This week, I asked my friends a question about partnerships.

“My friends, if you are a contributor on Expert Briefs, it is assumed you have reached a certain level of success in your businesses.

So, my question is ‘What can someone possibly do or offer that would entice you into a business partnership at this stage?”

I think you'll enjoy the responses.

Kevin Riley of  Blogpreneur Training says:

I rarely partner with anyone, but have on a few small projects. Those projects were done with someone I fully trusted to pull their own weight – and that's a super important point. Most partnerships I've seen fail, do so because one partner was not doing their fair share of the work.

For a partner project to work well, all the responsibilities need to be well defined at the beginning, and each partner must be fully accountable for their tasks. If I were to partner with someone on a project, I need to know first of all that they can be relied upon to complete their assigned tasks within a specified time period.

So, would I partner with someone now? And what would it take to partner with me?

As I'm busily embarking on a new business, the openings in my schedule for another project are few; however, if an interesting project presented itself (and as a partner I'd only need to dedicate half as much time to the project) I could be tempted – if the project would fit into my present business model and focus at Kevin Riley Publishing (since the new business is all in Japanese, I doubt anyone would want to partner on a project for it).

In a potential partnership, there are a few things that would need to be met. First off, I need to know that the potential partner is reliable – has a good track record for completion, has a good reputation online, etc. And, since my main interest in a project is the creation of the product, I would be more interested in partnering with someone who would want to take on the marketing, while I create the product. If someone is ready to meet these parameters and wants to partner with me on a project, the best approach would be to send me a clear, well-written (but brief) proposal.

Lain Ehmann of Crafting Your Business, Step-by-Step says:

The biggest thing someone could do is to demonstrate an understanding of my market and my business. If they present a partnership opportunity to me that doesn't match what my audience needs, or overlaps something that I already offer, then it's a non-starter.

Also, if they make it as easy as possible for me to promote (with access to the material, promo information, etc.) then I'll be more likely to jump on it!

Kelly McCausey of Solo Smarts Podcast says:

The smart people I've partnered with in the past have pulled me into projects and profits I'd never dreamed of on my own. They changed the way I see myself. Does that make sense? Over the years I've had seasons where everything I do is on my own and that's fine, but I find myself craving partnerships again. There's something energizing about working with someone else with equal motivation and different gifts.

So what would entice me?

A person with a fire in their belly to grow their income would be very appealing to me. Someone who shares my target market but brings a different set of skills to the table.

Speaking of partnerships and enticements… just this week I announced a new partnership for my Solo Masterminds membership. I'm welcoming the awesome Melissa Ingold (Special Report Club) as my partner and co-coach and I couldn't be more thrilled.

Solo Masterminds has been around since 2004, we launched as a membership for work at home moms and enjoyed many years of success. As I've rebranded myself over the last two years, the membership is about to go through another change. We'll be welcoming men into the membership for the first time, in just a few weeks.

In this situation, timing was so right. Melissa was interested in building up a membership and since she got her early start from within the Solo Masterminds membership she really liked the idea of helping take it to greater heights. At the same time, here I am with a big old fire in my belly, HUNGRY to grow my business and do great new things.

Partnership is so much about making a great connection, coming together at the right time and having a united goal. Working with Melissa is going to be great. I know it!

Nicole Dean of .. here! .. says:

I have had a lot of partnerships over the years. Just counting quickly I can think of 10 different people who I've partnered with over the years.

• Some of my partnerships have been AWESOME.
• Most have been positive.
• A few have not. (I have several grey hairs from one particularly terrible partnership.)

Anyway, I find this topic interesting as my answer to this question has definitely changed over the years.

A few years ago, I was much more open to partnerships.

While I am still open to a win-win (or I'd be silly not to be), I'm definitely more hesitant to get into a partnership now than I have been in the past. If I have an idea for a project, I'd rather create it myself, use my own team, and/or get an intern to help. That way it's part of my core business.

So what would someone need to bring to the table at this point to really interest me?

The biggest things someone can do to entice me into a partnership would be to bring in all of the following:

• a ton of sweat equity or an existing project that is profitable
• a hard work ethic
• a great reputation
• unbreakable integrity when dealing with money
• a positive mindset
• an attitude of FUN

Those are all must-haves.

Also on my wish list would be:

• Skills (preferably different than my own)
• Experience, preferably in marketing and in taking at least one past project to success
• A Network or Community of People (connections)
• A Team of at Least a Few Helpers in place (so that we're not burdening my staff)
• A Vision for the project

Of course, I wouldn't expect someone to have all things in place, but the more, the better.

Basically my rule of thumb for partnering is the same as my rule for getting JV partners.

“If I feel like a moron saying ‘no', I won't.”

Make the offer so irresistible that your potential partner will lose sleep thinking about passing on the opportunity.

That's how you get them.

Speaking of partnerships, just yesterday, I teamed up with my good friend, and business partner, Melissa Ingold on this fun new project:

We are releasing Business Transformation Packs to help Coaches to have a more profitable business.

We just announced our first one and you can check it out here:
Business Transformation Pack: Coaching Business Start Up to Step Up

What about You?

Please share your thoughts about partnerships, your experiences, and your questions below.

I'm looking forward to hearing from you.

Warmly,
Nicole

These posts, unlike Expert Briefs, are short, quick reads and are mainly photos of fun things that I've found.

I'm going to start with this advertisement that I saw while waiting for a bus in Ireland.

It certainly got my attention.

“Drop your Trousers” vs. “Drop off your clothes with us to be cleaned“.

Which grabs your attention more?

What do you think?

Does it make you suddenly want to get your clothes cleaned?

Warmly,
Nicole Dean

PS. You can see past Marketing Monday moments here: Clever & Unique Marketing

If you've missed past Expert Briefs, you can click on the undies to see them all –>

Big News! I just finished writing my new book that will, hopefully, be published soon. (WOO HOO!)

Because I've been thinking about books 24/7, it reminded me that I haven't asked my friend what they're reading lately.

Therefore, we're revisiting a popular Expert Briefs topic this week …

What are you reading?

Here are their replies. You can click on any cover to check out that book.

(Also, be sure to check out more about each of my friends. That's how I get them to come back.) 

Rachel Rofe of How To Get Every Book You Write Onto The First Page Of Kindle says:

I'm always in the middle of a few books. Right now I'm reading through three books which are all EXTREMELY great.

#1 is The Charge: Activating the 10 Human Drives That Make You Feel Alive by Brendon Burchard. This is a phenomenal book that fills me with energy every time I read it.

#2 is Outwitting the Devil: The Secret to Freedom and Success by Napoleon Hill. I'm re-reading it as it's one of my Top 3 books and just amazing.

#3 is The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business by Charles Duhigg. One of my subscribers insisted I read this and I'm so glad he did. I started reading it in Hawaii and couldn't put it down! I love it.

Lain Ehmann of Business Love Potion says:

I'm reading a ton of stuff!

The Lean Startup: How Today's Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesses by Eric Ries

Just finished

No B.S. Marketing to the Affluent: The No Holds Barred, Kick Butt, Take No Prisoners Guide to Getting Really Rich by Dan Kennedy. He's always thought-provoking.

And the kids and I are reading “Paddington Goes Abroad” at bedtime.

Kelly McCausey of Solo Smarts says:

I am reading The Power of Story: Change Your Story, Change Your Destiny in Business and in Life by Jim Loehr.

A couple years back I got a lot out of another book from Jim, The Power of Full Engagement: Managing Energy, Not Time, Is the Key to High Performance and Personal Renewal. I pre-ordered The Power of Story as soon as I heard about it. It's not a business book but it has a lot to do with helping you be more successful in business as well as life.

It's about the story we tell ourselves and others about us. Most of us are telling a terrible story that isn't even based in truth. It's not a light read, he's asking me to truly evaluate what I have to say about myself. I'm convinced though that it will be worth it – I've already noticed how I'm not so quick to make reference to some ‘reasons' for this or that.

