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  • Social Entrepreneurship – Now is the Time

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    Social entrepreneurship is a major area of interest in many social and civic organizations and has a significant impact on many areas of society. During the past decade economic resources have become more difficult to acquire and society has continued to exhibit economic and cultural decline. Concurrently, communities are in need of initiatives that will enhance their financial viability and programs that will enhance the overall viability of the population.

    Social entrepreneurship initiatives are ventures that can serve as a method of increasing the social value of a community, organization or cause while enhancing the financial viability of a not-for-profit organization. With this being stated, social entrepreneurship has been defined in different ways by many different theorists. Gary McPherson, Executive Administrator of the Canada Centre for Social Entrepreneurship, states that social entrepreneurship involves various individuals working toward meeting social and economic goals simultaneously; while Bill Drayton, CEO of Ashoka, defines social entrepreneurship as a term coined to describe “individuals who combine the pragmatic and results oriented methods of a business entrepreneur with the goals of social reform.”

    A more basic definition of social entrepreneurship states that it is “the process of using entrepreneurial and business skills to create innovative approaches to social problems.” Therefore, it is a methodology that is presently being used to resolve community and societal concerns globally. Social entrepreneurship as an area of specialized entrepreneurship is not defined by the same titling in every culture. For example, in Latin America countries social entrepreneurship initiatives are referred to as “Micro Enterprise.” In India the same program would be identified as a “Social Mission.” Though termed differently in various regions, social entrepreneurship initiatives are being implemented to solve specific societal and community concerns by focusing on the needs and resource availability within specific geographic regions.

    Social Entrepreneurship in Education Throughout the United States, many top tertiary level academic institutions are enhancing their business programs by including a curriculum that caters to the study of social entrepreneurship. In 2003, the Center for Responsible Business was launched on the University of California Berkley Campus. This subsidiary of the Haas School of Business was implemented with the intent of training students to be more principled and socially responsible members of society through attending “the preeminent educational institution in area of Corporate Social Responsibility.” Stanford University also has established a Center for Social Innovation as a part of its graduate school of business. This center was founded with the mission to “build and strengthen the capacity of individuals and organizations to develop innovative solutions to social problems for a more just, sustainable and healthy world.”

    In 1993, Harvard Business School started its social enterprise program with its mission of “generating and sharing knowledge to help individuals and organizations to create social value in the not-for-profit, private and public sectors,” and the University of Miami has refocused its business school curriculum to include coursework in the areas of ethical-decision making, social entrepreneurship and community engagement with the primary focus being to expose students to various areas of civic engagement while concurrently teaching them leadership and team building skills.

    Tertiary level institutions, including Duke, which has established a Center for the Advancement of Social Entrepreneurship as part of its Fuqua School of Business, and Columbia University where the research initiative on social entrepreneurship is embedded in its school of business, have also made strides to enhance the study and education of those seeking to venture into areas of social entrepreneurship and social venture implementation. The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business-International (AACSB – International) has identified over twenty-four tertiary level institutions that have included social entrepreneurship as a part of their business college and or business curriculums.

    With social entrepreneurship being perceived by many as a new way of stimulating social change, Idee Winfield believes that the implementation of community-focused service learning projects is the first step in exposing youth to the various attributes associated with social entrepreneurship. Through community involvement, youth will begin to visualize and experience the various social issues within their community and envision ways to solve these problems. Winfield states that social entrepreneurship should be promoted in primary and secondary education, and coursework should be adjusted to allow students to “see how abstract socially focused concepts can have real world applicability.” Jeffrey Soderborg, a member of the Kauffman Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership Clearinghouse on Entrepreneurship Education, is also an ardent proponent of social venture education who believes that social entrepreneurship would be more readily accepted if youth were exposed to information expounding the laurels of these initiatives during their primary and secondary academic years.

    As youth expand their horizons through the establishment of entrepreneurial efforts, knowledge and exposure to information about the process involved in the establishment of entrepreneurial business effectively plays a major role in the rate at which business entities are established. A study focusing on entrepreneurial interests among black youth ages 14 to 19 identified that 75% of the youth surveyed had interest in becoming entrepreneur. The study also found that these minority youth believed that more information about entrepreneurship should be presented through their schools. They also believed that entrepreneurs have a responsibility to reinvest in their community.

    Corporate Social Responsibility

    Personal values often serve as the justification for entrepreneurs to focus organizational efforts on socially focused ventures. The organizational decision to forgo pursuing financial gain with the intent of using the corporations’ profit resources to enhance a community is often referred to corporate social entrepreneurship. Corporate Social Entrepreneur (CSE) is a term used to describe corporate initiatives whose primary focus is to enhance a social concern and whose secondary focus is financial gain. The corporate social entrepreneur differs from the financial profit seeking entrepreneur in the area of decisions made that affect the community and environment in which their organization functions. Research identified that in corporate social entrepreneurship business acumen serves as a factor in the success or failure of social venture initiative implementation. Research identifies that success factors associated with the implementation of social responsibility initiatives were linked to whether the entrepreneur exhibits behavior that is moral, amoral or immoral.

