What tips would you give a new business owner who wants to get their business off on the right foot?

There are many issues that a new business owner must tackle during startup.  These items generally fall into 3 categories.

1. Things that must be taken care of now (either because they are legally required or must be in place before the next item can be handled).
2. Things that need to be taken care of soon, like creating show term marketing plans, creating a unique selling proposition, ideal customer profile and goals
3. Longer term issues like creating operating procedures, having a growth plan, detailed marketing plan, an employee handbook and more are last on the list.

Obviously my startup list is very short and leaves out many items that must be addressed. The focus of this article is not about all the myriad of items and details a new business owner has to tackle. No, this articles purpose is to guide a new business owner in finding help and support that will expedite their businesses growth. That’s right, growing their business and getting help at the same time. We will be killing two birds with one stone.

Three Internet Marketing Techniques That Use Leverage To Produce Great Results

Image by Getty Images via @daylifeWe all know that internet marketing is vital for the sale of many types of products and services. It is also very important for the growth of many businesses. We live in a society that is seeing rapid change with completely new market segments cropping up in what seems like over night. As a consultant and small businesses owner, I need to keep up with these rapid changes. A marketing, management and learning principle I have always adhered to for staying ahead of the game is leverage. The principle of leverage allows you to do something once and then repeated it several times without having to add more energy. In essence, it allows you to do more with less effort. This article will discuss how to use the principle of leverage on the internet and in social media. Although there are numerous ways to use leverage for internet and social media marketing, this article will focus on three examples that any business can implement. Although this article will only provide three examples, it will become a nice down payment for understanding and using leverage to get results from your social media marketing.

Leveraging Technique #1 Link Your Networks

Image via WikipediaUse the linking applications built into most social networks. These applications are usually free and are often included in the setting section of social networks like LinkedIn, Twitter, Face Book, MySpace, Google + and others. These applications let you automatically share the same post on multiple networks without you having to retype anything. These applications are free and usually have the approval of the social media host providers. They also work even when you are posting via your smart phone, table or web browser. Enter your post once and it is share to multiple social networks.

Leveraging Technique #2 Use Aggregator Software

Another way to achieve leverage is to use third-party aggregator programs that are not directly connect to the social media networks. These applications allow you to post to several networks simultaneously just like the "built-in apps" but the also allow you schedule your post at some future time. Another important feature of aggregator programs is that "you can pick and chose" which social networks sites receive your posts at the time you make your entries. The "build-in apps" generally don't allow changes after the fact. It's an all or none type post. Again, this allows you to leverage your communications, your work and your time. You can actually enter two dozen post today that are scheduled to be released over the next three or four weeks. Two good examples of these are Tweet Deck and Hoot Suite. Both are available as free downloads of as commercial applications.

Leveraging Technique #3 Make it Easy for People to Find You

Any time you're in the public eye, make sure these potential customers can connect with you. If you're posting information, make sure you include some kind of contact information. It can be your phone number, business address, your web URL, or email address. Email and URLs are easiest to remember so I often include these. Now this is not appropriate for all social network sites posts. For example, both Face Book and LinkedIn users would frown if you posted your contact info with every message. They already have your contact information as part of your profile and it is not necessary since your connection is automatic.

Having said that, all your email communications, business cards, brochures etc... should include your contact information. All your printed ads should include references to your social network URLs, website and more. In other words, all your regular advertising should invite people to connect with you through whatever means they like.

I use Twitter quite a bit. It definitely lends itself to including URLs in every message. Your web address can be used as a mere link, or as a push link with an added enticement. The point I am making here is this. Always make it easy for people to find and connect with you, the way they prefer to communicate. The more way a person can find you, the higher they likely hood they will.

There you have it, an introduction on how to use leverage in social networks. These three techniques are just the tip of the iceberg when compared to all the different leveraging techniques you can implement today. The sole purpose of using leverage is to do more work in less time and these three techniques deliver by multiplying your message and amplifying your work it in a viral way. By doing so you give up the countless hours of late night posting and prodding of tweets and comments that so many entrepreneur complain about and trade them in for a good nights sleep while your marketing leverage works for you.

That's my opinion. I welcome yours.

