Worcester Business Journal

22 Worcester Business Journal | October 16, 2017 | wbjournal.com W e live in the age of Big Data, where 1.5 billion pieces of content are pub- lished and shared daily. That's a lot of information for con- sumers to trek through, which is why marketers are always on the hunt for ways to convey that data in a manner that sticks. It's why video has become such a buzzword in recent months. Videos can capture attention and express a ton of information, without the need for 2,000 words of text. Our agency uses video as a hallmark of our digital marketing because it works. But there's no denying for all its benefits and effectiveness, video is both expensive and time consuming. We don't know a single small busi- ness with the budget, manpower or time to produce videos on a regular basis. At the same time, you still need to catch the eye of your prospects with compelling content that builds your brand and, eventually, convinces your prospects to convert. That's why we love infographics. Infographics are by no means new to the world of marketing. They've been used for years. But just because they may be considered old-school by now (can you believe it?) doesn't mean they've lost their luster. In fact, I'd argue they've become even more effective. Infographics are easier to consume. One of the issues with video is unless you use closed captions or your 10 T H I NG S I know about . . . Being a nonprofit executive after By Maryann C. Johnson Johnson is the chief development officer for Oak Hill CDC. Reach her at mjohnson@ oakhillcdc.org. K N O W H O W The power of the infographic W here it may sound like simply meaning feeling comfortable speaking up, in the corporate world, psychological safety goes beyond that, and is crucial to building a produc- tive team. It means a culture where mis- takes can be discussed and learned from. The phrase was reportedly intro- duced by Harvard Business School Professor Amy Edmondson, who called it, "a team climate characterized by interpersonal trust and mutual respect in which people are comfortable being themselves." Here are ways to create psychological safety. Frame work as learning problems, not execution problems. There needs to be understanding all team members need each other for uncertainly ahead, said Shana Lebowitz, citing Edmondson at BusinessInsider.com. The importance of all team members' input should be well established, with an attitude of, "we can't know what will happen; we've got to have everybody's brains and voices in the game," she said. Don't forget about onboarding. From an MIT Sloan Management Review article: "When newcomers are 'processed' to accept an organization's identity, they are expected to downplay their own identities … [that] may not be optimal in the long run for either the organization or the individual employee." The article suggests employees being encouraged to use their strengths from day one. Maybe a salesperson who likes graphic arts could design promotional flyers. Go in curious, not blameful. "If you believe you already know what the other person is thinking, then you're not ready to have a conversation," writes Laura Delizonna of Harvard Business Review. She cites researcher John Gottman's work in showing blame can escalate conflict and eventually lead to disengagement – a nail in the coffin of any team's productivity (and potentially of that team member's job satisfaction, as well). BY SUSAN SHALHOUB Special to the Worcester Business Journal 10 1: P s y c h o l o g i c a l s a f e t y Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Business was a eye-opening experience for me. For expanding small businesses, the program provides an intensive growth planning program, which includes online courses and two intensive training weeks at Babson College. 10) The passion and creativity entrepreneurs have is contagious. 9) You, yourself, are a commodity. Your ideas and commitment are worth more than everything else combined. 8) Market segmentation is key to competing in any market. 7) Forecasting growth and funding is critical. You cannot embark on a journey seeing a need or having an idea without forecasting. 6) Even though leaders were there to make profit, they cared deeply about their staff, and in their small businesses, treated them as family. 5) If you don't plan it, and it happens, it didn't happen. 4) You must always look at what is making money and what is losing you money. Critical decisions can be hard, but they are necessary. 3) Numbers (accounting, ratios and money) scare everyone. 2) Finding your niche, whatever you do, is key to success. Creeping in on new business products or programs (or mission creep) is not productive for business. 1) Even though entrepreneurs do not work in a nonprofit, most of their ideas and businesses give back to the community. BY KHAM INTHIRATH Special to the Worcester Business Journal W W viewers have their volume on, your video isn't really hitting the mark. Even with closed captions, surely your audi- ences aren't getting the full experience. Videos are incredibly powerful, but they require more commitment by the viewer. An infographic, on the other hand, is easy to consume and under- stand. There is no need for volume; no need for closed captions. All the infor- mation is laid out in front of you. It's great for establishing your brand. Infographics can be extremely versa- tile. A company keen on conveying their young, fun side might create an infographic using cartoon characters Kham Inthirath is the founder and president of Envision Digital Group in Worcester. Reach him at kinthirath@envisiondigitalgroup.com. and silly language. A law firm, on the other hand, might prefer a more refined approach, using minimal icons and direct language. The point is, infographics are a great way to bolster your branding and make a stronger connection with your audi- ences. Whenever possible, be sure to include your brand colors and font to keep things consistent. Infographics are a great way to repurpose content. If you want to excel at connecting with, and converting your audiences, you need to produce a good amount of content. To help minimize the burden associated with this task, we often repurpose content for our clients. Let's say we create an incredible FAQ page for our client, based on the feed- back of real-life customers. We house that FAQ page on the client's website but want to find ways to get the word out about this resource. One thing we could do is turn that FAQ section into an info- graphic. We'll likely attract an even wider pool of people, and we didn't have to recreate the wheel to make it happen. Infographics can be easy to make. Ready to try your hand at infograph- ics? We'd always suggest working with a designer to ensure that your message hits home. However, if you don't have a designer, or the budget for one, we encourage you to check out Canva. It's a free design tool that's incredibly easy to navigate, comes with premade templates, and is an app we use often for our cli- ents' work. W being surrounded by entrepreneurs during Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Business

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