Imagine dropping all of your story crutches and standing on your own two feet instead of your own two feet plus the 50 or so good reasons that you haven't been able to succeed so far. Life gives us a lot of reasons to fail but it doesn't have to be part of my story – especially when I'm the one who gets to tell it from now on.

David Perdew of NAMS says:

Oh, I’m reading so much always. I usually have 4-6 books going at once in different genres…and since I have them all on my Kindle Fire, I can read as my mood suits me.

Self-Help –

Breaking The Habit of Being Yourself: How to Lose Your Mind and Create a New One by Dr. Joe Dispenza. I LOVE this book. It makes so much sense to me. If you’re like me, you do things over and over that may cause a feeling of unease or physical pain in your stomach some times. It can be something as small as sneaking a candy bar when I’m trying to improve my blood sugar count. I have a visceral reaction to the things I no longer want to do, but have become rooted habits in my daily life. This book is really helping me see how to change those things by describing the exact process that goes on in your brain and body.

Make A Killing On Kindle (Without Blogging, Facebook Or Twitter). The Guerilla Marketer's Guide To Selling Ebooks On Amazon by Michael Alvear. The author is a successful Kindle publisher and publishing coach. He provides a lot of examples for great Kindle publishing strategies as well as some specific techniques. Many of them are basic, but I need those too.

Ultimate Guide to Facebook Advertising: How to Access 600 Million Customers in 10 Minutes by Perry Marshall and Thomas Meloche. Perry was THE leading expert in Google advertising techniques with his previous book 10 years ago. And now, he’s focusing on Facebook. Just starting this, but can’t wait to learn what Perry’s teaching.

Imperfect: An Improbable Life by Jim Abbott and Tim Brown. If you’re a baseball fan, you know who Jim Abbott is. He was a pitcher in the 80’s and 90’s who happened to be one-handed. Not only did he play in the major leagues with a very respectable career, but despite all odds, he was a gold medal Olympian who pitched a no-hitter in the majors.

And because I’m at the beach in Florida while writing this, I’m reading Skin Tight by Carl Hiaasen. He’s one of my favorite trash novelists who can turn murder and mayhem into some of the strangest and funniest situations you’ll ever read, and it’s all set in the pink flamingo world of corrupt land developers, crooked cops, crazy ex-governors, and strippers with hearts of gold.

Connie Ragen Green of Affiliate Marketing Secrets Explained says:

I'm reading The Leader's Guide to Storytelling: Mastering the Art and Discipline of Business Narrative by Stephen Denning. I have used storytelling to build up my business in a very short period of time, and it's my goal to learn more about this topic as I strive to become a leader in my field. This book presents the idea of using your stories to build a powerful business in a clear and concise way.

Shannon Cherry of Get Free Business Help (ie. How to Get Interns) says:

I'm in the midst of rebranding my business, so a lot of what I'm reading has to do with it. Here are my selections on my Kindle right now:

1)The Story Factor (2nd Revised Edition): Inspiration, Influence, and Persuasion through the Art of Storytelling – I like telling stories to make certain points, but have never actively done so. This book is pretty good so far at explaining the why of storytelling… I am hoping to get to how it works from a marketing standpoint soon!

2)The secret weapon of a master direct response online copywriter: How to position your brand for success, based on the research of Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung – I just did some archetype work with my pal Danielle Miller, to help me with my brand. Now I want to take it one step closer to how to write based on my own archetypes (Hero, Ruler and Creator). It should be fun, especially when I incorporate it with my story telling.

I'm currently reading the Steve Jobs biography (again) – mainly for insight into their software development process since we run our own software company

Besides that, I'm reading Evernote For Dummies off and on a bit each day. To me, Evernote is going to be one of the next big communication channels, so I'm trying to wrap my head around it now.

Daniel Hall of Procrastinators Guide To Authorship Complete Training says:

I'm currently reading

The Back of the Napkin (Expanded Edition): Solving Problems and Selling Ideas with Pictures

and

Trust Me, I'm Lying: Confessions of a Media Manipulator

Nicole Dean of .. here! .. says:

ooh. I'm definitely going to have to check out several of those books.

Here's what I'm reading.

1. The 10X Rule.

I just dug the 10x Rule out again. The 10X Rule: The Only Difference Between Success and Failure I didn't finish reading it before, because every time I started a chapter, I got so motivated that I would put the book down and go WORK. That's not a bad thing.

I'm also reading this book by my friend, Aileen Bennett. It's full of doodles. She's a girl after my own heart. Even if you  have no intention of learning more about your presentation skills, still go check this out at Amazon and do the “Look inside” feature -> Notes on Shining: Tips to improve your presentation skills It's pretty darned clever.

It's Your Turn to Shine.

Please let me know what are you currently reading. Would you recommend it?

I appreciate you much.

Warmly,
Nicole Dean

Recommended.

Here are some of the books that my friends recommended the last time I asked this question, which was last year.

If you've missed past Expert Briefs, you can click on the undies to see them all –>

Everyone always wants to know how to grow a list, what works and what doesn't, especially when they're new to email marketing. This week I asked our experts what advice they would give in this situation.

Let's say I'm a blogger with no products of my own.
What's the fastest way you would recommend that I build my list?

Here are their replies.

Jeanette S. Cates, PhD of Organize Your Online Business says:

You certainly don't need a product in order to build a list. But you do need several optin gifts, such as reports, audios, or videos. I find it best (and most effective) when I rotate these optin boxes, so that they are not always the same. That also helps me segment my list as it grows.

I use Robert Plank's Action Optin for my optin box, since they can join the list and never leave the page they're on. It just gives them the thank you message in the same space.

I change the offer every couple of weeks to keep it fresh.

It's also a good idea to notify the list that you DO have, as well as your social media contacts when you publish a new blog post. You can do this via email, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn. This gives them the chance to see and comment on your blog post, as well as opt into your current offer.

I've also used the Covert Messenger Pro plugin that Nicole uses on her blog now and then. It's a great way to draw attention to a new offer or event. And it's easy to use and change!

Dr. Jeanette Cates works with online business owners who are ready to expand their Online Success. She provides training for new and intermediate marketers in her well-respected Online Success Incubator  course.

Lain Ehmann of Business Love Potion says:

Create a product! No, seriously – people need a reason to sign up for your list. Discounts, special exclusives, a free download — these are all great “bait” to lure them into your list – where you'll give them MORE goodies.

Even if you're primarily an affiliate marketer, you should establish yourself as an authority, and one of the best ways of doing so is through creating your own product. Here are some ideas:

• Checklist (“10 things you need to know before you write your next poem”)
• Special report (“The five biggest mistakes in ferret ownership and how to avoid them”)
• Audio interviews
• eBooks
• Free five-part email class (“Five Days to Silkier Skin”)

Then offer this product as a gift when someone signs up for your email list. Voila, instant subscribers!

Lain knows how to enchant her readers. Check out her podcast here: Business Love Potion

Connie Ragen Green of Affiliate Marketing Secrets Explained says:

Bloggers are in the enviable position of writing regularly on their topic. In order to build a list quickly I would recommend writing reviews of products, courses, and services in your niche, and to add a relevant short report as a bonus to anyone who buys through your link. Continue to blog about the benefits of being on your list, and ask people to share your posts on social media. This will bring you some income, build your list, and massively increase your visibility in a short period of time as the buzz grows about what you have to offer your audience.

How Has Connie won so Many Affiliate Contests? Find out here -> Affiliate Marketing Secrets Explained

Susanne Myers of  Daily Affiliate Tasks says:

There are a million and one ways to grow your list and a lot of them you can do from your blog. That being said, I get the best results from a very basic strategy … but you have to do it well and constantly test and tweak for best results. Here it is…

Have The Basics In Place and Then Tweak Them

The best way to grow your list from your blog is to have some sort of optin form on every page of your site, to offer a goodie or ethical bribe in exchange for your readers’ email addresses, to overcome any objections they may have for signing up and to ask your own readers to help you grow your list further.

