Nagging Her Way To Riches!

I am now totally convinced you can make a business out of anything!

Successful woman entrepreneur, Marla Cilley of North Carolina has managed to make nagging profitable. Marla aka “FlyLady” has nagged her way to millions!

FlyLady is the guru of nagging. Marla sends her 400,000 subscribers 15 email messages each day nagging them to get out of bed, get their lives in order and get rid of clutter!

FlyLady’s fans are mostly middle aged housewives called “FlyBabies” from which FlyLady receives about 5000 emails each day. FlyLady and her FlyBabies even have a gathering called the “FlyFest”.

FlyBabies flock to the website and buy $4 million dollars a year in FlyLady merchandise. See what all the “buzz” is about, visit FlyLady!

Online Marketing Basics

 The number one reason that most businesses fail is because they run out of money. And most businesses run out of money because their marketing isn’t working. Online marketing allows you the opportunity to market your business much more inexpensively than you can offline.

When you’re doing direct marketing you’re looking for a “yes” or “no”, when you’re marketing online you want people to say “maybe”. Online marketing affords you the opportunity to give your potential customer the opportunity to “get to know” you. You can offer them a free article or report, they can sign up for your free ezine, listen to a free audiocourse or watch a free video presentation. Because everything you offer them is digitally produced, your costs are minimal.

So your first step is to make them a free offer in exchange for their email address, this allows you the opportunity to market to them over and over again. You’ll want to offer the people on your list a lot of free information, make sure to vary the medium. Offer free audios, free videos, free PDF downloads and free teleseminars. Over time the people on your list will begin to feel like they know, like and trust you. Some will buy immediately, some may take awhile, and some may never buy at all, but because expenses are minimal that’s okay.

Eventually you’ll have a large enough list that whenever you offer a new product or service, orders will come flooding in. This type of marketing takes patience and should be just one of the marketing strategies you use to build and promote your business.

Life Can Be Risky!

 Risks

• To laugh is to risk appearing the fool.
• To weep is to risk appearing sentimental.
• To reach out for another is to risk involvement.
• To expose feelings is to risk exposing your true self.
• To place your ideas, your dreams, before a crowd is to risk their loss.
• To love is to risk not being loved in return.
• To live is to risk dying.
• To hope is to risk despair.
• To try is to risk failure.
• But risks must be taken, because the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing.
• The person who risks nothing, does nothing, has nothing, and is nothing.
• They may avoid suffering and sorrow; but they cannot learn, feel, change, grow, love, live.
• Chained by their attitudes, they are a slave, they have forfeited their freedom.
• Only a person who risks is free.

          ~Unknown

Is Your Computer Making You Fat?

Is your computer making you fat? How many hours a day are you spending sitting around surfin’ the Net, writing your blogs, working on your business? Your wrist gets it’s workout clickin’ away on your mouse and while it’s important to have thin wrists so your watch and bracelets look nice, what about the rest of your body?

Lots of women working from home are facing this problem. You get so involved in the work you’re doing on the computer that time flies by, you’ve spent hours sitting in front of the computer, usually snacking and the next thing you know, you’ve put on a few pounds.

I used to have this problem myself, just like I had the problem with checking emails as they came through, tying up all my time and getting off track. As a successful woman entrepreneur you have to manage your time. So what did I do? I put myself on a schedule, I write out all my daily activities on my white board and then I schedule a time next to each activity. This helps me stay on track and get things done.

I also include break times in my schedule, I go outside and take a quick walk around the neighborhood for about 15 minutes, I come back recharged and ready to go. I also put my daily exercise time on the white board, for me it works best if I do it before I start the day, because then I don’t get involved in work and not get it done.

Working at home is great, it gives you freedom and flexibility, but if you don’t manage your time you won’t be productive and you might even gain a few unwanted pounds. So take the time to take good care of yourself, exercise, take breaks and stay away from those snacks, then your computer won’t make you fat!

Easy Chocolate Mousse

Today we’re going to learn to make chocolate mousse! This is the simple version, but if you don’t tell, no one will know it’s so easy and soooo good!

Here’s what you’ll need:

• A package of chocolate pudding mix (if you’re in a hurry use the instant mix, if you don’t have anytime at all buy the pre-made chocolate pudding and if you have a bit of time buy the mix that you cook, this will give you the best flavor)
• Milk to make the pudding
• A container of whipped topping (I like the extra creamy Cool Whip, “off-brands” not a good idea)
• A plain chocolate bar
• some orange liqueur (optional)
• Fresh mint sprigs (optional for garnish)

This is the deal, you’re using just a few ingredients here, so get the best tasting products you can afford otherwise it’ll taste awful. You can buy mini bottles of liqueur in wine stores if you don’t have some at home and don’t want to buy a big bottle.

