It’s been a while since I wrote in my blog about something non-newsletter related. Well this is another one of those times when I want to share something of value. A couple of months ago, just before the launch of Success Advantage, I surveyed my subscribers and learned that the vast majority of them are also entrepreneurs, and that means we probably face similar challenges.

When something works, I feel like sharing it so it might benefit others as well.  

I want to revisit a decision I made about 18 months ago. I decided it was time to get some help running my growing businesses. This was not an easy decision for me, nor is it for most entrepreneurs I talk to. After all, nobody can do anything as well as we can, right?!  

Aside from being perfectionists, many entrepreneurs struggle with a fear of not having control. I used to spend time reading and learning how to do something so I could do it myself, maintain control, keep my expenses low, and stay lean and mean. The biggest problem with this thinking is that it takes so much longer to get things done. Even if it’s not harmful to your business, it certainly stunts your growth. 

Well, 18 months ago, on the recommendation of a friend, I finally made the decision to let go of some my responsibilities and hire a virtual assistant. I have to tell you, it was a decision that I wish I’d made long ago.

With a large part of my growth coming from online activities, I hired the services of the best online marketing guru I could find, Adam Hommey. Adam is nationally known as The Website Surgeon (www.thewebsitesurgeon.com). Adam is skilled in many areas, including telling me when I am wrong or off base in my thinking. Do not underestimate how valuable that is.  

Adam and his team now have full rein over my entire online presence. Adam and his team now handle everything from simple updates to creating new Web pages to building my new sites and shopping carts when I launch a new product.

The major benefit of having a virtual assistant like Adam is that I now have time to focus on the larger-picture items that are moving my businesses forward. Could I learn how to do what Adam does? Perhaps – but he would probably always be more efficient than I could ever be.

Why am I revisiting this topic now? Well, I did it again! I hired another virtual assistant two weeks ago, and believe me when I tell you it was easier the second time. This time I hired Chris Ruppert. Chris is a very talented graphic designer who is helping me get many of the various newsletter templates for No Hassle Newsletters done on time. Chris has been a tremendous help and the proof is that my ‘to-do’ list now fits on one page of my trusty legal pad!

For me, using virtual assistants is the way to go. I have none of the headaches (and expense) of full-time employees and there are literally hundreds (if not thousands) that are available to hire as needed.

Ask yourself these questions. What is holding you back? What are you spending a great deal of time on? What has been on your to-do list for far too long? I urge you to consider letting go, finding some help, and getting back to running and growing your business. If you have a similar story to tell, please share it with me.

Customer-focused marketing is more inspiring then other types of marketing efforts. It is a personal, upbeat communication, usually in the form of direct-mail flyers or newsletters that make customers feel more optimistic and confident about buying from you. Each communication provides customers with information that is relevant to them and that involves products or services they have bought or are about to buy from you. When a newsletter is written effectively, the customer will never feel as though he or she is receiving just another sales solicitation. Furthermore, the customer will look forward to receiving your next communication in the mail or by email.  

You know you have mastered customer-focused communication when people start writing back to say how much they appreciate your newsletters. Making your newsletters fun and entertaining is also rewarding for you as a businessperson because they are about building relationships rather than simply pushing ideas. Even writing them will become a rewarding experience, as you are writing not to intimidate or impress (as is typical of mass marketing) but with the aim of building friendly relationships.   Remember, customer-focused marketing is an effective strategy for the small-business owner because it resists the big corporations’ tendency to make all customer relationship marketing about embracing the corporate identity.  I discuss this and other topics in my book, Newsletter Secrets Revealed – How to Use Newsletters to Make Your Profits Soar. To the readers of this posting – if you would like a copy of my book at a discount, order it within the next 5 days and I’ll take 20% off your purchase. To get your discount, all you have to do is enter the word “bonus” in the coupon window.

Before I dive into today’s topic (which you’re going to love!), I’m going to take a moment and be a proud father. Last week my twin girls each received awards at college. Amanda received an award for being the top sophomore in her major. Unfortunately her school is 3 hours away and we were not able to attend the ceremony. Jessica however is only 45 minutes away and we got to see her get an award for outstanding leadership. My wife, Stephanie, and I are very proud parents! 

And now, as the stage manager says … on with the show!  

