Archive for September, 2009
Network Marketing Is Giving and Receiving Not Selling
Author: carlos
Networking is a fantastic way to build your business, not only by expanding awareness and your customer base but also by giving you professional resources to enhance and strengthen your skills and knowledge.
Networking actually takes many forms including offline networking with local associations and organizations like the Chamber of Commerce. You can also network online in forums, blogs and social networking sites. Here’s how:
Step One Understand what your networking goals are.
For many, their social networking strategy evolves around building relationships and there are many different relationships networking can create and build including:
* Joint venture partnerships
* Vendor relationships
* Mentor relationships
* Friends and resources
* Customers
Whether you’re creating a social networking strategy to find new customers or you’re seeking partnerships or mentors, or a combination of the above it’s important to have your strategy planned out before you begin networking.
Step Two Create Your Networking Plan
Answer the following questions:
* Who is your target audience?
* What relationships are you looking to find and build?
* What do you have to offer them?
* What networking sites or organizations will you participate in?
* How are you going to represent yourself online?
* How often are you going to post/participate?
* Will you create specific promotions and offers for your networking audience?
Step Three Choosing your networking mediums websites and organizations
Whether you’re looking to join a local networking organization or an online website, the most important thing to keep in mind are your goals. Determine if the organization is going to be able to help you reach your goals before taking steps to join.
For example, if you’re looking to create joint venture partnerships then a professional networking site, forum, or chat room devoted to your industry may be exactly where you need to be. However if you’re looking to build your customer base and expand awareness then a popular social networking site would fit the bill.
Often, networking sites are valued by the number of members they have however it’s also important to make sure the audience matches your audience. For example, if you’re marketing to seniors or baby boomers then MySpace is probably not the right social networking site for you since it caters to younger people.
Step Four: Participate
Networking is only effective if you participate. Here are a few rules of interaction when it comes to online and offline networking.
Get involved. Networking is about connecting with others. This means communicating with your audience in a manner which they will respond to. This is accomplished by using their language, addressing issues which they will be interested in or concerned about and providing them with information and resources which they will benefit from.
Update frequently. Online, in order to develop a following and to stay connected to your audience, it’s important to update regularly. Because many people have made a habit of networking online at least once a day (some people maintain access to their social networking site of choice all day long), it’s important to stop in and say hello. If your time permits, update at least once a day. If you don’t have time to commit to updating daily, consider outsourcing your social networking.
Be professional. Networking is about giving and receiving and not selling. Keep the sales pitches to a minimum. Networking is more about offering benefit to others than making sales.
Networking, whether online or off, is a valuable way to grow your business. Create a strategy and goals and remember you get what you give and become active in the right group and you’ll reap the big rewards.
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How To Increase Customers In The Next 30 Days
Author: carlos
When it comes to growing an online business, one of the most common and most effective strategies is to increase your customer base. This is often accomplished by a variety of means including, social networking, word of mouth, search engine optimization tactics and advertising. Advertising, when done correctly, can actually be the most effective means of growing your business and your customer base.
What is Advertising?
Advertising is defined as the process of attracting attention to you and your business. Online advertisements usually take the form of banners, pay per click , search engine optimization , text ads, pop-up advertisements and video or audio.
In order to increase your customer base, it’s important to choose not only the right type of advertisement but also the right location and to follow up with accurate testing and tracking.
Here are five steps to take to make sure your advertising strategy will produce the results you desire and will increase your customer base.
Step One: Who is your Target Audience? It’s important to make sure your advertisement is focused on an individual group of consumers. Writing an ad that appeals to everyone is difficult and will most likely not generate the results you’re looking for. Remember you can write 10 ads, each one directed at a specific market segment within your total audience.
Step Two: Create a compelling ad. Writing online ads is much different than writing an advertisement for offline print. The goal for offline advertising is typically to capture someone’s attention and generate memory. The goal for your online advertisement is to motivate a click to your website.
