Category: Local Branding

Many people talk about the round 360 degrees appraisal these days, but if one looks back, this very concept began much earlier in the 1940s. This particular method is mainly used so that each and every employee of a particular company can get the equal opportunity to get a good performance feedback from the staff members, managers, supervisors and colleagues.

This is also a kind of multi-source feedback process and it is used as a proper assessment tool which is completely based on the performance of an individual. It can thus easily gather up all the feedback from the ones who are affected the performance of an individual in a particular job. So, it is very much essential to do this round about thing every year.

There are many companies which try to avoid this 360 degree employee evolution because this tool and process has a lot of complexity. There are a few chances that in case of 360 degree feedbacks there can be some misunderstandings. If that happens, then it is not a good thing. But at the same time, this 360 degree performance appraisal is a very powerful tool which can be used by a company so that the employees who work there can enhance their performances depending on the feedback they get.

There are some practical ways to do this thing so that the company or a business can benefit from this particular 360 degree feedback.

• The primary thing is that, it easily opens the channel for more communication. When a company goes for an annual practice of using 360 degree feedback program on their employees, it also opens the passage of some rich communication problems and as a result of it, the problems that have been questioned and addresses can be easily resolved. As a result, the companies end up communicating effectively with the employees and bring out the best in them.
• Also the employees can get some major feedbacks from their managers, supervisors, fellow colleagues and even from the subordinates by which they can rectify themselves. As a result of getting this peer feedback every year they try to better themselves which in turn brings profit and good to the organization.
• Due to this feedback process, the team members can easily talk about each other and give their personal feedbacks and so in turn it creates a sense of accountability. This brings in some honest and open communications which clears up a lot of misunderstandings and the team can work as a transparent group which is very important for a company to flourish.
• The company can also look after the feedback results and then decide how and on which field an employee needs to work more so that they can become more efficient. The company can introduce some training sessions as well if they see they need some in particular areas so that it can do more good to the company.

Why this is very powerful?

This entire feedback thing might sound complicated, but it is actually a very powerful process as it helps the leader of any team to get aligned with their subordinates. It caters in authentic team work and keeps the process going of continuous learning. It also develops the personal and company awareness at many levels. It helps one in continuous learning and the company discovers some truths in this process and can have a clear idea on where they stand in the market as an organization.

Find the right tool

This particular tool is very easy to fill and one requires very minimal technical skills in order to fill this up. The company can very easily set up the survey in the employees computers and from there one can fill up the things that ate needed to be filled up. But just like any other tools, this particular thing also has to be installed with the help of some trained professionals in order to stay away from any kind of technical glitch and complexities.

Once all the appraisals have been submitted, the company can easily get out the printed reports. These detailed reports are the thing that the company needs every year to bring improvements in the organization.

Many people may think that this appraisal process is a kind of performance review but that is not the fact. This particular thing has to be done mainly for the benefit of the company. This 360 degree performance appraisal is definitely not a way to measure the objectives and performances. It is also not a way to determine whether the employees are doing their hob correctly or whether they are meeting the basic requirements. This is not a tool which is focused on some job specific skills and basic technicalities. If this can be carefully implemented then this process can give the company and very proper and refreshing lift. It also adds to the advantage of the company’s competitive mode in the market. But the company has to be very clear when they are implementing this tool so that the experience remains hassle free and so that they can get all the proper feedback accurately.

When a company is thinking of implementing this 360 degree feedback process then they have to make sure that they have a proper and a very strong management system. A proper 360 degree performance reviews can also be used as a conjunction with one another for a powerful development of the company.

This is a much-tested tool and when a company is thinking of installing this particular tool, they need to go for the ones which are tried and tested. There are many formats available when it comes to these kinds of round appraisal things and one needs to pick the right one for their company. If the tool is not tested well then it can create much complications and problems which will not be good for the sake of the company. So one needs to do proper research before installing the right tool and use it.

Are you looking forward to boosting sales in your store? Perhaps you’re to take part in a tradeshow. You’ll definitely have to find a way to drive traffic to your booth. In both circumstances, hiring promotional models is a great idea. These can work alongside your executive and sales staff to promote lead generation and make presentations more exciting and engaging. To make the most from your hires, it requires grasping these 5 tips to hiring the best promotional models.

