Top 3 Business and Marketing Lessons Learned in 2008

“The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather in a lack of will.” -- Vince Lombardi

Well yes another year has seemingly breezed by but 2008 was a very different kind of year for so many reasons. The biggest one that comes to mind was all the doom and gloom surrounding conversations about a failing economy. It seemed like so many people were using the supposed failing economy as an excuse to crawl under a rock and die. “Oh no one is spending money right now so they won’t buy my services… it’s that damn economy.  Oh no one is giving me leads anymore… it’s that damn economy. This damn economy is killing me!”

I’m saddened to say that I’ve heard it all this past year!

That venomous message seemed to permeate every orifice of our being – as scary as that sounds!

So as usual as each year passes by there are so many lessons we can learn and grow from each year. And for me there were 3 core ones that I’ll share with you here: 

#1 – Don’t Buy Into the Bull
Yes while it’s true that the economy had been in quite a state of flux in 2008, that didn’t mean that I had to sit idly by and suffer. That was completely against all I stand for as I firmly believe that we create our own reality. So my mantra quickly became “if it is to be, then it’s up to me!” It’s up to me to as Ghandi once said “to be the change I wanted to see in the world”. I knew it was time to step up my game in a big way… and I did!

Let someone else do the worrying… Let someone else do the blaming… Let someone else become the ‘victim’… not me… I refused. My credo for 2008 quickly became “When the going gets tough, the tough get marketing”. I decided to live or die by what I do best… marketing! Hey guess what? I’m still here so I guess it worked. 

#2 – Focus on My Fastest Path to Cash
No matter what, money does make the world go around; therefore it was critical that I earn my share.

Now you must have heard the saying that ‘the grass is always greener on the other side’. Well my experiences over the past year confirmed for me that this doesn’t have to be the case! The grass can be plenty green right here! I just had to learn how to nurture it better. So this past year I focused diligently on nurturing and growing my most promising and lucrative profit centers. The few that I did choose to do were to be done great. My focus became razor-sharp at marketing, selling and delivering those specific services and those only. Everything else went into what I call the ‘parking lot’ -- a repository for items worth consideration at some time in the future -- just not now. 

#3 – Greater Health Leads to Greater Wealth
I honestly can say that taking the time out of my already hectic schedule to focus on my physical health was the single-most smartest move I made all year!

As my physical health improved so did so many other critical areas of my life. My brain felt sharper… I became more focused… I had more energy… my self esteem climbed through the roof… heck even the air smelled fresher, need I go on?

What did I do differently? Well 3 main things: weekly chiropractic care, regular massage therapy, and I became much more conscious of what I was eating. Hey I lost 23 pounds in 2008… that’s no small feat! However with the right regimen, the right coaching, and a strong desire… it really did happen easily. Big thanks to both my wife Andrea and the team over at DREAM Wellness for all their guidance, support, and care.

So in closing, I’ll tell you that sitting around blaming stuff outside your control will not get you the things you want in life. Tough times will certainly test your will! How bad do you want it? Because I’ll tell you this challenging economy will weed out the weak – that’s for sure! And you know what; maybe that’s not such a bad thing. That’ll just leave more for those who are willing to play a bigger and better game. I intend to continue to raise my game… how about you?

© 2009 Online Marketing Muscle -- All Rights Reserved.

Want to use this article in your newsletter, blog or web site? You have my blessing so long as you include the following complete blurb with it (including links).

Liked this article? -- Then you won’t want to miss Long Island-based marketing consultant, coach, and entrepreneur Dean Mercado’s highly acclaimed marketing blog 'The Motivational Marketer’s Journal' (www.MotivationalMarketer.com). Additionally, for even more small business marketing and success tips, sample the latest edition of his FREE marketing tips newsletter the 'Marketing Minute' (www.OnlineMarketingMuscle.com/marketingminute), -- a multimedia e-zine designed to give you a jolt of marketing wisdom in less than 5 minutes.

