Saturday, August 30, 2008
RE: 10 Tips from This Week's Featured Woman Entrepreneur or Executive.
This week's featured woman entrepreneur or executive is Mei Xu, Founder and Creator of Chesapeake Bay Candle and Blissliving.
about Mei Xu, Founder and Creator of CHESAPEAKE BAY CANDLE and Blissliving (Rockville, Maryland).
Mei Xu is the creator of candle- and home fragrance brand Chesapeake Bay Candle and interior lifestyle brand BlisslivingHome. She studied to be a diplomat in China and received a BA in English Literature from the Beijing Foreign Studies University. After the Tiananmen Square uprising in 1989, she and other college graduates were sent to work in the countryside and factories for their "re-education". Not satisfied with her situation, she applied for and received a fellowship to the University of Maryland and in 1992, earned her MA in Journalism. Mei and her husband, David Wang (who emigrated to the U.S. four months after Mei), took a series of uninspiring jobs and desperate for new opportunitie. In 1994, they went to a gift show, toting an array of products – massage pillows, musical dolls, silk flowers, glow candles and more. They received $90,000 in glow candle orders and were well on their way to becoming a real company. In 1996, sales slowed and Mei and David turned their Annapolis, Maryland home into a lab by making candles in her basement with soup cans and paper towel rolls. Today, with retail partners such Target, Kohl’s, IKEA and Pier 1 Imports...2000 varieties of candles and accessories...and 40 percent annual growth over 10 years; Chesapeake Bay Candle has become a household name synonymous with scent, style and ambiance. The company has been named twice by Inc. magazine as one of America's fastest growing company.
In 2007, Mei launched Blissliving Home, a line of home accessories, bedding, and candles inspired by Thailand, Morocco, and other global destination locales. She has since combined both brands under one holding company, Pacific Trade International, a $60 million dollar home decor and textiles company. She has also created the Mei Xu Cultural Exchange Foundation, providing video-conferencing software enabling American students in Washington to have real time interaction with English immersion Chinese students in Hangzhou, China. In 2007, the Asian Women in Business Organization honored Mei with their Entrepreneurial Leadership Award.
Mei's Top 10 Tips
1: Blue Sky Thinking
Just because we run a million things everyday doesn't mean we should not always have a moment to pause, and look at the blue sky. Taking a break allows us to think about things in a completely fresh prospective and give us the opportunity to evaluate our positions, priorities and strategies.
2: Lock your Blackberry up, for the weekend and in the evenings
I know many of you are addicted, or controlled, by your Blackberry. It pops up everywhere: between meetings, at birthday parties of our children, or even at the dinner table before the main course is served. As important as it is in your life, it sometimes deprives you of the attention you need to pay to the ones you truly love.
3: Follow your passion, not money, when you decide which business to start
It is easy to make a decision solely based on the money you could make. Ask yourself if a prospective opportunity is the career or business you would be proud of 10 years later. Can you see yourselves pour your heart and soul into it and enjoy the ups and downs of that for the rest of your life?
4. Make it liquid, when it comes to money in business
It is very tempting to invest in certain aspect of financial products or real estate. After all, experts always advise you to grow your money. But in business, liquidity is gold. It is precisely due to lack of cash flow that many companies are not able to last more than 3 years.
5. Hire slowly and fire quickly
Employment relationships are like dating. I believe in hiring slowly and firing quickly, even though most companies do the opposite. Organizations are faced with the challenge of evaluating when to hire and when to fire. Always remember to not burden those who are performing with those who are not. And because of that, you must find the right person that can blossom in your company.
6. Always leave the idea box open
One of the biggest challenges for a small business is that it may get caught up pretending it has become a big one. It may start are putting "rules and procedures" in place. And meetings start to get longer and more frequent. Try to stay as nimble as possible and encourage your staff to come forward with good ideas. Try to maintain a layer free structure when ideas and creativity are concerned. Do not let yourself become too removed from the creative process.
7. Know your friends well, but your enemies even better
Train your sales team to become as sharp as network correspondents. Equip your sales staff with the tools to unlock the inner work of your competitors through their customer interaction and market research. No level of preparation is ever going to be enough if you are not focused on defeating your competitors by using your strengths against their weaknesses.
8. Life is a beach, work can become a holiday
That's right. Have some fun. Let your staff know you enjoy coming to work every day and working with them. A great and happy boss is contagious. It can make the little world around you so much more attractive!
