It’s been a busy year full of amazing tips and advice from our experts so to save you a bit of time catching up on all the gems, we compiled a list of the top 25 tips (with links to the original articles if you want to read more)!
25 of the Top Business Tips of 2010
#1: Give your sales a personal touch – Sales Diva Kim Duke reminded us of the importance of handwritten notes to build relationships and boost sales. What to make an impression on someone you want to connect with? Kim recommends a handwritten note with your business card!
#2: Connect others first and you will always be remembered! – Networking expert Gina Bell shared that the secret to always have a full roster of prospects is not constantly closing or pulling out the high-pressure sales tactics, it’s making strategic introductions that benefit others.
#3: Realize your TRUE value and charge for it – On the topic of setting money boundaries, Aly Pain talked about that your true value isn’t the hourly time you spend or what you charge, but the potential benefits others reap from your knowledge (to either avoid mistakes or leap ahead)…charge accordingly!
#4: Keep an eye on the cash flow! – Alycia Edgar made sense of dollars and cents with her reminders to keep the cash flowing! Her top tips for cash IN: clear payment terms, regular invoicing, collect deposits, and send overdue reminders!
#5: Social media as an engagement platform – Social media experts Scott Stratten and Shelly Kramer reminded us of the importance of less talking and more listening! Building relationships in social media is about interacting and engaging, not broadcasting!
#6: Bag it, barter it or better it – What do you do when you are really stuck? Sarah Robinson shared her 5 steps to getting unstuck, including Bag it (get rid of it), Barter it (give it to someone else) or Better it (make it more fun for you to do)!
#7: Get picky about your information consumption – Momentum Expert Carla Young told us stop consuming and start implementing information. The golden rule for information consumption is if you aren’t going to do anything about it, don’t read, listen or invest in it. That’s for all you Info-Addicts who never implement!
#8: Good fences make good business – Amy Lupold Bair addressed the most common challenge facing anyone who works at home: boundaries! Her tip: set clear rules and boundaries around work and personal time!
#9: Eat the FROG – Got a task that you just can’t get started on? Jennifer Haubein reminded us of the importance of just getting it done: eat the frog FIRST!
#10: Look for inspiration in the women who walked the path before you – Kim DeYoung reminded us that we are fortunate enough to follow in the footsteps of trailblazers who we can look to for inspiration on what it takes to be successful!
#11: Make Fear your Frenemy – Dr. Susan Biali shared the difference between the two types of fear – protecting you from the saber-toothed tiger fear and the fear that holds you back. Moving forward means making friends with your fear!
#12: Building a Loyal Following starts with your B-O-P! – Sarah Robinson told us you need to be Bold, Outrageous and Provocative if you want to build a loyal following – that means no more wishy-washy stuff and say what you really mean!
#13: Get back to the basics with your marketing – Britt Michaelian shared that small businesses don’t need huge marketing budgets to attract clients, but they do need a client attraction strategy that answers the who, what, how of the problems you solve for your clients!
#14: Not to big, not too small, but just right when it comes to SEO – Tara Geissinger told us the key to SEO success is finding the nice middle ground between too broad and too narrow!
#15: Take a cue from the dollar store and go for Death by Papercut! – Christie Schultz shared that the secret to success is in the small transactions that fly under the credit card radar. Low dollar, high volume transactions not only give your customers a chance to sample your product, but increase your browser to buyer conversion!
#16: Remember OHIO (Only Handle It Once) – According to Efficiency Expert Karen Turner, the secret to saving oodles and oodles of time is only handing things once. That means if you don’t have time to do it, don’t touch it until you do! She recommends putting the words Only Handle It Once on a sticky note and posting in your office as a visual reminder!
#17: Ask questions – One of our readers Jane Walter shared the tip, “To know the road ahead, ask those who are coming back” and learn from both their good and bad experiences!
#18: Stop listening to your inner critic – Stepping forward means quieting that inner critic! Thank you, Sandy Grason, for reminding us that we all hear that little voice and we don’t have to listen!
#19: If momma ain’t happy, your business suffers – Dr. Mollie Marti reminded us of the importance of slowing down and addressing the stressors that are draining our energy!
#20: Tap into free marketing opportunities like Facebook fan pages – Andrea Vahl reminded us that you don’t have to spend money to get results. Facebook fan pages are the perfect example.
#21: Set your people up for success and you will reap the benefits – Human Capital Expert Cindy Lund Chow shared her top tips on managing your talent: hire the right people, train based on their resume and commit to fostering their success.
#22: Doing it all yourself does not save you money – Kim DeYoung talked about the value we as entrepreneurs must place on our time and why that value means that it doesn’t make sense to handle certain types of tasks ourselves.
#23: The fortune is in the follow-up – MOMeo Publisher Carla Young told us not to leave it to chance! Create systems and processes around managing these key types of follow-ups: potential clients, strategic partnerships, email subscribers, affiliates and opportunities!
#24: Marketing matters – Michelle DeKinder Smith reminded us that marketing is not optional and even if you don’t love it, you have to do these 5 things: develop a systematic approach, determine your target market, get clear on your benefits, create a clear marketing message and establish joint venture partnerships!
#25: Don’t forget to share the social media love – Don’t forget to help others the way you want to be helped by retweeting, liking, and sharing their content in social media!
2 Comments
Fabulous resource here. I’m tagging this to return and study further.
great tips, thank you!