When business owners ask us what we do, we tell them that we are business coaches. We also tell them that we get our clients focused on the four things that entrepreneurs have the most difficult [...]
I need to have a conversation with my friends in the non-profit world. It may not be pleasant to hear but someone has to speak truth to your power. This conversation really began many years ago [...]
Did you miss this month's Monthly Marketing Mentoring on 20 Secret Ways to Generate Customer Loyalty and Win Your Past Clients Back? Well, lucky you ‘cuz here they are listed below. AND we [...]
(if you're viewing this on mobile, please click here to watch the video on Proper Phone Etiquette) We have all experienced PHONE HELL. It happens when a business has not trained their [...]
What if you owned a car detailing company and had the opportunity to go shine Air Force One? That seems to be an incredible ‘3rd Party Validation Celebrity Endorcement' for that industry, [...]
Hey there – We are writing to ask a favor that could actually help your business, and ours. We just finished our new book that helps business owners immediately boost their social media programs [...]
Last week, a friend asked me to record a video about how I brand our affiliate links for our collaborative community. So, here's that video: This is one of those rare occassions when I record the [...]
We are often asked about an easy way to create video content. That usually means they want an easy way to create video content itself, OR they want an easy way to create video content with some [...]
“How do you speak to your target market?” We hear that question all the time from our private coaching clients and entrepreneurs who attend our Small Business Marketing Plan Bootcamps and who [...]
Every brick and mortar business has the same challenge at the beginning: what is their outdoor sign going to look like? Let’s go through a few rules to make your outdoor sign more attractive, and [...]
Did you miss last week’s episode of The Marketing Checklist radio show? Here’s what you missed: we interviewed the dynamic duo of Damian Bruno and Danielle Giann who were the only realtors [...]
This past week, we were given a 6 minute speaking spot where we taught the 5 rules of what not to post on social media (so wish we would have recorded it so I could post the video here…alas…this [...]
It’s time to get on Hank's Marketing Soapbox: this time it has to do with the use of Stock photography instead of actual photos of you, your team, and your workplace. Stock photography can be [...]
Welcome to Real Estate Week! Although we didn’t initially construct this week to be all about Real Estate, it has turned out that way. I suppose, now that I’ve taken the time to look back, this [...]
Like you, we are out in the world, networking and meeting other business owners, sharing our message. Also like you do, we come across people who claim to do the same things we do. Is it fun for [...]
Every holiday season, I am bombarded by a bevy of Nonprofit Solicitation Emails. They have become sort of a hobby. When you are on the contact list for dozens OF nonprofits, getting nonprofit [...]
I had an interesting conversation over the weekend with a startup founder. She reached out because she thought she might be interested in our services. She stated that she is a creative type, not [...]
It’s time for all those office housekeeping and year end review activities, and here is a list from us for your marketing. Here are 5 Parts of Your Business to Review First is your Marketing [...]
One of the oldest sales ‘tricks' I learned is that as soon as you enter a prospect’s office you should look for something you have in common. Picture of himself fishing? Talk about the [...]
Full disclosure: this post was inspired by Sharyn waking up saying that she spent the night dreaming about correcting the punctuation in protest signs…! We have all seen pictures on the [...]
Most of us for our first few books are still a bit intimidated with the entire process of creating our business book. In past blog posts, we have talked about WHY to write your book, so now [...]
“Can you send us a company brochure?” Do you ever have a potential client say that? To me, they are doing one of two things. ONE: They are very interested but need a little more information [...]
Who do you know that has unexplained health problems? Did you know that some chronic unexplained health challenges may have roots in our mouths? I met Kimberly Miles at a local networking lunch. [...]
Oh my, it's been way too long since we've blogged…yet the reality is that even we sometimes fall victim to inconsistent blogging. Ok, so we teach our clients that the key to successful [...]
Back in July, we had the honor of interviewing Steve Ayers and his colleague, Sebra Choe, on The Marketing Checklist radio show. Somehow, and hour was just too short for this inteview, so we [...]
Our guest on this week's episode of The Marketing Checklist was Denis Nurmela, The YES Man (Young Entrepreneur Success!): “Denis Nurmela’s experience includes founding and operating both [...]
I was the guest speaker at a Women of Interest meeting entitled Branding Critique. The point was to review women entrepreneurs' collateral material (printed and online). As the conversation [...]
Do you need to be happier at work, or know someone who does? How about 15 Ways?! This week's episode of The Marketing Checklist radio show we learned from Business Coach Deirdre McGee (well, we [...]
Every year or so, I am reminded of the expression that words matter. Words matter in our personal relationships and words matter in how we build our business ties. Recently, I had a client who, [...]
Do you have a passion for your cause? Your company? Does your team share your passion? On Tuesday, July 25th, 2017, we had the honor of interviewing Steve Ayers and Sebra Choe of the Economic [...]
It is time. The moment is right to share this Viagra story with you. You see, it is a sad thing when a patent goes away. It means a company will no longer be able to be the sole profiteer from [...]
