![Create Amazing Infusionsoft Landing Pages [VIDEO]](https://smarttofinish.com/Blog/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/rsz_1923389-2-1080x675.jpg)
by Amber Miller | Oct 26, 2017 | Infusionsoft, Infusionsoft training
It’s here! The new Infusionsoft Landing Page Builder is here, and I think you’re going to LOVE it. There are templates, stock images, a ton of customization options, and so much more. Watch the video below to learn how to create Infusionsoft landing pages and see some of the options in actions.
If you’re ready to implement Infusionsoft Landing Pages for your business, contact the Smart to Finish Team.
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by Amber Miller | Oct 18, 2017 | Social Media
Social media isn’t just for sharing funny cat videos and pictures of your kid’s birthday party. If you’re a small business owner, and you are not using social media to market your business, then you are missing out. Used correctly, social media is a valuable tool for meeting your marketing goals. It can help you do the following:
- Increase brand awareness
- Communicate with and interact with your audience
- Increase website traffic
- Build conversions
To help you get started on social media, we’ve put together a list of social media marketing tips:
Create a Social Strategy
This is number one in our list of social media marketing tips for a reason. As with any marketing campaign, a clear plan of action and an end-goal are key to a successful social marketing strategy. You should be asking yourself these questions:
- What do you want to accomplish with social media marketing?
- Who are you trying to reach (i.e., your target audience)?
Decide Which Social Media Networks You Should Prioritize
You don’t need to be on ALL of the social media networks. It’s best to focus on 2 to 3 networks, depending on what your business offers. For instance, if you own a business that is visually oriented (e.g., e-commerce, travel agency, etc.) you should probably focus your efforts on Pinterest and Instagram.
Develop a Content Strategy for Each Platform
You should do some competitor research and keyword research to come up with ideas for content that will interest your target audience. Create a social media calendar to map your content.
Share Engaging Social Content
A good rule of thumb for sharing content on social media is to share 80% external content and 20% your own. By sharing valuable external content, you are making yourself the go-to source for your audience. Not only will you develop trust with your followers, but you may also get some shares in return. Some ideas for external content include videos, articles from industry leaders, infographics, social media images and memes, etc.
Create Your Own Amazing Content to Share
Once you have a loyal following and have established trust, start developing high-quality content and posting it more often. People will be more likely to visit your website, read your content, and share it on social media. This a type of content marketing, and it works hand-in-hand with social media marketing.
Leverage Paid Advertising
The nice thing about paid advertising on social media is that you can develop a highly targeted ad campaign directed at your target audience. Especially in the case of Facebook Ads, you can research your audience’s likes and interests and create a laser-focused ad campaign at a reasonable cost.
So now that you have a few basic social media marketing tips to get started, why not contact us at Smart to Finish? We can help you develop a social marketing strategy to add to your other marketing efforts and increase your bottom line.
by Amber Miller | Oct 12, 2017 | Infusionsoft
If you are using Infusionsoft to automate your marketing, you may know that there is a huge assortment of add-ons and tools that can make Infusionsoft work even better for your business. Our clients ask for our recommendations all the time, and I’m sharing my five top Infusionsoft apps with you today:
If you want to customize the look and feel of your Infusionsoft order forms without having to write any code, Spiffy is the solution. Here are some of my favorite features:
- It works with your existing Infusionsoft order forms.
- It has a ton of customization options.
- You don’t have to worry about any hard-to-implement integrations.
All forms are mobile-ready, and if you can copy/paste a hyperlink, that’s all it takes to get your forms looking great. Some of the options include: a mobile-friendly keypad for entering card numbers quickly and easily, ability to customize your browser icon and meta title, an option to add a link to your Terms & Conditions without having to use any code(!), an easy way to change the size of your payment buttons making them big and sleek, and so much more.
Infusionsoft has a free plugin that connects WordPress directly to Infusionsoft. With the plugin, anytime a user fills out your opt-in form on WordPress, they’ll automatically be added into Infusionsoft. Then, any automation campaigns you’ve set up will run. You can install the plugin directly inside of WordPress with just a few clicks. The plugin makes it easy to kick-off sequences like thank you emails, triggered phone calls, newsletter delivery, and drip nurture campaigns. You can read our full review and see a step-by-step guide here.