Yes, this is pretty basic stuff, but are you doing all of it? Let’s look at each of these in a little more detail.

1. Optin Form on Every Page

Go check on your blog and see if you have some sort of optin form on every single page. It’s pretty easy to do with WordPress. You can add it to the sidebar or tweak your blog template so it’s automatically added to the bottom of every post.

Next it’s time to tweak and test. Try a different placement for your optin form. Test different copy, color, layout … you name it. If you can think of something to change, it’s worth testing. If you are using Aweber it’s very easy to set up split tests directly in your Aweber account settings. No need to change your Blog files every time you test something new.

Keep testing and keep improving your optin rate to grow your list faster and faster.

2. Offer An Ethical Bribe

Again… it’s a pretty obvious one. Make sure you offer something to new subscribers. This could be a short report, an audio or video recording, a coupon code etc. If you have an offer in place now, take a look at it. Does it still work? (You can use PLR content to create this.)

Either way it’s time to do some testing. Come up with a few different goodies to give away and see which one works best. This doesn’t have to be complicated. Just mention a different one in each test version and then add links to all of them in your welcome email that goes out automatically. You can mention in there that you’re throwing in a few extra bonuses that you thought they might enjoy.

3. Overcome Objections

Another good idea is to overcome any objections your blog readers may have. A great way to do that is to write up a page with 10 good reasons why someone should sign up for your list. Link to that page from right below your autoresponder signup box.

Here’s an example of my page for my Affiliate Treasure Chest blog.

4. Ask For Referrals

Last but not least, let’s talk about my favorite strategy. It’s getting my existing subscribers to help me grow my list faster. Every few weeks I ask them (usually in a P.S.) to help me grow the list by referring others to it. I invite them to share my emails with colleagues and friends that may also be interested in the topic.

I LOVE my Susanne friend! Check out her Daily Affiliate Tasks here.

David Perdew of NAMS says:

Because MyNAMS.com is a membership site, we’ve focused on growing that members’ list organically and without undercutting any of our affiliates. That’s a tall order. It means slow growth until we have a system in place that protects our affiliates first.

For example, I won’t send traffic to an aWeber opt-in page first. If we do that, we’re just raiding the affiliates list.

So, we built a list opt-in box that adds prospects to a free membership first, THEN to the autoresponder list.

Now, we’re customizing our opt-in process to recognize whether visitors are logged in (if so, don’t show them the sign up box), and whether they’ve signed up for the product on that page already (if so, don’t show them the sign up box).

I’ve been really slow creating opt-in funnels because I wanted to respect the traffic source. But now that we’re set up with target specific, non-invasive opt-in technology that rewards our affiliates, every page of MyNAMS will have a popup box to harvest the maximize number of visitors.

That kind of list building is really good for our affiliates since they are tagged with lifetime database referrals. In other words, more passive commissions through better list building

Be sure to sign up for David's free weekly webinars here: NAMS Training

Rachel Rofe of How To Get Every Book You Write Onto The First Page Of Kindle says:

To build your list, there a few things you could do.

First, you could do some kind of 30 day challenge based around whatever your niche is. So let's say you're in scrapbooking… maybe you can post a new scrapbook every day for 30 days.

If you're in “learn to play piano”, you can have videos showing you learning to play the piano.

If you're in internet marketing, post about what you are doing to earn money.

All of these should be done with affiliate links included. As you post more and more, people will get more enrolled in your journey and sign up just not to miss the updates.

When you're done with your challenge, offer an opt-in with your main learnings from the past 30 days. People can sign up to get the report that explains your main takeaways, what you would've done differently, etc.

This would be highly valuable to people.

Another idea to build your list would be to blog with excellent content, like Steve Pavlina, and just offer a newsletter for people to get your updates. Steve didn't have any of his own products for a LONG time and was still highly successful and one of the most trafficked blogs on the web.

Another idea would be to hold contests for your blog readers. If you can make your readership engaging (contests, particularly viral ones), people will keep coming back just for the inevitable community you build.

Rachel's customers are getting results with her latest product: How To Get Every Book You Write Onto The First Page Of Kindle

Kelly McCausey of Solo Smarts Podcast says:

This is a tip for podcasters. During a podcasting webinar earlier this year, we were brainstorming ways to get the most out of your podcast content and we came up with the idea of building a list from your podcast listeners by transcribing the best interviews and making them available to list members for free.

I don't transcribe the entire episode, just the guest interview alone. I don't transcribe every interview, just those that strike me as being really meaty.

When I publish the podcast I add a note like this one: “Prefer to read rather than listen? Subscribe to my list and get a free interview transcript!”

I manage this by storing the transcripts in a protected folder and provide new subscribers with the password.

Since I started doing this I see little bursts of new optins (as few as ten, as much as twenty-five) on the weeks that I offer a new transcript.

Be sure to check out Kelly’s podcasting course. You can check that out here: Smart Podcasting Skills

Nicole Dean of .. here! .. says:

Lists, lists, lists.  So much to say. So little time.

I have many thoughts on this topic. But first, let me share one thing that I've done.

The last few weeks, I decided to give some attention to my lists. And, it's paying off very nicely.

If you've been around recently, you may have noticed some things changing. Well, most of that was to make it irresistible to sign up for my list. While I don't think I'm at irresistible yet, I think it's much more appealing.

Here's what I've been up to.

Step One: Sexy-up the Bait.

First of all, you'll notice that I made the “bait” sexier to sign up for my blog updates. When they sign up, they get not just updates, but THREE awesome reports. (Soon to be more.)

1. Where to Find Images for your Blog Posts.

2. 104 Blog Title Ideas (printable list)

3. List of the Tools that Power my Business

You could easily use PLR content to create these or just take your most popular blog posts and turn them into pdfs. Either way works.

Step Two: Sexy-up the Signup Forms.

Next, I made the signup boxes a bit more updated and current as you can see.

The new Side nav opt-in looks like this:

I added a new top opt-in box which looks like this:

And, we updated the opt-in at the bottom of the posts, too. (Although that little pokey out black thing still needs to be removed.)

 I *wish* I had a tool to recommend to make these pretty boxes. I've tried several and they've all been buggy and disappointing, so I shall just keep them to myself. BUT – I just bought ANOTHER program, so I'm testing it and am hopeful that we have a winner. Keep your fingers crossed. If it works as well as they say it will, you'll be hearing about it very soon.

Step Three: Sexy-up Your Testing.

Make sure you're using different signup forms on your blog so that you can easily track your results in Aweber.

Even better would be if you used Aweber's split testing feature that is built into their program to see which sign-up forms are getting the best results. I have used that in the past and it provides great feedback. But we haven't done it yet with these. We will though.

Step Four: Sexy-up Your Traffic.

The fourth thing to do is to boost your traffic so you get lots of people on your blog. That will give you a true test to see if your new forms are getting more signups than your old ones.

There are several ways to get more traffic to your blog, fast. These are two of my favorites.

The first one may not be the most interesting way you've ever heard, but it flat out works.

Here's a free report you can have to read more about it.

• The Easiest Way to Get More Blog Traffic (pdf)

Note: The Workshop that's mentioned in that document “Get to Know Your Blog Stats” – use coupon code “peeps25” to save 25% on it if you decide to sign up.

The second method that I like to use is Guest Blogging.

If you're new to my blog or are just getting to know me, I'll let you in on a cool thing about me, I did 75 guest blog posts during a 15 week spell a few summers ago. It was AWESOME for my exposure.

I have a course that explains the methods to my madness and you can check that out here if you'd like: Guest Blogging on Steroids.

So Talk to Me.

What are your biggest questions about building your list on your blog?

What has worked well for you in the past?

Well, I'm going to get off this computer and enjoy the beautiful day outside.

Talk soon.

Warmly,
Nicole Dean

I thought I'd do a quick link roundup to share so they were all in one place for you.

