Did you know that LinkedIn is one of the premier business networking sites? It provides amazing coverage of the professional market and one that you shouldn’t ignore, especially if you are a B to B business (a business where your clients are other businesses.)

LinkedIn is a free social networking site but it does have an option to upgrade to a paid version for more extensive uses and capabilities. Unlike Facebook or Twitter, LinkedIn is geared more for business owners who have the intention of connecting and sharing information with other business owners.

If you haven’t done so yet, please connect with eVision Media here http://ca.linkedin.com/in/evisionmedia and if you haven’t created your LinkedIn profile yet, read further!

Below are some basic tips and strategies to get you started in the world of LinkedIn social media marketing.

Setting up your LinkedIn profile

When joining LinkedIn, you will want to create a profile that includes your accomplishments, experience and areas of interest. You will then want to expand your network by inviting others to connect with you. Through LinkedIn, you can:

- Manage information about yourself and your business, which is publicly available

- Find and be introduced to potential clients, service providers, experts and more

- Be found by others looking for your service or product

- Collaborate with others on best practices and processes

Here is an excellent YouTube video that will walk you through creating your LinkedIn profile:

Tips and Strategies while using LinkedIn

- Be strategic about what you feature and post on your profile so that it meets your business goals.

- Use effective keywords that relate to your business and industry so that those doing searches for your expertise can easily find you.

-Use the “recommendations” feature by recommending others that you know and have worked with and by also asking your clients and associates to post a recommendation for you.

- Be sure to post a profile picture of you and not your logo or product picture. People will connect with a real person far better than a logo or image of your product. It is also against the LinkedIn Terms and Conditions to use anything else other than a personal photo of you.

- To increase your connections, join LinkedIn groups that are either areas of your interest and/or where you know your ideal client is hanging out. For instance, if you are a real estate stager, find real estate agent groups in your local area that you can join and be a part of the conversations. Use these groups to exchange ideas and information. Avoid using them to just promote you and your business. The idea is to develop relationships and share your expertise, not to try and “sell” anything.

- Use the eMail feature to send news and articles to your network. Again, not to sell but to help build your credibility as an expert in your field of expertise. You can also post updates at the top of your profile to let people know what you are doing and to share brief tips, hints and other tidbits of information that they will find useful and informative. Remember this is a professional network so avoid posting what you had for breakfast that morning or showing off photos of your kids’ funny faces – save those for Twitter or your personal Facebook profile.

- Remember to build your contacts when out networking, going to workshops and attending seminars and conferences, etc.

- Have a LinkedIn button on your eSignature, eStationery and website for maximum opportunities and exposure to get lots of connections.

Once you have your personal profile created, it’s then time to create your company profile and start building that up. Stay tuned for the next article on how to do that!

Here are 4 product positioning tips to differentiate your business…

Luckily, it’s not all that hard to stand out from the crowd, as long you realize the importance of product positioning. Positioning is the art of matching your marketing message, with the desires, feelings, and beliefs of the particular type of customer that you know you can service better than anybody else. You make yourself “visible” as the kind of business this individual would naturally be attracted to.

Why would I say that it’s not that hard?

Well, you really don’t have to look very far to see that effective product positioning is about as common as caviar at a McDonald’s outlet. Just look in the yellow pages, look on the net, and you’ll soon see what I mean.

It’s more of the same old same old, look at us were #1 for pricing, service & selection nonsense. It’s just meaningless drivel. Anyone can say these things and everyone does, and I ask you this:

Are you guilty of spouting these “buy from us for no apparent reason” platitudes? Don’t feel guilty if you are. Just take these product positioning tips to heart.

What happens when everybody in your industry says the same thing? Customers don’t know how to tell the difference between one product and another, so they make their decision based on price. And everybody loses. The customer doesn’t get the product that best fits their needs. You don’t make nearly as many sales as you could, and those that you do make, are at less margin than you would like.

Listen, if you can just get the principle that I’m about to reveal hammered into your head, you’ll have more business than you can handle, and you won’t worry about having to undercut the competition.

That sounds pretty good doesn’t it?

Here’s the secret. Just take the time to communicate, clearly, specifically, and thoroughly why you‘re different and how that difference makes a difference in your customer’s perception of his or her life. Such a simple concept, but so rare, it can’t help but differentiate you.

You see, people really don’t buy on price at all. They buy on value. If they bought a cheaper product, it’s because you didn’t demonstrate the value of yours. Admittedly, there is a certain percentage of the market that is best served by an inferior low end product, but this segment is much smaller than it appears. More often than not, people cannot differentiate, buy based on price, and live to regret it. This is a crying shame, and were not going to stand for it much longer, are we?

As you absorb this material you will become intimate with the following 4 product positioning principles that will set your business apart.

*** Unique Selling Proposition
Something unique, that you have to offer. Not necessarily entirely unique. You can appear unique by simply packaging your product or service in a unique way. For example, a lawyer, might advertise flat rate incorporation, and attract a lot of customers because the market fears the open ended legal bill. In reality, it is all of the other “back end” services that come about as a result of incorporation that generate incorporation revenues. But who do you think will end up getting more of that lucrative business, the flat rate USP savvy attorney, or Mr. Conventional?

*** Risk Reversal
Differentiate yourself with outrageously bold guarantees that you’re competition don’t have the guts for. Most people are genuinely honest, and if your service is what you say it is, you’ve got nothing to worry about. The increased sales volume will be well worth it.

