Have you created your 2012 marketing plan yet? Do you know some of the specific steps and strategies that you are going to implement this year to achieve your goals?
And where is social media fitting into the picture?
In the last week, I have had three highly respected business owners ask me about creating a social media strategy. And my response is simple: social media is a tool, not a strategy.
“What do you mean?” they said.
What I mean is simple, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Twitter and a boatload of other platforms have the potential to garner new visitors to your ideas and even convert the viewers into raving fans and customers.
So if social media can do all that, then why isn’t it considered a strategy?
Social media is what you do to help you achieve the results that you want in your business. You want more visibility for your business online? You want more attendees at your next event? You want to be able to quickly shift complaints into testimonials? Then social media can help you do all these things and more.
It is a tool that can help you achieve:
Online visibility
List building
Increased credibility (and even instant credibility)
More speaking opportunities
More qualified web traffic to your site
Search Engine results (have you “googled” yourself lately?)
Networking
Promotional partners to help you sell your services
Joint venture partners to help you build your business
Build a team to help you grow your business
Customer support
Increased publicity & recognition
And so many more results!
So if you have speaking, networking, SEO and advertising as your top strategies for your marketing plan, social media can help you get better results in each of these. Is this starting to make sense?
Now that you have a new awareness and understanding of social media, how are you going to use it to achieve your goals in 2012? Please post a comment below.
I love that we get to celebrate the Chinese New Year toward the end of January. It’s about the time that we are reconsidering some of our goals for the year and more importantly, after the hub-bub of the holidays have cooled off, I have the clarity to think again.
That picture is from my own adventure to Las Vegas after Christmas when I discovered how much I LOVE to see Broadway musicals. My daughter and I got the opportunity, thanks to a dear friend, to see the Phantom of the Opera AND to sit in the front row at one of the last shows of The Lion King.
Right now, I am completing my marketing plan for 2012 which includes some reorganizing of my business model as well as some very different commitments to myself.
One of these commitments that may or may not surprise you, is my commitment to focus on collaborative partnerships. I love working as a partner in people’s businesses–whether I am coaching, consulting or stepping up as President in my local NAWBO chapter, I am committed to working as a partner and an advocate for those around me.
And in this commitment, I will be sharing some tools that I know can help you achieve your goals for 2012.
You know the struggle and frustration of trying to break the barriers to achieve the income and the lifestyle that you deserve; the uncertainty and confusion. But you may not have figured out the specific steps to achieve that success for you!
That’s why, my friend & colleague, Annette Pieper, has brought together 10 leading-edge, heart-centered entrepreneurs to share their wisdom so you can accelerate your success. The Soul Power Success Summit takes place January 30 – Feb 3.
Each successful business owner has been handpicked based on their expertise in:
-Marketing
-Sales
-Mindset
-Speaking
-Success Systems
-Making a Difference in the world!
You will discover at the Soul Power Success Summit how these leaders of thriving six and seven figure businesses make a big impact and how you can apply their strategies to make more money right now!
This is a gift from heart-centered entrepreneurs who want to help you learn exactly what they do to make money today. They will share the golden key to increased freedom, financial independence, and inspire you into action.
When you sign up today, you will be one step closer to using YOUR Hero’s Journey and making your dream a reality. It’s your turn to soar!
This was the opening of the presentation that my friend, Ty Bennett, shared a few weeks ago when I heard him speak. He then went on to share the story of Howard Shultz, the CEO of Starbucks, and how the philosophy and mindset of a business can greatly effect everything that business does, and the success it has.
The message: Instead of being a coffee house serving people, Starbucks was built upon the philosophy of being a PEOPLE business serving coffee.
Isn’t that great?!
What’s even better is that Ty has created a program that teaches you how to incorporate stories into your speaking & presentations to engage your audience and create better relationships, resulting in better sales and great success.
I think that the best part is that these stories don’t even have to be your own! Did you notice that the story here is not about me or Ty, it’s about another amazing entrepreneur with vision, passion and a great message.
If this is interesting to you (and if you are still reading, it probably is), then go check out the video series that Ty created at the link above. They are free and it’s all good stuff.
Last week, I was honored to be able to hear Geena Davis give one of the most powerful keynote speeches I have heard in a while. It spoke to my heart on a lot of levels and I thought I would share some of my “take-aways”:
3 qualities that helped Geena Davis become a success:
NAIVETE - Sometimes NOT knowing how difficult the journey is going to be is a blessing. I know that I often experience this in my life and my business.
COMMITMENT - You must be completely committed to what you want to accomplish. How committed are you to your goals?
