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Internet expert Sean Roach, author of Get Off Your Duff and Make Your Own Damn Cheese! recently presented some very interesting information about why page 2 of Google might be a better place for your website to end up on than page 1.

The video footage can be found on the World Internet Summit blog written by Tom Hua and Brett McFall.

There is also alot of great advice from Sean about which niches are producing great financial results and why….

Below is a video that was done by Gary Vaynerchuk in 2008….

It is all about what it takes to conquer the New Economy and come out a WINNER !!

The video is 15 minutes long and worth watching … BEWARE … Gary ‘cusses up a STORM !!

This is NOT for the faint of heart !!

PASSION

TRANSPARENCY

AUTHENTICITY

COMMUNITY

COMMUNICATION

Browse the business section of any bookstore, do some research on Goggle…

Inevitably you will find an enormous amount of information…

Keys…secrets….formulas…tips and tricks to running a successful small business

There is so much information that it threatens to easily overwhelm you.

It is all useful, but this vast amount of information can leave entrepreneurs feeling overwhelmed and that running a business is complicated and difficult. That’s far from the truth. Success comes from sticking to basic but simple fundamental principles. Increasing your business income is no exception. When you stop to think about it, there are only three routes you can follow toward making more money:

1. Find more customers

2. Make more from your existing customers by increasing the value of each sale

3. Increase the frequency that customers buy

Those three simple steps represent a foolproof way of increasing the revenue of your business. If you can direct more resources to achieve one or more of these, you will almost certainly make more money. The trick is to move this little list from theory and turn it into practical application in your specific arena and circumstance.

Overall

1. Focus on a specific target market

Understand that you can’t be everything to everyone. Only the big department stores still have a measure of success with a generalist approach, although if the truth be told, many of them are struggling to break even. We live in an age where customers demand an ever increasing degree of specialization—make sure you are able to offer this by developing a target customer profile and a strategy for delivering what they really want. Turning away from the masses to service the few may sound slightly counterintuitive, but it remains the simplest way to build a loyal customer base that is appreciative of the fact that your business is geared toward meeting their specific needs.

2. Deliver innovative, high value products and services

Marketing gurus often talk about the value of being “first in the mind”. This refers to the fact that the first company to offer an exciting new product or service will often become identified with that product or service to such an extent that they will remain the market leader for years or even decades. Examples of companies that are first in the mind are: Microsoft (software), Xerox (copiers) and Coca-Cola (soft drinks). You may not be running a multi-national corporation, but the first in the mind principle can be applied on a local level by making sure that you offer innovative, high value products or services that get people in your niche talking. Selling products or services that are available elsewhere should not prevent you from becoming first in the mind. To assist with this, be sure that the level of expertise and customer care you offer makes your business the first that people think of in your field.

3. Tailor your marketing message toward benefits rather than features

The infamous features and benefits distinction is well worth repeating. We often design our marketing pieces to highlight all the bells and whistles of our products while our prospective customers are simply asking: “What is in it for me?” Since the goal of your marketing message is increasing your income by providing products and services that truly address the needs of your customers,  you should make sure that your marketing is laser focused on answering this question.

4. Make technology work for you

Technology provides a small business owner with a huge amount of leverage; time leverage, financial leverage, organizational leverage.  It makes good business sense to find technologies that can truly deliver in terms of added value and cost savings. To do this effectively, you will have to do some research, but the benefits are tremendous. Chances are that technology exists that can revolutionize your back-office or marketing.

Get more customers

5. Create an effective follow-up system

Customers who do not buy on a first visit are much more likely to do so on the second—if there is a second! Do your best to ensure there is a second chance by creating an effective follow up system to remind all prospective customers of the great services and products you offer. Technology like e-mail auto-responders and e-zines can play a key role here.

6. Make your current customers work for you

No marketing technique is as effective as word-of-mouth advertising. Ask for and use testimonials—where satisfied customers say GREAT things about you and your business.  Always ask for referrals—satisfied customers will always be glad to provide you with information about prospective clients who might benefit from what you offer.

