Top 7 Web Sites for Entrepreneurs

Do you feel dazzled and confused by the ever-increasing number of Web sites your colleagues and coaches consider essential for entrepreneurs, and recommend to you? Do you wish you could narrow the list to just a few sites and stick with them regularly?

Then consider these top 7 Web sites that--used regularly and creatively--will help you provide top-tier service to clients, and will protect you from wasting time with similar sites that reduce your efficiency.

1. LinkedIn
   
   linkedin.com
   The networking possibilities amaze me daily, especially the opportunity to join relevant professional groups and engage in lively discussion. I recommend the paid version, whose moderate cost is well worth the extra advantages.
   
   Besides accessing the connections of those you link with, you can conduct sophisticated searches, such as locating HR leaders in companies of at least 500 employees within a specified region.
   
   
2. Twitter
   
   twitter.com
   Twitter disciplines you to provide value for your readers several times daily in only a few words. In return, you have access to tips and strategies from many experts.
   
   Remember that the tweeters you allow to follow you will reflect on your credibility, either positively or negatively, so you'll be wise to approve requests to connect quite selectively.
   
   
3. YouTube
   
   youtube.com
   What a benefit--to display at no cost all the videos you produce, as long as they remain within the ten minutes allowed. You Tube enables you to introduce your ideas and strategies to tens of thousands of people you don't know yet.
   
   Be sure to respond to those who post comments, which will encourage them to return to your videos and encourage others to view them.
   
   
4. Picasa
   
   picasa.google.com
   Even a photography novice can learn this simple system for importing and improving photos you have taken and want to use in your Web site, blog and social media sites.
   
   You will be amazed at how, with a little practice, you can modify a seemingly useless photo until it becomes highly presentable.
   
   
5. Skype
   
   skype.com
   Who would have believed it would be possible to have free conversations with other Skype users worldwide, and even see them as you talk?
   
   Avoid the temptation to look at the recipient while you're talking. Look into the camera lens to achieve good eye contact.
   
   
6. Google News
   
   news.google.com
   In far less time than the half-hour required to wade through your newspapers (whose news items are a day old anyway), you can truly catch the news as it happens--almost instantly.
   
   Google News certainly illustrates its belief in the power of photos, posting thumbnails beside every featured item.
   
   
7. Get Response
   
   getresponse.com
   Here's a very economical way to produce and distribute your online newsletter. An added benefit: the company's customer service by phone astounds me every time.
   
   Also, the Live Chat service brings a technical assistant to you with little delay.

Bill Lampton, Ph.D.--Speech Coach for Champions--helps leaders speak with poise, power, and persuasion. His client list includes the Ritz-Carlton Cancun, British Columbia Legal Management Association, Missouri Bar, and CenturyTel. Interviewed by Entrepreneur, Investor's Business Daily, and Delta's SKY.

Web site: http://www.commlampton.com/coaching.htm

678-316-4300