The Law of Attraction states that what you think about most, you ultimately attract. It’s possible to entice customers to come to YOU, but positive thinking is only part of the process. Attraction comes from one thing - and that’s action. Trouble is, most sales professionals, business owners and entrepreneurs don’t know what actions to take.

Jimmy Vee & Travis Miller, of Gravitational Marketing, are our featured guests in this Episode of The Small Business Trends Radio. Jimmy and Travis discuss the power of action and give you a 5 step plan to start attracting customers NOW.

Here are the first 3 tips from the show:

• Differentiate yourself — from the rest. Think in terms of sensational. This creates an intense interest and curiosity. And remember, “Same is lame!” The definition of lame is: A pathetic lack of force or effectiveness. If you are the same as everyone around you then you lack force and effectiveness.

• Carve out a tiny niche — and become an expert on it to rise to the top. For instance, instead of being an expert on dogs, be an expert on a specific breed. Better yet, be an expert on a specific breeds grooming needs and you’ll find that you have less competition which makes becoming an expert even easier.

• Add a bit of entertainment — to your marketing and you’ll capture attention. People love being entertained and tend to make buying decisions emotionally first, and logically second. Tap into that emotion because once people start enjoying themselves they become less defensive, more receptive - and more likely to buy.

Jimmy & Travis provide the remaining two tips along with five marketing myths assumed to be true and some tips on how to discover your “uniqueness” and make it work for you.

It’s true. The Law of Attraction can work for you. If you’d like to hear all of the insightful tips that Jimmy & Travis provide to begin attracting customers now, you can do so by clicking the red and yellow player below and listening to their full interview.

UPDATE 4/30/08: We are proud to announce that this episode, featuring Jimmy & Travis, was voted as one of the Top 50 on the Law of Attraction. You can see the entire list by clicking on the Top 50 icon. Congratulations Jimmy & Travis - Way to go!

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 Attract More Sales Using The Law Of Attraction [38:43m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Posted by Staci Wood | Comments (5) | Permalink

If your methods of advertising and marketing are missing their mark, why not spruce things up a bit and step into the modern world by incorporating new technology into the mix?

Our featured guest in this Episode of The Small Business Trends Radio is Derrick M. Guest, CEO of Griot’s Roll Film Production & Service, Inc. Derrick says it’s possible to improve your sales margins — all through the power of video.

Derrick elaborates on the following topics:

• How does video assist small business owners? — By connecting emotionally to customers. An important and often overlooked factor. Video brings your personality and integrity to the forefront and boosts your professionalism and credibility.

• How can video be used in small businesses? — Well, in many different ways. But reality video, testimonials and sharing stories are just a few that allow the customer the ability to connect visually. Visual impressions create lasting impressions and assist in emotional connections.

• What are the important basics of creating a successful video clip? — That’s simple. People like stories. Telling them, sharing them, hearing them. Convey a story - professionally and with technical expertise.

• What are the benefits of video over print and direct marketing ads? — To name a big one - customer response. Derrick discusses the differences between customer responses generated by video as opposed to direct and print ads.

As CEO of Griot’s Roll Film Production & Services Inc., Derrick discusses the benefits of video for small business and how to make use of that technology for your own business. Griot, which means storyteller in Swahili, is a maturing company specializing in video marketing, multi-media, production, post-production and web distribution.

Not sure how you can make video work for your small business? Would you like to hear the suggestions Derrick has? You can do so by clicking the player below and listening to Derrick’s interview.

Listen Now:

 Increase Sales Through The Power Of Video [24:49m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Posted by Staci Wood | Comments (12) | Permalink

Some service providers and vendors have made progress on what it takes to market and sell to the 26 million small businesses in the United States. It’s a time of changing trends.

Our featured guest in this episode of Small Business Trends Radio is Steve King, a Research Affiliate at the Institute for the Future. Steve is also the project leader for the Intuit - IFTF Future of Small Business project and has over 25 years of industry and consulting experience including having lived and worked abroad. Steve’s blog is SmallBizLabs.com.

Here’s a sampling from the show:

• Demographic trends are changing. — Not that long ago it was only middle-aged men who met our perceived definition of small business owner. Now, women, immigrants, baby boomers and even teens are forming new businesses at a growing rate. There is no longer one set of demographics and vendor marketing should reflect the changing nature of the small business customer.

• Partnering between large and small businesses is occurring more frequently. — Large companies such as Google are now partnering with small and mid-size firms, whereas a year or two ago, they were partnering strictly with larger firms. By partnering with smaller niche players, Google can now provide technology and services to these niche markets, with the small business partner receiving a percentage of the profits from those sales. These new partnerships differ from the traditional relationship dynamics between large and small businesses, which were either competitors or vendor/purchaser.

• Large corporations without an obvious connection to small businesses are partnering to find new sources of product innovation. — Proctor & Gamble is an example of a company that is finding new sources of innovation by partnering with smaller firms. For instance, fifty percent of their product innovation is coming from outside, through licensing. This presents an opportunity for smaller businesses, that can now find markets through the power of Proctor & Gamble. If you want shelf space at Walmart - as a small business it’s very difficult. But show up with Proctor & Gamble branding - and it’s much easier.

Steve provided many useful insights into the changing world of small businesses and how it impacts the marketplace. To hear them, click the player below.

Listen Now:

 What Small Business Owners Want [29:50m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Posted by Staci Wood | Comments (5) | Permalink

Video and PC Gaming is a popular pastime. But what does that have to do with small business? Well, many of the requirements to attain success are needed in both worlds. Strategizing, meeting deadlines, collaboration, playing to win and taking risks. All are attributes of success in sales - and in gaming.