Make more money per client

7. Charge more

This is perhaps the most obvious and also the most difficult way to increase revenue. Most of us fear the loss of customers if we raise our prices. In reality, price is rarely the single most important determining factor in customer loyalty. You will have to do some price point testing to see if you are on the mark. But overall,  if what you are providing is of TRUE value and solves your customers’ problems, most clients will gladly pay whatever you are charging.

8. Broaden your product range

One of the best ways to increase income per client is to develop a range of products and services that suits different budgets. This allows you to offer value-added premium services to those who do not mind paying more for something extra.

Increase purchase frequency

9. Design strategies to keep customers loyal

Never underestimate the value of initiatives to keep your customers coming back. Regular customers tend to spend more and are also your best word-of-mouth ambassadors. Make special discounts for regular customers, like loyalty programs, a part of your strategy.

10. Stay in touch. Investigate the best ways to stay connected with your customers

Communicate regularly and focus on the benefits of your products or services. Also be sure to mention any new or additional offerings. If you provide high-value, high-content information to your customers once a week via e-mail or an e-zine, you will be surprised at how much more income you will create. It is also a really special when you send a handwritten note or card to your customers. Most folks are so accustomed to being bombarded by junky emails, that receiving a postcard or a hand written note will be something that totally differentiates you from everyone else !!

Are YOU a money magnet…???

No matter how hard you try to deny the fact…

MONEY is an important thing to have…

Money makes life easier and more comfortable…

It gives you and your loved ones access to amazing opportunities that just might be beyond traditional reach.

Money gives you incredible leverage…

You can help others… financially support causes you believe in…

You can even buy some really cool new toys…cars…shoes…even a restaurant !!

Listen up folks…

Since you’re going to have to work hard anyway in this life…why NOT make a lot of money doing so?

The good news is you really won’t have to work more than you already do now.

You just have to learn how to work in a new way.

It starts with how you think…your MINDSET !!

Having the correct mindset about money is CRITICAL to making the  money YOU DESERVE through your business…

Why?

In order to be rich, how you think and feel about money is more important than how you earn money.

You can learn all the tips and tricks about how to make money…

But if you don’t think and feel wealthy BEFORE the money materializes…

you’ll be stuck in the ” I need to make more money” rut forever.

You must think rich..feel rich…see yourself rich… FIRST…

And then take focused action to achieve those rich results.

Words from my mentor…

Who you REFUSE to be is responsible for all that you can not RECEIVE

To help you start thinking and feeling wealthy so that you can become wealthy…

Here are seven wealth statements that I say to myself every day and share with my clients…

Wealth Statement 1~ “I am responsible for my financial success, and no one else.”

I alone am responsible for my wealth. I know that where I am at right now in terms of financial success is a direct result of your own decisions and actions. Blaming other people or circumstances prevents me from moving forward financially. If I allow myself to believe my circumstances are attributable to the actions of others and that I am powerless and have no control over my situation, I am also powerless to change my life now. The good news is, that by accepting responsibility for my financial success I give myself complete permission and power to build the future that I have always wanted.

I AM a Wealthy Woman. I Know that Wealthy People create their own lives. Life doesn’t just happen to them. Wealthy People are RESPONSIBLE for EVERYTHING in their lives.

Wealth Statement 2: “I learn about making money from wealthy people.”

Take a hard look at who you are taking money advice from: friends and family who struggle to make ends meet, or successful mentors who have proven they know how to make money, and lots of it…there is a BIG difference !!

As a Wealthy Woman, I  take advice from people who have more money than I do. I am constantly learning and advancing my knowledge about money, business, and investing. I have taken the  time to learn from those who know. I picked one area, and I got started.

Wealth Statement 3: “I take good care of my money.”

Until I can demonstrate that I can handle what I’ve got, God…the universe… won’t bring me any more. I have learned to love managing my money, even when it was only a few dollars. I simply started with a notebook, my bills and statements, a pen and a calculator.

I got my debts organized and worked out a repayment plan. Ignoring my bills didn’t improve my situation. When I got everything organized and created a repayment plan, I demonstrated that I was taking responsibility. Things started changing for the better.

