Your Top 5 Health & Fitness Marketing Questions Answered

Marketing Strategy, personalized brand experience

Q. I’m launching my business in two months, when should I start marketing my business. A. Now.
Q. How should I begin marketing my business on line? A. With a marketing plan and a clear strategy.
Q. Should I start with Facebook and Instagram Ads? A. No. Start with organic posts first.
Q. How can I increase sales on my website? A. Brand awareness through links to your site.
Q. Where do I find influencers to review my products. A. Instagram

Do you have a question about how to grow your new idea? I have helped hundreds of brands start their businesses online. If you need guidance, you can email me at hello@mj.works or reach out on Upwork. You can find my profile here.

HOW TO SUSTAIN YOUR STARTUP SUCCESS

business, creative collaboration, digital content strategy, Email Marketing, Influencer marketing, instagram, instagram insight, Instagram marketing, Marketing in the Moment, marketing muscle, marketing plans, social media, social media marketing, Technology, the future of branding

This list of market building business tips about how to stay on course while you design epic products and services for the world was originally created for my daughter who is a hard-working, bad-ass fashion designer. Like every child ever born, she asks for advice daily and then ignores a lot of it. SO THAT IS WHY THERE IS SO MUCH EMOTION BEHIND THIS POST. All of these tips apply to anyone making anything. They work and they are important and today is a SPECIAL DAY because she is FINALLY heeding more of this advice. Amen.

Sure she’s nervous, as any startup who has achieved a bit of success would be. You might be nervous too – the big question – how do I sustain the success? Especially in the finicky world of Insta-fashion. Here, I humbly give you YOUR GUIDING STRATEGY FOR STAYING & GROWING SUCCESSFULLY.

WAKE UP, DESIGN, REPEAT

Design EVERY SINGLE DAMN DAY. Do not let a morning go by without designing. That means you don’t answer emails or texts or schedule meetings unto 1 pm every day. Why? Because the life of your authentic brand depends on you DESIGNING. Designing can mean sketching, shopping vintage, eating something delicious, going to an inspiring store, museum, listening to music – WHATEVER MAKES YOUR CREATIVE MINDFLOW BABY. The only reason you are in business is that you designed epicness in the first place. There is a lot of stuff people can buy out there, they are choosing to drop their bank on yours. KEEP THOSE CUSTOMERS HAPPY.

DEVELOP SYSTEMS FOR REPETITIVE STUFF.

What is a system? A set of rules that a baby monkey can do. They just learn the system (written or video instructions) and they do it.

Develop a system for responding to customers emails including templates for their frequently asked questions.

Develop a system for making sizing 1,000% CLEAR for all customers. Put it on the website.

Develop a system for ordering office stuff – like your favorite drinks, food, printer ink. Yes. make a list for the intern or assistand – where to go, when to reorder, how to pay for it. Make it so YOU DON’T EVEN HAVE TO TELL HIM OR HER WHAT TO DO.

Develop a system for packing items for shipment – include the surprise and delight gift – write it down or video it for the new interns. Then make them watch it. Show them PRECISELY HOW YOU LIKE IT DONE.

If you are complaining that an intern or assistant isn’t doing something the way you like it, it is YOUR FAULT. You didn’t set up the easy-to-learn systems.

TAKE PRE-ORDERS ON ALL NEW DESIGNS

The best rule of business is to MARKET BEFORE YOU MANUFACTURER. This is done by the best, most SUCCESSFUL companies. Create the demand BEFORE YOU ACTUALLY MAKE THE style. How?? Start sharing the backstory of design on your Instagram and Pinterest (YES PINTEREST) accounts. Show your customers the inside scoop. Tease them and then create a link to a page where they can GIVE YOU THEIR MONEY. Let them know they are going to be the FIRST TO HAVE IT. How exciting is that?? And give them a little something special for supporting you in the meantime. Make the “landing page” really JAZZY, sexy & FUN. Show the super special parts of designing, what inspired you. What is a LANDING PAGE? It is a special page on your website that you LINK TO THE BIO in your Instagram account every time you POST about that one design to INSTAGRAM. Don’t wait for the customer to SAVE your post. Make it EASY FOR THEM TO SHOP THE LINE. Stop with this I DON’T WANT TO BE TOO “PUSHY” CRAP. THERE IS PUSHY AND THEN There IS MAKING IT SIMPLE & EASY. DO THE LATTER.

