How a Virtual Book Tour Can Expand Your Audience

Written by Robin Thompson on July 28, 2020. Posted in Audiobook Marketing, Blog, Business Development, Leadership, Networking, Publishing, Vocal Leadership.

Wondering how to safely promote your book? Simple! Do a virtual book tour. Check out this article where Jackie Lapin shows you how to launch yours

If you are an author or leader with a mission or message, then the pandemic may have actually handed you an unexpectedly positive gift!

While the number of podcasts has been growing exponentially all on its own (now reaching more than 1 million), the number of listeners for podcasts AND radio shows during this shelter-at-home period has skyrocketed.

Even when people begin returning to work, many will still maintain their new “podcast habits” because of their allegiance to new hosts and the vital information they offer. A whole new world has opened up for the listener.

Now, couple that with a figure I just saw that book sales are up 777% since the shut-in began!

While this is a misfortune for so many, for the book marketer it is a perfect storm. And you can stay home and be safe, while still reaching millions of ears.

Virtual Book Tours are supplanting the old notion of a physical in-person book tour…and with the fact that fewer and fewer people are actually buying in brick-and-mortar bookstores, a radio/podcast tour is an ideal opportunity to reach people not only across state lines, but internationally as well.

A Virtual Book Tour is best launched once your book is available for readers to purchase online, and podcast and radio hosts can be sent a physical copy of the book. Believe it or not, in this era of everything digital, show hosts want a real, old fashioned book to read. They don’t want to read it online or on a digital device.

This isn’t a good strategy for pre-orders, as hosts can get annoyed if their listeners are stuck waiting a month or two to get the book they ordered during or after the show.

But that doesn’t mean you should wait till the last minute to execute. You need to be planning well in advance, selecting the dates you want to be on the air, and then reverse engineer. Figure that if you want the hosts to read the book before interviewing you, you must allow one week for the book to arrive in the mail (preferably using the lower cost “media mail”) and then allow the host two weeks to read the book. So start soliciting the hosts at least a month or so before you want to be doing the interviews.

Now many hosts will be booking for months ahead, as they have already filled up the interviews closer in time. Assume that your interviews can be scattered out as far as five months in advance—which actually gives you plenty of time to work them into your schedule without being overwhelmed. Unlike the “old days,” when everything was crammed into the first 90 days because bookstores would start returning books to the publisher if they didn’t see sales movement, today a book campaign is a marathon, not a sprint. And the radio/podcast shows welcome self-published authors, not just the traditionally published. Only national TV shows and the biggest NPR shows will snub self-published authors today.

To get booked on your Virtual Book Tour you should have three things ready to go:

A compelling pitch letter that answers the host’s question of “Why you?”—What are you bringing to the table that is distinctive, helpful, newsworthy or unique?
A comprehensive media kit with a release on the book, your extended bio, a short on-air introduction, the 20 questions you want to be asked (20 because most interviews are now one hour), your website and your social media links
And, if your book is a gateway to other products and services, a free offer that you can also promote on the show that gets people to give you their email. This should have a simple and easy to remember URL. Buy a domain that is memorable to make this easy for folks to remember and for you to deliver.

So don’t lament that the virus crashed your original book tour plans. This is a great opportunity to build momentum without leaving your home. A Virtual Book Tour is a great way to launch a book, revitalize an older book, continue to sell your products using your book as the hook for the interview, or build your movement.

Click here to discover the 20 Factors That Will Tip the Scales in Your Favor to Get Booked on a Podcast

Jackie Lapin is a leader in helping entrepreneurs, authors, practitioners, speakers, leaders and messengers connect with their next followers around the globe. For the past 10 years, her internationally acclaimed Conscious Media Relations has been providing radio/podcast tours and speaking engagements to support leaders and authors. Conscious Media Relations offers authors to 9000 podcasts and radio shows, guaranteeing 30 interviews. Learn more at Conscious Media Relations and Speaker Tunity Cities

Jackie Lapin – founder of Conscious Media Relations, and accomplished Book Marketing Coach to help emerging authors navigate the marketing of their books

How (And Why) To Get Started In The Podcast Space

Written by Robin Thompson on May 21, 2020. Posted in Blog, Business Development, Leadership, Marketing, Podcasting, Vocal Leadership, Voice.

When thinking about getting into the podcast space, business leaders and companies can consider several low-risk ways to make use of this powerful communication and marketing medium.

When computers and the internet were first becoming popular, they began to change the way we do business — ranging from advertising and marketing to obtaining clients, taking payments, record-keeping and everything in between.

And with the advent of email, all of a sudden, we could send information to our clients and colleagues quickly and easily at any time of the day or night. Email assisted us in the rapid transmission of important documents, as well as gradually replacing phone calls to document information (or confirming the content of conversations after the fact).

Fast forward a couple of decades: Computers have infiltrated virtually every aspect of our lives to the point where we carry a hand-held version with us everywhere. Smartphones are not phones that also happen to have some computer features. They are computers that also happen to be phones.

Because of the many benefits of “virtual offices,” especially when employees can be anywhere in the world, we are more reliant than ever on video consultations for business meetings. In our increasingly isolated lives, we are turning to social visits on video, too. And of course, there are the countless hours that disappear into the black hole of social media (which is sometimes business-related, though often is not).

