Daily Biz Tips

Positive Fabulous Women is thrilled to have teamed up with Silver Lining Limited to help keep you inspired, motivated and taking action with your business! You can find daily tips, weekly videos and monthly articles here which discuss business topics relevant to anyone who wants their business to thrive and succeed. Check back daily to make sure you don’t miss a thing!

Your Fortune is in the Follow Up!

By Ali Brown

Most business owners are good at pitching clients or reaching out to new customers. It’s the follow-up where they fall down. Why? Because they figure, “if they wanted my product, they’d finish the transaction,” or they worry that, “if I bug them too much, I’ll come off as needy.” Here’s the thing: while you’re worrying about bugging a prospective customer or telling yourself that maybe “they’re just not that into me,” someone else is following up and sealing the deal!

“No” is just a little bump on the road to “yes.”

When someone expresses interest in your business, but they aren’t quite ready to sign on the dotted line, they can often be persuaded with a polite follow up. Say you were trying to convince a local business to purchase advertising on your website. They might say, “this sounds like a good opportunity, but I’ve already used up my marketing dollars for this quarter.” By following up before the beginning of the next quarter, you could get on your contacts’ radar and get her business while she’s in the planning stages.

Here are some other follow-up methods to consider:

Ask if they’d like to be added to your ezine. Creating an email newsletter is a great way to keep in contact with prospects and update them on new promotions or offerings. Since nobody likes getting spam, ask their permission first and include useful content in your ezine so it’s not a pure sales message. Once people expect timely and insightful information from you, they’ll become more likely to open your emails and conduct business with you.

Send useful links. If you know the prospect pretty well, you could email her sporadically when you find articles that might be useful for her business or see networking events she might like to attend. That way you’re keeping the lines of communication open without pressuring her.

Send a holiday card. The holidays are a great time to reconnect with prospects and spread seasonal cheer. But if you’re afraid your holiday card might get lost in the shuffle or you simply don’t have time to coordinate another mailing, then consider sending a card at other times of the year, perhaps a mid-summer greeting or a Labor Day card (as people return from vacation, this can be a good time to snag new business). That way you’ll become more memorable and have an excuse to connect with people outside of the regular holiday season.

Hold an event. Consider hosting a symposium on a timely topic or a free seminar on an issue that will interest potential customers. Invite prospects who were on the fence and use the opportunity to also bring in new prospects.

Follow up is key in any business, but you can also be creative and have a little fun with your strategies. The bottom line? Be persistent, but always be polite.

© 2010 Ali International

Self-made millionaire entrepreneur and Inc. 500-ranked CEO Ali Brown teaches women around the world how to start and grow profitable businesses that make a positive impact. Get her FREE weekly articles and advice at www.AliBrown.com

Working From Home? Tips To Succeed Without Distraction

By Kendall SummerHawk

Do you love the idea of working from home but you’re wondering how to handle distractions such as housework, kids, hubby and friends?

Working from home affords many benefits. Think about it: no traffic, commuting or annoying coworkers. But without the right mix of people contact and structure you can easily fritter away your time without the things you need to show for it, such as new clients and lucrative opportunities.

I’ve run my business from home for nearly ten years — from when I just started to now, as a multi-million dollar business — and would never trade in my home office for a “real” office, no matter how big my business gets.

Here are my favorite secrets for turning your home into what I call, a “success sanctuary.”

Tip #1 Keep Your Home Your Sanctuary

Even if space is limited, I recommend setting up a separate work area for your business. A private room devoted to running your business is ideal but if you must share space then set up a screen or some other type of divider to separate your business from the rest of your life. Creating this kind of privacy will help you focus and feel professional.

Tip #2 Know When To Close The Door

Running a business can consume every waking hour of your life unless you put into place much needed boundaries as to when you work and how much you work. I get the most done when I follow a daily ritual. That means I don’t answer phone calls, turn on the computer or answer email until I’ve completed my personal, morning routine.

