Guest post by Janet Aronica

Creating consistent and helpful blog content is a great way to build community and trust around your brand for your prospects.

It's how you draw the right potential customers to your website.

But cranking out daily content is challenging.

How can you keep the blog post ideas flowing? How can you keep the content fresh and prevent yourself from re-hashing the same old thing?

Here’s a brainstorm of some ideas to get you started, or just keep you going...

Multi-media and Visuals

1. Do a screencast with Screenr of your product and share it on your blog.

2. Show a step-by-step guide on how to do something in a screencast, how-to video, or show the steps in a series of photos.

3. Create a music video for your company and post it on the blog.

4. Share a cartoon or create an original one.

How-to’s and Tips

5. Write a how-to article. Give instructions with screenshots or photos on the steps someone needs to take to do something.

6. Point out common mistakes in your industry and offer solutions on how to fix or avoid them.

7. Offer a list of benefits for doing something.

8. Share a list of some things to avoid.

9. Relate your how-to content to a current event or a celebrity. Example: “Five _____ Lessons from Lady Gaga” or “What the Election Teaches Us About ____”

Use Existing Content

10. Take the contrarian position – Find someone else’s article that you agree or disagree with. Introduce your blog post with what you specifically agree or disagree with it, and support your argument with a few concise points.

11. Do a weekly or daily links-roundup of relevant news for your community.

12. Find tips in other content, create a list of those tips and give links to those articles as the sources.

13. Share an excerpt from an ebook or white paper with a call to action to download it for the rest of the information.

14. Share an excerpt from an upcoming webinar with a call to action to get the rest of the content in the webinar.

15. Share your slides from a recent presentation.

16. Share conference takeaways.

17. Do a round-up of last year’s/last month’s/last week’s most popular posts.

18. Re-interpret existing content: Collect the top motivational YouTube videos for your audience, top ebooks, top webinars or infographics.

Incorporate Other Platforms

19. Create a Slideshare presentation of new statistics related to your space and share that in a blog post. Tag the Slideshare presentation with relevant keywords for your company to leverage SEO benefits of the platform.

20. Ask a question on Twitter and share the results with a Storify embed.

21. Collect Tweets from a webinar or conference hashtag, show them off with Paper.li (as recommended by FitSmallBusiness.com) and offer your own takeaways in the blog post.

Research

22. Respond to industry research with your own perspective. Offer a fresh angle to spark conversation.

23. Do a survey with Survey Monkey among your community members and create an infographic based on the results.

24. Do a poll of your Twitter community with a Twtpoll or your Facebook community with a Facebook Question and post the results on your blog.

25. Do an in-depth case study about one company, or offer a few examples of how other companies do something successfully.

Thought Leadership

26. Record an interview with an expert in your field and post it to your blog.

27. Get experts to offer a tip and do a round-up of their recommendations.

28. Feature guest posts from industry experts.

29. Publish responses to frequently asked questions about your industry.

30. Create a list of trends to watch.

31. Compare and contrast: Different products, different approaches, different companies, different people, different places, etc.

32. Do a review of other non-competitive products or services that your community cares about.

33. Be a journalist: Be the first in your space to offer industry takeaways about breaking news.

34. Explain what a current event or topic in the news means for your industry or community. Example: “What ____ Means for ____.” “Why _____ Matters for _____.”

35. De-bunk common myths.

Make it About Your Community

36. Interview your favorite customer.

36. Post a Flickr slideshow of pictures from a recent event.

37. Run a contest and give away something relevant to your community.

38. Ask for guest posts from community members.

39. If you have company news to share, talk about it in a way that makes it about the reader. Example: If someone gets promoted, talk about how why were successful. Inspire your audience.

40. Publish a post relevant to the current season or holiday.

41. Outline the top practical use cases for your product, service etc.

Originally posted by our partners at Hubspot on the HubSpot Inbound Marketing Blog.

What do you think? How do YOU generate ideas for your blog? Use the COMMENTS area below to share your advice, questions or opinions...

You'll remember from yesterday's introduction to this Business Blogging 101 series, I mentioned the three BIG problems keeping you from doing a better job of leveraging blogging into business: 

1. You are unable to write QUICKLY.

2. You are unwilling to write BRIEFLY.

3. You are inefficient at IDEA CAPTURE.

Good news for you - #1 and #2 are related and we'll solve them both for you before you're done reading this post...

