Productivity Archives - Page 21 of 37

5 Quick PR Tips for Bloggers, YouTubers & Business Owners

5 Quick PR Tips for Bloggers, YouTubers & Business Owners

For many small businesses and brands, the concept of PR may seem like something that only big business and influential figures have to worry about. We see PR firms that represent brands or celebrities and we may be intimidated by the concept of public relations or think we shouldn’t hire out our PR. Now, as a small business owner myself who also blogs and creates content for YouTube, I am often approached by my fans, and other businesses or brands that want to work with me. All of that falls under the category of Public Relations and although we all can’t afford PR representation, we need to get in the habit of putting our best foot forward when dealing with the public. So today I just want to share 5 Quick PR tips that I have relied on through the years that I believe have helped me streamline my PR without needing outside representation or some cumbersome PR strategy!

#1. Create a Media Kit

I think that all brands and businesses that plan to work with customers or others brands should have a media kit. I made my first media kit for my blog years ago and try to update it once a year or whenever I am pursuing or about to contact a brand I want to work with. You can create a simple one page media kit that includes a brief “about me” along with your key stats and services you are available for. If you don’t know how to structure your media kit, a quick Pinterest search will yield many different examples that you can turn into your own template! Now, when it comes to using your media kit, you will want to send this file in PDF form along with any emails you may send to brands or businesses soliciting a collaborative effort. If you want to work with a brand, having this kit is like a resume that the brand can use to identify whether you and your brand will work with their objectives. You can also create a media kit if you are a service based business to send to potential clients that may outline your services, pricing and experience! I think anyone operating online would benefit from having a media kit, so consider creating yours asap!

#2. Use a business email address

This may be a given for some people, but you’d be surprised how often I see people using email addresses that just aren’t professional or a representation of their brand/business. It’s essential for putting your best foot forward to have a dedicated business email address that you can keep separate from any personal email account you may also use. This is an easy PR tip that you can implement asap with free email clients like gmail or yahoo!

#3. Make sure to engage on social posts that include your brand

It’s a great PR rule of thumb to engage with any and all social posts or mentions you may receive. I always make sure to like, retweet, and respond to all mentions on Twitter, Instagram or elsewhere online that I see! It’s just a best practice that shows that you are present in your brand and open to interaction with your followers. Nothing is worse for PR than a brand or business that doesn’t make every reasonable effort to respond and engage with followers or fans that are talking about you positively online!

#4. Reply to all your emails

I know this one may be hard, but like #3 above, replying to your emails is a best practice for any serious brand or business owner. I know what it’s like to get bulk or spam solicitations from companies and also manage emails for customer service and general inquiries, however, on the other end of each and every email you receive is a person who is reaching out to your brand and if they don’t get a response, you have most likely lost an opportunity for a sale, a connection or even simply the opportunity to create a loyal fan. If you have trouble replying to all your emails, consider creating canned email responses that you can quickly copy and paste to address frequently asked questions or specific customer service inquiries, or hire an assistant to help you manage your email. Either way, make sure you respond to your emails in a timely manner!

#5. Double check all the content and products you create for brand consistency

When you’re managing a brand or a business, I think it’s easy for us to feel like we are getting stretched thin with our ideas for content and products. I know I have felt this way on many occasions in the past few years and the result ends up being that I may create content or products that aren’t consistent with my overall brand. Since your brand is your fingerprint online, you need to keep it safe and strong by double checking that everything you produce is in line with that brand. If not, any content or products that don’t align have the ability to dilute your brand which weakens it. In order to ensure your content and products are in line with your brand, consider creating a litmus test question that you can ask and answer for each item you create to ensure it’s in line with what your brand is all about. For me this question is “Does this help people work smarter, not harder?” If I can honestly answer that question with a “yes” then I proceed with publishing my content or product to the world. If not, I need to reevaluate what I was doing and get that answer turned to a yes before I will release it to the public!

Public relations doesn’t have to be a complicated topic for your brand or business, but it is essential that you implement some simple PR tips to help your business succeed! If you have any other tips you have learned over the years or want to share a PR experience you had as a blogger or business owner, please feel free to comment below!

xoxo,

My Productivity Playlist

Who Run the World? {April 2016 Productivity Playlist!}

Hey Strange & Charmed Friends!

