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I am often asked whether or not posting fees on a website is good idea or not.  Unfortunately, it isn’t as simple as a yes or no answer.  There are pro’s and con’s to both positions.

Now I know that you are feeling pangs of uncertainty and anxiety as you struggle to come to some decision with regard to whether to post or not.  But keep reading to find out why I think posting your fees is NOT a good idea.

First let me say if you post your fees you run the risk that prospective clients will pass you by because they feel your fees are too high without you ever having a conversation with you.  On the other hand if you don’t post your fees many people will wonder just how much you ARE going to charge and will assume your fees are too much for them to afford without any further investigation on their part.

So why do I feel leaving them off is the right answer?  Here are my three top reasons:

1.  The Decision To Hire Should Never Be Made On Price Only

Do you want price to be at the top of that prospects reason for hiring you?  I think not!  Money usually isn’t the number one reason why clients will pay you for services and invest in themselves.  But if you go ahead and post your fees you are clearly encouraging clients to keep price as a main criteria for hiring you.

I have never posted my fees on my website and I don’t have any intentions of starting.  Yet the funny thing is that most of my clients are people who feel that I am out of their price range.  When I sit with them and explain the value and benefits of working with me, they usually invest, find a way to pay for the service and end up being the best clients.  Why?  Because they understand the investment they are making and are really, really committed to achieving their goals.  They are PHENOMENAL!

2.  It’s All In The Conversation

The reality here is that your goal is to engage your prospective client in a conversation.  The selling conversation is about helping your prospective client get to know, like and trust you.  This can’t happen by just going to your website and perusing your price list.  It is one dimensional and flat…there is no opportunity for your prospect to have an authentic experience with you.

But remember, there is absolutely no reason for you to get into this conversation unless you are prepared to fully understand what problem they want to solve, what their business will look like once the problem is resolved, what the cost is if they don’t solve this problem and finally what it’s worth to them to solve it.

Do you see how vital it is to have the conversation in the first place?

Do you realize by having this conversation you help them to explore so much more than just a dollar amount?

3.  Clients Want  A Price They Can Wrap Their Head Around

In short, they want a price they can justify.  Until you can help them find the value in what you have to offer, they won’t spend a penny to work with you.  Your solution must be important and valuable to them.  While you are engaged in the conversation you can ask them why it is important to them.  Without the conversation you can never uncover what is truly valuable to them.

When you ask that all important question, “What’s important to you?” the prospective client will inevitably open up and tell you all the emotional reasons behind why they want to fix and solve their problem.  When you are then able to address their issues and let them know that you can help them their objections around money disappear like magic.

Now don’t get confused here.  If you are offering a product or a seminar where everyone is paying the same price then you will post that price on your website.  But for coaching, consulting, designing, organizing or other serviced based professions I recommend leaving the price off.  Instead spend your time writing great copy that fully describes the value and benefits you offer your prospective clients so they can imagine what it would be like to work with you and have a business that is truly flourishing.

How to Make Money in Your Bathrobe from eBay

Adam Ginsberg is America’s “go-to” guy for how to make BIG money on the Internet. Instilled with an entrepreneur’s spirit from an early age, Adam helped build a young marketing company into a multimillion-dollar success while he was still in college. Fascinated by the moneymaking potential of the Internet, he began selling on eBay and in less than a year became eBay’s #1 new seller. Adam’s eBay sales exceeded $20 million in less than five years, and was one of eBay’s first Titanium Power Sellers – eBay’s highest level.

Adam is the author of the #1 best seller, “How to Buy, Sell & Profit on eBay”. He has been featured in Fortune, Entrepreneur, and Kiplinger magazines, and has appeared on CNBC, ABC World News Tonight, and The Today Show. He has taught entrepreneurs nationwide how to build a winning Web site and make big bucks online. Adam will show you how to create a truly automated system that generates profits 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.

To learn more and to register go to: http://tinyurl.com/maxsuccess

Are you interested in becoming a millionaire entrepreneur?  Well then you won’t want to miss the Maximizing Success Wealth Retreat this March 20-21, 2010 right here in Boston!  Thousands of people have attended Debbie Allen’s seminars and now you can too.

Learn how Debbie built and sold numerous highly successful entrepreneurial ventures from the ground up to multi-million dollar businesses with little knowledge of the industries. Discover her easy-to-follow, highly insightful grass roots success strategies. Learn how you can hold a “Masters in Life” from the school of hard knocks and real-life business experience, too. Debbie will show you that “It’s ALL Possible.”

