Meta's looking to add more ways to use avatars within its evolving experiences.
* This article was originally published here
Monday, December 23, 2024
Meta’s Experimenting With ‘Avatar Quests’ as It Builds Towards the Metaverse
* This article was originally published here
Sunday, December 22, 2024
Social Media Ad Spend by Platform [Infographic]
An overview of the top earning social platforms, and how they compare.
* This article was originally published here
Saturday, December 21, 2024
LinkedIn’s Giving Users a Summary of Their Games Performance
LinkedIn will give you an overview of how good (or bad) you've been at its in-stream games.
* This article was originally published here
Friday, December 20, 2024
What are the steps of IMPACT’s sales process?
Every company that speaks with our team at IMPACT comes looking to solve a problem they have in their business. Whether it be lead generation, content marketing, attribution reporting, sales team effectiveness, developing a marketing strategy, among many others, there’s a.
The reality is, the solutions to these problems can look different depending on the industry, company size, or goals of the organization. Frankly, this means the conversations our team has with a company interested in working with us needs to be focused on understanding those problems, determining what success looks like, then building out the right solution, assuming our team is the right fit to help.
At IMPACT we have designed our sales process to be efficient, linear, and educational for our prospects, and we move forward only when they understand our unique approach to their success and believe in the philosophy of coaching and training. What does that mean?
We are a sales and marketing coaching company, we’re not an agency where we do things for you. We help you build the team and infrastructure so you never have to rely on an outsourced agency again. We train businesses how to take ownership of their marketing and optimize their sales process by implementing the principles of our business framework, Endless Customers.
Why businesses choose to partner with us
Businesses are drawn to partner with IMPACT for a variety of reasons:
- Proven Expertise and Outcomes: Many professionals first learn about IMPACT through our visible presence in the industry, whether by attending our events, engaging with our content online, or through our status as an Elite tier HubSpot partner. They see firsthand the insights and best practices we share across multiple platforms, including articles, videos, podcasts, and live presentations. This exposure not only showcases our expertise but also the tangible results we achieve, inspiring confidence in our ability to replicate similar successes for them.
- Tailored Solutions: As a leader in business transformation, our strength lies in empowering companies not only to adopt new technologies and methodologies but to truly integrate them into their operations to maximize outcomes. Unlike typical service providers who may simply set up tools, we focus on equipping your team with the knowledge and skills needed to effectively use these technologies and methodologies themselves. This approach goes beyond adoption; it transforms business practices, making teams more effective and self-sufficient. Our strategic planning and hands-on training ensure that businesses are well-prepared to meet their goals, enhance productivity, and drive growth.
How We Help
At IMPACT, we focus on equipping your team with the skills and strategies needed for success.
We offer a comprehensive program that includes:
- Leadership Coaching: Our coaches bring extensive business leadership experience to every interaction, helping your team navigate complex challenges and achieve strategic goals.
- Strategic Planning Sessions: We guide you through detailed planning that aligns with your business objectives, ensuring that every marketing and sales activity is purpose-driven.
- Hands-On Training: Covering essential areas such as SEO, content strategy, and video production, our training empowers your team to execute with confidence and skill.
- HubSpot Mastery: Leveraging our HubSpot partnership, we teach you how to maximize these tools to enhance your sales and marketing effectiveness.
- Sales Process Integration: We show you how to strategically use content within your sales processes, educating prospects and closing deals more efficiently.
Our approach is designed to not just deliver information but to transform your team’s capabilities, making your business more dynamic and competitive in today's digital landscape.
No matter the path a prospect takes to get in touch with our team, anyone who wants to learn more about IMPACT’s service offerings follows the same sales process, which can take as short as two weeks or quite a bit longer, depending on how much education our sales team has to do.
In this article, we’re going to map out IMPACT’s sales process, defining the key steps every company takes when speaking with our sales team, what they can expect at each stage, and the requirements for success as you move forward.
The IMPACT Sales Process: Education First
When any prospect enters our sales pipeline, our primary goal is to educate them. What does education first mean?
