Listen to your body and you will have a more balanced business life

I recently had the opportunity to host an event called The Marketing Next Expo. It was held in Daytona Beach on September 11. We had 48 energized exhibitors, 22 amazing speakers and 200 excited attendees. It was such an honor to be part of this unnatural event. The mission was to educate and empower and based on feedback I can say that most walked away with one if not both! Coming down from the expo I found myself in hibernation mode much like a bear in winter. I barely spoke to anyone the two days following and the weekend after was filled with feedback forms, returning emails, calling to say thank you and so needless to say, the hibernation didn't last long enough. The following Monday I found myself overwhelmed with my ever growing to-do list. Because my focus and time had been so set on the expo in preparation for the past four months, I had rearranged my appointments, templates and monthly duties to accommodate my new schedule of meetings, speaking engagements and runs to the nearest office supply store. I hadn't been sleeping right, eating right or working out like my usual routine. All focus was on making the expo a success for all who involved. Keep in mind, this expo was no way a profit machine. Being a first year and not having sponsorships in advance meant that hitting the pavement and having the phone glued to my ear was the only way the hope of breaking even was possible. So why do this, you ask? I believe so strongly in the mission and in marketing. I felt that we have such great talent in our community that it's silly to travel to neighboring markets to become educated and empowered. Instead of sitting around complaining about why we didn't have a platform like this I decided to do it myself. I had recently pulled away from my non-profit organizations so I felt I had some extra time to donate. If I broke even, then I would be a happy camper. Well, what was I thinking? The expo completely consumed me, reminding me exactly why I got out of event production. I developed issues with my relationships, I never slept, I felt exhausted all the time and my health began diminishing. As I stand here today in an airport coming home from Indiana where just a short week after the expo I was scheduled to speak about email marketing in the 21st century, I am committing to not allowing myself to lose focus again. I will remember to take care of myself first. To stay focused on eating right and sleeping my typical eight hours. When stressed I will get into downward dog instead of complaining to a girlfriend over a bottle of vino. I will stay focused in my meditation practices and will continue to be the positive person I am. Because I allowed the opposite to happen, on this trip, I missed out on an opportunity to gain more interest in my company potentially bringing in more business. I ended up traveling hours to sleep in a foreign bed for an entire day. I had to cancel my presentation and explain why. Embarrassing, disappointing and overall, my fault. I loved everything about the expo and am so proud of the work we all did. Our positive outlook and inspiration made the event a success but my health took a beating. With all events in life there are lessons to be learned. I definitely learned mine. Here are some great tips on ways to listen to your body! When it's talking to you, please don't ignore it! It's the same as a girlfriend giving you advice, your parents saying you're pushing it too hard, like your kids pulling at your arm screaming "mommy, mommy"! Listen when your body talks and you won't end up like me today. I'm privileged to be "in the know" and to be a living, growing being that makes mistakes and learns from them! Namaste! Listen to your body!

I love writing for the Ormond Observer! It's a monthly column where I have freedom to express my views about different business situations! Read the latest...

Callan Group seeking Asheville representative

The Callan Group's Business in a Box program has everything you need to begin a successful business for yourself. If you know 5-10 businesses that need to keep in touch with their clients on a regular basis – you could become their email newsletter ghost writer and designer. The program is popular with individuals looking for flexible, part-time work including mompreneurs.

Too often business owners simply do not have time to do this crucial aspect of marketing. Instead of the business doing this monthly task – you would create the marketing concept, writing and design for them. Coming from a reader/consumer perspective you will be able to help the business save time, create client retention and drive more traffic online and at their location. For $500/month you will receive a “business in a box”. Your monthly payment will cover all your business expenses. This a month-to-month program so there’s no pressure. Work as little or as much as you want. No sales goals – only your goals. Need More Info? Email Diane at diane@thecallangrp.com. Learn more about The Callan Group at www.thecallangrp.com

Thank you to Asheville Chamber of Commerce for posting this opportunity on their blog: http://blog.ashevillechamber.org/2013/05/callan-group-seeking-asheville.html

2 visitors from Palo Alto!

Google analytics is a helpful free site to pull up your site statistics. Signing up is simple, if you already have a Google account you log in with your email and provide Google with the URL of the site you want to keep track off. Google will provide you with a code, copy this code and put it into each of your WebPages.

Now that you have created your account you are ready to log in and start analyzing! Under site usage you will find several statistics for a certain time period.

·         Visits - tells you how many visits there were to your page.

·         Pageviews - tells how many times the pages on your site have been viewed.

·         Pages/visit - tells how many pages, on average, users view when they come to your site.

·         Bounce Rate - tells what percentage of users left after viewing only one page on your site.

·         Avg. Time on Site - shows how long each user spent on your site.

·         New Visitors - shows what percentage of your users have not visited your site before.

When pulling up your city demographics it will show you where your visitors come from. I even had 2 visitors from Palo Alto!

This can be a fun easy tool to do on a monthly or quarterly basis. 

My Two Cents

The second article of "My Two Cents" is out. This month we feature tips for coupon-ing for consumers and businesses alike. Keeping local in mind - shout outs to LuLu's Oceanside Grill and @Ariel Beckner - love for you to share! 

Also check out "Embrace the Race" which got rave reviews!

http://www.ormondbeachobserver.com/my-two-cents-the-couponing-conflict-or-to-cut-or-not-to-cut/

http://www.ormondbeachobserver.com/my-two-cents-embrace-the-race/

Use Testimonials to Boost the Success of Your Email Campaign

When users hesitate to take action, they often turn to others to decide what they should do. So use a positive review in the header, body or footer of an email to encourage users to request more information or make a purchase.

Source

Open Rate Truth Be Told

Oh, where do we begin when it comes to open rates? Well, you can Google it yourself to see the numbers are not accurate and a nice gauge to see how your email newsletters are getting to your readers.

The average open rate is below by industry. Listen to our vLog to learn thetruth about open rates…including that when you view your email newsletters on your phone those numbers will not report…you be the judge!

Business Type   Open Rate
Accountant         15%
Art Gallery          23%
Associations       21%
Consultants        15%
Education           19%
Entertainment   16%
Event Planning  17%
Government      23%
Hotels                 19%
Legal                   19%
Manufacturing  19%
Marketing/PR    15%
Medical               18%
Non-profit          22%
Office Supplies  13%
Personal Services  18%
Professional Services 17%
Real Estate          16%
Religious Organization   23%
Restaurants        19%
Retail                   18%
Salon/Spa            17%
Technology         15%
Travel & Tourism  17%
Web                        18%