Pinterest is social media’s newest little darling. All around the social universe, people are pinning their favorite meals, recipes, nature photos and other shareable items. But Pinterest for business? Why not!

As with any of the other social networks, Pinterest, too can be used successfully for business. There are a few tips to make your Pinterest experience a successful one:

1. Spend the time to learn. Just like you did with Facebook and Twitter, you have to take the time to learn how to use Pinterest. Use the “pin” and “repin” capabilities to build relationships.
2. Keep things simple. Pinterest is such a crowd favorite because it’s so easy to use. Use your boards to pin items that are not only relevant to your business but also to the targeted audience you’re trying to attract.
3. Make a connection. Have a brick and mortar business as well as an online presence? Use Pinterest to help connect the two. Use your physical location to feature
   online ads and Pinterest promotions. Place Pinterest buttons on your company’s website and blog.
4. Promote more than products. Remember Pinterest is just like any other social network, a great tool for building relationships. Resist the temptation to promote only products.

While the number of Pinterest users isn’t as large as Facebook and Twitter, the potential is there. Learn to use it and it will be a valuable tool for your business.

If you’re not getting my weekly newsletter in your inbox, register for free today at www.JimsNewsletter.com

Sometimes creative thoughts happen at inconvenient times … but when your idea is about how to keep customers longer, you must pay attention to it, and embrace the time it comes to you! Want to learn more? Watch this fun video. To view “Client Retention and Creativity” go immediately to http://NewsletterGuru.tv!

Please post a comment and let me know what you think and I’d also greatly appreciate it if you would click the “share” button and share this information with other entrepreneurs and small business owners. Also, don’t forget to register for one my free “Fastest Way to Higher Profits Webinars” at www.HigherProfitsWebinars.com. You can choose the date and time that best fits your busy schedule! I currently am offering three different webinars:

• The Magic of Newsletter Marketing  – How to Boost Your Profits with a Customer Newsletter
• Social Media Marketing – How to Build a More Profitable Business
• Master Reseller Programs – Discover the opportunities I’m offering to add a new revenue stream to your business!

Again simply register at www.HigherProfitsWebinars.com.

Entrepreneurs are idea creators. It’s part of our makeup and idea creation is really what the entrepreneurial spirit is all about. However, sometimes it’s difficult to get an objective perspective on the ideas that pop into our brains. It’s tough to determine the difference between a great idea and a shiny object.

It’s very important to develop and nurture your network and I’m not talking about the network you have of clients and customers. Yes, they are important, but as a business owner you really need to have a circle of colleagues who understand what you face as an entrepreneur.

It’s important to have the right types of connections. Your social circle of friends may not completely understand, especially if they’ve never created and managed a business. Good friends they may be, however, not good advisors.

Your professional network is worth your weight in gold when it comes to offering objective perspectives. While they’ll appreciate your enthusiasm for a particular idea, they’ll also be able to offer you real guidance and help you determine if it’s really a good idea or just another shiny object.

Before you can run down the road full-steam ahead with any idea, bounce it off your network. Ask for opinions about it. Then review your “big why” and make certain that this new idea keeps you on track and supports your personal mission.

If you’re not getting my Weekly Dose of Smart Marketing and Business Building Advice^TM – along with my weekly resource and other helpful information, then fix that right now by going to www.JimsNewsletter.com!

To boost your profits you can either increase your revenue or decrease your expenses. Recently my good friend, Ron Seaver, talked about a unique way to boost your profits, sponsorships! Done correctly, you can increase your revenue through sponsorships or lower your costs – either way more money falls to your bottom line!

To view “Boost Your Profits with OPM” go immediately to http://NewsletterGuru.tv!

Please post a comment and let me know what you think and I’d also greatly appreciate it if you would click the “share” button and share this information with other entrepreneurs and small business owners.

Also, don’t forget to register for one my free “Fastest Way to Higher Profits Webinars” at www.HigherProfitsWebinars.com. You can choose the date and time that best fits your busy schedule! I currently am offering three different webinars:

• The Magic of Newsletter Marketing  – How to Boost Your Profits with a Customer Newsletter
• Social Media Marketing – How to  Build a More Profitable Business
• Master Reseller Programs –  Discover the opportunities I’m offering to add a new revenue stream to  your business!

Again simply register at www.HigherProfitsWebinars.com.

