let’s all hold hands and market…

As a professional marketer and partner in a Marketing Agency (Shameless Plug for ThreeSixty Solutions), I have re-packaged my client engagements to make up for a tightening pocketbook, exacerbated by a slowing economy. The concept is not new, but by gaging the reaction from my clients, it has been all but forgotten… It is a simple and easy way to make your marketing campaigns meaningful and useful. What is it? It is a little thing called co-operative campaign marketing…

Using co-op, you can transform your marketing efforts to compete as a major player for your target market. Allow me to give you an example…

Let’s say you own a full-service car wash and you wanted to produce a direct mail campaign to your target market, but had a limited budget that would only allow you to send out a very small amount, let’s say your budget is $2,000 for this mailout. Sure, you could do quite a bit with that budget, but you could also opt to put it on steroids! Odds are, you have contacts in complementary businesses (note: I said “complementary,” not “competitive”).

I’m sure you know a windshield/glass repair company, a mechanic, a window tinting service, and perhaps even an audio video vehicle specialist. That’s 4 other businesses who would likely be targeting the same audience, and are not likely to cut into your car wash business. You would go to them and see if they were interested in pooling their money together in a way that your $2,000 campaign becomes a $10,000 campaign. Now we are talking. Imagine how much more effective you can be, and how much larger your audience has become. And remember, this is an exponential growth - your campaign is not going to be 5 times greater, but 10 times greater. Why? Because in the business of marketing - higher volume equals per unit savings. By creating an economy of scale, you have essentially taken a “mom and pop campaign” and turned it into a “big business campaign.”

Some Ad agencies, like ThreeSixty Solutions, are capable of putting these campaigns together for you in a fast and simple manner. I know that, from a personal standpoint, I enjoy working with small businesses and doing campaigns in a coordinated effort. Co-op allows small businesses with less means to be able to use the professional services of a full-service firm without breaking the bank when times are tough!

KNOWING “IT”

Do you know what your “it” is? Odds are, you don’t. Half the time I don’t know either, but we should all take this practice very seriously. It is what separates the great from the average! I realize this appears to make little sense, so allow me to shed light with a brief story…

One of my great mentors said something that blew me away. He pointed out to me that there are two worlds: the ordinary world, in which 99% of the population resides; and then there’s the extraordinary world, in which those who accomplish massive success live some of the time. He told me that his goal is to live in the extraordinary world as much as he possibly can. To this, I asked - HOW??? How do we live in the extraordinary world?

There are 2 simple things we must do to achieve our great potential and live in the extraordinary world. First, we take all the common rules that define our normal path and existence and turn them completely upside down, as there are no rules in the extraordinary world. Second, you must know what “it” is that you want. How true! Have you ever made a goal for yourself that did not define an outcome? I know I have, and guess what? That goal was never accomplished. Let’s take our health goals that we all make around New Years… We set out to lose weight and usually by the 10th of January we have all but forgotten our goal. This is because of failure to specifically define an outcome. If we had set our goal to lose x pounds by x date and to have a specific outcome such as clothing size, energy, etc. in mind, we would be much more likely to succeed.

This holds equally true to entrepreneurs. I challenge you to take 1 hour and define the things you want in life and be specific. What kinds of goals will fulfill your dreams? This is not to be taken lightly. Don’t spend your time working out a plan right now, just define your “it.” The plan will reveal itself when the time is right.

When the Wright Brothers set out to build an aircraft, they had this “it” in mind, which is why they succeeded where thousands of others failed before them. The concept of flight was not new. Many bright people set out to create a contraption that could fly, but they got stuck on the “how,” and could not get past the conventional rules that defined their paths. The Wright brothers started with: “we are going to build an engine powered craft that will fly” and allowed the steps to reveal themselves.

Put some faith in yourself and find your “it.”

You have nothing to lose by making your list now!

Sure, we are hearing this hard-luck news everyday. Wall Street giants going down, job losses, financial disasters, panic… Be afraid or take advantage? That is what I pose to you.

Take a look at the times and identify the upsides. This is your moment. You have little to lose by taking the power into your own hands as a renegade entrepreneur!

