The Marketing Mix | official blog of the Marketing Mentor community

A new tool for worry-free email "vacations"

As email continues threatening to bury us all, more and more people are coming up with creative ways of dealing with it when we've got to knuckle down and get real stuff done.

The "only-check-twice-daily" method is great, except for those few emails you're always worried about in the back of your mind. You know--the emergency emails that really are an emergency.

AwayFind deals with just that problem. The freshly-launched web app acts like a filter, shielding you from email onslaught while letting the people who really, truly need to get through to you via text message. You sign up for an account (free or pro), create a special autoresponder that goes out to anyone who emails you and go about your business as usual. 

To celebrate the launch, AwayFind is offering a really great ebook on how to control your email flow along with any free subscription you sign up for by November 21. After that, the ebook will only come bundled with the pro version of the account, which also gives you features like the ability to brand your messages, access to support, etc. (And it really is a great ebook—I previewed it, and I'm picky as hell.)

AwayFind is the brainchild of an enterprising chap, Jared Goralnick, whom I first met back in May at SOBCon in Chicago. He is obscenely young to be so accomplished, but I forgive him that because he not only comes up with great stuff, but is the good, nice kind of networker: proactive, friendly and always looking for ways to be helpful. His excellent productivity blog--one of very few in my Google Reader--is here.

See also:

• A great page of uses for AwayFind that may not be immediately obvious
• A great write-up with screenshots by Lifehacker editor Gina Trapani

The nexus between organization and promotion

One thing a lot of people don't know about Ilise is that her roots are in professional organizing. I forget it myself, since she's so good at marketing, self-promotion and helping other people get a handle on their own tasks in those areas.

But a quote of hers for a story in this recent edition of The Oklahoman reminded me of the link between one and the other. She talks mentions that she "consistently found information on self-promotion at the bottom of piles of paper that people saved." Clutter was literally getting in the way of her clients' ability to promote themselves—and, I'm sure, a lot of other tasks.

I struggle with staying on top of things myself. On the one hand, I'm a huge fan of organizing as an art or even a science; on the other, I'm really abysmal at the day-to-day practice of staying organized, and implementing my tools and systems to actually get my work done.

I'm wondering if I'm alone in this, or how alone I am in this. Are you organized? Do you use your skills in service of work? Or do you get a lot of stuff done, self-promotion and marketing included, despite being disorganized?

(Thanks to Kay Stout for the heads-up on the article.)

What to do when you get into overwhelm

A client writes, "I'm so busy, I can't get to my work. I have two freelancers working on projects. I spend most of my time writing proposals, meeting with new clients and prospects. Half my time is non-billable. What am I doing wrong? How do I make more of my time billable?

Our answer comes from Lee Silber (a.k.a. Creative Lee), author of 11 books, including Time Management for the Creative Person (and a few others in that series).

We can't have it all—at least not all at once. We must make choices about what to focus on now. It's at the core of our success—the choices we make about how we spend our time. To do this we have to separate good from great. (Of course it's "great" we want.) To do this I suggest using a little left-brain thinking in the planning process. (We can save our right brains for creating.)

When left-brainers feel overwhelmed they make lists. They also prioritize what's most important. We right-brain thinkers are good at spinning all our plates at once and only worrying about the one that looks like it's about to fall. So, let's try the left-brain approach and see how it works.

1. Make a list of everything you are spending time on. All your projects, proposals, personal stuff, and so on.
2. Next to each one rate it with dollar signs ($) 1-5. One means it has very little chance to produce revenue and five means it has a good chance.
3. Then rate each item on your list using a check mark on how urgent it is. One check means it's not urgent, five means you need it done.
4. Using a heart, rate each item based on how much you want to work on it 1-5. How excited are you by it?
5. Lastly, using plus signs, rank the item based on it's importance to your career, or any other criteria you feel is key.

Now you can see what is of the highest priority, and what to focus your time and talent on.

Try this and let us know what happens.

Best of 2008 round up: Tools to make your life easier

On my regular blog, I like to pause during the holiday slow-down to review my year in posts, which I then aggregate into a 2-part, 100-item list of what I learned this year. Not only does it help me pull out the most interesting and/or useful things of the past 12 months for my readers, it also gives me a snapshot of what I was working on that year. Win-win!

