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Figure Out YOU in Business!

Figure Out YOU in Business!

by | Entrepreneurship

Figure out how to be YOU in business. 

Everyone tells business owners what they should do! We get plenty of input. What I think we need is silence and listen to our gut! Many have great instruction. But it can leave us with the feeling of never enough.  Not doing enough, not good enough, not smart enough. And we can compare our work to those on a different level serving a different market.

I know as a person creating websites that I have at times compared myself to those who have taught me much of what I do. Through the use of Facebook groups, I have learned from people around the world who I have come to admire.  But it’s important

Drawing comparisons never help a business owner to become their best.

The only way to learn is by doing.  At some point, you have to put yourself out there to be seen. But if you love what you do and know why you are doing it, other’s opinions fall away. I have recently seen this happen.  At first, I thought this was more relevant if you are in a creative, artistic field. But no, it is relevant for everyone in small business.  Because to be successful in business, you must be creative to standout!

Creativity is intelligence having fun.

~ Albert Einstein

Other people will have opinions about your business. And not everyone is the right fit for you. But if you know WHY you are making the decisions you are, you are on the right track.

I have looked at the year ahead and know where I want to end up. We are starting out 208 and my decisions are all based on building up this business. That understanding comes into my day to day decisions.  And I feel comfortable.  Hope you do too!

Hello 2018!!! Ready for a Great New Year…

by | Website Development

I have great expectations for you.

Much comes out of lessons learned in 2017.  Lessons that will help me in my business for the new year. What have you learned in 2017 that you can take into the year ahead?  I believe focusing on (sometimes hard) lessons learned, gives excitement for starting a new year!

I now know how to do things pertaining to business and to life better!  All the results of understanding failure and developing better work processes and balance.

And it is time to refocus after two weeks of special times with family and friends and leaving everything about my business behind!  All fresh and rejuvenated.  Time to transition into all the promise that is possible for 2018.

One lesson I have learned in life is to enjoy where you are at. Don’t be one place and let your head be another. Be grateful for the day you are in!

 

GETTING BACK TO PROJECTS

What are you excited to get back to as you start the new year?

For me this means, further development of two membership websites, going live with some professional websites, creating a big event website filled with photographs, my first large retail/service business, and preparation for scheduled new appointments set for new incoming projects.  And especially important this year is the creation of a new wedding website for a daughter and future son-in-law.

This is time for PRODUCTION.  And production in my business means creativity. Making websites that don’t resemble each other. Starting from a blank page and choosing images, fonts, colors, writing text in a way that connects to client’s ideal customers.  Finding and using the right tools to create websites that exceed my client’s expectations. That is the goal. Exceeding expectations in terms of attractiveness, functionality and with the ability to grow the site with the growth of the business.

What projects are you most excited about?  Look at the week, month, and year. They all bring different blessings.

 

THINKING ABOUT MY CLIENTS

Developing relationships with clients has been a learning experience for me. 

Being responsive to their needs in the development process is part of why I enjoy this business. In almost every website project, the site is developed in partnership with the client. We become a team.

Before taking on a project, I spend some time in a “discovery” phase to learn about the needs of the client, determine if this is a good fit and define expectations. I have found many have had a negative experience in the past with website design and development. I am interested in what went right and wrong so as not to repeat that experience.

Communication and trust is key to success in my industry. Clients often are not aware of all that goes into a website. Listening to needs and being clear with expectations are a focus for 2018!

My product is the development of a website. My reason is to help clients grow businesses. What I sell is the ability to help clients develop relationships online with the people that are important to them. My challenge is to figure out a unique way that sets them apart from their competition through their website (their hub of all their online marketing). This comes best done with clarity and simplicity (not easy to do) in our world that bombards us with too much information. 

I want my clients to know, like and trust me….and I feel the same for them!

 

SHARING MY BUSINESS ONLINE

Why do I share so much of my business online?

