Rapid advances in technology have changed everything from health care to communication. Now, as the latest technology becomes more accessible to a broader market, the advertising field is changing, too. Years ago, you could plan your advertising campaign around a few television commercials and print advertisements. And most companies would never have considered spending a sizeable portion of their advertising budget on the Internet. But in 2006, online ad expenditures are expected to reach over $16 billion.
Advertisers who want to reach their target audience and remain competitive in this high-tech world have to change with the times. You need to keep up with emerging technologies, what media types are most popular, and how consumers use what's available to them.
If you want to stay current and advertise your products and services in ways that reach your target audience on their turf, consider the following forms of emerging media.
1. Blogs
Blog is short for "web log," online journals that people without any HTML knowledge can create easily from any computer. They are frequently updated and usually include the owner's thoughts or musings on topics ranging from what's happening in the news to what they wear to work.
Companies or individuals can keep blogs. Company blogs usually promote products in what is known as an "adverblog." However, those blogs started by individuals without a commercial affiliation usually have more credibility.
About fifty million people keep blogs. And many different categories exist, including travel, health, and business. Blogs are popular because they provide a concise summary of news and information and give users power by providing information all in one place and on a timely basis. A blog dedicated to heart health, for example, will likely pull information from sources all over the Internet, so someone surfing for heart health information doesn't have to search several sites for the most up-to-date research about the topic; they can find everything they need on a heart health blog.
As far as advertising on blogs, ads are generally related to the blog topic. That heart health blog could be an excellent place to advertise a health food or exercise product. If you're interested in advertising on blogs, first look for help from marketing companies that measure hot blog topics and provide market research based on blog content.
2. Podcasts
Podcasts deliver digital audio and video files to a user via the Internet. The name comes from the iPod, but they aren't just for iPod users. A pod cast is an audio file in MP3 format that a consumer can download to their iPod, MP3 player, or computer. Then the person can listen to it over and over again, share it with friends, and save it on a computer's hard drive.
Six million people have downloaded podcasts, according to the Pew Internet and American Life Project. And of the twenty-two-million iPod owners, twenty-nine percent have downloaded podcasts.
Podcasts are an emerging media form that will continue to grow, and as this media outlet increases in popularity, the advertising possibilities will grow as well. Viacom, Disney, and Clear Channel all have radio-type podcasts, and even print media outlets use podcasts to broadcast interviews and other audio supplements to their print stories. For example, you can read an issue of a magazine and listen to an interview in its entirety on the magazine's website.
3. Gaming
Sixty-eight out of 108 million households currently play video and computer games, according to the "Digital Gaming in America" Ziff Davis report of August 2005. Advertisers can reach this market, which is mostly comprised of young males, in two ways.
First, advertisers can use gaming technology to insert their ads in popular games. For example, say you are playing a football video game on your XBOX 360. You'll see ads placed on the sidelines and on the scoreboard just like you would if you were in a real football stadium or watching a real game on television. Video games are also played online, allowing gamers to compete with opponents in other parts of the world. These games offer many opportunities to place logos and products that a huge audience will see.
Another way to advertise using games is literally to create your own game that the consumer can play online. This is commonly referred to as Advergaming. Many companies, such as Lipton and Mountain Dew, have used this advertising technique. The greatest benefit of these games is that they get people involved in the brand. Game designers create these games to interest a particular target audience, such as young children. Be aware, though, if you're marketing to kids, to closely monitor the game's content.
4. Mobile Advertising
Nearly 199 million people in the United States subscribe to mobile phone services. And every phone produced in the last year is capable of accessing the Internet. What does this mean for advertisers? It's another method for reaching the target audience. People now use mobile phones to search the Internet, play games, and instant message as well as to access sports scores, learn breaking news, and even check out horoscopes.
Mobile advertising presents a great means to reach the high school and college student markets with banner and video ads. Currently, mobile ads are simple and usually text banners. But down the road, as this technology continues to advance, cell phones may be capable of displaying television ads. However, this media outlet is not without limitations. Everything in your ad has to be cleared by the phone company, so you must consider the logistical aspects of placing mobile ads.
The High-Tech Future of Advertising
If you want to remain competitive in the future, technology will be key to your success. You should consider these four, and other new types, of digital media when putting together any advertising strategy, because traditional media outlets just aren't as effective as they once were. While it's difficult to predict exactly where the trends are headed, when you keep an eye on new technology, you and your service won't be left behind.
If you’re networking with strangers, you’re wasting your time. A consultant friend of mine recently complained, “I’m doing 2-3 networking events a week – and I’m worn out.” When I asked why she felt networking was important, she replied, “One of my marketing goals is to do at least 1 networking event a week.” (I pointed out that she just admitted to doing 2-3 a week – and perhaps doing 1 a week is smart and doing triple that goal is causing some of the fatigue.) But there’s much more to the great American business myth of networking.
Myth 1: The more you network, the more effective your networking activities become.
Truth 1: It’s much more important to become well-known in 1-2 circles than to spread your networking activities over many different groups. Depth beats breadth every time.
I then asked her how networking was working for her. She said, “I don’t think I have gotten a shred of business out of it in the last six months.” Her rationale for doing networking: “Everybody knows that you build a business by networking!” Does this make any sense? Or worse, does it sound familiar?
See if this networking scenario has happened to you:
You meet someone for 30 seconds. They mumble something about real estate as you are tuning them out. They ask you what you do, and you say you are in insurance. After 10 seconds of staring blankly at each other, you both head to the celery sticks for lack of anything better to do.
Myth 2: The cocktails and miniature wiener circuit is the way to network to success
Truth 2: Networking with strangers to build business is about as effective as going to a bar to get married. In the words of Dr. Phil, “It simply ain’t gonna happen that way.”
Here’s why you’re not going to meet your business soul mate at a networking event:
1) You aren’t going to do business with someone after meeting them for a few minutes and getting handed a poorly printed card.
2) Businesses are built on relationships and not “30-second commercials,” no matter how effective and intriguing.
3) Most of us have major trouble in explaining what we do, much less getting past that explanation and listening for what prospects need.
4) Networking with strangers is not targeted or specific and in fact is completely random. For some people, networking is exactly as effective as cold calling, which is the least effective marketing tool there is.
So am I saying that networking is a waste of time? Absolutely not. What I’m saying is you need to start networking smarter.
Here are a few thoughts to jog your noggin:
* Network by having coffee or lunch with people one on one. Get to know them and their business. They may become a prospect, alliance partner, or referral source. But aim first and foremost to make them a friend. The rest will follow naturally.
* If you’re going to network with strangers, go with the goal of making 2-3 lunch or coffee dates with people you find interesting.
* Ask every happy customer you have (they’re all happy, right?) for just one referral of someone who would be interested in your type of goods or services, then call and use their name. (“Hi I’m Fred and Ginger said I should call you. Isn’t Ginger great?”) You already have one thing in common – Ginger!
* Create a network “hit list” of the exact kind of businesses you want to network with – maybe you sell software and you want to meet IT managers at medium-size companies. Make the list and put it in your little black book or PDA. Focus your networking and outreach activities on only those people – or others who can refer you to those people.
* Join non-business groups and spend time doing non-business activities: Civic, social, religious, recreational, musical, athletic... the list is endless. Establish relationships with people in your group. Perhaps you’re a Moose and a realtor. A Moose, as it turns out, wants to by a house from another Moose. If so, you have the Moose Market cornered! Are you into hand-drumming. Guess what? A hand-drummer will want to do business with another hand-drummer. Get it?
* If you do go to a “mixer” go with a targeted goal in mind. For example, your goal might be “to meet three people on my target list and get their card so I can follow up for breakfast, lunch, coffee or badminton.” A traditional “networking event” now becomes simply the first phase of your targeted plan for global domination, and not an end in itself.
