Author Archive
World Business and Executive Coach Summit
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The second annual World Business and Executive Coach Summit (WBECS) is set for June, 2012…
But before those dynamic coaching sessions begin, you have the opportunity to preview the best of the best at no charge.
Register for the free pre-conference sessions here.
The WBECS features an outstanding line-up of business and executive coaching thought leaders, specialists and industry pioneers…including:
• Verne Harnish—one of Fortune magazine’s “Top 10 Minds in Small Business”
• Sir John Whitmore – Pre-eminent thinker in leadership and organizational change
• Prof. Vijay Govindarajan – Voted World’s #1 strategic thinker by Harvard Business Review
And of course, Marshall Goldsmith, PhD, recognized last year by Harvard Business Review as “Most Influential Leadership Thinker in the World.”
The pre-conference sessions will be in a “TED-talk” style, in the sense they will be “punchy” (15-30 minutes) and pitch free…
They will set you up with takeaways that you can start using BEFORE the actual summit even starts!
Best thing, you can get to them whenever you have time… From anywhere. No commute necessary. 
Click here to register for: World Business and Executive Coach Pre-Summit Series…
No sales pitches, just timely information your business needs to become unmatched in service and value…
Give your business the boost it needs. Register now – the calls start on May 1st.
WBECS has 1 simple mission in mind:
To dramatically improve the success of business and executive coaches the world over…
I’ll be listening to the calls and I hope you’ll join me!
Warmly,
Janet
3 Ways to Beat the Home Office Blues
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There are many wonderful benefits to working from home including caring for your family and being there when they need you. You’re the boss, so working from a home office often means you can choose your hours. Sick days aren’t an issue and neither is buying a work wardrobe. The list of perks could go on and on.
However, there are a few downsides to working from home. One of the most common and surprising to many work at home folks is the isolation. It can be lonely working by yourself during the day. Even if you have children at home, the lack of adult communication can wear on you.
Here are a few ideas and tips to help you beat the work from home loneliness.
Join an Offline Networking Group
While online networking is fine, it really doesn’t help you feel connected to other individuals. It doesn’t help you stop feeling isolated and lonely. Offline networking, however, can. Join a local group of work at home individuals. There are groups dedicated to work at home people and there are groups dedicated to specific industries.
For example, if you’re a freelance writer, chances are there’s a writer’s group in your area. If you don’t have a local group to join, start one. There are undoubtedly other work at home professionals in your community who would like to connect.
Take a Class
Working from home doesn’t mean you have to stay home 24/7. Get out of the house in the evenings or on the weekends and take a class. It can be a class to help further your business or career. Or it can be a class just for fun. If you have always wanted to learn to knit or kick box, sign up for a class.
Exercise
Exercise helps boost your mental and physical wellbeing. It can help reduce feelings of depression and exercise improves sleep and increases your metabolism and energy levels too. The key to creating an exercise habit is to first find an activity that you enjoy. If you’re feeling isolated at home, consider finding a group class like Zumba or kick boxing. If you enjoy running, consider joining a local running club.
Taking steps to alleviate your feelings of loneliness is only the beginning. To keep those feelings at bay it’s important to create a habit of socializing. It’s easy to fall into a stay at home rut. Find activities that you enjoy, that fuel your mind and body, and schedule them into your life. You’ll be glad you did.
Getting Testimonials for Your Next Book
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You’ve just created a book and you’re ready to publish. Congratulations! The book market is still growing in demand. And publishing is a fantastic way to build your business and make money. However, it’s not enough to simply publish a book. If you want to sell books then you’ll need to do a bit of marketing too. Testimonials may be a key ingredient in your book-marketing strategy.
Before You Publish
Before you publish your book it’s a good idea to gather a few testimonials. These testimonials can be used on your website and sales page. They can also be used inside the cover or on the back of your book to help a prospect justify the buying decision. Collecting testimonials before you publish gives you the opportunity to hand pick the best testimonials to include in your book.
Who Gives the Best Testimonials?
Generally, it’s easier to ask for testimonials from peers and associates. They are the people you know and trust. If you have a sizeable rolodex of people in your industry or complimentary industries then you’re ready to ask the big question, “Will you write a testimonial for my book?”
People in your niche or in complimentary niches make the best testimonials because they add credibility. For example, if you wrote a book about “How to Get Started with CrossFit” and you have a testimonial from a personal trainer, that makes more sense than a testimonial from a home organizer. It adds more credibility to the testimonial.
Asking the Big Question
The best way to ask for a testimonial is via email. This is because it makes it easy for you to attach chapters from your book and sample testimonials. Write the email asking for the testimonial and describe the book and the book’s market. Even though you’re talking to people you know, they will still want to know what’s in it for them. So let them know how they benefit. Usually, the benefit is in the form of a link to their website and including their name on your book and/or website with that link.
