February 17th, 2012 by Steve

Do you wish you had a magic wand when it comes to marketing your business? You think a magic wand would have amazing power, but you need to know how to use it to get results. You need to point it in a certain way, you must have a clear intention and you often need to use certain words in order to get the desired result.

I know this might sound silly to you, but let’s think of planning as a magic wand. You create an intention, wave the wand, take action and produce a result. And if you have the right wand, you can consistently and repeatedly produce the results you want.

business advice, entrepreneurship, lead generation, Marketing, prospecting, Public Speaking, Referrals, Strategy, Systems, value proposition

February 10th, 2012 by Steve

Imagine you are walking along in a park one bright sunny day. You happen to look down and see an envelope, which you decide to pick up. It is very fine quality envelope with a logo and postage on the front of it. You think it is very impressive.

To your amazement, the envelope has nothing written on the front, no recipient’s name or address. And you can tell, on closer inspection, that the envelope is empty.

Business, business advice, Business Secrets, Coach, entrepreneurship, Marketing, prospecting, Strategy, value proposition

February 3rd, 2012 by Steve

Let’s address an impossible topic: Delegation.

It’s not that delegation is impossible, it just seems that way to many Independent Professionals.

As self-employed professionals, we went out on our own because we enjoyed working on our own; we liked to be our own boss; we preferred to make our own decisions, and we liked doing it our way. The reality is that many things get done well, some things get done just okay and many things don’t get done at all because we can’t bear to have someone else do stuff for us!

business advice, Business Secrets, motivational, Strategy

January 27th, 2012 by Steve

The words you use in your marketing will make or break the success you see. Copywriting is really “salesmanship in print” and here are some basic techniques to make your marketing and sales materials do what they are supposed to which is to sell more products and services.

1. Have your offer in the headline or near the top of your advertisement. Possibly have a box that highlights areas of importance with the offer near the top or on the right hand side after your initial 3 paragraphs. This will weed out tire kickers immediately as they realize it is not free, they have to pay for it. Do that and many people are ready to read it all but are interested (possibly) in what your offer is.

Business, business advice, Business Secrets, Coach, lead generation, Marketing, prospecting, Strategy, value proposition

January 20th, 2012 by Steve

It’s been called “selling the invisible”—delivering intangible services as a core “product” offering.

Law firms, management consultants, IT services and telecom providers, architectural groups, healthcare and educational organizations, financial and insurance institutions, and a multitude of business-to-consumer operations profit from performing and delivering people-based services.

But invisibility, or intangibility, is just one factor that distinguishes services marketing from product marketing. Along with inseparability, variability, and perishability, these four characteristics affect the way clients behave during the buying process and the way organizations must interact with them.

business advice, Business Secrets, entrepreneurship, Marketing, prospecting, Strategy, value proposition

January 13th, 2012 by Steve

Business fall prey to a very common misconception in regards to systemization: the idea that a system is just a document that tells people how to do things, and in what order to do them.

It is a great first step to understand the need for systems in a business, but what most people forget is that they already have systems in place. What they mean when they say they need systems is, “I need to create documents for my systems.” At BCSG, we call those documents action plans. Some call them procedures or processes. But an action plan and a system are really two different concepts.

Business, business advice, Business Secrets, Coach, entrepreneurship, information technology, Strategy, Systems, value proposition

January 6th, 2012 by Steve

You need to develop a presence on social media to help you grow your small business and form that all important relationship with your customers. How do you know if you are doing it right? Or if it is even working? What are the social media metrics you should be watching to ensure your company is headed down the right path? Is there any way to find out?

There sure is.

The truth is tracking social media doesn’t have to be any more difficult than tracking your other marketing campaigns, you just have to know what to look for. If you are just getting started, below are six metrics worth watching to help you determine how social media thing is working for your business.

business advice, Business Secrets, information technology, lead generation, Marketing, prospecting, Strategy, Technology

December 30th, 2011 by Steve

Here are some instant ways for you to bring in more customers and grow your business.

The following are 30 questions that will immediately pinpoint where your business is doing well – and where you can take action that will produce rapid results.

These are the questions that may help your business, if you are willing to spend a few minutes giving them serious thought – the results can be quite profound.

You should be aware that each question you answer ‘no’ to probably means that you are losing out on untapped profits. But the purpose of this process is not to have you feel bad – it’s to motivate you to make marketing a top priority. Have fun!

business advice, Business Secrets, Coach, entrepreneurship, Marketing, motivational, Referrals, Strategy, value proposition

December 23rd, 2011 by Steve

Keeping customers happy is the smartest way to grow your business. But in this age of customer dissatisfaction, it is not always easy. He consistently promised more than he could deliver. Many customers, infuriated with his poor service, stopped buying. It is my friend’s arduous job to get those customers back and to keep them.

Whether your employees are good sales reps, like my friend, or poor ones, like his predecessor, retaining profitable customers is often your company’s number one challenge. And a challenge it is: Customers are setting their standards for service higher and higher. Customers want to be wooed and wowed at every turn.

business advice, Business Secrets, Coach, entrepreneurship, Marketing, Strategy, value proposition

December 16th, 2011 by Steve

Feeling some nervousness before giving a speech is natural and even beneficial. But too much nervousness can be detrimental. Here are some proven tips on how to control your butterflies and give better presentations:

• Know your material. Pick a topic you are interested in. Know more about it than you include in your speech. Use personal stories and conversational language, that way you won’t easily forget what to say.

• Practice. Practice. Practice! Rehearse out loud with all equipment you plan on using. Revise as necessary.

Business, Business Secrets, Coach, entrepreneurship, motivational, Public Speaking