Online Business School Seeks To Disrupt Business School Pricing And Value Proposition Model

Tulsa, Oklahoma, February 14, 2015 /PressReleasePing/ – Thrive15.com, the online business education platform for entrepreneurs, business owners and employees looking to improve their business skills, launches out of beta, after nearly three years of development. The online education platform is already disrupting the business school pricing and value proposition model. According to Bloomberg, the least expensive business schools such as the Illinois – Urbana Champaign School of Business and William and Mary Mason start at over $34,000 per year and many business schools like Cornell University are priced at over $50,000 per year.

“We’ve worked very hard to make our business school $49,400 less per year than other business schools and much more entertaining, engaging and interactive so you will actually retain what you are learning,” says Thrive15.com Founder and Chief Operating Officer, Clay Clark.

Thrive15.com currently has subscribers in 33 countries has been attracting the attention of both non-college graduates and college graduates who are amazed at the quality and the practicality of the website’s ever growing content. One Thrive15.com subscriber and a private Ivy league Graduate from Southport, Connecticut says, “I think if you were to go to one of those websites that evaluates schools, my school would rank in the top 3 in the U.S. However, theres no training on how to be an entrepreneur and run a business. What is provided is not considered to be important by the students. They have professors who have never built a business, but are giving them critiques on their work. When go out in the real world, you enter this foreign world of entrepreneurship.

Thrive15.com’s Founder, Clay Clark says, “We think Steve Jobs (Apple co-founder and former Pixar CEO) was correct when he said, “It is absurd that American classrooms are still based on teachers standing at a board and using textbooks. All books, learning materials, and assessments should be digital and interactive, tailored to each student and providing feedback in real time.”

Thrive15.com’s business education platform offers courses in 20 areas of business mastery including leadership, capital, accounting, marketing, sales, legal, and more. Thrivers rate themselves and their current proficiency in each area and can then choose from the ever-expanding course catalog consisting of thousands of business education videos.

Even proud pillars of academia such as Harvard Professor, Clayton Christensen, see a brewing storm for America’s colleges, “Generally universities are doing very well financially, so they don’t feel from the data that their world is going to collapse, but I think even five years from now these enterprises are going to be in real trouble.”

Thrive15.com videos are taught by world-class mentors including NBA Hall of Famer turned successful entrepreneur, David Robinson, the former Executive Vice President of Operations for Walt Disney World Resort, Lee Cockerell, the New York Times bestselling author and publicist of choice for Michael Jackson, Prince, P. Diddy, Charlton Heston, and countless celebrities, Michael Levine, and countless other experts.

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Quick Facts Thrive15:

Thrive15.com provides 15-minute practical online business courses taught by millionaires, mentors, and everyday entrepreneurial success stories.

Thrive15.com features many celebrity mentors including:

David Robinson, NBA Hall of Fame Basketball Player and founder of Carver Academy charter schools and Admiral Capital Group, which currently has a valuation of over $250 million; Lee Cockerell, the Former Executive Vice President of Operations for Walt Disney World Resort who once managed 40,000 + employees; Michael Levine, the founder of Levine Communications who has been the publicist of choice for Michael Jackson, Prince, P. Diddy, Charlton Heston, Cameron Diaz, and countless other celebrities; David Nilssen, the cofounder of one of the nation’s largest small business funding solutions, Guidant Financial and; Jonathan Barnett, the founder of the 400 + OXI Fresh franchise.

Thrive15.com has teamed up David Robinson and the U.S. Chambers, Hiring Our Heroes Program, to provide free subscriptions to U.S. military families as part of the 1 for 1 HandUp Movement.

Thrive15.com has been mentioned in Forbes, Pando Daily, Yahoo Finance, Business Insider, Entrepreneur, and numerous media outlets since launching in BETA.

Thrive15.com offers best practice and practical online education in the core areas of business mastery that every entrepreneur must know including: legal, real estate, investing, execution, purpose, mindset, networking, business modeling, overcoming adversity, capital, branding, marketing, sales, customer service, product/service development, quality control, accounting, management, human resources, and leadership.

