When you register for the GIA Event before September 27th, you get to go to Ali Brown’s SHINE Event for free! (A $1497 value!)

Hurry, be decisive, and take advantage of this amazing opportunity while it lasts. Next year will certainly be the BEST YEAR for all entrepreneurs who attend both events.

See all the GIA Event details at http://www.gia-connect.com/events — register today and I look forward to seeing you at both events!

AND if you missed our preview calls for the GIA event, you can listen to them all at: http://www.gia-connect.com/previewcalls

To your success,

Sheri McConnell

CEO of the Global Institute of Associations

FREE PREVIEW CALLS

Join Sheri McConnell and the Global Institute of Associations for the next 5 weeks for an exciting FREE TeleSeries for leaders and visionaries!

These preview calls are for the Global Institute of Associations Annual Event on October 6 – 8, 2009.

GIA CEO, Sheri McConnell will share must have information that will completely transform your mindsets about business models!

Preview Call #1 – Why An Association?

Learn Why the Association Model Is More Powerful Than Any Continuity Program

Audio Download: Listen Now

Preview Call #2 – Naming Your Association and Picking Your Target Market

Learn My Easy Formula for Choosing the Perfect Association Name So that the Search Engines Love You and Your Future Members Get It

Audio Download: Listen Now

Preview Call #3 – Let’s Talk Money and Mindsets

3 Ways To Make Six Figures In 12 Months With The Association Model and The Single Most Important “Strategy” You Must Understand or You Will Not Be Successful

Audio Download:  Listen Now

Preview Call #4 – Freedom and Leadership Leverage

5 Ways The Association Model Allows You To Maintain Your Freedom

Audio Download: Listen Now

Preview Call #5 – Why You Should THINK BIG and CREATE AN ASSOCIATION!

Why 2009 is the Best Year to Build Your Very Own “Tribe” (Association)

Audio Download: Listen Now

BONUS SPEAKER PREVIEW CALLS

Melanie Benson Strick

Listen to Melanie’s Call Now

Lisa Sasavich

Listen to Lisa’s Call Now

REGISTER for GIA EVENT TODAY and YOU RECEIVE

THE BLUEPRINT and TOOL KIT WITHIN 10 DAYS!

Go to http://www.giaevent.com now to learn more!

_________________________________________________________________

]]> http://naww.org/sm-blog/2009/08/10/preview-calls/feed/ 0 http://naww.org/sm-blog/2009/08/07/smart-women-quote-book-launch/ http://naww.org/sm-blog/2009/08/07/smart-women-quote-book-launch/#comments Fri, 07 Aug 2009 15:51:11 +0000 Sheri McConnell http://naww.org/sm-blog/?p=429 Introducing The Smart Women’s Book of Powerful Quotations

SPECIAL LAUNCH PRICING!

Only $10 During our 48 Hour Launch Celebration!

(Regular Price is $18)

DOWNLOAD CHAPTER ONE now for free before you purchase the book!

PURCHASE BELOW

Click to Purchase Now – USA Orders – $10 plus $3.50 S/H

or

Click to Purchase Now – Outside USA Orders – $10 plus $7.50 S/H

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For orders of 20 copies or more, shipping is waived.

Click to Purchase 20 or More Copies – No S/H Charge

This is a 200 page print book, not an ebook.

Table of Contents

Foreword
Introduction
Women Who Understand the Power of Words
Women Feel Powerful When They …
Chapter 1 – Are Courageous
Chapter 2 – Are Creative
Chapter 3 – Are Evolving
Chapter 4 – Are Facing My Fears
Chapter 5 – Are Genuine
Chapter 6 – Are Grateful
Chapter 7 – Are Helping Others
Chapter 8 – Are Passionate
Chapter 9 – Are Persistent
Chapter 10 – Are Spiritual
Chapter 11 – Are Validated
Chapter 12 – Lead a Balanced Life
Chapter 13 – Listen To & Follow Their Intuition
Chapter 14 – Seek Solitude
Chapter 15 – Take Risks
Chapter 16 – Write From Their Heart
INDEX of NAMES

Testimonials

“The sheer number of quotes in the volume is overwhelming. One can’t help but feel empowered by the encouragement offered by so many women to those who seek to find their own ‘quotable’ voice!”
Moira Allen, Author of STARTING YOUR CAREER AS A FREELANCE WRITER

