Archive for the ‘Business Tips’ Category

You might already have a handle on using Twitter and Facebook, but LinkedIn is fast becoming THE place to be for business owners because it offers so many different ways to connect.

Once thought of as just an online CV site, LinkedIn now has more than 65 million users worldwide. But there is more to this social media application than just a place to look up contacts. Many users find work, sell their products and services and grow their business by expanding their networks.

The first step is to fill in your profile completely so anyone who looks you up or finds your profile in a search can see everything you have to offer. This also works on the flipside, by researching prospects or staff before meeting them.

A great way for your connections to see how you operate is to ask happy clients to write testimonials via LinkedIn. Equally, you can return the favour by writing valuable recommendations for your contacts.

Other ways LinkedIn can help your business:

• Conduct your own market research within your network
• Answer questions to show your expertise
• Post job listings to find the right talent
• Join groups related to your industry to expand your network and build knowledge
• Display examples of your work or presentations using SlideShare
• Share useful articles and resources
• Search for new contacts by company, industry and city, or ask your existing connections to introduce you to their networks
• Check your connections’ locations and use TripIt so you can meet up when travelling for business
• Gain new website visitors or newsletter subscribers by including links in your profile

Integrate other social media applications, such as importing contacts, adding blogs, like Posterous, and your Twitter stream so people can connect with you in different places for different purposes.

LinkedIn’s Twitter application has recently been upgraded to include Overview, Connections, My Tweets and Settings features. Now you can see what your friends are tweeting, who you follow (including suggesting LinkedIn connections to follow) and you can tweet direct from LinkedIn. You can also save your LinkedIn connections as a Twitter list.

Include your LinkedIn URL, along with other online applications, on all your marketing collateral such as business cards, email signature, email newsletters and websites so contacts can connect with you in their chosen way/s.

So if you haven’t already, join LinkedIn and start making connections. Make sure you add me: http://www.linkedin.com/in/johannabakerdowdell

Humans consume 100,000 words a day.

If there have ever been any doubts that we live in the information age, the report released by the University of California in mid January proves those wrong. The study, called How Much Information, found American households consume 34 gigabytes, equivalent to 100,000 words, a day. I have a fairly voracious appetite for words, but I would never have put the figure that high.

Read the rest of this entry »

As a public relations consultant I have often nominated my clients for awards – and even helped them write their award submissions – but I’ve never put myself forward. Until now.

I recently entered Strawberry Communications in two awards programs – the Business Women Connect Central Coast Business Women’s Awards and the 2009 Business Achiever Awards. I am proud to say Strawberry Communications is a finalist in the Professional Services category of the latter.

In the process of entering and making submissions for these awards, I learnt a lot about myself as a business person and a woman with aspirations. Without being forced to put my goals, achievements and plans for my business into words I might not have realised how far I am have come in the four years I have been a soloist.

As hard as it is to admit, especially to a potential audience of so many, I had to Google myself (is that called “weegle”?) to find out everything I have done. The process jogged my memory and helped me clarify my successes, which include speaking as an expert in social media and small business promotion, contributing to several books, becoming a professional blogger, writing for Flying Solo and publishing my own eBook.

So, even though it took many hours of my time and I wondered several times why I had agreed to enter these awards, here is what I gained from the process:
•    I clarified my short- and long-term business and personal goals
•    I looked back at my achievements over the past four years
•    I can now explain with conviction why I am worthy of receiving an award
•    I am very clear on my point of difference from my competitors
•    I can relate examples of where I, as a business owner, have excelled in customer service, leadership and communication
•    I have a better understanding of the relationships I have built with clients and the media
•    I revisited the system I use to retain existing customers and attract new ones
•    I looked closer at my financial position to see how the business has improved year-on-year
•    I isolated areas of my business that needed work
•    I discovered the process is a good excuse to market Strawberry Communications because these awards recognise the value of my business and add credibility to my brand.

So even if Strawberry Communications finishes 2009 as a finalist in the Business Achiever Awards only, as a business owner I have gained more than any trophy or prize is worth. Wish me luck though!

Can you say you have the same clarity about these areas in your business? It might be worth spending some time looking at your business goals, unique selling proposition (USP), past achievements and areas in your business that could do with some extra focus. It is a valuable exercise.

I recently wrote a post about using technology, in particular social media, to market your business. Read it here.

I have since become more involved with social media for business and personal purposes. I have found it led to work, as well as new contacts and greater knowledge. Read the rest of this entry »

This article was written for Flying Solo. Have a look here.

A recent conversation with a fellow business mum about recognising the difference between free publicity and paid advertising made me wonder how easy it really is to tell. Read the rest of this entry »

After reading several comments on the new Flying Solo forum and Ingrid Cliff’s blog on getting personal this Christmas, I started thinking about how much difference actually meeting a person makes.

Sure in this cyber-enabled world we work in, it is easy to keep in contact with clients from around the corner, as well as around the world, but have you ever thought of the effect a personal meeting has on your relationship over the odd email and, maybe, phone call? Read the rest of this entry »

This article was written for Flying Solo. Have a look here.

The first few weeks as a first time parent are filled with fear and questions, but then you relax and start to think about the future. In many ways it’s the ideal time for acting on that great business idea and starting a business. Read the rest of this entry »

After reading a great blog by Valerie Khoo for Enterprise, called The one thing you must not ignore in a downturn, I started thinking more about what Valerie had said.

Many businesses ditch marketing when times are tough, but this is madness, as now is the time to make your business stand out from competitors to compete for the dwindling dollars customers have to spend. Sure, re-evaluate marketing practices to cut out the ones that aren’t as successful and track all marketing activity to make sure it is paying dividends, but don’t chop out marketing altogether. Read the rest of this entry »

This article was first published in Flying Solo in June 2008. See the article here.

I currently have two jobs: one job is paid for with money, and the other with love. This article provides five rules to help working parents. Read the rest of this entry »

Everyone has a passion. It might be your job or a hobby, but you are an expert in that subject and you get a buzz from it.

What if you could make money from your passion – in fact create a successful business? Could this be the chance you’ve always wanted to tell the boss exactly what you think and work for yourself? Read the rest of this entry »