Welcome to the Story Bistro blog!
Our most recent posts have been cued up for your enjoyment. This month, our focus is on blooming and deepening our online relationships.
(See the footer at the bottom of this page to browse by category.)
Surprising Advice for Honing Your Storytelling and Blogging Skills
Have you seen the above rules before? It's super-smart advice! [Get more writing and content marketing tips from Copyblogger.] Here's Step #11: Don't Write in a Vacuum. It's simple: if you want to get better -- no matter what your experience level -- you should also...
read moreSchrödinger’s Email List: Are Your Readers Dead or Alive?
If you're any sort of geek, you know about Schrödinger's Cat. Is it alive? Or isn't it? You won't know until you open the dang box. Which brings me to next point: Your eMail list is a lot like that cat. If you think you have one, but you never send out an email, it...
read moreHow To Write Fun and Engaging Survey Questions
This is a guest post by Josh Pigford Did you know that online surveys don't have to be boring? Gathering feedback is a necessary part of running a business, but the process doesn't necessarily have to be dull. Instead, surveys can be fun, engaging platforms where...
read moreAsk Tad: How Do I Start Conversations Online?
Ask Tad: How Do I Start Conversations Online? A note from Tea (aka The Chef): Bartenders are fabulous listeners, and Tad is one of the best. If you've got a question related to listening, conversations, or developing relationships with your prospective clients, he'd...
read moreThe Marketing Plan is Dead. Long Live the Storytelling Framework
I have a confession: I've never really enjoyed writing marketing plans. There's math, and a bazillion details and research. And planning feels so...corporate. I did a LOT of it when I headed up various marketing departments earlier in my career. After all, we weren't...
read more10 Totally Unique Ideas for Your Next Blog Post
Nobody ever wants to "phone it in." Our blog posts reflect who we are as a brand and a small business. The more you're able to think creatively about your content, the more you'll be able to generate engagement and interest, right? So I asked some of the brightest...
read moreGratitude, Goals and a Turkey Day Business Tip
Gratitude is everywhere this time of year. Especially online. I've seen posts on Facebook every day since Nov 1st (it's that 30 Days of Gratitude thing). Twitter is clogged with #Gratitude tweets. And today, multiple posts around the blogosphere hit my RSS feed. There...
read moreYes! You CAN Stop Pigging Out on All That Information
This is a guest post by Zeus Yiamouyiannis, a reader who responded to a recent PB&J newsletter with this bit of helpful advice. (If you're a reader, too -- keep that in mind the next time you're bold enough to reply to my emails!) Okay, you and I do it all the...
read moreFrom Struggling “Jill-of-all-Trades” to Master of One: A Case Study
This week, we take a close look at a Digital Dining Room member and learn what’s possible when you focus like a laser on “one thing.” Meet Colleen Conger of Think.Web.Go. In June 2012, she was a struggling freelance graphic designer who’d never even heard of a thing...
read moreSpinning Your Plates: How to Find Balance and Order
A guest post by Zeus Yiamouyiannis. For those of you just tuning in, this is the latest in a series of posts for The Zeus Experiment, whereby I chronicle my learning curve and ups and downs in developing my own successful online business. Tea Silvestre is my mentor in...
read moreNaNoWriMo: Postcards and Love Letters from the Chef
November is National Novel Writing Month (aka NaNoWriMo). And, even though I won't be working on my novel, I want to push myself to create some new writing habits. At first I thought I'd try my hand at short stories. But then I remembered my Box... I have a...
read moreThe Art of Growth: An Interview with Tara Gentile
Everyone has a different idea of what it means to grow their business. Some of us think we need to reach for 6- or 7-figures. Others would prefer a 4-hour work week. And then there are those who would just like to be able to pay the bills and put a little away for...
read moreWe’re Brokenhearted and Helpless. Here’s How We Turn that Around…
"Sometimes I wish the apocalypse would get here, already." My younger sister said this to me while we were talking about the state of the world. She's pregnant with twins. Boys this time. (She's already got five kids -- four are girls.) The twins should be arriving on...
