Perry included a quote in his latest email to me that I thought summed up WHY giving leads a free gift is such a powerful marketing strategy, that I just had to share it. It's actually attributed to Steven Covey ... it's from his very popular book '7 Habits of Highly Effective People.'

In the book, Covey talks about the idea of an "emotional bank account" that everyone has.

=> When you do something good for someone, you make a deposit into their emotional bank account.

=> When you ask someone to do something for you, you make a withdrawal.

=> If the account balance is zero, they will ignore your request.

=> And here's the KICKER: Most advertisers and marketers try to make a WITHDRAWAL from a customer before they've made a DEPOSIT.

No wonder making sales is such an uphill battle!

Perry goes on to share that a white paper (aka a special report) is a way to make a deposit before you make a withdrawal -- with useful, problem solving information. People are much more responsive to this type of marketing than they are to traditional advertising.

WHY? Because it builds trust and credibility like no other kind of advertising can.

If you're not currently using this type of lead generation in your business, you need to strongly consider incorporating it into your marketing. Perry's free e-course on white papers is a great way to learn more. And YES, it is an example of exactly what he's talking about - it's a lead generator for his business. So you can see how he does it, while also learning something you can immediately put to work in your business. You can sign up for the free ecourse here.

In fact, you'll get a chance to test your own knowledge of these brands with my Brand Quiz in this Special Report. You can get your free copy at www.1HourBranding.com.

If you could get the same or better results from your marketing while spending less, you'd want to do that, wouldn't you? At a time when most businesses are cutting back on marketing, and limiting their growth, there is a marketing secret that could potentially allow you to cut back and still get the same or even better results.

There is a way to maximize the effectiveness of all of your marketing. To get the greatest "bang for the buck!" An easy way to make sure you stand out from the crowd. A simple way to make you practically immune from competition.

This is a secret all the big guys know, but one that very few small business marketers take advantage of. The secret is in "branding" your business. And it's very likely one of the biggest challenges you face as a small business marketer or solo-professional.

But the bottom-line is, if you can create a strong brand, you will be remembered. And that's the first step to being CHOSEN.

I'd like to ask you three questions...

(1) Does your business stand for something clear and unmistakable?

(2) Do you stand out from your competitors

(3) Do you have a BRAND or just a business?

To market successfully, you NEED a brand. So make sure you take the time to determine what you want your business to stand for. What you want to be known for. Because that is your brand and it should be front and center in all of your marketing. Because it will allow you to attract exactly the right clients, and gain more trust and ultimately more business.

I just introduced a new program called the 1-Hour Branding System to help solo-professionals and small business owners create their own brand. And of course, it was designed in my signature, one hour, simple, step-by-step style ... after all, that's MY brand!

You can get all the details at www.1HourBranding.com

As you know I am a big fan of Article Marketing. Writing articles in your area of expertise and posting them on free article directories on the Internet is a great way to establish yourself as an expert in your field, drive traffic to your website, build your email list, and just plain build your business.

Christopher Knight, founder of EzineArticles.com, my favorite article marketing directory website just added a really cool new feature. It's a widget you can use to feature your most current articles on your own website or blog. It's very easy to use and you can even customize the widget to match your site.

I've already added widgets to my blog and two of my websites. You can see the widgets in action right here on my blog and on my 10stepmarketing website and on my 6FigureWorkAtHomeMom website.

If you're an EzineArticles author and you want to add a widget to your site, you can get all the details on the EzineArticles Blog.

And if you're not yet using Article Marketing, I encourage you to learn more about this powerful and FREE marketing tool. You can start with the following article from my free article library: How to Massively Multiply Your Web Exposure AND Position Yourself As An Expert

You can find out more and submit your listing here.

I just signed up myself and I wanted to let you know about it right away so you can, too.

To sign up, just go to http://www.ezinearticles.com/training/

You'll be required to confirm your subscription in order to receive the course. FYI, my confirmation email went into my spam folder. So if you don't receive it, you may want to check there for it!

Enjoy this free gift!