Make the pudding according to the directions on the package, if using liqueur, remove 1 Tbsp. of milk before adding the milk to the mix and add 1 Tbsp. of liqueur (taste the pudding and see if you want to add a bit more). If you’ve cooked the pudding allow it to chill in the refrigerator.

Slowly add some whipped topping to the pudding, folding it in gently with a rubber spatula. You want to add enough whipped topping so that the pudding becomes light and airy, but not so much that you lose the chocolate taste.

Spoon the mousse into decorative glasses or use large wine glasses, top with a dollop of whipped cream, shave some of the chocolate bar over the top and put a mint sprig along the side. Voila! Chocolate Mousse!

6 Tips To Copywriting Success

Copywriting is the one skill that all online business owners should master. As an online marketer you communicate with words, if those words aren’t conveying your message to your customer your business won’t succeed.

Here are a few copywriting tips to help you get started.

Who’s your target market? Good copywriters know exactly who they are writing for before they start writing. Their copy is written to speak directly to ONE person and they keep that person in mind at all times. If you try to reach too many people with your message you’ll end missing your target market altogether and not reach anyone at all. Before you start writing your copy, take the time to define the ONE person that makes up your target market. Here’s a tip; make up the person, give them a name, a personality, how do they look, where do they live, what are their hobbies, do they have children, how old are they, you get the picture, make up an imaginary friend and pretend you’re writing your copy to that friend.

Construct a riveting headline. Use intriguing headlines throughout your copy to guide the reader. Your main headline should be in bold, large letters to grab the reader’s attention. It’s often the headline that will make or break your copy. Use a benefit focused headline which explains in powerful detail how you’ll solve the customer’s problem. Use sub-headlines throughout the text to keep the reader intrigued so that they’ll keep reading.

Don’t use big words in your copy. Online writing is different than the writing you did in English class. Forget all the rules your teachers taught you, online writing is casual, it needs to convey emotion and has a clear purpose. When you write copy, write in a conversational style as if you’re sitting there talking with the person, stay away from big words or you’ll risk losing your prospects.

Be persuasive. Sure you love your product or service, but you’re biased. Your customers want to hear from other unbiased people that have used your product. Include customer testimonials. Include the person’s full name, city, state and web stie URL if available. Include a picture if possible, the more information your testimonial includes the more persuasive and believable it will be.

It’s not about you! Effective copywriting is concerned about the needs of your customer. The writer doesn’t matter. Of course you’ll need to add a little personal information about yourself to gain trust, but even then it’s all about what you can do for your customer. Read through your copy, if it contains a lot of “I’s”, it’s time to for a re-write. Go back and change the “I’s” to “You’s”. Your writing should always be about the customer.

Don’t forget to have a strong call to action. You must guide your visitors and tell them what you expect them to do. Be specific. If you want them to click over and purchase a product, then say so. Write the call to action in a clear way that promotes all the benefits of your product or service.

And one last tip, if you want to learn to write good copy, find a really good copywriter. Take some of their material and write it out by hand several times. You’ll start to get a “feel” for how to write copy.

In order to be the best copywriter you can be, definitely check out Maria Veloso’s book on copywriting; Web Copy That Sells, Maria provides lots of tips and techniques to write copy that sells!

So educate yourself and pick up all the tips and tricks you can to become the best copywriter you can be!

How To Change Your Life

The first step toward getting somewhere is to decide that you’re not going to stay where you are.

Analyze your life in terms of your environment. Are the things around you helping you toward your success or are they holding you back? You’re a product of your environment. So choose an environment that will best develop you toward your goals.

Your world today is a living expression of how you’re using and have used your mind. It’s something you can change at any time. Where you are in your life today, you made an appointment to be there five years ago. Where you’ll be five years from now will be determined by your actions today and in the future. Don’t remain a captive to your environment. Don’t say “If I could, I would,” say, “I can, I will.”

You can make changes anytime. Why not start today?

Secrets To Reaching Your Goals

Are you really setting goals? Or is it one of those things you just know you should do to be successful but you just don’t bother? If you’re like most women out there you’re walking around with some vague goals in your head and you haven’t taken the time to write them down … because you’re too busy, right? Let me ask you this, if you’re not willing to take the time to write your goals down do you really think you’re that committed to them? I mean you won’t even make the commitment to write them down, what’s up with that?

