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by Kizzy

Have you seen our free business resources?

May 18, 2012 in About ACEInspire, Blog, Featured, Headline


Training at a time that suits you, and at no cost too!

If you find it hard to invest time in your own training, we offer a range of online training courses from ACEInspire. These no-cost training courses deliver bite sized chunks of information to your desk every day in the form of eLessons. You can learn about:

Each course is packed with fresh ideas and is guaranteed to help you take ACTION in your business to find more followers, get more customers or clients and make more money.

If you want to get some inspiration for your business, learn new skills and get tried and tested ideas, why not try out one of the no-cost eCourses today. Visit www.aceinspire.co.uk to pick your course or follow the direct links below.

Not sure which course will suit you? Try the ‘decision maker tool’. It will help you pick the right course for your needs.  Simply answer the questions and the decision maker will choose the course that best fits your needs. You sign up and ACEInspire sends you the lessons.  It couldn’t be easier, and will cost you nothing.

Plus, we have some resources to help you develop and promote your business:

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by Kizzy

Dare To Be Different

May 17, 2012 in About ACEInspire, Blog, Featured, Headline


aceinspire co ownerDoes a lot of stuff feel very samey to you? The same big companies selling us the same products.  The same people coming up with rehashed ideas.  Tv programmes which are remodelled but in essence just the same as what has gone before. In a globalised world it’s hard to find the different, the unique.  It’s out there if you go searching for it: try folksy or etsy, pinterest is a good place to find unique stuff too. There is some new information out there too but you’ll rarely find it on the shelves of popular book shops. It’ll be on little known blogs in dark rarely visited corners of the internet, or in an eBook self published by an unknown writer.

The problem is we’ve all become a bit brainwashed I think. We’re bombarded by this sameness day in day out through media, and well, everything.  If we see anything different or anyone sharing a new idea we can be quick to criticise.

Some people, though, like me, crave the new and unique.

And if you’re the one that has the new idea, do you worry that it can’t possibly be a good one? Or do you think, ‘Surely someone else has thought this already’?  Not necessarily so!  You see, inside each one of us is a bank of uniqueness – nobody in the world has had the EXACT experiences that we have.  Nobody has seen the world and all the experiences we’ve had through OUR eyes. Each one of us has a unique set of thoughts, ideas and theories that are waiting to be tapped.

Where are they?

Right below all that noise, all that sameness, and possibly below that voice that says ‘it can’t be any good’, that’s where the real gold is.  Granted you might have to ‘pan’ for that gold amongst the silt and crap, but it’s there. If you can find the energy to go looking for that gold and the courage to share it with everyone, people will begin to take notice.

Dare to be different. If you run a business what one thing could you start doing differently? If you write a blog what new idea could you share?

 

 

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by Antonia Chitty

Want to write an eBook?

May 16, 2012 in Featured, Headline, Online Marketing, Social Media


Knowledge to Profit How to Create and Sell eBooksEarlier this year we ran ‘From Knowledge to Profit’, a course to help anyone who wants to write an eBook. Some of the course members are still working hard on their books, others like Chloe Asquith have already seen success – Chloe has completed her eBook and now has a publishing deal for her next one.

ou missed out, join our email list in order to be kept in touch with news and advice on writing and publishing eBooks .

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Watch this video, and discover award winning entrepreneur and author Antonia Chitty’s advice on writing eBooks:

 

Access further free video training now:

To get access to a 25 minute training video and take the first steps to creating and selling your own eBook, sign up here:
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by Kizzy

Book Review: The Social Media MBA by Christer Holloman

May 16, 2012 in Blog, Social Media


Date of Review: 30th April 2012

We all know social media, right? We can converse in Twitter, plan in Facebook and eat in Foursquare. But what if we didn’t know the difference between our LinkedIn and our Tumblr? What happens when we Stumbleupon when we should be using Delicious?

There is more to social media than just being online. There is a whole industry waiting to take you in a coordinated way, and help you use it as a powerful tool in your business.

With “The Social Media MBA” by Christer Holloman, this communication and marketing tool is brought alive in a book that engages effectively. Christer Holloman has brough together a number of social media experts to give a wholistic view of a tool that supports effective and productive communication.

For it is communication that social media is all about. And this book delivers. Apart from the descriptions of how social media has evolved into a modern force of communication and business, the value in the book are the case studies in the rear of the book. From ARM to Kodak and Sage, there are valuable insights into how real firms have dealt with the monster of social media. With comments from personnel who have been there and done it, this is a unique opportunity to engage with the people at the social media front line.

Looking at the future, there is a section on how social media is developing across the world and identifying how different regions and countries are using social media. These distinct variations will need to be accommodated if you are to (easily) connect with people and organisations across the world.