Likewise, at night I have a clear stop time, and an end of day ritual that includes shutting down the computer, neatening my desk and updating my to-do list for the next day. Rituals like these give you a feeling of order, which will help you relax during your off hours so you can start up again the next day feeling refreshed and recharged.

Tip #3 Take Daily “Energy” Breaks

Some business owners crave company while others (like me) prefer to recharge by spending time outside or exercising. Whichever your preference is, make sure you build that into your day. You’re the “boss” so don’t wait until you feel stir-crazy to take action. I recommend taking a daily social or get-back-to-nature break daily to keep you focused and inspired about building your business.

Tip #4 Establish Clear Boundaries With Your Family

Women entrepreneurs are easily side-tracked with household demands such as making lunches, laundry, playing referee when your kids aren’t playing nice, etc.

Listen, running a business takes focus, concentration and creativity, which you won’t have if you’re constantly interrupted with the demands of others, even if they’re your family.

Tell your family up front that when you’re working you’re not available to handle their disputes or to “play mom.” Tell them why growing your business is important to you, then ask for their help. Tell them EXACTLY what the rules are, such as no interruptions unless the house is on fire or someone is bleeding (think I’m kidding? I’m not!).

Make sure to thank them frequently for helping you grow your business. Above all, do NOT cave in and give up your priorities for the day. Successful businesses are built on creating strong boundaries so now is a great time to practice strengthening yours. Besides, when your family sees that “mom means business” they’ll respect you and what you’re doing even more, making you an awesome role model for the people you care about the most.

There’s No Place Like Home…

Whether you have a private home office all to yourself, or you’re office is the dining room table, the more you practice these simple tips the more professional and focused you’ll feel. Remember that building a successful home based business is a dream that many aspire to and YOU can achieve!

Would you like to learn more simple ways entrepreneurs can brand, package and price their services to quickly move away from ‘dollars-for-hours work’ and create more money, time, and freedom in their businesses? Check out my web site, http://www.KendallSummerHawk.com, for fr.ee articles, fr.ee resources and to sign up for my fr.ee audio mini-seminar “7 Simple Steps to Create Your Multiple Streams of In-come “Money and Soul” Business.

Become a Money Magnet!

7 Mantras to help you attract wealth today

By Ali Brown

No matter how hard you try to deny the fact, money has an important place in the world. Money makes life easier and more comfortable and gives you and your loved ones amazing opportunities that would otherwise lie beyond reach. Money also gives you incredible leverage in helping others, and for furthering causes you believe in—and hey, you get to buy some really amazing shoes, too!

Listen ladies, you’re likely going to have to work hard anyway in this life, so why not make a lot of money doing so? The good news is you usually won’t have to work more than you already do now. You just have to learn how to work in a new way.

It starts with how you think!

In my Millionaire Protégé Club, many of my members are surprised to find that I spend as much time teaching the correct mindset to have with money as I do the strategies to make money with their businesses.

Why? Because if you are rich, how you think and feel about money is more important than how you earn money.

You can learn all the tips and tricks about how to make money, but if you don’t think and feel wealthy, you’ll be stuck in a rut forever. So you need to think rich, feel rich, and take action to become rich to obtain rich results.

To help you start thinking and feeling wealthy, here are seven mantras I say to myself and share with my clients.

Mantra #1: “I am responsible for my financial success, and no one else.”

You alone are responsible for your wealth. Know that where you are right now in terms of financial success is a direct result of your own actions. Blaming other people or circumstances will prevent you from moving forward financially. If you truly believe your circumstances are attributable to the actions of others and that you were powerless and had no control over your situation, you are also powerless to change your life now. The good news is, accepting responsibility for your financial success gives you complete permission and the power to build the future you’ve always wanted.

Wealthy people create their own lives—life doesn’t just happen to them. You need to believe the same if you want to improve your outcome.

Mantra #2: “I learn about making money from wealthy people.”

Consider who are you taking money advice from: friends and family who struggle to make ends meet, or successful mentors who have proven they know how to make money, and lots of it?

Wealthy people take advice from people who have more money than they do. They also continually learn and advance their knowledge about money, business, and investing. Take time to learn from those who know, pick one area, and then get started.

