Youtube. Viable?

- #1 area where professional marketers are increasing their efforts.

- #2 most used search engine

- every minute 72 hours of video is uploaded

- average user spends 15 minutes per day

- 90% of consumers trust peer recommendations

- 63% of businesses using social media report improved marketing results

- The ROI of Social Media will still exist in 5 years

Recommended Resource - Hurdie Burk, YouTube extraordinaire and Impact Trusted Referral Partner.

Follow-through

Follow-through. The energy it takes to work your database can be exhausting for many of us. 

In a lunch and learn yesterday we were discussing the differences in being "victory vs defeated" focused/oriented (the overall subject was "hope").

This morning, thinking about my database, how I haven't been near as diligent in my practice to "never-waste-a-handshake," I realize that, in the context of the lesson I taught from Maxwell's book "Sometimes You Win, Sometimes You Learn," that maybe I don't have enough HOPE.

Maxwell writes about being energized vs tired; Victory focused - you're energized, Defeat focused - you're tired.

So, by applying hope, will this change? Will I be more energized to do the follow-throughs, work my Contact-Circle Worksheets?

I recognize mining a database is heavily shaded in the admin area and outside my sweet-spot (I'm a high D/I, Choleric/Sanguine), but it's a period-the-end task to "never-waste-a-handshake."

Applying HOPE to the process. I'll let you know.

PS - I'm also pondering the stop vs never aspect of wasting handshakes. Which sends the better message?

Contact circle worksheet

"Never waste a handshake!"

Click image for download - 

Data mining to end the year well

A good marketing exercise is to casually look through the names of people you've met. These names are "ideally" in a database/CRM, but are likely in numerous places; business cards lying in/on your desk, contacts in phone, contacts in Outlook, emails, friends/connections on Facebook/Twitter/LinkedIn/Pinterest/etc.

Casually looking is a minor form of "Mining." Mining a database is a daily activity for Professional Marketers. You're likely a Business Owner or Sales Person that should practice Professional Marketer activities.

What is 'mining a database?' I'm going to give you a rambling approach to this, again, on the minor side.....

Data-mining, for many an entrepreneur, starts with thinking through the meetings, names, cards, emails you've had, collected, sent, received...reconnecting in your head and on paper with the people, who they are, what they need, what you can provide them, how you fit together, where's the win/win, is there a win/win. Data-mining is looking at the data you have and learning from it, extracting information and transforming it into understandable information...it's finding needles in haystacks.

Data-mining can be very sophisticated, but it doesn't have to be. A glance through my database this weekend showed me a list of people I could possibly add value to through an online tool.

Data-mining is a primary discipline Professional Marketers are constantly practicing. I'm using it in my Process as I finish-up 2013. I'm looking at "what" I could have done better, "where" I can improve and "how" it will need to come about.

I'm asking what, where and how questions about the past, not why and when.

I'm thinking about "if" I'd done some things differently, what that would "feel" like right now.

Once I have all that down, asked myself good questions, pondered and reflected....then I'll start working on 2014.

Friday Follow-Through Questions...

What have you done differently this week to make this week different?

Zig told me 25 years ago "I was going to be the same 5 years from then as I was then, except for the people I associated with, what I listen to and what I read."

Who are you associating with?
What are you listening to (watching)?
What are you reading?

If you're not where you want to be, do something different.

What are you doing "differently" to STOP WASTING HANDSHAKES?

A great way to start the day is by asking yourself these questions -

What's my purpose?

What do I have to be thankful for?

What new potential can I tap into today?

And, add hope.

Does marketing require you to ask for sale?

I was asked yesterday "does marketing require you to still ask for the sale?"

My answer was "yes."

I'd like to clarify -

Marketing well will make the "ask" easier and give you more people to ask.

"Should I take a leadership class to improve my marketing abilities?"

Leadership ability determines a person's level of effectiveness

- Law of the Lid, John C. Maxwell

Lids negatively impact all of us, everyday. Experts say the we typically go about our day working solely from our unconscious. In other words...on autopilot.

In a marketing class today I was asked "do you think we should take a leadership class to improve our marketing abilities?" My answer was "yes, nothing will help you more than to constantly improve your core leadership abilities. Improve your ability to lead and you improve your ability to trust yourself, others will trust you more, your spheres of influence will increase and your marketing impact will improve in direct proportion." 

Maybe not word-for-word, but something like that. read more

The 3 Rs

My mentor Christian Simpson reminded me this morning that the top 1% of the most successful entrepreneurs develop themselves out in front of their business (Christian is regularly pounding that into my head).

Here's a John Maxwell tip he gave me: The "3 Rs" -

1. Required - What's required - what must I do that nobody can or should do for me? This tends to sort out the noise that doesn't serve me in pursuit of my your dreams/goals, and identifies what can be delegated elsewhere if it's not necessary for me to do (and you're not skilled in doing it!)

2. Return - What gives me the greatest return? Maxwell says "leaders should get out of their comfort zone but stay in their strength zone. What are my strengths? And what should I be letting go of?

3. Rewards - What brings me the greatest rewards? What brings me personal fulfillment? What could I do more of that will energize me and transform the my productivity in my business?

Make today the beginning of a great day, and a better life.

Listening through Social Media

Social media provides the business owner with more ability to listen to their market.

Questions to ponder, and then ACT!

1. What's your purpose today?

2. What's the benefit you bring to the table? What's your big so-what?

3. What target are you shooting at?

4. What 5 marketing weapons will you use to get your purpose done?

Choose. Choose to act. Choose to be proactive. Choose to CAUSE your results.

CRMs and Processes; mining your database.

What CRM(s) do you use? Do you still use a paper version to supplement your software?

Are you on LinkedIn and not sure how to benefit?

A series of events

As we've covered here and in the classes, "marketing well is a series of events that lead towards a defined and intended result."

To reach these results, on a continuous basis, requires Change.

Habitually though, we over-estimate the power of the event and under-estimate the power of the process.

The power is in the process and the thinking you put into those results.

Any new process takes thinking new thoughts.

Your current results are a product of your thoughts driven by your current processes.

To change, develop new processes. To develop new processes, think differently.

Think into the results you want from your processes.

What is marketing?

Marketing is everything you do; how you show-up, showing-up (face-to-face and online), how you act, respond, look, etcetera, etcetera. 

Be purposeful and thoughtful about picking and using your weapons.

Marketing and The Law of Consistency

The 8 Essential Choices to Marketing Well

1. I choose to THINK INTO MY RESULTS

2. I choose to get ACCESS TO HIGHER EXPERTISE

3. I choose to get the RIGHT SUPPORT
4. I choose to get the FREQUENCY and REGULARITY
5. I choose to get the RIGHT ACCOUNTABILITY
6. I choose to get a CREATIVE INNER CIRCLE
7. I choose to get AWARENESS and KNOWLEDGE

8. I choose to get a WIDER AND DEEPER SOI (sphere of influence)