DS Domination Products: March 2015

Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Solar Light – Your Questions, Answered

There are fantastic ways to save money, use less electricity and be more energy conscious. You can make a difference by learning all about solar lights. If you’re tired of feeling like your questions about solar lights are never answered correctly then you should continue reading. Solar lights are a great way to brighten your ...

Images: How to Find and Choose High-Impact Photos

Ever throw your hands up in frustration when it comes time to look for an image for your latest blog post? Let’s start with the bad news: a terrible stock photo is worse than no photo at all. The good news? There are more free stock photos available now than ever before! But you have

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The 3 Pillars of Great Web Writing

If you summarized every single book and article written on writing for the web, you’d get the three words I’m about to tell you. Yet, no one — not even the experts, authors, or pundits — has, to my knowledge, ever consolidated all this knowledge into one simple, sticky process. Write with these three words

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Last Day to Save on Authority Rainmaker 2015

The Early Bird Price for Authority Rainmaker ends today, so I had a message planned for today making one final case for why you should join us in Denver, Colorado this May. But then I read what Raubi wrote on Friday about how much last year’s event accelerated her career. The quick version: She came

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Portable Solar Panels – Tips To Buy The Right One

The clean energy industry is a booming market in recent times, when the protection of the environment seems to be a priority for all. Solar energy has long been accepted as the best source for the safest and efficient energy that humans produce electricity for our consumption needs. Most countries are opting for this system ...

Monday, March 30, 2015

Don’t Get Caught with Your Pants Down: 3 Steps to Increase Your Search Traffic with Google’s Next Update

On April 21st, 2015, Google will roll out an update that will make mobile friendliness a bigger part of its algorithm. If you don’t think this is a big deal, think again. Why? Because Google is saying the mobile update will have a bigger impact than its Panda update. Should you be worried? Yes! Here’s why, and here are some [click to continue...]

True Confessions About Copyblogger’s Authority Conference (Last Chance to Save)

The Early Bird Price for Authority Rainmaker ends tomorrow, so I had a message planned for today making one final case for why you should join us in Denver, Colorado this May. But then I read what Raubi wrote on Friday about how much last year’s event accelerated her career. The quick version: She came

Advantages And Disadvantages Of Solar Powered Products

Sustainable or green energy is becoming one word above all for those who want to save on their energy consumption. The use of solar energy is becoming very popular not only because it is free and plentiful, it is also one of the cleanest renewable energy resources used today. Whether you are looking for some ...

Sunday, March 29, 2015

Highlighted Aspects of the Solar Industry

Solar energy has entered our lives for decades, and has been the change in our lives since. With more spin-off industry, many things that have become difficult to treat. While many aspects have become very popular rooms that provide large amounts of benefits every day. What are they? Distributed solar Service The service relates to ...

Saturday, March 28, 2015

Will a Solar Power System Work for You?

If you still think of going solar and find it difficult to choose the right provider and installer, then you’re in the right place. Here, we help you look more closely at how installing an outside residential solar reliable network allows you to save a lot of money and the best possible energy. Installation of ...

Friday, March 27, 2015

How to Boost Your Revenue Through Upselling and Cross Selling

What are the two main ways you can grow your revenue? Driving more traffic to your website and boosting your conversion rates, right? Although those two ways are effective, there is also another way to increase your revenue… it’s by increasing your average order value. A simple way to do that is through upselling and [click to continue...]

Solar Energy Risks to Health

Solar energy is a potential free electricity and water heating source. It has the power to take advantage of electricity in remote areas of the world. It seems to offer health and safety with power, but is it? Rarely health risks of solar energy are mentioned. This may be partly due to the limited use ...

4 Revelations that Drove Me to Quit My Job and Start a Business

Someone in this room is going to change everything because they cared. Seth Godin and his round-framed glasses stared back at a room filled with ambitious entrepreneurs-in-training, and I looked around wondering who would be the next person to “change everything.” That’s how my experience at Copyblogger’s Authority event in 2014 began — looking into

Thursday, March 26, 2015

How to Write Headlines that Get Results

Headline writing is probably the first and most important skill you need to learn as a web writer. John Caples called it the most important part of an advertisement. That’s why he dedicates four out of 18 chapters to headline writing in his book Tested Advertising Methods. And you can sum up those four chapters

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Content Will Never Be King

Yesterday, I had the pleasure to sit down with my friends Darren Rowse and Brian Clark. The last time the three of us sat quietly was in 2008 or 2009 when we launched the Third Tribe group (ah, memories). I joked that I wanted to bring that back and we could call it Sixth Tribe. […]

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How to Structure and Sell Your Natural Expertise

Way back in late 2009, I was getting antsy, on both a personal and a professional level. I had run my own design studio for almost 20 years. And I’d created just about anything a designer could create, from business cards to billboards — even a glossy, full-color national magazine. But despite my success, I

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Wednesday, March 25, 2015

How to Generate $100,000 a Month from a Brand New Blog

A week ago, I wrote a blog post stating that anyone can generate $100,000 a month in income. To prove it, I told you that I’m going to create a new company and grow it from scratch without leveraging my connections. In the majority of your comments, you told me you wanted me to create a new company [click to continue...]

4 Ways to Identify Site Visitors (and Why It Matters)

You think we all would know what marketing automation meant, the way we throw the phrase around in the corporate hallways and home offices of America. “Reginald, what you need is a marketing automation solution — then your sales team would be balling!” That’s the idea. Software that captures, nurtures, and delivers leads to a

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Content Marketing as a Food Truck: Rethinking Content Marketing In A World of Splintered Attention

With well over a billion users, Facebook must easily rank as most people’s “where I see interesting stories and click” tool of choice. Sure, us nerds might point to Feedly or Flipboard, but that’s not “most people.” That’s the enlightened. Some of us get our favorite sites to our inbox. But that’s more rare than […]

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Should We Give Solar Power Another Try?

Cities in many countries suffer degradation of air quality. Oxygen levels are decreasing every year making it harder to breathe. Our water is actually much more polluted and trees are dying. The human race has made decisions that are harmful currently causing our planet to fade. Perhaps returning to the things we use at the ...

Tuesday, March 24, 2015

A 12-Minute Crash Course on Link Building (Ugh)

Links have become the online content creator’s currency. Get a lot of links, and you get “wealthy.” And the more quality links that point to a particular page, the higher that page is going to rank. But how do you get those links without breaking the law or looking like a scuzzy spammer? Well, here

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Last Week to Save on Authority Rainmaker 2015

We call Authority Rainmaker a different kind of online marketing conference … and that’s for many good reasons. Rather than a multi-track free-for-all that requires you to choose between sessions and gamble on what’s worth your precious time, Authority Rainmaker is a cohesive two-day presentation in itself. The four segments—design, content, traffic, and conversion—provide an

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Irresistible Reasons To Create Your Own Solar Power At Home

1. promotion of government: the federal government offers discounts for the use of clean energy. For example, wind turbines and solar energy systems installed at the end of 2016 are eligible for a tax credit of 30 percent. A tax credit is better than a tax deduction to take money directly from their taxes instead ...

Monday, March 23, 2015

The A to Z Guide on Creating a Memorable Brand (like McDonald’s)

Neil’s introduction of the author: When I think about branding, logo design, and designing great products, there’s one person I love working with. He has worked with me for many years and for several of my companies. His name is Ian Main, and this post—based on his latest work helping me rebrand Quick Sprout—is about Ian’s [click to continue...]

On Pink Hair, Marketing, and Business on Your Own Terms

It’s always interesting being in an airport as a person with pink hair — especially when I’m traveling for business. Pink hair is a little more mainstream these days (curse you, Nicki Minaj), but it still gets attention. Small children think I’m some kind of live-action muppet, which I enjoy very much. TSA security officials

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Environmental Benefits of Using Solar Power

Electricity is known to be the best invention of all time. With electricity, people have good lighting at night with the use of light bulbs. Electricity is the main source of almost all devices used in homes and institutions to work. And electricity enables companies to operate with the use of machines. With the help ...

Sunday, March 22, 2015

Are You Going to Social Media Marketing World? SMMW15

I’m going to Social Media Marketing World in San Diego next Tuesday through Thursday. I speak there Wednesday at 3:15pm. Beyond that, most of my time is my own (I’ve got two other formal obligations and a few friend obligations). I thought I’d write out what my hopes are for the event, in case you […]

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Saturday, March 21, 2015

Is Residential Solar Energy Worth It?

The amount of solar energy varies greatly depending on what part of the world that you can live. Places to get much sun are most beneficial when it comes to installing residential solar power systems. Any person residing in an area like Florida or Phoenix would actually losing significant savings. You can save thousands of ...

