‘Ah Ha’ moment: I was 16 years old and after a 2010 summer internship I knew I wanted to be a voice speaking to my peers and young adults about topics important to them. With determination and gusto I set out and designed my own website and started my own internet radio show.

Ideal market: Young adults, and lately parents, too. As a speaker and author, my target markets are both youth and adults.

First guest: She was an American Idol contestant. I heard she was appearing at an event hosted by EMS bikers for Alex’s Lemonade stand. I asked to cover the event and interviewed her after her performance.

Measuring success: By not only accomplishing a goal you set out to reach but by how much effort you put into something you are pursuing at the moment. My earliest successes were designing my own website, covering a Twilight convention to get close to the stars who played the wolves in the movie, being recognized as press for events and given the chance to speak to 175 youths at an event.

Biggest struggle: Being seen as a credible speaker because I am a teen myself. I overcame it by not accepting no as an answer and, when given the opportunity to speak, I engage my audience.

Promoting business: Making appearances at different venues, book stores and events has helped to create the visibility I need for people to know who Lenore Luca is. Another thing I do is be readily available for others to talk to so they know I am truly concerned and believe they can make our generation prosper.

Two things I wished I knew before I started 1. So many people do not have the courtesy to let you know if they cannot follow through with something. 2. Starting your path toward your career at a young age takes creativity and tenacity to be taken seriously. To succeed takes work and networking is very important.

Ever think about throwing in the towel? It’s not an option for me. Yes, there were times when I thought to myself I just wanted to have a normal teen life, but then I think about what I’ve accomplished and how I am still striving to achieve my goals. I once said on my show. “Even motivational speakers need help staying motivated”.

Biggest goal in next year: To reach 500,000 people with the message of taking responsibility for their lives and becoming teens on the move. Along with that I want my second book to be published and be excitedly nervous that I can’t meet the demand for book orders.

Funding/advice on getting it: My funding is known as “Dad.” When I started out I needed to pay for my own website domain and then for my show on BlogTalk Radio. He offered to do it for me. It took about 1 ½ years for me to make some money. Now I am able to pay for my two websites and my radio show. As an author I needed to publish and print my book. Fortunately my speaking appearances and the books being ordered have covered the start-up expenses. Now I am looking to have companies sponsor me.

A few tips: As an entrepreneur it is important to have the strength needed to ride the roller coaster of ups and downs. Also, never ever accept no for an answer. Rejection is everywhere and if you don’t allow it to stop you, then anything is possible. So many of my peers have given up on following their dreams. I have also learned that once you publish a book people take what you say more seriously because your words are in print. You must promote who you are and what you do. People don’t know you exist unless you make sure of it, making sure to have your name seen everywhere all of the time. I know it’s hard but in the long run your dreams will come true.

The absolute best part of owning my business is: being proud that I set out and did this all on my own. If I had to start over again I would follow the same path yet work harder.

• Proof that you are a refreshingly successful entrepreneur?
• The satisfaction that you are making a difference for people who need what your business offers?
• A juicy lifestyle with lots of perks?

How about the opportunity to turn you into a multi-millionaire and leave a profound legacy for all the stakeholders your business touches?

That is the ultimate return on your investment in your business.

Your company could be the biggest asset you will ever own. Yes, it could be worth more than your home or your stock portfolio.

So how do you get that kind of return? You could turn to Kiplinger, the financial advice specialists. They note that there are 7 ways to become a millionaire. Several involve owning businesses.

Getting good at aggressive stock trading can work. Building a killer software app. Flipping real estate. Starting a business. Building a product. Or the sure-fire ‘make a video and make it go viral so you will be an instant star’ solution.

All involve risk. You’ve already accepted a high degree of risk because you own and are growing a business.

But Kiplinger made a ridiculously blinding omission when they made their list.

They neglected to mention that the fastest way to get rich quick is not starting the business, it is when you sell your business that real wealth is suddenly yours.

You become a millionaire by making your business saleable so that a buyer wants to acquire your business.

Making a company saleable is like owning a winning lottery ticket. Without the risk!

Could you make your business saleable?

Maybe. Let’s examine what it means to have a saleable business.

First you’ve got to know what kind of business you have and then examine whether you are willing to make a few adjustments in how you run your operation.

I’ve got good news and bad news for you.

There are two types of businesses:

• The Lifestyle business. You get a salary and dividends. Your business gives you a great lifestyle but slim returns on the investment in your asset.
• The Wealth Generating business. You and your team are adding the financial and operational systems that make your engine hum, metrics that tell you how you are doing and management strength into your business so you can claim market leadership.

Your Lifestyle business relies on you to lead it, work in a functional role and provide the secret sauce knowledge and relationships the company counts on for success. No matter how many employees you have or how successful your company is for you, this business is virtually unsaleable.

Which means that you will close it down one day if you can’t find someone to run it for you or pass it along to a family member. Even those options require that the company be able to function without you at the helm.

The Lifestyle business provides no return on your investment other that the returns you might capture by how you invest your dividends and salary personally.

The Wealth Generating Business is not reliant solely on you for its success. You’ve built a team around you, processes to exchange information and measure actions, you’ve set growth goals that make you the go to company in a critical market niche and have key employees that can do everything you can do and then some.

Buyers search the world for Wealth Generating Businesses.

I get asked questions about this topic all the time. Here are the answers to the questions you should be asking.

Q: If you own a Lifestyle Business can you make it into a Wealth Generating asset?

A: You bet. All it takes is choosing to make the switch and learning how to become saleable. And making the commitment to think of your business like an asset.

Q: But aren’t I working myself out of a job if I sell or exit my company before I’m ready to retire?

A: Let’s put it this way. If you bought a stock for $100 per share and over several years it shot up to $700 and you knew by looking at all the signs that over the course of the next year the price would drop down to $300, when would you choose to sell that stock? At $700? Or would you wait and hope that after drops down something will make it go back up again? Your business is an asset, not a job, not an identity. The right time to sell it is when it’s on the way up and your ideal buyer wants exactly what you have built. Your company has to be saleable when the ideal buyer is looking to buy, not the day you don’t feel like leading the business anymore. Unless you’ve changed your mind and you don’t want a return on your investment. Exiting your business doesn’t mean you are retiring. It means you are locking in your gains and then choosing to reinvest in something else that makes your heart sing.

