Welcome to One to One Marketing Adventures with Lisa MoffaIndependent Distributor with Market America, Certified Motives Trainer - Shop Online at: www.EarthboundElements.com
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One to One Marketing Adventures With Lisa Moffa
How Can An Entrepreneur Not Want To Be A Market America UnFranchise Owner Now?
That's it, my mind is officially blown by the recent Market America World Conference in Miami. This opportunity is the ultimate business for anyone looking for the hottest products, services and tools. There's never been a better time to partner with MA. It's got so much to offer that I am seriously considering expanding my niche markets into other areas within the company. I'm probably going to look for new business partners to work in those divisions rather than me taking on another certification right now. My Motives trainer status is being evaluated now that I attended the latest set of certification classes while at conference so I know that I should really focus on mastering that and not diversify until later in the year.
WHERE TO BEGIN?! I guess the company webportal is the first place to look for updates and changes. It's our face to the public and has so many awesome and innovative things going on that are empowering people like me that are into Web 3.0 with cutting edge tools and services. The corporate blog got a "makeover", now it's really sharp looking and has the social media share buttons. It also has links to company info along with some excellent posts that are managed by a twitter friend from MA that I've been tweeting feedback with for months.
I also love the technological advancements that are being implemented, like the overhaul of ma Chatterbox, that is still being refined but will launch in a week or two. The original version of our social network was great but couldn't be improved by the techno company so MA got someone else to revamp the whole thing and made the change to be a social hub for all of the top social networks! I love that idea!! That means that people will be able to go to one page, on the portal--ma Chatterbox, and manage their various profiles or status updates in ONE site!!! That is going to be an incredible time saver and will definitely make me come back since I log in several times a day to manage those for self-promotion and socializing.
The HP (health professional) program Nutrametrix is also going to truly change the healthcare industry with the launch of a partnership with EliteHealth which is a hybrid of WebMD & Facebook for patients where they can post their daily blood sugar test results or blood pressure for the doctor to review conveniently or at a eConsultation, and a new DNA Gene SNP analysis for the laser approach to wellness and nutrition based on genetics that recommends Market America products such as the Custom Isotonix Supplement Formulations. That entire program is just amazing and I hope to listen to the audios on the doctor panel again once they are available.....so much amazing info it's hard to retain it all.
Let's see, the Ultimate Aloe comes in a concentrate now that's got a bottle half the size of the regular ones. And the Transitions Lifestyle System for weight management introduced the kids program. OMG, there wasn't a dry eye in the arena when 15 kids got up there to share their weight loss stories.....some were bullied, others had self-esteem issues, while all of them learned about setting and keeping goals to get healthy and relearn their daily habits for optimal health. I am ordering the Shape Up kit with the parental guide & DVD, kid's journal, training CD and two supplements all for $79.95. The program is designed for six weeks and many of the kids, mostly preteen & early teens, lost anywhere from 10 to 20 pounds in that time period which is incredibly powerful and done in a healthy way that they can continue for the rest of their lives. I vowed to get a kit and do TLS along with my older daughter so that we can both lose and keep each other on track.
I'm going to have to post about Motives in another entry because there's just so much to tell!!! There are at least 50 new products and so many changes to our consultant trainings that I know it's going to be another long post.
Perhaps one of the most exciting things coming up in Spring is the MA 2010 Blitz Tour with JR & Loren Ridinger, Dennis Franks and Kevin Buckman in 14 cities across the US to promote the UnFranchise business system. I already bought my handful of tickets prior as part of the local council because I know that their event will seal the deal for any entrepreneur that I bring & can get them for any location with enough notice. So if you want to check it out with me in New York, set aside Sunday evening March 14th on Long Island to learn about the company that debuted on the 2009 Internet Retailer Top 500 as #66 and is really making Amazon worried!! Send me an email to reserve your seat now!!
Motives & MA World Conference 2010 Update
Funny how I keep posting everything to Facebook & Twitter and thinking of lengthy blog posts but not even making drafts that I can publish whenever I finalize the editing. This year I plan to write more because it really does help me track my progress and ideas for business and personal growth.
I partnered with a very talented beauty professional last month that has kept the winter quite busy. We've done several retail events already and have major plans to present Motives by Loren Ridinger Cosmetics to the network of salons and freelancers she knows. I have been organizing and strategizing this for the last year! So now as team we can bring the line into the Long Island beauty marketplace which is a feat in itself!!! The Long Island area has been an ongoing challenge for the company in general. And I am glad to say that the rebranding of Motives will finally make it appealing to the beautyscape of salon and spa owners and help the beauty industry empower itself to get through the recession.