9. Don't play the generalist, become the sought-after expert
Find a niche in your industry. It is easy to try to become everything for everybody. But you don't have the energy or the resource to make everybody happy. Why not run a complete inventory of your talents and competitiveness and come up with a niche that has a great potential in the long term?
10. Network even if it takes away time from work
Whatever experiences you are going through in life and at work, chances are other people have been through it before. Networking with peers is the easiest way to find answers that you cannot get from your customers, staff or friends. And what a rewarding experience it is to help others with your expertise in return! You become stronger and better when sharing your experiences with peers.
Contact Information
Mei Xu
Founder and Creator of Chesapeake Bay Candles and Blissliving
Web:
http://www.chesapeakebaycandle.com and
http://www.blisslivinghome.com866-95-BLISS or 1.800.331.8339
Many appreciations to Mei for her words of wisdom!
Think Mei's 10 Tips deserve a complimentary
pair of shoes from the RE:INVENTION team? Post a kind comment!
Share your expertise! Submit A REQUEST to have your company featured along with your 10 Tips For 10 Million Women.RETURN TO TODAY'S RE:INVENTION BLOG POST.ARCHIVED FEATURESClick
HERE to read previous 10 Tips for 10 Million Women features.
Labels: 10 tips for 10 million women, entrepreneurs, executives, marketing to women, Mei Xu, women, women entrepreneurs, women executives
Saturday, August 23, 2008
RE: 10 Tips from This Week's Featured Woman Entrepreneur or Executive.
This week's featured woman entrepreneur or executive is Randi Smith-Todorowski, a 3rd degree Certified Black Belt Instructor and owner of Atlas Martial Arts.
about Randi Smith-Todorowski, owner of Atlas Martial Arts and Click N' Kick, an online training academy (Scotsdale, AZ).
Randi Smith-Todorowski, a 3rd degree Certified Black Belt Instructor and martial arts school owner, believes every woman deserves to be armed with confidence. As a women’s self-defense expert, she has trained thousands of women how to recognize danger and avoid it. Whether you are 8 or 88, you do not need to be a victim. From a small martial arts school started in Scottsdale in 2004, Randi has now taken her passion global. By concentrating on Corporate Wellness Solution Programs and building an online academy, the sky is the limit for growth potential.
With over 12 years of training in the soft martial arts, Randi teaches that size and strength can be overcome by finesse, technique and awareness. She owns Atlas Martial Arts in Scottsdale, AZ, which has recently introduced Click N’ Kick, the online training academy. You can spend 5 minutes a day learning something new.
Her expertise has been featured on NBC, and she is often hired by Fortune 500 companies to educate the staff on personal safety; especially important for women walking through parking garages. Randi teaches women to recognize their intuition and then trust it. Confidence is what gives you the courage to get out of bad situations before they are unrecoverable.
Randi's Top 10 Tips
Build Your Network Before You Need It -- Join the best professional networking organization in your area and get involved. For me this is NAWBO Phoenix, just voted best place to network in 2008! As the co-chair for Membership, I have an excuse to know and help tons of great highly motivated business owners!
Be Passionate About What You Do -- Let your enthusiasm radiate through you. Excitement breeds excitement. People will be drawn you.
Fall in Love with Yourself -- The more you love you, the better you treat you. Commit yourself to continuing personal development.
Ask for Help -- Find referral partners. Work in your strength and get help with your weaknesses. Help is everywhere and often times free for the asking. Need help? Just start asking.
Remember Giver's Gain -- Aim first and foremost to help other people. Do not give to receive. Trust the Law of Reciprocity and recognize that when you give first, you will receive abundantly. Put your hand away and put your scale away.
Start Saying Yes -- Even if you can't see how something benefits you today, just say YES! Watch and see how much bigger your world becomes.
Keep a Black Belt Attitude -- Becoming a black belt in Kung Fu takes serious discipline and commitment to a goal. Be like a Black Belt. Make serious commitments to yourself and others...and keep them...whether it is returning phone calls or following up.
Leave a Lasting Impression -- Be an interesting and engaging Communicator. Brand yourself - when people think about self empowerment and Corporate Wellness I hope that they think of Randi at Atlas Martial Arts.
Identify and Leverage your Gifts -- What do you love to do? Become an expert at it. Use this to build your business around and you will never "work" another day in your life.