How a $200 Chromebook Earned my Company $28,000 in Ten Days

This is the Acer Chromebook 11 CB3-111-C670. It’s about the size of a Macbook Air, kinda. It runs the Google Chrome OS, which means it’s pretty much like a browser-only deal. All the apps you use are web-based. And this device helped me make $28,000 in ten days. Could a Chromebook Make You More Money? […]

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Reasons Why Your Solar Lights Are Not Working

One of the best solutions you can get for your home is solar lighting. It is economical and help reduce your energy costs. However, sometimes, sunlamps may stop working. You should know the reasons why solar lights do not work so you can correct them quickly and return to the economy. First, it is important ...

Friday, March 20, 2015

Execute a Practical Editorial Strategy with the ‘Prepare; Don’t Plan’ Philosophy

Are you an Editor-in-Chief? Editor-in-Chief (noun): a person who assumes complete responsibility for and ownership of all the communication he or she puts out into the world to enable a self-directed, creative career. Do you want to become one and learn effective ways to take control of your own digital media platform? In this 9-minute

An Idiot-Proof Guide to Writing Blog Posts That Google Loves

If you’re a good web writer, then February 24, 2011 was your day. Bad web writer? Not so much. February 24, 2011 marks the day Google took low-quality content sites out to the woodshed. It’s the day they rolled out their search algorithm update known as Panda. And here’s how you can benefit from that

The Ultimate Guide to Creating Visually Appealing Content

Have you noticed that I publish a lot of visually appealing content on Quick Sprout? From videos to infographics, I’m constantly leveraging visual media. Can you guess why? It’s because these visual content pieces are generating more backlinks than any other form of content I publish, which—in the long run—helps increase my search engine rankings [click to continue...]

Why Copyblogger Media Is Also Betting Big on Pamela Wilson

Last week, Brian Clark explained why Copyblogger Media is betting big on podcasting. Then Monday, he introduced Copyblogger’s new digital marketing podcast network. (And with five shows in the top 30 of all business podcasts on iTunes at the moment I’m typing this, the early returns on that bet have been positive.) Today, I am

Thursday, March 19, 2015

How to Build Your Digital Business with the ‘MVP’ Process

Last week on The Mainframe, Tony Clark explained how he and Brian Clark built Copyblogger into an eight-figure business using the minimum viable product process. In this episode, Chris Garrett and Tony explain how you can implement the MVP process in your own business for faster time to market, better customer experience, more effective launches,

4 most common uses of solar technology

Solar energy is one of the most popular forms of people have jumped on the bandwagon “Going Green”. The solar systems provide ways to make clean, renewable energy from the sun to electricity; However, as with all new systems, a large initial investment is required in terms of installation and setup. There are four main ...

The Highest Priority Of Successful Business Leaders: Their Employees

When you develop, grow, and change as a leader, so does everything and everyone around you.

What Writing A Great Sales Letter Taught Me About Everything

I can count on one hand the number of times that something I’ve tried to sell has been well-received by the people I serve. You know how some kids are a late bloomer? That’s me with most of the things I sell. People buy them years later sometimes. But this time, I really struck gold. […]

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Google: Mobile-Friendliness a Significant Ranking Factor

We've known for some time now of Google's increased emphasis on mobile-friendliness in the search results. We've seen them testing out mobile-friendly icons and non-mobile friendly icons. We've seen them add mobile usability reports in Google Webmaster tools, and send mobile-usability warnings to webmasters with non-mobile friendly sites.

5 Unexpected Ways Meerkat Will Crush It For Sales and Marketing People

So, if you haven't heard of Meerkat yet, don't waste another minute in the dark. Go check 'em out.

Conduct Better Podcast Interviews with this Simple 6-Step Preparation Process

Editor’s note: This post was originally published on March 26, 2014. We’re running it today to once again share these important podcast interview best practices with you. No regrets. That is my number one goal for every podcast interview I conduct. (And there are a lot of them, including this one you might be familiar

Wednesday, March 18, 2015

How Search Engines Work, Part Two

Imagine you love jaguars. You have a blog about jaguars. You publish seven times a week about jaguars. On your site, it’s jaguars all day and all night. But Google doesn’t seem to know you exist. What gives? The problem is Google can’t tell if you are an authority on the car, the animal, or

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Five Frequently Asked Questions About Solar Power Generation

Solar energy is different from any other form of energy. This is a special moment because it’s clean and green. More importantly, it has at least two essential functions. One is that it can be used to generate electricity, and the other is that it can be used to generate thermal energy. The first is ...

Jargon Madness: The Most Obnoxious Startup Jargon

If you really want to cut through the clutter and land that VC funding, launch a perfect product or secure that sometimes-elusive media placement, maybe it’s time to try something new: plain English.

24 Years Old, Waking At 4 a.m., And Supervising 70 Staff -- Who'd Be A Startup COO?

A lot of people would find it intimidating to assume responsibility for a £15m turnover business while the founders are away building relationships on the other side of the world. It sounds like the kind of task you might be ready to take on if you had been at the firm for, say, 15 years or more, had known all of your co-workers for a good few years, and had permission to put your day to day work to one side for the period in question.

What I Learned About Content Marketing by Analyzing 614 Posts

Can you believe that I’ve published 614 posts on Quick Sprout? I published my first post on April 16 back in 2007. Today, nearly eight years later, the blog gets well over 700,000 visitors a month. However, considering how long I’ve been blogging, I should have more visitors and ideally a quicker growth rate. For [click to continue...]

10 Tips For Managing A Moody Boss

Why You Need to Become a Rainmaker Before It’s Too Late

In his 1989 book, The Age of Unreason, Irish author Charles Handy made a startling prediction about the future of organizations. He argued that businesses would soon be smaller and the workforce would be comprised of “portfolio people.” And what is a portfolio person? Handy describes a portfolio as a multifaceted career, comprised of different

U.S. Estate Tax Is 4th Highest At 40%, But Obama Wants To Make Us #1....At 68%

America's 40% death tax is one of the highest in the world, but President Obama wants to fix that. Why have the 4th highest rate when you can be #1.

InsideSales.com Covers All Bases, Announces Funding From Both Salesforce And Microsoft

I remember sitting at Salesforce's DreamForce conference a few years ago (2010 to be precise) when the industry had recently been bombarded with Microsoft advertising their competitive CRM product DynamicsCRM. The campaign was a marketing initiative using a character, "Bernard", who was feeling underwhelmed by the Salesforce offering and hence moved to Dynamics. Salesforce's CEO, and master marketer, Marc Benioff could have let the guerrilla campaign slide, but instead he turned the impacts around by inviting the actor who played Bernard on stage in the DreamForce keynote begging him to come back to Salesforce from the Microsoft "Evil Empire". The guerrilla response was a masterful one and Benioff undid the damage created by Microsoft and turned it to his advantage.

How to Give a Rock Star Sales Pitch: Sales Strategies from The Voice Coaches

The coaches on The Voice, NBC's singing competition television show, may teach contestants how to become hit vocalists -- but they also show you how to give a rock star sales pitch. When Blake Shelton, Christina Aguilera, Pharrell Williams, or Adam Levine try to convince a contestant to choose them as their coach, each uses a unique sales strategy. Because each approach reflects the personality and leverages the status of the coach, the show provides insights into how to make a pitch that best fits you.

The Fifth Circuit Slices The Golf Channel Into The Pond

I have previously written about the misadventures of the notorious Ponzi schemer Allen Stanford, a blustering Texas real estate developer who bought his way into the Knight Commander of the Order of the Nation (KCN) for the Caribbean island nation of Antigua and Barbuda, ceremoniously conferred in 2006 by no less of a figure than Prince Edward, the Earl of Wessex, and then revoked in 2010 after Stanford had revealed Antigua and Barbuda to be the bad joke of the offshore financial world when his $7 billion pyramid came crashing down.

Tuesday, March 17, 2015

The New Entrepreneur's Bible

It's been more than ten years since Guy Kawasaki wrote his classic guide to entrepreneurship, The Art of the Start: The Time-Tested, Battle-Hardened Guide for Anyone Starting Anything, and a lot has changed. We're in an era dominated by mobile devices, Big Data, and social media. Great ideas no longer have to pass scrutiny by mercenary venture capitalists, because entrepreneurs can go straight to customers with crowdfunding tools like Kickstarter and Indiegogo.

How Search Engines Work, Part One

There are a few important details every web writer should know about how Google does its job. So we need to back up just a little bit. We need to talk about how people actually find anything on the web to begin with. Why? Because, as web writers, we have to face that ugly monster

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New F1 Engines Have Boosted Sponsorship Says Williams

Claire Williams, deputy boss of the Williams Formula One team, has revealed that its sponsorship budget has been boosted by brands choosing the series as a result of new environmentally-friendly engines write Kate Hewitt and Christian Sylt.

