Linkcrafter.com – Blog

Sarah, a housewife, meets a man named Pete at the grocery store. Pete sells high-quality, environmentally friendly light bulbs. Sarah doesn’t have any need for a light bulb when she meets Pete, but as they strike up a conversation she mentions a few things she does need – a house cleaner, a mechanic, and a place to find vintage records.

Pete tells her he knows his sister is very happy with her house cleaner, and asks for her email address so he can follow up and give her the name later. He sends her the following email:

Hi, Sarah –

Good to meet you at the store; I enjoyed our conversation. I spoke to my sister Julia about her house cleaner and she recommends Lupe Velasquez at xxx-xxx-xxxx. She says feel free to mention her name when you talk to Lupe.

I remember you also said you were looking for a mechanic and a good vintage record store. I didn’t know myself, but I asked around a little bit, and I hear very good things about Hoshi Motors and Rockin’ Records on Broadway. Apparently the guy to talk to about vintage records is named Dan, and he works there on weekday afternoons.

Hope that helps! Looking forward to keeping in touch.

Best,

Pete

Sarah is grateful to Pete for his help, and her natural response to that gratitude is to do him a good turn in exchange. She introduces Pete a man she knows who does environmental design, and who may need light bulbs for his projects. She mentions his name to a friend who’s looking to cut her electric bill and to her brother the next time she’s with him at the hardware store buying new bulbs.

Why does Sarah put so much effort into helping Pete? Because Pete put so much effort into helping her, without expecting anything in return.

In exchange for the trouble Pete put into introducing her to his network of people, he now has three potential new clients, all of whom need what he’s selling.

If Pete had instead put his effort into selling Sarah a light bulb she didn’t want or need, he might have made a single sale, but Sarah certainly wouldn’t be as eager to refer him to others she knew. Sarah’s not likely to want to help out a random salesman. But she will want to help out – and introduce to her own network of people – a friend.

The power of reciprocity will always be in your favor. The Copywriter guru Brian Clark put it this way

“First, you’ve gone out and either found or created something to solve a need they told you about. You’ve done them a favor, and they’ll want to repay that. If they’re in the market to spend six figures on an automobile, you’re the person they’ll want to buy it from.”

Who is White?

Most ancient peoples defined population differences culturally, not physically, and often regarded lighter people as less civilized. Centuries later, European travel writers regarded the light-skinned Circassians, a k a Caucasians, as people best fit only for slavery, yet at the same time labeled Circassian slave women the epitome of beauty.

This is Book offer an undoubtedly provocative and intense insight into the deeper meanings of race and identity today. Written by a Black woman adds more to the sweetness and the controversy.

“Nell Irvin Painter’s book title, “The History of White People” is a provocation in several ways: it’s monumental in sweep, and its absurd grandiosity should call to mind the fact that writing a “History of Black People” might seem perfectly reasonable to white people. But the title is literally accurate, because the book traces characterizations of the lighter-skinned people we call white today, starting with the ancient Scythians.”

Great Book review at the NYT: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/28/books/review/Gordon-t.html?hpw

Can a Black historian write about white people history?

It’s a mind blowing book. Don’t be stopped by the skin color of the author. Haven’t white people been writing about people of color throughout history?

If you are interested in racial studies, immigration issues, Black & White classification?  You’ll surely learn a lot from Nell Irvin Painter‘s book and better understand many contemporary issues.

Be Nice today, ok?

In my professional and private life, I have adopted 3 main ways to praise people:

Catch people doing something good, and praise them instantly,

Praise people in front of other people,

Praise people in their absence

The first one is very effective. It has a tremendous impact on people self-confidence, motivation, and feeling of belonging. Whenever you find someone doing something good, reinforce the action by praising the person in the moment.

The second  one is very delicate and need to be used with great mastery and care.

The third one is the most powerful and the most influential on people and has a boomerang effect. Everyone could practice it, at any time, without any limitation. There is no specific skill needed, but your wish to use it.

