When I started doing consulting many years ago, I was told that what you really wanted were clients who paid you on a recurring basis. After all, when you don’t need to market all the time you can focus on your clients more.

I bought into that model and used it for many years in my business.

Then in 2004 my mother died and I needed to take several weeks off. I emailed each of my clients, explained the situation and told them that naturally I would not bill them during the time I was off.

Two things happened. My income immediately stopped. And my clients became impatient, thinking that surely I could not mean “them” when it came to not working. They sent emails asking questions. They called asking for a quick conversation.

As I reviewed my relationship with my clients I also realized that with few exceptions, I cared more about their business than they did! Sure we met every weeks or two, but it was often to discuss the same thing we had talked about two weeks before – and they hadn’t done a thing with it.

And between calls, I was the only one coming up with new ideas, sending them new opportunities. I was working for them 30 days a month – not just on the few calls we scheduled! I was spending more time and attention on their business than I was on mine.

So with the combination of those clients who weren’t doing anything and those who kept wanting me to do more – I fired them all. In retrospect I perhaps should have chosen a few to keep on retainer. But I was fragile at the time and it was easier to just say “everyone must go.”

It was shortly after that that Vickie Sullivan, a brilliant marketing and positioning strategist and good friend, told me I should be charging for the “quick calls” I did with people, as they were trying to determine whether or not they wanted to hire me – or buy a product. Those quick calls often turned into 20 or 30 minutes. And I gave away so much information in that time that they didn’t feel that they needed to hire me! It wasn’t a very profitable model of marketing to consulting clients.

So I took Vickie’s advice and started charging for marketing. Anyone could sign up for a Brain Drain Special. I would spend a dedicated hour with them, answering any questions they had and giving them as much advice and direction as I could in that hour. I recorded the call and created a client page for them with links to resources I mentioned.

And the beauty of this system is that once I hung up – I had no more obligation to that client! Likewise they were not on the hook for a recurring consulting fee. It was a win-win situation.

Since then I’ve done a LOT of Brain Drains – and each time I enjoy it. Some people do an annual Brain Drain – just to set their strategy for the coming year. Others come once and are never heard from again. One client told me it took her nine months to get through the list of tasks we generated in that single hour.

Valerie Dawson was the first to show me that Brain Drains can also provide recurring revenue. Val completed all of the tasks I gave her on our Brain Drain within a week – and was back for more. We continued to schedule a Brain Drain each time she felt she needed more help. So for a time it was recurring – but on her schedule.

What did I learn from firing my clients and moving to Brain Drains?

1. Don’t make hasty decisions during a personal crisis. I still feel badly about some of those clients I “dumped” so quickly. Some came back under the new model, but many just disappeared.

2. Find a model that fits your personality and joy. I love getting people started. I don’t love maintenance. So doing Brain Drains is perfect for me. In fact, I charge more for the ongoing client than I do for the one-time client – just so I can focus on the Brain Drains.

3. Charge for your marketing. If you sell consulting services, consider how long it takes you to “sell” a client. You may talk to several people before one buys. So you are spending a lot of time – time that you could be paid for – doing your marketing. Charge for it. It doesn’t have to be much, but it will not only help you recover costs, but it will set you apart.

Nothing says “my time is valuable” more than a simple – “I’ll be glad to talk with you and answer your questions. I charge $x for an initial consultation.” And at the end of that hour – you KNOW whether or not this client is for you. And they are certain you are worth it!

Need a Brain Drain? Sign up today!

One of the things that was obvious when I first started attending Internet Marketing events was that I was in the minority. In a room of 400 attendees, maybe 10 of us were women!

For me, it was nothing new. I had been a percussionist in high school and college bands – and in those days there were few female drummers.

I had been an accounting major in college. The year I was hired by Arthur Andersen in Houston, there were two women and 298 men starting.

And I had enjoyed math throughout school and ended up in technology in the 80s – all very male-dominated.

So frankly, it seemed “normal” to be in the minority at an Internet Marketing conference. It certainly made it easy to stand out!