*** Inordinate Value
Leverage your advertising by offering to let complimentary businesses come along for the ride, in exchange for a free sample of their wares. Then bundle those into your offering. Cut the right deals, and your offer will appear “irresistible”, compared to your competition.

*** Clear, Complete, and Concise Customer Education
Here’s where most advertisers fall down, and you can stand head and shoulders above the crowd. Tell your full story. Don’t make people try to figure out on their own why they should be doing business with you. Spell it out for them.

Spend some time thinking deeply about these product positioning ideas, and how you can use them to your advantage. Your market share is predicated on how well you assimilate them and apply them to the promotion of your business.

This is an article written by Client Attraction expert, Fabienne Fredrickson. So many times I hear lots of “reasons” why a client isn’t moving forward with their dreams and goals and when I read this article from Fabienne, it was a perfect way of articulating what we all can learn on how to get our businesses to the next level.

Enjoy,
Sue

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I’ve discovered something really interesting in terms of human behavior over the last few years. I’m shocked to notice how often people stop themselves by using excuses for not doing something in their business, and in their lives. The thing is, they’re not even aware of it. Here’s what I mean… People SAY they want something very badly, that they want a change, and theoretically, that they’d do anything to get it.

But when the rubber meets the road, it’s a totally different story. For many, when it’s time to take action, they’re not WILLING to take the steps or do the work that creates the result. And they use excuses about time and money as the trap door, their escape route:

“I can’t do ‘x’ because I don’t have the money right now”
“I can’t do ‘y’ because I’ve already got something planned for that day”

I see it plain as day and I see it happen EVERY day. It’s the “Inner Self-Doubt” that consistently has someone question every single move they make in growing their business or their income.

It’s that same inner self-doubt that creates the excuse that invariably comes up, either having to do with time OR money, or something along the lines of “I’m not sure this is right for MY business.” And what I’m convinced about, because I’ve witnessed it in my own life and then in the lives of hundreds (if not thousands) of my clients, is that this inner self-doubt, questioning everything and not taking serious ACTION when the solution shows up all boil down to one thing and one thing only. And in plain English, it’s called… SELF SABOTAGE.

(By the way, The same thing happens when you decide to do something and then you decide to back out at the last minute. There are people who do this again and again. It’s what I call “waffling” and it’s another form of self-sabotage, something that you use to keep yourself from playing a bigger game in your life.)

In all the years I’ve been working with solopreneurs, I have seen countless people beg for a change in their business, pray to make a lot more money, and yet, when the answer is delivered and it’s right there in front of them (in whatever form it shows up) they use excuses, turn away or question whether it’s right for them.

Realize that THE limitation around getting to the next level in their business is created by your own mindset. Then you can make a change in perspective, stop using excuses and “just go for it”, then the results show up. Here’s the process I’ve witnessed in myself and in my clients recently:

1. They make a firm DECISION (to succeed, buy something, attend something, or whatever)
2. They stop over thinking
3. They quiet the inner critic and the relentless self-doubt
4. They look for different ways of making it happen
5. They take action, IN SPITE OF the “fear”
6. They are then rewarded very handsomely.

Widening your perspective around success starts with a DECISION. Once you make a decision to succeed, it’s time to commit to doing whatever it takes to make it happen. Whatever it takes.

Instead of saying “I can’t afford this”, ask yourself “How *can* I afford this? ” Instead of saying “I’m already busy that day”, you’ll begin to find ways to move things around to make it happen. It’s a SMALL shift in perception, but it is absolutely life-changing when you begin to think that way. Instead of stopping the flow, you begin to search for opportunities, for solutions. You begin to act like a detective, looking for different ways to make it happen.

And that’s when it shows up.

I’ve often thought that, if I can’t get into a house from the front door, then I’ll look for the back door. And if the back door’s locked, then it’s time to look for an open window. And if all the windows are shut tight, then the storm door or basement door, etc. Too many people simply try the obvious way of doing something, often, by just looking at their bank account or their calendar. And then they stop there.

And you know what? There is ALWAYS a way. But only if you’re willing to look for a different way. Only if you don’t get stopped at the front door, thinking, “Oh well, it wasn’t meant to be!”

It’s about letting go of mediocrity and trusting that there IS a way to get what you want, or to do what you want to do for your business or in your life. You see, once you make the COMMITMENT to find a way to make it happen, the way to do that thing shows up. Always.

YOUR ASSIGNMENT:

Let me ask you this…

What is it that you are wanting to do that you’re stopping yourself with excuses or money or time?
Make a list. If you can be honest about it, really honest with yourself and you see yourself doing this very thing, I want to ask you this… How BADLY do you want this thing, whatever it is? How BADLY can you taste it?

Before you say, “But wait, Fabienne. There ISN’T enough money for this in my bank account.” or “Fabienne, I’ve already got something planned for then”, notice that it’s all a question of your perception. If it were a life-or-death thing, you WOULD find the money, you WOULD clear your schedule. And so it CAN be done. And if it can be done, then the excuse is no longer valid.

If you want something really badly, then you need to approach it as if it were a life-or-death situation. You need to have your ACTIONS match what you say you want. Otherwise, a year from now, 10 years from now, 30 years from now, you’ll be in the same place you are now. Is that what you really want?