Develop the Vision, Plan and Performance critical to achieving high levels of success.

Discover the four distinctive mindsets of a millionaire entrepreneur and uncover six powerful characteristics that will empower you to exceed your goals.

Learn how to:

• Use the power of your thoughts to move you past any obstacle
• Create massive success by focusing on the quality of your thoughts
• Implement the action-oriented skills required to achieve peak performance
• Think, act and respond to opportunities like a millionaire entrepreneur

To learn more and to register go to: http://tinyurl.com/maxsuccess

What’s your story?  You know your money story; what is it?  We all have one.  Some of our stories are simple and some far more complicated.  These stories are all rooted in our past, deep inside of us and where formed when we were very young.

How many of us heard the following statements from our parents growing up:  “Money doesn’t grow on trees”, “Do you think I’m made of money?”, “We can’t afford it”, or, “Do you think there is a money tree growing in the backyard?”  There are countless phrases that our parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles said to use as kids.  We know them all and those statements are part of what has created our money mindset.  Sad I know, but true.

Unfortunately, most of us have negative feelings about money.  We have gathered all of the information that our family, peers, television and the media have told us about money and it has come together into what is now our negative money mindset.  Some of our feelings may be conscious and others subconscious.  It doesn’t matter if they are conscious or subconscious, they are there and they need to be tackled head on if you are going to make the money you desire!

1.  Stop Ignoring Money and Start Paying Attention To It

Money needs to flow and it needs to be paid attention to. If you don’t pay attention to money it will find a way to get your attention.  This will show up in ways you don’t want it to because you are not giving it the respect it deserves.  So stop putting your head in the sand and take a good look at your current money situation and develop a strategy to deal with it head on.

• Develop a Budget and Stick To It

We all understand the importance of developing a budget buy many don’t follow through by sticking to the plan. me ask you:  How do you expect to pay down your debt if you don’t have a plan?  Your budget is part of that plan and a crucial part of your overall success strategy.  So take pencil to paper and develop your budget NOW!

• Pay Your Bills On Time, Every Time

Paying your bills on time is an important step in your money recovery plan.  When you fail to pay your bills on time you are creating the energy of lack and scarcity and that leaves you feeling powerless over money.  Many of my bills are paid automatically some manually but I pay them at the same time each month.  Find a system that works for you and your money flow and stop ignoring your bills.

• Track Your Money Daily

You don’t need a fancy system just paper and pen.  Put down the date and money that was received each day.  You may start out with some zeros on some days but eventually you will see money coming in everyday!  This simple system really works…try it and see for yourself.

2.  Find The Money Leaks In Your Business

Every business has money leaks.  It may be that you are paying for a membership that you don’t use.  Maybe you are paying someone by the hour and they take far too long to complete a task costing you hundreds of dollars in lost cash.  There are countless ways that money leaks right out of our hands and back account.  Find your money leaks and plug them so that you can have more money in your business and life.

3.  Stop Using Negative Money Language

Spending money is always a choice about what you are prioritizing and what you value.  But when you say things like, “I can’t afford it” or “I don’t have the money” it tells the universe that you are not open to receive the money that it is trying to give you.  These statements are constricting, limiting and are based in scarcity and lack.

Instead say things like:  “I am worth it” or “I choose to invest in myself and my business”.  Not only is the language really important but what’s behind the language, the mindset is really important too.  Start focusing on what you say and stop using language that sends the wrong message to the universe.

When you start to pay attention to money, it will begin to flow to you into your business and into your life.  So pick one of these tips today and change your money story.

This week we had our first DARE To Be Phenomenal:   Success Minded Women’s Networking Event of the year.  We had 74 women mixing, mingling, networking and having fun!  As usual we had many new members join this month.  It was fabulous or dare I say phenomenal.

After the event someone commented to me that they like the evening events better than the lunch events because there is more room to move around and meet new people.  Although I understood her comment, it got me thinking about the purpose of these two events and how I see their function as being quite different.  Let me explain.

The evening event is a more structured event; we have a presentation followed by a Q & A session.  There is more opportunity to speak with more women as the event usually has somewhere between  85-90 women in attendance.

The lunch events are more casual and were always intended to provide an opportunity for the membership to get to know each other more personally.

