Sometimes, weird things pop into my head and I think that they are worth blogging about. I hope you agree that this was worth posting on this blog.

All sales reps and business owners have one common challenge. That challenge is marketing. We’re always looking for more effective ways to get the word out about our business. In my opinion, word-of-mouth via networking is probably the most powerful and under-rated of all options. How can you create powerful word-of-mouth advertising for yourself?

By volunteering to speak at group meetings.

First of all, when you are a featured speaker, it is assumed that you are an expert on that particular topic. This is when assuming is a good thing. Speaking to groups of people can help you close volume (i.e. pitch numerous people at once) and is a great way to save time, energy, and money. You can really get your name and brand out there by volunteering to speak at events.

Oh – back to the word goyasu. Here is what it means:

G et

O ff

Y our

A ss[ets]

S peak

U p

Maybe I’ll make a move to have the word goyasu added to the dictionary. Hey, if bling can make in there, why not? (smile).

So the moral of the story is to go out there, and let your light shine by sharing your expertise with others. I do understand that public speaking is not for everyone, but certainly fortune favors the bold, so be bold and collect your fortune.

If you are looking to improve your public speaking skills, networking organizations like Business Network International, NYC Social Media Networkers, and Toastmasters International may help.

Talk to you soon.

Timothy Ferris wrote a great book called The 4-Hour Work Week. In that book, he talks about employing virtual assistants to work in your business while you work on your business. That is to say a virtual assistant (VA) works in your business handling administrative tasks while you focus on growing your business by engaging in income generating activities (e.g., meeting with prospects and existing customers, attending networking events, open house events, product demos, etc.).

Highly qualified VAs are available offshore for as little a $6 per hour. The VAs in based in the Phillipines are particularly skilled and affordable. Some people frown about using offshore personnel and think that money is leaving the USA. That is not true. When a business owner cuts expenses while increasing her/his revenue, it is most likely that that “new found” disposable income will be spent right here in the USA.

To learn more about this option that can help you save time, energy, and money, go to www.OutsourceForSavings.com.

Kind regards,

You know, I like to help people, and generally do not want or expect anything in return. However, when networking, some people always call me for a “hook-up” of some sort but they never reciprocate.

Check out this video I put on YouTube:

Here is a letter that I’m sending to a few people. They have to be reminded that networking is a two-way street:

======================================

Dear Friend,

I need your help.

You know that I network like a mad man and I work really hard to help others have success. I’m always looking for ways to connect people to prospective customers, vendors, and strategic partners. Not all of the referrals work out, but the fact is I give quality introductions via email, or I set up a conference call or a video chat.

Heck, I may have purchased products from you or used your service in the past – or maybe I still do.

Hey, I really need you to help me out.

Who do you know who is a busy corporate professional that has a side business?

I market two services that may be able to help them automate and preschedule blog posts and social media updates, and a tool that allows them to network with others from the comfort of their home or office.

Here are the links for these two services:

• www.PostScheduler.com
• www.SpeedNetworkingOverThePhone.com

Please keep your eyes and ears open for me and forward this info to others in your network.

I’ve shown you time and time again that I do in fact keep my eyes and ears open, and forward info to my social media network about you and the products/services that you offer.

Let’s get the exchange flowing, and let’s keep it going and growing.

Thank you.

Kind regards,

Tyrone Turner

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Hey, if they don’t get the message, they don’t want to get the message. I’ll just take my database of contacts elsewhere.

You make sure that you do the same. Follow your dollar. Put money in the pockets of those that put money in your pockets.

Don’t be reluctant to give first, but if it seems to be a parasitic relationship rather than a symbiotic one, drop that zero and go find a hero.

All the best,

A lot of us home-based entrepreneurs still have a full-time job. That sure does make growing one’s business kind of difficult. However, difficult is not impossible. Especially in 2010 and beyond.

After reading books like Tim Ferris’ The 4-Hour Work Week and Scott Fox’s e-Riches 2.0, and joining great online communities like The Perfect Biz Finder and Click Millionaires, I picked up a couple of ideas on how to automate your initial contact and follow-up.

I discuss a few of them in the below video.

Check out the video and click through the links for more information on these free and low-cost services.

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES

• GetResponse
• uReach
• Phonevite
• Send Out Cards
• Ping.fm
• Post Scheduler
• Desk Ping

Let me know how these tools work out for you.

Daniel Stoica, Accounting Consultant, helps you explore and discover your passion and turn it into a successful business, as this is his passion. “Minimizing your tax liability and maximizing your net worth at the same time by providing you with professional accounting and tax preparation services” is his profession. He goes beyond his own expertise and uses the resources of his professional network to meet the needs of his clients. He is incredibly passionate about helping others.

I have to tell you, bookkeeping, accounting, and taxes and the like are not the most exciting topics, but when you don’t have a seasoned professional like Daniel on your side, you can really lose your shirt – or more!

Sometimes, it is not about how much you earn, but how much you keep that counts.

In the Tuesday, November 24th, 2009 podcast I did with Daniel, here are some of the topics we discussed:

• Where you should be spending your hard-earned dollars
• What you should not be spending money on
• What the best business structure is for your business
• How taxes can really add up depending on the nature of your business
• Some of the the deductions that home-based entrepreneurs qualify for
• And a lot more!

This was a general accounting overview and Daniel has agreed to visit with us again to focus on specific aspects of accounting and taxes to optimize your profits.

To listen to the 60-minute interview that is certainly a must-listen to, click on the player below.