The Best Soccer Fans In The United States

This Is What It Takes To Win The $1M Global Teacher Prize

Nancie Atwell is a lifelong middle school teacher whose best known for her many books about teaching reading and writing. She also founded Maine’s Center for Teaching and Learning, a demonstration school where she shares her exceptional expertise with other teachers. And, of course, she just won the inaugural $1 Million Dollar Global Teacher Prize at the Global Education and Skills Forum.

How to Efficiently Use Solar Panels for Your Home

Finally decided to go solar? Fantastic! You will find some great energy savings in your near future. Plan to install yourself? There are some things you should know before buying. Read on for more information. To determine how many panels you will really need, you will need to do your homework. The first thing you ...

Steve Van Andel: 80% Of Millennials Favor Entrepreneurship Globally

I spoke with Steve Van Andel, the chairman of Amway, who is responsible for managing daily operations of the company with Amway President Doug DeVos. Van Andel is the eldest son of Amway Co-Founder Jay Van Andel, who, with Rich DeVos, started Amway in 1959 in Ada, Michigan. Since then, Amway has grown into the world’s largest direct selling company. Over the past two decades, Van Andel has led a strategic transformation of the company with a focus on growth through innovation, driving double-digit growth. Prior to being named chairman, Van Andel served as vice president with responsibility for Amway’s business operations in North and South America. He also served as vice president of marketing.

Does Hitting Publish Make You Want to Puke?

Have you ever hovered over the “Publish” button while your stomach churned? Have you hesitated to make your website live because you’d rather stay invisible? Does putting your content out there make you feel exposed and insecure? Hitting “publish” means becoming vulnerable People will know what I’m thinking and feeling. It’s true: when you create

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As Amazon, Yahoo, Hulu Bid For Streaming Seinfeld, Think Taxes

Seinfeld reruns are so common that paying $90M for streaming rights sounds odd. Well, unless you're thinking about taxes.

Digital Technologies Will Soon Add $1 Trillion-Plus To Global Economy

The increased use of digital technologies could add $1.36 trillion to total global economic output in 2020, according to a recent study by Accenture and Oxford Economics. This may be only a fraction of a percent of the total global gross world product (currently sized at about $87 trillion), but it's a substantial contribution to growth. To put it in perspective, moving forward full-force with digital would add an economy the size of South Korea to the global market (current GDP at $1.3 trillion).

Without Hispanics, America's Corporations Can't Grow and Compete

The cultural demographic shift ? in the United States is about the workplace and marketplace telling us it?s becoming less about the business defining the individual and more about the individual defining the business. This is exactly what Hispanics are awakening corporations to, as they begin to recognize that young professionals entering the workforce are in search of the right career and employer who will allow them to be their most authentic selves. This equally holds true to those Hispanic professionals who have been battling the gulf between assimilation and authenticity for years ? and are now ready to advance as 21st century leaders by allowing the influence of their cultural values to empower the natural ways they think, act and are motivated to perform at work.

Chris Borland's Retirement From The NFL Could Start A Trend

A look at the recent string of early retirements in the NFL. Is this going to be a trend? How can the league make football safer for the players?

Monday, March 16, 2015

10 B2B Companies That Show What a Killer Blog Looks Like

Blogs are an extremely valuable marketing tool for companies, even though not all companies have caught on to this fact. Blogs can educate potential customers, build trust, and even bring in new leads. Unfortunately, many corporate blogs can be very banal and lack any real value other than serving a company’s own needs. However, when a B2B company dedicates the proper amount of time and resources, focuses on its community, and builds engaging content, it can result in a terrific asset for the company.

PayPal Does Not Accept Funds For NCAA Tournament Pools, But Others Are Willing To Incur The Risk

For college sports fans that are entering private NCAA Tournament pools, finding a payment processor that is willing to accept your pool's entry fees may prove to be a challenge. Most of the large U.S. payment processing companies understand that the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act makes it illegal for any payment processor to “knowingly accept” funds “in connection with the participation of another person in unlawful Internet gambling.”

7 Innovative Education Products For The Blind And Visually Impaired

While many technologies for the blind and visually impaired focus on mobility, several newer products are geared towards education and communication.

Of Obamacare's Many Taxes, What Hurts Most

With all the Obamacare Taxes and penalties, which one is worst? It may depend on who pays, but often it's not clear where the buck stops.

Introducing Rainmaker.FM: The Digital Marketing Podcast Network

Yep, we’ve launched a digital marketing podcast network. Someone was bound to do it, but you may be surprised that it’s us. Truth is, this is something I’ve personally wanted to do for a long time … and the time is right. Copyblogger came to prominence by teaching people how to write engaging content and

How to Make $100,000 a Month Within 1 Year

What if I told you anyone could make $100,000 a month in income within a year? That’s right—after 12 months, you could be on track to making $1,200,000 a year. I know what you are thinking. It’s easy for me to do so because I have money that I can use to generate more income [click to continue...]

6 Must-Have Energy Efficient Devices In Your New Home

The good news about going green and installing energy saving devices in the home is that it is not necessary to make big changes immediately. You can make your home energy efficient by installing a device at a time. What devices are these? Let’s look at the most popular. 1. Programmable Thermostat Installing a programmable ...

How To Engage Your Audience And Keep Them Coming Back [Video]

For digital content platform Latin Everywhere, audience engagement is essential to success. CEO Jorge Granier and business author Barry Moltz discuss best practices to attract, maintain and grow engagement.

InsideSales Moves Beyond Salesforce, Integrates With Microsoft Dynamics

It would be easy to assume, given the proportion of mindshare that Salesforce.com seems to have in the customer relationship management (CRM), that there is only one cloud CRM in existence. The reality is somewhat different however and despite Salesforce's undeniable momentum and size, there are other solutions that organizations use. One of the bigger Salesforce competitors is Microsoft Dynamics CRM. Given this fact it should come as no surprise to see third party solutions integrate with the Redmond offering.

"If You Don't Have a Strategy You Don't Need a CIO": Ferrovial's Federico Florez

“Miami will be the next innovation center for North and South America, “ Federico Florez informs me at lunch in Madrid recently. Silicon Beach, I think? It’s not impossible, when you consider what restored relations with Cuba will mean for the entire region. And coming from this man it could be a prophecy worth buying into.

India's Road To Jaipur -- The Challenges Of Destitution And Infrastructure

Among various “post-retirement” activities I am a visiting professor at NIIT University (NU) in Neemrana, Rajasthan (India), where I am involved in a new initiative: The Asian Lenses Forum (TALF). Neemrana is situated on the Delhi-Jaipur highway, 120 kilometers (75 miles) from Delhi. It is in the process of establishing industrial parks and seeking to lure foreign investment. There are Japanese and Korean industrial zones, including a factory of Takata, the manufacture of, among other things, airbags, about which I wrote an earlier blog. These industrial developments represent important pillars of the Modi “made-in-India” campaign and his pledge to generate sustained inclusive economic growth.

India: The Road To Jaipur -- Challenges of Destitution And Infrastructure

India: The Road To Jaipur (And Back) -- Challenges of Destitution And Infrastructure

Sunday, March 15, 2015

Is Your Pay-To-Enter NCAA Tournament Pool Legal?

This week, many million Americans are expected to fill out their NCAA Tournament brackets. Some will compete for fun. Others will join free contests. Meanwhile, still others will enter private pools that include both entry fees and cash prizes.

Is The UK 'Accommodating' China By Joining Its New Investment Bank?

Last week marked a rare riff in the “special relationship” between the UK and the US. The countries clashed publicly after the UK announced that it would join the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), a new multilateral financial institution that is a result of China’s budding efforts to project its influence abroad.

Is the UK 'Accommodating' China By Joining Its New Investment Bank?

The British Electric Bike Company Hoping To Crack America

A British company taking on the US market with its electric bike is hoping to put difficult time behind it

5 Vital Steps To Customer Service Disaster Recovery: Build Customer Success Via This Expert Approach

Customer service breakdowns are uncomfortable, and they require training to resolve in a way that creates customer success and sustainable organizational and business success. But you’ll find an opportunity hidden inside your company’s worst moments: the opportunity to bring a customer closer to you. Indeed, you can learn to handle service breakdowns so masterfully that they actually help you to create engaged, and ultimately loyal, customers. Here’s how to pull this off, in four specific steps.

How Can Solar Electricity Become Even Cheaper?

At the start of mass production of electricity from sunlight, discussions on solar electricity prices have never been arrested. The main focus is electricity produced from sunlight, which was generally more expensive than that supplied by the mains. Prices may be lower? If they can, how can we achieve it? falling costs One solar panels ...

Build Customer Success And Business Growth With This Expert Customer Service Recovery Process

Can Apple Disrupt the Luxury Watch Market? Depends On How You Define 'Disrupt'.

