Social Media – Letting Your Visitors Control The Direction Of Your Business

When people talk about social media today, you may instantly think of Facebook or Twitter. But in truth, there are hundreds of ways you can take your business social.

Have you ever been to MyCokeRewards.com?  If you drink Coke products, you can take the codes listed on the bottles and boxes, enter them into the website, and build up your points to trade in for prizes. You can trade them for things like magazine subscriptions, coupons to use at your favorite stores, or to enter sweepstakes for bigger prizes.

So Coke has a highly concentrated site where a lot of their “fans” congregate and spend time.

Now instead of simply going there for prizes, they are also trying to get you to take the next step with their branding by offering a contest where you become the designer.

For 2010, they are looking for a new design to place on their cans of Coke. Instead of letting their in-house graphics team handle the job, they’ve turned it over to millions of fans. Design a can. Submit it to Coke. And you have a chance to win one of fifteen $500 Visa gift cards.

By making this kind of offer, they are accomplishing three things:

1. Gaining more dedication to their product – if you enter, you’ll probably be more dedicated to coming back to check results.

2. Growing their worldwide exposure. What if you enter, and win? Imagine how quickly you can spread the word about your design. Share it on Facebook. Tweet about it on Twitter. Let your blog audience in on the news.

3. Making their site even more fun. If you already visit for one reason, why not come back for additional reasons? You always have to have a reason for people to keep coming back.

Will You Be Ready To Retire Someday?

The last year has done a lot to the hopes and dreams of the worker. Pensions are gone. Retirement funds are hitting rock bottom. Even the threat of losing your job is more probable then ever.

But for some people, all of this doesn’t even cross their minds. They knew it was coming. And they did something about it.

I’m talking about people that went out and started their own businesses.

It doesn’t have to be a full time career. Or even have a master plan. Instead, they simply went out, learned something new, and started making money at it.

Now if you look at a lot of the guru’s on the Internet today, they make it seem so easy to earn $40k every single month – and to be able to pick up that type of income in just a matter of months. Honestly, the one’s you read about are the exceptions – the few that saw things align perfectly, and had everything come together in just the right manner.

But even if you don’t earn an extra $40k per month, wouldn’t it be nice to know an extra $2k is coming in?

That’s one of my goals with Vision Of Success. I’m here to show you how to take your hobby and turn it into an income stream. I’ve spent the last 7 years writing information to help you get started with your business planning, and helping you understand how to turn it into a side income using online sources.

Maybe you’re worried about the longevity of your job. Or maybe you’ve recently been laid off. In either case, its time to start building for your own future.

1. Choose one thing that could help bring in an extra income stream. Maybe you love taking pictures. Maybe everyone raves about your brownies. Or maybe you love scrapbooking. Whatever your interest, there is a way to make money at it.

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They Print How Many Yellow Pages?

Just this past week, six phone books ended up sitting at our front door. And for us, phone books go straight from the front door to the recycling bin. (They have for years; who needs them when  you’re online 16 hours a day?)

So it got me to thinking. Is there a way you can opt out of receiving phone books?

According to Green Tips, that’s a very difficult task at best.

Every year the North American Yellow Pages prints around 540 million copies of the Yellow Pages. Because so many people aren’t set up with land lines in their homes, they deliver a few extra to people that may only have mobile devices. They keep printing and delivering, but from everything I can tell, there’s no way of opting out.

You can sign a Paperless Petition, and hope to capture the attention of the Yellow Pages industry.

You can opt out on the Yellow Pages Goes Green site.

Even places like Dex have sites exclusively for recycling. But  its all for recycling old and out of date books – not how to opt out of receiving them at all.

I understand why a billion dollar industry is holding on as tight as possible to what’s left of the industry. But let me ask you a few questions.

• When was the last time you pulled a phone book out to look up a company in a new niche?
• When was the last time you pulled out a phone book to decide what restaurant to go to on a Friday night?
• When was the last time you pulled out a phone book to find resources for your business?

If you’re like me, the answer would be at least ten years. Now let me ask you a few more questions.

• Are you still advertising in the phone book?
• How much are you spending?
• How could you use that money to advertise in other media sources that are getting a whole lot more attention?

10 Tips For Becoming A Better Entrepreneur

Is it a secret club?

Can anyone join?

Is it something that you just have to be born with?

Once you’re an entrepreneur, its hard to imagine ever going back to the “job” mentality. You simply get too used to being on your own, doing things on your own, and controlling your own destiny.

But there are things you can do to move your business to the next level.

1. Stay organized. Have you ever met with someone who doesn’t take notes, promises you things, and never follow through? It’s not a sign of weakness to write things down, and it can help you become even more focused. Keep everything in its place, including your goals and tasks.

2. Use every tool available to you. People talk all the time about new technology (blogging, Facebook, Twitter, etc). But you like doing things the old way – why change? By changing and trying new things, you may make your business even more profitable, and cut your work time down by minutes or even hours with automation. Efficiency should be on your mind every time you hear of something new.

3. Be connectable. If I want to email you, find your website, connect on Facebook, or find out what you’re saying on Twitter, I should easily be able to connect. Put your links in your emails, on the home page of your site, and in your newsletters.

4. Outsource whenever possible. There are a ton of options today, from virtual assistants to consultants. Always free up your time by handing off tasks that can easily be accomplished by others.

