Implement a new approach.

Go to your next networking event with this mantra in mind:

It’s not about ME.

It IS about YOU.

This means: do not put yourself at the forefront of the interaction after shaking hands with a woman you’ve met. Instead, focus on the person you’re speaking with, what her needs are and how she would interact with your contacts.

Imagine YOU, someone she might consult, perhaps to resolve tension with her landlord.

Consider YOU, the person to whom this woman might, for example, provide bookkeeping services.

Seat yourself at the hub of a wheel of professionals and specialists. In your travels, you collect information about those you meet. Then, you’re able to make recommendations and introductions. Do this selflessly, without considering the personal benefit you might derive from that initial or subsequent interaction.

Here’s how this change in attitude plays out at Networking events

• Be seen as a connector/Recruit resources: A client recently asked if I knew someone who might conduct market research for his business. Yes, I do. I know five market research professionals. Two spoke with me and were very interested in the project.
• Make introductions: If you know a networking contact is open to meeting a potential client or a potential resource, use your smartphone and dash off an email introducing the pair to each other on the spot.
• Maintain contacts: I know Michael will attend a certain monthly group. We don’t have to email or speak in between events. We catch up in person.
• Learn from the speaker: The presenter stands at the podium because she has specific and timely insights to share with others in the industry or the professional group. Listen up.
• Stay up to date informally: A colleague has a new job. A company is expanding locally or nationally. There’s talk about a competitor losing market share. You’ll hear it through the grapevine. Use your antennae.
• Be seen as in the know: Everyone wants to associate with insiders who have their finger on the pulse of the market. You can be that person.

All of these motivations speak to the mantra of keeping YOU (and not ME) at the center of your networking conversations.

Now, do I hope to meet prospective clients at networking events? YES.

Would I like to receive introductions and referrals? Absolutely.

These are not my primary objectives, however.

Getting referrals and meeting prospects are more likely to happen in follow-up activities outside the networking event, after others see you as knowledgeable and trustworthy. Serving as a resource establishes that expertise and builds that trust.

This Month’s Tip

Andrea Nierenberg, a renowned networking professional, suggests an approach of 2-2-2:

Attend two meetings of this group before you decide to join.
Meet two people at each event.
Arrange two post-event get-togethers.

Contact

Do you listen to WII-FM, the world’s greatest radio station, also known as What’s In It For Me? Perhaps it’s time to switch channels. Contact me at 347.256.9141, set an appointment here or email me at janet@janetlfalk.com and we’ll find some new networking groups where you can become involved and promote your role as a connector and resource.

This is the first in a series of three newsletters about Networking. The second will discuss pre-event marketing and the third will discuss get-to-know-you problem and solution questions that engage networking contacts.

Click here to request the e-book Three Lessons to Improve Your Networking Success.

PS Did you see my quote in The Wall Street Journal? If I can get myself in that most-desired publication, imagine what I might do for you, your clients and your contacts.

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Thanks to Tiffany Ashitey and Tasha Morris of The Benchmark Creative Group. Their invitation to speak at Brooklyn Marketing Week was the impetus to crystallize my approach to networking.

Why let your card get lost in the display?

You send a holiday greeting card in December to everyone you can recall.

Not because the IRS, the SEC or the FDA require you to do so, but because you appreciate the relationship with that contact.

Now that you’ve made the commitment to keep in touch with your clients, colleagues and referral sources, take the next step.

Make sure that your card stands out in the display on your client’s office door or the credenza in the boardroom.

How can you make your card distinctive?

Don’t order from a catalogue. Imagine that your competitor, or a dentist, chose the same one.

Instead, use an image or photo that conveys a sense of your company or organization and its uniqueness.

Center that image on the front of the card, leaving the rest white, as frame. Place a greeting of warmth and holiday cheer in the spaces above and/or below the picture.
Add your logo, discreetly, in the lower left corner.

Inside the card, offer a wish for the joys of the season, a prosperous New Year or some other heartfelt expression of connection with the recipient.

On the back of the card, show your company name, address, phone and website URL, plus a short description of your mission or services.

When the recipient gets your card, the small logo immediately makes it clear who sent the card, even without opening it.

When the card is placed among other holiday cards, the white frame makes it stand out. Plus, colleagues of the recipient will notice it from among the other cards.

Let me confess I do not follow my own advice. Instead, I compose an email with a Holiday Haiku.

Like the card with an image in a white frame, it is distinctive. I’ve flexed my writer’s muscle to create a 17-syllable seasonal poem since 2009. Recipients tell me they know it’s the holiday season when my haiku arrives.

This Month’s Tip

Like other marketing activities, this holiday card is not about you, personally. It is about the you on the other side of the table, the person who is opening the envelope. Keep the image and discourse neutral. The United States has many faith groups. Respect them; you cannot be sure another person shares your beliefs about a seasonal holiday and may take umbrage.

Candles are a universal image, they spread light during a period of the year when daylight lasts less than 10 hours.

Snow and winter scenes are popular, unless geographically unlikely.

A photo of a team member, interacting with a client or visitor, who is seen from the back or in profile, conveys the mission of your company or organization.

Contact

Ready to prepare a unique holiday card, or even a haiku of your own? Contact me at 347.256.9141, set an appointment here or email me at Janet@JanetLFalk.com. Let’s imagine snowflakes, trees and candles — in a new light.

