For those who know me, you know I always wanted to be a weatherman. I used to track the weather daily when I was a kid, by watching the weather on the news and the Weather Channel and track the local weather using charts just like they do on TV. Even today, a day still doesn't go by where I don't connect to weather.com to check local and national weather. If anyone asks me what the weather is in a certain part of the country, I am likely to know. One of the reasons, I love living in New England is that the weather is very changeable. As far back as I could remember, the New England area did not have a year like we have had in 2011. Here is a review of this year.
The year started with one of the worst Januaries in terms of cold and snow in Boston history. I was getting my daily legs and back workout digging out of numerous snowstorms that seem to hit every other day. This year was the first year I had to even shovel my roof! The snow blitz continued into February which prompted me and the family to take a road trip to Florida to feel what it is like to experience warm and sunny weather again.
The spring was relatively dry and warmer than past springs. Nothing too hot, but I started to notice that the springtime thunderstorms were more severe compared to past years. Other parts of the country experienced the biggest and most deadly tornado outbreak in history. Raleigh, North Carolina, Joplin, Missouri and Alabama come to mind. One thought I had was that the Southeast US was having warmer than normal weather while the Midwest was in a deep freeze into the spring, causing a clash of the air masses.
In June, it was our turn with tornadoes. I remember June 1st like it was yesterday. I was driving home from meetings in Boston and the weather reports were saying that conditions were favorable for tornadoes even as far east as Boston, which is very rare due to the ocean effect. I noticed the sky becoming an eerie black/green color too in the distance. Around 5:30pm or so, my biggest fear happened. Numerous tornadoes touched down in western and central Massachusetts, including one that went through downtown Springfield. The weather reports were saying the same line should be hitting the Framingham area. I have never been in a situation like this before and was thinking the worst, like where would we live after my house gets destroyed. Luckily, the funnel clouds lifted up about ten miles west of me, so all we got was severe thunderstorms and the wildest clouds you would ever seen.
We ended up having three more days over the summer with tornado watches, but nothing like June 1st.
Later in July, we started having abnormally hot and humid weather. On July 20th, Boston had its second hottest day ever at 103 degrees. For those that don't know, Boston's airport is right on the ocean so it was probably even hotter inland. We ended up having five or six more days around 100 degrees during the rest of the summer, which is rare here.
In late August, another rare weather occurrence was in the making. Hurricane Irene was making a beeline toward New England. For the first time since 1991, a Hurricane was going to hit New England. The storm ended up downgrading to a Tropical Storm right before it made landfall but caused extensive damage in western New England. We had a lot of wind in our area and I spent the aftermath cleaning up the tree damage.
September and October were warmer than normal. There were still beach days well into September, but then in late October, yet another rare weather event happened, a big snowstorm. Even though only 1-2 inches fell in Greater Boston, almost 2 feet of heavy wet snow fell in Central and Western Massachusetts. Who would have ever though we would have a White Halloween. It was weird seeing the trees still green with snow on the ground. The storm actually caused more tree damage in the area than Hurricane Irene.
Since the October snow event, at this time, we have yet to see a snow flake where I live in Greater Boston. The late fall featured numerous days well above normal temperatures and even a couple of short sleeve shirt days in December. The grass is still green here a couple of days before Christmas.
It makes you think, what will we have in store for 2012? We shall see.
Friday, December 23, 2011
Sunday, December 4, 2011
I Think I Got the Guitar Bug Back
2011 was a crazy year from me. The year started off losing my full-time job at Nokia and led to growing my internet marketing and social media business to a point where this year became my successful year in business. In the middle of it all, I landed another full-time gig at Osram Sylvania. But the one thing I regret in it all, is I lost time and desire to play guitar this year. I actually was getting pretty good at it, up until two years ago. But time got in the way and as hobbies go, they take a back seat.
That all changed on December 2nd. My wife won tickets to the Mix 104.1 Not So Silent Night Party with 3 Doors Down, Gavin Degraw and O.A.R. I was psyched since I think 3 Doors Down and Gavin DeGraw are great musicians. I did not know much about O.A.R. All three bands played an acoustic set, which I like since it really brings out the raw talent of the musician. 3 Doors Down had a ton of big hits in the 2000s, so it was pretty cool to see them in an intimate setting like the Lansdowne Pub in Boston. I am hoping that they get back to being commercially successful again like they deserve. Gavin DeGraw is the hot star now with the big hit with "All Over You". He is the new Billy Joel, a New Yorker with tons of talent. O.A.R was the big surprise. They are a jam band with a lot of acoustic jams and the crowd knew their lyrics word for word which told me they have a great following.
Needless to say, this is what I needed to become interested in playing guitar again. I played this weekend a little and will need to practice to get to where I was in 2009. I will be looking for lessons so if you know of anyone, please let me know. Playing guitar is great for us middle age guys!
That all changed on December 2nd. My wife won tickets to the Mix 104.1 Not So Silent Night Party with 3 Doors Down, Gavin Degraw and O.A.R. I was psyched since I think 3 Doors Down and Gavin DeGraw are great musicians. I did not know much about O.A.R. All three bands played an acoustic set, which I like since it really brings out the raw talent of the musician. 3 Doors Down had a ton of big hits in the 2000s, so it was pretty cool to see them in an intimate setting like the Lansdowne Pub in Boston. I am hoping that they get back to being commercially successful again like they deserve. Gavin DeGraw is the hot star now with the big hit with "All Over You". He is the new Billy Joel, a New Yorker with tons of talent. O.A.R was the big surprise. They are a jam band with a lot of acoustic jams and the crowd knew their lyrics word for word which told me they have a great following.
Needless to say, this is what I needed to become interested in playing guitar again. I played this weekend a little and will need to practice to get to where I was in 2009. I will be looking for lessons so if you know of anyone, please let me know. Playing guitar is great for us middle age guys!
Saturday, November 26, 2011
The Fear of Public Speaking
They always say that the thing that people fear most besides death is public speaking. How many times you see someone get in front of a crowd and that once confident powerful person turns into a nervous wreck and uses every nervous word in the book, such as "umm", 'so" and "you know"? Being able to speak publicly opens up opportunities as a leader, as a sales builder and most of all an inspirational mentor that people look to.
I recently joined my local Toastmasters, which is one of the larger more respected public speaking groups around. I still have some fear getting in front of people, but I am much more seasoned now compared to three or four years ago. Ever since I started my own business and had to learn to network and to get in front of people, my confidence grew. I learned that as long as you knew a lot about the subject I was speaking about and you did not read notes, chances are I would do a great job engaging the audience.
Toastmasters is a great program since they have processes like Table Topics and the Icebreaker, in which you are put on the spot and had to talk about a subject that was selected that day. The audience critiques you but does not criticize you. The whole point of the exercises are to make sure you feel comfortable presenting in front of people. I recently completed my IceBreaker speech which was titled "How I Was Influenced in Helping Others". It was an easy topic considering my family and wife have influenced my greatly with their compassion for life and helping others. I have found myself much more compassionate in helping others in the past few years. I have faced a lot of adversity in my career the past four years with two layoffs and with starting a couple of businesses. I looked back at where I was in 2006 compared to now and felt I have grown as a professional and am now more successful than ever in my career. Because of where I am in my career and because of groups like Toastmasters, I think I have conquered the fear of public speaking, at least for now.
I recently joined my local Toastmasters, which is one of the larger more respected public speaking groups around. I still have some fear getting in front of people, but I am much more seasoned now compared to three or four years ago. Ever since I started my own business and had to learn to network and to get in front of people, my confidence grew. I learned that as long as you knew a lot about the subject I was speaking about and you did not read notes, chances are I would do a great job engaging the audience.
Toastmasters is a great program since they have processes like Table Topics and the Icebreaker, in which you are put on the spot and had to talk about a subject that was selected that day. The audience critiques you but does not criticize you. The whole point of the exercises are to make sure you feel comfortable presenting in front of people. I recently completed my IceBreaker speech which was titled "How I Was Influenced in Helping Others". It was an easy topic considering my family and wife have influenced my greatly with their compassion for life and helping others. I have found myself much more compassionate in helping others in the past few years. I have faced a lot of adversity in my career the past four years with two layoffs and with starting a couple of businesses. I looked back at where I was in 2006 compared to now and felt I have grown as a professional and am now more successful than ever in my career. Because of where I am in my career and because of groups like Toastmasters, I think I have conquered the fear of public speaking, at least for now.
Saturday, October 15, 2011
What I Learned From Steve Jobs
Believe or it, I am a Google/Droid user and have never owned an Apple product. I did get an iPod a few years back from my wife, but I don't own an iPhone, an iPad or subscribe to the iCloud. Even so, I am very impressed with Apple. They got it right, one mobile operating system on one device. The only difference in devices is the amount of memory and the wireless speed you can configured. Apple also is very efficient when it comes to R&D and spends six times less on development than the former number one mobile provider based in Finland. Apple is also the #1 consumer brand in the world and is one of the most popular companies to work for in the world. Apple was also run by a college drop-out, former orphan, and twice-fired leader whom we unfortunately lost too soon, Mr. Steve Jobs.
