The topic was entitled: Raising Money for your business? It’s easy if you know how!

Looking around the room of 150+ business owners I was not alone in my quest for knowledge on Venture Capital, Angel Investments, and the process to achieve the perfect win-win outcome. Finding capital for any startup is essential for your company to launch and grow. Experts predict that lack of cash closes half of all startups within 5 years. I would suggest it is overspending that kills your business. Find the critical aspects that keep your business afloat and pinch your pennies.

Investing is the least understood topic when talking “business.” Unless of course you live in Silicon Valley where million dollar investments are passed around like peanuts at the bar. For the rest of us it’s a mystery, and our first experience is often across the table negotiating terms of an investment. Here are 5 points that I left with from Basil Peters topic.

• Investments are just as much about the business owner as the possibilities their business presents. Angel Investors seek owners who are charismatic, enthusiastic, and passionate. The business will get you in the door, your personality will sign the cheque.
• For the investment to make cents for the investor (yes cents) your business should have 10x return potential. 80% of all returns will come from 10% of the investments. Without 10x return to cover the failed investments that are expected your investor will be less likely to risk their money. This may not seem fair, but consider your business. If you have a retail shop your markup on products include theft, or damaged products. Investors are simply playing the numbers.
• Most large companies like Yahoo, or Google are constantly on the look out for 20 million dollar purchases. Their growth depends on it, and their shareholders demand it. Unlike small businesses, cash reserves are a liability that generate little interest.
• Popular news headlines include 100+ million dollar deals weekly; this is exceptionally rare. The majority of purchases are under 15 million dollars with the odd exemption being sold for more then 100 million.

The last point describes the truth about available capital for entrepreneurs seeking investment. 20 years ago it would cost millions of dollars to launch your business. Without the internet you would have to create custom software, produce ad campaigns and spend millions on marketing.

Todays entrepreneurs can bootstrap companies for as little as 10,000. The news outlets are accurate when describing the decrease in available capital yet forget to point out the reduced cost for startups. Angel Investors, and Venture Capitalists are constantly looking for new opportunities.

Leap of the Week:
Find an angel investor in your community and be clear about your opportunity. The best advice Peters gave: Utilize all personal financial avenues prior to finding professional investors.

For more information on Basil Peters:   Twitter |   Blog |   Book |   Website

Twitter will not triple your Web traffic overnight.

A press release will not get journalists banging down your door.

Harsh truths, I know, but ones you need to hear. The problem with small businesses and marketing is they want instant pudding. They want to see a spike in sales or Web traffic instantly, and that simply doesn’t happen unless you’re Old Spice. Freshly showered men aside, all your marketing efforts should lead to one thing: trust.

Why Trust Is Important

Is trust necessary? Not really. You could sell a thousand widgets to a thousand people and never see them again. Or you could work to build trust with these customers, and rely on them to become your brand evangelists, to let them tell others how great you are because you’re a trustworthy company. Let them blog, tweet and share their love on Facebook.

Trust keeps customers coming back. If what you sell costs a lot of money, it gives them the confidence to drop the $100, $1,000 or $10,000 on your product.

How to Build Trust

Every component of marketing is about trust-building, if done properly.

• Social Media. Face it: You probably haven’t bought much from brands on Twitter just because they’re there. If a brand you’re following is having a promotion, you might click the link and buy. But that’s promotion. Not marketing. So your role in social media is to use it as a channel to build trust. Create conversations, whether they’re related to your industry or not. Share relevant links, even if they’re not from your own blog. Interact. Give people a reason to seek your brand out on Facebook or Twitter. A great example of a brand that does this is Mabel’s Labels. Under @mabelhood, the brand shares bloggers’ links and rallies behind its supportive followers. They’ve created a community that translates into trust, and then into sales.
• Press Releases. Sometimes trust is just about being there consistently. Putting out a press release each month can go a long way to say, “Hey! We’re still here doing awesome things.” And while journalists may not be clamoring to publish your news, searching for keywords that lead them to one press release after another from your brand certainly shows that you’re consistent. And consistency is one of the cornerstones of a healthy relationship, is it not?
• Blogger Relations. If you’re smart enough to be working with bloggers to spread the word about your products, kudos. But how you work with them can have just as much impact on your brand as what they think of the product. First off, pay your bloggers. Their time is as valuable as yours. But be there for them too. Make sure they know you’re partners in the blogger outreach campaign you’re working on, and make sure to address any questions or concerns they have before they post. If you build that trust, they’ll go beyond the call of duty for the campaign and talk about your brand on all the social channels, resulting in bonus play for you.