SAVE SOME MONEY FOR GOD’S SAKE

Stop f-ing WASTING YOUR MONEY on stupidly expensive food. That $6.00 matcha drink isn’t good for you. Don’t buy into it. What is good for you is PEACE OF MIND THAT YOUR BANK ACCOUNT ISN’T NEGATIVE. Lack of money is the most stressful thing that can happen to you. You can lose your lover, break a leg, create something stupid that people will laugh at, but if you don’t have dough in the oven, life will SUCK. Make it a habit. Open up a BUSINESS SAVINGS ACCOUNT TOMORROW. Do it after you finish designing. Move $500 over IMMEDIATELY and then add reminders to your calendar to drop $500 in every month. DO THIS NOW. More if you can. Save, save, save. We are going to INVEST that money too, so your money can make baby money. GROW THAT ACCOUNT BABY.

LET THOSE DAMN HATERS HATE

It’s their job. That is what they do. Haters are going to HATE. It’s GREAT to have haters. Why? Because you are actually doing something that get’s noticed. Hater’s don’t hate on something that isn’t getting any attention. Why? BECAUSE HATERS DON’T DO ANYTHING BUT HATE. That is how they get their ATTENTION. MORE MONEY, MORE HATERS. That’s okay. Hell, some brands actually pay to have more HATERS. It’s called Facebook and Instagram ADVERTISING.

CHILL YOUR ROLL. TAKE A BREAK.

Every day make sure you do something ridiculously extravagant and/or luxurious. GO AHEAD WASTE SOME TIME. Whatever that means to you. A pedicure, a bike ride, a hello fresh meal with your partner. This business building thing is NOT A RACE. It is YOUR LIFE and you need to enjoy YOUR LIFE. So make some time every day to do something fun that you enjoy. DON’T FEEL GUILTY ABOUT IT. Just do it. Just like you design, you also take time to RELAX every day.

IMITATION IS THE HIGHEST FORM OF FLATTERY – MY ASS

Anytime you can call out some creep ass KNOCK OFF cheater brand copying your original designs DO IT. Make them feel like what they are GREEDY, UNORIGINAL A-HOLES. That’s right. Call them out. Call them out in public in a CLEVER AND FUN WAY. Like you care but you don’t care. Unless they are HUGE creepy conglomerate – a dinosaur – looking to stay relevant. Then EMAIL CALL & SCREAM at the CEO & Founder and their BOARD OF DIRECTORS. Remember, however, when YOU are INSPIRED by something to REDESIGN IT and make it your VERY OWN. Best thing to do really is KNOCK OFF YOUR OWN DESIGNS and start a second business in the weird ass bowels of eBay. LOL. P.S. Don’t spend too much time on this and try to design something so ahead of the curve that the market has to catch up. One step ahead baby.

MOST PEOPLE ARE CLUELESS ABOUT HOW FAST THE WORLD IS CHANGING

So, don’t listen to MOST anyone, except maybe people like Elon Musk and Ray Kurzweil and maybe me because I have made it my business to stay RELEVANT, ahead of the CURVE and on top of my game. I AM FASCINATED WITH CHANGE AND YOU SHOULD BE TOO. NO JOKE. Every business is being disrupted by technology. This includes INSTAGRAM. You have to start emailing & MEETING with your customers and clients. WHY? Because Instagram may become the old people’s party and then how you gonna find them customers? SnapChat?

But doesn’t everyone hate email? Hello, people DON’T CHANGE THEIR EMAILS. Some still hang on to their freaking yahoo and aol accounts. Emails are a tighter connection. Better YET get the cell phones of your VIP customers and take them to DINNER. Just, whatever you do, DON’T BE BORING. Create an email you WISH SOMEONE WOULD SEND YOU.

GROW UP WITH YOUR CUSTOMERS OR KEEP ATTRACTING THE YOUNG GUNS

Yeah, your 25-year-old Insta-hottie is going to have a baby and all of a sudden that cropped off the shoulder number isn’t going hide her love handles and/or mother belt. Oh, am I “body shaming”? Read the HATERS note above. This is reality. Have a plan as to how you will keep moving forward with your biggest fans now or the babies coming down the pike.