Dean Mercado, Online Marketing Muscle, success articles, lessons learned, failing economy, health, wealth, DREAM Wellness

Top 10 Business and Marketing Lessons Learned in 2007 (Part II: The Second Five)

Well I certainly hope you enjoyed part I of this article where I shared with you the first five of my top 10 business and marketing lessons learned in 2007. To quickly summarize, they were:

#1 - Maintain an Attitude of Gratitude

#2 - Improve Myself… Attract Better Clients

#3 - Make a Conscious Effort to Use Time More Efficiently

#4 - The Clearer My Vision… The Greater My Results

#5 - The More I Measure… The Better My Decisions

If you’d like to review them in detail, you’ll find part I of this article on my blog the Motivational Marketer’s Journal at www.MotivationalMarketer.com.

In the meantime, as promised, here are the remainder of my top lessons learned in 2007:

#6 - Milk Each Marketing Campaign for all they’re Worth
“Anything worth doing is worth doing well”. I’m not sure who to credit for that statement however it is such sage advice. You’re better off doing a few things great than many things so-so. One hard lesson I learned this past year was that since I knew how to implement dozens of marketing strategies and tactics, I wanted to use them all. Therefore I started out doing just that and received mediocre results for my efforts. Once I scaled back and took on just a few of those marketing strategies and tactics, I was able to really maximize my effectiveness and get more results with less effort. So my point is for example, if you’re going to have a blog, be the best blogger you can be or, if you’re going to have a newsletter, publish the best newsletter you can, and then focus and maximize your efforts to gaining the most traction from them.

#7 - Love the Client’s you Want to Keep… Fire the Rest!
I’ve had the unfortunate experience of losing a loved-one this past year and let me tell you, life’s just too damn short to waste on screwing around with clients who don’t add value to your life. Business is a two-way street… every client/vendor relationship must be mutually beneficial and enjoyable else, give yourself permission to move on! It’s important here to lose the scarcity-mindset. There are plenty of clients out there for all of us. As a matter of fact I do believe that there are plenty out there that are meant to be served by you!

#8 - Increase the Quantity and Quality of Thinking Time
Turn off the radio… turn off the TV… grab a pen and paper… and a seat, and practice thinking. Let your thoughts run through your pen and onto the paper. Let your creativity and inner-genius flow. Think of ways to improve your value… think of ways to improve your client’s experience with you… think of ways to improve your productivity… think of ways to have more fun in your business… the bottom line is to practice thinking. I’ve been journaling my thoughts for years and believe me when I tell you that my best stuff has spawned from such thinking sessions… let alone the clarity of focused action that came as a result.

#9 - Mastermind Your Way to Success
This past year I participated in several different mastermind teams. Some focused on business… some focused on investing… and some focused on self-improvement. I am a firm believer that 2 minds are better than 1… let alone if you have a mastermind team of 5 or 6 great minds… the possibilities are endless! I garnered tons of insight and advice from all of my fellow mastermind teammates and I am eternally grateful to each and every one of them!

#10 - The Joy Is In the Journey… Not the Destination
Do yourself a huge favor and pause long enough to smell the roses. Driving yourself forward like a slave-driver is no way to go through life. This year I really took the opportunity to slow down and have more fun with my business. That didn’t mean get lazy. It just meant to consciously draw more joy out of every day. I not only had a more fruitful and enjoyable year, but all those around me seemed to as well… my vitality became contagious and also attracted others with similar vitality toward me!

So in closing, I just have to ask you, did any of my experiences shared here resonate with you? What lessons did you learn this past year? Take the time to do some reflection of your own… and then… why don’t you stop by my blog and share them? I’d love to hear all about them. In the meantime, allow yourself to learn from my experiences as well as the experiences of others around you and make this next year, a year to remember!

© 2008 Online Marketing Muscle -- All Rights Reserved.

Want to use this article in your newsletter, blog or web site? You have my blessing so long as you include the following complete blurb with it (including links).

Liked this article? -- Then you won’t want to miss Long Island-based marketing consultant, coach, and entrepreneur Dean Mercado’s highly acclaimed marketing blog 'The Motivational Marketer’s Journal' (www.MotivationalMarketer.com). Additionally, for even more small business marketing and success tips, sample the latest edition of his FREE marketing tips newsletter the 'Marketing Minute' (www.OnlineMarketingMuscle.com/marketingminute), -- a weekly multimedia e-zine designed to give you a jolt of marketing wisdom in less than 5 minutes.

