Date: February 16th, 2012 at 12:00 pm PST / 3:00 pm EST

It’s one thing to create an information product – in today’s day and age anyone can do that. But it is a whole other thing to create a *great* information product that has an impact (and that people will buy and use!) As an OBM we can help guide our client’s to making the best of their information products so they can sell more, make more money and stand out from the crowd.

What You’ll Learn:

• Various options for information products – not just books anymore!

• Get a customer’s attention before they even open the package

• How to distinctively package and ship lead generator or free CD offers

• Retail distribution for self-published books and products

• Easy ebook conversion and distribution

Cindy Tyler is the founder and owner of Vervante.  She started Vervante 11 years ago as a print-on-demand publishing company for corporate customers such as IBM, Palm and Apple.  Today Vervante serves over 1000 self-publishing authors and companies printing books as well as a variety of information products.  Cindy will share tips and ideas that will get your products noticed as well as how to easy maneuver the self-publishing and distribution channels.

Call-in information for live call is on your member login page. Missed the live call? Get the audio download on your member login page within 48 hours. If you do not have your password, e-mail us at support@obmconnect.com

If you are not an IAOBM member yet, find out more about IAOBM Membership Benefits by clicking here: http://www.obmconnect.com/membership-benefits

(an excerpt from Chapter 5 in Becoming an OBM)

Planning

Before starting any project you want to make sure you plan before you start. This is SO important in order to prevent frustration and wasted time and resources along the way.

Let’s look at an example. Your client has just written a book and needs to get a sales page “live” so he can start selling the book.

The first step is to plan the sales page, which means getting really clear on what exactly your client wants.

• Is there an example of a sales page that he really likes?  Which elements does he like or not like? I always like to work from an example, especially if your client is new to sales pages or really wants to try something different.
• Does he want a short/sweet style sales page or a longer/harder sell page?
• What domain name does he want for the sales page?
• Will you need to hire a copywriter to write the page?
• Do you need a 3D graphic of the book to put on the page?
• What look (colours, graphics, layout) does he want for the page?
• Does he have testimonials ready or do you need to collect some?
• What price will the book sell for? Is it an e-book or print book?
• Are there any bonuses to go along with the purchase?Is there going to be a special launch price/offer?
• Does your client want an upsell as part of the buying process (e.g., Buy the book and workbook for a discounted price)

As you can see, in order to effectively plan this project, you need to have a strong understanding of all the elements of setting up a sales page. If you don’t have experience in this yet, then I suggest finding a few sales pages and studying each element of the page.

You will also want to consider the cost of each piece of the project so that you can a) have a good idea of what the overall cost will be, b) prevent last minute surprises and c) have a guideline for keeping costs in check.

Company: Jessica Audrey Korynta Website: www.JessicaAudreyKorynta.com Location: Seattle, WA Time Zone: Pacific

My Experience, I am a: Certified OBM

My Client Intake status is: Open – I am looking to work with new clients

I’ve been working online since: While relatively new to the online business world I have been a store manager for a retail company for the past six years. In my position there, I have been responsible for everything including:

- day-to-day selling

- managing a team of up to 30 associates

- analyzing metrics

- planning events and launches

- problem solving

- ensuring task completion

I have also worked during the summers as the business manager for Skogfjorden, Concordia’s Norwegian Language Village. There, I am in charge of:

- managing the sites budget

- ensuring completion of goverment required forms such as

- hiring paperwork

- government subsidy paperwork

all while ensuring a culturally authentic, immersion program for the village participants.

Why I love working as an OBM: I am so excited to be working as an OBM because I love to help those around me. My idea of a successful day, is making someone’s life easier and taking the stress off of their plate. I am really looking forward to working with different types of clients and helping to grow unique businesses.

My Strengths and Areas of Specialty: My favorite thing to do is analytics. I love to see the numbers and statistics coming in and interpret those results into meaningful information.

I am also very strong in organization, motivation, and planning. These are the talents that I used the most in by past career. Setting a goal, creating a plan, and then seeing it through to the end is so exciting for me. Event set-ups and launches are some of my favorite tasks.

My favorite kind of client to work with is: The client that I would seek to work with is someone who is goal driven. I operate by setting up a goal and then creating the steps to achieve that goal. This person would be open to fun and creative ideas, ready to think out of the box, but also realistic in what is an attainable goal.

I would love to work with artists. Many of my personal life passions involve artistry, crafting, and especially photography. I would love to help someone build a business involving the arts.

I also particularly enjoy event planning and would really like the opportunity to work with event/wedding planners. Having just recently planned my own wedding, I am super excited about helping other couples have the most wonderful event of their lives.

My Business Goals for this year are….: I would love to take on 2-3 new clients this year.

Company: LizM Solutions Website: www.LizMSolutions.com Location: West Simsbury, CT Time Zone: Eastern

My Experience, I am an: Experienced OBM – currently working in this capacity for 1 or more clients

My Client Intake status is: Open – I am looking to work with new clients

I’ve been working online since: I started my business as a network marketer hoping to make enough income to work from home to keep from having to put my children in daycare. Through my experience as an engineer and love of all things technical my business morphed into website design.

