Marketing Mishaps: The "I should hope so!" factor

Marketing Mishaps: The "I should hope so!" factor

 

A few years ago, I read an article offering advice about how to be an "exceptional" employee. This was before the big stock market crash of 2008 that precipitated the recent unemployment surge, but presumably intending to guide folks toward keeping their jobs, nonetheless. The advice contained suggestions like:

• Be on time for work.
• Dress approrpiately.
• Know where all your files are, so that when the boss asks for them, you can hand them to him/her immediately.
• Don't use work time for personal matters.

I am not kidding or exaggerating — these were the tips this writer offered about being an exceptional employee. Of course, my first reaction was, "Are you serious?! This is the very least someone should do to be an ADEQUATE employee, one who receives a check next to the 'Meets Expectations' box on those infernal reviews."

Well, these sorts of "I should hope so" episodes are not limited to advice articles. Sometimes you find them in companies' marketing materials, and there's no quicker way to blend in with the crowd.

Yesterday I saw a bus stop ad for a law firm. The main message of the ad was, "WE WIN CASES!" Immediately, I thought to myself, "Really? Isn't that what you're supposed to do? And how many cases do you win? 20 percent? 30 percent? 90 percent?"

To their credit, they had a fairly small space in which to work. However, what they gained in space they sacrificed in a compelling message. What if they changed their message just a bit, to say instead, "We win cases other firms won't take"?

This happens more than you may realize. Have you seen ads for bedding companies that tell say, "You'll sleep through the night on our mattresses"? Or hotel promotions that emphasize their "clean, comfortable rooms"? Isn't that the least you expect from a mattress or a hotel room? I suppose it's a slightly different matter whan an airline brands itself as the "On-Time Airline" because the industry standard is to seldom be on time — but even so, isn't arriving on time a pretty average expectation? It's kind of like saying, "We screw up less than everyone else in our business."

I once saw a brochure for a summer camp. This was a glossy, full-color, 12-page booklet touting the beautiful location and all the exciting activities children would experience at this $2,000/week camp. Then came the testimonials, which said things like, "Little Bobby had so much fun and made lots of new friends!" Again ... seriously?! Isn't that the least you should expect from a summer camp? How is that in any way compelling to a parent?

It can be difficult to stand out in  a crowded field, but mine your features, benefits, and characteristics until you hit on what really makes you unique and different from everyone else — and then promote THAT.

Location.
Price.
Success rate.
Specializations.
Length of time in the business.
Green technology.
Additional apprecaited by unexpected offerings.

Whatever you do, avoid using words that will make people think, "Really? Isn't that the least this company should do?!"

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Until next time — happy marketing!

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Marketing Mishaps: Pushing the "Edgy" Envelope a Bit TOO Far

Marketing Mishaps: Pushing the "Edgy" Envelope a Bit TOO Far

Twice in two days, I came across branding that caught me off-guard. First, I was directed to this "coaching" site; then, I saw a new business near my house.

Now, I'm not a prude, but the coaching site really stunned me. Maybe it's the giant cow's nose on the Facebook page. Maybe it's the whip. Maybe it's just use of a crass word for a business that looks as if it desperately wants to be professional.

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The F-Bomb store actually made a lesser impact. More of a "Hmm ... check that out," because I know it's not a place I'll likely ever shop.The thing about my responses to these two "brands" is that they are personal. My dad must have told me a thousand times, "There's no accounting for taste," usually when I was complaining about politics, food, or someone's choice of a partner. And he was right — there IS no accounting for taste. Except for places and instances when we generally expcet things to be tasteful.

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You may have heard me rant about the business coach I once heard speak who described herself as a "business pimp." Crikey — that term still gets under my skin. Wonder how that branding worked out for her.

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Another incident involving a speaker brings home this idea of each person's taste being unique. A friend recently told me about losing all respect for a national speaker who, in telling a story during her keynote at national convention, said something to the effect of, "I laughed so hard, I nearly peed my pants."
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"So what?" I wanted to ask my friend, who clearly thought the comment was tawdry and unworthy of the speaker. We each have differing degrees of what we consider appropriate.

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Entertaiment may be the one place where it can benefit an act to push things to an extreme. I was just out of college when Van Halen released an album titled, "For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge." In case the words don't ring a bell, check out the initial caps in the title.

Then, more recently, a little Law of Attraction movie created quite a stir. Initially titled, "What the #$@! Do We Know!?" it became colloquially known as "What the Bleep?" I'm not sure the title had anything to do with the movie's success, but I'm not sure it didn't, either.

People have different perspectives about coarse language in the business world. Right Spot Media makes the case that such language can actually help public speakers: "[R]esearch shows that—at least for speakers delivering presentations—obscenities can increase the perception of passion and enthusiasm." Of course, they go on to mention mild epithets like "hell" and "damn," but in some places not long ago, use of those by a speaker would have been considered scandalous.