Wealth Statement 4: “I see opportunity in everything. EVERYTHING.”

When you want wealth, you need to start looking at the world differently than other people. Are you seeing opportunities, potential growth, and rewards? Or are you seeing obstacles, potential loss, and risks?

Take the current economy as an example. The media is having a field day with all the apparent loss and hardship in this country, while many savvy entrepreneurs are quietly using the current situation to their benefit. Here’s something that you won’t be hearing on the news: Some of the largest fortunes ever made were generated in times of economic recession. There’s no better time to get involved in your own business than now!

Wealth Statement 5: “I play big to win big.”

If you ask most people about how much money they’d like to make, they respond, “Well, I just want enough to be comfortable.” That means they want to make more money, but not take risks to do so. That keeps them in survival mode, and that means stuck in a comfortable rut.

Are you playing to win, or just not to lose? To get out of your current money rut, you need to get out of your current comfort rut. You’re only growing when you are uncomfortable. Ironically, once you are used to discomfort, you’re more likely to end up with wealth that makes you very comfortable. Get used to taking educated risks that make you FEEL UNCOMFORTABLE. THAT is the price of winning BIG.

Small thinking and small actions lead to small bank deposits. Big thinking and big actions lead to a big fat bank account. Play BIG to Win BIG !!

Wealth Statement 6: “I love to receive—especially money.”

If you have trouble receiving gifts from others, you probably have trouble receiving money. I even see many women deflect compliments, myself included. If a friend would say: “Wow…you look great today”, I used to respond by saying, “Who….me??? You’re crazy.” I not only didn’t receive the compliment, but I also denied my friend the joy of giving…God and the Universe won’t give to those who are unable to graciously receive.

Over time I learned how to RECEIVE graciously. It was a POWERFUL lesson to learn. Next time someone says, “You look great today,” simply smile and say, “Well, thank you. I appreciate that.” Or when receiving a gift say, “Thank you, this is PERFECT. I appreciate it.”

Charge well for your products and services and NEVER apologize for your rates or pricing. Get paid ahead of time or on time. Become good at asking for and receiving money, and know you deserve to be paid !!

Wealth Statement 7: “I enjoy giving money to others.”

Tithing…the act of giving back to worthy people and organizations…is an important part of the money cycle. I recently received a wonderful gift from a client who wanted to “Thank” me for the value she had received from our coaching sessions. In the past I would have been very uncomfortable receiving a gift like this from someone because I would have felt that I didn’t deserve it. Now …I know better. I blessed both the giver and the gift. I have been able to use the gift to help lots of other people and the giver knows how much she is appreciated by me because I am able to help other people through her generosity. Being able to help other people makes me feel good and it also allows my client to feel even better about our relationship.

Video Marketing GETS PEOPLE MORE EXPOSURE AND MORE MONEY than ANYTHING.

Period.

Andy Jenkins (formerly of Stompernet) breaks it all down for you in a series of new videos….

He shows you some simple little techniques that he uses that have literally raised the bar of how people do Video Marketing…

Does this stuff really work?

Andy did some testing and the results go like this…

Over $5,000,000.00 in sales from 3 simple little slide-show video campaigns….

This information is PERFECT for the Video Phobes out there…

Take a minute to check it out…
http://www.thevideoboss.com

Now, one of the best parts about the kind of video that Andy does is…

The tools that he uses just might ALREADY be installed on your computer…

Do I hear anyone saying FREE … low-cost marketing…???