Q: What’s the hardest part about making my business saleable?

A: There are three challenging aspects to changing your company direction:

1. You have to deal with the fact that your company will be more consistently profitable as a result of doing the work of becoming saleable. Then your phone will ring off the hook with every banker and business broker wanting to give you more money.
2. You will have to find other fresh pursuits for your time because a saleable company has a capable management team in place running the business for you. So if you don’t like change and believe in the illusion that if you’re in charge you have control, you won’t like making your company saleable.
3. You have to get out of your own way to allow the talented team of people you hired to do what you pay them for. Which means you can’t be the star of your own show any longer. You become their coach.

Q: So is it worth it to make my company saleable? What kind of return could I get?

A: Well, I can’t answer that specifically. What I can do is tell you that most businesses are unsaleable. One client we worked with was given a valuation of $7 million…on paper. But there were no buyers interested in helping the three partners get that big return on their asset because their profits were inconsistent. They weren’t known for anything special in their industry. After 18 months working through all their saleability issues, a buyer did seek them out… and gave them an offer 2.5 times more than that initial valuation. With the stroke of a pen, the three partners signed the offer and became millionaires. Their lifestyle business is now part of a big public company. Their employees are thriving. The partners have left a fabulous legacy after building it up from 10 people. If that kind of transformative experience gets your heart pounding then I’d suggest you sign up for the game.

Q: How do I learn what to do to change course and make my Lifestyle company a Wealth Generating asset?

A: You can learn more by reading Fast‐Track Secrets for Making Your Business Saleable. Make sure to get the book and the playbook so you can build your own custom saleability blueprint for how to transform your business. You can get additional resources at SpiritWest.com.

Lorraine McGregor, MBA is the co‐author with her husband Rob McGregor of the proven Make Your Business Saleable Resource System. Having helped more than 100 companies grow since 1990 as management consultants, they recognized that succession planning was not enough to give their clients a saleable asset. Lorraine is a frequent speaker and Amazon best selling author and is the past President of ACG Vancouver, the leading mergers and acquisitions association in North America.

When it comes to email marketing, the idea is simple: create content that inspires people to do something.

In practice, coming up with that content can be hard.

Just ask Jaye Myrick, Co-Owner of Take 5 Massage. She recently gave a presentation on how she boosted her open and clickthrough rates with strategic content, but she still doesn’t think it’s easy.

“I’d be lying if I said that,” she admits. “But there are ways that small business owners can make creating content a lot easier.”

Here are Jaye’s secrets to making email content so engaging that it drives opens, clicks, and, ultimately, sales:

1. The template

Above all, Jaye says her content template has been the key to her success. Each month, the team will scribble down any potential idea on this template to see how it will look in the email.

“It helps us stay organized,” Jaye says. “We’ll come up with different themes for each newsletter, but if we come up with a good idea that doesn’t fit a theme, we can put it in the template for another month and put it back in my desk.”

2. Finding sources of inspiration

One of the biggest problems for small business owners is just coming up with those ideas in the first place. Here are Jaye’s top sources for content inspiration:

• Email newsletters from other businesses
• Self content curation via social bookmarking service Delicious
• A notebook for ideas
• A mind map that helps her capture business values she can feature in emails
• Other businesses on Facebook
• Newspapers and magazines

The key for Jaye is to just “dip in” to different topics that can be broadly applied to massage.

During the Olympics, for example, she used a picture of an athlete getting a massage and used it as a jumping point for an article.

“Photos can make a huge difference,” she says.

3. Having a theme

Jaye makes sure that each newsletter doesn’t just have a theme, it has a timely theme. In August, the newsletter was all about children going back to school, and how starting school can be a stressful experience.

Having a theme as a cornerstone to your content can make it easier to come up with ideas and give email subscribers helpful information that also promotes your business.

4. The coupon

Jaye has found that you don’t need to offer a big reward with an email, either. In the above newsletter, she offered a $2 coupon, which can be redeemed either by printing it out and giving it to the massage therapist or just opening the email on a smartphone and displaying the coupon on the screen.

Take 5 Massage keeps track of every coupon redeemed and the massage therapists see over 300 redemptions each month.

5. A checklist for voice

Jaye has a checklist that she goes through every time she’s about to send an email. That way, she makes sure she doesn’t miss anything—whether it’s making sure the email is scheduled or an article is tagged correctly on the Take 5 blog.

The quirky part of this checklist is probably the most important: “We make sure we check for voice before we send anything out,” she explains.

That means making sure emails from Take 5 Massage clearly show the personality of the business.

“I’ll go through the text and punch it up if it seems a little boring,” Jaye says. “And the last thing I do is make sure that every ‘I’ in the email is turned to ‘we.’”

Breaking the bubble

Since she started applying content marketing strategies to her email newsletters, Jaye has seen an uptick in practically every metric.

The proportion of sales, clickthroughs, and open rates has gradually increased even as Take 5 Massage’s contact list has grown substantially:

What Jaye shows us is that content marketing is all about breaking the initial bubble that surrounds the product or service of any business.

Take 5 Massage’s email newsletters work because the content puts massage within the context of larger issues: from health, to stress, to work, to school.

At the core, content marketing is thinking about the other things your audience likely cares about, and then connecting those issues with your business.

Once you start planning appropriately, you may even find you have a different problem than before.

“I don’t ever run out of ideas anymore,” Jaye says. “I just run out of time.”

Looking for more resources about content marketing? Check out how one financial planner builds a content-rich email every time.

This advice is courtesy of Spark & Hustle National Sponsor Constant Contact. Constant Contact’s leading email marketing, social media marketing, event marketing, local deals, digital storefronts, and online surveys — supported by free KnowHow , personalized coaching, and award-winning product support — help all types of small businesses and organizations find new customers, drive repeat business, and generate referrals. Today, more than half a million customers worldwide trust Constant Contact to help them drive success.

