I always find great information in the newsletter every month and want to share it but can’t because it’s only available to Mom Mastermind members. So I’m happy to announce you can grab your copy of Mom Masterminds MMotivator today!

There are some things that are just easier taught at a live event and it doesn’t even have to come from one of the speakers. Take ‘advantage’ (I use that term loosely because I don’t really mean to take advantage of someone in a literal way) of all the different expertise in the attendees. You’re there to network so you’re bound to find someone that can help you.

There is always something new to be learned regardless of who you are. If you’ve stopped learning then you’ve probably stopped growing too! You’ve more than likely heard the saying there’s no obstacle greater than yourself. It’s true and especially in business! The only limits that are placed on your business are self-imposed. The Internet is a wealth of knowledge for the one who can access it, but did you ever stop to think where that knowledge was received?

If you’ve ever been to live business events more than likely some of that knowledge was received there. You’re exposed not only to people who can expand on marketing techniques that you currently utilize, but also individuals who have found new ways to harness business power.

Those who host these events are looking for the best to entice you to come. These people prove time and time again that there is more than meets the eye when it comes to business.

Here are three things you can take part in and learn from at live events:

1. Brainstorming sessions – Imagine the energy in the room when hundreds of entrepreneurs get together at tables to discuss new ways to improve each others’ businesses? Be sure to take copious notes to refer to later and get the names of everyone at the table.
2. Visit the vendor area – This is an opportunity for businesses to highlight their products and services. You can learn about new programs computer programs, business software and get to demo items right there on site.  (I have to comment about the fact that NAMS didn’t have any vendor areas. I liked that for the most part. But I would have liked to see the speakers have a place with their products set up – if they offer physical products.).
3. Keep all materials given to you – Within the pages of those handouts are vital information. Speakers may lay out for you how they go about promoting new products, implement new programs and techniques and list online resources for you. You may want to bring a tote bag or a briefcase to hold everything you will get so it is easier to reference later. (At NAMS there weren’t hardly any handouts. One of the speakers gave a handout for scheduling our time. But while they didn’t give handouts I really liked the fact that each speaker had a link to the presentation they were doing so we could follow along that way. I printed some of them out that I didn’t get very good notes on.)

When you attend a live event(s) just remember to keep an open mind. As an Army wife once told me ‘expect the unexpected’ and while that was referring to Army lifestyle it rings true for live events too! Keep your mind open and get immersed into business techniques you haven’t tried before.

P.S. Have you signed up for NAMS 4 yet? Hurry before the price goes up on March 1st!

Live events are not only a great way to meet some peeps you’ve known online for awhile but they are also a great way to network with other like minded business people!

The question is – how do you know which live event to choose?

There are so many out there that are available to attend! You need to know where to look to find the ones that are best suited for you. Here are two suggestions that will help you hear about live events:

• Forums. This was the first way I heard about the NAMS event. One of my favorite forums – Mom Masterminds – had a topic all about those members of MM that would be attending the event. This was when I first really started giving some serious thought as to whether I wanted to invest the money or not to go.
• Favorite Blogs. This is a great way to hear about upcoming live events. People are excited to go so they’re eager to share with their readers! Not to mention that most events offer an affiliate program which provides a little incentive to get the word out! This was the second way I heard about the NAMS event and probably the most influential on me. When your favorite bloggers talk about their experience with an event it’s hard to not get as excited as they are. Nicole Dean really ’showed’ her enthusiasm and excitement for NAMS through several of her blog posts.

After I made the decision to attend NAMS I started thinking about ways that the event would benefit me. It came down to two beneficial aspects:

1. Professionally. On the professional level you need to choose events that pertain to your business. It would be pointless to spend hundreds, even thousands, of dollars on an event that doesn’t pertain to your business. For example if your business is built around selling dog items you wouldn’t attend an event focused on cats and cat products.
2. Personally. On the personal level it boiled down to cultivating relationships on a deeper level with those I’ve known online for some years now. There were so many people going to this past NAMS event that I’ve known online for several years I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to meet them in person!

