How many times have you said to yourself that you have to write a book to help you promote your business and speaking, but you keep putting it off? It seems overwhelming. Where do I start? Do I even know if this book will help my business? Today we are going to discuss specifically how to plan and write a book that will help your business with my guest, Sophfronia Scott.

Featured Guest

Sophfronia Scott helps entrepreneurs and speakers to write and publish books to market their businesses. She is the author of the bestselling award-winning book, Doing Business By the Book: How to Craft a Crowd-Pleasing Book and Attract More Clients and Speaking Engagements Than You Ever Thought Possible. Her latest book is How the Fierce Handle Fear: Secrets to Succeeding in Challenging Times. Sophronia’s website: http://www.doneforyouwriting.com

Listen to the January 23rd, 2012 show.

It’s vitally important that we have visibility in order to get more clients and get promoted at work. What is the best way to do that? Where do we begin? My guest, PR Expert Lisa Elia will give us valuable advice on how we can position ourselves in the marketplace to sell our products and services and promote our expertise in the workplace.

Featured Guest

Lisa Elia is a publicist, media trainer and CEO and founder of Lisa Elia Public Relations, a full-service PR firm in Los Angeles. She has secured placements for her clients in major media outlets, such as The Oprah Winfrey Show, Time Magazine, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, CNN, Redbook, In Style and hundreds of others. She has positioned clients for book deals, endorsement deals, positions as contributing editors to magazines and even their own TV shows. As an entrepreneur herself for over 20 years, Lisa speaks at many events for entrepreneurs, sharing tips on publicity, internal communications, positioning oneself as an expert and a variety of other topics. She has created programs to teach people how to do their own PR and to improve their on-camera presence. For information about the many programs and services Lisa Elia, please visit her website, www.lisaeliapr.com.

Listen to the December 26th show.

As entrepreneurs, we know we need to network to grow our business. As career professionals, we know we need to build relationships to help us advance our career. But how do we do this well? What do we need to know about networking to help us be successful? Diane Darling, founder of Effective Networking, Inc. joins me today to give us some advice on how to approach networking so that we are comfortable and effective. Listen to Diane’s great tips on how to approach new people at networking events and what the best way is to follow up and build relationships that last.

Featured Guest

Diane is the founder of Effective Networking, Inc. and is an expert on networking.Diane believes that everyone can learn to network well, once they find their own style. Her own story is that she is shy herself and needed to get over her fears and learn the skill networking. She not only mastered the skill , but then went to build a successful business from it. Diane is the author of The Networking Survival Guide and Networking for Career Success, both published by McGraw Hill. Diane has appeared on NBC Nightly News. She’s been featured in the Wall Street Journal, the San Francisco Chronicle, and the Boston Globe. And she’s here today on GPS Your Career to offer us some advice on how to network to advance our careers.

Listen to the December 5, 2011 show.

‘Tis the season to be jolly! It’s also the season for socializing. We are invited to many holiday events; some for business and some just to have fun and share some holiday cheer. The point is that we are meeting and greeting more people this time of year than any other. It’s a great networking opportunity.

Often these occasions are not about serious networking yet they do provide us with the chance to meet new people and enter into casual conversations about what we do. It’s the perfect time to network without the pressure to “sell” ourselves.

How do you enter into casual conversations with someone new?

Simply introduce yourself and ask the other person to tell you about them. People love to talk about themselves and this opens up the conversation in a casual way. Listen to what they have to say and learn about their business or position.

Offer the gift of connection.

Here is where the holiday giving spirit comes in. What can you do to help this person? Ask them! There may be opportunities for you to introduce them to other possible clients, partners, or referral sources.

When you are open and giving, it opens the door for others to reciprocate.

Take their business card and write on the back where you met them and who you want to introduce them to and make sure to follow up immediately.

Pay it forward and enjoy all your holiday events! You will be surprised how much you will receive in return.

For more tips on how to network, listen to my GPS Your Career Radio podcast with Diane Darling, President of Effective Networking, Inc.

I have a power point slide in many of my keynote presentations that states Confidence = Competence. When this slide appears, it’s always an “ah-hah” moment for many people in the audience. Isn’t it true though? When you present yourself with confidence, people assume you are competent.

Think about your own purchasing decisions. Would you be willing to purchase a product or service from someone who lacks confidence; who stumbles through their sales presentation and seems unprepared and anxious? You would no doubt hesitate unless you felt sorry for them. (Not a good reason to buy, by the way.) You hesitate in this case because you believe that when a person lacks confidence in their presentation, they may lack competence. As an entrepreneur, it’s important to understand this when selling your own products and services.

Now, I’m not saying it’s necessarily true. It’s just our perception. But the perception is important because that is what people base their decisions on.

Maybe you’re not an entrepreneur, but a woman with ambition to get ahead in her organization. You are talented and gifted and produce great results, but when it comes to presenting those results, speaking up in meetings, you fumble and stammer. Do you come across as a potential leader? Probably not!

I’m not a proponent of faking confidence. I’ve read some articles that say “fake it until you make it.” I’m against this tactic because authenticity is so important in our presentation. It is, in fact, this connection with our authentic selves and the value that we offer that is the foundation of the confidence we need in order to present ourselves as competent. This authenticity inspires trust and it’s vital for our success in business.

