|
|
|
Life Design Ezine
March Issue: Cultivate Your Brand by Writing Easy Essays
|
"Ideas spread like populations, from one person to another." ~ Malcolm Gladwell, The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference
"The traditional approaches to marketing and branding are now obsolete... we can no longer market directly to the masses. One hundred years of marketing thought are gone. Alternative approaches aren't a novelty--they're all we've got." ~ Seth Godin, Purple Cow: Transform Your Business by Being Remarkable
What if you could make marketing easy by publishing simple essays? Just by sharing what you're learning from your customers in writing can be a way to begin the spreading of your good news. Because you've connected and recorded the needs of your clients, you will most definitely add value not only to them but to others who need and want your services.
HOW DO YOU DO IT IF YOU'VE NEVER PUBLISHED A THING?
1. Make a list of questions your clients or customers are asking you? Find out by asking them: "Right now, what are your urgent concerns, what do you think you need and, especially, what do you need from me and my offerings?"
2. Write a short paragraph or two in response to each question they've asked. Don't forget to bring empathy regarding why it is so important to them.
3. Next, come up with a few simple tips or steps that you can offer them only after asking them, "What's worked in the past?" Good news: You will be delving into your own expertise here and giving valuable, and most importantly, solicited advice. Your answers will reflect your thoughtful listening skills and will be easy to share because they're something you really know about.
4. Write a couple sentences about each of your simple points/tips, (creating a skeleton), then use bullet points or numbers to make it easy for the reader. Now, add some flesh on this skeleton by offering a "case example" or brief story of how this tip has helped your past clients.
5. Next, write a short paragraph simply summarizing the benefits -- one more time -- and what will happen if your would-be client were to follow these points.
6. Finally, add a simple bio that offers up-to-date contact information and, possibly, a free sample session with you should they want to see what you two might create together. And, something I've learned the hard way, be sure not to give away the store! Remember, work to connect NOT to impress.
Here's my example: Jennifer Manlowe, PhD, CPC, is the founder of Life Design Publishing and is a certified publishing coach helping people step out to authorize their lives through writing. Her books can be found at: http://Authorizeu.com. Be sure to take advantage of Manlowe's 30" sample session to see how you might work together. Call 206.617-8832 to arrange this complimentary appointment.
Another bit of good news -- you're not spending a dime to share this kind of research. The next time someone says you need to spend money on advertising or a new logo or promotional items to “build your brand” remember this article. Then think about all the ways you can give your customers a good experience every time they have contact with you/your business. You'll be building your brand not by telling but by showing your customers that you are listening to their concerns and really care about offering them true value in relation to who they are.
|
|
|
CULTIVATE YOUR BRAND BY WRITING ESSAYS
The next time someone says you need to spend money on advertising or a new logo or promotional items to “build your brand” remember this article. Then think about all the ways you can give your customers a good experience every time they have contact with you/your business.
|
Mar 1, 2010
|
OVERCOMING CREATIVE CHALLENGES
“Inaction breeds doubt and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage. If you want to conquer fear, do not sit home and think about it. Go out and get busy.” ~ Dale Carnegie
|
Feb 1, 2010
|
WILL COACHING MAKE MY RESOLUTIONS COME TRUE?
Coaching is not the same as advice giving, it's a lot more like serving the client in bringing forth what is within them waiting to be born. I'm more of their mid-wife than their trainer with a whistle in my mouth. The fierceness of-a-professor-who-cares is still there but that energy is much more focused on supporting my clients in turning their insights into rewarding actions.
|
Jan 1, 2010
|
I COULDA BEEN SOMEBODY!
Terry Malloy, a former middle-weight boxer, (played by Marlon Brando), speaks to his brother, Charlie, in the back of their car in the 1950s movie, On the Water Front, it is clear that his reflections express regrets for not taking more risks during the first half of life.
|
Sep 1, 2009
|
GETTING REAL
When you're self-disclosing, you're less apt to get caught up in illusion of control. After all, "Motive = self-expression," not trying to change others. Being vulnerable with people makes you less likely to trigger their defensive reaction(s). Going public helps you see yourself more honestly.
|
Aug 1, 2009
|
WHICH DISNEY CHARACTER ARE YOU?
When you take these little quizzes on Facebook, they can be one way, a harmless way, to “get out there.” As Opera Diva Beverly Sills warns us, “You may be disappointed if you fail, but you are doomed if you don’t try.”
|
Jul 1, 2009
|
ACKNOWLEDGE AND INSPIRE!
How often do you celebrate progress made in any of your endeavors? Most of us claim that it’s easier to say, “Thank you!” to a police officer who has just given us a speeding ticket than to acknowledge our own strengths or past successes.
|
Jun 1, 2009
|
BREATHING (NOT STUFFING) EMOTIONS
No need to rush out of uncomfortable feelings into anesthetizing with food, alcohol, spending, or hyper-fixating on the problems of others to find relief from an anxious mind. We can go into the feeling and witness its transience.
|
May 1, 2009
|
MAKING TIME WHEN NONE CAN BE FOUND
Little by little, I realize that nobody ever finds time—time is not lost. Time is actually related to the word “tide” (in Old English “tima”). It’s not a thing, but something that we experience with our senses. Time is something that we carve out of the rocky schedule or impenetrable wall of activity in which we live.
|
Apr 1, 2009
|
WHAT SHOULD I DO NOW?