David is based in Chicago and his website is www.DanielStoica.com

All the best,

Wow…

A lot of people want to start their own business but don’t know where to start. I don’t mean how to start making money but how to get started at square one by actually picking a business. Hopefully, an entrepreneur picks the right business. Not the right business according to me or anyone else. But what is the right business according to that entrepreneur. Even if you are the already operating a business, perhaps you can maximize your fun and profits by taking on a different function within the business.

This is where Steve Little comes in. Steve Little is the President of Zero Limits, Inc. He is truly a renaissance man. He has been an entrepreneur since 13, he’s a champion athlete, and has made tens of millions of dollars and he’s still going! He’s been rocking and rolling as a successful entrepreneur for more than 40 years now. Steve’s mentoring has helped hundreds of people to break the barriers sabotaging their success and have created their dream life as a result. He has put his knowledge into a program called The Perfect Biz Finder. What it does is help you find your perfect business in 21 days or less. Step by step resources and blog take you by the hand and show you the perfect business that is genetically matched to your DNA.

You can take a free psychoanalytic survey (valued at $297) on his site at www.PickTheRightBizForYou.com.

Check out this 45-minute interview that I did with Steve on Tuesday, November 10th, 2009. You have GOT TO give this a listen.

Make sure to bookmark Steve’s site and to take the survey. He has some exciting announcements in the weeks ahead.

To your success,

Kyle Nichols is the owner of a wonderful Internet marketing and coaching company, and what they have done is combine high-quality training and coaching from some of the best online marketers along with a very lucrative money-making referral program.

A member can truly earn while she learns. What is so pleasantly surprising is how affordable the program is, yet powerful enough for members to build an immediate and substantial long-term recurring income stream.

Kyle shared some tips on how we can become web marketing whiz kids by leveraging his latest product/program, You Can’t Say No.

What is really appealing (to me, anyway) about this program is that it compliments whatever you’re already working on by giving you more ‘How To’ online marketing knowledge. The catalog of training audios, videos, and the community of other online marketers that share best practices is extremely impressive. I can’t believe that a person can have access to this program for less than $1.75 per day – unbelievable. Hey, You Can’t Say No to that (pun intended).

To learn more about this product/program, visit www.WebMarketingWhizKids.com.

Click on the player below to listen to the interview that I did with Mr. Nichols on Wednesday, October 7th, 2009.

As Internet Marketing heavy-hitter, Perry Belcher, would say, “Hey man, the poops is out and you can’t shove it back into the horse, so get with it because Internet marketing is not going anywhere and is only going to get bigger.”

Hmmm…spoken like a true Texan.

With appreciation,

I hear a lot of talk about building a sales funnel — recycling your customers to maximize profit for yourself and to add benefit to the customer by introducing them to related products or services. Your sales funnel may also include introducing them to various people that provide a given product or service. You don’t always have to be the one profiting, and as a matter of fact, you’ll be more of a ‘go-giver’ if you were not the only person generating revenue.

Remember, it is always easier to keep a customer and resell her/him rather than go out and get a new customer.

Also, keep in mind that the products/services in your portfolio should be related so that you will not be all over the place.

Let me give you an example of how I set up the sales funnel for my business. Perhaps my example will give you some ideas on how to create your very own sales funnel based on your target niche(s) and your product/service offerings.

Grassroots Business Network, LLC’s Sales Funnel

We help sole proprietors and home-based entreprenerus put the pieces together. This is done creating environments that are conducive to networking (face-to-face and over the phone) and the teaching of specific skills, how to use certain tools, and 1-on-1 coaching to develop a customized system to help them accomplish their business goals.

For more information on the networking events, go to the www.Meetup.com/NYCSocialMedia, and visit www.SpeedNetworkingOverThePhone.com.

We are also an independent broker of various products and services that gives our customers access to top-notch resources. Here are some of the products and services that we promote that are relevant to our niches:

• Pick the right biz for YOU
• Business consulting and legal advice
• Quality, affordable health plans
• The ultimate permission-based marketing tool

Okay, folks, I hope that made sense to you. Let me know what you have in your sales funnel as I may be able to send business your way.

Thank you.

All the best,

I had the good fortune to meet Mary Cravets on a Speed Networking Over the Phone event. She is a prolific networker that organizes and promotes face-to-face speed networking events in her home town of Sedona, Arizona.

She is the owner of Brilliant Virtual Assistance. What they do at Brilliant Virtual Assistance is provide support for entrepreneurs and companies that need help, but don’t wish to incur the costs of hiring and maintaining employees. Whether it’s consistent administrative support, or collaboration on a one-time project, their wide range of services, convenient access and inherent flexibility make them a great option to meet the ever-changing needs of business enterprises.

They are not a staffing agency so there are no agency or advertising fees. You pay only for services rendered.

She typically works with busy real estate agents and networking marketing / MLM professionals who have more than 4,000 sales representatives in their organization. However, her company has the flexibility to work with other entrepreneurs and sales professionals who are looking to free up their time from doing administrative things so that they can focus on revenue generating activities.

Being that her company is virtual in nature, they have clients all across the USA.

Listen to Mary’s story on how she became an entrepreneur accidentally and how that accident has become a rather profitable operation. This interview took place on Wednesday, September 2nd, 2009 at 8:30pm EDT.

.

Make sure to visit Mary’s site at www.BrilliantVA.com.

All the best,

Lisa Torres (aka the Social Butterfly) and Tyrone Turner (aka Ty the Card Guy) share a few tips on things to do to get the online conversations offline.

Some things touched on:

• Social networking sites
• Face-to-face networking events
• Virtual networking events
• Follow-up tools
• Video email and chat
• Building your list

.

I hope that you like what you hear in the above video.

All the best,