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Decide then take massive action to reach your goals.

A New Year’s Day Quiz to cut through the New Year’s Eve celebratory fog:

Three frogs were sitting on a stump. One decided to jump off. How many were left?

If you’re an analytical type you say, “Like, duh, 3-1 = 2.”

If you’re a Southerner like me you say, “Well dang. Anybody that’s ever seen frogs in da rivah (translation: “the river”) knows that when one frog jumps off they all jump off. So the answer is zero!”

If you’re wise beyond your years (and you’re a fan of Yoda) you say,

“The answer is three because the first frog has not yet jumped. It only made a decision to jump.”

(Well done, Grasshopper.)

With 2012 here what did you decide to do in 2011 that you did not actually do?

To make that “not-getting-done” list shorter in 2012 decide one thing you want to achieve this year right this very second.
Literally. Right now.

Stop reading this article and go do it this exact moment in time.

Stop reading and write down what it is you are going to do this year.

You can type it and print it, write it in a journal, write it on a sticky note, whatever.

But write it, put a date on it and make it visible and go get started on it right now even if takes you 5 hours, 42 minutes and 17 seconds.

Football games are not that important. (Really. They aren’t.)

Parades are not that important.

Putting away your Christmas decorations are not that important.

Neither is chatting with Facebook friends, updating your Fantasy Football league, washing the cat or reading your horoscope (hint, you’ll experience something wonderful today and someone important will come into your life or leave your life. You’re now up to date for the year.)

After you 1) decide, 2) document and 3) go DO come back and click here for your free gift. (Warning: It requires more effort but a millionaire told me he does this a couple of times a year so I’m giving you the clues to success that I’ve been given.)

2012 is the year of getting really important, meaningful, profitable, impactful things done.

To your success.

~Wes Schaeffer

P.S. My good friend, Roger Bauer, The Search Engine Ninja has a free webinar entitled “5 Alarming Trends That Could Put You Out of Business or Send You Soaring.” You can watch it here now, as long as you did the first two things above first. Then reward yourself with this great webinar.

Does Your "Why" Make You Cry?

Is your soul and heart, mind and attention, blood, tears and sweat given to that which occupies your workaday life?

Does a tear (or three) literally wet your eyes when you fall short of your daily, weekly or annual goals?

Or do you find yourself going through the motions? Doing the minimum to make the boss happy or to keep clients from complaining?

Until you are so passionate about your “why” you actually cry when you don’t reach your goals you will find your career (and probably your life) a few fries short of a Happy Meal.

In 2011 your goals were either:

• Met.
• Exceeded.
• Far exceeded.
• Missed.
• Absent.
• Wrong.

Beautiful. That’s why, at this time of the year you must always take a few moments – even days – to evaluate the past and prepare for the future.

This year you REALLY need to do this.

This year is different.

2012, more than ever, you must question EVERYTHING such as:

• What is “The American Dream” and is it your dream or Madison Avenue’s dream or Freddie Mac’s dream?
• Is a corporation-funded pension or a gyrating 401(k) really the foundation of your “golden years?”
• Do you really have to wait until you’re 65 or 75 to have “golden years?”
• Is one or two or 435 corrupt politicians with their hands in the pockets of lobbyists the only way jobs (your job?) will be created in 2012 and 2013 and 2027?
• Why does that schmuck down the street make more money, drive a nicer car, give more to charities and smile more than you when you know more than he does, work harder than he does, are more likeable than he is and care more about your clients than he ever will?

Now’s the time to bust out your history books – the REAL history books - and internalize what it took to discover and colonize this nation, to fight against the most powerful nation in the world for our freedom, to head West (with no pension or unemployment or government health care) as part of our Manifest Destiny and to become the most powerful nation in our own right.

You have it in you to create your own Manifest Destiny. You have it in you to forge your own path to success as defined by you.

Yeah, yeah, I know. The economy is tough.

You know what? It won’t get better any time soon, which begs the question: How long will you use the excuse of the economy (or some other convenient, publicly-acceptable “reason”) to put off your own goals, dreams and desires?

Nobody we know of ever did anything worth a damn “waiting it out,” “hunkering down,” “keeping their head down.”

2011 was a great year for me.

In 2011 I invested in more training programs, more certifications, more partnerships, more affiliate relationships and more group and private coaching and read more books on sales, marketing and persuasion than any year in my life.

Is it any surprise to hear that I also made more money than ever before in 2011?

In 2012 all areas above will grow. On purpose.

Would you like to grow in 2012 on purpose? I have a little group called the Seller’s Circle that can help make that happen.

Merry Christmas

Do more.
At the Biltmore.
Not the shore.
Come to the desert.

Meet new friends.
See email sends.
The party never ends.
Become an expert.

Who will you meet
At this desert retreat?
The list is replete
With people who are neat.

First, Gary Vaynerchuk
Who sure can make a buck.
I’ve met the dude.
Let’s Crush It up.

The Millionaire Maker
Loral’s no faker.
The New York Times
Says her book is a taker.

(I met her, too.
Her words are true.
She shows what to do.
To make dreams come true.)