read moreHow to Keep Bears from Eating Your Business
If you've ever been camping in bear country, you know the drill. Lock up your food. Keep your trash safely stowed. And for cryin-out-loud, don't feed the bears! When it comes to your business, it's also a wise idea to safeguard something important: your values. Why?...
read moreCopy Writing that Sells: The Starter Recipe
This post was originally published on WPProBusiness.com During the Gold Rush, the Boudin family, well known master Bakers from France, came to the San Francisco area. They discovered that the sourdough yeast cultures there were very unique and they eventually became...
read moreFear. Fearless. Fearfully ready to take action?
Fears run rampant here lately. I've noticed lots of comments during coaching sessions like, "I can't do that. I'll look stupid." or "Are you serious? Me? Um, NO." Which reminded me of the time my son and I went hiking. Or, at least, he went hiking. I got as far as the...
read more6 Ways to Spice Up Your Copy Writing and Sell Without Even a Dash of Hype
This is a guest post by Marcia Yudkin If you hate screaming headlines, exaggerations and a hard sell, you may find it hard to know how to write copy that presents you and your offerings in an interesting way. Simply describing what you do in no-frills fashion may seem...
read moreNo More Marketing: Why I’m Done
What I'm about to tell you might kill my business, but I have to say it: I'm done (yes, you can stick a fork in me). I've never wanted to build an empire -- at least not one whose sole purpose was "bigger, better marketing." And a 4-hour work week? Puh-lease. Those of...
read moreBe a Chef: a Manifesto for Entrepreneurs
Remember the Day You Said Yes to Your Dream? You hung out your shingle, launched a website and did plenty of other business-starting-activities. Bet you never said, "I can't wait to create average, boring, standard work." Me either. The following ideas guide me as an...
read moreYes, We’re Overrun with Fear, Violence and Fuckery. Here’s How We Turn that Around.
Our world is seriously crazy. (And getting worse every day.) In just the last month, nearly 100 people have been shot dead in the U.S. (see Gun Violence). Every time you turn around, someone else is (rightly) up in arms about sexual harassment and gender violence (see...
read moreTeach What You’ve Just Learned
This post is part of the 30-Day Bloom Your Online Relationships Challenge. If you'd like to play along, you can sign up here (don't worry -- it's FREE). We're all working through these small, powerful actions together and sharing our questions, learnings and...
read moreWide vs. Deep: How to Choose the Right Path for Building Your Business
Just for a moment, close your eyes and picture the dining room in your home. What kind of table do you have? What wood is it made from? How many chairs will fit around it (comfortably)? Visualize that table set for a dinner party. Choose the Placemats. Dishes....
read moreWhat The Beatles Can Teach You About Telling a Story With Your Home Page
How can a rock supergroup who broke up 45 years ago help you tell the story of your business? Turns out, they can teach you a lot. I’m a huge Beatles fan, even though they split up before I was born (which would come as a surprise to my 7-year-old, who recently asked...
read moreSSC 1.2 :: The Meeting
Julia stood on the sidewalk, the letter in her hand. She looked at it again and then searched the storefronts for a matching address. There IS no 404. Am I even on the right street? She craned her neck to read the street sign. Hmm. West...
read more10 Best Books for Learning the Art of Business Storytelling
Unless you live under a rock, you've likely heard by now that using stories in your marketing is the Golden Ticket to business success. There are scads of blog posts and books out there all telling you WHY storytelling is so important: Stories help our brains make...
read moreDeep Fried Kool-Aid: a Marketing Parable
Brainfluence: An Interview with the Author
Roger Dooley, the author of Brainfluence: 100 Ways to Persuade and Convince Consumers with Neuromarketing, stopped by the Word Cafe for a quick chat about his new book. Here are the highlights: TS: How did you get started with neuromarketing, Roger? RD: Practically my...
read more