5 Success Indicators to Knowing If You Have a Hobby or a Business

5 Success Indicators to Knowing If You Have a Hobby or a Business
I'd like you to take a step back, look at your business as
an outsider would and ask the question "Is this a hobby or
a business?"

Put aside the anger that immediately boils to the surface
because, after all, you are working 12 hours a day, 7 days
a week; eating and non-sleeping this entity known as your
business with little financial return and look at it
objectively.

There will come a time (if it hasn't come already) when you
get up one morning, exhausted and overwhelmed, and ask
yourself "What happened to my vision of carefree self
employment where I'm my own boss, there's plenty of money
and I'm a raging success? Did I take a wrong turn on the
road to success?"

Be thankful for that day. That is the day you realize you
have a great opportunity: to step up and act like a
business (and recognize the limitless possibilities) or
keep playing with your "hobby" (and be realistic about your
income potential). Up until that point, chances are you've
been more focused on your specialty (bookkeeping, massage
therapy, virtual assistance, etc.) than on running your
business (think "technician" rather than "manager").

As a "business", you must focus on the future and look at
planning and revenue. As a "hobby", you focus more on today.

If you wish to create a business, especially a successful
one, you must have certain success indicators in place
(just ask the IRS):

1. You have a business and marketing plan.

If you want your business to be successful for the longer
term, you need to define what "successful" and "longer
term" mean to you. Your business plan must be written and
adaptable to the change that will happen.

I strongly recommend that you have a separate marketing
plan which outlines the activities you will do to attract
more clients. Your business and marketing plans should be
living, breathing documents which you use to keep on track.

2. You act like a business.

Your business has its own identity or brand. You have a
"look", possibly a tagline and cohesive marketing materials.

Your email address has your domain name in it (e.g.,
Sandy@SandraMartini.com) rather than you using a generic
account such as yournamehere@yahoo.com.

And, most importantly, you are not mixing money between
business and personal. You track your business income and
expenses in a software such as QuickBooks and not in a
shoebox timidly carried to your accountant each year.

3. You're making money.

Your business needs to be holding its own and then some.
OR, at the very least, well on it's way to profitability.
You can't be drawing out of your savings or racking up
credit card debt with no idea of when you will actually
start making money.

Hobbies can cost a lot with no hope of financial return
aside from the sheer pleasure of engaging in them.
Businesses can not.

4. You have a team.

As a solopreneur, there is only so much you can do. . .and
do well. To build your business to the point where you are
focusing only on your core strengths (which should be the
same things that bring in the revenue), you need someone to
delegate to.

5. You continue to learn and improve.

As a business owner, you must continuously review what's
working and what's not in your business and make changes
accordingly.

Personally, I do two things to insure that my business (and
I) continue to improve: 1/ I invest in myself by hiring
good coaches -- I currently belong to a very small, high
end Mastermind program run by Alexandria Brown in addition
to working with another coach who consistently challenges
me and 2/ I created a "Flash Report" for my business -- one
of my virtual assistants populates the report and sends it
to me each Friday. It tells me what's working and what
needs tweaking within my business (more on this coming
soon).

If you dream of a business where you fulfill your passions,
work less, yet make more while making a difference in the
lives of your clients, these are just a few of the
indicators that you want to insure are in place. The proper
systems will do more for you than a thousand networking
meetings. :-)

I challenge you to take a hard look at your business over
the coming days and see where you can improve - - make a
list and choose one indicator to work on over the next 90
days.

----------------------------------------------------
For the past 5 years, Sandra Martini has been showing
self-employed business owners how to get more clients
consistently by implementing processes and systems to put
their marketing on autopilot. Visit Sandra at
http://www.SandraMartini.com for details, compelling client
testimonials and her free audio series "5 Simple and Easy
Steps to Put Your Marketing on Autopilot".

How a Professional Services Business Can Prioritize Marketing Resources

How a Professional Services Business Can Prioritize Marketing Resources
Lots of people teach how to market a business and what
tools to use, but rarely do you see advice on how you
should allocate your resources of time and money.

In other words: where do I spend my first dollar and my
first hour?