Drink More Water -- Water is a powerful force that carves valleys through mountains. Drink it to purify your organs, bathe in it to purify your body. Listen to it to inspire your soul!
Contact Information
Randi Smith-TodorowskiOwner - ATLAS MARTIAL ARTS and Click 'N KickWeb:
http://www.atlasmartialarts.com/Email:
randi@atlasmartialarts.com480.556.9181
Many appreciations to Randi for her words of wisdom!
Think Randi's 10 Tips deserve a complimentary
pair of shoes from the RE:INVENTION team? Post a kind comment!
Share your expertise! Submit A REQUEST to have your company featured along with your 10 Tips For 10 Million Women.RETURN TO TODAY'S RE:INVENTION BLOG POST.ARCHIVED FEATURESClick
HERE to read previous 10 Tips for 10 Million Women features.
Labels: 10 tips for 10 million women, entrepreneurs, executives, marketing to women, Randi Smith-Todorowski, women, women entrepreneurs, women executives
Saturday, August 16, 2008
RE: 10 Tips from This Week's Featured Woman Entrepreneur or Executive
This week's featured woman entrepreneur or executive is Nanice Ellis, a Professional International Life Coach and CEO of Aardvark Global Publishing Company.
about Nanice Ellis, Life Coach and CEO of Aardvark Global Publishing Company (Salt Lake City, Utah).
Nanice Ellis is a licensed master Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) Practitioner, Master Results Coach, Advanced Neurological Repatterner, Performance Consultant, Professional Intuitive, Energy Healer and author of The Infinite Power of You, What If, and Is There A White Elephant In Your Way?. Nanice is also CEO of Aardvark Global Publishing Company, a company that specializes in helping thousands of independent authors every year publish their books while retaining all rights and control. Aardvark supplies new and seasoned authors every service necessary for publishing their books including Interior Book, Layout, Cover Design, ISBN, Copyrighting and Printing
Nanice's Top 10 Tips.
Know exactly what you want - Unsuccessful people go through life with a foggy idea of what they want, but in order to create success on any level you must know exactly what you want. You don't need to know all the details and every step you need to take, but you must be extremely clear about the end result. You need to know where you are going in order to arrive at your destination. It's only when you have a clear picture of what it is that you are striving to attain that you have any chance of actually getting it. When you can see it clearly with your mind, clarify it with your words and feel your desired outcome in every cell in your body, you are creating the energy and mentality necessary for your success.
Commit to your vision - Being committed to your vision means that NOTHING will stop you. Those who truly succeed have made a commitment to themselves to keep going until they reach their goal. They believe that what they intend already exists and they just have to keep taking one step after another until they arrive at their destination. It doesn't matter how long it takes or the amount of effort required - nothing can stop them. There will always be challenges and delays on the path of success and most people give up and take another road, but those who persevere no matter the challenge are virtually guaranteed their heart's desire.
Adjust courses if needed - It's important to be committed to our end result but sometimes as we go along our path, we gain more knowledge, insight and unexpected opportunities appear. Success has peripheral vision. It keeps its eye on the goal, but is aware enough to spot unknown possibilities, a better route to the destination or even a better destination. It's important to add a bit of flexibility to any plan for success to flow. Be clear about what you want, but wise enough to know when a shift in perspective, direction or intention is most beneficial.
Take chances - Greater success only exists outside your comfort zone. As long as we stay within our current comfort zones, our success will stay limited as well. What we want always exists outside our comfort zone - otherwise we would already have it. Your comfort zone is as far as you will go without feeling anxious, unsure or fearful. These same feelings are emotional guards that keep you from moving towards what you want. When most people hit upon them, they turn back to situations where they feel more secure and confident, but if you really want to be successful, you must learn how to move past your fears and insecurities - you must have the courage and willingness to expand your current comfort zone to include your possible potential.
Fake it until you make it - In everything that I have ever succeeded at, I jumped in the water and then figured out how to swim. I'm not saying that you shouldn't prepare and have all your ducks in a row - certainly you should. But, there will come a time when you find yourself out on the diving board uncertain if you can stay afloat once you dive in. These are the turning points in your success. You can either turn back or you can take a chance and dive right in, having faith and confidence that you will somehow figure out how to swim. The point is that you won't be able to predict or prepare for every step of your journey towards success - there will come a time when you are asked to do more than you think you can. Do it anyway and be willing to learn as go. You don't have to be an expert at everything you do, but you do have to be willing to become one in the process of learning. The most successful people are the ones who are willing to learn as they go and willing to go all the way.