Leap of the Week: Where to Go From Here

If I’ve put you into a tailspin, don’t worry. Keep doing what you’re doing in marketing, but shift your thinking.  Don’t focus on how many (or few) website visitors that last Facebook contest netted. Instead look at how you built the trust of hundreds of loyal fans. If they are engaged in what you’re doing, you’re successfully building that trust. Keep it up, and those relationships will come to fruition.

MOTIVATION
You run the 5k to lose weight, stay in shape, raise money for cancer. Maybe to prove something. It’s on your bucket list. You made a bet. Only ten pounds to go. Achievement is thrilling.

All fine reasons.

INSPIRATION
The runner’s high. My body simply has to run. When I run, I feel closer to life.

MOTIVATION
You write the book, the blog, the brochure to raise your profile so you can sell more stuff, serve more people. You compose and package your thoughts. A 1000 words a day until you’ve crossed the finish line.

All fine reasons.

INSPIRATION
I have something to say that needs to be heard. When I write I feel bigger, freer, like God is using me well.

We seem to need motivation to get stuff done. Typically there’s a lot of “measuring” that happens in the realm of motivation. Check lists and goal posts and markers and such. There is often a fear of loss involved. We are on duty. All perfectly natural.

But beyond finish lines and well done, is a different call. Inspiration.
It is magnetic and progressive. Its reasoning cannot always be reasoned — I just gotta do it. It busts you outta shouldsville into the unfenced field of freedom and possibility.

Inspiration is a completely different force of creativity.

What is motivating you?
What is inspiring you?

What is pushing you?
What is pulling you?

Leap of the Week:

Follow the pull. It’s the first step toward flying.

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Here are my Top 4:

1. I mistook ‘Enthusiasm’ for ‘Priority’:
I know now that some great ideas HAVE to be PARKED no matter how good they are and no matter how exciting they are, to make room for more immediate and key priorities.

2. I lost my sense of humour:
I started to take everything way too seriously…including myself. Everything became a chore. I tend to do that when I feel like I am losing control.

3. I did not say ‘NO’ enough:
I got lost in the noise of it all. I tolerated way too much. My gut knew better, but I was too busy to listen. Busy, busy, busy! Everything became urgent and important and I know that this is only a representation of a massive lack of focus.

4. I lost sight of MY GAME:
Instead of doing things MY WAY like I normally do…I let myself be influenced by people and circumstances and it altered my quick decision-making abilities. I let myself get confused by other peoples’ noise and basically…bullshit.

Does any of this sound familiar to you?

Well, I can say that I am grateful for 2011 because it allowed me to experience how my clients feel at times and that has already made me an even better coach and catalyst.

Leap of the Week:
What will you say no to today? This week? This month?
What will you STOP tolerating to create more peace of mind?

And talking about guts…here is a gutsy woman making a gutsy move. Mavreen (our rock-star assistant) is making a big bold change in her life. She is saying goodbye to LeapZone to invest in herself. She is taking a leap of faith by going back to school and we are very proud of her. Margarita and I have made many bold decisions in our lives and we recognize how much courage it takes to leave what is safe and familiar behind to start something that is scary and new.

Mavreen, we want you to know that you will be greatly missed by us and by the entire LeapZone Community and we wish you a fulfilling journey of discovery, learning and creativity. 2011 would not have been the same, nor have been possible without you, and we look forward to having the opportunity to collaborate, in one way or another, with you again in the future. The friendship that we have created will be forever nurtured and cherished.

Here are a few words from Mavreen:
Dearest Leapers,
The last year and a half has been an incredible learning experience. I have been challenged, moved, and inspired which has lead me onto a new path. I am thrilled to be going back to school and building upon the experiences I have been blessed with, but I will definitely miss LeapZone and all of the people with whom I have connected. A huge thank you to Isabelle & Margarita for their generosity, support, and wisdom. You ladies are beyond fabulous and I love you both! I hope to stay in touch with you all and look forward to having our paths cross again at some point in the future. Best of luck and speak soon!

Thanks Mavreen for everything that you brought to us personally and to LeapZone. We wish you the best in your new endeavors and may 2012 be all that you want it to be…and remember that it’s much easier to do it, than to dwell on it! LOL!