Stay Hungry, Stay foolish.
I think those four words together is one of the most powerful quotes perhaps ever. What it means to me is to always have an urgency in whatever you do and never ever quit. It also means that it is OK to make mistakes, ask stupid questions, but more importantly, learn from your mistakes and stupid questions. Some of the most successful professionals in the world have made some big mistakes and came back stronger than ever. Think Donald Trump. Steve Jobs also gave hope to anyone that did not get that fat degree from an Ivy League school, that by staying hungry and staying foolish, you can be as successful as you want to be. I personally know some colleagues with masters degrees and a lot of debt that are going through hard times. They may have played it safe and rested on their past accomplishments. All the while, there were college drop-outs all around us making a difference, like Steve Jobs did.
I have personally gone through two layoffs in the past three years and have been in process of building my social media and health/wellness business. Building a business is very difficult. You have to constantly network to build a referral base, you have to work long hours to make that extra sale, and most of all you make a lot of mistakes along the way. After hearing what Steve Jobs has gone through, I now feel that I can never give up on my businesses, that I need to stay hungry and make a foolish mistake now and then. The end result will be the most rewarding.
So stay hungry, stay foolish. I will.
Stay Hungry, Stay foolish.
I think those four words together is one of the most powerful quotes perhaps ever. What it means to me is to always have an urgency in whatever you do and never ever quit. It also means that it is OK to make mistakes, ask stupid questions, but more importantly, learn from your mistakes and stupid questions. Some of the most successful professionals in the world have made some big mistakes and came back stronger than ever. Think Donald Trump. Steve Jobs also gave hope to anyone that did not get that fat degree from an Ivy League school, that by staying hungry and staying foolish, you can be as successful as you want to be. I personally know some colleagues with masters degrees and a lot of debt that are going through hard times. They may have played it safe and rested on their past accomplishments. All the while, there were college drop-outs all around us making a difference, like Steve Jobs did.
I have personally gone through two layoffs in the past three years and have been in process of building my social media and health/wellness business. Building a business is very difficult. You have to constantly network to build a referral base, you have to work long hours to make that extra sale, and most of all you make a lot of mistakes along the way. After hearing what Steve Jobs has gone through, I now feel that I can never give up on my businesses, that I need to stay hungry and make a foolish mistake now and then. The end result will be the most rewarding.
So stay hungry, stay foolish. I will.
Friday, August 26, 2011
Social Media and the Weather
When I was a kid, I always dreamed to be a weatherman. I used to keep track of the weather in my hometown of Cranston, RI writing down the high and low temperature and the weather conditions every day. I got my information from the good ol' Providence Journal. I used to marvel at thunderstorms and admired the how high and mighty thunderstorm clouds were. Of course, in Rhode Island you do not get the severe thunderstorms that the Midwest and South get, but the storms were nasty enough. I also was intrigued by the Blizzard of 1978. All snowstorms from that point forward was measured against that great storm. There was no Weather Channel then or Facebook, just the television news and newspaper. So you really didn't know how severe that storm was going to be until it happened.
I was thinking of going to school for meteorology, but the only school in the area was in Vermont and I was not about to go to school in northern Vermont. People in Rhode Island though Vermont was somewhere near Alaska. So I settled for Computer Engineering while maintaining an avid interest in weather.
Later on in my life, I experienced my first hurricane, Hurricane Bob in 1991. Hurricanes are a different puppy compared to Blizzards. What was really amazing was the preparation for such a storm. The technology was a little better then. We had the Weather Channel but no real internet. Bob was a pretty intense storm in Rhode Island. The Hurricane Barrier in Providence got activated which is worth seeing. There were trees down everywhere after the storm and we did not have power for a few days. The only way you knew about your friends or family status was when the phone lines were finally on-line. Again no real internet access or Facebook then.
Now comes 2011 and one of the most imminent hurricanes threats to New England in over 20 years. But boy are things different from a preparation perspective and how we all communicate. With social media, the game is totally different. I am getting up to the minute updates via Twitter and Facebook on my smartphone. For example, I just found out we are now in a hurricane warning in Massachusetts and Rhode Island from you guessed it, from my Facebook feed on my HTC Incredible Droid smartphone. I will be able to get the latest on the storm, stay in contact with friends, and perhaps even avoid danger knowing if the worst part of the storm is hitting my area. The Weather Channel has a live Facebook chat for the public to answer any questions they have. Wished we had that in 1991!
Think about it, you lose power, you can still use your smartphone and the social media sites. One recommendation is to keep your smartphone connected to a power source as much as possible during the storm in case power is lost. So hope to see my friends and family online during the storm. Please no Farmville requests! It is pretty amazing how far social media has taken us. It may save some lives this weekend in New England... Stay safe!
I was thinking of going to school for meteorology, but the only school in the area was in Vermont and I was not about to go to school in northern Vermont. People in Rhode Island though Vermont was somewhere near Alaska. So I settled for Computer Engineering while maintaining an avid interest in weather.
Later on in my life, I experienced my first hurricane, Hurricane Bob in 1991. Hurricanes are a different puppy compared to Blizzards. What was really amazing was the preparation for such a storm. The technology was a little better then. We had the Weather Channel but no real internet. Bob was a pretty intense storm in Rhode Island. The Hurricane Barrier in Providence got activated which is worth seeing. There were trees down everywhere after the storm and we did not have power for a few days. The only way you knew about your friends or family status was when the phone lines were finally on-line. Again no real internet access or Facebook then.
Now comes 2011 and one of the most imminent hurricanes threats to New England in over 20 years. But boy are things different from a preparation perspective and how we all communicate. With social media, the game is totally different. I am getting up to the minute updates via Twitter and Facebook on my smartphone. For example, I just found out we are now in a hurricane warning in Massachusetts and Rhode Island from you guessed it, from my Facebook feed on my HTC Incredible Droid smartphone. I will be able to get the latest on the storm, stay in contact with friends, and perhaps even avoid danger knowing if the worst part of the storm is hitting my area. The Weather Channel has a live Facebook chat for the public to answer any questions they have. Wished we had that in 1991!
Think about it, you lose power, you can still use your smartphone and the social media sites. One recommendation is to keep your smartphone connected to a power source as much as possible during the storm in case power is lost. So hope to see my friends and family online during the storm. Please no Farmville requests! It is pretty amazing how far social media has taken us. It may save some lives this weekend in New England... Stay safe!
Friday, July 22, 2011
MLM People, Financial Planners and Life Coaches Are Taking Over the World of Networking
A lot of people that know me know that I am an avid networker and go to between 2-3 events a week. Why do I network? It is because you have to in today's professional world. Considering I am in transition and have a couple of businesses, networking is the lifeblood of my professional career. I recently went to an event in Boston this past week and looking around, you can clearly distinguish the different breeds of entrepreneurs enjoying the free food and working their elevator pitches.
First, you have the financial planners/ advisers. They are the ones wearing full suits and ties despite the fact it was 95 degrees out. Clearly, you can see them sweat not just from the weather but also knowing five of their competitors are in the room. You had MetLife, Mass Mutual, New York Life and Wells Fargo in the room. My advice to a financial person.... wear a Hawaiian shirt and rent a BMW for the next networking event. Personally, I did not select my financial advisor because they wore a suit in 95 degree weather.
Second, you got those Multi-Level-Marketers. At this event, you had Adzzoo, Trump Network, Avon, Arbonne and Tuppleware. BTW, Market America is NOT multi-level-marketing for the thousandth time!!! They all claim their company has the best products & services, provide the best compensation plan, have meetings in exotic places... but meanwhile they are wearing Walmart specials driving off in their beat up Saturns... My advice to MLM networkers.... treat your business as a business not not some spectacular money making machine and listen to people. Personally, I did not start my business with Market America because Donald Trump owns it and sends me to Key Largo for $1000 to look at his hair. FYI, Donald Trump doesn't own Market America. He wished he did!
Finally, ah yes, the life coaches. The ones that teach business people to transition their life, to discover holistic health, and pay them thousands for advice that you can also get on Google. I honestly always wonder how these fine folks make any money. They must do a wonderful job showing how their clients get their best return on investment. Really, go into real business, you would do wonders! The Life Coaches dress a little better since they are setting an example to their clients. My advice, get a Plan B. This business is very cyclical.
So I am hoping at the next event, I meet some restaurant owners, car dealers, social media people, cigar shop owners, just to mix it up a bit. I guess that is why BNI is successful at what they do. They only allow one of two professionals from each line of work.
Ok, time to go to the dry cleaners to go get my suits for the next event.... a wedding, not a networking event!!
First, you have the financial planners/ advisers. They are the ones wearing full suits and ties despite the fact it was 95 degrees out. Clearly, you can see them sweat not just from the weather but also knowing five of their competitors are in the room. You had MetLife, Mass Mutual, New York Life and Wells Fargo in the room. My advice to a financial person.... wear a Hawaiian shirt and rent a BMW for the next networking event. Personally, I did not select my financial advisor because they wore a suit in 95 degree weather.