Mantra #3: “I take good care of my money.”

Until you can show you can handle what you’ve got, the universe won’t bring you more. Learn to love managing your money, even the little you may have. You don’t need any complicated software—just start with a notebook, pen, and calculator.

If you have debts, get them organized and work out a repayment plan. Ignoring your bills won’t improve your situation. When I left my marriage with over $30,000 debt, I put together a colorful spreadsheet outlining each credit card or loan, the interest charged, and total amount due. I hadn’t seen the total number before, but then seeing which debts I could knock down the fastest became a fun game.

Mantra #4: “I see opportunities in everything.”

When you want wealth, you need to start looking at the world differently than other people. Are you seeing opportunities, potential growth, and rewards? Or are you seeing obstacles, potential loss, and risks?

Take the current economy as an example. The media is having a field day with all the apparent loss and hardship in this country, while many savvy entrepreneurs are quietly using the current situation to their benefit. Here’s one thing you won’t be hearing on the news: Some of the largest fortunes ever made were generated in times of economic recession. There’s no better time to get involved than now!

Mantra #5: “I play to win big.”

If you ask most people about how much money they’d like to make, they respond, “Well, I just want enough to be comfortable.” That means they want to make more money, but not take risks to do so. That keeps them in survival mode, and that means stuck.

Are you playing to win, or just not to lose? To get out of your current money zone, you need to get out of your current comfort zone. You’re only growing when you are uncomfortable. Ironically, once you are used to discomfort, you’re more likely to end up with wealth that makes you very comfortable.

Small thinking and small actions lead to small bank deposits. Big thinking and big actions lead to big money.

Mantra #6: “I love to receive—especially money.”

If you have trouble receiving gifts from others, you probably have trouble receiving money. I even see many women deflect compliments. If a friend says: “I love that sweater” and you respond, “This old thing? You’re crazy.” You not only didn’t receive the compliment, but you denied your friend the joy of giving.

This is something you need to work on immediately. Next time someone says, “You look great today,” simply smile and say, “Well, thank you. I appreciate that.” Or when receiving a gift say, “Thank you, this is great.”

Charge well for your services and products, and don’t apologize for your rates or pricing. Get paid ahead of time or on time. Become good at asking for and receiving money, and know you deserve payment.

Mantra #7: “I enjoy giving money to others.”

Just recently while I was hosting one of my events in a Los Angeles hotel, I received a lovely card from one of my past clients thanking me for changing her life. Not only did the card have a beautifully written message inside, but out of the card fell three crisp $100 bills. She explained in the card that this was a tithe.

Now, in the past I would have panicked, feeling I didn’t deserve this gift and should return the money to her. Now I know better. Tithing—the act of giving back to worthy people and organizations—is an important part of the money cycle. I received graciously, hugging it to my chest and saying “thank you.”

After I wrote her a pleasant acknowledgment, I put two of the bills in my wallet and left one of them on the nightstand for the hotel maid. I never saw who she was or how she reacted, but I’m sure it made her day—perhaps her entire year. That felt good.

© 2009 Ali International, LLC

Self-made multimillionaire entrepreneur and Inc. 500 CEO Ali Brown is devoted to creating financial freedom for women globally through the power of entrepreneurship. To learn how to create wealth and live an extraordinary life now, register for her free weekly articles at www.AliBrown.com

The Divine Femine: How it Shows up in Business

The Divine Feminine:

• brings a sense of community to business
• is cooperative because we know that is the road to thriving
• achieves results by nurturing others
• wants all members of our tribe to succeed
• encourages others
• challenges others with love
• champions others with kind accountability methods
• celebrates milestones and goal attainment

There is no doubt–with the shifting business paradigm in full swing–women have made a powerful impression and will continue to do so. Our innate gifts as birthers of new ideology will change the face of entrepreneurship so much that soon the old facade won’t be recognizable. It’s the dawning of a new age and we’re the luminaries.