‘Ah ha’ moment that led to launching this business: I started Women Are Gamechangers as a blog to share stories of the everyday women who were doing amazing things in business, community and life but receiving no recognition. It soon took off. I was getting inquiries about paying me to blog, helping with social media and covering events. That’s when I knew I could monetize this simple idea of telling stories into a business.

Ideal customer/target market: My ideal target markets are women who have left full time employment and starting their own business. As well as women who’ve been in business for awhile, but need more understanding on how to use networking and social media for their business.

First customer or client: My very first paying client came to me. I’m not sure how they found me, but were interested in me writing about an event in Houston I was covering. They wanted me to write about the event for their website as well.

Measuring success: By amount of people I genuinely help. I take pride in knowing that my services, chats, products, and blog posts are helping women take charge of their careers.

Biggest struggle: Getting people to understand what I actually do. I have found that my blog posts, YouTube videos, chats, events and speaking to them face-to-face have helped people gain a better understanding that Women Are Gamechangers can show them how to add valuable connections to their network.

Surprise!: The amount of time it takes to get something off the ground. But quality takes time to create.

Promoting business: Most people who buy from me or attend my events found me via social media. So social media has been a big help in gaining exposure.

Two things you wish you would’ve known when you started: I wish I had known what direction I was going in when I started. I also wish I had a plan instead of just falling into this opportunity.

What keeps you up at night (business-wise!)?: What keeps me up at night right now is Fusion Tour. It is my national networking tour and just getting everything in place for the other cities is nerve-wrecking. I’m stepping out on faith into a new direction with my signature event.

Ever tempted to throw in the towel and just get a job? No. I was forced to resign from teaching and never want to feel that helpless again. I don’t want someone else controlling if I will or can be employed ever again.

Biggest business goal over the next 12 months: To turn Fusion Tour into a highly sought after networking event tour that women entrepreneurs must attend. I will continue to provide an event unlike any other as well as create a stronger marketing presence through social media, traditional media, print and word of mouth.

Pricing/advice on getting it right? My prices are competitive. I look and see what is similar and stay competitive. I also make sure the quality I’m putting out warrants the prices I am charging. I know I’m in business thus I must charge my worth and women will get their value from it.

A few tips specific to your industry: My industry is literally networking. One thing that has helped me stand out besides my business name is offering something that doesn’t already exist. I truly have created my very own niche with my networking event. The advice I give is to use the gift you have and incorporate that into your business. That will set you apart from the rest. And that everything you do is of the highest quality possible.

The absolute best part of owning my business is: knowing I am using the gifts I have to leave a legacy in this world.

If I had to start over again, I would have: had a plan from the very beginning.

I never imagined: educating people about authentic networking would be so difficult.

If standing on a rooftop facing crowds of aspiring or struggling small business owners, I would shout, “You will never know what will happen unless you try.”

In this part of our series about coconut oil, Dr. Joseph Mercola discusses the benefits of coconut oil for your skin and heart. How can coconut oil improve your health? Find out below.

Besides the mounting medical and scientific evidence that coconut oil has powerful positive health benefits when eaten, it has also been used for decades by professional massage therapists to knead away tight stressed muscles. However, you don’t have to be a professional massage therapist to gain the skin and tissue support benefits of coconut oil. Just use coconut oil as you would any lotion.

Coconut oil is actually ideal for skin care. It helps protect your skin from the aging effects of free radicals, and can help improve the appearance of skin with its anti-aging benefits. In fact, physiologist and biochemist Ray Peat, Ph.D. considers coconut oil an antioxidant, due to its stability and resistance to oxidation and free radical formation. Plus, he believes it reduces our need for the antioxidant protection of vitamin E.

Like Dr. Peat, many experts believe coconut oil may help restore more youthful-looking skin. When coconut oil is absorbed into your skin and connective tissues, it helps to reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles by helping to keep your connective tissues strong and supple, and aids in exfoliating the outer layer of dead skin cells, making your skin smoother.

Heart disease is the number one cause of death in the U.S. And heart disease is often a silent killer. The first sign of cardiovascular disease is commonly a heart attack, and sadly, over one third of heart attacks are fatal. And despite the propaganda, the truth is this: it is UNSATURATED fats that are primarily involved in heart disease, not the naturally occurring saturated fats, as you have been led to believe.

Plus, the polyunsaturated fats in vegetable and seed oils encourage the formation of blood clots by increasing platelet stickiness. Coconut oil helps to promote normal platelet function.

This advice is courtesy of Hail Merry®, the Raw, Vegan, Gluten-Free snack brand that features healthy organic raw plant based oils and delivers superior taste and purity. The company is a women-owned certified business (WBENC) guided by experienced leaders who value healing foods and are dedicated to ingredient integrity. At Hail Merry, we believe sharing a journey to higher health is the path to a better world. Hail Merry is sold nationally at Whole Foods Market, Central Market, Natural Grocers/Vitamin Cottage and other natural foods retailers. Hail Merry® is also available at airports, stadiums, convention centers, colleges/universities and national hotels, such as Omni Hotels & Resorts.

This advice is courtesy of Spark & Hustle National Sponsor Constant Contact. Constant Contact’s leading email marketing, social media marketing, event marketing, local deals, digital storefronts, and online surveys — supported by free KnowHow , personalized coaching, and award-winning product support — help all types of small businesses and organizations find new customers, drive repeat business, and generate referrals. Today, more than half a million customers worldwide trust Constant Contact to help them drive success.

So, now that you have a sense of who your potential buyers might be, how do you go about reaching them? Assuming, of course, that you’re not going to be selling to people you’ve already identified, like your children or your key employees.

You could start by advertising your company yourself, in the “Business Opportunities” section of your local paper, strong regional papers, and/or the Wall Street Journal or New York Times. You could also start sending out feelers to your friends, associates, and network of business contacts to see whether they or anyone they know might be interested in buying your business.

