Martha Wood Marketing

03/09/2024

Time is running out, if you've been thinking about booking onto my google business workshop and haven't yet, this is your last chance! It's tomorrow🏃‍♀️

If you're a small business owner looking to boost your local presence, attract more customers and stand out in your community - this ones for you 👉

My upcoming workshop is designed specifically for small business owners with a physical location or those who regularly engage with customers in person. Whether you run a shop, café, gym, estate agency, event space, or any local attraction, this session is tailored to help you grow your business.

Date: Wednesday, 4th September
Time: 6:00 PM start - 7:30 PM
Cost: £12 per person
Location: No-Hands Rest Coffeehouse
🔗 https://www.trybooking.com/uk/events/landing/64863?

Spaces are limited, so book your spot today!

Please note: You'll need to bring a laptop or iPad with access to your business Facebook and Google Business pages ready to go. We will not be covering Google Ads in this workshop.

30/08/2024

There's no sugar coating it, getting a negative review is pretty cr*p 💩

I developed a thicker skin working in a hotel as a receptionist when I first moved to the Lake District in 2013. Dealing with complaints and negative feedback became easier the more I had to deal with it, but I still vividly remember the first time I got yelled at by a guest before promptly running off to have a cry in the toilets 😭

As a business owner, reviews can make or break your business BUT at least with an online review you have the power to step AWAY from the screen and take a breather to compose yourself before responding.

If there's one thing we can all agree on it's that negative reviews are rubbish to receive... BUT they are also a really good opportunity to learn and grow. After all, we're all only human, we all make mistakes, most decent people can recognise and understand this, but it's how you learn from mistakes that can really make a difference.

For my pro tips on how to turn a negative review into a positive experience, head over to my blog ✍️
https://marthawoodmarketing.com/blog/

28/08/2024

I still have places left on my upcoming workshop if you're quick!🏃‍♀️

If you're a small business owner looking to boost your local presence, attract more customers and stand out in your community - this ones for you 👉

My upcoming workshop is designed specifically for small business owners with a physical location or those who regularly engage with customers in person. Whether you run a shop, café, gym, estate agency, event space, or any local attraction, this session is tailored to help you grow your business.

Date: Wednesday, 4th September
Time: 6:00 PM start - 7:30 PM
Cost: £12 per person
Location: No-Hands Rest Coffeehouse

Spaces are limited, so book your spot today via my website ➡️ training page (see comments)

Please note: You'll need to bring a laptop or iPad with access to your business Facebook and Google Business pages ready to go. We will not be covering Google Ads in this workshop.

📸 Photo credit Scott Heleniak

26/08/2024

If you're wondering how the HECK anyone manages multiple social media accounts without going completely bonkers, I'm about to share my worst kept secret with you.

It's the worst kept secret because anyone who talks to me about social media marketing or anything to do with being organised and planning content, I immediately start reeling off all the amazing reasons why they HAVE TO sign up and give this tool a try.

I am talking about Metricool. My not so secret weapon to keeping on top of content scheduling, analytics and reporting. It's not just great for social media managers, but business owners too. You can get a free account with plenty of access to features or upgrade to a paid account to get more fab tools!

Read more on my blog about my favourite social media scheduling tool.

https://marthawoodmarketing.com/social-media-scheduling-tool/

23/08/2024

With 96% of people learning about local businesses online it's SO important to make sure your digital information is up to date. ✅

My takeaway for small biz owners and marketers this month is to remember that most of your potential customers are searching online for credible businesses right now.

Take some time out to look at your Google Business profile (please tell me you have a google business profile!?😅) and check to see if all the information is current and up to date.

Want to learn how to optimise your Google Business Profile and drive more local engagement? Join me at my next workshop which looks at how you can improve your local reach through Google Business and Facebook Groups. DM me for more info!

21/08/2024

Did you get a cheeky little email from me last week? 💌

My August edition of the Three T's Newsletter has made it's way to the inbox of those lovely folks who have signed up!

"What are the Three T's.... is it Taylor Swift, Tea & Treats?" ❌ sadly, not (although that does sound pretty great and now I'm thinking how could I create a business around these 3 things 🤔!)

The Three T's is my monthly newsletter which delivers... a marketing tip, tool and takeaway straight to your inbox in the form of a short and sweet 3 minute read, perfect for the busy professional!

Sign up ready for the next one! ➡️ https://marthawoodmarketing.com/blog/

19/08/2024

Like with anything in life, if you want something to grow, you have to invest in it - whether that be an investment of time and energy or money 🌱

The same is true for marketing, I've been saying this a lot to people lately, the juggle between having the time or the budgets to progress with marketing your business is an important consideration and it has to be right for you and where your business is at right now.