Step Three: What is your goal for the ad? Do you want to collect subscribers for your ezine? Send visitors to your website? Generate interest for an upcoming product launch? Make sure the copy, ad type, and location all fit your goals and then make sure you’re sending click throughs to a relevant page.
Step Four: How will you test your advertisements effectiveness? The goal is to know how many people are responding to your ads. It can be as simple as sending them to a unique sales page. You won’t know if your ad is working unless you have put measures into place to track it. Additionally, test your ad copy, size, graphics etc for results. Use two ads each with different headlines, calls to action or even size and send them to identical sales pages. Which ad performs better?
Step Five: Make sure each new advertisement integrates into your current marketing strategy. That means including your promotions, press and publicity and even your email marketing into your advertisement strategy and vice versa.
The goal of advertising, beyond motivating a click through, is to increase and expand awareness on YOU and your business. The larger your customer base the larger your sales and profits. Follow these steps and you’ll increase customers in the next 30 days.
Spongebob Square Pants Meets Network Marketing
Author: carlos
I see that people that struggle with MLM and Network Marketing is not because of their Upline and it also has nothing to do with the opportunity.It does play a small factor ,but that’s not why people fail.
Here’s why………
We are hard wired to find other people attractive or unattractive based on the level of value they have to offer.We gain a portion of their power through association alone…
Let’s take The cartoon Spongebob Squarepants.. and dive into their character…
Sponge Bob Square Pants: Is hyperactive and optimistic and believes that people and events are inherently good,so that most situations work out in the end for the best.He believes that by becoming a professional cook, he will one day become like Mr Krabs…lol
Patrick : He is commonly portrayed as having low intelligence and is largely unemployed throughout the series.He’s daily activity relies on what spongebob is doing.He’s not complete unless he’s doing daily activities with spongebob,yet making money is not on his top list..
Squidward Tentacles : Is an arrogant and egotistical octopus who dislikes everyone specially his neighbors.He thinks he is better than everyone and hates his current job.He pretends to be someone of importance and exaggerates his value and importance to others by shutting down their ideas and daily activities.
Mr Eugene Krabs : Owner of the “Krusty Krab ” restaurant. Extremely cheap,greedy and is constantly seeking new ways to earn money no matter how low he sinks to;but at the same time is too cheap to spend a dime.Despite his eccentric habits,he is held high regard by spongebob,and in turn acts as a father figure.
Sheldon Plankton : Mr Krab’s arch enemy who owns a low rank fast food restaurant “The Chum Bucket” across the street from a successful restaurant “the Krusty Krab” .Plankton spends most of his time plotting to steal the recipe from Mr Krab’s the “Krabby Patty Burger”.He’s always looking for a short cut in his business and believes that by stealing a recipe his days of struggle are over and he will destroy the competition who is just around the corner…lol
Can you relate to these characters ?
Don’t answer just yet…Let’s dive into the Network Marketing side……
Now when it comes to Network Marketing and Sponsoring people into your business,There is one thing you need to get straight …and that is……..
People don’t join a business ,they join You…
Where do you stand when it comes to the value people perceive you give?
Established Leader/ Up and Coming Leader/ Follower ?
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My name is Carlos Anastacio and I hope you enjoyed this blog post.I f you are struggling with your networkmarketing business I suggest you get a copy of this course Magnetic Sponsoring by Mike Dillard.
How to Avoid Distractions When Working From Home
Author: carlos
Working from home is an ideal choice for many entrepreneurs. Working from home offers many conveniences and freedoms that a traditional office job does not. However, working from home also offers many challenges; the primary challenge for many is staying focused and motivated.
Step One: Create a Workspace
Staying focused and motivated when working from home requires a home office. Yes, maybe the kitchen table or the couch could work. However, placing yourself in those locations is just asking for distractions.
When you create a designated workspace, your frame of mind changes immediately when you walk into it and sit down. You’re mentally more ready to focus. Make your workspace comfortable enough that you enjoy being there yet not so comfortable that you want to be there when you’re not working or that it becomes a place to hang out.
