In a little less than two weeks.  The University of Arizona will be hosting National Collegiate Leadership Conference. This means that Tucson will be flooded with college students and university staff from all across the country.  With more than 80 workshops, this in one of the premier collegiate leadership workshops in the country. I have been given the opportunity to speak at this event and am extremely grateful for the opportunity.

My topic is Building a Personal Brand in a Digital Age. It will provide practical advice on how to brand yourself as  the leader corporations and clients are looking for.   Although this presentation will be tailored to college students and staff this is a critical topic for all professionals and business owners.  If you are unable to attend the conference you can read about all of the principles in my newest book, My Vision, My Plan, My Now.

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Today I had the opportunity to speak at the 2012 Arizona State Florist Association conference in Phoenix about how retail and wholesale florist could use social media to grow their businesses both locally and internationally. There were a number of current and future American Institute of Floral Designers (AFID)in attendance, to include Tim Farrell of Farrell’s Florist in Drexel Hill, PA and Telaflora.

I must admit that I had never explored the floraculture industry until I began to prepare for today’s event. However, after all of my research and having several good conversation with a number of designers I must say that I am pretty impressed with the creativity and business savvy required to be successful.

The slides from the presentation are below. While they don’t capture the full level of engagement I had with the audience through music, good humor and text polling. They do provide a good amount of advice and insightfor florist that are looking to grow and expand their shops.

Additional Information:
Top Exporters of Flowers
Holland
USA
Italy
France
Germany

Top Importers
USA (Largest Supplier – Colombia)
Holland (Largest Supplier – Israel)
France
Switzerland
Great Britain
Belgium/Luxemburg
Sweden

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Over the last week I’ve had the opportunity to spend time with my brother in law in MN.  After being married for 4 years this really the first time we’ve had the opportunity to hang out.  I’ve learned a great deal about him over the last several days.  The biggest thing I’ve learned is that he is a man of many great business ideas and unlike some his ideas actually have merit and would do great in the marketplace.  Do you have a friend or realative likes?  Maybe you’re this guy?

The million dollar question is: How do you turn these great ideas in to a profit.  Below are a list of points you will need to consider to accomplish this successfully.

1.  Choose one idea and move as fast as you can with it.  If you’re creative by nature you probably have a new idea every minute.  This is how I am and for awhile I didn’t know how to control this trait. They way I’ve learn to harness this gift is by using my creativity to help develop my single idea and to make processes easier for clients.  I’ve choosen to focus on a single task  and not be vererd off course by anything that is unrelated to this task.  This is mandatory for success.  Choose which idea you will persue first an only focus on it.

So…how does one select which idea comes first?  Choose a list of criteria and measure each idea against these criteria.  What tends to be common for most people is having more time than money.  If this is the case for you, choose an idea that you can develop today and make money with tomorrow (literally).  Plan to build and develop this concept over the next 2-3 years.   (This means blocking everything unrelated to this idea out for 2-3 years).  Then use the money from this venture to fund your next venture.

Once you’ve choosen your idea it will be important to move fast?  Why? Beacuse we are all interconnected and when you focus on a single idea it is released in to the Marco-mind or into a thought field that everyone subconsciously has access to.  In computer terms it’s like putting you idea into an unprotected cloud.  If you do not execute on this idea rest assured someone else will.  Good ideas are never lost they simply go to other people.

2. Put Your Idea on Paper.  Putting your idea on paper can take many forms.  Most people think of  business plan when I share this priciple.  Obviously, you will need to make a business plan in time if you would like to acquire funding for your idea.  However, initially, you will simply need to write down the products or services you plan to sell (in detail), who you will sell them to, and how will you reach these customers.

It is important to write your ideas down for 3 reasons.

I.  So you don’t forget them (because you will if you’re an idea magnet)
II. So you have a guideline for moving ahead.
III.  Writing is the first step towards manifiestation.  The written words grounds your concept in the physical world.

3. Protect your idea.  There are several things you can do to protect the idea you’ve choosen.  The biggest defense of all silence and and speed to market. You may also need to consider other forms of protection like non-disclosure agrements, trademarks and patents depending on the idea.

Only discuss your idea with your inner circle or mastermind.  This is a small group of 3-7 people that support your dreams and will provide you with positive feedback.  These individuals should preferrably be more successful than you, have their own things going so you aren’t seen as a threat.  Additionally, they should have solid connections and be cooperative in nature instead of competitive.

Keeping quiet keeps you humble and moving forward.  It also protects your seedling or baby idea from naysayers and idea thieves as it develops. It may even be important to stay silent about your idea around your spouse or other family members, escecipally if they are risk adverse or have seen a substantial amount of your past failures.  If you need to conduct reseach and you will do so without revealing your end objective when possible.  Your goal should not to be to talk. Instead, you should focus on put points on the board then sharing your success.  The former is day dreaming.  The latter is marketing.

4. Set at definate date when you plan to have your idea on the market.  This is not always easy.  However, after you have quitely gathered the information needed from your various sources regarding time frame and and any possible expenses, set a realistic timeline for the completion of various milestones and ultimately the completion of your project.

