September 1st we are launching the Survive he Transition training course that will help small business owners know how to make the transition from traditional advertising to digital advertising. Why Did We Create This Course? 20 years ago businesses could advertise effectively with radio, TV, newspaper and using direct mail. In addition you had to have a listing in the phone book. Recently things have changed, and they will continue to at a much faster pace. We no longer use phone books, newspapers are becoming obsolete and advertising on radio and TV is getting more expensive and less effective. We are in the middle of a transition from advertising with traditional media and moving towards the dominance of digital media. We are turning into a digital world and businesses have to use digital media to market and advertise. In the Survive the Transition training classes you will learn how to use digital media and even how to use digital with traditional. We are very excited to announce this training course and have many new classes coming to the course soon. Anyone that buys the training during the month of September, they will have access for all future classes. Thank you for your support. - C. P. Keyser
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Every month I try to set a goal to learn a new skill or industry outside of my normal scope of work. Last September it was Morse code, November was bread making and of course Christmas cookie baking in December. This month my goal is to finally learn everything I can about Bitcoin and crypto currency.
The month of May saw a huge spike in the crypto currency markets and even got a lot of national press, so I decided this would be my thing to learn. I started on the 15th of May and dove right in. First I started with YouTube videos, and then blogs and then I started following the daily price charts and checking in every hour. The first week was just constant learning about the industry and what Bitcoin is and how it works. Basically, Bitcoin is a digital currency that uses encryption to regulate the units and verify the transfer of the money. It is supposed to happen instantly, some issues have risen lately, but the transfer of the money is independent of any central banking system. Bitcoin is just the most popular of over 600 crypto currencies. Aside from Bitcoin, the one that I have found to be most intriguing is Ethereum. Ethereum is like Bitcoin but it’s platform just activated SegWit. It gets too technical for this blog, but the point is Bitcoin isn’t the only crypto to watch. The crypto currency market seems flooded right now and everything from Bitcoin to Ethereum to countless others are seeing all time highs. Despite seeing all-time highs, within 24 hours of this blog being posted, it is still unbelievably early. This is really a true emerging market that could redefine how money is transferred around the world. The market cap for all crypto currencies broke $100 Billion on the 5th of June. That is a drop in the bucket compared to the global economy, but none the less impressive and an indication of the money behind it. Once I dove in and understood more and listened to a ton of really smart people, I decided to start investing myself. I see it as investing because my plan is to hold or HODL as some may say. (Inside joke for crypto currency traders.) I also plan to only invest in Bitcoin and Ethereum to begin with. That was on May 31st and since I got into Bitcoin it has gone up over $500. Ethereum has gone up over $30. The nice thing is, you don’t have to buy an entire Bitcoin for $2,850 to start. You can spend $20 and get .0007 Bitcoin. It makes it easy to invest a little each week. Doing all the research on where to go and who to trust with my Bitcoin purchases, I picked Coinbase. The company is a billion dollar company and just completed another round of funding. They are really growing in the right direction. Currently you can only buy Bitcoin, Ethereum and Litecoin on Coinbase, but since that is really all I am interested in, then it doesn’t matter. I have tried to open an account on Kraken, but it takes weeks to get approved. I was able to buy Bitcoin the same night that signed up for Coinbase. One of the most important things that I learned about crypto currency is the need to protect it. There are only a lifetime total of 21 million Bitcoins available. If you lose a hard drive with all your keys on it or someone hacks your phone, you could lose it all forever. This is the key to investing in any type of crypto, buy a hardware wallet. A hardware wallet is basically a usb thumb drive that is uniquely secure that can allow for you to recover your crypto in the worse types of scenarios. The one that I am trusting and the one that so many in the crypto world use is the Ledger Nano S. It is perfect for holding onto crypto during this major growth period, and it is the best priced one on the market. It is around $65 bucks. If you are looking to get started, you can buy your Bitcoin and Ethereum on Coinbase and then transfer it to yourLedger Nano S for safekeeping. With projections from experts I trust saying that Bitcoin will likely be around $11,500 early next year and Ethereum could be around $1,200 by the end of the year, I couldn’t be more excited about the future of crypto and getting into something this big, this early. So of course, Keyser Media is now accepting Bitcoin and Ethereum for any of our services. Crypto is going to be the future and it is going to be a bumpy ride, but I think it is worth spending some time in understanding if it is right for you to invest. After all, I am a marketer and consultant, not a financial advisor. If you want to join Coinbase, use this link and you and I will both get $10 free Bitcoin. If you want to get a Ledger Nano S, please use this link so I can get a couple of dollars. Thanks for reading and let me know your thoughts about crypto in the comments below. C. P. Keyser Since we kicked off Keyser Media back in April, we have worked with a number of local and national clients. The number one question we get from business owners is how do I track online results? The question is one that I found disconcerting at first because when you market and advertise effectively online, you should be able to track just about everything. You can track unique visits, conversions, earnings per click and even track Facebook users when they land on your websites with the Facebook pixel. The Internet allows you to target and retarget and advertise to extremely tight niches. All the things you can’t do with traditional media you can do online. When businesses use TV, radio or print, they can’t track their results. The goal is to reach as many people as possible. Different channels may reach different masses, but spending $10,000 on a TV schedule or radio schedule will get you a bunch of ads, but they really can’t be tracked. It is incredibly difficult to understand and know if your ad spend got you a positive return on your investment. With digital, tracking and a positive ROI seem to be the number one question for small businesses. I’m curious as to why? If the entire advertising paradigm for the last 70 years has been to spend a lot of money reaching as many people as possible and hope it comes back, why is tracking results the number one issue for small businesses now? The answer could be as simple as understanding the digital evolution. Not only is the ability to market and advertise becoming easier online while being more efficient and targeted, business owners are also evolving. Business owners are quickly becoming aware that their ad dollars can reap massive rewards online that simply are not possible with traditional media. Business owners are realizing that they can track all of their online efforts and with the right understanding and knowledge, they can project growth and sales by using digital media. Small business owners are evolving with the digital age. They are learning that once you get over the initial knowledge hurdles a technical barriers, the Internet can be the greatest asset your business has ever had. What happens when you have been using radio, TV and print for decades to run a successful business, but one day those outlets are gone or don’t deliver anymore? That day is coming and it is coming quickly. Don’t let the Internet scare you. Get past the knowledge curve and start learning how to grow your business online. If you need help or have questions, comment below. - C. P. Keyser We are very excited to announce a new product that Keyser Media is helping bring to market. iWipes are really cool microfiber cleaning cloths that are incredibly efficient. For a limited time you can get one free. Just go here.
