I  just returned from spending an entire day with a client.  We planned their business success road map for this year. I had originally worked with this client over 3 years ago.

So how did Sarah remember me after all this time? Sarah had been on my database and had consistently been receiving my e-zines. Sarah is just one of the many stories I can share with you, where I’ve received thousands of dollars of referrals, sales and business by sending out one simple e-zine on a regular basis.

There are many marketers sending out e-zines and emails weekly.  I’ve even experienced having one marketer sending out emails every day. What do successful marketers know that you might not know about sending out a weekly e-zine?  Plain and simple, it works!

The biggest challenge today with the majority of  entrepreneurs and small business owners is they just don’t realize the huge monetary impact of sending out a regular weekly e-zine. So, this keep in touch strategy is put at the bottom of the priority pile with all the other things to do.  If you want more business and a simple and easy way to stay in touch with prospects and clients, put sending out an e-zine on a regular basis!

Here are the 6 MUST have’s to include in your e-zine…

1. Your personal note

Today, before prospects become clients they want to know, like and trust you. They want to know you on a more personal basis, not just know about your business.  So, put a personal note at the beginning and let them step into getting to know you.

2.  Use photo’s

When you use a photo, this brings you to life, brings your e-zine to life and makes it more fun and easier to read.

3.  Give your readers VALUABLE information

To keep your readership engaged and have them stay subscribed provide great content that’s of VALUE in the form of a featured article.

4. Use client testimonials

Client testimonials are the easiest way to show your prospects that your products and services are legitimate and they work. It’s easier to have someone else rave about you,  and how wonderful your product services really work!

5. Let them know what you are up to

Letting your prospects and clients know what you’re doing and what you’re up to give them an opportunity to forward your e-zine to their friends who might be interested.  It’s a very casual way to give them an offer without sounding like a sales pitch.

6. Give a short Bio

If you keep yourself and your business the world’s best kept secret, how will everyone get to know about YOU?

Sending out an e-zine, including articles with HIGH value content is the single best way to keep in touch with your prospects and clients will save you time and ACCELERATE your profits.

© 2009      Ileana Kane   All Rights Reserved

Part 1

When I first started my own small business, I made a huge mistake when it came to marketing. I didn’t have a good mentor helping me out, so I just decided to use the same techniques that others were using for marketing. I was full of excitement, the business was brand new, and I was ready and determined to help others and make my business grow.

Over time, I began to start feeling very tired each night, yet I barely had anything to show for my hard work. It seemed the more I worked on my small business, the more it was declining instead of growing. This began to make me feel unmotivated and disillusioned with my new small business. I thought I’d have freedom as an entrepreneur - but I didn’t have it. I had to come up with something different. Business networking had become a drudge and I wasn’t accomplishing much at all.

If I was going to succeed at business networking, I decided that I was going to need a plan that was both specific and clear. I came to the conclusion that I would no longer make myself go to events without doing proper preparation. Things had to be done differently.

I took some time out and decided to try and figure out what I needed to change. At this same time, I was introduced to the sport of fishing by my boyfriend. I suddenly thought that what I was dealing with had a lot in common with fishing. Before I was going to catch anything, I would need to know what type of fish I was fishing for, the equipment needed to catch them, the bait I’d need, and the best places to go to catch that type of fish.

After this realization, I wrote up a new plan. The reason I wrote down a plan is so I would be sure what I should be doing before a business networking event, as well as during and after that event. With my plan, I then made a system. Using the system made me feel more confident and I was starting to network with the right people. So, here are my nine steps that I came up with that you can follow for business networking that works.

Step #1 - Figure out who to meet. I needed to figure out what type of clients I was looking for. Then, I had to figure out who knew those clients. When I knew what type of fish I was fishing for, I could then spend time focusing on where the best place to fish was. Essentially I was able to find the best places for business networking. Understanding that there were various types of categories, including non profit groups, networking groups, associations with professionals, and lead exchange groups, I made up a list and picked the options that complimented my personality best.