Most people are used to speak nicely about people only when they in front of them, but in their absence they will gossip and say mostly bad things about them or talk about things they don’t like in these people. It’s very common and it looks like a human trait. Many casual conversations are about pointing, highlighting the disliked  things in other people or events.

If you follow this practice you act like the crowd and you won’t stand out to become a people star and a recognized leader.

How to practice  the technique of “Praise People in their absence”.

1. To start you need to choose voluntary to abandon the old fashioned way of talking about people in their absence. Instead of pointing, highlighting the disliked  things in other people, make it a conscientious choice Stop this practice, and praise people in their absence instead.

2. Systematically try to catch people doing something good. If you can, praise them in the moment. If not record in full detail  the event, and spread a praise of the event to the world. Next time, when the name the  person will pop up in a conversation, when appropriate, go ahead to tell other people your recorded story and express your personal admiration.

3. Praising in general terms like “he is nice”, “he is hard worker”, “he is smart”, “he is resourceful” still is good, but less effective than praising a person with reference to very specific story, event, achievement, etc. Being specific makes your praise more credible and make the person you are praising stand out effectively like an important and special person.

4. Make it a rule to praise  every day at least one or two persons in their absence. it could people from your team, family, friends, etc. If you could Double this number every month during the next 3 months, you’ll be flooded by invitations of people who want to become your friends. You’ll become a People Magnet.

5. When you start the practice of praising people in their absence, Try to do it in front people who are very close to them. Your praise will spread like a wildfire and reach your target in less than 24H.

6. When your target heard of your praise in his absence, he will feel good and things will look for him like you become his private PR agent, telling the whole world how important and special he is.

7. Practice undercover compliment and praise your friends, your colleagues, your kids, your wife, your husband, your investors, your peers  in their absence. Never stop to praise them. Make it an active choice of praising continually people in their absence.

8. You may be wondering when will you have again the opportunity to say some disliked things about people, like everyone does? It’s so good to be caustic, to ridicule people in casual conversation. it’s a world wide practice, so how can you stop yourself from practicing it? Won’t you look boring? Maybe looking boring today, is a condition for your full success tomorrow.

Praising and complimenting people in their absence is the Most subtle and the most powerful way to win people over. Start doing it actively and systematically from Today on, You’ll be stroked by the results.

Keep me in touch.

Because I want one for myself, and because I’ll buy one for  grandma.

Apple iPad

Linkcrafter is marketing company that helps small business owners who are struggling to attract clients but don’t have money to invest in advertising nor have time to spend in networking.

Our solutions work for marketing professionals, sales people, home-based businesses, small business owners, Freelancers, services providers, etc.

Some months ago we have started something new for our customers. We build a system like Yahoo Answers for business purpose: to capture business opportunities by answering consumers questions.

It’s a small widget our customers put on their websites or blogs that encourage their visitors and customers to send them their burning questions, needs or requests, even if they are not related to their business. They promise to provide them in a short period, if not minutes, free professionals answers, ALL for Free.

When we have started, we were not sure how things will work out. Some people doubted the foundation of the promise to put a widget on a website that promise to help anyone with answers, even if their questions or requests are not related to your business.

After several months of test now, we can say this is a really powerful marketing solution. It’s working remarkably well because the vast majority of questions involve purchase decision or service need.

For Linkcrafter company, Since we have put the Answers widget on this blog, we are collecting daily 10 to 25 requests from our visitors, readers and customers. Up to 78% of requests collected through this widget are directly related to our business. 15% are opportunities that we route to partners. We receive a small percentage of crappy requests and questions.

For the community as a whole, 36% of opportunities are collected through members Answers widgets, 13% through direct opportunity report by members, and the other 51% come from solution-feed.com ( a public Answers portal focused on before purchase questions from consumers) .

Abe’s of Maine has used Q&A marketing strategy to boost  revenue and loyalty.  Here is Sarah Mishan, Director Marketing of Abe’s of Maine testimonial:

“When we first started, we didn’t really expect it to take off the way it did,” Mishan says.

