Woody Allen has been quoted as saying that 80 to 90 % of success is due to “just showing up.” Apparently this quote is controversial, as I found out when I searched for it. Some people think that “just showing up” is not to be applauded. They say that we should strive to make a [...]
Information overload and overwhelm are two terms that have become active in my vocabulary in the 21st century. On the web, you can find out more than you ever wanted to know about anything and everything. I feel like I am almost drowning in the quicksand of information overload! The most refreshing advice I have read lately was in an encouraging articlein Harvard Business Review by Michael Schrage, a research fellow at MIT Sloan School’s Center for Digital Business, called, “Tip for Getting More Organized: Don’t.” Michael says, “When it comes to investing time, thought and effort into productively organizing oneself, less is more.” Basically, his advice is to use search instead of filing.
Personal Branding and Google + Circles Personal branding has become crucial to success in business. Circles on Google Plus, Google+ if you will, along with SEO and social media profiles, are replacing the old school Rolodex in the internet age. Perhaps it was always true that people did business with those they knew, liked and trusted. [...]
Making friends is one of the most valuable activities in life, whether measured by happiness, helpfulness, or financial benefits. Making friends usually begins with finding compatible people. In a previous post I wrote about How To Find Friends. Social networking websites have made it easy to find new friends online. Meetup.com even facilitates finding and meeting [...]
“Everyone” says that video is “the future” on the internet. More and more websites and blogs use video. Video email is now a big thing. It seems that most tutorials are in video format. Video conferencing is “in.” Credit for the images above goes to the VideoConferencings blog, which states [...]
“Relationship marketing” is a term often identified with network marketing or “attraction marketing.” However, it seems to me that relationships are at the heart of all kinds of successful marketing in the 21st century. Generation after generation of marketers have learned that Love endures and that good service breeds brand loyalty and referrals. Good customer [...]
Whatever you need and don’t have, somebody else does have, whether it be knowledge, resources, ideas, skills, or contacts. Synergy is the main reason for networking. Of course, relationships, which are precious per se, are a very nice by-product of networking and collaboration. In an article on BrightHub.com entitled, “The Benefits and Challenges of Team Collaboration,” Bruce Tyson [...]
Extended family gatherings used to be a hallmark of Christmas celebrations. Bel Mooney wrote a disturbing article in the Mail Online about the sad fact that millions of grandparents are left alone at Christmas. Ms. Mooney lamented the fact that “The elderly are neglected by the very people to whom they gave the gift of [...]
Social Networking Social networking has been around for centuries. Synergy and empowering relationships are the essential ingredients of civilization. The internet is an efficient channel of communication for human beings who would like to interact for mutual benefit. I’ve been a fan of social networking for decades, and I was delighted when social media arrived [...]
Attraction has been linked to similarity of attitudes, belief, and interests in university research since the 1960′s. Personally, I invested four years in post-graduate research into interpersonal attraction. The implications for social media are profound, because we open to the public intimate details about our attitudes and interests on our Facebook profiles. A recent article [...]
Relationships are always between human beings, and humans have always been emotional creatures. We make decisions emotionally and then justify them rationally. Whatever the media or communication channels, we, the people, are attracted to those we know, like and trust. Online or offline, we don’t care how much you know — until we know how [...]
One of the best things about true network marketing, online or offline, is the win-win relationships. To quote Zig Zigler, “Help enough other people get what they want, and you will get what you want.” Sales and internet marketing, as opposed to networking, have the potential to be win-lose games. The seller wins, whether or [...]
Alliances, tribes, and virtual teams are popular among internet marketers today. SEO has incentivized reciprocal tribe syndication beyond the normal reasons to cooperate. Personally I have been wrestling with my entrepreneurial tendency to focus on my own creative projects, rather than to contributing a lot of time as a team player. I’m just being honest [...]
Get traffic? The volume of “traffic” flowing through Facebook and Twitter feeds make the Los Angeles freeway system look like a rural country lane. But social media experts continue to advise marketers not to transfer the old freeway billboard advertising technique to social networks like Facebook. Unlike the freeway, the traffic on the new internet superhighway is becoming [...]
Social media allow us to get to know each other before we decide to do business together. This is one of the things I like about network marketing too. We can choose to work with whomever we want. I think that is better than taking a chance on “buying a pig in a poke” from [...]
Sales and network marketing are related but different professions. Of course there are various hybrids and blends. But for this discussion let’s distinguish between these fields based on their fundamentals. Either profession can be practiced online or offline. I love the internet and the technological leverage. It reminds me of the leverage of networking, which [...]
Social media has powerful potential for viral exposure. But studies have shown that more than two-thirds of Facebook users say that “Liking” a “Fan Page” does not mean permission to send me advertising messages. Marketers need to understand that the vast majority of “Fans” click that they “Like” a page as a message to their friends, [...]
Trust is a key component in business (and personal) decisions. Greg Ferenstein wrote an interesting post on the Mashable blog about trust in social media, in which he quoted Professor Judith Olson, who has studied the essentials of building trust in digital communication. One of her most important findings is that “responsiveness is key” in building [...]
Begin with the end in mind. As a leadership consultant I have always asked “WHY” before “WHAT.” Intention helps focus efforts in the direction of desired results. Craig Galati wrote about social media strategy in the Las Vegas Sun: Social media is important, but it must fit into a marketing strategy. Social media is a [...]
The foundation of any lasting relationship is a positive value exchange. In personal relationships the value is often intangible. It may be a subtle deposit in what Stephen Covey calls the “emotional bank account.” Making such deposits spontaneously and without calculation is most effective. In fact being relatively unconscious of the value exchange may be [...]
A psychological study revealed that out of 400 adjectives that describe personality characteristics, the #1 most attractive was sincere, and the #400 (most unattractive) was phony. People like authenticity. Philosopher James Allen, in his Essay on the Eight Pillars of Prosperity, wrote, “Attractiveness, like genius, is lost by being coveted, and possessed by those who are too [...]
In blogging and social media marketing we often read that “content is King.” The “King” in networking is caring! Top Leaders in network marketing all concur that “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” Computer geeks are always looking for “the killer app”, i.e., the “next big thing” [...]
“it’s a pretty good bet that we really are here to make friends,” according to Peter Bregman, CEO of Bregman Partners, Inc., a global management consulting firm. An excerpt from his article, Why Friends Matter at Work and in Life, in the Harvard Business Review is quoted below: To be a good friend, you have to give [...]
Relationships come in many varieties: romantic relationships, strategic business alliances, customer relationships, family relationships, et al. I believe it is wise to begin with the end in mind. What are you looking for? Social media provide efficient tools to communicate, and all relationships thrive on communication. What do you think are the best ways to [...]
In an article for CNBC.com, Professor Ivan Misner, the founder of Business Networking International (BNI), and author of Networking Like a Pro: Turning Contacts into Connections, wrote: The only way you’ll benefit from social media is to build relationships with your online friends through engaging in the conversations you start. Otherwise, you’ll quickly earn a reputation [...]