See also:  Make YOUR Holiday Greeting Card Memorable

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Speaking at events is one of the top five ways to attract new clients.

You probably get invited to speak at events where there is no honorarium beyond coffee, sandwiches or a glass of wine.

Should you accept these engagements or turn them down?

Absolutely accept them. Here’s why I seek out and look forward to speaking opportunities as part of my marketing activities.

First, these presentations help raise the level of professionalism among the attendees and in their industries. People who work in accounting know very little about Public Relations and people who work in Public Relations know even less about accounting, generally. The overview, tips and pointers you discuss will establish a foundation for understanding. This will help the participants improve communication with their colleagues and vendors. You may alert them to an overlooked situation or problem within their organization, and thus the need for your services.

Tip: Speaking at an organization where a client is a member, or to a class where a friend is the teacher, is an obvious YES, as you strengthen the relationship.

Second, to teach is to learn twice over, said French essayist Joseph Joubert. Preparing a workshop requires an immersion in the material; you assemble articles, notes and previously given presentations. You need to be current in your field and incorporate the latest issues and trends in your remarks, keeping you at the top of your game.

Next, know that the participants will ask questions from their narrow perspective, leading you to drill down deeper, on the spot, in order to arrive at a cogent answer. Responding to their queries opens you to a new viewpoint from a business owner or professional whose field is different from your own. You can then incorporate what you’ve learned in future presentations.

Of course, you hope to get business from the workshop; sharing valuable information and branded handouts with your contact details may make that happen. Remember, too, everyone knows someone worth knowing. Note that even if the attendees may not hire you, nor buy your book or product, they may refer you to one of their work colleagues or someone among their contacts.

Finally, speaking is speaking; practice makes perfect, whatever the format and whoever the audience.

This Month’s Tip

Where can you find speaking opportunities? Try:

• Networking group
• Classes taught by colleagues
• Professional membership associations
• Business associations
• Local merchant associations
• Chambers of Commerce
• Municipal public library
• City and county small business services agency
• City and county economic development corporation
• Associations of nonprofit organizations and United Way
• Center for management training

Contact

Ready to find your next speaking gig? Contact me at 2347.256.9141, set an appointment here or email me at Janet@JanetLFalk.com. Together we’ll brainstorm topics for specific audiences and devise ways to introduce you to them.

See also: Create Your Own Traveling Classroom and Back to School – As a Teacher.

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Here are five essential ways to promote your business.

According to author and consultant David A. Fields, there are FIVE Marketing Musts for consultants who want to build their visibility — and these also apply to any individual and organization:

1. Networking
2. Speaking
3. Writing
4. Trade Association
5. Digital Presence

Consider which approaches are most comfortable for you — and which will be most effective in reaching your target market.

Set a goal of participating in these marketing activities every month — and track your progress to evaluate your success.

In June, for example, I attended four weekly networking meetings of one group; two monthly networking events of other groups; one monthly networking lunch; one networking social; and a series of four weekly workshops, as well as two annual networking dinners.

In the speaking category, I gave 10-minute presentations at two of the networking groups, plus one 60-minute presentation at a colleague’s class of entrepreneurs.

As for writing, I composed my monthly newsletter, plus published an article in a monthly trade magazine.

Turning to trade associations, I gave a 75-minute presentation to a group of attorneys who are potential clients.

Finally, in expanding my digital presence, I posted links to the article and newsletter on my website, LinkedIn and Twitter accounts, plus mention of the trade association presentation on LinkedIn following the event.

Looks like I batted over .300 for the month. How about you?

This Month’s Tip

Here’s where you can publish your timely insights to fish where the fish are:

• Write an essay for the industry publications your potential clients read.
• Contact a colleague who has a blog and offer a guest post.
• Maybe it’s time to launch your own quarterly (or monthly) newsletter, if you don’t have one.
• Consider a post on your LinkedIn profile.
• Wherever you publish, extend the reach beyond the standard readers; promote the article, column or post on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook, as appropriate.

Contact

Are you ready to step up to the plate? Let’s consider which of these five marketing tactics are most suitable for you and your business. Contact me at 347.256.9141, set an appointment here or email me at janet@janetlfalk.com. Let’s play ball.

Click here to purchase the e-book Create and Monitor Your Marketing RBI, for $9.99 via Venmo.

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Complete and embellish the image of your online presence.

When someone you met at a conference searches for you online, what will she find? What you say about yourself?

Or is there a blank or incomplete space?

You have the positive obligation to shape your digital presence and tell your story through multiple channels. As a business or nonprofit professional, place yourself in the most favorable light.

LinkedIn

Among the many digital channels, your LinkedIn presence is the resource likely to be reviewed by your peers, contacts, prospects and reporters.

Many consider LinkedIn the world’s largest database of professionals, with more than 450 million global participants. Now, seemingly everyone is promoting themselves online via LinkedIn.

Once your profile is established, be sure to update it on a frequent basis.

Take the time to view yourself through the eyes of someone you met at an industry conference to ensure you have a strong, attractive and complete online presence.

Your Photo is clear and focused; you have a smile, eyes looking at the reader. LinkedIn states that having a photo means your profile is 14 times more likely to be viewed. Because you own a smartphone with a camera, you can easily pose against a blank wall and have someone take your photo. Then, post the snapshot to your profile, and eventually replace it with a professional headshot.