EVERYONE IS GOING TO WANT A BIG BITE OF YOU. CHOOSE YOUR PACK WISELY

Why? Cause your haute, hot, HOT right now. Yup. Especially the has-beens and the wannabes. Be DISCERNING. Be choosy. Be SUPER SELECTIVE about who you chill with. Why? Because if you hang with the reckless and wild, you will become reckless and wilder. If you chill with the sorry asses, you, in turn, will be a sadder one. EVERY dedicated entrepreneur experiences a bit of FOMO at times. There should be a LONELY HEARTS CLUB MEETUP for those building something big. Get out, dance, laugh and then get back to work. That BULL SHIT ABOUT WORKING HARD & PLAYING HARD is for drunks and trust fund IDIOTS without a purpose. Balance your work and play and stay away from the MDMA. Seriously, it’s not worth the emotional roller coaster ride. Get HIGH ON LIFE.

SELECT WHO YOU WANT TO DO BUSINESS & SCREW THE 15 MINS OF FAME

Stop getting so flattered every time someone wants to COLLAB or PARTNER WITH YOU. You are WORKING YOUR ASS OFF and deserve to be noticed. Say NO to anyone not willing to collaborate with respect or who brings their headaches to the table. You have enough of your own problems to solve. If it’s not a HELL YEAH immediately than it’s a F NO. If you have to THINK about whether you want to sleep with someone, then it’s A F NO and collaborating is a lot like sleeping with someone. Create a list TODAY of the discerning people or businesses you want to align yourself with. SAY NO to anyone else who reaches out. Say it nicely. Always be kind. Kind always works.

You WON’T MISS OUT. Andy Warhol was WRONG and RIDICULOUS about that 15 minutes of FAME. Not true. Most people remain anonymous their whole lives. You may never be famous. Who cares? It’s better to BE GREAT.

KNOW WHAT SUCCESS MEANS TO YOU

Stop measuring your success by other people’s stupid ideas of success. SUCCESS IS SIMPLY DOING WHAT YOU LOVE. Life is short. Everything else is BS.

IT ALWAYS TAKES LONGER THAN YOU THINK.

Whether it’s sex with an ex or a check-up at the dentist or building your first prototype or sample. So STOP with the anxiousness. IT WILL TAKE YEARS TO GROW YOUR BUSINESS. Even Google, the FASTEST growing business in the history of the world took 15 years to become a GIANT. SO SLOW THE HELL DOWN.

Start & Build Your Dream Business

Brand Awareness, brand reputation, digital content strategy, madeline johnson, marketing plans, media relations, Public Relations, Uncatergorized

For those of you sitting on the fence about starting your own dream business, I urge you to start now and take advantage of all of the amazing tools that can help you reach a global audience. I’m not just talking about social media like Instagram, Facebook and YouTube. I am also very excited about the hundreds of other ways in which you can reach your audience in countries around the world and the collaborations happening in my industry, health, wellness, fitness and nutrition.

My name is Madeline Johnson and I am an marketing and media strategist based in NYC. I help startups and entrepreneurs build brand awareness and sales revenue by creating easy to follow marketing plans and courses like ThePRPlaybook.com.

Here is my new intro video.

I am very enthusiastic about learning more about what you are working on, so please connect. You can comment on this blog post or meet me on Twitter @MarketCouncil or here on my YouTube Channel.

Instagram Love❤️ & an Award from Linkedin

business, instagram, instagram insight, Instagram marketing, Public Relations, Public Relations Plan, The PR Playbook, Uncatergorized

Out of all the social media platforms right now, I am finding Instagram to be the most engaging and rewarding. Yesterday I had a group of holistic nutritionists invite me to their Instagram group, yes we are creating our own community, and they have inspired me with the healthiest recipes for plant-based food – delicious meals as healing medicine for the body. If we haven’t connected on Instagram yet, please say hello @MadelineMarieJohnson I’d love to learn more about what you are up to.

Helpful Hashtags & Consistent Content

Two of the strategies that I find work best include using #hashtags within the 100,000 and 800,000 range. For someone like me this includes #healthandwellness which at the time of this post is at 562,451 and #digitalmarketing 951,149.

The second strategy is posting at least four times a day. I am paying attention to Instagram Insights (I have a business page) and find that around 3:00 pm is the golden hour for engagement and likes.

LinkedIn ProFinder Best of Badge

The team at Linkedin emailed me a badge of honor yesterday. According to the marketing team at Linkedin, the Best of 2016 badge signals a best in class ranking on their platform and spotlights the services I provide on ProFinder.

Strategies to Grow Your Business

And, if you are looking for a way to grow your business, than check out my online course, www.ThePRPlaybook.com which is packed with PR strategies to take your personal brand to the next level of success. Comment below and ask me for a code to take the course for free.

