Each One Teach One

by Elle Ray | Apr 25, 2017 | Small Business Advice

Become a Business Mentor to Pay It Forward

business mentors change the world

While helping your customers is rewarding, the word “customers” implies that you got paid for the service or products you provided. And that’s certainly all well and good, especially when you strive to actually help people.

But there’s a certain satisfaction you get when you go out of your way, with no compensation in sight, to help another as a business mentor. Every major religion, every spiritual philosophy and every successful business person understands the “pay it forward” mentality that truly reaps the biggest benefits — for you and the recipient of your efforts.

Always in Style

“Each one teach one” is a philosophy, or way of life, that originated in the U.S. during the early days of slavery. Africans were thought of as chattel by their owners and not worth the time or resources it would take to educate them. Leaders within the slave community started the practice of teaching reading and writing in secret. And they passed on their knowledge to their friends and family members one at a time.

In true leadership fashion, they encouraged each new student to pass on their newfound knowledge to another person. If each one who gained new knowledge passed it on to one person and the pattern continued, then they believed that eventually everyone could become educated. And it worked!

But We’re Not Enslaved Anymore

The each one teach one philosophy gained traction over the years, and many religious and community organizations have adopted the concept into their practices today. It isn’t a stretch then to think that you too — as a small business owner, successful entrepreneur or seasoned professional — can pass on your knowledge to someone who could really benefit from it. The end result may be that no one goes without fulfilling, prosperous work they love to do.

The organization called SCORE, a division of the Small Business Administration, is one example of a group of professionals, mostly retired, who volunteer their time to become business mentors and share their expertise with new or wanna-be business owners. Some areas where their experience is prized by hungry knowledge-seekers include:

IT
Accounting
Legal
Branding
Marketing
Business development

So How Can You Get Involved in Becoming a Business Mentor?

Once you make the intention to become a business mentor to small business owners who can really benefit from your expertise, your mentees will appear. That’s how the universe works. And if you don’t recognize those people as they cross your path, consider other sources to find willing learners:

Your church. Ask your minister or someone in the office who may be involved in the business community.
Business networking groups. As you talk to people to build your network, explain what you have to offer and ask if they know anyone with whom you might work (at no charge of course).
Re-entry programs, such as those provided by your local Goodwill office or through the courthouse. Former offenders often have difficulty finding lucrative opportunities for work, especially when they’re first released from prison. Many are interested in starting their own businesses.
The local community college counseling office, which can direct you to a program administrator or other small business advocate who works with students of all ages trying to get settled in a new business.

Once you start as a business mentor, you’ll begin to reap your own rewards immediately, not the least of which is feeling pretty good about yourself. When you pay it forward and follow the premise of the original each one teach one philosophy, you’ll make a difference in the lives you touch — in your community and in the world.

Ray Access is a content marketing firm that delivers targeted words to empower your business. Contact us about your specific project to receive a quote or discuss your needs. We write website copy, blog posts, e-newsletters and more. Everything we do is thoroughly researched, professionally edited and guaranteed original.

10 Presentation Tips to Make a Lasting Impression

by Elle Ray | Apr 11, 2017 | Communication

Don’t Let Fear of Public Speaking Derail You

Getting up in front of a group of people to make a case, pitch a product or tell a story is an ideal opportunity to make an impression. Take advantage of it whenever you get the chance. If you’re a small business owners seeking to make your mark, it’s a great way to spread your message to a number of people at the same time.

presentation tips to help you speak in public

Even with all the presentation tips at your disposal, however, you may be reluctant. Psychologists agree that public speaking is the second most common fear among adults — coming in a close second only to the fear of death. Like every effective marketing tool, it takes work, planning and gumption to do it successfully. But it’s worth it, so don’t pass up a chance to speak.

Why Is It So Hard?