True disruption is the competitor that companies never see coming, or if they do, they don?t consider that company to be a threat.

Before Beating McDonald's, Shake Shack Must Get Its Business Model Right

Shake Shack (NYSE:SHAK) is a popular ?fast and casual? franchise. Though slowing, its sales continue to grow at robust rates. That?s in sharp contrast to McDonald?s, which has been reporting sluggish sales for several quarters. But before it beats McDonald?s, Shake Shack must get its business model right. Specifically, the company needs to

Is The Biotechnology Bubble Turning Into Mania?

Disclosure: I own shares of AMGN For more than three years, the big run in a number of small biotechnology stocks that have little or no revenues had all the elements of a bubble. Now, there are signs that the bubble may be turning into mania, and will eventually burst. Every stock market bubble is different, and can be easily confused with healthy bull markets. But all stock market bubbles follow a certain profile. First comes ‘investor hype’ over a popular theme -- an emerging industry that promises to change the world and bring big returns to those who invest in it. Somewhere down the road come ‘the role models’—companies that made it big carrying this theme—turning investor hype into contagion. Then comes easy money by accommodative central banks to provide ‘the “air’ -- financing for the bubble to grow bigger and bigger. Flurries of IPOs that double, triple, or quadruple the day they make their market debut -- and sky-high M&A premiums -- turn investor hype into mania. Investing in this theme reaches a cascade, as no investor wants to be left behind. Finally, the bubble soon bursts, as early investors have already cashed out, and there are no more investors to join the party. Apparently, the ongoing run up in biotechnology has all these elements. Investors are excited about the big promise which the field proffers – that it can cure the ills of humanity. An aging baby-boomer generation and universal healthcare coverage make it easier for biotechnology companies to monetize this promise. The trouble is, however, that many biotechnology companies that command a market valuation of several billions of dollars have little or no product revenues. Puma Biotechnology, for instance, has a market capitalization north of $7 billion, though it has no revenue. Intercept Pharmaceuticals has a Market Cap to revenue ratio of 372.41. Isis Pharmaceuticals and Pharmacyclics have somewhat better ratios.

How Two Obscure Court Verdicts In Europe Could Impact Americans' Privacy, Cybersecurity, and Taxes

Two recent court verdicts in Europe, barely covered by American media, could have serious ? if not outright scary ? consequences for Americans and American businesses. Here is what you need to know.

Green Building Strategies

Homeowners and businesses of all sizes around the world are beginning to pay more attention to the techniques and strategies of ecological construction, both for the sake of the environment and the pocket of building occupants end. The good news is that sufficient time to evaluate exactly what initiatives have been helpful had elapsed. Manufacturers ...

UK CEOs Struggle With Emotion For Engagement

A workshop of 100 CEOs and managers from companies across the UK has revealed insights into the effects of national character on corporate governance, which was famously described by Stephen Green, ex CEO and Chairman of HSBC, as "the very essence of a business."

Saturday, March 14, 2015

7 Retail Trends That Will Shape How You Shop In 2015

Tax Exempt Church Turns Out To Be A Night Club

Don't like taxes? Form a church, even if your religion looks like a party. But be prepared for the IRS and state tax officials to ask questions.

When McDonald's Rise Again, Will It Still Sell Burgers And Fries?

McDonald?s will rise again. But it may no longer sell burger and fries, at least not the kind of burgers and fries it has been selling for years -- learning a lesson or two from Shake Shack and Chipotle. Investors focusing too much on McDonald?s recent history of sluggish sales reports?including

Off Grid Solar – The Best Financial Solution for Your Home

Consider using solar energy in a better way? Installing a solar power system outside the network today and stay tension free all year – round! As we can see, solar power systems have become very popular these days because of its effectiveness and meaningful approach. This new trend of installing solar systems in homes has ...

Comparing the Free 2015 NCAA Tournament Contests: Only Yahoo Guarantees A Prize To The Best Bracket

With the NCAA selection committee expected to soon announce its 2015 tournament brackets, college basketball fans have already begun to scour the web for free NCAA Tournament contests to join. Once again this year, each of the 'big three' fantasy sports websites (Yahoo, ESPN and CBS) is offering a free-to-enter March Madness challenge. However, only the Yahoo contest guarantees a prize to the contest's first-place finisher.

Playing to Win: What Every Leader can Learn from the Kentucky Wildcats

The Kentucky Wildcat’s Men’s Basketball team is making history. With an undefeated regular season under their belt, the Cats have the capability to continue through March Madness with a perfect record (which hasn’t been done since Indiana in 1975-1976). That is not to say, however, that every moment of their journey has been perfect. The Cats have been taken to the edge by multiple teams along the way, but they have always landed on top. Even when the chips were seemingly down for them, the UK Wildcats played to win.

Egypt's Richest Family To Invest $3 Billion In Energy

Egypt's richest family, the Sawiris, plan to invest as much as $3 billion this year in the country?s energy sector

Predictions for the Solar PV Industry in 2015

The global market for solar PV is facing a strong growth momentum due to reduced production costs and technological advances in the industry. Governments and other agencies around the world to promote the use of solar energy through various financial incentives. The year 2015 should see continued growth, emerging markets and changes in production processes. ...

Friday, March 13, 2015

4 Reasons To Get Excited About Cloud Technology In The Workplace

According to a poll taken by the management consulting firm, McKinsey & Company, 80 percent of large North American companies are either looking at or are currently using cloud services. This means big money for the cloud market, but it also could mean an exciting and profitable future for your business.

How to Get Customers Without Spending Any Money

Who says you have to spend money on marketing to grow your business? From social media to SEO to even content marketing, the possibilities to grow your business in ways that don’t require capital are endless. To show you how you can grow your business without spending any money, I’ve broken down 9 tactics that [click to continue...]

New Yorks Marijuana Program Designed To Fail

New York is creating one of the most restrictive medicinal marijuana programs in the country. Creating an atmosphere open only to investors who able to losing millions of dollars for years.

Fake IRS Agent Scam Targets Public, Even Feds, While Identity Theft Tax Fraud Is Rampant

Tax scams, fraud and identity theft refund claims are running rampant. Senate Finance Committee hearings reveal just how bad it is.

Why You Should Never Micromanage Your SEO Firm

You?re not getting the results you want from your SEO firm. Is it possible you're micromanaging, and hurting results in the process?

Dramatic Breakthroughs in Solar Energy

Recently, there have been advances in solar energy that will help further the public use of photovoltaic (PV) solar reconciliation at a cost parity with fossil fuels as a viable source of energy to power the door. A key development that will allow the widespread use of solar energy is the production of cells using ...

Why Freelancers Are Taking Over The World

Next week I will be keynoting the Staffing Industry Analysts Conference and the focus of my talk is going to be the freelancer economy. This is perhaps one of the most exciting and impactful trends that is going to disrupt organizations over the next few years. Today it's estimated (according to the Freelancers Union) that around 34% of the U.S. workforce is already freelancing to some degree and according to a study conducted by Intuit they predict that 40% of American workers will be freelancers by 2020. I'm working on a more comprehensive infographic around this topic that I will be sharing in the coming weeks. In this latest episode of the Futurein5 I share the underlying trends that are powering the freelancer economy and what this trends means for organizations. I absolutely think that freelancers are taking over the world!

Thursday, March 12, 2015

When Does An Entrepreneur Become A Business Owner?

According to most definitions, an entrepreneur is one who envisions a new and different business, meaning one that is not a copy of an existing business model. Many entrepreneurs have a passion and an idea, or even invent a new product, but are never able to execute to the point of creating a startup. Even fewer are able to grow the startup into a viable business.

YouTube Secrets And Ideas From Mindy McKnight Of CuteGirlsHairstyles

image thumbnail - see full story for attributions

YouTube’s Top Mom, Mindy McKnight, is busy thinking up new ways to style her five daughters hair. Her husband, arguably one of YouTube’s top dads, Shaun McKnight, is busy growing one of the strongest audiences of any how-to channel on YouTube. Add their two twin daughters, Brooklyn and Bailey, whose YouTube Channel

How, In Less Than A Decade, Singapore Wants To Become A Smart Nation

An ageing population and the high density of population, are the drivers behind an extremely ambitious plan, that could become a model for other nations around the world.

Jewelry Designer Steven Lagos Talks About Growth In A Changing Industry

In February, Lagos announced that he will step down from his CEO position to focus on his roles as chairman and creative director of the company. He described the change as both a natural progression for him and the company and as a dream come true as he can now put all of his focus on designing jewelry.

Former NFL Player & 2 Others Get Jail & $35M Restitution For Tax Break Scheme

The feds are cracking down on tax scams, with particularly harsh sentences for tax fraud involving return preparation. These 3 defendants drew harsh sentences.

