BCA

By J. Mark Lipscomb

Getting visitors to a website is something a person would face early on in  his internet marketing career. Definitely one of the better affiliate marketer’s  techniques of building traffic or leads is by creating back-links back to one’s  website.

A definition of such process is when a person has his internet URL on someone  else’s site. This link is directing back to one’s website and could be a source  of site leads. Eventually, an individual would want to develop his own little  WWW of affiliate links which are interchangeable & revolve around his  website.

Ways one could enhance site traffic through developing  such links.

1. Writing and publishing articles. Articles could be utilized in different  ways to build links to one’s site. The secret in all of a person’s articles is  to create a writer’s resource box with a web link in it directing back to his  website.

One way is to submit articles to article listings. In such case, one will  hold a resource box with his site URL linked in it.

Blog sites are a typical means to build backlinks from articles. You could  hyperlink different keywords or phrases in article bodies to other web pages on  his website. This type of profound linking is a great way to generate repeat  traffic and keep one’s visitors on his website longer.

2. Discussion forums. Placing comments in internet forums is a means to  produce excellent backlinks. This is as well a great strategy of improving site  leads.

When you join an online forum, you would need to create a signature file.  Simply think of it as a brief classified ad wherein one could link back to his  site in it. The more internet forums a person joins in, the more of such links  he would build. There’s more to that though, as you would need to be an active  member of the forum for the strategy to work. Nowadays, the discussions  themselves would rank for different keyword or phrases that could develop an  individual excellent traffic.

3. Guest writing for blogs. Write articles and then submit them to other blog  sites. Majority of bloggers are always on the hunt for fresh content & are  eager to permit a person a couple of affiliate backlinks to one’s website in the  blogs themselves.

4. Blog site comments. Sign up with Google Alerts and get updates on Google  blogs. Check them out and post comments. Each time one does this, he’s creating  an affiliate link on top of potential site visitors from it.

Such are a tiny sample of improving site traffic using backlinks. This is a  constant project which over time could lead to a massive amount of no-cost site  leads from the links one’s getting directing back to his website.

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When I’m working with negotiators who are trying to become better, they  always ask me what the secret to moving to the next level is. For years I always  told them that there was no “silver bullet” that would allow them to make the  jump. It was just going to take a lot of hard work.

Lately I’ve decided that I’ve been wrong. It turns out that there is one  thing that any negotiator can do that will allow him or her to move up to the  next level. This secret turns out to be something that all of us should be doing  anyway. In fact I think that it should really be part of the negotiation  definition: planning the negotiation.

Negotiating Is Dynamic, Why Bother To Plan?

Nobody could possibly object to the idea of creating a plan to guide your  actions during a negotiating session, right? If this is what you think, then  you’d be wrong. I get a lot of push back from my clients when I suggest  this.

What they tell me is that they view negotiations as being a dynamic thing.  They don’t think that a plan will do them any good – it will quickly become  useless and so why waste the time creating one in the first place?

I have a saying that I share with my clients when they say this: plan your  work, work your plan, and it will all work out. Yes, a lot of things that you  can’t possibly anticipate may happen during a negotiation process. However, by  having a plan you’ll know where you want to go during the negotiations and  you’ll know how you want to get there.

The Best Way To Develop A Negotiating Plan That Will  Work

If I’ve been able to convince you that having a plan for your next  negotiation is the way to go, then perhaps your next question will be how can  you get better at creating plans for negotiating?  It turns out that this is  actually pretty easy to do.

The first thing that you’ll want to do is to do some role-playing. Because of  the dynamic nature of negotiating, you’ll never be able to know exactly how the  other side is going to react to your proposals. If you can get someone to play  the role of the other side of the table, then when you make your proposals you  just might be surprised by their reaction. This is a good thing – you can update  your plan to take this kind of reaction into account.

Additionally, during the actual negotiations you will want to make sure that  you and your team have enough time to make sure that you are staying on plan.  This means that you should plan on taking frequent caucus breaks. Only by  re-synching with your team will you be able to get your side of the table back  onto your plan if things have goon awry.