Don’t Sell, Focus on Why they Buy

building brand trust, How to Do Your Own PR, marketing muscle, marketing rituals, press release writing, Sales Funnel Explained, Start up Success

So your marketing isn’t getting any traction. No retweets, likes, comments or love. You need more traffic to your shopping cart, eyeballs to your website.

The real reason you don’t have engagement, why your blog and social posts aren’t read is because your content is too self-serving.

Word of advice. If you want to succeed in growing your business, do not try to sell or market another thing. Every time you say or share something about your company that emphasizes the upside you will most likely get skeptical responses.

Sure, it is perfectly fine to list the benefits of your brand, but whatever content you are creating – whether it be a blog or Instagram post, your unbridled optimism about what your business can do for customers and clients comes across as salesmanship and it seems dishonest. As a consequence it is met with skepticism.

Everyone is allergic to the feeling of being sold something.

What you should focus on instead – why people buy.

Buying motives are a million times more powerful than selling skills.

Don’t sell your product. Instead think about why people buy products like yours.

Marketing – Educate, inspire and enlighten your audience instead.

Learn more at ThePRPlaybook.com

How to Create a Growth Marketing Plan for Your Business

Brand Awareness, Creative Marketing Campaigns, market research, Marketing Metrics, marketing plans, social media marketing

I work with a hell of a lot of startups in the fitness, health and wellness industries. These are great people with really wonderful ideas. However, what I have observed is that too many business owners are in complete denial about what it takes to really grow their customer and client base. Some are under the impression that if they build it, they will come.

Others think it just takes a couple of big press hits to get the brand awareness ball rolling.

Most are incredibly impatient.

Sorry, folks, unless you do the deep research about who your customer is and if they even want a product or service likes yours, you are going to run into trouble. You also need to wake up to the reality that all marketing is pure experimentation and some activities work better than others. Depending on your target market, if you scurry around without a plan you will be hitting your head against the wall, wondering why your sales aren’t spiking like you thought they would.

You will be lost in the matrix of marketing hell.

It’s also very, very easy to get overwhelmed by what type of marketing you should be doing for your brand.

This is why I recommend building a plan first.

This plan does not need to be an 80 page manifesto for building your business. It can be as simple as focusing on the core elements for a plan of action.

These elements include –

competitive market research
defining your target audience
a strategy for owned, earned and paid media
a realistic budget
metrics to measure your success.

This will help you create a realistic situation analysis and summary while giving you a clearer picture of what you must do first and a marketing strategy that will have you overcoming obstacles and threats as you build brand awareness for your business.

The PR Playbook: Fitness Media Coverage for Your Health Brand

Brand Awareness, digital content strategy, Digital Newsroom, Earned Media, editorial know how, Fitness, Fitness Marketing, How do do your own PR, Marketing in the Moment, media relations, press coverage, Public Relations

Watch for tips on how to collaborate with fitness editors, media and influencers. . .

When you need to get the word out about your new fitness class, gym, yoga studio or wellness workshop, the fastest way to connect with customers and clients is through influencers and media. Sign up for ThePRPlaybook.com for more real life lessons on how to build your fitness, health, wellness and nutrition startup.

In this video I show you how to get started, how to find the writers, bloggers and journalists most likely to collaborate with you and report on your launch and how to connect via email and social media.

It’s been just a few weeks and I have already connected the brand with The NY Daily News, Cosmopolitan Magazine, The NY Post, US News & World Report, Well & Good NYC and TimeOut NY.

Time Out NY

Check out more coverage here NY Daily News and here US News & World Report

What is H.I.I.P. HYPE?

A new fitness experience in New York, created by artist and personal trainer, Sayco Williams, H.I.I.P. HYPE stands for High Intensity Interval Painting. Many exercise and fitness enthusiasts are familiar with high intensity interval training, where someone performs a given exercise for a short interval followed by a rest interval; it’s a very effective and very efficient means of training that can produce impressive results.

Sweat it Out, Brush it Off

H.I.I.P. HYPE puts a brand new spin on this popular style of training by incorporating acrylic painting on canvas into rest periods, allowing participants to express their creativity in a pressure-free group setting.

An Exercise in Creative Self-Expression

No prior painting experience is required; many participants have never painted before. And while some brief and general instructions are given during the warm-up, the goal is unhindered expression; to flow with whatever comes out.

Fun Fitness for All

The exercise portion is all done with bodyweight exercises, meaning minimal equipment requirements and participants of any fitness level can be happily accommodated.