Treat your time and energy as valuable commodities - Your time and energy are your greatest resources and must be treated as such. Are you someone who gives your time and energy away to things and/or people when you don't really want to? If so, it is time to take it back. You may be able to create unlimited amounts of money and other resources, but there is only so much time and energy in one life-time. Where you put your time and energy will determine the amount of success that you will create in all areas of your life. People who give their time away unconsciously to mindless dead-ends like TV and video games are throwing away time that could go to achieving their dreams. People who also put the needs of others before their own are giving valuable energy away that can be channeled into great success. If you treat your time and energy as the valuable, limited resources that they are, your choices will become much more conscious and intentional and move you closer to the success that you desire.
Be yourself - Your greatest success will always come as a result of being who you really are. The only job that you have on this planet is to be yourself. Of all the people who have ever lived and will ever live, there is only one unique you. You offer gifts that only you can offer. Your greatest success will come from the fullest and most authentic expression of who you really are. When you allow your gifts and talents to shine forth, magic begins and success follows.
Connect with people - Success does not happen in a vacuum. Success happens because we are all part of an integrated web. In order to be truly successful, we must utilize our connections and human resources. We must let the world know who we are and be willing to share whatever it is we are called to share. It also means knowing when to ask for help - and doing so frequently. Every time we make a connection both professional and personally we open up thousands of possibilities. You never know who knows who, and they just might know the perfect person to help you take the next step.
People before profits - It's not about the money. In the end, prosperity and success is measured by the amount of good you can contribute to others. On our deathbeds, we won't be counting the amount of money we have accumulated or the number of degrees on our wall. What we will be adding up is the amount of good we did in the world and the number of people we helped to succeed in whatever way we could. People know when you are in business to only make money and when you are in business because you sincerely want to help. Most people are likely to give their business where they are most appreciated. If you make contribution your priority, material success will likely follow and you'll enjoy it so much more.
Expect Miracles - When we are clear about what we want, totally committed to the outcome, and willing to take chances, we create the space for miracles to happen. There is a great force "out there" that wants for us what we want for ourselves and when we do our part, "it" can do its part. This might look like being in the right place at the right time, accidentally meeting just the right person to help us succeed, unexpected support coming out of no where, an amazing resource magically appearing, or all the wonderful synchronicities that make success happen. If you were to interview just about any successful person, you would discover that it was the miraculous synchronicities that made the difference in their success. This miraculous energy, which conspires on our part, can bring us exactly what we need when we need it. When we live in a space of expecting miracles, we open ourselves to possibilities and opportunities we might otherwise not see. The bottom line is that the more we set our energies in any one direction, the more unseen energies can support us in creating exactly what we want.
Contact Information
Nanice EllisCEO of Aardvark Publishing Company and Professional International Life Coach.Web:
www.aardvarkglobalpublishing.com and
www.nanice.comEmail:
nanice@naniceellis.com801.953.6490
Many appreciations to Nanice for her words of wisdom!
Think Nanice's 10 Tips deserve a complimentary
pair of shoes from the RE:INVENTION team? Post a kind comment!
Share your expertise! Submit A REQUEST to have your company featured along with your 10 Tips For 10 Million Women.RETURN TO TODAY'S RE:INVENTION BLOG POST.ARCHIVED FEATURESClick
HERE to read previous 10 Tips for 10 Million Women features.
Labels: 10 tips for 10 million women, aardvark publishing, entrepreneurs, executives, nanice ellis, women
Saturday, August 09, 2008
RE: 10 Tips from This Week's Featured Woman Entrepreneur or Executive
This week's featured woman entrepreneur or executive is Alice Cunningham, Founder and co-owner of Olympic Hot Tub Company.
about Alice and Olympic Hot Tub
Alice Cunningham, the founder and co-owner of Olympic Hot Tub, has 31 years of experience building one of the most successful and award-winning hot tub retail operations in the United States. She knows a thing or two about entrepreneurial success and she puts a great twist on our 10 Tips for 10 Millions Women feature by instead offering us her 10 Mistakes to Avoid.
Of her advice and her business Alice says, "If there is one thing I have learned over almost 30 years of helping customers take care of themselves it is that we all put this off far longer than we should and run the real risk of paying a high price if we don’t. Stress, chronic aches and pains, sleepless nights and other consequences of a busy, charged life are giving us all a run for our money in more ways that we can count. Take this list to nearest mirror, look yourself in the eye, and consider the path to success you are traveling to grow your business. Just a few meaningful changes can result in a smoother journey and a faster road to success. This I know for sure based on my years of experience in the entrepreneurial trenches."