Within the first seven months, the team approved more than 5,200 questions to their site, 97% of which were answered. The team has seen a significant decline in customer service inquiries since the effort launched in March.

The notification email messages were strong performers:

- Answer emails average about a 70% CTR.

“For every 100 questions that I answer [for which I] have email addresses, I get 70 people back to my site. And that’s 70 customers that I would have otherwise not gotten.”

- 7.5% of questioners who receive an emailed answer made a purchase.

This is compared to the team’s email newsletter campaigns, which see about a 25% open rate and a 3.5% conversion rate.

Also, the team calculates an average cost-per-acquisition of customers through the answer notification emails at $23.81. That’s better than the team’s approximately $40 CPA and 2.5% to 2% conversion rate on shopping engines, although shopping engines deliver more volume”.

How to start?

Create your account on Linkcrafter.com, and pick your Answers Widget. It’s a unique link, badge or form you can use in your email signature, Newsletter, on Twitter, Facebook, or on your blog, website, etc.

It’s in this way that hundreds of small are actually market their business without wasting money on expensive advertising or wasting time on countless networking websites, clubs or events.

The main benefit for small business owners is the shift from chasing customers to customers coming to you, because consumers  first come to you with their questions and needs.

In the present economic conditions, Linkcrafter is a Good solution.

Start today, follow this link: Linkcrafter.com

Danny wants to buy a car. He knows what he needs in a car – good mileage, enough room for his two kids and their dog, four-wheel drive, a good sound system. He knows what he wants in a car. The problem is finding a car that can provide him all of those things.

Where does he go?

If he’s like the average consumer today, Danny goes online to try and gain knowledge. So Danny runs a Google search for his desired car features. He enters in search terms for ‘minivan’ and ‘good mileage’ and ‘4-wheel drive’. Immediately, he’s inundated with way more information than he can process.

There are millions of sites clamoring for attention and at least fifty different cars that could possibly give him what he’s looking for. He ends up sifting through contradicting advice, opinionated content and a lot of pretty crappy material.

Danny has no way of narrowing them down. He can’t find information telling him how the car handles, whether it’s large enough for his family, whether his dog will find the upholstery irresistible.

He doesn’t have time to sift through thousands of Tweets and Blog posts and emails and IMs and websites to find the answer to his problem. All he wants is a person, with a sincere stake in his best interest, to offer a solution: a Knowledgeable Friend.

A win win solution

Linkcrafter has built a system like Yahoo Answers but for business purpose: to capture business opportunities by answering consumers’ questions.

Consumers at large post their burning questions, needs or requests, and they will be provided in a short period, if not minutes, free personalized answers from experts and business professionals.

Once a customer’s question is received, Linkcrafter’s proprietary application searches the site’s network of experts and routes the question to the small business professional most knowledgeable about the topic.

It is an incredible leads generating machine because the vast majority of questions involve purchase decision or service need.

Small businesses are motivated to respond quickly and thoroughly because they could mention their products or services, where relevant, in their answers, and furthermore Linkcrafter puts an advertisement for their business adjacent to the answer.

The main benefit of Linkcrafter for business professionals is the shift from chasing customers to customers coming to you, because first consumers come to them with their questions and needs.

Happy Danny

With Linkcrafter Danny is in a better position now than earlier. Danny uses a site where consumers receive quick and free professionals answers to their questions: Solution-feed.com.

Once Danny posts his need, the web application combs through a vast network of experts and professionals that offer an infinite willingness to provide answers to consumers’ questions.  Questions are routed to the most knowledgeable experts and Professional on the topic best. Answers come back within a short period, if not few minutes.

Danny question is sent to a profession in his region who loves cars, constantly reads car Magazines and the latest reviews, and who does a little repair work himself. He is more than willing to help. He gives Danny a couple of options to choose from, explains the pros and cons of each option, and sends Danny on his way ready to buy a car. Danny’s probably feeling pretty good and confident at this point, and he’s an informed consumer.

That’s how we imagine the new Internet: an Internet that empowers people, not distract or get them lost.

