First Word

The Daily Cup: Issue 3 ​ Q: What's the worst mistake people make on their websites? A: They either forget to include contact information or they put the information somewhere difficult to find. Many of you might be surprised by that answer. It's true. Businesses and individuals commonly forget to include contact information or a way to contact them. Your contact information should be easy to find, easy to understand, and easy to use. Do not make the mistake of not putting it right on your menu of information. I do not recommend burying it at the bottom of your website either. Many people put a contact link in small font at the bottom of the homepage. Avoid that method. Put it right on the end of the your menu bar items. Always include a phone number and email address. You might also include a submission form. However, do not only provide a submission form. If you have someone's attention you want to capture it. It's only a matter of second before their...

So you blog ... daily. So you write a weekly newsletter. So you regularly post on social media. So you do speaking engagements. So you send proper follow-up marketing messages. So, so, so, so ... do you have direct sales results you can pinpoint? I have this question asked regularly. I'm going to give you a non-answer: no, but I know I have to do it. The basic formula is don't stop the machine because you can't define why you have a widget at the end. What will happen if you stop a machine? Will the widget still appear at the end? You know the answer -- no. Widget not made widgets not dispensed. The underlining lesson: you can't stop making widgets and expect to have more widgets. I'll put it clearer: can you afford to stop marketing just to see if your marketing works? If you answer "yes" then you must have some great cash reserves set aside. Stopping the machine ... stopping marketing just to see what happens is risky business. I like to tell clien...

This is a rough draft of the Introduction from my forthcoming nonfiction book Nothing Sells Your Business Better than a Book.   Introduction When I open my presentations, I ask two questions: “How many of you throw away books in the trashcan?” I follow this question with the next one, “How many of you throw away brochures in the nearest garbage can?” The second question provides the audience’s a-ha moment. Most people feel value when they buy or are given a book. A book has weight. It has pages. It has merit. It conveys the perception of knowledge and expertise and time and money to publish. A feeling of guilt or at least a sense of environmental responsibility overcomes the desire to toss all that time, money, expertise, and most importantly “paper” into the garbage can. On the other hand, how many flyers, tri-fold brochures or one-sheets create such a moral or ethical dilemma that you actually feel guilty to throw it away? I’ll be honest. I’ve thr...