* robfrankel   Yes, there IS a Free Clinic this morning, Monday, January 11, 2010. It will begin at the top of the hour (9 AM Pacific) as designated by the clock in the upper right hand corner of your browser.
* robfrankel   At that time, I'll be back here, welcoming anyone with their business or branding issues at no charge. Lots of people drop by.
* robfrankel   So rustle up a cup of coffee, grab your business issues and meet everyone here at the top of the hour.
I'll be back to begin at the top of the hour.
* eydryan   Can't wait :)
* eydryan   Damn it an I almost made it today... I have to go, have a great morning Rob! I'll ask you next week all my questions, really had a few since I'm starting up a new business! Finally! :))
* robfrankel   Almost ready
* eydryan   Really must run... Darn it. Have a great week Rob, goodbye! :)
* robfrankel   No problem.
* robfrankel   Alrighty then, just as every Monday since time began, the Free Clinic is open for the next 60 minutes. This is where I keep my browser open for anyone who drops by, a no-charge pro bono service that's publicly archived at http://www.FrankelBiz.com
* anita2306   Good morning, Rob.
* robfrankel   Hey Anita. How ya doin'?
* anita2306   Begining to despair.
* robfrankel   Why would that be?
* robfrankel   From everything I can tell, the market is heating up.
* anita2306   Clients are sitting on proposals
* anita2306   No one seems to want to committ suddenly
* robfrankel   Doesn't matter that clients are sitting on proposals. That just means you have to keep stuffing the new business pipelines.
* anita2306   I thought it was a function of the end of the year, but...
* robfrankel   I think I have about 20 new biz proposals "out there" right now. And I still send out 100 to 150 e-mails every day.
* anita2306   Since I am now charging what I am worth, face to face networking no longer seems to be working
* anita2306   The larger businesses do not attend the same events I do
* robfrankel   After you've identified your targets, you simply have to find more and target them. It eventually ends up being a balance of numbers and timing.
* robfrankel   I told you YEARS ago that face to face networking is for instant printers and nail salons.
* robfrankel   People who want free bagels and coffee do face to face stuff.
* anita2306   Well, it did bring me a lot of clients, and a few larger ones from conferences
* anita2306   I need to go back and reread the ebook I got from you.
* robfrankel   Well, sure, NOTHING is going to TOTALLY fail. But it's certainly not the best method, especially if you analyze the overall ROI.
* robfrankel   Even if you choose to continue F2F, you STILL have to stuff that new biz pipeline in any other way that makes sense.
* robfrankel   What's your latest URL?
* anita2306   I have all this knowledge, and cannot seem to make a living with it.
* anita2306   I still have my old site that needs to be re-written completely.
* robfrankel   Right. But that's been an issue for you for a while. Time to really look at what your business process is to convert that knowledge to $$$
* anita2306   I am writing a Welcome letter to new clients to let them know what the process is.
* robfrankel   I suspect you're taking to much time on process and not enough time on tactics.
* anita2306   No, I am doing the opposite.
* robfrankel   Well, SOMETHING is disconnecting.
* anita2306   Maybe it is the long term strategy that is missing
* robfrankel   Prospects and clients generally don't connect the dots on their own. They rely on you to take them through it, but from THEIR points of view.
* robfrankel   Well, what IS your long term strategy?
* anita2306   That is probably where I am going wrong.
* anita2306   SEO is so abstract...
* robfrankel   It shouldn't be. In fact, it's nearly impossible to sell something abstract.
* anita2306   The long term strategy is to amass a large number of clients and keep their websites visibile in the search engines by a variety of techniques.
* robfrankel   Believe me, branding CAN be abstract. I think one reason why my practice has grown is due to my ability to articulate where others rely on abstractions.
* anita2306   People not think they understand SEO and social media, but they really do not.
* robfrankel   But you have to do that without giving away the store.
* anita2306   do think
* robfrankel   And it really helps to have case studies that go to the clients' bottom lines.
* anita2306   Exactly, which has been a problem for a long time. My biz partner is helping me on that point.
* robfrankel   Yeah, you have to get over what they think and what they don't think. you have to focus more on who you are and why you're the only solution.
* robfrankel   If you have a business partner, and you have faith in that partner, let the partner focus on the business and you focus on what you do. That's if you TRUST your biz partner, of course.
* anita2306   I just realized the other day that I have been doing SEO for over 10 years
* anita2306   The partner is my CFO and CRO (Cheif Reality Officer)
* robfrankel   You must have case studies by now!
* anita2306   He is best in sales, where I am not.
- cmd   Hello, all!
* robfrankel   Well, that's cute and everything but can he frame a business plan and execute on it?
* robfrankel   Hey CMD! Welcome....
* anita2306   Yes, he has done so for two of his own businesses
* anita2306   Let cmd go ahead.
* robfrankel   Well, then, strap in and go for the ride. He should be driving the new business train. you should just be serving the clients as he signs them up.
* robfrankel   CMD, anything I can help out with?
