earned another thing in my life it was okay, because I truly had all that I needed. Beyond my children I recently received a gift in which a wonderfully sweet girl went and collected old barn wood in which she sanded down herself, glued together, took some small nails and made a heart shape with them, ran red string from nail to nail making a beautiful heart. I was awestruck at her thoughtfulness. The gift is beautiful and sits in the heart of our home.
by Amber Miller | Jun 12, 2016 | The Team
(Q) How big is your family?
(A) I was born in Longview, WA. I’m the youngest of 5 kids. YAY – the baby! The one that was spoiled the most. I moved to Arizona when I was 19 with a couple of friends and could never move back after realizing there are places where it doesn’t rain 10 months out of the year!! I got married when I was 23 and have two adult children who live nearby. Thankfully, my son still stops by weekly to do his laundry and my daughter visits often usually dropping off her dog while she is off on some adventure! I am begging, begging for grandchildren – but doesn’t look like it will be happening anytime soon. So, my daughter’s friend has a 5 year old girl and she visits us and calls and us grandma and grandpa, and we shop, play games, bake cookies – we love her as if she was our granddaughter!
(Q) What is one of the craziest thing to happen to you?
(A) I’ll start with one of the craziest things that ever happened to me – when my husband and I were dating we were at a park playing frisbee and he threw it too far and I ran to catch it and wrapped my entire body around a gigantic saguaro cactus! Had to be taken to ER and they contacted poison control because they had never seen so many needles stuck in a person. I was still pulling out needles weeks later that were embedded in my skin!! (Husband proposed to me shortly after that incidence—I’ve made him pay for it ever since!)
(Q) Do you have pets?
(A) After watching our daughter’s dog a few times, we fell in love with the boxer bread and now have two of our own. One is a boxer mix (not sure what the mix is) her name is Merlot. The other is all boxer—100 .lbs of boxer and his name is Brut. We got him as a puppy and he fits his name! We have learned when we leave them alone to shut all doors and put everything up high so they can’t reach it. Came home too many times to things shredded all over the living room!
(Q) Do you like cooking?
(A) I have never liked to cook. During the time we were raising our kids, my husband did all the cooking. I don’t know exactly why, but suddenly I started watching some cooking shows and wanted to chop things. For the past 3-4 years now I have loved cooking. I find it very relaxing. The hubby is happy to come home to a dinner that’s not chicken nuggets and fries anymore!
(Q) Favorite Television Show?
(A) I am addicted to reality TV. I know – it’s so wrong!! I can’t stop myself from watching any of the Real Housewives shows, Kardashians, Deadliest Catch (my FAV), Southern Charm, the list goes on and on….. I know, I know – my family says I need to seek help!
(Q) Favorite Restaurant?
(A) I love In and Out burger restaurant! Thankfully there is not one too close to me or I’d probably be there everyday and if you’ve seen me that would not be good!!
(Q) Do you like Movies?
(A) I love going to movies (I’ll be honest – it’s for the popcorn w/the white cheddar salt)! Since working at home the past few years – I love a slow afternoon when I can sneak away and go enjoy a good flix when there’s hardly anyone at the theater. Never thought I’d go see a movie alone, but I actually don’t mind (I know you’re thinking probably because you don’t have to share the popcorn … and you’re right!)
(Q) Favorite thing to do on the weekend?
(A) My brother-in-law has about 300 acres about 3 hours north of us and we love going up and camping on the weekends. The dogs love running free and I spend time reading and cooking…. And of course enjoying a little vino!
(Q)What is your favorite food/drink?
(A) Oh, speaking of vino – I have a love (well, maybe I should say major love) for wine that started from many business dinners with a previous manager who insisted that I needed to start drinking red wine. It’s healthy she would say. When I tried it I hated it – had to add ice to get it down. Well, I’m a red wine lover now – maybe too much, lol. Hence the name of my dogs! Even my kitchen is wine theme. My mother is moving from WA to AZ (a couple miles from my house) in the next few months. I have a feeling I’m going to need to start buying wine in BULK!
(Q) Tell us a little about your work history.
(A) I worked for 2 large financial institutions in the past 25 years and held various marketing roles. I have been working for Amber a little over a year and love learning the virtual assistant world and working with such great people. I look forward to many years to come!!
by Amber Miller | Jun 12, 2016 | The Team
There’s a lot more to Britney than the awesome experience she brings to our team. We’d like to take a minute here and talk about 10 more things you might want to know about our admin star!
(Q) Favorite thing to do on the weekend?
Spending time with family and friends! We just moved to Mesa, Arizona from San Diego, California so taking the kids to the beach or the zoo was my favorite weekend activity. Now that we are in Mesa we are still looking for fun weekend things but I love sitting poolside with a good cocktail!
(Q) Where is your favorite shop or place to shop at?
