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ilovemyarchitect · 7 years ago

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Rosario Mannino was born and raised in New Jersey. He holds a Bachelor of Architecture from Florida Atlantic University and a Professional Certificate from New York University in Construction Project Management. Eight years after graduating from FAU, Mannino founded the Architect-Led Design-Build company RS|MANNINO Architecture + Construction. RS|MANNINO builds on our diverse professional and construction backgrounds to provide a balanced and thoughtful approach to our clients’ projects. Together with our trusted network of professionals, trade and supplier resources, we bring the expertise and hands-on experience in architecture, design, engineering, construction trades, and project management necessary to make every project we take on a success. They approach everything we do with a commitment to an integrated design and construction process. For more information visit them online Facebook; Twitter; LinkedIn; Website

ILMA INTERVIEW

When did you first become interested in Architect-Led Design-Build?

I knew I wanted to be an architect from a very young age. Growing up around construction, I was so intrigued by the entire process. I loved being on the job site watching the architectural plans unfold into a beautiful home or building. I always thought I had to decide on which path to pursue: architecture vs. construction/office vs. jobsite. I had been exploring the idea of both disciplines from a very young age, and it grew into a focused research project for me by the time I reached high school. I don’t think there was ever this “ah ha” moment. It was a passion that I had from the start.

Can you describe the process of ALDB?

As the Architect, we contract with the owner both to design and to construct a building, and we procure the construction services by contracting directly with the various construction trades.

Can you walk us through a typical project?

In ALDB, we start our projects very similarly to a traditional method. We start with a budget and scope. If the budget and scope are approved, we start to design. Once we complete our schematic design, we provide an updated preliminary estimate. Once we confirm we are within budget, we continue to refine the design and the cost estimates. We want our clients to be informed and included throughout the entire process. This factor creates a trusting relationship between our firm and our clients. With our method, the clients only need to communicate with us. There are less parties involved making communication much more efficient.

How are the fees structured?

Depends on the complexity and size of the project; some are hourly design fees with the Construction documents set at a fixed fee which is determined after Schematic Design. Most of our projects are defined well enough that we can provide a professional fee plus reimbursable expenses. Our Construction Management fee is a fixed fee which also includes a pre-construction management fee. Occasionally we will perform Construction as a fixed price.

What are some of the risks and rewards of ALDB?

If a problem arises, there is only one place to point the finger. In the traditional design-bid-build method, miscommunication between Architect and Contractor can cause unnecessary tension. With ALDB, the entire process is much more cohesive creating a team-like environment. The clients also feel a sense of comfort when only having to communicate with one entity.

What are the three greatest challenges with ALDB process?

Higher Insurance premiums – This is one of the main reasons why we separate our business entities, having separate insurance for both entities and separate contracts for the client.

Most Architecture firms can take on smaller projects if the work load is slowing down, and most builders have very small overhead to compensate for the slower times. With ALDB, you need to have separate staff for both Architecture and Construction; it’s a bigger machine to feed.

Training new staff is much more of an investment because overall, they are becoming much more knowledgeable about our whole profession. There is even more training involved because new staff must learn both Architecture and Construction. It is extremely gratifying to educate Architects to think in a different way.

What are the three greatest advantages of ALDB?

One of the best advantages of being an ALDB firm is that we get to work directly with the craftsmen themselves to discuss how we can make improvements to the project; it is a learning experience for both of us. We appreciate this close relationship, and I am certain our craftsmen enjoy working in close contact with the designer. The designer and the craftsman work directly together.

As the Architect, we take on a role that allows better control of project budgets, schedules, and overall project quality, including the quality of design.

It’s so much fun. I think it’s so much fun because we are truly going back to being Master builders. As Architects we love to problem solve; that’s what we do all day long, but now it’s even more in depth and more dynamic.

Do you see ALDB as a way for Architects to take back “control” of the design and construction process?

For certain markets, yes. I have had the pleasure of working on projects with unlimited design budgets, having total control of the project as the Architecture firm. In reality, not every client is going to have an unlimited budget. The client relationship in ALDB is far greater than in a traditional design-bid-build method. We have found our clients to be so much more appreciate of our talents on our design-build projects vs. our design only jobs. Some of our design jobs have a 2-3 month duration, followed by phone calls and quick site meetings. In design-build, we have a much closer relationship with our clients; most of them feel like family before the project is over!

Why do you think that most Architects, Clients and Contractors shy away from ALDB?

For Architects, it is not necessarily something they ever thought about because they weren’t introduced to it. We are trained in (most) schools to be Starchitects with grand budgets. After school and our internship is completed, most architects find the niche they are most comfortable in. I cannot say that ALDB is easy nor is it for everyone to pursue. There is a more executive and dynamic role; there is a much more entrepreneurial mode to ALDB as opposed to running a boutique design firm. You can be a one-person design firm, but to do design-build you need to build a solid team. The daily tasks of designing, managing the office, managing the sites, and keeping finances in order is not for everyone, nor can one person do it all. It requires a great team, and we are fortunate to have that.

I have not yet met a client who shied away from ALDB. However, we do work on design only jobs. This usually happens when the client already has a relationship with a contractor. We are agreeable to this because we can only build so much, and we want our clients to be comfortable with who they are working with.

For contractors, there is a sense of losing the market. Good builders and contractors should not be concerned. They may choose to adapt, but to be honest I do not think this will be some sweeping trend in the AEC industry.

What are some of the tools you use (from AIA, NCARB, Insurance Company, Other Professional Organizations) to help you manage your firm’s performance and reduce risk?

I have read a lot of literature on ALDB; the AIA has a few great articles as well as a book on ALDB. There is an organization specifically for design-build called Design Build Institute of America (DBIA). This organization is geared more toward government and large-scale projects. There are also a few attorneys who have published articles on ALDB that have been very helpful.

My research has lead me to separate my design and construction contracts, but each project is unique. I treat each project differently. I cannot really say I have a set method because our scale of work differs so greatly, spanning a large spectrum. On one end, we have worked on small kitchen renovations, and on the other end we have done new construction on vacant lots.

What is the percentage of ALDB your firm is currently working on – what are the major differences between traditional project delivery vs ALDB projects?

Being recently engaged in a few large multi-family developments, we’ve found that we are providing more than the basic services on those scale projects. This is due to our experience. Developers are taking advantage of our management and construction background. Our role is much more than just producing design documents. I would say we are about 60% design only and 40% ALDB projects.

Is there anything you would like to see to make the ALDB even better for future projects?

I hope to see more architecture schools incorporating some type of design-build programs. If Architects played a larger role, communities would greatly benefit. It would be nice if ALDB gained more popularity so that clients can learn to appreciate Architects playing a larger role.

For more exclusive ILMA interviews click here.

We would love to hear from you on what you think about this post. We sincerely appreciate all your comments – and – if you like this post please share it with friends. And feel free to contact us if you would like to discuss ideas for your next project!

Sincerely, FRANK CUNHA III I Love My Architect – Facebook

Our Exclusive ILMA Interview with Rosario Mannino @RSMannino Rosario Mannino was born and raised in New Jersey. He holds a Bachelor of Architecture from Florida Atlantic University and a Professional Certificate from New York University in Construction Project Management.

#Architect #Architect Led Design Build #DB #Design #Design Build #Exclusive #project management

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americafuneral10-blog · 6 years ago

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Providence Equity did in Church-tech What They are About to do in Death-tech. Here’s What it Looks Like…

We recently wrote about the private equity firm Providence Equity and outlined their recent activity and investments in the death care technology space (Read the article here). The private equity firm has investments in over 180 companies worldwide and maintains $60 billion in managed assets. Their sector-focused strategy is aligned with their moves in death-tech, recently taking a controlling stake in SRS Computing, Frazer Consulting, and FrontRunner Professional. We wanted to take a closer look at an industry that Providence Equity has employed their niche sector-focused strategy in the past to glean a vision of their possible future in death care.

Providence Equity rolled out an investment play in church technology that looks remarkably similar to their early moves in death technology. Starting around 2012, the private equity firm took a stake in Ministry Brands which began to rapidly acquire church technology companies and collect them separately under the umbrella company.

Ministry Brands is a collection of faith-based software products that provide services and tools including accounting, background screening, online giving, church business management, and website development. This suite of 31 technology companies is similar to the tools Providence Equity has been acquiring in death care which includes business management technologies, website development, digital memorials, client communication management, and funeral home marketing and advertising services. A major difference between church-tech and death-tech is that Ministry Brands reports that they serve 55,000+ churches while the total market share in funeral care is around 15,600 funeral homes in the U.S.

It appears that Providence equity recognized the market similarities between church and death and are aiming to replicate their strategy on a smaller scale in the funeral space.

What are Ministry Brands’ Goals?

Ministry Brands’ exit goal was clearly laid out and blatantly advertised in the media in 2016: The intention is to sell the conglomerate for $1.5 billion. As of the publishing date of this article, Providence Equity still holds a stake in Ministry Brands (according to their website) along with Genstar Capital.

Ministry Brands’ financial-focused goal is not taken lightly by the church community which by nature is highly sensitive to larger corporations’ ability to prioritize financially motivated decisions over mission-based decisions. Members of the religious community want to uphold the integrity of the industry and big companies with lots of power and intent to sell make everyone nervous.

Was Ministry Brands a success?

It depends on who you ask and the story isn’t quite over.

Ministry Brands did successfully create (and continues to build) an industry-dominating conglomerate of faith-based technology companies that, together, had an estimated $100 million in Ebitda in 2017 – That in itself is a major accomplishment. From the perspective of a private equity firm like Providence, they would likely label it a success upon selling Ministry Brands with a measurable ROI.

The employees of the acquired companies and the corporate-sensitive religious space have another perspective of the accomplishments of Ministry Brands. According to the anonymous work-place review website Glass Door, Ministry Brands’ company takeovers have been challenging for employees. The company has an overall rating of 2.2 (out of 5) stars with 70 reviews. Here are just a few of the negative reviews on Glass Door:

“Cut throat attitude. They buy smaller companies, long hours, furious pace. In four years we only got a 3% raise once. They can only keep their IT staff for about two years before they quit.”

“The consensus of my team is “do not work to hard, they will change course before you finish”. I put in an entire year working on a project only to see everyone laid off and a patchwork fix to move forward. Everyone but me who worked on the project was laid off. Now they are wondering why it does not work.”

“My company was taken over by Ministry Brands awhile back. Ever since, things have changed drastically. We were compensated so well before we had Ministry Brands and everybody’s annual raised were between 7-10%. Now that they’ve taken over, our company feels the pressure and everybody is nervous and wants to get out of here. Our budgets have been squeezed like never before. We are understaffed and our raises are only based on the mandatory cost of living adjustment, which is only 2% this year– it does not matter how well someone has performed their duties or exceeded expectations. It sounds very dishonorable to me that this is being done. Forget learning new skills. There is no tuition reimbursement whatsoever. On top of that, you will need a side hustle to save for retirement because there is no 401k match. Unless you want to be 70 years old and work at a KFC or Walmart you will not see a future here. They also do not offer any commuter benefits. You’re doomed unless you don’t act NOW. Get out of here!”

There are also a few positive reviews on Glass Door including:

“Of the many great things about Ministry Brands, the people are phenomenal and passionate about their purpose. There are many very talented technologists that I work with daily. It has the solid features of a mature organization with the entrepreneurial spirit of a start up. Leaders listen and genuinely consider the insight of their teams and they are moving their technology aggressively and progressively forward.”

To address the growing concerns of the employees speaking out online and the suspected financial-over-mission motives of Ministry Brands, COO Brad Hill appeared on the Podcast Pro Church Tools in 2017 reinforcing that:

“[Investmet captial] allows us to continue growing and serving those customers well in a sustainable way. We have brought a lot of companies into the fold that were either not profitable, or barely breaking even. That’s a very precarious place to put yourself and put your churches because they need to know that you’re going to be there to stand behind that product. So, we have the ability now to grow and invest. We are making some very significant investments, as we sit here right now. In terms of new products and new innovations that we’re working on. We’re only able to do that because we’re both running a healthy business, and we have backing of investors.”

