 Running a small business is hard work! Small business owners tend to wear many hats: project manager, logistics manager, operations manager, human resources department, and often times, marketing manager. That is a lot to maintain and control! Marketing mistakes and pitfalls often occur due to the fact that so many small business owners aren’t confident in their marketing skills and they are simply just spread too thin. Marketing mistakes won’t necessarily ruin your business, but they do sometimes cost time and money. The My Big Day Marketing & Events team recently pulled together a list of common marketing mistakes that we have noticed clients and potential clients make. Our team has over 127 years of marketing experience - we’ve seen it all! Hopefully this list will help your small business avoid or correct potentially costly mistakes. Outdated Website Your website is your most valuable marketing asset. It is the key to reaching all of those searching potential customers. It is oftentimes the channel that delivers your company’s first impression to potential customers. 97% of consumers search online for products and services. A missing or outdated website can have a detrimental effect on your ability to do good business. Creating and maintaining a website isn’t hard or even expensive. There are a variety of easy-to-use website builders that are affordable - Wix, Weebly, Squarespace - are all user-friendly for even the most tech-fearing person. Neglecting Data If you don’t track the results of marketing campaigns, website traffic, or social media data, you never get a solid idea of what actually works. Not tracking goals, conversions, click-through rates, or engagement is like throwing something “against the wall” and hoping that something sticks - a sometimes costly mistake. There is no way to learn from your mistakes when you neglect to track. There is no way to improve. My Big Day Marketing & Events suggests building a strategy that includes campaigns with goals, milestones, defined messaging, targeted channels, and data collection. We suggest tracking website metrics, including the number of sessions, users, pageviews, top pages, traffic sources (which social media channels or ads bring your website the most visitors), visitor demographics, and conversions. When you collect this data, you’ll be able to track where to spend your time and money for campaign promotions. You’ll also learn a lot about your audience and customer base. My Big Day Marketing & Events tracks these metrics quarterly for all of our clients. This data helps us shape and adjust our marketing messaging.  You don’t have a clear idea of who your audience is Your audience is the people you want to purchase your service or product - those that are buying your solution to their problem. Sometimes the audience we want can blind us to the customers we actually have. No matter how great your messaging, logo, or campaigns are - if you don’t really know your audience, your message will miss the mark. Some small business owners try to avoid this problem by targeting the masses (remember before we mentioned throwing something against the wall in hopes that it will stick???). This is a sure way to drive up marketing costs and see very little on your ROI. My Big Day Marketing & Events helps small businesses study and get to know their customers and target audiences. We help companies segment their customer base, allowing tailored messaging to reach the right people at the right time.  Wasting time on social media by not following the 80/20 rule The 80/20 rule is a standard in social media marketing - 80% of social media posts should provide useful information to your audience (educating, entertaining, and offering solutions), 20% explicitly promote your business. People do not engage on social media to watch advertisements. They scroll through their timelines and feeds to connect with others, to be entertained, to learn, and to be inspired. Your social media strategy should reflect that. Also, when you provide helpful content for your audience, you are establishing yourself and your company as an authority on the matter. It builds trust. My Big Day Marketing & Events will often create posts and blogs that provide links to helpful articles or videos, industry insights, inspirational quotes and images, timely articles, and uplifting stories. These are peppered in with posts that promote our clients’ businesses and events. All of this is created to draw your customers in and engage them around your mission and business. No strategy or plan All of the previously mentioned mistakes could be avoided with one simple solution - having a strategy and plan. Failing to plan usually leads to a high rate of failure. Every client, event, and campaign is unique. My Big Day Marketing & Events works with each client to build a marketing strategy that works for their specific needs and goals. Our typical marketing strategy is built around these 7 steps:
 Failing to see marketing as a business investment Expenses are something you buy and are often cut or curbed during tight economic times. Investments deliver future value. The entire purpose of marketing is to drive leads into future and long-time customers. When you treat marketing as an expense, your ability to find future leads, customers, and company ambassadors is greatly diminished. Marketing should be viewed as a business investment. Marketing will help drive growth and new opportunities when your company needs it the most. My Big Day Marketing & Events helps coach clients to avoid these common mistakes. We work to help small businesses create effective, scalable, and brand-building marketing campaigns that really work. We specialize in marketing, advertising, social media strategy & management, website design & maintenance, and event marketing. We have the time and expertise to help support small business goals and growth. If you would like help with your marketing goals and strategy, reach out for a one-on-one consultation. We will help you avoid these mistakes and find success!  Making Business Personal
