I am investing in an amazing network marketing business to build a residual income so I can build a great retirement fund and never have to worry about money again. I wanted to get that out of the way first.
Network marketing, what is it? It is simply marketing and selling a product or service using a network. Just like affiliate marketing is marketing a product or services using an affiliate company or direct mail marketing which is marketing a product or service using direct marketing. See, network marketing is not really a dirty word. It is another way to market and sell a product or service.
But why when I mention what I do, I hear "scam", "pyramid scheme" or that question, "Is it Amway?"
Good ol' Amway, the company that has had legal trouble in the past but is doing better now. However, Amway has ruined a great industry to a point that 97% of our population would not touch a network marketing company to build a residual income. They rather work a second job, start a very expensive business or simply buy a lottery ticket every day and get psyched when they break even. 97% of our population is entrenched with the legacy way of go to school, get a job, get laid off and stay away from those "scams". Nothing like living on the edge, huh?
Interesting enough, network marketing is a clever business model. It is truly like an employee owned company. There is no "salary limit" since it is a business. You can make $2 a year or $2 million. It depends on your ambition, the company you are affiliated with and your network. Network marketing has turned that driven inspirational professional to top 1% income status in America. For a small investment under $500 for all the tools you need and a great network of positive people, with the strong possibility of making more money that you can make at that job, why won't anyone jump at the opportunity. After all, I broke even with my business in the first month and it has been all profit every since. Why do people run away? Because of frigging Amway! I'll ask again, what is so illegal about a business model that is built for people to control their own destiny? As long as the company has products or services of their own and people don't get paid on recruiting, then it is NOT illegal. You know what is illegal? Your job. Ask yourself, who makes the most money in your company? The CEO and shareholders, period. Pyramid scheme. Only 3% of our population get it and are successful in network marketing.
So if you are past the Amway thing and want to learn more about network marketing, there are many resources to do so. Get the facts about any business you are looking into. Check the Better Business Bureau to see how legit a company is. I did the same when I looked into my business and it was the best move I have ever made. Since I started my business six years ago, I am more outgoing, confident, successful, wealthier and most of all I have the ability to help anyone that wants to control their own destiny. I have gone through three layoffs in my corporate career and I always thank God I have my Plan B to fall back on. So, just like when you took a chance asking someone out that resulted in a relationship, made that extra sales call to meet your numbers or got in front of people to tackle your fear of speaking, you never know how successful you can be, unless you try. Don't let the 97% control your own destiny. I didn't and life is just wonderful.
Saturday, July 12, 2014
Wednesday, June 11, 2014
Social Media in the Music Industry - Have Things Changed or What?
The days of the rock star are dead. You know, the rock star with the long hair, earrings, spinning their guitar around their neck and having groupies following them city to city. Back then, as a fan, you could not wait for that Van Halen, Michael Jackson or Duran Duran album. You always wondered what where they going to look like and had to wait till that new album came out to get your answer watching MTV. Success was measured on how many albums were sold and how many t-shirts were sold on tour. But besides shows and celebrity appearances, how did yesterday's rock star understand if their music is making a difference? MTV was basically one-way communication.
Fast forward to 2014, and yesterday's rock star has now become today's social media celebrity musician.
Instead of album sales, it is how much hits on their You Tube video which determines the artist's popularity.
Speaking of You Tube, it is simply the most powerful social media platform there is for musicians today. Musicians can post interviews, test new music, and engage with fans. Also You Tube is the new MTV. For a while there in the late 1990s into the early 2000s, music videos hit a lull and a lot of bands didn't think of the music video as a powerful promotional tool. With You Tube, it is now essential to have a music video for that hit single or it will not be a successful single.