If the thought of this scares you, guess what?

It isn’t any easier to start a business during times of prosperity…

Here are 5 reasons you should be your own boss now…

1. Competition - with fear of a sluggish economy comes reduced competition. Larger companies in your field will be unable to compete with your ability to turn on a dime, as they make drastic leaps to control costs and inflated overhead expenses. Other potential entrants will fear the market and will avoid launch. You, on the other hand, will go forward with full knowledge that there is no better time than now!
2. Creative Bootstrapping - when you enter a rocky terrain, you are much more likely to watch your footing and take careful, calculated steps. In other words, when times are trying - you will think twice before making risky decisions with your capital. Take advantage of the fact that you are small and nimble.
3. Think Low Cost - slowing job growth, tight financing options, and limited resources mean that everyone is feeling the squeeze. This is the best time to secure low cost arrangements for your overhead. Whether you are negotiating leases, securing vendor partnerships, or looking for talented team members, your launch will cost a lot less today than it will when the market picks up.
4. The Outsource Principle - if your venture is focused on B2B markets, this is your chance to land a big deal with a large customer. Think about it. This is the time that large corporate entities are reigning in and putting controls on internal expenses. Whether it is reducing specific departments or eliminating various operations, they will still have a need to fulfill relevant business projects and will outsource to smaller firms. Marketing firms, for example, do quite well in hard times, as large companies cut out internal marketing functions… This is your chance to help them save money while fulfilling their needs with your service.
5. Fear = Pain… Pain = Opportunity - Sound horrible? Sure, but it is the truth. When the economy suffers, fear reigns. We are intelligent enough to identify the pain behind the fears. Remember, those who help ease the pain of the masses prosper.

-

Emerson said: “You become what you think about most of the time.”

Earl Nightingale said: “You become what you think about all day long.”

One of the world’s most famous anthropologists was Margaret Mead. She spent her life studying different cultures. Dr. Mead called this concept of ‘what you think about, you bring about’ the greatest breakthrough in the field of human potential in the entire history of mankind.

Much of our outer world is controlled by, or is merely a reflection of, our inner thought world. In computer language, they have an expression, GIGO, which means Garbage In, Garbage Out. It also can stand for Good In, Good Out. As far as we know, this is how animals are programmed. They have little chance to change their instincts and responses. Their learning, growth and development is controlled to a large extent by their environment.

The good news is that we, as humans, have far greater opportunity. What that means for us is that everything we have learned, we can choose to un-learn.

That means you can de-program everything that has been programmed into you and overwrite it with new programming of your choosing. This is a key concept in managing yourself, in helping others towards peak-performance work environment, in raising happy, healthy self-confident children. So, the good news is that if you don’t like the way your ‘thinking machine’ thinks … you CAN change it!

Some have even said, the way you talk to yourself and use your “Magic Thinking Machine” is really one of the key controllers of your life. Many believe your brain is the Number One, master program of your subconscious mind!

Now, you know that a computer operating system is the software infrastructure that is responsible for the management and coordination of your computer’s activities. Well, in the same fashion, the way you run your human operating system, your Magic Thinking Machine, will control everything that you produce.

Everything is determined, modified, or effected in some way by your inside operating system. Human thought and the way we choose to use it, is a powerful God given gift.

Here’s an example of how this powerful process can change lives:

A boy was sent to his room and told by his father, “You hurt your mother’s feelings. Go to your room and think about that.” The boy did think about it. He thought, “Wow, I must be pretty powerful if I can hurt my parent’s feelings.” Then he thought, “Uh-oh! If I can hurt my mother’s feelings, then that must mean others can hurt my feelings.”

It was many years later before he discovered the real truth. He came across a famous quote from First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt: “Nobody can make me feel bad without my permission.”

Suddenly, he understood that our lives, our happiness, our performance and our day-to-day experiences are controlled, not nearly so much by what happens to us, as by how we think about and talk to ourselves about what had happened to us.

This realization that he is in charge of his thoughts literally changed his life. He made a decision to become an expert at the way he ran his Magic Thinking Machine. He went from a life of uncertainty to one of great success.

