I started asking about the software and hardware she had purchased, and in making comparisons to the old system we happened to create the problem. What we found was that she had some pirated software on the old system. Now she didn’t consider it pirated software, I mean, her husband had been working for the company she’d purchased the old laptop from, and the software came with her system.

She’s pretty sure she paid for it. If it came with the system, they should have provided her with the actual software CD’s, or the key code. If they failed to do so, she should go back to them to secure a “certified” copy and/or the key code. It took some time, but she did finally admit that perhaps she didn’t pay for it.

I proceeded to suggest a few of my favorite software “deal” sites so she could purchase the software she needed to be able to transfer her contacts back into the new laptop. When she started considering asking her husband to get her a copy of the software…I proceeded to tell her that I considered her to be a good ethical business owner, and hoped that she would reconsider doing anything that could jeopardize her credibility with her clients. How would she feel about the ethics of a company that “stole” someone’s product?

I must admit I don’t get through to everyone, but on this particular occasion, I had struck the right cord. She called me back the following week to tell me that she’d upgraded her entire Microsoft package to the latest version, and felt really good about it. She also told me that she felt really bad about having taken up so much of my time and canceling so many appointments.

Incredible! I felt like buying a new leather belt just so I could cut a notch in it. Not only did I reap the rewards of having helped someone move in a more ethical direction, but two days later I received a check from her for $100, with a wonderful thank you card. She said that she really felt good about herself and the direction of her business. Needless to say, I felt pretty good, too.

What we both were experiencing was the POWER of ethical business practices. When you take the time to consider the impact of what you do, you come away not only with the pride in knowing that you did the right thing, but you give your self-esteem a boost as well. Ethics can be a powerful elixir in attaining your business goals. Use it liberally and watch your business GROW!

Wishing you continued success and the wisdom to consider ethical options.

Jeannine Clontz, IVAA CVA, MVA, EthicsChecked™, provides marketing and social media support, training and consulting to busy entrepreneurs. For information about finding a VA, download her FREE 10-Step Guide to Finding the Right VA, or to learn why Social Media should be an important part of your marketing plan with her FREE Report, Social Media Marketing Benefits, visit: http://www.internetmarketingvirtualassistant.net, or contact her at info@internetmarketingvirtualassistant.net

Not motivated to achieve the goal.

Have you ever made plans to go to a movie with a friend or attend a party, but when it came time to get ready to go, you just couldn’t get moving? Maybe you decided you didn’t really want to see that show, or you’re having a grand old time just sitting on the couch in your sweats with your significant other. Whatever the reason, the motivation is just not there.

If you’ve tried all the suggestions in my previous posts, and you keep missing deadlines, or taking the next step, or simply not acting on your goal, it may be time to let that goal go, at least for now.

Sometimes it’s a disconnect you haven’t been able to pinpoint, or sometimes the timing’s just not right. It’s okay to just set the goal aside and move on to something more attractive. No one’s keeping score – I promise.

You don’t know what’s next.

If you are lost, unsure which direction to go in next, which path to take, or what you really want, it may be time to stop hitting that wall. Instead of feeling like you HAVE to have a goal, take some time to reflect and figure out what you’re really trying to achieve with your business or your life.

Though I’m all in favor of action, I think it’s much smarter to make sure you’re choosing the right goal and the right strategies to achieve them, rather than just acting for the sake of acting. You can’t get where you want to go until you know where it is you want to go! Simple enough.

You are exhausted.

Type-A, ultra-motivated goal-setters can burn themselves out pretty quickly. It’s hard to stay motivated if you don’t have any recovery time, instead bouncing from one huge project to the next. It won’t matter how successful you are if you don’t have the energy, or give yourself the time, to enjoy your achievements.

If you’re bordering on burnout, give yourself a break. Set all your goals aside for a while and just relax. It’ll pay off in the long run.

You don’t feel as positive about the goal any longer.

Contrary to popular belief, it is okay to change your mind. You may be halfway to a goal, or even closer, and decide it’s a bad idea or it’s just not a goal that you long for anymore. That’s okay. Really.

