Shari's posterous

Does God Care About Your Business Success?

I suppose that if you ask some people why they’re in business, they’ll tell you that it’s to make heaps of money. But ask others, and they’ll tell you it’s to meet a need - to help others with products or services they provide. Still others will tell you that they’re not in it for the money at all.

Of those three groups, the only one that truly concerns me is the last one. That business owner is either naive or lying. Making money is the happy result of a business focused on meeting a need in the marketplace.

Does the bible have anything to say about business success?

Isaiah 48:17 (AMP) “Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; I am the Lord thy God, Who teaches you to profit, Who leads you in the way that you should go.”

I’ve been letting that verse sink in lately. I want to be in tune with His leading, not trying to clear my own path. He teaches us to profit. How cool is that?

The Source of Business Success

Talk to me on a personal level, and you’ll find that I don’t attribute personal or business success to any type of self-promotional efforts. But my blog articles say you’ve got to have a website, an email campaign, a social media presence, the right message at the right time to the right audience. While all those things are factual, they’re not stand-alone truths.

They leave out a vital component - acknowledging the actual Source of all success - that Source being the author and finisher of our faith, Jesus Christ.

Before David faced the giant Goliath, he faced his oldest brother Eliab - who belittled him, saying, “Why have you come down? And with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your insolence and the wickedness of your heart; for you have come down in order to see the battle.”

Here he had such an important thing to do, yet he was verbally berated by someone he respected highly, his older brother. Surely this gave David some pause. It’s not so different today. Often we’ll hear people discuss the challenging times with hopelessness, talking to those on the verge of success as though they want to succeed for the wrong reasons. That can be hurtful, but we have to remember why we’re to be successful - to be the ‘go to’ people who can help in times of need. We have to press on and trust on a higher level than what society understands, not be in agreement with failure.

David was fired up and ready. He was excited to conquer the giant. He knew he was there for a reason. I’ve experienced passion like that before, and when it’s not there, I feel a little lost.

There’s a lifetime worth of answers in David’s response: “... Is there not a cause?” I Sam 17: 29

A Jesse Duplantis article titled Are You on Cruise Control? brought this to my attention at a time when I’ve been wondering if I’m on the right track. I talk marketing all day long, but lately there’s a voice asking me why. “Is there not a cause?” In other words, if I’m where I’m supposed to be, where’s the passion?

“But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” Matthew 6:33. I believe that ‘all things’ includes our business success.

“In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” Proverbs 3:6

“Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things. In your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all.” I Chronicles 29:12

In the interest of truth, passion, and recognition of a cause, it’s time to speak plainly. I believe there’s more to promoting your business online than crossing off items on a marketer’s to-do list.
Just writing this down fired me up like I’m supposed to be. I hope it motivates you, too.

What do you think? I look forward to your comments!

Are your website and blog photos legal?

Be careful: Just you found the photo online doesn't mean it's okay for you to download and use it on your own web site, product, blog, etc. Doing so may, and usually does, violate a copyright of the person who originally created the image. That could mean legal hassles, and possibly major penalties for you. Stay safe by looking for images that have a 'Creative Commons License' and reviewing the terms for each image before you use it.

via High Tech Marketing Blog by Jeff Mulligan on 9/11/10

Don't go to jailRead a great blog post this morning about using the photos and graphics you find on the web and realized it was worth repeating. The post was by Don Crowther. Don really knows his stuff and you can check out his original post here.

The point is simply this: You cannot download any image you find on the web and use it on your own web site, product, blog, etc. Doing so may, and usually does, violate a copyright of the person who originally created the image. That could mean legal hassles, and possibly major penalties for you.

Fortunately there are several sites where you can find good images that are OK for you to use. These images have a “Creative Commons License” which allows public use of them as long as their terms are followed. Sometimes this means you have to give credit to the author. You need to check this on each image.

I know many people use Google images or Flickr to find images. Both of those sites have images that are legal – AND illegal to use. You have to know how to find the images that are legal to use and avoid the illegal images. This Google blog post shows you how to find images that are licensed for your use on your sites.

Don’s blog post has a video showing how to find images on flickr. Be sure to also read the comments on Don’s blog as several of his readers suggested alternative sites for finding legal images. For example, I found the image on this blog post at http://www.sxc.hu .