Thrive15.com was founded by Chief Operating Officer and Oklahomas former U.S. Small Business Administration Entrepreneur of the Year, Clay Clark.

The Chief Executive Officer of Thrive15.com is doctor, entrepreneur, and venture capitalist, Doctor Robert Zoellner.

Thrive15.com offers points instead of grades and gives its users a chance to win a business boost package of over $10,000 every six months to the Thriver with the most points.

Thrive15.coms content is created by combining entertainment, gamification, and best-practice practical business education to increase the retention of training provided on the platform.

Press Contact:

Deedra Determan

D2 Branding

1609 S. Boston Ave

918-520-8012

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The Internet Home Business Success Rate Is Only 5%. How Can You Improve The Odds

Did you know that only 1 out of every 20 internet home business seekers fail? I knew that it was bad, but I had no idea that 95% of the millions of people who attempt to make money online never succeed. It is too bad, creating home business income is an incredibly life changing thing to do. A home business can create multiple streams of income for you, passive income that can allow you to become financially free and even develop lasting wealth. But you need to succeed in order too enjoy all the benefits, and so you will want to do things differently than the masses of individuals who never make it very far. Improving the odds for your own home internet home business success is quite possible, there are just a few things that you need to know before getting started.

For starters, you need to be sure that you really want to pursue a home business. There are far too many individuals who for some reason think that the internet is a path to instant riches. While you can grow rich online, as millions have done, and while it is quicker than traditional business ventures, creating a successful and profitable business from home takes time, effort, and consistent work. People who are looking for a way to get rich without working are much more likely to quit when things do not flourish instantly. Success in any areas of life takes time and effort, and working form home is no different. So before you even get started, make sure that you are ready to invest time and energy into your new business.

Another common pitfall of internet business seekers is choosing unreliable opportunities that are either scams or that will not last very long. Most internet business programs fail within their first year, which can be very frustrating for those who invested months of time into them. I have successfully earned money from several internet income programs, all of which have been around for several years or more. Often the people who fall for scams or unreliable programs are those same people who think the internet is a place to get rich without work. Scammers prey on these types of individuals. They create hyped up ads that usually have no real substance, and they make ridiculous promises. People who do not look at the internet as a place to build a real home business and just want to get rich without work are more likely to fall for these novelty “opportunities.”

Simply by realizing that it takes time and effort to create a profitable income online, and taking the time to research possible opportunities to choose the best to work with, you will be improving your odds for success in the home business arena. If you find a reliable program, commit to investing time each day into it, and never give up, you will succeed as a home business owner. If there is one other piece of advice that I can offer that will give you a huge advantage, it is to invest in your knowledge of marketing online. Internet marketing is a crucial component to making money online, and those who can market the best earn the most. There are many books on internet marketing, and by reading a few of them you will be giving yourself the tools of online home business success.

Business Management Consultants

Their Role in Media Planning

Media planning and buying is an important marketing function. Companies need to use the right medium while targeting their audience. Business Management Consultants help organisations to use the right medium and measure the performance of the marketing activity. Media planning essentially answers these fundamental questions:

Media planning helps in answering these basic questions:

a.Where to advertise? Market research helps in identifying which market their competitors are using. Either using primary or secondary data, the target market segmentation is done. Which part of the country would it be more successful and the medium that part uses.

b.Who to advertise for? The companys potential buyer needs to be identified, the person earning the most in the family might buy the product, but it could be used by some other individual in the same household. Research again helps in targeting these products accurately.

c.How much to advertise? The media budget is based on this, the more frequently the advertisement is shown or viewed or aired the costlier it is the purchase the medium for the given time and space. Specifying the time is a must when the ad campaign is on a television or a radio.

Some companies prefer in-house planners, business management consultants usually have a team of individuals, who are selected based on the client. Business management consultants can make his/her group according to the project or client they have. Certain brands invest highly in media planning and at times some dont, depending on this a team can be formed.

What is media planning?

