SCORE St. Louis August 2019

St. Louis Bi-State Region

Aug 2019

SHANEE’S LABOR OF LOVE THIRDTIME’STHE CHARM L ike most who come to SCORE, Shanee Davis came with the dream of opening her own business. She envisioned a local convenience store that would serve as a community hub and provide daily necessities, beginning.After learning about her vision, Tony helped Shanee.“I got partnered with the greatest person,” Shanee says of Tony.“He was instrumental in the process of starting my business. He encouraged me when I felt deterred. It’s been a phenomenal experience. I feel forever indebted.”

grab-and-go items, and fresh foods to commuters heading to and returning from work. Rooted in her childhood experience of hours-long bus rides to get groceries for her family, Shanee’s dream was to build an accessible business to serve her community. Last year, Shanee saw her dream come true. She secured a contract to open up QSM Mart at Riverview Metrobus Center and just celebrated her one-year anniversary of being in business. “It’s something to be excited about!” she says. (You can read more about QSM Mart at QSMMart.strikingly.com.) Shanee attributes reaching this milestone in large part to SCORE and her mentor here, Tony Cuneo.When Shanee came to SCORE, she connected withTony, a former COO and business owner with a background in social work.After retiring,Tony looked for a way to serve others that would also utilize his business skills, and his search led him to SCORE. Since serving as a mentor with us, he’s worked with a variety of folks to help them develop their business ideas. Tony says he appreciates the range of people he’s had the opportunity to work with.“It’s the diversity that I really enjoy,” he says.

Tony helped Shanee develop her business plan and mentored her in the financial aspects of owning a business. Of course, as with many entrepreneurial stories, Shanee’s hasn’t been without challenges. She had to go through several trials before winning the contract for her current location, and she was turned down twice before succeeding.“Each time, she had to go before a panel and speak about her plan,” Tony says.“She put together a very fine presentation.”

Tony.“What impressed me the most was her tremendous drive,” Tony says.“She is singularly minded, always focused on her goal. Even after getting told no, she didn’t waver. She’s an amazing person.” Today, Shanee is excited to connect people through her business and to fill a local need, and she knows she can turn to Tony for continuing guidance and support. “I’m part of the community,” Shanee says of the business Tony and SCORE helped her get up and running.“I grew up here; I caught the bus here. It’s very sentimental to do business in the community I grew up in. I look forward to watching it grow.” With SCORE, you’re never alone! Schedule an appointment to meet with a mentor today. Call 1-866-726-7340 or visit StLSCORE.org right now!

I got partnered with the greatest person.

Along the way,Tony was there to provide feedback and encouragement at every turn.

“Shanee came in with the dream of having her own business,” Tony says.“She brought determination to the table.” He’d mentored other entrepreneurs before, but Shanee’s commitment to her vision stood out to

Shanee speaks to the incredible support and guidance Tony has provided her from the

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The Marketing Secret as Old as Mankind Tell Me a Story

CONVEY: Use stories to convey your expertise, relevance, humanity, and values.

the story is about the value you can deliver to your customers — or about the common ground you share with them.Your company is just a supporting character.You created your product or service for a purpose; you know the scenarios in which it’s most important. Why not share that knowledge with your demographic? You can harness these tips through a variety of media, so don’t be afraid to tell your story through blog posts, case studies, your website’s home page, FAQs, newsletter articles, videos, podcasts, and more. Infusing your marketing with human storytelling is a remarkably effective way to engage and connect with your audience.You can take advantage of it right now by revisiting your brand message and marketing collateral to see where storytelling makes your business stand out to your customers. Once you start engaging with your prospects and clients in a way that brings the narrative to them, you’ll find your own story has a very happy ending. With SCORE, you’re never alone!We offer workshops and seminars each month to help you develop the skills you need to succeed.Visit StLouisSCORE.eventbrite.com today!

It’s not hard to imagine a marketing manager crying out in frustration somewhere because their marketing messages are being utterly ignored.You’ve likely been there too. No, this isn’t a worldwide conspiracy among consumers to make your job harder; rather, it’s the result of consumers seeing trillions of ads per year on the web alone. If you want your marketing to break through the clutter, you need to give people what they want: stories. While Americans consume more than 100,000 digital words every day, 92% of consumers want to internalize those words in the form of a story. In the Information Age, branding is less about flashy logos and more about forming true relationships between customers and companies. John Naisbitt, author of the world-renowned book “Megatrends:Ten New Directions Transforming Our Lives” says,“The more high-tech we create, the more high-touch we will want.” A great brand can help you stand out and give your business a unique way to differentiate itself in a crowded marketplace. To really succeed, you have to captivate your audience with a story. By doing so, you give your products and services context, as well as an identity that exists beyond the basic problem-solving your business offers. Best of all, you connect with your target audience on an emotional level, making your message more meaningful, more memorable, and easier to pass along. In fact, science shows that digesting brand stories prompts the brain to perform at a higher function, as opposed to the basic functions employed to digest plain data. Entrepreneurship author Jim Blasingame, who penned “Three Minutes to Success,” says that the power of small-business storytelling lies in the three C’s: CONNECT: Use stories to connect with prospects and convert them into customers.

CREATE: Use stories to create customer memories that compel them to come back.

