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May 24, 2009

Let others do your marketing for you. The power of viral networking to generate leads.


Congressman Fred Upton and Erin Schneider

Congressman Fred Upton and Erin Schneider

Ok I know I have said this before and I am going to say it again. Networking is one of the most important keys to generate good PR and thus generating leads through referrals. I don’t know how many times I have gone to a chamber event and told someone who I was and I got an immediate response of, “Hey didn’t you work with so and so on a project not too long ago? I’ve heard all about you. I have a few questions for you regarding such and such…”  This right here is a great example of letting others do your PR for you. You just had someone talking about you in a positive light and will spread the word that you’re at the event and that you are worth talking to. Make people think of you not someone else when they need a service you provide. Here are a few examples of what I am talking about.

 

 

1. The first chamber event I had gone to was an eye opener for me. I met people who I had worked with a few years before and got to talking and catching up on what we had been up to since we worked together. After the event I walked away with 4 sponsors for one of my clients for an event that I was putting together for them. A week later I received a call from someone I passed out my business card to. He knew someone who was looking for someone to help raise funds for his nonprofit. We set up a time to meet at Biggby’s and he gave me 2 leads.  We have been working together ever since. He passes me leads all the time now. I’m still actively seeking business but with someone passing referrals to me all the time I don’t need to spend so much time doing it.

2. I was at an event I put together for a nonprofit and was introduced by the owner to a supporter who when told my name said, “So you’re the famous Erin. I’ve heard so much about you and all the good things you’re company are doing to help. I’d like to schedule a time to sit down with you and talk about having your company help me out with my marketing.”  Now I was calm on the outside but on the inside I was jumping for joy! I had only been working with this organization for 5 days! Out of that one event I gained 3 new clients all from word of mouth. He had heard about me from someone else he met at a Chamber event. I didn’t even know the person who he met. It was all from word of mouth PR. How crazy is that?

Here are the basics of what I am trying to teach you today. The goal in any business is to sell a product that people will pay a good price for and then you can generate money right? Companies spend thousands of dollars each year on marketing and PR materials and sometimes it works but most of the time it is just wasteful in my opinion. What if you can generate the leads you need to make the sales and do it without spending thousands of dollars each year would you jump at the chance? That would be a boon wouldn’t it? I have taught so many companies how to do this and it only takes a few hours a week.

Here is the secret to my success. I give out free information all the time. The more free information I give out the more people seek me out and from that I gain business and people who generate free PR for me by telling others about NuVisions. I am online about 30 minutes a day working my social networking sites giving out free information and generating PR and leads. I attend free marketing and nonprofit seminars online once to twice a week for an hour at a time to keep up to date with the latest trends and I take what I’ve learned and tailor it to what services I perform. I spend a total of 5 hours maybe a week doing it all and I spend a total of $0 dollars to do it. It’s all free marketing and PR for NuVisions.

Now if you are scared about giving out free information don’t be. Free information will show you as a leader in your industry and will keep people coming back. Go to as many events as you can. Strut your stuff and generate some good PR. Did I mention it is all FREE?

Contact me today to find out how I can help you generate leads using free marketing and PR. NuVisions will show you the best methods to use for your organization.

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May 11, 2009

Sandy Rees Interview


Sandy Rees CFRE
Sandy Rees CFRE

I just did an amazing interview with Sandy Rees. She gave me so many helpful tips and ideas on how to fundraise and motivate nonprofit organizations. We have so much in common. Our training styles are almost in sinc it’s kinda funny. I’m glad that we are on the same page and I hope to be able to have her on the show again in the future.

 

 I will be uploading the audio to this interview in the next couple of days but for now take a look at her bio and I strongly recommend pruchasing her two books from her site. http://www.sandyrees.com If you would like any further information on how NuVisions can help your organization please conatact us. info@nuvisionscg.com

 

 

Sandy Rees is a nonprofit fundraising coach, author, speaker, and trainer.

She teaches small, grassroots nonprofit organizations how to raise more money, attract more people to their organization, and be more effective in their work.

As a former Director of Development, Sandy is well-versed in all areas of fundraising and donor development.  Her strengths include donor relations, direct mail, nonprofit marketing, board development, and strategic planning.

 

Sandy obtained her CFRE (Certified Fundraising Executive) certification in 2003.
 

Sandy is the author of Fundraising Buffet and co-author of 7 Essential Steps to Raising Money By Mail.  She has contributed articles to Advancing Philanthropy and Inside Fundraising Success.  She is the author of the blog Get Fully Funded, contributes to Step-By-Step Fundraising, and is a Platinum Author on www.ezinearticles.com.


She is an accomplished presenter and an AFP Master Trainer. She has led fundraising seminars for America’s Second Harvest, Habitat for Humanity of Tennessee, the Association of Fundraising Professionals, and the Amputee Coalition of America and the Chattanooga Center for Nonprofits.

