I’m Teresa Morrow, Founder of Key Business Partners, LLC and I work with authors and writers by managing their online promotion. As part of my job I read a lot of books (and I love to read anyway!). I am here to offer a weekly post about one author I am working with and one book I have put on my reading list. The books will cover topics such as social media (Facebook and Twitter), organization, career building, networking, writing and self development and inspiration.

Upbeat by Rajesh Setty

This week I would like to start off with a book I have read and have worked with entitled Upbeat by Rajesh Setty.

This compact book is filled with wonderful ideas and strategies to help any business owner or entrepreneur get out of the “jam” they may be filling at the time.

Here are a few tips from Upbeat I would like to share with you:

1) Be Accountable to Yourself - “Recession time is hard on everyone but that does not mean that you should go into a state of inertia, waiting for the times to pass.”—>The time is now. Take inspired action to do something today to get to where you want to be. Sitting down and doing nothing will get you just that…nothing.

2) Be Grateful - “Yes, you are frustrated, things are not going well, and most of it is not your fault. However, do remember that in the general scheme of things you are lucky enough to have the opportunity to think and do something about it.” –> Take some time to embrace the blessings in your life. Write them down even and you will be amazed at how many things you have in your life to be grateful for. When you are grateful, the positive energy comes out of you and into other people’s lives.

3) The Discipline - “Like any good idea, discipline is very easy to grasp an an idea but has no value unless it is implemented–and well. Quote by Jim Rohn “Every disciplined effort has multiple rewards”. –>things take time to come together and become successful. However, if you don’t start creating action to make those things happen, it won’t.

See, and those are just a few golden nuggets from Rajesh’s book, Upbeat.

About the Author:
Rajesh’s mission in life is to bring good ideas to life. With love!

Rajesh is involved in a few companies in some combination as a founder, operating executive, board member and/or an investor. Apart from that, he has written a few books and is working on a number of them. His first book was published at the age of thirteen. While he is not building companies or writing, he enjoys speaking at conferences and company events.

You can read his latest thoughts on his blog Life Beyond Code or on Twitter at UpbeatNow. If you are really curious to know the events that shaped his thinking, you can read his story so far here.

Rajesh lives in the Silicon Valley with his wife Kavitha and son Sumukh.

You can pick up your copy of Upbeat at Amazon.

Masters of Sales

Secrets from Top Sales Professionals that will transform you into a World Class Salesperson

Now is time for me to showcase a book I have not read but it is on my reading list. This week my choice is Masters of Sales by Ivan R. Misner, Ph.D and Don Morgan, M.A.

Bursting with valuable advice from Jack Canfield, Anthony Robbins, Keith Ferrazzi, Tom Hopkins, Al Lautenslager and more than 70 other masters of the art of selling, this exclusive compilation of the best sales strategies ever known puts you on the fast track to sales success.

Just a short but poignant business lesson of what I read by just picking up the book once:
This is a excerpt about Janet Attwood (speaker, trainer,author)–
“A persistent attitude is mandatory for success in any endeavor, including sales. You may need to stop banging your head against the wall and change directions, but don’t stop too early–you might be closer to success than you realize! Listen to your intuitions, and you can make a lot of money!

About the Authors:
Dr. Ivan Misner is the Founder & Chairman of BNI, the world’s largest business networking organization . BNI was founded in 1985. The organization has thousands of chapters throughout every populated continent of the world. Each year, BNI generates millions referrals resulting in billions dollars worth of business for its members.

Dr. Misner’s Ph.D. is from the University of Southern California. He has written nine books, including his New York Times best seller, Masters of Networking and his #1 bestsellers, Truth or Delusion, and Masters of Success.

You can pick up your copy of Masters of Sales on Amazon.

I’ve been a freelance writer, an online publisher, and a strategic consultant. I’ve handled a multi-state whole sale consumer products accounts, selling to big chains and to mom and pop stores. I’ve presented huge educational programs to state boards of education and made deals with publishers on four continents. I’ve built a successful conference and convinced big brand sponsors to partner with us. I led the strategy that turned around a failing company. Most of what I know about getting folks to work with me I’ve learned the hard way, by doing things wrong and adjusting out when those things didn’t work.