Facebook, Instagram and Twitter are also powerful tools for promoting music. Why? Simply fan engagement. Today's successful music stars all focus on engagement. A musician will know if a new musical direction will work by asking fans to let them know what they think before they spend money on cutting an album. An example is if a song is posted on Facebook, a musician can review the comments and even ask for their fan's opinions on that guitar solo on one of their demo songs. A musician can also easily post pictures of their fans at shows via their mobile devices and make the fan's day. Pretty powerful stuff. Finally, Twitter can be used to announce that surprise appearance or that secret song they just wrote.
I can go on with other examples, but it is obvious that social media is the new channel for music today. Now if only today's musician not be too corporate and be more "rock star", we would be in a perfect world. With most bands, you cannot tell if the singer fronting a band is a banker or a musician. That said, unfortunately, the days of the rock star is dead, and the days of the social media star are now here.
Fast forward to 2014, and yesterday's rock star has now become today's social media celebrity musician.
Instead of album sales, it is how much hits on their You Tube video which determines the artist's popularity.
Speaking of You Tube, it is simply the most powerful social media platform there is for musicians today. Musicians can post interviews, test new music, and engage with fans. Also You Tube is the new MTV. For a while there in the late 1990s into the early 2000s, music videos hit a lull and a lot of bands didn't think of the music video as a powerful promotional tool. With You Tube, it is now essential to have a music video for that hit single or it will not be a successful single.
Facebook, Instagram and Twitter are also powerful tools for promoting music. Why? Simply fan engagement. Today's successful music stars all focus on engagement. A musician will know if a new musical direction will work by asking fans to let them know what they think before they spend money on cutting an album. An example is if a song is posted on Facebook, a musician can review the comments and even ask for their fan's opinions on that guitar solo on one of their demo songs. A musician can also easily post pictures of their fans at shows via their mobile devices and make the fan's day. Pretty powerful stuff. Finally, Twitter can be used to announce that surprise appearance or that secret song they just wrote.
I can go on with other examples, but it is obvious that social media is the new channel for music today. Now if only today's musician not be too corporate and be more "rock star", we would be in a perfect world. With most bands, you cannot tell if the singer fronting a band is a banker or a musician. That said, unfortunately, the days of the rock star is dead, and the days of the social media star are now here.
Wednesday, June 4, 2014
My Love For Boston
There is no city in the world that means more to me than Boston. It all started at Northeastern University back in the early 1990s. I was only one of two people in my high school class at Cranston High School East in Rhode Island that made the move to that big city 50 miles to the north to begin my journey into the world of college and eventually the professional world. I remembered my first week in Boston, meeting new people, walking around my new city and attending orientation when Northeastern President Ryder mentioned "Look to Your Left, then Look to Your Right speech" where chances are, the people you are next to, may not make the vigorous life of college. His statement held true considering that none of my roommates in my first semester graduated college with me. However, what I remembered most, was those walks around this great city.
Boston is one of the most walkable cities in America, but for a former Rhode Islander, it is an overwhelming place with the hustle and bustle, the subway, the diversity, and the taxicabs all over the place. Now that I have lived here for over 20 years I realize that it is a small city. Take me anywhere in Boston, and I cannot get lost, unless it is in the maze of the financial district. Don't get me wrong, some of the larger cities I have been to like New York, Chicago, LA and overseas in London, Paris and Munich are great cities with similar qualities of Boston, but I would not live in any of these cities since they do not have the charm or skills of its sports teams.
This past winter really tested my willingness to stay in Boston. With my sudden career change, the brutal winter weather and a trip to sunny Florida, I was almost convinced to pack it up and head south. I thought about it for a while and then came to my senses. After the tragedy of the Marathon Bombing and seeing how this city came together. After the Red Sox came from nowhere and won the World Series. Most of all, after all the new people I have met and the great friends I have, I could never leave this city. The weather is still a little shaky but think about it, if everyone moved to that perfect weather place, San Diego would be the biggest city in America. Of course it is expensive to live here, but again think about it, there is a reason. Of course, you can buy a house in Cleveland or Detroit for under $100k, but would you want to live there?
I'll take Boston any day. Sports, history, diversity, smart people, pubs, scenery and my friends. I am not going anywhere.