Sandy is active in the community and has volunteered her time with many community organizations including Shangri-La Therapeutic Academy of Riding (STAR), Lost Sheep Ministries, and Loudon High School Band Boosters.  She is a former Girl Scout Leader and currently serves on the Board of Directors for Loudon County Habitat for Humanity, Horse Haven of Tennessee, and the Blount County Chamber Foundation.

 

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April 27, 2009

Interview with Eli Williamson from Leave No Veteran Behind


I just completed the first in a very long line of interviews with Nonprofit organizations.  If you would like to listen to the interview podcast, please click the link below:

Listen To Interview Audio Podcast

I just wanted to say thank you Eli for participating in this interview series. My goal is to talk to as many Nonprofit organizations as I can and talk about their mission, vision, programs, why they were created, what the community can do to support them and what companies can do to help further their mission. I want to do my part by helping give them a voice for the world to hear for free.  NuVisions works with nonprofit organizations develop a voice. We write grants, inbound marketing and PR, any kind of business and technical writing, program and fund development creation and now we are offering this free interview service that we are making into a weekly podcast that we hope can turn in to a video podcast…once I figure out how to do that. I have organizations in Africa and Argentina who are going to be part of this series as well.

This series will not only be done on Nonprofits. I will also be interviewing for profit companies to see just how they tic as it were and see how they are supporting their community and hopefully out of that we can connect nonprofits and companies in their communities to work together. Build new relationships and funding sources.

We at NuVisions want to give a voice to those organizations for free to help further their missions. I was very impressed with Eli and what they were trying to accomplish. I strongly recommend anyone getting involved with their time or if they can donating. I will be adding the audio to the blog under Interviews as soon as I can.  Take a look and listen…:)

Here is a brief bio on who Leave No Veteran Behind.

My name is Eli Williamson and I am a Veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan
and executive director and co-founder of a nonprofit called Leave No
Veteran Behind. Our nonprofit works to relieve the educational debt of
veterans who are serving and have served in the US Military.

I took their mission right from their site. www.leavenoveteranbehind.org CORPORATE MISSION OF LEAVE NO VETE

The military has many codes of conduct that enable diverse individuals from all parts of the nation to represent the US with honor and win our nation’s wars. One code that is paramount is that we never leave a soldier, seaman, airman, or marine behind.

This principle should transcend the military and should be a part of our national fabric as Americans.  We should not allow individuals to slip through the cracks, especially if they are bettering themselves as citizens and soldiers by attaining higher education so that they may bring their expertise to the military and civilian workplace.

It is well understood that veterans of wars are highly vulnerable to a number of social and mental ills that affect them at higher rates than average Americans. It is also well known that veterans make up a disproportionate amount of our homeless population. This is a travesty — but a solid education can serve as an essential lifeline for returning veterans making the transition back to civilian life. Veterans should not have to struggle to secure this vital right to a secure, productive life.

Leave No Veteran Behind mitigates this problem through a low-overhead, high-impact program that obtains private donations and applies them to the payment of veterans’ student loans directly. The Military Student Loan Repayment Program has helped many veterans pay off the costs of their education. This, in tandem with the recently passed G.I Bill, will continue to have a tremendous positive impact on veterans and the nation. However, they do not apply to all veterans who have served honorably. For example:

-The GI Bill does not reimburse veterans for loans that have already been used for education.

-The Military Student Loan Repayment Program does not cover private loans.

-The Military Student Loan Repayment Program is not available to all veterans.



In order to take advantage of the lessons learned from the current programs, Leave No Veteran Behind has established a process that will fully supplement the repayment of veterans’ student loans. Using a public/private partnership concept, Leave No Veteran Behind operates with the support of professional veterans organizations such as the American Legion and the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans Association, and will seek the support of the appropriate United States Government organizations.

It obtains private donations and disburses funds by way of a fully transparent procedure. Leave No Veteran Behind makes up for the inadequacies of existing programs by fully supporting veterans’ education through financial assistance, which will bring a high return on investment by relieving their debt burden and facilitating their transition into more productive circumstances.

Leave No Veteran Behind also requires all veterans helped by this program to give back 100 hours of community service. We will work in conjunction with other nonprofit organizations, educational institutions, governmental agencies, and religious social service groups so that we may allow veterans the chance to use their skills and lack of indebtedness to improve the lives of people in their communities and country.

Finally, Leave No Veteran Behind works with business to help veterans find employment. As an organization we recognize the special skill sets that veterans acquire during their service in the military. We make sure to promote the skills of our veterans to any companies seeking high quality workers.

How You Can Help

In order to address this problem, Leave No Veteran Behind is taking donations to help pay the debts of veterans who have answered our nation’s highest call for sacrifice. Please help us give back to those who have given so much. Donate now and tell others about our organization and our cause


RAN BEHIND

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