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Personal Trainer Marketing Plan

November 15, 2021 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

personal trainer marketing plan Need a marketing plan for your personal trainer business?

If you are a personal trainer looking to get more clients, my 12-Month Personal Trainer Marketing Plan is really all you need!

My plan gives you easy, low cost and no cost tactics to do each month focusing on advertising, publicity, content marketing, social media, promotions, email marketing and more.

This plan is all filled in for you so I make it super easy!

There are over 300 tactics split up by months so that the entire year is covered. Here are some examples.

Personal Trainer Marketing Tactic: Publicity

Email a story idea pitch to various wedding blogs, particularly local ones with your tips on “Easy Ways to Get in Shape for Your Wedding”.

Personal Trainer Marketing Tactic: Advertising

Leave coupons, business cards or flyers for your business on cars parked outside local gyms, yoga studios and fitness events/shows.

Personal Trainer Marketing Tactic: Social Media

Post a 30-day #fitnesschallenge on January 1st for the entire month, challenging followers to do at least 20 minutes of cardio a day, and have followers comment if they completed their challenge today.

Personal Trainer Marketing Plan Tactic: Social Media

Post your workout #playlist and ask followers theirs for #musicmonday.

Personal Trainer Marketing Tactic: Email

Change up your email opt-in incentive to include a free one-page printable workout calendar for the new year clearly labeled with your business name and url, as a frequent reminder.

Personal Trainer Marketing Plan Tactic: Promotions

Consider offing a special class for couples on Valentine’s Day or for singles on Galentines.

Personal Trainer Marketing Tactic: Promotions

Ask a local Weight Watchers group if you could speak at their next meetings, offering low impact fitness tips.

Start marketing your personal trainer business! Download the plan today!

If you are a small business and you need more marketing advice, be sure to see my products and services. Be sure to also read: 101 Promotional Ideas for Your Small Business.

Travel Agency Marketing Plan PDF

November 14, 2021 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

If you’re a travel agent looking to get more clients, my best-selling 12-Month Travel Agency/Agent Marketing Plan is all you need, with hundreds of tactics to do each month focusing on advertising, publicity, content marketing, social media, promotions, email marketing and more.

Travel Agency Publicity Ideas for January

Email a story pitch to the travel writer at your local newspaper (with a quote from you) for “The Best Places to Visit in the New Year” in hopes of getting your agency and name a mention.
Check and submit daily to HARO (Help a Reporter) requests that apply (sign up for these PR requests for free).

Travel Agency Advertising Ideas for January

Add your travel agency to Trip Advisor if you have a physical store presence where tourists can drop in off the street for tourist advice. Then you might be able to get listed as a “Tourist/Visitor Center”.

Travel Agency Social Media Ideas for January

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Post your Travel Bucket List for the new year and ask followers to comment on the one place they want to go to.
Give a #shoutout to a favorite travel blog every Sunday for #SundayBlogshare (tag the blog so they repost).
Post a mood board of your favorite travel products for #NationalShopforTravelDay on January 14th and give shoutouts to the shops.
Post a poll asking followers their favorite all-time vacation spot for #GetToKnowYourCustomersDay on January 16th.
Post a list or photo carousal or reel of the top cities to visit in Florida for #NationalFloridaDay on January 25th.
Post your favorite travel booking tips for #NationalPlanforVacationDay on January 28th.
Tweet out a #quote every Friday for #FridayFeeling that has to with “escaping” or “getting away” (quotes are very popular on Twitter)
Set up a YouTube channel to show “2-Minute Virtual Vacation” videos.
Comment daily on the Instagram and Facebook posts of local media & sports teams to get seen by your local market.

Travel Agency Email Marketing Ideas for January

Create a free email signature (use WiseStamp) and include a linkable banner to your agency’s website, links to your social media sites and your latest blog post.
Email your customers your winter or Valentine’s day vacation specials, spring break getaways and any new blog posts.
Change up your email opt-in incentive to include a free one-page printable calendar for the new year clearly labeled with your agency’s name and url, as a frequent reminder; or do a 12-month calendar, each month showing an amazing place to visit at that time of year.