But I pay attention … especially to one question that makes a working relationship actually work.

Working relationships work because an exchange of value occurs. Value can be currency, time, resources, risk, or sharing a network. Somehow in the best working relationships a balance seems to keep itself, without any party too closely monitoring the score.

So if you’re looking to start a new working relationship, you might want to do a little more work before you event start.

• Know what you offer to the partnership. What can you bring that I don’t have, but would help me to my goals?
• Know what you ask of it. What could I offer in return that would do the same for you?
• Make sure the two are balanced, aligned, defined, and limited in scope. “I”ll do X. What I ask is you do Y. Those two things should move us both forward. Would that work for you? We could try it once as a proof of concept to see whether it works.”
• Then consider that a promise, a pact, a contract made in your words so that you work your butt off to keep to it.

Investors call that “share risk, share the benefit.”
Working partnership might think of it as “share the workload, share the win.”

It’s a great way to get everyone working at what we do well and still get everything done. It’s also a great way to make an offer to a new client.

What makes your great working relationships work?

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz!!

The entrepreneurs and brand managers I work with both often start by asking how to use the social web. Their goal is to promote their business or their brand. The worry that seems consistently common in every first question is that they appear professional and helpful. No one wants to appear to be too aggressive in social web space.

How to Promote Your Business Without Being a Seen as Smiling Shark

When the wrong kind of promotion comes our way, it feels like we’re not being seen as people, but more like prey. Who wants to do business with someone that comes at us like a shark? No one in a marketing or sales role wants to be perceived like that.

I’ve found that the key to elegant and authentic promotion is being fully present in the conversation. Too often we start talking before we listen. Too often we haven’t fully considered what brought us to be interacting. Knowing who we are, what we offer, and how it fits our reader-customers before we even start a conversation can make promoting a blog, a business, or a brand as seamless as talking to a friend about how our day went.

These questions can get us to that information.

1. Are you truly passionate and excited about it? If not, go find out how you can be. Be clear on what drives you.

   “Can I tell you why I’m so excited to be working with big companies on big ideas that connect people and change lives in ways that really mean something.”

2. Can you articulate that passion and excitement? What words explain why you are willing to invest the time of your life building that blog, business, or brand? Be able to tell the story that connects you to what you’re sharing. People will identify with that.

   “Every day people I work with tell me that they think that what we’ve put together to connect with new business is going to be so much easier and so much fun.”

3. Can you name and claim what you offer so that folks can attribute it you? Can you explain how your blog, your brand, or your business will change people’s lives in a clear and specifically good way? Give that a name so that the idea stick. Draw a picture with words and name that. Become the person who is the only one who provides that.

   “Folks who know how to talk about their unique value attract amazing people who want to be part of what they’re doing. Knowing what you offer is powerful.”

4. Do you call folks to action and offer them an easy way to talk about what you’re building? Can you show them how joining you will make what they do easier, faster, and more meaningful? If you don’t tell folks how to join, be a part, they could think you don’t want them to. Gotta invite them.

   “If want to talk about how to do that, it only takes about 45 minutes.”

5. Do you invite people offer their experience? Do you ask folks how you might reach more people who could benefit from your brand, your book, or your product? If they offer suggestions, do you follow through?

   “If you were me, what would you differently to offer folks like more value in faster, better, more meaningful ways?”

6. Do you ask people to talk about you? Do you give them ways they might do that, ways that make them feel proud for helping you?

   “So glad you found value, would you tell your colleagues about our work together? I’d love to help them too. We can all grow together.”

Not every questions fits into every conversation. The thing is that when we know ourselves, our business goals, how to partner and how to extend an irresistible offer, promotion gets to be as passionately authentic as the other parts of the work we do.

How do you make sure that your promotion is authentically you?

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz on your business!!

In the 5 or so years of walking up and down the beach at Rainbow Bay we have never seen such a unique surfboard as we did yesterday morning.

Creativity Rocks!

Do you put your creativity into what you’re living?

Suzie Cheel & Des Walsh

and the right to call themselves
Successful Blog SOBs.

I invite them to take a badge home to display on their blogs.