Boston is one of the most walkable cities in America, but for a former Rhode Islander, it is an overwhelming place with the hustle and bustle, the subway, the diversity, and the taxicabs all over the place. Now that I have lived here for over 20 years I realize that it is a small city. Take me anywhere in Boston, and I cannot get lost, unless it is in the maze of the financial district. Don't get me wrong, some of the larger cities I have been to like New York, Chicago, LA and overseas in London, Paris and Munich are great cities with similar qualities of Boston, but I would not live in any of these cities since they do not have the charm or skills of its sports teams.
This past winter really tested my willingness to stay in Boston. With my sudden career change, the brutal winter weather and a trip to sunny Florida, I was almost convinced to pack it up and head south. I thought about it for a while and then came to my senses. After the tragedy of the Marathon Bombing and seeing how this city came together. After the Red Sox came from nowhere and won the World Series. Most of all, after all the new people I have met and the great friends I have, I could never leave this city. The weather is still a little shaky but think about it, if everyone moved to that perfect weather place, San Diego would be the biggest city in America. Of course it is expensive to live here, but again think about it, there is a reason. Of course, you can buy a house in Cleveland or Detroit for under $100k, but would you want to live there?
I'll take Boston any day. Sports, history, diversity, smart people, pubs, scenery and my friends. I am not going anywhere.
Wednesday, May 28, 2014
Let take me take a #SELFIE - The Social Evolution - A Historical Look
There is a popular song out now by the Chainsmokers called #SELFIE. It pretty much sums up the social culture today where you would go into any public place and everyone has their smartphone in their hand texting about what they are doing that night or generally about nothing at all. The texting and selfie craze is getting out of control and is destroying normal interaction between people in public places. However, this is not a new thing. Every decade had its own version of #SELFIE. Let's take a look.
So I was born in 1969, so I will start with the 1970s. In the 1970s, the popular culture was Sex, Drugs and Rock n Roll. People interaction meant going to a club, getting a little high with a little help from their friends, chainsmoking and listening to some long drawn out rock and roll songs from Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin and Yes. The sex part was evident with free love and the case of looking for someone to make out with at the end of the night. This was the decade of no technology so you had to talk to people. Some of the best stories came from the clubs. The #SELFIES consisted of turning that old Polaroid camera around and hope that you take a straight picture after one too many vodka tonics. The 1970s lets just say is a classic time.
Then we move onto the 1980s., my favorite decade. After all I was a teenager and it is a time in your life to embrace the popular culture to the fullest. This was the decade of great alternative rock and gender bending. Guys wore makeup, had long hair and girls wore those leggins. It was probably the best decade to take those selfies since there was a lot of color and individuality. After all from a music perspective, it was the decade of Duran Duran, Culture Club and my favorite heavy metal, think Motley Crue, Poison and Van Halen. People interaction, like the 1970s meant, you go to clubs. There were still no cell phones except those mega bricks in the later half of the decade, but who wanted to carry those. A #SELFIE was more like taking a picture of the people you were with instead of taking a picture of yourself, since everyone looked so interesting.
In 1991, someone happened that killed the great 1980s culture. It was called grunge rock. Thanks Nirvana. The songs got darker, people started staying inside and if you did go to a club, it meant slam dancing into people to angry music like Nine Inch Nails, Stabbing Westward and Korn. It was the decade of least people interaction, why? it was when email was the main way to communicate. You probably did not want to take a selfie since you probably had a black eye and no makeup. This was the decade where the internet became mainstream and going online was the main way people interacted. Yes there was email and beepers. Yes, beepers, remember those? It was the start of carrying about those devices in your pocket so anyone can get in touch with you anywhere you are. Social interaction was determine on how much black clothes you can wear in one week, yes,the social angst decade. Don't talk to me!