I've had many clients ask me these questions. So when I bumped into this video that does a great job of explaining what the heck an RSS feed is, in a simple, low-tech manner, I felt compelled to share it with you. I hope you enjoy it and that it helps you better understand what RSS is, so you can put the power of it to work for you. And, if you want to sign up for my RSS feed, you can do so at http://www.10stepmarketingConnection.com

It simply is NOT necessary. I have streamlined the entire process to make it simple and best of all, you can complete your marketing plan within one hour.

How is this possible?

I've put together a package of materials to help you quickly understand exactly what you need to do, and templates to make it easy, so when you sit down to create your marketing plan , you will be able to complete it within one hour. In fact, I even give you a sample marketing plan so you know exactly what your marketing plan should look like. And, I call it the 1-Hour Marketing Plan.

And now's a great time to start thinking about your marketing plan for 2008, so you'll be ready to kick of the year with a winning marketing strategy.

You can find out more about the 1-Hour Marketing Plan here.

So what exactly does that mean? Isn't marketing, marketing?

The answer is, no. There are two kinds of marketing: strategic marketing and tactical marketing. And, there is a distinct difference between the two.

Tactical marketing is the actual activity you are doing to market your business. It includes things like networking, advertising, direct mail, publishing an ezine, article marketing. Yes, these are all valid ways to market your business. So, what's the problem?

Without a well-thought-out marketing strategy behind them, your chances of finding success with any or all of these marketing tactics is limited. That's where strategic marketing comes in.

Just like it sounds, strategic marketing means you have a strategy behind your marketing. A "game plan" if you will. It involves spending some time BEFORE you market to determine exactly what you want to accomplish and setting some marketing goals for your business. It means creating a marketing plan ... a foundation for your marketing tactics to stand on.

Now is a great time to evaluate whether you have a strategic marketing plan - a solid foundation for your marketing to stand on, or whether you are just out there doing tactical marketing (marketing without a plan).

Next week I will be introducing a brand new tool to help you create a marketing plan quicker and easier than ever. So be sure to check back!

The other day I went to my mailbox to pick up my mail. Inside my box was a bright orange slip letting me know I had a package. I handed the slip to the girl at the counter and she returned with a big purple and white box. I was immediately intrigued. After all, I wasn't expecting package.

The package was from Yahoo Search Marketing. Now I was even more intrigued ... what could they be sending me in such a big box? I couldn't wait to open it! It's important to note here that as a regular Google search advertiser, and a one-time Yahoo search advertiser, I regularly get direct marketing postcards from Yahoo, eager to get my business back. I didn't get very good results with my initial Yahoo search marketing campaign, despite the fact the Yahoo experts set it up for me, so these postcards usually go right into the trash can.

But you can bet I wasn't going to throw away this big purple box! When I opened it I found a small brochure and a purple Yahoo button. The button reminded me of the Staples "Easy" button - you've seen it if you've seen the Staples TV commercials. When I pushed the purple Yahoo button, it hollered "YAHOOOO!" It was hysterical!

Click Here to Listen to the Yahoo Button

Of course I've had lots of fun playing with the Yahoo button ... I shared it with my husband, my son and my dogs (they really don't know what to make of it!).

But my point with all of this is to illustrate the power of an unusual direct marketing piece. I haven't yet decided whether or not to give Yahoo Search Marketing another try, but you can bet that purple Yahoo button is still sitting on my desk, reminding me every day to consider it.

You may not be able to afford to send something so elaborate or expensive. But you could probably come up with something unexpected to send to your prospects or clients. Even if it costs you more than a traditional postcard, if it gets opened and does NOT get thrown away, it may just be worth it. Of course, you'll want to track and test to find out for sure.

Have you ever received an intriguing direct mail piece. If so, post a comment to tell us about it!

Meet Debi Silber, also known as The Mojo Coach. Debi is a fitness professional and health coach. She was smart enough from day one to pick a very specific target audience. Debi works exclusively with moms. Why? Because she is one and because she knows and understand this audience well. And she knew she could help them.

After many years of training and coaching moms, Debi realized that what she was really doing was helping moms "get their mojo back." And from that point on, Debi became "The Mojo Coach."

This is a brilliant brand positioning. It has personality (that matches Debi's by the way), it is memorable, it separates her from all the other fitness professionals and health coaches, and it resonates with HER target audience.

Bravo to Debi for creating a powerful Brand YOU!