Maybe you’re thinking that because you’re new to online business that a live event isn’t for you. Or that maybe because you’re so new to online business that you don’t have a clue how to pick a live event to attend. Those are definitely valid thoughts but let me help you with a few suggestions on how to pick an event if your a ‘newbie’ to online business:

• Location – To help cut the cost down (live events can get expensive quick, you’ll be staying in a hotel – if you don’t live nearby (and even if you do staying at the hotel is something I’d still recommend if you can swing the cost just because there is so much networking going on after the events end for the day!) – eating out for all your meals, snacks, etc.
• Registration Costs – The cost of your ticket to attend a live event can range in price greatly. It’s hard to give a specific cost because there are so many different price points for live events. You’ll have to decide whether you can swing the cost for a high caliber event or not. Just make sure it’s one that will benefit you and your business.
• Speakers – Take a look at the lineup of speakers the event has. You’ll want to pay for an event that’s going to provide top notch, internet marketing savvy speakers. If they’re all speakers you’ve never heard of you just might want to pass. On the other hand if the speakers are some of your favorite bloggers or business owners you’ve wanted to meet you just might not want to pass up the opportunity to hear them speak and to get your questions answered.

Don’t make the decision to attend a live event harder than it needs to be! All it comes down to is gathering as much information as you can about the upcoming events (fees, locations, etc) and then sitting down and figuring out which one you can afford and which one would benefit you and your business the most!

p.s. Whether you’re a ‘newbie’ to internet marketing or a pro I recommend NAMS for your live event. It’s broken down into 3 stages – beginners, intermediates or advanced – so there’s a place for everyone!

As most of you probably already know I just recently got back from attending NAMS 3 in Atlanta, Georgia. In fact the above picture is just one of the many I’ve yet to get posted (It’s Bob “The Teacher” Jenkins and I – he totally rocked my world by the way! More on that later). It was awesome (I know I still need to get a post put together recapping my NAMS experience!). If I had let ‘fear’ hold me back I wouldn’t have attended such an amazing event!

Public speaking is a huge fear for me and I was concerned about whether or not there would be a time and place for everyone to do a quick little introduction of themselves. I actually posted on Mom Masterminds about this because I was so nervous about it (and by the way no you don’t have to do this! lol) and I had considered NOT going if we were going to have to do this.

The point of this isn’t about my fear of public speaking (it’s not just a little fear – I actually hyperventilated in one of my college classes during a presentation I had to do) but you might be impressed to know that I actually asked a question – with a stinking MICROPHONE in my face – in front of a room full of people!. It’s about I learned how valuable offline gatherings can be for someone who has an online business.

Not only do you finally get to meet so many people that you’ve probably known online for several years but the social networking aspect of it is huge. If you haven’t noticed social networking is pretty big these days, everyone is really gung go ho about it and social sites are bursting at the seams with members and new members joining daily. Social networking takes on a new expansion during in-the-flesh-and-blood live events.

What’s a Live Event?

That’s pretty self-explanatory and probably not something that needs to be explained but just in case there is someone that doesn’t quite understand what it is it’s exactly what the name implies. It’s a gathering for business (both offline and online) professionals. They’re held all over the world. It’s simply people with something to say that others want to hear forking over their time and talents to those interested. You’ll find a mixture of speakers at internet marketing live events. Those from bloggers to internet marketing gurus to coaches often speak.

Benefits of Attending

After my experience at NAMS I finally understood what others have always talked about when they mentioned the benefits of attending live events. There’s just something about being in one place with so many other people seeking the same knowledge and understanding you want. The energy is high and it’s nice to know that others ‘get’ what you’re doing with an online business. I don’t know about you but so many people around me (family and friends) just don’t have a clue when it comes to internet marketing stuff. It was so refreshing to be in a place with so many people that understood me and my business!

Here are a few things I learned attending NAMS that are benefits of attending a live event.