Alice's 10 Mistakes to Avoid.
Mistake #1 - Addicted to Being Right. If you're ultra-competitive, watch for signs that you argue every point to the death -- right or wrong. Make a practice of listening to every side of an argument. Owning a business does not make you right about everything. What can you gain from a staff that agrees with you 100 percent of the time?
Mistake #2 - Always Needing to be In Control. You know if you're a control freak. You can't delegate, you're a workaholic and you are picky about each and every detail. The ONLY way to grow your business is finding people who are better than you at certain tasks, letting them do what they're good at and managing the results. To grow, you have to find great people and delegate or you'll end up working 100 hours a week.
Mistake #3 - Having a Captious Personality. Are you quick to point out the trivial faults in other people while never giving compliments to counter them? If you bask in the negative and focus on pointing out the problems, nip this tendency now. Make a habit of praising the good. Take a trip from animal trainers who reward their subjects for doing the desired behavior. Be lavish with praise and short but to the point with criticism.
Mistake #4 - Blaming Other People. Accept personal accountability in yourself and insist on it from those who work for you. If you blame your staff, outside forces, competitors, the economy, etc. for all of your woes, you'll never accomplish what you set out to do. Problems are a normal part of doing business. A business is never going to be perfect. Take the blame and move on.
Mistake #5 - Seeing the Trees and Not the Forest. If you're mired in the day-to-day with every detail demanding your attention, step back, dust off that vision and set bigger goals. See the greater good.
Mistake #6 - Possessing a Careless Tongue. Do you have one of these? Are you prone to gossip and addicted to using sarcasm? If you find that you simply can't hold back inappropriate comments that are better off left unsaid, now's the time to take stock. Just because you are the owner doesn't give you a license to say anything about or to your employees, suppliers or staff. Set an example for your staff by holding every confidence to yourself, respecting everyone and treating others as you'd like to be treated.
Mistake #7 - Having a Lack of Balance in Your Life. Entrepreneurs who have a lack of balance in their lives are usually workaholics. You may be addicted to your work and forgoing all of life's pleasures. Get off that dead-end track now. Your business will prosper as you allow yourself to be more of a whole person. Remember this adage: No one ever says on their deathbed that they wish they had spent more time at the office.
Mistake #8 - Expressing Uncontrolled Anger. Do you blow up at your employees? If you have no self-control and often allow your anger to get the better of you, you'll leave a trail of hurt feelings and animosity in your wake. Take a deep breath. Go walk around the block. Words spoken harshly during a blow-up can produce no good results. It will take a thousand words of praise to begin to undo one blast of uncontrolled anger.
Mistake #9 - Taking Yourself Too Seriously. If your switch is always turned on, you can't loosen up and you take every little thing seriously, you're in for trouble. Most people want to be in a workplace filled with humor and respect. Laughing at yourself is actually good for you. Lighten up.
Mistake #10 - Becoming a Victim of the "Slot Machine" Syndrome. This is the practice of pulling a handle and wishing money would fall out of the machine. Because all the marketing hype about easy ways to succeed, falling for this can be a dangerous and costly habit. The only sure way to success is goal setting, consistent hard work and patience.
Contact Information
Alice Cunningham
Founder and co-owner of Olympic Hot Tub Company
Web: http://www.olympichottub.com/
Email: alice@olympichottun.com
206.286.0700
Kudos to Alice for her smart advice!
Want Alice's advice to earn her a complimentary pair of shoes? Post a kind comment!
Share your expertise! Submit A REQUEST to have your company featured along with your 10 Tips For 10 Million Women.
RETURN TO TODAY'S RE:INVENTION BLOG POST.
ARCHIVED FEATURES
Click HERE to read previous 10 Tips for 10 Million Women features.
Friday, August 08, 2008
RE: The RE:INVENTION Women at Work Report
RE:INVENTION is pleased to introduce our first monthly Women At Work Report. The report consolidates marketplace trends about women executives and entrepreneurs and evaluates these trends on a chic scale of longevity.