It means that we don’t pressure sell you. We believe that in order for you to make the right purchasing decision, you must have a clear understanding of the problem(s) you’re looking to solve, how we help businesses like yours, who is successful and not successful with IMPACT, and what it will take to be successful. This guarantees that future clients are well-versed in IMPACT’s philosophy and ensures that only those who are genuinely a good fit proceed, sparing potential clients from committing to a partnership that doesn't align with their needs. Each stage of the process is carefully designed with the goal of educating prospects and keeping their best interests at the forefront. One thing to keep in mind is these steps can either happen with one call or up to three calls.
High-level expectations for the call
Who should be involved in the sales process:
Decision-makers from your team are crucial to the sales process. These are individuals who have the authority to make purchasing decisions and who understand your business's strategic needs. While an IMPACT advisor will guide the process, ensuring the right decision-makers are present is key to aligning your business needs with how IMPACT can help.
How long does it typically take:
Each call with IMPACT typically lasts between 45 to 60 minutes. However, the exact duration can vary. The pace of our conversations depends largely on how detailed and open the discussions are. Our goal is always to reach outcomes that best serve your needs, whether that takes less time or requires a bit more.
How does it work:
Our sales process is outcome-driven rather than being tied to a specific type of call. This flexibility allows us to adapt to the unique pace of each conversation. By focusing on outcomes, we ensure that the process moves at a pace that feels right for you and is aligned with achieving your desired results. We measure success by how well we meet your needs, not by the clock.
Step 1: Identify if you have a problem that needs to be solved
Your most valuable asset is your time. Nobody likes to waste their time in a conversation that isn’t going anywhere, so before you even talk to one of our advisors for the first time, you can expect a bit of homework.
We aim to ensure that we all have a shared foundation of expectations before we dive into a conversation. IMPACT is not a marketing agency. We’re teachers, coaches, and trainers. We’re not going to write your content and film your videos. We’re going to train your team how to create content at a world-class level and make sure those efforts fit into a larger business strategy.
Before the first call you can expect to receive a video from one of our advisors (like the one below), as well as 1-2 pieces of content to review.
While it should only take you 5-10 minutes to complete, reading and digesting these pieces of content is imperative, and our advisors will not move forward to have an actual call until you confirm that you have done so.
Marcus Sheridan, explains it this way: “We give you resources beforehand to address 90% of the top-level questions you have. That way, our conversations are going to be deeper, more personal, and more impactful on your business.”
Remember, our sales process is really an education process. We can’t want to move forward until we’re all aligned.
During this first step of understanding if you have a problem we can help you solve, our advisors will ask a lot of questions about your business goals, your current challenges, and the priority or importance of each challenge. This helps us determine if there truly is a problem that needs solving and if we can effectively help. We want to guarantee that both your team and ours know as much about your business and your needs as possible. That way, we can begin planning the right course of training for your needs.
Step 2: Determine if IMPACT is the right fit to help solve that problem
Once we have a clear understanding of your challenges and have identified them as critical areas for your business, the next step is to determine if IMPACT is the right partner to help you solve these problems. This step involves a deep dive into your specific needs and expectations.
This discussion can take place during the initial call or might extend into further conversations, depending on the complexity of your challenges and the clarity of the information shared initially. We want to ensure that there is a strong alignment between your needs and our capabilities before moving forward.
Specifically, you’ll have a conversation that sounds like this:
IMPACT Advisor: “We have dug into a lot and I believe we have a clear picture of the problem. Here’s how I’d describe it: [Insert description]. Does that sound right to you?”
Prospect: “Agreed. If we could solve that, life and our business would be a lot better.”
IMPACT Advisor: “Fantastic! Now that I know you’re committed to solving this problem, let’s talk about how our team helps companies like yours solve that problem, and what it’ll take to do so.”
That brings us to step 3 of our process.
Step 3: Learn how IMPACT will help solve your problem and who will be involved
Once it’s clear that we’re a good fit for each other, your advisor will schedule a call to introduce you to your coach, who will guide you throughout your journey with IMPACT. We have a team of coaches and trainers that have helped 1000s of businesses grow and achieve success.