Here’s a final thought to shake up your networking mindset: Network with people who already know you, like you, or have done business with you.
Myth 3: Networking is all about getting more people to know what you do.
Truth 3: Networking is all about getting people that already know you to share opportunities where you can be helpful to each other.
Make 2-3 phone calls a day to connect with people from past jobs, former clients, or influential people who have expressed interest in you in the past.
We all have a “fan base” that we grossly underutilize.
Think about tapping into friends, colleagues, mentors, and family to mine the connections you already have at your fingertips.
So get out there and network – but make it worth your investment of time and energy by networking smart. As your mother always said, “Don’t network with strangers.”
Myth 1: The more you network, the more effective your networking activities become.
Truth 1: It’s much more important to become well-known in 1-2 circles than to spread your networking activities over many different groups. Depth beats breadth every time.
I then asked her how networking was working for her. She said, “I don’t think I have gotten a shred of business out of it in the last six months.” Her rationale for doing networking: “Everybody knows that you build a business by networking!” Does this make any sense? Or worse, does it sound familiar?
See if this networking scenario has happened to you:
You meet someone for 30 seconds. They mumble something about real estate as you are tuning them out. They ask you what you do, and you say you are in insurance. After 10 seconds of staring blankly at each other, you both head to the celery sticks for lack of anything better to do.
Myth 2: The cocktails and miniature wiener circuit is the way to network to success
Truth 2: Networking with strangers to build business is about as effective as going to a bar to get married. In the words of Dr. Phil, “It simply ain’t gonna happen that way.”
Here’s why you’re not going to meet your business soul mate at a networking event:
1) You aren’t going to do business with someone after meeting them for a few minutes and getting handed a poorly printed card.
2) Businesses are built on relationships and not “30-second commercials,” no matter how effective and intriguing.
3) Most of us have major trouble in explaining what we do, much less getting past that explanation and listening for what prospects need.
4) Networking with strangers is not targeted or specific and in fact is completely random. For some people, networking is exactly as effective as cold calling, which is the least effective marketing tool there is.
So am I saying that networking is a waste of time? Absolutely not. What I’m saying is you need to start networking smarter.
Here are a few thoughts to jog your noggin:
* Network by having coffee or lunch with people one on one. Get to know them and their business. They may become a prospect, alliance partner, or referral source. But aim first and foremost to make them a friend. The rest will follow naturally.
* If you’re going to network with strangers, go with the goal of making 2-3 lunch or coffee dates with people you find interesting.
* Ask every happy customer you have (they’re all happy, right?) for just one referral of someone who would be interested in your type of goods or services, then call and use their name. (“Hi I’m Fred and Ginger said I should call you. Isn’t Ginger great?”) You already have one thing in common – Ginger!
* Create a network “hit list” of the exact kind of businesses you want to network with – maybe you sell software and you want to meet IT managers at medium-size companies. Make the list and put it in your little black book or PDA. Focus your networking and outreach activities on only those people – or others who can refer you to those people.
* Join non-business groups and spend time doing non-business activities: Civic, social, religious, recreational, musical, athletic... the list is endless. Establish relationships with people in your group. Perhaps you’re a Moose and a realtor. A Moose, as it turns out, wants to by a house from another Moose. If so, you have the Moose Market cornered! Are you into hand-drumming. Guess what? A hand-drummer will want to do business with another hand-drummer. Get it?
* If you do go to a “mixer” go with a targeted goal in mind. For example, your goal might be “to meet three people on my target list and get their card so I can follow up for breakfast, lunch, coffee or badminton.” A traditional “networking event” now becomes simply the first phase of your targeted plan for global domination, and not an end in itself.
Here’s a final thought to shake up your networking mindset: Network with people who already know you, like you, or have done business with you.
Myth 3: Networking is all about getting more people to know what you do.
Truth 3: Networking is all about getting people that already know you to share opportunities where you can be helpful to each other.
Make 2-3 phone calls a day to connect with people from past jobs, former clients, or influential people who have expressed interest in you in the past.
We all have a “fan base” that we grossly underutilize.
Think about tapping into friends, colleagues, mentors, and family to mine the connections you already have at your fingertips.
So get out there and network – but make it worth your investment of time and energy by networking smart. As your mother always said, “Don’t network with strangers.”
business development,
contact building,
list building,
networking,
small business sales
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Life is About Choices and the Decisions We Make
Life is like a road. There are long and short roads; smooth and rocky roads; crooked and straight paths. In our life many roads would come our way as we journey through life. There are roads that lead to a life of single blessedness, marriage, and religious vocation. There are also roads that lead to fame and fortune on one hand, or isolation and poverty on the other. There are roads to happiness as there are roads to sadness, roads towards victory and jubilation, and roads leading to defeat and disappointment.
Just like any road, there are corners, detours, and crossroads in life. Perhaps the most perplexing road that you would encounter is a crossroad. With four roads to choose from and with limited knowledge on where they would go, which road will you take? What is the guarantee that we would choose the right one along the way? Would you take any road, or just stay where you are: in front of a crossroad?
There are no guarantees.
You do not really know where a road will lead you until you take it. There are no guarantees. This is one of the most important things you need to realize about life. Nobody said that choosing to do the right thing all the time would always lead you to happiness. Loving someone with all your heart does not guarantee that it would be returned. Gaining fame and fortune does not guarantee happiness. Accepting a good word from an influential superior to cut your trip short up the career ladder is not always bad, especially if you are highly qualified and competent. There are too many possible outcomes, which your really cannot control. The only thing you have power over is the decisions that you will make, and how you would act and react to different situations.
Wrong decisions are always at hindsight.
Had you known that you were making a wrong decision, would you have gone along with it? Perhaps not, why would you choose a certain path when you know it would get you lost? Why make a certain decision if you knew from the very beginning that it is not the right one. It is only after you have made a decision and reflected on it that you realize its soundness. If the consequences or outcomes are good for you, then you have decided correctly. Otherwise, your decision was wrong.
Take the risk: decide.
Since life offers no guarantee and you would never know that your decision would be wrong until you have made it, then you might as well take the risk and decide. It is definitely better than keeping yourself in limbo. Although it is true that one wrong turn could get you lost, it could also be that such a turn could be an opportunity for an adventure, moreover open more roads. It is all a matter of perspective. You have the choice between being a lost traveler or an accidental tourist of life. But take caution that you do not make decisions haphazardly. Taking risks is not about being careless and stupid. Here are some pointers that could help you choose the best option in the face of life’s crossroads:
· Get as many information as you can about your situation.
You cannot find the confidence to decide when you know so little about what you are faced with. Just like any news reporter, ask the 5 W’s: what, who, when, where, and why. What is the situation? Who are the people involved? When did this happen? Where is this leading? Why are you in this situation? These are just some of the possible questions to ask to know more about your situation. This is important. Oftentimes, the reason for indecision is the lack of information about a situation.
· Identify and create options.
What options do the situation give you? Sometimes the options are few, but sometimes they are numerous. But what do you do when you think that the situation offers no options? This is the time that you create your own. Make your creative mind work. From the most simplistic to the most complicated, entertain all ideas. Do not shoot anything down when an idea comes to your head. Sometimes the most outrageous idea could prove to be the right one in the end. You can ask a friend to help you identify options and even make more options if you encounter some difficulty, but make sure that you make the decision yourself in the end.
· Weigh the pros and cons of every option.
Assess each option by looking at the advantages and disadvantages it offers you. In this way, you get more insights about the consequences of such an option.
· Trust yourself and make that decision.
Now that you have assessed your options, it is now time to trust yourself. Remember that there are no guarantees and wrong decisions are always at hindsight. So choose… decide… believe that you are choosing the best option at this point in time.