I do the same for my business and often ask myself...
🔹What do I want to achieve?
🔹How fast to do I want to achieve this?
🔹Is this something I can do myself with some training / research?

Investing my own time and energy to see some initial growth in the short term, can often mean that in the mid to long term you generate enough income to be able to justify the budget to hire professional.

It really depends on how QUICKLY you want to see results 📈 Do you agree?

16/08/2024

Super excited to be hosting another mini marketing workshop in September!

If you're a small business owner looking to boost your local presence, attract more customers and stand out in your community - this ones for you! 👉

Join my upcoming interactive workshop designed specifically for small business owners with a physical location or those who regularly engage with customers in person. Whether you run a shop, café, gym, estate agency, event space, or any local attraction, this session is tailored to help you grow your business.

What you'll learn:

✨ Optimize your Google Business profile
Discover how to rank higher on Google Maps and get noticed by people searching for businesses like yours.

✅ Handle negative reviews like a pro
Learn strategies to turn negative feedback into opportunities for growth.

📣Google business events & updates
Stay ahead of the curve by leveraging the latest features and updates from Google Business

🫂Utilize facebook groups
Reach new customers in your target audience by tapping into the power of local Facebook Groups

Date: Wednesday, 4th September
Time: 6:00 PM start - 7:30 PM
Cost: £12 per person
Location: No-Hands Rest Coffeehouse

Don't miss this opportunity to enhance your online presence and attract more local customers.
Spaces are limited, so book your spot today > https://marthawoodmarketing.com/training/

Please note: You'll need to bring a laptop or iPad with access to your business Facebook and Google Business pages ready to go. We will not be covering Google Ads in this workshop.

14/08/2024

One of the top things I hear from small businesses is the challenge of reaching new local people. It’s a common goal and I get it - getting your name out there can be tough!

With Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and 100's of other channels out there, it can be hard to pick where to begin. But one of the BEST channels to help you reach new customers is often neglected... your trusty Google Business Profile!

Your Google Business Profile is one of the most powerful tools to help you reach new people. It’s your digital storefront that’s open 24/7, and when optimised right, it can really help you get noticed by the people searching for businesses like yours.

If you haven’t given your Google profile some love lately, now’s the time! I am running a fab interactive workshop to help businesses improve their local reach with Google Business and Facebook Groups.

This workshop is PERFECT for small business owners with a physical location or businesses who make regular in-person contact with customers. Including but not limited to... shops, cafes, hotels, restaurants, pubs, gyms, PT's, fitness centres, coaches, estate agents, events spaces, wedding venues, museums, local attractions, trades people, activity centres, clubs - the list goes on!

🗓️Wednesday 4th Sept
⏰ 6pm - 7:30pm
👛 £12 per person
🏠 No-Hands Rest Coffeehouse

Full details & book your place > https://marthawoodmarketing.com/training/

A few tweaks can make a world of difference in attracting the customers you're looking for ❤️

13/08/2024

I've been publishing some training workshops recently and am absolutely loving using the Trybooking.com/UK events platform! 🎫

It's a similar platform to Eventbrite but (in my opinion!) MUCH better in terms of marketing options, plus the set up has so many options to personalise your events, add discount codes, auto-emails and much more.

With full integration options to your website, full brand personalisation and a whole host of features to help organise and advertise your events, it's a fantastic option!

It's free for free events and if you have a paid event, the fees are super low AND you can choose to pay them yourself or pass them onto the ticket purchaser.

The UK branch is based in Cumbria, they're super friendly and whilst you can totally crack on and create an account yourself, I recommend getting in touch with [email protected] to arrange a video walk through of all the features so you can really make the most of all the capabilities!

Happy event organising folks x

09/08/2024

Being a woman in business is so tough sometimes.

It’s that time of the month again, where my body feels out of control and I can’t do anything other than rest and give it time.

I honestly don’t know how I would cope being in so much pain with my periods every month if I was in full time employment. At least being self-employed I can try to plan work around my cycle but sometimes I get it wrong and it can be so bloody hard (pun intended!).

I’ve had to cancel talks that I’ve been booked in to give and cancel attending important events because I’m in so much pain.

It’s taking a toll on mental health, something I’ve struggled with in the past. But I’m determined to get to the bottom of it and try to find a solution so we keep pushing on.

In a few days I’ll be back on it again, you’ll probably see me around, my normal happy go lucky self - on it with work and loving life, but I wanted to share this as a little reminder that even when things are seemingly going well, behind the scenes people can still be struggling 🫶 take care of yourselves and if you need to talk, I’m always here.

07/08/2024

07/08/2024

Mentoring has honestly been one of the most rewarding things I've ever done!