Andy also shows you how amateur videos are ranking on the first page of Google – right along with “The Learning Channel”…

That video got over 104,567 views….that is some SERIOUS exposure…

Here’s what else is in the series:

• How “Regular Folks” … NOT professional Video-makers are CLEANING UP using simple video marketing strategies
• How “James” created a short, 4 minute slide-show video as a gift to his dog, and how it went VIRAL and got over 4,000,000 views
• How “Robert” used camcorder Video of his wife exercising to ramp up to over 90,000 visitors per month to his YOGA site
• How “Bill” made short, less than 2-minute long demonstration videos for his Artificial Christmas Trees site that are now 11 of his 12 most powerful converting web pages.
• The CURSE of Online Video Marketing – how to protect yourself and take advantage of what everyone else is afraid of.
• The absolutely fastest way to make a killer sales letter video from SCRATCH, so you can be converting more visitors to sales in just a few hours.
• The most popular and powerful software you should use to make slick, professional looking online video. Some of these applications are so easy to use, you might not even need to read the manual.
• A silly, but hardly ever used trick to make the voice quality of your audio sound like it was recorded on an expensive, professional microphone.
• How to make “Flip-Cam” videos look like “TV-Studio” videos…

And Andy is promising a whole lot more high value FREE information and training !!!

BTW folks, this is PURE content – there’s NO pitch in this video…

So feel free to pass this link around if you have some friends that might benefit from it !!!

Go here and WATCH Andy Jenkins totally tearing it UP !!!

http://www.thevideoboss.com

This article was originally written in 2007…The advice is as pertinent today as it was then !! In-JOY !!

Do You ‘Make a Sale’ or ‘Provide an Experience’?

You ordered a glass of wine and two bottles of water.  The bill came to US $40.  Are you shocked?  Horrified?

I recently came across a receipt from my trip to Italy last year and, rather than cringe in pain when seeing that receipt again, I smiled at the instant memory of the experience which it generated. It was one of the few nice days we had and I was sitting with my uncle and mother at an outside table in the center of Piazza Navona (Navona Square) in Rome watching local artists selling their works and people milling about.

Why did I smile rather than cringe? It was the “experience”. I was immediately brought back to the people, the chatting, the smells, the feel of the warm sun on a winter’s day, the sound of the Fountain of Four Rivers — all of it, generated off a receipt for wine and bottled water.

Now I want you to stop and think for a moment.  What type of *experience* do you/your business leave your clients with?

Are they happy they did business with you? Are they frustrated? Did you answer the phone with a smile? Are your emails friendly or clipped?

In this age of technology-driven companies and recorded receptionists, are you providing your clients with a personal touch? It’s the personal touch, the feeling that they are special to you and your business that will bring them back again and again.

With the Internet, clients (and customers) today are extremely fickle. They can quickly and easily “Google” another company that provides similar goods and services. You need to create an iron cage around your clients — and you do that by creating loyalty. You should be the *only* virtual assistant or consultant or pizza company that they think of when needing your services.

You create loyalty by consistently providing your clients with a positive experience.

Let’s go over that one more time: “You create loyalty by CONSISTENTLY providing your clients with a POSITIVE EXPERIENCE.”

Now before you dismiss all of this and say “I can’t do this, my business is different!”, let’s discuss some ways you can create loyalty through positive experiences.

1. Care about your client.

My husband and I went on a Celebrity cruise to Alaska with another couple a few years ago. It was the most amazing trip of my life. If you ask my hubby about the trip, he immediately focuses on two things: the glaciers (a little hard to beat those) and our waiter, Sanchez. Sanchez was, by far, the best waiter we have EVER had. He remembered all of our names, our likes, our dislikes, our quirky requests, everything — and this was after one dinner.

We felt truly cared about. And how he added to our experience was reflected in the end-of-cruise tip he received — five times the recommended amount.

Similarly, there was a local used car dealership which prided itself on caring about its customers. They even offered free, no-appointment-needed oil changes for as long as you owned your car and free loaners whenever your car needed repairs. One of their salesmen lived up the street from me and whenever I needed work done, he would swing by in the morning and drop off a loaner and bring my car back that night — fixed and ready to go (including a wash and vacuuming). He didn’t get paid any extra and he wasn’t even “my” salesman. He, and everyone else at that dealership, prided themselves on the total customer experience.

The result — my husband and I told everyone we know how great they were and, within the course of 2 years, 16 people we referred there purchased vehicles. Not including my parents who originally referred us and bought two there themselves. Then they changed ownership and service was never the same — the company quickly went out of business. Care about your clients and they will care about you.

