2017 Digital Marketing Trends

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Keeping track of trends can help small businesses in shaping their marketing plans, expanding sales channels, and increasing revenues. The start of a new year is a good time for business owners to consider what they want to achieve over the coming months. Here are some of the most important 2017 digital marketing trends set to impact small businesses.

1. Increasing Mobile App Usage

According to Pew Research, the majority of Americans now own a smartphone. On average, users are accessing 27 separate apps per month.  And the typical smartphone user is spending 37.8 hours a month on apps. For small businesses, developing a mobile app or tapping into popular apps in your industry can provide unique opportunities to reach new customers and increase customer engagement.

According to data from research firm Clutch, less than a quarter of small businesses currently use mobile apps. But that may be set to change in 2017. The firm estimates that mobile app adoption among small business owners will increase to 47% in the coming year as more businesses strive to increase their visibility and remain competitive in the marketplace.

2. Video Storytelling as a Marketing Tool

Print and digital marketing can be effective ways to promote your small business.  But thanks to platforms like YouTube and Snapchat and the addition of live video streaming to Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, video storytelling is quickly becoming one of the hottest 2017 digital marketing trends on the scene.

So why is video storytelling something your small business should care about? Because in 2017 seventy-four percent of all web traffic will be video-based. If you’re not using video storytelling to your advantage yet, you could be missing out on a chance to expand your online presence. Airbnb is one of the most recognizable startup brands to jump on the video storytelling bandwagon, allowing hosts to share their stories via video on the Airbnb website.

A 2016 survey from the Web Marketing Video Council found that 61% of small businesses are incorporating video storytelling in their marketing plans. That’s a marked difference from the previous year, when 66% of those businesses weren’t using video. The numbers are on track to continue that upward trend in 2017 and beyond.

3. Augmented and Virtual Reality Continue to Gain Ground

Augmented reality and virtual reality technology were pushed into the mainstream spotlight in 2016 with the popularity of Pokemon Go. All signs point to the technology increasing in popularity as a marketing tool in 2017.

A survey from Walker Sands found that 55% of consumers think virtual reality will impact their buying decisions. Sixty-two percent said they were interested in shopping via VR and 22% said they planned to purchase a VR device within the next year.

Augmented and virtual reality may be brand-new territory for some small business owners.  But for those brave enough to venture in, AR/VR could be an opportunity to breathe fresh life into their marketing. According to research firm IDC, 30% of consumer-facing companies in the Forbes Global 2000 will focus on utilizing AR and VR technology in their marketing plans over the next year.

4. The Growth of E-commerce

If you’re still not doing business online, 2017 may be the year to consider changing that. Data from the Census Bureau shows that e-commerce has been on a steady climb since 2006, with total online sales for the third quarter of 2016 topping $101 billion. A report from Forrester Research projects that online sales will grow on average by 9.32% year over year through 2020. Worldwide, 54% of consumers say they buy something online weekly or monthly, according to a survey from PwC.

Millennials are driving this trend, as they are spending more time online than any other demographic.  According to Business Insider, young adults aged 18 to 34 spend around $2,000 a year online. This amount is spent despite their having lower average incomes than Gen Xers or Baby Boomers. Fifty-five percent of online shoppers have household incomes of $75,000 or higher. Making the effort to tap into this market in 2017 could prove valuable for your small business.

And the switch is not as difficult as you would think.

Prep Your Business Now

While each of these 2017 digital marketing trends may hold significant promise for small business owners, implementing some of these strategies—such as developing an e-commerce website or creating your own mobile app—requires a certain amount of funding. If you’re ready to move with the times but you don’t want to drain your cash reserves, seeking out financing to get the capital your business needs may be the key to a happy new year.

Strategic Funding provides needed operating funds to small businesses. Strategic Funding has helped small businesses from hundreds of Industries.  These industries include: restaurants, personal services, construction, medical, manufacturing, agriculture, retail stores, automotive, and food stores.

