Better Than A Business Card™

The most important words you may ever write

What are the most important 50 or 100 words you may ever write? Your bio. That one paragraph which tells the world (or, more importantly, your target market) who you are and why you are the expert they need to read or hire may be the first time a potential client hears about you. It might even be the onlyinformation they have about you before they make a decision to buy your book, listen to your audios, or book you for a seminar or speaking engagement. You need to craft a professional bio that prompts your target client to call you right away...before you lose more sales to a more polished competitor.

But writing an attention-getting bio that brings in the sales is no easy task. The Bye-Bye Boring Bio Action Guide is the best-selling tool at the DIY Publicity Store and I highly recommend the small investment to add it to your arsenal. It's earning rave reviews around the world. It even comes with a money-back guarantee, so you have nothing to lose... and a new boost to your career to gain.

Increase your business’ value with trademarks

Every business owner (and if you’re an author, professional speaker, seminar leader, or radio/podcast host, you own a business) wants to boost the value of their business as much as possible. One way to do that is through intellectual property: trademarks and patents. We all know that patents are the gold of inventors, but none of us invented the book or the radio, so there’s little room in the world of patents for us. Trademarks are a different story, though.

If you’re writing a series of books or booklets, conducting a series of workshops, or recording a series of audios, you’re in particularly good shape to create a memorable name for the series. The next step is to protect that name and trademark it.

Think of Chicken Soup for the Soul and For Dummies. Those trademarks are worth millions in and of themselves. Those writing projects may have started out as single-book visions, but they quickly evolved into full-fledged businesses producing a series of successful books. And their creators knew how to protect themselves.

Now is the time to think of how you might protect the important work you’re doing. Do you have plans yet for more than one book, workshop, or audio? You should. Come up with a catchy name, then check to be sure it’s available for your use by searching on the Patent & Trademark Office website.

The majority of the trademark process can be handled yourself, but I recommend consulting an intellectual property attorney in the beginning. Discuss whether the standard ‘classes’ of trademarks will work for you or if customizing the description of the kinds of goods (or services) you’ll be producing will protect you better. Once that has been decided, you can take care of the registration process yourself and save thousands of dollars.

This week is a great time to learn the ins and outs of trademark applications because the Trademark Office is slow. I got a live, knowledgeable person at the PTO on the phone inside of a minute yesterday and cleared up my questions about submitting my ‘specimens’ to finalize my trademarks. So, even if you don’t have an attorney yet, go ahead and take advantage of this slow week at the PTO to get all your questions answered so you can charge ahead with confidence in the new year, building value into your business.

Are you resisting writing an e-book? Don't!

At some point you may have signed up for "The Biggest Mistakes People Make Authoring An eBook And How To Avoid Them" two-part preview series for Ellen Violette's Quick-Start 3-Day eBook Authoring Workshop. Or maybe not. Either way, I hope you will seriously consider taking her Quick-Start 3-Day eBook Authoring Workshop, because it's awesome and it really works!

It starts tomorrow, Tuesday, Dec.8th at 2 p.m. Pacific/ 5 p.m. Eastern...so it's  time to make your decision.

And if you're interested,  I really urge you to do it now, because next time Ellen teaches it, it's going to be a lot more expensive, (if she even does it live again!)

So here's what you need to know: Ellen's  workshop is the fastest and easiest way to:

• Write an ebook
• Start branding yourself as an expert
• Make short-term cash

 And

• Build the foundation for a six-figure income.

In this workshop, Ellen not only teaches you how to write an ebook in 72 hours or less with 12 hours of writing time, but she teaches you:

• Who your target market is so your ebook appeals to them which leads to more sales!
• How to LEVERAGE this one e-book into a whole business for massive profits!

AND

• How to get clear about your business so you KNOW your e-book will fit into your business plan and make a powerful impact!

Plus much more! It's absolutely transformational. And it's a MARKETABLE skill! You'll really learn how to do something you can use over and over so you never have to worry about not having enough money again!