2. Personalize your approach.

I have a client who is very relaxed in nature. She loves to laugh and joke and have a good time. I have another who is very formal and serious. I enjoy working with both of these clients and personalize how I work with them so they remain in their comfort zone while working with me.

I also do A LOT of reading and clip out and send things of interest to each of my clients as I come across them. It’s not always about business, as a result of working together, I’ve learned their personal interests and send them things related to what they care about.

3. Keep in touch.

In addition to my ezine and regular coaching sessions, I “touch” my clients, past clients and prospective clients, at least six times each year. Each “touch” gives them something positive — whether it be holiday wishes, a discount on a new product or a gift — and reminds them that I am here if they need me.

4. Thank them.

As simple as this sounds, many businesses forget to thank their clients for doing business with them. Your clients have a choice — they CAN go elsewhere. Thank them for doing business with you. Thank them personally, thank them in writing, thank them with discount coupons. . .just THANK THEM!

5. Be generous.

If you have a client who is currently going through some tough times, do something to let them know that you care and will stick by them during this time. Whether you extend your invoice terms, offer them a discounted rate or otherwise “help” them during their time of need, they will remember it. It’s human nature to want to do something good for someone when they have done something good for us — let them “do something good for you” by being a loyal customer.

These are just a few ways that you can give your clients a positive experience when dealing with you and your business. Have staff? If so, you’ll want to ingrain this in every one of them — from the receptionist to the shipping clerk.

What can you do today to insure a positive client experience?

Sandra Martini, the Automatic Business Coach, and award-winning author teaches small business owners how to implement processes and systems designed to take them out of the day-to-day running of their business. For more information and to receive her FREE e-course/audio series, “>”5 Quick & Easy Ways To Put Your Marketing on Autopilot”, visit http://www.SandraMartini.com

I just received an amazing email from Todd Falcone who is Buzzy Boxer’s real life alter ego…READ AND HEED !!

Hey Rose -

Didn’t you hear the news?  Social Media is dead.  It’s gone…completely worthless.

“Now HOLD on a second here Todd.  Have you flipped your marbles completely out of your head?  Are you ok?  Should I be worried?”

No, I haven’t lost my marbles.  My head is completely in tact.

In fact, Social Media IS alive, well, kicking, thriving…in fact BOOMING.  And not just booming…but downright monstrous in size.

Social Media’s been booming for a LONG time, way before Social Media was even called “Social Media.”

There’s probably a very good chance that you are using or are involved in Social Media, at least in some capacity (or…at least you should be) right now.

As of February 1, 2010, Facebook is the #2 most trafficked website in the entire world, followed by YouTube, with Twitter coming in at #12.  There are obviously other Social Media websites, but I’ll leave it at that for now.

Here’s some absolutely BEYOND AMAZING STATS for you on Facebook (Source:  Facebook)

-         More than 350 million active users

-         50% of our active users log on to Facebook in any given day

-         More than 35 million users update their status each day

-         More than 55 million status updates posted each day

-         More than 2.5 billion photos uploaded to the site each month

-         More than 3.5 billion pieces of content (web links, news stories, blog posts, notes, photo albums, etc.) shared each week

-         More than 3.5 million events created each month

-         More than 1.6 million active Pages on Facebook

-         More than 700,000 local businesses have active Pages on Facebook

-         Pages have created more than 5.3 billion fans

If you want to read ALL of their stats, you can go to:  http://www.facebook.com/press/info.php?statisticsSo, when I said that Social Media is DEAD, the point I wanted to make is this…

If you don’t follow the rules…even though they are largely unwritten, you’ll get canned, create a bad rap for yourself, and any of the time you invest in Social Media Platforms will all be in vain.

In other words, if you don’t ACT RIGHT, Social Media for IS dead…at least for you.

But, you know what?  This stuff is so good and has such significant potential for you and your business, that you absolutely DO NOT want to blow it.

I’m not assuming that you are…but I’m making and reiterating a point I made recently about BEHAVING ON FACEBOOK.

Some people simply DON’T know what to do and not do, what’s acceptable, what’s tolerable…and what’s completely intolerable and downright weak.