With Zapier you can create powerful, automated workflows without writing or even understanding any code. Zapier connects the other software systems you use and updates your Infusionsoft contacts so you don’t have to waste time copying/pasting data from one system to another. It’s easy to set-up a “zap” and sync data between your systems.
You can connect hundreds of other software sites using a zap such as:
- GoToWebinar
- Google Calendar
- DropBox
- Slack
- QuickBooks
- Facebook ads
- ZenDesk
- SurveyMonkey
And there are many more, too. Imagine entering data on a Google Sheet and having that data automatically update an Infusionsoft contact, apply a tag to that record, and then kick-off a campaign! That’s just one example; the possibilities to streamline your workflow are endless.
Similar to Zapier, MyFusion Helper is a collection of 50+ Helper applets to extend the capabilities of Infusionsoft. They integrate with systems like DropBox, Trello, Excel (plus many others!) and have some really cool date and formatting functions you can use. A great example of this is related to product refunds. If you have a 30-day refund policy, you can add a date helper that will calculate when the 30-day refund time period is over. Then, it will set up internal practices on how to handle refunds outside of this time period.
Another helper that I absolutely love is Email Validate It. Today more than ever, email deliverability is vitally important. The Email Validate It Helper makes sure that the email the user typed in is valid. Many times people make small typos that cause emails to bounce. The Email Validate It Helper finds those mistakes, flags them, and even finds other root issues or potential problems with the email itself.
There are also helpers that integrate with Vimeo and Wistia that allow you apply a tag based on how long someone watches you video. What’s great is that with one small monthly fee, you get access to ALL of the helpers – with no limits! Not sure if it’s right for you? There’s a FREE 30-day trial!
Wicked Reports transforms your Infusionsoft data into clear, actionable information. You can easily see the following information:
- Which emails make sales
- The best time to send your emails
- Which Facebook ads provide leads that turn into your best customers
- The entire click journey of a customer in an easy to read display
In addition to showing you Infusionsoft data, Wicked Reports syncs data between Facebook ads, Google Adwords, Google Analytics, and Infusionsoft so everything is in one place. There’s no need to create Excel reports and manually enter data. Understanding how your marketing is actually working is the first step to taking your business to the next level, and Wicked Reports makes that easy.
If you’re ready to take get the most out of your Infusionsoft app, or even get started with marketing automation, contact the Smart to Finish Team. Our Infusionsoft experts are standing by to help!
by Amber Miller | Oct 5, 2017 | Social Media
Did you know that you can use Facebook ads to collect leads for your newsletter? And that you don’t need a landing page to do it? Yep. It’s called a Lead Ad, and it can help you grow your email list big time.
When you set up a Lead Ad, and one of your targeted audience members clicks on the ad, a form opens up with their Facebook information already entered. There’s no need for them to type in their name, email address, etc. But, their privacy is still protected, so no need to worry that you’re violating the CAN-SPAM rules.
So now that you know this is a thing, and a pretty cool thing, we put together a brief tutorial on how to set up a Facebook Lead Ad:
Step 1
The first step is go into your Facebook Ads Manager and click the “Create Ad” button at the top right.
Step 2
Then, choose your objective “Lead Generation” then give your campaign a name.
After that, you set up your ads like any other type of Facebook ad. You select your Facebook business page, your audience, your budget, and your schedule. Then you choose how you want your ad to look (e.g., single image, carousel, or even a video) and add the ad copy.
Step 3
Now comes the part that’s different about a Facebook Lead Ad! At the bottom of the page, you will see a section called “Lead Form.” All you do is click on the button “+ New Form” to make a new one.
Step 4
A pop-up screen will appear:
There are four sections you need to complete in order to create your Lead Ad: Welcome Screen (optional), Questions, Privacy Policy, and the Thank You Screen (which is not visible in the above image). There are a few things to note here:
- You must have a privacy policy on your website to link to in order to be able to use Facebook’s Lead Ads. If you don’t have one, you can generate one here.
- Your image should have as little text as possible in it, just like with other Facebook ad images. The more text you have, the less likely people are to see it, and the more expensive your ad becomes.
Once everything is set to your specifications, all you have to do is save your form and confirm it to send it to the Facebook Ad team for approval. And then you should start seeing leads start to come in!
