entrepreneurs Archives | Page 3 of 3

8 Free or Low-Cost Twitter Timesaving Tools | Twitter Toolkit

By Cindy Ratzlaff June 7, 2011

UPDATE: Since the writing of this blog, Twitter has changed it’s policy on third party auto-follow apps. So Tool #3 below is no longer recommended for auto-following.

Twitter continues to help entrepreneurs and Fortune 500 companies alike increase their brand awareness, exponentially expand their marketing message reach and create more a sense of relationship between customer or client and brand or product.

Many still fear that Twitter is a time rabbit hole and that building a large following on Twitter will unleash a time commitment they can’t accommodate.

Here are eight timesaving tools to help any sized business or individual entrepreneur find, follow, engage or manage their time on Twitter for productive results.

Twellow: This site is the Yellow Pages of Twitter. This free site allows you to register your Twitter account under three different keywords such as marketing, branding, social media or whatever keywords a potential client might enter to find your business. Listing your Twitter account here will help others to find you when searching for the service or product you provide. Therefore, leads or followers coming from Twellow are more likely than average to be seeking what you have to offer. It’s fast and easy to register and worth your time. Additionally, if you use Twellow while logged into your Twitter account and Twellow, you can search, find and follow others directly from the platform.
Twitter App for Facebook: The Twitter stream is a fast moving conversation and therefore, your tweets once out of sight are out of mind. Making any content you create do double duty is a good timesaving strategy. Using this app to cause Facebook to auto-post from Facebook to your Twitter account makes your daily Facebook post work harder by also speaking to your Twitter followers. And, the added benefit is the way this app creates a truncated link to bring people back to your Facebook page to read a post that is longer. This is a subtle invitation for Twitter followers interested enough to click the link to continue reading to “like” your Facebook page. Again, always ask your content to work in multiple ways.
SocialToo: Auto follow everyone who follows you. I’m a believer in auto following everyone who follows me on Twitter. It’s an easy way to build your following and allows people who find you to DM or Direct Message you on Twitter. I’ve been interviewed by national newspapers and contacted by future clients this way and had I not employed a policy of auto following, they would not have been able to reach me as easily and quickly. I upgraded from a free account at SocialToo to a one-time $10 fee to use their set it and forget it auto follow tool. I love this feature and cannot recommend it enough.
Hootsuite: In my opinion, Hootsuite is one of the best social media dashboards for managing Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin accounts at a glance and pre-scheduling tweets. I use it regularly manage 10 or more Twitter accounts alone, using Hootsuite and their newly enhanced metrics are terrific for creating client reports and for insight into which marketing messages are working and which are falling on deaf ears and may need tweaking.
Tweetbeep: Google for Twitter. Set alerts for your keywords, your business name and your competitors to keep yourself in the loop and to find good information to tweet to your followers.
Tweepi: This handy site allows you to weed out the accounts that don’t follow you back, to reciprocate those that follow you first and to clean out inactive accounts from your Twitter tribe. A free version is suitable for smaller accounts and a paid version adds significantly more functionality for larger accounts or agencies.
Tweetchat: Follow hashtag conversations in real time without distractions. By doing so, you can quickly and easily find people talking about keywords and topics that interest you or your potential customer. Use hashtag conversations to bring yourself and your brand to the attention of others by participating in interesting, on-point twitter conversations.
Timely: Analyze your Twitter patterns and get recommendations on times of day when your followers are most likely see, read and respond to your posts.

What other tools are in your Twitter toolkit? If you have tools and strategies for maximizing your time on Twitter, I’d love to hear about them. Let’s share with one another.

Social Media Marketing Tools and Tactics | The Virtuous Circle

By Cindy Ratzlaff April 29, 2011

Using a variety of social media marketing tools and tactics strategically, even businesses on a budget can dramatically increase online visibility and search engine ranking.
Small businesses and entrepreneurs have heard the drums, heeded the call and jumped on the Facebook bandwagon, setting up a fan page for their businesses and even dipping their toes into the Twitter pool. But many are struggling to build a following and beginning to wonder about the R.O.I. of their time in using this social media platform.

The virtuous marketing circle engages multiple learning styles to reach more potential clients and customers.

Although Facebook, Twitter and other social media sites are free, the valuable resource of one’s time is required to actively engage, update and promote a brand message. And, time is expensive. Making the content business create work harder and across multiple platforms is a good way to produce a virtuous marketing circle and increase the ROI of content creation. This tactic can help users create a wider circle of influence by spreading their brand message to an exponentially larger audience; reaching consumers wherever they spend the majority of their time online.

Below is an example of a virtuous marketing circle. The small business owner creates the circle in the follow way.

1. A blog post on his or her blogsite or website.

2. Using a Facebook application such as Notes or Networked Blogs, our business owner automatically pulls that blog post onto his Facebook Fan page, which represents his business. Having set his application controls once, he never thinks about this again. His page is automatically updated with his new blog post each and every time he posts.

3. The title and a link back to our business owner’s Facebook Page is automatically posted to her Twitter account, moments after it hits her Facebook page because she has set up an application called the Facebook Twitter App. So now that single blog post has now been seen on three different platforms and potentially by three different audiences with some minor overlap.

4. Once or twice a month, our business owner chooses a particularly informative blog post and posts it to an e-zine articles site that accepts and syndicates articles with valuable information. Articles on e-zine sites can be picked up by other publications or blogs and helps our business owner reach a new audience with content he or she has already created. Additionally, Google and other search engines will index the articles which helps bring our business owner and brand higher up the search engine rankings.

5. Occasionally our business owner chooses one of his or her blog posts and records it as a podcast, saves it as an MP3, posts it to a Podcast site, itunes and perhaps to a special Podcast tab on the original website. Producing the same messages in multiple formats helps engage different learning styles in potential customers.

6. Just as our business owner was able to rework the original blog into a podcast, so she does so again, in a short how-to video about a particularly post. This video is posted to YouTube, then brought into Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and again, back to the original blog.

With the virtuous marketing circle, one blog post reaches six or seven unique readerships and our business owner has created mutiple touchpoints from which to engage with clients, exponentially increasing the chances of being seen and heard. The original content he or she created has now been broadcast throughout the virtuous marketing circle.

How do you reuse, rework, re-introduce your ideas and messages to reach a wider crowd. Let’s share ideas.

FOCUS | How to Create Powerful Marketing Messages

By Cindy Ratzlaff April 19, 2011

When I consult with entrepreneurs, publishers or major corporations, I start by asking them to share their F.O.C.U.S with me. At first, most say “creating wealth,” “making money,” or “selling more products.”

Can you put your core offering into one compelling sentence?

I always ask them, for the purpose of achieving those goals, to shift their focus from the end result to the first challenge; clearly stating their unique value to a potential customer. This “why to buy” focus helps businesses center their marketing, branding and public relations messages around the most important point of all—their offering.

F.O.C.U.S stands for “Find Our Core Unique Service.” Figuring this out helps companies address one of the four key elements of branding; variation. Asking the tough questions, doing the research and creating clear, concise communications will save entrepreneurs and even bigger companies time, money and frustration.

Some questions to ask to help define the unique service or selling proposition are:

How is this service or product different from all others in the competitive set?

Less expensive, more detailed, easier to use, more conveniently located?

Does the personality of this business or service give it something special?

Is the business or service provider more highly qualified, more experienced, personally enriched by the product usage?

Why would someone choose this product or service from all other choices available?

Better customer service and support, first to market, more stylish packaging, more rave reviews, higher perceived value?

Try to put your core offering into one compelling sentence. This exercise will tell you if you’ve nailed your F.O.C.U.S. I invite you to post your F.O.C.U.S. statement here and I’ll give you my opinion on whether or not your statement conveys your F.O.C.U.S. to me. Go.

6 Entrepreneurial Lessons from Secret Millionaires | Brand Marketing Tips

By Cindy Ratzlaff March 29, 2011

A new ABC television production hit airwaves nationwide this month and is creating more than high ratings. Secret Millionaire features a number of high profile people whose business model is helping others create financial stability, and even wealth, both online and off. What lessons might entrepreneurs emulate to create their own secret, or not so secret,millionaire success story? Let’s look at four of the secret millionaires to identify replicable patterns.

Secret Millionaire stars share some common practices entrepreneurs can adopt to create their own success.

Dani Johnson was homeless at 21 and a millionaire at 23. She now speaks, writes and conducts virtual home study courses and live events designed to help people get out of debt. Her story is compelling and inspirational. The tone of her communications is all about having experienced the fear and frustration of financial debt herself. By sharing her personal story, helping people identify with her, then modeling a success route, Dani acts as a mentor, cheerleader and coach to those who follow her program.

James Malinchak is a speaker, consultant and internet marketer who models hard work and reward. He is everywhere, all the time, with boundless energy and a message that you can create the life you want if you just have the will. He’s a mindset coach and people aspire to the life he has created for himself through relentless hard work and strategically brilliant marketing. Among other things, he coaches people on becoming paid speakers, something he is very good at doing himself. He understands creating ambient awareness and brand connections. His newest offering is called the Millionaire Apprentice Program, which piggy backs his programs SEO nicely with the buzz Secret Millionaire is garnering, and authentically ties in by teaching the techniques that helped him become a millionaire.

Gary and Diane Heavin are the founders of Curves, the fitness franchise for women. They have a different model. They’re not internet marketers. The majority of their work is hands on, with people who buy a Curves franchise. They model the in the trenches, “do it with you,” style of business. Even though they’ve created the largest women’s fitness franchise in history and have become very wealthy in the processes, they still operate like entrepreneurs. Gary’s philosophy is “Entrepreneurs don’t get paid on effort. They get paid on results.” He and Diane believe “success is not about who runs the fastest but rather who gets up the fastest after they fall.” This year they’ve teamed up with Zumba to create a new Curves Circuit with Zumba Fitness class to add to club offerings and are in the process of adding a diet counselor certification program through the Cleveland Clinic so clubs can provide better diet counseling to their members.

Ali Brown is a high profile coach for women entrepreneurs. She’s offers a tiered system of coaching programs that go from free webinars all the way through a very elite high priced personal coaching program and she has clients lined up to work with her. Her personal story of leaving corporate America and struggling as she launched her own business helps entrepreneurs identify with her and her “my gamble paid off and yours can too” mantra is appealing. She models success, glamour and adventure. And, she works hard. From that first business in her living room, Ali has expanded her brand into a magazine, an online style boutique, women’s retreats, info-products and more.

So what lessons can other entrepreneurs learn from these successful self-made millionaires?

Poverty is a strong motivator in each of their success stories. A driving passion to improve your life can be a powerful influencer.
Creating a business from the ground up takes more hard work than anything you’ve ever done before. Persistence is the key.
Continued success lies in continued reinvention. Successful people never stop innovating.
Financial freedom is a strong motivator and there are millions of people who want and need the information you may have on how to create financial security. A down economic climate may be the ideal time to launch a business that solves a problem.
Sharing your personal journey helps others envision themselves as potentially successful. People want to do business with successful people and modeling success can produce powerful results.
A great career or business is less about making the next sale and more about building lasting relationships.

If you enjoyed this article, I’d appreciate hearing from you. Please leave a comment below or on my Facebook page and share your thoughts.

Five Questions with the Expert | Career Reinvention When An Industry Changes

By Cindy Ratzlaff July 10, 2010

Catcher in the Sky’s Lisa Gordon

Lisa Gordon spent two decades at the top of her field in advertising sales for newspapers and magazines like Time, Real Simple, Prevention and Entertainment Weekly. When her industry took a particularly hard hit as the economic climate worsened, she realized that she needed to reinvent herself, add to her skill set and move forward without looking back. Lisa’s transformation took her from old school, traditional communications to the new high tech and cutting edge world of app development. We caught up with Lisa recently to ask her five questions about her reinvention process.

RATZLAFF:

Your background is in print advertising sales and sales management, how did you make the leap to developing mobile apps?

GORDON:

I spent more than twenty years in businesses related to ad sales. When I started
working in the 1980’s I was in a thriving field with no end in sight. I could
never have guessed what kind of atrophy would occur this many years later.
When my oldest son went to kindergarten I was experiencing a lot of personal
upheaval and was in the fortunate financial position to take some time off to be
with my kids. After three or four years I started thinking about getting back to
work. By this time, newspapers and magazines were closing all over the country.

It was clear that I could not go back to a vanishing industry.

I had had my own business for ten years so the idea of going back into business
for myself was a very attractive one. Having some time off gave me the insight I
needed to break from my rut. I contacted a former colleague and we
brainstormed ideas for more than a year. With an idea in hand, we consulted with
a dear and successful friend who gave us direction. In the end, our app has
nothing to do with any of our original business ideas.

RATZLAFF:

What do you find to be the biggest challenges in starting over in an industry that is not just new to you, but new in general?

GORDON:

Actually the easy part is starting in a new industry. I embrace the challenge of
learning something new. The difficult part is the fact that the industry is new.
There are no real experts yet. The app industry is growing at an exponential
pace. It seems like everyone is learning by trial and error and what worked last month, won’t necessarily work this month. Being part of this Wild West is fascinating to experience from the inside.

RATZLAFF:

Your apps, NameCatcher and NameCatcher Biz help people to remember names of acquaintances. What inspired you to create these apps?

GORDON:

For the most part it was born out of necessity. My partner and I both have young children and I have an aging father. Just through our kid’s activities and my dad’s caregivers, new people, acquaintances, really, come in and out of our lives regularly. These people are important to us, but sometimes it is just hard to remember all of the names and how we know them. It can be embarrassing to keep asking people to repeat their names. As a regular user of my own app, I have seen how good it makes someone feel when they are remembered.

RATZLAFF:

You and your partner both have marketing backgrounds. Can you share your thinking on how you’ll go about marketing your apps?

GORDON:

One very interesting thing about this app is when people see it or hear about it they
instantly know how they would fit it into their own life. And, everyone thinks they
are our demographic. The truth is, nearly everyone with an iPhone is our
demographic. As exciting as it is to have the millions of iPhone users as possible
users, such a broad audience is hard to reach. So, we have broken down the possible
users by category and are targeting them individually. So for example, we speak to
“mom” targets differently than we do to our Boomer targets. We will often break
those targets down even further so we can speak directly not generically.

RATZLAFF:

What advice would you give to someone who wants to get into the mobile app business or any new business for that matter?

GORDON:

Start with a great idea, but be flexible as to how it can work as an app.
Get a basic understanding of the app business and the available platforms before investing any money.
If you are not technical, hire the right people who are. If you are not good at marketing, hire someone who is.
Never get comfortable with the way things are because they will change.

Both NameCatcher and NameCatcher Biz are available for download at itunes and readers can find more information about the company, Catcher in the Sky, on their website.

Publishing Secrets for Authors | Five Questions With the Expert | New Media Consultant Amy Porterfield

By Cindy Ratzlaff March 24, 2010

Amy Porterfield is a social media strategy consultant and a regular contributor to SocialMediaExaminer.com. Amy helps entrepreneurs, small business owners, authors and speakers find their “sweet spot” so they can maximize their marketing and publicity efforts through social media. We asked Amy five questions to help authors and entrepreneurs better utilize social media to bring their books and products to new audiences.

Remember to give your best stuff for free. Don’t hold back.

RATZLAFF:

We hear a lot that authors and speakers need to have a platform before a publisher will take them on. What exactly is a platform?

PORTERFIELD:

A platform is a little like the concept of a “soapbox” but in a really good way! It is the space you create for yourself online where you highlight who you are, what you are all about, and connect and foster relationships. In a very literal sense, a platform is made up of all the social sites where you spend your time, including Facebook, Twitter, your blog, etc. When you create your platform, you want to make sure you choose the social networking sites where your target audience is spending time–because a “soapbox” is no good if no one is listening.

RATZLAFF:

How would you recommend that an author or speaker begin building his or her platform?

PORTERFIELD:

Here’s my formula: Listen first. Listen some more. Research next. And then jump in the game. You have to first really understand who your target audience is…and who it is not. Don’t be afraid to only craft your communications for your ideal audience (it’s ok if you leave some people out–they are not your audience!) and also don’t waste your time on social sites that are not appealing to your ideal audience. To really understand the needs and wants of your ideal audience, take a little time and listen to them online. What are they talking about? Who are they connecting with? What Fan pages are they attracted to? Who are they following on Twitter? Once you have listened and done your research, jump in! Start using the sites that really matter most to your outcome. And here’s my golden rule with social media: Don’t be afraid to mess up. It does not always come naturally at first, and it can even be a bit overwhelming. But don’t let that stop you. Jump in, start talking, and it will all become second nature to you in no time.

RATZLAFF:

What about self-publishing? Can a self-published author really reach a large enough audience to make an impact?

PORTERFIELD:

My favorite example of a self-publishing superstar is Marie Forleo. When she first came out with her book, Make Every Man Want You, she self-published and she used the power of the internet to spread the word. Because she was willing to show up daily, connect with people, be her true self online, and really hone in on the needs and wants of her target audience, her book became a HUGE success. But here’s the thing: It was not easy. She worked hard for that success! So yes, self-publishers can find success online, but just like everything else worth having, you have to work really hard and keep moving forward. And one more thing! I think the authors that really find their voice online and create a strong buzz around their books are those that have found a way to showcase their uniqueness. They carved out a little piece of online real estate that they devoted to their “It” factor. And here’s the really great part–you get to figure out what that “It” factor is for you. No one needs to decide for you. So take a little time to think about what might make you stand out from everyone else (we all have it), and then run with that. You just might be pleasantly surprised with the results.

RATZLAFF:

Which media has the most impact on book sales? Radio, TV, print, online, speaking engagements? Should an author focus on one area or try to be seen and heard everywhere?

PORTERFIELD:

In most cases, there is rarely just one media that will work overall. Like I said earlier, know your audience and you will know where and how to market. But don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Mari Smith, a social media guru who always has great advice, teaches the power of Radical, Strategic Visibility. What that means is this: Be seen and heard everywhere it matters. I think that is so important for authors to remember. The more people see you chatting and connecting online, adding value in your blog, and speaking live, the more curious they will become. And when people are curious, they seek out information about you. But remember this, some media outlets could be a waste of time for you. It all depends on your personality, your audience and your book. So choose wisely so you can enjoy the process and spend your time and energy where it really matters.

RATZLAFF:

What are the top three things an author or speaker can do to increase his or her chances of getting media attention for their book?

PORTERFIELD:

Find Your Key Influencers: Who are the people in your niche that are really getting it right? Who stands out the most when you talk about your niche? Build relationships with these people, comment on their blogs, tweet their content. These relationships are extremely beneficial as you move forward with establishing yourself as an expert in your niche.

Show Up Daily: I have noticed that the authors that are really crushing their competition are those that are showing up daily. They are keeping their blogs current, tweeting great, valuable content, connecting one-on-one online, and giving shout outs to others when they see something they like and want to share. They are present, available and real. This is crucial for all authors.

Mix Up Your Media and Provide Great Content: The authors that use video, articles, blog posts, podcasts and more are the ones that stand out the most. They mix up their media and offer great content in many different packages. This is key. If you have not tried video yet, give it a shot. It’s extremely valuable. And remember to give your best stuff for free. Don’t hold back. When you give out your best stuff for free, you are offering an incredible service to people and I can guarantee they will want more. Plus, this strategy will help you build more trust with your audience. So don’t hold back and you will reap the rewards!

Amy teaches authors, entrepreneurs and business people how to use social media to enhance their marketing and visibility strategies. Learn more about Amy by visiting her website and joining her on Facebook.

Social media and the enduring challenges of business communications

By Cindy Ratzlaff February 2, 2010

From time to time, I’ll be bringing you blog posts or opinion pieces by guest experts in various fields who can offer a unique point of view on either social media, public relations, marketing, entreprneurship or publishing. Today I’m honored to introduce you to guest blogger, Bob Martin an Allentown-based corporate communications professional who is experienced in both corporate communications for worldwide and local organizations. Contact him at bobjmartin@verizon.net.

Guest Blogger, Bob Martin

A few weeks ago, the Eastern Pennsylvania Business Journal published an article from an experienced marketing and communications professional, offering a contrarian view of the rush to incorporate social media into business communications. The gist of the argument seemed to be that incorporating these new techniques and channels into your business’s marketing efforts offers no obvious, tangible benefits over those delivered by a traditional mix of marketing communications activities and media.

I respectfully disagree – and not just because of the increasing power of younger, more social media-oriented individuals in the customer and consumer pools. As someone who’s worked in media and business communications for more than two decades, I see a compelling philosophical reason for embracing the new social media in our efforts to reach and serve our customers.

Since the beginning of mass media, business communicators have struggled to overcome the technical limitations of traditional communication channels, as we work to make our message connect more effectively with target audiences. Today’s new social media channels – Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, blogs and the like – are game-changing advancements precisely because they’re breaking through those limitations, and creating a new, more effective business communications paradigm in the process.

Encouraging give and take during discussion, alternating the roles of messenger and receiver within the communication, adjusting your message on the fly based on the other party’s reactions – by enabling these actions, social media presents smart business communicators with something we’ve always wanted: a way to have an honest-to-goodness conversation with our audience.

Admittedly, this new conversation paradigm can be disorienting to traditional business communicators, because it adds a third dimension to our messaging – not brand to customer or customer to brand, but customer to customer ABOUT the brand, in which the communicator has to relinquish some measure of control over the message. For example, consumer products companies are realizing that relationships with influential bloggers can be excellent avenues to introduce new products, or emphasize features of existing ones, or just communicate their brand promise. But it comes at a cost: the power of the blogger can be directly related to their perceived independence from your influence, and you need that perception of independence to maximize the potential benefit of your relationship, so you accept the possibility of loss of some control over the message to the blogger and their audience.

Forward-thinking companies who can accept the social media conversation paradigm can use it to constantly adjust and update marketing strategies as they are executed. A social media audience is different than the total target audience, of course – but they’re different in ways that add to their value as “thought leaders”: they enter the conversation as generally knowledgeable about your company and its products, they are comfortable with the new conversation paradigm, and they relish the feeling that their opinion matters to what happens to “their brand” and so take that perceived responsibility very seriously.