Image via WikipediaHector Cisneros has been an entrepreneur for 25 year, a veteran of BNI for 18 years, and was a BNI director for over 5 years. He is still an active BNI member and follows the philosophy of Givers Gain. He is the owner of several Businesses in Jacksonville, Florida. He actively coaches business owners in the fine art of internet advertising, Networking and Word of Mouth marketing. He is the president of Website Know How, Inc. a holding company for his business ventures that include online advertising, word of mouth marketing, real estate holdings, books sales, health and wellness product sales and Adventure sports. He is also a partner in a new company called Successful Campaigns LLC. That provides training and support for non profits organizations. To learn more about Social Media Marketing, Internet Advertising and Word of Mouth Marketing explore The Networkers Apprentice workshop or visit us at http://www.Websiteknowhow.com or http://www.60secondstosuccess.com. Friend us on Face book by clicking here.

Related articles

• What the best Social Media site for a Small Business. (networkersapprentice.blogspot.com)
• What tips would you give a new business owner who wants to get their business off on the right foot? (networkersapprentice.blogspot.com)
• Leverage Social Media To Show Your Expertise (viralblog.com)

Common Mistakes Made During 60 Second Presentations - Part one of a Four Part Series

Image via WikipediaAs a business consultant and BNI Director I get to help lots of business professional make the most of their word of mouth marketing efforts. Most often I am asked to evaluate their elevator speeches. You know their "60 second infomercials'" or "Sales Manager Minutes" as they are called in "BNI". Over the years I have discovered over 2 dozen things that a person can do wrong when presenting their sales manager minutes.

This article is the first installment of a four part series on common mistakes made during 60 second presentations. In this segment I will discuss the first 5 of these 2 dozen or so common mistakes that I seen. These 4 articles will give you the cure for these all so common aliments so that your 60 second presentations will produce result and make you more money. Eliminate a few and you will see real results. Eliminate them all and the referrals will come rolling in. So let's get started.
Image via Wikipedia
Common Mistake #1. "No Hook".
It is important that your last statement be a memorable one (hopefully a positive one too). People are more likely to remember the first thing and last thing you say and your hook can help "brand" you as the go to person for your particular product or service. Make your hook different, but easy to remember. Keep it simple. Using your companies' slogan is ok, as is rhyme for effect. Keep in mind that you want to be remembered in a positive way so don't make it too funny or off the wall.

Common Mistake #2."Selling to your audience"

Image via Wikipedia

In many cases your audience includes your referral partners. Your mission should be to educate your referral partners in stead of selling to them. People join referral network to get referral not be sold to. Make sure you remove or change the words "you and yours" when ever possible to something else. Don't use phrases like "everyone in this room can use this"! Change the sentence from you need to buy this to; "so when you customers does xyz, tell them about me and my service/product". Sell to their customer not to them.

Common Mistake #3. "Not saying your Name".
Image by Getty Images via @daylifeIt is important that you always say your name when presenting. I often hear members of various net working organization say things like, "You All know me" at the beginning of their sales manager minutes. Although this may be true, often times there are people in the room who don't know you. These "visitors" to your net work meeting are clueless to who you are. They could very well need your product or service and with out your name in hand, they may have to leave with out being able to connect with you. Get use to saying your name every time you present and you will never miss an opportunity with a visitor.

Common Mistake #4. "Going to short!"
It is important that you use every second of your time when doing a 60 second presentation. You did pay for that time didn't you? Would you go to a radio station and pay for a 60 second commercial and be happy when you only get 30 second of air time? No way! Create 60 second presentation, (or what ever time frame you are given). Use the whole amount of time allotted. So remember this. If you meet 50 times a year you only get 50 minutes a year for this type of advertising. If you're in a BNI chapter don't waste these precious moments. If you're in any other networking organization the same goes for you!

Common Mistake #5." Going too long!"
Image via WikipediaIf your sales manager minute goes too long, you quickly start to lose credibility with your audience. "Going to long", is being disrespectful of the other time. It also makes you look unprepared and unprofessional. Rehearse and time your 60 second presentations. Take advantage of the spot light you're given.

