When you are just starting out, there can be a lot of fear about where money is going to come from and how you’ll find clients. I understand this because back in the beginning, I lived through it too. So I went back and documented everything I did that worked and created the Quick Start Guide.

One of the gems in my start up program is to write a congratulatory card to yourself about how much money you want to earn each month, the number of clients you need and how you’ll feel when this happens.

I recommend crafting a few positive statements about what you want to happen, but make sure you write everything in present tense so it sounds like you are living it right now. Then type this on your computer in a font that looks script-like, as if it’s someone else’s handwriting. Don’t skip this step because it does make a difference to receive a card that’s not in your own handwriting. Then paste it in a card, put it in an envelope, address it to yourself and mail it.

The mindset shift from receiving this card can be tremendous. Imagine opening a card right now that congratulates you for achieving your monthly goal and reminds you how great you feel about this reality. Feels good doesn’t it? Once received, put the card in plain sight on a bulletin board or your desk. Or carry the card with you so if you’re out of the office a lot, you can still look at it. You want to look at this daily to help you make the positive mind shift you seek.

The idea is that this card is positive evidence of your success. It’s a powerful tool to help you focus and believe to shift your mindset from feeling fearful to feeling successful.

Here’s what one client said about her experience with doing this exercise, “I sent myself two cards and I loved receiving them…The next day I had two clients that signed up…Wow, money is just coming in the door.”

The power of using visual representation for your goals to create a mindset shift is truly remarkable. Writing and sending a card to yourself can help you start to feel like the success you desire.

Your Client Attraction Assignment
Have you decided what your immediate goals are? Now is the time! Imagine that you have set and achieved your first set of goals. How does that feel? What will it be like when your initial dream becomes your reality? Capture that feeling in a few statements and then put them on a card and send it out. Review this card often so you can feel it, believe and know the truth in those statements. You’ll find the mindset shift is just what you need to stay positive and be open to opportunities.

by: Fabienne Fredrickson

Two-thirds of these same online consumers say they would discontinue being on a company’s email list and one in five US consumers would cease from using that company’s products or services if they felt bombarded by too many of the company’s promotional email messages consistently.

There are three main reasons a small business gets caught up in digital ad overload:

1. Lack of focus. When a company loses focus on their goals and objectives, they tend to operate from a “Bottom Line” mentality. All of their marketing efforts are focused on “getting the sale,” so everything you send out is a promotion for your business. Online consumers are getting tired of this “digital ad overload” approach. Therefore, it is imperative that you focus on your customer’s needs and not your bank account.

2. Lack of strategy. There are a lot of new internet toys to play with these days; social media, smart phones, SMS, mobile ready websites, just to name a few. With all these new gadgets, if you don’t have a strategy in place for your particular business, then you’re still playing the digital ad overload game which is not good.

3. Lack of knowledge. Most small businesses are not aware or familiar with the current and future marketing trends being used on the internet. They are still using old marketing techniques and are losing a lot of potential customers daily.

28% of the US consumers surveyed said they would display their disapproval of digital ad overload to future messages from that company, and approximately 1 out of 10 would complain about their discontent on social media sites. This is serious, because a lot of negative feedback can severely damage your reputation, diminish your online presence and lower the overall ranking of your website.

One of the best ways to avoid digital ad overload is to focus your marketing strategy toward your customer’s needs instead of always promoting your company and the services you provide. Your website should attract viewers by giving them valuable information they can use immediately. In addition, it should provide an interactive experience for them. If your website is focused entirely on your customers, it should ultimately provide you with potential leads.

In conclusion, if your marketing strategy targets the 18-24-year old population, 31% of them don’t mind receiving messages once or twice a week. But on the average, 55% of the adults in the US would rather receive messages no more than once a month. If you remember this in you marketing efforts, you will avoid the dreaded digital ad overload.

by: John White, Jr.

A branding strategy is by no means simply picking up a new logo design and sending out some leaflets. A real branding strategy is a concerted marketing effort that uses multiple tactics to synthesize a cohesive business message and deliver that message to customers in an attractive manner. Branding is not a matter of luxury advertising; it is a truth of legitimizing your business and image in ways that will be profoundly beneficial and see immediate returns to your bottom line. Branding can only do this for your business, if you go about it the right way.