1. Check out their photos

Filters can make images misleading. Therefore, ensure to request the models for their photos. This should be a professional headshot plus a ¾ industry standard body shot. You can as well request for dated candids to preventing models from submitting older photos. This will ensure that you get the real impression of the person you’re about to hire to represent your brand.

2. Experience matters

After reviewing the photos, ensure to check their experience. it pays to hire models with experience handling your type of work. Staff with previous experience is a guarantee that the models have the poise and communication skills required to convey your brand message and intricacies. More experienced models have higher chances of meeting expectations on the actual day.

3. Get models from a staffing agency

Perhaps you’re too taken up with other tasks for the show. A great idea is to look for a professional agency with UAE female models. This will eliminate the tough job of selecting the right models for you. The agency will handle the job of selecting the right models to meet your requirements. These are usually experienced and have an interest in your industry. staffing agencies handle interviewing, screening, onboarding, and managing models.

4. Choose models with interest in your industry

Avoid working with models who just came to make some quick cash. Look for enthusiastic and genuine people with interest in your industry. These will be easier to work with. The agency can help identify models with an authentic interest in your industry, services, or products. Their knowledge and excitement will be invaluable when handling customers.

5. Look for trainable promotional models

Good promotional models should have more than looking the part. Ensure to find knowledgeable people about your industry. Consider a briefing session before the function or offering a script offering insight into your company. It will make the models understand the features and benefits of your products or services before the event. This is very important because the models are likely to answer questions from customers. Possession the right knowledge will lead to better results.

Bottom line

Your staff can make or break your marketing effort. A wonderful ideal to attract hordes of customers to your trade show booth or store is to hire some beautiful female models. These will answer customer questions, receive customers into your store, and give out promotions material about your business. The right staffing agency will come onboard to provide the right models to help enhance your marketing efforts. These have the right experience, are easily trainable, and have some knowledge about your industry.

There’s no such thing as bad publicity, right?

Wrong. On so many levels – more than 3 billion, to be more precise, because that’s how many people are using social media and can witness your public humiliation.

A PR disaster on social media spreads like wildfire, and you can expect a fierce backlash if you step on somebody’s toes. What’s even worse, you can permanently damage your business reputation.

A single mistake could wipe out years of hard work. Like the one involving American Apparel and the company’s infamous Tumblr post containing a picture of the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster. The occasion was the Fourth of July, and their social media manager clearly mistook the Challenger explosion for fireworks. Despite issuing an apology on Twitter, the company stirred much controversy for its insensitive faux pas.

No matter how careful you are, such things happen even to the best of us, so here are a couple of tips on how to save your face and turn a PR blunder into a marketing opportunity.

Own it

The worst thing you can do is to try and get away with your mistake by denying it or blaming it on somebody else (just like American Apparel blamed their “young, international employee” who was unaware of the Challenger disaster and its significance in the history). This will most definitely cause a landslide which will bury you even deeper. Take a cue from Apple and their brilliant handling of a PR issue over offering a one-month free trial of its streaming services for which they didn’t intend to pay the artists whose music would be played during that period. Taylor Swift stood up against this practice and called her fellow musicians to do the same and boycott Apple Music. It took a simple “Apple Music will pay artist for streaming, even during customer’s free trial period [sic]” tweet posted by Eddy Cue, the company’s SVP of Internet Software and Services. The aftermath? Taylor Swift starred in an Apple commercial soon after this whole mess was sorted out. Some skeptics believe that the whole thing was staged, but in any case, it was an amazing example of how to deal with PR disasters.  

Timing is everything

Addressing the issue in a timely manner is crucial for overcoming the crisis, and you can’t do that if you don’t know exactly when, where, and how the problem appeared. This means that you have to monitor your social media channels very closely and constantly. The best way to do this is to set keyword alerts which will notify you in case that there are conversations with a negative context. Make sure to include different negative keywords which are used in negative comments. Check your hashtags too, because people often use them when they want to call brands out publicly. This is particularly important when it comes to Twitter because this social media channel with 326 million users globally is known to be fast-paced. If you don’t react right away, people will think that you don’t care. Airbnb was heavily criticized when it came to light that there were cases of racial profiling and discrimination on the platform, as many African-American travelers experienced discrimination. The company’s co-founder Brian Chesky reacted proactively and sent an email in which he admitted that they were slow to notice and address this issue, as well as that the management would take action to put an end to discrimination on the platform.