However, we don’t recommend either of these tactics. If your employees, customers, and suppliers find out that the business is up for sale, you could have big trouble on your hands. Key employees might start jumping ship, and other employees might stop putting forth much effort if they see you as a lame-duck boss. Customers might search for other sources, and suppliers might search for other customers. Many people assume that when a company goes on the block, the primary reason is that it’s on shaky financial ground, so you may find that credit is not being extended to you or people don’t want to sign long-term contracts with you. Avoid all these problems. Keep your divestiture plans to yourself and your team of advisors as long as possible.

A better course of action is to let your business broker or mergers and acquisitions intermediary look for potential buyers for you. They should have a long list of contacts, including brokers in other areas of the country, to sift through in search of the perfect match. They may also advertise your business in local and national publications, trade journals, etc. under their name, not yours. Your broker should be able to approach potential buyers confidentially, keeping your name out of the discussion, until some positive interest is shown. The broker should also screen the potential buyers to weed out those who are merely nosy, and those with no visible means of coming up with the purchase price.

Prepare a selling memorandum. One of the best tools to promote the sale of your business is a selling memorandum. This is essentially a business plan in reverse. It should present all the important information about your company, products, industry, and market in an easy-to-grasp format that presents your company in a very positive light. The elements of a selling memorandum are very similar to what you’d find in a business plan that was prepared for a venture capitalist or a banker.

You’ll need to start with an executive summary that briefly lays out your key selling points, and tells the buyer why you want to sell. The buyer will always want to know why you are selling, so have some plausible explanation ready that casts your business in a good light!

You’ll also need sections that describe

• the facts about your company’s history, structure, and operations;
• the asking price and basic terms you’re looking for;
• your industry, market, and products;
• your employees and physical assets;
• historical and projected financial statements; and
• any other information that will explain who you are and why your business is such a strong opportunity.

Keep in mind who your audience is, and don’t divulge any information that you wouldn’t want your competitors to see. On the other hand, remember that a lot of your financial information is publicly available anyway, so there’s no need to be paranoid.

Your selling memorandum is essentially a marketing piece, and it’s likely that your business broker will want to have a hand in creating it. In addition, you should run it past your lawyer and accountant (in fact, it’s likely that your accountant will provide the financial information you include). In most cases, this memorandum is not considered a prospectus that would need to comply with SEC or state securities regulations. Nevertheless, it’s important to make sure that your statements are accurate and not misleading or incomplete, and that your projections and written expectations for the business are reasonable.

In particular, if problems exist, don’t try to cover them up. The buyer will find out eventually, and will probably distrust everything you say after that. In the worst-case scenario, you could be sued for fraud. Instead, where problems exist, briefly state the problem and then present one or more possible solutions. For example, if your revenues have been falling off, but you think a new advertising campaign will drive up sales, make sure that the two ideas are linked in your memorandum.

This article is courtesy of Huggies MomInspired Grant Program. Huggies recognizes that there is a dynamic and talented community of moms who strive to make life as a parent easier and more enjoyable every day. They’re giving moms a chance to channel their moments of ingenuity into products that help improve the lives of children and parents through the Huggies MomInspired Grant Program. Now in its fourth year, the Huggies MomInspired Grant Program celebrates the natural creativity of parents, who solve real parenting challenges every day in innovative ways. Since 2010, 32 $15,000-grants have been awarded to provide capital and business resources to help fund business startups and new product innovations inspired by parenthood. Applications for the 2013 Huggies MomInspired Grant Program open on May 6th, so be sure to apply for your chance to receive $15,000 in capital as well as business resources at HuggiesMomInspired.com to help you channel your moments of ingenuity into products that help improve the lives of children and parents!

See the original article here.

‘Ah ha’ moment: It came when I realized that when you have so many orders to fill that you could stay awake 24 hours a day/7 days a week and still not complete them, so it was time to turn the hobby into an official business. When your husband is checking on hotel rates because there is no longer any room for his belongings in the home due to space, it’s time to get a showroom!

Ideal customer/target market: is any age, any day, any time.

First customer: A girlfriend who worked at Saks and within one week of her wearing one, she had 22 other friends lined up to purchase a custom cuff.

Measuring success: My success is not measured in a dollar amount. I measure success if, at the end of the day, I am content with what I have done yet still burning with ideas about what I could continue to do.

Biggest struggle: Balancing home life with brand new business. I overcame it by reminding myself that all new babies eventually grow up and become more manageable.

Surprise!: The more money you make the more you have to spend!

Promoting business: I come up with fresh ideas each week/month via Facebook/Constant Contact to always keep introducing new products and new promotions.

What I wish I would have known: 1. Undercommit. 2. Overperform.

What keeps me up at night: Wondering if someone in my office remembered to blow out the candles we had going that day to keep things smelling fresh.

Ever tempted to throw in the towel? Never. I cannot say that about any other job/venture.

Biggest business goal over next year: To make Rustic Cuff a household name in all 50 states.

Pricing: In the beginning I wanted each customer to be able to afford one for herself and one for a friend. I still maintain that goal for at least half of my cuffs.

A tip: Always keep it fresh and stay ahead of the trends, not behind.

The absolute best part of owning my own business is: freedom.

If I had to start over again, I would have: done the exact same thing.

I never imagined: saying no would be so difficult.

If standing on a rooftop facing crowd of aspiring or struggling small business owners, I would shout “Rome wasn’t built in a day.”

When Adrian Taylor co-founded Vertical Image Property Photography in 2006, he knew there was a difficult task in front of him.

After all, the Surrey, UK based company, which “provides imaging services to marketers of premium properties,” was unknown and needed to build a client base from scratch.

So how did he do it? Email marketing!

Vertical Image’s goal was to show readers examples of the company’s unique, low-altitude, aerial shots to get them to really “experience” the business. “We wanted our clients to be able to imagine the possibilities through imagery that inspires,” Adrian says.

Using email marketing, Vertical Image Property Photography has grown their client base to over 250 agents and developers, with plans to increase this number to 750 by the end of 2013. The company is also expanding into France and Germany.

With stylized graphics, imagery, and content that was relevant to its readers in their emails, Vertical Image created a balance of information that appealed to readers and got them to take action.