Travel Agency Content Marketing Ideas for January

Write your own article on “The Best Places to Visit in the New Year” with a byline that has your business name and submit it to Buzzfeed,
If you haven’t already, create a blog to drive traffic to your shop. You can then circulate your blog posts on social media as well as on blog sharing sites like BLOGLOVIN’ and BLOGARAMA even if your posts are something as simple as mentioning events going on in your city each weekend, such as “What to Do in {Your City} This Weekend”. It also gives you a reason to email your customers weekly.

Travel Agency Sales & Promotion Idea

Comment daily on the latest blog posts of popular local news media and magazines as a great way to get seen by their readers.
Create a monthly or seasonal Travel Trend Report, great for handing out at trade shows, posting to social media, emailing to clients. Use my template.
Find additional revenue potential signing up with Travel Agent to earn 8% commission on all tours and activities you sell on their site.

Download the entire 12-Month Travel Agent Marketing Plan! Read some of the reviews below.

Travel Agency Marketing Plan PDF

Start marketing your travel agency business! Download the plan today!

If you are a small business and need marketing help, please see my services and product pages.

travel agent agency marketing plan pdf

Black Friday Ecommerce Checklist

November 11, 2021 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

Black Friday Ecommerce checklist

Need a Black Friday ecommerce checklist? It is a great way to make sure you are ready for the biggest selling time of the year with this handy checklist.

Black Friday / Cyber Monday Checklist

Host a giveaway on social media, two weeks before Black Friday (so tomorrow) to attract the attention of potential new customers.
Check product inventory and supply inventory levels.
Check packaging and shipping supplies inventory levels.
Update store inventory levels if they are getting low, so you do not sell out and cause listings to deactivate.
Check all expired, sold out and inactive listings to see if there is anything that needs to be re-listed.
Update social media shop banners and avatars for Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa & New Years products & sales.
Update store banner & avatar for Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa & New Years products & sales. Be sure to add “Last Day To Order By” date.
Update shop owner photo to a festive one, just for fun.
Change email signature to show holiday, Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales.
Consider increasing daily ad budget for the month of November or just for November 25th to November 29th.
Only run ads on listings that have the highest sales conversion rate to maximize ad dollars.
Email customers Black Friday offers on November 25th.
Email customers Cyber Monday offers on November 28th.
Post to social media daily, and several times a day from November 25th to November 29th.
Comment daily on popular Facebook and Instagram posts that your target market reads, to get seen by their followers.
If you sell on Etsy, close orders as soon as they ship, to avoid shop getting paused.
Check that all links are working. Links from your social media sites to your store, and vice versa.
Include coupons or gift guides for Valentine’s Day in all packages.
If comfortable, encourage local buyers to do curb side pickup.
Email your local business writer(s) today and ask to have either your Black Friday, Small Business Saturday or Cyber Monday special mentioned in any write-ups they are doing.

Book a 30-minute phone consultation with me to get personalized marketing advice for your online business!

New here? Learn more About Me.

Life Coach Marketing Plan PDF

November 9, 2021 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

If you are a life coach looking to get more clients, my Life Coach Marketing Plan PDF is really all you need!

My 12-Month Life Coach Marketing Plan gives you hundred of tactics to do each month focusing on advertising, publicity, content marketing, social media, promotions, email marketing and so much more.

There are over 300 creative tactics in all. Here are just a few example tactics from the January page.

Life Coach Marketing Plan Tactic: Publicity

Email a story idea pitch to lifestyle blogs like PureWow, or other lifestyle blogs on my contact list, early in the month for “How to Stay Motivated in the Winter Months, according to a Life Coach”.

Life Coach Marketing Plan Tactic: Advertising

Consider listing your business with Trusted Coach Directory.

Life Coach Marketing Plan Tactic: Social Media

Post a 30-day #MentalHealthChallenge on January 1st for the entire month, challenging followers to do something positive for themselves or someone else every day for #MentalWellnessMonth (January).

Life Coach Marketing Plan Tactic: Social Media

Post a carousel or reel of your tips for “How to Have Your Best Year Yet” for #NationalMentoringMonth in January.

Life Coach Marketing Plan Tactic: Email

Email a monthly newsletter to customers featuring tips for getting through January, especially a dry January challenge, along with any new services or products.

Life Coach Marketing Plan Tactic: Content Marketing

Write a short article on “Is a Life Coach Worth It?” and include a byline with your name and business website url and submit it to Buzzfeed.

