Archive for the ‘business’ Category

Facebook: Mode D’emploi for Business

Friday, July 30th, 2010

Facebook has been the buzz for youngsters, adults and business circles for a while now and trends show it is not going to stop soon. We love Facebook; it’s as simple as that. But besides playing Café World while chatting with a potential client – what other business reason are you using Facebook? It has been brought to my ears that many networkers were having trouble to use Facebook productively. So here comes Lilach to your rescue guys!

Step 1: Create a Profile
When filling out the information section remember not to give too many details; going on and on will increase the risk of sounding repetitive and boring your potential ‘friends’. Once you are done adding your existing contacts you will move to new people. It is because of those very people that you have to keep a reign on your fingers and not type your whole life in the about me section. Why would a stranger want to know why you decided to have cats instead of dogs? I am not saying you should look plain and talk only about business; in my opinion this is an even bigger put-off factor than showing too much. Be yourself but just put the chances on your side. However don’t worry you will get to satisfy this wish when you become more popular on Facebook and your new friends themselves ask to know more about you. It’s better to wait till you are sure they will be receptive to it.

Step 2: Know the Limits
This really depends on your approach to work, what you are trying to sell and your image. But the old adage ‘Don’t mix work and fun’ might be true after all. I know experienced marketers who have a sole Facebook profile where they add potential business partners and clients who can see posts about their social games, their insignificant or in the depths of despair status, the latest song’s link and tags of them in photos taken when they were drunk or sleazy. We can all see the fun in those petty things but it is unfortunately often a repellent in business.

Step 3: Who to Add/Accept
Don’t add like mad just to increase figures. Think of quality over quantity and add/accept people who are your target market, potential employers, provide services you might need or whom you might want to work with.

Step 4: Weave a Quality Fiber
Don’t jump with joy just because you have thousands of friends. Many people accept friend requests without thinking and therefore cannot be counted as quality friends. The only way you can assure yourself of their loyalty is by winning it. I hate it when I login, see I have several messages, get all excited only to see they were sent by the same person who not only is trying to sell me something but can’t even remember he sent me the same message 5 minutes ago! So don’t spam them but post quality content such as blogs and links (post it on your profile instead of sending it as a message so they can see it in their feeds and decide by themselves if they want to read it or not) or simply chatting with them once in a while, wishing them a happy birthday and commenting on some of their posts.

Step 5: Create Your Fanpage
Yes you are ready for fans! The number one advantage of a Fanpage is that you can go beyond the 5000 people limit. And since you already have loyal friends they will be most happy to join your Fanpage as well, knowing you are a quality content provider and not one of those airhead spammers. Thanks to the Suggest to Friends option, which is the Facebook equivalent of word of mouth, your friends’ friends will also join and they will pass you to their own friends and so on.

Step 6: Monetise Yourself
Let us be clear; it doesn’t take 5 steps and over 5000 friends to make money. If you used your cards well your Facebook presence will have won you bucks already. But when you reach the status of someone with a dynamic Fanpage it gives you extra value and credit; it impresses the client, gives him the
impression (rightly I hope!) that you know your field and are on top of things.

Keep everything and everyone connected by organizing events, webinars and so on. Send them courteous and light offers, for example

‘Hi there, was wondering if perhaps you would like to have a look at my new ebook. I’d be glad if you could read it and tell me what you think of it. Please let me know if I can return the favour. Thanks’

Don’t pressure them or send them messages at a high frequency. Keep it concise and friendly. Give them an apercu of what you are offering instead of pushing the whole thing under their nose.

Best of luck in the Facebook world!

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Content is King

Monday, July 26th, 2010

With new blogs being written every second yours has to enfold something better. You need to catch the readers’ attention. Difference isn’t always a good thing in marketing as it can put off some people who might prefer a more conventional approach. So I am not advising you to be extravagant but rather to differentiate yourself from other bloggers through three factors: Quality, Originality and the X Factor.

Factor 1: Quality
Do not write BS if you don’t know what to write! It’s as simple as that. Always do your research to confirm statistics and make sure if you make references to companies you or people you quote the correct names. Also be very careful when writing about anything that could be interpreted as defamation; remember a man is guilty of nothing until proven but you can still pass your feelings by playing on words. Thanks to MS Word you can now avoid nearly all grammatical mistakes and enrich your vocabulary via synonyms and Thesaurus.

Factor 2: Originality
Originality is a two-way gift for both the writer and the reader. If you like what you are writing and are fond of your style then you will be even more creative than if you were just rephrasing others’ blogs. Readers love feeling they have made good use of their time after reading an article or blog; it pleases them to know they have learnt something new, laughed a bit or opened the door to an opportunity.

Factor 3: The X factor
The X factor is what makes a reader remember your blog and not another. It is that thing which belongs only to you and which you twist around words to produce a unique effect. Some call it style but I personally think no school can teach you that little something you already have in you.
So be yourself; let the ink drop and stun them all.