    The amoral entrepreneur would pursue initiatives only if they were deemed acceptable by the organization as a whole. The immoral entrepreneur implements initiatives based on what can be potentially gained for self as well as for the stakeholders, while the moral entrepreneur would pursue social responsibility initiatives based on what was in the best interest of the organization. Individuals identified as corporate social entrepreneurs are individuals who are more active in community activities and are actively involved in social responsibility efforts. Corporate social entrepreneurs also are more likely to implement social responsibility initiatives based on an organization’s long term objectives.

    While many corporations are looking for ways to increase their social responsibility efforts, in some regions corporate responsibility efforts are not progressing. A policy paper, “Corporate Social Responsibility in Latin America and the Caribbean,” documented that corporate social responsibility activity in this region has “stalled.” The reason for stagnation in this region is “minimal government involvement” and the lack of “private sector involvement.” It was also identified that initiatives to implement programs focusing on social responsibility are often initiated outside of the market, and then subsequently not embraced by stakeholders who reside within this geographic region.

    Corporations are continually looking for ways to increase corporate advantage through their social responsibility efforts. While proponents of corporate social responsibility believe that corporations are obligated morally to engage in efforts to enhance social, community and environmental concerns, many stakeholders believe that social involvement should only be initiated if the efforts are going to strengthen the organization’s image, brand, moral or stock value. With this in mind, corporations have separated social issues into specific categories.

    These categories are social concerns that are general, social concerns that are value chain based and concerns that focus on social dimensions of competitive contrast. Generic social issues are identified as social concerns that do not directly affect the company’s operation and do not have an effect on a company’s competitive advantage. Corporations are least likely to get involved or invest in projects that focus in these areas because they will not receive a high value of return on their involvement. Value Chain Social Impact issues can significantly affect a company’s operation and can have an impact on the way a company conducts business. Corporations are more likely to be involved in value chain concerns, but only after conducting due diligence studies to ensure that a return on investment will be achieved over time.

    Social issues that affect a company’s financial profitability or serve to enhance or increase a company’s competitive edge are likely to be areas that a company will invest in because of the direct impact that these initiatives will have on the company’s overall viability and stability. An example of a social dimension projects is General Electric’s investment in under-performing high schools throughout the country. General Electric believes that through investing financial and professional resources in under-performing high schools in areas where they have substantial financial investment, they are investing in enhancing a community, as well as directly increasing their future employment prospects.

    Whole Foods Market is an organization that has taken control of its social value position through purchasing products from local farmers. Also, Whole Foods maintains strict controls over all of the products produced and sold in all of its locations. They even have extended their social and ecological efforts through offsetting the use of in-store electricity with the installation of wind conversion generators, converting their trucks to operate on bio-fuel and trucking spoiled produce to regionally located compost sites. Though the investments in these technologies may be costly at the onset, the long term financial, civic and market exposure benefits far exceed any initial costs incurred.

    In the area of corporate philanthropy many corporations are at a loss. They continue to be involved in the conflict between philanthropic giving and investor requests for increased profits. For this reason many corporations engage in context-giving programs. Context-giving programs are programs that are defined as allotting resources to specific projects that will enhance the community while simultaneously enhancing the corporation.

    Examples of context-giving initiatives include the Cisco System Networking Academy, which trains computer network administrators and provides job opportunities to those who complete the program; the DreamWorks SKG film production program that trains low-income individuals in occupations that are needed in the film and entertainment industry; and American Express Travel and Tourism Academy which trains high school youth for careers in the hospitality and tourism industry. Corporations that invest in corporate-giving social venture programs are concurrently gaining positive return on their social investment, improving the economic climate of the communities where they are located and gaining positive exposure for their organizations.

    At times social ventures do not have the intended impact on the community. A study focusing on the impact of community focused business ventures found that businesses started with the intent of enhancing a community often lose focus by becoming focused on profitability and competition. Competition and self-focused motivators were identified to be factors that played an additional role in the impact and economic role that entrepreneurial ventures have in community settings.

    While many foundations, trusts and philanthropic organizations, accumulate and distribute resources with the intent of providing services to enhance specific community or social causes, many of these organizations are looking for ways to gain public exposure for their efforts. Organizations also attempt to leverage their gifting efforts through seeking not-for-profit organizations that are willing match the funding received. The success of funded programs is evaluated through performance outcomes and indicators, and through promoting the organization’s work through success stories provided by program clients. These methods are viable ways for funding agencies to acquire value and exposure through their philanthropic efforts and simultaneously continue their efforts to enhance the communities in which they invest.

