Category: Marketing

The Top 10 Lessons We Learned Hosting Over 300 Virtual Events in One Year!

Post author By Tyler Hayzlett
Post date April 21, 2022
No Comments on The Top 10 Lessons We Learned Hosting Over 300 Virtual Events in One Year!

#1 It’s totally possible to create a close-knit community online!

Creating a digital community is easier now than ever before. We went from hosting 40 in-person conferences per year to 300+ digital events/year.

Crazy right? But it has been totally worth it.

Hosting consistent, recurring events meant our members would continually check in with each other, learn about each other, and be part of each other’s lives in ways that were never possible before.

We’ve had members join digital events while on vacation or even in the hospital!

Connecting with people has never been easier.

Virtual communities are a great way to engage your audience!

In March of 2020, C-Suite Network recognized the need for a weekly events to connect with one another, celebrate our successes, big or small, and discuss the unique challenges our businesses were going through.

That’s why we created an event series called C-Suite Celebrates to allow our community to celebrate their wins of the week either personally or professionally. Two years later, the event is still thriving with an amazing community of business leaders.

In fact, on May 6 we are celebrating the 100th anniversary of our digital networking Celebrates series.

If you’re interested in experiencing a digital networking event you can register for the event here.

Now on to number two!

#2 Be prepared to mute users and turn off videos!

Appoint someone to be on the ready to turn off anyone’s video and sound!

Here’s why…

There’s always that one person who sounds like they are in a wind tunnel. Or the other one that thinks they are on mute and takes a personal call in front of the whole group (it happens)!

If you don’t have someone appointed to this role ahead of your event, you’ll just end up wasting a lot of precious time waiting for people to fumble themselves off mute.

#3 Make the events interactive -people want to interact not just sit there

The vast majority of the feedback we get from attendees is that they are craving to be part of the conversation. Not just listen to one.

Ask questions to the audience, acknowledge comments in the chat, offer break out rooms (Zoom has this feature).

Pick interesting or experienced speakers. Attention spans are small and there is a lot of noise competing for attention. An engaged audience always makes for a better event.

#4 There’s strength in numbers! The power of joint ventures

Don’t have a big list of people to invite? You don’t have to go at events alone. Find joint venture partners who are on a similar mission to compliment each others success.

For example, we partnered up with LeadHERship Global and others to add massive value to our joint communities not only by cross promoting each other, but joining forces to create more diverse events and subject matter expertise.

Joint ventures can be a great way to expand your influence and add value to audiences that otherwise may have not known about your brand.

#5 Engagement is the key performance indicator

Unlike in-person events where an attendee is immersed in your event experience, virtual events compete against at home or in-office distractions for your attendee’s attention.

That is why it’s even more important to focus on how you are engaging and interacting with your attendees.

Increasing your engagement during virtual events leads to stronger more meaningful connections and relationships between your attendees. Add surveys, polls and breakout rooms to allow people to dive deep on the topics that matter to them.

Give people a way to engage!

#6 Encourage people to interact and turn their cameras on

We have found that it’s considered rude to attend a networking event on mute with your camera off. You appear to not be engaged, which is a bad look for your brand.

You wouldn’t walk around a live event with blinders and a muzzle, would you? If so, why make the trip at all?

Remind people to turn their cameras on or call on people for feedback to make sure everyone gets a chance to be heard. Otherwise they may not come back or feel like a welcomed member of the group.

#7 It’s okay to let people see your personal side

It’s OK if your kids or pets show up on camera. (as long as they’re not being in appropriate).

We’ve seen the more personal side of brands and colleagues and most of us have gotten used to the small interruptions. In fact, they’re often welcomed.

So don’t shoo your six-year-old daughter from wandering into the conversation. Embrace her interest in what’s being discussed.

After all, she’s a future leader and it’s never too soon to get her connected and networking!

#8 Have a plan b if a falls through (life happens)

Be prepared for the event to NOT go according to plan. Life happens after all.

Have a plan b in case the speaker doesn’t show or they have technical issues and a backup on your side too.

Make sure your host has a topic they can deliver on in case your guest falls through or has technical difficulties.

#9 Come prepared with ice-breaker questions

Let’s face it, networking events can be a little awkward and scary to others (especially if you’re new to a group). That’s where we have found icebreakers to come in handy.

We found it empowering to ask questions like;

“Share your favorite picture on your phone right now and explain why it is.”

It helps to break the ice in a business setting and bring the conversion down to earth in a personal way before diving into the deep end on business issues.

Need help thinking of ice-breaker questions? There are hundreds of ideas, like these 62 event ice-breaker questions from eventmanagerblog.com.

Ice-breakers adds to the fun factor and sometimes even the corny sounding games get people interacting with it and each other. That’s what creates a memorable experience.

Having a prize wheel doesn’t hurt either!

#10 Cross train your team on technical tasks!

The most stressful part of hosting digital events is when you don’t know what you are doing from a technical level.

Have your team cross trained on hosting, running slides, monitoring registrations, creating breakout rooms (Yes, Zoom lets you do breakout rooms).

Sometimes it doesn’t matter how prepared you are, something comes up and its better that your team is empowered to step into different functions. Everyone should have basic understanding for the entire event process.

For more information visit tylerhayzlett.com

Tags Learned Hosting

Best Practices Marketing Personal Development

What’s In A Name?

The Story Behind The Brand Name

Shakespeare famously said before, “Do not judge a book by its cover.” Or in this context, we shouldn’t judge an establishment by its name. Unfortunately, this doesn’t hold much water when you’re running a business. In business, your name matters—a lot.

