More Than A Few Words

​Goals are an important part of a successful business, but we often don't achieve them as quickly as we would like.  Coach Cailen Ascher suggests business owners take a few lessons from yoga. They have these wonderful teachings around non grasping, and detachment, which often get misinterpreted, as being blasé about life. That is not the point. Think if it as goals with an open hand rather than a clenched fist. When we are running our businesses entirely from the ego from our humaneness, we can get ourselves all worked up about stuff that actually then creates more problems because we are bringing such negative energy to it. When we allow ourselves to trust that things are working out in the highest for all and explore that possibility that maybe there is a force greater than ourselves, it allows us to see things with a bit more humor. Taking this approach Cailen envisions herself as more of a channel through which  work is flowing through rather than  as the creator of everything. That allows her to feel mor

You may not believe this, but negative reviews are a gift. They give you a chance to improve to change your customer perception, and maybe even be a hero. When someone writes a negative review, they're annoyed at your company, not you, so don't let it get personal. Instead, put yourself in the customer shoes and get ready to engage. Be sure to respond quickly to take control of your brand and the narrative. As you respond, be sure your answers are well written with good grammar and spelling and resist the urge to respond quickly on your phone. Why? Because autocorrect may make you look a bit foolish and may make things worse. Remember people often write a negative review because they just want to be heard. So give them that opportunity. Reach out, try to take it offline so you can resolve the issue. Finally, deliver service with a smile. It's hard when someone says something negative but that's what you need to do. Thank them for their feedback, acknowledge their dissatisfied and do not try to prove them wron

You spend hours creating content so you may be disappointed to discover that nobody's reading it. But it doesn't have to be that way. Our guest, Jonny Cooper shared three simple reasons content fails to deliver results. You forgot the ABC- Audience Before Content. Essentially, you need a clear picture of who you are writing for, before you start writing.  Too often we start writing for a general audience.  The result, the content doesn't hit home with anyone.  You aren't tapping into their challenges, hopes and dreams.  When you understand those elements it is easy to create content, which engages them by entering the conversation that's already going on in their heads. Crimes against the algorithm. This is where you're posting random links to external content. For every social media platform, their number one priority is to keep their users on the platform. So if you pop a post in your newsfeed, with an external link, Facebook isn't going to show that to many people because you are trying to take people off

Ask most small business owners what makes their company unique. And they'll tell you it boils down to the people and the culture. That great culture attracts more potential employees and clients. Now it's easy to maintain your culture when you have longtime employees. But it's much harder when you have turnover and rapid growth. How do you hold on your culture as your organization grows? It starts with clear well defined values. And this is more than just a mission statement you put in some obscure corner of your website. Your core values really define how you behave in the marketplace and how you want others to view you. The values need to be part of your hiring process helping you evaluate candidates who do or don't fit. They need to be part of your onboarding, and they need to be part of the evaluation process as you give feedback and coaching to your Your values need to come through your marketing material, so you  attract customers who you enjoy working with because they are a great fit.  

There is a cycle business owners get trapped in as they start to spiral toward burnout.  Coach Linsi Brownson says the first thing you need to do is recognize, you're not doing anything wrong.  This is just a phase in your business. This is actually a really great moment to step back and realign the business, by going back to the drawing board and looking at three things: yourself, your business position and your operations.

Are you frustrated by the lack of engagement and results from your Facebook pages? Maybe it is because you are treating Facebook like any other advertising platform, and not a social network. People come to Facebook to check in with friends, share a joke, trade a recipe or get a daily dose of inspiration. Contractors who invade the news feed with ads promoting coupons for clean and checks or air filters seem out of place in their news feed. So how do you get people to pay attention to you? On social media you need to share content that is personal, funny, or inspiring. If you focus too much of your content on posts designed to sell, sell, sell readers are likely to ignore, ignore, ignore! Give People a Look Inside Share photos and short videos of life at your office. For example, I worked with a sheet metal fabrication company who mixed photos of their employees playing paintball and a wedding photo of the company owner along with images of their manufacturing floor. Introduce new employees. When they share t

What would you learn in one hundred networking conversations?  And how would those conversations change your business? That is what our guest, Chella Diaz set out to discover when she set a goal to have conversations with  100 smart, interesting women.    About Chella Chella is passionate about empowering women to master their money skills.  She helps women identify and release their money baggage, so that they are able to set and achieve their financial goals.