I’m kind of obsessed with Target! They have everything, plus Starbucks and a dollar section.
(Q) Where was your favorite vacation?
Growing up our family vacations were spent floating on the river in either Laughlin or Havasu. My husband just got out of the Navy after 12 years. During those 12 years, he deployed three times, we moved seven times and lived in four different states. We really haven’t had time to take a real vacation. Now that he is out and we are settled I hope to change that!
(Q) What food do you dislike the most?
Seafood! I can’t stand the smell, flavor or texture of anything that comes from the ocean (except fried calamari!)
(Q) What is your favorite music?
Rock and Country. I am super excited to finally see Metallica in concert this year!
(Q) Do you like Movies?
Yes. My three-year-old daughter Emma usually has control of what movie we watch. We have watched Moana every day since it came out! (My husband and I can’t say “You’re Welcome” without singing it like Maui!)
(Q) Favorite Restaurant?
BJ’s Brewhouse – they have the BEST chicken tender salad and strawberry martini!
(Q) Do you have any favorite pets?
Before my husband and I had kids we had a Siberian Husky, Gretzky. He was our first baby and the BEST dog! We lost him in 2013 due to kidney failure. We are hoping to add another husky to the family soon.
(Q) The BEST gift you ever received?
My pink glitter KitchenAid stand mixer!
(Q) You love people who…?
Make me laugh!
by Amber Miller | May 13, 2016 | Social Media
If your small business hasn’t taken the social media plunge and started a social media marketing campaign, now is the best time to jump in. Marketing is all about engaging in conversations with customers, problem solving, promotion of your products or services and educating your customers. Social media can help you generate new leads as well as establish a client base that encourages them to purchase from you again and again. What better way to engage your customers than through social media outlets?
Here is a short list of reasons to take that social media plunge:
- Create a “buzz” about your products or services. Buzz marketing allows a business to increase awareness about their product by growing online traffic. Get consumers talking about your products, services or company by utilizing social media marketing campaigns. Create an event to promote your products or services then have customers share experiences or engage in conversations. Examples of this would be to start contests on Facebook or Twitter that give followers a chance to win prizes. You can also ask consumers to follow you on Twitter and re-tweet a specific tweet to be eligible for a contest.
- Build your brand. Social media makes it easy to build your brands identity and increase brand awareness. You can successfully establish your brand and make it relatable to a specific demographic.
- Social networking with current clients and prospects. Personal conversations can be held with customers by using social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram.
- Create traffic. A study by Balihoo indicates that, “91% of local searches use Facebook to find local businesses online.” Being active on social media will help you increase the quantity of traffic that your website receives. Successful social media campaigns will likely improve the amount of traffic referrals your website receives, playing a role in business sales.
- Communicate with customers. Social media gives a business the opportunity to interact with and receive valuable information from customers. In addition to a customer service email or phone number, social media is another way to monitor and be part of the dialogue about your product or service. This platform makes it possible for a business to provide tips and solutions in real time. In other words, social media gives small businesses an opportunity to host the conversation about their product or service and gives them the power to mediate and correct issues that may occur.
- Move up in search engines. Social media’s importance in a website’s SEO ranking continues to increase with the current popularity of social media. If you company is being talked about on social media, chances are Google will consider your website to be authentic, helping your SEO ranking. It is important to use high-quality content and links on your website. This information is evaluated and used as part of an algorithm by Google, contributing to your site’s ranking in the search engine chain.
- Social media helps increase trust in your business or brand. Customers can become overwhelmed by the number of choices they have for certain products and services. Customers want some type of indication that your business is authentic before making that first contact. Having an active social media presence helps fill an impending trust that indicates you care about your customers and that you can easily be contacted.
- Target a specific niche. Your business can use social media advertising to target by specific demographics, zip code, keyword, demographics, etc. Twitter is an excellent site to start reaching your niche market. Hash tags and lists are used to help you generate leads. Linkedin and Facebook also offer ways to connect to people with the same or similar interest groups.
Developing successful social media marketing campaigns has become an important tool for small businesses, and it should be utilized for all of its benefits. It provides a cost-effective way to build a community, that can potentially enhance the experience for both client and business owner. The trend of social media is still going strong and there is no indication that it will be halting in existence any time soon. Is your business missing out on this incredible opportunity?
If you and your staff are too busy or uncomfortable with the process of social media marketing, you can hire us to be your social media expert!
Sources
Pingler. Creating A Buzz With Social Media. July 9, 2011. Retrieved from https://pingler.com/blog/creating-a-buzz-with-social-media/ on September 15, 2015.