Second, you got those Multi-Level-Marketers. At this event, you had Adzzoo, Trump Network, Avon, Arbonne and Tuppleware. BTW, Market America is NOT multi-level-marketing for the thousandth time!!! They all claim their company has the best products & services, provide the best compensation plan, have meetings in exotic places... but meanwhile they are wearing Walmart specials driving off in their beat up Saturns... My advice to MLM networkers.... treat your business as a business not not some spectacular money making machine and listen to people. Personally, I did not start my business with Market America because Donald Trump owns it and sends me to Key Largo for $1000 to look at his hair. FYI, Donald Trump doesn't own Market America. He wished he did!
Finally, ah yes, the life coaches. The ones that teach business people to transition their life, to discover holistic health, and pay them thousands for advice that you can also get on Google. I honestly always wonder how these fine folks make any money. They must do a wonderful job showing how their clients get their best return on investment. Really, go into real business, you would do wonders! The Life Coaches dress a little better since they are setting an example to their clients. My advice, get a Plan B. This business is very cyclical.
So I am hoping at the next event, I meet some restaurant owners, car dealers, social media people, cigar shop owners, just to mix it up a bit. I guess that is why BNI is successful at what they do. They only allow one of two professionals from each line of work.
Ok, time to go to the dry cleaners to go get my suits for the next event.... a wedding, not a networking event!!
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Over the Border - The Demise of the Brick and Mortar
Well, another large retailer is biting the dust - Borders. I liked Borders but always wondered how they were making money. Normally, people go there to look at books as if they are in the library and not buy anything or go to coffee shop and buy a $2 latte and sit on their laptops cruising Facebook for many hours. It is no wonder they were losing money and are now going out of business. But there is a larger issue here where Borders did not change with the times and customer focus. For the past few years, just as newspapers started going away, people started moving to electronic readers and mobile devices to do their day-to-day communication and reading. Barnes & Noble has the Nook, Amazon has the Kindle, and many others are being promoted. Borders also did not do a good job promoting their online presence. Simply put, if you don't shift your focus to your company's online presence, you will go out of business. Case in point, Circuit City, Linens n Things and soon Toys R Us. You didn't hear that from me, but it is my pick for the next brick and mortar retailer to go out of business.
Today's customers buying habits are online case in point. Online sales at a company I am affiliated with has gone up over 30% in the past year while the typical brick and mortar retailer had same store sales growth between -5% - 5%. Social shopping is the wave of the future, matching product to people and people to product and there is no other way to do that than online shopping. A lot of retailers are now offering free shipping and online deals only since they do not need to distribute a product to a store and pay for shelf life and most of all, employees. I recently bought the book, Social Boom from Jeffrey Gitomer on my portal for $14.50 with free shipping. Just for the sake of it, I went to the local Barnes and Noble to see what is would cost. Try $22.99 with tax. I just booked a trip to the Cape through my online travel site and got an incredible deal at a great hotel/resort for a third of the price. Where? Online! So, why would someone go to a brick and mortar store? I'll admit, I do not buy clothes online or anything to do with the look and feel of my home (pictures, lights etc.), but in reality the demise of the brick and mortar is here. Your local mall may become more of an entertainment destination with theatres, restaurants, entertainment centers with a few clothes stores thrown in.
In closing, I feel for the 11,000+ people losing their jobs at Borders but we are in a different world today. Companies need to keep up with the times in the information and mobile age or they become a Borders.
Today's customers buying habits are online case in point. Online sales at a company I am affiliated with has gone up over 30% in the past year while the typical brick and mortar retailer had same store sales growth between -5% - 5%. Social shopping is the wave of the future, matching product to people and people to product and there is no other way to do that than online shopping. A lot of retailers are now offering free shipping and online deals only since they do not need to distribute a product to a store and pay for shelf life and most of all, employees. I recently bought the book, Social Boom from Jeffrey Gitomer on my portal for $14.50 with free shipping. Just for the sake of it, I went to the local Barnes and Noble to see what is would cost. Try $22.99 with tax. I just booked a trip to the Cape through my online travel site and got an incredible deal at a great hotel/resort for a third of the price. Where? Online! So, why would someone go to a brick and mortar store? I'll admit, I do not buy clothes online or anything to do with the look and feel of my home (pictures, lights etc.), but in reality the demise of the brick and mortar is here. Your local mall may become more of an entertainment destination with theatres, restaurants, entertainment centers with a few clothes stores thrown in.
In closing, I feel for the 11,000+ people losing their jobs at Borders but we are in a different world today. Companies need to keep up with the times in the information and mobile age or they become a Borders.
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Google + Facebook = LinkedIN My Twitter - Heck Social Media is Taking Over My Day!
If you are a business owner and new to the Social Media world, you must be pulling every hair out of your body right about now. Before 1995, marketing your product or services meant putting an advertisement in the paper, making sure you are listed in the yellow pages and making a few cold calls here and there. Then the leads come to you. There was little or no competition from abroad and you didn't worry about some techie from Harvard stealing your idea and creating the biggest technology Armageddon in the world!
Well it is mid-way through 2011, and yes, there is a new legitimate player in the social media world. It is a very positive and forward thinking company called Google. I am still trying to figure out why it is called "Google +". Then again "Facebook" and "Twitter" are interesting words too. Conan O'Brien put it best a couple of years ago and called MySpace + Twitter + Facebook = MyTwitFace. So, I guess since MySpace is pretty much non-existent now, I guess the new Social Media platform is Goog+FaceTwit? OK, I am not exactly good with words. That is why I have a day job, right?
All I know is that I spend a lot of time on social media sites now. Tools like TweetDeck and Hootsuite make it easier to have that "console" approach. But I find myself looking at posts, responding usually about nothing important and then later discover that I just wasted two hours. Speaking of wasting time... why did Zuckerburg come up with this "Poke" thing. Was it his way to pick up chicks on Facebook? His one liner was " Hey Babe, I am going to poke you!" I login everyday on Facebook, and always know that heck I still got it for an old guy, since there is a list of women that "poke requested" me... but it is not a sexual thing. It is more like, POKE! Wake up Jeff and do something constructive and get off Facebook!
Now Google + has this thing called "circles". Great, now another way to get stuck in some click talking about nothing and not letting the world know about it. I personally think with the incredible initial success of Google + is that people are starting to get sick of Facebook and are hoping Google would create a new dimension in social networking, but instead you get stuck in these gossip circles. Could Google call them groups instead? Oh wait, that is what Facebook calls them.
Finally, I think the innocent social media site in all of this is LinkedIN. I do the bulk of my business building on LinkedIN and there is nothing about the site that makes me sick and tired of social networking. They don't have this poke thing or some addition symbol in their name. Just a great name for a social media site.. I am linked into you. Being linked is a lot less painful than being poked or being called a Twit! Speaking of Twit... I know I did not mention Twitter since I also never log onto Twitter. I have linked my two LinkedIN account and my three Facebook accounts to my three Twitter accounts. It takes a computer engineering professional like me to draw a flowchart to figure it all out.
OK, time to get off my computer and go for a walk and chat with the neighbor. Social Walking sounds so much healthier!
Well it is mid-way through 2011, and yes, there is a new legitimate player in the social media world. It is a very positive and forward thinking company called Google. I am still trying to figure out why it is called "Google +". Then again "Facebook" and "Twitter" are interesting words too. Conan O'Brien put it best a couple of years ago and called MySpace + Twitter + Facebook = MyTwitFace. So, I guess since MySpace is pretty much non-existent now, I guess the new Social Media platform is Goog+FaceTwit? OK, I am not exactly good with words. That is why I have a day job, right?
All I know is that I spend a lot of time on social media sites now. Tools like TweetDeck and Hootsuite make it easier to have that "console" approach. But I find myself looking at posts, responding usually about nothing important and then later discover that I just wasted two hours. Speaking of wasting time... why did Zuckerburg come up with this "Poke" thing. Was it his way to pick up chicks on Facebook? His one liner was " Hey Babe, I am going to poke you!" I login everyday on Facebook, and always know that heck I still got it for an old guy, since there is a list of women that "poke requested" me... but it is not a sexual thing. It is more like, POKE! Wake up Jeff and do something constructive and get off Facebook!
Now Google + has this thing called "circles". Great, now another way to get stuck in some click talking about nothing and not letting the world know about it. I personally think with the incredible initial success of Google + is that people are starting to get sick of Facebook and are hoping Google would create a new dimension in social networking, but instead you get stuck in these gossip circles. Could Google call them groups instead? Oh wait, that is what Facebook calls them.
Finally, I think the innocent social media site in all of this is LinkedIN. I do the bulk of my business building on LinkedIN and there is nothing about the site that makes me sick and tired of social networking. They don't have this poke thing or some addition symbol in their name. Just a great name for a social media site.. I am linked into you. Being linked is a lot less painful than being poked or being called a Twit! Speaking of Twit... I know I did not mention Twitter since I also never log onto Twitter. I have linked my two LinkedIN account and my three Facebook accounts to my three Twitter accounts. It takes a computer engineering professional like me to draw a flowchart to figure it all out.
