Take Survey, Get Free 60-Minute Video LinkedIn Seminar & Book Discount

I received the following email from Mike O'Neil so I thought I'd pass it on. for those of you who don't know Mike, he spoke at the Fall 2009 Channel Partners show on the marketing value of social media and LinkedIn as a way to grow your business. I've learned a great deal from Mike that I'm incorporating into my LinkedIn page. I've ordered his book & watched his seminars. You should too. The price is right!


Dear Dan:

I hope you wouldn’t mind taking a really quick survey so we can understand how people feel about certain areas of Social Media that we help with. It will allow us to maximize the positive impact of our rockin’ new LinkedIn book entitled Rock The World with your Online Presence.

As a reward, incentive or as just a matter of course, a $5 off coupon is given for the book itself (making it $15 vs. $19.95).  I very much appreciate your help in letting us better target the needs of our audience.  It even has a free 60 minute LinkedIn training video we did for the Rocky Mountain Direct Marketing Association in Dec.

TAKE THE SURVEY

The book really rocks – seriously.  We use Classic Rock to inspire people to get their LinkedIn profiles perfected and get readers on the fast lane to active LinkedIn participation.  It is 170+ pages just on LinkedIn profiles, related areas and Classic Rock Music.

TAKE THE SURVEY

Each area is introduced with familiar music metaphors from the past. These bands (Lynyrd Skynyrd, Led Zeppelin, The Beatles, The Police, etc.) had important things to say about what is happening now – REO Speedwagon “Ridin’ The Storm Out” is more relevant now than when it was recorded!

In our early investigation, the #1 thing holding people back from getting more involved in LinkedIn and Social Media in general – inspiration.  #2 – how do I begin?  It has them both nailed and with fine precision.

Thanks a lot for helping, even if it really is just the survey. If there are other ways we might be able to help you, just send a note back or call.

Mike O’Neil
President, Integrated Alliances
303-683-9600

Free (But Professional) Web Marketing Tutorials

I attended a Girl Scout expo (a cool trade show for girls) over the weekend with my wife & daughter and sat in in a "cookie marketing" break-out session put on by a Ms. Lorrie Thomas who herself had broken into the hard-knock business world by selling cookies as a Girl Scout.

She gave a terrific 30-minute sales & marketing primer that my daughter picked up some tips from ("Ask 'How may boxes would you like?', not 'Would you like to buy cookies?'")

While I'm sure she could still move a boatload of cookies, Ms. Thomas' current expertise is in helping marketing challenged entrepreneurs with their web marketing efforts through her company Web Marketing Therapy. I asked about her project rates and they were very reasonable. I spent twice as much when I launched my two companies in 1996.

She suggested that business owners could get to know what sort of work they do by checking out the "Free Therapy" her company provides at their website. She invited TA members to help themselves to all her firm's free advice by clicking here.

Below is the bio info on Ms. Thomas from the Girl Scout expo handout. If you have an urgent marketing therapy need give them a call at 888-702-8993.  

Lorrie Thomas, MA is The Marketing Therapist™, dedicated to educating and empowering people how to use the web to showcase their value, values and have a powerful voice in this influence economy, all by tapping the power of relationship development.  

She is a speaker, educator, marketing expert and CEO of Web Marketing Therapy, a web marketing agency and training company.  Lorrie was on the founding team at ValueClick Media.  

She teaches workshops for corporations and universities including UC Berkeley and UC Santa Barbara Extension.  Lorrie speaks nationally on a number of sales and marketing-related topics.  

She has been featured in articles by the Associated Press, eCommerce Times, Entrepreneur, DM News and Tech News World and has been quoted as a nationally recognized marketing expert. 

Social Media and LinkedIn WEBINAR for Telecom Professionals, Nov. 10th, $69

Are you ready to get serious about using social media in general and LinkedIn in particular to boost your telecom career to the next level in 2010?

Is your current LinkedIn page ineffective or non-existent?

Do you want a seasoned LinkedIn professional who understands the telecom industry to guide you to LinkedIn perfection?

If you said "Yes", it's time to invest in the best return $69 can buy you.

Mike O'Neil of Integrated Alliances knows telecom and he know's LinkedIn. For $69 he's ready to show you specifically HOW TO maximize the value social media and LinkedIn can bring to the elevation of your career in 2010.

For the same price as a business lunch or a happy hour bar tab that may put you in good with one or two prospects or customers you can get in good with the millions of customers and prospects on the Internet that need your help today.


Money-Back Guarantee and 30-Day Access to Recording of Live Webinar

Click here to register now for this $69 November 10th live webinar with Mike at Noon Eastern time. There's a money back guarantee and you can re-watch the recording of the live webinar for 30-days after the webinar. So register now and write down all your questions because the telecom LinkedIn expert is ready to make sure you have the best 2010 that social media and LinkedIn can deliver.