    With the social philanthropic efforts of Warren Buffet and Bill Gates gaining a high degree of attention, and many leaders engaging in activities to promote social advocacy, corporations are seeking ways to also gain exposure with social entrepreneurship. Social entrepreneurship from the corporate perspective can be defined as corporate social initiatives used by a corporate entity as vehicle to show support for social causes. In recent years, many Fortune 500 companies have implemented social ventures with the intent of enhancing their corporate image through providing funding for various social causes.

    McDonald’s is one such company that has funded social causes for many years. McDonald’s primary social venture is the Ronald McDonald House Charities. The Ronald McDonald House provides lodging for the families of adolescents, ranging in age from birth to 18, who are receiving critical care for illness in communities that are away from their community of residence. The Ronald McDonald House allows families to reside in these temporary living facilities throughout the child’s period of treatment at no charge.

    The Federal Express Corporation also funds programs focused on the implementation of socially responsible programs. FedEx is a supporter of St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital and has been acknowledged by Reader’s Digest as one of “Americas Best Charity Minded Corporation.” Federal Express has also been recognized for providing funding for numerous community and civic organizations, including March of Dimes, Heart to Heart organization, an organization that focuses on delivering food and health resources globally, the United Way and the National Civil Rights Museum. These are just a few of the charitable initiatives that allow Federal Express to present itself as a socially conscious organization.

    Virgin Mobile has partnered with Youth Noise, a not-for-profit organization that brings youth together for networking and brainstorming opportunities, and Stand Up for Kids, the largest all volunteer not-for-profit organizations in the United States, to implement an initiative to expand its corporate social responsibility activities. The project involves recording artists donating ring tones to Virgin Mobile and through partnership agreements, 5% of the proceeds received through ring tone sales are donated to various “Virgin Mobile Charity Partners.” This initiative, established in June 2006, is being positioned to raise over $250,000 annually.

    For social ventures to gain global acceptance, corporations need to become involved in ventures that allow employees and consumers to see the social, community and external benefit of these ventures. This process is identified in countries south of the United States, where the concept of social responsibility is one that has been embraced by many but implemented by few. Many government organizations expect non-government, or private organizations to take responsibility for ensuring the stability and longevity of the resources throughout this region while the private sector is looking toward government agencies for intervention.

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    Source by Paul Van Putten

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  • Internal Medicine: Characteristics You Want in This Type of Doctor

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    Having a chronic issue that just won’t resolve itself on its own is extremely frustrating. And while you may have gone to doctor after doctor, it may be time to see someone in internal medicine.

    A physician in internal medicine has more specialized education as opposed to a general practitioner. In addition, this doctor does not focus on things like pediatrics or obstetrics. The main role of this doctor is to diagnose, treat and prevent issues associated with all areas of the adult human body. So when trying to find one to fit your needs, be sure to keep a few things in mind.

    Expertise

    The whole reason for seeing a doctor in internal medicine is to get an answer to some of your most troubling health conditions. When you’ve exhausted all other options, such as family doctors or general practitioners, an internist is the next logical step. These doctors have made careers out of solving complex medical problems in adults. So be sure to explain the issues you’re having as well as make sure your internist has all your past medical history. This way, he or she can have a leg up in trying to figure out the root of your problem. In addition, a doctor in internal medicine has gone to school for at least seven or eight years, has passed a board exam as well as focused on a particular area of study, so he or she is well prepared to handle your problem, depending on what it is. For instance, if your issue deals with the heart, then you’d want to see a cardiologist. On the other hand, if you have reproductive issues, a reproductive specialist is best.

    Good Communication

    In addition to expertise, it’s essential that you have great communication with your doctor, especially when it comes to internal medicine. That’s because this doctor has the knowledge and experience to help you figure out what’s causing your issue. Yet, you want him or her to be patient and really listen to your issues. These doctors see numerous patients each day, but that doesn’t mean you should feel rushed through your visit. So when deciding on a good internist, pay attention to how he or she talks with you as well as listens. If you feel like your doctor has not given you the time you need, then you need to keep looking, because communication is key when trying to find a doctor in internal medicine.

    Timeliness

    When you’ve been referred to an internist, this means your general practitioner hasn’t had any luck figuring out what’s causing your problem. Or if he or she knows the problem, maybe they don’t know how to treat it; yet an internist will. Unfortunately, if your internist cannot see you until two months from now, then that’s a problem. Depending on your issue, you could possibly wait, but for most people, this is not acceptable. Instead, you should keep searching until you can find a specialist that can see you in a decent amount of time. Also, whenever you do find a good doctor in internal medicine and schedule an appointment, you want him or her to honor your appointment time. If you’re always waiting over an hour to see your physician, you may need to start a search for a new doctor.

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    Source by Anna Woodward

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  • Boho Beach Style

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    Summer is defined by sun, sand and the water. People typically focus on their swimsuits and throw on a t-shirt and a pair of shorts on top and their outfit is brought down a level. It’s time to pay more attention to our bohemian-chic tunics as cover-ups for our bathing suits, making you look more stylish and draw attention as soon as you step out of your house.