Allowing intuition, spirituality and pure intent to guide us, we’re in a very powerful position to creative positive and lasting change. The way business is conducted will never be the same.

Let me go back to my reference of “aligned female” and elaborate for the fullest understanding.

Being born female (a gender identification) does not an empowered woman make!

It’s vital to understand that being strong, allowing the feminine divine to be honored in our words, thoughts and actions, referring to ourselves as “conscious,” embracing our roles as leaders and visionaries, and intentionally creating our lives, is a journey… the journey of a lifetime.

The aligned woman is so much more than female. She:

* has a vested interest in bringing her best to everything she does

* willingly surrenders her plan to the wisdom of the Universe

* commits on every level to the ever-unfolding process of life

* pushes on with courage, no matter how hard the task

* walks with herself, if necessary, so as not to dilute her efforts and energy with anything/anyone that might take her off-course

* graciously serves others in accordance with her innate talents and gifts

* models integrity because it’s the core of who she is and how she conducts the business of her life

* celebrates her unique talents-removing all hindrances to shining brilliantly-because she understands this world benefits from her exceptional contribution

* is bold in her approach to life because there’s no value in standing for nothing

* accepts herself as-is, always

Modeling empowered divine femininity has many rewards; and it also comprises great responsibility; to whom much is given, much is required. Wielding power with benevolence requires a solid understanding that true power never attempts to manipulate, dominate or control. Only insecurity behaves that way. We are actively defining the future of business with our actions. We are creating something uniquely feminine.

EditCopyProof © 2009 All rights reserved.

Charlon Bobo is the visionary behind EditCopyProof ~ Wordsmithing Solutions for Conscious Entrepreneurs. EditCopyProof is the single and final destination in your quest for copywriting, editing and proofreading services that effectively speak to the core of your heart-centered audience. Increase your sales, credibility and exposure with high-impact content based on your genuine desire to connect, serve or create community. http://www.EditCopyProof.com

Creative And Simple Tips For Planning A Profitable 2010

Creative entrepreneurs love the idea of “having a plan” but often struggle with how to make one, given the deluge of ideas they have spinning around in their head. The planning process can feel overwhelming and the end result is often a plan that still doesn’t answer the essential question, “What do I do FIRST?”

If that sounds like you, then you’re in luck. As a highly creative entrepreneur I’ve figured out how to honor my creative, feminine spirit AND design a practical plan that will ensure I meet my financial goals.

The results of the process I’ve designed have contributed significantly to my going from frustrating five figures just a few short years ago, to now having a multi-million dollar coaching business. The cool thing is, I still use the same planning process every year.

This part may make you laugh: I don’t use fancy spreadsheets, charts, graphs or any of the traditional, male-oriented planning tools. Doing so sounds like far too much work!

Instead, I run my entire multi 7-figure business from a plan written out on a couple sheets of paper with pencil. The secret is what goes ON those sheets of paper.

Here are 3 simple tips taken from my planning process, each designed to help you create the Divine Feminine version of a business plan.

Tip #1 Include Both Your Divine Feminine AND Masculine Strengths In Your Business Design For 2010

The Divine Feminine spirit is rich with ideas, creativity and inspiration. But if not properly directed the energy this part of you provides can easily get diluted, with nothing concrete to show for it. You need the strength of the masculine, which loves to implement, on your side to put your ideas into action.

Which is why I recommend listing all of the things you want to accomplish in a year, then assigning them to a specific time table. You’ll quickly see if you have more ideas than you have months in the year (likely) and can make adjustments to your plan so that you’re realistic about what you can actually accomplish.

Tip #2 Don’t Make This Mistake When Setting Your Income Goal For The Year

Most entrepreneurs start their new year’s planning by trying to figure out how to maintain the same income they made last year, or, at best, set a new goal that’s only slightly bigger than before.

This is a big mistake because this kind of thinking comes from fear and scarcity. Plus, it means you’re trying to maintain your business instead of growing it. Remember this: the amount you made in the past year represents your OLD thinking, mindset, beliefs and values. To increase your revenue you need to adopt at least ONE new mindset, belief or value.