Here you go…

How Do You Choose a Profitable Niche? 
This is an Expert Briefs blog post that I really love.
Each person answered the question “If you were going to start over in a new niche (not internet marketing or business related) – how would you choose which niche? Also, how would you know that it would be profitable before jumping in?”

Niche Research – A Step-By-Step Approach To Creating A Niche Website 
Written by Susanne Myers.
Quote from this article “Before you start building your new site, I want you to check on one more thing… Are there any products (eletronic or physical) that you can sell to this market? “

3 Easy Ways To Create Niche Products
Written by Susanne Myers.
Quote from this article “I know it can seem a little intimidating to create your own information product, especially if you’ve never done it before. Here are three different ways to create niche products that are all very simple and straight forward.”

How do you decide which idea to turn into a product?
Written by Erica Douglass.
Quote from this article “It’s awfully hard to sell a niche product if there’s just no one out there looking for the information you want to sell.”

Where Can You Learn More about Finding a Hot Niche Market?

Recommended Resource #1

My friend, Susanne creates Niche Research Packs and can help you to determine if you're entering a profitable niche or not. She’s done the research for you.

In each pack, you get…

• Detailed niche description
• Who your target market for this niche is
• List of affiliate products available
• 100 domain name ideas (plus list of modifiers for hundreds more)
• Detailed keyword report for over 1000 keywords
• 100 article and blog post ideas
• 15 different author resource boxes
• 2 different detailed marketing plans (beginner and advanced) with action steps to get you up and running right away.
• List of available PLR products for this niche
• Recommended tools and resources

Here’s the link: Niche Research Packs

Recommended Resource #2: Free Webinar by Kevin Riley

Click on the arrow to go to the page where you can listen.

(You'll find this hour long webinar free to listen to on that page.)

Warmly,
Nicole Dean

PS. I can't talk about niches without mentioning Weird Niche Wednesdays. From handerpants (underpants for your hands) to bacon candles – there's a niche for that.

If you've missed past Expert Briefs, you can click on the undies to see them all –>

There appears to be a fine line between FOCUS and Diversification at times. On the one hand, you want to focus your business and your business assets for greatest return on investment. On the other hand, you want to have some diversification.
(Translation: Don't put all of your eggs in one basket.)

So, I was wondering how you've diversified your business or your income. Do you have multiple income streams? If so, how'd you choose them, and what are they? Thanks!

I think you'll find the answers this week interesting and hopefully motivating.

Rachel Rofe of RachelRofe.com says:

This is a GREAT question.

I would say that it makes sense to focus on one project at a time until it's systemized and as “hands off” as possible.

For example, when I launch a new site, there's a week or two period when I get extremely excited about laying out all of my ideas.

I get people on board, I have outsourcers ready to get things going, and then I have a system where I don't need to do much for its long term success.

Once that's done, I feel free to move on to the next thing.

I strongly believe that “if you chase two rabbits, both will escape”… so I only work on ONE of these projects at a time.

Some of my multiple income streams are different types of sites – I have sites where I teach people about internet marketing, smaller niche sites, membership sites, affiliate sites, help offline businesses with their internet marketing, do consulting, speaking, and more. And I've recently started dabbling in real estate.

Basically I do whatever excites me and seems to have a good profit potential… and it's worked pretty well for me!

Kristen Eckstein of Finish Writing Your Book Fast: Book Writing for Procrastinators says:

I've found that I needed to focus on one niche to maximize ROI. However, it's still important to diversify within that niche. For instance, instead of having a site about “How to potty train your cat” and “How to market your book” and “How to make money with underwater basket weaving” (diversity in many niches), I've chosen to focus on one niche and diversify within that as follows:

• Imagine! Studios, LLC – Parent company providing graphic design and book coaching services, mostly for items relating to books and book marketing materials.
• Imagine! Books – my indie publishing company that sells my own books.
• “Finish the Book!” – writing coaching programs designed to help people get their books written in record time.
• “I am Published!” – Indie publishing consulting programs set up as done-for-you solutions that keep the author in 100% control over the production, distribution and repurposing rights.
• “Market My Book!” – DIY course that teaches how to develop a 4-month book marketing plan in less than one hour, with optional done-for-you packages to upgrade to.

Each of these programs has a freebie opt-in with autoresponders directing people to more valuable how-to info as well as info on the paid programs. By diversifying within my niche, I've created 4 streams of income for services and digital products, as well as a separate stream of income for each book I publish. Right now I have 10 streams of income as a direct result of diversifying within my niche.

It wasn't always this way. When asked, “What do you do?” I used to answer, “Everything on the back of my business card.” That was everything from graphic design to photography to art licensing and illustration to book coaching… I was wearing myself ragged trying to keep up, and I was an expert at being an expert in nothing. By focusing on books, which includes writing, publishing and marketing, I have set myself up as an expert in books and as a direct result my business has grown over 500% in the past two years, when I was struggling with shoot-in-the-dark tactics before.

Some niches only have a little diversifying ability, so I would encourage anyone to choose one niche, diversify as much within that niche as possible, then once you feel you can branch out into another niche and your current one is working on auto-pilot, do so. As for me, I think I'll stick within the niche of books. There's plenty there for me to keep diversifying in!

Felicia Slattery of Signature Speech Secrets says:

I diversify my business by keeping everything I do related but different enough so I can always count on at least one part of my work to bring me income on a regular basis (that mortgage has to be paid & the kids gotta eat!!).

First I'm a professional speaker and I make money either on the front end by my clients, in this case meeting planners, paying me to be there OR by selling my products and services from the stage (that's 2 different forms of professional speaking, by the way — so there's diversification even in that!).

Next, I work with private clients in my consulting business. I limit my regular private clients to 5 at any given time so I can really focus on their individual needs and provide excellent service.

For a while I had removed just about everything I had for sale online because I was in the process of rebranding myself a bit. Now that process is complete, I'm systematically rolling through my 5 years' worth of content, refreshing and releasing my work for sale using basic Internet marketing strategies. (Love those sales that come in while I sleep, play with the kids at the pool, or go on date night with my hubby!).

Of course I make money promoting affiliate products and services, but in a very minimal way. I could take a few lessons from you on that!

Finally, my last stream of income is from sponsors. I learned how to do that from one of our colleagues and mutual friend, Shannon Cherry, and it's been another excellent source of big ticket revenue for me.

Everything I do relates to my area of expertise: communication and public speaking. Keeping that SKILL focus allows me to diversify where my income comes from so I never have to count on just one form of income and worry that it might dry up. It's been an effective way to run my business and know I'll always have money rolling in.

Nicole Dean of .. here! .. says:

The reason why I asked this question is that I was preparing my presentation for the NAMS Conference in Atlanta and the topic was “Building Assets: Multiple Streams of Income without Madness”.

Why is this a Problem?

The problem is that, we suffer from Entrepreneurial ADD. (Admit it.)

I think a bigger problem though – the root of the problem – is lack of confidence in 3 things:

1. That this whole internet marketing thing really works.

2. That your idea is good enough.

3. That YOU are good enough.

You put those three things together and it becomes VERY tempting to jump ship to a new niche or market or “easy button” on a monthly basis.

The problem is that, as you're jumping from project to project and idea to idea, you aren't getting any momentum.

The other problem with diversification is that you're splitting your time between less profitable projects and more profitable projects (an average) – rather than throwing your everything into the highest profit projects you have.

So, does that mean that focus is the answer?

Well, there is a reason why race horses wear blinders, right? To get to the finish line without distraction.

However, there is also an advantage to having a little diversification, too.

1. What IF … you put all your eggs in one basket and something happened. You'd lose your entire income.

2. It's fun to play. I find that, having some variety gives me the opportunity to play and avoid boredom.

It truly is a balancing act.

What Have I Done?

Over the years, after spreading myself too thin on a bunch of niche sites (and driving myself totally insane), I've focused in on my core strengths and have put the blinders on to other distractions.

