As a marketer, this comment from prospects and clients has always baffled me. I have always screamed in my head, ‘What do you mean you have enough business already?!’ 

Tonight as I presided over our biweekly meeting as President of the Freehold Phrasers Toastmasters Club, as is customary at the end of the meeting, we took volunteers for the different roles for upcoming meetings; Grammarian, Ah Counter, Joke Master, and the ever-coveted Speaker role. We basically set our agenda until the middle of September…it’s starting to seems like “we have enough business already”.

When I first took over the position of President of the club, I quickly assembled the executive board for a meeting about the upcoming year. When it came time to discuss public relations and new membership, I had a TON of great marketing ideas.

After I was finished presenting all of my “great ideas” to the group, they asked me a very poignant question, “How big do we want to get?” At 32 members, our club is rather large for a Toastmasters club. And because we have so many members, and a limited amount of roles, I understood what they were saying.

Of course we could get more members if we advertised more, but at what cost? By adding too many members too fast, we would risk alienating and discouraging the members that we already have.

However, as a marketer this is unacceptable to me. Maybe we could just add a few minutes to the agenda to allow for more speeches? Maybe we could meet 3 or 4 times a month instead of 2? Maybe we could start a whole new club? Maybe, maybe, maybe…

Or maybe we should focus our marketing internally for now. Perhaps we need to focus on developing the talent we already have and really help our members to grow. Yes of course, that’s it! While we can and should plan for expansion and the future, we should never do it at the expense of what we already have.

So when you feel like you have enough business already, focus on what you have and how you can help your people grow. Then, when the time is right you will grow too. 

Because let’s be TOTALLY honest here, you can never really have enough business, can you?

John Zalepka

Do butterflies attack your stomach whenever you’re asked to speak before a group? 

Can you confidently express your thoughts and ideas? 

Do you have the nerve to ask your boss for a raise?

Whether you’re speaking to one or one thousand, Toastmasters can help you speak clearly and confidently. At home or on the job, Toastmasters will provide you with the confidence you need to get ahead.

I spent my writing time today putting together a presentation about giving effective Toastmasters speech evaluations. I will be delivering my talk tomorrow night at the Freehold Phrasers’ BBQ & Pool party meeting. The BBQ starts at 6:00pm followed by the meeting at 7:30pm.

Toastmasters is a “learn-by-doing” public speaking club where men and women hone their speaking, listening, evaluating, presenting & leadership skills in a friendly, comfortable atmosphere.

Guest are always welcome to attend our meetings on the 1st & 3rd Wednesdays of every month at the Greater Monmouth Chamber of Commerce, located at 57 Schanck Rd, Suite C-3 in Freehold, NJ. The exception is tomorrow’s meeting which will be held at 125 Crine Rd. in Morganville, NJ.

For more information please visit our website: www.FreeholdToastmasters.com or call club President John Zalepka at 732-610-7654.

Exactly 235 years ago today, our Founding Fathers signed the Declaration of Independence granting all Americans the “unalienable Rights of…Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

Single-handedly the coolest mission statement ever!

And with that America was open for business…leave everything you have behind they said…your family…your home…your country…for a chance at the “American Dream”.

No promises were made, just a chance. Hell, we had just come out of a battle with the baddest nation on the planet, no one knew what to expect next.

But they came, and they came from everywhere. And now 300 million people and 128.9 million Facebook users later, we’re still in business.

Sure times haven’t always been easy, there have been battles and wars fought internally and externally, there have been changes to the rules and regulations many times over, and our leaders from ever side of the political spectrum have come and gone.

But what has stayed consistent over the years is our belief in the company (America) and the belief that we all really do have a shot to “make it”, whatever “it” is. 

Lou Gehrig knew it…72 years ago today he stood before a packed house at Yankee Stadium, suffering from a disease (ALS) that took his baseball career, and ultimately his life…and yet declared himself “The Luckiest Man on the Face of the Earth”. On what was probably the saddest day for Yankee fans he was telling people, ‘look, don’t feel bad for me, I have already lived Life & Liberty and had experienced a ton of Happiness’ (as any 6-time World Series Champion would). He closed by saying “that I might have been given a bad break, but I’ve got an awful lot to live for. Thank you.”

So you see, we have been through a lot, as a country, as families, and as individuals, but the United States of America Company is still open for business. And the best news is you are already an employee…all you need to do is put the hard work in that it takes for any employee, in any company to climb the “corporate ladder”. 

How high do you want to climb? 

Happy Birthday America!!

John Zalepka 

THANK YOU TO ALL WHO SERVE, WHO HELP KEEP OUR RIGHTS OURS!

The sun got in my eyes…

…the #Trust30 challenge ended on Friday…

…it’s a holiday weekend…

…I never got to a computer yesterday…

…I was spending time with my family…

…I’ll just say I meant 30 business days.

Yesterday was a very busy day for me with the family. The beach in the morning, a dip in the pool in the afternoon, and a pig party in the evening.

The truth of the matter is that I could have posted to my blog yesterday from anywhere, but then I could have gotten sand in my phone, or dropped it in the pool, or, well there I go again.

