ORANGE STAR BLOG
Subscribe to Fresh Squeezed, essential ideas on branding, marketing and growing a small business.
Subscribe to Fresh Squeezed, essential ideas on branding, marketing and growing a small business.
Shut up. Listen. Repeat.
Being a good listener is underrated. Good listening is rare. So rare that being listened to feels so much like being loved, people can scarcely tell the difference.Most people are waiting for their turn to talk when they should be listening. Listening is not just about hearing what the other person is saying, it’s about understanding…
Effortless thought-leadership: simplify and speed up your process
54% of decision-makers say they spend more than one hour per week reading and reviewing thought-leadership content. (Edelman/LinkedIn 2021)¹ What if your content is the one that captures their attention and becomes their go-to source for information on a particular topic? Producing thought-leadership content can be a daunting task. Most of us don’t have the time…
Simplicity 101
10 Laws of Simplicity (get the book) Reduce: The simplest way to achieve simplicity is through thoughtful reduction. Organize: Organization makes a system of many appear fewer. Time: Savings in time feel like simplicity. Learn: Knowledge makes everything simpler. Differences: Simplicity and complexity need each other. Context: What lies in the periphery of simplicity is definitely not peripheral. Emotion: More…
Safer, Easier, Better: Use a Password Manager
Does your email arrive via magic owl 🦉? No? Then you should be using a password manager.Here are the four best ones to choose from according to Zapier:I personally use LastPass and have for many years. Some features I like are: It works cross-device so I can use it to easily log in to all my sites and tools…
Ode to Old Posts
Did you know that 75% of blog views and 90% of blog leads come from old posts?¹ Look at your website analytics, do you see traffic going to older blog posts? When was the last time you reviewed these older posts? Older blog posts can be extremely valuable for a website. Not only do they help…
Can you make my website smell like fresh baked cookies? 🍪
Sometimes we focus on details that don’t matter while other times these details can be a winning difference.When it comes to selling a house, it’s clear why making it smell like fresh baked cookies can have a positive impact. It makes potential buyers feel at home and may subconsciously influence a decision.But when it comes…
The right customers
“Building a sustainable and fulfilling business isn’t just about finding enough customers—it’s about finding enough of the right customers.” ~ Bernadette Jiwa Here are ten questions you can ask yourself to guide your thinking about what kind of customers will enable you to do your best work.
Music, inspiration, and album covers
Sometime back in 1988, I played and sang “The Weight” in a bar in Ypsilanti, MI with my friend Bob. Thankfully, there is no video. For the 50th anniversary of the song, Playing for Change (PFC) produced this “Around the World” version that gives me goosebumps and brings me to the verge of tears when…
Wait, before you go…
Did you know that over 70% of visitors who abandon your website will never return? 😲If people are leaving your website without taking any action, that means you’re wasting practically all of your marketing efforts.Considering that existing customers and email subscribers are 16x more likely to make a purchase than a regular website visitor, it’s…
Now and Later — use scarcity to encourage action
People have a natural tendency to decide to “do things later” unless there’s a compelling reason to act now.In business, “later” turns into “never” if the customer forgets about you.So how can you encourage people to act immediately?Scarcity.When people feel like they might miss out on a good deal, they’re more likely to take action….
