Well, it is! C'mon everybody, we can do better than this. I know it's summer time and you're probably hot wherever you are (although, not hotter than me. I'm in Phoenix, Arizona!), but business is still going as usual. Ms.LaShanda Henry created BBWO as a forum for us to SUPPORT each other, HELP each other, and USE each other...(for services, products, etc.) and we're not using it to it's fullest potential. People post blogs and thoughts all day but NO ONE comments! And how many BBWO friends do you have?
So I'm just commenting on how quiet it has been lately. I know everyone is busy with LIFE but with the ability to comment on Twitter or Facebook it should make it a little easier to be more active. I've decided to make it a goal of mine to comment on at least one blog daily (baby steps), or to be-friend AND communicate with a few people a week. Make it a goal of yours! If you're a blog writer then you know how helpful it is to hear what people think.So, let's help each other, and start COMMENTING.
Let's start now: What is your opinion? What business are you in? How has BBWO helped you in your business? Have you made any goals for your business or BBWO membership?
Ok enough of the tangent...
Stay motivated and keep moving towards prosperity!
Posted by Robin Tramble on September 21, 2011 at 5:51am
Are you a victim of Time thieves?
Maybe that would be easier to answer if you knew what time thieves were. And quite possibly you already know what they are but need to be reminded of how much they are stealing from your Destiny, from your relationships, okay from your life.
I’m sharing another post on Productivity secrets because it is one area that most women have a challenge with whether in business or their personal life.
You’ve probably given in to most of the time thieves I’m going to mention below.
Phone You can actually use the phone as a timesaver if you know how.
TV and Radio How many hours have we given to watching TV or listening to the radio. Now get this, some of it is done out of habit. What that means is if you actually made a decision (remember everything begins with a decision) a decision to reduce the amount of time you watch Television and replace it with a productive activity you could achieve that goal and realize increased revenue in the process.
The same thing applies to the radio. Be intentional about your listening and not habitual.
Waiting in Line I truly believe that this is one way our patience is tested.
Sometimes going to crowded places can’t be avoided, however, there are peak hours that you can expect longer lines. Pick a schedule where you least expect many people to show up. For example, buy your groceries on weekdays. Don’t shop during weekends and paydays. If you can afford the higher price tags of items that can be bought through the phone, internet, or third-party services, then go ahead and buy them. If you treat time as gold, then the extra time you’ll be saving as a result of this act is worth much more than the extra money you’ll be spending. In case you really have no choice but to wait in line, then don’t waste your time complaining. Do something productive like reading a book, listening to educational tapes, or writing your future plans on your little notebook.
Social Media Yes I said it. Social Media. Some individuals spend all day on Social Media sites and get absolutely nowhere. Social media is a power resource if you know what you’re doing. Automate your activities. Up grade your skills. Connect with a Social Media Coach such as myself to learn how to monetize your efforts or outsource it. Our World Wide Visibility movement is set for this very thing. to support you in your efforts to gain World Wide Visibility.
Email overwhelm
The ability to send emails has contributed to productivity in the office whether you have an office at home or in the workplace. It’s become such a part of our daily activities that we’ve forgotten about the snail mail which can end up being more effective due to the fact that some people don’t even open most of their emails.
However, there are certain downsides to using email as a means of communication. Do you check your emails many times in the day? If so you’re hampering your productivity. It can end up being a very time-consuming activity.
Traffic Traffic and more Traffic This is another hair-pulling moment, especially when you’re running late for an important appointment. Avoid the rush hour by all means. Anticipate when a traffic jam is usually occurring during the day so you can adjust your commuting time. If your destination is not too far away, a walking session might be a great idea to evade traffic, save on gas or money, and attain a healthy lifestyle.
I’ve shared with you a few time thieves and you may be asking “Okay Robin that’s all good but what do I do about it?” I’m glad you asked.
I’m hosting a Tele-series “Get it Done – Make it Happen: Get Focused, Make Big Changes and Get Results!” I’ll be sharing some yummy insights on this very topic and more! If you’re serious about keeping your appointment with Destiny, manifesting your most desired results and ideal lifestyle while having time for what matters most, you don’t want to miss this call.
Understanding how not to OVERUSE social media to maximize your business opportunities is the focus of this year’s All Women’s Social Media Summit.
A six-member female panel will share tips on how to generate revenue and capitalize on networking opportunities. BAMedia is hosting the third annual event. Organizer Beverly Mahone says each woman brings a tremendous amount of experience to the table which will be extremely beneficial to the audience. “These are the women who take social media to another level. They’ve learned how to navigate their way and master their craft through sites like LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and FourSquare. And they do it without being overwhelmed at the end of the day or week."
Kelly Duffort, a web strategist, is one of the panelists for this year’s Event. As the Principal and Founder of KD Web Strategies, a consulting firm that advises companies how to take their overall web presence (e.g., websites, blogs, social media profiles) to the next level. Kelly says, “Whether you love it or hate it and whether you understand it or avoid it, social media is changing the way people communicate – personally and professionally. If you use social media wisely to promote your business, you will be amazed at the connections it enables you to make and the doors it opens for you.”
This year’s social media summit will be held at the McKimmon Center in Raleigh, NC. Early Bird Registration is currently underway. The first ten women to register will receive a free 30-minute consultation with a member of the panel, preferred seating at the Summit and Luncheon, business card info in the Program Book and an opportunity to promote your business at the Summit.
Recently, a friend told me about a negative incident she had while dining at a large restaurant chain. Her waitress was very rude and inattentive. By the time her meal arrived, her colleague had finished eating. The last straw was realizing her steak was prepared wrong. Angrily, she took out her I Phone and sent out a tweet to her followers about her experience. Minutes later, she received an apology from the restaurant’s general manager; the cost of her meal was waived; and she was given a $100 gift certificate for a future visit. Imagine if that restaurant chain didn’t have a social media presence? What you don’t know can harm you!
It takes many good deeds to build a good reputation, and only one bad one to lose it. Benjamin Franklin
Do you know what people are saying about you, your business or brand? Whether you are managing one or all, your online reputation is extremely important.
This is so tragic!!! Failing! I can't stand that word actually. It is so negative! And it's sad that failing is a reality for some business owners. Briefly, I will share with you the 5 reasons why most people fail :( in their first 30 days! Forget about the first year! Some people don't even make it that long!