Finally, work like you life depends on meeting this deadline.

What action help you bring new ideas to market?  Share them with us here.

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The South American economy is growing and the interest and demand in social media and mobile marketing is growing with it. Here are a few thought from my trip to Lima this week

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Isabel Celis

In an effort find Isabel, many citizens and businesses owners posted flyers and told neighbors. Most of these flyers contained information about a $50,000 reward for finding Isa and used QR codes that drove mobile users to a website with information about the young girl.

Tucsonans also used a number of social media sites like Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest to let others around the world know that Isa was missing. Within hours of the news story, post with pictures of young Isabel went up across the social graph.

In addition to a number of YouTube videos created, as police wound down their search efforts, one group of musicians “The Flight Team” released a music video entitled “Bring Isa Home.” So far the video has been seen more than 22,000 times. View the video below and share it with others.

Isa we miss you and we wait for your return. #BringIsaHome #Tucson

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I recently spoke to a group of small business leaders in Tucson about internet marketing trends.

What other trends do you feel are important in the ever changing world of internet marketing?

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Often times when meeting with new clients I ask them to describe their target market or perfect client. The answers I get range from “everybody” to small businesses owners on the “North-side” of town. As a business newbie we’ve all said something like this. However, if you ever want to make it to become an “oldie” I’d recommend never repeating it. If you want to be laser focused in your efforts to attract the right clients for your business I’d recommend creating up to 3 Avatars or personalities of your target market and directing your marketing specifically to these individuals.

I’ve known this concept for awhile but recently decided to take it on after hearing a talk by Paul Lemberg  at the Social Profit Formula conference in Phoenix, Arizona nearly a week ago.

In less than one week I have effortlessly attracted 3 perfect prospective clients without even looking for them. Why? Because my intentions were crystal clear about what I was looking for. Additionally, I am now able to share my Avatar with others so they can make the best referrals. Lastly, and best of all I get to save time and energy by not wading through the hordes of individuals who simply aren’t a good fit.

Surprisingly, my perfect Avatar was not at all who I thought it would be. This was very eye-opening and caused me to rethink my marketing efforts. Which as I mentioned has worked like a charm.

Below is what I did to create my Avatar. Follow these steps to create your own.

1. Review the records of the customers you’ve worked with.

2. Make a list of 6-10 that you absolutely enjoyed working with. The clients I’ve enjoyed working with the most were very positive, eager to learn, took action, and best of all they didn’t haggle over pricing because they could afford my services.

3. Create a personal and professional profile for each of these individuals based on the following:

Professional

• Industry
• Company size
• Gross Sales
• How they interact with company
• How their employees and peers view them
• Problems they need solved

Personal

• Age
• Sex
• weight
• Race
• Hobbies
• Political preferences (even if you don’t agree)
• Cars they drive
• Marital status
• What inspires them
• What keeps them up at night

4. Find or create a picture of your Avatar.

5. Give him/her a name and personality.

6. Repeat steps 1-5 two more times.

7. Design marketing materials to focus on your 3 Avatars.

8. Share  your Avatar with all who ask you to identify your best customer.

Here is an example of one of my perfect Avatars (If this looks like you or someone you know visit SocialMobileBuzz.com to learn more about how I can help you grow your company with social media and mobile marketing.)

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Last week I mentioned that I was reading the book “Trance of Scarcity” and I was sharing my thoughts on  Marketing Beyond the Trance of Scarcity.  This week our guest blogger, success expert, coach, author and speaker Lynden Kidd will be sharing with us her view on  the chapter in “Trance of Scarcity” about ‘stories’ and how they impact our ability to create the results we deserve in life.

We all have a story about ourselves. It usually starts mundanely with; ‘I was born on (fill in the blank date) in (fill in the blank location).’ We also love to tell stories about everything around us. Additionally, we learn powerfully from them too.  So, then it seems logical that we’d be empowered by our stories; that they would be informative, uplifting and renewing and that we would tell good ones, rich, juicy benevolent ones about ourselves and each other. NOT. Have you seen the headlines?  Have you heard about the US economy; about the European one?  What about your own story?  There isn’t much of a silver lining in anything in the headlines and many of us have chosen really awful personal stories.

With bad news all around us; how do we avoid the instinct to simply hunker down and to wait out this economic winter hoping that spring will arrive before we perish or run out of cash, investments and patience?  Answer: we live intentionally.

Each of us is in control of how we respond to the events that happen in our lives, and we craft what happens to us from adolescence through all of our adult years.

Living a life on purpose or a life of intention is very different than trying to get our personal and professional circumstances to behave. Intentional living means living out loud and in a way that aligns us with what really works – being confident, being resilient and exultingly achieving success in our lives and our work.

So, how do we do this you might ask?   The most successful among us examine our stories and lives for “limiting” beliefs.  We intentionally reviewing what is serving us and what isn’t any more.  We focus on the stories and beliefs that serve us and discard all others.

The objective is to transform into a version of yourself that has a story that is worth telling.

