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Saturday, June 27, 2015

New Age networking: 3 strategies more effective than asking someone to coffee

IMAGE: KEVIN KOZICKI/CORBIS

SARA MCCORD for The Muse

1 day ago

Before those who read this title think I've abandoned everything I stand for: Don't worry, I still love coffee. I am the stereotypical remote worker who seeks refuge from writer's block in a coffee shop. I drink nearly as much as Lorelai Gilmore, and whenever I want to catch up with a friend I suggest we meet for coffee.

However, I'll admit that this isn't always an effective networking strategy. As the writer Deborah Copaken Kogan includes on her contact page "but please refrain from asking her to…go on a coffee date…it's hard enough to find an hour to have coffee with a friend."

Therein lies the problem in asking networking contacts to meet for coffee: There's a good chance they'll respond that they're "too pressed for time." And, it's no doubt true. (Seriously, look no further than here, here, and here). So, if you're hoping to connect with someone new or particularly busy, try moving your requests online. You'll get the same results (new connections!) without all those the back-and-forth "when and where" emails.

1. Use Twitter to share your work

As the resident Twitter evangelist on The Daily Muse team Lily Herman writes, "...Twitter is one of the best networking tools (if not the best) out there...Without exerting too much energy, you can put a plan in place and start to see your networking connections — and professional opportunities — rack up."

Herman goes on to explain how you can

use hashtags, questions, and your current network to foster connections over Twitter.

use hashtags, questions, and your current network to foster connections over Twitter. The idea here is that while someone may be hard-pressed to find 30 minutes (or more!) to meet for coffee, he or she probably has time to tweet you back. And, if you tweet with someone more regularly — and she's responding — you'll start to build a relationship. Once someone follows you, you can then DM him or her to continue the conversation over email.

Need proof this approach works? Just last week, someone tweeted me that he scored a 100% on the Grammar Quiz I shared. He then asked if that was worth me reviewing his infographic. I was impressed — with the score and the tweet — and asked him to DM me a link to it. If he'd asked me for coffee to discuss the possibility of collaborating, I would've said no — but this 10-second request was easy to say yes to.

2. Use LinkedIn to share your resume

Some people just aren't into Twitter, so no matter how strategically you tweet at them, they won't respond because they rarely log in. Next stop: LinkedIn.

Before you say, "Duh, everyone's resume is on LinkedIn," remember that there's a difference between a person clicking on your page just to see if you share a past employer or alma mater, and someone actually reading your professional history.

I still remember when Muse career expert Lily Zhang reached out to me over LinkedIn. Not only did she send me a personal note, but as soon as I accepted her request, she went to my profile and endorsed me for some of the skills she had mentioned in the message. This demonstrated to me that she really had read my articles, and naturally, I immediately went to her profile to endorse the skills I knew she had. And while I was there, I read her profile.

This method could work for anyone, and it's a much more strategic — and likely — way to get a contact to view your summary and resume than asking to meet for coffee so that you may discuss your career aspirations.

3. Use Instagram to be in touch

One of the secrets to really connecting over social media is to figure out your contact's preferred platform.

One of the secrets to really connecting over social media is to figure out your contact's preferred platform. While you may think that Instagram is just for personal photos, people now use it in all sorts of ways. From sharing industry-related quotes to using it as another profile to share their work, many people do utilize it for professional purposes — making it a great way to reach them.

As with Twitter, just following someone isn't enough to build a connection. You'll want to interact with the person you'd like to be in touch with. Of course, there are a few things to keep in mind. I shy away from requesting private Instagram profiles unless it's someone I already know. (Because if someone's account is private, odds are this is not a platform he uses to network with new people.)

Also, it's important not to act like you know someone you've never met. Sure if someone posts a photo of a beautiful place or of themselves all dressed up or of a cute child, it's pretty standard for followers to like and comment accordingly. But if you tell a stranger that you notice her husband always poses on her right side or that she has worn her hair the same way to every fancy event lately (a.k.a., things only a BFF or her aunt would say), you're crossing over into creepy territory.

Instead, comment on professional posts — pictures of the office, of that person traveling for work, or of events he or she has attended. A comment that you "also loved the keynote at [ABC event] especially when she mentioned [this cool thing]" is a much better way to go than the comment above. While an influencer might not have time to meet with you for coffee to discuss a recent speaking engagement, through Instagram, you can get on her radar.