OK, time to get off my computer and go for a walk and chat with the neighbor. Social Walking sounds so much healthier!
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Network Marketing is the Real Deal
Do the household names Avon, Tupperware, Pampered Chef or P90X ring a bell to you? How about Isotonix, Transitions, Nutralite, Primerica or Partylite? All of these household names are part of the burgeoning network marketing industry that has generated over $125 billion in revenue in over 150 countries in 2010 and is growing on average 25-30% a year via over 75 million men and women who are in distributorships where they take pride in helping others.
As you probably figured out, I am a distributor for a very well known internet marketing company. The reason I got into the business was originally because the products and the mission of the company was nothing like I have ever seen. I also liked the fact that the company paid out over 60% of its revenue back as commissions to distributors of the company. But the biggest reason was I always had a calling to help people. My purpose at a networking event is to help people connect. My purpose in network marketing is to help people financially and with their well being. Where else for a very small capital investment, you can change your world and the world of others willing to open their mind.
It baffles me when I introduce to people to my business venture, that the old "it's a pyramid" or "scam" vocabulary is the first word out of their mouth. Later on they come to realize that some of the products that they are currently using are very much from the same network marketing companies that they claim is part of some pyramid. Finally, I always like to ask, so what are your options to make a little extra income and then there is silence....
Network marketing or otherwise known as direct selling is the original social networking business. Long before we even knew what a computer was, people were getting together for fun, socializing and shopping. Add in technological power and globalization, and you’ve got a winning formula for a fast growing and recession proof business. Network marketing or now known as social networking focuses on what people want. Check out your Facebook page and look at the ads. Chances are you will see ads focused on products from a leading network marketing company that you may be interested in.
The concept of network marketing is so intriguing. It eliminates the "middle man" distributing a product or service to the end consumer. There is no brick and mortar store or large numbers of salaried employees needed to move product and because some companies have hundreds of thousands , even millions of distributors, they essentially have independent contractors doing the bulk of product and service distribution and then paying them pretty handsomely on top of that. It is such a cool concept and it is fast becoming the wave of the near future.
So why is network marketing the real deal? It may be the only way to help solve the shrinking job market. Face it, we will never go back to pre-2007 employment levels. Network marketing may be the answer since it has a competitive advantage in the training that it offers, both in business and personal skills. It allows people to be retrained while they pursue something new. It gives an opportunity when no one else will. The shrinking job market will not do that.
As you probably figured out, I am a distributor for a very well known internet marketing company. The reason I got into the business was originally because the products and the mission of the company was nothing like I have ever seen. I also liked the fact that the company paid out over 60% of its revenue back as commissions to distributors of the company. But the biggest reason was I always had a calling to help people. My purpose at a networking event is to help people connect. My purpose in network marketing is to help people financially and with their well being. Where else for a very small capital investment, you can change your world and the world of others willing to open their mind.
It baffles me when I introduce to people to my business venture, that the old "it's a pyramid" or "scam" vocabulary is the first word out of their mouth. Later on they come to realize that some of the products that they are currently using are very much from the same network marketing companies that they claim is part of some pyramid. Finally, I always like to ask, so what are your options to make a little extra income and then there is silence....
Network marketing or otherwise known as direct selling is the original social networking business. Long before we even knew what a computer was, people were getting together for fun, socializing and shopping. Add in technological power and globalization, and you’ve got a winning formula for a fast growing and recession proof business. Network marketing or now known as social networking focuses on what people want. Check out your Facebook page and look at the ads. Chances are you will see ads focused on products from a leading network marketing company that you may be interested in.
The concept of network marketing is so intriguing. It eliminates the "middle man" distributing a product or service to the end consumer. There is no brick and mortar store or large numbers of salaried employees needed to move product and because some companies have hundreds of thousands , even millions of distributors, they essentially have independent contractors doing the bulk of product and service distribution and then paying them pretty handsomely on top of that. It is such a cool concept and it is fast becoming the wave of the near future.
So why is network marketing the real deal? It may be the only way to help solve the shrinking job market. Face it, we will never go back to pre-2007 employment levels. Network marketing may be the answer since it has a competitive advantage in the training that it offers, both in business and personal skills. It allows people to be retrained while they pursue something new. It gives an opportunity when no one else will. The shrinking job market will not do that.
Friday, June 24, 2011
15 reasons Why EVERY Business needs a Website!
We are in an information age and moving to a social and mobile age, where if your business is not accessible/ available on a mobile device, your customers will move onto your competition. I always like this list since it opens up awareness why every business needs to be on the web.
Here are the 15 reasons why EVERY Business need a Website!
1. It is the most cost-effective way to advertise.
2. Your customers expect it.
3. You will sell more products and services.
4. You will be able to provide information to your customers more cost effectively.
5. You can receive feedback via your Web site.
6. It is much easier to stay in contact with distributors and sales reps.
7. You can provide better customer service.
8. It's the best way to stay competitive -- considering that most of your rivals already own their own Web sites or are looking into getting one.
9. Your business will grow immediately. Any small, local business has the ability to be an instant international sensation with franchise penetration in every city -- simply by getting an on-line presence.
10. Your business will look more professional.
11. You will gain credibility. A professional, well-designed site makes your business look successful, and builds trust in your company and its products/services.
12. You are open 24/7 without any added overhead and your sales potential may increase exponentially.
13. You have the ability to update sales information in real-time.
14. It is much more convenient for your customers to purchase your goods and services on-line than by physically coming to your location.
15 You can't afford not to. With Internet sales increasing almost 400% in the last six years, it's just good common sense to boost your business onboard the Internet superhighway.
Go to http://www.aimcbizsolutions.com to build your business website and let us take care of the rest!
Here are the 15 reasons why EVERY Business need a Website!
1. It is the most cost-effective way to advertise.
2. Your customers expect it.
3. You will sell more products and services.
4. You will be able to provide information to your customers more cost effectively.
5. You can receive feedback via your Web site.
6. It is much easier to stay in contact with distributors and sales reps.
7. You can provide better customer service.
8. It's the best way to stay competitive -- considering that most of your rivals already own their own Web sites or are looking into getting one.
9. Your business will grow immediately. Any small, local business has the ability to be an instant international sensation with franchise penetration in every city -- simply by getting an on-line presence.
10. Your business will look more professional.
11. You will gain credibility. A professional, well-designed site makes your business look successful, and builds trust in your company and its products/services.
12. You are open 24/7 without any added overhead and your sales potential may increase exponentially.
13. You have the ability to update sales information in real-time.
14. It is much more convenient for your customers to purchase your goods and services on-line than by physically coming to your location.
15 You can't afford not to. With Internet sales increasing almost 400% in the last six years, it's just good common sense to boost your business onboard the Internet superhighway.
Go to http://www.aimcbizsolutions.com to build your business website and let us take care of the rest!
Friday, June 3, 2011
How Social Media Saved Lives This Week in Massachusetts
This has been a devastating week for the folks in Western and Central Massachusetts. It was announced today that multiple EF3 or stronger tornadoes touched down around Springfield and further east on Wednesday, June 1st, resulting in incredible damage to structures and the beautiful forest in the area. For those of you not familiar with Massachusetts, this is a part of the state that has beautiful rolling hills, farms and the third largest city in Massachusetts, Springfield, a city of about 155,000 people. The amazing fact, despite the devastation in highly populated areas, only four lives were lost.
This area is not used to such violent weather and do not have a warning system in place like the South & Midwest to warn people of the impending danger to their lives. Also, most of the houses here have been built over 100 years ago and do not have the strong foundation of a stone or brick house like you seen in tornado prones area.
So considering how there is no warning system such as those sirens you hear, how did everyone prepare and take cover? Most of the people I know that were affected or were in the storm's path have smartphones with Facebook or Twitter and even the Weather Channel application on their phone. Back in the Metrowest at my house, I was connected to friends further west that kept updating their statuses of what is going on where they live and taking pictures of the storm and posting them. This real time activity allowed people in potential danger to get prepared. At one point, the Weather Channel was warning that the tornado which turned out to be an EF3 was making a beeline to my town! Luckily the funnel lifted about 15-20 miles of so away and we ended up just getting a lot of rain, wind, hail and the most amazing lightning show I have ever seen.
Since most of us have smartphones w/ texting, we have communication like we have never had before. We were able to warn each other of the pending danger and in the storm's aftermath, were able to locate missing people very quickly. As of today, Friday, there are no more missing persons, which is amazing considering how bad the storms were. Again, do you think that because people were able to communicate via Facebook, Twitter or text, that they were able to be prepared for the worst?
Now that the state is in cleanup mode, you are seeing a lot of relief efforts being posted and tweeted. A lot of celebrities are posting messages about how we can all help. With hundreds of millions Facebook and Twitter users, their message goes out to a tremendous amount of people with one short message. This did not happen only 5 or 6 years ago. Because of Social Media, we minimized the amount of deaths during and the after the storm. Pretty incredible stuff, just like the weather.
