Mid-Week Motivation. The Power of Doing.

Midweek Motivation!!!!

The power of doing. Recently I have been talking with many successful individuals.  In my conversation I’m looking for what makes them successful.

Last week we found that true confidence in “knowing” lies great power. Today I wanted to discuss the “doing.”

How do things get accomplished? You go out and do it! But what do I mean?  Well when a successful outside sales rep started calling on business’s they circle the block a few times. Because of the fear. When the rep started walking in to business’s she realized, “What was I scared of?” She soon learned that the more she did the work, the easier it got and more her commission grew.

The way we get over fear and achieve any goal is doing. Drafting a plan and actually working it. I have learned that the doing is important to overcoming, otherwise we stay stuck. Sounds simple, but how many times have we not hit a goal simply because we didn’t “DO” it. You need to ensure everyday your actually doing those activities that produce the goal!

If you have a goal, no matter how large, start today! Even it it’s small, do something. The small things lead to big things. Began doing and you’ll be on your way to achieving.

Are you placing too much focus on your NEXT customer?

Any small business needs new customers to keep growing. The problem is most small business's put so much money in getting new customer's they forget about their existing clients. So here are some good ways to keep a small business growing using your existing customer base and minimize the cost.

First thing is to gather a database. Collect your clients info in a responsible, safe and non-violating manner. Always keep the security of this info on high alert!

Now try a customer loyalty club. This club will receive updates via email with any specials you may be running for existing customers. For example an automotive shop might announce a free inspection and tire rotation to existing customers. Or give the customer an small discount when it's time to get the oil change. I'll be writing more on this idea in the coming weeks. 

Another major way to grow sales through your existing client base is...referrals. This is certainly no new concept.  Here is one easy and simple way to start today. Go to an existing customer and help them. I mean show them how to take full advantage of your services. Find an existing customer with a need for better or more efficient use of your services. You probably have more than enough. After you have showed them the value you provide simply say, "Can I have the names of your favorite suppliers so I may help them like I have helped you?" It seems to work every time, but remember we are looking to help before  we recieve no matter the outcome.*

And lastly a monthly enewsletter. Your up to date on your industry, right? So draw up a monthly newsletter explaining any changes in your field of business. At the bottom include promotional items and coupons. This reminds customers your in business and you send out via email so that means no postage.

We will began looking at a tool we use to help us manage these three activities called CRM...

*More on Referrals try Bob Burg's Endless Referrals or his Go-Giver's. 

Mid-Week Motivation. Is it all in knowing?

We all know that successful person who has all the confidence, charisma and smarts. They seem to have a response to everything and we often seek their thoughts or approval. What makes them so sure?

Lately I have been thinking about this much. I have read many books, see my reading list on linkedin.com/in/nmsmallbiz, and done much soul searching. I KNOW I have part of the answer.

The answer is simply this: Confident and Successful people know they're Confident and Successful!!! I know your asking, thats it? The answer you came up with was this? This helps me not one bit.

Give me a chance. I have found on mornings when I say out loud what I WILL, not TRY, to accomplish today I get done. The other day I said I was going to make a certain dollar amount. By the end of the day...I had it. I said I hope the next day...and I still don't have it. 

Point is this; Know your confident, Control your thoughts, change your end result! So let's set ourselves up for success by first knowing...than doing. I KNOW soon you'll be the person you thought when you read my first line. 

I dare you try this!

Fran Tarkenton's Quick 3 keys to success

This past week I got to share a confrence call with business partner and NFL Hall of Fame Quaterback Fran Tarkenton. When we asked the small business expert what are some keys to success in business? He responded with three quick bullet points:

-You have to have a great product. If your product isn't something people want or need you can't sustain growth or even maintain your current base.

-Customer experience is key. You have to treat your customer so good and create enough value that your customer want's to continue to buy from you or send you business.

-And finally you have to like to work. Fran mentioned the following names: Sam Walton, Harland Stonecipher, Bill Russell, Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods. While mentioning these names he said they all have one thing in common...they liked to work. And they work hard simply because they enjoyed and believed what they we're doing.

Great and simple advice.  If you have a goal, you might as well be running!

Next Step in Building A Website

It's time to look at what you need to set-up the actual website. After we have build our Site Map now it's time to start researching what we are going to need to get on the Internet. We will be looking at Domain Names, Hosting Services and Development Software.

Your Domain name is quite possibly the most important part of your website. It's your place on the Internet and needs to be easy enough for clients to remember...and carry your marketing plan online. Godaddy.com  is a popular site used to get a domain names. When we register clients we usually find a .com as opposed to a .net, .org or any other extension. Simply go to godaddy.com search your domain name find one you like and purchase. The purchase is for the registration of the domain name.

Now you will need to find hosting services. Hosting services basically make having a website for the small business owner affordable. The hosting company provides uses of their sever for data or information transfer, Internet connectivity and data or information storage. This service is what actually puts your site online. Simply put, this services places your website on the Internet for an affordable process. 

Finally you'll need some Development Software. This software is what is used to designed the site. You'll need your site layout to help you with this. This software will be used to put in the pictures, text and SEO phrases you want on your site. Many hosting companies have some sort of development software or you can use separate software if you choose. Our program has both the hosting services and the software development and I say it is much easier to just deal with one program. 

Remember this is designed for the small business owner. It's true their are different routes to take to build the site, but I found this is the easiest and most effective process. I be happy to show you some websites we have built, just ask!

What Do I Need To Get Started Building a Website? The Planning Process.

Building a website can be a daunting task if you have limited Internet experience. It can be daunting even if you are a experienced user. What do I need to get started? What should I include? The following is written to at least give you a starting point.

First you should have a Internet marketing plan. The plan should set an outline for what you want to accomplish with the web site. You need to think about the image you currently portray now and how you can carry over online. Use your current marketing materials and signage to guide you. Think about things like:

-Who is my ideal prospect/customer?
-What makes me better than the competition?
-What product or brand name shall I promote?

Next decide how many pages you will require. All websites should at a very minimum have the following pages, Home or About Us, Product/Service (maybe more than 1), Contact Us and finally a Location page if you have a storefront or office. Most companies will have at least four pages to their site.

Finally create a Site Layout. Take a piece of paper and draw as many boxes as your web pages will have. So staying with four, we would draw four boxes. Label each box for the page, ex. Box 1 Home/About Us, do this for all the pages and you now have a site map. Now do the same with four blank sheets of paper, ex. Page 1 Home/About Us. Below your title write a brief description. Next put down any ideas, images or thoughts you have about what this page should say.

This is the process we follow when helping a new client grow their business. I would be happy to share an example if you like.