You see there was never a perfect time for me to sit down and write, plus I hate typing on my phone, you know I have fat thumbs. What if I had typos or grammatical errors…wouldn’t people think I was an idiot?

Plus, what would I write about? What could I possible offer about marketing while sunning (burning) myself on the beach that would be really thought provoking or interesting? I’m doing it again, aren’t I?

Now what do my excuses have to do with marketing?

Well my suspicion is that if you are a small business owner, you probably have some excuses about why you don’t market your business more, or worse don’t market it at all. 

Marketing is all about putting yourself out there and telling people who you are. And as long as you stay true to your message and target properly, then your message will be fine. Will it always be perfect and great? Probably not, even the greatest of marketers don’t always get it right…New Coke, anyone?

Anyway, I found a good article on the Top 3 Excuses for Not Marketing a Small Business, and what to do about it.

So let’s cut out the excuses and get to work.

John Zalepka

“How can you squander even one more day not taking advantage of the greatest shifts of our generation? How dare you settle for less when the world has made it so easy for you to be remarkable?” – Seth Godin, Seth’s Blog

Some of you have been following my progress this week (if you missed it, check me out at Zalepka.com) and I must say that my brain is exhausted. Not exhausted to the point where I need to lie down and take a nap, but more like how I used to feel after the first 5 two-a-days back in football training camp, exhausted, but excited and hungry for more.

Through my writings and by utilizing some of the different social media platforms, I’m attempting figure out how companies are using social media to grow their businesses. My hope then is to bring that information to you, our loyal customer base, and help you to take advantage of this social boom as well.

After a long day on the job it takes some effort to do the extra things that you know you need to do in order to achieve success in your field; much in the same way it has been a struggle for me to write for 5 days straight. However, once you get past that fatigue and you push through the lactic acid buildup in your brain, you will be stronger and wiser for it; while putting yourself in a position to capitalize on the opportunities that will seem to virtually pop up out of nowhere. They call this is called creating your own luck.

So stay tuned, because at Adpro Imprints we’re committed to your success!

John Zalepka

Here I am, 4 days into my commitment to myself to post for 30 days straight. I got the idea from the #Trust30 prompt of the day, which is basically a fantastic marketing tactic for promoting a book. The book, Self-Reliance, is in celebration of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s 208^th birthday.

When I received the prompt today however, I was having a difficult time trying to formulate an answer that somehow related back to marketing. So I decided to skip the prompt and just focus on the marketing.

When I first began my social media journey (this past Monday), I found myself with about 100 tabs open on my browser as bounced around the internet trying to absorb as much information as possible. I think I saw the link on a tweet… ralphwaldoemerson.me

Upon landing on this very basic looking site, I was immediately asked to take a challenge. Being that I am such a competitive person, I am always up for a challenge. And the best part was, I would only be competing against myself (which isn’t as easy as you may think, but that’s another topic for another day).

So here I am committing to better myself through writing this blog. And I am grateful for #Trust30 for making me take on this challenge and make that commitment, that pledge. And yet, they never asked me to buy the book, sure they let me know it was for sale, but they gave me value first.

It appeared as though they really wanted me to increase my own self-reliance and better myself. And all they asked for in exchange for helping me along was the proper credit in my posts, tweets, and updates.

And even though I didn’t use their prompt today I’m still talking them up, aren’t I?

I’m sure there will be quite a few people in my network (friends, followers, connections) that are bound to see, click, read, or perhaps buy the book (note to self: maybe I should figure out how to monetize these referrals).

And what did it cost them?

Domain Registration $10… Design $1000… Hosting: $100… Thousands of people blogging and referencing your book on social networking sites for free: Priceless!

So basically, if I figure out what value I can give first, maybe more people will buy my “book”… I just bought theirs.

John Zalepka

Speak what you think now in hard words, and tomorrow speak what tomorrow thinks in hard words again, though it contradict every thing you said today. – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Imagine your future self, ie, you 10 years from now. If he/she were to send you a tweet or text message, 1) what would it say and 2) how would that transform your life or change something you’re doing, thinking, believing or saying today?

(Author: Tia Singh)

A text message from my 45 year old self: JB was right, Web 2.0 created a million millionaires, and the good news is we’re one of them! The better news is that because we have been so socially engaging to our network of contacts over the past 10 years, we are in position to become a billionaire by leveraging Web 3.0… get ready for a most excellent adventure!

I couldn’t help not to think of Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure when I read today’s #Trust30 prompt. The irony in my head was not lost on the fact that their time machine was a 1960’s style phone booth and mine was also a phone (albeit a much more sophisticated Droid). And as silly a thought as it seemed at first, my most excellent and ironic time machine began to make more and more sense to me.

Much in the same way as Bill & Ted were able to convince (kidnap) the likes of Napoleon, Billy the Kid, Abraham Lincoln & Genghis Khan to follow them, aren’t I doing the same thing with social media …”like me”, “friend me”, “follow me”?

And talk about the ultimate cold call victory …two metalhead slackers are able to appear out of virtually nowhere and sell a menagerie of historical figures on the fact that they need to help them with a high school presentation sometime in the future. And why do these important historical figures ultimately agree to participate and help the boys? The short answer is; because they were likeable and social.

