Thursday, May 28, 2009

Stories Are Tools


“A story – Stories are the best selling tool available, stories capture the imagination. You begin to picture an event—you are a co-creator in the project.” The Heart of Marketing by Judy Shereven, PHD & Jim Sneechowski, PHD

But whether we are using it as a marketing tool, or an entertainment we must always be sure to treat the reader fairly or they will desert us. That means being true to the genre in which your story exists. Every genre has it rules, reader expectations and more. The wise writer pays attention to these.
Enjoy a good read - whether classic or a first time author. And if you like it,Share it with others.
Billie
http://www.billiewilliams.com
http://wizadryofwords.wordpress.com

Monday, May 25, 2009

The Influence of Fiction


Robert Louis Stevenson - a great author. Putting pen to page he crafted, he illuminated, he put a world together to make us think and dream and believe. What books influenced him most? I'll let him tell you.

“…The most influential books, and the truest in their influence, are works of fiction. They do not pin the reader to a dogma, which he must afterwards discover to be inexact; they do not teach him a lesson, which he must afterwards unlearn. They repeat, they rearrange, they clarify the lessons of life; they disengage us from ourselves, they constrain us to the acquaintance of others; and they show us the web of experience, not as we can see it for ourselves, but with a singular change - that monstrous, consuming EGO of ours being, for the once, struck out….”
The Art of Writing by Robert Louis Stevenson

So if you were doubting that writing was a less than noble profession I believe you need to rethink that. I say three cheers for fiction and Robert Louis Stevenson.
http://www.billiewilliams.com

Sunday, May 17, 2009

Love of Words


Words, Words, Words, my stock in trade. I can never get enough of them. Bob Bly just released a whole book - with nothing but words every vocabulary should have. At the top of that list I would put Compassion for your fellow man - but today I found another word about words from Your Dictionary Dot Com - Love this daily email!
The word:
Periphrasis (noun)

Pronunciation: [pe-rê-'fræs-is]

Definition: The figure of speech whereby a longer, descriptive phrase is used in place of a simple word or phrase; circumlocution; the use of several words where one would do.

As writers we are warned of this nearly daily by editors and critiquers - but being a wordy lot that we are we need to make our word count grow - even at the risk of confusing our reader - or boring them to tears. Not a good thing to do if you are trying to increase your readers list.

We do love to play with words though, don't we? Next time you are tempted - besure all that verbage is necessary - The Dictionary of Concise Writing, by Robert Hartwell Fiske has written a dictionary just for us to keep on track. Check it out of you want to express yourself the best that you can.
Speaking of words my good friend J. Gayle Kelly's An Apple For The Teacher will be an exploration is just what the good use of words can do. Hurry out and get your copy wherever good books are sold. ISBN 1-60703-902-8 It's a great read.

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http://www.billiewilliams.com

Thursday, May 14, 2009

The Heart of Marketing


SL - This Book Can Change the World...


As you know I’m very careful about what I recommend to you.

But this book . . .

The Heart of Marketing Love Your Customers and They Will Love You Back
(Morgan James Publishing)

. . . is a MUST read for the future of your marketing and the growth of your business.

And no surprise it’s already a best-seller at Amazon - so if you already know you want to get the book and maybe some extras to give to friends since there is a serious discount at Amazon - just go to:

http://theheartofmarketing.com

The authors, husband and wife psychology team and Internet marketers Judith Sherven and Jim Sniechowski are respected friends of mine — and they are the voice for what is known as Soft Sell Marketing.

Now an international movement, Soft Sell Marketing is creating a heart-based change in commerce — to one of consciousness and conscience, caring and community.

And their latest book The Heart of Marketing is now the published voice for this change!

http://theheartofmarketing.com

Answering 45 questions out of 772 that they received during an Ask Campaign for their “Bridging Heart and Marketing II” conference this book is a soul-inspiring, heart-warming turn-around in how you’ll approach your business from now on.

AND when you purchase the book today you receive Judith & Jim’s invitation to get thousands of dollars in Bonus Gifts from their Gift Sponsors — including David Riklan, Mark Joyner, Christine Kloser, Gregg Braden, Hay House, and of course Yours Truly!

You’ll even have the possibility to win 2 Tickets to Judith & Jim’s October 9-11 “Bridging Heart and Marketing III” conference (a $997 Value).