1. Lack of training: Some people you decide to do business with might tell you something like: they provide free training, you're in business for yourself but not by yourself, call in every day at this time for an automated training message, etc etc. They tell you how simple it is to build a business and get you all revved up to jump in and start making truckloads of money and then you never hear from them again! Unfortunately, this happens all too often and new business owners are left to figure things out on their own. It is very important that you find a mentor to partner up with and help you along as you build your business.
2. Lack of focus: Let's be real here, you were just going along with your life and then all of a sudden you decided to start a business! Great decision, but the problem is that your life continues and you never adjust it to fit in your business! It takes TIME and dedication to build a successful business.
3. Lack of strategy: Can we say, BUSINESS PLAN? How many of you have ever enrolled in school WITHOUT a plan or blueprint of your 4 years at the institution! NO ONE HAS! You HAVE to have to plan for the things you want to succeed in.
4. Unwillingness to get down and dirty: If you are NOT uncomfortable within the first 18 months (at maximum) of your business, then you're doing something WRONG! It's ok for you to be uncomfortable calling or following up with people. Its ok to be uncomfortable telling someone about what you do and maybe asking them to join you. It's ok to be uncomfortable going to training sessions by yourself. It's ok to be UNCOMFORTABLE! Because believe it or not, eventually you WON'T be uncomfortable. And it will be apart of your routine. YOU HAVE TO BE CONSISTENT!
5. No desire or passion: This is a huge one! I always tell people they have enjoy the business they're in! Why would you have a traveling business but hate to travel? You have to be passionate about what you do! When you have passion for your business you will have a desire to succeed! And eventually all of these 5 reasons, although obstacles, will be triumphs!
The thing that seperates SUCCESSFUL business owners from the FAILED ones is that they keep trying. Whats the old saying? "IF AT FIRST YOU DON'T SUCCEED, TRY, TRY AGAIN!" There are even 2 trys in there! So you've got to stay motivated, stay prayerful, and stay positive when going through the excitements and woes of starting a business.
Updated 7/10/11
If this is your fear, I can help you. Contact me today! Tamara@garrisonprosperitysolutions.com
Do you have a Facebook Fanpage or Facebook Business Page? Don't know whether you need one or not?
I have the pleasure of empowering women in their personal, spiritual and business growth. One area that I've extended my reach to is Woman Entrepreneur Empowerment. This is not a brand new area, however, I've committed a greater percentage of my reach to this particular group.
One thing that is apparent is that women are identifying the need to become equipped to use Social Media effectively without wasting time or money.
If your niche (who you serve) or audience can be found on Facebook thank you need to Power up your Social Media endeavors with a Facebook Fanpage.
A Facebook fan page is more than just another way to connect with prospects and customers online. Your Facebook fan page can:
Click here to read this Business empowerment post.
I'm sure you'll be motivated to get busy utilizing this powerful tool.
Empowering you,
Robin aka The Empowerment Diva
Recommended
5 irrefutable steps to creating a profitable Facebook Business Page and getting more likes!
Tuesday, June 28 at 12:00 noon PST
Can't make the call the Audio replay will be available to all registrants
There was a time that you could put up your offer for a free Newsletter and you could be guaranteed nice opt in rate. Now a days it takes a little more than a post that reads “Sign up for my free newsletter.”
It makes you wonder if E-mail marketing is dead?
A related aspect of online marketing that can be as annoying as it can be effective is targeted e-mail campaigns. Improper use of this avenue has lead to the use of so-called “junk” e-mail filters and huge campaigns against vendors and sites that knowingly send out millions of e-mails to any e-mail address they can harvest.
Junk e-mail is typically sent without regard to whether or not the person in question is a potential customer or not. Returns of less then 1% on these campaigns are common, and still considered a “success” because the costs are so low that any return seems worthwhile.
So is it worth my while to consider this strategy? While e-mail is one of the most abused forms of advertising on the Internet, it can be a great way to start a marketing campaign. Use it carefully and correctly, especially with customer acceptance and true manned “removal” systems.
So what is the key to successful e-mail campaigns?
The key to successful e-mail campaigns is to target people who would actually want to hear from you about your product, and then to personalize your e-mails in such a way that it isn’t apparent you are mass-marketing. One thing you will need to get started is an autoresponder. This will help you automate the process of capturing the prospects name, email and building rapport by sending follow up emails with value added content and hopefully converting them to a client/customer. This is of course after you build trust and demonstrate your expertise. You’re working on the know, like and trust factor throughout this process. Just be sure you act responsibly, or you may find your e-mails going into junk e-mail bins and all your marketing dollars wasted!
If you’re looking for a great autoresponder I recommend Aweber. It’s great to use while getting started. You can click here to learn more and get a 21 day free trial.
Consider adding e-mail marketing to your marketing plan. If you feel a little shakey and want additional support in this area and Online Marketing as a whole, I invite you to join other dynamic entrepreneurs and I for The Online Marketing Breakthrough Boot Camp.
Click here to learn more and secure your enrollment.
...Keep them off of it! Facebook is great for us adults to chat and to catch up with old friends, but it is not the safest site for your kids. Did you know that because of all the advertising on Facebook, your name and email are sometimes sold to these companies so they can advertise to you via email? If you haven't noticed, they do not offer any privacy features for your children. If you're a good parent, then you monitor your child's Facebook page regularly. But those who do not, there could be all kinds of things like cyber-bullying, inappropriate conversations, and predators that your children are being exposed to on Facebook.
Now, don't get me wrong. I use Facebook regularly. Facebook just doesn't offer very safe features for children. Therefore, I went searching and I found a social network that would be perfect for you and your kids! This social network, appropriately named CrazyGood, offers so much privacy, they don't even allow advertisements on the site! Their main goal is to provide a safe, secure, private, and fun community for their members. As a member, you receive 2 sub-accounts so you can sign your children up under your name and monitor what is going on IF you ever wanted to.
CrazyGood offers great content and value for their members. How many of you have ever experienced one of your Facebook friends using profanity, or had some one spam your page? Maybe you've even been exposed to nudity or someone trying to sell you something. Well on CrazyGood they ban anyone that is using profanity, nudity, spamming, etc. They frown upon anything that brings discord to the community and shut them down right away. Although they have very private settings, it is still a social network. A place where you can find old friends, or make new ones. If you're a business owner, evangelist or have news to share, you can MARKET all of that on CrazyGood.
