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.)
The Truth About Why You Aren’t Learning Anything in Your Online Classes
I got an email this morning from Mary over at A-List Blogging (maybe you did, too?). It was titled "6 Reasons Why Blogger Trainings Fail." As I read through, I noticed my head nodding up and down. Yup. Yup. Yup. She's SO right about this stuff. Here's just a portion...
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True Confessions: I’m Afraid You’ll Find Out I’m a Marketing Fraud
There, I said it. One of my deepest fears laid out for the whole world to see: I'm not really who you think I am. Mostly -- like 99% of the time -- I'm actually pretty confident. I know that I know my stuff. But every now and then something happens to trigger the ugly...
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Case Study: How to Conquer the Blank Page and Write Better Sales Copy
Writing copy for your website or other marketing materials isn't always easy. And unless you're a professional copy writer (and sometimes even when you are), the blank screen of your computer can feel like it's taunting you: You've got no idea what you're doing, do...
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Why Marketing Plans and Content Strategies Help Create Real Sales
You've got a product or service and you want people to buy it, right? First things first. Have you done your homework (e.g., written a plan)? Does your plan include a content strategy? If you're like 90% of those I talk to, the answer is no. And guess what? I've got...
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Flying By the Seat of Your Pants: A Marketing Plan Love Story
Do you have a marketing plan for your business? No, I don't mean all those plans you've got in your head. A plan that's written down. (Or, more likely, typed into that thing you stare at most of the day.) If you're like 99% of the folks I talk to, you don't. Because...
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My Big Why: On Motives, Mentors, and Defining Moments
Every hero has one: an origin story. Bruce Wayne watched a mugger brutally kill his parents when he was just a child. Peter Parker found his inner hero after a radioactive spider bit him. Buffy discovered she was “The Chosen One” and learned to leverage her slayer...
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No 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...
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Got Resistance? That’s FABulous. Let’s Use it.
“In a troubled time, you must become that which you are longing for.” – Stephen Jenkinson, Orphan Wisdom School Do you know? When I'm caught up in the world's chaos and anarchy, I long for peace. I want things to be OKAY. I want my son and my husband to find their...
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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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My Big Why: On Motives, Mentors, and Defining Moments
This post first appeared on TheWordChef.com in October 2013. When our Word Carnival group decided an homage to parenthood and business was in order (congrats on your new son, Nick!), I felt a little lost about how I might approach this month's theme. Then I remembered...
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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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Writing Prompt: Your Soap Box
What do you stand for? Questions to get you started: What's bugging you about how your competitors operate? What do you see happening that needs to stop? What positive changes need to be made in your industry or line of business that everyone else seems to overlook or...
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The True Meaning of Your Unique Value Proposition (and How to Explain it Like a Pro)
It's Word Carnival time again! In this month's episode we learn all about the dreaded Unique Value Proposition (or USP), why it's so deceptively hard to figure out, and how you can nail it without having an emotional breakdown. Jargon is for jerks. Ninnies. Lazy...
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Five Captivating Elements of Hollywood Storytelling You Need to Employ to Attract New Clients
We humans love a good story. Especially when it's true. Ever watch a movie based on a real-life events? Some of my all-time favorites have been inspired by true stories: The Pursuit of Happyness. Titanic. Unstoppable. Big Miracle. These were all compelling movies to...
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Your Signature Dish: How to Create a Product or Service that Sizzles AND Satisfies
Noise. Bloat. Overcrowded marketplaces. Saturated industries. I won't kid you. It's an uphill battle to create the right offer -- a product or service -- that stands head-and-shoulders above those of your competitors. And that battle? It's won slowly; over time. You...
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We’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...
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One of the Biggest Storytelling Mistakes You Can Make While Marketing Your Business
It's an easy mistake to make. Especially when you've got some of the biggest brands in the world doing it, too. (Take AT&T, for example.) And there are SO many business coaches out there telling you you're a rockstar. A phenomenaut. In short, a hero. That you're...
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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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SSC 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...
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How to Stand Out, Stand Up, and Help Change the Business World
Do you look the same as your competitors? SOUND the same? You might find this hard to believe, but even with my branding background, I've had a blind spot about HOW to stand out from the crowd. Differentiation -- that fancy word for your Unique Value Proposition -- is...
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Tipping Sacred Marketing Cows and Changing Stories: “The Money’s in the List”
Want to be different and stand out from the crowd? One of the best ways to do that is to challenge the status quo. And over at the Business Luminaries' Roundtable, that's exactly what we're doing. Talking about the elephants in the various rooms of our industries....
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Tipping Sacred Marketing Cows: The Hero’s Journey as Ideal Story Structure
This month, I got curious about the best practice of using The Hero's Journey (aka The Monomyth) as THE structure for our best stories. For me, the problem is that this structure comes with the metaphors of battle built into it. And those metaphors bleed out...
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Bake a Bigger Pie (and Share it with the World)
Style, Grace and Guest Posting Etiquette
This was kind of a major week for me, as a blogger. I had not one, but two guest posts go live on a couple of big-deal sites: One on Remarkablogger: 17 Ways to Turn Your Blog Readers into Loyal Fans One on Problogger: Make Your Blog the Event of the Year (and have...
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An Appetizing Guest Post Pitch: The Perfect Ingredients
A Guest Post by Rohan Pawale of WebHostingDeals.org I’m an big fan of guest posts. I love how they allow me to reach out to new bloggers and build relationships with them. Anything and everything about guest blogging excites me, and considering the latest advice Tea...
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5 Goldenly Creative Ways to Tell Your Brand Story
Five Go~lden Rings! It’s Day 5 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 5 creative examples of how to tell your brand story. One of the easiest places to tell your story is the...
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Collaborations: 12 Ways to Build Your Brand
12 Drummers Drumming! Wow! It’s the last day 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 how to use collaborations to build a strong brand. When you think of drummers drumming, what...
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