Many business owners ask us for a quote to build a new site or provide some marketing services, but without a defined marketing budget. They then shop around, looking for the best price. This approach may appear to make sense. Unfortunately, it can be a terrible idea. Let me explain … Price comparison works
What colours should I use for my website? What is the meaning or colour psychology behind certain chroma when applied to site design? Which colours work best to increase conversions? These are all common questions that we are frequently asked, so let’s take a look, and find the truth behind colour choice… For a
We work with a wide range of business, all with one thing in common – they each have a website. But this does not mean they all have the same website needs. Far from it. It is easy to think that the website needs of a business would be reflective of its size. However,
Once upon a time, people searched for businesses in the Yellow Pages. The Yellow Pages enabled businesses to get in front of people while they were actively searching for their product or service (be it for a new set of tyres, a therapist or a pizza). Now they use Google. As in the past,
Surfing is one of those sports that makes you feel more connected to nature than almost any other. Despite it being fairly minimalistic, sadly the tools of the trade are far from eco-friendly. However, Patagonia have just come up with a solution to make the negative environmental impact from surfing just that little bit
Just how important are reviews for your business? Are bad reviews all that bad? How many reviews are enough? Which platform should you collect reviews on? Should you ask for a review? If so, how? There are so many questions, that many business owners don’t know where to begin, and simply leave reviews up
Google continues to reign supreme when it comes to lead generation. For some businesses, Google My Business in particular may just be the source of leads they have been looking for. This is because, regardless of what social media fads may be passing, you just can’t beat user intent when it comes to getting
“Opportunity often comes disguised in the form of misfortune, or temporary defeat.” – Napoleon Hill One thing is sure… thanks to COVID-19, and the global response to it, many businesses face colossal disruption. The hard truth is, many will not survive the challenges ahead. The good news is that there will be many who will
There are many reasons to have teams work remotely, though with COVID-19 sweeping around the world, many businesses are now finding themselves forced into having teams work from home. Rather than fear the change, embrace it as an exciting opportunity, and take advantage of the many benefits that a remote team offers. “Benefits?” I
What you need to know before getting a website built or upgraded to avoid getting ripped off, or losing a lot more from false economy. With any significant purchase, it is important to research how much you should expect to pay before making a buying decision. Many businesses pay far too much for their
I am excited to announce the official release of our new book, Ethical Marketing—a digital marketing guide for socially responsible businesses and non-profits. This book was written to help business owners and project leaders understand how to communicate their message in ways that get heard, and get people to care about. It covers an
In this talk Bill Gates explains why we need seaming miracles to save the future of the planet, and why zero emissions is the only option for all forms of power generation.
Elon Musk discusses the future of energy and transportation amongst other important issues. He explains some of the pressing issues, facing society, what problems entrepreneurs should be tackling now and what both Tesla and SpaceX are doing to help.
In this interview Shel Horowitz talks about his new book, Guerilla Marketing To Heal The World, and how businesses can become more profitable by becoming more socially minded. Shel Horowitz is a copywriter, marketer, an award winning author, speaker and a social business consultant. He is also founder of Green And Profitable, Business For
Rise Up is a new documentary that features many thought leaders and challenges us to live at a higher level. In this interview I speak to its producer, Kate Maloney, about the purpose for the film, and how it came about. Great inspirational content and a better understanding of what you need to do
In this TED presentation Barry Schwartz, author of Why We Work, explains why we are approaching work with a false logic that leaves business owners and employees dissatisfied with their lives. He shows us a new path that could radically change the type of business entrepreneurs build; and the way business owners manage and
If you have not yet checked out the Cowspiracy documentary then I highly recommend it. One of the biggest ways to slow down the effects of global warming is being ignored. Unless we address this issue then everything else we do will likely be in vane. Here is their infographic to give you a
In this video presentation, Leon Jay shows you how to ask better questions to design a better business. Known as ‘The 5 P’s of Priority’, his unique framework provides entrepreneurs at any stage of their business a method to identify what they should be doing, and how to go about it. He also explains
I was recently having coffee with a very smart man by the name of James Wilson. Our conversations often revolve around finding practical solutions to reducing climate change and minimizing waste. This day was no different. We began to discuss the topic of plastic bags, and in particular, our own hypocritical actions regarding their use.