If you think Instagram is just about pretty pictures, you're really missing out on opportunities. Sure, a pretty picture is going to stop your audience in their tracks, but it's not necessarily going to be enough to start a conversation. Instagram allows you to use up to 2200 characters for your caption. So take advantage of the opportunity to engage your audience through words that complement the photo. Use your  captions to tell people the story behind the photo, invite them to comment or share their thoughts, ask a question or add a call to action. Whatever you do, it will be more effective than letting the picture just stand on its own.  

When you collaborate with people you would, on the surface level think of as your competitors, it is amazing what happens You will discover your business is healthier, your mental status healthier and the tips and tricks and strategies that you uncover can completely change how you operate your business.  What about the fear of competitors stealing your secrets?  Our guest, Jon Tsourakis​ believes every business is like a fingerprint.  Each business has their own unique way about going about what it is they do. Different core values and different DNA means that not every suggestion will work for you, so you should treat iput from peers like a buffet, with lots of choices.   

The other day, I got the nicest note from a prospect,  who by the way is now a client. He said "The information you shared was valuable and easy to understand. Most of the folks we talked to try to wow us with technical crap and it becomes so confusing. You guys didn't , thanks!! " As a former school teacher, I was trained to break complex concepts into smaller, easy to understand elements. It seems that skill is an asset in my marketing consulting sessions as well. Too often subject matter experts think they have to impress their prospects with their knowledge instead of making them feel comfortable. Why would someone want to hang around you if you make them feel uncomfortable?  As you're writing information, even if it's for a technical audience, dumb it down a little Why? It's easier to grasp the important concepts if the language is simple, clear, and direct. So what about you? Are you so busy sounding smart that you're running off your prospects? If that's the case,  simplify your messages and sell more.

According to our guest, Ellen Goodwin, you can have all the plans in the world, manage your time, block out time for specific activities, but if you have no energy, you're going to be dead in the water. Without energy, nothing moves forward so today we explore how managing your energy is the actual the key to time management.   Managing your energy relies on the four "P"s: Prepare, protection, proceed and prolong.   Download a Guide to Phone and Cellphone Blockers. The guide is designed to help you block the digital distractions that can lead to procrastination and multi-tasking. Without digital distractions you are more able to focus and get more done with your time.    

I always say there are three days in the life of a project give me an emotional left. When I make the sale When I send the invoice  When I get the check. The foundation of cash management starts with an understanding of how much money you have in the bank, knowing when the checks will arrive and how much you are anticipating in the next 30, 60 or 90 days? Those sales boost your numbers but what will your expenses be to deliver on those sales? One way to look at your cash management is to check your balance sheet and compare your accounts receivable to accounts payable. That will tell you if you have enough money coming  in to pay your bills. If not, you're going to have to dip into your savings and assets. Cash management helps you identify when you'll need cash to fill a gap and pay bills before a big payment from a client comes in. The time to try to line up a line of credit and financing is not when you need the money the most so advanced cash management planning helps ensure that you have money when you n

There, there's about seven different qualities that are highly associated with someone's credibility, trustworthiness and perception of leadership when it comes to vocal qualities. The research around this astounding.  For example, Duke University did a study of almost 1000 CEOs.  They found on the topic of pitch alone, CEOs who had a lower pitch to their voice, had more tenure, commanded larger companies had more perception of credibility and leadership.  They also made more money, on average of an additional $180,000 per year. While vocal tone is hard to change it is not the only element of your voice that can contribute to your success.  Other elements, including tempo, which can be learned are  can impact perceptions of credibility, leadership, trustworthiness is tempo.    