Just take a look:

A. THE HEADER

Adrian starts his emails with a visual header introducing the company. The logo establishes the brand while the stylized categories across the top identify different areas of the business and drive traffic back to the website.

The photos arranged below the categories provide concrete examples of their service. Take advantage of your header by introducing your business to the reader.

B. SIDE BAR

Using a side bar to feature the “shots of the month” series, Adrian generates further interest around the Vertical Image brand. Highlighting clickable links with “click here” graphics draws attention and engages the reader.

The column’s visual component is simple and showcases Vertical Image’s work. Using a column or sidebar is an effective way to properly utilize space and compliment your other content.

C. CONTENT

Disclosing the right amount of information without being boring or “salesy” can be a challenge. Adrian keeps readers invested by creating a story they can connect with. He provides context to the visuals and cites studies that support Vertical Image’s purpose. Using data and stories that resonate reinforces the power of your work so customer interest turns into desire.

D. SUM IT ALL UP

After letting the majority of the content speak for itself, Adrian presents a call to action followed by a summarized bullet list of Vertical Image’s services. Getting to the bottom line with a footer that both highlights the benefits of your business and provides contact information is the best way to leave an impression on your reader and prepare them to take the next step.

Snapshot of Success

Adrian directly attributes the majority of Vertical Image’s business growth to email marketing. “Several clients have told me they gave us work initially because the emails were so great,” he explains.

Now that’s a testimonial every business would like to hear.

Vertical Image doesn’t miss an opportunity when it comes to email marketing. How can your business make the most of its message and turn readers into customers?

Ready to jumpstart your email marketing to rev up your sales? Sign up for Constant Contact Email Marketing today.

This advice is courtesy of Spark & Hustle National Sponsor Constant Contact. Constant Contact’s leading email marketing, social media marketing, event marketing, local deals, digital storefronts, and online surveys — supported by free KnowHow , personalized coaching, and award-winning product support — help all types of small businesses and organizations find new customers, drive repeat business, and generate referrals. Today, more than half a million customers worldwide trust Constant Contact to help them drive success.

‘Ah ha’ moment that led to launching this business: As a school teacher, many parents ask me to create a visual daily routine to help their kids at home get organized and out the door faster in the morning or help with bedtime routines. I drew and created visual routines for free for so many years until I realized one day that there just might be a product here.

Ideal customer: Families with small kids, families with children with special needs and educators.

First customer: Word of mouth

Measuring success: My top three: 1) Seeing my own children smiling and happy because this shows me that no matter how crazy being a “mom-preneur” can be, I put my family and children first. 2) When I receive an e-mail from a mom with three children with autism or a foster parent writes to me about how their lives are becoming easier because of Easy Daysies, my heart smiles and cries at the same time and keeps me going when I am working at the kitchen table until 4 a.m. 3) Knowing that I am not putting my family and finances at risk.

Biggest struggle: Learning when to take a break, allowing myself to step away from it all when I could be doing Easy Daysies all day long every single day of the week. It becomes your child: you feel like you have to be there, feeding it, taking care of it, nurturing it, controlling it, making sure that it is healthy, fit, teaching it to crawl, then walk, and then one day be able to run on its own.

Surprise!: One of my biggest surprise moments was when we took Easy Daysies on a popular Canadian pitch-your-idea-to-investors show called Dragons’ Den/Shark Tank, after being encouraged by our retailers to get off my kitchen table and get bigger. We auditioned and were chosen to fly in and be part of the taping of the show. The producer had me bring my husband and the three little ones. We stood in front of the Dragons and incited a bidding war between all five investors and were blessed to have secured two of them to be our partners. After the show and due diligence, we were the first business to sign a deal that season!

Promoting business: I have found that when I sell directly, it always results in the best sales, but I cannot be in every store, or fair, or event. I’m still trying to figure it out. There is always a surge in sales when our episode of Dragons’ Den replays on TV nation wide. We can see the orders come in province by province.

Two things you wish you would’ve known when you started: How much time it takes and how little sleep there was going to be. When women write to me asking me for advice or telling me that they have a great idea but don’t have time to figure out the next step, I gently break it to them that doing the research is the easy part and if they do not have time to do that now, they are not going to have time to do the rest.

What keeps you up at night (business-wise!)?: There is no time zone in the business world, so I have learned. I am often corresponding with people overseas, either by phone, e-mail or skype. No one knows that I have pajama bottoms on. But the kids are asleep, no one needs me and I can process shipments, create product, make orders, deal with account payables, receivables, reply to e-mails, create marketing strategies, and pack my children’s lunches for school for the next day.

Ever tempted to throw in the towel and just get a job? Yes, I have caught myself saying several times, it would be so nice to just be a teacher again, have my week nights and weekends and have a paycheck again. But then I remember how excited my children are that their mommy is the Easy Daysies lady, and how proud they are when they see their mommy’s product in a local store or on TV. I hope to inspire my children to have ideas and to create, to work hard and try their best and not give up.

Biggest business goal over the next year: My biggest goal is to try to be less involved with every single aspect of my business, to learn how to delegate and let go of control over everything.

A few tips that are specific to your industry: When I am asked for advice by people who are wanting to make a new product or offer a new service, I always tell them that the two things they want to make sure they do is: 1) ask themselves if there is a need for that product or service and does it solve a problem and 2) do the research and find out if there is something out there like it already.

The absolute best part of owning my business is: being able to spend time at home with my children and revolve my work around them as best as I can.

If I had to start over again, I would have: done it all the same.

I never imagined: being a woman in business would be so difficult.

If standing on a rooftop facing crowds of aspiring or struggling small business owners, I would shout, “Don’t ever give up in what you believe in.”

Do men and women have the same nutritional requirements for a healthy diet? No, in fact women need more healthy fats, like omega oils in essential fatty acids, than men due to differences in percent body fat, distribution of body fat (pear versus apple), and hormones.