REGISTER RISK FREE NOW

Why You HAVE TO Update (or Create) Your LinkedIn Page

As Telecom Association increases its coverage of interesting individuals within the telecom community, it becomes more important for the people we report on to update their LinkedIn pages. Why? To add credibility to the person being reported on.

If you're important enough to be identified by name in an online article or blog post then you're important enough to be taken seriously. But how can someone take you seriously if they don't know anything about you?

You need to do whatever it takes to make sure your name never appears online unless it is also hyper linked to your LinkedIn URL. Here's an example of minimum linkage:

Dan Baldwin is the Executive Director of Telecom Association and owner of 951Tel.com. 

Even though the sentence above only has 11 words, you can come away knowing a whole lot about Dan Baldwin because of the hyperlinks to the LinkedIn page and the two business web pages.

Even if your name never appears in print on the web (which is bad - but that's a whole other discussion) you still need to update (or create) your LinkedIn page because likely everyone you meet with in business is going to look up your LinkedIn page. Before they take you seriously they want to see if others take you seriously (by linking to or recommending you) or if you take yourself seriously (by keeping your LinkedIn page updated).

Need to test this theory? Make a list of your five biggest prospects and your five biggest competitors. Now look them all up on LinkedIn. How do their LinkedIn pages compare to yours? If your prospects had to make a buying decision based only on your LinkedIn page would they do business with you or your competitor?

Do This Now:

Mike O'Neil of Integrated Alliances has published a two-page cheat sheet to help you see if your LinkedIn page measures up. Click here to view the page and print it. Read it and then create or update your LinkedIn page.








Register For Mike's Professional LinkedIn Seminar:

Ready to "Go Pro" with social media in general and LinkedIn in particular?  Invest in Mike O'Neil's professional LinkedIn seminar by clicking here.




Want Mike to Speak About Social Media and LinkeIn at Your Event?

Contact Mike via his website at www.Integratedalliances.com

Startup Strategies for Agents

Click the box below to view the video of the Miami trade show presentation given by Bill Taylor of Corporate Ladders  .



Following was the pre-show promo for this presentation:

"If you are a VAR, dealer, former carrier sales rep looking to start or improve your new(er) carrier sales agency business, this session is for you. It will cover the most important things a new agent should do to build their business and top-line revenues - from business planning, budgeting, marketing, lead generation, sales and customer support."

Click here to view a PDF copy of the Power Point slides used in this presentation.

For more information about Bill Taylor or Corporate Ladders please contact Bill at wbtaylor@corporateladders.com or 201-825-8296.

What are your thoughts on this presentation? Did it hit the mark? What other content would you like to have with regard to "Startup Strategies for Agents"? Click the comments link below to post a comment. Click the envelope icon to email this to a friend.

Five Things to Know About List Marketing & Telecom Sales

                  

1. Social Networking Does Not Substitute for a Good List
   
   LinkedIn, YouTube & blogs all have their place in proper B2B marketing but they are certainly no substitute for a good list. A good list gives you more than just a good place to start calling, it helps you define what you're trying to do - and who you're trying to do it with.
   
   There are not enough hours in the month to sell to all wayward and time-wasting folk who will find you from the Internet. You need to first decide who is rich enough to buy from you, pursue them directly and then let online marketing support that effort - not the other way around.
   
    
2. Start with a Small But Complete List
   
   Using an inexpensive list service like the $19 list you can get from TA, put together a small but complete list of a specific set of customers you know are high margin prospects. You need to define:
   
   A. Who?  Pick a yellow page heading like doctors, laywyers or dog catchers
   
   B. Where?  A state, a metro area a certain radius from your home office?
   
   C. Size?  How big a company is too small or too big when measured by number of employees?
   
   When you start with this sort of list you will be able to methodically attack your marketplace without a lot of wasted time backtracking & overlapping your efforts.
   
   
   
3. Comb Through Your Initial List to Find the Nuggets
   
   Before you start cold-calling your starter list, you will want to comb through and vet it against Google, LinkedIn, Jigsaw and other Internet resources. (Specific techniques for doing this will be covered later.
   
   This initial combing of your prospect list will likely pare it down by 30% or more but it will also give you 30% more time by not wasting your time calling "dead wood".
   
   
   
4. Start Calling, Emailing & Door-Knocking Now
   
   Now's the time to call, email or door-knock with a simple two-step goal in mind - get the answers to these two questions "Do you need me today?" and, "Can I get permission to share my expertise with you over time?"
   
   There's "low hanging fruit" out there. Don't miss the easy stuff because you're spending too much time "selling" to those who clearly don't want to buy today. Once everyone knows how brilliant you are they'll all want to buy from you. Until then, find & focus on those desperate for your expertise today.
   
   
   
5. Refine Your Methods by Reviewing with Peers
   
   You're not the only person selling telecom & IT to doctors, lawyers & dog catchers.  Fish around for professional friends on LinkedIn & elsewhere. Ask TA for a referral. Make sure you're learning from the winners and avoiding the "not-winners".

How is your experience the same or different? Let us know by adding a post!