Why Copyblogger Media is Betting Big on Podcasting

Back in 2005, I came up with the idea for Copyblogger, a site that taught people how to create text content and copy to sell products and services. Right … everyone knows that. But did you know a competing idea was to instead start a podcast? To say that would have been the wrong move

The post Why Copyblogger Media is Betting Big on Podcasting appeared first on Copyblogger.

Lyft Raises $530 Million Series E To Battle Uber At Home

Ride-hailing service Uber may operate in 55 countries across the world, but its smaller rival Lyft is hoping to nip at its heels in the U.S., and it has raised $530 million in new funding to do so, Lyft said Wednesday.

Wednesday, March 11, 2015

Three Signs Your Business Has Turned Into An Employment Agency

Owning an employee agency can be quite profitable these days. However, not so much when this is not your intent. Here are three signs that your business has turned into an employment agency and what you can do to change this.

Will There Be An Increase In State Transfer Pricing Audits?

The Multistate Tax Commission’s transfer pricing project, entitled the Arm’s-Length Adjustment Service, is still being developed and is scheduled to begin in July, but corporate taxpayers should take notice now. The result could be a significant increase in the number of state transfer pricing audits.

Woodford's Patient Capital Backs British Innovation

Neil Woodford's new fund aims to put an end to Britain's poor record of turning academic success into commercial sustainability

Are Psychedelics The Wonder Drug We've Been Waiting For?

A bevy of new research is starting to suggest that psychedelics may be one of the better performance-enhancing mental health tools in the kit—so tune in, turn on and level up.

How Spending $138,491.42 on Meals Made Me $992,000

Every year, my bookkeeper sends me an email breaking down my spending habits. For my personal corporation, I spent $138,491.42 on meals over the course of 12 months. At first, I thought there was a clerical error as that number comes out to roughly $11,540 a month. There’s no way I could have spent that [click to continue...]

Feds Launch Internet Sales Tax Again, So Better Click While You Can

The Marketplace Fairness Act is reintroduced and being pushed hard. It could mean the days of no sales tax for online purchases are fast closing.

Here’s How Veteran Search Engine Expert Danny Sullivan Writes

In 1996, the Unabomber suspect, Ted Kaczynski, was arrested. TWA Flight 800 crashed off the coast of Long Island, New York. Bill Clinton was elected president of the United States. The movie Jerry Maguire hit the silver screen. “Macarena” was the hottest song. And some of you were probably born. For Danny Sullivan, 1996 was the year

Branding 101: Avoid "We Want To Suck Your Wallet Dry"

In the mid-90s, I was on the IBM account at Ogilvy & Mather, during the period at which IBM’s brand went through a massive transformation. Worldwide, IBM fired all its agencies and gave the entire business to Ogilvy. The brand went from arrogant to approachable. The phrase we used internally was

68% of Journalists Unhappy With Corp Communications Pitches, New Study Reveals

A new study reinforces what most of us already know: Journalists aren?t happy. Reporters are putting out more material with fewer and weaker resources available than even five years ago.

Tuesday, March 10, 2015

Cyber Regulators Emphasize Process Over Products

By Eben Kaplan

Scott Stratten Versus Ryan Deiss at Authority Rainmaker: Who’ll Be Left Standing?

It’s an epic philosophical battle over how to best sell online. And we’re doing it up on stage at Authority Rainmaker, May 13-15 in beautiful Denver, Colorado. In one corner, we’ve got customer experience advocate Scott Stratten. Scott believes that an amazing customer experience that prompts repeat purchases and evangelical word-of-mouth is the way to

Out of the Trenches, Into the Aisles: How Coke, Burberry Derive Devotion Digitally

If colas and coats can claim one thing in common it is this: Two of the best-known makers of each are trying to transform the historic into meteoric through the clever use of digital marketing.

Keep Your Lip Buttoned Up: Disclosure In Growth And Venture Capital Deals

"Toughen up, toughen up Keep your lip buttoned up Strict time" --Elvis Costello, "Strict Time"

Michigan Tax Incentives -- Corporate Welfare?

Tax incentives are terrible policy choices -- find out how one state’s credit program just won’t go away.

How to Set Goals for Your Content and Weave Them into What You Create

How does the current piece of content you’re creating fit into your content strategy? New content you produce needs to have a goal before you even start writing. Goals for your content benefit both you, the digital content creator, and your audience. Allow me to elaborate with an example from one of my favorite stories,

Wesley Snipes Lands NBC Show Endgame. Why His IRS Endgame Failed

Just in time for tax filing season, Wesley Snipes has landed a new TV show. It is worth remembering his tax trial and what could have made it far worse.

G&T, Cosmo, Mojito - We're Talking Popcorn, Not Cocktails

Gin & Tonic, Cosmopolitan, Mojito...take your pick, except we're talking popcorn, not cocktails. “Selling popcorn to Americans feels like selling coal to Newcastle,” British entrepreneur Joseph Sopher tells me. He’s not wrong. Americans have been eating popcorn since the late 19th century. During the Depression, it was one of few affordable luxuries. It’s been a popular American snack ever since, which is why Sopher still finds hit hard to believe he gets 20-30 orders from the US every month for his Joe & Seph’s gourmet popcorn. His alcoholic popcorn could be one reason it sells so well, but more on that later.

China's True Entrepreneurs In Pictures

In business schools, the potential leaders of tomorrow are taught that every business project starts with a plan; a strategy based on market research and data analysis. But for most entrepreneurs and start-ups, that’s not the case.

Attracting And Retaining Top Female Talent

A few weeks ago I wrote an article and created an infographic around Why The Future Of Our Organizations Depends On Having More Women In Management. Recently Vodafone announced a new policy were women will received at least 16 weeks of paid maternity leave as well as full pay for a 30 hour week for the first six months after returning from maternity leave. No company in the world has announced this type of a policy in the past, in fact usually women have to negotiate their maternity leave with their respective managers. KPMG did some analysis on this and found this new policy could save businesses up to $19 billion annually by implementing this kind of a policy. Why? Because women will stay at the company which means spending less time and money trying to recruiting new top talent.

Monday, March 9, 2015

Mexican Billionaire Carlos Slim Moves To Conquer Spain At Bargain Price

Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim's recent expansion into Spain, where he has increased his stake at bargain prices, is being described as an attempted corporate conquest.

The We:eX Brand, Like Jerry Seinfeld and Steve Jobs, Uses Observation of Human Behavior to Succeed

So there I was, in the audience sharing the experience of watching two exceedingly attractive people, in exceedingly attractive underwear, about to engage in some very interesting foreplay. No, it was not Fifty Shades of Grey, but an award-winning ad for Fundawear, wearable and, suffice it to say, interesting technology

How To Create Engaging Social Media Images in 30 Seconds

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Cinnabon's Employee of the Month: Saul Goodman

Cinnabon gets a free promotion with a feature on "Better Call Saul."

The Secret To Small Business Success? Managing Client Expectations [Video]

When Joy and Jeff Schranghamer, founders of Schranghamer Design Group, started their own design firm, they quickly learned that their clients demanded consistency—but also flexibility. Business consultant Alexandra Levit joins them to discuss how managing client expectations is the key to their success.

10 Ways to Make Your “Most Popular Posts” More Popular

No matter how long you have been blogging, some of your posts will be always more popular than others. These posts tend to rank higher on Google and have more social shares and links from other websites. So the question is, how do you get more traffic to these popular posts? If people already like them, [click to continue...]

The Battle Of The Marketing Clouds--Things Heat Up

This week sees the hosting of Adobe's annual summit (disclosure, Adobe is covering my travel and expenses to attend the event). While it will be interesting from the perspective of looking at a vendor that has transformed itself to be a credible cloud player, it will also be interesting because a battle is looming between the various companies delivering new age marketing tools.

Using Data As A Creative Force

“They promised us jet packs…” begins a classic complaint about the future, when the awesome promise of a technology isn’t realized. Today, this is true of Big Data in business. The ability to capture and act on previously unimaginable quantities of data should be creating breakthrough new products and services. We’re still waiting for the jet packs.

Why I Don’t Give a Damn about #TheDress

Six months (or six days) from now, maybe I’ll come update this topic with the latest trending topic. Because #TheDress, the latest distraction-of-the-moment, will feel utterly tired. One reason that earning attention isn’t the same thing as earning business is that the Internet is prone to these little waves of irrelevance that hook everyone in

The post Why I Don’t Give a Damn about #TheDress appeared first on Copyblogger.

Obama Tax Hikes By Executive Action Versus The Constitution

President Obama likes executive action, bypassing Congress. As his immigration actions face court tests, he moves on to tax changes without going to Congress.

