It always amazes me when people still respond with, “Oh, that’s one of those Pyramid Schemes” when exposed to a Network Marketing opportunity.  It just goes to show the misconceptions that people still have.  Clearly, there’s still plenty of work to do in educating people about Network Marketing. Despite the fact that Pyramid schemes were made illegal in the 70′s, that Network Marketing is taught in some of the world’s top business schools, that a plethora of top business people sing the praises of Network Marketing and that some very well known companies use a Network Marketing model, including publicly quoted ...

Erik Qualman’s terrific book, Socialnomics, has really brought home the importance of using Social Media in business and the statistics that were originally quoted in the book are changing rapidly. This is the latest (the 3rd) Socialnomics video that brings those statistics a little more up to date.  Of course, they continue to change on a daily basis but the resounding impact of them just re-emphasises the need to embrace Social Media to help promote our businesses. If all of this seems like something of a mystery to you, please feel free to get in touch.  I’m more than happy to help ...

Even though we don’t all know exactly what they do, most of us have seen or heard of QR Codes. Originally developed by a subsidiary of Toyota to track parts and components in the vehicle manufacturing process, QR Codes (QR = Quick Response) are 2D barcodes  that can be reproduced on any kind of printed media and used to store different types of data that enable them to be used in many ways. To gain an understanding of what they do, think of QR Codes as print based hypertext links.  You ‘click’ on them by scanning them with a Smartphone (or other ...

I don’t know whether you understand the tax system, particularly the intricacies and implications that result when tax rates change, but I saw this explanation and couldn’t help but smile in enlightenment when I read it. I’ve no idea who wrote it and I’m sure that it’s a bit of an over simplification but it does make you think.  I hope it makes you smile in enlightenment, too! The Tax System Explained in Beer Suppose that once a week ten men go out for beer and the bill for all ten comes to £100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our ...

When you start to look at the fundamentals of marketing, this is the most fundamental of them all; There are only 4 ways to grow a business. Just in case I’ve caused you to raise your eyebrows and you’re feeling a little doubtful about that last statement, let’s take a look at the 4 ways to grow your business, so that you can see what I mean. The 4 ways to grow a business are as follows; Increase the number of customers you have. Increase the average order value. Increase the frequency of purchase. Increase the length of time that an average customer stays with you. Of course, ...

Has Yellow Pages Had its Day? I recently received the latest Yellow Pages directory for Southampton and then, today, the latest Thomson Local directory came through my door.  To say that I was a little surprised when I saw them is a bit of an understatement and I’m sure you’ll understand what I mean from the photographs comparing the 2010/2011 editions to the 2011/2012 editions. In just one year both directories have shrunk, both in physical size and in the number of pages they contain.  This can only be the result of either a substantial reduction in the number of businesses advertising ...

The Networking Nemesis There are a number of challenges when it comes to networking but the biggest networking challenge, the real Networking Nemesis is, perhaps, a little surprising;  it’s Human Nature. Let me explain what I mean by that. Some time ago a survey was carried out to establish exactly what it is that people fear the most  – to find out what are our biggest fears.  Unbelievably, the fear of dying only managed to make it to number 3.  Number 2 turned out to be the fear of walking in to a room full of strangers and the number 1 fear is ...

Following on from my last post, ‘I Will Fly‘, I remembered Nick Vujicic, a truly inspirational individual.  If you’ve never heard of him or seen him before, you may find the video a little shocking, at least, when you first come to realise the challenges that Nick has  had to face in his life. And for Nick, those challenges are there every day.  Although, I doubt that he thinks of it that way!  You see, Nick Vujicic’s a prime example of the strength and determination that pervades the human spirit.  It’s not just that he doesn’t allow his disabilities to ...

If you’re like me, then you can’t help but be touched when you hear about someone that’s suffering from some kind of serious illness or disability.  Particularly, where there’s the distinct possibility that their condition could prove to be life threatening or could lead to them having to face what, to us, are seemingly impossible challenges.  And, unless you’ve faced that kind of a scenario, yourself, it’s difficult to imagine how you would react. But people do react in very different ways and some of them are, truly, inspirational.  Not only in the way that they face their situation but how ...

When it comes to marketing or copywriting, there’s no doubt that we can’t afford to ignore the power of words and how we use them to get our message across.  Whether it’s the written word or the spoken word is, largely, immaterial but how we put them together, how we frame our words, who’s perspective we consider and how we engage the emotions are all important elements in our communication. Now, I don’t know whether the following video is genuine or somewhat contrived.  Either way, it clearly demonstrates that it’s not what you say, it’s how you say it that makes ...