But how do you get the leads from your ads? There are several CRM integrations you can use to collect your leads, or you can download them to a spreadsheet if you do not have a CRM yet.
If you need help with creating a Facebook Lead Ad to grow your email list, you can contact us here at Smart to Finish to get you set up and ready to go!
by Amber Miller | Sep 27, 2017 | Infusionsoft
If you run an online business and haven’t checked out Infusionsoft, you’re missing an opportunity to automate your marketing and increase your revenue. Maybe you’re interested in Infusionsoft, but you really don’t know what it can do for you. If so, here are 10 Infusionsoft facts to help you learn about just how powerful of a tool it is:
1. Infusionsoft is a fully integrated customer relationship management (CRM) system and a complete marketing and e-commerce solution. What does that mean exactly? In essence, it is one system that combines multiple features. Instead of having an e-commerce program (Shopify, 1ShoppingCart, etc.), an email management program (MailChimp, iContact, Aweber etc.), and a customer database (Salesforce), you have one tool that does it ALL, and more too!
2. Unlike other software companies, Infusionsoft is focused solely on small businesses. They started out as small business, and over half of their employees have owned or worked for small businesses too. It’s great to work with a team of people who really understand the small business mindset.
3. Infusionsoft has 9 Core Values, and they truly live them. If you ever get a chance to visit their headquarters, you’ll see the core values posted as soon as you walk in the door. You can also ask any employee to explain them to you and they will (excitedly!). Why should you care? Because the values include: We Empower Entrepreneurs. Their staff and partners truly consult to help small business owners learn how to market, grow, and scale. They offer regular education and training, too.
4. You can use the Infusionsoft Campaign Builder to quickly create a complete marketing program that is customized to your contacts.
5. Infusionsoft integrates with your social media accounts, which allows you and your contacts to share your messages socially with just one-click.
6. You can use Infusionsoft to automate a lot of the manual work you do now. With marketing automation, you can send out personalized emails, send reminders, and even resend information that someone hasn’t opened or clicked on yet.
7. If you’re selling anything online, Infusionsoft’s e-commerce module will allow you to sell even more. You can easily create upsells, sell subscription programs, create coupons and special promotions, design a storefront, and more!
8. There’s an app for that: the Infusionsoft mobile app. If you’re on-the-go and need to collect payments, or access or update your customer data, you can do that from any mobile device. Plus, Infusionsoft emails, web forms, and pages are all optimized for mobile display.
9. Easily segment your list by just about anything you want. You can track and tag people who open/don’t open emails, purchase a product, opt-in for your free offer, sign-up to attend a webinar – the possibilities are endless.
10. Integrate with just about any application you’re using now with Infusionsoft’s API data. You can sync data from other systems like survey tools, scheduling software, accounting programs, WordPress, and many, many more. In fact there are over 200 apps alone in the Infusionsoft Marketplace.
Bonus Fact
Here’s one more to add to our list of Infusionsoft facts: Infusionsoft experts are the backbone to their success. The Smart to Finish Team has over 20 years combined experience helping small business owners leverage Infusionsoft for their business. We’ve visited Infusionsoft Headquarters, have some great friends and partners on the Infusionsoft Team, and are here to help you succeed with your Infusionsoft application.
Ready to multiply your efforts while reducing costs and increasing revenue? Contact the Smart to Finish Team, and we’ll help set up your new Infusionsoft application, audit and clean up your existing app, and help strategize and create a campaign that will help you reach your business goals.
by Amber Miller | Sep 21, 2017 | Wordpress Maintenance
If you have an online business, and you haven’t thought about SEO (search engine optimization) for your website, you are more than likely missing out on a lot of traffic. And if you’re missing a lot of traffic, that means missing a lot of sales.
While there is more than one way to drive traffic to your website, you shouldn’t ignore the free traffic that you can get from Google and Bing with a good SEO strategy. But what if you don’t know anything about SEO, and don’t have the time to learn the ins and outs of it? That’s where a good WordPress SEO plugin comes in. So, in this article, I will discuss the top 3 SEO plugins for WordPress and how they can help you boost your SEO efforts.
