A Resource for all you Creative Entrepreneurs...Caring for your Intellectual Property

Press Release
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United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) launches small-business intellectual property protection Web site at StopFakes.gov

U.S. Government urges businesses to protect their intellectual property from overseas piracy and counterfeiting Washington, D.C. Jul 28, 2005 Washington, D.C. – The Department of Commerce’s United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has launched a Web site – StopFakes.gov/smallbusiness -- dedicated to small businesses and protecting their intellectual property (IP), both in the U.S. and abroad. Specifically designed to answer common questions of small businesses so they can better identify and address their protection needs, the new online resources are part of a nationwide awareness campaign to help educate small businesses on IP protection.

The Web site provides information to help small businesses, home business owners, inventors and other entrepreneurs decide when, where and how to file for intellectual property protection, covering patents, trademarks and copyrights. “Piracy and counterfeiting are on the rise around the world, and all American businesses are at risk,” said Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property Jon Dudas at a recent USPTO-sponsored small-business conference in Arizona.

While theft of intellectual property poses a serious threat to all American businesses, small businesses may be at a particular disadvantage because they may lack the resources and expertise available to larger corporations. In addition, small businesses typically may not have personnel or maintain large operations in other countries; therefore, theft of their intellectual property overseas can go undetected.
The Web site is part of a much larger USPTO and federal government effort. The Strategy Targeting Organized Piracy (STOP!) initiative ( http://www.stopfakes.gov) is aimed at combating criminal networks that traffic in fakes; stopping trade in pirated and counterfeit goods at America’s borders; and helping small businesses secure and enforce their rights in overseas markets. As part of the initiative, the USPTO maintains a toll-free telephone hotline, 1-866-999-HALT that helps businesses leverage the resources of the U.S. government to protect their intellectual property rights.

For more information about the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s effort to educate American businesses about intellectual property rights, visit http://www.uspto.gov . For small business-specific inquiries visit the small business link at http://www.stopfakes.gov or the issue-specific links noted below.

ResourcesStop Fakes Small Business General Information: http://www.uspto.gov/smallbusiness

Stop Fakes Small Business Patents: http://www.uspto.gov/smallbusiness/patents/
Stop Fakes Small Business Trademarks: http://www.uspto.gov/smallbusiness/trademarks/
Stop Fakes Small Business Copyrights: http://www.uspto.gov/smallbusiness/copyrights/

Media Contact:
Brigid QuinnUnited State Patent and Trademark Office(571) 272-8400brigid.quinn@uspto.gov

Webmaster and online linking inquiries can be directed to:
Chris Clark on behalf of USPTO(877) 835-8362 ext 2013uspto@stopfakes.biz

A Brand Oasis in a Sea of "Too Much Info"

I spent the last 2 days in Peter Montoya's Brand University. Wow. I've seen Peter speak many times before...as a matter of fact he helped me celebrate my birthday back in May (see May posts for Small Biz Marketing Summit.)

I attended the event as part of my ongoing quest to find the best education and training for my clients and small biz networks. I have completed the process with a new branding statement that truly captures the essence of my programs. I'm not going to tell yet though.....but soon!

People often ask me how I skyrocketed my success so quickly. Attending events like this one has definitely helped. I invest over $10k per year in my continuing education. The knowledge is just one part of the ROI. The other part is I always leave with clients and cross-marketing partnerships. So I probably quadruple my revenue every year just from investing in education and training.

Because I believe that 90% of success is determined by your mindset, I'd like to share a golden nugget from Peter. Most people limit their success by saying:

"What the least amount of money I can spend to stay above water."

The million-dollar question really is:

"What's the most I'm willing to invest to ensure I'll achieve my goals."

Do you get the difference with the second question? One is positioning your mind for a successful outcome, the other is positioned for struggle. Start asking yourself the million-dollar investment question and I know you will tap into all kinds of new possibilities.

What are you willing to invest? Share it here...

Success Habits -- What do you do EVERY DAY that supports your success?

On my VIP mentoring call today, our group discussed our daily success habits. What we do every day either supports or sabotages our success. If you look at any accomplished person (whether it be in busienss, health, relationship, etc.) you will find that they are committed every day to habits and behaviors that support their "outcome."

So here are some things that people do to support their "successful outcomes:"

- My friend Ali Brown is my mentor for an awesome body. Every day she goes to the gym NO MATTER WHAT. That is a consicous choice she makes to ensure that she gets the results she desires.

- One of my clients who owns a mortgage business makes 10 phone calls every day to his marketing partners and past clients. This one habit can help him increase his business results up to 50% within 45 - 60 days.

- In the movie "What the Bleep Do We Know" one of the scientists interviews talked about creating his day every morning. He literally creates a picture in his mind every day of what he wants to have happen. Every time the "magical situations" occur, he knows he has just reinforced the power of creating his day.

Some of my success habits:
- Every day I choose to eat healthy, balanced meals including protein, veges, no sugar, etc.
- Every day I read or listen to one expert who motivates me to achieve more.
- I go to a yoga class and work out at least twice a week (more when I'm in town.)
- Every week I work on one system or procedure to streamline my business.
- I outsource anything that needs to be done that someone else does better (my bookkeeping, calendering of appointments, preparing documentation, following up with people, etc.)
- After a speaking event, I schedule an entire day to rest & get a massage!!!
- I spend at least one meal per week with friends/colleagues that I love and adore. This continues to stimulate my thinking, excites me to play bigger, and strengthens my sense of community.
- I keep a written list of tasks that must be completed during the week. Every day I commit to completing at least three. Anything that I say yes to completing gets put on the list. So when I have free time unexpectedly, I pull out the list and focus on completing new tasks.
- I write in my Success Journal daily to acknwoledge my accomplishments and learnings while reinforcing my goals.
- I give loving, supportiving compliments to my family/boyfriend/friends every day.