What this book gave to me was a realisation that social media can be used as an effective resource to get better results for your business. It’s also a place where there are always people willing to offer advice and help you achieve what you want. All you have to do is ask.

The Social Media MBA is a book that could transform the way that you do business. It has done this for other people already.

TOTAL MARKS: 4/5

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by Kizzy

Blogging tips: Top Ten by ACE

May 15, 2012 in Blog, Business Blogging, Featured, Headline


Blogging for your business is what will make your business stand out from the competition as well as bring in new customers to your site. Blogs generate fresh content which search engines love, therefore your site will start ranking higher when prospective customers are searching in your niche on the internet.

So to help you with your blog, here are ACEInspire’s top 10 blogging posts:

Don’t read this if you blog already.  This post gives you 10 reasons why you should be blogging for your business. So if you are not already, read this and it will reinforce the reasons why you should be.

How to Start a Business Blog After reading the post above, you may be wondering how to actually start a business blog. Here is a wonderful post on how to start one from scratch.

WordPress.com vs WordPress.org Have you wondered which is best for you and your business? This post explains the differences of the two platforms WordPress has to offer.

Blogger or WordPress? This also may have crossed your mind when you are thinking about staring a business blog. This post explains the key differences between the two platforms.

Blogging Tips: Linking for Maximum Effect  Not sure what text to add your link to in a post for it to achieve the maximum effect? This great posts includes a video tutorial explaining how to add links to your blog posts.

40 Blog Post Ideas in 5 Minutes! If you are struggling to find ideas for topics to write then watch this fantastic video. Erica shows you how to create 40 blog posts in just 5 minutes. You’ll never struggle again.

Top Posts To Drive Traffic To Your Blog Here is a post that will give you different ideas on what type of posts you want to use on your blog to generate more traffic.

How To Write Attention Grabbing Headlines Your blog posts headlines are one of the most important aspects of any blog post This is because it is generally the first thing readers will look at. Here are ways to write headlines that will make people want to come and read your posts.

Blog Promotion: Guest Posting If you are looking for a great way to promote your blog, then this video explains how guest posting works.

The Concept of Pillar Posts If you have a blog have you wondered why a certain post keeps popping up in your most viewed, well this post explains this and how to harness a post like this.

Well I hope these posts give you and idea of how important a blog is for your business as well as inspiring you.

 

 

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by Kizzy

Success is a journey, not a destination

May 14, 2012 in About ACEInspire, Blog, eBook, Headline


aceinspire co ownerDo you feel that success is a far away place that you might never get to visit?  Do you feel like you’re working really hard but you’re worried you might never get to visit success?
Back in the beginning when I was trying to find ways to make money for myself I felt like I wasn’t making much progress.  It was difficult to see at those times how I was on any kind of journey when I hadn’t even made £1.  I had hopes and dreams and a lot of time on my hands.  I had no indicators to show my success and no ££’s to show for my time.

Looking back now I can see that even in those early days I was already on the path.  My failures were moving me one step closer to making that first £1.  The thing is you don’t know that until you actually have the breakthrough.  I read somewhere once that many people give up on their dreams and ambitions right before their first breakthrough.  I don’t know if there’s any truth in this in general but I know from my own experiences that I’ve had fleeting thoughts about giving things up and shortly after deciding to give it ‘one more month’ I experience a breakthrough.  When I was trying to make that first £1 I was determined not to be the sort of person who gives up, and my breakthrough came.

I made my first £1 and there was the excitement and elation of earning money for myself. Yes it was only £1 but it was so much more than that.  In that moment it was success.

That feeling passes though and £1 isn’t as exciting any more, £1 doesn’t make me feel as successful as it once did.

Fortunately this motivated me to earn £10, then £100, £1000 and £10,000.  Each time there is the excitement and the feeling of success and then it becomes the norm, the new standard.

Success isn’t a place you’ll ever arrive at.  You may well have an income goal right now but once you’ve met that goal there will always be the next goal, the next high, the next fix.  The success feeling comes and goes, it is part of the journey.

If you don’t feel like a success today, think back to a year ago, are you further on than you were then?

Success isn’t earning £1, £100 or £1000. The success is in the progress, it’s in the journey, and it’s not a feeling you can have all the time.  If you did you would tire of it. Enjoy your success.  Enjoy the journey.   

