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Posts Tagged ‘entrepreneur’

What’s The Interest With Pinterest?

Posted on: March 5th, 2012 by Beth Heilman

What's the Interest with Pinterest?

There's a new kid in town on the Social Media landscape and it's taking the internet marketing world by storm. So what's all the interest with Pinterest? Pinterest, an image sharing site where fellow "pinterites" (I just thought of that one…cute, huh?) can visit your Pinterest page and "like" and repin photos you've posted on virtual bulletin boards you create within your account.

Folks are pinning things like motivational quotes, yummy recipes, cute critters and very cool clothes. Then there are those (like you and me) that see the enormous business potential this has.

Unlike sites like flickr where folks just go to look at lots of pretty pictures, Pinterest is proving to be a marketing powerhouse with incredible reach. In January 2012 alone, over 10 million visitors frequented Pinterest. Ten Million!! That's a lot of pinning!

For the average business owner Pinterest has enormous potential. For the Real Estate pro (that would be you) using this as one of your marketing channels could blow the doors off how you showcase your listings like nothing you've ever done before.

How, you ask? Let me tell ya…

Say for instance you get a really cool listing. I know, any listing is really cool, but follow me here. You upload photos of the house to the normal channels; your local MLS, Realtor.com, Trulia, Zillow and you throw in Craigslist for good measure. Great job…you're cookin' with gas, and here's where the new kid on the block comes in.

You go to your Pinterest account and create a bulletin board JUST for this listing. You add the photos, put in some really catchy comments and hit the "save" button. The potential for what's next is enormous…

Say you have some fellow "pinterites" (heehee) stop by and repin your photos to their boards. Their friends stop by, people you may have never even met, like what they see and repin to THEIR boards. And so on and so on and…well, you get the picture (yes, pun intended).

But wait, it gets better. Every photo you pin to your board includes a link back to the original "pinner" (that would be you) so anyone interested in finding out more about that particular house can find you. and research shows that over 50% of people who repin, click through to the site the photo originally came from to find out more information. Are you happy dancing yet?

It's a backlink strategy made in heaven. (Note: for those not familiar with backlinks and other internet wizardry stuff, that's why I started Red Leopard Marketing in the first place, so you wouldn't have to try and figure it out. That's my job 🙂 )

Guys, Pinterest knocks most other kinds of ways to visually market your homes on their ear because of the HUGE potential to go viral. People all over the world will be able to check out your listings in a casual, fun way AND had direct access back to YOU!!

Are you excited yet? You should be…

Pinterest is still in the Beta phase as I write this, so you have to be invited to join (and yes, it's free). If you can see how awesome this can be for your business and want to learn more, shoot me a message along with your email and I'll send you an invitation. I look forward to meeting you and seeing what fun things you have to share. And please leave a comment below and let everyone know how you're using Pinterest (or would like to 🙂 ). Until then…

To Your Pinning Success,
Sonrisas(smiles),

Beth

 

Beth Heilman is a 20 year Real Estate veteran and Owner/CEO of Red Leopard Marketing, a company specializing in using Social Media Marketing (and some other nifty cool things, too) to help Real Estate Professionals attract, engage and keep their ideal customers. After experiencing the devastating effects the housing market crash had on her and her fellow Real Estate peeps, she has made it her mission to get businesses back on track using innovative marketing strategies with an emphasis on Social Media. Business as usual just doesn't work anymore. Beth has lived in fabulous Las Vegas for 30 years. She's a mom of four great kiddos and a "gramita" to 10 amazing grandmunchkins. Her philosophy in business and in life is "when you do the right things for the right reasons, things will turn out just fine". Believe it…

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How To Get Started Doing What You Love…Knowing Your Why

Posted on: December 19th, 2011 by Beth Heilman

Today's post is the next in the continuing saga of "As The Business Turns" or more aptly named "As The Mind Changes" (read the previous post if you haven't got a clue what I'm talking about) 

On our last episode we talked some about the frustrations we encounter on this entrepreneurial journey doing what we love when we pretty much love to do everything…and we make ourselves crazy trying to decide what the heck to do.

Here's something that's helped me narrow down the field of business possibilities and keep from banging my head against the wall (too much 🙂 )

First, before you try and figure out the "what" (or what's) of the thing you're going to be earning a living at, it's important to know your why.

Along with your why is the question, what do you want your life to look like?
 
What I mean by that is it will do you absolutely no good to choose a business running a used book store because you love old, rare books if you're a free spirit and want to be able to pick up on a whim and fly off to Tibet. There's not much whimming allowed when you have a brick-and-mortar store to open up everyday. The freedom to travel you long for will be sacrificed for the day-to-day routine of running a store.

Can you see yourself feeling stiffled? Maybe even resenting the business after a while because you feel tied down? Best to figure that out at this stage…BEFORE you order the bookshelves, agreed? Thought so…let's keep going.