Leverage negative feedback

Negative feedback isn’t a bad thing. Quite the opposite, it actually helps brands realize what they need to fix and improve, thus indirectly reducing customer churn. Many brands make a big mistake by ignoring bad reviews and comments, which only additionally enrages their customers. Instead of that, make sure to respond to every question and criticism. But you have to very careful and formulate your responses properly, especially if a number of customers have the same complaint. Such a situation can easily get out of hand and create a snowball effect. It’s a good idea to consult a reliable digital marketing agency which will help you deal with it like a pro and prevent a major reputation risk. After a recall of 1.6 million vehicles back in 2014, GM didn’t leave anything to chance. The company used Twitter and Facebook to publicly and individually address every single complaint and offered possible solutions.

A friend in need

Sometimes the situation gets critical and you need to ask your biggest clients, partners, employees, and influencers for support. Of course, when something that can damage your reputation occurs, people who are involved with your business have to know everything about it, so make sure not to hold anything back. One of the most important things is to communicate clearly with your stakeholders, tell them your side of the story, and ask them whether they’re ready to stand by you. If you’ve built loyalty with them, the answer will probably be yes. Honesty and consistency are essential for rebuilding the trust and showing that you will go to great lengths to do everything right. You have another card up your sleeve – your social media following. Maybe you can ask them for their opinion as to what you should do to make up for your mistake. And since sharing is caring, offer a generous discount to compensate your customers. Needless to say, this is excellent PR as many of them will be happy to spread the word about your nice gesture.  

Don’t dwell on it

After you’ve done everything to prevent and fix your PR faux pas, the best thing to do is to let bygones be bygones and move on. McDonald’s has had a couple of notable social media blunders, and one of the most recent is their Black Friday tweet from 2017 or should we say the lack of thereof. Namely, the company tweeted “Black Friday – Need copy and link”, which didn’t go unnoticed. But, their clever social media manager used this opportunity to masterfully promote one of their products by following up with “When you tweet before your first cup of McCafé… Nothing comes before coffee.”

As you can see, it’s possible to survive a PR disaster and leave without a couple of scars only, but you have to know the drill.

Top Tips For Handling A PR Crisis

It’s a worst-case scenario that can befall even the most prestigious organization: a public relations crisis. From a string of bad reviews to a serious financial scandal, a negative incident can have a powerful impact on a company’s reputation — no matter how small or diplomatic it is. That’s why it’s critical for every business to have a reaction plan in place. Here are some do’s and don’ts when navigating a PR crisis.

In today’s digital age, news can go viral almost instantly. The implementation of a swift and effective crisis management plan is essential. An organization should address the issue head-on, whether it’s with an apology, an explanation or an announcement. If an immediate, informative response is not possible, the business should at least communicate that it’s looking into the issue and give a reason as to why there will be a delay. Above all else, it’s important to take responsibility for what happened.

Before sending representatives to address the media, make sure they fully understand the response strategy and are given enough information to answer questions. If time allows, set up a practice session to ensure they are prepared. Emphasize that the company’s message must be consistent across multiple channels.

Refrain from saying “no comment,” as these are two of the most damaging words in PR. Shutting down communication leaves a gap for others to fill, and what they say may be worse than the truth. If an organization is waiting for more information, it should let the public know that it is working on a response or a reaction to the situation.

For more tips on how to handle a PR crisis, see the accompanying infographic.

