I receive plenty of emails that tell me I can write my nonfiction book in a weekend. And if I had 72 hours to totally devote to the process, I probably could finish one.But would it be anything more than a shelf dust-collector?

That’s the big problem with the “book in a weekend” movement. Sure, it can be done… but just because it can doesn’t mean it should.

If you’re considering writing a nonfiction book, let me encourage you to get a ghostwriter and marketer to help you ensure that your written book is:

a. Going to make you money thanks to call-to-action items organically placed throughout the text.
b. The strongest it can be in terms of succinctness.
c. A powerful tool that will give you credibility with peers and clients.
d. An item that can offer “mileage” even after it’s been published.
e. A product that isn’t going to be relegated to the land of the dust bunnies.

Now, I believe that you have a message to tell and I believe that you have an audience who needs to hear it. You just have to make sure that you’re delivering that message in a potentially profitable way!

I must say that the USPS is in a difficult situation right now.  To save money, they might have to eliminate Saturday mail, which will affect millions upon millions of consumers and businesses.

My question is whether you’ve given any thought about how such a decision could affect your organization?

Obviously, if you operate an entirely (or almost entirely) online company where everything is handled through email and fax, your first inclination will probably be to say “no”.  However, you might want to look a little closer. 

For instance, do you pay all your bills without the use of the USPS?  (Even if you bank online, the banks often mail checks to vendors rather than directly depositing the amount you authorize into the vendors’ accounts.)  Do you send anything through “snail mail” channels, such as thank you notes, sales proposals or marketing paraphernalia?  If so, having one fewer day per week when your messages could hit their intended audiences could have repercussions.

Though the USPS hasn’t made a decision yet, it would behoove you to do a little bit of thinking about the ways in which you can combat any concerns caused by a “no Saturday mail” reality.  That way, you’ll be ready — just in case!

1. Start using social media.  It’s a fast way to increase your presence on the Internet and — except for your time — it’s free to set up.
2. Hire a business coach.  I know that might sound self-serving, but I’ve used a business coach myself and I know how valuable even a single session can be!
3. Make a monthly sales plan.  If you don’t have anything written down, it’ll be difficult to make your sales goals a reality.  The plan doesn’t have to be complicated, either.  A simple MS Word doc or Excel spreadsheet will do.
4. Make phone calls.  I know — the dreaded “cold call”.  But if you just try 20 per week (4 each business day), you’ll have made 80 calls by the end of the month.  Even if your return rate is 2-4% on those cold calls, you could snag 1-3 more clients by month’s end.
5. Outsource where you can.  It may initially seem counter-intuitive, but if you outsource the items you don’t need to do yourself, you’ll be able to work on other projects that have been “backburnered” too long.
6. Start writing a book.  You won’t be able to finish it in 30 days, but with the help of a ghostwriter, you could be well on your way to having a first draft AND you’ll be able to pre-sell it.
7. Attend networking events.  Brush off your networking skills and get out there at least once a week.  Make it your mission to distribute AND get at least 10 business cards at each event.  Then follow up with those people.  You may just get a customer or two for your efforts!

We all have dreams, goals, aspirations… it’s what makes us business owners and entrepreneurs.  But not all of us achieve them.

Why?

Quite honestly, some individuals are just not willing to go far enough to reach their goals.  That’s because it’s sometimes necessary to change your life dramatically in order to see your hopes come to fruition.  And we all know how difficult change can be!

Yet I want to take a moment and urge you to chase after your aspirations.  There really is nothing you cannot do as long as you’re willing to go forward 110%.  Take the case of Katie Spotz, a young woman who is (at this moment, in fact!) rowing across the Atlantic to support her nonprofit of choice.

Now, I’m certain that although Katie loves to row, she’s had to give up many things in life (in the short term) in order to accomplish her dreams.  I’m also certain that she spent innumerable long days and nights planning for her journey, from how she would raise funds to what kind of outfit she would wear. 

The next time you’re “convinced” that you can’t do something that you “wish” you could, go to Katie’s site.  If she can row across the Atlantic — solo — you can pick up the phone and make a cold call, contact a financial guru to discuss investment opportunities or launch the marketing campaign that will increase your business four-fold.

It’s your dream.  Reach for the stars and make it happen!

Are you a business owner, even if it’s just on a part-time or start-up basis?

Congratulations! You’re also a sales person!  

[cue the scratchy horror music]

Wait, though.  Before you run screaming from your computer screen, let me assure you that it’s really not that bad!

Many entrepreneurs completely forget that being in charge means you have to be willing to sell whatever you offer, be it products or services (or both). That can be a tough realization for individuals who “hate” sales.

Now, to be sure, it’s possible for you to hire a salesperson to do the bulk of the selling, but you’re still going to have to do some kind of sales yourself. You really cannot avoid it, so it’s better to embrace the fact and prepare yourself.

I‘ve compiled a list of 12 things to keep in mind as you develop your new-found sales persona. Trust me - these suggestions come from years of experience:

1. Get a tough skin. Sales can be rough and you’ll always hear “no” more than you’ll hear “yes”.

2. Pay for sales training. It’ll be worth its weight in gold.

3. Find a sales mentor. This should be someone you know and trust or can be a person you hire to coach you.

4. Get into a daily (or weekly) sales routine. Don’t allow yourself to slack off or you’ll never make those “cold” or “warm” calls.

5. Go for “low hanging fruit” first. If you don’t know what this means, find a sales advisor to explain the concept to you.

6. Read a lot about sales. There are many incredible books, websites, periodicals and blogs out there and the more you know, the better you’ll become.

7. Talk to other salespeople. Even if you think you loathe selling, it’s important to discuss sales with people you know. Join an association if you’d like.