Business Blogging 101: 7 Ways to Write Less and Say More
 

1. Think fortune cookies - you don't need to write an essay to share a key nugget that occurred to you while you were driving or in the shower.
   Example: 101 Success Tips in 3 Words  
    
2. When you have a lot to say, say it in shorter, sharper chunks. Like a series. Call it something snappy like "Business Blogging 101." See?
    
3. Use quotes, stats, visuals, videos, and graphics. These are not only easier for your blog readers to absorb, they're MUCH more likely to be shared, thus driving more traffic and Google juice back to YOU. 
   Example: Marketing Concept: 12 Home Page Must-Haves
    
4. Great blogs do NOT persuade, explain or convince. Put your opinions out there - the sharper, the better. Give your readers something to agree or disagree with.
   Example: The (REAL) Idiot's Guide to Social Media Marketing
    
5. Stop being so nice. It's OK to piss people off. Too many blogs take both sides of any given argument and end up sounding like a high school essay instead of a pointed, share-worthy piece of thought leadership.
   Example: 5 Signs that Your Prospect is Giving You Too Much Bullsh*t
      
6. Master the 20-minute blog post. Give yourself 20 minutes on the clock. Set a timer. Write. Revise as you go. When the bell goes off, hit publish. Truth: Even if it sucks - which it won't - you're better off posting it than if you had posted nothing that day. Honest.
    
7. Steal these blog titles: 7 Ways to... 5 Keys to... Top 10 Strategies for... 3 Biggest mistakes of... 11 Secrets of [topic] revealed... 7 Questions to ask yourself... 13 Quick tips on... 
    
8. (Bonus) Use numbers in your titles
   Example: Marketing Coach: 17 Ways to Drive More Traffic FAST
    
9. (Bonus) People love lists of key points, mistakes, lessons, examples, templates, strategies, tactics, tools, secrets, and so on. 
   Example: 23 things to say when you're asked for free consulting
    
10. (Bonus) People love free resources. People love when you point out other cool people, other great blogs, and things they need to know about, use, read, or buy to make them more successful in your area of expertise. 
    Example: Why Your Business Needs to FLOP
     
11. (Bonus) People love bonuses. Underpromise and overdeliver and you'll keep folks coming back for more. Like sharing 11 points when you initially promised just 7. Priceless!! 
     

And then leave a comment below with your questions, thoughts, and advice on the ideas above.

Are you a DO IT freak? Welcome to the club!! Please use the social media buttons at the top of this post to share it with your network. YOU are a rock star!

As a marketing speaker and marketing coach, it makes me mad - like really REALLY mad - when business owners, entrepreneurs and executives responsible for sales and marketing results start to whine about how hard it is to generate leads, cashflow, customers, clients and revenue.

Guess who is NEVER to blame for failing in these scenarios?

Yup - you guessed it: THEM.

I recently read an article in the New York Times about a management consultant whose business - and I quote - "was drying up." In another part of the same article, the writer said that this consultant was "running out of work as a management trainer."

Really? There's no more work to be done? Corporate America is all fixed now? Hmmm... someone should send a press release. That's pretty big news.

"Work drying up" and "running out of work" are both terrific euphemisms for... YOU suck at marketing.

And/or you are unwilling to make changes, get help, partner, delegate, outsource, or innovate.

And ALL of these shortcomings are 100% your own damn fault.

So without further ado, here are the Top 10 Nifty Excuses for Marketing Failure. If you promise to ERASE these from your vocabulary starting immediately, you will be on a much better track to MAKE your numbers, IMPROVE your cashflow, and firmly PLACE responsibility for your failure OR success exactly where it belongs - 100% on YOU. 

1. Business is drying up.

2. We're running out of work.

3. The industry has changed.

4. All my old clients have retired or moved on.

5. Our prospects and customers no longer have a budget for what we do.

6. Competition is tougher than ever these days.

7. The economy has had a major impact on our revenues.

8. We're selling sugar - it's a total commodity and our customers know it. 

9. All prospects care about is price.

10. It's impossible to get through to anyone anymore - everyone hides behind voicemail and email and we can't even get a first conversation.

Do you know what all 10 of these are?