Working with the iWipes team has been a great experience. It is wonderful working with businesses that understand the importance of selling online. iWipes is launching with a new website this summer and we can't wait to continue working to market the best microfiber cleaning cloth on the planet. Sometimes things don't go as planned. That isn't always a bad thing. Last month we started Keyser Media and now we are a lot busier than we had planned. Sometimes, when you get busy, you sacrifice some things. We have not posted recently on social media and on our website and that is a big no, no. The trade off is we have picked up a bunch of new clients and have some very exciting projects happening. We are also expanding our team soon. Things are moving fast, and at the end of the day, the most important aspect of our business is following through on what we promise our clients. For us, that has been our focus from the beginning. One of the reasons we are so busy is because we have an ambitious plan for the future. Here is a preview of a few projects that are launching soon. Plus we are launching Season 2 of Fredericksburg Marketing Advice with a few other surprises. We have a lot going on, and we are are very excited about what we have planned for this summer. Keep checking back and thank you for the support.
Comment below if have a project you want to launch. Maybe we can help! There are a lot of businesses that I talk to that are very hesitant to put their ad dollars online. The top two reasons that people are not spending more online is because of past experiences or understanding... or both. There are a lot of people who have been scammed before online. A flashy salesman from the Yellow Pages (Remember them?) walked in one day and sold a web package that didn't do anything for the business. Some bought banner ads and they didn't work out. I also hear, "we buy our own Facebook ads" a lot. Then I ask how they are working and they can't answer definitively. That means they are doing it wrong. Most businesses don't have the knowledge base to navigate the ad options online and even less know how to run campaigns effectively. Just like anything, you need should hire a professional. If you are not getting a positive return on every ad campaign you run, then you are not doing it right. Don't be scared to hire professionals, ideally Keyser Media, to really use your digital advertising dollars wisely. If you take the leap, you will be rewarded.
Today we are talking about branding. A lot of local businesses are not taking advantage of some free ways to brand. In this video we talk about three different ways to brand your business in the Fredericksburg area.
Let me know your thoughts in the comments below. - C. P. Keyser When Zealand, who just turned eight in February, said he wanted to make YouTube basketball videos, we were very excited to help him out. We have been filming his games since he started playing and making some videos, but he wants to get serious about it. As parents we are here to encourage and guide, but not do the work for him. I told him I will film him when he comes to me with an idea and a basic plan. I am helping him organize his thoughts, but this is his channel. His plan is to play in the NBA and we will do whatever is necessary to support him on that path, but we have stressed the importance of learning and turning knowledge and skills into marketable assets. We don't use those words, but he understands the importance of learning and how that relates to income. In one-on-one conversations, I have stressed the importance of a good education. Reggie Miller is one of his favorite NBA commentators, and using Reggie as an example, I told my son of five that Reggie played in the NBA and was great because of his skill. Now, he is able to have a job in the NBA watching games and talking about them because he is educated. In our house we watch a lot of YouTube because we cut cable. One day I explained to my wife how YouTubers make money and I could see Zealand's mind blow in front of my face. It was like he realized how to say his first words. In excitement he said, "You can make money doing YouTube videos?" I smiled and said, "Yes". I already knew what was coming. Zealand loves basketball. He really loves the game and everything about it. His passion for the sport is relentless and now he wants to share that passion with the world. Hoops With Z will be a YouTube Channel with training videos to help other kids get better at basketball. He wants to feature some of his trick shots, game highlights and talk about basketball. One of the features he is working hard to prepare for is Basketball Commentary. We have already told the Z-man that if his channel makes any money, it will go into a savings account for him and his sister. He negotiated Wizards tickets out of it though. He might be pretty good at this business thing after all. Hoops With Z is launching soon. He is very excited. |
AuthorsC. P. Keyser - Entrepreneur, Dad, Author, Digital Marketer, Faithful Creative Mastermind. Archives |