Note to our Leaper Community
As you know, parting with a great employee creates a lot of loose ends. Both Margarita and I are taking this opportunity to simplify…simplify…simplify…everything from our value proposition to our business processes, client touchpoints, contact management system and everything in between. Why? To force us to keep it simple and to ensure maximum value for you. Having said that, I know that we will probably drop the ball a few times in the process despite our efforts not to, and we thank you in advance for your patience.

Cheers,
Isabelle & Margarita

Hope you had a fantastic Holiday Break filled with great food and great moments with family and friends! Margarita and I are taking some focused Bubble Time this week to really work ON our lifestyle and business. It’s a great opportunity for us to get a lot done while slowly re-integrating into our schedules and daily rituals.

One key factor in preparing for a new year is to reflect and evaluate the previous one. It’s important to look into the eyes of The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly to learn as much from it as we can and to recognize patterns so that we don’t repeat the same mistakes over and over again.

As Margarita and I are reviewing 2011 and planning for 2012…we are asking ourselves some tough but valuable questions and I thought I would share some of these questions with you, as they are powerful and important to reflect upon in order to raise the bar and move forward.

Investing 15 -20 minutes in this questionnaire will definitely prepare you for a great 2012. Here you go! Are you ready for 2012?
https://leapzone.wufoo.com/forms/w7×3k1/

P.S. By filling this out before January 7th, you are automatically entered to win one full year of MyLeapTools.com*.

*MyLeapTools™ is packed with kick-butt tools, templates, strategies and methodologies that have greatly helped us, and our clients, take their brand and business to the next level. Each item comes with a kick-ass tutorial explaining how to best use it and what it will do for you!

I look forward to continue to be a part of your “virtual team” to help you raise the bar and take your business to the next level.
Enjoy and cheers to a kick ass 2012!

Isabelle
Catalyst at LeapZone Strategies
Host of LeapTV.com

We encourage you to take action, because a little goes a long way. We can all make a difference!

Want to help brighten the lives of some of Greater Vancouver’s neediest children?

Here’s how you can:

“Like” The Vancouver Sun Children’s Fund on Facebook.

Go to vansunkidsfund on Facebook and hit the like button. For every like Telus donates $1 to Adopt-a-School and The Children’s Fund matches that. So every like = a $2 donation.

Check out the Children’s Fund web site at vansunkidsfund.ca for more ways to donate and learn about the needs of children in inner-city schools.

Adopt-a-School Donations of New Items

The Adopt-a-School project is aimed at collecting financial donations as well as providing a conduit so readers can immediately donate goods such as coats and shoes and gloves directly to those schools and students that need them most. For information on how to donate new items, contact Adopt-a-School at adoptaschool@vancouversun.com or call Adopt-a-School coordinator Kathy Anderson at 604-605-2654.

Find the Vancouver Sun Children’s Fund:

On Twitter: @vansunkidsfund

On Facebook: facebook.com/vansunkidsfund

On Flickr: flickr.com/vansunkidsfund

On YouTube: youtube.com/vansunkidsfund

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Chasing sucks. Prospects, clients, people who owe you information, drawings, money. I hate having to chase. Most of us have to do it–A LOT. Most of the time we go into the bottomless pit of voice mail hell to be tortured by the digital demons therein. Here is how to get your phone call returned more often. There are no perfect strategies that guarantee 100% response; even the IRS auditors don’t get 100% return calls. But you can do much better if you follow this approach.

Quick note: This skill focuses on getting a returned call from someone you have already met. Prospecting is a different skill.

Step 1: Tell the person what you want.
Calls that say “Call me when you get a chance” are relegated to someone’s “B” or “C” priority list. (When was the last time you were working your “B” priority list?). If your voice mail says “Give me a call back, I have a couple of things I want to review with you,” then you are never going on that person’s radar of must-do priorities.

Tell the person you are calling what you want right at the beginning of the call. Make certain your voice mail is not longer than 40 seconds- they won’t listen to it. What do you tell them you want? A document, a phone call, an email, a piece of information- whatever it is that you want, ask for it and ask for it fast. I’ll give examples below.

Step 2: Speak in terms of time.
Tell them:
* How long the returned call will take. (3 minutes, 11 minutes, “less than a cup of coffee” are all good increments)
* Must-talk-by date and time. Your message needs to say, “This call has to happen by….” And then give the date and time. End of day tomorrow, Friday by noon, this afternoon before 3:45pm. Success goes up if the window is later than 4 hours from now and no later than 24 hours from the point of your voice mail message you are leaving. If, by some miracle, you are actually talking to an administrative support person, the time issue is the same, just ask to book the appointment.