How an SF Fashion Startup Funded Their 3-D Technology Business

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Julian Eison, founder & CEO of Eison Triple Thread (ETT), built his successful fashion startup in San Francisco by combining his love of technology and fashion — two of his passions since a young age. At 7 years old, Eison built his first computer. By the time he was in high school, he capitalized on a popular fashion trend using Gucci fabric to make and sell jeans during his lunch breaks. Now, Eison’s menswear line uses technology to offer customized, tailored garments. Here’s how Eison built ETT and leveraged financial bootstrapping and working capital. He grew his online fashion business into a unique retail showroom in downtown San Francisco.

“The concept for Eison Triple Thread was born in 2013 after a previous attempt in building an enterprise software startup failed,” Eison says. “The failure of my first startup was a necessary phase that I had to go through to discover my true strength and passion.”

Eison saw a menswear market that was saturated at the far ends of the spectrum. It was either disposable low-end fashions and high-end designer goods. Eison leveraged both his passion for design and knowledge of engineering for his second startup. Realizing the opportunity for broad-appeal tailored menswear within a mid-wallet price point, ETT was born.

Eison was able to bootstrap his new startup throughout beta product releases while working full time at private equity firm.

“Once I had a product that I knew early customers were generally happy with, I raised a pre-seed round of capital funding to further build out the brand and [the] Style Gallery,” Eison says. “Next, it was simply a matter of putting my money where my mouth was.”

To build ETT, Eison next focused on hiring talent. The platform required a team with the technology skills to build the interface and expertise in fashion and luxury retail. ETT uses 3-D body modeling to map a customer’s exact sizes and dimensions and create a unique digital pattern. Not only does the customer get to virtually try on the clothes, but the 3-D model guides ETT’s tailors in customizing the final garment’s fit. The customer gets a bespoke garment without needing to visit a store or tailor.

It wasn’t long before Eison proved his digital fashion concept was something men wanted and needed. Within two years of launching the service, he was able to open the Style Gallery. It is ETT’s first physical showroom in downtown San Francisco.

“Opening our physical location wasn’t something that was urgent on our end,” Eison says. “We let the opportunity to open a store come to us organically since we were able to deploy directly to our customers online. Like all great companies in Silicon Valley, we were operating out of my garage rent free. To save extra money, we also debated [using] co-work space and even moving to a nearby city to avoid the exorbitant rent in San Francisco. To other entrepreneurs looking into the same retail-to-physical-location dream, I would say stay patient and track the real estate market before making the move.”

This transition from an online-only business to an online business with a physical location has helped ETT understand their customer even better. In their physical location, ETT has gathered intel around their customers’ lifestyle. He understands their preferences and how this translates to the desires for different textiles, utility and function in garments. Through the in-store customer experience, they’ve continued to highlight the quality and authenticity of their brand. Meanwhile they grow beyond what they could have imagined.

Eison’s Forwarding Message to Entrepreneurs

He has simple advice to other entrepreneurs looking to grow from online to a brick-and-mortar location. Pay careful attention to creating an integrated customer experience that provides value and delivers on your brand promise.

Eison recommends:

Identifying your target customers, their needs, their likes and dislikes.

Interacting with them monthly via a number of different channels — not just for sales.

Evaluating their social behaviors and public information to find patterns.

Using that information to build brand experiences.

For example, ETT discovered their demographic enjoys wine but generally is a novice in understanding wine. So they pair wine tastings and textiles for in-person events to add value to their customer experience.

Creating an integrated customer experience, Eison says will be a process that is iterative and constantly changing. “You need to truly understand your customer and have an omni-channel plan in place before making the leap,” Eison says. “It’s one thing to have a great product, but the barriers to entry are low, and the demand for great experiences is high. It’s important to create a valuable experience for your target audience because today’s consumer is unlike any previous generation.”

Strategic Funding provides needed operating funds to small businesses. Strategic Funding has helped hundreds of industries including: restaurants, personal services, construction, medical, manufacturing, agriculture, retail stores, automotive, and food stores.

Trump’s Promise to Repeal Health Care Reform

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During President-Elect Donald Trump’s campaign, he repeated his plans to “repeal and replace” President Barack Obama’s health care law. Referring to the Affordable Care Act or “Obamacare,” he said at a rally, “it’s one of the single most important reasons why we must win on Nov. 8.” In his first televised interview after the election, the world watched as he departed from his former, rather resolute, campaign promise of free market reforms.