Which is why I HIGHLY recommend setting your new year’s income goal by looking forward, not backward. Choose a new income goal that is big enough to provoke you to think bigger about yourself, take bigger action and step up in a bigger way.

Once you have your new number you’re ready to plan the activities, campaigns, programs and products that will produce the results you’re looking for.

Tip #3 Design Your Plan Focused On Your “Calling”

The masculine part of us says to “get real, be practical,” which is great. Thing is, if you lead with the practical you’ll likely miss out on the inspired moments that will help you leap your business forward in a new and powerful way.

Start your biz design process by listening to your inner guidance, which tells you what you’re called to do. Is it to help people find their ideal relationship, to improve communication in the workplace or to empower women to stand up for themselves? Perhaps it’s to help others in your field create success or to help business owners lead their company to financial greatness without sacrificing their morals.

Once you’re clear and connected to your calling (what I often refer to as your Soul’s Divine Purpose) you can design your business model, program and product offers to deliver your message and value to the world.

For example: Three years ago my inner guidance directed me to create powerful, confident, financially and spiritually successful business coaches. I listened to that voice of wisdom and launched the highly successful Money, Marketing and Soul Coach Training program (which brought in multiple 6-figures its first year) and the soon-to-be-announced International Association of Women in Business Coaching.

Keep Your Business Planning SIMPLE

Creative entrepreneurs need to be careful to keep things simple. By doing so you allow your energy and your actions to focus on creating results, which means you’re serving more people in a bigger way, and reaping the rewards you deserve.

Award-winning small business expert Kendall SummerHawk is the Million Dollar Marketing Coach.

Would you like to learn more simple ways entrepreneurs can brand, package and price their services to quickly move away from ‘dollars-for-hours work’ and create more money, time, and freedom in their businesses? Check out my web site, http://www.KendallSummerHawk.com, for free articles, free resources and to sign up for my free audio mini-seminar “7 Simple Steps to Create Your Multiple Streams of In-come “Money and Soul” Business.

“5 Steps to Taking Control of Your Time”

For solo entrepreneurs, time management is one of the toughest parts of the job. You are a jack-of-all-trades: running the back office, fixing the computer, answering the phone, handling invoices, and, of course, doing the work that actually earns you revenue. It’s easy to get so wrapped up in administrative tasks that it becomes difficult to grow the business without working longer and longer hours to keep up with paperwork and other demands.

Here’s how you can keep control of your time and make sure that you’re earning what you’re worth.

1. Calculate your real hourly rate. Once you add up the number of hours you’re working, including core business tasks as well business-related items like invoicing and answering phones, you may be surprised to learn that you’re wasting time and money on less important tasks. Say you bill clients $100/hour for your time, but then you spend two hours of your own business time on non-essential tasks like unjamming your printer or organizing your receipts from the last quarter. Wow! You’ve just spent $200 on tasks that many administrative assistants could do for $15/hour. You want to be working on your business rather than in it.

2. List the extraneous tasks. Make a list of all of the extra tasks you perform in the course of a month that don’t directly relate to your core business. This could include accounting, customer support, event planning, filing, marketing, public relations, search engine optimization, and anything else that takes up your valuable time.

3. Hire help. Outsourcing isn’t just for multi-national corporations. It’s a must for solo entrepreneurs and small businesses, because it frees you up to focus on your core business. You might ask other local businesses who they use or go online and search the portfolios of creative and technical professionals on sites like guru.com and elance.com. Hiring a virtual assistant (VA) is another option. VAs work remotely and handle many different tasks including scheduling, bill paying, and research. Look for a VA on assistu.com or ivaa.com.

4. Delegate as much as you can. Many entrepreneurs, especially those without a cofounder, are reluctant to let go of tasks that they once performed themselves. They worry that other people will not perform those tasks with the same level of attention, but it’s actually better to have someone who is trained in that area rather than trying to do everything yourself. And it will save you money in the process.