In this initial meeting with your coach, the focus is on building a strong foundation. While your advisor may also be present, the coach will lead the discussion. This is essential for your coach to fully understand your business, which is vital for effectively planning and implementing the strategies you need.
During this stage, you can expect the coach to cover both strategic and logistical aspects of the program. They will validate some of what the advisor has shared with them to help explain how the IMPACT program works and how it’s tailored to tackle the specific challenges you face. The goal is for you to leave the meeting with a clear understanding of what to expect from IMPACT and who you’ll be working with.
This stage is not just about reinforcing the connection but also about setting the stage for targeted interventions to help your business grow. The coach will outline the next steps and ensure you are well-prepared to succeed in our program.
Step 4: Learn the details of the program we've created and agree IMPACT’s solution will solve your problem
This step will be a presentation, separate from previous discussions, where we thoroughly walk you through the customized plan crafted to meet your specific needs.
Once you reach this stage of the process, nothing should be a surprise or new information. This meeting occurs once we've all verbally agreed to move forward, you know your team is ready to engage fully to achieve desired results, and IMPACT is confident in our ability to guide you there.
During this call, your IMPACT coach (and/or advisor) will present a detailed overview of the tailored program, providing a clear walkthrough of each component and how it addresses your unique challenges. Alongside the presentation, we will review the agreement together.
By the end of this call, we aim for a complete alignment and agreement to proceed, marking the official start of our focused efforts to achieve your business goals through the IMPACT program. If that isn’t the case by the end of this call, it means we’ve missed something in our sales process and we need to backtrack to the earlier steps.
Step 5: Get started with IMPACT
Once the contract has been signed and your initial payment has been submitted, your Account Manager will contact you within 48 hours to schedule your kickoff with your coach along with instructions for our onboarding process. This ensures a smooth start to your engagement and helps button up other miscellaneous preparatory activities.
The process, start to finish
“A sales process is a lot like dating,” says Marcus. “No one is ready to get married on the first date.” Instead, there’s a good deal of getting to know you that happens first, where both parties have to figure out if the other is right for them.
IMPACT stands opposed to the typical relationship between inbound agency and client. We believe you should not be forever dependent on an agency to write your content, film your videos, organize your HubSpot portal, and schedule your emails. You can learn to do these things (and more!) at mastery-level, ensuring true marketing and sales freedom. As such, our sales process focuses heavily on education to make sure our clients are clear about what they’re getting into.
IMPACT believes in teaching you to take ownership. In our sales process, we’ll start you down that path towards independence and excellence. Each step forward represents an investment in the future of your business, so we build these steps deliberately to get you ready.
Ready to start the process? Schedule your first call!
Author: cdelaney@impactbnd.com (Connor DeLaney)
* This article was originally published here
Thursday, December 19, 2024
What Happens on the Internet Every Minute (2024 Version)
The latest overview of the crazy amount of online activity happening every day.
* This article was originally published here
Wednesday, December 18, 2024
Threads Announces Test of Post Scheduling
A highly requested feature is coming to Threads soon, enabling users to schedule a post from the in-app composer.
* This article was originally published here
Tuesday, December 17, 2024
Threads Reaches 300M Active Users
Threads' growth momentum continues to rise as it reaches a new milestone.
* This article was originally published here
Monday, December 16, 2024
Threads Surveys User Opinions on Political Content Restrictions
With the 2024 election in the past, Meta is seemingly reassessing its approach to political content.
* This article was originally published here
Sunday, December 15, 2024
Instagram Tests Scheduled DMs
Plan your DM outreach to align with your target audience.
* This article was originally published here
Saturday, December 14, 2024
X Provides Usage Insights and Ad Tips for ‘Q5’
Some data notes to inform your end-of-year marketing push.
* This article was originally published here
Friday, December 13, 2024
Thursday, December 12, 2024
Meta Tests ‘No Edit’ Tag for Untouched Images in Stories
A new way to signify that you haven't edited or generated an image.