Additionally, when you create a workspace, your family will take your working from home more seriously. It becomes easier to set boundaries. When you’re in your office, you’re working and you’re not to be disturbed.
Step Two: Create a Schedule
Okay so maybe one of the things you love about working from home is that you don’t have to create a schedule however a schedule will help you stay focused and productive. When you create your schedule, remember to schedule in breaks, household chores, time with your family and meals. It’s easy to say, I’m going to work from 9-3 however actually sitting there and working for 6 hours is going to be a lot more difficult. Give yourself breaks and downtime during the day. When you schedule in your distractions, your working time is much more focused and it’s easier to stay focused because you know you have breaks to look forward to.
Additionally, make sure to schedule days off. It’s easy when you work from home to work from the time you get up until the time you go to bed seven days a week. Itís a sure way to suffer burnout quickly. Plan vacations, days off, and time for yourself to stay motivated.
Step Three: Eliminate Distractions
Make a list of distractions. Perhaps it’s laundry, your children, your friends calling you for coffee, appointments and errands. Make a list of these distractions and then find a way to eliminate them.
For example, if your children are a distraction, then how can you plan your day around them? Can you trade childcare days with other parents who work from home? Can you hire a sitter for part of the day? Can you work around their naps?
Staying motivated and focused when working from home is possible. Rather than modeling your work from home life around what you feel you should do, take a look at your reality, your needs and personality, and create a work from home life that works for you. It takes a little planning and premeditation to get the job done.
Using Positive Self-Talk to Conquer Any Goal
Author: carlos
Do you feel like you are always talking yourself out of success? As soon as you start to set goals for yourself, do you suddenly have nagging thoughts about how you aren’t up to the task or how you simply aren’t qualified to carry it through?
If you have ever experienced either situation, you need to change the way you respond to your inner dialogue. Instead of obeying your negative commands, you can use positive self-talk to counter the negativity and overcome nearly all anxious thoughts.
Setting Goals and Sticking to Them with Positive Self-Talk
Are you initially filled with excitement when you first set goals for yourself? Are these thoughts then followed by self-doubt and self-defeating thoughts that stop you in your tracks before you even get started?
It can be difficult to make the most of your life when you are constantly talking yourself out of being a success. It can be frustrating and discouraging to have these thoughts constantly plaguing you. Many of us, in fact, don’t even realize we have them! All we know is that we don’t have the confidence to stick to our plans and reach our goals.
But there’s another way!
Positive self-talk is an effective way to set goals and ensure that you stick to them, even if you have never been able to do this before. The way this works is that you decide what goal is important to you, and then you plan the logistics of how you are going to attain this goal. When self-doubt starts kicking in, you will respond with affirmations that prove your success without surrendering to the negative pressure. Since you’re reading this article, it’s clear that you’re no quitter and you’re certainly not a failure, so start believing in yourself!
Re-Programming Your Mind
Affirmations are essentially positive statements that re-program your mind for the positive. The moment you have a self-defeating thought you’d be able to counter the negative with a motivating statement. An example of a positive affirmation is: “I am worthy of great success,” or “I see myself in the winner’s circle.” What this does is replace negativity with thoughts that will help you move toward your goals instead of further away from them.
Positive self-talk is easier to implement than you might think. You may not be aware of the severity of the negative dialogue currently within your mind. However, once you begin with positive self-talk, you will suddenly realize that you are self-sabotaging the goals you set for yourself from the minute that you make them. This process can open your eyes to exactly how much this inner conversation has been interfering with your life. You’ll feel hopeful that you can now set goals and surpass them.
Through positive self-talk you will be able easily set long and short-term goals for yourself. And when you use affirmations, you’ll have accessible tools to help you push yourself further than ever before. Learning to quiet negativity with positive thoughts is a great move toward setting and attaining future goals with ease.