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They take the conversation to their readers,
contribute great ideas, challenge us, make us better, and make our businesses stronger.

I thank all of our SOBs for thinking what we say is worth passing on.
Good conversation shared can only improve the blogging community.

Should anyone question this SOB button’s validity, send him or her to me. Thie award carries a “Liz said so” guarantee, is endorsed by Kings of the Hemispheres, Martin and Michael, and is backed by my brothers, Angelo and Pasquale.

Want to become an SOB?

If you’re an SO-Wanna-B, you can see the whole list of SOBs and learn how to be one by visiting the SOB Hall of Fame– A-Z Directory . Click the link or visit the What IS an SOB?! page in the sidebar.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Welcome to the SOB Cafe

We offer the best in thinking — articles, books, podcasts, and videos about business online written by the Successful and Outstanding Bloggers of Successful Blog. Click on the titles to enjoy each selection.

The Specials this Week are

Powered
Why is it that when it comes to conversation about social media, business-to-business (B2B) seems to draw the short stick every single time? As someone that does a lot of webcasts, blog posts and speaking gigs, the questions/comment that always comes up is, “what about B2B examples.” Fortunately for me, I’m able to mention companies like BreakingPoint Systems and Hubspot that do a great job tapping into the power of social media but I often wish there were more examples (with public results) that I could discuss.

Six Pixels of Separation
Imagine this scenario: you are walking along one of your favourite streets and you suddenly receive a text message on your mobile phone. It notifies you that your favourite fast-food burger chain has a joint just up the block, and if you come on in, they are willing to throw in a medium-size fries and bottomless jolts of free cola with the purchase of a hamburger.

Brand Savant
One thing that has become apparent to me over the past few months is that there are a lot of folks using social media monitoring tools to listen for brand mentions, but truly they are capable of so much more with a little forethought and planning.

Randy Gage
Do you hold back on things because you feel you aren’t worth the extra money? Does going for the luxurious choice bring up feelings of guilt?

I used to say these kinds of things were issues for people who grew up in the great depression. Then I came to realize that this was a problem for most people. It’s no surprise really, when you think about it.

Bawld Guy Talking
BawldGuy Axiom: When the farmer plants corn in the spring after proper preparation, tends his fields diligently, fertilizes as needed, and adjusts to any bumps in the road, he’s not surprised when he’s harvesting corn in the fall.

Related ala carte selections include

Social Media Enthusiast
Are there still companies who haven’t entered, at any level, the social web? Sure. But they’re so far to the right of the adoption bell curve, we’ve effectively entered the territory of the Amish. They might make awesome baked goods, but don’t know diddly squat about marketing a brand in the digital age.

Sit back. Enjoy your read. Nachos and drinks will be right over. Stay as long as you like. No tips required. Comments appreciated.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

We have the wisdom of teachers all around us. They say that when we’re ready to learn the teacher will appear … We can find those teachers in our family, in our friends, great books by our heroes and by people we’ve heard of. Some of those teachers were in our schools. Others meet us daily on the Internet.

But it’s the ability to know which past decision applies to today’s problem and which tool to reach for when something is broken that builds our own wisdom. Practice and experience with our thinking makes the difference between the wisdom a Yoda and a Skywalker.

It takes 10 critical skills to own an outstanding future — to think and achieve personal wisdom to navigate a life and do the passionate work that we are uniquely suited to do.

What follows is an article I wrote four years ago that you may missed if you recently tuned in to my blog.

Thinking, Fitting In, and Living Well

Thinking cannot be separated from who we are. In the 21st century, the age of intellectual property, the way we think is crucial to having a place in society. What we think and how well we express those thoughts determines where we fit and how well we live. Thoughts, ideas, processes, intangibles — all have value in a world of constant change where knowledge is an adjective, a noun, and an asset — in the form of intellectual property — on balance sheets.

In the largest sense, American society is breaking into two classes:

The first class are people who know how to think. These people realize that most problems are open to examination and creative solution. If a problem appears in the lives of these people, their intellectual training will quickly lead them to a solution or an alternative statement of the problem. These people are the source of the most important product in today’s economy – ideas.

