Does your email inbox make you feel like Mickey Mouse in The Sorcerer’s Apprentice?
Are you overwhelmed by how many emails you have and you feel like you’re drowning in them? Here’s a technique I find very helpful that will magically get a handle on all those emails. Continue reading
I learned two important principles recently that I wanted to pass on to you. What do they have to do with each other? Nothing, except that they can both be related to how you can enhance your business and maybe your life.
Jerky
We recently took a trip to Las Vegas. Driving back across the desert to our home in Southern California, we noticed several billboards advertising a place selling jerky that claimed to be “the best jerky in the universe.” Of course we had to check it out – we didn’t want to miss out on the best jerky in the universe! So we stopped and bought a package. It was a fun place to stop once. Out front they had a real car tricked out to look like a spaceship, including aliens sitting inside, and another flying saucer craft that were fun to look at. But although the jerky was good, it certainly wasn’t the best we’ve had. Needless to say, we won’t be stopping there again.
What’s the moral of this story? You want a good, solid message for your business that entices prospects to work with you or buy from you. We would have never stopped there if they hadn’t claimed to be the best. But your product or service has to deliver on your message. People might try you out but if what you deliver isn’t what you promise, they won’t keep using or buying from you. Rather than over-promising and under-delivering as the jerky people did, you want to under-promise and over-deliver so your customers are delighted with the result and feel they got good value.
Zumba
I love taking Zumba classes at my local fitness center. I’ve always been a dancer at heart and Zumba helps fulfill that need without the cost of paying for dancing classes (ballet being my favorite). But there have been times when I’ve gone to class feeling pretty tired and not really getting into the routines until we do one I especially enjoy doing because it’s very “dancy” with fun moves and is to music I especially like. I suddenly have lots of energy for those and give them my all.
My takeaway from this for business is: if you do what you really enjoy doing, you’ll have the energy and drive to keep going and persevere through the tough times.
I’d love to hear your comments on this. And what lessons have you learned from your life outside business that you can apply to your business?
I’ve been asked by several people how to add videos to a WordPress website, so I thought it would be best to write a post about it!
There are a few different ways to add a video to your website. These procedures are the same whether you’re adding it to a static page or a blog post.
Add a Link
One way is to insert a link to your video on YouTube. My colleague Susan Joy Schleef is preparing a set of training videos on how to create visual content for the holidays, so I thought her introductory video would be the perfect example to use here! After you upload your video to YouTube, on the video’s page, click on Share below the video. Under your video, you’ll see a box with a URL in it, like this:
If you want, you can even tell it at what point in the video to start playing. Insert an image or create an interesting graphic where you want it to appear on your page or post, and link the URL to that image. When readers click on the image, they’re taken to your YouTube video.
Embed the Video in the Post
Another way is to embed the video using HTML code. Don’t worry, this isn’t as “techie” as it sounds. Click on Share below the video, then click Embed. YouTube supplies the code that looks something like this:
You can change the size of the video by either using the dropdown menu or changing the width and height numbers in the code. In the Text tab, copy and paste this code on your page or post where you want the video. The video will then appear like this:
Your readers click the Play button on the video and it plays right on your website!
Install a Plug-in
There are a number of plug-ins for WordPress that you can install to have more control over the features of and who has access to your video. Some plug-ins allow you to either embed videos from other sources like YouTube or host on your website. Search for “video player” at the WordPress Plugins page to find the best one for your needs.
Embed Your Video or Self-Host?
This is out of the scope of this post, but since I mentioned plug-ins that allow you to self-host, let me give you an overview. In most cases, I would say embedding from another site rather than self-hosting is the better option. Self-hosting requires you to install a video player, which can be complicated, sometimes requiring reformatting of the video file for it to work. Some of the main reasons why embedding is better:
Do you have any questions or comments about adding videos to your website? I’d love to hear them – let me know in the comments!
Would you like to leverage email marketing to grow your business?
Consistently providing valuable content that your clients and prospects need and want is vital to growing your business. Adding videos to your emails is a great way to improve click-throughs. Click here to schedule a no-charge email marketing strategy session with me to talk about next steps to optimize your email marketing plan and budget.
In Part 1 of this blog series, I talked about why it’s important to consistently follow up with your contacts, and I provided strategies to keep them engaged and enhance your brand. So now that we know why we should follow up, what exactly to write? Here in Part 2, I delve into how to write great emails and newsletters that will keep your contacts engaged and loyal! Continue reading
Tony Robbins said, “Success comes from taking the initiative and following up… persisting… eloquently expressing the depth of your love.” I think this is a great way to think of following up, that it’s not about selling but about helping your contacts resolve their problems and grow their business. Keeping your promises to contacts and regularly following up with them shows you care and want them to succeed, and helps establish the like part of the “know, like and trust” factor. Continue reading
“Inaction is the cause of fear. Any acti
on
is better than no action at all.”
–Norman Vincent Peale
“Success comes from taking the initiative and following up…persisting…
eloqu
ently expressing the depth of your love. What simple action could you take today to produce a new momentum toward success?”
~Tony Robbins
I really like the secondary message along with the main message of this quote: Think of following up with your prospects and clients as a way to show them you care and want to help them succeed. That in turn will help you succeed!
What is your take on this? What is your favorite Tony Robbins quote? I'd love to hear from you!
It is said that the money is in the list. Having loyal customers and prospects gives you the influence to change more people’s lives and gain a greater income. Here are three action steps you can take right now to grow your list and retain loyal customers and followers.
Not taking chances may feel like the safe way to go. But then you'll never experience the wonderful feeling of accomplishing something really great.
"Take chances, make mistakes. That's how you grow. Pain nourishes your courage. You have to fail in order to practice being brave."
– Mary Tyler Moore
When did you take a chance and it turned out to be a great experience? I'd love to hear your stories!
Never shirk from thinking big. If you limit yourself to what you think you can achieve, you will limit your a
chievements.
"Nurture your mind with great thoughts, for you will never go any higher than you think."
– British Prime Minister, Benjamin Disraeli (1804 – 1881)
