For more details on what Pops is... errr... recommending - please visit the America Talks Business conference website.
It's just the smart thing to do.
Guest post by Dharmesh Shah, OnStartups
I get pitches every day from entrepreneurs, PR agencies and book authors who hope to get an article about them written on my blog, OnStartups (300,000 readers) — or on HubSpot's marketing blog (over 1.5 million visits a month).
It's sad that most of those pitches fall flat and are likely to be completely ignored. A waste of time and money for everyone.
Click here to read the rest of Dharmesh's article...
Thought for you:
It's Bigger Than You Think It Is
It's Not What You Think It Is
(Click on book cover for your free download) >>>
Stop being put off by objections that stall your sales – and your income.
Join my pal Mike Brooks for this NEW sales webinar on June 12 (free, of course), where you'll learn – word for word - how to overcome these common stalls:
During the Call:
"We're not interested right now."
"Could you email me something?"
During the Close:
"I'll show this to my regional manager (boss, partner, etc.)"
"We're still looking at a couple of different options on this right now"
Plus a NEW voicemail script for prospects who are stalling you by NOT calling you back!
Register for this info-packed training webinar right now to make sure you don't miss out.
And please do share the registration link with other folks in your network who are tired of losing sales to the dreaded "stall" - you can point people directly to:
http://mrinsidesales.com/stall.htm
These strategies could make all the difference to help YOU sell more products, services, and programs. Mike's content-rich webinars always fill up, so register now to avoid missing out.
_______
"You'll Do It When You're Tired"
Hmmmm... that may be the dumbest prediction you've ever heard...
You'll do what, exactly?
In a word: Succeed.
You know - get "it" done...
That pet project of yours, that book, that event, that special thing you've been working on, talking about, noodling, doodling, and planning for YEARS...
Tired? Tired of what, exactly?
- Tired of struggling
- Tired of excuses
- Tired of missing out
- Tired of complaining how hard it is
- Tired of striving
- Tired of faking it
- Tired of wishing
- Tired of hoping
- Tired of (day)dreaming
- Tired of fantasizing
- Tired of sketching
- Tired of postponing
- Tired of obsessing
- Tired of perfectionism (perfect time, place, people, conditions)
- Tired of being safe
- Tired of disappointment
- Tired of watching others zoom by you
- Tired of sitting on the sidelines
- Tired of keeping score when you're not even in the game
- Tired of talking
- Tired of planning
- Tired of noodling
- Tired of doodling
- Tired of starting
- Tired of choking
- Tired of quitting
- Tired of fear
- Tired of uncertainty
- Tired of self-doubt
So what the hell are you supposed to do instead?
- Launch!
- Go!!
- DO!!!
- Kick ass
- Take names
- Leap - and the net will appear
- Make it happen
- Get off your buts
- Climb in the cockpit
- Strap in
- Light the afterburners
- Jump out of the plane
- Figure out the rest on the way down
- Yes, YOU!
- Yes, really REALLY YOU!!!
Why am I telling you all this?
Well, because I'm kinda doing it myself...
After.
Ten.
Years.
The small business conference idea I had 10 years ago was a victim of a decade of noodling, doodling, planning, and dreaming.
Not any more.
Check it out: America Talks Business.
Buy an early bird ticket. Share the web link with a friend. Bring a whole posse with you.
Or don't.
'Cuz we're gonna have an amazing entrepreneurial conference anyway. (It would just be a lot more fun with YOU there to take part.)
Bottom line: I got tired. I'm doing it.
You can do it, too.
What do YOU think? Please use the COMMENTS area below to share your advice, insights and recommendations on this topic and join the conversation...
Here's another in my series of marketing and business book reviews - but not just any old business books.
Fire starters...
Game changers...
Show stoppers...
Books that will transform the way you think about your work, about your business, and about your future.
This time, we take a look at a GREAT book recommendation if WRITING a non-fiction business book lies in YOUR future.
Ready? Take a look...
What do you think? Please leave a COMMENT below to share your advice, insights and recommendations on this topic...
Here are the top 7 things that entrepreneurs, business owners, and independent professionals must do every single day:
- Revisit your goals, milestones, and metrics for the day, week, month, and quarter (financial, marketing, sales, operations)...
Ramifications if not done daily - you lose sight of the big picture and get pulled off your game by distractions, trivia, and grunt work.
- Put new prospects on your radar via strategic outreach...
Ramifications if not done daily - your sales and marketing start to slip and you suffer from the feast-or-famine small business sales rollercoaster.
- Thank your team - whether in-house, outsourced, full-time, or virtual...
Ramifications if not done daily - your team loses their motivation, momentum, and mojo. Once that's gone, they're halfway out the door.
- Offer value - in terms of content, your blog, a video, a resource, a referral, a favor, a gift...
Ramifications if not done daily - you become just more marketing noise and customers and prospects tune you out and see you as a peddler, not a partner.
- Invite engagement - online, offline, in-person, by phone or Skype; ask and answer questions, solicit feedback, invite comments, send a survey...
Ramifications if not done daily - your business becomes isolated as you talk AT your customers and clients rather than talk WITH them.
- Recharge your batteries - just like the airlines say, "secure your own mask before assisting others"...
Ramifications if not done daily - entrepreneurial burnout, stress, drinking, drugs, and divorce. Don't laugh - you could be next.