If you didn’t watch my friend Buzzy Boxer talk recently on my video blog titled “How to Behave and Get Results on Facebook”, you should go watch it, then return to this.

It’s a little goofy, but Buzzy’s a little odd anyway.  So…he’s just being him.

You can watch it here:

http://blog.toddfalcone.com/how-to-behave-and-get-results-on-facebook/

Things to DO and NOT DO on Facebook

What I’m going to share with you is in my opinion, based on how to act in a social setting.

And…in the case of this particular writing, I’m talking from the context of Facebook…since it is the #2 most trafficked site on the web.

Before I get into this…picture these “social” situations, and ponder whether or not they would be considered “acceptable” behavior or not.

Would it would be acceptable to be nude on a nude beach?  Yes.

Would it be acceptable to be naked on the streets of New York?  Probably not…unless you’re that cowboy dude.

Would it be acceptable to cuss in church?  No.

Would it be considered acceptable for you to blow your tobacco smoke into an infant’s face (or anyone for that matter)?  Nope.

Would people like it if you got drunk and puked on them?  Doubt it.

Would it be generally considered ok to walk into a stranger’s house and borrow their car without asking?  Nope.

I wanted to bring up these SOCIAL situations and then simply applying those same thoughts into how we behave in Social Media platforms move into like Facebook.

So…what to do and not do on Facebook…

When you set up your profile account, DO it in your REAL name. Remember, this is a place where you are there to network and meet PEOPLE, not to hook up and have relationships with acronyms, company names, or product names.  People want to hook up with YOU…and then they can learn more about what you DO, if they want to.  Fake names, company names, logos, product names…are all considered generally unacceptable behavior.

DO use a real and current picture of YOU. Why would an individual put a picture of some hot model as their Facebook shot if that really isn’t them?  A picture of your product is just stupid.  Logos are ridiculous.  This isn’t CompanyBook.com or LogoBook.com.  It’s FACEBOOK.  An 80’s shot?  Come on!  First of all…80’s hair was bad.  People want to see you…as who you are NOW.

DO upload lots of photos into your account. There’s your spot for the 80’s shot and other new and old shots of who you are, what you’re into now and have been in the past…kind of a snapshot of your life.  The more the merrier on Facebook.

DO Tag Properly. Seriously.  Come on.  People trip on this.  It’s like they have an addiction to tagging or something.  It’s just NOT good.  Oh…just in case you don’t know what “tagging” is on Facebook, it’s the ability to “attach” someone’s Facebook account name (which should again…be your REAL name) to the photo that was uploaded.  So…perhaps you were IN that photo.  They could “tag” you and that photo would appear on your wall.  I’ll cover walls in a second.

People OFTEN make the HUGE MISTAKE (a deadly one) of tagging people in things that they shouldn’t really be tagged in.  And…what it does is generally reduce the possibility of remaining “friends” on Facebook.  People get un-friended all the time.  You don’t want to be un-friended.  It even sounds bad saying it.

If you want to be a cool person on Facebook that people like, you simply “Tag”  properly.  Tagging people in photos and videos are really the two primary sources of doing so properly.  But…have a little respect here as well.  If you have a bad photo of somebody doing something they shouldn’t be doing, or is even questionable AT ALL, you don’t EXPOSE IT to the world by putting it up on Facebook and tagging it.

This is ABSOLUTELY UNACCEPTABLE behavior on Facebook.  Here are some DON’TS in the tagging category.

-         Tagging people in a promotion for a webinar or presentation for your company that they aren’t actually involved in at any capacity.  Some people, either plain stupid or completely uninformed do this, thinking that it will add traffic to them because the “other person’s” friends will see the post.  That’s plain WEAK.  That’s how people get black-listed and ruin their reputation.

-         Spamming someone’s wall.  Spamming someone’s wall is when you go over there and promote yourself.  That’s simply garbage.  Never, EVER go to someone’s wall and pitch your deal in ANY way.  People will literally HATE you for this…in Facebook terms of course.