As a connected collective of experts, My Big Day specializes in creativity. With superior organization, marketing experience and original ideas, we pull off amazing events and campaigns! My Big Day makes business personal by bringing JOY to the job in everything we do. As purveyors of fun with My Big Day, we support businesses and individuals in the growth of their ideas, events and marketing strategies. Our creative aptitude allows for unique ideas. Our passion for perfection makes every client a priority! Contact MBD Marketing & Events *** Bringing Joy to the Job *** Phone: 970-613-1455 or 303-886-3068 Email Us Whether you’re just starting your small business or are well-established, a communications plan is crucial for your business success. Here are four reasons why you need a small business communications plan – and how My Big Day can help.  What is a communications plan? A communications plan or strategy is a system through which businesses communicate news and marketing messaging within the company and externally. Internal communication may occur between colleagues, human resources staff, and company management. Information may be communicated externally to the public, news media, clients, suppliers, and other businesses. The goal of a communications plan is to ensure your business’s messaging remains consistent, no matter who is receiving information and from which representative of your company. Communications plans are designed to be proactive, but are absolutely necessary in a crisis. A communications plan may address not only what message should be broadcast, but through which channels (for example, that certain types of messaging should be communicated through email, over the phone, or via internal memos).  Why do I need a communications plan for my small business? Company Image A standardized, professional method of communication with the public lends your business credibility. Consistent communication builds external trust in your business, and trust is paramount to success. It is important to know which message(s) you want to convey to specific target audiences, which is where marketing comes into play. Conflicting information released by different parties sporadically conveys an image of disorganization, which degrades trust. Having a unified communications strategy that everyone in the company is aware of prevents confused messaging. Crisis Management Some sort of reputation crisis, whether big or small, is inevitable during the life of your small business. It may be one disgruntled client or a newsworthy catastrophe that affects a wide audience’s perception. Either way, having a strategic communication plan in place will reduce uncertainty for you and present your company as a unified front under scrutiny. Community Relations Engaging with and supporting your community is essential to your business’s image. Your company’s public reputation is enhanced by giving back, including support of nonprofits, local initiatives, and other businesses. Staying abreast of industry happenings helps you make better business decisions, and positive relationships with other businesses build trust and mutual respect. Internal Business Objectives and Employee Morale Having everyone in your company on the same page is essential to efficient operations. Everyone in your company should understand their roles and tasks and have the information necessary to carry them out. Missing or inconsistent information frustrates employees and decreases performance. Trust, loyalty, and transparency are cultivated through a consistent internal communications plan between employees and management.  How do I create a small business communications plan? Creating an effective small business communications plan requires knowledge of branding, measurable goals, target markets, media relations, communication channels, campaigns and events, and evaluation of measurable communication analytics. Executing a strategic communications plan is a big job, and most small businesses don’t have a marketing or PR professional in-house. Internal communications plans, particularly for small companies, can be managed by an owner, president, or manager. External communications are best managed by professionals trained in marketing or public relations. At My Big Day, we offer a long list of small business services, including strategic communications planning, in conjunction with:
 Our talented team of women comes from a variety of educational backgrounds with decades of experience in the marketing, communications, and event planning industries. Reach out to find out how we can help you grow your small business! For business marketing and event tips and ideas, follow My Big Day on Facebook and Instagram. Visit our Small Business Marketing Pinterest board for more from your local small business experts!  Event Sponsorship can benefit your marketing and sales By Carrie Stadtmueller, Content Conductor Event sponsorship can be a great cost-effective way to reach your customers, and allow you to reach targeted niche markets without the expense of traditional advertising. Through sponsorship, your business won’t directly promote your company or product, but you will pay to support an event or cause that your customers care about. Through this support, your business is then associated with the event by customers, attendees, media, and the larger community as a whole.  The many benefits of sponsorship There are many benefits associated with sponsorship - many are related to promotional opportunities. If you are looking to sponsor larger events on a nation-wide level scale, there are multiple opportunities to get your branding on items and in the hands of event attendees. Local causes such as sports teams or charity drives might offer more limited spaces for branding and products, but they also allow you to reach a more specific local audience. In all its forms, event sponsorships offer a certainty that traditional advertising simply cannot. They can also help you meet multiple marketing goals at once. Here are just a few:
If it’s a non-profit you’re supporting, you’re getting your name out in the community, building brand visibility - perhaps getting your logo on a t-shirt, creating brand visibility long past the event!
