Glenn Andrew: Web 2.0 Strategist

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Value propositions are a powerful means for attracting new business and opportunities to you. Yet they are often overlooked by the very people who could immediately benefit from them. A value proposition is a statement that elaborates the value that you bring to a company, customer, or whoever will benefit from your products and services.
The question you want to answer is “What value do you provide?” Another way of phrasing the question that I’ve heard is “How do you turn your solutions from a ‘so what’ to a ‘must have.’”
I recently came across an article written by Barbara Bix in which she described the six criteria a value proposition must meet:

The process of creating a compelling value proposition can be a challenging one.
First, it’s all about outcomes and results. These outcomes need to be verbalized in a clear and concise manner and that requires a certain level effort.
Second, good value propositions elevate a business above its competition. How do you distinguish yourself from your competitors?
Third, good value propositions help others refer business to your company. Once you share your value proposition with someone, will they think of someone who would benefit from your product and service?
Creating a value proposition for yourself and your company can and will have a positive effect your bottom line.
As an example, my value proposition is as follows:

“What I do is to help clients get clear on their vision, work with them to develop goals and action stems, and provide a level of accountability in achieving those goals.”

I look forward to hearing your value proposition. Take a moment to create one for yourself. Share it with your colleagues and help them develop value propositions for themselves. You will find a synergy from that sharing that will help you further hone your own value proposition. And that’s a real nice side effect!
To read the full article by Barbara Bix, go to http://www.bbmarketingplus.com/articles/article_7_14-2009.html.
Please add your comments below. I look forward to hearing your thoughts. And do share this post with your favorite social media sites.

I recently ran a poll in LinkedIn asking the question, “What is the most important part of a marketing plan?” Over a 100 marketing professionals responded to the poll over a seven-month period spanning from May through November 2009. Responses were solicited from the major executive and marketing groups within LinkedIn. Responders were given the five (5) main components of a traditional marketing plan to choose from:

About a quarter of the responders left descriptive comments that were heavy on content. What follows are the results of that poll broken down by overall results, job title, company size, job function, gender and age.

According responders, the description of the target market was the most important part of a marketing plan by 57%. The description of product/service came in a distant second by 25% The marketing budget garnered 9% of the vote coming in third. Description of competitors came in fourth with 5% of the vote. And pricing strategy came in fifth with 2% of the vote. Clearly the majority of responders felt that the target market should be the main focus in any marketing plan.
Below is a chart of the overall results.
RESULTS BY JOB TITLE
Results varied significant when sorted by job title. Owners comprised 11% of the responders with 56% saying the product/service description was most important followed by 22% saying the marketing budget was most important. C-Level and VPs comprised 8% of the responders with 50% calling the target market most important and 33% saying the product/service description was most important. Management made up 15% of the responses and clearly voted target market by 83%. All other titles comprised 66% of the responders with 63% voting for target market and 23% voting for product/service description.
Below is a chart of the job title results.
RESULTS BY COMPANY SIZE
Responders from Enterprise companies (10,000+ employees) made up 13% of responders and 50% chose product description as most important. Large companies (1,001-10,000 employees) comprised 13% of responders and 67% selected target market as most important. Medium companies (201-1,000 employees) made up 11% of responders and 80% voted target market as most important. Small companies (1-200 employees) made up 64% and were in the majority; 70% selected target market as the most important part.
Below is a chart of the company size results.
RESULTS BY JOB FUNCTION When the poll results were sorted by job function, there were a few surprises. Academics comprised 6% of the responders and 100% voted for target market. Business Development made up 19% of the responders with 67% voting for product/service description and 33% for target market. Those with Marketing job functions made up 38% of responders and 50% voted for target market and 33% voted for marketing budget. Product (13%) and Sales (25%) job functions all voted for target market (100%).
Below is a chart of the job function results.

RESULTS BY GENDER
Gender was not a factor in the results of this poll. Females comprised 30% and males 70% of the responders. In both cases, 57% voted for target market as most important and 29% selected product/service description.
Below is a chart of the gender results
RESULTS BY AGE
Age was not a factor in the voting process for the primary response, but it was for the secondary response. The 18-24 group made up 9% of the responders and 67% selected target market as the most important part. The 25-34 group comprised 22% of the responders and 60% voted for target market. The 35-54 group made up 57% of the responders and 64% selected target market. Lastly, the 55+ group comprised 13% of the responders and 56% voted for target market.
One interesting trend was that as the groups became older, product/service description took on an increasing significance. Another trend was that 17-20% of those below age 35 felt that the marketing budget held significant importance, while those 35 and older felt it was of minimal importance.
Below is a chart of the age results.