This area is not used to such violent weather and do not have a warning system in place like the South & Midwest to warn people of the impending danger to their lives. Also, most of the houses here have been built over 100 years ago and do not have the strong foundation of a stone or brick house like you seen in tornado prones area.
So considering how there is no warning system such as those sirens you hear, how did everyone prepare and take cover? Most of the people I know that were affected or were in the storm's path have smartphones with Facebook or Twitter and even the Weather Channel application on their phone. Back in the Metrowest at my house, I was connected to friends further west that kept updating their statuses of what is going on where they live and taking pictures of the storm and posting them. This real time activity allowed people in potential danger to get prepared. At one point, the Weather Channel was warning that the tornado which turned out to be an EF3 was making a beeline to my town! Luckily the funnel lifted about 15-20 miles of so away and we ended up just getting a lot of rain, wind, hail and the most amazing lightning show I have ever seen.
Since most of us have smartphones w/ texting, we have communication like we have never had before. We were able to warn each other of the pending danger and in the storm's aftermath, were able to locate missing people very quickly. As of today, Friday, there are no more missing persons, which is amazing considering how bad the storms were. Again, do you think that because people were able to communicate via Facebook, Twitter or text, that they were able to be prepared for the worst?
Now that the state is in cleanup mode, you are seeing a lot of relief efforts being posted and tweeted. A lot of celebrities are posting messages about how we can all help. With hundreds of millions Facebook and Twitter users, their message goes out to a tremendous amount of people with one short message. This did not happen only 5 or 6 years ago. Because of Social Media, we minimized the amount of deaths during and the after the storm. Pretty incredible stuff, just like the weather.
Monday, May 23, 2011
Network Marketing and its Evolution to One-to-One Marketing
Network Marketing has been around a lot longer than a lot of people think.
It started back in the 1930's with direct selling. Do you remember the insurance salesman that knocked on your door at dinnertime to try to sell you a life insurance policy? Then came franchising in the 1940s with the invention of McDonalds and Holiday Inn. Franchising was revolutionary since it introduced the "system" for managing the business processes and the ways of working. In the 1950s, multi-level marketing was born. Amway is the most well-known company from this era and introduced what a lot of people thought was a pyramid. Ironically, the Amway organization is closer to horizontal marketing and isn't any more than a pyramid than the typical corporate organization. Then came the 1960s, the big catalog was introduced. Think JCPenney or Sears. For the first time, you can "shop from home" and call a toll free number to order your favorite product. In the 1970s, businesses of all sizes started to use direct mail to market their products and services. These brochures would be mixed in with your bills in the mail and allowed consumers to save money on services. In the 1980s, cable television changed not only what we watch on TV, bu how we shop. For the first time, infomericals were born. QVC and the Home Shopping Network allowed viewers to see product demostrations and then order the product via a toll-free number. This was start of the saving trees movement with less paper in the ol' mailbox. As we moved into the 1990s, another drastic movement in network marketing happened, the internet and the dot.com era. For the first time, consumers were able to shop online at their favorite stores and use credit cards or tools like PayPal to purchase products and services. While the ease of shopping online created a whole new paradigm, for the first time, you started to see the brick and mortar stores start to suffer. Think Caldor, Lechmere, Bradlees and Ames.
So then came the 21st Century... the 2000s-2010s! A new paradigm invented by Market America's founder, James Ridinger, took the best of all of the network marketing stages from the 1930s till 2000 and called it one-to-one marketing. With almost 200,000 distributors marketing cutting edge products and services and partnering with all of the retail stores that helped start the paradigms from the 1970s through the 1990s, one-to-one marketing was born. One-to-one marketing is where you have a personal shop consultant (think the old insurance salesman from the 1930s) who follows a system invented from franchising to assist shoppers to research what they need through a catalog and make a purchase on an online shopping site. It is pretty revolutionary and it is now the best way to connect people to the products they need. What better way to build a one-to-one relationship?
Network Marketing is in fact the Business of the 21st Century. Pretty exciting stuff!
It started back in the 1930's with direct selling. Do you remember the insurance salesman that knocked on your door at dinnertime to try to sell you a life insurance policy? Then came franchising in the 1940s with the invention of McDonalds and Holiday Inn. Franchising was revolutionary since it introduced the "system" for managing the business processes and the ways of working. In the 1950s, multi-level marketing was born. Amway is the most well-known company from this era and introduced what a lot of people thought was a pyramid. Ironically, the Amway organization is closer to horizontal marketing and isn't any more than a pyramid than the typical corporate organization. Then came the 1960s, the big catalog was introduced. Think JCPenney or Sears. For the first time, you can "shop from home" and call a toll free number to order your favorite product. In the 1970s, businesses of all sizes started to use direct mail to market their products and services. These brochures would be mixed in with your bills in the mail and allowed consumers to save money on services. In the 1980s, cable television changed not only what we watch on TV, bu how we shop. For the first time, infomericals were born. QVC and the Home Shopping Network allowed viewers to see product demostrations and then order the product via a toll-free number. This was start of the saving trees movement with less paper in the ol' mailbox. As we moved into the 1990s, another drastic movement in network marketing happened, the internet and the dot.com era. For the first time, consumers were able to shop online at their favorite stores and use credit cards or tools like PayPal to purchase products and services. While the ease of shopping online created a whole new paradigm, for the first time, you started to see the brick and mortar stores start to suffer. Think Caldor, Lechmere, Bradlees and Ames.
So then came the 21st Century... the 2000s-2010s! A new paradigm invented by Market America's founder, James Ridinger, took the best of all of the network marketing stages from the 1930s till 2000 and called it one-to-one marketing. With almost 200,000 distributors marketing cutting edge products and services and partnering with all of the retail stores that helped start the paradigms from the 1970s through the 1990s, one-to-one marketing was born. One-to-one marketing is where you have a personal shop consultant (think the old insurance salesman from the 1930s) who follows a system invented from franchising to assist shoppers to research what they need through a catalog and make a purchase on an online shopping site. It is pretty revolutionary and it is now the best way to connect people to the products they need. What better way to build a one-to-one relationship?
Network Marketing is in fact the Business of the 21st Century. Pretty exciting stuff!
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Social Media Is Not A Fad, It is For Real
With over 600 million users and thousands being added every minute, Facebook is the most powerful communication platform on earth. It recently passed Google in terms of number of searches and has fast become more of a business platform versus a platform of embarrassing pictures of your high school prom. Twitter is adding 10,000 users a day and has become the dominant way to become discovered again by search. YouTube is the dominant video platform on earth. Just think, you can create a video and reach billions of people with one click. Wikpedia is THE Encyclopedia, the domimant resource in the world. Sound like a fad, I think not.
Colleges and universities are adding Social Media as a certification and even as a bachelor's program, marketing programs are changing, journalism degrees are going away and 99% of all college students use Facebook and Wikipedia for all of their research. Is this a fad? Pretty Powerful...
In the business world, Social Media Management is a job now and every company that is serious about surviving today's economy needs to divert their marketing and advertising budget toward personnel and social media tools to help stay relevant. It baffles me today when I meet someone and they don't have a website or think Facebook is for kids. Well, I hope they will be ready for retirement considering they will probably be out of business soon. Businesses still need to have a balance of print advertisement and online social media promotions but the shift is on. Where social media distiguishes itself is that it helps business build a relationship with their affiliates, partners and customers that a print advertisement does not do.
Social Media is the real deal just as the mobile device is today and electricity was long ago. It is simply the new age of sales, marketing and communication. Enjoy the ride!
Colleges and universities are adding Social Media as a certification and even as a bachelor's program, marketing programs are changing, journalism degrees are going away and 99% of all college students use Facebook and Wikipedia for all of their research. Is this a fad? Pretty Powerful...
In the business world, Social Media Management is a job now and every company that is serious about surviving today's economy needs to divert their marketing and advertising budget toward personnel and social media tools to help stay relevant. It baffles me today when I meet someone and they don't have a website or think Facebook is for kids. Well, I hope they will be ready for retirement considering they will probably be out of business soon. Businesses still need to have a balance of print advertisement and online social media promotions but the shift is on. Where social media distiguishes itself is that it helps business build a relationship with their affiliates, partners and customers that a print advertisement does not do.
Social Media is the real deal just as the mobile device is today and electricity was long ago. It is simply the new age of sales, marketing and communication. Enjoy the ride!
Friday, April 22, 2011
Are We Really Ready to Join The Cloud?
The hottest buzz word in Information Technology today is Cloud Computing. Read any technical magazine from CIO to ComputerWorld to Information Week and the word on the street is that everyone is migrating from client/server applications running in their own data center to a cloud computing environment at an infrastructure provider. We are currently going through the same transition and technology paradigm we did back in the early 1990s when companies were migrating critical applications from large distributed systems like mainframes and AS/400s to client /server on Windows or UNIX servers.
