Guy Kawasaki's Blog

Guy Kawasaki is a managing director of Garage Technology Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm and a columnist for Entrepreneur Magazine. Previously, he was an Apple Fellow at Apple Computer, Inc. Guy is the author of eight books including The Art of the Start, Rules for Revolutionaries, How to Drive Your Competition Crazy, Selling the Dream, and The Macintosh Way. He has a BA from Stanford University and an MBA from UCLA as well as an honorary doctorate from Babson College.

http://www.guykawasaki.com/about/index.shtml

David Ledoux's Road to Gold - amazing life story of a successful network marketer.

by Zamri Nanyan


How bad do you want something in your life? Or, do
you know how bad your prospects want something in
their lives?

I've recently re-read 'Beyond the Road to Gold' and
I can tell you that David really wanted (badly) to
change his life from the worst to something great -
beyond his own imagination.

But, it didn't happen overnight. In fact, he was
introduced to network marketing before, joined, met
Jim Rohn once in one of the conferences, then he got
out of focus and quit...

I can say that he 'played' with his life after that,
and he faced probably the worst period of his life -
broke, miserable and lonely.

Who on earth could predict David Ledoux would come
back to be a well-known, respected millionaire in
a network marketing business after failing a few
business ventures?

I know that I couldn't... simply because not many
people came out of their miserable lives to be ones
of the greatest successful people on earth.

Well, David Ledoux did it. Believe it or not, many
other successful network marketers did it too. Take
an example of Richard Brooke (who used to be chicken
cutter), Art Jonak, Sandy Elsberg and many more. Read
their stories and you'll know.

So, there's no reason for anyone in network marketing
to whine and say that it doesn't work, or the sponsor
doesn't help much, or the product labels are not
attractive enough. Find out how to solve YOUR problems
rather than worrying about those that you can't change
yourself.

From reading 'Beyond the Road to Gold', I can spot
this characteristic in David Ledoux - his 'WANTS' to
change and his ACTION to make it happen.

Here is my recommendation to you. Grab a copy of
'Beyond the Road to Gold' and read it. I'm sure you'll
be touched by David's story.

Digital copy :
http://mlmlessons.com/downloads/beyondtheroadtogold.pdf

Physical copy :
http://www.ilovemlm.com/cgi-bin/at.cgi/223852/book

In case you don't know David Ledoux (which is unlikely),
he is now an MLM success. He developed a generic network
marketing training website for all network marketers
around the world to benefit fom his experience. It's
called "MLM Mastery Course". Subscribe his free
newsletter to learn how a 26-year old built a downline
of 25,347 people. Here's the link to his website :

http://mlmlessons.com/blueprint

I wish you success in your networking business!



Zamri Nanyan

Business models on the web

Business models are perhaps the most discussed and least understood aspect of the web. There is so much talk about how the web changes traditional business models. But there is little clear-cut evidence of exactly what this means.
In the most basic sense, a business model is the method of doing business by which a company can sustain itself -- that is, generate revenue. The business model spells-out how a company makes money by specifying where it is positioned in the value chain.

Some models are quite simple. A company produces a good or service and sells it to customers. If all goes well, the revenues from sales exceed the cost of operation and the company realizes a profit. Other models can be more intricately woven. Broadcasting is a good example. Radio and later television programming has been broadcasted over the airwaves free to anyone with a receiver for much of the past century. The broadcaster is part of a complex network of distributors, content creators, advertisers (and their agencies), and listeners or viewers. Who makes money and how much is not always clear at the outset. The bottom line depends on many competing factors.

Internet commerce will give rise to new kinds of business models. That much is certain. But the web is also likely to reinvent tried-and-true models. Auctions are a perfect example. One of the oldest forms of brokering, auctions have been widely used throughout the world to set prices for such items as agricultural commodities, financial instruments, and unique items like fine art and antiquities. The Web has popularized the auction model and broadened its applicability to a wide array of goods and services.

Business models have been defined and categorized in many different ways. This is one attempt to present a comprehensive and cogent taxonomy of business models observable on the web. The proposed taxonomy is not meant to be exhaustive or definitive. Internet business models continue to evolve. New and interesting variations can be expected in the future.

