Successful Blog

2015 Business Goals – How to Accelerate Through the Finish Line

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You’re at a track and field event. The leading runner anticipates the finish line, slows down, and allows the would-be second place finisher to blow past.

That’s all of us in November.

Are you already pulling out your post-Thanksgiving fat pants and planning a holiday getaway?

It’s definitely not too late to accomplish those important business goals you set up last January.

So re-tie your sneakers, step away from the pumpkin pie recipes, and let’s soar through the finish line tape of 2015 with our arms spread, victorious.

Step One: Look at the Goals

First of all, you should know exactly where your goals are, and where you stand on them, if you’ve been doing quarterly check-ins, right?

If any of your 2015 goals were “overtaken by events” or don’t make sense anymore, just strike a line through and forget about them.

Did you set any goals that were out of your own control to accomplish? Gather up the team and review those goals together.

Step Two: Celebrate the Victories

There’s no point in having goals if you don’t give yourself the joy of celebrating when they are achieved.

For any of the goals on your 2015 list that you’ve already accomplished, set aside some time to bask in the glow. Take your team out for lunch, high five, and savor a job well done.

If any specific colleague deserves credit for the accomplishment, be sure to recognize him/her with a thank you.

Step Three: Focus on the One Big Goal

For any 2015 business goals that are still in play, winnow it down to the one big one. Which project will make the biggest difference to your business if you were to buckle down over the next two months and get it done?

Take that one big goal and make it your total focus through the end of the year. Do you need to break it down into smaller bite-sized steps in order to get moving? What’s in your way? Has something stopped you from moving forward with it? Do you need to enlist additional resources? Gather the team and rally around your One Big Goal.

Make sure you have metrics in place for the “big goal.” Know when you will have achieved it!

Use your lessons-learned from this year’s goals as you think about your 2016 goals. Were you overly ambitious? Were you not ambitious enough? Do you need to tweak your work habits or methods to get a different outcome next year?

 

Let’s all work together to avoid coasting into December 31. Let’s accelerate together and go into January with momentum!

I’d love to hear about your 2015 goals…how did it go?

 

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

 

Go Blogging and See the Results

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New Customers written in search bar on virtual screenDo you sometimes feel like your brand is not getting the attention it deserves and more importantly needs?

For some business owners, their websites can mean the difference between a healthy brand and one that is on life support. Whether your brand is doing well or not so well, are you looking to improve it? If the answer is yes, make sure you review your blogging efforts.

Given the fact that more and more consumers are going online to browse and ultimately buy products and services; having a strong website presence (including a relevant and informative blog) is more critical than ever. So, take some time to see how you can improve your blog or even how to start a blog today.

Blogs Matter More Than Ever

No matter what product or service you sell, blogging about your line of work is a great way to not only attract new customers, but also retain current ones.

With a solid blog on your website, you can:

  • Promote your brand – First and foremost, promoting your brand should always be a priority. A stellar blog on your website allows you to do just that and more. The blog can be an ambassador for your brand, introducing your products and/or services to millions of consumers. Make sure the information contained in your blog is relevant, timely, and provides a call to action without coming across as a sales pitch;
  • Be more socially active – Having a solid blog to work with allows you to be more social, meaning go to social media. Promoting your blog posts opens the door to consumers who may not be familiar with your brand. In turn, you are more likely to get inquiries about your brand when you are publicizing it on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and even YouTube. Just like with your blog, you need to be active on social media, meaning share or tweet regularly in order to maximize your opportunities;
  • Engage with industry experts – While some companies decide to do all their blogging in-house, many others welcome guest bloggers. If you decide to work with guest bloggers, make sure they are a good match for your site’s blog. What kind of experience do they have in blogging? Are they an authority on the topics they speak of? Do they have a decent to solid social media following and will they promote their posts and your site? Yes, some guest posters will not be a good fit for your blog, but many others could be just what you are looking for;
  • Use it as a networking tool – In the event your business attends a number of trade shows and conferences during the year, your blog can be a topic of discussion. Along with promoting the respective event on your blog you will be attending, bring a laptop to the event and set the viewing page to your blog. As attendees visit your booth, it can make for a great conversation piece.

