How Visual Content Can Improve Readership of Your Brands Emails - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

How Visual Content Can Improve Readership of Your Brands Emails - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career An email marketing strategy is still one of the best ways your personal brand can connect with your audience in a meaningful way. The type of communication is important for increased sales and return customers. You can grab their attention through strong visuals that are easy to read on mobile. There are several ways that the right images and video can work for your brand, which should be well suited for your message and brand image. Visual content can enhance your emails whether you include a photo or video that tells a story, illustrates important points, or urges readers to take action. If you are losing subscribers or have lower open rates then adding a mix to your content could help boost your leads and sales. Here are several ways your email marketing messages can be more appealing: Keep it simple  Use small sizes on your photos and videos with less detail in order to avoid crowding out your text. Keep in mind that your readers may be viewing your messages on mobile devices, and want to get to your email as quickly as possible. Too many visual graphics can slow the loading speed down and cost you in lead generation. Text needs to be the priority Include relevant visuals to accompany your written email. It’s best practice to place your images above the fold in the preview pane. This helps to draw the readers attention to your message and call to action.  Use a branded color scheme Harmonize your templates with the colors you’re already using on your other online platforms. Choose images that stick with the theme you already have in place that your audience can easily recognize. Include alt tags Keep in mind that some recipients’ email services won’t load images immediately if at all. What they will see is the description instead of the picture. For example, use a tag that reads, ‘learn how to master social media now’ rather than one that reads, ‘image of eBook cover.’ Although there’s a trend towards clean, simple email designs, visuals could be a great compliment to help your brand stand out. It’s always important to send out test messages before your real broadcast to make sure the formatting looks good. If the formatting or image is done wrong, this can lead to losing your existing subscribers as well as new ones.

Build Leadership Presence in Business With These 4 Social Skills

Build Leadership Presence in Business With These 4 Social Skills Are you an ambitious professional with high aspirations for your career?Maybe you’re a young professional who is driven to one day reach a leadership position. Or perhaps you’re a mid-level manager who wants to be noticed for the next round of promotions.Regardless of the position you’re currently in or where you aspire to be, if you’re a professional and you have high ambition, you need to develop a unique set of skills that all true leaders possess; and that is social skills for business.evalSocial skills for business, or business etiquette skills, are critical in today’s fiercely competitive job market. They make you stand out from the crowd. They help you interact with coworkers and clients more efficiently and effectively. They also help you communicate your potential and true worth to decision-makers in your company or industry.Teaching social skills to professionals is my job. In this article, I want to share with you four specific social skills that you can immediat ely implement to attract the career and business success you seek.1. Dress for the Job You Want, Not the Job You HaveevalWhen you dress for the job you want, and not the job you have, you move yourself out of the limits of your current position and send the message to others that you’re ready and determined to get a higher position in the company. How do you dress for the job you want? Look at what people in higher positions wear and emulate their style. If they wear formal business suits to work, do the same. If they wear jeans with a blazer, add that outfit to your executive wardrobe.2. Find Similiarities to Create LikeabilityFinding similarities with somebody is one of the most powerful ways to get somebody to “like” you. It stems from the principle that “people like people who are like them”, and it can greatly impact, influence and grow your business relationships. How do you find similarities with others? That’s where you need to start conversations. Ask questions about that person’s background, hobbies and interests. Point out a similarity when you find one. If you don’t have a similarity with that person, maybe somebody you know does. That connection will still play in your favour for creating a strong business relationship.3. Become the Conversation LeaderMany people mistakenly believe that being the conversation leader means you do all the talking. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Being the conversation leader means you ask all the questions and encourage the other person to do all the talking. Why? Because when you ask all the questions, you can steer the conversation to where you want it to go. The next time you’re at a networking event or client meeting, make an effort to ask more questions for greater control of the conversation.4. Establish Your Credibility on LinkedInCredibility is a crucial part of leadership presence. It’s often the reason why people will hire you and promote you. The first place you should estab lish credibility is on your LinkedIn profile. Why? Because this is often the first place people will look to find out more about you. First, you need to make sure your education and experience sections are fully completed, and don’t forget to mention how you added value to that company. Second, ask for recommendations from current and past coworkers and clients. People and businesses are often confronted by the same problems. When you show you’ve successfully helped somebody else with a particular problem, it will boost your credibility and communicate your competence to the world.Anybody can become a leader. However, you need to focus on building a skill set that your peers don’t have. More often than not, the skill set that will set you apart is your level of social skill in business.evalYou can get social skills training by Kara in her new video course, Business Etiquette 101: Social Skills for Professional Success.