In the spirit of that, I thought I'd do an abbreviated, marketing/business-type version here on the Marketing Mix.

Great tools for organization/time management:

• The List Series (Part 1, Ilise's lists and a free list-making tool; Part 2, list taxonomy; Part 3, stimulating creativity with lists)
• Jott (free notetaking from your cellphone)
• TextExpander (time-saving auto-typing software)
• Photostamps (your mug on a stamp!)

and of course, to keep you on track with your marketing plan for 2008:

• the 2008 Grow Your Business marketing plan/calendar from Marketing Mentor

"Cheat sheets" (or startup guidelines):

• Money Management "Coffee Break" call topline (basic points to get a handle on finances)
• Ways to keep yourself motivated to blog (Guest Post from blogger/speaker Rebecca Morgan)
• How (and why) to "do" handwritten notes (Guest Post from Mike Kasalnek of HOARD)
• The introverted networker's survival guide (plenty of tips for extroverted veterans, too!)
• Top 12 tips for a thriving newsletter (I did a ton of research on this. Ugh!)

Using social media effectively:

• Twitter 101 (marketing & self-promotion in 140 characters or less
• Blogging 101 "Coffee Break" call topline (all the basics on blogging)
• LinkedIn success how-tos (Guest Post from copywriter Mary McCauley-Stiff)
• Getting the most out of mailing lists (do more than give & receive information; send a message!)

Which, if any, of these did you find especially helpful?

Time to prep for 2008

Well, it's almost too late to be making cold calls, now that the holidays are almost upon us. And most people are getting into the swing of holiday networking (if you need some holiday networking tips, here's a post we did last year on the topic pointing to Bruce Allen's excellent marketing blog). But it's not too early to start thinking about your marketing plans for 2008. Even if you'll be taking some time off to be with family, try to use some of the December down time to set a strong foundation for 2008 so you can hit the ground running in January.

Here's what we recommend for December marketing activities. Get yourself a glass of champagne and:

• Install time tracking software, such as Timefox to keep track of your actual time spent on jobs (and mention Marketing Mentor for a discount).
• Create or update your database of prospects, clients, colleagues, vendors and anyone else who needs to stay abreast of what you're doing. Weed out the prospects who no longer fit your criteria for “best prospects” and take some time to research more who resemble your “ideal client” profile.
• Install contact management software -- such as ACT for PC users, Daylite for Mac users or web-based Highrise -- to keep track of your marketing efforts

And if you need a marketing plan, try ours. We just launched the 2008 Grow Your Business Marketing Plan/Calendar. It's ready to go for December and there's a version for "Start ups" as well as for "Veterans." Check it out today (and forgive the blatant self promotion).

Getting ready to get organized

As we get close to year end, people seem to feel the need to get organized. Maybe that's why January is "Get Organized" Month. Anyway, lots of people are writing about it:

• The special Technology section from December 11th's Wall StreetJournal reviews the best software available to help you declutter your life. Lots of ideas for getting to-do lists under control, plus mind-mapping software that everyone seems to love (although I don't really get it).
• This week Marci Alboher, who writes the Shifting Careers blog for the NY Times, shares her top 5 time management tricks:
• And we launched the 2008 Grow Your Business Marketing Plan/Calendar.

Working holidays

Yes, it's a great, big, holiday weekend coming up. And for sure, I'll spend a chunk of it eating, relaxing, and playing with the new dog (click here for the total cuteness!)

But I will also spend a good portion of the next four days playing with business stuff. And yes, I said "play"—for me, these quiet times when everyone's out of town and the phones stop ringing are the best time to dive into some of the more "optional" but no-less-fun (and possible more fun) projects like...

• reorganizing digital files
• catching up with a lot of the to-read stuff I have bookmarked locally and on del.icio.us
• making some overdue changes on my websites and blogs
• "non-essential" marketing reading (e.g. that stack of Fast Companys, HOW magazines, etc., that have been piling up)
• crossing off pesky, smaller items from my to-do lists

I know The BF has some holiday weekend work-type stuff planned, too (the Great E-Bay Sale, for one). Does anyone else have any nerdy stuff planned, or are you all going to watch football and snooze on the sofa between snacks?

