“Nothing of great value in this life comes easily. The things of highest value sometimes come hard. The gold that has the greatest value lies deepest in the earth, as do the diamonds.”
– Norman Vincent Peale

The internet is certainly a powerful tool. And, you may have seen all those ads out there telling you that you can make loads of money online. You may have even bought some products or books that teach you how to leverage the internet for your business.

But is it really possible to make lots of money quickly online like these products promise?

To leverage the internet, you need a few essential things happening in your business.

First, you need to be reaching a lot of people. A “response rate” is how many people respond to your offer. A good response rate is 1%. Yes – 1%. So, if you are reaching 1,000 people with your marketing message, 10 responses is considered good. Now, if you are reaching people who are really qualified – meaning they are really right for your products or services, your response rate will be a bit higher.

The second thing that you need for successful internet marketing is an established name – or a way for people to get to know you. 95% of the time, when people land on your web site for the first time, they will not make a purchase. The internet is a great place to window shop, and people don’t readily hand over their money. Think about it, how often do you purchase from someone the very first time you land on their site?

You need to have a way to stay in touch with people when they land on your site. You’ll see a lot of people do this through a newsletter or a blog. This way, you can build a relationship with people who may be interested in your business, but just aren’t ready to purchase from you yet.

The third thing to remember is, it takes time to build a business – online or offline. Just because the internet is accessible 24/7 and it has the potential to give you exposure to 100’s of 1,000’s of people, doesn’t mean it’s any easier to build a business. You still have to work at it.

I realize these internet marketers promise that you can make loads of money with seemingly no hard work. And, if you had a list of 100,000 people or more like they do, and you’ve been in business online 10 years or more like they have been, then yes, it’s really easy to be making 5 or 6 figures per month pretty quickly.

It’s entirely possible to make money online. You can create products, and even services that are available to people across the world. But it will take time, and you need to employ effective marketing techniques to really leverage the internet.

“Snowflakes are one of nature’s most fragile things, but just look what they can do when they stick together.” – Vesta M. Kelly

Alright, alright – I admit it. One of the hardest things for me to do is ask for help. And, I know I’m not alone in this. I’ve spoken to many clients, many colleagues and many other women who feel the same way.

Why? Why do we find it almost impossible to recognize our need for help, and then reach out?

One reason is, we feel ownership over our lives. We don’t want to lose that control – we want to make sure every last detail is handled exactly to our standards.

Another reason is, we feel it makes us look weak to ask for help. We’re supposed to be experts, people turn to US for help – we shouldn’t need help.

And yet, another reason we don’t ask for help is, we don’t even know we need help! I fall desperately into this category. It isn’t until I’m banging my head against my desk wondering why I’m stuck that I finally realize – all I need is a little help!

This exact scenario just happened in my business in December. I was trying to plan for 2008 – struggling to determine what my goals should be, how I would accomplish what I wanted to accomplish, and exactly what I should be doing. I hemmed and hawed, started a plan, stopped the plan, re-wrote the plan, got frustrated, started the plan again, wondered what would happen if I did certain things, stopped the plan again… Finally, I realized I could ask someone else for some insight.

So, I called up my coach, and began working more closely with him. I’ve had coaching throughout my business in one form or another – sometimes, it’s 1 on 1 coaching. Sometimes, it’s been group coaching. Still other times, it’s a teleclass, or a seminar.

Once I connected with my coach, a huge sense of relief washed over me. I felt supported. I felt empathized with. And most importantly – I saw the light! I received answers to my questions, and with just an hour phone call, I had the beginnings of a plan in place to get me moving in the direction I wanted to move.

It was so easy for him to look at my business, listen to where I wanted to go, and make a few suggestions that really made a difference. Sometimes it’s easier for someone outside our situation to see things we miss, or give us just the right guidance – especially if they’ve been where we’ve been, and are where we want to go.

I think the biggest sense of relief I felt was from the acknowledgement that I didn’t have to – nor was I supposed to – do this all on my own. I could ask for and receive help!

As humans, we’re not meant to be isolated. We’re not meant to do it all by ourselves. If that were the case, none of us would be guided to be in service to others. We’d all just go lock ourselves in a room and get it all done alone.