“Our next guest is the author of….. “ “Trying to change your life? This next guest can help you do it. She is the author of the new book…. “ “Last night I read the most fascinating book and the [...]
We just did a “second set of eyes” check up for a small business in our area. This made me think that, since we are at the half way mark of the year, this would be a good time to discuss our [...]
Do you like saving time? Do you know your target market? Would you like to know how knowing your target market will save you time? If only I had recorded what Angie (of Angie's House) said at [...]
Did you miss us last week while we were immersed in Speaker Training? (if you know how to turn our video, please let us know!) Did you catch Tuesday's radio show? We spent the first half of the [...]
Video of Windy West's Last Day Are you one of the thousands of listeners to our weekly radio show, The Marketing Checklist? If so, you've probably noticed a change in our production staff. We [...]
When it comes to promotional products, one of the most often asked questions I am asked is “What are the best promotional products to use at a trade show?” Although it’s a great question, when I [...]
We have joined a lot of organizations – Chambers of Commerce, Networking Groups – places where business people gather, meet and create relationships which lead to doing business. The goal is to [...]
I'd like to share with you how to gather testimonials. And why it is so very important. But first, here's an example: One reason I am sharing some tricks on this topic is that I am amazed at how [...]
No matter what we do, every one of us in business has the same challenge: How to get more clients. The first steps to get more clients has a very specific vocabulary: Revenue goals, forecasts, [...]
One of the hottest buzzword phrases in our world is Marketing Automation. Automate this, automate that – make your marketing work for you without having to touch it. That is what most of the [...]
I get asked all the time how and why I began to put on my own seminars. I thought for this first blog on seminars, I would share the kinds of seminars we put on and in the next blogs share more [...]
At our networking group , as we went around the room talking about what we did, I heard the same things: “I’m the best locksmith and we have cheap prices.” “We work fast and [...]
Everyone has seen those negative posts about a company. You might be standing in line at your favorite locally owned coffee shop to get your triple shot of mocha coffee grandalicious and [...]
, We received some interesting, and some not very effective direct mail earlier this year (recently resurfaced on our desks). I’d like to share the high points … and the low. Starting with the [...]
The internet is an amazing tool. There are not many things that we cannot learn, nor share, online. But how in the heck can you keep up with it all? How do you find everything you need to know? [...]
We are asked by every Sedona Marketing Retreats client about using video marketing for their business. Most people, because of the age we live in where beauty is promoted on our television, movie [...]
2 Conversations at one Holiday Party. 2 People, both business owners, approximately the same age. 2 VERY different attitudes about Marketing. The difference? One seems to have settled into a [...]
When a speaker comes up front, don’t you just love it when they begin by asking you to raise your hands? How many people love THEIR cats? How many people are just OK with cats? How many people [...]
As part of the business community, I think it is our responsibility to pass on the lessons we learn from entrepreneurs around us. I think those lessons become even more solid when we teach them [...]
Way back in October of 2015, we talked about the announcement that Playboy Magazine was no longer the place where young boys would see their first naked woman, borrowing their Dad’s subscription [...]
A few weeks ago, at the beginning of our radio show The Marketing Checklist, I talked about this pdf I found by one of the tools we use that provided 30 steps to build a thriving facebook [...]
I’d like to tell you a marketing fairy tale. A marketing tale about ‘who got fired?' Once upon a time, the incredibly popular band Geraniums N’ Grenades* released their 5th album and it [...]
The lifetime value of a customer is a number that helps companies focus their customer service activities. If you know how much that client is worth, you work harder. Evidently, Celebrity Cruise [...]
According to one of the best direct marketers in the world, we have a HUGE marketing opportunity that's apparently being ignored by most people. In the email I just received, it is time to take [...]
We’re governed almost entirely by emotion (whether you know it or not). Emotion determines our psychology. And our psychology determines our ultimate performance. How we feel greatly determines [...]
We always teach our clients to not only blog but to also syndicate each blog post in an effort to reach more readers. Although they all take notes and write down the URLs, a couple asked us to [...]
It’s been a long time since electronic mail (email) was created, and only a slightly shorter time that electronic mail marketing began. And just a slightly SHORTER time before people started [...]
Several years ago, we began to notice that the television show Modern Family was doing a bit of product placement. A Toyota Prius was driven by Jesse Tyler Ferguson’s character Mitchell [...]
I never gave much thought to competition, and always just assumed that it existed and was a part of life. In every marketing tactic I have sold, newspaper, direct mail, promotional products and [...]
Since I just received a survey, I thought this would be a good time to talk about Member Surveys. Before we talk about the 10 Tips, a bit of history is necessary. I receive dozens of emails every [...]
Entrepreneurs don’t often get reminders about why we all do what we do. We’re rather busy. It helps to be reminded. This weekend I got three phone calls which shine a light brightly on why our [...]
“I keep watching how you and Sharyn do so much to promote Sedona Marketing, and your clients, how can I do that? What are some of the basic marketing tools I should be focused on?” During the 12 [...]