Samsung Just Launched An Innovative New Product, But In PR Terms It's Apple Who Still Have The Edge

Market disruption and Company culture are the two most talked about ingredients in a successful start-up, and the requirement to constantly pivot and innovate is nowhere more obvious than in the fields of tech and communications.

Wearable Shoe Technology A Market Win For Investors, Consumers & Providers

In the last two weeks, GTX Corp’s GPS SmartSoles has gone from almost nonexistent in the mainstream media to being called the “most undervalued company... ever encountered, selling out their first production in preorders with zero advertising, ” by John H. Ford, a writer and 30-year veteran of the investing world. With the wearable tech boom showing no signs of slowing, this company could stand to increase individual autonomy and improve health outcomes, while making investors a lot of money if Mr. Ford is correct.

Sunday, March 8, 2015

A Model for Executive Women From Killer Whales

Germany passed a law last week requiring some of the country’s largest companies to ensure their boards of directors included 30% women. Yes, the land of kirche-kuche-kinder has joined the ranks of Norway, France, Spain, Iceland Italy and Belgium in enforcing a quota system to ensure female representation at the highest level of business.

If You Need Any Convincing That Solar Roadways Are The Future, This Video Will Help

Bright behind Solar Roadways released a video detailing his plans to change the world earlier this month, but the language minds really do not attract anyone’s attention. This new designer Scott Brusaw, however, certainly not make this mistake. “The solar access roads Freakin!” It is filled with passionate enthusiasm and specifically targets young minds adults ...

Senator Lee's Judiciary Committee Hearing Could Protect the Future of Streaming Music

Several months ago, I warned of the looming problem facing the streaming music industry if the American Society of Composers, Authors and Musicians (ASCAP) and other performing right organizations are freed from the “consent decree” issued by the Justice Department in 1941 to ensure a competitive marketplace. On the one hand, companies like Pandora, Spotify, Apple with its iRadio and Amazon.com’s Prime Music have benefitted from the shift in consumer preference to streaming music over downloading albums or music singles. On the other, these companies have had their profitability held in check by onerous royalty rates that ASCAP and others are seeking to increase as their bread and butter business continues to shift away from them toward streaming.

Plastics Products Makers Posting Sales, Margin Gains

U.S. plastics product manufacturers, key suppliers to auto and aerospace industries, construction and retailing, recently wrapped up their fifth year in a row of increased sales, according to new data from Sageworks, a financial information company. Profitability has also strengthened as the industry benefits from a growing economy, increasing automation and “reshoring” trends. Preliminary estimates from Sageworks’ analysis of statements filed in 2014 show that privately held companies in the industry, on average, increased sales by about 4 percent, on top of roughly 8 percent growth in each of the previous two years. Plastics product manufacturers in 2011 and 2012 had experienced double-digit growth as manufacturing in general led the U.S. economy out of the recession.

Thought Leadership Speakers You Don't Want to Miss in 2015

The following people will help you cut through the noise and learn valuable thought leadership lessons from the experts who will be changing the game in 2015.

The Fate of the MD in the $12 Million Patient Safety Scandal

Dr. Charles Denham, a physician-turned-entrepreneur-and-activist, has agreed to pay $1 million to settle government charges of taking a $12 million kickback to influence a national patient safety standard in favor of one company's product. Though the legal case seems closed, many questions remain open.

Social Media Doesn't Make Life Better, Growing Numbers of Chinese Say

While more and more people in China are embracing the Internet, a growing number of people feel that social media is ripping them away from other, more important, things in life.

Saturday, March 7, 2015

First Win Lottery, Then Defend Suits By Ticket Sellers, Co-Workers, Relatives

Winning the lottery is great, but litigation with co-workers or relatives isn't. What's worse, you could be taxed on money you have to split with someone else.

Once Homeless, Mid-Life Social Entrepreneur Works To Ease The Pain Of Living On The Street

Mary Murray remembers being homeless. She was 15 then, and she vividly recalls the constant fight to survive.

How The UN Plans To Use Innovation And Entrepreneurship For Sustainable Development

Several months ago, I wrote a post that was critical of ongoing efforts by the United Nations to renew their Millennium Development Goals (MDG’s) – to be called the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s) moving forward. My concern with the plan stemmed from the fact that we have seen incredible progress in areas of international development as a result of innovation, social entrepreneurship and good policy. And yet, “Draft Zero” of the Sustainable Development Goals, did not showcase the learnings of the last 15 years, and instead, seemed like a laundry list of interest-group agenda items lumped together.

Undercover Tourist Tax Spies In Greece, Then Private Bounty Hunters For IRS

Greece wants to form an army of tax inspectors to rat out tax cheats. Tourists, nannies, students, or anyone could be on surveillance duty. America's IRS could be emboldened even more to roll out private debt collectors.

Alabama Court Gives The Go-Ahead To School Choice Programs

School choice supporters scored another victory this week when the Alabama Supreme Court ruled that the tax-credit scholarship program that Dalphine Wilson uses to send her two children to Catholic school is legal.

Is Mobile Care Killing Your Brand Experience?

Mobile has changed how consumers access information and engage with brands. Consumers expect to be served in the channel of their choice. Increasingly the consumers’ channel of choice is mobile. Companies have the opportunity to create one-to-one relationships that weren’t possible in the age of shared PCs. But many companies are squandering this opportunity while others are damaging their brand by using the mobile channel incorrectly.

Friday, March 6, 2015

Everything You "Know" About Millennials Is Wrong

As every new generation enters the workforce, it never ceases to amaze me how quickly their generation is labeled with "attributes" that are common to young people. These attributes tend to stick, and they quickly become inaccurate as the generation ages (assuming they were even accurate in the first place).

Happy Birthday Zopa, The Inventor Of P2P

Zopa, the inventor of crowdfunding is now 10 years' old - the business has come a long way.

The 1,024 Types Of Salespeople--Hire The Right One!

Hiring good salespeople is one of the hardest things a company has to do. Typically, companies need to go through three salespeople, in order to find one successful one with long-term closing power. This hard fact can take its toll on early-stage companies, that have limited budgets, can only afford small teams and can’t afford to make any mistakes which will result in revenues getting delayed down the road. Hopefully, the below categories of salespeople, will help point you in the right direction of which type you should hire for your business.Enterprise vs. SMBEnterprise sales is typically a much longer sales cycle, and needs someone who knows how to work numerous parties and divisions within an organization over time. With smaller businesses, you are typically closer to the decision makers and budgets at the top of the organization for a quicker sale with fewer people involved in the decision making.Early-Stage vs. Late-StageEarly-stage salespeople tend to need more leadership, passion and brand ambassador skills. And, later stage sales people tend to work better within structured and repeatable processes.Inbound vs. OutboundInbound salespeople prefer limited travel and leads coming to them in the office. Outbound salespeople are typically road warriors that spend most of their time selling and schmoozing prospective buyers at the clients’ offices.Simple vs. ConsultativeMost any good salesperson can sell a product that is simple and easy-to-understand. It takes a really special salesperson that can put on a consultative hat with clients, to help them better understand a complex product and remove the fear of the unknown.Competitive vs. Non-CompetitiveAgain, most any good salesperson can have success with limited competition in the market. But, finding a good salesperson that knows how to win business with “hand-to-hand” combat skills up against entrenched competitors is much harder.Big Ticket vs. Small TicketThe bigger the ticket, the longer and harder the sale process, as more decision makers are typically involved in larger ticket purchases. Not all salespeople have the persistence and nurturing skills required to succeed in longer sales cycle products.Hunters vs. RecipientsAny good salesperson should be able to close leads that are handed to them by the marketing department. But, many salespeople do not have the “hunter mentality” to have to drum up leads on their own, with persistent and long term success.Doers vs. ManagersMake sure your salesperson actually has demonstrated recent success in selling, as opposed to managing a team of salespeople. It is very different when you have to “dial for dollars” yourself and are building your own Rolodex of relationships.Lone Wolves vs. Team MembersOftentimes, virtual salespeople working from their home offices have the discipline to stay focused and put in the hard work required. And, some salespeople just prefer the team environment of working alongside their peers in the office. Don’t put a square peg in a round hole.Direct vs. ResellerTypically, you want to hire someone with past success selling one specific product or service, inside that company. Resellers, distributors or channel salespeople are often selling multiple brands, leveraging a broad portfolio of products, and may not be able to show success for one specific product therein.So, with ten categories above and two options in each category, that equates to over 1,024 specific types of salespersons (two to the 10th degree). Try to hire ones that check off the most skills needed for your specific business.Be sure to my companion piece, How to Screen Salesperson Candidates, for a list of key questions you need to ask during the interview process.

Jeb Bush, Grover Norquist, And The Decline Of The Pledge

Does Jeb Bush's refusal to sign the antitax pledge, which as recently as 2010 seemed enshrined as a third rail of Republican politics, mean it is losing relevance?