    We can start with the basics: a tunic/kimono dress. An oversized poncho in a light shade or a shift/flowy dress lets the breeze right in, keeping you cool. The light shades are good to look for when shopping for oversized clothes, especially with the beach, in order not to drown you in the fabric and to avoid the ruthless sun. Light shades let the light shine through while complementing a nice tan. A yellow brings a happy aura around you while a light pink compliments your skin tone. For those who like to have less fabric, shift dresses are ideal; the shift style still allows for a chill vibe but is a bit more fitted to the body. Any shade of color goes well with boho shift dresses, but the ideal summer colors would be a bright blue or blazing orange, summer is all about bringing more color into your day, in contrast to the winter months. Flowy dresses are my preference, letting my skin breathe but not too baggy, simple and chic. Simply printed bohemian dresses add the extra touch to my outfit: hand painted flowers bordering the neckline and the hem of the dress are enough to finish off the outfit.

    Want to show off some of your new bathing suits while still covering up? Flowy sari pants are the way to go. Flowy pants never go out of style as they make your legs look like they go on for miles. Accent your bathing suit by bringing out the undertones or detailed colors with a complementary colored pant. A rich red pant coordinated with the small red detailing of your top brings out your tan and looks stunning along the water. Want to show your inner yogi? Wear the perfect bottoms that work for the lovers of yoga and the beach. Pants of lightweight recycled silk fabric with a cinched bottom and a bright pattern do amazing things for the transition from morning yoga to a beach day.

    No shirt, no shoes, no service? An embroidered tunic kurti is the perfect throw on dress for lounging around. Kurtis come in a variety of styles depending on your mood. Short white kurtis with colored embroidery continues the summer beach theme from the flowy pants. Vibrant colors give a new look and the white hand embroidered tunics are so comfortable and chill.

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    Source by Era Chandok

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  • My Husband Says That I Am Too High Maintenance

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    Any complaint that causes your husband to disconnect from your marriage, to distance himself from you, or to consider a separation hurts. There is no scenario where this isn’t painful. But I suspect that it can feel a little more painful when the reason for his distance seems personal.

    What I mean by that is that sometimes, a man will be unhappy because of reasons that have to do with him. He may be having a midlife crisis. He may believe that marriage doesn’t suit his ideology. He may be having a personal crisis. I am not saying that these scenarios are not horribly painful. They are. But at least the wife has no reason to blame herself.

    And then there are the scenarios where things do feel personal. These are the instances where your husband is blaming the issues in the marriage on the wife. It could be something that she has done or something about her, about her actions, or about her personality that is the supposed problem.

    Here’s an example. A husband might tell his wife that being with her is “exhausting.” She might explain: “for the past three months or so, I have been noticing my husband acting distant and weird. I confronted him about it right away, but he denied that there was a problem. Then we were at a family gathering this weekend and it was held outside in 90 degree heat. Like everyone else, I said it was hot and wanted to leave after dinner because I felt sick. My husband got angry at me and said he was tired of dealing with my ‘high maintenance personality.’ As we were leaving, he said that being married to me is ‘exhausting’ and that he may want a separation because he can not stand living his life this way anymore. He says that nothing makes me happy and that I can’t just sit back and roll with the punches of life like a normal person. He says that I am spoiled. He says that he feels like he always has to pick up the slack. I admit that I am not as thick skinned as some when it comes to sitting in the heat all day, but that doesn’t make me a bad person. And he knew that when he married me. I told him that I could try to change and he said that people like me never change and that we are just not compatible. He says that I make him ‘feel tired’ and he doesn’t want to feel that way anymore. Where does that leave me? I don’t want to lose my husband. This really hurts my feelings and feels like a personal attack. But I could forgive it and move on if he would give me the chance. The problem is that he does not seem at all receptive to me right now.”

    I understand why you are hurt. These types of issues can feel, and sound, like a criticism. When someone tells you that you are ‘exhausting,’ that phrase makes it seem as if they no longer want to do the work to keep up with you. Of course it hurts.

    Understand The Context In Which The Comments Were Made: I think that your husband’s ‘fatigue’ might be due to the fact that the maintenance issue may have bothered him for a while, but he sat silent and said nothing – even when you asked him what was bothering him. So things built up until they exploded. His silence is not your fault. And things may have been easier now if he had addressed the problem much earlier – before he became so angry that he lashed out at you.

    Know That Context Doesn’t Mean That It Isn’t Time To Take Action: It’s normal to hope that this will blow over. And it may – for now. But any time a husband is uttering words that indicate he is tired of your marriage or thinks that there is a compatibility issue, you want to pay very close attention and you want to take action right away. I say this not to scare you, but from the concerned place of someone who was in a similar situation. I hoped for the problem to pass over, but I ultimately ending up separated. I think that I possibly could have avoided that fate by taking action at the first sign of trouble.