* This article was originally published here
Wednesday, December 11, 2024
Meta’s Testing Options To Hide Like Counts on Reels, Replies on Threads
Meta continues to add more options to control which performance metrics are displayed on your profile.
* This article was originally published here
Tuesday, December 10, 2024
YouTube Tests Multiplayer Games With In-Stream ‘Playables’
YouTube's trying out a more social version of its mini-games.
* This article was originally published here
Monday, December 9, 2024
Court Rejects TikTok’s Effort To Negate US Sell-off Bill
The end of TikTok in the U.S. could be as soon as January 19, 2025.
* This article was originally published here
Sunday, December 8, 2024
Court of Appeal Rejects TikTok’s Effort to Negate the U.S. Sell-Off Bill
The end of TikTok in the US is now closer than ever.
* This article was originally published here
Saturday, December 7, 2024
Meta Launches New Llama AI Model, Building Towards the Next Stage
Meta continues to evolve its AI offerings.
* This article was originally published here
Friday, December 6, 2024
Meta Announces VR Development Deal With James Cameron’s ‘Lightstorm Vision’
The partnership could see the development of innovative new VR projects.
* This article was originally published here
Thursday, December 5, 2024
Staffing Up After a Recession: Who to Hire When
When the economy shrinks and demand dries up, companies often feel obligated to trim their staff. While it’s painful, it’s a natural part of the economic cycle of any organization.
According to TechCrunch: The tech layoff wave is still going strong in 2024. Following significant workforce reductions in 2022 and 2023, this year [2024] has more than 130,000 job cuts across 457 companies.
While layoffs are more commonplace (and more accepted) in some industries than others during these times, the process is never a pleasant one. But sometimes layoffs are a must to stay profitable — or even stay afloat.
The opposite is also true, however. When the economy is hot and demand is high, teams are going to staff up.
For business leaders, staffing up after a recession comes with its own challenges.
If you’re in this boat — planning to hire back after layoffs — you want to be sure you get this right. Below, I’ll explain how I recommend you proceed.
When it’s time to hire for your future
For many businesses coming out of a recession or downturn, they fall into one of two camps:
The first wants to scale back up to their previous strength, so they jump at the chance of filling the positions they lost.
The others take the opposite approach — sort of a once-bitten, twice-shy mindset.
After the experience of having to cut staff once, they’re hesitant to hire, fearing that they might have to go through the whole thing again if they add headcount too quickly.
For me, hiring decisions are always a balance of data and intuition. So my advice to you is this: Hire smart. Your goal is not to add headcount, it’s to find great candidates.
Bill Gates famously said that a great writer of software code is worth 10,000 times the price of an average software writer.
For whatever role you’re hiring for, the great candidate will deliver way more value than the average candidate.
If you’re looking to hire and can’t find someone great, don’t fill the role until you find the right person. Or, if you’ve got a pipeline full of exceptional applicants, maybe hire more than one if your budget and forecast allow it.
With any new hire, you’ve got a chance to raise the overall ability of your team, but if you bring on the wrong person because you jumped the gun, you could be kicking yourself for years.
Post-recession hiring is your chance to find that all-star.
Don’t hire for what you lost; hire for the future
According to research from Accenture, 88% of executives believe that their customers are changing faster than their businesses can adapt.
This reflects the crisis that companies of all kinds are facing: Not effectively adapting to a changing marketplace.
Judging by the statistic above, your company might be in need of change. Although layoffs are never easy, there can be a silver lining. Maybe the staff you employed a few years ago doesn’t really fit your needs today — let alone your needs a few years from now.
For example, it’s easy to just want to hire back to fill the roles you lost: You had to cut three sales rep jobs? Now it’s time to hire three new sales reps.
However, I urge you to avoid that kind of knee-jerk reaction.
This is an opportunity to hire for your company’s future, not its past.
First, figure out how you’re bringing in revenue
Recently I compiled a big spreadsheet of every deal IMPACT had closed in the last six months. I listed each customer, what they bought, how they heard of us, how long they took to close, and about a half-dozen other pieces of information.