If you’re looking to improve your company’s blog or finally getting around to starting one, know that it can help your brand in so many ways.

Photo credit: BigStockPhoto.com

About the Author: Dave Thomas writes about marketing your business on the web.

Engineer a Better Career Approach Moving Forward

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How to Get Ahead words on a board game advance your career
How to Get Ahead words on a board game advance your careerWhat is your career approach?

Whether you want to be an engineer or a CEO, a nurse or a big data scientist, the right approach to your career will give you a valuable boost.

What are some things you can do to keep a positive attitude and make sure you have the best approach to your career?

Make Your Career Your Business

It is all too easy to drift along, even in a career you’re successful at. That’s why you need to make your career your business.

Make time for a career review; ask yourself where you would like to be in five or 10 years. What would you like to achieve before you retire? Once you know where you want to be, map out a plan of how to get there, and regularly review where you are.

Think about your talents, motivations and likes.

If your career is the right one for you, how can you use your skills to make it even more rewarding? If it’s not, ask yourself what you would like to do instead, and how you can use your existing skills in a new way.

Keep Learning

One of the keys to engineering a better career for yourself, is learning. Keep abreast of what’s hot in your industry from new technology to new ideas.

Be willing to invest in your education (sometimes employers will be able to help you with this). Continuous learning will keep your skills up to date, making you more valuable to an employer, and helping you get more satisfaction from what you do.

If you want to move in a different direction, learn as much as you can about your intended career so you can figure out if it’s right for you.

Make the Most of Mornings

Making the most of mornings can help you advance your career.

The morning provides prime quiet time, before the rush of work, family commitments and deadlines. As the article “Boost Your Engineering Career” says, you can use that time for making plans, motivating yourself, and starting your day with a goal in mind.

Time spent in the morning planning your day is a good career booster.

Start every morning with a clear plan of what you want to achieve, and which tasks are most important to that end. You’ll be taking charge of every day and making sure you use your time in the best way possible.

Look For Opportunities

If you want to forge the best career path for you, keep your eye out for opportunities. Having a positive attitude and being willing to seize opportunity will help you move forward.

Be proactive in looking for chances to boost your career.

That might mean taking a new course, attending an event, or simply connecting with the right person. Don’t be afraid to ask questions, make suggestions and start conversations. You never know what might come of it.

If you want to go in a new direction, look for chances to learn and grow on your new path.

Don’t wait for the perfect training course, for example. Read books, talk to other people in your desired industry, or even look for ways you can volunteer to find out what it’s all about.

Being in a career that you love is fulfilling and rewarding.

Make sure that’s the case for you with a positive attitude, great time management, and a nose for opportunities.

Photo credit: BigStockPhoto.com

About the Author: Tristan Anwyn writes on a variety of topics including social media, how to build customer relationships, content marketing and how to move forward in your career.

Unleash your inner social PR superhero – Q&A with Shonali Burke

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I’m so pleased this week to interview one of my personal superheroes, Shonali Burke.

She’s a “social PR” strategist who was named to PRWeek’s first “top 40 Under 40” list, the first list of 25 Women That Rock Social Media; and who founded and continues to curate the popular #measurePR hashtag and Twitter chat. She’s the owner of Shonali Burke Consulting, Inc.

Shonali is going to be offering a free mini-training to share some of her secret sauce, so I thought it would be great to have her answer some teaser questions here at Successful Blog. We could all use some help with PR, right?

 

How do you define “social PR”?

The classic definition of PR is the discipline that “builds and maintains mutually beneficial relationships between and organization and its publics” – that’s the *real* P in PR, not the imposter, “publicity.” Now, for decades publicity was the best way to get attention, and that awareness was the springboard for inquiries, additional marketing, sales, etc.