5. Create action lists. Do you have a to-do list? How big is it? I record everything in spiral and 3 ring notebooks. Then I prioritize into three levels. I always work my 1 priorities first, followed by my 2’s, and then my 3’s. I can tell you I almost never get to my 3’s. Which means I’m learning how to not take on 3’s altogether.

6. Control your risk. A great entrepreneur takes on risk no easier than someone working at a job. She understands the impact of each action she chooses, and only takes on those tasks that have a somewhat guaranteed outcome.

7. Fix problems quickly. Ignoring things won’t make them go away. And with social media, an ignored problem can quickly snowball into a HUGE problem. Correct the problem, and even consider doing it publicly on your blog, if appropriate.

8. Start a blog. Blogging is by far the most beneficial thing you can do for your business. Want to join me in setting your blogging goals?

9. Ask for help. Have you ever thought how much each of us accomplishes each year? Now compare that with what your great-grandparents did in a year. Because we live in an instant society, we’re expected to do things instantly. It is possible – with help. Do what you do best. And hire others for what they do best. You’ll cut your work load down tremendously, and you’ll see the results very quickly.

10. Reward yourself. It’s easy to say, “I didn’t finish my to-do list today.” But it’s much more difficult saying, “I did a great job today.” Make it a practice to reward your successes, no matter how little they are. A positive outlook will make you that much more successful.

image source ba1969

Turning Your Small Business Into Big Business With A Partner

Some companies just get it.

I remember over 10 years ago, a new business opened up in my local mall. The first time I walked by Build A Bear, I laughed at the idea. Who would honestly keep going to a place where you could stuff your own bear?

Fast forward. My daughter now has over 10 of the stuffed friends, and an entire tub of clothes and accessories. And I love their marketing strategies – they seem to be teamed up with a ton of different businesses.

This week I received an email from Williams Sonoma. I love going into that store – doesn’t it make you seem like you might actually be able to cook? (All right, I haven’t mastered that part, but its still fun to pretend.)

And there in my email was Build A Bear. Yep, you need the special cake pan to make the 3-D bear. And then you can buy separate decorating kits to make a variety of outfits for the bear. How cool is this?

Now is a perfect time for the Santa suit. Or you can use the Princess decorating kit for your daughter’s birthday. Or the Soccer outfit after your team finishes the season. They’ve got you covered.

Just by taking their concept to a totally different level, they are easily going to add a LOT of income to their bottom line. And both companies will do very well with this promotion.

Cross promotion is finding a company that sells to your target audience, and joining up with something that benefits the both of you. And it may be just the thing you need to jumpstart your 2009 sales.

The Power Of An Image

Books are such a wonderful gift to the world. In a few short paragraphs, they can transform you to far off places, create settings from any place in time, and add detail to your imagination like no other source we know. When you want to disappear from reality for a few moments, the best place to go is into a nice hot tub full of bubbles with a few lit candles and a great book!

How can a few words on a page do that to you? How can they change your mood from sad to happy, and lift your spirits to make you ready to face the world again? It’s in the detail. It’s in the way those details fill your emotions. It’s in the way you perceive the world around you based on what has filled your mind within the last few minutes. Everything we do is for the experience. We do it for what it brings into our lives.

So we base our ideas and our perceptions solely on the experiences we have. Experience is everything. The way the rest of the world perceives us is through the experience they receive while they are with us. Imagine how you feel in different places. If you receive an experience above and beyond the expected, don’t you feel just a little more special? Don’t you recommend those places that go above and beyond the normal, and give you an experience that you never thought was possible?

What does it take to create that type of an image for your company? Here are three ways for moving your business forward.

1. Create a memorable first impression. Whether on the pages of your website, through the first contact with a powerful brochure, or a handshake at a local restaurant, first impressions have a definite effect on your future business.

Did you know a person forms an opinion of you within the first 15 seconds of meeting you? Or that a person makes a decision to read copy on your website or a brochure based on the headline alone?
If you were presenting to a potential client, you would never show up in jeans and a sweatshirt. Yet many people think nothing of printing up brochures on their home computer, and adding handwritten information as needed. Then they wonder why business isn’t as good as they had hoped. What people see the first time they make contact with your company is what they will carry inside for a long time to come.

2. Concentrate on the detail. Putting effort into the little things can have an instant impact on your business. From the thickness of your business cards, to the colors you use on your website, everything tells your customers how well you focus on your business.

Have you ever been to a clothing store that wraps your purchases in tissue paper before putting it into a color-coordinated bag? I love getting home and unwrapping my sweaters from the tissue paper. It just makes them seem a little more special. Yet there really isn’t a difference between them and the large department stores that simply drop the sweaters into a bag. It’s just my perception of the quality of their service. It’s the detail they choose to put in their presentation.

3. Follow through on everything you do. Have you ever been totally enthralled in a movie: you love the story line; the characters have captured your heart. And then, the ending comes to an abrupt halt? Don’t you somehow feel a little cheated?

Servicing your customers is the same way. You can create an incredible first impression, have a convincing sales presentation, have a wonderful product or service, but if you fall short in your delivery, you will lose all credibility with your customers.

Creating the experience always begins with the image you portray from beginning to end, throughout the life of your business. And the more magical it is, the more it will spread like wildfire through your community.

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Lori Osterberg has created three successful businesses in the past 10 years, and along the way discovered secrets of taking a local small business and turning it into a worldwide success. She now shares this passion with people all over the world, and writes and mentors on using technology to grow your business – and stay small at the same time! Receive her FREE ezine at www.VisionOfSuccess.com.