Trump told 60 Minutes that healthcare is the number one thing that he plans to “get done right away.” His campaign website proclaims, “On day one of the Trump Administration, we will ask Congress to immediately deliver a full repeal of Obamacare.”

As President-Elect Trump prepares to take office in January, his party has already announced proposed changes, making health care reform again a reality for Americans.

Proposed Plan Changes

In A Better Way, led by Rep. House Speaker Paul Ryan, Republicans share their vision for health care reform in 2017 and beyond. There’s strong support for repeal of the Employer Mandate, which under “Obamacare,” forces business owners to provide Washington-approved state-mandated benefit packages. Republicans plan to get rid of legislation requiring business owners to purchase “one-size fits all” coverage. It would allow insurance providers to sell across state lines instead, saying this will control costs, increase plan flexibility and coverage options by creating more competition.

Additionally the Association Health Plans (AHPs) is another new cost-control proposal potentially affecting small businesses. An AHP is a pool of small businesses under an umbrella policy. In a proposed strength in numbers union, “improving bargaining power at the negotiating table” is said to lower overhead costs.

Moreover, Trump’s campaign has proposed tax cuts for high-income taxpayers, insurance providers and corporations. To offset these tax cuts, Medicare benefits currently going to “nondisabled, working-age adults” living above the $11,880 poverty threshold will get cut. Also the income tax exclusion that allows workers to deduct insurance premiums from wages will be repealed.

According to Republicans, these reforms will fix the “Obamacare” system. However, there are two ACA provisions Republicans and Trump currently agree on keeping. First, children under the age of 26 will be able to remain on their parents’ plans. Second, individuals will receive coverage regardless of pre-existing conditions.

What Trump health care reform might mean for small business:

  1. Small businesses can say goodbye to the Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP). Under ACA provides tax credits to businesses who employ 25 or fewer full-time employees who earn $50,000 or less.
  2. Repeal of the Employer Mandate forcing businesses with 50 or more full-time employees to provide coverage.
  3. New provisions would exclude exemptions for employers with fewer than 50 employees who offer Health Reimbursement Arrangements (HRAs) instead of ACA. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) reports small employer job subsidies attributed to revenue losses of $266 billion in 2016. It may grow to $3.6 trillion by 2026.
  4. High-income earners can expect relief from the Medicare tax enacted under ACA. Since its inception, it raised taxes an additional .9% and 3.8% on payroll taxes, capital gains, investment and dividend income.
  5. Individual insurance providers will compete to sell products across state lines. As a result, Republicans say this will increase the quality and affordability of plans.
  6. Republicans want to offer Association Health Plans to increase negotiating power and lower costs for businesses.

Every proposed change in federal law takes time and negotiation. For now both the President-Elect and Republican-controlled Congress plan to offer a form of “patient-centered” coverage. It would shift responsibility away from employers and onto individuals. Reforms will not happen overnight. But based on the current proposed reforms, small business owners may have more flexibility in the coverage options they chose to offer employees.

Strategic Funding provides needed operating funds to small businesses. Strategic Funding has helped hundreds of industries including: restaurants, personal services, construction, medical, manufacturing, agriculture, retail stores, automotive, and food stores.

When Your Business Goes Viral

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When a business gets a sudden influx of interest—whether from a national TV appearance, a celebrity mention on social media or an online video that goes viral — founders aren’t always prepared.

Unless the attention is overwhelmingly negative, it’s a good problem to have. However, an unexpected surge in interest can crash websites or cause customer service issues if a product sells out.

You often can’t predict when outside factors make you famous. For instance, an influencer mentions you on Instagram or the First Lady wears your jewelry to a state dinner. But in other cases, you may have time to prepare.

When Martin Hill, creator of a baby bottle holder called The Beebo, appeared on “Shark Tank” in September 2015, landing a $200,000 investment from Lori Greiner and Ashton Kutcher, the producers gave him eleven-days notice before the episode’s air date. Hill sprang into action upgrading the website, shooting new photos and preparing boxes of product to ship. However, he says he wishes he’d had more time to promote the TV appearance.

Here are his tips for other entrepreneurs preparing for a “Shark Tank” appearance or some other flurry of orders.

Prepare for all possible scenarios.

