The New Digital Adventure!

Posted on by meaganjohns0701

The New Digital Adventure!

My name is Meagan Johns, and I live in Argyle, Texas.  I have a husband, two horses, and four dogs (a small ranch), and they all keep me very busy!  I am a hospital pharmacist by day though.

When I started this MBA program at New England College last year, I never though it would end up bringing me into the Digital Age.  I am ashamed to admit that at 30 years old, I have never tweeted, nor have I ever had a blog.  I have tried to stay as “unconnected” as possible until now.  As a pharmacist,  I never thought I would really need to embrace social media or marketing skills.  Now, I realize that marketing may simply mean proposing or “selling” a new pharmacy service line in the hospital, or presenting onself in the best possible light in the job market. I am also realizing, I am one of the only people my age that isn’t routinely on social media!  I am truly excited to start this digital marketing class, and I will commit to keeping a open mind, adapting  to new ways of thinking, and embracing change throughout my digital marketing journey.

I plan on blogging about a local organization where I live called Pet Haven, a local pet grooming business.  They have done such a wonderful job grooming my two rough Collies and two Shetland Sheepdogs, that even though I live in Argyle, I still drive all the way to Watuaga, around 25 miles, to have them groom my dogs! They are a locally owned business where people visit based on word of mouth.  I love to see locally-owned businesses thrive and compete with “big box” retailers. I have nothing against “ big box” retailers; however, my experience with this local business has been wonderful.  They treat my pets very well, and the owners truly understand how to properly groom collies without taking short-cuts.  They have been in business for 15 years, and they recently moved to a new, larger location in Watuaga. They currently have a website, but no Facebook page or Twitter account that I could easily find.  Over the course of the next seven weeks of the class, I will use what I learn to analyze how they can improve their digital footprint to reach new customers.

I look forward to this digital adventure!

5 thoughts on “The New Digital Adventure!”

  1. Hi Meagan, I’m excited to follow along and see what you come up with. I love to see small businesses succeed. We have several mobile pet grooming businesses in town. One is called “Mary Puppins”. 🙂
    Julie

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Hi Julie,

      I love to see small business succeed as well. I think the thing that people like about local businesses is the personal connection to the community they offer. One of the top digital marketing trends listed on http://www.toprankblog.com/2014/05/digital-marketing-2015/ this year is connecting with people on a human level, whether that is through humor, or empathy for their situation and needs. I think this is where large companies are missing the mark, and why people in my generation are craving the originality local businesses offer. Thanks for your reply!
      Meagan

      Like

      Reply

  2. Hi Meagan – I’m looking forward to seeing if and how your thoughts on social and digital media change through the course of this class! I love the idea of blogging about your local pet grooming business because there is so much that can be done from a digital marketing perspective to increase business and outreach for a small business like that. I know how hard it is to find a good pet groomer, so it will be fun for me to see the ideas you come up with to help them become more engaged and successful through online initiatives. I love animals, especially dogs, so I hope we get to see a picture or two of some cute and sudsy pups 🙂

    Like

    Reply

      1. Flickr is great site to find commercial use photos. Creating an account is free, and once you do it is easy to search the Creative Commons section using keywords to find what you’re looking for. There are also sites like Shutterstock where you can purchase photo credits and find stock photos to use for commercial purposes.

        Liked by 1 person

Leave a comment