With 28% of Americans saying they’re “almost constantly” online, according to a Pew Research Center poll, I believe we are overloaded with technology. As a result, some of us are trying to mitigate the impact screen time can have on us mentally, physically, emotionally and socially. “Screen-Free Week” is just one example of efforts to rediscover the joys of life beyond screens.

At the same time, our interest in listening to podcasts has been rising steadily over the past few years. According to Edison Research’s Infinite Dial report, The Podcast Consumer 2019, the percentage of people who have ever listened to a podcast increased to 51% in 2019, which equates to an estimated 144 million people. In 2010, that percentage was only at 23%.

Why podcasts?

As the owner of a company that specializes in audiobook publishing, podcasting and publicity, I’ve seen there are several reasons why some people find podcasts to be much more appealing than video. First, there’s the portability aspect. Audio is available when you can’t read or watch anything, which increases the likelihood that the message is actually being heard.

Second, many listeners appreciate being able to enjoy podcasts while doing other tasks, such as commuting to and from work, doing household chores or working out. Podcasts can also be highly engaging, with 52% of people listening to entire episodes and 41% listening to most of them, according to that same report by Edison Research. Considering it’s often reported that our attention spans are shrinking, this is impressive for long-form media content.

Podcasts can help you build relationships with your audiences and explore topics on a deeper level. In my experience, they’re also easier to distribute and quicker to produce. In the two or three hours it might take to shoot a high-quality video, between three and five podcast episodes could be recorded (depending on how long you want each episode to be).

Hosting a professional, high-quality video requires a special skill set that not everyone has. This is why some find it much easier to feel relaxed, comfortable and authentic when there isn’t the pressure of a camera. When recording a podcast, you don’t have to be concerned with how you look or whether the lighting, background or angle is just right; you just have to show up and deliver great content.

How To Start A Podcast Yourself

When considering getting started with podcasting, business leaders and companies can consider several low-risk ways to make use of this medium.

1. Encourage your executives and senior leaders to share their knowledge as guests on podcasts. Many podcast hosts are actively seeking powerful stories and advice to share with their audiences. I’ve also found that the experience that leaders receive in preparing and learning to be expert guests elevates communication skills that transfer back to the boardroom and team leadership.

2. Start an internal podcast. This can help enhance communication, build culture and showcase the talents and accomplishments of your team and clients. Companies like Trader Joe’s, American Airlines and JP Morgan have all taken this approach.

3. Consider producing a shorter podcast series. These short series can consist of eight to 10 episodes around a central theme. In the end, you’ll have a complete set of content your marketing team can share and repurpose in a myriad of ways.

That said, there are some challenges leaders face that you could consider before entering the world of podcasting. For example, I’ve found some leaders don’t like the sound of their own voice, so they’re reluctant to record anything. Leaders are also very busy, and podcasting can add to your already-packed daily schedule, which leads to a third common challenge: the return on investment. If you don’t see the expected ROI right away, you might become discouraged.

Soon, I’ll write in-depth on how you can overcome these challenges. In the meantime, consider which of the three options above is the best fit for you and your company to start making the most of this powerful medium. Consider for yourself: What are the stories your company or brand has to share with the world?

There is no denying that the interest in podcasts has only been steadily increasing since its inception. With nearly 30 million podcast episodes and 90 million monthly listeners in 2019, there is something for everyone. By taking action on one of the areas listed above (and keeping some of the challenges you might face in mind), you can begin your own podcast journey and connect with potential clients, your team and current customers.

Want to learn more about podcasting for your business?

Engaging Influencers in Your Content Marketing: 5 New Rules for The Influence Game

Written by Robin Thompson on April 30, 2020. Posted in Blog, Business Development, Leadership, Marketing, Networking, Vocal Leadership.

No one was ready for influencer marketing. Almost overnight, through the power of social media, everyone from fitness models to grumpy cats had millions of eyes on them. Here's how to make influencer marketing work for you.

No one was ready for influencer marketing. Almost overnight, through the power of social media, everyone from fitness models to grumpy cats had millions of eyes on them. Best of all, they did it with a $600 smartphone and an internet connection.

Companies rushed to capitalize; the newly minted “influencers” rushed to monetize; companies spending millions on 30-second Super Bowl ads were left scratching their heads.

What Is Influencer Marketing?

Influencer marketing refers to promoting a brand by partnering with an “influencer”—a person with a popular personal brand and a large social media following.

Many companies that play the influencer game do it wrong because they don’t understand the new unspoken rules. As influence marketing matures into the commercial landscape, here are five new rules to engage influencers in your content marketing.

1. Pick the Right Influencers

It used to be that hundreds of thousands of followers on Facebook or Instagram was enough of an indicator of influence. This is no longer the case. Users can and do pad their follower count to make themselves look more popular.

Instead, look for user engagement. A social media personality has millions of followers? How many people have liked or commented on his/her recent posts? Do people respond when they ask questions in their stories? How fawning and enthusiastic are the replies?

If you identify a genuine influencer, make sure your brand resonantes with the influencer’s brand. Otherwise the influencer will not want to do business with you.

“But I’ll pay you” doesn’t cut it with an influencer. If their followers see them as inauthentic or a shill, a pitchman for off-brand products, their image will be tarnished, their influence decreased. Influence is lightning in a bottle, and a true influencer won’t risk losing it for a little bit of money.