    Moving Forward Quickly: It’s unfortunate that your husband waited so long to share that this issue has been bothering him, but you can’t undo that at this point. What you can do, however, is be careful of what (and who) you are presenting to him moving forward. It doesn’t sound as if he has made definite plans to move out or to pursue a separation, which means that you may have some time to address this.

    Sit back and be really honest with yourself. Which of his concerns have some validity? What is he right about? Is this issue something that other friends and family members have expressed? If so, then there is nothing wrong with addressing it. Sometimes, it takes a painful situation to stimulate growth. If you take this and use it to move you forward so that you grow and improve in some way, then at least the pain will have been for something. At least you can use this as a stimulus to improve your marriage.

    If you are very honest and you find that his words do not have validity, then you may went to dig a little deeper. Sometimes, a husband will project another problem onto to what is obvious or handy. It may not have been the heat or your personality at all during that family gathering. But the situation might have given your husband an easy explanation. Sometimes, a husband can be frustrated and not quite sure why. That’s one more reason why it’s very important to be extremely observant right now – so that you are taking action on the items that are truly at issue.

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    Source by Leslie Cane

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  • Developing Emotional Control With The Fallen Angels

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    Emotional control is that thing that everyone wants, but no one knows how to get.

    How do you develop something that most people don’t even understand?

    Some say hours of meditation can do this. You just meditate for a set amount of time each day and you develop more balanced emotions somehow.

    That doesn’t make sense to most people so they don’t do it.

    Meditation is only one way to learn how to better control yourself, and thereby your emotions.

    The fallen angels have a very unique power, and that is to guide us to understand our emotions. They can give you insight on how to better self-reflect and understand yourself.

    That process alone can be quite a startling realization.

    Let’s say you wanted a little spark to start things off.

    How on earth would you develop more emotional control and resilience if you don’t know where to start?

    Well, allow me to show you the way.

    Hakemiah – Develop emotional understanding of yourself and others around you (if applicable)

    Melahel – Develop deep understanding of your emotions so as to bring yourself to a serene state of being faster.

    Vevaliah – Enables deeper understanding of yourself, namely your emotions, so that you can better manage your temper, anger and other negative emotions if they creep up.

    Omemiah – Enables conscious control over emotions in a way that you can self-reflect and know how to bring your emotions back under control. Aids control of conscious thoughts so intellect and emotions are better controlled.

    Eshaliah – Deepens our connection to the self so that we have a much deeper holistic understanding of our emotions and how to manage them.

    Take a deep look at these powers. Do you see how powerful this can be?

    When you have emotional control, you basically have control over your thoughts, your body and how you react to others, the things that happen to you, and your life in general.

    Am I over stating things?

    Actually, not at all. This is a pretty big deal no one really considers.

    We are diving very deep into the fallen angels, and this is uncharted territory for most of you.

    These angels are very easy to work with as long as you are willing to put some effort into your evolution – not many are willing to do that.

    What does that mean to put effort into your evolution? It just means that you care about becoming a better person and how you get there. The people who are technically ‘asleep’, who just go by day by day not self-reflecting and oblivious to the world around them are not ready for these angels.

    If you know what you want, and you’re just not sure how to get there, these angels can help you get there.

    Emotional resilience is a very big deal for those who are successful – it doesn’t really matter how you define success either. Being emotionally strong is just really seriously important, and I think you already see that.

    Nememiah – Helps us develop deep emotional resilience that allows us perfect self-understanding that leads to being much stronger emotionally.

    Literally everyone can use emotional resilience to better their lives.

    Asking if emotionally strength can help is like asking whether having extra money is a good thing – you don’t even question that.

    The tragic thing here is those who most need emotional help likely won’t be reading this. You are very likely one of the more emotionally awake people out there, and it’s interesting that you know you’re serious about developing your emotional strength.

    This isn’t a question of whether or not you want more emotional control, but of how enhanced emotional strength can help you.

    Can it help you cope with problems at work better?

    Can it help you deal with family drama in a more constructive way?

    Can it help you deal with stressful situations easier?

    It doesn’t matter what your situation is, the answer is Yes to these in one way or another.

    Emotional resilience is powerful, but I don’t think we pay enough attention to it to really change ourselves.

    I think that should change, don’t you?

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    Source by Donald B. Johnson

    Views: 0

  • What Marketing Strategy Is the Best for You?

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    If you pick the right marketing strategy, you’ll be like that little guy in the middle of my diagram above. Yes! Winning! Fist pumps!

    The problem with marketing today is that there are way too many options and it’s much too confusing. It makes me dizzy just thinking about this stuff and I’ve been immersed in it for 35 years.

    Well, I lay down on my bed last week with a notepad and started to map out my “Unified Theory of Marketing Strategies” with an emphasis on online marketing.

    And I actually came up with something that’s not totally confusing, and might even be helpful to a few people.

