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The Executive Connection SM
a publication of The Virtual Executive Coach SM
"Vision + Accountability = Success!"
In This Issue:
1. Preview
2. Executive Summary
3. Marketing Your Business
4. Helpful Hints
1. Preview
The Executive Connection explores the creative and analytical process of business development, team-building, and executive development. We are an interactive community of executives and small business owners who desire to network with like-minded high-performance executives to enhance our knowledge, skills, and aptitudes in the competitive business world.
Published monthly, the Newsletter offers coaching suggestions around the topics of: business development, financing, marketing, networking, incorporations, mergers, human resources, governmental regulations, and tax laws.
Topics are presented from the perspective of Keith Barton and represent only his ideas on creating and running your business. Because we are an interactive community of executives and business owners, other viewpoints are welcomed and may be printed in future monthly newsletters with permission from Keith Barton.
2. Executive Summary
February, 2004
Dear Executive Connection Subscriber,
This month we will discuss
marketing your business.
3. Marketing Your Business
Now that you've taken the Executive Coaching Course with your coaching organization, read the books, subscribed to the business journals, you're ready to market your executive coaching practice. Where do I start?
The Written Stuff: First, I hope you've got professional brochures, flyers, business cards, handouts that you can give to potential clients. Please avoid direct mailing as they are expensive and ineffective. Normal rates of return run one to two percent. If the postage doesn't drain your budget, you're tongue will feel like Elmer's glue after lickin' your flyer for colleagues and potential clients. This is known as the "cold call" and like SPAM is unsolicited. Imagine getting something in the mail with a pre-printed label. You don't recognize the return address. Chances are the letter never gets opened. Your marketing material is important, but it's better to use as handouts after a workshop or presentation. After all, you're not selling yourself, but a service. Think of yourself as a repository of useful information for business types.
Niches: I have two niches--writing fiction that I pitch to writers and authors, and executive coaching. I have separate brochures and business cards for each niche. Don't go with generic material if you're giving specific advice to a select audience. People are somewhat taken aback when asked what I do? I carry four different cards with me depending on who's asking.
Presentations: You've done your research for your presentation, rehearsed it till you're pacing and sequential notes are indelibly etched in your frontal lobes, now it's show time. What do you do next? The simple answer is "relax and share" as if you're talking to a small group of friends. Steven King had a wonderful answer when asked what makes a good writer. His reply was to read and write a lot. I believe his advice is good for anything we want to excel. If you want to be a good coach, you have to coach and be coached a lot. There is no substitute for practice and experience.
Workshops: Workshops are a little different from presentations because you have more audience participation. One should be familiar with group dynamics and learn to facilitate interaction rather than direct the discourse. Mentorcoach offers an excellent virtual group dynamics course by Dr. Randi Smith who is an expert in group dynamics and running high performance groups for business and industry. If you can successfully run a workshop then you will be marketing yourself as a "facilitator," not an expert consultant. Besides, most requests from business and industry have more to do with group dynamics within a corporate culture than imparting information. Process, not product is the key ingredient in running workshops. The best marketing tool you have available is yourself. Don't hide behind your brochures and business cards. After your workshop people who are interested will be "opting in" for more information about you. Now is the time to give them a business card, brochure, handout and most importantly, ask for their email address for your mailing list for free newsletters, future workshops, web information, etc.
Virtual Groups: Virtual groups fall into five categories: mentoring, support, teleclass, niche, high-performance. Most executive group coaching deals with high-performance teams. Executive coaching provides in my opinion the most challenging and rewarding group experience, because the team takes ownership for change and action if you've done your job well. Also, many of your individual coaching clients will come from group work. Remember anytime you're working with someone, the more exposure and name recognition you receive. My advice is to build up a local reputation with face to face group offerings and supplement this approach with virtual groups using your website and offering teleclasses. It also helps to have a book about what you're talking about because a "how to" book gives one instant credibility. With the advent of small publishing houses and sophisticated print-on-demand technology today, you can be in print within months with a polished book and cover design. Before actual publication you will want to send free copies to colleagues in return for their comments (testimonials) that will also be used in your print advertising. Contacting your local newspaper editor will also provide free publicity, name recognition, and credibility. To sum up, "the book is the hook."
4. Helpful Hints
"Helpful Hints" is a monthly feature of The Executive Connection. In this section of our Newsletter, we will discuss accountability structures necessary to stay focused on your business plan and objectives.
"This Month's Helpful Hints"
1. Develop a workshop around your area of expertise. Ask to speak to your local church, civic club, parent organization, business group at no charge.
2. Take in a workshop on public speaking if your skills are rusty. Toastmasters is a great organization. Many of us belong to breakfast (networking) groups.
3. Make sure you collect email addresses for building up your clientele. Tell folks you have additional information you would be pleased to send via email. If you have a newsletter, tell them about it and offer to sign them up or give them your URL.
SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION
The Executive Connection SM is a free publication. If you want to continue to receive this Newsletter, you can SUBSCRIBE by clicking here or by sending a blank email message to keith_barton@att.net
with the word SUBSCRIBE in the subject line.
Be assured your name and email address are confidential. We do not sell, rent or share our mailing list with anyone.
Contact Information:
Distribution Rights:
The Executive Connection SM is copyrighted, but you may retransmit or
distribute it to whomever you wish as long as not a single word is changed, added, or deleted, including the contact information. However, you may not copy it to a web site.
Republication of The Executive Connection SM in paper media is encouraged and permitted by individuals, organizations and associations, as long as the issue is reprinted in its entirety, without change, and includes the contact information.
With advance permission, we are happy to edit an issue to fit your space requirements. Republication also is encouraged under other circumstances. However, the advance permission of A. Keith Barton, Ph.D. must be obtained in the event that changes in the text are desired.
The Executive Connection SM Mission:
The Executive Connection SM is dedicated to helping first-time business owners and executives to recognize resistance to change, while they create and manage their own businesses. My goal is to help you transform your vision into a successful business venture with the addition of accountability structures and silent partner.
The Executive Connection SM is a publication of The Virtual Executive Coach SM and Keith Barton, Ph.D.
We would like The Executive Connection SM to be as interactive as possible. If you have feedback, comments, topics you would like addressed, or can suggest additional resources to benefit us all, please email us at any time. Send your e-mail to
keith_barton@att.net
.
Please forward this issue to anyone you think would find The Executive Connection SM interesting and beneficial. Your recommendation helps us keep growing, and ensures an excellent exchange of information and techniques.
Archives:
You can read previous issues of The Executive Connection SM in our archive section.
About Keith Barton, Ph.D
Dr. Barton received his Ph.D. in 1972 from the University of Texas at Austin and has been a practicing therapist for over thirty years. He is a graduate of MentorCoach and is accepting new clients. He has been an adjunct professor at the University of South Carolina, consultant to Fortune 500 companies in executive development, founded and managed Texas Community Living Ventures, Inc., in 1986 for providing group home services to persons with mental retardation, and has been running a clinical practice in Northwest Houston since 1990. He writes part-time with the goal of completing one novel a year. His desire to coach others derives from his passionate interest in helping others become attuned to their creative powers of storytelling.
Dr. Barton has training in coaching, cognitive and family therapy and health psychology. He has published articles, made presentations and conducted workshops about:
Small Business Development
Employee Wellness Programs
Anxiety and achievement
Stress management
Self-esteem
Communication skills
Leadership styles
Core values in the workplace
Executive Development
High-performance groups
Physician support groups
Writer support groups
© 2010
The Virtual Executive Coach SM and Keith Barton.
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