Chasing the Next ‘Shiny’ Thing…

By Donna Denil on October 17, 2011 in Internet Marketing

Image by Stephan Geyer via Flickr

…can you relate?

If you, like me, have been chasing ‘shiny things’ around the internet to find the best and brightest tools, training, products, affiliations, etc. this will be of value to you. My blog is devoted to providing the best and the brightest, but it took awhile to arrive at that point. If you are interested, read on.

About two years ago I was surfing the net looking around for something that would allow me to work from home and leave 9-5 behind. After all, I had years of experience in sales and marketing, sitting on both sides of the desk, what would be so hard about translating that into a successful online business? If you are rolling around on the floor laughing at my naivety, it’s understandable. I was gobsmacked by how different it is to market online.

Numerous ‘excursions’ later after checking out different possibilities (and spending more than a few dollars), I settled on a company that forums, research and testimonials deemed reputable and sound. I joined with every intention of embracing and following the whole program. What I failed to pay attention to was that the product(s) being offered and the way it was presented was a bad fit for me personally (not the fault of that company). The company continues to be successful and has a number of members doing extraordinarily well, I just was not destined to be one of them.

In the process of trying to fit a square peg into a round hole, I started ‘chasing the newest shiny thing’ that would (hopefully) get me back on track; my morgue contains kits, books, DVDs, software…Maybe you have your own morgue of ‘shiny things’ too numerous to list. Then reality struck, my company sold and my position was eliminated. It was time to Get. Serious.

While most of my time was spent online, I also looked for information/training being offered locally and hit the jackpot! At an event called ‘Be a Social Media Rockstar’ several extremely bright people, (Todd Lohenry, Dana VanDen Heuvel, David Sauter, Tom Clifford, to name names) presented on their areas of expertise. Over time, some have become friends and have helped me connect with great resources and training to stop the ‘shiny thing’ chase. At their suggestion I’ve also connected virtually with incredibly talented people.

It became evident in my many ‘aha’ moments that I had failed to do several things that are really important for success in online marketing.

I didn’t take the time to learn the lingo.
I didn’t reach out and get connected with those interested in the same topics I am either through following their blogs or news feeds.
I didn’t set a consistent schedule for my training and posting.
I didn’t have a firm strategy.
I didn’t define my brand and products/services clearly.

What I did do to turn this bus around.

Learned the lingo. It’s so easy to find the definition by just ‘googling’ it.
Started connecting virtually.
Treat part of the day the same way I treated my college courses. I go to class every day.
Established a strategic plan.
Refocused on defining not only my brand, but developing affiliations with trusted resources.

One of the biggest positives was working with Todd Lohenry to get my blog enabled website up and rolling. He has taught me to use such simple tools for posting, resourcing, information feeds and connecting in the virtual world, that it is really a pleasure to sit down with my laptop each day. Gone are the days of approaching the keyboard with more fear than I would have approaching a snake pit, not a small victory if you have a fear of snakes like me!

If you would like to see what Todd is all about, visit his e1evation site. There is a wealth of free information to be found as well as the opportunity to hire him for services you don’t have the time or know-how to do.

Now that I’ve faced my fear, written this post and confessed my shortcomings , I am committed to continuing to bring you the best information and trusted resources I can find. Stay connected for more.

To your success!

Donna Denil

Disclaimer:

Sometimes I’ll recommend products or services to help you start, manage, or build your business. If you decide to click the link and purchase the product or service, I’ll get a commission. The commission varies depending on what you buy. This is the main way Donna Denil Marketing is monetized.

I will never recommend a product or service that I don’t, either, use myself or have 100% faith in its quality and benefit to you. I don’t leave a note after every affiliate link, but if you see a link with my domain name and a refer attribute, it’s probably an affiliate link (e.g. http://donnadenil.com/e1evation/).