marketing insights

5 Cybersecurity tips

Every small business needs

by Patrick Salvatierra | Jan 28, 2025

In today's digital world, small businesses are prime targets for cybercriminals. Implementing robust cybersecurity measures is essential to protect your assets and maintain customer trust.

Here are five practical tips to enhance your business's cybersecurity:

1. Educate your team on cybersecurity best practices

Your employees are the first line of defense against cyber threats. More than 90% of cyber breaches start with an email. Regular training sessions can help them recognize phishing emails, avoid suspicious downloads, and understand the importance of strong passwords. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) emphasizes the need for establishing basic security practices and policies for employees, such as requiring strong passwords.

2. Implement Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)

Adding an extra layer of security through MFA makes it significantly harder for unauthorized users to access your systems. This process requires users to provide two or more verification factors to gain access, reducing the risk of compromised accounts. The U.S. Small Business Administration recommends enabling authentication tools like MFA to protect sensitive information.

3. Regularly update and patch software

Outdated software can have vulnerabilities that cybercriminals exploit. Ensure all your business applications, operating systems, and devices are regularly updated with the latest security patches. The FCC advises keeping clean machines by having the latest security software, web browser, and operating system as the best defenses against viruses, malware, and other online threats.

4. Secure your user accounts

While our employees are our first line of defense, we also don’t want to expose them to unnecessary risks. Take away or limit any administrative permissions on your computers and networks that aren't absolutely necessary for the user to do their job. This will minimize the potential for accidental security breaches.

5. Develop a data backup and recovery plan

Regularly backing up your data ensures that you can recover critical information in case of a cyber incident. Store backups in multiple locations, including offsite or cloud storage, and test your recovery procedures periodically. The FCC recommends making backup copies of important business data and information as a key cybersecurity practice.

Bonus tip: Partner with a reliable Managed Service Provider (MSP)

Collaborating with a reputable MSP can provide your business with expert guidance and support in managing your IT infrastructure and cybersecurity needs. MSPs offer services such as continuous monitoring, threat detection, and incident response, helping to safeguard your business against potential cyber threats. The U.S. Small Business Administration highlights the importance of working with trusted service providers to enhance your cybersecurity posture.

By implementing these strategies, you can significantly reduce the risk of cyber threats and protect your small business's valuable assets.

______

This guest blog comes courtesy of one of our valued partners in purpose:

Patrick Salvatierra is founder and Chief Engineer (CIO) of Simplicity IT, a minority-owned Managed Service Provider serving businesses in San Diego and Orange County with managed IT service, IT helpdesk support, and cybersecurity services.

Reflections on Allyship

marketing insights

Deepening the practice of intentional support and inclusive action

by Katie Facchinello | Dec 3, 2024

Allyship is more than a statement—it’s an ongoing commitment to action, accountability and growth. As purpose-driven marketing and communications professionals, we have the power to shape narratives and create inclusive spaces where everyone feels seen, respected and valued. This is why it's important to continuously reflect on what it means to be an ally in our work.

Listening and Learning: The Cornerstones of Allyship

Impactful communication strategies start with listening. At Axiom of Purpose, allyship means creating spaces where underrepresented voices are valued and prioritized. Genuine listening goes beyond words; it involves engaging with lived experiences and staying attuned to evolving language and cultural sensitivities. This approach ensures messaging authentically reflects the needs of the communities we serve.

Navigating Privilege in Allyship Means Constantly Educating Yourself

In allyship, it’s essential to recognize how privilege can influence actions. The “white savior” mentality occurs when individuals position themselves as the solution, overshadowing the communities they aim to support. We avoid this by working in partnership with communities, elevating community-driven approaches and embracing co-created solutions. Our team brings a wealth of diverse lived experiences and backgrounds, yet we remain committed to constantly questioning how different forms of privilege shape our perspectives. Together, we listen, learn, and ask, “How can we support you?” rather than assuming we know the answers.