Step #2 - Work on the introduction. The first impression is important, and in just a few seconds it’s over. So, the introduction should show who you are interested in working with, the problems they have, and why they can benefit from what you have to offer. In essence, you become a vocal business card. Come up with several different introductions. Then work on practicing them. Try practicing on your friends and family members. Then they can help you improve. Just make sure you introduction is natural so that you are comfortable while giving a statement that is compelling.

Step #3 - Position yourself and get an invite. Instead of you seeking out the prospects, put yourself in position to get the invite. Find a group you are interested in and get in touch with the contact person of the group. Figure out if the group is going to be a good match. Then, allow the contact person to sell you. Put yourself in the position where they will come get you. Also, remember, it’s not the group size that is so important, but the people in the group should be quality people.

© 2008 Ileana Kane.

WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE OR WEB SITE? Of course you can, as long as you include the following with it: Ileana Kane founder of “Turn Your Passion to Profit Marketing Breakthrough System” publishes a weekly Ezine ‘Opportunities on Marketing & Success for Your Small Business’. If you’re ready to take your business to new heights with ease and your ready make more money, have more profits and more time off. Get your FREE Audio ‘Turn Your Passion To Profit” in 5 Proven Simple Steps. Go now to: www.milliondollarmuse.com.

The holiday season and the end of this year is quickly coming. During this time, you may be feeling like you just won’t get everything done you need to in the amount of time you have left. Well, you’re not the only one. Just Saturday I made up a “to-do” list and tried to get organized. I just wasn’t able to get it all done. It just seemed that there weren’t enough hours in the day to complete it all.Have you begun to notice that your levels of stress are on the rise around this time of year? You have the responsibility of making sure your small business is running well, but during the holidays you are supposed to purchase gifts for your family, your friends, and even your clients. Sometimes we tend to put a lot on our plate. We try to do it all, and to do it well. Well, think for a moment that you get everything done that you have to. You are controlling your time and enjoying the holiday season.

Starting out the holiday season this way will allow you to do all the things you really enjoy and love. Here are some excellent tips that will help you have more time so you can get the most important tasks done.

Tip #1 - Take Time for YOU!

During the holiday season, there is a lot of emphasis put on taking time to spend with your friends and family, as well as clients. You may be feeling guilty for taking time out for you. Well, you need to take this time. Have a plan to have some time to yourself. It will help you feel more balanced. Give yourself a gift - a gift of time. Set boundaries, saying “no” to parties you really don’t want to attend.

Tip #2 - Anticipate the Bumps.

Alter your expectations. Have realistic expectations. Don’t have the idea that everything is going to be perfect. Even though it is the holiday season, remember that situations with your family and with your clients may not always be so wonderful. There’s a variety of emotions that can occur during the holidays. So, anticipate the bumps along the way.

Tip #3 - Make a List…Check it Twice

Come up with a list of all the people you need to purchase gifts for. This way you can purchase gifts for more than one person while you are in one store. If you target hobbies or interests, then it is a lot easier to shop for someone. You may even want to do your shopping for the holidays from home. I love using the internet for holiday shopping and enjoy the great catalogues full of holiday gifts. I do most of my shopping all from home. In some cases I take someone out to lunch as a gift. In some cases it can be more important to take the time to give a phone call to a client to wish them a wonderful holiday season and to let them know how much you appreciate having their business.

Using these three important tips, you’ll be able to relax and actually enjoy the holiday season this year.

© 2008 Ileana Kane.

WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE OR WEB SITE? Of course you can, as long as you include the following with it: Ileana Kane founder of “Turn Your Passion to Profit Marketing Breakthrough System” publishes a weekly Ezine ‘Opportunities on Marketing & Success for Your Small Business’. If you’re ready to take your business to new heights with ease and your ready make more money, have more profits and more time off. Get your FREE Audio ‘Turn Your Passion To Profit” in 5 Proven Simple Steps. Go now to: www.milliondollarmuse.com.

The holidays are behind you. You’ve shopped like crazy. attended parties, and visited family. And I bet you haven’t started the creation of your business marketing plan for 2009, you need to get started. If you don’t have a plan to fulfill your dream, then it’s just a wish. So, you need a good plan - starting now!

