Yep, you read that right! While it seems counterintuitive, working less and finding more balance in your life can actually have a positive impact on your business.
Thanks to social media and the fact that in this digital age you can work almost anywhere at any hour, there can be limitless opportunity to work and a never-ending supply of tasks to do. But that doesn’t mean you should just work-work-work!
Not least because an overstimulated, perpetually busy mind is not the place where the best ideas, clearest decisions, or brilliant strategy come from.
As part of our consulting work, we often talk with clients about how to get more balance in their lives, and how it’s not indulgent, but can really pay off for their business.
You only have to look at business power players Tim Ferriss, Ariana Huffington and Bill Gates – all advocates of scheduling dedicated time off – to see how working less can help you more.
If you are finding you are always ‘on’ and spending the bulk of your precious time working on business, take a moment to stop and recalibrate.
Here are 5 ways to consider bringing more balance to your life, calming your mind and running your business, so that it doesn’t run you.
#1 Take Holidays!
Having time off is one of the most sure-fire ways to be more productive. Breaks, down time, having fun and thinking about things outside work is one of the best investments you can make in yourself. Travel allows you to learn new things, get new perspectives, and come at problems in different ways. If you haven’t had a holiday in ages, it can be as easy as taking a long weekend away or getting to the beach for a couple of days.
#2 Clear Boundaries
Make clear boundaries and stick to them. Leave work on time, take a proper lunch break each day, don’t reply to emails or calls outside of hours.Some of our clients at Deane & Co now put in strict boundaries and openly take one day off a week. On this day they don’t reply to emails (unless the situation is urgent) and their success continues. If anything, this client argues (and we’re inclined to agree) that it enhances their ability to be successful as they’re giving themselves adequate time to recharge and restore.
#3 Switch Off
The best way to be a winner in business and in life is to rejuvenate body and mind, which means a good nights’ sleep. And vital to good sleep if switch off technology, social media, the laptop and cleansing the bedroom of all electronic gear. Consider social media-free weekends: Tim Ferriss switches off his phone every Saturday unapologetically.
#4 Prioritise
Take a cold hard look at how you’re spending your precious time across the different categories that matter to you, whether that’s Family, Eating Well, Exercising, Down Time, or Being Social. If you’re finding that all your time is caught up in business and busyness consider where your main priorities truly lie. Upping your wellbeing only help performance, so spending time on them is an investment in business too.
#5 Delegate
To work less you need to do less, so think strategically about how you can get things off your plate. If your business is like your baby, at some stage you need to let it grow and develop. Trust and work with others. Invest time in good people and then delegate to free up your own time and do the things you truly love and are good at. If you suck at accounting or graphic design, it’s time to hand those things over to people who excel at them so you can have the bandwidth to do what you do best.
In a world where technology is as much a part of your daily ritual as your toothbrush, digital really is a girl’s best friend. From the moment we wake up our days are dominated by interactions with apps, programs and devices, modern accessibilities that most of us couldn’t imagine living without.
Not only has the digital era redefined the meaning of convenience, ongoing innovations in technology have also established new and continually expanding job markets, in turn creating a wealth of novel career paths.
One woman who has paved her professional journey in the rise of the tech revolution is Margarita Camus, Digital Innovation Lead at Queensland Urban Utilities. A regular guest speaker and contributor within the digital innovation, marketing and technology industries, Camus knows more than a thing or two about the ever-evolving digital landscape.
Here, we speak to her about everything a tech-savvy woman needs to know about building a career in the digital landscape.
Women in Digital: What does the digital era mean to you?
Margarita Camus: The digital era is the new way of life. As a digital professional it’s about constantly navigating the ever-changing industry so we can make sure we’re meeting customers’ expectations, creating efficiencies and adding value.
WID: How does digital affect your day-to-day?
MC: Digital is all around us, and is especially engrained in my life as a tech professional. I wake up to an alarm on my smartphone, use a smart toothbrush that syncs with my phone, and tell my Google Home to play my favourite morning playlist – all before I’ve had breakfast!
That being said, when I get home from work it’s important for me to put my phone down and enjoy a meal, spend quality time with my family and friends, or make it to a yoga class. Digital can make a very positive impact on a person’s life, but at the end of the day we are still human and need to know when to disconnect and be present.
WID: Throughout your career you have worked in digital strategy, digital marketing and project management for a diverse range of brands across different industries. What has working across these different sectors taught you about the flexibility of digital marketing?
MC: I have been lucky enough to work on incredible projects with some of the world’s biggest brands, including Nestle and UNIQLO. Working for one of Australia’s largest water companies is an incredible challenge and I’m really enjoying working in a more innovation-focused digital role [where] I get to push the boundaries and explore new technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and bots, to see how they can add value to our customers’ digital experience.
Each brand you work with can have a completely different approach to digital, and it’s been invaluable to my career to have a wide breadth of experience; I think getting digital experience across a range of industries is one of the best things you can do early in your career.