Figure out your "why" and write it down.

Next, take out a blank sheet of paper and start listing out all the things you love to do. Really let your creativity flow. Nothing is too
silly or insignificant at this point. Pen ready? Ok…let 'er rip!

(Clock ticking…Jeopardy music playing in the background) Ding!

Ok. Did you come up with a good sized list of things? It doesn't matter if they all relate or are polar opposites of each other. Just get 'em on paper.

If you're like me, some will relate and some just make me wanna go, "huh?" Doesn't matter. What you love to do and the ability to make a living doing it is part of your DNA. It's time to start tapping into it.

Now, a little caveat here. There ARE those things that should be done just for the sheer love of doing them because quite frankly, there just ain't a market for it. Here's an example (and I'm making this up); say you love collecting chicken feathers.

You have the most extensive collection of domestic chicken feathers in the northern hemisphere. You're an extremely proud chicken feather collector and would love to open up a chicken feather museum. Do you see where I'm going here? Thank you.:-)

Not much call for a chicken feather collection unless you're a balding chicken. That, my friend is better kept as a hobby. Hobbies are a happy thing, too.

Back to our regularly scheduled program…

What I want you to think about now, and until the next post, is possible different "profit centers" using the items on your list.

Are there ways you could turn you passions into an information product like an ebook, book or mp3 that people would pay for? Could you do a how-to workshop in your town?

How about making an actual physical product that you could sell and distribute is a local shop or maybe put on ebay. There's a zillion ways to market and distribute both physical and digital products. 

What I want to do here today is open up your imagination and let you know that you really can have the life of your dreams doing what you love. Just apply that creativity of yours and watch what happens.

That's enough brainstorming for now. Keep going over your list and next time we'll talk about how you can do what you love even if you're still working a regular J-O-B (for now 😉 ) Leave a comment below and let me know how your list is going. I'd love to hear all about it. Until next time…

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Deciding On A Business When You Love To Do …Everything

Posted on: December 12th, 2011 by Beth Heilman

After you've made the decision to strike out on your own and be an entrepreneur, deciding on a business to go into should be easy, right?

I mean you know what you're good at. You know what you like doing.

Hmmm…there's the issue. You like doing EVERYTHING!!

Now, I may not be talking to all of you here. Some people just know what they're meant to do.

Then there's those of us who are decisionally challenged who can flip-flop daily (or hourly) on which business avenue to pursue.

Want to hear some good news?

You don't have to decide.

What I mean by that is you can create a business that incorporates your talents and your passions and you don't have to pick just one way to earn your living.

Matter of fact, given what we've been through these last few years in the economy, it's smart NOT to have just one way.

I'll use myself as an example. After I was downsized from my job four years ago, I knew I could sell houses. Problem was the market wasn't all that pretty plus I was suffering from a serious case of don't-care-if-I-never-sell-another-house-again burn out.

Not good when it's only thing you've done for a living for the last 17 years. I knew I'd always keep my real estate license, but  also knew that I had other passions I wanted to pursue; passions that had been put on hold in the pursuit of a Real Estate career.

So I started looking, and looking, and looking. If looking could've been turned into a career, I'd be sittin' pretty right now.

Everyone said to really focus on the real estate, and even though I love working with my buyers still to this day; it didn't hold the same excitement that it used to. There had to be something more.

The search continued…I dabbled in a couple network marketing companies. I fell in love with internet marketing and put up some
websites. I started a little mobile marketing company. I wanted to do it all. Everyone said focus on one thing…and I just couldn't.

Then I came across the coolest book. It's called "Refuse To Choose" by Barbara Sher. When I started reading it it was like finally someone was speaking my language.

While I'm not going to do a full-on book review today, I'm giving it my whole-hearted recommendation for anyone who loves to do a bunch of things and would love to make a living at them, but doesn't have a clue where to start…or where to start first.

There are those people (like me) who have a lot of knowledge in a LOT of different areas and they love ALL of it.

When I tried to come up with my "one big thing", I took a look at all the experiences I've had. Let's see…

I was a military wife and mother for 20 years. At one point in time I added up all the time I held down the fort by myself. It totaled almost 12 of those 20 years. I could talk to Military spouses and retirees…

I've sold Real Estate for the last 20 years in the highly crazy Las Vegas market.I could talk about real estate…

Most of the time I sold new homes and worked so hard (my fault) that I developed Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue. I could help people with the same thing and let them know what to do to feel better…

I'm a mom of four awesome kids. Two of them have special needs and my youngest, Emanuel, I adopted in Colombia, S.A. as a single mom in 2004. Maybe I could help parents of special needs kids or adoptive single parents…

Maybe this, maybe that…eeeeeek!

It was driving me nuts. That's when I found Barbara Sher's book. What I found was there are certain people who do lots of things well. You'll learn that you can actually earn a living doing lots of different things. And you'll learn that it's OK.