But my love of learning and helping people simplify, streamline, and use technology has caused my business to expand beyond just websites to helping businesses use the internet to help grow their business as well as improve processes and systems.

Why I love working as an OBM: I love working as an OBM because I love helping businesses take technology that was confusing or overwhelming to them and bringing them to a place where it is helping their business grow. This can be by bringing more customers to them or by streamlining their processes and systems so the business tasks can be better automated.

My Strengths and Areas of Specialty : As an OBM I am very good at helping my clients:

-Streamline their current processes

-Implementing Systems that will work for the business – and grow with what the business owner wants for the future

-Setting up solid online “infrastructure” and web presence for a business

-Setting up a team of people who each use their strengths to best benefit the business and team

My favorite kind of client to work with is: A business owner who is excited about their business/program. They offer a life-changing/transformational service or product and are so excited about that and are excited that they get to make a good living pursuing their passion and helping others.

They are at a point where they need more help managing their business and day to day implementation and systemization of their business.

My Business Goals for this year are….: To really help grow the business of my OBM clients and help them take their business beyond what they could do on their own.

Company: Cybertary Lorton Website: www.cybertarylorton.com Phone #: (703)436-2199 Location: Lorton, VA, USA Time Zone: Eastern

My Experience, I am a: Certified OBM

My Client Intake status is: Open – I am looking to work with new clients

I’ve been working online since: I have 20 years working at the corporate level of the Armed Forces and recently retired to take my skills to the Entrepreneurial World. For many years I led community wide teams through multi-level transformations which I operated through virtual teaming techniques to two warzones and connecting over 30 organizations. As I approached retirement I pulled forward my dream to own and operate my own business. Cybertary is a wonderful franchise model that allows me to blend my leadership and managerial expertise with providing virtual support solutions to a wide range of clients. I work with highly motivated entrepreneurs, sales consultants, and other highly online based businesses. I enjoy strategic planning, project management, team building, and creating things from a blank piece of paper.

Why I love working as an OBM: I love being able to work on a partnering level with my chosen clients. I am a tremendously creative and driven gal. I quickly assess the strategic goals and objectives and set out to set the strategies and plans to get there. I have a knack at breaking down the “elephant” and moving the mountain forward and truly enjoy building worthwhile and impactful progress.

My Strengths and Areas of Specialty: I am very strong in organizing, strategizing, and planning out road-maps to success. I build teams and multi-lane efforts with ease. I draw upon many years of experience leading and managing disparate groups and controversial change efforts. I am trained in Lean Six Sigma and Kaizen disciplines and take the best of all to inform my eye for process improvement and design.

My favorite kind of client to work with is: My favorite kind of clients are those that enjoy collaboration and the journey. I like to get excited about what we are doing and I thrive on celebrating small victories and building the dynasty. I enjoy working with those that think BIG and continue to reach-understanding that we are always in a continual state of improvement.

My Business Goals for this year are….: My goals for this year include working with no more than two extraordinary OBM clients, building my business to include additional OBMs–supporting no more than 2 clients each, and a tight knit group of Technical VAs that are on the cutting edge of client demands. I will lay the groundwork for the World to hear my VOICE this year and set a course for building and extraordinary consulting firm that becomes the leader of the pack.

Company: Generate Your I-Biz Website: www.generateyouri.biz Phone #: 860-830-1180 Location: Simsbury, CT, USA Time Zone: Eastern

My Experience, I am a: Certified OBM

My Client Intake status is: Open – I am looking to work with new clients

I’ve been working online since: I have been working with computers, systems, online marketing, networking, and anything to do with technology since 1992. I decided to step out of the corporate environment, where I was in sales to Fortune 100 companies, marketing, project management, customer relationship management, expectation management, and exceeding client expectations. I decided to bring my skill set to the online world. I became an Online Business Manager so I can continue doing the work I love, for myself and my clients. I loved the impact I made in helping my corporate employers succeed. It is far more satisfying to facilitate those brave entrepreneurs willing to step up and live their dream.

Why I love working as an OBM: I love being an integral part of making big things happen. While pushing for corporate America to flourish was fun, I found it is more fulfilling to help those who dare to dream big and go out on their own to thrive and become wildy successful.

My Strengths and Areas of Specialty: I have an incredible marketing mindset. Everything I do is focused on how to nurture and grow your business. What can we do to make your business thrive? I have an eye for detail and a gentle, yet persistent way to keep projects, people, even business owners on task. Put the project in my hands. I’ll take care of the customers and the details, you take care of the vision and the relationships.

My favorite kind of client to work with is: My favorite kind of client to work with is one with a MISSION to change the world. One that raises consciousness, empowers people, helps them expand beyond any boundaries imaginable. That kind of client has the vision and drive to make things happen. They have grown as far as they can on their own. They need me to hold down the fort with the day to day management of the business so they can unleash their creativity and empower the world. Let’s change it together. What else is possible?

My Business Goals for this year are….: My business goals for this year are to grow with a few new clients. Giving them the focus and attention they need to expand and thrive. I hope to work with you.