The top five trends identified in the RE:INVENTION Women at Work Report for August 2008 are:
1. The death of 'marketing to women?'
2. Working women worrying more about retirement, but still aren't saving enough
3. Budget-conscious women invent "Staycations"
4. Women advancing to c-level technology careers, but only in non-technology metro markets
5. Momtourages make their mark
Click on the following links for the full report (pdf) and press release (pdf).
Media can contact RE:INVENTION for use of this report or for a quote by calling 312.635.1350 ext 3.
The second Women at Work Report will be released during September.
Labels: marketing to women, momtourage, staycation, Women at Work Report, women entrepreneurs, women executives
Saturday, August 02, 2008
RE: 10 Tips from This Week's Featured Woman Entrepreneur or Executive
This week's featured woman entrepreneur or executive is Kristen Marie Schuerlein, 
Founder and CEO, Affirmagy Inc. (Seattle, WA).
about Kristen and Affirmagy, Inc.
In 2005 Kristen launched Affirmagy as a 'nights and weekend hobby' designing blankets to wrap people in Love, Abundance and Serenity... The things she wanted more of after a health challenge at age 32. Today Affirmagy is comprised of five divisions: online retail, wholesale, custom design, licensing and fundraising.
In Kristen's words: "Affirmagy is a woman-owned business in Seattle WA. In our office you will find a poster of Rosie the Riveter declaring, 'We can do it'. Trust us, around here that about sums it up!
With clarity of intention, faith, trust and a team of amazing people, we are spreading the power of affirmations far and wide. Why? Because we know how powerful our thoughts are...how amazing things happen when you affirm the qualities you want in life (they start showing up!). Affirmagy is a dream come true for us and a perfect example of our belief that you can create anything you desire in life.
At Affirmagy we believe words have the power to encourage, enrich and inspire lives. Our cuddly blankets called Affirmawraps are the perfect way to surround yourself with positive affirmations, and inspirational words. People love to give Affirmawraps to themselves and those they adore."
Kristen's Top 10 Tips.
1. Don't expect email to build a relationship. Want to really WOW someone? I don't care how big or small your company is, it's essential that you do this one thing like your life depends on it: write personal notes. Not an email, not a typed letter, a hand-written personal note. And do it within 24 hours of meeting someone or talking to them on the phone. You'll make a powerful impression in a world drunk on email and text messages.
2. Proactively refer people. As strongly as I feel about writing personal notes, this is a close second on the success scale. Get in the habit of referring people powerfully. When I meet new people I genuinely think about the people I know, who would be a good fit and make a warm introduction. No, "Here's a card, call these guys." I personally connect them. I once heard Zig Ziglar give a presentation and declare, " To get what you want in life, help someone else get what they want." Zig is right. The goodwill and positive energy you create from a great referral will always come back tenfold.
3. Don't forget to say 'Thank You.' Most of us do a pretty good job of thanking our customers, or at least we think we do. But do you ever thank your vendor partners? As a small business, we rely heavily on the work of others to get the job done. One of the smartest things I have ever done was give a $50 Amazon.com gift certificate to the owner of the tech company I work with, who I knew loves to listen to books on CDs. Computers are one of the main arteries in our business so we view the guys who keep them running as vital members of our team. He once said to me that receiving our thank-you gift was when he realized we were people he wanted to deepen a business relationship with. Over the years, he has helped grow our company in untold ways. The gift certificate cost us $50, but the relationship to this day is priceless.
4. You cannot treat people poorly and expect fabulous service. Want to grow your workforce exponentially overnight? Bend over backwards to get superior vendors on your team and make them feel like gold. Our vendor partners make us look good all day. Why? Because we never beat them up on price and we treat them like absolute peers. The miracles we have performed because our vendors rose to the occasion time and time again are countless.
5. Don't put up with business as usual. Run for the hills if someone says,"It's just business." This is the ultimate tip-off that a person believes they can treat you poorly, pay you late and expect the moon and the stars because "it's just business." I have yet to hear those words inside a win-win relationship.
6. All banks are not created equal. There is a huge difference between consumer and commercial banks. I've found that business bankers can be worth their weight in gold. When the day came that I needed a loan for a piece of commercial real estate, I called my business banker and the bank I had been banking for years. The business banker ran circles around the other folks - they made the deal happen when the others could not. Get a banker on your team. Think about what's in it for them - how they make money - and become a great consumer. Start this today by overcoming the following tip:
7. Thinking OPM (other people's money) isn't for you. Get a line of credit set up now. It's not a matter of if, but when you'll need it. Banks don't want to talk to you when things are tight. Having a healthy line of credit - as large as you can get based on your revenue - will be a blessing some day. In 2003, my thyroid went whacko, dramatically slowing my performance and my business suffered because of it. Looking back, I realize that without a line of credit - other people's money - in place, we could have lost our company.