I'm going to be talking about this more in future posts and I'm gonna be giving you different examples of how to turn those things you love into income.

Stay tuned and be sure you sign up for my free report to the right. If you've even thought about starting your own business; read it, today's post will make perfect sense.

Let me know what you think about having a passion for and making a living with a bunch of different things. Look forward to hearing from you…

 

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The Other Veteran’s Day Hero…The Military Spouse

Posted on: November 10th, 2011 by Beth Heilman

Tomorrow, 11-11-11 is Veteran's Day here in the US. Its a day to remember and honor those who serve our country, the men and women who defend our freedom everyday; Our Armed Forces.

It doesn't matter which branch of the service these brave souls choose to serve in. They are all heroes.

But there is also another Veteran's Day hero who stays in the background, supports without question, sacrifices and keeps things running smoothly at home without complaining or even giving what they do a second thought.

I'm talking about the Military Spouse. These wives (and husbands) of  Active Duty Military personnel are heroes in their own right. They put up with long deployments; time periods that can last from a few weeks to a few months and even longer.

They are left home alone to take care of anything from kids to car problems; from balancing a lean budget to fixing a leaky faucet. They do double duty; things that both a Mom and Dad, husband and wife would tackle together they do alone. How do I know?

Because I was one.

Not many people know this, but I was an Air Force wife for nearly 20 years. So when I tell you that I know what it's like to be the one left behind, to be the one who was both the Mom AND head of the house, I speak from experience.

I also know what it's like to want to be the supportive spouse and have a career of my own. One of the most difficult things about being "married to the military" is the uncertainty of knowing if you're going to be in one spot long enough to put down roots and establish yourself  in a job, much less a career. It can be frustrating.

Military pay wasn't much then and it still isn't much. When a spouse works and has to pay child care, it almost doesn't pay to work. Until now.

When I was raising my kids, the internet as we know it today didn't exist. Back then it was Commodore 64's and DOS programs and blinking cursors.

Today, thankfully, the possibilities are unlimited. Any military wife with a laptop (or smart phone) and an internet connection can start and run her own successful business from home. 

Some hot trends right now range anywhere from being a Virtual Assistant, to starting an e-commerce website to information marketing. Social Media Management and website content management for small (and some large) businesses can both be done from home and worked around kids schedules and TDY's. That's "temporary duty" (short assignments for a couple of weeks to a couple of  months at a time) for any non-military folks. 🙂

There's almost nothing in business that can't accomplished over the internet. For military spouses, it levels the playing field in the job market like never before.

So to all the Military wives and husbands who think they may have to settle for whatever low paying job they can get, think again. You really can create your own business (and do what you love) using today's technology. Do some research. Find a business that really gets you excited…and will pay you what you're worth.

Dream again…you've earned it.

Are you or do you know of someone who's a Military spouse, Vet or service member? Please pass this along to them and as always, please leave me a comment below and let's talk. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this. Happy Veterans Day…I salute you.

Until then…

To Your Success,
Sonrisas(smiles),

Beth

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The Number One Speed Bump to An Entrepreneur’s Success

Posted on: October 24th, 2011 by Beth Heilman

While it's no secret that going into business for yourself can be a challenge ( heck, it can be downright scary), but the number one speed bump on the road to success is one itty bitty word…sales.

For some folks, just the thought of having to sell something to someone makes them break out in a cold sweat like they have the latest strain of the flu.

Why is this? As someone who made the bulk of her living as a Real Estate Agent for 20 years, and making commission-only at that, the idea of helping a customer solve a problem with a product I represent makes me feel warm and fuzzy all over. Selling them what they need is actually serving them.

To withhold what I know will help them solve a pressing problem or make them feel better actually feels selfish…now.

There was a time however when I could completely relate to how my sales team and coaching clients feel.

Sales was scary. There were sales trainers teaching techniques that were in a word…manipulative. It felt unnatural to memorize 20 different closes (remember the Ben Franklin close?).

Today, sales is all about building relationships and to that I say, "Yipee!!"

For entrepreneurs that should be a breath of fresh air.

Most entrepreneurs are "people people" and creating and nurturing relationships is what we do best. Things change though when that "sales" words gets tacked to it.

It's time to stop all the weirdness and get comfortable with the idea of serving your customers by getting them involved with your product or service.

Want to feel comfortable with the sales process and smooth out the speedbump? Put the focus on serving your customer with what you have to offer and take the focus off feeling like you're doing something "to them". You'll succeed when it becomes about them and what they want. The result will show themselves in happy, repeat customers; a sense of pride and satifaction is your business and oh, a healthy bank account.

How do you feel about the selling process in your business? Are you satisfied with it or are there things you want to change? Leave a comment below and let's talk. Until then…Make it  wondermous day 🙂

To your Sales Success,
Sonrisas(smiles),

Beth
 

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