The second class, the vast majority of Americans, are people who cannot think for themselves. I call these people “idea consumers” — metaphorically speaking, they wander around in a gigantic open-air mall of facts and ideas. The content of their experience is provided by television, the Internet and other shallow data pools. These people believe collecting images and facts makes them educated and competent, and all their experiences reinforce this belief. The central, organizing principle of this class is that ideas come from somewhere else, from magical persons, geniuses, “them.”

–Paul Lutus, Creative Problem Solving

. . . My purpose in this article is to undermine that belief.

Most Schools Are Not About Lateral, Individual Thinking

In school it’s “weird” not to think like everyone else. The management problems of classrooms lead to social conformity and pathways through an over-structured curriculum. In society, lateral thinking is a prized commodity. Innovative thinking is essential to any change-based leadership brand.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

My experience of school, both as a student and as a teacher was not geared toward developing new ideas. It was centered around teaching and learning what had already been done, without taking that next step to challenge the past with how it might have been done differently or better.

Working with Thoughts and Ideas Is the New Reality

The world economy has changed to one of service and ideas. Conversation is digital and content is king. The ability to work with ideas has become crucial to having a place in society. Thinking outside of the box is no longer a weird personality trait, but something to be admired and valued. It’s a key trait necessary to modern-day strategic planning and process modeling.

• Intellectual property — content — is an asset that not only gets produced, but reproduced, reconfigured, and re-purposed for variety of media.
• Those who produce intellectual property are builders of wealth.
• An original idea — a twist or tweak on an old process or product — that solves a problem or presents an opportunity is worth more now than it ever has been.

Those who develop, mold, and execute original thinking will own the future.

10 Skills Critical to Owning an Outstanding Future

1. Deep independent thinking and problem-solving – The ability to understand a problem or opportunity from the inside out, vertically, laterally, at the detail level, and the aerial view.
2. Mental flexibility – The ability to tinker with ideas and viewpoints to stretch them, bend them, reconstruct them into solutions that fit and work perfectly in specific situations.
3. Fluency with ideas — The ability to describe many versions of one answer and many solutions to one problem set and to explain the impact or outcome of each both orally and in writing in ways that others can understand.
4. Proficiency with processes and process models — The ability to discuss a problem in obsessive detail and to define a process, linear or nonlinear, that will solve the problem effectively within a given group culture.
5. Originality of contributions – The ability to offer a value-added difference that would not be there were another person in the same role.
6. A habit of finding hidden assumptions and niches — The ability to see the parts of what is being considered, including the stated and unstated needs, desires, and wishes of all parties involved.
7. A bias toward opportunity and action — The ability to estimate and verbalize the loss to be taken by standing still and missed opportunities that occur by choosing one avenue over another.
8. Uses all available tools, including the five senses and intuitive perceptions, in data collection — The ability to weigh and value empirical data, sensory data, and one’s own and others’ perceptions appropriately.
9. Energy, enthusiasm, and positivity about decision making — The ability to bring the appropriate mindset to the decision-making process in order to lead oneself or a team to a positive decision-making experience.
10. Self-sustaining productivity — The ability to use the confidence gained from the first 9 skills to establish relationships with people at all levels — from the warehouse to the boardroom — knowing that ideas are not the pride and privy of only a gifted few.

Innovative, imaginative, inventive, mind-expanding, playful-wondering, what-if, how-come, dramatic-difference, find-the-wow, visionary, killer-app, I-want-one, no-more-stupid-stuff, nothing-in-moderation, bet-the-farm, incredibly-sexy, please-please-can-I, that’s-so-cool, couldn’t-knock-it-off-if-they-tried-to, able-to-see-better-than-the-best, no-more-move-here-today-move-it-back-tomorrow, stupid kind of thinking happens outside of the box.

The skills that you develop from deep, individual thinking stay with you for a lifetime and are transferable from one job to another.

You don’t need them to write every shopping list, but you’ll have them whenever there’s a problem to solve or an opportunity to take advantage of.

It doesn’t take a genius to become a fluent, flexible, original, and creative source of ideas. It takes a person who can develop habits of thinking in new ways.

Imagine what you might do if you find out how you really think and use that.

You become uniquely you — BRAND YOU — the only one — priceless.

Who wouldn’t want to work with a person like that?