What All Of This Means For You

All of us want to become better negotiators. We spend a lot of time  researching new negotiation styles and negotiating techniques; however, it turns  out that one of the most powerful ways to become better has been under our noses  all along: practice planning. It’s so simple that we’ve overlooked it for too  long.

Sometimes a negotiation seems to be too dynamic. I mean how could you ever  hope to plan for something that changes that much? However, it turns out that by  having a plan, you’ll always know where you want to go and how you’ll get  there.

In order to make sure that your plan will work for you, you can take the  extra step and do some role-playing before the actual negotiations start. By  doing this you can adjust your plan so that it accounts for the actions that you  believe that the other side may take.

Having a plan gives you something that every negotiator needs before a  principled negotiation starts: self-confidence. If you know what you want and  how you’re going to get it, then there’s a much better chance that what you’ve  negotiated is going to end up producing a good deal for both sides.

Dr. Jim Anderson http://www.blueelephantconsulting.com/

Your Source For Real World Negotiating Skills™

Dr. Jim Anderson has spent over 20 successful years negotiating sales of all  sizes. Dr. Anderson offers you his insights on how to develop your negotiating  skills so that you can approach sales negotiations with more confidence that  you’ll be able close more deals and close them faster!

Oh, and if you want to follow Dr. Anderson on Twitter, he can be found at: http://twitter.com/drjimanderson

Becoming a sales superstar requires a “village” of mentors, sales managers,  assistants and other supporting players.

Sales pros possess an abundance of dedication, knowledge, skill and stamina,  traits that are typically developed and refined over a period of time.

But superstars must raise the bar. To be a superstar, such as Joe Girard or  Joseph Crane, you must follow these lessons that sales greats have learned.

Strengthen Your Commitment. It is not easy to become and  remain a superstar. You have to work longer hours, especially in your first few  years. You must set and meet demanding goals, thrive during difficult market  conditions and always remain confident in your abilities.

Get Help Now. You cannot get to the top by yourself. The  pivotal point for master salesman Joe Girard was when he got his first  assistant, allowing him to concentrate on sales and significantly expand his  annual volume. Salespeople often complain that they can’t afford to have an  assistant; actually they can’t afford not to.

Invest in Yourself-Salespeople should view themselves as a  business or a mini-corporation. Do whatever it takes to grow the business. For  example, salespeople shouldn’t necessarily expect their companies to provide  laptops, marketing materials and other “necessities.” Invest as much as 20  percent of your annual income to reach your desired production level.

Think and reach “outside the box.” Top producers constantly  seek unique ways to run their business. Find your own niche. Research the  demographics of your area. Look at trends. Take a more creative approach to your  usual routine. Evaluate what you have done in the past and what the competition  is doing; then make sure you continually test a few new strategies.

Raise the Bar-Continue to set higher production goals and be  relentless in your pursuit of them. Do not sell yourself short with easily  achievable goals. Too many salespeople get complacent after reaching a certain  production and are not willing to extend themselves to meet or exceed their  goals in future years. I have succeeded consistently by setting aggressive and realistic sales goals.

Become Even Smarter. Continue your education to become known  as the wisest expert in the market. Possess a thorough understanding of the  industry’s regulations, market demographics and economic trends. Become a  voracious reader of sales and management books, in addition to a variety of  business magazines. Understand the competition’s products and programs better  than anyone else. Be able to answer every possible objection customers can  raise.

Brand Yourself. You want customers and prospects to  recognize you as the one salesperson in your market they should contact. Have an  identity as the salesperson who provides value to customers. My own branding  evolved as customers and prospects began to recognize me as the nation’s top  ranked loan originator.

Concentrate on Profitable Strategies. It is crucial to  concentrate on programs and niches that are the most profitable. Do your  research to determine which potential markets haven’t been overexposed; i.e.,  markets that the competition haven’t yet developed.

Adapt to Technology. Top producers have a better grasp of  the latest technology developments, including Internet marketing and social  media techniques. But while embracing technological advancements do not ignore  the human element. When it comes to the major life purchases most people prefer  to have an expert with whom they can develop a personal relationship.