Here are some tips:

1. Get control of (or start) your client/patient database.
Marketing to people who know you, like you and find you
interesting is far more effective than marketing to the
'masses.' Thus, you need a data base of folks who have said
to you "Market to me." Every time someone asks for
information or visits your place of business their name
goes into your database to be marketed over and over again.

2. Make yourself the "guru"—become an author. There is no
better way to establish your self as the wise man/woman at
the top of the mountain than to become an author. In
today's world of print on demand you can go from idea to
publication of a "real" book in a week. Do it one time and
you'll soon be on your way to becoming an multiple book
author.

3. There are two types of media, "inbound" and "outbound."
"Inbound" media is the media consumers are using when they
are hunting for you. Today, its the Internet and (still)
the Yellow Pages. Perfect these media for your business
before spending tons of money on "outbound" media.
"Outbound media" is TV, radio, print and anything else
where you are just sending out a message and hoping it hits
someone who might just need what your business offers today.

4. Work on making an irresistible offer. What would almost
force the consumer to contact your first? It should be
unique. For many, that irresistible offer can be an offer
of information that will help the consumer solve their
problem. We are in a 'research' world.

5. Develop your "Shock and Awe" package.When the consumer
raises their hand and says "I'm interested in what you have
to say about my problem," have a multi-media package ready
to send to them. Reports, books, CD's and video's. I can
almost guarantee that no one else in your market it doing
this.

6. Master the Internet (or at least know how to talk to
your webmaster). It doesn't' matter how pretty your web
site is if it isn't on the first page of Google. As the
business owner you need to understand search engine
optimization or hire someone who is an expert. The great
thing about this is that its easy to test. If you are a
dentist in Houston and typing "dentist in Houston" doesn't
put you on the first page of Google, then you have work to
do.

7. Develop your newsletter system. There is no better way
to stay in constant contact with your database than through
an interesting print newsletter mailed (not emailed)
monthly. Don't use a canned newsletter. Become a
personality. Be interesting.

8. Associate with folks who do this better than you do.
Most business owners put "learning about marketing" too far
down their list of things to do. As Michael Gerber says in
the E-Myth, we are too busy working "in" the business to
work "on" the business. You have to reverse that and find
the time to work "on" your business. A great way to do this
is to find or start a mastermind group of like-minded
entrepreneurial business owners who will commit to getting
together frequently to help each other think about their
businesses and, importantly, their marketing. This is not a
business "cross-referral" group. This is a thinking group.

Far too many business owners are willing to throw their
marketing resources of time and money at the glitzy TV ads
without really thinking about the effective ways to build
and nurture a relationship with customers and patients
through a system of attracting their attention with
interesting advertising and irresistible offers and then
maintaining that contact through frequent newsletter
"touches."

----------------------------------------------------
Ben Glass is a personal injury attorney in Fairfax,
Virginia. He is the creator of the Ultimate Personal Injury
Practice Building Toolkit. He runs mastermind and coaching
groups, and conducts marketing seminars for attorneys,
teaching "Effective, Ethical and Outside the Box Marketing."

Can you have instant Success with a Home Based Business

Can you have instant Success with a Home Based Business
It is reasonable to assume you can have instant success
with a home based business because of the numerous get rich
quick claims. While it is possible to have success rather
quickly on the internet, it is virtually impossible to
instantly have success. The reason for this is because
there is simply too much to do in order to have success.

Even if you are an internet expert, it still takes time to
develop a home business. It can certainly speed the process
up because you probably have customers from other
businesses of yours. But there are still several facets
that need to be taken care of prior to you making money.

Before anything you have to develop a plan. It is risky
going into a business on the internet without a plan. There
is stiff competition and constant change on the internet
making it imperative you know what you are doing. By having
a plan you can be prepared for the numerous road blocks you
will face. And having a plan will lead you to success.

After developing a plan and getting your domain name and
web hosting company, it is time for you to develop your
site. This includes creating fresh and enticing content
people will be interested in and generating a visually
appealing site design. The most successful home based
businesses balance the content and graphics perfectly to
draw as many prospects away from their competitors.