​LED bulbs are perhaps the simplest way any business (or home) can become more sustainable overnight. They are cheaper to run, last way longer, and are now just about as cheap to buy as any other bulb – if you know where to look.Most decisions in life require compromise, but LEDs may well be
I have just finished interviewing Ollie Milliner, the Sustainability Coordinator for Kathmandu (an outdoor adventure clothing chain with stores in NZ, Australia, and the UK). Yes, they have a full time position for such a role. I had contacted him as research I am conducting for my next book, but wanted to share what
Another quick business (or community service) idea inspired by the great James Wilson over coffee. This one is unlikely to make you crazy rich, but could be a fun project for the right people. And it is certainly a great way to reduce waste, and minimize the embodied energy in fresh foods… We all
The internet is estimated to have close to, or slightly exceed, (depending on the estimate) the CO2 impact of air travel. I hate to be the one to break it to you, but websites are not eco-friendly. And nor is email. Here are a couple stats for you… A typical website produces 0.2gs of
We know we must reduce waste. And there is one thing that almost everyone can do, (if you have not already), to help… Put a ‘No Junk Mail’ sticker on your mail box. More and more people are doing this, but many just never get around to it. And here lies a simple opportunity
I just finished watching the ‘Racing Extinction’ documentary – again. I have to say, it is rare for me to watch anything twice, and almost never just a few weeks apart. But this is just one of those documentaries you want everyone in the world to see, and ideally more than once. It is
There was a time, not so long back when it was socially acceptable to run a business using slaves. Then we became a little more civilized. We entered a period where child labour and poor working conditions were acceptable. Then we became a little more civilized. For a while, it was acceptable to pay
Almost every business guru will teach you to define your goals. Far fewer talk about your values. Yet we can enjoy a greater feeling of achievement when our goals that have been set, and achieved in alignment with, our values. (Value Based Goals.) There is usually more than one route to achieving your goals.
A few sceptics continue to argue whether the sea is rising, or if climate change is real. However, most scientists are simply focused on calculating not if, but by how much. Recently I have been swamped (excuse the pun) with evidence that there is no going back. CO2 levels have now reached the 400
I have heard the passion vs profit debate since I first began to study business. For years the debate has continued to rage, and for years I could see both sides of the argument. But it was only about 18 months ago that it all became clear to me. The entire debate was way
Mastermind is a term first coined by Napoleon Hill, and has become increasingly popular amongst entrepreneurs and executives. But what are they? Why are they so popular? What makes a good mastermind? And how can they make a difference to the socialpreneur? First of all, let’s clarify what a mastermind is… A mastermind can
Let’s be honest; marketing has had a bad rep. It is often blamed for creating the consumer-based society we live in today, along with the environmental damage that results from it – and not without good reason. Marketing may not be solely responsible for overconsumption or environmental decay, but it has undoubtedly played a
All businesses do more than just make money. Unfortunately many forget this fact, and they become lost by only measuring revenue. Revenue is, of course, not just important – it is critical for the very survival of a business. And while it is a significant reason why many people start a business or go
It has been estimated that only 2 in 10 people read past a headline. Of course, this is just an average, and not true for every site. It does, however, illustrate the importance of getting your website’s messaging right to increase your online conversion. Think about it … if you increased the number of
One of the most important decisions you can make is which platform to use to build your website. Unfortunately, because most people don’t understand the pros and cons of each, they let their web developer make the decisions for them. Sometimes this works out, but can often be a terrible mistake. The problem is,
Adding your billing details to Google Ads How to find your Google Adds Id Adding a user to Google Analytics Adding a user to Google Tag Manager Adding a user to Google Search Console Adding a user to Google My Business You’ve just signed up for a new website, Google Ads or maybe conversion
CRO stands for Conversion Rate Optimization, and is a systematic process for increasing your websites conversion rates. Before we did deeper into the befits and methodology of CRO, we should define what is meant by conversion rates. Conversions come in many forms, and are essentially any action that you wish a visitor to your
Many business owners looking to build or rebuild a website, or do any form of digital marketing, want to know if they are making a good investment, or wasting money. And quite right … it’s just not an easy question to answer. Marketing is a mysterious blend of art, science and psychology, with many
It is no secret; we love digital marketing 🙂 It is hardly surprising. The cost of traditional offline methods has gone through the roof, and their effectiveness through the floor. It’s not that some businesses can’t make newspaper, radio or TV ads work, but it is increasing difficult. Plus, there are just so many
You need new leads. But where to get them? Google Ads (or Adwords as it was formally known) is one of the most popular sources of traffic for small businesses – for very good reason. It can target hot prospects, just as they are showing interest in what you have to offer. Social media is
False economy. Let me explain. No one likes paying for things they don’t have to. This is especially true in the early stages of a business when revenue is low (or non existent). However, there is a big danger that in cutting costs you lose more than you manage to save. In some cases
It is no secret, many businesses are struggling far more than they have in the past, or far more than they need to now. But Why? There are many excuses given; the economy, the season, high rents and rates etc. But if any of this were true, why are other businesses in their industry
Elon Musk just unveiled his master plan for Tesla, which if he can pull off will change the face of transport and energy production forever. In his own overview it looks like this: Create a low volume car, which would necessarily be expensiveUse that money to develop a medium volume car at a lower
Democracy is often hailed as the solution to the perils of dictatorship, but it is far from perfect. This is true for governments, organizations, and of course, businesses. But there could be a new interesting solution to solving many of democracies inherent issues, and bring some of the benefits that a dictatorship offers. Before
EthicallyMAD is a conversion based web design and digital marketing agency, based in Nelson, NZ, that ‘ETHICALLY Makes A Difference’.