You see, a business name is more than just that. It signifies something more powerful. It represents what your business is all about, what it stands for. In the same vein, a name can have an instant effect on how your customers perceive you because every word, every sound, and every letter impacts the way we think and feel.

Coming up with the appropriate brand name is one of the most crucial things you have to think about when engaged in business. It can mean all the difference between a brand that instantly hits off or falls completely flat.

Yet, when you’re just starting, choosing a name is probably the second-to-the-last thing on your mind. Of course, there are lots of other things that come first, right? You still have to polish (or revise) your business plan, create your products, and research your audience. However, trust us when we say that creating a company name is useful. It could either make or break your brand.

Think of this process as similar to laying the foundations of a building. Discovering how to create a brand name can help you set the foundation for your company.

How to come up with a name that matters

The key to creating a brand name that sticks in the minds of your customers or is simply “catchy” and helps towards establishing brand recognition and awareness are the following:

It must be evocative

Simply describing your product or service could make your name too generic. Everyone else is doing that. Instead, try to come up with something that has a story behind it. Of course, the story has to be related to your business.

Stories have a powerful effect on our brain. When you’re given a really interesting story, your palms start to sweat, you’ll blink faster, and your heart might flutter or skip. Your facial expressions shift, and the muscles above your eyebrows will react to the words — another sign that you’re engaged.

Now, imagine feeling this when thinking about a brand. Take Apple, for example. Apple is a fruit, but it has come to be associated with cutting-edge technology, quality, and user-friendly designs over the years.

Make it Timeless

A name should be neutral enough to transcend time. Your name shouldn’t be something that restricts your brand.

It has to be timeless and one of the most effective ways to make sure that your name is “timeless” is to ensure that you create something that resonates with the emotions of your target audience, rather than limiting yourself to a basic descriptive term.

For instance, Nintendo didn’t just call themselves “The Gameboy Company.” Nintendo went with an evocative name with room for growth.

Consider the “looks” of the brand

Imagery is by far one of the most powerful poetic devices to use when creating a brand name with meaning. You leave a lasting impact if your brand can produce an image in your customer’s minds.

Some of the best phrases in literature earned their popularity because they evoke images in the reader’s mind. Think about how you can use the imagery in your name to convey an idea of your brand. GoPro, for example, leaves a lasting image of adventure and freedom on its customer’s minds.

Bottomline

Coming up with a brand name may be a daunting task, but that’s what the team is for. One way to make the process a bit easier is to think about what your company is all about and then come up with a brand that resonates with that. Everything else will eventually fall into place.

Pro tip from MarketAtomy.com: Come up with a name that you can easily trademark and find a domain for. After all, our goal here is to increase brand awareness and recognition. Making it easily recognizable online is one essential step.

Enter Our Naming Contest

Participate in MarketAtomy’s “What’s In A Name” Contest. Submit the name of your business and a short introduction, video, or in writing, describing the story behind the name. The winning submission will be selected on May 10^th, 2022. The winning submission will receive $100 and be featured on an Episode of the Charged-Up Studio Podcast. All submissions must be received by 12 AM EST May 5^th (Cinco de Mayo) to qualify. Submissions should be sent to info@marketatomy.com.

Danna Olivo is a Growth Strategist, Author, and Public Speaker. As CEO of MarketAtomy LLC, her passion is working with first-stage business owners to ensure that they are prepared and equipped to launch and grow a successful small business. She understands the intricacies involved early on in business formation and as such the challenges that come with it. A graduate of the University of Central Florida’s College of Business, Danna brings more than 40 years of experience strategically working with small and medium businesses, helping them reach their growth goals. danna.olivo@marketatomy.com

Tags brand|brand name|stories|story|storytelling

Best Practices Entrepreneurship Management Marketing Negotiations Sales Skills Women In Business

“What Is Your Comfort Level And Why It Matters” – Negotiation Insight

Post author By C-Suite Network
Post date April 5, 2022
No Comments on “What Is Your Comfort Level And Why It Matters” – Negotiation Insight

“What Is Your Comfort Level And Why It Matters”

He had a stomach swirling feeling. It was an internal alarm indicating that he was out of his comfort zone. At that point, he didn’t feel overly exasperated. Nevertheless, he knew he had to control his level of discomfort. He knew such feelings matters to one’s emotional wellbeing.

Are you aware of when your state of comfort is challenged – when your levels of uneasiness begin to alter your perspective and behavior? You should – those are the points at which you might begin to engage in negative behavior. And that’s why it matters.

The following are thoughts to consider to improve your comfort level and enhance your mental wellbeing. You’ll also uncover insights about your thought process. That will allow you to discover more about what matters to you and why.

Importance of Comfort:

Comfort, it’s something you constantly seek but don’t think a lot about until you become uncomfortable. You should note it more frequently. Because when it’s altered, your stability and wellbeing can become mired in self-emotional conflict. That can make you feel awkward in some environments. Not only should you know your level and degree of comfort, but you should also know what triggers it to go up or down. That insight allows you to gain greater control of yourself and the environments you’re in.

Going forward, note your emotional change based on your environments. Seek to understand why you feel more comfortable in some situations versus others. Before entering those that might cause you to experience discomfort, think about how you might obtain greater control of yourself and the environment. Look for common variables that you can use to become emboldened to assist in your assessment. By doing that, you’ll become empowered and gain an insightful introspection about yourself. [eut_single_image image_type=”image-link” image_mode=”medium” image=”32023″ link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fc-suitenetwork.com%2Fbecome-c-suite-network-executive-membership%2Fpricing-options%2F|||”]

Past Occurrences:

In considering your state of comfort, consider your current state of mind. Ask yourself why you have such feelings – what caused them – and what you might be associating from past occurrences that may be shadowing your perception. If you’re conflating past occurrences, especially if they’re negative, realize that you might be placing too much emphasis on the past. Separate the occurrence. Assess whether it causes the degree of angst as before the separation. You will have begun to control past triggers that might negatively sway your perspective. Doing that should allow you to become more at ease.