Because CrazyGood has no advertisements, there is a small membership fee. But it's the cost of a McDonald's value meal with a drink and for that price, I'd say it's worth the privacy. The best thing about it is that they give 10% of all revenue to a charity of your choice! I know it's too good to be true, but it is! One of CrazyGood's missions is to help its members create financial security for themselves and their family. Therefore, if you tell your friends, who tell their friends, etc, you also get paid for each of them. So you're getting paid to socialize! Just think about it...how many Facebook friends do you have? How much do you make for socializing with them on Facebook? What was that?? Did you say, NOTHING?!! Right! But with CrazyGood, you get paid MONTHLY for your friends, their friends, and so on and so on. You have the potential to make at least $111,000 a month. (see for yourself => <a href="http://http://www.crazygood.com/pages/worksheet">click here</a>)
Bottom line is, CrazyGood is a safe environment for you and your family to socialize. You can enjoy your friends, profit from your friends and help somebody in need all at the same time. What better way to socialize?? Check it out and let me know what you think.
I am such an impatient person. I can admit it right out of the gate, but one thing I've learned after a number of business "beat-downs" is that planning is priceless.
One of the steps often forgotten in the excitement of creating a new business that you're going to market is the planning phase. But this is particularly important when you're creating your sales and marketing strategy.
You have got to spend some time mapping out how your content, products and services, and marketing are all going to work together to build a profitable online business.
To help you out, I'm going to share a few key steps - all of which I'll be talking about in my brand new coaching program that launches in a few weeks - Spicy Hot Systems That Sell (SPICY = simple, profitable, impactful, convenient, and getting your buyers to YES!):
Step One: Develop high quality offerings. Starting off on the right foot with your customer service approach is very important for the livelihood of your online business. Quality products, from the very first freebie to your largest ticket item, will help you gradually build a positive reputation for yourself. Any future dealings you have where you can do repeat business with your customer should leave them feeling as if they were treated as well if not better than the first time around.
Step Two: Create your product line. A sales funnel is a series of incrementally more valuable, and perhaps more expensive, products or services to offer your customers. However, people are going to enter your funnel at various stages. Some may begin by taking advantage of your free offer while some may jump right in and buy a product or service. Create a plan for each type of customer. Set the stage for the next level of products you have available. Figure out which ones might be of interest to your clients, or which ones could be useful. Help them to see just how they can be helpful and how to implement them effectively into their present business or organization.
Step Three: Maintain the Communication. In addition to creating a line of high quality products and services, you’ll also want to establish consistent communication with your prospects and customers. Accomplish this by continuing the flow of valuable information in the form of blog posts, email messages and perhaps a newsletter.
Maintaining the flow of valuable information makes it easier for your customers to confidently pass your information on to others. You could soon find yourself starting the process all over again with new referrals, or other people you have found on your own who have become customers.
Planning is the key to online business success. Create your sales funnel plan, marketing plan and content plan and work to integrate the three into a seamless and efficient system. Consistency is the key, and by using the same plan over and over again with each new person, your online business will grow. And everyone will be receiving the same great quality products and services you have to offer.
Yeah I said it. OVERWHELMED! Let's face it, we all deal with this at some point in our lives. Being overwhelmed or feeling overwhelmed. There are so many factors of building a business that can be overwhelming or seem like too much to handle. Here are 3 ways to keep yourself from being overwhelmed or get out of your overwhelm-ing-ness
Step 1- FOCUS
Step 2- FOCUS
Step 3- did I say, FOCUS?
Last week, my husband decided to purchase a new couch for our living room. We are moving into a new house soon but I didn't expect him to start buying furniture anytime soon! Anyhow, he starts sending me pictures of all of these couches and living room sets that he liked and thought I'd like and I almost threw my phone across the room! I appreciate him trying to take initiative, use his time off wisely, and make a purchase for our family, but the thought and process of choosing a couch set via text message pictures made me really overwhelmed and I couldn't handle it! There were so many pictures coming in, I had students in front of me (I'm a teacher by hobby :)), and I just couldn't FOCUS on what he was asking me. Eventually, I just asked him to find out what the return policy was, what their weekend hours were, and asked him to choose one he liked (If I don't like it, I can return it later).
Compare this to your business. If you are always looking at what others are doing, have so many business ideas that you start and stop on, then you are not FOCUSed. There's no way you could be successful with so many OTHER things going on. You need to chose. In my book, The Motivator (coming this summer!), I share that you should write down the actual hours you are going to work your business during the week and stick to them! Having a set amount of daily working hours will help you to not get so overwhelmed.
I mentioned earlier, "looking at what others are doing": If you were privileged enough to experience the twitter party this weekend, you saw or read information about so many different business people. Which was so cool to see. (Hat's off to LaShanda Henry of Black Business Women Online...mybbwo.com) However, if you are not FOCUSed in your business, still trying to figure out what services you're going to offer, then that might have been a little overwhelming for you. You were probably the one looking at everyone's website, getting ideas of what you want to do, then seeing someone else's website and seeing something ELSE you want to do, and eventually having too many ideas to choose from (don't get me wrong, it is always nice to check out other peoples websites to support them and refer people to them, but stay focused on what you are trying to do)!
Here are some things you need to do, in order to find your niche in business: First, you need to take the B.A.T. (Business Aptitude Test: determines what type of business would best for your personality type). This test will help you decide what you would most enjoy doing, if you could FIRE YOUR BOSS tomorrow! Second, you need to find a business coach ( I know a great one offering a FREE introductory consultation that can help, ME!). A business coach can help you create a business plan and hold you accountable for sticking to the plans. Once you have these two steps done, you will be on your way to success.
Remember the old saying, "time is money". So you are losing out when you are wasting time and distracted by other peoples websites and services You are losing out when you are wasting time and doing things in your free time OTHER than working your business. You are losing out when you are not FOCUSED on your goals for building a successful business. Remember, "when you are not focused, you fail".
This is part 2 of a 4 part series where I'm sharing the essential systems entrepreneurs must have in place to support a solid brand.