Be irresistible
–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz on your business!!

I’m Teresa Morrow, Founder of Key Business Partners, LLC and I work with authors and writers by managing their online promotion. As part of my job I read a lot of books (and I love to read anyway!). I am here to offer a weekly post about one book I am working with and one book I have put on my reading list. The books will cover topics such as social media (Facebook and Twitter), organization, career building, networking, writing and self development and inspiration.

Quirky Marketing Calendar

This week I would like to start off with an ebook I have read and working with the author entitled Quirky Marketing Calendar: The Ultimate Ebook to Promote your Business 365 Days of the Year by Heidi Richards.

For every business owner using the special holidays and events is a creative way to help promote your business and a nice departure away from the traditional.

Here are a few of the suggestions to market your business in a Quirky way:

Did you know?

March 5th is Nametag Day – Want some media attention? Do what Joe Porcelli from Neighbors for Neighbors did. Joe wore a nametag every day for the entire year of 2007 and got coverage which sparked other companies to jump on the Nametag bandwagon. Wyndham Price Agency and the Norwich Bulletin of Massachusetts provided free nametags during the week leading up to Nametag Day. People dropped by Wyndham to collect their name tags and the Norwich Bulletin put a nametag ready to use right on their front page! There was a complimentary edition of the Norwich Bulletin delivered to all non-subscribers in Colchester . And the local Parks & Recreation hosted a wrap up Nametag Day event on Tuesday, January 23rd at the Colchester Youth and invited people to share their unique experiences of wearing the nametag for a day and meet new people too.

AND…

July is National “Doghouse Repairs” Month ~ Dog treats may be a hit with animal lovers. Give away cookies in the shape of a dog bone… wrap them individually in cello with a little bow,
add your business card and pass out at networking events or in your establishment. I purchased the dog bone shaped cookie cutter at a local craft store, took it to my local
grocer/baker and they made me 1,000 cookies for this promotion. I also took them on trays to local radio and TV stations delivered by a local actor in a “Scooby Do” - like costume.

About the Author:
Heidi Richards Mooney is an author, business coach &entrepreneur. Mother of 3– Jennifer, Alexis (deceased), and Suzannah, grandmother to 3 beautiful children – Devon, Madison and Logan, wife to Timmy and friend to many. Heidi grew up in California and moved to Florida in ‘74.

A writer, social media coach and entrepreneur, Heidi enjoys traveling to new countries, learning new cultures & sharing a woman’s perspective on marketing, leadership and running a business. She has written 8 books and co-authored 2, published and edited several ebooks and publishes a quarterly international magazine – WE Magazine for Women.
Heidi is the Founder & CEO of the Women’s ECommerce Association International (WECAI™) ~ a virtual organization of women in ecommerce.

You can pick up a copy of Quirky Marketing Calendar here.

Book Yourself Solid

Now is time for me to showcase a book I have not read but it is on my reading list. This week my choice is Book Yourself Solid by Michael Port.

Book Yourself Solid is a complete instructional guide for starting and growing a successful service business. It gives you simple, yet effective techniques for creating relentless demand and endless leads. It includes more than 200 proven marketing strategies for attracting new clients, earning more referrals, and building profitable, long-lasting professional relationships. If you want to take your service business to the next level, start here and Book Yourself Solid.

About the Author:
There’s nothing ordinary about Michael Port, at least, according to his mother. But others seem to agree. Day to day, he runs one of the largest and most respected coaching programs for small business owners in the world at Booked Solid University.

Michael has been called “an uncommonly honest author” by the Boston Globe and a “marketing guru” by The Wall Street Journal. He is the author of four bestselling books including Book Yourself Solid, Beyond Booked Solid, The Contrarian Effect, and the New York Times Bestseller, The Think Big Manifesto.

A few tips about networking from the book:
1) Do arrive on time. Port writes” This is not the time to stage a grand entrance by being fashionably late…”
2) Do relax and be yourself. He adds,”Contrary to conventional wisdom, you don’t have to fit in.”
3) Do introduce yourself to the person hosting the event. Port explains,”The person may be a very valuable addition to your network.”

You can get yourself a copy of Book Yourself Solid on Amazon.

