Podcast

Which Tweet worked best?

Which Tweet worked best?

I'm moderately active on Twitter. I follow experts, creative thinkers and other people I like. I reply and retweet fairly often. I even had a long conversation with an author friend of mine using Direct Message (when we could just as easily spoke on the phone!) I also...

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Create your crowd

Create your crowd

Click here to subscribe in iTunes; or, listen to the audio version below: Here's something you've probably heard umpteen times before: To market your services, you need to get in front of your target audience as often as you can. You need to give talks. You need to...

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Don’t get stuck in the “how”

Don’t get stuck in the “how”

Click here to subscribe in iTunes; or, listen to the audio version below: My friend invited me to his Super Bowl party last Sunday. One of the pre-game festivities – besides eating waaaay too many chips – was watching a baseball documentary about knuckleball pitchers....

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Become more “find-able” on LinkedIn

Become more “find-able” on LinkedIn

Click here to subscribe in iTunes; or, listen to the audio version below: Last week I was looking for a virtual assistant to help me with a new project. In the past, I would have Googled to find someone. But that's so 2012! This time, I went to LinkedIn, did a search...

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Facts are not enough

Facts are not enough

Click here to subscribe in iTunes; or, listen to the audio version below: I had an amazing opportunity earlier this week. I was invited to pitch a book idea, in person, to an Executive Acquisitions Editor of a major publisher. That doesn't happen every day! So, as you...

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About your “ABOUT” page

About your “ABOUT” page

Click here to subscribe in iTunes; or, listen to the audio version below: A few weeks ago, I was looking for a consultant to help me with a particular issue. I asked around, got a referral for "Jane" (not her real name), and then checked out her website. I scanned her...

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A simple way to write an elevator pitch

A simple way to write an elevator pitch

Click here to subscribe in iTunes; or, listen to the audio version below: Imagine you're a freelance copywriter… You visit a major marketing convention. There are hundreds of prospective clients there. It's the perfect networking opportunity. Someone comes up...

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Are you, ah, different?

Are you, ah, different?

Click here to subscribe in iTunes; or, listen to the audio version below: It was my wife's birthday last week. A milestone. So I decided to order one of those wonderfully corny, slightly embarrassing lawn signs and have it secretly set up in the middle of the night....

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Should you pigeonhole prospects?

Should you pigeonhole prospects?

Click here to subscribe in iTunes; or, listen to the audio version below: I got a lot of questions and comments regarding my Marketing Memo earlier this month – 3 Simple Ways to Stay In Touch. People loved the ideas. But some of you asked whether or not you...

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3 simple ways to stay in touch

Click here to subscribe in iTunes; or, listen to the audio version below: I thought about giving up a few times. It was about seven years ago, and I had been following up with a particular prospect for more than a year. When we first chatted, he seemed to be...

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Don’t let this happen. (You might lose the client.)

Click here to subscribe in iTunes; or, listen to the audio version below: I had a weird experience last week. I needed a change of scenery, so I thought I'd grab a coffee and muffin at my local Starbucks and do some writing. As I placed my order, the guy behind the...

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A new prospecting approach. (That works better.)

Click here to subscribe in iTunes; or, listen to the audio version below: When I started my business in the mid-1990s, I had no contacts. So, in an effort to promote my services to prospective clients, I made cold calls. Dozens of them. Probably hundreds of them! It...

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Don’t forget to ask, “What’s next?”

Click here to subscribe in iTunes; or, listen to the audio version below: See if this scenario sounds familiar to you... You've completed an important project with a new client. He's clearly happy with your work. You're pretty sure he's going to use your services...

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How to raise your price (without losing clients)

Click here to subscribe in iTunes; or, listen to the audio version below: A coaching client recently asked me to help him increase his prices – ideally, without losing any of his current clients. During the past couple of weeks, I received about half a dozen...

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Writing an appointment-getting letter

Click here to subscribe in iTunes; or, listen to the audio version below: Chasing prospects – via cold calling, for example – is about as fun as scrubbing down a backyard deck with a toothbrush. That's why I'm a big advocate of marketing that progressively...

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What’s your “likeability factor”?

Click here to subscribe in iTunes; or, listen to the audio version below: After college, I couldn't find a "real" job. So I got a position in sales for a large temporary help firm. After a few weeks of pounding the pavement, it didn't take me long to discover the...

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When it’s smart to give up

Click here to subscribe in iTunes; or, listen to the audio version below: Last weekend, I gave up. And it was the best decision I made that day. Here's what happened... After several weeks of being a virtual shut-in, working on way too many projects, I looked out my...

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Do you ask prospects to marry you?

Click here to subscribe in iTunes; or, listen to the audio version below: Next to writing, speaking, and drinking coffee at Starbucks (which I'm pretty sure is tax deductible), my favorite professional activity is consulting. I love working with clients one-on-one....

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