Why are they online anyway?

Many people focus on why they are online and simply assume that most others are doing the same thing.  A recent post on a Facebook group confirmed this fact. 

There was a post on a “friend add me” group stating that this person was unhappy with the group because the friends they added through the group did not join their game application.  For whatever reason they assumed that all the open networkers were going to join in on the game they liked to play and boost their level in the game.  The creator of the group responded with an honest answer “I only offered a group to help you get new friends; I did not promise they would give you more power in your game”.

Others try to convert the social network into a no cost product website or information site and direct people there expecting that they are on this social network to shop or start a business.  Again, most people’s response is to disconnect.

What is missing is the other persons why.  Why are they here? 

Determining their why is a little more complicated then joining an add-me site.  Here are a couple of ways that will help determine their why. 

First create or join a group on the subject and invite your friends to that group.  If the person who was looking to make friends that play the game application had done this they would have a better shot of finding others with the same interest.  

The same is true for a type of product.  Setting up a general group based on the type of product or system is a great way to attract people interested in that type of product.  

In both circumstances expect the competition to join in with their point of view, it is all part of the open online environment. 

The one thing that is great about social networking is your ability to connect with people, a few each day, and find those who share your interests and goals.  It just takes a little time each day and a commitment to meet new people.

Networking ok, but on my terms. (Whats in it for me?)

The selfish personality becomes very evident in a social environment, even if you know little or nothing about a person.  Those who wish to participate in a social network and still wish to act selfish will find their experience a very lonely or ridiculed one.

I received a message from one of the Facebook groups I belong to this morning.  A couple of new members were bashing the group and the admins.  It is clear that they read nothing about the group and attacked the admin for issues which were outlined in the definition of the group.  So you have to question why did they join the group in the first place?

One person was complaining that people from the group were contacting them, even though they joined a networking group.  One of the complainers had an issue with the fact that they did not get the personal results they expected; results that no one offered or promised.  The response to these posts were basically ridiculed from the other members.  

The ability to freely express you opinion on the internet is a great thing.  It allows us to view ideas from many angles.  At the same time it also makes us accountable for our own actions. 

Accountable for our own actions, what a novel concept…

Great series topics on money and kids

MSN has a great series with tips regarding children and money.  There is a lot of stuff here that I try to instill in my boys.  http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Investing/StockInvestingTrading/should-your-kids-know-your-salary-series-home.aspx?GT1=33011

Change by Zig Ziglar

Change

By Zig Ziglar

Change can be good for you.  In today's world of societal and corporate change, job security is a thing of the past.  While we must face the fact that change is inevitable, we should also realize that many changes are positive and benefit both individuals and businesses.

Some things you can change and some you can't.  You cannot change when you were born, where you were born, how you were born or to whom you were born.  It's a fact that if you were born white you will stay white and if you were born black you will remain black.  It's a fact that you cannot change a single event that has already happened.  You can't change one whisper of yesterday.  Tomorrow, however, is an entirely different matter.  If you're willing to change your thinking today, you can change your life and your living to make your tomorrows better and brighter.

Example: As a student at Yazoo City High School in Mississippi, table tennis was one of my favorite sports.  Frankly, I could beat most of my buddies at that particular sport.  Then a new kid came to town and he beat me regularly.  I was using the old three-finger grip; he was using the new "handshake" grip.  I felt that I was playing as well as I could with the grip I was using so I changed to the "handshake" grip.  Initial results were disastrous.  My buddies beat me like a drum.  But after a couple of weeks I started winning and eventually was able to beat the "new kid in town."  I'm convinced there was no way I could have done that without changing my grip, though I actually got worse at first.

Message: Analyze your situation.  Have you gone as far as you can go and are you doing as well as you can with present procedures?  If so, don't be afraid to take two steps back if it will enable you to move three steps forward.  Make those changes and I'll SEE YOU AT THE TOP!  

 Zig Ziglar is a motivator and teacher.  He is the author of 27 books and loved by millions of people world wide for his practical wisdom and his gift of hope. 

Mobile Networking SMS 2.0 vs. Web 3.0

The public social networks are already scrambling to retain their hit numbers in the wake of tons of competition but will Web 3.0 really be the future of networking? 

The buzz being generated by the industry is that Web 3.0 will accommodate the changes in the landscape from Web 2.0’s “join me” environment to the new “follow me” environment.  I wrote about industry plans to create open id’s to help their users stay connected over a number of sites, but is this really what their users are looking for and how will the current rule based social networks handle the data? 

Open ID’s and Web 3.0 in theory would allow your connections to follow you as you travel from site to site.  The hole in the Open ID platform is each of these sites operates on a different platform, allows for different information, and most importantly they all have different limits.  For example I currently can add only 9 new connections on LinkedIn, if I were to invite my 250 members from Facebook to join does LinkedIn now waive their limit?  On Linked in I have slightly over 800 connections; I have an additional 1000 on MySpace so forget trying to invite them over.  If LinkedIn does decide to toss out the limits in the wake of Web 3.0, Facebook’s and MySpace’s platform isn’t even close to LinkedIn’s so the user would be forced to enter a lot of information anyway.  This is a large piece of the sale for Open ID’s.

If I owned one of these giant social websites I would be asking my users why they are looking else where and why are they are trying to bring their network with them? 

I believe the reason people are shifting from site to site isn’t because they have a prettier background.  It is because someone else is driving the ship and they don’t really care about our experience they care about our assisting them in generating a profit.  All of these sites have arbitrary rules that keep changing to meet the needs of the corporation.  At the same time advertising space expands and workspace shrinks in almost direct relation to the size of the user base and hit counts.  More people and more hits equal more advertising potential.  MySpace for example has simply turned into one big advertisement and the site is basically a free-for-all regarding spam.  Facebook shifted to a multipage profile format, which drastically expands their hit count and advertising space.  It is almost like there is a competition for who can figure out how to get the most advertising space on a page and all their user base is trying to do is communicate with their network.

The level of concern about their users experience is very apparent.  Try to file a complaint with any of these sites when you have an issue with its operation or another member.  If you do get a response it is the automated – thank you for contacting us greeting.  Facebook’s solution to a violation report regarding their terms of use is to automatically block your access to the person – problem solved...  I guess that would be more profitable than removing a member who is helping generate a profit. 

I see the social networking company’s biggest problem being the very noticeable shift away from web based communications.  Users are creating their own personal texting networks through mobile communications where there are no corporate rules, no controls, and no advertising blocks cluttering their networks.