“Pretend I am starting at the beginning… What are the basic marketing tools I should use to promote my business and increase sales?” “I don’t think I’m very good at marketing. How do I get [...]
AUTHOR'S NOTE: To go along with this blog about Basic Marketing Tools, here is a video Sharyn and I did entitled “10 WOW Things You Can Do to Market Your Business.” “What are the [...]
NOTE: Hear an audio version of this blog about the 15 Basic Marketing Tools on our radio show: The Marketing Checklist http://www.starworldwidenetworks.com/index.php/Audio/marketing_checklist#2 I [...]
“What are the basic marketing tools I need?” This is something I hear all the time when sitting down with someone who is going to hire us, or is thinking of hiring us, or honestly, wants to get [...]
“I have this idea,” our client began, “but I am not sure it is a good one.” We hear that all the time. Our clients want to know if their business idea – almost always something they are going [...]
In the race for the presidency of the United States, a lot of money is spent on marketing candidates. And it is on one of largest stages ever created. When marketing mishaps occur – not in [...]
We had a first coaching call with a client this morning. He is a sharp businessperson and a sales leader in the industry. Since I have been in that industry for 30 years we were able to connect [...]
“When it rains, it pours.” We’ve all heard this expression. It means that when things go wrong, it can be like a domino effect. It starts out with one thing and it just keeps on going: You have a [...]
If you are setting up your social media program to work in concert with your website, you will like this simple marketing tip. Before you build your site, and perhaps before you even buy the URL, [...]
With the United States National Park Service (NPS) having its centennial in 2016, I have been noticing a lot of branding opportunities that go along with that event. Some of their making and some [...]
We all have plenty of slang terms which get used quite often. Some of them you will want to use forever, but others become quite dated. Ann-Marie Alcántara is a millennial in her 20s and wrote an [...]
When we are printing promotional products on plastic or brochures and flyers on paper the saying I have always used with clients regarding artwork is that “As good as you give me is as good as [...]
I would like to share a holiday story with you, that has the benefits of blogging as its marketing message. In order for this story to be most effective, though, you have to say out loud, [...]
“I just finished the Bangkok Half Marathon and boy are my feet more tired than normal.” Well, yes, you just ran an extra 4 miles. Due to a mistake in laying out the course, the [...]
Do you schedule your social media posts? Or do you post live each time? We tend to schedule our posts. On our last weekly radio show episode, we talked about a training Sharyn had completed with [...]
We have all said it – ALL OF US: “I don't believe advertising.” But yet, we all buy things which are advertised. Interesting disconnect, huh? Let's talk about the song I used in [...]
Over the last 18 months, Sharyn Yuloff and I have been on a long, interesting, fun, and enlightening journey to complete the changeover on our business which began 7 years ago. This journey has [...]
Once again, the world of sports and using celebrity to market your business gives us subjects to talk about and relate back to our own marketing. Keeping in mind that your story – the things [...]
For years, when I have talked about how advertising media has changed, I have told people that if they want to learn how to sell, they should get a job hawking ad space for a direct mail weekly [...]
What? You say that the question is what came first the chicken OR the egg? Not in marketing. In Marketing it is the Chicken and the Egg. You have to be telling your story all the time, not [...]
The concept of How He Salespeople Talked Themselves Out of The Sale has been rolling around in my head for a long time and at a networking meeting this morning, there it was again, how a salesman [...]
I just joined the APPLE ARMY of product usage. It had to happen eventually, I guess. Their products are so … NOW and HIP and COOL and all sorts of other words that whichever generation that [...]
There are SO many incredible promotional products but selfie sticks are not one of them. I have had reservations about using selfie sticks as a promotional product since the first time I saw one [...]
Last week I had the good fortune to attend a table top tradeshow that I was no part in organizing or exhibiting. It was the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce’s 28th annual expo and was held at the [...]
Golf, to me, is one of those sports which carries a great pressure to perform. At the professional level, you have fans surrounding you in judgmental silence. Since I am not much of a golfer, [...]
I got a call today from one of our marketing plan clients. He said that he has been bombarded by calls today from a company saying they can get him “front page of Google” etc. As his [...]
During Promotionally Minded Marketing Days I had a section in the workshop workbook called Generational Communication of Your Marketing Message. The short version of that is if you are selling to [...]
I am going to make an assumption that if you are reading a marketing blog, you are looking for ways to improve your marketing efforts. One of those improvements is to use written communications [...]
When it comes to playing winning football, you need a solid game plan. When it comes to playing and winning at getting third party endorsements marketing, you need a solid game plan. The [...]
Bob Dylan sure knows his audience! http://money.cnn.com/2015/01/25/retirement/bob-dylan-free-album/index.html?source=yahoo_hosted I saw the article referenced here by CNN Money and thought I [...]
It is difficult, sometimes, for neighborhood retail businesses to improve sales and solidify a marketing plan, especially one that will work all the time. This is because different times of year, [...]
This blog is discussed more completely at the beginning of our radio show: The Marketing Checklist! You can find the show at www.OurMarketingChecklist.com We received two very bad pieces of [...]