The basic categories of business models discussed in the table below include:

Brokerage
Advertising
Infomediary
Merchant
Manufacturer (Direct)
Affiliate
Community
Subscription
Utility

The models are implemented in a variety of ways, as described below with examples. Moreover, a firm may combine several different models as part of its overall Internet business strategy. For example, it is not uncommon for content driven businesses to blend advertising with a subscription model.

Business models have taken on greater importance recently as a form of intellectual property that can be protected with a patent. Indeed, business models (or more broadly speaking, "business methods") have fallen increasingly within the realm of patent law. A number of business method patents relevant to e-commerce have been granted. But what is new and novel as a business model is not always clear. Some of the more noteworthy patents may be challenged in the courts.

Five Steps to Win the Battle with Strategic Internet Marketing

Five Steps to Win the Battle with Strategic Internet Marketing

Internet marketing is like getting into a fight. Winning requires careful planning and formulation of strategies and not just brute force. If you base your decisions entirely on whims then don't be surprised if the results are just as unexpected and unstable!

Five Steps to Win the Battle with Strategic Internet Marketing

The Internet is your battle site and financial success is your reward. Brute force is exhibited by the amount of money you have at your disposal. It's going to help, but it's not enough. Internet marketing is your main weapon and to prepare for battle, you need to know how to effectively use your weapon to win the fight.

Remember your goal.

What is your goal? Be as specific as you can. When you've got your goals spelled out, have them posted and displayed wherever you're working. You can make it a part of your desktop background and have a banner of it posted on your wall. What's important is to keep it in sight literally and figuratively. These goals will serve as your motivation to succeed.

Start planning.

And when we say plan, we don't mean the general, abstract type that you only formulate verbally. Put it into writing. Be detailed. Make an outline. Identify all the resources you need to have to attain your goal. Determine the tasks you need to accomplish and in what particular sequence should they be completed. Take note of your strengths and weaknesses consider them when you're mapping out strategies. Pay attention to the opportunities and threats around you as they could make or break your plan.

To make planning easier, start with a general outline then break it down to smaller or more detailed tasks step by step. Lastly, remember that the best plans are specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time-bound.

Start organizing.

You know what to do so it's time to get things done. Start allocating resources. How much money do you need for your Internet marketing strategy? How much money do you have? How much money will you have to obtain from financing? Do you have all the necessary resources in possession or would you have to outsource some of them?

Don't do it alone if you don't have to. Delegate what you can but take personal care of the most important tasks or those which you can't afford to fail in.

Don't forget to be a leader.

If you have people in your employ and all of you are working on the same Internet marketing project, remember your role as a leader as well. Give your employees a pat on the back whenever they deserve it. Verbal praise is free so don't be a scrooge with it! Motivate them with promises of rewards and promotions! Train them how to derive satisfaction from a job well done. Do what you can so that they'll see the benefits of aligning their personal goals with that of the company.

Monitor and evaluate your progress.

Keep careful track of every aspect of your Internet marketing strategy. If you've chosen to use text ads for a particular project, use the various statistical tools made available by your advertiser and other websites to quantify the results of your ads. Evaluate the results. Is it better, worse, or equal to what you've expected?

Implement changes.

There's always room for improvement, even just the tiniest bit. Monitoring and evaluating results will let you know what changes you have to make. Consider your options before applying any changes.

Offline Marketing vs. Online marketing

One of the most critical aspects of running a business is marketing. It encompasses every customer related task from creating awareness to customer satisfaction and retention. One may go as far as to say that a business cannot survive or even start up without it. In the current scenario, marketing has become a complex and sophisticated function, especially now that an increasing number of businesses choose to start up online. Now, along with the traditional offline marketing tools, there are a number of web marketing tools and methods available. These web marketing methods must be mastered for any level of success in online business.

The differences that separate web marketing from offline marketing are as below:

• Snail mail vs. email – Email marketing is low cost, efficient, instant and effective means of generating customers. Snail mail is slow, generally more expensive and is losing some of its efficacy with the influx of TV and Internet.