Only time will tell if Web 3.0 will save the beast or we are entering the new era of mobile networking through SMS (Short Message Service) 2.0.  My money is on the later.  One plus with Open Id is it will definitely help users transition away from public social networking sites by helping them take their network to the mobile networking SMS  2.0 platform.  Using sites like Twitter and new mobile phones we can have the best of both worlds a SMS text network on our cell phone without the Advertising clutter …  Maybe that is why Twitters member count is growing at lightening speed.

What do you think?

There is an underground information network proliferating across the world.

I recently attended a training conference where there was a discussion about how our method of communications is undergoing radical changes.  Those discussions we were having just two months ago are already obsolete. 

We were sharing information about internet social networks, online texting sites, and SMS cell phone communications.  We heard stories about inflated text counts and excessive phone bills because of thousands of texts.  Well those numbers and communication networks are already yesterday’s news. 

There is an extensive and growing base of non-internet messaging networks being developed by individuals and they are sharing information at the rate of over one thousand messages an hour.  Yes we are talking about over 1 million messages per month being received by a single cell phone. 

You have to wonder how one individual can send an average of 23 texts a minute all day, every day.  They have to sleep, eat, and do something else – Right? Well it is all possible with updated hand held technology, address lists and group texting. 

The implications of this type of networking are both intriguing and unnerving. 

My first indication that something was happening was when I started seeing groups popping up on social networks where individuals were sharing and asking for mobile numbers with strangers.  Groups with thousands of members and all were sharing their cell phone numbers.  I couldn’t fathom why someone would want to share their cell phone number with strangers and have to put up with all kinds of annoying calls.  There wasn’t much information outside of a one liner which said “I need numbers” and then they posted their number.

Yesterday the rest of the story fell into place when two separate incidents happened.  I was chatting with one of my clients and he was telling a story about his daughters who had thousands of incoming texts the month before.  When he asked her about the number which exceeded 20,000 she said that’s nothing I have a friend who had over 1 million incoming texts on the month prior.  While her service was limited to 250 outgoing texts by her parents, she was receiving hundreds of texts at a time as part of her text network.  He asked her friends parents if the story was true and they validated that this teen actually did receive over 1.3 million texts the month before and they actually had to terminate the service and obtain a new number.

At first this was a story and a laugh, but then last night I received a text from one of my teenage cousins who blindly forwarded me a text he received about joining a cell phone singles network.  At the end of the text it said forward this to everyone on your address book and I can see by the message it was forwarded to him.  It all started to come into focus.  They were building an information network through SMS texting that did not require permissions, could not be controlled by any corporate terms of use, and because most cell phone companies pushed unlimited texting for teen phones, it does not matter how many communications are sent or received in an hour.

My next thoughts were regarding the positive and negative implications of this disruptive change. 

A positive affect would be if there was an immediate threat or natural disaster, news would travel through this network and everyone would be aware of the issue within minutes.  Text messages can also include video and pictures.  Important information shared quickly to millions.  People would not be waiting for a news truck to setup, get the story, shoot the video, and then broadcast the event.  (news at 5…)

A negative affect would be that there could be an immediate sharing of information regardless of the content.  Take the recent broadcast email containing distorted facts suggesting that people not purchase gift cards this year from two dozen different chain stores because they are rumored to be “going out of business”.  When in fact just about all of those companies have no intention on going out of business and they are only closing individual stores which are not generating enough revenue or legally reorganizing so they do not have to go out of business.  Today this type of inaccurate email and inaccurate news takes days and weeks to replicate and these companies have time to react and halt the rumors.  Take that same news shared to millions in minutes.  There is no time for the company to react and quell the rumor.

There is no question that there is an information revolution underway and it is impossible for any corporation or government to stop the sharing of information regardless what it is.

Would open networking be a benefit?

As someone who has incorporated social networking into how I build relationships, I understand the limits associated with privatizing my contacts and personal information.  I receive invitations to social networks and support networks almost weekly and the task of replicating my information and sharing contacts is beyond tedium. 

There is good news on the horizon.  Companies like Plaxo, MySpace, Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft along with others are building their platforms based on open information interchange (Open IDs).

What does that mean to an online networker?  It allows us to take our information and contacts along with us to a new network.  Here’s an example.  Some of my contacts on one are also my contacts on LinkedIn, Facebook, DIGG, Plaxo, or UNYK.  Each time I am invited to a new network I have to enter all of my personal information again on that network.  I then have to invite everyone from my networks to join me on that service.  In an open environment all I would have to do is import my date through my Open ID.  Everyone in my network could also easily add themselves on the new network.

Information and status changes happen automatically across networks.  Even a post like this which I have to copy and paste four times to share with all of my networks can be completed as one post on my open network. 

For more information on this listen to the Connection show podcast featuring John McCrea who is Vice President at Plaxo: http://blogs.theaustralian.news.com.au/wiresandlights/index.php/australian-it/comments/johnmccrea/

What do you think?  Would Open IDs be a help?

Digital Books – Worthy or worthless?

Mobile technology is springing up everywhere and these new devices are allowing us to take our entertainment where ever we go. Many of these new devices are a real benefit to our life while others simply appear to be a last ditch effort to keep an industry from changing. I see the new digital book devices as one of these efforts to cling to the past.

Just last week my son and I were disagreeing on the value of this type of technology for the newspaper industry. Surprisingly he was in favor of a digital newspaper while I failed to see the value. I felt the local newspapers were missing the point that paper print was dying and they needed to adjust their subscriptions to allow customers to receive their local news online from devices they already had right in their homes. While he felt it would be better to keep the news in the same format it is today just deliver it on an electronic handheld device that is refreshed everyday.

Why would we purchase one of these $400 devices?

Verizon Storm Launch – Brilliant or botched

Regardless what actually happened Verizon and Vodafone are still reeling from the launch of the new Storm and there is a lesson for all of us on prelaunch marketing.

The long awaited launch of the new Blackberry Storm happened on November 21, 2008 to lines of people, even an altercation. Demand for the product actually crashed the website and order systems for several hours. There are a dozen different stories regarding what happened and all Verizon can tell their customers is “sorry.”

I have been following the marketing campaign for several months. Verizon used traditional advertising to market the product along with a unique marketing approach which was to tie all of their advertising to a website with a picture of the back of a product. There were no listed features or benefits. Almost no information was shared about the product outside of rumors until two weeks before the launch.

There was two solid months of curiosity and anticipation before the actual launch of a product that only a few saw, touched, or knew much about. That campaign was based on a website, a few emails, and online videos where you heard great things and only saw the back of the product.