Next week is the much anticipated 2010 World Conference in Miami where about 20,000 Market America distributors will get a whirlwind of trainings and company updates. There have already been pre-event trainings for the Internet Shopping niche that gave the scoop to some key leaders on how to train the field for marketing the webportal and the "Get Paid To Shop" program. I can't wait to hear what they are doing next! I know Social Media is a new addition to our site with "ma Connect" an interface for the top social networks that is capable of giving the distributor cutting edge technology for sales and prospecting new entrepreneurs. Can't wait to learn more about this one!
MA already released it's killer app for the iPhone and soon will have WAP for Blackberries, Droids and the rest of the smart phones. I don't have any of those models yet but I had my son download it to his iPhone and even he was impressed. I hear it's in a beginning stage so it's not fully functional but with Microsoft FAST powering the search it's just a matter of the technology and programming being completed because MA does tend to get a head of itself that way. They get an idea and want it launched at the next major event but it's not quite ready because of the complexity of it. I love that and know it will just set the company way ahead of anyone else.
In the past the direct sales industry how competition tried to copy the MA webportal and affiliate store program but have failed to some degree. The 3 most popular ideas I know of were from Quixtar (which went back to being Amway), ShopToEarn and the most recent Blast Off Network powered by Pre-Paid Legal. There's nothing wrong with that and I'm sure affiliates can make plenty of sales from the legion of distributors from those companies but the limitations and misrepresentations are the problem....so I hear. Even Bing's cash back has major drawbacks and it can't offer leverage with a network of people that creates any kind of residual income potential or any compensation for referring a friend. I believe that MA"s investment in technology is what keeps it strides ahead of any other company, webportal or opportunity and is perfect for the average entrepreneur looking for a turn-key model.
So I anticipate many innovative new releases and updates for our company to utilize. The company blog has already launched a redesign and now it looks really professional with a great photo of the corporate headquarters in Greensboro. I asked all the techs over the years for a company blog and I am so glad to see it evolve into a location for information, public relations and announcements. They even monetized it with Google's Adsense which is something that MA also added to the portal. And if my understanding is correct, that Adsense click revenue created an additional income that even customers will accrue into some form of compensation, most likely cash!
Okay, back to work on my Motives salon flipbook. I downloaded the Press Release on MotivesCosmetics.com and selectively printed off pages, especially the first 3 about Loren, Motives & the rebranding of the line and put them in the branded briefcase in sheet protectors. I also included a few beauty blog stories along with our company magazine promos for the beauty lines. There are also some pages about past celebrity studded events that MA or the Ridingers participated in that are in there too. Plus there's a whole section of how Motives can benefit a salon/beauty professional because the goal is to get them to see the backend income along with the typical retail profit.
Motives & MA offer a unique opportunity for everyone to create more wealth with their existing business. My team has a few Motives Day of Beauty events scheduled for the coming weeks at LI salons and the owners already want to see the compensation so that they understand the full potential of partnering with our company business model. I believe that 2010 is the year for MA on Long Island!!
That's all for now....
PS... Happy Blog Anniversary!!! I just realized after the post that my blog is 4yrs and 10days old!!!
Enter To Win A Stocked Motives Cosmetics Kit From Redbook Magazine
Great news Motives beauty fans!! There's an awesome giveaway from Redbook magazine for TWO Motives by Loren Ridinger fully stocked makeup kits with a branded makeup artist box!!! The Limited Edition Kit is shown at consultant's cost but well worth over $4,000 in retail which is plenty of makeup for any beauty junkie or professional makeup artist to play with for years to come.
The kit looks something like this but brushes probably aren't included...
So...How'd The Online Holiday Shopping Season Fair For You?
My family had a wonderful Christmas plus I'm getting 2% cash back! I've been busy using and Twittering sales and discount codes for online shopping the last month. Yeah, I thought to post here on the blog too but it just never happened, always got distracted with comparison shopping and family, I left so many windows open that didn't get to checkout but got some great deals. I love the updates to the Market America webportal for product search but some sites still weren't patched in to the Micosoft FAST search engine. The database has 35 million SKU's and once Target & Walmart get in there I'm sure it'll be really powerful.
