Writing goals for 2016 - and writing dreams in general...

I would like to try and respond daily to the prompts I get from this site.

I would like to re-establish the habit of writing my marketing blog.

I would like to return to writing the blogs about my children.

I would like to write content or my own business site.

I would like to write enough content for m y social media pages, personal and business alike.

I would like to start writing a style tips blog.

I would like to write my memoirs about Germany and hope that I remember enough so that it becomes a funny book about the cultural quirks.

I would like to write my memoirs. period! So that my kids will be able to read them after I die.

Maybe one day "I can become a content icon.

Though probably if I am to write enough content, I need to hire writers...after all economies of scale is what creating a web presence is all about.

Maybe once day I can out some of my blogs and other scribbles into a book form.

I need to find all my idea scribbles, they are scattered about the house is different notebooks and stickies.

I want to just write for fun and for posterity.

Yep! new and old techniques do nicely for me...2016 - here I come, with keyboard, paper and pen!

Talk about your motivation these days. High? Low? Where's most of your energy being directed these days?

Starting an independant business is a p rocess that takes up a lot of energy.

If until now all I had to do is get up and got to work (after getting the kids rady for school), now I have to get up and think about what task needs to be taken care of today, which clients to talk to and what are the tasks that can be postponed, and then to when to push them.

But on top of all that I need to think what kind of a business I am trying ot put together, what are my goals and what steps I hve to take to get there. the thinking an dplanning of this business is the hard part.

Afterall, task management is something that I also did when I was a hired employee. And I did sometimes begin to organize my day before I got to the office. The thing is, that I has a clear separation between working time and free or familt time and now those barriers have become fuzzy.

With the freedom to mange  my own hours and the natural tentency towards taking care of  the quick and mundane tasks, comes the challenge of truely manging my own time in the most efficient way, so that I do not find myself pushing work into the hours that should be dedicated to my family, just because a client called and I just have to get things done.

This reorganisation and developing time management habits, combined with the thinking process of planning a new business of m y own is taking up my energy and motivation. But its a rich man;s problem, I have set to help myself, so the universe will help me and I am sure that my business will happen!

Good luck to all the self employed people, and happy holidays

Ofra

Who's the most "successful" person you know?

Successful is such a word full of...success.

Its easy to measure success with money, but I do not think its just that. Its about happiness and self satisfaction. Success is about feeling successful, its about believing in yourself and in doing something that is meaningful to you in your life. something that is also meaningful to others. Success is about being loved and appreciated both professionally and in one's private and family life.

This reminds me of a film I saw in high-school as part of a psychology course I took. A couple of elderly people were sitting and when death came along, they receive it with open arms and smiles, because they have led a fulfilling life and now accept that its time to move on.

So in light of all that I have written, I think the most successful person i now is my mother. I know she is financially well off, I know she is happy with herself and her lot in life, I know she has done some meaningful things in her professional life and that she is satisfied with her achievements. I know she has a loving family and that all her children are self sufficient and no one is in trouble... I know that she loves herself and is self assured and happy.

I can only wish that all these positive achievements and feelings will continue in her and that they will sustain her for many years to come.

I  love you mommy,

Ofra

What's the most interesting thing you've read about recently?

The bunnies got the spirit right...

Is there a connection between marketing and dating ?
Actually I have recently heard an interesting comparison of online marketing or growth hacking to a dating experience from more than one source. The idea is that online marketing takes a customer through a  journey. Dating is also a journey towards finding your (it is hoped)  lifetime partner.

Acquisition = blind date
First the customer needs to know that a certain  company/product/ or service exists - this is done via dissemination in various channels. Today social media is the starting point for most of the acquisition campaigns. These campaigns are geared to capture leads, get the prospect to sign into a distribution list (perhaps in return for a free gift or coupon) so that the company can start the communication process and the prospect enters the sale/marketing funnel

This is like going on a blond date. You saw an advert somewhere on social media or a dating site and now you opted in for the first meeting. You probably gave the other person you email or phone number so that you can coordinate this first meeting. The communication process has started.

Activation = relationship
Now the comply has the name of the prospect and its time to gain their trust. This is done by repeatedly sending more information to this person about the company or the service and generally keeping the service in the awareness of the prospect until they take some action and become an active customer.

In the dating world, this is the part in which people go out on dates repeatedly. If the communication is working, they will continue to date and will enter into the relationship phase. During the relationship phase there are various stages and hurdles that have to be faced (like meeting the partner's parents, deciding to move in together etc.). These are the "small sale" stages, each time one of these hurdles has been met and removed, it compares to the selling of a small product or service, on the road towards the main goal/ flagship product.

Retention =  matrimony
Now that a company has an active customer is all about getting them to make repeated purchases an also to spend more money in each purchase. up-selling, cross-selling and getting the customer more and more engaged with the product, so that the always keep coming for more. Alternatively this could mean getting the customer to trust the company enough in order to buy its flagship product, which is also the most expensive products. This could also means to get the customer into purchasing a retainer - retention mean getting the customer to always purchase, making them a source for growing your revenue.

This is a lot like matrimony. Once you get married, your partner has effeminately signed up for the biggest product, you! As the marriage progresses there is always retention and re-selling points: steps that you will take together that will get you more and more engaged and involved with each other. fir example - buying a house together, and having children. Here the revenue is not money but rather  deepening of the relationship and partnership. The more things you go through together with your partner the more deep the commitment you will have towards one another. It terms of the commitment currency, you are spending more and more in this relationship, becoming more committed and "repurchasing the product" every day - your commitment to your partner only grows.

As I mentioned at the beginning of this response - I have heard this in various sources recently, but I liked the inforgrahic Quicksprout has put together on this subject, so I ma sharing it here with you.

www.quicksprout.com/the-definitive-guide-to-growth-hacking-chapter-4/
This also reminds me of a blog post I wrote a couple of year's back for a blogging competition for a job seeking website - in which I compared getting a job to dating.

First you go to the interview (blind date/ first meeting) then you negotiate the terms of employment (relationship) and then you get the job (matrimony). In the post I used another  marketing model usually referred to as AIDA. More on that in another response...here is the link to the blog I wrote.

https://jobmob.co.il/blog/market-yourself-for-dating-and-job-search/

Wishing you a great weekend and happy reading

Ofra