If you’ve missed a previous lesson, click here to read them on the blog.

Lesson #4: Market the results of your work, not the process you use. If you were in my profession of business coaching, and someone asked you, “What is coaching?” you would be unlikely to enroll a client by saying, “We meet by phone for half an hour each week and talk about your goals.” That’s just the process – where’s the VALUE?

A slightly better answer might be to say, “Coaching is a process for helping you get what you want.” Now you are stating some value. But an even better answer would be not to market “coaching” at all, but instead to market higher earnings, improved selling skills, or more fulfilling work. You would respond not with a definition, but with a statement of benefits: “I teach success-driven women how to achieve MORE online in record time.”

Instead of offering tax preparation, an accountant could invite you to “save money on taxes.” Instead of selling logo design, a graphic designer could suggest “get your business noticed.” Rather than proposing a company retreat, a trainer could promise “improved teamwork and cooperation.”

Whenever possible, market benefits that your clients can place a dollar value on. You’re asking them to write you a check, so if they can’t see a monetary benefit, they are much less likely to do it. In a corporate environment, talk about improved productivity or employee retention. With individuals, describe the benefits of a healthier lifestyle or better relationships.

People need to see your service as the answer to an essential need they have. If you allow it to be something that’s just nice to have, you will either limit your market to clients with a budget for luxuries, or you’ll limit your rate to only what people will pay for something that’s nice but they don’t really need.

HELP IS CLOSER THAN YOU THINK!

One of the most overlooked secrets to successful marketing is getting a hand from the people you already know. If you’re new, maybe you are waiting to become more successful before telling more people about your business. Or perhaps you have made up a rule that your personal life is supposed to be separate from your business. But the truth is that the people who already know you are likely to be the best contributors to your success.

In the next lesson, you will learn what you will discover a success habit that could be the key to finding all the clients you will ever need. In the meantime… take action and start connecting with the people you already know. There may be dozens of ways they could be supporting your business – you just don’t know it yet.

If you’d like to take this a step further and are serious about developing and implementing a Marketing Action Plan that gets results, register now for the next Get Clients Now!™ action group program. It starts August 10th and is guaranteed to shift your marketing experience from reactive and frustrated to purposeful, proactive and producing results!

Imperfect action trumps perfect inaction every time so take action now! You’ll be so happy that you did!

Wait! Before you go…

I’d love to know what is (or was) your biggest frustration with marketing? Post your comments and let’s get a conversation started.

~ Gina xo

P.S. Be one of the six to register for Get Clients Now! and you will receive a bonus 30 minute one-to-one Accelheration call with me. You’ll be amazed by the motivating kick in the pants this single call will bring to your marketing! You’ll feel energized and ready with specific steps you can take immediately so you can start experiencing the improved results you crave. (Value $187)

Welcome back to the blog series devoted to getting you to see your marketing in a new, positive and productive light.

For success-driven woman in business online marketing can get frustrating quickly. The good news – marketing is a learned skill and has the greatest impact on your long term success.

Now, let’s keep the marketing wisdom rolling with lesson #3 of 6!

Did you miss a previous lesson? Click here to read them on the blog.

Lesson # 3 – Choose a niche and become known for it.

Returning to our metaphor of the water barrel, not having a niche is like running all over town to different water faucets instead of coming back to the same one each time. Even if you do have a bucket instead of a drinking glass, it’s inefficient. And worse, you might not even be able to find the faucets in all those unfamiliar places.

Not having a niche means that attracting clients is impossible. You must spend all your time pursuing clients; there’s nothing that brings them to you.

Your niche can be a target market, a specialty or both. For example, your target market might be “executive women” or “high-tech companies.” Your specialty could be “career transition” or “productivity improvement.” Having both a target market and a specialty to define your niche is ideal, e.g. “executive women in career transition,” or “productivity improvement for high-tech companies.”

When you identify a niche that works for you, you can become known in that niche.

That way, clients start calling YOU. Usually, you begin by networking in your niche and ultimately graduate to writing, speaking, or teaching to establish yourself as an expert. Keep in mind that networking is not just going to a room and exchanging business cards; it’s creating a pool of contacts from which you can draw clients, referrals, resources, ideas, and information.

You don’t have to wait for word of mouth within your niche; you can create it, by actively reaching out to others who are either in your niche themselves or serve your niche by what they do.

For example, if your niche is helping small business owners become financially successful, certainly you want to network with entrepreneurs and self-employed professionals. But you should also get to know accountants, small business attorneys, staff at entrepreneurship centers, career counsellors, psychotherapists, business bankers, newsletter editors, merchant card providers… anyone who comes in contact with your niche on a daily basis.