But it also made it hard to blend in. So when “the guys” gathered at the bar each night – or went out on the town to let off some steam, they generally did not include a married mother of three.

For years there was a lot of talk about how women were left out when it came to the “big marketers.” Rarely did you see a woman on the stage, so it was a BIG deal when I was asked to join the panel of experts at the Superconference in 2003. It was less than an hour among 20 men, but I was THERE.

There were calls for “equality” for women speakers on the Internet Marketing stages. There was even a group of women speakers who tried to form an organization to push for women speaking more. But it never gathered much steam.

With all of the talk of equality, it was no surprise when Alex Mandossian and I announced our first Womens Power Summit in 2005. All female speakers. Only women were allowed to attend (except for Alex, who was the MC).

Womens Power Summit 2006

It was a big hit! We held it the day before the Big Seminar in Los Angeles. Since the Big Seminar drew hundreds of people it was the perfect time to gather the women the day before.

And it gave me insight to an important point about events. The nicest thing to do for someone attending an event for the first time is to introduce them to a small group of people the day before. That way they go into the bigger event already knowing people – having friends in the room to sit with and wave to. It makes a huge difference in their comfort level and enjoyment of the conference.

We ran the Womens Power Summit only two years. But it served its purpose. It was a gathering point for women in marketing. It was part of a group of women-only conferences that took place around that period.

I was invited to speak for many of the conferences – because I was a woman speaker in marketing and we were still few and far between. Others during that time included Ali Brown, Lorie Morgan Ferraro, Donna Fox, Lynn Pierce, Jenny Armato, and a bunch of others I’m leaving out!

Rhea Perry, Jeanette Cates, Lorrie Morgan-Ferraro, Jenny Armato at Donna Fox's Wonder Women of the Web 2007

I have always felt that being in the minority has made it easier for me to stand out in the Internet Marketing arena. Not always to be included – But definitely to leave a mark.

Top Row: Lynn Pierce, Willie Crawford, Stu McLaren Middle: James Malinchek, Noah St. John, Terry Dean Bottom: Ryan Deiss, Peg Barron, Joey Smith

One of the best things about having been online for so long is that we got to “make it up” as we went. There were no courses. No systems. No insider secrets. We were all learning together.

It also meant that you got to leverage your strengths in any way that made sense. So it was no surprise when I started using teleseminars. After all, I had made my living as a professional speaker. And I had been teaching for 30 years.

So in the Fall of 2001 I taught a 12-week Coaching For Online Success, geared toward speakers, consultants, and coaches. Each week we had a different topic, a homework assignment, group discussion, and a guest interview.

Tom Antion At A Seminar

Some of those guests included:

Tom Antion

Richard Middleton

Fred Gleeck

George Tran – inventor of 1ShoppingCart. George sold the Cart to someone else, retired, and is now back online doing something completely different!

Brad Konia

Alex Mandossian

Notice that all of them are still online today. Their businesses may have evolved, but they are still doing it – because they love it and it’s profitable!

Alex had introduced me to several of the people on the agenda, so when he called me with another name, I considered it. But when he told me this guy developed software, I said “No thanks. He just doesn’t have a topic we want to talk about in this series.” His name? Armand Morin!

That’s a good lesson to remember. Who you are today is not who you are going to be tomorrow. Even if someone turns down an interview request now, it doesn’t mean they will the next time. Even though they don’t ask you to speak this time, it doesn’t mean the answer will be the same next year.

Keep evolving!

And keep doing what works. Teleseminars worked for me. As an early adopter I was able to help a lot of other people get started. So it was no surprise that in 2004 I created Teleseminar Basics – still one of my best-selling products ever!

I’ve revised it multiple times since then and continue to add tips to the autoresponder sequence. But the basic structure has remained solid. And I still believe that teleseminars are one of the core pillars of a strong information business.

If you’re not using teleseminars – start today! They are easy to do, inexpensive to start, and they will help you grow your list as you get to know your followers.

Having Lunch? Why not write a book!

You’re reading this with a skeptical mind. And I would have, too, just 60 days ago – before I wrote and published my first book. So set aside your doubts and see how to make this work for you.