My clients share similar challenges as I do.  These are issues that I explore with my clients. No matter what size business, there are common experiences that all business owners deal with to succeed.

IT’S NOT ABOUT TELLING HOW GREAT YOU ARE!  

The website is more than an online pamphlet and listing of services. It is their most powerful marketing tool. I have experienced the results of that myself and through my customers. People do respond to websites because of the personality put forth. The website puts you in a relationship with your clients. You do this by being you. Not telling how great you are. It is your availability to solve your client’s or customer’s problems.

Your customers need or want something and through your website (and marketing), you provide the solutions.  Reaching those customers is imperative in the development of your best website.

 

WHY DO CLIENTS CHOOSE YOU?

Building on your natural strengths, why do your customers choose you?  Don’t spend too much time focusing on your competition. Be creative and do things in your style. It makes you vulnerable. Can be a little scary. But share your values and what makes you tick.

KEEPING LANGUAGE SIMPLE

You are an expert in your field of knowledge.

There is a temptation to impress. But what happens more often is that you lose people when they don’t understand. Become wise in what your customers need to understand and what they are comfortable leaving in your hands. Keep working on your content (copy, images, and all)  Make sure it is easy to find answers to questions. Easy to know next steps. Make people comfortable with contacting you.

And your website will work for you!!!

 

 

 

In 2014, God Closed a Door

by | Uncategorized

I don’t like to let go.  Nobody does. But I think I am very high on the scale if it is something I am passionate and care deeply about in my life. I can become haunted. I strive to make sense of it. I start advocating in my mind like I am an attorney in court. And I am willing to fight. What Happens When God Closes the Door People will step away also.  You find yourself with few advocates. That is when you need those very close relationships that stick like a spouse, another family member, or longtime friend. Never forget how important those relationships are to you. My door closed in March of 2014. I had worked for six years as the Satellite Director of the MI-SBDC. The door closing had nothing to do with the merits of this organization. It had everything to do with where God knew I would be at my best.  That is what my faith has taught me. My Reaction I had so many feelings wrapped up together: hurt, fear, anger, confusion and the list goes on. But the reality was I was unhappy in my position for a very long time. Looking back, my biggest problem was fear. I enjoyed being in the working world, and I didn’t want to leave it. I had left before for many reasons, but the main one was to be home with my children. And I knew how hard it is to return and find a job. My First Year Instead of taking time and planning, I jumped right into starting a business (within weeks). That decision was based on fear. People thought I would retire from the workplace. That is the last thing I wanted. I am lucky. I have a supportive husband who could provide for me financially. I would not be doing this today without that support. I also benefited from his continual encouragement.  This summer I was contemplating quitting. But he kept saying, no, keep going, you are doing well. And since then, my business has taken off. From the last quarter of 2017, I project I will make more money in 2018 that I ever have in my life. And that has built my confidence which has a ripple effect in bringing in more jobs. What I Love to Do I genuinely like to build websites for people. I like to get it right for them. And when that happens, I am on top of the world. I have learned in business not to follow what everyone else is doing. I am not building an email list. I don’t need that many clients. I just need the right ones. I play with Facebook. It keeps people aware I am still doing what I do. But it has not brought clients. My success has come from ignoring all that “experts” say a solo-entrepreneur should do. It has come from being willing to learn, create a good product, and being led by my faith and the people closest to me. Encouragement I am an “encourager” at heart. Maybe it is because I know how much it can mean. Life is full of ups and downs. As I watch people who I admire, I see them battle through the downs of life. And I see them making a difference in areas where they are gifted. It helps to have the opportunity to see this. Life can appear easy through the perception of Facebook or the smiles you see at networking events. And those smiles are sincere. But I don’t believe life is “easy” for anyone. You have to battle through. But when God closes a door, trust that it is right (as much as you can). I wish my Christian friends a very Merry Christmas! And for those of other faiths, hope this holiday season brings much meaning and happiness to you.