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Branding yourself as an expert when you’re a newbie

Friday, July 16th, 2010

Nowadays in the midst of more choice than ever, we often ‘don’t know’ which to choose. So what do we do? We rely on others’ choice, overlooking the basic fact that these others too most probably based themselves on others. Well you might not have realized it but this is called branding. Relying on others to market your brand, product or yourself is high level marketing and once you achieved that you can call yourself a master. All of them branded themselves and made themselves the expert in a focused niche and the great thing is that you can do the same!

So what areas can you start to brand yourself as an expert in?
If you’re a newbie or someone who doesn’t have tons of experience within the internet marketing arena then start with the simplest step: Before branding your products or services start by branding yourself. It’s important because when you brand yourself, you’re setting yourself apart from other people in the field. Become that expert people rely on when they find it hard to choose.
In case you are still not totally overwhelmed by that idea let me list the other benefits of branding yourself:
-You will get the cream of clients…Yes I mean the very best of the best. These are usually people who are willing to pay more in order to get the finest and in our case being an expert will make you the finest.
- Clients will come to you, instead of you having to go to them. Think how much time and costs this will save, without mentioning the immense boost to your self-esteem.
- Word of mouth will be your best friend and whenever clients will think of your expertise they will think of you. Repeated purchase is nearly in the bag!

So now that you’re raring to go here is a list of a few areas that you could brand yourself as an expert in:

- Info Product Development
- Blog/Site/Membersite Development
- Article Marketing
- Audio & Video
- Copywriting
- Opt In List Building
-SEO
- PPC
- Ebay
-Social media

And if you haven’t found something that lighted a fire of motivation in you then don’t panic because the good news is that the list is endless! In fact it’s even better if you find a gap niche market to become an expert in.

Ok great you now know you want to be an expert and in which field. But where do you start?
Step 1: Don’t worry. The hardest has been done as you now know what you want.
Step 2: Be patient and trust the number one tool of all experts: People!
Step 3: Organise yourself with a daily to-do list that will be productive for you.
Step 4: Attend seminars and learn new skills. If budget is tight there is a wealth of information at your finger tips, just log on to the internet. Don’t forget there are some great ebooks that you can download and a lot are free.
Step 5: Get known. Facebook is my favourite tool for that. Build a contact list consisting of established experts and potential clients which you can separate via Friends Lists. Join related groups and fanpages and post a nice note on their wall telling them that you appreciate their work and would like it if they could keep you informed of coming seminars or new ebooks.
Step 6: Don’t give up. At this stage of your self-improvement process you might be very vulnerable and easily feel like giving up. Don’t! Keep going. Remember it’s important to enjoy what you do and have fun. Push away negative thoughts and remain far from people who would be likely to discourage you. Remember no one wants a sulky expert to work with!
Now that you are armed with these tips go out there and show the world the expert in you!

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Are you ready to set up your own business?

Thursday, July 15th, 2010

The credit crunch and the looming recession will have an impact on all of us, whether it’s the price of petrol and food or concerns about job security and risk of redundancy. Of course, changing direction because of redundancy or the need to balance the demands of family can open up opportunities too. More and more people are wanting to end the rat race and with the boom of the Internet and leverage Social Media more people are making money online.
So, how do you know whether you are cut out to run your won business and what is involved? For anyone considering setting up in business the key is to be clear about what you want to get out of it – whether this is about achieving a particular lifestyle, generating a specific level of income, building a business which you can sell on, giving you flexibility to spend time with the family. You can achieve all of those but being clear on your aim will dictate the business model you follow.
Setting up on your own has many advantages – being your own boss gives you great scope for exploring ideas and bringing creativity into your business. It’s a steep learning curve. You will need to get up to speed with basic accounts and book-keeping as well as marketing and business planning. If you are looking for a challenge then this could certainly be it. Depending on the type of business model you follow, and the type of work you are aiming to get, you can work around the needs of your family. Being based at home will also save you considerable commuting time. There is, of course, a need to put money into the business and it’s important to set aside a budget. By working from home you won’t need the kind of outlay necessary if you were looking for premises, which might be needed for other types of businesses.

There are disadvantages in that working from home can be lonely and some people may find this difficult. It’s important to remember that you have to have the mindset that you can make your business work and not expect business to just walk in the door. Juggling the needs of clients can also be tricky. What do you do if requests for support all come in at once? You do what you’ve always done and prioritise. Again, depending on the type of business model you will need to put considerable time into the business. Networking is important and you will find events that can fit with your schedule – early morning, lunch, evening. Attending events on a weekly basis can be exhausting but if this is part of your strategy then you will need to find the time to commit to it.

The drive for new business and all business decisions are down to you so that can sometimes feel like a lot of pressure. It’s important to have a good support network around you and to never give up on achieving your goal. It can be hard work but the rewards, however, far outweigh the stresses and strains.

The experience of setting up a business will certainly take you outside of your comfort zone with the need for networking, devising promotional strategies and materials and presenting in public. That might seem daunting but if you would relish the challenge then it may well be just what you are looking for.

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