If you think you’ve changed your mind about a goal, take time to ask yourself “why.” Is it a higher-level objective issue? A strategy issue? Or are you just not sure? Figure out how you feel about your goal before you decide to let it go. If after you’ve explored your “why” and your feelings about your goal, you decide letting go of your goal is the right thing for you right now, release it and move on. No regrets – just lessons learned.

As a final thought on this topic, I can’t resist putting in this quote for obvious reasons:

“The only thing you live to regret are the risks you didn’t take.”
~Anonymous~

Jeannine Clontz, IVAA CVA, MVA, EthicsChecked™, provides marketing and social media support, training and consulting to busy entrepreneurs. For information about finding a VA, download her FREE 10-Step Guide to Finding the Right VA, or to learn why Social Media should be an important part of your marketing plan with her FREE Report, Social Media Marketing Benefits, visit: http://www.internetmarketingvirtualassistant.net, or contact her at info@internetmarketingvirtualassistant.net

Just like everything else to do with your business, it’s hard work! But it doesn’t have to be drudgery. Once you start asking for and listening for the openings to make a request, it becomes a habit that will help you expand your business and increase profits.

A big part of it is your mindset. Are you excited about your products and services? Do you express excitement when talking about what you do? Is there a smile on your face? Do you think about the many potential clients searching for your products and services and how you are the best option to solve their problems?

Are you confident when you are speaking to a client or friend about passing along a referral (do you even ask?), and when your client or prospect is speaking are you focused on them and being a good listener? Are you making eye contact?

Be sure and ask current clients periodically if they know of anyone, like them, who might be in need of your services. You may also want to find out from any long-term client why they have not referred any business to you, should that be the case.

What I’ve found many times is that the client was hesitant to pass along referrals because they feared that it would take your time away from doing their services, so they hadn’t even considered connecting you with others.

Make them feel comfortable that you will be able to serve them at the same level you always have, and help them to understand how important it is that you grow your business in order to keep your business profitable and allow you to stay in business to help them for years to come.

You might also consider some sort of a referral program where they could receive a discount on their next purchase, or possibly a gift of some sort in appreciation. Whatever that might look like, it’s a great way to develop a good continuous stream of prospective clients who will already have an understanding of the value and benefit of working with you.

These are all great ways to prepare yourself to ask for referrals. And don’t forget to provide them, too. Find someone that fits a need for this person that is not in your expertise, or suggest their products/services to someone else, and be sure to let them know you referred them. Nothing helps solidify your relationship better than reciprocating and creating a partnership and deeper relationship with your current clientele.

Create a basic script for asking for referrals and practice it until it is second nature and flows naturally. You’ll be surprised at just how many great prospects are out there just waiting to find you if only you would ask.

Jeannine Clontz, IVAA CVA, MVA, EthicsChecked™, provides marketing and social media support, training and consulting to busy entrepreneurs. For information about finding a VA, download her FREE 10-Step Guide to Finding the Right VA, or to learn why Social Media should be an important part of your marketing plan with her FREE Report, Social Media Marketing Benefits, visit: http://www.internetmarketingvirtualassistant.net, or contact her at info@internetmarketingvirtualassistant.net

Marketers are especially fond of WordPress, for a number of reasons. It is easy to customize, giving marketers the power to create text-heavy sales pages, multimedia website intros, and call-to-action service pages on a single platform. Alongside the customization is another powerful marketing aspect, its incredible search engine optimization (SEO) benefits.

As blogging platforms go, WordPress is the reigning champion of SEO. From extended page URLs to pingback links and header tags, these four tips can help you turn your WordPress blog into a powerful SEO resource.

1) Enable comments.

Comments add great things to your website: fresh content, and outbound links. The first is a godsend in the eyes of search engines. While other marketers slave to produce fresh content for their websites manually, a relatively popular WordPress blog can live off the SEO-friendly content produced by the comments it receives.

2) Be visible.

Sometimes the most basic mistakes are also the most devastating. Almost all modern versions of WordPress include a range of visibility options. Users can select to make their blog visible to all, block it from any viewing, or simply block search engines from indexing the content.

Of course, no marketer would want to block their blog from search engines. However, some automated WordPress installers — particularly Fantastico and cPanel installers — block WordPress from search engines by default. To reverse this, simply use your WordPress dashboard to change privacy options back to “visible by anyone”.