Now that you have made a decision, be ready to face its consequences: good and bad. It may take you to a place of promise or to a land of problems. But the important thing is that you have chosen to live your life instead of remaining a bystander or a passive audience to your own life. Whether it is the right decision or not, only time can tell. But do not regret it whatever the outcome. Instead, learn from it and remember that you always have the chance to make better decisions in the future.
Life is like a road. There are long and short roads; smooth and rocky roads; crooked and straight paths. In our life many roads would come our way as we journey through life. There are roads that lead to a life of single blessedness, marriage, and religious vocation. There are also roads that lead to fame and fortune on one hand, or isolation and poverty on the other. There are roads to happiness as there are roads to sadness, roads towards victory and jubilation, and roads leading to defeat and disappointment.
Just like any road, there are corners, detours, and crossroads in life. Perhaps the most perplexing road that you would encounter is a crossroad. With four roads to choose from and with limited knowledge on where they would go, which road will you take? What is the guarantee that we would choose the right one along the way? Would you take any road, or just stay where you are: in front of a crossroad?
There are no guarantees.
You do not really know where a road will lead you until you take it. There are no guarantees. This is one of the most important things you need to realize about life. Nobody said that choosing to do the right thing all the time would always lead you to happiness. Loving someone with all your heart does not guarantee that it would be returned. Gaining fame and fortune does not guarantee happiness. Accepting a good word from an influential superior to cut your trip short up the career ladder is not always bad, especially if you are highly qualified and competent. There are too many possible outcomes, which your really cannot control. The only thing you have power over is the decisions that you will make, and how you would act and react to different situations.
Wrong decisions are always at hindsight.
Had you known that you were making a wrong decision, would you have gone along with it? Perhaps not, why would you choose a certain path when you know it would get you lost? Why make a certain decision if you knew from the very beginning that it is not the right one. It is only after you have made a decision and reflected on it that you realize its soundness. If the consequences or outcomes are good for you, then you have decided correctly. Otherwise, your decision was wrong.
Take the risk: decide.
Since life offers no guarantee and you would never know that your decision would be wrong until you have made it, then you might as well take the risk and decide. It is definitely better than keeping yourself in limbo. Although it is true that one wrong turn could get you lost, it could also be that such a turn could be an opportunity for an adventure, moreover open more roads. It is all a matter of perspective. You have the choice between being a lost traveler or an accidental tourist of life. But take caution that you do not make decisions haphazardly. Taking risks is not about being careless and stupid. Here are some pointers that could help you choose the best option in the face of life’s crossroads:
· Get as many information as you can about your situation.
You cannot find the confidence to decide when you know so little about what you are faced with. Just like any news reporter, ask the 5 W’s: what, who, when, where, and why. What is the situation? Who are the people involved? When did this happen? Where is this leading? Why are you in this situation? These are just some of the possible questions to ask to know more about your situation. This is important. Oftentimes, the reason for indecision is the lack of information about a situation.
· Identify and create options.
What options do the situation give you? Sometimes the options are few, but sometimes they are numerous. But what do you do when you think that the situation offers no options? This is the time that you create your own. Make your creative mind work. From the most simplistic to the most complicated, entertain all ideas. Do not shoot anything down when an idea comes to your head. Sometimes the most outrageous idea could prove to be the right one in the end. You can ask a friend to help you identify options and even make more options if you encounter some difficulty, but make sure that you make the decision yourself in the end.
· Weigh the pros and cons of every option.
Assess each option by looking at the advantages and disadvantages it offers you. In this way, you get more insights about the consequences of such an option.
· Trust yourself and make that decision.
Now that you have assessed your options, it is now time to trust yourself. Remember that there are no guarantees and wrong decisions are always at hindsight. So choose… decide… believe that you are choosing the best option at this point in time.
Now that you have made a decision, be ready to face its consequences: good and bad. It may take you to a place of promise or to a land of problems. But the important thing is that you have chosen to live your life instead of remaining a bystander or a passive audience to your own life. Whether it is the right decision or not, only time can tell. But do not regret it whatever the outcome. Instead, learn from it and remember that you always have the chance to make better decisions in the future.
This land is your land. This land is my land. This land was made for you and me! No truer words were ever spoken. In fact, my palms tend to get a bit sweaty with excitement whenever I hum a few bars from that great uniter that was a childhood classic for me. I’m really a big fan of sharing. That’s why I’m so glad and thankful that the Native Americans that inhabited the area that is now the United States of America were so kind as to invite us to share their land, so that now it’ made for you and me. I think that’s great.
And in the spirit of kindness, I am excited that people who came here from other places have given the proper respect that the land and its previously sole inhabitants deserve. It’s about community and connection and a land built upon altruistic generosity and selfless acts for the common good. That’s what I like. To be honest with you, I feel that sometimes I don’t live up to the standard that has been set by the friendly folks that came here from Western Europe. I try, but it’s sometimes difficult and I forget.
When I was a child, I even thought that it was cool to litter. I don’t know what got into me. Maybe I’m naturally a bad seed or maybe I was too concerned with impressing the older kids from down the street, like Kenny and Brian (who really were bad seeds). Regardless of the reasoning, I littered. I couldn’t see beyond my, then, present circumstances to realize that I was but a simple part of an enormous, loving entity. That was until I watched a commercial.
When I saw the tear roll down the check of a Native American due to a passing motorist’s disregard for the mutually beneficial gentleman’s agreement that was made between the previous and current peoples of North America by tossing trash out the window of his/her speeding car in a 1970’s television advertisement, I understood my role and I understood my misdeeds.
I now am a faithful ally of those who revere the environment as something which needs to be explicitly cared for. I view the environment as though it’s not mine do with as I please, because its not mine. It’s mine and yours. It all started with an ad. You want to ask me what advertising is? Twenty years of community-minded, selflessness…that’s advertising.
And in the spirit of kindness, I am excited that people who came here from other places have given the proper respect that the land and its previously sole inhabitants deserve. It’s about community and connection and a land built upon altruistic generosity and selfless acts for the common good. That’s what I like. To be honest with you, I feel that sometimes I don’t live up to the standard that has been set by the friendly folks that came here from Western Europe. I try, but it’s sometimes difficult and I forget.
When I was a child, I even thought that it was cool to litter. I don’t know what got into me. Maybe I’m naturally a bad seed or maybe I was too concerned with impressing the older kids from down the street, like Kenny and Brian (who really were bad seeds). Regardless of the reasoning, I littered. I couldn’t see beyond my, then, present circumstances to realize that I was but a simple part of an enormous, loving entity. That was until I watched a commercial.
When I saw the tear roll down the check of a Native American due to a passing motorist’s disregard for the mutually beneficial gentleman’s agreement that was made between the previous and current peoples of North America by tossing trash out the window of his/her speeding car in a 1970’s television advertisement, I understood my role and I understood my misdeeds.
I now am a faithful ally of those who revere the environment as something which needs to be explicitly cared for. I view the environment as though it’s not mine do with as I please, because its not mine. It’s mine and yours. It all started with an ad. You want to ask me what advertising is? Twenty years of community-minded, selflessness…that’s advertising.
But who’s growing your business while you’re busy tending to your clients’ needs? What are you doing to attract and maintain a steady stream of qualified, motivated prospects? How do you find and keep interesting clients who pay you what you’re worth? Like most professionals, you may not be able to answer those questions because the answer involves marketing.
Sure, referrals can be a decent source of new clients, but they’re only one approach in a system of balanced strategies for guaranteeing you’ll have many desirable clients for as long as you wish. It doesn’t matter how many referrals you get, if you don’t know how to build and extend the potential relationship that each referral represents.
As a Smart Person, you have lots of options at your disposal for attracting more clients to your firm. And they don’t have to include the expensive things that spring to mind when you say "marketing," such as slick brochures, advertising, or direct mail.