It comes down to being WILLING to act differently. It’s not just thinking differently, it’s about taking bold and decisive action toward what you say you want in your business or your life. It’s about saying YES to what’s possible for you. Saying YES to the opportunities that are divinely given to you. And then taking action. Your business, your life, your in-come will never be the same. I promise you that.

Here’s a great opportunity for you to take action on as well. If you’ve been searching for answers to growing your business, then I want you to know about my brand new Get More Clients Blueprint DVD/CD Homestudy System (based on the SOLD-OUT live event). With this program, I take you by the hand and walk you step-by-step through the process of earning way more in your small business. Take a moment to watch this high content video that explains it all at www.JoinTheTop5Now.com. No more excuses!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Fabienne Fredrickson, The Client Attraction Mentor, is founder of the Client Attraction System , the proven step-by-step program that shows you exactly how to attract more clients, in record time…guaranteed. To get your F.R.E.E. Audio CD by mail and receive her weekly marketing & success mindset articles on attracting more high-paying clients and dramatically increasing your in.come, visit www.clientattraction.com.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Every day, we send emails to our friends, business associates and clients. Have you ever taken a moment to really think about what your emails are saying about you? More specifically, what unintentional impression are you leaving your reader? Are you giving them ample opportunity to misjudge your intentions and even your overall business brand?

In preparation of writing this article, I took a quick, unofficial survey of the volume of emails I work with on a daily basis. I receive approximately 100 legitimate emails and send out about 60 emails…a day. So of those 60 emails, I either have an opportunity to make a favourable impression towards my overall eVision Media brand or create a terrible impression on my professionalism…and the same applies to you!

You may not even realize it, but too often little details can be left out or inadvertently included that can suggest that you’re lazy, incompetent, inattentive, mistrustful, or unprofessional. Yikes.

Below lists some critical things to keep in mind when sending emails. Some may seem like a no-brainer, but it doesn’t hurt to have them serve as a reminder, as I know that I definitely make some of these mistakes sometimes!

• Spelling. Remember that spell checkers don’t know when you’ve used a correctly spelled, but incorrect word such as "their" instead of "there". Also be aware of similarily spelled words such as “lose” and “loose”, which I find is commonly done.

• Avoid using web/texting jargon, such as “this 1 is 4 u”, somehow this style of “English” has permiated from social media and text messaging to regular communications – yikes! ’nuff said.

• Grammar. Grammar is not just for picky English teachers. If your writing is grammatically incorrect, it has a much higher probability of being misinterpreted by the recipient. Often in this instance, miscommunicating is worse than not communicating at all.

• Signature Block. Do all of your emails contain a short, professional signature block with your contact information? Don’t make people look in their address book if they want to call you. Just have your information inserted in every message. Add in a brief, catchy sentence and of course, be sure to put your website address there too!

• Subject Line. Use the subject line to communicate useful information. Let the recipient know what the email is about so they can decide what to do with it. Useless subjects, no subjects at all, or misleading ones can be really annoying.

• Format. Writing large, impenetrable blocks of text in one long stream of consciousness paragraph. Break up your ideas so that they are easier to follow.

• Length. Emails should generally be short. Many people find it difficult to read long pages of text on their screen.

• Urgent Indicator. Using the urgent indicator for clearly unimportant emails gives the appearance that you have no regard for the time and attention of the reader or that you suffer from a personality disorder that leaves you with delusions of self-importance. Either way, it’s not a good impression to give so only use the urgent indicated for truly urgent emails.

• Bandwidth Usage. If you’re sending attachments, be careful of the image size – 1 MB is TOO LARGE for those people who still get email over the phone line. It wastes lots of their valuable time waiting for it to download. If there’s no need for sending big files, don’t. If there is, find a way to reduce the image size first or let the person know in advance that you’re sending the large file so they can be prepared.

• Delivery Receipt. Unless you are sending a very important contract or time sensitive document, avoid using the read receipt feature. Most people want to read their emails in private and don’t want to be made to feel you don’t trust them to read your emails. The exception to this rule is if you fear your email is not being delivered to the intended person and you want to be assured they received it.

• Proof-Read SLOWLY. Studies show that the human brain can easily “fill in the blanks” of a sentence or not register a double word like “the.” However, that doesn’t mean you have licence to take advantage of that! When you proof read your email, carefully read E V E R Y W O R D to make sure that your sentence makes sense and isn’t missing anything.

• Understand the difference between TO: CC: and BCC: Rule of thumb, if you want a response from someone, put their email in the TO: field. If you are sending an email to more than one person, the people you are including just as an FYI go in the CC field, this way they know they are not expected to respond. If you don’t want anyone to know that you are sending an email to someone else at the same time, that email address goes in the BCC field. IMPORTANT: If you are sending an email to a bunch of people that don’t know each other – ALWAYS use the BCC field for ALL email addresses. It is a privacy violation and security risk if you share email addresses with other people in your contact list that don’t know each other.

• Never send an email when you’re angry or upset – 9 times out of 10 you’ll regret it the moment you hit the send button. Go ahead and write your emotionally charged letter and then walk away without sending it. Come back when you’ve cooled down and either send a re-written letter or better yet, pick up the phone and communicate that way. There are times when email is simply NOT the best form of communication and the phone is always going to be better when a disagreement has formed, misunderstandings are happening, or emotions get charged.