8. All accountants do not do taxes. Through great pain and expense, I finally learned that when it comes to taxes, most accountants report on the past and are not experts at how to build a strategy for the future. I learned this one the slow way and I shutter to think what it meant to my bottom line year after year. Accountants specialize. Get yourself a tax expert AND a general accountant. You'll be happy you did, and so will your accountants.
9. Do your best to budget everything. Savvy business owners see the financial impact of everything in their business. Even the smallest of companies should have a budget for phone, lights, rent, supplies, salaries, legal fees, dues and subscriptions, equipment...everything. Armed with a detailed budget, you can develop a plan to generate the revenue to pay all these costs, and then some. It sounds simple, but so many fail to do it. Understanding the costs of opening the doors everyday - whether or not you generate a single sale - is critical to success.
10. When you're the captain of your own ship, have a map. Of all the lessons learned, this may be the most important. You can flawlessly execute on everything I've shared and more, and still not reach your goals. Being the head of your company without a plan is like speeding on a dark road without your headlights turned on. You're driving blind and may be heading for a cliff. The surest way to get where you want to go is to map out a course of milestones and landmarks and plant yourself firmly in the helm. No one cares about your dreams more than you do. Give yourself permission to have big dreams for your business and immediately begin building a team to get you there. I know the investment is worth your time.
Contact Information
Kristen Marie SchuerleinFounder and CEO of Affrimagy, Inc.Web:
http://www.affirmagy.com/http://www.positivelyfundraising.com/http://www.affirawords.com/Email:
kristen@affirmagy.com206.624.6018
Many appreciations to Kristen for her words of wisdom!
Think Kristen's 10 Tips deserve a complimentary
pair of shoes from the RE:INVENTION team? Post a kind comment!
Share your expertise! Submit A REQUEST to have your company featured along with your 10 Tips For 10 Million Women.RETURN TO TODAY'S RE:INVENTION BLOG POST.ARCHIVED FEATURESClick
HERE to read previous 10 Tips for 10 Million Women features.
RE: And The 10 Tips Winner Is...
In July, RE:INVENTION's blog featured 40 insightful and visionary tips from four successful and powerful women. These four women, Susan Wilson Solovic, Lesley Mattos, Lisa Nirell and Jen Groover, were generous enough to share a few of the secrets to their success with women everywhere and for that we thank them!
Each woman also provided her 10 tips with the possibility of scoring a new pair of shoes, compliments of the RE:INVENTION team. The woman whose tips conjured up the highest amount of reader comments would be rewarded a pair of shoes from zappos.com.
We are excited to announce that Susan Wilson Solovic, CEO of SBTV.com, is July's winner. Susan's tips stirred up the most reader comments. Her 10 Tips included: 1. Get Out Of Your Own Way;
2. If You Don't Ask...;
3. It's About the Money, Honey;
4. Be a Constant Learner;
5. Relationships May Change, Be Prepared;
6. Speak With Confidence and Control;
7. When You Say 'Yes' to One Thing, Effectively Say 'No' to Something Else;
8. Network Effectively by Giving;
9. Shatter the Looking Glass;
10. Take a Vacation.
The shoes are our gift to admirable women doing their part to inspire and motivate other working women. When searching for advice for small business success, there is no better resource for tips than a woman who has achieved just that.
We hope you have taken something away from this month's four featured women and we look forward to the tips to come!
Share your expertise! Submit A REQUEST to have your company featured along with your 10 Tips For 10 Million Women. Much appreciation to all four women for their words of wisdom!
Labels: adesso albums, energize growth llc, jen groover, jen groover productions llc, lesley mattos, lisa nirell, SBTV.com, Susan Wilson Solovic, zappos.com
Friday, August 01, 2008
RE: Three Marketing to Women Campaigns Worth Noting
Many great campaigns were created to market to women throughout the month of July and RE:INVENTION would like to give a virtual pat on the back to three that stood out to us. Taking a look back, these three women-targeted marketing campaigns had what it took to successfully court the women of today:
1. Pantene Pro-V® has partnered with the Canadian Cancer Society to launch Pantene Beautiful Lengths® - a campaign encouraging women to grow, cut and donate their hair to create free, real-hair wigs for women who have lost their hair due to the harsh effects of cancer treatments.