Tough guy Scott Palangi
Would surely break my knee
If he saw me
But his name did not see.

(Kickboxing is his thing
His cash register sings.
Ideas he brings
To reach your brass ring.)

Jennifer and Brian Bourn
Your website they’ll adorn.
Awaken your brand.
Say goodbye to the norm.

Change your business landscape,
With Pam Slim’s book “Escape.”
Journalists now
Your phone calls will all take.

Dude. How rude.
I  forgot the food!
Desserts are accrued,
So’s steak and seafood.
The beer and wine flow
No need for corkscrews.
Over drinks we’ll collude,
Friendships get renewed,
Plan to miss your curfew,
But the coffee is brewed.
Just thinking about it
Puts me in a good mood.

Now on to the learning,
For which you are yearning.
The ideas we cover
Will increase your earnings.

The Ultimate Marketer
Will make you smarter.
And smarts are the answer.
Not working harder.

Infusionsoft tagging,
Is not bragging.
It’s why your emails
Are no longer nagging.

Ecommerce is here.
Make money online.
Let’s all shout a cheer.
The update’s divine.

The Spring release has sprung.
With benefits far-flung.
Rick’s ideas are young.
Your competitors are done!

The Perfect Customer Lifecycle.
(PCL to you and me.)
No longer will you wrestle
With how sales come to be.

Your best defense,
Against business suspense,
And wasteful expense,
Is the follow-up sequence.

Last but not least,
Aside from the feast,
There’s another reason
I’m heading east.

Between me and you,
Tuesday, Day 2,
Is my birthday, now you
Know just what to do.

So please join me,
And 1,000 wise friends,
Who, backwards they bend,
And open arms they extend,
To stop any downtrend,
And pipeline leaks mend.
So you can ascend,
And sales problems transcend,
No need to pretend.
With entrepreneurs you’ll blend.

THAT’S how to spend
Your birthday. Amen.

This post is my entry into the ‘Bloggers in Motion’ contest sponsored by Infusionsoft for Infusionscon 2012.

Life Is Worth Living

So Live It.

Today I may ramble a bit. You’ve been warned.

Today my fifth baby, third baby girl, turns 7. Her name is Mary-Claire.

(That’s her in the photo above turning 3 in the San Diego Children’s *Hospital.)

With six (6) children from the same wife with no multiple births I regularly hear wise, creative, loving people ask kind, thoughtful, personal questions like:

• Are you done yet? (Like a loaf of bread?)
• Don’t you know what causes that? (Yes I do and I like it very much.)
• Don’t you own a TV? (Do you have a nice one you want to get rid of?)
• What, are you religious or something? (Aren’t you?)
• When are you going to get fixed? (EVERYTHING on me works just fine. Obviously.)

What’s my point?

I have a couple, maybe even a few.

One. Children are gifts from God. God does exist. God entrusts the miracle of life to us for a reason. That reason is not always readily apparent. Trust in God.

Two. Life is fragile. Enjoy it. Appreciate it. Live it out loud and on purpose.

Three. Fear keeps you from following your dreams.

Four. 95% of fears never come true. 4% do come true but aren’t as bad as we feared. So 1% of potentially bad stuff is keeping you frozen, paranoid, stressed out, unhappy, grumpy, unproductive, limited, under your potential, sad.

Five. God did not work with your parents to bring you into this world to be poor and sad.

Go live on purpose.

If you can benefit from a nudge, a word of encouragement, an idea or two try my month-to-month private coaching program I call the Pre-Paid Sales Advisor.

-Wes Schaeffer

*Mary-Claire had an un-diagnosed ruptured appendix that took 15 days to identify and remove. I spent 11 days in the hospital with her. Her mommy spent all 15 days with her despite being 38 weeks pregnant with our fourth baby girl, Ella. Moms are the best and Shannon’s the best mommy. That’s why we have 6 kids and twice this year almost had 7. Now we have two little angels pulling for us, praying for us, waiting for us in heaven. I told you life is a gift.

MarketingSherpa conducted a survey in September 2010 about business email and found that 90% of businesses track their success in email marketing with email open rates. Depending on the relevance and quality of your content and your list engagement you should expect a 15–35% open rate. If you are not seeing open rates in this range one of the following factors is probably at play:

1. You’re a sender of junk.

Would you send your friends and family the same emails you send your prospects and clients? If your emails are “useful,” resourceful and people want to save and archive them then you’re on the right track. If your messages are “interesting,” funny, relevant and usually good for forwarding to the contacts of your prospects and clients, then good on ya! If your messages are none of the above, nor are they interesting nor useful … they’re junk!

2. Boring subject lines get deleted FAST!

If your subject line is boring your email will not get opened. Be accurate yet creative. Consider using the recipient’s name or a personal detail, such as their city of residence. This simple technique can increase your open rates because people are always curious about something that involves them. Finally, keep them short and to the point; aim for 50 characters or fewer.

3. You’re emailing dead accounts.

To avoid SPAMMERS people switch email addresses every few years. If your open rates are low, you could be emailing to abandoned or secondary accounts. Consider using an alternative follow-up campaign (phone/direct mail) to get people to update their contact information and re–opt-in to your marketing to help correct this. Disciplined email marketing pays off when you have a truly engaged, interested and hungry list—and you can cater to the people who really matter.