- cmd   I'm actually just here to kinda get an idea of what goes on here
* robfrankel   Ah, well this is pretty much a free form session. Sometimes I can help out folks when they're stuck. Other times, we end up matching people up to do business together.
* robfrankel   People drop in and out during the hour. When the session is done, it gets archived at http://www.FrankelBiz.com
It can be pretty helpful.
- cmd   I guess I'm what is referred to as a 'traditional marketer' and was recently laid off so I'm in between opportunities atm
* anita2306   Rob, did you see where Pre Paid Lega is messing up their own advertising?
* robfrankel   Hey, that's perfect. This is a great place to brainstorm and get leads.
* robfrankel   Anita, no I missed that one. But they never did have a great reputation.
* robfrankel   CMD, what were you doing in the offline world?
* anita2306   They claim that you can make a great living selling their product. But then they launch the Blastoff network.
- cmd   Director of marketing for a consumer goods company
* robfrankel   That sound pretty interesting. Any particular sector?
- cmd   I've heard of the blastoff network - isn't that an MLM biz?
* robfrankel   I avoid MLM and network marketing like the plague.
- cmd   why's that?
- cmd   if you start one, they can be very lucrative, no?
* robfrankel   I must get 4 invitations a week from new MLM groups who want me to work for free in exchange for a top slot in the downline.
* anita2306   Yes, it is an online mall, basically MLM and affiliate marketing. It has been done before.
* anita2306   Cmd, you have to know which one to join, and do your due diligence.
* robfrankel   My position on MLM/Network is that it's REALLY an "internal consumption" model, meaning that the innocent recruits and downliners end up consuming -- but never selling -- the stuff they signed up for.
* robfrankel   Which is why there are so many MLM's being created. Their halflives are not terribly long.
- cmd   Anita, have you tried them before?
- cmd   I agree with you on that, Rob.
* anita2306   I tried a travel one, but could not even afford the travel packages I was promoting.
* robfrankel   A while back, I had a start up contact me. Well funded by private folks.
The entire team was made up of MLM types.
* robfrankel   First thing I did was get payment - in cash -- up front for 100%.
- cmd   Do either of you have any experience with provisional patents?
* anita2306   I am now working with one because I love their product. They are very new to direct sales, but are an established company.
* robfrankel   Even though the CEO offered me stock and a "top spot", I chose the cash.
* robfrankel   Within 90 days, the CEO ran off with all the money, the project crashed and the only vendor who got paid was me.
* robfrankel   I own a patent myself, no longer provisional because it was granted.
* robfrankel   By provisional, do you mean "pending"?
* anita2306   Cmd, have you checked out this site: http://patents.alltop.com/
* anita2306   It is a list of blogs and news about patents
- cmd   No, there is a new patent called "provisional" which is less expensive to file up front. It expires within one year if you don't apply for a traditional patent.
* robfrankel   In any case, that client's business plan was to amass as many MLM people with databases containing as many"agents" as possible. It was simple: Blast e-mail all the suckers in their downlines to buy in.
- cmd   I will look at it, thanks, Anita! I have worked with traditional patents but not these provisional ones.
* robfrankel   I haven't filed a provisional. Not sure why you wouldn't just file a regular patent, since it pretty much affords you even more protection than an issued patent does.
- cmd   A provisional patent is just $100 to file
- cmd   Rob, so are you currently working with an MLM company?
* robfrankel   Is it an easier application process? The traditional ones were fairly involved.
* robfrankel   No CMD, the last MLM I worked with was the one I mentioned. And they imploded on their own.
- cmd   ahhh, gotcha
* robfrankel   I'll work with them, but there are some clients that have very strict payment requirements -- and they're on that list.
- cmd   what do you guys think of LinkedIn and careerbuilder?
* robfrankel   The remnants of that disaster are that I now know people who can access hundreds of thousands of potential "agents" with a push of a button. So if there's an MLM opportunity that I like, I can help launch it.
* robfrankel   Can't say for sure about CareerBuilder, but I know for a fact that LInked IN is actually a lead engine that sells profiles to recruiters.
- cmd   Anita, do you know if the alltop site has information on expiring patents?
* anita2306   CareerBuilder is a job search engines for the most part.
* robfrankel   I believe LInkedIn charges recruiters something like $7 per qualified lead.
- cmd   SELLS profiles?
* anita2306   cmd, the various blogs may have that info. I suggest checking the US Patent office website
* robfrankel   Which is why LinkedIn is free to users.
It's like LendingTree. They don't do anything other than sell your information to lending institutions.
- cmd   Can't recruiters just view profiles like everyone else?
* robfrankel   Yep, LInkedIn sells their data.
See the kind of stuff you can find out here at the Free Clinic? :D
- cmd   I thought LinkedIn monetized their site mostly through offering upgrades to their free members
* anita2306   LinkedIn is not totally free, there is a paid membership as well.
* robfrankel   Of course. But if you're serious about fulfilling a job vacancy, you want to put the power of computing to work for you.
* robfrankel   LinkedIn's paid services are a red herring.
- cmd   yes, Rob, very interesting
* anita2306   LI lets you find others who may be in the company, who can help you with insider info.