Life Coach Marketing Plan Tactic: Sales & Promotions

Consider offing a special coaching session or workshop just for January called, “How to Get the New Year Off to a Great Start”.

Start marketing your life coach business! Download the plan today!

If you are a small business and you need more marketing advice, be sure to see my products and services. Be sure to also read: 101 Promotional Ideas for Your Small Business.

As such, I have been advising my ecommerce clients to offer their Black Friday sales as soon as possible, even now, and not make people wait until Black Friday. Even Amazon has already started.

The key is to let customers know this is the SAME OFFER you will be making on Black Friday, so if they are holding out for a better deal, there won’t be one. This way you get the early sales and not lose out to the bigger brands. So email all of your customers THIS WEEK with your early bird Black Friday offer.

2. Do Not Overestimate Demand

You might not want to base this year’s inventory on last year’s sales, since 2020 was an abnormality with retail shopping not being an option. Retail is not only back this year, but the number of online stores has also drastically INCREASED.

There are now 1.75 million Shopify stores, with 680,000 new stores opening in 2020. Etsy stores also increased from 2.7 million in 2019 to 4.3 million in 2020. On Amazon, 1.3 million additional sellers joined the marketplace last year.

So, I am advising my ecommerce clients to base this year’s holiday sales estimates on 2019 holiday sales to make sure they have enough in stock, but are not stuck with overstock, unless you think you can still sell your inventory for Valentine’s Day sales.

That being said, do DO NOT let Etsy listings get down to “1 in stock” or the listing will deactivate, fall out of search results and take forever to re-rank, and you will miss out on those holiday sales.

3. Fill Orders Quickly

Last year, a lot of Etsy shops had their shops temporarily put ON HOLD by Etsy, during the big Christmas rush, due to having too many outstanding orders. I am not sure what the magic number is before your shop is put on hold, but you will want to fulfill and close orders as quickly as possible, or else it could cost you days of valuable holiday sales.

4. Change Up Your SEO Game

You would be amazed at how many people search for Christmas gifts using the following adjectives: GOOD, BEST, COOL, THOUGHTFUL, HOTTEST, TOP, POPULAR, 2021, so incorporate these keywords into your holiday SEO. Discover hundreds more top holiday search phrases in my Best-Selling Etsy Holiday Sales Planner.

5. Up Your Social Media Game

If you want your business to get noticed on social media, try answering the Most Searched Google Questions in November, such as:

When does Diwali start?
When to thaw out turkey?
When was the first Thanksgiving?
When does Hanukkah start?
Find more in my best-selling 365 Day Social Media Posting Calendar

Or even just post the top searched recipes in November:

Pumpkins scones
Pumpkin bread
Hot buttered rum
Apple cider mimosa
Spiked hot chocolate
Thanksgiving leftovers

Always make sure that your shop url is on the post graphic!

Big Opportunity!

Last November, I wrote about Why Having Your Own Advent Calendar is an Amazing Marketing Tool. Well Etsy announced that searches for pet advent calendars have gone up 137% in the last 3 months, Google also shows that dog, beauty and kids advent calendars are breakout searches for the past 30 days. In fact, demand for advent calendars has DOUBLED in the last 4 years. Advent starts November 28th, so you need your advent calendar in your store today.

Book a 30-minute phone consultation with me to get personalized advice on how you can maximize sales this holiday season.

First time reader? Learn more About Me.

Common Mistakes Online Sellers Keep Making

October 1, 2021 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

I do many many phone consultations every day, and a lot of the same problems tend to come up. Therefore, I thought I would address a few of them, in case you are making the same ones.

1. Thinking Traffic is Always the Problem: Many times online businesses come to me saying they are not getting sales, and they blame lack of traffic. However, when I look at their stats, I typically see that their traffic has actually increased, and it is their conversion rate that is low. If your sales conversion rate is below 1%, this is your problem. If you can double your conversion rate, you will likely double your sales without having to increase traffic. What you need to determine is what is causing your low conversion rate (and I can help you with that) and fix it.

2. Pricing Too Low: Don’t be fooled into thinking people buy solely based on price. I have written about this so many times. Too low a price and people will think the quality is low as well. Also, too low a price and you might have priced yourself out of the gift market. For example, the average price spent on a wedding gift is $115, $200 for an anniversary gift, and $120 for a Mother’s Day gift.

