October 14, 2009

Your Reputation Is Key to Your Success... Take the Time for a
Daily Affirmation... An Active Mind Is an Entrepreneur's Best
Asset... How to Wow Info Marketing Clients... and More.

If you are in business or are considering starting one, you might not have thought about the silent killer: a bad reputation.

You probably don't think that your reputation has anything to do with your success; but, believe me, it does.

Think about how many times you have heard a friend or colleague talk about the horrible service they received from a local mechanic. Chances are that opinion stuck in your mind and you probably won't be taking your car there in the future. Have you ever decided to eat at a restaurant simply because a friend said the service was great? I do all the time. So, it works both ways. Your business reputation could make or break your success whether you like it or not.

In order to keep your reputation blemish-free, you need to first work on letting your business community get to know you.

Attend a charity/community event and meet people. If customers put a face to a business, they are more likely to try it out, particularly if you are professional and seem concerned about the well-being of their city.

If you are involved in an Internet-based business, make sure that you are providing customers with the exact product or service that you have promised them. If not, your name could very well be dragged through the "Internet mud."

Try to provide as much convenience to your customers as you can. So, provide them with reasonable hours to do business and, if they have a request, make a conscious effort to fill it. Above all, be honest with your customers. If you have a sale starting next week and a customer buys an item that would have been on sale, inform them that they will pay less next week. You're not losing out on money; you are gaining a return customer.

Customers need to be able to trust you. No one is going to do business with someone they don't trust. Make sure that you are pricing competitively and giving the customers the respect that they deserve. Be helpful and courteous in your customer service and go above and beyond the call of duty. Believe me; going that extra mile could benefit you greatly.

Word of mouth is one of the simplest and most inexpensive means of advertising that you have at your disposal. So, make sure your reputation is helping and not hindering your success.

To discover the power of believing in yourself -- and to make that power grow stronger every day -- I want to encourage you to commit a few minutes each evening (or during any other convenient time) to affirm your self-worth in order to help you realize your successes, no matter how small or large they may be. It might seem like a silly exercise for some of you, but I guarantee that the results will be well worth the effort.

I have put together a few questions that you can ask yourself at the end of each day. The answers will come easily to you when you start doing this on a regular basis -- and once you get past the hesitancy that some of you may have about celebrating your achievements.

The ticket is to build your confidence and to start feeling good about yourself, even on days when you're feeling a bit down or when you're feeling a lot of stress or pressure. At the end of the day, you have to put the day's events into perspective. Take this time to acknowledge your achievements and to determine how to solve the challenges in your life.

The more confident you are in your abilities, the more success you will naturally attract. The less stressed out that you feel, the more you can get done in a day -- and the better you will feel mentally and physically. The more positively you see yourself, the more positively others will see you. So go ahead and ask yourself the following:

-- What was my most positive achievement today?
-- What's my plan to spin that success into more accomplishments and achievements?
-- Did I face a challenge today and overcome it? What was it? How did I overcome this challenge?
-- What's my game plan for tomorrow?
-- What made me feel good about myself today?

It's an easy formula, and you will see results if you commit to putting it to work in your life. It will only take a few minutes of your time to do this. You can write out the answers or simply acknowledge them in your mind. Review the day's events and the things that you did well, the people you impressed, the challenges you faced, and anything else that was positive about it. This is a time where you can plan for the next day and settle your mind and body. It will help you feel relaxed and good about yourself.

There's no question that, in order to be an entrepreneur, you've got to have your wits about you. Of course, you need to be creative, relatively smart and have a brain capable of accepting new ideas, while possessing the chutzpah to give them a try.

If you get a small taste of success, it can be quite easy, however, to fall into the trap of thinking your ways are always the best. When this happens, you can get a little lazy, which can result in lowering sales and other problems.

You see, when things are working, it's easy to set your mind adrift. Next thing you know, it becomes inactive, causing you to lose the edge you once had. The fact is that, to continue to grow your business and operate a successful company, you need to learn constantly by expanding your knowledge base. When you do this, new and innovative ideas will present themselves that can take your business to the next level.