My core mission is:

To Help Busy Online Marketers, specifically InfoProduct Sellers (and future InfoProduct Sellers), to Build Sustainable Online Businesses that Help them Reach their Financial and Lifestyle Goals while Making both the Web and the World a Better Place. And, Hopefully Having a Lot of Fun While Doing It.

I do that through my PLR sites, my courses, this blog, a few conferences, and through my lists.

Yes, I still have a handful of niche sites. Those are my playgrounds where I can test things out to see if they work in the “real world”. Most of those are totally outsourced now and are just “free money” for me.

Throw your comments and questions at me about this, please. I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Warmly,
Nicole Dean

PS. Recommended! If you need someone to tell you “THIS project” is the one to focus on or “THIS traffic technique is what you need to be doing” – I recommend my friend (and mastermind partner who I brainstorm with on a daily basis), Susanne Myers, who offers private coaching for much cheaper than I do.

You can check it out here: Private Confidential Business Coaching with Susanne Myers.

I HIGHLY recommend it.

If you've missed past Expert Briefs, you can click on the undies to see them all –>

The question for this week is about outsourcing. I got this from a friend on Instant Messenger. I'll have to reword it a bit, but the gist is…

The questions in my head is about frickin' “entrepreneurs” masquerading as service providers – how do you find people that stick? Basically, I hire people who'd rather putter around in their own business than to actually work in a job as a service provider – which they were hired to do. I pay well and I'm easy to work for. What's the deal? How do you find people who WANT to work?

I think you'll find the answers this week interesting and hopefully motivating.

Rachel Rofe of RachelRofe.com says:

I totally understand your frustrations and have been there many times before.

I like testing people with small tasks first, seeing if they perform, and then giving them bigger ones.

I will never EVER entrust anybody with a big project until they've proven themselves. (I used to have a company with 120+ contracted employees so I've been burned a lot!)

I know this approach takes a little more time but it's well worth it in the end (and you can outsource the process to a virtual assistant so you don't have to worry).

You could also look for word of mouth referrals, check internet marketing forums, or do internet searches to gauge for reviews of specific providers.

Also, if you need a specific service provider, feel free to leave a comment at RachelRofe.com – I know a TON of people and would be happy to help!

Note from Nicole:
Rachel knows outsourcing. Her Outsourcing Report is very good (and affordable). I bought it and recommend it.

Check it out here: Happy Outsourcing

Connie Ragen Green of ConnieGreen.com says:

I have excellent experiences with outsourcing because I look for people who have fun doing the things I can't do or don't like to do. This makes a lot of sense, if you think about it.

In the beginning I tried to do everything myself, as many new entrepreneurs do. When it came to graphic design, I was beyond terrible. I even took a PhotoShop class at my local community college, but it did not help me at all. Then I found someone who had been playing around with graphics and web design since she was about 12 years old, and who was now doing it for others. She creates beautiful designs for me, including the cover of my first book, as well as my soon to be released next book.

Each day I take a look at what needs to be done in my business to see which activities I would rather not do myself. Then I turn that task over to someone who enjoys doing it. Usually the work is done more efficiently and with better quality than if I were to do it myself.

Ask others you know who they would recommend, and attend live events to meet people in person. In a group of two hundred attendees, there is more than likely someone who can help you do most anything you need help with in your business. This will free up your time to do the things you love to do, and to focus on your next steps as you build your online business.

Alice Seba of Contentrix says:

Just like with a brick and mortar business, it's not always easy getting good help, but when you find someone you hang onto them. The reverse is also true, if they aren't working out and don't seem to priorities in check, let them go.

Some ways to keep your good people:

* Communicate regularly. Make sure they are happy with the work and find out if they have any concerns.

* Communicate efficiently and be specific in your requests. There's nothing worse than a lack if clear direction and repeated revisions needed due to lack of communication.

* Help them excel in their best areas. If you hire a VA, for example, and they do certain tasks better then others, let them work in those areas. Find someone else who is good at the other stuff.

* Give them pay raises regularly, even if they don't ask. Make them feel appreciated and valued and realize someone who knows your business and is proactive in helping you with it is manifold more valuable than someone off the street.

The more you value you good work, the more good work you get.

Shannon Cherry of The Business Building Live Intensive says:

Gosh! I remember when I was going through help for my business like water. That was years ago – and it was extremely frustrating.

Today I have a great team who have stuck with me for some time. What's the secret to finding good help? It's you.

Seriously, I see many entrepreneurs blame their ‘helpers' for their ills. But the fact of the matter is, you, as the business owner, are not doing your job managing your team.

Do you have in place things like:

• job descriptions?
• policies and procedures, including a ‘trial period?'
• contracts for service providers?
• systems to get things done the way YOU want them done?
• a plan for your business and marketing?

If not, then it's your fault you can't find good help.

Many entrepreneurs hire help to be a ‘catch-all' instead of looking at the persons skills and strengths, as well as their personality. Imagine trying to get someone who is shy to try to cold call reporters. Not only will the person be unsuccessful at the task, but they will get frustrated – and often, simply disappear. (And if you are wondering, that happened to me a while back.)

The key to having a good working relationship is to have your ducks in order BEFORE you go hiring.

Felicia Slattery of Credibility and Cash Flow says:

Here's my take on finding people who want to work. It's simple, really– you go to places where those who want to work are hanging out, paying attention, and looking for work.

Places I like to go to find useful service providers:

• Fiverr.com — for $5 you can find people to do all sorts of quick, one-off types of things
• HireMyMom.com — This site is for Moms who have stepped away from the corporate world, who want to keep their skills sharp, and make some money while they are home raising their kids. You'll find highly qualified people here at very reasonable prices. Fill out an RFP and wait for the resumes.
• Elance.com — Be specific in what you're looking for, check out the feedback they received, and look for those who bid on your job to be personal in their response. Then Google them to see what you can find before hiring.

One place I'd be careful of is looking to folks on social media. While you can definitely find excellent talent and people willing to work, carefully look at how much time they seem to spend on the various social sites. If they seem to spend/waste a good portion of their days on social media chatting, they may not be doing much work in the background or they may be on social media to promote themselves — and we all know how addictive that can be. It could be difficult for some to get out of that rut and get to actual work. Not that you shouldn't look to network with people on social media, it's just not necessarily the first place I'd look when I want someone willing to roll up her sleeves and dig in.

Finally, be clear in what you are looking for and with everyone you hire draw up a simple contract or letter of agreement so you can communicate your expectations, deadlines, and other requirements. Oftentimes we get into trouble because of a lack of communication of expectations up front. Be clear about what you need, want and expect and you should easily find someone willing to meet the challenge and make some money!

Susanne Myers of AffiliateTreasureChest.com says:

I hear ya … been there, done that and it can get pretty frustrating. You're all excited to have someone take care of some crucial business tasks and then it just doesn't get done, they quit etc. Unfortunately we do sometimes have to go through quite a few assistants, VAs, service providers until we find the one that's a perfect fit. (I had to go through about 10 before I found the right one).

Let's talk about service providers for a minute. There are those that just want some tasks and a weekly or monthly paycheck in return. They are very reliable and work exclusively on this kind of stuff. The problem is you have to provide every single step of the process. They don't think outside the box, they don't see the bigger picture of where you're going with your business.

Service providers who are also entrepreneurs on the other hand will come to you with ideas and suggestions for improvement. They are the types of people you can hand an entire segment of your business to and have them run with it.

The thing to keep in mind to make this work is that these different types of assistants are motivated by different “things”. While paying well and being easy to work with is great for the first group of VAs, it won't quite cut it when you're dealing with an entrepreneurial minded person. They want more than just a paycheck for the hours they worked. One way to keep them focused on and interested in your business is to give them a cut of your profits. Another option may be to help them grow their business by referring sales, clients etc. Encourage them to work on their own products on the site and promote those if your target markets match.