What can we take away from this?
- Curiosity is a very strong emotion and curiosity satisfied is opportunity lost. Using a campaign about the next generation of phone and keeping the details secret for months created pent up curiosity for thousands.
- Telling everyone you have plenty of stock when you are not sure of demand is not a good idea. This is what sparked the altercation outside one store when they announced after just one hour that they were out of stock to a hundred people that waited overnight for a phone.
- Lastly, use of the internet, opt-in lists, short videos are all very affective tools to promote a product and keep your prospective customer engaged.

Any thoughts?

What happened to fast food?

This is a little off topic for my blog but reflects the current level of customer service in the US. I went to one of the world famous fast food places today. I am not going to mention any names but it is the one with the yellow M looking logo.

It all started this morning when I ran out of the house to a board meeting forgot my work keys and my healthy choice lunch. So in true American fashion I ran out and grabbed the next best replacement meal which is a fast food double burger, fries and a soda.

Well if you have been to one of these fast food places lately they have become anything but fast. Stopping at 1:30 PM I figured the lunch wave was just about over. Wrong, I think people were still there from the 12:00 rush. There was a line at the drive-thru so I went in and there was a line at the counter.

Immediately I knew this was going to be a problem. Standing there waiting to place my order I was watching the production line, or should I say bottle neck behind the counter. There were plenty of people standing around waiting to distribute food. Two people taking orders and ringing two people waiting to distribute food and one person grabbing drinks. In addition there were the regular people who were there in employee outfits but doing nothing more than walking back and forth. Back behind line of waiting people there was one person assembling sandwiches to order. Hmmm, could that be the issue?

I am no mathematician but if you have one person filling orders for two lines of customers and everything is made to order it stands to reason there may be a delay built in somewhere in that process. As I watch my order being prepared, a milk shake, I ordered for a business associate, was already sitting on the counter melting because the person getting drinks for the front had plenty of time to prepare. My fries which were already placed in the bag were getting cold and the entire process was at a stand still waiting for the one poor sole in the process with the biggest job.

During this whole process there was a win for the company, the gentlemen behind me only ordered a small coffee so he was able to get served and be on his way because the drink person had literally nothing to do anyway with both lines halted.

During this ordeal I was trying to come up with a reason why this company who built its reputation on delivering fast hot food moved away from that model to now deliver slow cold food.

I thought it could be because they were making your food to order and could be more flexible and fresher, but that made no sense because they precook everything and place the food in steam trays so it isn’t fresher and their menu really does not provide for flexibility when you order number 1 through 6. It would make more sense to let the odd person who wanted to vary the burger wait for a few minutes and get everyone else out fast with hot food.

Then I thought it could reduce waste, but when you have lines of people waiting to purchase, at lunch and dinner time how much could be sitting around and need to be thrown away. Again 1 – 6, not a wide range of choices here.

My last thought was to save money – cutting back on preparation staff is a cost savings, but then I saw that mass of people in front of the counter holding food that was either getting cold or melting waiting for the only person in the place actually working hard and I was thinking there goes quality and with it customer so that doesn’t make sense.

I finally figured it out – Corporate thinking. Then it all made sense. There were a bunch of leaders all running around trying to find things to keep the worker-bee busy which creates a bottle neck. So then the leaders have to come up with different ways to resolve the bottle neck. This in turn keeps all of the leader’s busy and employed running in circles trying to make the one worker more productive. After a while they decide that they need to outsource the job and get it done for less because their one worker can’t keep up with demand.

So watch for the next improvement where by your finished meal is shipped in from a country where the pay is significantly less and the employees do not speak our language. Your #1 may end up being #2 and your containers may be painted with lead because it is cheaper and shinier. But hay that is progress…

Is social networking having an impact?

Over the last few months I have been doing hands on research to see what affect social networking can have on a candidate running for election.

I approached a friend, who decided to run for office for the first time and offered to manage her website and establish social networking sites.

Some positives for the experiment and negatives for the candidate:

• She was relatively unknown in city, small business women who had a few book keeping accounts and worked part time.
• She had never run for office before.
• She was running against another first timer, but his family was well known in the city.
• She was running as a Republican in what was predicted to be an election which would be dominated by the Democratic Party.

The results are now history…

• She already had a website so I updated the format and added widgets to make it sticky (provide a reason for people to return)
• Added a poll to involve guests
• We placed recent updates on the main page to alert visitors of changes
• Included pictures of events

I also created a social networking site on Facebook and created a Twitter Account. The sites were updated at least three times a week to keep them fresh and current.

The results were amazing. Although she lost as a result of the state wide democratic sweep her district had one of the closest races for state representative. All three republican candidates lost the election to their democratic competition in her city. Here is how the results played out: District 22: 30 point spread, District 77: 11 point spread, District 79: 49 point spread. Yes you guessed it my candidate was in district 77 and the only candidate with a website and incorporating social networking tools.

My experiment demonstrated that when you add social networking tools to what you are doing there will be an impact on the results. It is easier for people to find, research, and stay connected with you.

Staying on top

Just about every ISP and web hosting company in the world has turned into Search Engine Optimizers (SEO) overnight and they are promoting the Holly Grail of business – top listings on search engines.

Is this even possible?

Since generally there are only 10-15 listings on the first page of a search engine list, while it is possible, it is not probable. There are millions of websites, thousands of competing pages, and now an SEO on every corner exposing your website based on - wait this is the one I like best - unpublished search engine rules that are constantly changing to keep your page from getting top billing unless it is the most relevant for the search based on those unpublished rules.

Search engine companies like Google are constantly changing the rules to keep companies from getting that top bill which equates to free advertising. Think about it, if you are the top spot, just after their paid advertisements what are the chances you will get a hit? Probably close to 99%. If that is the case then why would someone pay to advertise with them just to get listed a couple a head of you?

One of my clients just grabbed the bate and went with an SEO that guaranteed a first page listing on Google. Why not, it was a guarantee. He ended up on page 3. Not bad, but not what was pitched. When he complained that they did not deliver on their guarantee, he was told it would be up to 3 years before he moved up on the list. 3 years? By then the site will have to be redesigned and he will be starting all over.

First of all is a search engine the real answer or just part of the plan?

It is great to get hits based on a search engine but if you are selling a product or service that can be purchased locally then chances are pretty good those hits will only translate into enhancing the viewers knowledge of the industry and pricing. Why would the viewer buy from you? They don’t know you or your company. You have no credibility with them.

Yes - you can get noticed and create sales regardless of your product or industry.

The real answer is to Promote, Promote, Promote. Get recognized as someone who knows the industry, which will provide the drive for people to visit your website and purchase regardless what your product is.

Products do not sell because they are the best, the cheapest, or even the first to market. They sell because they filled a need and the person who purchased them believes they received value from someone they trusted.