TENACITY - If you want something, just keeping trying over and over and over. Get under the person’s skin. According to Dictionary.com, it is the act of being tenacious -
I especially like #5 to define tenacity for entrepreneurs.
Great quotes from the presentation:
“This is YOUR time to make a change!” (referring to women in the room)
“Have unfailing belief in yourself”
In response to the open QnA:
Q: How can we follow in your steps as an activist for women’s rights? A: I am not an activist. I am an advocate. I work with the world and the media to PARTNER and enlighten. I am taking research to experts to raise consciousness about women. The raised consciousness will then affect change about the representation of women in the media which will then empower women. (In response to the work she is doing at The Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media)
Q: Do you have suggestions for achieving balance as a women? A: I don’t know if balance is possible. You just do what you can do to the best of your ability. Stop beating yourself up for not feeling like you are balanced.
I could go on and on about the work that she is doing to affect change in the media for representation of women in children’s programming, but I will spare you the pulpit talk. You can check out her work on her organization’s site. But it is good. Let me just say:
17%
That is the same statistic that has held true since 1946 with the number of women compared to men in various programming…. enough said?
Overall, I absolutely LOVE her viewpoints about affecting change as an ADVOCATE instead of an ACTIVIST and accomplishing balance in your life.
You may remember me talking about an event that I attended in May with my daughter. And you may have seen the blog my daughter started as a result of that event. She’s an intermittent writer (hmm…where does she get that from?) but it’s good stuff.
More importantly, let’s talk about that event. One day spent learning a process to help us uncover the answers to all those questions that often stop us in our tracks. Can you relate?
This day was hosted by Johnny Covey (yes, great-nephew to the popular and brilliant Stephen Covey). Johnny’s philosophy is that the answers are all within us–we just need to learn to tap into them.
After that event, I had a number of people ask me if he was going to offer the event again because they wanted to attend and they wanted to bring their teen (like I did). So…
Why am I sharing this with you now, 5 months after the event we attended (that was life-changing for my daughter and eye-opening for me)?
Because Johnny is going to be offering this event again, with a few changes, so that YOU can take advantage of this process that you can use over and over again. The best part is that he is offering it to you and your family. So bring your teenagers and young adults. Bring your spouse. Bring you mom and dad.
Here is the information for this event which starts next week. And YES, Liz and I will be attending again. So join us!
Below is the information but first, let me give you the overview:
When: Wednesday evenings starting October 12
How: Tele-course (so on your phone line); calls will be recorded
Cost: The price is $297, but you can get it for only $97
Simply email Johnny at noriskresults@gmail.com and let him know that I sent you. (no, I am not making any money on this–I just really believe in what he is doing). It’s that easy!
And then share this with anyone else who you think could use some direction and support!
Discover the next step in any area of your life, discover what is holding you back from taking that next step, and have the ability to have the answer to these two questions in any area of your life.
You will also know your…
• dexterities
Define exactly what your strengths are.
Discover how to fully utilize your strengths.
• equity
What untapped potential do you have?
What resources are available to you right now?
• core values
What are your core values and how are they influencing you?
Realize how to align your core values to create the results you desire.
• purpose
Find what your purpose is.
See how to use your purpose to motivate you in every area of your life.
• who are you committed to being?
You are never going to set a goal again.
You will know if you will reach your desired result before you start.
• the commitment completion process
A simple process to make sure you complete what you start.
Count the cost beforehand so you know if it is worth your time and energy.
For the complete flyer, CLICK ON THE FOLLOWING LINK: The Answer In Me
If I had never dropped out, I would have never dropped in on this calligraphy class, and personal computers might not have the wonderful typography that they do. Of course it was impossible to connect the dots looking forward when I was in college. But it was very, very clear looking backwards 10 years later.
This is an excerpt from the commencement speech that Steve Jobs made to the graduating class of 2005 at Stanford. He is talking about his experience in college AFTER he dropped out and it greatly impacted his vision of what is possible. If you haven’t seen the video, it is 15 minutes of awe-inspiring, motivational and genius commentary–worthwhile.
I was reading a commentary this morning about Steve and his impact on technology and the world as we know it. What impacted me most about this comment is his journey that took him into a calligraphy class. At the time, it seemed so unimportant and whimsical.
And in retrospect, it was pivotal and the perfect journey to give him the experience he needed to have the impact he did.
I have often pondered the questions “Why is this happening to me?” and “Why did I do that?” as I know most of us have. I often get frustrated at not understanding the path I am on even when I fully submit to the process.
And with hindsight, I see how the path was SO important to my own learning, understanding and ability to empower others from a real place inside me. And as I live the path, even when I know it is what I need, I can’t ever see the “why” until later….sometimes years later.