• Finally, remember that email does not include tone of voice or body language - so all the person reading your prose has to work with is your words. It’s amazing how quickly those words can cause people to jump to the wrong conclusion, misinterpret your intentions and even worse, be offended by the attempt at humour that didn’t quite translate properly.

Can you think of any other things that annoy you about email? Submit your comment below!

Have an amazing day,
Sue

Have you ever wondered, “now that I’ve got a website, what do I do?”

Is having a website stressing you out because it isn’t giving you the return on your investment you were hoping for? Are you worried because it isn’t producing the results you thought it should?

The old adage, “if you build it, they will come” simply doesn’t happen in the World Wide Web. In order to get visitors to come to your web site, you need to make a concerted effort to attract them.

Here’s a checklist of basic things you could be doing now to start promoting your website and getting those desired results:

1. Use your domain name for your email address in all of your email correspondence. This way, with each email you send out, you are advertising your website URL. For example: if your website domain is www.mywebsite.com, then you should ensure you use an email address that uses “mywebsite.com” like susan@mywebsite.com or info@mywebsite.com. This technique also promotes you as a professional; often seeing a Hotmail or Gmail address can appear to others as “amateurish”.

2. Create a signature that goes on the bottom of all your emails that you send out. In your signature, put whatever caption you like – such as, “Contact me to find out how you can [fill in the blank]” along with your contact information and of course, your website URL!

3. Put your website address on all of your print/promotional material such as business cards, promo cards, letterhead etc. Often your website is the first point of contact for new and potential clients. Make it easy for them to find your website so they can find more information about you and your business and feel comfortable about contacting you directly.

4. Create reciprocal partnerships with complementary websites to do a website link exchange. The more high-traffic websites that link to you, the more the search engines will think you are a high-profile website and your search engine ranking has the potential to go up.

5. Send out regular e-newsletters or some form of written communication to your existing and potential customers. Have a prominent sign-up form on your site so people can receive your e-newsletters on a regular basis. The more people trust you and what services you have to offer, the more likely they will contact you or purchase your product!

6. Share the benefits of what you can do to help others; what need can you fulfill for them? Be sure to list those benefits on your website and use it as a reference point to send people to for more information.

7. Encourage referrals – your existing customers can be an amazing promotional tool for you. Offer a referral incentive program if you can.

8. Take advantage of any upcoming holidays – what contest can you run? What special can you put on? (Caution, try to avoid discounting your products or services, this devalues what you have to offer. Instead, offer gift with purchases or entries to a prize draw as an enticement to make a sale)

9. Bonus tip: Engage in Social Media such as Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn. Create a professional profile and have conversations with your followers. Engage with the intention of being helpful and offering useful information. This will build your credibility as an expert in your industry and start to create an important, “know, like and trust” factor that is needed to attract clients.

There are many things to consider before having a website created for you. You first need to have a thorough understanding of what you want it to achieve – and be reasonable about your expectations. Will it be a simple “brochureware” piece that is meant to provide visitors with a basic overview of your products and/or services, or is it going to actively sell for you? Hiring a professional website developer can help you sort through these questions, create a design to best achieve those goals, and produce an effective site that will deliver what you want.

Once built, be sure to follow the 8 9 simple steps outlined above and you will be well on your way to having a website that is working for you and your marketing efforts.

Susan Friesen
eBusiness Mentor and Developer

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You have my full permission to use this article on your website, blog or social media sites. Simply ensure this complete credit is found at the bottom of the article:

About the Author: Susan is president/founder of eVision Media, a web development and eMarketing firm specializing in building effective brands for entrepreneurs, businesses and organizations for over 11 years. With a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, she is able to provide an authentic and personalized service for those wanting a trustworthy member of their team for their brand & marketing design, website development and SEO/eMarketing needs. Visit www.evisionmedia.ca to receive your free report, “10 Key Strategies You Need to Know Now to Prevent Your Website from Being a Marketing Disaster.”

By online business consultant, expert and author Biana Babinsky

Many of my clients have asked me over time whether running a blog is worth the time and effort that goes into it. The answer, as always, is “it depends”. For me, my blog has made a major contribution to bringing leads and clients to my business. I estimate that about 20% of my clients have found me through my blog, got to know me and then decided to attend my classes or purchase my other products.

If you learn how to run a blog and how to use it to bring clients to your business, it will become a great tool to get clients for your business. You need to create a plan for bringing your target market to your blog and converting this traffic into clients.

Will you be required to invest a lot of time and energy into blogging? Actually, blogs do not have to take up that much time and energy. Your blog posts don’t have to be as long as your articles, as long as they are of interest to your target market. The effective blog post is not long; it is written on the topic of interest to your target market. The blog post helps them learn something and at the same time leaves them wanting more. You also don’t have to blog every day – blogging a few times a week is fine. Some people only blog once a week.

Here is how to create a plan that will turn your blog into an effective tool that will drive potential clients to your business 24/7:

• Define Your Goals For Your Blog. If this is a business blog, your goals could be to become more known to your target market, attract more newsletter subscribers, attract clients to your business, etc.
• Pick Good Blogging Software. Blogging starts with picking the blogging software that’s right for you. I strongly recommend evaluating a few different options before deciding on the one that is right for you.

