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Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Internet Marketing: Is it Mysterious?

Back in the day, Louise Hay, well known author, talked about her word processor and the issues it held for her. She referred to the machine as the 'Magic Lady' and when she finally surrendered to the fact that there was only one way to get the Magic Lady to work properly-The Magic Lady's way-she was successful at producing copy.

By now, Louise Hay, and the rest of us are surrendering to XP, Vista, Mac or what have you.

The key? Surrender.

In the wonderful world of internet marketing we must set our preconceived notions aside. We must learn how the technical side of the computer allows us to post blogs, send email campaigns or present webinars. Furthermore, we would do well to study our marketing techniques, all the while refining our efforts, streamlining our work days and getting the most bang for our bucks.

When I first learned about blogging I had great difficulty putting a prepared post into the template. I felt foolish when I asked on a conference call if anyone else had that same issue. It took a long, long time for me to GET that Microsoft Word does not work or play well with internet templates. Silly me. I had a preconceived notion about how to do a thing but I was completely wrong. As soon as I surrendered, the mystery solved itself!

Whatever we believe will drive us to act whatever way we do. If we believe we will fail, for example, that's precisely what we will do. Then we can play the Blame Game and point fingers at parents, old bosses, anyone we begrudge and whoever stands close enough for us to see!

If we THINK we can or if we THINK we can't--either way, we are 100% correct.

What do you believe? What do you tell yourself as you sit at your computer, creating squeeze pages and one time offers? If you live your life-business and personal-moment by moment in truth and love you may be amazed at how much smoother your business flows.

Our internet marketing businesses are not unlike Louise Hay's "Magic Lady" because when we surrender, when we work in an educated, organized manner and when we believe the truth about whether we can or can't-will or won't-we will reap whatever we have sown.

We think a great many thoughts over the course of a day. We just as well focus on positive thoughts, positive people, positive results. I'm positive of that!

No mystery there! May all your thoughts be good and true and may your life be filled with the glorious success you deserve!

Connie Baum


Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Work at Home?

If you are a home body, a mom, or house husband the chances are good you are earning a living by working at home. Or you may work FROM home. Either which way, you are one of a growing number of entrepreneurs who chose to lay off your boss.

Under some circumstances it would be very easy to feel isolated while working at home. If those around you are three and five years old there won't be an abundance of adult conversation. When a spouse goes to work and the house is quiet enough to accomplish many things but there is now no "adult supervision" you may become distracted by television, the view outdoors, or what is calling your name from the refrigerator.

One of the things that can serve you well in this kind of work environment is habit.
There is a lot of power in habit; that power can enable you in your work or it can hamper your efforts. It all depends on how you apply it.

Habit works with the precision of a machine. Your behaviors program your habits and your behavior reinforces the programming. You can use this to your advantage or you can allow it to bring you down. The choice is entirely up to you.

Here are some of the habits you might like to consider programming and reinforcing to help you boost your bottom line:

  • Create a daily task list and prioritize your items. This will assist you in minimizing distractions and help you to remain focused on your goals.
  • Reward yourself for accomplishments. An example of that might be to finish a blog post, then read for pleasure for half an hour. Or if you post an article or press release, you have earned a cookies n milk break. Set up your rewards to suit the task involved and your personal preferences.
  • You may want to consider hiring child care for a certain block of time so you are not interrupted with the needs of others. For instance if your children nap during the afternoon, you may want to have help during the morning so you'd have assistance with lunch. Design your days for maximum productivity.
  • Sitting to make phone calls or work on the computer for long periods will require that you physically move your body from time to time. Set a timer, if necessary, and take a moment or two between tasks to stretch your muscles. In case you do not have an exercise program in place, you would be wise to begin at once.
  • If it falls to you to perform household tasks, plan your day around those. Don't fall into the trap of getting caught up in laundry, dishes, sweeping and bed making and forfeit time that could be used in your marketing efforts. One resource I'd like to share with you in that regard is a website that is loaded with ideas for organizing tasks: FlyLady is one of my best friends and with good reason! Be sure to visit her but be warned that it is a very large website and you could spend too much time looking at all that's offered there. Set your timer and return to your tasks when it rings!
  • Be very clear about what you WANT and what you DO NOT WANT. If you do not want interruptions in your day, then set your boundaries and make sure they are not trespassed. Post your "Office Hours." If you want to network with people, meet them for breakfast or coffee throughout the workday. IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to create the kind of work environment you like best.
One last point I would offer is that if you are working at home and are not affiliated with a coaching program you can trust implicitly, please study this list and make a choice that suits YOUR needs and reinforces your best habits:

Rapid Cash Marketing

Autopilot Wealth Institute

Lay Off Your Boss 3

Life is filled with choices and these programs are designed to help you make wise ones. Here's hoping you can choose good work habits to create good things for yourself and the people you love most!

Connie Baum

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Working From Home?

If you are working from home, the chances are good your "uniform" is jeans and a tee shirt or something close to that. You probably wouldn't really think about donning a MINER'S HAT, would you?

Well, on second thought, if you knew how to 'MINE your own business' for golden nuggets of success, you might reconsider that miner's hat. It has a light on it, after all.

'Mining your own business' is a play on words that Dixie Brown teaches her students in order for them to learn about product creation and internet marketing. She maintains that if you begin modestly and grow your business incrementally as you refine your internet marketing skills and business acumen you can achieve the kind of success you'd like to have.

She emphasizes having a written, step-by-step plan that is executed consistently and with purpose and passion. She makes it clearly understood that no one has to be a "one man gang" and perform every element of the process alone. Some of the work can be outsourced, such as graphics or copy-writing or recording. Think everything through carefully. Remember that content is key and people want and deserve VALUE.

Part of mining your business is cultivating relationships. Giving your customers the best content you can possibly give them will cement those relationships.

After you have developed your plan and made your commitment to yourself to see your project through, then you need to make up a TASK list. As you move through your list of tasks you will see that your project will be finished when the last item is checked!

Then it is time to rinse, wash, and repeat the process with the next product, program or idea. Keep moving forward by consistently taking action.

Your mother will be so proud! Dixie Brown, ever the consummate instructor, will be proud of you, too.

Connie Baum

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Internet Marketing: Are YOU a Follower or a Leader?

You are likely to remember seeing bumper stickers posing this question:
"If you are not part of the solution, then you are part of the problem!"

FOLLOWERS talk and think about the problems!

LEADERS think and talk about solutions!

The JOB of any internet marketer is to solve peoples' problems. We need to create easy, affordable, lucrative ways to help people do whatever they do.

Going about problem solving can be done in a variety of ways. We can go to forums to see what folks are talking about. We can read blogs to see how other people offer their help. We can sign up for email notifications and learn much about the ways other business people communicate.

We can invite our readers/visitors to chime in and offer their questions, their comments, their ideas and their suggestions. We can offer them surveys to take so we can "take the public pulse."

I know a blogger who ADORES greeting cards. So she offered them to her visitors. They may or may not have one thing to do with her website but there they are, for all the world to see and enjoy. And if you like, you may donate something for the use of the image she provides. That's a pretty cool way to help people. It may not be YOUR way, but it will spark ideas in your head and those ideas will reflect YOUR personality and goals.

Do you need help getting things done but can't quite handle the expense of a personal assistant? Try this on for size: Become your own personal assistant with the help of this simple list:
  1. Send 5 emails
  2. Make 5 calls
  3. Program 5 autoresponder messages
  4. Write 5 pages of a book
  5. Outline 5 articles
Just think how your internet marketing enterprise would advance if you only did THREE of these five things!

Everyone is unique. Each of us has certain passions, gifts, skills and great ideas inside our being. How will you choose to use yours? By doing SOMETHING, ANYTHING AT ALL, sets you up for leadership! Wouldn't that feel great?

There is an international speaking and leadership club called Toastmasters, International. Their program helps men and women all over the world to learn to communicate better. They learn step-by-step how to speak more eloquently, more professionally, and without nervousness. AT THE SAME TIME, they learn how to take responsibility and ACTION to accomplish their speaking/leadership goals as well as the goals of their club, area, district, and region.

It's exactly the same for internet marketers! Every single action we take helps us build for the next set of actions, products, and programs!