Ahead of our quarterly planning session, I asked all our company leaders and managers to study the spreadsheet. Then, at the planning session, I split them into groups and asked them what we needed to do to close more business. Imagine a Stop/Start/Keep brainstorming session.
By focusing only on the past six months, we eliminated historical bias and outdated approaches. We came up with a list of marketing and sales priorities based on the way our most recent customers were buying from us.
You should do the same.
Before you jump back in and hire the exact roles you lost, look closely at your numbers. If you’re ready to add headcount, do it in the places that make the most sense for you based on data, not nostalgia.
Hire for your future, not for your past.
While you’re at it, audit your hiring process
One more thing: before you go on a hiring spree, take some time to look at your hiring process with a critical eye.
In a famous study done a few years back, Jobvite found that one-third of all new employees quit within 90 days of starting their new job. And that was before the pandemic, the great resignation, and quiet quitting.
Part of the fault for this lies with workers, sure, but I believe a bigger share of the blame rests with employers.
Is your hiring process designed around the candidate’s needs? Are you using techniques like the 80% video to cover as many of the applicant’s questions ahead of time so you can weed out those who might be a bad fit? Are you committed to transparency and honesty?
If not, fix your process before you start putting more people through it.
This is the opportunity you’ve been waiting for
In the past few years we’ve seen drastic economic swings.
First, there was the shock of the pandemic. The bottom fell out of the stock market and unemployment spiked. Then, the government flooded the economy with stimulus money and businesses were flush with cash. Since then, there have been supply chain issues, high energy costs, and political instability.
It’s been a wild ride.
And while these last few years have been especially volatile, the economy is always going to go up and down. As a business owner, you know there will be fat years and lean years, good times and bad times.
This is the natural cycle of business.
The key is to see every up and down as an opportunity. If you’re ready to hire after a recession, use it as the opportunity to build a staff for the business you’re becoming, not the business you were.
Author: rruffolo@impactbnd.com (Bob Ruffolo)
* This article was originally published here
Wednesday, December 4, 2024
Meta Launches ‘Threads for Creators’ Hub
A new home for Threads tips and insights.
* This article was originally published here
Tuesday, December 3, 2024
Note From the Editor-In-Chief
A change in ownership and what it means for our readers.
* This article was originally published here
Monday, December 2, 2024
TikTok Implements New Protections for Young EU Users
TikTok says it removes 6 million suspected underage accounts each month.
* This article was originally published here
Sunday, December 1, 2024
Instagram Launches ‘Collage’ Option for Stories
A new visual composition option for your Stories.
* This article was originally published here
Saturday, November 30, 2024
Hate Being On Camera? Performance Tips For Better Marketing Results [Endless Customers Podcast Ep. 78]
About This Episode
You’re a busy business leader. Meetings, strategy sessions, and putting out fires—it’s all part of the job. So when the marketing team adds being in the next video to your to-do list, your first thought might be, Is this really the best use of my time? Don’t they have someone better at being on camera?
But here’s the truth: if you’re not leveraging video, you’re leaving money—and trust—on the table. Buyers crave connection. They want to know the faces behind the brand, hear your expertise firsthand, and, most importantly, decide whether they can trust you. Video isn’t just another marketing tactic. It’s a tool that can fundamentally change how your audience feels about your business.
And yet, stepping in front of a camera can feel daunting. You might be wondering, What if I’m awkward? What if I mess up? What if I look or sound weird? Will this hurt people’s perception of me?
On the latest episode of Endless Customers, Alex Winter sat down with Lindsey Auten, a video and content trainer at IMPACT, to tackle these exact questions. Lindsey shared why video is critical for businesses, how to get comfortable on camera, and why following the S.I.M.P.L.E. method can make all the difference.
Why Video Builds Unmatched Trust
Unlike other content formats, video creates an immediate connection. Buyers see your face, hear your voice, and get a sense of who you are—long before you meet them in person. It’s a level of trust-building that even the most polished website can’t achieve.
“When your audience watches a video, they feel like they know you,” Lindsey explained. “And that familiarity is priceless when it comes to converting leads into customers.”