5. Jump back in the driver’s seat! Time is the most important asset you have. Unlike money, you can’t earn more once you’ve used it up. Managing your time efficiently helps ensure that your business succeeds. Put all non-essential tasks in the hands of others so you’ll never to worry about burning the midnight oil to get everything done. Now that you know exactly what your time is worth, jump back in the driver’s seat of your business and do what you wanted to do all along – work less and earn more money!

© 2009 Ali International, LLC

Self-made multimillionaire entrepreneur and Inc. 500 CEO Ali Brown is devoted to creating financial freedom for women globally through the power of entrepreneurship. To learn how to create wealth and live an extraordinary life now, register for her free weekly articles at www.AliBrown.com

Six Surefire Strategies to Build Your Brand Online for More Impact and Income in 2010

In this age of new media and new marketing, the rules for marketing professional service businesses have changed dramatically. Yet, many women in service-based businesses are not keeping up with the times and may fall behind the leaders in their marketplace who are embracing the new media models to build their brand online.

Having a strong brand reputation is the key to making sales in the new economy. It’s never been so important for your brand to be highly relevant. Your brand is the one competitive edge you can offer that no one else can copy or duplicate.

Brand marketing trends for 2010 indicate that you need to have something highly interesting and relevant to say to build a brand that people will notice. You need to engage your community, build your platform, and include social media in your marketing mix.

Here are my six surefire strategies to build your brand online for more impact and income in 2010:

1. Publish a Blog That Positions You as a Leader in Your Niche

Publishing a blog is a great way to expand your visibility and attract a community of followers. And, it’s very easy and low cost to publish a blog. Starting a blog is a great way to find your voice as well as start to cultivate an audience base. Put the focus on your readers instead of on you. Offer solutions to your audiences’ biggest challenges and you’ll never be at a loss for content. Writing valuable and relevant information at your blog can position you as the go-to person in your area of expertise. You will be easily referable and people will line up to buy from you. To remain relevant, your message must be interesting and timely, communicate authority and an authentic personality, and indicate that you are connected and in the know.

2. Brand Your Brilliance and Your Purpose

Personality and purpose-driven marketing can be highly effective these days when it has become so hard to get people’s attention. The most effective personal brands are built around your strengths, expertise, passion, personality, and life purpose. A strong brand based on your unique brilliance can differentiate your offerings and create value-added client relationships which lead to sustainable client loyalty. What people want now is relevance, simplicity, authentic personality, honesty, imagination and inspiration. If you’ve been holding back on following your true purpose or heart’s desire in your business, or not saying what you really think and feel, now’s the time to get real.

3. Leverage Social Media Marketing

Social media marketing is one of the easiest ways to effectively expand your reputation. You can use social media to position yourself as an expert, build your credibility, build relationships, and extend your reach. Social media can be a very powerful tool for business growth if you know how to use it wisely to build relationships and not just to promote yourself. To successfully leverage social media, become highly active at a few sites like Facebook and Twitter, or LinkedIn, rather than trying to keep up with multiple networks. Get to know and get known by your online community and virtual neighbors. Become a superstar, must read resource and source of inspiration on Twitter.

4. Build a Purposeful Platform to Amplify Your Brand and Your Message

Your brand platform is the image or impression you make in the marketplace. It’s the set of associations that clients make when they think of you and your services. It’s both what you stand for and what your marketplace perceives as valuable. It’s how you create distinctive value through the unique combination of your expertise, values, vision, passion, purpose and message. By following your passion and purpose, you can build a purposeful platform that feeds both your pocketbook and your soul. A powerful online presence is one that builds and extends your platform and positions you to become well know for your message. There are many ways you can do this: article and blog marketing, social media marketing, signature presentations and programs, press releases, and developing a line of information products, to name a few. The first important step of course is to choose a highly targeted niche m arket that is looking for solutions to problems that you have answers to.