Finally, there are limitations in using these sites. They don’t have as many images available, and they aren’t always the best quality, especially Google and Flickr, because anyone can throw an image on there. If you have a specific image you need that has to be good, like for instance a cover photo on your eBook, then you might have better luck at a site like http://www.istockphoto.com. You can find great photos there for a very reasonable price.

Comment below.

4 Tips for Writing SEO-Friendly Blog Posts

In addition to writing for their human readers, web writers and bloggers have to consider the digital web crawlers employed by search engines like Google

Google
. Your business can’t skip the task.

Since most would-be readers use search engines to find blog posts, you need to make sure that Google ranks your site highly when those readers search for terms related to your business and the content you’re writing.

With that in mind, here’s a basic primer on Search Engine Optimization (SEO) for your company’s blog: http://mashable.com/2010/09/01/how-to-seo-blogs/

What will you do today to draw new visitors to your website?

To increase traffic to your website, remember that little things done consistently will produce results. Need some ideas? 
  • Take a fresh look at one page or post on your site. Does the page title contain one of your keyword phrases? If not, spend a few minutes weaving one in. 
  • Does that page have any inbound links? To find out, just enter that page in the 'Explore URL' box here: http://siteexplorer.search.yahoo.com/. On the results page, be sure to choose 'show inlinks except from this domain.' Or skip right to the chase - without a doubt your site can always benefit from more inbound links - so ...
  • Bookmark your page on Delicious, Mixx or Propeller.
  • Tweet about it.
  • Add it to your Facebook wall or status update.
  • Leave a comment on another blog, making sure to add your page's URL in the appropriate field.
For more quick traffic producing ideas, check out these SEO and link building tips.

Give Them Something to Brag About

Nothing sells better than a GREAT story your customers can share on your behalf. And your job as the marketer is to find a signature story worthy of telling.

via The Total Package by Troy White on 8/19/10

Fellow Business-Builder,

Nothing sells better than a GREAT story your customers can share on your behalf. And your job as the marketer is to find a signature story worthy of telling.

The ability to tell a great story is easily learnable, and is something you should consider a must in today’s business environment.

You can use your signature stories in multiple ways:

  • To work into your headline and lead for the perfect start to your copy.
  • To create your ultimate USP.
  • To create a personal bond with your prospects and clients.

My introduction to storytelling came from my experiences with the Dale Carnegie organization. 

After realizing that the ONLY way I could ever overcome my fear of public speaking was to get out there and do it, I signed up for the Speaking & Human Relations course. 

It was the most uncomfortable thing I had ever done before … getting up in front of people AND telling stories about myself.

Not exactly in my comfort zone.

But the funny thing was … the more I did it the more comfortable it became.

Now I use stories to sell products and services for my customers.

Fortunately for me, I have also met some of the best storytellers in the business … even writing about some of them here.

J. Peterman and his catalog full of stories … so powerful a cult was formed.

Gene Simmons and his ability to weave a good story into every nook and cranny of his business.

Gordon Ramsay and his quest to find the one great signature meal and story the customers devour most.

One of my favorites: The Ready brothers who took a $9 Lobster and turned it into a million dollar business in just a few months.

Peter Kinjo – and his incredible ability to get people laughing, and eating … while bringing all their friends with them so they too could experience this restaurant.

Tommy Bahama … the fictional character who lives the lifestyle many aspire too … and sells a boatload of clothing along the way.

Do you notice something here?

These success stories are all centered around a great story … and the changing market demands a great story in your business.

Not a story just for entertainment value, but to create a compelling reason to read your ad … and take action on your tie-in to the sale.

Some tips and tools that will help you become more comfortable with your stories, and ultimately create the signature story that takes you to the next level.