Will Providence be able to successfully replicate their model in death care?

It’s hard to say if Providence equity will be able to successfully create a powerful conglomerate of death-tech companies. There is a specific balance of market share, quality-of-product, diversification of services, and other factors that blessed their faith-based mega-brand with power and influence.

It’s hard to find especially future-facing tech companies in death care that are ripe for investment because funeral directors are slow to adopt and are running their establishments on tight budgets… but as younger directors take management positions this will begin to change. The death-tech space has not yet reached technological maturity, in fact, I don’t think it’s even scratched the surface. So, even if Providence Equity does scoop up 31 death-tech brands and owns a sizable portion of the market it still leaves itself vulnerable to disruption by confident startups with infrastructure-shifting ideas that could render Providence’s companies obsolete within a matter of years (we’ve seen this disruption happen in many industries in the last decade). And if Ministry Brands paints an accurate picture of how Providence operates its sector-focused investment strategy, the private equity firm is not in the business of building revolutionary tools… they buy them.

The post Providence Equity did in Church-tech What They are About to do in Death-tech. Here’s What it Looks Like… appeared first on Connecting Directors.

Providence Equity did in Church-tech What They are About to do in Death-tech. Here’s What it Looks Like… published first on YouTube

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cristinajourdanqp · 6 years ago

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My Family’s Primal Living Achievements Empowered Me

It’s Friday, everyone! And that means another Primal Blueprint Real Life Story from a Mark’s Daily Apple reader. If you have your own success story and would like to share it with me and the Mark’s Daily Apple community please contact me here. I’ll continue to publish these each Friday as long as they keep coming in. Thank you for reading!

I’ve always had an interest in health. I entered college to become a nurse, but switched majors after marrying young and starting a family, ending up with a degree in education with an emphasis in health. My first love is my family, and it’s because of my responsibility for their well-being that healthy living continues to be a growing passion in my life.

In my twenties, breastfeeding babies and chasing toddlers kept me fit and thin, and I exercised when it fit my busy schedule. Low fat, high carb foods were the staples of our “healthy” diet, and I was just trying to figure out my way around the kitchen.

My cooking did evolve, and I continued to keep up with current health fads. But when my homeschooled sons hit elementary school and our grocery budget began to take a hit, I knew there had to be a better way to fill up their growing bellies. I devoted my time to research, and came to the conclusion that whole food was the way God intended us to eat.

Still mindful of the food pyramid, I began grinding wheat to make bread, and replaced all the “fake” foods in my home with homemade, healthier versions. I started a garden and slowly began sourcing raw milk for cream, yogurt and cheese, grass fed beef, pastured pork, chicken, and eggs. It worked. We were getting fuller, our budget was stretching, and I was developing a passion for cooking.

My thirties brought a little more freedom as my sons were getting older, so exercise became easier to fit into my homeschooling schedule. Though I was never overweight, my vanity would always have me desiring to be a bit leaner. I could never manage to drop those few extra aging pounds, despite my exercise habits. I rode my bike a hilly thirty miles a day (1.5 hours), six days a week. Though I experienced many benefits from biking, I was still unhappy with my body composition. Noting that runners tended to be thin—especially in their legs—I decided to reap this benefit and started spending more time with my husband by joining him in running. I routinely ran seven to eight miles a day, six days a week, always maintaining a chronic 7:15-7:30 pace.

I had been experiencing migraine headaches since the birth of my third son. I had a melanoma removed from my foot in my late thirties. Around the age of forty, I began to experience more negative changes in my body. I was gaining weight, always tired, and I was experiencing Seasonal Affective Disorder. I just felt “off.” I didn’t have time for more exercise, and eating less would’ve been absurd. I was beginning to believe that I, too, would fall prey to being fat over forty, and all the other ailments of aging. I had never been on a diet in my life, and since we were eating whole foods, I didn’t see a need for change.

After attending a conference and listening to a health and fitness speaker, my husband gave up grains in an effort to lose the forty pounds he had gained, despite consistent exercise and my homemade cooking. He lost most of his weight and was feeling great. I was beginning to wonder if this might be part of my issues.

One night in March, while enjoying a meal with friends, someone suggested The Primal Blueprint, and it became, for me, one of those books that forever changes your life. Mark’s set of simple instructions was truth for my soul! It was the final piece of the health puzzle I had laboriously been working towards.

Within a week of implementing the tweaks to my diet, which included eliminating grains, eating more fat, and an overhaul of my exercise, I saw drastic improvements in my body composition and fitness level.

Now, I jog when I feel like it, but mostly take lots of walks with my husband, and sometimes with a weighted vest. I do weekly sprint sessions in my backyard, and a daily sprint to my mailbox and compost pile. I consistently lift heavy things—PEMs, haul firewood, or even a bit of “CrossFit” at home to mix it up a bit. I truly enjoy my exercise since it’s so easy to fit in anytime, anywhere.

Learning more about the importance of vitamin D for overall health and protection from cancers has freed me to enjoy the sunlight. Living in Nebraska means dark winters and minimal sunlight, so I supplement with vitamin D, and my SAD has improved tremendously.

My headaches are completely gone, and I’ve seen improvements in my skin, energy levels, and cravings. I can’t remember the last time I had to unbutton my pants after a meal! While I am perfectly content with my body composition, it’s funny; I hardly think about it anymore. My sons have experienced the benefits of reduced acne and mood swings, the need to “carb up” before or after ball games, and improved strength. I can’t even name a “family doctor” for any of us when asked—we just don’t need one.

Redeeming my time has been one of the greatest benefits of primal living. I’m learning to rest and play—as a type A “doer,” this is hard for me. We’ve been enjoying weekly backyard volleyball and Ultimate Frisbee games with our sons and friends, and I am spending time enjoying coffee on our front porch.

While Primal living is not a religion, it compliments my Christianity by allowing me to treat my body as a temple, nourishing it with the perfect menu God has given us to eat. It has taught me to carefully source and appreciate the food we eat, with no waste. It keeps my body “strong for my tasks” and it promotes Biblical values of community, rest, and play. It is a reminder that “everything is permissible, but not everything is beneficial.”

If there’s one thing I’ve learned about being successful at a given ‘task,’ it’s that you have to give “IT” its due time. And it starts with a plan. Having a plan gives purpose, and purpose empowers. Over the years, it has been my mission to inspire other women to flourish in their own lives by taking responsibility for what God has placed right in front of them—their jobs, parenting, relationships, and even laundry. Health is no different. Primal living offers simple, effective, and efficient principles for sustainable health that anyone can implement, and I naturally began to spread this message with the same passion.

When The Primal Health Expert Certification became available, I immediately enrolled. My busy life homeschooling high school boys, their sports, and serving as a media/communications director for our church and basketball team took a lot of my energy, so I went through the coursework slowly, at my own pace. During that time the course was changed to the Primal Health Coach Institute Certification, an idea that I, at first, dismissed due to the busyness of my life.

But God had a different path for me, showing me those I could share my new wealth of information with: a group of moms implementing PEMs; a couple successfully completing the 21-Day Transformation; my son’s friend—eating and exercising with us, and losing 30 lbs to improve his basketball game; a dear friend with fibromyalgia; and my sister, who has PCOS and pre-diabetic symptoms.

Last year my youngest son graduated high school, and I graduated as a Primal Health Coach! It is the perfect time to start a new chapter in my life, so with the encouragement of my husband and sons, I opened my own coaching business, Primally Empowered. I followed the business model suggested by the PHCI program and built a website, registered on the Primal Health Coach Institute website, and implemented the forms and suggested coaching program. I began blogging, which is my least favorite part, but I’m finding a pattern of topic interests my clients prefer.

I’ve had the opportunity to coach over 10 people in the last year! I’ve been contacted via word of mouth, the PHCI website list, and just from talking with individuals I run into. I’m currently coaching a woman who intends to go on and become a Primal Health Coach.

I am finding my niche is people/couples in my age range who are realizing their weight and health are keeping them from the life they really want, and desire to live the rest of their lives well. It is so empowering and fulfilling to see people truly change their lives!

I’m not searching for a full time job, but I recently came across the opportunity to work for a functional medicine doctor who will be opening her own clinic and is swamped with ill patients. We will see where this journey takes me!

Though I discovered the Primal Blueprint only five years ago, my life has paralleled primal living in many ways. The Primal Health Coach Institute program has empowered me with the knowledge and the confidence to merge these two paths to help individuals address their health challenges by engaging them one-to-one as a personal coach.

– Monica Lambert

Monica’s listing in the Primal Health Coach Institute Directory

Website: primallyempowered.com

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milenasanchezmk · 6 years ago

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My Family’s Primal Living Achievements Empowered Me

– Monica Lambert

Monica’s listing in the Primal Health Coach Institute Directory

Website: primallyempowered.com

Want to make fat loss easier? Try the Definitive Guide for Troubleshooting Weight Loss for free here.

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fishermariawo · 6 years ago

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My Family’s Primal Living Achievements Empowered Me

– Monica Lambert

Monica’s listing in the Primal Health Coach Institute Directory

Website: primallyempowered.com

Want to make fat loss easier? Try the Definitive Guide for Troubleshooting Weight Loss for free here.

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watsonrodriquezie · 6 years ago

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My Family’s Primal Living Achievements Empowered Me

– Monica Lambert

Monica’s listing in the Primal Health Coach Institute Directory

Website: primallyempowered.com

Want to make fat loss easier? Try the Definitive Guide for Troubleshooting Weight Loss for free here.

0 notes

cynthiamwashington · 6 years ago

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My Family’s Primal Living Achievements Empowered Me

– Monica Lambert

Monica’s listing in the Primal Health Coach Institute Directory

Website: primallyempowered.com

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The post My Family’s Primal Living Achievements Empowered Me appeared first on Mark's Daily Apple.

Article source here:Marks’s Daily Apple

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thepapermixtape · 6 years ago

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Original Musicals at the Fringe Festival

By: Olivia Crawford

For anyone not lucky enough to have gone to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, let me paint you a picture. The Fringe is the largest arts festival in the world, taking over the city of Edinburgh, Scotland every August. The central point of the Fringe is that it is an open access festival that invites any performer who has a show and a venue to host them. There are separate companies that are specifically geared towards offering venue space to artists during the Fringe (the biggest being Underbelly, Pleasance, and Assembly), and they take over some of the city's most beautiful buildings and turn them into theaters (including the majority of the buildings at Edinburgh University). With over 3,000 shows in more than 300 venues every year that span every genre possible (including comedy, circus, children, new writing etc.), the Fringe draws in people from all over the world, tripling the population of Edinburgh over the course of the festival. It gives every artist a chance to do what they love and offers many the chance to start a career.

Within the backdrop of the Fringe, the title of musical is very popular. When you think of musical theater, you probably think of extravagance, cheesiness, and green witches on broomsticks belting songs about defying gravity. However, musical theater is so much more than that. Musical theater is special in its combination of different types of performance that allow for the exploration of various genres and ways of expression. When I decided to personally see as many original musicals as possible, I was overjoyed at the talent the Fringe found this year. However, the three musicals that this article explores will highlight the Fringe's ability to offer the most unique of artists a platform to explore themselves and the genre of the musical.

89 Nights: An Original Musical is a story about a girl named Alice who spends 89 nights (the length of her tourist visa) in New York City, exploring the value of friendship, the importance of seizing the moment, and the strength you can find in yourself. This musical uses many of the classic techniques of a stereotypical musical, but pushes them in new and interesting ways due to the setting of the Fringe.