“How many times have you begun your day or sat down to write hoping for some gentle and profoundly insightful encouragement? You no longer have to go farther than “The Smart Woman’s Book ok Powerful Quotations (by Women)”, an enchanting and intriguing collection of the voices of women sages who dared to be creative. From Helen Keller to Nikki Giovanni, hundreds of writers and soulful sisters from across generations chime in to bring you to a sense of calm. With comments on topics from gratitude to passion, this book surrounds you with the comfort and tender wisdom of women who walk the walk. Marooned on a desert island, this is the book I would want to bring, as it is the survival guide for any woman who dares to be creative. All of these empowering remarks I want to paint on walls, embroider on pillows and shout from the rooftops.”
Michele Weldon, Author and Oprah Guest

“What a great volume of quotations and inspiration for women. I can see this book sitting on a delicate lace scarf in a cozy, quiet reading corner as well as crammed in a backpack who’s owner is making her way toward the highest mountain top around. May it help women everywhere unleash their personal power. Perfect gift for female friends.”
Patricia Fry, Author

“As a feminist and public speaker, I am delighted to have “The Smart Woman’s Book of Powerful Quotations” as a resource. It should be in everyone’s library. It makes for pleasurable and inspiring reading as well.”
Sonia Pressman Fuentes
Author “Eat First–You Don’t Know What They’ll Give You, The Adventures of an Immigrant Family and Their Feminist Daughter”

“I’ve always believed that each woman is the sum total of all women. And aren’t we lucky!! The female experience–like fudge–is rich, gooey, and powerful. This book reminds us of our proud heritage as women writers.”
Sunday Larson, Author

“The readers of FundsforWriters know how I cherish the insightful words of those who’ve gone before us, achieved success, or learned to define this life we struggle through. Quotes help people on all levels, and this book will be by my desk for ready reference in times of need, despondency or simple celebration. Good job, Sheri! You’ve once again enabled women to take yet another step toward writing success.”
Hope Clark
High “Hope” for Freelancers
FundsforWriters.com

“Flip to any page in The Smart Woman’s Book of Powerful Quotations and you have the voices of those who have trod the same difficult ground there to guide you. It’s both powerful and empowering, offering a motivational boost on each page. Every woman needs a book like this — not on her shelf, but open in her hands every day.”
Shirley Jump, Author

Here are six “ways of being” that all authentic and visionary leaders practice. These are leaders that lead with purpose and are strategically creating positive change in the world. These leaders don’t have to focus on the bottom line all the time because their results are so powerful that their business bank account just grows as a result of how attractive their business energy is. Let me explain:

1) Always Be Positive and Grateful

This behavior or this way of being is so powerful and allows you to anchor all lessons and grow from them.  Your ability to see forward movement in every part of your business at every stage is exactly what attracts more success, more money, more exciting experiences, and more amazing people into your world.  No matter what your business or your life looks like today, you must see the lesson in it all and be grateful and welcome it. Genuinely welcome it in. And when you do, you will be rewarded with innovatiive ideas and a ha’s from the universe. On the flip side, if you aren’t positive, you will struggle more just to stand still. Life and business can be effortless or it can be a constant struggle. Know this: You are the core reason whatever you are experiencing right now is happening. Good or bad. Being positive and grateful allows you to see what works and what decisions have been made from ego vs. from the universe that flows through you.

2) Be Decisive and Act Fast

This behavior is all about energy. Just energy, not good or bad energy, but energy that causes more energy. Energy likes speed because that is how it builds momentum. For business leaders, this energy manifests itself in a profitable way through marketing. Concentrate on delegating energy to your team that people can see (video), feel (direct mail), and hear (teleseminars). The faster you create energy, the faster energy in the form of money flows back to your website and your bank account. Then there is the energy that flows through all of the people you help with your products and results. Flows literally through their hearts and souls because your passionate work is changing their lives. Help people accomplish results quickly and all the money you ever wanted will flow to you effortlessly.