Bottom line, intentionality means consciously choosing to write and live a better story. instead of just  bumping along like a leaf in a stream.  Here’s to great stories!

You can begin your journey for intentional living by attending Lynden’s day long Success by Design workshop on October 8th. Visit http://lyndenkidd.eventbright.com to register.

Use the Coupon code “NETWORK“  to receive $50 off the retail ticket price

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A friend of mine recently graduated college and landed a great job in the IT industry only to discover that her passion was baking.  She sent me an email requesting my advice.  I ended up writing a pretty lengthy response that I believe is filled with information any new entrepreneur can use… so I decide to share it with you; my favorite reader! I apologize in advance for any spelling errors.  I like for my my emails to have character.

So…you want to be an entrepreneur? This is a big decision. I’m glad you have job now to support you while you build this dream.  Since you want to become a baker lets hop right in to it.

Start Small and fill a Niche

I would start by baking cakes at home and selling them to friends and family while you save money and prepare for your bakery. You may even want to get access to a commercial kitchen at a church if things really get rocking. Most churches have underutilized kitchens and would be happy for an extra $100-200 a month. I recommend choosing a niche (wedding cakes, cup cakes, etc) and getting really good at it You can make a pretty good living off of wedding cakes.

Build a business Plan – Most people say start here.  However, if you’re a procrastination you will never get started.  My advice is to simply get started and but build your plan before taking on too many customer.

Next, you will need to build a business plan with a good financial forecast. This means you will need to start pricing everything you need as if you were going to open the bakery tomorrow. (Location, oven, city inspection and tax fees, baking ingredients, credit card machine, etc). It wouldn’t be a bad idea to work part-time with a local baker and watch how the run their business.

There are many FREE biz plan templates online http://bplan.com/ is one.

Get Support – Business is a team sport. Lone Rangers are punished harshly

Review your plan with several people who have been successful in business (The keyword is “successful”) and who you trust will give you honest feedback and won’t be a dream stealer. Look around your city for an SBA approved Small Business Development Center or other Free or low cost start-up support centers like SCORE.

I would also become a regular at chamber of commerce, non-profits, and other business/social related meetings. Make friends and lots of them and keep up with them on Facebook and with Christmas cards, etc. They will eventually become your customers. It’s not a bad idea to find out what the top charities are in your city and start volunteering when you can. This will get you noticed by the big players in your city.

Confidence is King – If you don’t have it now read motivational books take seminars and execute on your plan like crazy to build it.

When people ask what you do tell them by you own a cake decorating company and you specialize in_________cakes. Even if you’re baking them in your apartment.

Part of becoming a business leader means acting like one until you believe you really become one. Hence, the phrase from the movie “Boiler Room” Act as If. Customers absolutely love confidence and will pay a premium for it!

Save Your Dough – Most business owners fail because they go broke before they learn how to make money.  Don’t be this guy. Additionally, I would caution against taking out large loans on your first enterprise.  There is nothing wrong with growing your business with the earnings from your success.  Business loans are still loans and have to be repaid (Unless you’re like Trump and you go bankrupt every year).

While you’re doing all of these things keep your expenses way low and start saving like a maniac 25-35% of your pay. You will need at least 6-12 months to live on plus whatever your business plan dictates you will need monthly to run your business until it becomes profitable.   Starting home-based bakery can help with this transition.

Be willing to Fail – Because chances are you will

Most businesses fail in the first year. Don’t be afraid of this. Business is 90% mental. If you do the things in this email you will increase your odds by 1000%. Nearly every Millionaire has failed their way to success. In fact, most millionaires fail on average 16 times.  Since this is your first business you should be prepared to take at least 15 more shots.

If you don’t want to become a millionaire thats ok but the same rules apply. However, you should plan to make a lot of money at what you do otherwise it’s not worth the risk, worry and sleepless nights.

Oh…and you must learn to Sell, Sell, Sell yourself.  If you’re uncomfortable asking for money get over quick there are several seminars and training programs to help you with this.

Finally make sure you read the book “The E-myth Revisited”….this book is critical reading for all entrepreneurs according to nearly every business consultant in America and its core example is built around a bakery concept.

What would you have included in this email to my friend?

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Everyone has been talking about Google + and Facebook’s new timeline so much these days until most have missed one of the latest innovations in increasing social  Brand Awareness; GaggleAMP.

Google AMP is a tool designed for brand managers and marketers looking to increase exposure by way of organizational employees, vendors, political, supporters, donors or customer networks. The organization builds a network and the people associated with the network amplify the messages pushed thorough it by posting and retweeting company info to their friends and connections on the various social networks. The idea behind GaggleAMP is to make it easier for an organizations  stakeholders to participate in the promotion of that organization in guided fashion.

The stakeholders who agree to promote the company simply sign up to be apart of a “Gaggle” on GaggleAMP and start posting messages. They can even receive emails telling them when they have a message to share.

I exepect to hear more about GaggleAMP in the coming months.  This technology has the ability to help small and midsize companies gain a competitive advantage when it comes to increasing brand awareness because it helps them more strategically tap into the relationships they already have.

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