I want to ask you a very specific question. Who were you writing for? Now, if you have a personal blog and you're documenting the days of your life, you're writing for yourself. But if you have a business blog then you are writing with business objectives in mind.  Those objectives are directed towards a specific audience and you need to write for them.  So, are are you writing for your customers or are you writing for your referral partners who will pass the information on to your customers?  Does your target audience have a high level of expertise or are they primarily novices? Once you decide on a target audience, it's easier to figure out what you should be writing and where you should be promoting them once they're written. It's fine to have more than one audience for the overall blog, but individual posts should focus on a specific group or section of your target population. Looking for examples on blogging, be sure to check out the resources in the Digital Toolbox

There are many elements in a successful ecommerce program, but email is at the top of the list.  From simple promotional campaigns to event specific "flows" the trick is to send the right message at the right time.   This week, our guest Ivana Radojevic talks about the four types of email you should include in your ecommerce marketing program 1) The Welcome Flow - a series of emails sent to new site visitors. Emails in a welcome flow generate a 86% greater click rate than one-time sends. 2) Abandon Cart Flow - 7 out of every ten prospective customers will abandon their shopping cart.  These emails bring them back to the checkout page.  3) Post sale Flow - This is a great time to thank a customer, perhaps share tips on how to use the product to get ahead of potential customer service issues.  4) The Campaign - These are one time emails with special offers or information, not tied to a particular event.  Want to improve your email game, be sure to listen to the whole episode  

Long before I ever worked on my first website, I was developing brochures and direct mail campaigns for business owners. Many of the rules of good copywriting I learned back then, are transferable to a digital environment especially, great content is engaging and interesting to a reader when it's focused on them. So the trick as you're writing your web copy is to make sure you're focused on the client. One of the best ways to figure out if your focus is correct is to print out your web copy.  Then read the content with two pens in hand, one red and one blue. As you read circle all your first person references in red words like I, we, our company, and even our clients.  Then circle all your second person references you, your business people like you in blue. When you're done, look at the page if you see more red circles than blue, go back and rewrite from a readers perspective. The result will be more interesting, more compelling and more effective. Go ahead, try this at home on your web copy. 

As you drive down the road, you have to be ready to make small adjustments.  The same is true for your marketing. This week's guests, Sharyn and Hank Yuloff,  think you need to stop thinking about your marketing as if the plan was carved in stone.  Instead, you should view it as a path that will need to be adjusted along the way.  You need to keep your hand on the wheel, so you can make the small changes to your program as conditions change.  

When I started my career, I was full of crazy, innovative ideas which were routinely shut down by senior managers. I grew to hate hearing "That isn't how we do things" or "We tried that and it didn't work". When I left corporate, I assumed I was leaving the negative energy behind. Unfortunately, resistance to change is human nature. I haven't changed. I still throw out lots of crazy, sometimes half baked ideas. But the difference is when I hear one of those soul killing phrases, I have a different response. When someone says, "that isn't how we do things",  I simply ask why? When someone says "it didn't work", I'll ask them. Why not? How long did you try? What's changed in your company since then,?  So I want you tp commit to two things. Number one, you are not going to use those phrases when someone else suggests a crazy idea to you. And number two, you're going to turn the conversation around when someone resists your idea. It takes a little practice but it's well worth the effort.  

More than a Few Words is a marketing conversation for business owners.  MTFW is hosted by Lorraine Ball and features interviews with marketing professionals from around the world.    In today's conversation, Mal MacCallion,  discusses the common mistakes and challenges of starting a business.  He says:  1) If it was easy, everyone would do it. 2) You need to start with a clear definition of why your business exists.  Who you serve and what problem will you solve.   3) You need to set your pricing  to match the rest of your marketing because your pricing says something about your brand.

You have a blog for your business, that is an important first step.  But if you want to transform a good blog into a great one, there are several things you can do to improve your company blog, First you need to do is think about why you’re blogging. You need to identify very specific objectives for your blog. That will allow you to then measure the results of your activity to decide if this whole blogging thing is even worthwhile. Some potential goals could be increasing awareness of your company, educating potential customers, increasing customer engagement, generating leads, scheduling appointments, reducing service questions, improving your search position on Google. Once you identify those goals, you need to also identify how you’re going to measure that. For example, you can look at your overall web traffic, you can look at how often people download information, fill out forms, you can look at and see whether or not you’re having fewer customer service request issues. So as you’re mapping out your blog