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.)
Be 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...
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What I Wish I’d Known Then about Starting a Business…
Advice for My (Much Earlier, More Naive) Entrepreneurial Self (Note: Much of this post first appeared on the Prosperity's Kitchen website under the title, "An Open Letter to New Entrepreneurs." I've modified the text somewhat.) Hey Girl, I'm really proud of you for...
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The Evolution of Story Bistro (and other Juicy Tidbits)
Do you know Kim Doyal (aka The WordPress Chick)? She's got a super fun podcast that you should totally check out. Especially this week cuz I was her most recent guest. Listen in and if you have any questions, drop them into the comments here -- or there -- and I'll be...
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Must-Have Kitchen Tool: The (Sales) Funnel
Ask 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...
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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...
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The Ultimate Branding Quiz (It’s NOT What You Think)
Wondering which branding quiz will give you the definitive answers about what makes you unique? It's true, you've got options. Unless you've been hiding under a rock lately, you've undoubtedly been harassed by at least a dozen "Which _________ are you?" quizzes in...
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The Crowd Sale Experiment Concludes (What I Learned and Will This Work For You?)
Note: This post is Part 2 in the series. Read Part 1 here. How well did the Crowd Sale work for our Tarotic Story Prompts Deck? The results are in. In one week, we sold a total of 53 decks. (If you'd like to buy one now, you can do that here.) How did that happen?...
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11 Tips for Making Your Brand a Word-of-Mouth Superstar
11 Pipers Piping! It’s Day 11 of the 12 Days of Branding. If you missed any of the series thus far, you can find them here. In today’s installment we look at what needs to happen in order to get people talking about your brand. If you know me at all, you know that I'm...
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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...
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The Un-Sexy Side of Internet Marketing
These days, most of us would agree that in order to do business and market ourselves properly, you need a website. A digital space that belongs just to you. (Not to Facebook, or Tumblr or even WordPress.com -- for reasons that my friend Annie so beautifully explains.)...
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Case Study: Creating an About Page that Works
Did you know that your About Page is one of your website's most important tools? For some of us, it's probably one of THE most-visited pages on the entire site. And that's because people want to know who they're about to do business with. Are you trustworthy? Do you...
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Revamp vs. Rebrand? 10 Considerations for Your Business Website
Most people don’t know that my parents named me Christina. I changed my name to Téa in college (I'll share why at the end of this post). Yes, it’s my legal name. Believe me, the IRS, the DMV and every government office between Los Angeles and Portland can verify this...
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10 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...
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The PB&J Guide to Building a Tasty Brand
Peanut Butter and Jelly. Two simple, timelessly appealing ingredients. Like most of us, you probably became a fan in childhood. Of the PB&J, I mean. I know it was the only thing my little brother would eat. Period. White bread, creamy peanut butter and grape jelly...
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Yes! 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...
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Is Your Ideal Client Trying to Tell You Something?
Last month in the Digital Dining Room we focused on Market Research. Specifically, how the heck do you find out what your Ideal Client is ready and willing to pay for? Because there's a difference between them needing and wanting something. Traditional business folks...
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Be Incomplete
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...
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Show Them You’re Listening
My own business coach is...
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Bored or Apathetic? How to Rekindle the Passion for Your Business
Maxine's been building her coaching practice now for nearly two years. And she's had it with all the same-old advice. She swears that if she hears one more time that she needs to "focus on a niche" or "quit playing small," she's going to punch someone in the throat....
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A Story of Big Whys and Secret Desires
Another entrepreneurial story from our series... Secret desires, we all have them. by Blaze Lazarony of Blaze a Brilliant Path Many people keep their desires locked up close to their heart. Some of us are brave enough, in time, to speak them out loud. I’m a big fan of...
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The 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...
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Don’t Ask Them to Follow You. Follow THEM First.
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...
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Designing a Brand that Works: 6 Key Eye-Catching Elements
It’s Day 6 of the 12 Days of Branding. If you missed any of the series thus far, you can find them here. In today’s installment we'll look at the six key elements of using design to create memorable visual representations for your...
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Your Brand and the Marketing Rule of 7
Seven Swans a-Swiming! It’s Day 7 of the 12 Days of Branding. If you missed any of the series thus far, you can find them here. In today’s installment we’ll dive into the Marketing Rule of 7. Never heard of it? Read on! Let's start off today with a visualization...
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Small Business Pickles: a True Tale of Trust and Betrayal
na·ive [nah-eev] adjective having or showing a lack of experience, judgment, or information; credulous: She's so naive she believes everything she reads. It's easy to see looking through the rear-view mirror that one of my biggest life lessons is trust. Who to trust....
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Are You Smokin’ a Joint (Venture)? Why Collaboration MUST Come First
I've been doing a lot of hanging out with freakishly cool kids. (Have you noticed?) First came the Word Carnival carnies. (An ever-growing close-knit tribe of bloggers who write for the small biz crowd.) We've been together for almost nine months now. Then came the...
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