I don’t know if Steve Jobs fretted about taking a calligraphy class instead of something more important like a business class. Probably.
He says in the video that instead of following logic, he followed intuition. And in the long run, it worked out quite well.
So I wanted to share. Have you had this same experience? Have you ever had to wait 10 years to be able to connect the dots and understand why?
Here is the video in case you wanted to watch it…it’s good!
I met Rene Johnson a few months ago because I had 3 people in one week say, “Hey, do you know Rene?” I didn’t so I reached out to her. Interestingly enough, she mentioned that I caught her before she had a chance to reach out to me–same situation as a number of people had said the same thing to her about me.
Isn’t that funny? Do you ever have that happen?
While my systems in my business are very logical, left-brained, WHO I connect with is the other extreme. I have learned to tap into my intuition for making connections–whether the connection is for someone new, a promotional partner, or just a reconnection of some sort.
And it pays off!
Rene is definitely someone who shines a light on who you are at the core–and makes you want to be that person more! When I am with her, I feel like the leader that I know I am (some of the time) and I am inspired and motivated to be that person all the time.
If you understand what I am talking about, then you will want to check out her class she is teaching tomorrow evening on Leadership. Here is a great article excerpt from her latest blog post:
Power Leaks = Lost Potential, Revenue and Opportunity
If ever there has been a time in history when entrepreneurs and small business leaders can make an impact on the world around them, now is that time!
There are unlimited possibilities, despite the seemingly endless challenges we hear about. Because real opportunities come to those who “accept the calling” to leave their comfort zone and take the risk to step into their most powerful self where they lead their passions and vision forward. And from doing so, they become empowered leaders in all areas of their life, creating a ripple effect to all they influence. Leadership is not solely for those in the boardroom, it is a must develop and master quality for all of those who want to fulfill their dreams.
Depak Chopra shares in his book, The Soul of Leadership, “Becoming a leader is the most crucial choice one can make–it is the decision to step out of the darkness into the light.”
One of the reasons that I love what Rene is doing is because I USED TO BE the leader that she sees. In fact, last year, I had lunch with a new friend who asked me “Why aren’t you being the leader you used to be? People want you to lead and you just aren’t doing it like you used to!”
It was a pivotal moment for me. I asked myself why? Why am I not that person anymore? And the answer was transformational. And you probably saw a glimpse of that transformation this past year.
But the good news is that I am back! I really feel like that leader now. And on the days when I am not sure, I check in with that feeling I had way back when and it becomes easy.
Are you a leader? Do you ever struggle with being that person all the time? Have you ever had a time in your life when it was overwhelming? I would love to hear your story and what happened next.
For years, this was one of my most popular speaking topics. While I have evolved from conversations about Facebook and Twitter to how turn your friends into profit centers while developing authentic REALationships, the question still remains.
Can you make money hanging out in social networking spaces?
The answer remains an astounding YES!
This last month, you probably saw me share tips and links about creating REALationships and Jumpstarting Your JVs on my various social media platforms.
While I usually fill that program with an average of 70% strategic JVs and partnership referrals, this latest program was not the case. Oh, I still had my referral participants, but more than 1/2 of my paid attendees came directly from Facebook!
Why does this matter, you ask?
Well, let me start by saying that I love my Joint Venture REALationships and partners. But I pay them an affiliate commission to everyone they send over. (and I love writing those commission checks because I am very grateful!)
So when someone clicks on MY links in Facebook….or a comment that links back to my program, I make more money!
Please note that I didn’t just show up one day pitching myself to my social networks. I have spent years building my reputation and relationships here.
And I am continuing the process.
But it does pay off and I wanted to share this little win with you.
So the next time you are wondering if Facebook is worth the time, it can be when its done right!
Today is a celebration of our freedom. But I have to think, are we really free?
I was speaking to my mom a while back and she shared with me that she worries about me ALL the time. With everything that I have gone through these last few years, she is concerned everyday.
A few years ago, I would have tried to calm my mom down and make her feel like she didnt need to worry.
But I found that I really didnt feel the need for her worry and prayers any more. Life is still trying to knock me down, but I explained to her that I am really happy. I mean REALLY HAPPY! and I dont feel like Im requiring quite the level of concern that, despite my comments to my mom, even I felt were deserved.
So in honor of Independence Day and our freedom that entrepreneurs strive and thrive for, I want to share that I feel like Im about there!
I mean, isnt happiness the first huge leap toward freedom and success? For me happiness IS the level of success I have achieved.
Isn’t that great?!
s
Isn’t that funny? Do you ever have that happen?