So, what does a great brand story look like? It should be factual, but not biographical; the story should always convey what’s in it for the reader. For example, aWeightWatchers testimonial may feature someone with an amazing story of overcoming adversity and achieving their lifelong goal weight, while addressing the “what’s in it for me” factor. Readers may think if someone else can do it, they can too. In an interactive marketing campaign a few years ago,WeightWatchers posted hundreds of scales on a wall, and on each scale was written an intangible thing, such as “laughter,” “feeling free,” or “playing with my kids.” It told observers the stories of the things they could weigh in their lives, if they weren’t so busy being preoccupied with a scale! A marketing story can also be diluted by including too many details.Too many specifics take away the impact, and too few have the same effect. Make sure the story you craft is compelling and relevant to your brand. Know who you’re selling to. Most importantly, keep in mind that the story is never about you or your company. Even if you’re talking about your business,

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SCHOOL’S BACK! TAP INTO THE BACK-TO-SCHOOL SEASON

discounts and sales for teachers will bring more business through your door and help you support your community. Teachers can also serve as a direct marketing tool for your business.Whether it’s via mailers or in-person during open house nights,August is full of teacher-to-parent communication that could include coupons or recommendations to your business. The back-to-school season isn’t just for the big-box stores or retail providers.You can tap into this powerful market and make this last summer stretch a lucrative business season. With SCORE, you’re never alone! Schedule an appointment to meet with a mentor today. Call 1-866-726-7340 or visit StLSCORE.org right now!

full capacity of the market.You need to make the offer something people actually want or need, be it chiropractic adjustments for kids carrying too many books or discounts on vehicle services for carpooling families. For example, if you sell and service computers, you must do more than offer 10% off all technology services for the back-to-school season. Provide a sale on installing and updating programs for students or provide a gift with the purchase of a laptop for college students on the go.This makes your offer more appealing to your customer base, which will guarantee you happy and returning customers. There’s also a key demographic in the back- to-school market that often gets forgotten: teachers.Thousands of dedicated teachers across the U.S. have a classroom budget, and some must dip into their bank accounts to keep their classrooms stocked. Offering “thank-you”

As you load up the family for some final summertime adventures, preparing for the upcoming school year is likely one of the last things on your mind. Instead of shopping for school supplies, your main focus might be finding the best place to position your lawn chair around the campfire for optimal marshmallow roasting! But the back-to-school season is coming up, and families need to begin the expensive task of purchasing items for school.According to the National Retail Foundation, back-to-school shopping contributes to 17% of total annual sales.That’s a nearly $76 billion industry that your business could be cashing in on. However, when you only offer a special or sale because of a particular season, you are not tapping into the

How Print Marketing Can Help Your Business

an added bonus, print materials make a huge impression when you physically hand them to a prospect or partner. Even though print has a greater expense attached to it than online media, print is buying you a lot of value through reach, longevity, and credibility. Best of all, Direct Marketing Association reports that businesses get an average return on investment of 13 to 1 with direct mail! In concert with a website, social media, search marketing, and other offline marketing efforts, print can catapult your company to new levels of growth. Give it a try and see what direct mail marketing can do for your business! With SCORE, you’re never alone!We offer workshops and seminars each month to help you develop the skills you need to succeed.Visit StLouisSCORE.eventbrite.com today!

Running a business comes with myriad expenses, including the costs of a physical location, legal fees, accounting fees, web design, and so much more. Many business owners choose to ignore direct mail because it adds more to their expenses, but that is a big mistake. Here are some reasons why incorporating print marketing into your business plan makes a lot of sense.

REACH Whether you are marketing to an older audience or younger, you should know that print materials help expand your reach. Mailing lists target specific profiles or locations with direct mail campaigns. Statistics show that audiences actually prefer the personalized touch of direct mail, with a survey from International Communications Research finding that 73% of consumers prefer direct mail over other advertising methods. Even better, you can connect print with online marketing using URLs and QR codes, granting you further reach and the chance to stay relevant with your customers and prospects. LONGEVITY Valuable print materials, like books, brochures, and newsletters, are great ways to get

exposure, but their longevity makes them even more valuable. Electronic media like emails, tweets, and blog posts tend to get buried shortly after they go out; print media can stick around longer. Print materials are also more likely to get passed around. You might think it’s easier to do this with electronic media, but how often do you really go back and look at tweets or emails from a month ago? Nearly half of consumers retain direct mail for future reference! The longevity you get from print marketing is crucial. CREDIBILITY There’s something about print material that legitimizes your business in a way that electronic media just doesn’t.A printed book tends to carry more credibility than a downloaded e-book.This credibility is usually subconscious, but it’s still very powerful.As

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St. Louis Bi-State Region UPCOMING WORKSHOPS

AUGUST 2019 Saturday,August 3 • How to Start and ManageYour Business • The Supply Chain as an Element of Business Success Monday,August 12 • Start a Business — KeepYour Day Job! • Getting It Right — How to Handle Core Legal Issues Facing a New Business Monday,August 26 • Patents,Trademarks, and Copyrights • Utilize the Library for Business Research

SEPTEMBER 2019 Monday, September 9 • The Ultimate Marketing Plan: How to Attract & Keep New Customers • Understanding Financial Statements Saturday, September 14 • How to Start and ManageYour Own Business • How toWrite a Great Business Plan Monday, September 23 • GrowYour BusinessWithWomen’s Business Enterprise (WBE) Certification • Buying a Franchise or Existing Business

To register for an upcoming workshop, go to StLouisSCORE.eventbrite.com *Workshop schedules are subject to change.

EXPERT LEADWORKSHOPS + MENTORSTO GUIDE YOU = THE SCORE ADVANTAGE

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS

ADVERTISE YOUR BUSINESS HERE GET EXPOSURE TO THOUSANDS OF BUSINESS OWNERS EVERY MONTH

To Sponsor Our Newsletter : Kim Henson 636-219-5244 Kim.Henson@ScoreVolunteer.org

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SCORE is a resource partner of the Small Business Administration and provides mentoring services free of charge to all business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs.

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