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Yep – I’m a Joiner!
Finding your ideal client – part deux
You may recall a post on the blog where I ranted and railed against using physical appearance to determine your ideal client. I’m very much against doing so, and I was pretty vocal about it. (Like I am with most things. Vocal is “my bag” you know.)
We have the second installment (of four) over on the Thriving Business Blog by Yvonne Weld dealing with finding your ideal client. I was relieved, it has nothing to do with checking out what kind of shoes they are wearing or how scuffed they are.
She actually talks about my very favorite part of the client finding process. “The Art of Conversation” – it is, of course, my favorite part because oh…do I conversate! (Yes I said conversate, and I did it on purpose. Cringe, english teachers of the world, cringe!)
I think this post is dead on with some beginner tips to really being able to have a conversation that goes beyond the “how many kids do YOU have?” banter that people can feel good about, but isn’t powerful enough to form an emotional connection (and an emotional connection closes deals, my friends.)
One of the questions (What, did you think I was just going to repost it? You are all closet plagarists.)
“Is there a lifestyle that is important for your ideal client to possess?”
So once you’ve chosen your target based on part one, now you’re going to talk to them. This, in my opinion, is where most people make the big mistakes. They stand and nod and wait for the right time to give the elevator speech, not realizing that the bonding process that happens through asking questions and learning more about someone (and letting them talk about themselves, of course!) is the true way to get them involved and engaged in what you have to sell…yes, before they even know what you do.
I think my favorite part of Yvonne’s blog post is the clarity of purpose. You don’t just ask rapid fire questions, and it’s not even necessary to if you would rather…
…get the same result by simply carrying on a conversation and learning about them and their lifestyle.
Finding clients isn’t as difficult as you might think. Especially if you are in an industry or niche where your job helps the business owner you work with make more money.
- Virtual Assistants take mundane tasks off the plate of the business owner – allowing them to get more clients and make more money.
- Marketers sell the concept or idea of the business to others, bring in more prospects for the business owner, and the business owner can then close those deals and make more money.
- Graphic Designers create online or offline ads or pleasing web graphics that make the business owner look good and raise the odds that the prospect will call and become a client.
I cannot think of one B2B service based industry that could not use this reasoning to close more deals. (Feel free to correct me if you think of one.)
Even if you turn out to be master of the deal, and close everyone you talk to…all you’re doing is creating the biggest headache of your life if you haven’t screened them for being a decent fit for you and your business.
Technorati Tags: yvonne weld, thriving business blog, blog conversation, conversation, ideal client, service industry, getting clients
Google Maps Valid Concern?
I remember when everyone was freaking out over the woman that saw her cat in the window of her house. The police officers arresting someone, and thousands and thousands of other hilarious pictures available until they were blacked out, block by block.
This video made me laugh. Really, really hard. Enjoy!
[beyondmom]fPgV6-gnQaE[/beyondmom]
Technorati Tags: google, maps, close, ups, fun
Yahoo! part two!
It looks like this weekend the list of employees to be laid off from Yahoo! was finalized.
But we, and the poor unfortunates that will be pounding the pavement for new jobs, won’t know for sure how many or who those people are until February 12th.
How awful to work at Yahoo! right now and know you might not have a job past February 12th.What would you do? Would you start to look for work immediately, or would you stick it out and just hope beyond hope that your job is not one of the ones deemed unnecessary?
Or would you stick it out for the severance package, thinking that if you work for Yahoo! and get laid off, Yahoo! still looks kick ass on the resume. Also, if you put Yahoo on your resume, do you go with the ! or leave the ! off when listing the company? I enjoy using the ! because it’s so “in your face” and makes me smile a little.
Like we’re Yahoo! b***h! Whereas Google is all rainbow-licious like the dirty hippie of search engines.
Yes, this is just the way I think. But this train of thought does make the layoffs at Yahoo! make a lot more sense. With an ! as part of your name, you have to get rid of the employees that just don’t ! the way you want them to.