3) Use the All-in-One WordPress SEO plug-in.

Simply put, no other WordPress plug-in is as valuable to online marketers as the All-in-One SEO Pack. Offering a buffet of SEO options for marketers, this plug-in allows its users to optimize their post URLs and categories for maximum SEO power, override default meta and title tags, and even highlight potential keywords to target. Simple, quick, and powerful — this plug-in is a must for internet marketers using WordPress.

4) Use keyword-heavy titles.

Keyword density was once thought of as the ultimate measure of a website’s search potential. Marketers would stuff their content with keywords, often until the point where it resembled machine-style nonsense.

Now, most marketers know that keyword density is not the ultimate measure of SEO value. Websites that rank typically do not use keyword-heavy content, but keyword-heavy post titles. Whenever you are writing a blog post, research keywords first to get an idea of what your market is searching for to help make the connection far easier for your reader.

Try these four search engine optimization tips on your WordPress blog and watch your analytics to see how well you’ve done. What other challenges are you facing with your blog platform? Leave your comments and/or questions below!

Jeannine Clontz, IVAA CVA, MVA, EthicsChecked™, provides marketing and social media support, training and consulting to busy entrepreneurs. For information about finding a VA, download her FREE 10-Step Guide to Finding the Right VA, or to learn why Social Media should be an important part of your marketing plan with her FREE Report, Social Media Marketing Benefits, visit: http://www.internetmarketingvirtualassistant.net, or contact her at info@internetmarketingvirtualassistant.net

#1: Compelling Headlines

Internet users have short attention spans and you have only a few seconds to strike their fancy and make a connection. For this reason, your headline must be strong enough to catch your visitors’ attention and compel them to read more.

#2: Publish a Video

The popularity of videos and the appeal of learning by watching rather than just reading content is all the rage right now and it doesn’t show signs of changing. You can create a video demonstration of your products and services to highlight the benefits to your customers. Place this video near the top of your webpage so that your visitors are encouraged to view it right away, and stay longer on your site, as well as consider checking out more of the information provided there.

#3: Use Bullets to Present Your Content

It’s still a good idea to layout all the features and benefits mentioned in your video in text. We live in a world where people want immediate and instant access and they want it quickly. Using bullets or lists, and shorter text, helps visitors to quickly scan the content and grab their attention. This area will also serve as a summary of features and benefits that will reinforce this information in your visitors’ minds, making them more likely to search the site for more.

#4: Testimonials

It’s one thing to tell everyone how wonderful and marvelous our products or services are, but something totally different when it’s a testimonial from a happy customer who a prospect might better relate to. Choose testimonials that reaffirm what you are presenting in your bulleted information. Be certain to include quotes and the reviewer’s name. In this context you may also include a short profile or their company name so that prospects can identify with them and realize your offerings can benefit them, too. If you don’t have testimonials, it may be a good idea for you to either request some from current clients or send out free packages to influential people in your niche and request a review.

#5: Keep It Simple (Subscription Form)

If your focus is to use this information for email marketing only, require only the subscriber’s name and email address. By keeping it simple, more people will opt-in. However, if the focus is to use the contact information to market to them offline, make sure your offer is something that requires their address, perhaps a CD, or a printed report. You will also want all those who register through your opt-in page to automatically receive a welcome or thank you email of some sort. Linking your subscription form to a simple autoresponder will do the trick.

These simple options are proven strategies in putting together an effective opt-in page. Try them on for size and experience how quickly and easily you can generate leads for your business.

Jeannine Clontz, IVAA CVA, MVA, EthicsChecked™, provides marketing and social media support, training and consulting to busy entrepreneurs. For information about finding a VA, download her FREE 10-Step Guide to Finding the Right VA, or to learn why Social Media should be an important part of your marketing plan with her FREE Report, Social Media Marketing Benefits, visit: http://www.internetmarketingvirtualassistant.net, or contact her at info@internetmarketingvirtualassistant.net

There was absolutely no way that they would not find a way to tell the client or prospect that they’d heard something bad about their competitor, all under the guise that they were looking to protect THEM. Even if their knowledge was not from having had a direct experience with them, they were still adamant that their client/prospect should be told.