However, your professional expertise alone will not differentiate you in a crowded marketplace…nor will it bring clients to you. You’ve got to let them know you exist and help them understand why you’re different – why you are uniquely qualified to address their needs. This is called positioning. It takes some thoughtful, creative work to nail this first, most important step in attracting more clients.
Once you’ve determined your positioning, you have four more major steps that will bring clients to you and your firm: packaging, promotion, persuasion, and performance. Each step requires that you are able to communicate with your target client audience in a variety of ways that they can understand – in their need-based language, not your expert language.
In a nutshell, here are some of your strategies for each major step to attract more clients:
Positioning: niche, specialty, specialness, reputation, unique competitive advantage, client-centered worldview, saying no, commitment, no Plan B, congruence, self knowledge, re-niche
Packaging: knowledge-sharing, articles, reports, surveys, web sites, slide decks, CDs/cassettes, videos, books, mini-books
Promotion: knowledge-sharing, speaking, writing, networking, referrals, newsletters, e-newsletters, letters, postcards, calls, teleclasses
Persuasion: listening, diagnosis, openness, curiosity, visioning, education, presentations, asking, recommending, assuring, sharing
Performance: competence, solutions, results, keep promises, manage expectations, intelligence, creativity, guarantees, thank you’s, commitment, walking the talk, innovation, persistence, integrity, generosity, alignment inside firm, staying in touch, management competence
Chances are, you’re on a learning curve in one or more of these major steps. Even if you’ve been in business for years and have built a successful firm, taking your practice to the next level means setting new metrics, ensuring your niche hasn’t grown stale, and learning new ways to reach that next stage in your firm’s growth or maturity.
For larger firms, maybe now it’s time to pay attention to how your firm delivers on your brand promise – do principals, management, and staff really "walk the talk" of what you promise in the marketplace? Or are you, like many professional service firms, a cobbler whose children have no shoes?
Or perhaps you serve "internal clients" inside of a very large organization, and need support or buy-in for the services your department offers. You can put these principles and strategies to work for your work to get noticed, get invited, attract positive attention, and get buy-in.
So what’s a Smart Person to do to attract more clients? Here are some suggestions:
Raise the role of strategic marketing in your practice to a conscious level. Get it on the agenda and apply your smarts to it, just like you do with any other crucial aspect of your business.
Create a niche for your practice – you cannot be all things to all people. However just because you enjoy working with a particular market or prefer a special approach, it doesn’t mean your target clients will. You need to understand the difference between a good niche and a bad niche, and strategize accordingly. Lynda Falkenstein’s NicheCraft is an excellent source of ideas.
Position yourself to others through their worldview, not yours. Instead of saying, "I’m a strategy consultant," start with "I help (Fortune 500) companies (increase market share)." Obviously you’d tailor the statement to fit who you help and what problem you address, but you get the idea. For tons of information on how to get this right, Robert Middleton of Action Plan Marketing is the guru on what he calls creating an "audiologo."
Develop a system of marketing strategies that both attracts new clients and helps you retain the ones you have. Start with the metrics of what you want to change or improve in your practice and tie the system to driving those metrics.
Develop an action plan that translates your marketing system into specific tasks, with real assignments, deliverables, and deadlines.
Commit to and put a system in place to keep you on track and motivated as you work through your plan. Build non-billable time into your business model dedicated to marketing. A rule of thumb is at least 20% of your firm’s time should be allocated to marketing.
Get expert help and resources for any of these suggestions, including implementation. For many professional service firms, this requires getting away for a day or two of focused thinking and discussion among key people. When you consider that stakes, it’s well worth the time and effort.
There are actually two more "p’s" in marketing. Intelligent, effective marketing requires a great deal of patience…and the ability to see this not as a series of transactions completed in a few weeks or even months, but as a relationship-building process with your current and future clients over time.
Marketing really is a life-skill and something to learn as one of your core competencies as an educated professional. Now that’s being smart!
References
Argyris, C. "Teaching Smart People How to Learn," Harvard Business Review, May-June 1991.
Falkenstein, L. NicheCraft. New York: HarperCollins. 1996.
Middleton, R. "InfoGuru Marketing Manual." Action Plan Marketing. 2002.
Sure, referrals can be a decent source of new clients, but they’re only one approach in a system of balanced strategies for guaranteeing you’ll have many desirable clients for as long as you wish. It doesn’t matter how many referrals you get, if you don’t know how to build and extend the potential relationship that each referral represents.
As a Smart Person, you have lots of options at your disposal for attracting more clients to your firm. And they don’t have to include the expensive things that spring to mind when you say "marketing," such as slick brochures, advertising, or direct mail.
However, your professional expertise alone will not differentiate you in a crowded marketplace…nor will it bring clients to you. You’ve got to let them know you exist and help them understand why you’re different – why you are uniquely qualified to address their needs. This is called positioning. It takes some thoughtful, creative work to nail this first, most important step in attracting more clients.
Once you’ve determined your positioning, you have four more major steps that will bring clients to you and your firm: packaging, promotion, persuasion, and performance. Each step requires that you are able to communicate with your target client audience in a variety of ways that they can understand – in their need-based language, not your expert language.
In a nutshell, here are some of your strategies for each major step to attract more clients:
Positioning: niche, specialty, specialness, reputation, unique competitive advantage, client-centered worldview, saying no, commitment, no Plan B, congruence, self knowledge, re-niche
Packaging: knowledge-sharing, articles, reports, surveys, web sites, slide decks, CDs/cassettes, videos, books, mini-books
Promotion: knowledge-sharing, speaking, writing, networking, referrals, newsletters, e-newsletters, letters, postcards, calls, teleclasses
Persuasion: listening, diagnosis, openness, curiosity, visioning, education, presentations, asking, recommending, assuring, sharing
Performance: competence, solutions, results, keep promises, manage expectations, intelligence, creativity, guarantees, thank you’s, commitment, walking the talk, innovation, persistence, integrity, generosity, alignment inside firm, staying in touch, management competence
Chances are, you’re on a learning curve in one or more of these major steps. Even if you’ve been in business for years and have built a successful firm, taking your practice to the next level means setting new metrics, ensuring your niche hasn’t grown stale, and learning new ways to reach that next stage in your firm’s growth or maturity.
For larger firms, maybe now it’s time to pay attention to how your firm delivers on your brand promise – do principals, management, and staff really "walk the talk" of what you promise in the marketplace? Or are you, like many professional service firms, a cobbler whose children have no shoes?
Or perhaps you serve "internal clients" inside of a very large organization, and need support or buy-in for the services your department offers. You can put these principles and strategies to work for your work to get noticed, get invited, attract positive attention, and get buy-in.
So what’s a Smart Person to do to attract more clients? Here are some suggestions:
Raise the role of strategic marketing in your practice to a conscious level. Get it on the agenda and apply your smarts to it, just like you do with any other crucial aspect of your business.
Create a niche for your practice – you cannot be all things to all people. However just because you enjoy working with a particular market or prefer a special approach, it doesn’t mean your target clients will. You need to understand the difference between a good niche and a bad niche, and strategize accordingly. Lynda Falkenstein’s NicheCraft is an excellent source of ideas.
Position yourself to others through their worldview, not yours. Instead of saying, "I’m a strategy consultant," start with "I help (Fortune 500) companies (increase market share)." Obviously you’d tailor the statement to fit who you help and what problem you address, but you get the idea. For tons of information on how to get this right, Robert Middleton of Action Plan Marketing is the guru on what he calls creating an "audiologo."
Develop a system of marketing strategies that both attracts new clients and helps you retain the ones you have. Start with the metrics of what you want to change or improve in your practice and tie the system to driving those metrics.