If you are struggling with your work at home business or online enterprise I'd like to recommend you find the solution or solutions that will propel your business. It may be you need a coaching program. You might want to form a Mastermind group with your friends. It could be such a thing that the Toastmasters program I mentioned could be of help to you in terms of your marketing efforts.

SIDEBAR: TOASTMASTERS CLUBS ARE LISTED WITH MOST EVERY CITY'S CHAMBER OF COMMERCE ALL OVER THE WORLD. END SIDEBAR.

Here's hoping you have stumbled across some ideas and solutions on this page that hit you like a brick! PUT THEM INTO ACTION! BECOME THE LEADER YOU KNOW YOU ARE MEANT TO BE!

Feel free to tell us about YOUR internet marketing experience or offer YOUR solutions in our comment box. We appreciate your taking the time to share with us!

Connie Baum



Monday, September 14, 2009

Internet Marketing: Do You Have the "GUTS"?

Jeff Herring said this: "EVERYTHING in your life is an article." My own interpretation of Jeff's statement is that 'everything is a blog post.'

If you ever stared at a white screen with a blinking cursor-and I do not mean 'blinking' in the bleeped sense of the word; the cursor actually does blink-you understand that there may be times in your blogging life that you are unsure what to write.

Here is the problem that can create: You may hit a wall with respect to not knowing what to write about or you haven't thought up an angle with which to approach a certain topic. So you scrap blogging for that day. You play golf. You piddle with your emails. You go out for lunch. Pretty soon you get out of kilter with that blog and when you look again SIX MONTHS have passed. No wonder your list is dwindling; you have not even written anything for an email campaign!

Jeff Herring suggests that playing golf, emails, a lunch out CAN BECOME MATERIAL for you to use in a variety of ways.

Let's say, for example, that you have a wonderful luncheon meeting in a cafe you seldom frequent and you have a delightful encounter with your server or you have a chance meeting with someone who is interested in your latest project. YOU CAN WRITE ABOUT THOSE THINGS. Furthermore, you can RE-PURPOSE every account. These events can translate from blog to article to press release to e-book to audio/video...do you see where I'm going here? I am taking you down a pretty productive path.

If you consistently take action-which is advice from JEFF WELLMAN AND HIS PARTNERS-using your life as a template for your product creation and blog or write or email or whatever your choice is EVERY DAY AND EVERY DAY AND EVERY DAY, you WILL reach your internet marketing goals!

Jeff Herring also says this: "GUTS" aka"Now GO USE THIS STUFF" !

'Nuff said.


Connie Baum


Friday, September 11, 2009

Internet Marketing: Working From Home?

Working from home has pros and cons just as does working in an office in the heart of a city.

Take yesterday, for example. The "To Do" list was longer than a yardstick. Never mind the blog posts and the auto responder messages. Forget the phone calls, laundry, cooking, housekeeping and grocery shopping. Don't even mention the visitors who came to the door, knowing full well I am working but just wanted to stop for coffee! There was the little matter of the messed up blog site that consumed me and a committee until, thankfully, it was resolved right after bedtime.

As internet marketers and entrepreneurs, these are the things we must take in stride. The key in all of it is not to become stressed, discouraged, or overwhelmed.

It is far more important to have stamina for the task at hand, call in the troops to help when you get into hot water and learn to manage your time. Frankly, when you work at home and you see dust bunnies, you must learn to look away or get help with that issue.

I remember when one of my massage clients once asked me, "Do you have a girl?" Presuming she meant my daughter, I replied in the affirmative. She said, "Getting a girl-a good girl-was the smartest thing I ever did for my dress shop business. If I had to go home and clean house, I could not sell dresses." Bobbi understood the value of delegating and by hiring someone, she could focus on selling dresses, not housekeeping.

Maybe your way of delegating is to outsource some of your technical work. Perhaps you need to find someone who will cheerfully write your blog posts if you pay them in greenbacks. It could be you need a nerd god to tweak your computer from time to time. Whatever your issue, get help with it.

Working at home can mean that you feel isolated from time to time. The best way to counteract that issue is to plan your day so you meet someone for lunch occasionally or take a break by walking with a partner. You might think of scheduling times when you meet other work-at-home folks so you can talk "shop" and compare notes with those in similar circumstances. It's all about time management and priorities.