While this could have been completely true, that’s not how someone would or could look at it, from the other side. Although I’d gone through the process with them, mentioned a number of reasons why it’s not wise, and even gave them a response that wouldn’t be considered a ‘lie’ on their part, it was all to no avail. They were looking too closely from an emotional position instead of trying to see someone else’s side, even how they might look to the client or prospect.

Not long after returning from the conference, I was speaking to one of the event organizers who called to let me know that she had just mailed me copies of the 70+ evaluations they’d received in response to my presentation. She indicated that they were all very positive (or almost all of them), and that she wanted to schedule a time for us to discuss the next years’ event and program.

When I received the evaluations I wasn’t at all surprised to see one that was negative. I looked at their evaluation objectively to see if I could in any way improve my presentation, or the delivery, to better communicate the most positive and ethical response in any situation such as this, and to help attendees make the best, most ethical decision to a similar dilemma.

What I learned from this situation is that we shouldn’t expect that everyone is willing or able to act as ethically as possible, or will always understand both sides of a situation. It’s something we really have to work at, all the time. It also doesn’t mean this person is unethical, just unknowledgeable and perhaps too emotional. For all we know they may never have faced this type of situation, or they let their emotions be their guide when faced with ethical challenges and their results have never yet yielded a negative result.

That may change as time passes and she grows her business, or she may have negatively impacted the way this client/prospect looks at her, without her ever knowing. In the long run, it’s always best to take the ‘high road’, and not take a chance that you will be looked upon unfavorably. Your reputation is so important to the health and well being of your business. Don’t take a chance!

We do things for our physical well-being all the time. We eat right, get plenty of sleep and exercise, or we at least know to try. However, most of us don’t think to do anything regularly for our moral well-being.

I look at ethics in this way; it takes constant reflection, being open to alternatives, removing any emotions from the equation, and doing what’s right, not easiest, in order to make the most ethical decision. I hope you’ll incorporate some time into making better decisions to ethical situations as they arise. It’s a great investment in your business.

Jeannine Clontz, IVAA CVA, MVA, EthicsChecked™, provides marketing and social media support, training and consulting to busy entrepreneurs. For information about finding a VA, download her FREE 10-Step Guide to Finding the Right VA, or to learn why Social Media should be an important part of your marketing plan with her FREE Report, Social Media Marketing Benefits, visit: http://www.internetmarketingvirtualassistant.net, or contact her at info@internetmarketingvirtualassistant.net

So what are the best ways to build a good rapport with our clientele; one that will yield us not only continued business, but referrals? I think there are three key elements to creating long term relationships, they are:

• Exceptional quality products/services
• Stellar customer service
• A reliable and ethical reputation

I see it all the time on forums, people asking how to do something that a client has requested. Don’t promise something you can’t deliver. There are so many other options available to solve this issue. Be honest and up front with the client. Offer them several options. Consider discounting your rate on the project and/or agreeing to get up to speed on the software needed at no cost to your client. Consider finding someone with the expertise and subbing the work out to them at a cost that allows you to make a little money, too. Or connect the client with the sub who has the skills and help them get the project done to their specifications.

Another area where we sometimes overextend is in deadlines. Just because the client wants it by tomorrow, doesn’t mean that’s reasonable. If you know you won’t be able to complete it in the requested period of time, let the client know. Your relationship will be much stronger if you be up front and honest, even to the point of referring them to someone else to better serve their needs.

Do something extra as often as possible. Maybe it’s offering them an added feature to the project, or suggestions to improve or make the project more effective. Anything that will exceed their expectations and communicate to them that their satisfaction is the most important part of your relationship.

Find out how the client prefers to communicate. Not everyone prefers Email, some like to speak by phone. Some respond to voicemail, others don’t. Make sure you’re listening to the client’s needs and react in a way that makes it easy for them to work with you.

Always be looking to improve your service. It’s easy to make a client feel important by asking them to critique your work and level of service. Ask them how you might improve your service and then really listen. Sometimes they may not feel there is need for improvement, which may lead to a nice testimonial or referral. Never miss an opportunity to connect and make the client feel like a partner and a part of the process.

And finally, as you get more involved and familiar with their business, be sure you are referring business to them. Referrals should never be a one-way street. It should be something you both do regularly to support each other. This will go a long way in building a good solid, mutually beneficial relationship!

