XBM Blog

Overcome Challenges with Svetlana Kim

Wed, 14 Apr 2010 18:00:00 GMT

It's so easy to get excited and pumped up at events only to get derailed or depressed when you get back to your every day life only to face an unforeseen challenge.

That's why at the end of every Extreme Business Makeovers event, I like to have a speaker who's really "been there and done that" in the realm of overcoming challenges so big that they eclipse what most of us ever have to go through.

Last year, I had my buddy and extraordinary overcomer, Josh Hinds teach us how he consistently rises above the challenge of Tourette Syndrome to work as a professional speaker.

This year's "challenge crusher" is Svetlana Kim who arrived in this country with a dollar in her pocket and a few words of English at her disposal. Today, she is a leader among her peers in the business world, and has been honored with numerous awards citing her commitment, skill, and integrity. In February 2010, Orphan International Worldwide honored her with its Global Citizenship Award for her work towards saving the lives of children in Haiti.

Here's an interview that AlishaTV did with Svetlana. It gives a nice peek into the heart of this very special lady and reveals how she prepares to get the most out of attending events like Extreme Business Makeovers.

Tom Ziglar - A Proud Son

Sat, 10 Apr 2010 19:39:00 GMT

Here's a great preview interview with Tom Ziglar, proud son of Zig Ziglar. Join Alisha Whiteway and Tom as they discuss the time Zig will be sharing with us at Extreme Business Makeovers 2010!

Stephanie Frank - 3 Things That Can Cause Your Business To Grow OR Fail

Fri, 09 Apr 2010 10:03:00 GMT

Alisha Whiteway, aka AlishaTV, interviews Extreme Business Makeovers 2010 faculty member - Stephanie Frank.

Not only is Stephanie a brilliant business thought leader, author, speaker and consultant, but she's also a dear friend of mine. I'm really looking forward to sharing her with you at Extreme Business Makeovers 2010!

Stephanie Frank - 3 Things That Can Cause Your Business To Grow OR Fail

Fri, 09 Apr 2010 10:16:00 GMT

Carrie Wilkerson - How To Fill Your Stadium

Thu, 08 Apr 2010 09:16:00 GMT

When I first met Carrie Wilkerson, aka The Barefoot Executive, about a year and a half ago, I told her that she 'ruined my weekend!' Why? Because I had just watched her share her business building systems with an audience and was totally blown away by not only her information, but her heart and spirit as well. So much so, in fact, that I invited her - on the spot - to present at Extreme Business Makeovers 2009. Of course I had previously filled all my faculty spots, but was planning on giving up my own presentation time had she said 'yes.' That's how much I wanted her to be part of our experience.

As it turned out, she was already scheduled for another appearance and had to decline ... which is, of course, how she 'ruined my weekend.'

Now you understand why I am beyond excited to have Carrie with us for Extreme Business Makeovers 2010. I KNOW that her heart, information and authenticity will totally blow everyone away!

Check out this AlishaTV interview with Carrie Wilkerson and get a little taste for what you'll experience from her at Extreme Business Makeovers 2010.

More Great Media Exposure for XBM 2010

Thu, 08 Apr 2010 00:33:00 GMT

I was interviewed yesterday on the EPodcastNetwork and it just posted today. Extreme Business Makeovers 2010 continues to get great BUZZZZZZ....

Check it out HERE!

Simon T. Bailey - Brilliant Shifts

Wed, 07 Apr 2010 18:31:00 GMT

Continuing our series of Extreme Business Makeovers 2010 - Speaker interviews, here's one that Alisha Whiteway - aka AlishaTV conducted with Simon T. Bailey, author of Release Your Brilliance!

Frank McKinney - Experiencing "Tap" Moments In Your Business

Tue, 06 Apr 2010 15:38:00 GMT

Alisha Whiteway - aka AlishaTV - provides another great XBM 2010 Speaker Spotlight! This one is with bestselling author, philanthropist, ultramarathoner and real estate 'rock star' - Frank McKinney!

Creating Real Wealth With Robert Shemin

Mon, 05 Apr 2010 21:32:00 GMT

Alisha interviewed Robert Shemin about what he will be sharing with us at Extreme Business Makeovers 2010! Wow! What a dynamic guy. He supports charities and takes 100 days off per year. He's able to do so because he's developed assets that keep producing for him. He will be teaching us how to do the same

XBM Panelist - Lewis Howes - On the Power of LinkedIn

Thu, 01 Apr 2010 14:41:00 GMT

At XBM2010, we have an incredible line-up of speakers who will be guiding us through the process of making and leveraging improvements in our businesses.

