Your three words: What’s the personality of your business?
What’s the story you’re carrying inside about your business? If you had to describe the way you view your work in three words, what would they be?
Everyone has a story: Tell yours, ask theirs, and everything changes.
Most self-employed people are barely tapping the power of story in their marketing – if at all. Through story—sharing yours, asking for theirs, and creating a new one together—you can spark a long-lasting conversation with the people you most want to reach.
Who Are You Trying to Help? Go Beyond the “Ideal Client” (Meet Jean)
A good website is an invitation to a conversation, where you tell your story, and invite your audience to tell you theirs. Knowing who you’re conversing with has to come first. Have I introduced you to Jean?
Beware of malware scams – SiteLock, HostGator, Bluehost, and the tale of the angry web girl
I believe there is a special circle in hell for service providers who lie to my beloved clients and colleagues. And if there isn’t, there should be.
The world we live in: How small businesses (like yours) are going to save us all
I believe that small businesses and self-employed folks are not just the key to the world’s future, but are also what makes life worth living. Here’s why I think that.
Ditching the pitch, part deux
Marketing yourself with complete integrity—and without manipulation—is a rare skillset that’s beneficial across the board, from attracting the kinds of clients you love working with, to seeing a healthy bottom line.
Permission to take time to create
This week a Facebook friend shared something that surprised and delighted me. But not at first. You see, it was a link to a podcast about creativity, and the episode title was “The Silent Episode.” Huh? Is that some kind of joke? So at first I was skeptical. I scanned the comments for snarky comments, […]
For our nonprofit friends…and THEIR friends
Search engine specialist Charlotte Davies shared this with her audience on Facebook (of which I’m a happy member), and I’m passing it along to all of you because there are quite a few nonprofit organizations in our tribe, as well as a lot of folks who support nonprofits. Google Ad Grants is a program that provides free Google […]
Are you working on a book, or wanting to publish? BookBub’s got your back.
Many of my folks out there are working on books, or looking for fresh ways to market the ones they have. BookBub has published a great resource for writers.
It’s about you: On being fiercely yourself on your website
According to the oracle that is Google Analytics, one of the most popular places on my professional website is my About page. GA tells me how many people visit that page in a given month, and how many minutes they spend there, and whether they then leave the site, or move on to somewhere else. […]
What does your website’s About page say about you?
There’s one website page that seems to take the longest for my clients to complete, because it never quite feels right, and it gets revised and revised and revised. You guessed it: The About page.
There, That’s It! Finding the Typefaces that Serve You Best
When I begin building a website with a client, there can be a lot of elements that fall into the category of “Gosh. I’ve never really had to think about that before.” In addition to the obvious decisions like how many pages you want and whether you need a PayPal account or an email opt-in […]
If you need your website, please take two minutes to read this note
As much as I prefer to write about the more “human” side of our businesses in my blog posts, this week I really need to go geek on you for just a second. Please don’t stop reading. This is important. In a recent newsletter we published a recommendation that you update your WordPress website so it […]
How can you help more people and do more good in the world?
How many people do you typically get to help with your small business over the course of a year? Ever find yourself wishing you could help more — a lot more?
Finding the Right Images without Brain Damage
While it’s possible to make an interesting site without a single photograph or graphic, I think that’s the (tiny) exception rather than the rule. So if you write blog posts, put things on social media, or just want to keep your site fresh, seeking out the right images is something we’ll almost all need to do from time to time. But where do you get them? Where do you go to look, and how do you find something good once you get there? Read on, MacDuff.
Social Media for the Sensitive Entrepreneur
My dad would’ve called it a “hissy fit.” I prefer “tantrum” myself. Whatever it was, it wasn’t pretty. There I was, minding my own business, checking up on a client’s business page on Facebook. Not just any client, but a thoroughly kind and thoughtful soul. Poking through posts and post replies to see what conversations […]
Marketing Integrity: Can We Ditch the Pitch?
Marketing yourself with complete integrity—and without ickyness—is a standout skillset that’s beneficial across the board, from attracting the kinds of clients you love working with, to seeing a healthy bottom line. Ditch the pitch!
The Morning Routine: Ten Minutes That Change Everything
It seems like I was a latecomer to the “early morning routine” trend. I didn’t really trip over that concept until 2014, when suddenly (to me) it seemed to be everywhere I looked. Leo Babauta had written about it long before on his great blog ZenHabits.net. Tony Robbins has been talking about it for ages. […]
What is Your End-of-the-Year Ritual?
You can tell what season it is just by looking around my office. There is a crispy new box of manila folders, new Sharpies, a new blank journal, and a new whiteboard and markers. There is a mini-mountain of books on topics like mastering habits, gratitude practices, and ninja scheduling techniques, as well as all the books […]
Small Businesses, Freedom, and the “Independent” Entrepreneur
Have you even felt like sometimes — just sometimes — the freedom of operating your own small business isn’t so free after all? As I write this post, it’s the Fourth of July here in the United States (though I am offline, see below for more on that). This holiday, to me, has always been […]