Networking is never about how many people you can meet in a single event.  It is about meeting people with whom you can build a relationship and begin to work together to help strengthen each other’s business.

Whether you come for to the lunch event or the evening event you are guaranteed to meet a phenomenal group of women that are truly interested in taking their business to the next level.  Our next networking opportunity is January 26, 2010 at the Boxwood Grille, Methuen, MA. I look forward to seeing you there!

I recently had a consultation with a women business owner who wanted to move her business from frustrating 5-figures and into the 6-figure mark.  She was pretty clear in her money goal and seemed very determined to make it happen. I had to ask myself…

Is it Doable?

Absolutely!

Is it doable with the plan she had?

Absolutely not.

So many business owners create good solid goals and then take haphazard action, constantly led astray by another bright idea or strategy that someone dangles in front of them.  Or possibly they sit back and think that by “using” the Law of Attraction it will miraculously be delivered to them…plop right into their lap.

Here is the truth:

You must take the RIGHT action in the RIGHT way at the RIGHT time while keeping a clear and positive mindset about what you want to achieve.  This combination will catapult you forward to your goals and nothing else!

Sound tough?  Well imagine having to go and work for someone else again in a JOB…ugh the very thought makes me cringe!  You have already invested time, resources and your sanity to making your business work.  So how do you make it happen and stick to the plan you developed?

My Coaches Request:

1.  Sit down and revisit your goals for 2010. Haven’t developed any?  Well get cracking on that task.  Review the questions below.  Your answers will help you create your goals for 2010.

• What’s working in my business?
• What’s not?
• What action(s) would take me closer to my commitments in the next 90 days?
• What opportunities exist right now?
• What new strategy(ies) could I implement so I can reach these goals?

2.  Determine if your goals are realistic given where you are currently and your action steps. For example, consider how you plan on bringing in revenue for the year, what program, services, or products are you launching in 2010 and what marketing strategies are you planning on implementing in the year?

3.  Next revise your goals or the plan to achieve them or maybe both so that they are in total alignment with your vision…oh, and make sure they are doable. I like to tell my clients that when developing goals you need to feel the friction between too hard and too easy…that place in between.  When you find it, that is where your goal should be.

4.  Take action right now!

Want to make sure that you are formulating the RIGHT goals, at the RIGHT time, in the RIGHT order?  Call me at 978-794-4991 or email me at maureen@daretobephenomenal.com for a strategy session to see if I can help you formulate the right plan!  It’s a simple, easy and cost effective way to make sure you are on the right track!

Successful business owners will tell you that having a well thought out marketing strategy is crucial to their overall success.  Developing the plan doesn’t have to be a daunting task if you follow these components.

1. Proper Positioning

Positioning is the most important element when developing your marketing plan.  Positioning is the process by which you create an image or identity in the minds of your customers each time they experience your product or service.   Generally speaking positioning involves several steps; but in a nutshell it boils down to ensuring you are offering what your customers want with the most profitable market opportunity while differentiating your product/service from the competition in such a way that customers will choose your product or service.   To sum up, positioning is putting the right product at the right price in front of your target market.  When you have done this, you have mastered positioning.

2. Survey Your Customers

Don’t know what your customers want?  The best way to get the information that can propel your product or service forward is to ask your customers.  You need to understand clearly your target market if you have any chance at appealing to them to buy your products or services.  Surveys, samples, and test markets are great ways to get the feedback you need.  The feedback you get from your current customers or potential customers is priceless and will help you evaluate the integrity of your product, whether or not it’s in line with you branding, if the pricing strategy is correct and whether or not the quality of the product meets your customer’s expectations.

3. Tap Into The Power of Your Mastermind

Mastermind programs are one of the most powerful programs a person can participate in.  Why?  Because you get to leverage other people’s expertise and information and that is always better than trying to go it alone.  Your mastermind participants have probably had similar situations when developing their own marketing plans and even if they haven’t, they are a wonderful resource for ideas, perspectives, and experiences.  Having this resource to brainstorm with and to solve your biggest business challenges is the greatest benefit of a mastermind.  The synergy created between the members of the mastermind is the fuel that creates powerful results.  If you are not part of a mastermind I encourage you to investigate it and see if it doesn’t help you achieve the goals you set for your business.