One last tip and this is something I'm still working on. Document everything you have them do. Instead of just showing or emailing them about a task, take a few extra minutes to make a video or write the instructions in a word document. Save all this so you don't have to do it over if you need to train someone else.

Nicole Dean of .. here! .. says:

Oooh. I was so tempted not to answer this question and instead just defer to the others. But, I think the question wasn't quite clear. It was about outsourcing to other entrepreneurs rather than outsourcing in general. So, let me see if I can tackle it without offending anyone… Wish me luck.

As you may know, I go through a lot of helpers.

Wait. That sounded bad. eek! I mean, running 3 PLR sites, plus my niche sites, customer support, graphics, and even managing my household — it takes a village some times.

Although this question was submitted by a friend, it's one that I've struggled with over the years.  “How do you find people who want to work? Especially if they are entrepreneurs?”

This is a frequent scenario for us…

My Content Acquisition Manager: Would you like consistent writing work for Nicole Dean?

Writer: Really? OMG. YES! I'd love that. That would be awesome. I really need the money because (insert expense here ie. my husband lost his job, we have a leaky roof, our pet needs surgery, kid just got into private school, we're moving, etc.  ).

(They discuss price and topic of articles.)

My Content Acquisition Manager:  ok. Nicole pays weekly every Friday via Mass Pay. If you'd like to get into the current week's Mass Pay (and have Nicole pay the paypal fees instead of it coming out of the payment like normal) then I need this back by (date).  Can you do that?

Writer: YES!

Looks promising, right?

Here's what happens as the deadline approaches.

My Content Acquisition Manager: Checking in. The deadline is this afternoon. How's the article pack coming?

Writer: Well… (insert story – which is likely true – here). I need an extension.

My Content Acquisition Manager: When can you have it to us?

Writer: Tomorrow afternoon.

My Content Acquisition Manager: ok. Of course, you won't be paid until next Friday since you missed the cut-off. But that's fine. It has to be to us by that time.

Still looks promising, right?

Well, the next afternoon…

My Content Acquisition Manager: Do you have the articles ready?

Writer: No, I …

My Content Acquisition Manager: We're sorry, but we won't be able to work with you.

On to the next writer.

We probably go through 3-5 writers for every one that sticks (either for actually completing the project or for the high quality standards we have). When we find a writer that sticks, that person gets consistent work.

What's my point?

There are a few lessons that I've learned about outsourcing to entrepreneurs who are freelancers.

1. Many entrepreneurs are not good motivated freelancers, because they *really* want to be focusing on building their own businesses and getting passive income.

It's an ongoing battle for the freelancer. And, I can relate because I've been BOTH, myself. Feeling “stuck” working for an hourly rate, while really wanting to have a passive income. This is fine as long as the people on both sides of the fence recognize that. Just don't let resentment build between you.  As the business owner (the one doing the hiring), you're the one taking all the risk, bringing in the leads, and the one who is ultimately responsible for the success of your business. You're responsible for having the money to pay them at the end of each month, too. That's a lot of pressure. Where there's risk, there is reward.

2. If you hire an entrepreneur-freelancer to do work for you — recognize what's important to them, and try to acknowledge that.

This normally, in my experience, is not just about money. Not that money doesn't matter, too, of course, but you can give in additional ways that are meaningful. I always talk about the “The 5 Love Languages: The Secret to Love That Lasts” and how it applies to outsourcing. (If you haven't read that book, please do.)  Motivation comes from different things in different people.

It may be one or all of the following…

• Flexibility. Perhaps it's a college student or mom who needs a flexible schedule. Just knowing they can work at 9pm or 9am is enough to really keep them going.
• Doing something that matters. Hence the number of people who work for non-profit organizations.
• Feeling Appreciated. I've worked for bosses who could get me to do anything by appreciating me. Work long hours? Sure! No problem.
• Kind Words and Recognition. Similar to being appreciated, this can be huge. When I worked for Jimmy D. Brown, all he had to do was mention my name in an email that he sent to his list and I would hop around for a week, like it was my birthday.
• Doing what they Love. For some people, they want to be able to focus on their talents. So, if you find a Virtual Assistant who says that she's a customer support rep, but you find out that she plays with Search Engine Optimization in her free time for fun — then you might want to see if that's really what she'd prefer to be doing.
• Gifts. Some people like small gifts. Sending a surprise token of appreciation can be all that it takes.

And, for the entrepreneurs that I hire — oftentimes they want ME. My time. Which is fine if we've arranged that. But, of course, I can't coach every person who I work with all day long – so there is normally additional bartering that goes along with that. Even my mom expects and gets coaching time with me when she needs it.  That's part of our arrangement for her working for/with me.

Others trade work (sweat equity) for coaching time with me. I've had coaching clients for months and months — and they work for me in trade. For them, that's a better arrangement than having me pay them for their time spent working.  Each of us has profited much more from the bartering arrangement than we would have otherwise.

So what's my advice? Well… good question. Of course any outsourcing really comes down to the people on both sides of the relationship.  I've had some really great experiences and two where I had to consult my lawyer about starting litigation. (Don't ask.)

My advice is going to be a summary of what has already been said:

• Take it slowly with anyone new. Start small. Test the waters before making any commitments.
• Set up Standard Operating Procedures. This will ensure that expectations are clear from the start.
• Place people correctly. Find out what they love to do, instead of what they say they do.
• Continually look for new people. Make sure you have access to new people on a continual basis – if you need more than a few people working for you at a time.
• Understand what motivates your new hire. Praise publicly. Critique privately.
• Reassess often. The person you hire today to do a job may not be the same person who should be doing that job a year from now. (Either because they've bubbled up the ladder or down it.)
• Expect excellence, but plan for disaster. There's a saying I love – “Hope for the best, but plan for the worst.” That's the case in any area of business.

Go ahead and share your thoughts. I would love to hear your experiences on both sides of the outsourcing coin.

Hugs,
Nicole Dean

PS. Let me just say that I do encourage service providers to work on getting an alternate source of income, preferably passive income. But, not at the expense of meeting deadlines for clients or getting a bad reputation.  Schedule at least 1/2 hour every day on your own business, but keep all client obligations met. That's what I taught my mama.

Check out these Recommended Resources:

• Rachel has an Outsourcing course here: Happy Outsourcing
• I have an Outsourcing course here: Outsource Weekly
  

If you've missed past Expert Briefs, you can click on the undies to see them all –>

I am asked this question often and I think it's safe to say that it happens to everyone.

This week I asked our panel of experts …

When you're having a bad day or where you feel like throwing in the towel and just saying ‘screw it' what do you do to pick yourself back up and keep plugging along?

I think you'll find the answers this week interesting and hopefully motivating.

Denise Wakeman of Blog Squad Tips says:

Depending on how difficult the day is feeling for me, I do a couple of things;

1. Go to the gym or for a short run.
That almost always clears my head since I'm away from my desk/computer and focus on my body. A good workout will do wonders for my mental state.

2. If it's really bad, I contact my business mentor.
She can always talk me down from the “screw it” place and talk me back up to recognizing my gifts and how I serve others and that i am appreciated.

Between those two things, I can usually get myself back to work with a positive attitude.

Mark Mason of MasonWorld.com says:

OK — you are asking for the secret sauce now.

Seriously, I run into this problem all the time. Like a lot of internet marketers, I have a day job, a wife, four kids, a dog, a cat, two turtles (Pumble and Tumble) and five fish. I also have a house with a ton of chores. I usually don't work on internet marketing until after 10PM, and some days it is really easy just to “screw it” (Nicki's words) and go to bed (or watch old Law and Order re-runs).

When I feel that way, I use one of 2 strategies:

1. Instead of doing NOTHING, I pick something that I want to do that is not on my list of things that I need to do.
Check out some new software, read some blogs, do some fun social media work. Basically, I goof off on non-critical BUSINESS tasks. Stuff that I usually do not allow myself to do when I am focused on making real progress. Then at least I get SOMETHING done.