2. Give First, Then Get

Reciprocity is key to cultivating influencer relationships. Remember, an influencer doesn’t need to help you. They have to want to help you.

Before you ask favors of an influencer, like social media mentions or a collaboration, give back first. Start by engaging with their social content—likes, comments, views, etc. Engage with multi-word comments.

Give them anything of value you can—freebies, tips, exclusive access … especially if it’s something they can turn into content for their audience. Engaging content is the gold standard of social media influence.If the influencer sells products or services, consider becoming a customer. Reciprocal business is big in the influence game.

3. Deal With Them Directly

Even if it seems like the appropriate point of contact, influencers don’t want to deal with your PR department. They want to deal with you, the founder, the CEO, the senior manager, the beating heart of the organization.

Influencers build brands by sharing freely of themselves in public. They attract engaged viewers by being authentic. Give of yourself authentically, and you are speaking their language.

PRO TIP: Try for facetime with an influencer. See they publicize their upcoming attendance at an event, convention, party, or meetup. Can you attend as well? Nothing engages an influencer like face-to-face contact. In fact, that applies to everyone, not just influencers.

4. Give Them a Good Story

Influencers aren’t impressed by great marketing copy; they want to tell a story.

Social media channels are like personal TV channels. People watch them for the programs, not the commercials. You want to be one of the influencer’s programs, not one of the commercials.

You can do that by offering the influencer your brand’s story or narrative. Whether it’s the story of your founding, a recent milestone, a customer interaction or other breakthrough, influencers can use interesting stories to provide value to their audience. That’s what they remain relevant.

5. Make Them Look Good

Many influencers make their bones by being “cool” or “hot” or “aspirational,” or at the very least authentic. Don’t undermine that, or they won’t be interested.

When you start asking an influencer to collaborate or pitch your product, make sure you present yourself in a way that flatters them, not just you. They should look savvy and “in the know” because of their involvement with you.

Interested in developing a strategy to play the new influencers game?

3 Ways B2B Enterprises Can Leverage Podcasting

Written by Robin Thompson on April 14, 2020. Posted in Blog, Business Development, Leadership, Podcasting, Publishing, Sales, Vocal Leadership.

Podcasts' popularity has the potential to open doors for every company, including B2B. Here are three ways B2B enterprises can leverage podcasting

The most popular podcasts are businesses unto themselves. From interview formats to history lessons to true-crime storytelling, long-form spoken content has captured the imagination of the public. A staggering 165 million Americans have listened to a podcast at some point. Top podcasts earn millions of viewers and attract top-paying advertisers.

If you operate a business-to-business enterprise, this may seem to have nothing to do with you. Your warm market is not millions strong—you may only be a few thousand appropriate prospects in the world. Even if all of them became avid listeners, it wouldn’t attract big advertising dollars.

Still, a successful podcast isn’t just about direct revenue. Podcasts are relatively easy, cheap, and even fun to produce, and their popularity has the potential to open doors for every company, including B2B.

Here are three ways B2B enterprises can leverage podcasting.

1. Establish Yourself as an Authority

Producing an authoritative podcast makes you an authority. Podcasting can up your cache in your industry, even if your content does not specifically target your B2B warm market.

If your podcast resonates with the consumer base of your B2B vertical, B2B prospects will take notice. It could lead them to favor your brand over competitors as their B2B vendor. They might agree to be guests on your podcast, establishing their own authority and forming a bond of reciprocity that could blossom into a business relationship.A quality podcast could open the door to speaking engagements, exclusive invitations, and VIP industry insider status. No convention MC is mad about including “Host of the popular podcast XYZ…” when they list the credentials of the keynote speaker in their introduction.

2. Laser-Target Your Warm Prospects

The smaller size and specialization of your warm market is a good thing when it comes to podcast promotion. There may not be many of them, but all of them will be interested in what you have to say. There may only be a handful of podcasts targeted directly to their needs. You could target your prospects with paid search or email campaigns with your podcast as the content.

Consider—a prospect may spam-file a marketing email or scroll right past a social media ad … but a podcast with an attractive subject matter specific to their industry? That may go on the Bluetooth media player of your prospect’s car on the drive to work. Talk about making a warm prospect even warmer.

3. Hone a Brand Message

To cut through the noise in a crowded marketplace, you need a brand message that sets you apart. B2B companies probably already know this, but they may not know how to communicate that voice to the world.

One of the keys to the podcast boom is the unique ability of the format to humanize the podcaster. Like FDR’s fireside chats (arguably the original podcast), it’s a chance for listeners to dive deep into an aloof public persona and find the genuine person beneath.

Podcasts allow you to tell your story—articulate the journey that led you to your position of expertise. Even if a mass audience does not gravitate to your content, it’s an opportunity to forge a personal connection with the B2B prospects who will resonate with your message.

It’s a chance to be edgy, honest, unflinching and authentically you, to put your brand purpose out into the world and see what comes back.

Ready to put into the world your voice and your brand's purpose?

The Tremendous Power Of The Pause In…Your Leadership

Written by Robin Thompson on April 3, 2020. Posted in Blog, Personal Development, Video, Vocal Leadership, Voice.