Conference calls are an efficient and cost effective way to connect with others, learn as you go, and keep your business up to date. Does your network include those who can provide ample content with answers to your burning internet questions? If not, I can hook you up with a fine coaching program that will create success you may not have experienced before now. CLICK HERE NOW.

If you have enjoyed financial rewards and success in your own working from home ventures, we'd love for you to leave your comment here for everyone to see. You can take out braggin' rights, if you like! Who can resist self promotion?

Connie Baum


Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Internet Marketing: How's Business Going for YOU?

Whenever there is a gathering of people one question internet marketers and storefront owners are asked is, "So, how's business?" And most people either make a perfunctory statement: "OK, I guess" or they tell an outright lie and say, "OH! It's great!" I think their noses grow as they speak.

I know that there are men and women who are raking in more cash than they can count. I also know there are a few-maybe more-who are whining about this problem or that one and not making much, if any, money at all.

What is the difference?

Some people complain there isn't enough TIME. Hey-everyone gets 24 hours every single day. It might be prudent to learn how to manage it more profitably.

Other people will tell you, if you stand still long enough to listen, that their coaching program is impersonal or incomplete or their coaches are inaccessible.
If that's an issue, I'd suggest you make other arrangements ASAP. If you need info about that, I can give you names and phone numbers! grin

I made arrangements yesterday to spend 5 hours on conference calls and webinars. It was a commitment of time but I am fiercely determined to learn all I can learn as fast as I can learn it so I can share with you some of the lessons I am absorbing. I had a sort of epiphany as I heard ideas, suggestions, recommendations and looked at screen shots and images to reinforce my learning process. After making 16 pages of notes I perused them and became SO EXCITED about how limitless the possibility of my internet marketing life really is that I was sure my head would burst!

When it comes to Press Releases, for example, I have done a few lately that have rattled some cages and brought some attention and traffic to places I hoped would have a light shining there. I recommended to a friend that she write a press release...IN THE HOUR AFTER SHE POSTED THE THING SHE HAD 118 hits!

Here's the thing: if you follow your passion and do what the coaches ask of you and consistently take that action PLUS introduce new strategies and ideas as you progress you cannot help but realize that YOUR business is burgeoning.

There are programs that promise to reveal secrets to make you money. GET REAL. The "secret" if there were one is that the harder you work, the luckier you get.

Connie Baum


Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Internet Marketing: Do Mastermind Groups Work?


Steve Jobs said, "Things don't have to change the world to be important."

It was fortuitous that I presented myself for a coaching program when and where I did because part of the program required me to participate in a Mastermind group. I was assigned to a collection of men and women from all over the world.

As you can imagine, the men dropped off first. Then one woman, and another...now we have a collection of internet marketers who have bonded and become fast friends. Only 3 of us have ever met face to face; the rest of our numbers are just friendly voices on the phone and email addresses!

Last night's Mastermind conference call was so phenomenal and so filled with information that it was decided to summarize it and send it to those who were absent. Life happens, you know-people go on vacation, have ailing relatives, get laid up themselves and we all can't be present for every call. We don't want to miss a single thing; we remind me of mothers who want their children home in time for supper!

Each member of this group is working in a different area. Some are bloggers, some have non-profit ventures. Some work on offline projects as well as online activities. Some of us are working full time jobs in addition to our online activities. Everyone is incredibly generous with their time, talents and resources. We share information if we find a Golden Gem somewhere. We cheer one anothers' accomplishments and mourn with others if they struggle.

Each of us has accountability partners, to whom we report our activities and progress. We are nudged to reach a little higher, think outside the box in different, better ways and we connect when an idea or question pops up for consideration.

Some online entrepreneurs may not need this kind of support. For me, it is life giving and nourishing the way nothing else is. Our little sisterhood may not change the world, but it has colored MY world and it is critically important to me in my internet marketing journey.

My Mastermind Sisters have demonstrated to me what Jimmy Carter knew:

"You can do what you have to do and sometimes you can do it better than you think you can."

Connie Baum