Customer-focused marketing is the last refuge of the small or start-up business owner. This form of marketing, which uses newsletters as its main marketing tool, is a backlash against mass marketing. As a small-business owner, you can give your customers what the big corporations can’t – a real person to connect to and identify with. This is because a newsletter can have a “voice” – the personality you and your company.   

Most corporations can’t offer a customer much more than a big logo, an aloof Web site and a reply card asking for feedback. This type of marketing has gotten incredibly impersonal. 

Customer-focused marketing is an effective strategy for the small-business owner because it resists the big corporations’ tendency to make all customer relationship marketing about embracing the corporate identity. I discuss this and other topics in my book, Newsletter Secrets Revealed – How to Use Newsletters to Make Your Profits Soar. To the readers of this posting – if you would like a copy of my book at a discount, order it within the next 5 days and I’ll take 20% off your purchase. To get your discount, all you have to do is enter the word “bonus” in the coupon window. 

When you write a customer-focused newsletter, it is not about you – it is always about the customer. It is not about, say, a “happy face” logo (in the case of Wal-Mart) but about the needs, desires and wish lists of the customers. Even the way that copy is written for customer newsletters is an important component of this type of marketing.  In my next posting I’ll share some strategies to help you really connect with your customers. Don’t miss it!

I know - it’s been quite a while since I’ve posted to my blog. This has been a very busy two weeks and I have a lot to share with you. Last week No Hassle Newsletters exhibited at the Glazer-Kennedy Marketing and Money Making SuperConference in Nashville. I am honored that No Hassle Newsletters has been named as the preferred vendor for B2B done-for-you newsletters for Glazer-Kennedy Insider’s Circle.  The rest of the conference was also an amazing experience, being together with about 1200 other smart marketers and hearing many great speakers including, Nido Qubein, Gene Simmons of Kiss, and of course my marketing mentors Dan Kennedy and Bill Glazer.

On Thursday Doug Huggins, the President and Publisher of an exciting new magazine called BEST (Business Owners & Entrepreneurs Success Tactics) came by my booth to recognize me as one of the magazine’s contributing authors.

I am also honored to have been chosen as one of twenty presenters at the upcoming 2008 SuperConference for Coaches. Twenty superstars from the coaching and marketing world have come together to provide experienced coaches, as well as people considering becoming a coach, with the very latest insights into building a platform for coaching success, and building multiple streams of coaching income. This is an incredible event and best of all, as a speaker, I was able to get a significant discount for all my members who enroll early.  With space being strictly limited, you will want to consider participating in this life changing event. If you have an interest in coaching, take a look at the 2008 SuperConference for Coaches.   

I also wanted to share with you a realization I have every year when I attend an event like the GKIC SuperConference. Meeting and mingling with some very sharp (and a few famous) people is very invigorating. I am reminded of a quote from Jim Rohn, a successful and self-made millionaire:

“You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” 

Here are a few more pictures from the Super Conference.

I was reminded of a very important lesson this past weekend. Through an outreach mission with our church, my wife, Stephanie, and I hosted two women from China. Young and Wendy (their easy-to-spell American names) have been attending Penn State University since last fall. While they were with us for only a short time, it was an incredibly eye-opening experience. I commented to Stephanie that with our busy lives, it often feels like we live in a bubble, unaware of the vast differences in culture and other lifestyles in the world.  

A couple of observations as I write this, still sleepy from the time change. The Chinese highly value and respect education and hard work. Both of these women have a master’s degree, and one of them is a PhD studying molecular something or other! When we sat down to breakfast on Saturday, after we explained what a pancake was, they each had one and then announced that they were full and satisfied. When I looked down at my plate of four pancakes, fruit, and a muffin, I knew why many Americans have a weight problem! 

My daughters were home for spring break, and on Saturday night we spent time getting to learn more about our different cultures and ways of life. When we said goodbye to Young and Wendy after church on Sunday, we exchanged phone numbers and e-mail addresses and said that we would stay in touch. I hope we do.  

Driving home from church (my mind already engaged in what I needed to do on Monday!), I thought about how there are so many different people, customs, ways of doing things, outlooks on life, etc., that one size just doesn’t fit all. This is such a great lesson for business owners. You cannot simply come up with option A and option B and hope to please everyone. The businesses that do really well are those that are able to effectively cater to the individual needs of their customers. Figure that out, and no matter what you do you will do well.  