During these extraordinary times, I invite you to find and embrace the tremendous power of the pause in…your leadership. Take a look

We are living extraordinary times. Times of change where we are all being asked to stop, to observe ourselves with more intention, to act with more kindness. From a distance.

This is a time where we have the opportunity to consider what we have been taking for granted and make some choices.

I invite you to consider making a small shift. A small shift that carries huge change and opportunities with it.

Hey, it's Tina Dietz coming to you live from my office studio here after a long day of having many conversations with leaders from all over the US and Canada.

And what's on everybody's mind?

How are we going to keep doing business as usual when nothing is business as usual?

And here's the opportunity.

We live in extraordinary times.Which gives us the opportunity to be extraordinary leaders.

Now, what does that mean? Does it sound like a lot of pressure?Do you say to yourself “Oh, I'm already a leader, and now I just got to figure this out.”

Well, I would request that right here right now in this moment that you actually just pause.

There is so much power in taking a pause.For your mind.For your spirit.And for whoever you're communicating with.

We live in a world where we are very uncomfortable with silence.

Even in a moment of silence, you're thinking to yourself “What are they going to say next? What are they going to do next? What am I going to say next? What am I going to do next?”

And that is a lost opportunity.

Because it is only in the listening of ourselves, and in the listening of others that we truly have an opportunity to create something new.

Our brains chatter the same thing about 85% of the time. By the time you're thirty, your personality is pretty well solidified. You have very similar vocal patterns. You have very similar mental pattern. Not that we don't learn new things; we do. But our personalities get kind of firmed up. And now, with all of the change happening, we have the ability and the opportunity to consider what we have been taking for granted. And maybe make some choices around making small shifts.

So, the small shift I'm asking you to make today is to give yourself more room to pause, and more room for silence.In your own life, and the conversations that you're having.

Before you respond to something somebody says —you're in a team meeting, you're in a conversation, you're running the meeting and you feel like you have to have all the answers— take a deep breath with everybody.

Invite everybody to take a pause together.“Let's just take a minute, and give this a little thought. Let's just take a moment and consider what was just said. Let's just take a moment to take a deep breath together. How are you guys doing?”

And let the moment settle before you get into a checklist, before you get into who's doing what and when and how, in that agile daily huddle rapid speed delivery that we all have.

So, that is what I'd love for you to consider today. in upping your leadership game. Particularly, your vocal leadership game, is the power of the pause.

There's a lot more ways that we can use pauses in our vocal leadership and in our delivery and in our presence to make a difference with our teams to engage, and inspire, and inform, and create beautiful, beautiful levels of performance in others as a leader.

We can talk about that if you want.Send me a message and we can talk more about that. You can learn more in some of the articles below.

And just enjoy as much as possible in all of the fracas that we're dealing with now.

Take a moment.

You deserve it. Your people deserve it.

We're All in This Together. Take care.

How much are you allowing yourself (and your team) to pause?

What’s The Right Book To Write For Your Mission?

Written by Robin Thompson on March 4, 2020. Posted in Audiobook Marketing, Blog, Business Development, Publishing.

Let me guess…you've got at least 3 book ideas clamoring in your head, but you can't sit down and write ANY of them! Here's the help you need, from publisher and book development expert, Julie Ann Eason.

Let me guess…You’ve got about 3 different books in your head, all clamoring to be written. So why can’t you just sit down and write them?

They’re all important. They all help people. They’ll all position you as the expert in your industry. You just have to figure out the right one. Right?

I see it every day, unfortunately. Would-be authors going around and around in their brains trying to figure out which direction to go.

There’s probably a book you really want to write, one you think you should write but it doesn’t excite you, and then there’s the real book. The gem. The one that’s going to set you apart and truly showcase your unique brilliance. The book of your heart. You may not even know it exists, but it’s there. You just have to uncover it.

The Right Book Will Align With Your Audience, Purpose, and Goal

The mistake most nonfiction authors make is starting from the inside. They think what do I WANT to write about? That’s where they get stuck because they know so much about their topic that they could write ten books! They struggle for months or even years puttering away on a draft, trying to figure out what’s the most important information they can share with their audiences. That’s a lot of pressure. It wastes a LOT of time and often money. And it’s why my clients come to me for book development, even when they’re already great content creators.

Instead of working from the inside-out, we switch it up and think from the outside-in. That means instead of trying to figure out what you want to say, think about your reader and what they need to hear. We start by answering three questions.

1. Who’s your audience?

Who, exactly, will be reading this book? What’s their problem? What’s your solution? This is the starting point for any book, especially a nonfiction book that’s going to attract people to your business.

2. What’s the purpose or promise of your book?

What will those readers be able to do when they finish your book? How will they be changed? What will they believe? If this isn’t clear from the start, no one’s going to read your book. It won’t even get noticed.

3. What’s the goal for you as the author?

What do you want the reader to do when they’re finished reading? Do you want them to hire you? Buy a product? Donate to a cause? Change their life? Feel better about themselves? Vote a certain way? Writing and publishing a book is a major investment of time, energy, and money. There should be an ROI for you as the author.

These three questions form the foundation of your book development. They must align, if you’re going to have a successful book. Think of your book the missing link between you and your reader. If the book is aligned with what they need and what you want, you have a direct connection and they will likely want to know more about you and what you do. If your book is completely off-base and misaligned, well, that connection may never happen.