In my next segment I will discuss 5 more common mistakes made during 60 second presentations. Each segment will cover 5 or 6 topics. All of these common mistakes affect you're ability to get qualified referrals from the people you meet. Eliminating these common mistakes will greatly increase your result and land you that dream referral you've been looking for. Until then, work on these and let me know how it's helping you. If you would like to know more about this subject, visit my free blog to read several other articles covering word of mouth marketing.

That's my opinion, what's yours.

Hector Cisneros is an entrepreneur/businessman with over 25 years experience, is a 17-year veteran of BNI, and was BNI Director for 6 years. Currently he manages 3 businesses, writes and coach's business people in the art of Word of Mouth and internet marketing. He has several intl. published articles covering word of mouth marketing, social media marketing and how to improve your 60-second presentations. His new book "60 Seconds to Success" is aimed at helping business people make great first impressions and make more money through referral and word of mouth marketing. To learn more about Social Media, Internet Marketing and Word of Mouth Marketing visit the Networkers Apprentice workshop at http://networkersapprentice.com/ To contact Hector write him at hecisneros@gmail.com

How to Make Your 60-Second Presentations Sizzle

Great 60-second presentations all contain elements that capture your audience's attention. There are words that seem to have almost a magical air to them. Others carry lots of emotion and some just motive others to action. In this article, I will cover several of these magical words and other essential elements that you must have if you want your 60-second presentation to sizzle.

First of all, what do I mean by sizzle. My definition of a sizzling 60-second presentation is a presentation that captures the audience attention, hold it like a vice and then move that audience to act on your behalf. Now that we are on the same page as to what I mean by sizzle, here are five items that will bring more sizzle to your 60-second presentations.

Get your Audiences Attention.
The first element you have to add to your 60-second presentations is something that will get your audience's attention. I call this first element "the opening salvo". My favorite technique is to ask relevant question or ask a riddle. I often start out with the words; "Did you know", then ask a question usually tied to some current event or sensational headline. These headline usually grab a persons attention because of the words used in them are dynamic and emotional. An example might be; did you know that last year more than 80,000 people in the US had been hospitalized because they used Tylenol? I would then go on to tell the punch line, which then allows me to transition in to my own emotionally charged story. The key point here is to grab the audiences' attention with "opening salvo". This grabs your audience's attention and gives you the momentum to move into your story. Your story has to be related to your "opening salvo" in some way for this to work. By using, the right words in your story you will be able keep your momentum and their attention.

Use Emotionally Charged Words
The second thing you must make sure you do is use emotionally charged words through out your 60-second presentation. This allows you to keep their attention all the way to the end where you will empower them to act on your behalf. I have done a lot of research to find which words carry the most emotionally charged weight. These words can carry both a positive or negative charge. You want to use words that primarily have positive connotations. Here are a few of the word I use in my stories; Easy, Healthy, Love, Safety, Proven, Results, Guarantee, and Excited. There are many others highly emotionally charged words that are not listed here. I devote a whole chapter in my book to this subject. Check out 60-Second To success if you want to learn more about these magical words. The point to remember is that positive words draw people to you and negative word push people away. Both types of emotionally charged words will hold your audiences attention. Make sure your words are nudging them it the right direction.

Be Focused
Third, you need to make sure that your message is focused and has a specific outcome. If you try to ask for a half dozen different types of referrals, you will lose your audience and most of them will not know what you're really looking for. On the other hand, if you only ask for one very specific referral, your message will be easy to follow and your audience will stay with you longer. Another advantage of being specific is that your audience/referral partners do not have to mentally work as hard to find you referrals. By being specific, you have done most of the hard work for them. Keep your message focused and specific. Being specific will always be terrific.

Empower your Audience
Forth, your task is to empower your audience. You empower them by giving them specific directions on what to do when they recognize your referrals. If you want your audience to have the referral check out your website, tell them to do this. If you want them to set and appointment with you, ask for that. If you are trying to get your referral partners to ask your prospects to meet with you, ask them to get permission from the prospect for you to call. Ask that they give the prospect your card. Giving your audience clear and specific instructions empowers them to act on your behalf. Add this piece to every 60-second presentation and your referral numbers will go way up, especially if you are not doing this now.