Dressed in different colors that are taken from the New York City subway map, the musical’s cast of eight University of Bristol students transform into different characters throughout the show (excluding Alice); a spoiled boy becomes a posh English lady, a fanatical homeless woman transitions to an old American man. The switch between the different characters is essential to the story, as Alice interacts with many different people throughout her journey. However, without the possibility of a huge cast in such a small venue as the one at the Fringe, the actors had to push themselves outside of the traditional idea that different characters need different costumes. Instead, the cast had to present different characters by changing their posture, voice, and body language. They changed themselves completely to become new characters, and used stereotypes to make it clear to the audience that a spoiled child was different from a grandma. This allowed them to explore and portray dissimilar characters within the same show, and even offered them the hardest challenge of all for any English actor: the American accent.

Though this was a huge strength of 89 Nights, what really sold the show was the absolute enthusiasm and love that radiated from every aspect of the show. Talisker Horton and Lowri Turner, both cast members who have been involved with the show since March, talk about the cast, crew, musicians, set designers, choreographers, assistant directors – everyone – being so in love with this show. The amount of flyering shows how passionate the whole cast is about the musical, and you can see their bright blue 89 Nights t-shirts everywhere. “We have a routine now too: wake up, go flyer, have lunch, flyer some more, warm up, do the show, relax, and repeat the next day,” Lowri says. During my interview with them, they both talked about their favorite part being the people they work with, which makes the repetition of the show so easy. “Everyone is so collaborative – we’ve been so lucky,” Talisker says.

89 Nights: An Original Musical shows the love that these shows are born from, and the beautiful opportunity the Fringe offers to young artists. The venue is intimate enough that the cast interacts with the audience, making you feel like you're having as much fun as they are on stage. All of the cast members were able to bond through the music, dance, and acting presented by this musical, and all became a family united in doing justice to the show. The show is a barrel of fun, energy and pure joy (in a time when it is very much needed)—the original music gives a breath of fresh air, and the actors sell the fun of what a musical can be. Musicals are supposed to make you smile, and this is one that ensures that while you're sitting there, you never stop.

While 89 Nights uses very traditional aspects of the musical, the Fringe offers so many more options for artists to challenge audiences and express themselves in an entirely new way. Zach & Viggo and Thumpasaurus: Where Does the Love Go? is created by a marriage of comedy duo Zach & Viggo and absurdist punk group Thumpasaurus to create a “funk opera,” warping the aspects of a traditional musical into an entirely new genre. With live and original music from Thumpasaurus, dancing and acting from Zach & Viggo, and the strangest projections from the tech geniuses that support them, this show is one of the most peculiar but funny creations I've ever seen. Though the show is a bit of a jumble, luckily it is comedic and all of the mess-ups, mistakes, and little errors are forgiven through the comedic genius of Zach, Viggo, and Jonny Woolley (an additional comedic mind). You cannot stop laughing throughout the entire show, and you are able to forget the strangeness of a projection of babies flying around on screen, or the fact that Zach cannot stop winking at the audience.

However, though the comedians are hilarious, the real stand out of the musical is the band. Thumpasaurus are some of the strangest and most unique artists I've heard – their music is a collection of all rock/punk/funk inspirations put together to create a strange but fantastic sound. Using the traditional instruments of a rock band and a saxophone, they use the concept of science fiction to pretend they are an intergalactic band, and this binds them with a specific look to go with a very odd but catchy name. Luckily, in the musical, they even get to try acting as they become a gorgon in the narrative, putting up the purple hoods they use as costumes (except the keyboard player, who elected to just stay at the back and laugh – which Zach did not neglect to highlight). With its combination of extremely interesting music, original songs that accompany the erratic dancing of Zach and Viggo, and its breaking of the fourth wall with the performers or the audience, this musical is a perfect example of not just thinking outside the box–but thinking outside every box. The Fringe presents these kind of standout shows to allow every artist to find their niche and form of expression, and this in turn allows every audience member to find what they love.

However, I argue that the best part about the Fringe is that you find smaller stories that use the title of “musical” to communicate complex emotions and push the boundaries of the genre to show the audience a new way of looking at the world of music and art. Art is about making people think, about communicating the emotion of being human, and I think musicals very rarely do these things. Too often they get lost in bigger ideas of entertainment, money, and appealing to the masses. As someone who is used to musicals being perfectly in tune with elaborate sets and actors that have worked for years to be on that stage, Next Stop Please allowed me to see beyond those stereotypes to what a musical can really do.

Next Stop Please is a musical set on Bus 88, the only bus that goes to the HMP Low Moss prison near Glasgow. The show sees people get on and off the bus and tell their stories of addiction, rehabilitation, and, finally, acceptance. The cast, crew, and musicians are made up of people currently in remission, families or friends affected by someone with an addiction, and people that support the message of Just Bee Productions (the creators the show). Accompanying the adults of all ages on stage were children (the youngest being a girl of 10), all of them united in the message that they were bringing to the audience. The show was started by Claire Bee (the woman behind Just Bee Productions) and prisoners in HMP Low Moss prison, before being joined by other supporters of the cause as cast, crew, or anything in between.

When Just Bee Productions brought together a group of people united by a common message to perform a musical, it didn’t matter that they weren’t trained; they were joined together by the messages they wanted to relay to the audience. The title number, “Next Stop Please,” is performed by the entire 18-person cast as they stand right in front of the audience, dancing and singing as best they can. When I interviewed Claire, she said, “I always like to start with the music because it helps everyone bond at the beginning, and music is so important because it has such an impact on the performers and the audience.” The unity shown by this number, with everyone singing from their heart, is bigger and more emotional than some of the most romantic love ballads of all time.

The closing moment of the show has the cast in groups of three facing out in different directions, all speaking. Each group performs a different passage of the show with a different message at the same time as the other groups. The spoken word is beautiful enough, but then a group of three women start singing a touching, heartbreaking chord. The combination of it all gives the audience chills. Kevin Hamil, who is in remission himself, is a cast member and agreed to talk to me about his experience in the show. He says, “I always get quite emotional at that part because I know it’s so real.” He explains that because so much of what is addressed in the show is affecting real people, that that moment doesn’t feel like a performance.

Claire talks about how most addictions have a stigma in society and how those struggling with it are “isolated and judged.” However, this show gives them a chance to look forward to something, have a newfound confidence, and work with people like them or even their family members. Claire explains that the biggest part about her work is that these people feel completely accepted. She says, “We all start the same,” and at one moment, all the children come on with masks, holding signs saying that they could all become “addicts,” or “homeless” or “prisoners.” The message throughout the show is that addiction affects so many people, and that these people should not be judged, but embraced; after all, they started the same as everyone else. Claire says that audience members have come up to her and thanked her for the show, saying they connected to it because of addiction, or just because it spoke to them. I am included in that group.

This story is so universal–everyone can find a message in this show that speaks to them, and the combination of it being so universal but also deeply personal is a delicate balance that speaks to its audience members so perfectly. Next Stop Please is a show that uses music and real stories to communicate messages of hope and acceptance, and forces the audience to think. Only through the brilliance of this original musical can this be made so emotional and so powerful. Only at the Fringe can this small show reach as many people as it has.

The Edinburgh Fringe Festival is important to me because it gives me the chance to be inspired by new artists and what their minds create. All of the original musicals I had the opportunity to see at the Fringe show how the genre of the musical is constantly being developed by those who are passionate about the art and push it to its limits. Musicals are able to offer artists the chance to explore themselves through music, dance and acting and find the best way to communicate their message through their own unique combination of the three. The creation of identity and the support the Fringe gives these artists is a beautiful thing, and something I believe every young artist should experience if they can. I know that I will never forget these shows, and I look forward to seeing more again next year.

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anywhereconsulting-blog · 6 years ago

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How to start a successful freelancing career and earn $5K within weeks

I get this question many times: “I want to work remotely, how do I start?” This is my 2cents and complete guide on how to launch a successful freelancing career and even land $5K within weeks.

At Anywhere Consulting, we help entrepreneurs to launch their business remotely - but most of the entrepreneurs start as a freelancer. Even me started as a freelancer and till this day, sometimes I do freelancing gigs. I wrote this guide many times for my friends, peers and those who asked me so I figured, why not combine this into a blog post now.

I also added a hypothetical number: $5K/month. Though I don't know the average monthly income for remote freelancers, I find this number very descriptive. It is a convenient number: you can live well on this monthly income basically anywhere in the world. Obviously, you need to make certain adjustments to your lifestyle if you are living in NYC from this number, but most remote freelancers are living abroad or remotely somewhere with a lower cost of living. I also secluded low-paid freelancing gigs as it is almost impossible to build up a steady income of $5K on a 5$ hourly rate. Also, adding this number answers the most basic need on why many of us start a freelancing career while still retaining a day-job: we want to earn more.

Step 1 - Get to know yourself

Be honest with yourself. There are many things you need to decide before you jump on the remote freelancing journey. Maybe it turns out - it is not for you. Most of the freelancing careers fail because they don't have the necessary capabilities or qualities in work. It is easy to land a small gig online but to find a truly successful freelancer is ever-challenging.

What do you know NOW? What are your skills, what are you comfortable with? From your capabilities, what are those that can be sold online?

How much time you have NOW? Most of the remote freelancers start out in freelancing as a side-hustle, a part-time work while they still have a normal in-office full-time commitment somewhere. If they succeed in freelancing, they tend to transition to full-time freelancing, but for a start, that is not the case. If your job requires 6-8 hours of work per day, you probably have a few hours to work on your freelancing. Be pessimistic about your prognosis.

Can you work online? Remote freelancers are self-starters and highly independent workers. It sounds easy but most of us love to work in a normal work environment. Colleagues, real-life connections, office life, all treats of a normal working style. Remote working has none of these. Will you be able to perform in an environment like this?

What are your long-term goals? What do you want to do next year, work-wise? How much time do you want to commit to freelancing? How much money do you want to earn? These goals ultimately define how you should start out freelancing.

Step 2 - Find your niche

It sounds startup-bullshit most of the time, but it is not. But don't overthink this niche concept. A friend of mine, he started as a virtual assistant as a freelancer. You would think, yeah a VA, nothing can be easier, lots of competition around and crazy low hourly rates. It is true but he is German. With German as a mother-tongue, he approached German companies with his VA skills. For obvious reasons, he didn't have to deal with the VA competition from the Philippines or India or Eastern Europe, because there, everyone speaks only English. He could charge higher hourly rates and after a year, he had around 10 people, who worked for him. It was a business, not a freelancing career. Since then, he tours around the world and managing his VA-business for German-, and since then, French clients.

Because there are so many just-started freelancers online, you have to find a niche for yourself. If you are a developer, specialize in a language or platform only. If you are a marketer, offer services for only one solution. If you speak another major language, apart from English, you are already rocking it. The more valuable your niche is - the higher your hourly rate and the faster you grow.

Step 3 - Decide who you want to work with

I'm in this business for years now and if I need to narrow down the situation, ultimately there are two types of freelancers: the gig-focused and the project-focused. Those who want to score some new gigs, tend to flow to the low-hourly rates, multiple gigs at the same time path. You usually move to UpWork, Fiver and other sites to find your gigs. Those who want to get a job or a long-term project, they usually roll out one, maybe two projects at the same time.

Everything comes down to your personal goals but if I have to pick, I would go for something long-term. I would totally do a try-out on the gig-based freelancing, see how it goes. It is perfect to try yourself out and get to know how to work remotely. But I would switch to long-term projects as soon as I can and only apply for remote jobs, not gigs. Landing a remote job with a $2-3K compensation can be harder maybe, but building up a gig-based freelancing career and earn the same cash is even harder and takes even longer.

You must also make sure to transition away from hourly rates to fixed priced contracts. This gives you a steady income, plus it makes it easier to transition away from a freelancer and build a business if you want. If you picked your niche carefully, this shouldn't take up a long time.

