Motivation

As a business owner it is easy when you are busy to loose track of time because you are so immersed in day to day routine of meetings and conferences and business calls. But what happens on those few and far between days when you are not really motivated at all??? Thankfully that does not happen to me often, but when it does, it is a real quandary. How do I push through on those days when I just want to send calls to voice mail and take a nap? Well - today being one of those days - I made calls, sent out emails and orders and samples and decided to blog on the subject because we all go through this from time to time.

I think that sometimes we need to give ourselves permission to not work every moment of the day. I have always given my kids one or two "mental health" days from school. Since they were never the kids that faked being sick [like my brothers and I did] they rarely missed school. Once in a while I would wake them up and one of them would come out to me on the couch and I could tell by looking at them that they just needed permission to take the day off and sleep. They never abused it and understood that staying home also meant staying in after school - and if they were willing to do that - I KNEW they needed the day off!

Today I want someone to give me a mental health day and say, Dori - just take the day for yourself, go have a manicure and perhaps a glass of red wine and come back tomorrow. Unfortunately, calls needed to be made and emails sent and things done - so I feel like I did when I was still doing theatre professionally and once in a while I had one of those shows where I was "phoning in" my performance. I was there - but not there at all.

That is why the computer is a great thing - emails can't have a blase tone, tweets can be honest and blogs don't always have to be about sales and marketing and business building - sometimes they can just reflect the mood of the day or of the moment. So that is why I am sharing this with you - it is alright not to always be happy and peppy and bursting with life - you can be tired and uninterested and still get things done. Sometimes the contacts you make on a day like today are the ones that eventually put the motivation back in your day.

To all of us out there that have muddled through the days that we didn't want to be at the office at all - Congratulations - we did it anyway!!! So as Linda our fabulous webmaster says - GET MOTIVATED even if you are not and just do it!

The Power of Twitter and On-Line Marketing!

I am completely amazed at the power of Twitter. The spectrum of people that you find tweeting back and forth is remarkable. Believe me, when Theresa - S1's Director of Finance - asked me if I was on twitter - I knew what a powerful tool this really is. If you knew Theresa and her lack of web-based marketing knowledge, you would understand. Needless to say, she was very happy to see that I am happily tweeting away.

As we launched our Checkpoint Friendly Laptop Bags I was checking on Google to see where we were ranking on the search engines imagine my surprise that all my blogging regarding the launch landed S1 fourth on the list! My blog - not our website - but my blog.

The power of On-Line marketing is literally right at your fingertips and there are great people out there to connect with that will be happy to walk you through things as you get started.

I was sharing information with a class at Gateway Community College in March and was amazed that to so many they don't realize that the www is for world wide web! The saying, "It's a small world" has never been more true than now.

The most important thing to realize is that we don't need to know it all - there are plenty of people out there that can share their knowledge with us - and believe me - they are happy to help.

So those of you on Twitter - my name is Dori_S1_Bags - follow along as we travel the online road together!!!

Love What You Do!

As entrepreneurs we get caught up in the day to day running of our business while we juggle all the other responsibilities in our lives. For me that is my 3 children and all that is happening in their lives and trying to get a life for myself.

Each new day I am excited to see what is going to happen today - because you never know what the new day will bring. I was able to talk to my children, get a couple of our clear backpacks into great hands, go to a fabulous lunch and learn with The E-Circle (check out their blog on my sidebar) and then make my daughters softball game. Now, here it is 10:04 pm and I am writing this as I watch a ballgame because I had to share the cartoon S1's designer, Mike Samuel created.

Mike is the owner of Mike Samuel Graphics and is an amazing designer and has created many a logo that has branded some of the most recognizable companies. Just to name a few - The History Channel, A&E, Sears, VH-1, Nickelodeon and my personal favorite - the Keep America Beautiful symbol of the Native American man with the tear coming down his face! Needless to say - he is a great artist that knows how to convey what you are in his logo.

On the other hand - he is also an amazing illustrator who has a quick mind that always keeps me laughing. My office has cartoons from Mike World all over it and for the first time - I am sharing them with the public. I have uploaded a cartoon that is one of the reasons I love working with my partners in S1. I had called him from the road to ask him to create a banner ad for our checkpoint friendly laptop bags and I received that - which is also here - along with this cartoon and I had to put it up everywhere I could.

