Successful Blog

Co-authoring and Sharing Genius by Text

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A Glass of Wine Conversation

One night last week, Liz  and I were having a text conversation about GeniusShared. It’s something we often do — talk via text instead of by voice. Over the last few years, we have come to work very well this way. Given that I’m in Vancouver and Liz is in Chicago, it’s a convenient way for us to connect with ease and frequency. It also allows us to talk even on days that Liz’s voice isn’t as strong as we might wish.

You could say it was a glass of wine sort of conversation. I was reminded of a conversation Liz once described in her post What Is Trust? We were were discussing business plans for the GeniusShared community and the shifts we see unfolding in the social and entrepreneurial spaces.

Picture two introverts not concerned with sharing thoughts aloud … a no-filter conversation. — Liz Strauss

Only this conversation was over text — instead of face to face.

Co-Authoring by Text?

The next morning Liz messaged me wondering if maybe there was more to all of our text conversations than basic business planning. Perhaps, she speculated, we were actually co-authoring blog posts without realizing it.

“Wow — what a concept!” — I thought as I read her text. And then I thought — “Only Liz would see this!”

That’s because seeing things is exactly what Liz does best. She sees things that others totally miss — in people, in moments and even in the clouds. It’s her greatest secret power. And she’s exceptional at it. Liz applies this skill in ways that even I can’t quite figure out. (Believe me — I’ve tried!) It’s simply a Liz thing. She has used it to help a great many people and businesses over the years.

And after all of that — I finally thought — “This makes so much sense.”

You see — we both want Liz to start sharing her voice once again in the online space. She still has a lot to say about personal growth and business growth — despite her virtual silence in the online world over the last two years. What’s more — when we exchange our thoughts on the many topics related to personal and business growth  — together we come up with solutions, approaches and ideas. It makes sense that we share these things with Successful-blog readers and the GeniusShared community.

Sharing Genius

Moving forward — we are going to be co-authoring a new “Sharing Genius” series here on Successful-blog — using our text conversations as the very foundation for those posts. We think it’s fitting that two entrepreneurs who have lived online more than 10,000 hours would choose text messages to write collaboratively about how personal growth fuels business. We will also share news about upcoming products, gatherings and other plans for GeniusShared. Most importantly though, we will be exploring ways to spotlight readers. After all, we believe that every viewpoint carries it’s own bit of genius.

Join the GeniusShared movement. Share your experience and genius with us.

Loyal Customers Often Means More Revenue

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By John McMalcolm

While it is important to attract new customers, you should also try your best to keep your existing customers loyal.

Customer retention plays a vital role in your ability to maintain a steady stream of revenue, and it can help you build a solid foundation for long-term success and growth.

There are many things that you can do to retain your customers, and one of the most effective among them is implementing a customer loyalty scheme.

Here is a look at how a customer loyalty scheme can be beneficial to your business.

Benefits of a Customer Loyalty Scheme

Retaining Existing Customers

The main benefit of a customer loyalty scheme is that it can help you retain customers more effectively.

In order to remain competitive, many businesses are offering discounts, free gifts and other rewards to build customer loyalty. If you do not have a customer loyalty scheme, many of your existing customers will take their business elsewhere to get better value for their money.

An attractive customer loyalty scheme will help you maintain a consistent customer base and keep your business growing constantly.

If you are able to retain your customers for a long time, you will also develop a better understanding of their preferences and habits. This enables you to provide a more personalized shopping experience for them and create products and services that can better meet their needs.

Attracting New Customers

As the following article looks at, although a customer loyalty program is foremost a customer retention strategy, it is also an effective way to gain new customers.

Consumers are always looking for the best possible deals, and they are more likely to buy from you if your customer loyalty scheme offers better rewards than those of your competitors.

If you want to gain more new customers, you can implement a customer referral program that rewards existing customers who bring in new customers.

Other than attracting new customers, a customer loyalty scheme can also help you win back lost customers.

Increase Customer Spending

A good customer loyalty program is one that offers better rewards to customers who spend more.

Such a program will encourage your customers to make a conscious effort to reach certain spend thresholds, and it will contribute significantly to your overall sales.

One good example of this type of customer loyalty program is Best Buy’s Elite program.

Get Better Marketing Results

If you have a customer loyalty program, you will be able to obtain insights that can help you segment your customers more accurately.

This enables you to market your products to your customers more effectively and achieve higher conversion rates.
Additionally, a customer loyalty scheme can significantly reduce the amounts of time, effort and money you need to spend on marketing.

It is becoming increasingly difficult to stand out from the crowd in today’s competitive business world. If you want to maintain your competitive edge, you need to offer the best possible value to your customers.

Customer loyalty programs have been proven to be an effective strategy for attracting and retaining customers.

About the Author: John McMalcolm is a freelance writer who writes on a wide range of subjects, from social media marketing to running a small business.

Do this 5-step exercise today and enjoy your long weekend

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Today I’m proposing that we all take about 30 minutes and set ourselves up for a refreshing, guilt-free long 4th of July weekend. (For our friends outside the United States, please join us, this 5-step exercise is good for everyone).

