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.)
30 Must Reads: My Best Marketing Reading List
I love to read (duh). And when I'm not reading supernatural romances, I'm devouring nonfiction business and self improvement titles. (Amazon loves me!) The following list encompasses some of my favorite, and most recommended titles in the field of marketing. I've...
read more
If You Had Clients Like These…
...You'd Be in Love, Too Few business owners are as lucky as I am. I don't talk about them often enough, but I have some of the BEST clients in the world. Each of them are doing amazing things -- changing and shifting, growing into more confident and glowing versions...
read more
The Quantum Mechanics of Manifesting Your Community
I'm the oldest of 6 kids. And I've always been overly enthusiastic about my own ideas. Which of course means, I'm bossy a natural leader. Whether I was organizing a backyard production of Cinderella with my siblings (and any other neighborhood kid lucky enough to...
read more
How to Get 5-Star Referrals From Your Peers and Colleagues
Most of the advice out there about referrals is related to your customers (i.e., getting them to send you new ones.) In short, make them happy and they'll want to tell their friends about you. But you can also get some fabulous referrals from your peers and colleagues...
read more
A Pumpkin with a Plan (Or, How to Quit Being a Slave to Your Business)
Every once in awhile, a book comes along that really makes sense. This? Yep, this is definitely one of them. If you've read Mike Michaelowicz's The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur, then you're already familiar with his friendly and accessible style, his sense of humor,...
read more
Case Study: Create a Content Strategy to Support Your Launch
Last month in the Digital Dining Room, the group's mission was to identify their main business goal for the final quarter of the year and then to develop a content strategy to support it. Here's how we got them there: Step One: Brainstorm ideas using a mindmap. Start...
read more
Bad Table Manners: 39 Ways to Kill Valuable Business Relationships
No man is an island. -- John Donne You've probably heard the Golden Rule of Sales: that folks only do business with those they know, like and trust. It's true. The Better Business Bureau's Standards of Trust are built on this maxim. Luckily, most of my business...
read more
Game-Changers Wanted: I Need Your Advice
Note: Recently, I published a post about blowing things up. That post literally got more comments than any other post I've ever received on this site. Clearly, I'm not the only one frustrated by the system as it exists. I've been getting a lot of questions and...
read more
A Surprising Way to Fix the Drawbacks of Digital Marketing (and Find New Clients)
I have a confession. I used to think I was an extrovert. After all, I've never had qualms about speaking in public. I've never felt anxiety around being the new kid in the room. And there was a time in my self-employed career when I was sure that my perfect job would...
read more
Perform a Random Act of Kindness
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 more
Back of the House: How I Keep This Bistro Humming
One of the things I do each month with my Digital Dining Room group is host a Secret Supper. If I were an actual chef (and not just a metaphorical one), those Secret Suppers would be intimate gatherings in my kitchen where I'd show my guests exactly how I make my...
read more
#Follow Friday Much? My Love-Hate Relationship with Fan Base-Building Tactics
Yes, we all know it's about quality, not quantity. But still. It's tempting to want to take shortcuts with building your connections on social media. After all, at some point, you DO need a critical mass to help you get traction. But when we stoop to buying Facebook...
read more
Collaborate in the (Online) Kitchen and Yield Exponential Results
7 Basic Story Types and Why They Matter to Your Marketing
Julia sat on the edge of her seat, leaning in toward the fire. "Mad Henry lived alone in a run down mansion at the edge of town." Her father's voice hung in the air, low and steady. "Rumors about the wild-eyed man never died. Some folks said he was a magician who...
read more
Over-Exposed: When Too Much Marketing is Bad for Business
It happens about the same time every year. We all get a barrage of emails and see a tsunami of ads, blog posts, and offers for a certain program that starts with a B. Affiliate marketers -- even people we trusted! -- were hawking their bonuses left and right, and...
read more
Simplify a Complicated Branding Story
In preparation for the launch of Story Bistro, I reached out to my readers and asked for your best storytelling questions. At least half of the ones you sent were a variation on this one: I work in two distinct areas. How can I incorporate them both into my story? Or...
read more
17 Unique Ways to Turn Your Blog Readers into Loyal Fans
Sure. You read all the best blogs about blogging. Your content sparkles. Your design is flawless. You've optimized for SEO and ticked off the long list of best practices. You've fine-tuned every aspect of your site. And you've got passion, damn it. It’s all humming...
read more
Fear. 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 more
This Week’s Marketing Dish: Apple Nachos
Keith Pillow of Caddy Marketing submitted the first dish up for examination in my new weekly series that answers the question, "What the heck can we learn about marketing from our favorite foods?" An expert on marketing and communications, career advancement, and...
read more
Your Secret Sauce: 9 Steps to Create an Addicting Brand
If you've been a freelancer or a small business owner for even a few months, I'm sure you've heard the advice, "Differentiate, or die." The experts are like a dog with a bone: "Nail down your USP, if you want to succeed,” they say. But when you're struggling to even...
read more
The Hero of the Story: How to Keep Your Dinner Guest in Mind
(Infographic) If Your Blog Were a Beer, What Kind Would it Be?
I always love when food (or in this case, drink) and marketing come together. Once you've read thru this infographic, share what flavor you think your blog is in a comment below... If Your Blog Were A Beer... infographic by...
read more
Uncorked: How Gabrielle Taylor Helps Highly Sensitive Entrepreneurs Thrive
Welcome to Corkers Uncorked. These are some of my most treasured interviews -- mostly because I get to know my readers (you!) on a whole different level. We focus on your astounding biz-related superpowers and origin stories. Bonus: you get to learn more about your...
read more
Book Review: Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook
The Big Promise: How to tell your story in a noisy, social world. My biggest problem with this book is its core metaphor. Boxing? Blood sports? Knocking out your prospects? What the hell were you thinking, Gary? It took everything I had to just get through the intro....
read more
After the Sale: How to Create Strong Client Relationships
Everything is about relationships. (Marketing, too.) That extends to things we do after the sale. After all, it's much easier to keep a client than to find a new one. If your client relationships aren't as strong as you'd like them to be, it may be time to put your...
read more
The Golden Triangle of Coffee Joints: A Marketing Parable
Color Your Life Happy: Interview with Flora Brown, PhD
Spent an enjoyable Monday morning chatting with Flora Brown of Color Your Life Happy on BlogTalkRadio. Listen to this 30 minute interview and learn my 9 step process for creating your Secret Sauce so you can spice up your small...
read more