An Image
Branding is really all about conveying a bevy of emotions and ideas with just an image or design. By building a brand you are consolidating all of the services and products you provide with an image that you want to become synonymous with your business’ practices, ideas, and beliefs. One small misstep in crafting the image can lead to permanent brand distrust and thus an outrageously negative effect on your business.

The Process
Building a strong brand strategy begins with introspection and self-evaluation. The business owner must take stock of the product that they fulfill, and the strengths and weaknesses of that product. Also, the owner must decide what ideas and concepts they want to be connected with their business and the products sold. Crafting a story that incorporates how the business wants their customers to view it will be wildly beneficial in terms of advertising and first impression customer relations. Some good questions to ask about the business and find these answers are:

• What do we offer that no one else does?
• How will customers be helped by our products or services the most?
• What is one idea or feeling that we want every customer to feel about our business?
• What are your business’ goals for the future?

After these plans are laid out, arranging for a new logo design and other such concerns should be undertaken with gravity. Branding agencies are beginning to employ the services of talented graphic design artists to artfully design logos for their customers. A strong logo design is a cornerstone of brand strategy. Get the job done right through a branding agency or design firm; a professional job will convey just that to a customer (as will an amateur job).

Enact Your Branding Strategy
Finally, do everything in your power to spread the new branding and logo design through all aspects of the business. Make sure that the logo design appears in every advertisement, or every bill and letterhead that the business in question sends out. Design all advertising aspects around a unified message and echo that message through all communications.

The strength of a unified brand strategy cannot be understated. As much as it is a necessity that branding becomes part of any business or product’s marketing strategy, it is a necessity that the branding is done right. Brand marketing permanently grafts ideas and concepts to a business’ image that will work for the positive or negative; make sure that the professionalism of a branding agency ensures the best results possible.

By: Diane Lorenzo

While Facebook knows the IP address and basic profile information of people who visit your page, detailed information is never released to the public. At the time of this writing, there are no apps, scripts, or tools that can tell you who visits your Facebook personal profile. No. Facebook cannot track who visits your profile.

Facebook has recently begun testing a new feature called “Facebook Smart Lists”, and you can read more about it on the Inside Facebook blog.

Can Facebook Track Views?

Anyone can see how many “likes” a Facebook page has, but if you want to know that your page is truly successful, you have got to check out Facebook Page Insights. Insights is a tool for tracking the growth of your page as well as the number of interactions on your page. You can look at the data and determine how to improve your page most effectively. It is a free service and available for those pages that are liked by at least 30 people. So as long as you have 30 fans, you can jump right in.

Detailed demographic data

An incredible aspect of Facebook Insights is the data on the demographics of your fans. Facebook breaks down the demographics by percentages, as well as the actual number of people within your Facebook page by age and gender.

The demographics chart shows you the largest groups, as well as the groups that are growing most quickly. In some cases, you may discover that you have frequent page views from people other than your target audience and if that is the case, this allows you to make the necessary changes in your marketing strategy.

What interests your audience?

With Facebook Insights you can find out so much about your fans. You can see how people like to interact with you and your page. Generally speaking, as the number of fans on your Facebook page increases, the number of people interacting with your page should increase as well. Whether it’s comments, photo views, wall posts, or likes, you can see exactly what your fans like and then you can deliver more of what they want and increase interaction even further.

Insights breaks down the activity from fans who have visited or commented on a post during specific time periods. You can see the number of impressions and the percentage of feedback each individual post receives. This can be a valuable tool in determining the best subjects for your audience. The higher the impressions and feedback, the more that particular post resonated with people. At the same time, you can review posts that are not receiving much attention and change what/how you post.

You also have the ability to see if people are “hiding” your page.

This gives you crucial information when trying to decide if you’re posting too much or too often or sharing information that people don’t find interesting. Keep an eye on the number of page views you’re getting and see if you can increase it while still maintaining your style. You can do this by posting more of what your fans want to see. As each of them comments, or hits “Like”, you’ll increase your page views because your stuff is being seen by all of their friends.