Develop an action plan that translates your marketing system into specific tasks, with real assignments, deliverables, and deadlines.
Commit to and put a system in place to keep you on track and motivated as you work through your plan. Build non-billable time into your business model dedicated to marketing. A rule of thumb is at least 20% of your firm’s time should be allocated to marketing.
Get expert help and resources for any of these suggestions, including implementation. For many professional service firms, this requires getting away for a day or two of focused thinking and discussion among key people. When you consider that stakes, it’s well worth the time and effort.
There are actually two more "p’s" in marketing. Intelligent, effective marketing requires a great deal of patience…and the ability to see this not as a series of transactions completed in a few weeks or even months, but as a relationship-building process with your current and future clients over time.
Marketing really is a life-skill and something to learn as one of your core competencies as an educated professional. Now that’s being smart!
References
Argyris, C. "Teaching Smart People How to Learn," Harvard Business Review, May-June 1991.
Falkenstein, L. NicheCraft. New York: HarperCollins. 1996.
Middleton, R. "InfoGuru Marketing Manual." Action Plan Marketing. 2002.
business marketing,
marketing consulting,
marketing education,
marketing implementation,
marketing resources,
marketing success,
stategic marketing,
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Creative thinking is a potential we are all born with. If you don't use that potential, it is probably because you don't know and apply the simple principles for developing it. We can remedy that right now.
The two basic principles of creative thinking are:
1. There are methods and techniques of creative thinking.
2. Making these methods and techniques a part of your mental habits will make creative thinking easy and automatic.
An entrepreneur sees the potential profit in a situation, because his mind is trained for that. A lawyer sees the potential problems, because that is how his mind is trained. How we repeatedly think becomes a habit, and that is how you train a mind. Learn the techniques of creative thinking, use them until they are a habit, and creative thinking will be as natural for you as lying is for a politician.
The Techniques Of Creative Thinking
There are dozens of creative problem solving techniques you can learn to use. "Concept-combination," for example, will have you mixing roses and clocks to create the first alarm clock that wakes you up with a gentle release of fragrance. Use the technique of "random-presentation" and a cell phone can give the idea to do your dictation with a pocket tape recorder while you walk, so you'll have time for exercise and still get your work done.
Creative thinking goes beyond just solving specific problems or inventing new things. A truly creative mind is always coming up with the questions too, not just the solutions. To be more creative all the time, focus on three things:
1. Challenge your assumptions. What if a restaurant didn't have employees? Customers could pay a machine as they enter, and feed themselves at a buffet. If everything was as automated as possible, maybe one owner-operator could run a large restaurant alone. Challenge everything. Do you have to go to work? Do pools need water? Is education always a good thing?
2. Change your perspective. Imagining a dog's thoughts about your busyness could clue you in to the unnecessary things you do. Thinking dollars-per-day instead of per-hour could give you a plan to let employees go home when they finish a certain quota. Greater efficiency would be almost certain, and you could adjust daily pay and quotas so both you and employees made more money. Look at everything from several perspectives.
3. Let your ideas run wild. Flying furniture seems silly, but it may lead to the idea of a hover-lifter. Slide the device under furniture and it lifts it with a cushion of air, making for easy moving. Don't stifle your creativity. Relax, let ideas come, and know that you can always discard them later.
Creating Creative Thinking Habits
To make the above techniques into an automatic part of your thinking, just use them enough. Usually it takes several weeks to develop a habit, so you need a way to remind yourself each day during that time. Try writing a few of your favorite techniques on a card and carrying it with you. Pull it out throughout the day and apply the techniques to anything. Soon, more creative thinking will be a normal part of your life.
Home business MLM has never been easier these days. With the emergence of electronic tools and other gadgetry, coupled with the Internet, your task has been chopped down in half.
Nothing can beat the business or opportunity that MLM home business can give.
Besides, how do you beat working at home in your blue jeans, never going to an office, and making more money than the people you might have worked for?
Once an MLM business is established and well under way, a typical week might take 3 to 5 hours of some form of enjoyable work to keep your network running smoothly. That’s it. Your working day is finished.
It does not take a rocket scientist to make a network work. There are also no magic bullets, books, software, devices, meetings, and tapes that can make it any harder or easier.
Many years ago, just the thought of MLM affiliate programs, franchises and home businesses are enough to scare people off.
The reason? All the extra hours that people have to put in to make things happen.
There are also those MLM home business programs that say they are the best. Only to turn out bankrupt in an instant. This and other reasons of the same kind have marked MLM as phony and the people behind, not to be trusted.
If these people only had to think for a while, they would have realized that there is no such thing as best program and best company. The concept of being the “best” is depending on the characteristics inherent that is shown and is approved by others.
Reading, studying and learning about MLM home business is the most effective way. Then it would be now up to the marketer to think how he or she can input those learnings in his own MLM home business.
In order to build your MLM home business, you need to understand one simple aspect. It is a business and definitely not a hobby. Also remember that nothing is free.
So it is best to understand up front that you are going to spend some time and money. That simple.
Understand also that things being offered for free are not likely to be useful and effective. If things are free then you probably will get free stuff that would not work.
Find a product or service that you really like. Join a company that sells just that. Then build your own MLM home business using a system that can work using the internet.
If this is like the other types of business, you will need the necessary business skills to run their new venture to ensure its success.
However, an MLM home business marketer needs no special skills to run their multi-level system. Any skill a network marketer may need, they can learn while running their MLM home business based from their marketing plan.
MLM home business is a smart business sense for anyone wishing to start a home-based trade.
There are many benefits to MLM home business. It cost next to nothing to get started, you get a proven system like that of a franchise opportunity and you can be in profit in months rather than in years.
Therefore, if you desire more income while still working a 9 to 5 job, or to build your retirement income then should seriously consider MLM home business as your vehicle for you and your family’s financial well being.
Nothing can beat the business or opportunity that MLM home business can give.
Besides, how do you beat working at home in your blue jeans, never going to an office, and making more money than the people you might have worked for?
Once an MLM business is established and well under way, a typical week might take 3 to 5 hours of some form of enjoyable work to keep your network running smoothly. That’s it. Your working day is finished.
It does not take a rocket scientist to make a network work. There are also no magic bullets, books, software, devices, meetings, and tapes that can make it any harder or easier.
Many years ago, just the thought of MLM affiliate programs, franchises and home businesses are enough to scare people off.
The reason? All the extra hours that people have to put in to make things happen.
There are also those MLM home business programs that say they are the best. Only to turn out bankrupt in an instant. This and other reasons of the same kind have marked MLM as phony and the people behind, not to be trusted.
If these people only had to think for a while, they would have realized that there is no such thing as best program and best company. The concept of being the “best” is depending on the characteristics inherent that is shown and is approved by others.
Reading, studying and learning about MLM home business is the most effective way. Then it would be now up to the marketer to think how he or she can input those learnings in his own MLM home business.
In order to build your MLM home business, you need to understand one simple aspect. It is a business and definitely not a hobby. Also remember that nothing is free.
So it is best to understand up front that you are going to spend some time and money. That simple.
Understand also that things being offered for free are not likely to be useful and effective. If things are free then you probably will get free stuff that would not work.
Find a product or service that you really like. Join a company that sells just that. Then build your own MLM home business using a system that can work using the internet.
If this is like the other types of business, you will need the necessary business skills to run their new venture to ensure its success.
However, an MLM home business marketer needs no special skills to run their multi-level system. Any skill a network marketer may need, they can learn while running their MLM home business based from their marketing plan.
MLM home business is a smart business sense for anyone wishing to start a home-based trade.
There are many benefits to MLM home business. It cost next to nothing to get started, you get a proven system like that of a franchise opportunity and you can be in profit in months rather than in years.