  The one I recommend to use is available at wordpress.org. This software can be installed on your own web site, is easy to use and is highly customizable.

• Find Topics That Your Target Market Wants To Read About. Since your goals for your blog include using your blog as a tool to get clients and newsletter subscribers, your target market has to be interested in reading your blog posts. Do research through online social networks and search engines to find topics that your target market would like to read about.

  Always write blog posts that are of interest to your target market.

• Bring Traffic To Your Blog. Just writing posts on your blog isn’t going to do much to improve your visibility and get more clients. In order to get the benefits from blogging, you need to create a strategy to bring traffic to your blog.

  Some ideas for bringing traffic to your blog are search engine optimization, social networking sites, article marketing, commenting on other blogs and more.

• Convert Blog Traffic Into Clients. Just bringing traffic to your blog is not enough. You need to get people who come to your blog to take action with you! In addition to bringing traffic to your blog you need to have a procedure in place for turning your blog readers into clients.

Follow the above five steps to turn your blog into a tool for getting clients. Once you have a step-by-step strategy to bring your target market to your blog and turn it into clients, you will be able to get more clients for your business.

About the author: Biana Babinsky is the online business expert who teaches coaches, consultants and other service professionals how to get clients using their blogs. Get her Make Thousands Of Dollars With Your Blog Home Study Guide to learn how to start a blog and use it to get clients for your business.

Congratulations! You decided to write a regular newsletter and are psyched to get started (or start again as the case may be).

Before you dive into writing, it’s important to plan your newsletter so you get optimal results. Also, it’s very important to remember your newsletter is not meant to be a promotional piece but rather a content rich resource where your subscribers will want to ensure they don’t miss an edition because they know it will be worth their while.

Here is a brief summary of the components that should make up your newsletter:

1. A Personal Note: In order to build a “know like and trust” factor with your readers, you want to give them some insight to who you are personally. I’m not saying you have to share what you ate for breakfast that morning (unless nutrition is your business!) but do share something casual or interesting that your readers would love to know more about. If you feel uncomfortable with sharing personal information, then share what seminars you’ve taken, what books you’ve read, what hobby you’re into – anything so people make a connection that you are a human being just like them! Include a photo pertaining to what you’re talking about if you can as this enhances the relationship building you want to achieve.
2. Client Showcase/Raving Fans. This can be in the form of showcasing new clients or a way to post client testimonials who are your raving fans. Make this section more than just a couple of sentences – you want this to be more a short case study that details the benefits of what you did for a client and why they are so happy with your product/service. Have a photo of the client and link to their website so it becomes a win-win scenario and they get good exposure for writing you such a rave review.
3. Feature Article: this is the main point of your newsletter. There are a couple of ways to do this and I suggest you give them both a try and monitor your results:
   1. Place the full article in the body of the newsletter
   2. Have just the first paragraph of the article in the newsletter and then link to the full article that is also posted in your blog. This serves a couple of purposes: 1) sends people back to your website and 2) the article posted in the blog is great for search engines and can also be posted to your social media sites at the same time.

   Be sure to add a note at the bottom of your article inviting readers to repurpose it in their own newsletters or website. Give them a short paragraph that must accompany the repurposed article that provides a call to action for the reader to go to your site and get your free giveaway or sign up for your newsletter.

4. Where You Are: If you do presentations, talks, demonstrations or anything where the public could come and see you, add this section in that details the dates of these events and what you’ll be doing. If you are wanting to showcase yourself as an expert in your industry, include other events such as attending seminars, high-end coaching sessions or travel destinations.  
5. Your Assignment. Often an article can be accompanied with a “to do” action item. Something you can tell your readers to do to get them into action with what they just read. Like what I’ll have below this article…
6. Recommendations: This section can be used for you to recommend something you would find of value to your readers. This can be a book, a recipe, a service or product… whatever you wish! If possible, you can use this opportunity to become an affiliate of the item you are promoting and gain commissions on any sales that might come of it.
7. Your bio/profile. Have a spot at the bottom of the newlsetter reminding your readers of who you are. Craft a concise “20 second elevator pitch” that speaks to the problems people have that you can solve for them. Finish with a call to action by contacting you for a free ‘get acquainted’ session or whatever your free offer is.

Your Action Assignment:
Think about a question a client asked you this week OR think about an interesting idea you came across you want to share with your readers. Start writing down what you want to say – don’t worry about the grammar, just get your thoughts onto paper. Once that hard part is done, then flush out the rest of your newsletter by following the formula above. For the intro, what personal thing can you share? Do you like to garden? Cook? Do you have an interesting hobby? What about your kids that you can boast about? Let your readers get some insight into your life so they can start to get to know the real, authentic you. Lastly return back to your main article and either refine it yourself or send it to your VA, assistant or newsletter guru to get it polished for you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

About the Author: Susan is president/founder of eVision Media, a web development and eMarketing firm specializing in building effective brands for entrepreneurs, businesses and organizations for over 10 years. With a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, she is able to provide an authentic and personalized service for those wanting a trustworthy member of their team for their brand & marketing design, website development and SEO/eMarketing needs. Contact Susan today for a free 30 minute “get to know you session” on helping you build your website presence to be the effective marketing tool is can be. susan@evisionmedia.ca or visit www.evisionmedia.ca.