So, what are some of the ways you can keep your mind fresh, active and innovative? That's an excellent question. It just so happens that I have a couple of answers.

The first thing you can do is to read various types of information. Even just a couple of articles a day can offer some insight and get you thinking about things you may have otherwise neglected. When reading, it's also important to look at things you don't necessarily agree with. This can teach you to understand others and learn to accept various points of view.

Once you've read the material, take some time to reflect on it. Look at your business and see if anything, even something that may not connect directly, applies to your business. Maybe you've been ignoring something, have failed to consider various options or just flat out didn't even think of it.

Another way to keep your brain active is to teach people things. If you've got some customers or friends who've taken an interest in what you do, go a little further and explain a certain aspect of the business. Sometimes talking and hearing your own voice can cause new ideas to spring forth and open up new pathways to explore.

It's also effective to start taking on new things and involving yourself with things you may not have been comfortable with in the past. Perhaps it's something like joining a book club, a ball team or a community organization that allows you to meet people and learn fresh perspectives. The fact is that the more outlets you have to cultivate your mind, the better.

** How to Wow Info Marketing Clients
By James Burt, Online Marketing Expert

I was typing away early one morning, when the phone rang.

"Hey, we need you in-house today. New stuff coming in."

"Got it," I said, and hung up.

The man on the other line was, and still is, a regular client I have written content for. More often than not, I work remotely and can do all the things he needs right from home. But that day he needed me to come into the office. He was doing a new venture within his business and needed some technical content written. I knew that this meant me going over to his building, sitting in the boardroom, looking over presentation slides and whatever requirements were needed, and then being let go to get started on the new project. But that was alright -- I knew this was part of the job.

As an information marketer, this is something you may be called upon to do from time to time. While most of your business will be done online and through e-mail, there is a good chance that you will be having one-on-one in-person contact with your client. Don't be put off this -- it's a great way to meet who you are working for, establishing a good working relationship and helping you learn new concepts on site.

Meeting a client firsthand can be daunting. It's a bit like a job interview and can frighten a lot of people not used to one-on- one encounters. When you go to meet your client in person, there is a good protocol to follow. Here are some tips I use:

-- Dress appropriately: Especially if you are meeting a client for the first time, it's important to make a good impression. You don't need a three-piece suit, but good business casual dress is probably best. Even if you are in the routine of doing your content creation in your underwear in front of your computer -- I'm not saying this is bad -- it's a good thing that if you meet others in the flesh, you look proper.

-- Come prepared: Along with looking good, you should also bring some vital tools to your meetings. I always bring a portfolio of recent or relevant work to any new party who might be interested. I also take along a pad and pen to take notes on whatever meeting or presentation I am involved in while there. It's just a good practice to do these things and you never know what info you may pick up and want to refer back to later.

-- Look, listen, and listen some more: I've seen new info marketers, writers, and even executives who go to client meetings and basically ruin the experience. They talk too much, argue, and are even rude with one another. It's pretty bad, and I am sure a lot of deals have fallen through because people talk when they should listen or are rude when they could have just as easily been polite. It's best, particularly if you are the new guy, to listen to everything that your client has to say and then speak once he or she is finished. Feel free to give input, but make sure you think about it before you speak and offer only material that is relevant to the task at hand. Save the blabber for your friends at the pub.

-- If possible, set up a return schedule: This is something that can help you with a particular client who has to meet with on a regular basis. Information changes a lot and so do new digital formats. Therefore, it's often a good idea to schedule a regular time to meet up with your client to discuss new directions and ideas for the info product. Once a week, biweekly, or once a month is best. This works, as your client will know you are a true professional, interested in the new tasks at hand. And it keeps you on a regular payroll, which is, well, always good.

A friend recently found out I was going to meet clients in their office. He griped, "That sucks. Give me a shut-away office any day." But I couldn't agree at all. Meeting clients one-on-one has been great for me in building up my work history and establishing some great working relationships in the process. I can recommend the same for you as well. Getting out to meet clients is another way you can help your information marketing business grow and become more successful.