Meet with them, call them, write to them, write for them, speak to them, and teach them. Following the first rule of choosing a few simple things to do and doing them consistently, this is completely within your grasp “if” you focus on one narrowly defined niche.

If you leave your niche too broad or try to “cheat” by having several niches, your client universe becomes too large and you are once again spread too thin.

SELL THE SIZZLE, NOT THE STEAK

Imagine you went to an auto mechanic, and he told you he was going to lift the hood of your car, shine a light around, and move some parts up and down. Does this sound like a service you would pay for? Of course not! What you want to hear from the mechanic is that he will fix your car. If you’re not telling clients about the results your work produces and the benefits they will get from it, they will never see the value of it.

In the next lesson, you will learn what you need to be marketing and how to do it so your prospective clients will be begging to hire you. (Sounds good doesn’t it!)

If you’re anxious to get unstuck and are serious about developing and implementing a Marketing Action Plan that gets results, register now for the Get Clients Now!™ action group. It’s guaranteed to give your marketing and mindset a motivating kick in the pants!

Remember… Imperfect action trumps perfect inaction every time so take action now! You’ll be so happy that you did!

Do you have friends or colleagues whose marketing could use a swift kick too? Make sure you let them know about the series okay!

~ Gina xo

Welcome back to the blog series designed to get you looking at your marketing in a new, positive and productive light. Now, let’s keep you moving towards the achievement of your goals! (If you missed lesson #1 click here otherwise keep reading & enjoy!)

Lesson # 2 – Rely on the Persistence Effect, not on magic.

When you begin to move purposefully in a specific direction, energy is created and things begin to happen. There is an interesting phenomenon that occurs when you get serious about marketing in a focused, consistent way. You begin to get results in unexpected places…

• The phone rings, and it’s a prospect you spoke to three months ago saying they are suddenly interested in working with you.
  .
  
• You go to a networking meeting that seems like a complete waste of time, and run into a hot new prospect in the elevator on your way out — who wasn’t even there for the meeting you went to.
  .
  
• You get an exciting referral from someone whose name you don’t recognize. It’s almost as if the universe has noticed your dedication and decided to reward you.

Don’t make the mistake of thinking that these out-of-the-blue opportunities are accidents.

There is a direct connection between the level of effort you put into marketing and the results you get out of it — even when it seems like the results are completely unrelated to your efforts.

This marketing phenomenon is so common that it has been named The Persistence Effect. If you persist in making ten calls a day, every day, you will get business, but it won’t all come from the calls you made. If you consistently attend one networking event per week, clients will appear, but not necessarily from the events you attended. Don’t worry about why it works; just know that it works. And don’t confuse the Persistence Effect with magical thinking. Just creating a positive intention for something doesn’t have this kind of payoff. You have to do something about it.

USING PULL INSTEAD OF PUSH

Another way you may be preventing yourself from getting clients is refusing to choose a niche for your business or private practice. I know, I know, you don’t want to limit yourself. But the truth is that having a niche doesn’t limit you; it focuses you. If a client shows up at your door, of course you can choose to work with them, regardless of whether they fit into your niche. But to be effective at marketing, you need some kind of organizing principle for your outreach activities. The universe is too big to market to all of it. In our next lesson, you will learn what a niche market really is and how to choose one that will serve you the best.

If you’re anxious to get unstuck and are serious about developing and implementing a Marketing Action Plan that gets results, register now for the next Get Clients Now!™ action group program. It starts August 10th and is guaranteed to shift your marketing experience from reactive and frustrated to purposeful, proactive and producing results!

Imperfect action trumps perfect inaction every time so take action now! You’ll be so happy that you did!

Wait! Before you go…

I’d love to know what is (or was) your biggest frustration with marketing? Post your comments and let’s get a conversation started.

~ Gina xo

P.S. Be one of the six to register for Get Clients Now! and you will receive a bonus 30 minute one-to-one Accelheration call with me. You’ll be amazed by the motivating kick in the pants this single call will bring to your marketing! You’ll feel energized and ready with specific steps you can take immediately so you can start experiencing the improved results you crave. (Value $187)

Over the next few days I’m going to share five secrets to finding all the clients you may ever need.

This thought-provoking series is based on a special report created by CJ Hayden, creator of the Get Clients Now 28-Day Marketing Program…

Marketing shouldn’t feel hard or frustrating…  If it does – it’s time to get marketing working for you in new and more powerful ways. You’re going to love this blog series!