Media planning is a highly specialised service; the planner needs to have a thorough understanding of consumer behaviour, purchasing habits of various brands and the medium of communication which is popular with their consumers. Based on these factors the consultant chooses the right medium or media, depending on how much the client is willing to spend. Media planning is a function that helps in determining the most effective manner of spending the advertisers money/ investment across media so as to generate the best Return of Investment (ROI) for the company.

The consultant needs to understand that mediums of communication are now merging, previously each medium print, radio and television were being targeted separately. Now with the online medium the three traditional mediums have converted into one. Marketing is now a two way communication, consumers and brand interact using social media.

The major steps involved in media planning are:

Clients Marketing Brief: This brief is provided by the client, it contains details about the product, its functions and the competitive advantage and the portfolio of products and services they offer. High and low selling products are highlighted, this help in the SWOT analysis. The media that they are currently using, the market segments that they are targeting and how much they are currently spending on media. The client specifies their marketing objectives in this brief.

Advertising Agency brief: This brief explains the creative execution of the campaign; this is usually done by a boutique or an agency that handles creative advertising designs.

Media Planning brief: The advertising agency comes up with the advertising brief the media planner or business management consultant helps to arrive at a media plan. The media brief contains media objectives; this helps in deciding which media to choose, how many times and at when. The brief includes definition of target segment and information about their competitors. Understanding how much their competitors are spending, the medium they are using and how many times in a day or month are they disseminating the advertisement.

Media planning is an important management function and business management consultants help in creating the media planning brief. At times companies use to wrong medium to disseminate their marketing efforts, business management consultant help in choosing the right medium in the current market scenario.

How Outsourcing Content Projects & Software Development Helps Your Business

As Tom Peters, the American writer who has written extensively on business management practices says, “Do what you do best and outsource the rest!”. There is no harm in outsourcing. In fact, outsourcing is not a novice idea and there are lots of businesses that outsource more than one project. Outsourcing content projects is a common practice among many businesses. Most of them lack the core expertise that is required to handle content projects and this is why they prefer to get it done by experts. On the other hand, there are businesses that can’t handle software projects skillfully, and therefore, consider outsourcing software development to be a safer option.

How does outsourcing benefit your business?

While outsourcing is undeniably beneficial for your business, you need to know the exact benefits. Does it help you focus on the core activities or manage the risks better? Handing over the responsibility of some of the most financially rewarding projects to a third party is indeed a smart move for your business. But before you make that move, let’s take a look at the exact benefits of outsourcing.

Lets you focus on the core aspects There are several functions, which are not related to the core aspect of your business. The moment you start expanding your business, the workload of the non-core functions continue to increase. As a result of this, the core activities get neglected and the quality deteriorates. In a situation like this, outsourcing seems to be an easy solution. Since you transfer the responsibility of some of the projects to a third party company or an individual, your key resources can focus on the primary business tasks.

Allows access to skilled expertise One of the main reasons why businesses prefer to outsource some tasks is that they get access to skilled expertise. It may not always be possible for a business to hire employees for a particular skill set. Outsourcing seems to be the most feasible solution in a scenario like this. This allows you to get the job done by professionals, who are expert at handling it. This also saves you the hassles of hiring full time employees and training them for specific projects.

Enables better risk management The moment you outsource a project, you share the risks associated with the project with your outsourcing partner and thus, reduce the burden. By outsourcing a task to a company that is competent enough to handle that, you can rest assured of the quality of the task.

Lets you run your business 24X7 By outsourcing projects to a country like India that is in a different time zone, you can make use of all 24 hours. By the time your working hours are over, the Indian company with which you are working can take over and continue with the work. They can work on several critical tasks and make considerable progress by the time you get back to work the next day. This way, you can abide by the follow-the-sun working model. This also helps you focus on time and material development.

These are some of the ways in which outsourcing helps your business.

How Your Business Can Benefit With Video Surveillance In Chicago, Il

When you are running a business, the most important thing that you need to keep an eye for is ensuring appropriate security for your business premise, assets and of course your employees. While the traditional concept of security was always associated with appointing security guards, things have evolved remarkably with the passage of time. In present times, video surveillance is considered one of the most effective ways of ensuring security for residential as well as business premises.

