"You Don't Even Know Who I Am" - Patty Loveless

That's a great marketing story title isn't it? One of my favorite sayings is "You can make the best widget in the world, but if no one you make it, or who you are, it's not going to do you much good." Am I right? Especially in this day and age with the Internet, there are so many people doing similar things, and some with larger pockets that can spend more money, or have more business training, or more "guts" to get out there and sell. Us little guys get the short end of the stick and people don't even know who we are. 

So, you're saying "give me a break. It's all I can do to get the product or service together. You want me to price it, to market it AND sell it. I think my putting my stuff out there on Facebook should be enough. Isn't it?"

Facebook is a good start, but it's so much more than that. I spend hours (ok you Facebook marketing gurus, cover your ears here). I spend hours commenting on other peoples' pages, liking and sharing other events and programs, finding articles that have meaning for my followers -- all so that my relationships will grow and people will learn to trust me and to think of ME when they need something I offer. And then, I write articles for LinkedIn, and for StumbleUpon. I share on Quora, and Tumblr. That's JUST the social media.

Then, there are articles and ads in my monthly magazine, Small Biz Forward. Flyers in the weekly Chamber of Commerce newsletter, and the live, "in-your-face" networking that needs to be done as well. Wow, when is there time to actually do the work? The time for the work is when the phone starts ringing, the emails start adding up and and people stop you in the street and say, "Hey, your program sounds great. Where do I sign up?". 

This is just part of the cycle of running a successful business. Don't get me started on Who's your ideal customer? Why would they want what you offer? What goals do you have for 5 years -- have you even thought about next month? There are so many things to think about that your head could easily spin off your shoulders. But one step at a time. What are you going to do to change that old country music song, They Don't Even Know Who I am?

WIIFM

I'm a small business. You may be as well. Or, you might be someone who can say, hey, I've made it. I'm a success. I'm no longer that small. Congratulations on whatever level you're at. You have made it -- you made the decision to be your own boss and to do the things that you have dreamed about doing.

I know, for me, I've never wanted anything except to own my own business, and started when I was 12 years old with a crafts store out of my parents basement. I then went on to create a summer educational program for the little kids in the neighborhood. Like the Pied Piper, I would go around the block picking up kids as I went. We would hop and sing, and laugh while we got our exercise, and then, when we got back to my yard, we would read stories, play games, work on arts and crafts projects, have a snack and then go home the same way we got there. And I did this all for 25 cents a kid a day. Back then that was good money -- especially for someone who was 12 or 13.

I learned the value of wanting something and buying it with my own, hard earned dollars. I purchased a guitar, and a brand new full sized bedroom set (getting rid of that tiny single). And between the money I saved, scholarships and student loans/work study programs, I paid my way through one of the best colleges in the midwest. That work ethic has stayed with me til today and sees me here working in my office after a night in the ER where my dad was having a stroke, and with me having level 12 pain from a hit and run accident I was in over a year ago.

But I tell you, it's interesting. I turn on the computer and I see emails and Facebook ads telling me that I can easily make $10,000 a month quickly and simply, by following the formulas crafted by this person or that. The book "The Four Hour Work Week" is popular and everyone I ask tells me they have started their own business to be their own boss, to have time to spend with family, to take vacations, and to only work with customers that they resonate with. Sounds wonderful to me too. Unfortunately, I have yet to see that formula truly work, especially without a lot of other stuff thrown in. I'm here to tell you, whether you want to hear it or not, that it takes work and effort and a lot of persistence to get to that level where you can take the vacations and the time to do the family things you want to do. It's not as simple as it sounds. 

I'm not saying that these (at least some of these) programs aren't right on the nose, but invariably, they all end the same -- they get us started with a teaser, and then we have to come up with the money to pay for the real work and the real mystery to be solved. So my question is, ok. If you're not making the money yet, how can you pay the thousands of dollars some of these gurus are asking for, in order to make the money. People buy into their philosophy and fork over the dollars, and then most often, never put it to work as they learn the real secret takes time, effort and patience (what I said in the beginning). 

So, here's my final thought -- I know the answer and I'm really happy to share it with you (for $1500, paid in two installments). You can sign up at my website. I'll be waiting to meet you!

Stay On Target -- a Star Wars Quote

Entrepreneurs are a crazy lot. The way you can tell if someone's an entrepreneur or not is to see how many ideas they have bouncing around at one time, how many challenges they are dealing with yet keep on keeping on, and how few hours of sleep they operate on daily. The more of all these things going on in their lives, the more of an entrepreneur they are. Truly. Look at yourself. Are you content to call it a day at 5pm or are you just getting started (after a 10 hour work day)? That gives you your first tip as to whether you're an entrepreneur or not.

That's not to say that there aren't times when we find ourselves weighed down and ready to throw in the towel. Sometimes life can just be TOO much. But, sure as certain, the next day we're up and on a roll again. Well, maybe not the next day, but you get my drift. We don't stay down for long.

Welcome to my life -- come on in, sit down and get ready for storytelling time. Are you ready? Here goes.