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Top 10 Business and Marketing Lessons Learned in 2007 (Part I: The First Five)

It’s scary… 2007 has come and gone in the blink of an eye. Time sure seems to fly when you’re having fun… and I did have fun this past year. Not only because my results were better, but because I learned and/or re-learned so many great lessons along the way. And I intend to share with you 10 of those which had the most impact for me. I’ll share five here and five more in Part II of this article. So without further adieu here are the first five:

#1 - Maintain an Attitude of Gratitude
I’ve been keeping a daily gratitude journal for a few years now yet for some reason this year, something just seemed to click… kind of like a light switch just flicked on in my head. I began noticing patterns as well as more specificity in what I was truly grateful for. I began writing more from the heart and started letting go of my fears and inhibitions… I do believe that these were some of the same fears and inhibitions that were holding me back. I became much more grounded and tuned in this past year to what was really important to me in both my personal life, as well as in my business. Getting clear on what was important really focused me on not only what to do, but why I am doing it. It also strengthened my conviction and resolve to make these things happen. This I believe was the most important lesson for me in 2007… more important than any business skill or marketing strategy.

#2 - Improve Myself… Attract Better Clients
I’ve been a consummate student of self-discovery and self-improvement for the better part of the last 20 years… really upping my commitment to that cause over the past 5. I cannot articulate to you enough on how wonderful and fruitful this journey has been. It’s had such a profound effect on not only my life, but on the lives of all those around me. In terms of my business, it has helped me continuously attract an increasingly better quality of prospects and clients

#3 - Make a Conscious Effort to Use Time More Efficiently
One thing’s for certain, we’re all given the same exact amount of time each day to work with. No one is privy to a larger ration than their neighbor. This is a good thing. This levels the playing field and gives the small business owner a fighting chance for survival. What makes the difference is how we choose to use that time. This is where my lesson came in. The crux of the lesson was to work smarter not harder… wean my business away from purely trading time, my time, for money… the lesson was the power of leverage! And the two biggest areas of leverage for me this past year was leveraging the resources of others for mutual gain and repurposing content to get the most ‘bang for the buck’ out of it.

#4 - The Clearer My Vision… The Greater My Results
This one is such common sense that it is often overlooked and taken for granted. It really is much easier to get what you want if you know what it is you want. However ask 10 people to clearly describe what they want and see how difficult that question really is for most of them to answer. So for me it was not only getting clearer on what I wanted both personally and professionally but I also applied that same thinking to all of my marketing campaigns. Before embarking on each campaign, I began asking myself what I wanted as a result of carrying it out. This also provided me with a measurement I could use to track each marketing campaign’s effectiveness… I could then judge their viability going forward and make more sound business decisions.

#5 - The More I Measure… The Better My Decisions
Simply put, the numbers don’t lie. And simply figuring out what core metrics I needed to track, and those that I no longer needed to, have empowered me to make more educated decisions faster and with increased confidence. For example, keeping track of how many visitors stop by a specific web page that sells a specific product as well as how many of those visitors actually buy that product once there, is instrumental in knowing whether of not the sales copy on that web page is doing its job. This helps me figure out what actions I need to take (if any) on that web page.

So in closing, remember, reflection can be a powerful tool if leveraged properly. Yes this article serves as a kind-of therapeutic reflection for me. However, take advantage of my hard-learned lessons and maybe leverage them to cut your learning curve a bit.

© 2008 Online Marketing Muscle -- All Rights Reserved.

Want to use this article in your newsletter, blog or web site? You have my blessing so long as you include the following complete blurb with it (including links).

Liked this article? -- Then you won’t want to miss Long Island-based marketing consultant, coach, and entrepreneur Dean Mercado’s highly acclaimed marketing blog 'The Motivational Marketer’s Journal' (www.MotivationalMarketer.com). Additionally, for even more small business marketing and success tips, sample the latest edition of his FREE marketing tips newsletter the 'Marketing Minute' (www.OnlineMarketingMuscle.com/marketingminute), -- a weekly multimedia e-zine designed to give you a jolt of marketing wisdom in less than 5 minutes.

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