Wondering how you can benefit by installing video surveillance system? Here is what you need to know:

With video monitoring you can efficiently keep track of who is entering and leaving your business premise.

Because video surveillance in Chicago, IL provides real time monitoring, it helps you view all that is happening in your business area even when you are away from your office.

All the incidents taking place in your business area are recorded. In the event of a mishap, when police investigation is required, these recordings can be immensely helpful.

In case an employee make compensation claims for injuries they have suffered while being on duty, recordings provided by the security cameras can help determine the validity of their claim. This can save you a good deal of money you would have needed to spend due to false claims made by an employee.

Through video monitoring, you can keep a watchful eye on your employees and evaluate their professional performance. As a matter of fact, when your employees know that security cameras are being used to monitor them, they make extra efforts to prove their efficiency and dedication. Consequently, video surveillance in Chicago, IL can contribute effectively to enhance employee productivity.

If at any point of time you suspect that one or more employees are engaged in unethical practices like theft, installing security cameras can provided you necessary proof needed to verify your suspicion.

Surveillance systems are available in a wide range of sizes and shapes. It is important however that the right system is installed as per your requirements, conveniences and budget to ensure efficient video surveillance. A reputed and reliable installer can provide you customized solution catering perfectly to your business needs and interests.

A structured cabling system plays an important role in ensuring effective and organized access control system. Structured cabling in Milwaukee, WI serves the purpose of providing a device independent infrastructure for telecommunications, data and VoIP.

In earlier times, a building’s network comprised multiple wiring systems, each having a different standard and protocol. However, this system made it difficult to manage the network and transmit data in any format. In present times, structured cabling presents a number of advantages in terms of maintenance, flexibility, obsolescence, reorganizing and management.

A reputed installer of video surveillance in Chicago, IL can provide all the assistance and guidance you need to know the key benefits of video monitoring and to choose the device that best suits your requirements and budget. They also provide solutions for structured cabling in Milwaukee, WI to ensure organized and precise functioning of your surveillance system.

How To Minimize Small Business Taxes A Tax Professionals Guide

Knowing how to minimize small business taxes means you get to keep Uncle Sams hand from picking your pocket of hard earned money at tax time. If you are not taking advantage of every available, legal, tax loophole, your business profits are being handed over to the IRS.

The following tips will help you reduce small business taxes.

It is recommended to take full advantage of ones claim on Capital Cost Allowance. If you need to buy supplies, machinery, and technology, time it for maximum savings. If doing the math shows you will minimize your tax exposure deducting the expenses this year, do not delay. Using Capital Cost Allowance on your new property, you will still increase the CCA for the current year and will have increased CCA claims for the next year.

Consider postponing disposal of depreciable resources. Do not dispose of business equipment until the following year depending on which will better reduce the tax liability for your business.

Planning income deferments can also help minimize your business tax liability. Postponing or putting off income is recommended if business profit will be higher or if the tax rates in the following tax year are expected to be reduced.
Through smart tax planning managing your expenses to meet higher profits is another strategy for further minimizing tax. Let the tax implications dictate the timing of improvements, supply purchases and equipment upgrades.

Make the most of Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) payments possible as a means of minimizing small business taxes. Contribution of up to eighteen percent in any given year of the profit, along with a Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) payment is deducted from the income. An RRSP is advantageous to be considered for tax deduction for small businesses. Additional deductions you may or may not be taking full advantage of include write-offs for start-up expenses; office costs; furnishings; advancement through education; travel expense; insurance premiums; affiliations; and conferences.

Employ members of the family. The government is particularly understanding to family-run businesses when salaries are concerned. You are not required to provide payment for federal unemployment taxes if you employ in your business your husband or wife or parents. There is no need to hold back income taxes and Social Security if siblings work in your business. However, child labour laws are still applied even if they are your children so age restrictions must be considered. As employees they must receive proper salaries and must be assured that the company is benefited in order to be eligible for these exemptions that can help dramatically reduce small business tax exposure.

