Posts Tagged "Word Carnival"

Hitting the Wall – Motivation for Small Biz to Reach Your Profit Goals

Posted by Nicole Fende in Business Plan, General Finance | 26 comments

Every runner on the planet knows what it’s like to “hit the wall”. Your legs are filled with lead. Your lungs have shrunk to the size of a pea. Visions of cold water dance in your head. All you want to do is just give up.

Every small business owner, entrepreneur, and freelancer hits the wall.

 
Your new business leads have dried up like the Sahara Desert. Your cash is flowing out, not in. The grass must be greener somewhere, anywhere else. All you want to do is just give up.

Experienced runners know, if you can just hang in a little longer it does get easier.

Here’s how to tear down, scale, or break through that small business wall.

Using Community to Power Profits

Posted by Nicole Fende in Business Plan | 24 comments

As a small business owner do you feel alone? Frustrated? Wishing for a regular 9 to 5 job (horror!) simply to enjoy some water cooler talk?

Perhaps you dream of your own, super successful, online tribe. I’ve always wondered if those exclusive, VIP, secret entrance, James Bond-esque clubs exist. Do I need a single use drop box to join?

*Ahem*

Back to business.

Water cooler discussions, and their online equivalents, continue to exist because they serve a purpose. They build community. Managed properly that community can be an asset.

Be warned – mismanaged, bloated, or neglected communities can become business quicksand.

How to Use Community to Power Your Small Business Profits

Scooby Doo to the (Mentor) Rescue

Posted by Nicole Fende in General Finance | 32 comments

Remember those old episodes of Scooby Doo where the villain would be unmasked at the end?

The sweet old grandma was really a dirty rotten scoundrel. Ghosts were actually people and dirty rotten scoundrels. Monsters were actually people and dirty rotten scoundrels. All unmasked by Scooby and the gang before they could do any permanent harm.

I’ve had some fantastic mentors in my career. They’ve helped me get to the next level, heck the next five levels. I’m thankful to all past, present and future mentors for their insights and encouragement.

Sadly, I’ve also had a couple mentors who were really just wearing masks. The problem was that I couldn’t see the masks for a long time. My business, my vision, and even my self-confidence paid the price.

Read on for the cliff notes version of my lessons learned – Scooby snacks sold separately.

Scooby Doo’s Rules for Mentor Success

Email Lists – Profit is NOT by the Numbers

Posted by Nicole Fende in General Finance | 53 comments

Do you think your email list is a cash cow?

Are you convinced a certain template will magically convert droves of subscribers?

The harsh reality is that you can’t paint by the numbers and hope to get a Picasso. You might get a nice picture of dogs playing cards, but is that really what you want? If profiting from email was really that simple wouldn’t we all be rich?

This post is part of the June Word Carnival. The topic is The Care and Feeding of Your Email List. Click the link to get a variety of perspectives from an amazing group of small business experts.

How to Profit from Painting Outside the (Email List) Lines

For More Profit, Just Add Quirks

Posted by Nicole Fende in General Finance | 43 comments

Would you buy a finance book from this person? Listen to her advice on pricing? Ask her to help with your cash flow issues?

If your answer was “Heck Yeah!” you’ve just made it past my velvet rope. Here’s your VIP pass and welcome drink.

Think you don’t need a velvet rope? Reflect for a minute on any well attended, high dollar event. There’s always a VIP entrance. If you really want to get into the event and desire the full experience you’ll pay for that VIP Pass. If the event was only a passing fancy you may wait in line, or you may just leave.

Embracing your quirks creates a profitable velvet rope. It intrigues and attracts people who desire your products and services. And they’re willing to pay.

Wondering who this is in the picture? Keep reading to find out.

Learn how to turn your quirks into a profit boosting velvet rope!