As the co-producer of SOBCon, a small event conference, I had to invent a few things about working with sponsors. It took a while to build and explain the value proposition for an event that only offers 150 attendees. Yet, those weren’t just any 150 and my goal was to entice, encourage, and enlist the most awesome sponsors to invest in making it work.

Last week I wrote a blog post about the 6 Cold Truths of Building Business. Two points in that list really apply here. Take a minute to go read it if you haven’t had a chance to; then come back here.

Learning the art of finding great partners might be the biggest value of my business career. I’m delighted to be sharing what I’ve learned about finding great sponsors with you.

How to Enlist Awesome Sponsor Partners for Your Projects

How often does it happen that we get emails often from complete strangers, requesting our time, resources, or money that outline what our investment will do for person asking? For me at least, it happens more and more. It’s a sadly tuned request that only lays out the benefit to the person who is asking. No giver has resources to answer every one-sided request generously — it’s not good friendship or good business. How would the giver ever survive?

Whether you’re looking for a sponsor to send you to a conference or someone to support your newest project … you have to make it in the best interest of the people who might help.

Here’s how to entice, encourage, and enlist awesome sponsor partners for your project.

1. Do your homework. Know what you have to offer. What about your event or project might be attractive to what sort of partner? Find out how folks value it. Be ready to walk in with an broadly sketched business plan that considers what the exchange of value will be.
2. Choose your partners. Don’t ask everyone. Look at what you’re doing and find the ideal match for the event or project you’re building. It will be so much easier to connect and collaborate if you can explain to a potential partner how you already see them participating in a meaningful way.
3. Start with asking them, “what are your goals for the next two quarters?” Then listen. Listening lets offers a chance to adapt what you’re doing to include something that fits the sponsor irresistibly.
4. When you hear a goal that aligns with yours, suggest how you might be more efficient working together. Negotiation is aligning your project goals with the goals of the folks you want to buy in. Sit on the same side of the table and align what you want with where they want to go.
5. Last word: Love your sponsors and the sponsors of any event or project that you enjoy! Sponsors make all of our lives easier.Talk about them. Write about them. Personally thank them for all they do for us! Give them lots of reasons to be pleased, proud, and ready to come back. You can bet that helps when we ask them to sponsor again!

A great example might be …
If you want a sponsor to send you to a social media (or SEO or education) conference or workshop, research to find a local business that wants to get involved social media. Ask for a meeting to discuss how you can help each other. You might suggest that they send you to the conference and that in return you spend 4 hours with their team teaching them what you learned.

Even if they don’t have the budget, you’ve made call on a local client who’s interested in social media (or SEO or education). You’ve started to establish yourself as an expert. You may find other business come from it.

Show how doing what you want will make them a hero, get them closer to their goals in ways that are easier, smarter, and more meaningful. Look for how you can make folks feel proud and smart to be a part of what you’re doing, you’ll find someone who wants to invest in what you’re doing.

I’m pleased to say that SOBCon2010 has an incredible list of sponsors, including Intuit, Allstate, ReveNews, Smart Brief of Social Media, and IZEA. Every one of them has been a pleasure to work with. We’ll be announcing a few others soon!

Any questions about getting awesome sponsors?

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz on your business!!

What will make a blog compelling to a user?

It’s a favorite question. Getting people to come and stay is what I do, and talking about it is almost as much fun. I might have said it in a slightly more corporate way, but what I answered was basically this.

Humanity is what’s compelling. We’re all hungry for a connection that makes us feel real.

Quality content that serves real human needs served up by a real human being is the combination of three things: head, heart, and practical meaning. Put them together and a blog — or rather one who writes it — can make a reader feel inspired, moved to action, and wholly alive.

People recognize the real deal.

Visitors to a barroom or a blog figure out quickly whether they get to be who they really are, and whether that’s okay with everyone already there.

Authenticity allows everyone to tell their own truth and feel valued for it.

When that “feeling valued” happens, we give back — in attention, participation, and loyalty. When we’re invested, we don’t walk away.

That’s the heart of compelling.

A compelling blog is human in every way.

What makes a blog compelling to you?

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz on your business!!

Recently, working with a client, I was asked the question,