How You Can Use The Internet To Help Accelerate Your Business

How You Can Use The Internet To Help Accelerate Your Business In this day and age, if you want to get yourself seen or heard, the internet is the fastest and most convenient way of doing exactly that. The same principal works for your business too, as the internet can take your enterprise from a small time business to a global phenomenon in a matter of hours. That’s why, if you haven’t already, it’s time to take to the world wide web with your business so that you can begin accelerating your growth more than ever. Here are a few tips and tricks to get yourself noticed and expand your company more than you could have ever imagined. Utilise social media With approximately 39 million people now on social media, it’s no wonder that businesses are signing themselves up to grab a piece of the action. As you may already be aware, social media is one of the fastest ways of making something go viral and putting it in the spotlight, so use these techniques on your social media accounts to help accelerate your business: Make sure that you’re signed up to every social media platform. While some are indeed, more popular than others, don’t fool yourself into thinking that the less popular platforms won’t have any effect. Posting regularly on social media is key to getting yourself noticed. Due to the millions of social media posts that are created each day, it’s easy for your one post per day to become lost in the abyss of other uploads. The more often you post, the more you will get yourself noticed. However, it’s important to establish the difference between posting regularly and simply spamming, as this could lead to you losing followers rather than gaining them. Give people a reason to follow you on you social media accounts. Unless you’re a big company like KFC, it’s unlikely that people will follow you just for the sake of it. Running competitions and giveaways using your social media accounts will have people clicking, liking, sharing and more importantly, following. Take time to learn the algorithms of each platform. Some of them have different peak times for posting and different ways of making your content go further. However, one thing that most platforms have in common is the good old hashtag. Use relevant and popular hashtags to ensure that your posts are seen. Taking care of social media accounts is very time consuming, and it’s understandable that you have many other important things to be getting on with. However, you can now amalgamate all of your posts into one handy place and use a social media scheduler to free up your time but also make sure you’re still posting regularly. As your business grows bigger, it might be a good idea to hire a social media manager. Vamp up your marketing knowledge and techniques Using the internet to market your business is another very useful way of promoting your business. However, it’s important to understand that the trends in business are forever changing, and so will the techniques you need to use for marketing. Luckily, there’s a fantastic way of putting yourself ahead of the game, so check out Walsh Universitys MBA in Marketing Online       to see if this kind of training and knowledge could benefit the way you market your business online. A few things to remember with marketing are: You need to stand out from the crowd, so think outside of the box. Bright and colourful is always going to be favoured over dull colours. A jingle really can help sell your business. Don’t be scared to break the boundaries of ‘normal’. Create a useful website Having a website for your business whether you’re going to be using it to sell products or not is essential. Think about when you want to find out more information about a business or product you’re interested in investing in you look for their website right? Not having a website in this day and age could lose you a lot of valuable customers, so check out these tips on how to create a useful website that will reflect on your business: Make sure that on pretty much every page of your website your audience is able to see a way of getting in contact with you. Many businesses make the mistake of not having it displayed clearly enough, and this can lead to a loss of custom. Your website needs to be easy to navigate around. A website that’s hard to find what you came to it for will be clicked off just as quickly as it was found. Speaking of finding websites, make sure that your SEO is on point so that your website has a higher chance of ranking higher in search engine results. Making your website attractive should also be a main priority. It’s a sad but true fact that pretty much everything these days is judged by how aesthetically pleasing it is. Much alike social media posts, you need to make sure that the content you’re uploading is useful to your target audience. So, for example, if you’re a company selling DIY materials, posts and information on DIY will benefit your audience and keep them coming back for more. As you can see, using the internet to accelerate your business isn’t as hard as you might have thought. Pop these tips and tricks into play and you’ll soon notice the growth in your business!