The most common reason for the devastating (and paralyzing) fear boils down to a set of mostly illogical and unfounded fears:

Fear of failure
Fear of embarrassment
Fear of not being good enough
Fear of rejection

For many, the fear of public speaking wraps itself up in the number one fear, leading to the idea that you might get up in front of the group and actually die! But don’t worry: “death by public speaking” is not a thing. You can conquer your fears by following presentation tips from your friends at Ray Access. Effective presentation tips tackle the physical, emotional and mental aspects of your fear.

Try It, You Just Might Like It!

Once you start reaping the rewards of making a rousing speech and getting positive feedback, you probably won’t be able to shut up. No one says overcoming fear is easy, but it is truly possible. Here’s how:

Acknowledge your fear. Accept the fact that you’re going to be nervous; it’s actually a good thing. Instead of forcing yourself to overcome it or feeling shameful about it, tell yourself that you’re nervous because you care.
Give it appropriate billing. In the grand scheme of life (and your business), how important is it that you follow all the presentation tips to make a solid gold speech? Compared to losing your leg? To going hungry? To losing your home? Maybe not so much. Put your speech in perspective.
Get real. There’s very little chance that you can please everyone all the time — no matter who you are and how well you speak. Give up the notion that you have to please everyone and focus on the few who really matter.

presentation tips you can use

Write it down. You shouldn’t necessarily read your presentation, but having it written down — in a font large enough to glance at — serves as a great backup in case you do freeze. As a former speech writer, I know that even the best presenters use written notes (and usually have the entire presentation written word for word).
Practice. Stand in front of the mirror and read your presentation. Get your family or friends to agree to give you feedback you can use. Or record yourself and watch the video to see how you might improve.
Breathe normally. Holding your breath, hyperventilating or taking shallow breaths increase the physical side effects of your nervousness. One of the most helpful (and powerful) presentation tips is to remember to take a deep breath before you go on and notice your breath as your speak. The psychiatrist Fritz Perls says: “Fear is excitement without the breath.”
Visualize yourself speaking. See yourself standing erect, smiling, pausing at all the right junctures and engaging your audience. Visualization works for everyone from star athletes to CEOs; it can work for you.
Think about your audience. Presentations aren’t about you. Remember that you’re giving this speech to help people solve a problem, find a better solution and hire the best in town. Your speech is for your audience, right? When it’s all about them, your feelings don’t matter as much anymore.
Play it through. Imagine that you’ve finished; what’s the worst thing that could happen? Even if you made mistakes, so what? You’re not giving a speech in front of a group armed with stones (or spare shoes). When you realize that nothing dangerous can occur, you’ll relax. Consider how you’d treat a colleague who bombed. Worse case, you’re not asked back. Best case? Endless opportunity.
Embrace it. With practice, your nervousness becomes an integral part of your preparation. You understand that once you start talking, you’ll be fine. After a few tries, you’ll realize you aren’t going to die up there. In fact, you actually may make some sales — as well as good connections — from the opportunity. Aren’t you glad you persevered?
Bonus tip. Don’t do it by yourself. Bring along a coworker, colleague or employee. There’s no law that says presentations have to be given by one and only one person. Share the love, and it’s easier for both of you. Presentation tips don’t get easier than this one.

5 Ways to Connect to Your Audience, Part 2

by Elle Ray | Mar 26, 2017 | Communication

Connect with Customers Online for Best Results

As you follow the advice in last week’s article to write your website content, blog posts and other online communications in an informal tone, remember that the people you want to attract are also your potential customers. Treat them as such!

connect with customers online

While every company wants to promote good will and build its brand, the ultimate goal of online marketing through content is to make sales. Connect with customers online through a variety of avenues from social media and your own website to email newsletters and webinars. Connect with customers online through entertaining articles, pertinent information and timely reports. In other words, give them what they want and need in one clean package.

Know Your Target

Writing conversationally is just the second step to successfully connect with your customers online. The first step is to correctly and succinctly identify your target market (aka your potential customers). Once they’re firmly in your sights, deciding what they like becomes much easier.