System #1: Customer engagement
Brand support system number one is about the way in which you engage your customers. This is the process by which you create a path of attraction to your business. It's the way that you make it easy for prospects to meet you, to love what you do, to test drive your services. This might look like your current opt-in strategy. Or it may even be the type of events you host that attract people to your business.
Creating an easy path for prospects to engage is critical to building your pool of interested buyers. As a system, this path should be outlined in such a way that you can powerfully reflect your brand with ease. The goal is to create a connection between you as a solution provider and the potential client, or prospect.
What is evident when you view an entrepreneur’s website is whether or not there is an easy way to determine your next step. Successful entrepreneurs are clear in the single action they would like for a viewer to take when visiting their website the first time. But unfortunately too many business owners fail to streamline the instruction for their prospect. There is no opt-in form. There is nothing “sticky" about the page that keeps a person there, so viewers leave after only visiting a few seconds.
One example of a way to engage customers that capitalizes on the way they first interacted with you is to create a social media landing page. This blog post by visibility guru Nancy Marmalejo tells you how to do this: http://vivavisibilityblog.com/social-networking-landing-page/.
There are other ways to engage your customer or prospect. One of the most widely used ways is to develop a strong opt in form. A blog post by marketing diva Ali Brown shares great insight into how to make this work for you: http://www.alibrown.com/blog/?p=722.
The key to customer engagement is to entice prospective buyers within the first few seconds so they can receive your valuable information.
WANT TO RE-POST THIS ARTICLE ON YOUR BLOG OR USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR EZINE, E-NEWSLETTER OR WEB SITE?
You may, as long as you include this complete blurb with it:
About the Author: Tanya Smith is a creative business strategist specializing in showing coaches, consultants and freelancers how to spend more time making money with simple, yet profitable marketing systems. Her company Be Promotable provides clients with fresh actionable strategies and virtual resources to promote their small businesses as power players in their market. Claim your instant access to a free 10 part ecourse, 10 Ways To Grow Your List at: www.bepromotable.com.
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I've been studying copy quite a bit lately because I want to improve my own business brand and make sure my stuff gets more eyes on it! What about you? Doesn't that matter to your business? Writing good copy is actually ESSENTIAL to your success, so even if you choose to outsource your writing, you should be familiar with at least the basics.Study and save this simple list of words you can use to attract more views.
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The customer relationship management system refers to the way you take care of your current customers. It may be the way that you process their intake into doing new business with you. It's about how you provide here and service once your clients have already paid or invested in your services. Ultimately the goal is for prospects to become clients and eventually to become raving fans for your business. This happens when you treat current clients or fans very well.
How do you deliver on the promises that you make in your brand. Does it require a lot of manual labor? Can you automate delivery of your services? Can you set up systems with the click of a button that will accept payment and deliver on the promise? If you're conducting a coaching group is there self-service function word new clients can go and access their profiles, pay an invoice, create a support case? This is all part of delivering on your brand promises. When you have easy tools and systems in place it's much easier for your clients to rave about your services and to refer others to them as well. A great service experience can immediately expand your level of influence and authority.
I am a huge fan of Customer Relationship Management systems (CRM). CRMs were like a dream come true because I was tired of manually tracking loose pieces of paper, sticky notes, e-mails that flooded my inbox from people I worked with. A solid CRM can manage projects, automate your billing, and make it easy for you to find essential correspondence between you and the customer. Examples of great CRMs to research for your business include BaseCamp, Salesforce, Capsule CRM, and WorkEtc.
Another part of the relationship management, however, involves your approach to follow-up. Send Out Cards is a simple but highly distinctive way to show your clients you care. I purchased an account with the company years ago but did not realize the power of the program until I used it to mail personalized postcards to members of a course I was teaching online. It really made an impact with my clients to receive a special thank you from the right at their doorstep.
Trust me, in this age of Internet marketing a postcard or greeting card will help you stand out from the crowd. It will also help to solidify the emotional connection with your customer, which has the potential to generate more sales. Besides, sales are really about creating a personal experience for the buyer.
WANT TO RE-POST THIS ARTICLE ON YOUR BLOG OR USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR EZINE, E-NEWSLETTER OR WEB SITE?
You may, as long as you include this complete blurb with it:
About the Author: Tanya Smith is a creative business strategist specializing in showing coaches, consultants and freelancers how to spend more time making money with simple, yet profitable marketing systems. Her company Be Promotable provides clients with fresh actionable strategies and virtual resources to promote their small businesses as power players in their market. Claim your instant access to a free 10 part ecourse, 10 Ways To Grow Your List at: www.bepromotable.com.
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Posted by Randa Johnson on April 26, 2011 at 10:28pm
When I first began my journey as a network marketer, I was exposed to many challenges. The most prevalent of those challenges was my own inability to conform from the mindset of an employee into the mindset of a CEO. Although I had the desires to run my own company and build a successful organization, there were still parts of me that were engrained with the employee mentality.
I half-wittingly did some of the things that I was being taught by the top earners of the company, but I was arrogant enough to think that I could do a lot of it on my own and not follow the map being laid out for me. So, needless to say, I was initially unsuccessful in my business. After watching my up-lines continuously receive large checks, I quickly learned that systems are placed for a very specific reason. S.Y.S.T.E.M = (Save Your Self Time Energy and Money). It’s that simple! Once I was able to grab hold of that concept, there was no stopping me.
For many people that I have spoken with about network marketing their initial thoughts are that it is a pyramid as to where only the people at the top actually make any money. I then explain to them that although it can be considered a pyramid in some aspect, everything is a pyramid to some degree. The corporate world is actually more of a pyramid than any other organization if you were to really break it down.
I think that what most people don’t initially realize about network marketing is that once you become a network marketer, you are immediately at the top of that pyramid and have placed yourself in a position of leadership. You then build your organization down. So, it is in your best interest to build a downline of great leaders or at least people with leadership potential, because if you yourself are a great leader, you will definitely be able to train others to lead as well. So for those that are extremely successful in the business, they have built a downline of people who see the big picture and are willing to do what it takes to be a success themselves and those people do the same and so on and so on.
Do you see the big picture? It is possible for everyone to be a great success with good leadership and the ability to see the vision and carry it out.
In order to be the CEO that you’ve dreamt about being, you must first let go of the employee inside you that is holding you back….