The most newsworthy thing about the MA site now is how much cash back shoppers can get back and how few limitations there are compared to other cashback programs. A few people used the UPromise accrual for their kids' college fund 529s but they obviously didn't know how bad those funds are doing and that UPromise is a MA Partner Stores? Other companies like Bing, ShopToEarn, PrepaidLegal's BlastOffNetwork, and let's not forget the old Quixtar/Amway have if at best a few hundred stores while MA has over 3,000, and doesn't have caps on the earnings. MA's 2% cash back program is good for customer and distributors, has no limit to the total amount of cashback like Bing which has a $2500 annual limit. There's also a weekly update as to what the shopper has accrued every Wednesday, some plans give a monthly update. I must take some detailed notes from our webinar on those differences.
I've also learned that some of the competition says that shoppers can earn more than 2% back but the reality is that there are restrictions on that too that kinda ruin the benefits.....I've heard that to get 15% back you must register as a distributor or rep for several hundred dollars to get that discount. MA doesn't require a social security number for customers and allows for anonymous shopping, from what I recall. There is a notification that customers aren't registered yet as they shop but I'm pretty sure it's not required like some sites that must immediately get your data to lock you into a customer manager/distributor.
We have a few overview videos on Youtube now for showcasing the "Get Paid To Shop" features that I've already posted here but did you know.... MA is the ONLY company to PAY FOR REFERRALS!!! Registered customers can "Invite A Friend" and continuously earn 1/2% on whatever shopping their contacts do!! MA claims to have been advertising the site yet I saw nothing on any sites which is disappointing, no one else mentioned it either in my cache of MA colleagues. I was truly hoping for a print ad that I could talk about or even a 5 or 10 second television ad that would satisfy my husband's demand for "real publicity" and boost my own efforts at promotion. Sadly, none of my contacts took advantage of our plan. Do they think I'm going to see their personal choices? That's out of my realm but as a merchant I have privacy ethics anyway to uphold too for my customers with their credit info and purchases.
Well, I'm still very excited about the whole deal with our leap into Web 2.0 and the addition of several Social Media tools that are in the works for release in 2010. Some will debut in early January while others will launch at World Conference in Miami. Join me for the big training and sure to be groundbreaking sold-out event, I can ask around for a ticket. MA has totally embraced social media, I'm so glad they got it and see that being on the cutting edge of it for directly reaching people is a big component to the future of the company. The iPhone app alone is sure to be a killer-app!! I'm so tempted to get one but am on Verizon so the Droid would be my first choice but we'll see....
Black Friday Great Steals And Incredible Deals for Online Shoppers
There's a new page showcasing the Thanksgiving holiday sales for Black Friday featuring Dell, Macy's and Home Depot. You can also see the 2 % cashback on the examples of sales items. If you are shopping online use coupons and check out the Hot Deals page for further savings! Shop smart here: Black Friday Sales
Refer your friends and family to earn an additional 1/2% on everything they do!!!
Shopping For Black Friday Sales With MarketAmerica.com Can Help People Get Hot Deals
All the news is a buzz about the Thanksgiving and Black Friday shopping sales. I have read several articles about advertised specials being leaked, probably on purpose, and how some sales are poised to be big money saving offers especially on technology. My strategy is to shop online at MarketAmerica.com's webportal to earn 2% Cashback and to see what kind of exclusive offers show up in our Partner Store directory of over 3,000 merchants.
The Hot Deals page is sure to be loaded with links from every eRetailer. I have been meaning to write down on a legal pad what I want to look for and purchase online from my favorite stores like Target, Old Navy, NY & Company, Walmart and Toys R Us, which has some excellent deals already on netbooks for around $300.
Another task I must do prior to the sale is get on the coupon sites like CouponMountain, Gotta Deal and the like so that I can have extra savings or shipping codes. The 2009 Holiday Shopping season will be all about smart shopping strategies like this and utilizing the credit cards that offer cashback like Bank of America or Discover on top of special sales from the stores and adding the MarketAmerica.com channel to funnel an additional 2% cashback will be a extra bonus for holiday shoppers.
Okay, I'm off to do last minute Thanksgiving errands and will be back with more updates later....
Listen to Loren Ridinger tell shoppers what to expect from the Market America Preferred Customer program:
The Get Paid To Shop & Earn 2% Cashback Launched On Market America's Webportal
MA is going to ROCK Black Friday & Cyber Monday....everyone is shopping their little hearts out now thanks to the "Get Paid To Shop" program on the MA portal! The icon with a dollar showing the "maCash" logo shows shoppers what they'll get back for their purchase. It doesn't matter if the item is an MA brand or from any of the hundreds of Partner Store merchants participating in the program. Thanks to Microsoft FAST the new search is incredible! The values are even shown if someone is Comparison Shopping or just searching.
