What is the number one thing that gets clicks to your blog? Headlines. What is the written content that pops up when your blog gets posted on social media? Headlines.

You get the point. Headlines matter!

According to CopyBlogger, “8 out of 10 people will read headline copy, but only 2 out of 10 will read the rest."

One of people's biggest complaints about content marketing is that often times the content is confusing. To avoid this negative reaction, write your content as you would a press release. Make sure your purpose is clear, and arrange your content in a logical, simple manner.

And, be sure your headline entices the reader to open the email. Subject lines seem like a small part of your job, but in actuality, they matter more than anything else!

Read on to learn how to create winning subject and headlines.

As we continue to dive into Nature’s Rx for Mental Wellness, the theme for the 2018 Garden Trends Report, we start to look more to how we can create spaces that help ease our minds.

Imagine walking through a forest and you’ll see that almost every bit of soil is covered with interlocking plants. Trees are covered with moss; the ground is covered with leaves, debris, grasses and moss.

Everything is working in perfect harmony.

Why do we think our garden should be any different?

Read more to learn about one of our 2018 Garden Trends: Social Network

The most important step in creating content is figuring out what your audience wants to read. 

Audiences come to trusted brands for their information. In fact, 65% of daily internet users read blogs. It could be YOUR blog if you make it easy for them to find it.

And yes, while blogs can assist you with the effective promotion of a service or product, they do more to build your businesses credibility, trust and authority. 

However, if you're still about the ROI:

• 63% of people turn to blogs to influences their purchase decisions.
• 60% of U.S. online consumers say they've made a purchase as a direct result of reading a blogger's recommendation.

Continue reading how to build content your readers want.

Nature’s Rx for Mental Wellness, the theme for the 2018 Garden Trends Report, is all about taking a break from being connected 24/7 and getting back in the real world.

The World Health Organization predicts anxiety will be the #1 health issue, outranking obesity by 2020.

That’s right around the corner. If we don’t try to stop that now, we are going to be in major trouble.

Thankfully, there is more talk of wellness in the world more than ever.

Celebrities and Royals are talking about their mental wellness goals, which is helping demystify mental health.

The bottom line is: Happy mind = Happy body.

2018 is officially here!

This year Garden Media Group is taking a break – a mental break that is. Our focus for this year is mental wellness and with that comes a few resolutions to make that happen.

Before we jump into what resolutions we are looking forward to, let’s take a look back in 2017.

Brands did some great things and some not so great things. In the spirit of growing, let’s see what we can learn from 2017.

Use Your Voice: Thousands of women stood up and spoke up with #MeToo. This led to a cover of Time magazine as “Person of the Year.” As Trump took office, companies raced to get their brand in order to see what they were going to do to help immigrants have a voice of their own.

Using your voice doesn’t mean speaking out against every issue – it does mean backing the issues your brand, customers and employees might be dealing with.

Podcasts and Videos: It has been shown time and time again video marketing is here to stay! How-To videos are great for millennials and vlogger influencers are trending like crazy. Podcasts are picking up quickly. Branded video content being featured or even sponsoring a podcast is a great way to get your name out there in a new niche.

Narrow it down: Brands that have narrowed down their audience and created content for specific people have hit the nail on the head. Netflix did a great job of this while promoting the newest Stranger Things season. They used era specific photos and hints to really drive the nostalgia of the 80s.

Continue reading to see what resolutions to follow in 2018.

Patience has never been my virtue. I tap my feet waiting in line, traffic is a nightmare and “take the long way home” never made sense to me.

In business, I never thought this was an issue. Getting the task done as quickly as possible was always something I was praised for, when I was someone else’s employee.

Now that I’m managing people, this lack of patience may be my downfall.

Without even realizing it, most leaders do and say things that create ineffective employees. Christine Comaford, author of SmartTribes: How Teams Become Brilliant Together says even good leaders unconsciously strike fear in the hearts of their work force.

“From time to time, we all say or do things that spark unconscious fears in our employees,” says Comaford. “The primitive ‘fight, flight or freeze’ part of the brain takes control. When that happens, when people are stuck in what I call the Critter State, all they can focus on is their own survival.”

Just like the garden, no one wants critters. But, I get the feeling my lack of patience is creating this mental state.

Continue to reading to learn how to practice patience and put people first.

Trade shows are one of the best places to learn, network, garner new business, attract new customers and interact face-to-face with trade show attendees.

They are also a huge investment. Are you making the most out   of every dollar that you're putting into garden industry trade shows? 

Chances are, your garden business could be doing more. 

Mastering the art of PR at a trade show is not easy.  You will  have a lot of balls in the air if you're trying to both sell and  market at the same time. 

But, don't overlook marketing! It is just as important as selling.

Read on for 10 tips for to master garden industry trade shows, conferences and events

As millennials step into becoming homeowners, Home Depot sees them ringing up more do-it-yourself projects at its stores.

Give and Take. One of the most simplified principles of physics. Energy, inertia and other terms help explain the physics principle but what about in business? What are some Give and Take principles for business?

Sharing Feedback (give) and Effective Listening (take) are the two I’ll be focusing on. Both can be very difficult to do but they are extremely important and don’t need to be stress inducing. Sharing feedback can make people feel uncomfortable for both the giver and the receiver and listening effectively can be challenging when you have so many other things on your mind.

Continue reading for some tips on how to do both with ease.

With Black Friday behind us, who do you think will be the big spenders this holiday?

According to a recent survey by The National Retail Federation (NRF), young adults ages 18-24 plan on spending more this holiday season compared to last year.

54 percent of consumers overall, plan to spend about the same as last year, while 24 percent plan to spend more. Among those aged 18-24 — which includes the oldest members of Generation Z — 46 percent say they will spend more than last year.

“As Gen Z and Millennials get older, their purchasing power increases, and the rise in disposable income is sure to be seen by retailers,” NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay said. “This group of consumers has spent time carefully researching gifts for friends, family and themselves, and are ready to begin knocking out their shopping lists.”

What do these holiday spending trends mean for garden businesses?

Read more to find out how to ensure these big spenders are shopping your products or store.