WID: What are the most important professional skills required to thrive in the digital era?
MC: I would say the best digital professionals genuinely love technology, have curious personalities, enjoy learning and want to solve complex problems. Digital is constantly changing and you have to keep up with new technological advancements and user trends that change almost on a daily basis, so it’s not something you can do without a significant time investment.
WID: In 2014, Queensland Urban Utilities introduced a ‘Women in Leadership’ Group to promote and harness the potential of women within the organisation. Can you tell us more about how Queensland Urban Utilities is currently working towards improving female representation in the digital realm?
MC: Joining the Women in Digital pledge represents our commitment to supporting diversity within digital teams at Queensland Urban Utilities. We are also involved in other initiatives, including Work180 and Diversity Council of Australia, which promote diversity across the organisation.
I’m very proud to say our digital team is gender balanced and we have tailored sourcing strategies to attract top digital talent from all industries, backgrounds and sectors.
WID: In the digital realm, do you feel there are currently equal opportunities for both men and women?
MC: It’s widely acknowledged that diverse teams are more productive and profitable and it’s great to see more organisations recognising this and pushing this movement, especially in the digital industry, which can often be very male dominated. It’s not just the right thing to do, but organisations will be left behind if they don’t prioritise diversity.
Diversity is more than just [about] gender. There are a range of other factors that organisations need to consider including diversity of ethnicity, socioeconomic status, language, religion, sexual orientation, and geographical area. I also think diversity of experiences and viewpoints are important, as it provides more holistic ways of looking at organisational challenges.
WID: What role do you think analogue communication plays in our digital world? Do you feel there are some business practices and forms of communication that cannot be digitised?
MC: Absolutely – at the end of the day digital isn’t just about technology or processes, at its core it’s really about people. I’m passionate about events like hackathons, as they provide a great opportunity to break down silos and encourage diverse teams to think about digital challenges in new ways. The magic behind a hack happens through human interaction. Plus, they are great fun!
WID: What do you love most about what you do?
MC: I love working with a passionate team, and working for an industry that does so much for our community and environment. I’m supported by an incredible team that believes in my ideas and constantly encourages me to push boundaries. It’s really refreshing.
WID: What piece of advice would you give to women who aspire to work in the digital realm?
MC: I’d encourage them to build a great network and find a mentor to support them on their professional journey. There are so many digital events and activities across Australia that can help you to connect with like-minded people.
WID: What’s one app you can’t live without?
MC: There are a few! I recently converted to using an Apple watch and I really enjoy the activity tracker to keep me active. I also plan my life on Evernote and couldn’t live without it.
It wasn’t all that long ago that seeking part-time work was like hanging a sign across your LinkedIn profile saying “not that interested in my career.” Not only was there a salary penalty but promotions suddenly became “unavailable” and career-enhancing projects would disappear like a puff of smoke.
But in 2007, Tim Ferriss forced the world to take a look at the way we all workwith his international bestseller “The Four Hour Workweek.” No longer was there a direct link between hours worked and commitment and success.
The flow-on effect has been slow in coming but is now picking up steam. Finally, like a shy little sister at the dance, part-time work is stepping out of shadows and presenting herself as a powerful career tool.
All over the world, millions of dollars are flooding into part-time and flexible work in 2018 as both employers and employees catch on to its advantages.
But have the tables turned so much that part-time work now actually boost your career?
In many cases yes. And for women in digital, it’s a “hell yes!”
So let’s take a look at six specific ways you can use part-time work to skyrocket your career.
1. Use job-sharing to make you part of an unbeatable package.
By developing a strategic job-share partnership, you can take you from a “maybe” candidate for a stretch job to a “must have.”
By matching your skills with someone similar but complimentary, you can potentially double the expertise, experience and skill sets you bring to a role. It also means that when and if the need arises, there is the ability to scale up rapidly (e.g. for a launch/end of financial year/time-sensitive report).
Increasingly – job sharing is a thing. And for senior, well-paid and challenging roles.
Companies are becoming open to hiring senior people on a flexible basis, according to recruitment firm Timewise.
“The British company surveyed 200 local senior managers and found that two out of five would consider hiring candidates for a senior role as part of a job-share. It also estimated that 770,000 high-income earners in Britain now work part-time, an increase of 5.7% on the previous year.
There are no losers in this scenario and big wins for innovative employees.
2. Use the flexibility of part-time work allows to develop skills in new areas
Very often, even the best full-time jobs involve using the same skill set over and over. I kind of rinse and repeat. Sure, you may have mastered the skills required but once you have done that a plateau can set in.
That’s what happened to Tracey – a coder in Sydney.
“When I first started my job
Part-time work, by its very nature, frees you up for things other than your primary job.
Spend it to upskill in new areas that can take you in a whole different career direction.
3. Get your foot in the door at an up and coming company.
Once you have a few years experience, you expect a certain salary – and that’s a good thing.