I do a lot of speaking now about the topic of understanding your value because I believe until we understand and connect with our unique gifts and value proposition, we will continue to lack the confidence to present ourselves as competent.

Do you understand your unique value or the value that your products and services offer?

Starting January 10^th, I am be offering a four week group coaching program that will take you on a journey of self-discovery to understand your value and better position yourself to grow your business or advance your career. This four week program will be done via phone and participants will receive four hours of coaching, valuable worksheets and exercises as well as feedback from a group of like-minded professionals. Each participant will also receive mp3 recordings of every class.

Check out my website, for more information! And be one of 10 lucky women to take this journey. The group will be limited to 10 so please register now.

True confession time. I have a little gremlin inside me that often rears its ugly head and causes me to lose focus. Of course, it’s easier to blame a gremlin than to admit that I am often challenged to stay on track with my business.

When presented with compelling new opportunities, new ventures, new products, new  technology, I have been known to veer off my well planned strategic path from time to time. As a result, I find myself headed down a dead end road chasing something that not only doesn’t make sense, but consumes my time and energy.

Does this ever happen to you?

I can’t even count how many times I’ve said, “Yes. I can help you with that.” “Wow! Of course I can do that for you.” All this willingness to help out leads me astray and off my mission.

How does this happen? Let’s face it. We are constantly presented with new enticing opportunities. Every day I receive emails, tweets, invitations to connect that all brings potential new prospects for my business. It takes a tremendous amount of focus to stay focused!

So how do we stay on point? How do we evaluate new opportunities that come our way? Should we accept every client, every consulting gig, even if it’s not aligned with our core business? The answer is “no”.

The best advice I can give (which I admit is a challenge for me) is to put up a sign in your workspace with your mission and keep it visible at all times. When presented with new opportunities, evaluate them against your stated mission. Does is make sense to move forward and investigate this further? Does it align with my mission? Does this project or client best reflect my core message?

The reality is that staying on message and living your mission and values is THE best way to grow your business and attract the right clients. When you stray off course and send mixed messages, people get confused and as a result, it becomes more of a challenge to engage with you.

There is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done at all. ~ Peter Drucker

How do you stay focused?

Any tips you’d like to share?

I have always traveled quite a bit for business, and before every trip I would diligently print out my airline ticket, the rental car information, and directions from the airport to my destination.

Often this meant trying to read Mapquest directions while driving on a highway or in the dark. It never worked well and thank goodness I’m still alive after several close calls with other cars on the road. The biggest challenge, however, was having Mapquest dump me some strange place that was not where I wanted to go. Have you ever experienced that?

But now we have GPS, the Global Positioning Satellite, and somewhere up in the sky there is a satellite that knows where I am and beams down directions for me. It provides a step by step navigation and helps me stay on course so I get to where I want to go. How comforting is that?

Don’t you wish you had a GPS for your life and career? Wouldn’t it be great to simply plug in your dreams or goals for your life and career and have someone tell you in a very confident assuring voice how to get there?

Imagine if you took a wrong turn every so often or a detour, the GPS would “recalculate” and bring you pack on course.

It is common this time of year to set goals. We’re often so much better at setting the goals than keeping on track until we reach our destination. Here’s my suggestion: find a “GPS Buddy”.

Ask a colleague, friend, coach or mentor to hold you accountable this year and help you with  your own personal navigation system. A “GPS Buddy” could make a huge difference in how well you navigate in 2011 toward your life and career goals.

What are your goals for your career or business? It is important to be intentional and focused to be successful.

In this fast paced business environment, people are just too busy to seek you out so you need to strategically plan how to create your visibility, how best  to communicate your value proposition and to whom. Without this GPS or strategic plan, you are quite simply less likely to reach your career destination.

I am offering two new programs in January to help women differentiate themselves and confidently communicate their value so they attract more clients or win the promotion they deserve. These programs are limited to just 10 women! RESERVE YOUR SPACE NOW!

The 90-Day Intensive for Entrepreneurs and the 90-Day Intensive for Managers help women overcome their barriers to self promotion and create powerful personal messages about how their value can benefit others. Self promotion is a must have skill in today’s workplace if you want a successful business or career!

I have extended the Early Bird Discounts until January 10th to give you all a chance to get caught up from the holidays. If you register before January 10th you will receive:

• A $700 discount!
  
• A free 60 minute strategy coaching session with me to create your unique plan.
• A free ebook , How to be Happy for No Reason, with best selling author, Marci Shimoff
• And if you are one of the first 3 women to register, you also get a free 60 minute PR strategy session with publicist, Lisa Elia.

Sign up now to propel your business and career forward in 2011!

I hope you can join me for a successful and amazing 2011.

Our decision to buy a new car is often more about the status and sex appeal than transportation and functionality.

We can purchase a great looking pair of jeans any where, but we are more likely to choose a popular brand that has some status and recognition. The advertisements tell us we will be more attractive and appealing in these jeans and we believe it. We pay more money even if we can’t afford it, for the opportunity to wear these status symbols.

