Are you frustrated with low conversion rates on your website, emails or digital ads? Everyone’s been there. There’s an easy fix I’m going to show you in less than 5 minutes.  Today you’re going to learn how to Optimize Conversions like Netflix without Hiring a Single Analyst. I’m Jay Zagami and this is the CPM Podcast, brought to you by Seedling. Netflix constantly tests and optimizes everything, including TV & Movie artwork, that’s the card you see with an image and title. Through testing, they were able to significantly increase the number of plays by A/B testing artwork card segmentation. In their case study, they show how it works using the movie Good Will Hunting as an example.  People who watch more comedies are more likely to watch Good Will Hunting when the artwork shows a scene with Matt Damon and Robin Williams, a comedian.  People who watch more Romantic films are more likely to watch Good Will Hunting when presenting with artwork card showing a romantic scene between Minnie Driver and Matt Damon.  They tested this against  Pre-chosen artwork (control) Randomly chosen artwork   Contextual Chosen Artwork The contextual artwork showed a significant uptick in views - their chosen conversion.  This is a more complicated example that what you need, but everyone knows Netflix so It’s relatable.  If you’re not constantly testing and measuring conversions, at a minimum, you're missing out on a huge opportunity to generate more revenue. At worst, you’re letting your competitors run away with your customers at a speed you most likely won’t catch up to. So here’s how to run powerful A/B tests in 3 easy steps.  You can do this on an email, a web page or digital ads. Most email service providers natively include the ability to create variants for A/B testing. Facebook and Google allow you to run variants of ads for A/B testing, and there are easy ways to run tests in WordPress, Squarespace, and HubSpot. Each of these services includes some form of data reporting so you can see what happened.  Here it is: Step 1. Choose an element, an image, a headline, a conversion offer. Doesn’t matter what it is, but only choose 1 thing. Come up with a hypothesis around how you could improve that element. For example, your form button may say “Submit” what if you tested one that said “Send” or “Sign Up Now.  Step 2. Create the variant and run it to statistical significance. This means that there is enough data to be sure your test is accurate.  Step 3. Look at your data and pick the winner. Make sure 100% of your traffic goes to the winning option.  Once you have a winner, start planning your next A/B test.  I’m going to include free resources to help you in this podcast episode on our website. If you’d like to learn more visit Seedling.agency/podcast and find this episode.  If there’s a topic you want me to cover in future episodes let me know on twitter @jasonzagami. I’ll see you next time.  

CPM - Digital Marketing Podcast

Optimize Conversions like Netflix without Hiring a Single Analyst

Click Here to Book Me for your Free HubSpot DemoHow much more successful would you be if you did a better job of monitoring your companies numbers? Do you know how much money you spend on marketing each quarter? Ok, good.  Do you know if it’s ROI positive? Probably not.  Like you, my number one priority is growing my business as quickly as possible, and I'm able to do that because I can identify what’s working and what isn’t each month. And I’ve helped dozens of companies like yours do this very thing, and in many cases watched as they hit double-digit growth year over year.  Today I’m going to give you the tools to create insightful performance reports, each month, even if you're not an Analyst.Peter Drucker famously said, "What get’s measured get’s managed.” The first thing you need to do is to clarify what’s needs to be measured. I talked about that in the episode: Set & Exceed Seemingly Impossible Goals, like Amazon, without being Jeff Bezos.  If you haven’t listened to that one yet, go back and start there. Everyone on your team needs to be clear on what the organizations' objectives are, how you measuring success, and what actions everyone is taking to support those objectives. Next, you’re going to need to figure out some simple metrics for your business.  How many customers or clients do you have? What’s the lifetime value of a customer? What’s your average order value and how can you increase it?  What’s the purchase frequency and how can you increase this?  What're your companies conversion rate and how can you improve it?  What’s your profit margin? What’s your ROI on your marketing spend? Now you have some baseline metrics to measure against.  I’ll list these in the show notes, so don’t worry about remembering them all. And a simple google search will guide you through how to calculate them.  Now, these aren’t the only metrics you’ll want to know, but it’s a really good start. Visit this episode on our website at Seedling.agency. I’ll include a link to performance reporting spreadsheet templates and powerpoint templates. Each month, just plug in your numbers and it will graph out your performance. At a glance, you’ll see exactly what’s moving in the right direction and what isn’t. Want to make it even easier than that? I'm including a link in the show notes so you can book me for Free HubSpot Demo. During this demo, I’ll walk you through setting up a free HubSpot account. And I'll show you how to create custom dashboards and reports.  It's incredibly easy, and the easier it is, the more likely it is to get done. So, where will your company be in 12 months now you have better insights? I’m willing to bet, you’ll be a lot better off than you are now. Click Here to Book Me for your Free HubSpot Demo