As hard as we all work in our respective businesses, we need to remember to laugh lots and never take it too seriously! Enjoy the brilliance of Mike - I know we do.

To Blog or Not To Blog...That is the Question!

To blog or not to blog...the ruling is still out on this one. Some people you speak to will say that blogging is an integral part of your online presence, others will say that blogging is becoming passe and that it is better to use twitter to get yourself out there.

Well - as someone who is finally getting the hang of blogging I just can't jump ship - I want to build this end of my social network, too.

The real question is - why can't you do both? Why can't we blog, tweet, tweem, post, be linkedin, facebook and the list goes on and on and on and on...I'm sure you get the point!

Ultimately, it seems to me that the more of a presence you have online, no matter what the forum, you are getting yourself out there and creating a splinter effect in the online community. Sooner or later something you are doing will be effective.

As someone who is striving to learn as much as possible to make my office as productive as it can be - even with gas going back to 2006 prices - I am going to continue with what I know, learn what I don't and defer to the experts and devote 2-3 hours per week to building an online presence.

Last week, I created our first holiday sale campaign for S1 bags! We are offering 25% off your entire order when you add the code - HH123 at checkout time. Happily, people are responding - please do so if you haven't already - you can do this by visiting www.s1bags.com.

No matter how you decide to promote yourself online, the most important thing is to be consistent. You can't create a presence if you are not present on a continuous basis - so blog, tweet, post, comment and share all that you are doing with your fellow networkers. It is the only way to make networking really work!

And The Pitch Goes On...

Well - the Elevator Pitch is one that just keeps on pitching!

Taking the advise of a colleague I emailed MSNBC about their Elevator Pitch Segment that airs on Sunday am on their Your Business show at 7:30. Long story short, they didn't even wait till they received a video copy of the pitch! Their producer went to our site and found our product "extremely compelling" and had a cancellation - so I am filming on Oct 2nd.

It is amazing to me that this one minute pitch has opened up so many doors for S1. I can't stress enough how much you owe it to your business to define the who, what, where, when, why and how of your company. Crystallizing your vision so others see its potential can bring you to clients you only dreamed of.

Once I have the air date I will post it here and hope you all tune in to hear my pitch! Together, we can make a difference!

The Elevator Pitch

Hello fellow bloggers...
Here is the actual pitch that I used to win the contest. Hopefully it will encourage you to create a pitch that will excite people about your company and make them want to learn more - cause lets face it - that's what it is all about!

Hi I’m Dori DeCarlo, Founder and President of S1 – for Safety First.

S1 has a full line of clear bags and backpacks designed to assist with the safety measures being implemented in schools, offices, airports, sports arenas and other public venues.

After Columbine as a mom, I wanted to find a way to keep our schools safe and began S1with our Standard and Mini Backpack, Messenger Bag and Wheelchair Bag because I didn’t want to say to a child in a wheelchair, “Oh maybe someday we’ll make a bag for you.”

Our manufacturer uses the thickest materials available, offers a 3 year warranty and I worked with Chiropractors on the ergonomic design of our products all to ensure that S1 bags are CLEARLY the finest see through bags available worldwide.

We began with 4 bags and this fall numbers 15 and 16 hit the market - our Checkpoint Friendly Laptop Bag and Backpack that meet TSA requirements so travelers don’t need to remove their laptop when going through security.

Visit S1Bags.com or call me at 203 924 6577. We’re S1 – the CLEAR advantage!

Making New Connections

Networking is such a powerful tool and you never know who is going to lead you to someone that is going to make a real difference in your business and your outlook. As a woman in business I sometimes find it surprising how reticent other women are in working together and sharing resources. I am not sure if it goes back to the dating competition or what - but it is sometimes disheartening to me to see women almost jockeying for space rather than gaining strength in alliances. This is not always the case, and hopefully it is getting better, but it still comes up.

Well - yesterday was NOT one of those days! I urge you all to take a look at the Entrepreneur Circle and their blog - http://resourceforbusiness.blogspot.com/ developed by an incredibly dynamic woman, Maria Keiser; she is a force to be reckoned with. We were suppose to meet for about an hour and four hours later had a hard time leaving! It is so uplifting to meet someone so focused in assisting others grow their businesses. As a person who is committed to making a difference we connected even before we met.