Employ independent contractors so you will not have to withhold state income taxes from their salaries. As the business owner, you will not have to provide withholding payment for the employers contribution for Social Security as well as Medicare taxes. There is also no need to provide unemployment benefits for independent contractors. However, make certain that the IRS does classify the independent contractor as your employee. If they do, you will be requested to provide payment for taxes including fines levied for any missed withholdings you may or may not have been aware of. Consult your tax expert before categorizing an individual as an independent contractor to be sure you are properly doing so.

Contributing to charity can help reduce small business taxes. Donating to non-profit groups that work to help others who need assistance is a great way to reduce tax liability. In this way, you will be able to decrease the tax exposure of your business. Tax incentives are offered by the IRS for businesses and individuals who give contributions, so why not take advantage of these opportunities that are mutually beneficial by creating a tax plan of donation to your favorite charities.

Prior to making a contribution, be sure the charitable organization qualifies for the deduction you seek. The IRS also requires you to document with the organization donations of $250 or more.

No one is exempt from paying taxes; however, executing a proactive, smart business plan to reduce the business tax exposure for your business is good business. Small deductions when added up, combined with a tax aware financial plan created with an experienced accountant can help not only to minimize your business taxes but grow the future you are working so hard to create.

Business Role Of Whatsapp Messenger – Whatsapp For Android

Till today we have seen the use of WhatsApp Android for the chatting purpose as well as social media leading role. Today, we are going to familiar you with the role of Whatsapp Messenger for business.

As per the market research, nowadays, use of WhatsApp For Android has jumped the boundary of conversation. If we take a look in current scenario of the eCommerce business then today many leading eCommerce platform using free messenger like WhatsApp android for communication between the seller as well as buyer. It has been seen than compare to email account people are tend to check their Whatsapp Messenger account more. If ecommerce platform offer the free messenger for communication then people tend to use their service more compare to other. As communication is the base to gain the trust and in case of eCommerce business if you provide free of cost platform to your customers for the communication then definitely they will rely more on you compare to your competitors.

In the second phase where WhatsApp Android has explored its wings is media as well as editorial places. As per the report, many local news websites are involved in using WhatsApp for Android. WhatsApp Messenger has played its role as communication tool for many news covering. However, its main reason for this field popularity is easier way of offering to forward news via free platform just in pinch of time. Moreover, its advantage of taking image and forwarding on free platform make it more favorable for this field. As in news covering many times its required to take an image of current situation and make familiar visitors for the ongoing activities in such case instead any other platform Whatsapp android played leading role.

Furthermore, WhatsApp Messenger has covered the market of the customer care. Any customer care activity provider has jumped to the Whatsapp for android. The reason for this moving is free of cost messaging for different platform like voice, text, image, location and many more. However, the marketable purpose of WhatsApp acceptance is not only cost efficiency, for both the company and the customer. Because this valuable application offers better practice towards the consumer like customer services is avail without any surcharge with prompt reply.
In conclusion, I can say that there re many areas where WhatsApp Android has gained the popularity and in future also it will gain. As, this application has been designed by keeping in mind all expectations of users.

The Influence Of Internet On Modern Business

An Internet Marketing program has two sides. One is the part devoted to individual customers. The other is the business to business component. E-commerce programs as well as advertising, sales support, customer service and public relations are all elements of an internet marketing program.

Similar companies compete against one another while being only a click of the mouse away. In other words, a buyer can locate numerous sellers offering similar merchandise, similar prices and similar offers in a very short time period. As more people and businesses become comfortable with the internet, the marketing landscape will continue to evolve quickly in the coming years.

Use of the internet has exploded during the last few years in both the consumer and business-to-business markets. Although the experts still debate the future of the internet, no one doubts it is having an impact on how business is taking place in the twenty ‘first century, even with all of the – – dot crashes – – of the late 1990s. Here are some facts about the internet that highlight its tremendous growth and presence in society:

– The most common products consumers’ research online and purchase off-line (at the store or outlet) are: automobiles, computer, hardware, travel, electronics, books, appliances, music, sporting goods and clothing.

