Marketing tips

Feeling tired, not enough time but need to give your marketing a quick boost? 

What's the most successful thing you've ever done to promote your business?

Which were your most effective posts on social media? 

Which of your website pages are the most popular? 

Which phrases do your visitors most often use in reviews? 

The easiest way to give your marketing a quick boost is... to repeat yourself.

You might want to tweak something lightly with different images or a few changed words, but in …

Last week I talked about people who don’t necessarily think of themselves as visitors, but who’re essential to our visitor economy – friends and relatives who come to your area and business for a gathering, celebration or just to meet up.

Promoting to these people is a little different as you’re not really promoting to them, but rather to the hosts and local people thinking where to go for lunch, or which activities to plan, or how to accommodate everyone without any family arguments.

The firs…

On a cold miserable Tuesday in January, six people went to a pub, and then ate a meal at a restaurant, before staying in a holiday cottage for a couple of days. Tomorrow they’ll go on a guided tour and visit an attraction, eating breakfast, lunch and dinner at various locations. 

This Sunday, 25 people will gather to eat lunch at an out-of-the-way small restaurant. The weather forecast is awful but they’ve pre-booked and paid a deposit so they’ll still go.

I know both these sets of people. The…

Yesterday someone proudly told me they have become more consistent and are now regularly posting on social media: once a week. 

Consistency is great! It really does make a difference - consistent posts build confidence and posting on consistent topics teaches the algorithm that you know what you're doing so more people are shown your posts. 

But posting once a week isn't enough! 

Here's why. 

Even your followers won’t see every post you make — people aren’t always online, and algorithms on p…

Feeling tired as we approach the end of the year? Want to somehow get ready for 2026 but lacking any real energy. I might have an answer...

Simplify

I've started to simplify all kinds of things lately. I've started a 'don't-do list' for 2026...

I know that I do everything better when I focus on fewer things. I feel less tired when my home isn't full of clutter. I get dressed quicker after I've culled those 'one day' outfits from my wardrobe. I have more energy for clients when I hit the 'dele…

Can you tell when social media posts are written by AI? There are some obvious clues (too many emojis) as well as more subtle ones. Humans are good as sensing when something is real and when it's fabricated, just as we're pretty good at knowing when something comes straight from the heart. 

There's someone I know who has a really good business, with loads of potential. But he said that he’s struggling, both to get more attention and new visitors, and financially. When we talked a little more I …

For some reason two sad times popped into my mind this morning. I think they were triggered by realising I wasn't many years older than my daughter is now when I started my business. Those memories of turmoil and tears prompted me to think about my 'why': what motivates me, my values and how I came to start my business. 

Bear with me: I think this is relevant to you and your business too!

The first moment of turmoil was decades ago. My father was made redundant when the small business he worke…

The gift voucher market is booming. The experiences market is booming. 

People are spending less on 'things', more on experiences and memory-making. 

Whether you run an accommodation, activity, or food and drink business, there's a thriving market for gift vouchers.

Now's the time of year to offer them. But don't just do a quick post on social media and hope for the best. Promote them now. Promote them next week, and then promote them repeatedly as we get closer to Christmas. 

It's a useful …

It's the one thing everyone tells me they struggle with - ideas for social media posts.

What can you write about to keep people interested and engaged, even if your business isn't open or busy at this time of year? 

Here are a few ideas

Before we get started: instead of just scanning through these ideas, I suggest you get a pen and paper (it works much better if you can actively scribble, not just think or type) and jot down related thoughts as you read each topic. Let the list below spark mo…