Questions to ask before you take the job -

Questions to ask before you take the job - Job seekers who have been looking for new opportunities for months, or even years, are unlikely to spend a lot of time and effort evaluating a new offer before signing on the dotted line. If youve been searching for for a long time, you may not have the luxury to turn down an offer. But if you can afford to pass up an opportunity to wait for something that could be better, here are seven questions you should answer before you accept a new position: 1. How healthy are the organizations finances? Especially if youve been laid off recently, the last thing that you want to do is jump into a situation where another layoff could be in the near future. Make sure you research the organization and review what the press has to say before you jump to join. 2. Is the location feasible, and may it change? Can you really handle a 90-minute commute in the morning? Is there a possibility that the company may transfer you to a different location in the near future, and how would that affect your work-life balance? 3. Can you function in the organizations structure and culture? If youre a very independent worker and this organization functions as a series of small teams, you could be miserable and ready to look for another job in a few short months. Will you have a private office or be expected to function in an open office plan? Dont underestimate the benefits of working in a company that provides a good fit for your work style. 4. What do you know about your boss? Studies show that people who may otherwise prefer to stay in their jobs plan to leave instead because they cannot continue to work for their bosses. While its not always possible to get an intimate picture of what its like working for your future boss, be sure to do the best job possible getting to know him or her before accepting the position. Hopefully, you took a good look around when interviewing for the position and noticed if people seemed generally happy or miserable at work. Use all the data at your disposal to decide if the position is a good fit. 5. Can you fulfill the companys expectations? Does the company expect you to turn around a failing department in just a few months? Are you expected to wave a non-existent magic wand and solve a decades worth of problems? Make sure you arent overpromising and setting up a situation where you may under-deliver. 6. What can you expect from the company? What benefits do they offer, including vacation, health insurance and other extras, such as flexible hours and on-site child care? When do you become eligible to join pension plans or to take advantage of professional development opportunities? When are you eligible for a raise or a promotion? Some companies have archaic rules that could prevent you from applying for an internal transfer until a certain waiting period, even if you are well qualified. Make sure you fully understand what the organization offers you before you accept the position. 7. How does this role help you advance your career? At some point, its important to think about yourself and your own career goals. Too many people go from job to job without stopping to think about how the roles fit into an overall plan. Are you overqualified for the job? Make a list of the ways this job will contribute to your personal career goals. Will it offer new experiences or give you the chance to add something to your career portfolio? Will it put you in touch with influential people you can impress who may offer you new opportunities you want down the road? Try to avoid taking a job that doesnt give you anything but a paycheck and a place to go each day.

Cover Letter For Resume Writing

Cover Letter For Resume WritingA cover letter for resume writing is a document that can greatly help your resume to stand out. It is a message that says you are qualified for the job. The cover letter should be a testimony to who you are and what you can do to bring in the results.Your cover letter will make your resume stand out and show you have something valuable to offer the employer. The first thing an employer will see when reading a resume is the cover letter. If your cover letter is written in an original, simple way that shows off your resume, the employer will be convinced that you are serious about getting the job.A good letter will showcase your strengths, skills and accomplishments. The letters should be professional, compelling and convincing. Your letter should tell about why you are the right candidate for the job. This shows the employer that you have earned the privilege of applying.Your letter should include what you have accomplished in the past and how your quali fications match with the needs of the employer. It is important to explain what you have done well, but you need to keep it short. There should be a paragraph about yourself and then another paragraph explaining what you will bring to the job.Keep your paragraphs short and focus on what your experiences and positive qualities will bring to the table. Your cover letter should contain words that express your desire to get the job and explain why you are so qualified. It is important to keep it brief and to the point.Writing a cover letter is a good way to determine if you are suitable for the job. They will help you stand out from the crowd of applicants. They should also provide positive proof that you are qualified for the job. This makes your resume stand out from all the other candidates, especially the more competitive ones.As with any other writing, writing a cover letter is not as easy as writing a resume. It is important to remember that your letter is your cover and should re flect who you are as a person.