• Limited radius of impact vs. unlimited – The target audience is global in the case of web marketing with the Internet shrinking the world. The radius of offline marketing is limited by physical, political and time barriers.

• Web customers are looking for a product or service similar to yours – The beauty of being an online business is that people log on to look for a service or product that you can offer. Whereas, offline businesses have to rely more on push marketing than the pull effect.

• Long, complex process of making a sale vs. instant conversion – A few clicks of a mouse and the product is sold, in the case of web marketing. Offline marketing process is time and manpower heavy, from generating leads to making a sale.

• Fixed office hours vs. 24 hour store – An online business can sell its products 24 hours a day while an offline business will open and shut at particular hours.

• Advertising in print, TV and radio is expensive – While you can easily offer content, audio and video clips on the Internet for a very low cost.

• Pay for time spots vs. unlimited time and space – Ads in offline marketing mediums are for a limited time only and you pay for time slots and space. In an online marketing scenario, you would keep your ads up for a longer time and pay much less.

• Cost per incremental customer – This cost is very low for web marketing based concerns, whereas this cost is appreciable in case of offline marketing efforts.

• Targeted approach vs. blanket approach – The above reason leads offline marketing businesses to target and select carefully, eliminating a lot of potential customers, who may buy in the future if not the present. However, low incremental costs result in online businesses covering a broad spectrum of the market.

• Segmentation – Preferences are much easier to track for an online business and this means that segmentation is simpler. The web marketing effort has the information it needs to customize its pitch at once.

• Customer contact – Access to customer information is automatic in the case of online businesses and the web marketing process is simplified and made efficient. Databases and mailing lists are created in an instant. On the contrary, offline marketing efforts for the same require time, employees and money.

There are many benefits to both web marketing and offline marketing, and it is best to use a judicious mix of the two.

Can you Pass the Leverage Test?

We talk about leverage every day in network marketing. It’s the basis of why we can earn the kind of money we do. Earning income on the efforts of lots of other people is certainly being leveraged.

But, can you actually pass the leverage test in all that you do in your business?



Throughout a normal day of being a network marketer, there are many things that you are probably doing, including sending emails, responding to emails, spending time for personal development, prospecting, running ads, conducting meetings, doing 3-way calls, training, and so on.



Everyone has 24 hours in a given day. Bill Gates, Oprah, Warren Buffet, Richard Branson, me, you…everyone has 24 hours each day. Human beings need to sleep. So…no one can work all 24 hours.



Are you maximizing your productivity in the hours that you are able to put into your business? For most people, the real answer is “no”, even though they may have kid themselves into believing something different.



After you read this, run into the bathroom. Look at yourself. And ask this question, “Am I really doing all that I can possibly be doing in the most efficient manner to propel my business forward to its absolute capacity?



Be honest when you ask yourself that question. If the truth hurts, change it.



Here are a few tips to ensure you are maximizing your leverage in your business:



1. Prioritizing your Prospecting Calls. Make sure your dials are efficient. If you know you’re on the line with someone who is a loser, get off the phone. Use your ears and quickly determine whether or not you are on the phone with the right candidate. If you’re a talker, put a timer on your desk and set it at 5-minutes. When it buzzes and you’re still on the phone with the same person, ask yourself whether or not this person is really worth the time you are putting in.

2. Watch the Chit-Chat. It’s real easy to get caught up during productive work hours having conversations that are meaningless to your business. Talk to your friends and family later, unless they are in your business. Be productive during your productive time.

3. Prioritize your Call backs. If you’re a busy person like me, there is a good chance that your phone is ringing all day long. Oftentimes, I am on the phone and it goes directly to voice-mail. I only call back people in a timely manner when it is critically important to do so. And…if I don’t know you and you are not clear on your message, your call back goes to the bottom of my list. Here’s what you can do with your voice mail to ensure that people tell you why they are calling and can give you a legitimate reason for calling you back. “Hi…you’ve just reached the office of Todd Falcone. I’m on the other line currently. At the tone, please leave your name and your phone number twice, and be sure to tell me the purpose of your call, as I prioritize my call backs due to my busy schedule.” You get the point. If you don’t put that on your voice-mail, you’ll have people calling you and you have no clue who they are and what they want. This is a time-saver.

