Liz Strauss at Successful Blog

Thinking, writing, business ideas … You're only a stranger once.

Thanks to Week 329 SOBs

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Successful and Outstanding Bloggers

Let me introduce the bloggers
who have earned this official badge of achievement,

Purple SOB Button Original SOB Button Red SOB Button Purple and Blue SOB Button
and the right to call themselves
Successful Blog SOBs.

I invite them to take a badge home to display on their blogs.

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They take the conversation to their readers,
contribute great ideas, challenge us, make us better, and make our businesses stronger.

I thank all of our SOBs for thinking what we say is worth passing on.
Good conversation shared can only improve the blogging community.

Should anyone question this SOB button’s validity, send him or her to me. Thie award carries a “Liz said so” guarantee, is endorsed by Kings of the Hemispheres, Martin and Michael, and is backed by my brothers, Angelo and Pasquale.

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Want to become an SOB?

If you’re an SO-Wanna-B, you can see the whole list of SOBs and learn how to be one by visiting the SOB Hall of Fame– A-Z Directory . Click the link or visit the What IS an SOB?! page in the sidebar.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Finding the Right Talent Mix For Your Start-Up Enterprise

Filed Under Marketing, Successful Blog, leadership | Leave a Comment

A Mixture of Key Personality Traits

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For the entrepreneur, the early months of developing a start-up are some of the most hectic and arduous: you need to secure financing, explore legal limitations, and forecast your financials for the years ahead. You need to take your idea and turn it into a product or a service, along the way keeping a close attention to quality, profitability, and logistics. You may even need to start thinking about your personal financial future; you may want to open an IRA, for example, or conversely consider how much of your funds you can afford to allocate to the venture.

Amidst all of this commotion, moreover, you find yourself in the position to make one of the most important decisions a new business can make – the decision of hiring employees, in the process surrounding yourself with the best talent possible designed to help your start-up grow.

While different businesses and different industries have a wide variety of talent needs, the most successful start-ups usually share several commonalities. They possess drive, motivated individuals. They hire people who are truly passionate about their work. And they assemble a diverse mixture of several key personality traits and personal attributes.

That last point is an oft-overlooked one. Unlike Abraham Lincoln, who assembled a “Team of Rivals” in his Cabinet in order to maximize diversity and individual talents, few entrepreneurs hire their start-up team with such an outlook in mind. Don’t make this mistake if you’re starting a business, or plan to do so in the future. Instead, look to creative a mixture of the most important personality traits and personal attributes necessary to get a new company up and running. I believe that the most important of these are charisma, having a mathematical mind, creativity, and possessing the ability to network. Here’s a quick breakdown:

  1. Charisma: This person can be the face of your start-up and an excellent salesperson.
  2. Mathematical Mind: This person can oversee your budgets and all your financials. A good start-up doesn’t need a full accounting department – just one talented employee.
  3. Creativity: Whatever your product, this person is the one best equipped to turn it from an idea into a reality. They should be incredibly hard-working and driven.
  4. Ability to Network: Along with our charismatic leader, this employee has strong inter-personal skills. However, they operate more behind the scenes and use their connections and networking abilities to market the business and secure investors.

While you certainly may possess one of these traits, don’t lull yourself into thinking that you could do all of them better than a team of specialists can. To this end you want to diversify as you seek quality talent; even if you don’t end up with a team exactly like the one above, insure that a variety of strengths and capabilities are exhibited in your force. Your start-up’s long-term prospects will be much rosier as a result.

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Author’s Bio:
Alex S. writes about education and business at theeducationupdate.com

Thank you, Alex!

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz on your business!!

Buy the Insider’s Guide to Online Conversation.

How To Select The Right Shopping Cart For Your Online Business Store

Filed Under Successful Blog, Tools | 2 Comments

What Works for the Buyer

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Keeping an online shop is taking your business to a completely new level. Until you had your online store, your clients were walking up to you to buy your products or services. But now, with an online facility, you are offering them a totally different experience. You are stepping forward and taking the river to the thirsty child! It’s important that the quality be worth it.

There are two things that come into play here:

  1. Your existing clients buy online.
  2. New people come across your site and buy.

In both cases, the user experience has to be great.

Once again, there are two important factors here:

  1. You – the seller
  2. Your shopping cart – for the buyer

Both the factors need to appeal to your buyer. So, your website needs to look and feel authentic – in a way, that your buyer doesn’t feel he’s going to be rugged! And your shopping cart has to be user friendly, comfortable and convenient – to make the buying experience a pleasure!

Here’s how you make it happen by selecting the right shopping cart for your online business:

1. The Look

Your shopping cart should match your website layout, ideally. It should look like your cart, for your buyer! And it should be easy to use. Don’t have complicated tabs; settings features that make the buyer suspect your intensions!

2. The Display

It is important for the cart ot display all the information relevant and important to the user. Along with the products selected, the cart should show the exact price clearly. If you are offering discounts, they should be visible to encourage your user to buy.