Beyond that, we even have a group of Expert Panelists - who, together, would be an all star line-up for a completely separate event! Our panel at XBM2010 will be focused on real-world technology and social media - for those of us who aren't able or willing to spend our entire waking lives at the computer!

One of our experts is Lewis Howes, author of Linked Working. Here's an interview he recently did with Michael Stelzner of SocialMediaExaminer.com

Here is what you’ll learn in this interview:

Why businesses should be on LinkedIn
How to use LinkedIn questions and answers to benefit your business
Why you need to complete your LinkedIn profile 100%
How to set up the links in your profile for stronger calls to action
How to use LinkedIn groups
Why you should add as many contacts as possible

You can find out more about Lewis on his website here.

Meanwhile, for those who are registered for Extreme Business Makeovers 2010, I'm really looking forward to seeing you there. And, for those who haven't registered yet - What are you waiting for? ;-)

Here is what you’ll learn in this interview:

• Why businesses should be on LinkedIn

• How to use LinkedIn questions and answers to benefit your business

• Why you need to complete your LinkedIn profile 100%

• How to set up the links in your profile for stronger calls to action

• How to use LinkedIn groups

• Why you should add as many contacts as possible

You can find out more about Lewis on his website here.

Here is what you’ll learn in this interview:

• Why businesses should be on LinkedIn

• How to use LinkedIn questions and answers to benefit your business

• Why you need to complete your LinkedIn profile 100%

• How to set up the links in your profile for stronger calls to action

• How to use LinkedIn groups

• Why you should add as many contacts as possible

You can find out more about Lewis on his website here.

Here is what you’ll learn in this interview:

• Why businesses should be on LinkedIn

• How to use LinkedIn questions and answers to benefit your business

• Why you need to complete your LinkedIn profile 100%

• How to set up the links in your profile for stronger calls to action

• How to use LinkedIn groups

• Why you should add as many contacts as possible

You can find out more about Lewis on his website here.

Here is what you’ll learn in this interview:

• Why businesses should be on LinkedIn

• How to use LinkedIn questions and answers to benefit your business

• Why you need to complete your LinkedIn profile 100%

• How to set up the links in your profile for stronger calls to action

• How to use LinkedIn groups

• Why you should add as many contacts as possible

You can find out more about Lewis on his website here.

Interviews with the Co-Hosts of Extreme Business Makeovers 2010

Wed, 31 Mar 2010 18:41:00 GMT

23 days to go till Extreme Business Makeovers 2010!

I thought I'd take a quick moment to share the brief interviews that my co-host, Bob Burg and I recently did with AlishaTV about some of what will be happening at this year's event!

4 1/2 Weeks To Go!

Wed, 24 Mar 2010 17:39:00 GMT

It’s almost hard to believe that it’s only 4 1/2 weeks to go till Extreme Business Makeovers 2010! I’m getting calls every day from past participants wanting to know if there is anything they can do to help and saying how excited they were to come experience the event and reconnect with friends from previous years! Wow … what a great reminder of why I always say that our Extreme Business Makeovers audience participants are the absolute best!

If you still haven’t registered or made your hotel reservations at the Caribe, make sure to take care of that right away!

Meanwhile, I thought I’d share some video inspiration about the event … just a little something I put together last week to help explain what Extreme Business Makeovers is all about …

The Power of Presence

Wed, 24 Mar 2010 17:41:00 GMT

Wow .. hard to believe it’s only 7 weeks to go till Extreme Business Makeovers 2010. It’s going to be an incredible time! In the next 7 weeks, we’ll be posting articles from our speaker team, as well as some other ‘goodies’ here on this blog for you.

Meanwhile, I just posted an article titled, “The Power of Presence” on my Coach Thom blog. You may want to check it out.

2010 Extreme Business Makeovers Experience - Speaking Team

Wed, 24 Mar 2010 18:12:00 GMT

Okay … I’m officially beyond excited!

We have confirmations for all of our incredible speakers and our web team is busy prepping the full information and photos to include on the Faculty page.

However, I wanted to share – as quickly as possible – the list of top guns we have coming in to be with us AND let you know about our HOLIDAY TICKET SPECIAL!