So this means I’m probably done talking about Yahoo! until Feb 12th when we find out just how many people are going to be taking a mini-vaction living on layoff severence packages before going back out and trying to get another gig.
Maybe some of them will work for startups that stay in private alpha for a year. Goodness knows they’re out there *grin*
Technorati Tags: yahoo, layoffs, february, list-finalized
No one is yelling Yahoo! when it comes to job security
When you work for the world’s most visited homepage, you would think your job was secure, wouldn’t you? I know I’d be feeling a little cushy – a la the workers from IBM in the early nineties – I mean, it’s a huge company, what’s to fear?
It seems that up to 2,500 people have a LOT to fear according to SearchEngineWatch.com who reported this story earlier today.
They say the only department that’s safe is Right Media – which you can read about at Zdnet and the Right Media Blog.
Looks like we’ll find out exactly how this plays out on January 29th. Until then, I feel kind of bad for the people working at Yahoo! – not knowing if the axe is going to fall.
Are there any “safe” jobs anymore? Yahoo! and Google are the huge conglomo-corps the way GM and Ford used to be. Maybe cutting jobs now will keep these new uber-companies from going the way of GM and Ford, keeping only the freshest and the best. Or killing the weak ones in the herd.
I wonder what the criteria are to get fired from Yahoo! – how they’re going to choose the 1,500 to 2,500 – and who the 1000 people are that may or may not be let go. I look forward to seeing how this unfolds.
Technorati Tags: yahoo, layoffs, wsj, searchenginewatch, current events, search engine news
jennideckidoodles | The Recipe
This is a recipe for a cookie that tastes like a cross between a snickerdoodle and an oatmeal cookie.
If you make them, let me know how yours turn out.
Basics:
Preheat the oven to 350
Cooktime 13-18min
Ingredients:
1 1/2c Sugar
1c Butter
2 Eggs
2 Tablespoons Milk
1 Teaspoon Vanilla
1 1/2 Cups Flour
1/2 Teaspoon cinnamon
1 Teaspoon baking powder
3 Cups uncooked oatmeal oats
Turn on the oven so it’s preheated. Please check it before you turn it on for pans, pots, or anything else you may store in your oven. These cookies will not taste good if you burn plastic in your oven before cooking them.
Cream together the butter and sugar (This means mix them till they are together – usually involves lots of schmearing along the side of the bowl)
Add
2 eggs
2tbs milk
1tsp vanilla
Blend well via electric mixer, spoon, fork, or whisk. Whatever.
Put a sifter on a plate. Put into sifter
1.5c flour
1/2tsp cinnamon (this can be altered for taste and you can add nutmeg too if you wanna)
1tsp baking powder
Sift all of it into the wet ingredients.
(Note: If you don’t have a sifter, put it through a colander…if you don’t have a colander, just wing it. At least stir it with a fork mix it up…don’t just dump it in there.
Fold in (aka gently mix in) 3 Cups uncooked oatmeal oats. If you want mushier oats use the one minute style. I use the regular style.
Drop by rounded teaspoon onto a cookie sheet. I don’t care if you grease or flour or spray said cookie sheet with Pam or some other crap. Just do what it is you normally do.
Bake as specified above.
Let them cool on the cookie sheet for a few minutes so they firm up a bit and don’t go all goey on your spatula. Finish cooling on wire rack if possible, if not, no one will die if you put them on a plate right away. They’ll just stick together a little.
Enjoy.
This is a crunchy cookie if you make them small, it’s a gooey cookie if you make them big.
It really does taste like a cross between a snickerdoodle and an oatmeal cookie. Good times.
Tired writer – will whine for peace
This is probably the first full day I haven’t been on Twitter in months.
The only MySpace page I’ve been on is the one I’m tweaking for a client.
If anything amazing happened in the last 48 hours on the Internet – I have no idea.