Although I am fairly new to the freelance world, I feel so grateful to have had such a positive and successful journey and have learnt an unbelievable amount in the last 2 years.

I have had some fantastic support from business mentors that has undoubtably helped me to make such a success of the business, so I know how valuable it can be to have a fairy godmother in the wings who can help to keep you on the right track!

To now be able to offer this as a service to other freelancers or marketing professionals makes me SO excited and as part of my new website launch, I am delighted to share a case study from one of my fantastic mentoring clients, Little Miss Social Media

Cecile is an amazing 19-year-old entrepreneur from the Lake District, who is pursuing her passion for marketing & social media. She wanted to find a way to help others achieve their dreams and put small businesses on the map through the world of social.

Facing several challenges along the way (as we all do!) Cecile wanted to take charge and get some support from someone who was a little further along their journey looking at topics from attracting new clients to designing her service packages.

It was an absolute pleasure working with Cecile and I can't wait to help more people in this way in the future!

If you'd like to read the full case study and a gorgeous testimonial from Cecile, take a look on my new website here ⬇️
https://marthawoodmarketing.com/portfolio/cecile-clark-little-miss-social-media/

01/08/2024

About last night 😍

Thanks so much to everyone who joined my Canva workshop .hands.rest

It was such a great evening and there was a real buzz in the room with people really getting stuck in!

I can’t wait for my next workshop now 😍🙌

I have 2 coming up in September…

✨ Improving local reach using Google my business & Facebook

✨ Using TikTok to boosting your business

Head to the link in my bio and click training to find out more & book your place!

30/07/2024

I still have a couple of places left on my mini marketing workshop tomorrow evening if you're quick 🏃‍♀️

It's a fab hands on workshop for marketing professionals & small business owners to learn how to create gorgeous graphics on Canva, to help you promote your businesses on social media.

This is a "learn through doing" interactive session.

Please bring your laptop or I-pad, a mouse and set up your free Canva account before you arrive so that you're ready to go!

📆 Wednesday 31st July
⏰ 6pm - 7:30pm
☕ £12 per person *Cuppa included
🔗 https://www.trybooking.com/uk/eventlist/marketingtraining

No-Hands Rest Coffeehouse
K Village Outlet Centre
Unit 26, Kendal LA9 7FH

26/07/2024

Last night I launched my Three T's Newsletter, did you get it? 👀

A super simple, value packed 3 minute read, perfect for the busy professional!

⚒️ 1 Marketing Tool
👩‍🏫 1 Marketing Tip
💡& 1 Takeaway (not the food kind, the "something to mull over" kind. Sorry if that got you excited!)

Three T's to help you with your business marketing!

This was the "Takeaway" included in this months edition ⬇️
Think about your content for social media, blogs, newsletters etc. as if it were an in person conversation…

Are you discussing something relevant to your audience?
Are you presenting it in an interesting and engaging way?
Are you adding a little of your personality?

If not… chances are people won't even read it! Let alone come back for more.

There's SO much content online these days… my takeaway this month is to focus on trying to create interesting conversations around topics in your industry that you get excited about!

The chances are, if you're excited whilst creating it, other people will be engaged when they read it.

Sign up via the link in my comments below to make sure you get next months edition delivered right to your inbox!

25/07/2024

A few months ago the lovely Alex Staniforth approached me to help him to look at creating a "media pack" geared towards collaborating with brands.

Alex is business savvy himself, having built up a following of over 46.3K on social media, having given several TED Talks and key note speeches on topics surrounding mental health, leadership and resilience all over the world! He's a busy man that's for sure so it's no surprise he didn't have the time to design the pack himself.

After a discovery call it was clear that the document would need to be accessible to Alex to tweak in the future, as with any proposal, tailoring something to an individual is key! So we decided the best way forwards was to have a document in Canva which includes all the key information that Alex could tweak and adapt in future.

I created a 9 page document which covered all the key things that a brand might want to know before taking on a partnership or collaboration with Alex. From his achievements, values, previous collaborations and testimonials.

Here's what he had to say after receiving the final copy.

"Martha created a brochure for my brand collaborations and sponsorship as I needed a slick, professional document. Martha went above and beyond, keeping me updated and asking for feedback throughout to make sure I was fully happy with the end result, and was such a joy to work with! I'd happily recommend her to anyone who's short on time to do things properly."

Alex was also amazing to work with! It was so hard to pick out the best of his achievements because he has so many. Honestly, what a guy! If you're looking for a genuinely brilliant person to work with to boost your outdoor brand, I'd highly recommend him.

Thanks so much for trusting me bring your vision to life Alex!