Create Insightful Performance Reports each Month, even if you're not an Analyst

Is your company creating any content? Is it interesting and helpful to anyone, or is it just a salesy digital brochure passed off as a free helpful guideThe problem is, most companies are pumping out useless, boring tired information, and they wonder why growth is slow. Would you want to read your own content? Today we’re going to talk about Creative Execution. That’s the 4th step in our 6-part marketing framework. If you haven’t listened to the first 3 parts, go back and start with the episode on goal-setting. I meet with a lot of business owners and CEO’s who want to know why sales are slow. When I look through their digital presence, they have nothing of value to attract and excite potential customers. People have no time or interest to read the novel of an about you page on your website. They don’t care who had a baby in your office. And they definitely don’t want to be sold on the first visit. Less than 1 out of 100 companies are marketing in a way that actually attracts visitors, engages them, and builds trust, which ultimately drives sales and sales velocity. So, here are the 6 Money Murdering Mistakes I see businesses making, and here’s what you can do about it. Number 1.  Share Don’t SellCompanies aren’t sharing anything of interest of value. You should be an expert in your industry. Don’t assume people know as much as you do. They don’t. Think of questions you get asked each week. Take those questions and create an FAQ webpage or ebook. It will blow you away how effective that can be. Marcus Sheridan grew his pool company to be the largest in the country using this method. I’ll link to his book They Ask, You Answer in the show notes. Number 2. Perfection is the Enemy of DoneMake it easy to do. Don’t overcomplicate things with high-production value, shoot for award-winning designs, or make excuses that you can’t afford it. People don’t care about aesthetic quality when it comes to helpful content. Depending on the format, article, ebook, video, audio, etc… what’s important is whether or not it’s helpful and interesting. As Donald Miller of Storybrand would say, how does it help them survive and thrive? The point here is, if you make it easy for yourself to do, it will get done. I had to make podcasting easier, so I ditched the studio and now record and upload short unedited episodes on my phone. Simplify the process and share your knowledge with the world. Number 3. Call Them To ActionInclude a Call-To-Action. Nearly every website I see doesn’t make it clear to the visitor what to do. If it’s not clear what to do next, people will do nothing. There should be a clear Call-To-Action on every webpage, ebook, and social post. If you make visitors work to find a way to do business with you, they won’t. Not sure how difficult it is for someone, ask a friend to go on your website. See where they get lost or stuck. Number 4. New Phone, Who Dis?Check your links, phone number, and forms. I hate when I go to a website and their links and forms don’t work. Or worse, when the phone number or address is wrong. Also check your online business listings. Make sure it’s all accurate. If I an get a hold of you, I can’t buy from you. Number 5. 3-Second RuleHow long does it take to access your site on mobile? If it’s more than 3 seconds, most people aren’t sticking around. That means get off WordPress or an image-heavy website with flash animations and a server with 12 thousand other websites.We highly recommend Squarespace. There isn’t anything out there that can match it. For around $20 a month it’s amazing. They handle server optimization and security. There are no plugins or version updates. I’m not 