1. Excuses

2. That rare Japanese mushroom that Guy Kawasaki calls "Bull-Shitake"

Here's what they really mean - if you're interested in decoding them:

1. Business is drying up = Because you suck at marketing and can no longer rely on business that just falls in your lap.

2. We're running out of work = Because you haven't landed a piece of new business in over three years and because of that, your pipeline is as empty as a bead bucket on Mardi Gras.

3. The industry has changed = Because you haven't and it's so unfair that your outdated products, services, and programs are no longer relevant or valuable to today's buyers.

4. All my old clients have retired or moved on = See #2 above.

5. Our prospects and customers no longer have a budget for what we do = See #3 above.

6. Competition is tougher than ever these days = Because your competition has shifted, improved, streamlined, repositioned, repackaged, and innovated their way into your customers' hearts (and wallets) -- while you've been sitting on the sidelines watching the show with popcorn and a megaphone to amplify your whining.

7. The economy has had a major impact on our revenues = Because your successful competitors are saying the same thing -- only in a POSITIVE way -- as they've reinvented their value proposition to be MORE relevant, MORE valuable, and MORE necessary under the current economic climate than ever before. Hmmm... there's a good idea!

8. We're selling sugar - it's a total commodity and our customers know it = Because everything you DO and everything you SAY reinforces that impression. If YOU can't articulate the specific, tangible value of what you do vs. your competition, don't blame your customers. This goes way beyond what you SAY and how you say it - it impacts the very nature of your business, including what you DO and how you do it. 

9. All prospects care about is price = Because you've failed to articulate and distinguish your product or service to the point where they know any better. Experts win on value. Generalists die on price. If you look the same, sound the same, and act the same as the competition, then you have only yourself to blame for the endless stream of tire-kickers, price shoppers and broke-ass losers who are wasting your valuable selling time. 

10. It's impossible to get through to anyone anymore - everyone hides behind voicemail and email and we can't even get a first conversation = Because you're using old school interruption-style marketing and stupid sales tricks like cold calling and email spam. You need to integrate FOUR WORDS (embedded in the following two rules) into every marketing and sales strategy you deploy: 1. OFFER VALUE. 2. INVITE ENGAGEMENT. Do that -- and you'll get through.

Final word of advice - all of the excuses above can be summarized in one of two ways (both very fixable) - Your business is in trouble because of:

a. Failure to market and sell in new ways that are high-value, immediately relevant and sharply prospect-focused.

b. Failure to adapt, evolve and innovate your own mix of products, services, programs, and solutions.

Zen saying: A bend in the road is never a dead end. Unless you fail to turn.

What do you think? Have I pissed you off? Made you think? Made you money? Please use the COMMENTS area below to share your thoughts...

Guest column by Ryan Pinkham, Engagement Marketing

Engagement marketing is a lot about relationships.

Your current customers are the lifeblood of your business. These are people who know you, the products and services you provide, and who return week after week and month after month to see you again.

Your current customers are also your best source of new business—especially those who you’ve built a relationship with in the past.

That’s because when you build a relationship with your target audience, they’ll not only be more likely to do business with you again, but will also feel more comfortable referring you to a friend, family member, or colleague.

Email marketing is a powerful tool in your toolbox for building those relationships online.

[Ed: The email marketing software we use at Do It! Marketing is Constant Contact. Click here for a 60-day free trial.] 

By connecting with customers in their inbox each month, you’ll stay top of mind with your target audience. And by delivering content they enjoy, can use, and want to engage with, you’ll build trust with the people who already know you best.

Here are 10 tips for building long lasting email marketing relationships:

1. Get to know each other before things get serious

You should never start any relationship until you really get to know each other. You may think that you know your customers, you might even see them every day, but until they are comfortable enough to share their email address with you, don’t assume anything.

That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t ask. Having a sign-up sheet at your business or a Join My Mailing List feature on your website or Facebook Page is a great way to start things off.

2. Make sure you have something in common

Without common interests, your relationship is never going to work. If someone has signed up for your email newsletter, that means you have at least something in common, but you have to make sure the content of your emails remains relevant to keep the relationship going long term.

Keep an eye on whose reading and who’s opting out. It’s a good way to see who’s engaging with your content and who is not. Just keep in mind, sometimes it’s just not meant to be and it might not always be your fault.

