Marketing Strategies for Remote Work
Many of us dream of traveling more and relish the thought of working abroad. Check out this blog for helpful tips on how to work while traveling, so you can keep making money and keep building your brand while you’re on the road.
Full disclaimer- this blog is intended for new or small-sized businesses, and we specialize in small-business marketing. This blog was written 2 years ago and is repurposed content. I am still working while traveling, and can travel more than ever now, while maintaining the same monthly salary.
working in Morocco
As I write this, I'm currently working on my laptop on an airplane going to Morocco. I’ve just spent the last month walking through Spain on the Camino Del Norte, and much to my boyfriend’s dislike and disappointment, I actually was able to get a decent amount of "work" done while walking. (I was learning things and brainstorming and taking notes, which any entrepreneur knows is work).
Yes, this is astonishing to many, and many of my clients have been privy to my voice texts and phone calls of an out-of-breath Alex walking up a mountain with her dogs while detailing some grand scheme to employ. For those of you reading this, you might think, "How can she work while she hikes?" “I would trip and fall!” Or maybe, “why not just enjoy where you are and that moment?” And guess what- I hear you and I've heard it all! Blame my ADD, blame my hyperactive brain, blame the love for my job?
Let me start by saying that I have many trails back home on Oahu that I almost utilize like a gym. I have gone on them so many times and taken in the view so many times that I’m not only able to work while I walk, but I always know my favorite parts of the trail to stop and look around, and I make sure to do just that. As for tripping- I’ve just gotten used to working while walking and I am quite good on my feet :)
Ok, so back to the present. I’ve been on a plane for the past two hours sandwiched in an uncomfortable middle seat on a Ryanair flight to Agadir and in this time have culled all my photos from Spain, listened to 4 business podcasts and taken notes, written out a blog plan for 3 months, and I’m working on the remainder of my social media strategy to accompany my blogs and grow the business! How? I take advantage of my resources when I can, and I plan ahead to have the resources I need to work on branding and strategy, no matter where I am!
What do I mean by this? Well, PlanIt does social media marketing and content creation for multiple brands, but we also have to keep our stuff up to date. We have to look fresh, provide valuable insight, attract new customers, engage with our current audience, and more. How can we get hired to execute brand building and brand strategy for other businesses if we don’t also work on our own brand marketing? How can we get hired to shoot commercial photography and videography for businesses if we don't showcase our work? We can’t!
This blog is about how I’m able to work on the marketing for my own business while I travel, but to be paid by my clients while abroad, a lot of pre-planning and work in advance had to happen. I’m talking about creating content calendars 5-6 months in advance to ensure I have all necessary content ready for editing and scheduling during my travel time. This also means having people on your team you can also trust and have worked with for quite some time before your travel, people that you know will be able to continue their tasks while you’re gone. If you can handle it on your own, which after 1 full year of doing this FULL TIME, i am not completely doing the work without any assistance, A LOT of pre-planning is necessary.
I once did 3-month contracts, but now do 6 months, allowing me to essentially get 3-6 months ahead of schedule and plan out what my clients will do well in advance, so I can create content, write captions, form partnerships and strategic plans, etc. For example, at this exact moment, I am leaving in 2 weeks for my bachelorette party, my destination wedding/honeymoon, and my destination wedding reception, totalling 6 weeks of being out of town. For the most part, I do not intend to work while I’m gone, but only because I have planned and worked so far in advance that I’m able to make it work. I am also currently pregnant and thinking ahead of the potential of feeling ill, or tired, or who knows- so I figured while I still felt ok, I’d work far ahead even on my PlanIt blogs and social media work. It never hurts to be too far ahead if you understand the market, current trends, your client, and their customers.
So that’s how I plan for our clients and make sure I can continue getting paid. But how do I plan for the marketing and growth of my own business? KEEP READING!
TOP 10 THINGS TO DO TO WORK FOR YOURSELF, WHILE TRAVELING
1) EQUIPMENT PURCHASE
I once had a hardcore editing laptop that was super heavy and expensive, but with technology upgrades, I was able to trade in my hog and get a MacBook Pro that is small, light, and does everything I need and more! And, while I do have a big desktop at home, this laptop will be utilized anytime I want to work in public places or even want a change in scenery.
