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How to protect your online reputation and grow personal brand - SMALL GIGS MARKETINGSMALL GIGS MARKETING. There are very few people who do not have some sort of an online profile. Even those who avoid social media, with perhaps the exception of LinkedIn to publish their professional resume, will find themselves at the mercy of employers or associations who will list their accomplishments, their ‘latest’ headshot and bio somewhere online. Not to mention all the friends of said individuals who snap photos at events and post to social networks. Having an online footprint seems to be an unavoidable fact of life.

As a professional whose reputation is paramount to personal and professional success, the best option is to be in control of what is shared about you so that you can effectively manage your online reputation and grow your personal brand. Your online reputation is a valuable asset that you should and can influence. “You cannot build a reputation on what you are going to go.” Henry Ford If you are serious about creating a professional online profile, here are some basic tips to help you out. How to Grow Your Business with Live Events. As a business owner the whole point of events is to grow your business and this means growing your contact list or email list subscribers. Just like giving away a free eBook or report to increase your email list.

But, live events can attract a lot more people, a whole lot faster than promoting a free eBook. If you think about it, live events are often a lot more personal in nature, giving people a chance to interact with one another and the movers and shakers within your niche, to speak with experts and to get personal attention. Somehow live events are just a lot more effective and personal than a pdf type report. Hosting Teleseminars and Webinars You can literally reach hundreds of people at one time with a live webinar, all while you’re sitting in your home or even a hotel room at the beach.

Join with Others Joint venture partnerships for events work very well because the more experts on the panel who will present, the less work it is for you. Give It Away Free Expand Credibility. Team Management Tools To Supercharge Your Productivity. The Benefits of Top-Down Thinking & Why it is Critical to Entrepreneurs. For the first 5 years of my career I was a “bottom up” thinker and worker. I assembled tons of data, grouped things, found results and drew conclusions.

It was difficult to make the transition to a “top down” thinker but as a senior executive – and as an entrepreneur – you’re far less effective without this skill in your arsenal. You need to be able to structure problems / solutions at the appropriate level to communicate effective and drive decision-making. The difference is in formulating hypothesis then testing conclusions / data vs. assembling data and finding patterns.

I know it might sound a bit esoteric so let me explain: I started my career as a programmer. In billing we literally started thinking about all of the types of bills that would be generated for customers: full payment, partial payment, split payment, senior discount, student discount, level pay plan, etc. I spent the first 5 years of my career as a “bottom up thinker.” Heresy. But applied correctly and this is golden. The 2015 Ultimate Guide To Startup Sales Tools. Here at Bowery Capital, startup sales tools are top-of-mind on a daily basis. They’re core to our portfolio support efforts: we work closely with every one of our founders to build an optimal sales infrastructure from the ground up.

They’re a part of our diligence process: we see sales tools as critical to keeping acquisition costs low and sales cycles short, and always evaluate how a startup plans to leverage them. They’re an area of potential investment for our team: we specialize in B2B SaaS and sales automation has become a sub-sector in its own right. Over the years, therefore, we’ve developed a unique view on the startup sales tools that work. As a result, we thought it would be helpful to aggregate our team’s and founders’ learnings into a piece that other startup stakeholders can use to build their own sales stacks. Last year, we released the first edition of the Ultimate Guide to Startup Sales Tools. Happy selling! 5 Steps to Take Before Quitting Your Job to Become an Entrepreneur.

While some professionals have managed to start work on a side business while maintaining their integrity in a nine-to-five job, such a setup has little potential for long-term success. Whether you’ve come up with a new idea or you’re interested in scaling up one that’s already there, eventually you’ll need to quit your job to nurture your dream of becoming a successful entrepreneur. However, too many people have become obsessed with an idea and quit their jobs impulsively only to find their potential business isn’t as strong as they thought it would be. Before you do anything reckless, be sure to take these five steps: 1.

Make sure your idea is viable. This should go without saying, but unfortunately, it needs to be said. Billions of ideas are born every day, but not every idea is a good idea, and unfortunately, not every good idea is a viable idea. Related: 12 Ways to Hack Your 9 to 5 Job and Live Worry Free 2. This simply isn’t true. 3. 4. 5. 5 Video Courses That Your Recent College Grad Should Go Through If They Want to Start a Business. If you’re reading this, then I’m going to assume 2 things… You have a son or daughter that recently graduated from collegeThey have the itch to start a business or you are encouraging them to start their own business Since you most likely fall into these 2 categories, I’m going to speak directly to you. If you do not fall into these categories, then this article is not for you. We have plenty of other more general pieces of content on this website that you can benefit from.

As the parent of a recent college graduate, you are most likely looking to help your son or daughter get into the best position possible to get their career and life launched. Now, there is nothing wrong with going to work for another company when you get out of school. But how your son or daughter compete with tech hubs like Google, Yahoo and Facebook..?

There are endless types of business that can be started, and not all of them have to be billion dollar successes. Via MarketingTechBlog.com Learn more here. A Freelancer's Best Friends: 9 Apps to Save Your Business + Sanity - Freelancing comes with a lot of perks – independence, flexibility, being able to give yourself a raise any time you want. One of the downsides, though, is that you’ve got to handle all the organization yourself and you can wind up working around the clock. These apps will all help you avoid that – they’ll help you work better, faster, and smarter. The best part? Most of these apps are free, and the ones that aren’t are still freelancer-budget friendly! Email management: Streak There are a lot of CRM systems out there, and many are 100% overkill for freelancers.

Mixmax Also for Google Apps, Mixmax is a free add-on that comes with a suite of tools. Project management: Everyone has different tastes for project management tools…so I included three options here! Asana Asana is a project management tool that’s super lightweight and flexible. Trello If you’re a visual thinker, Trello could be a good choice. Droptask General productivity: Timeful Evernote Administrative: Ink. How to Deal With Unsupportive Friends and Family. Ultimately, it's natural to seek recognition, love and support from our friends and family. But what if, one day, we decided to venture onto a different path in life? One that is not as conventional as the others around us have chosen for themselves. Our support systems might be taken off guard with our non-traditional desires and aspirations of being entrepreneurs. The last thing we want is to be ridiculed for exploring the unknown.

You may confuse a lot of people when going against the grain of conventional thinking, and that's perfectly okay. Below are three ways that will help in overcoming the obstacles of unsupportive friends and family. Don't argue. When confronted in this manner, do not argue. Related: The Right Way to Ask Your Parents to Finance Your Business No matter how much energy and frustration you pour out, you may not change their minds. Recognize authentic friendships. There will be many people that will await your failure. Related: Stop Spending Time With Toxic People.