Last month I let it be known that I had an open seat in one of my mastermind groups and I’m happy to report that the open spot filled in one day! That’s the good news.

The bad news is that based on the number of inquiries we received we may have disappointed a few folks, and as a business man I don’t like disappointing anyone if I can help it! So, while both mastermind groups for this year are full, I have cleared up some time in my schedule to work privately with 2-3 entrepreneurs, doing one-on-one coaching.

If you’re interest in applying for one of these 2-3 private coaching spots, the first step is to click here and review my private coaching options. If you’d then like to coach with me personally to help market and grow your business, then please contact my assistant, Kate, at kate@thenewsletterguru.com. She’ll be happy to speak with you and send you a confidential application. If it looks like a good fit for both of us, then Kate will schedule a time for us to talk.

Please note that I am only taking on 2-3 private coaching clients at this time so please don’t hesitate if this is something you’re interested in. If you’d like to see what some of my current and past coaching members say about working with me, please click here.

Branding. We’re all exposed to continuous advertising. Yes, it’s now continuous (rather than “continual”) because it’s impossible to escape. You know it. I know it. It’s everywhere. And the businesses that are most effective are the ones that have established their brands. Brands are critical to recognition, and recognition is critical to successful advertising.

There has to be something that sets you apart from your competition. Who are you? What is your USP (unique selling proposition)? What’s your field of expertise? When people mention your name, what’s the first thing they associate with it? No matter what type of business you have, figure out what sets you apart and establishes you as the expert, the go-to person of influence. What do you offer that your competitors don’t? Review your strengths. Review your competitors’ weaknesses. By doing so, you’ll quickly hone in on your USP and have a clearer sense of your brand. To read the rest of this article, please click here!

Gives Your Business BIG Marketing  Muscles With Social Media!

One of the many great benefits of social media marketing, particularly for entrepreneurs and small business owners, is that it allows them to play and compete on the same playing field as huge companies. You see, it doesn’t matter whether you’re a home based business or a multi-national corporation, everyone has access to the same 140 character Tweets on Twitter and everyone has the same ability to attract new clients with engaging blog posts!

Another huge benefit is video marketing. Just a few short years ago you had to have very deep pockets to connect with customers and prospects using television advertising. But today, anyone with a flip camera and good message can just as easily connect with their target prospects. One of the major benefits of video is that it readily allows people to feel your passion and experience your
personality. To read the rest of this article, please click here!

If you’re not getting my Weekly Dose of Smart Marketing and Business Building Advice^TM – along with my weekly resource and other helpful information, then fix that right now by going to www.JimsNewsletter.com!

Branding. We’re all exposed to continuous advertising. Yes, it’s now continuous (rather than “continual”) because it’s impossible to escape. You know it. I know it. It’s everywhere. And the businesses that are most effective are the ones that have established their brands. Brands are critical to recognition, and recognition is critical to successful advertising.

There has to be something that sets you apart from your competition. Who are you? What is your USP (unique selling proposition)? What’s your field of expertise? When people mention your name, what’s the first thing they associate with it? No matter what type of business you have, figure out what sets you apart and establishes you as the expert, the go-to person of influence. What do you offer that your competitors don’t? Review your strengths. Review your competitors’ weaknesses. By doing so,

Review your strengths. Review your competitors’ weaknesses. By doing so, you’ll quickly hone in on your USP and have a clearer sense of your brand.

When you figure out who you are, speak up—boldly, confidently, and continuously promote yourself to your customers and prospects. As you define who you are and build your brand, the goal is to have it linked, so that if someone said your name, a prospect would say, “Oh yeah, he’s the ____ guy,” or “She’s the one who. . . .” And fill in the blank with whatever your expertise is

What you stand for is now as important as what product or service you offer. Marketing is becoming more about talking to your customers and prospects, not talking at them. It’s all about interactions and building trust. Be honest about who you are, what you stand for and what you offer or your customers will see right through you and walk away

Looking for more ways to boost your profits? You can find them all in my latest book: “The Fastest Way to Higher Profits: 19 Immediate Profit-Enhancing Strategies You Can Use Today.” Your job as a business owner is to start nurturing, developing, and building a strong relationship with your customers. Get your copy, read it now and implement what you learn!