4. You email at the wrong time of day.

When faced with a full inbox, people tend to make liberal use of the delete key. If you send emails at busy times of the day (early morning, lunch and late afternoon), your open rates may take a hit. To fix this, send messages at different times. It’s okay to shift your email marketing patterns once in awhile.

Wanna see what I use to manage the Perfect Customer Lifecycle? Follow me to Infusionsoft...

"Roadmap To Revenue" By Kristin Zhivago

The key to big profits is the development and implementation and strict adherence to big processes. In “Roadmap to Revenue,” Kristin provides the guidance and directions you need to see clearly how to develop the processes you need to sell to your clients the way they want to buy.

She provides examples and stories to keep it interesting along with key insights into the four main buying processes your various clients follow including the most nagging, frustrating and irritating (in my opinion) the “Heavy Scrutiny” process.

This book is not “light reading.” This book is a dense, detailed guide for the serious business owner / professional sales person that is committed to doing what the competition will not do in order to stand out in this competitive environment.

You will be better, more efficient and more profitable in how you run your sales and marketing efforts if you follow what Kristin Zhivago hands you on a big, wide, beefy shiny silver platter with a beautiful blue compass on it. If you don’t read it and heed it you have no right to complain about how tough business is. It’s only tough for the lazy.

“If you’ve read about social media or been to any marketing conferences, you’ve probably heard tons of advice like love your customers, engage in the conversation, be yourself, and make friends. I call this unicorns-and-rainbows advice. Take a couple of time-honored adages, add in the unquestioning awe of an unaware audience, and pretty soon you’ve got an entire industry based on easy-to-agree-with but unsubstantiated ideas. But there’s a problem. Myths aren’t real and superstitions often do more harm than good.”
-Dan Zarrella, Zarrella’s Hierarchy of Contagiousness

So many people think “if I just get a Twitter account and Facebook Fan Page I can grow my business.”

Really? I hope you have a prescription for whatever it is you’re smoking.

The irony is most people are neither sociable or knowledgeable when it comes to marketing but somehow two wrongs make a right when it comes to Twotting and Facetubing and Youbooking.

(There are also no unicorns. There is no pot of gold or little Irishmen at the end of rainbows. Mermaids are only in the movies. There is no prince in Uganda that wants to share $10,000,000 with you just for helping him cash a check.)

If you want to grow you need to focus on the message, not the medium.

You need to focus on the “Who” and then it will become much easier to focus on the message.

You can’t sell to or service everyone. Choose who to lose and shout it from the top of a mountain.

There is power in stating what you are not, what you won’t stand for, what you leave out, thus “gluten-free,” “Zero Calories” and Dan Kennedy’s “No B.S.” series of business growth advice.

Ask yourself this question: How persuasive, powerful, influential and interesting am I?

If the answer is somewhere between “not very” and “kind of” you’re just spinning your wheels and self-medicating as you goof off (that’s what you’re really doing) on your social media accounts.

Until you get a backbone of steel and tell the world what you stand for and what you don’t stand for and deliver this powerful message in a powerful manner you’d be better off waiting for Santa Claus to bring you that golden list of willing and able buyers. At least you wouldn’t get sucked into worthless debates on Facebook about whether or not global warming is caused by humans (it’s not), who has the best conference in NCAA football (the SEC) or whether the all-loving government can save the economy with more taxes (are you stupid or what?).

To really grow you need to work hard, do the right things and have the right tools to attract, capture, nurture, convert, deliver & satisfy, upsell and get referrals from leads and clients. My secret weapon is InfusionSoft. What’s yours?

Joe Manna, InfusionSoft’s Community Manager, asked this question:

What are your tips and advice for new InfusionSoft users?

Here’s what I wrote:

Sit in a sound-proof room, open your eyes wide, type only with your right hand, wipe away your tears with your left hand as you get a dose of humble pie as you realize four things:

1. How many systems and processes you DON’T have in place.
2. How much work it will take to develop good systems and processes.
3. How much money you were leaving on the table by not having having good processes.
4. How much money you will soon be making while you sleep once you develop and implement these good processes into InfusionSoft’s good system.

I’m serious about the “humble pie.” Most clients that get mad at InfusionSoft are really just frustrated with their own lack of scripts, marketing systems, email sequences, ability to measure the ROI of a marketing campaign, etc.

I’ll help you eat some of that pie if you don’t want to gulp it all down on your own.

Get your InfusionSoft cheat sheet here.

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You’re In Business To Make A Profit, Right?

*By the way, SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is one of the most misunderstood phrases tossed around by wanna-be’s, rookies and desperate business owners trying to stand out is a crowded, fractured, busy world. SEO is also a moving target as the 800-lb gorilla – Google – is continuously updating and modifying how they rank web pages and present those results to your potential clients.

If you’d like to get a clear understanding and grasp of this “magical” world of SEO take a good look at what my good friend and fellow entrepreneur, Roger Bauer, is offering in his “Search Engine Ninja” program.

You’ll be glad you did.