So you thought it was a good idea to write a regular e-newsletter. It sounded like a great idea at the time when you first heard all about the benefits of having one…. so what happened? Are you missing out on a fundamental marketing strategy that could make a huge difference in your business success?

I know for me, I just got busy and taking care of “eVision Media” related items, such as writing a regular newsletter, was the first to go off the radar. Definitely not the wisest decision to make, so this is my resurrection at correcting this slip-up.

The thing is, a newsletter is quite critical to the success of your business. Here’s a few reminder pointers to consider:

1. A newsletter is a way for you to keep in touch with your database (consisting of clients and those who signed up to hear from you). The reason this is so important is you simply don’t want people to forget about you! You want to remind them of your services so they will automatically think of you when they need what you provide or automatically refer you to a friend or associate for the same reason.
2. A newsletter is your opportunity to showcase your expertise. People have a desire to learn and they want to learn from those that know what they’re talking about. You’re doing a disservice if you don’t share your expertise with those who WANT to learn from you.
3. A newsletter is an inexpensive form of marketing. It costs pennies to send one out and your return can be immense.
4. A newsletter is an opportunity for you to collect a database of people truly interested in what you have to say. They are your primary target market!
5. A Newletter is a way for you to develop a lasting relationship with your readers. The more you write and share, the more they get to know, like and trust you. The more they do this, the more likely they will want to do business with you or refer you to others.

It’s clear why a newsletter is important to have, but I know, there are lots of “reasons” why we don’t have one …

1. Don’t have enough time
2. Don’t know what to say
3. Don’t know how to write well enough or like to write at all
4. Don’t think you have anything of value to share
5. Don’t want to “bother” people by emailing them all the time

I’m sure you can think of more, but these are some of what I hear most often.

So let’s examine this list of “reasons” and see what solutions can be found.

1. Not enough time. Simply make the time! Schedule a couple of hours into your calendar to write a newsletter at minimum once a month. Every two weeks is much better and some experts will say once a week is most effective. I think it really has to do with who you are writing for – what are they wanting and how often would they love to get your valuable information.

2. Don’t know what to say. This one can actually be as simple as listening to your current clients and remembering the questions they ask you. If one is asking, then the chances are many others are also seeking the same answer. Keep a log of questions you get throughout your day and then write an article about your response. It doesn’t have to be a long drawn out answer – short and informative is all that is needed.

3. Don’t know how to write / don’t like to write. This can be solved a few ways. Believe it or not, there are people out there that actually LOVE to write and would be thrilled to help you out! There are virtual assistants, students and even us here at eVision Media that do this service for some clients. All you need to do is write out the general outline of what you want to say and let the copywriter put it together for you. Another idea is to record your thoughts using a free recording service and have it transcribed by a Virtual Assistant. Another idea is to not write at all and create a video instead! All you need is a blog to post the video onto and then send out a newsletter telling people to click on the link that takes them to your blog post.

4. Nothing of value to share. Ok, tough love here… STOP THAT! Of course you have something of value to share! You wouldn’t be in business if you didn’t! Your clients love you for your expertise so never undervalue what you offer. Don’t let your lack of confidence filter through because people don’t want to hear from someone who doesn’t think they are very good. Do you?

5. Don’t want to bother people. I get where you’re coming on this and it can be used as an easy scapegoat to avoid the whole newsletter thing. However, you’re forgetting one critical fact – these people signed up to actually RECEIVE a Newsletter from you! If they didn’t want to be bothered, they wouldn’t have signed up. Period. In fact, by asking people to sign up for your newsletter and then never or rarely send one out sends a negative message to these people – that you can’t be counted on to follow through with what you promised you would do. Ouch.

If you are still unsure of whether a Newsletter is of value for you, we can schedule a consultation to help you come up with a game plan.

On a final note, it’s important to realize a Newsletter is NOT a form of advertising and should never be the main focus of your email (unless it’s a separate sendout and is not part of your regular Newsletter). In my next issue, I’ll go over the formatting of a newsletter and the types of content that should be in them.

Your Action Assignment:
Take out your calendar right now and schedule a time THIS WEEK to write your next newsletter. Give yourself at least 2 hours to do some research and write down your thoughts. If you don’t want to write the entire newsletter, then arrange for someone who will be gladly do it for you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

About the Author: Susan is president/founder of eVision Media, a web development and eMarketing firm specializing in building effective brands for entrepreneurs, businesses and organizations for over 10 years. With a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, she is able to provide an authentic and personalized service for those wanting a trustworthy member of their team for their brand & marketing design, website development and SEO/eMarketing needs. Contact Susan today for a free 30 minute “get to know you session” on helping you build your website presence to be the effective marketing tool is can be. susan@evisionmedia.ca or visit www.evisionmedia.ca.

When working with new entrepreneurs, I often hear resistance to “going big” or making any major moves due to various fears that come up preventing them from feeling it’s the “right time”. When I read this article from Fabienne Fredrickson, she addresses this subject perfectly and I wanted to share in hopes it inspires you to just go for it! Here’s the full article…
Sue

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Stop Planning, Forget The “How”, Just Go For It!

Recently, we’ve been talking about aiming for MUCH bigger in our business, in our life, and in our purpose. We’ve stretched, looked into the fears of dreaming TOO big (is there such a thing?!) and looked at all the other emotions that come up once we’ve actually MADE the decision to play a bigger game. These are related to issues of safety, not rocking the boat, and self-doubt as to whether we really CAN play a bigger game in life and business.