 How you can add sponsorship to your marketing plan Adding an event or non-profit sponsorship to your marketing plan should be a part of your overall marketing strategy. You should spend time asking the following questions:
It doesn’t have to be a huge event to make a huge impact on your business. You should choose something that makes the most sense for your brand and mission, and most of all, something that you believe in. My Big Day Marketing & Events can help My Big Day Marketing & Events works with a variety of non-profits and can help your business find an organization to partner with. We can do the research for you and find the right sponsorship level that will benefit your business as well as the non-profit, making it a win-win for both! If you are interested in finding out more about how an event sponsorship might benefit your small business, please reach out for a consultation.  Contact MBD Marketing & Events
Small Business. Big Impact. Phone: 970-613-1455 or 303-886-3068 Email Us We serve the entire Front Range; Denver, Southern Wyoming, the CO Mountains, and Northern Colorado: Loveland, Fort Collins, Greeley, Windsor, Berthoud, Estes Park, Lyons, Longmont, Boulder, Wellington, Johnstown, Evans, Severance, Timnath, Mead, Frederick, Firestone, Milliken
For nearly 15 years, My Big Day has been serving Northern Colorado in unique and creative ways... events, business development, media buying, marketing, website design, fundraising.... For over 25 years, Realities for Children has been supporting abused and neglected children in Northern Colorado through a wide range of services and with large event fundraisers. In 2020, Realities reached out to My Big Day to see if we would be willing to take on their annual NightLights campaign. During such a difficult year, fundraising was not the easiest job in 2020 - but MBD Marketing & Events rose to the challenge. Not only did we reimagine the event, we far exceeded their fundraising goal!  Here we are in 2021, and MBD has committed to a long-term partnership with Realities to manage all events and event marketing campaigns. This year will certainly present us with many challenges, but we are eager to help make a difference in so many children's lives. Carrie Stadtmueller is the event lead who will be managing all of the initiatives with Realities for Children. "I'm excited and honored to be be the lead on this full time contract, and even more so, because of the organization we are working with! Be on the lookout for some incredible ways to support children in our community!