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Similarly, the following excerpt from Influential Marketing Blog makes a case for pushing things a bit to attract attention:

The first time I thought about this was when reading about a wonderful social marketing campaign from Saatchi and Saatchi that was done close to 20 years ago. It was for an organization fighting childhood hunger on the streets in Canada (I think) and as the ad featured visuals of young homeless boys on the street just trying to survive, the following voice-over of a boy's voice came on:

                "If I said 'I'm hungry,' that probabbly wouldn't bother you."

                "If I said f*ck, it probably would."

                "F*ck, I'm hungry."
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That being said, there are still those who seem to agree with me that some words just don't belong in business, particularly in a brand name. Case in point: this discussion on the use of swear words in domain names.
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There's no accounting for taste.

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It was from branding expert Peter Montoya that I first heard the comment, "Good branding repels as much as it attracts." The thing the marketer/brand/business owner needs to determine ahead of time is how far they can safely push the envelope and still reach their intended audience. I may be the perfect demographic for the whip-wielding coach, but I will never hire her because I find her brand name tacky.

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When you're building a brand, it will serve you to remember a couple of key points:

1. You are not your client.
2. Test everything. 

If you have examples of branding that gave you a bad taste in your mouth or left you wishing the business owner had been a bit more selective, please share them in the comments section  below.

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Until next time — happy marketing!

____________

I invite you to do 2 things next:

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Good copy is relatable to your readers, regardless of the venue

Good copy is relatable to your readers, regardless of the venue

Years ago, I had a conversation with an Internet marketer who asked me how my writing differed, depending on my audience. He was taken aback when I told him that my writing doesn't really differ much depending on my audience. My single goal is always to communicate my message as clearly and simply as possible.

"But ... but ... but ..." he protested, "what about times when it needs to be formal, times when a more specific kind of writing is called for?"
OK, there may be small degrees of difference in formality, like perhaps fewer contractions or an upleveling of vocabulary, but overall, my tone and style of writing don't change from project to project. They are almost universally upbeat and conversational.

My friend implied that I must be mistaken, insisted that was definitely a need for different kinds of writing. I pushed back. "Even legal writing is only stuffy and formal because we've come to expect that — and it keeps lawyers in business. But as long as all the required elements in a brief or legal filing are included, the way it's said is more or less irrelevant."

This, I believe, is the gist of Brian Clark's quote, and as founder of CopyBlogger, he should know!

People often seem to be terrified of writing because they think it's difficult, when in reality, every piece of writing is an act of storytelling. Yes, there is a bit of an art to selecting the words that will draw your reader to you, as opposed to sending her packing, but it's not about the formality, structure, or informality of the writing. It's about how well the words themselves resonate with the reader. No matter how much time, effort, or money you pour into your copy, it will ring hollow if the reader doesn't feel you are speaking to him in language he can understand.

Regardless of your venue — social media conversations, ad copy, your website, or your blog — spend time honing your relational writing. Take a page out of Joe Vitale's book and discover the art of hypnotic writing. If you worry less about correct and formal and more about connection, you will find your writing resonating in a way you may never have dreamed possible.

Here’s to your successful writing!

____________

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Blogs: Still the place you should begin your social media campaign

Blogs: Still the place you should begin your social media campaign

You know social media is crucial to your marketing strategy, but if you're like many who have hesitated to jump in, you may be wondering where to begin. This very question often arises with my clients when discussing social media and other low- to no-cost marketing strategies. I've got to agree with Chris Brogan: Blogging offers, hands-down, the best ROI on your time and energy.

Before you tackle Facebook, start Tweeting, or create your LinkedIn profile, get your blog underway. There are a few keys to successful blogging:

• Quality content
• An image/graphic with every post
• Posting on a regular schedule
• Commeting on other relevant/related blogs  

But why should you start with a blog? What exactly is the power in this platform that began as an online journal tool?

Blogs allow you to do 6 important things:

1. Generate lots of relevant content that the search spiders love. The World Wide Web turned 20 this week, yet generating traffice remains perhaps the biggest challenge for new sites. Because a blog is much more dyamic than a traditional website, in that the best bloggers are adding new content at least once a week, the search engines love well-populated blogs. A blog is the perfect platform through which to add gallons of relevant new content to your site. Not only will the spiders love this content and pull you up in the rankings, but if it's relevant to their searches, your readers and prospective clients will love your content, too.
2. Work wonders in long-tail* searches. Generally speaking, smart bloggers focus their blogs around a reasonably narrow topic or niche, rather than taking a kitchen-sink, one-size-fits-all approach. When writing on such focused topics, an interesting thing tends to happen. Search results and traffic will wend their way to your blog via long-tailed queries that might never have occurred to you. Long-tail searches can generate a lot of traffic to a newer blog, with much less competition for those all-important rankings.

