That’s a big word starting 2020. Yes, it was a year like no other.
Many entrepreneurs experienced the huge effect of the current pandemic on how they handle and manage their businesses.
The sales and retail industry were disrupted by the sudden change of consumer behavior.
Everybody is online nowadays. Well, NOT by choice, but by circumstance.
That’s why a lot of businesses need to pivot online.
But I observed a lot of entrepreneurs are confused about where to start. They are overwhelmed by the different marketing strategies that are available nowadays.
What they often missed are the timeless marketing principles that can be done even in the digital world.
One example of an Ageless Marketing principle is…
… H2H (Human-to-Human) Marketing
In an era where bots, Artificial Intelligence and other forms of machine learning prevail, H2H marketing is more beneficial now more than ever.
Humanizing marketing efforts builds trust.
It taps into people’s emotions—and based on studies, this is one of the most important elements in the decision-making process of the buyer’s journey.
So go ahead and personalize your marketing messages. Incorporate user-generated content as much as you can.
Use stories as well to become more memorable and different.
Research shows that if people love your brand’s story, 55% are more likely to buy from you in the future, while 15% will buy the product immediately.
Storytelling is a potent and necessary “human” element for marketers in any industry.
When people resonate with your brand story, mission and vision, there’s a high possibility that they will follow you.
It is evident that female business owners nowadays are on the rise. In fact, women run about a quarter up to a third of private businesses worldwide and still counting. And yet, most of their businesses have few assets, struggle to scale, and are having a hard time to have more profit. These may get worse when they tend to shatter their confidence and underplay as a business owner and may be hesitant to call themselves ‘leaders’.
The consequences of being a leader Women business owners struggle with building networks, business loans, and dealing with family members or friends who don’t support them fully. Some women purposefully limit their ambitions or goals to have more time for their relationships. And sometimes, they hinder their own vision and goal when they think it’s way out of their societal identity. Because women are expected to be nurturing, selfless and collaborative – these traits are not mainly focused on leadership. Society still sees the business world in masculine traits (such as ambitious, aggressive, risk-taker, etc.) despite women’s gains in business nowadays.
Developing into something they are unaware of… ‘Imposter Syndrome’, this happens when people question their own abilities and when they become successful, attribute it to luck or fraud and not on hard work. This will feed the doubts within oneself, making it hard to internalize the milestone or success that is achieved.
And you may not know it, but all of us actually experienced this in one way or another. Some of you may have overcome this, learned how to go about with it, and turned it into a competitive edge (congratulations for the win! 😉). But some of you might feel stuck because of your own thoughts of self-doubt and self-denial – believing that your success is just a stroke of luck. When you believe you’re not worthy of your position or title, and you feel stressed because you’re doing your role and yet you think you’re not qualified, it will be hard for you as a high achieving woman to manifest your success as proof of your abilities and your leadership (even when it’s actually you who did it).
Looking into a different perspective… Changing how you view your roles and strengths may take time, but your view for success and what it takes to attain it is where you can work on right now. The
truth is, there is no ‘gender advantage’ that exists in regard to leadership because both male and female leaders tend to agree on the relative importance of the top-tier leadership traits. Regardless of gender, both possess traits that are essential for leadership such as decisiveness, honesty, intelligence, and being compassionate. It’s just a matter of knowing your true self and your true abilities.
As women business owners, you should define entrepreneurship and business success in light of your greatest advantage. It is important to know your strength and develop self-awareness. This will allow you to build your confidence so you can lead and carve your way to success… and eventually conquer the business world!
You can eventually start by learning from the successful female entrepreneurs nowadays.
Be inspired by the Empowered Woman behind Kimstore, Kim Lato on the first edition of HiFi’s Empire Building e-magazine.