However you decide to spend it, have a great (and safe, if you're traveling) Thanksgiving!

All about lists, #3: Lists as (productive) playtime

This is the third in a series about lists: tools for making them, ways of making more useful—even using them as creative tools. Posted as inspiration strikes and time permits.

Long weekend coming up and to me, that means one thing: uninterrupted putter time!

I'll be attacking many non-urgent to-do items on various contextual lists, but I also plan to allow myself a few creative list-making opportunities.

Yes, I make lists the way some people do crosswords or sudoku—to keep my brain sharp. I mean, I do crosswords, too, but I confess to feeling guilty at only working my brain; I like working my brain and having something to show for it afterwards besides a filled out puzzle and (somewhat guilt-tinged) sense of accomplishment. Lists help keep my brain sharp and can, when plotted properly, provide a valuable public service.

Some Lists of Lists You Might Think of Tackling

These are helpful for everyone, and give your brain a fun, gentle stretch. For those who like to get double-duty out of stuff, they also make excellent blog posts!

• favorite movies for a rainy day
• favorite movies for Saturday
• favorite "go-to" movies (IMDb is great for tracking these: here's mine
• best experts on... (I wrote one on advice columnists)
• to 10 tips on whatever it is you know about (I did one on newsletters)
• top 100 books of all time
• top time-saving tips you've learned in your life
• five things you'd go back and tell your 20-year-old self
• five things you'd tell someone starting out in your industry right now
• best ways to use 5...10...15 (etc) minutes
• top 10 blogs that people MUST read
• etc.

The above lists do shed some insight onto your own psyche, which can be fun (and, yes, useful!) from a self-development standpoint. The potential lists below work that even harder. You can choose to externalize them or not. I provide links to my own lists that I've made public; people seem to find them entertaining at the least, occasionally illuminating at their best:

• the famed Proust questionnaire
• the 100 things you learned this year (2006, pt 1/pt 2; 2005, pt 1/pt 2; 2004, pt 1/pt 2)
• 43 things you'd like to learn (or do)
• how you got to where you are (I did 10 steps on How to Get to Happy)
• etc.

How about you—are you a closet/compulsive listmaker? What kinds of lists do you write to help keep your mind sharp and the world informed?

Let us know in the comments!

All about lists, #2: Taxonomy is everything

This is the second in a series about lists: tools for making them, ways of making more useful—even using them as creative tools. Check back tomorrow now and then for more list goodness.

In her (excellent) post about Ta-Da lists yesterday Monday, Ilise touched on the basics of what make lists such a valuable business/life tool. You can use them to quickly capture information, to organize your thoughts, even as Monkey Brain Reward—few things are more rewarding than checking stuff off a list.

She also shared her list of lists, which I found fascinating. I have many similar lists:

• running lists of stuff I need to discuss with Ilise, my Toastmasters board, etc.
• running lists of changes I want to make to my website, communicatrix-dot-com
• a "bucket" list I use to unload all the flotsam that accumulates in my noggin, which I occasionally go through and sort/prune

The thing is, I have way too many lists to list, the way Ilise does. At least, not without risk of embarrassment at exposing my OCD tendencies. (If you don't believe me, click here for a screenshot—and be aware that I edited the list of lists for public consumption.)

Because I'm a compulsive listmaker, taxonomy—labeling everything in some kind of sensical way—has become crucial. And one of the best ways to structure the naming of your lists is to use context as the defining principle, as David Allen describes in his organizational program, Getting Things Done (or GTD, for short). A major part of the GTD system is learning how to carve up the things you need to do in terms of context to make them most convenient to attack.

So a GTD-er would have her to-do lists sorted by where or when she might do them; David Allen suggests sticking an "@" sign in front of the contextual lists, to keep them all grouped together neatly. So a typical list of to-do lists for someone who travels a lot might be:

• @calls
• @office
• @home
• @computer
• @errands—home
• @errands—anywhere

The beauty of the system is that it can be sliced and diced in any way that works for you, and tweaked as you go along to better reflect how (and where) you spend you time.

If you're new to GTD, Merlin Mann has a great primer on his blog 43folders.com here.

If you're curious about contexts specifically, Merlin has an excellent post on them here.

How do you carve up your lists?