Controlling Your Mind Controls The Environment:

Before entering an environment, you have expectations about what might occur – how you might feel and what you might do. If it’s a new environment, you might experience a higher degree of angst than those that you’re more familiar with. Regardless of your emotional state, reassure yourself that more than likely you’ll live through the situation that you’ll find yourself in. Thus, there’s nothing worse than death that’ll occur to you.

Anything other than that is okay. So, assuage your mind – focus on the fact that you’ll learn something from being in that surrounding. By thinking like that, you’ll relieve the pressure from overthinking what might occur and how you’ll fair. That should allow you to mentally perceive yourself as flowing freer in the environment. You’re going to be a rock star … and everything will be right with the world.

What does this have to do with negotiations?

The negotiation process is about comfort and discomfort. When a negotiator feels comfortable about an offer or concession, he’s more likely to continue upon the same path. Conversely, one can use pain and discomfort as a tool to motivate the opposing negotiator to alter the path he’s on. Thus, the tool of comfort and how it’s used during a negotiation is something that you should give with great consideration. If you overlook it, you overlook an ally that you can use to advantage your negotiation position. Smart negotiators don’t waste this tool. Are you a smart negotiator?

Remember, you’re always negotiating!

Listen to Greg’s podcast at https://anchor.fm/themasternegotiator

After reading this article, what are you thinking? I’d really like to know. Reach me at Greg@TheMasterNegotiator.com

To receive Greg’s free “Negotiation Tip of the Week” and the “Sunday Negotiation Insight” click here https://www.themasternegotiator.com/greg-williams/

#Negotiate #Emotion #Comfort #Level #Matters #Business #Progress #SmallBusiness #Negotiation #NegotiatingWithABully #Power #Perception #emotionalcontrol #relationships#HowToNegotiateBetter #CSuite #TheMasterNegotiator #ControlEmotions

“Comfort, something we all seek but don’t appreciate until it’s gone.” -Greg Williams, The Master Negotiator & Body Language Expert (Click to Tweet)

[eut_single_image image_type=”image-link” image_mode=”medium” image=”32020″ link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fc-suitenetwork.com%2Fbecome-c-suite-network-executive-membership%2Fpricing-options%2F|||”]

Best Practices Entrepreneurship Leadership Marketing Personal Development

The Rise of Omni-Channel Marketing* – On Bots, Funnels, Fly-Wheels and Social Media

Post author By C-Suite Network
Post date April 4, 2022
No Comments on The Rise of Omni-Channel Marketing* – On Bots, Funnels, Fly-Wheels and Social Media

The Rise of Omni-Channel Marketing*

– On Bots, Funnels, Fly-Wheels and Social Media

…And the ONE thing you really need to learn if you want to keep your sanity

Do you ever feel overwhelmed these days by the sheer amount of marketing messages coming your way?

Or, are you at the other end of the spectrum, feeling overwhelmed by the need to keep on sending out ever more and increasingly creative and promising marketing messages about your own products and services, while making sure you can deliver on the promises?

In other words, on what end of the noisy spectrum do you operate?

I know I’m sometimes troubled by both sides of the spectrum. That’s why I wrote this article in the hope it might also give you some nice new perspectives for being able to handle it all. So…

Let’s dive in…

I recently attended a webinar on Bots – what they are, what they do, how you can use them, and how they can automate your lead generation, your sales, and even the follow-up support.

It’s astounding. And for some, perhaps many of us, it can feel like a liberation.

What it also means though, is that many jobs will become obsolete. Many co-creative enterprises will be left to the advancing power of automated solutions. And the communication between buyer and seller becomes a robotic style of conversation marketing instead of a human-to-human social interaction.

One the one hand, this can be seen as a good thing. It can save us from tedious tasks or from troubled discussions over minutiae. It can also help us in placing our marketing messages virtually everywhere so we’re able to expand our reach and connect with more potential customers or clients. And so it can provide us with that much wanted increase of profits and time freedom at the same time.
On the other hand, this can also be seen as a bad thing. It can hurt our humanness because more and more interactions will be guided and directed by the programming of the bots. It can also usurp our vital energies because we’re not reciprocally nourished by the intricate web of human connectedness. And it can provide the consumer with a complacency or false sense of entitlement when we get back into interactions with real human beings who do not immediately comply to our requests or questions. Have you ever experienced that? Or perhaps, ask your customer service representative if they’ve experienced such behavior from consumers.

Now, Bots attached to Funnels will amp this even up a notch.

Because from the initial robotic style of conversation marketing, the customer/client’s journey is then further directed into a sales funnel. In the Sales Funnel there can be a video from an actual human being, but still, it’s not real time, it’s still somewhat artificial, since it is pre-recorded and oftentimes according to a script.

Then, after someone has taken the journey from Bot-conversation through the sales funnel, to the delivery and the automated support, the customer can be satisfied. But will they really be happy? Who knows for sure? They probably will. Or at least they think so because they got what they thought they would get.

It indeed depends – on the product, the course, the program, etc.

Yet, since almost all marketing seems to promise ‘heaven on earth’ these days, we also know that for many of us it’s still not here.

