Posts Tagged ‘Business’
Believing in myself…
Who recommended: Cristina Favreau
, The Savvy Entrepreneur
What I am reading: Get Clients Now by C.J. Hayden
Where in the book: page 51
Why I am reading: To make the most of my marketing
Which quote: “I’m going for it because it matters to me and I believe in my dreams.’ Then prove you really do believe in yourself by taking action.” by Marcia Wieder http://www.dreamcoach.com
How this quote adjusted my thinking:
OK. This quote is my biggest challenge.
Number one: I have to believe in myself.
Number two: refer to number one.
I have no problem identifying what matters to me. I believe in my dreams. I have no problem taking action. Then I falter. Believe in myself? hmmm….
Marketing Vocabulary
Who recommended: Cristina Favreau
, The Savvy Entrepreneur
What I am reading: Get Clients Now by C.J. Hayden
Where in the book: page 31
Why I am reading: To make the most of my marketing
Which quote: “Prospects are people you attract using a visibility strategy…Contacts are people you meet through outreach strategies like networking…leads are people you identify through research…referrals are people who are referred to you by contacts, clients and others.”
How this quote adjusted my thinking:
Prospects, contacts, leads, referrals…I thought they were one and the same. Can you tell I do not have an MBA? Or a business background for that matter! I did learn how to organize my actions to handle each category. For example, I learned that when I participate in a business online showcase I am attracting prospects. When I exchange contact information with someone on LinkedIn, I am networking. I am collecting referrals when I follow up with someone you recommend. This was a tremendous help to me.
Not as a customer…
Who recommended: Cristina Favreau, The Savvy Entrepreneur
What I am reading: Get Clients Now by C.J. Hayden
Where in the book: page 26
Why I am reading: To make the most of my marketing
Which quote: “How do clients usually select a service like mine?’ If your immediate answer is ‘by referral,’ you will probably find advertising to be a waste of money.”
How this quote adjusted my thinking:
There are moments when I think: “I should advertises like that!” As I glance at the slick ad that caught my eye, I ask myself, “Did the company who paid for the ad get my business?” My response is almost always no. If advertising does not effect me when I am a customer, then what makes me think advertising will benefit my business?
It’s all about strategy…
Who recommended: Cristina Favreau
, The Savvy Entrepreneur
What I am reading: Get Clients Now by C.J. Hayden
Where in the book: page 17
Why I am reading: To make the most of my marketing
Which quote: “Every strategy is made up of one or more tactics, or to put it another way, you use specific tactics to execute a chosen strategy.”
How this quote adjusted my thinking:
This quote resonated with me because I feel like I am blindly selecting things to do. I know I am supposed to be marketing so I just pick something. I do things randomly. I never give a thought to the effectiveness or the impact.
Advertising v. Marketing
Who recommended: Cristina Favreau , The Savvy Entrepreneur
What I am reading: Get Clients Now by C.J. Hayden
Where in the book: page 17
Why I am reading: To make the most of my marketing
Which quote: “If you are wondering whether to plunk down a large sum of money for an ad special, ask first what that money would buy if you spent it on promoting yourself as a public speaker.”
How this quote adjusted my thinking:
I thought all marketing was advertising. I thought it was a matter of choosing which advertising you were going to buy. However, this made me realize there is a difference. You can advertise on a broad impersonal level or you can market on a selected personal level.
Finally sunk in…
Who recommended: Cristina Favreau
, The Savvy Entrepreneur
What I am reading: Get Clients Now by C.J. Hayden
Where in the book: page 9
Why I am reading: To make the most of my marketing
Which quote: “So instead of worrying that you should do more marketing, you simply scratch each item off your list and plan for the next.” by John Jantsch, www.ducttapemarketing.com
How this quote adjusted my thinking:
There were times I would think I need to do more marketing. “Marketing” was an all encompassing term. It represented all the “things” I should be doing but am not doing. Now I know there is a method.
Really, what is marketing?
Who recommended: Cristina Favreau, The Savvy Entrepreneur
What I am reading: Get Clients Now by C.J. Hayden
Where in the book: page 7
Why I am reading: To make the most of my marketing
Which quote: “Marketing is telling people what you do over and over.”
How this quote adjusted my thinking:
This quote made me stop and think because I thought marketing was creating a presence. Once the presence was created, the marketing was over. Now I know creating a presence is one element of marketing. Effective marketing is repeatedly letting people know about my services.
Resources for ways to market online
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Too much information!
Too much information!
by Lara Nieberding
The Internet is an over abundance of information. Have you ever researched a product online? Do your eyes bug out of your head when you see all the “Os” in the word Google at the bottom of your search? How do you sort through all your options?
I would like to thank Michelle Ulrich, Chief Villager of The Virtual Nation, for her comment that inspired my post today. She said when she does research she selects five resources. She looks at those five resources and from that prioritizes them into her top three decision points. Then she makes a choice. After she makes her decision, she moves on. Michelle is a successful virtual professional. Her time is of the essence, as is your time.
It is excessively overwhelming to worry about the 1.3 billion other options you did not consider. How do you sort through all your options? To keep you organized, efficient and productive here is an action plan:
· Organize
o Write down the product/service you are looking for.
o Write down the top ten features the product/service must have.
Unbelievably, writing down these two things is a critical action. As your search progresses, you will be inundated with details of the product/service. It is very easy to get side tracked from what you are actually looking for. Having a written reference will keep you focused.
· Efficient
o After writing down the product/service and the features you need, get online and start a search.
o Out of the search results, select five resources with these criteria:
§ Select one resource from the most expensive or most popular or the one with the best reviews category.
§ Select one resource from the middle price wise, recommendation wise, etc category.
§ Select one resource from the least expensive, least known, etc category.
§ Select one resource from the “looks interesting” category.
§ Select one resource at random.
o Thoroughly research your five resources.
§ Read the FAQ
§ Watch demos
§ Refer to your top ten features list
· Productive
o After thoroughly researching your five options, make your decision.
o Know that you made the best decision you could based on the information available to you at the time.
o Do not doubt yourself. Give yourself permission to let go of the fact that you did not consider the other 1.3 billion resources. Your productivity depends on it.
Lara Nieberding 