You can start by flat out asking them directly. Survey your audience to ask them if they prefer to get your great content via social media, in their email inbox or through your website (if they visit regularly). Then give them the goods.

Tweak Your Tweets and Boost Your Blog

One size usually does not fit all your potential clients. In fact, when you want to connect with customers online, you need to engage a wide range of platforms and tactics. But here’s a useful tip: short introductory sentences practically demand readers to click on your link, which gives them the impression that clicking was their decision. That gives them a stake in your message before they even see it.

connect with customers online to click through

And once they click through to your content, don’t disappoint your readers. Instead, try a few of these tactics to not just keep them on your site longer, but actually convert them into buyers:

Hold contests and giveaways that require visitors to answer questions or send you some other level of feedback. Engage your audience with prizes, kudos, recognition and surprises. Keep the games light enough so they are easy to play quickly, yet make sure they’re serious enough to keep readers coming back for the chance to play again.
Create videos of value. When you connect with customers online, you want them to feel good about the experience and pass it on to their friends. By creating humorous videos that contain your message, you give your audience a chance to repost and resend while they garner kudos from their friends and pass along your name.
Rehash news that’s of interest to your target demographic. Not everyone has local TV to watch the news anymore and even fewer people read newspapers. Help keep your customers and potential clients informed: choose those news stories that may affect them the most and rewrite them in blurbs throughout the day.
Make it personal. Talk about yourself and why you started your business or why you work for your company. Share stories that other customers have told you. Explain how your product or service plays a role in your own life and that of your family and friends. People prefer to do business with people they like. Act like a friend instead of a pushy salesperson.
Respond quickly. You can really make a statement that you care about your clients by making the effort to respond to inquiries as quickly as possible. Hardly anyone does that! Make your company stand out from the competition by being first in customer service. Everyone enjoys being pampered, treated like royalty and shown the highest level of respect. Be the person you want to attract, and you’ll continue to connect with customers online in meaningful (and profitable) ways.

10 Tax Tips for the Mathematically Challenged

by Elle Ray | Mar 13, 2017 | Small Business Advice

Small Business Tax Tips That Just Make Sense

Did you know you may be able to deduct part of the cost of that new water heater you installed in your house? How about that class you took that taught you how to use social media to promote your business? Ever think the new treadmill you put in your basement could serve as a tax deduction?

go big with small business tax tips

Fact is, small business owners — particularly sole proprietors and partners — usually are unaware of all the potential small business tax tips they’re missing. In 2014, the most recent year when statistics are available, the IRS reported that about 24.6 million tax returns listed income from non-farm related sole proprietorships. That’s 2.3 percent higher than in 2013.

Taking It to the Bank

Of the more than $1.78 billion earned by those solo entrepreneurs, only a little more than $9 million was deducted for home offices. And that’s 1.3 percent lower than in 2013. That’s just downright crazy!

The point of the matter is: if you aren’t taking all the deductions you legally can, you’re giving Uncle Sam extra money to take to his bank. So if you’re tired of letting your hard-earned dollars slip through your fingers just because you don’t know the most recent tax codes or don’t think you’re allowed to follow too many small business tax tips, then grab a pencil and get out your calculator — you very well may get a bigger return or a lower tax bill if you pay attention to the following small business tax tips.

DIY or DIFY

There are plenty of easy-to-use small business tax tips and tax programs available so that you can do it yourself (DIY). On the other hand, if you have an astute accountant who also provides business advice, ask him to do it for you (DIFY). Either way, it pays for you to know your rights and know how to take advantage of those rights. For example:

The Home Office: This is one of those small business tax tips that baffles many entrepreneurs, yet it’s one that’s easily overcome. If you have an office dedicated to work, simply find out what percentage of the square footage of your whole house it takes up. Then deduct that percentage of every expense — from home improvements and utilities to maintenance, rent or mortgage, and insurance payments you made.
Make Space: If you don’t have a dedicated room, then invest in a simple accordion room divider and make a separate space dedicated to work. In addition to creating a legally deductible office, you’ll cut down on the distractions while you conduct business.
Start Up Right: Long before you even crack a book or take in your first buck, you can be earning tax deductions. All the effort, money and advice you pay for to start your business are work products that you can deduct.
Pay Yourself: Many small business owners and sole practitioners don’t get much of a paycheck for the first year or two. But that doesn’t mean you can’t be paying yourself in perks and necessities, such as a retirement account. Open a SEP IRA for tax deductions and retirement savings.
Stay Healthy: When you work for yourself — whether as a sole practitioner, partner or owner of an S Corp with more than two percent equity — you can deduct your health insurance premiums off your personal 1040 tax returns.
Pay Me Later: It may be too late this year, but consider sending invoices out on December 31 to clients. They can take the cost of your services off your taxes, but you won’t have to report the income until the following year, if they wait at least a day to pay you.
Take Heed: If your heart doctor told you to get an indoor exercise bike because the stress from your work is giving you high blood pressure, you may be allowed to deduct the cost as a medical expense if you meet the minimum required in other medical costs.
Time Well Spent: Mileage adds up. Keep an electronic or old-school log of every mile you drive for business. And if almost every trip you take outside the house has a work-related component — from meeting a client for coffee to picking up extra printer paper — then that trip counts.
Learn More: Self-improvement, professional development and skills training are all deductible on your taxes. And that includes books, money spent on meals, rooms, mileage and any other related expenses. So, as an example, if you want to do your own taxes next year, take a QuickBooks course and deduct the costs.
Document, Document, Document: If there’s only one of these small business tax tips that you take out of this blog, we bet it will be this one. Save every receipt, write down the purpose of the receipt, who you were with, why you spent the money and what you were doing it for. Many small business owners worry about getting audited, but when you cover your butt with receipts (figuratively speaking), those concerns are declawed. And as the budgets for the IRS keep getting cut, your chances of undergoing an audit as a small business get lower every year. In 2014, only 0.3 percent of small business owners reporting less than $200,000 income were audited, according to the IRS itself.

Fake News vs. Real News

by Elle Ray | Feb 27, 2017 | Communication

The Media Landscape’s Shifting Regarding News

Those of you of a certain age may remember the TV commercial for hair color that said it left your hair looking so real that “only your hairdresser knows for sure.” Do you remember that? At least she had a hairdresser to tell us if the color was fake or real.

In today’s over-saturated news universe, there is no one person, organization or source totally without bias. None can be unequivocally trusted by every single citizen. These days, if the skies turned purple and a booming voice heard round the world shouted out answers clearly in every known language, you may wonder if there’d be naysayers who refuted its existence. But if it really happened, is it “fake news?”

fake news and the shifting media landscape

Skeptics Abound

The skeptics in our society serve a purpose. They keep us all honest. Skeptics question everything they read or hear. They always ask for proof, for substance. They enjoy playing the devil’s advocate to make us question our assumptions to the core. For every faction who says they’re right, there are an equal number of people who believe just the opposite. Even facts are in dispute today. Welcome to the era of fake news.

It’s very unsettling. It’s troublesome when you have to take a poll to find out which apple is organic and which is laden with so many chemicals that it’s toxic. If you picked it from the tree yourself, does that mean it’s safe? You see water falling from the sky, yet you’re told that it’s not raining. What can you do when you can’t even trust your own senses? When does fake news start to become surreal?

Pick a Side, Any Side

As a former journalist and as a writer who today produces copy that’s read by many, Linda Ray of Ray Access has always prided herself in fair and accurate reporting. Everything she writes is researched from reputable sources. She checks the “About Us” page on websites to find out if they have potential conflicts that make their information questionable. She goes to original sources whenever possible to hear directly from the “horse’s mouth” what was said … or whinnied.