4. Conduct Group Trainings. Instead of wasting your incredibly valuable time conducting one-on-one trainings, schedule a weekly training call and a weekly Q & A call that allows you to impact many people rather than only one.

5. Tools are Leverage. Tools serve a multitude of different purposes. Whether it be a sales aid like an audio CD or DVD, a weekly meeting, or weekly conference call, they serve several purposes. Primarily, they ensure that the message being delivered is consistent. Secondly, it puts you in the position of not having to do the telling and selling. That’s what tools are designed to do. Use them.

6. When it’s Prospecting Time, it’s Prospecting Time! Get this. There are only so many hours during the day when you can actually reach people. Try dialing someone at 5:30am or 11:00pm on an initial call and see what kind of response you get. Probably, not so good. So…when you know that you are in prime-time, only be conducting primary activities that lead to revenue. The middle of the day and early evening is not the time to be listening to motivational CD’s, and it’s not the time to be writing ad copy. Spend your hours wisely. Being an entrepreneur means that you might be burning the candle at both ends. I spend my evenings and mornings writing, reading and listening to stuff that furthers my education.

7. All Emails are not Created Equal. Get a spam filter. It will make your life a lot easier. First of all, you won’t see all the crap in your email box that you don’t want. Secondly, from a visual standpoint, it makes it a whole lot easier to sift through your email. If it is not pertinent that you respond right this second, then respond to it later. Again…make sure you are focused on revenue producing activities.

8. Hire some Help. Let’s face it. We are ALL busy. You’ve got laundry to do, shopping, running errands, paying bills, kids, etc. It is incredibly easy to hire cheap labor. Find someone who can do your grocery shopping for you, clean your house, mow your lawn, go to the post office, or whatever else it is that keeps you out of production. You’d be amazed at what you can get for under $10/hr. You have to put a massive value on your time. I’m quite sure you are worth a whole lot more than $10/hr.

http://www.ToddFalcone.com

Why write an E-book?

Why Write an eBook?

It's not true that everything that has been said has
already been written. Since that unfortunate axiom
came into use, the whole universe has changed.
Technology has changed, ideas have changed, and the
mindsets of entire nations have changed....


It's not true that everything that has been said has
already been written. Since that unfortunate axiom
came into use, the whole universe has changed.
Technology has changed, ideas have changed, and the
mindsets of entire nations have changed....

The fact is that this is the perfect time to write an
ebook. What the publishing industry needs are people
who can tap into the world as it is today - innovative
thinkers who can make the leap into the new millennium
and figure out how to solve old problems in a new way.
Ebooks are a new and powerful tool for original
thinkers with fresh ideas to disseminate information
to the millions of people who are struggling to figure
out how to do a plethora of different things.

Let's say you already have a brilliant idea, and the
knowledge to back it up that will enable you to write
an exceptional ebook. You may be sitting at your
computer staring at a blank screen wondering, "Why?
Why should I go through all the trouble of writing my
ebook when it's so impossible to get anything
published these days?

Well, let me assure you that publishing an ebook is
entirely different than publishing a book in print.
Let's look at the specifics of how the print and cyber
publishing industry differ, and the many reasons why
you should take the plunge and get your fingers
tapping across those keyboards!

Submitting a print book to conventional publishing
houses or to agents is similar to wearing a hair shirt
24/7. No matter how good your book actually is, or how
many critique services and mentor writers have told
you that "you've got what it takes," your submitted
manuscript keeps coming back to you as if it is a
boomerang instead of a valuable mine of information.

Perhaps, in desperation, you've checked out
self-publishing and found out just how expensive a
venture it can be. Most "vanity presses" require
minimal print runs of at least 500 copies, and even
that amount will cost you thousands of dollars. Some
presses' minimal run starts at 1,000 to 2,000 copies.
And that's just for the printing and binding. Add in
distribution, shipping, and promotional costs and -
well, you do the math. Even if you wanted to go this
route, you may not have that kind of money to risk.