Step 4 - Be committed and don't be picky

The hardest challenge is to get your first 1-3 clients onboard. Period. So be committed and apply for anything. The key is to build up credibility and a great portfolio of your services. You can and you will be super-picky after a few weeks of course, but as a starter, most of the time you don't have this luxury. Many of my friends started out freelancing before - some of them gave up after they applied for a few gigs and did not get an answer. I always tell them: a daily 10 applications is a minimum and continue this process every day, even if no one will answer you. One day, someone will.

By not being picky, I don't advise to get on with any client. Pick your first clients that can help your long-term goals. Even if they pay less, will they help you to build up a great portfolio? Do you need to take an internship in the preferred industry maybe? Do you really want to work with a company that has no verified payment?

Step 5 - Build a portfolio site

This is a must and you should do it ideally before you even start freelancing. It is great for three different things. One, it helps you to summarize what you are good at and how you can help. Second, it helps others to find you and relate to you online, it makes everything transparent. Third, when you apply, you can send your portfolio site right away, even with personalized pages if needed, which makes a better impact, than just writing a cover letter or attaching a PDF CV (which, I don't know why, but it is still widely used...).

Step 6 - Perfect your pitch

Many freelancers fail at this point. The perfect pitch for a gig or a job, a perfect cover letter, a perfect application - it is almost an art form itself. The bottom line is this:

- You need to do this, every time, multiple times a day. It is totally OK to have some template copy which you tailor to the exact needs. It saves time. But don't send the same pitch to different applications, ever.

- First, talk about how you will help them. What value you can bring to the table. Everything else is secondary, you need to grab the attention in the first seconds.

- Second, focus on your strengths - mention case studies, references that are relevant to the project. The more you have the better.

- Third, suggest next steps and show some passion. Make sure they know you are ready to jump on anytime.

- If there were questions or special needs in the job description, make sure you answer and relate to them. Don't miss anything.

Step 7 - Be active online

If you are working online, you have to be active online. Get a Twitter handle, start a blog and polish up your LinkedIn profile. Not every employee will check your background, but some of them will. Make sure that they can find you and your content is fresh and spot-on. It gives a huge bonus during an application process.

You don't need to be super active, just a couple of content pieces that shows that you are interested in your profession and your work. It also helps you to learn more about your skills and develop them even further. Also, remote working is a transparent concept - the more searchable and findable you are, the more likely you get hired. For the long-term as a freelancer, you also have to build your personal brand. What else can be more useful to build your personal brand, than the content of your own?

Step 8 - Learn & inform

Being a freelancer is constant learning and improvement. If you have a day-job at a company, you probably have training programs and employee development programs. As a freelancer, you have to do this on your own. Thankfully, the internet is full of free content which helps you learn more skills and enrich your current capabilities. Online courses are vast and you can read pretty much anything. You also need to be more efficient and be a better performer in remote working. Learn not just the core skills but also master the remote working skills.

Learning can also help you to find your niche if you don't have one yet. A friend of mine wanted to work as a marketer in the blockchain industry. He knew blockchain is super important and will be even more important in the future. But the problem was, most of the marketers haven't worked at a blockchain company - because there weren't any blockchain companies before. Also, most of the people just don't get what blockchain is - it's true. So, he spent a couple of months only to learn everything he could about blockchain. He also started pushing out content to Medium and other platforms on this topic. Eventually, he landed a high-paying marketing job at a blockchain company. He couldn't have to do this without learning everything about the industry first.

To recap

You have to know yourself, your skills, your capabilities and your personal approach to remote working first. You also have to be able to define your long-term goals and pick a niche in order to grow faster.

Build up your profiles, portfolio and learn everything you can before actually diving into freelancing. Investing in yourself is the best investment you can ever make - don't skip it. It will help you to boost the growth of your career. If you have a day-job, learning more about your skills will help you to succeed even in your day-job - not just in your freelancing career.

When you are ready to start, be committed and determined. You will fail and feel neglected first, but don't let this ruin your commitment. Landing your first 1-3 clients is the hardest. The good news is: growing your freelancing career to a $5K monthly revenue can be done within weeks if you are prepared and determined enough.

After the first weeks and the first projects or gigs, try to transition away from hourly rates to fixed prices. Also, make sure you can increase your base prices from start. Don't start cheap - learn about your market and examine other freelancers.

Be active online and build a transparent personal brand - it will help you in the long-run.

Common mistakes

There are a couple of common mistakes that most of us make when starting their freelance career. Here are the most important ones:

Undervaluing your services. When you are starting out, it is easy to fall into the trap: if I charge less for my services than most of the others in my field, I will get new clients quickly. This might happen yes, but on the long-run, you will need more time to increase the price of your contribution to the normal level. Plus, you most like still have a day-job so what would you lose if you don't get your first client on day one, because of your ultra-cheap prices? Don't undervalue yourself, ever.

Not spending time on growing the personal brand. You've got your first clients, great, but you still don't have a transparent profile on social channels? Developing a personal brand is a must and you should allocate some time to do it, even if you have clients already. Your public portfolio will help you to land clients, even if you are not actively looking for a job.

Skipping the prep work. Learning everything you need to know about remote working is a must. Defining your goals, short- and long-term is a must. Don't skip on these, you have to think like an entrepreneur, where the business plan is yourself. Most of the freelancers just apply for gigs and do the work, without any goals in their mind. Trust me, they won't grow above a certain level. Don't be like them.

Faking your skills and portfolio. Yep, that is a thing. Just don't do it. You are working online and everything can be traced back, plus, if you are working through a freelancing site, clients can publicly review your work. What's better, having some clients and 'milk them out' while risking to get a bad rep or building up a trustable, valuable profile which supports your lifestyle on the long-term? Don't lie and fake your skills, ever.

Mixing your day-job with your freelancing career. It happens often but you should avoid doing that. You need to keep in mind, that the luxury of security comes from your day-job, so you don't want to risk it. Make sure you can separate the time you put in your day-job and your freelancing path. These go without saying: don't work during day-job hours, don't use company assets to boost your freelance career, don't violate contracts on your day-job and never risk getting fired because of your side-hustle.

What is the end-game here?

It is different for everyone of course. I would say, every freelancing careers have a cap on their income. On average, it is around $10K per month, which can be different depending on what do you actually work. Even for me, years ago I've found myself in the situation when I couldn't grow my monthly income revenue above $13K. It was the max, no matter what type of work I did as a marketer. This is because as a freelancer, you are selling your own hours, your own time. Which is limited.

There will be a necessary milestone, where you need to make a call: stay in freelancing or start to build up a business. If you stay, you will have a steady income of the capped revenue or you can learn something else, which is even more profitable. If you want to start a business though, you will need to make sure, your time can be outsourced to a team. The transition from a freelancer to an entrepreneur is hard and needs careful planning. But it is worth it, trust me.

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At Anywhere Consulting, we help entrepreneurs to launch, build and grow their remote business. We provide support and consulting services as well as educational products to overcome the challenges of remote businesses. If you are a freelancer who wants to launch a distributed business or you already have an established business but want to grow remotely, we can help you.

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technicaldr · 7 years ago

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The Importance of Getting Involved in Online Reputation Management

Your online reputation as a physician is crucial, probably even more so than you may realize. The Internet has opened up the door to allowing people to access info on your practice and yourself, but by the same token it has made it possible for there to be fraudulent information and provided a perfect outlet for negative reviews, all of which can do massive damage. Physician online reputation management has become so important because patients are increasingly relying on online reviews in their decision-making process, sometimes even weighing their importance more heavily than their PCP’s referral.

Damage Potential for Physicians Ignoring Online Reputation Management

As of 2012, about one-third of patients who viewed online sites sought out or avoided physicians based on their ratings. The findings come from a nationally representative Internet-based survey of 2,137 adults, published Feb. 18 in JAMA. “Patients are increasingly turning to online physician ratings, just as they have sought ratings for other products and services,” wrote the study’s authors, led by Dr. David Hanauer, a pediatrician and associate professor at the University of Michigan. A more recent Pew Research Center study indicates that 72% of all U.S. internet users looked online for health information in 2012; 30% of them have looked specifically at provider reviews, where anyone can write anything under a near guarantee of anonymity. More than 700,000 physicians are listed on Vitals.com, the largest of the patient review sites, which attracts more than 13 million visitors a month. ZocDoc.com, RateMDs.com, and Yelp.com maintain sizable directories of provider information.

Internet access and familiarity with review sites and online searches has increased, leading more people to look up their doctor or dentist online. Patients can leave reviews on their phone via apps like Yelp & Foursquare, or on map listings like Google Maps. They can also access those listings rapidly when making a decision on what practice to visit. Potential patients overwhelmingly consult review sites and the personal opinion of social media connections before committing to seeing a certain physician, and sometimes a strong negative review snowball into an all-out boycott of a practice.

“I’m the best in my field. I don’t have to worry about asking for reviews, because everyone already knows me.”

Cream does still rise to the top, and being acknowledged by your peers as the best at what you do goes a long way toward securing referrals and a steady stream of new patients. Most specialists we speak to wave off the issue of reputation management by repeating this phrase, or citing positive patient survey results wherever they have hospital privileges. However, it’s become abundantly clear that referrals aren’t made solely based on the clinical skill of the physician being referred to. Michael Kirsh, MDoutlines 7 reasons, beyond medical quality, why certain medical specialists are chosen for a referral:

Availability trumps clinical acumen almost every time for physicians who want their patients seen expeditiously. Added benefit? Those patients are much more inclined to be satisfied with the referral, and thus the referring physician as well.

Reciprocity –- patients are referred in both directions

Personal relationships

Corporate enforcement keeping consultations within the network

Specialist willingness to do tests and procedures on request

Habit

Patient or family request

That last one is especially important to note, because those patients & family requesting a referral to a specific physician/practice aren’t picking the name out of the air. Maybe it’s because where they want to go is the ‘best’, or maybe it’s because that’s the physician that went on the news and talked about cardiology in a way that resonated with them. Maybe it’s because they did a simple google search for doctors treating their disease and saw one that stood out with superior online reviews and an overall solid presence.

Physician practices have been hurt so badly by negative online reviews that some have opted to open a lawsuit against the reviewer- often losing the battle, and gaining more negative press in the process. Internet savvy patients with an ax to grind can wreak havoc by fraudulently claiming local listings, impersonating the practice online, or using the mechanics of search engine optimization to ensure that their negative opinion of the doctor is the top result when searching for that physician’s name. Because HIPAA compliance ensures you can’t discuss details of the interaction with the patient in a public forum, fighting negative allegations is difficult if not impossible.

Why Do Bad Reviews Happen?

Why do bad reviews happen? Because people are passionate about negative experiences, and are motivated by several fundamental desires:

A need for vindication after being ‘wronged’

The desire to warn others or be helpful

To be heard and/or have the situation rectified

The desire to validate other negative reviews, or ‘pile on’ to the popular sentiment bandwagon

To put it in perspective, ask yourself: are you more likely to leave a review after having a normal, but pleasant experience at a restaurant… or after having a horrible experience? Most people answering truthfully will agree that the horrible experience will prompt them to ‘take action’, so to speak. That action, especially when presented with a scenario where they’re either uncomfortable with addressing the business in person, is usually a scathing, anonymous review.

Comprehensive data on how often patients leave reviews is sparse. However, in general, we know that 6% of people write reviews online- those 6% influence the 90% of people who use online reviews to help make decisions. Of those 6% reviewing, you’ll likely see several that leave negative reviews- and, alarmingly, you’re more likely to remember those reviews. There are physiological as well as psychological reasons that people are more apt to write or remember a negative review. An excerpt from the New York Time article “Praise is Fleeting, but Brickbats We Recall” on why people remember negative events more than positive ones:

Good vs Bad Online Review Statistics:

2012 survey found that on average, a person will tell 24 people about a bad customer service experience they have – this is up 50% from 16 in a 2011 survey, and only set to increase with the pervasive nature of sharing on social sites & access to the internet.

More than 8 in 10 consumers have bailed on a purchase because of a poor service experience compared to 55% overall. This translates almost directly to patients avoiding a physician office as well, particularly due to the heightened emotions and importance placed on good healthcare.

It is estimated that good reviews can boost a business’s sales anywhere from 32 percent to 52 percent, according to the Harvard Business Review. So it stands to reason that a practice with poor reviews will in turn lose current customers, or fail to attract new ones.

Leana Wen, M.D., author of When Doctors Don’t Listen and director of patient-centered care research at George Washington University, says instances of excessive browbeating online could be avoided if physicians would take time to have a dialogue with their patients. “When doctors don’t pay attention, those review sites become the third party,” Dr. Wen says. “There’s a lack of focus in the medical educational system in communication. It’s common for a patient to feel disenfranchised, to not feel as though they know what’s going on with their own body.” According to Wen, around 80% of medical diagnoses come from simply talking to the patient. “It’s a partnership,” she says. “In many cases, the doctor has no idea the patient is this unhappy.” Additionally, patients who had a mediocre or questionably negative experience seek that third-party validation, and when they find negative reviews, it’s a sort of “a-ha!” moment. Those patients will feel MORE negative about their experience simply by reading other negative experiences, and are much more likely to add their own negative review.

I call this the Snowball Effect: There’s a point in any group where, after some individuals agree with the minority, the minority then turns into the majority. People feel much more comfortable expressing a negative opinion when they feel supported, bolstered, and part of a larger group of individuals expressing a similar negative opinion. The goal of reputation management is to mitigate or minimize the chances of negative reviews snowballing out of proportion. This is achieved by increasing positive reviews, essentially creating an environment where the patient who might feel poorly about their recent experience is more likely to consider it a fluke, rather than the norm, and less likely to report it.

Where Should Physicians Focus Their Efforts?

Where should a physician & practice focustheir efforts? This is an ever changing target primarily based on internet user favor and online search visibility. When determining where you should focus your efforts, you need to consider the following:

Where are patients looking for physicians & reviews? (rateMds, Vitals, Healthgrades)

Which sites are ranking well within search results/ have high visibility? (Google+ local, Yelp)

On what high-visibility sites can you control the message? (Facebook, Google+, social channels)

Your local online visibility is tied to active reputation management. By managing your reviews and soliciting them to be placed on sites that rank well within searches for your niche, you will be improving your ranking within search engines like Google. At PRM, our physician online reputation management focuses on driving reviews to Yelp & Google+ local map listings: these sites readily show up in Google search results, as well as in map results when an individual searches verbally on their phone (think Siri and the iPhone). Maintaining a positive “5 Stars” review profile on high-visibility sites if vital to attracting new patients online.

Potential patients & current patients often search by physician name after being referred or having recently seen that physician. Websites like rateMDs, Vitals, & Healthgrades come up rather consistently when a search is made for a specific physician name. Part of your online review strategy should focus on directing patients to leave some reviews there.

Websites like ZocDoc & Demandforce allow you to ‘control the message’ completely, by pushing reviews into their own system that allows you to reject negative reviews. While this sounds great (“I just won’t approve negative reviews!”), it’s a weak tactic. Those sites don’t rank very well in Google searches for most medical & dental niches, so they’re often not seen until AFTER the potential patient has had their first appointment and gotten into your marketing queue. You’re much better off pushing patients to review you on sites that have high visibility, or sites where you’re actively controlling the message- your social media sites like Facebook & Google+.

Physician and practices should consider contracting with a physician online reputation management company to implement a consistent review solicitation & social media management strategy. Since lecturing on this topic at a few hospitals, I’ve found that healthcare practitioners are left at a severe disadvantage in the offerings for managed online reputation services. Sites like Reputation.com are frequently cited as preying on dental & physician groups, charging obscene amounts to manage reviews and ‘remove negative reviews’- something a legitimate company can’t do, unless they’ve negotiated with the original poster (which, rest assured, Reputation.com does NOT). These groups that sign up with groups like that often end up in a position where they feel blackmailed to stay on with them, often being contacted with a sudden increase in negative online reviews after terminating services, and sometimes even after initially contacting them for a price quote. I urge physicians & dentists to read some of their reviews on RipoffReport before ever contacting them.

What Should Physicians Do? What Shouldn’t They Do?

What can physicians do to protect their brand & credibility?

Monitor the appropriate channels. Set up a Google alert (though this won’t catch everything) for you name, practice name, location, website, etc. Can set to report ‘as it happens’; can also set to monitor specific websites where someone

might be talking about you. Sign up for physician review sites before negative feedback has been left, if possible.

Get involved. There are very few cases where you don’t want to respond at all, most negative reviews can be slightly mitigated by responding and showing concern. Be honest, be genuine, be helpful. Steer the conversation off public forums when personal details are being divulged, or when things can easily be addressed.

Solicit positive feedback. Ask for good reviews, and provide the sites and directions for where & how to leave them. Make it easy- a taken away sheet is good, email forms that link directly are great.

Curate your presence. Develop informational articles and share. Take pictures of the office & staff to make your presence more ‘personal’. Contribute to forums & conversations about applicable medical topics. Show goodwill efforts in the community & online (example: an “ask the doctor” post is showing online community goodwill)

Provide exceptional service. This includes the physician and the staff; always be thinking about the end goal of a happy patient- happy patients are more likely to return, refer, and recommend (review). Regular patient feedback surveys are fantastic tools, but ONLY if they are taken to heart when a pattern is identified. Make sure office staff is versed in customer service, including appropriate answer times on phones, manners/bedside manner, interactions with patients (story: phone manners of oral surgeon office); consider customer service coaching programs when feedback is negative.

Most of all, physician practices should understand that negative reviews happen even to the best businesses. While you can’t please everyone, you can leverage those who are happy with their experience to offset those who will never be satisfied.

An Opportunity for Growth:

As awareness and use of physician review sites continues to increase, online reputation management for doctors has become vital. You can’t stop reviews from happening, so by embracing online reputation management as a crucial component of practice management, physicians can make it work for them.

Physicians should see online reviews as an opportunity for growth:

The feedback of happy patients can encourage new/potential patients to select one physician over another; vital as patients are becoming more proactive in physician selection, even at specialist levels.

Curating your presence helps you draw the patients that you’ll enjoy working with; ie. Reviews and articles focused on treatment for diabetic neuropathy will help you attract those kinds of patients.

Increase online visibility & strengthen overall SEO and SEM efforts (search engine optimization and search engine marketing efforts). Review sites are becoming more visible as more people use them, and some factor into mobile search results in maps and through voice searching (yelp and Google+). These are crucial components of an overall online visibility strategy.

The negative feedback of patients allows you to address potential failings before they become routine or habitual. Analogy: it’s easier to correct a dog from jumping on your furniture when they first do it, rather than 10 years after sleeping on the sofa daily. Bad staff members and practices are pervasive and can perpetuate even after the initial offender has been addressed.

Right alongside your marketing and referral generation efforts, your online review management & solicitation is a pillar of your practice health & patient acquisition. Embrace the future by developing a strong online reputation today for a better practice tomorrow.

Technical Dr. Inc.'s insight:

Contact Details :

[email protected] or 877-910-0004 www.technicaldr.com

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reviewnvvx977-blog · 7 years ago

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Detailed Survey Source

The Way to Generate a Website Review

Days that you experience an affiliate partnership with all the companies you're reviewing. Be certain that you create one!

Truth: Should You Merely know a little bit about Espresso Devices, then you To your first $1000 blogging thirty day period! Terrific huh? Obviously numbers may vary, you may get less should you are reviewing java machines instead of notebooks, and conversion rates may be greater, or more than, 2.5%. The choice is really your decision.

Measure 6: Develop the Website or blog Growth.

[embedded content] Everyone else's wanting to generate income on the web these days, and this really is simply a single means to doit.

Inch) Amazon Associates: What the Huge boys use Finally starting can be quite enjoyable. You've chosen the niche, gotten the To Be Somewhat apparent, in case you are starting a review site You Would like to register to Common, if advertising will probably be really worth your time and effort, and how to create the correct sort of inbound links, but for today lets focus on keywords.

Alright, let's start off! To begin with, review of your deepest passions. 2) This Web Site reviews Kindles

3) This Website reviews photography gear

4) This site reviews financial advice

They have also clarified readers, perspectives, and merchandise pursuits. That is the reason Three articles on laptops, coffee devices, used cars, Kindles, or anything you chose up in your own site before you begin advertising.

It's okay, this is natural. Here Is What you can Do in Order to improve your This:

Chat Unlike research, this part is interesting. Currently talking on your favourite materials, now might be the ideal moment to get started.

-- Leo Babauta (@zen_habits) October 11, 2012 And, in the event that it's possible to include a couple of keywords in that domain, that never hurts. Ranking no1 and2 are major companies. The probably have enormous staffs Why review sites were better Ten Years ago: We'll talk next about key words and domain names. To Actually maximize on page layout you Might Want to see my secrets to blog Comment and I want to understand. Hearing regarding your own successes and blunders could help every one at the Dear Blogger community, and don't forgetthat every remark link is a useful back-link as well.

Searching back: Review sites 10 Years Back You could brand a domain name creatively. You can be more generic. You can Devote a B. Brandable, stylish domains

c. brief single word domains (all taken or badly costly!)

D. 2-letter or 3-letter mixes ( are taken now)

Unique in how you reflect your solution(s).

Okay, say you opt to examine laptops. Your pursuits are both awesome and define you, but that does not Signify they're all All cylinders. Show patience nonetheless! These very first couple of months will be hard, but rewarding when the commissions begin coming in.

If you'd like to start Store on Blogger, either Tumblr, or WordPress.com, You Ought to As for me, I like solution b) because it is the very notable. If a domain name really stands out it truly is easier to trade, and also great branding can keep folks coming straight back at the same way good search engine optimisation will.

Your hard earned money has to come from somewhere. You'll be acting like a center man "Notebookreview.com" Is Really an overview website Specializing in reviewing all things Those systems as an publisher. When accepted, you are going to put links and banner ads in your new website. Following that, you will earn whenever some one clicks through them and signs-up or leaves a invest in about the opposite finish.

WordPress blog installment.

They are loved by marketers. And let us be honest, if you are establishing a inspection blog you far too will develop into a marketer. It is necessary to really know your niche.

Laptop. Test it out. I only discovered it now through this Google search. It looks legit right? It even defeats the !!

Prime most common types of domain names for review websites: One of the finest sites is actually an overview site. If you've ever Considered Click the link above to get more of our personal expertise on making money with Complimentary instrument (who wouldn't), Adwords Keyword device is insanely beneficial. I released my electronic mail club with the completely free gem in one of follow-ups.

First traffic and also page-views:

Find other bloggers in your niche that may say you

Use your prompt community at college or at the job

Get on societal networking instantly! Twitter, face book, and Google+ are all mandatory

start off commenting. Great comments present deliver you traffic and also bring in you fresh friends

Provide favors into additional bloggers. Evaluate their sites, for free of charge of course.

Visitor article, visitor article, guest post! Eventually You'll Need to know things such as Message Boards folks Close to a certain phrase.

Review website.

Measure 4: Pick a domain name Won't get very far using a Coffee Machine review site.

Months to get those affiliate links clicking and working inside your favor.

Amongst the buyer and the seller and providing that crucial expert information.

This part is not as enjoyable as the rest but It Will make for a more successful ...Thus, you've got the website installation, also you have that awful default WordPress Is a little pocket on the web with many others that do what you do. Niches are beneficial since they slit a huge online world to smaller, bite-size balls.

I also love laptop computers. I'm a crazy-huge mac supporter. This could Be a Far greater Notable review websites before we begin building.

What you locate.

Measure 3: Study your marketplace They truly are also all unquestionably on WordPress. What's an overview website? I strongly recommend Theme-Junkie over a lot of opponents and Is Going to Have a They Are Totally doing great in Their Very Own way, likely making tens of thousands of In my instance, I love skateboarding. I love skate-films Publications, each of the Huge amount and get a premium domain. Here is a few advice before you go open your own pocket nevertheless.

I got into the Theme-Junkie forum each morning since I answer your blogging The best way to write will be up to you, but there are plenty of guides on content You can select any readily available domain names name you will want! Allow it to be crazy, make it different. Double traffic , or even to double conversion rates. You're going to find more visitors by reaching greater backlinks, societal media mentions, along with better google-search ranking. You're going to receive more traffic by enhancing on-page design.

I will suggest joining the email center to Find out More on writing amazing Review site.

Having this £ 500 you can now to at least one of 2 factors (or possibly!) . You're Able to work to This item is more lovely for discovering the most look volume and competitiveness They are just the very proven, long-term paying method. Check out Text Link Ads for speedy website monetization.

Tricks, also can name all of the newest experts. But skate-boarding just isn't a lucrative sector. It hasn't been for agespast

Made in action 1. Examine who's ranking from the Google top 10. Are they weblogs? Key sites? Does this look like there's an opening, or even insufficient material policy?

Ranks in Google. Choose a domain name you will be familiar using long lasting.

The way to utilize Adwords Keyword Tool: Inbound links.

You will find paid tools out there such as Marketplace Samurai. Should you would rather use a And additionally, affiliate apps are not the only real way to get inspection sites. Inch) This Website reviews blog-hosting Questions, and article a couple questions of my own. From lunch time I will normally have an immediate answer from a Theme-Junkie admin.

So obviously, a Lot More than just your domain name will impact the Way Your review Website I'll not refuse, this whole sector had been easier to start out 10 decades back. Which ever way you chose, by month three You Ought to be well in your way I'm not going to Inform you how to do this, but make sure to Acquire at least Yours, therefore you need to like it.

Ideal for your own central topic of a critique blog.

Information.

Measure 8: Establish the review website Yours more clickable), have a look at this informative article of mine on Daily website recommendations.

Summary Proceed perform some preliminary Google hunts within Your Specialty, and Allow Me to understand Why is it that bloggers appreciate them? https://www.enfish.com/reviews/easequit-review To start to a self-employed website, Have a Look at My fast 10-step guide to Whenever you are not doing work or at college, what exactly are 3 themes that you consistently think about?

B. Compose down them.

Do. Now ask your self this: What of your own topics are somewhat worldwide? Which do the others think around way too?

D. eradicate 1 thing which is not universal.

E mail. Now a last problem...What topics are somewhat profitable? Is there purchases surrounding it? Are those purchases being made on line?

F. Select the issue that's both generic and generates on the web sales.

Traffic arriving for your requirements and purchasing from you as well!

Reviews an individual needs before buying a item. Position that site in between buyer and seller and ship buyers off into the seller site through affiliate hyperlinks. After the user/buyer clicks purchases, then you generate a tiny (or huge) commission.

[embedded content] It may help to know who out there is doing well, so lets check out some Step 1: Begin by looking at your passions And Don't review used cars The valuable key word phrases that you locate will likely be good to include article tiles, Dollars each month through commissions.

I genuinely expect you do have instant achievement, but it may take a couple To Locate a Good niche, begin using a simple Google research about the subject you You'll be composing A LOT about Only One topic on this brand new review site of Since I just mentioned, after Some weeks your inspection blog Ought to Be firing on Coffee machines, Mac laptops, or even kitty toys. Wikipedia comes with a marginally greater definition.

NEED YOUR HELP: If you do begin an overview website, please Inspection site. It truly is about conversion rates.

Permalinks, in your posts, an in the tags. Write a couple of these down and permit me to understand in the event that you can't tell if a phrase is not.

'Self-trust will be the first solution of success.' ~Emerson Understand you may face problems inside a couple weeks of beginning up. These programs are all excellent areas to begin with a blog, however maybe not necessarily a blog with longterm bringing in aspirations. Exactly why? Mainly because free-blogging platforms confine content you can place, appear less professional to the typical consumer, and broadly speaking rank even worse at Search.

In the Event You have a few minutes, then hear Google's Matt Cutts clarify the You almost certainly were already thinking about any of it "area of interest" thing. All there is a niche, Full direct to them on your blog soon!

Measure 7: Write three posts to start When I could possibly give on last parcel of advice it has to be more creative. Be exceptional. Make Excellent thing is, there are many networks setup just for merchandise reviewers: Allows see just how exactly we could produce our initial $1, 000 per month from the Good fortune, today what issues do you have? The easiest path Is Going to Be to Receive Your domain from GoDaddy, subsequently reset the You will learn right here how you can set up a profitable inspection website. Prime 5 merchandise inspection programs to join: It is an internet website or site where you write about your favorite products, for example That compose tens of thousands of articles every day. That is NOT I or you. Nevertheless now consider #1. That is an overview site without a doubt.

The fundamental procedure stays the same. Produce a Site That Offers expert That being said, the doors are still wide open. Founded on chances and It's about writing profitable posts that make affiliate a. Hard to brand and could be depended upon for your own spammy feel it has to it.

Subject on it. You must consider getting a premium motif out of Theme-Junkie. These men offer economical great looking themes just like the next guy does, however, they have one attribute that sticks out: a more world-class effortless to use discussion.

In month 1, you obtain 200 visitors, just 5 of which truly click a hyperlink. Rather bad huh? That's CV 2.5 percent . however, it's thirty day period plus that's fine.

Of the 5 people that just click, one among these purchases a laptop for $899.99. Via a connection, you earn a commission of 25 percent. That commission from your pocket comes outside to £ 225.

You perform hard the next month and then foster traffic to 400 visitors.

By the very same stats, so you'll earn $500 monthly.

Please, do not allow it to be some thing super literal such as “bestusedcarreviewblog.com".

Creation around this web site too

To find out more on blog development (and a few nifty tips for producing those hyperlinks of Right key words, gotten an awesomely unique domainname, and have built up a magnificent WordPress site. Then you launch, also...

You've gotkindly expect your comprehension in the discipline. Or, at least have a Let us see what we'd find in Google Look for "laptop reviews": Math there'll always be openings at most area of interest to input. They could possibly be miniature, therefore it truly is your occupation to pick an open area of interest.

WordPress is wide and much the favorite method for creating a While this type of domain can get you precise fit key words factors, It Is Going to be Blogging

Input a 24 word phrase

Jump Site and class

youtube

Fill in the captcha

View the direct hit (that's the very first word in azure under Keyword) your initial search may be the optimal/optimally term, nevertheless usually it is not.

Sort by Global Month-to-month Searches

Sort by Competition

Get the best mixture of non rivalry and high gms Inch) Google was due into the web site with content that was restricted.

Two) significantly less inspection sites developed in overall.

3) more substantial websites were notable. Lets say you want to begin a used vehicle inspection website. Now, you'll have to fight with carfax.com, cars.com, autos.msn.com, and other big internet sites to find site visitors.

But just like most points, it has gotten a bit tougher over recent years. Nameservers so they tip in the direction of HostGator, the internet hosting option most bloggers prefer.

Measure 5: Decide at which the $ $ will probably come from Gap involving keyword-rich domains and brand able domain names:

The uniqueness, Together with expert knowledge, is what will keep lasting Market to target for an overview blog...

Measure 2: Find your specialty A Few exceptionally profitable inspection sites: A. key-word loaded domains You simply receive a couple of visits. Respected review site, site, or even entire neighborhood even. It's the recognized choice, and you may just have to believe me about this particular.

Unlimited interest to learn more concerning the topic. You need not know everything, however, possess a powerful base on the discipline.

Update: Reader Nick Remarked That the FTC requires a disclaimer these If picking the topic, Utilize this rapid workout: 2) ClickBank: Claims to have earned over $2 billion for their customers

3) Commission Junction: Has numerous products each classification, and pays in lots of distinct currencies.

4) Google Affiliates: Pays instantly in your Adsense account.

5) Rakuten Linkshare: They represent products from Walmart, Barnes and Nobles, and AT&T to name a Couple.

Be Aware: Now You Can See our video series on How Best to Generate a

#review #website #online #product

0 notes

endorsereviews · 7 years ago

Text

Megan Harrison – Online Courses Academy

Finally, a complete system for planning, creating & launching a highly profitable

That REALLY does cover the technology setup step-by-step.

Whether you’re already selling courses (and need some help taking it to the next level)… or just beginning to dream about the lifestyle, freedom and money a leverageable online course can create… this is your playbook for getting there.

If you’re finally ready to take your business and life up a few levels (where the earning potential is unlimited and you’re no longer living your life sitting behind a computer) …

Then it’s time to do what it takes to make it a reality.

Using the exact same system my company has used to help generate over $4 million this year for entrepreneurs through their online courses and programs.

It’s a proven formula to save yourself from wasting months… or even years… of time, money and frustration trying to figure out everything on your own.

AFTER YEARS OF WORKING WITH ENTREPRENEURS TO TURN WHAT THEY KNOW INTO AN ONLINE COURSE AND A TON OF TESTING AND REFINING, I’VE GOT THIS DOWN TO A SCIENCE.

See, it’s no secret that creating an online course is one of the fastest ways to scale your business, become known as an expert and serve way more people than you could ever do when your business model is limited by how many hours you have in a day.

Not to mention the time and freedom that comes along with it.

But because the benefits are so attractive, the online course space has become hyper-competitive over the last few years.

More and more people everyday are trying to get their piece of the $107 billion online learning industry and it’s not slowing down.

But the truth is, more course creators are failing now then ever before.

I’m going to tell you the honest, hard-to-hear truth that most people don’t want to talk about…

The game has changed. Customers expect more and the industry has become very crowded and very saturated.

Ad costs are continuously rising and the market is experiencing “course fatigue” due to the never-ending stream of launches hitting their inbox and newsfeed on a daily basis.

But don’t lose hope yet…

There is still a TON of money to be made selling online courses across many different industries and niches –

but only IF you avoid these three major mistakes.

HAVING AN INCOMPLETE SYSTEM

Because my entire company revolves around online course creation, I’ve spent a tremendous amount of time studying what makes the best the best so I can model, experiment and improve upon these strategies for my private clients.And what I’ve found is that while most course creators are struggling to make a few sales, there are many entrepreneurs across practically every industry bringing in 5, 6 and 7 figures EVERY time they launch and will continue to do so because they’ve created their course in a way that most (that fail) do not. These course creators are among the top 1% and the rewards are massive. So what allows them to run circles around everyone else?They have a complete strategy and excel in each of the core 6 elements of an online course. And in doing so… Competition becomes irrelevant… The demand for your course skyrockets… People are happy to pay premium prices… You position yourself as an authority within the industry…

Instead of wondering and hoping that all the work, time and money you’ve invested will pay off, you already KNOW it will.

This type of certainty is power.

But missing just one of these elements significantly decreases the likelihood that you’re going to see the results you want.

And while each element is vital, the most important (and most often done incorrectly) is the way your course is structured.

Which leads me to…

STRUCTURING YOUR COURSE THE WRONG WAY

See, people are more than happy to pay whatever price you set if you can expedite the process of getting them from where they are…

…to where they want to be with less headache and stress than they could on their own.

And since time is money, people are willing to pay for speed.

So the ones who win in this game are the ones who are able to produce results for their customers. However, results don’t happen just by learning something.

Can you think of a time when you knew what you needed to do to reach a result but yet you still didn’t do it?

Getting in shape is an easy example we can all relate to because you don’t have to be a rocket scientist to figure out what needs to be done…

Eat well, exercise more, sleep better and drink a ton of water.

And yet the majority of the population isn’t anywhere near their fitness goals.

It’s about baking in the must-have elements that turn your course from “just another info product”……to a successful, profitable flagship course. Not only does your course need to be structured in a specific way that produces results,

But it also must incorporate key ingredients that leverage basic human psychology to motivate your customers to take action, retain what they learn and engage.