Content marketing is a “Keep in touch” strategy that involve information sharing, with the purpose to engage customers or prospects.

Content marketing works, because Keep in touch with consumers is the most critical function of marketing in the new economy. It helps you stay in front of clients and new prospects on a regular basis.

But, content creation is very very challenging, it demands a lot of time and resources. That is the reason why the huge majority of websites, blogs are debris, almost never updated, and the main reason why small business owners, freelancers, services professionals don’t know what to write to their customers in their newsletter,  never update their websites.

If to create content is difficult and complex, create continually new content to keep in touch with customers on regular basis, and engage prospect is close to impossible for most small businesses owners, entrepreneurs or freelancers.

Even if you’ve succeed to create a good content on a regular basis, it’s not garanty that it’ll attract to you traffic, fame, new customers, etc.  As Susan Payton put it “Good content is important, but unfortunately, there is a ton of it out there. You have to differentiate yourself somehow.”

For Josh Hanagarne, the world’s strongest librarian, “These days, it’s easy for anyone to get their hands on 94% of the information. The top dogs are those who provide their customers with that extra 6%.”

Yes, Good content is not enough anymore, there is a ton of it out there. You have to differentiate somehow. You need to to provide what we call gap closing information, tailored to each individual contact or customers needs and interests.

Follow the advise of Josh “However large or small your audience, customer base, or fan club is, start there. Having the answers to their questions or problems is non-negotiable if you’re going to be successful.

If you’re a professional, it won’t matter how successful you think you are if your customers don’t agree with you. But they will agree with you if you can answer their questions. And they will remain your customers because you bridge the information gap.

These days, it’s easy for anyone to get their hands on 94% of the information. The top dogs are those who provide their customers with that extra 6%.” Josh Hanagarne, the world’s strongest librarian

“There’s a connection. The problem solver becomes more popular as more problems are solved for more people. Every time you solve a problem in a way that’s better than others, you add undeniable value to the person in need. After performing a search engine query on a topic, what pages do you bookmark? The ones that offer you the best possible solution.

First, identify the problems facing your target audience. Go deep into Understanding the problem. Go after nuance. Absorb feedback on current solutions.

Nobody is able to constantly solve problems in the best possible way to please every single person. All solutions have flaws because consumers evolve. People are also going to look elsewhere because of boredom. But understanding exactly what problems and solutions are out there, allows you to better score points or gain favor with any audience.” Maki, doshdosh.com

This is the basis on Linkcrafter PIG technology (Personalized Information Gears) and marketing concept: Knoweldge for Free Advertising ™.

Join Linkcrafter today. Click here.

From chasing Customers to Customers coming to You.

Linkcrafter is a marketing solution that helps small business owners who are struggling to attract clients but don’t have money to invest in advertising nor have time to spend in countless networking websites, clubs and events.

It works for marketing professionals, sales people, home-based businesses, small business owners, Freelancers, services providers, etc.

How it works?

1. Answer Consumers Questions and Your Ad appears next to the answer they receive.

Look Google, advertisers would pay a lot of money to appear next to relevant questions. With Linkcrafter each experts and professional act as a mini-google: They receive questions relevant to their business area and expertise, they answer and put their ad in or next to the answers.

It’s simple, straightforward, and delivers on the promise.

Business professionals on Linkcrafter have a huge incentive to answer questions: They could mention their products or services, where relevant, in their answers and If they are answering a question not related to their business, they can expose their know-how and brand to millions of users, and their ad appears on the right side or at the bottom of their answer proposal.

For consumers, Linkcrafter is a life improvement tool. It relieves them from digital fatigue and information overload. They receive Quick and Free professional answer to their burning questions within a short period, if not few minutes.

For professionals, Linkcrafter is an incredible leads generating machine because the vast majority of questions involve purchase decision or service need.

2. Opportunity Reporters™

Each member of Linkcrafter is an Opportunity Reporter for the whole community. Wherever they hear about an opportunity, they immediately post it on the community wall for other member to consider.
It could be during formal or casual conversation with customers, friends, or from Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.
Linkcrafter made available survey scripts and widgets gears that help the business community capture more easily their users and clients questions and requests through their website, blogs or email.

