I’ve lived through a number of economic downturns and recessions and after a while you start to accept the up and down cycles as normal. But the most recent developments regarding Lehman Brothers, together with inflation, the mortgage mess, gas prices-well you know the rest-is really a bit much.

Will things get better? Yes, but most likely after the election. Will there be some discomfort? Yes, there always is. I can remember waiting over an hour in the freezing cold in gas lines back in 1974 when I was barely out of college. Things got better then when it seemed they never would, and they will now. But at the moment it may not feel that way. So here is what you need to do to keep your business prospering.

• Don’t hunker down by resisting change and thinking that if you keep doing things the way you always have you’ll be fine. Be creative in developing new ideas, products and services
• Do increase-yes, increase your marketing. But only do marketing that gives you a direct return on investment. No marketing just to increase visibility or for branding purposes.
• Think strategically. Plan exactly how you will make money over the next year and make a plan including details like marketing, budget and financial projections. Sound hard? It’s really not. Every small or solo business that does this out performs their competitors by a mile.
• Be conservative with your cash-make sure your cash flow is good. No impulse buys right now. Spend money on marketing and necessary marketing materials, mentoring to learn ways to fastrack your business, and product development.
• Take higher priced services and information products and break them down into sequential, lower priced services and “knowledge nuggets” to increase sales, as lower ticket items will sell better right now.
• Work hard to increase customer service and customer loyalty by following through on what you say you’ll do and producing stellar results. Also provide personalized customer support.
• Develop strong referral and joint venture systems and strategies that will dramatically increase sales.
• Stay optimistic and focused - it won’t serve you well to spend time worrying and then going in ten different directions trying out would be opportunities. It’s a recipe for failure

If you want to know exactly how to implement this “recession proof” business advice, go to Maximize Your Profits Now and learn about a business mastery system that will help you create a solid 6 figure income and sail through this tough period with flying colors.

My colleagues and I often rant about the unfortunate amount of alluring hype that exists online about making money fast. It’s so easy to actually believe this stuff if you are a small or solo business struggling to survive, or even if you’re just tired of working so darn hard.

Make $1,000,000 in seven days! 

Yes I actually saw this on a website and undoubtedly some people were falling for it. Why would someone make a promise like that? Because they are afraid that you won’t buy from them if they don’t and because they are touching their readers’ hot button-financial freedom.  Don’t fall prey to this ridiculousness.

This is a lesson for all of us about integrity in marketing. It’s also a sad lesson about how we don’t like hearing the naked truth and we search for the easy way out.

What’s Real?

The truth is that if you started a business and thought it would be easy, you’ve definitely been misled. Many businesses fail to flourish because the real truth is:

• You’ll need to work really, really hard-especially during the first few years
• You will go through a steep learning curve that may take you outside your comfort zone
• You’ll need courage, unbelievable determination and laser like focus

Chances are you’ll face many of these roadblocks

• You will procrastinate
• You won’t know where to start
• You’ll think, dream and do research, but will fail to take action
• You’ll feel overwhelmed with ideas begging to be turned into projects
• You’ll be confused as to what to pursue next
• You’ll be bombarded with daily tasks and your to do list will never end
• You’ll sometimes make excuses, like not having the time or money you need to succeed
• You’ll sometimes think you don’t have what it takes to succeed
• You’ll sometimes fail to follow through or feel stuck
• You’ll even settle for less than you deserve sometimes, just to get the business
• You’ll skip the planning and strategy because you think you have no time.

You might be nodding your head in agreement, but using language like that would probably discourage sales.

That’s why some marketers make promises they can’t keep. However, facing the truth will set you free to reach a level of success you can’t even imagine. I know that from first hand experience and from what I’ve seen my clients experience.

We’re all human, we all face these roadblocks. Acknowledging them and seeking solutions instead of looking for a quick fix is the only way to get past them.

Depressed yet? Here’s the good news.

First of all, I’m assuming that if you’re reading this, you are determined to be your own boss and build a successful small business, no matter what it takes.

The good news is that you can overcome every one of those roadblocks with the right support and help. You are not an island. With the right mentoring,  coaching and resources from someone who has been in your shoes, experienced what you’re experiencing and moved forward to achieve success, you will be able to bust through roadblocks quickly, be held accountable, kept on track and accelerate the growth of your business in a big way.

That’s why I love being a coach and mentor. When I see someone breakthrough it’s the biggest thrill in the world. When a client starts making the money they dreamed of and they feel great about their accomplishment, well, there’s nothing like it.

If you want some powerful guidance that can move you toward a solid 6 figure income-and a rock solid step-by-step system that will get you there, go to

Maximize Your Profits Now

If you haven’t already done so, sign up for the free audio and videos. Check out the Maximize Your Profits Program and see if it’s the help you’ve been looking for. No hype. Everything there is possible because its already been done. Let this be the time to stop thinking and wishing and take action!

For almost every small or solo business owner I’ve worked with as a coach, how to keep a steady stream of clients rolling into their business is the main challenge . But not for all.

Some businesses seem to soar quickly. They seem to have a secret that everyone wants to know. They call me because they are growing so fast they need me to help them put the automated systems in place that will reduce their workload and give them their life back. This is not a bad problem to have!

The businesses that have a flood of clients with seemingly little effort actually have a lot in common because they have several or most of the following factors in place.  Any of these can be the key to astonishing business growth. Take a few of them together and the results are truly impressive. Here’s what they did:

• Found an underserved niche with a group of hungry buyers
• Found buyers who had money to spend and were willing to spend it
• Found a niche where competition was minimal or manageable
• Developed a repeatable system for connecting and selling to these buyers that worked again and again.
• Developed a compelling, benefit laden marketing message
• Developed joint ventures and strategic alliances to dramatically increase sales
• Developed a strategy to get repeat business.
• Protect their time relentlessly
• Outsourced simple tasks as soon as possible

As you can see, there is no real secret. Measure your business against this list and see what needs to change.

