Comments (0)

  1. It’s interesting how many people go on vacation and are still “tied” to their devices for fear of missing an important call or email. Love how easy you made the automation process sound in your post, Sharon. It seems social media platforms are wanting us to engage faster than ever, so having some strategies that keep you present when you are absent, makes a lot of sense to me. I believe that vacations are an important part of staying energized and vital! Thanks for another great post!

    1. I’m with you, Beverley. As entrepreneurs, we want to keep our names in front of clients and prospects with regularity. The time that takes is epic, though. So finding a strategic way to outsource is a big relief.

  2. Great tips! Taking those breaks is very important. Even the hardest worker needs a break now and then.

    1. Give our brain a break, too, Lisa.

  3. Automation done right is the entrepreneur’s Godsend! Thanks for these helpful tips, Sharon!

    1. You nailed it with this phrase, Cathy…”done right”…

  4. Automation takes so much work off our plates. We actually can go on vacation when we know that the work will still be done while we’re gone.

    1. The more we can do and afford, the better, Beth.

  5. These are some great tips! Banff here I come!

    1. Hee hee– Banff is gonna love you, Gisele!

  6. As Director of Strategic Relationships for a mortgage company, I would love to start automating certain things. We have co-marketing programs with introductory information that could easily be sent off from an initial lead but first need to get the website up to date…it never ends does it?

  7. Thanks for this great information, Sharon! Entrepreneurs definitely work long hours, and need to find more ways to outsource and automate. I appreciate your recommendations!

    1. The more help we can get and afford, the better, Susan!

  8. I need to pay close attention to this, Sharon. The more I can automate the better life is!

    1. So many cool things with automation, Sherri –done well!

  9. So grateful for these so that we can take vacations! LinkedIn is one platform though that I always forget about!

    1. LinkedIn and Twitter are my faves…but I’m not so good on Facebook or the other 699 platforms!

  10. We leave for vacation in two weeks and this is going to be helpful. Thank you!

    1. I love the idea that you’re taking two weeks, Christi.

  11. I like your suggestion of keeping a list of resources or white papers handy that could be sent to clients at a strategic point in an email conversation. I have written blog posts to serve as resources, but I love the notion of taking it a step further with your suggestion. Thanks for the ideas!

    1. It’s great to create original content, Vickie.
      Sometime we just need a break–AND keep our name out there.

  12. Excellent tips Sharon… so true, as entrepreneurs, we work all the darn time and we should be learning how to work smarter, and not harder!

  13. Some great ideas here. I really need to set up my email system, which I think I will do right now! Thanks!

  14. Automation with personalization is the key.

  15. You seem very knowledgeable in this area. The most I’ve done to set up to take vacation is to schedule out FB & twitter posts & add some apps to my iphone so I can respond when I have down time. I’m so pleased I did this as past 3 weeks, I had several trips away with family visits and my few platforms maintained same engagement. Next I need to automate Pinterest.

    1. I also love social media, Rox. But I believe the closest ties are with people we email.

  16. Thank you for this article, very useful information here. Especially for people like me who are newbies!

    1. You’ve joined a great group to start as a newbie, Varina.

  17. Although I’d never stop checking my emails, etc it is nice to be able to send automated messages, posts etc to take some of the work away if you do want to be away even for a short period of time.

  18. Excellent points on scheduling emails. I already schedule my social media. And I only wish I had time for a vacation!

  19. As a network engineer I am beleaguered with various offers of information, too many to actually even read. One major networking company always kept my attention. They provided free books and conducted free events. The books helped me dig into technical details of networking technology. The events were great to network with other engineers, discuss technologies and share how we dealt with networking problems. Locally based account representatives were available for on site visits.
    How does this translate to smaller companies that do not have the available resources to deploy this level of service and marketing. There is no substitute for face to face visits. So how do we get there starting with emails?
    I like the ideas you provided, especially a way to automate initial emails and then scale to phone calls and a face to face event. I enjoyed monthly informational emails. Once an email was about something we were interested in or researching, then we would reach out for more information. We always made clear that we were gathering information and were not looking for an immediate sale. Occassionaly this long haul strategy would end up in a sale when a need arose, we often went with the company that had come out to visit us without constantly bugging us for a sale. That is the fine line to keep, keep in touch enough so the customer remembers you exist without being a pest.

    1. I had similar discussion this week with a CEO who insists on his salesforce getting face-to-face calls. He’s right, of course –yet, we’re probably needing to find that sweet spot that combines both methods. As a consultant, the only way I can reach a lot of people on a regular basis is through my email program. Open rates range between 15% and 20% and–2 years later–I’m starting to get regular business.

  20. Thanks Sharon, will definitely automate a bit soon when I will be on vacation.:-)

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *