“I am still learning.”–Michelangelo

 This is a quote I found in Pat Flynn’s amazing book for business owners, Let Go, and it seemed perfect to kick off a brand-new series here where every month, we’ll share one seriously amazing business book to help you, the busy, time-starved business owner, become the best you can be.

 On the Bookshelf: Let Go by Pat Flynn

The book, autobiographical yet educational and eye-opening, is Pat Flynn’s account of how he was “let go” from his “job” and how that became the best thing to happen.

Pat Flynn is the owner of Smart Passive Income, one of my all-time favorite sites for everything legit about making money online, via affiliate and content marketing. His emails and blog posts are one of the very few that I wholeheartedly enjoy opening, reading and applying.

I was lucky enough to receive a copy of Let Go as part of being an Ambassador for the book and happily wasn’t disappointed.

 Learning from Failing

Losing one’s job or being laid off is everyone’s worst nightmare. Pat’s story is no different. He was doing well, but with the recession, came an event he’d not planned for. But there’s a lesson in every failing, every stumble, every fall.

As Pat says, “The best and worst things that happen in life are usually the things that happen unplanned. There are miracles and there are misfortunes. Big breaks and big let downs. We remember those single moments in life like scenes from a movie we didn’t expect. But how we react and live life after those moments is what shapes who we become.”

The book describes how he turned around a misfortune into a fortune.  No hype. No drama. No trying to sell you a dream. Seriously.

 What I Loved About this Business Book

Although it is Pat’s story, there is something in Let Go for everyone. The uncertainity, the fears, the doubts, the holding back, the joy of finding something that works, the thrill of that first dollar. Yes, I can relate to every single one of these emotions and can see how you would too.

The other thing that really drew me to Let Go is that it encourages, in fact, pushes you to  test your boundaries and go out of your comfort zone to really create the life you want for yourself. You don’t have to wait to be let go. You can start right now. Where you are.

Pat’s vision is completely in line with my own, “I wasn’t on someone else’s predetermined path; I was out there creating my own.”

Finally, the book gives you a glimpse into every aspect of Pat’s life with its multimedia content. From interviews with his wife and father to traveling with him when he’d take the train to work, you can experience it all.  It also shows you that overnight successes do take a long time in the making and they do require excellent quality and some amount of work. Yes, there is no get-rich-quick scheme.

I think Let Go is an inspiring read for time-starved business owners because it is personal, real and even, raw with emotion. Something that most business books aren’t.

It leaves you with an important lesson that you, yourself are the creator of your destiny.  Now am off to watch Back to the Future and write a letter to my younger self. Why? Read the book to find out! **smiling**

“The best thing to do is just let go.” ~ Pat Flynn {Click to tweet it out!}

Are YOU creating your own path? Share with me how in the comments below!

Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of Let Go and yes, this post includes affiliate links to Amazon which means I make a small amount of latte money if you buy through me. However, I wouldn’t be sharing it with you if it weren’t seriously awesome. 

The post The Time-Starved Business Owner’s Book Shelf: Let Go by Pat Flynn appeared first on Social Media Direct.

First up, a fact. Websites with blogs attract 55% more traffic. Does your business website have one? I sure hope so.

Having a website with a blog isn’t enough, though. You need to make sure that your business blog marketing efforts are giving you the returns and doing the job they’re meant to do  – increase visibility, bring traffic, generate leads, get more sales.

Working with many business owners on their blogs and managing two of my own means that I get up, close and personal with what’s working and what’s not.  I shared 7 blogging sins in an earlier post but today, I want to dig deep and look at more common yet possibly fatal business blogging mistakes.

Here is a list of 17 business blog marketing mistakes that every smallbiz owner who’s starting out on the blogging path should avoid:

1. Choosing a free blogging platform

I can’t tell you how many business owners I’ve had to talk to about moving their business blogs from blogspot.com or wordpress.com to either their own site or a self-hosted domain. Why is self-hosted important? Because it is more professional, it is YOUR piece of online real estate and it is good for SEO. Even if you choose a free blogging platform, PLEASE register your domain name. Bluehost {my hosting provider of choice} offers domain name registration when you buy hosting. It is inexpensive and a very good investment.

  2. Overthinking design

As entrepreneurs, we think. A lot. And when it comes to design, it is SO easy to get pulled into a million different directions about what to do, what looks good, what is needed, what template to choose. Don’t overthink it. Choose a template with a clean layout and features that you like and run with it. You can always redesign later. Really.

3. Not thinking about design

On the other hand, not thinking about design is another blog mistake I’ve seen happen many times. One of our clients had a blog that looked like it had been designed by an enthusiastic tween. Not that anything’s wrong with enthusiastic tween designs but when you’re a business wanting to reach professionals. So, yes, focus a few design elements that lend your blog the image you want for your brand.

4. Not having a clear goal from the blog

Just having a blog isn’t enough. Knowing what you want from it is what matters, especially for business owners. Having a clear goal will help you create a focused strategy, which is our next point.

5. Not having a clear-cut strategy for the blog

If you have blogging goals or a blog but no strategy in place, chances are your blog isn’t going to give you any results. It doesn’t have to be complicated. For instance, if your blogging goal is attracting search engine traffic, your strategy needs to include keyword research, editorial calendar planning, interlinking, post promotion and so on.

6. Not promoting the blog

Have a blog but haven’t told your customers, fans and followers about it? How do you think people will find you? Sorry if that stings a little but tough love’s needed.

7. Not sharing valuable content

Business blogs MUST offer real value. If you’re only selling your product or sharing content that readers don’t need or want, you’ll not be building a community anytime soon.

8. Sharing too much content

Then there is the problem of over-sharing. Your business blog readers do want to know more about the people behind the brand and also about how your product or service can help them {without you being sales-y}. but they don’t want to know about your children’s play date schedule or about your trip to the dentist. Seriously. These are posts I’ve read on actual business blogs.

9. Not having a consistent blogging schedule

Most business blogs die a natural death because business owners are busy, busy people and blogging is an investment of time and effort. Posting once in 3 months will not make your business blog a lead magnet. You need a consistent schedule. Be realistic about the demands on your time and choose a posting schedule that suits you. Once a week or once every two weeks? But once you choose it, stick to it.

Really don’t have the time to blog? Get help!

10. Not using the blog to capture emails

Have blog but don’t have an email marketing system set up? How will you nurture and stay in touch with the prospects that land on your blog? Once you have the blog set up, your second action item must be to sign up with an email service provider, like Mailchimp and get your sign up form all set.

Need help building or growing your list? Sign up for Nathalie Lussier’s FREE 30-Day List Building Challenge and double your list FAST! 

11. Not optimizing your blog for search engines

Yes, we write for humans and not search engines but we do need search engines to attract those humans and bring them to our blog. So, do your keyword research to see what people are looking for. Use free keyword tools to begin with and then, move up to the paid ones. Or again, if it overwhelms you, hire help! **smiling**

 12. Over-optimizing your blog for search engines

At the other side of the SEO spectrum is turning every post into a keyword-stuffed post that makes little to no sense and has zero value for a reader. Don’t do that.

13. Adding all sorts of buttons and badges to your blog

You’re not an enthusiastic tween {see #3 above} starting your first blog, so don’t go overboard adding all sorts of buttons, badges and bling to your business blog. The same goes for ad blocks and affiliate banners. Unless you’re getting decent traffic to your site, ad blocks and banners will only suck SEO juice, look amateurish and not give you any returns.

 14. Not infusing your blog with your brand’s personality

Have a fun brand but a blah blog?  Whether you write for your own blog or hire someone to blog for you, infuse your posts with your brand’s voice and vision. That is why before I write for any business, I spend significant time reviewing their overall brand presence and interacting with the business owner to understand their personality.

 15. Not engaging with readers

Getting comments? Yay! Not replying to them? Boo! I’ve been guilty of this when things get too busy. But as a reminder to myself and to others, please engage with your readers and reply to comments when you get them.

Engaging also means, asking your prospects and customers for their inputs and their burning questions and then, addressing them on your blog.

16. Getting discouraged early on

“I’ve had a blog for a month and don’t see any traffic!” Newsflash: Blogging takes time to show results. Overnight successes take a long time in the making. Give yourself at least 3 to 6 months or even, a year depending on your niche to see how your blog is performing with consistent content, promotion and clear strategies.

 17. Not launching the blog

‘Nuff said. **smiling**

Like what you read? Share it with your Twitter friends and tweet it out!

 What do YOU think are other business blog marketing mistakes that bloggers or business owners make when starting out?

The post Business Blog Marketing: 17 Beginner Boo-Boos and How to Avoid Them appeared first on Social Media Direct.

A guest post by Karen Gunton:

One of the things i LOVE talking to business owners about is their brand. Mostly because this is something that is hugely important, but something we don’t actually spend a lot of time thinking about once our business is off and running.

Sure we think about our brand at the beginning – when we first work on our business name, our logo, and the look of our website. But it is often something that business owners don’t revisit again and again. And this is why i love chatting about it.

No matter what type of business you have, no matter what stage your business is at, doing a bit of work on your brand can be a great way reignite your excitement, to build some buzz and interest, to increase your confidence, even to have some fun with your marketing.

Working on your brand can mean refreshing things a little with a few updates and tweaks. It can mean revamping things a lot, making some big changes or even rebranding entirely. Or it can mean taking what you have already started, what you already love, and making it EVEN BETTER.

Try asking yourself the following questions…

1. Are you unsure about the message you need to send out with your brand? Are you wondering what it is you would like to be known for? Are you wondering if that message would even stand out?
2. Have your products or services changed over time? Would you like to add new products or services? are you trying to grow your business?
3. Would you like to attract more of your ideal customers? Would you like them to know that they are in the right place as soon as they come across your biz?
4. Are you struggling with your pricing? Do you need to make a change to your offerings? Are you worried that you aren’t going to be able to raise your prices or adjust your packages?
5. Do you struggle with your marketing plans & sales practices? Do you feel like every strategy you try falls flat? Or that you are just saying the same things over and over?
6. Do you need to inject more YOU into your brand? Do you feel a disconnect between yourself and the brand you have created?
7. Do you feel like you need to find your “brand voice”? To inject more personality in your written copy? To sound different from all the other bizzes in your niche?
8. Are you slightly uncomfortable to say your biz name? Hand out your biz card? Send someone to visit your website? Have someone read your brochure or blog post or newsletter?
9. Are you trying to make the jump from a hobby to a business? Do you need to establish that you are indeed a professional, competitive business in your niche?
10. Are you trying to make the jump from an old niche or ideal customer to a new one? Do you need to send a new message about where your business is heading now?
11. Do you need your biz to stand out better amongst the competition? Does your brand show the true benefits of your products and differentiate you from everyone else?
12. Do any of your business activities feel a little bland? Do you feel like your newsletter or your facebook page or your blog (or whatever) are just falling flat? Not getting the kind of attention or engagement you had hoped? Just simply not that much fun to do?
13. Do you need to inject some excitement, energy, or buzz into your biz? Do you need to remind yourself why you love what you do or remind others about why your biz is awesome?
14. Are you feeling a little lost about what to do next for your biz? Do you feel like you are just going through your to do list, following everyone’s advice, but nothing is really working that well?
15. Are you ready to take your business to the next level? Go from part time to full time? Raise your income level? Raise your online profile?
16. Would you like to take what you have started and make it even better? Even stronger & more powerful? To extend your brand beyond your logo & website into everything you do?

What do you think?

If you said YES to any of these questions then NOW is a very good time to get some clarity about your brand, to make sure that you are indeed sending the message you wish to send, and then amplifying that message loud & clear… spreading that message far & wide.

Spend a little time working on your brand. You won’t be sorry! Need help with branding for small business? Be a part of the amplify your brand workshop with Karen Gunton, a blogger, teacher, and creative designer. her passions are helping women in biz get unstuck and brainstorming awesome ideas for little businesses.

The post How Do You Know if NOW is the Time to Work on Your Brand? appeared first on Social Media Direct.

One of the whole ideas of having a business is growing it, scaling it, taking it to the next level and usually that involves not just an investment of time and effort, but also, good, ole-fashioned money!

From spending on tools to make you go pro to investing in design that sets you apart from the competition to adding products that will bring in additional income streams, your mind is buzzing with ideas but you know that to do all of this, you need cold, hard cash.

How can you grow, like really, seriously power up,  your business without going broke? Or maxing out your credit card? Or taking out a second mortgage?

Here’s how we’re doing it without spending insanely:

1. Identify What Needs Fixing

One of the first things we do whenever we want to ramp things up in the business is to make a list of things we think need fixing – a better design, more freebies, newer killer offerings and so on. Then we rank the list in order of priority and see what each line item needs.

For us, one of the things we really needed to go pro and go big was a better designed website. So, based on my learning from B-School, we identified a list of things that we would like the new website to have and showcase and went with that.

Knowing what needs fixing allows a budget-savvy business owner to make an informed decision and tackle the important items first.

 2. Go Pro Without the Pricey Price Tag

Ooh, we did SO much of this. You see, going pro generally means forking out the wallet and while you, me and everyone else is prepared to do that, I don’t see why you shouldn’t do a bit of research to find a provider who not only meets all your needs but comes at a price you can afford.

I may get flak for this but growing your business and being premium doesn’t always mean pricey.

As a budget-savvy business owner, for me, premium means getting quality services at a sensible price.

The new website design is being designed by Revka Stearns of Berries and Cream who is insanely talented, incredibly patient and completely gets my vision and will have custom graphics by Karen Gunton who is one of THE most incredible visualiser ever and gorgeous photos by Neha of Tiny Love Photography.

We chose all of these amazing service providers because they provided EXCELLENT value and brought amazing energy and experience to their work. 

Please note, what may be reasonable and affordable to me may not be to you and again what is expensive and out-of-reach for me may not be the case for you.  Yes, how you perceive pricing is subjective. However, at the end of the day, what matters is whether or not you get great VALUE from your investment, regardless of how big or small it may be. 

3. Invest in Learning and Take Action

2013 has been the year of learning. We have learnt so much about growing our business, increasing our annual income and taking it close to that 6-figure mark. From investing in Marie’s B-School to now joining Leonie’s Amazing Biz+Life Academy, I’ve been constantly investing in growing my knowledge and learning because that my friend, is key to keeping a mind sharp and building a business as well. Again, all the learning in the world is pretty useless unless you apply it. You know that, right?

You’ll be seeing a lot of changes happen here, some visible and others behind-the-scenes, as a result of B-School and our newfound learning. I wouldn’t invest in another Academy or course unless I was sure I would apply what I learn. If you’ve taken a lot of courses, time to shake off that virtual dust off them and dig in deep and start taking massive action. NOW.

4. Grow Your Community, Tribe, Network

Call it community, tribe or network, you need to surround yourself with amazing, inspiring and encouraging people who while being uplifting can also be honest and straightforward. While this strategy effectively costs nothing, it is one of the BEST ways to grow your business.

When you’re in the midst of like-minded people who understand your goals and support you with resources, ideas and thoughts, you’re bound to be inspired to act.

That is one of the BIG reasons I’m joining The Amazing Biz+Life Academy and if growing your business with clarity and community is what you want too, I hope you’ll join with me. We can have our own little accountability group to support each other. Yes!

5. Give. More. Generously

Finally, and this may seem a little woo-woo to some of you, BUT let me say this, “it works”. The more you give, the more you get. Simple. Call it anything you want, but the fact is that everyone loves a generous soul. Someone who is truly, deeply and sincerely willing to help you. Be that person. It’ll help you grow your community, grow your business and grow your own self.

When you feel good, you do good. Nothing energizes me more than sending a thoughtful note to a friend who may be struggling with something in her business. Nothing inspires and excites me more than receiving a surprise in the mail from a friend who believes in me. {thank you, Natasha!}.

Giving more is a great way to grow your business and infuse it with fresh energy, passion and commitment.

What aspect of YOUR business do YOU want to grow? Share with me in the comments below.

The post Need to Grow Your Business Without Going Broke? Read This appeared first on Social Media Direct.

Since we’ve been planning a redesign for both this site and The Mom Writes, I’ve been really busy scouting web and graphic designers.

While I’ve finalized my projects, in my travels across the Net, I came across a LOT of businesses that made me go “Huh!”

And I realized that a lot of service providers – designers, consultants, coaches, writers, bloggers, are losing business EVERY.SINGLE.DAY because of a few super-obvious  factors.

Here’s a look at the top 5 reasons you may not be making as much money as you should be:

1.No Newsletter = No New Business

I visited so many sites and many of them appealed to me but weren’t in my budget right now. However, I wanted a way to stay in touch with them so that I could get info on their specials whenever they run them. Unfortunately, except for a very few of them, NONE of them had an email subscription or newsletter for me to sign up to.

Seriously, how many of us have the time to keep checking a website to see if they’re running any promotions? I don’t.

2.No Blog= No Search Engine Traffic

Then, there were these amazing designers who had NO blogs attached to their websites. I know blogging is an investment of time and effort, but it is also an investment that pays off. Big time.

You attract search engine traffic, engage with prospects landing on your site for the first time and nurture leads by showcasing your talent. Need more reasons, read this.

But most importantly, a blog is YOUR piece of online real estate, unlike a social network that may change or worse, die.

If blogging doesn’t come naturally to you or you lack the time to blog, hire someone to do it for you.  But do it and see the impact it makes on your business.

3.No Contact Form = Lower Contact Rates

That’s right. Seriously, a contact form is a given. You can share your email address if you want to but again, time is of the essence here. And busy business owners don’t have the time to copy your email address from your webpage, open their email in a browser window, paste it in the compose field and then, type out their message. I am tired just typing the steps.

A contact form, on the other hand, makes it super-easy for folks to contact you in a few clicks and keystrokes. You don’t even need to hire a coder to install a contact form. My favorite FREE form builder, Jotform, lets you  create and embed a contact form in less than 5 minutes. So, don’t make it difficult for paying customers to reach you. Please.

4. No Customer Follow Up Sequence = Losing Prospects to Better Organized Competition

Now this happened to me, twice. I emailed a couple of designers and then I followed up to find out if they got my email. Big fail right there. I’m the client, I shouldn’t be following up. But it gets better {or worse}. After my following up, from one, I get a reply with no proposal. Just a brief note saying she’ll be in touch with me which never happened.

The second one didn’t even reply.

See, I get it. You’re busy. Maybe you can’t take on my project. Maybe we’re not the right fit. I get all of that. What I don’t get is NOT replying to a prospective customer who wants to hire you. By making this little mistake, you’re not only saying “I don’t need your business”, you’re also saying, “ I don’t need any business you may want to send my way.”

Compare this to branding queen, Victoria Prozan, who makes not only contacting her a breeze but has an awesome follow-up sequence when you sign up for a free 15-minute session with her. No wonder she’s the go-to gal for designing awesome customer experiences. Need a customer intake or follow-up sequence? This post by Natasha of Systems Rock will help!

5. No Social Media Presence = No Networking Opportunities

Finally, there were sites that had no social media connection opportunities. At least none that could be found easily. Why is that a big mistake, especially when I keep going on and on about a blog?

Social media, whether you choose one network or five, gives you a great opportunity to share your expertise and interact with prospects and peers in an informal, engaging and fun manner. It’s so easy to reach out to someone on Twitter and say, “Hey, I saw you’re looking for a web designer. I’d love to brainstorm concepts or moodboards with you. Skype?” Need help getting started with social media, download your free social media starter toolkit now!

 Take Action: Review your website to see how YOU may be losing business and money, and then, commit to fixing it. Share with me in the comments what would YOU be doing and get public accountability by tweeting this out.

The post The Top 5 Reasons You’re Losing Business, Clients and Money…Every Single Day! appeared first on Social Media Direct.