    Here goes…

    It’s yet another four-quadrant grid where the vertical axis is a scale from easy to hard and the horizontal axis is a scale from passive to proactive.

    I emerged with these four snappy quadrants:

    Hard and Passive = Multimedia

    Easy and Passive = Publishing

    Hard and Proactive = Presentations

    Easy and Proactive = Email

    Now, all of these strategies can be effective. But, yes some are easier than others. And the passive ones tend to take a lot longer than the proactive ones.

    Hard and Passive = Multimedia (Videos)

    Everyone is crazy about video these days. It’s a challenging, yet passive strategy. You put a lot work into creating a video and then post it on YouTube hoping people see it.

    It’s difficult to do well. It’s time-consuming and it can be expensive. And most videos are pure crap. If you want to do it well, it takes a chunk of change and a lot of time.

    Throwing up a lot of little videos on your website can be a nice touch, but they usually don’t get people to call you in droves.

    So, as you can see, I’m not crazy about a video strategy for self-employed professionals. I’m not saying they can’t work, but it’s a whole lot of work to do right.

    Best example: A non-duality teacher named Rupert Spira (non-duality.rupertspira.com/home). He does live workshops and films everything. Then his staff chops them up into questions and answer segments and posts them on YouTube. They’re five to fifteen minutes long. And what you see is what you get. No pitch, no hype. It’s his teaching unadulterated.

    He has hundreds of videos on YouTube with hundreds of thousands of views. Does it work? Well, his workshops are always full and all he does is a low-key email announcement to his list every month or two.

    I like this approach a lot. Got a lot of good content? Look good on video (unlike yours truly)? Then you may want to emulate Rupert.

    Easy and Passive = Publishing

    I happen to like this strategy a lot as it, ahem, built my “Empire.” It’s relatively easy: Write a how-to article on your subject matter once a week, send it out to those on your e-list and publish on your blog. Fame ensues.

    But online publishing can be a lot more than that. You can take those same articles and publish them on Medium, LinkedIn, and Ezine Articles. And then you can announce them on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest. Sometimes you can get big exposure when writing an article for a major online publication. Web traffic multiplies.

    The cost is zero; an article takes from two to five hours to write (unless it takes you several days). And your ideas are online for eternity to be discovered by those looking for practical ideas. Some will opt-in to your e-list and perpetuate this virtuous marketing circle.

    The downside, of course, is that, according to my extensive research, (a 10 second Google search), there are 2 million articles published online every day. The mind reels. So your stuff will be out there, but somewhat lost in a very big haystack.

    I’m still a big advocate of online publishing, but the mountain is getting steeper and steeper. Just writing an article or two here and there won’t help you much.

    Best Example: Well, other than mine, of course, check out Henneke of Enchanted Marketing. She has a wonderful, readable, fun blog on business writing and blogging. And she walks her talk. It’s all about well-written, relevant content. If you don’t have that as a foundation, it’s a total waste of time.

    Hard and Proactive = Presentations

    I built my business on presentations in front of live audiences at professional associations and chambers of commerce. It got me attention, added people to my mailing list and generated warm leads for marketing coaching.

    And I still do presentations today in the form of webinars. I just filled my recent group program with the help of a couple webinars (also called video conferences). They most certainly do work.

    But I put presentations in the hard category, not because they are all that hard to give, but can take a long time to prepare. The last one I did took me two full days. There were about 200 slides (whew).

    Yes, that’s not the only way to do a webinar. You can just go live on Zoom Video, and that can work as well. You ultimately have to find your style and test what works.

    Presentations are proactive in that at the end you can ask for the business. And, of course, you can turn the recording of the webinar into a video in a snap and send it out to those on your list. Watch it here.

    So presentations will always play a big part in my marketing toolkit.

    One other thing though – If you don’t have a LOT of people on your email list, good luck in getting much of an attendance. Yes, you can do guest presentations hosted by others, but you don’t have the same control and ability to pitch your professional services.

    Best example: John Nemo of LinkedIn Riches (linkedinriches.com). His webinar is a blast. There are a lot of them out there in the online marketing world. And many, Like John, have set them up as evergreen webinars that are scheduled to play automatically several times a day. These are kind of a hybrid between publishing and presentations.

    Easy and Proactive = Email

    In my opinion, email is the most powerful overall marketing tool. And it gets the least respect. But I can’t imagine even being in business without email marketing.

    Social media gets all the PR and all the attention, but email gets the business. A recent study showed that email generated 40 times the business results of Facebook and Twitter combined.

    Email is the online tool that’s been around the longest, and I think it’s taken for granted. Promotional emails have expanded exponentially over the years, but most of it isn’t very good.

    We wade through our email boxes like we sort our mail over the trashcan. Delete, delete, delete. Why? Because it’s either not relevant or it’s boring. Usually both.