But what about if your dream company is a bit speculative and can’t afford you at that rate?
Easy.
Negotiate a part-time contract to get your foot in the door.
4. Make more money
This may sound counter-intuitive, but sometimes, working part-time can mean you end up bringing in more money.
If, for example, you take on a 30 hour a week gig and a 15 hour a week gig, your total income might exceed a full-time salary.
5. Be available to last minute and short-term opportunities
By its nature, part-time jobs mean you are free to dabble in small, cool and/or one-off projects.
Who knows, maybe that small gig you pick up might lead to you being the next big thing in digital in a few years.
And finally…
6. Part-time work can make you happy – and that makes you a far better company asset.
Here’s what the article said: “A recent study by economists at the University of Warwick found that happiness led to a 12% spike in productivity, while unhappy workers proved 10% less productive. As the research team put it, “We find that human happiness has large and positive causal effects on productivity. Positive emotions appear to invigorate human beings.”
If you can find your work/life balance that works for you, you’ll be far better and your job – and a much more valued employee.
Shawn Anchor, the author of The Happiness Advantage, has found that the brain works much better when a person is feeling positive. At those times, individuals tend to be more creative and better at solving problems.
Kathy Wilson from Elite Reputationsgets women great part-time jobs. She knows that starting a job search can push everyone single, insecure button you have and she has a plan for you to follow that is simple and easy and will get you a new job in 4 weeks or less. And she’s released a course called “The World’s Most Real Guide to getting a part-time job that isn’t crap and pays what you deserve“.
Many small to medium business owners have seemingly bigger fish to fry when it comes to marketing than developing a brand voice for their business. However, something as simple as what you say and how you say it could be the difference between many and few conversions.
What is Brand Voice?
Brand voice is an ostensibly grandiose concept but it can actually be make or break for your marketing campaign. Simply, your brand voice is what tells your brand’s story – the personality of your brand. It’s what keeps your brand consistent and plausible through style and tone but, most importantly, it’s what differentiates you from your competitors. Your brand voice is applicable across all content streams, including (but not limited to) blogs, email marketing, social media, website content and digital advertising.
How will a clear Brand Voice help my business?
There are a number of ways your brand voice can benefit your marketing and your business as a whole by inspiring interaction, engagement and customer relationships. Let’s take a look at the top reasons to establish and employ a brand voice:
Establish Brand Identity
With a solidly established brand voice you can give readers an instant understanding of what your brand is all about, purely through the way you communicate. By personifying your brand (thinking of your brand as a person), you can find a way to encapsulate the values of your business in the style and tone of your content. Are you passionate but relaxed? Lovable but cheeky? Firm but approachable? Try to choose contrasting traits to give your brand voice more depth.
It’s important not to pick too many adjectives when describing your voice. If you do, you dilute the strength of the words that encompass your brand’s values most effectively. Aim to only use three or four adjectives when describing your tone and style of communication. This not only preserves the power of your voice but makes it clear to those using it.
Reach the Right Consumers
Your brand voice gives you a rich understanding of how to address your consumers. Knowing how to speak to your target audience will help attract more qualified consumers and, as a result, maximise your conversions.
For example, if your business is selling bicycles for children, the audience will be vastly different to a business that sells health insurance to under 25s. The bicycle store will be targeting parents, so their voice may be playful yet authoritative to demonstrate that the brand knows how to have fun but pays close attention to safety. On the other hand, the health insurance broker speaking to young adults may take a more comedic approach to be relatable to a youthful audience. There is no use in the bicycle store or the insurance broker employing a rigid tone of voice as it doesn’t appeal to either target market.
Gain Trust
Just as sending mixed or scattered messages can be detrimental to a romantic relationship, the same can be said about the marketing messages sent by your brand. You can avoid inconsistency in your communication by setting out clear brand voice guidelines. This not only improves the interaction your potential clients have with your brand but it also stimulates trust. Consistency implies stability and dependability, which are traits that all consumers look for in a brand.
Brands who know who they are and the value they provide to their market are the most successful because they appear trustworthy. Think Nike, Apple, Coca Cola – these brands all have a strong and identifiable brand voice. Just because your business isn’t a multi-million-dollar company, doesn’t mean the same tactics won’t benefit your marketing strategy.
Establish Connections
You want your brand to be relatable to your target audience and speak to them in terms they understand. Business is built on relationships, which is why it’s so important to ensure your customers can and want to connect with your brand. Establish a brand voice that inspires audiences to want to interact with your brand.
Many purchases are made for aspirational reasons. Consumers aspire to look cooler, be slimmer, get a better job and, by ‘talking the talk’ you further tug on the consumer’s aspirational strings. This can drive consumers to develop a relationship with your brand. Satisfying your customer’s expectations in terms of style and tone, not only adds coal to that aspirational fire for purchase but deepens the consumer’s yearn to forge a relationship with your brand.