How Content Marketing Can Power Your Business

I had a super great time talking to Laura at Laura from Clarity about content marketing and what it might be able to do for companies looking to reach people and do something a bit more meaningful. They don’t usually share these conversations with the outside world. Usually just the premium people. But they were […]

The post How Content Marketing Can Power Your Business appeared first on chrisbrogan.com.

Sneakernomics: What's Next For "Athleisure"?

Where we are now

How to Improve Your Marketing with Google Analytics Data

You know Google Analytics is powerful, but do you really know how to use it? Chances are you don’t… Looking at reports isn’t enough. You have to take the data from Google Analytics and make adjustments to your site to get more visitors and conversions. So, how can you use it to improve your marketing? [click to continue...]

1099-C From Out Of The Blue? Don't Ignore It! Fight It!

If you owe somebody money and then you don't have to pay it back that can create taxable income for you. It is called either income from the discharge of indebtedness or cancellation of debt (COD). The rules about when you can exclude COD from taxable income are in Code Section 108. Timing is important. If you are bankrupt or insolvent when the debt is discharged you can exclude it from your taxable income (You may have to adjust your basis in property). The other way that timing can be important is that if you miss reporting COD when it happens and three (or maybe six) years go by, you are home free.

Why Chegg Stock Popped 30%

In a prior Forbes blog, I cited venture capitalist Vinod Khosla's cardinal caution about presentations: “Message sent is not the same as message received.” Another way to think about this is that no matter how compelling your story is, if you don’t package it properly for your audience, you’re materially limiting your ability to tell that story.

Intuit Chief Tax Officer Says Reducing EITC Error Shouldn't Come on Backs of Low-Income Taxpayers

The following post is from David Williams, the Chief Tax Officer at Intuit.

Tips for Dealing with Employees Whose Social Media Posts Reflect Badly on Your Company

In early February 2015, a Texas pizzeria owner “terminated” an employee before she’d even had her first day of work after she tweeted vulgarities about her future job. In January 2015, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals found that a Mississippi police sergeant, fired in 2012 after she posted Facebook comments criticizing her police chief, had no First Amendment protections for her statements. And in December 2014, Nordstrom fired an Oregon employee who had posted a Facebook comment seeming to advocate violence against white police officers. So, are employees’ off-duty social media postings fair grounds for termination? They can be—but be sure to keep the following tips in mind.

Thursday, March 5, 2015

Emotional Intelligence Predicts Job Performance: The 7 Traits That Help Managers Relate

The evidence that Emotional intelligence is a better predictor of workplace performance than IQ is clear . The problem is that no-one can agree what it is about EI that actually makes the difference to performance, until now.

Why You Should Not Use The New Smartphone Fingerprint Readers

New smartphone fingerprint authentication technology promises improvements over Apple's TouchID, but it still presents *serious* risks. Here is what you need to know.

The 7 Lethal Internet Marketing Mistakes Law Firms Make

I must be feeling lucky or am in seventh heaven these days because for some reason the number 7 is very prevalent in my thoughts these days. Over the past few days I scribed the 7 Tips To Better Employee Retention and 7 Mammoth Marketing Mistakes And What To Learn From Them.

From Push To Pull: Engaging With Customers To Find Product-Market Fit

By The RelateIQVoice Team

Despite FATCA, U.S. Companies Stash $2.1 Trillion Abroad---Untaxed

U.S. companies have trillions offshore out of reach of the IRS. Why isn't that income taxable? Why isn't that capital at work in America?

Henry Rollins on the Art and Business of DIY Media

I vividly remember the first time I heard Black Flag. It was in a kid named Mike Goodman’s bedroom, and the record was called Damaged. That’s how it was pre-Internet in suburban Houston. If it wasn’t on the radio or MTV, it was invisible — unless some cool kid turned you on to something new

The post Henry Rollins on the Art and Business of DIY Media appeared first on Copyblogger.

Rags To Riches: Cyprus Emigrant Builds A Fortune In London Real Estate

Billionaire Christos Lazari calls the President of Cyprus Nicos Anastasiades a close friend. In 2014, Christos offered to foot the bill for private planes Nicos needed after the Eurozone bailout and austerity measures squeezed the country’s budget.

Do You Need A Good Excuse To Do A Digital Detox?

Do you need a good excuse to switch off? Sometimes, we need to take a step back from digital platforms to regain vital perspective. This weekend is a great time to try a digital detox, joining many people around the world who are doing just that.

Wednesday, March 4, 2015

How Do You Know When It’s Time to Hire Someone Else?

I was working on the audiobook (long overdue) for my book, The Freaks Shall Inherit the Earth and I came to a part of a chapter that might be useful to you. Are you thinking of hiring someone else? Are you a solo business and wondering if you should have a partner? Are you wondering […]

The post How Do You Know When It’s Time to Hire Someone Else? appeared first on chrisbrogan.com.

Scott Walker and the Gotcha Question

Governor Scott Walker (R-Wis.) got caught up in the wake of the dust storm kicked up when former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, speaking at a private dinner in New York featuring Mr. Walker, said, “I do not believe, and I know this is a horrible thing to say, but I do not believe that the president loves America…He wasn’t brought up the way you were brought up and I was brought up through love of this country.”

The Future of Marketing: Goodbye, Don Draper. Hello, Captain Kirk.

Watching the TV series Mad Men, with its pitch-perfect view of advertising and marketing execs in the 1960s, it’s easy to marvel at how dramatically the world has changed since then. But has it, really? There are still brands sinking huge budgets into full-service agency contracts, spending millions to produce and run :30 TV spots, and expecting the audience to believe whatever product claims they put out there.

Why Organizational Happiness May Lead To The Death Of Your Company

Companies are into organizational happiness these days, when what is really needed is discipline. If employers really believed that employee happiness leads to high levels of productivity and profitability, then they would get rid of those managers who never should have been placed into a leadership role in the first place. In a recent TinyHR survey, employees were asked what they wished for most in the New Year. The second most asked for item on their wishlist was a new manager. As the economy continues to improve, employees will be taking their skills elsewhere in search of better leadership. Lucky for you, there is still time to retain these employees and save your company from what will most likely be a slow and painful death. Here's how.

10 Fun Exercises That Will Help You Become a Better Entrepreneur

When I first started out as an entrepreneur, I lacked many skills. I wasn’t able to think on my feet; I wasn’t good at sales; and I was a terrible networker. And the list goes on… What do you think I did? Quit? Of course not! Instead, I developed the necessary skills. How? I created 10 unique exercises [click to continue...]

Tips And Advice From Top CEOs

Why Interactive Content May Be the Most Exciting Marketing Tactic of 2015

I’m looking forward to speaking at the Authority Rainmaker conference this May in Denver, Colorado. As a longtime Copyblogger fan, it’s a great privilege, and I can’t wait to meet many of you. The title of my talk will be: How to Design Interactive Content — Moving Beyond Button Clicks and Form Fills. Which begs

Want Viral Content? Try this Instead

Everybody wants to make their content go viral these days. I can tell you for sure, a lot of CEOs are walking into the office of their marketing director chanting, “We need viral content.” Most companies that have content marketing on their agenda talk about virality and feel their mission has been accomplished if their content manages to hit ‘X’ number of shares on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn. But what is the true pay out for viral success? Cat memes are fun, and sure we’ll savor the page views that a news jacked parody of the latest Kardashian stunt may bring. But unless you sell cat toys, or your first and last name begins with “K,” what does that type of viral get you?

What You Can Learn about Customer Experience from Sharing Economy Companies

A couple weeks ago, San Francisco-based taxi company DeSoto announced a rebranding effort to try to reclaim market share lost to ride-sharing service Uber. The company adopted the name of a mobile app, Flywheel, and repainted its vehicles in the hopes of helping passengers realize they can use a mobile app to summon a taxi.

Changing The Workplace: Past And Future

At most organizations around the world decisions around how we work follow a very top down chain of command . The executives or key stakeholders that sit at the top of our organizations decide everything including how we work, what we work on, what we wear, who we work with, what technologies we use, and of course where we work. These decisions are then passed down the food chain to senior and mid-level managers who then enforce these rules and pass them down to employees. However we are now starting to see this trends completely take a 180 degree turn and employees are starting to drive the conversation. Why? Because of the five trends shaping the future of work which are creating an unprecendented war for talent that is forcing organizations to shift from creating an environment where they assume employees need to work there to creating an environment where employees want to work there. Dan Pink said it best, "talented people need organizations less than organizations need talented people. "

How To Manage Executive Onboarding The Way McDonald's Brings In New Franchisees

If everyone treated executive onboarding the way McDonald’s brings its franchisees into the fold, the failure rates for new leaders would plummet.