Jeannine Clontz, IVAA CVA, MVA, EthicsChecked™, provides marketing and social media support, training and consulting to busy entrepreneurs. For information about finding a VA, download her FREE 10-Step Guide to Finding the Right VA, or to learn why Social Media should be an important part of your marketing plan with her FREE Report, Social Media Marketing Benefits, visit: http://www.internetmarketingvirtualassistant.net, or contact her at info@internetmarketingvirtualassistant.net

Creating a good marketing plan doesn’t have to be overwhelming, or costly, but it will save you time and help you achieve your goals much more easily than you ever believed possible.

Start small, your plan can grow as your business and profits grow. In fact, without some sort of plan in place, it will be extremely difficult for your profits to grow. Don’t fall into the trap we sometimes set for ourselves by having our marketing plan in ‘mind’. You do need to memorialize it in some form so that you will be accountable to making it happen. And once you decide what you’ll want to include in the plan, then you need to set it up on some sort of a calendar so that you’ll be sure to implement it and track your results.

Start by identifying:
• Who is your ideal client?
• What do I have to spend?
• Where can I reach my ideal client?

Establish your ideal client profile by looking at your current clients and who can afford to buy your product or service? Who on your current client list seem to be the best fit for you and our expertise? What industry are those clients in, or what types of services to you enjoy doing for them the most?

Once you understand who that client is and what products or services you can and should be providing them, then identify the best ways to reach them. Where do they hang out? What industry associations or list serves do they belong to? What type of message will they respond to, in order to have their problems solved?

Next, consider your marketing budget. It should minimally be 10-15% of your yearly sales. Start simple, and make changes monthly or quarterly as you begin to see results. Be realistic and flexible. Having a budget will allow you to visualize and expand upon your program throughout the year.

The plan itself will have a number of options to consider. Here is a list of some marketing aspects to consider in your plan.

• Print advertising (including Yellow Pages)
• Direct Mail
• Email (include eZines and Blogs)
• Networking (Chamber participation/membership)
• Sponsorship
• Trade Shows
• Article Writing
• Speaking
• Referrals
• Social Media

While some of these items will have little to no cost, including them in your marketing plan will help you stay on track and implement each segment as needed. Don’t just participate in ‘free’ marketing options, although it can be tempting, you just won’t be able to reach the top level clientele that you should be looking for.

You need to participate in multiple mediums so that you will determine the best, most logical and cost effective way to reach your ideal prospect and client.

When putting together the actual marketing piece, remember to include a ‘call to action’. It could be a coupon in a direct mail piece, or a ‘free’ offer at the end of a speaking engagement. Just make sure you have different calls to action in each piece so that tracking success will be a breeze.

Check in quarterly to see how each segment is performing and make adjustments as necessary throughout the year to make sure you are getting the biggest bang for your marketing buck! Try to give each marketing option at least 6-months to produce results. It can take up to 10-15 touches for a prospect to remember you and your offerings before they take the next step to connect with you. Don’t give up too quickly or you could lose that next big opportunity to connect with the perfect client.

Jeannine Clontz, IVAA CVA, MVA, EthicsChecked™, provides marketing and social media support, training and consulting to busy entrepreneurs. For information about finding a VA, download her FREE 10-Step Guide to Finding the Right VA, or to learn why Social Media should be an important part of your marketing plan with her FREE Report, Social Media Marketing Benefits, visit: http://www.internetmarketingvirtualassistant.net, or contact her at info@internetmarketingvirtualassistant.net

Social media gives major brands and companies as well as small business, some seriously big power, but it is rarely used as it should be. Commitments to quality are sometimes overlooked, and opportunities for branding, direct sales, or indirect marketing are often passed over. These missing opportunities do cost businesses.

Social Media for Branding:

A dollar unearned is a dollar lost. Businesses are often questioning the value of social media for their branding efforts, but few take action when they should. Billions of dollars are being left on the table, particularly as major brands move onto social media services, and the value of a social media-friendly brand still is not being recognized.

An experiment is always worth more than not even trying. Discussion on social media’s branding abilities will only take companies so far. With the low cost of social media efforts, an experiment with social media branding can generate huge returns, all with a relatively minimal level of risk. Develop a simple plan and test your ability to grow and expand your brand.