3. Don’t take them for granted

Your customers should be the most important thing to you … or at least to your business. They aren’t just names on a list; they are people who want to be appreciated. Once your subscribers start to feel like they aren’t being valued, they’ll be packing their bags.

Show that you appreciate them by getting exclusive with content, whether that’s an informative article or a coupon. Also keep an eye on how often you’re sending emails. Be careful not to smother your list by overloading their inbox—remember, sometimes less really is more.

4. Be yourself

Think of every newsletter as a first date. It’s your chance to make a first impression and to show your list what you’re all about. You already know they’re interested, they said “yes” to joining your list, didn’t they? Be confident. Don’t be afraid to have fun with it.

5. Make sure your signals are getting through

Your relationship’s not going to go anywhere if your signals are getting lost in translation. When you get someone’s number for the first time, you better make sure you get all the digits, right?

It’s the same thing with your emails, make sure your recipients have an easy way of giving you accurate contact information so your messages get to where they are meant to go.

6. Earn their trust

Trust. It’s the most important part of any relationship. The best way to prove your customers can trust you is by showing them you can keep a secret. That means never EVER sharing your customer’s contact information with someone else. They trust you to protect their email addresses and once you break that trust, it’s tough to get it back.

7. Set realistic expectations

A great way to set expectations for your customers is by sending a welcome email. It helps make a good first impression and gives you a chance to show your intentions. Just don’t make promises you can’t keep. If your newsletter is going to be a monthly newsletter, it needs to be a monthly newsletter.

8. Dress the part

This should be an easy one. All you need to do is find the best “clothing” store for email newsletters.

Constant Contact has plenty of outfits to fit any business or organization and they’re easy to customize to fit the look and feel of your brand. Not only that, it's easy for you to use the same template for each of your newsletters. That way you don’t have to worry about showing up wearing two different colored socks. 

9. Be responsive

Just because you’re the one sending out your newsletter, that doesn’t mean you’re the only one who has something to say. Like in any relationship, you need to be good at listening.

Send out a question in your next email or use a survey to get customer feedback. This is a good way to show you care - and to get valuable feedback on what your buyers want!

10. Pay attention to the details

I don’t mean that you need to clean your fingernails and brush your hair (although you probably should anyway). I mean you need to be aware of how things are going AND pay attention to how your relationship is progressing.

Keep an eye on your email reports. Watch your open rates, click-through rates, and opt-outs. They’re a good way to see if things are really going as well as you think they are.

Build relationships online and off with a WOW! experience

Remember: the best way to build relationships is by providing a WOW! experience online and off.

Make sure your email marketing reflects the type of service you provide and you’ll build long lasting relationships to help grow your business.

What rules do you follow with your email marketing relationships? Use the COMMENTS area below to share your advice and insights...

Marketing Coach: 6-Step Secret Sauce for Awesome Email Subject Lines

Guest post by Corey Eridon

How many emails do you receive every day? And across how many accounts? The Radicati Group reported that 1.9 billion non-spam emails are sent every day. Most people aren't reading every one of those emails (do you?), and the way people determine which ones to open and which ones to trash is by looking at the email subject line. It may be one of the smallest components of your email marketing strategy, but it's the keeper between the reader and your message. That's a pretty hefty 50-something characters.

As one of the most crucial parts of your email message, you should dedicate serious time to crafting that copy. But if you know the secret sauce for writing an awesome email subject line, you'll find you need less and less time as you practice and learn what resonates best with your audience. Next time you draft an email message, use this recipe to formulate a great email subject line that will help you get your message in front of more eyes.

The Ingredients

• Deliverability
• Actionability
• Personalization
• Clarity
• Brevity
• Consistency

The Recipe

Step 1 - Check for deliverability. There are two kinds of filters you need to get past: actual SPAM filters, and your readers. Readers have a BS detector up when checking their inboxes, and it's as sharp as a bloodhound's nose. Avoid spammy words like "free," "act now," and "limited time." Don't yell at the reader by using all caps, like "REMINDER," which is another spammy word that should be avoided. Also, steer clear of excessive use of punctuation marks such as dollar signs and exclamation points at the end of sentences.