I am not discounting that there are ways to get your website noticed and SEO’s can help you accomplish that. Just avoid the hype and do not get duped into believing that unpaid advertising on a search engine is guaranteed to create a drastic shift in revenue. Unless you are in a pay-per-click environment, which most of us are not.

Words of Wisdom

Words of wisdom I wanted to share:

"There comes a time in everyone's career when you need a new challenge, a new opportunity. You realize that your professional development and your future depend on your willingness to step out of your comfort zone and follow a different path. When the time has come for you to leave... make sure it is for the right reasons. Leave with class, leave with gratitude, leave a legacy!" - Doyle Slayton

Your connected to a million people in social networks - now what?

I woke up this morning to over 100 new connections in LinkedIn, one of the most difficult websites to build new members. Wow what a great feeling to wake up and be connected to over 100 new people overnight, better yet these new connections opened me up to over 10,000 others that I can more easily connect with since the beginning of August.

A seemingly endless supply of new people, just about all entrepreneurs but without a plan they are just names, pictures, and email addresses. Half the time when someone accepts my invitation I receive nothing back. I always respond I always expose myself to them a second time.

I have just added a group on linked in called The Power of Five. I will be inviting my now over 200 connections to join my group. This will be another exposure.

The group is linked to a social network I just set-up so I can add them to a private social network just for this group. Another exposure to me and my work.

You get the picture. They keep seeing Mike and what I do over and over and over. Marketing by exposures, not spamming.

This is how every company in the world advertises their product. They don't slam their product on the screen and say check this out you will like it. They tell you what it does over and over.

In the world of social networking, YOU are the first product your contact must accept before they will ever listen to your product or company pitch.

Apple's iPhone - Tool or Toy?

I have been tracking the iPhone for some time because it promised to be the next generation of technology which would allow business people to be more mobile (the true road warrior). It has been interesting watching how the phones were being used and why these phones were being purchased. While the phones were loaded with great features that was touted as the beginning of a true hand held office most of the purchasers used them for little more than their iPod and phone functions. With a minimum data contract of $30 per month that was a hefty price to pay for an add on that was never used. It appeared from industry reports that at least half were purchasing simply to have the latest gadget.

While the first iPhone only resulted in a minor impact financially on the entire industry, it did raise the feature bar and competitors clamored for similar or better functionality as the large carriers worried that the next generation of these gadgets could or would result in a huge impact in their business. There is no question that we are not far away from having all of the features and functionality we need to stay connected, give presentations, take orders and generally do business right from the palm of our hand.

Why was the first iPhone not the hit Apple predicted?

While the first iPhones release did ok selling 22 million¹ units worldwide between September 30, 2007 and December 29, 2007 according to their website, it did not create the industry buzz that Apple had hoped for and at the time there were no out of inventory issues. It was a large disappointment for those who waited hours in line worried that they would not be able to get their hands on the highly publicized gadget, only to find a few others waiting in line with them and the initial boom over and done within one hour in most retail locations and plenty of iPhones left to go around. No one really pointed their finger at why. It could have been the single carrier AT&T who was already battling for market share held by Sprint and Verizon, the cost of the service, or the high initial release price of the actual device. The fact that Apple dropped the price within the first six months was a clear indication that price was an issue with consumers, but even at this new price point iPhone's were not flying off the shelf.

Apple iPhone 3G is creating the buzz, but maybe not the buzz Apple hoped for...

The recent release of the iPhone 3G was a different story. With Apple reporting over 1 million units² sold the first day and an almost instant out of stock situation which is creating industry buzz. This time however there is a different buzz and that is the buzz associated with release problems. This next generation iPhone allows users to purchase and download compatible applications expanding the capabilities of the original iPhone offering. But is this a good thing? As we discussed earlier this could bring the device closer to being the holly grail of business tools everyone dreams of but this new flexibility seems to come with a high price tag - dead iPhones. Yes, you guessed it, not all of this software works as planned on the new iPhones and worse some of these releases seem to overwrite the basic phone functions and users are complaining that a software install is leaving the phone inoperable.

The buzz I am finding on message boards, follow me sites like Twitter.com, and personal blogs is more about dissatisfaction with customer support for both companies, AT&T and Apple. People reporting extended wait times for service, complaining about the speed and functionality vs. expense of the data service, and reporting less than positive comments about downloaded applications that either do not work, are not as functional as advertised, or damaged the phone.

It will be interesting over the next couple of months how this will turn out.

So now you decide, is the iPhone a tool or toy? With over 50% of these devices being used for music and gaming I say high tech Toy. Please take my readers poll on this page and let me know how you feel.

¹ Source http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2008/01/22results.html
² Source http://www.apple.com/pr/pr/library/2008/07/14iphone.html

Five ways to double your exposure online starting today (The Power of Five System)

Already online with millions of other people on a social network but you feel like no one knows you are there? Chances are they don't. The problem is you are on a site with millions of other people so you have to put yourself out there over and over to get attention.

Here are five easy tips to help you double your exposure starting today:

• Respond to every new friend connection, even if you initiated it. A simple thank you and check out my site is a second contact and possibly another hit on your page or website.
• Post and respond to online Q & A's, forums and group posts. Positive, Negative or controversial make sure the people reading those links can see a your page. Social Networks already provide this link for you.
• Post a blog several times a week, even if it is about your day. Keep in mind the boss could see your page so you should be careful what you say about your significant other... But seriously this is great exposure as a blog gets picked up by search engines over time. As with friend requests, respond to new comments on your blog.
  
• Add your social network link or website link to your email signature. Instead of just closing an email with your name and phone number add a social contact site or website. If that email is forwarded so is your link.
• Use sharing sites like DIGG , del.icio.us and Twitter to gain additional exposure. These sites help you gain exposure by putting you in front of more people.

Five ways to improve your profile to promote yourself online (The Power of Five System)

Five ways to improve your profile to promote yourself online (The Power of Five System):

• Place a picture of yourself on your profile. Add pictures of trips, events, activities, family. People connect better with people than products. The most successful sales and business people got there by connecting and networking with people.
• Your About should be about you not about what you want people to do. Add your background, history, experience, resume.
• Include your interests, books, movies, TV, etc. These are generally links and are used as part of the search function. Keep this up to date. It will help people connect with you.
• Set up your top friends with top friends. It is great if authors and famous people accepted your friend invitation but they accept everyone's friend invitation. They should not be in your top friends list since you probably do not know them personally.
• Create a BLOG which is real. The word blog stands for online log (personal journal). You can write about anything, but this is not a place to further define your business or products.

In conclusion, setting up your profile as a billboard for your business and then expecting real people, who do not know you, to connect with who you are and what you do will rarely happen. If you want to sell this way then you need to create a big budget and purchase advertising, not invite people to meet you and then switch up and try to hook them into a sales advertisement.