What does the default avatar signify? Perhaps you do not take your digital presence seriously and cannot be trifled to show your true self to the world.

Your Value-Driven Headline has 120 characters, including spaces. Summarize your professional title, name of company, target audiences and how you are able to help them. Emphasize the value of working with you and your company. Your goal is to make the reader want to see more of your profile. Consider reviewing the headlines of peers among your connections to learn both do’s and don’ts.

When someone conducts a search on LinkedIn, whether by name or key words, this is what she will see:

Photo, Name, degree of connection
Value-Driven Headline
City
Photos of any shared connections

Reading a value-driven headline will prompt the viewer to click on your name and read all about you, not a colleague with similar keywords.

What might a short or lackluster headline indicate to the reader? Maybe you do not maximize opportunities right in front of you.

Your Summary, in up to 2,000 characters, including spaces, is your greatest opportunity to advertise what you bring to the table, for whom and why. Note that only the first 220-235 characters (spaces included) will be displayed with your profile, so sharpen that sales language pencil and include a call to action: Contact me to make this happen. The reader must click to See more of your summary than these two lines.

Make an effort to explain, from the viewer’s perspective, how she would benefit from knowing and working with you. How will she Save Time, Save Money or Make More Money, thanks to your product, service or experience. For a nonprofit executive, how will you help Save the World or Bring More JOY to Life.

Remember, you control what you display about yourself on LinkedIn; write about how you serve clients in order to prompt prospects to contact you. Anything less and the reader has little reason to stick around.

Your LinkedIn URL can be customized as your name. When you register to open a profile on LinkedIn, you are automatically assigned a random number. Changing that URL demonstrates that you are a person attentive to detail who has taken two minutes to polish his profile. Complete instructions are in the This Month’s Tip section below.

Will the reader think you accept the status quo, without putting your personal stamp on the situation?

Your LinkedIn Connections should number at least 500 people. Why? Among these many contacts, it is more likely one of them will be connected to the person searching for, say, a copywriter or comptroller, either directly (1^st degree), by a mutual contact (2^nd degree) or a connection with a contact of a contact (3^rd degree). These three degrees of connection mean she will be able to read more of your profile than that of a person with whom there is no viable degree of connection.

It’s easy enough to reach out to your many professional and personal contacts via LinkedIn. Enter a name in the Search space, then select the appropriate name on the list that appears. From that profile, click on Connect and personalize the request, indicating how you have a shared interest in, perhaps, marketing home insurance to renters.

Will you remain at a below-500 level of connections? That approach may suggest that you do not dynamically step forward to engage with others.

This Month’s Tip

Customize Your LinkedIn URL.

• On your LinkedIn page, go to Profile and click Edit profile.
• To the right, look at Edit public profile URL with the link: www.linkedin.com/in/xxx/123456a7
• Click on the pencil.
• Now you can type your name XXXX without the number /123456a7 gobbledy gook after it.
• If there is a duplicate of your name, LinkedIn will advise you; perhaps you can use a middle initial, hyphen or underscore between your first and last names.
• Then click Set Custom URL.
• You are done!

Contact

Ready to draw more details on your virtual portrait? Don’t gaze at a blank slate or a half-finished image. Contact me at 347.256.9141, set an appointment here or email me at janet@janetlfalk.com. Let’s look at the big picture and sketch in the missing pieces to call more attention to your digital presence.

See also: Are You Find-able? and Three Steps for More Success on LinkedIn

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Thanks to Marcia Rockwood, whose conversation inspired this newsletter.

If you do not already have an email newsletter, it is (past) time to launch it.

Consumers prefer to hear from vendors and brands by email, according to a recent study. Even Millennials, regarded as highly digitally attuned users, want to receive promotional email.

Given the choice of contact via a variety of platforms, the preference for email is overwhelming in three key demographics:

• Baby Boomers (born 1945-1965): 74%
• Generation X (born 1965-1980): 72%
• Millennials (born 1980-1995): 64%

Moreover, more than half of consumers (53%) check their email on their smartphone, making it imperative that newsletters display well on the small screen:

• Baby Boomers: 36%
• Generation X: 53%
• Millennials: 59%

In short, knowing your audience is receptive to email marketing, it’s vital to tailor the content of your newsletter and ensure that it is accessible in a format easy to read on a smartphone.

If you DO have an email newsletter, here’s a video review of best practices for newsletters as gleaned from six writers, including yours truly.

More email newsletter tips here.

This Month’s Tip

Email is here to stay.
Email has a larger reach; there are THREE times more email accounts than Facebook & X (Twitter) combined.
Email delivers to the recipient 90% of the time; only 2% of Facebook fans see posts.
Email converts with a 3% click-through rate vs .5% click-through on Twitter.
YOU control the distribution of email, not Facebook or Twitter algorithms.

Contact

Ready to launch or evaluate your email communications strategy? Let’s consider the audience, content and format that are most appropriate. Call me at 347.256.9141, set an appointment here or email me at janet@janetlfalk.com.

PS Tomorrow is Election Day. Plan to vote.

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Advice you give freely may be quite valuable, even for yourself.

You probably love to give advice to others. We all have insights on (un)usual business issues and strained relationships, plus tips for gardening, exercise and travel.

Ever get that AHA moment when you realize the suggestions you offered work for your own situation?