   
   * As explained by MarketingHub.info, "The term ‘long tail’ is used to describe the strategy of targeting less-competitive niche markets rather than the hugely competitive broad keywords. A long-tail keyword might be something like ‘Small Business Web Design,’ while the short-tail would be ‘Web Design.’"
3. Produce high-quality, link-worthy content. Although links to your site from other well-populated sites are not as crucial to successful SEO as they once were, they are still important. But the only reason anyone will link to your blog is if you create content that's worth linking to. Producing regular, high-quality blog posts will give you something to offer site owners so that they will want to link to your blog.
4. Become a credible expert. If you're new to your business or industry, one of the biggest challenges, both on- and offline, is becoming a credible expert. A blog can be a means to catapult right over that little difficulty, if you take the time to do your research and write posts that demonstrate your qualifications and expertise. A great blog post won't necessarily seal the deal for you, but it will lead prospects to you and open the door for an initial conversation. It can also demonstrate an in-depth knowledge of your subject matter so that your prospects feel a certain level of comfort in doing business with you. A high-quality blog can also give you an advantage over the others in your industry if you become the person in your industry who stands out as the expert.
5. Provide a focal point for your social media. Blogs are the organic nexis of any well-crafted social media campaign because they offer syndication tools that make it easy to link to other social media outlets such as Facebook, Google+, Twitter, and LinkedIn. 
6. Build rapport with your clients, prospects, readers, colleagues, vendors, and other interested folks. Once upon a time, not so long ago, when you wanted to contact a company, you scoured their packaging for their mailing address, wrote a letter, smacked a stamp on it, found a postbox, and crossed your fingers that someone who cared enough to write back would open the letter. Then came traditional websites, which allowed you to learn a lot more about the company – things like their mission statement, product descriptions, and even employment opportunities with their organizations. But there was still a disconnect between you, the consumer, and the folks running the company. Blogging has changed that. Now, companies – even large ones – use blogs to communicate directly with their customers. Take GoDaddy's Bob Parsons, for instance. He’s famous for his personal blog in which he offers commentary and advice to GoDaddy patrons. Think of your blog as your opportunity to sit down for a cup of coffee with every client or potential client. Chat with them. Be personal. Build a relationship. The fact that your readers can post feedback and comments  helps you create a conversation with them, which is the first step in building rapport.

So if you have a new mission, message, company, book, service, or product the world needs to know about, I encourage you to wholeheartedly embrace social media – but start with a blog.

Here’s to your successful blogging!

____________

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What if you had to spell "there" correctly before you could post a comment online?

What if you had to spell "there" correctly before you could post a comment online?

Yesterday, I posted a blog at Marcie Brock, Book Marketing Maven about the annoying trend of misusing apostrophes to create plural words. My brother-in-law saw it, and sent me these hilarious graphics from DangerousMinds.net.

I know it's snarky, but I love this idea. Of course, I also did a recent post about spelling skills (or lack thereof) not equating with intelligence. There's a giant distinction, though, between actual learning challenges that make spelling difficult and laziness or apathy. 

Sometimes it feels as though we're losing the smart language battle, but I insist that attention to these details matters. This is especially true if you plan to publish your writing publicly, whether in a book or a blog.

Here’s to your successful writing!

____________

I invite you to do 2 things next:

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Marketing Mishaps: Using Tech Speak (or Industry Lingo) with Non-Techies

Marketing Mishaps: Using Tech Speak (or Industry Lingo) with Non-Techies

Sense. You're not making any.

I came across a blog today, the intent of which is probably to help the company build business. The problem is that it's a tech company whose writer(s) does not know how to address a non-techie audience.

This month I promised to tell you how to save money by virtualizing your server(s).

This is one of the most powerful money-saving and environmentally friendly concepts in computing today. And one of the cool things is that you don't sacrifice performance. In fact, in most cases performance is enhanced.

Again, this might be a little technical, but [our company's] techs are always able to help you navigate any issues you might have.

The problem here is that the blogger/company assumes (a) the reader understands enough of the concept of "virtualizing your servers" to know (b) they need to do it and (c) be willing to spend money on this upgrade. Pay particular attention to the text in red. This writer KNOWS the info is technical, but instead of figuring out a way to simplify it, he/she thinks the fact that they have pros on their team is going to get him over that little challenge. WRONG.

Granted, there is more to this post than I am quoting here, but it's full of more techie mumbo-jumbo like "redundant machines," "virtualization platform," "load balancing across diverse hardware," and "host architecture."


Say you run the small to medium-sized business that is looking to enhance its technology performance. Are you going to read this and think, "Yup. That's probably what we need. Let's write a purchase order"? Or are you going to head back to the search engine to find a company that speaks a language you can understand?

Years ago, I remember my friend, master techie Matt Moran, telling me he threatened to fire any of his employees who spoke tech-speak to their clients. His thinking? Their job wasn't to overwhelm the clients with the depth of their computer knowledge; it was to explain the situation to the client in words they could understand and fix the problem. Period.

The thing to remember is that this issue is not exclusive to the technology field. I was in a meeting recently with a printer who was obviously adept at his business but had ZERO ability to translate the conversation into everyday English for my client — who was his potential client. She had no idea what full-bleed (printing that goes to the edge of the page) meant, not did she need to. Not in this meeting.