Keeping with the Star Wars theme, A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away...I started my first business, and over the years, I have owned several (at this moment, I am running three distinct and separate companies). There are times when they are highly successful, and other times when they have been, not so good. We all go through those stages and it is good to realize that even when something fails, it's not a failure but a learning experience.

However, lately I have been "hit" by several asteroids (shall we say). My mom and dad's health have been less than good to say the least. I was in a serious car accident that has kept me from doing things that I have wanted to for about 18 months now. And as a consequence, my business has been less than stellar. I have fallen into fear and self doubt -- thinking that I wasn't worth anything and how dare I try and run businesses. And guess what: the more like that I felt, the worse my business got. In the great words of Yoda: fear is the path to the dark side. And I was surely on that path.

I steadily lowered my rates, thinking who is going to pay me THAT? I didn't try to work with the clients that I KNEW were my target and that would jump at working with me -- rather, I worked diligently at trying to get those that didn't have the money, didn't want my help and would NEVER buy what I was selling (like trying to sell freezers to eskimos). I would talk with the coach gurus who told me, if you don't charge what you're worth, then why should anyone pay you what you're worth? It makes sense, but boy was I scared!

Yet, somewhere along the line, I realized that I was worthy of appreciation and that people would be lucky to have me work with them. And you know what? I met with a potential client this morning, we talked about her business, we talked about things she should be doing (I gave her value for the free consultation) and I closed by saying I would love to work with you. I believe in your business and feel that we could work together well! She asked me what I charged (and I heard somewhere in the back of my mind -- may the force be with you). I swallowed, and said X (a price that I haven't felt able to charge in a LONG time). She nodded, and said. Sounds good. Sign me up! WOW. Yes, indeed the force was definitely with me today.  And it can be for you as well.

 Hopefully, you've enjoyed these Star War quotes and see how they can fit into your own lives and businesses. So let me end by telling you -- Do or do not. There is no try!!! And definitely, may the force be with you too!!!!

You say Tomato, I say Tomaato... Part 1

What does it take to be successful in business? There is a commercial on TV right now for a company that sells makeup for women. And the ad is about these people "hawking" their wares, chasing after this woman, wanting her to buy everything they're selling. This makes me think about my own business and all the others out there that say they help business owners make more money, help them find more time for family and friends, and create the ability for them to be "their own boss".

The competition for most businesses can be fierce, and what we really hope for is to find our place amidst the many where we can stand out, build a substantial following, and have enough success to do the things we really want to do with our lives. Some of us of course want to be "the wealthiest", "the most well-known", "have the most people talking about us", and more. Yet, I believe for most of us, a more modest dream of time for ourselves, money to pay our bills and have some of the niceties in life, with a group of loyal fans who will always buy from us, recommend us and be part of our "family". I know that's what I want for my business. I don't need to be the BEST. or make the most, or all those other things. What about you?

But I do know that whatever it is we want for our business, it is not going to just show up one day. The articles I read about how "I made $10,000 in my first month" -- well all I can say about that is: Really? Do you have Aladdin's Lamp handy?  Unless you're really really lucky, I am sure that's not going to happen to you. Sorry to say, it takes work, and effort to get a business started, and then it takes more work and more effort to keep it running. It's not easy and it's not cheap.

The work that you must do to get your business running is time consuming and hard on the brain. First, you have to understand things like, what is it that I'm providing? What value and benefits do I offer? And here, I'm going to let you in on a little piece of information -- you don't sell washing machines, for instance. You sell a simple way to get your clothes clean, with little work. You provide the person doing the washing with an easy way to protect their clothing so that they look good and last a long time. Get the idea? Benefits and value are much different than the product or service. People buy things that either give them pleasure, or take away a perceived pain. A washing machine is a washing machine is a washing machine. But one of the new gizmos that are becoming "hot" right now, are washing machines that have built in sinks. That's supposed to help with prewashing, etc.

You need to figure out what your goals are and how you're going to accomplish them. SMART goals are goals that provide to dos, and time tables and accountability. For a goal, without a direction to achieve it, will never get accomplished. Once you've got those goals in place you have to work at it to make sure you're moving ahead. If you set it up and then leave it to grow on it's own, it will never happen. I often see people using the visual of growing a garden -- you have to water it, pull the weeds, and consistently check in to make sure that there are no bugs or animals digging around it. The same is true for your business. Focus, focus, focus -- it takes time.

Once you have all of this in motion, your next step is to figure out just how do you get the people to know what you sell, and want it. There's a difference between marketing, advertising and sales. You need to understand the differences and figure out how to make them work for you. When you're just starting out, you are going to be EVERYTHING for your business, and so of course you are going to be the marketer, salesman and everything all wrapped up in one. Get used to it and don't let it intimidate you. You're not going to be able to get a customer unless they know you exist. It's a very important step in the process.

In our next article, we'll talk about more about the marketing and go into more depth with what is needed here. But for now, whatever you call starting your business, you need to work hard at it for it to be successful.