Participating in trade shows or exhibitions is a great way to get the word out about your business. Unfortunately, however, it can be a little bit hard to stand out at these events, simply because there are so many other businesses participating. That is why it is so important to put a lot of careful thought into your exhibition stand. To create an eye-catching display that attracts a lot of attention, try using these seven tips:

Make The Design Of Your Stand As Noticeable As Possible

Creating a showy, noticeable display is the best way to grab the attention of people as they walk by and any good exhibition stand designers will help you achieve this. This is one situation where you definitely don’t want to blend in with the crowd. From a design standpoint, there are plenty of different ways that you can set your stand apart from those of your competitors. For instance, you can choose a stand that has a tall wall where your logo is prominently displayed. Bright, vibrant colors also do a great job of drawing the eye of anyone who happens to be walking by.

Create A Well Lit Area

The right lighting can make a big difference in the appearance of your stand. Use LED strips or spotlights to draw attention to key features that you want people to notice. Avoid going overboard, however, since bright, glaring lights can wind up driving people away. The key is to position your lighting in such a way that it enhances your booth rather than detracting from it. The right lighting design can make a real difference in how people perceive your stand and in how easy it is for them to see your products.

Take Advantage Of Social Media

Showcase your exhibition stand online through the use of social media. If you make it eye-catching enough to stand out at the show, it most likely will also get a lot of attention online. Best of all, social media makes it easier than ever to reach your target market. Sharing photos of your booth is especially important if you participate in a lot of different trade shows or events throughout the year. The more often you display your booth online, the easier it will be for people to recognize it when they see it at a show. Social media offers a lot of unique opportunities to connect with potential customers, making it a great marketing tool.

Consider Offering Refreshments

When people go to trade shows, they typically spend about five hours checking out all of the displays. By the time they reach your booth, they may be starting to feel a little bit tired. Offering refreshments is a great way to draw them in. You don’t have to go overboard. A simple drink or a small snack is usually enough to get people to stop and check out what you have to offer.

Create A Theme For Your Booth

Designing your booth around a central theme can be an effective marketing option. If you have an existing marketing campaign going, you can use that as your theme. Alternatively, you can come up with a new theme that is based around one of your new products or a new service that you are offering. Every time you create an exhibition stand, you have an opportunity to share your marketing message with the world. Choosing a different theme for each exhibit is a great way to get the word out about the products or services that you are most interested in promoting.

When creating an exhibition stand, it is all about paying attention to the small details. If you are hiring a company to build your stand for you, it is important to talk with them about your business so that they get a better idea of exactly what you are trying to achieve. Participating in trade shows is a great way to not only reach new customers but also to connect with other businesses. To get the most out of the exhibitions you participate in, it is well worth building a stand that you can be proud of.

With the festive season around the corner and I’s a wonderful opportunity to boost sales. Every business owner is looking for ways to beat the competition. It’s high time you went on a creative streak to find a way to boost your sales. A wonderful idea to consider is to consider using promotional models. These can do a wonderful do of promoting your products and leaving a lasting impression on customers. Apart from boosting sales of existing products, the models are also essential when launching a new product. Take a quick glance at these 5 ways promotional models will boost your sales this holiday.

Image credit: uaestaff.com

1. Boosting your brand

It pays to create a lasting impression on the minds of customers. You have to have innovative ideas on how to create brand awareness about your products. Using promotional models will provide the right exposure to your brand needs. Additionally, your brand will get the promotion it requires. People will get to know about your products and develop the desire for them. So, professional models from an agency are a wonderful idea to introduce your products to the market.

2. Enhancing sales

The role of the marketing department in a business is to see a boost in sales. Innovative marketing ideas are required to make people get carried away by your promotional ideas. This is a wonderful idea to boost sales. Using promotional models is the trick to create a lasting impression on the market. This will make your brand gain immense popularity leading to growth in sales and better ROI.

3. Grabbing attention in the market

It’s a great idea to contact modeling agencies in Dubai for a male for promotional this festive season. These will help promote a particular product to target a specific audience to make market segmentation easier. This will ensure that your products grab the attention of people who need it. Additionally, marketing to the right market segment will help make our product gain popularity. The models can distribute fliers and give direct information about your products. These models will significantly make you a leader in your niche.

4. More successful product promotion

Regardless of whether you’re to sale in an exhibition or discount sale in your store, it pays to invest in promotional models. Attractive models are a wonderful idea to make people come to your store. These models capture the attention of people and help highlight your products and services. Having welcoming models at your entrances is a simple and innovative way to grab customers’ attention. This will significantly increase traffic to your store and more sales.