Hill hoped the TV appearance would lead to an uptick in orders—and it did. But he also recognized that things could have gone differently, so he didn’t over-extend himself by ordering excessive amounts of inventory or moving to a fulfillment center. “Look at the flow of how things are potentially going to happen,” Hill says. “Try and cover as many of the what-ifs as you can. What if we get only a few orders? What are we going to do?”

He hadn’t yet moved to a fulfillment center, so he had thousands of boxes in his home with stickers waiting to ship. When those sold out, he had more product on its way from China. Worst case scenario, he says, they would have just moved unsold product back to his storage unit. “You go through the process of getting on ‘Shark Tank’ but you’re still not guaranteed that you’re going to air,” Hill says. “You can’t start plowing in money and expanding for the potential ‘Shark Tank’ surge if it might not happen.” Later on, Hill moved to a fulfillment center so his family wouldn’t have to deal with boxes in his home.

Shore up your website.

Your current website may not have enough bandwidth to withstand a much higher volume of traffic, so plan accordingly. On a recommendation from Dan Greiner (Lori Greiner’s husband), Hill moved from a WordPress and Magento setup to a Shopify website. “He said there’s a high probability if you stick with the setup you have right now, it could crash,” Hill says.

Even if you don’t have much notice to promote a TV appearance or other success in advance, you can make it prominent on your website after the fact. A year since Hill’s “Shark Tank” experience, the company’s homepage still reminds visitors of the “Shark Tank” appearance. It continues to capitalize on the show’s popularity and build instant trust with potential customers.

Communicate about delays.

In cases of sudden interest, customer demand often outstrips the available supply. When the product sold out, Hill says he likely missed out on orders because customers didn’t want to wait. “Manufacturing takes a month and it takes another month on the ocean,” he says. Once the current inventory sold out, the website automatically reverted to pre-ordering so customers understood the timeline for shipping. “When someone pre-orders, it’s all about education,” he says. “Make sure the customer knows the expected date of delivery prior to them hitting confirm purchase.”

Even if you lose some orders, it’s better to be upfront and transparent about delivery timelines than deal with customers who are irate over delays or other issues they didn’t anticipate.

You can’t anticipate every possible scenario. However, by preparing for potential outcomes and communicating with customers about issues, your business can capitalize on sudden interest.

Strategic Funding provides needed operating funds to small businesses. Strategic Funding has helped hundreds of industries including: restaurants, personal services, construction, medical, manufacturing, agriculture, retail stores, automotive, and food stores.

How Biz Bagz Used Tongue-in-Cheek Marketing to Grow Their Pet Business

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Do you clean up after your dog?

Most people wouldn’t think to devote time money and resources to building a pet business around dog poop.

But Ashley Spitz and Ryan Riley did. Cofounders of Biz Bagz, the duo has created “responsible dog waste bags” . The bags have the added benefit of making it look like dog owners are carrying a bag of cherries (instead of poop) around after scooping their furry friends’ waste. Piggybacking on the tongue-in-cheek humor of their bags, they started posting photos on social media of pooping canines. The humorous approach helped kick-start their first sales and from there, grew the business through word-of-mouth. Here’s how the clever duo tackled US-based manufacturing, social responsibility, smart finance and grassroots marketing to build their business.

“Biz Bagz started as a joke,” Riley says. “Ashley and I love to make each other laugh and the idea of building a pet business around dog poop gave us plenty of material. So, taking the plunge wasn’t as scary as it could have been because we knew that if we failed, so what? It was fun while it lasted. And — worst case scenario — we wouldn’t have to buy dog poop bags for as long as we lived.”

Pooping Dogs and Authenticity in Marketing

Riley and Spitz knew the key to growing their business was figuring out how to connect with people with no marketing budget. They decided to leverage the power of content and social media, but they kept their strategy laser focused on one platform they felt they could do really well.

“We started posting pictures of our dogs Bliss and Stewart pooping on Instagram,” Riley says. “It was gross, but we tried to make it artsy. People liked our photos and shared them. For us, what has worked the best is just being authentic. Being us. We’re small and so that allows us to just have fun. Sometimes businesses over-curate their content and message until what you’re left with seems fake and forced. We just say what’s on our mind. Usually it’s about poop, but it works. People respond to authenticity.”