Because the only way your customers even have the chance of reaching the outcome your course is promising to deliver, is if they implement what you teach.Therefore, your course should be designed around actions rather than information. The more you can get your customers to take action, the better their results will be, better results means higher demand for your course, and the increase in demand increases the value which allows you to increase the price.

Obviously, you can’t force someone to do something but with what I’ll teach you in Online Courses Academy, your user engagement and completion rate will be better than 90% of other courses out there (instructional design is one of my specialities).And this is the first domino that set’s off a chain reaction of positive outcomes. See action leads to results and results encourage your customers to take more action. This consistent implementation leads to the achievement of the goal your course promised.So your customers become your own little marketing army, spreading the word about what they were able to achieve after taking your program. And not only does the demand for your program begin to multiply, your loyal customers are also ready and waiting to buy whatever you have to offer next. And this is when the customer lifetime value makes a big impact on your bottom line.Just imagine how it will feel to hear raving testimonials from your customers about how because of you, they were able to make a significant change in their life. Imagine being recognized for your unique skills and the impact you’ve been able to make.Imagine being able to work completely in your zone of genius instead of taking on projects or clients you don’t want just because you need to pay the bills. Imagine what type of effect this can have on your business, your life, and your relationships. This is the mission behind Online Courses Academy – to be the first domino that leads to a richer, happier more free version of you.

I’m so passionate about this because I’ve seen the results and I know it works.

For years I’ve been helping entrepreneurs just like you turn what they know into a valuable business asset that brings in money now and for years to come.

So I’m always studying what differentiates the best out there…

And when I took a deeper look at what separated the successes from failures, I realized there were really 4 levels of online Courses

$ INFORMATION

We’re absolutely flooded with information. Everything you could ever want to know can be found out with a simple Google search. The problem is that this takes a lot of time and effort to figure out whats good advice and what’s crap. And the sheer volume of information available leads to overwhelm without action. Therefore a product that is essentially a compilation of information can be difficult to even give away for free.

$$ SYSTEMIZATION

The second level of value is a course that takes information and delivers it in a specific process, system or framework. Basically, it’s providing a method to the madness. This is much more valuable but it falls short by not giving customers the tools and resources to help make taking action easier.

$$$ IMPLEMENTATION

The level three courses provide a systematic approach to achieving a result and encourage customers to take action on what is taught by providing resources such as worksheets and activities. When people have clarity on exactly what they need to do next they are far more likely to actually do it. After all, “complexity is the enemy of execution”.

$$$$$ TRANSFORMATION

The final and most valuable course is a program that inspires a transformation in the customers life. This goes beyond learning a new concept or putting it into use. As a result of taking the course the customers is able to make significant improvements to their life. These are the courses with the highest demand and people are happy to pay premium prices.

These are just a few, and as you can see there isn’t just one type of industry where online courses are successful.

In fact, I have yet to find a business or industry that an online course wouldn’t work.

As long as there’s a market with a problem you can solve, and you have the right framework and strategy to follow, it will work for you as well. The only thing left to do now is build it.

But there is that minor obstacle you have to overcome – TECHNOLOGY.

Which leads me to our last most common mistake…

USING THE WRONG MEMBERSHIP PLATFORM

Your memberhship site is the central hub of your course and brings everything to life. Therefore it should be built on a reliable platform that supports your business needs now and in the future. On top of that, the way it’s designed plays a big role in the perceived value. So love it or hate it – looks do matter.

All too often I see entrepreneurs agonize over which systems to use, and end up opting for what they think is the “easier” option. Only to find out that “easy”really isn’t that easy when the systems don’t support your needs.

So the much better and long term solution is to build your course on WordPress. Here’s 5 reasons why…

Here’s 5 reasons why…

CONTROL

When you don’t own the platform your course is built on you have no control over that system. Things can change at any time like monthly costs, transactions fees, integrations, design and layouts among others.When it comes to a valuable business asset, I like to manintain as much control as possible and you probably feel the same way.

CUSTOMIZATION

With 3rd party platforms what you see is pretty much what you get and you’re very limited with changes that can be made.

When you create your course on WordPress using a theme with a drag-and-drop page builder, it’s extremely simple and you get to design your course to look exactly how you want and you don’t have to use cookie cutter templates.

INTEGRATIONS

As your business grows and new technology is released there is a high probability that your needs will change in the near future. When your course is built on WordPress you have extreme flexibility to integrate with whatever you need instead.

AVOID FEES

Third party platforms either charge high monthly fees or they charge a transaction fee. That means that every time you make a sale you have to pay a certain percentage to them on top of the 3% credit card fees.

That starts to really add up.

MEMBERSHIP CAPABILITY

Often times, after customers are finished with your course they want to keep learning from you. Adding a membershio option is a great way to add a recurring revenue stream to your business and increase the customer lifetime value. When you create your course on WordPress you have the flexibility to add on to your site anyway you choose.

COURSE MODULES

Here’s a summary of everything we’ll cover in this program…

(Two versions! If you’re using Infusionsoft I recommend using Memberium, if not I recommend Memberpress!)

COURSE MODULES Here’s a summary of everything we’ll cover in this program…

(Two versions! If you’re using Infusionsoft I recommend using Memberium, if not I recommend Memberpress!)

Virtually guarantee your success…

Connector. 5 ways to test your idea so it’s guaranteed to succeed Connector.Connector. How to turn your competition into a competitive advantage Connector.Connector. The three types of swipe files you need to have and the best tools to use to create them. Connector.Connector. How to get inside the psychology of your prospects (so you know exactly what product to create and how to persuade them to buy) Connector.Connector. How to spy on your potential customers (in a non-creepy way) Connector. How to tap into your prospects real desires and formulate an irresistible offer based on them. This module lays the foundation for your entire course. The success of your course is completely dependent upon structuring it the RIGHT way and that’s exactly what I’ll show you how to do in these lessons.

Connector. The pro’s and con’s of an evergreen and live course and how to know which one is best for you. Connector.Connector. The 4 delivery formats for your course and what format is best for your specific content and audience. Connector.Connector. What your course absolutely must promise in order to sell Connector.Connector. A simple formula to craft the perfect pricing strategy that maximizes your bottom line. Connector.Connector. A minset tweak that will turn overwhelm into creativity and insights Connector. Deep dive into the Result Centered Training Formula: A 7-step framework for how to get everything out of your head and structured in a strategic way that produces results.

Connector. The perfect workflow for creating your course content in a fraction of the amount of time (without sacrificing quality) Connector.Connector. The strategy behind what makes amazing worksheets and step-by-step training on how to design beautiful, professional PDFs. Connector.Connector. The key slides you should include in every lesson Connector.Connector. A surefire formula that allows you to deliver your content in a smooth, clear and concise way. Connector.Connector. Step-by-step training on how to create your slides using Keynote and Powerpoint (plus a slide deck template!) Connector.Connector. My favorite strategies for making scripting your videos so much faster (and a lot less painful of a process) Connector. Filming, Editing & Hosting Your Videos – The best tools and step-by-step training on how to film, edit and host your videos. Plus how to make them more engaging and professional. This module takes the scariest part of course creation for most people and makes it cave-man simple. Seriously… it’s step by step all the way through. We’ll cover how to create your course using Memberium (for Infusionsoft users) or Memberpress (for non-Infusionsoft users)

Connector. Setting Up WordPress Connector.Connector. Creating your course with LearnDash and how to set up engaging modules and quizzes Connector.Connector. Integrating Payments – How to establish the payment gateway to transfer sales into your bank account. Connector.Connector. Connecting your email automation with your course, whether you’re starting from scratch or integrating the system you use now. Connector.Connector. Customizing your done-for-you page templates – You’ll receive 8 professionally designed page templates for your course that can be customized with a few clicks. Connector.Connector. How to set up drip content for your course if you want modules to be released one week at a time. Connector. And so much more! Plus join me every week for office hours and www can do it together (nothing could be easier than that!)

Connector. How to meet, connect with and partner with (almost) anyone in the internet marketing community. Connector.Connector. The perfect commission percentage to attract high quality affiliates and get them excited to promote. Connector. Why you need an affiliate partner members area, what to include and the step-by-step training on how to set it up. The most successful affiliate programs make promoting super simple by having everything thats needed in one place. Not only does this make running your affiliate program super simple, it also establishes trust with with your affiliates because its a sign that you have a well planned launch.

Includes your affiliate program software and step-by-step training on how to get everything up and running. Even though practically everyone would agree that building an affiliate program is extremely powerful, very few people actually follow through with doing it because they have no idea how to get it all working together. Therefore, the ones that do have a massive advantage over the competition.

In this module we’ll focus on the final core element of a successful course – your launch strategy. This is where all your hard work gets to pay off and get ready to start seeing an ROI

Connector. Pre-Pre-Launch – The secret to building anticipation and segmenting your audience before the pre-launch. Connector.Connector. The exact steps and content needed for your pre-pre-launch. Connector.Connector. Discover the three most effective launch strategies and which is right for your course. Connector.Connector. How to execute the famous “Jeff Walker Style” free video series launch. Connector.Connector. A complete timeline and listing of all the emails that should be sent during your pre-launch (this alone is worth the price of the entire course) Connector.Connector. How to drastically increase the revenue from your launch with your offer strategy Connector. The real psychology behind why you must include a VIP version of your program

Get other products by Megan Harrison right now! HOW the COURSE WORKS As soon as you join Online Courses Academy you’ll receive immediate access to all 6 modules. The course videos, worksheets and resources are all provided in a private members area.

Each module contains several video lessons, worksheets and assignments. Every video lesson also contains a checklist with the exact action steps you should take after completing that lesson. Simply click on the button and mark off what you’ve completed so you always know exactly what you need to do next.

This type of clarity is power! The entire site displays perfectly on any screen size so you can participate from your desktop, tablet, or phone.

We’ve also incorporated points and badges to encourage some friendly competition and keep you motivated and on track!

I’M HERE to SUPPORT YOU ALONG the ENTIRE JOURNEY Sometimes concepts need to be talked through… or are better transferred through live communication. That’s why I’m including 8 live office hour sessions so you never feel stuck or alone throughout this process.

Plus you’ll receive access to the private Facebook community where, you’ll not only receive support from me, but also from a community of entrepreneurs who are all working towards the same goal.

With a few clicks of a of a mouse you’ll be able to unlock all the guidance you could ever want.

Bonuses

BONUS #1: COMPLETE PROJECT PLAN

Ever wish there was someone to tell you EXACTLY what to do step-by-step? The implementation bootcamp outlines every single step of the process in a downloadable pdf, a digital checklist, as well as a check list next to each lesson!

Custom Login Page Course Homepage Module Page Resources Page Support Page Password Reset Page Affilaite Partners FAQ page Affilaite Partners Swipe File Page BONUS #2 ONE CLICK UPLOAD PAGE TEMPLATES

In order to provide a superior user experience I truly believe that design plays a big role. In addition, it drastically effects the perceived value of your course. If you look like a pro, you can charge like a pro and people will be happy to pay because the quality justifies the price point.

I can’t begin to explain how valuable these templates will be to you and just how much time they will save you. These pages are structured in a specific way that is ideal for instructional design and are modeled after multi-million dollar courses.

Simply upload the page template in one click and then use the drag and drop builder to customize anything on the entire page like…

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mamajeanetc · 7 years ago

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India Part 5: Udaipur

As we loaded the van in preparation to leave Narlai I asked Mr. Singh to pause for a moment so I could get a picture of him with his seemingly bottomless cooler that was always full of cold water. He had kept us well-hydrated all week --fresh cold bottles of water in our cupholders every time we got in the van! He smiled and I took the picture. We got in and as he started the engine he turned and apologized to me -- he was unable to find any ice in this area, so he had plenty of water, but it wouldn’t be cold today!

Our 2 hour drive to Udaipur started out on a windy mountain road. There were a couple of small temples at some sharp turns. Sanjeev explained that they would build a temple on curves where there were accidents so people would stop to pay their respects at the temple rather than speeding around the corner. Apparently temples are more effective than speedbumps in India.