5. Offer an extra hand

Another way of investing in promotional models can enhance your sales this festive season is by giving your staff the chance to focus on core activities. The festive season is bound to be very busy. Therefore, you have to plan for ways of handling the huge number of customers. Apart from hiring regular staff that might not know what to do, hiring promotional models is a smart idea.

Wrapping up

The Christmas season is when businesses record the highest sales. To ensure you make the most from this period, hiring promotional models is a smart idea.

About the author

Ashly William is a freelance writer, with years of experience, creating content for varied online portals. Her content is published on many national and international publications. She has expertise in writing about Arts & Entertainment.

The education industry is a vast and diverse one, however, not all of its beneficial aspects are intellectual and altruistic. By becoming an RTO (registered training organization), you can provide an invaluable service to those who desperately need it while making a profit for yourself along the way. RTO is an organization that provides vocational education and training (VET) to students in order to prepare them for their specialized careers later on. Now, even though there are over 5000 RTOs in Australia, most of which are in specialized niches, there’s still some room for growth and advancement.

1. TAFE vs. RTO

Before we proceed to discuss this important issue, it’s important to mention that there are a lot of people who mistake the term TAFE (technical and further education) with the term RTO. While on the surface, these two terms may sound somewhat similar, the fact is that TAFE is government owned and RTO is privately owned makes all the difference in the world. Other than this, TAFE is less niched than RTOs, which are mostly oriented towards equipping one to deal with a very narrow, specific set of services. As for the popularity and the issue of how widespread both of these organization types are, last year about 2.4 million students enrolled in various RTOs across the country, while only about 739,000 did so in various TAFE organizations.

2. RTOs in the business world

One of the greatest differences between RTOs and the traditional, formal, education, lies in the fact that RTO has a great application in the business world. First of all, an RTO expert can make an estimate of skills that are in the greatest demand by your business, as well as compose a development of training program that will allow for it to satisfy its needs. Other than consulting and planning, an RTO can provide training equipment, personnel and reliable RTO materials that are necessary for this task. Most important of all, sometimes knowledge isn’t enough and, in that case, RTO can produce a nationally-recognized qualification or a certificate. In other words, the RTO system isn’t just an element in the present-day business world, it’s one of its supporting pillars.

3. Steps to start an RTO

In order to launch your own RTO, you need to apply for a registration and fulfill several vital steps. First of all, you have to complete the application, pay all the fees for initial registration, go through an initial annual RTO registration charge (right away) and, of course, meet data provision requirements. Keep in mind that this organization isn’t just educational but also financial, in nature, which is why it’ll have to undergo a thorough audit. Later on, if necessary, you’ll have to make certain changes to registration and renew it year after year. Australian Skills Quality Authority is in charge of this and their decision is final, yet, their decision can be contested and changed, provided that you manage to persuade them otherwise. Still, the body reviewing your registration usually tends to be fair and unbiased.

In conclusion

Regardless if you’re someone with an aspiration of starting your own RTO or merely aim to collaborate with one (individually or as a business). Knowing how they work, why they are relevant and what types there are may help you understand them better. As for the registration process, getting familiar with the organization in charge of their approval and supervision might help you trust them substantially more in the future. Either way, all of the above-discussed is a common knowledge that’s more than worth possessing, even though a lot of people still remain oblivious when it comes to specifics of this topic.

Brand positioning is essential for any online business these days. It refers to the way your brand is positioned in your customers’ minds. It occurs whether or not you have a strategy in place because your customers will always have an impression of your business.

But you can help to direct your brand positioning by creating a distinct impression on your customer and ensuring they associate your brand with something desirable.

So, how can you set about improving your brand positioning? There are many ways, but here are six to help you get started—fast.

1. Determine Your Brand’s Personality

The first thing you need to do is determine your brand’s personality. Your brand already has a voice, whether you have made an effort with this or not. Customers will encounter this whenever they land on your website, see your social updates, or click your ads.

You should start by deciding what you want this voice to be. Should it be funny, strict, youthful, serious? Your voice will play a large role in your brand’s personality and how your brand is perceived by your customers. If you do not have a clear brand personality, you are increasing the chances that you will be forgotten all too easily by your customers.