Giving Back to US, The Planet & Some Furry Creatures

Authenticity is not the only core belief that has worked well for the business couple. Since they met volunteering in the Peace Corps, service and community have always been a part of their beliefs as well. As they built their business, they knew they wanted it to be socially responsible, give back to their community and have as little impact on the environment as possible. This translated to three business pillars for Biz Bagz:

  1. Made in the U.S.
  2. Environmentally friendly
  3. Supportive of animal groups

 

“Our first challenge was finding a US-based manufacturer,” Riley says. “That was by far the toughest. There are dozens of plastic bag manufacturers in China that can create our bags for a fraction of the price. But, we didn’t feel right not supporting US manufacturing jobs. So, we kept searching and searching until we found a great team in the northwest [who are] amazing partners.”

utilizing the model companies like TOMS Shoes, Riley and Spitz also decided to give one dollar of every roll sold to animal groups. The nonprofit groups they chose as beneficiaries have helped spread the word about Biz Bagz in an effort to raise additional funds for animals.

“We were inspired by our two rescue dogs,” Riley says. “They both came to us with emotional problems and through hard work and love, they’ve become different dogs and are such a huge part of our lives. We wanted to create a business that both recognized their role in our home and helped us help other people in our situation. That’s why we donate $1 from every roll of Biz Bagz sold to animal charities.”

Bootstrapping & Financial Management

Giving $1 of every roll sold has cut into the couple’s profits, but for now this has been a decision they’ve been able to manage through careful financial management.

“We have been very measured in our approach to the business,” Riley says. “We are entirely self-funded and we’ve structured [operations] in such a way that we only purchase new inventory once we have sold enough bags to provide the necessary capital to pay for our order in its entirety. We have no debt on the business and all profit is funneled back into the business. As we scale and introduce new bag designs, we will likely have to modify our structure and processes. But we will likely maintain a minimal risk strategy.”

Through this measured and minimal-risk financial approach, the couple plans to expand from an online-only business to a brick-and-mortar location in the near future.

You Know You’ve Succeeded When…

Don’t think all this success they’ve had through grassroots marketing, social responsibility and smart finances means the Biz Bagz couple hasn’t had any business challenges.

“Actually, our biggest challenge has been to get our parents to buy our product,” Riley says. “You’d think that parents would be the first ones to support their child’s business, but not our folks. They’re a tough crowd. Our parents have five dogs total, yet they don’t buy our bags. They do it the old fashioned way with a shovel and a trash can and refuse to change their ways. So, we’ll know we have a successful business when our parents finally buy our bags. Hopefully, the guilt gets to them. People underestimate the power of guilt in marketing.”

Strategic Funding provides needed operating funds to small businesses. Strategic Funding has helped hundreds of industries including: restaurants, personal services, construction, medical, manufacturing, agriculture, retail stores, automotive, and food stores.

How Small Businesses Can Prepare for Proposed Overseas Tariffs

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As a new presidential term begins, small business owners are paying close attention to promises made on the campaign trail. One item that has businesses owners concerned are the proposed overseas tariffs on items imported from overseas. With so many small business owners contracting their manufacturing outside of the US, this kind of tariff presents some dilemmas. Should they try to find less expensive manufacturing options domestically? Should they wait it out, hoping the tariffs won’t force them to increase their prices too dramatically?

One campaign proposal was a tariff of up to 45 percent on products imported from China. Economists estimate that this move could lead to price increases of ten percent. Without cheaper alternatives, many consumers would likely choose to not buy certain items at all. This could hurt businesses of all sizes. For small business owners, though, it’s important to plan ahead, especially if they’re already manufacturing products overseas. Here are a few things you can do to protect your product-based business.

Don’t Panic

Although international trade agreements are on the president-elect’s radar, it will take time to legislate and impose overseas tariffs.

Experts stress that under current laws, the administration would not be able to target a specific country with tariffs.  Instead, the overseas tariffs will need to target categories of products.  If possible, you may want to extend existing agreements, since any laws passed may apply to new contracts, allowing existing relationships to be grandfathered in.

Price Competitors

Instead of accepting that an across-the-board price increase may be an inevitable part of your future, begin pricing competing manufacturers. If you’ve worked with the same provider for a considerable period of time, you may be able to strike an agreement that reduces your costs without sacrificing product quality. You may also find that making small changes to the way you manufacture and ship your items can result in a big difference in your annual expenditure.