-         Tagging people in ANYTHING they aren’t really in.  I personally don’t want someone else essentially “attaching me” to something I’m not in, endorsing, or involved in at any capacity.  I don’t think you do either.

-         Playing Games on Facebook.  If you’re into playing games, that’s sweet.  And…perhaps Facebook is just a place to “play” for you.  But…if you are using Facebook from a “business” standpoint, like many people do, there’s no time for playing games.  I’m not saying this is completely unacceptable behavior, but it certainly isn’t productive…at all.

-         Shortcutting actually kills you.  Here it is straight.  I get the idea of want to build relationships and attract lots of friends, but you want to KEEP them.  What you think might “quickly” help you propel something forward, really doesn’t.  What I mean by shortcutting is using any tactic where you are essentially “stealing’ people from others without having any real relationship with them or their list of friends.

DO Tell Us About the Real You.  Don’t be shy with giving information and about yourself, unless it would compromise your personal safety.  As an example, if you are a single mom living alone, you don’t want to be giving out your home address.  But, people want to know you.  So…fill us in.

Be Consistent, but Keep Track of Time. Life happens every day.  To bring your life to your Facebook page, you should be consistent.  Popping in once a week or once a month isn’t at all conducive to relationship building, regardless of what your objective may be.  Logging in once or twice a day for five to ten minutes TOTAL could be enough to keep the momentum of relationship growth in play.  But…careful not to get sucked down the “rabbit hole”.  It can happen quite easily…hours and hours of Facebooking with nothing but sore fingers to show for it.

Interact. This is pretty much what it’s all about.  If you are on Facebook, interact with people.  Say hi.  Check in.  Get to know people.  Make friends…for real.

Like and Comment.  You have the opportunity to LIKE something somebody posts on their Facebook page.  Perhaps someone puts a funny video up that you laughed at.  You can press the LIKE button next to the post and creates more of a connection with the poster.  You’re giving “props” to something they did, said or posted…and people like props.  COMMENT on stuff.  If somebody says something and you have something to say in return, say it.  This is probably one of the most critical areas of focus in building relationships (real ones) on your Facebook page.

WARNING!  Don’t over LIKE stuff or COMMENT on everything.  Be sincere.  Comment when it’s right and you feel it.  LIKE stuff you really like.  If you overdo this…you could essentially be spamming in this category as well.

When you add a Friend, Personalize it. When you go to “add new friend” on Facebook, write the potential new friend a little personal message.  (i.e.  “Hey Todd…been following your Monday calls for a while.  Love your stuff…and it would be great to connect with you on Facebook.  – Raymond”)

THAT is the way you do a friend add on Facebook!  I ain’t joking.  Guaranteed, more people will accept your friend request when you personalize it.

Don’t Send Too Many Personal Messages. Within Facebook, you can essentially send your Friends email.  If you send out too many emails, Facebook will shut you down…quickly.  This is not a place to grow a Friend list and send the same email to 100 of them about your deal.  In fact…you’d never even get to 100 because Facebook will slam your account closed before you get even close.  If you want to send a private message to someone, do it.   But don’t blast it…or you’ll get blasted right out of Facebook.  If you want to reach a lot of people for the same purpose, a Fan Page or Group is more conducive to that happening.

Connect with Influencers and Ease in. Alright…I should be charging for this stuff,  especially with what I’m about to share.  Influencers are people who have LOTS of friends and followers in the same main Category of Interest for you.  Since you’re a reader or follower of mine, chances are that that category we’re talking about is Home Business, Network Marketing, Direct Sales, or Entrepreneurship.

When you connect with people of Influence, you are creating the potential of magnifying the number of relationships you can build by a MEGA factor…if you do it right, and politely.  Without going too deep into this subject, what I’m telling you here is that if you COMMENT, LIKE, TAG, or POST where people have lots of mutually interested followers and friends, things can skyrocket for you.

But…they can also slam you.  Bring VALUE to whatever you do or say.  Be RESPECTABLE.  Use COMMON SENSE.  And…THINK before you ACT.

Hope this helps you Facebookers out there!  Social Media is powerful.