A while back, I did a post about the dangers of being too insider in your industry. Going top-heavy with the insider language is a perfect example of what you don't want to do.

If you're not sure whether your copy is resonating with your clients — and PROSPECTIVE clients — test it. Have non-insiders read it and give you their honest feedback. If they can describe to you what you meant to say, you know you've succeeded. If they're confused by any of it, it probably needs to be rewritten. Remember, the onus of communication is on the communicator, not the one receiving the information. Don't lose potential clients by talking right past them.

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The least you need to know about Self-Publishing from David Carnoy

The least you need to know about Self-Publishing from David Carnoy

I just came across an article titled Self-publishing a book: 25 things you need to know, by David Carnoy. It's truly the best, most succinct lists of need-to-know info on the subject I've ever come across.

Written from his personal experience publishing a novel, Carnoy cuts through the clutter, the BS, and the drama to give those considering self-publishing a real look at the pitfalls and plusses of heading into this enormous undertaking.

Here's the list, with my comments - but I HIGHLY advise that you go read his column for the nuts and bolts.

1. Self-publishing is easy. True enough.

2. Quality has improved. Also true. The self-publishing industry has come a long way since the horrible production jobs where you were lucky to make it to Chapter 2 before the pages started falling out of the book.

3. Some of the more successful self-published books are about self-publishing. There are a LOT of books on self-publishing out there. But think about it - what's in it for a traditional publisher to print a book about self-publishing? Some are definitely better than others.

4. Good self-published books are few and far between. While this is true about self-published books, I would also argue that it's true about ALL books.

5. The odds are against you. Only in that there are 200,000 new titles released every year, so the odds are against everybody.

6. Creating a "professional" book is really hard. Yes, yes, yes. But if you're going into this to brand yourself or your business, make the best book you can!

7. Have a clear goal for your book. File under "Duh!"

8. Even if it's great, there's a good chance your book won't sell. You MUST have a marketing plan if you want to sell books!

9. Niche books do best. True about almost any business.

10. Buy your own ISBN - and create your own publishing house. And do NOT make the name of your publishing house in any way reflect YOUR name.

11. Create a unique title. If you're using this book as a branding tool, make sure your keywords are in the MAIN title, not relegated to the subtitle, which frequently is left off in reviews and online cataloug

12. Turn-key solutions cost a lot of money. Think of yourself as the general contractor for your book.

13. Self-publishers don't care if your book is successful. I think he means the companies that offer self-publishing tools. Why would they care, as long as they get paid?

14. Buy as little as possible from your publishing company. True. Create Space's printing costs are highly competitive. They're like a car dealership, though. They make their money on the upsell of ancillary services.

15. If you're serious about your book, hire a book doctor and get it copy-edited. Eh-hehm ... it's good to be validated!

16. Negotiate everything. Practice ahead of time, if you need to, but get this one down!

17. Ask a lot of questions and don't be afraid to complain. Not so much on the complaining, but yes, make sure you get your needs met!
18. Self-publishing is a contact sport. And how!

19. Getting your book in bookstores sounds good, but that shouldn't be a real concern. For the most part, this is true.

20. Self-published books don't get reviewed. Unfortunately, still very true.

21. Design your book cover to look good small. EXCELLENT advice!

22. If you're selling online, make the most out of your Amazon page. So many authors neglect this very easy step.

23. Pricing is a serious challenge. Do your homework. A self-published book is considered successful if you recoup your costs in the first year after publishimg.

24. Electronic books offer the most potential for self-publishers. The wave of the future - and if you've already written it, why NOT make it available for the growing ereader crowd?

25. Self-publishing is a fluid business. The entire publishing industry seems to be changing daily. Either make a commitment to stay on top of it, or hire someone who can help you do that.

All that being said, it's time to get busy writing, building, and marketing your book! Don't let this list scare you. Let it inspire you and guide you so that your experience is as seamless as possible.

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At what point should you think about showing your work to an editor?

At what point should you think about showing your work to an editor?

Had a great question from a prospective client yesterday:

At what point would it be beneficial for you to see a sample of my writing?

My response:

That's a good question. Typically, when I'm interviewing a prospective client, I ask to see EITHER the first chapter OR the section of the book that is most representative of their writing. The reason being that we sometimes rewrite the first chapter a bit, so it tends to be somewhat cleaner than the meatier portions of the book. How's the writing going? Do you feel you have enough pages (5 to 10 should do it) to show me a representative sample?

The interesting thing is that there's no right or wrong order to things when it comes to writing a book. Some people feel like they need more than just editing; in that case, they might hire a book coach to help them through the writing process. Others are very disciplined, follow an outline well, and won't bring in an editor until their manuscript is finished. You'll have to determine the right process for you.