In a recent newsletter, I calculated that each of us probably has 5,000 contacts in a variety of places: address book, LinkedIn, subscribers to a newsletter or blog and more. Aggregating those names into a single database:

• Provides a way to keep in touch with hundreds of them;
• Evokes opportunities to introduce one to another;
• Sparks awareness of your own services and products for them as potential referral sources and connectors.

Accordingly, I took my own advice by consolidating my contacts into my address book. Here are a few results:

There were 2,483 names in my address book in August; a month later, I had 4,503, a gain of 2,020 names that were scattered in emails, lists and business cards.

Similarly, my connections on LinkedIn increased from 2,809 to 3,023, an additional 214 and a number that continues to grow.

Clearly, implementing my own suggestion was successful, as it enabled me to re-connect with long-dormant contacts, plus initiate conversations, email exchanges and meetings, not to mention a few subscribers to this newsletter.

This Month’s Tip

Here’s a few resources for hands-on advice and general tips:

Ilise Benun, Marketing Mentor offers tips on marketing for creative professionals that apply to many business owners.

David A. Fields advises consultants who work with companies of all sizes.

Life Hack – Tips for Life features pointers on productivity and getting things done.

Contact

If you’ve followed my advice on this topic of aggregating your contacts – or have a suggestion of your own to share – Contact me at Janet@JanetLFalk.com, set an appointment here or call me at 347.256.9141. Let’s dig for more good ideas in that gold mine of 5,000 contacts, plus we can swap tips and brainstorm together.

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Out of Sight, Out of Mind.
In Sight, Top of Mind.

You may not believe it, but you’re probably sitting on 5,000 contacts in various pools of connections.

Imagine the opportunities they represent for new business, new alliances and new volunteers.

You can find these people here:
1. Names in your address book
2. Recently emailed addresses
3. LinkedIn connections
4. Subscribers to your newsletter and blog
5. Business cards
6. Lists of attendees at events
7. Membership directories
8. Facebook friends and Twitter followers

Look for potential clients, partners, vendors, donors and board members among these resources.

Possibilities for you to refer business and connections to each other also abound.

Let’s start identifying them and actively mine these contacts. Plan to re-connect with these people and create momentum — for your business, for your organization, and for them to be thinking of you.

If you don’t use a contact relationship management program, make your address book the basic database.

1. Export the names in your address book in a .csv file. (If you use Outlook, go to File, select Open & Export, click on Import/Export and follow the simple steps.) Save the file as an Excel spreadsheet to make it easier to manipulate. Sort by first or last name. Print only the names. Review the names; delete duplicates and others, as appropriate.

2. Collect the email addresses and names of the 1,000 people you have most recently emailed. Outlook’s blessed auto-complete feature is your new best friend. Certainly, there are several hundred names in that pool you have not yet added to your address book. Download the NK2Edit program. As before, export, save in Excel, sort, print. Compare this group to the list above. Through this exercise, I found more than 400 new names to enter in my address book.

3. Export the names of your LinkedIn connections. Again, save, sort and print. Perhaps there are a few names of people you no longer recognize. Now might be the time to delete them. (They will not be notified you did this.) Compare these names with those in your expanding address book and add them to it.

4. Your newsletter and blog subscribers are another group to mine. Continue to export, save, sort and print. Compare the list to your address book and LinkedIn connections; add to both, ensuring consistency across all platforms.

5. That stack of business cards? You know what to do.

6. Have you been to any events and received a list of the attendees? Who did you meet at the break-out session? Who sat with you at lunch? Add these names.

7. Do you belong to a chamber of commerce, professional association or networking group? Peruse the membership directory; your dues paid for it. See how your address book continues to grow!

8. Finally, your social and professional connections on Facebook and X (Twitter) represent an audience that is interested in keeping up with your latest activities. Bring them into the fold, too.

Yes, this exporting, sorting, printing, comparing and entering data is tedious.* With this effort comes a payoff; when you read every single name, you will find out who’s hiding there, including some welcome surprises.

Last month I wrote to a colleague who subscribes to my newsletter; I hadn’t spoken with him since 2012! We then chatted for 15 minutes. The following day, he emailed me to help him with a project, which I completed. A few days later, he urgently needed my help by close of business, so I also did that. Plus, he spies another task on the horizon.

Four years of minimal communication, and now he sees me as a member of his team.

This Month’s Tip

Here are six subject lines and invitations to re-start a conversation:

• LinkedIn suggested your name, so I endorsed you for a few skills. When can we grab a coffee to catch up?
• Your name came up in conversation with PERSON (Put the name in the body of the email, so the reader will open the note.) What are you working on now?
• This article/podcast reminded me of our conversation about TOPIC (link). What do you think?
• Would you like to meet a PROFESSION? Perhaps NAME is a potential collaborator. (link to website or LinkedIn profile). Let me know and I will introduce you.
• Remember this email? Please help me recall what happened next.
• Your business card re-surfaced. What’s new?

By asking a question, you open the door to a phone call, coffee or lunch to re-ignite the connection. Perhaps you have discovered a viable contact for this person among the hundreds of names you recently added to your address book. Some say your best prospects and referral sources are among the people you already know, so start re-connecting.

Contact

Ready to hunt for buried treasure among your contacts? Contact me at Janet@JanetLFalk.com, set an appointment here or call me at 347.256.9141. Let’s start prospecting.

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* Note: You can expedite the Outlook data entry process by saving each modified Excel list as a .csv file. Import that file into Outlook. It sounds more complicated than it is; let me talk you through the process.