So get The Heart of Marketing today!

http://theheartofmarketing.com

AND please pass this message on to all your friends inviting them to get The Most Important
Marketing Book of 2009.

Judith & Jim received 43 incredible endorsements including Mark Joyner and David Riklan

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This title may sound a little ‘hoofy-poofy’ but don’t let it fool you. Even if you’re a hard-nosed skeptic who shudders at words like ‘love’ and ‘heart’ this book will radically boost your sales. Feeling good about yourself afterwards will just be a nice side effect.
Mark Joyner - #1 Bestselling Author of “Simpleology” www.SIMPLEology.com

I really like the message embodied in "The Heart of Marketing." Part marketing, part self growth, part spiritual expansion, this book opens the way for your much larger future while changing the way we've all thought about business and making money.
David Riklan - Founder, SelfGrowth.com

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That’s how important this book is to the future of commerce!

So get your copy today - and copies for friends you care about -

http://theheartofmarketing.com

By the way, a percentage of book sales will always be donated to Habitat for Humanity!

Because, as Judith & Jim say,

It’s ALL in the Connection,

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Dynamic, Imaginative, Inspiring!


As former therapists who ventured into online marketing just four years ago we had to overcome our technical deficiencies and learn to make friends with the computer. Even more so, we had to open our minds to an entirely new way of being in the world, a whole new and very different mindset—a marketing/business mindset.

We kept hearing from Internet marketing teachers about this strategy and that technique, and all we had to do was apply what we were learning and we would surely become successful Internet marketers. After all, they did, and, as they kept insisting —“You Can Too!!”

So we applied exactly what we were told, step-by-step, word-for-word — with some financial success. But all along we labored under the feeling that something was wrong. Or to put it more accurately, something just wasn't right. But what?

The answer began to emerge at the various Internet marketing conferences we attended.

We could hear that what the speakers were teaching was logical and credible. But we always felt a sense of displacement, a feeling of not belonging, of somehow being outsiders. We hadn't had years of business experience, no formal business education, and no family business connections. So we accepted our discomfort as just part of the newness we'd jumped into.

But at those same conferences we began to hear others who had the same complaint.“I don't feel right, somehow. ” We heard their complaints often enough that a pattern became clear. All those who voiced this kind of discomfort were service providers, care-givers, change agents of some kind, men and women who had dedicated their lives to helping others— heart-to-heart.

These people didn't have big money as their foremost objective. To be sure they all wanted to make money —a commensurate return for the value they provided. But equal to making money was their need to serve the well-being of their customers and clients, and in so doing, earn the income they desired — not the other way around.

They also expressed their resistance to and sometimes down right objection to competing and keeping score— i.e. making money for money's sake. And some uttered the word “selling” as though it were a profanity. It became clear that there was a segment of the Internet marketplace that was not being served. That segment is peopled by soft sell marketers — all of us who are care-givers and life - change artists as distinct from accumulation artists whose focus is money first and foremost.

If you relate to what we're saying, The Heart of Marketing is written to you and for you.

Monday, May 11, 2009

You'll Want to be Here for This!


Judith and Jim -
Outstanding authors and very interesting people Read some of what they have to say here and watch for more in the coming days!
1) I understand the two of you came to write this book - The Heart of Marketing - after traveling a very circuitous path. What happened?

We are former psychotherapists who ventured into online marketing just four years ago. We had to overcome our technical deficiencies and learn to make friends with the computer. Even more so, we had to open our minds to an entirely new way of being in the world, a whole new and very different mindset-a marketing/business mindset.

But all along we labored under the feeling that something was wrong. Or to put it more accurately, something just wasn't right. But what?

The answer began to emerge at the various Internet marketing conferences we attended.

We always felt a sense of displacement, a feeling of not belonging, of somehow being outsiders. We hadn't had years of business experience, no formal business education, and no family business connections. So we accepted our discomfort as just part of the newness we'd jumped into.

But at those same conferences we began to hear others who had the same complaint. "I don't feel right, somehow." We heard their complaints often enough that a pattern became clear. All those who voiced this kind of discomfort were service providers, care-givers, change agents of some kind, men and women who had dedicated their lives to helping others-heart-to-heart.

It became clear that there was a segment of the Internet marketplace that was not being served. That segment is peopled by soft sell marketers-all of us who are care-givers and life-change artists as distinct from accumulation artists whose focus is money first and foremost.