And so, people go online again in their never ending search for that happiness they think they can get from buying more stuff, getting more solutions, or from having a clearly laid out process for them that virtually guarantees eternal bliss – you know, that something that makes all problems disappear.

And so, they enter the fly-wheel of ever more products, services, etc. etc. etc.

Then, with all that ‘stuff’ and the wins they got along the way, they go show it off on social media, amidst all the promoted posts, the advertisements of bots and the marketing messages of others!

Oh dear, the madness we’re in…

So, let’s take a pause…

What is just described?

In a nutshell we went through the rise of Omni-Channel Marketing.

This means that we can see how over the past two decades – and especially over the past five or six years – technology has more and more taken over our marketing efforts.

Marketing indeed is everywhere!

It has become an Omni-Channel endeavor.

This means it is online on all the social media platforms, the websites, the funnels, the apps, the messenger services, the emails, etc.
This means it is offline via letter post, mailing packages, billboards, signs, brochures, newspapers, etc.
This means it is via telephone, text, at the front door, in the streets, by word-of-mouth…

And probably via even more channels that not everyone is necessarily aware of.

From a business standpoint this means that you have to find at least one channel that works for you to reach your customers, although it seems increasingly important to at least begin to adopt an omni-channel marketing mindset to a certain extent.

From a customer’s standpoint this means that they become more and more selective, apathetic or burned out, or maybe even aggressive towards marketing messages unless those messages are really dialed in to their specific needs, wants and desires!

And if you’re both a business owner and a customer, you’re even into some deeper complexity here.

So…

What is the ONE thing you really need to learn now if you want to keep your sanity?

It’s learning how to plug in to your authentic human awareness.

This means…

Not necessarily relying on Bots, Funnels and Fly-Wheels alone.
Not necessarily feeling the need to post endlessly or increasingly on a multitude of channels.
Not necessarily having to participate in the constant bombardment of sending and receiving marketing messages.

Instead, taking a step back for a moment from all the busyness, from all the noise of the entire spectrum… Taking an Omni-Channel perspective for a moment, without having to do anything… Just taking some time to think things through without the need to buy or sell anything…

But how to market your products and services then?

The answer to that question is probably the best kept secret no one’s really talking about.

Yet the answer is hidden in this article. And it is everywhere, in plain sight. If you can find it, you can have your Omni-Channel marketing dialed in from the positioning of your authentic human awareness. And that could save you tons of time and money in the long-run.

How? To learn more…

You’re invited to >>consider this<< to get started today with Enhancing Your Awareness.

To Your Omni-Channel Marketing Success!

Sincerely,

Maurits van Sambeek, MA

Author of >>Omnibenevolence<<

PS: The rise of Omni-Channel Marketing is picking up speed these days. Are you well-prepared or already embracing it? To learn more about How to Adopt an Omni-Channel Mindset to begin with, you’re invited to >>consider this<< and get started today with Enhancing Your Awareness.

*Omni-Channel Marketing is defined as sending marketing messages through all available channels to all potential and existing customers and clients. It can be applied both online- as offline, and it is regarded as best practice when it is all attuned and aligned, serving humankind.

Tags business culture, How to adopt an omni-channel mindset, leadership, marketing, Mindset, omni-channel, Omni-Channel Marketing

Human Resources Marketing Negotiations Sales Skills Women In Business

“Stop Bully Fear How To Fight Back And Easily Increase Negotiation Skills” – Negotiation Tip of the Week

Post author By C-Suite Network
Post date March 18, 2022
No Comments on “Stop Bully Fear How To Fight Back And Easily Increase Negotiation Skills” – Negotiation Tip of the Week

“A bully’s power exists to the degree you grant it.” -Greg Williams, The Master Negotiator & Body Language Expert (Click to Tweet) Click here to get the book!

“Stop Bully Fear – How To Fight Back And Easily Increase Negotiation Skills”

People don’t realize they’re always negotiating, even more so against a bully.

World leaders gently gnaw at their bottom lip as the world wrenches in turmoil created by the bully. They are waiting to see what the bully does next. They pause in hesitation because they are unsure which negotiation skills and tactics to use. One courageous leader stands alone, shouting, fight the bully.

But since he has little and limited power on the world stage, his cry for assistance to fight the bully forcefully is met with an insufficient response. Even though the bully has shown through actions that he cannot be appeased or trusted, those in power act with restrained power. No one seems to know how to negotiate with the bully.

So, how might you better negotiate with a bully to fight back his aggressive nature? That is what this article will help you discover. And in so doing, you will increase your negotiation skills.

Click here to discover more!

Remember, you’re always negotiating!

Check out this offer to learn more about negotiating better and reading body language!

Listen to Greg’s podcasts at https://megaphone.link/CSN6318246585 Once there, double click on the one you would like to hear.

After reading this article, what are you thinking? I’d like to know. Reach me at Greg@TheMasterNegotiator.com

To receive weekly free 5-minute sneak peeks into the brilliant techniques offered by Greg, click here

https://www.themasternegotiator.com/negotiation-speaker/ and sign up at the bottom of the page

Culture Entrepreneurship Marketing Personal Development

Navigating Web3, the metaverse and Music

Post author By Kelli Richards
Post date March 11, 2022
1 Comment on Navigating Web3, the metaverse and Music

As a career-long visionary and innovator, I’ve been at the forefront of several major iterations of content-related waves and platforms over the past several decades. Each of these waves has enabled greater empowerment for content creators and deeper fan engagement. So in that context, how will Web 3 and the metaverse will affect today’s artistic community? My research has uncovered some clues. But before I talk about those, let’s see how we got here in the first place.