I've been playing with the features all day to get myself acquainted with the new service, as a Customer Manager I have to be able to tell my customers what it can offer them and where to go. The only issue I've had is finding the "Invite A Friend" link so that the customer can refer their friends & family to shop the MA portal and.....earn an additional 1/2% for whatever they buy on an ongoing basis. So far I've only seen the link on an a homepage flash ad. As I understand it, the referral program is not just a one time deal, as long as the invited party confirms that they were invited and identifies that person then that will entitle them to the extra earnings. Now that's cool, I don't know of anyone the pays you to refer a friend!
In addition to Preferred Customers getting their 2% cashback that can be redeemed once it accumulates to $50, they can save so much money with special offers from our partners that is usually highlighted on Loren's blog My Fashion Cents or the company blog. And savvy customers can shop the online Black Friday & Cyber Monday sales to save even more and if they're really smart they will have coupon codes from sites like Coupon Mountain or Retail Me Not for knocking down prices even further. That's not counting any free or discounted shipping offers which is also something the MA site can show consumers!
This kind of innovative shopping system is surely going to rise the tide for all of the merchants Market America has partnered with because the entire field of UnFranchise Owners and several million customers will be making purchases to earn some money back for what they are already going to do. It's a safe smart frugal way to shop for holiday gifts that anyone hit by the recession will appreciate and there is no cap on the cashback or restrictions like for business supplies.
Once I get up to the NorthEast Regional Convention this weekend I'll know more from the company. If you are a an entrepreneur that wants a web or e-commerce business this is "the" event to get to and it's so perfectly timed before the Holiday Season kicks in. Email me for an admission ticket or miss the boat for the close to sold-out convention that draws thousands of attendees from across the country. Our region has the third biggest training in the entire company next to the two main corporate sponsored events. And I'm sure this Paid To Shop launch will be a big factor in the weekend's training info.
Gotta rest up for the crazy weekend ahead.......and 2 1/2 hour drive!!
Gorgeous YouTube For Motives As The Official Cosmetic Line For The Miami Fashion Show
Got the news about a beautifully produced video for Motives by Loren Ridinger on YouTube today. I wish I could make it a flash page for this blog. hehe And I hope to see it incorporated into the Motives mini-site someday. We already have maTV on the portal so having a Motives specific viewer would be an awesome tool for the site. Watch below:
Holiday Shopping With MA Gives Customers 2% Cash Back!
I'm so excited about the new reward program coming out for my Market America Preferred Customers!! I really hope they use the webportal for holiday shopping and get the 2% Cash back for purchases. There are also exclusive offers from our merchant partners and the ads for companies has even created a new stream of revenue for the distributor that MA is also passing along to the loyal MA customer...they'll earn even more "maCash" for clicking around and using our features!! How cool is that??
I've been into internet marketing since 2003 when the first version of the site with partners launched yet I still can't fix a computer & I suck at Excel but I love showing people the portal. My tendency to dive into marketing topics consumed my time and I learned to master Pay Per Click and getting my URL out there. I also created, out of necessity, my own Preferred Customer follow up system for online purchasers which is now taught to the field by our Internet Advisory Board trainers because I shared it with corporate from the distributor perspective.
My only challenge was staying on top of those retail tasks when I had hundreds of customers. I got a lot of leads and sales volume that created a lot of checks but didn't want a retail job so I slowed it down and managed the few that just want their stuff and I don't have to chase them down to re-order. It's the same way I shop and want to be treated. To me reminders are ok but I will buy when I want and ask for info when I can't find it online. Those are the best kind of customers in my opinion, the ones that know what they want & find value in what they get from MA. I'm their guide and here to help when called upon.
In the meantime, social media evolved into a new platform of marketing. No longer are directories, forums and conversation threads--like the ones Work at Home Mom sites & Craigslist offer--satisfying our need to promote or connect with others and contribute our 2 cents. The simple idea of quick emails via phone text or instant messages with a downloaded program has birthed Twitter. Half of the top Fortune 500 companies out there are on Twitter, the other half either hasn't figured it out yet or sees no value in reaching out to their customers directly for branding. It has also become the best way to get real time news and opinions on what people are saying about any topic you can imagine with a search. Using networks like this also evens out the playing field because any one can post comments and reach a massive amount of people globally which helps someone like me an independent distributor.
As for marketing my services as a Motives Consultant & Trainer, it's been giving me insight into review of other beauty brands. There are so many beauty bloggers, makeup artists and makeup junkies on Twitter or on social networks, you'd be amazed. They share pics from photoshoots, events and aren't shy about voicing their thoughts on most anything, which can be annoying to the newbie just learning to scan through to pertinent info. Yeah, I post stuff about my dog, cat or kids but that's because I am an actual person and not a company working on a brand image yet I am mindful that I represent the quality of entrepreneur associated with MA. Social Media is about being a professional and being personable and real too but drop the cussing and negative stuff at the curb.