3) Always Think About Positioning

This behavior is about saying “No” if it isn’t a “Hell Yes”. Know this: If and when you compromise in any way whatsoever, you are diminishing your results before you even get started. When we say yes to anything we don’t want to do or we shouldn’t do, we are compromising our souls. You will be amazed at how authentic your life will be when you start to practice this one behavior. And be ready for a lot of people to get upset. This one behavior is harder for others to accept than almost any other behavior I am sharing today because they are receiving your decision as rejection. You can not control how people receive your authentic actions. As a leader, you are helping them grow by leaps and bounds though every time you say no to what isn’t in your best interest.

4) Try to Be An Innovator

This behavior is about doing business your way. It is indeed healthy in business to break rules. It is called innovation. Customers love it and it is one of the single fastest ways to be seen as a leader in your industry. And it is ok if you screw up because innovation is messy. And it is fun and profitable too! Now if this behavior intimidates you, trust me, I get it. Here are a few tips that I have learned over the last ten years as I grew my businesses. 1) Carve out alone time often for brilliance to emerge. 2) Surround yourself with innovation through innovative information and other innovative people. It isn’t hard… however, for some of you, you may need to make lots of changes in your life to do these two things.

5) Plan Ahead

This behavior is about planning ahead and thinking strategically about the return on investment in everything you do in your business and in life. You must be able to see the big picture to plan ahead and also be able to see the many parts of your business at a micro level and understand how they relate to each other because all the parts do affect each other. To motivate your team you will need to be able to communicate the big picture and still be able to brainstorm every part of the business with each of your high-level team members as needed. Your ability to be able to successfully switch between Big and Micro Picture in your business will determine your success more than anything else.

6) Do Not Focus On What You Don’t Have

This behavior is the hardest out of the six behaviors in my opinion because it is dependent on your ability to trust and have faith about your future. You can’t touch or feel your future. But you can visualize it. I encourage you to spend time in the real world and time in the abstract world. Ignore what is for moments each day or at least an hour a week and spend some time acting as if you are already physically in that place that you desire. Successful people spend a lot of time focusing on the future and then they are wise enough to check back into what is also. The easiest way to check back in to your business is to look at Quickbooks. I always say that Quickbooks will never lie to you about your business. The numbers don’t lie. Your job is to know where you are now and where you think you want to go and then focus on the end and use the other five habits above to move yourself forward. Enjoy the journey.

Want To Use This Article In Your Ezine or Website? You have my permission, as long as you include this complete blurb with it: Sheri McConnell is the CEO of Sheri McConnell Companies, Inc. and the president and founder of two national organizations, the National Association of Women Writers-NAWW and the Global Institute of Associations-GIA. You can visit Sheri, access her free article archive, and find out more about all four of her companies at www.sherimcconnell.com. Sheri lives in San Antonio, Texas with her husband, their four children, a weenie dog, and two cats.

Setting intentions is a conscious way of keeping yourself from going through life on autopilot. You can set an intention each morning, before a meeting or appointment, or even before you go to bed to guide your dreams. Marcia Weider defines intention this way: “to have in mind a purpose or plan, to direct the mind, to aim.” By practicing intention setting you can change your behaviors and eventually accomplish all of your goals. Some changes can happen in a moment, like a changed mindset for an instance and other growth requires the continuous practice of intention setting.

I believe that there are two primary intentions you can set that will dramatically affect your life and your business. These intentions can literally create A New Way of Being in your life.

First Intention: Being Authentic

Authenticity requires consciousness, exploration, and a willingness to stand for something. And the more conscious you are, the more you will receive “tests from the universe”. If you are authentic and act from a core set of values that you believe in, then these tests become very easy to move through.

Christine Kane (one of my mastermind members and an amazing musician and writer) talked about “letting go of ego” at our last retreat. This is huge because when we make all of our decisions from that authentic place inside us that has no attachment to ego, everyone around grows as they feel empowerment through us.

Understand this. Reacting is not authentic. When we are in a reactive moment, we are not operating from our authentic core and we literally shrink and cause those around us to shrink also. Being authentic is not about you, it is about your time in this world and how you affect everything around you.