Today we are going into an economic environment for small businesses than we’ve ever seen. After you have your marketing plan in place as an entrepreneur, you will be able to change it throughout the year as you need to. As you go through 2009, you will need to review the plan, update it, assess it, and more.

So, where do I begin?

Well, you start with where you want to be. Next year, on the last day of December, where do you want to be? If you know where you are going, it’s easier to come up with a plan of how to get there.

Begin now, but have the end in mind.

Step 1 - Have a Vision - Jonathan Swift once said, “Vision is the art of seeing the invisible.”

This is so true, and those who have been successful would say the same thing. People like Richard Branson and Donald Trump started out with a great vision. So, you need to have a vision as an entrepreneur. Figure out where you see your business in the next year, or even a few years from now. Come up with a vision for your small business that empowers you.

Step 2 - Have a Personal Vision Too - When coming up with a marketing plan, you need to have your own personal vision. What do you want from the business? If you don’t know what you want, you may end up with a lot of stress, long hours, and very few rewards. What do you want? Would you like to make more money in fewer hours? Do you want to make your business work better with your lifestyle?

Step 3 - Remember Your Reputation - My dad once gave me a great piece of advice. He told me, “Ileana, at the end of the day you only have one thing. That one thing is your word and reputation.” Don’t just leave your reputation up to chance. Figure out what you reputation to be. What you want people to know you for.

Step 4 - WHO? - When developing a marketing plan, a wise man had it right. “The WHO is more important than the HOW!” I truly believe that an entrepreneur can attract the clients they want if they know WHO they want. Figure out who you want to attract to your site. Then you’ll be able to bring them in. Come up with your ideal client. List why you enjoy working with them, and the qualities that they have.

Step 5 - How to Do It - Now that you know WHO you want to come to your site, now it’s time to figure out HOW to get them there. When coming up with a marketing plan, this is a very important question you must answer. I have a special workshop, called the Pathway to Profit, Freedom, and Breakthrough, which is a special workshop to help entrepreneurs like yourself come up with an approach to bring in new clients. You must have a strategy to do this.

Step 6 - What? - After you come up with a specific strategy for bringing in your targeted customers, now you need to figure out how to implement that strategy. Come up with the tactics you’ll need to follow though. Put up a white board and begin coming up with a plan of implementation for the next year. Write down what tactics you will use on a monthly basis.

When you are coming up with your marketing plan for 2009, these six steps can help. You’ll be able to come up with a top notch plan that will get your business going strong in this new year. No matter what the economy is doing, I’ll be launching a 4-part Breakthrough to Your 6 Figure Business, in January. You will be able to get your business accelerating as you go in 2009…stay tuned for more!

© 2008 Ileana Kane.

WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE OR WEB SITE? Of course you can, as long as you include the following with it: Ileana Kane founder of “Turn Your Passion to Profit Marketing Breakthrough System” publishes a weekly Ezine ‘Opportunities on Marketing & Success for Your Small Business’. If you’re ready to take your business to new heights with ease and your ready make more money, have more profits and more time off. Get your FREE Audio ‘Turn Your Passion To Profit” in 5 Proven Simple Steps. Go now to: www.milliondollarmuse.com.

MARKETING SIN #4 – There is no or very little internet presence

Did you know over 95% of small business web sites are just a brochure site. This type of site is a pure waste of time and money. You’ll never make a dime from these sites.

A strong online presence can become a serious marketing tool. But if you just do not know how to make your web site generate leads and sales – you are not alone.

Amazingly, with a few simple and inexpensive tweaks you can turn your web brochure into a profitable, lead generating machine.

MARKETING SIN #5 – Telling how great you are.

Most small business owners and entrepreneurs feel you have to boast what a great job you do. This just leaves you feeling slippery and unprofessional. No wonder you avoid marketing.

The truth be known most potential clients don’t have a clue about all the ways you can help them. Your job? You are to educate them. In all of your marketing efforts, find out about their problem and tell a story about a client who had a similar problem. Also include educating strategies in your articles, talks and books.