Current research has found that the proportion of energy derived from fat is increased during low to moderate intensity exercise in women as compared to men. In other words, women burn a greater ratio of fat to carbs than men. According to a 2000 report in the “Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport,” during endurance exercise, women metabolize more fats but fewer carbohydrates and amino acids (proteins) than men. This suggests that active women require proportionately more lipids (fats) to carbohydrates and proteins in their diet, while active men seem to require more carbohydrates and proteins than lipids. I found this interesting since so many women perceive fat to be bad. In truth, fat is a women’s best friend. Essential fatty acids (EFA) are vital to the proper functioning of the body, and are the major source of energy for the body when at rest and for mild intensity activities. Unlike carbohydrates, which stimulate insulin and fat production in the body, EFAs provides energy independent of insulin involvement. Eating good fats does not equate to getting fat but, eating too many carbs does.

Essential fatty acids (otherwise referred to as omega oils) are long chain fats synthesized by plants and fish but not by the human body and therefore a dietary requirement. Essential fatty acids play a vital role in the health of the membrane of every cell in our body. The benefits of omega oils include reducing the risk of heart disease and stroke while helping to reduce symptoms of hypertension, depression, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), joint pain and other rheumatoid problems, as well as certain skin ailments. Some research has even shown that omegas can boost the immune system and help protect us from an array of illnesses including Alzheimer’s disease. Can the need for more fat and women’s fear of eating it partially explain why females have higher rates of autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, multiple sclerosis, celiac disease, even diabetes? Possibly. Do good fats have a protective aspect to them? Absolutely, research has shown time and again that eating omega oils helps reduce inflammation and lessen the symptoms of many autoimmune diseases. It is time that the medical and health community acknowledge the importance of fat in a healthy diet and leave low-fat diets as a thing of the past.

What does this mean for women? EAT MORE PLANT FAT! One of nature’s richest sources of essential fatty acids is found in raw nuts and seeds. Hail Merry® Grawnola is loaded with Omega 3 raw flax seeds & raw walnuts and is also properly balanced with Omega 6 raw sunflower seeds to keep your engine humming and your skin glowing.

Plus, our grawnola is a perfect fit for any gym bag, suitcase or lunch box- a transportable fresh Gluten-Free snack with healthy omegas, all within reach, for people on the go. Trust and Purity in a Bag!

This advice is courtesy of Hail Merry®, the Raw, Vegan, Gluten-Free snack brand that features healthy organic raw plant based oils and delivers superior taste and purity. The company is a women-owned certified business (WBENC) guided by experienced leaders who value healing foods and are dedicated to ingredient integrity. At Hail Merry, we believe sharing a journey to higher health is the path to a better world. Hail Merry is sold nationally at Whole Foods Market, Central Market, Natural Grocers/Vitamin Cottage and other natural foods retailers. Hail Merry® is also available at airports, stadiums, convention centers, colleges/universities and national hotels, such as Omni Hotels & Resorts.

What led to launching this business: I realized that an entire market existed of parents just like me who want to work for themselves and enjoy their family time, who were in need of professional accounting services that pay attention to their needs.

Ideal customer/target market: Moms and dads with home-based business, micro-business, and other unique working arrangements.

First customer or client: My first customer came from a free business listing on mampedia.com.

Measuring success: I measure it in several ways: 1) in meeting my goals for contributing to my family’s finances, 2) building a regular client base, 3) receiving referrals from my clients.

Biggest struggle: Time management. Learning how to run a business and a household and take care of my four kids. I wouldn’t say that I have overcome it just yet, but I have been moving forward by trying to learn from others; including working with a professional organizer.

Surprise!: How much I find myself wanting to work.

Promoting business: I reached out to a single business owner who I thought I could help, gained her business and her referrals which have led to almost half the clients I currently work with.

Two things you wish you would’ve known: One, it’s okay to make mistakes. To own them, fix them, and move on. And two, I can do this.

What keeps you up at night (business-wise!)?: Worrying about meeting deadlines and client expectations.

Ever tempted to throw in the towel and just get a job? No, but I struggled early on with the confidence and self-discipline to go it alone.

Biggest business goal over the next year: I have reached the point that I can no longer take on new clients without hiring some help, so my goal this year is to hire my first employee. My plan is to get organized and create processes in order to assign responsibilities to employee(s) and shift my attention to marking and client intake.

Pricing/advice on getting it right: Research your competition and know your market.

Funding/advice on pursuing it: I am lucky to be in a service industry which required very little startup fund and I was very quickly able to fund additional growth with reinvested earnings. My advice is, when possible, to consider ways to start small and reinvest.

A few tips specific to your industry: As a provider of professional services, know where your clients are looking for you. In my case, clients look online or they look for referrals.

The absolute best part of owning my business is: being in control. I decide when to work, how to work, and who I work with.

If I had to start over again, I would have: more confidence.

I never imagined: setting boundaries between work and family would be so difficult.

If standing on a rooftop facing crowds of aspiring or struggling small business owners, I would shout, “Don’t save your bookkeeping for tax time. Accounting records should help you run your business — not just calculate your taxes.”

If you’re new to email marketing, then you may be wondering what everyone wonders at some point: how the heck do I get started with this thing? Who do I email and how do I get those email addresses?

A lot of small businesses and organizations face a daunting task when they’re trying to create a list of all their email contacts.

Mainly, the fact that they just don’t have any email addresses.

So, I recently spoke with marketing consultant Sandi Abbot, the owner of Xpresso Marketing, about how organizations can build an email list if they don’t have any contacts.

How can an organization start a list from scratch?

That’s a really common question. A lot of the time, clients come to me and say that they have no contacts, but they really do.

Every business has a current customer base. They have contacts in their Outlook that they’ve been communicating with. That list of names is a great starting point. You also need to think about your referral sources.

After that, you’ve got to start thinking differently about each contact you make.

Every point of contact, whether it’s a customer service call or a sales meeting or a networking event, is an opportunity to grow your email list.

How should businesses promote an email list?

I encourage my clients to put an email sign-up form on LinkedIn, Facebook, their website, and every other point of contact that they have.

Potential leads for business should be engaged and given a way to keep in touch. One big point of contact is events, where you should always ask people if they want to join your email list.

What are the best ways to get email contacts from Facebook?