Going into the new decade meant the advent of cell phones and eventually smart phones. Everything changed? Why? Since those little devices have cameras now. By the latter half of the 2000s, all of a sudden those cameras tied to the internet to create what we know as the new social media interaction. After the downward spiral of the 1990s, the 2000s and 2010s were a welcome change in the social evolution. People got out more and interacted, but in a different way, online. At first, it was pretty cool to post pictures on social sites and yes, taking a selfie. But that was in 2010-2012. Now in 2014, it is out of control especially when even the president is taking selfies and listening to EDM Music Rock and Roll as you knew it, is dead. Thanks Avicii and Daft Punk!
So remember back in the 1970s, chain smoking was the most popular activity and now in 2014, the most popular activity is taking that #SELFIE. Wow, this little old group called the Chainsmokers knew something when they named their group tying the 1970s culture to today's culture. What will be the next group name with the latest craze? I am open to suggestions. Now to go to Starbucks so I can join everyone for a meeting of not looking at each other and but texting each other about how I need to take a #SELFIE.
So I was born in 1969, so I will start with the 1970s. In the 1970s, the popular culture was Sex, Drugs and Rock n Roll. People interaction meant going to a club, getting a little high with a little help from their friends, chainsmoking and listening to some long drawn out rock and roll songs from Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin and Yes. The sex part was evident with free love and the case of looking for someone to make out with at the end of the night. This was the decade of no technology so you had to talk to people. Some of the best stories came from the clubs. The #SELFIES consisted of turning that old Polaroid camera around and hope that you take a straight picture after one too many vodka tonics. The 1970s lets just say is a classic time.
Then we move onto the 1980s., my favorite decade. After all I was a teenager and it is a time in your life to embrace the popular culture to the fullest. This was the decade of great alternative rock and gender bending. Guys wore makeup, had long hair and girls wore those leggins. It was probably the best decade to take those selfies since there was a lot of color and individuality. After all from a music perspective, it was the decade of Duran Duran, Culture Club and my favorite heavy metal, think Motley Crue, Poison and Van Halen. People interaction, like the 1970s meant, you go to clubs. There were still no cell phones except those mega bricks in the later half of the decade, but who wanted to carry those. A #SELFIE was more like taking a picture of the people you were with instead of taking a picture of yourself, since everyone looked so interesting.
In 1991, someone happened that killed the great 1980s culture. It was called grunge rock. Thanks Nirvana. The songs got darker, people started staying inside and if you did go to a club, it meant slam dancing into people to angry music like Nine Inch Nails, Stabbing Westward and Korn. It was the decade of least people interaction, why? it was when email was the main way to communicate. You probably did not want to take a selfie since you probably had a black eye and no makeup. This was the decade where the internet became mainstream and going online was the main way people interacted. Yes there was email and beepers. Yes, beepers, remember those? It was the start of carrying about those devices in your pocket so anyone can get in touch with you anywhere you are. Social interaction was determine on how much black clothes you can wear in one week, yes,the social angst decade. Don't talk to me!
Going into the new decade meant the advent of cell phones and eventually smart phones. Everything changed? Why? Since those little devices have cameras now. By the latter half of the 2000s, all of a sudden those cameras tied to the internet to create what we know as the new social media interaction. After the downward spiral of the 1990s, the 2000s and 2010s were a welcome change in the social evolution. People got out more and interacted, but in a different way, online. At first, it was pretty cool to post pictures on social sites and yes, taking a selfie. But that was in 2010-2012. Now in 2014, it is out of control especially when even the president is taking selfies and listening to EDM Music Rock and Roll as you knew it, is dead. Thanks Avicii and Daft Punk!
So remember back in the 1970s, chain smoking was the most popular activity and now in 2014, the most popular activity is taking that #SELFIE. Wow, this little old group called the Chainsmokers knew something when they named their group tying the 1970s culture to today's culture. What will be the next group name with the latest craze? I am open to suggestions. Now to go to Starbucks so I can join everyone for a meeting of not looking at each other and but texting each other about how I need to take a #SELFIE.