How does being authentic affect your business? Your clients want to know you understand them and that want to relate to you. They can’t do that if you aren’t being authentic. Being an authentic leader is pure attraction because so many people are waiting to be led. Running your life and your business with congruent core values makes client attraction effortless. You will begin to hear phrases from your clients like: “You walk the talk” or “You are the real deal” and so on. This is a sign that they are grateful that you are being yourself and you have now given them the permission to do the same. And don’t underestimate the importance of this intention to your bottom line. It is the thing that shifts everything else.

Action to take today: Make a list of five core values that you plan to use as your authentic life and business compass.

Example: Mine are Love, Freedom, Growth, Creativity, and Equality.

Second Intention: Being Balanced

Balance is everything. And everything in the universe wants to be balanced. Balance is in all that we experience. To me, the second most important intention we can set in our lives and in our businesses is balance. This is an intention that I believe must be worked on each day because of the amount of awareness one must have to see that everything around them requires balance to thrive.

If you apply Chinese philosophy, then consider yin and yang. Yin and yang are complementary opposites within a greater whole. Everything has both yin and yang aspects, which constantly interact, never existing in absolute stasis. To me, looking at the opposite of what I want to accomplish really helps me get centered and see the benefits of truly being balanced. Here are some of my yin and yang examples below where I am always striving for balance. I need both sides of these things to thrive. Too much or too little of one and I become unbalanced.

Life

• Adult Time and Kid Time
• Stillness and Busyness
• Writing and Speaking
• Food Consumption and Exercise
• Receiving and Giving

Business

• Income and Expenses
• Marketing and Fulfilling
• Working and Unplugging
• Investing and Earning Passive Income
• Doing It Yourself and Delegating
• Innovation and Systems

Action to take today: Set an intention to become balanced in at least three areas above. As you do, you will find a certain effortlessness that begins to happen in all the areas of your life.

Want To Use This Article In Your Ezine or Website? You have my permission, Want To Use This Article In Your Ezine or Website? You have my permission, as long as you include this complete blurb with it: Sheri McConnell is the CEO of Sheri McConnell Companies, Inc. and the president and founder of two national organizations, the National Association of Women Writers-NAWW and the Global Institute of Associations-GIA. You can visit Sheri, access her free article archive, and find out more about all four of her companies at www.sherimcconnell.com. Sheri lives in San Antonio, Texas with her husband, their four children, a weenie dog, and two cats.

After ten years of running a 7 figure online business, I have concluded that success can be narrowed down to two specific areas of mastery.

I call them the two M’s — Mindsets and Marketing

And I want to make a BOLD statement here and say that if you can focus your efforts on mastering the Mindsets and the Marketing in your business, you will be successful!

First, let’s discuss the Mindsets…

After years of learning and growing and accomplishing many goals I have set for myself, I decided that no matter what you decide to do in and with your life, your mindsets matters most.

In fact, your mindsets make or break your success in life in three ways:

1. Believing in Abundance
Right now you believe many goals are attainable and many are not. The way we were raised and our current environment dictate our beliefs and unless we are challenged and taught to believe differently, we stay stuck. Today–open your mind up to abundance. Take a goal and rewrite it in an abundant mindset. Try to make yourself believe that you can accomplish it even if there is a nagging voice saying “no way!” Then put it where you can see it every day. It can be a financial goal or the number of articles you want to write next year. Whatever you want to accomplish, have, or do. It doesn’t matter. Think abundantly and think big for yourself.

2. Manifesting What You Want
Once you begin to think more abundantly and do it enough that it becomes a practiced mindset, then you will begin to easily manifest what you need, want, and deserve in life. Since manifesting is done in the mind, it in itself is another mindset. You should begin to consciously manifest what you dream of and what you need to accomplish your dreams. That is why writing down your goals is so powerful. It forces you to consciously manifest your wants and desires.

3. Welcoming the Change
The third mindset and the hardest and most important is being open to change. Many of us are very fearful of change and don’t recognize that we are resisting an abundant life because of the safe choices we make. Me included. We limit ourselves because of that risk of failure. We get used to believing what other un-abundant thinkers think because at least then we don’t have to put ourselves out there and fail. Change is good–it helps you grow. When you begin to expect change and thrive in the middle of it, you will increase your speed at which you succeed at your goals.

And second, let’s discuss Marketing…

Outside of your mindsets, marketing is the next most important area to master in my opinion. Why? Let me list the many reasons that Marketing is so important to you–the visionary of your company! By the way, I define marketing as anything you do that lets other people know that your company exists.