- Be gracious and grateful - take a moment to appreciate what you have, what you've built, and who you get to serve each day...
Ramifications if not done daily - instead of becoming more and more fulfilling, your business success becomes a trap, a race, and a never-ending contest that you can never win. Stop and smell the coffee!
What do YOU think? Please use the COMMENTS area below to share your advice, insights and recommendations on this topic and join the conversation...
As you may know, my loyal Labrador Retriever, Woofie, works part-time as marketing dog here at Do It! Marketing HQ.
Her website attracts a LOT of traffic and she gets some very nice inbound traction via email (at least for a dog!)
Here are nine secrets to Woofie's online success - and perhaps some good ideas for YOU, too:
- Post regularly. She posts updates annually on her birthday (4/29) but the point is that her audience has come to EXPECT that. You should post more often - but with the same dogged consistency.
- Don't ask for much. Woofie shares her updates with enthusiasm and authenticity. She never sells. She never begs. She never whines. How about you?
- Be cute and relax. Woofie's main job with her web marketing is to be herself. Share what's interesting and important to her and her like-minded followers. Bacon. Cheese. Wagging. Tennis balls.
- Let people come up to you first. Woofie has lots of ways to interact with her on her website. You can email her. You can follow her on Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn. She makes herself approachable and then lets her fans be in charge of getting in touch.
- Photos - visuals sell. Her website is 80% photos and 20% text. As my pal Jay Baer, author of the great new book Youtility, likes to say, "Text is going away. Everything online is moving to photos and video."
- Let other people help you. Since Woofie has no opposable thumbs, she needs people to answer her email for her. That's where I come in. Folks email her. I respond, pointing out the fact that I'm responding on her behalf because of the whole thumbs problem. Generally, you'll do much better in business if you FLOP (Feature and Leverage Other People.)
- Make people feel better about themselves after engaging with you. 'Nuf said.
- It's OK to be silly. Especially if you're a Labrador Retriever! And it's OK to be funny, human, and kind if you happen to be funny, human, or kind.
- 10 kisses, one bark - keep it positive. Nobody like growling, barking and whining. Not from a dog. And not from a blog. And certainly not from an online expert, thought-leading professional, or entrepreneur like YOU.
What do YOU think? Please use the COMMENTS area below to share your advice, insights and recommendations on this topic and join the conversation...
DECIDE is the most powerful word in marketing.
Decide who you are.
Decide who your prospects are.
Decide to do your best work.
Decide not to work with jerks.
Decide on your menu of investable opportunities.
Decide what business model you're running.
Decide what revenue model your pricing comes from.
Decide what tasks can be delegated, eliminated, or outsourced.
Decide to pursue a niche market.
Decide to publish content regularly.
Decide to become a valued asset to your prospects.
Decide to become indispensable to your clients.
Decide to make a bigger splash in a smaller (or bigger) pond.
Decide what kinds of projects are NOT for you.
Decide on your marketing strategy.
Decide on a small, focused set of tactics.
Decide to market more consistently.
Decide to sell more bravely.
Decide to dream bigger.
Decide to act faster.
Decide to crush it.
AND.
YOU.
WILL.
What do YOU think? Please use the COMMENTS area below to share your advice, insights and recommendations on this topic and join the conversation...
Good!
Quit!!
Please, for heaven's sakes - quit already.
Over the past few weeks, I've come across way too many complainers, whiners, goofballs and goobers telling me how broke they are, how hard it is to be an entrepreneur, and how much they are struggling.
Are you kidding me? QUIT NOW because...
- If you want to make an EVEN trade of hours for dollars - get a JOB.
- If you want to be ASSURED of a paycheck - get a JOB.
- If you want OTHERS to define your work and your value - get a JOB.
However...
- If you want to MULTIPLY your own paycheck - be an entrepreneur.
- If you can PROVE your work has worth - be an entrepreneur.
- If YOU want to define your work and your value - be an entrepreneur.
So you should QUIT right now...
- Quit whining
- Quit complaining when your ideas and projects "fall apart"
(HINT: It's YOUR job to pull them together!)
- Quit saying lack of money is your problem
(HINT: Lack of tenacity and creativity is your problem)
- Quit going it alone
- Quit hanging out with losers
- Quit freeloading
- Quit expecting "zero" investments (time, money, effort) to pay off
- Quit following the herd
- Quit relying on social media (it's the sauce, not the meat)
- Quit believing your own negative self-talk
- Quit playing the victim
- Quit jumping from one hare-brained scheme to the next
- Quit putting tactics before strategy
- Quit under-spending and over-hoping
- Quit blaming others
- Quit blaming yourself
- Quit congratulating yourself on "the struggle"
- Quit bragging about how hard you work and how little you sleep
- Quit bragging (yes bragging!) about how little money you earn
- Quit telling yourself you're doing your best, when you're not willing to do what needs to be done
- Quit quitting when things seem impossible
Take a step back - breathe - think - regroup.
This is no time to wimp out.
Quit doing this destructive, dumb, demoralizing nonsense.
And start turning things around.
Today. Right now...
Don't make me come down there and slap you upside your head!
What do YOU think? Please use the COMMENTS area below to share your advice, insights and recommendations on this topic and join the conversation...