As you may remember reading from my latest installment of Entrepreneurial, last month I learned a valuable lesson that progress comes from taking action! In my situation, last month, I waited around for a while hoping creativity and inspiration would strike me, but it never came. So, this month, I am taking things into my own hands and taking action to stay inspired in whatever ways I can. Of course, since I am an audiophile, one of the first things I did was create a fresh Productivity Playlist for April filled with some action-packed and inspiring music that I’ve been loving lately. If you want to check out my new playlist, you can click here to visit Spotify or you can click the audio player below to enjoy the music as you catch up on my blog posts!

Well, let me know what music you have been listening to, or feel free to tweet me a link to your latest Spotify playlist @MissTrenchcoat!

xoxo,

Productivity

The Essential Business Planning Inserts that Keep Me Productive, Organized & Stress Free!

The Essential Business Planning Inserts that Keep Me Productive, Organized & Stress Free!

I get a lot of questions from people in my community about the best planners and inserts to use, especially from current or aspiring business owners who are looking to streamline their planning system, so today I want to share with you the inserts I use in my planner, why I like them and why they may be a good option for you if the standard planner insert options aren’t cutting it for you!

My Business Planning Inserts

The calendar inserts that I use in my (self-made) planner are the A5 Charmed Life Planner Inserts from TheCharmedShop.com. They are printable planner inserts that combine month on two pages, week on two pages, monthly task and expense sheets in a continuous monthly format. These inserts work well for me for a number of reasons:

1. The inserts are a complete, all-in-one system that work together beautifully with a dedicated place for everything that’s important to me. I can track my business goals/marketing/editorial calendar on the monthly calendar, keep track of my project tasks on the monthly task list, track income and expenses on the financial log, and plan my day to day in the weekly spreads.

2. The weekly spreads are vertical list style, which works best with my list loving brain! The weekly pages include a dedicated top 3 space, a good sized ruled center column for lists/schedules/notes/etc and a open lower flex section to be used as I see fit! The clear planning hierarchy built into the weekly spreads almost forces you to prioritize your day and “work smarter, not harder” as I like to say!

3. Because the inserts are so well designed and utilize space seamlessly, I find that I don’t feel the need to dress them up with decorations, but there is room to do so if I choose! Obviously, adding stickers and washi tape don’t make your planner more useful, however, there is something to be said for the fact that it does help you feel more motivated when you are looking at a well designed “pretty” planner spread. Well, these inserts are beautiful with or without added decor which is a major plus for me!

Now, other than my calendar pages, I also have a section in my planner that contains my business projects. In this section, I use inserts from the project planning bundle also found at TheCharmedShop.com. Specifically, I use the Yearly Goal Planning Tracker and the Project Planning Pages. On the Yearly Goal Planner, I map out my business and marketing goals and outline promotions, projects, and areas of focus for different periods of the year. So, it’s essentially a year at a glance business plan! Then, on the Project Planning Pages, I break out each promotion, project and initiative into the manageable tasks that I will need to perform in order to see the project through to completion. Using these project planning pages is excellent because it gives me enough space to outline a full project which I would not have the space to do in my calendar pages, and then I can transfer individual items from my project planning pages to my monthly task lists in the calendar section so I know what items I need to focus on for the month!

Will these inserts work for you?

When it comes to finding the best inserts that work for each of us, the struggle is certainly real! There are so many options out there when it comes to planner inserts, and options can be good or they can be paralyzing to some. For obvious reasons, its impossible for me to determine whether the inserts I use will work for you, however, if you identify with any of the situations below, I think these inserts may work for your life as they do for mine!

1. If you find that your current inserts don’t keep you organized because they lack structure, the Charmed Life Planner inserts may be a welcome change for you!

2. If you find that your current inserts don’t seem to work together, perhaps you have created your own system by curating inserts for a variety of places but they don’t feel like they interact with each other properly, the Charmed Life Planner inserts may be a solution that will work for you!

3. If you have a hard time prioritizing within your planner and find that although you make a list of tasks each day, that few of the important tasks get completed, the Charmed Life Planner inserts should solve that problem for you!

Do you need a Business Planning Bundle?

One of the reasons I feel so confident and successful with my business is that I have confidence in my business planning system! Not only does my calendar system, the Charmed Life Planner, work seamlessly to ensure I am able to prioritize and focus on my business activities, but having a dedicated project planning section gives me the space I need to break down key business activities into a clear plan of action! So, I thought to myself, why don’t I put together a Business Planning Bundle that includes the Charmed Life Planner AND my essential Project Planning Inserts?

So, I did!