This self imposed bubble has been a double-edged sword. My kitchen is cleaner than it’s been in four years, my kids are eating meals that consist of more than one food group, but I’m more tired than I’ve ever been before.
Working like a dog has benefits, but wow, I don’t know if I have more than one book in me. This is exhausting!
On the bright side I’m totally in line with my goal of finishing the book by the end of the month.
I’ve also been asked to be the expert for networking over at the Virtual Assistant Networking Association. It’s an honor and a huge responsibility. Virtual Assistance is a field growing at an exponential rate, and I’m really excited that I can help VAs find clients through networking – the way I currently help clients find great VAs through Virtual Staff, Inc. It helps that I kick ass at networking!
It’s been a good week all the way around and if I’m really, really lucky and determined I may have the rough draft of the book finished this weekend!
MySpace Page Customization – Evlove Intimates
Sometimes I just adore what I do for a living!
I’ve pared down my services at Marketing Curve considerably with the changes that have happened around here recently. Focusing on writing has taken up the majority of my time, so other than consulting I really only have time for customized MySpace pages and some copywriting.
Nothing over the top amazing (that’s why they’re inexpensive…have you HEARD how much bands pay for MySpace pages? It’s just mind boggling) but customized, logo-ized, and just overall more professional-ized. Plus they still retain that aspect of fun and community that MySpace pages so desperately need to have in order to be successful and interesting.
So without further delay, let me present my latest creation!
If you know of a business owner or anyone else that would like a MySpace page tweaked, have them get in touch with me. I’d be happy to talk with them regarding what they’re looking for and seeing if I can help!
For more information you can also visit the Marketing Curve website.
Again with the Internet Marketers and the New Media
I’ve received another email offering to teach me about New Media and Internet Marketing.
It’s enough to make me cringe, wondering what sites they’re going to recommend so I can know what poor, unknowing site owner is going to be besieged with unwanted crap messages from the kids who don’t listen to the message they pay good money to learn.
The teachers of these social networking classes I don’t have a problem with – in most cases they aren’t sleazy at all and I’m sure they will do their level best to talk about “having a conversation” with the people on the social networking sites.
But there is nothing worse online than a gung ho newbie IM that just can’t do that and does the basic equivalent of spamming a forum, a site, or a twitter feed. The guy that thinks the goodnight kiss after the first date means he’s getting laid next time you talk to him. NO finesse.
Of course, this may not affect me, because I have multiple circles of people that I know online and this should only bloody the waters of one ocean, not all of them. But, wherever they go the fallout remains. Now people on MySpace get labeled as “spam” where they might not have if it weren’t for the unchecked proliferation of idiot IMs on the site.
I’m not saying the teachers shouldn’t make money, I just feel bad for them…that they never aspire to teaching real students instead of students that want to blow through the material as fast as possible in order to make money *now*.
A couple of them are very smart, and I think no matter how well funded…it must be very sad sometimes to know this is as good of a classroom as your teaching warrants. You sold yourself short, and didn’t think you were worth more than that.
I honestly wonder when the house payment being paid became hollow, instead of a joy. I really think that when an Internet Marketer gets to a certain level, they get trapped in a golden cage. Where they have to constantly sing for their supper…and are never free from the demographic that seemed like such a good idea.
Maybe the worst mistake you can make when you’re branding yourself personally is to attach yourself to a niche so much so that you can never make any change to that. Of course, it’s possible I only think that because I change niches very quickly – and learn more about myself and what I love doing with every change.
The changing niches thing occurred the same time that I began doing only project work. I didn’t like being attached to someone with a retainer, and any job that needs to give me a retainer to do it every month is going to turn out to be tedious and boring anyway. Who needs tedious and boring? I’m at home for fun and exciting.
And I’ll get there if it kills me *laugh*
With that, I’m off to go write this morning. This got my fingers moving and I have a book to finish, people!
Technorati Tags: new media, social networking, internet marketing, spam, sleazeballs, integrity, trapped in your niche, branding