Reflecting Inclusivity in Storytelling

Inclusive communication goes beyond just words—it’s about showing the true, full stories of all voices. Too often, reductive narratives only focus on struggles or stereotypes, which can create damaging and incomplete pictures of people and communities. Instead, we need to share stories that show resilience, successes and the many strengths that make each community unique. When we move away from these limited views and tell more complete stories, our messages reach people in a way that feels honest and inclusive. Using accessible, multilingual content helps us connect with everyone and helps makes sure no one is left out.

Collaborating Instead of Controlling

True allyship means sharing power and decision-making, recognizing that those who experience challenges firsthand hold the most effective solutions. Partner with communities to co-create solutions, centering their expertise and support rather than trying to lead. Be open to new ideas and perspectives, embracing collaboration as a path to equitable outcomes that reflect shared goals and create meaningful, lasting impact.

Embrace Humility: Continuing the Journey

Most importantly, deepening allyship is an ongoing journey of learning and growth that should never end and may likely include a misstep. After all, to F.A.I.L. is simply a “First Attempt In Learning.” Mistakes happen, but our commitment to equity and inclusivity drives us to improve. By partnering with communities and amplifying their voices, we aim to inspire positive change and make a meaningful impact.

Join us in making allyship a living practice, reshaping how we communicate to truly reflect the voices and strengths of every community we serve. With practice, our allyship deepens and grows stronger, helping us better carry the messages we hold together. By honoring and uplifting these shared stories, we build a lasting foundation of trust and inclusion that resonates in every story we tell.

The Power of Frequency

marketing insights

Why consistent engagement matters

by Delilah Fuentes | Oct 22, 2024

In today’s fast-moving media landscape, one principle consistently stands out: frequency. It’s the secret sauce that keeps your brand top of mind, and helps build lasting relationships with your audience. If you’re wondering why getting in front of your audience often matters, let’s break it down.

Frequency:

The foundation of engagement

We’ve all heard the saying, “Out of sight, out of mind.” That’s where frequency comes in! It’s all about ensuring your audience regularly sees your message, whether in their inbox, social media feed, or favorite streaming platform. The more they see you, the more they know you.

Familiarity:

How brand’s build awareness

People like things they are comfortable with! Familiarity is when your audience knows your brand, they know who you are, what you do - and most importantly for a purpose-driven brand - the know what you stand for! When your audience is familiar with your brand, they are most likely to want to engage with you.

Reinforcement:

The importance of repetition

Imagine your message is like a workout for your audience’s brain. The more you reinforce it with repeated exposure, the stronger their memory of your brand becomes. Every touchpoint, whether an email, an ad, or a social post, reinforces who you are and what you stand for.

Trust:

The glue of consistency

Seeing your brand consistently over time helps build trust. It tells your audience, “We’re here to stay.” And in a world full of choices, trust is a game-changer. Your audience wants to know they can rely on you—and regular, reliable messaging does just that

Consistency:

The key to strategy

Once you’ve built that familiarity and trust, it’s time to keep the momentum going with consistency. Delivering on your brand promise repeatedly shows your audience you mean business and keeps them coming back for more.

Loyalty:

The end game

All of this—the frequency, familiarity, and trust—leads to one thing: loyalty. That’s the holy grail of brand success. Consistent engagement doesn’t just win new customers; it turns them into lifelong fans.

So, whether you’re planning your next social campaign or prepping that new product launch, remember frequency matters. It’s the backbone of effective marketing and the key to building lasting relationships with your audience.

Driving traffic to your site

marketing insights

If you build it, there’s no guarantee they will come

by Revekka Balancier | Jun 11, 2024

I may not be the world’s biggest baseball fan, but I know a thing or two about movies (and driving traffic to websites)! And I know Field of Dreams is a great movie, but if one more person tells me “If you build it, they will come…” 😒

Creating a well-organized, engaging, beautifully designed, and highly functional website isn't enough. Attracting visitors requires proactive effort. Here are five proven strategies to drive traffic to your site and get it the attention it deserves:

Digital Ads:

Target the right audience

Think of Google Ads as a targeted billboard in the vast digital world. By investing even a small budget, you can create search and display ads that reach people actively searching for products or services related to yours. The key is to carefully choose your keywords and target the right audience to maximize your return on investment. You can set up conversions to help ads perform better over time and you can analyze performance of specific keywords, ad creative and locations to refine your targeting efforts.