In today’s world, when it comes social and business networking, it’s not so much who you know. More importantly, it’s who knows you! This is how opportunities come your way, both personal and business ones.
You are the best at being yourself; no one can do a better job than you. And so, ask yourself the following questions:

Answer these questions and you will gain a clearer understanding of what your personal brand is.
You are your own brand! And when you know your brand and are able to clearly enunciate it, then you are able market yourself more easily. With the proliferation of social media sites, it becomes quite easy to brand yourself online and to develop your own brand awareness. Here are a few tips to help you get started:

Google yourself. Find out what comes up when you google yourself. Look for links that may contain information about you. Many people are surprised at what they find the first time they do google themselves.

Set up a Google account. Go to https://www.google.com/accounts/NewAccount to create a new account.

Create a Google Alert. Use your name and whatever keywords you wish to track. Each time Google indexes a page that contains your name or keyword, you will be sent an email with that link. This is a great way to keep track of what’s happening with your name or keyword on this search engine.
Create a Google Profile. Each time your name is searched on Google, your profile link will show up on the search engine results pages (SERPs).

Begin creating your social media accounts. I suggest starting with Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. For me, these are the “must haves.” There many, many others including more social networking sites, social content sites, blogging and podcasting sites, photo and video sharing sites, and on and on.

The extent of your personal branding is limited only by your imagination and the time that you are able to devote to the process. Initially, it may seem to be a very time consuming process, but one you have set up your profiles and learned more of the social media landscape, you will be able to leverage your efforts using many of the automation that are available, many of which are free. More about that in another post!
Remember, in the networking world it’s not who you know, but rather who knows you! And your personal brand helps people to remember you and know what skills and expertise you have to offer.
I look forward to your comments.

Looking to grow your small business? Watch the first ever GrowSmartBiz Live Webcast live today, Sept 29, 2009. The keynote speaker is Chris Anderson, editor-in-chief of Wired magazine and author of The Long Tail and Free. There are many speakers, panels and shared tips throughout the day.

Many years ago one of my good friends and mentors shared with me what he found to be the two essential keys to success.This was after decades of life experiences . Now he is one person that most of you may not have heard of and that’s how he wanted it kept. But his wisdom has stayed with me ever since that bright sunny morning many years ago that he shared it.
First, you need some form of specialized knowledge. You may not be achieving the measure of success you are seeking because you are lacking specific knowledge. Perhaps it’s a particular skill, bit of know how, learning from the experience of others, but we need knowledge and know how.
Second, you need to take effective action consistently. Taking action is paramount to achieving success. But not just any action will do. We must take action that is effective. And must take that effective action on a consistent basis.
I will be adding to this post over time because there is more that needs to be shared, but these are the key points I wanted to share.
On a deeper level, may I ask you, “Who in your life has openly shared with you a golden key or a pearl of wisdom with you and did so unselfishly, without regard to any self interest?” Take a moment to reflect on that and when someone comes to mind, be grateful that you have had the privilege to have known them.
What are some of your favorite success tips? I welcome your comments!

In this post we take a look at the 10 key benefits of having a personal, private and professional coach.

Help Clarify Values and Important Goals
Many people don’t have the slightest idea about what they want to do with their lives. Many times they select their values from a list of worthy sounding ideals. And their goals tend to be vague and/or seemingly unattainable. Sadly, this is a common problem for most people.Good professional coaches are trained to help a person understand what really matters in his/her life. They can help clarify values and then make sure they’re in harmony with a person’s core desires. It’s the first major step for getting a life on track and it’s the first major role of a good coach.
Provide Extreme Personal Care
Coaching is a safe place for a person to be. It’s a place where injustices, fears, frustrations and anger can be vented. It’s a place where dreams, fantasies and hopes surface and are openly discussed. It’s a place where confidentiality is of the highest order. It’s a place where someone can be herself without fear of sounding weak, insecure or scared. The coaching relationship is also a place where truth is king. The coach has no vested interest in the relationship other than helping the person have every advantage possible to lead the kind of life she wants for herself and her family.
Work on the WHOLE Person
A person needs balance in his/her life. It’s possible to be hugely successful in terms of a career and still be miserable most of the time. For example, people who work all of the time often will neglect their health, their spiritual life, and recreational activities. They will neglect their family, friends, and loved ones in lieu of a successful business career.By examining a person’s whole life, a coach can identify where that person is out of balance and then help him take manageable steps towards having a well-rounded life. Many corporate business executives are attracted to hiring a personal coach for these very reasons.
Uncover Natural Talents and Gifts
A good coach can motivate a client to do something they didn’t know they were capable of doing. By having a natural curiosity about what makes people tick and utilizing special coaching tools, professional coaches are able to uncover talents, abilities and gifts that many people don’t even know they have. It can be a truly enlightening experience for a person to go through this discovery with their coach.
Craft Action Plans
What good are values and goals without a good action plan? The best action plans are the ones where the client has complete “free will” to choose a path that is comfortable for him/her self. The coach simply finds out what the client wants to accomplish and then helps them to take action.Motivation is much more likely to occur when there is no pressure or “shoulds” in a relationship like this. But the coach is no fool. Forwarding the action or deepening the learning must always take place to make the coaching experience worthwhile. A coach just simply makes this whole process a little easier.