You still can ask to meet people for coffee (I know I do). But if you find that you're having troublegetting a "yes" to your networking request, try one of the strategies above. Then, buy yourself that cup of coffee for victory's sake when you hear back from someone you've been dying to connect with.

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10 steps to take if your conversion rates drop — first, don't panic

IMAGE: ROBIN HEIGHWAY-BURY/ IKON IMAGES/CORBIS

BY SCOTT GERBER

2 days ago

Plummeting conversion rates can spell bad news for a business that relies primarily on online sales, and how you react is critical. Factors such as technology failures and sales funnel issues play into sudden conversion rate drops, as do overall market changes — but you won't know the real reason, or best way to respond, until you investigate the source.

Before you panic, take some time to analyze what might have gone wrong. I asked 10 entrepreneurs from Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) to weigh in on what to do after spotting the initial decline. Their answers are below.

1. Trace your steps

If you see your conversion rates are dropping suddenly, then the first thing you need to do is figure out what's causing the drop. Is it directly related to a drop in your website traffic or is it something else?

SEE ALSO: 14 traits every successful social media manager should have

If your traffic is the same and the conversion has dropped, then you should run through your checkout process and test that it is working in all different browsers. Often you will be able to find the problem during this process and fix it. If the drop in conversion is caused by drop in traffic, then you should look at any outlier drops. For example, if Google was your No. 1 source and it's down 80%, then log into your Webmaster tools to see if there are any penalties against your domain.

— Syed Balkhi, OptinMonster

2. Analyze your acquisition channels methodically

First, break out the data into your acquisition channels. From which acquisition channels are your conversion rates changing? Is it all of them or just one?

If it’s all of your channels, that’s indicative of a changing market. Perhaps a competitor is outdoing you, or perhaps your market is shrinking. You need to take a holistic view of your business and product and transform it to match the changing market landscape.

If it’s just one or two of your channels, even if they are major ones, that’s probably due to a lack of accountability or innovation within your marketing team’s control. Examine each step of your funnel and look for weak points. Engage in split testing and hold your staff accountable for getting those conversion rates back up.

— Joshua Dorkin, BiggerPockets

3. Consider seasonal effects

It is something I like to call buyer's fatigue. It is what happens to consumers right after the holidays, towards the end of January or right after Valentine's Day, when they are less willing to part with money anymore. They are still browsing, but aren't as quick to pull the trigger. The effects are rather sudden. While you might be getting the same level of traffic, less people are converting. It is important to think about these seasonal effects so that you don't inadvertently make changes to your site that may actually be detrimental to its success.

— Justin Boggs, ZeeBerry.com

4. Check the top of the funnel

The longer you run the same marketing campaign, the less effective it becomes. This is true of paid and unpaid customer acquisition channels. Check to see if the quality of your incoming traffic has dropped recently. If so, it's time to build new content and test new platforms.

— Neil Thanedar, LabDoor

SEE ALSO: 9 marketing mistakes that make you look like a rookie

5. Act like a customer

Look at where your customers are coming from. Your answer will be different depending on whether your customer came from organic traffic, social media or paid advertising. Remember that within each of those groups are subgroups. Also check the functionality of the page they're landing on — something might be misfiring. I always prefer to do a test transaction myself on each of the major channels.

— Kevin Henrikson, Acompli (now Outlook iOS/Android @ Microsoft)

6. Take a look at your analytics

This is a major issue that should be addressed as early as possible in order for it to not snowball into a larger problem. You need to dig into your analytics and look to see if the traffic that is coming in is the same as it has been. Ask yourself if you changed anything about your landing pages. I would have a friend randomly test it on your website so you can get honest feedback. This issue is originating somewhere and you need to decipher where it is coming from in your analytics.

— Jayna Cooke, EVENTup

7. Look over paid search campaigns

Give a once-over to your paid campaigns and their locations, and see if there have been any changes that you did not keep track of or were not aware of. Was the landing page for one of your links changed? Was a special offer or coupon removed from your landing page content, therefore bringing a lot less traffic to the site? Was your campaign budget hit? All of these things should be looked into and measured right when you see any kind of decrease, so that in the future you will know what may be causing a decline in conversion.

— Miles Jennings, Recruiter.com

SEE ALSO: 6 ways to build career skills on your own

8. Go through your lever checklist

Consider all of the levers influencing your conversions and investigate each of them. For example, I would run down the following checklist to see where the drop is coming from:

Test the conversion flow.
Dig into your back end for potential issues (tracking, attribution, configuration, etc.).
Check impact of any tests that are running on ads, landers, etc.
Check for increases in competition.
Drill down into individual traffic sources.
Segment out conversion rates by device, browser, geo, etc.
Account for any industry trends or seasonality.