24/07/2024

First impressions matter! Especially for your business 🙏

❌ Bad design can turn people off, leave people with questions, tarnish reputation and ultimately cost you in sales!

✅ A good design however can help to leave a fantastic first impression, create curiosity about your brand, build trust, paint a professional image of your brand, and bring more sales!

It can also set you apart from your competitors and over time, builds brand awareness so that people see the colours, fonts and design combinations and instantly know it's your brand.

If you know you need a little helping hand with improving your design, come along to my Canva workshop!

📍 No-Hands Rest Coffeehouse Kendal
🎫 £12 per person
⏰ 6pm - 7:30pm
📆 Wednesday 31st July
🔗 Book here > https://www.trybooking.com/uk/eventlist/marketingtraining?embed

Bring your laptop & mouse with your free Canva account set up and get ready to learn lots of top tips for creating beautiful designs for your social media channels 🙌

PS. Creating the before poster really made me cringe! But I kinda fell in love with the little waving cheese graphic 😂

23/07/2024

I'm super excited to announce that I have won an award in this years Influential Businesswomen Awards!

2 years into my Freelance Marketing journey I still absolutely LOVE what I do, I LOVE working with fantastic small business owners everyday and I will continue to offer the best possible service I can to all my clients and fellow women in business! 💪

Thanks so much for all of your ongoing support.

Martha x

🏅Most Influential SME Marketing Solutions Business Owner 2024 (Cumbria)
🅰️Acquisition International Awards 2024

17/07/2024

I'm so excited to be hosting a series of mini marketing workshops over the coming months at No-Hands Rest Coffeehouse

The first one is going to be a fab hands on workshop for marketers / small business owners to learn how to create gorgeous graphics on Canva, to help you promote your businesses on social media.

This is a "learn through doing" interactive session.

Please bring your laptop or I-pad, a mouse and set up your free Canva account before you arrive so that you're ready to go!

📆 Wednesday 31st July
⏰ 6pm - 7:30pm
☕ £12 per person *Cuppa included
🔗 https://www.trybooking.com/uk/eventlist/marketingtraining

No-Hands Rest Coffeehouse
K Village Outlet Centre
Unit 26, Kendal LA9 7FH

15/07/2024

🚨£500 vouchers towards marketing advice for Cumbria businesses!

You may have seen this in my stories last week when I was VERY excited to share that the Cumbria Growth Hub & Chamber of Commerce have £500 "advice vouchers" for Marketing Consultancy up for grabs.

These are available for ALL types of businesses in the Cumberland area, AND in Westmorland & Eden for Land based businesses. (Although they are in the process of gaining approval to open this up to all businesses, I'll keep you posted!)

Land based businesses can include the following industries : farming, tree services, horticulture, gardening, forestry, conservation and landscaping.

If you'd like to get some professional marketing advice to help your business and you're interested in finding out more about these grants, subscribe on the link in the comments making sure you select - "Cumbria Business Grants" and you'll instantly receive an email with all the information you need about how to apply and how we can work together! 🥰

01/07/2024

Can someone PLEASE tell me, how is it July already?! 🤯

The summer seems to be flying by and things behind the scenes at MWM have been super busy, with some great client work and results and exciting developments in the pipeline.

I have also just opened up dates and times for July discovery calls. So if you're a business owner looking for some marketing training or consultancy, or a marketing professional in need of some mentoring and support - I'd love to help so don't be scared to reach out 👉💌 https://tidycal.com/marthawoodmarketing

24/06/2024

Fab part time sales & marketing role based in Ulverston!

Are you passionate about Sales & Marketing? Join our small friendly team selling our UK made products to retailers.

Sting in the Tail is seeking an experienced and self motivated Sales and Marketing specialist to join our small team. Office based, this role will focus on acquiring new customers nationwide, targeting specific retail sectors in addition to independent retailers, for our design led products, created and assembled in-house.

The role will also include some office administration, customer support, social media work and ideally maintenance of the Company website.

⏳ Immediate start
⏰ Approx. 16 hours per week
📍 Ulverston Area
💰 Dependant on experience

If you think this could be you, please email Karen at [email protected] for a full job description.

18/06/2024

2 days in Oslo
44,800 steps
& 1 pack of extortionately priced blister plasters

I love what I do SO much but it’s been really nice to properly switch off for a few days and spend time with lots of loved ones.

The 44,800 steps over our first 2 days away are on top of dancing the night away at Taylor Swift in Liverpool on Friday and celebrating my lovely cousins wedding on Saturday (where I barely left the dancefloor 🙈) before flying out to Norway on Sunday evening.

What a great week so far!! Looking forwards to lots more adventuring with Josh over the next few days 🥰 let me know if you have any good recommendations for things to do/see in Oslo!

✔️