Let’s clear the decks.

Physical objects laying around the workspace, catching dust, inhibit your productivity.

Mental objects can be clutter too. Those un-captured ideas, multiple to-do lists, and procrastinated tasks all weigh you down.

1. Physical Space

Set a timer for 10 minutes. File and put away everything that’s on your physical workspace or desk. Then dust it. Here’s a great office organizing video that might help:

2. To Do Lists

Choose a single, centralized spot for all tasks, and consolidate to that list (I see your sticky note on the side of the laptop screen…get rid of that right now). Throw away the random scraps of paper, delete the multiple Notes in your iPhone, and put all of your outstanding tasks in a single place. It could be a legal pad, an Evernote notebook, or an application like TeuxDeux, but you can only choose one.

3. Email In-box

Go to the oldest 3 emails in your in-box and deal with them. If dealing with them means deleting them, then so be it. Go hard core. And if you’re inspired to really get control over your technological life, check out WorkHacks, the super-useful new resource from the “digital girl” herself, Julia Roy.

4. Phone

Now pick up your phone. Do you have any nagging voicemails messages? If you have any phone calls you need to return, return them right now. If it’s an unsolicited call you’ve been hanging on to for no reason, delete it.

5. Planning for Success

Are you coming back to work on July 6? Take 10 minutes and plan your productive day. Assign a few tasks so that you don’t have to spin your wheels when you return.

Now commit to yourself that you will use the long weekend to unplug, decompress, and breathe some fresh air.

Play, laugh, grill, and give your family the gift of your undivided attention.

Author’s Bio: Rosemary O’Neill is an insightful spirit who works for Social Strata — makers of the Hoop.la community platform. Check out the Social Strata blog. You can find Rosemary on Google+ and on Twitter as @rhogroupee

Don’t Work Yourself Into a Financial Hole

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In a recent study done by the National Institute of Health, it was reported that more Americans are considering working past their official retirement date.

More than half of those working past the age of 65 are choosing part-time versus full-time employment.

Is a part-time job something you’re considering for your retirement years?

There are some considerations to make before entering the workforce as a senior.

Does your pension cover your expenses?

If you have a good pension to take care of your living expenses, working in retirement may not be a smart option. Consider your quality of life, and the amount of time you have left.

Working automatically introduces a level of stress into your life that you don’t need if you already make enough money to live on from your pension. If it’s an activity you’re looking for, consider something other than work.

A social hobby or something that gets you outdoors and exercising will be better for you than stressing over getting up early and making it to work on time.

Is your health declining?

If you have health problems, a job – even if it’s just part-time – could exacerbate the problem.

If your doctor has prescribed rest for you, or if you have difficulty walking or standing for long periods of time, a job may not be the smartest choice.

Instead, choose an activity where you can exercise, but sit whenever you feel the need.

Even a desk job isn’t idea for someone with poor health, because you do need some amount of movement in order to get to optimal health.

Will taxes become an issue?

Before accepting any offer of employment, consider the effect the income will have on your taxes.

You may be eligible for certain deductions based on your income level. Those deductions may make the difference between paying an exorbitant tax bill or paying no taxes at all.

Speak to your accountant before getting a part-time job, so you can avoid any unpleasant surprises come April 15.

As the following article looks at, these are 3 big mistakes to avoid when working past retirement age.

What’s best for you as an individual will be up to your personal circumstances.

But don’t assume that what was automatically a good decision when you were younger will be a good decision for you now that you’re a senior.

There are alternatives to working yourself into a financial hole.

If you still have a strong desire to be useful in your community, here are some attractive options:

  • Volunteer at a local charity
  • Man the snack shack for your region’s Little League
  • Help to sell Christmas trees in season
  • Offer to assist another senior who has trouble getting around town
  • Teach your skills (piano, crochet, gardening, etc.) for free to youngsters and adults

Not working for pay is no excuse to become inactive or anti-social.

It simply means you’ll need to be more creative with your new freedom.

About the Author: Kate Supino is widely published on matters relating to finances and practical planning.

How to Promote Your Self-Published eBooks: Checklist

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By Jessy Troy

When it comes to self-publishing an ebook, authors are afforded all kinds of freedoms that they’d never be able to achieve when releasing a book through a traditional publishing house, allowing them to retain all of their profits even as they take pride in the fact that the good job done was all theirs.

Unfortunately, they also lose the typical advertising team that comes hand-in-hand with a publishing house, forcing them to play marketer all on their own.

Luckily for all of you self-publishing ebook writers out there, the internet has made it possible to do just that, and to do it well, with social media leading the way in that regard.

I highly recommend that you first read this article: 5 Myths About Writing an E-Book, by Ovetta Sampson.

Here are six creative steps to promote your self-published eBook:

1. Set up a Separate Website

It’s easier to brand your eBook if you have a separate mini website for it. It will rank easier for the eBook name and will accumulate links and exposure naturally. Plus you can use branding colors, calls-to-action and logos to make sure people remember the eBook and will be more likely to convert next time they hear about it.