Again I am continuously amazed at how a mom like me who just wanted to keep our kids safe has gone on to meet the amazing people that I am connecting with. I've worked with my partners to take www.s1bags.com from 4 products to 16 in 4 short years! It just goes to show you that if you have a dream and make a commitment to make it a reality it can happen. Time is what it is and anything worth having must be worth working for - so don't focus on how long the journey is - focus on learning while on the journey - then the time won't matter.

I hope that this blog is working to make it easier to find resources to build your business and strengthen your networking connection - so join me on the journey. Together, we can make a difference.

Promote Clients and Safety Together.

Well it has been a busy Monday morning for me - thankfully! I have had more people contact me today looking to promote their clients and love the safety element that S1 Bags brings to the table. Our clear bags and backpacks give marketing and promotional companies to opportunity to take a premium product and personalize them to brand and promote their clients while offering a timely item.

It is amazing how many companies are looking for something new and unique and want to combine minimizing time spent at security checkpoints with a quality product that is cutting edge. Visit our site - www.s1bags.com and you will see why S1 bags are the finest transparent bags on the market.

Security measures are being implemented everywhere and S1 is looking to make it easier for safety and convenience to coexist. With high-quality, durable designs, S1 bags are clearly safer, clearly stronger and clearly more comfortable than the flimsy see-through plastic carryalls that many people have purchased as fashion accessories through the years. Heavyweight, temperature-resistant vinyl, fabric lined and reinforced seams and a three-year warranty against manufacturers’ defects guarantee each S1 purchaser a bag that will last.

I hope that you will join us as we expand our product on a global marketplace. Believe me, if I can do it with my mission and product line - you can too. Take the time to look at what we do and lets see how we can best work together to make it safe out there for us all. S1 - the CLEAR Advantage!

Making the Network Work for You.

Well - in finding all these new resources literally at my fingertips now I am looking to make the networking really work! Too many times I see people joining groups or networking sites and then never updating their profiles or looking at what others are doing to get their name out to others in the social networks they are signing up for.

When I first sent out connection requests I simply looked for someone that I thought might be interested in sharing contacts and information without really seeing if they were actively involved in their networking. Now, I look at the last time they updated their profile, added information, posted to their blog and generally to see if they were really looking to grow their network or just here for no other reason than to have their name somewhere.

Believe me I was just as guilty in not updating my information and have since learned that all you need to do is change one word or two and it is an entirely new submission and shows that you are active in your networking. Having joined numerous networks in the last few months I am committed to devoting time each day - even if it is only a half hour - to logging on, answering messages and getting my information out there. With a company like S1 - for Safety First - our audience is far reaching. When you visit our site www.s1bags.com you will see what I mean. With a full line of see through bags and backpacks we are really open to everyone whether for business, travel, pleasure or back to school, we have a bag for your every need.

That is why it was hard in the beginning for me to know who best to contact. Even though S1 has a product for everyone connecting with everyone is not the answer. I would rather have fewer connections that are truly interested in sharing ideas, business building and other services than a network of hundreds or thousands that are doing nothing.

So with all that said, take the time to see if the person you are reaching out to is someone that is looking to network to the fullest or if they are just there for so their name is out there. It takes a couple of extra minutes but it is well worth it.

More Social Networking.

As we all navigate these new waters of on-line social networking I wanted to bring a new site to you all. Perfect Networker, the online home for serious business professionals.

Perfect Networker Online is one of several tools created to provide you with a comprehensive business networking system, designed specifically to allow you to create, strengthen and nurture long term, win-win, mutually beneficial relationships with other business professionals who make relationship building a priority in their business. You can learn more about them at www.perfectnetworker.com - and right now they are offering a free life-time membership to the first 1000 people that sign up on their network - just tell them Dori sent you!

Personally I think this is a great site - they are new and innovative and are doing all they can to be cutting edge - so look for new features on a regular basis.

One of the biggest things I have learned about being an on-line presence is getting your name out there in more than one network. Also - it is very important to fill in the little things they ask like your favorite movies or books. Believe it or not, people can find out who you are with these little things. In the beginning of my on-line journey, I always left this blank because I was there for business - not to make friends! Well - I quickly learned that business often develops when people see that they have things in common with you. Simple things can make you interesting as you develop an on-line network of people. Our diversity is what makes us unique and our likes bring us closer to someone that may be on the other side of the country or the world for that matter! Guess what - it really is a world wide web!!!