Requests collected through surveys and widget are routed to Linkcrafter members. If the request is related to their business, it’s a lead they can act on. If the request is not related to their business, and they have no solution to provide, they can choose to make this lead available to their partners on Linkcrafter or to the most knowledgeable people on Linkcrafter who could help.

Example:
A web designer in Amsterdam (Netherlands) put Linkcrafter widget on his website and blog. He receives a constant flow of questions and requests from his visitors and clients, ranging from how to find a local good video recorder to where to find the best hotel in Amsterdam. He answers questions related to his business and mention his business and brand, and transfer the other opportunities to professionals in his network or to other Linkcrafter members.

3. What are the Benefits of Linkcrafter?

From chasing customers to Customers coming to you
Consumers come first to you with their questions and needs. It Generate a consistent flow of leads for you and your partners. You are Wanted and Welcomed in Your Clients’ and Prospects’ Mind.

Forget about marketing complexity and uncertainty
You’ve tried many things, but the results are miserable. Linkcrafter’s approach works consistently. It only requires one single action, which is easy and even enjoyable to do.

It works and you can show it.
Linkcrafter is an opportunity-based network. You can see the ROI (return over investment) of the time and resources spent in Networking and show quantified business results to your Boss.

You have a great product but Not enough visibility to grow
Switch to Linkcrafter and receive faster, more enthusiastic and more qualified responses. Customers and Prospects call you First, ready to explore how you can help them.

Today Linkcrafter is for small business owners and services professionals, The Fastest, Easiest, and Most Reliable Solution for Getting Noticed and Attract More Clients Without spending money on advertising or wasting time in networking.

Join Linkcrafter today. Go to: http://www.linkcrafter.com

Danny wants to buy a car. He knows what he needs in a car – good mileage, enough room for his two kids and their dog, four-wheel drive, a good sound system. He knows what he wants in a car. The problem is finding a car that can provide him all of those things.

Where does he go?

If he’s like the average consumer today, Danny goes online to try and gain knowledge. So Danny runs a Google search for his desired car features. He enters in search terms for ‘minivan’ and ‘good mileage’ and ‘4-wheel drive’. Immediately, he’s inundated with way more information than he can process.

There are millions of sites clamoring for attention and at least fifty different cars that could possibly give him what he’s looking for. He ends up sifting through contradicting advice, opinionated content and a lot of pretty crappy material.

Danny has no way of narrowing them down. He can’t find information telling him how the car handles, whether it’s large enough for his family, whether his dog will find the upholstery irresistible.

He doesn’t have time to sift through thousands of Tweets and Blog posts and emails and IMs and websites to find the answer to his problem. All he wants is a person, with a sincere stake in his best interest, to offer a solution: a Knowledgeable Friend.

Thankfully, Danny is in a better position now than earlier. Danny uses a site where consumers receive quick and free professionals answers to their questions: Solution-feed.com. Once Danny posts his need, the web application combs through a vast network of experts and professionals that offer an infinite willingness to provide answers to consumers’ questions.  Questions are routed to the most knowledgeable experts and Professional on the topic best. Answers come back within a short period, if not few minutes.

Danny question is sent to a profession in his region who loves cars, constantly reads car
Magazines and the latest reviews, and who does a little repair work himself. He is more than willing to help. He gives Danny a couple of options to choose from, explains the pros and cons of each option, and sends Danny on his way ready to buy a car. Danny’s probably feeling pretty good and confident at this point, and he’s an informed consumer.

That’s how we imagine the new Internet: an Internet that empowers people, not distract or get them lost.

If you’ve tried many things, but the results are miserable, it time to switch to Linkcrafter and receive faster, more enthusiastic and more qualified responses. Linkcrafter’s approach works consistently what ever the background of the user. It only requires one single action, which is easy and even enjoyable to do.

Join Linkcrafter today.