Over the next few days, you will discover:

• three things you may be doing now that can actually prevent you from getting clients,
• how the Persistence Effect can liberate your marketing,
• one simple habit you can begin today that may bring you all the clients you will ever need.

I promise this series will help you look at your marketing in a whole new and positive light. So, if you’re ready to give your marketing a motivating kick-in-the-derriere, let’s get started…

Lesson #1

Why is it that some consultants, Realtors, insurance agents, stock brokers and service sales professionals have all the business they need, while others struggle by with only a few clients? Is there a hidden secret no one is telling you?

Getting prospective clients to hear what you have to offer and remember you until they need your service can seem like an enormous challenge. So how do people in your line of work get clients? As any successful businessperson that question and you will hear: “Referrals” “Networking” “Making contacts and following up” “Word of mouth”.

It’s simple stuff; you probably already knew the answer. So, why don’t you have all the clients you need?

The answer may be simpler than you think.

WHEN LESS BECOMES MORE

When your marketing isn’t drawing the results that you believe it should, it’s easy to think there must be some hidden secret to marketing your business or professional practice. There are so many books to read, classes to take, and mentors, coaches, and consultants you could hire that it makes the process seem mysterious or overwhelming. But there is a simple answer and it’s the first of five secrets I’m going to share with you…

Choose a set of simple, effective things to do
and do them consistently.

The real key to successful marketing is picking just a few simple, effective things to do and then doing those things consistently.

This is how you can build your business more quickly by doing less.

Imagine that you were trying to fill a water barrel with a drinking glass. You would have to make trip after trip, going back to the faucet over and over. In marketing, this is like doing a little bit of networking, some haphazard follow-up, trying to get some publicity, giving a talk, buying a booth at a trade show, placing an ad, then writing an article…

Instead, why not use a bucket to fill your barrel? You can carry more water while making fewer trips. Instead of spreading yourself thin with a dozen different marketing strategies, you could simply do some networking with consistent follow-up, give some talks and follow up with those you meet, and that would be it; just three strategies: networking, public speaking, and following up. Your barrel fills faster, and you’re less tired.

Trying to do too much is one of the ways you may be sabotaging your own marketing efforts. Stop-and-start marketing can actually prevent you from getting clients. It wears you out running back and forth. You never spend enough energy on any one approach to really make a difference, but instead you make yourself less efficient and effective in all areas.

Instead, think… drip…drip…drip…drip…drip…

THE PERSISTENCE EFFECT AT WORK

If you limit your marketing activities to what you can realistically do well, it becomes possible to give your marketing the essential quality of consistency. Instead of just hearing from you once, people begin to hear your name over and over (drip…drip…drip…). They begin to think of you when you’re not in touch and send you referrals (drip…drip…drip…). But to make this happen, you have to do the work. Positive intentions alone won’t create clients without more help from you.

In lesson #2, you will learn how to tap into the quantum field and start activating the law of attraction.

If you’re anxious to get unstuck and are serious about developing and implementing a Marketing Action Plan that gets results, register now for the next Get Clients Now!™ action group program. It starts August 10th and is guaranteed to shift your marketing experience from reactive and frustrated to purposeful, proactive and producing results!

Imperfect action trumps perfect inaction every time so take action now! You’ll be so happy that you did!

Wait! Before you go…

I’d love to know what is (or was) your biggest frustration with marketing? Post your comments and let’s get a conversation started.

~ Gina xo

P.S. Be one of the six to register for Get Clients Now! and you will receive a bonus 30 minute one-to-one Accelheration call with me. You’ll be amazed by the motivating kick in the pants this single call will bring to your marketing! You’ll feel energized and ready with specific steps you can take immediately so you can start experiencing the improved results you crave. (Value $187)

Did you know that one of the best ways that an entrepreneur can stand out from the competition is to write a book?

When you’re an author, you have a business card that lasts forever, sharing your message and wisdom with the world.

In fact, a book is often your ticket to getting invitations for paid speaking engagements, media attention, information products, higher fees, and a steady stream of clients.

However, writing and marketing a book can be challenging,

especially if you don’t know where to begin. Aspiring authors can get bogged down and never finish their books, or, even worse, write a book that no one wants to buy.

I’m really excited about an event happening the month of August, Successful Author Secrets: Navigating the Course from Aspiring Author to Best-seller and Beyond. This ground-breaking program will feature 21 successful authors who will tell you the truth about what it took for them to become successful.

Just imagine learning from author super stars like Michael Gerber, Marci Shimoff, Loral Langmeir, and T. Harv Eker.