Email marketing:

Cultivate brand ambassadors

Email marketing is an incredible tool for building relationships and driving traffic. Nurture a loyal subscriber list by offering valuable content, exclusive promotions, and insights relevant to your audience. Remember, your subscribers are your brand ambassadors – each click they make is a vote of confidence in your work.

Social Media:

Create Once, Repurpose Everywhere (CORE)

QR Codes:

Bridge the physical and digital gap

QR codes aren’t just for restaurant menus. Include them on flyers, business cards, and packaging to help bridge the gap between the physical and digital worlds. Make sure your QR code leads to a relevant landing page on your website, offering relevant information and engaging content to make scanning worthwhile.

Paid media partnerships:

Find your perfect platform

The world of online advertising is literally evolving at the speed of technology, with new platforms emerging faster than anyone can keep up with… but don't be intimidated! Partnering with a paid media specialist can help you navigate the options and identify platforms that perfectly align with your budget and target audience.

Driving traffic to your website is an ongoing process. Experiment with a combination of different strategies, track your results using tracking links so you know where your traffic is coming from and adapt your approach based on what is resonating with your audience best. With dedication and the right tools, you can transform your website from being out in left field to hitting virtual home runs.

Balancing creative content and proactive distribution

marketing insights

Don't just build it, launch it!

by Revekka Balancier | Apr 30, 2024

You've poured your time, energy and creativity into crafting compelling content – the perfect video, a stunning website, an insightful blog post. But here's the thing: awesome content isn't enough. I know, I know - content is king. But I am more of a fan of the King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table system where everyone works together, rather than your traditional feudal monarchy!

In our increasingly overwhelming digital world, content cannot stand alone. We need to actively launch amazing content into the right orbit to reach the right target audience and make an impact. It's a delicate dance between creation and distribution, and neglecting either side can leave a beautiful masterpiece languishing in obscurity.

Here are some ideas for striking the perfect balance:

Content Creation

Proactive Distribution

Produce high-quality videos

Utilize stunning cinematography, integrate captivating infographics, and brand your titles and thumbnails.

Drive YouTube views

Optimize your videos for search, promote them with a paid schedule, and collaborate with relevant influencers.

Build a user-friendly website:

A well-designed website is your digital home, offering valuable information and a seamless user experience.

Implement a digital ad strategy:

Target your ideal audience with strategic display ads and search engine marketing, using platforms like Google Ads and social media pay-per-click advertising.

Post insightful blog posts:

Thoughtful, informative content provides value and establishes credibility with your audience.

Share with email marketing:

Send out regular newsletters with your latest blog posts, add special offers, and highlight valuable insights.

Host engaging events:

Webinars, workshops, and conferences are an opportunity to connect with people directly, build relationships and showcase expertise.

Repurpose on social media:

Record your event sessions and share key takeaways on platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn.

Design captivating infographics:

Condense complex information into visually appealing infographics that are easily shared social media.

Boost posts to your audience:

Utilize social media ad platforms to reach the right people with your infographics, ensuring maximum impact.

Content creation is just the first step. By proactively distributing your content, you amplify its impact, engage your audience, and drive results. Think of it as building a rocket ship: the content is the engine, but the distribution strategy is the fuel that propels it to new heights.

So, next time you're brainstorming content ideas, don't forget to create a distribution roadmap alongside it. We are happy to help!

7 Alternatives to hosting a public meeting

marketing insights

Town HallNeighborhood DialogueDesign Charette Just kidding

by Revekka Balancier | Mar 19, 2024

A public meeting by any other name is still old school. And I love old school, but only on the radio. Yes, I still listen to radio. Nonetheless, even I know that more than twenty years into the twenty-first century, there has got to be a better way to do community engagement.

It’s not that I am against community meetings. They offer a rare opportunity to make governments human, to connect with people, to answer questions in real time, to gather feedback from our most important stakeholders - the public. They play an important role in our community outreach toolkit; but rarely do you build a masterpiece with just one tool.