1. Step out of the box – your comfort zone that is. This was huge for me. You might not think this is a benefit but it is. Your business isn’t going to grow doing the same thing over and over. You need to learn new things and sometimes things are easier to pick up during a live event especially one like NAMS where you aren’t just learning but you’re actually DOING! And of course you’ll get to meet those ‘screen names’ you’ve known for so long.
2. Joint ventures. Sure you can find people to do joint ventures with online – in fact people do it all the time. But it’s easier to make the decision to joint venture with someone you’ve met in person and can get a ‘gut reaction’ about them. Talking in person with them will help you each understand the others goals/business objectives and you can then make a decision as to it would benefit you to partner with one another.
3. Build your business. There’s no better time than a live event to pass out those business cards (you do have business cards right?). Don’t expect it to build you business overnight but the opportunity to pass it along to so many people from all different walks of life but share the same goal as you – building your business – is an opportunity you don’t want to pass up. You’ll also get to take pictures with others including some of the top internet marketing gurus that speak! There’s networking opportunities during breakfast, lunch, dinner and after hours!

So if you’ve never been to a live event now you have three (and there’s so many more I could have listed!) reasons you need to make it happen! Put it on your to do list or goals list to attend a live event and start making plans to attend one. In fact, NAMS 4 is coming up soon! It’s this summer in August!

What do you say will I see you at NAMS 4?

To Vote

1. Go to Vote For Your Favorite Mom Webs Promo Video
2. Leave a comment saying you vote for me (Tishia Lee in case you didn’t know lol)

You can watch my video by going here.

I shared about the contest going on to see who could sell the most copies of the product. I’m doing well but I’m 2 sales behind the top lady. So I’ve decided that I will sweeten the pot for anyone who purchases the product. I’ll rewrite a PLR article for you for free. If you’re anything like me I know you’ve got some PLR just sitting around on your computer So why not purchase a great product and get a free PLR rewrite while at it? Check out Strategies 4 Social Marketing.

So let me get right to the point! No beating around the bush right?

I’m working towards winning this sales contest that they have going on. We have until 5pm tomorrow, January 31st to see how many sales we can make on a product that 5 top internet marketing gurus sat right in front of me and created!

The product?

Strategies 4 Social Marketing.

Listen in as 5 top gurus – Willie Crawford, Kevin Riley, Maritza Parra, Jeff Herring, and Joey Smith – share their Secret Strategies for Driving Traffic and Dollars through Social Media. With an audience of 180 eager online marketers watching, five of the world’s most successful Internet Marketing masters revealed their secret strategies for leveraging the incredible power of Social Media.

I was one of those 180 eager online marketers mentioned above. Let me just say it was awesome and because I was sitting right here in the audience I can personally tell you that the product is packed full of great information and easy to implement tips from the gurus. The product is based around 5 questions:

1. Why would I want to build an online presence using Social Media? Isn’t it just about hooking up with buddies? Find out how Joey Smith transforms his online ‘buddies’ (and former girlfriends!) into happy and loyal customers.
2. Is Social Media for real? If so, how is it changing the way we interact on the web? Learn how Maritza Parra uses Twitter to tap into what her audience really wants – and uses that information to create products that have a hungry market already waiting for them.
3. How do you drive traffic using Social Media? Take notes as Willie Crawford explains exactly how he achieves an “economy of action” with his Social Media efforts. (Hint: he is traffic-driving legend for a reason!)Do you still need an email list if you have thousands of followers online?
4. How can you convert ‘friends’ to a list and why? Jeff Herring explains why you still need both – and offers great insight into how to convert your Social Media lists into responsive email marketing lists.
5. Do conversion tactics still work in Social Media? Kevin Riley offers some great ideas on who you should be following and why – and how this can dramatically improve your conversion rates.

Strategies 4 Social Marketing, like mentioned above, sells for only $17.00. And this is exactly why I drove through the mountains!