Recognition
A good brand voice will be instantly recognisable. This doesn’t just improve brand recall, it also helps you stand out amongst a crowded market. If you communicate with your consumers in a memorable way, you have a higher chance that potential customers will remember and recognise your brand just from your tone of voice. Being recognisable and familiar to audiences is a high priority in marketing and can be the molecular difference that makes you a sale.
Once you have something to say and a way to say it, the marketing world is your oyster!
With a strong background in creativity, Jen has found her niche in digital marketing. As the senior content creator for the ASX-listed Melbourne IT Group, Jen is responsible for branded content across all subsidiary businesses. Her flair for writing is matched by her passion for sharing knowledge and she is driven to produce digital content that is useful to business owners and marketers alike.
To be big, you need to think big. Canva, the hugely successful online design platform empowering everyone to unleash their creativity and design anything, is doing just that. In four short years, it’s grown from a small Sydney start-up to a $1 billion valuated business — and according to Liz, Head of PR and Communications, Canva, the journey has only just begun!
With 250+ innovators propelling this newly crowned “tech unicorn” into its future, we asked Liz about the business’s latest achievements and what it’s like to be part of the Canva team.
What was the team’s reaction to the new $1 billion valuation and $40 million round of funding?
This new funding round is a great vote of confidence for our vision to empower everyone to design anything and publish anywhere. No matter what you’re creating, we want Canva to be the one-stop place that makes the whole experience seamless.
Our achievements so far have given everyone even more motivation for the huge journey ahead — everyone here is super excited to play a huge role in it!
What helped the team achieve success so quickly?
One of our values is to “Set Crazy Big Goals and Make Them Happen”. While chasing after them can be intimidating, it pushes you to try harder and dream even bigger. Without this value, our most recent achievements and projects such as Canva Print, Canva for Android and Canva Animations wouldn’t have happened. And, we wouldn’t have helped millions of people all over the globe collectively create 400 million designs since launch!
How is this new funding going to help Canva achieve the rest of its “crazy big goals”?
Just recently, we launched in 100 languages, which brings us one step closer to making our product accessible to everyone. This new funding will enable us to implement even more enhancements and give us the ability to scale, so we can bring Canva to more people around the world.
Our number one focus is creating a product that users continue to love, while scaling our team and culture — this chapter is definitely the most fun!
How does it feel to work in a place where innovation and breaking the boundaries is at its core?
I’m incredibly lucky to be surrounded by super smart people, all of whom share the same big dreams and plans for Canva — especially our CEO, Melanie Perkins.
She is one of the most visionary, yet down-to-earth and approachable CEOs I’ve ever worked with. She leads by example, setting a company culture and approach to teamwork that really sets Canva apart. When you see someone as dedicated as Melanie — always willing to roll up their sleeves and help out — it’s hard not to get infected by her drive for success!
Speaking of success, what helped you achieve yours?
Perseverance, bravery and learning to deal with negative feedback positively so you can forge ahead with your new learnings. This also means having a strong locus of control — you need to understand what you can control and accept what you can’t.
Also being willing to do the grunt work despite what your title says.
Lastly, where do you see the future of online design platforms and Digital Marketing going?
We continue to see a strong trend toward visual communication. Marketers will have to continue to explore new visual ways of getting people’s attention. This is why I think the trend for more personalisation will continue to grow. We’re already seeing super tailored video content become the norm. It’s that personal touch that makes all the difference.
Whether it’s creating marketing collateral or a killer presentation, the Canva team is continually pushing the boundaries to provide the best experience for all members of their design community. With no dream too big, they are well on their way to achieving even more success locally and on a global scale.
This article was contributed by our star blogger, Phyllida Yeo. Phyllie is a driven digital marketer based in Brisbane. Since she started her career in a graduate program, she has developed a passion for all things digital. Whether it’s content marketing, search marketing or simply getting inspired by others, she enjoys building her skills across all areas of the industry. She is currently a Digital Marketing Coordinator at Signet.
Read more interesting stories on Inspiring Women in Digital here.
To a casual observer, it might seem consultants spend an excessive time on PowerPoint; re-sizing and aligning boxes, re-arranging slides and re-editing tag lines. We’re known for creating ‘pretty presentations’.
Not only that, most people are terrible at it. ‘Death by PowerPoint’ is all too real and common—painful to read, even worse to listen to and unfortunately too easy to do.
Alas, beautiful PowerPoints do exist and are a pleasant harmony of structural and graphical design. And of course, they are existential to the consulting way of life. We (defending all consultants on the planet) inherently believe that PowerPoint is the ultimate tool for crafting compelling stories and framing important messages.
What most people don’t understand is that a PowerPoint presentation is (or should be at least be) an extremely concise showcase of months and months of client deliverables. Every interview, meeting, data analysis and research is turned into insights—so that only the most relevant knowledge makes it to the client in a nutshell. Not forgetting, the client sponsor is clearly an extremely busy, BUSY person and has no time for consultant bullshit, so it’s best to get to the point quickly.