Every solo business owner has a set of processes or systems that either promote their business very well or contribute to the business’ demise. There are really 3 essential systems that any successful business owner needs in place in order to automate the things they repetitively do over and over again, while adequately supporting the brand. These systems form the structure of success because they are the ways in which you continuously reinvigorate your business for expansion and growth.
What is a system?
For purposes of this article, we’re going to define a system as follows: a set of integrated, interdependent processes that can be replicated over and over again to produce similar results.
This article is designed to explain the 3 critical brand support systems for real breakthrough in your business. These essential systems are key to ensuring your success and creating a structure on which your brand can thrive.
It all starts with the BRAND
Before we cover these systems, let’s talk about brand first. As a solopreneur in the “entrepreneurial renaissance” age – a coin termed by business coach, Marcia Bench, you will have to compete against many people who claim expertise in the same field as you. Regardless of their level of experience or visibility, the sheer numbers require that you carve out a way to stand apart from the crowd. Your brand must be distinctive, powerful and recognizable.
The brand is the foundation of any effective marketing strategy. It is how people perceive you. The brand is YOU in a single owner business. If your brand is weak, the systems I will describe below will not operate to support your business. An analogy would be like building a new house, installing a beautiful kitchen, hardwood floors, and hiring a dynamic salesman to greet buyers at the door when the house has no walls yet.
The support systems we will talk about in this article will allow you to deliver great service, they will engage your customer base, and they will automate your delivery but only when you have taken the necessary steps to first put in place your brand strategy.
This means getting clear about what you do, the market you serve, and how you provide the service. Brand support is most connected to the latter – the “how”.
We will spend time outlining the 3 systems over the next group of articles in this series.
WANT TO RE-POST THIS ARTICLE ON YOUR BLOG OR USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR EZINE, E-NEWSLETTER OR WEB SITE?
You may, as long as you include this complete blurb with it:
About the Author: Tanya Smith is a creative business strategist specializing in showing coaches, consultants and freelancers how to spend more time making money with simple, yet profitable marketing systems. Her company Be Promotable provides clients with fresh actionable strategies and virtual resources to promote their small businesses as power players in their market. Claim your instant access to a free 10 part ecourse, 10 Ways To Grow Your List at: www.bepromotable.com.
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Posted by Tanya Smith on April 15, 2011 at 11:25am
Sticky notes are not the best way to keep track of a prospect you need to call. There is a better way - thankfully. It's called a CRM.
A CRM is a sales and marketing term for "customer relationship management". It's a system to keep track of important information about your clients, customers, sales prospects and a way to centralize your business communications and resources.
I love technology. You may already know that from some of the resources I share. But I really didn't discover the power of a CRM until I started realizing that I had too much paperwork floating around with my client's notes, names of people I needed to follow up with, and even keeping track of any missing payments to my client accounts.
So here are some benefits of using a CRM:
Organizes your business records
Creates a safeguard of all your key contacts
Automates your appointments
Helps you develop a "pipeline", which is the path you work each client or prospect through to work with you
Gives you an easier way to pay attention to your customers
Makes it easy for people to pay you
These are just a few of the things that I've learned a CRM can do for my business. And when you're a solopreneur, it helps to make your workflow as simple as possible.
Try one and let me know what you think in the comments below!
WANT TO RE-POST THIS ARTICLE ON YOUR BLOG OR USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR EZINE, E-NEWSLETTER OR WEB SITE? You may, as long as you include this complete blurb with it:
About the Author: Tanya Smith is a creative business strategist specializing in showing coaches, consultants and freelancers how to spend more time making money with simple, yet profitable marketing systems. Her company Be Promotable provides clients with fresh actionable strategies and virtual resources to promote their businesses as power players in their market. Claim your instant access to a free 10 part ecourse, 10 Ways To Grow Your List at: www.bepromotable.com.
Read more…
Posted by Tanya Smith on March 28, 2011 at 11:31am
I had a dream last night. In the dream I invested in some type of postal supplies shop - you know, like the ones you see on every corner now? This guy from an office next door kept coming in to say he was there to help me. Seemed like a nice enough man. At first, he offered to lay a customized floor tile that looked like a stamp for me in front of the counter. He described how it would have my initials, my favorite colors, and it would really light up the place. I was convinced and I said, "sure, that would be nice". Then after he put it in and I realized it wasn't just one tile, it was half the floor. Cha-ching.
Next, he came in and offered to change the locks on my door. I said, "yes, that's probably a good idea". And of course, he upgraded the entire door. Cha-ching...again. After a series of these offers, I realized I'd drawn up quite a bill. That's when I finally sat down to look at the total costs of my initial investment, the add-ons, and the history of success the shop had before me. Guess what? The previous owner sold it because she hadn't made a profit.
It was a pretty dismal outlook. I had the same dream at least once more the same night. It was like I had to go through it all over again, even knowing what the end would be. Then I woke up.
I realized that this was a pretty accurate picture of some decisions I've made before as a business owner. Not researching the so-called investment first, saying yes to everything that looks short-term shiny, looking at the total profit/loss picture only after I've spent all the money...
Notice I didn't say anything about "adding value" or "profit generating" decisions? What investments are you making in yourself and in your business that will add long-term value and generate profit? Got the wake up call yet?
WANT TO RE-POST THIS ARTICLE ON YOUR BLOG OR USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR EZINE, E-NEWSLETTER OR WEB SITE? You may, as long as you include this complete blurb with it:
About the Author: Tanya Smith of Be Promotable is a premier personal branding & marketing coach. Her creative genius has unlocked the potential of many women solopreneurs, helping them to reinvent themselves as power players in their startup business. Claim your free instant access to a free video download, 5 Secrets to Developing Your Unique Brand Proposition at: www.bepromotable.com.
Regularly, I travel to several rural counties in southern Alabama providing business counseling and training to local business owners. In discussing the importance of incorporating social media into their marketing plan, some clients are not sure if it is relevant for their businesses. In fact, a few give me that ‘deer in the headlights’ look when I introduce Twitter as a viable way to increase their client base. By educating them, I help them understand the benefits.
As I explain, Twitter is used by millions of people each day who share, connect, promote and brand their business image. If you, like them are still not convinced, here are 3 reasons why Twitter is important for your business.
Connect Imagine having a captive audience waiting for your information every minute of the day. By positioning yourself as an industry expert, you can grow a small community of followers who will have a direct connection to you and who recognize your name and business brand! You can also barter, search for independent contractors or find employees. Twitter provides a great platform to connect with the right people to fit your business needs.