But then, if this weren’t enough, there’s yet another thing that is likely to stop a lot of people right in their tracks. And that’s trying to figure out the “how”.

“How will I ever get from here to THERE?”
“But I don’t HAVE the resources (the funds, time, help) to make that big dream happen.”
“I’m not qualified right now to take on this big dream. I just don’t have what it takes yet.”
“Once I know HOW I’m supposed to do this, I’ll do it. Until then, I’ll just wait to be ready.”

Problem is, this is EXACTLY the point at which most people give up, probably even YOU. Right there. You see, most people wait for the HOW before they make a commitment to accomplish their big goal. Being the good planner that you probably are, there’s a part of you that feels this is too risky of a project or a goal to take on without having a plan, a solid plan, without knowing exactly how it’s going to unfold.

You may have a dream of being on Oprah, for example, to share the message only YOU can share, and to give exposure to your book or business. You love the idea of it, you imagine yourself on her yellow leather sofa, talking to her and her live studio audience. You may even be able to feel the warmth of the studio lamps and the nervous feeling you would have in the pit of your stomach. Perhaps what you’ll be wearing and what she’ll say to you. Your imagination is strong about what it would actually BE like once you’re there. And it feels great.

But then it all stops. Your imagination shuts down once you try to think about HOW you’ll ever get to the Oprah show, or whatever else your big dreams are. Here are things I’ve heard:

“I don’t have enough media training. They’ll never pick me.”"Everyone and their MOTHER wants to be on Oprah. There’s too much competition.”"Explain to me how it would ever happen and THEN I’ll think about going for it.”"Is there a guarantee this will even work? Probably not worth trying if I don’t have a plan”

Now, if you’ve seen my Mind Movie on my Facebook page, you know that I have BIG dreams. Writing best-selling books, doing workshops to thousands of people, affecting millions, and having a global effect on helping women and children around the world, and yes, one day, even taking my message to Oprah’s stage and sharing it with 10 million people.

I’m hearing it now… “Stop dreaming and GET REAL!”

And admittedly, some these things ARE “lofty”. In fact, I would categorize as downright “scary big”. Especially since I don’t have a clue yet as to how I will write ONE best-selling book, let alone many, how to get thousands of people to come hear me speak, how I’ll help on a global level (where, whom, what will I be helping them with???). And I certainly don’t have a clue about how to get on Oprah’s couch.

But I’ve decided to go for it anyway, because here’s “what I know for sure”. If you’ve got the commitment to do something, the intention is strong and you’re willing to do anything it takes to get there, in a good way/not bad, then things WILL unfold before you, like a red carpet being unrolled in Hollywood. You just need to take the first step, accomplish the task that’s right in front of you, and then the next task will show up for you to work on. Once you’ve done that one, just the right opportunity will land on your lap, followed by the right resource to take full advantage of that opportunity or to accomplish the task at hand.

But because we’re bred to be planners (or in my case, sometimes a bit of a control freak – have you ever seen me in the kitchen right before a dinner party??), we want to have the WHOLE thing planned out first, in every descriptive detail. It’s got to be all laid out and orchestrated ahead of time, in perfect order. Otherwise, we don’t make the commitment.

Thing is, that’s not how the Universe or life works. Your next step or the next opportunity will NOT show up until you’ve made the commitment. But once you DO, it shows up, and the more you do this, the faster things start showing up for you: the right operations manager, the perfect branding development coach, the spiritual guide with just the right message (even the bottle cap with just the confirmation you’ve been asking for) or simply, just the right book to get you to that next level.

That’s what is happening to me right NOW. It’s fascinating to be in the eye of the storm, calm (most of the time) and witnessing everything around me show up as it’s supposed to, having everything around me rearrange itself to make that big dream come true. In fact, it’s pretty humbling. It’s almost as though my intention and commitment to getting this big dream accomplished has taken a life of its own, in a really good way. And now, it’s just about taking the next step that presents itself, without thinking of the next HOW. In fact, it’s a very reassuring process, once you begin to see the pattern.

Your Assignment:

Notice your mindset as it relates to your big dreams and goals for your business or your life. Is there a way that you might be stopping yourself or putting a hold on your big dreams because you haven’t yet figured out HOW it’s going to happen? Is the planner in you squashing the dreamer in you?

Instead, I’d recommend you gather your strength, deny your “smallness” and grab hold of the truth of yourself: that you CAN accomplish that big dream, that it’s not a silly notion. Just the mere fact that you’ve thought of it means it can be done. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have gotten the idea. Forgot the how! Just go for it. Each “how” and the resource needed at that time will show up exactly when you need it.

And I’m here for you to make it happen, with all the support you need.

If you’re not attracting enough ideal prospects in the first place, I’d recommend you create compelling marketing and systems starting today. The tool that will take you from 0 to 60 clients the quickest is The Client Attraction Home Study System™. It’s everything you’ll ever need to know to fill your practice quickly; no matter how long you’ve been in business. All the tools, scripts, templates, and examples are handed to you on a silver platter (including how to close the sale 97% of the time). So, you do step one of the system, and when you’re done with that, you move on to step two, and so on. So easy. That’s why my customers have gotten such great results from it. You can get yours at www.TheClientAttractionSystem.com.

