When you’re just getting started in business, it helps to have mentors.
Especially when you’re trying to do something no one in your immediate circle of friends or business contacts has done.
You know, the ones who look at you quizzically when you try to explain your plans for creating a digital empire where you get to express yourself, help others achieve something positive, and get more clients, customers and sales, all at the same time.
“You’re going to do what, now?” Yep, I’ve been asked that a few times.
But I didn’t let it stop me.
I went online and found biz and marketing mentors who were doing what I wanted to do, and started learning and implementing what they taught me.
The following five marketing mentors are the ones I follow consistently, and whose blogs, newsletters, webinars, free reports, videos, and in a couple of cases, paid programs, have been the most useful and actionable to me as a small business owner.
They’ve taught me plenty about marketing online and business in general (and life too, yeah), and I bet you can learn heaps from them as well.
LAURA ROEDER
I’ve probably learned more actionable, immediately implementable online marketing strategies from Laura than from anyone else to date. She’s one of two people on this list whose paid products I’ve purchased. (So far.)
Laura offers accessible, practical, easy to understand and simple to implement social media marketing instruction. Both her free content and paid programs are full of real-world strategies and techniques that work.
As she says, “I make technology, specifically social media marketing, dead-simple to understand and implement.”
Agreed.
If you want to learn how to market your small business with Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, and a whole lot more, and you like your advice straightforward and uncomplicated, then Laura’s your go-to girl.
My biggest takeaway from Laura . . . technology and social media marketing do NOT have to be difficult or time-consuming. You can get results and have fun – yes, fun! – by doing a few things consistently and well.
Laura’s site: http://lkrsocialmedia.com/
Follow Laura on Twitter: @lkr
MARIE FORLEO
Marie is a goddess of holistic business and life advice. You’ll get guidance on everything from “How to Transition from Your Day Job to Your Dream Business,” to combining multiple passions in your business, to “What to Do When You Doubt Everything + Just Wanna Stay in Bed,” and lots more besides.
I love her combination of real-world life advice and implementable marketing strategies, with a whole lotta keepin’- it-real and hip hop sensibility & fun tossed into the mix.
Marie calls herself a “multi-passionate” entrepreneur and tells us we can be the same and still have a business and life that works. God love her for that.
She walks her talk when it comes to this – she’s a living example of it – as you’ll see when you watch her videos.
My biggest takeaway from Marie . . . it’s entirely possible – and recommended – to bring your multiple passions into your business and use your unique talents to change the world – and achieve massive financial and life success in the process.
Marie’s site: http://marieforleo.com/
Follow Marie on Twitter: @marieforleo
DANIELLE LAPORTE
Danielle offers a kick-a** combo of poetic and writerly, yet realistic and straightforward, guidance. There’s no b.s. in her digital domain. She’s smart, helpful and direct, and the well of her emotional intelligence seems bottomless. Think a whole lot of practical with a huge helping of spark-inducing, inspiration-generating business and life advice rolled into an outspoken package.
Two of my favorite things she says: “there is no such thing as life balance,” and “your mantra of choice is ‘you’ll figure it out.’ ”
Go to her site and watch the 1:46 minute video, “A Credo for Making It Happen” for some instant inspiration. And for the stuck full-in experience, check out her book, The Fire Starter Sessions.
My biggest takeway from Danielle . . . it’s possible to be your most authentic self online and still be uber-successful – without selling your soul to the online devil and writing the same stuff in the same way everyone else in your niche is doing. Be an artist, a poet, a writer’s writer, if you want. It’s all good.
Danielle’s site: http://www.daniellelaporte.com/
Follow Danielle on Twitter: @daniellelaporte
NAOMI DUNFORD
Oh, Naomi. Love her. In fact, I read all her emails, even the sales & offers emails, with great joy. She’s a terrific communicator, whip-smart and funny.
And she tells it like it is. Her marketing advice is of the cut-the-b.s.-and-just-tell-me-what-works-variety, delivered with a healthy dose of tough love, all wrapped in an officially licensed warm fleece Snuggie of wise and witty writing.
She describes her site, IttyBiz, as “a place to get tips, advice, motivation, and support for your very small business. If you’re working from home or just thinking about it, come and hang out here for some great ideas and bad jokes.”
My biggest takeaway from Naomi . . . how to prioritize business activities, especially when you’re not swimming in clients and cash and you need to get some money rolling into your business pronto. In that case, thing #1 you have to do is get real and focus on the activities that are “closest to cash.”
This piece of advice literally changed my business. When there’s an 87-item to-do list and the hours are slipping by, the directive to focus on my “closest to cash” activities brings me instant clarity.
Naomi’s site: http://ittybiz.com/
Naomi on Twitter: @NaomiDunford – I don’t believe Naomi is active on Twitter at the moment. Our loss.
ASHLEY AMBIRGE
I’ve only recently discovered Ashley Ambirge and her site The Middle Finger Project, and when I did I thought, “Girlfriend, where’ve you been all my life?!”
I somehow stumbled onto her brilliant post, “The 67 Emotions of Online Success: My Story,” and nearly wept with soul-sister recognition. I’d never read anything that made me feel better about the many – and I do mean many – twists and turns and moves and passions, and you name it, she nailed it – steps along my own path.
It actually made me cry. More than once. So, I find her utterly beguiling.
Ashley is a copywriter who also sells online programs and products. The freebie on her sight is called “The Definitive Guide to Getting Off Your Butt, Finding Some Focus and Jump Starting Your Biz,” which I promptly downloaded and thoroughly enjoyed.
And with blog post titles like “How I Plan on Making $97,000 while Traveling Latin America. Bitches.,” and “Being Fat, Getting Robbed + Some Shit You Won’t Want to Miss,” at the very least you’ll be entertained by her content – well, maybe shocked – but also entertained.
My biggest takeaway from Ashley . . . even if you were once gloriously disappointed, lost, frightened, unsure, and defeated, you can still come out on the other side wildly happy, successful and doing what you’re meant to do – and make bank doing it.
Ashley’s site: http://www.themiddlefingerproject.org/
Follow Ashley on Twitter: @TMFproject
And there you have it. Five women doing great things online and off, whose knowledge and business advice you’re sure to benefit from tapping into.
How about you? Who are your business and marketing mentors? Online or off – please share! : )
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