In the world of newsletters, this point was also driven home for me with one of my new joint venture partners, Eric Paul. Eric and I are combining forces to offer a done-for-you newsletter program for magicians, and I learned from him that magicians have essentially three different customer bases – schools, corporations, and families. So rather than try to create a newsletter that loosely fits all, we have created three monthly newsletters, one for each segment. I know that this extra effort will pay dividends. So remember, one size does not fit all.

The real value of a monthly newsletter is not calculated in terms of how much money you spent on writing, layout and design. It is calculated in terms of the ROI (return on investment) that you get out of it. For instance, if each newsletter you write costs you $500 to write, layout, publish and mail, it is well worth that cost if it brings in $40,000 of business. There is no rule about what the ROI must be – but by definition, the more profit you make, the better your ROI. As is true of many endeavors, the real value of a monthly newsletter is what it can bring you in terms of repeat and referral business. This is because it costs far less to sell to a customer you have already converted than it does to try and find new customers for your business. Finding new customers can be costly, especially if you need to purchase leads from a company so you can send out direct mail newsletters.  

A monthly newsletter can help you build loyalty among your current customers because in addition to amusing or entertaining them, it offers you an opportunity to connect with them one-on-one. A newsletter should also serve as a way to tell your existing customers about new products, sales you are having or incentives for them to help you find new customers. Getting your existing customers to spread good word of mouth (or “word of mouse,” as it is sometimes called online) can mean saving a great deal of money on advertising. In fact, it is apparent that the real value of a monthly newsletter is in its function as a viral marketing tool. This only works if you can provide really valuable and unique information that relates somehow to the product or service you are selling. Having quality content is absolutely essential, or your current readers will not bother to pass your newsletter along to new or potential customers. This is because nobody wants to read recycled or stale information – that’s yesterday’s news!

If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you’ve heard me say that how often you send a customer newsletter is the most important thing. It is more important than its style, color, size, name, or anything else you can think to ask me about. Some companies will send their customers a holiday card, a birthday card (not many these days!), and some might even send a quarterly newsletter. I consider this random, and while better than nothing, it is not enough to effectively build and strengthen client relationships. 

To determine the right frequency for your customers, ask yourself a couple of questions: “Am I communicating with my clients enough to convey how much I value them?” and “Am I doing enough to stand out among the thousands of marketing messages my clients receive every day?” 

Here is why a monthly newsletter is so important to your company: because it arrives every month, it is looked at as a regular “publication.” Think about it, magazines arrive monthly, and sometimes weekly; newspapers arrive daily; even bank statements arrive monthly! The point is that people see things they receive on a regular and frequent basis as having value, or at least important, and they generally anticipate them. Things like advertisements that arrive sporadically, including postcards and other marketing pieces, are just that — solicitations.  

So start off a new regimen accepting the fact that your customers will find more value in your newsletter if it arrives monthly.  

The previous concept is very important and worth rereading. In addition to frequency creating perceived value, frequency also increases brand awareness, which in turn will help to drive repeat and referral business. See how this works?! 

You may be surprised how many people resist my urging to do a monthly newsletter by saying, “It’s too expensive.” Quite frankly, this astounds me and I find it somewhat shortsighted. As a business owner, you need to figure out what you currently spend to attract new customers and clients, and also what the lifetime value of a typical client is to your business. If you can figure out what each new client costs your business, and what the lifetime value of a client is, I predict that you will start to see that building and maintaining these client relationships takes on a whole new meaning.  

I am very excited to announce that the book you’ve heard me talk about for months has finally been printed! Dream, Inc.: Million- Dollar Business Strategies From 32 Successful Philadelphia-Area Entrepreneurs is an exciting collection of stories about how successful business people dreamed, persevered, and succeeded in building the company and lifestyle of their dreams.

Each chapter is packed with strategies and “nuggets of wisdom” that I know you will enjoy. Also included is “must-read” list of books complied from these 32 business owners.The book is only $19.95, and as a subscriber of mine, you can order the book directly from me — and I will pay your shipping!

Please click here to order your copy of Dream, Inc.If you are a newer business, you might be concerned about how to get your newsletter read. This is particularly true if you are a new business owner and have very few names on your subscription list. 

And now for the featured article!