Ran one to many lights?

How do you know when being that last car through the red light happened one too many times?

Answer at the end of this post...

It simply amazes me the risks that people take in their lives with their valuables. How little regard they have for the items of most value and what high regard they have for their items of least value.

What is truly mind boggling is these same folks will risk their entire existence to save a couple of minutes at a stop light, but won't risk a couple of hundred dollars and a few hours a week to never have to rush any place ever again.

Background on this article: It has always amazed me how much risk people take with themselves and their vehicle. They race around to save five minutes, cutting off traffic and running red lights with the most important and expensive tool they own. Without there car they probably can't easily get to work to pay their bills and worse the automobile has been shown to be the leading cause of death in this country. I was heading back home this afternoon and as my light turned green I watched as that one last car ran the red light crossing traffic so not to have to wait a couple of minutes for the next light change.

The irony is his vehicle already had front end damage where he had appeared to have performed this time saving stunt one too many times before.

This picture says it all...

Hmmm No time savings here

Great Expectation

Wednesday evening my family and I sat down for a nice family dinner and the conversation transitioned to a recent movie release which everyone at the table had already viewed except for me. The conversation started with each declaring the movie one of the best they had ever seen and informing me that I should take the time to view it in the movies.

Without going into a lot of detail, not to spoil it for me, they started to compare different scenes of the movie which had the most impact on them. The longer they discussed the movie the conversation strangely transitioned what what they loved about the movie to what they did not like. At the same time the movie went from great to good. One commented to another that a scene was rather odd to them and another said they kept thinking the movie was going to end but then would continue on.

By the end of the conversation they found that they shared opinions and then one came up with the conclusion that there was so much hype surrounding the movie before it was released they already had the pre-conceived opinion that this was going to be the best movie of the year, maybe of all time. After seeing the movie and comparing opinions with each other they felt differently which brought the actual movie down a couple of notches on their best ever scale.

While each had things about the movie they did not like they fell back on the hype which was this was one of the greatest movies of all time. Even though they shared opinions like the movie could have been shorter, they kept them quiet not to go against what they felt was popular opinion.

We see this in business all the time. We wonder why a vehicle, with a lower safety rating and fewer features sells better. Why people eat at a restaurant which serves lower quality food but advertises everywhere, or spends twice as much for a caffeinated confection at the "in" coffee place.

It is all about the buzz. It is all about the perception that what they are offering is better, in style, popular.

How can you make your company and product fit this bill?

What does your conversation sound like to them?

We often get caught up in our own excitement and our interest in trying to impress the prospect that we forget that they are the one who has to buy into what we are doing.

When we start talking about what we are doing in the business and how the business is going to change our lives and our prospect loses focus and never connects what their part in your master plan. Your conversation comes across more like a news report than an invitation.

It is critical that you share your excitement but more important that you do it in a way that keeps your prospect connected.

Here are five ways to keep your prospects interest and build their dream:

• Share your story and then ask for theirs. What are their dreams? If the prospect can't come up with something ask for specifics.

  Would you like to:
  - quit your job?
  - upgrade your home or car?
  - take Vacations?
  - have money for retirement? have more time freedom?
  

• When you present details about the product or company ask what they like or dislike about what they just heard.

• Obtain important details like:
  - How soon would they be looking to get involved,
  - Would there be anyone else involved in the decision process,
  - how much additional income would allow them to live comfortably each month.

• Ask pointed questions about their current situation. What do they like and dislike about what they are doing today. Do they like their boss, benefits, retirement, co-workers
  

• Last suggestion is help them dream. Try something like: "If I can show you a way to help you get _________ and change ___________ and you could do it without without risking what you have today would you be interested?"
  

Your goal should be to keep your prospect talking more than 50% of the time. This is also a way to qualify your prospect. If they are open and sharing then you know this is someone you can work with and will be good working with others.

Five Steps to connect with people online (The Power of Five System)

The biggest mistake networkers make is trying to make one contact and close a sale online. It is one thing if someone finds your site, gets excited, and orders, it is a completely different dynamic when you contact a prospect and try to hard sell them on you and your product before they get to know who you are.

We have found the following to be effective ways to find and qualify new prospects online:

1. Search - Use the power of the internet to search for people with like interests. Those interests do not have to relate to your business in any way. The search should be based on a conversation starter and not a sales pitch.
2. Invite - Invite that person to be a friend, contact, etc. Many sites allow you to invite with a message, which can help you get a better result on your invites. Let them know why or how you found them.
3. Connect - Once your prospect accepts your friend request start a conversation
4. Qualify - Remain in control of the conversation by asking questions which will result in specific answers. Is this person right for your business and someone you want to work with?
5. Follow-up - Keep your contacts close. When you make a contact use the philosophy that: Some will, some won't, but today is just one day. Today may not be the best day for someone to decide to join your company or purchase your product. You never know when the right time will be for this person to take a second look at your business. The biggest mistake in marketing is not following up on past contacts. Each new qualified contact should be treated like an uncut diamond.

Michael Zimmer is the author of the Power of Five System, 5 lessons every Entrepreneur should know about building a Multi-Million Dollar Network.

Did you give them a chance? (Five ways to get results for your efforts - The Power of Five)

Something that happened to me personally inspired this thought. I was headed off to a phone conference, met with my client who scheduled the call only to find out I was an hour early. I rushed out for nothing because I did not spend the time to read the email through. The email said 9:00 AM Central time, not 9:00 AM Eastern time. In my rush to get to the next thing I glazed over the email, scheduled the call in my planner and moved on. The client was shocked to see me an hour before the meeting and thought I was there for another reason.

If you are having an issue getting prospects to meet with you chances are you or they are doing the same thing. Rushing to get onto the next thing, whatever it is and not properly sharing or receiving the message. Help your prospect make an informed decision.

Here are a 5 ways to help you avoid rushing people to a decision:

• Approach with excitement, not with details.
• Invite them to a meeting, one-on-one, phone, web-conference. Invite without losing control: "If I set up a time for us to meet are you serious enough to attend? This is serious and I can't waste time."
• Confirm your appointment - Confirm with conviction: (Just like your doctor): "I am following up on our meeting tomorrow. Are you still planning to attend ? My schedule is filling up (conference call is filling up) and if you cancel I am not sure when I can get you back in, it will probably be a couple of weeks."
• Never answer questions before your meeting. Regardless what the question is, let them know that all of their questions will be answered when you meet. You can give them many reasons for this but the best ones are: You have a partner and they can better answer the questions or They have to see it for themselves, you don't want to ruin it for them, etc.
• Work with your upline, sideline, downline. Having a second person who is also involved with the business available, even if it is over the phone or internet, helps the person see that this is more than they thought.