Social Media for SEO:

SEO consultancy (and in-house efforts) were once the domain of spammy content and low quality link generation efforts. Poorly planned information was setup on low-cost websites, and marketers shot out as many links as were possible. Despite being somewhat effective, the old world of SEO is packed with inefficient models and outright unethical business models.

However, social media has given SEO new life. The old “SEO is spam” cliche is no more thanks to the development of social media. Each new social media asset is another opportunity for high quality outbound and inbound linking, and every social media conversation is another opportunity to spread links that actually add value.

With Twitter tweets and Youtube videos now regularly appearing in Google’s standard search results, the divide between search and social media is likely to become even smaller. Marketers accustomed to spam-style SEO tactics are in for a new surprise, while businesses that embrace social media receive a well-deserved SEO boost.

Social Media for Sales:

Social media is not a good sales platform, but it is a good resource for generating future sales. Social media’s ability to generate prospects is one of the most important aspect to the sales process. Marketers that were once dependent on direct lead generation have a new platform available to them, particularly in open social media platforms like Twitter or Myspace.

The greatest news is that social media is still in its infancy. Businesses that are built on lead-based sales have good things to look forward to. As social media develops further, sales models will be refined, micro-networks offering great sales potential will grow greater, and marketers can look forward to a platform that is refined, sales-friendly, and willing to be marketed to.

Jeannine Clontz, IVAA CVA, MVA, EthicsChecked™, provides marketing and social media support, training and consulting to busy entrepreneurs. For information about finding a VA, download her FREE 10-Step Guide to Finding the Right VA, or to learn why Social Media should be an important part of your marketing plan with her FREE Report, Social Media Marketing Benefits, visit: http://www.internetmarketingvirtualassistant.net, or contact her at info@internetmarketingvirtualassistant.net

By the ‘80’s piggybanks had changed; they had rubber stoppers in the bottom so you were able to remove money whenever you wanted. No longer having to continue to save until you’d reached your goal, many times goals were never met, because we could remove small amounts whenever we wanted, no matter if the purchase was for something important or simply something we wanted. The bank became a place to gather loose change but it took away the demand that you reach a goal or lose it all, by having to ‘break the bank’.

I think about my business goals in somewhat the same way. I have to find ways of making myself accountable to reaching my goals or they may never be met. Last year, I setup several reminders to check on my goals. When I got the first reminder, I realized, – YIKES, now where did I put those goals? I was not contributing to them as I would have liked, and I certainly had not put a system in place to remind me more often how I planned to achieve them.

It’s difficult when you’re the boss, isn’t it? How can we make ourselves accountable for the goals we need to keep our businesses afloat in these challenging times?

Because I know many of us struggle with this, I decided to find someone willing to help me stay focused on achieving my goals, and I’m doing the same for her! Sort of a business buddy system that keeps things fresh and motivates us to always keep our goals in mind as we work on our businesses.

Now do not beat yourself up if you don’t achieve a goal. They are always evolving to meet the demands of whatever’s going on in your industry, or marketplace, to help your business stay strong and profitable.

So set some attainable goals for where you’d like to see yourself in 2012. Find someone you trust who will help you stay on track and make you accountable for the goals you’ve set.

Re-invent yourself and your business. Try new technologies. Keep in touch with your clients to see what new challenges or problems they may have that you can solve. Take your yearly goals, break them down into monthly and weekly goals, so that you are always in touch with what will be needed to attain those goals.

Be reasonable with yourself and your abilities to meet them, change or update all areas including your marketing options and tracking systems, whatever is necessary to get your business growing in the right direction, and keep making deposits in your unbreakable piggybank of growth. Stay positive and watch what happens.

Jeannine Clontz, IVAA CVA, MVA, EthicsChecked™, provides marketing and social media support, training and consulting to busy entrepreneurs. For information about finding a VA, download her FREE 10-Step Guide to Finding the Right VA, or to learn why Social Media should be an important part of your marketing plan with her FREE Report, Social Media Marketing Benefits, visit: http://www.internetmarketingvirtualassistant.net, or contact her at info@internetmarketingvirtualassistant.net