Barack Obama How Will He Make Money After Being President

Barack Obama How Will He Make Money After Being President President Barack Obama is officially out of a job. At the age of 55, he’s one of the youngest ex-presidents ever, and he surely has many career opportunities ahead of him, including plenty of options to cash in on an epic scaleâ€"if he chooses. So what’s next for Obama? We know that the Obamas are jetting away to Palm Springs right after the Trump inauguration for a vacation. And that they are renting an 8,200-square-foot house in Washington, D.C.,so that their daughter Sasha can finish high school in the capital. Other than that, however, where President Obama goes and what he does are largely mysteries. “He will enter a period of what he says will be silence and reflection with family,” the Los Angeles Times reported regarding Obama’s trip to Palm Springs and beyond. “I want to be quiet a little bit and not hear myself talk so darn much,” Obama told reporters. “I want to spend precious time with my girls.” As for how much money Obama will earn in his years as an ex-president, here are some of his possible sources of future income. Pension All ex-presidents get pensions, to the tune of $205,700 annually, and the amount increases regularly to keep up with inflation. Obama, along with ex-presidents Carter, both Bushes, and Clinton, will also receive federal money to cover expenses such as office space and staff. In 2015, for example, George W. Bush was allocated $1.1 million, while Jimmy Carter received a total of $430,000â€"the highest and lowest amounts, respectively, of all the living ex-presidents. Book Deal In his final press conference as president, Obama revealed one plan for 2017: “I want to do some writing,” he said. If that writing entails work on a memoir, President Obama will make a bundle. According to publishers and literary agents consulted by the New York Times, a book contract would be worth somewhere between $12 and $30 million for Obama. (A Michele Obama memoir could be worth $10 to $15 million, meanwhile.) That’s only the original contract, mind you. If the book sells well like Obama’s previous two have, he could earn millions more in royalties for years to come. In 2009 alone, Obama reported $5.1 million in income just from the sales of his two books, The Audacity of Hope and Dreams from My Father. Obama is still receiving royalties from his books, though the amounts have decreased over timeâ€"just $56,000 during the 2015 tax year. Speaking Engagements President Obama is renowned for giving great speeches, and he’ll be in high demand as a guest speaker. It’s hard to nail down how much he’ll earn via paid speeches, however, for a variety of reasons. One is that he may not be interested in paid speaking engagements, especially not ones at business conferences, corporate retreats, and the like, which tend to be the most lucrative. Bill and Hillary Clinton have reportedly been paid $200,000 and up per speech over the years, with Bill receiving over $500,000 for some guest-speaker engagements. CNN estimated that the Clintons earned over $153 million in speech fees from 2001 through 2015, including talks at business forums in China and corporate events hosted by the likes of Goldman Sachs and Swedish telecom giant Ericsson. Wall Street has a reputation for hating Obama for policies that have been deemed anti-business, however, so the world’s corporate overlords may not be clamoring to host him. Regardless, it’s a safe bet that if Obama wants to give paid speeches, he could pocket somewhere in the neighborhood of the $100,000 per engagement commanded by Al Gore or George W. Bush. Professor Obama was a lecturer at the University of Chicago Law School from 1992 to 2004, and it’s long been speculated that he could return to teaching. The thinking goes that even if he doesn’t return to his previous gig, Obama might be tempted to teach at Columbia (where he was an undergrad) or Harvard (where he went to law school and became the first black president of the Harvard Law Review). Does Obama actually want to be a professor? “I love teaching. I miss the classroom and engaging with students,” he said in a 2014 interview. But Obama certainly hasn’t indicated teaching at college or any other level is his top post-presidency career choice. For what it’s worth, the average Harvard professor earns around $200,000 a year. NBA Team Owner Barack Obama’s passion for sportsâ€"basketball in particularâ€"is legendary. He’s undoubtedly the best basketball-playing president ever, and as the recently-published oral history of Obama’s pickup games shows, he’s a fierce competitor and notorious trash-talker as well. All of that competitive fire could translate well into Obama owning a sports franchise. And yes, he’s interested. Last summer, White House press secretary Josh Earnest said that Obama had “discussed” being part of an NBA ownership group, and is game for taking over a team “under the right set of circumstances.” (Obama is a huge Chicago Bulls fan, so we’re guessing he’d be easily swayed into owning that team.) It’s not the first time this possibility has come up either. “I have fantasized about being able to put together a team and how much fun that would be,” Obama said in a 2015 GQ interview. “I think it’d be terrific.” As for how much money Obama could make as an NBA team owner, it’s impossible to come up with an estimate. Most pro team owners are filthy rich business giants who get into sports mostly for fun, not to amass more wealth. Teams don’t always make money either: The Charlotte Bobcats, owned partly by NBA all-timer Michael Jordan, lost $13 million in a recent season. Nonetheless, NBA team valuations regularly increase 20% or more annually, so owners generally profit handsomely when the time comes to sell. Who knows if Obama will ever own part of a pro sports franchise, let alone what his ownership stake would be, plus how much the owners paid and how much it will be worth if and when they sell it. We’d need to pinpoint all of these variables to estimate how much he could earn as an NBA team owner. General Do-Gooder Over the years, Obama has consistently said that down the road he would somehow return to his roots as a community activistâ€"more specifically, by helping children and providing opportunities to young people. “You know, in a post-presidency, the thing that I think I would enjoy most is spending time working with kids,” Obama said on “The View” in 2012. “The idea of being able to go around in various cities and helping to create mentorships, and apprenticeships, giving young people the sense of possibility and opportunity, and using whatever spotlight I can shine to show how much incredible talent there is out there.” Obama has pledged to remain active after his presidency with My Brother’s Keeper Alliance, a nonprofit focused on helping young men of color reach their potential. He’ll obviously be involved with his own nonprofit Obama Foundation, which is developing the Obama Presidential Center and community programs in the South Side of Chicago. Obama will probably earn little to nothing with his nonprofit efforts. But making money is hardly the point. Besides, if Obama figures out how to pull in a few million regularly giving speeches or writing books, it’ll be easy for him to pursue other passions without worrying about money.