I recently consulted with a well-regarded public speaking coach. She wanted to grow her business helping people feel more comfortable delivering value from the stage. When she came to me, she wanted to write a book on women’s empowerment. She told me she had no idea how to get her book out of her head and onto the page. She just couldn’t understand why she was having so much trouble getting started. The reason was simple: her business goals and her book topic didn’t align with what her readers needed. She needed to write a book like How To Nail Your Next Presentation, not one about women’s issues. Once we worked through her book development, she changed direction to align with her clients’ needs and all the pieces just naturally fell into place. The actual writing flowed easily after that.

If you’re not sure where to start or you’re struggling to get the words down on the page, you might be trying to write the wrong book. Remember, work from the outside-in. Once you’ve got your book subject, target audience, and overall business goals in alignment, things tend to move along more smoothly.

Good luck, and I can’t wait to read your book!

Julie Anne Eason is a book development expert and the author of The Profitable Business Author and The Work At Home Success Guide. She had ghostwritten New York Times and Wall Street Journal best-selling books for industry leaders like Russell Brunson, Annie Grace, and Cristy “Code Red” Nickel. Her publishing company Thanet House Books offers a variety of writing and publishing services for nonfiction authors. She also founded The Nonfiction Book Academy to help people write and publish their books on their own. Want some help with your book? Click here to tell us about your project.

Julie Anne Eason – Book development and self-publishing expert

Taking Care of Your Money Maker

Written by Robin Thompson on September 12, 2019. Posted in Blog, Business Development, Creating Wealth, Leadership, Voice.

Your voice is your livelihood. You spend a great deal of time and effort using it to communicate with the masses. It is vital to your success. But examining the self-care movement reveals that the topic of caring for your voice gets very little attention.

As a physical therapist with an extensive background treating patients who did not respond to other interventions, I learned that the fastest path to healing and optimizing function is in treating nerves.

Nerves control everything and sometimes they get pinched between bones, muscles, ligaments, and more. If you change the nerve input to the body, the pain and mobility immediately changes.

The nerve that I have found yields the most profound effects on the body is the vagus nerve. The vagus nerve is a major parasympathetic pathway that comes out of your brainstem. It is outside of your spinal cord. Ideally the vagus nerve has an optimal tone, or range in which it fires. The gold standard measurement is heart rate variability (HRV).

Everyone has an optimal HRV range based on their age. Someone who is anxious or stressed has a high HRV, exceeding the boundaries of this optimal range.

Trauma sometimes shuts down the vagus nerve to the point where we go into freeze mode.

Someone who is traumatized to the point of freeze or severely depressed may have a flattened HRV, not filling the optimal range.

The feeling of having a high HRV is easily identifiable. When you get stressed and get that lump in your throat, your heart races, your palms sweat, and you get constipated or have diarrhea, that all happens because your vagus nerve is suppressed.

This is the same as being in “fight or flight” mode. It can be induced by stress or trauma. Many people live constantly in an elevated state of fight or flight. In this state our sympathetic nervous system dominates, and the calming parasympathetic pathways don’t always recover to a point of balance.

Due to the size of the vagus nerve and far-reaching effects, removing mechanical trauma to give it more room to move has a seeming “magic wand” effect on a myriad of problems in the body.

I have very specific exercises that I teach to my clients based on my examination findings and their goals. Often where a patient is experiencing symptoms is not where the problem is. Keeping the vagus nerve free to move at all of its major choke points goes a long way toward preventing everything from hoarseness to back pain.

How does vagus nerve compression show up in your body? Here’s some general info and what can you do about it! These exercises do not have any known precautions or contraindications. If you have any questions or concerns, please consult with your healthcare team before proceeding.

Side effects may include calming your pre-show jitters, making you sound smooth on the airwaves, improving your interview skills, prevention of voice disorders, normalized digestion, decreased pain and inflammation, resolution of trauma, healing of heart issues, reduced anxiety, and experiencing more pleasure.

Voice: Trauma and stress always shows up in the breath and the voice. The vagus nerve innervates muscles of speech and swallowing. One of the exciting developments in my profession has been the use of vocalization exercises for patients with incontinence. These patients are literally causing excess downward pressure causing them to pee on themselves because their voices are all bottled up, mechanically and spiritually. Keep your throat chakra open. Remedy: Chant. You can chant “Om”, vowels, Sanskrit, even curse words. Just chant.
Breath: Again, trauma always affects the voice and the breath. In the midst of stress and trauma, our diaphragms go from being a nice round dome, to a flattened one. Remedy: Exhale. The major exhalation muscle, the transversus thoracis, sits under the breast bone and is often tight, keeping us breathing shallowly. You can stretch it out by inhaling for a count of five, holding for a count of eight, and exhaling like you are blowing up a balloon for a count of thirteen. The voice exercise will help with this, too.
Heart: Our vagus nerve innervates our heart, and thus generates the electromagnetic fields of heart, which is what connects us to others. Some interesting research has found that our electromagnetic fields synchronize with the electromagnetic field of the earth, and that when space weather disrupts the earth’s field, it also shows up as a disruption in ours. The severity to which it disrupts appears to be dependent on the strength of our interpersonal connections. This connection is 360-degrees, yet most of us only pay attention to the 180 degrees in front of us. Remedy: Inhale in to the back side of your heart for five repetitions. Bonus: Amplify the benefit by using the 5-8-13 breathing pattern.
Head: When you have a forward head posture, you are pinching your vagus nerve at the base of your skull. Remedy: First, identify the tragus of your ear. It is the tab that you would use to cover the opening to your ear to dampen sound or otherwise avoid hearing. Gently grab the tragus of each ear between your thumb and index finger, and pull each one sideways, like your head is a piece of taffy and you are unwrapping it. Hold for one minute. Bonus: Do the 5-8-13 breathing while you are holding this stretch to amplify the benefits.
Pelvis: Most of us sit way too much. Our pelvic floor gets weak because of the convenience of chairs and seated toilets. Many people don’t get in and out of squatting positions often, taking their joints through a full range of motion and keeping the pelvic floor strong and flexible. Remedy: Guided imagery often works well with the pelvic floor. Bring your attention to your lower abdomen. If you are familiar with chakras, you can bring your attention to your second chakra. Imagine breathing in and out of your pelvic floor and gradually extending the breath up to the top of your head to clear a channel between your pelvic floor and the top of your head. Bonus: This activity addresses all five compression points!