Now you’ve read this, what are you going to do next to achieve your own success? If you want more help getting your business to succeed all our eBooks are on special offer on Kindle and Smashwordsthis month. For £0.77 or $0.99 you can get information on:

  • online study success
  • designing and carrying out surveys
  • choosing a web host
  • choosing and email service provider
  • building your business online

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by Kizzy

6 simple tips on debt collection for small businesses

May 11, 2012 in Blog, Headline


In the current economic climate, it is not unusual for businesses to find that customers are choosing to delay or even failing to make payments to their suppliers.  In most cases customers are not avoiding payment because they will not pay, but because they are suffering the same pressures as your business.

Debt collection can be a time consuming and frustrating process, but it is important that you maintain effective credit control and exercise proactive payment management, otherwise major cash flow problems can quickly ensue and affect the financial health and growth of a company. Often the first business to get paid is the one that is proactive about getting paid.

So how can a business avoid late payments and control its cash flow? There are six key points.

  1. What are your terms and conditions?  Make sure you know your terms and conditions, and at the outset make sure that your customer does too.  What are your payment terms?  Do you have a right to charge interest on late payments?  Do you have the right to recover the costs of debt recovery?  If these are clear and tightly drafted you can help protect your business from late or non payment.
  2. Who will owe you money?  Is it a company, a sole trader or individual, a partnership or another entity?  When the customer walks through the door, are they acting as themselves or on behalf of a company?  Knowing who your customer is will ensure that any action you have to take is directed at the party responsible for paying.  If you are chasing the wrong party you will not get paid, and you even risk incurring further costs in the future e.g. if you issue court proceedings against the wrong party. In addition, certain legal principles apply to particular entities.
  3. Do they have the money to pay?  Once you know who will owe you the money carry out simple credit checks of your customer beforehand; this will help protect you from late payment down the line.  For individuals and partnerships, carry out a simple free bankruptcy search on the Insolvency Service website.  For a company check their status for free on the Companies House website.  Enforcement action against a customer who does not pay will be pointless unless they have money to pay, or assets against which you can secure the debt.
  4. Can you reduce the risk of late payment?  Ask for a deposit or payment on account before supplying the goods or services.  Will a third party guarantee to pay if your customer does not?  Does your business accept BACS or CHAPS payments to avoid the risks of accepting payment by cheques?  Does your business hold credit insurance to protect you if your customer becomes insolvent, or legal expenses insurance to pay the costs of recovering debts through the courts?
  5.  Are you chasing late payment quickly?  Effective credit control will ensure that you do not get a reputation for being soft with customers who ‘forget’ to pay.  Polite but timely invoices and reminder letters will help maintain your cash flow without sacrificing your business relationships.  For customers who repeatedly fail to meet your payment terms try to find out the reason why they pay late and see if you can come to a mutual agreement.  If you cannot, consider tightening your payment terms or even stop supplying those customers who repeatedly pay late.  Bad customers can threaten the continued survival of your business.
  6. Get to know your customers.  Late payments may be reduced if you take the time to understand your customers’ businesses, how they work and their specific requirements.  Check whether a customer has a County Court Judgment (CCJ) against them for a small fee at TrustOnline.  If appropriate, ask your customer for credit references and make sure you check these.

For customers who continue to fail to pay, seek legal advice as to the ways in which your business can chase the money that you are owed.  You may need to issue court proceedings and obtain a CCJ against the debtor.  A legal advisor can also explain the ways in which a CCJ can be enforced if the debtor still does not pay.

For further information about Debt Recovery, visit http://www.fishermeredith.co.uk/archives/service/business-services/business-disputes-dispute-resolution/debt-recovery and https://www.onlinedebtcollector.com/

 

About the Author:

Jay Sahota is Deputy Head of Civil and Commercial Litigation, Fisher Meredith LLP. For more information see http://www.fishermeredith.co.uk and https://www.onlinedebtcollector.com/

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by Kizzy

How understanding more about marketing transformed my business

May 9, 2012 in About ACEInspire, Blog, Featured, Headline, Online Marketing


Do you know all about marketing already?

Back in 2009 I thought I knew all about marketing. I’d used my marketing skills to promote my own business, launch books and help others. But then I called in someone else to help me launch a new book, because I was really short on time. And working with Lindsey showed my LOADS of different aspects of marketing, which enabled me to have a really successful book launch. I found, even with my background, working with another marketing pro was really illuminating. I sold the bmost books ever in that launch, and saw my profile rise significantly. Alongside that I also won a business award. Good marketing really helped my business.

Over the last couple of years Erica and I have been learning and studying marketing in even more depth. I’ve written Marketing: The Essential Guide too. AND, perhaps most importantly, we’ve been putting everything we’ve learnt to the test on our own business and seeing what works best.

We’ve decided to open the ACE Marketing Club so we can share all this knowledge and practical experience with you. If you feel your marketing is in need of a fresh eye, and you’d like to work with us, join today.