I’m pleased to introduce you to my two NEW Business Planning Bundles, one in A5 equivalent size and the other in Filofax Personal equivalent! These bundles are a $48 value and include, not just my Charmed Life Planner Inserts and projecting planning inserts, but also an EXCLUSIVE Printable Business Planning Sticker Set design that I personally use to help me organize key business activities in my planner as well!

If you are looking for a complete business planning solution, pick up your Business Planning Bundle for just $35 today and you can get started immediately printing out your inserts and getting them organized into your planner!

xoxo,

Productivity

Make Your Own Luck this March with My Free Tech Wallpapers & Planner Inserts!

Hello my Strange & Charmed ones!

How has your February been? This month has been filled with excitement for me, I love celebrating Valentine’s Day with my Husband and of course, Galentine’s Day with my besties! I hope your month was wonderful and that you are ready to go for a new month of fun and FREEBIES!

Okay, so let’s talk March Freebies, shall we?

As per the usual, I have a March Dashboard for your planner, along with my Make Your Own Luck March monthly task list! They are both in the same shop listing, so you only need to check out once and you get both designs in both personal and A5 size.

Also made a new set of monthly Tech Wallpapers. In celebration of my birthday on March 13th, these wallpapers are a mix of my two favorites, white marble and stripes! It’s the same pattern I use for my Charmed Life Planner Cover and my Macbook Air skin! I hope you enjoy these wallpapers and that they keep you inspired for the month. I know I love making them for you!

If you download any of these items and put them to use on your gadgets or inside your planner, I would LOVE to see them in action, so please make sure to share your photos on social media, tag me @MissTrenchcoat and use the #CharmedGTD so everyone in the community can see your photos and like them as well!

xoxo,

Productivity

Boost Your Productivity this March with My #CHARMEDGTD Instagram Photo Challenge

I don’t know about you but nothing inspires my productivity quite like a good Instagram Photo Challenge! Last March I debuted my #CharmedGTD Instagram Photo Challenge and so many of my productivity loving followers participated that the month proved to be an epic success! March is a super important month to me because my birthday is March 13th, so I love celebrating the month with my friends.

If you love Instagram and would like to participate in this challenge, here’s all you have to do!

Step 1: Right Click on the graphic above and email it to your smartphone to post on Instagram announcing your participation! (Or you can open this webpage on your smartphone and save the graphic directly to your phone’s camera roll)

Step 2: Read the prompts on the graphic each day, take a picture that illustrates the prompt of the day, and post it to Instagram. Make sure to add a fun description to your image that includes the hashtag #CharmedGTD so everyone participating can see each others pictures!

Step 3: Make sure to follow me @MissTrenchcoat and interact with the other participants by liking and commenting on their images!

Instagram is one of my favorite ways to interact with my community and the #CharmedGTD photo challenge is all about inspiring you everyday to Get Things Done! (Get it #CharmedGTD = Charmed Gets Things Done, inspired by my favorite productivity book Getting Things Done by David Allen!) If you have been curious about trying a photo challenge but haven’t ever participated before, I’d love for you to join- remember, this is just something fun to do on social media so if you miss a day or days, don’t sweat it! You can always catch up or skip prompts as needed, the point is just to get involved, let the daily prompts inspire you and of course, HAVE FUN!

If you would like to participate, again, make sure to repost the graphic above to your Instagram account and of course, let me know that you are joining! I can’t wait to see your pictures and I hope we all have a wonderful and productive March!

xoxo,

My Productivity Playlist Productivity

What’s On Your Playlist? {Productivity Playlist February 2016!}

Long time no Playlist!

I think it’s been a few months since my last full playlist post, so this is completely overdue, but I just wanted to share the tunes I’ve been listening to lately. This is a pretty random mix, but I like it and I hope you do too. Happy listening and I hope this playlist brings you some inspiration and productivity as we close out February!

Enjoy!

So what have you been listening to lately? Let me know on the comments!

xoxo,

Productivity

Set Yourself Up for Success in the New Year with These Excellent Reads!

January is about to come to a close and I have a collection of interesting articles from around the web that you may want to check out if you are looking to set yourself up for success in the New Year. Looking for some interesting books to add to your “to-read” list? Perhaps you are looking to map out your path for the year either personally or professionally. This link-roundup has a little bit of something for everyone, and plenty of motivational inspiration to spare!