Making a decision about “what’s next?” means taking a good look at our own passions, values and life circumstances. Factoring in both our authentic dreams and our realities (and keeping in mind that this first choice won’t necessarily dictate the entire course of our lives) will help us figure out how we want to spend our time and what will help us feel engaged and nourished in the near future. No matter what, clarifying our consciously chosen path is a legitimate part of our ongoing education regarding our life’s particular purpose. As the Taoist immortal Lao Tsu says, “Knowing others is wisdom, knowing ourselves is Enlightenment.”
|
Mar 1, 2009
|
BECOME VISIBLE THROUGH E-PUBLISHING TIP SHEETS
Get visible through publishing an online article or tip sheet. There are 77,000 journals and magazines in hard-cover and probably 10 times that many online. Keep fishing and you will be published!
|
Feb 1, 2009
|
SETTING INTENTIONS VS. NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTIONS
So much has been written in the last hundred years regarding the power of positive thinking, or the magic of thoughts, or the "fundamental law" or "secrets of attraction"--all of these thought to be something over which humans have control via cognitive techniques.
|
Jan 1, 2009
|
DO YOU BELIEVE YOU SHAPE YOUR FUTURE?
"Creating Your Own Destiny: How to Get Exactly What You Want Out of Life," written by Patrick Snow, is my favorite self-improvement book this year. Such praise proffered is saying a great deal because my blog, "Helpful
Books," reflects my very choosy appetite.
|
Dec 1, 2008
|
STEERING BY STARLIGHT
My readers may have heard of best-selling author Martha Beck through her advice column in "Oprah Magazine" or through her many books: "Expecting Adam," "The Joy Diet," "Leaving the Saints," "Finding Your North Star," or" Four Day Win"–all available at my favorite independent bookstore Powell’s Books. "Psychology Today," "NPR" and "USA Today" consider Martha “the best known Life Coach in America.” Beck is a very straightforward writer who believes each person has an “inner-compass” and has available to them “limitless possibilities” to help them locate their “just right” lives.
|
Nov 1, 2008
|
CULTIVATING CALM AMIDST THE STORM
I try to practice what I call, The Four A's: Awakeness, Awareness, Acceptance and Acting skillfully (these are attitudes to which I aspire--something I do totally imperfectly).
|
Oct 1, 2008
|
CULTIVATE YOUR INTUITION (a Radio Show)
This month's Ezine is meant to help you authorize your intuition and design your life. By listening to this interview with Jennifer Manlowe (conducted by "Directed Focus" Radio Show founder, David Zarza) you'll see what you can create when you cultivate clarity.
|
Sep 3, 2008
|
MINDFULNESS MEDITATION, WHY BOTHER?
Breathing mindfully is like listening to waves on an ocean, something to which we are always available to attend. This practice takes practice. It’s like training a skittish, stray cat to “stay still” and trust that today will take care of itself.
|
Aug 1, 2008
|
I KNOW EXACTLY WHAT YOU MEAN
You can commit to broader understanding of others and yourself and learn to be more adaptable, more capable of successful intimacy. When you understand each of the four styles, how to recognize them in others, and how to adapt to them in key ways, you can have greater ease in almost any interpersonal situation.
|
Jul 1, 2008
|
SO YOU WANT TO WRITE YOUR FIRST BOOK..
“When I start a book, I always think it’s patently absurd that I can write one. No one, certainly not me, can write a book 500 pages long. But I know I can write 15 pages, and if I write 15 pages every day, eventually I will have 500 of them.” ~ John Saul
|
Jun 1, 2008
|
CAREER SATISFACTION IS UP TO ME
Will you have more work satisfaction in 5 years, 10 years, or 25 years from now? Do you know? Do you have an idea how that will happen? Have you ever dreamed about it or set a goal for acts you can take that will lead to greater professional contentment? Are you willing to take responsibility and recognize that, “connecting to contentment is up to you?"
|
May 1, 2008
|
TEN TOOLS FOR LASTING SUCCESS
The essential tools for creating the life we want are our thoughts, attitudes, and emotions…and that’s not a secret—or the secret—kept from the rest of us. Successful people know the tricks for lasting fulfillment, whether they are poets, painters, lawyers, artists, teachers, entrepreneurs or full-time parents working at home. It doesn’t matter whether you believe these Ten Tools are ancient or modern, new or old, true or false; just be open to testing their principles. Be a scientist and a skeptic, experiment!
|
Apr 1, 2008
|
WHY HAVE A DREAM?
“...In spite of the difficulties of the moment, I still have a dream.” ~ Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
|
Mar 1, 2008
|
|
|
NOTE: I will use your information only to contact you about services and inspirational newsletters. Please know that you can ask me not to contact you again at anytime.
Please see and comment on my new blog: Helpful Books
To make contact, phone: (206) 617-8832 or email: jlmanlowe@comcast.net
RETURN TO HOME PAGE
|
|
|