Your personality is determined by the words you use, the design of your website, the types of social updates you post, the ads you run—everything that you do.

So decide what you want your brand personality to be. Create a firm idea of your brand voice, then write down exactly what you are going for and share it with all the stakeholders so they can use this to influence their activities.

2. Decide What Makes You Special

Why is your business different? Why would people want to choose you over your competitors? You need to know this if you want to stand out, and that means you need to know your unique selling proposition (USP).

This will help you to differentiate yourself in a competitive environment. Once you know what makes you special, you can communicate this to your customers.

This can be surprisingly tricky, but one good way to start is to look at your competitors and see what they are doing. As you look over their products, can you pinpoint ways in which your products or services are better?

Perhaps your products have something special about them, or maybe the way you do things is superior. If you were trying to convince someone to choose you, what negative aspects would you highlight about your competition? Do they take too long to deliver orders? Do they charge too much?

A fine example can be seen in the chocolate brand M&Ms. Claiming to melt in your mouth rather than your hand is a simple USP that appeals to a consumer desire that they might not have acknowledged themselves. The chocolate market is one that is heavily saturated, and yet this USP lifts M&Ms above the fray.

Create a list of the strengths and weaknesses of your competitors and determine what it is about your business that would make your customers want to choose you. Once you know, you can start making sure your customers know about it.

3. Know Who Your Customer Is

You also need to know exactly who your customer is. You may think you know, but do you really? You cannot position your brand properly until you know this; you have to position it at someone.

Create a marketing persona, or a few of them, and determine everything about your target customer. This should include their interests, dislikes, hopes, fears, the movies they watch, and more. See what they do on social media and work out what is important to them.

This can have a huge impact on improving your brand positioning. If you know who they are, what they want, and what matters to them, you can position your brand more effectively.

4. Tell Your Brand Story

Tell your brand story based around how you came into being, the problem you solved, and how your product or service was the solution. You will probably have one main product or product line that determines who you are and how your business came into being. Perhaps this is the product that you started your business around.

Telling your story can help to form a bond with your customers and highlight your shared values, which makes you come across as more trustworthy.

You see this all the time with nascent ecommerce businesses looking to get ahead of competitors in the digital space. For example, electronics websites are a great investment for entrepreneurs. There will always be a market for the latest gadgets and tech, but in such a saturated market it can be tough to stand out.

By creating a unique brand story that resonates with customers, brands can position themselves as more than simply a business. Brands can become relatable, friendly, and human.

5. Create a Positioning Statement

When you have done all of the above, you’ll be ready to create your positioning statement. This is a short statement, just a sentence or two, that communicates your value. It should include details of who your business is targeted at, why it is special, how you meet their expectations and how you fulfill their wishes.

This is an internal state for your business, so don’t worry about how snappy it is. Simply use it to influence your decisions, especially when it comes to marketing.

Your tagline is a shorter version of this that is more customer-focused. This is an external statement that you can use on your website or packaging. It’s usually punchier than a positioning statement and more memorable, and it can help you to quickly communicate your brand value.

6. Connect Emotionally with Your Customers

Finally, focus on connecting with your customers emotionally. You will only reach your customers and have an impact on them with an emotional connection.

One of the best ways to do this is with content, which provides you with an opportunity to go more in depth. Use content on your blog, for example, to engage. Don’t just promote, and instead use your content to educate and inform to connect on an emotional level.

These six tips will help you improve your brand positioning in no time at all. But don’t forget one of the most important things of all: consistency.

You need to be consistent with your brand positioning if you want to maximize its effect. Once you have determined your voice and your values, ensure you remain consistent everywhere, including your blog, advertising, social media, customer support, design, use of words, images—everywhere.

This way, you will help to make your brand more memorable and avoid confusion, creating a stronger connection with your customers that will last.

Patrick Foster, Ecommerce Enthusiast, and Entrepreneur

I’m a freelance ecommerce expert & serial entrepreneur. I love to write articles on ecommerce branding and content marketing for ambitious online sellers and hope to share some useful insight that will help to grow your business.