The best teachers are those who have mastered the task. These folks are proven master authors who are ready to share valuable information you can use right away. Yes, some have even been on Oprah’s couch. I want to hear about that!

If you are even remotely considering writing a book to build your business, check out the all-star line up of speakers at this on-line event happening in August. And, you can attend for free!

Successful people are committed to life-long learning but that doesn’t mean they don’t also leverage what they already know.

Before you purchase that next product or enroll in that next program, here are a few questions to ask yourself:

1. What area of my business needs the most attention – right now?

2. Is this product or program I’m considering relevant to the current gaps in my business?

3. Do I need to develop additional skills or purchase new resources in order to address this area? (i.e. maybe you *know* but struggle with implementation – actually doing it/getting it done)

4. Does it make more sense for *me* to learn these skills OR, does it make more sense to hire a specialist?

Make sure you’re evaluating what areas of your business need attention – right now. Investing in these areas are the most applicable, provide the best ROI (return on investment) and will move you forward more quickly.

If you’re continually investing in skills and resources that you “may need someday” rather than what will move you forward right now – you’ll find you’re not moving as quickly as you’d like. And that is SO frustrating!

Getting ahead of ourselves and investing in these products and programs we might need in the future is one of the top ways we self-sabotage – and, totally unnecessary.

Simply checking in with yourself before you buy (even if you choose not to) is can accelerate your speed of success.

Keeping your feet on the ground in this way requires a level of self-honesty that I believe is essential to long term success.

Good grief!

I just received a “just checking in” email from an “expert” asking me to please confirm that my email is still active by clicking a confirmation link…

Or… they will “remove” my email from their list.

In the P.S. of the message, they reveal the link will take you to their Facebook page.

“P.S. This link simply takes you to my FaceBook fan page where I’ve prepared a great article on how to…

Please visit the Fan Page so I know not to remove you from my list.”

A simple invitation to read an exclusive – only posted on my Facebook page – article on ABC topic could have been more effective.

I guess I don’t respond well to ultimatums. Do this or else.

What’s worse is that I’ve only been subscribed to this person’s list for a very short time… literally a couple of weeks.

The relationship is just getting started and if I don’t do what you say – right now (before we really know each other) – you’ll delete me?

So I’m curious, what do you think?

• Have you ever received a communication like this regarding a list you’re subscribed to?
• Any other suggestions of how this list builder could have handled “weeding the garden” of unresponsive email addresses?
  

Example: I remember reading a case study about a magazine company that discovered over 80% of their top accounts took more than a year to make a decision to advertise with them. AND that more than 50% of their sales reps were weeding the garden (a.k.a. stopped following up with prospects) after a “3 strikes your out” rule. Mucho dollars were being left on the table.

• What other list building and/or retention mistakes have you noticed?

I’d love to hear your stories… before you go, share your comment (or else! Just kidding)

Now, whether you leverage a resource like the Expert Faculty from List Attraction Week or plan to register for Ali Brown’s forthcoming List Building Tools and Secrets course (or both) – PLEASE do your business and reputation a favor by learning what works and what doesn’t.

In the meantime, let’s get a conversation started here…

~ Gina xo

Your invite to Sandy's Virtual Cocktail Party is below...

I’ve seen just about everything, but I was really struck by Sandy Grason’s “Jerry Maguire Manifesto” Video.

You can check it out at http://ginabellinc.com/fab

It’s been one year since Sandy declared “I lost my ability to bullshit”

Here’s what she meant… (and I quote)

“Why do you have to either do the work you love from your heart and struggle with the money part or go so deeply into the marketing of your business that you feel like a used car salesman willing to do anything for a buck? I wish I knew 6 years ago, what I know today.”

If you’re ready for something different…

If you know there has to be a better way…

If you’ve lost your ability to bullshit…

You are invited to Sandy’s Virtual Cocktail Party!
Coin + Kwan: You Can Have It All

Happening Thursday, July 8, 2010 at 3pm Eastern
(12noon Pacific, 1pm Mountain, 2pm Central)

RSVP now at: http://ginabellinc.com/fab

At the very least, hop on over to see Sandy’s Jerry Maquire Manifesto Video… it Rocks!!

Hope to “see” you there!

Have a great day!

~ Gina xo

P.S.: Sandy’s Jerry Maguire video mentions a new product coming at some point, but in the meantime, the free content you’ll have access to is outstanding!

I’m curious. How many of you are using free publicity to build your business?

Are you wanting to attract profitable partnerships and reach markets outside your inner circle?

Is your business the first one people think of when looking for your product, service or expertise?

Are you finding clients ready to invest with you at higher rates?