Build a Never-ending Referral Pipeline. Referrals should be  a superstar’s main focus. Build satisfied customers who will tell family  members, work associates, friends and others to do business with you. To ensure  that referrals multiply, you must stay in contact with customers on a regular  basis. If you don’t pay attention to your customers, someone else will.

Find a Mentor. Novice salespeople should seek a mentor who  can share proven strategies and help avoid the inevitable obstacles. The mentor  could be an experienced salesman at your company who is willing to allow you to  “shadow” them or a salesman/manager somewhere else.

Motivate Yourself-Self motivation is one of the major  factors in maintaining superstardom. Salespeople must create their own formula  to stay motivated. For many, earning an income to support their family’s diverse  needs is sufficient motivation. My personal drive is fueled by a passion for  sales and a long-standing desire to achieve.

Maintain a Strong Work Ethic. Newer  salespeople are typically willing to work extra hours to reach their goals,  reasoning that they can slow down once they reach the upper level. But the most  successful have learned that it is more difficult to substantially reduce their  workday if they want to retain their market share. Taking long vacations and  leaving early to play golf is not necessarily the formula for superstar  status.

Aspiring superstars should learn these lessons from top salespeople to become  a mega-producer.

Daniel Milstein, is CEO of Gold Star Mortgage Financial Group an INC 500  company and is author of The ABC of Sales. Milstein has been recognized as the  #1 mortgage originator in the nation, has been among the top 40 finance  professionals in America for 10 years, and has been named the top employer in  Michigan for two years by the Detroit Free Press. Milstein has achieved more  than $3 billion in personal career mortgage sales, is a licensed mortgage lender  in 20 states, and has 15 years in the banking industry as an executive,  originator, underwriter, productions and operations manager with the highest  track record in the industry.

By James Peltier

You’ve heard of mobile apps – now imagine getting that same portable user  experience from your website.

Mobile-enabled websites take your current web presence to new places and  heights – distilling the most important functions of your site, and optimizing  them for intuitive and natural delivery to mobile devices. With mobile web, your  users have access to your website wherever they are, meaning you’re available to  your customers anywhere and everywhere either of you go.

Why Go Mobile?

Because your audience is already there! Studies project that by 2015 there  will be over 7.1 billion mobile internet-enabled devices – nearly one for every  member of the projected world’s population forecast that year.

If you’re not already delivering your site to mobile devices, you’re missing  your audience, and it might not wait for you! The mobile web gives you the  opportunity to customize and develop your online presence, so customers can  interact with your content and information in a completely new way. This isn’t  just about fixing a perceived problem – this is about re-inventing how you  interact with your audience. It’s about meeting your readers, users, and fans on  their level; it’s about speaking their language. The mobile web is an  opportunity to recapture your audience and how you interact with it.

3 More Reasons WHY Mobile Websites Matter!

I: Mobile-friendly websites benefit your customer, and in turn your business.  These sites produce an average 75% higher rate of engagement (revenue, page  views, etc.) per visit for mobile users.

II: Mobile web use is exploding. By 2015,more Americans will access the web  via mobile than desktop. Building a mobile-friendly site essential for  businesses to prepare and realize the opportunity.

III: Users take action on mobile-friendly sites. 1 in 5 website visits lead  to a immediate call to the business.

Just because a website can be viewed on a smartphone does not mean it is  mobile-friendly. Mobile websites have faster download speeds, simplified  navigation, LARGER text, and are “thumb friendly,” just to name a few relevant  reasons why they are so important today.

The mobile web is rapidly expanding. More and more, consumers visit websites  via their mobile devices. And it’s projected that more than half of Americans  will own a smartphone by the end of 2011. Now that data plans are so affordable,  that’s a significant amount of users who rely on their phones looking for  businesses like YOURS.

No pinching, no zooming! Thumb friendly, one-button links to call and mapping  are invaluable features to get you more business.

To get your business mobile contact Detroit Web Productions for a free consultation. We’ll help  you achieve your marketing goals.

By Laura Lopez

From our earliest memories of childhood games, a leader is defined as the one  out in front, stepping out first from the others who follow.

Ironically, this model works well as you are climbing up the ladder towards  leadership, but it fails miserably when being a leader.