Another thing, let’s get real about this goal setting stuff, you should not have 100 goals. That’s way too much! You have to have laser focus and commitment. Well how are you going to commit to that many things? Let’s be realistic, you should have no more than four goals at any time. Divide them into the following categories: personal, career, family and financial. See, that’s plenty to work on.

Another thing, just how committed are you to your goals? Are you willing to make your goals non-negotiable? In other words why are you setting goals unless you are determined to accomplish them … no matter what! Isn’t that why it’s easy to come up with a list of 100 goals, because you know that there is absolutely no way you’ll ever accomplish them.

So let’s see if this new way of goal setting will work for you. Make your four goals, each in the four areas I’ve suggested. Look at where you are now and look at where you want to go, that’s called a Gap Analysis. Now decide exactly what you need to do to accomplish your goals. Take this step very, very seriously because these are the steps that you will be committing to take every single day until you’ve accomplished your goals. Then the most important step … Take Action! Massive Action! You must commit to taking massive action every single day until you’ve accomplished your goal and then it’s time to set the next goal.

Think about it … aren’t you going to be much more successful and happier if you’re actually accomplishing your goals instead of wishing and hoping? Remember Ladies, Hope is NOT a strategy. So let’s get serious, set some goals, make the commitment, determine your plan and get into action!

Are You An “IT” Girl?

Are you the “IT” girl in your field or industry? If you want to take your business to the next level and become an “IT” Girl, there’s a great book you must read called It! by Paula Froelich.

Paula is the smart, savvy (of course,she’s from Ohio like me) gossip columnist at Page Six; the place for all things gossip.

Paula has seen first hand what it takes to become famous, she knows what works and what doesn’t. Whether you’re an aspiring actress or you want to be the “It” Girl in your local city, Paula gives you the scoop on how you can be fabulous, famous and HOT! To be a successful woman entrepreneur you must market, market, market and “it! 9 Secrets of The Rich and Famous That Will Take You To The Top” is a great place to learn PR basics.

Paula gives a lot of examples used by the fabulously famous and shows us how we can use the exact same techniques to claim our fame. So for all you wanna be “it!” girls out there, buy the book, take lots of notes and make “it!” happen.

Fast, Fabulous and Fun Cocktail Party

A Cocktail Party is the perfect way for women entrepreneurs to throw a great party without all the fuss involved in planning a dinner party. Cocktail Parties are fun and glamorous, you can look like you knocked yourself out and “wow” everyone with a quick trip to the supermarket.To keep things glamorous, serve all beverages in martini glasses or champagne flutes. Set up a self serve station for drinks and appetizers, include the basics like glasses, napkins, and plates for appetizers. Purchase high quality cocktail napkins and do not use paper plates.

If you have a beautiful table cloth, stack some books and small boxes (sturdy shoe boxes will do the trick) of varying heights on the table, cover with the table cloth. Place your best serving trays on the covered books and boxes, this will make an interesting arrangement as the serving trays will be at different levels on the table. Place flowers in a beautiful vase and light votive candles, arrange these on the serving table for a glamorous effect. A few strategically placed wine buckets with bottles of wine and champagne will add a look of elegance to the table.

You’ll want to offer a wide array of appetizers for your guests to nibble on. Crackers fanned out across a platter, bowls of olives and drained roasted red pepppers, a wide variety of nuts, ready made dips and spreads in beautiful bowls, bread sticks served upright in glasses, slice up a baguette and serve with a purchased olive oil based dipping sauce. Serve prewashed baby carrots, and quickly sliced red and green peppers with purchased dip or hummus, serve a variety of cheeses on a cutting board surrounded by grapes, figs, sliced pears or apples sprinkled with a bit of lemon to prevent discoloration. Go over the top and serve paper thin slices of salmon on crackers topped with a smidgen of herb flavored cream cheese, break out the caviar and your favorite store bought pate.

It’s best to have the bar area separate from the food area, to avoid everyone gathering in one spot. Prepare one special signature drink to offer each guest as they arrive to get the party started. Provide sparkling waters, both flavored and unflavored, a wide array of beers, wines and sodas. You’ll want to serve both white and red wines and of course your favorite champagne; add a few mixers to the bubbly like creme de cassis for a Kir Royale or a touch of peach nectar for a luscious Bellini. If you don’t want to serve as bartender all evening set up a well stocked self serve cocktail station with all the necessities and make sure to have plenty of ice!

Well it’s time to dim the lights, light some candles, play your favorite CDs or iTunes on the Ipod, slip into that slinky, sexy dress of yours and get ready to impress your guests!

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