Personal Development

Business

Productivity

I hope you enjoyed these selections and hopefully found something interesting to read that you hadn’t seen before. If you have any other suggestions for articles that you think I need to check out, feel free to link them below or send me a tweet @MissTrenchcoat!

xoxo,

Productivity

Stay Inspired & Productive this February with My Freebie Planner Inserts/Tech Wallpapers

Hello my Strange & Charmed ones!

How has your January been? I feel like it’s been a minute since I’ve last chatted with you. I know I was a bit MIA this month on the blog, which I sincerely apologize for. I spent the month in a frenzy of creation for my latest product, The Charmed Life Master Class, which I launched yesterday via YouTube… click here to watch the launch video if you are curious about the class!

Okay, so let’s talk February Freebies, shall we?

As per the usual, I have a February Dashboard for your planner, along with an updated 29 Ways to Love Yourself monthly task list! They are both in the same shop listing, so you only need to check out once and you get both designs in both personal and A5 size.

Also made a new set of monthly Tech Wallpapers. In celebration of Valentine’s Day, February’s wallpapers are an adorable oversized heart polka dot! I hope you enjoy these wallpapers and that they keep you inspired for the month. I know I love making them for you!

If you download any of these items and put them to use on your gadgets or inside your planner, I would LOVE to see them in action, so please make sure to share your photos on social media, tag me @MissTrenchcoat and use the #CharmedGTD so everyone in the community can see your photos and like them as well!

xoxo,

Productivity

How to Plan Your Day like a #GIRLBOSS!

How to Plan Your Day like a #GIRLBOSS

One of the awesome parts of being an entrepreneur is that no two of my days ever seem the same. Although that brings a lot of diversity and excitement to my work, it can also represent a challenge to my planner. What I need from my planning system on a day to day basis can change, but I have no interest in using multiple planning methods to keep up with my business, which is why back in July, I designed my Charmed Life Planner; a complete printable planner that included everything I need to plan my days, no matter what work needs to be done or how crazy (or simple) my schedule looks. The meat of this planner is a vertical week on two pages layout that allows me to see my whole week laid out in front of me, but also gives me the ability to really make use of every inch of space in the individuals days of the spread without feeling like I need more room to write. So, I wanted to take a moment to show you how I use this layout and the tips I have for you to optimize your day in your own planner.

1. Set Your Top 3: When you jump between too many tasks or activities in a day, you end up lowering your productivity. Instead, focus on your top 2 priorities and put those at the top of your list! My printable Charmed Life Planner has a dedicated space for your top 3 sitting right on top of the page.

2. Create a schedule or task list: Depending on your work for the day, you may need either a schedule or a task list. Use the ruled column below your top 3 to break out your appointments or list out lower priority tasks and reminders.

3. Add function with stickers: Stickers aren’t just for decorating anymore! With my line of printable planner stickers, you can add flexible function to your planner by adding a sticker or two to designate special information to help you manage your day.

This system and the Charmed Life Planner has honestly been the first planner system to bring me a sense of lasting planner peace, and if you want to see my planner in action I highly suggest checking out my 2016 Planner Setup video, as well as my DIY Spiral Planner Tutorial showing how I used my printable Charmed Life Planner inserts to create my own custom spiral planner! Of course, if you are still looking for planner peace and you aren’t afraid to try out a printable planner, head on over to my shop and check out the Charmed Life Planner. If you like what you see, use the code CLP2016 for $5 off your purchase of the planner. Happy Planning!

xoxo,

My Productivity Playlist

My Anthem for 2016

To stay productive and create a theme for the new year, some people choose a word. That word becomes their word of the year and they will keep that word plastered around them as much as possible and turn to that word for encouragement and guidance as the unexpected twists and turns of life conspire to push us off course. That works for some people, but it doesn’t necessarily work for me. Instead, I choose a song- an anthem if you will! Something that’s more than a word or even a mere collection of words because music speaks to my soul. I’m just that kind of person.

I don’t ever set out to “find” my song of the year, in all honesty, it just sort of finds me which is exactly what happened when I first heard Bird Set Free by Sia during a live performance on SNL last month. The song immediately stirred something inside of me and I knew, and actually said to myself while the performance was still going on, “this is my song for 2016.”

If you have never experienced this song, I’d recommend it. It definitely has a powerful message that I hope will help keep me strong even when things get tough this year- and I know this year is going to get tough. The best years always do!

If you are someone who also sets an anthem for yourself for the year or perhaps you want to now that I’ve introduced you to the idea, I’d love to hear (haha, so punny) what song you choose! Let me know in the comments or tweet me a link to a music video @MissTrenchcoat!