Therefore, if you desire more income while still working a 9 to 5 job, or to build your retirement income then should seriously consider MLM home business as your vehicle for you and your family’s financial well being.
We've all heard the saying that "talk is cheap." In fact we've heard it so often it's become a cliché. Like most cliché's the law of familiarity has set in and keeps us from actually absorbing the true meaning of the phrase. We've grown so tired of hearing it that we don't really listen to it anymore. The fact remains that talk is cheap. It is easy to talk about things and most people do. In fact most people “talk a great game” on a regular basis. The difference in people, however, is not in what they say they will do but in what they actually do.
We don't really judge people by what they say but rather by what they do. We judge people by their behavior and by their actions. The reason for this is that deep down inside we all know that words have no real power to create anything in itself. It is only when the words are backed up by action that you have the power to create any real results. The ironic thing is that although most of us know this we get caught up in accumulating knowledge. We learn something and get really interested in the results we think the information can produce for us. In pursuing the results, we often confuse it with getting more information so we end up gathering and accumulation tons of information and knowledge without producing the result we wanted in the first place.
The proper fruit of knowledge is action. It is true that gaining knowledge can make us feel more capable but knowledge in itself will not produce the results we really desire. One of the biggest myths that is prevalent in the information age is the notion that knowledge is power. Knowledge is not power. It is only potential power. What you do with what you know is where the real power is. The difference in people comes in what they have done differently from someone else with the same information. The reality of the world we live in is that information on almost anything is freely available to anyone, quite literally at the push of a button.
Even though you have all the information at your fingertips, still, the most valuable resource you have to create results in your life is your ability to take action. An action always produces a result. When you take action you bring an idea into effect and you use your will to do something to achieve a specific purpose. When you do this you actually create in the true sense of the word as you turn an idea into reality; you express something that was internal on the outside. Every action is a cause set in motion and for every cause there is an effect and it is the effects or results that we are all really interested in. You don't want to know that you can be wealthy. You want to experience it by seeing and touching it and the real satisfaction comes from turning your ideas into reality.
There is a big difference between knowing what to do and doing what you know. Most people know what to do to be able to make their lives work but knowing just isn't enough – we must act and use what we know. Something intangible happens when you take action on an idea. You set in motion a series of events, events that you don't always know the full consequences of. Like throwing a stone in a pond, the ripple effect of the water affects the whole pond and moves everything that is in or on the pond. This illustrates how a single action can have a significant impact even if you aren’t always aware of it. On a more practical and tangible level you start getting feedback from your actions and you learn things that you can only learn as a result of your actions. These are things you simply cannot learn from merely listening to others or reading books.
Think of your knowledge and ideas as an elastic band. It has the ability to be stretched, but until and unless you stretch it you are not using it for its real purpose. Information is usually something external. When you learn it you transform it into knowledge and when you act on it, it becomes part of your life. To truly experience anything in life you must take action. Knowing simply isn't enough. We all want to feel and this only comes from engaging "all of you" - by engaging all of your senses to experience the fullness of life in all its abundance.
It doesn't take many ideas to change something in your life. Neither does it take a complicated idea. It takes ideas that you can use and act upon to give you what you really want. Rarely is it the information or ideas that you really want as it is almost always only the means to an end. What you truly want is results and this will only come from using what you know. Don't get caught in the flood of information and knowledge. Start to focus your mind on action and on applying ideas instead of accumulating them. Slowly feed yourself more information and knowledge, but let your actions be your ultimate guide. After all it is not what you say you will do but what you actually do that will determine the quality of your life and what you achieve or fail to achieve.
We don't really judge people by what they say but rather by what they do. We judge people by their behavior and by their actions. The reason for this is that deep down inside we all know that words have no real power to create anything in itself. It is only when the words are backed up by action that you have the power to create any real results. The ironic thing is that although most of us know this we get caught up in accumulating knowledge. We learn something and get really interested in the results we think the information can produce for us. In pursuing the results, we often confuse it with getting more information so we end up gathering and accumulation tons of information and knowledge without producing the result we wanted in the first place.
The proper fruit of knowledge is action. It is true that gaining knowledge can make us feel more capable but knowledge in itself will not produce the results we really desire. One of the biggest myths that is prevalent in the information age is the notion that knowledge is power. Knowledge is not power. It is only potential power. What you do with what you know is where the real power is. The difference in people comes in what they have done differently from someone else with the same information. The reality of the world we live in is that information on almost anything is freely available to anyone, quite literally at the push of a button.
Even though you have all the information at your fingertips, still, the most valuable resource you have to create results in your life is your ability to take action. An action always produces a result. When you take action you bring an idea into effect and you use your will to do something to achieve a specific purpose. When you do this you actually create in the true sense of the word as you turn an idea into reality; you express something that was internal on the outside. Every action is a cause set in motion and for every cause there is an effect and it is the effects or results that we are all really interested in. You don't want to know that you can be wealthy. You want to experience it by seeing and touching it and the real satisfaction comes from turning your ideas into reality.
There is a big difference between knowing what to do and doing what you know. Most people know what to do to be able to make their lives work but knowing just isn't enough – we must act and use what we know. Something intangible happens when you take action on an idea. You set in motion a series of events, events that you don't always know the full consequences of. Like throwing a stone in a pond, the ripple effect of the water affects the whole pond and moves everything that is in or on the pond. This illustrates how a single action can have a significant impact even if you aren’t always aware of it. On a more practical and tangible level you start getting feedback from your actions and you learn things that you can only learn as a result of your actions. These are things you simply cannot learn from merely listening to others or reading books.
Think of your knowledge and ideas as an elastic band. It has the ability to be stretched, but until and unless you stretch it you are not using it for its real purpose. Information is usually something external. When you learn it you transform it into knowledge and when you act on it, it becomes part of your life. To truly experience anything in life you must take action. Knowing simply isn't enough. We all want to feel and this only comes from engaging "all of you" - by engaging all of your senses to experience the fullness of life in all its abundance.
It doesn't take many ideas to change something in your life. Neither does it take a complicated idea. It takes ideas that you can use and act upon to give you what you really want. Rarely is it the information or ideas that you really want as it is almost always only the means to an end. What you truly want is results and this will only come from using what you know. Don't get caught in the flood of information and knowledge. Start to focus your mind on action and on applying ideas instead of accumulating them. Slowly feed yourself more information and knowledge, but let your actions be your ultimate guide. After all it is not what you say you will do but what you actually do that will determine the quality of your life and what you achieve or fail to achieve.
You just got started with a new online MLM business and you want to tell everyone online about it. So, you sign up for all kinds of message boards, email groups and other business networking websites.
Before you do anything, please realize that you are dealing with REAL PEOPLE. The Internet seems like this anonymous place where you might feel people won’t really notice you if you engage in any vampirish behavior, but realize that the Internet is no different than dealing with people offline.
Treat people with respect, get to know them first and you’ll have plenty of valuable contacts for your business. No, most probably won’t join your business opportunity, but they will teach you a lot about business, will refer others to you and will be a great asset to your business – even if they never buy a thing from you.
Some Online Networking No-Nos:
- Sending private messages or emails about your business opportunity or products to another member is in poor taste. If you want to contact someone privately because you feel you have something in common, go for it, but don’t recruit or sell.
- When you introduce yourself on a networking group, it’s usually okay to say what you do…but don’t invite people to check out your website or say that you are looking for new customers or recruits.
- Even if a message board or networking group allows you to post ads in certain places or on certain days, don’t bother if you’re new. Get to know the group first and then they’ll be more interested your offers.
When you have a new business, it can be stressful and you feel pressure to get results. The important thing to remember is that results come from building long-term relationships and not from preying on online networking groups.
Don’t suck the blood out of all your prospects and people who can connect you with potential prospects before you even get started.