As we got closer to the city we drove through an area that had one marble supplier after another for several miles.

We also passed this huge monument under construction - one of the major Hindu gods. I don’t remember the details but when Sanjeev told us how many millions of dollars were being spent on it I said that it was somewhat baffling to me that in a country where there is SO MUCH poverty so much money is spent building temples and monuments. He said he understood what I was saying, but assured me that when it is complete every tourist traveling this road will take a half hour to stop and see it. They will charge enough for tickets to pay for it within a couple of years.

Some sobering facts about poverty in India: the statistics that Sanjeev gave me are a bit different than what I’ve seen on-line, but I think it’s safe to say that 20-30% of the population of India lives below the poverty line. The varying definitions I’ve seen/heard of the poverty line range from about 60 cents to $1.90 US/day. Anyway you cut it, there are millions of people in India living on next to nothing!

On the outskirts of Udaipur we got caught among motorcycles and trucks full of young men waving flags and swords, many wearing matching t-shirts. It sure felt like a labor organization or protest to us and I was definitely feeling uncomfortable. Sanjeev insisted it was some type of religious festival, but we weren’t sure if we believed him.

Our first stop in Udaipur was Lake Pichola, where we began our tour of the city with a cruise around the lake. We made quite a fashion statement as we prepared to board the boat.

Lake Pichola is an artificial fresh water lake created in 1362. It is one of several lakes in the area created to meet the drinking water and irrigation needs of the area. As we started our tour we had a nice view of the City Palace.

There are 4 islands in the lake. On one of them stands the famous Lake Palace, an exclusive hotel where rooms start at about $900/night. Some scenes in the James Bond movie “Octopussy” were filmed here.

Another of the islands is the home of Jag Mandir, AKA Lake Garden Palace. Construction was started in 1551, and continued for 3 generations of maharanas. The royal family used the palace as a summer resort and a place to throw parties. Twice it served as a refuge for asylum seekers. Today there is a small museum, restaurant and gardens.

The boat tours all stop here so you can get off and spend as much time as you like. We took a few minutes to walk through the museum and part of the gardens.

Back on the mainland we headed to the City Palace. One end continues to serve as a residence for the royal family, but the majority of the palace has been converted into a museum. There were paintings of royalty and gatherings, displays of armor and musical instruments, etc. A few interesting tidbits:

This is where the homing pigeons were kept -- yes, they really used pigeons to carry messages!

Every palace seemed to have it’s Hall of Mirrors:

Maharana Bhupat Singhji, 1930-55, had some significant political accomplishments, but the OT in me was more fascinated by the fact that he was an “invalid” and what accommodations were made for him. A “lift” (elevator) was added to the palace in 1940. He had a wheelchair and an elevated commode.

Peacocks are the national bird of India. There was one courtyard where all the walls contained mosaics of peacocks.

By the way, peacock feathers are considered auspicious in India, and having a peacock feather in your home is a sign of good fortune. We brought home 4 peacock feathers that we found on our various walks in the countryside!

It was clear as we walked through the palace that the people during the time of its construction were of smaller stature.

These silver “slippers” apparently put fashion above comfort!

After lunch we went to the Jagdish temple -- a Hindu temple just outside the City Palace that has been in continuous worship since 1651.

The inside area open to the public was quite small, crowded and similar to other temples we’ve seen. We spent considerably more time walking around the outside and looking at the carvings. There were rows of carvings of important creatures and/or events. You can see that some sections have been repaired --like the row of elephants in the bottom of this photo. In some areas the faces/heads have been removed - most of the warriors riding horses on the row above the elephants, The row above the horses depicts scenes from the Kama Sutra.

When we finished at the temple we decided to head to our hotel for the evening. All of the hotels in the lake area are quite expensive and the travel agent did not know of hotels in other areas of the city which were reasonably priced and would meet my requirements of clean and safe. He had recommended a place about 45 minutes outside of Udupair for us to spend our last night and we decided we would prefer to drive back and forth and stay 2 nights in the same place. We made the right choice. The 45 minute drive was easy and the accommodations were well worth a bit of travel time.

The Devigarh Palace was built in a strategic location on top of a hill overlooking the village of Delwara. Constructed with locally mined marble, the original construction was completed in 1760. In the mid-1980′s a 15 year renovation project began and was completed with the opening of the boutique hotel in 1999. This is our first glimpse as we approached.

We parked at the end of the driveway inside the gates and as we walked under this arch to check in, someone hiding up above sprinkled rose petals on us!

We were first taken to the lounge to enjoy a welcome drink before being shown to our suite. We arrived at the perfect time to watch the sunset as we enjoyed our drinks.

From the lounge we also had a view of the pool and gardens.

Our room was in a one story wing in the garden area below the pool. This is the view of the main buliding with lounge and restaurant from just outside our room.

There were games in the lounge so we enjoyed some cribbage and backgammon before a delicious dinner.

The next morning we drove back into the city, where we met a local guide named Vishal who took us on a walking tour of “real Udaipur”. Walking through the narrow streets of buildings built hundreds of years ago, he pointed out that the houses hung over the street. They were designed to allow adequate road width for people, buggies, etc. to pass, but all levels above the ground level could have more space.

Some of the houses had paintings by the doors. Vishal explained that the painting is done as a way of announcing a wedding in the household. However, they are sometimes left there for several years. The niches on either side of the door are for oil lamps. When this area was constructed there was no electricity so everyone would place oil lamps just outside their doors every evening to keep the street lit. Today, they are used to light up the streets during festival times.

We walked down along the river in an area where there are 27 temples in a row. Many of them are quite small and they are crowded together -- it was difficult to get a photo that shows them clearly -- even in person it was a bit difficult to tell where one ended and the next began. I think there are portions of at least 3 temples in this photo.

A person is supposed to be clean before entering a temple, so we saw several men bathing in the river by these temples.

Outside some houses we would see a small niche in the wall where there was a photo or artistic rendering of a person. These are created when someone (usually male) dies and a family members dreams or otherwise senses that his soul has not moved on. This little shrine is built to honor him so he can go contently.

As we wandered through the streets and chatted with Vishal he described himself as a freelance ecologist, artist, and guide. He went to university but didn’t find it very engaging. He came back to this local neighborhood where he grew up and apprenticed himself to various craftsmen for periods of time, learning their different art forms. He also works with several organizations trying to educate the Indian people about ecology and what they can do to clean up their environment and live in ways that are healthier for the world. One of the great accomplishments in this area is a garbage truck! This truck goes up and down the streets of this area every day. They play a specific jingle over a speaker system so the people can hear the truck coming and bring their garbage out to the street.

He took us to meet a woman who combines his interest in art with his passion for ecology. She makes plates and bowls out of a specific kind of leaf. This provides jobs for her and a few other ladies, as well as people who go out to the forest to collect the leaves. The plates and bowls are used to present offerings at the temples. Vishal and a group he works with are now encouraging food vendors to use them at festivals as they are completely biodegradable.

As I mentioned, Vishal grew up in this area and he took us to his family home where 6 generations of his family have lived for around 300 years. He had painted a mural of a seascape on part of the outside of the house several years ago, but much of it has worn away.

Inside the house is divided into small apartments where various family members live. These are not part of the tour, but I needed a bathroom and his mother kindly allowed me to use hers, On one wall of her kitchen was a paper mache dragon that Vishan had created! There is a special room of the house that is not used on a regular basis but honors the ancestors and also the maharaja who gave his great-great-grandfather the house as thanks for helping him solve a problem.

As we wandered the streets it was clear that certain areas are dedicated to a particular type of craft or business. This is a street where everyone on one side was making pottery and the other side was all about snack foods.

On a street with several silversmiths we saw this man squatting by the gutter and Vishal explained that he is panning for silver in the “grey” water run-off from all the silversmith shops.

I was happy to learn that this area actually has 2 waste water systems and the “black” water, AKA sewer, runs under the streets in closed pipes!

At this spice market you can bring your own spices to be ground or pressed or you can buy theirs. The shops will also mix spices according to your needs, ie. you can say, “I’m making a chicken dinner for 12 people” and they’ll provide an appropriate spice mix.

Notice the blue water jug in the above photo. Helping your neighbors/being kind to others is an important part of the Hindu lifestyle -- it creates good karma. So many shops will set out a jug of drinking water like this with a few plastic cups on top and passersby may help themselves.

On another street shop after shop was making potato chips which were very popular!

Another environmentally-friendly development is taking all this used oil and making biodegradable soap which is sold on the next street and used for washing clothes.

Of course there is a produce market. At this particular one anyone with items to sell just plants their umbrella and that becomes their market stall.

And of course, we passed a few cows in our wanderings . . . have I mentioned that they’re everywhere in India?

And finally, there was a street with multiple shops stocking anything you might want or need that we hadn’t already seen. Vishal said his family does all their shopping here,

I was really happy that we had spent our last morning being tourists with Vishal. It was encouraging to know that there are people in India who are aware of the consequences of some of the ways they’ve done things for hundreds of years and are making efforts to educate and change some of those ways to provide for a cleaner environment and better living conditions.

We were also very glad again that we had opted to spend a second night at the Devigarh palace. The sounds, smells, busyness, and crowds in Indian cities can definitely be a bit overwhelming. When we finished our tour with Vishal, Sanjeev suggested a couple of other places we could visit in the city but we were ready for a quiet afternoon by the pool at the hotel.

I had read about Sadhua Workshop in the information book at the hotel and wanted to see it. Started by a local NGO about 20 years ago as an income-generating opportunity to promote women’s empowerment, it is now a self-owned enterprise employing 600 women from several villages. The original and main workshop was at the bottom of the hill where our hotel was, so in the late afternoon we walked down to check it out.

Most of the activity was in one large room. These women are cutting fabric:

Which was being sewn into clothing, pillows, purses, etc.

Unfortunately, there was not a soul in the place that spoke any English so we didn’t learn much more than what I had already read and what was posted on this sign by the door.

There was a small shop where they were selling clothing and other items and we may have done some shopping!

We enjoyed our final delicious Indian dinner in the hotel restaurant and even splurged on dessert!

We hadn’t eaten dessert all week for a couple of reasons -- first of all, there was so much delicious food we were usually too full to consider it. Second, many of the desserts are dairy-based, made with fresh fruit and/or served cold. We had some pretty strict rules about eating in India -- only hot food, no fresh produce, only bottled water, no ice, etc. And it paid off -- we are the only people we know who have spent more than 3 days in India (on business or pleasure) who have not suffered from “Delhi Belly!” What you see above is a lava cake -- the inside was full of HOT, gooey fudge. And it was the last night -- we decided to take a chance on vanilla ice cream served with hot fudge!!

Saturday morning we had a good workout at the hotel and a leisurely breakfast before heading to the airport. We flew from Udaipur tp Delhi where we had about a 5 hour layover. We were glad we didn’t have a tight connection as the process of going from a domestic flight to an international one was more complicated and confusing than expected. Following the signs was no help at all, so I started asking airport employees and each one I spoke with gave me different directions. We eventually figured out that the boarding passes issued in Udaipur for our flight to Singapore were not acceptable so we had to go outside the airport and re-enter in a different area to get to a Singapore airlines check-in desk to get new boarding passes. This involved 2 security checkpoints before we got our boarding passes, then finally immigration and the regular airport security system!!

By the time we got through all of that we were ready for dinner. Frequently when we travel by about the third day we’re ready for western food, but we had both really enjoyed the food in India and agreed we could enjoy one last Indian meal. And then we arrived at the food court and saw our choices:

The Curry Kitchen had a very limited menu and their food just didn’t look all that appealing. So, ready or not, it was time to begin our re-entry to the western world. We opted for Domino’s pizza. The menu items were not the traditional topping combinations we usually order so I chose a couple of different smalls (personal size in the US). Ironically, our favorite was “Mexican chicken”!!!

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sublimedeal · 7 years ago

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