Michael Zimmer is the author of the Power of Five System, 5 lessons every Entrepreneur should know about building a Multi-Million Dollar Network.

How do you know you want me in your business?

We talk about how we are in our own business, but do we treat this like it is a business or a quick product sale?

We are constantly trying to recruit everyone and anyone and then we wonder why most people are not interested.

The reason is simple, people want what is just outside of their reach. They want to be involved with something special. They want to learn and grow.

If you are offering something that anyone can do and anyone can get involved in, then why would anyone want to be part of it?

This is the real secret to enrolling new people quickly: Make it special, make it limited, and stop trying to recruit just anyone. Honestly, what you are offering is a new life, a better life, a better product, and a way out. You are offering someone unlimited income and time freedom.

Treat this business like you are cutting checks for a billion dollars to each person who you enroll. Would you just give your money away to anyone?

Would you qualify that person to ensure that they are worthy of your billion dollars before you cut the check?

The Real Secret

There is only one secret to business and it is making contact with people and forming relationships with those people. If you are not social and not willing to change then you can not survive in direct sales. I don't care what system you use. Being successful in this or any business is more about forming relationships and less about selling DVD's, products, leads, or systems.

• It doesn't matter that 90% or more quit, in fact it forces companies to pay better. If the compensation plan is good then all you need is 5 personally sponsored people working the duplication model to create substantial income.
• It doesn't matter if your family or friends are contacted. Why would you not share what you are doing with the people you love and hang out with.
• Top leaders are not harboring a secret way of doing the business. It makes no sense that they would not teach you to build the business the same way they do so you create income. After all they share your income so of course they want you to be successful.

If someone is telling you to post an advertisement or promote a system on a social network to be successful they are steering you down a dead end path. Chances are you will find little or no success and in a few weeks you will be out of business.

If you are truly interested in being successful in business then look for a real product, a reputable company, and a team of people willing to help you learn the business.

You do not need to buy leads, buy special programs, or invest big money in websites. Chances are you already own everything you need if you are viewing this message - your voice, a phone, and a computer.

Five ways to attract new people to your business that cost next to nothing

Five ways to attract new people to your business that cost next to nothing to use – The power of Five System:

• Person to Person invite – Personal referrals are the most powerful way to attract a new person. People want to connect with people, not products or services. Make a connection by inviting the person out for coffee or someplace social before you begin to speak about your product or business.
• Social Networking – Use the power of online social networks to attract new people. You are searching for a variety of new prospects that have like interests. Avoid focusing on one group and avoid only attempting to attract other people already in your industry.
• Blogging/forums/Email – Attract people to you by sharing your message. It doesn’t matter what you write as long as it is entertaining and engaging. Placing an advertisement on a blog site is not blogging. Express yourself.
• Conference Calls/Live Events – Put the power of having partners to work for you in building your business. Information coming from other people also involved in your business builds credibility for your business.
• Fishbowl Leads - Use a plastic fish bowl or other container to collect business card leads at restaurants, health clubs, and stores. Offer some form of monthly prize like a free lunch from the establishment or a special discount. Offer to share the leads and split the cost of the monthly prize for an inexpensive or free-of-charge lead opportunity.

The Power of Five System demonstrates ways to turn a network of five people into a substantial monthly income. The system was designed by Michael Zimmer who is a business and marketing consultant with over 20 years experience. For more information about The Power of Five System he can be contacted directly at mjzimmer@takingmeglobal.com.

21 ways to make your website or blog sticky

I just found this great blog post on 21 ways to make your website or blog sticky (keep 'em coming back).

Worth the read: http://www.problogger.net/archives/2008/07/18/21-ways-to-make-your-blog-or-website-sticky/

The difference between good and great

The attached link was shared with me a couple of times but is always worth watching another time. The 212 the Extra Degree movie is a powerful message which is worth sharing over and over. http://www.212movie.com/

Want to get noticed?

Travel like a rock star – Try Twitter.com. Twitter lets you follow people and people follow you. What better way to promote yourself then let people know what you are doing, what you are working on, and where you are going?

Do lead systems work?

There are dozens of lead generation systems and dozens of ways to obtain leads. The bottom line on leads and lead systems is they are a great way of bringing people to your door. If you are seeing results without leads but need to bring more people your way then a good lead system can increase your results.

If you are not currently seeing results without a lead system there are a few things you should consider before buying into a lead system:

• Systems can be expensive. We have found fresh leads costing between $2 and $30 each.
• Leads are generally shared with 2 or more other people immediately from different companies so your competition is knocking on the same door at the same time.
• While the lead company tries to sell a lead as a warm contact, they are truly strangers in your cold market.

Here are a few ways we have found will help when working with leads:

• Make your contact as if you are planning to have a long term relationship with this new person. This means do not approach the call like they are a hot molecule and ready to sign. If your lead gets the impression that you are desperate to get them into your business chances are they will shy away. You are looking to connect with your prospect and build trust.
• Take the lead in your call and remain in control. Don't let your prospect assume control for one second. If they try to take control and you do not snap it back they will get the impression that you are not someone that will help them.
• Questions and concerns raised by your lead during conversation are good you want questions. However you do not want to answer their questions, you want them answering your questions. Let them know there will be a time for there questions after they have seen the material. Generally people are looking for a quick answer that they can turn into an excuse.
• If the person says no today or if you completely botched the call, do not throw away that lead. Set up a contact schedule 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, and 1 year later. You paid a lot for the lead and you want first shot at signing this person. We have watched leaders move to the top of the pay plan purchasing old leads and signing people that others contacted once and threw away.

Shopping Cart Friends

I have been studying social networking since 2005 and it is interesting to watch how and why people use social networking sites. Some use them to find friendship from a remote location, others to stay connected with friends who are in walking distance. Many use these sites to connect with people in an attempt to build their business. All valid uses if you can make them work.

As a business person I spend most of my time watching how people use social networks in an attempt to build their business. Most people struggle using these sites to connect people to their business and this is where I like to focus my research.

This morning while looking at the business forum MLM thread on MySpace I saw two recent posts which had little to do with the forum or the purpose of the thread. One from someone who looked oddly like an alien and another from someone with no picture at all. Both people posted comments recommending that you check out their site business site. I have been watching what I call “shopping cart” posts on social networks for a couple of years.

Why do I call them “shopping cart” posts? Because the people posting these messages are not really looking to connect with the people they are messaging, they are looking sell them a product, service, or business – i.e. online shopping cart. I also call these hit and run posts. The reason these posts exist is generally because the person joined something that they really did not understand and were told go tell people and that is exactly what they feel they are doing sharing the story.