So I guess the moral of the story is, if you keep making connections and stay friendly, likeable, and social with your message, you will one day too have your Wyld Stallyns’ moment.

PARTY ON, DUDES!

John Zalepka

Nothing can bring you peace but yourself. Nothing can bring you peace but the triumph of principles. – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Write down a major life goal you have yet to achieve or even begin to take action on. For each goal, write down three uncertainties (read: fears) you have relating to each goal. Break it down further, and write down three reasons for each uncertainty. When you have three reasons for your fear, you’ll be able to start processing the change because you know where the fear stems from. Now you’ll be able to make a smaller changes that push you towards your larger goal. So begins the process of “trusting yourself.” 

(Author: Sean Ogle)

Upon my first read through of today’s quote and Sean Ogle’s subsequent post I started thinking about my “goals” …all of the sudden visions of me swimming in a pool full of hundred dollar bills filled my head.

As I read through a second time though, I realized that I did not “fear” money, what uncertainties could I come up with? I mean I could definitely find something to spend all of my goal (money) on. That’s when I began to come to my senses; I realized that money should never be THE goal, instead it should be a by-product of a goal that you actually achieve.

Dictionary.com defines a goal as: the result or achievement toward which effort is directed. Now you could certainly make a case that money could be a “result” of your “effort”, but then what would be a good goal? Should I set out to make $100,000 per month? $10 million per year? Perhaps a net worth of $1 billion should be my goal? My point is that maybe money is better off on my business plan and left out of my personal goals.

A friend of mine whom with I am working on a project, sent me a text message yesterday stating that we needed to take the project in a different direction. I agreed with him, but figured we would talk about it later in the day. Within a minute, I received another text message from him stating that it was done. My first thought was, ‘What do you mean it’s done? We didn’t even give ourselves a chance to second guess ourselves.’ When I asked him about it later he said that, “When I make my mind up about something, I need closure right away.” Wow, what a concept! He is able to move on, where I would have been left hemming and hawing until someone else made up my mind for me.

So my life goal is this; Decrease the amount of things that I allow myself to ‘think about’. Sure there will be major life decisions that I will need some time to properly formulate the best way to handle, but for the most part, for my day-to-day, I need to follow my gut …make a decision, take action and then stick to my guns. I have emails sitting in my Inbox from weeks ago, I have papers piled up on my desk that I need to go through, I have half-finished projects waiting for the perfect time to complete them.

I’m not sure why I have such a tough time deleting an email or throwing away a piece of paper. Maybe my fear is the uncertainty of finality. Whatever it is, it has got to stop! I need to start trusting myself, after all I’m a pretty smart dude.  I have to understand that there will never be a perfect time, or a perfect place, or a perfect business partner. Einstein said it best when he defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

So take action and take it now …before you end up in a strait jacket.

John Zalepka

Good and bad are but names very readily transferable to that or this; the only right is what is after my constitution, the only wrong what is against it. – Ralph Waldo Emerson

We are our most potent at our most ordinary. And yet most of us discount our “ordinary” because it is, well, ordinary. Or so we believe. But my ordinary is not yours. Three things block us from putting down our clever and picking up our ordinary: false comparisons with others (I’m not as good a writer as _____), false expectations of ourselves (I should be on the NYTimes best seller list or not write at all), and false investments in a story (it’s all been written before, I shouldn’t bother). What are your false comparisons? What are your false expectations? What are your false investments in a story? List them. Each keep you from that internal knowing about which Emerson writes. Each keeps you from making your strong offer to the world. Put down your clever, and pick up your ordinary.

(Author: Patti Digh)

All of my businesses have revolved around some aspect of marketing, advertising or sales. Even as a small child I can remember being a sucker for great marketing… whether is was gum or baseball cards conveniently placed down low on the checkout line at the grocery store, or TV commercials in between my Saturday morning cartoons, or the Sears Christmas Wish Book, I had to have it all.

That’s why it was no surprise that when I saw today’s #Trust30 challenge question, I read it from a marketer’s perspective.

Ordinary, much like beauty, is indeed also in the eyes of the beholder.

Busy business owners often borrow (steal) ideas from successful companies in their industry, often trying to emulate concepts and product offerings that they cannot deliver on. A small retail boutique would be crazy to try and compete on price with Walmart… it’d be like like asking a Little-Leaguer to try and hit a CC Sabathia fastball (I’m a Yankees fan btw).

However, time and again I have small business clients ask me to print up fancy brochures and marketing collateral that contain a lot of industry jargon, that, truth be told, they hope no one ever asks them about. They try to be “clever”, but what they are really doing is over-promising and setting themselves up to under-deliver.

Your marketing efforts should focus on what you already do well and apply it to your ideal market segment, then rinse and repeat as often as possible. Social networking sites and blogs can make your marketing go viral as fast as you can upload a video customer testimonial or whitepaper answering questions about subject matter that you know about.

I firmly believe that if you spend a little “extra” time focusing on what you already do well (ordinary), then it’s just a matter of time before your ordinary becomes extraordinary!

John Zalepka