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“The Chef is a standout amongst mentors.

She teaches you to fish. She shares generously, offers wisdom, insight and actionable plans to help you reach your goals. Don’t know how to identify goals that will work for you? There’s guidance for that too. Tea, a gifted wordsmith, connects and creates supportive communities.

Julia Hayes

Swanbourne Business Centre

“Tea’s helped me with my message…

by giving me solid guidelines and action items to get stuff done. She is not for the faint at heart and cracks a mean whip but it the most authentic person I know. Looking to hone your marketing efforts, the Chef is your gal.

Lee Drozak

LeeDrozak.com

“Tea’s helped me to think differently…

— on a daily basis — about who my target clients are and the best way to communicate with them. That’s huge! Tea’s advice is current and savvy and you know you are on the cutting edge when working with her.

Holly Higbee-Jansen

Jansen Photo Explorations

“Tea is amazingly generous and smart.

It’s really important to find someone who’s got a lot of experience, knows the ropes, and is still open and growing her/himself. And I LOVE the tough love: do the work or you’re out. You know, I’ve bought a lot of programs and read and listened to and watched endless webinars and …. now I’m doing the work. That makes all the difference.

Megan Everett

Tools-n-Pros

Latest Articles…

How to Attract Your Perfect Customers (and Keep Them Coming Back for More)

Case Studies | 1 Comment

What was the last purchase you absolutely loved? See it in your mind's eye. Feel the feelings (again) of finding it, buying it, using it. I'll tell you mine, if you tell me yours... For me, one of the best ways to spend money is at my local Farmers' Market. It's not...

My Big Why: On Motives, Mentors, and Defining Moments

Storytelling | 17 Comments

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...

9 Tips to Connect with Your Inner Genius and Find Your Best Content Marketing Stories

Storytelling | 6 Comments

Ideas. If you're like most entrepreneurs, you're distracted by at least one or two every day. If you're lucky, one or two might spark your next great blog post or a heartfelt email to your subscribers. (LOVE those.) But if those ideas just seem to distract you from...

Tipping Sacred Marketing Cows: “You MUST Have an Elevator Pitch”

Tipping Sacred Marketing Cows | 7 Comments

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....

Wordification: Cook Up a Creative Title, Brand or Product Name

Branding, Writing Tips | 0 Comments

You've seen other people do it. Stephen Colbert used to do it all the time. George Bush (Jr) is probably still doing it. Both of them got pretty famous for their efforts (although, for different reasons). That word they create is sometimes called a portmanteau, but I...

Stop Talking and Listen! Making Sales by Fulfilling Customer’s Needs

Market Research | 0 Comments

This is a guest post by Gina Smith So, you've perfected your pitch. You've spent hours understanding the needs and desires of your customers. You've created the best possible products and/or services. You've rehearsed in front of family, friends and colleagues. Maybe...

How Well Do You Tell Your Brand’s Story?

Branding | 8 Comments

This past weekend I attended (via simulcast) Andrea Lee's Lasting Lead Generation event. It was three days of fabulous teaching, coaching and delivery of actionable content. And I gotta say, she really knows her stuff! One of the first exercises she had us do was to...

Don’t Ask Them to Follow You. Follow THEM First.

Bloom Your Online Relationships #BYOR30 | 4 Comments

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...

Are You Smokin’ a Joint (Venture)? Why Collaboration MUST Come First

Branding, Community & Relationships | 6 Comments

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...

Why Marketing Plans and Content Strategies Help Create Real Sales

Marketing Strategies | 1 Comment

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...

How to Make Your Call to Action a Call to Adventure

Storytelling | 5 Comments

Are you ready for an adventure, Storyteller? Or is your life already so full of strange and crazy that you only long for a quiet house and some peaceful chain-napping? Either way, I have a special invitation for you. But first, let's talk about your biz story and The...

Features vs. Benefits: The Stories that Produce Sales

Features and Benefits, Ideal Heroic Client, Storytelling, Writing Tips | 3 Comments

The $64,000 question is: Do your customers want to buy what you're selling? If you've done your homework (i.e., market research), and you know without a doubt that your product or service is something people need and/or want, yet you still fail to generate sales, then there's something missing in your marketing messages. In short, you're not "speaking" your customer's language (either online or in person).

Mise en place! Rock Your Project and Client Management with ASANA

Productivity | 16 Comments

I'm a small, mostly one-woman show here at Story Bistro (translation: I don't have Sous Chef). And if you're like me, your operational budget barely has room for bells, let alone whistles. But that doesn't mean you can't make the most of what you do have. You just...