I came across this contest and immediately thought of you.

I entered the contest and you should to.

Here’s why:

“Fast Company Magazine” is running a contest for the most “Influential People” online and I want you to enter and place in the top 100!

You automatically will be featured in the November issue just for entering.

Then, you can then use the phrase “As Scene in Fast Company Magazine” in all of your marketing, websites, etc and that give you instant credibility because Fast Company is a a well known brand name and you will NOW be associated with Fast Company Magazine.

It’s FREE!

Here’s a TIP that will save you alot of time: Register thru the Facebook icon. I tried to register the manual way and it took forever (like hours because it takes forever to upload your picture). Use the facebook icon  it takes 2 seconds.

Here’s how the contest works. You enter the contest and you will get your own unique URL that you can then promote. All of your friends, email contacts, buyers list can then vote for you.

You get credit when people vote for you and partial credit for all the votes their friends give them when they create an account. (That’s what makes it viral.)

I started at position 27,157.

Here is what you need to do step-by-step to enter the contest for “Fast Company” so you can get published in their November issue.

1. Go to Fast Company
2. Register yourself for the contest by clicking on the blue button that says “Discover Your Influence” and that is how you create your own account. There is no charge whatsoever.
3. Put in your information and a picture.
4. It then gives you a link to promote and have your friends vote on it

Send out some emails to your list and make sure you tell them to register by clicking on the  “Discover Your Influence” button so they will get in the November issue of Fast Company Magazine. and post some blurbs with your link on your facebook and twitter accounts for more traffic.

You can also use this in the article you send to your list:

I will also help you as well. When you are done creating your link go post your URL in the comment section below or on my twitter page and I will vote for you
http://www.twitter.com/KendallMatthews

See you in Fast Company Magazine in November,

Kendall E. Matthews

P.S. This contest will be over next week so get in now before you lose your chance. The sooner you get in the better your chances will be.

Go here now and click on the Discover Your Influence button to get started for FREE today. Then post your link on your facebook, twitter and send an email similar to this one to your email list.

Because when you setup your account thru my link, it helps me and you at the same time. You will borrow off of my influence and it will bump right up to where I’m at so your not stuck back at 27,157 like I was.

Go here now: http://fcinf.com/v/dcgc

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You can follow me on Twitter here – http://twitter.com/KendallMatthews

Have you ever read “The Tipping Point” by Malcom Gladwell. Twitter hit the tip last year and it’s clearly gaining steam.

I’ve had a Twitter account for many months but I utilize it a lot differently than most. I’ve successfully ignored advice about creating tweets about Florida income property listing, check out my cats (Flavio – he’s 12 & Roxy – she’s 4) or I telling the world what I eat for breakfast (actually I’m like a fly, I juice my foods, check out The Raw Food Detox Diet by Natalie Rose).

I like to focus on one thing and become really good at it – building win-win relationships – and since Twitter isn’t labor intensive to manage especially using Hootsuite, I’ve decided to get really active and get online networking…

With the media folks and people who are make things happening…

4 Twitter Superstars You Must Follow Now

In the real estate and marketing world here are folks who are taking full-advantage of building connections using Twitter:

• Jay Thompson talks more about his personal experiences in life and has built a huge following for just being real.
• Nicole Nicolay’s blog rose to recent fame thanks in part to her Twitter Guide for Real Estate Twits. This indicates the demand and interest in the topic is driving a lot of traffic. You got to check out the cool video she created after you become one of her followers.
• Gary Vaynerchuk helped his folks wine business become massively profitable using social media. I went to a workshop he did for Keller Williams Realty and he absolutely Crushed It with great information.
• Yaro Starak & Gideon Shalwick, the reason why I even started blogging, could be considered a late adopters, but if there’s a great in-depth blogging training program to be made these Aussies will jump on the bandwagon eventually.

What The Heck Is Twitter Anyway?

If you don’t know Twitter, it’s basically a a website that lets you post short sentences to update voyeurs and stalkers called “followers” and let them know what you are doing, when your doing it and even where.  People follow you and you can follow others.

But you need to understand this….

99% of the people who are following you on twitter aren’t paying attention to what your saying, They just want you to follow them back, so they can…

A) Have the perception they are famous and people care what they say ie. www.twitter.com/KanyeWest

B) Hopefully, sell you stuff loads of stuff that you probably won’t use.

Increasing your Twitter following isn’t a bad goal. Increasing your relationships with people who have something in common is just a better one.