First, we had Web 1.0 (dawn of the Internet — early days, then high-speed Internet, web sites, mobile explosion, and in my case helping to launch the earliest initiatives around artist direct-to-fan (DTF) models in the mid-90s when Todd Rundgren and I launched Patronet — pre-cursor to Patreon — in the mid-90s). Other artist DTF models of the day included efforts by Prince with the NPG Music Club and David Bowie with BowieNet (pioneers all). And of course, this phase included the disruption of Napster, Bit Torrent, the launch of iTunes, et al. That lasted about a decade.

Then Web 2.0 came along about 10 years ago, which focused on things like the rise of social media platforms where like-minded communities gathered, user-generated content was born, SmartPhones and the rise of the app world, and we had experiences like second screen (consumer engagement across and between multiple devices), et al. Over this decade, we’ve witnessed an exponential increase in social media/UGC platforms, especially with the use of graphics and video (visuals). In this era, we experienced something referred to as “The 2nd Renaissance” — a term coined by Jack Conte, CEO of Patreon — to describe a feedback loop between tech and content creators that drives the expansion of creator-type jobs and changes how society interacts with media and ‘influence’.

This creator economy is being embraced in a big way by venture capitalists (VCs) with increasing levels of investment in tools and platforms across industries that foster the interaction between creators and fans. And crypto is enabling a whole new set of opportunities for digital creation, placing the creator at the center of its own economy — no longer held back in distribution or monetization by monolithic media companies.

This past year in 2021, we’ve entered Web 3.0 — which has really started to pick up speed over the last six months in particular as I write this. Web3 includes the metaverse — immersive content and virtual in-world community experiences, the blockchain as a system for recording transactions and asset ownership as a digital ledger in the crypto world, and NFTs (non-fungible tokens which themselves are collectibles in the form of “one of one” cryptographic assets housed on a blockchain that are unique and can’t be replicated).

One of the leaders in the metaverse space (for music) is Roblox (worth about $28B and has about 50M users as I write this). Long-time colleague, Jon Vlassopulos is VP & Global Head of Music, and he’s leading the charge with all sorts of creative things in music on the platform including facilitating unique virtual concert & festival experiences, listening parties for artists and fans, and other innovative music experiences. These opportunities provide for richer artist-to-fan interactions, fan-to-fan interactions, and new revenue streams.

And in tandem with the metaverse, we’ve seen nothing short of an explosion of NFT sales in 2021. There’s quite a bit of uncertainty and skepticism with NFTs given the massive growth in a relatively short period of time, but many believe they are here to stay having gained traction particularly among younger demographics as a way to engage more deeply with their favorite artists (and with each other in fandoms).

One of the things NFTs enable is the opportunity for artists to get upfront funding from their fans without giving up the rights to their ownership and taking big revenue cuts — which was **exactly** the vision Todd and I had when we launched Patronet over 25 years ago (!). And in tandem, fans as “investors’, can participate in a share of the success of their favorite artists financially as well as with intrinsic satisfaction.

Several artists are experimenting with NFTs, such as creative music producer 3lau (pronounced “Blau” aka Justin Blau), who sold 33 NFTs on the third anniversary of his album Ultraviolet for over $11.7M, making it one of the largest music NFT deals to date. He has also launched his own venture, Royal, which enables fractional ownership through its own version of NFTs, and last Fall secured $55M in a Series A round raise.

And more recently, Julian Lennon (son of the late Beatle) auctioned off a set of Beatles memorabilia from his personal collection as NFTs in support of his philanthropic venture, The White Feather Foundation.

The truth is there is so much happening in this space on a daily basis, and I’m paddling as fast as I can to come up to speed on the broad range of opportunities that the Web3 era enables in music and other realms. (As a career-long visionary and innovator, I’ve been at the forefront of several major iterations of content-related waves and platforms over the past several decades. Each of these waves has enabled greater empowerment for content creators and deeper fan engagement.) Others who are a little further along than I have done podcasts and written some highly informative pieces which I encourage you to dive into if you’re keen to learn more. Here’s a collection of just some of the resources I’ve found to be among the most insightful — but truly there’s a plethora of information out there (let alone a steady stream of events showing up on the landscape consistently):

*Peter Csathy’s CreatTV.Media — a long-time trusted colleague in the digital media space (especially in music), Peter hosts a podcast called “Fearless Media”, and offers a wealth of insights on Web3 here. He features guests on the cutting edge of Web3 activities aimed at music and other media (films, games, etc).

*Variety’s Intelligence Platform also offers a broad range of well-researched reports and insights that cover every facet of music and entertainment’s next frontier in Web 3. Here’s just one example.

*How NFTs Could Re-define the Future of the Music Industry by Jake Fraser for Venture Beat

*The Creator Economy & 2nd Renaissance — a terrific PDF I recommend highly; by Bitkraft Ventures

*Web3 is the Future, or a Scam, or Both — by long-time journalist colleague Peter Kafka

*Unpacking Music Royalty Investment NFTs — by Tatiana Cirisano

*Real Vision — an on-demand financial TV channel focused on fintech and Web3 initiatives, including an emphasis on the music, media and entertainment worlds. They also host highly curated dynamic events.

*NFT LA — taking place in Los Angeles, March 28–31, 2022

*Web3 Summit — taking place in San Diego, May 18–20, 2022 (full disclosure, I’m programming music track panels for this event).

So as you can see, Web3 is emerging as one of the most dynamic of all the waves we’ve experienced thus far related to multimedia platforms and new forms of content creation, engagement and monetization. Watch this space as we’re only on the cutting edge of this new era which promises to be a game-changer.