Use a Catch Phrase to be Remembered
The fifth and last element that will give your 60-second presentation sizzle is to make sure you end your presentation with a memorable catch phrase or memory hook. Memory hooks should make you stand out in a positive way. They need not rhyme, but should be unique to you if possible and easy to remember. Using memory hooks is a way of branding your special talents, skills or product. This is important because good catch phrases will trigger a conditioned response to remember you. You should pop into the listeners' head anytime your memory hook "plays". Memory hooks, catch phrases, slogans and jingles are all branding elements. Make sure you are using memory hooks to brand yourself in a positive way. This will definitely increase your recognition and get you more referrals.

Using these five techniques will radically transform your 60-second presentations for bland to bam, from dull to dynamic, from so-so to sizzling. Word of mouth marketing is more that just meeting and greeting people at business events. Being systematic, prepared and professional will increase your credibility. If you use attention-getting headlines like my opening salvos, emotionally charged words to maintain momentum, a focused easy to follow story, ask for a specific out come and use a unique memory hook, your 60-second presentations will take you to the next level. Using these techniques in your presentations will all add up to better communication, more visibility more credibility and before long more profitability. Best of all you will have more fun and have less stress and closed more business.

That's my opinion, what's yours?

Hector Cisneros is an entrepreneur/businessman with over 25 years experience, is a 17-year veteran of BNI, and was BNI Director for 6 years. Currently he manages 3 businesses, writes and coach's business people in the art of Word of Mouth marketing. He has several intl. published articles covering word of mouth marketing and how to improve your 60-second presentations. His new book "60-Seconds to Success" is aimed at helping business people make great first impressions and make more money through word of mouth marketing. To get a FREE PREVIEW of his book, 60-SECONDS TO SUCCESS", Sign up for his blog at http://networkersapprentice.blogspot.com/. Email us when you have signed up and he will send you the free preview. Friend us on face book at http://www.facebook.com/pages/60-Seconds-To-Success/182027141821361?v=wall To contact Hector write him at hecisneros@gmail.com

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Minding your networking P's and Q's

By Hector Cisneros

Great 60-second presentations all contain elements that capture your audience’s attention. There are words that seem to have almost a magical air to them. Others carry lots of emotion and some just motive others to action. In this article, I will cover several of these magical words and other essential elements that you must have if you want your 60-second presentation to sizzle.

Why Networking fundamentals are your route to fun and profit.

By Hector Cisneros

If you are like me, you don't like to work real hard and get nothing in return. Yet at the same time, you know instinctively that doing the least amount will yield the smallest reward. I discovered that the phrase "least effort most gained" is actually an oxymoron long ago. However, I also discovered that if I wanted to network smarter not harder, I had to concentrate on doing very specific behaviors that produce the best results. Otherwise, I would find myself doing things right but not doing the right things.

Understanding the importance of your 60 second presentation

By Hector Cisneros

I am often asked the question; "How important is a good 60 second presentation?" People sometimes gasp at my answer. They look at me as if I am a little crazy because my answer is simple and very straightforward. The value of a good 60-second presentation is only as high as the importance you place on it.

It's Marketing not a meeting

By Hector Cisneros

Years ago, I was at a business luncheon, talking to several attendees about what I was planning for the upcoming year. It was the New Year, and we were talking about new products, growing our businesses and marketing. I brought up the subject of creating a word of mouth marketing campaign that I would deliver through my BNI chapter.

Eight more common mistakes you need to avoid when doing a 60 second presentation.

By Hector Cisneros

My last article talked about the top ten mistakes I see people make when doing 60 second presentations. At the end of that article I hinted that there were more traps that needed to be avoided but for the sake of brevity, I only talked about my top 10.

Creating a Strategic Word of Mouth Marketing Plan

Bt Hector Cisneros

As an experienced Networker and BNI Director I come across many people that I consider top notch networkers. I also take the time to meet with them and ask what has contributed to their success. Many times their answers are similar, some time what they tell me is blinding obvious yet no one does it, except them (which is why they are top notch). In this segment I am going to discuss “Creating a Word of Mouth Marketing Business Plan. In a futures issues I will cover implementing your plan, how to keep it on track and how to adjust it if its not working. Now let’s talk about what should be in your plan. Here are 6 items that I found were in all of the top notch players plans.