Yesterday I had the opportunity to listen to Felicia Slattery teach a teleseminar about promotional tools that you can use right now to grow your business.

In this video, I share my opinion of the teleseminar I attended.

If you’d like to learn more from Felicia, be sure to visit Communication Transformation (yes this is an affiliate link) today for more details.

Okay so one of my twitter friends posted a question about aggregation on his blog post, Aggregating Social Media Updates Pros and Cons and he asked us for our opinions.  So here’s my answer:

I hate to give a female answer such as it depends, but it depends. LOL If I’m announcing something for business then I will use an aggregating service.  Right now my favorite one is the selective twitter app on facebook.  I like that app because I can choose which twitter statuses get posted on facebook.  This is important to me because I can get quite chatty on twitter.  A lot of times I’m sending @replies to my twitter friends.  I have some friends on Facebook that aren’t on twitter.  That’s why I don’t push out all of my twitter conversations to Facebook. If all they see from me is LOL, but they didn’t get to see the original joke because they weren’t on twitter, that can get kind of confusing.

I do use ping.fm if I’m announcing something that can stand alone.  Like if I’m posting my last blog post or if I’m promoting a link, then I’ll post it on ping.fm I know it seems like it takes up a lot of time, but I don’t want anyone confused.

I hope that answered your question, Carlton!

Wow, I’ve been gone from my blog way too long. Here’s why, I’m expecting a little girl in either early March or late February. I’ve been taking it easy lately.

So today is Blog Action Day and the theme is climate change. Now I had to seriously think of a way to make the theme fit in with the overall theme of my blog. So here’s what I came up with…

As much as possible, try to think of “green” solutions for your business. Do you really have to print out that 45 page ebook? Try saving it on your hard drive for future reference or you could just print out the pages you need instead of printing out the whole ebook.

If you’re going to a live event, try to find someone that lives near you to carpool with. This way you reduce the number of cars on the road and you get to spend some face time with some of the people in your network.

These are just a few suggestions that I have come up with to help you go green in your business.

If you’d like to participate in this year’s blog action day, you still have time to register and get a blog post up! Just go to www.blogactionday.org to register your blog.

I must apologize for getting off schedule. I haven’t been feeling well the last few days. I’m feeling better now. Here’s an interesting article I found about Networking. I hope you enjoy it.

Funny Networking Poem and Do’s and Don’ts
By Sheryl Nicholson

Networking Do’s and Don’ts

I always enjoy speaking at networking events. I get there an hour early to set up everything for my presentation and then I stand in the back of the room and watch people enter.

Here’s the opportunity for them to rub shoulders and minds with other professionals and yet the most common thing that is done…a hesitation when entering, a “look see” for anyone they recognize, and then a beeline to that person and a flip of a napkin on the back of their chair to guarantee a “safe seat”. What a poor investment!

The goal for networking is to EXPAND and EXCELLERATE opportunities to be of service to others. By far, being a resource of knowledge to connect others with those that can help is a much better position to hold than the “salesperson” who’s pitching their stuff.

Business has changed dramatically. At one meeting this woman had 4 different business cards holders and had to decide which one to give me. At this same meeting a man came up and confronted me with his brochure in my face and quickly told me about all the features of his business. I was looking for a plug I could pull to stop the recording! So in honor of them…I wrote this poem….

The Unproductive Networker
I’m an unproductive networker
I have cards up the wazoo
No one wants to talk to me
Or ask me what I do

I just can’t understand it
Don’t know what the problem is
I have cards of many colors
For that and that and this

I sell insurance and juices
I have vitamins galore
I set up websites on the side
And I sell candles in my store

I teach yoga in my spare time
And help smokers who want to quit
I groom doggies on the weekends
And I even clean up …sh…..oot

I work hard all day and nite
And I’m dedicated too
I want to have that real success
For me and also you

So won’t someone please help me
And tell me what to do
I’m open to receive advice
I’m listening to you

So let me give you some quick do’s and don’ts to prepare you when networking.

DO – Think about the PURPOSE of the meeting you are attending. Who’s going to be there? How can you be a resource to that audience of people? Have that one card ready to give out and only that card.

DON’T – Take out every card of every business you represent. It only looks like you are scattered and not focused or serious about doing business.

DO – Ask more questions about what the other person is looking for and why they came to this particular meeting.

DON’T – Pitch your product or services. Nobody is going to get their check book out and order and pay tonight. Be patient and realize people do business with people they like and know – so focus more on getting to know that person and the product they represent

DO – Follow up! It amazes me how many people stack their cards and put rubber bands around them and that’s it. Can you remember who you saw when? Did you call them, write or send an email to maintain a relationship with these people?

I believe if you breathe air you bring a gift to lifes’ party. When I walk in a room I can’t wait to unwrap those gifts to find commonalities and THEN do business. Try it – it makes networking exciting and FUN!

CSP Sheryl Nicholson http://www.sheryl.com SIGN UP there for more FREE articles

International Professional Speaker and Nationally Published Author Presents training programs on People Skills. Topics include Leadership, Communication, Team Building, Sales and Customer Service

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Sheryl_Nicholson
http://EzineArticles.com/?Funny-Networking-Poem-and-Dos-and-Donts&id=2345903

If you’ve just started a blog, this post is for you.  This post will give you some important principles to follow so you can have a successful blog.

Principle #1-Define success in your own terms.You have to decide for yourself what a successful blog looks like. Is the weblog bringing you a lot of money? Do you have a lot of loyal subscribers? It all depends on what you want.

Principle #2-Post regularly.You don’t have to post three times in one day. You do have to decide on a schedule that you can stick to. You’ll turn your readers off if you post on an irregular schedule.

Principle #3-Check your sources before you repeat a story.I can’t stress this point enough. There are a lot of fake news sites out there. I know you want to be the first to break a story, but you need to make sure something is actually true before you report on it. The last thing you want is to gain a reputation for reporting inaccurate news.

Principle #4-Post original content.People want to see what YOU have to say about your topic of choice. You do your readers a disservice if you just repeat what other people have to say about your topic. Even if you disagree with the mainstream, post your opinion. This is your site, you don’t have to agree with what everyone else says.