And so, soft sell marketing was born.

2) So you found yourselves uniquely qualified to write this book - a book that advances the power and profit of heart-based, soft sell marketing - at a time when a lot of marketing is still pretty darn - in your face - hard sell. What's that been like?

Actually quite surprising. Not just that we've attracted, many people who are looking for a different way to market and profit, but that we see that the hard sell community is taking notice.

3) Now, you say that soft sell marketers are primarily care givers and service providers - but aren't they the people we routinely deal with in our everyday lives? I mean aren't the hard sell folks pretty much in the real estate and stock and bond markets - that kind of thing?


Most marketers both online and off-about 90%-are soft sell marketers. They've just never been identified that way before.

4) You know with Obama now our President, it would seem that your book is really speaking to the change needed at almost all levels of commerce. Am I right?

Yes. The traditional marketing mindset, which is very competitive, every man for himself was modeled after what people at the turn of the last century thought Darwin was all about-survival of the fittest. That's not exactly what Darwin believed.

5) So what's the most common criticism you receive for the stand you've taken? Because you're really calling us all to rethink what happens in the buying and selling relationships that go on in our lives every day.

People haven't liked our use of the term "soft sell." They hear the word "soft" as meaning weak. That terrifies those who live in the traditional mindset. But we don't mean weak at all. Quite the opposite. Soft sell is much stronger than hard sell for creating long term profits.

6) Do you ever have people who say- "You're making too big a deal out of this? It's just business you know"?

Yes. And our response is that the phrase "it's just business," is the problem.

7) I was really impressed by the section you wrote about truly loving your customers. It's not the least bit sappy or off the charts. It really makes sense that customer relations should be treated with a great deal more care and value. So pin it down for our audience - what is it you are calling love when dealing with customers?

We are all interconnected on this planet-in this universe, actually. We co-create our lives together. That means we need each other. When you're aware of that need then, if you're the seller, your buyer is your partner in every sale (and vice versa).

8) Besides your book - The Heart of Marketing, Love Your Customers and They Will Love You Back - you also run the Soft Sell Marketers Association and produce the Bridging Heart and Marketing conferences. There are tons of professional associations and endless marketing conferences. What makes yours unique?

Ours are based on the principle that Selling Is Spiritual Service and that a sale is a sacred event.

9) We've covered a lot of territory here. So before we run out of time, what do you want to say to all the buyers in our audience? And why should they read your book?

If you are a care-giver, a service provider, what we call a life transformation artist, our book is the only book written to identify, match, and support your marketing needs. As one of our endorsers wrote-"Read it and you will be impressed. Put it into action and you will be transformed."

10) And are there any kinds of business people who wouldn't be inspired or, at minimum, find profit from reading The Heart of Marketing?

Not really. When you apply the soft sell marketing approach you will create long-term relationships causing customers to trust you, buy from you again and again, and spread the word. As a business person, isn't that the point?

11) OK, finally, what would you say to President Obama if you could take your message into the White House?

That the change he is after is not merely a change in policy or politics but it's a mindset shift. And we offer the strategy and steps to achieve that change.

12) You two are so passionate about this. It's been a pleasure. And whether you are in business or you support businesses with your buying power - read this book - The Heart of Marketing. The world will be a better place when we make this shift in our business dealings! Thank you Judith & Jim for your time with me and for all that you are doing to change the world to make it a better place!

Watch for more information May 14, Thursday - Exciting opportunity for you to get free bonuses and more...But don't order your book yet - wait until Thursday
http://www.theheartofmarketing.com

Thursday, May 7, 2009

Our nearest star - 35 trillion miles away...How Far is that?


In perspective, a train going at the rate of a mile a minute would reach our nearest star in 48-million years. Make you think doesn't it. How will space travelers reach it?
If a song were sung there and the sound traveled here it would be 3,800,000 years before it reached us so that we could hear it. So much for crooning to your love, pining your heart out for her.

How about something lighter? A spider's web - or at least the silken thread that she uses to build her web would weigh 500 tons by the time it reached that star. Amazing to think of.

And what great mind figured this all out in the first place?
I read about it in Dale Carnegie's How to Develop Self-Confidence & Influence People by Public Speaking.

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Remember


"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams,"
Eleanor Roosevelt
http://www.billiewilliams.com