Whether you’re just starting out, or perhaps you’re growth line has flattened out, the answer to turning things around can likely be found in a soup recipe.  This is the first episode of Newsletter Guru TV in 2012 recorded at Marsh Creek Lake and I’m going to share with you a very important lesson in starting or maintaining your growth. Don’t miss this episode!

To view “The Missing Ingredient in Your Soup” go immediately to http://NewsletterGuru.tv!

Please post a comment and let me know what you think and I’d also greatly appreciate it if you would click the “share” button and share this information with other entrepreneurs and small business owners.

Also, don’t forget to register for one my free “Fastest Way to Higher Profits Webinars” at www.HigherProfitsWebinars.com. You can choose the date and time that best fits your busy schedule! I currently am offering three different webinars:

• The Magic of Newsletter Marketing – How to Boost Your Profits with a Customer Newsletter
• Social Media Marketing – How to Build a More Profitable Business
• Master Reseller Programs – Discover the opportunities I’m offering to add a new revenue stream to your business!

Again simply register at www.HigherProfitsWebinars.com.

In today’s competitive market, it is absolutely essential that you figure out an inexpensive and effective way to market your product to your customers. If you are a small business, you may be wondering how this is possible when you do not have the budget to afford big-time advertising. The world seems to be dominated by fast-moving visual images, giant billboards and two-page glossy spreads in magazines. As a businessperson, how can you possibly compete with this relentless information blitz?

The answer is, don’t try to compete with this type of advertising at all. Don’t even contemplate it. Instead, beat the giant corporations at their own game simply by refusing to play in the same field. By using newsletters, you can leave blanket marketing to the big boys while you specialize in marketing to individuals. While they are hard at work dazing the masses with too much information, you are flying beneath the radar and using clarity and affability to increase your business – one customer at a time.

To finish reading this article, please click here!

Ask Jim
Question: Jim, I like your expression from Stick Like Glue, “There are never any traffic jams on the extra mile.” What exactly are you referring to … how does this relate to my business?
To read the answer to this question please click here!

Stay Focused on the Needs of Your Visitors (What’s Important to Them)

Everyone surfs the web differently. Some are happy to read page after page of content, while others need to be more visually stimulated through a combination of text, photos and video. Adding video content helps to put your company in front of your web visitors, allowing you to connect with them in a more personal way. Video lets you make eye contact with your visitors, putting your customers and potential customers at ease, which helps create that all-important connection that, in turn, allows you to gain their trust. To finish reading this article, please click here!

If you’re not getting my Weekly Dose of Smart Marketing and Business Building Advice^TM – along with my weekly resource and other helpful information, then fix that right now by going to www.JimsNewsletter.com!

In today’s competitive market, it is absolutely essential that you figure out an inexpensive and effective way to market your product to your customers. If you are a small business, you may be wondering how this is possible when you do not have the budget to afford big-time advertising. The world seems to be dominated by fast-moving visual images, giant billboards and two-page glossy spreads in magazines. As a businessperson, how can you possibly compete with this relentless information blitz?

The answer is, don’t try to compete with this type of advertising at all. Don’t even contemplate it. Instead, beat the giant corporations at their own game simply by refusing to play in the same field. By using newsletters, you can leave blanket marketing to the big boys while you specialize in marketing to individuals. While they are hard at work dazing the masses with too much information, you are flying beneath the radar and using clarity and affability to increase your business – one customer at a time.

Newsletters work in terms of customer relations because they provide an intimacy that blaring announcements and flickering screen images never will. They allow a customer to absorb information on his or her own terms and to connect with your brand rationally and emotionally at his or her own pace. People recognize the voice of a real person behind the newsletter and find it easier to relate to that product than to one endorsed by a giant puppet, cartoon character or celebrity spokesman.

Newsletter advertising makes the customer feel as though he or she is still in control of what will happen during the buying experience. Customers don’t have to wait for the commercial to repeat itself or for that 1-800 number to flash on the screen again before they can find out more information about a product or service. If your newsletters are well written, they can easily refer customers to specific sections and bullet points to find out more.

If your information is valuable or fills some kind of niche, customers will also “work” for you as unpaid advertising agents by sending your newsletter to other customers. This, of course, leads to repeat and referral business. Newsletters may seem old-fashioned to some, but in the age of dissonance and information overload they are one of the best ways to connect with a customer in a competitive market.

Learn more secrets on how to use a newsletter to boost your business in my book, The Magic of Newsletter Marketing – The Secret to More Profits and Customers for Life.