These are just some of my success habits and behaviors. The bottom line is that change must be conscious -- you have to chose to do what needs to be done (especially if you are changing bad habits.)

What is a success habit that you have adopted that has transformed your success?

"Recycle Your Articles to Gain Tons of Traffic and New Subscribers"
by Alexandria K. Brown, "The E-zine Queen"

Note from Melanie....
My good friend Ali Brown recently posted a great tip on getting more traffic through article posting. Since I'm working on this right now, I wanted to share these great tips with you guys. By the way, Ali is not only a good friend but also one of my personal success mentors. You can bet I'll be one of the 150 people on her party boat to help her celebrate her 34th birthday (and really live like a freedom-based entrepreneur!!) Wanna join us? Check it out.

While there are many effective ways to get more traffic and build your ezine list, the one I've had the MOST success with is to submit articles for use on other people's websites and in their ezines."But wait a minute," you say. "Aren't I supposed to be creating great articles for MY OWN e-zine?"Yes, you are! And after your article appears in your OWN e-zine, you should then submit it to others. Over the past few years, I've found this to be the best way to get traffic, build my list, and increase my sales, for five reasons:

1) You can quickly gain FREE exposure to TENS OF THOUSANDS (or even HUNDREDS of THOUSANDS) of untapped prospects at a time. There are many high-traffic sites and ezines with high readerships that are looking for content from people like YOU.

2) Articles let you educate and share good information with your prospects. They also position you as an expert in their eyes, so they'll think of YOU as the most respected resource in your field. (Traditional ads don't do that for you.)

3) You have the right to promote yourself, your business, and whatever else you want at the end of every article. And anyone using your article must keep this information intact. (More on that in a minute.)

4) This is a tried-and-true method that will NEVER stop working, unlike the latest and greatest gimmicks to spoof the search engines. (Try one of those and see how quickly your traffic halts once the bottom drops out.) Search engines love real content and will always love real content.

5) It's EASY, and anyone can do it!HERE'S HOW TO GET STARTED...

1. PICK A WINNER
Browse through your archives and pick an insightful article that really showcases your expertise. Or, if this is new to you, write a basic article on your subject of expertise. (Not a good writer, or need help? Hire a writer from Elance.com.)

2. POLISH IT 'TIL IT SHINES
Publishers will not be interested in your article if it contains typos, misspelled words, grammatical errors, or inactive Web links -- these goofs would compromise the integrity of their publications. So make sure it's Kosher!

3. ADD A COPYRIGHT NOTICE
At the end of the article, insert a copyright notice, dated when you first published the article. Example: © 2005 Alexandria K. Brown

4. WRITE A JAZZY "RESOURCE BOX"
In exchange for your letting other publishers reprint your article, it's customary to require they include the contact information you provide. This is usually called the "resource box" and it should come RIGHT after your copyright notice. Here's where you can ham it up.Don't waste time promoting your actual business in the resource box. Why? Remember your #1 goal is always to get prospects on your LIST. You'll gain MORE clients and customers by FIRST getting them to subscribe to your FREE e-zine or special report. THEN you've got them! You'll be in front of them regularly, and that's when they'll understand why they should hire you or buy your products.

5. SUBMIT YOUR ARTICLE TO ONLINE CONTENT DIRECTORIES
There are hundreds of 'free content' Web sites and announcement lists where you can submit your articles for other publishers to use. Some even let you include a picture and other information about your website. One of my favorites is EzineArticles.com.

6. SUBMIT YOUR ARTICLE DIRECTLY TO APPROPRIATE PUBLISHERS
For best results, take the bull by the horns and contact publishers directly. But not just any publishers -- ones with e-zines that accept articles AND whose readers are your ideal clients and customers. A great place to start your search and build your own list is Charlie Page's Directory of E-zines.

7. AUTOMATE THE ENTIRE PROCESS
I know you're probably thinking right now, "OK Ali, this sounds great, but isn't this going to be time consuming?" The answer is most definitely YES. In the past, you'd have to spend several hours a week just to get one article out there. It's a lot of administrative work, requiring time that you probably don't have.But my friend Jason Potash has just released his brand new "ARTICLE ANNOUNCER" software that does all this work FOR you. It blasts out your articles to hundreds of directories, publishers, and other sources to help generate a slew of web visitors to your site, month after month. My staff and I have tested Jason's "Article Announcer" product and wholeheartedly recommend it. I urge you to see Jason's information page NOW, and grab your own copy before the price goes UP in just a few days. Remember also that if you don't want to do any of your own article marketing yourself, it's a perfect task to pass on to an assistant, intern, or freelancer. The key is getting it down to a SYSTEM, which is what this software helps you do.
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Online entrepreneur Alexandria K. Brown, "The E-zine Queen," is creator of the award-winning 'Boost Business With Your Own E-zine' system. To learn more about this step-by-step program, and to sign up for her FREE how-to marketing articles and FREE audio class, visit http://www.ezinequeen.com/