Melanie Weller spent over 25 years in the field of physical health as an athletic trainer and Physical Therapist. she is a board-certified Orthopedic Clinical Specialist, a Certified Exercise Expert for Aging Adults, and a Certified Athletic Trainer.Though Melanie spent most of her career in an outpatient orthopedic setting, she also has worked in hospitals, schools, and home health. Melanie's practice and teachings now looks beyond basic bodywork to the imprint of culture, society, ancestry (and more) on our ability to understand and access our greater intelligence.

Melanie Weller – Physical Therapist, Board-Certified Orthopedic Clinical Specialist, Certified Athletic Trainer and Certified Exercise Expert for Aging Adults

How To Create a Lead Magnet To Attract Fans and Customers

Written by Robin Thompson on August 1, 2019. Posted in Blog, Leadership, Marketing, Sales.

Do you want more fans? Do you want more buyers? Do you want more listeners? Do you want leads for your business? Do you want to connect with your audience in a meaningful way?

Your Lead Magnet can do all of these.

It can turn a listener into a fan because it gives them something interesting and useful, from you.
It can get you more buyers for your products and services because it gives them something that solves their problem.
It can get you more listeners because it may be the first contact an online searcher has with you.
It will get you leads for your business. That is its purpose.
And finally, the lead magnet will help you to connect with members of your audience in a meaningful way because you get to communicate with your leads via email and share information that you don’t share as part of your show.

It's been said, “the better the lead magnet, the bigger the list”.

Actually, I said it many years ago and continue to say it because it’s true.

Yes, I am talking about the lead magnet. The enticing content that makes your reader, listener, audience member want to give you their email address so you can communicate with them on a regular basis ‘privately’ by email.

In all truth, the lead magnet can make or break a lead generation process. A good one will lead to success and a bigger email list. A bad one will lead to dismay because few people will want to get on your list.

Is a Lead Also A Potential Customer?

The short answer is “No”.

A lead is an unqualified contact. Any person that hasn’t been qualified as a prospect is a lead. In the sales process you do this:

Gather leads > Qualify them into prospects > Move them through your sales funnel to become a paying customer.

For example: Your customer is a sales manager in a Fortune 500 company. You may have 50 people download your lead magnet and give you their email address. Of those 50 people, 23 are solo business owners, 5 are business consultants, 11 are virtual assistants, and 12 are sales managers. All of these people are leads.

A prospect is an individual or organization that fits your criteria to be a potential customer. They don’t have to express interest in what you are selling to be considered a prospect, they just have to fit the right qualifications.

For example: Of the 50 people who gave you email addresses, all are leads and 12 are prospects, aka potential customers.

What Is A Lead Magnet?

A lead magnet is anything of value that you offer for free in exchange for someone’s email address.

You can do it through a creative landing page or a simple graphic on your website.

It’s referred to as a “magnet” because it is part of an attraction marketing effort. You want to attract people to your site and program so you offer an enticing freebie. The freebie acts like a magnet, attracting those who are interested in what you’re offering. Those who give you their email address in exchange for that freebie are Leads.

Leads can become prospects.

There are two ways they can qualify to be prospects:

they click on links inside the lead magnet
they click on links inside the emails you send to them (because they’re on your list)

What can you create and offer that is irresistible to your ideal customer?

What can you create and offer that delivers real value and piques their interest in your paid offers?

What steps are involved to create a lead magnet?

Create a Lead Magnet in 5 Steps

1. Know Your Ideal Customer

Your program is focused on a target audience. This means your lead magnet should be of value to the buyer inside your target audience or the buyer that you want to be a part of your audience.

Everyone listening to your program isn't your ideal customer, but your ideal customer is listening to your program.

It is possible that you have multiple ideal customers. Don't try to create a lead magnet for all of them. Instead, create a separate one for each distinct Ideal Customer.

2. Know What Your Ideal Customer Wants

You must give them a reason to download your lead magnet. The best lead magnet is the one that gives a quick solution to a common problem your ideal buyer is facing. The quicker they experience results from your lead magnet, the better.