3 Things You Should Do Right Now To Build your Twitter Following

• Do you remember,  the Right Said Fred song, “I’m To Sexy For My Shirt.” Well, if you got it flaunt it in your twitter profile. Check out Laura Roeder @LKR
• Be the cool kid. If you know you are boring, like Ben Stein’s character as the teacher in the movie Ferris Beullar’s Day Off – then don’t bother. You have 140 characters to make a good impression.
• The real power comes from using Twitter to network and connect with people. Send messages directly @ people you want to know, perhaps sharing interesting links or giving a useful tip.  Like… @PhxREGuy @KendallMatthews put you on his top 5 twitter #superstars list

Twitter is the most basic form of online networking available today and helps people to “feel connected” with others, which is definitely one of the reasons like a bird it has taken off.

I’m Off To Twitter

I found a couple of interesting links that I’m going to stick in my Twitter account. If you want to follow my thoughts, then please follow my Twitter:

http://twitter.com/KendallMatthews

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The rap artist Jay-Z’s song is absolutely right, “I Got 99 Problems But My …. Ain’t One.”  Like you, as a business owners I have many problems and lot of issues. Yet this one is bigger than self-employment tax. Taller than trying to control maintenance cost.

This problem is like a shin splits– despite all efforts to grow our businesses, it gives us massive pain when we try to run profitable business.

No, it’s not only employee labor cost.

That problem is… A schizophrenic focus on marketing and delivering your message to customers and clients.

For those of you from St. Louis, schizophrenia can seem like bizarre delusions, disorganized speech and unclear thinking.

Here’s some real world examples of powerful people who may show signs of…

Bizarre Delusions:

“640K ought to be enough for anybody.” Bill Gates said in 1981, who is now former owner of Microsoft and according to Forbes Magazine one of the top 3 wealthiest men in the world

Disorganized Speech:

“I stand by all the misstatements I have made.” Dan Quayle, former vice president of the United State.

Unclear Thinking #1:

“I promise you I will listen to what was said here, even though I wasn’t here.” George W. Bush, former president of the United states.

Unclear Thinking #2:

“My friends, we live in the greatest nation in the history of the world. I hope you’ll join with me as we try to change it.” Barack Obama, President of the United States.

Do you want to make real money with your business online or offline? OK, then answer this:

• Do you think that online marketers are mostly new-age snake-oil salesmen or Brooklyn Bridge Dealers?
• Do you spend months creating a 83-page marketing plan or every 8 days come up with a new marketing scheme?

If you answered “yes” to either of those questions, you’re doomed. You’re just doomed. I’m not even going to bother to sugar-coat it.

Marketing is simple. It’s not the practice of getting other people to agree with you… that’s sales. Let me repeat, it is not the trying to get people to agree with you.

Marketing is the art of getting your message in front of those people who can and may want to say yes to your service, product, or offer.

If you are doing anything else you are wasting your time.

Let me take a bit further…

The reality is that ALL small business owners, investors, are marketers, whether they sell something or not. You want people to think your website is pretty good and keep coming right?

That takes marketing.

But, you said you want to make Lil’ Wayne duffel bags amounts of money every month. So, what about that?

If you answered yes to either of those questions above, then you come try to sell something, how’s that going to work?

Well, it won’t work. What it leads to is owing a huge IRS tax bill that you put on your zero percent interest credit card until November then the rate goes up to interest rate to high for even pole vaulter leap over, but that’s not you…

You sit there and GROVEL at the feet of prospective buyers. You try to convince them that you’re OK… you’re not one of those “bad” business owners with high prices and bad customer service. Not so unsure of yourself, you low-ball the price to some insanely low figure.

Instead of actually marketing your wares, you GROVEL like a little boy with your low price and hope people will feel enough compassion (because you’re not the evil marketer) to take a roll the dice with a few bucks on you.

SKIP LOGIC: Make Them Drool With Desire

You don’t make sales by lowering your price. You don’t feed your family by trying to tell people what a good person you are for not trying to sell it to them. That’s d e l u s i o n a l. That’s a 100% fool-proof way to never make any money online or offline.

The “buy it if you want it, and if not, whatever” approach doesn’t work. I tried.

The “buy it because it is so cheap” approach is failure. I tried that too.
Do you want people to buy because they feel sorry for you or because they think you actually have something worth buying?

Nobody is going to buy from you because you’re the anti-marketer or the “old-dog that can’t learn

execute new tricks.” They’re going to go buy from the people who DO market.

Why? Because people respond to great marketing. Always have and always will. Who says, “Taste The Rainbow? What melts in your mouth and not in your hand? “Remember, “Taste Great, Less Filling”?

While you rock back-and-forth in your schizophrenic dream world, thinking you’re above the tactics of internet marketing tactics, making phone calls, constant repetition, and kissing babies like a politician, I hope you enjoy not realizing the income you could make and filing for payment plans to pay your back-taxes.