© 2010 Client Attraction LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Fabienne Fredrickson, The Client Attraction Mentor, is founder of the Client Attraction System, the proven step-by-step program that shows you exactly how to attract more clients, in record time… guaranteed. To get your F.R.E.E. Audio CD by mail and receive her weekly marketing & success mindset articles on attracting more high-paying clients and dramatically increasing your in.come, visit www.ClientAttraction.com.

I’ve been talking a lot lately to clients about branding and finding their niche but this can be quite challenging to new entrepreneurs or even seasoned business owners when it isn’t clear what their brand is or who they would ideally want to work with. It’s important to explore these two areas to better serve the success of your business. Fabienne Fredrickson teaches client attraction and wrote a great article about the importance of finding your niche (ideal client). Read below to help you put the fears surrounding this topic to rest.
Sue
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“I don’t know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody.” — Bill Cosby

To attract clients consistently and with little effort, your marketing message must be clear and it must stand out. There’s no way around it. If what you say about your business and what prospects read about it isn’t sounding irresistible to them, they’ll move on to the next person. Guaranteed.

So, your task is to stand out from the pack and to make prospects really stand up and listen to what you have to offer. In my opinion, standing out from the pack is easiest if you have an expertise or a niche. (But you knew that already.) So, what’s stopping you? Well, after having worked with thousands of people on this issue, I’ve come up with 2 reasons why most people don’t niche:

• They believe they’ll turn away opportunities if they go too narrow.
• They wouldn’t even know where to start (and most are going about it the WRONG way).

Let’s start with the first point.

Believing that you’ll turn away clients and opportunities if you niche is actually completely and utterly invalid. It comes from a “lack” mindset, one based in fear. Ironically, the exact opposite is true. When you niche properly, you get more clients and Client Attraction becomes SO much easier:

• Your marketing message becomes crystal clear.
• Your marketing plan is SO much easier (and less costly).
• People perceive you as an expert (clients seek out experts).
• You get a lot more referrals than generalists do.
• Strategic alliances seek YOU out.
• You can charge more because you know more.
• You get sought out by the media (the media loves experts)

Once you get clear it’s of absolute benefit to you to niche, your job is to do just that. And that’s usually the daunting part. There are many ways of creating a niche. Solopreneurs often don’t know where to start and if you ask me, people go about it in the wrong way (that’s probably why it’s so frustrating and why they’ve even stopped trying to niche). Here’s where they’re making a mistake.

Most people look on the OUTSIDE for a niche, when they should be looking on the INSIDE. Instead of TRYING to find a demographic that is more affluent, or more likely to work with you and forcing yourself into a particular niche, just because the numbers look good on paper, look for a situation or type of person you have an AFFINITY with, who can recognize that working with you is essential.

Hint: your niche is usually someone like you, who is in the “before” stage of YOUR own “before-and-after” story. This is really important. When someone is looking to hire someone in your industry, they’re looking for a SOLUTION to their biggest problem. Not only that, they’re also looking for reassurance it will work and their mo-ney will be well spent.

Essentially, many will come to you and pay you (well) to have you show them how to get to the “after” part of the story. That’s when using your Compelling Story in your marketing begins to REALLY make a difference in your Client Attraction. When you can tell your story, show your struggles, what you did to get over those, and what your situation is like now (and that you can help them do the exact same thing and, oh, you’ve actually got a Proprietary System that will walk them through it easily) they’re SOLD.

Right there, on the spot, they will choose to be your client. And you haven’t even opened your mouth yet! Your marketing message and materials did all the work for you. How cool is that?

Your Assignment:

Instead of looking on the OUTSIDE for your niche, look for it on the INSIDE. Your best clients may just be the person experiencing the “before” part of your “before and after” story. A person in that position will look to you for the solutions they need and will probably do anything and pay relatively anything to work with you to get out of their situation. They’ll trust you faster than they would the average Joe and will look to you as their problem solver before anyone else.

Use your compelling story to pinpoint your niche. It can be either a type of SITUATION you’re solving or a type of PERSON you work with. Or it can be both, it doesn’t matter. They key is to have such clarity in your marketing (a niche) that clients and customers self-select and pre-qualify themselves to be your client, with little or no effort on your part. Then, they reach out to you without you having to do anything. Can you now see how much easier it is to have a niche? Good. This may just be the start of a whole new business and income level for you.

You may be having trouble figuring out your own Compelling Story, Proprietary System, and niche. If so, I recommend getting a copy of the Client Attraction Home Study System™. It gives you the most important things to do to figure this all out easily, and then set up simple, solid marketing systems, so that you consistently fill your pipeline and continually get new clients. It’s all step-by-step, not a big mishmash of things. So, you do step one of the system, and when you’re done with that, you move on to step two, and so on. All the tools, scripts, templates, and examples are handed to you on a silver platter. Easy. You can get it at TheClientAttractionSystem.com.

© 2010 Client Attraction LLC. All Rights Reserved.

~~~~~~

About Fabienne

Fabienne Fredrickson, The Client Attraction Mentor, is founder of the Client Attraction System , the proven step-by-step program that shows you exactly how to attract more clients, in record time…guaranteed. To get your F.R.E.E. Audio CD by mail and receive her weekly marketing & success mindset articles on attracting more high-paying clients and dramatically increasing your income, visit www.ClientAttraction.com.