Take a stand.

Two very different companies once had rather similar slogans:

It’s not business, it’s personal. (law firm)

It’s personal. (meaning: It’s not business.) (bank)

In each case, the slogan was designed to reference a close, even intimate, working relationship. Some clients prefer to be reassured and reminded, on a frequent basis, that a vendor or partner has their interests top of mind at all times.

Consider that what is personal from a client’s perspective may not be reciprocal. Many clients think primarily of themselves and may have a limited interest in the individual private lives of their contacts.

Copywriter Deirdre Rienzo wrote about her dog in her newsletter and invited subscribers to send photos of their pets. The response was overwhelming.

LinkedIn coach John Nemo recommended sharing “something personal from your non-work life . . . once or twice a day as part of your LinkedIn status updates.”

Let me be blunt. I do not care about your pet, the (extra) ordinary exploits of your progeny or your awesome (tiresome) visit to Nepal.

As I commented to Nemo and Rienzo, if there is a business lesson to be gleaned, then summarize and explicate it. Otherwise, I will look elsewhere for inspiration and connection. I might even unsubscribe to your newsletter. The reader’s attention is yours to lose.

Following this guideline, here is the takeaway: a business consultant in North Carolina read Nemo’s post and agreed with my response. She contacted me, and we chatted about our respective practices. A few weeks later, she referred a client to me.

It was Business. Not Personal. That’s how I began working with a former CIO on an article about lessons learned from implementing enterprise technology to improve performance.

This Month’s Tip

Think: What’s the earth-shattering news about your morning coffee? People who announce on social media where and with whom they have consumed a breakfast drink flabbergast me. Can you specify the value-added information or societal significance of your inability to prepare a hot beverage at home? Alternatively, invite me to sample one with you, so we can become better acquainted and consider ways to work together.

Contact

Where do you draw the line between business and personal in your Communications? Contact me at Janet@JanetLFalk.com, set an appointment here or call me at 347.256.9141. Let’s clarify where the boundaries are.

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You probably know someone who is a resource for a connection.

It’s a mystery to me why people say they hate networking.

When asked their best source of new customers, most business owners say referrals.

What is the flip side of referrals?

Networking.

Everyone makes referrals of professionals, with whom they’ve previously worked, to contacts who need someone with that particular skill. We all pass names around our network.

For those who claim to hate networking, think instead how you might make – and receive – referrals to and from people in your various circles.

These circles include formal organizations, such as professional membership associations and networking groups, current and former clients, vendors and partner organizations, even friends, family and members of your faith community.

It’s amazing how far your reach will extend when your approach is focused on referrals, not networks.

Here’s an example:

A neighbor asked me for a referral to an engineer to evaluate the repair work the condominium board had arranged for her friend’s terrace. Because I did not know any engineers, I directed her to Fred Basch, an architect and former client. Fred named an engineering firm, saying the project “is right up their alley.”

Referral made. Problem solved.

The sequence of emails was completed in less than two hours.

Everyone knows someone worth knowing. Who might be the intermediary who can introduce you to a prospective client or your next hire? When there is someone for whom you’d like to do a good turn, think about the people in your circles (or networks) who might be useful to that person – or who might have a colleague who could suggest the resource the contact seeks.

This Month’s Tip

Whom might you offer and whom do you seek to meet? Members of a networking group can provide mutual referrals in an exchange exercise. Each participant writes the profession of a contact they’d like to help on a 3 x 5 card (offer) and requests a person with a specific occupation or employee at a company they want to meet (seek) on another card. Every pair of cards gets passed around the room, so all attendees can see each one. Invariably, a match will materialize.

For example, a grantwriter, who wanted to enhance her LinkedIn profile, learned about a very active LinkedIn user. That referral helped her draft emails to request recommendations from clients.

Contact

Let’s brainstorm about the people among your professional and personal connections. Contact me at Janet@JanetLFalk.com, set an appointment here or call me at 347.256.9141. Let’s consider how so you can make and earn the referrals that will promote business growth for your contacts and yourself.

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Consider what you are compared to what you are not.

Here’s a striking contrast:
Sell your firm as an ENTER Strategy, Not as an EXIT Strategy.

This turn of a well-known phrase emphasizes what is to be gained and shifts the focus away from the owner, the price tag and the negotiation process.

It promotes the opportunity the acquirer has to gather expertise, penetrate new markets and add clients — all by using a buy rather than build approach. An acquisition/enter strategy may be an expedient and cost-effective solution to quickly expand in a desirable and growing market and niche.

Similarly, would you like to resolve your separation from your spouse in a private setting and at a lower fee, supported by an attorney, a divorce coach and a financial advisor?

Or would you prefer to duke it out in an expensive, protracted public battle over the future of your family? Do you relish a process that may devalue all your assets and leave every participant bitter, emotionally drained and physically exhausted?

That is the premise, admittedly exaggerated, of the collaborative divorce process as practiced by a recent client, the Collaborative Divorce Center of Coastal Virginia. Guided by legal and financial professionals and a child development specialist, divorcing couples invest in a customized, mutual agreement. They allocate their resources and arrange for the care and education of any children, instead of a third-party (judge) determining their individual and collective futures.

These examples demonstrate how an organization or company can effectively set itself apart by describing how it is the opposite of what is familiar.