Marketing is how:

1. You Build Personal and Professional Relationships With New Leads-There are so many interactive ways to market on the Internet today that let solo-preneurers to CEOs of large companies personally build relationships with those they serve in their businesses. And marketing is the only way that exists for new leads who don’t know you exist to find you. Some of the interactive strategies available to your business (no matter what size) are video, blogs, social networking, webinars, teleseminars, and audio. Non-interactive strategies are article marketing, online newsletters, advertising, direct mail, and search engine placement.

2. You Build Overall Brand Identity and Awareness-The more marketing strategies you incorporate into your business, the more “instances” people will see your company. There are a number of different ways to encourage your leads and customers to easily identify you. Keep the color and design the same throughout your website and newsletter and all marketing materials. Make sure every product and service you launch is in line with what you say your mission is. Write books and information products that represent you and grow your brand.

3. You Answer Questions Your Current and Future Customers Didn’t Know They Had-One of the best reasons to incorporate live radio or live teleseminars or webinars into your marketing is so that your leads and customers have an opportunity to learn from others who are ahead of them. It lets you the owner of the company or your employees serve them and help them solve their problems on the spot. And because much of this marketing is recorded and sent out via internal company lists and social networking, the marketing is automated.

4. You Create Physical Energy So Customers Can Learn More About Your Products and/or Services-I believe energy always balances itself. And I have found in business that the amount of time, expertise, and money energy I am willing to put into my marketing, it comes back to my companies proportionally. The key is to put in place marketing energy that is automated and keeps working long after you implement the marketing. For instance, Facebook, Twitter, Article Marketing, Online Newsletters, Direct Mail, and so on.
5. You Serve Your Customers-For Instance, your educate your leads when your write articles and blog posts. Always be of service in your marketing and your leads will return to uplevel to your product and service offerings when they are ready to take action.

Want To Use This Article In Your Ezine or Website? You have my permission, as long as you include this complete blurb with it: Sheri McConnell is the CEO of Sheri McConnell Companies, Inc. and the president and founder of two national organizations, the National Association of Women Writers-NAWW and the Global Institute of Associations-GIA. You can visit Sheri, access her free article archive, and find out more about all four of her companies at www.sherimcconnell.com. Sheri lives in San Antonio, Texas with her husband, their four children, a weenie dog, and two cats.

Your relationship with money and how your feel about it determines your success. Period. If you feel shame when you have debt or if you are paralyzed when making a certain investment because of a relative number, then your money mindsets are affecting your results. To be successful, it is crucial that you begin a lifelong study of healthy mindsets and behaviors you should have where your money is concerned. Mindsets are energy just as money is energy. And you can literally attract money by learning how to experience money in a healthy way. Here are three money mindsets that you can learn that will help you grow your business.

1) Customers Want To See You Invest In Your Business Before They Are Willing To Invest In You

Have you ever visited a website and subconsciously decided this website wasn’t worth your time or money? Of course you have! Internet visitors do it everyday. Yet, many business owners think that they can convert visitors to members without putting there best foot forward on their website. They expect visitors to invest in them when they aren’t willing to find a way to even invest in themselves (their website) first. Trust me, I get cash flow issues. But if you can understand just the basic rule of “invest in your website and your customers will invest in you faster” then you are ahead of at least 75% of the businesses that exist on the Internet today. And it doesn’t cost as much as you would think at all. The costs have come down substantially over the last five years as innovative new companies have popped up to serve online businesses. There are three core areas I have my clients invest in to have the highest ROI (return on investment) on their websites. They are:

- Invest in the latest technologies such as Wordpress.org that allow you to integrate multiple innovative plugins and blogging software.
- Invest in professional copywriting or invest in learning the skill yourself
- Invest in a good designer that understands how to convert visitors to paid customers or members

2) Spending Money Creates An Energy Flow and Customers Are a Form of Energy

Money loves speed. People love speed. Since money is energy, it likes to flow. Business expenses literally create a flow of money going out and create a space and vacuum for money to flow back in. If you aren’t spending any money on your professional development or your business, you are literally turning off the faucet to the flow of money in your company. If it doesn’t flow, it doesn’t come in or go out.