6 Money Murdering Mistakes That No Marketer Will Dare Tell You

Have you spent time and money on marketing that wasn’t ROI positive? Have you ever hired an expensive consultant or bought digital ads that didn’t work?You’re not alone, so don’t feel bad.  Most people get tactical when they should be strategic. Developing a strategy is the 3rd part of our 6-part framework. If you haven’t listened to Parts 1 & 2, go back and begin there. You’ll need those together to build a strategy. Step 1 is defining a target. You can hit a target you can’t see. Make sure you’re clear on what’s important and how you measure success.  Step 2 is customer research. Asking customers what they need, what they want, what they fear, and where they spend their time.  If you’ve done these thoroughly, step 3 - strategy becomes self-evident. You don’t have to overthink it.  Just tell the story leading with the problem you solve, introduce the customer as the hero. Position your company as a helpful guide with a plan. Showcase some cases where the client has implemented your plan or solution. And lastly, what’s at stake if they fail or succeed.  This is a brilliant storytelling framework by Donald Miller. I’ll link to his amazing book in the show notes.  Now you have a story. Where do you tell your story?  You should know where your customers spend their time from step-2.  That’s where you’ll share your content and run ads.  If you’re running ads, don’t sell your service. Sell the click.  Entice them to click and view your content offer. When they arrive at your content offer, either organically or through paid ads, this is where you guide them along the buyer's journey.  Be as helpful and clear as possible. And lead them on what to do next. That should be a micro-commitment such as signing up for your email content, requesting a demo, watching a video, downloading a checklist, etc… This first step builds trust and authority in your brand. People have anxiety and fears. Can you help me, can I trust you, will it work, could I waste my money.  Over time, if you’re helpful, can demonstrate competency, and elevate the anxieties customers have, you’ll win.  I’m developing an online training course to teach this framework to business owners and marketers. If you want to be notified when it’s available, visit this podcast episode at seedling.agency and join my email list.  We’ll never share your email or send you salesy spammy emails.  I hope this was helpful and make sure to reach out to me on LinkedIn or Twitter if you have any questions.  ResourcesBuilding A Storybrand: Clarify Your Message So Customers Will Listen

18 Years of Digital Strategy Experience Explained in 5 Minutes

Consumer research is the second step in our Framework that allows marketers too better understand and communicate a brands value to customers. This is a crucial step nearly everyone skips out of either laziness,  fear, not knowing how to do it, or haste. The secret is, anyone can do it. You don’t need an MBA or Marketing Degree. When people skip this set, what ends up happening is you communicate a generic message that doesn’t speak to anyone's needs but the person who wrote the marketing copy. A customer needs rarely line up with the business owners or the marketer's assumptions. Here are the 4 steps for Powerful Customer Research. 1. Identify who your ideal customers are. Who are you currently selling too? Who would you like to be selling to? 2. Talk to your current customers. Talk to past customers. Talk to your competitor's customers. And talk to potential customers.     1. Find out what their fears are that hold them back from a purchase.     2. Find our what their emotional reason for buying is.    3. Ask where what they read online and where they spend their time.     4. What do they like and dislike about current options?     5. What makes them happy?    6. What adds value for them? What could you deliver and charge more for?     7. Ask what needs they are looking to serve. 3. Segment based on differing needs. You will be far more effective when you speak to peoples individual needs. 4. Create buyer personas. Fictional models of groups of customers that have the same or similar needs. Once you’ve done the work of actually speaking with and understanding your customers, and you know what the goals and objectives are, next you can create a winning strategy. We’re going to cover that in the next episode. I’ll see you tomorrow. ResourcesHow To Create Buyer PersonasFinding Your Companies Why - Simon SinekUnderstanding Customers Needs - Jobs TheoryHubSpot Persona Tool

4 Steps to Powerful Customer Research that will save you from Paying an Expensive Consultant

I reveal the secret goal-setting formula used by the most successful companies in the world such as Apple, Amazon, Google & Tesla. In today's podcast, I walk you through OKR's (Objectives and Key Results). Learn how you can implement them in your organization today.Why the secret to success is setting the right goals - Ted Talk by John DoerrSeedling's Demo OKR ExampleOKR Examples and How to Write ThemMeasure What Matters (Book) by John Doerr

Set & Exceed Seemingly Impossible Goals, like Amazon, without being Jeff Bezos.