Here are the 2010 Extreme Business Makeovers Experience Luminaries:

Simon T. Bailey – Brilliant Shifts
Bob Burg – Go Givers Sell More
Stephanie Frank – Raising Your Success IQ
Svetlana Kim – Overcoming Challenges On The Ladder To Success
Paul Martinelli – Unleashing Your Inner Genius
Frank McKinney – Experiencing “Tap Moments” In Your Business
Howard Partridge – Truly Effective Goal-Setting
Thom Scott – Flock Building For Success
Robert Shemin – How Come THAT Idiot’s Rich And I’m Not?
Felicia Slattery – Increase Your Business By Communicating Your Credibility
Carrie Wilkerson – Real Online Success For Online OR Offline Businesses

And a very special talk with, and tribute to, an original “Go-Giver” …

Zig Ziglar

PLUS! An amazing lineup of expert panelists to discuss technology and social media in today’s business world!

Warren Whitlock – Social Media consultant and co-author of the bestselling Twitter Revolution
Chris Cree – New Media profit strategist and Founder of Success Creeations
Trey Pennington – Marketing Pro and author of Spitball Marketing
Terry Brock – Technology, Marketing and Internet speaker and columnist. Author of Relationship Marketing: It’s not about E-Commerce. It’s about R-Commerc
Courtney Engle – Social Media Consultant specializing in streamlining implementation and teaching in plain english
Perry Lawrence – Video Expert and online video profit strategies

& Moderated by

Dixie Gillaspie – Business coach/consultant. Certified Kolbe Specialist and Go-Giver Coach

Needless to say, I’m TOTALLY jazzed about this incredible group of thought leaders. And, the only thing better than the speakers at the Extreme Business Makeovers Experience is the group of participants we attract (many of whom are accomplished speakers and authors themselves). It’s such an incredible experience getting to spend time with like-minded people and have top-notch speakers like this chatting with other participants in between sessions. That type of intimacy and connection is why Bob and I have always limited the size of Extreme Business Makeovers rather than make it a stadium event that it could certainly be.

Be looking for more posts here over the next 4 months, 2 weeks and 5 days till the 2010 Extreme Business Makeovers Experience. In addition to articles from each of our experts, we’ll be sharing event news and other timely information to help you and your business!

Wishing you All the Best,

Thom

Thom Scott, Founder of Extreme Business Makeovers

PS. Don’t forget to check out our HOLIDAY TICKET SPECIAL!

Innovation As Marketing

Wed, 24 Mar 2010 19:05:00 GMT

So much of advertising has degraded to the point that the ads themselves are the focus and not the products/services that they were supposedly created to sell. In an attempt to stand out from a crowded marketplace, the messages are getting louder and louder to the point where the marketplace – in many situations – has simply become tone deaf.

That’s why I love it when I see and am able to share what I believe to be great marketing – often for very ‘unsexy’ products. In this case – auto insurance.

While GEICO has clearly chosen and successfully run on the path of name recognition and low-margin bargain shoppers, Nationwide is staking its competitive edge on a different path – Innovation and Service.

Nationwide has just introduced a Mobile Application for the iPhone. While I personally think the “creative” for the ads themselves leave MUCH to be desired, there are several really brilliant strategies about this innovation from a marketing standpoint. Among them:

The core functions of the application make the process of reporting an accident and filing a claim as streamlined and hassle-free as possible. Nationwide has obviously been asking themselves the hard question – “What can we do to make doing business with us easier?”
Beyond that, many of the functions of the application are helpful even if you’re not a Nationwide customer. By giving away a free set of handy tools to people that aren’t even their customers, Nationwide is effectively building a bridge to new market share.

We’ve yet to see the result of what this will accomplish for Nationwide. However, IF it is communicated well enough as to get some traction, then I suspect that Nationwide will have effectively positioned themselves as service leaders and innovators in a valuable market that is willing to pay a premium for convenience and cool new tech solutions. We’ll have to wait and see.

For the rest of us, this case study serves as a reminder that, as marketers, we often ask ourselves the question, “What’s In It For Me?” in relation to the communication of why our clients would choose to do business with us. But, how often do we ask that question about our products or services themselves? Are there ways we can innovate to make doing business with us easier, quicker, more effective or fun, etc…?

My business partner, Bob Burg, and myself have asked ourselves those questions about Extreme Business Makeovers. We’ve taken our answers and have been building an EXPERIENCE and COMMUNITY that is unlike any other seminar out there – from our web site all the way to the follow-up tele-seminars and Q&A calls we provide to our attendees free of charge. We are constantly looking for more ways to add value and help our Extreme Business Makeovers “family” get the results they were looking for when they decided to join us.

How about you? Are there innovations you could make which would help you serve a larger audience – or help you serve your existing audience on a much deeper level? If so, get innovating and make the rest of your marketing efforts much easier, more fun and vastly more effective.