As a virtual organization with 20 solid years of experience helping Makers and Handmade Entrepreneurs use technology to build their and brands, IBN is uniquely situated to train entrepreneurs to maximize the use of technology for the benefit of their brands. At no time in IBN’s 20 years of service is this more important than…
On this episode of the Maker Mastermind Show, I was asked to share some ideas to help you be productive when sales are slow. Of course it stinks when sales are slow, but you can turn that frown upside down and use the time to your advantage. Here are four ways to do that. 4…
On this episode of the Maker Mastermind Show, I was asked for my best and easiest ideas to improve the all-important About Page at your website. Your “About Page” is an opportunity to woo your prospects and draw them into what you and your brand stand for. It’s a chance to replace the tired old…
If you know me at all, you know that I believe in the power of list building and email newsletter publishing. I have published a newsletter for nearly 20 years, so I know what I’m talking about. Newsletters help you generate sales. Newsletters help you drive traffic to your blog and social media pages. If…
This post is about the power of using your personal brand to represent, even embody, your marketing message. This presents a fantastic opportunity to leverage who you are personally for the benefit of your business. After all, while there are products on the market that are similar to yours, there is only one you. When…
If you’re just starting a business, you have a lot to consider: what to sell and how to sell it, whether to use a Facebook group, what to blog about, how to use social media, etc. Those things are important, but one thing is even more important, and you may have overlooked it entirely. I’m…
In our private entrepreneurial discussion community, IBN members discuss and resolve entrepreneurial problems all day long. Recently, I sat down with a few of them to talk shop and learn how they resolved some of their toughest packaging challenges. After your customer’s order is placed into the hands of your shipper, it is completely outside…
Wouldn’t it be great if you could sell your products with confidence and success, even if you think you hate selling? Well, you can. But it starts with one basic requirement. Stop selling. Seriously, it’s not as hard as you think, especially when you embrace an approach that not only allows you to sell more…
I have been mentoring women for nearly 20 years, and I have been mentored all my life. But not in the ways you might think. You might think that I’ve been surrounded by mentors who meet with me personally (and for free) over a leisurely meals to school me in the ways of the entrepreneurship.…
Since I’ve had to inspire myself to keep going in the midst of many sucky situations lately, I thought I’d share some of the strategies I’ve used to get through my recent sucky situations. There have been many, and I’ll tell you about them later, but for now, if your life is feeling The Suck…
As we wind down to the end of the first month of a new year, you may have already set some specific goals that will level up your business over the next 12 months. But just in case you haven’t, or even if you have and you may have missed something important, this list is…
Recently, the pastor of Elevation Church, Steven Furtick, interviewed Bishop TD Jakes, pastor of The Potter’s House in Dallas, Texas, during a special church service. The interview touched upon many critical areas of entrepreneurship, and I wanted to share it with you. I know you may not have time to watch the entire interview, so…
Recently, I served as a speaker at Melinda Emerson’s Reinvention Weekend. The photo here was taken at the cocktail reception the night before the start of the conference. My topic as a speaker was How to Launch and Grow a Product-Based Business. At Reinvention Weekend, Melinda, also known as Small Biz Lady, delivered a great…
Have you ever received stellar customer service? Have you ever delivered it? If you have provided awesome service to any of your customers, you know what a huge difference it makes in terms of how they view you and your brand. Not only that, it makes a difference in terms of how they view their…
Every business has slow periods. In the world of consumer lifestyle products like those made by most members of the Indie Business Network, the slowest periods are typically the summer months. Things pick up, sometimes to a frenzy, during holidays when people are celebrating and purchasing gifts for loved ones. In the meantime, things can…
A bomb dropped in the retail space this morning. With Amazon’s $13.7 Billion purchase of Whole Foods, a slowly expanding gulf between niche and mass market has finally become a gragantuan divide. The news just dropped a few hours ago, and I’m still developing my thoughts. Completion of the sale is subject to approval by…
When our member, Christina Wennstrom of Soap Seas in Redondo Beach, California, reached out to me a few weeks ago to ask if I would like to blog her and fellow IBN member Kristina Nanninga’s upcoming “road trip of a lifetime,” I immediately jumped at the chance because I knew it would be fun and…
Have I ever mentioned that IBN’s private Facebook group is not just a business community? It is heavily focused on business (as it is designed to be), but we also have fun in a really unique and amazing environment. For example, last week, I posed this simple question in our community: When it comes to…
I am thrilled to be participating this week in the first virtual Makers Biz Summit hosted by Deborah Engelmajer of Tizzit Design Company. Deb’s business is located in “the land of plenty” in beautiful Australia. I hope to visit someday, but for now, I have to settle for this appearance as a part of an…
The first time I went house hunting, a friend cautioned me not to get sucked into buying a house I could not afford. More specifically, he warned me not to buy so much house that I didn’t have money left over to furnish it. In other words, he advised me not to be “house poor.”…
Each week, I receive countless emails and phone calls from people who want to launch a business selling the products they make. I received an email recently from Jill in Tennessee who told me that: “I am really having a hard time finding what makes me unique. Therefore, I am having a hard time defining…