Of course the goal in business is to create a positive cash flow and cash is “queen”, so as in all laws of the universe it is your job to find the right balance of high ROI expenses that allow cash to flow back in. Some high ROI places to encourage positive customer energy (or customer conversion) are:

- Marketing and advertising
- Customer support
- Development of tangible passive income infoproduct

3) Business Debt is a Leverage Tool

Another area that almost all business owners struggle with at one time or another is the shame they have when incurring debt. Know this: A healthy business has debt during many phases of business growth. Debt is a growth tool and a form of healthy leverage you use so that you can move yourself and your business forward. To leverage business debt exponentially, you should plug into passive income producing business models so that cash flows back into the business even when you aren’t working. Some examples:

- Information Products
- Real Estate
- Membership-Based Business Model Like an Association

Want To Use This Article In Your Ezine or Website? You have my permission, as long as you include this complete blurb with it: Sheri McConnell is the CEO of Sheri McConnell Companies, Inc. and the president and founder of two national organizations, the National Association of Women Writers-NAWW and the Global Institute of Associations-GIA. You can visit Sheri, access her free article archive, and find out more about all four of her companies at www.sherimcconnell.com . Sheri lives in San Antonio, Texas with her husband, their four children, a weenie dog, and two cats.

Did you know that there is a under the radar strategy that exists that you can take advantage of right now and it can immediately catapult your success.

That strategy is positioning.

Positioning is the process by which marketers try to create an image or identity in the minds of their target market for its product, brand, or organization.

Re-positioning involves changing the identity of a product, relative to the identity of competing products, in the collective minds of the target market.

At its core, positioning empowers you to take control of your business and use leverage exponentially by leveraging others expertise. The following are three ways you can start changing the way people relate to your company.

One-Use a Powerful Business Model

Before you choose your target market, before you build your website, before you learn the latest online marketing strategies; you must choose an equitable and passive business model that allows your customers to see you as a leader in your industry. Not as a player, but as a leader. Most entrepreneurs start businesses without ever considering their business model and then they spin their wheels for years working a service-based business where they start over each day and have nothing to show for their previous work. Some examples of powerful business models are:

• Membership-Based Businesses Like Associations, Institutes, or Global Networks
• High-End Information Products
• Innovative Technologies

Step to take today: Grab a book on one or more of the three recommended business models above such as Smart Women Create Membership-Based Businesses (Sheri McConnell), Smart Women Create Information Products (Pub. Date – June 2009), or Peter Drucker’s book, Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

And by the way, did you see how I just positioned my books next to one of the most influential thinkers in business?

Two-Only Partner Strategically

One of the single most important ways you can instantly change how your customers think about you is by partnering with people they already know and love. This is leveraging other people’s expertise and it is a win-win. On the Internet partnerships come in the form of joint ventures on website articles or ads, books, teleseminars, the formation of new companies, and much more.  Your strategic goal is to create a win for them and then turn around and make sure you let everyone know you are “playing” with this new partner. The most common mistake made with this positioning tool is not saying “no” enough when you are asked to partner and when the positioning isn’t right. Women especially have a problem with this since they tend to be people pleasers more often.

Step to take today: Create an ongoing place to play with new partners.  Create a monthly or weekly teleseries of your own where you can feature your partners and serve your clients at the same time. Don’t want to do a teleseries, then how about featuring a well known guest blog post each week.

Three-Share Your Passionate Vision with the Masses

Use the power of the Internet to communicate your innovative solutions and decisive advice with those you serve. In business, being a leader that is willing to take risks and advocate for something you believe in positions you as a go-to person. In today’s business climate, being the leader and visionary that illuminates a path for your customers, positions you as someone to follow. Play at solving their problems and don’t be afraid to let them know that you are in the trenches with them and are dedicated no matter what.

Step to take today: Publish a weekly newsletter or blog and consistently comment on something that matters to your customers. Be innovative, be controversial, be authentic, be of value, be a leader.

Want To Use This Article In Your Ezine or Website? You have my permission, as long as you include this complete blurb with it: Sheri McConnell is the CEO of Sheri McConnell Companies, Inc. and the president and founder of two national organizations, the National Association of Women Writers-NAWW and the Global Institute of Associations-GIA. You can visit Sheri, access her free article archive, and find out more about all four of her companies at http://www.sherimcconnell.com Sheri lives in San Antonio, Texas with her husband, their four children, a weenie dog, and two cats.