This means the initial ‘information dump’ of 500 slides from all the work the team produced will eventually dwindle down to 10 slides. The client only wants to see the tip of the iceberg, which is the most important part anyway (likened to the 80/20 Pareto Principle).
In all respects, an impeccable PowerPoint presentation is clearly more complicated than most would think. Here are some important structural and graphical design considerations:
Structural Design
The message to the PowerPoint is key. What are you trying to achieve? What is the intent of the audience? The Pyramid Principle is a framework used to communicate the key message effectively and early in the presentation.
How do you use it?*
Structure the communication as a pyramid, presenting the main message first.
Develop the rest of the pyramid to support the main message, in ever greater detail.
Use topic sentences to tell the story mapped by the pyramid.
Why use it?
The main message, or the answer to the problem, is what the client wants to hear first, so it belongs up front.
People absorb information more easily when they know why they are receiving the information, and the main message creates that context. Stories are easier to remember.
Graphical Design
Now that we’ve covered sequencing and story-telling around main messages, we can focus on the singular frame.
Probably the most important element of each slide is the ‘Governing Thought’ title. The ‘Governing Thought’ title refers to an action statement which communicates the storyline of the slide in a short and understandable way. If necessary, a tag line may be required to describe a diagram or a set of points in the frame.
Of course, there are other important graphical considerations—some would consider almost “fanatical”…
Consistency is king. Use the same font, bullet, line, box, figure style and color throughout the presentation.
Use sober colors for a more professional look
Increase spacing between text to make it easier to read slide
Avoid use of clip art illustrations. Use simple illustrations to give a more professional look
Put conclusions below graphs
Never use shape effects*
Pick PowerPoint apart (say that 5 times in a row!) and you’ll begin to appreciate how subtle considerations in structural and graphical will alter the message. Beyond everything, we need to be constantly mindful of the ‘time-poor’ audience that want clear, relevant and logical answers…but don’t want to think too much about it either. That’s what consultants are for; to do the thinking, problem-solving, filtering, simplifying, tinkering, magic and wrapping it all up like a neatly-wrapped present.
*References made from Accenture 2013 Consulting 101
Sejal is a management consultant at Accenture with a keen interest in design and technology. She’s fascinated by design as a framework for creating meaningful human interractions with digital products, from AI, blockchain, e-commerce, social media tools and more. When she’s not in an office, you’ll find her tucked away in coffee shops eating “brunch food”, brainstorming for her next post and drawing stick figures as accompanying illustrations for the blog.
How do we get more women investing? The economic reality women tend to face is full of gaps – super, wages, investing – and part of closing them involves gaining the knowledge and tools necessary for tackling the inequality.
It’s why we’re developing a series aimed at inspiring women to invest in their financial future (and in turn, themselves) by looking to others who are already on that journey.
I’ll be sharing my own experiences in finance to kick things off, detailing 4 things I would tell my 24-year-old self.
15+ years in financial markets taught me a lot about myself, and has helped develop the investing mindset I have today. While learning along the way is part of the fun, these are the things I wish I knew from the get-go:
1. Find your passion and pursue it
I’m a big believer in doing what you are passionate about, not what others say or think you should do. Haven’t quite figured it out yet? That’s okay, just never stop searching.
I’ve seen too many friends make life decisions, such as choosing courses and careers paths, based on what their families think.
They almost always end up with regrets.
When it comes to investing, I’ve learnt the same principle applies – invest in what you find interesting, because you’ll be naturally motivated to learn more and become well-versed in whatever it may be.
If you can align your passions and beliefs with what you’re investing in, it’s going to be a far less uncertain and stressful ride.
2. It’s good to take risks sometimes
At 24, I couldn’t possibly picture myself quitting an amazing job in investment management to go overseas and pursue my travel dreams (let alone stay there for nearly 4 years), then leave an established career in investment banking to found a start-up.
If you asked anyone who knew me at the time, they would probably say it wasn’t in my DNA. Fast forward a decade or so, (eek, I’ve just given away my age!) I’ve discovered that taking on these risks, which I now see as opportunities, has only led to positive outcomes.
If you can overcome the fear of failure; the experience gained is priceless.
“You’re unlikely to regret decisions you make, and more likely to regret decisions you don’t make.”
I’m not saying quit what you’re doing and jump on the latest fad, or try to double down on your life savings at the casino. But rather strive to develop a healthy relationship with risk – it can be quite rewarding.
Let’s take the stock market as an example. Numerous studies have suggested a major factor influencing a woman’s likelihood to invest is they fear it’s too risky.
However, once the fear is overcome, research has shown women tend to outperform their male counterparts – partly for the very reason they don’t enter markets in the first place. The research data (collected by Fidelity Investments) also showed that while men are more likely to make trades, which means trading fees eat away at their portfolios:
“Women assume less risk, such as not loading up entirely on equities. They also invest more in vehicles like target-date funds, whose automatic allocations make for smarter diversification”
I thought being in a career surrounded by men had changed my perception of risk over the years – turns out perhaps it was in my DNA after all.