8. Take your sales seriously. This isn’t something you can afford to not do. There really isn’t a choice.

9. Be a bulldog… but a nice one. Learn how to be firm but not pest-like.

10. Try different sales techniques. Just make sure you give each one time to “pan out”.

11. Don’t become overwhelmed by the process or take it too personally. It’s just business. Really.

12. Celebrate your successes. When you make a sale, you should feel good about yourself! There’s nothing wrong with being proud that you overcame your original concerns about sales!

Want a one-on-one evaluation on how to get your sales to soar? Contact me at Julie(at)jadcc(dot)com today!

7 Reasons to Improve Your Cash Flow (beyond the obvious!):

1. You’ll be able to outsource more work to professionals.  This, in turn, will make you more efficient in whatever you do.
2. You’ll have the money to attend educational seminars and networking events.  These will increase your knowledge base and your sphere of influence.
3. You’ll stress less.  Being able to sleep at night will absolutely make you a better business professional!
4. You’ll be able to plan for the future.  No more wondering if you’ll be around in six months or a year!
5. You can invest in new technology.  Been putting off buying a Blackberry or wireless printer?  You can finally make some purchases.
6. You can try some advertising and marketing ventures.  If you have cash coming in, you can budget to publicize your business in new ways.
7. You can update your website.  You’ve known it was important — now is the chance to do it.

Of course, you have to evaluate your current flow of cashin order to improve it, and that can only happen if you start planning.  Contact me today at julie(at)jadcc(dot)com to discuss ways to get your money working for you!

If you’re like most business people, you spend a lot of time performing tasks throughout your day.

But are you getting the most mileage from each and every thing you’re accomplishing?

For instance, let’s say you have a blog. You write a post. You make it go “live”. Then you move on.

Do you ever go back to that post? If not, you’re missing tons of opportunities!

Truth be told, the essence of that one little, itty, bitty blog post could morph into a dozen different things, including:

- A guest post at another blog’s site
- A full-size article
- A press release
- A tweet
- A Facebook entry
- A comment in an online forum
- A newsletter snippet
- Another blog post on your site months later
- A segment of your first ebook
- The source of a vlog

Now, this takes planning, of course. And I’ll be the first to admit that it’s much easier to just let that blog post you wrote sit and collect cyber dust. But what good will that do?

The trick to being successful without continuously reinventing wheels is to strategically figure out how you’re going to squeeze the possibilities out of every action you take.

If you’re struggling to do this, I encourage you to give me a call. I’ll help you come up with a marketing plan that focuses on being efficient, not being redundant. That just might mean you can start taking a little time for yourself once in a while instead of constantly burning the midnight oil!

I recently read an excellent article by Scott McPherson, a CPA and virtual CFO, entitled “When It’s Time to Change Your Accountant“.  I highly recommend that you take a peek at his post because it really makes you think about what you plan to do moving forward as a professional.

Scott notes that there are some “red flags” you should look for that indicate it’s time to make a change in your CPA.  I would have to say that most of these indicators hold true for almost any professional relationship, including those with business coaches, marketers and consultants.

How many times have you heard the adage: “When you fail to plan, you plan to fail”? Though it might sound a tad trite, the message is solid and true.

In my line of work, I have the opportunity to meet a lot of people who have goals but no plan. Guess what ends up happening to those goals? They essentially get pushed farther and farther into the future.  Many times, they never materialize, which is a shame.

So what’s the problem? Why don’t more entrepreneurs and business people grab the bull by the horns and just make a plan they can stick to in order to achieve whatever objectives they have in mind?

Quite honestly, the problem is threefold:

1. They don’t know where to start, so they don’t start at all.
2. They don’t realize they need to have a plan. They believe that truly wanting to do something with your heart and soul will make it happen.
3. They don’t really believe they can make their goals a reality.

Let’s look at each of these reasons a little deeper:

The first - not knowing how or where to start a plan - is relatively straightforward and pretty darn simple to remedy. Either the person can create his or her own map for getting from the present to the future or (and I strongly recommend this approach) he or she can get help from a business coach like me.

The second - not knowing a plan is needed - means they haven’t been educated in how and why plans work. Maybe they think that plans are for wimps or people who don’t know anything… who knows? Typically once they come to the realization that a plan is like an insurance policy against the risk that your goals will fail, they are more than happy to get on board with the program.

The third reason is perhaps the hardest because it speaks to a deep lack of self-confidence. These individuals not only need a plan, but they need to believe in themselves again. I’ve helped dozens of people who fall into this category, and once they start to have faith in themselves, they’re usually more than happy to create a plan and then “work it.”

Remember that it’s great to have a dream, but dreams don’t come true by wishing on stars. Take a proactive stance and plan for “luck” to occur.

It’s mid-February. Do you know where your resolutions are?

Yep, THOSE resolutions. The ones you made so earnestly on January 1st. The ones you swore were going to change 2010. The ones that would electrify your marketing and make your cash flow!

The ones that are getting put on the backburner again and again and again and…

Okay, it’s time to ‘fess up. If you’re human, you probably have reverted to your old ways on some level.  Maybe you had the best of intentions, but somewhere you got sidetracked.  It’s not uncommon. After all, it’s tough to turn the Titanic around when it’s barreling along at a comfortable clip. HOWEVER, you don’t want to make the mistake of not steering it away from the iceberg until it’s too late!

If you’ve allowed your excitement for your business resolutions to wane, don’t penalize yourself further by glumly saying: “I blew it. Better try again next year.” Instead, dust yourself off and start holding yourself accountable… better yet, hire a coach to help you stick with the plans you know are going to make the difference between having a so-so year and having a spectacular one!

It’s time for round two of those 2010 resolutions…  You have ten-and-a-half more months… get that virtual “cash register” ringing!