Forbes. Jacquelyn Smith. How to Use Social Media to Make Sales. January 10, 2014. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/sites/jacquelynsmith/2014/01/10/how-to-use-social-media-to-make-sales-2014/ on September 15, 2015.
by Amber Miller | May 9, 2016 | Blog, Wordpress Maintenance
Google has stayed to true to form and changed its rank algorithm yet again. With technology constantly changing, they need to do this in order to get a true sense of what people are doing in the way of searching. Unfortunately, that means you need to once again examine your website and make sure it is Google-friendly, or you will find yourself sitting there and wondering why your Google ranking is steadily dropping. The main item you need to take a close look at this point is whether or not your website is mobile-friendly.
A Mobile World
With the increased use of phones and other mobile devices being used to surf the web, sixty-one percent of all users are now mobile users. If your site is not ready for them, you could see your traffic decreasing by as much as one-third. That can add up to a lot of users – and much lower Google rankings.
What You Need to Know
- In order for Google to rate your site higher, it must determine that it is mobile-friendly. To make it possible for this determination to be made, the Googlebot must be able to scan your CSS and JS files, and it does so on a page-by-page basis. This means every one of your pages must pass the scan in order to be ranked.
- Google will put greater emphasis on the loading time of graphics, so you need to make sure they are optimized to the fullest.
- Avoid using small text and flash or it could seriously lower your ranking.
Achieving Mobile-friendly Status
Responsive design is the easiest way to insure your website is mobile-friendly. This newcomer on the scene is created to allow your website to seamlessly adjust to whatever device it is being viewed on. By designing for smaller devices first, responsive design makes it easy to incorporate sizing for all devices – and help Google find you.
If you need help making your website mobile friendly, reachout! Having a support team that stays on top of technology is very important!
by Tina Walker | Apr 19, 2016 | Blog, Marketing
The Divas have been listening to me for months talk about how much I love the Divi theme. I mention it on team calls, I mention it on team Skype and I almost feel like the team might roll their eyes when I suggest it being a good fit for multiple projects. Somedays I feel as if I chant the name “Divi” over and over. Let me share with you why I love it so much, and what it can do for you.
What is Divi?
Divi is a multi-purpose theme created by Elegant Themes. For me, as a developer, it’s the ULTIMATE WordPress theme with endless possibilities for layouts and styling. Combine that with the Divi Page Builder, which is an extremely easy and versatile drag and drop builder, and it becomes a monster do-anything, be-anything WordPress theme option.
Divi Announces Built-In Split Testing – perfect for Opt-In Pages, Landing Pages, and Sales Pages
So many clients use programs such as Leadpages or ClickFunnels and many times those programs are used for the purpose of ease of use, built-in split testing and conversion rates. But, you also have a heavy price for these programs. With Divi’s most recent update, they now offer Divi Leads Split Testing and a conversion optimization system!
With Divi Leads Split Testing we can build amazingly beautiful custom landing pages using a simple WordPress Install with Divi. This is the effective landing page tool that I have been waiting for, because for me, this puts Divi in the category of Leadpages or ClickFunnels at a fraction of the price! The look and feel you see can be created in Divi, plus you have the benefit that it’s fully customizable.
The Divi Leads Split Testing also allows you to not only A/B test pages, but modules within pages, individual sections, or rows. The results are also very in-depth. This includes bounce rates, click-through rates, engagement rates and sales rates.
Complete Websites with Easy User Interface
Divi also can be more than marketing pages. It can be an entire website with ease in functionality that anyone can easily use. For those who want to be able to add or change their own content easily, this is the theme for you. The drag and drop interface is the easiest interface I have seen in my 20 years of experience.
Sometimes with easy interfaces, you lose the power of options. Not with Divi. It integrates with membership plugins, commerce plugins, and community components with ease. It’s used to build full blown powerful website designs. In February, Elegant Themes launched the ability to import Squarespace sites with minimum fuss, as well as a new feature – the dynamic help system which, if needed, Divi will troubleshoot itself and help find the problem and fix it, saving a lot of time and frustration.
The support that Divi has from the WordPress Community is huge and I only see the future being brighter as Elegant Themes continues to offer amazing add-ons, modules, and more tools such as the split testing piece that was just introduced.
by Amber Miller | Jan 2, 2016 | Blog, Blogging, Social Media
The American Dialect Society Declared “hashtag” (#, or hash) as the 2012 word of the year. Now that’s a social media force! This modest little symbol gives the user the ability to connect their conversations on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Tumbler, Pinterest and Google+. Hashtags allow social media users to “tag” key words or topics and make them into a searchable link. Hashtags present an extraordinary opportunity for business owners to identify relevant social media conversations and allows their content to be delivered to their desired audience.
What Is A Hashtag And How Do You Use Them?
Hashtags originated on Internet chat networks before they became popular on microblogging sites such as Twitter.