    I feel that email has the greatest potential of all the online marketing strategies because it’s both relatively easy and the most proactive marketing medium of all. Your message goes right into the mailbox of your potential client. Nothing else can do that.

    Marketing email holds great opportunities for improvement in several areas:

    1. How to incorporate humor as the most powerful attention-getting device in existence (that almost nobody is using).

    2. How to telegraph your value proposition straight to the minds and hearts of your prospect.

    3. How to make your emails clear, focused, and easy-to-read.

    4. How to craft a compelling call-to-action that is hard to resist.

    5. How to get emails to thousands of your prospects without looking like spam.

    If you’re not working on ALL of these, your emails will not get the attention and response you want.

    Best Example: Therapy Practice Accelerator. Visit this site and get on the list just to see the brilliance of the email marketing. It’s all about demonstrating results.

    What marketing strategies will you choose?

    Take the four marketing quadrants into consideration. The easier a marketing activity, the more likely you’ll actually do it. And the more proactive a marketing activity, the faster the response you’ll get.

    Cheers, Robert

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    Source by Robert Middleton

    Views: 0

  • The Best eCommerce Practices for a Seamless Customer Experience

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    In this generation of online shopping, none of the businesses can thrive without an outright eCommerce site. Further, websites became an integral part of digital marketing strategy and hence improving a dynamic, appealing and user-friendly website is essential. From visual elements to UI / UX elements, everything matters! They should be able to lure customers and offer them a top-notch experience of shopping.

    So, here's a quick guide for the budding eCommerce entrepreneurs to start off their stores like a pro and let every single visitor has an exceptional experience. The points discussed below also explain how every minute element of an eCommerce site has a direct impact on the perceptions and interests of the visitors.

    Homepage must be engaging enough for the customers

    You hardly have 4-5 seconds to capture the attention of the visitors and the first thing they see is the home page. Within those fraction of the time, you need to show them what you have and how amazing your brand is. Make it approachable with a clean layout, uncluttered elements, and bold colors. Put all the promo offers, deals and discounts on the homepage only with tempting banners / sliders to captivate the attention visitors.

    Smooth navigation to persuade customers to explore

    The navigation and its related elements have to be pretty intuitive and easy to use because that enable the customers to explore more of the other pages on the site. The basic behind such effortless navigation is clarity of elements. That means menu, search box, categories, sub-categories, call-to-action, all should be organized well and redirect customers to the page they were seeking for.

    Businesslike content presentation is essential

    Users don't just view your website for the products but also read what's written to know the brand and for other snippets of information on products you offer. However, flowery language, long sentences and tough words are never that catchy to visitors! So, put all your information, headlines, offers and sales announcements in simplest words and in separate blocks to avoid cluttering.

    Responsive search tools are a must

    Make your search effective and responsive with filters, keywords corrections and suggestions. Customers are impatient beings! If they do not get the exact things they were looking for, they will just leave. These options will help them find the exact items they have in their mind by typing the keywords. Filters enable them to search for products according to features, colors, size and other specialties.

    Clear Call-to-Action and simplified checkout

    To redirect customers to the checkout page without any hassles you need to place clear call-to-action on the product pages. Further, to assure that none of your customers leaves because you have a lengthier checkout process, then make it short with fewer fields.

    At the end of the day, your website is for selling not just for capturing the attention of visitors. So, if there's enough traffic driving from the search engines to your website, leaves no chance to turn to their paying customers with these proven practices.

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    Source by Rob Stephen

    Views: 0

  • Conventional, Versus Wellness Approach, To Health

    Conventional, Versus Wellness Approach, To Health

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    What we consider, the conventional approach, to health, in the United States, differs, in many ways, from the way, most of the rest of the world, considers, and approaches, this concept. Many seem to believe, a conventional approach, means, using allopathic medicine, which includes, a primary emphasis on chemically designed, prescriptions, and treatments, while, in most other nations, this approach, includes, both allopathy, as well as alternative remedies, and treatments. Which way, is best for you, depends, on your specific mindset, attitude, overall health, condition, beliefs, etc. With that in mind, this article will attempt to briefly, consider, examine, review, and discuss, the different approaches, and some of the different advantages, and disadvantages.

    1. Conventional approach: The disadvantage of the so – called, conventional approach, is it pays more attention, often, to the symptoms, rather than all the possible causes, etc. It treats ailments, usually, by using a chemical – drug, to reduce and treat the ailment. It is important to recognize, illnesses, and ailments, should be divided into, chronic versus acute ones, and life – threatening, versus, more common illnesses. I strongly believe, there are many acute conditions, which are best treated with drugs, but there are also circumstances, when the side effects, and potential dangers, may make it less logical. Obviously, when the ailment is life – threatening, such as cancers, severe organ issues (such as pneumonia, liver problems, etc), they need immediate, dramatic treatment, while, at other times, it might make more sense, to use, an alternative approach.