5. Take Your Brand Viral with Video Marketing

Video marketing is hot. It’s the big key secret method to extending your reach globally and attracting more interested, pre-qualified leads quickly. A picture really is worth a thousand words! You can easily create short two minute video tips for your target audience to post at your blog, or a video of you outlining the benefits of your new program at your sales page, or record testimonials from satisfied clients. Upload your videos to a free video-sharing site such as YouTube. Video can quickly raise your visibility and exposure and spread your message virally across the internet.

6. Create Raving Brand Fans

People have so many complex brand choices today that they get overwhelmed and confused. You need to get a community of people really engaged to build a loyal following. Develop a marketing strategy that will give your target audience exactly what they want so you can attract a community of followers and “raving brand fans”. Find out where your community is. Find out what they like to read and who they follow. Build your connections, strategic alliances and audience base. Over time, people will start to trust your expertise and enjoy your style and will buy your services and products without you having to put a lot of effort into selling.

Times have changed in the web 2.0 world. The internet has leveled the playing field in vying for people’s attention. Online branding will give you an edge in the marketplace that will cause clients to think of you first when they need your type of services.

© by Jan Marie Dore of Femalepreneurs.com.

Jan Marie Dore mentors professional women to deliver their service, expertise and message in more leveraged ways so they can work fewer hours, impact more people and make more money. Get your free “Professional Women’s Success Kit” and other marketing resources at www.FemalePreneurs.com

Successful Business Marketing: What Does Your Marketing Archetype Say About You?

Article Contributed by Kendall SummerHawk

No matter how much a Soul-Preneur loves what she does, if she can’t figure out how to TALK about her services she’ll never attract better, higher paying clients.

When it comes to business marketing, most people brainstorm a billion different tag lines then wonder why none of them sound or feel like “the one.”

The problem is all that brainstorming isn’t every effective because it’s relying on the wrong information to start with. Crafting a tag line—or any of your marketing copy such as sales letters, email promos, flyers and titles—first starts with understanding your unique style and personality.

Okay, sounds good. But, how exactly do you do that?

The best way is to know your “Marketing Archetype.” Think of an archetype as a universally-accepted personality that appears in our stories, myths and in the most compelling current marketing campaigns.

A great example is the Hero archetype, put forward so richly and powerfully by the Race for the Cure campaign. Another example is the Teacher archetype of seeking wisdom, beautifully modeled by Oprah.

Every Marketing Archetype has key words and phrases associated with it. Once you know your Marketing Archetype you can quickly and easily create a compelling tag line, Web site and more.

Here are three easy tips on how to use the power of Marketing Archetypes to attract better, higher paying clients. What this means for you is quickly being able to write and talk about what you do in a powerful and authentic way!

Tip #1: What is Your Powerful Story?

No matter which Marketing Archetype you use, your marketing must consistently put forward an emotionally rich story. Do this and you’ll authentically draw people into caring about you, what you do and the people you help.

For example, the story theme that is woven throughout all of my marketing is that you can love who you are and what you do, and make great money doing it. My Marketing Archetypes are the Explorer and the Romantic. All of my marketing powerfully speaks to the idea that you must be unique and authentic (that’s key for us Explorers) and that you can love what you do and make great money doing it (that’s the richness of the Romantic).

Tip #2: Remember That It’s Better to Stand Out Than to be Ignored

No matter what your Marketing Archetype, it’s vital that you speak powerfully about the gift you’re here to share with your clients. Don’t let fear or that voice that says, “Who do you think you are?” stop you from being heard in a powerful way.

Tip #3: Reveal Your Clients’ Archetypes so You Can Speak Their Language

Once you understand your own Marketing Archetype, you can then easily figure out that of your client, giving you an insight into exactly how receptive they are to certain marketing.

Here’s an example: I attract a lot of coaches and I know that coaches are often Alchemist and Artist archetypes. I know exactly what type of language resonates with them best. Words such as “transform, magic, instant, idea and create” really speak to Alchemists and Artists, so I make sure to weave those words into my writing. This way, I’m speaking my truth in a way that goes straight into their hearts.

Your marketing archetype is a window to a new language you can quickly use, and a window into creating powerful affinity with your clients.