- cmd   doesn't seem like there are alot of job vacancies available right now
* robfrankel   I sat in on a funding meeting a few months ago and was just as stunned to learn that Linked In was selling data and keeping that aspect under wraps quite well.
* anita2306   Actually there are, you just have to know where to look.
- cmd   Careerbuilder has alot of upsells available. I'm thinking about upgrading my resume there for a month and see how it goes.
* anita2306   There is an entire website called Marketingjobs.com
* robfrankel   CMD, the worst of it is over, from what I can see. I'm getting a lot of action, and mine is a "front of the boat" kind of discipline. I deal with forward-looking people and just about everyone is planning again.
* robfrankel   What sector of marketing are you in CMD?
- cmd   I would love to start up my own biz but not sure I want to work that hard! :)
* anita2306   Also, take a look at Indeed.com , Simplyhired.com, and NetTemps.com
* anita2306   Many of the marketing blogs have job boards as well
- cmd   Product Development and Management, Rob.
* robfrankel   CMD, I started up my own business ago when I realized that you're actually more secure in your own gig than being at the mercy of someone else.
* anita2306   Here is a good place to start: http://jobs.alltop.com/
- cmd   so true, Rob, especially in the sales and marketing fields!
* robfrankel   I strongly encourage people to go on their own. It's worked well for me. I have more time for my family and generate more revenue than I ever would have working for someone else. Of course,your mileage may vary...
* anita2306   And that is why I am resisting going back to being just another librarian
- cmd   I just don't know what my niche is yet. I would love to get some of my own products out on the market.
- cmd   what kind of business do you have, Anita?
* robfrankel   CMD, one thing I'm doing now that you may find interesting:
I'm finding that clients are very receptive to my developing markets/products on turnkey basis, and then partnering with them on the production and sales.
* anita2306   If you start a Wordpress blog, you can do that without having to set up a website
* anita2306   Sell your products, I mean
* robfrankel   Because I've done their branding strategies, they know whatever I bring them deserves a look. We have one deal on the table now that could expand a client's product into new markets: 3000 new retail outlets for one product alone.
- cmd   ooh, I did that, Anita. But gave up on blogging
* robfrankel   TEN MINUTE WARNING: Still plenty of time.
* robfrankel   Um, I absolutely don't believe in blogging as a business tool.
No ROI there at all.
* robfrankel   If you want to do business, you have to do business. Period.
- cmd   I have some web skills and have built sites in the past
* robfrankel   Seriously, CMD. THink about your contacts. Your experience in development. Shouldn't take you too long to brainstorm and flush out an idea they can produce with you.
* anita2306   A lot of people have used blogging as a business tool quite successfully.
* robfrankel   Anita, everyone SAYS that but I don't know anyone who's made any real money blogging. It's another one of those web myths. That's why people are NEVER specific about what they've done with their blogs.
- cmd   Anita, sorry, I missed what kind of business you have...?
* robfrankel   I can't think of one person who can live off their blog earnings.
- cmd   Never thought about that, Rob ... thanks!
* anita2306   I do organic search engine optimization, ghost blogging, and social media training.
* robfrankel   Oh yeah, CMD:
NOBODY wants to hear about "ideas".
EVERYONE wants to hear about how you're going to make them money.
* anita2306   Rob, John Chow, Jeremy Shoemaker, Dave Taylor...
- cmd   right, Rob!
* robfrankel   Really? How much are they taking home in real $$$?
- cmd   Anita, sounds like your business is quite timely
* anita2306   no idea, but they seem to have enough to live well AND go to conferences
- cmd   I'm not a big conference advocate
* anita2306   cmd, I have been doing this for last 10 years
- cmd   Do you have a website, Anita?
* anita2306   I was doing "social media" in 1994
* anita2306   http://mysearchguru.com
* robfrankel   I don't waste time on any of those distractions. No network groups. No conferences. I just e-mail people who can use my services.
- cmd   How do you find those people though?
- cmd   You have to get your leads somewhere
* anita2306   Rob, quick book plug!!
* robfrankel   Yup. The best investment you can make is in a lead list. Have you looked at the E-books I sell? One of the best sellers is http://frankelbiz.com/stock/StockCatalog.php?m=store
* robfrankel   fb-105
How to Send Unsolicited E-Mail and NOT be a Spammer
Yes, e-mail really does work for prospecting business if you know what youre doing. Who Are Your Best Prospects?, Where Do You Find Them?, How Often Should You E-Mail?, What Kind of Letter Should You Write?, How Do You Build and Manage the Contacts?, When Do You Send Letters? What kind of follow up?
* robfrankel   ACK! Last minute!
The room is going to stay open for another 15 minutes, but I've gotta run.
* anita2306   lol
- cmd   hmm, I'll have to get that!
- cmd   thanks, all!
* anita2306   Definitely
* anita2306   bye
* robfrankel   Hey, I'm glad you guys showed up.
Stick around if you like. In the meantime, I've gotta run.
Have a great week. I'll see you online!