In addition, this is great way for existing customers to provide feedback.
By connecting with similar companies will enable the sharing of idea, best practices and opportunity to gain insight on improving your business.
Market Most small businesses have a very small marketing budget which results in continuously looking for low cost and innovative ways to leverage their products or services. Twitter is a free social network that can be a rewarding marketing tool for your business. A few examples:
Your message will appear across the Twitter board over and over by your followers who will retweet your message to their followers. Can we say ‘viral?’
Stay abreast of industry trends to market effectively to potential customers.
Publish your Twitter handle on all email newsletters, direct mailings, on your Web site and all other marketing channels.
Promote your latest blog posts and newsletters
Still having doubts? Well, let’s say you manage an online specialty athletic shop. You can:
Track new trends your customers are talking about using Twitscoop or Trendistic
Promote special offers, promotions and events using Twitzu
Sales Increasing your sales and profit margins are imperative for success and a matter of survival. By using twitter to announce upcoming sales or events, you will drive potential customers to your website or physical location. For example, I assisted a client who owns a Mexican Restaurant, with setting up her Twitter and Face book Fan page. Every day, she posts daily lunch specials. Last year, she reported a 9% increase in sales from travelers who used social media to find a local restaurant.
The point is, with little effort and signing up for Twitter’s free social network, you can drive prospects to you by sharing relevant information about your business.
Handy Tools to Manage Your Social Media Every day, 365 days per year at 6:00 am Central Standard Time, my followers from Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin, Blog and Community, receive a daily inspirational quote. Do you really think that I get up every morning, log on to my computer and tweet? Absolutely not! Though I get a chuckle from people that think otherwise! To help manage my various social networks, I use a tool called Hootsuite, which enable me to schedule each message into the future to one or all of my social networks. That’s reaching thousands of my followers in a single message!
As Twitter surges toward an estimated 190 million visitors each month who generate over 65 million tweets per day, there are many tools available to help you manage your time and productivity. Here are a few of my favorites:
Desktop Managers
Hoot suite: a web-based tool that allows you to set up a number of social media profiles to manage. The free application offers basic analytics and five social media profiles including LinkedIn, Face book and Twitter. www.hootsuite.com
Market Me Suite: allows thousands of small businesses to manage their social media. It allows each of your individual tweets to say, www.yourwebsite.com or via your name. http://marketmesuite.com/
Seesmic: a powerful collection of social management tools that provide businesses and individuals with everything they need to build their brand online. With applications on every platform, Seesmic is the most comprehensive solution on the market. http://seesmic.com/
Tweet Deck: your personal browser for staying in touch with what’s happening now, connecting you with your contacts across Twitter, Face book, LinkedIn and more. www.tweetdeck.com
List Management
MyTweeple: a great way to manage your Twitter people in one place. You can easily see who you are following and who's following you. With a simple click, you can follow, unfollow, or block people, and these changes instantly update Twitter. http://mytweeple.com
Tweeter Karma: a flash application that fetches your friends and followers from Twitter when you click the “Whack!” button, then displays them for you, letting you quickly paginate through them. http://dossy.org/twitter/karma/
Twit Cleaner: Analyses the profiles & tweets of your followers, looking for certain patterns of behavior, such as overly repetitive, common spam tactics, and posting the same links repeatedly, thus, allowing you to decide who to save & who to unfollow. www.twitcleaner.com
Twibs: Give twitter users a place to find businesses on twitter. www.twibs.com
Hash Tags
Hash Tags: You can find information pertaining to tags, users, trends and whatever else is available or site if you are lucky.http://hashtags.org/
Twitter Search: Twitter Search helps you filter all the real-time information coursing through our service. http://search.twitter.com/
We Follow: view popular tags, the most popular people on Twitter by tag usage. http://wefollow.com/
TwittUrlLy: tracks the URLs around the Twitter verse and provides a quick, real-time view of what people are talking about on Twitter. http://twitturly.com/
Applications or ‘Aps’
Social Oomph: a service that provides free and paid productivity enhancement services for social media users. A focus on productivity solutions for users of Twitter.com. http://www.socialoomph.com/
Twit Dom: The Twitter Applications Directory with over 2000 apps. http://twitdom.com/
Klout: A tool used for an individual to measure and leverage their influence on twitter. www.klout.com/
In conclusion, by now you should see the value of using Twitter to help you market your business. Right? So what are you waiting for? Go register for Twitter now! By the way, feel free to follow me @sylviabrowder and retweet this post to your Twitter followers, Facebook Fans and fellow bloggers!
WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE OR WEB SITE? You can, as long as you include this complete blurb with it: Sylvia Browder is founder of National Association Women on the Rise, a virtual community for aspiring and established women entrepreneurs. The association’s mission is to provide professional and personal resources while uplifting and empowering women entrepreneurs through collaboration, education, mentoring, spiritual and peer support, leadership and networking. She has served as an online volunteer SCORE counselor since 2004. For FREE weekly articles go to Sylvia Browder’s Blog for Women Entrepreneurs, www.sylviabrowder.com. She can be contacted at info@nawomenrise.com.
Posted by Pam Perry on February 24, 2011 at 4:00pm
You’ve heard the term swag lately. Someone may say, “I like your swag” or “He’s got swag!” And although you may not find this popular term in Merriam-Webster’s version of the dictionary, it is used worldwide by teens, recording artists, TV critics and most importantly for your sake… social media!
I know, I know. Before you tell me how you don’t know how to tweet and have no desire to tweet, twit, or Facebook, for that matter, let me let you in on a secret. Social media can be your business’ ticket to success. Don’t believe me? I’ll prove it to you.
Swag is a term used to describe someone’s style, personality, the way they carry themselves, and their level of confidence. It’s a person’s walk, their talk. It’s their attitude, but in a good way! We’ve all got some level of swag… well, some more than others. But after reading the following, I challenge you to ‘get your swag on’ and make social media work for you.
Step 1
Don’t Hate on the Competition Just Yet…
In any business, the goal is usually to beat the competitor. But in order to beat the competition, you have to know what they are doing and what makes them a competitor. If they are still in the game, they have to be doing something right. So you need to watch, look and listen at what is going on around you. Put your head in the game! Take inventory of where you are right now and where you want to go from here.