It’s also recommended that you include the attachments already mentioned – a few sample chapters and a few sample testimonials. Let them know that they can modify the attached testimonials to meet their needs or they can write their own. Finally, give a time frame that you need the testimonial back from them and thank them for their consideration and their time.
As you gather your testimonials, don’t forget to keep the information organized and to send thank-you’s to each person who responds. These people have contributed to your future success and may continue to play a role in your book sales and marketing. Treat them graciously.
How to Add a Pinterest Button to Your Blog
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Pinterest is the latest social networking craze to take over the country. The concept behind Pinterest is to share photos and images. Users create boards with themes and categories and then “pin” images to their board. It’s a fun site for personal use and also a great way to build your business.
As a business owner you can create a Pinterest account and use it to drive traffic, build awareness, and connect with potential customers. Once you have a Pinterest business profile, it also makes good business sense to integrate Pinterest into your blog or website. That’s as easy as adding a Pinterest button to your website. Here’s how:
Step One: Sign Up for a Pinterest Account
This may actually be the most challenging step because you cannot simply go to Pinterest and sign up. They’re still in Beta, which means that membership is limited. You can sign up in one of two ways. You can get an invitation from someone who is already a member. Once you have that invitation you can sign up immediately. You can also request an invitation from Pinterest. Simply visit Pinterest.com and request a membership.
Sign up with your business email address and create a username that reflects you and/or your business.
Step Two: Add a “Follow” Button
Once you’re logged into Pinterest, click on “About” in the upper right hand corner. You’ll see a drop down menu. Choose “Pin It button”.
You now have a few choices. You can add a “Follow” button to your website. There are three button choices. Choose the one that you like the best, then simply copy the html code and paste it where you want the button to appear on your website.
If you’re adding a “Follow” button to a WordPress blog, get into your editor and add it to the code. Alternatively, if you use widgets then you can simply add a text widget into your sidebar and then cut and paste the code.
Step Three: Add a “Pin This” Button
You can also add a “Pin This” button to your website. This encourages people to add images from your website to their Pinterest boards. It’s a fantastic way to drive traffic and potentially boost your SEO.
There are also some truly wonderful plug-ins for WordPress that allow you to integrate Pinterest into your blog. And as Pinterest continues to grow in popularity, you can bet that there will be more developers creating ways to capitalize on Pinterest.
Pinterest also links to your Twitter and Facebook accounts. Each time you post a pin on Pinterest you can also link that post to your other networking sites. It can be a very powerful tool to grow and build your business.
Check me out on Pinterest, I’d love to connect with you there. No, I am not really marketing my business there (yet!), but I am getting familiar with the site and how people are using it for biz. Mostly, I am enjoying the variety of images. You can even see a few of my own travel photos there on my boards!
Social Media for the Solopreneur
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In the early days of the web, the only ways a marketer could build a connection with customers was either through email or through their website. Then came Web 2.0.
With the advent of social media, the potential depth and breadth of your connection with your customers has become virtually limitless. That is, if you know how to leverage social media properly.
Social media presents an incredible opportunity for the shrewd marketer. How can you use social media to deepen existing connections and attract new customers?
Build Relationships with People Who Don’t Give Email Addresses
It takes a lot for someone to give you their email address. Even top marketers rarely get more than 20% of the people who land on an email capture page to actually give them their email address.
Contrast that with what it takes for someone to “Like” or follow you.
In order to like you, people just need to see a piece of your content that they connect with anywhere on the web, or through their friend’s feed. It doesn’t take much and can be just a passing thought.
The same goes for tweets. If someone sees one tweet of yours that they like, they can decide to follow you.
You can reach a lot of people who wouldn’t have otherwise got in your funnel through social media.
Social Media Is a Two-Way Street
Email marketing and (most) website marketing is a one way street. That means that you’re the one who’s providing the content, while your customers consume the content. You put out emails, they read the emails.
While this can be an effective way to market a product, it’s nowhere near as effective as having a real connection with your customers.
Social media allows you to have a two-way conversation. They can comment on your stories, tweet back, answer polls, like, post on your wall and express their opinions however they like.
This gets people much more invested in your brand and in your product. Someone who just reads your emails versus someone who’s in active discussion with you are two completely different kinds of customers. The latter will vehemently recommend your products, buy from you regularly and share your content, while the former may only purchase every once in a while.
Access to People’s Friends
Finally, social media gives you access to other people’s social networks.
With email marketing, you only get access to one person. On social media, if you make a post or a tweet that someone strongly agrees with, your content will immediately be shared with hundreds of other people. Among those people are more people who might re-share your content.
Social media is a powerful tool for building two-way connections and reaching friends of your customers. If you don’t have a solid social media strategy yet, now’s the time to create one.