Cloud Computing, in particular Elastic Cloud Computing, makes a tremendous amount of sense for companies that have business applications that are cyclical in demand (i.e. retailers or accounting firms). I know from experience working as a system administrator at a large retailer that on Black Friday, we really put our infrastructure and network bandwidth to test. But then there are other times in the year where the systems sit at 10-15% utilization. A big waste of green money from an environmental and financial perspective. Paying for computing resources like we do for electricity is a great concept. In terms of risk, the thinking is that data security and control of the environment are the reasons not to move critical applications to the cloud. Both risks have been addressed recently by leading vendors like Amazon, Google and others.
The reason I am asking the question if we are really ready to join the cloud is a result of the huge outage Amazon had yesterday with their EC2 platform. The outage affected the web properties for over a hundred companies. I do not know the details why there was such a big outage but my thought regarding risk in addition to security and control is availability. When working with a cloud vendor, understand the contingencies in place to make sure the cloud vendor meets service levels. It is always assumed that you should have a service and operational level agreement in place and if they are not met, then the cloud vendor should be financially responsible. One of the contingencies that should be in place are multiple electrical grids and internet service providers available in the data center facility where the cloud infrastructure are supporting your critical applications.
So in a nutshell, if you take into account security, control and availability, the cloud is the way to go especially if you are a web property and are running a Software As a Service. Don't let yesterday's outage make you run back to a mainframe, learn from it, and make your cloud vendor accountable so you do not experience an outage like that with your own applications.
Cloud Computing, in particular Elastic Cloud Computing, makes a tremendous amount of sense for companies that have business applications that are cyclical in demand (i.e. retailers or accounting firms). I know from experience working as a system administrator at a large retailer that on Black Friday, we really put our infrastructure and network bandwidth to test. But then there are other times in the year where the systems sit at 10-15% utilization. A big waste of green money from an environmental and financial perspective. Paying for computing resources like we do for electricity is a great concept. In terms of risk, the thinking is that data security and control of the environment are the reasons not to move critical applications to the cloud. Both risks have been addressed recently by leading vendors like Amazon, Google and others.
The reason I am asking the question if we are really ready to join the cloud is a result of the huge outage Amazon had yesterday with their EC2 platform. The outage affected the web properties for over a hundred companies. I do not know the details why there was such a big outage but my thought regarding risk in addition to security and control is availability. When working with a cloud vendor, understand the contingencies in place to make sure the cloud vendor meets service levels. It is always assumed that you should have a service and operational level agreement in place and if they are not met, then the cloud vendor should be financially responsible. One of the contingencies that should be in place are multiple electrical grids and internet service providers available in the data center facility where the cloud infrastructure are supporting your critical applications.
So in a nutshell, if you take into account security, control and availability, the cloud is the way to go especially if you are a web property and are running a Software As a Service. Don't let yesterday's outage make you run back to a mainframe, learn from it, and make your cloud vendor accountable so you do not experience an outage like that with your own applications.
Monday, April 18, 2011
China is Kicking Our Butt, So What Are You Going to Do About It?
China is now the second largest economy in the world, right behind the USA, after passing Japan in 2010. Their economy is growing 9% annually while ours is stagnant, with little or no employment growth and terrifying debt. While we are having problems with foreclosures and jobs getting sent offshore, China's residential growth is astronomical and they are adding jobs in a frenzied pace. Shanghai will be the world's largest city by 2025 passing Tokyo. New York City is not even close. China owns around 60% of the USA debt. So those are the some of the economic facts, however, China is kicking our butt in network marketing too.
I was at the Market America convention in North Carolina this past year and learned a lot. I was excited for new developments in my network marketing business, but was also alarmed at the same time how there was a distinct difference in the success of my Chinese colleagues versus the Americans in the business. On a Friday night after the convention was done for the day, back at the hotel, the difference was pretty evident. The American distributors were busy drinking at the bar, swimming in the pool, and generally wasting time doing nothing. The Chinese distributors were having business meetings otherwise known as corings, were mingling with the executives of Market America and generally doing everything they can to make sure they bring their business to the next level after the convention.
At Market America, we have something called The Power Profiles (http://www.thepowerprofiles.com) which showcases successful people in our business. Take a look and what do you notice? The majority of the big money earners are Chinese. Some have come to America with nothing but the clothes on their back and are now making over a million dollars with their Market America business.
I am always looking for entrepreneurial professionals to partner with in my business. I am determined that my Market America business will help me and my business partners retire much earlier than they would if they worked the typical corporate career. The challenge I have had is finding the right people. When I introduce my business to an American colleague, the usual excuses why they cannot do the business always come up. They have no time, no money, they are all set and most of all "is it a pyramid?"... Dumb, just dumb. Meanwhile, they are wasting time watching "Dancing With the Stars" or comfortable with their stagnant life of going to their job making the top of their pyramid (the president or owner of their company) richer. Another example? Go to a Casino. Americans want the easy way out and hope they hit a jackpot even after they dumped their paycheck on a little video poker. By the way... how many Chinese people you see there?
I am sure I am striking a nerve with some people. Instead of getting angry about it, do something about it. Look to China and their drive to be successful and duplicate it yourself. Small business is alive and well and will be the only thing to get us out of this terrible economy. So do want China to claim that they are number one in 2025 or are you going to shut your TV off and look at ways to become more successful whether it is through network marketing or other entrepreneurial ventures?
China is Kicking Our Butt, So What Are You Going to Do About It?
I was at the Market America convention in North Carolina this past year and learned a lot. I was excited for new developments in my network marketing business, but was also alarmed at the same time how there was a distinct difference in the success of my Chinese colleagues versus the Americans in the business. On a Friday night after the convention was done for the day, back at the hotel, the difference was pretty evident. The American distributors were busy drinking at the bar, swimming in the pool, and generally wasting time doing nothing. The Chinese distributors were having business meetings otherwise known as corings, were mingling with the executives of Market America and generally doing everything they can to make sure they bring their business to the next level after the convention.
At Market America, we have something called The Power Profiles (http://www.thepowerprofiles.com) which showcases successful people in our business. Take a look and what do you notice? The majority of the big money earners are Chinese. Some have come to America with nothing but the clothes on their back and are now making over a million dollars with their Market America business.
I am always looking for entrepreneurial professionals to partner with in my business. I am determined that my Market America business will help me and my business partners retire much earlier than they would if they worked the typical corporate career. The challenge I have had is finding the right people. When I introduce my business to an American colleague, the usual excuses why they cannot do the business always come up. They have no time, no money, they are all set and most of all "is it a pyramid?"... Dumb, just dumb. Meanwhile, they are wasting time watching "Dancing With the Stars" or comfortable with their stagnant life of going to their job making the top of their pyramid (the president or owner of their company) richer. Another example? Go to a Casino. Americans want the easy way out and hope they hit a jackpot even after they dumped their paycheck on a little video poker. By the way... how many Chinese people you see there?
I am sure I am striking a nerve with some people. Instead of getting angry about it, do something about it. Look to China and their drive to be successful and duplicate it yourself. Small business is alive and well and will be the only thing to get us out of this terrible economy. So do want China to claim that they are number one in 2025 or are you going to shut your TV off and look at ways to become more successful whether it is through network marketing or other entrepreneurial ventures?
China is Kicking Our Butt, So What Are You Going to Do About It?
Friday, April 15, 2011
I'll Pat Your Back and You Can Pat Mine, But Please Don't Burp
I have been going to Networking Events for the past four years and think I have evolved into a pretty decent networker. Even though I have a couple of businesses that are my lifeblood toward hopefully a nice retirement, I do not go to events today thinking of how many prospects, business cards and follow-ups I can get. However, that was not the case a few years ago, when I would go to an event, meet some business owners, and before I even know their name, I would spill the beans about what I do. An example is this scenario, "Hello I am Jeff DeSocio, I sell Isotonix, Torch, Transitions supplements, save money for my customers shopping online, help small businesses with their websites and are looking for people that want to start a network marketing business. Uh, and what is your name.....". How would I know what their interests are, why are they even there, and if anything I said register?
What I learned over the years, is the art of networking is just like politics. You know, the old "I'll pat your back if you pat mine" Politics have been around for centuries so why did it take me years to figure it out? So, instead now, I like to go to events and simply get to know the people I meet on a personal basis and always ask what they like to accomplish at the networking event. My rule of thumb is to pat their back first. With the following I have today with over 1100 LinkedIn connections and 500 Facebook friends, chances are, I will know somebody that they can connect to, to accomplish their goal. After the connection, they would have a good feeling about me and when they come across a referral that needs my services, I would be the first person they think of and they will go ahead and pat my back.
So what do I mean by the saying "Please Don't Burp". It simply states that you should try to balance how much you and a networking contact/referral help each other out. Don't ask for ten favors while they only ask for one or two. Maintain a balance. If you cannot do that, move onto to another networking connection you have. So, take a look at the people you have met so far and always work toward trying to help them out first before thinking of yourself. While meeting new people at an upcoming networking event, listen, learn and think about how you can help them. If you do, you will get help in return, no questions asked.