But time is running out! Are you one of those people who wants to learn to write e-books for profit fast, but you keep resisting?

Maybe you don't think you have the time, can't afford it, or don't have enough to say (if you're older than about 12, you know plenty enough to write an ebook!). If you see yourself in one or more of these scenarios you might want to rethink your decison before it's too late and register for the workshop here.

Also, Ellen will be doing a final no-cost call today, Monday the 7th at 5:30 p.m. Pacific/8:30 p.m. Eastern for ebook questions and strategies as well as answering any question about the workshop.

If you have ANY interest in e-book-writing and you haven't signed up for the workshop PLEASE at least read  attend this call. Then register here.

I want 2010 to be your best year ever, so let Ellen and me convince you this is the easiest way to do it!

Do you have to be an expert BEFORE writing your book?

In our society, authors enjoy an elevated stature. It's an impressive thing to be able to walk in a room and say "I'm an author." It's an automatic assumption that the author of a non-fiction book is an expert in the field covered in their book. And that book helps the expert gain even more credibility, more sales, and more income.

So, what if you want to experience the increased credibility, sales, and income, but don't feel that you're an expert yet--does that mean you're not ready, or qualified, to write a book? Fortunately, the answer is 'no.' Writing a truly valuable book (one that your potential clients and customers will read and keep) is not something many people can do 'off the tops of their heads.'

Research is crucial to be certain that the material you present in your book is as up-to-date and applicable as possible. During the process of this research, guess what happens? You become the expert you want to be! When you immerse yourself in your area of interest, your past experiences and existing knowledge will meld with the new information you're gathering, making you a greater authority in that field.

Don't wait until you've reached some elusive milestone before calling yourself an expert...start your research right now and you'll find yourself firmly on the road to that impressive title. Then, when you're ready to start pulling all that information together into a book, talk to Matt at Expert Self Publishing--he's my first choice for helping new experts get their book produced professionally...and quickly, too.

Writing Mistakes That Make You Look Dumb

Writing is huge, even crucial, when it comes to professional success. Here's a quick, useful read for you. Take a few minutes to look through it before you write another word:

11 Writing Mistakes That Make You Look Dumb

 

I'm guilty! Are you?

I just discovered this post (13 Mistakes Authors Make on Their Blogs) on Build a Better Blog and I have to confess that I'm guilty of more of them that I like to admit. My worst offense lately is not posting often enough. I'm busy, busy, busy working on marketing one book, writing another, researching a third, stocking the companion resource site for the first book with great info on a daily basis, and adding more publications, large and small, to my plate just about every day. On top of that, I've been appointed the College-to-Career Examiner for Denver on Examiner.com.

As I've said many times before on this blog, writing a book is much better than a business card in terms of marketing yourself. It demonstrates to your potential clients the breadth and depth of your expertise in your specialty area. A two-by-three-inch piece of cardstock can never do that for you. A book of your own also keeps your name top-of-mind because it's something your clients will actually keep and use, hopefully on a regular basis.

Once you've written your book, you may want to provide it as a giveaway or sell it...or maybe both, giving it to a particular group of exception clients free and selling the rest. Either way, your blog is a natural complement to your book and, as an author, your blog should read as well as a book.

Whether or not you've written your book yet, or if you have any type of blog going right now, I encourage you to take a look at this article to see if you're as guilty as I am. It's a good checklist to help us all get out of the rut and start selling more books!

Book store book signings: what to expect

Book signings are often an author's dream--fans lined up in the local Barnes & Noble, hankering for your book and a John Hancock from you. It's a great way to meet people interested in your topic, show off your expertise by doing a mini-workshop, and maybe even selling some books. But a book signing isn't just sitting at a table stacked high with books and waiting for the stampede. Here's a good article about what to expect and do to make your book signing a success.

Read the article on the Harper Studio blog.