For myself, I’m always interested in looking for more ways to grow my business FAST (you know – Achieve More Online in Record Time) without having to invest a lot of money in marketing.

So, I have asked Elena Verlee to join me on Thursday, July 8 where she’ll share insider secrets on:

How to Create Powerful Stories That Get You Free Publicity

On this free call, Elena will be sharing her insider secrets on:

• A step-by-step process to help you create UNIQUE publicity stories now and forever
• 3 common myths about publicity that stop you from playing BIG and making the impact you want to make that will build your business FAST
• The #1 thing heart-centered entrepreneurs need to have in order to succeed in getting publicity (don’t even start if you can’t do this)
• What only YOU can do in the publicity process and what you can easily outsource to your team (your VA or even a temp can do some of these things)
• How you can create a Publicity STORM no matter how much budget, skills and time you have available

You’ll want to sign up now before you forget. Here’s the link:

This is actually a FANTASTIC time to get free publicity.

Why? Because we have more media delivering news and
information than ever before. That means journalists and
producers who work for newspapers, magazines, TV and radio
are constantly looking for people, products and information
that will be of interest to their audiences.

Add specialty niche outlets, newsletters, blogs, social
networking sites, internet TV and radio shows and you’ll
find there are a TON of possibilities to get the publicity
that will make you stand out from the competition. 24
hours, 7 days a week is a lot of news time to fill.

If you’re serious about building your business (or possibly even selling it
 in the future), you won’t want to miss the information we’ll
be sharing with you!

Space is LIMITED, so sign up now to reserve your spot on
 this complimentary call.

And don’t forget to share your thoughts and questions below. I’d love to know what you really think about your business and getting publicity right now.

One of my favorite coaching analogies is to compare our comfort zone to the age rings found on a cross section of tree trunk.

Think of it this way… every time we stretch our comfort zone it’s like we have a new age ring, we have a new level of awareness, we have greater self-esteem, we have more confidence, we are more experienced, we have more wisdom, we make different decisions because of that and we’re open to new opportunities too (often ones that were always there we just couldn’t see them yet!)

At the same level, we are faced with new obstacles. For example, along with our new level of awareness, limiting beliefs that were once invisible rise to the surface.

This can be good or bad depending on our ability to identify them quickly and regain momentum in spite of them. This is a skill that is essential for long term success.

So, how do you identify limiting beliefs?

The best strategy I’ve found is to create “CONTRAST”.

First, you have to be crystal clear about your definition of success. This gets your inner voice chattering and providing commentary that becomes the contrast you need to weed out your limiting beliefs.

Next, you have to pay close attention to your self-talk, best known as your inner critic (statistics say 80% of our self-talk is negative – yikes!). The self-talk and mind commentary leaves clues to our belief systems.

Finally, you have to choose which beliefs you’ll keep and which ones you’ll let go. Yup, I said “choose”. We can choose our beliefs. If a belief doesn’t support your success… let it go or replace it with one that does.

Your beliefs determine your thoughts, dictate your habits and influence your decisions. Does your belief system support your success or could there be some invisible saboteurs lurking?

Consider these two questions to test if limiting beliefs may be keeping you stuck.

1. Are you NOT doing things that you know you should be doing to support your success and are frustrated to feel stuck this way?

2. Are you doing things you know you shouldn’t be doing that sabotage your success and wonder why you keep doing them?

The average person… okay, 99.9% of people are aiming for middle ground, taking baby steps and playing it safe. Think of your childhood and how often parents and adult role models told you to “be careful”. That advice may have served you as a child (key word = may) but, as an adult and moreover an entrepreneur, playing it safe is keeping you small!

If you’ve caught yourself doing things that sabotage your success or, not doing things to support your success and you can’t figure out why, start to listen to your inner voice.

Our beliefs influence our thoughts, dictate our habits, affect our decisions and ultimately create our results/reality.

If limiting beliefs and negative self-talk are keeping you stuck or derailing your momentum, my 5-Step Believability Makeover Program will have you jumping over these hurdles in record time.

Previously sold for $97.00, this highly acclaimed program is coming off the shelves and will only be available through my brand new Equity-Rich Women Online Business Acceleration Group (B.A.G.). For a limited time you can get the program FREE when you test-drive the new program for 30 days… Yup, totally free just by testing a program designed to accelerate your success.

Make sure you are subscribed to GinaBellinc.com (see opt-in box top right) and you will be the first to know when the program launches. In fact, as part of my inner circle – you will have the opportunity to enter the program as a beta tester before its released to the public (and, at a fraction of the regular fee).