Community meetings seldom draw huge crowds. Yet, when construction begins on a new recreation center, or a public park is moved, or enforcement begins on a law people ignored throughout the legislative process - everyone has an opinion. We often hear the same responses from Public Information Officers, “We followed our standard public notification process. We hosted community meetings. We provided our standard public comment period.”

Clearly, these are not always enough. As marketing and communications experts, we know we have tools at our disposal to reach thousands, if not millions of people, using proven techniques. We don’t need to limit our outreach to the local community room capacity. We don’t have to stay chained to a projector, sentenced to a lifetime of clicking through powerpoint slides. We are not beholden to foam core display boards forever.



Conduct a Facebook poll

Sometimes we just need to simplify things a bit. Facebook polls are a fun way to conduct “pulse-checks” and see what the community thinks on a particular subject. For example: This year we closed the road for the first time as a safety measure during the city’s signature festival. We are interested in hearing what you thought. Did the new road closure work well for keeping people safe? 1) Yes, it was great for safety, please do it again next year. 2) Yes, it made a difference, but I think it needs some changes. (Comment below.) 3. No, I don’t think this is a good way to address safety, I have some other ideas (Comment below!).

Pros: This simple poll lets us get a percentage of what the participants think, and record comments. It also sends a message to the community that we care what they think.
Cons: You are opening yourself up to negative feedback for the world to see. Though honestly, if you have a Facebook page, you are doing that anyway. Also, the poll is not scientific nor does it accurately represent the entire community. Guess what? Neither do community meetings!



Distribute a Prezi or Loom

The beautiful thing about Prezi is that it allows you to present ideas and information clustered in a circular, triangular, or any other format, rather than just linear as with powerpoint. You can zoom to different neighborhoods on a map, and between each screen, show the entire city for context. You can look at different depths of the ocean zooming deeper with each click to represent the journey. You can follow the path of traffic or a watershed to help your audience understand the challenges your team is facing. The speaking points can be simplified and worked into each screen so the presentation is self contained. The final screen can ask pointed questions and provide a link for responses to those questions. The prezi can be posted online and the URL can be distributed on your website, to your email lists, on social media, in a press release and you can even use a paid media strategy for targeted distribution. Leave the Prezi up for a 30 to 90 day comment period and really give people time to explore and respond. Check out this example of a Prezi on Moving Towards a Digital Government.

Pros: The Prezi still works at community meetings if you are obligated to host one by ordinance, and can be taken to stakeholders as well.
Cons: It is important to put the effort into development of the Prezi upfront to ensure the content and messaging are clear.



Produce a Video

I don’t mean videotape your elected or appointed official giving a presentation for people who couldn’t make it to the meeting. Animate your ideas, use b-roll to illustrate your points, or use 3-D modeling to show how something will work. I find talking heads aren’t usually necessary unless they are adding credibility. This can also be distributed on multiple platforms and linked to an online survey or feedback form. It can be as simple as a call to action that says, “Tell us what you think. E-mail feedback@government.org”

Pros: Videos grab people’s attention and give us the opportunity to animate complex subjects that are difficult to show in still formats.
Cons: Not much time. To be most effective, videos shouldn’t be too long, because you will naturally get drop off. Engaging content will help, but you don’t want a documentary!



Host a Radio Call-In Show or Podcast

Remember those Sunday morning public affairs shows? Well, actually, lots of other people do, too! Not to mention talk stations dedicated to public interest programming. Many will work with you to sponsor a segment. This particularly works well when you are early in a process and do not yet have visuals or renderings, but perhaps want to gather feedback on the idea. An example might be looking for new locations for a park, or beginning an environmental review process and asking for input on what should be considered. These days, podcasts are much more popular, but you lose the call-in factor, unless you are participating in a live event.

Pros: You can reach a lot more listeners at once this way, more than you ever could in a single room.
Cons: I suggest asking pointed questions to keep the comments on track; the station can help you filter if necessary.



