A partnership between AT&T and General Motors will give new car owners an option to have 4G Internet Access embedded in their new vehicle.  It’s called “connected car.”  The service is delivered through OnStar.  Embeded cars can connect up to 8 different devices. That’s right, your laptop, your passenger’s tablet, and your back seat rider’s ipod can all get connected.

Actually, this is not all that new.  Audi has offered broadband capabilities on several of its models for the past few years.  BMW and Chrysler intends to be the next car companies to follow suit.  In fact, Chrysler sees teaming with Sprint to uplevel its Uconnect infotainment system on vehicles such as the Ram 1500 pickup and SRT Viper sports car as a way to ramp up sales.

How fast is this type of WiFi service you ask?  Well, GM says it is 10 times faster than older 3G wireless technology.  Whether that holds up though, depends largely on AT&Ts ability to expand its network.

Smart business owners are gearing up for the holiday shopping spree by ramping up customer engagement through mobile marketing.  The reason is simple.  Mobile sales are skyrocketing.

Take a look at the numbers.  In 2008, mobile sales were about $1.6 million.  In just one year, that number jumped to almost $25 million.  This year, mobile devices are expected to generate over $119 billion in sales.  By 2015, mobile sales are expected to be between $650 and $900 billion.

According to David Hewitt of Sapient Nitro (a publicly traded marketing company), we will see a big increase in mobile spending for the 2011 holiday season.  And his prediction is supported by a recent study conducted by search giant Google:  15% of all “Black Friday” searches will be from a mobile phone and 44% of total searches for last minute gifts will be from a mobile device.

Given the mobile sales windfall that is expected this holiday season, small business owners must position themselves to take advantage of the mobile wave.

Even though the mobile web is growing 4 times as fast as the Internet, most small businesses don’t have a mobile infrastructure in place.  They don’t have a mobile website, they don’t have a database of their customers’ cell phone numbers, and they don’t have an interactive coupon offer.

Savvy business owners are taking advantage of mobile sales opportunities by meeting the expectations of their customers.  Customers want quick and easy access to information, AND they want a fun and engaging shopping experience.

The bottom line is this; we see a huge increase in demand for mobile shopping from customers.  Yet, small businesses are not going to keep up with the demand this holiday season unless they jump in now.  If you give your customers value and fun, they will respond.  So don’t put it off.

Go Mobile Now!

PS. Here are the benefits of going mobile:  Great Visibility, Increased Sales, Build Customer Loyalty, Generate Quality Leads, and so much more!

You’re Fired!

These are words no one wants to hear. Yet thousands of California affiliates – myself included – just received the equivalent. Termination emails went out to all California affiliates of Amazon.com, Overstock.com, and other retailers, thanks to California Governor Jerry Brown and the California legislators who passed the so called “Amazon Bill”.  My question is, how many of those who voted for the bill along with the Governor himself, really understood the actual impact and the fall out that would take place when this bill was made into law? And what does this mean for future Internet sales. States have tried for years now to figure out a way to tap into the potential of online sales tax income. If you are an online merchant, you might want to take notice. This could be just the beginning.

Read more in an Orange County newspaper

Coming to a domain near you, www.you.you.  That’s right. Dot com may be a thing of the past. Starting next year, ICANN will begin accepting applications for a domain extension that is your name, your brand, your business. TechCrunch says

“The first ones should be operational by late 2013 according to the current roadmap.”

How much is this going to cost you ask? Only a mere $185,000. Oh well, it was nice while it lasted. I guess the frenzy will be between large companies not small ones. Can you say www.TheRitz.hotel?

You can read the entire story here: TechCrunch

Skyrocket Your Results With AN Internet Marketing Action Plan

You’ve got your new and improved website. Why stop there? Now let’s market it!

Selling online is a great way to grow your business. Every small business needs an Internet strategy to be competitive and to grow.  Fortunately, the Internet is one of the least expensive ways to promote your business, open new markets, and showcase your expertise.  With many low cost and even free marketing strategies available, companies that take advantage of effective online marketing have little problem generating leads, increasing customers, building customer loyalty, and enhancing your brand. 

Step by Step

 Not everyone who is “marketing” online is making money or growing their business as a result of their hard work. In most cases, it is because they don’t have a solid plan. I have a solution for you. This Internet Marketing Action Plan will take the guess work out of knowing what to do when you get on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. I will show you how to develop a step by step method for getting results from your online marketing efforts.  

Here’s what we’ll cover:

• How to dramatically improve your ability to attract your ideal customer
• How to use customer relationship tactics to interact with your friends and fans
• Basic networking tips
• Time saving tips and tools
• How to gain name recognition
• What it takes to be a credible resource to potential customers

With this plain and simple one page Internet Marketing Plan there is no more guessing what to say or when to say it.  There is no sitting at your computer for hours without producing a single result. With this plan, you will have a formula that gives you extremely profitable outcomes every single time you market online.  

One Page Internet Marketing Plan ($300 Value) 

Special Price $97

Your Internet Marketing Action Plan Includes:

• Two 90 minute sessions
• Downloadable Templates, Worksheets and Checklists 

A Cash Cow Has Nothing on a Website

Websites have changed over the years.  They started out as an electronic brochure and have evolved to cash registers.  So much so that online sales for this past (2010) holiday season topped $13 billion. That is a 13% increase from the previous year. AND, that number was for a mere 29 days – November to December 1.

The question is, can a small business entrepreneur capitalize on this massive spending spree? In a word, YES! Many small business owners are enjoying unprecedented success by having an online presence.  Unfortunately, many more are not.