Regardless of where you are in the process when you bring in your editor, there are a few things to keep in mind when interviewing the person who will edit your book project: 

1. Any editor worth their weight will give you a courtesy sample edit. This happens for 2 reasons: (a) so they can see a sample of your work and (b) so that you can get an idea of how they would approach your text. 
2. Make sure you feel confident that your questions are being fully answered before you engage an editor. 
3. Find out ahead of time how the editor works and whether their style jives with yours (another reason for that all important sample edit). 
4. An editor’s PRIMARY role is to make your words sound like you, just better. 
5. Keep in mind that your editor is bringing their professional expertise to your text; however, their changes are ultimately only suggestions.
6. Avoid using price as your sole determinant when hiring an editor: as with most things, you get what you pay for. A good editor is going to be somewhat pricey, but worth every penny.

I can’t emphasize enough how important a professional editor will be to your finished work, especially for someone who’s not a practiced writer – but remember, even the pros have great editors!

Here’s to your successful writing!
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Marketing Mishaps: Using TOO MANY FONTS on a single mailer

Marketing Mishaps: Using TOO MANY FONTS on a single mailer

There's an old rule of thumb when it comes to designing an ad, mailer, or other marketing piece that involves copy: unless you are a very gifted graphic designer, limit yourself to TWO fonts. In case you doubt me, here it is from the Creative Marketing Guru blog: 

Why It's Ugly

Too many fonts. Use only 2 fonts per marketing piece, max. Change in a typeface signals a change in function or purpose - restrain yourself!

Care to see an example?

This mailer fails on a couple different levels, but the fonts are the most immediately noticeable, because it doesn't stop at 2 fonts, or 3 fonts, or even 4 fonts. It goes all the way to FIVE fonts on one smallish piece of paper. It's just too much.

For one thing, the message looks disjointed and disorganized. Additionally, the fonts don't really represent what they were apparently chosen to describe. For example, the BIG is much bolder than the BOLD. And that BOOMING looks more like boomeranging to me. Lastly, the main font - the one meant to convey details such as the date and call to action - is unnecessarily difficult to read.

Other Mishaps

Another problem with this mailer is the Web site. Go back to the image above and see if you can locate the Web site.

Don't feel bad if it took you awhile ... the Web address is utterly lost in the middle of that challenging font, with no space around it or other reference to it.

The final problem for this one little mailer is that the image appears inconsistent with the message. It references a "Hollywood Event," and yet the background picture more readily depicts a Hawaiian beach than a Hollywood event. Do a Google images search for Hollywood and the first five results are the famous Hollywood sign; the next three are stars on the Walk of Fame.

There is a reason graphic designers and advertising copywriters command big bucks: They know what they're doing! That is not to say you MUST hire an expensive pro for your ad campaign to succeed. However, IF you are going to venture into the design world, I highly recommend that you get some education first. The following are a few books that were recommended by Dexigner, an international design links directory.

Basic Brochures

Direct Mail Design

The Best Advertising and Design in the World

May the graphic design and copy writing force be with you!

Marketing Mishaps: Having a Poverty Mindset

Marketing Mishaps: Having a Poverty Mindset

This one is admittedly a bit off our regular topics, particularly for Marketing Mishaps. One might even call it somewhat "woo-woo." Whatever you call it, though, one fact remains clear: The best marketing in the world will NEVER help you succeed in your business if you come from a poverty mindset.

What exactly do we mean by a poverty mindset? A thought process that is based in lack, want, a perception of being 'less than', victimhood, or any other mindset that focuses on what you do not have. Whether you know it or not — and more importantly, whether you believe it or not — your thoughts are incredibly powerful, and they are constantly working to attract to you exactly what they're focused on.

Say your #1 client just pulled their account for a reason completely unrelated to you. Now you're looking at your quarterly projections, starting to feel stressed out and worried about how you'll make up that deficit. This is a completely normal reaction, right? Yes — it's normal, but it's not productive. In fact, it's 100 percent counterproductive to attracting a new client to replace the one you lost. 

So what are you supposed to do when a challenge comes at you unexpectedly? First of all, take a giant, deeeeeeep breath. Then another. And another still. Keep going until you feel the stress dissipating, at least a little. 

Next up, get into a space of gratitude. "Are you out of your mind?" you might be wondering right now. "I've just lost my biggest client and you want me to be thankful?!" Yeppers. Thankful. Hopefully you don't have to think too hard to come up with something for which you are grateful. Write it down. Then, think of another thing, and write that one down, too. Keep going until you have a list that covers the entire sheet of paper.

What's the point? Gratitude refocuses our thoughts, moving them away from what we do NOT have to instead concentrate on what we DO have. In this way, we move out of lack thinking and that poverty mindset into a consciousness where we can more easily embrace and attract the wealth we ultimately seek.

What if you're just starting out, and you only have a few clients? Be fabulously grateful for those few clients! What if you don't have any clients yet? Be grateful for the opportunities awaiting you to meet and connect with new clients. I promise you, as long as you're breathing, you can find something to be grateful for.

CHALLENGE FOR YOU

How can you turn around the following statements, which are focused on negativity and lack, instead building them into powerful, positive affirmations based in a wealth mindset?