Yoast
If you’ve already done some research on SEO plugins for WordPress, you probably ran across Yoast. It is the top SEO plugin, and it is my personal favorite and top recommendation. Not only does it provide SEO suggestions for better optimization (e.g., keyword utilization, alt-text for images, article length), it also provides tips for writing better content. Some of my other favorite features include:
- XML sitemap generator (no need for a separate plugin)
- Page analysis tool (uses a traffic light with red, yellow, and green to rate your SEO)
- Built-in open graph metadata (which turns links into rich objects on social media)
- Built-in Google authenticator and Analytics
It is fairly straightforward to set up, but if you ever need help, the built-in help section provides clear, concise directions. There is both a free option and a paid option, but if you’re just starting out with SEO, the free version will be more than enough for your website.
All-in-One SEO Pack
If you don’t want to use Yoast, my second recommendation for a WordPress SEO plugin is All-in-One SEO Pack. Like Yoast, you don’t need much experience to get it set up and working to boost your SEO. It also shares some of the same features as Yoast such as built-in Google Analytics and XML sitemap. But it has some features that Yoast does not:
- Automatic title optimization
- Automatic meta-tag generation
Both of these features might help your search engine rankings. AIOSEO provides you with as much or as little control as you want so that as you gain more experience, you will be able to use the more advanced features of the plugin. There is both a free version and a paid version for when you’re ready to use the more advanced features of this plugin.
Squirrly SEO
Squirrly SEO touts itself as the SEO plugin for non-SEO experts. It also works with both Yoast AND All-in-One SEO Pack, so there’s no need to uninstall and reinstall either of those plugins and lose all of your SEO work.
The features I like most are:
- Helps you find keywords and topics your audience actually uses.
- Lets you know when you’re doing things right by giving you the green light (much like Yoast)
- Provides a keyword research tool that rivals Google Keyword Planner
- Monitors progress and sends you reports
This is what’s known as a “freemium” plugin, which means that there’s a limit to what you can use with the free version (e.g., you only get so many keywords you can research). But as with all of these SEO plugins, the free version should suit you just fine as you’re just starting out.
So now that you have a better idea about how SEO plugins for WordPress can help you boost your website traffic, why not contact us here at Smart to Finish? We can help you choose the best plugin for your needs, install it, and get it all set up and running smoothly.
by Amber Miller | Sep 15, 2017 | Infusionsoft
Infusionsoft is an amazing tool for small business owners who want to automate their marketing and increase their sales. It’s not a software you can just sign up for a begin using. You need a strategy and a plan, and that’s why you need an expert to guide you along the way.
Infusionsoft understands this, and that’s why you also need to purchase a KickStart Plan when you sign up. This initial plan will help you create the overall structure for your new software, but that’s just the beginning. To ensure you are using the software in a way that benefits your business, you need to continually update your plan and consider how to best use Infusionsoft for your business.
Here are just a few of the benefits an experienced Infusionsoft Professional provides:
1. Experience!
This is number one for a reason. Understanding how to use Infusionsoft, and why and when to use certain features is key to having a system that runs on autopilot. If you consider yourself to be a “techie,” you can learn which buttons to press and how to set up the various systems. However, you may not understand the WHY – and that’s key. Infusionsoft is a marketing automation program, so there should be careful planning and thought with every action you take. An experienced Infusionsoft professional will be able to guide you to make good decisions and set things up that seamlessly flow together.
2. Insight
A qualified Infusionsoft professional will be able to provide you with real-life examples of ways you can leverage Infusionsoft to work for your business. For example, at Smart to Finish, we take a look at your business model and recommend ways to automate certain in-house processes, streamline your marketing, and even set up systems to automate key functions. There is no one set way to use Infusionsoft, and an Infusionsoft Pro can provide you with the advice you need to succeed.
3. Training
You may not want to know how to do everything in Infusionsoft. But, you will want to know how to run key reports and access other important data. An experienced Infusionsoft professional can show you exactly how to get the information you need, when you need it.
4. Marketing Know-How
In addition to setting up your software, you need to have digital marketing savvy to get the most from Infusionsoft. An experienced Infusionsoft professional understands one-click upsells, membership systems, marketing funnels, the fundamentals of setting up a launch from A-Z, and can provide you advice in all of these areas.