What I learned over the years, is the art of networking is just like politics. You know, the old "I'll pat your back if you pat mine" Politics have been around for centuries so why did it take me years to figure it out? So, instead now, I like to go to events and simply get to know the people I meet on a personal basis and always ask what they like to accomplish at the networking event. My rule of thumb is to pat their back first. With the following I have today with over 1100 LinkedIn connections and 500 Facebook friends, chances are, I will know somebody that they can connect to, to accomplish their goal. After the connection, they would have a good feeling about me and when they come across a referral that needs my services, I would be the first person they think of and they will go ahead and pat my back.
So what do I mean by the saying "Please Don't Burp". It simply states that you should try to balance how much you and a networking contact/referral help each other out. Don't ask for ten favors while they only ask for one or two. Maintain a balance. If you cannot do that, move onto to another networking connection you have. So, take a look at the people you have met so far and always work toward trying to help them out first before thinking of yourself. While meeting new people at an upcoming networking event, listen, learn and think about how you can help them. If you do, you will get help in return, no questions asked.
Friday, April 8, 2011
Leaders Need to Listen More
I went to Tri State Expo in Rhode Island this past week and the keynote speaker was Barry Libert, an entrepreneur/ investor and founder of Open Matters. Barry focused on why leaders of companies, small businesses and even sales teams need to listen more. I have seen a lot of inspirational speakers in the past, but this simple statement made more sense than anything else I have heard in a while.
As a small business owner, I am generally guilty of not listening enough. At a networking event, I used to go right into my sixty second elevator pitch before I have any idea why the other person is even at the networking event. I would mention that I sell websites & social media solutions for small businesses and also sell health & wellness products to consumers, before even knowing if the person I am talking to is even there. Honestly, how would I even know if the person I am talking to even needs what I have to offer? So I adjusted my sixty second pitch to ask more questions and build a relationship with the people I meet at networking events. I learned that as a leader in my industry and/or at my company when I am in a management/ director role, I need to listen to potential clients/employees before offering a solution. It only makes sense as Barry mentioned.
For anyone in sales, the first tip you learn is you need to listen to your potential client before even mentioning what you do. I always wished furniture and car salesman drill this in their head and stop selling and start listening. Make sure you get all the detail first before offering a solution.
At the corporate level, the communication between leaders and their subordinates are in dire straits. I have personally worked in corporate in various levels for the past twenty years and everywhere I worked, there always seems to be the old Berlin wall between anyone at a VP level or higher and the individual contributors. A leader at the executive level needs to listen to the professionals that work their job day in and day out to be able to gather enough data to make intelligent strategic decisions. So many times, leaders make decisions that put their companies in precarious situations that could have been avoided only if they listen. I have personally worked in five corporations so far in my career and only at one place, a large retailer based in Framingham, MA, did the president and CEO have an open breakfast with anyone that wanted to provide feedback, advice or ideas. It just so happens that of all the places I worked, this retailer based in Framingham is the most successful and to this day, the best place I have worked. Leaders here listened to their colleagues whether they were a director, manager, or individual contributor.
Finally, at the business expo, Barry kept referring to the people that did not attend his presentation that they were not listening or open to new ideas. He was right because no matter how much you know, you will never know enough. So whenever, you can, listen. Listen to others and you will build strong relationships and at the end have more success in what you do.
As a small business owner, I am generally guilty of not listening enough. At a networking event, I used to go right into my sixty second elevator pitch before I have any idea why the other person is even at the networking event. I would mention that I sell websites & social media solutions for small businesses and also sell health & wellness products to consumers, before even knowing if the person I am talking to is even there. Honestly, how would I even know if the person I am talking to even needs what I have to offer? So I adjusted my sixty second pitch to ask more questions and build a relationship with the people I meet at networking events. I learned that as a leader in my industry and/or at my company when I am in a management/ director role, I need to listen to potential clients/employees before offering a solution. It only makes sense as Barry mentioned.
For anyone in sales, the first tip you learn is you need to listen to your potential client before even mentioning what you do. I always wished furniture and car salesman drill this in their head and stop selling and start listening. Make sure you get all the detail first before offering a solution.
At the corporate level, the communication between leaders and their subordinates are in dire straits. I have personally worked in corporate in various levels for the past twenty years and everywhere I worked, there always seems to be the old Berlin wall between anyone at a VP level or higher and the individual contributors. A leader at the executive level needs to listen to the professionals that work their job day in and day out to be able to gather enough data to make intelligent strategic decisions. So many times, leaders make decisions that put their companies in precarious situations that could have been avoided only if they listen. I have personally worked in five corporations so far in my career and only at one place, a large retailer based in Framingham, MA, did the president and CEO have an open breakfast with anyone that wanted to provide feedback, advice or ideas. It just so happens that of all the places I worked, this retailer based in Framingham is the most successful and to this day, the best place I have worked. Leaders here listened to their colleagues whether they were a director, manager, or individual contributor.
Finally, at the business expo, Barry kept referring to the people that did not attend his presentation that they were not listening or open to new ideas. He was right because no matter how much you know, you will never know enough. So whenever, you can, listen. Listen to others and you will build strong relationships and at the end have more success in what you do.
Monday, April 4, 2011
The Only Pyramids are in Egypt or Are They?
The word pyramid is synonymous with the network and internet marketing industry. Chances are if you own a network marketing business and are introducing the business to a prospect, the first question they ask is "Is it a Pyramid Scheme?". Unfortunately, you spend the next five to ten minutes explaining that it is not and that a Pyramid is the shape of pretty much every corporate or non-profit organization out there today. In loose terms it means the people at the top make all of the money.
So, sit back and think about your job, your real estate office, your church... who makes the most money? Chances are, it is the ones at the top of the "pyramid". So to answer the question in the title, yes the only pyramids are not in Egypt, they are all around us.
So what is network marketing anyway? I like to explain it as a way to market a product or service to your network. Your network can be family, friends, business associates, or even strangers. There are thousands of network marketing companies out there and it is considered the business of the 21st century. Why? Because it is much easier to have people in a 100% commission/ contractor role to move a product or service than to hire full-time employees to do the same. The contractor or distributor (which is the common term) runs it like a business where they spend money on training, marketing and products and make money through retail profit and commissions. A real network marketing company should not compensate for recruiting people into their organization. If it does, then it could actually be considered a pyramid in a different way, such as a Ponzi Scheme. I personally do not recommend network or internet marketing company that compensate for recruitment since there is less focus on the products and more on signing people into the business.
So the next time, you are approached about a network marketing opportunity, ask the appropriate questions such as what are products/ services, how is the training and organization, how does the compensation plan work and not is it a pyramid? You may figure it if the network marketing company is for you by asking intelligent questions. After all a network marketing company is a business just like pyramids like Target, Walmart, GE and others, but it gives the professionals at the bottom of the organization to make money like the people at the top of the pyramids!
So, sit back and think about your job, your real estate office, your church... who makes the most money? Chances are, it is the ones at the top of the "pyramid". So to answer the question in the title, yes the only pyramids are not in Egypt, they are all around us.
So what is network marketing anyway? I like to explain it as a way to market a product or service to your network. Your network can be family, friends, business associates, or even strangers. There are thousands of network marketing companies out there and it is considered the business of the 21st century. Why? Because it is much easier to have people in a 100% commission/ contractor role to move a product or service than to hire full-time employees to do the same. The contractor or distributor (which is the common term) runs it like a business where they spend money on training, marketing and products and make money through retail profit and commissions. A real network marketing company should not compensate for recruiting people into their organization. If it does, then it could actually be considered a pyramid in a different way, such as a Ponzi Scheme. I personally do not recommend network or internet marketing company that compensate for recruitment since there is less focus on the products and more on signing people into the business.
So the next time, you are approached about a network marketing opportunity, ask the appropriate questions such as what are products/ services, how is the training and organization, how does the compensation plan work and not is it a pyramid? You may figure it if the network marketing company is for you by asking intelligent questions. After all a network marketing company is a business just like pyramids like Target, Walmart, GE and others, but it gives the professionals at the bottom of the organization to make money like the people at the top of the pyramids!
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Why Everyone Needs to Network More Than Ever
The concept of networking to meet people has been around since the Model T, however it has taken a new concept in the past two or three years with all of the social media tools available since you can meet more people in shorter time. Networking is the number one way to make connections today whether is to get a job, get a client, build a relationship, heck even to meet the love of your life. Heck, I met my wife through a friend which technically is networking!
The world is a different place today. There is a lot of competition out there, globally and even in your town. You may have the best product, be the best looking, are the best speaker, but if you do not know anybody, what good is it? The more people know about you the better chance you have to be more successful in what you do.
I am hoping my message goes out to the people that prefer to network when they only really have to, when they are unemployed, when their back is against the wall whether it is with their business or their personal life. One of the first statements I make to people when they mention they have a great new job, or landed the most lucrative client, is that they should network MORE THAN EVER. Networking is a great way to build a contingency plan if the great new job or new client falls through. You will be ahead of the game and be able to recover quickly since you would have a list of contacts that you can reach out for help.