Alex chimed in with this: “Trust is everything in sales. If you can use video to break down barriers and make buyers feel comfortable, you’ve already won half the battle.”
In a world where buyers are bombarded with ads and sales pitches, video helps you stand out by being genuine, relatable, and real.
Overcoming the Fear of Being on Camera
Here’s the truth: almost no one feels 100% confident on camera at first. The good news? You don’t need to be perfect. You just need to be yourself.
“People worry about their appearance, their voice, or making a mistake,” Lindsey said. “But what they don’t realize is that those little imperfections actually make you more relatable.”
Her advice for getting comfortable on camera? Practice, patience, and preparation. Lindsey broke it down into a few simple steps:
- Start small: Record short videos on your phone just for practice. You don’t even have to share them.
- Focus on your audience: Shift the focus away from yourself and onto the people you’re trying to help.
- Don’t sweat the small stuff: If you stumble over a word or laugh nervously, that’s okay. It makes you human.
Building Comfort on Camera with the SIMPLE Framework
For many business leaders, the idea of being on camera feels like a detour from their core responsibilities. But Lindsey broke down a powerful acronym during the episode—SIMPLE—designed to help anyone develop their on-camera performance while keeping things, well, simple. Here’s what it stands for:
S - Smile
Smiling might seem trivial, but as Lindsey said, "If you hit record and you have RBF on, that recording is going to look like you're a little ticked off." Starting with a smile changes your energy and makes you come across as approachable and engaging. Before you hit record, try smiling for 3 to 5 seconds—it sets the tone for the entire video and makes your energy inviting for viewers.
I - Imagine the Camera as a Person
Talking to a camera can feel unnatural—it’s just an inanimate object staring back. Lindsey advised picturing the camera as a person, saying, "If you can picture a person to talk to...that’s going to help you feel more natural and appeal more to the people watching." This mental shift transforms a mechanical interaction into a relatable conversation, making your delivery more personable.
M - Momentum
"An object in motion stays in motion," Lindsey explained. The same applies to your performance. If you mess up mid-sentence, don’t stop—just keep going. Stopping breaks your rhythm and often makes the editing process harder. As Alex added, "Power through it...even though it's messy, it helps you get to that final piece." Momentum allows you to refine your delivery naturally.
P - Posture Matters
Your body language speaks volumes. Lindsey recounted a client video where poor posture made someone appear "surly," even though it wasn’t their intention. "If my body language is open...leaning slightly forward, my energy is completely different," she shared. Posture communicates enthusiasm and credibility. Shoulders back, open stance, and leaning slightly toward the camera can make all the difference.
L - Leverage Storytelling
Humans are wired for stories. As Lindsey pointed out, "We’ve responded to stories since the beginning of time." Structure your video with a clear arc: introduce the problem, guide viewers through the solution, and show them how they can win. This approach builds relatability, which Alex highlighted as "the first step toward building trust."
E - Engage Naturally
Your instincts are usually right. If you use hand gestures or move your head while talking in real life, let those natural tendencies shine on camera. "Even if you think it might look stupid, just do it," Lindsey encouraged. Authenticity is magnetic—it’s what makes people trust and connect with you.
The SIMPLE framework isn’t about perfection; it’s about showing up authentically, building trust, and creating engaging content. Whether you’re a seasoned pro or just starting, these six steps can help transform your on-camera presence into a tool for building strong connections with your audience.
Get Started With Video
Video can feel intimidating at first, but it’s worth the effort. As Lindsey reminded listeners, “You don’t have to be perfect. You just have to be real. Your audience will appreciate your authenticity, and over time, you’ll see the impact it has on your business.”
So grab your phone, write down a few bullet points, and start recording. Because every video you create brings you one step closer to earning trust, building relationships, and driving results.
Connect with Lindsey
Lindsey Auten is a content and video trainer at IMPACT with a background in broadcast journalism.
Learn more about Lindsey from her IMPACT bio
Connect with Lindsey on LinkedIn
Keep Learning
Author: awinter@impactbnd.com (Alex Winter)
* This article was originally published here
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