MARKETING SIN #6 – No effective follow-up worse yet no follow up at all.

Did you know that more than 80% of sales made take five prospect follow-up contacts.

Did you know most people never follow-up or give up after 2 contacts? They just don’t know how to consistently stay in touch with their prospects, referral sources and existing clients.

Develop a follow-up system that gets results. I publish a ezine, send out a one page friendly letter and I use Send Out Cards. I’ll soon be adding an informational CD to send out. Here are some other options for you to consider. A full-blown newsletter, send out postcards with a tip, when you see an article that would be of benefit to your prospect or client sent that to them with a personal note.

Get started and take action NOW!

MARKETING SIN #7 – There is no WOW in you marketing.

AT the beginning, I told you there were six marketing sins. You counted right this is number 7. The last very simple way to WOW your clients is to -under-promise and over- deliver!

Simple and OFTEN overlooked. What you need to do is to ‘pamper’ your clients and be generous with your prospects and clients.

Sit back and contemplate what you’ve read. Make a list of what you need to implement, and then assign a date by when you’ll complete the items. My client Pam was amazed how quickly her business turned around and you’ll be amazed too!

© 2008 Ileana Kane.

WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE OR WEB SITE? Of course you can, as long as you include the following with it: Ileana Kane founder of “Turn Your Passion to Profit Marketing Breakthrough System” publishes a weekly Ezine ‘Opportunities on Marketing & Success for Your Small Business’. If you’re ready to take your business to new heights with ease and your ready make more money, have more profits and more time off. Get your FREE Audio ‘Turn Your Passion To Profit” in 5 Proven Simple Steps. Go now to: www.milliondollarmuse.com.

I recently met with my client, Pam, who left her corporate job to start her own small business venture two years ago. Due to her marketing efforts her small business had quickly grown, she had built up a clientele of loyal customers and recently she has had a decline in her business.

Pam had been excited when she first started her small business she had her marketing planned out and working her marketing plan. Somehow her passion wained and her motivation was at an all time low. She was loosing sleep at night.

When I asked her what was wrong, she said she was doing so much marketing to promote her business and there wasn’t enough time in the day to get it all done. By the end of the day she was tired and her phone wasn’t ringing like it used to. I found Pam committing the forbidden 7 marketing sins.

For many entrepreneurs, we have difficulty doing a lot of marketing without getting the return on investment with our time. Listed below are the seven sins of marketing. They’re so simple I’m afraid that you might dismiss it at a first glance. So give it a read. I’m sure you will get ideas how to tune-up your own marketing system.

MARKETING SIN #1- No marketing plan.

Let me ask would you go on vacation with out a plan? It’s no different in marketing. Small business owners and entrepreneurs are “doers.” There is nothing wrong with that - that is why they work for themselves and get things done! But often they get so busy they lose sight of where they are going and how they want to get there.

Just by giving the name of marketing plan sounds UGH and boring just the thought of those two words are less than motivating. The fact is creating a simple marketing plan can be so easy. Hung up on the naming your marketing plan still? Call it your money map!

Let me give you the first three steps of creating your money map.

Step one would be to list your ideal client. Step two would be to list the top three lead generating strategies to pull them in. In step three, you would list your first few implementation steps and put those steps into your calendar. Voila!

MARKETING SIN #2 – You’re like everyone else.

Most small business owners just name their selves by the profession. For an example:

I’m a mortgage broker, I’m a therapist, I make jewelry. YAWN. It’s like looking at a herd of zebras. There is absolutely nothing to differentiate you from the herd. But if you were the color-striped zebra; you would stand out in everyone’s mind.

Take a long look and ask yourself these top two questions. What makes your business different? What makes you, your services or products unique? With the explosion of new businesses, it should be your top concern - to set yourself apart from the pack.

If you are providing an ordinary product or service it may be hard to set yourself apart based on what or how you do it. But there is one thing in your business that no one else can duplicate - YOU!

MARKETING SIN #3 – No Visibility

If no one knows who you are or what you do you will always struggle to get enough business. Networking, public speaking, publishing articles are just a few no cost ways of getting the word out.