I follow this path also. With an eclectic background in various industries (law, Wall Street, nonprofit) I made the logo of Falk Communications and Research an octagonal shape.

You might be a round peg and someone else, a square peg; I am not so easily categorized. I am an octagonal peg, someone who does not fit the mold.

Not being an industry insider often makes me a keener analyst who is better able to assess the situations of my clients. By tapping into a range of valuable experiences, I develop unique communications solutions.

This Month’s Tip

Consumer goods are well known for flaunting their other-ness. Apple urged customers to Think different. In the beverage industry, 7-Up was the Un-cola. For cars, one manufacturer nearly denied its heritage: This is Not Your Father’s Oldsmobile. Consider the attributes of your cohort to see where you might be most different and distinctive.

Contact

How might you define who you are in contrast to who you are not? Let’s take a traditional slogan or image and turn it on its head. Contact me at Janet@JanetLFalk.com, set an appointment here or call me at 347.256.9141. We’ll devise ways that make you the opposite of the crowd.

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Thanks to Art Stevens, whose observation inspired this newsletter.

Look at the world through the eyes of a colleague or collaborator.

Do you occasionally share an inspired idea with a trusted sounding board, so you might learn how others see the situation?

When you speak with someone who sits on a different side of the table, or a peer in another industry, you’ll see the plan through another lens, which can be very revealing.

Here’s how I learned this tactic. You probably receive too many non-business newsletters, especially from retailers who twice a week entice you to shop for the latest fashion.

One way to control the distraction of such promotional emails is to create an email address with an account dedicated to that purpose. Next, you deliberately do not place that email account on your computer and phone. Instead, you only review that email on a tablet, at night, while relaxing or watching TV.

From your perspective, you are not interrupted by tempting announcements of sales and new products during your busy work day.

Now the kicker: From a marketer’s perspective, you are a dream audience. Sitting on a comfy couch, scrolling through promotional emails, you are in a much more receptive mood. When you see a photo of a fashionable jacket — voila. Immersed in news of sales, you now are more likely to shop online than when you are scrolling through emails on your phone before your next meeting starts.

How about that 180 degree turn? What started as a defensive posture has now made you a vulnerable target.

We all have a blind spot when it comes to our genius ideas. Find people who can serve as a corrective mirror. Make it a practice to ask for their perspective and see the market through their eyes.

This Month’s Tip

Who might be your sounding board? Members of networking groups. Former clients and former co-workers. Set up a phone chat with a social networking contact whose thoughtful blog posts and comments exhibit insights. The retired executives who serve as coaches at SCORE counsel business owners for free; ask to be paired with someone who worked in your industry.

Contact

Let’s test drive your newest idea. Contact me at Janet@JanetLFalk.com, set an appointment here or call me at 347.256.9141. We’ll take it out for a spin, so we can see if there are any bumps in the road ahead.

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Thanks to Joshua Sessler, whose observation inspired this newsletter.

S   t   r   e  t   c   h   to get more marketing action.

Email signatures are invaluable marketing tools. Take a good look at yours. Is it working for you or is it asleep?

Here’s a checklist to make the most of your real estate that passes under the eyes of at least 50 correspondents each day:

1. Your signature is positioned immediately below the last line of your email message, not buried at the tail end of the chain of correspondence.
2. Your direct phone number and cellphone number share a line and sit under your name, making it easy for the respondent to give you a call.
3. Your company or organization’s name, hyperlinked to the website, invites a click to learn more about your products, services and programs.
4. Your snappy tag line proclaims the value you create for customers.
5. The headline of a recent news story trumpets your success links to a PDF of the article.
6. Your current exhibition, an upcoming event you will host/sponsor or a trade show where you will speak/exhibit, is noted, with a link to register or make a reservation, if appropriate.
7. Your product flyer or an informative brochure is available as a download, which requires an email address to facilitate future sales team follow-up.
8. Your LinkedIn and X (Twitter) account information are listed, so contacts may connect with you on social media platforms.
9. The latest issue of your newsletter or blog is hyperlinked, with an opportunity to subscribe.

This Month’s Tip

Your email signature is a fundamental component of your brand, as are your logo, website and business card.  Every team member should have an identical signature, to reinforce the organization’s positioning and messages. After a revised email signature template is developed, provide the model and instructions for an update to all personnel, along with a two-day deadline for implementation.

Contact

If it’s time to rouse your sleepy signature, contact me at Janet@JanetLFalk.com, set an appointment here or call me at 347.256.9141. I can give it a once-over. Together, we’ll make it rise and shine.

For a more detailed discussion and an example of an email signature template, please see Harness the Marketing Power of Your Email Signature.

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Respect and lessons from other languages.

When you studied Spanish, French or German, you learned there is a formal and informal degree of addressing another person. Generally, it’s best to use the formal — Usted, Vous or Sie — to be polite, especially at the start of the relationship.

When the other speaker indicates she is amenable to informal address, she will tell you to use Tú, Tu or Du.

As Aretha Franklin sang, from the other’s perspective, communication is about R E S P E C T.

Treat your clients and potential customers with respect — during every in-person and electronic interaction.

These people may soon pay your fees or be in a position to refer others to you. Lack of respect may cause a prospect to look away from you and turn instead to competitors for products and services.

Two recent emails from Public Relations industry professionals violated the norms of polite customer correspondence, reminding me that we all need to pay heed and reflect on the lessons from Aretha.