Go Local

Even if local manufacturing costs slightly more than what you’d pay overseas, there are many benefits to contracting with nearby manufacturers for your products.

  • You save on international shipping to get products from the other side of the globe to your local distribution facilities.
  • You may find moving processes to a nearby warehouse is actually a better business decision than it was several years ago, especially if it means you can take a more hands-on approach to manufacturing.
  • When you support local businesses, you show your community pride. This incentivizes customers and your local government to make sure you succeed.

While there is inevitable uncertainty surrounding new national leadership, small businesses can always benefit from advance preparation. By reviewing your own manufacturing processes and paying close attention to bills as they make their way through the legislature, your business will be ahead of the game, helping you continue to keep your business’s budget in check.

Strategic Funding provides needed operating funds to small businesses. Strategic Funding has helped hundreds of industries including: restaurants, personal services, construction, medical, manufacturing, agriculture, retail stores, automotive, and food stores.

How A Passion for Roller Derby Fueled a Professional Services Entrepreneur to Grow Her Business

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In early 2016, Evie Smith found herself bedridden, recovering from a serious injury from a roller derby accident. As she thought about returning to the stressful corporate careers she’d held for nearly 10 years at various public relations (PR) agencies, she couldn’t help but feel an overwhelming sense of dread that brought her near tears. During her recuperation, she felt returning to her day job wasn’t an option anymore. Instead, Smith built her own PR agency, Rebellious PR. She leveraged the energy and competitiveness she gained in roller derby to grow her business. Almost one year later, Smith has plenty of work and more time to spend on her life’s passions of roller derby, skating and fitness.

“I’ve been seriously injured twice now. Both times it made me have to stop everything and put my environment around me into perspective,” Smith said. “Am I doing the things in life that are actually important? Am I living my best life and being my best self? Sometimes an unexpected injury, like an ACL tear, is a blessing in disguise because it really makes you look around.”

Smith re-evaluated what she wanted her careers and life to look like. It included building the kind of company she’d want to work for — one that is inclusive and supportive of all individuals— and spending more time with the “nerdy and outspoken” derby counterculture that helped her grow into the leader she is today.

“At first I wanted to quit the PR game all together,” Smith said. “It left a sour taste in my mouth. But then I realized that I could do [PR] my way. I could be a real person and take on the kind of clients I want. I was wasting so much of my time and talents having to work at an agency for someone else, doing things their way. Now I get to travel for roller derby and do the kind of work I am really proud of.”

Evie self-funded her new venture through savings that got her through her first couple months of business; however, she definitely had to hustle to make money to grow her business to where it is today. It wasn’t easy. She taught herself how to manage her business finances and had to learn how to price herself as a professional services provider, how to pay herself and when to say, “No.”

“I think way more about money than I ever have,” Smith said. “Financially I am on my own in this world. I come from a family of social workers and teachers. Everything I have from my college degree to my car I have paid for myself. I belong to a few local networks for female founders and entrepreneurs, and I find chatting with other like-minded and experienced women really helped me understand business finances and more. When talking about money, I’ve really had to just get over any discomfort I had.  Now, I just own it.”

Smith has grown her business with the help of savvy business networking skills and her own personal referrals. She is now hiring her first employee to join her agency. But, she isn’t stopping there. Smith is building her own rebellious empire and hopes to turn her brand into a household name — for both PR and roller derby — by bootstrapping the launch of a new roller derby skate shop business next year through the funds from her successful PR business.

“I am the woman I am today because of Derby: empowered, thoughtful, kind, smart,” Smith said. “I learned what it meant to be on a team and contribute to something bigger than myself. It gave me a lot of structure and direction, as well as a positive place to channel my energy and competitiveness. I have become a better professional by participating in Derby.  And working in PR and on my careers has made me a better derby player.”

Beyond derby advice, Smith shares what she wants other entrepreneurs to know who are looking to grow their professional services business.

“You can do it!” Smith said. “Don’t be scared of the money stuff and just jump! You won’t regret trying. I’ve never felt so empowered — it’s like my wings have finally spread.”

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