For example, when you read a blog, you are studying your competition. And after you read so many blogs, you’ll not only be motivated to start your own, but you’ll know what to say, how to say it and who is listening. Read the responses to the blogs as well. This lets you know what your target audience is saying, which allows you to tailor your own blog to those respondents.
Though many like to think so, social media is not a magic lamp where you can rub it, and out comes a genie. It is just another spoke in the wheel for your overall marketing plan. The social media outlet door is wide open for you and the rest of the world to see, free of charge! So no longer do you have to play detective and act like a secret shopper to find out the best strategies of your competitors. Their marketing strategies have just become an open book. Read their tweets. Follow their Facebook posts. Find out who your top three competitors are and simply sit back and watch, look and listen. Then determine your own personal goals you want to achieve through social media.
Social media is more than an outlet to just post pictures and ‘like’ someone’s status. It’s essentially free advertisement. Let’s say that I have a client who has an article about them written in Essence or Ebony. They can then repost that article into a blog site, or even add a link to the article on their Facebook profile. So this not only allows the readers of these publications to read the article, but all of this person’s ‘friends’ and ‘followers’ also learn of the success. If someone is featured on The View or Oprah, they can obtain a copy of it from the TV station, upload it to YouTube, and then repost to whatever other social media sites they choose. So while your friends or family may not have picked up the latest issue of Essence and didn’t get to watch you on The View, they are sure to see it when you post it on your public social networking profile.
Watch, look and listen. The competitor didn’t become a competitor by doing something wrong. They have to be doing something right. Find out what it is and make it work for you. While watching the competition, you purposely position yourself to attract your target audience as well.
Step 2
Make Digital Footprints in the Sand
Who are you? What do you do? What do you specialize in? These are all vital questions to ask when it comes to branding yourself in the social media. Make sure that wherever you go, with every digital footprint you make, that your brand is the same. Be consistent. Don’t create a brand for encouragement and inspiration, but post negative, depressing updates on your Facebook and Twitter profiles. This contradicts your ultimate branding of being one who encourages and inspires. Your Twitter and Facebook page should match your professional website. Your website should match your fan page. Your fan page should match your YouTube videos. And so on…
Don’t confuse people. They need to see your brand and instantly know who you are and what you stand for. Take Coach for example. The Facebook page and website for Coach products should reflect the same brand. And because of the reputation Coach has built, when you see a product, you can immediately tell if it is created by Coach. The same should ring true of your brand.
In this digital age, people have ADD. You have to capture their attention within a split second or you could lose them forever. However, if you have successfully branded yourself, they will recognize you and feel comfortable with whatever product you are promoting. There’s a certain comfort level people search for in brands. For example, if you visit Paris, but aren’t familiar with the restaurants, and you see the golden arches, you will more than likely eat at McDonald’s. You already know what their food tastes like and you feel comfortable with the brand. The same is true of Starbuck’s. When you visit a Starbuck’s, you expect a certain level of quality and great atmosphere, no matter the location.
It’s not just the brand; it’s the logo. That logo signifies everything that is behind the brand. The time you’ve invested. The information you’ve shared. The trust you’ve built. The logo is a culmination of everything you’ve done for people to notice you, know you, understand you, and recognize your brand ultimately. It is the promise to your customers.
Confusion destroys your brand. The equity and time you put into building your brand can be destroyed overnight by you simply doing something different and offbeat. Be known as an expert for whatever it is that you do. If you’re in business, your goal is to provide customers with your area of expertise. But it’s up to you to make sure you are known for just that. Share, don’t sell, information to your customers so that they not only come to know you as an expert, but they trust you. So as you make your digital footprints in the sand, make sure your brand tracks look identical to the ones you have made before!
Step 3
Content is King (Marketing is Queen)
People don’t follow a good salesperson. They follow good content. That’s one of the ways people will get to know you, by the content you offer and the value of it. In order to create valuable content, you must research keywords. Search for certain keywords and brand your content so that it contains those keywords. This will allow you to receive numerous hits without a potential customer ever knowing your name.
For example, if someone is searching for Pam Perry, they may use keywords such as PR coach, PR guru, ministry marketing, and so on. When someone enters any of these keywords, my website, blog or even my Facebook page should come up in the search results page. The ultimate goal is to be the first or second result on the search results page. If you come in any other place below that, you risk the user entering new search keywords, which may not be tagged for your business. Whether it’s a list of things to do (or not to do) or top ten tips, provide good, valuable content so that there is no question that you know what you are talking about.
A good resource to use when trying to determine keywords is Adwords.google.com. This tool not only allows you to enter keywords, but if you click Get Keyword Ideas, it will provide you with other keywords to use. Use these keywords in your blogs, eblasts, social media profiles and of course, your website. But even with keywords, if you have a similar name, like Jessica Jones, you want to make sure you are posting enough valuable content on the Internet so that you come up first in a person’s search results. Even though the other Jessica Jones in the world may have nothing more than a Facebook page, you don’t want customers to confuse the two. You have to constantly be active online. People love people that provide information for free. For example, author Seth Godin provided his entire book for free as an eBook before he released the hardcover copy. Because so many loved the electronic version of the book, they purchased a hard copy of the book once it was released, making it a New York Times Bestseller.
You can’t give away too much content. If it genuinely came from you, there is more from where that came from. With every article you write, every video you post, and every status you update, you throw more content out onto the web to brand you all the more. The more content you share, the more people come to recognize you as an expert and will realize the value of your information and ultimately, support your business.
Step 4
Are You Engaged?
Now, I’m not talking about the engagement where you get a ring and start planning a wedding for months down the line. I’m referring to interacting with others online. It doesn’t matter that you and I talk; we have to engage with others online. Create a community for isolated conversations to take place. Twitter actually uses hash tags, such as #GrammyAwards2011, which allows you to converse with all users who may be watching the Grammy Awards at the time. It’s all about engaging and establishing relationships. It’s not always about selling and marketing. Sometimes, you have to build up a group of ‘followers’ first.
Take Facebook for example. That’s great that someone wants to become your ‘friend’. But if you never engage them, and they don’t visit your page on a regular basis, what’s the point? How does this help your business? But also realize that while someone may not visibly engage on your page on a regular basis, they may still be watching you. They may still be taking all of the information you post into account, without ever saying a word to you about it. Personally, 90% of my clientele comes from online. I never know who is watching me. All of a sudden, I get checks for thousands of dollars from people that have been watching me for three or four months and appreciate the information I have shared.