To that point, a current ad campaign supporting the launch of Microsoft’s Windows 7 operating systems centers on PC users who offered feedback to Microsoft that ended up reflected in the new product – prompting each to claim that “Windows 7 was my idea.” The theme carries over to the product’s Facebook presence, which encourages groups of users to suggest, complain about or tout features of the product that others may find useful. It’s easy to see how these discussions could lead to adjustments in marketing strategy emphasis on particular features – which would in turn reinforce the umbrella theme of “Windows 7 is my idea.”

A final word of caution: by facilitating the continuation of a conversation, feedback through social media fundamentally changes the nature of any business communication effort. Establishing a presence in social media amounts to a commitment to your audience to continue that conversation. Fulfilling that commitment will cost time and money, but failing to live up to it will cost precious standing with key audiences that you won’t easily regain. Before embarking on a strategy that includes these new communications capabilities, make sure you’re prepared with the right resources and mindset to commit to a real conversation.

Social Media Marketing and Brand Goals

By Cindy Ratzlaff January 20, 2010

Social media marketing is the new shiny toy. Don’t get me wrong, I think it’s a really useful shiny new toy. It’s a rapidly evolving, fun newcomer that is grabbing all the headlines, adding bells and whistles every week…sometimes every day. So while every author, company, brand or entrepreneur needs to have a social media marketing strategy and be able to innovate and implement great new campaigns, it can’t pull focus from your primary goals. It’s a method to help you reach your goals, not the end goal itself.

Make sure that your social media marketing efforts serve your overall brand goals. As you set or review your brand goals, ask yourself:

What unique product or service do I offer?
What “need” does my service or product fulfill?
Where would potential customers seek solutions for fulfilling that “need?”
What 5-7 words describe the “why to buy” for my product or service?
What is my complete marketing strategy for announcing and promoting this product?
What are my expectations for income from this product?
Does this product reflect all of my brand messages and core values?

After you’ve identified your unique offer and created your targeted, keyword rich messages, make social media outreach via your business Facebook page and Twiter account a regular but measured part of your everyday business tasks. Just 10-15 minutes in the morning and perhaps another 10-15 minutes at the end of the day or at midday can help you keep your brand message in front of potential customers.

Here are five things I do every morning:

Facebook Profile: Check in-box and respond as need, accept or decline invitations to events and pages, check my “key contacts” stream briefly for any interesting updates, news, innovations I want to share with my friends.
Facebook Fan Page: Briefly check to see if any comments or questions need clarifying and post either a link to a news article or blog post that I want to share with my fans or post a tip, strategy or idea. That post goes out automatically to my Twitter as well.
Twitter: Check @replies to see if anyone has questions. Thank folks who retweet or #FF me. Check DM’s and respond as necessary. Check one of my key lists and peruse the stream to see if any of these industry movers and shakers has something I’d like to retweet or read or share with my followers.
Blog: Post to my blog, which will then auto post to my Facebook Fan Page and my Twitter account.

Periodically throughout the day, if I find something worth sharing I pop over to Hootsuite, which I keep open on a tab on my browser. I post the link, write a quick post and pre-schedule it to go to one or more accounts later that afternoon.

I spend no more than 10-15 minutes each day glancing through my Google reader which aggregates about 20 blogs I find most relevant to my business and I grab a link and schedule a post from one or more of those on Hootsuite.

Once a week, I spend a full day writing blog posts, making videos and planning additional marketing strategies for my business.

The rest of my time I spend on clients, writing, and creating new opportunities and outlets for my work. For every product, my social media marketing strategy is just one portion of my overall marketing plan. My marketing strategies including speaking engagements, webinars and teleseminars, e-newsletters, targeted advertising, guest blogging, in-person networking and media interviews.

What are your non-social media marketing plans? How will you create conversations about YOU this year?

Marketing and Self Improvement Books | 14 Books to Inspire and Motivate Entrepreneurs and Business Professionals

By Cindy Ratzlaff December 31, 2009

Recently a Facebook friend from Pakistan asked me to recommend a list of books to inspire his students both in business and personally. I asked my Facebook and Twitter friends and followers to chime in so we could send him a thoughtful list of great books to share with his students. I thought you’d like to see the list of inspiring business and personal development books that came from my request for suggestions. I’ve included links to their respective pages on Amazon.com and in full disclosure, these are affiliate links which means that if you choose to purchase them, I stand to earn an average of sixty cents. You are forewarned and the FTC is happy.