But does that matter anymore? Like beauty, fake news may lie in the eye of the beholder (or the reader). Upon learning a source’s political leanings, gender, age, race, sexual orientation, all of these things or none of them, do you believe the source more if the characteristics of the writer are more like your own? Would you simply dismiss out of hand every notion from someone who’s different from you?

In other words, is the source of information an actual fountain of credibility today? fake news: one plus one Is reality objective or subjective? Does first-hand experience mean anything at all or does it mean everything, meaning anything outside your experience can’t be trusted? Is education itself a sham? Does one plus one equal three?

Only Time Can Tell

When doomsayers proclaim that the world will end next week by a giant meteor hurtling toward earth, some people believe it to be true. The impending disaster becomes news. When the week passes without incident, does it become fake news? And if so, do all those who went about their business, not believing a word of it, sit around over their usual morning coffee and say, “See? I was right, and you were wrong.”

But a problem remains, a problem similar to that of the boy who cried wolf. When a real planet flings itself out of orbit next year and we need to take shelter, that bell has been rung already. No one believes the scam the second time around. It’s immediately declared fake news without follow-up. The boy cried wolf too many times and lost his credibility.

Perhaps the only truth in today’s world is found in the lens of hindsight. Only by living through each day can we look back and see what was real news and what was fake news. And only by continuing to question each and every assertion can we comfortably say goodnight in peace, knowing that the answers will come tomorrow — that the only real news is yesterday’s news.

Chop Wood, Carry Water

by Elle Ray | Feb 7, 2017 | Small Business Advice

A Woman’s Path to Self-Fulfillment and Success

Yes, it’s all very Zen:

Before enlightenment: chop wood, carry water
After enlightenment: chop wood and carry water

personal and professional self-fulfillment and success

I just came in from two hours of chopping wood. It’s good exercise: mindless, physical work. While I didn’t carry any water — because it’s winter outside, I did carry plenty of chopped wood. And as happens when my hands are busy, but my mind is not, I got to thinking about business and how the search for self-fulfillment and success in business is interchangeably linked with my personal goals of spiritual enlightenment, self-fulfillment and success.

Listening for Clues

My spiritual practice encourages me to listen to the world around me. When you stop thinking about yourself, your mind tends to wander in other directions. So, like I do in my spiritual practice, when I stop thinking about myself, I listen for clues as to what other people need. I always get answers.

When it comes to business, though, I too often forget to take the same road to self-fulfillment and success. It’s almost as if I don’t think business is a worthy recipient of my higher nature. But exactly the opposite is true.

Getting Out of My Own Way

When I listen for the needs of others in business, the answers may indeed often lead to the next client and more income. But it’s the practice of getting out of the way that seems to produce the outcome. I get answers when I think about what you need rather than what I need.

Whenever I have my head stuck in dark places (like up my butt), I never can see the light — only more stinky gloom and doom. When I worry about myself and my needs and desires, I cannot be open to the universe’s cries for help.

Start-Up Blues

You may be going through similar doubts if you’re an entrepreneur. As a start-up, it’s easy to find tons of issues to worry about:

What if I can’t pay my bills?
What if no one calls?
What if I make a mistake?
What if I fail?

Sometimes, the very answers are buried deep within the what-if questions:

What if I get so busy I don’t have time to pay my bills?
What if too many clients call, and I can’t give them all my best?
What if I create something beautiful?
What if I succeed?

Sounds So Familiar

This kind of existential thinking then takes me to the core. It all sounds so familiar, yet sometimes so far out of reach. I ask: “How can I profess to believe that there is a higher power setting all things right in ways that I can never understand and still worry about my business?” Is that not the very essence of hypocrisy?

If I believe that everything’s going to be all right in my personal life, then those same practices that bring me self-fulfillment and success when I’m not working should translate very well in all my business affairs. And they do!