3. Not Zooming in on the Product in Photos: I can’t tell you how many times I see product photos where it looks like the person shot the photo from miles away. You want to crop in close on the product so that it stands out better in search results, and so customers can see the details.

4. Not Including Store URL in Instagram Profile: Again, I will see an interesting product on Instagram, click over to the profile and there is no link to the store. The very last line in your Instagram profile is for you to add a direct link to your business, yet many sellers leave this blank. How do you expect anyone to find your shop?

5. No About Page: When buying online, especially from a small seller, people want to know who they are buying from. You need to have an About page with contact information (email, social media sites, etc.) and information on you and your background / experience. You have to use this section to connect with potential customers and tell your story, so that they trust buying from you.

6. Relying Solely on SEO: An SEO strategy should definitely be part of your overall marketing strategy, but not the sole strategy. Whether you are trying to optimize for Google, Etsy or Amazon, SEO is so competitive and greatly slanted towards advertisers. You want to have a marketing mix of SEO, advertising, content marketing, social media, publicity and promotions in order to drive the most traffic, and never be dependent on just one source. Something as simple as doing a giveaway on Instagram can bring you way more traffic and new customers than SEO.

More to Know

I was happy to be quoted in an article on Shopify’s blog called, How to Sell on Etsy.
While Etsy’s new collaboration with AirBnB is great, but it is actually an idea that I have been promoting in my 12-Month Marketing Plans for home goods and beauty products for a while now. Your local AirBnB market is a great opportunity for product sales or at very least, a potential free promotional opportunity to display your products in those AirBnBs who wish to do their part to support local.

© 2021 Gail Oliver. All rights reserved. Common Mistakes Online Sellers Make.

The Best Fall Theme Product Packaging Ideas

September 15, 2021 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

Fall Product Packaging Ideas

Need some great fall product packaging ideas

Did you know that searches for “fall gifts” has increased by 120% in the last three years, particularly house warming gifts?

Needless to say, our love for fall makes it a big selling season. If you are a seller, either online or retail, it presents an opportunity. Simply by adding fall theme product packaging could help make the sale.

Fall Product Packing Idea: Candles

Simple packaging, such as using these elegant fall themed papers and simple twine with branded tag, elevate these pillar candles into the perfect housewarming gift.

Fall Theme Packaging

Fall Product Packing Idea: Candles

Swapping out your regular product label for a fall theme label is pretty easy to do. It is very affordable to purchase these types of customized fall theme labels on Etsy.

Fall Product Packaging Ideas

Fall Product Packing Idea: Scented Candle

Candles that come in fall themed containers, like this beautiful glass bowl above, again add more value and panache to your product offering and feel more gift-like.

Fall Theme Packaging

Fall Product Packing Idea: Serving Platter

Even simple packaging like a brown gingham ribbon and Kraft box still makes buyers think this is a fall gift idea.

The Best Fall Theme Product Packaging Ideas

Fall Product Packing Idea: Food

Even fall theme printed boxes, wrapping paper or orange tag and ribbon can do the trick in getting the gift idea across to the buyer.

Need More Marketing Help?

Need a marketing strategy tailored specifically for your business? Need more traffic and sales? Wondering if you are selling the right products or maybe you are just unsure what you are doing wrong. Maybe you just want to start selling online? I can help with any and all of these issues! Click here for more details on my phone consultations.

Download my 12-Month Marketing Strategy Plans
Download my Marketing & Business Planners

7 Hot Product Ideas for Fall

August 10, 2021 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

Need some hot product ideas for fall?

In need of some fresh product inspiration for fall, the biggest buying season of the year? Here are seven products I found that I thought were innovative and served the needs of today’s consumer.

Product Idea for Fall: Uniquely Scented Candles

Searches for candles increased 35% last year, so the more clever the name of the scent, the more marketable it is, like these fall inspired candles from Anthropologie. If they are in containers in colors of the season, even better!

Product Ideas for Fall

Product Ideas for Fall: Halloween Countdown

Much like a Christmas countdown, this advent-style Halloween countdown calendar from Pottery Barn Kids allows you to place candy and small gifts in the pockets to get the kids excited about Halloween. Since a lot of kids didn’t really get to celebrate Halloween last year, this does make for a fun new tradition.