Taking the lead and being a leader are two separate and opposite ideas.

I learned this the hard way at work since I had excelled in my career because  I perfected the ability of stepping up and being the one in front. This worked  up to the point when I started to manage and lead many others. What I found was  that this behavior diminished results. You see, as a leader when you step in too  much to take the lead, others step out. Taking the lead is a detrimental option  as a leader.

The Spotlight is on You! 

After all when you are taking the lead and are out in front, you get noticed.  The spotlight is on you. These are all necessary tactics for advancing. But the  opposite is true when it comes to being a leader.

Being a leader and becoming the best leader you can be means unlearning  everything that has gotten you to the top. Suddenly, it’s no longer about you  and how you get things done, instead it’s more about others and how you are able  to inspire them to achieve great things. Being out in front has an entirely  different meaning when you are the leader.

The transition from taking the lead to being a leader is a difficult one.

It really is a conundrum. The best people at taking the lead may get  recognized, but may not always be the best leader. And the best leaders may not  always get recognized because they aren’t able to step out in front and take the  lead.

I see this a lot in my coaching practice. I get the “take the lead” kind of  person struggling with being a great leader. And I get the potentially great  leader who can’t get noticed because they have difficulty standing out in front.  Last month when Susan Cain’s book Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That  Can’t Stop Talking came out I wondered if the introvert/extrovert equation was  at play here.

Taking the lead is more difficult for the introvert

So I did a bit of my own research using results of The Birkman Method (a  behavioral assessment tool) and categorizing my clients and myself. The results  showed that there is some relationship with being an introvert and having more  difficulty in “taking the lead” whereas extroverts have more ease here but can  be too harsh, too direct or commanding when it comes to “being a leader.”

I have also had this validated in my experience as a parent leader. Raising a  daughter who is an introvert has stretched me. Seeing how my extraverted ways  can actually hinder her development has shown me that my leadership development  needs are different than someone who is naturally an introvert.

So what does this all mean?

Find a unique way to stand out

If you are an introvert, your work in leadership is probably going to be  related more to getting noticed and standing out versus delving deeper into  learning about how to be a better leader. Focusing on taking the lead and  finding your unique way of standing out above the rest is key.

Since introverts are generally more inwardly focused, they tend to be more  in-tune with the needs of others with varying strengths and developmental needs  and can make wonderful leaders. The issue is getting noticed in a world that is  more biased to an externally driven,”charismatic” leader.

If you are an extrovert, your work in leadership is probably going to be  related more to refining your tendency to step in and take command over the  situation. You will need to develop better collaboration and listening skills  that can help leverage the brilliance and abilities of others.

Your focus will be on developing the tools to be a better leader as opposed  to focusing on learning how to take the lead on things. It will be important to  understand that not all situations require you to take the lead. In fact, being  a better leader often requires you to step aside and enable others to take the  lead.

Our world is biased toward the extrovert

Susan Cain is probably right on stating that our world is biased towards the  extrovert. We often incorrectly attribute extrovert characteristics to  leadership when in fact these are the skills we need to advance, but not  necessarily the ones we need to lead others effectively.

The path to leadership is one that requires both skills where introverts and  extroverts have a great deal to offer and to learn from each other.

So, do you need to take the lead in order to be a leader?

I guess the correct answer really depends on whether you are an introvert or  an extrovert!

Laura Lopez is a performance strategist, leadership specialist and branding  expert with more than 20 years of corporate leadership experience. Laura’s book,  The Connected and Committed Leader, is available via her Web site at http://www.laura-lopez.com, at your local bookstore or on http://www.Amazon.com. As the  owner of her own business, Laura helps companies and business associations  achieve more sustainable business results through the power of leveraging  diverse talent with effective leadership and branding. She is available for  speeches, workshops and customized programs. Laura can be contacted via her Web  site at: http://www.laura-lopez.com.

By Barry Silverstein

The growing popularity of online marketing, in particular social media, is  resulting in an interesting dilemma. Small businesses are finding that they can  use blogs, videos, podcasts, search terms, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and other  such media to generate traffic to their Facebook page or website. The problem is  they have no idea if these “leads” are any good for their business.