Let's say you already have an Internet business with a
quality website and a quality product. An ebook is one
of the most powerful ways to promote your business
while educating people with the knowledge you already
possess as a business owner of a specific product or
service.

For example, let's say that you've spent the last
twenty-five years growing and training bonsai trees,
and now you're ready to share your knowledge and
experience. An ebook is the perfect way to reach the
largest audience of bonsai enthusiasts.

Ebooks will not only promote your business - they will
help you make a name for yourself and your company,
and establish you as an expert in your field. You may
even find that you have enough to say to warrant a
series of ebooks. Specific businesses are complicated
and often require the different aspects to be divided
in order for the reader to get the full story.

Perhaps your goals are more finely tuned in terms of
the ebook scene. You may want to build a whole
business around writing and publishing ebooks.
Essentially, you want to start an e-business. You are
thinking of setting up a website to promote and market
your ebooks. Maybe you're even thinking of producing
an ezine.

One of the most prevalent reasons people read ebooks
is to find information about how to turn their
Internet businesses into a profit-making machine. And
these people are looking to the writers of ebooks to
provide them with new ideas and strategies because
writers of ebooks are usually people who understand
the new cyberspace world we now live in. Ebook writers
are experts in Internet marketing campaigns and the
strategies of promoting and distributing ebooks. The
cyberspace community needs its ebooks to be successful
so that more and more ebooks will be written.

You may want to create affiliate programs that will
also market your ebook. Affiliates can be people or
businesses worldwide that will all be working to sell
your ebooks. Think about this? Do you see a formula
for success here?

Figure out what your subject matter is, and then
narrow it down. Your goal is to aim for specificity.
Research what's out there already, and try to find a
void that your ebook might fill.

What about an ebook about a wedding cake business? Or
an ebook about caring for elderly pets? How about the
fine points of collecting ancient pottery?

You don't have to have three masters degrees to write
about your subject. People need advice that is easy to
read and easily understood. Parents need advice for
dealing with their teenagers. College students need to
learn good study skills - quickly. The possibilities
are endless.

After you've writtten your ebook

Getting your ebook out is going to be your focus once
you've finished writing it, just as it is with print
books. People will hesitate to buy any book from an
author they've never heard of. Wouldn't you?

The answer is simple: give it away! You will see
profits in the form of promoting your own business and
getting your name out. You will find affiliates who
will ask you to place their links within your ebook,
and these affiliates will in turn go out and make your
name known. Almost every single famous ebook author
has started out this way.

Another powerful tool to attract people to your ebook
is to make it interactive. Invent something for them
to do within the book rather than just producing pages
that contain static text. Let your readers fill out
questionnaires, forms, even crossword puzzles geared
to testing their knowledge on a particular subject.
Have your readers hit a link that will allow them to
recommend your book to their friends and associates.
Or include an actual order form so at the end of their
reading journey, they can eagerly buy your product.

When people interact with books, they become a part of
the world of that book. The fact is just as true for
books in print as it is for ebooks.

That's why ebooks are so essential. Not only do they
provide a forum for people to learn and make sense of
their own thoughts, but they can also serve to promote
your business at the same time.

5 Rules of Social Media Optimization (SMO)

5 Rules of Social Media Optimization (SMO)

Rohit Bhargava

For years now, Search Engine Optimization (SEO) for websites has been honed into a fine art with entire companies devoting considerable effort to defining best practices and touting the value of SEO for raising a site's performance on organic search listings. While I believe in the power of SEO, there is a new offering we have started providing to clients which we call Social Media Optimization (SMO). The concept behind SMO is simple: implement changes to optimize a site so that it is more easily linked to, more highly visible in social media searches on custom search engines (such as Technorati), and more frequently included in relevant posts on blogs, podcasts and vlogs. Here are 5 rules we use to help guide our thinking with conducting an SMO for a client's website:

1. Increase your linkability - This is the first and most important priority for websites. Many sites are "static" - meaning they are rarely updated and used simply for a storefront. To optimize a site for social media, we need to increase the linkability of the content. Adding a blog is a great step, however there are many other ways such as creating white papers and thought pieces, or even simply aggregating content that exists elsewhere into a useful format.
2. Make tagging and bookmarking easy - Adding content features like quick buttons to "add to del.icio.us" are one way to make the process of tagging pages easier, but we go beyond this, making sure pages include a list of relevant tags, suggested notes for a link (which come up automatically when you go to tag a site), and making sure to tag our pages first on popular social bookmarking sites (including more than just the homepage).
3. Reward inbound links - Often used as a barometer for success of a blog (as well as a website), inbound links are paramount to rising in search results and overall rankings. To encourage more of them, we need to make it easy and provide clear rewards. From using Permalinks to recreating Similarly, listing recent linking blogs on your site provides the reward of visibility for those who link to you
4. Help your content travel - Unlike much of SEO, SMO is not just about making changes to a site. When you have content that can be portable (such as PDFs, video files and audio files), submitting them to relevant sites will help your content travel further, and ultimately drive links back to your site.
5. Encourage the mashup - In a world of co-creation, it pays to be more open about letting others use your content (within reason). YouTube's idea of providing code to cut and paste so you can imbed videos from their site has fueled their growth. Syndicating your content through RSS also makes it easy for others to create mashups that can drive traffic or augment your content.

There are many other "rules" and techniques that we are starting to uncover as this idea gets more sophisticated. In the meantime we are always on the lookout for new ideas in Social Media Optimization to encourage even better thinking. Perhaps we may even see the rise of entire groups or agencies devoted to SMO in the future ...

Why Buy Cold Leads When You Can Get Warm Leads That Are Hot - For Free

When salespeople buy cold leads it is not actual sales leads that they are buying. They are buying lists of contact names (CEOs, VPs, decision makers) at companies in certain industries. There are many companies that sell these lead lists, with InfoUSA being one of the most popular.

How can a phone number and contact name be a lead? Any yahoo can just go through the phone book or yellow pages and get these phone numbers for free. They are referred to as leads because they are marketed that way by the companies that sell them. Marketing dollars can do this. But really, in the end, cold calling random phone numbers from the yellow pages can get you the same results.

I like to refer to leads from lead lists as "fake leads." They are not really leads. Real leads come from real people that are actually looking for the products or services that you sell. These are "warm leads" or "hot leads" and are the ones that you actually have a chance to close the sale on.

So why would spend your money buying fake leads when warm leads will get you more sales? Perhaps it's because you don't know how to generate hot leads? It's actually quite easy to generate hot leads. You do this by building a network of business professionals that you can share referrals with. Some of the best salespeople get to be top producers because of their business networks. For example a top producing real estate agent can share referrals with a top producing mortgage broker. This creates a win-win situation for all parties involved.

Tino Buntic created TradePals to provide free leads to business professionals and entrepreneurs in cities across North America. Visit the site and create a free professional profile to receive free B2B and B2C sales leads.

Are you looking for a free link to your website? Then visit TradePals' new professional advice section where you could submit a business tip on a variety of topics, such as sales tips, in exchange for a link to your site.

The seven lies about MLM

If you feel like you’re struggling way too hard to make it in network marketing and nothing is happening, I wrote this book specifically for you. Have you ever thought to yourself: There’s gotta be a better way to do this. Something’s missing - it can’t be this hard?
I sure did.

After almost 2 years of religiously going to meetings, setting up appointments and showing the plan, I came to a point in my business where I hit a massive brick wall. For all my hard work, I had nothing to show for it but debt, an abundance of products and a dwindling list of friends who actually still talked with me. Maybe you can relate.

The worst part about it was, I could not – for the life of me – figure out why this wasn’t working! I was doing everything I had been told to do. In fact, I did way more than that. I was the kind of distributor you’d kill for. But I wasn’t any closer to the dream of financial freedom than I was when I started.

So I began looking for real answers to why I was spinning my wheels. To make a long story short and get right to the point, I finally did figure out what was wrong. And when I did, my entire view of this business changed forever. I’d like to share with you what I discovered:

If you want a free download of this book,please drop me a mail at lx.nice@gmail.com