And some of the very basic principles that have turned my sorry excuse for a human being into a pretty darn good citizen of the world work quite well in every aspect of business. Those core values I use in my own life can serve as the core and brand of my business as well, bringing with them the same level of self-fulfillment and success. Some of those include:

Gratitude
Generosity
Love
Forgiveness
Patience
Commitment
Honesty
Integrity

So just for today, I believe I’ll continue to chop wood and carry water. I’ll work hard. Give an honest day’s work. Strive for excellence in every split log and every lit blog.

It works if you work it!

Blog Post Topics That Get You the Most Traffic and Views

by Elle Ray | Jan 24, 2017 | Blog Writing

10 Legit Ways to Come Up with Blog Post Topics

A great blog title makes all the difference if you want your blog post to be read. Current statistics show that only two out of 10 people read more than your title. So come up with blog post topics so engaging that readers just can’t turn away.

Come up with blog post topics no one can turn away from

And it’s not easy. The pressure mounts when you think about stats from online publishers that say readers are 500 percent more likely to read your blog and enter your website when the title that attracted them is viral-worthy. That’s a high bar.

As If Writing Isn’t Hard Enough

Now you have to spend as much time — and sometimes even more — coming up with your blog post title as you do writing the darn thing. And if you’re not a natural, writing can be excruciating. But as with all things that have to do with online content — the stats can be a bit intimidating. So much so, that they can lead to analysis paralysis.

Anything you do to promote your company shouldn’t be so difficult. Marketing can be fun if you follow a few tips to come up with blog post topics that will at least put you in the running with the competition out there clamoring for the eyes of your customers.

10 Tips to Successfully Come Up with Blog Post Topics

At Ray Access, it’s part of our job to come up with blog post topics for our clients. While this service certainly is valuable and we’ve charged for it in the past, we’ve decided it makes a better value-added piece to our gold-standard services. And since we don’t charge extra for it, we better be good at it — otherwise, we’d have to spend all day coming up with blog post titles, and that’s time we couldn’t charge!

To make this blog worth your time, here are a few secrets to our special sauce to come up with blog post topics on a regular basis:

Collaborate. There’s nothing like brainstorming with another person or a group of people to get those ideas sparking in your head. It seems like they feed on each other.
Read the news. You can’t very well tap into a top news item that’s trending wildly if you don’t read the news. Whether you listen to the radio, peruse the headlines on a couple officious news sites or get a daily paper, know what’s going on in the world around you.
Run a tab. When your mind’s at rest and not forced to think about anything specific, it can come up with some pretty cool ideas. Jot down those super ideas when they come because you can’t expect them to be quickly available when you need them.
Listen to the pros. Companies like Moz and Google provide you with plenty of statistics to aid your topic search. Things like using numerals instead of writing out numbers help, as does looking up “word of the day” trends to boost your title base.
Talk to your readers. The word “you” is the number one most popular word used in searches. Ray Access learned that writing to an audience personalizes each piece — readers feel like you’re talking directly to them.
What’s it all about? Don’t make readers work for their payoff. Sure, catchy witticisms become obvious once a reader gets into the content of your blog, but they don’t work in a title. Topics that begin with “how to” “top,” and “why you should” tell the reader what to expect.
Go long. Studies show now that long-string titles with 16 to 18 words are the most popular. They give readers the most information about what they can expect in the blog and have a better chance of answering a query.
Drop the descriptions. Save the flowery descriptions for the body of your blog post. Spend most of your title real estate using verbs and adverbs that actually serve as calls to action.
Drop the salesy language, too. Putting your company name in a blog title or using that line to make announcements or promote sales is a turn-off for readers. You’ll get more sympathy than readers for appearing so desperate.
Mix it up. The last thing you want from your readers is to be boring. After all, they look good when you give them hot, trendy titles to repost. Don’t come up with blog post topics that are all questions; add one in occasionally (about 11 percent of the people like to click on questions).

And when you really don’t want to deal with the subject of titles or spend the time to come up with blog post topics — let alone writing them — contact Ray Access. We love a challenge.