5. Connections
An experienced Infusionsoft Team like Smart to Finish has connections that a newbie won’t. After working in Infusionsoft for years, an Infusionsoft Pro has access to optimized support and private networking groups. This type of access is invaluable. You’ll be one of the first to:
- Know if there are any system issues
- Know when new features are rolled out
- Get invited to beta test new items
- hHave access to discounts for additional features
Access is always a good thing!
If you’re investing in Infusionsoft to automate your marketing, hire an Infusionsoft Professional to ensure your investment brings you lots of returns. If you’re ready to put your business on autopilot and create a full marketing system for your business, contact the Smart to Finish Team.
by Amber Miller | Sep 7, 2017 | Social Media
You have a Facebook page, and Facebook constantly asks you if you would like to boost a post or start an ad campaign. Maybe you’re hesitant to pull the trigger on Facebook advertising because you’ve heard so many myths about it. However, once you get past the myths, you will see just how powerful a platform it can be to help promote your business and boost your brand. Here are the top 4 myths of Facebook advertising, and what the truth really is:
Myth #1: It’s too expensive.
There’s no need to throw tons of money at a Facebook ad campaign. Did you know that you can run an ad campaign for as little as $2 per day? While that may not get you a whole lot of results, it might get you some results…which is better than nothing at all, right? It’s also a good way to test your ads and see how they are working. Also, Facebook only charges you per click, not per view. You are only paying for people who interact with your ad, so it might not cost as much as you think.
Myth #2: It won’t work for my business
Another common myth is that it doesn’t work for B2B companies, only B2C companies. Well, with over 2 billion Facebook users, that’s not really true. You can bet there are business owners on Facebook who might be thrilled to see what your company can do for them. There are a ton of audience targeting options, and you can choose to run a campaign to generate leads rather than make sales such as boosting a blog post or offering a free ebook.
Myth #3: I need a big Facebook fan base
Do you only have a few likes on your Facebook page? That shouldn’t stop you from using Facebook ads. You can create an audience from scratch, and Facebook will happily serve it up to any of its 2+ billion users. Or, if you have an email list, you can import that to create an audience for Facebook to target. The real key is to focus more on your audience demographics more so than keywords (as you might do in a Google Adwords campaign).
Myth #4: People hate Facebook ads and always skip over them
Facebook has an algorithm working behind the scenes that tries to show its users relevant ads or posts geared toward their likes. The more clicks an ad gets, the more relevant it becomes. It also gets a higher quality rating. Sure, an annoying or spammy ad for slips through occasionally, but it will disappear because it probably isn’t getting any interaction. And when Facebook sees it’s not getting any interaction, then Facebook is less likely to show it to its users.
So, now that you know the truth behind some of the top myths of Facebook advertising, why not set up an ad campaign? If you need help setting up an ad campaign, the team here at Smart to Finish will be happy to assist you. Contact us today to get started!
by Amber Miller | Aug 31, 2017 | Infusionsoft
Running a business is sometimes like running a marathon. You have to train, prepare for “bad weather,” have a team to support you, understand your competition, pace yourself, and know that the impossible can happen when you put your mind to it.
You also need the right equipment. A marathon runner isn’t going to start a race without the right shoes, and you shouldn’t run your business without the right tools.
Infusionsoft, the leading sales and marketing software, is one of the tools you need to go the distance. It can help you automate your business and achieve real growth, too.
Here is a list of five ways Infusionsoft can help grow your business and put it ahead of the competition:
1. Behavior Marketing
When a customer opens an email, downloads your free offer, clicks a link, or even logs into your website, you should track that behavior and then USE it to market to them. You can follow up if someone doesn’t click your download, remind someone that you have important resources on your website, send more emails about an offer that someone has shown interest in, and more. Prospects are more likely to be turned into buyers when the sales messages they receive are relevant, and you are actually priming them for the sale. Infusionsoft makes this an easy and seamless process.
2. Upsell
The goal of a sales funnel is to get someone to make a purchase. Once they do, it’s always easier to sell to them again rather than converting a new customer. Using Infusionsoft, you can highlight a companion product to one the customer has already selected, or draw attention to related products, all with just a few clicks. In fact, statistics show that the probability of selling to a new prospect is 5% to 20%. The probability of selling to an existing customer is 60% to 70%. Imagine how your revenue can increase with just adding upsells and cross-sells to all of your products!
