7SuccessStrategiesforMTs

Back in November I wrote a blog post about the fall being a time of release and being a great time to evaluate what you are doing and what you want to do.

I wrote: “As I am writing this, I to have come to a transition in my career and what I am doing. I am still working on some of the aspects of what I want to let go of and what I want to keep so stay tuned as the winter turns into spring. I have decided to find a new name for this business endeavor of teaching, providing marketing resources as well as blogging. As of now, I have cancelled the website for Massage Therapist Training Institute. Once I have decided on a new name, this blog will be combined in that new website.”

I have renamed my business Prosperous Massage Practice. You can visit the new website at http://www.prosperousmassagepractice.com where I will combine blogging, information on the services I provide – continuing education, coaching, consulting, video – and a new on-line store featuring my ebooks as well as other products I recommend.

I will leave this site up for about a year.

If you haven’t already, go check out my new website and let me know what you think.

Here are the top 5 post of the 4th quarter of 2009 based on traffic, comments and tweets:

1. Receive a Free Copy of My Book
2. Marketing Ideas for the Holiday Season
3. Holiday Subject Lines that Get Your Email Opened
4. Marketing Ideas for Black Friday
5. How to Write Better Email Subject Lines

1. Started “Creating a Prosperous Practice” Blog

2. Grew my blog traffic to 160 RSS readers and broke the 100+ daily visitors mark.

3. Closed on our new condo in Costa Rica.
4. Decorated the new condo.

5. Wrote over 150 blog posts for Creating a Prosperous Practice.
6. Wrote 52 articles for BellaOnline.
7. Started to see the world in a different light.
8. Watched a bunch of movies.
9. Experienced a great deal of personal growth.
10. Made my first cross-country car trip – driving almost 6,000 miles in 28 days.
11. Learned videography after taking the Travel Channel Academy.
12. Learned that I don’t like cold weather…or snow.
13. Wrote a new Ebook called “Your Target Market, Finding Your Ideal Client”.
14. Taught countless students in various continuing education classes
15. Visited 3 national parks – Arches, Bryce Canyon and Zion. Bryce was my favorite.
16. Decluttered my office.
17. Sold tons of stuff on Ebay and Craigslist.
18. Organized my photo into albums.
19. Made lots of homemade greeting cards…including my Christmas cards.
20. Continued honing my videography skills by taking the New York Film School.
21. Took the MatadorU Travel Writing School.
22. Visited my friend in Seattle.
23. Updated my Last Will and Testament.
24. Made lots of new friends.
25. Combined my website (Massage Therapist Training Institute) and my blog (Creating a Prosperous Practice) in to one super mega site to be announced on January 4th so stay tuned.    

Well, it’s been a fantastic journey to say the least. But, I just want to say thanks to every one of you who’ve visited my blog, commented, and more for all your support over the last year. I really am grateful for everything I’ve experienced and think that it was all meant to be. 

What have you accomplished in 2009? Share it in the comments.

Happy New Year!!!!

Happy New Year! May the new year bring you Joy, Inspiration, Happiness, Healing, Prosperity, and Love.

*•.¸♥¸.•*´BLESSINGS¸.•*´♥`*•.¸

WOW, it has been one year since I started this blog on January 1, 2009. It was one of my goals for 2009 to start a blog. I really didn’t know what to expect. But I must say that I am pleased with the results. I have posted at least once every week for the past 52 weeks — actually over a 150 posts.

So, I want to take this opportunity to thank you for reading my blog as well as making comments and suggestions.

It’s hard to believe that it’s almost 2010.  But, you didn’t think we’d close out the year without a “Best of 2009” post, did you? Well, you’re not getting off that easy.

Here’s the best Creating a Prosperous Practice content of the year, based on your enthusiasm via views, comments, links, and tweets. I thank you all for your continued support.

…And Now for the Top 10 Posts for 2009

Here are your favorite posts of the year.  Check them out. 

1. Introduction to the Bagua Map
2. 25 Things Your Clients Wish You Knew
3. Receive a Free Copy of My Book
4. Marketing Ideas for the Holiday Season
5. Father’s Day Promotions
6. Mother’s Day Promotions
7. 7 Ways to Connect with Your Clients
8. Promote Your Massage Practice on YouTube
9. 6 Strategies for Website Copy

There was a tie for the 10th most popular blog post between…

10. 7 Reasons to Start a Blog and Getting the Clients You Want [Video]

and the most commented and perhaps controversial post belongs to “All-You-Can-Massage” Passport.

Looking Forward to 2010

There you have it . . . the best of Creating a Prosperous Practice for 2009.

I’ll be doing some neat things this year.  So stay tuned.  I look forward to seeing many of you at CEs classes and other events.  Also, if you’re in the Washington DC area, drop me a line.  I try to get out and meet people in the area as time permits.

Again, thanks for making the blog a success. 

I hope you have a great 2010! Happy New Year!

It is time to say goodbye to 2009 and hello to the new year. In preparation for the new year, make sure your website is in good shape.

Here are some of the things you should check:

1. Contact information. Check addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, etc.

2. Products and services. Are all of the products and services listed still available? Are the descriptions and prices correct? Have you added new ones that are not listed?

3. Dated material. Do you have items on your site about “upcoming” events that happened months ago? If your site has a copyright date, is it current? Keep it up-to-date by having it automatically update. Learn how to do this by searching “automatically update copyright”, along with the type of site you have, i.e., HTML, WordPress, etc. on Google.

4. Content. When did you last add new content to your website? If it has been a long time (particularly if your blog is not tied to your website), plan to do some kind of update at least monthly (and more often is better). Add a new article, list upcoming events, post some photos…

5. Images. How old are the photos, graphics and images on your website? Have you had the same one since you started your practice 10 years ago? Freshen up your website by adding new images.

6. Forms. Test to see if your contact forms (and any others your may have) work correctly. If you use autoresponders, make sure the information is still correct.

7. Dead links. URLs can change, so make sure that all of your links are valid. You don’t want to send your website visitors (or search engine bots) off to dead ends. This free link checker can test your site.

8. Get a fresh perspective. Approach your site as a client might. Browse (and read) through several pages, sign up for your newsletter, place an order, and make sure all of those processes work as they should.

Keep It that Way!

Once you have your website updated and awesome, keep it that way!

1. Do regular checkups throughout the year – at least quarterly.
2. Add new content on a monthly basis.

Welcome to Motivation Mondays! Here is your quote for the week.

Photo Credit: Konstantin Sutyagin

“Take action in order to move toward your goals.” -Les Brown

What steps do you take to get you moving towards your goals? Post them in the comments or email me.