Tags Navigating Web3, Web3 Summit

Culture Entrepreneurship Marketing Personal Development

Navigating Web3, the metaverse and Music

Post author By Kelli Richards
Post date March 11, 2022
4 Comments on Navigating Web3, the metaverse and Music

*How NFTs Could Re-define the Future of the Music Industry by Jake Fraser for Venture Beat

*The Creator Economy & 2nd Renaissance — a terrific PDF I recommend highly; by Bitkraft Ventures

*Web3 is the Future, or a Scam, or Both — by long-time journalist colleague Peter Kafka

*Unpacking Music Royalty Investment NFTs — by Tatiana Cirisano

*NFT LA — taking place in Los Angeles, March 28–31, 2022

*Web3 Summit — taking place in San Diego, May 18–20, 2022 (full disclosure, I’m programming music track panels for this event).

Tags Navigating Web3, Web3 Summit

Best Practices Entrepreneurship Leadership Marketing Personal Development

Adjusting To The New Normal

Post author By Danna Olivo
Post date February 10, 2022
No Comments on Adjusting To The New Normal

The past several months leading up to and into 2022 I have been concentrating a great deal of effort preparing my clients and prospects for the New Normal ushered in by the COVID Pandemic. By now I believe that as business owners we can all agree that the old way of doing business has given way to a whole new way that involves:

Less personal customer/prospect interaction
Streamlined/reduced resources and personnel
Increases reliance on technology interfaces, and
New means of communicating and connecting

What amazes me is that with all these changes there has also been a growing sense of productivity, focus, and community around family and friends. So, the dilemma is ‘How do we capitalize on the New Normal moving forward as we strive to grow and scale our businesses or careers?’ I have included 5 tips to help weed out the confusion and uncertainty brought about by the changes that have taken place and how to Take Back Control.

Stop listening to all the chatter

The first step in gaining the upper hand in your own life and business is to stop listening to what everyone else is saying. The Pandemic has introduced so-called ‘experts’ introducing shock and awe into an already frightening situation. As responsible individuals, we can choose how we react to what is happening around us and whether we let it govern us or we can take back control.

Take stock of the impact

The Pandemic has really had on us personally. Weigh the Pros and Cons. What seems to be a mess and negatively impacting our lives may also be introducing something that was lost a long time ago. I am constantly hearing stories about how families are reconnecting, workers realizing that chasing the brass ring was taking away from what was important in their lives. I for one have realized that by being confined and working from my home, my productivity has increased three-fold. I no longer am putting 100+ miles a day on my car, ultimately saving time, gas, and maintenance on my car.

Take advantage of looser time restraints

The Pandemic has introduced a new way of working, allowing more flexibility to spend as ‘ME’ time. Don’t be afraid to take an hour or two here or there during the workweek for downtime. Take a walk around the block, take the kids to the zoo, or spend some quality time with your ‘better’ half. Not being tied to an office 8-9 hours a day, allows you the freedom of flexibility.

Set up a dedicated space for work at home

Although the Pandemic has ushered in some positive advantages, these can easily be squashed when there is not a dedicated work/home life separation. Working from home can make it difficult to shut down, blurring the lines between work and family. Whether growing your own business or working at home in a remote position, you need to be disciplined enough to know when to close the door at work every day.

Pay close attention to trend changes

Now is not the time to become complacent thinking that THIS is the NEW Normal. Things are far from over when it comes to the impact of COVID. We will continue to see new and improved changes in technology, communications, operational management, streamlined systems, and much more as we maneuver the new normal way of working. To succeed in this changing environment it is more important than ever for you to remain apprised of the changes coming down the pike.

2022 will be a year of discovery and restructuring as we Take Back Control of our lives both personally and professionally. MarketAtomy is offering a 5-Day challenge February 21st – 25th “Taking Back Control in 2022” exploring trend changes impacting business growth moving forward. To register go to https://bpchallenge.teawithchris.com/

MarketAtomy, LLC is a growth development-learning environment for small and medium business owners with one goal in mind…to empower them with the tools and knowledge needed to build their business on a rock-solid foundation. Through foresight and fortitude, entrepreneurial dreams become a reality. For more information, please visit marketatomy.com. Visit MarketAtomy.Academy to find out about the only Learning Management System developed for early-stage business growth.

Tags business|covid19|newnormal|pandemic|strategy

Best Practices Marketing Personal Development

7 Ways to Elevate Your Online Brand So You Can Love Your LinkedIn Profile

Post author By Carol Kaemmerer
Post date February 2, 2022
No Comments on 7 Ways to Elevate Your Online Brand So You Can Love Your LinkedIn Profile

7 Ways to Elevate Your Online Brand So You Can Love Your LinkedIn Profile

Do you dread having potential business suitors, partners, customers – and the talent you hope to hire – probe your LinkedIn profile? Are you uncomfortable because you know your profile doesn’t represent you effectively? A great LinkedIn profile introduces you well, and starts to convey the message and impression you’re shooting for even before your first conversation takes place. If your profile is not doesn’t do this, give yourself some self-love to elevate it. I’ve outlined 7 ways below – so you can love your online brand.

Before a customer or M&A team probes your team’s LinkedIn profiles, I ensure everything is ready, and your profiles convey exactly the message and impression you’re aiming for.

Be authentically YOU.

As I mentioned in last month’s article, expressing your personal brand in words is difficult, but it is a challenge worth tackling. Think about who you serve, the problems you help them solve, and the results of your work. In your About section, tell us about your business purpose, principles, and passion. The more deeply you share, the more effectively you set the stage for people to know, like, and trust you.

