Moments of Clarity

Join me next Wednesday at 6PM for a talk called: Help! My Business Is Invisible - Increasing Your Internet Findability Factor

 Yours truly will be giving a talk for the New Iowa Entrepreneurs Coalition Meet Up Group next Wednesday, November 19th at 6PM.  Click here for full details and to RSVP and/or Join this meet up group.

Description of the talk is below.  I hope to see you there meeting, interacting, and building relationships with other progressive Iowa entrepreneurs.

HELP!!! - My Business is Invisible
Increasing Your Internet “Findability” Factor
6:00 PM - Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Ask 100 people, "What's the first place you look to find a business or information on a business?" and 98 will say Google. Yet phone book ads, glossy brochures, and static "cobweb" sites still make up the bulk of many small and medium sized company marketing budgets. Break out of the old routine and hear some low cost - high impact organic Internet marketing strategies that will give your firm a fighting chance online. Doug Mitchell, Founder of createWOWmedia (www.createwowmedia.com) will show you how to increase your Internet Findability Factor and amplify your online brand with a focus on web video and multimedia.

Location

E-Myth Coaching Center

6000 Grand Avenue
Des Moines, IA 50312
515-288-6984

Come and learn with me through the robust QA that I KNOW will break out.  If you're already "in the know" or a super web traffic findability guru...please come and share your knowledge with the crowd through the QA and interaction. 

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The Power of Networking, Relationships, and Referrals

Last night I attended a talk given by Tom Steen over at Bank Iowa.  (notice the feedback in the right column if you click into that site link...it's excellent!)

During our self-intros around the room, someone mentioned the possibility of franchising their business.  From the tone and big exhale when it was mentioned, I could tell that the concept of franchising...while exciting and invigorating...was also a nightmare of what-ifs.

I sought this person out afterward intentionally to refer her to my attorney and franchise specialist Rush Nigut.  Rush's expertise in this area is undeniable and documented.

I told her I knew the right one for the job, she said, "Oh wow you're about the 6th person in the last few months who's referred me to him...wow!"  (nice work Rush)

There were other attorney's in the meeting.  I overheard them approach her as well with referrals to lawyers in MN, etc.  While I'm sure those attorneys are excellent, she said, "You know I already have someone right here in Des Moines who's widely recommended." 

That's the POWER of relationships that spawn referrals during networking events. 

(She's never met Rush by the way...but I bet she feels like she has)

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Ignite Des Moines - Promotional Video from create WOW media

The create WOW media team crafted a nice promo/recap video of the Ignite Des Moines event hosted by Daniel Shipton at Impromptu Studio in Des Moines.

Enjoy.

Ignite Des Moines Promotional Video @ Yahoo! Video

Who told everyone in my highschool class about Facebook over the last few months

Image via WikipediaI've been commenting to my wife that it seems everyone has discovered Facebook...in the last 90 days.  In that time, no less than 30 people have "found me" there.  People from high school are crawling out of the woodwork and connecting.  My wife has been on for a while but she's experiencing the same thing.   I brought this topic up in my Blogging Class and people started snickering that it's true for them too.

Is this massive Facebook land rush happening in my world alone?  Are there others out there who are being deluged by friends and other random people they've not heard from in years?

I'm really blown away by this.  It makes me wonder if those "find your classmates" reunion sites are headed out of business due to this "insta-connect" Facebook world.

I've started using it more lately due to this pull effect.  By default having to log in and confirm/deny connections has made me more aware of what Facebook is offering these days.

In fact, I found out some friends were engaged first....before anyone else...since I was in Facebook and saw that they'd changed status.  I'm always the last to know (pay attention) to these things.

It felt kinda good to be in the know.  Thanks Facebook.

I look forward to connecting with more of you all soon.   

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Part 1 of my Podcast with Adam Steen of 25 Connections

We just released part I of my Podcast interview with Adam Steen of 25 Connections.  We got together to discuss the power of networking and relationships and what that means in our current economy.

Adam is in the business of connecting people but he's not just a slick networking guru.  Adam believes in the kind of networking that uncovers hidden business opportunities and matches resources...with opportunity.

Take a listen and subscribe to our createWOWmedia feed to get all of the future pieces of the interview as well as some other great ideas on how to leverage multimedia in your business.

Click here to visit the post and listen to the podcast.

 

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Check out Brett Rogers and see how following your passion can open doors

I saw this video piece on Brett Rogers and was really impressed.  I've seen the art from his phone...I'd NOT actually appreciated that he was creating his imagery on such a small "canvas".  Wow.  For those of you who've not seen what Brett does....he creates artwork using the drawing pad feature on an LG Dare cell phone.  Mind you the screen is roughly a 2 inch square.  Fascinating.

Take a look and see what a passion for the "artsy" side of cell phones can do for you.  I hope you end up not only with free cell phone usage...but as a paid marketing consultant who discovered a brand new niche market by following his passion.