You CAN be a fair and balanced business owner and a unabashed marketer at the same time. All the successful business owners are… ie. Steve Jobs, Richard Branson, Magic Johnson. The keys to good marketing are:

• Authenticity
• Interesting
• Clarity
• Perceived value.

Do that as a business owner/marketer and you will still have 99 problems, but marketing won’t be one.

Happy Investing!

Kendall Matthews

Official Sponsor of Making Things Happen

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Is Gary Vaynerchuk, creator of TV.WineLibary.com, on the list of 2009 Extraordinary Business Minds? I don’t see him on this list, but he should have been… View Who Made it and Who Didn’t It.

If you could do one thing to permanently instill the mindset of no-limit success into your life, what would it be?

Because frankly, I know what you’re going through. Plowing through all the negative thoughts and mental roadblocks can be tough.

Here in Mesa, Arizona, I recently attended a social marketing workshop that featured Gary Vaynerchuck. Gary is creator of WineLibrary.com and his video podcast receives 90,000 viewers. People love to watch him drink. He recently signed a $1,000,000 book deal and his websites generates millions of dollars as well.

The below video wasn’t the workshop I attended, yet you will get a feel of what I learned from a Russian who is Proud to be an American.

35 Things I Wrote Down From Gary Vaynerchuck’s Crush It Tour

1. Russian immigrant family. Moved to the US in 1978.
2. Respect cultural shifts
3. Respect the speed of the tech shifts
4. More people are looking down at their cell phones, not up at billboards
5. Content is king, but Marketing is Queen and she runs the household.
6. Use Twitter Search
7. We are in the biggest shift in media of all time
8. You can now go directly to the consumer and skip the gatekeeper
9. You must adjust to using the internet
10. Obnoxious hard work
11. The best media channel that converts is word-of-mouth @ 80%
12. Twitter is word-of-mouth on steroids
13. We are in the thank you economy (customer service)
14. Focus on hyper-niche markets
15. Build a business around what you love
16. It doesn’t hurt to be first to market
17. Now there is Zero cost of entry
18. You must be patient
19. Use mashable and techcrunch to stay up on tech trends
20. Mobile is where it is at
21. Create an Iphone App for your brand
22. V-Jay content. Be a real estate aggregator and add your 2 cents.
23. Get sponsors by getting traffic and do joint venture partnerships
24. You get stuff by taking it
25. If a picture is worth a thousands words… video is worth more than that
26. Blip.tv is starting to do a better job than Tubemogul
27. Twitter is about listening
28. Personal brand equity is very valuable
29. You have to be a fast-pace reactionary business, most of internet tools weren’t around 3 years ago
30. Be a content producer.
31. Put out content on how you do things and your knowledge
32. Online legacy last forever, if you do good, it is better than currency
33. Media cash is being neutralized
34. Create content that you can produce and consume
35. Comment on blogs and forums for hours, be a part of the conversation

What To Do With All These Brains

What I learned was that there’s issues and developments that will always pop up…things that you weren’t expecting. There are things that will try to drag you down and crush your dreams.

And the worst part is, most people who don’t have a similar success-oriented mindset just don’t understand. So when you have detailed questions or need direction, they either hand you a canned response or simply shrug their shoulders and walk away.

That’s what impressed me the most about Gary Vaynerchuck. He didn’t shrug his shoulders and walk away… He threw “f” bombs and challenged people not to lie..

One guy even got the courage to announce that he really did not like selling real estate and he would rather do something else.

Gary Vaynerchuck, like many others who have graduated from the School of Hard Knocks… understand the best way to succeed is to follow your passion. They’ve been there, done that, and bought the t-shirt.

Learn From The Best

In fact, there’s 53 of them. All right here, and all waiting to answer your questions.

Listen Here to what they have to say.

Instead of going to some workshop at a fancy resort and spa in Las Vegas or Palm Beach, you’ll have the opportunity to “virtually consult” with 53 of the world’s foremost business, marketing, and personal development authorities…

During these intense, ultra-focused panel sessions, these experts will address the biggest problems you’re facing in your quest for success and hand you the breakthrough solutions you’ve been searching for.

That’s right–people like Tony Robbins, Jay Conrad Levinson, Stephen Covey, Michael Gerber, Brian Tracy, Robert Cialdini and a host of others will be on hand to lend their assistance and guide you towards the winning mindset and lifestyle of your dreams.

Oh, and did I mention it was FREE?

Here’s the link:

Click here for Free live video training from over 50 business experts.

You read that correctly–for 6 solid weeks, you can be a part of these game-changing panel sessions. And it won’t cost you a single penny.

So I can’t stress enough how amazing this opportunity is. You can get the wisdom and expertise you need directly from the same brilliant minds who have helped to shape the success of billion dollar companies like Microsoft, Google, Coca Cola, Proctor and Gamble, and many many others.