Then, most importantly, prioritize where there’s the biggest opportunity to move the needle and get to where you need to be.

— Zach Robbins, Leadnomics

9. Check your technology

Make sure all your technology is working. Your could be having server issues, your forms may not be working, etc. Performance is typically a huge issue — people don't have patience to deal with slow websites or glitchy software. Thoroughly test all your technology.

— Joe Apfelbaum, Ajax Union

10. Don't panic

Any market change has to be respected. First, don't panic — it isn’t time for sweeping change at the slightest indicator. Next, take a look at Google Analytics — what changed? If absolutely nothing has changed in terms of calls to action, digital assets, site ranking and authority, then the issue is simply that you haven’t followed the market. Take that as a cue to revisit your buyer personas and do a refresh. I will say, however, 9.9 times out of 10, something major has changed in terms of the site structure or content. Markets don't often turn on a dime — unless its 2000 or 2008.

— Justin Gray, LeadMD

SCOTT GERBER

Scott Gerber is a serial entrepreneur, author (Never Get a 'Real' Job), TV commentator and founder of Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC), an invite-only organization comprised of the world's most promising young entrepreneur...more

How you can do less to achieve more in your career

IMAGE: CORBIS TIM ELLIS/IKON IMAGES

LEA MCLEOD MA for The Muse

3 days ago

I was in a Starbucks this morning and looked around. Every single person I could see — dressed in his or her business finest — was perched in place, looking down at a phone. Swiping, texting, and furrowed brows galore.

Being busy seems to be the national pastime. Just think: How many times have you picked up your cell phone at 11 PM and fired off responses to email? More is better — right?

Our always-on mindset may have deluded you into thinking that's true, but research doesn't agree. There's a science-backed reason we have a 40-hour workweek. Researchers proved that 40 hours optimized productivity. After 40 hours, the more work hours added, the less that actually gets done. It's called the law of diminishing returns.

And if you look at the most successful people in the world — from corporate executives to elite musicians — their lives also prove that more is, well, not more. If you want the same kind of success in your career, look to these star performers and learn how to do less.

Think like an executive

Look around at the executives in your organization. Do they know exactly what it's going to take to earn their quarterly or year-end bonuses? Of course they do! Do they answer every email they get? Probably not — especially not the ones that don't align with their key performance goals.

Spend a week or two observing those executives. They are singularly focused on what they're accountable for achieving. Every request they make, every question they ask in a presentation, and every email they send out is focused on those goals.

Now, apply that to your own work. If your compensation was tied only to you achieving your top goals, how would that change your day? Would you really drop everything to attend that meetingthat doesn't actually require your input? Would you spend 20 minutes on a conference call, when you could easily get the notes from a co-worker? Think about it.

If you aren't clear on what your goals are, get with your manager and make sure you know exactly how your performance will be measured. Then become the CEO of your job (because that's exactly what you are!).

Practice like an elite musician

Elite violinists may not be bound by the same 40-hour work week, but the same principle applies. Research found that these high performers practiced no more than the mediocre musicians. Instead, they simply focused their practice times to twice-daily 90-minute sessions, took breaks in between those sessions, and got more sleep.

The results? They outperformed the average musicians who spread their practice times throughout the day.

Elite violinists consistently and deliberately practice twice a day for 90 minutes each time, without interruption. Then — recognizing the law of diminishing returns — they walk away.

You can compress your key priority work into similar sessions. Simply focus solely on your most valued tasks, without interruption or distraction, for 90 minutes. Take a break in between, and then get back to your deliberate focus.

That interruption-free zone is important. Numerous studies conclude that focused, distraction-free work zones allow you to get more done in less time. Not convinced? Try working for one day without constantly checking email, social media, or texts while you work. You'll clearly see that avoiding interruptions is your path to productivity success.

Sleep like a world-class performer

No matter how much you work, working in a fatigued state sabotages your results.

Those elite musicians I mentioned? They took naps in the afternoon and got a solid eight hours of sleep per night. It turns out that being able to embrace a relaxed state — by getting enough sleep and feeling rested — is essential to being able to perform at a world-class level.