I've heard that the MA webportal will have widgets & chicklets soon. Chicklets are a box of links that can share a video or product by connecting with your social network profiles from Facebook, Digg, StumbleUpon, Twitter and a host of others. It will be so much more powerful than Email-A-Friend which mostly ends up in a Spam filter. Share links will also be bookmarked on my own profiles which will make for easy reference when I go there to browse or look for something or someone. Widgets on the other hand help monetize a website much like AdSense or Amazon affiliate programs. I really must listen to that audio again.
Let's hope that MA has the public relations firms working their tails off to truly create effective advertising campaigns for this holiday shopping season featuring the 2% Cash back, it can literally help people save money this Christmas while boosting the economy. MA has been simmering like a friggin' CrockPot for so long, 17 yrs!, with the invention of all these great services and features it would be such a shame to let it only be a word-of-mouth promo. I can't stand hearing about another MLM copying our stuff!! First it was Quixtar--which went back to the Amway name, then last year it was "ShopToEarn" under several identities and this year it's the "Blast Off Network" from PrePaidLegal. Ugh. They'll be gone soon anyhow with a trail of destruction behind them.
JR Ridinger has said before that advertising would happen after the rebranding of MA but none of my customers or friends read the magazines we've had major coverage in such as the Robb Report or Haute Living that go for $25 an issue. If this company is truly based on the average person becoming an entrepreneur than why aren't there strategies aimed at the average consumer or prospect? Motives has certainly helped MA get a lot of coverage in the beauty industry, and I like to think I had a small part in that, but Motives or MA still hasn't captured the attention it should have, not yet anyway. We need a viral grassroots message or iPhone app that is also supposedly under construction.
I believe that with a few strategic adverstisements, like commercials--hopefully produced by Andrew, or print ads in the average consumer's view, not just all the highbrow publications and luxury magazines.....then & only then will MA gain the public attention it so richly deserves. Until then I can only hope. So, with all of that in mind I have made myself searchable with profiles, findable via networks, and a resource with this almost 4 yr old blog that will all send lots of targeted visitors to my portal!!! 
(and if you are a distributor you can do it too, just be mindful of MA's internet policy and don't spam people, be a professional!)
(and if you are a distributor you can do it too, just be mindful of MA's internet policy and don't spam people, be a professional!)***
(I anticipate a lot of growth these coming weeks, if you heard about us and want to shop click my link or if you are looking to start your own business, contact me ASAP to get the scoop & watch the YouTube video below)
Being Productive Marketing & Working On My Social Media Skills
It's kinda interesting to see how many different industries tie into my Market America business these days. Besides having to learn about the business fundamentals which are always evolving, over the years I have had to learn how to promote my business and services, market products from various stores, design advertising flyers for my appearances or events, learn internet marketing, networking and social media and I guess it pleases the butterfly tendency within me because I never tire of learning!
I've recently become a member of the ISMA, International Social Media Association, for furthering my skills as a marketer and Social Media consultant that is creating a side income for me. And it's thanks to MA's growing presence in the economy and modern day marketing methods. What was once mostly a direct sales company with brochures and literature being the prime materials for recommending products to potential customers has now become an internet powered machine with the latest cutting edge tools. The distributor webportal has so many features on it now that if someone doesn't get orientated they will not be doing their UnFranchise any justice and miss out on a whole new way of finding prospects.
The trick is to apply information and updates intended for promotion in a certain way. Updates for social media should not be spam-like in any way shape or form! Unfortunately most marketers automate their profiles or just quote inspirational authors and post a link to their garbage. Maybe your not that creative and like to quote interesting sayings, that's fine, but please follow that with a relative thought or reflection on that then maybe a link for further information on that topic.
And so I will admit that this blog has lost my attention. I'm not the least bit happy with the blog's purple shopping bag layout. I even forgot my log in password, which is part of why I've been slacking, but it's reset and I have a new goal to revamp my efforts here. It'll also help me sort out my thoughts and inform customers on new programs coming out from Market America and I've got a few dozen pictures to share for my recent Motives by Loren Ridinger events. I'm also really looking forward to sharing more details about the 2% Cash back program for customers to shop online for the holidays. That alone will propel MA to the top 5 Internet Retailers for 2009. THEN.........everyone will know where to shop!
That's all for now.