I am constantly amazed at how our products strike a cord in the network that I am building. Who would have thought that trying to keep our schools safe by designing clear bags and backpacks would branch out into shipping to Australia for correctional facility officers! Go figure - I am just a mom who wanted to make a difference. See for yourself how our products can assist you - visit us at www.s1bags.com and let me know what you think. How can we help you or your company or your not for profit group - please - let me know how!

Technorati Link

Technorati Profile

Technorati is a great way to promote and track your blog or weblog. They regularly update search, surface and organize blogs and otehr forms of user genterated content to assist as you are looking to become an online presence. Visit www.technorati.com to register your blog and get noticed!

Becoming an On-Line Presence

Becoming an on-line presence is something that I am learning more and more about on a daily basis; there is so much to grasp as I delve into 2.0 technology!

I just want to say this to those ignorant of computer technology people out there - I am one of YOU - I know NOTHING about computers and half of what they are talking about - but I can follow simple directions and it is as easy as a click of your mouse or hitting enter on the keyboard - and you look like an absolute technology wizard. It is the old adage in business - "Fake it till you make it!" I can't believe how easy it has been to update my blog with www.Widgets.com and www.Feedblitz.com because they have links with just a click, copy and paste - it is so simple but something that I was so afraid to even attempt. Now what widgets are I still don't truly grasp - but I learned that they are really important -so there you go!!!

When I first started to learn about all of this through webinars and teleseminars my eyes would actually being to glass over and I had to take copious notes just to stay awake because it was all gibberish to me. I can't pinpoint which learning experience finally got through but all of a sudden I finally HEARD what was being said - I finally really LISTENED and there it was. There are places on-line where the links are in place for you to take advantage of - and it is just that simple.

Through www.FastPitchNetworking.com I learned where to make these things happen - and have expanded my network with the amazing technology available on their site. You can become a free member or pay different prices for various services - and whatever you choose - they offer a great network and up-to-date technology right at your fingertips. They even link up with other networks like Facebook and LinkedIn for more exposure.

ShopINUSCities.com is a newer social networking site that I also recommend as it has the right blend of business and pleasure and as a newer site will continue to offer new updated services as they grow. I don't know about you - but I love being in on the ground floor as things grow. It is also a personal connection that brings me to them - through S1, my company that has a full line of clear bags and backpacks, we are committed to the Merchant Scholarship Fund that www.ShopInUSCities.com has created. I urge you to see what they are doing and become part of this great network committed to bettering our communities.

See there are on-line social networks that offer business that makes a difference! Making a difference has been the driving force in my beginning www.S1bags.com and now in trying to become an on-line presence to assist others in building their dream one day at a time; understand that the challenges are what make us strong.

Come with me! Be part of the adventure because it is true, "Together, we can make a difference!"

Social Networking at its BEST!!!

I don't know about you - but with all the on-line social networking going on - how do any of us differentiate between which sites are promoting a strong business stand and which sites are purely for socializing - and what is best to do?

If you are like me, you are looking for that right blend of business and pleasure all rolled into one. It is amazing just how many networking opportunities there are!!!

For me, I think that the best way to really communicate a business-like persona is finding the sites that are truly devoted to assisting you in marketing your business. I think that Fast Pitch is a great place to start - they are constantly updating the features and are on the cutting edge. ShopInUSCities.com is a newer on-line presence, and one that is adding more and more features daily.

I have been learning more and more about how to reach out to my fellow on-line networkers and begin relationships one at a time on a global level. It really is a world-wide-web!

I am constantly amazed how people are looking at our products as a solution to a problem. Whether it is cutting time at checkpoints, keeping manufacturing rooms "clean", branding their logo and giving clients a timely gift, wanting to bring things into a ballgame or concert or because their child's school has just made it mandatory for them to carry clear bags and backpacks, S1 is catching on!

Become part of the solution! Visit us at www.s1bags.com - see our line of products - and let me know what you think! I am always interested in finding new ways to make this dream of mine happen.

I've said it before and I say it again, we are - S1 - The CLEAR Advantage!