2. I work on my Motivational Monday series.
Now, many people think that I publish motivational blog posts just to help my readers. The truth is, they help me too. I intentionally started that series to help me stay motivated too.

Most of all, people need to remember that internet marketing is a marathon not a race. Pace yourself. To me, that means that it is actually OK to say “screw it” every now and then.

Lynette Chandler of TechBasedMarketing.com says:

Such a timely question because I was feeling so ready to throw in the towel last night. Thinking back to the last times I felt this way, here's what I did.

Let it go, do something else, or if it is late at night go to bed.
Sometimes a few hours will do the trick but sometimes it could be a day, two maybe a week. But that's the beauty of doing what we do. Take as long as you need. If however you are taking forever to find your fire again then something is seriously wrong and you'll probably want to do a re-evaluation of the business and direction you're heading.

Sometimes the point of frustration is more about an unpleasant task that has to be done.
The last time that happened to me, I wrote to my assistant and explained to her the issue, that I didn't want to do or think about it. The wonderful woman took the entire thing off my hands and let me move on again.

Talk.
I'm not a talker by nature but have found I really need someone to just talk things out with me from time to time with a few good friends in the business and also my husband. The last time I did this, I ended up with a new vision.

Lynn Terry of Clicknewz.com says:

I walk out the door and drive straight to McDonald's to pick up a job application. About halfway there, I realize how insane that is and turn around, then get back to work.

Seriously though, it happens to all of us. It could be an email that is totally deflating, or a nasty headache, but sometimes there are just days when you don't “feel it”.

If I have something specific scheduled, I take a deep breath (and maybe a short break or power walk) and then work my way through it. More often than not though, I don't – my schedule is very flexible. So in most cases I'll step away from the office and take a nice long nap or watch an engaging movie.

A big part of taking care of my business is taking care of myself.
I don't take that lightly, as I know all too well how burn-out or mental fatigue can affect my work. Fortunately with a flexible schedule I can work when I am at my best, and when I'm feeling inspired and creative. And otherwise nap and read and watch great movies.

Shannon Cherry of The Business Building Live Intensive says:

Usually it's more than just one bad day that makes me want to throw in the towel. It's a bad week. And when it's bad, all I want to do is tune out and tune into Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

For me, it's Buffy. For you, it could be playing on Facebook or cleaning the house. Whatever you do, it's avoidance. And it's a sign something is up.

So here's what I do:

1) Allow myself some time to detach.
Sometimes just having a break from it all can do wonders. I allow myself a half-day to do what I want. They key here is to set a time frame and keep it. Then get back to work.

2) I make a list.
Sometimes it's overwhelm that's got me paralyzed and turns a bad day into a bad week. Usually, this is something I do with a partner – either my husband or my accountability partner. That way I don't get caught up in the list (which I already have in my head anyway) and start getting it done. Once the list is made, I select the top three things that MUST get done today. The rest, as they say, is gravy!

3) I think about my WHY.
Why am I in business in the first place? What is the motivator behind all I do (the good, the bad and the yucky). For me, it's my girls. I want to be home when they are home. I want also have time to be their advocate, as they are on the Autism spectrum. So I need to make sure the time I am working is productive. I think of this… and get cracking.

Susanne Myers of AffiliateTreasureChest.com says:

As you well know Nicole, I have those days on a somewhat regular basis and you know what the first thing is I do.

Step One – Send an instant message to Nicole Dean

Sometimes all it takes is to hear a “poor baby” or get a virtual hug from someone who understands this biz, understands “you” and gets why that one nasty email you found in your inbox is ruining your entire day. That's why my first step is to instant message Nicole. She sets me straight and reminds me that I don't really want to go back to an office job.

Step Two – Work on something productive

Next, I try to work on a little something that makes me feel productive. If it results in some comments, sales or new signups, even better. I might write a quick article or blog post and publish it, send out an email, or turn some articles into a short report that I can give to my list.

Just making myself do something to grow my business is often enough to get me in a better mood.

Step Three – Look at how far I've come

If none of the above do the trick, I open Google Analytics, Clickbank, Aweber and my shopping cart and look at where I was at a year ago. Seeing how much more traffic I get now, how many more affiliate sales I am making and how much my list and customer base have grown is a great “pick-me-up”.

It may feel like I'm taking one step forward and 2 steps back, but the stats show that I am making progress.

Nicole Dean of .. here! .. says:

Wow! I got a lot of responses this week – and I didn't even have to send a reminder saying “Hey guys… you gonna answer or what?” lol. This is obviously a hot topic.

Everyone has given great advice. So, I'll say “ditto” to all of my smart friends above.

Before I dive in with my answer, I'd like to, once again, say how amazing my friends are to be so transparent and honest in their answers. Instead of saying “oh, I never feel that way. I just sit on the beach and suck margaritas all day and my life is perfect” – they shared the honest truth.

YES. Some days are deflating.  Some days, you lose your mojo completely. Yes. Some days you question whether getting a job would *really* be a bad thing.

Goodness. This month, I got an email from someone who I thought was a friend (or decent acquaintance at the least) that felt like a punch in the gut. It was totally over the top. That royally sucked. (Before you ask, it's no one who you guys know from Expert Briefs. These ARE friends.)

Other things that can make me want to say “screw it” are…

• Technical snafus that roadblock me. These drive me bonkers.
• Spending time creating and sending an email or freebie that I think my people will LOVE and it tanks. (Yes, that happens.)
• Getting a refund request with the words “I don't mean to be mean but…” in it. (I can count the times on one hand that it happens, but I can personally remember every time it has in the years I've been online.)
• Creating a new product that people have been asking for – but they don't buy right away in the big numbers you thought they would.

Stuff like that can send you reeling.

It can make you question everything.

• Who you are.
• What you're doing.
• Why you're doing it.
• IF you're actually helping anyone.
• And, whether or not you should even bother.

Back to the drawing board, right?

Connect with Someone Who Understands.

The FIRST thing I do is always the same – I connect with someone who understands and knows me and who I trust.

I normally get on IM or Skype with Susanne, Melissa Ingold, or Ronnie Nijmeh, and get myself back on track. Sometimes I'll get on the phone with Lynn or Scott Tousignant but not often enough.

Reboot your Brain.

Then, I give myself permission to lick my wounds a bit and get away from the computer to “reboot” my brain and my emotions. I know that if I try to power through it – it's ineffective for me. I have to step away for awhile.

Some of the other things I do are similar to the others:

1. Spend time with the kids if they're home.
2. Go throw the ball for my Einstein puppy for awhile.
3. Go beat myself up at the gym.
4. Go on a walk.
5. Take a bike ride.
6. Read a book that's not work-related in any way shape or form.
7. Indulge in some TV time. (Normally the TV is off while I'm working.)
8. Take a nap.
9. Get a pedicure.
10. Walk around and clean the house.
11. Do some laundry.
12. Run errands.
13. Go outside and rake.
14. Clean my car.
15. Drive to the beach.
16. Ask my Joe to take me out to lunch.
17. Jump in the shower or bath. I swear there is something magical about the shower. I don't know if it's the steam or the sensory deprivation or what, but I get the best ideas in there.
18. Step outside by the pool with a piece of paper and pencil and start doodling until things make sense again.

Keep a Happy File.

I also keep a “happy file”.  I print nice emails that I get from people and keep them in one place so I can go back and read them when I need a pick me up.

I also mark the nice things that people say to or about me on Twitter.com as “favorites” so I can pull those up when I'm feeling down. Here's how it looks. You can do this, too. http://twitter.com/#!/NicoleDean/favorites

Take Time to See how Far You've Come.

One thing that I talked about in the Q&A this month at www.IncomeCPR.com is that I always recommend to my coaching clients that they set up a binder with their monthly stats in it. It's like Mark said, this business is like running a marathon. Oftentimes, you don't realize how far you've come until you take a moment to look behind you. And, like Susanne said, look back 6 months or a year – at your list size, your traffic, your income… and see just how far you've come. That always helps to spur me on.