3. Name Your Lead Magnet

You now know what you're offering and to whom, so naming your lead magnet will be easy. Similar to creating an attention-getting headline for your episode or a blog post for maximum listening or viewing, the name will help you get maximum downloads. Keep it simple, base it on the one challenge and one solution you present in it.

4. Choose The Type Of Lead Magnet To Offer

The most common lead magnets are PDF guides and reports. However, there are other options and there is a list right after step 5. The important thing for you to keep in mind is this:

Keep It Simple. The easier it is to create, the better. The easier it is to download and digest the better.

You want to solve their problem and move them into your sales funnel quickly. Choose a format that allows for fast delivery and consumption.

5. Create Your Lead Magnet

You're done with the strategic work, now you have to actually create the lead magnet.

Let’s look at the types of lead magnets that work well for many podcasters and radio hosts.

Types of Lead Magnets You Can Create Today

Now you know what a lead magnet is, why you should have one, and the 5 steps to creating it.

The most important thing for you to keep in mind is this: you already have the knowledge and likely have the content on hand, so don’t complicate it!

If you have a blog you have an eBook.
If you have an online course you have a cheat sheet.
If you have show notes or transcripts you have a resource guide.

The following list is meant to get you thinking about how you can put your content into a format that will be attractive and useful for your ideal customer. That’s all. If it seems weird or like it’s too much work, then cross it off the list. If it seems doable or like something you may already have on hand, then circle it.

A Short Guide or Report
Focus on one specific solution for one challenge your ideal customer is experiencing. This could be something like: – show how to prepare their next presentation so their team understands what they need to do- walk through the steps of preparing a speech that inspires or motivates- teach them what to look for when hiring a team member
A Cheat Sheet
Cheat sheets are more than a checklist but not as in-depth as a guide or report. They’re only a few pages and they get straight to the point. They contain a bit more information than a simple checklist by explaining each point in a short paragraph.
Toolkit/Resource List
This is an excellent way to provide reference material for them that they can use many times. It’s a great time saver for the lead and a great traffic generator for your website. Because, of course, you’ll have a few tools or resources of your own that they can purchase from your site.
Video Training/Webinar
Consider creating a video of you showing your prospect how to use your product or walking them through one thing that your service does. Then, at the end of the training or webinar you do a short sell on how they can work with you.
Software Free Trial
If your product is software, consider the Free Trial option as a lead magnet. When someone can try the product themselves they’re more likely to purchase. How many apps and products have you received a 14-day or 30-day trial to and then purchased for yourself because you liked it?
Offer a Discount
People love discounts. If it makes sense for you to offer a discount in the form of a coupon or code then all you would need to do is create an image containing that information.
Assessment
Do you offer coaching? An assessment that includes a guide on how to understand the assessment results is an excellent lead magnet because it not only brings in a lead it also will show you who qualifies to work with you.

Now What?

As you can see, there are quite a few options for creating a lead magnet. There can be more added to this list, but I think there’s enough to get you thinking. Thinking about your audience. Thinking about your ideal customer. Thinking about the content you already have or can easily create that will be attractive to your ideal customer.

What do you do now? You can begin with your own content and quickly create a lead magnet or you can outsource the creation of your lead magnet. Either way, now is the best time to get it done.

Do Your Press Releases Tell “The Story Behind the Story”?

Written by Robin Thompson on July 18, 2019. Posted in Audiobook Marketing, Blog, Business Development, Leadership, Publishing.

Great easy tips by Shel Horowitz, book marketing copywriter and strategic marketer, about how to write your book press releases.

Which would you rather read: “Electronic Privacy Expert Releases New Book” OR “It’s 10 O’Clock—Do You Know Where Your Credit History Is?”

If you follow most advice about how to write a press release for a book, you’d end up with something like the first example. You’ll put all the 5Ws in the first paragraph. And you’ll put your readers to sleep.

But when a client hired me to write a press release for a book on electronic privacy, I turned in the second example. The main text repeated the headline and continued: “It's 10 O'clock—Do you know where your credit history is? How about your employment records? Your confidential medical information?

“How would you feel if you found out this sensitive and should-be-private material is “vacationing” in computer databanks around the world—accessible to corporate interests who can afford to track down and purchase it, but not necessarily open to your own inspection?”

The book and author weren’t even mentioned until the third paragraph.

Any book has multiple angles—news hooks you can use to gain media and reader attention. I chose to focus on data privacy that time. If I were writing that press release today, I might focus on identity theft, hacking, or the influence of fake news on elections. But NEVER on “expert releases book.” Publishing a book, by itself, is not news. Just in the US, it happens about a million times a year. That’s 2740 books published every day! You want to stand out in that crowd.

So if you’d rather not imitate a snooze button, try something different. Tell “the story behind the story” and create a press release that people will read (and act on). For nonfiction: What problem does your book solve, what pain does it alleviate, what success does it lead to (financial, relationship, career, personal growth, etc.) Ask yourself who needs the information, and why.

For fiction or memoir, what kinds of people will identify with your main character? What exotic situation or fascinating career fills in the backstory? For either—what seasonal or charity tie-ins, awards, or superstar endorsements make your book newsworthy? If your press release is fun and exciting, readers will realize that your book is also going to be fun and exciting.