There are a couple of things that you could do.

One way is to use Social Campaigns from Constant Contact, to run a contest. You can ask your fans for contact information right on the landing page.

That way, you can get your existing fanbase to become subscribers. You can offer them a chance to win a prize, offer them a special discount or free downloadable resource, in exchange for their email address.

From there, you can set up an AutoResponder to send messages to the people who signed up from Facebook. You can set up a special contact list for your Facebook fans.

One of the things I do for a retail chain that’s sending out coupons all the time is announce an e-blast on Facebook a few days before it goes out.

I’ll say something like, “If you want in on this deal, click here and sign up to join our email list.”

I usually post it a few days before. Then, a day before or so, I tease them with, “This is about to hit your inbox, so sign up now.”

Are there any secret tips or strategies for building a list during the holiday season?

The holiday time of year is when people are looking for deals. You could run a contest giving out a free shopping spree or whatever else your business can offer, that can encourage people to join.

It’s a good time to build lists. You can say something like, “In the spirit of giving, we’ve got something great for our email subscribers.”

If you have a store, you can give them a free discount or gift on the spot.

What are some of the best ways to segment a list?

There are a few good ways that I use.

One is at the point of entry, in the website sign-up form. When a person signs up, you can give them a choice on what topics they are interested in.

That way, you can pinpoint the type of products and services they are most interested in. Let’s say that you’re a spa and you provide nail treatments, laser hair removal, and other services. By segmenting your email list, you can send your customers offers that are relevant to them.

Another way is to ask customers every six months what information they want to receive, update the list with their preferences.

When you do send an email, you can create lists based on what people have clicked on—for example a specific product, service, or workshop—that shows that they’re very engaged with the material you’re offering.

You can also segment using Online Survey, I use this a lot to segment the list and also followup on specific interests.

Tell us about a client you worked with who started with a small list and take us through the steps of growing it.

I have a client who hadn’t been gathering email addresses at all, it just wasn’t something that was on their radar.

They thought they had no contacts at all, but as a nonprofit, they do a lot of event marketing.

One of the things we did was go to the membership base. During meetings, we asked for email addresses to start that process and build the list.

We started gathering emails at the events, too. When people registered or came to pick up their ticket, we asked if they wanted to join the email list. Every event from that point forward, we made a point to gather those addresses.

We really had to educate the staff to think of email addresses as a gold mine and show them that it’s a necessary resource to get the word out about what they’re doing.

Also, I had my client go to other nonprofits they worked with and ask them to send a invitation to their subscriber base inviting them to join the list. Of course, we reciprocated on our social sites, inviting our fans to learn more about the nonprofits we worked with.

We also added an email sign-up form on the website.

Building an email list is a slow process sometimes, but you just have to keep at it.

So what happened with that client?

We started with about 150 contacts and now we’re up to 900.

We had some false starts, too. At the beginning, it was falling apart because some of the volunteers weren’t told about the new procedure. A lot of it was about training people to collect those email addresses at the point of contact.

Any last thoughts on building an email list?

Don’t underestimate the power of the website sign-up box.

If you don’t have a prominent sign-up box on your website, you’re missing a big opportunity. Text-to-join, too, is a great feature at networking events, because everyone’s on their phone.

But having the box on the website is critical.

For example, I had a retail client who came to me who had a house list of 13,000 names. They had a website that was not serving their needs, so we redid the website. The first thing we did was put an email sign-up there, offering an instant discount when they signed up.

Now, they have over 22,000 emails. They got more than 10,000 email sign-ups through the website. That’s important, because when you’re a retail store you have a lot of churn. The website has been a key part of their growth.

I’m an email evangelist. Even if you don’t have a budget for anything else, I always tell clients that email is the most cost-effective marketing tool to stay connecting with your clients and build a referral base.

Any organization needs to keep knocking on their audience’s front door, and an email address is that front door. That’s why email marketing is so important.

Want to learn more about building an email list? Check out 15 Ingredients to Cook Up a Delicious Email From Scratch!

This advice is courtesy of Spark & Hustle National Sponsor Constant Contact. Constant Contact’s leading email marketing, social media marketing, event marketing, local deals, digital storefronts, and online surveys — supported by free KnowHow , personalized coaching, and award-winning product support — help all types of small businesses and organizations find new customers, drive repeat business, and generate referrals. Today, more than half a million customers worldwide trust Constant Contact to help them drive success.

‘Ah ha’ moment that led to launching this business: When I was 20 years old I got a job waiting tables at a Burger Shop to make some extra spending cash. I worked only a couple of shifts a week and wanted to maximize my time and my tips. My grandmother who was quite successful in the restaurant business offered me the advice to ‘wear flowers’ in my hair to make better tips. It was her little trick, which I truly doubted would have actually work. But I tried it and sure enough she was right. I realized that wearing a fresh flower was a great way to share nature’s positive energy and start conversations with customers. By the end of my first shift wearing a flower I had nearly doubled my tips. I wanted to create a mini vase earring that would hold a little water and keep my flowers fresher throughout my shift. This was my Ah Ha moment. I had no experience casting jewelry but I have a good hand for drawing… so I drew out some ideas and a couple of years later I found someone who could make my design come to life and that’s when my line was born. From the earrings, I made necklaces… soon I will have lapel pins and mini vase hair clips too. It has been quite fun.

Ideal customer/target market: Women of all ages. Fleurings are perfect for proms and weddings. I would love to see my product more prominently in the bridal market because Fleurings makes the perfect bridesmaid gift. Any warm tropical locations where flowers grow year round are also ideal for selling Fleurings.

First customer or client: I recall one of the very first places that carried my line was Magical Blooms and they still carry the full line at their store in Redondo Beach.

Measuring success: I measure my success by my sales and by how many repeat customers I have. One of my proudest sales was when a friend bought one necklace from my site then she came back and bought several more a month or two later for her all of the bridesmaids in her wedding.