First Impression

What a lot of website owners don’t understand is that if they want a website that sells, that website had better be spot on.  Again, that is not the case with too many small business owners. When potential customers land on their site, the first impression is a bad one.

What Sells?

Every business owner knows that people purchase from people they know, like, and trust. So if you want a website that sells, it must be irresistible, it must build trust, it must be memorable, and most of all, it must move a visitor to take action.

How does a website do that?

To have a website that get results, the overall look and feel of the site must be sticky enough to keep visitors on the site. Coupled with a fresh clean look and dynamic strategic content, a website can sell 24/7.

Want to learn more about having a website that sells?  Join this free webinar with me, Cynthia Renee Frazier, and Lavada Thompson of Gems Shine Consulting. You can see all of the details here. See you there!

Kick start your blog traffic!

Are you a blogger who would like to attract heart-led readers to your blog?

Hi. I’m Cynthia.  If you are already blogging, you know that one of the biggest challenges we face as bloggers is driving traffic to your blog.  The last I read, there are over 126 million blogs on the web. And there are at least 175,000 new blogs popping up every day.

It’s no secret that there are many benefits to blogging.

• Brand building
• Showcase expertise
• Higher search engine ranking
• Reputation enhancement
• Community building
• Unique position differentiation
• PR
• Enhance credibility

The question is, how do you keep readers coming back to your blog for more?  One way is to cross promote.

Black Pearl Blog Festival

At Black Pearl Blog Festival, 30 top bloggers will come together and add a blog post on a specified theme.   March is women’s history month. This is a great opportunity to showcase dynamic women.

Who is the Target Market for the Festival?

Women Business Owners who are starting or growing their company.

How will I benefit?

One huge benefit to participating in the Black Pearl Blog Festival is to create back links. This will send your search engine ranking up up up.  Another big benefit is cross promoting with other leading bloggers.

What do I get?

• Featured post on the blog
• Photo on the post
• Link to your site

How will you market the Festival?

We have created a fabulous marketing campaign that combines offline and online tactics. Some of our marketing outlets include:

• Paid advertising in women focused online magazines
• Guest blogging
• Status updates on Facebook
• A live event on Twitter
• Press releases
• Article Marketing
• And that’s just for starters!

What is the Theme for March?

This is an opportunity to honor a woman in your life who gave you a bit of advice that has stood the test of time. You will share that advice and tell how you use it in your business. This is an awesome way to showcase this special woman and allow other women to learn from it.

Yes, This is awesome! How do I sign up?

If you are ready to enjoy a stream of visitors to your blog and share your message with heart-led readers, you must act now. Space is limited to 30 bloggers and 5 slots are already taken. Click here now to secure your spot.

What happens after I sign up?

You will receive a welcome packet with all of the information you need to submit your blog post.

What if I have questions?

I love questions! Call me at 206-312-1626. Not only will I answer your questions, but I will be happy to take a look at your blog and offer suggestions just for YOU.

Are you on the right path for extraordinary business growth?

Growing a business requires focus, accountability and results. Without a strategic foundation, there is no way to know where the business is headed or even why it is going in that direction.

Setting in motion clear and well defined strategies will position your company for increased market share. Better strategies mean improved implementation and accelerated outcomes.  With this plan, you will have a sensible approach for taking full advantage of opportunities to grow your company.  You will be well equipped to meet any challenges that can get in the way of growth.

Here’s how we do it

In just six sessions you will have an innovative detailed one page plan that you can use to move your business forward for one year and beyond.

• Sharp focus on what is important to your bottom line
• Clearly defined purpose and objectives
• Solid foundation upon which future growth and profits will stand
• Increased productivity and inspired action
• Move business from reactive to proactive
• Ensure market relevancy for years to come

Includes Virtual or face to face meetings

• Bonus Q&A call
• 30 days of unlimited text access

Got questions?  We are standing by to provide you with all of the answers you need. Call now. 206-312-1626. We love hearing from YOU!

This can make a potential customer feel like he or she is being cross examined.

Most customers love to browse and shop. At the same time, most customers hate to be sold.  That’s where building rapport comes in. When you take the time to discover what your customer likes, you avoid the mistake of moving through the sales process too quickly. Instead, engage your customer in a bit of friendly conversation with the intent to flush out their wants and needs. Not in a grilling kind of way.  This can make the potential customer feel like he or she is being cross examined. Instead, approach the conversation in an authentic, honest, dialog that shows you care about the individual, not just the sale.  The benefit to your business is long term customer loyalty.  And anyone who has been in business two minutes knows that it costs at least 10X more to acquire a new customer than to maintain an existing customer.   Fortunately, in today’s climate, there are great tools like social networking that can be used to build rapport.  Read more here.

In the old days of business growth, a company positioned itself as a champion that dives right in to solve problems.

In my earlier discussion on building customer rapport, I talked about the importance of taking the time to get to know your customers in order to fulfill their likes, wants, and needs.  Ultimately, this builds customer loyalty, saves you time and money, and eliminates the frustration of chasing after new customers.

Building rapport is so much easier with social networking. Using a profile page, you can engage your customers in an honest authentic dialog that let’s your friendliness evolve in a natural way.  In the old days of business growth, a company positioned itself as a champion that dives right in to solve problems. In today’s economy, successful companies have learned to value their customers by building a lasting relationship and delivering flawless service.  By utilizing social networking effectively, a company can grow to its fullest potential.