• I don't know why I even bother networking; I never get any new clients from these events.
• Oh, great. Another [_____fill in the blank with your industry title_____]. How can I compete when there are so many of us in this business?
• Susie Smith doesn't even try and she gets business. It's just not fair.
• I'd have more freedom and flexibility to build my business if I had a wealthy husband to rely on, too.
• I'm so behind — I don't think I'll ever catch up.

Can you see how each of these scenarios is focused on lack or victim thinking? Part of transitioning to prosperity thinking is recognizing the sabotaging language for what it is, and then practicing at reframing those concepts into supportive, grateful, positive language. For example, we could change the first bullet point to say something like, "I look forward to networking because I get to meet so many interesting new people. If I keep showing up, I'm sure I'll make great connections."

Additionally, it may help to have a phrase at the ready to substitute when you catch yourself spouting negativisms. My personal challenge is a tendency to run just a bit late to get to meetings. Sometimes, I'll get behind the slowest driver on the road, just as I'm in the biggest hurry. The phrase I always fall back on is, "Everything is perfect, exactly the way it is." If I just remember to say that a few times, I calm down, no  matter how stressed out I might be.

The most important thing to remember is that you are the biggest factor in your success. Not the economy. Not your business partner. Not the strength of your networking groups. YOU. Develop a prosperity mindset, and watch your marketing campaign ignite!
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Beware the Brain-Pickers!

Beware the Brain-Pickers!

I had an experience this morning that I'm sure is familiar to many consultants, coaches, doctors, attorneys ... pretty much anyone who is considered an expert in their business or industry. A friend texted me a few days ago, asking if we could meet soon. She didn't say what about ... but I had a feeling I knew before we got together. My subconscious must really have known, because I forgot to put the meeting on my calendar, and as a result was late to meet her.

We are in similar businesses, but she's very new to this line of work. As I sat down at the restaurant, she explained that she just wanted to "pick my brain" a bit about a couple of things. And then she proceeded to do just that  — not without my permission, I must add. I've been here before on perhaps two other occasions with the same friend, so this whole setup was not really a surprise to me.

One sentence in our conversation caught me quite off-guard, however. She was telling me about her challenges billing a new client, because the client has a limited cash flow right now and wants the work to proceed anyway: "I told her, 'Yes, but I have expenses. I have to do research, meet with people (gesturing to  me), and increase my knowledge so I can give you the best service.'" She did not even see the irony ... or notice my hackles going up.

I was unsure how to proceed. My inclination was just to decline the next offer for a "meeting." But as the check came and I found myself paying for my own breakfast, I knew that silence would not suffice. My friend thanked me for my time, which I used as an appropriate moment to tell her — perhaps a little harshly — that while she was welcome this time, if there was going to be a next time, it would have to be for a fee. A look of utter astonishment washed across her face. I then reminded her that she'd just told me she was charging her client for meeting with me, but seemed to be expecting me to share my expertise with her for free, simply because we're friends.

Those of you who've been there understand how awkward this can be.

The thing is, I bet we've all done it at one time or another, called on a friend for their expert advice. What we may not realize is when we begin to step over the line of "asking a favor" into the area where they normally and reasonably charge for the information we're after. For what it's worth, here are a few tips on this idea of "free advice."

FOR the ASKER

1. NEVER ask someone if you can "pick their brain" (or worse, tell them you'd like to).
2. Respect your friends'/colleagues'/associates' expertise and recognize when your favors are traipsing into areas of information for which they would normally charge a consulting fee.
3. At the VERY least, offer to buy them lunch/dinner for their time. More appropriately, ask if you can schedule an hour of their time (indicating that you will pay for this hour), and let them tell you that you don't need to pay them.

FOR the ASKEE

1. Decide in advance if you're willing to gift certain friends with your time/expert knowledge — and where/why you draw the line. Sure you're a nice person and you don't want to make enemies, but you also don't want to be a doormat.
2. It's your time, and they're your friends — you get to decide whom to help, to what degree, and how often.
3. You might let them know that while you're happy to have one brief conversation, you normally charge a rate of X for a consultation on this topic.
4. Have a standard answer prepared for those who want to "pick your brain."
5. Suggest they call your office during business hours to schedule an appointment.
6. If the "asker" has a product/service you can use, perhaps you might suggest a trade.
7. Even if it's a difficult conversation, be willing to set boundaries.

Here's the thing both "Askers" and "Askees" should remember. Askees have invested time (perhaps many years) and energy and money and brain power becoming the experts they are. They now charge for that expertise, as they should. Askees must learn to set sensible boundaries; Askers must learn to respect them. 
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Marketing Mishaps: Failing to Reply to Queries from Your "Contact" Page

Marketing Mishaps: Failing to Reply to Queries from Your "Contact" Page

You have a blog or a Web site – duh. More than likely you also have a "Contact" page on your blog or Web site. Yeah! Here's a quiz, though:

#1. How easy is your "Contact" page to find?

Why would I ask such a silly question? Have you ever had to DIG and DIG and DIG – sometimes 3 or 4 levels down – to get to someone's contact page? I have, and not just once. Let me tell you, (a) I'm not the typical Web visitor, and (b) I kept digging because after the second level, I was just curious how far this site owner was really going to make me go before they revealed their precious contact info.