7 Simple Habit Changes That Will GUARANTEE Professional Success In 2017 - Work It Daily

7 Simple Habit Changes That Will GUARANTEE Professional Success In 2017 - Work It Daily Habits. The biggest difference between successful people and unsuccessful people is that successful people challenge themselves to make simple habit changes (and actually follow through). (Having trouble following through on your goals? Watch this free 20-minute webinar for quick habit hacks for 2017.) At the beginning of every year, all of us think, “This is going to be MY year. I’m going to set goals for myself and get what I want -- finally.” But how many of us ACTUALLY follow through with those goals? If you have some career goals for 2017, you need to make some habit changes in order to actually get stuff done. These simple habit changes will help you succeed in 2017... Whether you want to earn a higher salary, find a job that gives you purpose, or make a career change, you can get what you want in 2017 by making a few, very simple changes to your life and mindset. Are you ready to show 2017 who’s boss? Let’s talk about what simple habit changes you need to make in order to get ahead this year. 1. Stop being reactive. If you want to take ownership of your career, you need to stop being reactive and start being proactive. Reactive activities include, but aren’t limited to, the following: Waiting for your boss to give you a promotion Waiting for recruiters to reach out to you with new opportunities Waiting for employers to email you back about your resume Notice that all of these activities started with the word “waiting.” Waiting doesn’t get results. Taking action does. 2. Stop limiting yourself to the familiar. Part of your new, proactive approach is to step out of your comfort zone. Don’t hold yourself back because you’re afraid of what people think. And definitely don’t hold yourself back because you’re afraid to fail. Remember, nothing will change if you don’t! 3. Start challenging yourself daily. In order to grow as a professional, gain confidence, and build resilience, you must challenge yourself daily. Whether that’s taking on a failing project at work or working up the courage to talk to a stranger at a networking event, push your boundaries. 4. Start surrounding yourself with supportive people. Having a support system is an integral part of success. Who wants you to succeed? In 2017, make a habit of surrounding yourself with successful, positive influencers who push you to achieve your goals. Make an effort this year to meet new career friends who inspire you to keep moving forward and build stronger relationships with those who’ve always been there for you. 5. Stop complaining and start changing. No matter who you are or what your situation, there’s always going to be something that *could* keep you from achieving your goals. Miserable at your job? Find a new one. Can’t find a job? Adjust your strategy. Can’t get a promotion? Figure out why. Complaining about your situation isn’t going to change anything for you. It only sends you into a vicious cycle of frustration that can seem impossible to get out of at times. Focus on change. Avoid dwelling on your problems. Focus on moving forward. 6. Start working with what you have available. Everyone’s situation is different. You might not have the same resources available to you that someone else has, but you do have the same desire to succeed. In many cases, that’s all you need to start getting what you want. Think about what’s available to you and use it to your advantage. Can’t hire an expensive career coach? Find an inexpensive alternative like an online course or a free webinar to help you get ahead. Or, go out and find someone who’s willing to mentor you through your journey. 7. Start allowing yourself to succeed. You have one life -- this is it. You don’t have time to waste being unhappy, underpaid, or unsatisfied with your career. Now is the time to get what you want. Stop allowing yourself to feel sorry for yourself. You are stronger and better than that. You can achieve anything you want to achieve with the right attitude, tools, and support. These aren’t hard habits to incorporate into your lifestyle. In fact, they’re all quite simple. The most important part is to follow through with them. Truly make them habits and not far-fetched ideas. If you need help, check out this free 20-minute webinar “4 Game-Changing Career Hacks For 2017” to help you get started. Stop waiting for next year. Get going on these simple habit changes and make 2017 YOUR year to shine. Related Posts: REVEALED! 6 Secrets To Achieving Your Goals Networking Your Way Into The New Year S.M.A.R.T. Goals For Job Seekers     Have you joined our career growth club?Join Us Today!