Inspirational business and personal development books
1. Stones into Schools: Promoting Peace with Books, Not Bombs in Afghanistan and Pakistan by Greg Mortneson. (Viking/December 2009) Greg Mortenson is the recipient of Pakistan’s highest civil award (The Star of Pakistan) for his sixteen years work to promote education and peace. The cofounder of the Central Asia Institute and Pennies For Peace, he lives in Montana with his family. http://bit.ly/4pHp7x

2. Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide by Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn (Knopf/September 2009) Publishers Weekly said “NewYork Times columnist Kristof and his wife, WuDunn, a former Times reporter, make a case for investing in the health and autonomy of women worldwide. More girls have been killed in the last fifty years, precisely because they were girls, than men were killed in all the wars of the twentieth century, they write, detailing the rampant gendercide in the developing world, particularly in India and Pakistan.” http://bit.ly/8dwNEr

3. Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell (Little, Brown and Company/November 2008) Named by Amazon as a Best of the Month in November 2008, Gladwell poses this provocative question: why do some people succeed, living remarkably productive and impactful lives, while so many more never reach their potential? He concludes that super achievers don’t just happen, “they are invariably the beneficiaries of hidden advantages and extraordinary opportunities and cultural legacies that allow them to learn and work hard and make sense of the world in ways others cannot.” Examining famous “outliers” from Mozart to Bill Gates, he lays out his theory that high achievers know how to take advantage of opportunity and concludes “some [are] just plain lucky.” http://bit.ly/6Cni9V

3. The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference by Malcolm Gladwell (Back Bay Books/2002) This is a terrific book detailing how marketing ideas become mainstream ideas and just exactly who and what contribute to an idea going from a small circle of adopters to a massive movement. This was a major bestseller and “tipping point” became a part of the lexicon we still use to describe an idea or product becoming a mega success. http://bit.ly/7fVRF0

4. Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell (Back Bay Books/April 2007) This international bestseller details the power of trusting your own instincts in business and learning to listen to that quiet voice that affirms the perfect idea (or warns you about an imperfect idea) in a blink. http://bit.ly/70SfmJ

5. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change by Stephen R. Covey (Free Press/2004 15^th anniversary edition) International bestseller for more than 15 years on specific work habits most successful people share and how you, too, can develop those habits. http://bit.ly/6NqQQW

6. Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson, M.D. (G.P. Putnam’s Sons/September 2008)
Change can be a blessing or a curse, depending on your perspective. The message in Who Moved My Cheese? is that in order to survive change you need to take action because inaction means death. Who Moved My Cheese? is a very short parable with a simple message that will stay with you long after the hour it takes to read this book. Once again, this book title became a part of our lexicon and is especially poignant and useful during this economic downturn as hundreds of thousands of unemployed realize that some, indeed, moved their cheese. In fact, their cheese may never come back and they’d better learn to eat wheat. http://bit.ly/5povmK

7. Fearless: Creating the Courage to Change the Things you Can by Steve Chandler (Robert D. Reed/July 2008) Chandler’s book delves into the ways in which fear of money, relationships and even death can keep one from living up to their true potential and attaining success. http://bit.ly/6xEELQ

8. 100 Ways to Motivate Yourself by Steve Chandler (Career Press/September 2004) motivational speaker Steve Chandler helps you create an action plan for living your vision in business and in life and suggests 100 ideas to positively change the way you think and act. http://bit.ly/7YGaIY

9. Make a Name for Yourself: Eight Steps Every Woman Needs to Create a Personal Brand Strategy for Success by Robin Fisher Roffer (Broadway/January 2008) Roffer’s personal brand building strategies begin with identifying your extraordinary attributes, thinking about your values and passions, and learning how to use them to build a successful and fulfilling professional life. http://bit.ly/4Ov8He

10. Pour Your Heart Into it: How Starbucks Built a Company One Cup at a Time by Howard Schultz. (Hyperion/January 1999) Amazon.com says “Whether you’re an entrepreneur, a manager, a marketer, or a curious Starbucks loyalist, Pour Your Heart into It will let you in on the revolutionary Starbucks venture. CEO Howard Schultz recounts the company’s rise in 24 chapters, each of which illustrates such core values as “Winning at the expense of employees is not victory at all.” http://bit.ly/7sNOn7

11. Crush It! Why Now is the Time to Cash In on Your Passion by Gary Vaynerchuk (HarperStudio/October 2009) Vaynerchuk built his family business from a successful $4 million a year to a $50 a year business by tapping into his passion and his predisposition for entertaining personal engagement. He is a social media success story. http://bit.ly/8qKQiv