SiteGeek can help you find the cheapest hosting for it. Plus it has all those user reviews so you can make sure you are making a good choice.

And here are some essential basics for you to easily build a website.

It’s amazing that we can actually handle website development ourselves these days!

2. Be Informed

First things first: when it comes to social media marketing, like any other task, a bit of planning is in order; while you’re very likely familiar with major social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter, have you ever really considered how to utilize them for business purposes?

Reading this article is a great start, but making the most out of what social media has to offer to you and your ebook means taking the time to do some serious research on each platform that you plan to tackle.

For example, tweeting your latest goings on simply isn’t the same as capturing an audience for a book in 140 characters or less, just as maintaining a personal Facebook account isn’t the same as leveraging a Facebook page to promote a product.

3. Be Informative

In order to get your campaign off on the right foot, start things off by tackling the big players in the niche. You’ll need to create thorough, in-depth, and always engaging social profiles that give your visitors – a fickle bunch, to be sure – a reason to stick around and learn more about who you are and what you have to offer them.

To achieve this, be sure to create fleshed out profiles that give visitors a good idea about who you are and, more importantly, why they should take an interest in your ebook.

4. Push Your Content Far and Wide

No matter what kind of content you find yourself adding to your social media streams, it is invariably true that the further it reaches, the more effective it is. With that in mind, it’s very important that you utilize all aspects of the social web in order to help your content grow wings and fly.

One excellent example of a social tool that can help you to achieve just that is Viral Content Buzz, a platform that brings together content creators in order to help each other to like and share content on the social web at large.

5. Engage Your Fans and Followers

One of the biggest tricks that needs to be utilized by any social marketer, especially one pushing a product as intimate and personal as an ebook, is to present yourself as a living, breathing human being to your followers.

The social web is full of content that looks as if it came straight from a spam bot and falling into that game, even inadvertently, is an easy way to turn off fans – and potential buyers – for good.

In order to stay approachable and engaging, be sure to always present your content additions as something deeper than simply trying to sell another copy of your ebook, and always make a point to engage one-on-one with fans and followers who take the time to ask questions and leave comments.

6. Stay on Top of Your Social Game

Even when the fans, followers, and sales start to roll in, be sure to stay on top of your social game, continuing to indulge your social enthusiasts by engaging them on a daily basis. This should continue to include the posting of content relevant to your ebook, one-on-one and group discussion, and teasers about your upcoming work.

More useful ebook marketing ideas:

Besides allowing you to continue to successfully push your existing work, these efforts will also help you to build a platform with which to generate interest in and sell future works!

Author’s Bio: Jessy Troy is a creative writer and editor at Social Media Sun. She Tweets as @JessyTroy.

Is Your Website a True Hit?

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If you wish to maximize your profits and expand your business, you should consider making your products or services available to consumers in foreign countries.

The Internet has made it possible for businesses of all sizes to go global, but you may have to localize your website if you want to reach out to a non-English speaking audience.

Website localization refers to the act of modifying a website to make it comprehensible, usable and suitable to specific local markets, and it can be beneficial to your business in many ways.

Here is a look at why you should localize your website….

Cross Language Barriers

English is presently the most widely used language on the Internet, but this may change in the future as the number of Internet users outside North America and Europe continues to grow.

Many businesses are beginning to realize that English may no longer be the global language, and they need to localize their websites if they want to be competitive in foreign markets.

According to an article entitled “Website Localization Key to Improving Customer Experience“, a survey conducted by Common Sense Advisory in 2014 showed that consumers in foreign countries were strongly biased towards localized websites, and a large percentage of them avoided English websites.

In Europe, it was estimated that only 44 percent of Internet users were open to using non-native language websites.

Website localization enables you to cross language barriers and attract and engage consumers in foreign countries as effectively as native language websites.

Increase Revenue

Most Internet users prefer to buy products from companies that can communicate with them in their native languages.

Being able to understand product information clearly and communicate meaningfully with companies can help them make better informed purchasing decisions.

By localizing your website, you can reach out to potentially millions of new customers and increase your chances of converting them. This can lead to a significant increase in revenue.

Improve Search Engine Visibility

Another benefit of localizing your website is that it can help you achieve higher rankings in native language search engines.

The translated parts of your website will be indexed by native language search engines, and they will be more easily found by Internet users who perform searches in their native languages.

As such, you will see an increase in traffic to your website.

Build Credibility

Generally, consumers have greater respect for companies that can communicate in their native languages and offer products and services that are tailored to their cultures.

Localizing your website is a way to show your foreign customers that you are truly a global player, and you are committed to giving them the best shopping experience possible. It will help you gain their trust, loyalty and long-term business.

As the business world continues to become more global, an increasing number of companies are localizing their websites to gain a stronger foothold in foreign markets.

You need to do the same if you want to stay competitive.

About the Author: John McMalcolm is a freelance writer who writes on a wide range of subjects, from social media marketing to growing your business.