Step 2 - Make it actionable. To have an actionable subject line, ask yourself one thing: does the reader know what he or she can do in the email? An email subject line is similar to writing a call-to-action; using verbs helps create the sense of urgency and excitement you want them to feel when reading your subject line. For example, a well written email subject line reads, "Meet the Legendary Ming Tsai at Blue Ginger," versus the less actionable "Ming Tsai at Blue Ginger." With the first subject line, I know I could do something in this email to help me meet Ming Tsai, as opposed to the second, where for all I know, Ming Tsai just went to Blue Ginger last night.

Step 3 - Personalize. The only way you can provide value to your email recipients is by knowing them...even just a little bit. And if you've segmented your subscriber list like every email marketer should, you do know something about your recipients! Your email subject line should reflect that you're sending something thatthey want. For example, a realtor may have a segmentation just for renters looking for an apartment in a certain zip code. Reflecting this knowledge in your subject line, such as "View a Vacant 2 Bedroom Apartment in Muskegon" will drive up the value of that email for the recipient.

Step 4 - Scrub for clarity. You know what your recipient will get if they open the email, but try to step out of your own shoes for a moment. Is it clear to an outsider? If your subject line is too broad, it won't resonate. This often happens when email marketers try to be witty with subject lines. If you can find a way to be clever and straightforward, go for it, but never at the expense of clarity. Can you further help recipients identify what the email is about by putting identifying keywords in the beginning of the subject line, alerting someone that their favorite item is on clearance? Include it at the beginning of the subject line.

Step 5 - Edit for brevity. You could write a haiku to your recipient, but it's to your benefit to keep the subject line as short as possible. A good rule of thumb is 50 characters or fewer. Not only do you want as much of it as possible to display in the email pane (especially on mobile devices), but people are quickly scanning their inboxes to decide what to read, and what to delete. The shorter your subject line, the less likely you are to get glossed over.

Step 6 - Ensure consistency. What the subject line promises should correspond with what is delivered in the email. Think about getting an email with a subject line that promises 75% off men's clothing, only to find out that it only applies to men's socks. The old bait and switch frustrates people and leads to lower open rates, lower click through-rates, and higher unsubscribe rates.

As with any recipe, testing is required for best results. Experiment with different verbs, reorder your words, and try different offers to see which ones resonate the most with your recipients.

Have you tested your email subject lines?

Use the COMMENTS are below to share YOUR email subject line secrets of success!

1. Drink more water.
2. Watch less TV.
3. Action makes traction.
4. Try new things.
5. Hang in there. 
6. Get better daily.
7. Begin with enthusiasm. 
8. Finish with flair.
9. Celebrate small wins.
10. Eliminate wasted steps.
11. Aim higher sooner.
12. Never stop learning.
13. Start fresh today.
14. Write that letter. 
15. Practice deep listening.
16. Pay yourself first.
17. Seize the day.
18. Cashflow is king.
19. Life is good.
20. Eat more vegetables.
21. Thank your Mom.
22. Make others shine.
23. Ask me anything.
24. Think WAY bigger.
25. Focus your energies.
26. Now beats later.
27. Tweet more often.
28. Zig don't zag.
29. Marketing comes first.  
30. Hug your kids. 
31. Content before commerce.
32. Never sell alone. 
33. Don't get distracted.
34. Always ask "Why?"
35. Amp it up!
36. How doesn't matter.
37. Invite and engage.
38. You're already there. 
39. Make silly faces.
40. Get off email.
41. See the sunrise.
42. Simplify, eliminate, outsource.
43. Kiss your dog.
44. Fascinate to dominate.
45. Write it down. 
46. Keep on truckin'!
47. Love your clients.
48. Ask for help.
49. Value follows fee.
50. Never give up.
51. Decide, organize, act.
52. Sharpen your edge.
53. Lose some weight.
54. Hammer it out.
55. Doodle more often.
56. Drink hot coffee.
57. Expand your circles.
58. Consider crazy alternatives.
59. Chinese food rocks!
60. Use beautiful things.
61. Not so fast. 
62. Get a massage.
63. Unlock, unblock, unleash
64. Go for no. 
65. Blow 'em away.
66. More chocolate, please.
67. Fill your buckets. 
68. Don't shy away.
69. Give more generously.
70. Don't be scared.
71. Freshen it up. 
72. Go play outside. 
73. Thank your heroes.
74. Respond, don't react.
75. Sing real loud.
76. Schedule "me" time.
77. Bake a cake.
78. Live the dream.
79. Invest in yourself.
80. Fall in love. 
81. Seek the truth.
82. Avoid the obvious. 
83. Laminate your kudos.
84. Birds gotta fly. 
85. Fish gotta swim.
86. Potential ain't performance. 
87. Relationships are perishable. 
88. Kill your television.
89. Make that call. 
90. Hire the weirdo.
91. Speak more honestly.
92. Track your progress. 
93. Decisions drive momentum.
94. Take notes everywhere.
95. Look further ahead.
96. Stop playing small.
97. Sell the dream.
98. Deliver the goods. 
99. Never shortchange yourself.
100. You're so ready.
101. DO IT. Now!