We need human contact. We need relationships. We need support. It’s ok to ask for it, and it’s ok to receive it.

Where do you need help? Look for places you feel stuck, or overwhelmed. When you hear yourself saying or thinking “I know that needs to get done… but I just don’t have time… and I don’t even know where to begin” or, “why won’t this situation change? What am I doing wrong?” Those are good indications you need some help.

Where do you turn for help? Sometimes, it’s as easy as asking your partner for help with the household chores. Other times, you may need to have a candid, private conversation with a good friend. Sometimes, you need the help of a professional. Take some quite time and sit with your situation. Listen to who it’s asking for help from.

I promise – just reaching out will bring so much relief, it will help you solve the situation, and get you moving ahead.

If you determine that you might need help in building your business, check out my 1 on 1 coaching program, or my upcoming Mindful Marketing Teleclass.

Ahhh the list. You’ve heard about creating a list, and you may have even heard that heartless phrase “the money is in the list.”

Sure, you’re business exists partly to support you via steady income. But - money is not THE be all end all of your business - or your list for that matter.

Your business exists to provide value to those that you serve through your business. It’s important to create and stay connected to the people that resonate with you.

And this is where your list comes in. Last week, we talked about making a connection.  It’s important to make a connection with those that you want to serve - and for those people to feel connected to you.

Your list can serve this function.

What I mean by a “list” is having a way for you to stay in touch with people who resonate with your business message. This can be done via newsletter, blog, podcast, discussion forum - there are a number of ways. People exchange their name and e-mail address (or sometimes physical address) for the value that you provide through those vehicles.

For example, you may be subscribed to this blog. If you resonate with what I have to say, and you want to hear more, you may stay in touch by subscribing. I am also offering a brand new newsletter starting next Monday. It’s called the Mindful Marketing Moment. That would be another way we might stay in touch and build a relationship.

I blog, and I produce the Mindful Marketing Moment because I enjoy it, and because it provides value. I’m also able to build communities and relationships through these two vehicles.

From a business perspective, it’s easier for me to talk about the products and services I offer through those two vehicles (through those two lists) because you all already know me. We have a rapport. I feel more comfortable talking to you about my offerings because I know what you’re interested in as a business owner, and you already know a bit about me and the way I work.

So, rather than standing on a sidewalk wearing a sandwich board trying to push my message out on the world, I provide value, have a way to build a relationship and then the offerings don’t seem so intrusive.

This is why having a list is so important to your business. It allows you to build on the connections you make, develop strong relationships - and then the sales happen organically.

You get to know your niche, and what they want from you - you in turn provide the value they are seeking. It’s a prosperous, abundant relationship all around!

And speaking of offerings *ahem*

I am offering a brand new teleclass! It’s called the Mindful Marketing Teleclass Series. Check out this page for details.

So, have you ever thought about building a list in your business? Are you currently building a list and just don’t know how to leverage it?

What have you found to be the most effective strategy when building your list?

I attended an afternoon networking event yesterday at Verbal Networking. The topic of discussion was “How do you handle it when you encounter someone who is just not nice?”

I thought this was a wonderful topic  because as we make our way through entrepreneurship, we’re going to come in contact with people that we just don’t resonate with… or to put it another way - people that just drive us crazy!

We aren’t going to like everyone in the world - and unfortunately, there are people in the world who just aren’t that nice. Without going into too much detail - I’ve been flamed by a couple of people through online networking venues, and I still have to interact with them.

But how do you interact with these people and remain professional?

The way I deal with it is, I allow that person to be who they are, and I honor who I am. If possible, I avoid the person - because I mean really, I’m not a glutton for punishment! For example, if I see them on the same networking group, I’ll just stay away from their posts.

If by chance I cross paths with someone who has been negative toward me, or who I just don’t resonate with, I allow them to be who they are. Because - I’m not going to change them, and I wouldn’t even want to spend the energy trying!

Allowing negative people to be who they are releases you from the responsibility of worrying about what they’re up to, what they’re saying, and what they might be creating in their business.

If you look around at your business and you like what you’re creating - then it’s ok for that negative person to exist and create whatever it is that they are going to create.

How do you deal with negative people?

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