Monday, May 19, 2014
Why are Some People Afraid of the Word Free?
Have you ever come across one of those advertisements for something free? What do you normally do, go for it? Run the other way? or think about it until you are blue in the face and then the free offer expires right in front of you?
What amazes me is how afraid some people are of free stuff. You know, that free sample in the supermarket, or that free report from Social Media Monthly or even that free car wash at the gas station. The best one of all is an offer for a free account on an online shopping site where you can earn cash back. Yes, a free account on a website where you can make money for shopping online. Some responses where, "I am not sure I want to earn cash back for shopping online" or "what is the catch?". Really? Is it a trust thing or is there nothing upstairs? This one is legitimate.
Perhaps we are in a world where some people of tentative of taking the bait of free stuff thinking there is a catch or it will lead to pressure to purchase something. In some respects, they are right. Am example are those Robert Kiyosaki Rich Dad Poor Dad free seminars. Be careful of those. I have gone to a few of them, and every time they lead to a three day training that they pressure you to purchase. In the middle of the session, they ask the people that will be attending the training to go to the back of the room to get their prize while the "cheapskates" stay seated in the seminar room. Ok, in this case, I can see why some people are tentative of free stuff.
My suggestion is to do your homework and research the company that offers free stuff whether it is a class, a social media competitive analysis for your business, or that free coffee with a purchase of a donut. Check out the company with the Better Business Bureau and note if there were any complaints specific with any free offerings. Knowledge is power and builds trust in a company. Always think of the value of the offering for yourself or your business and always remember, nothing in the world is free. Maybe this is why some people are afraid of the world free.
What amazes me is how afraid some people are of free stuff. You know, that free sample in the supermarket, or that free report from Social Media Monthly or even that free car wash at the gas station. The best one of all is an offer for a free account on an online shopping site where you can earn cash back. Yes, a free account on a website where you can make money for shopping online. Some responses where, "I am not sure I want to earn cash back for shopping online" or "what is the catch?". Really? Is it a trust thing or is there nothing upstairs? This one is legitimate.
Perhaps we are in a world where some people of tentative of taking the bait of free stuff thinking there is a catch or it will lead to pressure to purchase something. In some respects, they are right. Am example are those Robert Kiyosaki Rich Dad Poor Dad free seminars. Be careful of those. I have gone to a few of them, and every time they lead to a three day training that they pressure you to purchase. In the middle of the session, they ask the people that will be attending the training to go to the back of the room to get their prize while the "cheapskates" stay seated in the seminar room. Ok, in this case, I can see why some people are tentative of free stuff.
My suggestion is to do your homework and research the company that offers free stuff whether it is a class, a social media competitive analysis for your business, or that free coffee with a purchase of a donut. Check out the company with the Better Business Bureau and note if there were any complaints specific with any free offerings. Knowledge is power and builds trust in a company. Always think of the value of the offering for yourself or your business and always remember, nothing in the world is free. Maybe this is why some people are afraid of the world free.
Tuesday, May 13, 2014
Why it is not good to go cheap on your website for your business.
I have had my own IT, Social Media and Website business for a few years now and have met thousands of people through my extensive networking in Greater Boston. About 75% of the people I meet either have their own main business, a side (part-time) business or are in sales and marketing. About 50% of those people have their own website or are working on their own website.
A website is the focal point of your business. Not the Facebook page, Pinterest page, your website is the main source of revenue, interaction with clients/customers and where people land to learn about what you do. The first page of your website is the most important page. It is also the page where you would want the connections to take action whether it is to sign up for a webinar, purchase a product or service or simply contact you. Your website should be hosted on a secure platform that allows you to change the content as much as you want. The buzz word is content and without changing it, you will never get on that first page of Google. Your website should also be on a platform that allows you to grow your business to meet your financial and customer goals. Finally, your website should have the capabilities to be able to reach out to potential clients in a professional manner. Think email marketing or outbound marketing.