3. The Compatibility

Server issues are the last thing you want on your online store. The user can not afford a transaction error or a compatibility problem. If you are launching on the virtual space, you need to take care of technical issues. There’s no cashier sitting on the web page giving out the change! Your server and your cart, hence, need to roll together.

4. The Payment

The above discussion brings us to payment and processing questions. The payment processor on your shop online – cart should support credit and debit card transactions. Checking whether the gateways are working right for you is almost mandatory.

5. The Support

There’s always going to be something that goes wrong! God forbid, but some unforeseen circumstances can lead to problems or concerns. How are you equipped to deal with it? This is an important question that should be answered before you plunge into the virtual shopping scenario. Plus, in case there is a problem, how soon can you resolve it? Support is, hence, something that influences the strength on your online store.

There are various open source shopping cart downloads available for you to select from and install on your website. One of the key features to note here is that the premade software you are planning to use should be easy to edit or should have a template format to suit your requirements. The look and feel should go with the perception that your website creates. So, take time out to evaluate the shopping carts and find the one that suits you the best. After all, turning your e-commerce business into a profitable one could be a matter of only a few ‘right’ choices – for you and for your buyer.

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Author’s Bio: Divya Rawat writes about e-commerce and Website Development at SEO Company inetzeal.com. Divya also writes ezinearticles and other resources.

Thank you, Divya!

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz on your business!!

Buy the Insider’s Guide to Online Conversation.

Be a Good Citizen

Filed Under Business Life, Successful Blog, leadership | Leave a Comment

A Guest Post by
Rosemary O’Neill

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Like it or not, it’s political season in the United States. We must sort through the debates, talking heads, and town halls, and do our duty as citizens.

There are clear rules to being a good citizen of the US. Obey the law and vote, and you’re pretty much good. Throw in some volunteering, and that’s even better.

Online, in the social world, it’s a different story. Depending on where you are, the rules are different, and often unwritten. It can be tricky.

But don’t fear, I’m here to give you some simple tips that will keep you out of the Internet version of Turkish prison. We’ll cover Twitter and LinkedIn today:

Twitter

LinkedIn

If you keep these guidelines in mind, you’re well on your way to being a solid social citizen. And don’t forget to vote.

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Author’s Bio: Rosemary O’Neill is an insightful spirit who works for social strata — a top ten company to work for on the Internet . Check out their blog. You can find her on Twitter as @rhogroupee
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Thank you, Rosemary!

You’re irresistible!

ME “Liz” Strauss

Seriously, How Credible Can You Be?

Filed Under Marketing, Successful Blog | 8 Comments

You Don’t Even Know My Name

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Many years ago, when telemarketers began the annoying practice of interrupting dinner, I decided to change the name on all of my credit cards. Since that day the cards read with two initials and my last name. It’s been fun to receive the “personalized” calls, direct mail, and email that comes to me with a hello that has been chosen just so the sender can’t call me by name.

Then a friend told me how, whenever she is asked to give up her contact information, she customizes her name in such a way that she will know who sold her name to that business spamming her when she never opted in.

Do you think those business count my friend and I when they quote their reach?

Yet,the basis of relationship — inside or outside of business — is credibility.
The offers that succeed are those in which our credibility is at least as big the size of the investment we’re asking.

Buying my information and marketing to me isn’t that different from starting a first conversation with “I think you’re sexy. Will you sleep with me?”
Who knows if you’re a theif, a slasher, or someone with some pernicious disease?

What good is reach if you don’t even know my name? Credibility is what makes the sale, not reach. Reach is not credibility.

How Credible Can You Be?

It’s no longer about only about how far our message can reach. Has it ever been or was that the only measure we could think up then? It’s not even about how many people will receive our message and consume it. Just because I understand what you said, doesn’t mean I’m inclined to do as you ask or even remember the message when 10 minutes have gone.

The question is whether a clear, credible message can travel far and still be believed.

Steven M. R. Covey, who wrote, The Speed of Trust, points to 4 Cores of Credibility — integrity, intent, capability, and results. Together they carry the four reasons we trust ourselves, our friends and the people and companies with whom we choose to work.

The difference between reach and credibility is the difference between Handing out flyers to every person who passes on the street and developing relationships with people who who value integrity, shared intent, competent commitment, and consistent performance.

Credibility is trust without fear or worry of the wrong results. Credibility means we don’t have to prepare for consequences because positive outcomes don’t hurt us. Credibility relieves us of the burden of having to build extra safety nets because we know that you’re looking out for our best interests — you’ll still be there if something goes wrong. Can’t say that about the guy on the beach offering to sell us a watch.

Reach is only valuable if it stands on a foundation of credibility.
Seriously, how credible can you be if you bought my information and you don’t even know my name?

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz on your business!!

Buy the Insider’s Guide to Online Conversation.
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