– Over 25 percent of all business-to-business purchases are placed through some type of internet connection.

– The five top business-to-business e-commerce products are computers and electronics, motor vehicles, petrochemicals, utilities, papers and office products.

– In 2004, 10 percent of business-to-business advertising dollars were spent on the internet. The total amount spent was $8.7 billion.

– About 54 percent of the e-mail users have responded to an e-mail advertisement. Almost half purchased a product.

– Internet retail sales account for almost 2.5 percent of all retail sales.

Business-to-business marketers were among the first companies actually to make profits using the internet. In today’s marketplace, the web is becoming the communication tool of choice for many business-to-business companies. The internet provides opportunities for communication, customer service, sales support, collaboration and e-commerce.

Some companies use the internet for every aspect of their business including taking orders, inventory control, production scheduling, communications plans, sales programs, service departments and support programs. The change from traditional communication channels such as salespeople, telephone and – – snail mail – -to the internet and e-mail happened quickly in some companies and more slowly in others.

Now, convincing top management of the benefits of internet marketing is essential. There is still a lack of internet expertise in the business community. As a result, many companies are turning to marketing agencies for guidance.

To conclude, the influence of the internet on various businesses and industries has been clearly noted in today’s world. The presence of the internet and e-commerce is so sweeping that the various applications of web technology are now essential elements of a fully integrated marketing communications program.

How to Recognise Good Small Business Management Software

Finding out which small business management software solution is right for your business can be a long road. The majority of companies that offer this will tell you that their product is the best on the market in order for you to sign up to their service. Whilst it can be very useful to take a look at marketing material for small business management software owners of businesses should know what features to look out for. Here are a few questions which will help owners and managers of small businesses to ascertain if a small business management software solution they are interested in is right for them:

How many employees can be added to the application? If you are looking at software that will only allow for 10 or 20 employees there is little room for expansion. Instead look towards software that can handle up to 50 employees.

Is the application web based? Small business management software that is web based has so many advantages over other types of software. It means that owners, managers and even employees can log on from anywhere with an internet connection and check information relating to the business or even carry out their role from another location.

Do the features on the small business management software solution do everything your business needs them to? For example if you need a quoting and invoicing tool it has to have these as standard, similarly a business needs software with integrated calendars, document storage, project planning tools and reporting features to name but a few. Without these features a small business might need to pay for other applications, which is a waste of funds.

Is the small business management software solution easy to use? If a new software package is difficult to use and navigate around it can spell big problems for a business. Not only will it take a disproportionate amount of time to train employees on how to use it, it may also be too clumsy to use effectively. It is surprising just how many businesses sign up for software that is incredibly hard to use and requires several hours worth of training per employee. To get the most from small business management software it should take around an hour for employees to get to grips with and from there they can build upon their knowledge.

Can the software grow with your business? Whilst most businesses start off small there are a large number that do not stay small. With this in mind you need software that can handle a growing customer contacts database and will allow you to add employees as you hire them.

Does the software offer you a free, no obligation trial? This is essential before you spend money signing up to any software application.

Network Marketing Basics The Business Card

Business cards are the staple of any business. Once one goes into business for oneself, one of the first things that is done is the design and production of a business card. If done correctly, it could be a very valuable tool for marketing your business.

However, in my opinion, business cards done the traditional way serve no real purpose. What do I mean by that? Usually a business card has very little information that will drive the recipients of this card to action. It provides them with your name, the name of your company, and your contact information; beyond that, there is little else.

Why not put this little billboard to work for you? Instead of just supplying the basic information, invest in a card that is either 2-sided or a fold-over style, so you can put more riveting information on the card.

Denise, you ask, what do you mean by riveting information? I’m glad you asked!