4. Create Your Plan

A marketing plan is an essential element in your business and its overall success.  So many women business owners fail to create a marketing plan that it is no wonder that there scattered marketing attempts fail to yield them the results they are looking for.  Your plan doesn’t have to be complicated or complex to be effective.  I teach my clients an effective and simple marketing strategy that gets them the results they are looking for.  Remember simple is better and will be more effective.

5. Measure and Track Your Results

You know the saying if you don’t know where you are going how will you know when you get there?  The same is true of your marketing results.  If you don’t have the plan in place how will you know if you have achieved the results you are looking for.  You must track your results to see if you’re yielding the desired outcomes.  How will you measure the results of your plan?  Some ways this can be accomplished is by:  tracking open rates from your newsletter or other email marketing campaigns, how many unique visitors visit your website, increased signups for your newsletter, increased calls for new business, your return on investment vs what you spent.  Only you can determine what activities you want to engage in.  Just remember to know precisely the results you are looking for when developing your plan.

Sometimes I get so tired of the hype that marketers use to sell their products or services.  These marketers are sometimes the exact people who preach about being authentic and using the highest degree of integrity when marketing.  Here are some of my pet peeves and how to avoid them:

1. The Automatic Sign Up

This just happened to me last week at my local Chamber meeting.  I gave this person my business card and before I got home I had her most recent ezine in my in box!  Did she ask me if she could send it to me?  No, she didn’t, but I got it anyway.  And the icing on the cake…she told me if I put a link up on my website to her website she would do the same for me!  Now this may be appealing to some but I wasn’t falling for it!  Don’t do it!

2. Going, Going, Gone

Marketers who say stuff like, “We have 15 spots left, no I mean 17, no I mean 19.” Or the other version is, “Offer ends Monday, no I mean Tuesday, oops I mean Friday.”  Give me a break!  No matter if the game is played with numbers or time, the bottom line is it is still a game; and one that is insulting to potential clients.  Again, don’t do it!

3. Direct Messages

It seems like every day I get a new direct message from some yahoo  telling me how I must  check out this link so that they can sell me their stuff!  No thanks…and then I block them.  You heard me right.  When I get pitched to immediately I block them.  I don’t need to be sold too all day long and this is what some of these people on twitter are doing and frankly I won’t stand for it.  Don’t do this one either!

4. All Promo, All The Time

Some marketers send one promotion after another and it gets tiring.  Usually their ezine is full of useless information and when you check out their website they offer nothing free.  You guessed it, don’t do it!

5. Bad Twitterfeed

I like Twitterfeed,  but I really don’t need to get every feed, post, and link about everything.  Twitter is used best when used as a marketing tool; one that has been given careful consideration and is in line with your marketing plan.  There is no need to post every single thought, action or food you consumed because bottom line -  nobody cares.

6. Immediate Action Required

You all know what I am talking about!  You must act NOW.  Everything is urgent and it’s urgent all the time.  Give me a break…reading these emails and sales letter exhausts me.  I mean really do they think we have nothing better to do then stop what we are doing and attend to ANOTHER urgent message.  Now that is not to say that sometimes you get a notice and it is urgent but you will quickly learn if this is an ongoing case of the “emergencies” or if it out of the ordinary for this person.  If it’s all the time just hit the unsubscribe button.  And remember just don’t do it yourself!

Are you guilty of any of these mistakes?  If so, you know what to do…don’t do them again!

As a business owner our time is valuable so if you come across people who present their products and information in a manner that sends up the red flag then move on.

I was sitting and thinking the other day about the presentation that I did at the last DARE To Be Phenomenal Networking Event.  So many of the women came up to me after and told me how they have struggled with many limiting beliefs that were instilled in them by their parents.  It got me thinking about some serious questions one should ponder about money.  I am going to focus on a few here today and will be back later in the week with some more questions to think about.

Write down your answers and see what comes up for you.

1. What stories did your family tell you about money?  Was there a story that was repeated over and over again in your family?  Were these stories positive or negative?
2. How did your mother portray her attitude about money? What messages did she send about money?
3. How did your father portray his attitude about money?  What messages did he send about money?
4. Did you worry about money as a child?  What stories or words would you use to describe your worry about money?
5. What did you learn about money as a child?  How did these lessons make you feel about money?
6. When given the opportunity to learn about money do you resist learning this information?
7. Does money flow in and out of your life smoothly or do you have difficulty getting and giving money?
8. Do you feel in control or out of control with regard to your financial situation?
9. Do you know what your financial goals are?  Do you have a plan to get there or are you using the hope and pray method?
10. When you think about money do you feel dread or excitement? Why?
11. What are you willing to do about the beliefs about money that are having a negative impact on your ability to attract abundance into your life?