To repeat, the world is a different place today. We may never go back to being a job creating machine like we were in the mid 1990s or mid 2000s. There is too much competition globally. Professionals in places like China, India, Romania are just as smart as us and they are much more cost effective. You need to build a contingency plan for yourself and diversify what you can do and most of all, WHO YOU KNOW. Since it isn't what you know, it is WHO YOU KNOW that will lead you to your ultimate success.
The world is a different place today. There is a lot of competition out there, globally and even in your town. You may have the best product, be the best looking, are the best speaker, but if you do not know anybody, what good is it? The more people know about you the better chance you have to be more successful in what you do.
I am hoping my message goes out to the people that prefer to network when they only really have to, when they are unemployed, when their back is against the wall whether it is with their business or their personal life. One of the first statements I make to people when they mention they have a great new job, or landed the most lucrative client, is that they should network MORE THAN EVER. Networking is a great way to build a contingency plan if the great new job or new client falls through. You will be ahead of the game and be able to recover quickly since you would have a list of contacts that you can reach out for help.
To repeat, the world is a different place today. We may never go back to being a job creating machine like we were in the mid 1990s or mid 2000s. There is too much competition globally. Professionals in places like China, India, Romania are just as smart as us and they are much more cost effective. You need to build a contingency plan for yourself and diversify what you can do and most of all, WHO YOU KNOW. Since it isn't what you know, it is WHO YOU KNOW that will lead you to your ultimate success.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Why I network so much?
A lot of people ask me and sometimes criticize me why I go to so many networking events, why do I have a side business, or even why can't you do normal things like watch a movie on TV or something. Usually, I will sit and listen and note that the majority of those people still rely on the traditional way to be a professional.. You know, go to school, get good grades, get a job 9-5 and then go home and plop yourself on the couch and watch mindless TV. Then when that 9-5 job does not exist, they use the traditional ways to look for their next great opportunity and wait and wait... These people never think of a Plan B and new ways to come across their next professional opportunity. Anyone with children are without a doubt exempt from this but interesting enough the criticism I receive are from people that do not have children or are older.
In 2007, after leaving Staples and starting a new role at another company, I decided to network more. I got involved with my alma mater's Alumni Networking Exchange at Northeastern first then also started going to local networking events in Boston. After going to these events, I discovered the "other life" of small business and entrepreneurism. I found myself more passionate and interested in small business so I decided to look for my own. For months, I looked at franchising, starting a gym, network marketing etc... finally after networking with a fellow alum at Northeastern, I decided to give internet marketing and sell health/ wellness and online shopping to my customers. In 2008, I also started become interested in helping small businesses with their website and social media presence since without this in place, the business would suffer. In the meantime, I continued to network and build a personal roledex that has now grown today to over a thousand professionals in the Boston area. So now with a full-time job, two businesses, a family, I still continued to go to networking events and am meeting on average 5-10 professionals a week. All of this networking has made me much more of an on-going person, a more confident professional and also a very popular person in the Boston networking scene. But the biggest reason I network so much is that I am able to help make connections between two professionals. I may not get a good client or a job lead ( BTW, I am in between full-time jobs) at a networking event, but I feel a sense of satisfaction if I am able to connect two people in need of the connection.
In 2007, after leaving Staples and starting a new role at another company, I decided to network more. I got involved with my alma mater's Alumni Networking Exchange at Northeastern first then also started going to local networking events in Boston. After going to these events, I discovered the "other life" of small business and entrepreneurism. I found myself more passionate and interested in small business so I decided to look for my own. For months, I looked at franchising, starting a gym, network marketing etc... finally after networking with a fellow alum at Northeastern, I decided to give internet marketing and sell health/ wellness and online shopping to my customers. In 2008, I also started become interested in helping small businesses with their website and social media presence since without this in place, the business would suffer. In the meantime, I continued to network and build a personal roledex that has now grown today to over a thousand professionals in the Boston area. So now with a full-time job, two businesses, a family, I still continued to go to networking events and am meeting on average 5-10 professionals a week. All of this networking has made me much more of an on-going person, a more confident professional and also a very popular person in the Boston networking scene. But the biggest reason I network so much is that I am able to help make connections between two professionals. I may not get a good client or a job lead ( BTW, I am in between full-time jobs) at a networking event, but I feel a sense of satisfaction if I am able to connect two people in need of the connection.
Why Cloud Computing is Going Change Small Business.
My company, AIMC Business Solutions, is known for providing websites and social media solutions for small businesses. However, another IT related business seems to be tough to ignore these days. It is called Cloud Computing. Being in IT for over 20 years now mostly in enterprise related positions where the computing infrastructure is proprietary hardware running enterprise software like Oracle or DB2, I see how expensive both from a capital and operational perspective it is to simply keep the trains running. On top of that, you need to develop, train and keep your staff happy - another operational expense. So, what are your options? Well, if you are a small company (less than 50 employees) or a company that runs the bulk of their business using SaaS (software as a service) or web-based, where the applications are run via a browser or most of all you do not like to pay for infrastructure that is not used, then cloud computing is a great option to run your business. Imagine, paying for infrastructure services only when you need them, or being able to spin up some new hardware in days or even hours because you just signed a new client. If you have a standard legacy Data Center environment with staff, it could take months to get up and running. With a cloud environment w/ managed services, you can be up and running in time to meet the agile demands of your business.
If you like more information on utilizing the "cloud" to run your business's IT infrastructure, let us know. It is important to do a three-year analysis of what it will cost you versus building a standard data center w/ staff to determine if it fits your business model.
Finally, we like your comments so please reply.
Thank you.
If you like more information on utilizing the "cloud" to run your business's IT infrastructure, let us know. It is important to do a three-year analysis of what it will cost you versus building a standard data center w/ staff to determine if it fits your business model.
Finally, we like your comments so please reply.
Thank you.
How the Internet and Social Media has changed everything.
As I mentioned in the past, in addition to my full-time career in Information Technology, I started a couple of businesses in 2008. One is an online product brokerage franchise with Market America called All In My Cart (Link: http://www.allinmycart.com). The other is a website/social media company called AIMC Business Solutions (Link: http://www.aimcbizsolutions.com). Both endeavors rely heavily on social media and the internet to market the business and make connections to people I would have never met in person.
With a single Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter post, I can reach thousands of people in a matter of a minute. Of course, there are tools such as Tweetdeck, Hootsuite or maChatterbox that allow you to post once on all the major social media sites. The key with my businesses is to match product to people and not people to product so it is important to connect to people that need my service. With groups on sites such as Facebook or LinkedIn, you can target your potential future customers or business partners. This is a paradigm called one-to-one marketing in which my network marketing company is based on. Today, you absolute need to make sure your social media profile has complete and up-to-date information and that you are constantly networking to build your professional career. If you don't, you will be lost and considered that legacy application just like COBOL or that door-to-door salesman is today.
With a single Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter post, I can reach thousands of people in a matter of a minute. Of course, there are tools such as Tweetdeck, Hootsuite or maChatterbox that allow you to post once on all the major social media sites. The key with my businesses is to match product to people and not people to product so it is important to connect to people that need my service. With groups on sites such as Facebook or LinkedIn, you can target your potential future customers or business partners. This is a paradigm called one-to-one marketing in which my network marketing company is based on. Today, you absolute need to make sure your social media profile has complete and up-to-date information and that you are constantly networking to build your professional career. If you don't, you will be lost and considered that legacy application just like COBOL or that door-to-door salesman is today.
Why I started my network marketing business.
I have been in Information Technology and was always an introvert and was always gun shy to go after what I want whether it was regarding relationships or my professional career. Even though I was an introvert, I always tool care of myself and am in good shape. Since I am a gym rat, I am willing to try any supplement that would improve my performance at the gym. As with most supplements, my body could never absorb the nutrients until I met my business partner Sue, who introduced me to Torch Sports Nutrition and Isotonix. I started taking these supplements and noticed my performance and strength at the gym improving and I was generally feeling better and never getting sick. I also realized that I can sell these products and spread the wellness to my family and friends. This is when I discovered the Market America business. I looked into the business and its compensation plan and was intrigued since there was no other network marketing business like it, so I registered my business in 2008. When I started promoting my business, I also noticed that I was turning into more of an extrovert and was more confident talking to people. Market America's training was a major reason for my new professional view on life. I also planned to use the money earned for my retirement fund. My plan is to retire from corporate when I turn 50. Then again, in Information Technology, good luck getting a job after turning 50.
So in summary, the reason I have started my Market America business is the PRODUCTS, CAREER ASPIRATIONS and MY RETIREMENT. I also remembered that you always need a Plan B, and Market America is my Plan
So in summary, the reason I have started my Market America business is the PRODUCTS, CAREER ASPIRATIONS and MY RETIREMENT. I also remembered that you always need a Plan B, and Market America is my Plan
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