One BIG caution. Do NOT do what one of my clients did before they came to me.

They had a meeting with a television advertising salesperson who promised them everything and of course the delivery was way less than promised. In fact this small business owner did not receive one lead from all his efforts and money spent. (If you do approach the radio and television advertising arena, make SURE you are working with someone who KNOWS the business.)

© 2008 Ileana Kane.

WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE OR WEB SITE? Of course you can, as long as you include the following with it: Ileana Kane founder of “Turn Your Passion to Profit Marketing Breakthrough System” publishes a weekly Ezine ‘Opportunities on Marketing & Success for Your Small Business’. If you’re ready to take your business to new heights with ease and your ready make more money, have more profits and more time off. Get your FREE Audio ‘Turn Your Passion To Profit” in 5 Proven Simple Steps. Go now to: www.milliondollarmuse.com.

The easiest and simplest way for entrepreneurs to out smart and out market your competition is to be willing to do what 99% of your competition is unwilling to do.  Here are the next 3 HOT marketing strategies in this issue.  Stay tuned for more.

Marketing Strategy Four.  Lock Your Sales in Advance

It is amazing!  I am finding what has worked in one industry works in many other industries.  I found this little secret out when I was in charge of marketing for a small new home builder.  Let me share the secret with you (other industries might call this a product launch).  When we were getting ready to release a new home community for sale, we would have the construction of the product well underway, set a sales date, put up a sign, have the doors open for giving out information and start gathering names and loan applications.  On the day we had the first sale we would offer a limited number of homes for sale at an irresistible price (this is before they’re even ready for occupancy).

As an entrepreneur you are able to do this, too!  When you are offering a teleclass or launching a new product or service, start early and build interest and momentum in your product or service, create urgency and offer it at an irresistible price with an irresistible bonus.  Your sales will skyrocket.

Marketing Strategy Five. Align With Your Congruency Factor and Dance to the Beat of Your Own Drum.

Here’s the  biggest mistakes I made when I became an entrepreneur.  Very simple.  I looked at how everyone else was working their small business. Let me share how one small change can boost your sales just by embracing your congruency factor.

In one of my workshops, I told a story about Paddy Lund.  Paddy is a dentist and when he went into practice he looked around to see how other dentists marketed their practice… and he followed suit.  In a moment you will see why this is a bad idea.  Paddy ended up with $65,000 annual revenues, working long hours and feeling dog tired at the end of the day.  The day came when Paddy decided to market his small business the way he wanted. He started by remodeling his office into a more spacious, warm and friendly surrounding which reflected the essence of tranquility.  In this space of tranquility he could serve tea  to his patients while he sat and visited with his patients. Paddy reopened the office and worked only by referral.  He soon transformed his $65,000 practice to a $400,000 practice.

A participant in one of my workshops took this story to heart.  As an entrepreneur, she realized the mistake she had made in  marketing her small business and decided to some changes to her business.  And the outcome of the changes?  She went from charging $65 per hour to charging $200 per hour for her services.  And what this gave her was more income and more profit!

Marketing Strategy Six.  Move from Using A Marketing Tactic to Marketing Strategy

Do you want to know the difference?  If you are doing a lot of things and not seeming to get anything done, putting out a lot of energy feeling like you are chasing clients and chasing down business, you probably are experiencing using too many marketing tactics.  You are in a vicious cycle of working long hours and bringing in mediocre returns.

Let’s say you were a General and your job was to overtake a hill.  Overtaking the hill would be the strategy.  That’s the over arching goal.  The way you decide to over take the hill would be that tactic portion of the job you are setting out to do.

If you have done your job and positioned your small business in the marketplace, what you will experience is the joy of having your prospects and customers come to you. They seek you out as the obvious choice to serve their needs.

If you will take the time and make some changes in your small business, you WILL be the entrepreneur who out smarts and out markets her small business. You’ll be able to work a lot less and enjoy the FREEDOM your small business promised you in the first
place.

© 2008 Ileana Kane.

WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE OR WEB SITE? Of course you can, as long as you include the following with it: Ileana Kane founder of “Turn Your Passion to Profit Marketing Breakthrough System” publishes a weekly Ezine ‘Opportunities on Marketing & Success for Your Small Business’. If you’re ready to take your business to new heights with ease and your ready make more money, have more profits and more time off. Get your FREE Audio ‘Turn Your Passion To Profit” in 5 Proven Simple Steps. Go now to: www.milliondollarmuse.com.

If your are an entrepreneur or small business owner, here is what you need to know about marketing your small business.

Many of my clients share that one of their biggest marketing challenges is knowing what to do to get more clients, income, and profits … without working too hard. Attracting more clients and growing your small business isn’t a cut and dry process - there isn’t one perfect way to do it. But there are certain strategies and tactics that need to set the foundation to build a business as strong as Fort Knox…and following the list you will build you a nice stream of clients and income and profit. In essence give you more clients, make more money and have more time off.

The secret to getting more clients is to get your marketing wheels turning, check out these 15 must-haves to grow your small business.

____ 1. I have a clear compelling vision and know where I want to take my small business.

____ 2. I have total clarity on who my ideal client is.

____ 3. I have a magnetic marketing message (which positions me as the only viable answer to my ideal clients problem) and I use it 
                 regularly.

____ 4. I know the top 5 ways to get more ideal clients and use them.

____ 5. I know the importance of referral marketing and have a formalized referral system that brings me more clients. (I’ve been in
                 business 3-5 years and have 3 referral systems.)

____ 6. I have a monthly keep in touch system that allows me to follow up with prospects and clients. (You get two checks if you stay in
                 touch more than once a month)

_____ 7. I use my keep in touch follow up system as a vehicle to sell to prospects and clients.

____ 8. I have a systematic way to grow my client list and I use at lease 5 ways to get more clients. (I’ve been in business for 3-5 years and
                 have 15 ways to get more clients.)

____ 9. I have a least 1 thing I give away for f.r.e.e.

____ 10. I have 2 income revenue streams for my business and I’m happy with the income producing results. ( I’m 3 years or more in my
                   business and have a minimum of 3 income revenue streams.)

____ 11. I know the biggest untapped marketing opportunity in my small business and I’m utilizing it.

____ 12. I have at least doubled my small business income within the last 6 months.

____ 13. I have a high impact internet presence and I’m happy with the money making results I get with it.

____ 14. I continue to use my time productively and I’m able to get everything done I need to in order to grow my small business.

____ 15. I take plenty of vacations and have all the time off I want. Surprised to see this? Entrepreneurs and small business owners need 
                   time off to enjoy the FREEDOM their business promised them.

How did you do? This is a marketing check list that EVERY entrepreneur and small business owner needs to use to ensure they reach their ideal clients. Putting this marketing list to work will make sure you will get more clients, make more money and have more time off.

© 2008 Ileana Kane.
WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE OR WEB SITE? Of course you can, as long as you include the following with it: Ileana Kane founder of “Turn Your Passion to Profit Marketing Breakthrough System” publishes a weekly Ezine ‘Opportunities on Marketing & Success for Your Small Business’. If you’re ready to take your business to new heights with ease and your ready make more money, have more profits and more time off. Get your FREE Audio ‘Turn Your Passion To Profit” in 5 Proven Simple Steps. Go now to: www.milliondollarmuse.com.

Whether you’re a small business owner or entrepreneur, if your want to attract your ideal client and enter into conversations that sell here are 5 tips to get the job done.To attract your ideal client you need conversations that communicates and persuades … to get results! These guidelines can ALSO apply to Web copy, e-mail, sales letters, brochures, direct mail, and more. As long as your goal is to educate and elicit a reaction from your prospect or client, you’ve come to the right place.

1.  Tune into that well-known radio station WIIFM.

Many small business owners talk endlessly on and on about how great their business is and what great their products they have. Hello? Client, anyone? What’s your prospect or client thinking, “So, what? What’s in it for me?” Start being client centered. If you can, talk with some of your current clients and ask them 1) why they chose you, and 2) what they get out of your product or service.