Before you do anything, please realize that you are dealing with REAL PEOPLE. The Internet seems like this anonymous place where you might feel people won’t really notice you if you engage in any vampirish behavior, but realize that the Internet is no different than dealing with people offline.
Treat people with respect, get to know them first and you’ll have plenty of valuable contacts for your business. No, most probably won’t join your business opportunity, but they will teach you a lot about business, will refer others to you and will be a great asset to your business – even if they never buy a thing from you.
Some Online Networking No-Nos:
- Sending private messages or emails about your business opportunity or products to another member is in poor taste. If you want to contact someone privately because you feel you have something in common, go for it, but don’t recruit or sell.
- When you introduce yourself on a networking group, it’s usually okay to say what you do…but don’t invite people to check out your website or say that you are looking for new customers or recruits.
- Even if a message board or networking group allows you to post ads in certain places or on certain days, don’t bother if you’re new. Get to know the group first and then they’ll be more interested your offers.
When you have a new business, it can be stressful and you feel pressure to get results. The important thing to remember is that results come from building long-term relationships and not from preying on online networking groups.
Don’t suck the blood out of all your prospects and people who can connect you with potential prospects before you even get started.
Despite what the ad copy on most MLM sales pages tells you, this business is NOT easy. While everyone has their own learning curve, it generally takes a tremendous amount of solid planning and hard work to realize a profit with net marketing.
A big problem in this business is a lack of honesty. I’m not talking about scam artists or crooks here. I’m talking about the inability of individuals to be honest with themselves and realistic about what they want to achieve.
You may be an affiliate marketer who wants to build big in opportunity systems that are owned by other people. Or, perhaps you are someone who wants to sell your own products and services.
There is good money to be made with either path. Personally, I believe the intelligent use of both affiliate programs and products that you own is the best approach to making money in the net marketing niche.
But before you continue with this train of thought, I’d like you to take just a couple of minutes to consider why you are here in the first place. And don’t say “to make money”.
There are lots of ways to make money. But for some reason, you have chosen this field over countless other options. Look deep down and find the real reason you are here.
It’s funny how so many people get stumped by this very simple exercise. Don’t make a mountain out of an ant hill; just be honest with yourself about what brought you here.
I’ll give you my reasons, just so you can see how the thought process works for this.
I’m here because I don’t have what it takes to be an underpaid employee for the next 40 years of my life. I lack the fortitude required to work my butt off for less than what I’m worth, and then retire to a sub-quality lifestyle.
Don’t get me wrong; I’m slightly smarter than the average milk cow, and I’m not afraid of hard work. I just can’t get into the right frame of mind for doing all the work and letting someone else take most of the money.
For many years I felt guilty about my disposition, and struggled to bring my attitude in line with the blue collar status quo. Maybe I just had a chip on my shoulder, and needed to get in touch with a greater sense of responsibility.
Then one day, while working as a delivery driver for a local produce vendor, I had an epiphany. My partner and I were in the process of unloading, by hand, a $3,200 order consisting of numerous 25 pound boxes. It occurred to me about midway through the 2,000 pounds of fruit I was humping down the delivery ramp that my boss was at home smoking cigarettes and watching cable television.
I had been with this company for a while, and I had a good idea of the profit margins involved with this type of order. In the three hours it took me to fill the order, drive to the location, and unload the goods, I made less than $30. My employer, on the other hand, put just over $1,400 of profit into the coffers.
To be clear, I’m not saying there is anything morally astray about this. In fact, my former employer is a wonderful human being and a successful business owner.
I’m just not the kind of guy who can shake this stream of logic once it starts bouncing around inside my skull. The fact is profits are much better than wages no matter how you try to rationalize the equation.
When I shared these thoughts with my route partner, he shrugged and told me it was “just a job” and that I was “thinking too much”. This came as no surprise, and in fact was the same response my grumblings had been getting from fellow employees for years.
I’m not cut out for the nine-to-five grind, because I feel strongly about working for my prosperity and not toiling away to build someone else’s salary. I also don’t care for the idea of planning my day entirely around an agenda that fails to serve my best interests. My time is just that… MINE.
Plus I enjoy the idea of helping others for the benefit of both parties. Add to this the fact that I love the challenge of trying to attract people to my offers, when there are thousands of other propositions to choose from, and network marketing on the world-wide-web becomes a perfect fit for me.
So there it is in a nutshell. That’s why I’m here.
Ok it’s your turn. This may seem trivial to you, but I promise the exercise I’m suggesting is one of the most important things you can do for yourself.
A big problem in this business is a lack of honesty. I’m not talking about scam artists or crooks here. I’m talking about the inability of individuals to be honest with themselves and realistic about what they want to achieve.
You may be an affiliate marketer who wants to build big in opportunity systems that are owned by other people. Or, perhaps you are someone who wants to sell your own products and services.
There is good money to be made with either path. Personally, I believe the intelligent use of both affiliate programs and products that you own is the best approach to making money in the net marketing niche.
But before you continue with this train of thought, I’d like you to take just a couple of minutes to consider why you are here in the first place. And don’t say “to make money”.
There are lots of ways to make money. But for some reason, you have chosen this field over countless other options. Look deep down and find the real reason you are here.
It’s funny how so many people get stumped by this very simple exercise. Don’t make a mountain out of an ant hill; just be honest with yourself about what brought you here.
I’ll give you my reasons, just so you can see how the thought process works for this.
I’m here because I don’t have what it takes to be an underpaid employee for the next 40 years of my life. I lack the fortitude required to work my butt off for less than what I’m worth, and then retire to a sub-quality lifestyle.
Don’t get me wrong; I’m slightly smarter than the average milk cow, and I’m not afraid of hard work. I just can’t get into the right frame of mind for doing all the work and letting someone else take most of the money.
For many years I felt guilty about my disposition, and struggled to bring my attitude in line with the blue collar status quo. Maybe I just had a chip on my shoulder, and needed to get in touch with a greater sense of responsibility.
Then one day, while working as a delivery driver for a local produce vendor, I had an epiphany. My partner and I were in the process of unloading, by hand, a $3,200 order consisting of numerous 25 pound boxes. It occurred to me about midway through the 2,000 pounds of fruit I was humping down the delivery ramp that my boss was at home smoking cigarettes and watching cable television.
I had been with this company for a while, and I had a good idea of the profit margins involved with this type of order. In the three hours it took me to fill the order, drive to the location, and unload the goods, I made less than $30. My employer, on the other hand, put just over $1,400 of profit into the coffers.
To be clear, I’m not saying there is anything morally astray about this. In fact, my former employer is a wonderful human being and a successful business owner.
I’m just not the kind of guy who can shake this stream of logic once it starts bouncing around inside my skull. The fact is profits are much better than wages no matter how you try to rationalize the equation.
When I shared these thoughts with my route partner, he shrugged and told me it was “just a job” and that I was “thinking too much”. This came as no surprise, and in fact was the same response my grumblings had been getting from fellow employees for years.
I’m not cut out for the nine-to-five grind, because I feel strongly about working for my prosperity and not toiling away to build someone else’s salary. I also don’t care for the idea of planning my day entirely around an agenda that fails to serve my best interests. My time is just that… MINE.
Plus I enjoy the idea of helping others for the benefit of both parties. Add to this the fact that I love the challenge of trying to attract people to my offers, when there are thousands of other propositions to choose from, and network marketing on the world-wide-web becomes a perfect fit for me.
So there it is in a nutshell. That’s why I’m here.
Ok it’s your turn. This may seem trivial to you, but I promise the exercise I’m suggesting is one of the most important things you can do for yourself.
Do you know what one of the key secrets of success is - what makes people successful in business, sport or any other aspect of their lives? Let me come back to that in a minute.