2) EQUIPMENT SET UP
The next step had to do with prepping the laptop. I am a huge fan and long-time user of Adobe Suite, and with the subscription service I pay for, I am entitled to use the apps on 2 different devices. I also really like Capcut for basic reels and the fact that I can work on my phone and computer. Editing on the go- CHECK!
3) DOWNLOADS
I rarely have enough time to take the classes and listen to the educational podcasts I'd like to when I’m home, but what better time than when you are waiting for planes, sitting on trains or boats, taking a solo walk, etc. I conducted research into entrepreneurship and digital nomad podcasts to find ones that would inspire and educate me on areas for improvement. I downloaded a ton of these into my Spotify so that I could listen in airplane mode.
4) PACK WHAT YOU NEED but ideally things you won’t be devastated by the damage or loss of. Shit happens.
In order to be efficient, there are a few key pieces of technology I always bring along while traveling internationally.
- multi-country converter
- SSD drive with files you need to work on and plenty of available storage space
- Portable phone charger to charge while on the go
- Apple AirPods
- Canon R6 with 35mm lens and spare battery with charger (or something comparable. I chose this particular camera and lens setup because the camera isn’t new, and the lens is on the cheaper end, compared to my others.
5) THE RIGHT PHONE PLAN
Switch to T-Mobile for the international phone plan if you plan to travel frequently and want to be able to still use your number. With the newer iPhones, there’s no physical SIM card, but you can get an eSIM if service is spotty, which I often do when traveling these days. Sooo many places still don’t have WiFi or at least reliable WiFi, so it’s nice to have a backup, and it truly is a GAME changer. For $50 per month, you can also add on 5GB of high-speed data and unlimited calls. I totally recommend this, but if you do this, make sure to TURN OFF your iCloud updates because it WILL consume all your high-speed data without you even realizing it (a sad sad truth I discovered)
6) OPTIMIZING YOUR PHONE WORK FLOW
Download the app version of the programs you use on your computer to your phone and make sure you utilize them to the best of their ability. Some of the apps are amazing, but things like Later only let you schedule stories from your desktop, so schedule posts from your phone and plan ahead for your stories/do your stories whenever you have your computer!
7) OPTIMIZING INTERNET CONNECTIVITY
Whenever you have Internet, take advantage. Download/upload any images, videos, or podcasts that you need. Map out what you can do without internet, and don’t do any of those things when you have internet, unless you’ve done everything you want to do!
8) COMMUNICATE WITH LOCALS
Download WhatsApp. This is often the only way to communicate with businesses while you’re abroad. You can call and text them through this. Plus, send images. This is a little digression from working abroad and more into living abroad, but it’s worthwhile and used all over! Plus, if you don't plan for an international phone plan, it's a way to make calls!
9) A CREDIT CARD THAT WORKS FOR TRAVEL + CASH IN THAT CURRENCY
Invest in a credit card with no foreign transaction fees and a good points mechanism. You also want to make sure it gives you insurance on rental cars and lost baggage and has a super easy help line if needed. Add it into Apple Pay because most places (at least in Europe) offer tap to pay (even the train system in many countries, rather than buying tickets). You can even put your business PLUS personal credit cards in there and tap accordingly. But also bring your debit card because many places outside of Europe, and oddly many taxis within Europe, do not take cards! Many ATMs have horrible transaction fees, so it's best to take more at a time, take from your partner banks, and ALWAYS let it give you the money in foreign currency, not your home currency. If you choose your home currency, there are often additional fees.
10) A GOOD PHONE REALLY DOES MATTER
Invest in a good phone. If you create and store a lot of content, make sure to pay for iCloud storage so your phone isn’t always full and you’re able to capture content of your adventures without your work content clogging up your whole phone. At the same time, make sure your phone has a good amount of storage so that you have the ability to store what you need on your phone and have the ability to download from Cloud as you want! A good phone will give you a good camera, and if you know how to use it right, for the most part, you won't even need a camera unless it's for things far away or if you're shooting something that will be blown up larger than a phone image!
As always- I'm an open book! Reach out with any specific questions about working abroad!
XO,
Alex