Understand that it's NOT Just You.

Sometimes it feels like bad stuff only happens to you. It doesn't. Just for fun, here's podcast that I recorded back in April 2009, the day that my pedal fell off my bike WHILE I was riding it.  I know I laughed really loudly in this recording – I apologize to your ears in advance!

Poop Happens and Wrestling with Moths – mp3 file

As I always say yes, you will fall. And, yes, poop happens – even to the “successful”.

Dust off those britches and get back into the game.

Hugs,
Nicole Dean

Check out this Recommended Resource:

Rachel Rofe & Ronnie Nijmeh created a cool course called Time Management Tricks.

Check it out if you want more info on organizing your day so you can spend less time in front of your computer — and more time living life.

If you've missed past Expert Briefs, you can click on the undies to see them all –>

I feel that being transparent is really important and shows the “real” person behind the business. So, on that note, this week I asked our panel of experts …

What's one mistake you've made with your blog?
And, what did you learn from it?

I think you'll find the answers this week helpful in developing your blogging strategy over the course of the year.

Connie Ragen Green of ConnieGreen.com says:

I started blogging in 2006, when I was brand new to the Internet. Even though I started taking classes and learning as much as I could, I made lots of mistakes. The biggest mistake I made with my blog was not planning out the categories ahead of time. Instead, I just started posting, and soon I had more categories than you can imagine. In fact, my list of categories looked like an Internet marketing dictionary!

The result was that I had very little search engine ranking for my main topic. As I learned more and more about SEO (search engine optimization) I began to change my ways, and soon people were finding me simply by searching on Google and the other search engines.

What I learned from this experience was that you must take action right away, but always be flexible enough to ‘course correct' along the way. Even though I made mistakes with my first blog, it was still the best way for me to get started online. As I continued to learn, I made small changes here and there to improve what I was doing. Over time, I was able to build my list and increase my income steadily each month.

I encourage you to get started blogging now, and not to wait until you think you know everything before getting started. This is an industry that changes on a regular basis, so even when we think we know everything there is to know, it is very likely that something new is right around the corner.

Shannon Cherry of The Business Building Live Intensive says:

I was one of those ‘early adopters' in blogging. Those were the days when blogging was more about journalling and less about business, so I wrote a lot of different stuff. It was a good time – and I even got media coverage in Entrepreneur Magazine as a result of my blogging.

However, I wasn't seeing any kind of conversion: no growth in my list, let alone sales. And at first, I couldn't figure it out. I knew the content I was sharing was good stuff. But why weren't people even commenting?

Turns out, I hadn't asked them to. You see, I never included a call to action on the blog at all. I made a terrible assumption that if my target market liked the content, they would figure it out. Essentially I was giving them good ideas and tips, but then they were left with a question “Now what?” vs a direction “Here's what I need to do next.”

Some calls to action on a blog can include:

• leave a comment
• share the link on social media
• check it out
• sign up now
• subscribe to the RSS feed
• buy now

What I also learned was to step up the calls to action gradually if you've never included them before. Basically you are training your audience to take action. So first, I asked them to leave comments. After watching the amount of comments I was getting, I stepped it up to ask for them to sign up for something for free (a report, audio, etc), until I felt confident that when I asked for a sale on my blog, I would convert. This strategy worked effectively for me.

Today, I offer a mix of calls to action, but on every post you will see one, no matter what.

Jeanette S. Cates, PhD of JeanetteCates.com says:

I started online in a different time when business was much more formal, and I've had a hard time adjusting to the “transparent” approach. So two mistakes I've made really stand out.

First I put off blogging and social media too long. I was sure it was a passing fad, but now that I've realized this is a whole movement in society, not just online, I'm having to play catch-up. So if you aren't blogging and you aren't actively working social media – get over it! And get on board.

Second is that I sometimes forget to post to my blog regularly. I tend to communicate with my list because they are MY people. But then I'm leaving out new people who I might get to know by not being more visible publicly on the blog. My most consistent blog posts have been when I prescheduled PLR articles (thank you Nicole!) mixed with my original articles, so that there was new content coming out as I worked on the rest of my business.

An observation: Just participating in Expert Briefs provides the opportunity for more transparency, especially when you ask us to reveal our mistakes. Scary!

Nicole Dean of .. here! .. says:

Let's see… so many mistakes… so little time to write them all.

Two big mistakes stand out that I've personally made.

1. Talking to the Crowd & Trying to Please Everyone.

The first one was not knowing who the heck I was talking to – or what the goal of my blog was.  When I first started blogging, it was PAINFUL to me. I didn't know what the heck I was doing, who I was writing to, or what they wanted to know about. At the time, my main site was ShowMomtheMoney.com – so I was alternating between articles about working from home, Direct Sales tips, business ideas, home organization, and internet marketing.

What a nightmare. I had no purpose and didn't know if my readers were interested in working from home, network marketing, internet marketing, or starting an offline business from home, like Tutoring. EH GADS!

About that same time, I started doing some work for Lorrie Morgan-Ferrero as her Affiliate Manager. She's one of the best copywriters on the planet (in my not so humble opinion) and I started to learn from her. The biggest lesson I picked up was a term she coined “Tarket” – which means your one person who is your target market. So, I forced myself to figure out and narrow down exactly WHO the heck that person was.

Now, it's easy as pie for me to blog. I get on here, and I know exactly who that person is. (Actually, I have two. One male coaching client of mine and one is a female coaching client of mine. I know their problems, their concerns, and their wishes and dreams.) And, now blogging is a breeze. I just think of things that they'd benefit from and voila! Done.

You may remember this blog post: Please All, and You Will Please None.

The same lesson applies.

2. Spending too much Time ON my blog instead of OFF of It.

This is one thing that I lecture my coaching clients about now. Get OFF your blog! Go steal someone else's audience. It's much easier to get people to read your blog that way.

What exactly do I mean by that?

Yes, it's important to focus energy on your own blog. But, it won't do you any good if no one sees it. That's why you need to dedicate time every day to getting exposure on other websites.

This can be accomplished in any number of ways, including…

• Article Marketing
• Guest Blogging
• Video Marketing
• Doing Podcast Interviews

Here's a blog post with more information on this topic:  How to Get One-Way Incoming Links

I hope it helps!

It’s Your Turn.

So, now, I’ll pose this question to you. What has been your biggest blogging mistake? Do you have any questions about the answers above that you’d like to ask? Go for it!

I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Warmly,
Nicole Dean

PS. Here are a few of my favorite Expert Briefs:

• Check out My Home Office… If you Dare!
• How to Decide What to Blog About Next
• How do you get people to comment on your blog?
• Internet Credibility. How to Establish that You’ve Got It?

Yesterday Scott gave us a serious talk about prioritizing *some* exercise into our days. Remember, something is better than nothing. More is always better, but doing nothing is really not an option.

That little talk hit home for a few of us. (Me included.) Go back and read it if you haven't: ROI on Exercise.

Today, I've got a silly little video Scott made that cracked me up as well as a 10 minute ab workout.

First the silly video. (Remember laughter is good exercise, too.) The ab video is below this one.

Is Computer Gut your problem?

Here's a 10 minute ab workout that'll knock your socks off.

Please post your update today. If you missed the first few weeks of this challenge, no worries. Jump in at any time!

((hugs)) to all and thank you!

Warmly,
Nicole Dean

Here’s where you can check out Scott & Angie’s Workouts:

• Sizzlin’ Circuits
• Fat Loss Quickie 10 Minute Home Office Workouts (Excellent!)
• Rock that Body (For a more advanced workout.)

Here' s the workout that I'm doing this month (which incorporates a variety of exercises).

You can grab this program for only $10 here, if you'd like to join me:

http://www.fatlossquickie.com/Sizzlin-Circuits.php