Many of these folks are added to my friends or to my favorite lists and I check back from time to time. Generally within 3 months their page no longer contains any information about the product they were trying to sell or in the case of the alien the page will be deleted or abandoned.

If all you are doing is generating what other people view as noise are you really telling a story? The answer is no and that is why these people are gone in a short time. I assume they get little or no results have no place to turn and drop out. Since they are generally anonymous sites it is impossible to follow up to get a real answer. Having tried it myself I understand completely what they experienced which was a combination of angry replies, ignored messages, and other marketers trying to recruit me to their business.

It is important to remember that people generally do things with friends and family; they do business with people they meet and like or trust. A shopping cart post on a social networking site from an anonymous stranger meets neither of these criteria.

The ignorance of arrogance

We can learn many things from Asian culture and one I learned early in my life was not to be too arrogant. No matter how much you know, someone always knows more. No matter how much you do not know, someone always knows less.

Even when you have become a master, you must remain a student.

Beyond the Hook

When distributors complain to me about building their business I ask what their system is and generally I get back:

“My mentor told me that all I have to do is Invite, present, and enroll”.

I say

“Ok that in the front end of the system but then what?”

Next I get the

“Oh we plug them into the system. We have this weekly opportunity call and training call as well as an online presentation. Some leaders are actually doing a webinars or hotel meetings.”

I then ask how many of your people are on these calls or events each week and I receive the blank look.

This is when they realize that the system really isn’t a system at all at least one that is not working for them. It is an invitation (the hook) and a presentation which works great if you are an accomplished person at inviting.

Well it is a system; I call it the Catch and Release system. Just like in sport fishing they are catching prospects, holding them up for the picture and then releasing them back into the pond hoping that enough of them survive and stick around.

What is the reality of making this type of system work? Well it works about 5% of the time. We know this because most successful leaders teach this system and the industry has a 95% attrition rate.

So now you want to know why leaders teach their people to do business this way, right?

The answer is this is this is the only way they know and it worked for them 20 years ago and again 10 years ago and it is working for them again now. They learned how to become an expert at "invite and present systems" and became accustomed to only keeping the trophy fish.

If something only works 5% of the time is that really a system?

You have to understand that before the year 2000 it was nearly impossible to do what it took to connect with everyone in your group on a weekly basis so this was the only practical way to do the business. You could not be in all places at all times like you can today. Look at this blog. I can post it now and everyone on my team can read it when it is convenient to them. In fact these systems are still being perfected but we are at a point where they are now practical and widely available.

Today we have entirely new ways to fill in the gaps in that system and connect our people to our leaders 24/7/365. Our new systems make it possible for our younger leaders to catch those older leaders and blow right by them using technology that was not possible when they built these “catch and release” systems.

The really big news is the older leaders don't really understand how to make these systems work so this is creating huge opportunities for new leaders to jump in and capture the 95% that they toss back.

Who is teaching people how to build these new systems?

We do. We already have an entire system in place:

• An online training system which runs for 1 year,
• this blog,
• social networking tools and much more

When used correctly, these tools fill in the empty spaces and provide a number of other ways to introduce prospects and keep them connected. A system is a system when it teaches you how to continue to function after you have gone through your circle of friends and also provides your prospects with several ways to stay connected both online and offline so they have access to the latest training, product information and what is working.

It is no wonder that our company has developed more millionaires then any other company in history. One of the ways we do it is by constantly reinventing ourselves…

Energy vs. Wealth Equation – which side are you on?

The Wealth Energy Equation states that when energy costs change so does wealth, but this equation does not create the same results for everyone. For most people when the cost of energy increases their wealth decreases. We are seeing this today as a result of the recent energy crisis.

There are other companies that do better during depressed economic times – they are called recession proof industries. Supermarkets, Hospitals, and other industries which are linked to our survival are recession proof industries.

For the rest when the cost of energy goes up so does their wealth. Clearly companies involved in the sale of energy are experiencing exponential growth in wealth. There are other companies which are called recession friendly companies.

So during times of economic down turns it makes sense to look for ways to switch to an industry that is either recession proof or recession friendly.

One of those industries which is recession friendly is network marketing. During economic down turns like we are experiencing right now network marketing is a way for someone to create secondary income and therefore more people join in times like we are experiencing and more people become economically stable and economically secure.

What is more important is those who take action during those tough times, most just to get by, have more opportunity to emerge once we are economically stable with a monthly recurring income for an extended number of years regardless how much effort they put into their business when the economy stabilizes. People who took advantage of building a secondary income during the 70’s when we are in the worst recession since the depression and again in the late 80’s when the housing market collapsed were able to walk away from both of those economic recessions with a sustained income for many years to come because they had such a large group volume that people continued to purchase month after month and year after year.

Just a thought?

If you are running around in circles is that considered taking action?

The Law of Opposites

We are taught about the law of opposites in school with two magnets. It is impossible to put the same poles of two magnets together. You can use the law of opposites and to spin a motor. You can also use the law of opposites to spin a conversation to keep your prospect engaged.

Next time you are in a conversation see if you can pick out how many times opposites are use by someone else in your conversation. People generally do not like to be with other people that blindly agree with them for very long. When someone turns negative, try giving them a negative right back and see if it changes their position.

Understanding this law and how people react to positive and negative statements can really help you in conversations turn things around quickly. First, do not attempt these with negative or abusive people, these people will sap your energy and probably will never be successful in any business.

Here is a real life example:

• You: “I just joined this exciting new company and I thought of you first. I would like to show you what I am doing and see if it works for you.”

• Them: “No these companies are just a rip off, they don’t work.”

• You: “I just invited you to look at an opportunity with a billion dollar company, on its way to 3 billion dollars in what is currently estimated to be a 20 billion dollar industry. I understand this is probably not the right time for you to be looking at a business.”

I sent out positive and they responded negative. This is expected and actually welcome. I then follow their negative statement with the complete opposite positive message to invoke a response, which would be negative if I stopped here. So then I threw in my own negative response so they would feel compelled to be positive. You will get a positive response about 80% of the time, but it may not be the positive response that gets you the sale or a new distributor. If the person responds negatively again then they are generally negative and if they did join would bring down your group.

The key is to keep your prospects mind open and keep them engaged in your conversation. If you throw in the towel when they say “No” the first time your success rate will fall measurably in the negative column.

I said earlier that the negative statement was welcomed. This is because it is a sign that I can engage this person and apply the law of opposites to keep this person listening to my message. Generally people who are interested stay and question what you are saying which is how we create conversation. People who are not interested in a conversation simply walk away.

By the way this technique works online as well as in person.