Listen Now: http://naww.audioacrobat.com/download/GIAFastTrack.mp3

On this call, you will learn:

- 3 Ways To Make Six Figures In 12 Months With The Association Model
- Why the Association Model Is More Powerful Than Any Continuity Program
- The Single Most Important “Strategy” You Must Understand or You Will Not Be Successful
- 5 Ways The Association Model Allows You To Maintain Your Freedom
- Why 2009 is the Best Year to Build Your Very Own “Tribe” (Association)
- Sheri’s Easy Formula for Choosing the Perfect Association Name So that the Search Engines Love You and Your Future Members Get It
- Plus much more!

For more information on Sheri’s upcoming Fast Track Program at the Global Institute of Associations, click:
http://www.gia-connect.com/fast-track-program

To download application now, click:
http://www.gia-connect.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/fast-track-application.pdf

Did you know that there is a under the radar strategy that exists that you can take advantage of right now and it can immediately catapult your success.

That strategy is positioning.  

Positioning is the process by which marketers try to create an image or identity in the minds of their target market for its product, brand, or organization.

Re-positioning involves changing the identity of a product, relative to the identity of competing products, in the collective minds of the target market.

At its core, positioning empowers you to take control of your business and use leverage exponentially by leveraging others expertise. The following are three ways you can start changing the way people relate to your company.

One-Use a Powerful Business Model

Before you choose your target market, before you build your website, before you learn the latest online marketing strategies; you must choose an equitable and passive business model that allows your customers to see you as a leader in your industry. Not as a player, but as a leader. Most entrepreneurs start businesses without ever considering their business model and then they spin their wheels for years working a service-based business where they start over each day and have nothing to show for their previous work. Some examples of powerful business models are:

·         Membership-Based Businesses Like Associations, Institutes, or Global Networks
·         High-End Information Products
·         Innovative Technologies

Step to take today: Grab a book on one or more of the three recommended business models above such as Smart Women Create Membership-Based Businesses (Sheri McConnell), Smart Women Create Information Products (Pub. Date – June 2009), or Peter Drucker’s book, Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

And by the way, did you see how I just positioned my books next to one of the most influential thinkers in business?

Two-Only Partner Strategically

One of the single most important ways you can instantly change how your customers think about you is by partnering with people they already know and love. This is leveraging other people’s expertise and it is a win-win. On the Internet partnerships come in the form of joint ventures on website articles or ads, books, teleseminars, the formation of new companies, and much more.  Your strategic goal is to create a win for them and then turn around and make sure you let everyone know you are “playing” with this new partner. The most common mistake made with this positioning tool is not saying “no” enough when you are asked to partner and when the positioning isn’t right. Women especially have a problem with this since they tend to be people pleasers more often.

Step to take today: Create an ongoing place to play with new partners.  Create a monthly or weekly teleseries of your own where you can feature your partners and serve your clients at the same time. Don’t want to do a teleseries, then how about featuring a well known guest blog post each week.

Three-Share Your Passionate Vision with the Masses

Use the power of the Internet to communicate your innovative solutions and decisive advice with those you serve. In business, being a leader that is willing to take risks and advocate for something you believe in positions you as a go-to person. In today’s business climate, being the leader and visionary that illuminates a path for your customers, positions you as someone to follow. Play at solving their problems and don’t be afraid to let them know that you are in the trenches with them and are dedicated no matter what.

Step to take today: Publish a weekly newsletter or blog and consistently comment on something that matters to your customers. Be innovative, be controversial, be authentic, be of value, be a leader.

Want To Use This Article In Your Ezine or Website? You have my permission, as long as you include this complete blurb with it: Sheri McConnell is the CEO of Sheri McConnell Companies, Inc. and the president and founder of two national organizations, the National Association of Women Writers-NAWW and the Global Institute of Associations-GIA. You can visit Sheri, access her free article archive, and find out more about all four of her companies at http://www.sherimcconnell.com Sheri lives in San Antonio, Texas with her husband, their four children, a weenie dog, and two cats.