The ABC’s on Creating a Back-to-School PR Campaign
by Stacey and Regina (Smart Women Institute Faculty Members)

As always, journalists are looking for new ways to cover an “old” topic. This can include a vast array of experts and products, including fashion trends; supplies; food and nutrition; technology; organization; after-school programs; online safety; street safety; school-life balance; and more. Leverage this seasonal opportunity by finding a way to insert your expertise or product into the story.

In order to ensure that you “make the grade,” keep the following steps in mind as you develop your campaign:

A: Advance Planning - Most of us have had to cram for an exam at some point in our lives, but avoid compromising your results in your PR campaign by allowing yourself sufficient time to plan your campaign and put it into action. Give yourself at least a month to develop any ideas, promotions, press materials and/or partnerships; and then several weeks to pitch your story to the press.

B: Broadcast Your Message - Once you’ve planned your campaign, it’s time to get it out to the world. Pitch newspapers, radio, TV and online outlets (as appropriate for your goals and objectives) to broadcast your message.

C: Collect Coverage - Always make sure to gather any clippings or appearances you’ve done. These can be leveraged for years to come in both your online and offline efforts. Take your traditional press and utilize it to further expand your business opportunities.

Read more about Stacey & Regina on our faculty page – Click Here

The Real Reason You Do Agreements
by Alexis Martin Neely (Smart Women Institute Faculty Member)

I’ve talked with so many business owners recently who are doing business with undocumented agreements.

Hand shake deals.

They tell me they intend to get it done, but we both know the truth … they won’t.

I get it – I experience a lot of my own personal resistance to getting agreements documented.

Getting written agreements in place brings up a lot of stuff that can be challenging to deal with.

Just the other day though I was reminded of how important it is.

Tina Forsyth hired me to create custom Terms of Service for the website for her THRIVE Hiring System and a template agreement that business owners who invest in the THRIVE Hiring System can use before hiring.

Before I began work, I sent Tina an agreement confirming what I understood the scope of work to be and it’s a good thing I did because I was slightly wrong about what I thought I was doing for her.

Had I gotten right to work without sending her the agreement for review/signature (as many of you are doing!), I would have wasted my time and hers.

This is why you do agreements – clarity, certainty, the best possible chance of success in your relationships, which means more work with less time and more ease.

Who knew you could get all that from an agreement?!?

Do you use agreements in all your business dealings? If not, why not? How can I help?

Read more about Alexis on our faculty page – Click Here

Eating For Beauty
by JJ.Virgin (Smart Women Institute Faculty Member)

In my new book, “Six Weeks to Sleeveless and Sexy,” I’m not taking away your favorite foods, but instead helping you make lateral shifts for great health and to lose weight.

Now a confession: Many of the foods that I want you to shift towards will also help you look younger, reduce wrinkles and keep your skin in great condition.

You’re welcome!

But seriously….beauty experts have known forever that creams can only do so much. What you eat directly relates to how your skin looks – and how it ages. For examples, if you’re someone who ingests a lot of sugar through juice or cola then your body will be working overtime to process all that high fructose corn syrup in these products. That sugar overload will create inflammation that will make your skin look older and saggy while making it more prone to wrinkles.

That’s the bad news. The great news is that there are so many foods you can eat that do “double duty beauty.” You’re slimming down with the “side effect” being a natural glow that makes you lose five to ten years off your face. Ever see someone who has lost weight and they suddenly look like they turned back the hands of time? The reason is they’re probably eating foods that support great skin. To that end, why not try these meal suggestions from my new book:

*Fresh salmon with a side of spinach for dinner

The anti-inflammatory properties in the omega-happy salmon will make your skin glow and get rid of any bags under your eyes while the Vitamin A in the leafy greens like spinach helps support skin healing.

*Oatmeal topped with chopped walnuts 

The oatmeal is a high in fiber, keeping you fuller, longer and the walnuts give you a dose of heart and skin healthy optimal fats.

*Coconut milk for a quick stir fry or avocado slices on your turkey burgers.

These are healthy fats and your skin craves a little fat for hydration. Ever see someone with that crusty dry skin? Perhaps the problem is they have little good fat in their diets. By hydrating from the inside out with good fats, you may even help prevent wrinkles. And if you’re following my Sexy Arms program, that hydration will help make your new gorgeous arms look beautiful, soft and hydrated when you show ‘em off.

*Mixed berries for dessert

High in fiber and low on the glycemic index, these delicious antoxidant gems also help protect you from sun damage and help your skin stay youthful.

*Green tea as a drink or water with lemon.

The green tea is a wonderful anti-oxidant that does the same thing as the blueberries. It gives you stronger skin, plus helps fight harmful lights. The water will detoxify and hydrate.

As you can see, you’re gorgeous from the inside out. Now, please pass the strawberries.

Chickens Came First, At Least Last Week | An Example of New Business Opportunities and the Importance of Keeping Moving
by Andrea J. Lee (Smart Women Institute Faculty Member)

As a business coach, I often hear the plaintive sounds of those newer in business:

“Andrea, when will I be done?”

Done, as in finished building the business. Completed. Complete.

Of course, the answer is never, but I do try to break the news gently.  Still, there IS delight in the fact that nothing is ever done, I think. There IS joy to be found in the ever-moving nature of Planet Entrepreneur.

A great example of this comes in the form of a by-law that was recently passed in the city of Vancouver, allowing the keeping of chickens in urban backyards.  Prior to May 18, 2010 – it was not lawful to raise chickens in your yard.  Now, by stroke of executive pen, it is.

And with that, a whirlwind of commerce begins.