Add credibility & value to your book with celebrity endorsements

When you browse through the bookstore, do books with endorsements or introductions by celebrities or 'big names' in your field stand out as being more credible and valuable? I'll take a stab and figure that you said 'yes.' Most people do. So how did those authors get those big-name people to participate in their book project? Are they friends or colleagues already? Probably not.

I had heard for years that celebrity endorsements are hugely valuable and really help book sales, but I had never given it a try. Until recently. Thanks to Twitter (here I go again!), I just got the Foreword to my new book written by a New York Times bestselling author who is a worldwide influencer and motivator to my demographic. So there's one more reason to get on Twitter...connect with people there on a personal level who you could never approach otherwise and get them involved in your project.

Here are a couple other ideas for finding experts and celebrities in your field or who are interested in your cause and might make good candidates to write an endorsement and/or an introduction or foreword for your book:

Find other NY Times best selling authors here. Take a look in the left-hand column of this site for more categories of experts you might want to contact about your book project.

Get contact information for celebrities (mainly in entertainment but also in business) here.

You can also give Facebook and LinkedIn a try for finding and connecting with experts in any field. Go ahead and give it a try. You've got nothing to lose and everything to gain!

Have you considered entering a business plan competition?

Whether you have a business plan that you follow faithfully or have one collecting dust on the credenza...or need a good, motivating kick in the pants to get one written, have you considered entering a business plan competition? It can be a great way to get your idea in front of folks who can really help get your business off the ground or launched to the next level.

Media exposure during and after the competition and having a reason to engage your customers and email list are valuable benefits of entering, but maybe the most valuable benefit of entering a business plan competition is the exercise it forces you to engage in to develop the best plan possible for your business. Even the so-called losers have a well-thought-out plan to follow that they may never have developed if they hadn't entered.

The New York Times has a recent article, How to Win a Business Plan Competition, that's a good read for starters.

If your business is home-based, you've got through September to enter StartUp Nation's Home-Based 100 competition for this year. This competition has 100 winners and has many categories to submit your entries to. Get started now and pick your category!

• Best Financial Performers
• Most Innovative
• Boomers Back in Business
• Greenest
• Yummiest
• Wackiest
• Savviest in Social Media
• Recession Busters
• Most Slacker Friendly
• Most Glamorous

Relationship Marketing: Are you doing it 'right'?

We've all heard about it. We're all trying to 'do' it. But are we getting it right? I just discovered this blog post and had to share it with you:

7 Ways You're Screwing Up Relationship Marketing from copyblogger. Enjoy!

Get published...Calling all Authors!

For those of you wanting to get published but who can't think of a catchy title on your own, why not try to become the next author in the book series, The Skinny On™...? It's a new series with just four titles right now and the publisher is looking for new authors and new titles. So, think about a topic in your specialty area and give it your best shot! Click here for more info.

We all need free marketing like this!

A couple weeks ago I had a great time recording an interview for ReclaimU's radio show. We talked about my newly-released book, Grads: TAKE CHARGE of Your First Year After College! for over half an hour. The interviewer, Judy Davis, was genuinely excited about the book and made this radio interview a great marketing tool for me as well as being a valuable addition for ReclaimU's visitors.

After the interview has been featured on the ReclaimU site for two weeks, I will get a copy of the audio file to post on my websites. It will go in my Media/Press Room so reporters or producers interested in seeing whether I might make a good guest—they prefer to go with a known quantity than take a chance on someone who may or may not be able to speak well to the subject at hand.

This is the kind of interview every author, aspiring author, speaker, and business owner needs to get under their belt and on their website. It's one more piece of your marketing plan and building your credibility as an expert in your field.

I've been interviewed by a variety of blogs and campus radio shows as well. Not all of these outlets have large audiences, but every interview gets more experience under the belt so when the Big Guys come calling, I'll be ready for them!

Got grads in your life? Give them the "CliffsNotes" for real life, Grads: Take Charge!

Test marketing with Twitter and bit.ly

I'm learning as I go during my first month on Twitter and I've found an easy way to test ideas for new articles (or even books). You'll need to use your Twitter account as well as an account on bit.ly to do this and it couldn't be easier.