I’d like to invite you to a free tele-class, How to Fill the Client Funnel Now, on August 12^th at 4PM ET.  This content rich class will show you a business building system that is designed to stop you from worrying and feeling overwhelmed and get you feeling powerful and profitable.

If you sign up now, you’ll also gain access to my Maximize Your Profits Now videos.

http://maximizeyourprofitsnow.com/

I think this class could be a turning point for you.

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Opening and running a small or solo business is a daunting task that takes courage, passion and grit. It often takes a while before you hit that sweet spot where clients and profits start to flow in and you begin to breathe a sigh of relief. You look forward to that feeling of elation that takes over as you realize that your dreams are coming true. You’ve climbed a mountain and reached the top.

If you feel like it’s a struggle just to keep your business chugging along and you’re wondering when you’ll get to that point, you’re not alone. Here are some important things to look at and think about now.

• Make sure you’re key products are something for which there is a clearly expressed need in your market-something for which people are hungry. Your prospects and customers will let you know what they want and you need to give it to them, rather than what you think they want.
• Check to see if your niche is overcrowded. Competitors may be crowding you out and you may need to re-focus in on a less crowded niche within your area of expertise.
• Carefully measure the results you get from your marketing efforts. Are you creating a flood of interested leads? If not, your marketing approach isn’t working and needs to change. You need a powerful, new strategy.
• Your message may be getting lost in the flood of information with which people are bombarded. Making your message fresh, unique and benefit focused-even remarkable and memorable- is key
• You’re great at what you do, but are you struggling with the “running a business” part, like marketing, selling, website, bookkeeping, systems? These Entrepreneurial skills will make or break you no matter how good you are at what you do. They need to be mastered.
• Do you have difficulty managing your time and staying focused on profit generating activities? The most successful 6 and 7 figure income Entrepreneurs are time masters.
• You’re great at the daily details, but are you good at big picture planning? Remember, no one else can be the CEO and strategy maker but you.
• Persistence and follow-through are key. Don’t give up if something doesn’t produce immediate results. I’ve seen people throw an ad in the paper and expect the phone to ring like crazy. When it doesn’t they pull the ad and move on to the next short lived idea. Have a strategy, then stick to your plan. Follow through and you’ll see results.
• Are you feeling some resistance to doing tasks you know are essential to your success? Many business owner clients have told me that they know what they should be doing but every time they try they find themselves procrastinating of doing a non-priority activity. That can lead to inertia. Tasks that drain your energy may be better outsourced so you can spend your time on profit generating activities. Outsourcing is a success strategy and more inexpensive than ever. Or break the task down into 10 minute segments. Anyone can devote ten minutes to a task, even if they don’t like it. What’s important is to keep taking action! Keep moving forward. It doesn’t have to be perfect.

If any of this rings true, know that you are definitely not alone. Every business owner has experienced some or all of these roadblocks at one time or another. And all of them can be over come! If you want to breakthrough to a new level of success and reach the top of that mountain you need a solid, proven business and marketing system that works.

Try answering this question: “What is the one thing, which if I did it, would make a huge difference in my business now?” If there’s more than one thing, write it down. Voila! You know what you need to work on beginning now.

To access a series of free videos that will show you a solid, proven business building and marketing system that can take you to a solid 6 figure small business income, go to http://www.MaximizeYourProfitsNow.com/

Janis

I regularly speak and brainstorm with other successful business owners and there’s a topic that comes up over and over. Why do some people ramp up to success as fast as lightning while others work hard, seem to do the right things, but still struggle to make a living?

A major reason may be the business or niche you’ve chosen. I’ve always said that choosing the right niche is crucial. Your niche or target market needs to meet these criteria:

1. Your target market has unmet or undermet needs, challenges or wants
2. They are willing and able to pay for your products and services
3. They are fairly easy to reach

There are a few more things to think about though.

Is your niche oversaturated with competition? If it is you will have to fight to stand out in a huge crowd.  You will have to be a better marketer and have a fresh approach or great information and it will be harder to succeed.

Is your niche becoming extinct? There are industries that are shrinking and you don’t want to pour your passion, time and energy into trying to build a long term sustainable business in one of them. Just think of the newspaper industry, professional photography or  stores that sell or rent videos and CD’s as examples of a few industries that technology is slowly squeezing out of existence, or at least causing to stagnate.

If you are struggling now with reaching a healthy 6 figure income with your small or home based business, look at these factors and ask yourself honestly if any of them apply. If you find they do, don’t despair. You have a range of talent related to your core business. Just finding out what potential clients need in your industry and re-purposing what you offer to fill those needs can make a difference in the bottom line.

For example, say you were a wedding photographer who used to be able to sell expensive photo albums after a wedding, but now all your clients want is the digital prints. Ouch! What about expanding into video or taking professional photos for business websites. It’s a really smart idea to keep up with trends so you can offer services as the need first arises and before lots of other get on the bandwagon.

If your niche is saturated, think of an area of expertise that would set you apart, or concentrate on one specific sub-niche where you excel. Be more of a specialist than a generalist.  Everyone wants a specialist. If you had a broken bone you’d go to an orthopedic surgeon not a family doctor, right? Well your prospects feel the same.

If you’re not meeting your goals, take a few minutes to think about whether perhaps you’re just in the wrong business.

 Janis