, Author at Bellrae Marketing

Don’t Feel Guilty For Continuing to Conduct Business

Yes, there are many people who are unable to work and it has caused a huge strain on families around the world. But that doesn’t mean you should feel guilt or shame for continuing to work, and continuing to sell your services or products. In fact, the economy needs you to do so! We need your skills and talents to help our economy while everyone is getting back on their feet.

Show Up Authentically

In general, this is a good rule of thumb. Now more than ever you should show up in an authentic way in your social media strategy, blog posts, videos and in your overall marketing strategy. Showing up in an authentic way that adds a ton of value to your clients, customers and audience will go a long way!

Add Value

In any industry, you can still find creative ways to add value to your audience right now (even if your business is temporarily closed). For Fishpond Media, we’ve created a free Facebook group connecting entrepreneurs and small business owners called Marketing Made For You. In the group, I go live every week and discuss a marketing/business topic and answer any questions that our members may have. This has been a great way to add value, at no cost, to small business owners and entrepreneurs. What skillset do you have that you can get creative with and really add value to your audience?

Be Compassionate

When crafting your marketing messages remember to show some compassion. People are scared, people are anxious, and people need compassion. Kindness goes a long way, and if you are kind and show compassion, chances are people will remember how you made them feel (notice I’m not saying they will remember what you said or did, but how you made them feel) when all of this is over.

Pivot Your Marketing, Don’t Pause

Please, if you take anything from this blog post, let it be this: pivot, don’t pause. Now is not the time to stop marketing your business – whether you’re able to work right now or not. Don’t stop marketing, simply adapt, and reposition your message. There are so many ideas and ways that you can engage your audience right now. And, we’d love to help you talk through them! If you’d like to schedule a 1-hour brainstorming session, send us an email! We’re happy to hop on the phone and chat with you about how you can reposition your marketing message right now. You got this, I know you do!

I’d also like to extend a FREE copy of our guide, “20 Ideas To Engage Your Audience Right Now.” This guide was put together shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic took the US by storm, and it’s helped other small business owners spark some great ideas!

A Modern Approach to Digital Marketing for Small Businesses

At Bellrae Marketing, we get really fired up about helping not only OUR clients but ALL small business owners succeed! We believe in authentic brands that are doing good and making the world a better place one day at a time. If you’re having a hard time repositioning your brand during this time, please reach out to us! We will have a 60-minute brainstorming session and help you uncover creative ideas that you can implement right away. We’re here to help, and we will make it out the other side of this thing.

What does a marketing company have to say about mental health? You might be surprised. Bellrae Marketing exists to impact as many lives as possible, and we help our clients do the same. Mental health is such an important topic that we want to go out on a limb and share some of our own personal experiences in hopes that it can impact someone in a positive way.

Hey everyone, it’s Carly here! When I launched Bellrae Marketing in 2017 I was working full time as a Marketing Manager and preparing for my company’s launch simultaneously. That meant I was waking up at 5 am to do work before going into work, and coming home after work to do more work, usually until midnight. In hindsight, probably not the best for my mental health. But I did what had to be done and like most entrepreneurs, just pushed through. However, as I reflect on that time, and many others before and after, there are many things that I would want that girl to know.

1. Set Boundaries

Setting boundaries can be very difficult, especially when you are someone who cares so deeply about others. However, boundaries are necessary. It’s so important to protect your own space. Boundaries are one of the ways you can do so. Whether it’s boundaries with clients, friends, family, or co-workers, it can be tough to implement, but so very necessary.

2. Make Time For Play

I know someone out there needs to hear this right now: making time for play is just as important (if not more important) than the hustle and grind. Whether you’re a young entrepreneur who’s just starting out, or you’ve been a long time business owner, making time to have fun is vital. Otherwise, you face burnout, anxiety, and stress. Which also leads to having terrible physical effects on our bodies.

3. Pause

We live in a fast-paced, busy world. As business owners, there’s constantly something going on that needs our attention. We can get lost in the day-to-day priorities, but what about prioritizing yourself? Take a moment when you need it. Take 5, go on a walk, meditate. Do what you need to do.

4. Give Yourself Grace

Your workload isn’t going anywhere, and frankly, your output isn’t going to be great if you’re exhausted and overwhelmed. There are going to be days where you don’t feel as motivated as the day before or the day after. That’s okay. The road to success is not a straight line pointing upward, like any progress, it has peaks and valleys.

Give yourself grace. I like to remind myself to speak to myself as if I were talking to a friend. I would never give a friend a hard time about not getting enough done when they were exhausted and needed to just take a day, so why would I do that to myself? We tend to have unrealistic expectations for ourselves and it’s good to be reminded to give yourself some grace.

5. Don’t Fall Into Comparison Traps

Woo, this is a big one! Comparison is the theft of joy. Don’t compare your day 1 to someone else’s day 1,000. The more focused you can be on yourself and those you love, the better off you’ll be. Don’t get caught up in a shame spiral on social media because you’re not as far along in your career as you wanted to be. Don’t worry about if someone else’s Instagram grid is prettier than yours. You don’t know what’s real and what’s an illusion on social media. Oftentimes the couples and people who seemingly have a perfect life on social media are struggling the most.

It can be difficult to remind yourself not to compare yourself and your work to others, but it’s truly pointless. Everyone is unique and no one can do exactly what you do, and how you do it.

Bonus: Express Gratitude

Having a heart full of gratitude will get you far. When you reflect daily on the things you’re grateful for, you train your brain to be on the lookout for the good in the day-to-day grind. I write down 10 things I’m grateful for almost every day. I can say I truly feel happier when I’m doing this practice. When I do this I notice things, no matter how small, throughout the day that make me say “Oh, I want to make sure I write this down tomorrow!” Hence, the training of your brain to notice the good vs things that are going wrong or causing you anxiety.

Mental Health Awareness

I know this isn’t the typical content that you’d expect from a ‘marketing company.’ But, like I said in the beginning, Bellrae Marketing exists to impact as many lives as possible, and if this content can help one person who’s going through a hard time, then that’s something for us to be proud of! What other tips do you have that help you when you’re feeling overwhelmed? Leave a comment and let us know!

Author: admin

How Should I Conduct Business During a Global Pandemic?