Can you think of a better (and easier) way to transform your mind–and your life?

Me neither. Besides, it’s free–worth at least taking a few seconds to check out it here…

Moving Forward,

Kendall E. Matthews, Official Sponsor of Make Things   Happen!

www.InvestmentRealEstateCorner.com

P.S. Are you following me? www.Twitter.com/KendallMatthews

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I don’t know about you, but my teeth grind and my blood pressure goes over 143 when I hear a “business professional” answer their phone with, “Hello!”

The other week I called a real estate professional and he answered the phone like this.

“Hello, excuse I’m in an important meeting. Can I call you right back, who is this?”

“This is Kendall Matthews, calling about the offer my client, Dr. “X” has on your property.”

“Oh yea, I really don’t want to get into that in front of my client, call me back in 20 minutes.”

I think my blood pressure reached 185.

We eventually canceled the contract because of communication difficulties with this real estate “professional.” His business voice mail greeting wasn’t much better, just the same ” I will call you back as-soon-as-possible” line that millions of others have recorded on their cell phones.

Therefore, starting today I have decided to not work with any business person who answers their phone with “Hello.” Feel free to forward this article to anyone who has the words, “As-soon-as-possible” in their business voice mail greeting.

Here are 3 Important Factors To Consider When Writing A Business Voice Mail Greeting:

Figure Out How You Like to Communicate

A) Phone
I like talking on the phone, yet not for a long time. Business conversations for me need to last no more than 7 minutes. If you would like to learn how to get your point across clearly, consisly and quickly I would recommend the audio book, “How To Get Your Point Across in 30 Seconds or Less by Milo Frank.

B) Text
I don’t like texting. Did you see what happen to Will Smith’s wife in the movie “Seven Pounds?

“Texting while driving is dangerous. There is no however. Yet…

If your car is pulled over and you are not in motion, I have recently found sending text messages to be very beneficial business application. For years, I have refused to pay T-Mobile the extra $5 for an additional 800 text messages, because I like talking on the phone, but I have relented.

C) Email
I check and respond to my emails in batches. Typically only three times a day.  I found an even better way to reduce back and forth email discussions, using “If then scenarios.”  For example:

“I will accept your counter of $750,000. If you would like to move forward to a succesful close of escrow then scan back the signed contract to me.

If you have any problems scanning the document then fax them to 888.xxx-xxxx.

If I receive your email or faxed signed contract then I will email you a confirmation. If you don’t hear from me within 4 hours then I did not receive it and you will need to re-send.

If this makes sense, then I look forward to working with you to a successful close, if not give me a call between 1 and 2 pm today.

What Is Your Time Worth?

A) ASAP
I’ve lived long enough to learn that I will never be a doctor, fireman, or police offer. Yes, my childhood dreams have been dashed. That being the case, I realize that if I don’t return someones phone call right away, 99.999999% no one will die.

I have come to realize that people like to be informed. Having a business voice mail greeting that says “As-Soon-As-Possible” doesn’t inform… it’s a Jell-O blob copy-out of whenever I feel like it.
That’s why I created…

B) Call Back Times
When someone calls my phone, my business voice mail greeting tells them when I will return their call. I have created an expectation in their mind. I then listen to their messages and choose to respond by text, email, or return call.

If their phone call is on an urgent matter, then I call them back promptly. Allowing me to exceed their expectations. If their message is important then I call them back during the designated times.

Do You Like Referrals?

Ask Them Who Referred Them?

I’ve learned most of these techniques from being on the coaching program of By Referral Only. I have received hundreds of compliments on my business voice mail greeting and how I digitally communicate.

When I my script asks them “Who Referred them” I am essentially creating in their mind the framework that says, “I am referrable.” I don’t know about you, yet I like to work with people who know-like-and trust-me even before we meet.

Here’s My Business Voice mail Greeting Script on my cell phone.

A) Introduction

“Good day, this is Kendall Matthews.”

B) Body

“Please slowly leave your name, number and email address.

I return messages by phone or email between 9-10 am. 1 and 2. Then again between 4 and 5 pm. If you’ve been referred to me please leave the name of the person who referred you, so I can personally thank them.”

C) Close

“You have a Super-fantastic day and thanks for not keeping me a secret!”

Take five minutes out of your super-busy schedule. Sit down with a pen and yellow piece paper. Focus on a simple business voice mail script that will stand out. It doesn’t have to be extravagant, funny, or cute. It just have to be real. It has to tell folks that you don’t run your business as-soon-as possible.

Have you heard “professionals” unprofessionally answer the phone or had bad business voice mail greetings?

Do or Don’t. There is No Try.

Kendall E. Matthews
www.InvestmentRealEstateCorner.com

Official Sponsor of Making Things Happen

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