As a busy professional, it can certainly be challenging to get the recommended amount of sleep each night. But adjusting your schedule is worth it — you'll immediately begin to reap the benefits, from lower risk of health issues to improved productivity.

By starting these practices now, you'll start getting in shape for your own elite career performance. Being distracted by social media and constant interruptions takes your eye off the ball — and off your chances to excel. If you think like an executive and behave like a world-class musician, you'll be building the discipline, rigor, and patience to get more done by doing less.

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Thursday, June 25, 2015

How you can do less to achieve more in your career

IMAGE: CORBIS TIM ELLIS/IKON IMAGES

LEA MCLEOD MA for The Muse

1 day ago

Being busy seems to be the national pastime. Just think: How many times have you picked up your cell phone at 11 PM and fired off responses to email? More is better — right?

Think like an executive

Practice like an elite musician

The results? They outperformed the average musicians who spread their practice times throughout the day.

Elite violinists consistently and deliberately practice twice a day for 90 minutes each time, without interruption. Then — recognizing the law of diminishing returns — they walk away.

Sleep like a world-class performer

No matter how much you work, working in a fatigued state sabotages your results.

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This article originally published at The Muse here

Why your daily schedule just isn't working for you (and how to fix it)

IMAGE: GUSTAV DEJERT/IKON IMAGES/CORBIS

KAYLA MATTHEWS for The Muse

2 days ago

Is your Google Calendar overbooked with tons of microprojects? Does Trello take up hours of your day? Have you made so many lists that you can't even keep them straight anymore?

I have no doubt you're setting up your schedule with the best of intentions, but if it feels like your attempts to stay organized aren't paying off, chances are you're using the wrong kind of planning tool.

Most of today's popular scheduling tools serve one of three purposes. Make sure you're using the right one for the job you're trying to accomplish.

1. The basic to-do list

You know what a to-do list is. This kind of schedule is great for individual team members or for nonlinear projects where the order of tasks being completed isn't very important.

Tools like Wunderlist and Any.do are awesome for those seeking something more basic because they have a clean user interface and are accessible across multiple devices. Create and save your lists in the web applications, or manage them on the go from your phone.

Use it when your priority is completing unrelated goals

To-do lists are simple and straightforward, which means you can quickly plan and modify them without throwing off any other part of your day. If your daily tasks aren't dependent on one another, this will help you remember what you have to do without taking too much time for you to organize.

So, if you're looking ahead to the weekend, and you want to buy groceries, go for a run, meet up with friends, and send a few emails; your best bet is to record all of these unrelated items on your handy to-do list.

2. The Kanban schedule

Kanban tools focus on helping you organize tasks into buckets. Ideally, as a task moves from one bucket to the next, it gets closer to being completed. For example, these buckets could be stages of a process or subtasks within a larger task that you need to finish.

The Kanban schedule is what you see used by tools like Trello and Google Keep. They let you easily move items around, set deadlines and reminders, and share your timeline with others.

Use it when your priority is getting through many structured stages

The bucket system will help you visualize the stages in a process and track individual projects as they move through these stages. Not only can this help you manage your projects, but it might also help you spot inefficiencies in your process.

If you have a remote team of employees working on various aspects of the same project — and who are tracking progress by deliverables rather than a timetable — this is the way to go.

3. The Gantt schedule

Gantt schedules emphasize timeliness and deadlines. With this type, you can plan out how long each step of a process should take, and how each step relates to the steps that come before and after it.

People who work based on deadlines often prefer to use Google Calendar or Instagantt from Asana. Both of these tools allow you to color code your projects (which I find incredibly helpful). They also include drag and drop features so you can easily rearrange your tasks, should something unexpected come up.

Use it when your priority is deadlines

Gantt scheduling's focus on timeliness will help you break down the subtasks of your larger project and allocate the proper amount of time for each one. By breaking down the amount of time needed to finish the project, you'll be able to more efficiently plan each step of the process and avoid that approaching-deadline stress.

If you want to make sure that all members of your team are completing the subtasks of a long project on time, you'll want to use this.

Do yourself a favor and take a few minutes — today — to write down some of the most important aspects of your schedule. Don't think about the task management tool you currently use: Just write down what's important in your day-to-day work.

Then, take a look at your list and determine what kind of schedule would be best for you. Do you need a system that caters more to your deadlines, or do you need a simpler list that doesn't take an hour to plan out each week?

Just don't forget to schedule in time to tweet me and tell me how your new system is working out.

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This article originally published at The Muse here