Sign up is open until 5pm BST on Friday and the first live webinar is next Wednesday 16th May at 9.30am BST

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by Kizzy

Join the ACE Marketing Club

May 8, 2012 in Blog, Headline, Online Marketing


Have you enjoyed the blog articles over the last week on Marketing? If yes, you will be pleased to hear that this term’s course is all about Marketing.

We’re launching the ACE Marketing Club, and each term you’ll have the chance to join us as we focus on different aspects of PRACTICAL marketing for anyone who owns a growing business … and would like to see it grow more!

Most business owners underestimate what is included in marketing.  This first term in the ACE Marketing Club is for people that have a business but need the space and time to really look into whether the foundations of that business are right.  Without the right foundations your business will never succeed, and even strengthening the foundations can make your business stronger.

If you are unsure or need support in any of the following areas this first term is for you.

·       Am I offering the right product or service?
·       Am I targeting the right market?
·       Why am I not making more sales?
·       What could I do to make more sales?
·       Why aren’t my advertising and promotions producing results?
·       Who are my competitors and how can I compete with them?
·       How can I be different and get noticed?
·       I’m a bit all over the place: I have a good business idea but I need to get clear on my strategy
·       I would like to have a clear focus for my business and get on the path to success

When you really understand your business and begin to apply the principles in this course to your own situation you will see results faster.  Everything we teach we’ve applied to our own fast growing business.

We will teach you the theory of what you need to do and we’ll help you overcome the challenges you face. We’ll be explaining how to put what you learn into practice right away in your business. This course will help you improve your business and find more customers even as you study.

This course requires a small monetary investment and the results will be well worth it.   Once you understand the principles and apply them to your business you can continue to use the strategies to ensure you’re staying on course.

We’ll be with you live on webinars to coach you through everything you need to know including how to apply it to your business. We’ll also be available to support you both on the webinars and via email.

This term will start you off with the essentials of marketing, and as with all ACEInspire courses, you won’t just learn the theory. We’ll be explaining how to put what you learn into practice right away in your business. This course will help you improve your marketing and find more customers even as you study.

Follow this link for full details of the course

EARLY SIGN UP BONUS –commit to the course TODAY ONLY you’ll get a signed copy of Marketing: The Essential Guide. Find out more here.

So, does the ACE Marketing Club sound like it could help your business? If so, take action and join today.

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by Kizzy

Marketing: Rejection based pricing

May 6, 2012 in Blog, Headline, Online Marketing


aceinspire co ownerMy personal theme right now is ‘honouring your time and worth’.  It’s really forced me to think about the work I do, what I charge, my own self worth and how that affects my pricing.

One of the main human fears is rejection: in fact I heard once that it was the number one fear.  Being rejected by our fellow human beings can be one of the most hurtful things that can happen.  It comes from our ancient background, our need to be an accepted part of the ‘tribe’.

To avoid rejection many people choose to go ‘under the radar’. They never step up and do the thing that they were meant to do because they’re too frightened they might be rejected.

To grow a business, even to start a business you need to face your fears around being rejected.

You see, when you’re in business, you don’t want to supply everyone, especially if you have a service business.  Your marketing and pricing is your tool box to help you encourage people to reject you!  What’s that?  We actively want people to reject us?  Well yes, we can’t possibly serve everyone, and we don’t want to have to spend every day assessing each potential client one by one to establish who is the right fit for us.  This is the purpose of marketing, and pricing is the equivalent of the hammer in your toolbox.

Negative rejection based pricing
What is it?  It’s when you price your services very low as you fear rejection.  You don’t want to hear the word ‘no’.  You’re frightened that some people can’t afford what you’re offering and that makes you feel uncomfortable.  Your own self worth might be low and you’re using your business and pricing to bolster that – you need to hear ‘yes’ to build your confidence and self-esteem.

Positive rejection based pricing
What is it?  It’s when you realise that you can’t serve everyone in the world and that there is an ideal client for you and to reach that ideal client you have to use your toolbox.  Pricing is your hammer, and you have to use it to get rid of everyone that isn’t the right fit.  You need to actively seek rejection and realise that it’s a positive thing.

The ‘right’ price is the price where YOU are fairly remunerated and where your CLIENT feels they’re getting VALUE.   Your job is twofold;

• Work out at what price attracts those clients that find the appropriate value in what you do.

• What do you need to offer to achieve the VALUE at the price you’re charging.

Once you’ve done this you have the perfect pricing strategy for you AND your clients.

If you enjoyed this article, it is just a taster of the sort of thing you’ll be getting in the new ACEInspire course for Summer 2012. Sign up here to get the email on 8th May that will tell you all about it.

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