When you have an article you want to tweet (one you wrote or one you found on a blog, news site, or elsewhere), shorten the URL using bit.ly. Create an account there so you can track the number of clicks you get on each link you create.

Then tweet the article using the article's title or an attention-grabbing line and include the bit.ly link. Even better, make your tweet less than 125 characters because it provides enough extra characters for others to re-tweet (RT) your post.

Then, watch your account on bit.lyto see how much interest there was in the article's topic. I've found the most active times on Twitter to be about 6:00 to 8:00 am (I'm in the Mountain time zone) and 4:00 to 8:00 pm. Tweet the same, or similar, tweet during both timeslots and see what you come up with. I tweeted an article of mine which appeared on another site and was amazed at the number of clicks I got—that's definitely a hot topic that I should write about more often and pitch to magazines.

It may not be scientific, but it sure is helpful...and the price can't be beaten! It's all free!

Test market your book & your sales message

If you're going the self-publishing route, you want to know that there's a market for your book before you shell out those big bucks to print up a thousand, or even a hundred, copies. Create an online market test:

To make the best choice of cover design and/or title, create a different online sales page for each design or title. They should all look the same, and have the same sales message, just the differing design or title. An easy way to do this is to sign up for TypePad's Pro package, which allows you to create an unlimited number of blog sites. You can test market to your heart's content this way and not have to pay for every site. This is a tremendous asset for test marketing, but you can also create a site for your speaking engagements or consulting, even one for your family while you're at it (just don't publicize that one except to those you want to read it).

If you're already set on the title and design, you can create different sites to test various sales messages. This could include differing text or a different look and feel of the page itself (colors, large vs. small cover art, arrangement of the page elements).

When you have the test sites created, shorten the long URLs with bit.ly. This is beneficial in a couple ways: a short URL is just plain helpful if someone needs to type it in, plus you can monitor how many hits you get on each link, so you know how many sales you're making versus how many people visited the site (your conversion rate). If there seems to be a clear winner, delete the other sites and go with the winner. Fast and easy.

That's about as close to no-cost test marketing as you can get for your new book. Of course, you can use it to test anything: sales messages for your speaking or consulting, the interior layout of your book (by showing sample pages), or to see which of your products sells best (audio vs. print, for instance).

I've got a dozen sites myself. In addition to my business sites (for my Take Charge™ book series and The Smartest Thing I Ever Did...™ series), I set up a blog for my nephew as an impressive supplement to his college applications; one for my 13-year-old daughter to have an outlet for her political rantings; and one to keep everyone in the loop about my brother who's in Afghanistan. For less than $150 for an entire year of unlimited sites, this can't be beaten. The uses are high-value...and endless!

A quick Twitter strategy and a tip

If you're tweeting (and I hope you are!), one thing I noticed others doing is to tweet two, three, even four tweets in a row. This makes your tweets stand out in the ever-moving stream of tweets that your followers are getting, making it much more likely that yours will be seen at all.

I've tried this and the click-throughs I get has gone up significantly. Now, you can't do this in Twitter itself, because undoubtedly other people's tweets will slip in between yours because you will take from a few seconds to a minute or two to get the next tweet typed.

Use TweetLaterto create your tweets and enter an exact time for them to be published...enter the same time for several tweets and you'll get this effect. TweetLater is a great time-saver, too. You can spend some time each morning, like I do, to create several (even dozens) of tweets and schedule them to show up throughout the day. This is especially handy if you know you'll be tied up in meetings or traveling that day. You can even schedule them days in advance, so you can take a vacation and still tweet away while you're lounging on the beach! Your followers will never know the difference!

Another time-saving Twitter trick is to have your tweets post as updates to your Facebook account all at the same time. First, you need to add the app to your Facebook account, then all you need to do is add #fb to the end of any tweet that you want posted to Facebook at the same time.

While you're on Twitter, follow me! @RealSolutions22  See you in the Twittersphere!