Pantene's goal is to allow women to see a familiar image when they look in the mirror during a time when they are fighting to return to normalcy. As reported on the Beautiful Lengths® site, nearly 60 percent of women consider hair-loss the worst side-effect when undergoing chemotherapy.
We think it is wonderful to provide women who are going through such an intense struggle one less thing to worry about. Especially for women, physical appearance can have a strong impact on how we feel and freeing women from the financial burden of a wig - which can get extremely expensive - is an inspiring deed. The best part about the campaign is that the real-hair wigs - which are made up of six, eight-inch ponytails of healthy hair that has not been bleached, permanently dyed or chemically treated - are provided at no cost to the women who receive them.
If you think you may not qualify to donate, check out the Make The Cut page on the Beautiful Lengths® Web site to be sure.
The campaign allows those who may not have the length of hair needed, or cannot donate hair for other reasons, to give monetary donations to the Beautiful Lengths campaign. And since the number of free wigs that become available to cancer patients through this campaign depend entirely on the number of real hair donations received, we encourage you to share Pantene's message with friends and family who may have the hair to donate and have considered donating in the past - make the cut! You'll be helping women everywhere regain the confidence a beautiful head of hair can provide.
Besides, aren't bobs in right now?
2. Last week, while enjoying some Wheat Thins® crackers, we noticed a featured woman on the back of the box named Irma P. from Fort Worth, TX who was being honored for her beautiful Dicho Pots.
Wheat Thins has been featuring the winning women of their national Wheat Thins Creative Expressions contest on limited edition boxes. The popular and yummy cracker brand called for women to submit samples of the creative activities they take part in outside of the workplace - things that make women's lives more rewarding. They were looking to find women whose creative passions can serve as inspiration to others and they are now featuring the women and their expressions on boxes of the crackers.
A Wheat Thins source explains the campaign was started, "Because of the brand's strong commitment to leading balanced lifestyles." This seems like a fun way to provide working women with an outlet to share their passions and express themselves in a way that is different from what they do professionally.
We appreciate how the Creative Expressions, which were judged for creativity, originality and the inspiration behind them, offer a way for successful professional women to explore a different side of themselves and be rewarded for it.
The Wheat Thins Expressions Web site offers a promotional online area for visitors to "share an expression" by creating a one-of-a-kind work of art, choosing a frame and sending to a friend. Ours turned out pretty neat and we must admit, was fun to make!
We hope that the featured women, who will be shown on boxes throughout 2008, inspire other working women to integrate a fun, creative, stimulating hobby into their lives.
3. Keeping in fashion with last month's three featured marketing to women campaigns, we would like to applaud a small campaign with a powerful message.
Philippines-based Gabriela Women's Party is a sectoral party dedicated to promoting the rights and welfare of marginalized and under-represented Filipino women through participation in Philippine's government and electoral system. It is composed of women 18 years and above, having varied occupations, education, interests, ethnic origin, religious affiliation and sexual orientation.
Gabriela Women’s Party seeks to harness the potential, initiative, skills, and leadership of marginalized women towards empowerment, justice, and equality. Through grassroots organizing, education, services, various campaigns and legislative efforts, the group continues to advance the rights of women, children and country.
The group recently received a 2008 Finalist Certificate for the Innovative Advertising Award in the New York Festivals and won bronze at the Cannes Lions 2008 for their ad campaign, featured above, which focuses on reaching out to victims of spousal abuse in an innovative way by posting their advertisements in places not commonly used for victim outreach and different than the historically used television and radio ads, which according to Gabriela, makes the issue seem distant and uncommon thus making women less likely to report incidents.
The Gabriela Women's Party's duct tape-style campaign is tough and proactive. Their message is undeniably important and proves that the problem of spousal abuse is world-wide. Taking their ads to the streets in the way they have is not only innovative and contemporary, but in our opinion, worthy of the extensive recognition it has received.
Have any suggestions for great marketing to women campaigns you saw in July? Let us know by posting a comment!
Keep an eye out for marketing to women campaigns that touch you in August and tell us about them at the end of the month.
Labels: beautiful lengths, campaigns, canadian cancer society, cannes lions 2008, creative expressions, gabriela women's party, marketing to women, new york festivals, pantene pro v, wheat thins
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