7 New Year’s Resolutions for 2017

by Elle Ray | Jan 3, 2017 | Small Business Advice

Smart Resolutions for Small Business Owners

Not everyone makes New Year’s resolutions. In fact, according to Statistic Brain, a German think tank, only about 45 percent of Americans even bother to come up with new goals for the coming year. And when they do, not more than 10 percent keep them for longer than just a couple weeks. It’s actually proving to be a losing proposition.

Don't dream of goals; set them

And that very well may be why the tradition that began more than 4,000 years ago has lost its luster. Back in Babylonian times, everyone was encouraged to make promises at the beginning of the new year. Mostly, they had to do with paying the bills they owed and returning borrowed stuff. But when they made those resolutions to the gods, by god, they knew they’d better keep them — or risk getting stuck with a poor crop that year.

Set the Stage

Whether or not you count on your god (or higher power) to bring you good fortune or punish you if you break your word, you still can set the stage to come out of the whole resolution business as a solid winner. It may take a little more thought and foresight to make realistic resolutions. But the process very well may be worth the effort.

Those same German brainiacs report that the people who make specific, well thought-out New Year’s resolutions are 10 times more likely to succeed in the new year. Those who don’t make any resolutions and those who spout only wishful fancies and call them resolutions are just spinning their wheels.

Get Real

A New Year’s resolution really is just another word for setting goals. And any halfway decent entrepreneur knows that goal-setting is tantamount to success. The trick now is to choose wisely rather than make predictions that are doomed to fail. Start your year with some New Year’s resolutions that you have a very good chance of achieving.

The primary focus of New Year’s resolutions — or any goals, for that matter — should be positive. Instead of setting your sights on losing weight, for example, it’s much kinder and more encouraging to want to get healthy. And that just may be the best place to start anyway:

Get healthy. Good health doesn’t have to mean that you fit into any societal image of body perfection. But it does infer that you’ve reduced stress in your life, since stress is one of the major causes of disease and sickness in this country. Choose one new habit to institute this year in honor of your good health. Consider little things like: turning off your cell phone for one hour a day, meditating for 10 minutes each day or drinking one less beer a week.
Give compliments. Amazing things can happen in your life when you aren’t thinking only about yourself. Not only do you make the world a happier place, but you also store up plenty of good karma to improve your own life.
Share your talents. There’s a reason that you’re achieving success in your business and in your life. You’ve got talent. Invoke the power of payback and either give away an hour of your time every month to someone in need or take on at least one pro-bono client this year. This resolution falls into the same metaphysical category as giving compliments.
Read your own website. It’s amazing how many small business owners get so busy that they don’t even look at their own websites. But even if your website person did a great job on your site, you need to keep it updated and current. Read through it at least every other month. Make necessary and appropriate changes. You may save a sale or earn a new client if you do.
Clean house. Just as a cluttered office can lead to lost production time, so too can a lazy underachiever. Let the deadweight go and hire people who are hungry and want to make money for themselves and for you. This could also fall in the “get healthy” column of New Year’s resolutions, as you’ll discover how much your stress levels drop off after your poor employees leave.
Mix business with pleasure. Never leave home without your business cards. And jump into conversations with updates on your business when at parties or other social events. You’ll be surprised how many people you know need your services or have talents you could use.
Spend money. It’s true that you’ve got to spend money to make money, so let 2017 be the year that you loosen the purse strings a little more and hire a contractor to do some of your admin work or bring on a team of awesome writers to maintain your blog (hint, hint). As your revenues grow, you’ll wonder how you ever got along without them.

These New Year’s resolutions aren’t difficult to achieve, and they just make sense. Come back to the tradition of making resolutions. Even if you boil it down to just one, make it count. And make it real. Not only will you reap the benefits of each positive change, but you’ll feel better about yourself for trying — and succeeding! Best of luck for a rewarding, prosperous 2017.