I'm kicking off a new format. 1-Takes. 5 min or less daily podcast ?. Tips, tricks, strategies and reinforcement. Each day you'll get actionable steps on how to grow your company. I'll see you there - Jay 

I'm back!!! Get ready for CPM One Takes.

Link to episode resources I interview Ben Blakesley, the author of Get Social: A Practical Guide to Using Social Media for Business and head of Social and Content Strategy at Citizens Bank. We talk about strategy, tools, resources and real-world lessons. Ben's book - Get Social: A Practical Guide to Using Social Media for Business Jason Zagami on Twitter Music Credit Omnibeats - Rap Beats Ty Dolla Sign type beat - Loft (radio ready r&b/rap beat)

How to Improve your Social Media Marketing with Ben Blakesley

Today I’m talking about empathy. What it is, how empathetic companies win, and how you can foster a more empathetic culture. Produced by Seedling Inc. Hosted by Jason Zagami Music Credit https://soundcloud.com/airthrivemusic/alicks-empathy-airthrive-remix Airthrive Alicks - Empathy (Airthrive Remix)

Why Empathetic Companies Win

In today's Podcast, I sit down with SEO Expert Chris Sheehy of Sidewalk Branding Co. to hear how search has changed over the years, and learn what you can do to stay competitive. Visit our website Seedling Inc. for links and resources mentioned in this episode. Message me on twitter @JasonZagami if there's a topic you'd like me to cover. 

5 Things You Need To Know About SEO

Learn how Marcus Sheridan saved his company (River Pools and Spas) in 2009 after the economic collapse, by simply answering questions his customers were asking. His company went from near bankruptcy to become the largest installer of fiberglass swimming pools in the country. Produced by Seedling Inc. Hosted by Jason Zagami Music Credit: Piano_flava – Not-just-jazz PIANO FLAVA Hip Hop Instrumental #13 " Not Just Jazz "

4 Questions Every Website Should Answer

People get excited about new marketing tools, and forget about the basics. Today I talk about 5 fundamentals that get missed For more info visit us at Seedling.Marketing Music Credit: 641A https://soundcloud.com/sixfortyone-a/basics

Forgetting The Fundamentals

I’m going to try and explain GDPR, which is the General Data Protection Regulation in under five minutes. What it is, why it came about, and what you need to do before March 25th 2018. Find me on Twitter @jasonzagami Visit Seedling.Marketing for links and resources. Music Credit Say It Ain't So Ladies (DJ Wild Yeti Is Still Single Mashmix) https://soundcloud.com/djwildyeti/say-it-aint-so-ladies-dj-wild-yeti-is-still-single-mix The University of Warwick Big Band Crazy In Love https://soundcloud.com/warwickbigband/crazy-in-love

GDPR Explained in Under 5 Minutes

Ad Blockers are the greatest thing to happen to the internet in a long time. Learn why in this episode. Tweet at me @JasonZagami Visit Seedling for show notes, sources and examples.

How Ad Blockers Are Saving The World

Lead Intelligence is an amazing tool that very few salespeople know about. Learn how it works and how you can use it on todays Podcast. HubSpot's Free CRM Tweet at me @JasonZagami Visit Seedling for our free marketing eBooks 

Boost Sales With Lead Intelligence

Each week Jason Zagami talks Digital Marketing Trends, Digital Ads, Marketing Strategy, Social Selling and more. Read the latest Digital Marketing News at The Daily SeedConnect with Jason Twitter: @JasonZagamiLinkedIn: Jason ZagamiSeedling Inc.