Step 3: Declare consequences.
To create urgency you need to declare consequences. Notice I used the word “consequences” not “threats.” Consequences are the natural and understandable outcomes of an action or inaction. You are telling the person you are reaching out too that if he does not call back to you this will happen. Factual and without emotion. Here are some approaches:

* Negative Option – If you do not hear back, you will assume the answer is “no” and you will act accordingly.
* Time expiration – If you do not hear back, time will expire on the offer and what has been offered will be rescinded.
* Delay of Progress – If you do not hear back, then the proposed date for start or end will not be attainable and will be delayed.
* Positive Option – If you do not hear back you will take that as tacit approval and will move forward with the previously agreed upon actions.

Examples:
* “Bill, this is Tom from XYZ. I need the final drawings we discussed by noon tomorrow in my email or I will not be able to honor the delivery date of next Friday. Please give me a 30 second call when you have sent them to confirm. Thanks.”

* “Sue, this is Joe from PDQ. I need confirmation of the wire transfer by end of business today or we will not ship. Please give me a call back by 4:00pm to ensure shipment. Thanks.”

* “John, this is Deirdre from Pinnacle. I only need 3 minutes to get the details from you I need to give you the proposal you requested. If we connect by noon today, you’ll have my proposal before you pack up to go home. Thanks.

* “Frank, this is Alex from Acme. A call no longer than a cup of coffee will sort out the issues you raised about the proposal. We have been out of touch for over a week- that usually means bad things. If I don’t hear back from you by end of day tomorrow, I’ll take that as a definite “no” and assume you are not interested in the proposal. Thanks.”

What you should notice is that
1) This approach takes a forceful and direct tone, rather than a subservient and weak tone.

2) The messages are short. People rarely listen to long, detailed voice mails. They scan, much like we scan our emails. They store the things they intend to listen to later and delete everything else. They rarely get to what they say and eventually it solves itself or they delete it.

3) Action requests, time frames and consequences are clear.

Tom Searcy is a nationally recognized author, speaker, and the foremost expert in large account sales. Tom is the author of RFPs Suck! How to Master the RFP System Once and for All to Win Big Business and the co-author of Whale Hunting: How to Land Big Sales and Transform Your Company.

Leap of the Week:

In order to make this exercise easier,write a mini script for your phone messages. Leave dates, times and specific requests blank so that it can be re-used. Have it in front of you when you are making your call so that you don’t stumble and veer off on a tangent and end up on the “B” priority list. Be prepared and get better results!

The answer is yes and no.

Yes, the ideas flow easy. They just come.

And no, the things that are built from the ideas most often are only the product of struggle, and sometimes fear, with the terribly difficult task of realizing what one great sculptor called it, the shape within the stone.

The shape often doesn’t reveal itself within the stone that harbors it that easily as the idea which came from nothing did.

The shape within the stone, which is the predecessor of the actual form of the idea in the things which comprise the enterprise, the thing in itself, the thing which makes the enterprise come alive, the thing which calls out its uniqueness, which I am calling the shape within the stone, the face of it if you will, that entity most often takes some muscling time, some sweat too, some working with it without most of time any real clues that indicate which way to go, right or left, or to just stop and take a breath because if you push too hard you’ll probably just ruin it before its time.

I know this must sound terribly complicated, but it’s actually not.

Saying it is, but the doing of it has a natural flow to it.

Much like lifting weights.  Or doing sit ups.

In one moment the weights just feel like dumb stuff on the end of a stick.

At other times they are transformed into an enterprise of sorts, when the exact form of your body, your shoulders, your arms, your calves and thighs and your feet, and of course, your neck, all combine with your mind, and what was only moments before simply dead sullen weight suddenly appears as a luminously exciting idea, the idea of man, and of form, and of intention, and of a moments’ indefatigable honorable breath.

Breathe in.  Breathe out.  Feel the swell of it.  The sweat of it.  The intellectual rigor of it.  The drama of it.  The sudden wonderful  elegance of it.  And then it’s up!

Yes, that’s what entrepreneurship seems like to me when everything is going really well.

Come Dream With Me.  I’ll tell you all about it.

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