As soon as you begin creating your site it is essential you
promote your site at full-throttle. This means taking out
two to three hours of your day every day to promote and
market your site. Even if you have customers from a
previous business, you can never have too much traffic.

Finally, when visitors begin to come to your site you have
to treat them with full respect and respond to each and
every visitor's needs. Customer service is a crucial facet
to having success on the internet. The second you forget
about the customer is the second you can kiss your sells
goodbye.

There are several pieces that go in between everything
mentioned thus far, but this gives you the gist of what to
expect. As you can imagine, it is time consuming going
through this entire process, which is precisely why it is
virtually impossible to have instant success with a home
business. But with hard work, dedication, and the right
mindset you can speed up the process and go from rags to
riches fairly quickly.

----------------------------------------------------
Joan Campbell is the owner of Acheivers Now a Work from
Home Online Business.Sign up for her free home business
newsletter to receive 6 free affiliate marketing and home
business related e-books.
Attach links and name if reprinting
http://www.acheiversnow.com
http://acheiversnow.blogspot.com

Internet Marketing: Is It Appropriate If You Conduct Only Local Business?

Internet Marketing: Is It Appropriate If You Conduct Only Local Business?
Why would you bother with internet marketing if you're only
interested in business in your community? There are quite
a few good reasons and we will answer them here.

This is the question many business owners and independent
professionals have because they see the internet as only
being important if you are interested in national or
international business. Nothing could be further from the
truth. Targeted and effective marketing on the net is very
possible in several different venues. Below, I will
discuss these.

1. Your website-this is probably not a concept that is
debated much but is worth discussing. The website is it an
attraction tool that you can drive potential clients to
within your local market. The site can be customized to
your local market with information that pertains to the
local market and has resources that are available in the
area.

2. A Blog-this can also be geared toward your local market
as it is a forum for you to discuss just about anything
that either touches on your business or helps potential
prospects get to know you as a person. You can incorporate
all types of local references including commenting on
issues in your city or providing information about
resources that are available. You can use keywords and
optimization to drive local businesses to you when they are
seeking information that is oriented to your area of
expertise.

3. Social networking-many social networking sites allow you
to add a local flavor or to connect with people within your
city your community. You can even create a form on many
sites that would be primarily for other businesses and
prospects in your locale. Many sites even have the
opportunity to create a forum which again could be oriented
to a specific area.

4. Articles and Press Releases-while these can be more
difficult to target there are opportunities to mention that
you have events or services within a specific city or town
or state. If you mention this within your articles and
press releases they can be seen by local residents who are
searching within your specialty.

Lastly, if you can drive traffic from other areas outside
of your own, you can develop alliances and affiliates who
can handle that business and pay you a percentage of the
revenue. My philosophy is that if you can become a
"rainmaker" no matter where that might be you can find
competent business owners or professionals who can handle
that service and pay you passive income.

I encourage you not to hold back on your internet marketing
because of concerns over creating business outside of your
local market. Targeted properly, you can clearly
communicate in a way that will drive the type of traffic
you are looking for.

----------------------------------------------------
And are you ready to learn more about how to take action?
Then I would like to offer you free access to my FREE audio
class The 5 Step Marketing Plan Generator. You can get your
instant access at http://www.GuaranteedGS.com/audio.html
From David Eissman and GuaranteedGS.com

Attracting a Former Client from Your Competition

Attracting a Former Client from Your Competition
Too many small business owners pass on the opportunity to
attract their former clients. That's a mistake. It's far
easier to get back together with a client you've lost or
had no contact with than to get a new client. Your goal on
the phone should be limited: to get a meeting with the
former client at which you can pitch to become part of
their life once again. The secret to achieving this is to
leverage, as much as possible, on any personal relationship
or event the two of you shared. Assuming there was a
problem that caused your falling out, the former client may
still be angry. You response should be to absorb their
anger and simply ask for the chance to tell your side of
the story and make amends. To do either of those, you'll
need a phone meeting, then a face-to-face meeting if at all
possible.

Here are the tactics you need to practice prior to your
meeting, in order to attract your former client from your
competition:

* Your attitude must be cordial, humble, and if necessary,
persistant.