If you have a Facebook page and want to see if your efforts are paying off, it’s worth taking a look at Insights.

There’s nothing like taking a look at the raw numbers to let you know if you’re on the right track. Plus, it really is fun, especially when the graphs are showing positive trends!

By: Jen Shehan

1. Prioritize

Start each day by ranking the things that need to be done. Starting with the most important and unpleasant tasks first, then go from there. Those things that can wait for later, should be listed toward the bottom of your list. Don’t make your list too long because there are only so many hours in a day and you don’t want to feel like you will never get it all accomplished.

2. Assign Time Frame for Each Task

At first this might not seem realistic, but it is mostly so you will have some idea how long it will take to finish each task. You may find that once you start a task, it might not take as long as you thought. Larger projects should be broken down into smaller tasks, so that you can see some progress as you work.

3. Be Flexible

Unexpected things come up from time to time so if you have to stop to take care of some other matter, do not worry and stress out if you don’t accomplished a certain task in the time frame you set. Just like the saying goes, “Rome wasn’t built in a day” so make sure you allow for those time when things come up. Don’t let these things such as phone calls, important emails,kids and life in general frustrate you, the important thing to remember is that you are making progress on your list.

4. Say “No” if it Isn’t Important

Whether you work from home or out of the home there are things that can distract us and waste time. Limit small talk with co-workers, family, friends, etc. while you are working. Respect your decision to make a plan and stick to it. Others will need to understand that if it isn’t something that needs to be taken care of right this minute, then it can wait.

5. Delegate

Remember that you probably can’t do everything yourself, so if there is a task that you might not be very good at or like doing and there is someone that can do it, then by all means pass it on. In this way, the task will get done and you won’t waste time putting it off because you can’t do it yourself.

6. Compromise when necessary

As your day progresses the urgency of a task may also change. There may be times when your tasks will need to be re-prioritized, rescheduled, postponed or dropped altogether. Making adjustments for things that need your attention, is important.

Everyone has limitations and if you realize what those are, then you will know what you can work on later to improve those skills, or know in advance what tasks you will need help with.

Learning to manage your time should help relieve some stress during your day, so remember to relax and learn as you go. The more you practice managing your time, the better at it you will get. The purpose of time management is so that you can take control of your days and see how much you really can accomplish each day.

AAA Phone On Hold can help you save time. By creating on hold messages with information that your callers want to hear (like your address, hours of operation, directions, seasonal sales info, etc), you can let the message do the work for you. Now that’s REAL time management!

by Merrie C. Weeks
edited by AAA Phone On Hold

But why the mistrust? Since shortly before the dawn of the new millennium, people have been becoming increasingly paranoid about personal fraud, particularly so-called ‘identity theft’. While this is not a threat unique to the 21st Century, the advent of the internet has certainly made it a more accessible one. Similarly, as more and more of our business is conducted via-computer, there develops a much more lucrative market for hackers and viruses designed to steal information. From these assumptions, it is possible to deduce that the technology market, and the public which uses it, have (in some ways) left behind industries still trying to adapt to a changing market.

The situation is not unredeemable to any extent. It simply requires originality on the part of the marketing industry. Here are some examples of ways in which one might improve public faith in one’s campaign:

Personalisation of Campaign:
A friendly face can change everything. Online marketing is easily dismissed by people browsing, or can even be automatically filtered-out by built in programs in web-browsers. In fact, according to a study reported by Nielsen, only 47% of people trust online marketing. Contrary to this, tangible conversation between people, either by-phone or in the street, allows for a far more personal connection, and greater faith, as it humanises the campaign.

Re-assurance of Safety:
It may sound basic, but a surprising number of marketing efforts fail to mention the safety measures that they put in-place to protect private data. People are far more likely to invest-in something which they understand, so talking prospective customers through whatever process their data will undergo is a good idea.

Incentive and Marketing Appeal:
An appealing, original marketing campaign is likely to impress consumers, as well as to support ideas that the product, brand or firm that it represents is legitimate and well-organised. Traditional marketing techniques are still very effective, but delivering them to impress actually helps to improve credibility in the eyes of the public.