(an excerpt from Chapter 3 in Becoming an OBM)

Your job as the OBMis also to protect your client from certain decisions that your client should not be wasting his or her time on. This is especially important with operational and systems-based decisions.

Let’s say your client wants to set up a new blog-based website. First, bring them a summary of options and ideas for them to consider and ask for their approval on the parameters of the project. While you are creating the blog, do NOT NOT go to them with every little question that you have (“Where do you want your RSS feed link? Did you want me to add your picture here? Should I change this description to match your main website?”).

Instead, go ahead and set up the new blog based on your experience and then have your client look at a draft version and request any changes. Again, it is better to present them with a solution to review (a completed draft version of the blog) than to ask them what to do at every step along the way.

This is ESPECIALLY important for clients who actually enjoy systems and administrative tasks. If given the chance, these clients can very easily become involved in these things to the point of distraction. These clients may want to know more about the details than other clients would, but don’t be afraid to lovingly “slap their wrist” if they try to become too involved. It is not the best use of their time to get too involved on the backend and you may need to remind them of that.

Date: January 17th, 2012 at 9:00 am PST / 12:00 pm EST

In this world of online overwhelm it is often the “tried and true” marketing methods that can have the biggest impact. Enter the world of direct mail, which to make seem old-school but remains one of the most effective marketing strategies around – and is especially effective for businesses that find themselves in a marketing slump. If you really want to showcase your OBM marketing mindset to your clients you will want to join this class and learn where and how this could be an effective strategy to help them boost their business.

In the Teleseminar, participants will discover:

• How Image Advertising & Direct Response Marketing Are Different

• The Key To Successful Direct Response

• 3 Secrets To Getting Your Mail Opened

• ​Easy Ways To Save Thousands of Dollars With Every Single Direct Mail Campaign

• The 3 Ingredients of All Successful Direct Mail

Our guest expert for this Member-only call is internationally known marketing and business strategist Diane Conklin. She specializes in helping entrepreneurs and small business owners grow their companies to the next level and showing them how to outperform their competition by measuring their marketing and strategically using multi-media campaigns. Diane is also an author, entrepreneur, coach, consultant, event planner, speaker and direct mail expert, who for over 12 years has specialized in showing entrepreneurs and small business owners how to integrate their online and offline marketing strategies, media and methods, to get maximum results from their marketing dollars, through direct mail and other media.

IAOBM Members: You can access the recording for this call in the Member Area. If you are not an IAOBM member yet, find out more about IAOBM Membership Benefits by clicking here: http://www.obmconnect.com/membership-benefits

(an excerpt from Chapter 3 in Becoming an OBM)

On a day-to-day basis there are many decisions to be made in any online based business: When do we want to send out this promotion? Who is going to fix the typo on our website? Where can we find someone to edit my book? How should I respond to this upset customer? What should our next new product offering be?

Without an OBM, the majority of these decisions fall squarely on the shoulders of business owners. As such, anytime there is a question, their team members will turn to them for the answer. Because most business owners are incredibly busy, this process results in delays and it can also feel like a hassle to haveto deal with every little thing.

That’s why our clients want someone who is willing and able to make decisions on their behalf, and not wait to run everything past them first. This doesn’t mean that you will be making ALL decisions for your client, however you can certainly help with a lot of the tactical and operational decisions that come up on a day-to-day basis.

How do you know when you should check with your client before making a decision?

Generally, any decisions about money or strategy should be run by your client. On the other hand, your client will probably be relieved once you take over some of the administrative, operational and customer service decisions. When you first start working with a new client, you will run a lot of things by them, as you get to know each other and build a level of trust that will give you more freedom in making decisions down the road.

You may also want to set some standards and procedures around this. For example, I once worked with a client whose policy was that her team could make a decision on refunds that would be less than $100, but anything over $100 had to be brought to her attention. A “Decision Making Standards” guide can be something that you create for your client, and add to over time as reference for future decisions.

Company: Sunrise Virtual Services Website: http://sunrisevirtualservices.com Phone #: 916-517-6255 Location: Rancho Cordova, CA Time Zone: PST

My Experience, I am a: Certified OBM

My Client Intake status is: Open – I am looking to work with new clients

I’ve been working online since: I’ve been working online since January 2006 after working for 10 years in the traditional Administrative Assistant role. I have earned certifications as an Internet Marketing Specialist and a Social Marketing Specialist. .

Why I love working as an OBM: I would love to work with just a few clients and really dig deep and get their businesses to run like well oiled machines. I feel that working with just a few clients is best because then I am more focused on just their projects and I can better assist them instead of being pulled in many directions help many clients.

My Strengths and Areas of Specialty: People hire me because I listen to the clients needs and I offer suggestions to my clients.

My favorite kind of client to work with is: I like to help my clients to ‘let go’ of the things in their day to day business that keeps them trapped in front of their computer. I want my clients to be working with their clients or attending networking events or seminars and know that the business is doing well because I am handling the details.

My Business Goals for this year are….: I would like to have two rock solid clients that are ready to hand me their business so that we can both grow our businesses.