You have probably heard of cold-calling; leaving your newsletter on a stranger’s doorstep is similar. You are simply looking for leads by trying to entice them with your well-laid-out, informative and entertaining newsletter.   This entails having your newsletter printed on paper and then distributing it on doorsteps. You can pay to have someone distribute this newsletter, or you can save money and distribute it yourself. You can also pin copies of your customer newsletter on bulletin boards at laundry rooms and grocery stores or give it away as a handout at seminars or conferences that have a theme related to whatever it is you are selling. The idea is to create more repeat and referral business by getting others to spread the word about you by passing on your newsletters to other interested parties. However, whether your business is newer or older, you should always remind your readers to send the newsletter out to anyone who might be interested in the information. You can also offer incentives such as discounts or free gifts to individuals who bring another person into the store with them.

People enjoy two-for-one deals and free perks.  If your newsletter is composed in a journalistic style, you might be able to get it printed in a local newspaper or magazine. Sometimes you can also pay for print advertising space and get your newsletter printed as an advertorial in the local paper. 

Alternatively, if your newsletter is well written, it will be picked up and read. What you want to do is make sure it contains unique information that others will find of value so it is physically passed on from one person to another. This is a quick and not very expensive way to spread the word about your business.

The real value of a monthly newsletter is not calculated in terms of how much money you spent on writing, layout and design. It is calculated in terms of the ROI (return on investment) that you get out of it. For instance, if each newsletter you write costs you $500 to write, layout, publish and mail, it is well worth that cost if it brings in $40,000 of business. There is no rule about what the ROI must be – but by definition, the more profit you make, the better your ROI. 

As is true of many endeavors, the real value of a monthly newsletter is what it can bring you in terms of repeat and referral business. This is because it costs far less to sell to a customer you have already converted than it does to try and find new customers for your business. Finding new customers can be costly, especially if you need to purchase leads from a company so you can send out direct mail newsletters.  

A monthly newsletter can help you build loyalty among your current customers because in addition to amusing or entertaining them, it offers you an opportunity to connect with them one-on-one. A newsletter should also serve as a way to tell your existing customers about new products, sales you are having or incentives for them to help you find new customers. Getting your existing customers to spread good word of mouth (or “word of mouse,” as it is sometimes called online) can mean saving a great deal of money on advertising. 

In fact, it is apparent that the real value of a monthly newsletter is in its function as a viral marketing tool. This only works if you can provide really valuable and unique information that relates somehow to the product or service you are selling. Having quality content is absolutely essential, or your current readers will not bother to pass your newsletter along to new or potential customers. This is because nobody wants to read recycled or stale information – that’s yesterday’s news!

In my business of creating and designing customer newsletters, I spend a great deal of time writing. Like most things, doing it a lot tends to make you better. As I have mentioned at least a few times in this blog, I read TONS of books. Reading also makes you a better writer.  As a blogger, I visit and read a lot of blogs and one of the things I notice is that many focus on what to do. In this entry I want to focus on some of the things that you should avoid as you produce a customer newsletter for your business. By the way, I think I will list some of the blogs that I visit in a future posting, so keep coming back.  Here are Four Critical Mistakes You MUST Avoid! 

1. Not providing contact information — It’s hard to believe, but I have seen this too many times! If you’re going to take the time to create a great marketing tool such as a customer newsletter, don’t forget to tell your readers how to contact you!
2. Forgetting it’s not about you — There is always a big temptation when you start writing your newsletter to write about what is in your mind or what’s important in your world. WRONG! If your customers are going to read and enjoy your newsletter, and therefore read it again and again, it must contain information and content that is important to them.
3. Not enough pictures — One of the quickest ways to get your newsletter NOT READ is to load it up with tons of text and no pictures. I often joke with my clients about my patented (just kidding) rule of thumb for readability. Here it is: if people look at your newsletter and quickly determine that it can be read in ten minutes or less, chances are it will probably get read — otherwise it won’t. It will likely go into the pile of things that someone intends to read but probably never will.
4. Lack of distinctive personality — For heaven’s sake, don’t be boring! People get enough boring marketing messages thrown at them every day. Give your newsletter some personality. Make your readers feel a part of something fun and unique. Trust me on this; your readers will look forward to every newsletter if they learn something, are entertained, and crack a smile!

Be sure to get a copy of my new book, Newsletter Secrets Revealed, How to Newsletters to Make Your Profits Soar at http://www.newslettersecretsrevealed.com