A hashtag contains a word or phrase followed by the “#” symbol. When a social media user uses hashtags to find particular words or topics, they will be able to view all the posts that contain that same word or topic. Creating your own hashtag can be a very powerful marketing tool. Your goal is to create a hashtag that will start trending among your followers and send a reminder of your business. So, how can you utilize hashtags to benefit your brand?
1. Strive for business –specific conversations. Take advantage of Twitters’s news, advice and business variety resources. Look to #smallbiz for small business advice, as this type of hashtag can provide a large number of results and the information it contains could inspire your next marketing tactic.
2. Consistency and Simplicity are best practice. When creating your own hashtags, it is important to consider keeping your tags simple and direct. Do not create long or complex hashtags. They are not search-friendly. You also need to keep in mind that weighing you tweets down with excessive hashtags will only make you look desperate to your followers. Keep it simple by using 1-2 hashtags per tweet.
3. Create your own hashtag. Hashtags are the perfect way to create buzz around your marketing campaign. Events are a great way to create conversation around a hashtag. So, get creative and develop your own business-specific hashtags.
4. Use hashtags to cross social media channels. Connect your different social media outlets and reach more people by using the same hashtag in each of these platforms. Imagine the number of people you can reach by using ALL of these platforms.
Things To Consider
- Don’t use more than two hashtags per post.
- Anyone can search and view your hashtag links if you use a public account.
- Never send spam with hashtags.
- Use relevant hashtags.
- Monitor hashtags to see how much activity it receive before you use them in your post.
- Don’t use spaces, commas, periods, apostrophes, question marks, exclamation points or any other special characters.
- Create a unique hashtag for your business.
- Follow trends and make use of them.
- Generate a buzz by offering a promotion or contest to get people talking about your brand. Users are more likely to retweet hashtags if you offer prizes to do so.
Which Social Media Platforms Support Hashtags?
1. Twitter: Twitter has been called the “birthplace of modern hashtag usage”. Hashtags via Twitter are generally used to represent specific topics of conversation. You can find an item called “Trends” on the Twitter sidebar that generates a list o f suggested hashtags based on your tweets.
2. Facebook: Facebook has supported hashtags for a couple years. Popularity on this site is not as prominent as on Twitter. Clicking on a Facebook hashtag will take you to a list of posts that contain the same hashtag. The results you see come from people you know, as well as those users you do not.
3. Instagram: Instagram hashtags are used to complement photographs. This also helps you to discover new accounts and may lead to you picking up additional followers. Instagram has also created specific hashtags to encourage certain photo posts. #ThrowbackThursday is used to encourage users to post old or “retro” photos.
4. Tumblr: Hashtags on Tumblr are not links when they are used within the body of the post but, instead posts have a “Tag” section that you enter your tags. Tags will function like those in Twitter and be organized by topic. The “#” will be inserted automatically.
5. Google+: Google gives you an option to search within Facebook and Twitter for specific tags. Clicking on a hashtag in Google+ will generate a list of search results that include the original hashtag and other posts that have related tags and keywords.
6. Pinterest: Pinterest hashtags are placed in a pin’s description allowing users to click on the link and be taken to a list of pins that may contain that hashtag. Keep in mind that not all hashtags are indexed. Pinterest can be a great social media marketing tool if you know how to optimize your pins. Use key words in your pin’s description. The pin should also come from a URL that has the keyword in it. Keywords should also be included in the picture’s file name.
The Hashtag, a once lonely keyboard character, is swiftly becoming the most powerful punctuation mark in human history. Harness the mighty marketing power of a Hashtag and watch your social media base flourish. You will be hashtagging like a pro in no time!
References
5 Brilliant Ways to Use #Hashtags in Social Media Marketing. by Uri Bar-Joseph. Retrieved October 1, 2015 from: http://searchenginewatch.com/sew/how-to/2327748/5-brilliant-ways-to-use-hashtags-in-social-media-marketing
How to Use Hashtags on Every Social Media Network. Michael Patterson. Retrieved October 1, 2015 from: http://sproutsocial.com/insights/how-to-use-hashtags/
The Beginners Guide to the Hashtag. by Rebecca Hiscott. Retrieved October 1, 2015 from: http://mashable.com/2013/10/08/what-is-hashtag/#HB7807Cbwu
by Amber Miller | Jun 29, 2015 | Blog, Featured, Infusionsoft
Considering taking your business to the next level with AUTOMATION? Don’t know where to start? Overwhelmed with all the options out there?
Here’s an informative, no-nonsense approach from Wes Schaeffer, The Sales Whisperer©, that compares two popular systems: Ontraport vs. Infusionsoft.
http://thesaleswhisperer.com/office-autopilot-vs-infusionsoft-by-an-infusionsoft-consultant/.
We here at Smart to Finish are knowledgeable and experienced business automation experts, and we can help you make an informed decision on the direction to take your business automation!
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