3. Start investing early & think long term
Compound interest is a wonderful thing. It’s simple math we’re taught in school (if we’re lucky), that if I had fully appreciated at the time, I would have started investing sooner and started building wealth early on.
The beauty of it is you can start small, and watch compounding work its magic over time – supplementing it with a simple monthly savings plan based on what you can afford.
A close second behind compounding is possessing a long-term mindset. The share market will have its ups and downs, and unless you pride yourself in being a successful day trader, just let your investments build up over longer periods.
It’s your long-term mindset that breeds superhero-like qualities according to the Fidelity Investments study:
“If you want to invest like a wonder woman, that means shifting to a long-term focus, saving more up front and giving up on trying to time the market with brilliant trades.”
While it’s not gender that drives performance, there’s no harm in embracing your natural tendencies when they happen to work in your favour.
Don’t be hard on yourself if your long-term thinking hasn’t infiltrated your investing mindset yet. One of the key findings from ‘Enabling Change: A Fresh Perspective on Women’s Financial Security’research report revealed:
“Equal numbers of men and women (around one in two) say they were taught about managing finances at an early age. But the situation is very different when it comes to investing. Only around one third of women have been taught about the benefits of long-term investing when they were young, with lasting effects on their behaviour and financial wellbeing.”
Take it into your own hands and have a long-term plan as early on as you can. The difference between putting away money for investing at 25 compared to 35 is stark.
4. Invest in what makes sense to you
As a young fund manager, I was encouraged to ‘put my money where my mouth is’ by investing my own personal money in the stocks I recommended. This taught me two things.
You should only invest in what you know about and believe in
You can spend all your time reading, but you learn so much more by taking part in investing yourself
Like with anything, learning the theory is good a foundation, but I found the best way to learn was through practical experience.
People always say the fastest way to learn a language is to spend time in that country, and immerse yourself in the culture.
Want to learn Spanish? Spend some time living in Spain. Want to learn about investing? Why not start investing? It’s a piece of invaluable advice I live by to this very day.
You should never settle for less than having full transparency over knowing what you’re investing in and why (especially when someone else manages it for you).
It can be as straight forward as truly understanding or believing in a long-term investment trend like e-commerce, or knowing a little bit about every global stock you own.
You might be surprised by how much you’ll already know about a stock given you’re probably using their products or services every day. That iPhone you’re using is made by Apple (a listed company on the stock exchange: NASDAQ), and that item you ordered in one-click was from Amazon (also listed on the same exchange).
If you stick to what you’re familiar with, you already believe in or are passionate about, it will be less tempting to give in to the latest get-rich-quick scheme or investment fad.
And whatever you do, just don’t forget to learn, invest and grow. Plus have some fun along the way.
Jade Ong is a Co-Founder of AtlasTrend, an online investment platform that makes it easy for anyone to learn and invest in trends transforming our world. Jade has over 15 years of experience in financial markets including roles at Macquarie and IAG Asset Management.
An attempt to use design thinking could be likened to experiencing the peak of your professional imposter syndrome. I mean surely, somebody will eventually figure out that you have no idea what the final outcome will be of the session. All you have is some butchers’ paper, post-it notes, the people sitting in the room and a hope that the session won’t fall completely off the rails.
The reality is, using design thinking (rather than just reading about it) is messy and awkward. In fact, it can be a huge risk; but it pays to work through the initial awkward mess and focus on clear intended outcomes rather than worrying about the reactions of participants.
The hardest part of the process is usually convincing the team to congregate for 1 hour during the week to discuss how they might ‘align priorities’ and ‘build a roadmap going forward’—of course, with the intention of using design thinking methods. On my most recent project, I knew the client would not immediately be receptive of a “design thinking session” where “everybody gets to write on post-it-notes”. I could only imagine the reaction would be disappointing and awkward at the very least.
Undoubtedly, it was going to take a lot more than just the promise of a colourful room filled with post-it notes and ‘innovative ideas’ to convince the client to participate in a design thinking session.
To help you relate or empathise, I’ve illustrated the key 5 awkward phases that goes through the mind of a ‘facilitator’ planning to run a design thinking session.
STAGE 1: THE REALISATION
You’re at a critical point of the project. You’ve found the ideal moment where you know the team could benefit from brainstorming their ideas, understanding the problem and context, or gathering feedback to come to a shared understanding. I like to think of this as the problem or ‘tension’ for which Design Thinking methods can be incredibly useful.
STAGE 2: THE ‘DREADED ASK’
Now you need to muster up the courage to tell the client that you’re intending to gather everyone in a room to try some ‘methods’…
STAGE 3: THE ‘WHAT WAS I THINKING’ MOMENT
You’ve sent the meeting invite to the team with a standard agenda which no makes no reference to Design Thinking. Nobody knows that you’re frantically sifting through 10–15 Design Thinking methods to construct the best recipe for the session to achieve its outcomes. You suddenly hate yourself for organising the session in the first place and end up drafting back-up slides in case it fails. You start to have dreams of the client team giving you disgusted looks when you explain to them “you can only write one idea per post-it-note with a black sharpie”.