* Before the call, gather as much personal data about the
former client and his family as you can. Now is the time to
dig through your notes if you don't remember names and
ages. Search Google for your client's name, and see if any
personal information pops up on a Blog somewhere. Also, be
prepared to call back since your sudden reappearance may
surprise them initially.

*On Tuesday through Friday, try to call either before 9
A.M. or after 5 P.M. Do not try to resurrect them on a
Monday. Also, don't call the former client at home or on
the weekend.You'll get the most civil responses during
normal working hours when they are at the office.

*Prepare your behavior to absorb some anger. If possible,
imply that your request to reconnect with them is a modest
one. You could even offer to bring bagels for the office
during a morning meeting, or offer to take them out to
dinner.

*For your phone icebreaker you could say, "How are you? I
ran into our friend Jane Doe yesterday and it got me
thinking about you. I'm just calling to patch things up and
see how you and your family are doing. I hope I'm not
calling at a bad time?"

The key points to remember are:

If it's a bad time for your former client, then tell them
you will call them back later in the week.

If they are still angry, then absorb the anger and say,
"You know, I understand your anger. I hope one day you'll
be able to sit down with me over a cup of coffee and hear
my side of the story. Sorry for troubling you."

If it's a good time for them to talk, then make amends by
saying, "That's another reason for this call. I'd like to
try to work with you again. I think we could really be of
help to each other. Are you available next Wednesday to
meet for breakfast or dinner"

You can re-use these great tactics to rekindle a dorment
relationship for business networking purposes. Or, you can
tell a former client about a new product or service you are
offering. Either way, you will earn the respect of your
former client.

----------------------------------------------------
Kim Schott, your Global Client Communication Expert, is the
author of the Keys to Client Communication System, the
step-by-step, paint by numbers client attraction program to
attract more clients in less time. To receive your weekly
how-to articles on consistantly attracting more local and
global clients in less time, visit
http://www.SchottCulturalConsulting.com

Lessons in Survival - A Critical Leadership Skill

Lessons in Survival - A Critical Leadership Skill
To survive - to hang in there - to keep your head while all
around you others are losing theirs - to stay in play - is
a critical skill of leaders. Let's face it - even the most
astute, successful person will suffer setbacks, and
surviving and overcoming those setbacks is the true measure
of a leader.

To some, survival sounds like a skill for a loser. And,
frankly, there are many who try to survive by holding back,
by not taking risk, by getting as invisible as possible.
Those are not the behaviors of leaders - they are not what
survival means in this article - and they lead to failure.

An example of survival and leadership:

A client had a business unit that was doing badly.
Unprofitable, losing customers, over budget. The business
unit leader had been in the job for six months - not long
enough to have created the mess, but long enough to be held
accountable for it. Her predecessor had held the job for
ten years - and then retired with honors. There were many
days when she felt like giving up. She felt that she was
more a victim than anything else. She had been a top
performer in every other assignment given her. She felt she
had gone from the top 5 percent in her company to being
perceived as a loser by former colleagues. Everyone likes a
winner - no one wants to be associated with what looks like
a loser. No one was going to rescue her from this situation
- she was either going to sink or swim.

She felt she had four choices:

1 - She could quit and find another employer - she was
highly regarded in the market.

2 - She could stay and look at who to blame. She could try
to cash in on her former accomplishments and get a transfer
- or not be held accountable - or be given lots of slack.

3- She could let the situation tear her down, wallow in
self pity and blame fate, and turn into a part of the
problem - rather than be part of the solution.

4 - She could do what she had to do to survive the
situation - stay afloat, give herself a timetable, work to
improve performance, and then decide where her future lay.

She chose the last alternative. She reviewed it with her
boss - he agreed with her. For the first time in her career
she was faced with stabilizing a losing business, rather
than growing a winning one. What a difference! Going from
winning as a strategy to surviving - as a strategy - at
least as a first step strategy.

She shared her survival strategy with her staff - and
watched their reactions. They ranged from acceptance to
indifference. This unit was part of a much larger company,
and some of her staff had friends in other parts of the
organization that could "take care of them." She let some
people transfer to other parts of the business - got rid of
some others - and brought in key people who saw their new
positions as a chance to prove themselves.