Tuesday, March 3, 2015

Professional Networks Power Our Economy

Professional social networks such as LinkedIn are as important to our economy as banks and capital markets. Those network reduces risks in our economy by offering transparency into the job market.

[VIDEO] Loews Hotels CMO Bruce Himelstein On Keeping A Brand And Customer Experience Unique

Loews Hotels & Resorts is not the largest hotel company in the world, but it has been working for the past few years to be the most innovative. Under the marketing leadership of CMO Bruce Himelstein, the company has harnessed social media to be the first to enable bookings via Twitter, introducing the option in 2013, and also that year unveiled its $4 million print and digital campaign, “The Room You Need,”—a play on the word “room”—developed with agency Catch New York.

It's Time To Simplify Innovation

Innovation is critical for companies today -- but all the new frameworks, definitions, templates, models, and tools have made the process increasingly complex. In order to increase the chances of success, we need to simplify innovation. Here are several thoughts about how.

Springleaf Bulks Up, Citigroup Slims Down In $4.25 Billion Subprime Lender Sale

Expedience may be the critical selling point of Citigroup's $4.25 billion sale of OneMain to Springleaf Holdings.

Dan Pink on How to Succeed in the New Era of Selling

Selling isn’t what it used to be. And for most of us, that’s a good thing. Gone are the days of alpha males who are “always closing.” Today, in the new era of selling that has dawned, many of us are spending much more of our time selling than we even realize. This is the

The post Dan Pink on How to Succeed in the New Era of Selling appeared first on Copyblogger.

7 Tips To Better Employee Retention

No matter the size or stage your business is currently at, having employees leave is just bad for business. As the Wall Street Journal notes, a high employee turnover rate can cost “twice an employee’s salary to find and train a replacement.” Not only are there financial repercussions, a high turnover rate can also lower the knowledge base in your company and decrease performance and morale.

'Significant Deficiencies' In Audits Of Public Companies

International audits involving systemically important financial institutions or SIFIs - which include global banks and insurers - have the highest number of deficiencies relating to auditing of allowance for loan losses and loan impairments, internal control testing, and auditing the valuation of investments and securities, says the International Forum of Independent Audit Regulators (IFIAR) in London today.

The Real Reason Why Employees Should Use Collaboration Tools At Work

Why should employees use internal collaboration tools to get work done, why not just stick with email? It's a fair question right? I should know, I wrote a 340 page strategy guide called The Collaborative Organization where I listed out all sorts of reasons, case studies, strategies, and tactics. Companies around the world spends hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars on collaboration platforms to get employees to move away from email and into more efficient and ways of communicating and collaboration. The ultimate challenge for these companies always revolves around getting employees to use the tools. Technology is just that, a tool, but without usage it's meaningless. I've worked with and researched many companies over the past few years to understand how they position and sell these collaboration initiatives internally.

Monday, March 2, 2015

Marketing Lessons From #TheDress That Went Viral

When Caitlin McNeill and her friends couldn’t agree upon the color of a dress, she posted the innocuous photo, seeking the opinions of her Tumblr-sphere, but she never imagined what would happen next.

The African Billionaires 2015

Meet the 29 African billionaires in 2015

11 Tactics to Get More Click-Throughs from Social Media

If you want to get traffic from the social web, all you have to do is publish updates with your links in them, right? I wish that were the case. If it were this simple, my follower and fan count would guarantee me hundreds of thousands of visitors each month from social media sites. So, how [click to continue...]

Finally, Suing IRS Over All Those Emails

With 32,000 more emails just 'found,' IRS still has some explaining to do, particularly given the report that no one asked to recover them. This tax season, taxpayers everywhere are wondering how they would fare if they responded to an audit in this way.

The Secret To A Killer Networking Meeting? Treat It Like An Interview

Because just saying your job title doesn’t say enough.

Hey, It Could Happen! The Optimist's Case For Tax Reform

It’s easy to be cynical about tax reform. Politicians tell us that fixing the tax system is imperative and essential. But comprehensive reform is unusual and durable changes rarer still. That’s not exactly a recipe for optimism.

How to Crowd-Publish Your Content Without Asking for Money

If you read the headline, “Portland Entrepreneur Raises $13 Million by Enticing 62,000 People to Buy His Cooler,” which part fascinates you? How about, “7,000 Hungry Folks Raise $55,000 for Potato Salad Project?” I imagine, if you’re anything like the majority, those large amounts of money stand out. After all, $13 million is a gigantic

The World's Youngest Billionaires 2015

The 30 Year-Old Nigerian Mobile Phone Entrepreneur Who Is Challenging Apple In Africa

Michael Akindele, a 30 year-old Nigerian, is a director and co-founder of SOLO Phone, a new experience-driven digital content and Smartphone company focused on delivering the best content and services on the mobile platform to African consumers. He spoke about his entrepreneurial journey and why he believes SOLO Phone is better than the competition

Solar Energy; The Real Facts

Most power plants in the United States and around the world are using fossil fuels to generate electricity and operate. Fossil fuels has-been used as an energy source while the man has learned to generate power. Fossil fuels have been-around for ages and when man started using this energy nobody but the consequences. Fossil fuels ...

Free-Agent Lifestyle Replaces Rat Race For More Americans

Leading tours to forage for wild mushrooms in North Carolina's woods, Alan Muskat lives a life that might sound like an idyllic fantasy to many cubicle dwellers. At his business No Taste Like Home in Asheville, the Princeton University graduate sells his harvests to local restaurants in bulk or arranges for

India's Largest Cab Hiring Startup Ola Acquires Nearest Rival TaxiForSure, Leaving Uber Far Behind

In the very first sign of consolidation in India’s cab-summoning app space, India’s largest cab hire service, Ola, acquired its nearest competitor TaxiForSure for $200 million, in a cash and equity deal.

The Characteristics Of A True Leader

Every one of us is a leader in our own right. Whether we lead an entire company, or a team of people, or a group of friends, or our families, or just ourselves…we are all leaders in some form or fashion. Whatever size our circle of influence may be today, if we work to improve as leaders, that circle of influence will enlarge.

Sunday, March 1, 2015

Two New Big Players in Web Video - With Very Different Visions Of The Future

For the past ten years there was only one answer to the question: ?Who owns Internet Video?? It was YouTube, hands down. But in the past 90 days - we?ve seen two major players get in the game in a way that will forever change how video on the web

Corporate Titan, Phuti Mahanyele Resigns As Shanduka's CEO After 10 Years And No Politics For Her

After 10 years at Shanduka Group, one of the leading South African investment holding company in South Africa, Phuti Mahanyele, the firm's Chief Executive Officer, announced her resignation last week and that she will leave the company at the end of June this year. With interests in telecoms, food and beverage, property, financial services, energy, and industrial sectors, Mahanyele helped grow the Shanduka Group’s net asset value to about 8 billion Rands ($686,080,000 USD). Additionally, under the helm of the outgoing dynamic CEO, one of the group's subsidiaries, Shanduka Beverages was appointed as one of Coca Cola's four franchised bottlers in South Africa; with a work-force of 800 permanent staff, Shanduka Group owns 70% of Coca Cola Shanduka Beverages and Coca Cola owns 30%.

Why Balancing The Budget Means Economic Catastrophe

It appears as if those in Washington may once again be preparing to make our economic situation even worse than it is. We have already navigated fiscal cliffs, sequestration, and other attempts to make the government fiscally “responsible,” and we dodged a bullet only days ago with respect to shutting down Homeland Security. But there are many--among both policy makers and the general public--who are convinced that one of our short-term priorities must be reducing government spending. Even Chuck Norris has now thrown his hat into the balanced-budget ring (Ready for a new U.S. Constitutional Convention?)!

How To Approach The Boss When Conflict Arises

Did A Strong Dollar Cause The Bloodbath In HP's Stock Last Week?

HP’s leadership blamed the strong dollar for a lackluster financial report, which caused a slaughter in the company’s stock on Wall Street last week. That’s certainly a legitimate excuse for a company that derives a big chunk of its sales and earnings from overseas. Except for one thing -- Wall Street knows

HTC One M9 Faces Off With Powerful Galaxy S6

See how I got on with the HTC One M9 in my hands-on review here.

Conferences That Will Keep You Ahead Of Marketing Trends This Year

Here are 15 conferences that allow entrepreneurs, marketers, and business owners at every level to learn from the best.

Egyptian Billionaire Naguib Sawiris Plans To Pay $40 Million For Control Of Euronews

Egyptian billionaire Naguib Sawiris is planning to acquire a 53% stake in French media company Euronews Television for $40 million

The Cost Of Solar Energy

Solar energy is a natural source of energy that comes directly from the sun. When solar energy hits the earth it spreads over the surface of the earth and provides heat evenly. If you could capture the sun’s rays in a particular area over a long period of time that will provide enough heat for ...