12. The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch From Amazon.com’s review: “When Randy Pausch, a computer science professor at Carnegie Mellon, was asked to give such a lecture, he didn’t have to imagine it as his last, since he had recently been diagnosed with terminal cancer. But the lecture he gave–“Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams”–wasn’t about dying. It was about the importance of overcoming obstacles, of enabling the dreams of others, of seizing every moment (because “time is all you have…and you may find one day that you have less than you think”). It was a summation of everything Randy had come to believe. It was about living. In this book, Randy Pausch has combined the humor, inspiration and intelligence that made his lecture such a phenomenon and given it an indelible form. It is a book that will be shared for generations to come.” http://bit.ly/80umwz

13. Business Fitness: The Power to Succeed–Your Way by Dawn Lennon (Glenbridge Pub Ltd/June 2007) Focusing on four private moves; staying well, staying focused, staying current and staying connected and three public ones, attracting a following, taking the lead and implementing new ideas, Lennon lays out a logical, practical and replicable business strategy for large or small companies alike. http://bit.ly/60RWyK

14. Just Who Will You Be? By Maria Shriver (Hyperion/April 2008 Edition) An inspiration and intimate meditation that urges us to ask ourselves not what we want to be but rather who we want to be, at every different stage of our lives. http://bit.ly/6BELFJ

This is by no means a comprehensive list of inspirational, motivational and instructional books to recommend to students of business and life, but merely represents the responses I received from all of you. I’m sure there are additional books you’d love to see on this list. Post them here so we can all discover new inspiration or rediscover old friends.

Marketing 101: 7 Low-Cost Publicity Ideas For Small Business

By Cindy Ratzlaff May 8, 2009

You don’t need to break the bank to garner good publicity for your business. If you’re willing to commit a little time and ingenuity, you can promote your company effectively and build your reputation as a business leader.

Write an advice article. This is a great way to promote your expertise and your business, while providing added value for local newspapers. A car dealer could write a feature titled “5 Ways to Conserve Gas even if You Don’t Own a Hybrid.” A flooring storeowner might educate readers about new, renewable options such as bamboo. The owner of a closet organizing company could discuss the growing trend in home wine cellars. Real Estate people could write “8 Essential Home Repairs to do Before You list your Home.” Remember that your knowledge is valuable to others. Share it and gain visability.
Run contests or sweepstakes. Here’s a way to bring in new customers, and the prizes don’t need to be expensive. Doctors might provide free cholesterol screenings during heart health month. A floral shop owner might consider a June Bridal Bouquet sweepstakes or giveaway. A personal consultation from a life coach or a resume coach is sure to attract attention now. A bakery might give away a dozen cookes a month for a year. You don’t have to give away a free meal on Oprah to create buzz for your business in your community. People hear about your business and sample your product through contests and giveaways. Winners can become your best brand evangelists, telling countless others about you.
Create a sale or promotion with a twist: The Ben & Jerry’s in Gainesville won a national award, and free publicity in local newspapers, for it’s “BJs in Your PJs” promotion: Every Sunday night for four hours they offered discounted ice cream sundaes and shakes to anyone who came in wearing pajamas. All those people standing outside their store in their PJs was a great attention-getter.
Sponsor events: Let a local charity use your business location for an event or offer your products or services as fund-raising prizes. Sponsor or host a walk, a race, a bake sale, a food and wine tasting, a lecture by a well-known speaker–all of these could garner press attention. Having your company name and logo front and center in community events will build awareness and engender positive feelings about you and your business.
Speak Out: Organizations ranging from the Rotary Club to local businesses, colleges, charities and professional men and women’s groups are looking for interesting speakers. Volunteer a few times and soon you could develop a reputation as the “go-to” person for entertaining talks on subjects such as “five things we can do right now to protect our environment,” (a great way to promote a lawn service company’s chemical-free care package) or “how to stage a house for a quick sale” (Realtors, you know these tips by heart) or “using social media to connect with customers” (on trend and invaluable to any customer-centric business).
Serve as an expert: The media is always looking for people who can speak knowledgably on issues. If you’re an expert in your field, let the radio stations and newspapers know. Write an opinion page (Op Ed) feature on a topic that can educate people and submit it to your local paper, magazine or website. Write letters to the editors when you have something to add to a conversation in the news. Tax preparers can talk about the tax benefits of installing solar equipment. A doctor can interpret the latest scientific study for the lay person. Make yourself known. Become a thought leader in your community.
Be prolific. The key to inexpensive publicity is to engage with your community. You can promote yourself and your business by being caring, knowledgeable and accessible. By sharing your expertise, you’ll develop a passionate base of customers who will refer you to their friends. After all, word-of-mouth is really the Holy Grail of publicity and promotion.

*I originally published the majority of this essay in The North Central Florida Business Report. Thanks to Kevin Ireland for permission to reissue here.