2.  Put your focus on the benefits.

Way too many small business owners get so into the fact that their product or service offers a lot of neat features is great, but what do they DO for your customer? Do they cover the BIG FOUR? 1) Make her money? Save her money? Save time? Avoid effort? Think about what your clients are REALLY looking for.

Now, what does a life insurance agent sell? Policies?

Nope — peace of mind. (You’ve got it NOW.)

3.  Draw them in with interest.

In order to attract your ideal client you need to realize the first thing your prospect or client hears can mean the difference between success and failure. Have an interest (your clients interest) based conversation. Forget the ‘cutsie’ because most offend and those conversations aren’t effective. There are many ways an entrepreneur can have an attention holding conversation. REMEMBER to make it the conversation client centered — no one gives a hoot about your company. So if you are a financial advisor don’t talk with a prospect about what a new amazing financial program you have. Instead talk with them about turning their finances around in 30 days! Make sense?

4. Nix the buzzwords.

In conversations, do you like hearing the industry buzzwords? Well, neither does your ideal client. Avoid industry jargon and buzzwords — stick to the benefits. An easy way to weed out buzzwords is to think of dear old Grandma listening to your conversation. Would she get it? If not, clarify and simplify. (Unless your target audience is a business audience then you’d want to upscale your conversational style and upscale your words.)

5.  Use client’s stories when possible.

To attract your ideal client you must let your prospects know they won’t be the first to try your products and services. Give results-oriented stories from your ideal clients who have benefited from your product or service. Give your clients names (as long as you have permission to use their name). Your prospects and clients want to know they’re not the only one. HINT: Use this magical sentence. I have a client just like you (and go on and tell the story).

For every small business owner and entrepreneur the golden key is to stay focused and in the present with the prospect or client. In order to do this keep present and in the moment and think about what’s in it for the person you’re speaking with and WIIFM. If you do this one thing, you are sure to attract your ideal client.

© 2008 Ileana Kane.

WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE OR WEB SITE? Of course you can, as long as you include the following with it: Ileana Kane founder of “Turn Your Passion to Profit Marketing Breakthrough System” publishes a weekly Ezine ‘Opportunities on Marketing & Success for Your Small Business’. If you’re ready to take your business to new heights with ease and your ready make more money, have more profits and more time off. Get your FREE Audio ‘Turn Your Passion To Profit” in 5 Proven Simple Steps. Go now to: www.milliondollarmuse.com.

Let’s face it, being an entrepreneur comes with a lot of stuff to do and a lot of stuff to think about and just a lot of stuff.

We get caught in the vicious cycle of working long hours for mediocre results.

Even though you may know you stand to loose 68% of your client base if you don’t keep in touch with them (they do forget too). You still just can squeeze in the time to get out that ezine. As a busy entrepreneur you’ve probably been wringing your hands and trying

to figure out who to use and what to do.

It’s a lot less complicated that you think and a lot easier too! Let me give you the successful strategies to successfully add your ezine to your day and start reaping the benefits.

1. Make getting your ezine up and running a priority. Having a regular way to keep in touch with your client base CAN make a BIG difference in your small business. It can help you retain that personal touch, develop leads, turn your prospects into paying customers, increase your sales and grow your business. Let me say that a different way, “It can help you retain that personal touch, develop leads, turn your prospects into paying customers, increase your sales and grow your business.

But, you got to just hunker down and do the work if you want to see results.

Rather than looking at getting your ezine up and running as a burden or a “should” in your business life, look at it as an opportunity. An opportunity to foster better relationships and make a difference in people’s lives.

2. Block out time this coming week. I know, I know. You already have to. Just do your best. Think of it this way. It’s an investment in your small businesses future and you’ve worked way too hard to get the clients you have just to chance to loose them now. Remember – good is good enough!

3. Use the 80/20 rule. If you only have one or two hours a week, then it’s REALLY important to make sure you’re spending your time wisely. Surfing different MySpace pages or spending hours watching YouTube videos is NOT a good use of that time. So take a few moments and put together a plan on what exactly you want your end result to be, and then make sure you’re doing the right tasks to get that result.