I like to use a business card to guide prospects to take action and not just look at the card, then put it in their George Costanza-style wallet (any “Seinfeld” fans out there?) that is overstuffed with cards and pieces of paper they will never look at again. I recommend putting an eye-catching “headline” or a tagline that targets your niche market.

As an aside, let me briefly touch upon the idea of a niche market. While I know that we in network marketing like to think the world is our niche market and that everyone can benefit from what we have to offer, I recommend breaking the world up into categories. You will be more successful with your prospecting efforts if you identify a target audience, figure out what they need/want, and fill that need for them.

A good example of a niche market is Moms. If you want, this can be further broken down to more specific categories: working mothers, stay-at-home Moms, single/divorced Moms. Each group has their own set of needs and desires: the working Mom yearns to stay home with her children; the stay-at-home Mom wants to earn a living but not leave the nest so as to be close to her young; the single/divorced Moms need to generate income AND figure out a way to be present as a steady, guiding force in their child’s life. Getting extremely specific with your target market and letting them know you have an answer to their problem(s) is a much more effective way of prospecting than to just hand out a card with your name, company and contact information.

Once you carve out a niche you would like to target, design your marketing material that you create yourself (as an addition to the marketing material the company provides for you) with that group in mind. If you market to more than one niche (there is no limit to how many niches you can target), I advise creating different business cards for each target market in such a way that each card somehow catches the attention of that group by addressing a specific need or desire unique to each niche.

The center of your card does not necessarily have to focus on you or your business. Perhaps this information can be put off to the upper and lower corners, so as to allow for an eye-catching image that will appeal to their aspirations. Pictures, not necessarily of you, but of some desirable scene, can often be more effective than plain white or cream-colored stock

Consider adding a tagline to your company’s name (pending their approval, of course). The name of your company, in and of itself, may not be instantly recognizable. If they put this card away only to take it out a few weeks later, there should be something on there that reminds them of the conversation they may have had with you, or that indicates what the company can provide or do for your prospects. Otherwise, chances are they will just toss it and never follow up with you.

Be creative with your title. Are you a mentor in your business? Then say it. Do you teach people how to create wealth? Then say it.

Use the other side of the card, or better yet, use a fold-over style card, and inside you can ask a question that intrigues the prospect or addresses a concern of theirs along with a few short, bullet-pointed answers to the question that demonstrates you and your business have the solution to the prospect’s problem.

I’m going to give you a few examples of how I used the above guidelines to create an effective business card for myself:

1) I used a tagline under my company name that reads, “Your Road to Retirement.” Happily, I did not have to create this tagline or get it approved, this company uses it, and I felt it was effective. This will immediately raise eyebrows to anyone who is looking to get out of the rat race, and I’d say that’s a pretty large part of the population.

2) To match that tagline, I used the image of a beautiful tropical beach with gorgeous blue water, fine white sand, and palm trees. With the exception of people who live in that type of paradise all year long, this is what a good majority of people think about when they think of retirement. So, the image matches the tagline.

3) I gave myself a title: Recruiter and Mentor. I want people to know I am an expert at what I do, and I will help them do the same. Remember, in the end, people don’t just want to go into business for themselves and figure it out the hard way. They want to join a successful person. They are joining YOU. I find that much more emotionally appealing than something like “Independent PC.” To someone not in the network marketing industry, what does that mean? Professional corporation? What EXACTLY is a PC?

4) My contact information includes, besides my phone number, the domain name I picked that is specific to the niche I chose. This is linked up to the automated marketing system provided by my network marketing company.

5) On the reverse side of the card, I ask an intriguing question that is related to my domain name. I ask, “What Do YOU Want to be Free From?” I then give them simple instructions how to take action.

The old model of business cards that most people follow is based on image advertising. Small business owners, to which I include network marketers, cannot afford to effectively advertise by just spreading an image. We are not a name-brand athletic shoe or a famous soda that can be identified just by the shape of its bottle, nor do we have the kind of capital that those companies have to put into an image advertising campaign (think Superbowl Ads at the most extreme). We need to think outside of the box and provide more information on these little tools which will entice the recipient to take action, all within our own marketing budget.