A key ingredient for a successful coaching relationship is for the person to be accountable for the things that he says he will do. However, there are no judgements, disappointments or guilt trips laid on the client in the event of non-action, but there is accountability. The person must let the coach know what he did (or did not do) from each coaching session to the next.
Eliminate the Energy Drains
What are you tolerating in your life that you wish was not there, but it’s not a big enough deal to make an issue out of it? Are you tolerating a cluttered desk? Are you tolerating that hubcap that needs replacing? Are you allowing people to invade your space and time and infringe on your personal boundaries? Are you tolerating something from a significant other that is silently having an adverse affect on the relationship?When coaches make this request, most people can come up with a list of a hundred or more tolerations that have been eating away at them over a period of time. Coaches are all too familiar with how they sap the energy right out of a person’s life, energy that could be used to build a business or fulfill a life. Coaches use special tools early in the relationship to systematically eliminate things their clients tolerate.

When a person cannot get the support that is needed to build their business, it’s very easy to let things slide and not get them done. It’s also possible to allow the many distractions that happen every day bring us down. It’s sad that this is the way it is sometimes, but it’s true.A coach’s role is to be there for their clients in a supportive environment. That’s what they get paid for. Most professional coaches even allow email and telephone support in between coaching sessions that further deepen the relationship. Many clients report that the relationship between their coaches and themselves becomes so meaningful that they look to their coaching calls as one of the main highlights of their week.
Have a Silent Business Partner
How would you like to have a business partner that makes this promise to you: “As your coach, I have a special relationship where I help you get very clear on your goals and then together, we craft an action plan that systematically gets you into manageable action steps. As you take these action steps you bring more balance into your life so that every aspect of your life is enhanced. Each week I will hold you accountable for those action steps, but without any judgement whatsoever, if you don’t do the things you say you will do. I am your silent business partner who is dedicated to your success, but where you get to keep all of the profits.”
Coaches Help Their Clients Become Coaches
Many clients gain so much benefit from their coaching sessions that they naturally want to help others by becoming coaches themselves. In the process of being coached by a professional coach, clients learn some of the basics on how to coach others. The tools and skills that most coaches use are mostly skills that we already know from our life experiences and training. A good coach teaches how to use those skills and enhance them to a powerful and even professional level.

While going through some of my reference material the other day, I came across some notes I took on mastermind groups and thought they would be a great share for this blog. Mastermind groups are as old as time and have been used by highly successful people throughout history. In more recent times, the concept of a mastermind has been popularized by Napoleon Hill in his book “Think and Grow Rich,” as well as, many others. Participating in a mastermind group remains a key success factor for those achieving success.
Seven months ago, Brad Szollose, leadership coach and author of the upcoming book “Liquid Leadership,” shared five great tips on mastermind groups in a public forum. Here is what he had to say:

It is very important that the people you pick have very different skill sets. If any 2 people in a group have the same skills, it becomes like two people paddling a canoe on the same side…you just go in circles.
It is best to choose people that have different yet overlapping skills that are needed from the other. I just formed a group – one of the guys is a longtime corporate coach who specializes in turning authors into bestsellers while providing research. Since I am working on a leadership book he is a natural fit. Our overlap is humor and consulting…so we can help each other in that area, but our real need is what the other lacks.
No business should be conducted on the day of a mastermind meeting that could interrupt each persons contribution. Years ago I started a mastermind team and one of the key individuals had not only scheduled a private coaching session close to our 4th meeting, he was late. We broke up shortly after that. And this leads me to my next point…
Each contributor must receive an equal amount of support and contribution from the team. This is kind of self explanatory. Let’s say if I coach Lisa on her business and how to market herself, I expect her to use her knowledge and expertise to give me feedback on my book, as well as, open up her rolodex of publishers. Quid Pro Quo.
Be strict with each other. If you assign homework, each person must have their homework done. Hold each other accountable and support of each others goals.
Choose a balanced, small, professional group from eclectic backgrounds. In order to get the most from a mastermind team, I suggest small groups so that time is plentiful. Keep it between 3 and 5 people.
Eclectic backgrounds and balance are key to getting the most leverage from your team. Be very careful about creating an all male team or an all female team. Men have a tendency to be competitive and black and white in decisions; whereas, women are far more collaborative and supportive of the bigger picture, especially in corporate relationships. Brilliant ideas come from everywhere and the more diversified the group, the better.