Of course, there are endless ways to impress-upon a target-market the credibility, reliability and overall safety of a campaign. In the end, it boils-down to convincing an individual that their information is both necessary, and safe, and the extent to which this convincing must reach varies by-case.

by: Joseph Clinkard

Take one thing at a time and don’t try to learn too much at once. Know your limits and work at your own pace. If you try to overdo things in order to learn new information quicker, you might end up taking longer to learn than if you took it easy. If there is something you don’t understand than that’s OK, don’t allow yourself to get worked up about it. Simply keep your cool and it will come to you in time.

Keep in control of your tasks and don’t allow others to pressure you. Pressure can make it very difficult to digest information effectively so if you are being pressured, then put a stop to it. If you are being fed too much information too quickly by another person then tell then to slow down or stop. Allowing others to dictate how much information you are expected to absorb can lead to you having more information than you can handle.

Sometimes you might have to just have a break. Of course, deadlines should be met where possible but sometimes information overload can lead to you coming to a complete halt. Putting work away for a while and allowing yourself to relax can help you to have a clear mind that is better able to absorb the information you are presented with. It’s fine to accept defeat from time to time, it means that you are able to come back and fight another day, only stronger.

Don’t be afraid to ask for help if you are struggling with something. Having a lot of information can mean that you miss certain things that somebody with a fresh mind will be able to extract easily. Sometimes you might even have the answer already but you need somebody to remove superfluous information to make the answer easy for you to see.

Internet marketing is not always an exact science with different camps having different opinions. Sometimes you might be looking for a definitive answer when there isn’t one. It can help at times to simply turn to a trusted source for their opinion, and take that opinion on board. This can help you to stop thinking about details that are stopping you from moving on with other things that are more important. Whatever you do, you should always remember that you need to be in control of the information load you are taking on board, don’t let the information load control you.

by: Adam Taylor

A brand is more than a word. It’s everything that comes to people’s minds when they hear your name (or the name of your business). It might be strength, dependability, style, adventure, or something else. What do you want them to envision? What are you doing to support this picture?

After working with business owners for many years, I’ve found that success often hinges on being aware of the messages you’re sending. If you’re looking for a way to differentiate yourself from your field of competitors, here are a few questions you can ask yourself.

1. What are my strengths and how do I showcase them?

Joanne is an expert at teaching and facilitating programs. She has the ability to connect with people and make difficult topics easy to understand, and students say her classes are a lot of fun. When it came time to put her picture on her website, do you think she chose a photo of herself looking all solemn and serious? Oh, no. She posted a video of herself in action, so people get a sense of her light-hearted approach.

2. What do I say with my clothing?

Pete is a professional consultant. He knows his business and he can talk to anyone at any level, from the CEO to the workers on the floor. Despite this, his colleagues were uncomfortable bringing him to meetings because he didn’t give any thought to his wardrobe – his ties were stained, his shirt was untucked, his jacket was wrinkled. While clothes don’t necessarily make the man, what Pete wore had an undeniable effect on his colleagues. By making changes, he was able to instill more confidence in his clients.

3. Am I always running late?

Carla called me for assistance when the growth of her bookkeeping business stalled. She was late to our meeting, so I asked if that was the norm for her. Carla nodded. There was so much to do, and she had so many responsibilities, that she was chronically behind schedule. Does this sound familiar? No matter that you get a lot done, if you’re late to meetings and appointments, those around you will question your abilities. Carla’s skill in handling numbers was overshadowed by her habit of being late. After she made being on time a priority, she started to get more referrals and her business got back on the growth bandwagon.

4. Am I consistent?

This one could be titled “Do As I Say, Not As I Do.” I’ve been an executive coach for 15 years. Over time, my focus has evolved. But I still use the same business cards I created way back at the beginning. Meanwhile, as social media became popular, I created various profiles and descriptions that reflected my work along the way. Recently it came to my attention that I need to make all my information consistent. Someone looking at my online profiles and other marketing materials would never know they all belonged to the same coach! I can’t wait to get to the other side of this project, but I’m also enjoying looking at all the different ways I describe myself – and choosing the one that best showcases my strengths.