How it Began

It started as a pleasant lunch in my favorite “working” restaurant – you know the one with great service, a quiet afternoon atmosphere, and, for me, sunshine coming in the window. On that day I took a new book from a friend of mine – 101 Power Strategies: Tools to Promote Yourself as the Contractor of Choice. He had given it to me a few weeks before and it looked interesting.

As I began to thumb through it, my mind started clicking. Let’s see, Paul’s Strategy #1: Talk to everyone you know. In my online world that’s the equivalent of Gather emails.

Paul’s Strategy #2: Say it in an elevator. Hmmm, online that would be Use a signature file. And so it continued. As I read each of Paul’s strategies, I wrote down the equivalent in my area of expertise – online business. Naturally, one idea triggered another until I had over 100 ideas by the end of lunch. Wow! The outline for a book, although it had no chapters or sections at this point. But I had the ideas down on paper. Less than 2 hours work – and a pleasant lunch.

Five Minutes per Page

So what do you do with 100+ ideas? You start adding substance to them. I had recently read the sales letter for Steve Manning’s How to Write a Book in 14 Days and signed up for his email lessons. They promised to teach me how to write in 5 minute stretches. Yes, I had to set aside my skepticism in order to recognize that he was onto something.

Indeed, he showed me that I could write 2/3 page in just 5 minutes. No longer a skeptic, I ordered the full course and devoured it when it arrived!

Now it was time to apply my learning. I took my list of 100 ideas everywhere. I applied the 5-minute writing technique to one idea at a time – while waiting for an appointment, sitting in Barnes & Noble, waiting for a restaurant order to arrive, on the plane, in meetings. I spent just 5 minutes on each idea. 101 ideas x 5 minutes is only 8 hours and 25 minutes! The first draft was finished! I had written a book over lunch!

Getting Organized

Next came the organization. I put each idea (now called Tactics) on an index card and started sorting. I came up with 6 or more structures, but finally settled on the current table of contents that fits my larger Online Success System.

I went back to Paul’s book and looked at the section intros, the front matter and the back pages. I decided what I liked and what I would add. Then I started writing – it was easier this time.

So how long did it take to finish the book start to finish? Approximately 60 days from my first day in the restaurant I had a finished draft ready for layout and final editing. Getting it to the final copy, with cover, sent to the printer took another 30 days. Recognize that this was not a full-time job. I wrote while doing my full-time consulting business and launching 3 new web sites.

The most important thing is it’s finished! After years of thinking “I need a book” I now have a book. It’s not the large, comprehensive reference manual I had envisioned for my first book. But it’s a quality product that sells and provides good experience on how to market a book.

So what’s keeping you from having a book?

“I don’t know what to write.” My suggestion: pick up a book you like and model your book after it. I highly recommend Paul’s 101 Power Strategies since it provides solid, general business principles (and it has a solid track record for inspiring others!)

“I don’t know how to write.” My suggestion: Go to How to Write a Book in 14 Days and sign up for the free email course. You’ll learn enough to recognize the value of the full product – and you’ll be a more confident, faster writer.

“I don’t have time.” My suggestion: See suggestion above. You’ll learn the 5 minute technique and be writing in no time. After, can’t you spare 8 to 10 hours to write a book?

Regardless of your excuse, the important thing is to Start Writing!

Footnotes

I pioneered a new concept in this book and even created the name of the concept, as well as a logo. This has now gone on to become fairly standard in books nowadays. But in 2001, the concept of having a website that provided additional information beyond the book was new and revolutionary.

I added the Web-Enhanced logo to each page of the book to indicate there was more information online. I really wanted to do this for several reasons:

• To keep up with my readers
• To make sure the book’s information remained relevant as long as possible
• To provide added value

It worked! For several years, I kept the site updated. Today, I would create a free membership site based on a WordPress blog. It would be much easier to maintain than the HTML-based site originally created!

One other note about the front cover. I had no desire to have my picture on the front of the book. I wanted a picture of my target audience there – so that it would attract other people “like him.” I tried several women for the front cover models, but finally settled on him. When I update the book, I WILL put my picture on the front this time. Experience and confidence go a long way!