What has been your experience been with a mastermind group? Are you thinking of starting or joining one?Please comment!

Your network is one of your most valuable resources. And yet it is overlooked by most people. Networking skills are essential in today’s business environment. For me, the value of a network can be summed up in the following quote:

Make networking an on-going activity Look upon yourself as a full time networker, as someone who is always growing and expanding their network. Make it easy for people to find you, remember you, and connect with you. Do this and networking becomes effortless and more natural for you.
Always add value Become known as someone who always brings value to the conversation. When you add value or provide useful content freely, people will naturally look upon you as a valuable resource. Remember, it’s not who you know, but who knows you.
Crosslink Refer people in your network to other people in your network. Always be on the lookout for opportunities to connect people together. They will thank you for your efforts and will want to return the favor. This is a great strategy for strengthening your network.
Use an elevator speech An elevator speech is a short saying that you use when people ask what you do or what business you are in. It gets it’s name from when you get into an elevator at a conference or event and people ask you those questions. Your response has to be short, concise and roll off your tongue, because you only have perhaps 15 to 30 seconds to share it. This is something you don’t want to be “off-the-cuff.” Take time to develop yours.
Be “on purpose” with your networking Intention is the laser-like focus that guides you through the maze of life, including your networking efforts. You are the one who decides what what your intention is. Why are you networking? What do you want to achieve with your networking? Who will benefit the most from your networking? And so on.
Ask powerful questions A skill that all networkers should master is asking powerful questions. Concentrate on asking open-ended questions, such as those beginning with who, what, when, where, how, and why. These questions can yield you a lot of information. Use questions that begin with a verb only to obtain detail and clarification; only three answers available here: yes, no and maybe.
Use a contact management system Your contacts should be easily available to you, whether you use a rolodex, Outlook, or some contact management software. Organize them in a manner that is meaningful to you with categories. Be sure to include information on how you know them, whether it was through a mutual friend, a networking event or similar function. Add details that you can come back to such as the name of their spouse, ages of their children, or special interests they may have.
Follow-up A well-known business truism is “The fortune is in the follow-up.” Many people miss out on the opportunity to follow-up and this where up to 40% of potential business is actually lost. I look at is as a responsibility and that phrase has become a mantra of mine.
Respond to your network correspondences Have you ever sent an email and the recipient never responded? Did they get the message or did it get lost in their junk mail folder? Your response can be a simple three-step process that takes less than 10 seconds: (1) click “reply”, (2) type “thanks”, (3) click “send.” That way the sender will know you received the message. It’s a simple courtesy that builds trust.
Be memorable Some people are more memorable than others and you can become one of them quite easily. For example, chose something about your name that you could share that will stand out. For example, “My name is John Smith. It’s a common name, but I’m not.” or “My name is Glenn Andrew. I’m the guy with two first names.” Be creative and have fun with it.

One of the measures of your professional wealth is the size and quality of your network. Follow these tips and you will become a more effective networker. To your success!
What are some of your favorite networking tips? I welcome your comments!

Goal setting is one of the most important activities you will ever do in your personal and business life. It is an activity that all successful people engage in and this is why so much has been written and spoken about it. In this article, I share a few thoughts Ive learned on this important topic.
The value of setting goals can be summed up in the immortal words of baseball great Yogi Berra,

These words ring so true. Having a clear objective of where you want to be or what you want to achieve is key to your success in getting there. Goal setting helps you keep focus and on track with your objectives.
Tips on Writing Goals
The first step to manifesting your goals is to write them down. I suggest actually writing them down instead of typing them out to begin with. The creative process is an organic one and putting pen to paper helps you internalize and visualize. Write them down and then begin refining them. Here are a few tips to help you with that process:

Create goals that are a stretch for you, yet achievable. The bigger they are, the greater the possibilities in your personal and business life. By increasing the scope of your dreams and aspirations, you will be able to accomplish much more than you currently realize you can and the rewards will be that much greater.
Make your goals measureable and specific. Establish a time for completion or a threshold to be crossed.Prioritize your goals and list them in an order that makes sense for you. And remember that its common for some sub goals to be interrelated and that some sub goals build upon others. But there should be one overall, guiding goal in mind.
Make them powerful and dynamic. If you want your life to have an impact, then your goals must be so aligned. Use action verbs to help define them accordingly.
State your goals as if they are already completed and write them in the present tense. Here we use the law of attraction to begin the process of manifesting what we want in our life.
Under your personal goals, commit to changing something about yourself. Imagine who you will become as you achieve your goals and actively chose to be that new and different person. If you are perceptive, you will notice that life leaves clues for you. And if you act upon those clues, you will find yourself gradually transforming into what you want to become. But be patient, yet enthusiastic.

Engage in some form of daily activity that will help you visualize and reinforce your goals fulfilled. If you are enthusiastic about your goals, then it is easy to take action. Here are a few examples of activities you might engage in:

Create a dream board collage. Gather pictures from different magazines that represent the life of your dreams, such as your dream vacation, your dream car, your dream house, your dream business, and so on. Paste these pictures on a poster board around 11 by 17 inches or so. You will need a lot of pictures to fill this board so dive into the process. When you have finished, put this in a place that you will see it many times each day. And have fun with the process. Dare to dream the life youve always wanted!
Create a 2-3 minute video for a lasting multimedia experience. You can start by creating a PowerPoint presentation with positive affirmations and pictures. These affirmations should be phrased as if youve already achieved each goal, such as I am financially independent, I enjoy perfect health and well-being, or I vacation whenever I want to. Like the dream board collage just mentioned, the pictures for your video should also represent your dream life. Be sure to include music that gets you excited and pumped up; for example, choose a favorite song. Then play your video daily on your computer or DVD player to help get you into the right frame of mind. If you don’t possess the skills to put it together, then hire a wedding photographer or videographer to create one for you. This is an extremely powerful technique for attracting the type of life your goals will help you achieve.
Form a mastermind group or a support group. A fresh perspective can stimulate new ideas on how to reach your goals. Ask people that you know and trust to join your group. If you are crafting business goals, ask people who are in business with you or are business acquaintances. If you need help finding the right people for your group, use the social and professional networks online to find other likeminded people so you can develop a relationship with them and eventually build your group. I suggest connecting together by the phone or online. You can easily find free conference services by searching for “free conference service” online.
Keep track of your goals journey by using a journal or a diary. Include the successes you are having, as well as, the obstacles you encounter. Ask yourself, Am I doing all I can do to achieve my goals?, What is holding me back?, and What can I do to move forward consistently and effectively? Then start brainstorming and let the ideas flow forth. Imagine a river of ideas that are at your disposal and all you have to do is to jump inand partake.
Reward yourself as you achieve incremental steps towards your goals. Take yourself out to dinner or go out to a movie. Chose something that helps motivate you to take consistent, effective action. And when you achieve your each major goal, give yourself a big reward. Plan in advance what that big reward will be and it will help motivate you to taking action while you are on the journey.

Remember, goal setting is a two-step process. The first step is to know what your goals are; define them, make sure they are specific and measurable, and write them down on paper. The second step is to take consistent, effective action toward achieving them. If you follow these two simple steps to accomplish the goals you have set for yourself, then you will reap the rewards from your actions. To your continuing success!
What goal setting tips do you find work for you? Please comment!

Growing your friend network on social media is pretty easy. If you are interested in growing yours, here is one method you may want to try:

Join a number of groups that interest you that have 100+ members. Have some fun with this. You will find likeminded people who have similar interests and people who may relate well to you.
Start building your friends network by clicking on the list of friends for that group and start adding them as a friend. Be sure to include a short personalized message such as “Hi [Their First Name], we are both members of the [Name of the Group] group and I was wondering if you wanted to be friends here on [The Social Network Name]. I look forward to networking with you here. [Your Name]“.
Continue to add many name requests each day. You can start with 25-30 requests a day. Continue making requests until you reach 300-400 friends. At that point you will be receiving several friend requests each day. I accept most requests, but accept those that you feel comfortable with. Before you know it, your network will grow on it’s own.

If you want to grow your network faster, join more groups. If you want to slow it down, remove yourself from several groups. It’s that simple. With many networks you usually connect with friends of your newly found friends. Use your imagination and be creative in connecting with new friends. The possibilities are endless.
Try it and let me know how it works for you!

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