Chicks… Roosters, of course…. Hens. All the accoutrements to keep them including food, shelter, and of course, information.

What to do when the urban chicken gets sick?

How to cope when the coop gets overcrowded, or, dare I say flown?

Is it true that sometimes an egg can get stuck and what is the proper handling of such circumstance – ebook, or better yet, educational video, anyone??

When and exactly how to, err… not just properly husband the beginning of life – the eggs – but…well… you know.

(Now’s probably not the time to tell you about the ‘pet’ bunny rabbits our cousins had as children…another time over wine, then.)

And then there’s the infrastructure.  Chicken resource directories. Chicken swap tweetups. Insert your idea here. (Go on, you know you can!)

If you look closely, or think just a few moments longer than usual, you’ll see that in this example, current as of just last week, is a pattern.  It’s a pattern of activity, behavior, consumption and BIRTH of VALUE that occurs when something new (that someone wants) comes onto the scene.

The City of Vancouver may have thought of this as a quelling of a small urban uprising.  Responding to a group of people intent on taking control of a part of their lives, their food chain, their sense of capability. But the bylaw that was passed was even more important in my eyes for one reason – it stepped out of the way and allowed the birth of value to occur.

Commerce, of the great kind, the kind that really matters, is just human behavior that follows the creation of value.

What added-value can you create today?

How can you over-deliver on your promises to contribute value, to your customers?

When might it be useful to think about the value you add as a citizen of the world (who also happens to be an entrepreneur) as opposed to ‘how much money can I make?’

If you fall on the other side of the spectrum, when is it useful to seize the opportunity to make money as a result of value?

Comments, questions, answers, debate, are all welcome.

Read more about Andrea on our faculty page – Click Here

Why Western Women Will Save the World
by Jessica Eaves Mathews (Smart Women Institute Faculty Member)

“Women small business owners will ultimately create more opportunities for employees to grow in their jobs and inspire others to start their own small business – all while providing customers with superior service.” The Guardian Life Small Business Research Institute, Dec. 2009

I am taking a break this week from giving my opinion in order to share some very promising statistics with you about women in business. After reviewing this information, I am even more motivated and excited about all of our prospects and about the future of our economy.

At the Vancouver Peace Summit in September 2009, the Dalai Lama gathered with a powerful group of Nobel Laureates, Authors, Musicians, and other change agents to discuss the idea of world peace. As you have likely heard by now, during that event, the Dalai Lama stated that we are seeing the rise of the feminine energy globally as we move toward a more compassionate, empathetic and nurturing global society. As a result, he stated unequivocally that the world will be saved by the Western Woman.

But the Dalai Lama isn’t the only one who sees Western Women as a positive and powerful force of change on our planet.

The Center for Women’s Business Research did a study that showed that there are about 8 million women-owned enterprises in the US alone, and that those enterprises generate approximately $3 trillion and create or maintain more than 23 million jobs — 16% of all US employment. According to the study, Women entrepreneurs have economic clout. Why? Because the more women entrepreneurs participate in the labor force, the higher our Gross Domestic Product! Wow.

But that isn’t all: The World Bank has reported that on a global level, women own or operate 25% to 33% of all private businesses. And, I love this one….statistics show that women-owned enterprises grow faster than those owned by men and faster than businesses overall. You go girls!

Moreover, Forbes published an article this year taking this even further. According to Forbes.com, women are fast becoming THE job-creation engine for our country. According to Forbes, women start businesses and are responsible for an increase in new jobs at rates well beyond men and in a way that disproportionately exceeds their current contribution to U.S. employment.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics is predicting that by 2018, 15.3 million new jobs will be created. Do you want to know the best part? According to a new report by The Guardian Life Small Business Research Institute, women will create one-third, or 5.5 million, new jobs!

Yes, it gets even better than that. Not only will women create these jobs, but the report predicts that women will also be responsible for transforming the workplace from the male-dominated, hierarchical, exclusive “good ole boys” club of yesterday into a more “inclusive, horizontally-managed environment.”

According to Forbes, “this job growth projection is based on a rigorous analysis of converging factors, including the faster growth rate of female-owned vs. male-owned businesses; higher college graduation rates by women than men; and the predicted growth of industry sectors and occupations traditionally dominated by women. The projection also reflects the timely fact that female-owned businesses, more often self-funded than male-owned ones, are therefore less reliant on bank financing at a time when many say small business lending practices are more restricted.”

Using the Guardian Life report, Forbes predicts that women business owners will create a very different work environment than the male-dominated work place we have all experienced. This will include characteristics such as a positive working environment and opportunities for all involved in the business, better pay and health care, better customer service and customer loyalty, a smarter focus on ideal clients (niche marketing), better collaboration and communication, and better long-term planning, including a succession plan and a solid retirement plan not only for owners but for their employees.

As Forbes says so eloquently, “[T]his deeply engaged, inclusive, horizontal and diligent female-led approach to business management can be expected to counteract the top-down, command-and-control style long practiced by the male-dominant business establishment. Over the next decade, it will have a profound impact on the U.S. economy as female small-business owners create more opportunity for employees to grow in their jobs, encourage others to start their own small businesses and inspire a greater commitment to superior customer service and retention.”

I don’t know about you, but all of that data and those projections get me pretty darn excited.

I am witnessing a growing movement toward conscious capitalism, and I believe that women will lead that charge. I feel so honored to be a part of this and to help other women be a part of this great shift in our economy.

I have no doubt that the Dalai Lama was right: Western women will save the world, one business at a time.

Read more about Jessica on our faculty page – Click Here