So what’s this all about?

It’s all about the emotional connection. The advertisers create an emotional benefit for you when you purchase and use their products; a big juicy payoff. You will be more attractive, sexy, respected, admired, etc. That’s the big payoff; not the specific features of the products themselves.

As entrepreneurs, we often make the mistake of focusing on the features and details of our products and services instead of the big emotional payoff. We don’t make the emotional connection between what we offer and what our customers need.

Think about your target audience. What is their need or their pain, and how does your product or service fulfill their need?

Making this emotional connection is the most powerful way to promote your business. Identify the big juicy payoff or emotional benefit and clearly communicate that to your prospects. You will grab their attention and win their business.

There can be a big payoff for you in more clients, more referrals and more money!

I’ve designed a 90-Day Intensive Program for Entrepreneurs that starts January 20th for entrepreneurs who are challenged promoting themselves and their business.

Is this you? Do you have a pitch that falls flat and doesn’t get you new clients? Do you freeze when asked to promote yourself at a networking event?

Start 2011 off with a big bang and learn how to overcome your barriers to self promotion, create a powerful message to attract more clients and business than you thought possible AND if you register before January 1st, you receive a special $700 discount.

Also, a very special bonus gift for the first 3 women to sign up: a FREE 60-minute consultation with PR expert, Lisa Elia, who will help you plan how to increase your visibility in 2011. This consultation is worth $500!!!

Check out the program now and invest in yourself and your business. Imagine feeling confident and comfortable selling your services! Register now and take advantage of the special discount and gifts.

Whether you are a solo entrepreneur or small business owner or career professional, you probably spend a fair amount of your time at networking events to build your business.

Here are some common mistakes we make at networking events:

1.       We schmooze, but don’t make the necessary connection with people to get business. It’s great to meet new people, but effective networking is not just about how many new people you can meet. It’s about making more meaningful connections; building and leveraging relationships that will over time get you new clients. It’s about quality not quantity.

2.       We mingle with no strategy. Who is attending the event? Who do you want to connect with that you have determined might be a potential client or referral source or even someone to collaborate with? Make it your business to meet the people who will have the most impact on your business. Focus and be intentional.

3.       We assume that people automatically understand the value of our products and services when we introduce ourselves and hand out our business card. It’s important to use benefit language to clearly communicate the value of your service so people you meet can immediately determine if you will meet their needs or if they know of someone else who could benefit from your product or service.

4.       We give away too much. This includes too much information, too many things for free, and too many business cards. When we first meet someone at a networking event, we should not talk about ourselves endlessly. Craft your message so you just give enough information to stimulate curiosity and more conversation. Engage in a dialogue, not a monologue. You will learn more about the person.

Don’t offer to give away too many free products or services. Be strategic about give-aways. What product or service positions you best? What will provide a good intro so that people will want to purchase more?

Finally, don’t go to networking events with the goal of giving out as many business cards as you can. Collecting cards from the people you have good conversations with is much more important. Write notes on the back of those cards so you remember who they are and what they said. Once you have their card, you control the follow up.

5.       We don’t follow up. What’s the point of going to events to meet new people and then not following up?  Following up is how you begin to build relationships that will bring you business. If you tell someone you will make an introduction for them or send them information, do it and do it as soon as possible after the event. Determine who the key people were that you met and send a personal note and set up a time to talk or meet them again. This is the beginning of developing a network that will bring you business.

Basic sales training instructs us to use what are called WIIFM’s, “What’s In It For Me?” statements. WIIFM’s focus our sales efforts on how our product or service benefits the customer. They are meant to shift our mindset from our own agenda to what the customer wants and needs.

It has been my experience that using this benefit language is often the missing piece in elevator pitches as well as the communication of personal brand messages. As a result, many of our pitches fall flat. The use of benefit language makes an impact on our audience.

If you are an entrepreneur, think about your own elevator pitch. Do you make this important connection from your product or service to your customer’s wants and needs? A simple way to do use benefit language in your pitch is to state clearly what you do and then add, “what this means to you is”…

Here is an example. I could say, “My name is Bonnie Marcus and I coach women entrepreneurs to promote themselves effectively.” OR, I could say, “My name is Bonnie Marcus and as a professional coach, I help women entrepreneurs overcome their negative beliefs about self promotion, feel more confident and comfortable selling, so they can grow a successful thriving business.”

The same principle holds true for personal branding. Perhaps you have identified your value proposition, but do you use benefit language to state the business impact?

For instance, maybe I’ve identified that my value proposition is building strong teams. That statement alone does not have as much impact as when I tie it to business results. Find out what matters to your contact and make the connection for them.

Here’s how you could tailor your message.

” I build strong teams. What that means to my organization is that I help create more loyal, happy, and productive employees. Increased employee satisfaction means less turnover, lower employee acquisition and training costs. Also more productive employees means faster turn around on projects that results in more satisfied and loyal customers.”

Get the idea?

Don’t assume that people automatically connect the dots and bridge the gap between what you offer and how they can benefit. Don’t leave it to chance. Everyone wants to know what’s in it for them. Clearly communicate the benefit and the business impact to make your pitch or brand statement more powerful.