Our featured guest in this episode of Small Business Trends Radio is Paul Johnston, President and CEO of Entellium. Paul explains how Entellium has made this connection and developed a new approach to small business software that helps simplify the sales process and increase overall productivity through a new software affectionately named Rave CRM.

Here is a sampling from the show:

• Eighty percent — of employees under the age of 34 have had experience with video or PC gaming. The average salesperson is between the ages of 25 and 35 - competitive, fast-moving and risk takers – attributes found in gaming that sales reps also desire in business software.

• Video Games — reveal your capabilities to you and, in order to advance, you must use them successfully. Competition is the drive and your stats are available for all to see. Video and PC games are designed to create success. And it is possible for business software to be designed in the same manner - to create success.

• Mirrored gaming — features such as presenting information visually, rather than in text lists, and using a star rating system are all gaming trends that users respond to positively. Features that can prove successful through the use of CRM software that incorporates these attributes.

• CRM — or customer relationship management is a business tool to help you acquire leads inexpensively, offer success through repeated processes, and assists in servicing your customer. CRM does this by following a repeated process, managing work flow, and empowering your sales force to be successful by harnessing their passion to help them achieve their objective.

Paul shares the many valuable insights that Entellium has gained by studying the gaming habits of younger individuals that achieve successful levels in the video and PC gaming world. And stay tuned at the end of the program for Today’s Trend: Sound bites of Wisdom from Successful Entrepreneurs and Business Leaders at the Inc 500.

To listen to Paul’s insights, click the player below to listen to the full interview.

Listen Now:

 Putting The Whiz Into Small Business Software [53:27m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Posted by Staci Wood | Comments (3) | Permalink

It’s a constant challenge for business owners to find ways to stand out above the rest with the ever increasing number of online competition. If your looking for something to hold the attention of your site’s visitors, consider a virtual talking character.

Virtual talking characters can deliver your pitch and an introduction to your product or service. In essence, a virtual talking character can act as an online salesperson - a SitePal.

Our featured guest in this episode of Small Business Trends Radio is Adi Sideman, CEO of Oddcast, the company that developed and distributes SitePal. Adi provides tips on how to take advantage of this exciting technology and increase your sales conversions.

Here is a sampling from the show:

• Convert visitors — into customers by employing a virtual salesperson on your site. The avatar can connect your visitor to you or customer service through a simple mouse click or VOIP on the site. It can also provide sales information such as pricing, descriptions, etc. while your visitor is surfing the site.

• Deliver your — elevator pitch or a welcome message to your visitors upon entering your site. Gently coax your visitor by explaining about the products and services available and encouraging the visitor to view additional pages and explore your site’s offerings further.

• Increase sales — by instructing your visitors as to what you’d like them to do. For instance, your character can say, “To purchase, click the arrow below” or “For more information, click the description link.”

• Increase communication — with your visitors. Welcome your visitors back and deliver a new pitch for each visit through progressive messaging. The software remembers, through cookie technology, the number of times a particular visitor has been to the site and can progressively speak to them and encourage a sale.

Adi has much more to share with you. To learn more from Adi about the tips he has provided, click the player below to listen to the full interview. And be sure to stay tuned at the end of the program for Today’s Trend: What Keeps Entrepreneurs Awake At Night.

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 Virtual Talking Characters Can Add To Your Bottom Line [53:26m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Posted by Staci Wood | Comments (3) | Permalink

This week’s Podcast Review is about the Hawaii Diner Podcast.

Description: The Hawaii Diner Podcast is all about food - whether that means eating out, cooking at home or learning something new - and it is most about celebrating the importance of food in our lives. We are blessed with the bounty of the land and the sea and a rich cultural diversity which makes food in Hawaii unique.

Comments: I had two reasons for reviewing this Podcast, one it is a great example of using audio to augment a website’s purpose and two, it does an excellent job of providing insight into dining in Hawaii.

Each Podcast starts with some very cool and mellow music (my definition) and is professional produced with great sound values and excellent interview techniques. You get the chance to learn directly from some of Hawaii most famous chef’s. Here is a sample of some show titles:

- Mi Casa, Burger Project, The Banyan Veranda and Tadashi
- Lesa Griffith’s Views of Food, Food in Hawaii and the Future of Dining in Hawaii
- An Interview with Elizabeth Andoh, Japanese Culinary Scholar

and about 20 more Podcasts are available.

Pluses: Well produced, interesting interviews. nice website integrating the podcasts into the overall site theme. Good show notes and easy subscribe links as well.

Minuses: The content is a little dated, while the whole site seems to be fairly current the Podcasts are a few months dated. I would also like ‘instant play’ to be available on the site.

Recommendation: First check this out for the Hawaiin food information and then review it as a way for a small business to use a Podcast to augment your other website content. Listen to the Hawaii Diner Podcast.

Posted by Steve Rucinski | Comments (2) | Permalink

Your clients are bombarded with sales and marketing messages every single day. How do you stand out in this stream of sometimes overwhelming communication?

Rule #1, don’t waste their time, you better have something of value to stay.

Our expert guest on this show is Paul McCord, Author of Creating a Million Dollar a Year Sales Income: Sales Success through Client Referrals.

Paul has been a sales trainer and business coach for two decades. He has years of experience training and coaching salespeople and business owners in generating and retaining clients. Paul shares with us how you can bring value to your clients and stand out in the crowd.

Learn more about the details of this show or download the file Gaining and Maintaining “Top of Mind” Client Awareness

Listen Now:

 Gaining and Maintaining “Top of Mind” Client Awareness [53:26m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Posted by Steve Rucinski | Comments (0) | Permalink