A THANKFUL HEART

by | Personal

It’s time to recognize the real blessings in life. Here are mine as I think about next Thursday:

 

EMPTY NEST = TIME TO ENJOY THE PREPARATIONS

I love my home. Usually, the comment I get from visitors is that it is very comfortable. It’s filled with memories and it is unique. It is ours. Looking back, my husband and I enjoyed our time raising our four children here. This Thanksgiving we are welcoming our three daughters back home.

 Most of all, I treasure the fact that the “girls” are best friends.

 

SHARING EXPERIENCES

Thanksgiving morning we will be in Ann Arbor for the 5K Turkey Trot. The participants: Kerry, Hayley, Alison and Steve, and me!  My husband has been telling people I am in training over the past month. And he says that knowing it is semi-true! Unlike him, I have not kept it my highest priority. Sometimes it sunk pretty low. BUT, my inspiration continues on an upward curve which is good.

Most of all, I treasure the fact that this will be a Thanksgiving morning to be remembered.

 

LIVING LIFE

In 2005, I went deeper into my Christian faith than ever before. Being tested by life in those years, I dove deeply into the Bible. My strongest and most fervent prayer was for God to make me who He created me to be. I was brought up in a different generation than more recent generations filled with expectations of what the right thing was to do. I followed those expectations. Today, I believe very strongly that other people can’t tell you what you should be or what decisions you should make to have your best life. That is your responsibility to find.

And finally, I treasure the fact that life continues to be filled with meaningful relationships and opportunities!

 

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

 

Three Ways to Work Your Website to Get Results

by | Website Development

You are delighted with a new, modern website!  It fits you. Images, colors, fonts, copy all tell who you are and what you value. And it reflects your business and what it is like to do business with you.  There has been much work put into the project of getting it right.

Some say it is your “24 hour a day employee”. But not if your website sits there stagnate on the web.  Google likes activity. And technology is sophisticated enough to understand where there is relevant quality content. Gone are the days of tricking Google by creating fake backlinks. The best SEO approach is to provide true quality to your reader. Welcome the visitor to your site and let them know what to do (call to actions). Start a conversation with the visitor to begin the process of building a relationship!

 

WORK YOUR SITE

 

UPDATE ON A REGULAR BASIS

What is your strategy to keep yourself updating your website on a regular basis? Is there news that will build interest in what is happening day to day? Are you an authority on a topic that you can share? Could there be a regularly updated note from the President on your website? What can you do that you can reasonably fit into your schedule?

Jerry Seinfeld decided to spend a certain amount of time everyday writing jokes. He would X off each day on the calendar to keep the string of that commitment going. When we do something repeatedly, it gets easier and we get better. Taking an hour to add content to your website weekly is the first way to “work” your site.

 

CONNECT AND SHARE THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA AND EMAIL MARKETING

Understand the need for “sharing” your pages and posts from your website on social media. It drives traffic to your website.

And benefit from sharing others posts. I am now in the habit of sharing many blog posts. Some are tutorials I want to save for myself to look at them later in more detail. I share them on my personal page but limit the visibility to just myself. It’s an easy way for me to get back to them. And it is helpful to the writer of the post because it keeps me connected which can translate into purchases.

Sharing tells people who you are, what you value, what you know and what makes you laugh. It is the beginning of answering the question…are you someone I want to do business with.

 

DEVELOP CLIENT/CUSTOMER ONLY PARTS OF YOUR WEBSITE

Since making two membership websites for associations this fall, I am exploring ways to make this a tool for small businesses including my own business. Create something of value designed solely for loyal customers. A place for access to resources that have been accumulated. A place that I can share new trends in website design that can easily be incorporated into the website I already created for them that would require little time to add.

Looking for ways to deepen the relationship with best customers!

 

Your website isn’t your 24 hour a day employee if it isn’t active! Think about what you can do that fits your personality, interests and strengths. Can be as easy as sharing images in posts!  Or content can be created from something of interest after attending a business event.  The end result is that you are telling Google and other search engines that your website is working for you!