But if you’re actually going to build relationships with your “publics” – your audiences – you’re going to have to find ways to consistently engage with them. Social technologies allow you to do that in a way we never could before; it’s remarkable. I mean, just last week my website went down, and I was able to get BlueHost’s attention more quickly on Twitter than through their live chat!

So “social PR” harnesses the power of social technologies and platforms to help organizations build these relationships with their publics. This translates into a lot of online community-building, which is hard work (as you know), but the results can be incredible. Because if you can motivate your communities to start telling your story for you, isn’t that far more believable than you harping on it yourself?

What are some key mistakes that people make when trying to do social PR on their own?

First, I think a lot of companies (large and small) don’t realize they can’t just create social media accounts and blast information out at people. A press release will do that just fine. So there’s a lack of understanding of what it takes to have a regular conversation online. I find that a bit strange because they’re just fine talking to you offline!

Second, not actually listening to what people are saying, either about them, or their competitors, or their space. If you don’t do that, I don’t see how you can set a benchmark and ultimately gauge the success or failure of your campaigns and work.

Third, they’ll silo the various areas of communication as if they’re stocking their granaries for the winter. Social PR is by its very nature fluid and integrated (as business communications should be). While you must absolutely have some structure, you also need flexibility, because the mediums you’re working in are changing all the time.

 At what point does a small business owner need to call in a pro for PR?

The minute she can afford it. Truly, though I know you probably think I’m biased. But honestly – I’m wearing my own small business owner hat as I say this.

Unless you run a PR shop of some sort, your business is not PR. Your business is selling widgets, or distributing refrigerators, or knitting shark blankets, or selling online community software. Even if you have a knack for communications, and many many business owners do, ultimately any time you’re *not* spending on activities that grow your business is money you’re throwing down the drain.

Unless you’re exceptionally handy, you wouldn’t try to learn how to install a new roof on your home just so you could replace it in 30 years. So why would you not hire a PR pro to do what they do well, so that you can focus on what you do well?

How do you best leverage community to help spread the word about your product or service?

I heard a three-word mantra a long time ago that I often use: Educate, Cultivate, Motivate. This is how organizations *should* approach it; but most of the time they instead jump straight to Sell. That just doesn’t work.

You have to spend time becoming a part of a community, listening, engaging, curating, sharing. Do for everyone else before you ask them to do for you. Then, when you have enough community “change” in your bank, you can make your ask – but not before.

What’s your favorite social listening tool that won’t break the bank?

Talkwalker Alerts. I would have said Google Alerts, but they’re pretty unreliable these days, which is disappointing. 

What sparked you to create this course?

The best part of my job is when I’m able to help clients, students, people who attend my workshops, see what a joy social PR is. When that light goes off in their eye, that’s what makes my heart sing.

I got tired of seeing so many, many smart folk flounder when it comes to smart social PR strategy & implementation; not because they’re not smart, but because they don’t have the right coach to guide them.

I’m ultimately a teacher at heart. So I figured taking this online was the best way to share my joy with as many people as possible, and give back to an industry that has given so very much to me.

Thank you so much for chatting with me, Shonali!

Click here to sign up for Shonali’s free mini training course, The Social PR Launchpad: Unleash Your Inner Social PR Superhero.

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

 

Keynote Speakers Can Set the Tone for Business Success

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Speaker Talking at Business Conference.If you’re looking for a keynote speaker for your next event, you’ll want to make sure you choose the right person.

Keynote speakers can set the tone for the entire event. Getting it right is critical to the overall success of your event.

Here are some key qualities of a great keynote speaker….

Articulate

When interviewing for your keynote speaker, you should be able to tell right away whether or not they are a good speaker.

A good speaker is articulate, and seems to find the right words instantly to communicate the message.