As a book marketing copywriter and strategic marketer who writes a lot of press releases and book covers for books, I do this constantly. Here are some actual press release headlines I’ve written for clients (starting with one for my own tenth book):

NONFICTION:

Finally, A Handbook for Business To Change the World and Make a Profit—As General Motors, Patagonia, Ben & Jerry's, the City of New York, and Others Have Done (This is for my own most recent book, and I’ve left the hyperlink in to the complete press release)
54 Million Americans “Swallowed by a Snake”
At 54, He Moved Across the World—Because It’s Never Too Late for Dreams
Missing for 400 Years, Mercator’s Atlas Is Now Available in North America for the First Time

FICTION:

If Romeo and Juliet Had THIS Magical Parrot, Things Would Have Been Different: Romeo and Juliet Meets Robinson Crusoe Meets House of the Spirits—in Africa
Kidnapping…Terrorists…A Foreign Land: Carinci’s Latest Suspense Thriller Chases Danger Across the Emerald Isle
A Children’s Picture Book Where the Good Guys Don’t Win? Yes, Really!
Still More Honors for Debut Novel, “The Dark Dreamweaver”—Named an iParenting Media “Greatest Product”

In spite of their “just the facts, Ma’am” training, journalists love these kinds of press releases. And in today’s world where readers can find press releases in search results, you might even capture reader interest directly.

Shel Horowitz writes press releases and book covers and develops strategic marketing for authors, green and social entrepreneur businesses, and nonprofits. His 7th book, Grassroots Marketing for Authors and Publishers (2007), was endorsed by Dan Poynter, Fern Reiss, and other publishing gurus. His 10th book, Guerrilla Marketing to Heal the World, is endorsed by Seth Godin and Chicken Soup’s Jack Canfield. Discuss your next marketing project with Shel: 413-586-2388 (8 a.m. to 10 p.m.US Eastern) or https://goingbeyondsustainability.com/contact/ – and pick up his free gifts for you at https://goingbeyondsustainability.com/freebies/

Shel Horowitz – Book Marketing Copywriter, Strategic Marketer & Book Publishing Consultant

The Hazards of Happiness & Achieving Your Dreams

Written by Robin Thompson on February 5, 2019. Posted in Blog, Business Development, Leadership, Personal Development.

Creating happiness can cause a lot of problems. Achieving your dreams can sometimes feel like a letdown. You spend months and years working toward a goal–like a climber ascending Mount Everest. But when you achieve it and reach the summit, that moment right after you feel the triumph, there is an emptiness.

“What now?” You start to think.

This is the plight of the high achiever and the pitfall of the pursuit of happiness.

When we (my family and myself) first moved to Costa Rica 5+ years ago, it was a triumph. We accomplished a 5-year goal in 3 years, paying off our debts and finding ourselves in a tropical country with oodles of time and resources at hand. Do you know what I did first thing when we got here?

I slept. A lot.

About two weeks later, I found myself waking up early in the morning with a knot in my stomach, and I couldn’t figure out why. I was restless, picking up doing one thing and putting it down again, dissatisfied and unsettled. One night after dinner, I stood up from the table, exclaiming, “Holy crap!” (I didn’t say crap) “I know what this is!”

“WHAT?” said my startled and confused family.

I threw my hands up and said, “I’m bored.”

Thinking about it that evening, I realized that I hadn’t probably felt boredom since I was in my early 20s, which is more than nunyabizness years ago. I had been too damn busy pursuing my Perfect Day. Now that the dream had been realized, I was at a loss.

Five years have passed since that first dinner table exclamation, and here is what I’d love for you to know as you bring your dreams into reality:

We are more familiar with the feelings associated with failure than we are with the ones related to success. As a result, having what you want can take some getting used to. Contentment, happiness, satisfaction, and fulfillment are all muscles you need to flex in order to continue to create and have a life you love (and not sabotage yourself). The more you stop to appreciate your little successes and acknowledge yourself on a daily and weekly basis, the more you “exercise” those muscles.
You may be so used to having a long to-do list, constantly doing things for others, always working under a deadline, etc., that when all of that disappears and you have an open space before you, it can feel like a chasm. Create a daily practice of being quiet and listening to your thoughts to get your mind used to being calmer and quieter. Use any kind of meditation or relaxation practice you like, or even go for a quiet walk or swim. A daily practice of this kind also results in getting amazing ideas and insights in my experience.
When you find yourself feeling guilty or placeless because you don’t know what your next step is and you can choose anything you want, remember to breathe into giving yourself permission. Take 3-5 deep “letting go” breaths (add a sigh if you'd like; it deepens the relaxation response), and tell yourself something loving like: “Every day, in every way, I am getting better and better.” Or, “All I need to do today is what I get done today.”
Make a “dream list” of all the things you'd love to learn or do or try or experience. Would you like to learn a new language? Have you always wanted to take dance lessons or learn to paint? Volunteer to work with animals, children, or a cause that’s near and dear to your heart? What are all the books you’ve always wanted to read? As you create more time and money freedom, start choosing items off this list to put into your life, rather than creating more busy-ness. Pleasure makes us more productive, not less.

Do you feel like you have a “fear of success” or find yourself overwhelmed, at loose ends, or not sure where your next priority is? Are you taking tons of action, but not getting the results you want? Reach out for a discovery session, and let’s create the life and business of your dreams.

Let’s create the life and business of your dreams