​When business owners complain that their social media efforts aren't paying off and they just aren't seeing a return in their investment of time, it’s usually because they’re using the Jackson Pollack approach to social. They’re simply “flinging” paint on a canvas. There’s no goal behind what they’re doing. It’s random. That approach may create beautiful art, but it rarely works for business.

​Most employees think of reviews as the sand in their bathing suit. Sure, it comes with a benefit (a day at the beach or, in this case, a great job) but it can be incredibly annoying. Add in a global pandemic and you may be thinking it’s best to just skip them this year.
 
You couldn’t be more wrong.
 
Skipping a mid-year review only adds to your employees’ potential feeling of disconnection. Now, more than ever, you need to ensure your employees feel a strong allegiance to your company and are well-positioned for continued success. Mid-year reviews help you accomplish both of these things and more.  

​You likely have heard the phrase, “you need to spend money to make money.” I'm not here to argue that from either side but digital marketing has allowed businesses with very small budgets to make a big impression. While it hasn't exactly leveled the playing field, it certainly has helped businesses gain a larger audience with very little investment.

​With numbers of COVID infections increasing daily in many states, people are wondering when it will end and when we can begin to start feeling confident in an economic recovery.
 
No one knows for sure when recovery will begin.
 
In the meantime, there are a few things we know about how business and customers have changed. You can use that knowledge to restructure your marketing in order to better position your business for a stronger recovery. 

Whether you're dealing with a conflict at home, with your neighbors, or at your place of business, it can be easy to become bogged down in old ways of working through problems.
Jay Baer is the author of five New York Times bestseller books and President of the global consulting firm Convince & Convert, and he's made a career out of helping companies learn how to deliver exceptional customer service - even in the face of a crisis.

​If ever there was a reason to increase and alter your social media and blog posting, it’s COVID. At first, with so much of the workforce at home, there was a lot of traffic online. You may have been happy with the number of reactions and shares you were getting.
 
But let's face it, people were bored or they were stressed. Either way, they were looking for an outlet and entertainment. Some wanted to use this time as a way to advance themselves professionally and they launched into all sorts of personal development. But months in, you're likely seeing a drop off in participation, shares, and interactions.
 
 Why?
 
In most cases, it's fatigue. People are tired of the same old chatter.
 
So how do you get their attention again?
 
You do so by altering your patterns of communication and working on what you share. Here are several ideas that can help jump-start your business posts whether it be on your blog or on social media.

​If there's one thing 2020 has shown us, it's how to bolster our communication skills. We've had cause for a lot of really difficult conversations with our customers. Nobody ever wants to give bad news but 2020 seems like the year we have to keep reiterating and sharpening our communication skills with difficult messages.
 
But if you feel like you've had challenge after challenge and you're still wondering the best way to deliver those difficult messages, let's take a look at a few tactics you might use.

​Many business owners are currently wondering how they might get more involved in the conversations about race and creating a culture that celebrates diversity. When conversations about race and the workplace arise, the first area of consideration is often hiring practices but it extends to so much more in a business than who you're choosing to employ.
 
In fact, racial tensions can crop up even in businesses that are very focused on equality. If you want a more diverse culture in your workplace, here are a couple of areas to focus on in addition to fair hiring practices.

This question has been asked for as long as there have been businesses and differences of opinion. Recently, this topic has been brought to a head with the black lives matter movement. It used to be that taking “no stance” was the safest. But with the death of George Floyd, there are many individuals who see a lack of a stance as a stance of its own. This has been a deeply dividing issue with some business owners wanting to get involved while others have worried that standing for the cause was akin to supporting mass destruction of property and being anti-business.
 
So what should a business do? 

Whether you're dealing with a conflict at home, with your neighbors, or at your place of business, it can be easy to become bogged down in old ways of working through problems.
Jay Baer is the author of five New York Times bestseller books and President of the global consulting firm Convince & Convert, and he's made a career out of helping companies learn how to deliver exceptional customer service - even in the face of a crisis.