Ultimately, as the article, “what makes a great keynote speaker?” looks at, it’s the ability to articulate the message in a clear manner that will be easily understood by the attendees.

Presentable

Your keynote speaker needs to be presentable as far as physical appearance.

Unfortunately, society does judge others on appearance. If you are putting on a conference about fitness products, your keynote speaker needs to be in good physical shape.

Even if they are a past Olympian, if they’ve let themselves go, they won’t be a good spokesperson for your company.

You don’t need a beauty contestant, but a general modicum of physical health is desirable in a person who is going to be delivering the keynote speech at a corporate event.

Respectful

Your keynote speaker should be a person who respects your organization and what it stands for.

They should be able to address your attendees in a respectful fashion, and embody the ideals that your organization holds dear. Even if they are experts in their field, if they cannot speak to your group in a respectful manner, they wouldn’t be an ideal candidate.

For example, you’d be surprised at how many experts on matters that interest women, such as childcare and gardening, don’t actually respect the women who engage in those activities.

Well-Known

The best keynote speaker would be one who can lend an air of authority to your event.

If they are well-known in their field, you will likely get a lot more attendees to your event than if you hire a keynote speaker whom no one has ever heard of. The value of a well-known keynote speaker is immense.

They can advertise their upcoming keynote address, and perhaps bring in more attendees than you would have otherwise had. A well-known keynote speaker can also breed excitement about the event.

When people who are on the fence about attending your event see who is delivering the keynote speech, they may be more likely to sign up just to see their favorite motivational speaker, celebrity or what not.

Responsible

Once you hire a keynote speaker, you want to be able to cross that task safely off your list.

You never want to have to worry that the keynote speaker won’t show up or will forget. If your keynote speaker is a celebrity, they could potentially be someone less than plugged in to the conventional world where people have to be a certain place at a specific time.

Your choice for keynote speaker should be a person with a responsible attitude to their commitments.

Keynote speakers can often make or break the success of an event.

Choose wisely and carefully, and sit back and enjoy the speech.

Photo credit: BigStockPhoto.com

About the Author: Kate Supino writes extensively about best business practices.

Is Stereotyping Customers Hurting Your Business?

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What do we think about our customers?

My mom was buying some anti-congestion medication this past week. She asked the pharmacy tech for the OTC version (which they keep behind the counter). My mom requested two boxes and the tech said “We’ll see.” The tech continued to make my mom feel like a criminal throughout the rest of the process until the tech finally relinquished the medication.

We know not everyone is trustworthy all the time, including our customers. But what a mistake it is to err on the side of distrusting them. When we assume the worst of our customers, we aren’t as friendly, caring or helpful as we should be. If we count them as tasks we need to complete or obstacles to accomplish sales, we will not be as successful as we could be. And worst of all, if we stereotype them as we see them, we miss out on serving them excellently.

All of this starts in our thoughts. When we see a customer what do we think? Do we think a woman is poor if she has messy hair? She could be a busy mom. Do we think a man is rich if we see him in a suit? It could have been donated to him. We all fall into it. But stereotypes don’t help us serve people best.

When we see a customer what should we think?

We should see them as human, like we are. We should think about the honor it is to serve another person. We should feel thankful to have the skills and ability to serve them. We should feel grateful we are needed to serve them.

And all that should lead us to listen to them, to make their needs the priority and to serve them the best we can.

And let’s not forget about the consequences when we continue to entertain stereotypes about customers. My mom told me about her experience at the pharmacy because of the negative emotional impact it had on her. Negative word-of-mouth is a natural consequence of poor service due to our stereotypes.

The best customer service starts in our thoughts about our customers.

What do you think about your customers?

 

Image info: Photo by Adam Przewoski, found on Unsplash.

About the Author: Lindsey Tolino comes alongside artisans, craftsman and people monetizing their passions to help them create healthy businesses. She shares her heart at ToBusinessOwners.com. Follow her on Twitter @LindseyTolino or connect with her on Google+ .