For some of you when you read these questions it is going to stir up all sorts of feelings about money.  It’s ok and it’s totally normal.  It is all part of the process of busting through those negative beliefs so you can embrace new, positive beliefs about money.  Let me know how you do and best of luck through this journey.

Once upon a time you dreamed of a carefree life as an entrepreneur.  You saw the vision of a business where you would satisfy all your clients needs, make tons of money and live the lifestyle of freedom and joy…..wait a second, stop the presses…the reality is hauntingly different.

Now don’t get mad or upset.  I know that you are working your tail off sometimes 12-14 hours per day to turn that dream into a reality.  You eat, sleep (when you do) and think about your business 7 days a week with little return on the investment and a ton of anger to show for it.  But let’s take a step back and really look at what it takes to turn that hobby into a business so you CAN have the business you always dreamed of.

Today Is That Day

Right now in this moment you have a wonderful opportunity to closely examine what it takes to have a successful business.  Here are five action items that you can implement right now so that you can make the transition from a hobby to a business:

1.     Develop a Business and Marketing Plan

When you decide to start a new hobby you don’t need to sit down and write out what you’re going to do and how you are going to do it; you just go out and get your supplies, set up a card table in the basement or spare room and start.  If this sounds like how you started your business, let me explain why this was a BIG mistake.

You want to be successful don’t you?  How will you know if you are?  By writing out your business plan you are taking the necessary steps to plan out your course of action; to identify the goals that indicate you are on the right track.  Without the plan how will you know that you are making the necessary gains in your business that you desire?

So many business women hate marketing but I am sorry ladies it is necessary to develop a marketing plan.  Pick two or three marketing activities and make the commitment to do them consistently.  The activities can range from attending at least one networking event each week to writing a newsletter.  No matter what activities you choose, do them consistently to see results.

2.    You Act Like You Are In Business

There are a couple of really important issues that fall under this heading of “acting like you are in business”.  The first I would like to point out is you have a business email that is tied to your website or domain name.  For example, maureen@daretobephenomenal.com instead of using a generic email address such as yourname@gmail.com. See the difference?  In the first example you know I have a legitimate business, the other, well you’re not so sure.

Second issue is you have branded yourself.  You have a distinct look and feel.  When you brand yourself with colors, taglines and logos you begin to stand out in the crowd.  All of your marketing material must have a cohesive look and feel to them, if they don’t, begin to work towards branding yourself.

Finally, you are treating your personal and business financial accounts as separate; you are not mixing your money.  If you are not doing this now, please go and seek the help of a quick books expert or bookkeeper who can help you separate your accounts so that you clearly know what you are spending and taking in on your business.

3.    Show Me The Money

Here is the plain hard truth…if you are not making any money than you have a hobby and not a business.  Your business needs to be making money or at least be on its way to profitability.  You can’t continue to live on your savings account forever,  and racking up credit card debt to run a business is extremely risky particularly if you own your own home.  Your business won’t survive for very long if you can’t bring in clients and turn a profit.

4.    You Have A Support Team

Part of the trap that many business owners fall into, is they spend many hours a week working in their business instead of on their business.  They do tasks that would be better done by someone else.  You have special talents and skills that bring in the revenue for your business.  If you are spending your time cleaning the house, managing the books,  or managing your data base then you have less time to go out and procure clients.  Find a VA, housecleaner or personal assistant to help you; learn to delegate!

5.    Learn, Learn, Learn

As I mentioned in my opening article, investing in yourself is the biggest gift you can give yourself.  I have two coaches and belong to a mastermind program with a different group of people.  I made a commitment to myself that if I wanted to make my business successful I knew I would have to make the time and monetary sacrifice to make it happen.  If you are struggling with your business or know deep in your soul that all you have is a hobby, I encourage you to consider hiring a coach, mentor or joining a mastermind so that you can turn that hobby into a thriving business.

My challenge to you this week is to take a good, hard look at your business and pick one area to work and improve on.  Make a goal and outline the steps that are necessary for you to achieve success.