I am sharing the full interview I recorded with Debi with my Step of the Month Club members this month because I think it is such a great example.

If you'd like to learn more about The Mojo Coach, you'll find her online at www.lifestylefitnessinc.com

Oh, and if you're a mom interested in her services, just tell her that Debbie from 10stepmarketing sent you and she'll give you a 10% discount. Another great example of marketing - offering a referral incentive!

Or you may think of well-known celebrities like Oprah Winfrey, Martha Stewart, Donald Trump and even Dr. Phil. Like them or not, it's an indisputable fact that they are KNOWN. When you hear their names you have an instantaneous impression of who they are and what they stand for.

THAT is branding. You may wonder … does this really apply to me in my solo-pro business?

The answer is absolutely YES!

After all, whether you're a coach, consultant, accountant, photographer or just about any other kind of service professional, without a DEFINITIVE brand identity, how do you expect people to remember you? How do you expect people to decide whether not they want to do business, or affiliate, with you?

And, here's the real kicker...

When you successfully create a strong brand, people will be more likely to hire you and pay more for your services because they perceive you as the top EXPERT in YOUR field.

If you’ve ever struggled with how to separate yourself from the pack, click here to learn how you can create a memorable brand and all the benefits that go along with it.

I've decided to offer my complete 10stepmarketing System for only $46!

That's one dollar for each year I'm celebrating!

It's a savings of more than $50 and more than 50%! And absolutely the lowest price I will EVER offer my complete 10stepmarketing System for.

I told you it was CRAZY! :-)

This offer is only valid through Sunday, November 11, 2007. After that, it goes away, just like my birthday cake and party balloons!

You can get all the details about my award-winning 10stepmarketing System and get your special birthday blowout price on the Digital Ebook version here.

After all, now is the perfect time to start working on your marketing plan for 2008.

And thanks for helping me celebrate my birthday!

What if someone you trusted gave you advice along with step by step instructions you needed to take, in order to become wildly successful in YOUR business? What would that be worth to you?

I am very excited to announce that I have joined together with nine successful entrepreneurs who have pooled their expertise to help you go "From Employee to Entrepreneur." You can learn how I did it, along with these other nine successful entrepreneurs here.

I am so excited to be a part of this project and to be in the company of such an amazing group of entrepreneurs. Almost makes me want to pinch myself!

I encourage you to check this out today. We're even offering special Early Bird Pricing until November 18th. You can get all the details here.

November is a great month to review your tracking. The whole purpose of tracking all of your marketing is so you can do more of what works and less of what doesn't work. Simple really. That's why tracking is such an important step in The 10stepmarketing System.

So schedule a day soon to sit down and review all of the marketing you did this year, and how well it performed for you. Did each marketing activity bring you new clients? Generate sales? Add names to your prospect list? If you discover that some of your marketing activities didn't accomplish any of these goals, then you will want to seriously evaluate whether or not you want to continue using them. Your marketing should be generating results, and if its not you need to make some changes.

What if you didn't track your marketing this year? If that's the case, now is a great time to start thinking about how you can track your marketing from this point forward. Use coupon codes or unique web page addresses in your ads, your articles, or your press releases. Send speaking engagement audiences to special web pages or make them a specific offer that you can track back to them. Or, if nothing else, when you make a sale or get a new client, ASK them how they heard about you and jot it down ... keep a written record.

Without tracking, you don't know which marketing is working and which marketing is not working. And, there's a pretty good chance you are wasting your valuable marketing dollars and time. And I don't know about you, but I don't have time or money to waste! That's why I include tracking worksheets in The 10stepmarketing System - to make tracking easy.

Click here for an example of the type of tracking worksheets I make available in my 10stepmarketing System. It's a Microsoft Excel file that is already set up to make tracking your marketing activities easy. This one is my gift to you ... just think of it as a Halloween "Treat!"

I hope it will help you better track your marketing!

And, remember, the longer you track your marketing, the better you get at marketing YOUR business. And if you can spend less time and less money on your marketing and get better results, don't you want to do that? Having a marketing plan, and tracking your marketing activities are the BEST way to do so! And remember, that's exactly what The 10stepmarketing System will help you do.