Hey
The first was a sales pitch that began: Hey Janet,.

When I replied to the sender, I mentioned my name was Janet and not Hey. I received a follow-up note, again: Hey Janet,.

I replied I was offended at twice being addressed Hey.

This complaint led to a prompt apology, which was accepted.

DUDE
The subject line of the second email: DUDE. Seriously, OPEN my email already! (sic)

The Hey email was from a sales rep, who, with two years experience, should have known better.

The DUDE message was from a well-known senior Public Relations consultant with nearly 20 years experience.

Though this DUDE subject line is eye-catching, it is akin to the language of high school students and unlikely that an award-winning, college-level Public Relations instructor wrote it.

I responded that I found the subject line DUDE disrespectful. Surprisingly, the reply was by no means apologetic, but contrarian. According to this communications professional, if the use of DUDE or other terminology to which one personally does not relate is offensive, the recipient should unsubscribe.

Draw the Line
Where do you draw the line between informal and formal email correspondence with prospective customers and current clients?

This Month’s Tip

Do your colleagues treat your clients and prospects with respect? It’s polite to begin an email with Sidney, or Dear Leslie,. These forms of address acknowledge the virtual distance between the writer and the recipient and do not overstep the bounds the way that Hey Nicky, does. Write complete and grammatically correct sentences. Use restraint in tone, limit exclamation points and avoid emoticons. Finally, consider that the email might be forwarded to the CEO or another senior executive who has the final say-so on the buy decision.

You and your colleague worked very hard to get the reader’s attention; don’t let your email be discarded because it was disrespectful.

Contact

Are your coworkers speaking the same language as your potential clients and showing them appropriate respect? Contact me at Janet@JanetLFalk.com, set an appointment here or call me at 347.256.9141. Let’s review your company’s standard emails in this light.

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Adopt a reader-centered approach.

Your newsletter waits patiently in a recipient’s mailbox.

Once opened, you have the reader’s attention.

• Their attention is yours to lose.
• You gave them a gift and then you walked away.
• What will the reader think or do next?

Think of a reader’s attention like a person’s gaze. How fragile it is! At any moment, a phone call, knock on the door or sudden air conditioner blast could distract her eyes from the newsletter’s article.

Their attention is yours to lose. Accordingly:
Build trust and cultivate a solid relationship.

• Deliver timely and useful information.
• Provide relevant documents and links.
• Position your staff as accessible experts.
• Reach out to potential collaborators and competitors in a gesture of good faith.

You gave them a gift and then you walked away.
Lead a reader to feel good about your organization or company.

• Remind him of the solid work and accomplishments, to which he may have contributed or from which he benefited.
• Keep volunteers involved.
• Connect with elected officials and local business leaders.
• Maintain contact with alumni.

What will the reader think or do next?
Guide the reader to deepen her relationship with your group.

• Drive the reader to a specific page on the website.
• Make it easy for the recipient to share your newsletter.
• Promote advocacy.
• Encourage RSVPs and donations.

Is it time to orient your newsletter and implement a reader-centered approach? Let’s write a plan to hold onto your reader’s attention. Call me at 347.256.9141 or email at Janet@JanetLFalk.com.

See also Make Your Five W’s Reader-Centered.

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Maximize your online presence

An out-of-the blue email prompted me to consider how easy it is to re-connect with someone and what another person might find out about me online.

A long-lost acquaintance emailed me the same day my name, quote and photo were published in The New York Times. When I asked how she was able to get in touch with me, she responded that she conducted a search online and found my company website, which displays my email address (and phone number).

What about YOU?

Take five minutes NOW to conduct an Internet search of your own name. Your objective is to see which websites and social networks are listed in the search and make sure you appropriately connect those listings to your company’s or nonprofit’s website.

Start the search with Google.com, followed by Bing.com and then Yahoo.com; that adds up to 87.5% of global searches. (The remainder is Baidu at 10.2%, which is used in China, plus some minuscule search engines.)

Your LinkedIn profile probably appears first among the results. With its international database of 364 million members, LinkedIn outranks most websites.

Perhaps next on the list are your X (Twitter) and Facebook accounts; their enormous constituencies boost their rankings as well.

If you own a business or lead a nonprofit, a reference to your company’s or organization’s website might follow mention(s) of your name.

These personal profiles clearly list and link to your company or nonprofit’s website, of course. If they don’t, link them now.

Here are two ways to update your Personal LinkedIn Page:

Customize your LinkedIn Name/URL.
On your LinkedIn page, go to Profile and click Edit profile.
Under your photo, you have the link: www.linkedin.com/pub/xxx/1/234/56
Click on Edit.
Now you are in the panel where YOU control WHAT is VISIBLE in your profile.
Before you do anything with that section, look to the right and go to Your public profile URL.
Click on Customize your public profile URL.
Now you can type your name XXXX without the number /1/234/56 gobbledy gook that LinkedIn automatically assigns.
If there is a duplicate of your name in LinkedIn, you can use a hyphen or an underscore between your first and last names to differentiate yourself.
Then click Set Custom URL. You’re done !

Post your company website — and related resources.
On your LinkedIn page, go to Profile and click Edit profile.
In the lower right corner of the box, click on the Rolodex card labeled Contact Info.
Next to X (Twitter, click on the pencil and add your X (Twitter) account.
Next to Website, click on the pencil and select the category Other. Then enter the name (or description) of your company and link to the homepage URL.
You may add two additional websites; I selected the category Other to post Public Relations Tips and link to the Newsletter section of my website, plus Articles on Public Relations with a link to the Publication section.