    2. Alternative approach: Many use methods, such as Reiki, acupuncture, Ayuverdic, homeopathy, herbal remedies, vitamins and supplements, etc, as an essential part of taking care of their overall health. These often, enhance our immunity, and what we refer to, as resistance. However, one must take care, to do so, in consultation, with a qualified, open – minded, health professional, who is able to use, either approach. Don’t abandon prescribed medications, without thoroughly discussing with your doctor! Know the risks and benefits.

    3. Wellness: An intelligent, seamless, merger of both, conventional, and alternative treatments, is, often, the wisest approach. In most of the rest of the world, non – chemical approaches, are used, before conventional ones, in order to minimize over – use, and dependence, and minimize side – effects, and attempt to enhance our body’s immunity and immune system. This is the essence of a wellness program, where we proceed, and take advantage of any modalities, which might enhance and improve our overall health.

    Beware, you should do your research, and consult qualified, trained health professionals, in order to use the best combination. It’s up to you!

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    Source by Richard Brody

    Views: 0

  • Best Video Marketing Tips You Should Know About

    Best Video Marketing Tips You Should Know About

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    If you’re responsible for marketing a business, you need to get involved with making videos for your company. No two ways about it; video marketing is an effective and evolving tool for marketing that nearly every marketing manager can benefit from. Check out the tips in the following article to get started on your video marketing campaign today.

    Don’t be afraid of complex video marketing strategies. It is simple to make a good video with basic equipment. You can show customers your workplace, manufacturing centre or just discuss your expertise.

    Videos can easily be used to explain your products or services to potential customers. Seeing how a product works will help your customers understand how to use your product and why buying from you is preferable to other sellers. So, learning to make videos to explain what you are selling will easily help build your customer base.

    After you have published your video, include your web address in the video description. You will also want to include several keywords that describe your video in the description. This will help users find your information and search engines effectively rank your video. Your web address can also be included in your video.

    When shooting a video it is okay to keep things simple with your equipment. In most cases, it’s not the technical brilliance of the clip that achieves the desired results. Some of the most basic video marketing has been done by large corporations like Dell or Apple.

    Remember how important a catchy title is to the success of your video. More viewers will be interested in your videos if the titles make sense and attract their attention. This is what makes them more interested in the topic you’re discussing. Take some time to brainstorm titles that are creative if you want your video marketing to be successful.

    If you are thinking of using video marketing to increase your sales and website traffic, then look to your competition for some clues. See what is working for them and try to capitalize off of this information. You do not have to copy them, but see what is working for them and try to make it work for you.

    Don’t only rely on videos in your marketing campaign. They are great marketing tools, however, they should not replace your other marketing tactics. Videos should not replace content creation like article writing or blogging. Videos should simply be used to enhance the content in your marketing campaign and to build up your link portfolio.

    The content you use needs to be interesting. Make your video really pack a punch. Popular video hosting sites such as YouTube can expose you to many potential customers, but there is no way to attract them with boring videos. A lot of people want to watch videos that are relevant. Interesting videos ultimately increase traffic.

    Maybe you aren’t going to be the star of your show, but you do need to find a good spokesperson or mascot to help market your videos. Try to find somebody that is natural when speaking and generally makes people around them feel comfortable. People want to watch somebody they feel that they can trust.

    If you have a product that is quite difficult to use, you should create a video that will give step-by-step directions to users. They will appreciate the time you took to explain your products to them. This will make it more likely they will come to you when looking for additional products.

    Keep in mind that some people surf the Internet using large screen televisions for their monitors. YouTube accepts large video files now. So, do not turn your nose up at high-definition content. Someone looking at your content on a fifty-inch plasma will not buy from you if they just see pixels.

    Make sure each video contains a clear call to action. Inform your viewers of where your products and services are located and insist that they act immediately. Make it easy for your visitors to follow through by making your instructions simple and clear. Specific, bold calls to action are smart ways to conclude your videos.

    Perfection is not your goal! You do not need professional equipment to create quality videos. A webcam or a basic camera will be enough. Also, if you have a cell phone with a video camera on it, you can utilize it for your work. So long as you have solid information and remain professional, people are going to watch your videos.

    Try to let your unique personality come through in your videos. Your audience is predominantly interested in seeing exactly what you have to offer. The more viewers feel that they know you, the more likely they are to develop a relationship with your brand and not with your competitors! Many customers appreciate the chance to link a friendly face to a company and its products and services.

    Don’t think in terms of a single video. Think of an entire series of videos, which can become a marketing campaign. If you create a show which appears every week on a specific topic, for example, people will come back to see what’s new, and you’ll grow a loyal viewer base.

    Once you begin with video marketing, you’ll probably find it impossible to stop. It’s effective, easy, cost-effective and really fast to produce! It can also put your business on the Internet map, boosting your customer base right along with the bottom line. Get started soon and realize your potential in video marketing.

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    Source by Cameron Nyack

    Views: 0