W|M|D SUPER-DUPER WEB MARKETING TIP

Make your site easy to use.

If your visitors have to click through to even a second level to find your contact info, you've probably lost them.

#2. Do you use a Contact Form or an eMail Link?

Is one really better than the other? Well, according to the Flyte Web Marketing blog, the Contact Form is preferred for a number of reasons:

• Better contact information capture
• Better conversion tracking
• Easier data entry to a contact database
• Reduced spam

While I cannot argue with this logic, the part of me that says "easier is always better" knows that some people are always going to prefer the e-mail link, so I'd always be inclined to include one somewhere on my site. Would you rather risk getting less data up front so that you can be sure to receive that message from a prospective client, or use a one-size-fits-all approach?

#3. Do you have a "catch all" address so that you can capture misspelled e-mail addresses?

Could this lead to more spam? Sure. But I have to go back to making things easy for the end user. Say they've got Clumsy Finger Syndrome and type LittleMissMuffet@gmail.com as LittleMiddMuffet@gmail.com. Do you still want to hear from them? If the answer's yes, how are you going to hear from them if you don't have your e-mail set to catch all spellings, even the goofy ones? Even the ones addressed to Info@?

#4. Who reads the messages sent via your  Contact Form or contact e-mail address? How skilled are they at prioritizing?

Why is this important? Let's say you've got a summer intern who's quite green. You figure the perfect job for them is doing something that, for the most part, requires rote, standardized answers. What happens, however, if the inquiry that comes in via that contact page is not an order, a question about how to order, or some other easy topic, the answer to which can be found on your FAQ page? What if it's an invitation for you to speak or write an article or guest lecture or be interviewed? What if it's a dissatisfied client who wants options for recourse? What if it's someone who wants to reprint one of your articles or blog posts? What if it's someone looking to create a joint venture with you? None of these is a throwaway question with a standardized answer. But does your intern (or whoever reads this e-mail) know whom to forward the mail to? Are they empowered to follow up? Do you have a system in place for handling ALL queries?

#5. How quickly do you respond to these e-mail queries? 

Perhaps the single biggest challenge for entrepreneurs and small businesses is follow-up - mostly because most entrepreneurs and/or small business owners have no systems in place for following up. Does this require discipline? Of course! But if you can keep a couple things in mind, perhaps you will be motivated to move this to the front burner of your marketing stove. 

• When was the last time you submitted an e-mail query and received a prompt response?
• How did you feel when your question was answered right away?
• How did you feel if your question was left to languish on the vine?
• How will YOUR end user feel if you don't answer their query in a timely manner?

ON THE FLIP SIDE


Here are a few tips to help ensure any e-mail YOU SEND gets read and receives a response:

1. Use a good SUBJECT line.
2. Be SUCCINCT.
3. Indicate WHAT you want from them (e.g., a refund, an answer, a further contact, etc.)

Let that contact form do what it's made for ... allow new people to contact and engage with you!

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Are you READY to join SpongeBob at the Twitter party?

Are you READY to join SpongeBob at the Twitter party?

Who would have thought a goofy cartoon character named SpongeBob would take the lead in a new — but all too obvious — use of the machine that is Twitter? According to a Fast Company update:

This week kids' favorite SpongeBob SquarePants will be the center of a new story on a wholly new medium: Twitter. The Ice Race Cometh — A Twitter Tale is an original story, from the official SpongeBob writing team, and will consist of multiple tweets and images broadcast throughout each day from July 12th to July 15th. Fun? Sure. Novel? You bet. Silly? Quite a bit.

I absolutely LOVE this idea, and wonder about the fact that other authors have not picked up on it sooner.

Now, knowing what I do of human nature, I can hear the groans and protests already. "No way — I'm not going to GIVE AWAY my book for free..."Well, I'm going to fall back on my favorite Cher quote, from Moonstruck: "SNAP OUT OF IT!"

This Twitter series idea is phenomenal for a number of reasons:

• Twitter is approaching 300 million registered users, and has just surpassed 100 million apps designed specifically for it. So, as a social medium, it's no fad — it's here to stay.
• Get over your fear of "giving your work away." This is the way marketing is done today — if you don't want to play the game by the new rules, maybe it's time to find a J-O-B.
• Releasing this stories in a series of tweets is creating sustained interest in the @SpongeBob Twitter handle. People (who are captivated by this story) are going to follow, follow, follow!
• Following a Twitter feed is like watching TV — you can't watch all of it, ever. Yes, people can go back and read the whole story through the @SpongeBob feed, but they're going to have to wade through all the other intermittent tweets. If I really liked the story, I think I'd be inclined to purchase it, not sift through all the tweets to read it for FREE.

The goal is to attract attention to the story — and I have no doubt it's going to work!

As always, I encourage you — especially the authors in the crowd — to do some brainstorming and visualizing to determine how you can extrapolate from this SpongeBob experiment and use the idea to promote your own book, brand, or service.
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Marketing Mishaps: Just because your WordPress site can have lots of boxes doesn't mean it should!