Create a headline that differentiates you.

LinkedIn auto-fills your headline with your current position title and company, but they also provide 220 characters for customization. Consider how you add value and write the phrases that will let us know.

Update your headshot.

If your headshot is already stellar AND you still look like the person in the picture, there’s no need to update. But if the image isn’t the best, love yourself enough to find the best headshot photographer in your area and make an appointment. Chapter 3 in my book provides a checklist to help you evaluate whether you need a new headshot and information about how to source your ideal headshot photographer.

Create a customized banner image.

The graphic behind your headshot is called the banner; the default banner provided by LinkedIn is an uninspiring gray/green graphic. Customizing it can bring your personal brand to life. Perhaps your company’s marketing communications team already has some company-accepted banner images using your company’s logo. Or, refer to the headline you created and consider how some of your personal brand attributes might translate visually. The free sources of images I love to access for my clients are stocksnap.io and www.unsplash.com. Also, you can add text to any visual using www.canva.com.

Write to the margins.

An important driver of LinkedIn’s search algorithm is the number of times your profile uses the keyword someone is using in their search. If you write a two-sentence About section or include minimal text under each of your job experiences, you cannot possibly rank as well as someone who takes LinkedIn’s character limits for each section to heart. For example, the About section is 2,600 characters (about 5 paragraphs) and for each job position, the limit is 2,000 characters. The more you write, the more you will naturally use keywords related to your personal brand. For a more complete discussion on how to write effectively for the two audiences (bots and people) on your LinkedIn profile, see my article Tell Me More – on LinkedIn.

Customize your URL.

As I mentioned in my December article, the URL assigned to you by LinkedIn ends with a long string of random numbers and letters that are hard for you (and others) to memorize or type. You should create your own URL, because using the default URL signals that you are not in the know. A default URL doesn’t fit nicely on a business card or your signature block on your email and it is cumbersome when you have to look it up to post it in the Zoom chat. This is an easy fix: to the right of your profile, you’ll find the link called Edit Public Profile and URL. Click on it, and you can create your own URL.

Up-level your Skills section.

Make sure that the first three skills listed in your Skills section are your most important skills. If they are not, demote the skills currently listed in the top three slots by clicking the pushpin icons and add the pushpin icons to your three most important skills. For a more complete explanation of why that is important and how to up-level the skills listed in this important LinkedIn section, see my article: Have You Missed the Step that Gives Your LinkedIn Skills POWER?

When your online brand represents you well, you’ll love your LinkedIn profile. A profile that is working optimally will bring ideal-for-you opportunities right to your door.

From Fortune 500 companies to Silicon Valley start-ups, clients around the country have passed initial muster, raised capital, and bought or sold what they wanted to buy or sell by using LinkedIn to their best advantage. If you are a C-suite executive or senior leader, I can make this easy for you. Before a customer or M&A team examines your team’s LinkedIn profiles, based on my knowledge of how LinkedIn works and how people respond to what they see there, I can ensure everything is ready and your profiles convey exactly the message and impression you’re aiming for.

Over the past ten years, I’ve helped countless C-level clients and senior executives use LinkedIn to frame conversations, impress suitors and customers, and introduce themselves before their first conversation takes place. Along the way, I wrote the award-winning book, LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive-2^nd Edition. It’s received BookAuthority’s “Best LinkedIn Books of All Time” award, and is a featured selection of the C-Suite Book Club.

Let me help you use this essential business tool effectively. Contact me through my website: www.carolkaemmerer.com or profile: www.linkedin.com/in/carolkaemmerer.

Book me to speak either virtually or in person on the topic of personal branding via LinkedIn. I am a member of the National Speakers Association, a Certified Virtual Presenter, and an Advisor to the C-Suite Network.

Promote Your Brand with Authenticity, Tact and Power

To order an author-signed book, see: https://carolk.yourfeaturedauthor.com/

My book Second Edition: LinkedIn for the Savvy Executive: Promote Your Brand with Authenticity, Tact and Power is available through online booksellers. For your author-inscribed and signed book or quantity discounts, order at: https://carolkaemmerer.com/books

For DIY instruction on improving your LinkedIn profile, register for my self-paced, online course: How to be Found on LinkedIn: Key Strategies for Attracting Ideal-for-You Opportunities, https://carolkaemmerer.com/onlinecourse

To receive my monthly articles in your email inbox, sign up for my monthly emailing here.

Other Articles by Carol Kaemmerer

What is a Personal Brand – And How Can You Take Charge of Yours?

Twelve Changes You Can Make in About an Hour to Improve Your LinkedIn Profile

Why Is My LinkedIn Profile Getting So Few Views?

How Can LinkedIn Be Part of Your Company’s Strategy for Responding to the Great Resignation?

Is Your LinkedIn Profile Missing the Mark?

Comfortable in Your Job? Uncomfortable Life Lessons to Safeguard Your Career

How to Be Found on LinkedIn: Ten Top Strategies to Rank Well on a LinkedIn Keyword Search

Why Are You Playing Small on LinkedIn?

If You’re Not “Writing to the Margins” on LinkedIn, You’re Missing Out

Don’t Be Hooked Through a Big Phish: Recognize and Avoid Phishing Scams on LinkedIn:

A Small Omission That Undermines Your Credibility on LinkedIn

“Tell Me More…” — On LinkedIn

What is Your Poor LinkedIn Profile Costing You?