3. Testing
Are your marketing emails working? How do you really know? You have to test! By using Infusionsoft’s campaign builder, you can set up two different marketing email sequences that are each a bit different. Consider using different subject lines, changing the length of the content, including/not including images, or using different calls to action. After testing, review which emails have a higher open rate, more engagement (clicks/downloads, etc.), and better sales conversions. Then, take action on the results or even do further testing.
Note: it’s important to test one change at a time, check your results, and then test the next item on your list. By doing a bit of split testing, you’ll be able to improve your marketing emails and increase your sales. One recent client saw a 38% increase in sales conversions just by doing some basic split testing!
4. Update Your Marketing
If you’re stuck in a marketing rut, or aren’t even sure where to start, Infusionsoft provides pre-built marketing campaigns you can download and install – for FREE! With just a few clicks, you can create marketing campaigns such as:
- New custom welcome and nurture
- Birthday or anniversary greetings
- Automated event registrations
- Appointment reminders
- Follow-ups
- A Black Friday sale
One of our favorites is the Refer-A-Friend campaign. With just a few clicks, you can set up an easy way to ask for and collect referrals. By implementing just a couple of these campaigns, you can increase your revenue and reduce your marketing time and costs.
5. Track Your Leads
Do you know where your leads are coming from? Infusionsoft does! Using Infusionsoft’s lead source feature, you can track exactly where your leads originated. This can be the difference between making money and losing money on marketing that isn’t working. When you know exactly how much you’re spending on each marketing activity (Facebook, Twitter, events, etc.) and how much revenue you’re making from each one, you can make informed decisions about your marketing plan. Without knowing this information, you’re just playing a guessing game. Using this feature will allow you to cut marketing that isn’t working for you and spend more time in areas where you’re seeing real success.
So now that you know a few ways Infusionsoft can help grow your business, contact the Smart to Finish Team. Our Infusionsoft experts can help you map out a plan for your success.
by Amber Miller | Aug 25, 2017 | Entrepreneur
As a business owner your time is valuable and constantly in demand. How do you balance everything in your life while still growing your business? The best advice I can give a business owner is to focus on what you do best and create a community around you for support. That’s why you need to hire Smart to Finish. We will help you achieve your business goals while you work on dreaming big, working with clients, and bringing in more revenue. Here are 7 ways we can up-level your business and give you some much-needed time back:
1. Create processes and systems
Do you have a system in place for everything you do in your business? If the answer is no, then rely on the Smart to Finish team to help. A business with systems and processes in place is one that runs smoothly without you having to constantly manage it. The Smart to Finish team will review your current systems, recommend ways to streamline them, and then implement them for you too!
2. Run your launch
If you hold even just one product launch a year, getting help from the Smart to Finish team will save you money and bring you new revenue. Our team knows the software to use to make your launch successful so that you don’t have to learn yet another software program. We will set up your landing pages, opt-in pages, emails, social media, and more. Imagine sending your launch plan and having us implement it while you spend some much needed time with your family!
3. Be your gatekeeper
How many emails do you get a day? Do they all really need YOUR attention? The Smart to Finish team will handle your email and only bring the most important emails to your attention. We will manage all of your customer service issues, respond to social media requests, and even handle your appointment booking.
4. Build your list
If you are looking for new leads for your business (and who isn’t?!), the Smart to Finish team can help. We will set up a lead magnet on your website, looks great, ensure it’s delivered, and even test several lead magnets to ensure it’s bringing in the new leads that are right for your niche.
5. Manage your brand
Your online reputation is key to running a successful business, and the Smart to Finish team knows how to manage it for you. Whether it’s creating a new website, updating an existing one, or even writing social media content, we handle it all.
6. Recommend and set up tools
Are you unsure which software tool is best for your business goals? The Smart to Finish team is experienced with all of the latest tools including: LeadPages, Infusionsoft, ClickFunnels, WordPress, Zoom, and so many more. We will advise you on what’s working now and implement it for you too!
7. Help you grow
It’s time to grow your business, but you can’t do it alone. Rely on the Smart to Finish team to get you there. We will help you figure out which tasks to delegate, offer ideas and advice specific to your business goals, and help you implement all of the steps too.
As a business owner, your time is also your money, and you can have more of both when you hire Smart to Finish. I understand first-hand the demands of being a business owner and created my team to provide the support you need. Together we will both succeed!
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