As a marketing speaker and marketing coach, my clients often ask me for advice on sales.

Naturally, this makes a ton of sense because the MORE and BETTER marketing you do, the FASTER and EASIER your sales process becomes. 

BUT... 

Nothing frustrates me more than when my clients DO a lot of the great marketing we work on together ONLY TO BLOW IT during the sales process!

So... don't let this happen to YOU. 

Let's talk about what you need to close the deal: the steps you need to get from the first solid marketing conversation to the final signed contract.

Depending on your particular business, this could take anywhere from 10 days from first contact all the way up to a year or more. The sales process can be a long and winding road.

BUT there are several factors totally within your control that make it go faster and easier.

The most important one - by far - is asking smart questions early and often.

Think about it: delays in your sales process come from one main source...

Surprises.

You don’t want surprises on their end - and they don’t like surprises on your end.

Each surprise or question or unexpected element can add anywhere from a week to a month to your sales process - and you don’t want that.

Understanding this, you’ll want to ask them some key selling questions early on in your conversations and throughout at every major step and milestone.

Let’s cover them together now so you can begin using these 21 killer sales questions to close more deals - more easily and more often.

1. If you were to decide this is a good idea, how do you buy things like this?
2. How do you implement?
3. What should I know about your timing? Signoffs?
4. When do you budget for things like this?
5. Do you think this deal is going to work?
6. What’s missing or what should we add?
7. Are you going to pitch it?
8. What else do you need to see from me?
9. Can I help you put together some numbers?
10. Do you have some numbers I could include?
11. Who else besides you will be making this decision?
12. Are “they” going to like it?
13. WHAT are they going to like?
14. WHAT are they going to push back on?
15. What else is going to be in our way?
16. How would YOU respond to that?
17. What answers do you need from me to so you’re prepared to answer their questions?
18. How much detail do YOU want?
19. How much detail will THEY want?
20. Are there any surprises we should be prepared for?
21. If this were just you and me, how excited would you be to move ahead on a scale of 0-10?

Hint: If they answer 9 or 10 - you’re good; If they answer 7 or 8 - ask, "What would need to change to get us closer to 10?" If they answer 6 or less, you have a problem. Go for no with “I don’t think we can make this work. Do you?”

Be relentless and follow up like a friendly bulldog.

Never let an active prospect get more than 10 days away from you.

Always show up in their world like a happy squeaky wheel: Circle back. Send more value. Ask more questions. Offer more engagement. Invite further dialogue. Come back with more ideas to genuinely help them. 

More and better and faster sales will follow.

I guarantee it.

And then leave a comment below with your questions, thoughts, and advice on the ideas above.

Are you a DO IT freak? Welcome to the club!! Please use the social media buttons at the top of this post to share it with your network. YOU are a rock star!

Guest post by Art Sobczak

Several years ago I started a year-end tradition of posting a list of questions for sales pros to ask themselves as they started their new year.

It was extremely popular, received tons of reprint requests (like this one I got from David!), as well as suggestions to share them again the next year. So now I do it every year.

I suggest you set aside some time, look at each of these questions, and answer them with an action plan.

Follow that plan, and like many others, you will guarantee your own success.

Here we go:

1. What are you going to do to improve your industry and product knowledge in 2013? 
    
2. How many inactive customers will you revive and turn into regular customers again? What do you need to doto make that happen? 
    
3. What will you do to ensure you're protecting your best customers, and adding more value to the relationships? How will you sell even more to them? 
    
4. How many new customers will you bring on this year? 
    
5. How do you plan to do that, specifically? 
    
6. What will you do to improve your physical health in 2013? 
    
7. What, specifically, are your sales and production goals for 2013? How does that break down into quarterly and monthly goals? 
    