Tishia

You’ve probably heard about private label rights (PLR) articles and free reprint articles but which is better to use and why?

Private Label Rights

Private label rights is a concept similar to reselling, but the merchant is permitted to modify the product to fit his or her needs. Typical PLR products are articles, reports, eBooks, and autoresponders. This kind of content is used for the purpose of allowing multiple buyers to invest in the content with free rein to alter and use it by claiming authorship of it. It is typically used in online affiliate marketing systems. -Wikipedia Definition

PLR content can be used as is (I do NOT recommend this), changed around and re-written using your own voice (I do recommend this), broken apart into blog posts or articles or you can use PLR to add content to eBooks, reports, etc.

Free Reprint Articles

Free reprint articles are content you find at article directories such as Ezine Articles or Lady Pens. The articles are free for you to use as long as you don’t change the content and as long as you leave the author bio in place with a live link back to their website.

Both PLR and free reprint articles have their pros as well as cons. Of those two options you can probably see that PLR is a better choice than free reprint articles. Don’t let yourself be totally turned off to the idea of using free reprint articles. They can come in handy at times. For example there may come a time that you are talking about a topic that branches out into an area that you aren’t real familiar with. So instead of trying to write your own content you can find a free reprint article pertaining to that topic and use that. If you’re going to use a free reprint article make sure it’s well written and useful to your readers.

So the next time you have a dry spell and can’t come up with any fresh ideas for content give PLR or free reprint articles a try. Want to use PLR but don’t have the time to rewrite it? Let Tishia Saves Time rewrite it for you adding a personal voice and personality to it instead of leaving it as is.

I’m a very organized person…sometimes way over the top even, a little OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) you might say. But for some reason when it comes to my desk and work area I have a hard time keeping it organized and clean!

I was a little intrigued once I heard about National Clean Your Desk Day so I did a Google search. I found a National Clean Your Desk Day Press Release over at Organizing Resources. If you don’t want to read the full release here’s a little snippet of it that tells how the day originated.

This special day was originated by Anne Chase Moeller, the daughter of Mr. Chase of the Chase’s Annual Events—the very book where special events are listed.  Anne often helped out in her father’s office and shared his incredibly cluttered desk.  In order to create a place where she could work, she would spread a cloth over his chaos and then do her work.  When she finished, she would put her things away, including the cloth and leave.  The end of 1982 she declared that he would clean off his desk at least once each year.  Naturally, being in the business, they entered National Clean Off Your Desk Day into the record book for the second Monday in January, and the rest is history.  The record book has since been sold to a larger publisher, but the event is still celebrated each year.  It is a great time to get a fresh start for the new year.

So with today being National Clean Your Desk Day I’m partaking in observing this ‘holiday’ and doing my part – cleaning my desk (and work area).

What fun would it be if I didn’t let you see any pictures?

Before & After Pics:

Will you take part in National Clean Your Desk Day? (If you post pictures on your blog be sure to let me know so I can check them out!)

January is the beginning of a new year. The time when everyone is gung ho full speed ahead with New Year’s Resolutions. If we make resolutions to start the new year ‘fresh’, with a clean slate so to speak, doesn’t it make sense that our computers do to?

I don’t know about you but sometimes I forget my computer needs a little TLC (tender loving care). Right now my hard drive is cluttered with gazillions of eBooks, documents, etc that I  don’t even know what 90% of them are anymore.  Let’s just say I’m queen of purchasing eBooks, downloading free eBooks, etc to my hard drive thinking I’ll get back to them later only I seldom do (admit it – I know you’re nodding your head in agreement here).

Documents and eBooks are only the beginning of the cluttered state of my hard drive. Don’t even get me started on how many pictures are on here waiting for me to burn to a disc or put on a USB 2.0 Flash Drive. Or all the music and videos…yeah you get the point.

Enough picking on myself it’s time to go and do some serious clean up on my computer!

p.s. Be sure to come back tomorrow to get one tip, of several,  to cleaning up your computer.