And a final note. In the “olden days” there was no Kindle publishing. No way to have CreateSpace publish your book for you. You either had to have a contract with a book publisher or you had to “do it yourself.” I knew I wanted to do it myself. So I set out to learn how.

• I read books on how to self-publish a book. Thank you, Dan Poynter!
• I read books and attended a workshop in New Orleans on how to market your book. Thank you John Kremer (who I’m still following on Facebook and Pinterest! Some of us stick around…)
• I established my own publishing company and named it after after our daughters and the “towers of my life”. Unfortunately, it was formed in June, 2001 – and it was called Twin Towers Press. Obviously, it’s never “recovered.”
• I purchased my own ISBN codes and labels.
• I paid a book cover designer to create the cover, add the testimonials, and the ISBN codes so I could sell it on Amazon.
• I printed 1,000 copies of the book and had them shipped to our garage. Pretty exciting day!
• We shipped every copy ever sold – either directly to the buyer or to Amazon or other book distributors.

Now you can appreciate how EASY it is to publish your book. You have NO EXCUSES! 😉

There are certain dates that stand out in your life. Your wedding day. The birth of each child. The day you retire.

And there are a handful of events that make all the difference. One such event was in October, 2001.

It was Jay Conrad Levinson’s Guerrilla Marketing Boot Camp hosted by Mark Joyner. A single-day event at Ceasar’s in Las Vegas and I wanted to go! Really badly. But the tickets were out of my budget.

I mentioned wanting to go to Alex Mandossian and he got me a VIP pass. I couldn’t believe my luck! I booked my hotel and flight. Then came September 11, 2001. And we weren’t sure we could even have an event!

David Garfinkel and Alex Mandossian

But they decided to go ahead with it less than a month after the tragedy in New York City.

Mark Joyner

The whole event was a magical day. It was my first time to meet Jay Conrad Levinson. My first time to meet Mark Joyner (now of Simpleology fame). In fact, I asked a man passing in the hall to take a picture of Mark and I. He said “I’ll be glad to. By the way, my name is Joe Vitale.”

Roger C. Parker

In the evening we had a networking event where practially everyone who was marketing online was meeting and greeting. I was particularly thrilled to run into Roger C. Parker, an author I had admired for quite some time. I spent a little time in there, then went to a special presentation from Robert Allen.

Robert Allen

My life changed that day. Not only did I meet people who had only been names on a web page (we didn’t have a lot of images online at that point), but I met Robert Allen for the first time.

I signed up for his Protege program that night and started taking classes via teleseminar three and four nights a week.

By January, I was one of only 15 people who was accepted and attended his Infopreneur Master Trainer camp in Salt Lake City. We spent three days with Robert and his team, recording a video program that he has sold for years.

Of the other attendees, I was the only one who volunteered to do a presentation for the camera. So I was the only one who leveraged that opportunity into a recurring appearance on thousands of video programs over nearly ten years.

As a result of those three days I later did an interview with Robert Allen for his weekly series – as a last-minute fill-in when his high profile guest didn’t show. That interview went so well that I gained several coaching clients from it.

And as a result of the face-time I spent with Robert and his team for the Infopreneur training, as well as my interview, I was asked to teach the Internet Marketing Basics for Robert Allen’s Protege program. That gave me a huge base of students and clients over several years – some of whom are still my subscribers and customers.

Lessons learned:

Attend live events. As I’ve been writing this series, I realize how pivotal live events have been in my business life. Literally everyone I work with, spend time with, count as my friends I have met at a live event. You have to BE THERE in order to be a player.

Jump at the chance! When you have an opportunity to step out from the crowd, it is no time to be shy. Say yes – then figure out how later.

Leverage Your Experience. I love product creation and I loved being part of the Infopreneur Master Trainer group. But I recognized that one of the common issues that many entrepreneurs and infopreneurs have is too many ideas!

That’s why I created my Organize Your Ideas product. It’s all of the systems I’ve developed and use to control and leverage my ideas – in a neat package for you.