The Message or the Medium

by Elle Ray | Dec 20, 2016 | Communication

Send Your Message in an Appropriate Medium

In 1964, Marshall McLuhan coined the phrase “the medium is the message.” Due to a publisher’s error, his follow-up book became The Medium Is the Massage. Being writers, we certainly can understand typos. But when they are so right-on — as McLuhan thought when he saw the mistake — they must deliver some underlying, deeper truth.

And as true as both sentiments were in the 1960s, so they remain valid today. The medium you use to send your message has just as much to do with its acceptance as the words you use to convey your ideas. As a matter of fact, the medium you choose may have even more to do with the validity of your message today than it did back in the day.

The Medium Speaks

McLuhan posited that the means by which you deliver a message becomes embedded in the actual sentiment. In 1964, marketers chose between radio, TV and print. Which one they used to put out their word actually shaped (or massaged) the way it was ultimately perceived. Imagine if the Canadian philosopher and public theorist saw the way consumers communicate today.

He’d probably take solace, knowing that he was so very right. And it’s this question of “what comes first: the message or the massage?” that keeps marketers up at night. And to get a handle on the entire concept, you may need to boost your market analysis to find out the level of importance your target market places on how you send your message — and what your medium says about you and your company. As an extreme example, what would you think of a company that sent out marketing materials by fax?

Who Are You Talking To?

Call a Millennial from your landline to invite him to your launch party, and you’ll probably never see that guy at any of your company events (nor see his name come across your desk as a new client). But send your message in a tweet or a post on a hot community Facebook page, and he very well might show up with all his friends in tow.

Tweet that you have a special going on for seniors — and have fun sitting all alone at your business. But if you send an email or leave a voicemail message about how much you appreciate his previous business and want to show your appreciation with a sale just for him, and you better make sure you have plenty on hand. You’ll be swamped.

How You Send Your Message Says a Lot About You

So not only do you have to consider the message your prospective target sees, but you also must take into consideration just what your choice of medium says about you and your trend savviness. Ask a Millennial, for example, to call you back with her RSVP, and she may just roll her eyes and say, “No thank you, dinosaur.” Ask a Baby Boomer to post her RSVP on Facebook, and she’ll just pretend she didn’t hear you and wonder about your trustworthiness.

The medium you choose tells the world whether you’re hip and with-it or old-school and ready for retirement. So what’s a business owner to do when you want to reach a diverse audience of all ages, but don’t want to come off as a Luddite? Consider the facts:

All generations use email.
Email is one of the most trusted sources of contact for Millennials, Gen Xers and Baby Boomers.
Consumers over 65 use email, but still prefer postal mail.
Mobile apps, text messages and social media are strong media for reaching Millennials, but drop off drastically as the media of choice for everyone else.

Basically, email is the safest medium to use when you want to reach the most people. You also can’t go wrong with a high-quality website and interesting blogs to send your message. Consider:

87 percent of all adults use the Internet.
97 percent of consumers 18–30 use the Internet.
67 percent of those over the age of 65 use the Internet.

The Moral of the Story

The point of all this is to:

Applaud your use of the Internet to reach the most people.
Remind you that you’re being judged by your constituents in ways you may never have even considered, so listen closely to their feedback.
Be nice, use the appropriate medium for your message and surprise: you’ll make money.

If you’re having trouble coming up with a new topic or engaging content to fill your tweets, posts and blogs, contact Ray Access. The writers and editors of Ray Access are poised to come to the rescue. Whether you want to reach Millennials who prefer communicating through emoji’s rather than talking on the phone or the high-end Baby Boomers looking for more ways to spend their money, Ray Access can pointedly reach your audience with just the right amount of savvy. We can speak the language of your readers, no matter who they are.

Our medium is the message, and we know how to massage the written word, yo. So relax, sis, chill and veg-out. It’s all good, cool — lit. And it’ll be very much to your liking, sir, right up your alley and smooth as silk stockings.

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