8. How much more money will you make in 2013? How will that happen? What will you need to do, today, to take the first steps in that direction? 
    
9. What will you need to do to increase THAT number by an dditional 10%? 
    
10. What are you going to do every day to keep your attitude at a high level? 
     
11. How much time are you going to spend, daily, to improve your own sales skills? What will you do? 
     
12. How many referrals did you get in 2012? How did get them? From whom? What will you do to turn them into sales? 
     
13. Speaking of referrals, will you please forward this post to two others who would also benefit? And invite them to get weekly sales tips at http://businessbyphone.com (OK, that's one of mine.)
     
14. In which areas will you improve your personal, family, and spiritual life? 
     
15. How are you going to maximize the use of your time? Where will you cut out the time-wasters in each day? 
     
16. What have you been putting off that you will take care of within the next two weeks? 
     
17. Who can you help to feel special every day? 
     
18. What challenge, wish or desire--that you've never attempted before--will you finally achieve in 2013? 
     
19. How will you do that? Why? 
     
20. Where are you going to write all of this down so you can review and revise your plans regularly? 
     
21. What will it LOOK like when you accomplish everything you've just been thinking about? 
     
22. How good will it FEEL? 
     
23. What will it SOUND like when you achieve these things? 
     
24. Why COULDN'T you do all of this? 

Any answer to that last one is not a reason, but rather a self-imposed limitation, excuse, or lack of desire or effort. The biggest deterrent to success looks us in the mirror every day. 

Now, go out and plan to have, no, COMMIT to having...

...YOUR BEST YEAR EVER IN 2013! 

________________
About the Author 

For the past 30 years, Art Sobczak’s tips and training have helped others do “rejectionless” prospecting and painless  and profitable sales. Get his free ebook of 501 sales tips at www.BusinessByPhone.com 

Inspired by my pal Michael Goldberg of Building Blocks Consulting - who wrote this post - here are the Top 5 things to get excited about in YOUR business for the New Year and all of Lucky '13!

1. Books

Reading 'em. Writing 'em. Ebooks. Hardcopy books. All kinds of books.

As you may know, the DO IT! Marketing book is coming this summer from AMACOM and there's lots of cool developments brewing there... but let's talk about YOU... 

• Do YOU want to write a book? 
• Have YOU written a book that's under-marketed? 
• Do YOU have an ebook or information product that you're working on and just can't seem to finish?
• Do YOU have plans to develop a NEW book or information product - and just don't know where to begin?

Don't get stuck - let me help you take your first (or next) ebook, book, or information product over the finish line.

As for books to read - here are five recommendations for YOUR 2013 reading list:

2. Focus

Focus on a specific target market.

Focus on your "secret sauce" of expertise.

Focus on your most fun and profitable projects, prospects and programs.

And...

     Let...

          Everything...    

               Else...

                    Go...

3. Fitness, Toughness, Accountability 

As you may know, I've lost a tremendous amount of weight recently.

Sidebar: OK, my wife Vanessa HATES when I say that to people - it's 18 pounds in 90 days to be exact. (She thinks I make it sound like 100 pounds and she further thinks it makes people feel awkward when they haven't noticed. On the other hand, people whom I haven't seen in YEARS are shocked by my total weight loss of almost 40 pounds since 2008 - so to ME, it IS a "tremendous" amount!!)

The secret? The Charlie Newman hardass eating program plus twice weekly workouts at Nick's Gym.

What's the Charlie Newman program? Three things - all simple but not easy: 

1. No white stuff (dramatically reduce carbs, breads, sugars, etc.)
2. Drink a ton of water daily. More than is comfortable. More than is fun. More than you want to. Like you need to go pee 10 times a day. That is the right amount.
3. No food after 7pm.

The toughness comes at times like Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Eve - when it's EASY (or even expected) that you'll go overboard and do things you should not do. Toughness says you don't go there. 

Accountability is the fact that I live with Charlie Newman - he's my son - and he SEES what I eat, HOW much, WHEN I eat it... and there aren't enough places to hide in our kitchen. 

So consider one of your goals - what's going to fuel YOUR fitness (financial fitness, marketing fitness, relationship fitness, physical fitness, etc)? And which kinds of built-in toughness and accountability mechanisms will you use to ensure your success?

