Welcome to another Be My Guest interview post.  This week I have the pleasure of introducing you to Alison Wren, a marketing consultant who helps small businesses promote themselves online.

Having started out as a computer programmer, she had a varied career in IT working in local government, insurance and also had 3 years travelling round Europe delivering user training for Hewlett Packard.

In 2002 she decided it was time to try something different and explore her creative side. It was 2 years later in a classic light bulb moment that she had the idea of selling DIY wedding stationery supplies online. She set up The Wedding Crafter and grew it from back bedroom to a full grown ecommerce business with 6 staff, workshop and warehouse before finally selling it after 7 years.

She established Paprika Marketing in 2011 to bring the marketing skills she learnt to other small business owners through a mix of management, mentoring and training.  Her clients include niche ecommerce firms (such as weddings, interiors) plus coaches and therapists and covers areas like search optimization, blogging for business, ecommerce conversion, paid advertising, email marketing and social media.

Describe yourself in 3 short, fab and fun sentences

My favourite things are cities, cricket, cats and computers. I’m passionate about the internet and the opportunities it brings. I’m very practical and love rolling my sleeves up to solve problems – there’s nothing like getting deep into Google Analytics and finding a little nugget that can help a client get more sales.

What made you decide to become an entrepreneur?

It crept up on me slowly – I had a successful career in IT and project management but really wanted to get out of the corporate environment. Looking back there were a couple of opportunities I let slip – maybe I just wasn’t ready. Finally, finding myself in a job I disliked I took the plunge and left.

Who has been your biggest inspiration in business?

It’s not one person but all the thousands of small entrepreneurs who believe passionately in what they do and work so hard to keep their businesses going.

What’s the best business advice you’ve ever been given?

Get off your bottom and go make things happen (that’s the polite version!).

What three tips would you give for marketing online?

1. Understand your target customers, what they are looking for and where they go to find it. Then work out how best to get in front of them. If no-one actually searches for your service then Adwords won’t help you – you may want to use social media to raise awareness. Conversely, Twitter may not be the best place for promoting your Twitter for Beginners training!
2. Don’t try to do everything. Especially with social media. It’s best to pick one or two social networks and do them REALLY well.
3. Ask for help. It’s a huge topic and one that’s constantly changing. And there’s so much mis-information out there. Join Facebook groups, discussion forums or get yourself a marketing mentor. Invest in training. Learn which of the experts you can trust and follow them

What are the three biggest mistakes that people make when marketing online?

1. Believing that if you build it they will come. Time and again I hear people say they have spent their entire budget on building their website and have left nothing for marketing it.
2. Looking at the wrong numbers. Website visitors and Facebook fans mean absolutely nothing unless they become paying customers.
3. Cutting corners. Good enough doesn’t work these days. If you want to attract high paying clients you can’t get away with a free DIY website and a blurred selfie as your profile picture. So often people cut corners to save a few pounds and it ends up costing in the long term.

I’ve been told I should be blogging but I have no idea where to start, what do you suggest?

• Firstly, understand why you are blogging and what you want to achieve.
• Blogs can, indeed, help with your search optimization, showcase your skills and help you engage with potential customers – but each of these requires a slightly different approach and it’s hard to achieve all three at once.
• Think about the people who will read your blog. What do they want to know? What can you help them with?
• Now you can start thinking about what you will write about and the style you’re going to use

How much time do I really need to spend on blogging?

• Once a month is the absolute minimum for blog articles – any less frequent and it’s not really worth doing.
• Weekly is great if you can manage it, but fortnightly is fine. It’s better to go for quality, regular articles. Try to avoid feast and famine and don’t publish something poor just because it’s overdue.

Is there anything else you’d like to share?

There’s lots more on blogging (and more) on my blog!

If I wanted to connect and/or work with you where would I find you?

My Website and Twitter: @paprikamktg

Alison has kindly shared a great freebie, Blogging 6 Top Tips.  Thank you Alison for some great hints and tips about blogging and marketing.  It’s been great having you as a guest.

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Did you know I run a group coaching club, called Cappuccino Coaching Club?  Group coaching is a great way to grow your coaching business.  It can help you build your coaching confidence and skills, get known in your area for what you do and add another income stream.  Come and join us.

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