What do YOU think about most of the time? Success? Financial freedom? Serving others? How to make your world a better place? Abundance? Opportunity?

We invite you to join the top “3% club.” Consider making a decision to use the magic power of your thinking machine to focus on the positive aspects of your business. That will give you a marvelous advantage as you fashion and serve your world … just like the most successful top 3% of the people in the world.

The above wisdom comes straight from:

John Carpenter Dealey

International MasterMind Expert, Entrepreneur, and Author
The Advisory Council/Catalyst Group
a division of Dealey Ltd.
www.YourAdvisoryCouncil.com

A friend told me about this simple idea and shared his wonderful experience with me.

“Some time back an idea came to me. It had come up before, but for a variety of reasons this time I decided to take action and began to take a moment to [meditate and set goals] with my wife each day. Usually it takes only a few minutes, sometimes we have to get by with only one minute.

The results over the first few days/weeks were startling to both of us and have made our relationship even more wonderful. In a short period it has had such a profound effect, it is a practice that I plan to make into a lifetime habit, and continue the rest of my life.”

Hope you found this quick overview of an important topic to be valuable and thought-provoking as you check to see how you can use a few minutes each day to bring even greater strength and joy into your personal relationships, as well as increased success for your own business We thank you for being a part of our Advisory Council program and look forward to being of service to you in the future.

The above wisdom comes straight from:

John Carpenter Dealey

International MasterMind Expert, Entrepreneur, and Author
The Advisory Council/Catalyst Group
a division of Dealey Ltd.
www.YourAdvisoryCouncil.com

IF you want:
- even more happiness
- better relationships with your family (& friends)
- your business to do better in the coming year

YOU MIGHT CONSIDER THIS IDEA

Many of us consciously or unconsciously review the past  accomplishments and look forward to the potential of the coming of a new year. We tally the score card for business and personal achievements, then build on our successes, learn from our shortfalls, and think about the future…

Did you know, your success ratio is greatly enhanced by writing down your goals? Actually it’s hugely increased, like about 30+ to 1!!

There are many books, tapes, and programs available on goal setting - enough to tell you that everyone is interested in doing it and many people are having trouble getting it done. Goal setting will certainly enhance your business as well as your personal life.

A major Ivy League University studied their graduates over a twenty year period by comparing ‘written goal setters’ with ‘non-written goal-setters’ and people who did not set goals at all.

About 80+% of the group did NOT plan their business and personal life using any goal setting process.

Another 15+% or so of the group did take the initiative to visualize goals. However, their goals were not written down, nor were they date-specific.

Only 3% created a written set of goals with date-specific outcomes which they referred to frequently to plan their day/weekly activities. At the end of the twenty years, the results of the study clearly showed that this group out-earned the base group 30 to 1! In fact, the total accumulated net worth of this 3% was larger than the remaining 97% of the group combined.

If you have not written goals in the past, based on a 30 to 1 improvement, I ask you to consider doing so. Don’t put it off! “Just do it”, as they say in the Nike commercial. You can perfect the process as you go along, but the key is to start today with one of the seven key areas of your life . . . what I call the 7-F’s (faith, family, fitness, friends, fulfillment, finances, fun/fight-livelihood).

Print this now and start.
Write down three things now…

I hope this coming year brings you more fun, more money, more time for the things that are dear to you and gets you where you want to go faster and with ease & grace.

—

The above wisdom comes straight from:

John Carpenter Dealey

International MasterMind Expert, Entrepreneur, and Author
The Advisory Council/Catalyst Group
a division of Dealey Ltd.
www.YourAdvisoryCouncil.com

ATX Mastermind has been created to put the collective minds together in the Austin area and work in a collaborative format to help Austin’s entrepreneurs achieve their goals and realize their dreams. To put it simply, the mastermind process is a board room on steroids. Members meet regularly to discuss their current business issues and present new ideas and come together to support one another.

Did you read or watch “The Secret” and wonder - “what now?” Here it is - a new group in Austin to help make reality of your intentions…

More About Mastermind

More About our group