In fact, even large businesses routinely fail to qualify prospects  effectively. Here’s a widely acknowledged industry statistic: Around 70 percent  of leads generated never receive a sales follow-up.

That’s why small businesses could be throwing away sales if they do not  develop a lead qualification process that matches the way consumers buy  today.

In the past, a marketer could pretty safely bet on a lead qualification  process that looked like a funnel. The concept can be described as follows:  Imagine lead qualification as a funnel that has a broad opening at the top and  narrows down to a small opening at the bottom.

The lead qualification process is  designed to take a larger number of unqualified prospects (sometimes called  “suspects”) into the top of the funnel and push them down until only the most  qualified leads come out at the bottom of the funnel.

A prospect goes through  various qualification levels before they are converted to a customer.

The Internet changed things

This all worked rather well for many, many years — until the Internet came  along. It wasn’t the Internet itself that changed the process; rather, it was  the way the Internet enabled and facilitated a different kind of purchase  consideration to occur.

Today, the purchase consideration process is subject to many more outside  influences because the consumer has access to so much information in real-time.  This information shapes the prospective buyer’s view of the product in new and  different ways, and it makes lead qualification complex and even volatile.  Businesses have to work harder at understanding where a buyer is in the purchase  consideration cycle.

The big change is consumer empowerment. Because of the growth of social media  and the ease of online and mobile communication, people exhibit different  behavior when it comes to making a purchase. Now people who want to buy  something may do quite a bit of online research about the product or service  first.

They will search out product reviews on the Web, actively seek out what  other buyers of the product are saying, and engage in sharing opinions in blogs,  on Facebook, and on LinkedIn. They may ask others about the product via Twitter  or Facebook and continue the dialog.

Where is the prospect in the buying cycle?

The qualification funnel of old was linear and fairly uncomplicated. The  marketer could have better control over the lead qualification process — there  was less outside noise to detract from the marketer’s message. Today, it’s  difficult to even figure out where the prospect is in the buying cycle.  McKinsey, a renowned consulting firm that deals with major corporations, sees  the new process as being more circular than linear. McKinsey has a new name for  the process — they call it a “Consumer Decision Journey.”

Think about lead qualification as a “Consumer Decision Journey” and the  qualification funnel seems inadequate in meeting the needs of the new consumer.  Now, instead of an individual going through a linear process of moving from less  qualified to more qualified prospect, you should be prepared for a certain  amount of unpredictability.

This means more flexibility on your part. You will  probably need to be ready to respond at various times as the prospect’s  questions arise. With purchase consideration involving so many more outside  influences you can’t control, the qualification steps you take may need to be  far more personalized and specific to the needs of each individual prospect.

Lead cultivation essential to converting the customers interest

This means that lead cultivation becomes far more important for marketers.  Now you need to find ways to keep a prospect informed on a regular basis to  maintain interest over time. The basic premise of lead cultivation is that a  prospect’s interest in purchasing your product or service is fluid. The  prospect’s need rises and falls based on changing priorities, availability of  budget, and other issues you may not even know about.

Marketers have learned by experience that making periodic contacts with a  prospect seems to pay off. With each of those contacts, you have a dual  objective: (1) to provide the prospect with information and assistance that  maintains interest in your product and ensures your product is still under  serious consideration, and (2) to continue to learn as much about the prospect  as possible at each contact so subsequent contacts can be very targeted and  pertinent to the prospect’s needs.

Generating leads is only part of the story. It takes a solid lead  qualification program to make sure you are not throwing away sales.

Barry Silverstein is the author of the new eGuide, “Sales Leads 123:  Generating, Qualifying, and Converting Sales Leads in 3 Proven Steps.” In his  thirty year career, he has helped scores of small and large companies generate  and qualify leads. He is also the author of “Branding 123: Build a Breakthrough  Brand in 3 Proven Steps,” and “Product Launch 123: Launch a New Product or  Service in 3 Proven Steps.” All three eGuides are available for $2.99 at the  Amazon Kindle store, at Smashwords.com in any eBook format, and wherever eBooks  are sold. More information is available at http://www.123eguides.com