C-Suite Executives: Stop Hiding Online

Tags executive brand|LinkedIn brand|LinkedIn strategy|online brand

Best Practices Marketing Personal Development Sales

Trusted Advisors or Structured Sales: Pick One

Post author By Mark Boundy
Post date December 10, 2021
No Comments on Trusted Advisors or Structured Sales: Pick One

Two B2B sales models have emerged over the last decade or so, without most of us knowing it. In 2022, that divergence will become clearer. Both have their place, and each can be mis-applied.

One is “Divide and Optimize”, ably described in best-selling Predictable Revenue. Here, your selling process — emphasis on “selling”– is divided into subprocesses/components, and specialized job roles are optimized for efficiency and effectiveness.

Sales development & business development reps secure appointments for demo specialists/account executives, who close, relaying to customer success or account manager/farmers.
This model increasingly has a seller-centric feel, and various manipulations, especially discounting, get used – often in vain — to shorten sales cycles.

Second is a “Trusted Expert” model, emphasizing “buying process”. Goal: deeply understand each customer’s world & situation, then co-create desirable outcomes. Specialist roles are used extensively, but in service of enhancing the customer journey, not selling process efficiency.

Business acumen is key. Sellers must follow up compelling datapoints with insightful business discussions.
Content is customer focused, and outcome-heavy. “Discovery” and “mutual fit” are emphasized over “qualification”. Demonstrations are shorter, focused on areas of customer-confirmed interest.

Buyer Research Points to Which Model Fits…and When

Research shows that buyers are increasingly willing to engage salespeople earlier — sometimes much earlier — in their buying journey when the decision is:

New to me or my organization, particularly when the solution is innovative,
Risky to me or my organization. For instance: implementation, vendor, change management, executive visibility, strategic and other risks.

The vertical axis in the diagram represents increasing “willingness to engage” as you go up. “Willing to” is key. Sellers still need to rise to the occasion. Customers don’t suffer fools or time wasters.

When to Choose the Divide and Optimize Model –and When Not To.

Lower down, customers feel self-sufficient. They may have recently bought this type of product or service, and have well-developed buying criteria. SDRs and BDRs are well-suited to uncover a customer’s known pain & gain points, and quickly move the sale to demos & evaluating [repetitive/consistent] decision criteria. Conversely, few SDR/BDR organizations are able to cause a “trigger event” – that is, create dissatisfaction with the status quo. Fewer still can conduct meaningful business conversations.

The obvious conclusion: the more confident a customer is in their decision-making, the better Divide and Optimize fits the situation.

Contacting high-willingness buyers with low-acumen SDRs? You risk allowing a more trusted competitor to guide those prospects through their journey. Do you really want to re-engage near the end and compete based on the other guy’s features and your price?

When to Implement the Trusted Advisor Model

When the customer is under-experienced, and/or risk averse, the trusted expert model becomes the best fit. Sellers with business acumen, who build value — who are the value — earn “valued consultant” status. Ideally, buyers and sellers co-create a shared future; they act like they’re already doing business together.

Success in the trusted expert model requires that sellers establish credibility from the first contact (today’s typical SDR or BDR can’t deliver the expertise a customer would welcome). With credibility established, they are given liberty to help expand customer’s perception of outcomes or modify buying criteria.

Important: sometimes, an “low-willingness” prospect can change perceptions when a credible, collaborative, trusted expert opens their eyes to new possibilities. This textbook application of “challenging/perspective/insight selling” thrives with seller credibility; but without credibility, it backfires into “the annoying know-it-all sale”. There’s an art to building enough credibility with these prospects that you have “permission to enlighten”.

Choose the Best Match For Your Customer, Not on “Availability of Automation Tools”.

The Divide and Optimize model is about selling process efficiency, and a majority of current Martech solutions (8000+ and counting) serve well here. Many tools optimize your sellers quantity of:

Questions asked,
Seconds of listening vs. seconds of talking,
..and streamline quantity of calls, texts, tweets, posts, video messages, emails spewed…

However, little current sales automation measures quality of:

Business insights offered (although big data is starting to be applied here)
Credibility built,
Questions to expand the customer’s concept of their problems or future
Number of additional “natural ally” buying influencers are added to the decision team
Business outcomes identified and quantified
Personal outcomes identified.

We’re Starting to Automate the Trusted Advisor Model: a Huge Step Forward.

Some big data tools now quickly synthesize data for trusted advisors, enabling genuine consultants to add value with clients…It’s becoming possible to know more about key parts of your customer’s business than they do.

There are also great value quantification tools, which help solidify value in a customer’s mind, minimizing price objections.

Business acumen (hired or developed) is a priority with trusted advisor organizations. Options used to be full-on MBA educations for sellers (at least one major enterprise software company opts for this) or dissatisfying “how to interpret financial statements”, or “SWOT analysis” tools. Training and tools in between those are becoming available.

Let Your Customer’s Situation Choose Your Selling Model.

Follow the research: asses at your customer’s typical buying situation. Figure out if buying from you is novel and/or risky for your customer. Or, make it easy: ask me for my customer willingness assessment tool.

In 2022, if your company sells to high-willingness buyers…or want to…and you currently use a Divide and Optimize approach, you might want to switch models. Heck, if every competitor in a Trusted Advisor market uses Divide and Optimize, there is a market opportunity for the first mover. Be aware, though: execution requires investing in your people, their business acumen, and the types of content you generate, not your tech stack.

When you do, you’ll find that improves your pricing integrity – and profits, informs better marketing, and sharpens your product strategy. I’m happy to help you figure out how to do it in your world, using your language. You can get started by reading my book. ..or contact me.

To your Success!

Tags #businessacumen|#sales|#salesperformance|#trustedadvisor

Quick links

Follow Us