Marketing Mishaps: Just because your WordPress site can have lots of boxes doesn't mean it should!

There's no arguing that the world we live in today is a lot more complex than it was 30 years ago. Information flies at us from all directions, and is available to us from every corner at every second of the day and night. As a result, we're getting better at processing that seemingly unstoppable flow of data. Sometimes, though, more options are NOT better.

I just had a pretty typical experience of following a tweet to a site that looked promising ... until I got to the site:

It looks pretty, right? But this is the site of a self-proclaimed branding company whose brand says only one thing to me: TOO BUSY to be focused. 

You've no doubt heard about making a good first impression when you meet someone. Well, the exact same thing is true of your Web site or blog. You have literally about 3 seconds before that coveted brand new visitor decides whether to stay and explore, or chooses to hit the back button or the little X that closes your tab forever. If you want them to stay, your site has got to have a natural navigation and symmetry to it.

The problem with the site above is that there are WAY too many options. Where are you supposed to go first? The giant picture? Great. You tab through 5 or 6 images. What then?

When it comes to Web design, we sometimes get caught up in this idea that if we offer sooooo much good stuff in one place, our unique visitors will want to stay and check it all out. Wrong. They're not going to check anything out without a reason — and a natural pathway to guide them from section/option to section/option.


Think about the times you've followed a tweet to a blog post. One post, one topic. If you read the first paragraph and liked it, you probably kept reading. If you didn't like it, you left. But you lingered long enough to let the content do the persuading — it wasn't the layout of the site that sent you packing.


Simple isn't boring. Sometimes, it's more useful than we realize.
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When a client gives you chills — in a good way!

When a client gives you chills — in a good way!

I'm very privileged to be working with a new client on an important book, the working title of which is The Time to Heal. To preserve her confidentiality regarding topic, I'll just say it's a groundbreaking work about a misunderstood illness.

As part of our workflow, we have a standing appointment for a weekly phone call check-in, during which we review our progress, address questions and issues, and set the schedule for the following week's work.

Today, just before we got off the phone, my client said, "There's one more thing I want to do before we hang up. I want you to take note of these 6 questions, because as we go through the process of writing this book, I want to keep these in mind at every stage." Her questions nearly brought  me to tears:

• Is it true?
• Is it helpful?
• Is it kind?
• Is it clear and concise?
• What is healing about it?
• Who is healing from it?

What a thoughtful individual she is — and what a massively different world we'd live in if every author, writer, TV news commentator, blogger, social media user, individual would review these questions on a daily basis. My client's point was that although this will be a noteworthy book on what can be a terribly controversial issue, she wants her underlying purpose to be life-giving. Period.

Where can you apply these questions in your writing, work, and life?
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Your thoughtful comments encouraged and appreciated.

Considerations when publishing an anthology of other writers' work

I received a very interesting question from life coach Nicole Bandes today:

I am working on my next book which will be a compilation of stories. The challenge I am running into is that many of the stories being submitted are already written on blogs somewhere.

I'm ... wondering if this is a problem or if I should request exclusive only stories. Maybe I can take the story written on the blog and rewrite them so they aren't identical (I'd need to do that with most anyway).

Do you have any thoughts or suggestions?

My response to Nicole's question was 5-fold:

(1) Are you saying these stories have been posted by the writers on the writers' blogs? That's not an issue unless you make it one by insisting on original material.

(2) If the material has been submitted by the original author to another blog or article site, you'll need to find out who actually owns the piece because there could be fine print saying the blog owner/article site now owns the content.

(3) Make sure you insist on an affidavit or waiver from each story submitter stipulating that they wrote the material and have the rights to reproduce it.

(4) I would also insist on a signed release from each contributor, giving you express permission to reprint their material and agreeing to allow you to use it however you are planning to (e.g., book only, on your blog, in your marketing materials, etc.).

(5) You need to be VERY explicit about compensation — or lack thereof — especially if you're not offering cash payments for the stories. Maybe you're agreeing to give them a resource box at the bottom of each story in exchange for using it. Whatever the agreement is — make it clear that they know what they are agreeing to.

Brenda Warneka and Arlene Uslander, in an article titled "The Art of Assembling Anthologies," offer this additional valuable information:

Provisions to include in the contract with the contributors

Among other things, you must decide what story rights you will ask for, and what payment you will offer to contributors. We are aware of payment by the best selling anthologies of as much as $300 or more; others run contests for stories; new anthologies may pay with a copy of the book and a bio, which is an accepted practice. Many fine writers are willing to allow a one-time use of their work simply because they are interested in the theme of the book. New writers may be seeking the writing credentials provided by having a story in print.

There may be other money-making opportunities for contributors even if the anthology is nonpaying; e.g., the sale of reprint rights, speaking engagements, or other writing assignments as a result of the exposure.

Anthologies are a great, usually easy, way to put together an informative book. Just make sure you cover yourself and your contributors before embarking on such a project.

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