4. Travel + Leisure

Yes, I mean both the concept - and the magazine. We get this magazine and it has opened my eyes to an undiscovered opportunity that YOU have if business travel is part of YOUR work...

In my work as a professional speaker and marketing coach, travel is a given.

How much you enjoy it and exploit it is 100% up to YOU... 

2012 trips have taken me to Columbus OH, NYC, Toronto, Denver, Shelton CT, Indianapolis, Minneapolis, Phoenix, Atlantic City, and Winnipeg ("Brrr...") Future trips already planned for 2013 include Atlanta, Vancouver, NYC, Minneapolis, Pittsburgh, and Chicago.

But there is a HUGE difference between the two words "trips" and "travel." You can take business trips and they look like this:

• Get to airport in your home city 
• Go through security
• Swallow stale air in thin metal tube for between 1-8 hours
• Land 
• Taxi to hotel
• See inside of hotel
• See inside of conference rooms
• Eat inside hotel
• Eat inside conference rooms
• Taxi to airport
• Go through security
• Swallow stale air in thin metal tube for between 1-8 hours
• Land
• Go home. Hug spouse. Kiss dog. Fall into own bed.
• Repeat as needed to meet your career or entrepreneurial goals

THAT, my friends, is not travel.

Travel is sightseeing, museums, restaurants, cafes, bars, shopping, exploring new places and discovering local experiences.

Question for you: How can you bake more TRAVEL into your TRIPS during 2013? I'll do my best - and hope you do, too.

Let's check in with each other over the next few months to see how we're both doing!

5. Giving away WAY more FREE stuff

Since November, I have made a commitment to sharing MORE experiences of value - for free - and making MORE profit-rich resources available - again, for free.

If you know me at all, you know I've always done this BIG-time. But I wanted to see what would happen if I ramped this UP to near-ridiculous levels.

• Would I burn out? (No)
• Would you? (Not yet - but we're just starting)
• Would anybody come (Yes - see below) 
• Would there be anything left for me to monetize and sell? (Apparently)
• Would people tell their friends and colleagues? (Yes - and thank you!)

Early Results:

In November, I presented the "Marketing Strategy Blueprint for 2013." We had 169 people register for that info-packed training call and it generated $4500 of client work. Good for you - and good for me. 

In December, I presented the "Sponsorship Strategy Blueprint." We had 161 people register for that training call where I laid out my VERY BEST fee-paid advice with no holds barred. That call generated $8100 of client work. Again good for you - and good for me.

Coming up later this week, YOU are invited to "Your Speaking Business in 2013" with my friend and colleague Andrea Gold of Gold Star Speakers Bureau and author of "The Business of Successful Speaking."

Join us - you don't need to buy anything and there's no catch. If we provide value and you want more, you'll know what to do.

Questions for you:

• Are you strategically giving away RIDICULOUS amounts of value? 
• How could you give even MORE? 
• What could you do to AMPLIFY your impact with your target market? 
• Whose HELP do you need? Partners, affiliates, mentors?
• WHEN will you launch your "WAY More FREE Stuff" campaign?
• HOW will you measure its success?

What do you think?

Use the COMMENTS area below to share what YOU are most excited about in YOUR business for 2013 and... 

My friend and mentor, Jay Conrad Levinson asked me to send this special invitation to you below... this program may be exactly what you need to kick off your 2013 with a BANG and generate the results you want in your business.

• November 12th - 14th, 2012

PS: Read what this year's attendees have said about the Guerrilla Marketing Intensive.

I must tell you, this week was one of the most informative and productive weeks I have had in a very long time. Jay and Jeannie were wonderful hosts and teachers. I left there revved up and ready to take my business to new heights through Guerrilla Marketing.
Tom Lemery, President & CEO
Creatacor, Inc.

I just wanted to say thanks again for a great 3 days. You've motivated, inspired and given me the tools to take the action that I have been procrastinating.
Kelli Hoskins, CEO & Master Business Coach
ActionCOACH /The World's #1 Business Coaching Firm

Amy, I should tell you that I am in love with your parents. Jay and Jeannie are so amazing.
Elayna Fernandez, The Positive Mom Foundation
Bestselling Author | Guerrilla Positioning Strategist

I would like to thank you for your wonderful hospitality at the Intensive. Jay was just fantastic.
Ashish Desai, Sujanil Chemo Industries
Maharashtra, India

Click here to learn more.