And after winter folwth grene May - Geoffrey Chaucer |
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Fun fact, May Day (May 1st) in Oxford, like most days, has some traditions attached. Since the early 16th Century, the Magdalen College choir has sung from the top of the college’s Great Tower at 6am. I don’t think I ever went. I went to Oriel College which was just down the street, but I’ve never been an early riser and the night before was usually a late one. Another tradition is students jumping from Magdalen Bridge into the Cherwell on May Day. I don’t know when that one started and I didn’t do that one either. I did swim in the Cherwell at other times but I can’t recommend it. Apparently, this year 12,500 people gathered for the May Morning celebrations, but I don’t know how many jumped in the river. I have a soft spot for pretentious, ridiculous tradition. Over time, our traditions can come to define us, but the danger is, sometimes they mask who we really are. That’s something I try to dig into, and especially as part of The Alkimie Collective (loose segue, I know). We’re out in the world now so I’ve included a more formal introduction to us below. This month I’ve also been reflecting on my process with clients and why things never go quite as planned – because there’s always a wrinkle. |
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My process - There's always a wrinkle |
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Some marketing consultants have very set packages and fixed prices. I don’t. I have a process I work through and packages defined around that, but I’m going to quote you a price based on what I think your business needs and how much work that’s going to be for me. It’s not going to be the same for any two businesses because I don’t believe any two businesses are the same, and there’s always a wrinkle. | | |
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Marketing strategy - At the heart of everything |
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This month I held a Marketing 101 workshop locally, in Golden. Rather than focus on the nitty gritty of marketing, I talked about what I think is most important – strategy. The content went over well and I wanted to reshare a similar workshop I did with a fellow Alkimie member, Diane Pauley, last November. We called in “Stop building the plane while you’re flying it”, because it’s something we frequently see businesses doing! | | |
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We’re off! We have LinkedIn, we have Instagram, we have Google My Business, we have a starter website, we have business cards designed, we have all the things! Here’s a proper introduction to us. As The Alkimie Collective, we are a strategy-first brand and marketing collective that wants to help you uncover your brand, activate indelible truths and connect with your audience. Ok, what does that mean? First, we want to help you uncover your brand because too many businesses have forgotten who they are. They have mission statements on their website and on posters, but they’re distracted by the latest shiny object and feel under pressure to react to every social trend. Even when it doesn’t matter to them or their audience. Or your business is at a moment of transformation or critical growth and you don’t want to lose sight of who you are. We want to reroot you in who you are and who you serve. Then, we want to take these indelible truths and look at what this means for your marketing. Are there things you should be doing, that you aren’t? Are there others that you can stop because they’re no longer serving you? Finally, we help you connect with your audience in a way that resonates with them. We want them to care about you, as well as buy from you, and that starts with an understanding of who they should care about. We believe that people connect with brands that are connected with themselves. |
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Know your goals An important element of setting your marketing strategy is knowing what success means for your business. And part of that is knowing what the norms are in your industry. Setting yourself goals without referring to your particular industry may mean you never hit your goals, or maybe you’re aiming at the wrong things. | | |
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About me This month’s color is purple. Purple like lilac, catmint, meadow sage, russian sage, irises and columbines. It's all going on in my yard at the moment. Before moving to Golden, I didn't really know much about gardening, but I have learned a lot in the past few years. It turns out that coincidentally, a lot of the plants that can survive snow, blazing sun, rabbits, deer and really bad soil, have purple flowers. Who knew? |
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