STAGE 4: THE COMPROMISE
You think you’ve found the perfect recipe at least twice. But of course, you’re bound to wake up in the middle of the night and realise the recipe is shit, scrapping the recipe and starting again. The session is tomorrow so you settle for some ‘safe’ options—you think to yourself, a bit of rose-thorn-bud and affinity mapping is not overly time-consuming and not outrageously ‘creative’, so you decide that’s the bare minimum you’ll do. Of course, you know there’s a lot of other great tools you’ll have up your sleeve which you plan to use spontaneously if the session goes relatively smoothly. Although at this stage, you’ll be happy if the client doesn’t fire you on the spot.
STAGE 5: THE AWKWARD INTRODUCTION
You’ve finally made it to the session and you’re excited. You truly believe the tools you’ve prepared will help the team understand the situation better and come to a shared sense of clarity for an approach going forward. Only thing, the team is visibly confused when they come in with their laptops and notepads to a room full of post-notes and sharpies. Deep breath. You tell them what you’ll plan to do today, doing your best to ignore mixed their expressions of excitement, boredom…and of course, a heavy air of awkwardness and scepticism.
So now we’ve established the REAL emotional journey of design thinking in its 5 phases, here are my few simple tips on helping to overcome the inherent awkwardness of it all.
Have a clear intention and vision of the outcome: Understand what stage of the project you’re in and what outcome is desired. Then find the methods which will help to achieve the outcome and communicate this intent to the participants.
Know your methods, and practice it alone or with colleagues: Do the training, speak to experts, watch videos and tutorials.
Avoid using the word ‘Design’ or ‘Design Thinking’: Unless the client reads the Harvard Business Review or Forbes, its generally a fairly vague buzz word which a lot of people don’t really respect. People who believe in it respect it, but unfortunately, you can’t assume everybody trusts the idea of design thinking. Best to avoid freaking people out.
Have faith in the methods: If you doubt the methods, so will the client or the audience that is participating in the session. Be enthusiastic and engage everyone in the room so they all feel included in the process.
PR seems to be the golden child of a new business marketing arsenal. Send product to waiting journalist, get published, and watch the sales roll in, right? Sure, if you have a sizeable advertising budget to pair with that press release, but public relations in real life is a much longer game, and something that requires consistency, relationships and a little creativity!
This article is specifically for new businesses starting out, but the ‘rules’ can be applied to any business that’s just starting out their relationship with the media.
Firstly, when it comes to working with PR, if you’re still at the minimum viable product (MVP) stage, a fully-fledged PR campaign is unlikely to be the best use of your limited funds, time and resources. Journalists are looking for wins, runs on the board, case studies – the fact that you’ve launched often isn’t enough of a hook to grab their attention. At Deane & Co we have a saying, “Invest in getting your house in order.” That is to say, if you are about to open a bricks and mortar store you don’t throw open the doors, invite people in to look and shop with empty shelves. In this crucial time when you’re still working to prove your concept, spend the time getting your house in order with these simple steps.
1. Know what the purpose of PR is for your business
Public relations, specifically media relations, isn’t necessarily the thing that will make your cash register ring. PR is often more about brand awareness, introducing new customers to what you do, building relationships with journalists, influencers, customers… Don’t go into a PR campaign necessarily expecting a huge increase in sales. It takes repeated mentions of your brand and product across a variety of channels to encourage customers to make the leap to purchase, and relying on PR alone for sales is going to leave you disappointed.
2. Put your best foot forward
Make sure all of your other marketing and promotional channels are on point. Get your website looking beautiful, have professional images of your product, or yourself if you’re selling a service, make sure your social media channels are being regularly updated, and that you can actually handle it if sales do pick up when a journalist presses publish.
3. Create a 1-page general media release or fact sheet
Should media come knocking, you’re going to want an easy to access one page media release at the ready. It shouldn’t be a novel, but it should give readers the who, what, when, where, why and how of your business. At the very least it is brilliant practice at being able to succinctly describe what you do. Add a few quotes from yourself or your co-founder, include examples of the problem you solve, who the journalist should contact if they want more information and a link to hi-res images they can use in a story. Which leads me to the next point…
4. Have a library of images
Headshots and general lifestyle images of your product and/or service will be invaluable should you embark on a PR campaign. Aim for images that are a minimum of 1MB in size and don’t rely on the standard “founder standing against a wall in branded t-shirt” pose. Think outside the box and perhaps get the photographer to photograph you at your favourite cafe. Get a variety of images in portrait and landscape. The same applies to product shots. Lots of publications, both print and digital will only want deep etched (white background) images so they can create larger composite images with other brands. They may also want campaign shots, but it pays to have both easily accessible.