So why do the majority of business owners go cheap on their website? When I meet professionals at events, the typical answer on who is building their website is that they are eithlarge company that could care less about your business. In all respects, your business website is the most important marketing investment you are going to make, so why not spend your marketing dollars wisely and build a great website that your connections will remember you for? In today's world is all about being online, even if your business has a brick and mortar presence.
er doing it themselves, having an intern or their cousin build it and hosting it under their desk in their living room or for heavens sake, they got sold one of those expensive SEO/Website packages from some
Finally, when you are in business, get your website up and running as quickly as possible, build it with the take action on the first page, and don't look for that free labor or make it your side project. What will happen is that potential clients will not take your business seriously and then you may be out of business.
A website is the focal point of your business. Not the Facebook page, Pinterest page, your website is the main source of revenue, interaction with clients/customers and where people land to learn about what you do. The first page of your website is the most important page. It is also the page where you would want the connections to take action whether it is to sign up for a webinar, purchase a product or service or simply contact you. Your website should be hosted on a secure platform that allows you to change the content as much as you want. The buzz word is content and without changing it, you will never get on that first page of Google. Your website should also be on a platform that allows you to grow your business to meet your financial and customer goals. Finally, your website should have the capabilities to be able to reach out to potential clients in a professional manner. Think email marketing or outbound marketing.
So why do the majority of business owners go cheap on their website? When I meet professionals at events, the typical answer on who is building their website is that they are eithlarge company that could care less about your business. In all respects, your business website is the most important marketing investment you are going to make, so why not spend your marketing dollars wisely and build a great website that your connections will remember you for? In today's world is all about being online, even if your business has a brick and mortar presence.
Finally, when you are in business, get your website up and running as quickly as possible, build it with the take action on the first page, and don't look for that free labor or make it your side project. What will happen is that potential clients will not take your business seriously and then you may be out of business.
Wednesday, May 7, 2014
Content is King in the Marketing World, Really.
I have been involved with social media and marketing for about six years now in addition to my core career in Information Technology and has always heard a consistent message from marketing experts that the content on your internet platforms determines your success on the web and in business. They say content is the fuel for your marketing engine. So why do some company's avoid this stated fact and stick with those static web platforms.
There are three types of content. There is high content which is paid content such as trade blogs. There is medium level content such as a question/answer forum for a product or service a company provides. Then there is low content which is user generated. Medium and low content have a 60-80% direct referral rate where this type of content has the potential to generate the most leads for your business. This is pretty impressive but it doesn't initially lead to a sale/deal. With all of the information on the web and the intense research people do today, it can take up to ten pieces of content before a purchasing decision is made. So, what does that mean? By refreshing your content on your web platform, you keep your potential customers engaged, and engaged potential customers would become real customers.
So, just like the old SEO buzzword, you will continue to hear that you will need keep up your web platforms with fresh content. A great example of a platform that is considered the content king is the UR Business Network. Content is refreshed almost hourly on the site and the result is the site gets over 500 thousand hits a month. Not bad for a startup company. Content is king in the marketing world, really.
There are three types of content. There is high content which is paid content such as trade blogs. There is medium level content such as a question/answer forum for a product or service a company provides. Then there is low content which is user generated. Medium and low content have a 60-80% direct referral rate where this type of content has the potential to generate the most leads for your business. This is pretty impressive but it doesn't initially lead to a sale/deal. With all of the information on the web and the intense research people do today, it can take up to ten pieces of content before a purchasing decision is made. So, what does that mean? By refreshing your content on your web platform, you keep your potential customers engaged, and engaged potential customers would become real customers.
So, just like the old SEO buzzword, you will continue to hear that you will need keep up your web platforms with fresh content. A great example of a platform that is considered the content king is the UR Business Network. Content is refreshed almost hourly on the site and the result is the site gets over 500 thousand hits a month. Not bad for a startup company. Content is king in the marketing world, really.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)