This is also the place to post the name of your blog (category: Other) and link to it.
(Note: most people do not take advantage of this promotional space; if they do, they use the default setting of Company website and Blog, which is not particularly informative.)
Then click Save.

Contact me at Janet@JanetLFalk.com, set an appointment here or call me at 347.256.9141. It’s time to make yourself more find-able and more compelling online.

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If your website predates 2011, then plan for a re-launch.

According to designer Peter Levinson, websites have a three-year design cycle, after which their designs look dated.

Having launched my website in 2009, I realized an update was long overdue.

But what finally prompted the re-launch was, admittedly, peer pressure. Other websites use a WordPress format. The clean minimal look, with lots of white space, apparently has become the standard since 2011.

Another concern was to respond to visitor behavior, based on best practices. And the website analytics for my site also played a role in the re-design.

Online activity has grown exponentially and users’ expectations are high. Creating a clear layout that would be user-friendly and conform to the market was a priority.

Once the process was underway, it became appropriate to update the content. Editing the paragraphs succinctly, as well as incorporating more recent projects and successes, were the next steps.

Finally, the re-designed website assembled multiple guest blog posts and newsletter articles that were dispersed widely.

You are invited to take a look and let me know what you think of the re-design.

If it’s been a few years since your website was launched or revised, sit up and see the site through a first-time visitor’s eyes. Contact me at Janet@JanetLFalk.com, set an appointment here or call me at 347.256.9141. Let’s consider the content and layout that might best serve your goals and engage your audience by means of a website audit.

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Showcase Your Insights.

September = School, for students, teachers and parents.

Executives in business and nonprofits need to keep current with best practices and new developments, so they also go to class.

Consider how you might share your expertise with contacts, clients and prospects in one or more of these venues:

Networking group: Some groups incorporate a 10-minute pitch by members into their regular meetings. Your networking contacts will feel more at ease referring their favorite clients to you after they see you in action and hear the impact of your products and services.

Give a guest lecture at a contact’s course: Someone you know may teach a continuing education class. Offer to give insights from the field in a 20-minute presentation.

Center for management training: Peruse the quarterly calendar of workshops and then propose an interdisciplinary session for their target market. By straddling two content areas, you create a niche.

Small business center and economic development group: Government agencies at the municipal and state level offer a variety of business management classes to support small and medium-sized enterprises. These businesses may soon grow big enough to need your services as a consultant.

Webinar: There are companies whose sole line of business is to host webinars for speakers to give sessions and promote their businesses. If you’re shy about facing a room full of new faces, you might prefer the digital broadcast space.

You may join me at Managing PR and Communications on Top of Everything Else, on Thursday, September 19, 2013 at 9:30 am at The Support Center for Nonprofit Management in New York City.

Or tell another contact.

You will not be quizzed afterwards.

Have you got a timely subject for a class or workshop? Contact me at Janet@JanetLFalk.com, set an appointment here or call me at 347.256.9141. Let’s consider where you might teach a session and promote your business.

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No Blog?
No Problem!

You can write as a Guest Blogger.

Companies that frequently post on a blog attract as many as five times more visitors to their websites than companies that do not blog.

If you do not have a blog, you still can participate in the blogo-sphere: become a guest blogger.

Do the blogs you read publish work by others? If so, as appropriate, introduce yourself to the blogger/host and offer to write a guest blog post.

After the post is published, create a short bitly link to distribute your idea in the social media universe in the format of a question via the LinkedIn Groups to which you belong, with a summary answer and a link to your blog post. The topic may generate some comments — as well as drive traffic to your website, where readers can learn more about you.

I submitted a guest blog post, When Nonprofits Fail to Communicate, to a colleague and then shared it on X (Twitter) and LinkedIn. The editor of an online publication read it; she not only asked permission to re-publish it on their blog, she invited me to submit my own articles.

Of course, I accepted.

Here’s how you can prepare for your next professional association meeting: Pre-Marketing Can Maximize Your Success at a Networking Event, as published on Philanthropy Journal‘s blog.

Have you got a hot topic to blog about? Let’s consider where you might write a guest blog to get your word out. Contact me at Janet@JanetLFalk.com, set an appointment here or call me at 347.256.9141.

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Team Up for Speaking Success

What better testimonial of your expertise.

You belong to a business or industry professional organization, of course, to network with prospects and keep up-to-date on news and trends.

These monthly meetings offer an incredible opportunity for you — and a client — to showcase your expertise.

That’s why I suggested a client, Denise Shull, as a speaker to 100 Women in Hedge Funds, where I serve on the Communications Committee.

As a panelist, Denise promoted her approach to risk management: understanding feelings, senses and emotions can improve decision-making by hedge fund traders — and by everyone else.

Her anecdotes recounting the impact of self-awareness struck a chord with 200 women executives in the hedge fund industry.

Plus, she sold nine copies of her book Market Mind Games: Profiting from the New Psychology of Risk & Uncertainty.

Are you and a client ready to tell industry colleagues about your productive engagement? Let’s talk about where you might speak up for business growth and success.

Contact me at Janet@JanetLFalk.com, set an appointment here or call me at 347.256.9141.

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