Host an Open Exhibit

3D models are cool. Show them off! Use a public plaza or even the outside entrance to a government building and put up three different half-scale public art pieces that are being considered for the area and leave them up for several weeks. If you are planning to put up new park monument signs, make full scale foam versions of each and put them on display in a centrally located park for a full month. Build the exhibit so it has the story built-in to the signage in the exhibit and people can learn about the background, options and next steps as they walk through. Ask for feedback by providing a URL or e-mail address. You can do this indoors for more complicated models that need to be encased, which also gives you the opportunity to add in a tablet or kiosk where people can provide input onsite.

Pros: People love to take pictures with stuff like this and you can set it up artistically to encourage social media exposure. Provide a hashtag!
Cons: This is public. Very public. You cannot get this kind of engagement in an auditorium. Be ready to hear anything.



Build an Interactive Micro-Site

Long-term projects with multiple opportunities for comments over time may be worth building a micro-site. I normally fall on the landing page side of the debate, but for finite projects (and with meticulously aligned branding!), a micro-site may give you exactly the kind of interactive freedom you need. You can find the right platform to show renderings, build animation, add surveys, and change information over time.

Pros: You can usually add the newest functionality, without being tethered to your standard platform.
Cons: Using a micro-site diverts traffic from your main site, but for major projects where it is important to get feedback during multiple stages, this may be worth it.



Send out an online survey

If you really want to know what the community thinks, use an online research partner to send out a survey. They will help you develop questions, recommend a survey size sample, and execute your survey tool. In the end you will have a breakdown of feedback that is much more representative of the community at large.

Pros: You can segment your data to better understand differences in responses between neighborhoods, education levels or other filters.
Cons: It excludes the element of choice - the people who want to participate. You will still need an option that gives people a choice to give feedback if they choose to do so.

Just because people don’t come to public meetings doesn’t mean they don’t care about the future of their communities. We can meet people where they are, on the platforms they are on, with the mechanisms built in to provide feedback. Let’s take the risk, skip the comment cards and save a golf pencil.

Need some help for your next public meeting?

Next Entries »

5 Cybersecurity tips

Every small business needs

1. Educate your team on cybersecurity best practices

2. Implement Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)

3. Regularly update and patch software

4. Secure your user accounts

5. Develop a data backup and recovery plan

Bonus tip: Partner with a reliable Managed Service Provider (MSP)

Reflections on Allyship

marketing insights

Deepening the practice of intentional support and inclusive action

Listening and Learning: The Cornerstones of Allyship

Navigating Privilege in Allyship Means Constantly Educating Yourself

Reflecting Inclusivity in Storytelling

Collaborating Instead of Controlling

Embrace Humility: Continuing the Journey

The Power of Frequency

marketing insights

Why consistent engagement matters

Frequency:

The foundation of engagement

Familiarity:

How brand’s build awareness

Reinforcement:

The importance of repetition

Trust:

The glue of consistency

Consistency:

The key to strategy

Loyalty:

The end game

Driving traffic to your site

marketing insights

If you build it, there’s no guarantee they will come

Digital Ads:

Target the right audience

Email marketing:

Cultivate brand ambassadors

Social Media:

Create Once, Repurpose Everywhere (CORE)

QR Codes:

Bridge the physical and digital gap

Paid media partnerships:

Find your perfect platform

Balancing creative content and proactive distribution

marketing insights

Don't just build it, launch it!

Content Creation

Proactive Distribution

Produce high-quality videos

Drive YouTube views

Build a user-friendly website:

Implement a digital ad strategy:

Post insightful blog posts:

Share with email marketing:

Host engaging events:

Repurpose on social media:

Design captivating infographics:

Boost posts to your audience:

7 Alternatives to hosting a public meeting

marketing insights

Town HallNeighborhood DialogueDesign Charette Just kidding

Conduct a Facebook poll

Distribute a Prezi or Loom

Produce a Video

Host a Radio Call-In Show or Podcast

Host an Open Exhibit

Build an Interactive Micro-Site

Send out an online survey

Need some help for your next public meeting?

Success!