With Brain Boosting Benefits

This combination of physical activity and creative stimulation leads to an amplified mind-body connection, and is a perfect remedy for the hyper-connected, permanently-stressed culture that permeates the world today. A study in the journal Frontiers in Human Neuroscience shows that regular exercisers do better on tests of creativity than their more sedentary peers. Everyone benefits from disconnecting on a regular basis, and taking a HH class is an exhilarating way to reap that benefit and get a great workout in as well.

H.I.I.P Hype classes are also great for people who have become bored with their traditional fitness routine — it’s unlike any other fitness class out there.

How to Work with a PR Agency without Losing Your Mind.

Communications, Content management, digital content strategy, Earned Media, PR Agency, press liaison, social media marketing

These tips are for those entrepreneurs and startups who’ve decided to hire a press liaison, or a freelance social media marketer or a larger retainer-based agency.

Note: It’s best to heed this advice before you actually decide to hire one.

However if you’ve decided to blow your marketing budget on a digital agency and you are just not seeing the results you’ve expected, then tune in and follow these recommendations.

Need help navigating the world of PR for your brand? Comment with questions below. I would love to hear from you.

Building Your Business with Media & Influencers

creative collaboration, digital content strategy, How do do your own PR, Influencer marketing, marketing muscle, Marketing Technology, The PR Playbook

This video is part of a lecture in ThePRPlaybook.com, my new online course to help you build your business by leveraging media and influencer collaborations.

When it comes to driving eyeballs and business to your website, influencer attention can have quite an impact.

Now, there are basically three types of influencers.

The Elevated Consumer

A passionate enthusiast, they may not have formal training, but they are learning along the way and taking their community on the journey. Typically, they are sharing DIY’s, How to’s, interviews and product reviews for their fans and followers to try.

The Professional

A skilled, licensed and seasoned professional who has decided to scale themselves to reach a wider audience, typically with a product or service to sell.

The Celebrity Influencer

This celebrity can be a combination of the above or simply so entertaining that they have amassed a large enough following to have star status.

Finding influencers has typically involved some type of Google search but I have just signed up for a free trial at Scrunch.com. I have been waiting for something like this for a while.

Search the Health & Fitness Directory

Filter by Instagram, Twitter and Blogs
By minimum and maximum follower range.
By location. In this case North America.
By date range of posts.
By quantity of posts.

While influencers with a social reach of one million plus are going to be more difficult and expensive to reach, try finding those with a reach of 20-100K by location.

You will increase your chances of collaboration when connecting with emerging bloggers and vloggers who are on their way up.

Win Over Media & Influencer Like a PR Pro

collaborations, Digital Newsroom, How to Do Your Own PR, Key Messaging and Talking Points, press coverage, Press Kits, The PR Playbook

I am very excited to be editing a course that will help fitness, health, wellness and nutrition startups build their businesses with ThePRPlaybook.com.

This is your essential guide, basically your road map to growing your business while winning over top-tier media and your very favorite influencers.

You know that building buzz and sharing your journey will boost brand awareness and consumer engagement that leads to an increase in sales for you. This is your marketing manual for success and it was created for people who don’t have the time to spend on social media 24/7.

If you are struggling with finding customers & clients, then this course is for you. If you need more eyeballs on your website then enroll your ass in this course right now.

Whether you’ve written a book, built an online course yourself or you’re opening a new retail store, maybe an e-commerce shop or you have created a breakthrough product or service, you will learn the most critical and effective marketing and PR tactics to reach your audience and audiences you never knew you would attract. Yes, that is right, the people who want to buy your stuff.

You will learn how to grow brand awareness about your business with press coverage in leading media like The Wall Street Journal, TechCrunch and USA Today and how to collaborate with influential bloggers and vloggers to reach new customers and clients.

I created this course to help startups and new brands cut through the clutter of repetitive, abundant and downright confusing marketing advice and understand and execute only the most productive marketing activities to build upon success.

Who am I?

My name is Madeline Johnson and I am a Marketing & Media Strategist & Consultant based in NYC. I am a no BS PR pro who specializes in health, wellness, fitness & nutrition. I have over 15 years of experience working with amazing brands like Reebok, Fairmont Hotels & Spas, Aveda and startups in the world of health and wellness tech.

I enjoy working with startups and entrepreneurs who are basically creating anything that makes us look and feel great. Send me a Tweet @MarketCouncil