  • Share an unforgettable experience that you are comfortable sharing.
  • The details – putting yourself back in time when it happened.
  • How you felt, who was there, what was happening around you.
  • What lessons did you learn from that?
  • Relive an achievement in your life (business or personal). What may feel like a small achievement to you can be a substantial achievement to others. Share freely as you never know which story will be your signature story until you try.
  • Relive an event that made you excited. The excitement may be joy, or it may be anger. Try and go back to the state you were in at the time and describe how you felt, what you saw, and why you were so worked up.
  • Worry wart? Share a story on how worry totally consumed your waking thoughts … and how you overcame it.
  • Share your favourite hobby. What do you love most about it? How long have you been doing it? What would life be like if you could do twice as much of it? Describe your perfect day when your hobby is a significant part of your day.
  • The biggest business deal you have ever done. Share the details and how you felt at the time about it. How do you feel about it now? What could you do to find another deal like that one?
  • Share how and why you got into your present business.
  • Your favourite teacher and what you loved most about them. Mine was already published here in An Ode To Shannon Goodspeed.
  • A major life lesson your children have taught you.
  • The one thing you want most to leave with your children.
  • The proudest you have ever been. Were you proud of someone else? Yourself? What was the situation and what lessons do you remember the most from this event?
  • The most enjoyable shopping experience you have ever had. What did they do differently? Think back on how you felt at the time … how could you give your customers a similar experience?
  • The most unforgettable person you have ever met? What did they say or do that made you remember them? The most influential person in your life … past or present. What they taught you and how you have taken their lessons to heart.
  • The best advice you ever received … and how you took that advice and ran with it.
  • Your best friend … ever. Who they were. What kinds of experiences you had together. If you lost touch with them, what would you say to them now if you saw them again?
  • Finish the sentence: “I am my own worst enemy because _______”
  • What was the dumbest thing you ever did? What happened as a result? What lessons did you learn?
  • Do you have a secret ambition? Why is it still a secret? What would life be like if you actually lived that dream?
  • How you conquered your biggest fear. Me? Speaking – Dale Carnegie. Snakes – bought one and put it next to my bed. Endured 2 weeks of nightmares but the fear is now gone.
  • Why I quit ____drinking, gambling, smoking, junk food_______.
  • Who is/was your favourite pet? What do you love most about them? How could that quality be brought more into your own life?
  • The most trouble you ever got it and how it impacted your life.
  • Share the story of when persistence paid off in a big way.
  • Some other ideas you can use to reach deep back into those recessed memories to find those one or two great stories you should be telling, but aren’t.
  • Things that give your clients and prospects a reason to share your story with their friends and family.

    • Some other story ideas you might find easy:

    • How you overcame adversity and succeeded, despite the odds (I have told in the past that I was voted most likely to pump gas for a living by my grade eight science teacher). He was right … I did pump gas for a few months … in minus 30. It was the final straw that got me back to school and ended up with me getting my Bachelor of Commerce degree in entrepreneurship and marketing. Still not sure how much damage was done by the ‘lessons’ they taught me in University about how to effectively market a small business … but I am diligently working to erase that bad advice.
    • Tell your story from the customer’s perspective. How do they see you from an outsider’s perspective? What if they were reporters … what fascinating things would they dig up on you, your business, your industry, interesting trends or celebrity uses of your product? Think like them and write it from their perspective.
    • Sign up and watch how J. Peterman tells stories to sell even the most boring of products. Turning a lamp into a week-long romantic tryst is not something most of us are good at … but we could be with practice!
    • Use a good story or book/movie summary to lead into an important point … much like Daniel Levis did recently.
    • Tell the story of how you pick (or make) your products (or ingredients). Tell the story on how you ensure quality standards. Or tell the story on how it all began long before you got into the business. People love to hear the great details in a story – as long as there is something in it for them. Tell the story then tell them what it has to do with them.

    And finally, a challenge for you …

    I would love to hear your best story. Your customers would love it as well. So if you are anything like I was, you need to get busy telling stories.

    Daily.

    And share them with others.

    Like right here, right now.

    Go through the 25+ ideas above and find the one that clicks with you.

    Then pour your story onto the computer. Don’t think … just write.

    We would love to hear it.

    The best part? The more stories you start to tell, the easier your marketing becomes. Stories are perfect for newsletter content, blog posts, Facebook updates, Tweets, etc.

    Once you get more natural with this skill, you can easily start leveraging your stories into your sales pages, autoresponders, campaigns, etc.

    One of the most profitable skills you can learn … and anyone can learn it.

    So, are you up for the challenge?

    Share your story below … we would all love to hear it.

    To your success,

    Troy White Signature
    Troy White
    Editor, Small Business Mastery
    Supplement to THE TOTAL PACKAGE

    Looking for resources related to this article? Try some of these.

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    Looking for past issues of The Total Package? Click here for our archives.

    A Final Note:

    If you have specific subjects you would like addressed, or have any comments on what you have seen here, please submit a comment below and I will see how I can help.

    "A man to carry on a successful business
    must have imagination.
    He must see things as in a vision,
    a dream of the whole thing.”

    – Charles Schwab

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