 Contact MBD Marketing & Events
Small Business. Big Impact. Phone: 970-613-1455 or 303-886-3068 Email Us We serve the entire Front Range; Denver, Southern Wyoming, the CO Mountains, and Northern Colorado: Loveland, Fort Collins, Greeley, Windsor, Berthoud, Estes Park, Lyons, Longmont, Boulder, Wellington, Johnstown, Evans, Severance, Timnath, Mead, Frederick, Firestone, Milliken  The past two years, My Big Day has had the opportunity to work alongside the board and administrative team at The Family Center/La Familia. From our perspective, it has been an exciting, challenging, and fruitful partnership. The Family Center-La Familia hired our team of event planners to help them with their annual Fiesta fundraiser and party last fall. They were our first non-profit client, and the foundation on which we have built our new fundraising and non-profit support arm of our event business. Through our work with The Family Center-La Famila, we have also been able to grow the marketing side of My Big Day. We offer social media and overall marketing support for the non-profit, and have been able to use this experience to expand our business with other non-profits and organizations. We are extremely grateful that Deirdre Sullivan, the Executive Director of The Family Center-La Familia, took some time to offer feedback on our partnership, the work we’ve done together, and our goals for the future! What was it like for The Family Center-La Familia before you hired My Big Day to help plan fundraising events and provide marketing services for the organization? We were relying on volunteers and an overstretched Executive Director to do event planning, marketing, and donor development. After attempts to hire full time staff, proving costly and also lacking specific skills for these duties, bringing on content experts of MBD was the best decision we could have made! Events and marketing were unorganized, lacked consistency, took a back seat to all of the other priorities of the organization and ultimately wound up costing the organization (loss of donors, missed opportunities, etc.) What problem(s) were you trying to solve with our services? We desperately needed content experts for event planning, marketing and donor messaging support. In addition, because this work is sporadic based on times of year, month, etc. the ability to have a contracted firm do this, rather than a full time staff member, was a win-win! What was the obstacle that almost prevented you from purchasing our services? Funding for the nonprofit sector is ALWAYS the issue but MBD made its portfolio of services attainable for our budget and the return on this investment has paid off beyond what we imagined. What features sold you on buying this service/entering this partnership with My Big Day? Content expertise of team; efficiency of services; affordability; skills that NP sector don’t have; ability to have specific, task oriented services and not be paying for a marketing staff member to sit in unnecessary staff meetings, etc. MBD’s experience elevated the quality of our events and marketing significantly. What made you happiest about working with our company? Success with fundraising; independence in hitting the ground running with little to NO guidance, taking a huge burden off ED and board’s plate, increasing the professionalism of the organization through marketing and communications. What have you been able to achieve since using our services? Increased donor support and engagement, consistent messaging, increased social media presence, increased board engagement, incredibly successful and professional fundraising events What has exceeded your expectations since working with us? All of the above but mostly, the independence and leadership you’ve shown. I have never worked with a contractor who is so confident, able, and had the expertise to literally take the work off my plate and run with it...and succeed. What is the main reason you would recommend our services to another business or non-profit group? You (My Big Day) have expertise we lack in the sector and is hard to find in current Non-profit talent. You somehow straddle the perfect line in understanding the limitations, issues, etc. of nonprofits, how to communicate our message effectively, and you bring a professional skill set extremely needed in the nonprofit sector. You work efficiently, make the absolute best of our limited resources and need zero handholding of overstretched EDs/boards.   Contact My Big Day
Marketing & Events Phone: 970-613-1455 or 303-886-3068 Email Us As event planners, we serve the entire Front Range; Southern Wyoming, the CO Mountains, and Northern Colorado: Loveland, Fort Collins, Greeley, Windsor, Berthoud, Estes Park, Lyons, Longmont, Boulder, Wellington, Johnstown, Evans, Severance, Timnath, Mead, Frederick, Firestone, Milliken |
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Making Business Personal. We pride ourselves on giving you something to look forward to. We are a connected collective of creatives - owned an operated by outstanding women. Want More?Never miss an event or opportunity. Sign up for our newsletter!
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My Big Day Company LLC 2006-2022 www.MyBigDayCompany.com
970-613-1455 or 303-886-3068 EMAIL US
We serve the entire Front Range; Denver, Southern Wyoming, the CO Mountains, and Northern Colorado: Loveland, Fort Collins, Greeley, Windsor, Berthoud, Estes Park, Lyons, Longmont, Boulder, Wellington, Johnstown, Evans, Severance, Timnath, Mead, Frederick, Firestone, Milliken
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