5. Know 5 things you could confidently talk about that are happening in your industry
Sometimes PR is talking about the bigger picture things influencing your industry. Think about and write down five things you could talk about relevant to your industry but doesn’t put a megaphone up to your startup and says, “Me, me, me.” For example, are you able to talk about what it takes to source an overseas manufacturer, have you started a business in a traditionally male-dominated arena, or are you seeing travel trends influence how consumers book and spend their leisure time? All of these are ways you can promote your experience and as a by-product your startup.
6. PR isn’t just about media
Public Relations can also include events, activations, working with influencers, community building activities and more – media isn’t the be all and end all for promoting your brand, particularly as publishers are becoming more aspirational and less a catalogue of potential purchases.
7. Think outside the box
The traditional media release really isn’t the way to get attention any more. Journalists get so many across their desks, they often don’t have time to read or respond. Instead, try emailing a journo with a very brief intro email, detailing the 3-5 hooks or headlines they might be able to write out of your story. Alternatively, send them something tangible – a colourful jewellery brand might send a jar of bright lollies with a ring hidden inside!
When working with startups, we strongly advise our clients to consider where they will get the most value for their money. If you’re chasing sign ups to your new app or really need to speak directly to people within a niche industry, the financial investment of engaging a PR agency or contractor in your early days might be better invested in, for example, engaging a business development manager, a digital marketing strategy or similar. Food for thought!
If ‘influencers’ was the marketing buzzword of 2017, ‘micro influencers’ is the next big thing.
The platform? Instagram, usually. The content? Less polished, more organic. And if you’re thinking you need to shill out thousands of dollars to work with influencers, think again! But first…
What exactly is a ‘micro influencer’?
Let’s break it down: a social media influencer is someone who shares their personal style, taste, opinions, or recommendations to an audience that follows their profile.
They’re storytellers. Sharers. Their audience relates to them, trusts them and eagerly interacts with them.
56% of respondents are more likely to purchase products after they’ve seen them featured in a relatable or positive photo from other customers (Olapic)
While there’s no magic number that makes you a ‘micro’ influencer, a social following of 3,000 to 10,000 is a good ballpark to play in.
If you think this kind of following is smallfry, you’re probably associating the ‘influencer’ label with the likes of Itsines, Hembrow, or Morello.
If this kind of captive audience seems lofty, this may be your first foray into the world of influencer marketing. You’re in for a wild ride.
Quality vs Quantity
So, you’re the tribute tasked with bringing an influencer campaign into the marketing mix. Congratulations! Be prepared to hear something like:
“We should work with {insert influencer name here} because they have a million followers.”
A million followers must mean a million people seeing our brand, which means more sales, right?
Unlikely. Less is more when it comes to smart influencer marketing. Not to mention micro influencers cost a fraction of the cost to work with!
When bigger isn’t better
Influencer A has 500,000 followers
Influencer B has 50,000 followers
Influencer C has 5,000 followers
How do you choose who to work with? It’s time to do a little digging.
You’re going to look at three things: their followers, the engagement on their posts (likes and comments), and what people are actually saying in the comments.
82% of consumers are ‘highly likely’ to follow a recommendation made by a micro–influencers (Experticity)
A bigger following usually means a broader following. Take a look at who’s following the account: Where are they? Are they ‘real’ accounts? Are they mostly male or female?
If your target market is women aged 25-45 in Brisbane with kids, the locally based ‘mummy blogger’ with 5,000 followers is likely to have a greater influence than the Sydney beauty account with 50,000 followers.
It’s all about engagement
Engagement should be the number one metric you use to measure the success of your influencer marketing activity.
What do we mean when we say engagement? It’s the amount of interaction on a post divided by the audience size (the influencer’s following).
To keep it simple, let’s say a ‘like’ is worth 1 and a comment is worth 3. If a post has 200 likes and 30 comments, that’s 312. The influencer we’re looking at has 5,000 followers:
312 / 5000 x 100 = 6.24%
Again, there’s no magic number to determine a ‘good’ engagement percentage. Generally speaking, 2-3% is a decent engagement, 4-5% is good, and anything in excess of 10% is great.
Finally, take a gander at past sponsored or partner content the influencer has posted. What are their followers saying? Are they interested in the product?
Above all else, you want to work with influencers who make an effort to create authentic content that is in line with their personal aesthetic, giving their honest ‘thumbs up’ about your brand to their audience.
Find these influencers, and you’ve uncovered the true value of influencer marketing.
Ashton is a digital marketer and content specialist based in sunny Brisbane. She gets her kicks developing content strategies, measuring social media ROI and ensuring every communication touchpoint is ‘on brand’. As a classically trained journalist, Ashton harnessed the power of words to segue into marketing and has never looked back, She is currently the Social Media and Content Manager at Youfoodz. Find her here, there and everywhere at @ashtonrigg.