Product Idea for Fall: Halloween Shape Pillows

Not your typical holiday theme pillows, these plush Halloween pillows from Pottery Barn actually take the shape and form of jack o’lanterns and ghosts.

Product Idea for Fall: Football Baby Hat

Fall is all about football, and this knitted football hat from MudPie is perfect for your little baby girl.

Product Idea for Fall: Pie Recipe Dish Towels

A great housewarming gift, these pie recipe dish towels from MudPie definitely mark the fall and Thanksgiving season.

Product Idea for Fall: Pumpkin and Candy Corn Earrings Set

If you can make Halloween theme jewelry a little more stylish, like this pumpkin and candy corn earring set from BaubleBar, then you will likely have a fall hit on your hands.

Product Idea for Fall: Candy Corn Dog Sweater

Anything holiday-related for your dog will always sell well, like this candy corn dog sweater from Mark and Graham. It will be even more popular if you can personalize it with the dog’s name.

How to Market Your Online Store

Easily and affordably market and promote your small business with my sure-fire tactics, outlined in my 12-Month Marketing Strategy Plans, where everything you need to do is laid out for you, month by month. I have one for every type of shop. Download today!

About Me

As a long time marketing consultant who has been blogging about e-commerce since 2012, I advise, coach and mentor small businesses selling online. I first got involved in e-commerce back in 2002, wanting to sell online a book I had written. After years of selling on Amazon I decided to take the experience I had in e-commerce, merge it with my professional marketing background and start a blog with marketing advice for small businesses selling online. My advice has been featured in the NY Times, Success Magazine, American Express Open Forum, Big Commerce blog, Business2Community and SheKnows to name a few.

Personal Trainer Marketing Tactic: Publicity

Personal Trainer Marketing Tactic: Advertising

Personal Trainer Marketing Tactic: Social Media

Personal Trainer Marketing Plan Tactic: Social Media

Personal Trainer Marketing Tactic: Email

Personal Trainer Marketing Plan Tactic: Promotions

Personal Trainer Marketing Tactic: Promotions

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Travel Agency Publicity Ideas for January

Travel Agency Advertising Ideas for January

Travel Agency Social Media Ideas for January

Travel Agency Email Marketing Ideas for January

Travel Agency Content Marketing Ideas for January

Travel Agency Sales & Promotion Idea

Travel Agency Marketing Plan PDF

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Black Friday / Cyber Monday Checklist

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Life Coach Marketing Plan Tactic: Publicity

Life Coach Marketing Plan Tactic: Advertising

Life Coach Marketing Plan Tactic: Social Media

Life Coach Marketing Plan Tactic: Social Media

Life Coach Marketing Plan Tactic: Email

Life Coach Marketing Plan Tactic: Content Marketing

Life Coach Marketing Plan Tactic: Sales & Promotions

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Top Google Trends Searches in November

Top Diwali Searches

Top Pumpkin Searches

Veterans Day (Nov 11th)

Top Fall Cocktail Searches

Top Thanksgiving Searches

Black Friday

Small Business Saturday

Hannukah

Cyber Monday

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New Place to Sell Online: Michaels Marketplace

New Place to Sell Online: Yahoo Shops

New Place to Sell Online: Lands End Marketplace

New Place to Sell Online: Target Plus

New Place to Sell Online: Hudson’s Bay

New Place to Sell Online: Simons

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1. Start Your Black Friday Sale Now

2. Do Not Overestimate Demand

3. Fill Orders Quickly

4. Change Up Your SEO Game

5. Up Your Social Media Game

Big Opportunity!

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More to Know

Fall Product Packing Idea: Candles

Fall Product Packing Idea: Candles

Fall Product Packing Idea: Scented Candle

Fall Product Packing Idea: Serving Platter

Fall Product Packing Idea: Food

Need More Marketing Help?

Please Share on Social Media:

Product Idea for Fall: Uniquely Scented Candles

Product Ideas for Fall: Halloween Countdown

Product Idea for Fall: Halloween Shape Pillows

Product Idea for Fall: Football Baby Hat

Product Idea for Fall: Pie Recipe Dish Towels

Product Idea for Fall: Pumpkin and Candy Corn Earrings Set

Product Idea for Fall: Candy Corn Dog Sweater

How to Market Your Online Store

About Me

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