Think about how you describe yourself and your business. More important, how would others describe you? It can be helpful to ask your clients, customers, and good friends what comes to mind when they think of your company. Is this the image you want to convey? If so, how can you reinforce it? If not, what can you do to change it?

By: Andrea Novakowski

Many are reluctant to use those techniques. Many have had disappointing results. Therefore, an increasing number of network marketers are looking for online ways to generate mlm leads.

The basic way to generate leads on the Internet is to put up a website or landing page, drive traffic to it, and get a percentage of visitors to opt in by filling out a form asking for their contact information. Increasing web site traffic is a major topic in itself and is covered in a separate article. The other key part of lead generation is raising the percentage of visitors who opt in when you get them to your site. This is called conversion.

These are the nine major strategies we teach our team members to get higher conversion at their website or landing page. Top results with conversion begin with proper website design. The sole purpose of the web site is to do just one thing and do it efficiently…get the maximum percentage of traffic to opt in.

1. Your page should be a clean layout, be fast loading, simple to read, and deliver the information the visitor is expecting to see.

2. Avoid links going to other pages. Avoid using flashing images and other distractions.

3. Like in all other advertising, you still must use compelling headlines and body copy. If you don’t capture their attention, you will not get them to opt in.

4. Make it simple and clear what they need to do. As an example, direct them to enter their first name and email address in the box below.

5. Make it clear what the prospect will get for opting in. People are increasingly hesitant about giving out their personal information. Make it clear you have what they want.

6. Avoid asking for unnecessary information on the opt in form. The less information you request, the higher your conversion rate will usually be.

7. Offer a bonus to get more optins.

8. Maintain and display a clear No-spam policy.

9. Always test different versions of your website or landing page. Keep looking for what gets the highest results.

Increasing the percentage of visitors who do opt in may be more critical than driving more traffic to your website or landing page. Follow these tips to improve conversion on your website or landing page and you can generate more mlm leads.

by: Joe Barclay

We have all been there. I know I have been there and it’s not a fun place to be.

You love your clients and the others on your list, in your data base. You even asked them to answer some questions on your survey and you thought you were giving them what they said they wanted.

So, what went wrong?

Here are some thoughts:

Did you have a snazzy, jazzy title? Did you have a strong tag line? If you are not sure, ask others. I suggest you never create a title or tag line all by yourself. Ask others for their input and be open for new ideas. The title is a very important piece.

What about your launch? The days when you can just shoot out a few emails and get people to sign up have been long gone. You need a real launch plan and strategy. It may seem like a lot of work up front but as you move through your launch you will be glad you took the time to make it right.

I suggest you write all your emails in one or two days as opposed to every day writing another one. My experience is that when I write them all at once they flow better than when I do them more haphazardly.

There is also a trend you may have noticed. People are giving a lot more content than they had in the past. You see videos more and more which is very good marketing. It makes the time line of getting people to know, like and trust you much shorter. It’s much more personal.

One of the things that I see many people fall down on, myself included sometimes is not sending out enough marketing emails. Yes, you may get people that unsubscribe but that’s OK. They weren’t going to buy from you anyway.

If your emails are strong and powerful and give great information people will not mind. And you know you don’t read all the emails you get in your in-box. Sometimes you do and sometimes you don’t.

The other mistake some people make is to not market long enough. Unless you are doing a live workshop you can still continue to send out a few emails, use social media, your ezine and always put your link.

If it’s a teleseries that goes for several weeks or months, people can sign up later and still get the MP3′s and/or transcript. So, don’t stop marketing just because your first class has started.

People sign up last minute all the time. There are ways to lessen this though and that is to offer bonuses that disappear unless they sign up now and price increases as time goes on.

These are just a couple of ideas why people may not be signing up for your programs or services. Of course there are many more and this is one little article.

I think the key is that after you have done a launch and you didn’t get the numbers you wanted, sit back and take a look. Don’t just say, I’ll do better next time. Really sit down with pen and paper and write done some things you know you could be better with next time.

It’s all a learning curve and with technology and more sophistication, things are changing all the time. It’s important to keep up with the trends so your business can be the best it can be.

written by Kim Kirmmse Toth