Success in business is all about relationships, trust and a deep connection with your clients. Marketing Archetypes is a powerful way to build those relationships quickly and authentically, and in any form of media. The sooner you discover what yours is the quicker you’ll be enjoying the gift of attracting the better, higher-paying clients you love.

And, if you want to get personal training from me on what your Marketing Archetype is and how to use this powerful system with your clients, watch your inbox for details about my upcoming new certification program! I’ll share how you can learn more in just a few days.

About the Author

Kendall SummerHawk, the Million Dollar Marketing Coach, is an expert at helping women entrepreneurs at all levels design a business they love and charge what they’re worth and get it. Kendall delivers simple ways entrepreneurs can design and price their services to quickly move away from ‘dollars-for-hours work’ and create more money, time, and freedom in their business. For free articles, free resources and to sign up for a free subscription to Kendall’s Money, Marketing and Soul weekly articles visit www.kendallsummerhawk.com.

we know you’re busy. now shut up about it.

“So sorry, I’ve been busy.”

“I’m just so busy with…”

“I’ve been too busy too…”

Busy? Get in line.

If I ever tell you that, “I’m so sorry that I’ve been too busy to…” then I’ll pay $500 bucks to your favourite charity and get you a year supply of Haagen Dazs bars. Of course I’m busy. That’s life. That’s my life. That’s most people’s lives. Grown up humans tend to be…busy. Add kids, or business start ups, or illness into the mix and you have…much more of life to be busy about.

“I’m just so busy,” is the typically gasping, rushed, whiny refrain that’s become a contemporary anthem. It doesn’t make us look more important, it makes us look just-this-side-of-frazzled. It’s typically used as a lite apology, an excuse, a duck-out, as if your Life Master is making you do stuff that you don’t want to do. Even as a well-intended social pleasantry, “Sorry, I’ve been busy,” has a little victim ring to it.

Whatever is on your plate got there because you said yes to it – in the fullness of ambition and desire and wanting to eat life whole. Sometimes we take on to-do’s and commit to climb mountains because our soul demands it. Sometimes life throttles us with unforeseen and unrelenting demands. Sometimes busyness is the result of keeping up with the Joneses. Busy can be good. Busy can be bad. Busy is most often a choice.

The “busier than our predecessors…age of technology…workaholic culture,” argument. I don’t buy it. Yes, we appear to be more compulsive, less nuclear, and surviving on less sleep than the pioneers, but their lives were just as packed. They were extremely busy planting potatoes and raising barns, and surviving from sunup to sundown (they got more sleep than we average because, a) they didn’t have the luxuries that light bulbs afford, and b) they did physically exhausting work.) The fifties housewife was just as busy. Before eco-evil but ever-so-handy tools like disposable diapers, the Swifer and microwaves, June Cleaver had to work it.

“Sorry, I’ve been busy,” is often used to appease busy-bodies. – the kind of people who email you to double check if you got their email from yesterday, or their thank you note.

So what do you tell ‘em when you’re late? When you can’t fit another moment into your daytimer, when you have to send regrets, or pass on a sweet opportunity? Tell them the truth. Report on life, rather than whining about it. Deliver it with ease or with pride if you’re inclined. “Been in five cities in four weeks. The kid’s all had the flu. It’s tax season, you know.” Let people meet you in your clear truth rather than your apologetic panic.

And sometimes, many times, you don’t need to excuse yourself at all. Just show up. Present and accountable, full of life and it’s demands. We all understand.

we know you’re busy. now shut up about it.

Danielle LaPorte is the creator of www.whitehottruth.com, which has been called “the best place on-line for kick-ass spirituality & business” and lead author of Style Statement: Live By Your Own Design. She is the former Director of a think tank for futures studies, ran her own communications agency to promote Nobel Prize winners and a few old pop stars, and now works one-on-one with her signature Fire Starter sessions to help entrepreneurs rock their careers and creativity. Featured in Elle, Body + Soul, Vogue Australia, Better Homes & Gardens, Globe & Mail, The National Post and Entertainment Tonight, Danielle is based in Vancouver BC.

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