I love this information age we are in. I’m like a kid in a candy store. While others feel overwhelmed by too much information, I consume myself in it. It’s what I’ve done all of my life. I reported information in high school, college, and even once I was out of school. It comes naturally for me. I’m always sending an eblast, conducting a conference call, tweeting a valuable website for authors, or even posting a video on YouTube of me speaking at a recent conference.
I give away a plethora of information. But it’s up to you to use it. The same should ring true of you and your social media swag. Give away so much information that people say to you, “You give away too much free information.” Then give away some more! You’re putting your best foot forward. You’re creating your own community and at this point, people are simply watching you to decide if they will conduct business with you or not. The benefits in the long run will far outweigh the cost to send out complimentary information. Get engaged!
Step 5
The Swag Tool Belt
As with any job, you have to make sure you have the essential tools to succeed. People are looking for a solution to a problem. So you must make sure that the content you provide or the service you offer solves a problem for the customer. For example, if you’re a plumber, you can provide content on taking care of pipes in the winter time.
More importantly, make sure that you not only have a website, but that it works properly. It doesn’t matter if your website comes up first in search engine optimization and you have a steady flow of traffic to your site, but you’re not capturing their email address to communicate with them in the future. As with any other social media, your website homepage should state very clearly the purpose of the business and what it is that you do. Your brand should be the same as it is everywhere else on the web. Make sure you have an opt-in box on your website as well so people can continue to interact with you.
You definitely want to invest in an AWeber or Constant Contact account. Constant Contact allows you to create and send eblasts in a click of a button. You can even create eblasts to be sent out on a certain date and at a certain time, without being anywhere near the computer when it goes out. Eventually, these eblasts will turn into blogs, which is where a significant amount of your social media will stem from.
Do you have to have a blog? Absolutely! I say it’s mandatory! It doesn’t make sense to have a Facebook page or a Blog Talk radio show, and not have a blog. Don’t be blog haters; get a blog! You’ll be surprised at the results a blog can bring.
If you really want to be found, you also need Google Analytics. This free service offered by Google actually tells you where your traffic is coming from and how long a person stays on your website. It will show you, for example, that 50% of your traffic is coming from Facebook and 25% is coming from Twitter, etc.
In this digital age, you definitely need high speed Internet access. Dial-up won’t cut it. It will limit your capability to interact with others online as fast and efficiently. Also invest in a webcam. A webcam runs approximately $30 to add to your computer if you don’t already have one directly installed. Video tape yourself speaking about your area of expertise and post it on YouTube and Facebook. This counts as content as well. People are visual. Don’t be left behind because you won’t participate in the video content wave.
As a side note, when using social media, use your real name. People may see your photo but if your Twitter name is GodselectLady, no one knows your real name to connect with you. If you won’t post your real name, at the very least make the name your business name. People trust the real thing, not a nickname.
Ok, so yes, ultimately your goal is for people to do business with you. But you must first work to establish relationships. If the first time someone hears your name is when you release your first book, they may be hesitant to connect with you because they think you are just trying to sell them. You have to let people know who you are, what you’re about and that you’re not just looking at them as a dollar sign. I would advise using the attraction marketing method. Simply go about life, doing what you do best, and sharing information on a regular basis. Eventually, people will see how much of a goldmine of information you are for them, and ultimately be attracted to connect with you further.
Step 6
Find Your Social Media Niche
So you’ve started hanging out online a bit more. You tweet more frequently and may update your Facebook status three times a day now as opposed to the one you were accustomed to doing in the morning before heading out the door. Depending on the audience you are trying to attract, you may need to reconsider which social media outlet you funnel your energy to. If you started a blog but you hate writing, then maybe you need to consider posting more videos of you speaking. If you like to speak, but you may not want your face plastered online just yet, consider starting a Blog Talk Radio show. Find three major outlets and master them.
Most of the social media outlets allow you to integrate others. While you can integrate Twitter and Facebook, you can also integrate Facebook with your blog. Remember, most times we are mobile. So consider mastering three outlets that you can update and monitor from your cell phone. FourSquare.com is another good one for retail businesses to use. This outlet can be monitored from a cell phone as well. LinkedIn is a more professional network where you can also connect with people worldwide.
You have to find what works best for you. Once you find your three prominent areas of your social media niche, master them. Become consumed with them. Begin to build relationships, which will ideally turn into clientele. Remember, people look for consistency and a business they can trust. Make sure your daily branding reflects this.
Step 7
If It’s Broke, Fix It!
The final step is to measure your results of your social media efforts. Maybe you got over 1,000 responses on your blog, but didn’t get any responses to your posting on Facebook. Maybe you gained 100,000 new followers from Twitter, but didn’t get any reviews on your YouTube video. This is where you have to decide where your most vital relationships will stem from based on social media efforts thus far.
Make sure your content is not boring. Add pictures and video, if possible. Make it eye-pleasing. The great thing about social media is that it’s your world! Be as creative as you want to be. The more creative your blogs are, the more people feel a personal connection to you and start to see your true personality. This will build trust early on and cause them to stay connected long term.
Don’t be discouraged if you don’t get one million ‘followers’ as soon as you create your Twitter profile. Social media takes time and dedication. It may not seem like anyone is paying attention to you; it may seem as though no one is listening. But believe this, someone is watching you. They’re just waiting to see how consistent you will be. Don’t change the message that you send out. If you’re a motivational speaker, your tweets and statuses should motivate, daily! Over time, you will see positive results from people you never even knew were watching.
The benefits of Facebook are limitless. You can not only create a personal page, but also create a fan page for fans of you or fans of your business. You simply ask your personal ‘friends’ to ‘like’ the fan page. Now you have two pages where you can post content. Your personal page lets a person get to know you from day to day. Your fan page may only contain information pertaining to your business or your area of expertise. Hootsuite.com is another site that allows you to share content with one click of a button to many social media sites.
As the old saying goes, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. But for the things that are broke when it comes to defining your social media swag, you do need to fix it. And quick! Don’t just hang out. Create an effective brand, build long-term relationships and get your swag on! Your business brand depends on it!