Ever since I discovered that I wasn't invincible & that my body would fall apart over time, I've been a member of a gym. I've attended regularly over the past fifteen years & my body deterioration is almost being kept in check.
It is not that these gyms offer a poor service, on the contrary - it is because the members - "give up."
However I've always noticed a lot of new faces at the gym, a quantity of which seem to disappear over a short period of time. Most gyms & health clubs have a high turnover of members or "churn" as the marketing people like to call it. One club I know of loses around fifty members a month & has to work hard to sign up that number just for the business to stand still.
New members join to lose weight or to get fit. They then torture themselves on the rowing machines & all the other instruments of agony. If, after a few weeks of sweat & pain, they don't see any visible result - they give up.
You are probably away ahead of me on this; because the key secret of success that I mentioned earlier is this - NEVER EVER GIVE UP. This is what separates the winners from the losers in business, in sport & in life - this is what success is all about.
Whatever it is you are trying to accomplish, whatever success you need - never give up! Make mistakes - fall down - get up - fall down - but get up & try again.
If you have a mountain to climb either literally or figuratively & you reach an obstacle - don't give up. Find another way round - even go back a short distance & come at the situation from another direction.
So there you have it - If you need success remember what Winston Churchill once said - "Never - Never - Never give up!"
Ever since I discovered that I wasn't invincible & that my body would fall apart over time, I've been a member of a gym. I've attended regularly over the past fifteen years & my body deterioration is almost being kept in check.
It is not that these gyms offer a poor service, on the contrary - it is because the members - "give up."
However I've always noticed a lot of new faces at the gym, a quantity of which seem to disappear over a short period of time. Most gyms & health clubs have a high turnover of members or "churn" as the marketing people like to call it. One club I know of loses around fifty members a month & has to work hard to sign up that number just for the business to stand still.
New members join to lose weight or to get fit. They then torture themselves on the rowing machines & all the other instruments of agony. If, after a few weeks of sweat & pain, they don't see any visible result - they give up.
You are probably away ahead of me on this; because the key secret of success that I mentioned earlier is this - NEVER EVER GIVE UP. This is what separates the winners from the losers in business, in sport & in life - this is what success is all about.
Whatever it is you are trying to accomplish, whatever success you need - never give up! Make mistakes - fall down - get up - fall down - but get up & try again.
If you have a mountain to climb either literally or figuratively & you reach an obstacle - don't give up. Find another way round - even go back a short distance & come at the situation from another direction.
So there you have it - If you need success remember what Winston Churchill once said - "Never - Never - Never give up!"
Excuses! Excuses! When we fail to do something we are expected to do, we almost always have an excuse for it. However, if we analyze it closely, an excuse is a self-destructive alibi for having failed to do something, especially when it involves attaining a goal. Instead of trying to persevere in finding ways to continue achieving a goal, some of us resort to excuses.
Even a handicap cannot be used as an excuse. Many handicapped but determined people have become achievers and champions. Instead of using a handicap as an excuse, let us turn it into an asset. Let us explore this further.
A handicap need not be a reason for failure. On the contrary, a handicap can be a reason for success. People with a handicap always have an offsetting strength that allows them to overcome problems better than others.
A person with a handicap has one obsession - to lead a normal life. Depending on the handicap, a person would prefer to be as independent as possible. So he struggles and finds ways to overcome his impediment. When he is able to achieve his goal, this raises his self-esteem. In turn, he inspires others.
Everybody has handicaps in varying forms and degree. That is why; it requires effort and determination to overcome them. Handicaps can either be physical, financial, or emotional. And they can either be real or imagined.
Whenever we look at a handicap, we almost always look on the negative side only. It’s about time we take a look at the positive side of it. The positive side may be the difficult side, but it’s the one worth looking into. It’s the side that is going to lead us to excel in life.
If you think your handicap is physical, like having a weak body, you can counteract this through proper diet and training exercises. As long as the physical parts of your body are intact and mobile, there’s no reason why you cannot make it strong and useful. Why? Even those without a leg (for example) can be made to walk or run normally. With the advancement of science, artificial legs can help a handicap function with great mobility.
If your handicap is financial, then the more reason you have to rise above your present status. And if your financial status limits your educational attainment to improve your life, the school is not the only place to learn. Certainly, there are help centers to get you started even from zero level. Once you are initially warmed up with the basics of an education, the rest is up to you. Make use of libraries. Once you are educationally equipped, use your brain and come up with creative ideas to improve your life.
If you are emotionally disturbed with negative thoughts, it is like you are sitting on a chair with wobbling legs. Try sitting on a chair with sturdy legs; meaning, look at the bright, positive side of life. Put aside negativity and start thinking positively. The only one who can stop you is yourself.
If your handicap is a combination of any of the physical, financial, or emotional type, congratulations. You should strive more to overcome them, because a double layer of perseverance results to more than double the achievement. Where the odds are greater, the prize gets much bigger. After all the efforts you have exerted, the prize of success shall be a well-deserved one.
So what’s your excuse for not being successful?
Even a handicap cannot be used as an excuse. Many handicapped but determined people have become achievers and champions. Instead of using a handicap as an excuse, let us turn it into an asset. Let us explore this further.
A handicap need not be a reason for failure. On the contrary, a handicap can be a reason for success. People with a handicap always have an offsetting strength that allows them to overcome problems better than others.
A person with a handicap has one obsession - to lead a normal life. Depending on the handicap, a person would prefer to be as independent as possible. So he struggles and finds ways to overcome his impediment. When he is able to achieve his goal, this raises his self-esteem. In turn, he inspires others.
Everybody has handicaps in varying forms and degree. That is why; it requires effort and determination to overcome them. Handicaps can either be physical, financial, or emotional. And they can either be real or imagined.
Whenever we look at a handicap, we almost always look on the negative side only. It’s about time we take a look at the positive side of it. The positive side may be the difficult side, but it’s the one worth looking into. It’s the side that is going to lead us to excel in life.
If you think your handicap is physical, like having a weak body, you can counteract this through proper diet and training exercises. As long as the physical parts of your body are intact and mobile, there’s no reason why you cannot make it strong and useful. Why? Even those without a leg (for example) can be made to walk or run normally. With the advancement of science, artificial legs can help a handicap function with great mobility.
If your handicap is financial, then the more reason you have to rise above your present status. And if your financial status limits your educational attainment to improve your life, the school is not the only place to learn. Certainly, there are help centers to get you started even from zero level. Once you are initially warmed up with the basics of an education, the rest is up to you. Make use of libraries. Once you are educationally equipped, use your brain and come up with creative ideas to improve your life.
If you are emotionally disturbed with negative thoughts, it is like you are sitting on a chair with wobbling legs. Try sitting on a chair with sturdy legs; meaning, look at the bright, positive side of life. Put aside negativity and start thinking positively. The only one who can stop you is yourself.
If your handicap is a combination of any of the physical, financial, or emotional type, congratulations. You should strive more to overcome them, because a double layer of perseverance results to more than double the achievement. Where the odds are greater, the prize gets much bigger. After all the efforts you have exerted, the prize of success shall be a well-deserved one.
So what’s your excuse for not being successful?
Jungle of Knowledge is a place with great articles about almost anything.
Topics that will be covered here will be Internet Marketing, Business in general, Health-Fitness, Finance and Self-Improvement.
A place of learning and earning. Make the most of your visit here and feel free to contribute your ideas. I would love to hear your thoughts on any subject being posted.
Thanks
Tony P
Moderator of MLM Divas
Topics that will be covered here will be Internet Marketing, Business in general, Health-Fitness, Finance and Self-Improvement.
A place of learning and earning. Make the most of your visit here and feel free to contribute your ideas. I would love to hear your thoughts on any subject being posted.
Thanks
Tony P
Moderator of MLM Divas
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