She put together a "stop the bleeding" short term plan with
goals and measures that could be quantified and tracked and
reported on regularly. No "BHAGS" here ( Big, Hairy,
Audacious Goals). Her boss gave his support -while keeping
the situation at arm's length. The plan was shared with the
people in the business unit, and every person was expected
to establish goals that contributed to the plan. Some did -
some didn't. The plan worked - at least to the extent that
the bleeding stopped and the business returned to marginal
profitability in six months. No celebrations were held -
but the leader and her staff were pleased with their
progress -they knew just how much had been accomplished -
although no one else seemed to share their emotions.

As the six month plan unfolded, it became clear to her that
some significant investments in capital and systems were
going to be necessary if the business was to prosper - and
there was some risk that, even with those investments,
prosperity might not happen. The fight for capital was
intense, and other, more successful business units got
their share - and hers as well.

She gave it six more months. In that time, steady progress
was made, customers were won back, and profitability
continued to improve. At the same time, she sensed a
growing impatience from her boss with the rate of progress
- but no real help in the form of additional resources. At
this point she was 18 months into her job, and while she
had seen major progress, very little recognition of her
accomplishments came her way. She gave it six more months.

At the end of two years in the assignment, when continued
improvement went unrewarded, she resigned.

When asked about that experience five years later, she said
it was by far the most valuable of her career. When pressed
to identify what particularly valuable lessons she had
taken from the experience that helped her be successful -
and she had become very successful - she listed the
following:

-You gotta pick your spots carefully. Every organization
has top units and bad units. To decide to survive in a
marginal unit with little upside is not very bright. Be
sure the survival situation has an upside.

-The decision to fight through a tough situation, and take
the risk of surviving, must be a conscious one. And once
it's made, all effort must be directed forward. It's easy
in these situations to adopt a "why me" or victim attitude
- and that is fatal. Managing, defining and communicating
expectations in a survival situation are absolutely
critical skills - more than in a highly successful
business. Pressure from above to see progress can lead to
commitments being made that simply cannot be kept. And
intentions sound good at the beginning of a reporting
period - but only results matter. "Hockey stick" forecasts
and plans - where all the good news is forecast to occur
near the end of the measurement period - are always greeted
with suspicion.

-Tolerance for mistakes is much lower in survival
situations. And negative outcomes that would be ignored in
a successful business are magnified and used as examples of
just how bad things are - while good news is received with
skepticism. Protecting and insulating the people committed
to making it work from harsh criticism and judgment is a
major task for the survival leader.

-A survival leader must have a core group of optimistic
believers who are committed to making it work.

-Stay in close contact with the Boss - absolutely no
surprises are allowed.

- Keep people focused on improvement through widely
communicated goals they can share and buy into.

-Don't let people see discouragement at bad news - and
there is always bad news in survival situations. Negative
emotions will be multiplied 100 times by those that observe
them.

- Survival mode must be a temporary situation - it's easy
to slip into a survival mind set and make it a long term
behavior.

- Survival - both personal and organizational - is often
thankless. While in survival mode leaders have to see the
value of their contribution themselves. Often, there is
very little positive recognition given to survival.

- The worst thing a survival leader can do is to stay in
place and let the situation grind them down. When the best
shot has been given, and it remains apparent that that
isn't enough, move on - that's always a choice - always.
Know when to hold, and know when to fold.

- In the stress of survival situations, it's easy to
personalize all kinds of things. Don't. The ability to see
things for what they are - no more or no less - is a
necessary ability. Trying to ascribe motive, or waste time
on hidden meanings are great ways to lose control and
perspective.

These Lessons In Survival were learned the hard way. That's
the only way to learn. If you see yourself or your
organization in survival mode - use these Lessons to
inventory what and how you can apply them to get through it
better, quicker and more successfully.

----------------------------------------------------
Andy Cox helps clients align their resources and design and
implement change through the application of goals focused
on the important few elements that have maximum impact in
achieving success - as defined by the client. He can be
reached at http://www.coxconsultgroup.com and E Mail at
acox@coxconsultgroup.com