Nice work.  Keep it up.

http://www.kcci.com/video/17849448/

Brett's blog found here.

Introducing createWOWmedia

Hi folks:
The team has been working on some very exciting things here at Midwest Command.  Over the last year, we've been producing robust multimedia content for our Interactive Learning Environments (ILE).  We had many firms contact us and ask if we could do the same for them.  They asked us to:

1. Turn so so presentations, marketing material, speaking engagements, and documents into rich multimedia with sound, voice over, imagery, and professional appearance.
2. Shoot company intro videos that capture the mojo of their brands in video that is "good enough for the web".  Flaming fireballs optional.
3. Create robust and good looking blog based corporate websites for them that had a bunch of great organic Search Engine Optimization tools (SEO) working for them behind the scenes. 
4. Create Interactive Learning Environments so businesses extend their brands and digital product offerings globally online.
5. Develop web video strategies and some stock "intros and outros" that companies can reuse over and over again.
6. Help them understand the online world, social media, and their online BUZZ. 

We have been working under the radar to form www.createWOWmedia.com

createWOW provides Brand Amplification to small and medium businesses through  multimedia, blogging and social media, and Interactive Learning Environments.

Ask your small business owner friends how much their "Yellow Pages" ads cost per month? Ask the same group how many of them go to the Yellow Pages to look up services/products available themselves?  Could that resource be re-tasked? 

It's a pleasure to work with SMB's.  I know they get the shaft sometimes when it comes to these kinds of services because their budgets are small and their dreams are big.  Well we're tired of you being on the receiving end of the shaft...and believe its our job to help you take advantage of as much of this technology as makes sense for you.  We know how to provide IMPACT and RESULTS on a budget.  It's how we've modeled our own business and we believe you should get the same treatment.

We're already making an impact locally.  Feel free to contact Ryan @ Nutrisport - Full Potential Training and ask him what it's like to do business with the createWOW team.

If you can spare a couple minutes, please watch some of our videos in the products and services section of the site. 

Blogging For Business Class now being offered in Des Moines also

Image via Wikipedia

Starting Oct 21 - Nov. 14, I'll be in front of another group of progressive business leaders eager to understand the key aspects and tools used in social media marketing in Des Moines.  (West Des Moines class starts on September 24).  The Blogging for Business class is offered through the Des Moines Community Education program and it's VERY affordable. (Most likely $50).

Spread the word to friends, blog lurkers, and business leaders you know if they'd like to get a great lay of the blogging land...along with a great quiver full of other tools to become findable on the web.

The class will take place Tuesdays from 6:30pm-8:30pm and will last 4 weeks. 

Watch for the catalogs to show up in your newspapers and/or mailboxes. 

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Welcome Aboard: Attorney Rush Nigut Leverages The Mitchell Group's Interactive Learning Environment Platform to Bring More Value to Clients and Profession

Attorney Rush Nigut is the latest professional to adopt the Interactive Learning Environment (ILE) platform from The Mitchell Group. 

The online software platform provides the perfect medium for attorneys, associations, marketers, freelancers, consultants, business coaches, and any other information based business professional to extend their reach globally. 

We believe the ILE "Creates Time" because it enables professionals to move beyond the "billable hours" syndrome.  You can only be one place at a time.  If you're traveling 150 days or more per year...how exactly do you intend to grow your business?  You must move beyond where YOU can be...and add a global 24x7 medium that extends your reach while you sleep.  The ILE platform is that medium.

As today's business climate challenges grow in scope and magnitude...how will you be different?

If you're one of twenty or more relevant professional associations that companies may join, what will make you more relevant than the next?  Would providing an "Online University" for your members with training courses on "How to become more findable on the Internet" be the deciding factor that builds your membership by 25% next year vs. remaining stagnate?

The ILE platform lends itself to paid or free course offerings or a combination of both.  We leverage both models at RentalMetrics by offering a limited selection of course materials FREE and a full access option for $97/month.  Sign up for a free trial and see for yourself.

If you like the multimedia you see and hear inside the RentalMetrics ILE and think, "Hey but I can't do that," never fear.  We can help you with that too whether it's a video presentation, audio engineering, professional custom music, or voice over work. 

If you'd like to have your very own membership site and begin replicating yourself globally, email me.  The possibilities are endless.

the Ebook (e-book) as an accidental marketing tool

I wrote my "Confessions" e-book early this year.  After a short while, it has been downloaded/read thousands of times and I'm still getting calls for interviews/commentary for articles around the world. 

I knew nothing about ebook marketing when I released this and I'm certainly not an Internet marketing guru.  What I've learned though is that thoughtfully presented content written from the heart on a topic that matters gets attention.  Over 700 people have obtained the book via my embedded email form.  That means I can at least ask those same people their opinions on future books or even market to them if I have something of value to offer.

I've closed no business from the book but it has given me the confidence to write another full length book that will be industry specific and my "lead in" to introduce the construction/equipment rental industries to me and my company...RentalMetrics.