Biggest struggle: My biggest struggle has been my goal to see Fleurings on a major shopping channel. I would love to present Fleurings along with a host because I am so passionate about my line that I know it would sell very well. I have not yet overcome this struggle but one of the things I am doing is cutting together a small direct response type of video for presentation. Fingers crossed. I’m sure one day or the next it will happen, that dream will come true.

Surprise: To see how much fulfillment and satisfaction I have gotten from building something from scratch. It’s great seeing people love my product. It’s a wonderful feeling.

Promoting business: Running online sales through deal sites like Fab.com, and other third party boutique websites like TheDailyGrommet.com where they created a video review… those efforts lead to direct sales. News segments on TV like Tory Johnson’s on GMA always lead to excellent sales, far better than any results I have seen through magazines so far. Setting up an email newsletter to stay connected to your customers and build your audience is another great way to increase sales. Facebook ads have broken even and in some cases made me some money, but not much. They are hit and miss for my business, but I do think having a fan page to communicate with potential customers and run deals has been essential.

Two things you wish you would’ve known: 1) You need a rep because you can’t do this all alone. 2) I found that Shopify.com is the greatest online platform for building a website yourself. I spent thousands hiring people to build a website… something I did on my own with Shopify. Now I have full control over the look of my site. I can make changes to it anytime I want and it’s far more affordable, cost effective and has so many wonderful applications for marketing, and fulfillment.

What keeps you up at night (business-wise!)?: When I think I overlooked an order or didn’t follow through on an email, or if I have a big sale or order coming up that I need to prep.

Ever tempted to throw in the towel and just get a job? Absolutely. I have considered going back to a regular surefire income many times. Even now I supplement my income by teaching Bikram Yoga and I am also an actress so that brings in money from time to time as well. But growing a business from the ground up eats up a lot of my fun money and it is very time consuming and challenging as much as it has been rewarding. Sometimes I will spend the money I want to use on myself on my business. It really is like having a child. Last year I tried Google Ads and feel like I lost a lot of money doing that. My sales never improved from that investment. Trial and error. You live and learn and perhaps I will try those types of ads again in the future but I will do it differently.

Biggest business goal over the next year: I would love to see my business pull in a very steady average of 6,000 to 10,000 per month in sales online and wholesale accounts. My numbers vary according to how much publicity and promotion the line gets, so I plan to focus on more promotional. I want to get more YouTube Haulers to do reviews, more TV news and PR coverage, as well as build relationships with more jewelry reps to create more wholesale and boutique accounts. I would like to focus more on wholesale accounts in the next 12 months, more so than I have in the past.

Pricing/advice on getting it right? Knowing your target audience is key. I think offering a range of prices is also very good. I think it’s nice to offer something that is on the more affordable side and then some things that are more high end and special so people have options when they are shopping. I am always trying to perfect my pricing. It seems every market is different. Some boutiques prefer higher pricing while others prefer a significantly lower retail price. I say get as many professional opinions about this as possible and just make a choice. At the end of the day you can always go back and tweak your prices if they are not working. Pricing is an art form unto itself.

A few tips specific to your industry: When you are starting off small, save money on packaging by using inexpensive boxes or bags. I often buy supplies on RioGrande.com. Also I suggest purchasing shipping supplies from Uline.com to save cash. For manufacturing needs, I use Alibaba.com as a great resource. I found foam flowers made in Thailand through that site. I had meetings another company Stephen Gould & Associates who helped me with some packaging needs as well. With them I wound up designing and buying some very cute die cut flower tags that really give my line some branding. The tags also clearly describe what the jewelry does which my retailers really appreciate because it helps my in store sales. Lastly I recommend ShipStation.com for making fulfillment and shipping a million times easier.

The absolute best part of owning my business is: seeing people love my work.

If I had to start over again, I would have: worked even harder.

I never imagined: growing a business would be so difficult.

If standing on a rooftop facing crowds of aspiring or struggling small business owners, I would shout, “If you believe in yourself, nothing can stop you from succeeding. Go for it.”

Hail Merry Snacks are suitable for diabetics because they contain low amounts of carbohydrates, no refined sugars but plenty of fiber, raw plant oils including coconut oil and flavor! In fact our Grawnola contains 30-50% fewer carbs than leading brands!!

1 in 12 Americans has diabetes and 1 in 4 is prediabetic – that’s over 100 million of us! If diabetes is not taken seriously NOW- it will cripple our nation with health care costs. Luckily, it is possible to reverse the growing diabetes epidemic by Feeding Your Body Royally! Diabetes occurs when the body is unable to regulate the level of glucose in the blood, resulting in too much glucose being present. Over time, high blood glucose levels increase the risk of heart attack, stroke, impotence, and foot problems; and may cause serious complications, such as damaged eye blood vessels, nerve cells and kidneys. Prediabetes means that your blood sugar level is higher than normal, but it’s not yet increased enough to be classified as diabetes. Still, without intervention, prediabetes is likely to become diabetes in 10 years or less. For more information about the disease visit the World Diabetes Foundation’s site.

Luckily a healthy lifestyle, such as eating nutritious foods, being physically active and maintaining a healthy weight can bring your blood sugar level back to normal. Carbohydrates make your blood glucose level go up. The more carbohydrates you eat, the higher your blood sugar. Therefore people with diabetes and prediabetes should count carbohydrates and eat a low-carb diet.
Hail Merry Grawnola= 17 grams carbohydrate
Hail Merry Macaroons= 10 grams carbohydrates
Hail Merry Miracle Tart= 9 grams carbohydrates

Here’s a breakdown of how exactly Hail Merry snacks fit into a diabetic plan:

This advice is courtesy of Hail Merry®, the Raw, Vegan, Gluten-Free snack brand that features healthy organic raw plant based oils and delivers superior taste and purity. The company is a women-owned certified business (WBENC) guided by experienced leaders who value healing foods and are dedicated to ingredient integrity. At Hail Merry, we believe sharing a journey to higher health is the path to a better world. Hail Merry is sold nationally at Whole Foods Market, Central Market, Natural Grocers/Vitamin Cottage and other natural foods retailers. Hail Merry® is also available at airports, stadiums, convention centers, colleges/universities and national hotels, such as Omni Hotels & Resorts.