With change comes opportunity

How many times have you heard the saying change creates opportunity? Right now there is one of the largest opportunities to capitalize on change that has existed in history. The world is in the early stages of changing the way we socialize and meet people.

The teenagers understand it completely spending hours in front of the computer sharing experiences and creating relationships with people around the world. The twenty plus group use social networks, but are not tied in as completely as the generation right behind them.

The real opportunity is with the over 30 crowd. This opportunity goes far beyond anti-aging skincare and health care products. Forget about getting paid pennies on a link referral. It really doesn’t matter what you are marketing there is a group of people that have no idea how to get to it or how to capitalize on it.

So let’s talk about how companies are missing the mark. They are either teaching distributors how to attract people that are already in a social network, or how to direct people to a presentation on the internet.

Few are teaching people how to convert the non-technical masses into internet socialites. The big money will be made in this industry by companies that establish social networks that connect leaders to distributors. By sharing education, establish connections and relationships to other distributor also working in your company and industry will by the tie that binds people together and drastically reduces attrition.

Watch our broadcast on Thursday night to learn more about this subject. Thursday at 9:00 PM EST (6 PM PST) on uStream.TV. http://www.ustream.tv/mybroadcasts/info/takingmeglobal's-business-webcast

Is your online system failing?

The internet is a huge, untapped, ever changing, resource for marketing. The big multi-billion dollar companies have yet to figure it out so don’t feel like you are alone.

But you have one advantage they do not, and that is direct contact and the drive to make it happen. Joe or Jane corporate America doesn’t care if the company figures it out or not as long as they keep getting paid. They won’t care until the carpet is pulled out from under them and then they will all scurry around looking for a way to buy in and solve their economic woes.

This is a huge opportunity for the small guy to jump in and cash in. So with all this opportunity why is it that people are unable to convert contacts into results? The answer is so simple you are going to laugh. They are all being taught to open there store in the same places, they are all sending out advertisements and market to the same people, and marketing to people who are not there to shop in the first place.

Can you get results, sure but it will be the biggest battle of your life. It is like setting up a store in the center lane of a busy highway. The only reason most people will stop is to find a way to get around you.

Think about how marketing works. It is about setting up a location where people are looking to shop. It is about advertising where people are expecting to see it. It is directed in a way that has people coming to you and not about you getting in their face and force feeding your message. People would rather not see these advertisements where are expected to be, now think about how they feel finding them where are not expecting them like in their comments along with their friends comment about the great weekend.

I have been on myspace since 2006 and I check the heavy in-your-face marketers from time to time and almost all are long gone. Their pages still setup and the last time they logged in was well over a year ago. They did not figure out the system and just gave up.

This week on our video blog I will be talking about this very topic. Build your business using social networks and driving others to your site along with ways of picking up the prospects your competition is watching click the Delete button.

In preparation for the broadcast think about where you are marketing – a Social Network. This is a place where people are looking to connect and build relationships; it is not the shopping mall.

Follow-me with twitter: www.twitter.com/takingmeglobal.

Our show address is: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/takingmeglobal%27s-business-webcast. Thursday evening 9 PM EST (6 PM PST).

The next generation of social networks.

Would you like to bypass the spam on MySpace, be more open than FaceBook, create a business networking site without charging like LinkedIn?

Now it is all possible because the next generation of social networking sites allow you to create your own social network and connect with your family, business associates, or friends. Sites like www.ning.com are designed, not as a social network, but as a social networking tool.

Technology experts are predicting that social networking will be a way of life within the next 5 years. Families, businesses, clubs, and societies will all establish social networks as a form of communication and a way to keep everyone connected.

We believe the next generation of social networking sites is helping make this a reality.

TakingMeGlobal TV

Join us live each week at 9 PM EST (6 PM PST) on UStream.TV. Watch the program here. Each week we will broadcast different ways to build the business live.

Streaming Video by Ustream.TV

If they only knew the truth...

How many times do have you seen advertisements for the special system that is revolutionizing the way network marketing is being done claiming people fail because top leaders are teaching one thing and doing something completely different – I say Hog-wash.

Every leader knows that if you want to make big money in network marketing you have to teach a system that is 100% duplicatable. The system must be easy to use and simple enough that anyone can do it. It is absolutely against network marketing law to teach one thing and do another.

The truth is top leaders are using the same system they are teaching to build their networks but it may be a system that does not come naturally to everyone. Like person to person contact. I personally do not like using the old system that is why I developed an online education duplication system. But we absolutely teach both systems to our people and let them choose the one that works best for them. Some people love person to person direct contact and others like meeting people online.

Just building it is just a beginning…

So you want to do business online? Your page is published, tags are in place for the search engines and now all you have to do is sit back and wait for the profits to roll in - Right?

Wrong. If you wait for that to happen you will be out of business before you began. Somehow you need to drive people to your site. The best way is promotion. You need to go out and tell people about your site. I am not talking about getting off your couch and missing the next segment of American Idol, ha-ha-ha. I am talking about getting online and inviting people to check out what you have to offer.

Back in the late 90’s when the internet boom was just beginning companies like Amazon and eBay used traditional advertising channels: TV, Radio, Billboards, Magazines, etc. They quickly found out that while this was a way to drive traffic to their site, it cost them more per lead than they were able to generate in profits. Shortly after that many internet companies filed for bankruptcy as investors cut off funding because they could not see a future in this business model. This is when these same companies, who are giants today reinvented their marketing and this is one of the ways we use today to generate traffic and make sales.

What they did is the same thing you can do – online promotion. It costs next to nothing, does not require a marketing degree, and can be done while you sleep with the right tools.

Here are a few ways companies use to market online:
- Email Auto-responders – They regularly hit their customer base with something new and different by email.
- Search Engine Placement – Using tools like Google Adwords they can move their listing to the top of the search. Companies like eBay and Amazon who offer just about everything for sale use these tools to place a listing near the top for just about anything you are looking for online.
- Affiliate Marketing – Affiliates are people who direct traffic to the site through links or emails and the company shares in the profit when a customer purchased as a result of the link.

We use some of these but they cost money. Since you do not have to pay someone to market your products online you can add these to your ways to direct traffic to your site and they are free:

- Social Networks – Create a page on a social network and invite people to look at your page.
- Forums – join forums and groups of interest and make sure your posts and profile contains your website link.
- Blogs – Like this one where you can express yourself and also promote your site through links.
- Affiliates – Sharing the profit is a good thing. Giving someone a percentage of the profit for sending someone to your site to purchase is great word of mouth advertising.

Most important never stop inviting people to look at your material. Ask them to subscribe to something that allows you to keep in contact with them. We will cover tips on how to keep them interested without driving them away in another blog.